What are you reading right now? Showing 1,301-1,350 of 2,326

[Whitney]

Derek wrote: "Leo wrote: "I started writing reviews really carefully last year that weren't going to bother anyone who liked (or didn't like) the book. Waste of time!"

I'm not sure I actually agree with that - ..."

Oh, yes. I was referring to discussions, not reviews. I feel free to be as opinionated as I want in reviews, although I agree with waiting awhile to let the initial feelings settle. In discussions, I think people occasionally (myself included) get in the rut of expressing their opinions with the intent of 'winning' rather than as part of an exchange of ideas.

[Leo]

Ahhh ok, I misunderstood. Yeah I see a bit of that winning mentality, it can be a bit offputting. I guess because there's a lot of time and emotion investment involved...

[Riona]

Finished Dark Places -- still need to write a review, though. Started Making Money for something light.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Riona wrote: "OMGZ you guys, I finished Infinite Jest. Finally. Review.Then I took a complete 180 and started Blameless."

This was the discussion on Infinite Jest from ABC Australia's Book Club this week: http://www.abc.net.au/tv/firsttuesday...

I can see some similarities to Pale King!

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

I'm hoping to finish The Disestablishment of Paradise soon, particularly since it's such a weighty tome it has managed to do me a permanent injury. I fell asleep suddenly while reading the other night, (having tried a new sleeping tablet) and woke briefly to see that the book had fallen and the spine was cutting off circulation to my little finger. My finger was all black & puffy at the joint, but I fell asleep again before doing anything about it. Now it's lost all feeling - I'm guessing it's nerve damage.

That's it- no more big books! Well, not late at night anyways.

[Whitney]

Ruby wrote: "I'm hoping to finish The Disestablishment of Paradise soon, particularly since it's such a weighty tome it has managed to do me a permanent injury. I fell asleep suddenly while reading the other ni..."

Well, at least the sleeping pill seems to work well :-( Hope your finger recovers.

[Julie]

My name is Julie, I live in St. Paul, Minnesota. I am currently reading "We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families". This is a tragic book of how the genocide began in Rwanda. We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families: Stories from Rwanda

[Riona]

I've just started The Thirteenth Tale, since it looks like it's not gonna win the group read poll so I don't have to wait! It's super good so far.

[Jennifer]

Onto book twoInvader. Lets see if I can read this 16 book series.I have high hopes as she is one of my favorite authors and I have put off this series for a long long time.

[Tami]

Hi everyone, pleasure to be here.

I'm just about to begin The Spider King's Daughter

:)

[Jennifer]

Jennifer wrote: "Onto book twoInvader. Lets see if I can read this 16 book series.I have high hopes as she is one of my favorite authors and I have put off this series for a long long time."

Ok...Book done. Onto book three. Can't stop now. Hooked.

[Riona]

Just finished The Thirteenth Tale. Amazing -- I have a total book hangover now.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

I've been reading a book of short stories in between my finger-squishers: Under Stones. The author, Bob Franklin, is fairly well known as a comedian, but apparently also writes excellent VERY dark stories. The first one is about entrenched racism in regional Australia - beautifully written and very confronting.

[Tracy]

Riona wrote: "Just finished The Thirteenth Tale. Amazing -- I have a total book hangover now."

Book hangover. Heh. Like it. I'm having a music hangover just now.

[Theo]

I finished This is Not a Test and I liked it. I would say it's more about interpersonal dynamics in survival situations than it's about zombies. There's very little zombie action and I will give a warning that it is definitely a YA book (with all the teen angst), but I thought it felt fairly genuine. I liked this quote: "When this is over, society will need entertainment to get past it. We'll make movies about it, hundreds of movies, and in every one of them, we'll be the heroes and the love interests and best friends and winners and we'll watch these movies until we are so far removed from our own history, we'll forget how it really felt to be here."

I'm now listening to The Hobbit.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Theo wrote: "When this is over, society will need entertainment to get past it. We'll make movies about it, hundreds of movies, and in every one of them, we'll be the heroes and the love interests and best friends and winners and we'll watch these movies until we are so far removed from our own history, we'll forget how it really felt to be here. ..."

That's a wonderful quote.

I finally got a chance to check out our local library yesterday. It may be the loveliest library I've ever been in. Sadly, the condition of the books was (mostly) awful. I kept having to put books back because they were too filthy - filled with food, stains and/or mould. One smelled so strongly of potato chips, I didn't even open it up.

I did find one book that was in reasonable condition though: Light Boxes! It has been very high on my TBR for a very long time. And I never would have guessed that I would find a copy in the Townsville Library of all places! It's a bit more experimental than most.

[Marc]

I got bogged down reading The Exegesis of Philip K. Dick, so I somehow decided to cure that stuck-in-the-middle-of-a-huge-book syndrome by choosing an even bigger book that actually chose me at the library: The Cairo Trilogy: Palace Walk / Palace of Desire / Sugar Street. I'm about half way through and loving it (it's been on my reading list for at least a decade).

[Whitney]

Marc wrote: "I got bogged down reading The Exegesis of Philip K. Dick, so I somehow decided to cure that stuck-in-the-middle-of-a-huge-book syndrome by choosing an even bigger book that actually chose me at the..."

You get major points for even starting to tackle The Exegesis!

[CD]

Reading Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald for book club next month. 100+ pages so far and it most likely will be finished over the weekend.

Very well done book to this point. One of those that falls in the range of 5 stars without having finished it already.

[Riona]

Whitney wrote: "You get major points for even starting to tackle The Exegesis!"

I know, right? When that first came out I was totally psyched, but then I decided I should really read more PKD before attempting it...

[Riona]

I just started Special Topics in Calamity Physics today. Enjoying it so far!

[Theo]

Riona wrote: "I just started Special Topics in Calamity Physics today. Enjoying it so far!"

I have that from the library right now, but haven't started it yet. Might have to soon.

[Marc]

Thanks, Whitney! It's a little overwhelming but I plan to finish it in the next couple of months (when I saw it in the bookstore a year ago, I got so excited I bought it thinking it was a novel).

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Whitney wrote: "You get major points for even starting to tackle The Exegesis!..."

You get more points for being able to pronounce it.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Marc wrote: "Thanks, Whitney! It's a little overwhelming but I plan to finish it in the next couple of months (when I saw it in the bookstore a year ago, I got so excited I bought it thinking it was a novel)."

From the synopsis, it sounds just like my friend Tommy Tendrils on a coke binge. He had thousands of pages of unifying theories of everything (ie "tendrils") too. We ended up all chipping in to buy him a whiteboard for xmas one year.

[Marc]

Ruby wrote: "We ended up all chipping in to buy him a whiteboard for Xmas one year."

Something tells me that wasn't quite enough for the good Dr. Tendrils...
I can't imagine the labor of love the PKD book was for the editors (or for any of your friends who read those pages of unifying theory!

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Marc wrote: "Ruby wrote: "We ended up all chipping in to buy him a whiteboard for Xmas one year."

Something tells me that wasn't quite enough for the good Dr. Tendrils...
I can't imagine the labor of love the ..."

Yeah - I've TBR'd it while shuddering at the same time!

[Whitney]

Marc wrote: "Thanks, Whitney! It's a little overwhelming but I plan to finish it in the next couple of months (when I saw it in the bookstore a year ago, I got so excited I bought it thinking it was a novel)."

I was one of those serious P.K.Dick fanatics in my teenage years. I read pretty much everything. I even had copies of the non science fiction books that were very difficult to find in those days (kind of disappointed, in that insane hoarder way, that they are now available again and my copies aren't nearly as special). I feel somehow obligated to read the Exegesis, but I look at it and shudder. Is it at all coherent, or is it the ramblings of a paranoid near shut-in?

[Derek]

Ruby wrote: "Whitney wrote: "You get major points for even starting to tackle The Exegesis!..."

You get more points for being able to pronounce it."

ex-eh-jeh-sis? Or "dick?"

Whitney wrote: "Is it at all coherent, or is it the ramblings of a paranoid near shut-in? "

That would be my concern, too - but imagine how awesome it could be if it's both at once!

[Derek]

Riona wrote: "I just started Special Topics in Calamity Physics today. Enjoying it so far!"

Ugh. The blurb contains the word "postmodern"...

[Marc]

Whitney--I've had a couple of books like that where I hunted for them for years, finally found a copy, and then it was either reissued or existed all along in a collection (Jane Bowles's Two Serious Ladies--I ended up special ordering through some used bookstore after not finding it for a number of years only to realize it's part of the same Jane Bowles collected volume that I came across in countless bookstores).

Whitney & Derek--I'm about 400 pages in and it is a bit of both (pure genius & absolute paranoid/schizo on amphetamines). He basically tries to make sense of this vision/experience he had in '74 where he felt the true nature of the universe was revealed to him. It has deeply Christian overtones, but he ties it in to all sorts of other philosophies and theologies. This experience helps him see his writing in a more collective, focused light and makes him finally believe that maybe he's not just a paranoid, delusional pill popper. Parts ramble a lot or lose me and other parts are quite ingenious. I'm learning a lot of new words ; )

[Whitney]

Marc wrote: "Whitney & Derek--I'm about 400 pages in and it is a bit of both (pure genius & absolute paranoid/schizo on amphetamines). He basically tries to make sense of this vision/experience he had in '74 where he felt the true nature of the universe was revealed to him..."

The P.K. Dick episode on "Prophets of Science Fiction" was actually pretty good. And much less of a commitment :-) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKExjo...

[Karen]

CD wrote: "Reading Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald for book club next month. 100+ pages so far and it most likely will be finished over the weekend.

Very well done book to this point. One of those that falls..."I read this recently and enjoyed the authors fictional portrayal of Zelda and company.

[Karen]

Well, a surprise set of kidney stones sent me to the hospital for a week. I had a bad reaction to morphine. During this lateset challenge to my attention, I finished A Plague of Dreams,Days of Blood & Starlight which is a very good YA fantasy The Most They Ever Had. Now reading Silently and Very Fast ( love this book) and Miracles of Life: Shanghai to Shepperton: An Autobiography. Thank the gods for my ereader.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Karen wrote: "Well, a surprise set of kidney stones sent me to the hospital for a week. I had a bad reaction to morphine. During this lateset challenge to my attention, I finished A Plague of Dreams,Days of Bl..."

Wow. I wonder if the morphine reaction helped or hindered your reading! Hope you're okay now.

I loved Silently and Very Fast too. Isn't it gorgeous?

[Derek]

Gorgeous but too short!

My wife has that reaction to morphine. Watch out for codeine, too.

[Jan]

just finished Inferno i liked it a lot altho somewhat predictable story, has a message and loved the descriptions of Florence, Venice and Istanbul. Lots of art as well. I've been to Florence and Venice but not Istanbul. have to go now!! :D

[Derek]

Florence, Venice and Istanbul are counting on people like you! I was listening to a discussion of Brown on Saturday, and they talked about what the popularity of his books has done for tourism in the cities where they're situated.

Me, I got completely turned off by Angels and Demons and haven't read anything since. The guest on that show didn't even finish Angels and Demons, and is still recommending Inferno, so maybe my problem was actually finishing A&D!

[Marc]

I came across a satirical article about Dan Brown here. I read The Davinci Code a few years back and found the story entertaining but the writing kind of just like this article.

How is Black Swan Green so far? I hope to get to it later this year.

Derek, thanks for catching the mislink!

[Whitney]

I am reading way too many books at once now. A couple I 'set aside' but cant bring myself to take off of my 'currently reading' shelf (J.R. and Doctor Faustus). One audiobook on CD in my car (Unseen Academicals), one audiobook on my iPhone for walking the dog and to work (M is for Magic), one for a read with another group (Nightwood) and one I couldn't resist starting after watching the film (Wake in Fright ). Also assorted short story collections that I read or listen to at odd times, plus 1Q84 which I'm skimming to refresh my memory for yet another group read. I really should by trying to knock that list down instead of posting here.

[Karen]

I finished Silently and Very Fast. Gorgeous is right and wonderful, thought provoking, poetic, full of joy and sadness packed into a small number of pages. What a great book. I was really blindsided by this as, in the end, I was not that impressed with Palimpsest. Now on Ready Player One which is a real trip.

[Derek]

Marc wrote: "Derek, thanks for catching the mislink!"

I had to - I wanted to check it out! I think I'll skip reknowned author Dan Brown's latest... again.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Yay! Back online! I've had no internet for DAYS. o.0

I finished The Disestablishment of Paradise. I really enjoyed it, but I think that might just be me. Review here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

I'm mostly reading Ready Player One and Light Boxes, with some occasional queue reading of A Corner of White, and the odd story from Under Stones.

I very nearly bought a copy of Wake in Fright: Filmed as The Outback myself the other day, Whitney. I've heard great things about both the book and film, plus it's an Australian classic. It's very un-Australian of me not to have read it.

[Marc]

Mark wrote: "Marc wrote: How is Black Swan Green so far? I hope to get to it later this year."

Very good so far. Witty and engaging (wow, that sounds so cliché when I say it outloud)."

The important part is that you're enjoying it ; )

[Riona]

Mark wrote: "Marc wrote: How is Black Swan Green so far? I hope to get to it later this year."

Very good so far. Witty and engaging (wow, that sounds so cliché when I say it outloud)."

I need to get to that one too! I've read 3 out of 5 of David Mitchell's books and loved all of them, so I need to pick up the 2 last ones!

[Whitney]

Ruby wrote: "I very nearly bought a copy of Wake in Fright: Filmed as The Outback myself the other day, Whitney. I've heard great things about both the book and film, plus it's an Australian classic. It's very un-Australian of me not to have read it..."

I hadn't heard of it until recently, and it popped up as recommended in my Netflix queue. Excellent film, with some really disturbing scenes. Very Australian in the particulars, but also very universal in the " 'civilized' man meets rural brutality" theme. The book reads almost like it could have just been the screenplay.

[Derek]

Whitney wrote: "...very universal in the " 'civilized' man meets rural brutality" theme."

I hear banjos!

[Lindsey.parks]

nothing, waiting on books in the mail, this is hell.

[Marc]

Lindsey.parks wrote: "nothing, waiting on books in the mail, this is hell."

:(

may the mail quickly delivery you from your bookless torments!

[Maria]

Two day's ago I started reading "The White Darkness" by Geraldine McCaughrean but I didn't have as much time to finish reading it :{ So far it's quite engaging and if I wasn't so tired I would finish it in one night. Hope to finish it sooooooooooooooon! :)