What Else Are You Reading? - July 2012

[Tamahome]

Hmm, since the movie is coming out, maybe I'll check out Savages. Stephen approves.



Stay literary, my friends.

[Majtaylor]

Dan wrote: "I am trying so very hard to get through The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. I am enjoying it but it just feels like I've been reading it forever and nothing is happening. Pages and pages of dog training..."

I know what you mean, started reading it in Jan. and finally gave up a month later only half way through it. A friend of mine recommended it, she just loved it. Let me know if it gets a whole lot better and I might try again.

[Liv]

My current list to read is:

The Novice #2 The Black Magician Trilogy -currently reading
The High Lord #3
The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova
No Angel by Penny Vincenzi
Hyperion
Tigana

I was going to read Hyperion and Tigana in the past two weeks but got distracted by playing too many hours on Blades of Time. And if I finish my 25 book pile I might go and read Leviathan Wakes.

This might take awhile.

[Charles]

Currently reading the various Shirley Jackson Award nominees: http://www.shirleyjacksonawards.org/s...

[David(LA,CA)]

The Dragon's Path by Daniel Abraham, since it came with Leviathan Wakes.

[Connie S]

I already read this month's pick. Currently I'm reading the Earthsea series then I've got the Mistborn series waiting for me followed by Asimov's Foundation.

[Jenny]

I'm reading Journey to the Centre of the Earth and I'm still working on finishing up 1Q84 and Ender's Shadow. Tigana is up next.

[Richard]

I finished Death's Daughter so fast, I should have tacked it on the end of the June thread. Now I'm not done with the Belt, but I'm not ready to shell out another $10 for a new book, so I'm rereading Heavy Time. This is an old favorite that I go back to every couple of years.

[Mike]

I'm quickly getting through Wool Omnibus Edition by Hugh Howey. Incredible books, and quick reads. The Omnibus edition includes all 5 books, and in total the entire series is about 540 pages.

And Wool was just optioned by Fox, so maybe we'll see it come to the big screen some day...

[Been]

Finished reading Cryptonomicon a couple of days ago and absolutely loved it. I was hooked on the older stories to start with, but that soon changed to me being desperate for the next chapter in pretty much every viewpoint. Made it a little difficult to stop reading to be honest. I may have been disappointed by Snow Crash, but I think it's safe to say that I'm definitely a Neal Stephenson fan now.

I also started Redshirts yesterday and already finished it today thanks to a lot of very long train journeys. I enjoyed it too, but didn't really fall in love with it. I'm not quite put my finger on it, but it may have had something to do with how neatly everything went from around the midway point onwards.

I've now just started reading A Plunge Into Space, the first book released from the Singularity & co site. Not quite 20 pages in yet, so no real opinions for now. I'm a little concerned since I've heard its not the best editing job. The fact that it's over 10mb in size is worrying too, especially for a ~280 page ebook with only a single cover image.

[Alfredo]

I finished Redshirts in four days and loved it, now I am going for something different with The Red House: A Novel, though it also has red in the name. Have to read it fast, I'll drop everything to read Kill Decision on the 19th.

[Ken]

Just started Manhattan In Reverse

[David]

Audio:
Just finished: Redshirts
Next up: 11-22-63

Reading:
Just finished: The 9th Judgement
On going: The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt
Up next: Leviathan Wakes

[Igor]

Hope wrote: "I'm currently reading The Hero of Ages which os the final book in the Mistborn Trilogy Boxed Setwhich is by Brandon Sanderson. THese are some of the best books I have read in a long time."

Yeah, Mistborn is awesome. Don't forget to read The Alloy of Law it's very nice addition to the series, one can see how world of Scadriel is changing.
Regarding my reading at the moment, I'm catching up with Sanderson's work, Elantris. Next one is Warbreaker

[Joseph]

Finished Discount Armageddon and started The Sorcerer's House by Gene Wolfe, one of my all-time favorite authors.

[Brittany]

It's approximately 450F in Michigan, so the only thing I have energy for is sprawling out in front of the fan with a book. This weekend I burned through The One and Only Ivan, which falls under the YA header, but is a very quick read and worth its weight in gold. For something with so few words, I felt more attached to the characters than in some of the 8-part series I have read and it ended wonderfully, if only all too quickly.

I just ordered Leviathan Wakes from the library but they'll probably give me dirty looks unless I finish Tigana here soon...

I have a stack of former BBYA entrants that I also need to get through, but most pressing is A Brief History of Montmaray and the sequel, The FitzOsbournes in Exile, both of which look like nice historical fiction reads.

Aaaand I should probably do like someone else mentioned and get through the Wheel of Time again...

[Richard]

Berkely Breathed's Outland: The Complete Collection

[Brandon]

I just finished Throne of the Crescent Moon which was fun and I enjoyed the change to a less traditional fantasy setting. No elves and dwarves etc... It had its weak spots I felt it was a bit to short and rushed a few things but still an enjoyable book.

I also finished Equations of Life which grabbed me in the first few pages and didn't let go until I finished it in one setting. A relatively short book under 400 pages. I really liked the world and the main character, the blurb on Amazon made me expect something a different and I only picked it up because it was a daily deal, but I am glad I did and I bought the next in the series.

[kvon]

I reread The Forgotten Beasts of Eld because, well, I had forgotten too much of it. High fantasy, small world, focussing on love and revenge. Still good after 30 years.

[Aloha]

Oh, I forgot to pop in here this week. I always forget to do that for forums in which I'm not reading the genre that it's for. I finished Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter and have to gather notes for the discussion. I'm finding out interesting facts about Mario Vargas Llosa. I will have to read more of his book, especially his most famous The War of the End of the World.

I wasn't planning to but started The Savage Detectives, by another Latin American writer. This is because a Goodreads friend started a forum to discuss that book, and the forum has a bunch of like-minded people whom I have a great dialogue with. This should be interesting because people either love or hate his work. I like divisive books.

I'm leisurely enjoying the iPad app. version of Leonardo Da Vinci: The Anatomy of Man: Drawings from the Collection of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. I haven't gotten around to inputting the app. in Goodreads. I don't think there's an app. category, anyway. I am loving how the eBook is moving toward being interactive. This is an amazingly beautiful eBook that allows you to view Leonardo's drawing. If you hover and change the man's drawing from different body systems, muscular, circulatory, etc., Leonardo's accompanying drawings appear on the side. Also, an introductory audios by authorities discussing Leonardo's work appear in each section. Leonardo's famous for his backward writing, also. There's a backward view glass that you hover over the drawings to see how it looks reflected, and you also have the option to translate his writing to English. If you have an iPad, do yourself a favor and purchase this app. An absolutely beautiful way of viewing the book.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/leonar...

Since I was into looking at deformed humans from abnormal genetics and reading about the mentally insane at her age, I had 10 year old Aloha Jr. read Leonardo's Anatomy as her nightly reading, but she finds anatomy too disturbing, so I purchased a deluxe hardback of The Hobbit for her to read. I loved it as a child, and I'm sure she'll love it, too. I can't wait for it to arrive. This book is for her to treasure as part of her beginning collection.

I'm almost done with Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, getting to where he's discussing the potential of AI. This is going to be my #1 favorite book, with House of Leaves as #2. HoL uses a lot of the concepts in GEB in its structure. I'm going to start a forum discussing the two books once I've cleared my plate of a few items.

A friend notified me of two interesting books. The first book Audiobooks, Literature, and Sound Studies is a terrific study on the development and effects of audiobooks. If you have about 100 dollars, you can get it from Amazon as a paperback or eBook.

http://www.amazon.com/Audiobooks-Lite...

The other one, Tolkien and the Great War: The Threshold of Middle-earth, is a very interesting biography on Tolkien.

They're both on my to read next list, which is now over 100. Yes, I will read them all this year. I just know it! LOL. Since this is my top priority list, I don't know when I'll ever get to the 3rd priority list of about 2,000. But GEB confirmed that my brain doesn't work like a computer, so I may do a leap and grab one of these.

[Terry]

Currently reading, Leviathan Wakes the audio book.

Just finished Ready Player One

And rereading Fate is the Hunterwhich is a must read if you are in to aviation.

[Sandi]

I finished the Blue Remembered Earth audiobook yesterday. The narrator was amazing and the story was a lot of fun.

I'm now listening to Married With Zombies. It's about a couple who go into their marriage counseling session and find their therapist eating the couple with the appointment before them. The zombie apocalypse saves their marriage.

[Ken]

Finished 11/22/63 and The Butcher of Anderson Station: A Story of The Expanse. 1/2 way through Manhattan In Reverse. July's productive so far. (Could be something to do with the employer's semi-annual shut down.)

[Joseph]

Finished The Sorcerer's House and started Shadow by K.J. Parker.

[Jeff]

Richard wrote: "I just found out that Amber Benson of BTVS fame writes Urban Fantasy. Having already finished the official July pick, Death's Daughter is up next!"

This is a great series, and this just reminds me that I need to read the 4th book. I wish I could pause everything else so I could just read and catch up on my pile.

For those that prefer audio, Amber reads the books herself. (for the first 3 books the 4th isn't out in audio yet.)

[terpkristin]

I finished listening to Farseed while on the plane coming down here the other day. It was nowhere near as good as Earthseed. It was much more of a "frontier life" kind of book and not much science fiction.

I started trying to listen to The Stand, but fell asleep. I haven't had as much time down here to read as I had expected. Hoping to do some reading today once I leave the office. I'm about 40% through Leviathan Wakes so if nothing else would like to get more done in that. We will see...

[Aeryn98]

I just finished The Apocalypse Codexby Charles Stross ( love the Laundry series ) and jumped right in to The Crippled God. As a light chaser I am also listening to A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore.

In the wings another Zelazny novel The Doors Of His Face The Lamps Of His Mouth.

[Kim]

Have started reading Island in the Sea of Time and The Silent Tower.

[Ctgt]

Currently reading Prophets of the Ghost Ants and The Dark Before Dawn.

[Jeff]

Finished Leviathan Wakes and now onto The Long Earth (I'm getting well into this one!)

[Jonathon]

I've finished Leviathan Wakes, so now I'm moving on to the following:

Feed - Mira Grant
Reamde - Neal Stephenson
Redshirts - John Scalzi
Double Dexter - Jeff Lindsay
Blue Remembered Earth - Alistair Reynolds

And hopefully, I'll be able to cram in some smaller books too.

[Procrastinador]

I've finished listening to the Harry Potter audiobooks and really loved them - guess I really had no idea what I was missing all these years! Also finished The Lies of Locke Lamora.

I'm now going to read The Age of Zeus, cause the story sounds very interesting!

André

[JRush]

I read Leviathan Wakes a few months ago so when it was picked I read Caliban's War. Can't wait for the third one in the series.

Started and finished Redshirts yesterday. I really enjoyed the story, I wasnt sure after the first 20 pages but I fell into the grove of the story and devoured it.

Picked up 2001: A Space Odyssey today. My first Arthur C. Clark book and my first classic sci fi. So far so good, guess that's why they call it a classic.

[Jeff]

Just started this and I am digging it.
The Knife of Never Letting Go

[toria (vikz writes)]

I am reading Mayan December. It's not mind blowing but it's ok

[Kevin]

Finishing up the last two books in the Hunger Games Trilogy.

[David Sven]

Finished The Crippled God, the final in Steven Eriksons 10 book Malazan series. Yay whistle clap! I made it.

Review http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/.... I included some general thoughts on the series.

I'm not quite done with the Malazan Universe. I'm now reading Ian Esslemont's last Malazan book Orb Sceptre Throne.

[Aidan]

I recently finished up The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, which is a follow-up/sequel/prequel to The Shadow of the Wind, a modern class that has a fairly large following. Neither are Fantasy, per se, but there is a lot of magical realism and cross-over between the novels and the elements that make Fantasy compelling. I can't recommend the books enough.

I also read Legion, by Brandon Sanderson. I'm a Sanderson fan (though not a fanatic), but was somewhat skeptical going into this novella, given the big macguffin plot hook of writing a character with multiple personalities that manifest as highly capable delusions populating the protagonist's world. By the end, though, I was pleased. Sanderson poses a lot of interesting questions about religion, faith and science, all while giving a trademark spin to the idea of time travel. Decent characters and Sanderson proves he can write shorter stories, as well as the doorstopper novels he's becoming known for.

Now, it's back to my Wheel of Time re-read, in preparation for A Memory of Light. Currently working on Lord of Chaos.

[Art]

I am currently reading A Storm of Swords: Steel and Snow and I have just managed to buy Shadow and Claw, Hyperion, The Lies of Locke Lamora and The Name of the Wind for £2 on ebay new! (plus postage) I'm new to the community here but listening to discussion about these books has made me want to read them for myself. I was only searching for one but then i came across this. I am guessing that the person selling them is aware of this group to have bundled together those particular books and I am thankful to them for doing it. So that should keep me going for some time :)

[Igor]

Gardens of the Moon, since yesterday :-)

[John]

Just finished "The Immortal" by E. H. Kindred it's a great fantasy epic.

[David Sven]

Igor wrote: "Gardens of the Moon, since yesterday :-)"

I'm not sure whether to envy or pity you. If you are having a hard time with it, try sticking with it till at least a third of the way or half way in. Some people love it from the beginning. It took me about half way to "get" Erikson's style. The Malazan Universe is ambitiously large, so the reader is not given or spoon fed any back story but feels like they are thrown into the middle of an existing story. So the author asks a lot of trust from the reader before earning it - and my personal experience is that the reader's trust is rewarded.

[Rob]

I started following Sword and Laser when The Magicians was being read. Unfortunately my nook was stolen, and then life got crazy. If I can (finally) figure out how to get my strangely buggy nook app to work, that will be the #1 book I get through this month.

I'm reading Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch which will hopefully be finished by the time Fahrenheit 451 arrives from amazon, which I'll (FINALLY!) be reading, with John Green and the Nerdfighters.

I'm also kind of reading James Joyce "Ulysses", but given how insanely thick it is, only in small chunks, and then with massive spaces of Joyceless decompression in between.

[kvon]

Hooray, Leviathan Wakes is finished!
I also finished Endless Blue by Wen Spencer, hard sf with spaceships and wormholes and aliens and test tube people. Good beginning, so-so ending.
Next audiobook is Mira Grant #3.

[Travis]

Bitterblue because I'll have the trilogy-ish set finished before YA-MA reads the first in August. For once I will be the know it all in a book club! Also continuing the OMW series with The Ghost Brigades And of course Leviathan Wakes I don't know why I'm in a hurry though. My library still doesn't have the sequel yet.

[Diego]

I'm reading one classic: The Great Gatsby. I read the A Moveable Feast from Hemingway last month and loved how he talked about Fitzgerald, so i had to see about his work.

Also, there is a movie coming in christmas, with Dicaprio and all. I can't watch it before reading.

[Aloha]

Finished Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid. Love it! Going at the head of my favorites shelf. I'm going back to read it again, and again, and again....I'm also planning to write a review on it. I rarely reread, but this is one book that rereading always adds new materials that was missed the last time.

Starting The Savage Detectives to join in a forum on that book. Still enjoying Leonardo Da Vinci: The Anatomy of Man: Drawings from the Collection of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. I love the drawings and the format of the iPad app. I should be done with it, but I like to repeatedly gaze at wonderful art.

[Tamahome]

Eat sushi correctly or die!

[Aloha]

LOL! Love it!

[Clyde]

Now reading:
-Caliban's War (ebook)
-The Whitefire Crossing (ebook)
-The Jennifer Morgue (paperback)
(Also, in non SF&F I am reading some tech stuff and a Jack Reacher thriller.)

Coming up:
-Alexander Outland: Space Pirate
-The Disappeared (Retrieval Artist #1)