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What are you reading? (January 2011)
- Thread starter Maklershed
- Start date
Like the hat?
Banned
Looking forward to sitting down with this.
Just read Random Acts of Senseless Violence by Jack Womack. Debating whether or not I should read the rest of that "Dryco" series, although from wikipedia and such, it sounds like RAoSV is completely different from the rest of them.
Maklershed
Member
Added 4 links to the OP - the manybooks.net site that was mentioned earlier, a link to ereaderiq.com (Kindle search), and a link to previously mentioned websites that indicate the top 100 Sci-Fi and Fantasy books, and the top 100 must read novels.
@JodyAnthony - I got that for Christmas. I can't wait to get to it.
@JodyAnthony - I got that for Christmas. I can't wait to get to it.
Maklershed
Member
I don't know how they'd stack up to those examples, but based on your previous criteria I I'd like to suggest The Help, The World Made by Hand, or Thirteen Moons. They're fiction but not sci-fi or fantasy and they're not part of a series.Xater said:
afternoon delight
Member
In Cold Blood is incredible. It is beyond an achievement. Capote not only can write with the best of them, but the novel never once drags or becomes boring.
So what's stopping us from declaring this is it? Unless there are more suggestions?
Maklershed
Member
I'm down with it. I'll add it to the OP.
The Book Club book of the month for January is ....
Child 44
Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
"Set in the Soviet Union in 1953, this stellar debut from British author Smith offers appealing characters, a strong plot and authentic period detail. When war hero Leo Stepanovich Demidov, a rising star in the MGB, the State Security force, is assigned to look into the death of a child, Leo is annoyed, first because this takes him away from a more important case, but, more importantly, because the parents insist the child was murdered."
Amazon Kindle = $2.99
Nook = $2.99
B&N Paperback = $7.99
Amazon Hardcover = $10.00
The Book Club book of the month for January is ....
Child 44
Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
"Set in the Soviet Union in 1953, this stellar debut from British author Smith offers appealing characters, a strong plot and authentic period detail. When war hero Leo Stepanovich Demidov, a rising star in the MGB, the State Security force, is assigned to look into the death of a child, Leo is annoyed, first because this takes him away from a more important case, but, more importantly, because the parents insist the child was murdered."
Amazon Kindle = $2.99
Nook = $2.99
B&N Paperback = $7.99
Amazon Hardcover = $10.00
hey_monkey
Banned
JodyAnthony said:
Looking forward to sitting down with this.
I have this and, imo, most of the stories are a complete and utter waste of fucking time. Poorly executed, poorly written, just bleh. There are a few good ones, and most of those could have probably been better. I was really excited about it, too.
Though note that I'm a snob who hates everything, etc., etc.
Am reading: the 2011 Pushcart Prize Anthology (not too into that so far, either) and some old issues of lit mags I long-term-borrowed from my university. Glimmer Train, Indiana Review, and a New Yorker fiction issue.
slipknot2009
Neo Member
Dusting off some old gems while newer stuff is in the mail (like Simon Pegg's new book).
slipknot2009
Neo Member
coldvein said:
Sure does. I've been having trouble finding it so I had to amazon it.
BlazingDarkness
Member
About to start it.
Finished Anna Karenina a week ago or so and then decided to move on to something more light-hearted and with less insights on human psyche. At least not in a serious way...
... but in a comical way. :lol
First time reader, currently at So Long And Thanks For All the Fish and this series is so comically enjoyable.
hey_monkey
Banned
Jenga said:
It's one of the more interesting ones, but they all seem to fall into very predictable plots/ideas very quickly. It's kinda funny... there's one story that's even metafictional, about the writing of post-apocalyptic stories, and it's also a handbook for all the rest. Except that one, like a lot of them (especially Orson Scott Card's and Jerry Oltion's) feel like they fall into one of three other specific categories:
-idea stories (in which the point is just to impress/lecture the reader with one BIG IDEA OR CONCEPT without really developing what the hell is going on besides a general idea of shit being either cool or fucked up
-SHOCKING REVEAL stories (death! cannibals! secrets! madness! murdering explorers!)
-extended "joke" stories that hinge on a very thin concept that feels far overstretched by the end (what if there were crazy-violent animal-people-gunslingers and hot dames?! what if a courier had to beat the devil?! OMG)
Some standouts, to me, are "Inertia," which is interesting, well-written, and neither too long nor too short, but maybe painted a bit obviously in places, and "Speech Sounds," which is very short, though that fits the fast pace... but it leaves a lot unsatisfying questions, to me. A couple of the stories have potential but either don't develop it fully (like the aforementioned metafictional story, which seems poorly constructed), the last story ("Episode Seven and a very long title I'm not retyping), which is neat but not consistent and eventually gets boring. "Artie's Angels," too, is just too long for what it is. Conversational "let me tell you it" stories are a big risk, though, I think.
The world of genre fiction often mystifies me. I read a LOT of literary mags of all stripes and I'm frankly astonished by a lot of what gets published anywhere (like RON RASH, RON RASH, HOLY GOD WHY DOES ANYONE READ RON RASH EVER), but particularly in genre fiction, I'm puzzled. I read a ton of really great stories in smaller mags that get no attention and were probably rejected in all the biggies, and then a lot of the award-winning pieces are just big yawns to me... or are just (imo) actively bad.
hey_monkey
Banned
Coldsnap said:
Chekhov, Chekhov, Chekhov.
Mr. Miyato
Neo Member
Just starting:
Recently finished the Mistborn trilogy. Quick review:
Book 1: Great start! Excellent characters, and the development of those characters will pull you right through the novel. Book gets some romance in the last half or third of the book, but the book is building to a climax at the same time so the romance isn't unbearable. Awesome finish, not at all what I expected.
Book 2: Ugh. Uuuuuuuuugh. Pacing issues. Heavy romance - About 400 pages of boy/girl bullshit mixed in with the politicking and light action that I enjoy. A friend told me to keep going or I likely would have stopped. Again, the climax saves the book. Once you hit the action at the end everything gets a lot more bearable.
Book 3: Probably the highlight of the series for me. Way lighter on the romance. Pacing is good, with plenty of stuff happening throughout the book. The ending is likely pretty polarizing. I thought it was well done, but some might not like it.
Starting:
In addition to what other's have said, I'd really recommend a compilation of Tolstoy's short novels. I've got a Harper/Perrenial published one that has all the great ones. It really shows off Tolstoy's range, and they're nice and quick reads compared to the "loose, baggy monsters" you hear about. Also, Turgenev's Fathers and Sons is highly recommended. I'll be reading that soon.Coldsnap said:
I'll also second the Master and Margarita and War and Peace recommendations. Both are fantastic books. WRT translations, Peaver & Volkonsky seem to be the consensus favourite currently, and I don't disagree (though I haven't read either of their translations of M&M or W&P).
paranoidfortean
Member
Micromegas
Member
JodyAnthony said:
It is quite different. They're worth reading, I'd say.
Various Artists
Banned
I got a lot of nice things for Christmas I must catch up on.
I got part of the Alan Moore Swamp Thing Graphic Novel and the Adam Carolla book. Looking forward to it.
I got part of the Alan Moore Swamp Thing Graphic Novel and the Adam Carolla book. Looking forward to it.
I had begun reading the free Kindle edition of The Odyssey; I had read this nearly ten years ago and figured it would be a nice read for my newly-acquired Kindle 3. I remember I used to "sing" the words in my head so that I wouldn't fall asleep while reading it (when I was younger, I didn't care much for reading books). Now, I can't seem to stop "singing" it as I read it. :lol It's rather distracting; I should start up another book.
Signed up for Goodreads a few days ago, have joined the GAF group, and I'll definitely participate in the book club. This one seems interesting and I'm pretty sure I can read it before the end of the month. You can also get the mass market paperback from Amazon for $7.99 (link).
Maklershed said:I'm down with it. I'll add it to the OP.
The Book Club book of the month for January is ....
Child 44
Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
"Set in the Soviet Union in 1953, this stellar debut from British author Smith offers appealing characters, a strong plot and authentic period detail. When war hero Leo Stepanovich Demidov, a rising star in the MGB, the State Security force, is assigned to look into the death of a child, Leo is annoyed, first because this takes him away from a more important case, but, more importantly, because the parents insist the child was murdered."
Amazon Kindle = $2.99
Nook = $2.99
B&N Paperback = $7.99
Amazon Hardcover = $10.00
Signed up for Goodreads a few days ago, have joined the GAF group, and I'll definitely participate in the book club. This one seems interesting and I'm pretty sure I can read it before the end of the month. You can also get the mass market paperback from Amazon for $7.99 (link).
vitaminwateryum
corporate swill
Just started reading The Stand tonight. Cannot believe I haven't read this yet, as I've read pretty much everything else King has done.
Emerson
May contain jokes =>
I got a Kindle for Christmas so I've resolved myself to do a lot more reading. I set myself up with a huge collection of Stephen King, much of which I've read but a lot I haven't.
Currently:
Starting with some pretty light fare but it should pick up from there.
I'd love to read a good murder mystery or a legal thriller. I hesitate to say in the vein of a Grisham book because I have no idea if those are good or not, but that's sort of what I'm after. Any recommendations on either would be appreciated.
Currently:
Starting with some pretty light fare but it should pick up from there.
I'd love to read a good murder mystery or a legal thriller. I hesitate to say in the vein of a Grisham book because I have no idea if those are good or not, but that's sort of what I'm after. Any recommendations on either would be appreciated.
movie_club
Junior Member
Finishing up:
In the middle of, for the first time!
Also reading this one on kindle
In the middle of, for the first time!
Also reading this one on kindle
nakedsushi
Member
Tucah said:
I've heard various things about the book in general, but a few friends who literary taste I usually agree with won't stop raving about this book and the format of the book sounds too intriguing for me not to try it.
Weird. Seeing this post made me realize that the guy named Mark I met at a book-ish friend's house this weekend was none other than Mark Danielewski. I'm glad I didn't make a comment about his book, that might have been embarassing.
I finished this up this weekend:
Double Cross by Carolyn Crane
Pretty good second book in a trilogy. I was sick of how some characters were reacting to things for the sole purpose of progressing the plot, but overall, an enjoyable read. Monster of a cliffhanger though. Now I'll *have* to read the third book.
Started getting into this tonight thanks to the movie trailer. I never read it before even though all my coworkers seemed to have read it in school. Really liking it so far.
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Yay, I saw that our Neogaf bookclub book finally got chosen. I'll tackle it after Jane Eyre. Is it only for 1 month, or 2?
Is there any good place online to read good academic publishing on certain books? I usually like to read a few essays on the books I've completed, I use to use my college online library.
Thank you for the Russian lit recomendatoins, seems like a lot of those authors are on manybooks. Which is great.
Thank you for the Russian lit recomendatoins, seems like a lot of those authors are on manybooks. Which is great.
Dead Prince
Banned
I've added this to my book to read. i really need a bit more time to read. hopefully i can get in a few pages at work and pretend to be lazy :lol.Maklershed said:I'm down with it. I'll add it to the OP.
The Book Club book of the month for January is ....
Child 44
Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
"Set in the Soviet Union in 1953, this stellar debut from British author Smith offers appealing characters, a strong plot and authentic period detail. When war hero Leo Stepanovich Demidov, a rising star in the MGB, the State Security force, is assigned to look into the death of a child, Leo is annoyed, first because this takes him away from a more important case, but, more importantly, because the parents insist the child was murdered."
Amazon Kindle = $2.99
Nook = $2.99
B&N Paperback = $7.99
Amazon Hardcover = $10.00
hey_monkey
Banned
Coldsnap said:
Not most free stuff, it seems. Most articles are available through databases and all, but for fees. Do you still have your university e-mail? If not, you may be able to get it back by joining your alumni association, and then maybe you can still log in to those things by remote? It's worth checking into. I love reading criticism on books I've just finished.
crowphoenix
Banned
Currently reading:
It's a fun, light read so far about the Greek gods. It's set in modern day London where the gods are currently living in a run down shack of a house because they've lost a lot of their power due to a lack of believers. Lots of snappy dialogue, fun banter, and general assholery from the pantheon.
And I'm about to start:
It's a fun, light read so far about the Greek gods. It's set in modern day London where the gods are currently living in a run down shack of a house because they've lost a lot of their power due to a lack of believers. Lots of snappy dialogue, fun banter, and general assholery from the pantheon.
And I'm about to start:
afternoon delight
Member
Time to start Child 44 then. The first chapter definitely sets a tone.
sparky2112
Member
Does anybody but me attempt to take breaks from reading, all in an effort to give some love to other hobbies (video games and guitar, in my case)? This idea always fails - I simply have no resolve when it comes to ignoring books. It's sad, really...reminds me of the phrase 'life well wasted'...
My current reading 'break' is really just a 'book break' to try and catch up with about a year's worth of magazines - Wired, The Atlantic, and Vanity Fair.
Plus, I've got those DK doorstop coffee-table books, 'Science', 'History', and 'Universe' that aren't getting any love, either...
Sigh.
My current reading 'break' is really just a 'book break' to try and catch up with about a year's worth of magazines - Wired, The Atlantic, and Vanity Fair.
Plus, I've got those DK doorstop coffee-table books, 'Science', 'History', and 'Universe' that aren't getting any love, either...
Sigh.