253 replies to this topic

[Contrarius]

Grack21, on 16 May 2012 - 01:29 PM, said:

If you don't love Gates of Fire, we can no longer be friends.

Oh, the horror.

[Garett Hornwood]

So the month of May, I finished The Embarrassment of Riches by Simon Schama.  I actually started reading it in March but got bogged down in some spots, it wasn't the usual history book I read as it was cultural interpretation not something I was use too.  I took a break to read something else and started up again at the end of April and continued into the first days of the month.  It's a good book, but just not my thing.

Currently reading The Dragon Reborn by Jordan, I'm a tad over 75% of the way through and I should farther along if I didn't have a "stomach issue" last week that wiped me out for a few days.

Later this month I will be starting English Reformations by Christopher Haigh, I read parts of this book for a college course nearly a decade ago but never actually read the entire thing so I'm going to correct that.

[Davos55]

Finished Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane today.  It was a very good book and a quick read, I would definitely recommend it.  The movie is actually very close to the book, and rewatching the movie afterwards was fun to do as well.  Overall, very good stuff.

I am going to try to get back into The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson again tonight.  If I can't get drawn in again, I will start The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie instead.

[Maia]

Inigima, on 15 May 2012 - 10:51 PM, said:

It took me a long time to warm to that one, but I ended up liking it a lot. Chabon is a really interesting writer. I've read several of his books now, and you don't hear so much about it, but my favorite is his debut, The Mysteries of Pittsburgh.

I have become a Chabon fangirl during the last several months, reading everything of his that I could get my hands on. I liked the Mysteries a lot too, except for the over-the-top drama at the end, which made me sympathize with the gangster father, heh.

But my favorites of his are The Wonderboys and Kavalier and Clay - IMHO they are brilliant.

I liked the Yiddish Policemen's Union a lot as well, but it took more work (I even re-read it immediately after finishing it for the first time) and there is some stuff that  I still disagree with/which impends my enjoyment of it. But  it is certainly bold, interesting and rewarding.

Gentlemen of the Road and The Final Solution were too slight for my taste though... in everything.

I found his non-fiction "Manhood for Amateurs" really great.

Anyway, I think that there is a new novel of Chabon's coming out in autumn and I am grabbing it sight unseen.

[voodooqueen126]

I have read Toni Morrison's Beloved, Aravind Adiga's The White Tiger, and this afternoon I finished reading Dorothy Dunnett's Niccolò Rising: The First Book of The House of Niccolò.

[Reposado]

Just finished the Darkness that comes before.

first read it in 06. It isn't entirely what I remember, and not exactly what I expected based on how its often talked about.

after reading so much martin and abercrombie over the past year, i find the use of random characters having perspective for a single page or so odd. definitely picked up around halfwayish, once we get the cnaiur/moenghus story. surprisingly little kellhus to that point.

so next up will be the other two from the prince of nothing

then judging eye, which as been sitting on my shelf unread for a year, then an attempt to procure a copy of white luck warrior

[Inigima]

Just finished Murakami's Norwegian Wood. I liked it, mostly. Still processing.

Haven't picked the next read yet. Skunk, I will take that recommendation under advisement, thanks.

[Myshkin]

Finished Delirium by Laura Restrepo.  Really good book.  The stream-of-consciousness prose is beautiful, and the story, revolving around the themes of love, truth, and human fragility, is enthralling.

Now reading Omon Ra by Victor Pelevin.

[Brady]

Just got Hillary Mantel's Bringing Up the Bodies, the sequel to Wolf Hall, and I can't wait to get into it.

[Analu]

Brady, on 17 May 2012 - 07:26 PM, said:

Just got Hillary Mantel's Bringing Up the Bodies, the sequel to Wolf Hall, and I can't wait to get into it.

I remember buying "Wolf Hall" at an airport bookstore just before a long flight. Got about halfway thru it, then never finished it. I think I remember having trouble with the dialogue. I imagine if I was more well-versed in that particular history, I would've found it more entertaining.

I recently read the "Wind Through The Keyhole", the latest DT addition. I liked it, and not having read any King books in a while and getting back into his rhythm of storytelling, I bought "Under the Dome" and just finished that. I thought it was interesting but found myself hitting the "Next Page" button on my Kindle a bunch when a certain plotline resolution came to light (those who've read it will probably know what I mean), and my eyes started glazing over.

Not really sure what to read next. I hear so many great things about "The Heroes" on here, but not having been a big fan of the First Law trilogy - felt like it tried too hard to be dark and gritty - I'm a little reluctant to give it a shot. Will probably just download the next SFF book I see on Amazon Prime that gets good ratings, since it's basically a free book.

[Candre]

Read "Matterhorn" by Karl Marlantes... it took me ages to get through this one. As a German I might belong to the wrong target audience, but I wasn´t that impressed.

I also read "Palestine" by Joe Sacco and liked it a lot. A splendid graphic novel full of life.

[mashiara]

Brady, on 17 May 2012 - 07:26 PM, said:

Just got Hillary Mantel's Bringing Up the Bodies, the sequel to Wolf Hall, and I can't wait to get into it.

My copy hasn't arrived yet. Maybe complaining to the post office about our postwoman not being very careful and notices going missing wasn't a very good idea, I wonder if we'll ever get anything but bills again. :/

I finished Freedom by Jonathan Franzen and I loved it. Very strong characters, all of them deeply flawed in so many ways. He seems to be excellent when it comes to describing dysfunctional families and relationships.

Since the book I wanted to read isn't here yet I started Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence instead.

[Brady]

Analu, on 18 May 2012 - 12:55 AM, said:

I remember buying "Wolf Hall" at an airport bookstore just before a long flight. Got about halfway thru it, then never finished it. I think I remember having trouble with the dialogue. I imagine if I was more well-versed in that particular history, I would've found it more entertaining.

Funnily enough I got Wolf Hall as an airline read as well, and gave up about a third of the way in just because I couldn't concentrate on it. But I gave it another try later, and I've reread it a couple of times since then, and now it's probably second only to Matterhorn to me, in terms of books I've read in the last few years. I totally get why people might be put off though, the prose has a very particular rhythm to it that either grabs you or doesnt.

Mäshiärä, on 18 May 2012 - 06:30 AM, said:

My copy hasn't arrived yet. Maybe complaining to the post office about our postwoman not being very careful and notices going missing wasn't a very good idea, I wonder if we'll ever get anything but bills again. :/

Boo.

Mäshiärä, on 18 May 2012 - 06:30 AM, said:

I finished Freedom by Jonathan Franzen and I loved it. Very strong characters, all of them deeply flawed in so many ways. He seems to be excellent when it comes to describing dysfunctional families and relationships.

I quite liked Freedom, but good god did I hate Joey.

[Horza]

Wolf Hall II: Wolf Harder! Fuck yeah.

Read Wolf Hall I: The Hall-ening last month in a bout of procrastination. Just magnificent.

[mashiara]

Brady, on 18 May 2012 - 07:00 AM, said:

  I quite liked Freedom, but good god did I hate Joey.

I know, he was quite despicable at times. I liked that. It made him feel like a real person because most all of us have a dark side, even a revolting one.

Horzéur, on 18 May 2012 - 07:03 AM, said:

Wolf Hall II: Wolf Harder! Fuck yeah. Read Wolf Hall I: The Hall-ening last month in a bout of procrastination. Just magnificent.

The French, they don't make much sense. *shakes head*

[Horza]

Börk off back to Malmö with your mööses, Swedener - mes mots sont parfaitement claires.

[Guinevere Seaworth]

I seem to be in a mediocre reading funk lately.  The Fiery Cross by Diana Galbaldon, very little happens for a 1300 page e-book.
I need something quick and a bit more action packed to read next, so Rick Riordan's The Battle of the Labyrinth is next.

[SkynJay]

Pretty excited, I was first on the list for The King's Blood at the library, which came in today.  As I finished Ghostmaker by Abnett, the timing was perfect.  Also the second book from Kate Elliot's Crown of Stars was finally returned, so I snagged it and the first Sullivan omnibus while I was there.  

Guinevere Seaworth, on 18 May 2012 - 10:30 AM, said:

I seem to be in a mediocre reading funk lately.  The Fiery Cross by Diana Galbaldon, very little happens for a 1300 page e-book.
I need something quick and a bit more action packed to read next, so Rick Riordan's The Battle of the Labyrinth is next.

I liked the fist book well enough for what it was, but never could get through the second one.  Did the series get any better in book 3?

[jagilki]

I read through a handful of free barnes and noble self published(?) e-books.  None of them worth mentioning and None of them worth the effort to read them.

*sigh*

[Myshkin]

Finished Omon Ra by Victor Pelevin.  A great, and very strange little book.  Pelevin manages to pack a lot into 150 pages of text, and by the end you're left with a feeling of both despair and hope.

Now onto If on a Winter's Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino.