The Book Thread (Official Thread) [Archive] - Page 8

micahistheballs

01/11/08, 12:59 PM

I love that book. It was a book the whole university had to read, and at the end of the semester they brought in Hosseini (sp?) to lecture and talk about it. So tight.
Awesome, where do you go to school?

fueledbyiz

01/11/08, 10:27 PM

AlexanderG

01/12/08, 05:41 AM

I am re reading the X-Wing series it is goooood.

tttygxlove

01/12/08, 07:44 AM

right now i'm reading Lord of the Flies for lit & comp. i absolutely hate it, but maybe that's just because i'm being forced to do all that extra work on it.

great book - it just goes on such a deeper level than most books I've ever read.
I suggest reading it again when it's not assigned

catscradle

01/12/08, 11:01 AM

i just finished the man in the high castle by philip k. dick and let me just say, "wow."

awesome book that i recommend everyone read.

middlenameboom

01/13/08, 04:15 AM

i read that one Emo Culture book from the AltPress editors or whatever.
and Blue Like Jazz - Donald Miller.

right now i'm reading Lord of the Flies for lit & comp. i absolutely hate it, but maybe that's just because i'm being forced to do all that extra work on it.

now i'm about to start And Then There Were None - Agatha Christie for a book report project.

You've got a great avatar. I love Eduardo.

i just finished the man in the high castle by philip k. dick and let me just say, "wow."

awesome book that i recommend everyone read.

You've got a great avatar as well. Philip K Dick is very cool. I read a scanner Darkly. My dad had an original hardcover copy sitting on our bookshelf.
I'll have to check this book out as well.

lindZ629

01/13/08, 05:42 PM

Zeran

01/13/08, 06:17 PM

i've heard a lot about the dave eggers books. are they as good as everyone says they are? i tend to usually stay away from the mass-hype everyone knows them books, like the da vinci code or whatever, so i'm wondering if these are actually decent books or what.

.Nihilist.

01/13/08, 06:34 PM

Chuck Palahniuk. everything i have read by him is great. except choke, it was written well... just could not get into it

boykosaurus

01/13/08, 06:36 PM

Awesome, where do you go to school?

Villanova, it's ok

eraserhead

01/13/08, 07:36 PM

has anyone ever read the book How to Read a Poem and Fall in Love With Poetry by Edward Hirsch for a high school English class? it's the most pretentious piece of shit book I've ever read.

Zeran

01/13/08, 08:04 PM

has anyone ever read the book How to Read a Poem and Fall in Love With Poetry by Edward Hirsch for a high school English class? it's the most pretentious piece of shit book I've ever read.

personally, i hate analyzing poetry so that book sounds like utter cack.

middlenameboom

01/15/08, 03:32 AM

I just went to Barnes & Noble today and had a ball

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz
What is the What - Dave Eggers
The Road - Cormac McCarthy
Killing Yourself to Live - Chuck Klosterman

plus I still have The Kite Runner and A Heatbreaking Work of Staggering Genius to read after I finish up You Shall Know Our Velocity...so I'm set for awhile

i've heard a lot about the dave eggers books. are they as good as everyone says they are? i tend to usually stay away from the mass-hype everyone knows them books, like the da vinci code or whatever, so i'm wondering if these are actually decent books or what.

I'm reading You Shall Know Our Velocity right now. It's OK, but I'm really not in love with it. I don't know if I'll pick any more of his stuff up.

Has anyone read George Saunders? I heard some very interesting stuff about him. I want to know if he's worth reading?

Ailite

01/16/08, 06:56 AM

Against The Day by Thomas Pynchon

Zeran

01/16/08, 08:47 AM

Against The Day by Thomas Pynchon

i just finished that book earlier this year. so good. thomas pynchon is my favorite author. everything the man writes is just phenomenal.

takingbackrufio

01/16/08, 11:12 AM

Just finished:

The Life and Narrative of Fredrick Douglass, which is simply awe-inspiring, probably one of the most genuine accounts of the horrors of slavery I've ever read. It's basically a page-turning autobiography that informs the reader of the experience.

Also finished The Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Schulz. This man's prose is fantastic. I suggest reading just a few passages to get an idea and you'll probably want to read more.

micahistheballs

01/16/08, 11:20 AM

Just Finished:
The Kite Runner. I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected to although I could've used just a little more happiness for the ending. Now to write a paper on it....

Zeran

01/16/08, 12:16 PM

literally just finished a couple hours ago perelandra by c.s. lewis, and am immediately following it up with that hideous strength by same author.

stayillogical

01/16/08, 12:56 PM

Just Finished:
The Kite Runner. I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected to although I could've used just a little more happiness for the ending. Now to write a paper on it....

I left it in my dorm room and I don't go back until next week. I've been dying to pick it up again ever since you mentioned you were reading it. I thought the ending was pretty perfect, just a tad bit of optimism and hope for the future. I want to read the author's latest book as well, A Thousand Splendid Suns.

01/16/08, 01:13 PM

Anyone want to recommend me some good fiction books?

Dervela

01/16/08, 01:20 PM

just started 'a million little pieces' by james frey. so far it's pretty crazy but i really like it.

IAPAI

01/16/08, 01:44 PM

Anyone want to recommend me some good fiction books?

for a 17 year old male, there is no better choice:

Jay McInerney - Bright Lights, Big City

Bret Easton Ellis - Less Than Zero

I just started reading "The Good Life" by McInerney..

Anyone else here read it?

Ailite

01/16/08, 02:25 PM

i just finished that book earlier this year. so good. thomas pynchon is my favorite author. everything the man writes is just phenomenal.
I'm skeptical, not because I don't like, but because its so huge.

richie

01/20/08, 05:53 PM

i didn't really like ellis' less than zero.boring...
and ive just finished haunted by palahniuk and im full of doubts.

AlternRocker16

01/20/08, 07:38 PM

I read these this past week..

"SLAM" by Nick Hornby
"Playing In Traffic" by Gail Giles
"Right Behind You" by Gail Giles

ForlrnPerplxity

01/20/08, 08:07 PM

ForlrnPerplxity

01/20/08, 08:09 PM

I finished reading The World Without Us by Alan Weisman early last week. I'd definitely recommend this book to everyone.

I'm halfway through Into the Wild, and it's good so far. Next up is Playing for Pizza by Grisham.

Stupendous_Man

01/20/08, 08:39 PM

Is anyone going to pick up the new Stephen King book "Duma Key?" So far the reviews have been very positive. They've been saying it's a lot like his older work.

Baby VenomVeins

01/21/08, 12:06 AM

http://www.andrewsmcmeel.com/godsdebris/

God's Debris anyone?
It's not about Christianity if the title turns you off.

ForlrnPerplxity

01/21/08, 12:52 AM

Is anyone going to pick up the new Stephen King book "Duma Key?" So far the reviews have been very positive. They've been saying it's a lot like his older work.
I'm definitely going to pick up. Have you read the 30 or so page preview on Amazon.com? Looks like it will be great.

ForlrnPerplxity

01/21/08, 01:04 AM

Baby VenomVeins

01/21/08, 10:27 AM

Does anybody have any recommendations on books that deal with philosophy/religion/spirituality? I'm planning to pick up either The God Delusion or The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins in addition to Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris and I'd like some books that give a more objective view of God being involved with the theories of science. I have looked at The Language of God by Francis Collins, but I don't like some of the things I've been reading in reviews.

Also, any other recs involved with philosophy/spirituality would be great. I don't want anything on Christianity, but any other books dealing with spirituality and the world around us would be fantastic.

The book from my last post would probably do it for you. I havent read the others books, but this fits the more objective view of God point and it's involved with science. The link is to the free e-book. Check it out!

http://www.andrewsmcmeel.com/godsdebris/ (http://www.andrewsmcmeel.com/godsdebris/)

Dervela

01/21/08, 01:38 PM

In a couple weeks, I'm going to go pick up:
Duma Key - Stephen King
The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe
Cinderella Man - Jeremy Schaap
All the Pretty Horses - Cormac McCarthy
The Namesake - Jhumpa Lahiri

Has anybody read any of these (besides Duma Key)? Thoughts?

i read all the pretty horses last yr in AP Lit. it's very, very descriptive but that's pretty much expected when it comes to mccarthy's writing style.

Jumpoff

01/21/08, 06:00 PM

Just picked up

Thomas Pynchon - Against the Day
Junot Diaz - The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
Sara Gruen - Water for Elephants

Hope they are as good as some of you guys say they are. :-D

IAPAI

01/21/08, 06:28 PM

i just finished "The Good Life" by Jay McInerney.. it was good.. I wish that I had known it was a continuation of a story that he had written before, though.. Reading the first part first would have been better, but I'm still planning on going back to it.

And I just picked up The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Pretty stoked to start that.

Jumpoff

01/22/08, 06:34 PM

Seriously people, everyone here (especially people who like Palahnuik et al) should read this fucking book:
http://www.amazon.com/Brief-Wondrous-Life-Oscar-Wao/dp/1594489580/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1199769484&sr=8-1

I wouldn't be hyping the shit out of this if it wasn't justified. This book is one of the best released in the past 20 years. It will be a landmark of modern literature. READ IT!!

ilu.

But seriously, I'm almost half way through the book already and I love it. Amazing book.

TJ Wells

01/22/08, 07:09 PM

I've been reading some extremely positive reviews of Duma Key, lots of them saying it's his best book in 20+ years.

Broken Parachute

01/22/08, 07:13 PM

I'm going to pick up The Gunslinger from the library tomorrow.

JustAnotherPoet

01/24/08, 08:34 AM

Does anybody have any recommendations on books that deal with philosophy/religion/spirituality? I'm planning to pick up either The God Delusion or The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins in addition to Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris and I'd like some books that give a more objective view of God being involved with the theories of science. I have looked at The Language of God by Francis Collins, but I don't like some of the things I've been reading in reviews.

Also, any other recs involved with philosophy/spirituality would be great. I don't want anything on Christianity, but any other books dealing with spirituality and the world around us would be fantastic.

the language of god is a pretty interesting one. it gets awfully technical and scientific at some points, but overall, really makes you wonder.

JustAnotherPoet

01/24/08, 08:49 AM

been reading alot lately
this summer i finally read Nothing Feels Good - Andy Greenwald and Cat's Craddle - Kurt Vonnegut
now i'm working on The Town That Forgot How to Breath - Kenneth J Harvey and my sister got me a copy of Twilight - Stephanie Myer
anyone read either of the latter two? any suggestions?

CubbyNick42

01/24/08, 09:11 AM

And I just picked up The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Pretty stoked to start that.
It took me like three weeks to get the first 70 pages done, then the other night I picked it up to read 10 more pages or so and I ended up reading for two hours. It's not an easy read but it's worth sticking with.

noselove

01/24/08, 07:24 PM

I'm reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven.

I thought it would be extreme cheesey, but it's totally enlightening. I'm loving it so far.

Jumpoff

01/25/08, 09:37 PM

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is possibly my favorite book now. I finally finished it today. Now on to Water for Elephants and Against the Day.

middlenameboom

01/26/08, 05:01 AM

I just finished George Saunders The Brief And Frightening Reign Of Phil. Very good. I think it would be an amazing book to read and discuss in a class. It's with out a doubt the strangest thing I've ever read. The characters aren't really human. They are kind of just random things like belt buckles and letters and pieces of machinery that are all assembled to make characters. It's incredibly interesting.

I also just started reading The Raw Shark Texts. It's pretty damn good so far.

Broken Parachute

01/26/08, 03:28 PM

Neo Cassady

01/26/08, 08:34 PM

I just got back from the library, they didn't have "The Gunslinger." I got "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut and "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" by Thornton Wilder.

Anyone read them and like/dislike them? I know a lot of people have read the Vonnegut book.

I'm about halfway through Slaughterhouse. I didn't really care for the first couple chapters, but it's grown on me a lot.

Broken Parachute

01/26/08, 08:42 PM

Yeah, I read that the first few chapters are written in a different style than the rest of the book.

Neo Cassady

01/26/08, 08:51 PM

Yeah, I read that the first few chapters are written in a different style than the rest of the book.

The first chapter is more like an author's note than an actual chapter, which threw me off.

takingbackrufio

01/28/08, 12:14 PM

Now reading Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe and Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

reductiondesign

01/28/08, 03:52 PM

Just finished McCarthy's The Road.

Astonishing.

AshesAshes

01/30/08, 07:05 PM

I just tried reading "Twilight" because all my friends liked it and it got great reviews.What a horrible book that was I got to page 308 and stopped reading.I need to kick all my friends in the nuts for making me waste my time.

I did finish Bob Dylan-Chronicles today it was fantastic

CubbyNick42

01/30/08, 07:12 PM

Just finished McCarthy's The Road.

Astonishing.
Finished it last night. Couldn't agree more. The room got a little dusty at the end.

takingbackrufio

01/31/08, 05:09 PM

Just finished "Chronicle of a Death Foretold" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I think that it's brilliant. It's basically a really clever farce of typical murder mysteries, and really insightful to the fatalist cultural attitude and blind allegiance to incompetent figures of authority.

classys

02/05/08, 11:57 PM

bump/ Reading The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger, i have no clue where it's going, but it is interesting.

ForlrnPerplxity

02/06/08, 12:13 AM

jadedromantic18

02/06/08, 08:27 AM

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath- its so amazing but really depressing.

Jumpoff

02/06/08, 01:33 PM

Here are the books I picked up last week:
Duma Key - Stephen King
Blood Meridian - Cormac McCarthy
The Moviegoer - Walker Percy
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins
The Namesake - Jhumpa Lahiri

Anybody read any of these? Thoughts?

Not into a Clockwork Orange, though I really wanted to be. The slang was annoying to me because I kept having to look for what it meant, and I never finished the boko because of it. I do want to read Blood Meridian though.

EndlessMike

02/06/08, 02:00 PM

I highly recommend Agent Zigzag by Ben Macintyre. It was one of the best books I've read in a long time.

LaDiabla

02/06/08, 06:46 PM

Not into a Clockwork Orange, though I really wanted to be. The slang was annoying to me because I kept having to look for what it meant, and I never finished the boko because of it. I do want to read Blood Meridian though.

If you want to understand Clockwork Orange better, watch the movie before you read the book. I started reading the book and got fed up too, so I just watched the movie and it was a lot easier after that. I normally don't like watching the book turned movie, but in that case it's a good thing :)

Baby VenomVeins

02/06/08, 07:04 PM

www.andrewsmcmeel.com/godsdebris (http://www.andrewsmcmeel.com/godsdebris)

Please read.

lindZ629

02/10/08, 12:00 PM

Just finished reading The Kite Runner...great book. I'm definitely going to check out A Thousand Splendid Suns after I finish reading everything else I have.

On to A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius!

ashesofapril234

02/10/08, 12:04 PM

I just finished On the Road and am on to Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by Dave Sedaris and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce.

Dervela

02/12/08, 01:20 PM

If you want to understand Clockwork Orange better, watch the movie before you read the book. I started reading the book and got fed up too, so I just watched the movie and it was a lot easier after that. I normally don't like watching the book turned movie, but in that case it's a good thing :)

i happened to watch that movie the other day before reading the book because so many people told me it was a must see. i thought it was a really weird movie.. how is in compared to the book? i kinda am tempted to read it after, although i usually hate doing that. i'm hoping the book is better than the movie?

symbiote28

02/12/08, 07:03 PM

Stephen King's Nightshift

micahistheballs

02/12/08, 09:57 PM

Currently reading Stephen Colbert's book. Hoping for some laughs.

CubbyNick42

02/12/08, 11:44 PM

Stephen King's Nightshift
Very nice. His short stories are some of his best stuff.

symbiote28

02/13/08, 02:22 AM

Very nice. His short stories are some of his best stuff.

yeah .. have u read them all? care to tell me which ones are the best?

Ailite

02/13/08, 07:16 AM

Just finished Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, now onto Blood Meridian

Amandazing

02/15/08, 01:24 PM

Tuesdays with Morrie.
My favorite. Well besides Go Ask Alice and Perks of Being a Wall Flower.

AShannon04

02/16/08, 10:35 AM

I just started Lovely Bones this morning and am about 80 pages in. It can be a little depressing and hard to get through at times, but I'm loving it. Time Traveler's Wife is next for me.

Broken Parachute

02/17/08, 12:03 AM

Anyone read any Jack Ketchum books?

Broken Parachute

02/19/08, 08:36 PM

I'm reading Invisible Monsters. I decided to give in and finish reading Palahniuk's books instead of just hating him based on the two I read.

CubbyNick42

02/19/08, 09:13 PM

Did you hate Survivor? That was my favorite. Choke was decent. Lullaby and Invisible Monsters were kind of lackluster.

AShannon04

02/20/08, 07:32 PM

Lovely Bones is fantastic. I'm sooooo close to the end and loving it.

As for Chuck P., I think Survivor and Choke were the only books I really liked by him. The others were all totally forgettable, IMO. My friend said Invisible Monsters is his favorite, and I've yet to read it, so I'll have to get to that eventually.

lindZ629

02/20/08, 07:33 PM

Fight Club, Choke, and Invisible Monsters are his best work...the rest are mediocre at best.

Broken Parachute

02/21/08, 01:34 AM

Did you hate Survivor? That was my favorite. Choke was decent. Lullaby and Invisible Monsters were kind of lackluster.

Fight Club, Choke, and Invisible Monsters are his best work...the rest are mediocre at best.I thought Choke was overrated but written very well. I liked the concept, but I think for a story that I had heard so much about it was somewhat of a letdown. I liked Fight Club but I thought that was a little overrated too. So far Invisible Monsters is very slow, but my friend told me Survivor was his best work so I'm going to read that next.

AShannon04

02/22/08, 12:54 PM

Time Traveler's Wife is awesome so far (I'm about 75 pages in). Has anyone else read it?

TuningIn

02/22/08, 04:23 PM

Time Traveler's Wife is awesome so far (I'm about 75 pages in). Has anyone else read it?
I loved that book. It only took me a couple days to read it. Henry and Claire's relationship is so beautiful.

MattRM

02/22/08, 04:29 PM

A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving is the best book I've read in a long, long time.

takingbackrufio

02/22/08, 06:01 PM

I picked this up today. I couldn't help myself when I saw it.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51lVGbQlvyL._SS500_.jpg

All three books ... I think it was just over $20 or something. I'm looking forward to a reread.

wewascontenders

02/22/08, 07:37 PM

i just finished reading The Catcher in the Rye.

billyboatkid

02/22/08, 07:49 PM

I've never read anything from Chuck P. and since its his birthday got any recommendations for me besides Fight Club?!

AShannon04

02/22/08, 07:53 PM

I've never read anything from Chuck P. and since its his birthday got any recommendations for me besides Fight Club?!

Survivor is his best book, IMO, although I've heard Invisible Monsters is good as well.

TuningIn

02/25/08, 04:12 PM

I just finished reading Atonement. Any recs?

AShannon04

02/25/08, 04:19 PM

haha, I love how I'm really enjoying the same book that a 15 year old girl likes as well.

takingbackrufio

02/25/08, 04:30 PM

haha, I love how I'm really enjoying the same book that a 15 year old girl likes as well.
A reader who dismisses children/young adult books because they lack "literary value" is not a true reader.

That's not to say that's what Atonement is, but nevertheless, I am never ashamed of reading something that is considered below my age or reading level.

AShannon04

02/25/08, 04:46 PM

A reader who dismisses children/young adult books because they lack "literary value" is not a true reader.

That's not to say that's what Atonement is, but nevertheless, I am never ashamed of reading something that is considered below my age or reading level.

oh, I don't feel guilty for enjoying the Time Traveler's Wife at all. More the other way around, I suppose. I was reading pretty crappy books at that age, and I think it's cool she liked it as well.

takingbackrufio

02/25/08, 05:39 PM

oh, I don't feel guilty for enjoying the Time Traveler's Wife at all. More the other way around, I suppose. I was reading pretty crappy books at that age, and I think it's cool she liked it as well.
Agreed. I wasn't criticizing anyone ... just mentioning that people should be able to enjoy books that are above or below their age group.

AShannon04

02/25/08, 07:05 PM

touche

Ailite

02/25/08, 07:57 PM

Read books by my avatar, Cormac McCarthy.

atticusfinch

02/25/08, 08:04 PM

I've been reading a fair amount of C.S. Lewis as of late. I just finished The Abolition of Man, and I'm getting ready to begin The Problem of Pain.

Also, if you're up for a humorous read, check out Good Omens written by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. If you enjoy A Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, odds are you'll enjoy this.

reductiondesign

02/25/08, 08:59 PM

CubbyNick42

02/25/08, 09:10 PM

Neo Cassady

02/25/08, 11:24 PM

Just started The Kite Runner. It'll probably take me a while due to school eating up my free time, but I can tell it's going to be a good novel.

Mariam

02/26/08, 01:42 AM

I've never read anything from Chuck P. and since its his birthday got any recommendations for me besides Fight Club?!

Rant!

AShannon04

02/27/08, 03:59 PM

Rant!

I thought that was good until about the last 20 pages or so, then it just got too convoluted and confusing for its own good.

I just picked up Fargo Rock City (I love Chuck K.) and Love Is A Mixtape from Borders. Not sure which one I'll read first, although the last 2 books I read (Lovely Bones and Time Traveler's Wife) were both somewhat depressing, so maybe I'll read Chuck first.

CellarGhosts

02/27/08, 04:16 PM

I'm actually reading an old novelization of Back to the Future that I found at a flea market :-D
it's actually really cool, not watered-down or anything like that at all.

sateendreem

02/27/08, 04:22 PM

Just finished Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. It was good, but I was told American Gods is much better, which is the one I started Sunday. And so far it's so good.

anamericangod

02/27/08, 04:24 PM

I have been completely absorbed in Bukowski lately. The Pleasures of the Damned is such an amazing collection, and The Last Night of the Earth Poems is really good as well.

As for novels, Looking For Alaska is sitting on my bed, waiting to be opened.

anamericangod

02/27/08, 04:25 PM

Just finished Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. It was good, but I was told American Gods is much better, which is the one I started Sunday. And so far it's so good.

Neverwhere is good, but American Gods is arguably the greatest book I have ever read. Hence, the username.

sateendreem

02/27/08, 04:28 PM

Neverwhere is good, but American Gods is arguably the greatest book I have ever read. Hence, the username.

Neverwhere was good to me and it ended like it should have, which is what I liked. My boyfriend said that American Gods is sooooo much better than Neverwhere. And I'm only 148 pages into it so far and I'm hooked. I'm glad you took your name from the book, gives you class and style and intelligence in my opinion. I can't wait to finish it. I'll let you know when I do.

PadraicPrincess

02/27/08, 04:35 PM

Just started The Kite Runner. It'll probably take me a while due to school eating up my free time, but I can tell it's going to be a good novel.

It is ridiculously good. You will not be able to put it down at some parts. A Thousand Splendid Suns is also very good.

AShannon04

02/27/08, 05:17 PM

The Time Traveler's Wife is probably one of my top 3 favorite books of all time. I highly recommend it.

hallelujah23

02/27/08, 05:57 PM

The Time Traveler's Wife is probably one of my top 3 favorite books of all time. I highly recommend it.

I'm about halfway through right now. Really liking it so far.

hallelujah23

02/27/08, 06:05 PM

takingbackrufio

02/27/08, 07:06 PM

Anybody who reads CS Lewis needs to read Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. The latter is essentially a response to The Chronicles of Narnia.

Zeran

02/27/08, 08:29 PM

Anybody who reads CS Lewis needs to read Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. The latter is essentially a response to The Chronicles of Narnia.

i read his dark materials and thought it was great. i'm also a big fan of CS Lewis, but i haven't read any of the chronicles, for some reason.

MorningWillCome

02/28/08, 08:44 AM

a heartbreaking work of staggering genius
and
you shall know our velocity!
-both from dave eggers

anything from kerouac.

slickwataris

02/28/08, 09:33 AM

Download a copy of Beautiful Children

http://www.beautifulchildren.net/read/

good til 2/29

thursday727

02/29/08, 04:32 PM

I just finished The Rules of Attraction by Bret Easton Ellis.The book itself was good but the ending wasn't that great. I'm thinking of getting some other stuff by Ellis , maybe Less Than Zero or Glamorama.
I also might finally try to finish reading A Heartbreaking Work Of Staggering Genious (i've had it for two years and tried to read it like 5 times but never finished)
I hear good things about the novel House Of Leaves worth checking out?

takingbackrufio

02/29/08, 05:33 PM

I'm rereading Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain right now for a class. Just as brilliant as the first time, if not more, and deeply complicated when you really start to think about it and do some research. The wealth of secondary literature on it is fascinating ... so many perspectives from so many credible crtiics.

Broken Parachute

02/29/08, 08:40 PM

I love Huck Finn.

scmaley

02/29/08, 08:58 PM

Currently reading:

Blood Meridian - McCarthy

On my shelf to read:

One Hundred Years of Solitude - Marquez
Underworld - DeLillo
Infinite Jest - Wallace
Gravity's Rainbow - Pynchon
Blindness - Saramago
The Rules of Attraction - Ellis
Only Revolutions - Danielewski
In Cold Blood - Capote
Trainspotting - Welsh
Ulysses - Joyce
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle - Murakami
As I Lay Dying - Faulkner

Where should I start next?
Only read Ulysses if you have a ton of time and access to an annotated edition. My professor (I read it for Modern Novel) is writing a book on it, so we spent about 4 weeks of the course just discussing that one book. We hardly scratched the surface. I wish that I'd read A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man before I read Ulysses. I think it might have helped to explain Steven Dedalus's character a little bit more.
As I Lay Dying was pretty good. Although I hated Faulkner's Sanctuary when I started it, I ended up loving it by the end. It deals with the nature of evil, to put it simply. It's disturbing and twisted, and I loved it.

scmaley

02/29/08, 08:59 PM

I've never read anything from Chuck P. and since its his birthday got any recommendations for me besides Fight Club?!

I liked Diary, but it might be just a little bit girlier than Fight Club. Invisible Monsters had me so hooked I could hardly put it down.

Colorblind!

02/29/08, 09:05 PM

I think J-Pod is an amazing book, if any of you are into quirky novels, I have no idea.
Also, I would like to read As I Lay Dying.

thursday727

03/01/08, 12:46 AM

I just started reading Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas. I'm a quarter of the way through and it's amazing.

tttygxlove

03/02/08, 10:18 AM

Just started 1984 by George Orwell
pretty good so far.

Jessooker

03/02/08, 10:28 AM

I began In Cold Blood by Truman Capote last night. I'm about 100 pages in and I love it.

AShannon04

03/02/08, 11:35 AM

I just started Love Is A Mixtape today by Rob Sheffield and am liking it a lot. Unfortunately, classes start again tomorrow, and I'll barely have any time to read, so it looks like I'll have to put it down for a few months until school is over and I can dedicate more time to reading for fun. Fuck classes.

Brokenhill

03/02/08, 11:40 AM

For school, we've been reading Tuesdays With Morrie. It's alright...

But the book i'm currently working through at home is Inside Out, by Nick Mason
Which I like a lot.

Ailite

03/02/08, 11:50 AM

Currently reading:

Blood Meridian - McCarthy
So am I, its fantastic

I bought The Best of American Non-Required Reading yesterday

dostoevsky

03/02/08, 12:07 PM

I'm currently reading Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky. I'm only about 30 pages in and hardly a thing has happened plot-wise so far, but I'm fascinated by it already.

Reading Notes from Underground (a short novel of his) before this helped alot. It helps you get used to his writing style and the ideas/themes he puts forward in later novels. I've got The Idiot and The Brothers Karamazov for when I'm done reading this.

I love reading but hardly ever sit down and do it which is a shame.

Zeran

03/02/08, 12:21 PM

notes from the underground is fantastic. dostoevsky is the man.

anamericangod

03/02/08, 12:24 PM

I began In Cold Blood by Truman Capote last night. I'm about 100 pages in and I love it.

Have you seen the movie?

I just started Love Is A Mixtape today by Rob Sheffield and am liking it a lot. Unfortunately, classes start again tomorrow, and I'll barely have any time to read, so it looks like I'll have to put it down for a few months until school is over and I can dedicate more time to reading for fun. Fuck classes.

That is shitty. Stay up all night reading it. I couldn't stand to put a book away for months.

Jessooker

03/02/08, 12:27 PM

Have you seen the movie?

No I haven't yet.

anamericangod

03/02/08, 12:31 PM

No I haven't yet.

Definitely be sure to do that when you finish the book. It is brilliant. Phillip Seymour Hoffman gives one of the greatest performances I have ever seen.

Jessooker

03/02/08, 12:47 PM

Definitely be sure to do that when you finish the book. It is brilliant. Phillip Seymour Hoffman gives one of the greatest performances I have ever seen.

Yeah I want to see it. I saw the other movie Infamous on tv and really liked that, so after I read the book I'm going to check out Capote.

dostoevsky

03/02/08, 12:47 PM

notes from the underground is fantastic. dostoevsky is the man.

I've re-read the first half of that so many times and get something new from it each time.

heavenlydemonic

03/02/08, 01:00 PM

1984 by George Orwell

I'm currently reading The Tokyo Zodiac Murders by Soji Shimada

Broken Parachute

03/02/08, 01:05 PM

I have a list of about 35 books I want to read. Whenever I see one I add it to my queue of books I want to read on Facebook. I'm never going to be bored again, haha. The ones I really want to read:

"The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" by Edmund Morris
"Truman" by David McCullough
"Oil!" by Upton Sinclair
"Einstein, Picasso: Space, Time, and the Beauty That Causes Havoc" by Arthur I. Miller
"As I Lay Dying" by William Faulkner
"King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa" by Adam Hochschild

sateendreem

03/02/08, 03:06 PM

Definitely be sure to do that when you finish the book. It is brilliant. Phillip Seymour Hoffman gives one of the greatest performances I have ever seen.

I just finished American Gods by Neil Gaiman... I think it's the best book I've ever read in my entire life. My boyfriend's Myspace name is Mr. Wednesday. I thought you would like to know that since you also loved the book too.

Stupendous_Man

03/02/08, 06:19 PM

I just finished American Gods by Neil Gaiman... I think it's the best book I've ever read in my entire life. My boyfriend's Myspace name is Mr. Wednesday. I thought you would like to know that since you also loved the book too.
I thought that was also an amazing book. it's one of my favorites of all time. If you liked that be sure to check out the short story about Shadow in Gaiman's last short story collection.

Adeniz19

03/03/08, 03:36 PM

Read books by my avatar, Cormac McCarthy.I think I'm going to check out The Road. Seems to be getting a lot of buzz. What else by him is a must read (besides NCFOM)?

lindZ629

03/03/08, 03:43 PM

I have about 50 pages left in A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. I like it, but it's not one of my favorites. You Shall Know Our Velocity was better, in my opinion.

Next I hopefully plan on reading Into the Wild - Jon Krakauer

On my bookshelf:
The Road - Cormac McCarthy
What is the What - Dave Eggers
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz
Killing Yourself to Live - Chuck Klosterman

On my list to purchase:
A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini
Hey Nostradamus - Douglas Coupland
On the Road - Jack Kerouac
How We Are Hungry - Dave Eggers

Any suggestions?

AShannon04

03/03/08, 03:47 PM

Baby VenomVeins

03/03/08, 03:52 PM

Just finished Replay by Ken Grimwood. Great book.

lindZ629

03/03/08, 03:57 PM

Killing Yourself To Live is fantastic. I love Chuck K., and right now I'm in the middle of Fargo Rock City. What Is The What is pretty good too, but it's quite different from Dave Eggers' other stuff, for better or worse.
What is the What just seems like a great story and really all of Egger's books are different. You Shall Know Our Velocity is fiction, How we are Hungry includes a bunch of short stories, Heartbreaking Work is an autobiographical fictional memoir, and What is the What is a fictional memoir.

I love Klosterman. Most of his books make for nice in-between books, since they're so easy to read. I'm not sure about Fargo Rock City, since I don't really have an interest in 80s metal, but I'll probably read it eventually.

AShannon04

03/03/08, 04:01 PM

What is the What just seems like a great story and really all of Egger's books are different. You Shall Know Our Velocity is fiction, How we are Hungry includes a bunch of short stories, Heartbreaking Work is an autobiographical fictional memoir, and What is the What is a fictional memoir.

I love Klosterman. Most of his books make for nice in-between books, since they're so easy to read. I'm not sure about Fargo Rock City, since I don't really have an interest in 80s metal, but I'll probably read it eventually.

I agree that Eggers' stuff is all pretty different, but at the same time, I find that all of his books (except What Is The What) do have some of the same feelings and themes throughout. Maybe its just me though.

Fargo Rock City is pretty good, but like you, I'm not a huge fan of 80s metal. I was hoping it'd be more like a memoir than merely the history of the genre.

Kid B

03/03/08, 09:02 PM

im reading a heartbreaking work.
only like 40 pages into it though.
seems good so far.
hes funny :-)

erringtonavenue

03/03/08, 09:44 PM

just finished the frontiersmen and im reading a book called "trinity" about ireland i think

Jessooker

03/10/08, 05:55 PM

Jessooker

03/10/08, 05:59 PM

sateendreem

03/11/08, 11:17 AM

I'm picking this book up today.

I LOVED this book. I think it's the best I've ever read! I think you will love it too.

Jessooker

03/11/08, 11:48 AM

I LOVED this book. I think it's the best I've ever read! I think you will love it too.

I've only heard great things. I can't wait to start it.

sateendreem

03/11/08, 01:45 PM

I've only heard great things. I can't wait to start it.

Start now! But really I heard it was so good. Words can't describe how good it is.

Stupendous_Man

03/11/08, 01:48 PM

I'm about 100 pages into The Time Traveller's Wife and I am throughly enjoying it. The author does a good job of using the time travel gimmick to it's fullest extent.

tttygxlove

03/11/08, 01:53 PM

For school, we've been reading Tuesdays With Morrie. It's alright...

I loved that book.
The Five People You Meet In Heaven is good, too.
It has been a little over blown but it has a good heart and message

Jessooker

03/11/08, 02:26 PM

Start now! But really I heard it was so good. Words can't describe how good it is.

Ha I actually started it after I posted that, I'm only about 100 pages in, but it's so interesting.

lindZ629

03/11/08, 02:30 PM

Well thanks to this thread I'll eventually pick up The Time Traveler's Wife and American Gods, but after I finish the 6 or so books I have waiting for me.
I've just started Into the Wild and it seems like a great read.

odizzle_word

03/11/08, 03:03 PM

Just finished Kim by Rudyard Kipling. I didn't expect to like it, but it was pretty good.

Over break I have to read Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh and Gandhi's autobiography (both for class). I'm looking forward to those.

And it seems like a lot of people are reading The Time Traveler's Wife. I don't know why, but I could not get into that book at all. Read about half of it and got bored. Hopefully the movie version takes the interesting concepts that the book presents and makes it more... bearable.

sateendreem

03/14/08, 11:15 AM

Ha I actually started it after I posted that, I'm only about 100 pages in, but it's so interesting.

Wait until you're done to judge, but it grabs you right away doesn't it?

luvtheveronicas

03/15/08, 07:30 PM

Harry Potter.
No book thread is complete without a reference to JKR's masterpeice...

:bowdown:

AShannon04

03/15/08, 07:46 PM

Brokenhill

03/22/08, 01:32 AM

Today I started reading: Crazy Diamond: Syd Barrett & the dawn of Pink Floyd

contend in vain

03/22/08, 01:39 AM

Right now I'm reading The Road and an inconvenient book

takingbackrufio

03/22/08, 01:43 AM

Reading a few things right now, but I am especially liking "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" by Mordecai Richler. What a brilliant author.

Broken Parachute

03/24/08, 03:49 PM

I'm going to the library in a little while to see if they have "Einstein, Picasso: Space, Time, and the Beauty That Causes Havoc" by Arthur I. Miller. I'm so interested in that book.

Has anyone ever read "The Iceman Cometh" by Eugene O'Neill? A friend recommended it to me.

CellarGhosts

03/24/08, 04:00 PM

Right now I'm finishing up Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain.

im_wide_awake

03/27/08, 08:33 AM

I'm reading What is the What by Dave Eggers. I like it even better than HBWOSG

heyozzie

03/27/08, 08:45 AM

Right now I'm finishing up Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain.

that guy is so badass. i freaking love his show. i'll have to check that out.

i'm reading the genetic odyssey by spencer wells and i just finished haunted by chuckie p. i had to go back and read that one, i skipped it when i read all his stuff for some reason.

CellarGhosts

03/27/08, 09:44 AM

that guy is so badass. i freaking love his show. i'll have to check that out.

i'm reading the genetic odyssey by spencer wells and i just finished haunted by chuckie p. i had to go back and read that one, i skipped it when i read all his stuff for some reason.
haha indeed, i love it too. he's got a few other books, including a couple works of fiction. I actually finished that one up (Kitchen Confidential) and am now starting the Nasty Bits, which pertains to his experiences doing No Reservations.

BikeMore

03/27/08, 02:46 PM

I just started re-reading Regarding the Pain of Others by Susan Sontag. It's a pretty sweet book about how media driven our culture is and it addresses the idea of being desensitized to war imagery.

Some days I swear good nonfiction is so underrated.

But I just finished reading Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer. I rarely read a book in hopes that it is as good as I thought the movie was, but this was definitely an exception. I almost never laugh out loud literally when reading something, and this book definitely had it's moments.

Zeran

03/27/08, 04:55 PM

i'm currently reading the man who was thursday by g.k. chesterton. it's great, and quite funny as well.

lindZ629

03/27/08, 07:43 PM

I'm about 70 pages into The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. I like it so far, but the whole me not understanding Spanish makes reading this a little difficult.

takingbackrufio

03/27/08, 08:16 PM

Finished The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz by Mordecai Richler. One of those novels that simultaneously informs and makes me laugh at the same time. Love it.

Broken Parachute

03/30/08, 01:59 PM

I'm reading "The Iceman Cometh" by Eugene O'Neill right now.

eraserhead

03/30/08, 02:04 PM

i'm reading The Sound and the Fury by Faulkner again.

AShannon04

03/30/08, 05:37 PM

I'm reading A Fighter's Heart right now. Really interesting book about the world of the various types of martial arts. I'm about halfway through it.

drudo182

03/30/08, 05:45 PM

I'm a little over 300 pages into The Ruins right now. I really dig it.

Can't wait for Friday.

takingbackrufio

03/31/08, 07:37 PM

Took out Don DeLillo's White Noise the other day, so I'm reading that along with some other school stuff. Good books tend to introduce its major themes in the first chapter -- and I'm getting that feeling from this one.

positive hearts

04/01/08, 12:44 PM

The last book I finished reading was the third book in Y: The Last Man. The last non-graphic book I finished was American Gods by Neil Gaiman, and that was a fantastic read, even more so if you're interested in mythology, especially Norse, like I am. Currently I'm about one fourth of the way through The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay and it's already one of my favorite books.

Zeran

04/01/08, 02:32 PM

i'm currently reading the watchmen. anyone read it before?

fantasma

04/01/08, 02:58 PM

I'm reading High Fidelity by Nick Hornby. It is really similar to the movie. they did a great job casting that thing.

positive hearts

04/01/08, 03:52 PM

i'm currently reading the watchmen. anyone read it before?

I have and I loved it, one of my favorite comic books of all time. Alan Moore is a genius plain and simple. I can't wait for the movie, I really think they're going to pull it off fantastically.

Zeran

04/01/08, 05:21 PM

I have and I loved it, one of my favorite comic books of all time. Alan Moore is a genius plain and simple. I can't wait for the movie, I really think they're going to pull it off fantastically.

nice. i've heard a lot of good things about it, and so far it's really awesome. i'm about 1/3 of the way through.

positive hearts

04/01/08, 05:58 PM

nice. i've heard a lot of good things about it, and so far it's really awesome. i'm about 1/3 of the way through.

You're totally in for a treat, somehow the book just manages to get better and better as it goes on.

lindZ629

04/01/08, 07:57 PM

Bob Payne

04/01/08, 08:20 PM

Just picked up Kurt Vonnegut's posthumous Armageddon In Retrospect. Just started.

Jessooker

04/01/08, 08:26 PM

I just started reading Long Way Round: Chasing Shadows Across the World by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman. I really like it so far.

positive hearts

04/01/08, 08:57 PM

Would someone who's not interested in mythology still enjoy American Gods?

I'm pretty sure it would be almost as enjoyable without an interest in mythology, maybe in a tad bit different way, but Gaiman is such a great writer and storyteller that it would be a wonderful read if the people were just taken as characters, and not as much focus was placed on myth by the reader. I do have to warn you that the characters and the basic plot are drawn from mythology but Gaiman uses them in such a masterful way that's all his own, it is great regardless.

ThexQuietxCull

04/01/08, 08:59 PM

i know this has been done, but i need some book recs. ill take any and all recs

positive hearts

04/01/08, 09:03 PM

Have you read The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay or House of Leaves? Those are my first two recommendations.

lindZ629

04/01/08, 09:25 PM

I'm pretty sure it would be almost as enjoyable without an interest in mythology, maybe in a tad bit different way, but Gaiman is such a great writer and storyteller that it would be a wonderful read if the people were just taken as characters, and not as much focus was placed on myth by the reader. I do have to warn you that the characters and the basic plot are drawn from mythology but Gaiman uses them in such a masterful way that's all his own, it is great regardless.
I'm thinking about reading it, I was just a little wary that I wouldn't fully comprehend what was going on without knowing much about mythology.
I haven't read anything by him yet, but I did see Stardust, which made me want to check him out.

positive hearts

04/01/08, 09:40 PM

I'm thinking about reading it, I was just a little wary that I wouldn't fully comprehend what was going on without knowing much about mythology.
I haven't read anything by him yet, but I did see Stardust, which made me want to check him out.

You can totally understand American Gods without much if any prior knowledge of mythology. He does a thorough job of describing what's going on so the reader can get it just based on what's presented in his book, it stands alone pretty well. There are parts of the book specifically devoted to explaining some myths and how they relate to the action in the story.

lindZ629

04/01/08, 09:53 PM

You can totally understand American Gods without much if any prior knowledge of mythology. He does a thorough job of describing what's going on so the reader can get it just based on what's presented in his book, it stands alone pretty well. There are parts of the book specifically devoted to explaining some myths and how they relate to the action in the story.
Alright you sold me. I shall be picking this up in the near future.

TJ Wells

04/01/08, 10:04 PM

I'm currently reading Evelyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy. Just about finished with Men at Arms, then onto Officers and Gentlemen.

TheBaroness

04/03/08, 03:25 AM

Just started reading Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson

notoaststereo

04/03/08, 03:33 AM

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers.

i just finished it and highly recommend it.

sateendreem

04/03/08, 03:46 PM

Have you read The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay or House of Leaves? Those are my first two recommendations.

House Of Leaves is a great book. Disturbing on so many levels.

odizzle_word

04/03/08, 03:53 PM

I'm currently reading Evelyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy. Just about finished with Men at Arms, then onto Officers and Gentlemen.

I finished Waugh's Vile Bodies last week. How do you like his stuff?

positive hearts

04/03/08, 04:01 PM

House Of Leaves is a great book. Disturbing on so many levels.

Is it ever and I can't believe I forgot to make it blue!

TJ Wells

04/03/08, 04:25 PM

I finished Waugh's Vile Bodies last week. How do you like his stuff?
The humor is extremely dry, I think I like that best.

sateendreem

04/03/08, 04:46 PM

Is it ever and I can't believe I forgot to make it blue!

I read it about three months ago. I couldn't read it without someone being in the room. It was disturbing from the very beginning. I really liked it though. I thought that would let you know that I had actually read the book of I put it in blue. They should make a movie out of that book.

takingbackrufio

04/08/08, 01:26 AM

Just finished one "novel" and another novella: Rasselas, Prince of Abssynia by Samuel Johnson, which was a very enjoyable read and simply fascinating to study. I also finished Maggie by Stephen Crane, which evoked much different emotions. It's purposefully a difficult read (not because of reading level, but because of the raw, realistic content), but as literature it's a profound work -- really strong stuff. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the life of the incredibly poor.

AppleJack7285

04/12/08, 05:38 PM

does anyone have any interesting and original vampires books to read? they are all starting to sound the same to me

LouderThanBombs

04/12/08, 06:47 PM

Candy Girl by Diablo Cody(she wrote Juno)

also...
James and the Giant Peach
Wuthering Heights
Pure Drivel

Kid B

04/12/08, 11:08 PM

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers.

i just finished it and highly recommend it.
Have you read anything else of Eggers'? I've only read A Heartbreaking Work, and want to know what to read next.

lovely864md

04/12/08, 11:25 PM

The Perks of Being a Wallflower...nuff said

notoaststereo

04/13/08, 12:14 AM

Have you read anything else of Eggers'? I've only read A Heartbreaking Work, and want to know what to read next.

You Shall Know Our Velocity! is my favorite book by him (and maybe ever).

How We Are Hungry is one of the bet short story books i've read. I'm in the middle of What Is The What. Its good but i dont enjoy it as much as the others.

Kid B

04/13/08, 11:55 AM

The Perks of Being a Wallflower...nuff said
I don't care how much hate that book gets around here, it's amazing.
You Shall Know Our Velocity! is my favorite book by him (and maybe ever).

How We Are Hungry is one of the bet short story books i've read. I'm in the middle of What Is The What. Its good but i dont enjoy it as much as the others.
Thanks for the feedback. I guess I'll pick up You shall know our velocity next. :-)

lovely864md

04/13/08, 01:15 PM

I don't care how much hate that book gets around here, it's amazing.

Thanks for the feedback. I guess I'll pick up You shall know our velocity next. :-)

Perks gets hate here? At the risk of sounding cheesy, that book changed my perspective on a lot of things.

lindZ629

04/13/08, 02:10 PM

I'm about 100 pages into The Time Traveler's Wife, and it's shaping up to be one of the best books I've read this year or probably will read so far.

4N6 science

04/13/08, 04:17 PM

i just bought The God Decision by Richard Dawkins, and im about 50 pages in and I think its a pretty good book explaining why god doesn't exist and pointing out the flaws of religious beliefs.

Kid B

04/13/08, 05:14 PM

Perks gets hate here? At the risk of sounding cheesy, that book changed my perspective on a lot of things.
Same. I read it a while ago during one of those periods where your taking in a lot of new experiences and stuff, and that book hit me really hard.

lovely864md

04/13/08, 05:20 PM

Same. I read it a while ago during one of those periods where your taking in a lot of new experiences and stuff, and that book hit me really hard.

Same as me, I read it several months ago when I was really starting to open my eyes up to a lot of things and everything about that book fit in with everything I was experiencing. I immediately lent it to several friends.

Kid B

04/13/08, 08:34 PM

Same as me, I read it several months ago when I was really starting to open my eyes up to a lot of things and everything about that book fit in with everything I was experiencing. I immediately lent it to several friends.
Haha, I lent it to all my friends too.
i just bought The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, and im about 50 pages in and I think its a pretty good book explaining why god doesn't exist and pointing out the flaws of religious beliefs.
fixed.

4N6 science

04/13/08, 08:46 PM

Haha, I lent it to all my friends too.

fixed.

thanks.

AShannon04

04/13/08, 08:54 PM

I don't care how much hate that book gets around here, it's amazing.

Thanks for the feedback. I guess I'll pick up You shall know our velocity next. :-)

You Shall Know Our Velocity is great, but I still think AHWOSG is my favorite book of his. I need to go back and read both of those one of these days.

Kid B

04/13/08, 08:57 PM

You Shall Know Our Velocity is great, but I still think AHWOSG is my favorite book of his. I need to go back and read both of those one of these days.
With all of this praise on Velocity, I am going to go get it as soon as i can.

abasementbaseme

04/13/08, 10:16 PM

With all of this praise on Velocity, I am going to go get it as soon as i can.

Personally, I liked "What is the What" better. The story held my interest a bit more than "Velocity" did. I am in the middle of "How We Are Hungry Now" and I am enjoying it quite a bit. I have been so busy lately that I haven't really had time to sit and commit to a book with a narrative right now, so I am trying the short story route and trying not to have ADD set in as a result.

AShannon04

04/13/08, 10:44 PM

I think What Is The What is my least favorite Eggers book. Even though Velocity was a novel, it felt a lot like a memoir to me, which is why I loved AHWOSG. What Is The What seemed too "foreign", IMO

I think it's also badass that Eggers designed the cover of Vheissu

XxmagnesiumxX

04/14/08, 11:54 AM

one of my favorite books that i read all the time is a book called King Dork by Frank Portman. Its got awesome music, sarcasm, a dork, blowjobs, and dead people. You should all read it...

buysoap

04/14/08, 12:12 PM

I'm interested in picking up one of the four Chuck Klosterman books... I've never read anything by him though. What would people who have read his stuff recommend?

airik625

04/14/08, 12:20 PM

Anyone know when Tucker Max's new book Assholes Finish First, is supposed to come out?

AShannon04

04/14/08, 12:23 PM

I'm interested in picking up one of the four Chuck Klosterman books... I've never read anything by him though. What would people who have read his stuff recommend?

I think they're all great, although Fargo Rock City is a bit boring if you're not into 80's Metal. You really can't go wrong with any of the others ones though. Killing Yourself To Live is an extremely quick read (I finished it in about a day and a half), Sex Drugs and Cocoa Puffs is awesome, and IV is great because it's a collection of shorter articles/interviews/chapters, so it's easy to pick up and put down whenever you have some free time.

It's been awhile since I've read Sex Drugs and Cocoa Puffs, so I need to go back and give that another read.

buysoap

04/14/08, 12:28 PM

I think they're all great, although Fargo Rock City is a bit boring if you're not into 80's Metal. You really can't go wrong with any of the others ones though. Killing Yourself To Live is an extremely quick read (I finished it in about a day and a half), Sex Drugs and Cocoa Puffs is awesome, and IV is great because it's a collection of shorter articles/interviews/chapters, so it's easy to pick up and put down whenever you have some free time.

It's been awhile since I've read Sex Drugs and Cocoa Puffs, so I need to go back and give that another read.
I was thinking about Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs as my first read actually. I think that's the one I hear the most talked about. I will probably pick that up and then grab another one at random. I do love anything 80's, so Fargo Rock City will probably be a fun read

remyy

04/14/08, 02:21 PM

Anyone know any good places to get PDF-novels?

odizzle_word

04/14/08, 02:39 PM

I just finished RK Narayan's The Painter of Signs and Gandhi's autobiography for my post-colonial Indian lit. class. Highly recommend both of them.

CstSnow

04/14/08, 10:40 PM

I was thinking about Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs as my first read actually. I think that's the one I hear the most talked about. I will probably pick that up and then grab aKinother one at random. I do love anything 80's, so Fargo Rock City will probably be a fun read

I would definitely consider going with Killing Yourself to Live first, all are good, but I believe reading that one first will set the others up a lot better.

AtlanticRadio

04/14/08, 10:44 PM

Anyone know when Tucker Max's new book Assholes Finish First, is supposed to come out?

It won't be until after the movie comes out, so at least a year.

airik625

04/15/08, 05:19 AM

It won't be until after the movie comes out, so at least a year.

Movie?

Ailite

04/15/08, 06:58 AM

Have you read anything else of Eggers'? I've only read A Heartbreaking Work, and want to know what to read next.
My favorite book, ever. You should get into YSKOV next.

I'm reading The Children's Hospital by Chris Adrian

PaintMeBlue

04/15/08, 11:03 AM

i'm in the mood to read some good adventure and fantasy books. anybody got any good suggestions of books you've really enjoyed? i really like lord of the rings and chronicles of narnia...

AtlanticRadio

04/15/08, 11:37 AM

Movie?

Yup, they are in the middle of casting for a movie based on the Austin Road Trip story. Tucker and Nils (DrunkRex) wrote it and are producing it. They have a Director, Casting Director, budget, the actor for Slingblade cast, and all sorts of shit. He's doing it independently so studios can't fuck it up. The blog for it is right here: http://www.ihopetheyservebeerinhell.com (http://www.ihopetheyservebeerinhell.com/)

diehtc0ke

04/15/08, 11:49 AM

Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami is pretty much the best contemporary novel I've read in a while.

notoaststereo

04/16/08, 01:00 AM

Personally, I liked "What is the What" better. The story held my interest a bit more than "Velocity" did. I am in the middle of "How We Are Hungry Now" and I am enjoying it quite a bit. I have been so busy lately that I haven't really had time to sit and commit to a book with a narrative right now, so I am trying the short story route and trying not to have ADD set in as a result.

i feel the opposite. Velocity! kept me through the whole way while What is the What has me losing interest every once in a while. How We Are Hungry is one of my favorite short story books ever.

alice+interiors

04/16/08, 04:02 AM

last book I read was On Honeymoon With Death by Quintin Jardine; I highly recommend.

averageblue

04/16/08, 10:16 AM

Rosemary's baby by Ira Levin. It was really amazing, one of my favorites.

Erzeal

04/16/08, 01:06 PM

Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse (Compilation)

Its a bunch of sci-fi short stories about the aftermath of the end of the world(People trying to survive etc).
Really great. Just came out.

jennakate

04/16/08, 01:16 PM

I'm in the middle of On The Road by Jack Kerouac. It's taken me years to get round to reading it and I'm liking it so far.

The one before then was a crappy crime novel my parents got me for Christmas.

AShannon04

04/16/08, 04:36 PM

Just picked up Rock On: An Office Power Ballad and My Boring Ass Life by Kevin Smith.

Chemical Love

04/16/08, 04:42 PM

I just read Into Think Air and I absolutely loved it. I really almost cried when Krakauer was describing Halls last words and his death.

sugarcoatedlies

04/17/08, 12:44 AM

i recently found out how to put ebooks in my ipod. i loaded it with the twilight series, fear and loathing in las vegas, the alchemist and trainspotting. i love carrying the books with me in my ipod, they only take about 2 mb's of space each! but they do drain the battery a bit.

anyone else enjoy ebooks?
i'm looking for some more irvine welsh titles :/

AShannon04

04/17/08, 10:29 AM

I posted this in the videogame thread yesterday, but I spent about an hour yesterday in the nicest/coolest Borders I've ever been in, one of the new "Concept Stores". They had tons of computers that you can use to search the store, digital computer kiosks where you can make your own mix CDs, and digital cameras/other gadgets. Very cool, and apparently, all their new stores will be like that.

topher465

04/17/08, 08:52 PM

Just finished "Of Mice and Men" and am almost finished with "The Winter of Discontent." John Steinbeck is my favorite author. I'm starting "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" this weekend.

AShannon04

04/17/08, 09:02 PM

I can't wait to reread A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius this summer. Definitely my favorite book ever.

Zeran

04/17/08, 09:43 PM

i'm reading the first book in the sword of truth series by terry goodkind. it's amazing.

AShannon04

04/18/08, 08:32 AM

Just started reading Kevin Smith's My Boring-Ass Life. I'm liking it a lot, and he seems like an awesome dude.

Kid B

04/18/08, 07:15 PM

Just started reading Kevin Smith's My Boring-Ass Life. I'm liking it a lot, and he seems like an awesome dude.
Kevin Smith as in Clerks? He wrote a book?

sweet

AShannon04

04/18/08, 07:18 PM

Kevin Smith as in Clerks? He wrote a book?

sweet

Yeah, he's written two books. The one I'm reading is basically a collection of his blog diary-like entries that took place over a year or so on Silentbobspeaks.com. His other one is called "Silent Bob Speaks" and I think it's just a general rant book.

From Wikipedia:

In 2005, Miramax Books released Smith's first tome, Silent Bob Speaks, a collection of previously published essays (most from Arena) dissecting pop culture, the movie-making business, and Smith's personal life.
His second book, My Boring-Ass Life: The Uncomfortably Candid Diary of Kevin Smith, published by Titan Books, was another collection of previously published essays (this time blogs from Smith's website www.silentbobspeaks.com) and reached #32 on the New York Times Best Sellers List.[26]

Throughout the time of his blogging/writing My Boring Ass Life, he was starting to make Clerks II, starred in Catch and Release, and helped Jason Mewes with his drug addiction. It all takes place from about 2005-2006.

Kid B

04/18/08, 07:48 PM

Yeah, he's written two books. The one I'm reading is basically a collection of his blog diary-like entries that took place over a year or so on Silentbobspeaks.com. His other one is called "Silent Bob Speaks" and I think it's just a general rant book.

From Wikipedia:

Throughout the time of his blogging/writing My Boring Ass Life, he was starting to make Clerks II, starred in Catch and Release, and helped Jason Mewes with his drug addiction. It all takes place from about 2005-2006.
That sounds cool. I'll pick it up sometime.

_jonas

04/18/08, 09:07 PM

the last book i read was the bible.
oh yeah the bible. the follow up, Revelations & Such, is much funnier in my opinion.

i figure theres no reason to go to google and search for, "super genius sounding books to show off to" because im mega fat and dc.
sue me.

micahistheballs

04/18/08, 09:25 PM

Currently reading Frankenstein for English Class. Enjoying it thus far.

Oddpac87

04/19/08, 12:24 AM

I've had to slow down the reading during school, but reading list for the start of the summer is as follows:

Everything I have yet to read by Chuck Palahniuk (Lullaby, Diary, Rant, Snuff)
e by Matthew Beaumont
Sellevision by Augusten Burroughs
Clown Girl by Monica Drake

AShannon04

04/19/08, 12:45 AM

neverender2113

04/25/08, 10:13 PM

i just want to tell you about this crazy book i just read written by my step-cousin/cousin-in-law brett harvey called "serotonia". he was suffering from depression and was put on Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors. Apparently during the early stages of treatment the drug greatly influenced his dreams making them seem more real. These dreams played out in his sleep, he would wake up, go about his day, but when he returned to sleep, the dreams would pick up right where they left off and progressed in chronological order. its fuckin crazy and insanely good. i think you can only get it through barnesandnoble.com. get it, its awesome.

jonny4star

04/29/08, 12:12 PM

that sounds like a really sweet book actually

ClemTiger0408

04/29/08, 11:07 PM

Next month I will be spending two weeks on a sail boat so I need a few good books to read in that time. Please, give me some good recommendations.

Books I've read and loved recently:

Everything is Illuminated
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Choke
Lullaby
I Am Legend

i realize these titles are pretty cliche, but these are a few examples of books I've enjoyed.

I've considered reading The Kite Runner, although I've already seen the movie.

I haven't read any Vonnegut yet, whats a good recommendation from him?

Any other recommendations I would love!