What book are you currently reading?

[CebuShan]

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.

[Poppylicious]

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.

 

[cariad]

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.

[MooseMom]

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.

[willowtreewren]

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.

 

Aleta

[Riki]

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.

[cariad]

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.

[cariad]

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?

[MooseMom]

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.

 

Aleta

I'd recommend "Lymeaid" by Dr. Izza Joch, or perhaps "Icky Ticky" by a relatively new horror author Nottzo Phunnie.


 

[willowtreewren]

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.

 

Aleta

I'd recommend "Lymeaid" by Dr. Izza Joch, or perhaps "Icky Ticky" by a relatively new horror author Nottzo Phunnie.


 

 

Maybe I should WRITE one of those! 

[jbeany]

 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.

[cariad]

 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!  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.

[jbeany]

Case law on changing established custodial environments.  Yee haw....

[CebuShan]

"The Shunning" by Beverly Lewis

[Kitty Cat]

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.

[CebuShan]

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.

[cariad]

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....

[WishIKnew]

God Never Blinks by Regina Brett and working on Wild.

[cattlekid]

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.

[MooseMom]

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.

[jbeany]

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.

[kitkatz]

Dean Koontz 77 Shadow Street

[WishIKnew]

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!

[Rerun]

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 ...

[jbeany]

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.