THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB discussion
note: This topic has been closed to new comments.
Archives - Book Discussions
>
WHAT ARE YOU READING AND WHY!!
I am reading Stars Collide by Janice Thompson because I do like her writings. I believe her inspiritual favor is just what I need.
I am in the final stretch of 1Q84 and loving every single minute of this marathon. I started it on Tuesday night when it came out and have put every thing else on hold. I have Life and Fate on the side board half way finished, a couple little quick reads on the wait so I will have books to go back into after I finish 1Q84. It is always hard to leave one reality and jump into another reality without the characters lingering. I also have Infinite Jest waiting to be started. sometimes there are so many books and so little time and other times there is so much time and so little books. I so enjoy the feast rather than the famine :-)
Mod
pretty good thriller
I am currently reading The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood, as it's on my 1001 list, & I'm enjoying it so far, & just for lighthearted fun, The Cartoon History of the United States :)I picked up & started Tom Wolfe's The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test, & that's fun so far too. Can't wait to get further in to that too, & have Sophie's Choice on deck to be read.
Just finished both Fanny Hill: Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, & The Black Dahlia(Ellroy).
Mod
I picked u..."
The Blind Assassin is a good book. I like Margaret Atwood - her books are usually very original and intriguing.
This morning, I began reading Never Ceese by Sue Dent for 2 reasons ---1) Today is HALLOWEEN. (Naaaa aaaah!)
2) My fascination with lycanthropy (in particular, female werewolves and the lives they lead).
Ever drink blood? Not necessarily human.
Rick wrote: "Bill wrote: "Just starting two new books as I head into November, 
by Josephine Tey and 
by [author:..."I'm enjoying so far, Rick.
The what I'm reading is easier than the why.Pride and prejudice is what I'm reading and because I'm a masochist is why.
Mod
yuck :)
Never had blood pudding? Blood sausage? Blood gravy? Here in Finland, you can buy blood in bottles in just about any grocery store. Blood is good.
Peter wrote: "The what I'm reading is easier than the why.Pride and prejudice is what I'm reading and because I'm a masochist is why."
Peter, Peter, you just need to tap into your feminine side! :) And since you are in a masochistic mood, once you've finished the book you need to watch BBC's movie starring Colin Firth...I can't help from sighing just mentioning it! Happy reading!! :)
Mod
wow! very impressed- two complex and quite large tomes! at the same time! curious as to your thoughts on both Martha
Mod
LOL- that is exactly what I thought of when you made you initial post, James.
Mod
Pride and prejudice is what I'm reading and because I'm a masochist is why."
Peter, Peter, you just need to tap into your feminine sid..."
When I was in my first year of College- some 23 or so years ago, I used to go to a local Video Rental store (There actually were independent small video rental stores at one time...like bookstores!) to order movies I wanted to buy on VHS- This was when New releases cost about $100 - but I could get classics like To Kill A Mockingbird and Marjorie Morningstar for about 20-30 bucks. To this day- I still recall a lady coming in with a list of films she wanted. The owner of the store, a middle aged man, who did not seem particularly interested in my classic films-except when I paid for them - read off the list. One of the titles the woman had listed was Pride and Prejudice (The 1940 Version). The store owner read the title outloud and pronounced it as "Pride and Pree- Justice" To this day I cannot figure out why I still find that so funny or why I recall a 60 second event that took place about 24 years ago like it was yesterday! stange huh!
Rick wrote: "Sadie wrote: "Peter wrote: "The what I'm reading is easier than the why.Pride and prejudice is what I'm reading and because I'm a masochist is why."
Peter, Peter, you just need to tap into your f..."
No..it's funny! :) I own a copy of the 1940's version with Olivier..loved it and watched it so often that my father (who does not appreciate british literature what-so-ever) knows the movie on sight no matter the scene and he can't help saying in his most hoity-toity british accent "Mr. Darcy!"
Hi folks,Just finishing up my website renovation and turned it into a real multimedia site. Custom music and videos, lots of images. I'm not announcing it just for BSP. I'm proud of it and want to show it off. Just wrote a new blog too if you're interested. And if you go to my FB James Thompson author page and 'like' it, click 'welcome' and you'll find a short story, BITE MARKS I've never published in English before, only in a Finnish literary magazine.
The Valley of Fear by Arthur Conan Doyle - just coming off two very dark novellas and needed something fast paced and immediately engaging. Doyle is a great escape.
Mod
SO SO VERY TRUE!! Not in the least to belittle true classics - but Conan Doyle, Welles, Christie can also be true "pallate cleansers" after reading intense, dark books- works for me!
Eating Smoke: One Man's Descent Into Drug Psychosis in Hong Kong's Triad Heartland - a memoir
Chris Thrall left the Royal Marines to find fortune in Hong Kong, but following a bizarre series of jobs ended up homeless and addicted to crystal methamphetamine.
He began working for the 14K, one of Hong Kong’s notorious crime syndicates, as a nightclub doorman in the Wan Chai red-light district.
Dealing with psychosis, conspiracy and the ‘foreign triad’ — a secretive expat clique that works hand-in-hand with the Chinese mafia — he had to survive in the world’s most unforgiving city, addicted to the world’s most dangerous drug . . .
I've been reading travel books lately. Firstly Vic's Big Walk which I found interesting. Vic Heaney decided to mark his 70th birthday by spending 70 days walking from his current home in France to his birthplace in Blackpool, England. To make the journey more worthwhile, he also used the walk to raise funds and awareness for pancreatic cancer research. Fittingly, the day I finished reading it (yesterday) I heard on the radio that November is pancreatic cancer awareness month! Vic is giving all of the proceeds from his book to the pancreatic cancer charity.
Now I am reading a more light hearted travel book Cycles, Tents and Two Young Gents which is making me laugh - a real blokes trip! Reminds me a little of Three Men in a Boat. It's giving me a few giggles anyway.
:0)
Now I am reading a more light hearted travel book Cycles, Tents and Two Young Gents which is making me laugh - a real blokes trip! Reminds me a little of Three Men in a Boat. It's giving me a few giggles anyway.
:0)
I'm currently reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Remembering Smell, The Great Tyoo Hunt and The Believing Brain. The first is a library book, so it takes precedence; next is the other library book I have out, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. My plan is to finish the two library books, then get through some of the hundreds of unread books I own ... no going near the library until January!
I'm reading A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. It's fantastic! I'm reaading it because I like to read these kind around Halloween.
I'm reading Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Foreverby Bill O'Reilly. I only just started it but it promises to be very good and readable.
Today I finished Next to Love set in America in the years 1941 to 1965. It's told through the eyes of three women and the way WWII changed their lives and their men and everything that came after. Here's my review.
Just finished
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal. Very funny and would probably have earned the author a fatwah if he had done it about another faith. It manages to fill in the blank bit of the story between the teaching in the temple (when he is 12) and when Christ's ministry starts when he is in his thirties. Lots of humour but also an examination of what Christianity is all about and it's similarities with Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Judaism i.e treat others as you would have them treat you, all the rest is just window dressing.
I am reading A Whisper of Roses by Teresa Medeiros
because I picked it for one of my challenges.
Tim wrote: "Just finished Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal. Very funny and would probably hav..."Hi Tim. This sounds like something I would like. I've put it on my wishlist. I read a book called "The Year of Living Biblically" by A. J. Jacobs. I know, biblically is not really a word but the story is about a man who vowed to live strictly as people lived during the time of Christ. It wasn't the best book I ever read, but it was different.
Just started reading Tess of the d'Urbervilles and The Witching Hour...both are very good so far! Always wanted to read an Anne Rice book, and of course, I picked one of her biggest books, lol...also, I figured I'd give Thomas Hardy a shot while continuing on with my next classic read:)
TESS is a great book. After the first few Ann Rice books, she no longer held my interest. However, before she got into the witch business, she wrote erotica. I'm not into porn, but read a couple out of curiosity. The genre aside, they're quite well written.
because enjoying the last 3 books and to so far the plot is fast pace and the writing is combination of simple,sarcastic and funny...it's extremely hard to hate this series..i think the plot is much interesting than Harry Potter's(by the way,become boring after the first or so on book)
I just finished Spies of the Balkans: A Novel this morning, a great story and am about to start The Thirty-Nine Steps today.
I am reading Murder on the Eiffel Tower. I found this book on the sale table at Books A Million and was immediately interested. It is historical, set in Paris, France, and is a mystery - three of my favorite things. So far I am really liking it.
Mod
Rick
Rick wrote: "just a quick note from NJ- I am here for my brother's wedding, hence my absence from the Group- will be home in a few days= hope all is well!Rick"
Have a great time. :0)
Sue wrote: "I am in the final stretch of 1Q84 and loving every single minute of this marathon. I started it on Tuesday night when it came out and have put every thing else on hold. I have Life and Fate on the..."I love Haruki Murakami's books and heard mixed reviews about IQ84 so good to hear you would recommend it :O)
I have just finished reading Snowman by Jo Nesbo. Really enjoyed it, even if it was a tad spooky in places :)
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe.I'm liking her dialect very much. She uses dialogue to drive the story-telling and I'm thinking she's a great author. Knows exactly what she is doing.
Only 19% into the novel on my Kindle and a long way to go.
I read a child's version when I was still in the womb, but that didn't teach me anything.
Curiously, I'm reading the novel because it came up in Gone With The Wind which I read for the first time a few months back.
I have a lot of time for the ruggedness of American authors. Perhaps they write more outdoor adventure? They do, however, write convincingly.
There seems to be controversy whether Uncle Tom is accurate or contrived.
I'm from Africa and there is a great deal of misconception about that continent.
Somewhere I read that after the war, the farms that could be got going again, did better paying their employees than they had previous not paying them.
I am reading The World We Found by Thrity Umrigar, an Indian author that lives in the United States, because as a reviewer selected the novel from amazon.com Vine Voice book choices and so am committed to reading it. It's quite interesting so it's not a chore.
Mod
I am reading Nanjing Requiemby Ha Jin because I wanted to read a novel by a Chinese author about the Japanese atrocities in Nanjing.
Mod
finishing up -Perfume: The Story of a Murderer- one of the more odd- yet very facinating books I have read
This topic has been frozen by the moderator. No new comments can be posted.
THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB
Books mentioned in this topic
Confessions on the 7:45 (other topics)Amity (other topics)
Truly, Devious (other topics)
We All Fall Down (other topics)
Get Even (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Monica Rodden (other topics)Lisa Unger (other topics)
Natalie D. Richards (other topics)
Maureen Johnson (other topics)
Gretchen McNeil (other topics)
More...
So very happy you mentioned Josephine Tey- such a wonderful writer- she deserves to be far more remembered!