What are you reading this week of April 1, 2018?

[hermetic]

Last night I read Infinite Jest and today I think I'll breeze through War and Peace.


Actually, I have read both, but long ago and over a considerable amount of time.

In reality, I am pretty much breezing through Basket Case by Carl Hiaasen. He is SO readable and fun. I love all the rock 'n roll characters. Also fun is Tales of Burning Love though that one is taking much longer to read. I guess because I just savor every word, every phrase. Erdrich is so amazing.

Then there's Secondhand Souls. What can I say? Need a cheese! Some of the funniest stuff ever.

Hope your bunny brings you lots of good books, or chocolate. Tell us about it.




Don't be an April fool. Read a book!

[FirstLight]

1. Just finished The Revenant

it was actually quite riveting.

I have two books on deck this week:
The Buddha by Deepak Chopra

and a non-fiction
Paris Without End - The True Story of Hemingway's first wife
by Giola Diliberto

not sure which one to do first

Happy Easter! :wave:

[hermetic]

2. And the same to you

So, which Revenant? There are actually many books with that title. I'm guessing it would be the one they used for the movie. Does look quite riveting.

Tough choice. Paris Without End does sound fascinating. But then, Chopra... Ah well, a win/win.

[FirstLight]

3. yes, the movie version...

but as usual, much more backstory and info. Also, they changed some stuff in the movie and it bugged me ...I hate movies that take liberties with books material.

I'm leaning toward reading the Buddha first...just to see how it compares to Hesse's "Siddartha"

[backtoblue]

4. Nexus by Ramez Naam

Just started it last night. Pretty interesting so far.

[hermetic]

6. Cool, Sci Fi

The nano-drug, Nexus, can link mind to mind. That would be interesting.

[dameatball]

5. "The Assasin" - Clive Cussler

[SonofDonald]

7. The best stuff Cussler put out these days

The Issac Bell series is my favorite now, I've read all his books from day one but the rest of the series except for the adventures of Jaun Cabrillo and the Oregon have kind of become too formulatic for me.

But the Issac Bell books have all been great and I await the next one.

[dameatball]

12. I have the same opinion. Got bored reading Cussler years ago, then read "The Gangster"

[hermetic]

8. Sounds exciting

Something that some regulars here would enjoy. Murder, mystery, and mayhem around John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil monopoly. Thanks for sharing.

[SonofDonald]

9. "Fragment" by Warren Fahy

I'm a big Sci-Fi/Horror fan as long as it's good considering there are hundreds of not so good attempts on the market.

I had not heard of this book but I do remember picking it up and looking at it years ago, I remember seeing the illustrations in the back of the book but didn't think it would be interesting.

Boy was I wrong.

It makes "Jurrasic Park" look like a petting zoo, blew me away.

An island isolated for 750 million years with a different branch of evolution taking hold.

Where just setting foot on the island seals your death warrant in a hundred different ways.

Wow, just wow.

I'm looking for the authors next book "Pandemonium" to take on a cruise ship in 17 days and his other books if I can find them in time.

I have to drive 40 miles round trip to get to a bookstore as I prefer them over digital.

Whatever you read, ENJOY!

📙

[hermetic]

10. Great!

I will have to look into that one. Hope you have a wonderful time on your cruise. Let me introduce you to thriftbooks.com which is a great place to stock up from.

[dameatball]

13. Thanks.....just jotted that one down. Sounds like a good read.

[SonofDonald]

14. I heartily recommend Author Jeff Long

Every book he's written has cemented my opinion that there's something special about him.

"The Descent", "Deeper" part one and two of a trilogy, still waiting for the third.

"Year Zero", "The Wall" "The Recogning" and others

He also writes historical works such as "Angels of Light" and "Duel of Eagles" about the battle for the Alamo which I just started.

I compare his Descent trilogy to the best I've ever read from any fantasy author and I read voraciously.

Try it you will not put his books down.

ENJOY!

[dameatball]

15. Great thanks!!

[Atticus]

11. Just finished "On Tyranny". Now in middle of "Russian Roulette". nt

[TexasProgresive]

16. About 1/4 way through "Draft Animals" by Phil Gaimon (non fiction)

That was part one titled "Life in the Post-Dopocalypse" the era of pro-cycling post Lance Armstrong et al. Dark times for the sport as sponsors dropped out for fear of being tainted. Anyway it is a good read so far.

I finished Lincoln Child's Full Wolf Moon which was a fast read but did not really grab me like the books he wrote with Douglas Preston. Douglas' The Lost City of the Monkey God was gripping as were the Pendegast novels.

When I finish with this I may be reading another Connelly mystery. I don't have it handy or the title in my memory.

[hermetic]

19. I tend to agree

about Child. He's better in collaborations.

I think you can't go wrong with Connelly, though.

[TexasProgresive]

22. Thanks for your vote.

I think the plot was great but it just didn't have any zing. Maybe that what Mr. Douglas gives to their collaborations.

[shenmue]

17. Welsh legends, The Mabinogion

[hermetic]

20. Cool!

A collection of eleven medieval Welsh tales, whose invention and fantastical interweaving of Celtic mythology and Arthurian romance have made it one of literature's greatest epics.

[lordsummerisle]

18. How Democracies Die

by Levitsky & Ziblatt and frankly it's quite disturbing. I had bad dreams last night after reading it in bed and expect the same tonight...

[hermetic]

21. Huh, coincidentally

I just saw that one mentioned on Twitter. Harvard professors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt show how democracies have collapsed elsewhere—not just through violent coups, but more commonly through a gradual slide into authoritarianism. Like what's happening here. Sadly, not fiction.

[pscot]

23. World of Tiers by Philip Jose Farmer

I put Basket Case and Second Hand Souls on my library list. The World definitely needs more fun.

World of Tiers features a constructed planet shaped like a layer cake and ruled by Thoans, super human beings with a god complex and decided lack of empathy for ordinary humans or for the part-human creatures they construct for their amusement. The bottom layer, for example, is populated with immortal humans kidnapped from ancient Greece and monstrous constructs based on Greek myth. Robert Wolfe, amnesia victim and scholar of ancient Greek, ends up there when a wall in a closet in a tract home in Phoenix opens up and he steps through to escape the police and his wife.

Farmer was highly regarded among sci-fi aficionados back in the day. He influenced other writers of the day and Stranger in a Strange Land was dedicated to him. Farmer is best known for Riverworld but he wrote many fine shorter pieces and he anticipates tropes found in modern writers like China de Mieville. He also writes sexy without the leering, wink, wink, nudge, nudge quality typical of 50's pulp writers. During the 70's he wrote a novel, Venus on the Half Shell, under the pseudonym Kilgore Trout, which seriously pissed off Kurt Vonnegut. Critics praised it thinking Vonnegut had written it. . Some of the sci-fi from that era is as dated as Mickey Spillane but Farmer has worn very well and he's still worth reading.

[hermetic]

24. How did I ever

live this long, never reading a Farmer book? I've always been a sci fi fan. I think I may have read some of his Tarzan books, not sure...
Just looking at the long list of all he has written, I see a few I for sure want to find now.

I am totally in favor of more fun. And I tell ya, Secondhand Souls just has me howling. I can't wait to read Moore's Lamb, the story of Jesus in his younger years as told by his best bud, Biff.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

25. I just finished "Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder"

by Caroline Fraser.

It is simply one of the best books I have ever read. It gives the history of her family, looks at human induced climate change, talks about how people were bamboozled by the railroads to move to places like South Dakota, how small farmers have almost never made a living off farming.

It also goes into a great deal of detail of the writing of the "Little House" books, and her collaboration with her daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, on them I think even someone who'd never read the books and knew nothing about them would find this book fascinating.

Two points (of the many things I learned in this book). First is that her life was much darker and far more poverty stricken than the novels give any kind of clue about. Second is that daughter Rose became a right-wing nut case, and if she were alive today she'd be happily filling in for Laura Ingraham on Fox. What you see in this book, which I knew almost nothing about, was the roots of today's right wing, the conspiracy bullshit, the contempt of government, the total lack of awareness that the government, for all its flaws, really has helped the little people.

Rose was also a tax cheat.

Anyway, I will be recommending this book for a long time.

I'm going to cross post this to General Discussion.

[hermetic]

31. I stayed once

in a little house that she supposedly stayed in for a brief time. It was pretty shabby but fun lying in bed and imagining that she had once done the same.

Interesting about the right wing stuff, and Rose. Never knew that. Thanks, as always.

[bottomofthehill]

26. Worth Waiting For

From a book review.

Christiansen was once a Capitol Hill staffer like the book's protagonist, and her knowledge of Washington's political culture shines through brightly. In addition, the author keeps the novel's pace dizzying, delivering nearly constant action. But the intricate story is wildly implausible and often confusing.

From me, so far, lots of DC sights and sounds from the 80's and 90's. still working my way through this

[hermetic]

29. That sounds interesting

Just came out last fall. Author Morgan Christiansen is also an actress known for The Town Inside, All About Us and Letters to Addy.

[sdfernando]

27. I'm at the last quarter of "The Seventh Plague" by James Rollins

As mentioned in another post, I'm on a mission to read all of his novels. Once I finish this one I'll still have 4 or 5 to go.

[hermetic]

30. That one is

just, WOW! What a hair-raising adventure. Plagues, world's end, Mark Twain, Nikola Tesla. I really should read more Rollins.

Yours is quite the noble venture. Please share your thoughts on his other books as you get through them.

[sdfernando]

33. I love the Sigma Force novels

I've grown quite attached to many of characters.

I've also started on his Sanguines series, a collaboration with Rebecca Cantrell and read one of the Tucker Wayne series novels.

[Timewas]

28. The last 2 weeks

City of endless night by Douglas Preston,James Patterson Triple Threat,and Koontz Frankenstein:The Dead Town....right now reading Patterson's manhunt,A New York Red, Micheal Bennet series..

[hermetic]

32. You are a busy reader

We like that here.

Plus, Special Agent Pendergast is always a favorite character. Happy to meet another fan.

[Timewas]

34. New to Preston

Will go on and read the rest of his stuff... now doing Patterson again "Count to Ten"

I do read a lot especially in the winter...Average 3 to 4 a week some weeks

[TheDebbieDee]

35. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer...

I've always been curious about this classic as there are many references to this work. I've always wondered if The Canterbury Tales was the anglo version of 1,001/Arabian Nights (I've never read that one either but I may look for a synopsized version after I finish Canterbury Tales). I'm actually reading the synopsized version by Patrick Gardner since I don't really have time to analyze and de-code Middle English.

Chaucer's way of telling a tale from/about many different story-tellers is kind of interesting...

[hermetic]

39. Sounds like a worthy endeavor

Let us know how it's going.

[TheDebbieDee]

46. I made it through most of synopzised version...

I always assumed that the pilgrims were on their way to Jerusalem, so I expected there to be hundreds of stories!

Chaucer was good, but he was no Sidney Sheldon!

[Ilsa]

36. I finished a Crime novel called Capital Kill by Marc Rainer. Don't bother with this RW trash.

I read a lot of lightweight fiction to help me cope with problems at home and help me sleep at night. I use a lot of free downloads to Kindle via BookBub.

The protagonist, Trask, is a two dimensional character who never faces a real challenge to his beliefs or character. You see no internal struggle. Geez, even Harry Potter had philosophical issues to deal with along with typical growing pains.

There was an underlying thread of rightwing-ism throughout the book, and several insults thrown at liberals, especially defense lawyers, judges, and the Washington Post.

The author uses a nom de plume. He is really a former federal prosecutor, Charles Ambrose, Jr., and he smeared the Obama Justice Dept. He's written a series based on this character, Trask, who has a similar biography as Ambrose.

[hermetic]

40. Hey, thanks for the heads-up

on that writer. Definitely one to avoid. I know what you mean, though, about wanting something lightweight for a distraction. Stop by this weekly discussion to find new suggestions. I suggest Craig Johnson and Carl Hiaasen right off the bat. Hang in there.

[Ilsa]

37. Just started The Hawley Book of the Dead by Chrysler Szarlan.

This is a novel about a mother and her daughters with a long family history of women having special, usuall singular, magical gifts. There is a thriller aspect to it as something is after her family. Beautiful writing, IMO.

[hermetic]

41. Now this sounds wonderful

I will have to look into it for myself. Thanks.

[Ilsa]

45. Just finished it. Loved it.

I read it on my Kindle, which helped me quickly reference some vocabulary that is peculiar to me.

The story is rich with imagery, surprised me, and the fantasy and magic was fun.

[PennyK]

38. I just finished The Angel of Darkness by Caleb Carr

I'm in love with his writing (rather late to the party) and am about to start Surrender, New York, somewhat of a decades-later followup to The Alienist and Angel. These books may have spoiled me for my cozy mysteries...they're so dense with fascinating detail and character.

[hermetic]

42. Mmmm, yum

Does sound good.

[peggysue2]

43. Just finished . . .

The Gone World byTom Sweterlitsch. A strange novel, one part murder mystery, one part time travel/multiverse tripping. But entertaining.

Also finished Semiosis by Sue Burke. Reminded me of an Avatar spin off. It was . . . okay, a quick read.

Right now I've started the Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin which from the synopsis is a group of siblings who visit a fortune teller. Each is given the time of their deaths, the exact time. These are all children at the time of the reading from seven years of age to around fourteen. It begs the question: would our lives be better or worse if we knew exactly how long we would live? Probably our lives would be different, particularly if we believed the forecast. For instance, if we were told we'd die in young adulthood. Eek! It's an interesting premise and with multiple characters there are multiple avenues/reactions to explore. Should be fun and I already like the rich, interior writing style.

I did take Lincoln in the Bardo on my vacation. Finished the book on the flight home. I suspect I'm one of the few people in the world disappointed by the text. Then again, I still love Saunders' short work. So there's that.

[hermetic]

44. Hey, thanks

for reporting on that.

The Immortalists sounds like an interesting and rather different kind of tale. Personally, I would not want to know. But I think I would like to read the book, which is quite new.