Favorite books / What are you reading?
- Thread starter Snackpack
- Start date
It's one of the scariest books ever, is what it is.
SimpleMinded
Vault Fossil
Jotisz said:
Sadly, I never finished it. I felt like the book lost a lot of its steam and just became two characters having sex like mad. Still, it could be good if I tried again.
parallel reading stephen kings 'it', claude simon's 'akazie' and some brecht-fragments. of these 3, brecht seems to be the most entertaining so far 
and iain m banks is always a good read. not only his sf-operas.
ive read a lot of pk dick, dan simmons, and possibly the complete dune series on my pda when i was travelling more for my job. sadly, said pda was stolen. (otoh, i have been very lucky with this pda on several occasions, i recall being extremely stoned after some weird party in cologne... half asleep in the early morning in some kind of train, and some hobo wakes me up and gives me back my pda... kinda unexpected)
and iain m banks is always a good read. not only his sf-operas.
ive read a lot of pk dick, dan simmons, and possibly the complete dune series on my pda when i was travelling more for my job. sadly, said pda was stolen. (otoh, i have been very lucky with this pda on several occasions, i recall being extremely stoned after some weird party in cologne... half asleep in the early morning in some kind of train, and some hobo wakes me up and gives me back my pda... kinda unexpected)
SimpleMinded said:
*slaps SimpleMinded*
Finish it. Now. It's one of the 20th century's best books, if only for the setting.
On topic, I'm still reading Milton.
Carib FMJ
Nuka-Cola Chaser
Star Wars Legacy of the Force: Invinisible
Moving Target
Mildly Dipped
I just re-read "The Crusades Through Arab Eyes" by Amin Maalouf. For anyone who's even remotely interested in the subject, or is even a bit bemused by reactions from certain sectors of the Muslim world to, say, Israel or the U.S.'s recent...um... escapades... in that part of the world, it's a great book.
Hell, it's a great book anyway. I recommend it if you're just into history.
Other than that, I guess I haven't been reading much lately.
I've got a borrowed copy of "Blood Meridian" I haven't cracked open yet. Like, seriously, man, I'm *gonna* start it. I mean it. Dude. Totally.
Hell, it's a great book anyway. I recommend it if you're just into history.
Other than that, I guess I haven't been reading much lately.
I've got a borrowed copy of "Blood Meridian" I haven't cracked open yet. Like, seriously, man, I'm *gonna* start it. I mean it. Dude. Totally.
Small Framed
First time out of the vault
The Odessa File - Frederick Forsyth
I really like his style of writing. It's like reading a case file/ research.
I really like his style of writing. It's like reading a case file/ research.
Completed Sapkowski's God Warriors trilogy: Narrenturm, God Warriors and Lux Perpetua. Set during the 15th century, it accurately depicts the brutality, hypocrisy and oversexed nature of medieval times.
Oh, and atrocities commited in the name of religion.
Second, I read the entire Dune in a single day. It has got to be one of the best sci-fi books in recorded history.
Oh, and atrocities commited in the name of religion.
Second, I read the entire Dune in a single day. It has got to be one of the best sci-fi books in recorded history.
currently reading: the island of the day before by umberto eco. so far so great, but i'm only about sixty pages in. next up will be and the ass saw the angel by nick cave or a canticle for leibowitz by walter m. miller.
all time favourites:
the house of leaves by mark z. danielewski
phantom by susan kay
ender's game by orson scott card
american gods by neil gaiman
there are others, but those are the ones that come to mind.
all time favourites:
the house of leaves by mark z. danielewski
phantom by susan kay
ender's game by orson scott card
american gods by neil gaiman
there are others, but those are the ones that come to mind.
Moving Target
Mildly Dipped
velvatier, skip Nick Cave's book. It's *meh* at the best points, and there aren't many of them. Read Miller's book, it's a classic.
Also: Another House of Leaves fan! Cool! I read it about a year after the super-ultimate edition (or whatever it was called.... it had the color plates and the blue lettering,) got it on loan from the LAPL, and said "Whoah... where's this been all my life?" Then... he wrote his follow-up. *sigh*
Also: Another House of Leaves fan! Cool! I read it about a year after the super-ultimate edition (or whatever it was called.... it had the color plates and the blue lettering,) got it on loan from the LAPL, and said "Whoah... where's this been all my life?" Then... he wrote his follow-up. *sigh*
Carib FMJ
Nuka-Cola Chaser
World War Z by Max Brooks. An interesting alternate history of the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse.
Edmond Dantès
It Wandered In From the Wastes
The last book I've finished was The Iliad, from Homer. Simply because it felt like a hole in my education. Because of lack of ancient Greek, it was of course an English translation. But very enjoyable I have to admit. What struck me most was that humanity hasn't changed as much as I used to believe.
The next book that I've started is Umerto Eco's 'The name of the rose', though in a Dutch translation. After having heard about it several times from my professors and other teachers, I just can't seem to afford to stay away from it if I'm ever wishing to be taken serious as a student of medieval history.
The next book that I've started is Umerto Eco's 'The name of the rose', though in a Dutch translation. After having heard about it several times from my professors and other teachers, I just can't seem to afford to stay away from it if I'm ever wishing to be taken serious as a student of medieval history.
Misty said:
I also read this recently.
At the moment I am tearing through Arthur C. Clarke's "The Collected Stories" - all the short stories of his career from 1937 til 1999.
I am enjoying it immensly.
I've been going through some classic sci-fi lately. Last book I finished was "The Caves of Steel" by Asimov. I also have a collection of his short stories, which are mostly excellent. I especially enjoyed "Nightfall".
Dune is probably one of my favourite stories ever, but steer clear of the books released after Frank Herbert's death.
Dune is probably one of my favourite stories ever, but steer clear of the books released after Frank Herbert's death.
Everybody deprecates the new Dune books, but I don't find them any worse than any of the books written after the original Dune. IMHO House Corrino or Battle Corrin are no worse than Chapterhouse or Heretics.
While the new books do suffer from oversimplification and mass appeal, the old sequels were too self-important and monolithic.
Still, pretty good books.
While the new books do suffer from oversimplification and mass appeal, the old sequels were too self-important and monolithic.
Still, pretty good books.
Cimmerian Nights
So Old I'm Losing Radiation Signs
Those three Dune prequels I was willing to accept as Dune-lite, but that Butlerian Jihad was an unmitigated bomb. Embarassing cash-ins. Sloppy, shallow, just bad bad bad.
Battle of Corrin, that book was so bad, the only way I could bear reading it, was by writing a running commentery in the margins while I ridiculed and riffed on it a la Mystery Science Theater 3000. I've never read a book that made me roll my eyes and groan out loud. Cringeworthy all around. All they had to do was connect the dots too.
Just finished Arrian's Campaigns of Alexander - excellent contemporary history of his military career.
Now reading Gibbons' Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Great material, smooth prose, I like it. A hefty tome, I expect to read it in intervals.
Battle of Corrin, that book was so bad, the only way I could bear reading it, was by writing a running commentery in the margins while I ridiculed and riffed on it a la Mystery Science Theater 3000. I've never read a book that made me roll my eyes and groan out loud. Cringeworthy all around. All they had to do was connect the dots too.
Just finished Arrian's Campaigns of Alexander - excellent contemporary history of his military career.
Now reading Gibbons' Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Great material, smooth prose, I like it. A hefty tome, I expect to read it in intervals.
Slapper Trout
First time out of the vault
Right now I'm reading "House of Leaves" ...it's sort of a post-modern mindfuck...experimental narrative and all that...but it pulls it off pretty well and is quite interesting...I'd definitely recommend trying it, although it seems to be a bit polarizing...most people I've recommended it to either really like it or hate it...
EDIT: Woah...didn't realize it was mentioned above me...whoops...
EDIT: Woah...didn't realize it was mentioned above me...whoops...