What Are You Reading?

[ATM]

Currently I am reading Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris and it is hilarious.

What about you all?

[LostChild]

I'm in the process of reading It by Stephen King, and have been doing so for seven months and one day. I'm not enjoying it.

I'm also reading Mr. Murder by Dean Koontz and Omerta by Mario Puzo. Those two are both good so far, but I'm going terribly slowly with them. I just can't get into reading like I used to.

[3rdplanet]

I'm currently reading You Don't Have to be Evil to Work Here, but it Helps by Tom Holt and it's fairly good; even though the narrative seems to be plodding along almost tediously slowly. I'm also reading Truth by Simon Blackburn.

[Generic Joshman]

Angels and Demons

[The_Passenger]

The Grapes of Wrath. It's pretty good so far.

[Iskandar]

Gone With the Wind. I just really want to finish it already.

[thedeadwalk!]

I took some suggestions from the other reading thread and read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time a couple weeks back, and now I'm on Kafka on the Shore.

The first one was pretty good, though, being written from the autistic kid's point of view, lacked the poetic descriptions I enjoy. The latter is also pretty good so far, and very strange, but, Colonel Sanders being a pimp may just be a little too weird for me.

[Jude]

I need to get some David Sedaris books. The dude is hilarious.

Six to eight black men :lol:

Right now I'm reading "How the Mind Works" (overview of cognitive science/evolutionary psychology written so normal people can read it) by Steven Pinker. After that I think I'm going to move on to some Sherlock Holmes...it's been FOREVER since I read any of those.

[sparkylp2002]

I'm currently reading "The Master and Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov.

[bwbw]

"Does Anything Eat Wasps?" - Questions from NewScientist's 'Last word' column.

[MattyBlade]

I'm reading that we don't have a general discussion thread anymore, and I'm also reading all the people that are Crying about it.

It's a rather good read and hilarious to boot.

[talk show host]

I took some suggestions from the other reading thread and read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time a couple weeks back, and now I'm on Kafka on the Shore.

The first one was pretty good, though, being written from the autistic kid's point of view, lacked the poetic descriptions I enjoy. The latter is also pretty good so far, and very strange, but, Colonel Sanders being a pimp may just be a little too weird for me.

I never finished reading Kafka on the Shore though I got most of the way through it. I started reading something else and just never got back to it. What I read I really enjoyed though.

If you like it, and haven't already, check out The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. It's similar in tone, like most of Murakami, but it's definitely his masterpiece in my opinion. Probably my favourite book ever.

[MYR]

I took some suggestions from the other reading thread and read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time a couple weeks back,

I read that book once, I think.

[here comes the bird flu]

The second book of the Wheel of Time series; and Harry Potter - The Half Blood Prince.

[Kreator2112]

Guitar One...the magazine.

[here comes the bird flu]

Guitar One...the magazine.
That's some hxc reading material.

[MegaPhony]

That's some hxc reading material.

Harry Potter - The Half Blood Prince.

:rolleyes:

[A Spoonful Supreme]

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fight_club

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/17/Fightclub.jpg

[here comes the bird flu]

:rolleyes:
To first post: sarcasm

To second post: FU

[EightMilesHigh]

Fight Club is one of the few books where I enjoy the book as much as the movie.

I just started reading Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. It's pretty good so far. I'm also reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, which is pretty good.

[Super Wotan]

Varg Vikernes - Vargsmal. Amazing book.

[Jude]

Fight Club is one of the few books where I enjoy the book as much as the movie.

You enjoy movie adaptations of books more than the books?!

[A Spoonful Supreme]

Fight Club is one of the few books where I enjoy the book as much as the movie.

I just started reading Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. It's pretty good so far. I'm also reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, which is pretty good.

What's that about? I live like thirty miles away from there and I've been there and Steinbeck's house.

That book was too depressing for me (Bell Jar).

[EightMilesHigh]

Cannery Row is about the small strip of industrial land in Monterey known as Cannery Row. It revolves around the people living there at the time of the depression. It mainly focuses on Lee Chong, the local grocer, Doc, a marine biologist, and Mack, the leader of a group of bums. The novel is a wistfully nostalgic fairy-tale encorporating a very eastern philosophy.

You enjoy movie adaptations of books more than the books?!

No, usually I like one but not the other, or think they were both good but one was better. But I thought Fight Club the movie was just as good as Fight Club the novel.

[Volumnius Flush]

Christian Ethics ~ Norman L. Geisler

and

Compassionate Conservatism ~ Marvin Olasky

So far this Summer, I've read books by Rush Limbaugh, Neal Boortz, Cal Thomas, John Stossel, and Michael Savage.

[Jude]

That book was too depressing for me (Bell Jar).
Me too...well, normally I don't think it would have been, but I read it the worst possible time, which was coming home from college after my freshman year. I guess that's a pretty bad time for everyone because it's when you realize you really don't want to still be around all your high school friends you were so sad to leave a year ago, and that you miss all your college friends like crazy and summer just looks like a big, hot empty nothing.

Fortunately I didn't kill myself :thumb: and summer's been OK, if boring.

[Dave de Sylvia]

I'm reading Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk. I love his sense of humour and his ideas, but aside from Choke I find all his books to be unsatisfying as stories, and this is no real exception.

Recently, I've finished Hitler's Pope: The Secret History of Pius XII by John Cornwell and two John Irving novels, A Widow for One Year and Until I Find You.
Currently I am reading Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris and it is hilarious.
Yes, that man and that book are hilarious.

I'm also reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, which is pretty good.
Awesome. I might read it again soon, just cuz.

[jazzfromhell]

Just finished As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner (excellent), then just this morning started All the Pretty Horses, by Cormac McCarthy.

[team_racket]

American psycho. sick read literally. orgies and a nailgun. seriously, the film is so tame compared to the book. if the film was faithful to the book it would be snuff. not really a good book imo but its pretty damn nasty.

[Syncratic]

I'm finishing the Left Behind series, I read up to Apollyon a few years ago, and now just finished Assassins; if you don't mind the religious material, it makes for a great read.

[The Jungler]

Golden Boy, which is an autobiography about a 7 year old (white) kid growing up in a hong kong ghetto-type area, very well written.

and The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil, which is a sort of modern day Animal Farm. I don't want to give away the twists though, once again very well written.

[talk show host]

American psycho. sick read literally. orgies and a nailgun. seriously, the film is so tame compared to the book. if the film was faithful to the book it would be snuff. not really a good book imo but its pretty damn nasty.

hah yeah, it's quite twisted. the gerbil up the omnibus was pretty sick. (or rat/hamster, I forget)

heh word filter.

[run don't walk]

Home Before Daylight: My Life on the Road with the Grateful Dead by Steve Parish. I like it but it's to much about LSD and other illegal substances and not about music.

[morrissey]

Still reading John Irving's Until I Find You, only about a quarter way through.

Recently I have read Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner (a work of art), Dan Brown's Angels and Demons (great) and the DaVinci Code (meh), and a couple Robert Tanenbaums and Robert B. Parker's which are just disposable detective/lawyer crap but I read them anyway.

[EightMilesHigh]

I tried to get into The Da Vinci Code but found it a little boring. Might try it again later.

American psycho. sick read literally. orgies and a nailgun. seriously, the film is so tame compared to the book. if the film was faithful to the book it would be snuff. not really a good book imo but its pretty damn nasty.

I hear the movie of that is pretty ****ed up, so I might just read the book.

[Robert Crumb]

Last thing I read was Tropical Truth by Caetano Veloso. Decent read, very informative. Trying to decide what to take on next.

[3rdplanet]

Just finished As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner (excellent), then just this morning started All the Pretty Horses, by Cormac McCarthy.

Glad to see you called it excellent as I've just pulled As I Lay Dying off the shelf to start reading after finishing You Don't Have to be Evil to Work Here, but it Helps earlier.

[jazzfromhell]

Glad to see you called it excellent as I've just pulled As I Lay Dying off the shelf to start reading after finishing You Don't Have to be Evil to Work Here, but it Helps earlier.


Have you read any other Faulkner? It's written in a stream-of-conscience style (although as novels in that style go, this is pretty straight-forward), and the style might throw you a bit, at first. Threw me, for a little while, but I got used to it.


morrissey, I'll be reading the Kite Runner after All the Pretty Horses, they're the last two books on my summer reading list for Honors English. Glad to hear you like it.

[A Spoonful Supreme]

Has anyone read War And Peace? I'm planning on reading it e-book.

[Iskandar]

Has anyone read War And Peace? I'm planning on reading it e-book.
Big mistake ... your eyes will fall out.

On a barely related note, I finally finished the last hundred pages of Crime and Punishment the other day. I don't know what took so long

[Dave de Sylvia]

I watched American Psycho last night, so I think I'll have to read it again. Bret Easton Ellis is a great author but a lot of people seem to really dislike his style, I guess because he fills his novels with gratuitous sex, drugs and violence, kind of like Palahniuk does.

[EonBlueApcolyps]

Lost Horizon by James Hilton

I'm almost done and I really need to finish this book. I still have 7 books sitting on my desk i have to read and then 2 more for summer reading.

[silicon71]

I'm reading "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemmingway. It seems okay, a little boring. But I'm not even half way done with it yet.

[Jude]

I don't have any desire to read the DaVinci Code or anything by Dan Brown

1) I saw the DaVinci Code movie and while I don't usually judge books by their movies, in this case the premise was dumb enough that I don't even want to bother
2) from what I've heard and read, his prose style is annoyingly awful to read. The few snippets provided were great examples of this.

[morrissey]

Have you read any other Faulkner? It's written in a stream-of-conscience style (although as novels in that style go, this is pretty straight-forward), and the style might throw you a bit, at first. Threw me, for a little while, but I got used to it.


morrissey, I'll be reading the Kite Runner after All the Pretty Horses, they're the last two books on my summer reading list for Honors English. Glad to hear you like it.
Yeah it was beautifully written, even if you don't find the story that interesting (though it is), it is worth reading just to appreciate the prose.

[morrissey]

I don't have any desire to read the DaVinci Code or anything by Dan Brown

1) I saw the DaVinci Code movie and while I don't usually judge books by their movies, in this case the premise was dumb enough that I don't even want to bother
2) from what I've heard and read, his prose style is annoyingly awful to read. The few snippets provided were great examples of this.
Da Vinci Code was a pretty crap book, there as so many other writers who do the same schtick but so much better. I'd say give Angels and Demons a try though, I found it to have both a better plot and a better writing style than the Da Vinci Code.

[Samuel]

Has anyone read War And Peace? I'm planning on reading it e-book.
War and Peace is a bit much for the most hxc of internet readers. And Tolstoy warrants a hardcopy.

Anyway, I'm reading some Ludlum right now. The second in the Bourne series, and The Aquitane Progression. Neither of which are anything particularly groundbreaking, but they're a fun summer read. Other than that, I'm working through a Linear Algebra test, and skimming selections from "Foundations of Modern Cosmology".

[Syncratic]

Da Vinci Code was a pretty crap book, there as so many other writers who do the same schtick but so much better. I'd say give Angels and Demons a try though, I found it to have both a better plot and a better writing style than the Da Vinci Code.

Angels and Demons was so much better in every way. That would actually make a better film adaptation, the plot is terrific, and the action is great.

[tele_more]

I'm broke and owe the library money - so I'm reading nothing atm.

BUT - I plan on buying Ulysses as soon as some income becomes available.

I just finished reading Lolita not too long ago, and it was marvelous.

[Stig Caraveo]

http://www.musicianforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=512825

[tele_more]

I've never read steven king.

[LostChild]

For the most part, he's awfully overrated anyways. The plots are awfully simple, and lack complexity in comparison to other horror novels, and they almost always end rediculously or anticlimactically. Plus, as Stig Caraveo mentioned, he goes on and on and on with entirely useless information probably more than he writes about the plot.

1) I saw the DaVinci Code movie and while I don't usually judge books by their movies, in this case the premise was dumb enough that I don't even want to botherMy sentiments exactly. Honestly, the idea of some people looking at a bunch of clues to unearth some gigantic historical secret and not knowing who they can and can't trust is the least interesting premise for a novel I can imagine.

I watched American Psycho last night, so I think I'll have to read it again. Bret Easton Ellis is a great author but a lot of people seem to really dislike his style, I guess because he fills his novels with gratuitous sex, drugs and violence, kind of like Palahniuk does.I didn't care for American Psycho. It was, to me, nothing more than a bland display of sex and violence with not much substance, and the ending I thought was a tad cliche. Just my opinion though.

[The Jungler]

I've never read steven king.I think THe Shining is the only King I've read. I should get on that.

[tele_more]

i don't know if i will or not.

[Meatplow]

I am reading the Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King, which is disappointing so far, it seems so lightweight compared to his other stuff i have read.

Just finished the Bachman Books, they were f*cking awesome.

[apple pie]

1984- George Owell

[Dave de Sylvia]

Still reading John Irving's Until I Find You, only about a quarter way through.
It took me two weeks to get that far! How is it treating you?

[Bron-Yr-Aur]

Great Expectations.

[Jacaranda]

I just finished Magical Thinking by Augusten Burroughs. I will have to read his other stuff later on when I'm up for it.
:/
Now I'm reading Michael Crichton - Congo Reading it because when I was little the movie terrified me and I wanted to see how the book was.

[telewhore]

What was with Magical Thinking?

[Jacaranda]

What'd you mean?

[telewhore]

I will have to read his other stuff later on when I'm up for it.
I was just wondering what this meant, and if the book you just read was worth recommending.

[Jacaranda]

Well I'm not sure if you know who he is but he is kind of similar to David Sedaris in humor department but you know as much as I love the man I really don't need a whole chapter describing his sexual relations with catholic priests in a cab and a public rest room. But its a good book if you can deal with gay men and a bunch of random stories. I'd recommend Dry or Running With Scissors first though.

[telewhore]

Oh ok, I am not familiar with the man, but it sounds interesting to say the least.

I'll keep an eye out. :)

[A Spoonful Supreme]

War and Peace is a bit much for the most hxc of internet readers. And Tolstoy warrants a hardcopy.

Big mistake ... your eyes will fall out.

What? You guys are scaring me, I'm going to read it though I made a vow to myself.

[telewhore]

Check it out from a library man, reading that much on a screen is gonna kill your eyes.

[Mike Rakhabit]

Currently I'm reading a few different books: The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger, Lollyscramble by Tony Martin (Australian comedian) and Passion is a Fashion: The Real Story of The Clash by Pat Gilbert

[Surtr]

Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince. I've got like..3 pages left and it didn't take long to re-read. I'm in desperate need for good books but the bookstores where I live SUCK.

[Mazeppa]

Yesterday I finished reading Pyramids, a Discworld novel by Pratchett. Today, I'll probably start Carrie by Stephen King.

[Sepstrup]

Nick Cave - And the *** Saw the Angel

[Jude]

My sentiments exactly. Honestly, the idea of some people looking at a bunch of clues to unearth some gigantic historical secret and not knowing who they can and can't trust is the least interesting premise for a novel I can imagine.

That too...although I was thinking of the "if it were somehow shown that Jesus had kids then all of Christianity would collapse" part of the premise. But the whole wild-goose-chase structure of the movie - which lead to an agonizingly bad plot - was painful as well.

Pyramids, a Discworld novel by Pratchett.
I haven't read that one in forever. Those books don't take me long to read...maybe I should insert that in my reading list above the Sherlock Holmes.

Any other Holmes fans in here? Hound of the Baskervilles, The Speckled Band, and The Devil's Foot ftw.

[Syncratic]

How's Desperation? I enjoy King, and am interested in this novel....any other suggestions?

[Surtr]

From The Corner Of His Eye-Dean Koontz is a decent book.

[Mazeppa]

I haven't read that one in forever. Those books don't take me long to read...maybe I should insert that in my reading list above the Sherlock Holmes.
Yeah, those novels are quick to read. Especially during the holidays.

Any other Holmes fans in here? Hound of the Baskervilles, The Speckled Band, and The Devil's Foot ftw.
I've read The Hound of the Baskervilles. It was ok, but I'm not a particular fan.

[Stig Caraveo]

http://www.musicianforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=512825

[Iskandar]

What? You guys are scaring me, I'm going to read it though I made a vow to myself.
It's just a really, really long novel. You'll want to have a physical copy of the book for comfort and ease of reading. It will take a while to finish.

[LostChild]

That too...although I was thinking of the "if it were somehow shown that Jesus had kids then all of Christianity would collapse" part of the premise. But the whole wild-goose-chase structure of the movie - which lead to an agonizingly bad plot - was painful as well.

Yeah, and without revealing it out of courtesy for anyone whose yet read/see it, can someone also agree with me that the "twist" at the end was quite predictable?

[talk show host]

Nick Cave - And the *** Saw the Angel

I borrowed that from my housemate last year. I only got about 10 pages in because, man the prose is dense.

[jpj]

Right now I'm reading a biography of Jim Morrison by Stephen Davis. So far it's been pretty interesting. It talks a lot about the Beat poets and novelists like Ginsberg, Kerouac, Ferlinghetti (sp?), etc. becaus they were all very influential in Morrison's writing, so I think I'd like to check some of them out.

[talk show host]

Kerouac's awesome.

[MeaninglessPhoto]

Im reading Ghost Rider and Traveling Music by Neil Peart. They both are great books that I would recomend to anybody.

[Syncratic]

Yeah, and without revealing it out of courtesy for anyone whose yet read/see it, can someone also agree with me that the "twist" at the end was quite predictable?

Yeah, I found that as well.

[LostChild]

I just don't like how it's supposed to be all shocking and out there, when I was considering it like two minutes into the film (never got around to reading the book).

It also bothers me that in the summary on the back of the book, it's refered to as the "unpredictable and stunning conclusion." I mean, they're trying to sell the book, so I can understand them sensationalizing it a bit, I wouldn't expect "the ending that might catch you off guard if you don't even think once about what will happen later on in the story," but to call it stunning and unpredictable is laying it on very thick.

[sketchyjoe]

Yeah, and without revealing it out of courtesy for anyone whose yet read/see it, can someone also agree with me that the "twist" at the end was quite predictable?It was both ludicrous and awfully written just like the rest of the book.

[Unproductive]

I just finished A scanner Darkly. awesome book. the movie will suck.

[talk show host]

How's Desperation? I enjoy King, and am interested in this novel....any other suggestions?

Desperation is ok. It's not one of my favourites but I know a lot of other people think differently.

If you're looking for other King, try Bag of Bones or Needful Things. The former is my favourite of his recent books, it's less shock horror stuff and more melancholic and touching.

Needful Things is really well written for a King book and the way the characters' stories intercept as the book progresses is superb.

[LostChild]

My favorite King works are Christine and Rose Madder. Probably a tad unconventional, but those are just the one's that have moved me the most.

Christine is a book with a cheesy horror plot that somehow draws you in far more than you'd expect it to, and the plot is just very well done. Even the sub-plot and the side information that doesn't pertain too much to the plot was interesting, which is something I've not found in any other King novel.

Rose Madder is a pretty violent, gorey novel about spousal abuse and stalking, but it's very gripping and the suspense is masterful. The action kicks on the first page, and it never lets up till the end, which is another thing I've not found in any other King novel.

And, now that I've mentioned the end, I'd like to point out though that it degenerate into meaningless metaphor and unsuccesful attempts at being deep and meaningful at the very end, which is a staple of newer King works. (see Insomnia.)

[Jude]

Yeah, and without revealing it out of courtesy for anyone whose yet read/see it, can someone also agree with me that the "twist" at the end was quite predictable?
It was so predictable as not to be considered a twist. I saw it coming as soon as the relevant plot elements were revealed.

[Syncratic]

I'll check those out...my all-time favorite book is "The Stand," and "Dolores Claiborne" just blew me away with how good it was, considering it was just one free-flowing idea.

[talk show host]

My favorite King works are Christine and Rose Madder. Probably a tad unconventional, but those are just the one's that have moved me the most.

Christine is a book with a cheesy horror plot that somehow draws you in far more than you'd expect it to, and the plot is just very well done. Even the sub-plot and the side information that doesn't pertain too much to the plot was interesting, which is something I've not found in any other King novel.



Christine is awesome, I agree. And it is quite surprising how good it is considering the story line but Arnie is a really strong character.

I liked Insomnia but it did get progressively worse as it went on, and I haven't read Rose Madder but i'll look into it. I haven't read any King in ages.

Edit: I'll look out for Dolores Claiborne too. I saw the movie not too long ago and it was pretty good.

[LostChild]

Something about the whole cheesy horror plot with slightly petty teenage love triangle sub-plot was fascinating to me. I'm not much of a writer (I'm good at writing, but I don't enjoy it and I'd find it very difficult to ever take it seriously because I'm not a very creative person) but I'm attempting writing a horror novel presently, and trying to bring that same element into it. Unfortunately, the main story and the side love story so far have no connection to each other, other than involving the same characters and taking place during the same time period. Oh well. I should probably take another look at Christine one of these days to use it as a guideline of sorts.

On another note, I like how this thread is staying up towards the top of the Entertainment forum, occasionally above the xbox and whatnot threads, proving that atleast some people in today's world prefer literature over video games.

[masada]

Right now I'm reading Cold Mountain.

That is all.

[Syncratic]

That's cool that you're good at writing...I've been told I am, too, but I'm highly self-critical.

What's the most tedious and boring book you've ever read (to anyone)?


Mine would have to be "Earth" by David Brin....I got maybe 16 pages in and just thought to myself 'Life's too short.' It's so boring and wordy as to be nothing short of annoying.

[LostChild]

I'm just good at the mechanics- punctuation, sentence structure, etcetera. So I've only got half of the package.

"For Whom the Bell Tolls" was killer in its extreme lack of excitement. It is shaping up to be the same way, it seems.

[sexymuffin]

i'm re-reading the sixth harry potter because i feel like it.

[sketchyjoe]

That's cool that you're good at writing...I've been told I am, too, but I'm highly self-critical.

What's the most tedious and boring book you've ever read (to anyone)?


Mine would have to be "Earth" by David Brin....I got maybe 16 pages in and just thought to myself 'Life's too short.' It's so boring and wordy as to be nothing short of annoying.Jane Austen, the bible and the Q'uran have all defeated me with their rubbishness.

[DFelon204409]

Jane Austen, the bible and the Q'uran have all defeated me with their rubbishness.

Pride and Prejudice ranks up there withMember of the Wedding as the worst book I've ever read. Actually I didn't finish P&P. I had to get the A&E film version with Colin Firth. The best thing is that I had some of the best test/essay/quiz grades on the P&P material we did in class.

But to fit with the thread, I'm currently reading Speak, Memory, Vladimir Nabokov's autobiography.

[DFelon204409]

Actually I'll do out my summer reading here in general.

Notes from the Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Coming Through Slaughter by Michael Ondaatje
Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
The Prestige by Christopher Priest
Geek Love by Katherine Dunn
The Thief of Always by Clive Barker
Old School by Tobias Wolff
This Boy's Life by Tobias Wolff
Speak, Memory by Vladimir Nabokov
The Mosquito Coast by Paul Thereoux

Obviously the last two are yet to be completed as this is a chronological list. I think I liked Old School, Lolita, and Confederacy of Dunces the best.

[mx]

Obsessed with Gene Wolf lately, he's absolutely amazing, if completely unknown.

[here comes the bird flu]

Kerouac's awesome.
I never knew he wrote books.

[ibanezboy69]

iv decided im gonna read two books at once so right now im reading Bram Stoker's Dracula and The lord of the ringsm the fellowship of the rings.

[jpj]

I never knew he wrote books.
Yea, he's mostly known for his novel On the Road, which became like the Beatnik bible in a way.

I haven't any of his other stuff besides that, but the The Dharma Bums is supposed to be really good, which I'll read eventually.

[here comes the bird flu]

Yea, he's mostly known for his novel On the Road, which became like the Beatnik bible in a way.

I haven't any of his other stuff besides that, but the The Dharma Bums is supposed to be really good, which I'll read eventually.
I'm gonna have to look into that. He wrote some great poetry.

[Dave de Sylvia]

Actually I'll do out my summer reading here in general.

Notes from the Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

That book is so awesome I could consider learning Russian. Make sure you get a good translation though. The Penguin classic version I read was great.

[DFelon204409]

That book is so awesome I could consider learning Russian. Make sure you get a good translation though. The Penguin classic version I read was great.

Ugh. That was one of the most whining, pretentious, waffling, faux-intellectual books I've ever read. It was terrible. And, I had the penguin classic one. LAMEEEEEE

[Jaffa Cake]

I'm reading Lolita at the minute. It's good, I like it.

[sexymuffin]

i'm partial to vonnegut's style

[sketchyjoe]

Vonnegut is excellent.

[Txus]

I'm currently reading Sleeping Beauty by Phillip Margolin, it's really good.

[Iskandar]

Ugh. That was one of the most whining, pretentious, waffling, faux-intellectual books I've ever read. It was terrible. And, I had the penguin classic one. LAMEEEEEE
I'm pretty sure Dostoyevsky wasn't "faux-intellectual."

[jazzfromhell]

That's cool that you're good at writing...I've been told I am, too, but I'm highly self-critical.

What's the most tedious and boring book you've ever read (to anyone)?


Mine would have to be "Earth" by David Brin....I got maybe 16 pages in and just thought to myself 'Life's too short.' It's so boring and wordy as to be nothing short of annoying.



2001: A Space Odyssey


:shooting self in the head smiley:

[DFelon204409]

I'm pretty sure Dostoyevsky wasn't "faux-intellectual."

Have you read the book man? I've read excerpts from "Crime and Punishment" that are legit but "Notes From the Underground" is painfully different. It's just the kind of babbling that would appeal to a wanna be teenage intellectual who think it's "deep."

[burning star IV]

I'm planning on reading the entire Ultimate Spiderman series by the end of the summer. Does that count?

[Jude]

What the hell is "intellectual" anyway?

Everyone absolutely needs to read Tom Wolfe. Bonfire of the Vanities is usually considered the best of his novels, though I Am Charlotte Simmons is also excellent and probably more relevant to most MXers. A Man in Full is great too, I just finished that. I haven't gotten to reading much of his nonfiction yet, though.

[ratsinthecity403]

I'm reading 'The Inferno of Dante Alighieri'
which is an interesting book

[Dave de Sylvia]

Have you read the book man? I've read excerpts from "Crime and Punishment" that are legit but "Notes From the Underground" is painfully different. It's just the kind of babbling that would appeal to a wanna be teenage intellectual who think it's "deep."
It's not supposed to be "deep".

[Syncratic]

What the weirdest books you have ever read?

Although I really enjoy them, "A Series of Unfortunate Events" is a rather weird series.....excellent, but odd nontheless.

[jpj]

Everyone absolutely needs to read Tom Wolfe. Bonfire of the Vanities is usually considered the best of his novels, though I Am Charlotte Simmons is also excellent and probably more relevant to most MXers. A Man in Full is great too, I just finished that. I haven't gotten to reading much of his nonfiction yet, though.
I wasn't aware that he even wrote fiction. I read The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test a couple years ago, which was really interesting.

What the weirdest books you have ever read?
Something Wicked This Way Comes, A Clockwork Orange, and the HHGG series would rank among the weirdest books I've read.

[Syncratic]

My aunt has that book, I think that's my next read after the Left Behind series.

[DFelon204409]

It's not supposed to be "deep".

Hahah that's the irony of it all. Do you trust the character and believe that he's laying some cold hard truth on you? Do you trust the author and assume he's writing a minority report's miserable perspective on life and thus shunning it? Or, which is what I believe, does Dosty use the narrator as a way to distance himself from a lot of the anti-humanitarian sentiments he actually felt? You decide. Either way it's definitely read as "deep" by 99% of the people who check it out. Don't think you're any different by distancing yourself through your online persona.

[Jude]

I wasn't aware that he even wrote fiction. I read The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test a couple years ago, which was really interesting.


Check it out. His fiction writing is masterful. He's most definitely one of the greatest writers of our time.

weirdest books I've read.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and that stupid James Joyce book. I don't appreciate James Joyce.

[EonBlueApcolyps]

Just finished lost Horizon. I'll start and hopefully finish The Dhammapada tomorrow at the beach. Then if all goes well I'll start Breakfast Of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut that night

[Dave de Sylvia]

Hahah that's the irony of it all. Do you trust the character and believe that he's laying some cold hard truth on you? Do you trust the author and assume he's writing a minority report's miserable perspective on life and thus shunning it? Or, which is what I believe, does Dosty use the narrator as a way to distance himself from a lot of the anti-humanitarian sentiments he actually felt? You decide. Either way it's definitely read as "deep" by 99% of the people who check it out. Don't think you're any different by distancing yourself through your online persona.
What do you think the author was trying to say?

[Reaganista]

this thread's funny
i'm reading paladin of souls by bujold
i don't like it so far

[jpj]

Check it out. His fiction writing is masterful. He's most definitely one of the greatest writers of our time.
I definitely will, but there's a lot of stuff I want to read so it could be awhile before I get to it.

[Against Miik!]

I'm reading this thread.

Sry, I needed to get that out now that the pits gone.

[Jude]

I'm reading this thread.

Sry, I needed to get that out now that the pits gone.
This forum has become my new refuge in the absence of the Pit.

It's not quite the same :upset:

[jpj]

I started reading The Dharma Bums and The Salmon of Doubt, which is a collection of previously unpublished writings by Douglas Adams.

[bradc1988]

I'll be starting Area 7 by Matthew Reilly or Mary, Mary by James Patterson soon, just borrowed it off my grandparents the other day. I havn't read a book in agggesssss.

[Chrizzle fo' Shizzle]

What the weirdest books you have ever read?

Equus by Peter Shaffer

It's a play about a kid who stabs horses in the eyes

[3rdplanet]

Have you read any other Faulkner? It's written in a stream-of-conscience style (although as novels in that style go, this is pretty straight-forward), and the style might throw you a bit, at first. Threw me, for a little while, but I got used to it.


This is the first Faulkner novel I have read and you were right, the style/form did throw me a bit at first; although it was more the multiple narrators than the stream of conciousness writing which confused me.

[Iskandar]

Have you read the book man? I've read excerpts from "Crime and Punishment" that are legit but "Notes From the Underground" is painfully different. It's just the kind of babbling that would appeal to a wanna be teenage intellectual who think it's "deep."
No. I'm defending the author (because I loved C&P) but not the book. I might agree with you when I finish it.

[DFelon204409]

What do you think the author was trying to say?

I think the author was trying to make a lot of thinly veiled anti-humanitarian comments under the guise of producing a confused, wayward character striving to be authentic or real.

[Dave de Sylvia]

I think the author was trying to make a lot of thinly veiled anti-humanitarian comments under the guise of producing a confused, wayward character striving to be authentic or real.
Then you've misinterpreted.

[Alive]

I'm reading From Here To Infinity by Ian Stewart, about maths and its uses today, which is quite interesting, although the chapters about knots and topology are quite longwinded.

I'm also reading The Last Continent by Terry Pratchett, I've read it before, but all teh discworld books are great.

[Shell]

I'll be starting Area 7 by Matthew Reilly or Mary, Mary by James Patterson soon, just borrowed it off my grandparents the other day. I havn't read a book in agggesssss.

I just finished Mary, Mary and really liked it. I liked the ending especially.

Currently I'm reading Unmarried to Each Other.

[hafez]

The Problems of Philosophy by Bertrand Russell. it's pretty hard to grasp the concepts since i don't know too much about philosphy.

and i just finished Invisible monsters by Chuck Palahniuk which was really good IMO.

[hafez]

I'm pretty sure Dostoyevsky wasn't "faux-intellectual."

123
Dostoyevsky was definitely not "faux-intellectual"

[telewhore]

Equus by Peter Shaffer

It's a play about a kid who stabs horses in the eyes
lol, harry potters playing in it. lol.

[Meatplow]

Just finished The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King in one sitting. Wasn't so bad, the first few pages were sitting me up for major disappointment but it turned out pretty good.

[Triangle]

Just finished Fight Club, now I want to start the Dark Tower series.

[Chrizzle fo' Shizzle]

I just finished A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. One of the best books I've ever read

Now I need to start on my summer reading for school:

First They Killed my Father by Loung Ung
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
Beloved by Toni Morrison

[Paliente]

I am reading page 8 of thread 484592 by SputnikMusic.

[Meatplow]

Just finished Fight Club, now I want to start the Dark Tower series.

Heh odd that. I just finished one of the books in the Dark Tower series and want to read Fight Club.

[Salivation]

Im currently deep in the the dark tower series.

Right now its: Wolves of the Calla

[DFelon204409]

Then you've misinterpreted.

Dude, I knew you were going to say that no matter what. Hahah. Now tell me, since it's clearly a book a has one objective narrative that can only be interpreted in one right way as opposed to having a spectrum of possible decent interpretations, which is the proper one? You had to have known that after saying that my interpretation can't possible be right, that you'd have to actually produce one.

[Dave de Sylvia]

Well I didn't say that the book had one objective narrative, but you can't use the number of possible interpretations as a substitute for being right. I mean, it's not a particularly complicated book, and by taking such a cynical view of his motives you've gone directly against the purpose of the book. The point of the book, which I think is pretty clearly stated, is to affirm that life is meaningful and valuable and our lives are dependant and enriched for our actions, even our mistakes.

I don't know how you could have concluded what you did, considering he does pretty much everything in his power to portray the character in a non-sympathetic manner, to the point where he can admit he's wrong but his worldview is so warped he can't bring about a change in himself. I dunno, it just seems like you had pre-conceived notions or something to have gotten it so badly wrong.

[3rdplanet]

I am currently reading/listening to Under Milk Wood - a play for voices (by Dylan Thomas) at http://www.undermilkwood.net/prose_undermilkwood.html. I got to the end of Section 2 last night and will get another session of reading/listening in tomorrow night hopefully.

[DFelon204409]

Well I didn't say that the book had one objective narrative, but you can't use the number of possible interpretations as a substitute for being right. I mean, it's not a particularly complicated book, and by taking such a cynical view of his motives you've gone directly against the purpose of the book. The point of the book, which I think is pretty clearly stated, is to affirm that life is meaningful and valuable and our lives are dependant and enriched for our actions, even our mistakes.

I don't know how you could have concluded what you did, considering he does pretty much everything in his power to portray the character in a non-sympathetic manner, to the point where he can admit he's wrong but his worldview is so warped he can't bring about a change in himself. I dunno, it just seems like you had pre-conceived notions or something to have gotten it so badly wrong.

I heard from a friend that the book was really good and I had never read any Dosty before so I was really excited, but by the time I finished up the book I was surprised. There was nothing preconceived. I think your optimistic stance on the big ol "why" of the book is a part of what is literally being said in the book, but I don't think, when taking into account the possibility of the author's real intent being different, that the literal is the reality. The character is this miserable dude who you allege finds some affirmation of a positive step towards being a better human in his mistakes as well as his good decisions, etc. blah. However, in the same way that this character has been underground and is documenting how he's going to "change" and be real or whatever despite his "[warped] worldview," I think Dosty is slinging rocks from behind this facade of writing a novel that has positive literalist interpretations. I think his reality is that his own worldview is the same as his character's and the narrators follies are a way of distancing himself from his messed up pessimism on humanity. I think that the philosophical ramblings are not that of a fictional character but are really transparently Dosty's through a safe filter, which typically PISSES ME OFF, because I can't stand undying pessimism, elitism, and harsh criticism in a didactic, non-literature form, and I see that not as the problem of the character, but as the problem of the author. And at the end of the day, it's not that I hate the meaning or this little catch 22 of the narration that I hate, but I think it's very poorly and circuitously written and also hopelessly boring. The only interaction that has a glimmer of appeal is the interaction with his ex-school mates and the interaction with his butler, however each situation is too muddled in his pyschotic first person babbling to enjoy. I just straight up think he didn't do a good job. Period.

[Sleeper]

The Stand *bleh*

[Dave de Sylvia]

The character is this miserable dude who you allege finds some affirmation of a positive step towards being a better human in his mistakes as well as his good decisions, etc. blah.
No, I didn't say that. Like I already stated, you're supposed to be repulsed by the character.

I think his reality is that his own worldview is the same as his character's and the narrators follies are a way of distancing himself from his messed up pessimism on humanity.
He used to, then he wrote the book as a rejection of his past beliefs. That's why he wrote such an exaggerated character.

Well I don'tcare if you didn't like the writing, it just seems like you didn't read it closely enough or else you'd have a better interpretation of it, or even a better sense of what literally happened in the story because you seem a little confused about that too.

[DFelon204409]

There is really no confusion. It sucked. Period. He's writing an exaggerated character because that's easy. There is no subtlety to any of the characters. It's painful.

[Dave de Sylvia]

Well that's fine if that's what you look for, but if you have such difficulty understanding that character I can't see how more subtlety would have helped matters.

[Ugoff]

I'm reading 1776 right now. I haven't gotten too far in it yet. It's alright so far, better then I thought but to be quite honest, I'm not a huge fan of American History until we start getting to the Great Depression. I head it's a pretty good read though. I'm reading it for UIL. I went to state last year in Current Events so I'm going to try to do Current Events and Social Studies this year.

I'm sure I have some summer reading assignment but I never got the info for it so I'll just read what I need to read the 1st week of school. I have one of Stephen Hawking's books laying around somewhere that I plan to read too.

[Dinosawesome]

King of Torts by John Grisham, right now Clay has just had the crap beaten out of him by some guys from the small-town bricking company. Good book.

[Alf™]

I am reading A Riot of Our Own - Night and Day with The Clash by Johnny Green and Garry Barker. It's started off pretty good.

[Jude]

I just finished A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. One of the best books I've ever read

Dammit I keep forgetting about that book but I really need to get around to reading it.

After I'm done "How the Mind Works" by Steven Pinker, I want to go read some Sherlock Holmes. It would take forever to reread the complete works again though...I'll probably read the novels and the short stories I remember liking. Then I need to read some Freud and also "The Language Instinct" also by Pinker, which my dad lent to me.

[Steerpike]

I'm currently working my way through the D's of "The Vampire Book."

However, I'm hoping to pick up some books on Shaolin history and philosophy and a couple of James Rollins novels in the next couple weeks.

[simplephotographinthesun]

under the banner of heaven - jon krakauer

an engrossing exploration of mormon fundamentalism in the American West.

[plebeian scum]

I'm juggling For Whom The Bell Tolls, by Ernest Hemingway, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas right now.

Hemingway is such a great author.

[Reaganista]

First They Killed my Father by Loung Ung
it was ok
what grade

[VomitStainedCretin]

I finished Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett a few days ago, which was pretty decent. Im thinking about starting The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart - its meant to have been a lyrical inspiration for the vocalist of At the Gates.

[Chrysostom]

I'm reading Dracula, which will be followed by The Fall Of The Roman Empire.

[Jude]

I just started reading "A Study In Scarlet." It's been MUCH too long since I've indulged in any Sherlock Holmes. I'm engrossed already.

[Syncratic]

"The Mark," it's one of the "Left Behind" novels, and I've been wanting to read it for years....the concept of taking a mark of loyalty or death is a really interesting one to me.

[Yield]

I'm reading Red Dragon by Thomas Harris and The Communist Mannifesto by Karl Marx. I read The Silence of the Lambs and then I went on to Hannibal. I then realized that I had read the books out of order.

[ATM]

Communist Mannifesto is a heavy read.

[Spoonful of Shame]

"The Mark," it's one of the "Left Behind" novels, and I've been wanting to read it for years....the concept of taking a mark of loyalty or death is a really interesting one to me.

I have read the whole series. I am not a Christian anymore or anything but nevertheless they were interesting fiction.

[Chrizzle fo' Shizzle]

it was ok
what grade

Twelfth

Though technically, the whole school is supposed to read it. Every year, we get some author to come and about their book. Last year, it was Alex Kotlowitz, who wrote There Are No Children Here. Before that it was Rachel Simon, who wrote Riding the Bus with My Sister

[Rawb]

I just finished Scar Tissue. I'm starting The Tipping Point by Malcom Gladwel. I'll most likely move on to Blink right after.

[talk show host]

Someone got me Scar Tissue a while back. I never bothered reading it because I don't like RHCP or Anthony Kiedis at all, and it's a pretty big book.

Is it interesting enough that a non-fan would like it?

[Benzum]

The Shawshank Redemption

even better than the film, and that's saying something big

[2muchket!]

I was considering starting to read to kill a mockingbird I might get it from the library tomorrow.

[Interstate]

Reading One False Move by Alex Kava. Borrowed it from my girlfriend's mum after discovering she likes the same sort of thriller books as I do.
Two chapters in and I'm already hooked.

[Syncratic]

My mom has a lot of Alex Kava, I'll check him/her out.

I have read the whole series. I am not a Christian anymore or anything but nevertheless they were interesting fiction.

I believe in God, but it's very interesting...The Mark is so intense...

[Elmo McCheese]

Finished Watership Down by Richard Adams for the second time today. That book rocks. Next book will be either The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway, Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut, or Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. I'll get to all three eventually.

[Chrizzle fo' Shizzle]

Ugh Watership Down

****in rabbits

[here comes the bird flu]

I am going to take advantage of this thread to ask, what is a good book that I should read?

[Elmo McCheese]

Ugh Watership Down

****in rabbits

Yeah that's how I felt at first but I ended up liking it.

[here comes the bird flu]

I am going to take advantage of this thread to ask, what is a good book that I should read?
bump

[jpj]

What kind of books do you like? It'd be hard to recommend books you'd like without having some idea, but I'll just throw some of my favorites out there.

On the Road - Jack Kerouac
The Dharma Bums - Jack Kerouac
Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy series - Douglas Adams
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test - Tom Wolfe

[here comes the bird flu]

I was thinking about the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series. Thanks.

[playwithfire]

Currently reading Angels & Demons. Just finished Da Vinci Code... I'm finding Angels & Demons to be a much better book so far. Plans to move back into the Vampire Chronicles (Tale of the Body Thief, Memnoch the Devil, and Blood and Gold)... have yet to read the Harry Potter series through. Read 1-4 when they were new... only got 5 and 6 recently and can't remember the first 4 that well.

On a side note, am I the only person around to have stopped reading Bram Stoker's Dracula 2/3 of the way through due to sheer boredom? What a nasty, dragged out read I found that to be.

[Interstate]

My mom has a lot of Alex Kava, I'll check him/her out

It's the first book I've read by him/her (I'm not sure either) but it's awesome.

[Leukeh]

For school: The Loved Ones. Boring book. Supposedly a satirical masterpieces, I'm not laughing much. I guess the fact that it's setting is the upper-class Englishmen living in America, and me being in Australia could have something to do with it... But it's a very boring book.

For leisure: The Partner - John Grisham
This book is weird... I started off thinking it was very boring. Not much has changed, but I keep reading it because I wan't to know how it ends. It's unpredicatable, which is great. I'm no longer finding it boring, even though the style or anything really, has changed much. Just my attitude. I've never read a book quite like this...

[ATM]

On a side note, am I the only person around to have stopped reading Bram Stoker's Dracula 2/3 of the way through due to sheer boredom? What a nasty, dragged out read I found that to be.

The movie is pretty cool.

[perriwinkle]

The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell. has anyone read that or Blink?


reeeally cool books

[Jude]

bump
Everything by Tom Wolfe

[Samuel]

On a side note, am I the only person around to have stopped reading Bram Stoker's Dracula 2/3 of the way through due to sheer boredom? What a nasty, dragged out read I found that to be.
I really enjoyed that book, but it hits a couple of tedious points. Well worth finishing though.

[AlienEater]

On a side note, am I the only person around to have stopped reading Bram Stoker's Dracula 2/3 of the way through due to sheer boredom?

I managed to finish it, but it is badly written, hellishly boring book.

[Iskandar]

Someone got me Scar Tissue a while back. I never bothered reading it because I don't like RHCP or Anthony Kiedis at all, and it's a pretty big book.

Is it interesting enough that a non-fan would like it?
Yes, it is. It's an easy read too.

[Jude]

I managed to finish it, but it is badly written, hellishly boring book.
Same here. I've found a lot of the books considered classics fit the same description.

[AlienEater]

Same here. I've found a lot of the books considered classics fit the same description.

Yeah, for some reason they do. I often don't understand how they get "classic" status. Who gives it to them?

[here comes the bird flu]

Everything by Tom Wolfe
I'll keep it in mind.

[Iskandar]

Same here. I've found a lot of the books considered classics fit the same description.
You've piqued my interest. Which books?

[Elmo McCheese]

I was thinking about the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series. Thanks.

I only read the first one but it was funny. Get it.

[Little Man being Erased]

I just starting reading Nick Hornby's new(ish) book, A Long Way Down. It's pretty damn good so far. I love Nick Hornby.

[here comes the bird flu]

I only read the first one but it was funny. Get it.
No, I don't get it.

[Schyma]

Yeah, for some reason they do. I often don't understand how they get "classic" status. Who gives it to them?For the most part, "classics" are classic for a reason. Unfortunately, most teens are too immature and young to appreciate brilliant writing. I mean show me an average 15 year old who can understand Catcher in the Rye is actually about himself! It's truly sad when books like Grapes of Wrath, 1984, Catch 22, Of Mice and Men...etc are wasted on a teen that misunderstands the book completely.

[CabbageStabbage]

Not to mention that kids read classics at school. That ruins everything. I liked Lord of the Flies until we over-analyzed it.

I recently read Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse. I think it was pretty good, but I know I would hate it if I had to go through it repeatedly and having the "symbolism" pointed out at every opportunity.

Currently reading: Siddartha by Hermann Hesse.

[thedeadwalk!]

No, I don't get it.
He's not asking a question. He's telling you to get it.

[Janeway]

I just restarted Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder.I read about 350 pages in during the school year and I neglected to finish it. I need to read To Kill A Mockingbird and The Red Badge Of Courage before september starts, but I really don't want to, so I'm trying to put it off.
I hate having to read books that are chosen for me.

[LostChild]

For the most part, "classics" are classic for a reason. Unfortunately, most teens are too immature and young to appreciate brilliant writing. I mean show me an average 15 year old who can understand Catcher in the Rye is actually about himself! It's truly sad when books like Grapes of Wrath, 1984, Catch 22, Of Mice and Men...etc are wasted on a teen that misunderstands the book completely.
The idea of the average fifteen year old reading 1984 is scary. "OMFG check this out they're talking about sex! IN A BOOK! SEX! HE WANTS TO BANG JULIA OMG." :rolleyes:

When I read it a couple of years ago, I was fourteen, but I understood it completely and was mature about it. But most kids that age probably wouldn't be, primarily because kids tend to only read when they absolutely have to, and what they do read is pretty tame or is censored for school.

[sketchyjoe]

Communist Mannifesto is a heavy read.
That's a pretty easy read. It's a pamphlet: direct, short, full of catchy slogans. In terms of that sort of literature it's easily the most accessible.

[AlienEater]

It's truly sad when books like Grapes of Wrath, 1984, Catch 22, Of Mice and Men...etc are wasted on a teen

Catch 22 took me quite a while to get into, but I really enjoyed it by the end, Of Mice and Men was alright but I read it in school (same with To Kill A Mocking Bird, Animal Farm, Lord Of The Flies), I liked I984, Catcher In The Rye is a great book. Grapes Of Wrath is OK at best

I was thinking more along the lines of "classics" that only old women enjoy, though

[Schyma]

^Like who? Explain.

I believe the ones I named are all widely considered "classics".Grapes Of Wrath is OK at best I just got through with it a couple of days ago and I must say it's one of the best books I've ever read. Epic in every sense of the word, written out of passionate conviction by the master of story telling. Not only a dramatization of the forced migration of "the Okies"; it's a dramatization as well of the plight of the dispossed everywhere. Certainly a milestone in American fiction and also a great social document of the depression era. Classic? Very much so....

Has anyone read Jailbird by Vonnegut or possibly Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger?

[CabbageStabbage]

That's a pretty easy read. It's a pamphlet: direct, short, full of catchy slogans. In terms of that sort of literature it's easily the most accessible.

It was full of catchy slogans, but I didn't really find it had much substance. It was all REBEL without much reason why.

[Jon]

Got the Rum Diary by Hunter Thompson to read on holiday :)

Nothing will wake me up at 3am tomorrow morning to get on a flight than a Hunter Thompson :)

[Jude]

You've piqued my interest. Which books?
Oh...lots. The two that most readily spring to mind are Dracula (badly written and boring) and The Great Gatsby (too loaded down with ridiculous symbolism to be seriously enjoyed).

Not to mention James Joyce.

[Jude]

It's truly sad when books like Grapes of Wrath, 1984, Catch 22, Of Mice and Men...etc are wasted on a teen that misunderstands the book completely.
Partly true, though of the books you've listed that I've read, all are good. I never said ALL classics are bad, just a significant number.

Personally I think a book becoming classic has more to do with the author's style/content coinciding with a present or future trend in literature/"intellectualism" than with out-and-out quality. Sort of like how music works, really.

Not to mention that kids read classics at school. That ruins everything. I liked Lord of the Flies until we over-analyzed it.

This is also true...reading books in school, even good ones, ruins them because A) you're reading them under pressure and B) teacher insist on tearing them apart for "analysis" which is utterly stupid and pointless and really just ruins a good story.

[AlienEater]

^Like who? Explain.

Jane Eyre. Stuff like that.

And Grapes Of Wrath really isn't that good. We obviously have different tastes in literature.

[Jon]

I thought Of Mice And Men was crap, but I guess that's GCSEs for you.

[Noyana]

When the Emporer was Divine

actually a very quick and interesting read. It's written from the perpspective of a japanese family after pearl harbor so it deals with the father going off to an internment camp and how the family copes and lives in america

[Syncratic]

Partly true, though of the books you've listed that I've read, all are good. I never said ALL classics are bad, just a significant number.

The Grapes of Wrath was a little boring at first but was great near the end.

[Elmo McCheese]

While we're on the subject of 15 year old kids not being able to appreciate classics, I'll just say this. I finished reading Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises yesterday. I thought it was thoroughly boring, the plot did not capture me at all. So if anyone has read the book you can tell me if you disagree or agree with me.

Yeah I realize it was heartbreaking with the whole "what could have been" theme, but I really just found it hard to pay attention to and get interested in.

And yes, I'm 15 :)

[CabbageStabbage]

On the subject of classics and Hemingway: Old Man and the Sea was very mediocre.

I read For Whom the Bell Tolls and it blew Old Man and the Sea out of the water.

Then again, I did read OMATS for school...

By the way, what's the deal with minimalism? Hemingway does it well since all of characters are like macho and stuff, but when I read a story by Chuck Palahniuk it seemed so forced. Putting periods where commas should be and beginning every other sentence with "And" is annoying, not minimalist.

[Jude]

On the subject of classics and Hemingway: Old Man and the Sea was very mediocre.


That's exactly the kind of book I'm talking about. Anyone can tell it's a terrible story...it's clear that it became a "classic" for other reasons.

[Janeway]

I just started Affinity by Sarah Waters. I loved Tipping the Velvet, and I bought this on a whim that it would be equally as good. So far I like it better, but maybe because I have a fettish for prison.

[Six Foot Revolver]

Atm, I'm reading Past Mortem by Ben Elton.

[Iskandar]

Oh...lots. The two that most readily spring to mind are Dracula (badly written and boring) and The Great Gatsby (too loaded down with ridiculous symbolism to be seriously enjoyed).
Hmm, I hated the diction of GG when I started it, but I grew to appreciate his style. It's very original and suits the flavour of the book and the time in which it was written.
Not to mention James Joyce.
Well, he's an acquired taste.

One either thinks he's sheer genius or hates him; but you can't deny he's unique.
This is also true...reading books in school, even good ones, ruins them because A) you're reading them under pressure and B) teacher insist on tearing them apart for "analysis" which is utterly stupid and pointless and really just ruins a good story.
Sometimes I've actually had good experiences with that, when I've had good teachers who honestly liked their work and were knowledgable about the books they taught. Getting into LOTF and picking up subtleties added a lot to the story when I re-read it this year.

... then, however, I had a biased bitch of a teacher whose every other word was "this is why socialism can't work" while we read Animal Farm....

[CabbageStabbage]

... then, however, I had a biased bitch of a teacher whose every other word was "this is why socialism can't work" while we read Animal Farm....

I thought George Orwell was a socialist, just not a Stalinist, and Animal Farm was against Stalinism.

[AlienEater]

Yeah, that's right.

[jazzfromhell]

All the Pretty Horses had some parts that were really boring, some that I couldn't stop reading, and a lot in between. Now on to the Kite Runner.

[vipertongue]

I have been reading slaughterhouse five

[3rdplanet]

I have just this moment started The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson.

[ATM]

I just finished Me Talk Pretty One Day, and now I am starting Frank Zappa's biography.

[sketchyjoe]

It was full of catchy slogans, but I didn't really find it had much substance. It was all REBEL without much reason why.That's why it's easy to read. It's arguments are full of massive flaws, but it is well-written.

[sexymuffin]

I have been reading slaughterhouse five

fantastic book.

[thedeadwalk!]

Just finished Kafka on the Shore. It's definitely fanciful, but I think loses itself in its own metaphors and lacks depth into what's going on.

[Jude]

One either thinks he's sheer genius or hates him; but you can't deny he's unique.

Same with those retarded "death jazz" bands :\

I thought George Orwell was a socialist, just not a Stalinist, and Animal Farm was against Stalinism.
That's right...which makes those teachers all the funnier.

[Electronic Wolf]

Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I started on it two days ago, and I've not enjoyed one bit.

[Tyr]

I'm readning Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy at the moment and I only got about fifty pages left.
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I started on it two days ago, and I've not enjoyed one bit.
But Marquez is good!

[jazzfromhell]

I've been considering reading Marquez's book 100 Years of Solitude.

[Tyr]

I've been considering reading Marquez's book 100 Years of Solitude.
Do it! It is really good. It's my favourite Marquez's book.

[CabbageStabbage]

I am reading Trainspotting right now. I got used to the whole write-out-the-accent-phonetically thing.

[jazzfromhell]

Do it! It is really good. It's my favourite Marquez's book.


Yeah, I have to finish the Kite Runner before I read anything else, it's the last book on my summer reading list. After that, I'm not sure what I'm gonna read. The ones I'm considering most are Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison) and Siddartha (Herman Hesse).

[Jude]

I am reading Trainspotting right now. I got used to the whole write-out-the-accent-phonetically thing.
I hate when writers do that, it just makes the book that much more obnoxious to read.

Except, not to keep bringing up Tom Wolfe, Tom Wolfe, who does it amusingly well.

[CabbageStabbage]

I hate when writers do that, it just makes the book that much more obnoxious to read.

Except, not to keep bringing up Tom Wolfe, Tom Wolfe, who does it amusingly well.

It's 50x more annoying when someone thinks they're all cool and postmodern and whatever and don't put any markings around dialogue. Use quote marks or dashes, jeez!

Yeah, I have to finish the Kite Runner before I read anything else, it's the last book on my summer reading list. After that, I'm not sure what I'm gonna read. The ones I'm considering most are Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison) and Siddartha (Herman Hesse).

Siddartha was good. That reminds me, I have to finish the rest of the books of Hermann Hesse, after I read Trainspotting. I have Narziss and Goldmund, and The Glass Bead Game left on my list.

[Jude]

It's 50x more annoying when someone thinks they're all cool and postmodern and whatever and don't put any markings around dialogue. Use quote marks or dashes, jeez!



That's grounds for me to just quit a book right off. And I'm obsessive enough that I'll read almost anything through just for the sake of completion.

[jazzfromhell]

Cormac McCarthy does that. It took me a bit of getting used to, but really, I don't know what you guys are getting so worked up about. You'd really quit a book, just based on that? Not to be an asshole, but that's just closeminded. If anything, it adds a hint of change in the atmosphere for me, which I think is fine. All the Pretty Horses was far from being one of my favorite books, but any problems I had with it had nothing to do with whether it had quotation marks or not.

[jpj]

I've never read a book that didn't use quotations, but it sounds like something some pretentious twat would do to try and be "original." It seems like it would also be quite confusing.

[Jude]

You'd really quit a book, just based on that? Not to be an spatula, but that's just closeminded.
It's a matter of principle. I refuse to read a book by a pretentious twat (as the guy above me puts it) just because it was by a pretentious twat....also because doing something that assholy is general an indicator that the book itself is not going to deliver.

I've never read a book that didn't use quotations, but it sounds like something some pretentious twat would do to try and be "original."
They would and they have, and it's truly obnoxious. In fact, pretty much any form of poetic license you can think of has been introduced into a novel in attempts at originality, and generally all with the same result - it becomes repulsive.

[Syncratic]

... then, however, I had a biased bitch of a teacher whose every other word was "this is why socialism can't work" while we read Animal Farm....

Mine was like that too, only with Michael Moore, which had nothing to do with it and it got consistantly annoying. She also, this year (I had her in Freshman year) reported a friend of mine for drugs based solely on the fact that he had long hair and wore band shirts.

Animal Farm was a great book, however.

[jazzfromhell]

It's a matter of principle. I refuse to read a book by a pretentious twat (as the guy above me puts it) just because it was by a pretentious twat....also because doing something that assholy is general an indicator that the book itself is not going to deliver.

You can keep your principles, but they'll be keeping you away from books that you could enjoy. Cormac McCarthy is an author who doesn't use quotation marks. His book Blood Meridian was voted into the top 5 books of the past 25 years, in a NY Times article from a couple months ago that you may or may not remember. While this by no means makes it a great book, nor does it automatically mean that everyone is going to like it, it might be the best book you've ever read. Or you may hate it (but if you hate it because it doesn't have quotation marks, that's just bull****). However, you'll never know because you aren't gonna read it, just because you have some anal principle. Even if you can't help but see it as a flaw in someone's writing, not reading their work because of it is ridiculous. Your closemindedness is keeping you from reading great literature.


They would and they have, and it's truly obnoxious. In fact, pretty much any form of poetic license you can think of has been introduced into a novel in attempts at originality, and generally all with the same result - it becomes repulsive.

Pretentious or not, most will agree that McCarthy has skillz with the pen. And personally, I don't think the lack of quotation marks is just pretentious nonsense. I think it adds a sort of flavor to the dialogue, it's hard to describe...it kinda makes it feel more natural, so that it blends in with the narration. This way, when someone is talking, it doesn't feel like they're disturbing anything or pulling you out of the description. The dialogue sort of becomes part of the narration. I dunno, maybe I'm pretentious.

[Iskandar]

I hate when writers do that, it just makes the book that much more obnoxious to read.
There isn't much of a choice when you're dealing with fixed spellings. It's just something a writer is forced to do in order to show variation in pronounciation.

[Bass Queen]

ok, so right now im reading Hollywood Kids by Jackie Collins. I read Rock stars, and thought that was rad, so i decided to read another of her books.

[Jude]

You can keep your principles, but they'll be keeping you away from books that you could enjoy. Cormac McCarthy is an author who doesn't use quotation marks.
Then **** him. I'm a man of principles dammit. YOU CAN'T COMPROMISE YOUR PRINCIPLES!!!!

There isn't much of a choice when you're dealing with fixed spellings. It's just something a writer is forced to do in order to show variation in pronounciation.
Yeah but there's doing it subtlely, and then there's doing it obtrusively where you have to spell out every little thing, to the point where someone not familiar with the accent often has trouble figuring out what the character is saying.

[Surf]

so far no-one's mentioned Ridley Walker by Russel Hoban, which is written enitrely phonetically. but rather than hindering the writing, once you get into the rhythm of the words it becomes integral to the story, and the novel's all the better for it. a quote;

I dont have nothing only words to put down on paper. Its so hard. Some times theres mor in the emty paper nor there is when you get the writing down on it. You try to word the big things and they tern ther backs on you. Yet youwl see stanning stoans and ther backs wil talk to you

[Surtr]

Sharpe's Waterloo-Bernard Cornwell :)

I just finished reading The Salmon Of Doubt-Douglas N. Adams, I loved every moment of it :)

[jpj]

I'm reading that now, and I finished The Dharma Bums, which everyone should read.