I Hate Dialysis Message Board
Off-Topic => Off-Topic: Talk about anything you want. => Topic started by: okarol on May 05, 2007, 06:58:24 PM
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Me: Brother Odd by Dean Koontz
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Facing The Frozen Ocean.....Bear Grylls
(He's the guy on Man vs The Wild on Discovery Channel)
Almost finished then will be reading: The Kid Who Climbed Everest....Bear Grylls
(He did this when he was 23!)
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The entire Charlie Bone series by Jenny Nimmo. It's a Harry Potter wanna-be, but not bad. I've been checking out books from the kids section lately at the library - fast, fun, total escapist reading material!
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i just finished Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl, the editor of gourmet magizine and the former new york times food critic for six years- besides being a foodie book- it was a very good story-plus some excellent recipies.
I am glad she wrote two others.
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Cell... Stephen King.. my favorite author. :2thumbsup;
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A Mercedes Lackey Trilogy
Magic's Pawn
Magic's Promise
Magics' Price
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Currently re-reading the 3 autobiography books of Clive James. They've been put together as one volume now, but I can't remember what it's called.
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Can't Wait to Get to Heaven by Fannie Flag (Comedian who also wrote Fried Green Tomatoes) I read a couple of books a week - so always have a stack ready. Sometimes educational, but right now I need some easy reading.
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"blood of the Fold" book 3 in Terry Goodkind's Sord of Truth series. there are 7 in the series, nice big fat books :)
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I LOVED those books. That was the best series of books I have ever read!
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Enslaved by Ducks
by Bob Tarte
I'm going to stick with just a dog but a part of me would like a menagerie of fowl and hoof. The author keeps ducks + other birds as pets but I kinda like the idea of eating what I raise. It has an appeal to this city boy who's always gotten his food from cellophane packages.
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Gump and Company.... Still cant believe they made Forrest cus, lol, but its a cute book :popcorn;
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what's a book and how do you read it?
puzzled,
Rolando :thx;
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On a Beam of Light
the sequel to K-Pax
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what's a book and how do you read it?
puzzled,
Rolando :thx;
lol. I don't understand how anyone can dislike reading :) I've always loved it.
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100 Little Horror Stories
The Husband by Dean Koontz is next.
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Dean Koontz seems to be popular. I really do not like his style of writing. At all.
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I read one Dean Koontz, scared me so much I was afraid to read another.
Don't remember the title & much of the story, but never forgot this part:
A man picked up a teenaged hitchhiker took her to his home & strung her up in a pitch dark basement with just the tips of her toes touching the floor.
After several days he opened some air vents & let in thousands of ants & over the next week or so they slowly ate her alive.
I kept thinking he was giving some depraved psyco an idea on how to torture someone.
Anyone know the title of that book & are all his books like that?
Jane
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Holy Bologna! That short paragraph is enough to invoke my busy imagination-I sure hope I don't dream about it tonight!!!
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I'm glad I read Glitter's first.... I did not read McJane's. :o
I'm reading "Three weeks with my brother" by Nicholas Sparks. Good so far.
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Anyone know the title of that book & are all his books like that?
I don't, but I've read stories even scarier by Clive Barker!
Oh and don't worry about the psychos. They will come up with their own creative and just-as-cruel practices. Horrible thought, that, but having read so much true crime material, I now know that fiction just does not compare.
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I am currently on book 3 (Silverthorn) of the Riftwar series by Raymond E. Feist. There are only 4 books to this series, but about 20 books that all occur in this same world. I really like these so far so I think I will have to check the rest out. For more info on Raymond E. Feist go to www.raymondfeistbooks.com/index.htm (http://www.raymondfeistbooks.com/index.htm)
The Riftwar-Series:
Magician (1982) - This one was split into 2 books Magician: Aprentice, and Magician: Master
Silverthorn (1985)
A Darkness at Sethanon (1986)
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Oh, it's really bad, glitter, the description of torture & suffering that girl went through. There was more of it, but that part never left me.
I'm going to Google it & see if I can find the title.
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I've got a feeling I started reading Magician at some stage, many years ago. I don't think I finished it, and I also can't remember any of it.
I can't be sure it was Magician but it was Feist, and it was a huge fat book.
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I've got a feeling I started reading Magician at some stage, many years ago. I don't think I finished it, and I also can't remember any of it.
I can't be sure it was Magician but it was Feist, and it was a huge fat book.
In it's original release it would had to of been around 700 or so pages since each book separately is over 300 pages.
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I am not reading anything at the current time but I was wondering if anyone has read Historian by Elizabeth Kostova and My Life by Bill Clinton.....I heard My Life is very good.....
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I recently read the Memory Keeper's Daughter - it was well-written but for some reason I just didn't like the story.
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I am almost finished with 'Rabbit is Rich' by John Updike - I like it- very good meaty book.
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When Darkness Falls by Mercedes Lackey
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I liked the Memory Keepers Daughter, but I had a baby sister with Downs syndrome born during a time that they were hidden away. I could relate to the story; although my sisters story was different.
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Literature Approaches To Fiction, Poetry and Drama by Robert DiYanni 2nd Edition, This book has Hemingway, Frost, Fitzgerald, Poe, Dickinson and all their classics plus hundreds of poems and short stories, I'm simply loving it because there are exercises in understanding and deciphering some of these complicated and intense great writings. Call me a nerd but I'm really learning alot once I understand these stories, sometimes it takes a long time!
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I'm reading something called Boogaloo on Second Avenue at the moment, picked at random from the library shelf. Not sure where it's going yet, but it's easier to read than the Dosteovsky that I was trying to get through before. Not in the right frame of mind for that right now.
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Hooked on reading the Bible daily. :yahoo;
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Cell... Stephen King.. my favorite author. :2thumbsup;
Susie,
I just read Cell, how did you like it? I thought it was a pretty good book. Plus, he mentions a couple of the towns that I have lived in, in the book.
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I'm reading Salem Falls by Jodi Piccoult. I really love her books and this is a good one.
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Cell... Stephen King.. my favorite author. :2thumbsup;
Susie,
I just read Cell, how did you like it? I thought it was a pretty good book. Plus, he mentions a couple of the towns that I have lived in, in the book.
Skyedog... believe it or not I haven't finished it yet.. I have a hard time concentrating when reading now so I hardly pick up a book.. sometimes I'll read a few pages in bed before going to sleep... but .. so far so good.. I love Stephen King.
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This is all I have on my reading list for this summer....
1. Historian
2. My Life by Bill Clinton
3. Wicked....
The first two are huge books so that will take up a lot of time....I plan to buy book seven of Harry Potter and I have yet to read 4,5, and 6.
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I just finished Terry Goodkind's Confessor and Mercedes Lackey's Reserved for the Cat. I highly recommend The Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind. one of the best stories I have EVER read!
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Scar Tissue by Anthony Kiedis (of the Red Hot Chili Peppers)
-- it's SO good!
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Current reads:
"Coal Black Horse" by Robert Olmstead (excellent writer)
"All The Pretty Horses" & "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy (another excellent writer)
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reading Rescuing Sprite by Mark Levin....Boxman
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The Book of the Dead - by Patricia Cornwell. I read all of hers, but she is getting kinda depressing lately. On the lighter side, I also like Nicolas Sparks. Just finished his latest a few weeks ago, The Choice.
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I just finished 'China Inc." by Ted Fishman, now I am reading 'PS I love You' - I forget the authors name- she is the prime minister of Irelands' daughter, her first book-
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I just finished 'China Inc." by Ted Fishman, now I am reading 'PS I love You' - I forget the authors name- she is the prime minister of Irelands' daughter, her first book-
I read PS I Love You last year, very good book! Huge tearjerker also.
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"I Am America and So Can You" by Stephen Colbert
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"I Am America and So Can You" by Stephen Colbert
that will be soon- my dad has it first!!
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I am currently on a waiting list at our library for Tuesdays with Morrie, I seen the author talk about him on Dr. Phil and it is exactly what i need to read right about now :2thumbsup;
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Now that I finally have time to myself at night and my kids are sleeping in their own beds through the night, I am going to start reading the last Harry Potter book. :thumbup;
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Just read "Best Laid Plans" by Sidney Sheldon - good, quick read
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I just finished 'China Inc." by Ted Fishman, now I am reading 'PS I love You' - I forget the authors name- she is the prime minister of Irelands' daughter, her first book-
PS I love You is now a movie, soon to release. I can't wait!
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Rhett Butler's People. It's the follow up to Gone With the Wind, written from Rhett Butler's point of view.
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Re-reading "Rose Madder" by Stephen King. Chilling and gruesome!
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If you really enjoyed or really hated a book you read and posted here - give us a recommendation (thumbs up or down) when you're done.
I read:
Brother Odd :thumbup;
Scar Tissue :thumbup;
Both were great.
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communicating with the dead by linda georgian. pretty far-fetched but still interesting.
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for any foodies out there- I really,really liked Garlic and Sapphires by Rurh Reichl... I just bought her first two books, Comfort with Apples and Tender at the Bone, I expect they will be lovely. This woman has a way of descibing food, so that you almost taste it.
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The best of this week's library selection -
The Bachelor's Cat by L. F. Hoffman
Bad Girl Creek by Jo-Ann Mapson
Also read the Septimus Heap series from the kid's section - very cute!
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for any foodies out there- I really,really liked Garlic and Sapphires by Rurh Reichl... I just bought her first two books, Comfort with Apples and Tender at the Bone, I expect they will be lovely. This woman has a way of descibing food, so that you almost taste it.
Glitter---I loved 'Tender at the Bone'.....I made the potato salad from the book, and it brought me back to being a little girl in my Grandfather's German deli's in NYC.
Currently reading -- 'The Almost Moon' by Alice Sebold ( 'The Lovely Bones')
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Thanks for reminding me why I don't like Dean Koontz. I like Elizabeth Berg. I've read all her novels, I'm on "We Are All Welcome Here." About a lonely but bright teenage girl who is the caretaker for her quadraplegic mother. Elvis is in it too!
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I just finished The Cat who Had Sixty Whiskers
Also the Owl Knight (Heralds of Valdemar) books by Mercedes Lackey
Starting Aerie by the same author. A dragon book.
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I just finished the Historian over the weekend. Tweetykiss, I saw you asking about it. Did you read this, too?
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Got three new books for Christmas--The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (also new movie), Touching Stars by Emilie Richards (series of novels based on love of quilts) and Almost French by Sarah Turnbull. Not sure which one to start on first! They are all very different. Some days I like fluff, some days I want to learn new things. Today just might be a fluff day!
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Just got the whole series that the new "golden Compass" movie is part of - His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman. Here's hoping it's as good as the movie hype. Also hit the Salvation Army book sale today - hardcovers for a dime, what a deal! Couldn't resist Roald Dahl's Matilda. I love that book!
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for any foodies out there- I really,really liked Garlic and Sapphires by Rurh Reichl... I just bought her first two books, Comfort with Apples and Tender at the Bone, I expect they will be lovely.� This woman has a way of descibing food, so that you almost taste it.
Glitter---I loved 'Tender at the Bone'.....I made the potato salad from the book, and it brought me back to being a little girl in my Grandfather's German deli's in NYC.
Currently reading -- 'The Almost Moon' by Alice Sebold ( 'The Lovely Bones')
I loved "The Lovely Bones".
I just read the book that is the follow up to "Holes". My daughter was reading it over Christmas break.
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I am currently on a waiting list at our library for Tuesdays with Morrie, I seen the author talk about him on Dr. Phil and it is exactly what i need to read right about now :2thumbsup;
I just finished reading "For One More Day" by Mitch Albom, the same author who wrote "Tuesdays with Morrie". I enjoyed his previous book "The Five People You Meet in Heaven" more than "For One More Day", but both books were good. I would like to read "Tuesdays with Morrie".
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"The Five People You Meet in Heaven
that was awesome....
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I am currently on a waiting list at our library for Tuesdays with Morrie, I seen the author talk about him on Dr. Phil and it is exactly what i need to read right about now :2thumbsup;
I just finished reading "For One More Day" by Mitch Albom, the same author who wrote "Tuesdays with Morrie". I enjoyed his previous book "The Five People You Meet in Heaven" more than "For One More Day", but both books were good. I would like to read "Tuesdays with Morrie".
Hey, i havent heard from the library yet, hmmm, thanks for reminding me Kevinswife, i will call them first thing, and i think i will ask about the other books you mentioned as well, that 5 People you will meet in heaven sounds interesting. :) Thanks again and happy reading :waving;
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Feels strange now, reading that last post from Susie, particularly regarding the subject matter - not sure whether to :( that she's gone or :) at the positivity of the above discussion.
Anyway, I have just been loaned "My Sister's Keeper" by Jodi Picoult (sp?). Apparently it is about a couple who have an ill daughter, and they then have another baby (a boy) through genetic selection or whatever so that they can utilise his tissues/organs etc to save their daughter. It must raise a million ethical questions, but I've been told by two people that it's a very good story, tho very sad.
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I loved "5 People You Meet in Heaven", though I believe for those of us who have received a cadaveric organ, there are 6 people we meet!
"My Sister's Keeper" is an excellent book (the younger child is a daughter). It's been awhile since I read it, but as you said, it's very sad though inspiring at the same time, and raises a million ethical questions.
I'm currently reading "Freshwater Road" I'm sorry, I can't remember the author. It's about a 19 year-old black girl from Detroit who goes to Mississippi during the Summer of Freedom to volunteer to register blacks to vote. I'm not very far in, and so far it's only about her impressions of what she sees from cars, etc. We'll see if it improves.
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I loved "The 5 People You Meet in Heaven." It really made me think about my life and the impression I'm leaving.
I just finished Joel Osteen's "Become a Better You." I don't usually read "self-help" type books, but it was pretty good. Next, I'm reading "The Fourth Hand" -- my sister loaned it to, can't remember the author -- but it's about a guy who gets a hand transplant from a rather shady character. I don't normally like sci-fi type books either, but the cover on this looked good.
My nephew gave me "Wicked" for Christmas -- it's a really weird take-off on the story behind the Wicked Witch in "The Wizard of Oz." I started it three times but just can't get into it. It's really, really .... different.
"Losing My Mind" -- about an Alzeheimers (sp.) patient -- is on my list, too.
Too many books, too little time.
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Just finished "The Thirteenth Tale" by Diane Setterfield - amazing storyteller!
Also "Eclipse" by Stephenie Meyer - the third in the series. Nice juicy little read for a "teen" novel.
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I just finished the Mage Winds Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and am into T-2 Infiltrator
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Ruth Reichl- Comfort me with Apples, Tender at the Bone, and Garlic and Sapphires- three of the best foodie books ever written- I am not terribly adventurous, food wise, but after Comfort me with Apples, I walked around for weeks thinking how much I wanted to try 'tender little pins of garlicky, oily flesh' baby eels they were- I could almost taste them. Tender at the Bone is her first book (and the one I just finished), about her childhood and food- good story, the second ,'Comfort Me with Apples' began her foodie education,restaurateur and a food critic for the LA main newpaper( i forget the name)as well as the cooking she did in the commual world she lived in (Berkeley CA). And the third is just purely decadent love. Its the story of her as a food critic for NY Times. I love her. This is not just a story...(there are recipies too) Its a love story- with the object the food of the world- she eats so many things I don't have the guts to try. She makes the strangest food sound so wonderful, thanks to these books my sister and I try a different cusine every month- and we order things only that we have never had.
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Finished Kite Runner---excellent book. Loved it. Last week read Water for Elephants; about a small circus in the 30's and 40's. It was really good, too. This week, I am reading Almost French, about an Australian journalist moving to Paris (of course!) and integrating the two cultures. It is based on her own story. Easy reading during this time when my concentration has been limited.
Is anyone reading Oprah's new book club pick? She is also doing an online class with the book. Think I will pick it up with the Barnes and Noble gift card in my purse.
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Boom by Tom Browkaw about the effect of the 60's on life today
Darkest Evening of the Year by Dean Koontz Some Koontz I can read and enjoy, others I'll start and not like, so Ill just stop and read something else.
The Poisonwood Bible about evangelical Baptist who takes his family to the Belgian Congo in 1959
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Glitter, I wanna read those books by Ruth Reichl!!! They sound wonderful, just the kind I like, descriptive of foods, and with recipes!!!
I'm a foodie, I love to talk food, read about it, and cook!!!!
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Petey, I read Wicked!!! Yes, it's different...but it is worth it!!!! Try it again!! Or heck, do what I do, just skip chapters, read ahead!!!
I'm a very adventurous reader. I may read a book straight through. OR I may start at the back THEN go to the front and read it through.
Or I may start in the beginning then skip to the middle then to the end, then back again, or not. The way I look at it, books are there
for ME, not for THEM!! They're MY tools. I will use them as I please!!!!
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Right now I am reading 'America Alone' by Mark Steyn --a look at how Islam and demographics are shaping the world we live in.
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I just fiinished "Me and Emma" by Elizabeth Frock.
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My sister and I have a theory that there are many writers doing Dean Koontz books. Because some of them are so good, others are mediocre. You probably will not like Darkest Evening by Koontz. I read half and skipped to the end chapters. Read From the Corner of his Eye.
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I am reading Under the Tuscan Sun -- it's Frances Mayes true story on her adventures in buying a home in Cortona, Italy -- Their is a great (but not quite accurate) movie based on it - the book is fascinating.
I just finished PS I love you, which I had read once before but didn't realize it until the end of the book - definitely good if you want to cry...
Give Wicked a chance -- it's dark, like all Gregory McGuire books - but his charecters, settings and descriptions are amazing - really in depth! Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister is great too (the true story of Cinderella)
But I have some staples that I read everyonce in a while -- things like Pride and Prejudice and The Diary of Anne Frank are two of those...
I would recommend Veil of Roses for a light, but meaningful read about a woman from Iran who comes to live with her sister in America and knows during her six week visit she must marry to stay in the country -- really really wonderful and written by a woman who housed women in the same situations.
--Can you tell mom and I are readers?
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I read Poisonwood Bible too, it was interesting, I liked it. I am reading the Appeal by Grisham. Last week it was Dark of the Moon by John Sandford and before that it was Bad Luck and Trouble by Lee Child. That is a Jack Racher series, I like those.
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Lee Child is a good author. I like how he writes.
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I like Lee Childs too. Think I misspelled Reacher. Anyway, I like that series. The Appeal one I am reading now is a bit slow.
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I fished my T-2 Terminator 2 book. It continued the story after the second movie of Sarah Connor and her son John.
Today I am reading How to Talk to Kids.
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I am reading an orchid book, Classic Cattleyas by Chadwick & Chadwick :urcrazy;
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Just finished "Under the Tuscan Sun". I've seen the movie, and this is the book it was very loosely based on. The book itself is a memoir, not a romantic comedy, and the movie only used some of the basic setting and a few bits and pieces of what happened to the writer. I had to make Italian for dinner though - the book is full of recipes and incredible descriptions of Tuscan cuisine.
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JBeany = I thought of reading it too, as it has been mentioned here before. Do you give it a thumbs up?
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I am restarting "Father Knows Less" . I got side tracked by a local book called
Haunted Richmond about the local Haunts here in Richmond VA.
Katonsdad
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a friend just gave me a large bag full of books that she didn't want - I don't even know where to start with them! :)
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JBeany = I thought of reading it too, as it has been mentioned here before. Do you give it a thumbs up?
I thought it was fabulous - better than the movie by far! :thumbup;
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Oh, another fantastic book - easy to find in Australia, but I don't know if it's as commong overseas - is He Died With a Falafel in His Hand. The author is John Birmingham. The movie wasn't bad either, but the book was much better as usual!
It is about the time he spent in share housing when he was younger, and some of the crazy stuff that happened. Anyone who has ever been in share housing in their youth (i.e. most of us! lol) will probably relate.
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Good Friends by Peter Jenkins
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Good Friends by Peter Jenkins
I've read in the last few weeks:
I, Claudius
Claudius the King
I, Elizabeth
The Boleyn Inheritance
The Other Boleyn Girl
Biography of Henry VIII by Will Sommmers his Fool
The Pillars of the Earth (the best book I ever read so far)
Reading now World Without End Ken Follett the sequel to POTE
I'm into hisrorical fiction. :usaflag;
Donna
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Donna - you are quite a bookworm!
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Donna - you are quite a bookworm!
I get into times in life where I need something to distract me, to take my mind off things, ya know? TV becomes boring and monotonous, it's cold and damp out. I need something to take me someplace else, to escape life, I guess for a while. I was always in the gifted reader programs in school, I knew how to read when I was 5 for some reason. My mother always bought me books and read to me when I was little, she taught me letters and phonics and words.
They were the best times, my mom and me on the couch with her reading me a story and her having me read along with her.
Donna
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Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult - Excellent book, but also a bit disturbing at times. This is a huge book, lots to read.
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Doubled Cross - James Patterson
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last week Children of dune by Frank Herbert na d something by David Eddings. This week Blaze by Stephen King
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Obsession by Jonathan Kellerman
Just finished The Sword of Shanarra by Terry Brooks for the 2nd time.
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the shanarra books were awesome
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I am just starting
John Adams
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So I finished Pride and Prejudice (for the 10,000 time) followed it up with Darcy's Story, which I usually do. And now I am on Becoming Jane Austen -- an Austen biography.
Think I am on a kick? I get on Austen kicks from time to time...
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Right now I'm reading "Stealing Shadows" by Kay Hooper. It's the first book in a trilogy and also a series of books that are all abt different psychics who help the police/FBI find sadistic killers! It can be sorta creepy at times but I like that!
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"Wicked' by Gregory Maguire
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"Wicked' by Gregory Maguire
Do you want Son of Wicked? I will loan it to you.
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Krisna you have just sold me on kay hooper, creep is cool plus i dig the whole psychic +serial killer thing, reminds me of that show millenium!!
oh and to anyone who likes to ahve a good laugh read the dresden files by jim butcher
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"Wicked' by Gregory Maguire
Do you want Son of Wicked? I will loan it to you.
I checked out that along with two others by the same author from the library this week.
oh and to anyone who likes to ahve a good laugh read the dresden files by jim butcher
The Dresden files are amazing! I've pre-ordered the new release in April already. . .
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The Senator's Wife by Sue Miller. Follows two women of different generations through the stories of their marriages. The younger is a newlywed, buying her first home, and is always looking for some sort of "advantage" over her husband. The older one is married to a senator and barely has a marriage. Very interesting read about the friendship that develops between the two women with each other, and with their respective husbans.
I'm also re-reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven after seeing it discussed here a couple of times.
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Dean R. Koontz "Shattered". "Whispers" and "Watchers"
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I was reading a book called "Shadows". VERY good
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I just bought "The sociopath next door", it's about the "crazy" in all of us! I'm in to weird stuff like that:)
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"A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
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Then I'm going to start "Late Nights on Air" by Elizabeth Hay
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The Complete Works of Lewis Carrol
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rereading Catch 22 ( to help my son with a project) and East of Eden same reason
Game of my Life Dallas Cowboys, Coraline, and Ms. Moffett's First Year
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Half way through The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. Marvelous----sad but inspirational.
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It seems like I always have several books going at the same time.
I am currently reading Agatha Christie's "Murder on the Orient Express", one of those classics that I just never got around to, as well as "The World Without Us" by Alan Weisman, a fascinating look at what the world would be like if all of us (humans) were suddenly gone.
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Faith of Our Fathers by John McCain.
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Monrein,
How is A Thousand Splendid Suns? I just read The Kite Runner (same author) this summer and it was one of those books you just couldn't put down for anything.
Haven't had time to make it to the library yet, but that was one of the books on my list to read when I have to bid farewell to my kiddos for summer break.
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I read The Kite Runner this semester, my son had to read it and I wanted to be able to discuss it with him
he was upset when he read the part where the boy is "hurt"
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I'm loving A Thousand Splendid Suns. I've read about two thirds. I think I prefer The Kite Runner (not that either are happy little tales) but both are excellent. My husband spent some time traveling in Afghanistan back in 1972 and was treated very well but it was a totally different time in that country as in so many others.
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Terry Brooks The Elfstones of Shanarra. I have read it before, however I am now reading through the series again.
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I will definitely have to pick up the book then!
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It's great to find fellow bookworms. I just finished World without End ,the sequel to Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. Now I'm reading People of the Book. It's about an ancient illustrated Jewish manuscript that was saved from the war in Bosnia by a Muslim librarian.
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Also read The Kite Runner and loved it. A Thousand Splendid Sons is in my stack on my end table waiting to be read.
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For those who like Khaled Hoseini"s books (Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns) I think you might enjoy three novels by Rohinton Mistry. They are titled "Such a Long Journey,A Fine Balance andFamily Matters.
They are set in India and take us far far away from our own reality. I love his writing.
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Brain candy for me this week - I checked out 6 Sneakie Pie Brown mysteries from the library. Pets who solve murders - total fluff, but sooooo much fun!
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The Wishsong of Shannara by Terry Brooks.
I am rereading the series. I read it years ago.
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I just picked up A Thousand Spledid Suns today at the library! Can't wait to get into it.
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Finally I got around to finishing Marley & Me.
I feel a little better about Dorothy's appalling manners now - she's not such a bad dog after all. :rofl;
I have a whole range of possibilities to choose from next, but should probably pick up My Sister's Keeper as it is borrowed and I need to return it to its owner soon.
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Finally I got around to finishing Marley & Me.
I feel a little better about Dorothy's appalling manners now - she's not such a bad dog after all. :rofl;
I have a whole range of possibilities to choose from next, but should probably pick up My Sister's Keeper as it is borrowed and I need to return it to its owner soon.
I'm reading Marley & Me right now. I have already cried and I am only on chapter 5. He looks so much like my beloved Skye. Fortunately, she was so well behaved, unfortunately, I see so much of my little Scooby in Marley! >:D.
My Sister's Keeper was a really good book. Definitely a tear jerker!
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I love Marley and Me. so glad you are reading the book in case the movie is changed around the author also has some children's books with things Marley did
I already said this somewhere but here goes again I was reading the end at dialysis and was crying and a tech there could not understand why anyone would cry over a book...... I laughed and cried thru the entire book and missed Marley after I finished the book
the author has been on the show where the man goes around training animals because the dog after Marley would chase their geese or ducks
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Goodness - I have cried (and laughed) over many a book! I would hate it if I couldn't enjoy reading the way I do.
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cycobully I know, I always say a good book is like a friend, you miss it when it's over
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The secret.
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Sluff has a secret?
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SHHHHH! Listen for the secret Sluff has. Rumors abound!
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I heard it involves a squirrel. shhhh...
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I'm currently reading: Love My Rifle More Than You - Kayla Williams
The Alphabet of Manliness - Maddox
The Odyssey - Homer
Bravo Two Zero - Andy McNabb
I love reading and always have 3-4 books on the go at the same time.
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I'm still learning to read. Fortunately I discovered Rosetta Stone and I'm learning at a rapid rate.
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Run poor squirrels run! They want to afro you all and put on Oprah's reading book club!
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The Princess Bride - when all all else fails, read the classics. ;D
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I have a number of classics on my shelf, many of which I haven't read. A while back, I actually pulled out Tess of the D'Urbevilles. It was SO depressing. I bawled all the way through it.
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:bump;
Just thought I would give this topic a bump. I'm always interested in what everyone's reading.
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Currently "Notes from a Small Island" by Bill Bryson. It's a funny look at the Brits and their quirkiness which charmed Bryson, an American ex-pat living in England.
Also recently reread "Three Cups of Tea" by Greg Mortenson, non-fiction and fascinating from both a humanistic and political perspective. If you Google the title you can get a sense of this book and the man who despite his flaws (yep just another human) I found inspirational in his reaching out to other cultures. I'd love to have traveled with him.
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I finished First King of Shanarra
I also finished Manta's Gift
I am currently looking down the books in my house for the new read today.
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I finished A Thousand Splendid Suns -- that was very good.
Then I read Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry a young adult book.
Today I finished Cesar's Way: The Natural Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems. This one is by the Dog Whisprer on the National Geographic Channel. Interesting book. I am obviously not my yorkies' pack leader. I will have to work on this...
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I finished First King of Shanarra
I also finished Manta's Gift
I am currently looking down the books in my house for the new read today.
I think one of the best things about reading is that search for the next book!
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What is Buddhism?
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First in His Class
Biography of Bill Clinton
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I'm reading the 4th of of a 5 book series by my favorite author, Stephen King..and for those SK fans, YOU know what series I"m reading!! I'm almost to the end of Wolves of the Calla. The series is The Dark Tower/ The Gunslinger and is my favorite SK story!!! Ya gotta love this guy, he can take me out of the stresses of the days and put me somewhere else in the first page!
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Clear and Present Danger--- Tom Clancy
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I just finished 2 books by Ken Follet
The Pillars of The Earth
World without End
2 excellent reads about medieval times
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Just read "The Road" and now in the middle of "The Blood Meridian" both by Cormick McCarthy. I liked The Road much better...Blood is a tougher read with lots of untranslated spanish sprinkled throughout. Hard to get to freetranslator.com when I'm hooked up. :)
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I am reading The Pillars of The Earth... How did you like World without End Mark?
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I'm reading a fabulous book by John Irving -- Cider House Rules. WOW!
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That is a great book. It's out as a movie too.
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Azazel by Asimov cute little demon >:D
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Finally reading "Angela's Ashes" by McCourt about poor Irish immigrants. My grandmother was a "poor Irish immigrant" so it's
giving me insight on what life must have been like for her. It is a memoir and based on the author's life. I like it, but heart wrenching.
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Oh Sunny , I loved that book. I loved the first paragraph about being miserable
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Just finished, " The Thunderbolt Kid " Bill Bryson
If you are over 55 you will like this Book.
Also " A Walk in the Woods " about His Trip on the Appalachian Trail, I have Read
that One, Four or Five Times.
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Finally reading "Angela's Ashes" by McCourt about poor Irish immigrants. My grandmother was a "poor Irish immigrant" so it's
giving me insight on what life must have been like for her. It is a memoir and based on the author's life. I like it, but heart wrenching.
awesome book for sure!
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The Golden Compass Trilogy.
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The Golden Compass Trilogy.
Great story!
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The Thunderbolt Kid...........by Bill Bryson
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Sunny, have you read "Teacher Man" also by Frank McCourt? It's about his own experiences as a teacher and I think it's made more interesting when you know his background as you do when you've read Angela's Ashes.
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Monrein,
I'll have to put "Teacher Man" on my list for reading. As an ex-teacher, sounds interesting.
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Bonfire of the Vanities, by Tom Wolf
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Finally read My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. Not overly impressed, tbh.
She does tell a good story, though it's all a little soap opera-ish for me. I actually didn't think her actual writing skills were anything to write home about.
It did make me thoroughly depressed however, so clearly the story had some impact. It was difficult to get through, as a lot of the scenes reminded me of my times in hospital and struggles with illness and that just reduced me to tears. Each time I picked it up, I would be in the depths of horrid depression for the rest of the day. But that's more to do with how my coping (or lack thereof?) of some of the tough times I've been through, rather than the book.
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I am reading a current Star Trek book- Exodus. It tells the story of Sarek and Vulcan.
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Just fininshed A Thousand Splended Suns. Great book. Like it as well as Kite Runner. If you are at all interested in learning more about the mid-east and the war in Afghanistan, this is an excellent book.
Cycobully, I loved My Sister's Keeper, but I had a sister two years younger than me,with Down's Syndrome. She died at age 6 months. My entire life I was told she lived in a special private home with other babies like her. I even have a deep memory of visiting her once. Last year, going through my Mother's belongings, I found an envelope with my sister's name on it. It contained her funeral papers and a letter from The State Institution telling Mom what a good baby Peggy Jo was and thanking Mom for donating her baby clothes. I was stunned. All those years Mom kept the secret that she had institutionalized Peggy Jo and never once waved from her story. That was just the way it was in the 50's. The book helped me see Mom's point of view a little more. Yes, it was depressing, but I kept thinking how hard it must of been for my Mom. So, for me, it was very personal. But--- I had to read something light and fluffy after that :rofl;
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Cycobully----I read the title wrong!!!! I was talking about The Memory Keeper's Daughter!! All I can say is that it is 100 egrees today with a heat index of 110 and my mind isn't working! Well, it doesn't work when the weather is cool, either! Sorry for my mixup! :rofl;
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Take The Risk by Ben Carson MD.
rather interesting (a book my cousin bought to read then pass on to someone else)
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The Choice, Nicholas Sparks
I am just starting it, and having a tough time keeping interested, I hope it gets better
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Cycobully----I read the title wrong!!!! I was talking about The Memory Keeper's Daughter!! All I can say is that it is 100 egrees today with a heat index of 110 and my mind isn't working! Well, it doesn't work when the weather is cool, either! Sorry for my mixup! :rofl;
Gosh, they are similar titles!
Sorry to hear about your sister.
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Kim, all of Nicholas Sparks books take place in North Carolina. He uses real places, towns, restaurant names,etc. in his books. So, I always feel like I know exactly what he is talking about. So when he describes things---he is talking about where I live. I haven't read The Choice. I will have to look for it. Tell me if it gets better.
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I'm just starting The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, a Spanish writer. It was reviewed in the Economist some time ago and it's been on my list but I'm just now getting to it. (Written in 2001, translated in 2004).
It got terrific reviews in Spain and Germany.
For example;
"I was enthralled by Zafón's book and it gave me many hours of great delight. Not only because the story is set in a bookshop, not only because it is about the search and the hunt for books and there is a library of forgotten books to be discovered, but because The Shadow of the Wind is suspenseful like a thriller, poetic like a love story, sometimes mysterious like its title, and because it describes the characters and the story line so wonderfully that the reader wants to be a part of it. A paean to reading and to the love of books." SUDDEUTSCHE RUNDFUNK
"Zafónmania....A thriller, a historical novel and a comedy of manners, but above all, the story of a tragic love....with great narrative skill, the author interweaves his plota and enigmas, like a set of Russian dolls in an unforgettable story about the secrets of the heart and the enchantment of books, maintaining the suspense right to the very last page." LA VANGUARDIA
"The publishing phenomenon of the last year and a half". EL PAIS
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I'm reading the SHAD IRELAND FOUNDATION it's a book of the life of Mr. Shad Ireland, he was told at da young age of ten that he would have to go on dialysis he had 2 failed transplants he has gone on to become a triathlete i encourage everyone to read he book
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Monrein,
I read "Shadow of The Wind" and loved it. The author has such beautiful and descriptive writing skills. Some of the things he wrote
had me flat out laughing because he was so good at getting it right. I loaned it out and never saw it again. Rule of thumb: Don't loan
out good books unless you put your name in large letters on the inside. Even then, there is no guarantee of getting it back.
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:rofl; Sunny, my husband and I argue fairly frequently about the issue of lending our books. When I love a book I want to lend it, he won't....unless I promise that if it doesn't return I'll hound the borrower to death. I keep a little list of where the books are so I can kind of keep track over time.
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I started on Evelyn Waugh, I had never read him. Just read Vile bodies last night. Pretty good! I have a couple of his books waiting to be read.
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I just loan the books with the idea if I never see them again it's okay.
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My 6 year old grandson was looking at my husbands wall of books and said "Papa, have you read all these books?" He answered "most of them". Zeke then said "maybe you need to give them to other people so they can read them!". I thought that was a wise statement from a child. I love sharing books. If I get them back, great. If not, I hope they passed it on to the next person.
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I sometimes get my books back, sometimes I don't. That's okay. As long as they get read. That's what books are for, anyway.
To be read and enjoyed. I really need to go through my books and get rid of some. Anyone like mysteries?? Serious, if you do, I'll send some!!
Just PM me!
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Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.
"Scattered wits take a long time picking up. . ."
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The View From Here by Brian Keith Jackson
The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
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I finished The Scions of ShanarrA and am now into The Druid of Shanarra
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mary mary by james patterson
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Just finished Dear John by Nicholas Sparks. Very good book!! :thumbup; :thumbup;
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I finished The Druid of Shanarra and read today The Elf Queen of Shanarra. I am on a Terry Brooks tear lately. I found hardback copies of his next series in the thrift store cheap.
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I just finished "Bad Girls of the Bible".
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... Last week read Water for Elephants; about a small circus in the 30's and 40's. It was really good, too. ...
Want to put in a second on this book. I read it a couple of months ago and my husband couldn't put it down when he read it. I'd add that it has great character development and a highly unique (to me) perspective - told in part by an elderly man. I will always look at aging a different way after reading this book.
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Water for Elephants is an amazing book. I've loaned it to several friends and we all loved it. I could taste the Depression era and the circus life.
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Richard Bach.. Illusions
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Richard Bach.. Illusions
I read that book, along with the continuation of it.
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The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein.
I love dogs and books that feature dogs as main charters. :)
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Richard Bach.. Illusions
Way to go Kim(Alice)...I first read this book in college some 20 years ago and have read it once a year ever since.
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I am re-reading The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. I love that book.
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I hope you are reading it out loud so Queen Ruth can also enjoy The Hobbit
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Actually Twirl, we take turns. Sometimes I read to Ruth and sometimes she reads to me.
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The Husband by Dean Koontz - :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup;
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Kitchen confidential -- Anthony Bourdain
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Danielle Steele's HRM-- sucked rocks! The lady used to be able to write.
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Danielle Steele's HRM-- sucked rocks! The lady used to be able to write.
anymore -she just seems to be 'churning them out'- (but I will still read them anyway)
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Amazing Grace- Yes another D. Steele. I must be nuts!
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Coraline Neil Gaiman :o
Game of My life Jean-Jacques Taylor memorable stories of cowboys football (okay, I am not really reading it, my husband bought it for me and he thinks I ) :secret;
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am) left out a word :rofl;
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I just finished Armageddon Revisited by Kurt Vonnegut. It's stories and essays that weren't published before his death. I love all his work, but I think this may be the best. It also had some of his artwork in it.
EDITED: Fixed format error - okarol/admin
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Just finished "The Birth House" by Ami McKay, in the middle of "The Blood Spilt" by some Swedish crime writer, and up next will be "Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follett.
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Just finished "Sundays at Tiffany's" by James Patterson. SOOOOOOO GOOD....I couldn't put it down. I read it in 2 days.
I'm reading "Black Creek Crossing" by John Saul now.
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Pieces Of My Heart by Robert J Wagner
A good book & interesting thing about it is not on sale yet. Release date is 9/23/08
What I bought on half.com was (& this is printed in a black circle on the soft cover)
Uncorrected Proof not for sale.
There are no pictures though. I'm sure when the book comes out those copies will have photos.
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I highly recommend Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind.
I am currently reading Terry Brooks Shannara Series I am into the Ilse Witch book now.
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Just finished Val McDermid's "A Place of Execution". Very good, with some great unexpected twists at the end.
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Love love love Val McDermid. You're so right about that particular title.
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I'm a bit behind on my reading and I started "The Secret" today by Rhonda Byrne.
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I used to read all the time and now I stay on IHD all the time
last thing read
Sluff in the hospital
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"The Shack" great book...Boxman
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Just started reading The Million Dollar Mermaid
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"The Shack" great book...Boxman
This was a good book but I was careful who I shared it with. You would really have to know your Bible to extract what he is trying to say.
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"The Shack" great book...Boxman
This was a good book but I was careful who I shared it with. You would really have to know your Bible to extract what he is trying to say.
It sure gave me a differant outlook, in a good way...Boxman
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GONE WITH THE WIND :rofl; :rofl; :rofl;
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the friday night knitting club :clap;
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I just got a new log cabin quilting book. Not so much reading but looking at pictures. Some of them are just breath taking. :cuddle;
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w&w, one of my favorite things is to look thru are quilt books. And cook books. Both inspire me ---- and then I rest because I get tired just thinking of sewing or cooking :rofl;
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paris, I have become addicted to Paula Deen. I want her to design a kitchen for me. Like that's going to happen. :rofl;
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i'm always fascinated by paula deans recipes, but if i ate like she cooked i'd weigh 300 pounds. :rofl;
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Twirl, are you REALLY reading Gone With the Wind?
I'm reading a beautiful book: Under the Tuscan Sun. Ahhhhh......
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Anna, Under the Tuscan Sun was a great book. I enjoyed the movie very much. You kind of get lost in it and you become part of it. I loved the workers who helped her get the house back in shape.
W&W, I LOVE Paula Deen. I want to be her! A couple of years ago, my husband took me to Savannah and we had dinner at her restaurant. It was a lovely evening. Food was incredible--- I think I wattled out of there! When Len can travel (soon!), that would be a great trip for you two. I like her cookbooks because they are real foods we all like.
Twirl, one summer I read Gone With the Wind and Hawaii. I think they were the biggest books on the shelf! Maybe Gone With the Wind isn't a good idea right now----Ike might think you want him to take you with him when he blows thru! :rofl;
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I was joking---- that book is too long and "frankly, I don't give a damn" :rofl;
W&W call me----- I sound just like Paula Deen--- Ya'll grits howdy shucks peeeecan pie
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Damn twirl, your Paula and your hubby is Johnny. Lord, I don't know if I can take it. :rofl;
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we make for a weird couple :rofl;
you should see our children
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I like watching Paula's show but man she eats some unhealthy stuff. I think they sound delicious but way too many calories for me.
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The lady loves her butter!! I use substitutes to make it better for us. Definately not a diet one could eat everyday!
Twirl, around here you can tell if someone is a local by the way the say "pecan"!
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I just finished reading Henry and Mudge by Cynthia Rylant. It got rave reviews from both of my second grade classes. If you have an English mastiff it is the cutest story. I want that type of dog just so I can name him Mudge. My husband's name is Henry.
Next week we will be reading, Henry and Mudge and the Green Time, Henry and Mudge and the Careful Cousin, Henry and Mudge and the Wild Goose Chase.. and the list goes on.
Then we will finish our Henry and Mudge unit with a Henry and Mudge party. Maybe I can get a parent to make dog-bone shaped cookies or something.
Once school starts, I do not have much time for "adult" books.
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I love Little Critter books
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I just finished "The Alchemist", by Paulo Coelho.
Don't know if it has been mentioned here before, but it is a wonderful discovery.Glad I read it.
Very philosophical and contemplative. About a boy searching for his "Personal Legend" and the journey he takes to achieve it.
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Inherit the Wind
The Perfect Storm
Hurricane
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Twirl, I am glad you are maintaining your wonderful sense of humor! Keep safe and keep us updated :cuddle;
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David 13 better get back to IHD post
you were in an accident :rofl;
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:bump;
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Thanks for buming this David
I am finishing up Joyride.
On to a Koontz book next - just which one hmmmmmm
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The power of kindness.
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Skinny Bitch - A book on why to become a Vegetarian...
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dean kootz - the good guy
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I just finished "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle". I found it OK but I had higher expectations of it.
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I am reading Todd McCaffrey's new book DragonHeart.
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I just finished Fiet's Vase. A collection of stories about the Holocaust.
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I am reading Temple Grandin's Animals Make us Human. The author is a woman with autism who has used her unique perspective to work with animals.
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I am reading Todd McCaffrey's new book DragonHeart.
I love those! His or his mother's. . .
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Currently I am staring at a computer screen! Oh wait, you didnt mean right this instant....gotcha.
I just finished Marley and Me...thank goodness I didnt go to the theater and see the movie...what an ending!
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I'm reading "The Zoo Keeper's Wife" a WWII story.
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The Twilight series....
I have an obsessed 14year old, so I wanted to know what all the fuss was about.
Ohhh Edward :-* :-* :rofl;
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rereading some of The Daily Coyote
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John Edwards' one last time'- I am a skeptic, but right now I can wish :'(
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Anyone ever read any of Ursula Hegi's books? I just finished "The Worst Thing I've Done" and really enjoyed it. I've also read her books "Floating in My Mother's Palm" and "Stones From a River." Her stories are mostly about complex human relationships. This last one is set in the U.S., while the other two are set in Germany. Hegi, who is of German descent, touches on issues relating to the Holocaust and Nazism, but always through the eyes of "average people."
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Flat Earth: The history of an infamous idea, By Christine Garwood. Interesting study of flat earth proponents, and the enduring social structures that they adapt and create in order to maintain their theoretical base. It helps you think and consider counter- cultural thinking and approaches.
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Anyone ever read any of Ursula Hegi's books? I just finished "The Worst Thing I've Done" and really enjoyed it. I've also read her books "Floating in My Mother's Palm" and "Stones From a River." Her stories are mostly about complex human relationships. This last one is set in the U.S., while the other two are set in Germany. Hegi, who is of German descent, touches on issues relating to the Holocaust and Nazism, but always through the eyes of "average people."
I have read her books. She is a stupendous writer.
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I've read "Stones from a River" and "The Vision of Emma Blau" but now I'll try to find the other two you mentioned Pelagia. Hegi simplifies nothing about the human condition and makes me think in new ways. Good suggestion for people who love to read. :thumbup;
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I've read Stones from a River. Loved it. I'm on Spring break now.. might have to run by the library tomorrow to find something to read.
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I'll have to get "The Vision of Emma Blau" because I have not read that one. I was in a book club for the last year and I decided to quit. They were reading books that I just could not get excited about and at the same time I have all these books sitting around that I want to read. I also just finished David Sedaris' "Me Talk Pretty One Day," which is pretty funny. Now I am reading "Einstein's Dreams," which is interesting, maybe a bit metaphorical. I love reading books by foreign writers - South America's like Gabriel García Márquez and Isabelle Allende the "magic realists" and there have been a bunch of good books in the last decade by Asian writers or Asian Americans. The last one I read was Snowflower and the Secret Fan.
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That's so funny Pelagia. My cousin recently gave me the 6 CD set of David Sedaris' "Me Talk Pretty One Day". I confess that I've only listened to the first one so far but it's pretty good.
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I just finished "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle". I found it OK but I had higher expectations of it.
I agree, I am still trying to get in the grove of this book
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Salt: A World History (http://www.amazon.com/Salt-World-History-Mark-Kurlansky/dp/0142001619)
It's interesting. The production and distribution of salt has been a pillar of all economies since prehistoric times. You had to have it to preserve food. Without being salted food - meat and fish mostly - will spoil in a few days. Unlike the production of food which is widely dispersed salt production was centered in certain areas which made it easy for governments to control and tax. Salt funded the development of political entities.
I've just been reading the role salt played in the Civil War. One of the South's problems was that the North kept attacking their salt works. Without salt the South had a hard time supplying food to the soldiers.
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That's so funny Pelagia. My cousin recently gave me the 6 CD set of David Sedaris' "Me Talk Pretty One Day". I confess that I've only listened to the first one so far but it's pretty good.
He's a tad off kilter, but then he goes to France. You'll love that part.
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Salt: A World History (http://www.amazon.com/Salt-World-History-Mark-Kurlansky/dp/0142001619)
It's interesting. The production and distribution of salt has been a pillar of all economies since prehistoric times. You had to have it to preserve food. Without being salted food - meat and fish mostly - will spoil in a few days. Unlike the production of food which is widely dispersed salt production was centered in certain areas which made it easy for governments to control and tax. Salt funded the development of political entities.
I've just been reading the role salt played in the Civil War. One of the South's problems was that the North kept attacking their salt works. Without salt the South had a hard time supplying food to the soldiers.
Some irony in this, Bill! Have you read Guns, Germs and Steel? My husband liked it, and it's still on my list...
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I bought Twilight...Oh my God! I do not believe it! :sarcasm;
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Salt: A World History (http://www.amazon.com/Salt-World-History-Mark-Kurlansky/dp/0142001619)
It's interesting. The production and distribution of salt has been a pillar of all economies since prehistoric times. You had to have it to preserve food. Without being salted food - meat and fish mostly - will spoil in a few days. Unlike the production of food which is widely dispersed salt production was centered in certain areas which made it easy for governments to control and tax. Salt funded the development of political entities.
I've just been reading the role salt played in the Civil War. One of the South's problems was that the North kept attacking their salt works. Without salt the South had a hard time supplying food to the soldiers.
Some irony in this, Bill!
If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles
Sun Tzu: The Art of War
Have you read Guns, Germs and Steel? My husband liked it, and it's still on my list...
Oh yeah. And Collapse. I think he made a strong case in both books but less strong in Collapse.
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I just read Jihad in Brooklyn. It was about a terrorist plot before 9/11.
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I'm currently reading, "Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man, by Steve Harvey. It's about what men really think about love, relationships, intimacy and commitment. I thought I could use some tips in this department. Plus he's a funny guy!
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here kitty, kitty
please let me know if the book or the movie is the best
I always find the book to be so much better than the movie
The Pretty Fat
The Well and the Mine
Coraline it is a children's book -- but it is creepy
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Got two going a the moment - "Inkspell" and "A Game of Thrones" Both are good.
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What I would like to see is something about the book and if you recommend it.
Title, Author, Fiction or non,
The Zookeeper's Wife, by Diane Ackerman: A War Story based on a true story. Historical WWII story about the Zoo in Warsaw and it's function in the underground saving Jews from murder. It was pretty good except the writer is also a poet and so it was a little too descriptive. How many ways can you say it was raining outside? I get a little tired of that.
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Rerun's book review :cheer:
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anyone into downloading audiobooks? I think I am going to get one from Itunes and listen to it in dialysis
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Anything new and interesting on audio for i-tunes is pricey!
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I am reading "Waiting to Exhale" - saw the movie years ago, the book is pretty funny.
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Bones by Jonathan Kellerman
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I always find the book to be so much better than the movie
Personally, I think movies are unable to deliver the same nuances as books.
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At the moment I am reading White Lies by Jayne Ann Kerntz
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Trigger Men
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I am reading Becoming a better You... it is a self help book..
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One of my techs left "Marley and Me" at the center for me, so I read that today. Very sweet!
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Codgerspace by Alan Dean Foster
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I need a good book...any suggestions? A friend of mine told me to pick up Shogun or King Rat by James Calvell anyone read either of them?
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Go get Fairy Godmother by Mercedes Lackey... It is a different take on a Cinderella story.
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I read Shogun quite a long time ago- it was an excellent epic story. Richly detailed, capable of transporting you to a different time and place. I would highly recommend it- it is a very serious read.
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Thanks glitter. I plan on picking it up, and if I really like it reading the series. I love history so I am kinda excited.
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Found Christopher Paolini's "Brisinger" at a second hand store. I've got the first two in the series. Now I have to decide if I want to dive in, or dig the other two out of storage and start all over!
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My sister was sweet when Brisinger first came out she bought me a hard cover copy. I found the other two in thrift stores in hard back. I am prepared. We could read them and discuss them. Hehehehe.
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What is this book about? I don't think I have ever heard about it.
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ahhh! part of the Eragon series.. duh
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"The Last Lecture" By Randy Pausch and "90 Minutes in Heaven" By Don Piper with Cecil Murphey....
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My daughter was given "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" By John Boyne for her birthday last week.
I took a look at this morning and couldn't put it down. I loved it. Definitely worth a read. :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup;
Our Adult world can be a nasty place.
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I just finished "Stones From A River" and "Floating In My Mother's Palm" by Ursula Hegi. I got them based on comments in this thread. I bought them used from Amazon for about $4.00 each. I liked both books but probably preferred "Stones" the most. Currently I'm reading another of Jodi Picoult's novels...Songs of the Humpback Whale. It's been more difficult to read because it's written in a sort of backward sequence; quite different from most of the others of her books that I've read or really anything else that I've read before. I'll get through it but can't say I've enjoyed it as much as some of her others.
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I just started The Appeal by John Grisham.
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I just started Dear John by Sparks, and am still reading The Art of Dying by Peter Fenwick
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My daughter was given "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" By John Boyne for her birthday last week.
I took a look at this morning and couldn't put it down. I loved it. Definitely worth a read. :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup;
Our Adult world can be a nasty place.
That one was pretty intense for a kid's book!
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Fiction: I'm working through the Lincoln Rhyme novels by Jeffrey Deaver.
Non-fiction: I just finished The Sociopath Next Door (gave me the heebie jeebies) and now I'm on to Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell.
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My daughter was given "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" By John Boyne for her birthday last week.
I took a look at this morning and couldn't put it down. I loved it. Definitely worth a read. :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup;
Our Adult world can be a nasty place.
That one was pretty intense for a kid's book!
I agree.
My daughter has just turned 15 and has already read many "war themed" books. Although it is still categorized as a children's book. In Ireland it won two Irish book Awards, Children's Book of the Year and Peoples Choice Book of the Year. It has also been short listed for many international awards, was a Top 10 bestseller in the UK and many European countries, reached Number 1 in Australia and was a New York Times Bestseller. I don't think anyone under 15 would understand half of what is going on in the story.
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I've read all the Lincoln Rhyme novel that Willow mentioned. good reads, very suspenceful since
Deaver writes in so many changes that you can't guess the twists and turns.
When I read non fiction I usually read Civil War and World World II books. I just started Retribution by
Max Hastings which details the last two years of the war in Asia.
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"Bimbos of the Death Sun" by Sharyn McCrumb. Gotta love the name. It's actually a murder mystery, set in a sci-fi convention, and it's hysterically funny - or at least to me, since I have friends heavy into cons.
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I am reading My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. Interesting so far.
-
Cemetery Dance by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
Confessor by Terry Goodkind
-
Audition by Barbara Walters. Interesting, a little slow but I keep reading.
-
Just fininshed a great political mystery, "Child 44" by Tom Rob Smith. It's set in the last years of the
Stalin regime in the Soviet Union. It's violent at times, but it really gives you an idea of the mind-set
of the times.
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Just finished a great political mystery, "Child 44" by Tom Rob Smith. It's set in the last years of the
Stalin regime in the Soviet Union. It's violent at times, but it really gives you an idea of the mind-set
of the times.
That sounds very interesting and reminds me of a real Soviet-mystery I tried to figure out many years ago:
I came across the poetry of a Soviet literary critic Yuli Daniel, who also was a well known translator.
In February 1966 Yuli Daniel and his friend Andrey Sinyavsky were sentenced to forced labour at a trial in Moscow
where access to the courtroom was "severely restricted". Although the trial supposedly took place behind closed doors, with neither the public nor foreigners allowed in, only questionable fragmentary evidence ever reached the outside world,
but strangely enough, a verbatim record of the trial did leak out.
I happened upon Yuli Daniels poetry quite by chance and was taken by its poignancy immediately. He had composed it whilst in prison awaiting trial.
What I read about the trial, I felt was staged. Something felt not quite right.
The defendants appeared overly confident, in what surely must have been a very worrying situation. According to reports
mysteriously published in the West the defendants showed a boldness in their defence such that their replies occasionally bordered on jest and even insult.
This attitude I failed to comprehend as it must have been quite clear to them that their lives were hanging in the balance, as was the security
and welfare of their families. Like a play, the documents of the trial included moments of farce and drama. Both Yuli Daniel and Sinyavsky maligned
the work of Pushkin, Mayakowsky and Shakespeare and with regard to Pushkin that was surely tantamount to blasphemy in a Russian-Soviet law court.
I began to feel unconvinced that the trial was properly conducted, which led me to wonder if the trial really existed at all.
After I had read the trial's transcript, I was left with a distinct feeling of discomfort.
This reported case aroused a storm of protest in the West and many Western intellectuals like Pablo Neruda, Sartre and many others
signed petitions to support Yuli Daniel and Andrey Sinyavsky.
I am still wondering whether this was a "political media-spoof" going out of hand and whether Yuli Daniel and Andrey Sinyavsky really existed or not?
I still don't know the answers to this mystery.
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This weekend I read "A Thousand Splendid Suns" , which was written by the same author as "The Kite Runner". Excellent book - I highly recommend it. It's a heartbreakingly beautiful story; the author is a wonderful storyteller.
:thumbup; :thumbup; :thumbup;
I am currently reading "Bringing Down the House" - it's about a group of MIT students that beat the odds in Vegas playing blackjack.
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Jill, I loved both Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns. Both wonderful and taught me more about that area. :thumbup;
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"A Secret Garden" and "Stuart Little". I was in the mood for some classic kids stuff.
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:bump;
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Odd Hours by Dean Koontz (Odd Thomas is featured in this book, maybe 5th in a series...?
My favorite character to come along in ages!)
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I have picked up Hells Aquarium- part of the Meg Series.
Maria and I went to two bookstores while I was in milwaukee. I mailed home two boxes of books! Large flat rate boxes. Around 20 books. Yes I am spoiled!
-
The Godfather Returns - by Mark Winegardner
very interesting so far, nothing like the movie sequel. Almost as good as he original.
-
After Long Silence (a memoir) by Helen Fremont
True story
These sisters grew up Catholic but always felt odd. Never had Grandparents or relatives only one aunt who lived in Italy. They started finding clues that their parents were in a Jewish concentration camp in Poland during WWII and came to the United States to start a new life and leave the old one behind.... far behind.
-
I just re-read Half Blood Prince as the movie comes out on Wednesday. It was so good I re-read Deathly Hallows and now am re-reading The Order of the Phoenix.
-
The man who loved China, by Simon Winchester
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The Priest. Also about concentration camps and the Jews trying to connect their lineage from present day to before Christ. It is part mystery part history. Very good so far. I think I will read Rerun's suggestion next. :thumbup;
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Our Mutual Friend - love Charles Dickens!
Also, my Spanish tutor is helping me read short stories in Spanish by famous authors. We are reading "Vultures without Feathers" by Peruvian author Julio Ramon Ribeyro. It is beyond heartbreaking.
I have been on a quest for about 10 years to read at least one work (preferrably the most famous one) by each Nobel laureate in literature. I do not like to read poetry in translation, so I told my Spanish tutor that I have avoided Octavio Paz so far. She recommended his book "Labyrinth of Solitude" saying it was a masterwork on the history and culture of Mexico, and that I would also get a feel for his poetry from it. I think once I finish Dickens, I will check that one out next.
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Haunted Idol
Biography of Cary Grant
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Front Yard Gardens
-
Hell's Aquarium
-
Last two days I have read two books.
James Patterson : The 8th Confession
and
Luanne Rice : The Geometry of Sisters
-
Kit: I know you like science-fiction so maybe you would like the book I just finished. The title is
"The City and The City" by China Mieville. It's a combination of sci-fi and detective fiction. I
throughly enjoyed it.
-
I will look for it.
I am currently reading Christine Feehan's Mind Game about her Ghostwalkers.
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I will look for it.
I am currently reading Christine Feehan's Mind Game about her Ghostwalkers.
Steamy stuff, kit!
I'm in he middle of "The Sweet Potato Queens' Book of Love" and it's absolutely hysterical. Here's an excerpt. . .
"We all read, with dismay, the sad story of a good woman wronged in south Mississippi who took that option and made a complete mess of the entire thing. See, first she shot him. Well, she saw right off the bat that that was a mistake because then she had this enormous dead body to deal with. He was every bit as much trouble to her dead as he had ever been alive, and he was getting more so all the time. So then she made another snap decision to cut him up in pieces and dispose of him a hunk at a time. More poor planning. First she didn't have the proper carving utensils on hand and hacking him up proved to be just a major chore, plus it made just this colossal mess on her off-white shag living room carpet. It's getting to be like the Cat in the Hat now, only Thing Two ain't showing up to help with the cleanup. She finally gets him into portable-size portions, and wouldn't you know it? Cheap trash bags. Can anything else possible go wrong for this poor woman? So the lesson here is obvious - for want of a small chain saw, a roll of Visqueen, and some genuine Hefty bags, she is in Parchman Penitentiary today instead of New Orleans, where she'd planned to go with her new boyfriend. Preparation is everything. However, if you have been particular, you shouldn't need to be prepared to this extreme. Try to avoid getting involved with somebody who's gonna need killing before it's over. It may seem to you that that narrows the field somewhat, but be diligent. "
Now there's the best dating advice I've ever heard!
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Funny Jbeany! I may have to get that one!!!
I'm reading "The Great Influenza" by John M. Berry
It is about the flu of 1918 killing as many as 100 million people world wide. It is interesting so far.
-
I am just about to start Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.
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I am just about to start Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.
I remember my coworkers raving about this book. Let me know what you think and maybe I'll check it out.
-
I really enjoyed Water for Elephants. It felt like a trip back and forth in time and I couldn't put it down.
-
K I am out I need a book that is easy reading. Any one have any ideas?
-
Currently reading To Live is to Die, the Cliff Burton biography.
-
Manda, try something by Lauri Notaro. I just finished her "We thought you would be prettier" and laughed all the way through it.
-
thanks jbeany I will do that
-
Water for Elephants was a good book. :thumbup;
I finished Patchwork yesterday (about the cotton mills in the Carolinas) and today have started Three Cups of Tea.
-
DragonBones
-
razor sharp by Fern Michels, the continuation of the sisterhood series
and
The Bridegroom by Linda leal Miller
both pretty good books.
-
Oh, geeze. You guys make me jealous. I wish I had time for fiction! When I retire.....
So I'm working on a little tome by a Montessori parent: Montessori Madness!
-
I lost my current Mercedes Lackey book. No idea where it is!
-
I just finished "The Memory Keepers Daughter" -very good!
Also read last week while on vacation "Playing for Pizza" by John Grisham
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I am so happy to read that so many are reading/have recently read Water for Elephants. It's one of my favorites. It gave me a good perspective on growing old.
Monrein - did you ever finish listening to the David Sedaris book on tape? I want to know if the part about taking French class made you laugh.
A few months ago I read Daughter of the Queen Sheba by Jackie Lyden. Made me feel completely sane!
This one helped too -- After reading a piece about Nora Ephron (director of Julie and Julia) I learned that she wrote a book during the 1980s called Heartburn. It's about her divorce from Carl Bernstein (of Woodward and Bernstein, Watergate fame). I knew it would be funny and then there I was in a dusty old book store, checking under the Es in fiction just for the heck of it, and suddenly there was the book 7 feet up in the air calling to me. It is very funny and sad and ascerbic -- and perfectly appropriate for my state of mind this summer.
Now I am reading Zorro by Isabel Allende.
Aleta - here's what a friend told me. "Put a book on the table next to your bed. Even if all you can read is just a couple of pages every night it's worth it." Some nights I don't even get through two pages, but at least now I am reading for enjoyment.
-
I am reading Christ: A Crisis in the Life of God by Jack Miles, the author of God: A Biography.
His angle is to look at the central figures in the Bible (God in the first book, Jesus in the second) as characters in a story, and, as he explains in the first book, analyze them the way a person might analyze the actions of Hamlet. He is more than qualified to analyze the Bible (familiar, possibly even fluent in the original languages of the Bible, a Jesuit Seminarian for 10 years, a prof of theology currently). I would recommend the first book. This second one does not resonate as much, but I still like it, though I'm getting lost in many of the details.
He throws all sorts of interesting trivia in between the more profound sections, like apparently we should technically be calling Jesus 'Joshua', but his name was mistranslated from the original Greek long ago. Who knew?
-
Sounds interesting Cariad...... I am readiing about our National Parks here in the US and how they were formed. I like Geology and the development of mountains like the Cascades is very interesting. Anyway I think the tread is great and Iam glad I found it.... I will be reading alot more now that I am starting D.....
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I am borrowing a copy of The Shack tomorrow. A bunch of people said it is pretty good.
-
Phoenix Transformed by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory. The third book in a trilogy of science fiction fantasy.
-
I just finished Into Thin Air by John Krakauer, which was perfect because I feel like I climbed Mt. Everest this summer!
Now I'm reading Into the Wild by the same author. I can hardly put his books down.
I'm planning to his book read Under the Banner of Heaven and read Eiger Dreams, last winter, so I think I'll have read everything he's written soon.
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I just finished Sarah Morgan's Civil War Diary. Thought it was going to be tough to get through (is pretty lengthy) but flew through it. Quaint period language and very interesting perceptions of a young confederate girl.
-
I just finished Just Take My Heart by Mary Higgins Clark, Excellent!
I am going to start The Husband by Dean Koontz now.
-
I'm reading 'Enslaved'... True stories of modern day slavery....
Very disturbing... Talk about Man's inhumanity to Man....
-
Just finished Heartsick, Sweetheart, and Evil at Heart by Chelsea Cain. Very entertaining serial killer stuff. I am eagerly awating Under the Dome by Stephen King.
-
The Shack by William P. Young
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I am going to start The Husband by Dean Koontz now.
That was sooo good!
Did you read Odd Thomas by Koontz? There were 4 in a series, best character EVER!
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Working my way through lee child 'jack reacher' series. Waiting patiently for the new author to finish robert jordan wheel of time series. I'm a huge 'EPIC' reader. Love sci-fi fantasy so the reacher novels are a bit of a diversion. Not bad. kind of Rambo x Bourne.
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I finished "The Shack" awhile ago. It was good: very sad.
I am reading "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. It is VERY good so far.
-
'CHART THROB' by Ben Elton. It's a satire based on TV talent shows like X factor. Hilarious :rofl; :rofl;
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Ah, Ben Elton does great satire in general, but especially based on reality TV. I have already forgotten the name of the last one of his I read, but it was a Big Brother satire.
Obviously he has other fantastic books, too.
I have gone back to reading a book I put aside for a while - it's the Cliff Burton biography. I have just finished the chapter about the bus crash that killed him, and had to put it down again for a while. It made me cry. :'(
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Finished "The Road" EXCELLENT book.
-
Deadly Embrace - Jackie Collins
-
I finished "The Shack" awhile ago. It was good: very sad.
I am reading "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. It is VERY good so far.
I just about bought this one today.... I love a sad book! (The Shack)
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I'm about to get off my computer and read the Bible, specifically the book of Amos.
I'm thinking I need to read The Shack after reading all your comments!
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Ah, Ben Elton does great satire in general, but especially based on reality TV. I have already forgotten the name of the last one of his I read, but it was a Big Brother satire.
Obviously he has other fantastic books, too.
I have gone back to reading a book I put aside for a while - it's the Cliff Burton biography. I have just finished the chapter about the bus crash that killed him, and had to put it down again for a while. It made me cry. :'(
Cycobully I read that one recently. It's called 'Dead Famous' murder in the big brother house live on tv!
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I just bought, "The Historian" by Elizabeth Kostova
-
Half Broke Horses, Jeannette Walls
-
strong at the broken places
-
Finally got over the sad bit and finished reading "To Live Is To Die" and am now re-reading "Lolita", which is disturbing in a whole different way!!
-
'Dealing with people you can't stand'... Dr Rick Brinkman and Dr Rick Kirschner...
I'm learning SO much from this one...
-
'The Information Officer', Mark Mills. A killer is loose in war torn Malta in 1942.
-
Oh man, I wish I had time for fiction. I would be deep into the Lost Symbol if I did.
Right now I'm reading The Brain that Changed Itself.
-
I finished True Detectives by Jonathan Kellerman in the car yesterday.
-
"The Tale of Desperaux." Kid's books are the best distraction!
-
Lady Chatterley's Lover by D.H. Lawrence.
I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. It was, in fact, quite daring for its day! :shy;
-
I finished a brand new book. The Law of Nines by Terry Goodkind.
-
Just finished Three Victories and a Defeat: The Rise and Fall of the First British Empire by Brendan Simms. An in depth study of British Foreign and Military Policy from the Glorious Revolution(1688) to the American Revolution(1783). Dense and chewy, but really good.
-
Right now I'm reading The Brain that Changed Itself.
That title is interesting enough that I am going to google it.
-
I'm into "Foreign Body" by Robin Cook - an excellent tale of surgical tourism, evil health funds, and murderous nurses. Ideal reading during a D session.
-
"The Glass Bead Game" by Herman Hess
-
Just got through all nine of the sookie stackhouse books (yeh i'm a trueblood fan....)
About to start on 'a gathering storm' which is the latest Wheel of Time book. (the one written after Robert Jordans death). Feels weird reading a new book, written by a new author in a huge series that i've been reading for over a decade and a half. Only in the first chapter though. Seems ok. Then i think i'll give cathch 22 another read (my all time favourite book!)
-
"The Glass Bead Game" by Herman Hess
I have been wondering about the “Glass Bead Game”,
because it seems so very untypical.
Hermann Hesse's other books (Siddhartha, Steppenwolf etc) indicate a
search to “find a place in the world”,
a“search to find understanding & contentment” etc,
but the “Glass Bead Game” appears,
as if it was written by someone else:
The writer of the “Glass Bead Game” seems to welcome “elitism”.
This I find difficult to understand,
because Hermann Hesse apppears to have been
fighting against this “elitism” all his life...
What do you think?
-
"The Glass Bead Game" by Herman Hess
I have been wondering about the “Glass Bead Game”,
because it seems so very untypical.
Hermann Hesse's other books (Siddhartha, Steppenwolf etc) indicate a
search to “find a place in the world”,
a“search to find understanding & contentment” etc,
but the “Glass Bead Game” appears,
as if it was written by someone else:
The writer of the “Glass Bead Game” seems to welcome “elitism”.
This I find difficult to understand,
because Hermann Hesse apppears to have been
fighting against this “elitism” all his life...
What do you think?
It is not what one would expect of Herman Hess on the surface. Yet, Hess uses the eleite society to show that devotion to study is not in and of itself a way to understanding the meaning of life. In this regard it remains true to Hess.
-
I'm reading Blink, by Malcolm Gladdwell. It is about how we make snap judgments based on what we already know.
-
One final thing about the Glass Bead Game or Das Glasperlenspiel. The orginal title on german. Lesen Sie es auf Deutsch in der Schule. Wie alle Hess arbeitet, fügt er mit der Suche nach Erleuchtung. (orginally read it in german in college. Like all Hess works, it deals with finding enlightenment.)
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I think that in all his earlier books (especially in Siddhartha and Steppenwolf)
Hesse explains a philosophical thought:
that we are all equal,
despite our different background, different individual thoughts, different talents etc.
But in the "Glass Bead Game" an isolated intellectual "Elite" seem to set themselves
above the rest of the world & I feel Hesse's welcoming attitude toward this "Elitism"
contradicts all his earlier thoughts and works.
-
I think that in all his earlier books (especially in Siddhartha and Steppenwolf)
Hesse explains a philosophical thought:
that we are all equal,
despite our different background, different individual thoughts, different talents etc.
But in the "Glass Bead Game" an isolated intellectual "Elite" seem to set themselves
above the rest of the world & I feel Hesse's welcoming attitude toward this "Elitism"
contradicts all his earlier thoughts and works.
To me, Hess is saying the elite, though they think they are sayting to other "Hey we are superior because we know something you don't", don't.
-
Sorry, I did not want to upset you,
I always hoped I would one day communicate with someone about Hesse,
so I might solve the puzzle:
if books like “Siddhartha” and “Steppenwolf” were written by Hesse,
& also the “Glass Pearl Game” is supposed to be written by Hesse
... but I am not convinced....
...because when I read it, it sounded to me as if it was written by someone like Hess...
-
The Law of Nines by Terry Goodkind
The Loch by Steve Alten
-
Sorry, I did not want to upset you,
I always hoped I would one day communicate with someone about Hesse,
so I might solve the puzzle:
if books like “Siddhartha” and “Steppenwolf” were written by Hesse,
& also the “Glass Pearl Game” is supposed to be written by Hesse
... but I am not convinced....
...because when I read it, it sounded to me as if it was written by someone like Hess...
You didn't upset me. You raise a very valid point.
-
Thank you for your kind words, fc2821.
As I've grown older I have become more keenly aware
of anomalies in several authors works.
I feel these anomalies need an explanation
and I cannot find an explanation
but my senses and my instinct strongly tell me
there is something that is not quite right...
-
I started reading Craig Ferguson's American On Purpose. It has some funny stories so far, but only have read one chapter. Wish I had it in large print.
-
i just finished "the memory keeper's daughter" by kim edwards. very interesting.
-
Right now I am reading The almost moon By Alice Sebold, my favorite author! amazing so far.. but I didn't expect any less.
And I would suggest anyone and everyone to read "A thousand splendid suns" amazing amazing book, forget the Twilight bullshit, this is raw, tragedy,power,passion,human connections, and most of all. love. true passionate never forgotten love. MUST READ.
-
Blasphemy by Douglas Preston
-
"This Is It" by Alan Watts.
-
I'm working on 4 right now:
*Blink* by Malcolm Gladwell
*The Brain that Changed Itself* by Norman Doidge
*Montessori Madness* by Trevor Eislor
and in the fiction category
*The Burglar who Studied Spinoza* by Lawrence Block (Thank you to my Secret Santa, Kitkatz)
-
The English Patient. Odd, but good.
-
For Christmas, I got 2 books and ordered another one since it was so much cheaper post Christmas. I haven't restarted reading Craig Furgusons book, but switched to a classic book. For Christmas I recieved a H.G. Wells compilation of 4 stories that I have only seen the movies for and never read. The book includes The Time Machine, The Invisible Man, The Island of Dr. Moreau, and War of The Worlds. Just wish I had these books in larger print!
-
I'm reading Buried Child, the Sam Shepard play. I read it in school, but obviously not very well, because I don't remember any of it.
-
I am reading Genesis of the Artificial Kidney by Patrick T. McBride. It is very interesting. I read it during dialysis but the techs keep borrowing it to show each other.
This is the book that Nurse Wratchet included with my SS gift to pass on to other IHD members when I was done with it.
-
The Ice Man - can't recall the author's name. It's about serial killer/mafia contract killer Richard Kuklinski. Nasty!!
-
I just dropped off "Can't Wait to Get to Heaven" by Fannie Flagg for my Gram to read. It's fabulous and funny!
-
Last Words......George Carlin
-
Just finished Under the Dome by Stephen King-Great Book-got it for $9 at Amazon. I have looked at the Robert Jordan books but don't know where to start, there are so many of them, does anyone have a suggestion?
-
The Giver by Lois Lowry. This was a recommendation by my 11 year old niece and I'm really enjoying it.
-
I just dropped off "Can't Wait to Get to Heaven" by Fannie Flagg for my Gram to read. It's fabulous and funny!
Fannie Flag has become a great author. She was such a funny comedian and I didn't think I would like her writing, but I do.
New books for Christmas: Stones into Schools (by author of Three Cups of Tea) In Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult and The Time Traveler's Wife. Is there anything better than new books just waiting to be read? :2thumbsup;
-
Injustice for All by J. A. Jance. Started reading her books a while back but started on the 4th book without realizing it was a series. So, now I'm catching up. And I'm hooked!
-
"BAIT" by Nick Brownlee. There's blood in the water in modern day Mombasa.
-
Eclipse, by Stephenie Meyer. Blokey bought me the Twilight books for Christmas because I'm just a sheep. I am trying not to fall in love with Edward Cullen, but it's becoming increasingly difficult.
;D
-
I'm in the middle of The Time Traveler's Wife.
-
Eclipse, by Stephenie Meyer. Blokey bought me the Twilight books for Christmas because I'm just a sheep. I am trying not to fall in love with Edward Cullen, but it's becoming increasingly difficult.
;D
They are juicy, fun reads. I've refused to go the movies, though. Too much hype!
I'm rereading George RR Martin's "A Game of Thrones". I got book 2 - "A Clash of Kings", but it's been so long since I've read the first one, I figured I'd better start over.
-
just finished the lightning thief and have started the next book the sea of monsters. chasing chayton as he's reading the third book in the series.
-
“Sons of Vulcan” by Robert Duncan; published by Birlinn Ltd., 2009.
This is an honest heart-hitting account of the life and times of
the men and boys (as young as 9)
who made iron in Scotland in the 19th century.
Not a pretty story and not for the faint-hearted,
but a true story about those who laboured
and lived in torturous conditions to produce a material
which brought huge benefits to mankind.
Twelve hour-days, seven days a week,
low pay, an horrendous working environment,
a short life, and crude domestic arrangements.
These men and boys were treated like slaves,
thousands of them, and this well written
account shines a much nearer light on a
very dark chapter in British history.
Like it or not, it will change your life forever,
and leave you wondering if all that suffering
was necessary...
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"The Little Stranger" by Waters. A perfect English ghost story. Scared me.
-
White Shark by Peter Benchley
-
The Road by Cormac McCarther
-
"Just Six Numbers: The Deep Forces That Shape The Universe" by Martin Rees
-
The Art of Racing in The Rain,By Stein.
Loved it. A bit of a tear jerker in the end.
-
Sharon Osbourne - Extreme
-
I know they're magazines, but we subscibed to TIME & Natl. Geographic. Lady Nior- you that Sharon Osborne is be a contestant on Donald Trump's upcoming season of Apprentice tv show?
-
I was unaware! Thank-you :2thumbsup;
Don't really watch The Apprentice, and we are way behind here in Nz, but i will look out for it for sure.
-
re-reading the wheel of time series (all of them) so that i can re-read the latest book. Also reading catch 22 again... into a bit of a re-read phase
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Cell... Stephen King.. my favorite author. :2thumbsup;
It took me longer to find where I had read this post. . . I didn't know where I had read this. BUT! I saw this post and I went straight to the library, and got a copy that had just been turned in. Stephan King is one of my favorite authors. (I got a lot of favorite authors) Undoubtedly, This is one of his best! I just finished chapter 7. There's still only four chapters left. I know it can't go on forever, but I wish it could. I've read the Dark Tower series twice. once, as it came out and fairly recently. I think that I read "The Stand" 3 times. I didn't see any of the movies, or mini-series just to make the reading experience better, in case I might want to read it again. CELL! Quite a yarn.
jmz
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what's a book and how do you read it?
puzzled,
Rolando :thx;
lol. I don't understand how anyone can dislike reading :) I've always loved it.
Some people just can't read.
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I now have a TV in my bedroom so the book is getting dusty.
:shy;
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Am reading "Shadows Still Remain" By Peter de Jonge. 'A chilling story of murder and deception'.
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I am currently reading the Nxstage manual and the Pureflow Manual......Its beautifully illustrated and feels so warm while reading.... I highly recommend it to everyone...
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The Art of Racing in the Rain
Garth Stein
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Anne Bishop's Black Jewels series.
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The Art of Racing in the Rain
Garth Stein
I gave my son this book for Christmas. I want to read it after him. I'm reading Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult
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"In Search of Schrödinger's Cat: Quantum Physics and Reality" by John Gribbin
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I have just picked up yet another old one that I haven't read in 15 or 18 years, maybe more. "It" by Stephen King.
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'The end of overeating.'
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Still reading the fine novel of Nxstage and the Pureflow ways of life....
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Masquerade and Other Stories
by Robert Walser
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"All of Grace" by CH Spurgeon.
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Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan...... really great book.....its on kindle......
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Moran of Kathmandu
Pioneer Priest, Educator and Ham Radio Voice of the Himalaya.
by Donald A. Messerschmidt
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"Pale Horse Coming' by Stephen Hunter- evel lurks in the impenetrable piney woods of 1951 Mississippi.
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Just finished reading all 4 books of the Twilight Saga in less than 2 weeks. Just wanted to know what the big deal was about. Pretty good I'm impress. I couldn't put the book down.
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"Seven Plays" by Sam Shepard. For those who don't know he is also the actor who played Chuck Yeager in the movie "The Right Stuff" but he
was an acomplished playwrite long before he was in movies.
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The Sisters Grimm series for kids. I love kid's lit.
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Sounds fascinating!
I did not know the Brothers Grimm had Sisters?
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It's adorable. The premise is that the Brothers Grimm were telling the true life tales of the "Ever Afters", and became involved in all their lives. Their descendants have continued this, taking on a role as problem solvers and detectives. After their parents mysteriously vanish, the two Grimm sisters find out their real family history and get involved in solving mysteries for the fairy tale world.
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Thanks for explaining, jbeany,
it sounds really interesting!
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I am attempting to read to many books for my course, I have 7 books that I still need to take notes on but they are all overdue from my uni library, i smell library fines!
For pleasure I am (slowly) making my way through the terry pratchetts discworld series again. I think they are hilarious.
Jenny
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i love discworld? doesn't death just get you in histerics?
I've just finished reading the time travellers wife. Not bad, will definately see the movie
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yeh. I love all aspects of disc world. I recently had a laughter outburst when on a packed train on the way to uni - was a tad embarrasing. I love the teenage discworld books as well like wintersmith. I find the wee blue men in that hilarious, i think they are based on scottish clansmen, so funny! I tried reading time travellers wife but gave up and just went to see the movie instead. The mechanics of the story really confused me!
Jenny
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I found free audio books on the internet and am currently listening to Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. His story comes off in good shape on audio books.
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I read "Going Rogue" by Sarah Palin. I really loved the book. I like Sarah Palin and what the media has done to her is a crime. If you don't like Sarah, just read her book. It tells what the media won't.
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I'm reading the novella "Of Love and Other Demons". It's Garbriel Garcia Marquez, so even in translation you feel like you could sing the entire book the language is all so lyrical.
Side note: I wanted to pass along the news that my husband gave me that Amazon's Kindle program is now available for free download to your computer. You can purchase any of their books and read them with it, and they have many classics available for free.
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I'm into "John The Revelator' by Irish author Peter Murphy. A coming of age story. As Colm Toibin says - 'fresh, original, disturbing and brave.'
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I am reading..... A Clockwork Orange.
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Goliath by Steve Alten. It has submarines, bad guys and suspense in it.
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I have been reading a series of books called The Elm Creek Quilt Novels. I am just finishing The Christmas Quilt. I think it is about 10th in the series. You don't have to love quilts to enjoy the books. They are very historical and show the importance of quilts in our countys history. Did you know some were made as disquised maps during the Civil War? They played a big part in the underground railroad. I love quilts and have several made by my Mom. I even have some crazy quilt blocks my great-grandmother made. Quilts can tell a family story. I love them.
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Just finished "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and "Poisonwood Bible". I have "The Empathic Civilization", "The Hakawati", "The Lacuna", "Flora Mirabilis: How Plants have Shaped World Knowledge, Health, Wealth, and Beauty", "Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime", and "True Confections" in my bookbag for my summer reading. Best thing I ever did was to join the library.
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"Practical Magic" by Alice Hoffman.
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"The Girl Who Played with Fire" by Stieg Larsson...sequel to "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo".
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"The Girl Who Played with Fire" by Stieg Larsson...sequel to "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo".
That's the next one I'm putting on my "hold" queue at the library. I've been reading about the conflict between his partner of more than 30 years and his family over the estate ie the money coming in from his books. Someone should write a book about it! Has anyone seen the movie "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"? If so, how's the actress who plays Lisbeth Salander?
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I reckon she was good. I hope they don't put Angelina or Jennifer in the 'merican version. BTW - am reading James Ellroy's "Blood's A Rover", the final part of his Underworld USA trilogy. It's set during the social and political upheaval of 1968-1972.
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I'm planning to see the movie ASAP (although this week is crazy busy as I'm planting in the garden at home and at the cottage and I'm out there for hours on end). We've been waiting for me to finish the book. All the fuss about the estate has really surprised me in terms of how unfair it all seems to his common-law partner but when it comes to death and sharing money it seems that a good fight is more the norm than the exception.
My husband has just started on the third book in the series, which he had on order for as soon as it came out. I understand that all three have been made into movies.
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.
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Goodonya, snorter!
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I'm almost finished with "This Time Together" by Carol Burnett. I loved her TV show back in the 70's. She has led such a glamorous life that some of it is hard to imagine.
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Wild Child - Life with Jim Morrison. By Linda Ashcroft.
:clap;
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Just finished reading Infinite Possibilities: The Art of Living Your Dreams by Mike Dooley
Will read more whenever Social Security starts sending me some $$$.
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I finally, but finally, finished Love and Other Demons. I believe I started it at the salon Christmas Eve, and it took me until yesterday to read all 147 pages. (Check the transplant section for what else may have been occupying my time.)
I am having my third crack at The Stone Raft. I love Jose Saramago, so don't even ask why I have tried three times to get through this book and cannot seem to finish it. I think we all have a book or two or ten like that. Saramago's Gospel According to Jesus Christ is one of my favorite books of all time. I find his style is somewhat similar to Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
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Monsoon by Wilbur Smith
I really enjoyed this....... action, family, historic,
I can recommend it. I couldn't wait to read the next chapter.
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Jim Morrison - Life, death, legend by Stephen Davis
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Did you ever read, The Lost Writings of Jim Morrison, Wilderness Volume 1?
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My son had me read a 10 book series by Darren Shan called The Demonata series. For a "young adult" series, it was actually pretty good. But very easy read, I read all 10 books in about 2 1/2 weeks.
Last night I finished Witch and Wizard by James Patterson.
Today I am starting City of Night by Dean Koontz.
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Did you ever read, The Lost Writings of Jim Morrison, Wilderness Volume 1?
No, not yet ;)
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I highly recommend Night by Elie Wiesel.
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Crazy For The Storm by Norman Ollestad
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Chopping Spree
Relentlees by Dean Koontz- Finished it the other day. An interesting read. One of his not bloody, put the story together from five angles books.
Coming Out by Danielle Steele
Yes, I am reading two books at once. I often leave one in my office at home and read it while waiting for Facebook games to load :)
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Same Kind of different as me True story by Ron Hall & Denver Moore
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I finally finished The Stone Raft by Jose Saramago. It was lovely, and funny in its postmodernism.
I am now well into Reading Lolita in Tehran which is an autobiographical piece written by a female professor in Iran who secretly starts an all-female book club in which they read great works of Western Literature banned in the country. It was a gift from Gwyn many years ago and I am really enjoying it, although I realise now that I could stand to reread Lolita
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What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew
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Thirty Two Students and One Class Rabbit. A book written by a third grade teacher. A riot!
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Sarah's Key Tatiana De Rosnay
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"Paralegal Today" - 5th edition. Textbook time!
In between chapters - "Something Under the Bed is Drooling" by Bill Watterson.
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Self Matters by Dr Phil....no judging pls. It's really good!
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I need a good book. :waving;
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The Man Who Left Too Soon, the biography of Stieg Larsson author of the magnificent Millenium triology.
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the magicians by lev grossman
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No One Here Gets Out Alive - Jerry Hopkins & Danny Sugerman
Amazing so far!
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I am reading Karen Slaughter's newest book "Broken".
I love Karen Slaughter, Karen Rose, Lisa Gardner books.
Happy Reading to ya ;D
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Teach Like Your Hair is on Fire
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Sorry, I edited this wrongly and so deleted it and
it appears correct below.
Kristina.
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Riders On The Storm - John Densmore
:2thumbsup;
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Diary of a Wimpy Kid, by Jeff Kinney.
Well okay, I've convinced one of my reluctant/low-ability thirteen year olds at work to read it aloud, so it may take till Christmas. We're on page six! Yay!
The last book I read myself was The Second Life of Bree Tanner, by Stephenie Meyer. I must start reading more grow'd up books.
;D
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Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436. and the newest ruling on Miranda warnings from this June as well.
Well, that and "Enchantment Emporium" by Tanya Huff, when my brain is about to explode if I read one more court decision.
Sometimes I have to remind myself that I'm actually paying for this educational mental torture! ;D
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JBeany: looks like your course is well underway then. GO YOU GOOD THING!!! I am so delighted with this turn of events in your life.
(The practice of everyday life by Michel de Certeau, and the Foucault Reader edited by Rabinow)
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Just started EAT, PRAY, LOVE. Not sure yet but i want to read it before I see it.
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Just finished a great political mystery, "Child 44" by Tom Rob Smith. It's set in the last years of the
Stalin regime in the Soviet Union. It's violent at times, but it really gives you an idea of the mind-set
of the times.
That sounds very interesting and reminds me of a real Soviet-mystery I tried to figure out many years ago:
I came across the poetry of a Soviet literary critic Yuli Daniel, who also was a well known translator.
In February 1966 Yuli Daniel and his friend Andrey Sinyavsky were sentenced to forced labour at a trial in Moscow
where access to the courtroom was "severely restricted". Although the trial supposedly took place behind closed doors, with neither the public nor foreigners allowed in, only questionable fragmentary evidence ever reached the outside world,
but strangely enough, a verbatim record of the trial did leak out.
I happened upon Yuli Daniels poetry quite by chance and was taken by its poignancy immediately. He had composed it whilst in prison awaiting trial.
What I read about the trial, I felt was staged. Something felt not quite right.
The defendants appeared overly confident, in what surely must have been a very worrying situation. According to reports
mysteriously published in the West the defendants showed a boldness in their defence such that their replies occasionally bordered on jest and even insult.
This attitude I failed to comprehend as it must have been quite clear to them that their lives were hanging in the balance, as was the security
and welfare of their families. Like a play, the documents of the trial included moments of farce and drama. Both Yuli Daniel and Sinyavsky maligned
the work of Pushkin, Mayakowsky and Shakespeare and with regard to Pushkin that was surely tantamount to blasphemy in a Russian-Soviet law court.
I began to feel unconvinced that the trial was properly conducted, which led me to wonder if the trial really existed at all.
After I had read the trial's transcript, I was left with a distinct feeling of discomfort.
This reported case aroused a storm of protest in the West and many Western intellectuals like Pablo Neruda, Sartre and many others
signed petitions to support Yuli Daniel and Andrey Sinyavsky.
I am still wondering whether this was a "political media-spoof" going out of hand and whether Yuli Daniel and Andrey Sinyavsky really existed or not?
I still don't know the answers to this mystery.
The jury is still out whether the trial was a satirical hoax or not.
In a footnote to “The Trial, Yuli Daniel’s letter from camp” a photo shows Yuli Daniel & Andrey Sinyavsky being pallbearers at Boris Pasternak’s funeral.
But an official photo of Pasternak’s funeral procession shows different pallbearers.
Yuli Daniel and Andrey Sinyavsky claim to have been Pasternak’s best friends,
but write-ups do not mention Yuli Daniel or Andrey Sinyavsky as Pasternak’s friends,
in fact they are not mentioned at all.
This is very confusing and makes no sense. This mystery most certainly made me realize that literature is not quite as reliable as it is supposed to be and I shall be very careful in the future.
This experience also reminds me of the mystery about Nietzsche’s work. When I first read “Zarathustra” I realized that Nietzsche’s thoughts did not add up logically and because of this confusion I asked some Professors about it during my years as a student. These Professors had no answer either. It only became clear many years later, that Nietzsche’s work was meticulously gone through by his sister and she and her husband “cooked the books” with their own (ludicrous) thoughts. That is why Nietzsche’s work appears as if it was written by some schizophrenic. Nietzsche’s original handwriting was sealed in the Nietzsche Archive and no access was allowed to study the originals. After the fall of the Berlin wall, the “Nietzsche Archive” was finally opened and researchers were allowed to study his handwriting, to “clean” it from the handwriting of his sister and her husband.
The question is now: who are these researchers, how reliable are they & what is their angle?
I now study music and have started to play the piano. In an effort to reach the truth of a piece of music I try to find a copy of the score, or a copy of the first print.
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"Freedom" by Jonathan Franzen. I've just finished "The Corrections". Before that, I finally finished Stig Larsson's Millenium Trilogy. Next up is "Father of the Rain" and "The Doctor and the Diva."
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Finished Reading Lolita in Tehran. I did not find the book analyses anywhere near as compelling as her discussion of life in Iran through the revolution and after. It is incredible what some people survive. A fantastic book at any rate.
Now reading The Turn of the Screw. I don't think I've ever read any James through, or if I have, it was too long ago to remember. I also will probably read Daisy Miller as I have the collection, but this book has never called to me as it seems to do so with so many other literature enthusiasts. If nothing else, I am looking forward to seeing if I become a James convert. I am trying to read every book in our modest collection before I add stock. This will mean finally finishing my friend's favorite book Ulysses and somehow getting through the inscrutable Gravity's Rainbow.
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Intrigues by Mercedes Lackey
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I might start reading To Kill A Mockingbird tomorrow. I hear it's good.
;D
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Just finished Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese....loved it and of particular interest to transplant patients. Then moved on to Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb. Both books are partially set in Ethiopia.
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Just picked up Tony Blair's autobiography from the library.
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Beyond World's End by Mercedes Lackey
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I went to the library today to see if they had Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand but the person who last took it out never returned it :(I did pick up Lies the Government Told You by Judge Andrew Napolitano, Air Battle Force by Dale Brown and The Pacific by Hugh Ambrose. I am going to read the Judge's book first.
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Girl with a Pearl Earring. I've only got a smattering of pages left and so I can't bear to pick it up (you know, I really don't want it to be over, it's THAT good.)
;D
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i'm rereading harry potter and the deathly hallows so when i go see the movie i remember what is supposed to happen. and the only reason i'm not going to the midnight show is because when we went to get the tickets the theater was sold out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I went to the library today to see if they had Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand but the person who last took it out never returned it :(I did pick up Lies the Government Told You by Judge Andrew Napolitano, Air Battle Force by Dale Brown and The Pacific by Hugh Ambrose. I am going to read the Judge's book first.
Ah, if I had my old copy, I would gladly send it to you. Atlas Shrugged is one of my least favorite books of all time, filled with demoralising sexism, as well as just being an overlong, overwritten soap opera. I have to say, though, that it has a fantastic start. For the first 100 pages or so, I thought it would be a masterwork, but that strong beginning made it all the more disappointing when I could see the end coming 500 pages away. I once broke it off with a guy because he told me it was 'the greatest book!' (did not tell him that was the reason). One of the only parts I enjoyed was the 50 pages on her political philosophy. I disagreed with every word of it, but at least it was intellectually interesting. Not sure why everyone immediately advises to skip the radio address....
Hope you find the book.
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OK, I have a $20 gift card to Barnes and Noble that expires in a few days, so I am going to use it for a few ebooks on my Nook. I have already bought a children's book, and I think I will buy another Adrian Mole since I have not had one of those books since Gwyn bought me The Cappuccino Years over a decade ago. Those books always amuse me, frequently make me laugh, too.
I'll need one more ebook to spend the full $20, so I have decided to start on Doris Lessing's Children of Violence. I am eager to read a book set in Africa. It's been almost six years since I've been there, and no idea when or if I'll get the chance to return.
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Just finished reading Emily Barr's THE PERFECT LIE ... a brilliant escapist read but thought provoking.
I picked it up because under the title the tag reads EVER NEEDED TO DISAPPEAR? and I thought yeah, frequently... and I was hooked!
Partially set in Venice....loved it xxx
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I'm finishing up the last in the Flavia de Luce series.
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Age of Empathy by Frans deWall for a book club on Sunday!
I heard him speak here in Knoxville a few years ago....really interesting.
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Is anyone reading Genesis of the Artificial Kidney ? Nursewratchet sent it to me the Christmas before last to read and then sent onto another IHD member. It was for them to sign, read and then forward to another IHD member. I followed it for a little while and was wondering if it still was being circulated.
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An Inspector Ian Rutledge mystery by James Todd - "A Matter of Justice" Todd and his mother write this series. It is set in post war UK (WWI) and Inspector Rutledge is trying to deal with his own problems caused in battle on the Somme battlefield.
I am hooked on this series and read them at dialysis sometimes for full 4 hours.
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'The Grand Design,' by physicist Stephen Hawking who ponders the limitations of the models we use to understand the universe.
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'The Grand Design,' by physicist Stephen Hawking who ponders the limitations of the models we use to understand the universe.
Hey, great minds! I just downloaded that from the library site. Now I just have to figure out how to get it onto my Nook. I am "borrowing" it for seven days.
If anyone else owns a Nook, many libraries also loan ebooks via Overdrive and you can borrow them without ever leaving your home, and the Nook is compatible (not the Kindle, apparently). You do have to download Adobe something to your computer, but that was not too taxing.
I also decided to go to the library and borrow Girl with a Pearl Earring, the book that Poppy just finished. I hope I like it - it's been too long since I looked forward to reading.
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I will start reading "Text From Last Night", a humorous book about text that should not have happened
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I just finished "Blood, Bones and Butter" by Gabriella Hamilton. Great story from a female chef....hadn't heard of her before I read the book but definitely want to go to her restaurant Prune if I ever get to NYC again.
Now, I'm working on "Operation Family Secrets" by Frank Calabrese, Jr. True story of the Calabrese crime family here in Chicago. I'm a sucker for true crime stories - especially Chicago ones.
I second the Overdrive for those who have a Nook!
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Operation Family Secrets sounds good. If they have it in large print, I'll get it. I to like Chicago's and close suburbs history. Channel 11's Jefery Ross does great programs on Chico's history, even the River was traveled all the way from downstate Illinois o Chicago.
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I just finished "Blood, Bones and Butter" by Gabriella Hamilton. Great story from a female chef....hadn't heard of her before I read the book but definitely want to go to her restaurant Prune if I ever get to NYC again.
I swear I wouldn't fancy going to a restaurant called PRUNE ...
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I'm reading a couple self defense books on Brazilian Ju-Jitsu (yes I am a UFC/MMA fan) and The Art of War. Such a classic and honest book. Thinking about reading Count of Monte Cristo too. Never got the chance to read it
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OMG I bought the Nookcolor and I love it. I can adjust the print and background and buy or borrow huge books and it won't get heavy.
Unbroken is a great book. If you have a nook email me and we can try this borrowing thing.
Rerun
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I'm reading a couple self defense books on Brazilian Ju-Jitsu (yes I am a UFC/MMA fan) and The Art of War. Such a classic and honest book. Thinking about reading Count of Monte Cristo too. Never got the chance to read it
Okay, I have to ask: Lesnar or Dos Santos?
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Hi all!!! Long time no post, and I'm sorry. My company blocked the site from my work computer, which is also my home laptop. Any way, went around it. I got a message from YLGUY today about my circulating book, "Genesis of an artificial Kidney"... So glad everyone is enjoying it. I just always thought it was so interesting. I hope it continues to circulate, and that everyone is doing great.... Will try to be better about posting. :cheer:
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:waving; Hi Nurse!! Miss ya - good to hear from you!
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OMG I bought the Nookcolor and I love it. I can adjust the print and background and buy or borrow huge books and it won't get heavy.
Unbroken is a great book. If you have a nook email me and we can try this borrowing thing.
Rerun
I bought that for my mom for Christmas and she doesn't use it. I need to learn how to use it so I can get the email portion to open. It seems easy to use for the short time I got to use it when setting up.
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Chris - I access my email all the time through my Nook through the web browser. My only complaint is that my work wi-fi is locked down so I can't hook my Nook up to it if I forget to download the newspaper before I leave for work LOL
OMG I bought the Nookcolor and I love it. I can adjust the print and background and buy or borrow huge books and it won't get heavy.
Unbroken is a great book. If you have a nook email me and we can try this borrowing thing.
Rerun
I bought that for my mom for Christmas and she doesn't use it. I need to learn how to use it so I can get the email portion to open. It seems easy to use for the short time I got to use it when setting up.
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'The Grand Design,' by physicist Stephen Hawking who ponders the limitations of the models we use to understand the universe.
Hello, Rob,
Please let us know your thoughts about “The Grand Design” by Stephen Hawking.
I have listened to some comments about the book and cannot make up my mind yet
whether or not to start reading it...
Thanks from Kristina.
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I am finding the Nookcolor more and more fun as I start to use it. It can browse the internet, but it does not seem to have a forward button, just a back button, which is annoying. If anyone knows how to get a forward button for the browser, please let me know. Keyboard is a bit too touchy for my taste, but I own it for the books, not the browsing.
The best part of the Nook are the kids books. They have this Read-To-Me feature which is just awesome. My younger son is so enamoured with it that I can just hand him the Nook and he will play a story or two for himself and we do not have to read to him every single night anymore. We only have 4 books, because most kids books do not have the reading feature, but two were free (A Kipling book and another story) and I bought him I Saw an Ant on the Railroad Track (cute, but too short) and Cesar Takes a Break (this one is really long, but it keeps my son's interest, so I think it's great). I wish they would put out more of these books. They offer Splat, but we already have that book, so I don't want to buy it twice.
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Oncale v Sundowner Offshore; Harris v Forklift Systems, Inc, Price Waterhouse v Hopkins; Bibby v Philadelphia Coca Cola Bottling, and several dozen more on same-sex sexual harassment for a research assignment. Two more weeks and I can read for pleasure again!
The laws on this are completely crazy, too. If a homosexual makes offensive sexual suggestions to a straight coworker of the same gender, it's a legitimate claim worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. If a straight person makes offensive sexual suggestions to a homosexual coworker - suck it up and deal with it. There's pretty much no claim unless the homosexual victim can prove the harasser was also homosexual. And, in the interesting world of legal theories - there's no such thing as a bisexual. If someone is married to an opposite sex spouse, or has never had an openly gay relationship, that's taken as total proof they are straight. Very strange.
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I'm reading a couple self defense books on Brazilian Ju-Jitsu (yes I am a UFC/MMA fan) and The Art of War. Such a classic and honest book. Thinking about reading Count of Monte Cristo too. Never got the chance to read it
Okay, I have to ask: Lesnar or Dos Santos?
I love Dos Santos in that fight. Lesnar doesn't like to get hit, and Dos Santos has probably the best striking game right now. Add the fact he's been training with Nogueira for so many years, I'll give him the fight. Who do you like?
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I just purchased Heaven Is Real. I can't wait to read it!
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I'm reading a couple self defense books on Brazilian Ju-Jitsu (yes I am a UFC/MMA fan) and The Art of War. Such a classic and honest book. Thinking about reading Count of Monte Cristo too. Never got the chance to read it
Okay, I have to ask: Lesnar or Dos Santos?
I love Dos Santos in that fight. Lesnar doesn't like to get hit, and Dos Santos has probably the best striking game right now. Add the fact he's been training with Nogueira for so many years, I'll give him the fight. Who do you like?
I like Dos Santos. Just the fact that Lesnar came from WWE is a real turn off for me. Looks like we might have to start a UFC or MMA thread!
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Chris - I access my email all the time through my Nook through the web browser. My only complaint is that my work wi-fi is locked down so I can't hook my Nook up to it if I forget to download the newspaper before I leave for work LOL
OMG I bought the Nookcolor and I love it. I can adjust the print and background and buy or borrow huge books and it won't get heavy.
Unbroken is a great book. If you have a nook email me and we can try this borrowing thing.
Rerun
I bought that for my mom for Christmas and she doesn't use it. I need to learn how to use it so I can get the email portion to open. It seems easy to use for the short time I got to use it when setting up.
If I can snag it away from her, I would find out why I can not access her Yahoo mail. I'd use it for myself for the paper or a magazine while at the doctors office.. Everything else was easy to do.
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Is anyone reading Genesis of the Artificial Kidney ? Nursewratchet sent it to me the Christmas before last to read and then sent onto another IHD member. It was for them to sign, read and then forward to another IHD member. I followed it for a little while and was wondering if it still was being circulated.
I got a reply:
Thank you for contacting Baxter Renal. Unfortunately, this book is no
longer in print or available.
Internet Liaison
Baxter Healthcare Corporation
Renal Business Unit
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I'm reading "Naked Heat" by Richard Castle. I'm almost done with it and I can't wait to see how it ends!
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Is anyone reading Genesis of the Artificial Kidney ? Nursewratchet sent it to me the Christmas before last to read and then sent onto another IHD member. It was for them to sign, read and then forward to another IHD member. I followed it for a little while and was wondering if it still was being circulated.
I got a reply:
Thank you for contacting Baxter Renal. Unfortunately, this book is no
longer in print or available.
Internet Liaison
Baxter Healthcare Corporation
Renal Business Unit
I had a thought, but doubt hat it is available online. I was thinking the library of Congress where you can access some books online.
If I had a copy, there is a place that takes the book apart and scans every page so it is computer accessable for the blind/ low vision, or anyone who has an account.
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I'm reading "Naked Heat" by Richard Castle. I'm almost done with it and I can't wait to see how it ends!
Interesting title!!! Is it as hot as it sounds ! :rofl;
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I'm reading "Naked Heat" by Richard Castle. I'm almost done with it and I can't wait to see how it ends!
Interesting title!!! Is it as hot as it sounds ! :rofl;
Yes it is/was! I highly recommend it!
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Reading Adrian Mole and the Weapons of Mass Destruction and loving every page. It has helped me get through my latest illness with sanity intact.
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Just finished The Informationist and have just downloaded Susan Lucci's memoirs, "All My Life", onto my Nook Color. :P
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Downloaded The Truth (with jokes) by Al Franken. It's an audiobook, so it's effortless. No opinion on how good it is yet.
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I am reading Michael Palmer's book The Fifth Vial. It is about transplant issues. People being killed for certain blood types and organs.
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I downloaded (From the Library) "The Secret Gift" into my Nookcolor and it was really good. True story about a man in Canton, OH, who during The Depression gave away some money at Christmas. I wasn't quite done when The Library snatched it back. I guess my 14 days were over. One good thing is I won't have any late charges. :)
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Re-reading Anarchy Evolution by Greg Graffin and The Omega Point by John Gribbin.
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Reading "Irreligion" by John Allen Paulos for a book club discussion.
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Just finished "The Help" and also "The Elegance of the Hedgehog". Really enjoyed them both.
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ok, so i'm visiting oregon and have lots of time to read my sisters books....... in the last 2 weeks i've read...
the weed that strings the hangman's bag and a red hering without mustard by alan bradley (first book in the series is - sweetness at the bottom or the pie)
hevan is for real by todd purpo
i'm proud of you; my friendship with fred rogers by tim madigan
fablehaven by brandon mull
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I like book on facts/ history. Does anyone have a suggestion for a book regarding history of a certain time period?
Or even automotive history. Hopefully I can purchase in large print.
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I'm reading Genesis of the Grail Kings: The Astonishing Story of the Ancient Bloodline of Christ and the True Heritage of the Holy Grail, by Laurence Gardner. I've had it for ages but it's been collecting dust on my bookcase. I'm halfway through and really getting into it, despite it being non-fiction. There's some brilliant theories in it, and it's probably a load of tosh, but it's enjoyable tosh. I'm full of tosh myself, so this alternative/pseudo history makes sense to me.
;D
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I just finished The Bretheren by John Grisham (can't put his stuff down!) and am working on The Broker, also by John Grisham.
On my Nook, I have "A Reliable Wife" by Robert Goolrick. Got about 1/3 of it done on my lunch hour today. Couldn't stop reading it.
For work, I have to read the ITIL Service Operations guide by the first week of June. Not nearly as much of a page-turner as the rest. ::)
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ok, so i'm visiting oregon and have lots of time to read my sisters books....... in the last 2 weeks i've read...
the weed that strings the hangman's bag and a red hering without mustard by alan bradley (first book in the series is - sweetness at the bottom or the pie)
hevan is for real by todd purpo
i'm proud of you; my friendship with fred rogers by tim madigan
fablehaven by brandon mull
The sweetness at the bottom of the pie series rocks.
Sniffled and laughed my way through The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.
Currently rereading Rococo by Adriana Trigiani. Purchased it used so I could get the recipe for Our Lady of (Drown Your) Sorrows Cake again. I finally have someplace to take it, and I want to try it.
Chris, I'm no help - all I ever read is fiction - although The Guernsey book was historical fiction - how are you on that?
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I read and finished Alonzo Mourning's "Resilience". I found it at a Big Lots store for 50 cents. I couldn't pass that up! I highly recommend it. It was a good read.
Right now, I'm reading Edward Rutherfurd's "New York". It's a historical novel about the great city stemming back 350 years or so. Fascinating read. It starts around 1664 and goes on up to 2009.
KarenInWA
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"ECONned: How Unenlightened Self Interest Undermined Democracy and Corrupted Capitalism" Not light reading but it tis interesting when you come to realise how economic theory can be uwed to promote self interests and interest of certain groups pushing social agendas. Do not read this book if you beleive in the "Chicago theory of economics" , you'll get upset...if you don't know what it is do read this book, then realise how it is ruining day to day life, destorying the middle class in the US, and damaging our economy.
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"ECONned: How Unenlightened Self Interest Undermined Democracy and Corrupted Capitalism" Not light reading but it tis interesting when you come to realise how economic theory can be uwed to promote self interests and interest of certain groups pushing social agendas. Do not read this book if you beleive in the "Chicago theory of economics" , you'll get upset...if you don't know what it is do read this book, then realise how it is ruining day to day life, destorying the middle class in the US, and damaging our economy.
All right, we need cliff notes for this! We want a short definition of "Chicago theory of economics" and a two sentence explanation of how self interest is killing capitalism, please..... :waiting;
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Rihannsu- The Bloodwing Voyages a Star Trek novel.
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"Travels with my Aunt" by Graham Greene, I'm trying to include some Literature in my reading. GG writes so brilliantly and originally.
I tried Proust starting with 'Swann's way" but try as much as i could, I found I was unable to get into it.
I'm using a Kindle and it gives such wonderful access to a range of great reading and is really easy to handle on dialysis.
I read detective stuff for light reading and like Michael Connelly and the Swedish authors.
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I'm reading the Steig Larsen trilogy and am on the third book - The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Loving it and wishing there were more books in the series.
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There could be, chook. He had half completed a fouth book before he died. His partner has the manuscript, I believe.
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My daughter and I have just found the author "Louise Bagshawe and her daughter Tilly Bagshawe , I think keep it in the family. These books (women's books" you can not put down. We are now trawling the second hand shops for these books. Got 6 already.
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i LOVE my kindle. i've become a walking bookstore!!!! and so many of them are free!!!!
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I LOVE my NookColor :yahoo;
I'm reading "A Rope and A Prayer" by David Rhodes
A true story about him being kidnapped by the Taliban.
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I just finished "A Reliable Wife" by Robert Goolrick. I was reading it on my Nook Color and I think I wore a hole in the screen from tapping so fast to get it finished - it was a real page-turner (or tapper!)
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A little of this, a little of that...
Just starting the Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. It's good to catch on some classics I didn't cover in school. "The horror, the horror!"
The second book in the Fablehaven series for kids, so I can keep up with what my nephew is reading.
Just ordered a couple more books in the Aunt Dimity series on my book swap. These are cute and fast reads.
Also browsing a couple of coffee table books I checked out from the library on Art Deco style for some design inspiration.
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I'm working my way through the 'Martin Beck' series who are to Scandinavia what Ed McBain was to the USA. Although they (a husband and wife team) wrote in 1963 their books are still great reads and give you a good look at social life in the 60's.
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I will br eading my new book when my vision gets better, Car Guy's vs Bean Counters by Bob Lutz. The I'll get his other book that was a best seller that is more about business.
Bob Lutz when he was working for Chrysler brought us the Dodge Viper and Plymouth Prowler, then moved on to GM to ry to clean up the design department. Before all that he work at BMW
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Edge of Evil by J.A. Jance
lmunchkin
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Sounds like me on some days >:D :rofl;
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I am reading "The Wilder Life", a book about the author's obsession with Laura Ingalls Wilder. It has a breezy and funny tone to it.
:clap;
Aleta
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Not you Chris! I feel like Im on the edge sometimes myself, SYKE!!!!
lmunchkin :flower;
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I just finished Dewey- the Library Cat
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I finished Life of Pi on Monday (for the second time; love it!) and instantly began reading my Bargain Purchase of Last Week, Diana Wynne Jones' House of Many Ways (picked up for one pound in Poundland ... I ♥ that shop.)
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I am reading another Tilly Bagshawe book. Her books are full of sex, glamor, and intrigue, mostly set in Hollywood. OK they are a bit steamy but so what. At 66 I can dream.
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I just started a non fiction book "The Filter Bubble" about Internet personalization and its drawbacks/benefits. It is really fascinating and will make you really rethink your use of Google, Facebook, etc.
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I'm thinking of stealing my mom's Nook Color so I can read books easier, but I am old fashioned and still like to feel a book. Catch 22
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THE CONTROL BOOK by Peter Masters (Dominance and submission) Very interesting....
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I just finished the Burning Wire, by Jeffrey Deaver. Man, Deaver can give you chills. I love the Lincoln Rhyme books that he writes.
Aleta
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I have been reading a lot of YA lit (Young Adult literature) So far I read the companion book to "The Giver" by Lois Lowry It is a science fiction type of book pretty good I liked the The Giver better then Gathering Blue, the third book in the series is The Messenger.
I also am reading "Forge", "Chains" and then "Ashes" by Laurie Halse Anderson. These are historical fiction novels based about slavery and the Amercan Revolution. Really captivating trio of books....
Then two nights ago I reread the sisterhood of the traveling pants....yes it does have a movie based on the book. Pretty girlie, friends are great, feel good book.
xo,
R
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I just started a non fiction book "The Filter Bubble" about Internet personalization and its drawbacks/benefits. It is really fascinating and will make you really rethink your use of Google, Facebook, etc.
Who was the author CK I would like to read this??? :2thumbsup;
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I cried through the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, simply because I have no friends like that, that you've known all your life. I had no really close friends until high school, and then there were only two. Both of them are dead now. I get a little jealous of those people who have friends that they've had since elementary school.
As for the book I'm reading right now, Cell, by Stephen King. It's a little on the weird and creepy side, but it's definitely making me think differently of cellphones and the way that we use them these days
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I am reading The Help on my NookColor, via the library. I love borrowing this way! OK, it took us ages to suss out how to get the book onto the Nook, but now that we know how, I am so excited. I missed downloading Water For Elephants - by the time I saw the email from the library that my number had come up, it had been longer than 3 days and they gave it to the next person. I have been sent to the back of the queue. (# 217!)
I only have 7 days to read this book, so I have to concentrate on making time. I am enjoying the poor, black, Southern patois - I keep hearing it in my head now. So far, just two chapters in, I have to say it is one of the most clever books, in its quiet way, that I've encountered in recent memory.
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Loved both The Help and Water for Elephants but couldn't bring myself to see WFE, The Movie. I'm hoping that The Help will translate well to the big screen (surely they won't film it in 3D :rofl;).
I'm reading three books at the same time, a first for me. Usually I do not start one book until I finish the previous one, but circumstances landed three books in my lap at the same time. One is Wolf's Hall which is on my nook...it's about the machinations behind the Henry VIII "great question". Another is a Spanish gothic story that is just brilliant stuff, and the third came up available on my library queue. It's The Snowman and is a creepy Swedish thriller; I haven't started this one yet, but I might go ahead and begin reading it since I have only a few weeks before I have to return it.
Just got through with Bill Bryson's new book, At Home, which was utterly fascinating. I love all of his books. I read Notes from a Small Island shortly after I myself moved to the UK, so this book had me roaring with laughter.
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The author of "The Filter Bubble" is Eli Pariser.
It was an excellent read and not overly tech-y.
I just started a non fiction book "The Filter Bubble" about Internet personalization and its drawbacks/benefits. It is really fascinating and will make you really rethink your use of Google, Facebook, etc.
Who was the author CK I would like to read this??? :2thumbsup;
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Stuck home, can barely walk, can't bend over, need to keep my feet elevated as much as possible -so it's been book hour 24/7 around here. I've gotten through the first 13 books in the Aunt Dimity series, finished 2 short story collections by sci/fi-fantasy authors, half a dozen assorted kids books and I'm in the middle of a brain-candy murder mystery - one of those that includes recipes for the treats the "detective" makes all though the story.
No point in reading anything serious - not with the amount of oxy I'm taking!
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I just finished Prayers for the Assassin by Robert Ferrigno. Great book! The US turns into the Islamic States of America, Nevade becomes a neutral free state, still with booze and broads, and The Confederacy is known as The Bible Belt, holdouts against converting to Islam.
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I just finished reading Cell, by Stephen King. Very creepy apocalyptic read, where at a certain time, on a given day, something in the signal that the cellphones receive turns their users into what look like mindless wanderers. It is very good.
I'm thinking of starting the Harry Potter series. That requires a trip to the library
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I really liked Under The Dome by King, but... His characters are second to none, but his endings have a habit of falling flat.
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" The Protector" by Dee Henderson
lmunchkin
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I really liked Under The Dome by King, but... His characters are second to none, but his endings have a habit of falling flat.
I have noticed that.. I was disappointed with the ending in Cell, but I liked Christine and The Green Mile
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I haven't read any of his new stuff since Insomnia. That one just bored me to tears and I swore off King forever after that. I swear, he started writing books by the pound in the late 90's.
However, I devoured his old stuff when I was a teenager. I just downloaded Carrie from the library to my Nook Color yesterday and read half of it in about two hours at dialysis. My favorites are the short novellas he wrote under the pseudonym Richard Bachman (can't remember if it's one n or two). Anyhow, "The Long Walk" is one of my all-time favorites.
I really liked Under The Dome by King, but... His characters are second to none, but his endings have a habit of falling flat.
I have noticed that.. I was disappointed with the ending in Cell, but I liked Christine and The Green Mile
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"Honeymoon in Purdah - An Iranian Journey" by Alison Wearing.
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I always wondered if The Rage by Richard Bachman was what the Carrie 2 movie ws based on, but never actually looked it up to find out
I haven't read any of his new stuff since Insomnia. That one just bored me to tears and I swore off King forever after that. I swear, he started writing books by the pound in the late 90's.
However, I devoured his old stuff when I was a teenager. I just downloaded Carrie from the library to my Nook Color yesterday and read half of it in about two hours at dialysis. My favorites are the short novellas he wrote under the pseudonym Richard Bachman (can't remember if it's one n or two). Anyhow, "The Long Walk" is one of my all-time favorites.
I really liked Under The Dome by King, but... His characters are second to none, but his endings have a habit of falling flat.
I have noticed that.. I was disappointed with the ending in Cell, but I liked Christine and The Green Mile
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With my NookColor I've made it through Robert Redford's bio, Shania Twain's bio and Tina Fay's Bossypants. All were good.
I like nonfiction......... any suggestions?
:shy;
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I've decided to start reading the Harry Potter series. I finished the Philosopher's Stone the other day, and I'm about to start the Chamber of Secrets
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I just finished reading a fascinating book: Exorcising Hitler: The Occupation and Denazification of Germany. When learning about any war, so much emphasis is put on military strategy or specific battles or the nuts and bolts of warfare, but we rarely get a look into the lives of people and the way society copes the day after the war ends. Germany was practically obliterated and was then carved up by the victors, and there was a mass migration of people as they tried to escape the Red Army coming in from the east. The rape and atrocities committed certainly rivaled those inflicted by the Germans as they pushed west into Russia. The Czechs and the Poles who were the victims in the early years became the avengers in post-war Germany, but we don't hear much about that. We don't hear what happens to the ordinary citizens (usually women, children and old or wounded men) who survive in vanquished territory. How was Germany "denazified", and who decided how that was to happen? The French, the Americans, the Brits and the Russians all had their bit of Germany to take care of. Since Russia and France had both been occupied at one time by the Nazis, Germans in those sections didn't fare well at all (witness the creation of East Germany). The British had a very difficult time because they had to feed the most people; Germany's largest cities were in the British sector, and Britain could barely feed her own people back home, much less millions of starving, defeated German civilians. Most German soldiers wanted to surrender to the Americans, but there were so many POWs that in one area, there were 2500 US soldiers guarding 300,000 German POWs, and there was no food, water or shelter.
I had not known any of this. I've been schooled in the Pacific Battles, the Battle of Britain, the Holocaust and the racist policies of the Nazis, but there are few lessons offered covering the aftermath. It was really, really interesting.
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I am reading Water For Elephants and really detesting the experience. At around 100 pages in, I am wondering if it is worth if to finish, as I am easily grossed out, and sideshows are not a topic I wish to explore. I find her writing style so very grating as well, there just is no artistry to it. I enjoyed The Help even though I thought it faltered at the end. Is the plot of Water For Elephants worth trudging on, because her clunky writing is not enough for me to stick with this. I have not been this angry with a book in quite some time. I should have known when my mother completely tripped over herself, rushing to offer me her copy. I did not take it - I've got it from the library.
I have many other books to read and have to download The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks tonight or lose it. I found that author a mite irritating as well when I heard her on NPR, but I think the story is interesting enough to plough through. Maybe.
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I thought Water for Elephants was fab. If you plan to give up, at least skip to the last two chapters and read the ending!
I need to remember to put The Help on my wish list on my book swap site.
The author of Immortal Life gave a lecture locally in the spring - the hype was so over the top on campus, I had no desire to attend or read the darn thing. Yes, I think it sucks that her kin are too broke for medical insurance, while the researches make mega bucks from her cancer sample - but I've guess I've signed off on too many release forms giving the hospitals control of any bits they remove from, or images they take of me, or educational instances they can use my case for to get to hyped about the situation. They didn't take all those photos of my extremely rare transplant complications just to tuck them away in my file, after all. Someone is charging the textbooks to use the pics, and I'm sure not making a dime....
Anyhoooo....I'm knee deep in a complication of dragon stories, and eying my freshly opened copy of Jim Butcher's "Ghost Story" with eager anticipation. Forgot I pre-ordered it from Amazon with all my health complications mess! Yum, yum, yum - so many good things to dive into at once. What do I chomp into first?
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I know the feeling.. I have several of Anne Rice's Witches of Mayfair books yet to read. I'm told that I also need to read The Hunger Games series. My friends and I read a lot of YA. *G*
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I know the feeling.. I have several of Anne Rice's Witches of Mayfair books yet to read. I'm told that I also need to read The Hunger Games series. My friends and I read a lot of YA. *G*
I recently read the first in the Hunger Games series, and it is definitely YA, a bit too much for me, sadly. I need something meatier.
I thought something "meatier" might be "The Pale King". I'd read that it was supposed to be one of the most highly anticipated books of the season. The author died before he could finish it, but it was still published and was hailed as brilliant. I've read the first several chapters, and I am having trouble concentrating on it. Normally, I would just go ahead and plow through it, but ever since I've known that I have such bad kidneys, I am loathe to spend time doing stuff I don't like, and while I hate giving up on a book, I am not sure I want to waste time with this one. It's pretty rare that I don't finish a book, but this may be one of those times. My husband just bought me the whole Songs of Ice and Fire series, so I may just dump The Pale King and go right to those.
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I thought something "meatier" might be "The Pale King". I'd read that it was supposed to be one of the most highly anticipated books of the season. The author died before he could finish it, but it was still published and was hailed as brilliant. I've read the first several chapters, and I am having trouble concentrating on it. Normally, I would just go ahead and plow through it, but ever since I've known that I have such bad kidneys, I am loathe to spend time doing stuff I don't like, and while I hate giving up on a book, I am not sure I want to waste time with this one. It's pretty rare that I don't finish a book, but this may be one of those times. My husband just bought me the whole Songs of Ice and Fire series, so I may just dump The Pale King and go right to those.
Ah, MM, if you're going to go for David Foster Wallace, read Infinite Jest. My great friends, the twins who've read everything between the pair of them, said that it was not perfect, and a bit long, but that it was hailed more for what it attempted to accomplish than what it actually was. I have been thinking of grabbing a copy myself, as it is supposedly almost as cynical about the role of business in America as I am. I am loathe to give up on a book as well, and I am far too much of an uptight purist to skip to the end, as jbeany suggested, so I am continuing with Water For Elephants. The print is about four feet high, so it is a quick read, and might just be getting a wee bit better.
As an aside, the night David Foster Wallace killed himself, I pulled an 8-hour shift on the LA suicide line, filling in for people who needed a break. When I woke up to the news he was dead, my first thought was "Oh, God! Did I talk to a David last night?!" (For you see, it's all about Ms. Cariad....) I mentally replayed every caller in my head, but there was not a one that sounded like a depressed, middle-aged literary sensation. Sad, because one of his friends had contacted him shortly before he died, and he emailed back saying how much the message had cheered him. I don't know that many books that are unfinished by authors are worth reading. Some of my favorites, like Charles Dickens, left unfinished manuscripts but I cannot take the disappointment. I may make an exception with The Original of Laura, just because I followed that whole saga with Nabakov's son and Ron Rosenbaum for years. I think they made the wrong choice in publishing it against the author's wishes, but now that it's out there, I may as well read it.
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I am not reading anything highbrow right now - just started "Professional Idiot" the memoir of Steve-O (real name: Steven Glover) of MTV's Jackass fame. It is really interesting so far. I have a newfound fascination with "celebrities" that fall from grace and what makes them tick. I can't get enough of Celebrity Rehab on TV, didn't miss a minute of the Casey Anthony trial etc. I feel there are a lot of life lessons to be learned when you strip away all the "glitz & glamour".
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Cariad, I have read that Infinite Jest may be the best work of DFW (not "Dallas-Fort Worth"), or at least the most illustrative of his talents, so perhaps that might have been the better choice. I've been doing a lot of reading lately, swerving quickly from the Barcelona gothic stories of Carlos Ruis Zafon to denazifying Germany to DFW, and maybe my brain is rebelling. What's funny is that The Pale King is, by what I gather, supposed to be about the courage it takes to survive a life of boredom. The "action" takes place in the IRS tax returns processing department in Peoria, IL. In the opening chapter, we see the main character on a communter flight from Midway to Peoria, and his mind wanders from the details of the old woman sitting next to him to the exam he will soon be taking to upgrade his job level to the way his plane window is fashioned (not well) and back to how the woman can't open her bag of peanuts....and lo and behold, I found my mind wandering, too. ::)
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Yeah, and Gertrude Stein is a big literary genius, too. Doesn't make her work something I wanted to read, though!
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Yeah, and Gertrude Stein is a big literary genius, too. Doesn't make her work something I wanted to read, though!
So true. However, many years ago I was encouraged to plow through James Joyce's Ulysses, and I am glad I made the effort. When I finished, I felt a real sense of accomplishment, although feeling a "sense of accomplishment" is not usually the reason to read a book. But I try to keep my mind agile despite it floating about in a toxic soup; sometimes I want to be challenged because CKD has robbed me of just about everything, and if a book can give me a "sense of accomplishment", I'll take it.
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I started on my Jim Butcher book today. I'm halfway through already. I always end up at the end of them far too fast and then it's back to the long, dreary wait for the next one..... :(
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You guys are way above me, when it comes to literature, I think. I have a hard time with books that are someone's masterpiece, as there are usually layers upon layers of symbolism that I just don't get. I enjoy the story, even with nonfiction books, as they all tell a story of some sort, but if they're supposed to have a deeper meaning, I'm just not going to see it.
I discovered this issue, and I think it's probably a reading comprehension issue of some sort, in my grade 12 English class. We read A Separate Peace, and from what I was told, it was full symbolism about choices and separation and stuff like that. All I saw in it was a story about 2 friends, one of which caused an accident which eventually killed the other, but he wasn't sure if he did it purposefully or not. Kind of sad, really. It's no real wonder why I repeated that class
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You guys are way above me, when it comes to literature, I think. I have a hard time with books that are someone's masterpiece, as there are usually layers upon layers of symbolism that I just don't get. I enjoy the story, even with nonfiction books, as they all tell a story of some sort, but if they're supposed to have a deeper meaning, I'm just not going to see it.
Riki, sometimes it's so important to JUST enjoy the story. I know so many people who have done Eng. Lit. degrees who just cannot pick up a book without dissecting every single word used and it's so sad. I don't think you need to notice all the layers, or the symbolism or even fully grasp the author's intention (if indeed there is one) to enjoy a good book.
I'm currently reading LJ Smith's Night World series. I like it because I don't have to think (they seem to all be human meets non-human, falls in love, hides from the Night World, makes human non-human and then discovers they were part non-human anyway and didn't even know) and it satisfies my need to escape from reality for a while. I've had a bit of a teenage fiction thing going on for a few months now ... Neil Gaiman, Diana Wynne Jones, Charlie Higson ... it's all been a jolly good romp and THAT'S what I love about reading.
;D
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I'm a big fan of Neil Gaiman, Jim Butcher and Kelly Armstrong, but I'm currently reading Michael J fox's autobiography. Any recommendations for similiar authors would be great. Cheers, Al
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Reading Edgar Allen Poe's Greatest Works, and a book by Camilla Lackberg- "The Ice Princess", it's a murder mystery/drama. Very interesting, I would highly recommend it!!
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Michael MacConnell's "Maelstrom". A juicy serial killer tale.
MooseMom, I dips me lid to you for your finishing "Ulysses". Blowed if I could.
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I finished my Butcher book before the day ended...*sigh* - now the wait for the next one begins!
On to "Middlesex." Slow starter, but interesting.
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MooseMom, I dips me lid to you for your finishing "Ulysses". Blowed if I could.
" '...he said biscuitfully.' "
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@AlasdairUK, have you read Gaiman's entire Sandman series?
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I've never heard of Jim Butcher...can y'all tell me more?
Riki, sometimes an author's "masterpiece" is too pretentious by half! ::)
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Jim Butcher writes 2 series, MM. The most popular (New York Times bestseller popular) is a series called the Dresden Files, about a wizard named Harry Dresden who works as a private eye in Chicago. It's Harry Potter for sarcastic adults who are either former high school nerds or knew some. (Think Dungeons and Dragons and Star Wars fans.) The writing is filled with hysterical pop culture references, in a setting that's a mix of ghosts, magic, monsters and a real fairy godmother who is Sidhe, not Disney inspired. The main character has a warped sense of humor that involves things like snatching magical artifacts from under a monster's nose while yelling Road Runner's classic "Meep Meep" before tearing out of sight. There's also sex scenes and a lot of serious, intense relationship issues with his family and friends. There are 13 books in the series, and a collection of related short stories.
Butcher's other series is more traditional sword and magic in a feudal realm. I've not been able to get into that one.
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I am reading " The Help". It is about the negro side of the days of black people being considered " not human". Very interesting but scary when you think about the white folks intolerance of the blacks. Terrible!!
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Just finished "The Long Song" by Andrea Levy...takes place in Jamaica when slavery was a feature of life...of particular interest to me since my family was there since the 1700's. I hope that my ancestors were not among the jerkiest of the jerks but no one really gets a pass.
Currently reading "The Dogs and the Wolves" by Irene Nemirovsky (I loved Suite Francaise) which takes me back to Paris and to the early 1920's.
Also recently read "The Disappeared" by Kim Echlin...Canadian girl in love with young Cambodian musician in Montreal but his family trauma takes them back to Cambodia and to the tragedies of the Pol Pot regime.
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I'm reading "Larry's Kidney" A true story about this guy named Dan who takes his cousin Larry to China to buy a kidney. Good so far. A lot of humor for such a dark subject. I'm not done yet.
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Currently reading "The Dogs and the Wolves" by Irene Nemirovsky (I loved Suite Francaise) which takes me back to Paris and to the early 1920's.
Oh oh oh...Suite Francaise is one of my favorite books on planet Earth!. I know that it was to be a trilogy/suite, but she never got to finish it. How stupid of me to have not thought about reading her other works. How does "The Dogs and the Wolves" compare to "Suite Francaise" in tone, construction and style? Oh, I loved this book so much!
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You guys are way above me, when it comes to literature, I think. I have a hard time with books that are someone's masterpiece, as there are usually layers upon layers of symbolism that I just don't get. I enjoy the story, even with nonfiction books, as they all tell a story of some sort, but if they're supposed to have a deeper meaning, I'm just not going to see it.
I discovered this issue, and I think it's probably a reading comprehension issue of some sort, in my grade 12 English class. We read A Separate Peace, and from what I was told, it was full symbolism about choices and separation and stuff like that. All I saw in it was a story about 2 friends, one of which caused an accident which eventually killed the other, but he wasn't sure if he did it purposefully or not. Kind of sad, really. It's no real wonder why I repeated that class
I fell in love with literary interpretation in prep school - it quite clearly saved my sanity. I am one of those people who cannot handle certain subjects, and whilst I'm getting better in my advanced years, if something in a book really bothers me, I have a truly difficult time putting it out of my mind. So it was with this attitude that I was forced to read Kafka's Metamorphosis. I was so freaked out by the detailed description of Gregor's life as a 6ft cockroach (and I give nothing away - this is how the book opens) and I can still remember when he first managed to get himself out of bed, how his legs (all six of them) buckled and bent down into shape. Oh, it was just ghastly. Then one of the students in my English class said something to the effect of "I saw it as a description of how people with a certain disease are treated, like AIDS." OK, Kafka obviously cannot have known about AIDS, but it was a clean and tidy story of ostracism. I was describing it to Gwyn, and all of these years later, having never reread it, I remember how the housekeeper was the only one who was nice to him. But by nice, it meant she continued to clean his bedroom and to get him to move she would beat him out of the way with a broom. It only occurred to me now that that detail alone was very telling - this is what passed for decent treatment in Gregor's life. Author's intention does not matter, each generation in a work like that may have their own interpretation, and for me, as an allegory to life with a stigmatized condition, it was very nearly perfect. Also, it allowed me to appreciate the book despite the gruesome subject.
Then I read Lolita, and underage sex is another topic that repels me, more so when it is actually underage rape. However, that book is an allegory for European relations with America. And I laughed myself silly - Nabakov was a rare and breathtaking talent. If you are easily disturbed, The Tin Drum will give you nightmares, but I read a bit of literary analysis and learned that Gunther Grass was writing about Germany, which makes perfect sense if you've read the book. Oskar decided to stop growing at three years old (I always took that as an allusion to the Third Reich) and when he does decide to grow again, he grows deformed. He is also a child of uncertain parentage, who may or may not be the father of a boy who beats him up. Disturbing and deeply clever.
Anyhow, you don't have to be able to pick these things out yourself, read some (good) literary analysis, or join a book club. There is nothing I enjoy more than talking literary analysis with my friend Mark, who like I said, has read nearly everything. Ulysses is his favorite book by far. And we have a theory of authors like that, Joyce and Mann and Pynchon and perhaps even David Foster Wallace. They have their break out book, then the book that represents them in peak form, then they go stark raving bonkers and we get Finnegan's Wake. Follow the career trajectory of any of those true literary innovators and tell me you don't see that pattern....
Oh, and one last thing, if you're still reading my babbling, Riki. No one should feel bad for either not enjoying or not getting the point of A Separate Peace. That was the first book I had to read at prep school, and I am quite confident in saying that that book is ridiculously overrated. We read it because it is set in the academy that I attended, and I can still remember the clear descriptions of the assembly hall and the cage. Beyond the thrill of seeing locations I recognised in the story, it was a full-on snore.
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Currently reading "The Dogs and the Wolves" by Irene Nemirovsky (I loved Suite Francaise) which takes me back to Paris and to the early 1920's.
Oh oh oh...Suite Francaise is one of my favorite books on planet Earth!. I know that it was to be a trilogy/suite, but she never got to finish it. How stupid of me to have not thought about reading her other works. How does "The Dogs and the Wolves" compare to "Suite Francaise" in tone, construction and style? Oh, I loved this book so much!
This was written in 1940 so pre-dates Suite Francaise. Stylistically they're similar but while no Jews appear in the completed sections of Suite, this novel has jewish protagonists which is interesting given that Nemirovsky has been accused of being anti-semitic (or self-loathing since she was herself jewish). I regret that I've only read her in English and would like to get hold of an original version of Suite at some point. The translation stuff is always tricky and I think that in this particular novel (Dogs and Wolves) some of the subtleties are in fact lost...despite the best efforts of any translator. This one notes for example that the title in French is Les Chiens et les Loups which translates literally into the English title BUT also, the french expression "entre chien et loup" means dusk or twilight and so a time when it is difficult to distinguish clearly between things of similar shapes plus of course the clear theme that dogs and wolves are of the same family but some domesticated and some wild. Any translation of any work can obscure some of the layered meanings that are often present in the original.
Still very much worth reading though I think and for me (and for many others) the facts of Nemirovsky's own life make her novels even more compelling.
I'll try to remember and pack it for Vegas and you're welcome to have it.
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I am devouring all the books by Louise and Tilly Bagshawe. I love the glitz and sparkle and the sex that goes on in Hollywood, is it may be because It reminds me of what I once had (the sex I mean) . I read in the bath every night for about an hour, that is my escape from real life. I love it.
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I'm reading "Larry's Kidney" A true story about this guy named Dan who takes his cousin Larry to China to buy a kidney. Good so far. A lot of humor for such a dark subject. I'm not done yet.
I read a review for that and am tempted to try and get it out of the library. Is it really a true story? Wow! (I know the title suggests it is, but I just assumed it was titled that way because it makes for an appealing title, not because it's true!)
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Finished Water for Elephants and rushed it back to the library. It did get a bit better, but I still cannot say I liked it.
This might contain a few spoilers:
Had the author ever been within 10 feet of an elephant, or a non-human primate? Chimpanzees are not 'so human' and it takes a lot to train one to act like one. The elephant was tapping people on the shoulder with her trunk and it did not occur to people that this animal would have to be trained to do this? (Of course, she seemed to lack so much basic knowledge about animals that I could not tell if this was a plot point or just her baffling ignorance.) I am by no means an elephant expert, but spent a week at an elephant sanctuary in South Africa, plus have ridden both African and Asian elephants. My son even rode an African elephant (briefly) and he was beyond scared. Elephants cannot lift anyone onto their backs with their trunk, nor do they spray people with water like a fire hose. Am I the only person who found these details cartoonish and implausible? How can you mention the trunk without taking note of just how slimy they are? I remember my son absolutely terrified when we told him to feed an orange to an elephant, and me thinking that I did not want to touch the end of the trunk.
She had no ear for dialogue, and this is something I am very sensitive to after years in theatre. She seemed to use terms from the era, but had no idea how to construct an authentic sentence, and bizarrely chose to add in a few Anglo Britishisms ('a right state') and that somehow translated to 1930s-style, American speech? If anyone wants to read lovely patois from that era, read Babbit, he is excellent with conversational styles. Oh, and I seemed to have the same problem that many others did - it was obvious it was written by a woman, and while not normally an issue, the fact that she chose a male protagonist added another fake element to it. Ooooo, I just had so many problems with this book! I could go on, but will spare everyone.
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Maybe I liked it better because I read it as a fantasy novel!
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Maybe I liked it better because I read it as a fantasy novel!
Yes, that may well be my problem - I do tend to insist on a certain degree of accuracy/realism. Rarely been one for fantasy or sci-fi. Also, you probably did not take the time to read a rant from a real-life Cornell-educated vet who spluttered that horses have 50 LITRES OF BLOOD and therefore they simply could never be euthanized that way. Anyone who thinks I'm too picky should track down his review. :laugh:
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I do read a lot of sci-fi and fantasy, so I guess I'm quicker to jump into a "willing suspension of disbelief." Accuracy doesn't bother me much when I'm reading a novel, as long as the story flows for me. I finished Middlesex a couple days ago. The narrator describes a scene in which she, as an elementary school child, rides a banana bike after the tanks that entered Detroit during the riots, on a self-imposed mission to save her father at the family diner in the middle of the worst section of rioting, with gunfire everywhere. Realistic? Not at all. A fabulous part of the story? Yes.
Hey, when you get used to magic and totally impossible science, a little bad biology doesn't really stand out!
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The Help by Kathryn Stockett's
Love it! Can't wait to see the movie!
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Jbeany, re The Dresden Files, did they make a TV series out of those books because my husband put it on our Netflix queue some time ago.
Monrein, gosh, if you wouldn't mind bringing "The Dogs and the Wolves" to Vegas, I'd appreciate it. I tried to get it from the library, but none of them in my area own a copy. Thanks so much.
I'm still plowing through "The Pale King". The chapters about the IRS guy bore me silly, but the chapters about the other characters contain some truly magical writing. I'll forge ahead.
Saw the movie "The Tin Drum" yonks ago and hated hated hated it. Oskar was so incredibly annoying, and I didn't really care that much about Germany to find any interest in the film. My feelings about Germany are complicated tinged with irrationality.
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Yes, the Dresden Files lasted a season or maybe two before they pulled it, much to the dismay of a a number of fans. I liked the books better, but I usually do no matter what the book.
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Saw the movie "The Tin Drum" yonks ago and hated hated hated it. Oskar was so incredibly annoying, and I didn't really care that much about Germany to find any interest in the film. My feelings about Germany are complicated tinged with irrationality.
My great friends are a bit obsessed with the celebrated German writers, probably because Germans seem to favor challenging, often absurdist works. Zoo Story, which launched Edward Albee's career, premiered in Berlin, not America. I am not interested in Germany today, despite its omnipresence in my life. My brother got his PhD in Germany, the person who was more of a mom to me than my own mother is German, my family is of German descent and my father was fluent in Yiddish, though bizarrely chose not to pass the language down to his kids. He used to do a lot of business in Germany, with his business partner/best friend who is, you guessed it, German. Still, The Tin Drumwas just a rich, fascinating story, well told. And I only read the translation. I have heard that film was awful. In fact, my literary friend says it was banned in this country, which I can fully understand. No one wants to see a child of three assaulted or having sex, I did not particularly relish reading about it, but given the analytical distance that I spoke of above, overall I found the novel superb. Not for the faint of heart, though. I am told that the kid who played Oskar in the pic was more like 12, which would destroy the story in and of itself.
I guess I find Water For Elephants inexcusable, because it was just not good writing. I don't know what I expected. I love absurdism, but that was not what she was writing here, or if that was her attempt, she failed. I do love Vonnegut, who is very much an absurdist/sci-fi writer, and also has the advantage of being completely accessible to people who don't read often (Gwyn's read him and enjoyed it, there's your proof) and when the main character in Water for Elephants said that he seemed to be reliving his life out of order, or whatever he said, SURELY she knew, I desperately hope she knew, that she was invoking Slaughterhouse Five and the main character becoming 'unstuck in time'. I love Magical Realism that came out of Latin America. One Hundred Years of Solitude, for example, is a masterwork. When Garbiel Garcia Marquez writes about a flock of yellow butterflies carrying a woman off, or a line a blood from a woman's murdered son traveling the streets of town to stop at her feet, you are reading poetry, the words seem to sing, and the implausibility of it does not matter. It is a new world, one we recognise, but one whose rules we must learn through reading. (Sorry, I'll shut up now.)
For what it was, The Help was very well written, though I am sure criticism of it revolves around the Great White Saviour sweeping in to deliver them all from oppression. Whether she realises it or not (and I am sure she does) it takes a fair bit of bravery to attempt a book like that, and while she did not succeed in all places, I thought she captured the language and the mood of the era quite well, and I thought the main characters showed enough autonomy and ability to solve their own problems while remaining realistic to the times.
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Oh yes, One Hundred Years of Solitude was magical, and I enjoyed Love in the Time of Cholera. Gosh, I read those books so long ago...I had such a different life back then.
I know there has been criticism about The Help due to the reasons you mentioned, and while I can't disagree, I confess to being a middled aged white lady, so while I try to be sympathetic to that criticism, I do not have the life experience to truly understand it, and as such, I enjoyed the book as a good hearted attempt to see the world through the eyes of someone very much unlike yourself. I always applaud such attempts although they often fall short. I am a huge fan of Viola Davis ever since Doubt, so I intend to see the movie for that reason.
Has anyone here read Diane Setterfield's The Thirteenth Tale? One year for my birthday, my husband arranged for the owner of a local bookstore to come to the house, dress up and sing a song and present me with a bag filled with books he had chosen for me. One of those books was Suite Francaise, and another was The Thirteenth Tale. It's one of those books that ends with each chapter eliciting a "Whoa! Didn't see THAT coming." from the reader.
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Just about to start "Let the Great World Spin" by Colum McCann. Know nothing about it but my neighbour who lent it to me thought I'd like it.
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I think I'll stick to my YA books...
Cariad, I pretty much failed Grade 12 English, which was the only class I needed to graduate high school, because of that foolish book. I wasn't able to keep up in discussions in class, and I utterly failed the exam. The only thing we read in that class that I did well with was Shakespeare, but I think it's because I was the only one who understood it. I still love Shakespeare
Riki, sometimes an author's "masterpiece" is too pretentious by half! ::)
I most certainly hope not, considering that I'm somewhere in the middle of my first draft of my masterpiece.. *LOL*
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I think I'll stick to my YA books...
Cariad, I pretty much failed Grade 12 English, which was the only class I needed to graduate high school, because of that foolish book. I wasn't able to keep up in discussions in class, and I utterly failed the exam. The only thing we read in that class that I did well with was Shakespeare, but I think it's because I was the only one who understood it. I still love Shakespeare
Of course you should read whatever you like! If you love Shakespeare, then obviously you can keep up with complex and challenging writing, but that does not mean you are obligated to fill your days with Proust and Milton. I am feeling sleepy just mentioning Paradise Lost.... :rofl;
Oh yes, One Hundred Years of Solitude was magical, and I enjoyed Love in the Time of Cholera.
Wasn't it, though? I read One Hundred Years of Solitude in my early twenties, then quickly followed that with Chronicle of a Death Foretold (nowhere near as special) and I just finished Love and Other Demons right before my transplant, or maybe right after, I don't recall. I have so far not got round to Love in the Time of Cholera, and once Oprah put her hands on it, I decided I did not want to look like one of her followers. No offense meant to her or her fans, my parents live in the same town as she does and she is known for being smart, gracious, and of course, generous.
As another middle-aged white lady (by some people's definition of lady!) I know what you mean. I did relate to the moment when one of the main characters was surprised that she was not welcomed into the black community. I remember having those same feelings as a kid, although it would have been toward Latinos. The German woman that I felt so close to was our housekeeper, we were never allowed to call her a 'maid', we actually sharply differentiated. Housekeepers were trusted friends, maids were just people you hired to do a job that did not require a lot of thought. We had many maids come into our lives, only one true housekeeper. Never separate bathrooms, though, and most of our maids were Latinas who had a tendency to disappear with no warning when I guess immigration would find them. I once offered to drive our maid home because I saw her walking along the side of the road (she would never let my mother drive her to the bus stop, and we lived in an area with no pavements, only horse trails or the side of the road). I did not feel worried going in to the urban, immigrant neighbourhood, but I think she might have been embarrassed for any of us to see her home? Her kids, boys and girls, all shared one bedroom, with only twin bunk beds. The place looked fine, but I do remember thinking "so this is poverty". My parents paid very well and I don't think they ever fired anyone, even when they would call in frequently over car trouble or whatever, but California is a harsh economic climate and I imagine it was nearly impossible for them to get ahead. My parents did catch one couple stealing (beers from the fridge) and sacked them. I thought that was a nice detail in The Help, that stealing was really the worst offense. My mother was also weird about her fruit trees - she was constantly offering fruits/avocados to the maid and the gardeners, but if they took it themselves, she would call them on it. Don't think they let anyone go over that, though.
Have not read The Thirteenth Tale, but sounds like one I should check out!
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I was living in the UK when Love in the Time of Cholera was released in its English translation. I was working up in the City and on my lunchbreak, I wandered over to the bookstore, and there in the window was a sign saying, "If you do not love this book, bring it back and we will give you a refund." So, I took the bait, and I was glad I did.
I don't think I've ever seen a full episode of Oprah.
Shortly after I was born, my mother went back to work as a bank officer. I was the only kid I knew whose mother worked outside the home, but it seemed perfectly natural to me. We had a black housekeeper named Willie who would come in every morning, take me to school and stay until one of my parents got home. She did this until I was 13 and my mom stopped working. Even then, Willie would come in maybe once a week. So, she was an integral part of my family, and my family was part of hers. She was at my wedding. I would sometimes go to her house (I remember she had a very big bed). My son came to know her as "grandma Willie." And since my mom was from Mississippi, I tried to see some parallels between my life and that of Skeeter, but there weren't any. We didn't have a housekeeper because we were rich white folk and that's what rich white folk did. We had a housekeeper because we were middle class folk where both parents were ahead of their time and worked outside the home. And there was never any of this business of "separate facilities"...that really shocked me as I read The Help. I wish I had been older and therefore more curious about Willie's own life, but as far as very young MooseMom was concerned, she was family and I had no real concept that she had a separate life, just as I really didn't understand that my parents could possibly have a separate, private life that didn't center around ME! :rofl;
After I married and moved away to the UK, I would come back to Texas and would bring my son, and Willie would come out to visit us. I don't know where she is now. Like so many other people in my life, she seems to have disappeared, although to many of those same people, I've disappeared, too.
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Started reading "Buckalnd's Complete Book of WitchCraft", for just general interest and curiosity...wondering if I will stumble upon a spell for curing ESRD :2thumbsup; :rofl; :clap;
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Started reading "Buckalnd's Complete Book of WitchCraft", for just general interest and curiosity...wondering if I will stumble upon a spell for curing ESRD :2thumbsup; :rofl; :clap;
Sounds like a Hogwart's text book. *L* Would love to hear if you find a spell to cure kidney failure, also.. if you find something that regenerates retinas, I'd be eternally grateful..
I started Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire yesterday. I stayed up late last night, just to finish the chapter on the Quidditch World Cup.
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I am enjoying the Henrietta Lacks book. For someone who has worked in human subjects research and hopes to continue to do so, it is great information, a fabulous how-not-to. Her writing style is plain, but she's a journalist so that seems true to the story and her history. I don't like when she seems to take on the Lacks family dialect in her own writing, or projects thoughts onto people, but that only happens in bits. It does sound like a really difficult story to properly investigate, but that is characteristic of any modern social science - all the best subjects are sick to death of being hounded for interviews and information.
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I like medical stories in general, so The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks was interesting to me.
I'm sorry, but I just couldn't get through The Pale King. I have so many books that I want to read that I just cannot bring myself to waste time on something I don't enjoy. Maybe if I were 30 years younger and didn't have an incurable disease, I'd have plowed through it and then congratulated myself at the end, but nope, not gonna do it. So I've started the "Song of Ice and Fire" books and hope to get through all five of them by the time "Game of Thrones" returns to HBO in the spring.
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Started reading "Buckalnd's Complete Book of WitchCraft", for just general interest and curiosity...wondering if I will stumble upon a spell for curing ESRD :2thumbsup; :rofl; :clap;
I had a friend in college who was studying criminal justice, with the intent to go on to the police academy. For those without the historical context, this was the very late 80's, not many years after all the popularity of the urban legend nonsense about the supposed rash of Satan worshipers who liked to do human and animal sacrifices. Somewhere along the line, the college cj texts began to include sections about "witchcraft" and the spells practitioners used, on the theory that cops should be able to identify the trappings. I was at his apartment, and when he ended up in a long, involved phone call, I started reading that particular text. (I never did find anything that explained to the students that Wiccans and Pagans aren't Satanists, but that's another issue.) So, here was the "spell" the text listed that the witches supposedly used to protect themselves from enemies - with the idea that the cops could then recognize witchcraft at work when they found the remains of the spell.
Obtain a sealed container, such as a large metal coffee can. Fill the can with as many sharp objects as you can fit in it - nails, knives, razor blades, broken glass, etc. Mark the names of your enemies on the outside of the container. Fill the rest of the container with your own bodily fluid, usually urine, although a blood sacrifice, even in a small amount in combination with the urine can strengthen the spell. Bury the container, with ceremony, in the most remote location available, to protect it from being disturbed. The spell will last as long as the container remains undisturbed.
Think it will work if we write ESRD on the can instead? Pity the peeing part is going to be so hard for so many of us to manage! >:D
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I finished "Larry's Kidney" by Daniel Asa Rose. It is a must read. Hilarious description of Dan and his cousin Larry who to go to China to get Larry a kidney. It is a true story and has many truths in it that you will find endearing to a kidney patient.
I got it on my NookColor or I would share it.
http://www.amazon.com/Larrys-Kidney-Mail-Order-Skirting-Transplant--/dp/B002QGSWNI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1313611141&sr=8-1
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I checked it out, Rerun, and it does look extremely interesting. No LendMe for the NookColor? I only ask because I have one as well, although right now I am so overloaded with library books that I want to get through those before committing to anything new.
We are on holiday next week and I shall be taking a load of books with me. We will be in the middle of f***all, but there will be activities all day for the kids, so perhaps I will get some reading done. I have Born To Run (I have heard that man at least twice on NPR) and The Trouble with Testosterone, Maus' The Gift for preliminary PhD reading, plus a few other anthro selections.
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I just bought (on my NookColor) Born to Ride about Casey Tibbs.
The NookColor is just too easy.
I wrote to Daniel Rose the author of "Larry's Kidney" and he wrote me back. WOW can you believe it. He seems like a super nice guy who understands the problem with Organ Donation first hand in The United States.
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I just bought a copy of a book called, "Sorrow's Reward" It's a book about dialysis patients. I can't wait to read it. I just got it delivered today so I hope to start reading it soon! :flower;
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Let us know how you like it.
:yahoo;
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Yet another Aunt Dimity mystery. 13? 14? I don't know; the series is endless and cute and fluffy, but sometimes I don't want to think too hard when I'm reading!
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I'm reading Daniele Steele - The House on Hope Street.
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Thanks, Rerun, I will :2thumbsup;
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I've just started the 6th book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I'm only in the first 10 chapters, and I'm finding it a bit slow to start compared to the other 5 that I've read
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I've reverted to reading a simply Terry Pratchett (The Bromeliad) and it's a highly entertaining romp in a world of little people. It makes me wish my imagination was such that I could create such lovely little worlds.
I've just started the 6th book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I'm only in the first 10 chapters, and I'm finding it a bit slow to start compared to the other 5 that I've read
Sorry Riki, you've probably already said, but I assume you haven't seen the films?! I haven't read any of the books for a long time, but I always found them very hard to read. My relationship with them was very a much a Love/Hate affair. I hated to love them and loved to hate them, for many reasons. However, I was up early to open the door to the post lady when she brought me my Deathly Hallows book and did sit on the stairs for over an hour reading it; I couldn't go online until I'd finished (two days, I think) because I was so scared of seeing spoilers! *sigh*
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I've seen all but the last movie, but I found them a bit confusing too. I think that's because of the dvd player I was using. It's a portable, and I think there's a problem with the contrast on it, because whenever there was a dark scene, it looked like the screen was turned off
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I am currently rereading "The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey. I just love the Pern series!
I am anxiously awaiting the newest Janet Evanovich book in the Stephanie Plum series, "Explosive Eighteen" due out November 22nd.
I like to read just about anything except Harlequin-type romances and westerns. Just never could get into them.
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Well, that book I read, "Sorrow's Reward" was pretty depressing. And, it was actually a bunch of poems about people's experiences in their units. To me, it was just depressing, how it was written. I wouldn't recommend it for reading really. :thumbdown; Just my opinion
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I am currently reading absolutely nothing! However, I just bought on Amazon "The Help" which I read about 2 years ago. I plant to read it again before I go and see the movie.
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I bought the last Harry Potter book tonight. Even though my nephew's mom let me borrow her copy (which I actually bought for her when she was pregnant with her second oldest. She had appendicitis while she was pregnant, and spent a lot of time in the hospital), it was water damaged and had a little bit of mold on it. I couldn't bring myself to even touch it, let alone sit and read it. I'm saving the book now, cuz I'm going to be spending the day by myself at my dad's on Thursday, waiting for the cable guy. *L* I'll need something to do. He doesn't have anything there.
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I am currently rereading "The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey. I just love the Pern series!
I am anxiously awaiting the newest Janet Evanovich book in the Stephanie Plum series, "Explosive Eighteen" due out November 22nd.
I like to read just about anything except Harlequin-type romances and westerns. Just never could get into them.
Pern rules! I want my own pet "fire-lizard". Have you read any of the Pern books by her son, Todd? I like her stuff better, but his aren't bad.
School started this week. I'm reading 2011 Michigan State Court rules at the moment. Yee-haw.
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I am an avid reader. I can read anywhere, anytime, and have often deprived myself of much needed sleep to finish a good part in a book or whole book in general.
I just finished HOT BLOODED" by Lisa Jackson.
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When I finish the Harry Potter books, I think I may tackle Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches series. I've had them for a while, I just haven't read them
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When I finish the Harry Potter books ...
Have you not finished them yet?! Sheesh Riki, you've had all day at your dad's; you should be finished by now!
I'm still on my Terry Pratchett book. I just have no oompf for reading this week. I have to keep renewing the books I've borrowed from the library. I expect I'll forget where I've put them soon.
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I am an avid reader. I can read anywhere, anytime, and have often deprived myself of much needed sleep to finish a good part in a book or whole book in general.
Yeah, me too. I'm rarely asleep before 2AM.
I just got Ann Patchett's new book "State of Wonder" from the library. Also, I am on the second of the "Song of Ice and Fire" series.
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When I finish the Harry Potter books ...
Have you not finished them yet?! Sheesh Riki, you've had all day at your dad's; you should be finished by now!
I didn't really sleep at Dad's, so after he left for work, I kinda crawled into his bed. *G* Except for the hour when the cable guy was there, I slept til mid afternoon
besides, I can only go so long before I have to set it down. The words start dancing all over the page, and I can't focus.. stupid cataracts
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Has anyone else read "Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter" or "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies"?
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I need a new book to read on my Nook. I like nonfiction. Any ideas for me?
:shy;
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I need a new book to read on my Nook. I like nonfiction. Any ideas for me?
What kind of nonfiction do you like?
If you like history, there is one that I got called "White Death" (I can't remember the author. The book is in my van, the van is in the shop!) It's about Russia's attack on Finland during WWII. I really liked it.
If you like true crime, I would suggest:
"Irresistible Impulse" by Robert Lindsey. (It is about the murder of a classmate of mine.)
"Searching for Anna" by Michaele Benedict. (A very close friend of mine had her daughter kidnapped.)
Hoe you find something soon!
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Hello, CebuShan,
“Irresistible Impulse” is certainly a horrible and gruesome story.
I have read that because the perpetrator came from such an important UK-family,
Monika Zumsteg was “demonized” to “justify” the behaviour of the perpetrator.
Do you think that could be true?
Thanks from Kristina.
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Hello, CebuShan,
“Irresistible Impulse” is certainly a horrible and gruesome story.
I have read that because the perpetrator came from such an important UK-family,
Monika Zumsteg was “demonized” to “justify” the behaviour of the perpetrator.
Do you think that could be true?
Thanks from Kristina.
No, the Monika Zumsteg that I knew as very sweet, quiet and shy. I can't imagine her changing that much in so short a time.
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Fire Ice by Clive Cussler
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Hello, CebuShan,
“Irresistible Impulse” is certainly a horrible and gruesome story.
I have read that because the perpetrator came from such an important UK-family,
Monika Zumsteg was “demonized” to “justify” the behaviour of the perpetrator.
Do you think that could be true?
Thanks from Kristina.
No, the Monika Zumsteg that I knew as very sweet, quiet and shy. I can't imagine her changing that much in so short a time.
Thanks, CebuShan, I thought as much.
It just goes to show what money can do...
Another point that comes to mind is:
if she would have been as bad as he described her in court,
I am sure he would not have married her in the first place...
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if she would have been as bad as he described her in court,
I am sure he would not have married her in the first place..
:thumbup; I certainly can't see the family allowing such a marriage to take place at that time.
Fixed quote tag error-kitkatz: Moderator
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I agree with you, CebuShan.
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Just finished The Hypnotist. I'm really into Scandinavian thrillers at the moment.
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Just finished The Hypnotist. I'm really into Scandinavian thrillers at the moment.
Have you heard of: "The Seven Symphonies" by Simon Boswell? It's a Finnish murder mystery set in Helsinki.
If you'd like to "try it out" go to this link:
http://www.sevensymphonies.com/7SHome.html
You can read a bit of it before buying it.
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Thank you so much! I've written these down. I love true crime but I live alone and usually am up all night until it is solved.
There is one called "Murder In Spokane" It scares me just to write it. I'm such a chicken. I'm going to go turn on my $2,000 security system now!
I see a new book called "The Eighty-Dollar Horse : Snowman
That sounds safe ;D
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Hallo, Rerun,
that reminds me of the terrible experience I had when I first read Edgar Allan Poe.
I studied Philosophy and Literature and Edgar Allan Poe was recommended and of course,
I was very keen and eager to learn and bought the book.
Problem was, I lived alone and I remember, it was after midnight,
and I sat up in bed with this book in my hands, totally spooked
and I listened to every possible noise in the house...
As you can imagine, if one really listens, every old house creaks a lot after midnight. ;D
So, for me there is no more Edgar Allan Poe or any other genius mystery-writer after dark... ;D
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Problem was, I lived alone and I remember, it was after midnight,
and I sat up in bed with this book in my hands, totally spooked
and I listened to every possible noise in the house...
As you can imagine, if one really listens, every old house creaks a lot after midnight. ;D
So, for me there is no more Edgar Allan Poe or any other genius mystery-writer after dark... ;D
:rofl; HAHAHAHA! I'm laughing because back in the late '70's-early '80's I read the Amityville Horror. I made the mistake of sitting in my living room reading. Just the one light on. If you haven't read it, it is supposed to be a true story about some people that bought a house that was haunted. Anyway, I got up to use the bathroom and as I walked down the hall...I saw this pair of red eyes floating in the darkness of the bedroom at the end of the hall!!! It was my cat sitting on the bed!! Needless to say, I didn't read an more that night AND I turned on a few more lights! :rofl;
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your post about the Amityville Horror made me smile. :)
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Problem was, I lived alone and I remember, it was after midnight,
and I sat up in bed with this book in my hands, totally spooked
and I listened to every possible noise in the house...
As you can imagine, if one really listens, every old house creaks a lot after midnight. ;D
So, for me there is no more Edgar Allan Poe or any other genius mystery-writer after dark... ;D
:rofl; HAHAHAHA! I'm laughing because back in the late '70's-early '80's I read the Amityville Horror. I made the mistake of sitting in my living room reading. Just the one light on. If you haven't read it, it is supposed to be a true story about some people that bought a house that was haunted. Anyway, I got up to use the bathroom and as I walked down the hall...I saw this pair of red eyes floating in the darkness of the bedroom at the end of the hall!!! It was my cat sitting on the bed!! Needless to say, I didn't read an more that night AND I turned on a few more lights! :rofl;
Thank you for sharing your experience with us, CebuShan,
it makes me so glad to know I am not the only one with such a spooky experience... :waving;
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I read "The Eighty Dollar Champion" Snowman the Horse that inspired a Nation. Great book. It is new 2011, but the true story is from the late 50's. Oh, such a good feel good book.
Now, what to read, what to read.....
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I've just finished Oliver Sacks' new book, "The Mind's Eye". He is a neurologist who has published several books of some of his more interesting case studies, including "An Anthropologist on Mars" and "The Man who Mistook his Wife For a Hat." I enjoyed those, but "The Mind's Eye" I found to be a bit laborious. It's probably just because I caught Rerun's cold and so can't concentrate on anything... :rofl;
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I'm waiting for my copy of "Four Perfect Pebbles" I can't remember the name of the author but we went to see her speak a couple of weeks ago. She is a Holocaust Survivor. Wonderful speaker!
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I'm reading, "Don't Swallow Your Gum" It's a medical book written by 2 medical doctors who are trying to dispel myths. Everything from Chewing gum stays in your stomach for 7years myth to a dog's mouth is cleaner than a human's. It's interesting! :) I'm reading it while I'm on D.
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J.A. Jance - Trial By Fire (Ali Reynolds series)
Linda Howard - Burn
Huge fan of Jance. Have all her books!
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To ready myself for Nanowrimo, I'm going to start over reading Chris Baty's No Plot? No Problem! A Low Stress, High Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days.
I started reading it when I got it about a year ago, and.. uh.. misplaced it for a while. I got about a quarter of the way through it first, though.
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Go Riki! We all want to be able to post that we are reading your novel by this time next year!
I'm just starting "Coyote v. Acme" by Ian Frazier.
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Go Riki! We all want to be able to post that we are reading your novel by this time next year!
I don't know about that. I've been working on one now for about 2 years, and I'm only a 3rd of the way through it
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To ready myself for Nanowrimo, I'm going to start over reading Chris Baty's No Plot? No Problem! A Low Stress, High Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days.
I started reading it when I got it about a year ago, and.. uh.. misplaced it for a while. I got about a quarter of the way through it first, though.
Oh good, you should be done in time for Christmas. Let me know the title so I can have my local book store order it For me. Happy writing!
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A Sword for a Dragon by Christopher Rowley
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Ahhhhhhh ........my favorite subject ..... Reading !! I've always loved to read. I tend to like true crime, biographies and horror/scary fiction. The last book I read was Ellen Degeneres' latest "Seriously ....I'm Kidding'. Of course as a newbie here, now all of my reading time is this website. HA !! I find reading to be totally relaxing and enjoyable.
I will post this information on the thread about interesting websites, but any avid reader (who does not do 100 % e-books on a device) .... there is a website called www.paperbackswap.com that I use. Cuts down on the cost of book buying. Check it out.
I *do* also have a Kindle. I was one of the early buyers and of course it's outdated now .... crazy how you cannot keep up with technology and how everything goes to the wayside. Of course, I guess folks older than me rolled their eyes when I was younger and looked at 8-tracks oddly. They were on their way out when I was a kid. Now it's me with all my audio cassettes, VHS tapes, etc.
Here's hoping that technology and advances in treatments regarding kidney disease keep advancing as quickly as the rest of technology does !!!
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I have a friend who uses paperbackswap.. I thought about it, but I have a hard time giving up my books.. they're kind of like old friends
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Hey Riki ........ I'm with you ...........but I just had too many 'friends' ...........HA !! Trust me, I still keep the books I really love .... but I also swap out the ones that I haven't 'grown attached' to (tee hee). And it helps to keep down the 'hoarding', as my place looks like a Barnes & Nobles/Best Buy with all the books, magazines, CDs, DVDs, etc !!! Check out the site sometime. It's also a great place to go if you uncover a new author and want to stock up on their back titles (even their out of print ones). And it is honestly very easy !! (kind of like Netflix)
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hehe.. I have no shelves, so my books and movies are stacked up all over the place. My Anne Rice books are in stacks underneath an end table in the living room, so they've kinda taken over the house, and Mom wants me to downsize a bit, so we can move into an apartment. Will not be easy
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Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
This was original written in 1945 after WWII.
It is good so far.... page 20
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I also have tons of books. I remember when we were getting ready to move across country & I had to get rid of a bunch. I had a friend who had just opened a second hand store; I brought in a bunch of boxes. I told her not to open them until I left. I'm sure I would have found a reason to keep most of them!
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I'm at present enjoying "Black Water" by Jefferson Parker. He is one top writer.
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I'm not deeply into anything right now. Sometimes if I start a book and set it down, that is IT !! I'm done. I've just swapped a copy of 'We Need To Talk About Kevin' that I'm about to dig into. It's going to be released soon as a Tilda Swenton movie and seems to be getting a lot of buzz.
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Yaaaah .... Ann Rule has a new book out (the 15th in her true crime files) .... I'm on chapter 4 of the first 'file'. Very exciting because Amazon had said the book was not being released until 11/29. And I found it at Barnes and Nobles yesterday. WHOO HOO.
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Being so busy with moving, I decided not to start a novel right now. In keeping with the season, I have started, "Christmas in my Heart" by Joe L. Wheeler. It p a collection of short stories about... You guessed it, Christmas!
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Last night I finished "V Is For Vengence", the newest Kinsey Millhone book (they were my parents' favorites), and then I was up until 4AM because I had just started Nathan Wolfe's "The Viral Storm: The Dawn of a Pandemic Age". Yes, it is about pandemics and how they develop and spread. Nathan Wolfe is the head of a group that is trying to predict from where the next pandemic will come. It's fascinating and is very scary.
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Just finished OLD ENEMIESby Michael Dobbs, the author of the House of Cardsseries. 10 out of 10.
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I Hate People!: Kick Loose from the Overbearing and Underhanded Jerks at Work and Get What You Want Out of Your Job
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Black Ops by Vince Flynn. Good shoot em up novel
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I just finished 'The Watcher' by Brian Freeman - thriller/mystery. I was really enjoying it and started to notice a bad smell. At first I thought it was me, and then the house I was staying at, and then the car on the way home - hubby was driving - I eventually realised it was THE BOOK! There is a yellow stain at the bottom of the pages in the last half of the book that was most likely left by a cat. I had to finish the book and sprayed it with deodoriser but it didn't help much. Am returning it to the library in a sealed plastic bag with a note. Hope they don't think I'm responsible! And to think I didn't notice it for the first half of the book.
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Just finished ROOM while in the hospital! I don't want to give it away but you MUST READ IT!!! Shows how a mother's determnation can conquer anything...in the most hopeless of situations! If you read it please PM me and tell me what you think!!!
xo,
R
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I'm reading the new Steve Jobs book...... he was a dick.
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Rerun, I'm reading this too and I agree (as I write this on my iPad :2thumbsup;)
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I'm reading the new Steve Jobs book...... he was a dick.
Einstein was better with science than people, too.
Currently reading - if you can call it reading when it's a graphic novel - "Castle Waiting. Vol. II" by L. Medley. Not usually into graphic novels, but picked up Vol I at the thrift store thinking my nephew might like it something different. I like her rather warped twist on fairy tales.
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Rerun, I'm reading this too and I agree (as I write this on my iPad :2thumbsup;)
Thank Woz
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Dean Koontz's "Your Heart Belongs To Me" is what I'm reading......great suspense book! I recommend it, it helps reading to pass the time on the machine!
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Dean Koontz's "Your Heart Belongs To Me" is what I'm reading......great suspense book! I recommend it, it helps reading to pass the time on the machine!
I love Dean Koontz! My two favs by him are Seize the Night and Fear Nothing.
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Dean Koontz's "Your Heart Belongs To Me" is what I'm reading......great suspense book! I recommend it, it helps reading to pass the time on the machine!
I love Dean Koontz! My two favs by him are Seize the Night and Fear Nothing.
I just got into his books and am enjoying the one I'm currently reading while doing D. My step dad has a whole bunch of them so I am going to ask him if I can borrow some ;D I want to read Whispers from what someone told me, it's quite good too! I'll keep the ones you mentioned, in mind too!
Have you read Your Heart Belongs to Me yet?
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I have not read that one yet. Whispers is quite good. Seize the Night & Fear Nothing remind me of the area in CA where I grew up. they are kind of a part 1 & part 2 but either can be read as a stand alone.
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Rereading The Pillars Of The Earth by Ken Follett. I like to read long novels in the dialysis chair, but read them on my Kindle so I can have choices and don't have to hold up a heavy book one-handed.
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Angel in the Rubble by Genelle Guzman-McMillan, the last survivor found beneath the World Trade Center after 9/11. It is described as heart-breaking, nail biting, and inspiring. And it is!
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I have not read that one yet. Whispers is quite good. Seize the Night & Fear Nothing remind me of the area in CA where I grew up. they are kind of a part 1 & part 2 but either can be read as a stand alone.
I have some catch-up reading to do ;D :rofl; I'd like to read that one too
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Very sad news, I just found out that Anne McCaffrey, author of the Pern series, died on November 21. She was 85. Let's hope her son, Todd, honors her memory by continuing the series.
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I wish I could read while on the machine... but it's kind of had to hold a book and turn the pages with one hand.. I have tons of books I haven't read yet, just cuz I haven't had the time
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Shock Wave by John Sanford
My wife bought me a Kindle Fire to read while on dialysis. This is the first book. I expect to do porn later on.
gerald
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I expect to do porn later on.
gerald
Then maybe the "male" symbol above your avatar will be more accurate.
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:thumbup; MM, needed a laugh early in the morning.
I started The Race by Clive Cussler last night, and am half way through it. His books are fast reads.
EDITED Smiley - Rerun, Moderator
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I Hate People!: Kick Loose from the Overbearing and Underhanded Jerks at Work and Get What You Want Out of Your Job
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We just finished "The Kitchen Boy" by Robert Alexander. This the first book that I read about the Russian Revolution and I found it fascinating. DH is upset that I don't find Serbian history as fascinating, but there isn't a big love story woven in like there was with Tsar Nicholas and Tsarina Alexandra.
Today, I will be starting "The Wilder Life" about a woman who decides to take on the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder in today's modern world. Since I have read all of the Little House on the Prairie books ad nauseum, I think this will be an awesome read.
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I've just started Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. I love the movie Fried Green Tomatoes and have seen it more times than I can count.
The book is funny, I'm really enjoying this. Sometimes you need something that can put a smile on your face!
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Cattlekid, I read the Wilder Life recently and loved it! Of course I have long been a Laura Ingalls Wilder fan!
I just started "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." It is hard to put down!
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I just started "Meg: Hell's Aquarium" by Steve Alten
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I started "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" in August when I was in the hospital with a staph infection. Somehow, it wasn't the right time or place to read that book and I couldn't get into it.
I just finished "Blood, Bones and Butter" by Gabreielle Hamilton for the second time. I had read it over the summer and loved it and my book club decided to pick it for our December read.
I think I'm going to splurge and get "11/22/63" by Stephen King with the B&N card I got as a gift. I used to be a huge King fan but got turned off trying to read "Insomnia" a few years ago. This looks like an interesting read.
Cattlekid, I read the Wilder Life recently and loved it! Of course I have long been a Laura Ingalls Wilder fan!
I just started "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." It is hard to put down!
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Finished The Race, and am starting The Kingdom by Clive Cussler.
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Finished Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, it was most excellent especially if you're looking for a light read, I've now got Janet Evanovich, Sizzling Sixteen. Right now I'm craving light reads.
For those who really like Murder Mysteries, Harlan Coben has an amazing writing skill. You can never figure it out before the end of the book, unlike the other mysteries I've read. There's always a twist so you can't guess. Plus the ones I've read so far are done in a way that they aren't gruesome. It's up to your imagination how you see it.
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I've now got Janet Evanovich, Sizzling Sixteen.
I love Janet Evanovich! My husband and I have both read the whole Stephanie Plum series (so far.)
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CebuShan, I do too! With this one I'll have read everything except for 17, which I just saw in Walmart. I'll wait till March and find it at the book sale the library has.
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i got a Kobo as an early Christmas present from my boyfriend since I am going to my parents for christmas.
And I am reading the Steve Jobs Autobiography.
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I'm just starting Janet Evanovich's Finger Lickin Fifteen.
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I don't know if there is another post like this but I thought it would be neat to post about books we liked reading and a quick little info. on what they are about in case others want to read a good book :)
I am finishing up a really good book right now called Heaven is for real by Todd Burpo. It is a really good book about a little boy who has a near death experience and visits heaven for a little while, the book is written by his dad and it talks about all the things the little boy sees and experiences while he is there. I believe whole heartedly that this is a true story and this book really gave me peace knowing that there is so much waiting for us in heaven.
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There actually is one in the Off Topic section
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I am having fun at the moment, my husband has bought me a Kindle for my birthday next week and I am so busy down loading books I haven't had time to read them . It is weird not having to turn pages.
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I've just finished John le Carre's latest- "Our Kind of Traitor". Simply marvellous! He's 80 now, but, boy, he's still writing magnificent stories about the murky world of 'intelligence'.
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I just started a true crime book called "Amy'. I'm fascinated by what people think they can get away with (and in this case, sometimes do ..... the case is still unsolved). It is written by a guy who was the same age as the young girl at the time she was killed and how he tries to solve the case.
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Rsudock gave me Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings for Christmas. I'm trying to get into it, but not having a whole lot of luck
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Riki, sometimes books grab you from the first page and then others just can't get a hook in at all!
I'm reading a fanasty trilogy, almost through the first book The Last Stormlord by Glenda Larke. Loving it.
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I'm reading "Firstborn", the third in a trilogy by Arthur C. Clarke.
I enjoy Sci Fi for a change of pace. I recently finished "The Help" and "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." Both were quite good.
Aleta
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I finally finished "Steve Jobs" . Please don't go back to see when I started it. It is sad that I read so slow.
Anyway, it was interesting and a real eye opener plus a good walk down memory lane when it comes to computers. I was a senior in high school when this all started so I've watched it grow. My first computer was a 286. Remember those? A week later a 386 came out then a 486 and I'm not sure after that. I never bought any of the Apple products like the "Mac" but I do want an iPad. Steve Jobs may have been a Genius, but not a very nice or good person. I guess he probably knows that by now. >:D
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I'm having a go at Jasper Fforde's 'Shades of Grey'. It's not bad, but I'm not very far in ... it's about a future earth where much that we know today has been lost and people are given a place in society based on their perception of colour. I find fantastical books difficult to grasp, but I will get through this one!
Rsudock gave me Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings for Christmas. I'm trying to get into it, but not having a whole lot of luck
Sometimes you have to put it down, walk away and come back a few months later. I always have to be in the right frame of mind to read books. I started reading my mum's copy of Ken Follet's 'Pillar's of the Earth' back in November, and couldn't bring it home because she was only half way through it. When I finally got it out of the library a couple of weeks ago I just couldn't get back into it, even though I'd been enjoying it previously. Odd. I expect I'll be ready to read it again in the summer.
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I've just finished "Storm of Swords", which is George RR Martin's third book of his "Song of Ice and Fire" trilogy. It took over 700 pages to finally get to the point where so many surprising things happened, so now I am in a quandry. I'm dying to know what happens next, but I suspect that in book 4, he's going to take another 700 pages before he tells us anything of any substance. So, I may have to take a break. I might start "American Nations" next. It is about how the historical formation of the different parts of the US have shaped political and social thinking in these desparate regions. When our politiciians start talking about "American values" and "taking our country back" and "American culture", there really is no such thing.
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Just finished David Lebedoff's 'The Same Man', a biography comparing two of the greatest 20th-century English writers, George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh. Absolutly fascinating.
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I'd like to start the Hunger Games books. A friend of mine is really into them, and I have a feeling she'll be asking me to see the movies when they come out.
As for the book I'm currently reading, I think that when Rsudock got it for me, she forgot that I have visual issues. The test is a little on the small side, which makes it harder to read. I think that's partly what's slowing me down
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I am currently reading Widow for one year by John Irving.
I suggest anyone who enjoys John Irving to pick it up, it's a great read.
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"When things fall apart" - Pema chodron
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Tanya Huff's "Blood" books. Campy vampire mysteries.
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I'd like to start the Hunger Games books.
I know my step-niece got these for Christmas because she went wild about it on FB ... however, I know nothing about them. Will I like them? (I do like a bit of teenage fiction [Twilight, LJ Smith, etc] and I'm guessing these are aimed at teens, but I may be wrong?)
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You're still in your teens, aren't you Pops?
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Yes galvo ... not long out of nappies, me.
;D
I like teen fiction; it reminds me of being young and carefree. It also reminds me of how intense everything is at that age and I am so pleased that (kind of) intensiveness is behind me now.
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I'm starting the hunger games in the next couple days so I will let you know how it goes.
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I'm starting "Killing Lincoln" by Bill O'Riely I've heard good things.
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I want to go buy the Hunger Games books and start reading them soooo bad, but I have been too lazy lately and haven't went to the book store - LOL :) Please tell me if you like them!!
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The Cleanest Race by B.R. Myers on my NookColor, an analysis of North Korean culture through their myths, arts and literature. Cannot get enough of it.
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Just finished "The Hare with Amber Eyes" by Edmund de Waal. Fabulous read, beautifully written, fascinatingly historical in a broad way but made personal by the people at the heart of it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/30/books/review/Buskey-t.html
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Finshed Jasper Fforde's Shades of Grey. It was fabulous! Desperate to read the next one now, but not even sure if it's been published yet. Moving on to an easy-reader (twelve year old boy style fiction), The Fear by Charlie Higson. It's the third in a series, and I thoroughly enjoyed the previous two. It's all about the end of the world and ferocious adults and how children cope with that. A bit Lord of the Flies-y, but more fun!
Once I've finished that I'll find a Hunger Games book to keep me occupied (but only if Fforde has been slack on the sequel writing front).
;D
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Idiot America by Charles P. Pierce
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Idiot America by Charles P. Pierce
Oooh....good one, Gerald. We did that for a book club selection recently!
I'm taking a box of books to the used book store this weekend. I'll have an up-date after that.
Aleta
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I just finished this book by some big-deal community organizer from the middle part of the last century. Saul somebody or other. A great read, too bad the title escapes me....
Back to The Cleanest Race.
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I finished The Cleanest Race. Boy, is this world hosed!
I am depressed now and worse yet, I have no book that I really want to read next.
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I've been reading "Irrationally Rational" for today's book club. Not finished. Sigh.
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Tomatoland by Barry Eastbrook
I will probaly never buy a supermarket tomato again....I had no idea what they go through
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I just started The Tin Roof Blowdown by James Lee Burke. Love Dave Robicheaux!
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Me too , CS. I haven't read that one yet. I'm enjoying Karin Slaughter's 'fallen', a good who-done-it.
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Don't Let's Go To The Dogs Tonight. I needed a break from the North Korean cold, and now I'm all moody for the African sunshine.
I told the kids I want to sell everything and move to Australia and they sounded very hopeful about that possibility. Safer and more plausible than Africa, and perhaps we could visit.
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Just started Vince Flynn's Kill Shot. Starting well...
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Don't Let's Go To The Dogs Tonight. I needed a break from the North Korean cold, and now I'm all moody for the African sunshine.
I've read that. What do you think of it? I think the author has a new book out that focuses more on her mother's life.
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Don't Let's Go To The Dogs Tonight. I needed a break from the North Korean cold, and now I'm all moody for the African sunshine.
I've read that. What do you think of it? I think the author has a new book out that focuses more on her mother's life.
Yeah, I noticed when I was purchasing it that a second book was mentioned.
I am almost through with it as I have been so very ill that all I've had the energy to do is lie in bed. I am enjoying it very much. It is one of those books that I have always meant to read, and in fact I have read the first few pages many times in book shops. I would have preferred to save the cash and get it out of the library, but they did not have the electronic copy of it and if they did have the hard copy, I did not have the energy to go collect it these past few days.
It's bringing up lots of memories for me, good and bad. She had a remarkable childhood, no doubt about that, and it's made me glad that Gwyn and I decided not to try to move to Africa. Her writing style is charming, though it does wear in places, primarily (for me, anyhow) the overuse of hyphenated adjectives. It's a minor complaint, the story is so powerful that it carries it through.
The part about feeling like there is a dark cloud hanging over them particularly resonated with me. I love the way she says such simple things like "we were all malarial" that just stop me cold, because that is a nightmare disease that can last a lifetime, yet it was just part of life for her I reckon. I love the dialect, of course, and can especially relate to her feelings of personal responsibility for tragedy and that dread as she anticipates being "in trouble forever". I don't know that I could read her second book any time soon, but will certainly check it out at some point. Her tragically daft mother is the most interesting character in the book, so it was a wise choice to write more about her. I thought the section where they go to the dam with the young visitor Richard was brilliant, and her mother says 'isn't this nice' and the narrator wants everyone to take special note of what a normal thing that was to say. It is so relate-able even if you don't have a similar life experience.
There is another book that I actually always associate in my mind with this one, though they have no relation other than being on display together once. It is called There Are No Children Here about the Chicago projects. Well, there was a time I would have read such a book, but today, having looked a bit more into that book, I just could not take it. I suppose I even feel a bit guilty for that. Reading about two little boys, for all intents and purposes the same age as my kids, and how they live in fear, neglect, despair, and violence is just not upon the cards right now. Being set in Africa allows me to keep Don't Let's Go To The Dogs Tonight at a certain emotional remove. My memory is too good at times, and once I read a book about kids in the projects, the horrible bits will stay with me forever, I know this with certainty.
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I just finished reading the Hunger Games trilogy. I read all three books in a week. I'd say that's a new record for me. *L* Anyone who's into YA books like me, and wants to read these books, be forwarned- for the last few chapters of the last book, you're gonna need a kleenex. I think I went through a few.
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The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
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Remember me by Lesley Pearce I am really enjoying this. My husband is also reading it.
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Don't Sleep, There are Snakes about a remote tribe in the Amazon.
I've heard it was interesting but should have been much better. Not very far into it yet, so am reserving judgment.
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Each Little Bird that Sings.
It is actually a book for kids, but I'm reading it as a preview for my class. Oh, what a sweet little tome. I'm surely enjoying.
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Killing Lincoln by Bill O'Reilly was very interesting. The Civil War was so bloody. My Grandmother's uncle was in the Civil War for the North but was a prisoner in the South. He hated Lincoln because Lincoln quit the prisoner exchange program and left him there to starve to death. Obviously he didn't starve to death and came out west.
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I just finished reading the Hunger Games trilogy. I read all three books in a week. I'd say that's a new record for me. *L* Anyone who's into YA books like me, and wants to read these books, be forwarned- for the last few chapters of the last book, you're gonna need a kleenex. I think I went through a few.
I've just started reading the first book and am unable to put it down. Okay, that's not strictly true, but I am loving it. The problem I have is that I don't like reading books I love because I get through them so fast and then they're gone and I can't read them anymore and I become so very sad ... *sigh*
;D
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Poppy, I can relate to that. I hate the end of a great book or series - I so live with the characters that I get glum and lonesome when the book finishes, just for a time.
I'm reading "The Painted Man" by Peter V Brett. I thought it was a ghost/horror story but it's fantasy and I'm really enjoying it. I know I'll have that glum feeling when I finish it :) I so admire the writers that create these wonderful tales for me to read!
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a song of ice and fire series by George RR Martin. EPIC :thumbup;
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I have about twenty pages of the final Hunger Games book to read and then I shall be very sad to wave it goodbye. However, I have Battle Royale on hold with the library because Blokey keeps going on about how The Hunger Games isn't an original idea and Battle Royale is supposed to be oodles better. We shall see.
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I am cackling my way through Rupert Everett's autobiography - "Red Carpets and Other Banana Skins".
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I just downloaded to my Nook "The Imortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" (2010)
"Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor black tobacco farmer whose cells—taken without her knowledge in 1951—became one of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, in vitro fertilization, and more. Henrietta’s cells have been bought and sold by the billions, yet she remains virtually unknown, and her family can’t afford health insurance."
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Just started "The Seven Symphonies" It's very good so far.
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I've got a couple I'm reading. iPhone 4s for Dummies, How to Do Everything iCloud on Kindle App on PC & iphone. On iBooks I'm reading Trial By Fire by J.A. Jance, and just started Mr. Perfect by Linda Howard. Another one I hope to get to see is James Pattersons, 1st to Die.
I ususally read a lot but lately I've been writing. Tring to put a family cookbook together! And also a family history book! Then there's my blog that needs badly updated!
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I've been reading bits of "Sink Reflections" off an on. It is from the lady who hosts Flylady.net, but my kindle Beta app keeps crashing on my touchpad.
I do have a book recommendation:
Life Disrupted, by Laurie Edwards.
I read it a year or two ago, and it's written by a woman with rare chronic illness, giving a real account of what it's like to be in your 20s or 30s with chronic illness. She has some respiratory illness, but it was still nice to read from someone who was a freak like me and hardly ever meets anyone "like" her. My birth defects are really rare, too. She does not have a "woe is me" attitude, she's pretty normal, and I find most "sick" people are like that, especially congenitally-ill people. Sometimes these memoirs are recordings of tragedy dramatized by the loved ones of deceased sick people, and they get eyeroll-inducing, but Edwards is great!
http://www.amazon.com/Life-Disrupted-Getting-Twenties-Thirties/dp/0802716490/ref=pd_sim_b_8
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I finished Don't Sleep, There are Snakes and it was an interesting story, a bit scattered and very dense with technical linguistics theory at times, but overall I am glad I put the effort forward.
I am now enjoying The Strange Career of Jim Crow.
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Read Private by James Patterson for my bookclub. I'm not a fan of his, but that is why I am in a bookclub - to read books I normally wouldn't. On Kindle I am reading In Leah's Wake and printed form, Biblical Archaeology.
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Just finished McCarthy's Bar by Pete McCarthy. It's a travel memoir of his trip to Ireland. If you loved Under the Tuscan Sun - don't read this one! He's sarcastic and funny and has a unique writing style that I love.
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I'm reading the Bright Forever by Lee Martin. Kind of a sad who dunnit type book. After this, I'm going back to my Stephanie Plum in Smokin Seventeen (Janet Evanovich)
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DROOD by Dan Simmons. 775 pages long, it's about Charles Dickens (and is purportedly written by Wilkie Collins) who becomes 'increasingly obsessed with crypts, cemeteries, and the precise length of time it would take for a corpse to dissolve in a lime pit, Dickens ceases writing for four years and wanders the worst slums and catacombs of London at night while staging public readings during the day,gruesome readings that leave his audiences horrified. Finally he begins writing what would have been the world's first great mystery masterpiece, The Mystery of Edwin Droodonly to be interrupted forever by ...'
Rivetting!
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I just finished reading "Pirate Latitudes", Michael Crichton's last book. Someone found it in his files after he had died and decided to get it published. It was awful. Not in the least bit artful.
I'm now reading "After This" by Alice McDermott, which, in contrast, is beautifully written.
Next up will probably be the latest in the "Song of Ice and Fire" series. Did anyone see the SNL parody of "Game of Thrones" the other night? It was SO TRUE! LOL!
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Just finished 13 Reasons. Teen fiction about why a girl committed suicide. Disturbing but at the same time I could not put it down. :flower; :flower; :flower;
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I finished The Strange Career of Jim Crow. It was enormously informative. I will find the time to share what I've learnt on one of the political threads, because, and I know this is difficult to believe, there's been some misinformation spread. *waits a moment for all to recover from this shock*
So now, heaven help me, I'm reading Portnoy's Complaint. I needed a laugh, and only 30-some pages in I've at least had a few smiles. I've never read a Philip Roth far as I can remember, and he is always talked up on his own book jackets (greatest American novelist and so forth, which is quite the bold claim). Has anyone read this particular offering? I am wondering if I will survive it. It takes place entirely as a monologue told to a psychologist, and absolutely his style is witty and rings true, but the grotesquely detailed description of the protagonist's core problem is taxing. I don't do well reading about sexual obsessions. Does anyone know a less graphic but equally celebrated Philip Roth that I could perhaps switch over to?
Boys and I are 15 pages from finishing The Magician's Elephant. Liot fell asleep while I was reading.
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I finished "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks " by Rebecca Skloot. Very interesting. True story about the cells they used from her tumor that helped with polio etc.... Yet her family can't afford health insurance.
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I temporarily put down "The Seven Symphonies" to read "Explosive Eighteen" by Janet Evanovich. I knew it would be a fast read (Finished it in 3 days) So now I am going back to the Symphonies.
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I'm reading "Every Day A Friday" by Pastor Joel Osteen.
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I finished "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks " by Rebecca Skloot. Very interesting. True story about the cells they used from her tumor that helped with polio etc.... Yet her family can't afford health insurance.
That was a fascinating book.
I just finished reading "Do Not Ask What Good We Do: Inside the U.S. House of Representatives" by Robert Draper. It focuses on the impact of the 2010 mid-term election of the plethora of freshmen representatives, mostly Republican, and the response of the GOP leadership. It was fascinating.
I'm also reading "A Free Life" by Ha Jin, a novel about a young Chinese family's new beginning in America in the 80s.
Next up is "My Two Moms" by Zach Wahls, an account about the author's life and how his two moms instilled in him the values of the Boy Scouts. He was on the Daily Show tonight, and it just sounded really interesting. I like reading about other peoples' lives especially when they differ so much from my own. Mr. Wahls related the story where one of his moms had to go to the ER during a particularly bad episode related to her MS, but because his two moms were not legally married, the ER doctor was not obligated to speak to the patient's partner. Apart from being unfair, that just struck me as being medically unwise, you know? Wouldn't an ER doctor want as much reliable information as s/he could get, no matter the source?
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I'm about to start reading Battle Royale, just to see if The Hunger Games really is anything like it.
;D
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I just finished the Hunger games trilogy. Now I'm into another Jeffrey Deaver whodunnit, Roadside Crosses.
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I have just finished the Sidney Sheldon book "Are you afraid of the dark" very interesting post scrip at the back. I did not realize that Russia and the USA can control the weather. I did some research on this and sure enough they can. They can actually control and change the weather. This is bloody scary.
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I have just finished the Sidney Sheldon book "Are you afraid of the dark" very interesting post scrip at the back. I did not realize that Russia and the USA can control the weather. I did some research on this and sure enough they can. They can actually control and change the weather. This is bloody scary.
Apparently China can too ... Obviously we can't in England otherwise we would have had the last three weeks of constant heavy rain back in the autumn, thus negating the need for a panic-stricken (how are we going to wash our cars without hosepipes!!) drought.
Kim Jong-il of North Korea could control the weather with his mind, as if by magic. Honest.
;D
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I'm outside my normal reading realm, I'm reading Voices From the Titanic. It is the telling of the sinking by people who were there, what they told the senate after the sinking, there are also media accounts, it's as if you've been taken back in time to that era. Very descriptive. It is really good.
The book starts with the finishing of the construction of the ship to the launch and the things people did on ship until the crash. I'm about half way through, I've been sick so reading is keeping me sane right now. This book is well worth reading.
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I'm about halfway through Game of Thrones.
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Loving the book Defending Jacob. Really into it. I'm a little over half way.
:flower; :flower; :flower;
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Our latest book club pick for June is "Beekeepers Apprentice". Has anyone read it? I do the book club to read things I might normally not read. I have company coming --- I can't read until they leave or I will get no cleaning done! The book will always win. :2thumbsup;
We should have a book club and pick one book a month and then share thoughts. Have we talked about that and I have forgotten? Kidney failure = no memory :rofl;
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I'm about halfway through Game of Thrones.
Is it any good? I'm enjoying the second series on the telly (I think there's only one episode left) and am wondering if reading it will be a good idea now that I've become familiar with the characters through vision and sound.
I'm currently chilling with the kids ... I just can't stop myself from visiting the Young/Teenage Fiction shelves in the local library. They do make for very easy reading on the bus.
;D
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"The Beekeeper's Apprentice" is a favorite of mine, as are all the books in that series. I love that the main character had a double major--chemistry and theology. I thought I was the only one! Thanks for reminding me of that good book...A book club would be fun--count me in!
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@ Paris - I love an IHD book club!
:flower; :flower; :flower;
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I'm currently into Christopher Paolini's Inheritance, the last book in the Dragonrider series. So far I'm enjoying it.
And the idea of an IHD Book Club is interesting.
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I always have a book with me just in case I get stuck waiting somewhere. I love the idea of an IHD Book Club! :clap;
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It is the beginning of the month; a good time to start a book club. Anyone have a good suggestion for our first book? Give ourselfs until the beginning of July to read it. Figure out a good day to start the discussion. Maybe run the discussion for a week and then start another book?
Anyone ever been the leader of a book club? Any ideas on how to start this? Any ideas for a book choice. It will be fun.
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CebuShan, Have you tried a Kindle yet? I am so sold on it, can fit in my handbag and I take it every where. Wonderful for those hospital visits.
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Oh cool idea! :thumbup;
I'm reading Fifty Shades Of Grey right now.
I'm excited getting into the series! It's a romance/erotica series.
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Cordelia,
50 Shades is absolutely awesome! Really good story line. I recently finished the trilogy and really liked it the whole way through.
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Okay, I'll try 50 shades of grey by E.L.James soon.
Just finishing 'Wreckage' by David Baldacci. So relaxing
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Hi Kitty and Cas,
I'm SO enjoying this book, I can't put it down LOL LOL :rofl;
Oh, I can't wait to read more of the books. I heard there are 3, is there a possibility there could ever be more?
Cas, It's really good, its the kind of book that's hard to put down once you start. :rofl;
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I've just finished two books, one being "The Emperor of Maladies"; it is written by an oncologist and is a history of cancer and the treatment(s) of this disease. It was fascinating, it really was. It gave some insight into the historical reasons for why there is so much "publiciity" about fighting cancer as opposed to most other illnesses (like ESRD).
I've also finished "Unstrange Minds", written by a man with a PhD in cultural anthropology whose eldest daughter is autistic. So, he decided to write a book about how different societies around the world view and treat (or ignore) autism, and why. He mentions some of the pioneers in autism research such as Lorna Wing (who I actually have met in England), and it makes me see how very lucky my son is for being autistic in the UK as opposed to being autistic in someplace like South Korea. He also talks in depth about how in the 60s here in the US, the concept of "refrigerator mothers" came into vogue. My husband's younger brother was only 3 or 4 years old when he was struck by a high fever which rendered him autistic; he is non-verbal. Since this happened back in the 60s, his mother was labelled as one of the infamous "refrigerator mothers" and, I kid you not, this unhinged her forever. It was striking to see how much blame historically is left at the feet of mothers while fathers are left out of the equation altogether.
I now think I am ready for some good fiction!
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Sounds like they are really good books, MM!
I should really check the Unstrange Minds one out......I was reading one of Jenny McCarthy books before I got into my most recent fiction, 50 Shades.
Have you read any of her books about her son who has Autism?
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at the moment i'm working my way through kathy reichs crime books (on which tv show Bones Was based) & also the most recent in the True Blood Series. Haven't read much yet as Couldn't concentrate in hospital! x
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I watch the show, True Blood, however I never got into the books.
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Cordelia I read the books first before the show was around, I prefer the books the show's a bit over the top!x
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Hi Cordelia,
I don't know if there would be any other Shades books. I would like that, but everything was kind of explained out by the time you finish book 3. I know if the author does decide to do more, I'll be there waiting!! :rofl;
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Hi lainiepop, I'm wondering about the books then, are they 'very' different from the tv show then?
Kittycat, there are 3 Shades books for sure though, right? When I asked at the bookstore, the lady told me it was a series of 3 so far. But that the 2nd and 3rd books weren't 'in' yet, but to keep calling in for the everyday if I wanted them.
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Hmm yes quite different the show Is Loosely based on the books but show has more sex blood & guts & Storyline isn't as believable. also read that authors other Series, the Harper Connelly mysteries they were good :) x
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Am I missing something? Everybody I know seems to be reading Fifty Shades of Grey and I don't know anything about it!
I'm reading The Serious Kiss. It's not serious, and there's very little kissing in it (it's a book aimed at teen girls.) I promise that I will start reading grown up stuff again soon.
;D
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LOL Lainiepop, I want the Sex and the Blood! LOL LOL :rofl; :rofl; So you're saying there isn't as much sex and blood in the books?
Poppy, You're missing out bigtime on the Shades' books! LOL :rofl; It's soooooo good! :yahoo;
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Cordelia, I find Jenny McCarthy really offputting. I think she has done a real disservice to parents who have autistic children. I lived in the UK when all of the fraudulent "research" about the link between autism and vaccinations began to float around as it was a British researcher who started it all, and Jenny McCarthy keeps on harping about autism in ways that don't seem to have any real scientific foundation.
Having said that, though, each child with autism is really quite unique. They all have the triad of impairments, but those are manifested differently in every child. Whenever I hear her interviewed, I can't help but think she believes that all autistic children are like her son and that what works for him will surely work for everyone else. I appreciate her good intentions, and I appreciate that she knows more about her son and his needs than anyone else, but when I hear her, she just annoys me, so no, I have not read any of her books. I suspect that her experiences have no similarities to my own.
Is there anything in her books that you have found useful for your own son?
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Hi MM,
I just started reading the one of her books called, "Mother Warriors" I have never read any of hers before and thought, what the heck LOL I'm always looking for new/different books to read while on dialsis at my unit. I get so bored watching tv, nothing better than reading so I saw one at the local libray here on one of the 'recommended reading " shelves and thought I'd give it a whirlwind of a try.....
Like you, I don't agree with the whole 'vaccinations' causing Autism, but I enjoy reading about her experiences. I don't agree with everything, she says, either.
My daughters had the same vaccinations like my son, who is Autisitc and they are not Autistic, so I don't exactly believe the vaccinations causing it.
I really enjoyed reading in this book one of her run-ins with Barbara Walters, that was really interesting.
As far as anything helpful, no, I haven't read anything yet. She mentioned about diet, but I would like to read more of her books to see if she goes into it in more detail in one of her other books.
You are right about each child being unique, I totally agree with you! :thumbup;
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Oooh Cordelia, tell me more about her run in with Barbara Walters!
There is too much anectodal evidence regarding children who seem to change overnight after having vaccinations, so I would not be surprised if certain children do have a reaction to the shots. A lot of these children seem to also have GI difficulties. I don't think autism is caused by one thing. There was no sudden change in behaviour in my son after getting his MMR, nor has there ever been any stomach or bowel problems. To be honest, I believe my reduced kidney function played a part. I didn't know I had fsgs until six months after I had him. I don't know which came first, the pregnancy or the fsgs, but the timing of everything just strongly suggests that undiagnosed impaired renal function maybe affected his brain development. I'll never know. I did contact one of the posh universities in the UK who were investigating causes of autism, and they did tell me that maternal renal insufficiency was something they were looking at. That doesn't mean anything, but no one has ever flatly denied that there was a cause and affect.
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I just finished Fifty Degrees Below Zero.
Now I am reading Anne Rice- Road to Caana
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Hi Cordelia,
There are definitely 3 books in the series. I got all 3 at the same time from Amazon, which was good because as soon as you finish 1, you really dive headfirst into the next one.
Poppy, there's a lot of hype about the books, but they are so worth reading. I am normally into historical/family stories, but these really grabbed my attention. Plus, I usually read 2 different books at a time, when reading 50 shades, I couldn't...I wanted all my attention into these! lol
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Ah, I found a thread on another forum about the Shades trilogy ... apparently they're just Twilight for grown-ups so they're full of sex? Started off as Twilight fan-fic? I love Twilight, but might give Shades a miss (at least until the hype has died down) ...
;D
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LOL Kittycat, I'm the same as you, I'm usually reading two books too! LOL But, with Shades, also, I kind of put the other book on the back burner :rofl;
Poppy, I don't view Shades as an adult version of Twilight. Personally, I can't stand the Twilight Series at all. LOL :rofl;
MM, Barbara Walters got quite upset with Jenny McCarthy right before an interview on The View. Jenny was in shock that someone she so highly regarded in Journalism, would be "so vicious", as she called it. Apparently Barbara did not read her book by the sounds of it and there were some pretty attacking commets on Barbara's behalf. It wasn't a very long chapter from what she wrote, but it was pretty interesting LOL
Jenny apparently likes Oprah a lot better.
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just bought "Prisoner of Tehran" by Marina Nemat. I was seated next to her at a semi-traditional Persian wedding we attended on the weekend and although I'd heard of her memoir I hadn't read it. I found her interesting to talk to and look forward to learning more about her experiences in Evin prison.
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Argh! :banghead; I just went to order book #2 and book #3 on the Shades Series through Amazon.ca and I don't think the order went through properly. ???
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just bought "Prisoner of Tehran" by Marina Nemat. I was seated next to her at a semi-traditional Persian wedding we attended on the weekend and although I'd heard of her memoir I hadn't read it. I found her interesting to talk to and look forward to learning more about her experiences in Evin prison.
Oh, monrein, that sounds fascinating. Please let us know what you think of it.
I am almost finished with Whatever You Do Don't Run. It was a Nook Daily Find, so only $2 to download it, and it is written by an Australian who has spent 20 years in Africa as a safari guide. Easy summer reading. The setting is right up my street, the writing is nothing special, but the stories are superb. I have started Martin Meredith's The Past is Another Country but doubt I'll have time to finish it before it's due back.
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I'm reading Rachel Maddow's "Drift" right now. I really enjoy her show and feel I learn a lot from her. She is a research junkie!
I don't want to read the 50 shades of grey books. I hear the writing is sub-par at best, and frankly, virgin meek beauty meets powerful, abusive man really creeps me out. All the hype over it gives me the heebie jeebies! No thank you!!!
KarenInWA
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I'm reading Rachel Maddow's "Drift" right now. I really enjoy her show and feel I learn a lot from her. She is a research junkie!
I don't want to read the 50 shades of grey books. I hear the writing is sub-par at best, and frankly, virgin meek beauty meets powerful, abusive man really creeps me out. All the hype over it gives me the heebie jeebies! No thank you!!!
KarenInWA
Karen, I've read the free excerpt on Amazon, and the writing is terrible. Story line does not interest me, either, but I have never read a romance novel in my life - whole genre does not interest me. I do absolutely love reading the Amazon reviews of the book, it's become a guilty pleasure of mine. Some of those reviewers are quite clever and I wind up laughing almost every time I find new ones on there, especially the one and two stars.
Glad you're enjoying it, Cordelia. There is nothing better than being truly engrossed in a book!
It is the beginning of the month; a good time to start a book club. Anyone have a good suggestion for our first book? Give ourselfs until the beginning of July to read it. Figure out a good day to start the discussion. Maybe run the discussion for a week and then start another book?
Anyone ever been the leader of a book club? Any ideas on how to start this? Any ideas for a book choice. It will be fun.
This is a great idea. I hope we can get this started at some point. I have no suggestions, although I find that Kurt Vonnegut has near-universal appeal. He's an easy read with lots to say about humanity. Drawbacks are that he is not widely available outside America (at least I've never seen one of his books in a foreign shop/library) and the Americans may feel they've read enough of him in high school.
Come on, IHD, what are some authors you'd like to read and discuss?
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You are so right on the nail, Cariad, there is nothing better than being engrossed in a book! :thumbup;
I know Shades isn't everybody's cup of tea. I would say its the kind of genre of book that you either like or you don't. There is no between. :)
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Karen, I've read the free excerpt on Amazon, and the writing is terrible. Story line does not interest me, either, but I have never read a romance novel in my life - whole genre does not interest me. I do absolutely love reading the Amazon reviews of the book, it's become a guilty pleasure of mine. Some of those reviewers are quite clever and I wind up laughing almost every time I find new ones on there, especially the one and two stars.
\[/quote]
:rofl; I've done the same thing! I like to think of those reviewers as doing a public service!
KarenInWA
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I just finished the Shades series. Despite the fact I thought the author needed a thesaurus and to perhaps attend some writing workshops, I couldn't put the books down. But now I need to read something good - open to any and all suggestions!
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All I can say about 50 shades of grey is, I'd rather be hooked up to HD with no entertainment than subject myself to that garbage! And I say this as a transplant patient!
I have never read, nor had any desire to read, any of the Twilight books, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo books, and I only read the first of the Hunger Games books. I thought HG was well written, and an interesting story, but I just have no interest in reading the others. I'm not a big fan of violence or blood, and even though IRL I have a high pain tolerance, I certainly don't want to read about it. Books/movies with rape scenes or control scenes will literally turn off my appetite - both for food and sex. I can think of nothing worse I could do to my relationship, if I had one. I do have a bit of an LD one, and I would never to that to him. That would be horrible!!! (A tampon sex scene??? Really??? EWWWWWWW!!!!!!!)
I don't know why I am so bothered by the fact that 50 shades has become such a phenom with so many women out there. I guess I like it when I can relate to my fellow women about things, but this just draws a big "WTF???" from me. Women are already being set back politically in the US. Do we really seek that in our entertainment, too? Seriously???
KarenInWA
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I just finished the Shades series. Despite the fact I thought the author needed a thesaurus and to perhaps attend some writing workshops ...
This is how I feel about JK Rowling, which was (semi-)fine because the work she produced was for children. I hear she has a book coming out for adults this year and I've already decided I'll give it a miss, thankyouverymuch!
This is a great idea. I hope we can get this started at some point. I have no suggestions, although I find that Kurt Vonnegut has near-universal appeal. He's an easy read with lots to say about humanity. Drawbacks are that he is not widely available outside America (at least I've never seen one of his books in a foreign shop/library) and the Americans may feel they've read enough of him in high school.
Come on, IHD, what are some authors you'd like to read and discuss?
Well, I've heard that E L James is an up and coming author and I think Karen might really enjoy her style ...
;D
You can definitely get Kurt Vonnegut over here in bookshops and the libraries. I've never read anything of his but feel free to recommend something I could get my teeth into.
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Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Also read Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
These both came on my droid!
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Well, I've heard that E L James is an up and coming author and I think Karen might really enjoy her style ...
;D
No, Poppylicious, I would not like her style. I have a lot better things to waste my time on than sub-par writing about dominating men over virginal meek beauties. Like I say, I'd rather do HD without any entertainment. At least that's productive! LOL
KarenInWA
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I'm currently enjoying the fluffy, light summer read of James Patterson's The Lucky One.
I really liked Defending Jacob.
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You can definitely get Kurt Vonnegut over here in bookshops and the libraries. I've never read anything of his but feel free to recommend something I could get my teeth into.
Slaughterhouse Five! Slaughterhouse Five!!!!
This book played no small part in bringing Gwyn and me together. I'm sure I've told this story here before, but I never get tired of repeating it. When we met in San Francisco Gwyn told me that he did not really like reading and I responded "Well, even people who don't like reading love Kurt Vonnegut." He made some joke about only reading books with pictures, and that's the great thing about Kurt Vonnegut - you cannot use that excuse! He draws pictures! I told Gwyn about Slaughterhouse Five and he said "I think I'm going to go to Borders and see if they have this Slaughterhouse Five." This made me laugh uproariously, because it is basically like saying "I wonder if Borders stocks this Webster's Dictionary I've heard about...." Anyhow, he not only bought the book (which still resides downstairs) but read it and wrote me sweet little love letters about what part he was on and how it all reminded him of me. :guitar:
It is a painfully honest war novel with a lot of absurdism thrown in. Apparently Kurt Vonnegut did not consider himself to be a sci-fi writer, though he was often labeled this way because his books have included aliens, other dimensions, characters who know they are characters, mad scientist weapons, and so on. They can be rather melancholy.
Perhaps the rest of the world has finally cottoned on to him. I periodically checked a few Smith's and libraries and random booksellers in Britain once-upon-a-time, after Gwyn warned me he's really not famous outside America - the V section was always terribly bare. I guess in these days every author is accessible. :2thumbsup;
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It doesn't bother me that other people like 50 Shades of Grey. I got over that with the Harry Potter series. My friend (an English prof) and I are still talking about this trend in adults reading kids books. It used to annoy me - I worried what would happen to literature if one could only make money writing wizard and vampire books. These days, I recognize that most of us have so many real-world troubles and have to work so hard just to keep ourselves afloat that I can see how people would turn to light escapism more often than James Joyce. I recently read The Magician's Elephant and Framed aloud to my kids. I especially loved Framed, and I can proudly state that after a mere 12 years of marriage to Gwyn, I can pronounce all the Welsh in it. It takes place in Manod, Wales, authored by Welshman Frank Cottrell Boyce. It was beastie! (A term used throughout by the child protagonist. The kids over here say anything cool is 'beast' but have not adopted beastie... yet.)
I heard that 50 Shades of Grey is a bit of a rip-off of a film called The Secretary - the lead male is even named Mr. Grey. That film has been favorably reviewed, and I think one of the primary points was that in these relationships, the submissive actually wields a great deal of power. It is more balanced than it appears at first glance. I don't believe people can really help what turns them on, and so long as it's mutually consenting adults, I see no harm. Actually, the one-star reviews written by people familiar with BDSM called the sex 'boring' and 'vanilla'. You cannot please everyone!
Now E.L. James' awful, repetitive, simplistic writing - that offends me. Always.
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50 Shades started as an online fan fic novel based around the Twilight series - I guess lousy writing inspires more lousy writing. Popular, however, does not have to be intelligent or well made. Snookie and the Jersey Shore, anyone?
I've seen an interview with the author who admits that it's simply her personal sexual fantasies written down. If it's creating any kind of buzz at all, it's supposedly about the fact that it is "freeing" women to admit that what they fantasize about has little relationship to what they actually want IN a relationship. Apparently, it's taken this many decades for the media to jump on the idea than women prefer their porn in written form, not video. Duh....
Just chewed through the last of my stocked Kim Harrison "The Hollows" series. Trashy witch/vampire fun - especially when one was set in my hometown, complete with the Mackinaw Bridge and clueless "fudgie" tourists. The next two are on my wishlist on paperbackswap.com.
Tried to start another sci-fi series that I had collected 3 of from the thrift store. Uh...made it through a couple of pages. I hate it when the authors of the book blurbs don't seem to have read the books. All 3 on my swap site, hoping for someone who actually likes the author.
Found a new fluff mystery series that's next on my list. Found one at the thrift store to try. "Home Repair is Homicide" series by Sarah Graves. It seemed appropriate!
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Slaughterhouse Five! Slaughterhouse Five!!!!
Perhaps the rest of the world has finally cottoned on to him. I periodically checked a few Smith's and libraries and random booksellers in Britain once-upon-a-time, after Gwyn warned me he's really not famous outside America - the V section was always terribly bare. I guess in these days every author is accessible. :2thumbsup;
I'll try and remember to find it at the library (I say remember because they're updating the online feature/catalogue thingy and I can't currently search or put on hold and I KNOW my local library won't have it!)
I don't think WH Smith have ever knowingly sold anything decent ... these days especially they're just full of the biographies of z-listers.
;D
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Attempting to 'escape', I am reading The Pop Larkin Chronicles, a compendium of H E Bates' tales, including The Darling Buds of May. Was there a final story where all the characters either ended up on diabetes-related dialysis, or chewing their own feet off in an institution for morbidly obese alcoholics? Perhaps titled The Drunken Fatties of December?
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Currently reading Legacy by David Goleman
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jbeany, How strange, my daughter was hunting that book 50 shades down to-day. I said why don't you down load it to your Kindle and she said she wanted to share it with me. I think you not. I had all my fantasies years ago now all I want to do is sleep.
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I had all my fantasies years ago now all I want to do is sleep.
:rofl;
I'm all for the occasional trashy romance novel - but if that's all I wanted to read, I'd could buy Harlequins by the bagful at garage sales and save a fortune on books.
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The recent book store run netted me some books!
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I just finished The Memory Keepers Daughter By Kim Edwards. Not exactly light summer fluff, but a good story about the way familiar secrets, regret and lack of communication can change even the deepest relationships.
Just started a biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine. Fiesty lady for her time.
Also about 1/4 of the way into Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult. It's about a family whose youngest daughter has osteogenisis imperfecta (brittle bones) and how it affects each family member.
I love having summer off with the students! One of my favorite job perks - now if they would just pay me for staying home it would be perfect! ;)
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I read The Memory Keepers Daughter awhile ago and thought it was very good.
I've read a few Jodi Picoult books, but I don't think I've read that one. I read My Sisters Keeper, Change of Heart and The Tenth Circle. I like her style, but the darn books always make me cry like a little girl.
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I know, her books always get to me too. :'( Jodi Picoult also has a book about a high school shooting called 19 Seconds, it's a real heartbreaker.
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Well in Nottingham UK 50 shades of Grey is flying off the shelves. Every man and his dog are reading it. My daughter managed to get two of the books, apparently it is a trilogy. She says you can not put it down. I suppose I could have a little look when she has finished with it.
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I'm reading Madeleine Albright's 'Prague Winter' A story of remembrance from her childhood in Prague during WWII.
It is good so far.
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I suppose I could have a little look when she has finished with it.
Billy, might have known, you naughty girl....
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I'm reading Madeleine Albright's 'Prague Winter' A story of remembrance from her childhood in Prague during WWII.
It is good so far.
I've been wanting to read this; thanks for reminding me.
Used to be I'd finish one book before starting another, but nowadays I have up to three books going all at once. I am currently reading "The Emperor of Maladies" which is a non-fiction history of cancer. It explains, among other things, how fundraising for cancer has become such a behemoth, but it also outlines how far we've come in our understanding how cancer works. Cancer is basically a disease of us in that it is a disorder of reproduction, but all cells have to be able to reproduce in order to sustain our bodies. So, cancer is really built into us. I find that to be fascinating.
I'm also reading "A Single Roll of the Dice" about Obama's foreign policy toward Iran. It makes me realize that Iran has its political factions, too. There are those who want normalized relations with the US just as there are others who want to continue to have the US as an enemy against which to rail for political gain. Sounds rather familiar, doesn't it? During the Bush administration, the Iranians gave the US, via the Swiss, a list of concessions they were willing to make, pretty much agreeing to everything the US had demanded. There could have been peace between our two nations, but certain factions within the Bush administration refused to accept the concessions because they feared it would make us look weak, so that opportunity was lost. After several years, those people came to regret their intransigence. What a terrible shame.
My husband has been nagging me to read Stephen King's new book, 11/22/63 about the Kennedy assassination. I am not a fan of Stephen King's writing. His stories are better made as movies and I find his writing to be artless. But being the good wife that I am, I relented and am about a third of the way through that. It's easy reading.
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I'm reading "The Little Book on After Dinner Speeches", and it's got some good ones.
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Finished in the last couple of days:
the girl who stopped swimming by Joshilyn Jackson. Loved this as much as "gods in alabama"
La's Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith. This one is landing on my "To be re-read" shelve, right next to The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.
Emma by Jane Austen
Nerilka's Story by Anne McCaffrey - which was one I had read before,but didn't own until I just found it at the thrift store recently.
(I read really fast, and need to read for at least an hour if I expect to be able to sleep, so I chew through them quickly.)
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(I read really fast, and need to read for at least an hour if I expect to be able to sleep, so I chew through them quickly.)
Oh gosh, ME TOO!
I'm going to investigate the Joshilyn Jackson books you mentioned. I've not heard of this author and am always on the lookout for new things to read.
I am not familiar with La's Orchestra Saves the World, but I really enjoyed McCall Smiths "Ladies' Detective Agency" series. Did you see the TV adaptations? I loved those.
I also really liked The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.
I also recently read Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffennegger who also wrote The Time Traveller's Wife. Both very interesting and creative.
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Reading fast is a benefit in school - but a pain in the neck when reading the last book in a favorite series - they never last long enough!
I've read a few of the Ladies' Detective stories and liked them. Did know they were made into video, but then I don't have cable, so I don't see much on TV. (Plus, at the moment, both of my little TVs have been packed away for the last 2 months, which makes it really hard to watch them. One of these days, I need to dig them out and see if my antenna gets any stations here. But then I'd watch TV when I should be remodeling...so, nahhhhh.)
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Well in Nottingham UK 50 shades of Grey is flying off the shelves. Every man and his dog are reading it. My daughter managed to get two of the books, apparently it is a trilogy. She says you can not put it down. I suppose I could have a little look when she has finished with it.
My sister gave me all 3 of the books over the holiday. Neither of us can figure out what all the hype is about. It's like a poorly written Danielle Steele novel, with a few light bondage scenes tossed in. (Seriously, if you've ever watched HBO's Real Sex shows, which were all about the lighter, weirder side of people's sex lives, you've already seen harsher BDSM than what's in the book.) Everyone is young, beautiful, and incredibly rich - and they all live happily ever after.
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jbeany, Daughter loaned me the first book yesterday, I will let you know if it thrills me ,chills me or what!
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I bought the first volume of Fifty Shades Of Gray
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Are you enjoying it? I'm on book 2.
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Howdee, all. It's been a while, but I thought I would jump in and post about a book I'm about to start:
All My Crimes by Tal Valante
I really don't know much about this book, but I often get review request from Tal's publisher.
I have been discussing 50 Shades of Grey for many months now. I read it when it was a free Kindle read and had no idea it would take off the way it has, hehehe.
If you want to know what books I've reviewed recently, message me off list and I'll give you a link to my book review blog.
I've missed hanging out with you all, but I should be around a bit more now that I've quit my job to work from home.
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I'll admit it. I'm reading the first 50 Shades of Grey book. I'm 36% through it (can you tell I'm reading it on my Kindle?) and I'm still undecided if I like it or not. It is VERY poorly written, cliche after cliche among other things, but... I continue to read,,,
:flower; :flower; :flower;
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"The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak.
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Sue Grafton's V is for Vengeance.
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I'll admit it. I'm reading the first 50 Shades of Grey book. I'm 36% through it (can you tell I'm reading it on my Kindle?) and I'm still undecided if I like it or not. It is VERY poorly written, cliche after cliche among other things, but... I continue to read,,,
:flower; :flower; :flower;
Like an abusive relationship - we just keep thinking it will get better....
But I did read all of them - well, okay, by the last one, I was just skimming, convinced that all the raving fan girls online must have seen something I was missing. Still blind over here, though.
Chowed through Sarah Addison Allen's Garden Spells and The Girl Who Chased the Moon in the few days. Loved them both, and will add them to my "Reread" shelf. Also finished Rita Mae Brown's Loose Lips, and Bingo. Both also fab and destined for the Reread shelf, and making me wish she had written more about Runnymede. Some fictional towns just make you want to visit all the time.
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Reread 'Bloodstream' from Tess Gerritsen. Only remembered the story at the last couple of pages. Sometimes I can see the benefits of having had a cerebral haemorrhage.
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My youngest daughter is an English teacher at an all girl's catholic high school and she has recently become aware a number of her senior students are reading " 50 Shades of Grey " . She bought herself a copy to see what all the fuss was about and found it very disturbing on a number of levels , mainly that her students would think the kind of relationship portrayed in the book is OK . It seems that in the modern teenage world , being treated badly by one's boyfriend is seen as glamorous .
My daughter is concerned about the message the girls are getting from this book but is not sure what to do about it . Banning the book at school would only make reading it more desirable and anyway it seems many of the girls are being given the book by their mothers after they themselves have read it .
What do those of you who have read it feel about teenage girls reading it ? Would you encourage your teenage daughter to read it ?
I myself have no desire to read it as I too cannot sleep unless I have read for a while and I prefer to escape to a nicer place .
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Two Christmases ago, vcarmody was my secret Santa, and she gave me "One for the Money", the first in the Stephanie Plum books. I hadn't had the chance to read it, but about a month ago, I picked it up and really enjoyed it. It reminded me a lot of the Kinsey Millhone series (I'm sure both authors often hear that comparison) which I also had liked. So, I've downloaded the entire series onto my Nook, and I'm currently on the fourth in the series, "Four for the Score". It's light, entertaining and makes me giggle. I am not in the mood for anything too cerebral at the moment.
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My youngest daughter is an English teacher at an all girl's catholic high school and she has recently become aware a number of her senior students are reading " 50 Shades of Grey " . She bought herself a copy to see what all the fuss was about and found it very disturbing on a number of levels , mainly that her students would think the kind of relationship portrayed in the book is OK . It seems that in the modern teenage world , being treated badly by one's boyfriend is seen as glamorous .
My daughter is concerned about the message the girls are getting from this book but is not sure what to do about it . Banning the book at school would only make reading it more desirable and anyway it seems many of the girls are being given the book by their mothers after they themselves have read it .
What do those of you who have read it feel about teenage girls reading it ? Would you encourage your teenage daughter to read it ?
I myself have no desire to read it as I too cannot sleep unless I have read for a while and I prefer to escape to a nicer place .
Spoiler alert - skip this if you plan to read the books and want at least some plot line surprises...
Well, if you only read the first one - she walks out on him because of the abuse. The next two consist of a "Love and Psychiatry conquers all" message, so he gets over the controlling thing to a certain extent. I suppose the worst message the girls might get from it is that there's a chance to change a controlling man.
I don't know that it's going to have any huge influence though, not compared to what the relationships the girls will see in their own lives will have. I was reading at a college level by the time I was in 6th grade, so I certainly read my share of trashy novels at much too young of an age. None of the "flutter your eyelashes and let the man rescue and dominate you" philosophy stuck with me - but I credit the strong, balanced relationships I saw between my parents and grandparents for that.
I don't think I'd ever consider attempting to ban it - waste of time, and, as you said, the surest way to make certain even those who don't read for pleasure take a look. I think, if I were her, I'd get permission to have a discussion about the books - perhaps with the health and English teachers in tandem. With a Catholic school atmosphere, she would probably need to get parental permission, but I think it would be worth the effort. The English teacher portion would be a chance to talk about how badly it's written - and perhaps offering some other classic books about love affairs as a comparison. A discussion of banned books wouldn't be a bad idea either. Lady Chatterly's Lover was banned, after all - which is why everyone read it. The health discussion about relationships would be a chance to remind them that it's fiction, and get into the idea that what is appealing as a fantasy in a novel is not workable in real life.
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Two Christmases ago, vcarmody was my secret Santa, and she gave me "One for the Money", the first in the Stephanie Plum books. I hadn't had the chance to read it, but about a month ago, I picked it up and really enjoyed it. It reminded me a lot of the Kinsey Millhone series (I'm sure both authors often hear that comparison) which I also had liked. So, I've downloaded the entire series onto my Nook, and I'm currently on the fourth in the series, "Four for the Score". It's light, entertaining and makes me giggle. I am not in the mood for anything too cerebral at the moment.
MM - I got started on the Stephanie Plum series after winning a drawing at the local library. "Visions of Sugar Plums" was the first one I ever read. I have them all and reread them from time to time. (I want to grow up to be Grandma Mazur! :rofl; )Make sure you read the "between the numbers" novels too. Glad to hear you're enjoying them.
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I don't know that it's going to have any huge influence though, not compared to what the relationships the girls will see in their own lives will have. I was reading at a college level by the time I was in 6th grade, so I certainly read my share of trashy novels at much too young of an age.
I don't know what level I was reading at by 6th grade (age 10) but I do remember that it was that year that a girl brought the book Wifey to a sleepover at my house. I learned new words as the girls thumbed through a ludicrous number of pages (I think it was some 600 pages in total!) I was too young for it and when my friends created a cover out of paper to hide it and then left it at my house (this happened with an issue of High Times as well) I felt gross just having that book in my room, so I gave it to my mother because it didn't occur to me to throw it out and I just wanted someone to get it away from me. I have never wanted much to do with bad writing and spent my formative years reading through the great playwrights. That Christopher Durang could be awfully risque, though.
I don't think I'd ever consider attempting to ban it - waste of time, and, as you said, the surest way to make certain even those who don't read for pleasure take a look. I think, if I were her, I'd get permission to have a discussion about the books - perhaps with the health and English teachers in tandem. With a Catholic school atmosphere, she would probably need to get parental permission, but I think it would be worth the effort. The English teacher portion would be a chance to talk about how badly it's written - and perhaps offering some other classic books about love affairs as a comparison. A discussion of banned books wouldn't be a bad idea either. Lady Chatterly's Lover was banned, after all - which is why everyone read it. The health discussion about relationships would be a chance to remind them that it's fiction, and get into the idea that what is appealing as a fantasy in a novel is not workable in real life.
If it were good writing, I would be fine with this, and if every last girl in the class has voluntarily read it, it could work. However, I would never grant permission for my son to be assigned that book in school and I don't think the kids who hadn't read it would get much out of a discussion. If a teacher came to me with this idea, I would say pick a shocking classic, perhaps one that was banned, and read that but please, for the love of all that is decent in this world, do not take up class time with that awful book. :laugh:
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Half way through the first book of 50 Shades of Grey and I'm done. I just can't get into the "story" and can't get past the writing. I gave it a try. I used to teach high school English and many of my former students, now in their 30's, told me I would probably not like it. They know me well.
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Yeah, I can't bring myself to read 50 Shades. For me, sex that involves spanking, slapping, and whips reminds me of herding cows. Reading about controlling men makes me feel all icky inside. Not something I want to walk around with while I read it, ya know? And bad grammar in a mass published book would just piss me off! (and I really don't want to read a book and have a "Mooooooooooo!!!!" playing over and over again in the back of my mind!)
Instead, I am re-reading a novel by Edward Rutherford called "New York". It's an historical novel about the city, starting in 1664 and going into the 2000's. It takes real life events and writes it around the stories of some fictional characters, following their generations throughout the centuries. A highly fascinating read. I first read it last year. Reading that made my dialysis treatments a lot more bearable!
MooseMom, I want to read that JFK Stephen King novel! My sister gave it to my brother-in-law for Christmas, and she gets to read it after he does. I don't think he's read it yet! I haven't read much Stephen King, maybe a novel or two. But anything JFK is probably worth a read for me.
KarenInWA
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I got 50 shades of grey yesterday to see What all the fuss was about haven 't Started it yet am pretty girl its not gonnab an amazing read!
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:rofl; that's how I started reading 50 shades too, to see what the fuss was all about.
You either like it or you don't with the Series, there is "no in between"
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MooseMom, I want to read that JFK Stephen King novel! My sister gave it to my brother-in-law for Christmas, and she gets to read it after he does. I don't think he's read it yet! I haven't read much Stephen King, maybe a novel or two. But anything JFK is probably worth a read for me.
KarenInWA
Karen, I've had to put aside the Stephen King book for the moment. It is enormous, and I can't hold it in a comfortable position. I usually prop up such big books on my belly, but with my enormous incision, that's not gonna happen.
My husband is a big Stephen King fan, and he keeps pushing me to read more of his stuff. A few years ago, I finally relented, and I hated hated hated it. I swore I'd never read another, but my husband just won't shut up about this JFK book. It is an interesting story, but the style is just so pedestrian and lacks art, in my mind. The older I get, the more I appreciate style and the use of language in fiction.
CebuShan, what are the "between the numbers" novels?
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One of the most stylistically, poetically beautiful novels I've ever read is "Fugitive Pieces" by Anne Michaels. It took me over completely.
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My husband is a big Stephen King fan, and he keeps pushing me to read more of his stuff. A few years ago, I finally relented, and I hated hated hated it. I swore I'd never read another, but my husband just won't shut up about this JFK book. It is an interesting story, but the style is just so pedestrian and lacks art, in my mind. The older I get, the more I appreciate style and the use of language in fiction.
I was huge King fan in my teens for a while - nothing creepier than reading them under the covers in bed on a cold winter night when you are alone in the house. I didn't read anything of his for a while - I found other interests as I got older. I've tried picking some of his newer stuff up at thrift stores, but I don't seem to get into it much now. I'm not sure whose style has changed now that I'm older - his or mine.
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One of the most stylistically, poetically beautiful novels I've ever read is "Fugitive Pieces" by Anne Michaels. It took me over completely.
Ohhh, thanks for that recommendation! I'll see if it's available for Nook downloading, and if it is, I'll add it to my wishlist tonight.
Jbeany, I know that as I've gotten older, my tastes have changed. I still love a good story, but I appreciate literary style more than I did when I was younger.
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Finished Fifty Shades of Grey. Good story line. Hard at the beginning to read. The character development left something to be desired until about half way through the book. I like the guy in the book in spite of his Fifty Shades of Grey. I hate the way it ended. Now got to get the second book. The sex scenes are not really X-rated or pornographic, just detailed.
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I've also finished "Unstrange Minds", written by a man with a PhD in cultural anthropology whose eldest daughter is autistic. So, he decided to write a book about how different societies around the world view and treat (or ignore) autism, and why.
Hello, did someone say Cultural Anthropology??!!
I have to return books to the library today and need a little something to pick up. This sounds right up my street - medical anthropology, which is what I am attempting now. My advisor said to try reading books by other medical anthropologists to try to find a framework/style that I can use as a guide. I've already read Rayna Rapp's amazing Testing the Fetus but autism is such a uniquely fascinating condition, I suspect I'll enjoy this one just as much if the author put a good effort forward.
MM, what did you think of it? Was the author competent?
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Hee hee...I thought that might interest you, Cariad. LOL!
Yes, the author was competent, mainly because he chose a subject matter that that, I suppose, was dropped into his lap. Since his own daughter is autistic, it seemed a natural topic for a cultural anthropologist. He is not a lyrical writer. His style is, well, there is no STYLE, per se, just an straightforward interest in how other cultures see and cope with autism. Since autism IS mysterious, in those cultures who see "different" people as some sort of spiritual symbol, these people can be revered. In other cultures such as our own where personal responsibility and competence and independence is highly prized, services might be better but there is more of a stigma. And in a culture such as South Korea where higher education and cultural homogeneity is most highly valued, something like autism is frightening.
He ends with more personal stories about his and his wife's experiences with dealing with his daughter's condition here in the US. They have a younger daughter who is neural normal, and hearing about her is interesting, too.
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I've been picking away at Temple Grandin's "Animals Make Us Human". She intersperses her thoughts on autism (she's autistic herself, and incredibly successful in her field) with a lot of research on animals and her perspective on what we're doing right and wrong with our pets.
Most interesting thing so far - Wolves don't actually live in packs in the wild. They only form packs with an alpha wolf when wolves of different families are forced together into a group - like the relocated or zoo packs that are so frequently studied. In the wild, wolves live in family groups, and the dominance that exists in the group is no more than that of a human family that respects the mother and father. She correlates this with how we are raising our dogs - and discussing if the common "Be the Alpha" approach of the "Dog Whisperer" is actually the best way to deal with them in a family setting.
I was disappointed in the chapter on cats, though. She gets really in depth on offering ideas for getting your dog to follow the house rules - but no helpful hints on training a cat NOT to do something. She stresses that negative reinforcement doesn't work for them - just clicker training and treats. Peachy. How do you give a cat a treat for staying off the table and get them to make the connection?
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Oh, I've been a huge fan of Temple Grandin's for decades! I don't know, however, if any neural normal person can really understand cats, much less an autistic person! LOL!
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I've been picking away at Temple Grandin's "Animals Make Us Human". She intersperses her thoughts on autism (she's autistic herself, and incredibly successful in her field) with a lot of research on animals and her perspective on what we're doing right and wrong with our pets.
Most interesting thing so far - Wolves don't actually live in packs in the wild. They only form packs with an alpha wolf when wolves of different families are forced together into a group - like the relocated or zoo packs that are so frequently studied. In the wild, wolves live in family groups, and the dominance that exists in the group is no more than that of a human family that respects the mother and father. She correlates this with how we are raising our dogs - and discussing if the common "Be the Alpha" approach of the "Dog Whisperer" is actually the best way to deal with them in a family setting.
I was disappointed in the chapter on cats, though. She gets really in depth on offering ideas for getting your dog to follow the house rules - but no helpful hints on training a cat NOT to do something. She stresses that negative reinforcement doesn't work for them - just clicker training and treats. Peachy. How do you give a cat a treat for staying off the table and get them to make the connection?
Temple Grandin is a fascinating person. I'll have to look for the film about her on Netflix, the one that played on HBO? I've only seen clips.
She is widely criticized, though, I believe by other people with autism. The argument, which is a bit difficult to dispute, is "If you love something [animals] you don't perfect ways to KILL THEM." I do understand her reasoning, though. They are going to die anyway, so she may as well make it as non-traumatic as possible. I heard her on NPR a few months back and it was interesting how her career has shown this progression - I think she said she now is primarily in the business of advising the consumers of animal products, McDonalds and the like, how to pick the most humane suppliers.
Jbeany, have you tried one of those sour apple sprays for your table? I had two cats once, a Himi and a 'street cat'. The Himalayan, AJ, was easy to train, hated the negative consequences enough to stop doing what we wanted him to stop doing. I trained him to stand up and beg for food just because I thought it was cute. He would eventually get to the point where he would walk into the kitchen, stand in front of the fridge, meow, then stand up on his back paws (just in case I was THAT stupid and didn't realise what he wanted.) The street cat, Barney, I swear he loved the challenge of doing something naughty then running full-speed at us as we wielded a spray bottle and were pelting him right in the face. He did this for an entire evening before we decided he must be enjoying it, so it was counter-productive.
MM, thanks for the assessment of Unstrange Minds. I did get it from the library and have read the intro so far and I think I can already say that you are absolutely right about his style, or non-style. His structure seems to be that of the basic thesis or dissertation and he has yet to say anything that I didn't already know, but it's early yet and I have no doubt that will change. I am not sure why he said cultural anthro was about the intersection between biology and culture, because I don't think many would agree with him on that definition. Maybe as a definition of medical anthropology, but plenty of cultural anthropologists wouldn't know the difference between a chromosome and a kick in the head!
As for the having the subject dropped in his lap - what a cheater! That would be like me studying.... oh, wait.... :rofl; I can actually remember saying to a professor that I thought Rayna Rapp was able to write such an amazing book because not only had she been through the horrifying experience of having to choose whether or not to abort a baby with downs syndrome, but she also was fluent in English, Spanish, and French. His response was "Yeah, you work with what you have." So, when I feel weird about exploiting my transplant, I think of her. She found something positive in terminating a wanted pregnancy, and I hope to find the same somewhere in all my medical madness. :2thumbsup;
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Bible
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Temple Grandin is a fascinating person. I'll have to look for the film about her on Netflix, the one that played on HBO? I've only seen clips.
She is widely criticized, though, I believe by other people with autism. The argument, which is a bit difficult to dispute, is "If you love something [animals] you don't perfect ways to KILL THEM." I do understand her reasoning, though. They are going to die anyway, so she may as well make it as non-traumatic as possible. I heard her on NPR a few months back and it was interesting how her career has shown this progression - I think she said she now is primarily in the business of advising the consumers of animal products, McDonalds and the like, how to pick the most humane suppliers.
Jbeany, have you tried one of those sour apple sprays for your table? I had two cats once, a Himi and a 'street cat'. The Himalayan, AJ, was easy to train, hated the negative consequences enough to stop doing what we wanted him to stop doing. I trained him to stand up and beg for food just because I thought it was cute. He would eventually get to the point where he would walk into the kitchen, stand in front of the fridge, meow, then stand up on his back paws (just in case I was THAT stupid and didn't realise what he wanted.) The street cat, Barney, I swear he loved the challenge of doing something naughty then running full-speed at us as we wielded a spray bottle and were pelting him right in the face. He did this for an entire evening before we decided he must be enjoying it, so it was counter-productive.
Water in a spray bottle makes them run away quickly, but doesn't do a thing to keep them from jumping up there in the first place. I've got lemon juice and lemon extract - I might have to try adding some citrus to see if it helps. Although, given that these two eat pretty much everything, they might like it.
I'm well aware from previous kitties that I'm really only training them to stay down when they have an audience, but even that is better than them jumping up when I have company there. I've always scrubbed all my surfaces down with disinfectant before cooking or serving food on them.
Grandin has a section in this book explaining how she can say she loves animals and still design slaughter houses and pens for caged animals. I guess I didn't question it in the first place - probably from spending time as a child on friend's farms and helping with various 4-H project animals. The animals were always treated well, but there was never any question that the cute little calf we were bottle feeding was going to be auctioned off by the pound.
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Dr Harry showed on TV his way of keeping cats off benches. He put a strip of double-sided sticky tape around the top edges of the bench and their favourite walking place on the bench/table. They get up there and don't like their paws sticking to the bench. He reckons that it doesn't take long before they learn.
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Mine learned how to grab the tape and pull it off and drag it around the room for fun. I had duct tape in a web across the kitchen table, with the sticky side up, ends stuck to the underside of the table where it wouldn't destroy the finish. I think I was successful with the kitchen counters because I could leave cookie sheets with water in them for the cats to jump into. I couldn't do that with the dining room table, though. The kitchen had laminate counter tops and lino floors. If they knocked a sheet off the table, the wood finish would have been ruined, not to mention the carpet. Aluminum foil is supposed to bother them to walk on too, but not that I've noticed.
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Your cats are waaaaaay too clever for me, jbeany! I remember buying the sour apple cat repellent to place on the Christmas tree one year (our cat nearly needed surgery because he would stand under the tinsel and eat it like spaghetti). The sour apple scent kept AJ - who was not the problem - in a far corner of the apartment, but Barney again seemed to take it as a challenge. He would stand by the tree with his head extended as far as possible, as if he were inhaling deeply just to desensitize himself to it. Don't misunderstand, Barney was the sweetest, most lovable feline, he just had authority issues his entire life!
We would lock the cats in a back room when we were eating or had guests over who did not want a giant beast like Barney to follow them around demanding their attention. AJ was very stranger-shy, so he would voluntarily hide himself away until he got to know someone.
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I think it's having two siblings that makes the difference. No dominance issues to work out - just them ganging up against Mom.
If you've ever read the Mrs. Murphy mysteries by Rita Mae (and Sneaky Pie the Cat) Brown, she does a fabulous job of writing the inner dialogue of the pets who help their owner solve mysteries. She not only has them acting like super smart sleuths, she also has them hiding under the bed, giggling when they've shredded the throw pillows in retaliation for being locked in the house.
I look at mine sometimes and think they must have the same kind of thoughts. I had one years ago whose favorite trick was "Made You Look!" He'd stare at a spot on the floor or wall and track it like he was watching a bug. When I'd get up to go kill it, he gleefully run in circles before plopping down in my chair or warm spot on the couch.
Brown definitely has pets of her own!
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I'm reading Divergent by Veronica Roth (Book1 of a trilogy). Its similar to hunger games and I like it. I want to get back into reading non fiction to learn something but I haven't gotten the desire.
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Just finished the first of two mystery novels I got at the thrift store. Not impressed. It's a series called "A Culinary Mystery With Recipes" by Nancy Fairbanks. The food columnist/detective doesn't so much solve the mystery as stumble into the answer when the murder is finally committed right in front of her. Meh.
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I trained him to stand up and beg for food just because I thought it was cute.
Ha, Qyzen didn't need training, he's just taken to doing it, the cheeky moneky (he's thirteen-ish weeks). Dora doesn't do it so he hasn't learnt it from her. I've never actually been owned by a cat which does it before, but it is one of the sweetest things (especially when he uses his baby-squeak meow at the same time!)
;D
And back on topic ... I'm reading Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five (as per the recommendation). It's the first grow'd up book I've read for a while and makes a pleasant change from teenage vampires ... !
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Finished Fifty Shades Darker
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CebuShan, what are the "between the numbers" novels?
MM, They are Stephanie Plum books that she wrote for different holidays and aren't "numbered". The very first one I ever read was "Visions of Sugar Plums" That's what got me started on the whole series! Let's see...
Visions of Sugar Plums (Christmas)
Plum Lovin' (Valentine's Day)
Plum Lucky (St. Patrick's Day)
Plum Spooky (Halloween)
These are the books that introduced a character called "Diesel". Janet Evanovich just started a series with him revolving around the "seven deadly sins". The first one was Wicked Appetite. It was pretty good. I ordered the second and the bookstore just called and it's in.
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I have finished All three Books of Shades of Grey.
Does anyone want them? Free, you pay postage?
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I have finished All three Books of Shades of Grey.
Does anyone want them? Free, you pay postage?
I should have borrowed them for Jenna!
I am going to read the newest Dean Koonz book, I have it, just no time.
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I usually am reading multiple books at any given time. Some of the ones I am reading now are The General's Daughter, a mystery later made into a movie starring John Travolta; FlyBoys, about WWII pilots in the Pacific theatre; The North American Martyrs - Jesuits in the New World; The Renal Patient's Guide to Good Eating; Band of Brothers; First, Do No Harm about a hospital in Houston; my Breviary. My house is as usual loaded with books in varying stages of being read. I tend to go through phases of what I like to read, but mysteries and religious books are generally on the list.
Anne
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Have finished Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five. I really
enjoyed loved it and NEVER would have chosen to read it myself so BIG thanks to cariad for suggesting it. (At least, I think it was cariad!) I know my local library doesn't have any Vonnegut books (indeed, this one is an American edition which was donated) so whilst waiting for one to come from elsewhere (suggestions welcome) I'll probably revert back to something a little easier to read, no doubt involving smoulderingly ancient teenagers and spells.
;D
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Never read Slaughterhouse Five, what's that about?
I'm an ancient teenager. :rofl;
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I have nearly finished the last book Fifty Shades of Grey I can not wait.What a load of hype. or should I say tripe.
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Finished "As Nature Made Him" by John Colapinto. It's the fascinating and true story of David Reimer, the twin boy whose parents agreed to perform a sex change operation on him and raise him as a girl after a botched circumcision. It's both a biography and a scathing look at the doctor, John Money, who lead the charge to surgically alter any child with abnormal genitals, either through birth defect or accident, and raise them as whatever gender the parents saw fit to choose, regardless of what their genetic make-up. Money reported the case as a raging success, which fueled the belief that nature was a distance second to nurture, and what gender and sexual orientation a child was could be changed simply by making them wear pink dresses instead of blue jeans and giving them dolls to play with. (And also reinforced the belief that overbearing mothers made their children gay by how they treated them.)
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Finished "As Nature Made Him" by John Colapinto. It's the fascinating and true story of David Reimer, the twin boy whose parents agreed to perform a sex change operation on him and raise him as a girl after a botched circumcision. It's both a biography and a scathing look at the doctor, John Money, who lead the charge to surgically alter any child with abnormal genitals, either through birth defect or accident, and raise them as whatever gender the parents saw fit to choose, regardless of what their genetic make-up. Money reported the case as a raging success, which fueled the belief that nature was a distance second to nurture, and what gender and sexual orientation a child was could be changed simply by making them wear pink dresses instead of blue jeans and giving them dolls to play with. (And also reinforced the belief that overbearing mothers made their children gay by how they treated them.)
Oh, that is a sad, sad story. We watched the documentary on this for our Biological Anthro class "Hormones and Behaviour". Genes will tell you the so-called sex of a baby, hormones, however, have an organizational effect on the brain and are thought to be responsible for the very specific feelings that people have about their sexual identity - males who not only claim they should have been born female, but know that they were meant to be lesbian, for example. I love reading about the biology behind it. I remembered the name Dr. Money because how could you ask for a more perfectly Dickensian villain that that? Did the books mention what happened to the twin boys? I've not read it and did not know the ending until seeing the documentary.
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Country Of The Bad Wolfes by James Carlos Blake. An excellent three-generational saga set in the USA and revolutionary Mexico. 'No hay reglas fijas' - a precept of long standing along the lower Rio Grande!
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Oh, that is a sad, sad story. We watched the documentary on this for our Biological Anthro class "Hormones and Behaviour". Genes will tell you the so-called sex of a baby, hormones, however, have an organizational effect on the brain and are thought to be responsible for the very specific feelings that people have about their sexual identity - males who not only claim they should have been born female, but know that they were meant to be lesbian, for example. I love reading about the biology behind it. I remembered the name Dr. Money because how could you ask for a more perfectly Dickensian villain that that? Did the books mention what happened to the twin boys? I've not read it and did not know the ending until seeing the documentary.
The book didn't cover it, but it's a decade old. I looked them up online. The twin who was raised as a boy was finally diagnosed as a schizophrenic. He overdosed on pills. David, who was raised as Brenda, committed suicide not long after, both over his brother's death and because his wife left him. Very sad endings to some horribly messed up lives.
Money was just plain creepy. He wrote papers claiming that sex between pre/early teens with men in their 50's and 60's was perfectly natural and the relationships between them were healthy and good for them. Part of his "counseling" sessions with his sex-changed young patients involved showing them porn, describing sex acts that even the least prudish among us would be hesitant to talk about, let alone discuss with children, and repeatedly asking them detailed questions about sex and their sexual desires, even when they were as young as 6. Wrong on so many levels....
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I'm reading "Pirate Latitudes" by Michael Criton. It was a completed manuscript discovered after his death.
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"Beauty and the Werewolf" by Mercedes Lackey. Meh. Not as amusing as her other stuff about The Tradition in the Five Hundred Kingdoms.
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Just finished Bob's book ABCs of the Big D and all I can think about now is <drum roll> CORNEY DOGS!!!!!! :yahoo;
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American Pastoral by Philip Roth. I cannot say exactly why I like it but I do. The story speaks to me and while his writing can seem artless, it actually takes on this subtle lyrical quality that sort of sneaks up on you. It is nothing like Portnoy's Complaint which is a relief, although there has already been a ghastly, horrifying seduction scene which will be difficult to put behind me. I can relate to the feeling of trying to act like you are OK, like your mind is not a thousand miles away, like you are not utterly heartbroken and disinterested in life. That partcular scene was simply breathtaking. It is a story of what lives behind the facade of a perfectly happy person, and I think we can all guess that it is not terribly pretty.
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Im not even sure i can post the name of the book i just read....
but i dont know if id even recommend it, im still a bit baffled. I couldnt put the thing down, and when it was done... I sat there, my jaw still dropped, and im still confused, bewildered, and i almost feel dumb having read it. I read this book in 3 days, it was that odd i couldnt put it down.... but it really wasnt very well written, and the ending made it...... stupid. but i admit it kept me turning the page... so im going to try to put the name while not actually putting it, because its mostly a cuss word........
F**KNESS
im sure u can catch my drift, right?
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Just finished The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I highly recommend it. Particularly relevant now!
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Just finished The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I highly recommend it. Particularly relevant now!
I read that a long time ago. Have you ever read anything by Doris Lessing? Just found her website: http://www.dorislessing.org/ . Will have to look through it. I read the Golden Notebook, also some time ago. It was pretty good.
Anne
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I am reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.
Everyone should read this book, it's because of this woman's cells that have advanced in medicine. They were the first cells grown in culture. He cells helped test a polio vaccine and others through out the years. Just amazing.
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Abraham Lincoln-The Bounty Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith
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Finished American Pastoral. Such ambitious scope to the novel. I admire his ability to write such a book without ever having had his own children. A particularly odd book to read as I'm moving to Enlgand as it follows the climb up and down the American class system in a sort of universal circle of struggle, reward, rebellion, demise. It is steeped in what it means to live through the changes that the country has undergone.
(Re)reading Flaubert's Parrot - I know I was meant to have read it before but I remember almost nothing so wonder if I skipped that assignment in school. Regardless, I did not read it carefully if at all. It makes me want to revisit Madame Bovary (which I know I've read but also remember very little of).
The four of us are reading Journey to the River Sea as a family. It is a marvellous story so far and we are only a few chapters in. Funny and has female protagonists, which I think is good for the boys. I recommend it if you are in search of a kids' book. Also a strange book for us to read so fresh off the move, as it's about a young English girl who is sent overseas to live by the side of the Amazon. English life is discussed frequently.
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Just finished The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. Very Thought provoking.
And starting The Hangman's Daughter.
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Just finished The Fear Index by Robert Harris. Loved it. Never completely understood what hedgefunds were, now I do.
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Am reading Lone Creek by Neil McMahon. " postmodern contemporary western noir'" says a reviewer. "bloody good read" says I.
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I am reading our member, BobN's book that he wrote "The ABC's of the big D" It is pretty funny how he goes through some of his experiences on Dialysis.
:thumbup;
http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=27400.msg438282#msg438282
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The kid's series called Charlie Bone, which my nephew gave me.
The Pern series, now that I have it in order. I have two new ones, but the books are not written in chronological order for the fictional history, so I'm starting at the beginning before I read the new ones.
The Michigan Court Rules - every day at the clinic. :P
Whatever floats to the top of the pile first from the huge stack I bought today at the 4 thrift stores I visited. >:D
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FINALLY! I started a new book: "Damaged" by Pamela Callow- It's pretty predictable- serial killer meets young girls and kills them... heroine and hero are old lovers and are working the case simutaneously while attempting to re-kindle what they used to have...the only twist is the connection between the serial killer and heroine and a tissue-donating company that assists in creating prothestics and other medical equipment with living tissue... I'm hooked and can't put it down!
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"The Way of Perfection", by St Teresa of Avila (Good stuff, even if I am probably a hopeless case myself). And "The Rule of St. Benedict in English", because my pastor said I knew nothing about St Benedict and he pissed me off. >:(
"Damaged" sounds interesting. I love mysteries and police/legal thrillers.
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I keep skipping in and out of the English to Dutch Dictionary to help me with the Silly Word Game. I love it
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Just finished "State of Wonder" by Ann Patchett. I liked it but I loved her "Bel Canto".
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On the subject of Fifty Shades of Grey...which I haven't read...and have no intention of reading...this reader's reviews are hilarious, I laughed out loud the whole way through and read all 3 of her reviews. Enjoy.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/340987215
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On the subject of Fifty Shades of Grey...which I haven't read...and have no intention of reading...this reader's reviews are hilarious, I laughed out loud the whole way through and read all 3 of her reviews. Enjoy.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/340987215
Hysterical and accurate!
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Space, Inc. A sci fi collection of jobs in space stories.
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"Room" by Emma Donoghue.
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Just finished "State of Wonder" by Ann Patchett. I liked it but I loved her "Bel Canto".
My thoughts exactly.
I am just starting the 18th book of the Stephanie Plum series. Number 19 comes out in late November. I have about 20 books on my Nook's wishlist, and I don't know which one I will start next. I've been terribly distracted for the past few months, so I don't know whether to pick something light or something that requires deeper thought.
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"Room" by Emma Donoghue.
I love that book!
I'm reading The TroubleTwisters. Nice and simple for long bus journeys.
My library doesn't have F**kness GLM so I can't read it (I don't like buying books unless I know I'm going to love them, or already do love them!). I'm going to reserve some grow'd up books from the library now ...
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Poppy, I love it some grow'd up books I must admit I down load the free books from Amazon for my kindle but I still love to turn a page of a real book. I get mine mainly from charity shops. I must look out for some grow'd up books.
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Grow'd up books are over-rated! I'm on book 5 of the Charlie Bone and the Children of the Red King series. I'm back reading legal documents during my days, so the last thing I want is anything serious when I get to relax.
I've got Sarah Addison Allen's The Peach Keeper next in line for when I run out of the kid's series. (I've wish listed them on my swap site, so they are trickling in out of order.) Also some Stephen King and Alice Hoffman, as well as a stack of fluffy mystery novels.
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Grow'd up books are over-rated! I'm on book 5 of the Charlie Bone and the Children of the Red King series.
Is that a recommendation for when my library lend me, and I finish, my grow'd up books on order?!
;D
I'm now reading I Am Number Four. Apparently it's a film too, but I haven't seen it. It's quite good (another non-grow'd up book though, but teenage/young adult so getting a tad more mature!)
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Wizard Heir
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Grow'd up books are over-rated! I'm on book 5 of the Charlie Bone and the Children of the Red King series.
Is that a recommendation for when my library lend me, and I finish, my grow'd up books on order?!
The Charlie Bone series is is quite cute. The Fable Haven series is even better. For a less magic tone, try the Lady Grace Mysteries from Patricia Finney. Historical fiction for pre-teens, and quite fun. For magical teen stuff, try just about anything by Vivian Vande Velde. I like her heroines' sassy attitudes.
If you want to go way back to elementary school chapter books, try The Doll People and The Meanest Doll in the World by Ann M. Martin and Laura Godwin. The stories are darling, but the illustrations make these two laugh out loud funny!
And anything, anything at all, by Robert Peck.
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I started in a book for ages is standing gathering dust in my bookcase, but looked (the cover that is) kinda boring. Couldn't remember where I got it from either. Then I decided to read it so I could bring it to the clinic for the library. I'm only half way through, and its fantastic. I've no idea what kind of ending its going to have. Its about a 16 year old girl, who ends up with 3 men, traveling through Europe.
The Slow Train To Milan by Lisa St Aubin de Teran
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The fourth book of George R.R.Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire which is titled A Feast for Crows. You may have heard of Game of Thrones the HBO series based on these books. They are each about 1000 pages but they go faster than you'd think,and are very good.
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I keep reading my current screenplay. It's crap! So I read, rewrite, and read. Write, read, and rewrite. I'm determined to use every technique in the book and make them flow into an organic story with dramatic tension and humor. It's a lot easier said than done.
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I read constantly! Just got done with Ken Follett's Winter of the World. Currently reading Unsuitable Day for a Murder, which is okay, not great so far. I am in the midst of writing (or trying to) a novel.....I try to write a little every day, but have been unsuccessful the last week! Need to get some motivation!
Anybody else on Goodreads?
Ricki
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I try to write a little every day, but have been unsuccessful the last week! Need to get some motivation!
Ricki
www.nanowrimo.org/
November is coming - join in!
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Thanks for the invite! Will check it out!
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Storm of Swords...George R.R. Martin
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Rereading Robinson Crusoe--fifty years later...
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"The Beauty of Humanity Mouvement" by Camilla Gibb. Takes place in Vietnam and the national soup (Pho...pronounced feu) is almost a character in the novel. Her previous novel, Sweetness in the Belly is also worth reading IMO.
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Rereading Robinson Crusoe--fifty years later...
Yea, Robinson Crusoe is one of my all time favorites,read it probably 15/20 times over the years.
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I love this thread; I'm always looking for recommendations!
I just finished Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn which I found to be compelling and truly disturbing. It's about a wife who disappears on her fifth anniversary, but it is about oh so much more!
Today I finished Bliss, Remembered by Frank Deford which had a twist at the end that I just didn't see coming.
Re The Song of Ice and Fire, I've read the first four and have the fifth awaiting me. The story is great, but I have to admit that 900 of the 1000 pages of each tome seem to be more about what is served at various feasts, which sigil belongs to which family and which bannermen represent which kingdom. There is not a lot of "art" in the storytelling. I am surprised to find that I have enjoyed the TV series more than I have the books; the TV series has to be, by its very nature, tighter and more coherent and so can't spend so much time on the culinary details.
Ricksters, I'm on Goodreads although I confess I don't use it much. I should, though. I keep forgetting about it!
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I love this thread; I'm always looking for recommendations!
I just finished Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn which I found to be compelling and truly disturbing. It's about a wife who disappears on her fifth anniversary, but it is about oh so much more!
Today I finished Bliss, Remembered by Frank Deford which had a twist at the end that I just didn't see coming.
Re The Song of Ice and Fire, I've read the first four and have the fifth awaiting me. The story is great, but I have to admit that 900 of the 1000 pages of each tome seem to be more about what is served at various feasts, which sigil belongs to which family and which bannermen represent which kingdom. There is not a lot of "art" in the storytelling. I am surprised to find that I have enjoyed the TV series more than I have the books; the TV series has to be, by its very nature, tighter and more coherent and so can't spend so much time on the culinary details.
Ricksters, I'm on Goodreads although I confess I don't use it much. I should, though. I keep forgetting about it!
Yeah,dude does like his food,If you've seen him you can tell,pretty rough on women too,but it does keep you reading it doesn't it?
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There is even a "Game of Throne" cookbook! LOL! The cover shows Cersei at the table filled with pheasant and all sorts of weird stuff.
I do find it fascinating, though, that the main female characters are the most interesting in the vast cast of characters (although Tyrion is captivating, it must be said).
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Yes,I've seen the cookbook ,was going to mention that ,but forgot.I think I like the kids the best,Arya,Sansa,Jon Snow,though Tyrion is my favorite Lannister.
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Oh yeah, I am really curious about where Arya and Sansa end up.
I can't decide when to read the fifth and latest installment. I think I may tackle it once I have seen the third season on HBO which should serve as a reminder of where we are now in this epic tale.
Oh, and there's "the mother of dragons". I can't wait until SHE makes it into the main storyline. Will there be a clash between her and Jon Snow and the Lannisters?
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Yes,I also am very intrigued by Danerys Targaryen.I am at the same place you are ready to start the fifth,but I read the first four straight through and am taking a short break to read something else first.I have never really watched the series (no cable) except my nephew gave me a DVD of the first couple episodes and it seemed pretty close to the book. Nick
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"The Broker" by John Grisham
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over the summer, I read the Fifty Shades of Grey series, and reread the Twilight series. I've started rereading Harry Potter, and I'm on Prisoner of Azkehban.
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Nearly finished 'the eleventh hour' from James Patterson.
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Death at Intervals by Jose Saramago. I think it's the fourth book of his I've read, maybe even the fifth.
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"Sourcebook of Receivership Law Practice" and "Entrepreneurial Practice - Enterprise Skills for Lawyers Serving Emerging Client Populations"
The things I do to get a job....
Some one shoot me now and put me out of my misery, pllllllleeeeeease!
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The Phantom, which is the newest in the Harry Hole series by Norwegian author Jo Nesbo. (Sorry, I don't know how to make the "O" with the line going through it. My laptop doesn't speak Norwegian.)
I love Scandinavian noir.
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I just started reading "Area 51 - An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base" by Annie Jacobsen. I bought that and a book about Groom Lake while RichardMEL and I visited the National Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas. I thought that place was highly interesting, and found these books in the gift shop. The clerk in the shop had read both of them, and had just finished the Groom Lake one. Apparently, the Groom Lake one will give the reader a different view of the whole thing than the Area 51 book gives. I personally find the whole thing highly fascinating, and know that I will now be my family and friend's "Area 51" library. Already, Dad and my bro-in-law want to read them next!
I also bought a book about what it was like to be an astronaut on the Space Shuttle from the Museum of Flight in Seattle. That one is called "Riding Rockets" and is by Astronaut Mike Mullane.
Notice a theme here? ;D
KarenInWA
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Just finished "State of Wonder" by Ann Patchett. I liked it but I loved her "Bel Canto".
My thoughts exactly.
I am just starting the 18th book of the Stephanie Plum series. Number 19 comes out in late November. I have about 20 books on my Nook's wishlist, and I don't know which one I will start next. I've been terribly distracted for the past few months, so I don't know whether to pick something light or something that requires deeper thought.
Have you read the two books in Janet Evanovich's latest series abut the 7 deadly sins? Can't remember the names, other than Diesel, who occasionally shows uo in the Plum series is one of the main characters....Pretty good, albeit a little farfetched at times.
I just finished Bill O'Reilly's book, Killing Kennedy. I was in elementary school during those years, and there is a lot of info I just never knew!
Ricki
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Love the Jo Nesbro books about Harry Hole; starting The Phantom. Just finished a couple of Daniel Silva's series about the art restorer/spy Gabriel Allon. Really good. Also boning up on html5 and responsive css for a few web sites I still maintain. Need to make them look good on a phone and tablet.
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I finished Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban the other night. I saw J. K. Rowling on The Daily Show last night, and now I'd like to read her new book.
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Just finished "State of Wonder" by Ann Patchett. I liked it but I loved her "Bel Canto".
My thoughts exactly.
I am just starting the 18th book of the Stephanie Plum series. Number 19 comes out in late November. I have about 20 books on my Nook's wishlist, and I don't know which one I will start next. I've been terribly distracted for the past few months, so I don't know whether to pick something light or something that requires deeper thought.
Have you read the two books in Janet Evanovich's latest series abut the 7 deadly sins? Can't remember the names, other than Diesel, who occasionally shows uo in the Plum series is one of the main characters....Pretty good, albeit a little farfetched at times.
I just finished Bill O'Reilly's book, Killing Kennedy. I was in elementary school during those years, and there is a lot of info I just never knew!
Ricki
Wicked Business andWicked Appetite. Love Diesel!
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Right now Im reading "Rapture" by JRWard. Its the fourth in her fallen angel series. She spins awesome tales of believable worlds that exist within our own. My favorite books by her are her Black Dagger Brotherhood series. I have all of them and am patiently waiting for spring for the new one.
I too read the 50 shades mess. Alot of hype for.......what? Needed more story and more defined characters. Same phrases and expressions over and over. I cant imagine a virgin agreeing to that so easy. What with everybody swooning all over facebook I thought I would give them a go. I think maybe all the swooners need to read some more. They would find many better reads.
I read "The Hunger Games" recently. It was ok but not as good as hoped, at least for me so #2 is sitting patiently on my book shelf.
I truly need some new books tho. Badly. But money never permits anymore so alot of the time Im stuck with free stuff for my nook. Hit or miss there. Damn dialysis. Sucks us dry and cuts into my good time. I have a long list of books and authors that I hope to read in the future.
Our library stinks here....VERY small WV town. We have one street thats a mile long. Our librarian mostly buys what she likes so its lots of Danielle Steele which ain't my thing. They are mostly the same thing over and over with small changes. Anything good there I mined long ago.
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Leanne - not sure how tight your budget is, but have you looked into http://www.paperbackswap.com ? You post the books you don't want, and get credits to request the books you want. You pay shipping to mail out your books, and receive the books you order for free. It averages about $3 a book. (I've been on the no-budget-for-anything-at-all, so I understand if even that much a book is too much.) I've really enjoyed it though, and if the book you want isn't currently posted, you can put it on a wishlist and get in line for it. Because it's not a direct reader to reader swap, you don't have to find someone to trade with who likes the books you like. You just post whatever you have (like when someone gives you Danielle Steel books for a gift) and look through all 5,000,000 posted to books to select one you want. They also do DVD's and Cd's, and the credits transfer back and forth. As in "I posted all the crappy action movies my ex left behind, and got murder mystery books instead - so I could figure out the best way to leave no forensic evidence."
Or - for freebies you can't get from the local library -
http://www.rarebookroom.org/
http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/
http://www.gutenberg.org/
Sometimes the oldies really are the goodies!
Does your local library participate in book exchanges with any others? I owned more books than my local one had, but I could request just about anything. When the librarian finally figured out I'd read just about anything sci-fi, she even cleared space from the romances and started a shelf just for me. (And was really quite overly-surprised that other people checked them out too.) ::)
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I've become a bit of a Vonnegut whore. I've just finished Breakfast of Champions (the third book of his I've read) and am now about to embark on The Sirens of Titans.
Thank YOU, cariad for recommending him!
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Leeanne, the Hunger Games books get better as you go along. they actually get scary, which is why they're not books for little kids.
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Leeanne, the Hunger Games books get better as you go along. they actually get scary, which is why they're not books for little kids.
Haven't read the books but just saw the movie. I wasn't really impressed. It reminded of too many other "future-world-fight-to-the-death" books I've read.
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Haven't read the books but just saw the movie. I wasn't really impressed. It reminded of too many other "future-world-fight-to-the-death" books I've read.
The film really doesn't do the first book justice at all, plus it changes a few things (like the story behind the mockingjay pin) which annoyed me because it will ultimately change meanings behind what happens in the next films too. I'm hoping to get the Blu-ray version eventually because it's a 15 certificate (the theatrical and DVD release are only a 12 certificate) and I'm assuming it may have scenes which are more of a true reflection. It is quite similar to Battle Royale which is a brilliant read, but not as bloody or as grown up (and I've only read Battle Royale, not yet seen it but very much want to).
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I am currently reading the book 50 Shades of Grey by E.L. James.
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I'm reading Promise Me by Harlan Coben. He's one of the best mystery writers I've ever read.
Every time our library has a book sale, I aim for his books first thing, then Janet Evanovitch.
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I'm reading the creepiest book of all time, In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson. It's a non-fiction account of the life and observations of the new US ambassador to Germany, and those of his daughter who lived there with him along with her mother and brother, during his tenure in the early 1930's as Hitler and his maniacal cohorts came to power. The actions of Hitler and the SS were frightening enough, but what was really scary was the hopeful and purposeful ignorance of the Americans. What also struck me was the pervasive yet casual anti-semitism of the American government at that time.
We all have been taught the horrors of WWII and the Nazis, but it's the way the Nazis came to power and how they came to so completely control and terrorize the German people that's so fascinating.
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If you like Harlan Coban, then try Greg Iles. Excellent writers.
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Just finished reading Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness. Liked it almost as well as the first one! Now I'm reading The Bone Bed by Patricia Cornwell. Thank goodness for the Public Library!
Ricki
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I'm starting the Hunger Games books. My mother has been houding me to read them and tell her what I thought, since she read them already. I just finished the first book of the Dexter series. I honestly liked the show better than reading the book, it was much different, and I didn't feel like I got to know the characters as well as I would have liked from the book as I did the show.
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Bought "Blue Girl" by Charles DeLint at the thrift store, and just finished it. Pretty good for a YA fantasy. Had to laugh - I wondered what the scribble on the title page was supposed to mean - at least until I realized there was a sticker on the front saying, "Autographed Copy." He's apparently much better at writing than handwriting....l
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I've just finished reading "My Favorite American" Its a book about a young woman named Valen Cover, who has PKD. She has other health issues, like seizures, scoliosis of the spine. The author, Dennis McCloskey, is a Canadian author and wrote about her amazing journey how she has overcome a lot of her health obstacles.
Valen is an active advocate in the PKD community. It's a must read, even if you don't have PKD, the book will leave you feeling very inspired!
I actually met the author at a PKD wak in Toronto last month and he autographed the book for me that I bought. I really enjoyed his book, like I said above, it's a must read!
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I've just finished reading "My Favorite American" Its a book about Valen Cover, a young woman, who has PKD. She has other health issues, like seizures, scoliosis of the spine. The author, Dennis McCloskey, is a Canadian author and wrote about her amazing journey how she has overcome a lot of her health obstacles.
Valen is an active advocate in the PKD community. It's a must read, even if you don't have PKD, the book will leave you feeling very inspired!
I actually met the author at a PKD wak in Toronto last month and he autographed the book for me that I bought. I really enjoyed his book, like I said above, it's a must read for anyone who has a chronic illness, she is such a positve person, I thoroughly enjoyed the book!
I wanted to add that you can order the book on Amazon.com I think.
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just picked up 3 mysteries: V is for Vengance by Sue Grafton, The Postcard Killers by James Patterson, and The Lighthouse by P.D. James.
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Just got The Casual Vacancy by J K Rowling from the library today. I would not recommend the book I just finished, Laura Lamont's Life in Hollywood to anyone! I thought it was gonna be good, showing life during Hollywood's Golden age...turned out to be a real snoozer that I couldn't get into!
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Just got The Casual Vacancy by J K Rowling from the library today.
I'm watching for a copy of that book to free up at the library
I was at a book reading/signing today for a YA book called The Night Has Teeth, by Kat Kruger. It's the first in a trilogy. Kat is from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and her book is the first published by the publishing company, which is partly owned by a friend of mine. She's been talking about it so much, I decided I wanted to read it. *G*
and yes, it's about werewolves... don't judge me.. *LOL*
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and yes, it's about werewolves... don't judge me.. *LOL*
You're reading a book about werewolves? That doesn't sound like the sort of thing you'd do ...
;D
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and yes, it's about werewolves... don't judge me.. *LOL*
You're reading a book about werewolves? That doesn't sound like the sort of thing you'd do ...
;D
No, I generally stick to vampires... but since Kat is a friend of a friend.... *G*
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Following Atticus.
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I finished Death at Intervals and it was breathtaking. A bit depressing, especially in the middle, but it had a magical and strangely joyous ending.
Now reading Is That A Fish In Your Ear?, a scholarly work about the field of language translation.
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and yes, it's about werewolves... don't judge me.. *LOL*
You're reading a book about werewolves? That doesn't sound like the sort of thing you'd do ...
;D
You usually read about Vampires? Then you've probably read all of the "Twilight" books. I have seen all of the movies and finally decided to read the books. I am on the 3rd one now, "Eclipse".
No, I generally stick to vampires... but since Kat is a friend of a friend.... *G*
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Yeah.. I'm a vampire chick.. *G* I read all the Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles.. and I read all the Twilight books before I saw any of the movies.. I'm really excited for the last Twilight movie.. I'm going to the first showing on the 15th with a couple of girlfriends.. and my mom.. *G* She's only read the first 2 books, but she's seen all the movies
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I just finished a book by P.D.James, "The Lighthouse". Adam Dalgliesh is an inspector from Scotland Yard called in to investigate a suspicious death on a small island off the Cornish coast. I generally like the movies based on her books better than the books, since the books - though I think well-written - can be a bit of a slog for me to get through. Not like a Michael Connelly book (I like police procedurals, courtroom dramas, etc), which I can "zoom" through from start to finish. I have a couple other of mysteries lined up for next: the latest Sue Grafton "V is for Vengeance", and a James Patterson I haven't read, "The Postcard Killers".
Anne
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Since starting dialysis 2 months ago, I've gone through 8 books already. I read the Hunger Games (3) and they were AWESOME!
Does anyone watch "Pawn Stars" on History? I read the autobiography of Rick Harrison and his son Cory, the "Old Man", and "Chumlee". It was also very interesting, with lots of stories of each of them, and how to play the game of pawning and selling antiques. It was so cool to read.
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Annig83, the book you read about Pawn Stars does sound interesting, I really like the show. What's the name of the book, I'd like to read it?
I am currently reading 2 books. One on Kindle called "Pearl", it's an 1800's story and part 2 of 4 series. It's a very easy read, enjoyable and especially good for me right now trying to escape from the holiday season.
The other book I'm reading is called "Ireland". It is a history of Ireland from its inception through the years told in a story tellers perspective. It's huge has 559 pages, but is very interesting. It's not the normal dry kind of history, it's embellished in an interesting way. Not the usual thing I'd read, however, thankfully there are library book sales so I bought it for $1.00 and I figured if I didn't like it, it was no big deal. (This is how I've been able to read a whole group of new authors because of the library book sale. So far I've only had maybe 6 books that I feel I could never get the time I wasted on their books back :-) )
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oh kitty cat... so wonderful to see you :) AND... YES on the 'Pawn Stars' book. Im almost done and thourly enjoyed it!! infact, got it from the library and am now waiting for it to arrive from amazon ;)
And the next books i have ordered and will be reading are GodWink books. They look lovely and i cant wait!!
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Just finished Naked Empire by Terry Goodkind
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I'm on the sixth book in Louise Penny's Armand Gamache series.
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@ Kitty Cat- "License to Pawn... My life at the Gold and Silver" by Rick Harrison.
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The Hunger Games. :)
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Just finished the "Game of Thrones" and am about to start, "A Clash of Kings". I haven't been into sci-fi in ages, and was pleasantly surprised at how good this series is....The best part of discovering a new author I like is, I have 4 more books left to read in this series! :thumbup;
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"The Story" by Max Lucado & Randy Frazee. TOTALLY AWESOME. Its the Bible written in a story form. I love it!!
lmunchkin
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Dead Ringer by Michael A. Black and Julie Hyzy
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Just finished Good Christian Bitches. Meh. Other than a few inspired scenes at the prayer group, and the bit explaining what a good Christian bitch is, it was pretty bland.
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Redoubt by Mercedes Lakey
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Redoubt by Mercedes Lakey
Which of her series is that? I just ordered a slug more of the Valdemar ones from someone on my book swap website. I was afraid to before I was done with the party - I'd have my nose in them instead of working on the house!
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My book club has chosen "The Gone Girl" for next months book. It is on the NYBest Seller list. Anyone read it yet? Most of the group loves mysteries, and I like them, but they aren't my first choice. Love to know if anyone liked it (or not!)
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Redoubt by Mercedes Lakey
Which of her series is that? I just ordered a slug more of the Valdemar ones from someone on my book swap website. I was afraid to before I was done with the party - I'd have my nose in them instead of working on the house!
The First Collegium series, 4th book. The Mags story.
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Hmmm...have to add that to my wish list!
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My book club has chosen "The Gone Girl" for next months book. It is on the NYBest Seller list. Anyone read it yet? Most of the group loves mysteries, and I like them, but they aren't my first choice. Love to know if anyone liked it (or not!)
I loooooooovvvvvvvveeeeeeeedddddd this book! It is more than just a mystery; it is a real psychological thriller. It knocked my socks off (and they were such cute socks...). This tale constantly surprised me.
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Thanks MM. It was my pick this time. I thought it sounded good and also "The Forgotten" but that was a little too much for this group. So I will read The Forgotten on my own! Anyone read it? Thanks for the feedback. It helps!
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@ Annig83-thank you so very much for letting me know...I have it on my kindle wish list now. After the holidays when things slow down a bit, then I'll get it. Right now 2 books are a bit much lol!
I like this thread, because I hear of books that I normally wouldn't and it's given me a world of options for future reading. Thanks everybody!
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Mom gave me the Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit for Christmas, so I guess I'll have to read them now.. *G*
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The 36 hour day. It is about people who have dementia ( or alzheimers) and the problems faced by their caregivers. Interesting so far, but then, I have a very close friend who is a victim.
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I just read "Heads in Beds" by Jacob Tomsky, about his experiences (good, bad and ugly) working in the hotel business. It's something entertaining to read during dialysis.
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Liz Gilbert's memoir - "Eat, Pray, Love." Better than I expected, actually. I'm not big on memoirs usually, but she's pretty funny. The language lessons on Italian swear words are pretty entertaining, too.
And no, I haven't seen the movie, nor do I want to!
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Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro. Having seen the film I thought I ought to read the book ... I'm halfway through and it is really good and slightly sad. It's about organ donation, but really makes you think about the morals and ethics behind it due to how the donation occurs.
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Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro. Having seen the film I thought I ought to read the book ... I'm halfway through and it is really good and slightly sad. It's about organ donation, but really makes you think about the morals and ethics behind it due to how the donation occurs.
I have the film on my Netflix queue.
I'm reading The Alienist at the moment. An "alienist" is an old term for one who studies mental illness because those who are mentally ill were deemed to be "alien" to normal society. The book is historical fiction based on the first profiling of a serial killer.
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Crown of Vengeance by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory
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I have one nearly empty shelf in my previously overflowing to-be-read bookcase, so I'm slowing gaining on the heap. I cheated though - I gave up on Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next Series (it just didn't hold my interest, no matter how highly recommended it was), and added those to the "Out" pile to pass along to friends or swap online. I had 4 books in the series, and they all went at once. I did the same last week with the Sookie Stackhouse books I had. They may be incredibly popular, but they weren't doing a thing for me either. 4 of those went in the "Out" pile, too - and some of them got swapped immediately.
Just finished a complication called Midnight Blue - the Sonja Blue series by Nancy Collins. Not bad for yet another vampire book. ;D
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I have one nearly empty shelf in my previously overflowing to-be-read bookcase, so I'm slowing gaining on the heap. I cheated though - I gave up on Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next Series (it just didn't hold my interest, no matter how highly recommended it was), and added those to the "Out" pile to pass along to friends or swap online. I had 4 books in the series, and they all went at once. I did the same last week with the Sookie Stackhouse books I had. They may be incredibly popular, but they weren't doing a thing for me either. 4 of those went in the "Out" pile, too - and some of them got swapped immediately.
Just finished a complication called Midnight Blue - the Sonja Blue series by Nancy Collins. Not bad for yet another vampire book. ;D
Where do you swap online?
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I have one nearly empty shelf in my previously overflowing to-be-read bookcase, so I'm slowing gaining on the heap. I cheated though - I gave up on Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next Series (it just didn't hold my interest, no matter how highly recommended it was), and added those to the "Out" pile to pass along to friends or swap online. I had 4 books in the series, and they all went at once. I did the same last week with the Sookie Stackhouse books I had. They may be incredibly popular, but they weren't doing a thing for me either. 4 of those went in the "Out" pile, too - and some of them got swapped immediately.
Just finished a complication called Midnight Blue - the Sonja Blue series by Nancy Collins. Not bad for yet another vampire book. ;D
Where do you swap online?
www.paperbackswap.com It's very convenient - post what I don't want by ISBN #, use the online service to print pre-paid labels for the Post Office, wrap the book in plastic (I use the bags my newspaper comes in usually) and use the paper the label printed on as the outside wrap. Drop it in my box at my front door. There's a small fee for the print postage at home service, but I find it worth it compared to the hassle of getting to the post office. Each one I mail gives me a credit that I can use to order any of the other 4,000,000 plus books on the site. I can also wish list anything I want that isn't currently posted. They also have sister sites with CD's and DVD's, and the credits can be exchanged - ie, a stack of books can be sent out to get credits to order DVD's.
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I have one nearly empty shelf in my previously overflowing to-be-read bookcase, so I'm slowing gaining on the heap. I cheated though - I gave up on Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next Series (it just didn't hold my interest, no matter how highly recommended it was), and added those to the "Out" pile to pass along to friends or swap online. I had 4 books in the series, and they all went at once. I did the same last week with the Sookie Stackhouse books I had. They may be incredibly popular, but they weren't doing a thing for me either. 4 of those went in the "Out" pile, too - and some of them got swapped immediately.
Just finished a complication called Midnight Blue - the Sonja Blue series by Nancy Collins. Not bad for yet another vampire book. ;D
Where do you swap online?
www.paperbackswap.com It's very convenient - post what I don't want by ISBN #, use the online service to print pre-paid labels for the Post Office, wrap the book in plastic (I use the bags my newspaper comes in usually) and use the paper the label printed on as the outside wrap. Drop it in my box at my front door. There's a small fee for the print postage at home service, but I find it worth it compared to the hassle of getting to the post office. Each one I mail gives me a credit that I can use to order any of the other 4,000,000 plus books on the site. I can also wish list anything I want that isn't currently posted. They also have sister sites with CD's and DVD's, and the credits can be exchanged - ie, a stack of books can be sent out to get credits to order DVD's.
:thx;
I'll have to look into it.
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On my ColorNook I'm reading "Proof of Heaven" by Eben Alexander, M.D.
A Neurosurgeon's Journey into the Afterlife.
Very good so far. This doctor was a total scientist and pretty much a nonbeliever in God. That is until a coma for seven days took him to the higher realm.
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Still reading Is That A Fish in Your Ear? Gah, I started that two months ago, what happened? :waiting;
I am still really sick with a tonsil infection that seems to wax and wane but never disappear, so I have the motivation to just lie in bed and read. After that, Barnes and Noble featured Jose Saramago for one of their daily specials. I bought 4 of his books for $12 total, so those await when I am ready.
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the complete father brown mysteries collection. it was free! i love my kindle!
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Oh god, I'm with a Kindle Paperwhite now. I've finished three books already this past week. ;D
I just literally finished Full Frontal Feminism. Because I've enjoyed Jessica Valenti's blog. It's meant to be a more intro into Feminism (Possibly for someone a bit younger) But it was a good basic explaination of third wave feminism. And talked a bit about the phrase "I'm not a feminism, But...".
Some of the reading could have been improved. But overall, I highly suggest it.
But currently I'm reading I, Robot. By Isaac Asimov. I've read a few other of his works, especially about robotics. He's my favorite Sci-fi writer.
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Spanish for Dummies. I really need to learn - the last three jobs I interviewed for were all looking for someone with at least basic Spanish skills.
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I'm reading "Natalie Cole" Love Brought me Back-A Journey of Loss and Gain.
It's her autobiography. It's very interesting.
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I picked up two mysteries, but haven't started either of them yet. James Patterson's "10th Anniversary" and Phillip Margolin's "Capitol Murder".
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I in-between books right now. I think I may reread the Dan Brown books. Or maybe a trip to Goodwill is in order!
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I vote for Goodwill!
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Spanish for Dummies. I really need to learn - the last three jobs I interviewed for were all looking for someone with at least basic Spanish skills.
I read that book (skimmed) many years ago. Whether it will be of any use will really depend on your past experience with foreign language. Have you taken one before or are you starting from scratch?
Hope you don't mind some suggestions since I am always looking for opportunities to explore foreign languages, Spanish has been a big language in my life, and of course I live in a bilingual house. Check if your local library gives you online access to Mango. Mine does and it's free if you go through them. I have yet to throw myself into it (I want to learn Arabic), but basically you can create your own documents/videos in Spanish for others to give you feedback on while earning some sort of credits by critiquing submissions from English-learners. Or, if you're braver than me, join a Meet-Up for Spanish speakers in your area. What I did to learn Welsh initially was type 'learn Welsh' into Google and I came upon a fantastic (free!) course through the BBC, complete with a radio drama in Welsh. They offer something similar in Spanish and although it says the page is old, the links seem to still work: http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/spanish/
There was also a site that used to link people who wanted to learn Spanish with people who wanted to learn English and you could become email penpals. I never tried it, but some day I would like to. I would also look into books or online resources geared specifically toward la ley since the legal field is going to have its own vocabulary.
Buena suerte, jbeany!
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I got the book on my swap site, and I was happy that it included an audio CD. I need to start popping that in while I'm on the tread mill. I'm sure there are better ones out there - but this was available on the site and didn't cost anything!
I've taken German and French in high school and college, respectively - but it was a very long time ago. I do know I'm not particularly adept at languages! I got good grades, but it was not something that came naturally. I really just need to know enough to take a basic phone message for the translator. That alone would help in my job search. My pro-bono clinic has some resources for the legal terms - but no one who speaks Spanish on staff. The students rotate every term, so I'm not sure if we'll have any Spanish speakers this time or not.
The links look good - I need to start marking off a set time to study, or I'm not going to get anywhere.
Once I get some basics, I'm thinking of putting a "I'm trying to learn Spanish - please talk to me!" button (in Spanish, of course) on my jacket. I ride the bus to the clinic all the time, and there are plenty of people on it who I think would do that.
And I will need all the luck I can get!
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Currently reading " The 36 Hour Day". It is about dementia. My very dear friend has it and I wish I had that book when she first started down that dark path.
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I just finished reading "The Donor" a thriller about someone who was harvested for his kidney without his knowledge.....the plot wasn't too hard to figure out, but it wasn't half bad as far as writing. I am getting ready to start on a book by Ridley Pearson, "The Angel Maker".
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I attempted to read The Hobbit, since my mom gave me the set for Christmas, but the print is too small for me to read. I'm kind of disappointed. I was really looking forward to reading it
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I'm currently reading one of Ann Rule's books. "The Death of Rhonda Reynolds" I love true crime! Good book!
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Weird Illinois
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Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried." It's amazingly good, and I was trying to figure out how come I'd never heard of it until I looked at the release date. In 1990, when it was first published, I was knee-deep in a liberal arts program taught by every stray feminist who'd ever fought for women's rights in the 60's and 70's. They were powerfully pushing to include female writers in the canon of English lit that was taught at the university. I understand their desire to broaden the gender line of "important works," but it did tend to edge out any newer works by male writers.
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Kathy Reichs, Break no bones
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I am more than half way through Girl In Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland. Very awesome book, it's about a painting and it's going backwards through the history showing how the painting ended up with the next person. This isn't my normal type of read, but it really is interesting and hard to put down.
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Just read The Hobbit again. I have read it a number of times but it has been many years. After seeing the first movie I had to go back and read it again. It is a very quick read and still as good as ever.
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Just started on Java for Dummies. Learning a new language seems like a fun thing to do right now.
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I am more than half way through Girl In Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland. Very awesome book, it's about a painting and it's going backwards through the history showing how the painting ended up with the next person. This isn't my normal type of read, but it really is interesting and hard to put down.
I really loved this book.
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I've just finished The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. It's a brilliant mix of a fictionalized search for Dracula and the clash between the Ottoman Empire and the people of medieval Christian eastern Europe.
I've just started Absent, written by an Iraqi authoress who chronicles life in bombed out Iraq. To read this book is to understand how our wars affect the daily lives of regular people who used to live in beautiful, vibrant cities but now have to sell everything they own just to buy food. There is even a character who is on dialysis. During the period of late Jan/early Feb 1991, so many bombs were dropped on Iraq that it was the equivalent of dropping an atomic bomb on the country once a week. We think of bombing armies and armaments, but what really happens is the destruction of basic facilities like nursing homes and hospitals and water purification plants and power grids and all of the things that enable us to live in a world where when we turn on the faucet, we assume that water will flow.
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monrein,
I am having such a hard time putting it down and while at the library yesterday, I found one called The Passion of Artemisia, same author. I figure if this one is so good, that one has to be as well. Can't wait to get started on it as I'll be done with the Hyacinth within in the next couple days.
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I am reading The Lemonade War. It's a young adult book, but has some really great business lessons for kids as well.
I am also reading a non-fiction book called "Overdiagnosed" - just started it yesterday, it is about how the advent of more medical testing has actually made us "sicker".
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monrein,
I am having such a hard time putting it down and while at the library yesterday, I found one called The Passion of Artemisia, same author. I figure if this one is so good, that one has to be as well. Can't wait to get started on it as I'll be done with the Hyacinth within in the next couple days.
ooooh, these books sound really good! I'll put them on my Nook's wishlist.
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MooseMom,
You definitely won't regret it. I've been trying to read the Hyacinth book at work during break & lunch, I have been interrupted during each!!! I have only about 50 pages left, so tonight, I am going to sit on the couch and read!!! lol
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The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. Had it for a while justnever got to it.
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I really feel out of my depth when I look at some of the books that you guys are reading. I don't think I'd be able to read a lot of those books, because they are just too out of my depth. I don't think my reading comprehension is good enough to read something that is meant for someone in my age group, which is probably why I read a lot of YA. It's written for a younger audience, when makes it a little easier to follow.
I bought Drift, by Rachel Maddow, because I'm a huge fan of hers, and only got through the first few chapters because I had to go back and reread things, because I didn't understand what was going on. I bought the audio book, thinking that maybe it would be easier to understand with her reading it to me, and fell asleep after the first few chapters.. *L*
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The only way to get more reading comprehension is to keep reading, Riki. Nothing wrong with YA books, either. I've got a degree in English, and I read them all the time for pure pleasure.
I'm reading Mercedes Lackey right now - in the midst of a long chunk of the Valdemar series. After legal documents all day, it's a welcome relief.
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The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. Had it for a while justnever got to it.
Love Dan Brown's books! I'm rereading Angels & Demons right now. I had forgotton how different from the movie it is and that it is actually the first in the Robert Langdon series.
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Before We Began. I can't remember the name of the author and I can't be arsed to go and get the book from the next room (me so lazy). I'm not sure if it's interesting me because the story is obviously leading to something terrible which will make me sad, or if the appeal is more to do with the fact that part of the story is set in the late 1970s in the smallish city where I work; I keep stumbling upon place names and areas of town which I know and wishing my FiL were still alive so I could ask him if suchandsuch really happened at suchaplace.
I've just finished The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. It's a brilliant mix of a fictionalized search for Dracula and the clash between the Ottoman Empire and the people of medieval Christian eastern Europe.
I've had this book sitting on my bedside table for the last six months or more. I borrowed it from my mum and managed about ten pages. I will get back to it at some point but I think it's one of those books that I'll really have to be in the mood for.
I really feel out of my depth when I look at some of the books that you guys are reading. I don't think I'd be able to read a lot of those books, because they are just too out of my depth. I don't think my reading comprehension is good enough to read something that is meant for someone in my age group, which is probably why I read a lot of YA. It's written for a younger audience, when makes it a little easier to follow.
Most of the books I read are YA fiction; it's my favourite area of the library! I think it's partly because it's easier to follow, partly because I can live through my teens again in some fantasy world, and partly because I don't have to think too much and can just enjoy the whole experience of immersing myself into somebody else's life. Do you follow me on Pinterest, Riki? I have a lovely quote on my oh, so true board about teen fiction and how it's accessible for all because of the provocative themes and complex characters.
;D
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I really feel out of my depth when I look at some of the books that you guys are reading. I don't think I'd be able to read a lot of those books, because they are just too out of my depth. I don't think my reading comprehension is good enough to read something that is meant for someone in my age group, which is probably why I read a lot of YA. It's written for a younger audience, when makes it a little easier to follow.
I bought Drift, by Rachel Maddow, because I'm a huge fan of hers, and only got through the first few chapters because I had to go back and reread things, because I didn't understand what was going on. I bought the audio book, thinking that maybe it would be easier to understand with her reading it to me, and fell asleep after the first few chapters.. *L*
Girl, you've said something similar in the past but I still don't believe for a moment that there is anything wrong with your reading comprehension. People with poor reading comprehension skills would almost always make terrible writers, and you are anything but one of them.
If reading some of the denser works out there just isn't your thing, then so what? Read your YA knowing that there are plenty of other intelligent adults who love it, too. I have not looked at Drift but now I'm curious. I adore Rachel Maddow's intellect, but her show often grates at me for reasons I cannot quite explain. I agree with her almost always, but I think it's the kitschy attempts at humour that turn me off. (When she first arrived on the scene I thought she was Keith Olberman's daughter - they have similar styles and she even looked a bit like him to me.) What I'm getting at is that I am not sure I would find her the most compelling author, either.
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I have Drift on my Nook's wishlist; I think this will be a compelling read, but you have to really be in the mood for it. It's central thesis, that only 1% of Americans are taking the responsibility for fighting our wars and for "defending our way of life", I find to be really depressing and sad. But I think it is an important book, but I will have to be in the right mood to read it.
Cariad, I feel exactly as you do about Rachel Maddow. There is something about her stage presence that I find to be a bit grating, and I am hoping that that does not translate into her writing.
Riki, I certainly don't read now what I read when I was 30 years younger! My interests have changed over time. For instance, I used to be interested mainly in a book's storyline. Now I am just as interested in a writer's style. I hate Stephen King. He writes some compelling stories, but there is no art in his writing, if that makes any sense.
After my surgery, I found that "dense" books were just too much like hard work. My mind felt skittish and unfocused. Two years ago, my first IHD Secret Santa sent me a copy of "One for the Money", the first Stephanie Plum novel in the series by Janet Evanovich. I hadn't had a chance to read it, so I thought this would be a good time to do so. It was entertaining plus it was a light read, and I read all 19 of them in one go.
On the other hand, I started subscribing to The Economist in an attempt to regain some of my brain function! It's good to read what you enjoy, but it's never a bad idea to challenge yourself once in a while.
I'd never read any YA, so I read Hunger Games to broaden my horizons. I just hated it. I guess I'm just too old. The story was cool, but again, there was just no art to it.
Poppy, re The Historian, it does get rather dense in places, but the pay off is worth it.
It is very rare that I don't finish a book once I start it, but I may have to put down "Absent" because it is just too real and disturbing. I'm putting it aside for the time being and am now reading books 11 and 12 of Alexander McCall Smith's "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency" series. Has anyone read these? Have any of you seen the HBO series starring Jill Scott? These books are just so wonderful, so simple yet so joyous and compassionate. If you want some reading that is amusing, insightful and feel-good, read these.
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LOL! I love to see what others are reading! I wish I had more time to read. What with my frequent trips to New York to see my Lyme specialist, working full time (+), and doing intense research on Lyme disease, I haven't had any time for recreational reading. The book that is keeping me busy right now, though is "Healing Lyme" by Stephen Harrod Buhner. Next on my list is "Cure Unknown" by Pamela Weintraub. You can see where my focus is.
:rofl; :rofl;
Aleta
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Cariad, I didn't know you'd read any of my writing. *G*
In school, I had to repeat both grade 11 and 12 English, and only just squeaked by when I did pass, and I think it's because I didn't understand the symbolism in the books that we were reading. I noticed then that my classmates were seeing things in the stories that I wasn't and I got low marks on the exams because I was expected to see them too, and I didn't.
In the novel that I've been writing, I'm trying to intertwine three different stories, which isn't easy to do, and is probably why I've been working on the thing for three years. *L* The bad thing is, it's those types of books that would have confused me when I was in high school.
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Cariad, I didn't know you'd read any of my writing. *G*
2213 posts and counting, sister! If I haven't read them all, I'm sure I've read most. You write honestly about sensitive subjects, like the emotional impact of kidney failure on children, and I find I can easily relate.
MM, it's good to hear it's not just me that finds that Rachel Maddow's style ('stage presence' is a great term for it) undermines her likability.
I have some fantastic youth lit to recommend for those who want some superb examples of light but smart works. Frank Cottrel Boyce is such a witty author, and his Framed is so clever. The boys and I read it together and we still laugh remembering certain bits. Add the fact that he's Welsh, and you can clearly see that this writer is the whole package!
My son just finished book four of The Secret Series by Pseudonymous Bosch. He rarely chooses to read, but he stayed up far too late on more than one occasion because he couldn't put these books down. It's the only book I can ever remember him borrowing off a friend because he could not wait to read it. The first is The Name of This Book is a Secret, and I had to keep badgering him to start it, but once he did, he's been reading them as fast as I can find them. He excitedly told me the ending of the fourth book tonight, and I have to admit, it sounded so intriguing.
I am really enjoying Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson, though we are not even halfway through it. We're reading it as a family, but it is rare that we all have the time to sit down together and read. All of these books have a touch of mystery to them, in addition to their own literary voices.
David Walliams is all the rage amongst Aidan and his classmates. I helped Aidan write a book report on The Boy in the Dress and it seemed to have some nice moments to it, but I think it's aimed more at a pre-adolescent audience.
I would never choose to read these books on my own, so I'm glad that the boys got me to share these stories with them.
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now reading books 11 and 12 of Alexander McCall Smith's "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency" series. Has anyone read these? Have any of you seen the HBO series starring Jill Scott? These books are just so wonderful, so simple yet so joyous and compassionate. If you want some reading that is amusing, insightful and feel-good, read these.
I read the first one (or some of it anyhow) years and years ago. I just couldn't get into it. Then I think I told you that my father's company did some publicity events for the HBO special, and they sent me a DVD of the entire series. I adored it - well, I don't think we've watched the whole thing because I was just so sad when I heard it was canceled that I think I am afraid to watch it all because then I won't have any to look forward to. I know it doesn't make any sense.
My father and I discussed the book, and he and I agree on nothing, but we did agree that we didn't find much to keep our interest about the books. Again, I think it's just a style and personal taste issue.
Funny you say that about Stephen King because I have always thought he was a terrible writer with great ideas, too. I could never be bothered with reading his books, so at prep school I used to ask my friend to just tell me the stories. I still remember details from her book summaries, she was very good at re-telling these tales. In grad school we were talking about Stephen King and another student mentioned that he is a franchise - that basically he sells his name for other writers to use. I was shocked at this, and they all looked at me as if I had just fallen off the turnip truck (or, as Gwyn and I like to say, as if I just floated down the Taff in a coracle - we tend to make up Welsh versions of everything). Is it true? Is the market flooded with counterfeit Stephen Kings?
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The book that is keeping me busy right now, though is "Healing Lyme" by Stephen Harrod Buhner. Next on my list is "Cure Unknown" by Pamela Weintraub. You can see where my focus is.
:rofl; :rofl;
Aleta
I'd recommend "Lymeaid" by Dr. Izza Joch, or perhaps "Icky Ticky" by a relatively new horror author Nottzo Phunnie.
:P :P :P
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The book that is keeping me busy right now, though is "Healing Lyme" by Stephen Harrod Buhner. Next on my list is "Cure Unknown" by Pamela Weintraub. You can see where my focus is.
:rofl; :rofl;
Aleta
I'd recommend "Lymeaid" by Dr. Izza Joch, or perhaps "Icky Ticky" by a relatively new horror author Nottzo Phunnie.
:P :P :P
:rofl; :rofl; :rofl; :rofl; :rofl;
Maybe I should WRITE one of those! :clap;
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Is it true? Is the market flooded with counterfeit Stephen Kings?
He has done a lot of collaborations, but how much of it was his work compared to the partner is anyone's guess. Perhaps they are confused by the proliferation of books he's published under pen names besides Stephen King? (Richard Bachman is Stephen King, and there's one other name he's used I can't think of right now.) He has also given someone permission to write a novel using the characters he developed in Rose Red, but I don't think that's the same as selling his name. It's more like giving his personal stamp of approval to someone writing fan fic.
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Is it true? Is the market flooded with counterfeit Stephen Kings?
He has done a lot of collaborations, but how much of it was his work compared to the partner is anyone's guess. Perhaps they are confused by the proliferation of books he's published under pen names besides Stephen King? (Richard Bachman is Stephen King, and there's one other name he's used I can't think of right now.) He has also given someone permission to write a novel using the characters he developed in Rose Red, but I don't think that's the same as selling his name. It's more like giving his personal stamp of approval to someone writing fan fic.
This could explain what they were talking about. I just remember some 20 grad students staring at me like I was the naivest creature they'd ever met because I thought Stephen King actually wrote his own books. Statistically speaking, it is completely possible for a computer to verify whether writing is true Stephen King, or Stephen King in name only. We discussed this in stats class back in undergrad, but just read more on this in the book Is That a Fish in Your Ear which I *finally* finished! :cheer: Don't be put off by my snail's pace. It was a terribly interesting work, but it did require more concentration than I've had at my disposal as of late.
I have decided that we must buy a television license. I have to do so much reading just to keep up with the news of the world that I don't have the desire to read books. I have 3 Jose Saramago's waiting for me on my Nook, I think I am going to buy a Julia Alvarez novel for the Nook at $1.99 (daily special) and there is an ethnography of the traveller/gypsy population that I will probably buy off AmazonUK. And much, much more. So I am starting to miss having people tell me the news whilst I do other things.
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Case law on changing established custodial environments. Yee haw....
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"The Shunning" by Beverly Lewis
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The Shunning is a very good book. I like all of Bevery Lewis' books.
I am almost done with The Passion of Artemisia by Susan Vreeland. Excellent book! I wasn't sure I would like it, but I've been swept away by the story.
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I did enjoy "The Shunning". After I was done, I watched the movie. What a disappointment! The movie itself was pretty good but so very different than the book.
I just started "Body of Lies" by Iris Johansen. I have heard the name but have never read anything by her before.
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I am reading Pride and Prejudice, free via the Nook Classics library.
Jane Austen has a lovely, light, humourous style. People never seem to give her much credit as a writer, certainly not the type of adulation they give the likes of Charles Dickens (whom I adore, but that's by the by). There is a reason that Marian Evans used a male nom de plume....
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God Never Blinks by Regina Brett and working on Wild.
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I have three books going right now:
1. A Year of Biblical Womanhood
2. Catching Fire (second Hunger Games book)
3. Decisive by Dan and Chip Heath
I read slow because I can't seem to find any decent books on our library's e-lending system and it's really hard to read while on the dialysis machine unless I can get the book on my iPad. So I don't get a lot of reading time each week.
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There Was a Country by Chinua Achebe, who recently died. He is knows as being the first African author published in the West who wrote about the colonial/post colonial Nigeria, and what later became Biafra. It's just so interesting to read and learn about other cultures.
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Cariad, track down "The Youngest Miss Ward" by Joan Aiken. It's essentially fan fic written about some of the Mansfield Park characters. It's fabulous! I've got to get the rest of Aiken's stuff.
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Dean Koontz 77 Shadow Street
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Speak You Also by Paul Steinberg. It's a WWI survivor's reckoning my son is reading for his honors world history class. I'm engrossed in it!
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Did you see 60 Minutes last night? They interviewed this Patient Killer. The book is called "The Good Nurse" Scary, but I want to read it.
Overview-After his December 2003 arrest, registered nurse Charlie Cullen was quickly dubbed "The Angel of Death" by the media. But Cullen was no mercy killer, nor was he a simple monster. He was a favorite son, husband, beloved father, best friend, and celebrated caregiver. Implicated in the deaths of as many as 300 patients, he was also perhaps the most prolific serial killer in American history. Cullen's murderous career in the world's most trusted profession spanned sixteen years and ...
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Drunk Tank Pink by Adam Alter. Absolutely fascinating! It's all about how our environment - physical, cultural, and biological - effect us without our being aware of it.
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"The Enemy" by Lee Child (a Jack Reacher novel).
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Total Control by David Baldacci
Learning more about advances in technology and microchips than I ever wanted to know!!! :Kit n Stik;
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Animal Farm by George Orwell
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Pandora's Lunchbox by Melanie Warner. About processed food (of which I've never eaten much)
Did you know that China now takes about 80% of Australia's wool clip? It's not for the wool. It's to make vitamins from the lanolin!! And that China now manufactures around 80% of the worlds vitamins?
I'm so glad I've always cooked from scratch.
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I am currently reading "Sister" by Rosamund Lupton for our book club next week. It's confusing me because it is in the first person but it's written as if the author is talking to a dead person and then the timeframe keeps jumping back and forth. I'm bound and determined to get through it though because it will be the first book I'll have gotten through for book club this year.
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"The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel An journalist's personal investigation of the evidence for Jesus
A good read for those who need convincing or if your interested in Christian apologetics.
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"How the States Got Their Shapes" by Mark Stein. A fascinating history lesson and well-written. There is a chapter about each state and how the borders came to be what they are. The book is like eating chips...you read one chapter, then just one more, and then OK just one more...a page turner for sure. I got the book for $7 at Barnes & Noble where it was in the NY Times best seller display by the door. Yeah, I'm a sucker for such obvious merchandising tactics. :P
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I read one Dean Koontz, scared me so much I was afraid to read another.
Don't remember the title & much of the story, but never forgot this part:
A man picked up a teenaged hitchhiker took her to his home & strung her up in a pitch dark basement with just the tips of her toes touching the floor.
After several days he opened some air vents & let in thousands of ants & over the next week or so they slowly ate her alive.
I kept thinking he was giving some depraved psyco an idea on how to torture someone.
Anyone know the title of that book & are all his books like that?
Jane
That's horrible now I have that image in my head too.
I am not sure we need to read stuff like that!!!!
The real world is bad enough...
Can anyone suggest a nice read (preferably with a happy ending) and defo NO hitchhikers or basements or ants please... :(
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I read one Dean Koontz, scared me so much I was afraid to read another.
Don't remember the title & much of the story, but never forgot this part:
A man picked up a teenaged hitchhiker took her to his home & strung her up in a pitch dark basement with just the tips of her toes touching the floor.
After several days he opened some air vents & let in thousands of ants & over the next week or so they slowly ate her alive.
I kept thinking he was giving some depraved psyco an idea on how to torture someone.
Anyone know the title of that book & are all his books like that?
Jane
That's horrible now I have that image in my head too.
I am not sure we need to read stuff like that!!!!
The real world is bad enough...
Can anyone suggest a nice read (preferably with a happy ending) and defo NO hitchhikers or basements or ants please... :(
Where The Heart Is by Billie Letts
The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins
The Last Dragon Chronicles by Chris d'Lacey
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
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finished The Enemy, and am now reading another Jack Reacher novel: Persuader (In between watching old Law & Order episodes) .
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I'm currently reading 'ice cream girls' after watching a TV adaptation of it. Its good real page turner
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I just finished "The Meowmorphosis" by Franz Kafka & Coleridge Cook.
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"Rules of Civility" by Amor Towles. Set in New York in the 1930's.
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I just picked up Michael Pollan's "Cooked" at the library and need to finish "Tumbleweeds" by Leila Meacham before it's due date (I've already renewed it once!) :oops;
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Just started reading (again!) "Fear Nothing" by Dean Koontz.
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Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris. It is the 13th and final book in the series. This is the series that the True Blood TV series on HBO was created by. I have read them all and I am so sad to know that this is the end.
Newgrl
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I picked up Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (by Jonathan Sarfan Foer) at the library last week and I am LOVING it. It's actually made me cry on the bus. I haven't see the film and I've already decided that I don't want to; some books shouldn't be made into films and I think this is one of them. I highly recommend it.
I actually picked it up by accident. I tend to browse the teen and young-adult shelves and it was on a shelf in the pre-teen section as I walked past. It's definitely not a children's (or even young-adult) book! It uses very strong language and has sex scenes. Oh! Somebody best tell the librarians that having a picture of a boy on the front cover and a nine-year old protagonist does not automatically make it a book for children. It has really moved me in ways that I can't convey; it's literally blown my mind. I don't even want to finish it because I fear that it's going to make me sob and leave me with so many unanswered questions which will play on my mind for years.
There aren't many books which have affected me like this and I really struggle with the emotions and thoughts it's sprung on me. Silly book! But lovely book.
;D
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I've seen the movie, which led me to pick up the book, but it's waiting to be read. Glad to hear it's worthwhile!
I'm in the middle of re-reading Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin novels (the movie Master and Commander was drawn from the first two). Now, if I could just get my students working on a game about sailing ships and sea battles to read them.
cheers,
skg
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Speed cleaning in Fifteen Minutes...
It's took me over fifteen minutes to read Chapter One and that just covers cleaning the front door and path!!!!
:2thumbsup; :2thumbsup; :2thumbsup;
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Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King
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It's took me over fifteen minutes to read Chapter One and that just covers cleaning the front door and path!!!!
I had a cleaning book once that insisted that I should take my vacuum cleaner up into the space between the roof and ceiling every six months. In their dreams! :rofl; :rofl; :rofl;
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It's took me over fifteen minutes to read Chapter One and that just covers cleaning the front door and path!!!!
I had a cleaning book once that insisted that I should take my vacuum cleaner up into the space between the roof and ceiling every six months. In their dreams! :rofl; :rofl; :rofl;
Mine's full of insulation so hoovering it wouldn't do much good!!!
Chapter Two: The Entrance Hall,. Apparently I need an umbrella stand and a mirror.
My hall is so tiny it won't take 15 minutes to clean that...
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I have recently regained the ability to read (and comprehend) during my long journey with Lyme. Sorry to say, the first non-fiction book I tackled is "The Hand" by Frank White. It outlines the role our hands play in intelligence. Pretty fascinating! :2thumbsup;
But prior to taking on non-fiction, I hunkered down with a book Hanify left with me last year, Black Angel, by John Connelly. Pretty riveting. It took me over a year to reach the point that I could actually pick it up and read..... I'm getting better! :clap;
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Finished my last book! Yes, I have actually read every book in my house!
Off to the Goodwill to find something to hold me over until the weekend's garage sales!
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Did a charity shop raid yesterday and came home with three books for dialysis reading.
The first one, that I started is called ANOTHER MAN@S LIFE by Greg Williams. Actually really good book. Am hooked.
Two twin brothers who envy each other's lives, one single and one married, swap places to see whether the grass really is greener on the other side.
Interesting in that it is written from the bloke's point of view and written in a quite gritty, realistic but still humorous way. A step up from the usual
chick lit (God I hate that expression!!!)
8) 8) 8)
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I'm rereading my Dark Shadows books in preparation for the third book in the series (and hopefully not the last) being released on August 1st.
I am reading Angelique's Descent right now, and when that's finished, I'll move on to The Salem Branch. The third book is called Wolf Moon Rising.
They are written by Lara Parker, who played Angelique in the Dark Shadows TV series.
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Must be a re-read month. I started back at book one of the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. I've had the 15th in the series for ages, but haven't gotten to it yet because it's always ages between new ones, and I wanted to start over before I read the latest. I finally started. I'm on book 8.
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I'll have to add Dresden Files to my re-read list. It's been a long time since I read the first one.
Read through several volumes of the manga "20th Century Boys." It was quite good. But now I've got a dozen more to locate and pay for!
cheers,
skg
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Finished Another Man's Life by Greg Williams.
Excellent book.
Now about to start his other one The Accidental Father.
Looks just as good.
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I am reading "Come Spring" by Ben Ames Williams.
It is a historical fiction with the setting in the area where Iketchum lives. Ahem. Iketchum sent it to me. I Love trying to picture this and look at the map in the front of the book every couple pages. The next time I visit Iketchum, I'll be sure to traipse around the area more.
Aleta
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Just finished Stephen King's Joyland. Ok book, would make a good movie. I'm starting George Lopez' Why You Crying? next.
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Okay, so I miscounted - Book 15 in the Dresden files isn't out yet. And no release date posted either. *sigh*
Guess I'll have to find something else to start on now! I've got a stack of Anne Bishop stuff I haven't started on either - I should start over with those as well...
And The Princess Bride - there's always that....
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"Into Thin Air"---Jon Krakauer
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Just read John McPhee's _Coming into the Country_ -- very nice non-fiction about Alaska. If you've never read any McPhee, give it a try -- he takes all sorts of subjects and makes them fascinating by taking a deep look at whatever the subject is and looking at it from many different directions.
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Just finished "Sailing Grace" by John Otterbacher. It's his memoir of sailing around the world with his wife and two small daughters after having so many heart problems the docs were talking about possible transplants. His wife was one of my professors and teaches part of the law school clinic class I volunteer with, so it was interesting to see her from her husband's perspective! He's an amazing writer, too, which never hurts....
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Karin Slaughter's "fractured". She's good on the gory, our Karin!
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I've just finished The Angel at No. 33, by Polly Williams. It's British chick lit. The protagonist is a thirty-something woman who dies within the first few pages of the book and we get to see how her family and friends cope through her eyes. It wasn't bad and had equal measure of laugh-out-loud moments and must-grab-a-hanky moments. It was very 'human' in its emotions.
I have three books waiting for me to read them; two Kurt Vonnegut and one David Sedaris. I'm not sure which to go with first, but suspect it'll be a Vonnegut because they're always in demand within the county library.
;D
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I have three books waiting for me to read them; two Kurt Vonnegut and one David Sedaris. I'm not sure which to go with first, but suspect it'll be a Vonnegut because they're always in demand within the county library.
*boggle*
Really?
I've yet to meet the Brit on the streets (so to speak) who's heard of Vonnegut. I've always suspected that Brits that have read him looked down on him because his writing is simple, yet so gorgeous somehow, more so than Hemingway I've found. I think JD Salinger is the American icon you outgrow but Vonnegut is the writer that will find his way into your thoughts for life. I still cannot hear the phrase "take a leak" without thinking "where I come from, that means stealing a mirror". You've probably read more Vonnegut than I have by now, Poppy. That sorta makes me feel inferior, like I can't even manage to be better at American pursuits.... Ah well. The feeling shall pass. :laugh:
I've known people like David Sedaris, or at least like he claims to be - shunning anything remotely popular and favouring flea markets and gaudy religious art. On a personal level, I cannot get away from those types fast enough, they are forever judging what you like as not hip enough for them, and yet I did laugh aloud at bits of Me Talk Pretty One Day and his story of being a Macy's elf. I had Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim on an audio file but I only got to listen to one story (on dialysis, no less, barely conscious) and then my MP3 player was lost or stolen and I've not bothered with it since.
I'm reading Gone Girl and getting more annoyed with the author's style by the moment. I recall NPR said it had an ending "that you will not see coming". This had better be worth it, because I saw the ending of The Maids coming from a considerable distance and the ending of Like Water For Elephants did not justify the pain. I should really return to my Nobel prize winners. They almost always deliver writing I adore.
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I've never read much of David Sedaris, but I'm a huge fan of his sister, Amy. I think I need to start a quest to meet her, so I can get her to sign my copy of Wigfield: The Can Do Town that Just May Not, which is written by Amy, Stephen Colbert and Paul Dinello. I have Colbert and Dinello's autographs on the book already. Amy Sedaris' signature on the book would complete the trilogy.
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I picked up JK Rowling's "Casual Vacancy" on a whim this week. It is delicious to be able to enjoy reading again, and this one is delicious in its own way. But it IS dark, and I'm not sure I will be pleased with it overall. Time will tell.
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I've been meaning to read that one as well.. perhaps I will try to get a copy of it from the library and read it between the newest of my Dark Shadows books, which comes out August 20, and the rereading of my Hunger Games books that I'd like to do before the next movie comes out.
I did try to get a copy of it from the library a few months ago, but every copy in the province was out and there was a wait list
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Gone Girl has got much better. I did, however, instantly pick up on the 'New Carthage' reference, as would any theatre aficionado, so I suspected much of what would happen before it happened, so far anyhow. I think it may get more surprising, though.
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I just got Reza Aslan's Zealot from my husband for my birthday. I had expressed an interest in it before the Fox News hooha, and now I'm glad to see it is flying off the bookshelves!
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I have three books waiting for me to read them; two Kurt Vonnegut and one David Sedaris. I'm not sure which to go with first, but suspect it'll be a Vonnegut because they're always in demand within the county library.
*boggle*
Really?
I've yet to meet the Brit on the streets (so to speak) who's heard of Vonnegut. I've always suspected that Brits that have read him looked down on him because his writing is simple, yet so gorgeous somehow, more so than Hemingway I've found. I think JD Salinger is the American icon you outgrow but Vonnegut is the writer that will find his way into your thoughts for life. I still cannot hear the phrase "take a leak" without thinking "where I come from, that means stealing a mirror". You've probably read more Vonnegut than I have by now, Poppy. That sorta makes me feel inferior, like I can't even manage to be better at American pursuits.... Ah well. The feeling shall pass. :laugh:
To put my comment more into persepctive: the county library appears to have just one each of six Vonnegut books (they did have seven but I broke Slaughter-house Five and they sold it to me for 50p) so whenever I've requested a book I've had to wait in a queue of at least one. Still, I suppose that might still be a tad boggling! I don't look down on him; I find him amazing, easy to digest, sad, funny and thought-provoking, but I'm still in the early stages of Vonnegut pleasure! In many respects he contradicts everything I believe, yet at the same time I believe and trust everything he writes, which is probably ridiculously insane.
;D
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I'm rereading my Dark Shadows books in preparation for the third book in the series (and hopefully not the last) being released on August 1st.
I am reading Angelique's Descent right now, and when that's finished, I'll move on to The Salem Branch. The third book is called Wolf Moon Rising.
They are written by Lara Parker, who played Angelique in the Dark Shadows TV series.
My husband bought Angelique's Descent for me some months ago, but I haven't gotten to it yet. Was it good?
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Pops - you broke Slaughterhouse Five!! You broke it?
I've just started The Chalk Girl by Carol O'Connell. A crime tale starring the fabulous NYPD detective Kathy Mallory. Ab Fab!!!
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Martha Stewart Holiday Crafts. Christmas craft shows are coming - time to make stuff to sell now!
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If Looks Could Kill by M. William Phelps
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I had a one and a half hour bus ride to meet my MiL for lunch yesterday and managed to get through half of Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut. I then managed to finish the book whilst on the one and a half hour ride back from town. Sometimes there are benefits to having a lack of driving skills and living in the middle of nowhere. I only ever read in the bath or on the bus so I've read very little over the last four and a half weeks. When I'm back at work I'll be reading for England again.
I like to see people reading books on the bus (or anywhere). It's really frustrating when someone sits down with a Kindle (or equivalent) and I have to read over their shoulder to see what they're reading ... at least with a book - which clearly displays its title and author on the cover - I don't have to be so rude and space-invading!
;D
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Sadly I can't find a bus round here to sit on and read!!!
But I do read at dialysis, on the sofa and in bed when i can't sleep Poppy! :rofl;
Just finishes reading MINETTE WALTERS and THE DEVIL'S FEATHER
It was a good story but strange. The end was even stranger. The last chapter seemed irrelevant to the whole book (in my opinion) ???
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Dean Koontz seems to be popular. I really do not like his style of writing. At all.
Me either! I tried to read a couple of his books and just couldn't!
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I'm reading a few different books. Some informational and some entertaining.
1.) How to Write Your Own Life Story by Lois Daniel
2.) Genealogical Standards of Evidence by Brenda Dougall Merriman
3.) Midnight Sacrifice by Melinda Leigh
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Gone Girl has got much better. I did, however, instantly pick up on the 'New Carthage' reference, as would any theatre aficionado, so I suspected much of what would happen before it happened, so far anyhow. I think it may get more surprising, though.
I've read this and found it quite annoying ... but I liked the twists :beer1;
The writer's style is slightly erratic and I hate books that do lots of flashbacks in time!!!! ???
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The Visitationby Frank Perretti
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I picked up World War Z (Max Brooks) and Cloud Atlas (David Mitchell) from the library this weekend. I'm now going to take both of them to the bath and decide when I get into it which one I'm going to focus my attention on. I'm actually still halfway through the David Sedaris book, and although I'm enjoying it a bit it's not enough to keep me from starting something else in the meantime.
;D
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Don't drop 'em in the suds, Pops!
I am reading 'Bad Girl Magdalene' by Jonayhan Gash. It's quite a moving tale of an ex-inmate of one of Ireland's infamous Magdalene orphanages, and her planning to revenge her friend who was raped, on her death bed, by a pedophile priest! Ingenious and moving!
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Just finished January First, about a girl with childhood-onset schizophrenia,
which is extremely rare, and how her parents cope, or not, with her condition. Recommended.
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I'm re-reading A Short History of Progress by Ronald Wright. That's what I do when I'm bored... Nothing like a book about societal collapse when you're prepping for HD. :P
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Mmm I must try that one. Now reading Karin Slaughter's Indelible. I love it like all of her books. Escapism
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I also read J.A. Jance's books. She has 3 series that I read...J.P. Beaumont, Joanna Brady and Ali Reynolds. That last one is newer than the others. I really love her books!
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Jojo Moyes' Silver Bay, I hope it's as good as Last letter from your lover
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Just started Deborah Moggach Heartbreak Hotel ... enjoying it.... :waving;
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The Homecoming by Carsten Stroud. (It's the sequel to Niceville)
It's odd and a bit creepy but all in all I'm really enjoying it!
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Ryan White: My Story
by Ryan White and Anne Cunningham
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Just finished
NEVER COMING BACK by Tim Weaver
Brutal but one hell of a story. Well worth reading. :clap;
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Just started The Island of Dr. Moreau, and just finished Clash of Kings (book after game of thrones). Kindle apps are the best!
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I am reading 'Bad Girl Magdalene' by Jonayhan Gash. It's quite a moving tale of an ex-inmate of one of Ireland's infamous Magdalene orphanages, and her planning to revenge her friend who was raped, on her death bed, by a pedophile priest! Ingenious and moving!
Oh my god, that film The Sisters Magdalene was so haunting, it's been about 10 years and I'm still trying to forget certain scenes (the one in the shower!) When a critic calls work "a brave performance" they are referring to roles like those women undertook. If you haven't seen it it's worth a view.
Just finished reading Dial A Ghost aloud with the boys. Checked it out in August but have been too busy to really devote any time to it. Perfect time of year for it. All of you YA fans should try Eva Ibbotson, she really is a clever writer, although if you're looking for perfect teenage romances you won't find them in any of her work that I've encountered.
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I'm reading The Emerald Mile: The Epic Story of the Fastest Ride in History Through the Heart of the Grand Canyon by Kevin Fedarko
In 1983 a record snow yield in the Rocky Mountains created the highest volume of meltwater ever to surge through the Colorado River. The massive buildup of hydraulic pressure threatened to overcome the 710-foot barrier of the Glen Canyon Dam and sent a devastating current of destruction at incredibly high speeds through the mile-deep gorge that winds its way through the Arizona desert. The Grand Canyon was inundated with a catastrophic wall of the deadliest whitewater seen in a generation. And as the National Park Service conducted the most extensive helicopter rescues of trapped and injured boaters in its history, a trio of inspired fools launched themselves down the rapids in an open wooden dory called the Emerald Mile. By the seat of their pants the three-man crew braved a 277-mile journey in the fastest decent of the Canyon ever recorded.
I'm just a third of the way through but so far I am really enjoying it and already don't want it to end except I want to find out what happens.
The most amazing thing about that 1983 flood is that there was a group of dialyzors on the river at the time! I have been reading as much as possible about the Dialysis in Wonderland trips that the University of Utah organized in the early '80s. They organized travel for dialyzors all over the US and VIrgin Islands including three trips down the Grand Canyon (here is a little about the device they used (thanks Okarol for the link) http://www.laskerfoundation.org/awards/pdf/2002_kolff.pdf (http://www.laskerfoundation.org/awards/pdf/2002_kolff.pdf) ). Most of the article I found mentioned the tour leader's name, John Warner so I finally Googled him and found someone about the right age (88) living in Utah and decided to try calling him to find out if it was the same guy. It was! And he is still sharp as a tack.
One of the stories he told me was about the 1983 Dialysis in Wonderland trip when a helicopter flew over and told them to camp higher because they were going to release an unusual amount of water. The helicopter came back two more times telling them to camp higher every time. They were on the river when the Glen Canyon dam nearly breached! In the end the dialysis group was one of, if not the, last group to make it down the river before it was closed. Thinking of them on the river is making the book even more exciting to read.
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The Guardian by Robbie Cheuvront and Erik Reed.
I just started it. Haven't decided if I'm going to like it yet!
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The hundred year old mam who climbed out of the window and disappeared by Jonas Jonasson
Pretty funny, and weird, and keeps you reading
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I am enjoying Genesis by Karin Slaughter. "The first woman was tortured. The second was scared to death. Now a sadistic killer hunts the third..." A pleasant little read!
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I am currently reading Stranded by Emily Barr
About a group of people who get left on a Malaysian island ... literally ... with nothing
I can only read books that don't give me nightmares!!!! 8)
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Re-reading Ken Follett's The Pillars Of The Earth
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Just finished book club's choice "Flight Behavior". About monarch buttterfles, cllmate changes, human behavior patterns. I liked it. Based on facts but fictional.
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The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton. It won this years Man Booker prize. Beautifully written, strangely constructed, 830 odd pages, set in New Zealand in the 1860's. The author is only 28! One of the best reads I've ever had, but it may take another couple of weeks to get through it.
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The Third Gate by Lincoln Child
An archeological dig in Egypt calls in an enigmalogist to see if a curse is real. (Fiction)
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The Accursed - Joyce Carol Oates. 'A tale of psychological horror' set in Princeton in the early 1900s. It is the most amazing read, and far too complex to summarise here. I spent all Sunday reading it and am thoroughly involved.
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Fatal Cure by Robin Cook.
The Third Gate by Lincoln Child
An archeological dig in Egypt calls in an enigmalogist to see if a curse is real. (Fiction)
I love Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child! I've read just about everything they have written together and separately!
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Me too. They are great authors together and separately. The Third Gate is a new book.
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'Light of The World' by James Lee Burke. The Daily Express says it all about Burke' A fantastic novelist... so far above the prevailing standards of crime fiction that it is pointless to make the comparison'.The book, well, consider 'a web of evil and corruption, one of the most depraved serial killers who ever lived, set in a fragile American Eden, this mesmerising tale of good and evil is also a story about the earth itself. S0 good!!!!!!
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"Inside of a Dog" by Alexandra Horowitz. And no, it is not an anatomy book.
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The weird sisters by Eleanor Brown, nice
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The man in the dialysis chair opposite me is reading Mandella's biography... I am impressed
Me? I am reading The Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich (One for the money, two for the dough, three etc)
There is so much background noise from nurses slamming bin lids, machine alarms and gossiping nurses plus I often drift
off to sleep whilst i read ... I prefer light-hearted stuff! At least it makes me smile 8)
Escapism is a necessary tool to keep me in that chair for four hours!!!!
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Me? I am reading The Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich (One for the money, two for the dough, three etc)
I've really enjoyed those books, Sugarlump!
I've just finished reading The Silent Wife (If you liked Gone Girl, you probably will like this one, too), and I've started Burial Rites. I read once I go to bed and end up staying up until 2:30 AM because I just can't put my book down.
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Thanks moosey :cuddle;
Have ordered The Silent Wife on Amazon
Due in hospital next week for 6 days for angiogram so need decent reading material :waving;
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I am reading Evelyn Waugh. I finished A Handful of Dust (which I read as an adolescent but didn't remember a word of it) and have now started Vile Bodies. I find Waugh to be like Mark Twain or Kurt Vonnegut - excellent writing, often quite funny, but not all that challenging. It's what I need at the moment.
Sugar, you're going into hospital for 6 days?! Not fun. Hope it's painless and you manage to keep yourself entertained.
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Has anyone read the book Wonder?
A friend of mine read it about six months ago and said it was amazing so I looked into it back then. He is not someone I would turn to for advice on the next literary masterpiece so I wasn't terribly surprised to find that it sounded like a pedestrian tear-jerker about a disfigured child.
Then today I asked Aidan what he was looking up on the Internet, and it seems his homework is to look up the syndrome that the protagonist in Wonder has because they are reading it for English class. I told him I don't handle those sorts of things well so if he needed help he'd have to ask his father. I also got really annoyed. He's year 7 and mature enough to be reading classics. I think that in English class you should read books more for the quality of the writing than the story. I've read reviews of the book that said it was too simplistic. Oh, great! Aidan is rather a prolific reader, and he is also one kid that simply does not need to be taught that you need to be nice to everyone regardless of their appearance. Duh! This is a child who, at 4 years old, would shout 'Not funny!' at cartoon characters that were insulting one another, in other words hyper-vigilant when it comes to considering the feelings of others. I was reading The Pearl, A Christmas Carol, and The Hobbit at his age (because they were assigned!). I have a copy of Animal Farm - one of those perfect little novellas you'll remember for a lifetime - and have asked Aidan to please give it a go as soon as he's finished with Percy Jackson turns 40 or whatever the latest book in that series is called.
I asked Gwyn if he thought we should suggest Aidan read Slaughterhouse Five and he said no. He said there were images in it that Aidan was too young to handle, something about Jews on a train. I have no memory of this and obviously need to reread it.
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Cariad, it might be really fun for you and Gwyn to put together a custom made reading list for Aidan. Since his reading abilities are so advanced, how about an anthology of classic American short stories? The short story is a uniquely American genre (which is neither here nor there, I guess. Are there any classic British short stories?), and it might give Aiden exposure to good literature that's not too lengthy. Have you ever considered maybe introducing him to poetry? Has he read any Edgar Allen Poe? Boys usually like the creepy factor in his stories, and his poetry might interest Aidan.
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Cariad, it might be really fun for you and Gwyn to put together a custom made reading list for Aidan. Since his reading abilities are so advanced, how about an anthology of classic American short stories? The short story is a uniquely American genre (which is neither here nor there, I guess. Are there any classic British short stories?), and it might give Aiden exposure to good literature that's not too lengthy. Have you ever considered maybe introducing him to poetry? Has he read any Edgar Allen Poe? Boys usually like the creepy factor in his stories, and his poetry might interest Aidan.
Oh, first to clarify, I don't think his reading abilities are advanced. He is much like me at that age in that his vocabulary is not that impressive so he would struggle with works above his grade level. Socially, he's a genius. It's sort of the reverse situation with Dyl. Anyhow, to your suggestion, I think it is fun to suggest works for him to read. Gwyn, however, is not a reader and would be useless in this arena. Most of what Gwyn has read he's read because I've told him that these are important, beautiful (and yes, short) works.
I've never thought of the short story as uniquely American. I admit that I don't pay much attention to where a writer is from unless I really enjoy their work. The first short story I thought of was The Rocking-Horse Winner by D.H. Lawrence, which I was assigned at prep school, and I checked and he's British. Definitely a classic. Oh, and in reading the publisher's notes of Eveleyn Waugh's A Handful of Dust, he wrote two very different endings. The ending he wanted was a chapter entitled "The Man Who Loved Dickens" but because he had already published it as a short story, he couldn't reuse it for other purposes. Oscar Wilde and James Joyce are both Irish and both wrote short stories. Perhaps, like the short play, there is very little call for them so writers tend to avoid them. We did have the boys watch The Simpson's version of The Raven on Halloween, and of course they enjoyed that. I don't know a lot about poetry, let alone ones that kids could appreciate. Definitely an idea to look into, though.
On an unrelated note, I am delighted to be able to say that we have a costume for Dyl to wear for World Book Day! Yes, Britain has pulled another annual event out of their collective.... hat.... and all the parents have to come up with a fancy dress outfit that can be justifiable called literary. Dyl has agreed that he should go as Dwight from The Strange Case of Origami Yoda. If you don't know the story (and I don't but I was briefed this afternoon) Dwight is the weird kid at school who makes an origami Yoda finger puppet and will only speak through it. Dyl read me the list of the weirdest things this character has done at school, and one was wear a cape and insist on being called 'Captain Dwight' and the other was wear a t-shirt he acquired for free for a month. The t-shirt read "Biggie size your combo for only 39c" (cannot find the cents symbol). Between the cape, the shirt and the origami Yoda, he's going to have a silly costume that will be so fun to pull together, and also truly suits his extremely quirky sense of humour. Aidan and I have called it the role he was born to play. Dyl originally wanted to go as Dennis the Menace but I don't think that's really in the spirit of the day, and I imagine every other boy will beg their parents to let them have that outfit.
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Me? I am reading The Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich (One for the money, two for the dough, three etc)
I've really enjoyed those books, Sugarlump!
I've just finished reading The Silent Wife (If you liked Gone Girl, you probably will like this one, too), and I've started Burial Rites. I read once I go to bed and end up staying up until 2:30 AM because I just can't put my book down.
Moosey I just finished The Silent Wife really enjoyed it, thankd for the recommendation. I loved it's twists 8)
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I've just finished reading The Silent Wife
Oxymoron alert :o
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I'm reading a series of Swedish crime stories written by Liza Marklund. Her main character is a journalist for a Swedish tabloid who always seems to find herself investigating murders. Anyway, the weird thing is the English translations. The first of the series that I read just felt odd, and then I realized it was because I just didn't think a woman would be using certain words. Sure enough, the translator was Neil Smith, male and British. It was rather offputting.
The story I'm reading now is called The Last Will. Spoiler Alert!!!!!!!!!! The assassin is an American woman, and here is where the translator really gets it wrong. He has her using words like "lad" and has her using phrases that you'd never hear in America. So you have this American woman sounding like a British bloke. It's really bizarre. But the stories are good.
Cariad, of course non-Americans write short stories, but the genre developed earlier in the young USA than in other parts of the English speaking world. Some of our most well known novelists also wrote hauntingly beautiful and mystical short stories that didn't get much attention because of the popularity of their longer works. I always look to see where an author is from so that I can make a special effort to try to learn about his/her culture and how it is infused in their stories. And that is where sometimes a poor translation really sucks!
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I read Origami Yoda (in about an hour). I actually laughed. Twice. I tried to describe it to my Aussie friend and she said "Sounds like Wonder" I rather abruptly answered with "I assure you it is nothing like Wonder." She was referring to the different narrators, but that's an old literary device. Faulkner used it to great effect in As I Lay Dying, but I certainly wouldn't think to compare that work with Origami Yoda!
Cariad, of course non-Americans write short stories, but the genre developed earlier in the young USA than in other parts of the English speaking world.
This doesn't address the question you asked, and which I tried in good faith to answer. You asked "Are there any classic British short stories" and my answer was 'yes'. I am not an expert on the short story and would not have been inclined to comment one way or the other were it not for the fact that you seemed to genuinely be wondering if these authors existed.
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Yes, I did ask, cariad, and thanks so much for your reply! Like you, I'd read The Rocking Horse Winner long ago and had completely forgotten it! I'm glad you reminded me. And I didn't know that James Joyce had written short stories. I'll have to check them out.
I'll also have to check out Origami Yoda. It sounds really funny and weird. :2thumbsup;
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^
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Ooooh noahvale, thanks for those recommendations!! I think I'll search for some anthologies of Brit/Scot short stories. Ah, the things you learn from fellow IHDers! Thanks again!
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^
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Noahvale, I knew I recognized the names of Elizabeth Gaskell and Mary Braddon! My husband loves horror/ghost stories, and through the years I've bought him quite a few anthologies of these kinds of stories. I'm pretty sure that these two authors had stories included, so thanks for telling me just that little bit more about them; your post rang some bells!
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I always look to see where an author is from so that I can make a special effort to try to learn about his/her culture and how it is infused in their stories.
I think if their culture is important to the story, then it will be obvious. I don't think anyone has ever uttered the words "Wait, James Joyce was Irish??!!" I don't know - I can think of arguments for and against concentrating on where an author is from. At times it's meaningless. In my quest to read a work by every Nobel Laureate in literature, I am always very aware of where they are from, or at least where they are credited with being from. Quite a few of them lived in more than one country. I'm not sure how one would separate culture from style most of the time.
And I didn't know that James Joyce had written short stories. I'll have to check them out.
Dubliners is his collection of short stories, we were assigned it as seniors at prep school, followed by Portrait of the Artist. You no doubt have heard of the final work in Dubliners, "The Dead". My father was famous within our family for hating that story so much, he wrote a satirical essay comparing the boredom of reading "The Dead" to the boredom of being in the class taught by the professor who assigned the essay. He was so proud of that essay he read it to all of us when I was about 10. (Weird, I think, that someone would keep a college paper that long?) The professor handed it back to him and said "I can't grade this".
Anyhow, when I was assigned "The Dead" at about 16 I remember bracing myself for the boredom, but I found I actually (with a bit of guilt) liked it, especially that last line with the snow "falling faintly and faintly falling" and it going "through the universe" to rest on "all the living and the dead". Then when my horrid English teacher helped us analyze it, I found I liked it even more. Two primary characters were named after archangels, Gabriel the messenger and Michael the warrior? (having no Biblical education this came as a huge surprise to me!) I wanted to scream "Shut-up, that is brilliant!" There was such a refreshing quiet to his short stories. I've read probably hundreds of short stories, most of them assigned, most of them forgettable in my opinion. I dislike they way that they come across as so gimmicky - that they have to be eerie, violent, sci-fi, depressing - that I feel dragged to an inevitable horrifying conclusion with characters that I haven't had time to build a relationship with, as it were. I was drawn to the less dramatic ones. There was one about a man falling in love with a girl in a lime-green dress at the A&P that I really liked. It spoke to me as a teenager because there was something shameful in his being fascinated with her, and that was easily relate-able to me, that it doesn't often make sense whom you fancy. I don't think anything in that tale dealt with torturing a child, experimenting on a developmentally disabled person, ritually stoning a neighbor to death, nor burying someone you obsessively hate under the floorboards. I found those exhausting.
I'll also have to check out Origami Yoda. It sounds really funny and weird. :2thumbsup;
It was a pleasant way to pass an hour. If you do acquire it, hope you enjoy!
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Currently reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Ive seen the films but have never read the books, I am reading a chapter each night to my 6yr old boy before his bedtime. He is loving it and so am i, although he is asking to watch the films and i am unsure tbh maybe the first one but even that is dark in places. Hubby has read the books and said they get significantly more detailed and darker too so i will have to be careful!
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Currently reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Ive seen the films but have never read the books, I am reading a chapter each night to my 6yr old boy before his bedtime. He is loving it and so am i, although he is asking to watch the films and i am unsure tbh maybe the first one but even that is dark in places. Hubby has read the books and said they get significantly more detailed and darker too so i will have to be careful!
I (as an adult) don't like watching the Harry Potter films ... I find them too scary for me! Stuff of nightmares. >:(
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I agree with u sugar, i cant remember which film in particular i thought was freaky, the one where the death eaters attack the olympics, and the bit where the weasleys house is destroyed, i hated the bit with bellatrix running through the cornfirlds after someone, dunno why but i find her especially creepy. I didnt like the dementors either. Not bothered by voldemort really!! One of friends has let her kids see see all the harry potter films including her 2 yr old twins?! I would never let elena watch them, she is scared of the snow monster in frozen!! Some are rated a 12a (pg13 in the US i believe?!) so that says i all!! Perhaps i should discuss this in movie reviews?!
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I've just finished The Light Between Oceans and have not yet recovered.
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I'm an avid reader, between a work commute of about 45 minutes each way and dialysis I read anywhere from 2-5 books a week. As soon as I went on dialysis I asked my wife for a kindle for Christmas and now checkout eBooks from the library rather than physical books. I'm loving how light the basic kindle is and that it fits in my coat pocket.
Of my recent books I've saved the names of the following to recommend to my book club; Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford and The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin. Both take place in the Pacific Northwest (USA) and have some negative content but overall are more uplifting. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet tells the story of a Chinese boy/man during world war two and his friendship with a Japanese girl who is sent to an internment camp. The Orchardist tells the story of a man who takes over the families orchard, prior to modern transport, and his encounter with two girls who are running away from a house of ill repute...
In the last month I've read four of the Night Soldiers series by Alan Furst. They are all spy novels set during world war two - covering various agents from a different country each book. They are quick reads with good details and uplifting stories.
I've just finished The Light Between Oceans and have not yet recovered.
I've added this to my want to read list. Thanks
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I just finished reading Divergent by Veronica Roth, and have moved on to the second book Insurgent. Definitely worth the read, I suggest it!
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Can anyone recommend a nice uplifting book to read (not too heavy content) ??? :secret;
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Can anyone recommend a nice uplifting book to read (not too heavy content) ??? :secret;
Maybe "The One and Only Ivan", its a short simple book (with drawings) about animals in a shopping center in New Jersey (USA). It does have some hits of animal abuse but the story is light hearted and it has a happy ending.
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I have just finished THE FIRST WIFE by Emily Barr, good (a little spooky and twisty in a good way) and about to start reading
ATLANTIC SHIFT also by her. I am an Emily Barr fan 8)
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I am just re-reading one of my favourite books by Wilhelm Hauff which is called "Lichtenstein".
It is a wonderful story during the middle-ages about the Counts of Wuerttemberg who were ruling the area of Wuerttemberg in Swabia near the Lake of Constance...
This unfortunate ruler of Wuerttemberg was ousted by his own people of Wuerttemberg because he was too young and too eager and made so many mistakes,
so that he was eventually banned by his own people of Wuerttemberg as an unwanted ruler...
Wilhelm Hauff shows in his masterful writing the times and customs of the middle ages and reading the book puts the reader into the middle ages in such a way
which is hardly ever achieved by any writer or perhaps even any film-maker...The Book puts history back in a very interesting way to study... Worth reading...
and worth studying...!
Mind you, I am a bit bias because I have adored Wilhelm Hauff's thoughts and historical researches for many years ...
...and I find his individual style of writing especially endearing......
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I am currently reading (after a rummage in the charity shop where Ed Sheeran's clothes turned up!!!! 8) )
C'est La Folie by Mathew Wright.
It is a wonderful descriptive but funny book about an Englishman who decides his life has been boring and staid so far and not lived up to his childhood
expectations of being a superhero or a train driver to the Queen!!! so he buys a tumbledown house in France and attempts to live a different kind of life!
It echoes my dreams, if I wasn't a dialysis patient, of doing up a tumbledown house in France and having chickens and sheep and growing veggies and
having 3 hour lunches!!!!
Trouble is I don't speak french fluently!! and I am not very practical when it comes to diy or man machines but I am good with chickens and veggies!!!!
If only ....
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I am currently re-reading the fairy-tale of 1001 Arabian Nights.
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I am reading "Ruby Ridge" by Jess Walter. I lived in Boundary County Idaho when that siege was going on and I was a Federal Employee. It was scary. Plus in my previous Job in Spokane, I worked with the FBI Informant that sold Randy Weaver the sawed off shotgun that got him the Federal Offence that he did not show up to court for so they went up to Ruby Ridge to get him.
I'm loving this book because I know some of the names and all the places the author talks about.
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Rerun, that must have been a very scary experience...
... I have been wondering how one could possibly evaluate someone who is an FBI Informant or any other Informant...
because, how can we know (or trust) whether they are telling us the truth...
...or whether they are just creating tall stories for the money they can make ?
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There's a group of elderly men that get into heated discussions about poetry and literature in a park near my home. They started discussing themes from Doctor Zhivago in ways I've never heard before. So, I'm re-reading Boris Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago. Maybe when I'm done I can walk up to the older guys and join their ranting and raving. ;D
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Hello, Ukrainian Tracksuit,
Could you please elaborate a little more about the heated discussions of these elderly men ?
After reading the book Doctor Zhivago I have always felt that Pasternak wrote mainly "between the lines",
but I could not yet work out what he really meant to say between the lines in Dr. Zhivago ... What do these elderly gentlemen think ?
Have you heard - by any chance - of the USSR writer Juli Daniel ?
There is another question mark about his political Court case,
because many years ago the book of his trial was, like Pasternak's Dr. Zhivago, smuggled to the West and published here
and the contents of the book are all the details about his own political trial in the USSR...
The book contained all what was (supposed to be) said at the Court trial but I could not believe it because Juli Daniel made fun of Pushkin's poetry
and that is impossible, that would be almost bordering on blasphemy in USSR or Russia.
During the trial Juli Daniel also (supposedly) makes fun of the political regime in the USSR (according to the book)
and I can't believe that either because had he done so he would have put his wife and child's future in jeopardy...
... and I can't imagine a father and husband in the USSR to risk that...
I have written to the authorities in the USSR and later to Russia but unfortunately I have never received an answer...
... and I have been trying to find out whether this trial actually took place or whether the book was a spoof ?
I have even been wondering whether or not Juli Daniel exists at all ?
Another important point is
that according to the book of the Court case Juli Daniel was supposed to be one of the two pall bearers at Pasternak's funeral,
but according to my researches there was no Juli Daniel at Pasternak's funeral; no one in Pasternak's family knew a Juli Daniel,
in fact I could not find any evidence that Boris Pasternak himself knew a man/poet/writer called Juli Daniel...
What do you think?
Many thanks, Kristina.
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Hello kristina,
I have to admit I pay attention to the elderly men for entertainment. When there is nothing entertaining to do, and it's the middle of the afternoon, I get some chuckles listening to them. As for Doctor Zhivago, they were discussing the roots of the names of the characters. Pasternak was very witty and he made points about who the characters were and what they represented through their names. I know the older gents had a deep discussion about "unethical acts" [such as Lara's affair with Komarovsky] and how the tenets of "Soviet society" at the time would have viewed such actions. They did a lot of "comparative arguing" between the book and War and Peace also.
By between the lines, do you mean the points that Pasternak set out to make? I learned in Russian literature class that the main motifs of the book are a critique of the revolutions of modern Russian history, the loss of individuality and loneliness. So, each of the VERY mixed up relationships and events of the novel alludes to these points at some time.
Do you by chance mean Yuli Daniel? If so, yes, the "show trial" did happen and he did very much exist. You can probably find more information and books referencing the "Sinyavsky–Daniel trial" as Daniel was tried together with Andrey Sinyavsky. Anyways, the anti-Soviet propaganda both of them preached were in works of fiction. Sinyavsky wrote "The Trial Begins" and Daniel penned "This Is Moscow Speaking". This was the collection of stories that were smuggled to Paris to be published. It is believed that since it was fiction and they used pseudonyms, their anti-Soviet rhetoric wouldn't be figured out. This was a prime example of "samizdat" [or самизда́т if you want to get technical!] where Soviet dissidents used to use pseudonyms and have a system set up to pass subversive works they copied out all in handwriting. [It always amazes me to this day the dedication these people had.] However, the KGB did figure out that Sinyavsky was the author "Abram Tertz" and Daniel was "Nikolai Arzhak". As I said, it was a typical Soviet show trial where the decision that they were guilty was decided before the trial even began. Both authors entered "not guilty" pleas which on its own was a shock. They argued their case both knowing their future was sealed. It was a closed court so all of this was done in secrecy and few sources managed to get information. Western newspapers did give the trial some coverage. Anyways, to make a REALLY long story short, Daniel was sentenced to 5 years and Sinyavsky received 7 years of hard labour in a work camp. The trial was extremely important for the dissident movement within the USSR and it was a sign that Brezhnev was in the process of reverting to more "authoritarian" governing.
As for the pallbearer question, there are quite a few sources the list BOTH Sinyavsky and Daniel in those roles. Sinyavsky was the closer friend to Pasternak though. Keep in mind I haven't studied Russian literature in umm, 8 or 9 years, but I think the "Encyclopedia of Censorship" states this as fact. Anyways, there are quite a few books and journal articles out there that mention this trial and the influence of these two writers. They may further answer your questions and aid in your research.
I hope this answered some of your questions. :)
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The Testament by John Grisham
Fantastic book, can't put it down.
Jane
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My son wrote to Tom Angleberger, author of the Origami Yoda series, and he received a reply!!!
I am so delighted for him, he was glowing when he ran upstairs to tell Gwyn and me that he got an email.
Here is Dyl's email (when he talks to Americans he prefers to be called Elliot. Yes, he's an unusual one.) He composed it entirely on his own, even chose a smiley to add. This is actually how he talks. All the time.
Dear Mr. Angleberger,
I just finished reading your downright AWESOME book The Strange Case of Origami Yoda. Before I moved to Britain from America my brother Aidan used to read this book all the time. The book was put in my room and I decided I wanted to have a go reading it. I enjoyed reading it so much that I went as Dwight for World Book Day. World Book Day is something people here celebrate. It's a day where you can dress up as your favourite book character, and later on you can go to a book fair and get some cool books. 8) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I moved to Britain when I was only six and here I turned seven. I am sending you some pictures that were taken after World Book Day with me in my costume and Origami Yoda on my finger.
Yours sincerely,
Elliot
And here is Mr. Angleberger's response:
Hey dude! That's the best Dwight costume I've ever seen!
I'm honored!
I hope you'll consider visiting me on origamiyoda.com! That's the best way to send me stuff or ask questions, etc...
Thanks again, dude, I'm very flattered!
--Tom
My Aussie friend went out and got three of his books based on our recommendation (her younger son loves origami) and he brought an 'emergency origami yoda' to the choral performance that his brother and my kids were in last night. I told my Aussie friend that Tom Angleberger is permanently in my good graces and anything I can do to promote his books in the country, I shall be doing. So it's probably just as well that she didn't subject herself to my pressures and just went out and bought the books preemptively. :)
I want to add pics of Dyl in his Dwight costume but it will have to wait until after work. :P
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Hello kristina,
I have to admit I pay attention to the elderly men for entertainment. When there is nothing entertaining to do, and it's the middle of the afternoon, I get some chuckles listening to them. As for Doctor Zhivago, they were discussing the roots of the names of the characters. Pasternak was very witty and he made points about who the characters were and what they represented through their names. I know the older gents had a deep discussion about "unethical acts" [such as Lara's affair with Komarovsky] and how the tenets of "Soviet society" at the time would have viewed such actions. They did a lot of "comparative arguing" between the book and War and Peace also.
By between the lines, do you mean the points that Pasternak set out to make? I learned in Russian literature class that the main motifs of the book are a critique of the revolutions of modern Russian history, the loss of individuality and loneliness. So, each of the VERY mixed up relationships and events of the novel alludes to these points at some time.
Do you by chance mean Yuli Daniel? If so, yes, the "show trial" did happen and he did very much exist. You can probably find more information and books referencing the "Sinyavsky–Daniel trial" as Daniel was tried together with Andrey Sinyavsky. Anyways, the anti-Soviet propaganda both of them preached were in works of fiction. Sinyavsky wrote "The Trial Begins" and Daniel penned "This Is Moscow Speaking". This was the collection of stories that were smuggled to Paris to be published. It is believed that since it was fiction and they used pseudonyms, their anti-Soviet rhetoric wouldn't be figured out. This was a prime example of "samizdat" [or самизда́т if you want to get technical!] where Soviet dissidents used to use pseudonyms and have a system set up to pass subversive works they copied out all in handwriting. [It always amazes me to this day the dedication these people had.] However, the KGB did figure out that Sinyavsky was the author "Abram Tertz" and Daniel was "Nikolai Arzhak". As I said, it was a typical Soviet show trial where the decision that they were guilty was decided before the trial even began. Both authors entered "not guilty" pleas which on its own was a shock. They argued their case both knowing their future was sealed. It was a closed court so all of this was done in secrecy and few sources managed to get information. Western newspapers did give the trial some coverage. Anyways, to make a REALLY long story short, Daniel was sentenced to 5 years and Sinyavsky received 7 years of hard labour in a work camp. The trial was extremely important for the dissident movement within the USSR and it was a sign that Brezhnev was in the process of reverting to more "authoritarian" governing.
As for the pallbearer question, there are quite a few sources the list BOTH Sinyavsky and Daniel in those roles. Sinyavsky was the closer friend to Pasternak though. Keep in mind I haven't studied Russian literature in umm, 8 or 9 years, but I think the "Encyclopedia of Censorship" states this as fact. Anyways, there are quite a few books and journal articles out there that mention this trial and the influence of these two writers. They may further answer your questions and aid in your research.
I hope this answered some of your questions. :)
Hello Ukrainian Tracksuit,
Thanks so much for your answers...
You are right, I was wondering about the roots of the names representing the different characters in Dr. Zhivago
and I was also wondering who in society(in Russian and later in USSR society) those different names represented
and there seems also a good point in comparing the different colours within society in Pasternak’s “Dr. Zhivago” and Tolstoy’s “War and Peace”...
Please let me know if you find out more... (I take heated discussing about literature always very seriously
because there are so many fascinating literary conundrums...)...
Thank you very much for your assistance to assist me in “my Juli Daniel puzzle”.
I could hardly believe it at the time when I studied the book about the trial in Moscow
because Juli Daniel’s political justification at the trial almost read as if he was on a “suicide mission”.
Many authors in the West – I remember particular Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir
and many German authors like Heinrich Boell, Guenther Grass (some politicians and student organisations worldwide)
organized meetings and signed papers of protest which were eventually sent to the USSR authorities.
I eventually felt unsure about the truthfulness of this political trial
because none of the USSR or Russian authorities answered my enquiries
about Juli Daniel's existence and/or his political trial in Moscow...
... and I could hardly write to Jean-Paul Sartre and ask whether or not he signed the protest about a bonifide writer - or whether it was a spoof...
...That is the reason why I was wondering whether the story about the trial was real or whether it was a spoof which went out of hand
and because so many renowned poets/writers/authors had already signed papers/letters of protest sent to the USSR, the spoof could not be stopped anymore...
... I had started with my research before computers and google... and unfortunately there were no answers for my questions at the time...
I remember especially one very impressive poem by Juli Daniel which is named “Commit me to your memories, I give you each a verse”,
where he laments about his hopeless situation at the time...
Thanks again Ukrainian Tracksuit for your answer, it is very much appreciated and puts my mind at rest about this "Juli Daniel puzzle",
Kind regards from Kristina.
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You're welcome, Kristina. :) I'm happy that those answers were suffice. As for the elderly men and their discussions, I hope I can finish Doctor Zhivago [and they'll let me join a discussion!] before they move on to another work!
These are two interesting academic journals about the trial. If you're interested, I suggest The Iron Fist: The Trial of Daniel and Sinyavsky by David Caute and Satirists on Trial by Walter Kolonosky.
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Thanks again Ukrainian Tracksuit, :waving;
I shall look out for these academic journals and hopefully I can locate them and read “The Iron Fist: The Trial of Daniel and Sinyavsky” (I have looked up the summary
of it on the Internet and it promises to be a very interesting read; it also seems to include the execution of the American couple who became involved in cold war espionage,
Julius Rosenberg and Ethel Greenglass-Rosenberg)...
... and I shall try to locate “Satirists on Trial”by Walter Konosky. Thanks again for your kind information.
Have you been interested in the Daniel/Sinyavsky Trial for long ? I thought their resistance and refusal to make compromises was quite fascinating...
... and very rare in history to come across... I suppose, that made me interested in reading the book of the trial all those years ago during my studies...
I also hope for you that you can finish "Doctor Zhivago" and join the discussion of the gentlemen before they move on to another topic...
Thanks again for all the information from Kristina.
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I got given two foodie books:
Don't Panic Dinners in the freezer and
Don't Panic More Dinners in the freezer
I keep looking in my freezer but they haven't appeared yet!!!!! :thumbup;
(Actually very useful books)
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I got given two foodie books:
Don't Panic Dinners in the freezer and
Don't Panic More Dinners in the freezer
I keep looking in my freezer but they haven't appeared yet!!!!! :thumbup;
(Actually very useful books)
Oh, those sound brilliant! Love the titles!
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They are American but obtainable on Amazon.
Great ideas for bulk cooking for the freezer or just generally.
Ihad some chicken so made 4 chicken curries and 4 chicken supremes, wrapped individually in the freezer.
That's about as organised as I get with food :clap;
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My interest in reading spans a wide spectrum of interests.
Mysteries, westerns, certain biographies, bible, religion, occult, metaphysical, and healing, were and are in my days reading.
This is kind of a carry over from childhood days when I found reading opened doors in ones imagination.
It is unusual though, that any title is read cover to cover in one reading. Although it does happen,
Some need to be read over and over. Rare would be a book that is spared my written notes throughout the book.
A few reveal a deeper insight with each reading, and each rereading is deeper than the previous read.
Currently with slips of paper showing where my reading was at:
Meditation Within Eternity Eric Pepin
Silent awakening Eric Pepin
Soul Retrieval Sandra Ingerman
The God in You Robert Collier
What Happened In and To Moral Philosophy In The Twentieth Century? Fran O'Rourke
talker
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Have you been interested in the Daniel/Sinyavsky Trial for long ? I thought their resistance and refusal to make compromises was quite fascinating...
... and very rare in history to come across... I suppose, that made me interested in reading the book of the trial all those years ago during my studies...
The first time I heard about the Sinyavsky-Daniel trial, it was during the year of Russian literature I took as my undergraduate electives. [Silly me, I thought it'd be fun.] Naturally, I had to track down their works! Later, I went to a graduate student conference about 7 years ago that renewed my interest. A Hungarian fellow attended and he presented his paper about the trial's influence on dissidents in the years following. At the time, I spent a lot of time researching dissident movements in political practice and this trial was a really good example to focus upon. I got a little 'obsessed' with samizdat too. So, from there, I tried to learn as much as I could. I'm a bit of a geek but I find it fascinating to make all the connections between the intelligentsia at the time. [Dynamics and relationships.] I 100 % completely agree with you "their resistance and refusal to make compromises was quite fascinating..." :)
Have a good evening, kristina!
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Moosey I just finished The Silent Wife really enjoyed it, thankd for the recommendation. I loved it's twists 8)
I'm so glad you liked it!
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I admit that I don't pay much attention to where a writer is from unless I really enjoy their work.
Oh, this really surprises me! I would have thought that the anthropologist in you would make you curious about where an author is from!
I have just finished The Orphan Master's Son I'm not really sure how to describe it. It's about the life story of a man in North Korea, how his identity changes and the reasons behind those changes. It was not an easy read because North Korea is such a soulless place and life for its citizens can be horribly cruel, but it was such a fascinating piece of fiction that I was eager to read what happened next. The author is American but has travelled to North Korea and was able to speak to a few people while there (he would not identify them by name). It is a book that is well worth the effort. It's one of those stories that just kind of stays with you, rolling around in your thoughts for days.
I am just getting into Orange is the New Black. I've seen the Netflix TV series but wanted to read the book. I'm only about a quarter of the way through, but already I can see that it is quite different to the TV show in that the book is more of a straight forward narrative in which the reader learns about the mess that is the US prison system, whereas the tv show is a wonderfully crafted comedy.
The next book on my list is The Son, the new Jo Nesbo book. It is a stand alone story, outside of the Harry Hole series. If any of you like Scandinavian crime fiction and have some recommendations for me, please let me know! Thanks.
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Have you been interested in the Daniel/Sinyavsky Trial for long ? I thought their resistance and refusal to make compromises was quite fascinating...
... and very rare in history to come across... I suppose, that made me interested in reading the book of the trial all those years ago during my studies...
The first time I heard about the Sinyavsky-Daniel trial, it was during the year of Russian literature I took as my undergraduate electives. [Silly me, I thought it'd be fun.] Naturally, I had to track down their works! Later, I went to a graduate student conference about 7 years ago that renewed my interest. A Hungarian fellow attended and he presented his paper about the trial's influence on dissidents in the years following. At the time, I spent a lot of time researching dissident movements in political practice and this trial was a really good example to focus upon. I got a little 'obsessed' with samizdat too. So, from there, I tried to learn as much as I could. I'm a bit of a geek but I find it fascinating to make all the connections between the intelligentsia at the time. [Dynamics and relationships.] I 100 % completely agree with you "their resistance and refusal to make compromises was quite fascinating..." :)
Have a good evening, kristina!
Thank you, Ukrainian Tracksuit
It is interesting that the Hungarian fellow presented a paper about the trial's influence on dissidents in the following years...
I also believe that this book and the news about the Sinyavsky - Daniel trial had a great influence on people's resistance and refusal ...
... because the book about the trial gave many people hope again ... and there was also a great solidarity coming from the West...
... I have studied this book so many years ago, but I feel as if I only read it yesterday and that is why I had to find out more about it ...
Have a good evening, Ukrainian Tracksuit !
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They are American but obtainable on Amazon.
Great ideas for bulk cooking for the freezer or just generally.
Ihad some chicken so made 4 chicken curries and 4 chicken supremes, wrapped individually in the freezer.
That's about as organised as I get with food :clap;
Our next major purchase is going to be a chest freezer. Gwyn doesn't know this yet! I've priced them and know which one I am going to order. They do pay for themselves (eventually) and save so much time when you can cook large batches.
Finished Vile Bodies. It was only OK. One of his later works, I believe, and it showed. Back to the library it goes. I've got some Graham Greene I'll be starting next.
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I finished The Ministry of Fear by Graham Greene - it was a typical Greene novel about cloak and dagger stuff set in World War II. He manages to elevate these stories to something more than the sum of their parts, though. He generally starts with some unassuming, quietly tortured man and throws them into a somewhat extraordinary situation with equally ordinary, incredibly human companions on the journey. I read an article once claiming that Greene had made an enemy of some powerful figure in Stockholm and was subsequently cheated out of a Nobel Prize.
I am now reading his The End of the Affair and enjoying it even more than Ministry of Fear. A little jewel of a study on human jealousy, love and hate.
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I like Graham Greene, The Human Factor was a great book.
Have just finished reading THE ROSIE PROJECT
What a fantastic book, about a guy who has aspergers and tries to find a wife who will meet his exacting expectations. Funny sad and moving all at once!
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Have just finished reading THE ROSIE PROJECT
What a fantastic book, about a guy who has aspergers and tries to find a wife who will meet his exacting expectations. Funny sad and moving all at once!
This does sound really interesting. I'll have to look out for it.
I really enjoyed The End of the Affair. It turned into a fascinating account of the relationship between atheism and religion. I haven't yet found my next book to get excited about. :(
I've noticed that my local library has started offering Overdrive, so I can borrow e-books again. Yay!
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The Road - Cormac McCarthy
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Lost In Transplantation by Eldonna Edwards (2014)
Memoir of an Unconventional Organ Donor
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I am reading a fascinating collection of old Arabian folk tales called "One Thousand and One Nights",
originally from around the 9th century and first translated into English in 1706.
Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov composed his symphonic suite "Scheherazade" after reading these Arabian folk tales ...
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I have just started
Before we met by Lucie Whitehouse.
Really gripping ;D
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Gods and Soldiers, a selection of essays and short stories by writers from all over Africa, all the big names but some I've never heard of as well. Not too far into it yet, but it's wonderful so far.
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The Fault in our Stars - A young adult novel in which the characters have cancer. The ending was predictable, but the journey was fantastic. I think anyone with renal failure can relate to this book really well. There is also a movie for it coming out soon.
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'Mortal Instrument, city of bones'
wanted to see the film never got round to it, so started the book, got the second one redy too
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The Fault in our Stars - A young adult novel in which the characters have cancer. The ending was predictable, but the journey was fantastic. I think anyone with renal failure can relate to this book really well. There is also a movie for it coming out soon.
Love that book ... not sure I want to see the film because neither of the main characters look how I wanted them to look! Plus, there's so much in the book which can't possibly be translated effectively to the big screen.
'Mortal Instrument, city of bones'
wanted to see the film never got round to it, so started the book, got the second one redy too
I love those books (the film is good too).
I've been having a Young Adult Fiction vampire phase in the last few weeks. Really, I'm quite addicted (currently reading The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, by Holly Black.) I've also borrowed Divergent from the library ... haven't seen the film but hear the book is brilliant.
;D
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Hoping to watch the film soon poppy, have nearly finished the first book, have trouble concentrating, too much channel hopping and then i fall asleep lol.
Have u read the vampire diaries books? I read a few but they were so different from the tv series i gave up didnt like them
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The Fault in our Stars - A young adult novel in which the characters have cancer. The ending was predictable, but the journey was fantastic. I think anyone with renal failure can relate to this book really well. There is also a movie for it coming out soon.
Love that book ... not sure I want to see the film because neither of the main characters look how I wanted them to look! Plus, there's so much in the book which can't possibly be translated effectively to the big screen.
I only finished it two weeks ago and already I think I am going to read it again soon.
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I enjoyed Tell the Wolves I'm Home (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12875258-tell-the-wolves-i-m-home) by Carol Rifka Brunt. I started reading the book without knowing anything about it so I learned as a moved through the book which was good.
It was a good telling of a family dealing with an uncle who died from AIDS early in the Epidemic and a family that refused to acknowledge his partner, told from the standpoint of a teenage daughter and framed around a painting of two sisters created by the uncle prior to dyeing.
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Glenn Beck, Arguing With Idiots
More of a Common sense rant against the apathetic and ineffectual handling of societal problems. The passing of laws, measures, implementation of policies that fail to address the root cause of a problem.
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Glenn Beck, Arguing With Idiots
More of a Common sense rant against the apathetic and ineffectual handling of societal problems. The passing of laws, measures, implementation of policies that fail to address the root cause of a problem.
That sounds interesting. Is it a very long rant?
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Full size bound book, inch thick. Dvided into Chapters, Second Amendment, Taxes, Nanny State, etc.
Actually pretty well done, documented, footnoted with references, so it is far more than one man's rant, but a well laid out presentation of contradictions.
Politicians very often say one thing but do totally the opposite, yet 'We the People' keep re-electing them into office.
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Have u read the vampire diaries books? I read a few but they were so different from the tv series i gave up didnt like them
No, never have done. I refuse to. I've read some of LJ Smith's other young adult books but they're all exactly the same. Ordinary, but very beautiful, girl falls in love with very handsome, but mysterious, boy who turns out to be a vampire/werewolf/other mythical beast and she goes all gooey - "make me one of you, please!" - and he goes all "must save the damsel" and they live happily ever after. Every bluddy time. It gets boring after a while.
;D
I'm now reading a young adult book about dark, mysterious aliens. It follows a similar premise to LJ Smith's books actually ... ho-hum!
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Did anyone read 'while my sister sleeps' by Barbara Delinsky?
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Hi MM did you read Camilla Lackberg already? Quite good
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Hi MM did you read Camilla Lackberg already? Quite good
Ooooh, no! I've never heard of her! I've just finished the second of Kjell Eriksson's Ann Lindell series and am in two minds about reading nos. three and four. I've read some iffy reviews about those and so may skip right to the fifth, Black Lies, Red Blood. It's the latest in the series and is supposed to be the best. Besides, my husband bought it for me for Christmas and is always asking me if I've started it yet.
I have watched all of the original Swedish Wallander shows on TV, all three series, and I had begun reading the books. But I think I may stop there. The last of the TV series was very satisfying, and I feel I should just leave it at that.
After I've finished Black Lies, I'll check out Camilla Lackberg! Thanks so much for the recommendation!
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When Darkness Falls
by Shannon Drake
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Currently studying the 5:2 diet book .... feast on five days, fast on two ...
What do you reckon? :thumbup; :thumbdown;
Will it work?
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Might do, depending on what you eat in those 5 days I suppose. But aren't you on D? Remember you are supposed to eat protein EVERY day?
Why don't you by your weddingdress in your own size? You are perfect as you are, as I remember correctly?
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Having recently entered the world of the semi-retired and having time to turn to fiction, I'm reading Dan Brown's "Inferno."
A page turner, and definitely not that deep, but just what the doctor ordered for now.
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Having recently entered the world of the semi-retired and having time to turn to fiction, I'm reading Dan Brown's "Inferno."
A page turner, and definitely not that deep, but just what the doctor ordered for now.
I've read most of Dan Brown's stuff. I really like him as an author, though I haven't read "Inferno" yet.
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'The weird sisters' by Eleanor Brown. Very original, and different for a book that's relaxing too.
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Still making my way through Gods and Soldiers but just finished Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart. It's a brilliant account of the damage that missionaries have done and do do to traditional cultures, though you don't even realise it until it's too late (much like the members of these cultures themselves). It's enough to make an anthropologist weep - and a literature aficionado cheer.
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Never suspected a book on this subject could be so interesting to read, as regards it's use as healing tool.
'Sodium Bicarbonate Nature Unique First Aid Remedy' by Dr Mark Sircus ISBN 978-0-7570-0394-3
Be Well
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House Rules
by Jodi Picoult
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Divergent - yep, still embracing my inner-teenager.
;D
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I just read Flash Boys (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flash_Boys) about high speed trading on wall street. It was a good read and an easy to follow story. Its scary to think about how smart people leverage every loophole available to make money, often on the backs of people and their retirement accounts...
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Last Train from Berlin by Howard K. Smith, printed in London in 1942.
An interesting historical book containing what American correspondents in Berlin tried to tell the people “between the lines” of their dispatches...
Howard K. Smith originally went to Berlin in 1936, after finishing his studies at the University of New Orleans.
It was to be a tour at first, became a sociological “mission” to study people’s circumstances under a dictatorship and developed into a political observation,
whereby, with his keen instinct and very “sharp eye” he observed and wrote down as much as he possibly could.
Smith left Berlin for Switzerland on December 6 1941, the day before the attack on Pearl Harbour.
The book is historical, but reads like a thriller and it is a pity that the author is no longer with us,
because I would have loved to contact and ask him a few questions...
...it is one of those books one has to read several times to discover as many angles as possible...
... What Howard K. Smith mentions in his book, is hardly ever mentioned in “ordinary” history books,
like names of perpetrators like Dr. Robert Ley, Nathan Kaufmann, the Nazi-dogma “inventor” Alfred Rosenberg and many others,
or, for example, the description of the constant psychological terror on the population
and the fact, that so many trains (full to the brim with soldiers) were sent from Germany to Russia,
but the trains did not return (with casualties etc) from Russia ... and it reads, as if it was planned exactly that way from the start...
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François Couperin: L'Art de toucher le clavecin 1717 (The Art of playing/touching the Harpsichord).
A wonderful introduction... and hopefully I am going to learn a lot...
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"In Love With Bangladesh; the heart of a Missionary" by Jill Flat
A local author from Spokane, WA Very good!
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I just read Flash Boys (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flash_Boys) about high speed trading on wall street. It was a good read and an easy to follow story. Its scary to think about how smart people leverage every loophole available to make money, often on the backs of people and their retirement accounts...
It sounds like a recommendable book, especially, since the "Federal Bureau of Investigation" announced an investigation into high frequency trading ...
...one day after the publication of this particular book...
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I am reading Arguably, a collection of essays by Christopher Hitchens. I probably won't read all of it as it's enormous and I doubt I'll be interested in every topic that he sounds off about, but I do love his breathtakingly eloquent, witty style. He was such a talented writer, fearlessly outspoken, a well-known atheist/rationalist. There are quite a few recordings of him debating religion with various experts in the field. I give anyone willing to step up and face him credit, because he is quick and well-versed in so many political and social subjects. As I feel that my recent illness has brought me into close contact with my own mortality, I have been seeking answers to what death really means, and he is the only person who has made me feel better about it all.
I take issue with one article he wrote about 5 years ago in which his thesis was "women aren't funny". It was incredibly disappointing to read, an inherently sexist stance that lacked any of his usual persuasiveness or self-awareness, presenting his unfortunate opinion as fact. It was indefensible, but I don't know that he was ever one to reexamine a work and retract anything. He died not too long ago - not before publishing a massive memoir that I won't be reading - I don't find the life as interesting as the commentary on current and historical events.
Andrew Sullivan - a columnist whose work I also occasionally enjoy - said that his last words were "capitalism, downfall". I hope it's true. It seems so fitting.
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Just read Crazy Rich Asians (http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2013/06/crazy-rich-asians-kevin-kwan-asia-upper-crust), a story about the children of super rich Singaporeans. It was actually a good love story despite all the style name dropping and the like. Its interesting to read about people from a completely different economic level.
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Failing Forward by John Maxwell.
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Just finished "The Plantagenets" by Dan Jones and starting to re-read a biography of silent film comedienne Mabel Normand.
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Just finished Mad about The Boy which is the third Bridget Jones book. So funny!!!
Now I will Have to see the film... :clap; :clap; :clap;
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"Empty Mansions" by Bill Dedman
The true story of the Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune.
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Nemesis by Jo Nesbo, quite good MM
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Now reading PERFECT MATCH by Jane Moore
funny but hard-hitting and thought provoking
good read
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Just read A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea (http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15814104-a-teaspoon-of-earth-and-sea), a story of a twin girl growing up in Iran just after the takeover of the Shaw. She is fascinated with America and thinks her mother and twin sister flew off to America. There is constant struggles in her life as the regime gets stricter and she continues to dream of America. Good story, various traumas but I felt it was upbeat most of the time. I enjoyed reading about the cultural change at that time in Iran.
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Nemesis by Jo Nesbo, quite good MM
I read one of the newer Harry Hole series books and it was very good. I've actually held off on the rest because I'm not big into the crime novels so I feel its best to pace myself. I find it interesting that some how the Scandinavian authors are making it big with crime books...
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I am still studying François Couperin: L'Art de toucher le clavecin 1717 (The Art of playing/touching the Harpsichord).
A wonderful introduction... and I am learning a lot... and his wonderful tonality is simply breath-taking...
... the longer I study his compositions, the better I like them, he was a really great composer and is still very inspiring !
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I have been reading The Godsland series. A sci fi/fantasy series. 6 books so far I have read in this series.
First two were free on Amazon books.
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Shutter Island by Dennis LaHane
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Wife is a regular at the local clothing resale shops. She rarely answers her cell phone and one day I wanted to ask her about something so I figured I'd find her there. Y'up.
I ended up checking out their used book section and found THREE of the most recent Tom Clancy's. Of course I just HAD to buy them. Fifty cents each, no wait, it was a twofer day, so I also grabbed another by Sue Grafton.
Long story shorter, that was last week, now I'm Jonesing to find something else to read, all done, and I ain't got no more, yet.
Grafton is a hoot to read her series of the inept young female detective. More comedy than murder mystery.
What can I say about Clancy, it is very difficult to put down until you are finished.
I'm going to have to start going to the local County library again. Pick a new author. When I run out of what's on the shelf I simply order up the rest of their works from other counties until I've exhausted that Author.
Then the search begins again.
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The Secret Circle Part 1 by L.J. Smith
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I read one Dean Koontz, scared me so much I was afraid to read another.
Don't remember the title & much of the story, but never forgot this part:
A man picked up a teenaged hitchhiker took her to his home & strung her up in a pitch dark basement with just the tips of her toes touching the floor.
After several days he opened some air vents & let in thousands of ants & over the next week or so they slowly ate her alive.
I kept thinking he was giving some depraved psyco an idea on how to torture someone.
Anyone know the title of that book & are all his books like that?
Jane
I agree with you I read this book and it gave me nightmares too...
Now I avoid hitchhiking and basements and Dean Koontz books :P
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I've been reading Tana French's Dublin Murder Squad Series (I'm about to start the fifth and latest book, The Secret Place).
At the moment, though, I'm reading the latest in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, The Handsome Man's De Luxe Café. I love these books. They are gentle and so filled with wisdom.
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Of Human Bondage by Somerset Maughn.
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Haven't made it to the Library yet, but I did hit the Re-sell Shop again, found another Clancy that I haven't read, another Barclay, and picked up more books from a bunch of different authors that I haven't read yet.
I always tickles me how they ALL are advertised as "#1 Best Seller' Yea, right, as if they are ALL #1, there must not ever be #'s 2 through 10, or worse. LOL
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I'm reading "Gifted Hands, The Ben Carson Story". The more I hear him speak, the more I like him and the more I want to know about him. Especially if he's going to be a presidential candidate. He's got my attention.
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Wife is a regular at the local clothing resale shops. She rarely answers her cell phone and one day I wanted to ask her about something so I figured I'd find her there. Y'up.
I ended up checking out their used book section and found THREE of the most recent Tom Clancy's. Of course I just HAD to buy them. Fifty cents each, no wait, it was a twofer day, so I also grabbed another by Sue Grafton.
Long story shorter, that was last week, now I'm Jonesing to find something else to read, all done, and I ain't got no more, yet.
Grafton is a hoot to read her series of the inept young female detective. More comedy than murder mystery.
What can I say about Clancy, it is very difficult to put down until you are finished.
I'm going to have to start going to the local County library again. Pick a new author. When I run out of what's on the shelf I simply order up the rest of their works from other counties until I've exhausted that Author.
Then the search begins again.
I have the entire Sue Grafton series from A-W!! Waiting for X to come out!!!
If you enjoy Sue Grafton's feisty pi, try Janet Evanovich Stephanie Plum series, One for the money, Two for the dough, Three to get deadly etc right up to 21.
They are funky (I even have the video for One for the money)
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I am reading (and almost finished!) 'DIVERGENT.' i love it, can't put it down!!
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When I started with "d" I have also started to re-read all "my" Agatha Christies crime stories again through the four hours.
It helps me quite a lot to "sharpen up my grey cells" again, because just before starting with "d", I began to feel
as if my grey cells went "away without orderly leave" and I really feel that I need my grey cells to come urgently back again.
Agatha Christie is one of those very rare thinkers-writers, who had a very sharp logic and she could think "around many different corners".
Following her sharp logic in her books seems to be a very good training for the mind to get back again...
Of course, I shall continue with my cross-word-puzzles (good prices to be won there !), but Agatha Christie wins nevertheless!
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Just started my latest Jojo Moyes book 'The one plus one' . Finished 'Me before you' which was just great. I read all her books now, and am hoping she hurries up with the next one.
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Rereading one of my all time favorite books "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols. It a look at a culture in the south west of the U.S. and it's fabulous .
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I have started to read WILD by Cheryl Strayed.
About a woman who hikes the entire PCT trail from Mexico to Canada, alone.
It is an amazing book.
I look forward to seeing the film when it comes out.
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I am reading Dennis Wheatley's "Murder off Miami", a put-together of a crime-dossier from the 1930's
with all the police-evidence included in the book i.e photos, cablegrams, handwritten letters, police-memos etc.
Very fascinating to read and even more fascinating to develop different theories about "who's done it"...
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Louis Fordrin: Nouveau livre de serrurerie.
Engravings of French Decorative Ironwork
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Just bought The Pagan Lord by Bernard Cornwell, now if I can just find some time to actually read it...
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Just bought The Pagan Lord by Bernard Cornwell, now if I can just find some time to actually read it...
I few years ago I read through a few Bernard Cornwell books. They are quite enjoyable...
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I'm reading the new Flavia de Luce book along with "For Cause & Comrades", which explores why so many young men went off to fight in the Civil War. What exactly did these soldiers believe they were fighting for? Did a young farmer from Ohio join the Union army because he cared so much about abolition and emancipation?
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Dennis Wheatley: Who killed Robert Prentice?
A murder mystery planned by J.G. Links and it is a 1930's "who's done it" crime dossier complete with real actual clues,
which have been put - by the publisher - into little paper-bags within the book for the reader to take out and "investigate"...
i.e. a railway ticket, a teared-up photo, an envelope with a handwritten letter inside, a single stamp, newspaper-pages, newspaper-cuttings etc.,
all of which have been put into the book for the reader to take out, and "investigate" busily during the four hours of "D"...
... Extremely interesting, very time-consuming and it certainly takes the mind away from "you know what"......
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Wow Kristina, that sounds like a marvelous book. I will have to check to see if the public library system has a copy. I just hope other readers are careful to put all the 'evidence' back in the book so the next reader, me, can also inspect it.
I expect to finish my current read, Rainbow Six by Clancy. I think I've read most everything he's written.
Got to remember the name. Just saw a new John Grisham in the store yesterday. Forgot the title already. I'm too cheap, can't afford new books, so I browse the re-sell shops and use the library. It may be a while before I get to read this one, but I have read all his others.
Added note: Just searched the state library system. They do not have it. Will have to ask the ladies next time I'm there how to go about getting a copy. Or if it is possible. (Fingers crossed).
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Hello Charlie,
I do hope you can locate Dennis Wheatley's "Who killed Robert Prentice?" through your public library
and I wish you good luck with it...
Best wishes from Kristina.
P.S. In the UK it is possibloe to locate a book from one local public library
to all the public libraries in the UK and it does not take too much time either...
Does that apply to your library-system as well?
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During the four hours of "you know what" I have started to read books which I usually would not really read,
but during "you know what", these books are providing me with great fun and they make "my" four hours run much quicker...
... like when I am reading an Agatha Christie Thriller or a Dennis Wheatley Murder Mystery with all the evidences supplied in little paper-pockets included in every mystery story, as in "Murder Off Miami" or "Murder At The Milky Way Club" or "Who Murdered Robert Prentice"
or "The Malinsay Massacre", where a wealthy family is being "wiped out" by one of their financially poorer "side-liners" of the family...
These stories by Dennis Wheatley come with all the evidence supplied in those little paper-pockets within the book
and it is very fascinating to play "Sherlock Holmes" for four hours and "snoop" though the evidence during "you know what"...
... or the book I am currently reading: Anthony Masters "Literary Agents" (The novelist as a spy) with little stories
about writers (i.e. Somerset Maughan, Ian Flemning, John le Carré and many others) and their spying during the first and second world disaster...
... another book which is quite interesting to read is "Femme Fatale", the researched story about Mata Hari...
... And as I have said above, I would usually not have the time to read these books,
but during the time of "you know what" they are great fun to study and read...
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The Grand Era Of Cast-Iron Architecture In Portland (USA) by William John Hawkins III
The interesting story about how Portland was first build-up by brave pioneers who also invested their money
in the further development of Portland, once they became established there ... and the great pride people took in the city of Portland...
... and then, one hundred years later, Portland was "taken over" by conglomerates who destroyed a lot of the wonderful original architecture
which was so lovingly build-up by all those pioneers, plus, the conglomerates also destroyed anything in Portland
that would be of no more service to them without bothering about the great history of Portland
and how difficult it was for the pioneers to build-up Portland in the first place...
...Despite the rather non-descript title of the book, it is a most interesting historical and sociological story of one city,
which happens to be Portland, but the reader is also allowed to see through a historical/sociological magnifying-glass
how people’s priorities did change over one hundred years...
Great Book!
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I just finished The Girl on the Train. It's crazy good in a Gone Girl sort of way. I recommend it!
:flower;
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I just finished The Girl on the Train. It's crazy good in a Gone Girl sort of way. I recommend it!
:flower;
Oh wow, I've just finished that one, too! I really liked it.
I've just started the first book of the 44 Scotland Street series by Alexander McCall Smith.
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I just finished The Girl on the Train. It's crazy good in a Gone Girl sort of way. I recommend it!
:flower;
Hello WishIknew, great to "see" you again!
Hope things are going well for you
and I send you my kind regards,
Kristina.
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I just finished The Girl on the Train. It's crazy good in a Gone Girl sort of way. I recommend it!
:flower;
My book group is reading The Girl on the Train this month but I haven't started it yet. Thanks for the recommendation!
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Currently reading All the Light We Cannot See. It was my book group's pick for February but I was away and am just reading it now.
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Currently reading All the Light We Cannot See. It was my book group's pick for February but I was away and am just reading it now.
Our book club settled for that book on Sunday, we are three couples and two of the wives read it and all three wives recommended it....
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Currently reading All the Light We Cannot See. It was my book group's pick for February but I was away and am just reading it now.
Our book club settled for that book on Sunday, we are three couples and two of the wives read it and all three wives recommended it....
Thanks for the multiple recommendations! I've been rather lax in my reading recently. The books are piling up.
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I just finished Prince Lestat by Anne Rice. It's the newest of the Vampire Chronicles. It jumped around a bit, as her books tend to do, and it ended strangely, which I hope means that there are other books coming.
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Took the last of the three Dennis Wheatley murder books back to the Library today. The first two were really neat, just like kristina described. Never seen anything like them and would like to see publishers do more like that. The third was hard-bound. Still a purplexing riddle whodunnit. I always thought (wrong) that I cold be a great detective. Now I know better.
While at the Library I picked up another five Ed McBain, from his series of murder in the 57th Precinct. Usually a good read, and not too long, or dry.IDR, he has written maybe some 80 odds books in the 57th series. There are a lot I haven't seen, yet.
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Took the last of the three Dennis Wheatley murder books back to the Library today. The first two were really neat, just like kristina described. Never seen anything like them and would like to see publishers do more like that. The third was hard-bound. Still a purplexing riddle whodunnit. I always thought (wrong) that I cold be a great detective. Now I know better.
Hello Charlie,
I am so glad that you had great fun reading through those Dennis Wheatley mysteries ...
... I also wish, that a publisher would publish more of them,
but perhaps it has become too time-consuming and too expensive these days
to put all these different "evidences" into many little paper-pockets included in every single mystery...
...It is a great pity that only these few Dennis Wheatley mysteries with evidence were produced in the 1930's,
because they are most fascinating and such great fun to "work" through during "you know what" ...
Best wishes from Kristina.
P.S. I am not a detective either, but these mysteries have kept me very busy during "you know what"...
... Could you please share the titles of the Dennis Wheatley mysteries you located at your library?
Thanks again from Kristina.
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The first one is 'Murder in Miami'
Second was 'the one you've seen, 'Who Killed ....' then I forgot the name.
And I don't remember the name of the third hardbound book.
I live in Mid-Missouri, our Library is associated with three other county Library systems and regularly loan books back and forth. So I was very surprised to fiind they borrows all thre of these from different libraries in Oklahoma, one from the Univ of OK.
The Librarians all got a real kick out of seeing howw the first two books were assembled. They are really neat. And make them very hard to put down. Once you start you just HAVE TO finished.
Thank you for posting about the one as I never would have found any of them, never had a 'clue' that any books like this would exist outside of police files.
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Thank you Charlie,
I am so glad that you enjoyed these Dennis Wheatley mysteries
and that the librarians found them interesting as well because they are so very different...
It is great to read a mystery and it feels like "combing" slowly through a police file with all the evidence included ....
... Lets hope one day someone else puts a few more of these mysteries together ..
... I have just started to read Dennis Wheatleys "Old Rowley" (a very private life of Charles II)
and Dennis Wheatleys "The Dark Secret of Josephine" (Napoleon)...
... I have no idea about these books yet and I "only" relied on the name of the autor...
but I do hope very much that these books also entertain me well during "you know what"...
Best wishes from Kristina.
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- CAMP Z - How British Intelligence Broke Hitler's Debuty by Stephen McGinty.
An interesting book to read about May 1941 when Rudolf Hess (?), the Debuty parachuted over Reinfrewshire in Scotland
on a "mission" to meet with the Duke of Hamilton, ostensibly to broker a peace-deal (?) with the British Government (?) ...
... The book creates many more fundamental questions than it could possibly answer, but is a fascinating and interesting read all the same...
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Just bought the ebook version of The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I'm told it's a great read. I'll most likely start it on Monday
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Just bought the ebook version of The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I'm told it's a great read. I'll most likely start it on Monday
I read this book awhile ago for my bookclub. It was a startling but good read. It makes you think ...it isn't that far out of the realms of possibility...
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I have just finished SECOND LIFE (Highly recommended) by SJ Watson who wrote Before I go sleep...
I loved it.
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Just bought the ebook version of The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I'm told it's a great read. I'll most likely start it on Monday
I read this book awhile ago for my bookclub. It was a startling but good read. It makes you think ...it isn't that far out of the realms of possibility...
I'm hoping that it starts to explain itself a bit.. I don't understand why they are doing all these things.. and what happened to cause such a change in society
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I also bought the audio book for Stars: The Anthology, which is a compilation of short stories written by prominent science fiction authors, each inspired by a song by Janis Ian. There are 30 stories, I think. I've discovered, while listening to this audio book, and the audio book of her autobiography, that I could listen to Janis Ian's speaking voice forever. She could read the phone book, and I'd hang on every single word.
I also found several of the stories in this collection to be rather plotless, so I started writing one of my own, of course, inspired by a Janis Ian song
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Just bought the ebook version of The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I'm told it's a great read. I'll most likely start it on Monday
I read this book awhile ago for my bookclub. It was a startling but good read. It makes you think ...it isn't that far out of the realms of possibility...
I'm hoping that it starts to explain itself a bit.. I don't understand why they are doing all these things.. and what happened to cause such a change in society
You learn more about why as you read it and some of the reasoning behind it. Persevere ;D
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I'm reading Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_to_Run:_A_Hidden_Tribe,_Superathletes,_and_the_Greatest_Race_the_World_Has_Never_Seen). Its turning out to be a good story, both tracking down some people in the Mexican wilderness and the history of extreme running races (say 100 + miles mover mountains).
Also goes into how modern shoes cause more injuries... For example it quotes some studies of athletes (runners) stretching before races. One study showed no decrease in injuries and another showed an increase in injuries with stretching! Yet another reminder that just because something is popularized doesn't mean its right.
So that ties into medical care, some of what our doctors feel is best today might be proved wrong within our lifetimes...
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During "you know what" I have been reading a fascinating book: "A Different Class of Murder" (The story of Lord Lucan) by Laura Thomson.
Not only is this book a most interesting real-life "who's-done-it-mystery", but it also gives a real insight into the UK-class-system during the 1960' and 1970's.
The story itself is most complicated and at the same time rather simple: The nanny of Lord Lucan's children was murdered and Lord Lucan has disappeared ever since...
But at the time when all this happened, Lord and Lady Lucan were fighting over the custody of their children and questions were being asked whether Lady Lucan was a fit mother
because she seemed rather pre-occupied with her regular psychiatrist treatments and/or medications... and Lord Lucan was just in the process to finally get custody over the children...
After the murder of the nanny had taken place, Lady Lucan instantly ran to the police and accused her husband of murdering the nanny ...
As a result of this accusation, she was given custody of her children again... Lord Lucan on the other hand has disappeared and the police has been "searching" for him ever since...
... It is interesting to notice, that one particular police-station in Lord Lucan's London-district (Belgravia) has been following up any new Lord-Lucan-sightings anywhere in the world ever since,
... and one of the police-officers regularly "has to" travel to far off regions anywhere in the world to search for Lord Lucan,
if by any chance Lord Lucan has been sighted again... (Most interesting police-job, if you can get it...)
Fascinating book and a very fascinating story...!
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I seem to split my reading between anything Scifi-post survival, LCHF nutritional ketosis, and the thinking brain.
Since most CKD patients can be pre-diabetic I am reading Dr Bernstein's Diabetes Solution, Stop Pre Diabetes Now, by Jack Challem, & Fat Chance, Dr. Robert Lustig who has amazing youtube videos on anti-sugar rant, and the obesity epidemic. the high carb pyramid we have been 'sold' for 40+ years has riven a disaster for most of the world.
For Nutrition it is "200 Low Carb High Fat Recipes" by Dana Carpender (not Carpenter)
For Sci Fi am loving the type of futuristic/other world series The Saga of the Seven Suns- 6 books!! all thick.
For thinking…Daniel Kahnemans Thinking Fast and Slow Nobel Prize winer..he shows how our embedded brain choices of thinking in just 2 stages, can cause prejudice and skew decisions while we mean well.. and misread what others say or mean. this is a DENSE read..whew….
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Riki- The HandMaid's tale… I think we eventually learn that Islamic Radicals take over the world due to a progressive and liberal acceptance of laws changing, so while women are seen as only baby makers for Jihad warriors, or sex play, and all NON-childbearing women are crones only good for maid service and cooking. ( the women stealing butter to use as skin lotion was a sobering reality of how they survived, and being forced to wear glittery high heels, but have unshaved legs…grim)
So you are entering the story as the world exists in the future….LEFT TO ASSUME they took over in the past…
It should make us shudder to see how we can lose our rights and constitutional protection by being overrun. The political message seems clear…protect your self and your borders and defend the laws you live under..or risk the consequences. [that this is happening NOW with Sharia Law in London and in Benilux countries..trouble is brewing today and it is in the news all the time. Forwarned is forearmed?
One funny comment I read was "Were where the Hells Angels? why didn't they kick ass?"
I ADMIT I read her book in the 80s when it came out, and not recently but what stuck with me was the SAME religious Jihadis who didn't drink or party by their laws..DID all these things in the book, dressed up women in scanty clothing, drank booze…..just like the 19 terrorists did in the days before 9/11 as they went to bars and strip clubs before meeting the 72 virgins in their heaven.
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RE: The Handmaids Tale
It's a sobering thought. At first you read it thinking how extreme it is...
and then, as you say, there are elements of the book, despite written 35/40 years ago that are here now...
and suddenly it isn't so extreme ...
and yes it does make you think we have to stop the slide towards women as second class citizens driving in from the Middle East
before it happens :boxing;
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For thinking…Daniel Kahnemans Thinking Fast and Slow Nobel Prize winer..he shows how our embedded brain choices of thinking in just 2 stages, can cause prejudice and skew decisions while we mean well.. and misread what others say or mean. this is a DENSE read..whew….
Hello MuddyGurl, this book sounds very interesting and I would like to know more about it,
because I was always under the impression that our decisions and choices are the result of our very own experiences?
What are the author's toughts ?
Does prejudice not stem from individual experiences, especially after being grown up ?
Is it not the distance to our upbringing which allows us to make up our own mind about our future choices
which are often also based on our very own experiences ?
Thanks from Kristina.
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My husband recently bought for me 9 of the top-rated crime novels of the year, so I am currently reading "My Sunshine Away" by M.O. Walsh, set in the author's hometown of Baton Rouge, a city with which I am somewhat familiar.
I'm halfway through the 44 Scotland Street series by Alexander McCall Smith.
I've just finished "Neverhome" which is possibly the most lyrical novel I've read in a long time. It is set during the Civil War, and the narrative is quite similar in some ways to British English. I find that fascinating.
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I have developed a liking for Linwood Barclay books ... just read his latest Escape. Great read.
(Others include Tap on the window and The Accident.
They are all fast paced crime thrillers.
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Kristina…THINKING FAST & SLOW….I may not get to finish it was a one week loan, and I started late…sigh..but will do a quick review and see what it says so far.
If you like 'thinking ' books I will send you a list of a couple other mind blowers!
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=thinking+fast+and+slow
Here's my quick trick..when I hear or ANY book..I go to Amazon and do the LOOK IINSIDE..and then the Surprise me and get to read 2x as much… and then decide to buy or borrow it.
FIRST-- the author met a man who became LIFELONG friend and mental study partner, how I envy a life time of someone else to talk to deeply!! and his brilliant brain was supported by the thoughts of this other scientist Mr. Tversky ..I am so glad they had decades together to learn, but Tversky died so he could not
to contribute to this book.
REVIEWs:
….an exploration of what influences thought example by example…... System 1 and System 2, the fast and slow types of thinking, become characters that illustrate the psychology behind things we think we understand but really don't, such as intuition. [an example I read in the book: a fireman using 20 years of experience to KNOW when to leave a room with NO clear tips, but an 'intuition; something is very wrong…not knowing exactly what….and leaving the room before the floor collapsed and saving 5 firemen's lives.
Kahneman's book is a must read for anyone interested in either human behavior or investing. He clearly shows that while we like to think of ourselves as rational in our decision making, the truth is we are subject to many biases. At least being aware of them will give you a better chance of avoiding them, or at least making fewer of them
A sweeping, compelling tale of just how easily our brains are bamboozled, bringing in both his own research and that of numerous psychologists, economists, and other experts...Kahneman has a remarkable ability to take decades worth of research and distill from it what would be important and interesting for a lay audience...Thinking, Fast and Slow is an immensely important book. Many science books are uneven, with a useful or interesting chapter too often followed by a dull one. Not so here. With rare exceptions, the entire span of this weighty book is fascinating and applicable to day-to-day life. Everyone should read Thinking, Fast and Slow. (Jesse Singal, Boston Globe)
We must be grateful to Kahneman for giving us in this book a joyful understanding of the practical side of our personalities. (Freeman Dyson, The New York Review of Books)
It is an astonishingly rich book: lucid, profound, full of intellectual surprises and self-help value. It is consistently entertaining and frequently touching, especially when Kahneman is recounting his collaboration with Tversky . . . So impressive is its vision of flawed human reason that the
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Thank you MuddyGurl for your kind explanation.
This book sounds most interesting and fascinating and I shall look into it.
I was always curious to learn more about "instinct" etc.
and it is most interesting to learn what makes us sometimes react in a way which explains itself only later...
Arthur Schopenhauer discusses a lot about "instinct" etc. in his book "Aphorisms on the Wisdom of Life"
and he also explains "behaviour" as a result of "instinct" and it is most interesting how other thinkers went from there...
Thanks again for your wonderful short summary with the main points about the book, which are very thought-provoking.
Kind regards from Kristina.
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I have started (AGAIN!) A Game Of Thrones. I dont know, it's kind of weird and confusing, but my son says it's worth it to stick with it. So I'm trying. I just hate how the author introduces new characters and creatures and places with no (so far) explanation. Maybe the fantasy genre is just not for me.
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Boys' In The Boat by Brown.
About the boys from University of Washington who were in the 1936 Olympics. Just started it and I hope it is a page turner.
:flower;
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Hidden Agenda by Martin Allen
Subtitle: How the Duke of Windsor Betrayed the Allies...
Evidence unearthed in European archives, from the FBI and interviews with key individuals has thrown new light into the abdication ...
Hidden Agenda provides a fresh perspective on the true causes of the abdication-crisis and tells the astonishing story of the ex-king
who not only betrayed his own country but also assisted to alter the course of the Second World Disaster...
... worth reading... this book not only takes away romantic-fairy-tale-thoughts about "the king who abdicated for love" ...
but this book also explains why such a fairy-tale was necessary to be told in the first place and the very political reasons behind it all...
... Please be warned: This book is a very unromantic and extremely sobering study ...
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The Rabbi's Daughter- by Reva Mann ... a book about sex, drugs and faith ...
Reva Mann has caused scandal in the Orthodox community with her shocking account
of a life that veered (and continues to veer?) between pious and promiscuous.
The book leaves the reader in a bit of a quandery about the motives of the author ...
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This one is sort of out of character for me.
The Lost Books of the Bible. Books of the Bible that have been left out of our more 'common' editions. The editors have gathered texts of the old manuscript, english translations, documented, footnoted, all references noted, etc..
Chapters include Gospel of the Birth of Mary, lots of detail I've never heard or seen anywhere.
The First Gospel of the Infancy of Christ.
A great many more. Kind of a slow read, but quite interesting, revealing passages that most are unaware of, yet have a very real 'ring' of truth to them. If one believes, this can be most enlightening.
Somewhere out there are similar books. I haven't found them, yet. I am very confident that the King James Edition was heavily edited, altered to reflect some else interpetation of the original scriptures. There may be many things that could be better understood if we knew the old languages and had true copies of original texts.
Nuff said.
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This one is sort of out of character for me.
The Lost Books of the Bible. Books of the Bible that have been left out of our more 'common' editions. The editors have gathered texts of the old manuscript, english translations, documented, footnoted, all references noted, etc..
Chapters include Gospel of the Birth of Mary, lots of detail I've never heard or seen anywhere.
The First Gospel of the Infancy of Christ.
A great many more. Kind of a slow read, but quite interesting, revealing passages that most are unaware of, yet have a very real 'ring' of truth to them. If one believes, this can be most enlightening.
Somewhere out there are similar books. I haven't found them, yet. I am very confident that the King James Edition was heavily edited, altered to reflect some else interpetation of the original scriptures. There may be many things that could be better understood if we knew the old languages and had true copies of original texts.
Nuff said.
Hello Charlie,
It is most interesting what you write and I have heard about these "lost books" many years ago
but I have never come across any ...
... Where did you find these "lost books" ? And how reliable is it that these books are in fact the true "lost books" ?
Thanks for the information and many thanks from Kristina.
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A local charity run used clothing store also has a book section. I get a LOT of books there. Paperbacks fifty cents, hard-bound 75
I donate all the books I gather and read to the VA Hospital that I go to.
Unless I find someone very interested in a book. Then I may give it away.
This one, I'm not sure what to do with it. On one hand I may want to keep it so I can go back and re-read sections and compare to another source.
I would consider loaning it to you for as long as you need. PM me a mailing address, it can't cost that much.
from the inside flap of the paper cover:
The documents in this book were written soon after Christ's Crucification, during the early spread of Christianity. But when the Bible was compiled in the end of the fourth century, these texts were not amoung those chosen. They were suppressed by the Church, and for over 1500 years were shrouded in secrecy.
These writings are by and about many of the important figures in the New Testament. They express much the same zeal and earnestness about their subject as do the pieces in the New Testament. And yet, until they were first translated in this century, they were the peculiar esoteric property of the clergy and other learned people, available only in the original tongues.
We can now judge these texts for ourselves. We see much more here of Jesus as a child than we do in the New Testament. Peter and Nicodemus, who were close to Jesus, give us their versions of His life. There is an account of Mary's life before Christ's birth, and there are several letters that supplement our knowledge about the early Christians and the spread of Christianity.
There is no doubt that, whatever else we may find in these texts, we cannot help enjoying them for their beauty and directness. They also significantly increase our understanding of the first century A.D. in Judea, the world where Jesus lived. For those who want to know more about this crucial period in our history, this book is a major event.
(end of back flap)
from the page facing the 'Contents' page,
Bell Publishing Company, distributed by Crown Publishers, Inc
BELL 1979 EDITION
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Date
Bible. N.T. Apocryphal books. English. Jjones-Wake.
1979
The lost books of the Bible
Reprint of the 1926 ed. published by World Pub. Co.,
Cleveland
William Hone's collection first published in 1829
under title "The Apocryphal New Testament", incorporating the translations of Jeriah Jones for the Apocryyphal books and of Archbishop Wake for the Apostolic Fathers. cf. M.R. James. The Apocryphal New Testament, p. xv.
I. Hone, William, 1780 - 1842. II Jones. Jeremiah, 1693 - 1724. III. Wake, William, Abp of Canterbury, 1657 - 1737. IV. Title
BS2832.A2 1979 229'.9 79-4043
ISBN: 0-517-277956
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Thank you very much Charlie for this comprehensive information,
it is very much appreciated and gives me a good chance to study it as well ...
Many thanks again from Kristina. :grouphug;
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The Good Spy by Kai Bird ... a book about the life and death of Robert Ames.
The American spy Robert Ames tried ever so hard to achieve a valid peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians ...
... This is a rather sad biography about a spy who turned into a peace-envoy and lost his life when the American Embassy was bombed...
... The very sad part comes along, when one reads that the suspected terrorist of this attack on the American Embassy became a political refugee
who lived happily ever after in - yes you have guessed it - America ...
... If anyone should have any doubts about the "murky business of spying", this is the book to read ...
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After reading the Lost Books of the Bible I had more questions than I had before, so I started looking. Googled the same and ended up at the site Reluctant-Messenger.com
From there I went to their section on Lost and Forgotten Books and Ancient and Sacred Texts
http://reluctant-messenger.com/lost_forgotten_books.htm
So far I'm almost a quarter way down the list, Book of Jubilees.
I may be the rest of this year just getting through this list, and there is so much more. I now realize how much that I do NOT know.
Those two bags full of novels from the resale shop may have to just sit, and wait, as a LOT of what I am learning here is far different from what I saw, heard, and read, in Sunday School.
I do have one serious problem which I hope to find the true answer. That is the sections pertaining to 'unclean meats' and the ban on pork.
I was raised eating pork. Chops, sausage, bacon, ham, ribs, roast, hocks and beans. You name it, I've ate it. And LIKED it!
Things like this are why I am so interested in the 'original' texts. Throughout time so much has been re-written by man, meaning the authorities of the time changed the texts to suit THEIR own ends, changing the meaning of the texts.
I would hate to be condemned sole for my diet. It would be hard to change, but if I must....... I want to document it.
EDIT:
Forgot to mention that I actually ORDERED a book. 'The Other Bible' It has many of the Lost Books that I have seen plus so very much more. I'l be a while getting through this. I has sections relating to the ancient Jews, Gnostics, and Early Christians. Differences and similarities. This may prove quite enlightening, at least I am hoping so, that I can learn a BUNCH. As you can probably tell from my above statement to my attitude to the mid-East. I could maybe use a little 'attitude adjustment'.
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Hello Charlie B53,
many thanks for the link http://reluctant-messenger.com/lost_forgotten_books.htm, which is greatly appreciated.
Best wishes form Kristina.
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Dennis Wheatley: “Old Rowley” is about King Charles II and his travels, his exile and his return to England.
He appears to be a very human man, a good-natured man who, owing to his constant habit of jesting
(which always served the purpose of easing difficult situations) has been underestimated and underrated.
He was undoubtedly the cleverest Monarch who ever sat on the English throne
and he led the people out of darkness, anarchy and persecution into the Great Prosperity of the Georgian Century...
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The Mystery of Princess Louise by Lucinda Hawksley, a book about Queen Victoria’s rebellious daughter Louise, who was an artist, sculptor, painter
and friend of the Pre-Raphaelites, she was also a feminist and advocate for health-reform, care for children, social reform and health-care for sex-workers ...
... It is also a portrait of a daughter battling against a controlling and overbearing mother
and the portrait of a royal who was desperate to escape not only her mother but also her inheritance...
...and it explains about Queen Victoria in the context of : research the life of the children and find out what sort of person their mother was ...
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Since reading 'Lost Books of the Bible' I read a LOT available on line. Enoch, The Essenses, Clement, The Jubalees. Ordered/bought 'The Other Bible'.
I must be Blessed as today I found another book at the resale shop, 35 cents!
'The Bible Through the Ages' Hardbound, from Readers Digest. A complete narrative of the History of the Bible and the multiple religions of the mid-East following the timeline beginning about 4000BC through 1900 or so.
Describes the peoples, the places, the stories of each and how these stories were handed down throughout the times until becoming written, and which 'Books' were chosen to form which each of the Religions Bibles.
This really helps put into perspective most of my readings so far.
I am impressed.
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Since reading 'Lost Books of the Bible' I read a LOT available on line. Enoch, The Essenses, Clement, The Jubalees. Ordered/bought 'The Other Bible'.
I must be Blessed as today I found another book at the resale shop, 35 cents!
'The Bible Through the Ages' Hardbound, from Readers Digest. A complete narrative of the History of the Bible and the multiple religions of the mid-East following the timeline beginning about 4000BC through 1900 or so.
Describes the peoples, the places, the stories of each and how these stories were handed down throughout the times until becoming written, and which 'Books' were chosen to form which each of the Religions Bibles.
This really helps put into perspective most of my readings so far.
I am impressed.
... That is very impressive indeed and please let us know your conclusions...
... when I read through different Bibles, I was very much put-off by the fact that religions don't treat females very kindly...
... being a female myself, it turned out to be a very dissappointing reading-experience ...
... and then I turned to Philosophy (Plato, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche) and had much more good luck ...
Best wishes from Kristina. :grouphug;
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The Mystery of Princess Louise by Lucinda Hawksley, a book about Queen Victoria’s rebellious daughter Louise, who was an artist, sculptor, painter
and friend of the Pre-Raphaelites, she was also a feminist and advocate for health-reform, care for children, social reform and health-care for sex-workers ...
... It is also a portrait of a daughter battling against a controlling and overbearing mother
and the portrait of a royal who was desperate to escape not only her mother but also her inheritance...
...and it explains about Queen Victoria in the context of : research the life of the children and find out what sort of person their mother was ...
We have been watching a documentary about Queen Victoria on our local Public Broadcasting Station; it is in 3 parts, and the second part is about the Queen and her daughters. Lucinda Hawksley was interviewed for the documentary. It has been very educational, not to mention downright interesting!
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The Mystery of Princess Louise by Lucinda Hawksley, a book about Queen Victoria’s rebellious daughter Louise, who was an artist, sculptor, painter
and friend of the Pre-Raphaelites, she was also a feminist and advocate for health-reform, care for children, social reform and health-care for sex-workers ...
... It is also a portrait of a daughter battling against a controlling and overbearing mother
and the portrait of a royal who was desperate to escape not only her mother but also her inheritance...
...and it explains about Queen Victoria in the context of : research the life of the children and find out what sort of person their mother was ...
We have been watching a documentary about Queen Victoria on our local Public Broadcasting Station; it is in 3 parts, and the second part is about the Queen and her daughters. Lucinda Hawksley was interviewed for the documentary. It has been very educational, not to mention downright interesting!
Hello MooseMom,
Could you please tell me the name of this documentary? I then shall try to find and watch it on youtube ...
... Since Lucinda Hawksley was interviewed for this documentary, it should be most interesting to watch ...
Thanks again from Kristina.
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Kristina, it's called "Queen Victoria's Children".
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I just finished Part 1 of The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown. I am so glad I bought it, and can't wait to see how it ends. Rerun - did you enjoy it?
KarenInWA
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Kristina, it's called "Queen Victoria's Children".
Many thanks MooseMom, I have checked-up on youtube and there are a few different films on offer i.e. "Young Victoria " "Victoria and Albert: Part 1,
Victoria and Albert: Part 2 ... Queen Victoria's Empire... Queen Victoria ... Queen Victoria's Children - Episode 1: The Best Laid Plans (Documentary) ...
... There is quite a lot about Queen Victoria on youtube and unfortunately the titles here are different from tv-titles in America...
... But I shall try "to isolate the straw from the hay" and find the proper educating films about this matter....
Thanks again for letting me know and I send you my best wishes,
Kristina. :grouphug;
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I just finished reading The Godfather (or rather, re-reading, since I've read it before). Followed it up with getting the DVD set (Godfather I, II, and III) from the library and just returned it. I would consider this movie (series of movies) among the best ever made. Of course, you have to like crime drama.... 8)
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Dial M for Murdoch by Tom Watson & Martin Hickman...
subtitle: News Corporation and the Corruption of Britain...
... this story is about corruption by power and ... it's all about business...
... "They" listened to phone massages, but they also bribed, spied and bullied
and imposed their will through blackmail, corruption and intimidation...
... Rupert Murdoch was not runnng a normal business but a shadow state ...
This book is must-read for anyone who sometimes appears in the public eye
and/or sometimes (has to) deal with newspapers ...
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The latest fantasy fiction from David Weber, The Sword of the South, it's the fourth book in a series that I started in 1995. I just hope to live long enough to see the end of the series to know how it comes out. Additionally as a change of pace I am reading the West Point course on the Civil War available on iTunes.
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I am reading C.S. Lewis' The Screw Tape Letters.
Interesting...
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Found 5 of the Left Behind series at the resale shop. Already into #3 and now noticed the next two are NOT 4 and 5. They are 5 and 7. I can't read them out of order so I just made an offer on eBay for the whole 12 book set.
I still have a big stack of 'other' books I can read while waiting so it isn't like I won't have anything at all to read.
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Mafialand by Douglas Thompson.
Subtitle: "How the Mob Invaded Britain".
The book "Mafialand" recounts events from the viewpoint of the pawns as well as the kingmakers
and it is an account of the Mob's Machiavellian global manipulation of governments and officials...
... and London, the capital city of the Swinging Sixties was also a city of gambling, guns and gangsters
and the author Douglas Thompson writes about details & secrets of one of the most dangerous criminal conspiracies...
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P.S. I am still going over Mafialand by Douglas Thompson
... and I have noticed that it is very difficult to "digest" all the given information,
expecially for people like myself, who have never suspected or experienced any of it ...
... So many events are being explained in this book, including the reason (?)
for the assassination of the Kennedy-brothers ... and so much more...
...In short, it is a book that wants to be read very carefully and slowly,
because it is very difficult to take it all in...
... and perhaps certain events should be checked-up as well ...
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I just finished the Divergent trilogy. Liked it, but so disappointed in the ending :(.
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Just started Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. I've been watching Poirot on Netflix and wanted to read some of the books that the show is based on. I had a heck of a time finding it. My library didn't have it in any form at all, and I ended up having to buy the ebook version from Kobo.
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The Suicide Club by Andrew Williams...
During the First World-Disaster sensitive information about future-campaigns fell regularly into the hands of enemy-camps ...
Naturally, this had a devastating effect with even more losses and because of this,
specially selected officers were specially trained and educated to spy on other officers and/or soldiers to find out,
where these sensitive-campaign-loopholes originated from.
This was - of course - a very life-dangerous activity to take on and because of this,
all the officers/soldiers involved in this particular activity were called "The Suicide Club"...
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Hubby recently got me a kindle so been reading quite a bit. Currently reading the detective Helen Grace book eeny meeny, after stumbling upon the 3rd in the series. So far there's only 4 but I've enjoyed what I've read
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I started with Lost Books of the Bible. Since then I have been steadily reading. Studied through the Books of the Disciples, (New Testament), Clement a follower of Peter, the Other Bible, The Jewish Torah, (the five books of Moses which is most of the Old Testament. Skimmed most of the KJV of the Bible and see how closely it parallels all my previous readings.
Just started into the Qu'ran and surprised that Mohamed wrote 500 years AFTER Christ yet very closely follows the writings of Moses.
This is interesting!
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I am reading the newest book in the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind: Warheart
If you like Sci fi and fantasy read this series!
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Alexander Pushkin: The tale of Tsar Saltan with drawings by I.Biblin
dedicated to the Russian Composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakow, first published in 1905
and re-published in facsimile by Progress Publishers Moskow 1975 .
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Pierrpoint...
The autobiography of the last Official Executioner in Ireland and the UK... Very interesting... He didn't have lots of work, so he ran a pub in the UK... Called, believe it or not 'Help the poor Struggler'.....
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Dean Koontz- The City
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I started with Lost Books of the Bible. Since then I have been steadily reading. Studied through the Books of the Disciples, (New Testament), Clement a follower of Peter, the Other Bible, The Jewish Torah, (the five books of Moses which is most of the Old Testament. Skimmed most of the KJV of the Bible and see how closely it parallels all my previous readings.
Just started into the Qu'ran and surprised that Mohamed wrote 500 years AFTER Christ yet very closely follows the writings of Moses.
This is interesting!
[/quote
Hello Charlie,
Could there be several different versions (interpretations?) of the Qu'ran ?
I am wondering, because only recently I was told that according to the Qu'ran deocrative art is never wanted.
But in the shortened translation (version?) of the Qu'ran which I have read, decorative art was not even mentioned...
What do you think?
Thanks from Kristina.
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I started with Lost Books of the Bible. Since then I have been steadily reading. Studied through the Books of the Disciples, (New Testament), Clement a follower of Peter, the Other Bible, The Jewish Torah, (the five books of Moses which is most of the Old Testament. Skimmed most of the KJV of the Bible and see how closely it parallels all my previous readings.
Just started into the Qu'ran and surprised that Mohamed wrote 500 years AFTER Christ yet very closely follows the writings of Moses.
This is interesting!
Hello Charlie,
Could there be several different versions (interpretations?) of the Qu'ran ?
I am wondering, because only recently I was told that according to the Qu'ran deocrative art is never wanted.
But in the shortened translation (version?) of the Qu'ran which I have read, decorative art was not even mentioned...
What do you think?
Thanks from Kristina.
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I read very few books any more (and a LOT of stuff online), but I have picked up a book to read during in-center D that I've had for years. It's "Man Meets Dog" a classic by Konrad Lorenz. Fascinating. About the origins--and everything else-- in the human-dog relationship.
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Three Magic Words....currently.;
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Ashley Bell by Dean Koontz. I'm also currently reading a book about Spain in the Golden Age.
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Hello Charlie,
Could there be several different versions (interpretations?) of the Qu'ran ?
I am wondering, because only recently I was told that according to the Qu'ran deocrative art is never wanted.
But in the shortened translation (version?) of the Qu'ran which I have read, decorative art was not even mentioned...
What do you think?
Thanks from Kristina.
I have only read the one English translation, there may be more but I wouldn't expect them to vary by much. I hope!
IIRC, art and music are considered a waste of time and effort and could be considered a sin as that time and effort should be spent on meaningful worship of God.
Islam, Muslims do NOT believe in violence. And adhere very strictly to the commandment 'Do NOT Kill'. The only couple of exceptions are in self-defense. If you or one near you is attacked by an animal or another human and the threat of death is eminent, only then is one allowed to kill. And even then that person is considered UN-clean and must be segregated until a period of time and process of 'cleansing' is completed. This included the Muslim warriors that fought in their Religious Wars when other tribes of the Mid-East wished to take over Muslim lands. These successful warriors had to be 'cleansed' before they could return to their society.
Radical Muslims have to be quoting some other copy other than the one that I read.
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Just a note too; 0n a sea going tug boat I read 13 books one trip.... to Dekar Senagal ,Africa. via Cape Verde Inlands. Dec. of 1989.....We departed from San Jaun Porto Rica due east ( corse was 93 degress psg I remember well.) IT took 33 days to get there so I had allot of time. Once in port it took 30 days to off load the two barges , as they did it by hand..( 6,500 meteric tons of rice... aid.)ANYWAY... then 30 long days (apprx.) to return,.... tug had a lounge with shelves books like a library on the walls..(bulkhead) ' I think my favorite was Pillars Of The Earth by Kennieth F.... I discovered the gift of reading ....for me.
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Pillars of the Earth was a GREAT BOOK! It's sequel was almost as good - World Without End by Ken Follett . You can sink yourself in one of these - no pun intended!
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Hello Charlie,
Could there be several different versions (interpretations?) of the Qu'ran ?
I am wondering, because only recently I was told that according to the Qu'ran deocrative art is never wanted.
But in the shortened translation (version?) of the Qu'ran which I have read, decorative art was not even mentioned...
What do you think?
Thanks from Kristina.
I have only read the one English translation, there may be more but I wouldn't expect them to vary by much. I hope!
IIRC, art and music are considered a waste of time and effort and could be considered a sin as that time and effort should be spent on meaningful worship of God.
Islam, Muslims do NOT believe in violence. And adhere very strictly to the commandment 'Do NOT Kill'. The only couple of exceptions are in self-defense. If you or one near you is attacked by an animal or another human and the threat of death is eminent, only then is one allowed to kill. And even then that person is considered UN-clean and must be segregated until a period of time and process of 'cleansing' is completed. This included the Muslim warriors that fought in their Religious Wars when other tribes of the Mid-East wished to take over Muslim lands. These successful warriors had to be 'cleansed' before they could return to their society.
Radical Muslims have to be quoting some other copy other than the one that I read.
Thank you Charlie,
It is interesting that art and music are now considered a waste of time and effort and could be considered a sin as that time and effort should be spent on meaningful worship of God ... But if one comes across the wonderful art-work of the Royal Persian Manuscripts and the modern illuminated translation by Oxford University Press of the 'Rubáiyát' (short epigrammatic poems) of the medieval Persian poet, mathematician, and philosopher Omar Khayyám (1048 - 1141) it would suggest that at one time life and the arts were very much celebrated and enjoyed ?
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Thanks casper2636, going to be on look out for that one,,,, can't wait!! I wounder if it's a spin off Pillars of the Earth ,,,, the part were the lady had the baby along side the old stone road as they where traveling by foot still is in my visual memory bank...
thank you,, Blake n.
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Has anyone read The Girls of Atomic City by Denise Kiernan? I finished reading that about a week ago and found it fascinating!!! I never knew about the then secret city of Oak Ridge TN, and all the people who went there to work, and all of them didn't know what they were working on and agreed to not tell *any*one, including their friends, roommates, etc what their jobs entailed. All they knew is they were working on something that would help end the war, and they didn't find out what it was until the day the USA bombed Hiroshima. Good read!
I also thoroughly enjoyed The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown. This is about the Men's Rowing team at University of Washington making it all the way to the 1936 Olympics in Hitler's Berlin. They had a special kind of chemistry that made them into the ultimate rowing machine and was able to win the gold despite given circumstances that made that even tougher than their competitors. Soon to be a movie - I can't wait to see it!
Currently, I'm reading the KonMari book - the life-changing magic of tidying up by marie kondo. I really need to get rid of stuff and organize my home, so I'm hoping this book will inspire me. I've read about people who use her system and swear by it, so I figure it's worth a try.
KarenInWA
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I've heard of "Girls of Atomic City"! I think it is on my Goodreads queue. Thanks for reminding me!
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This will excite everyone. I am reading "What You Must Know About Dialysis: The Secrets to Surviving and Thriving on Dialysis" Sep 20, 2012
by Rich Snyder.
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This will excite everyone. I am reading "What You Must Know About Dialysis: The Secrets to Surviving and Thriving on Dialysis" Sep 20, 2012
by Rich Snyder.
:rofl; Confession: two years in and hubby and I are still learning. ::)
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"Proof of Heaven"
by Eben Alexander
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This will excite everyone. I am reading "What You Must Know About Dialysis: The Secrets to Surviving and Thriving on Dialysis" Sep 20, 2012
by Rich Snyder.
Hello Sibella,
Could you please elaborate about this book ?
Does Rich Snyder prioritize a kidney-friendly diet for dialysis patients ?
... And ... what does a kidney-friendly diet consist of in his opinion ?
... How important - or how unimportant - does he consider our weight ?
(I have been reading that if a dialysis-patient is a "heavy- weight", his/her survival-chances are very much reduced ...)
.... And ... what sort of priorities must we observe in order to survive for as long as possible on dialysis ... what is Rich Snyder's opinion about it ?
Many thanks from Kristina. :grouphug;
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Middlemarch.
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Defy Your Doctor and Be Healed
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A good read that goes quick (I didn't want to put it down) was David Wroblewski "The Story of Edward Sawtelle".