Author Topic: What book(s) are you reading? (Read 788755 times)

Guybrush Threepwood · « **on:** August 28, 2008, 09:44:24 PM »

What book(s) are you reading?

Right now I'm reading this:

I'm not sure how true it is, but it's a nice story.

Joe Molotov · « **Reply #1 on:** August 28, 2008, 09:47:05 PM »

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #2 on:** August 28, 2008, 09:52:06 PM »

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Pretty cool so far, but definitely much different than Blade Runner.

Phoenix Dark · « **Reply #3 on:** August 28, 2008, 09:53:44 PM »

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 28, 2008, 09:52:06 PM

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Pretty cool so far, but definitely much different than Blade Runner.

Great great book.

I'm reading

The Club Dumas
and i'm re-reading A Storm of Swords

A DANCE WITH DRAGONS 2009

muckhole · « **Reply #4 on:** August 28, 2008, 09:55:48 PM »

FINALLY got around to reading Old Man's War, I'm about half way through my reading has taken quite a hit with my obsessive DS playing as of late.

Finished up The Road a few weeks ago which was better than I expected as well.

MrAngryFace · « **Reply #5 on:** August 28, 2008, 09:56:16 PM »

fistfulofmetal · « **Reply #6 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:03:46 PM »

Well I was reading The Road last week and finished it yesterday.

Phoenix Dark · « **Reply #7 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:05:42 PM »

MAF: how's that alice book?

i'm gonna make sure i read the road before the movie comes out

MyNameIsMethodis · « **Reply #8 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:07:49 PM »

Homicide by David Simon (The Wire)

Robo · « **Reply #9 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:15:33 PM »

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 28, 2008, 09:52:06 PM

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Pretty cool so far, but definitely much different than Blade Runner.

I'm actually reading this right now too. WEIRD

MyNameIsMethodis · « **Reply #10 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:16:31 PM »

Androids is one of my favorite books. Make sure you read A Scanner Darkly + Ubik also, PKD's two other best works.

Tauntaun · « **Reply #11 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:17:57 PM »

Joe, Battle Royal is a great book, my sister got that for me for my last birthday. Right now I'm reading:

Rman · « **Reply #12 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:18:11 PM »

I'm still reading No Logo.

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #13 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:20:48 PM »

Quote from: RoboJ on August 28, 2008, 10:15:33 PM

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 28, 2008, 09:52:06 PM
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Pretty cool so far, but definitely much different than Blade Runner.

I'm actually reading this right now too. WEIRD

Dude what the fuck, we're on the same wavelength today.

Quote

Androids is one of my favorite books. Make sure you read A Scanner Darkly + Ubik also, PKD's two other best works.

I have his Four Novels of the 1960's collection (the coolest book I own), which also has Ubik. It's the last one, and I will read it next. I loved Man in the High Castle and The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, the first two novels.

Robo · « **Reply #14 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:21:54 PM »

Quote from: MyNameIsMethodis on August 28, 2008, 10:16:31 PM

Androids is one of my favorite books. Make sure you read A Scanner Darkly + Ubik also, PKD's two other best works.

Ubik is next. And the Library of America just released another PKD set last month, including "Martian Time-Slip", "Dr. Bloodmoney", "Now Wait for Last Year", "Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said", and "A Scanner Darkly", so I'll very likely grab that when I'm done with Ubik.

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #15 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:23:21 PM »

DUDE WHAT THE FUCK GET OUT OF MY HEAD

Robo · « **Reply #16 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:23:57 PM »

I am getting freaky with your brain. That bitch is into some weird shit.

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #17 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:24:40 PM »

I believe that is a plot for a PKD novel.

MyNameIsMethodis · « **Reply #18 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:24:43 PM »

Just stay with Ubik, even if you don't like it in the beggining. It has a WTF twist about ~50 pages in.

But make sure you read A Scanner Darkly, even if you've seen the movie, because it's so radically different, i'd say the movie version is what Blade Runner is to Androids

Candyflip · « **Reply #19 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:49:02 PM »

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 28, 2008, 10:20:48 PM

I have his Four Novels of the 1960's collection (the coolest book I own), which also has Ubik. It's the last one, and I will read it next. I loved Man in the High Castle and The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, the first two novels.

Wow thanks for mentioning this. Amazon has it up right now for $23 which is probably half the price it would cost me to get all four. I was planning on picking these up eventually anyway

Trent Dole · « **Reply #20 on:** August 28, 2008, 10:52:39 PM »

Did a reread of Siddhartha the other day.

Costanza · « **Reply #21 on:** August 29, 2008, 04:17:21 AM »

I just finished The Road a couple days ago. Great stuff.

lordmaji · « **Reply #22 on:** August 29, 2008, 09:58:16 AM »

Guns, Germs, & Steel.
Both Homer books. (Iliad & Odyssey)

Hangatýr · « **Reply #23 on:** August 29, 2008, 10:32:39 AM »

Message Deleted

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #24 on:** August 29, 2008, 01:37:09 PM »

Quote from: lordmaji on August 29, 2008, 09:58:16 AM

Guns, Germs, & Steel.

stop reading

jiji · « **Reply #25 on:** August 29, 2008, 01:54:10 PM »

I've started into Gibson's second trilogy with Virtual Light. I can see a few similarities to Snow Crash, except this isn't chock full of nerd fantasies and supervillain plots, and the characters feel a lot more human. Reading the book this long after its release almost makes it feel like an alternate present with a few hokey differences (faxes everywhere). I'm enjoying it.

The Fake Shemp · « **Reply #26 on:** August 29, 2008, 03:13:48 PM »

Reading this now:

Will read this next - a gift from Mandark:

And while at the airport at Vegas, I'll be reading this:

chronovore · « **Reply #27 on:** August 30, 2008, 11:48:32 AM »

Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson: Thanks, Cormacaroni! It's great so far.

Severance Package - Duane Swierczynski: Surprisingly light reading for such a violent book.

Rainbow Six - Tom Clancy: This is my third attempt at reading this POS and I think I'm just going to set fire to it and be rid of it.

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #28 on:** August 30, 2008, 12:23:38 PM »

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 29, 2008, 01:37:09 PM

Quote from: lordmaji on August 29, 2008, 09:58:16 AM
Guns, Germs, & Steel.

stop reading

why? it's an awesome book.

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #29 on:** August 30, 2008, 01:27:02 PM »

It sucked. He repeated the same stuff 234776 times over the 400 pages. Pulitzer Prize my ass.

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #30 on:** August 30, 2008, 01:32:26 PM »

I bet this is why you get non existent facebook names instead of numbers.

GGS

Juice

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #31 on:** August 30, 2008, 01:34:07 PM »

That was a low blow. :'(

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #32 on:** August 30, 2008, 01:39:16 PM »

Well now I feel bad.

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #33 on:** August 30, 2008, 01:43:10 PM »

You should.

TVC15 · « **Reply #34 on:** August 30, 2008, 04:49:58 PM »

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 30, 2008, 01:27:02 PM

It sucked. He repeated the same stuff 234776 times over the 400 pages. Pulitzer Prize my ass.

Cajole, re-re confirmed. I would recommend skipping the follow-up, Collapse, since it does feel like a reheated version of GGS, despite having a different topic. GGS does also get yawny in the last quarter or so. And Arvie, in your search for eclecticism, I am shocked you have not checked out Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, yet. You will have contrapuntal assholes by the time you get done with that.

Me? I just nabbed a copy of The Bridge by Iain Banks. Just finished The Flanders Panel. Have the strong desire to read either The Name of the Rose or Foucault's Pendulum again, but despite being re-reads, both books are (awesome) slogs that require concentration. Also reading, heh, my microKORG manual.

Joe Molotov · « **Reply #35 on:** August 30, 2008, 04:56:32 PM »

Urantia is the best Sci-Fi cult ever. Scientology owned.

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #36 on:** August 30, 2008, 04:59:00 PM »

Quote from: TVC 15 on August 30, 2008, 04:49:58 PM

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 30, 2008, 01:27:02 PM
It sucked. He repeated the same stuff 234776 times over the 400 pages. Pulitzer Prize my ass.

Cajole, re-re confirmed. I would recommend skipping the follow-up, Collapse, since it does feel like a reheated version of GGS, despite having a different topic. GGS does also get yawny in the last quarter or so. And Arvie, in your search for eclecticism, I am shocked you have not checked out Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, yet. You will have contrapuntal assholes by the time you get done with that.

Me? I just nabbed a copy of The Bridge by Iain Banks. Just finished The Flanders Panel. Have the strong desire to read either The Name of the Rose or Foucault's Pendulum again, but despite being re-reads, both books are (awesome) slogs that require concentration. Also reading, heh, my microKORG manual.

GEB was like in the first set of books that i put on my amazon wishlist. It's just that when ever I go to order new books it I never have the feel for it. Someday though.

I did just watch a documentary by the same author called victim of the brain. It's on google videos.

TVC15 · « **Reply #37 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:06:08 PM »

Quote from: Father_Mike on August 30, 2008, 04:59:00 PM

Quote from: TVC 15 on August 30, 2008, 04:49:58 PM
Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 30, 2008, 01:27:02 PM
It sucked. He repeated the same stuff 234776 times over the 400 pages. Pulitzer Prize my ass.

Cajole, re-re confirmed. I would recommend skipping the follow-up, Collapse, since it does feel like a reheated version of GGS, despite having a different topic. GGS does also get yawny in the last quarter or so. And Arvie, in your search for eclecticism, I am shocked you have not checked out Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, yet. You will have contrapuntal assholes by the time you get done with that.

Me? I just nabbed a copy of The Bridge by Iain Banks. Just finished The Flanders Panel. Have the strong desire to read either The Name of the Rose or Foucault's Pendulum again, but despite being re-reads, both books are (awesome) slogs that require concentration. Also reading, heh, my microKORG manual.

GEB was like in the first set of books that i put on my amazon wishlist. It's just that when ever I go to order new books it I never have the feel for it. Someday though.

I did just watch a documentary by the same author called victim of the brain. It's on google videos.

His other books tend to be good, as well, although I haven't read them all and I believe that most of them are compilations of his several magazine columns. I think you'll like GEB. Like GGS, it also kinda loses steam about 3/4ths of the way through, but it's a huge fucking book, so you get a lot of entertainment out of it.

Have you read any Oliver Sacks? He'll make you wish you were smart enough to be a neurologist. Check out The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and An Anthropologist on Mars, both immensely entertaining nonfiction books. Awakenings is also good, but the former two books work in a short essay format, whereas Awakenings is one book on one thing.

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #38 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:09:17 PM »

The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat: And Other Clinical Tales is on my wishlists too, lol.

I have seen the movie Awakenings though.

Does that count?

TVC15 · « **Reply #39 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:12:19 PM »

Quote from: Father_Mike on August 30, 2008, 05:09:17 PM

The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat: And Other Clinical Tales is on my wishlists too, lol.

I have seen the movie Awakenings though. Does that count?

I haven't seen that in like 15 years, so I can't really say. I'm sure it is fictionalized to some degree and that a lot of the actual medical content has been excised since lotsa medical jargon wouldn't fit in with a heartwarming Shittywood movie.

The sleeping disease in that movie (and mentioned in The Sandman comics) is incredibly interesting. Very little is known about it. At least the last time I checked:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encephalitis_lethargica

It has outbreaks for a few years and then disappears. People basically went to "sleep" for decades. The cause is not known.

CajoleJuice · « **Reply #40 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:19:27 PM »

Quote from: TVC 15 on August 30, 2008, 04:49:58 PM

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 30, 2008, 01:27:02 PM
It sucked. He repeated the same stuff 234776 times over the 400 pages. Pulitzer Prize my ass.

Cajole, re-re confirmed. I would recommend skipping the follow-up, Collapse, since it does feel like a reheated version of GGS, despite having a different topic. GGS does also get yawny in the last quarter or so.

Yea well, I wasn't planning on it. And obviously, I was exaggerating since this is the internet, but I really did feel he reiterated certain things more than they needed to be. The last 1/4 probably just got to me so much that I started to hate the entire book.

jiji · « **Reply #41 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:22:05 PM »

Quote from: TVC 15 on August 30, 2008, 04:49:58 PM

Have the strong desire to read either The Name of the Rose or Foucault's Pendulum again, but despite being re-reads, both books are (awesome) slogs that require concentration.

I took so long in buying The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana that I was able to find a cheap remaindered copy on the budget stacks. Maybe I'll dig into that after Virtual Light.

I'm midway through this 1970s photography book that sounds like it was written by some cantankerous professor, and it gets into all the nitty-gritty technical stuff and math that most books usually leave out. I keep leaving it and then coming back to it because it's such a stiff read, but I need to keep reading so that I can learn about how color film emulsions work.

TVC15 · « **Reply #42 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:24:35 PM »

Quote from: jiji on August 30, 2008, 05:22:05 PM

Quote from: TVC 15 on August 30, 2008, 04:49:58 PM
Have the strong desire to read either The Name of the Rose or Foucault's Pendulum again, but despite being re-reads, both books are (awesome) slogs that require concentration.

I took so long in buying The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana that I was able to find a cheap remaindered copy on the budget stacks. Maybe I'll dig into that after Virtual Light.

I haven't read that one yet. I heard it was a bit on the navel gazing side, and the reviews didn't make me rush out and nab it. I will get it eventually.

Quote

I'm midway through this 1970s photography book that sounds like it was written by some cantankerous professor, and it gets into all the nitty-gritty technical stuff and math that most books usually leave out. I keep leaving it and then coming back to it because it's such a stiff read, but I need to keep reading so that I can learn about how color film emulsions work.

What's the name? I kinda dig older photography books. It seems like most modern photography books cut out the nitty gritty in favor of saying "photography is fun and easy and everyone can do it and all the math you need to know is how to count stops and half-stops!" I like to know a bit about my scientism, even if it is not immediately useful to me.

Arvie, post your amazon wish list. I will tell you what you are missing.

jiji · « **Reply #43 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:28:26 PM »

Quote from: TVC 15 on August 30, 2008, 05:24:35 PM

What's the name? I kinda dig older photography books. It seems like most modern photography books cut out the nitty gritty in favor of saying "photography is fun and easy and everyone can do it and all the math you need to know is how to count stops and half-stops!" I like to know a bit about my scientism, even if it is not immediately useful to me.

"Understanding Photography," by Carl Shipman. http://www.antiqbook.com/boox/cro/44869.shtml

archie4208 · « **Reply #44 on:** August 30, 2008, 05:49:04 PM »

Just finished Watchmen. Good stuff.

cubicle47b · « **Reply #45 on:** August 30, 2008, 11:56:32 PM »

Oryx and Crake. My sister sent it to me a long time ago as a gift and I started reading it last week. I like it.

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #46 on:** August 31, 2008, 02:06:11 AM »

Quote from: TVC 15 on August 30, 2008, 05:24:35 PM

Arvie, post your amazon wish list. I will tell you what you are missing.

It's like 18 pages long.

From Lucy to Language: Revised, Updated, and Expanded by Donald Johanson (Author), et al.
   The Last Human: A Guide to Twenty-Two Species of Extinct Humans by G. J. Sawyer (Author),
   Brain & Behavior: An Introduction to Biological Psychology by Bob Garrett (Author)    Add to Cart
   The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague In History by John M. Barry (Author)
   The First Word: The Search for the Origins of Language by Christine Kenneally (Author)
   Phantoms in the Brain: Probing the Mysteries of the Human Mind by V. S. Ramachandran (Author), et al.
   The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat: And Other Clinical Tales by Oliver Sacks (Author)
   Cognition, Brain, and Consciousness: Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience by Bernard J. Baars
   The Richness of Life: The Essential Stephen Jay Gould by Stephen Jay Gould (Author), et al.
   The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence by Carl Sagan (Author)
   Neuroanatomy: An Atlas of Structures, Sections, and Systems (Point (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins))
   Neuroscience, Fourth Edition by Dale Purves (Author)    Add to Cart    $71.34
   The Student's Guide to Cognitive Neuroscience by Jamie Ward (Author)    Add to Cart    $35.95
   Thinking in Pictures, Expanded Edition: My Life with Autism by Temple Grandin (Author)
   Autism Spectrum Disorders: The Complete Guide to Understanding Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, Pervasive Developmental Disorder, and Other ASDs by Chantal Sicile-Kira (Author), Temple Grandin (Foreword)    Add to Cart    $10.85
   Evolution in Four Dimensions: Genetic, Epigenetic, Behavioral, and Symbolic Variation in the History of Life (Life and Mind: Philosophical Issues in Biology and Psychology) by Eva Jablonka (Author), Marion J. Lamb (Author)
   Not by Genes Alone: How Culture Transformed Human Evolution by Peter J. Richerson (Author), Robert Boyd (Author)
   Synaptic Self: How Our Brains Become Who We Are by Joseph LeDoux (Author)    Add to Cart    $11.56
   Basic Instinct: The Genesis of Behavior by Mark S. Blumberg (Author), Mark Blumberg (Author)
   On Human Nature by Edward O. Wilson (Author)    Add to Cart    $18.45
   The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins (Author)    Add to Cart    $15.71
   Intelligence in Nature by Jeremy Narby (Author)    Add to Cart    $10.17
   The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe Without Design by Richard Dawkins (Author)    A
   Sociobiology: The New Synthesis, Twenty-fifth Anniversary Edition by Edward O. Wilson (Author)
   DNA Science: A First Course, Second Edition by David Micklos (Author), et al.
A Mind of Its Own: How Your Brain Distorts and Deceives by Cordelia Fine (Author)    Add to Cart    $10.85
   Life: A Natural History of the First Four Billion Years of Life on Earth by Richard Fortey (Author)    A
   The Naked Brain: How the Emerging Neurosociety is Changing How We Live, Work, and Love by Richard Restak (Author)
   The New Brain: How the Modern Age Is Rewiring Your Mind by Richard Restak (Author)
   The Evolution of Cooperation: Revised Edition by Robert Axelrod (Author)    Add to Cart    $14.40
   DNA by James D. Watson (Author)    Add to Cart    $21.83
   The Ants by Bert Hölldobler (Author), Edward O. Wilson (Author)    Add to Cart    $91.20
   Labyrinths of Reason: Paradox, Puzzles, and the Frailty of Knowledge by William Poundstone (Editor)
   The Brain and the Inner World: An Introduction to the Neuroscience of Subjective Experience by Mark Solms (Author)
   On Aggression (Routledge Classics) by Konrad Lorenz (Author)    Add to Cart    $12.21
   Seeing Red: A Study in Consciousness (Mind/Brain/Behavior Initiative) by Nicholas Humphrey (Author)
   The Language Instinct: How the Mind Creates Language (Perennial Classics) by Steven Pinker (Author)
   A History of the Mind: Evolution and the Birth of Consciousness by Nicholas Humphrey (Author)
   Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body by Neil Shubin (Author)
   Oxygen: The Molecule that Made the World (Popular Science) by Nick Lane (Author)
   Major Transitions in Vertebrate Evolution (Life of the Past) by Jason S. Anderson (Editor), Hans-Dieter Sues (Editor)
   The Mysterious Flame: Conscious Minds In A Material World by Colin Mcginn (Author)
   The Evolution of Organ Systems (Oxford Biology) by Andreas Schmidt-Rhaesa (Author)
   How the Mind Works by Steven Pinker (Author)    Add to Cart    $12.89
   The Future of the Body: Explorations Into the Further Evolution Of Human Nature by Michael Murphy (Author)
   The Moral Animal: Why We Are, the Way We Are: The New Science of Evolutionary Psychology by Robert Wright (Author)
   Man is the Measure by Reuben Abel (Author)    Add to Cart    $17.05
   Supercontinent: Ten Billion Years in the Life of Our Planet by Ted Nield (Author)    Add to Cart    $19.77
   The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature by Matt Ridley (Author)    Add to Cart    $10.17
   The Emerald Planet: How Plants Changed Earth's History by David Beerling (Author)
Continents and Supercontinents by John J. W. Rogers (Author), M. Santosh (Author)    Add to Cart    $39.16
   The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature by Steven Pinker (Author)    Add to Cart    $10.88
   The Third Chimpanzee: The Evolution and Future of the Human Animal (P.S.) by Jared M. Diamond (Author)
   Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives by David Sloan Wilson (Author)
   The Intelligent Universe: AI, ET, and the Emerging Mind of the Cosmos by James N. Gardner (Author), Ray Kurzweil (Foreword)    Add to Cart    $17.15
   The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology by Ray Kurzweil (Author)    See buying options
   How Cancer Works by Lauren Sompayrac (Author)    Add to Cart    $34.95
   The Secret History of the War on Cancer by Devra Davis (Author)    Add to Cart    $18.45
   The Invisible Enemy: A Natural History of Viruses by Dorothy Crawford (Author)    Add to Cart    $16.15
   How Pathogenic Viruses Work by Lauren Sompayrac (Author)

that's just whats under my biology list. There is still history, math, philo and fiction, and default. :'(

Joe Molotov · « **Reply #47 on:** August 31, 2008, 02:09:27 AM »

Is there an "Add All" function in the book section of Amazon?

Vizzys · « **Reply #48 on:** August 31, 2008, 02:11:12 AM »

damn and I thought my wish list was long

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #49 on:** August 31, 2008, 02:11:42 AM »

No it's just fucking compulsion. Like looking at the related videos on youtube. I just keep hitting links. and worse yet when i get emails about stuff i might be interested in. :'( :'(

Madrun Badrun · « **Reply #50 on:** August 31, 2008, 12:59:01 PM »

Quote from: Green Shinobi on August 31, 2008, 09:34:59 AM

Quote from: Father_Mike on August 31, 2008, 02:11:42 AM
No it's just fucking compulsion. Like looking at the related videos on youtube. I just keep hitting links. and worse yet when i get emails about stuff i might be interested in. :'( :'(

Your wish list is like the required reading list for Atheism 101.

That's not really why I'd read those books besides the dawkins stuff.

The Fake Shemp · « **Reply #51 on:** September 01, 2008, 12:11:34 AM »

Just wrapped up The Yiddish Policemen's Union. The story kind of falls apart in the second half, becoming bloated and cliche and eventually, totally convoluted. Some of the characters have nice resolutions, but it's not Chabon's best work.

However, the characters are very Coen Bros. and if they follow through on their plans to adapt the book, I think we could get a terrific movie that is a lot better than the book.

Phoenix Dark · « **Reply #52 on:** September 01, 2008, 12:19:22 AM »

speaking of Coen bros adaptions, has anyone read NCFOM?

ch1nchilla · « **Reply #53 on:** September 01, 2008, 12:30:17 AM »

A Wild Sheep Chase, and uh... Rashomon.

Vizzys · « **Reply #54 on:** September 01, 2008, 12:42:15 AM »

I was rereading "the third lie"

still confusing and depressing as the first time I read it

FlameOfCallandor · « **Reply #55 on:** September 01, 2008, 01:01:37 AM »

Quote from: ParticleReality on August 28, 2008, 10:03:17 PM

(Image removed from quote.)

Shogun is such a good book.
Clavell was heavily influenced by Rand.

Olivia Wilde Homo · « **Reply #56 on:** September 01, 2008, 10:23:08 AM »

The Russian Revolution - Richard Pipes

I have about 700 pages left. I don't have a book on deck to start once I'm done but with all the studying I need to do for an important exam, this is the last book I'm going to read for a while.

Hangatýr · « **Reply #57 on:** September 01, 2008, 04:28:40 PM »

Message Deleted

Eric P · « **Reply #58 on:** September 02, 2008, 09:04:13 AM »

I myself am reading Jack Ketchum's Off Season, the 2006 re-release of his first novel (from 1980) which returned edited out bits and cleans up the book a bit. I only know Ketchum through his shorter works and through The Girl Next Door, but in reading a short story he wrote called Luck in a magazine his bio mentioned that the Village Voice in its review of this book decried its publisher for publishing violent pornography. I'm almost half way through (page 115 of 279) and so far there has been 0 deaths, and 0 graphic depictions of violence and only one violent scene, so my guess is that unless the tone radically changes in the last half (which is entirely possible) I think the VV reviewer was a bit of a ninny.

The book itself concerns a writer from Manhattan staying in a cabin in a Maine fishing town during the Off Season, that is the fall and winter. She invites four friends from the city to come stay with her. She's a writer/editor who is supposed to be taking a working vacation, but so far she hasn't seemed to do much aside from clean the cabin and romanticize the past which has led her to the cabin while philosophizing on the nature of writing. Unbeknownst to her, she's being watched from the woods.

Parallel to this is investigation of an attack which was adroitly told in the opening section of the book, wherein a woman stops her car because she sees a half naked girl standing in the road covered in dirt, which turns out to be a trap as she is hounded from the highway to the sea by a pack of feral children where she flings herself from the cliffs rather than take her chances with her attackers.

She lives and it gives us a chance for some expository dialog about previous mysterious disappearances and the like which serves as foreshadowing to what we can expect.

The attack itself serves as the prologue of the book and lays out the books tone quite well but so far it doesn't read as a horror novel at all but I don't expect everything to stay so civil as we've had our first act introduction of Chekov's gun and some insight into the socialization of the feral children with a bit of their back-story.

Tundra · « **Reply #59 on:** September 02, 2008, 10:49:04 AM »

Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 28, 2008, 10:20:48 PM

Quote from: RoboJ on August 28, 2008, 10:15:33 PM
Quote from: CajoleJuice on August 28, 2008, 09:52:06 PM
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Pretty cool so far, but definitely much different than Blade Runner.

I'm actually reading this right now too. WEIRD

Dude what the fuck, we're on the same wavelength today.

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Androids is one of my favorite books. Make sure you read A Scanner Darkly + Ubik also, PKD's two other best works.

I have his Four Novels of the 1960's collection (the coolest book I own), which also has Ubik. It's the last one, and I will read it next. I loved Man in the High Castle and The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, the first two novels.

May i mention "The Galactic Pothealer" by PKD as well. My favourite of his writings so far ...It's humorous, deep, thought provoking, hilarious sometimes. Everything a PKD story needs.

I read up a lot of his earlier work lately, which i don't like so much. A lot of "people living underground after the nuclear war" stories.

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Author Topic: What book(s) are you reading? (Read 788755 times)