Decemeber Reading Thread: How Are You Finishing Off The Year

[Sis Who Swears]

Just finished the last half of the Long Price Quartet and downloaded the Mistborn Trilogy on my early Xmas present, a Nexus 7 tablet. :thumbsup:

So far I'm loving reading on the tablet, especially how I can read in the dark without waking my son up.

[Stubby]

So, um, Cover me!! I'm going in!!

[Peadar]

I have just started Dark Eden by Chris Beckett. So far, I like it.

[Callandoril]

I'll end my year with the 5th or 6th book of Wheel of Time, Sarantine Mosaic by Guy Gavriel Kay and Dostoyesvky's Crime and Punishment. I'm a fast reader, you know, maybe I'll get to book 7 or 8 of WoT...

[Eponine]

Finished The Rise of Ransom City and thought it was great.

Started Broken April by Ismail Kadare.

I've been working on A Short History of Nearly Everything for quite some time, and thought it would be something I'd enjoy, but instead of focusing on the science and explanations thereof, the focus is largely on the scientists and discoveries, most of which I'd read about before. Every scientist seems to be accompanied by a description of his personality and appearance, which really isn't interesting to me.

[polishgenius]

Started The Rise of Ransom City on the train. I missed my stop.

[gwenyth]

... Afterwards comes The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston with Mario Spezi, about the infamous serial killer's killing spree and the police investigations and media criticisms.

I read about half of that ... it was sort of OK, but I lost interest and did not finish it.

My plan for Dec is to find something to read. Just plowed through "Wolf Hall" - I know it is much acclaimied, but I found it tiresome. I'm a simple soul, and like things spelled out a bit more (though not too spelled out either ... I'm picky, I guess. I can't stand what I call "and then this happened and then that happened" novels either). I like historical fiction - my all-time favorite is probably Robert Graves' "Claudius" books. I want something that good.

[Garett Hornwood]

I read about half of that ... it was sort of OK, but I lost interest and did not finish it.

I'm 40% through according to Goodreads after starting it Wednesday, I've found it a page turner so far. Granted I read like 45 pages a day because of time constrants and I like to absorb what I'm reading.

[gwenyth]

I'm 40% through according to Goodreads after starting it Wednesday, I've found it a page turner so far. Granted I read like 45 pages a day because of time constrants and I like to absorb what I'm reading.

I too, read - I don't know how many pages, depends on the type, lol - but I am an extremely rapid reader - not boasting, never worked at it, just am. If something is very complex I force myself to slow down or re-read - am not fool enough not to know that I do miss things. I was interested in the first part of the book - wrote more dismissively than I really meant to. But at the point I stopped, it seemed as if it was going to go to a lot of legal wrangling and back-and-forth accusations and I lost interest. It's still laying around somewhere - I think? Maybe I took it to the Thrift Store. If you like it all the way and it is still around I'll give it another go.

[Garett Hornwood]

I too, read - I don't know how many pages, depends on the type, lol - but I am an extremely rapid reader - not boasting, never worked at it, just am. If something is very complex I force myself to slow down or re-read - am not fool enough not to know that I do miss things. I was interested in the first part of the book - wrote more dismissively than I really meant to. But at the point I stopped, it seemed as if it was going to go to a lot of legal wrangling and back-and-forth accusations and I lost interest. It's still laying around somewhere - I think? Maybe I took it to the Thrift Store. If you like it all the way and it is still around I'll give it another go.

Sorry I didn't mean to imply you didn't read or didn't do so thoroughly, I was just describing myself and was too succinct which resulted in it reading like I was comparing myself with you.

As for the book, I've passed the halfway point and Preston himself has entered the 'narrative' and is getting up to speed on The Monster case from Spezi. Everything I heard about this book was beyond the serial killer himself was the controversial police investigations, trials, and media coverage that really interested me. Obviously as the old saying goes, "Different strokes for different folks," could be used how we're looking at this book.

I will say that "Wolf Hall" is on my eventual to-read list along with "I, Cladius", but considering I have over 40 books that I own and haven't read yet it'll be a while before can get around to them.

[Isis]

I'm just over halfway through Ash. I've stalled a bit, partly due to festive socialising and partly due to just losing interest. Might have to try speed reading as the section I'm in now is just dull.

Also about halfway through If On A Winter's Night A Traveller - a long awaited read - which is great fun. It, too, has been impacted by too much socialising but I hope to polish it off in the last working week before xmas.

[Guinevere Seaworth]

I found An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon OK. I was annoyed by the switching POVs and some were in the 1st and others in the 3rd point of view. I didn't care for William or Lord Grey POV as it implies that you have read the Lord Grey novellas which I have not. The positive was that the plot moved alot faster compared to the previous few novels.

I'm looking forward to reading The Shadowed Sun by N.K. Jemisin next as I really liked The Killing Moon.

[Peadar]

I finished Dark Eden by Chris Beckett. I think it's an extraordinary book.

Next?

[RedEyedGhost]

I finished Dark Eden by Chris Beckett. I think it's an extraordinary book.

I enjoyed it quite a bit too. Here's what I wrote back in August about it:

I finished Chris Beckett's Dark Eden, and it was a sad sad story but also hopeful. It's the story of the descendants of two survivors stranded on a distant planet after Earth's first wormhole capable ship is damaged in transit. Set 163 years after they arrived, there are now ~530 residents on Eden, and as would be expected genetic defects are quite common. The world itself is quite interesting in that it is not close to a star so all light and heat is provided from bioluminescent plants that have root systems reaching down into the planet's core pumping up massive amounts of geothermic energy. They live in a single valley surrounding by utter darkness and extreme cold, waiting for Earth to come looking for them. As their population has expanded food has become more and more scarce, yet the group's leadership is reluctant to move beyond their valley because they were told by the original two that that is where Earth would look for them.

Overall I really enjoyed the book, but the pacing was a bit off - especially from around the 15% through 40% marks. It was just mundane and boring in that part of the book because we knew where the story was going, but it just was not getting there. On reflection after finishing the book, I wasn't as bothered by this section because it does effectively show the plight of the main character trying to change the thoughts of the communities elders. It just went on too long. My other other complaint was overuse of repetition repetition; sometimes it worked demonstrating the devolution of vocabulary, but most of the time it was just annoying (as were the words that had changed with time: anniversary to Any Virsry, extraordinary to Strornry, and the most egregious electricity to lecky-tickity). The world was very interesting and I would love to see Beckett return to it with a time jump of a hundred or so years.

[Bellis]

I have worked my way diligently through Charles Dickens' Little Dorrit, which wasn't nearly as captivating in print than on the screen in the BBC miniseries a few years ago. Dorrit is a doormat. :(

Then I rewarded myself with Authentic: The Politics of Ambivalence in a Brand Culture by academic Sarah Banet-Weisner. I'm interested in the culture, so I found it a fascinating though dry and jargony discussion of the use of the language of authenticity as a brand to cover up capitalist ends. The book discusses marketing of the Dove beauty campaign, Christian pop, street art, Eastern mysticism, and social networking with the perspective of how "being authentic" is used to sell things.

Then I really rewarded myself by reading Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson. I feel compelled to say more about this novel, which I randomly came across on a 2012 list on Slate.com. I haven't seen discussion of it here, but this book is solidly genre fiction and should appeal to many on these boards. It's cyberpunk set in a modern day Gulf Arab state, at the cusp of the Arab Spring. It's urban fantasy with jinns standing in for elves or other hidden peoples. It's a conventional genre fantasy novel about coming of age, discovering what is important and what you'll fight for, and fighting bad guys using magic books - but with the main protagonists being conservative Muslims (the main female character wears a face veil by choice and won't touch boys, another main character is a Muslim cleric). That is, it's kind of like a bit of His Dark Materials (but Islamic! not atheist), a bit of CS Lewis, a bit of Cory Doctorow, a bit of Star Wars, a bit of Aladdin, blended together to be relevant to the current events in the middle east. I wonder how the youth of the Arab world would like this book, as it seems written as much for them as for a western audience (the author is a white American convert to Islam who lives in Egypt). I was skeptical as I started, since the prose reads very much like a first novel, with clunky passages and self-conscious winks at the audience that a good editor should have removed. But the pacing is perfect, and the characters are compelling, and it's just a fun ride. Finished it in a couple sittings. Recommended.

[nickg]

Well, I haven't been reading as much as i would like lately. My birthday haul should be here pretty soon though and I think I'm going to start Pariah by Dan Abnett. I'm in the mood for some 40k.

[gwenyth]

Sorry I didn't mean to imply you didn't read or didn't do so thoroughly, I was just describing myself and was too succinct which resulted in it reading like I was comparing myself with you.

Oh - I didn't take it that way at all - really! - and regret if I came off as defensive in some way. I merely meant to indicate that it was not a time issue or some other obstacle keeping me from finishing the book. The limitations of discourse solely in print, with no expressions ...it's why I've taken to using smilies more often

...I will say that "Wolf Hall" is on my eventual to-read list along with "I, Cladius", but considering I have over 40 books that I own and haven't read yet it'll be a while before can get around to them

I would not wish to dissuade anyone from "Wolf Hall" - as you say, different strokes for different folks, and it IS very highly acclaimed. I can acknowledge that it is well writtten, and even admire the author's command of style, but it is simply not a style from which I derive much pleasure. As for the Claudius duo, I would VERY highly recommend "I, Claudius." The second, "Claudius the God," I consider well worth a read, but think that Graves over-did his detailed depiction of some of Claudius' major acts - at points it reads like an engineering or military campaign manual.

[Ebenstone]

Finishing "The Fires of Heaven" then on to two YA titles: "The Crimson Crown" by Cinda Chima Williams then "The Falling Kingdoms" by Morgan Rhodes. Then maybe "Lord of Chaos" or another YA title or two.

[peterbound]

Finishing up my Black Library books.

OK.. i'm lying.

[thistlepong]

I finished Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and The Divine Invasion at the end of November. The first was great. The second was probably the most excruciating read I can remember. Finishing up Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and The Transmigration of Timothy Archer, now. Plan on finishing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,

The Dead Hand: The Untold Story of the Cold War Arms Race and its Dangerous Legacy, and Thinking in Circles: An Essay on Ring Composition before January.