Matthew Posted February 11, 2010 Report Share Posted February 11, 2010 Mark Twain's Roughing It, great book, full of humor and wit. In these days of global communication networks, reading such books of travel literature, an admittely 'obsolete' genre, it makes me wonder if we didn't miss something in this world of overwhelming information. After I read Roughing It, I'm always tempted to jump in my car and recreate the journey (that would be a good idea for a book also!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul secor Posted February 12, 2010 Report Share Posted February 12, 2010 Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sal Posted February 12, 2010 Report Share Posted February 12, 2010 I recently read Douglas Coupland's "Life After God" and Hari Kunzru's "My Revolutions". Both were very solid reads, yet neither felt completely satisfying. After I'm done getting through these Dexter DVDs, I'm going to pick up some Murakami or some Philip K. Dick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted February 14, 2010 Report Share Posted February 14, 2010 (edited) The Collect Stories of Lydia Davis. Heard some good and bad things about this book, even though the New York Times had a rave review. I must say that I'm very impressed (and I'm only 150 pages in) by Davis, as in this book you can see her experimenting with the short story form, and succeeding. Highly recommended to short story fans -- heck, to anyone who likes good writing. edit for grammar & spelling. I'm finding that these stories contain a great sense of isolation, with the characters locked inside their heads, and have no ability to reach out and connect with others. Short stories of isolation, yet of people wondering how to break out of that loneliness. Kind of a downer in some ways, but I'm 2/3 the way through, so I'll keep on going -- supposedly the last collection of stories in this book is very good. Edited February 14, 2010 by Matthew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceH Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 Excellent collection of his stories, supplanted the old Ballantine "Best of-" which for many years was the go-to Cordwainer Smith collection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 (edited) To Ballantine's credit, they also had several other collections out at least one of which simultaneously, and between them all nearly all the stories were in print. There's also a few softcver collections out now that get them all out there. Amazing stories. I read about a third of this book and then set it aside so I can extend the pleasure. I love the tone of his writing, the humor and the love, the color and the cleverness.(I've previously read almost all the stories at least once). Edited February 16, 2010 by jazzbo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gslade Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 Just been killin time with Stephen King's Under the Dome been sick for about a week and down with some kind of primordial flu This was a good call, no thought required for a tired mind Been awhile since I've read any King, This one has been fun so far about 450 pages in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harold_Z Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 Borges giving a lecture may be one of the best ways to encounter Borges. Absolutely terrific. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlhoots Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 (edited) Jeannette Walls: The Glass Castle Edited February 16, 2010 by jlhoots Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van Basten II Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdavenport Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 Aldous Huxley's Brave New World Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pasta Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 "Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded"- John Scalzi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bright Moments Posted February 16, 2010 Report Share Posted February 16, 2010 scalzi rocks! check out "old man's war"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejp626 Posted February 18, 2010 Report Share Posted February 18, 2010 Voinovich's Moscow 2042, which just showed up. I've gotten a little off-track reading forbidden Soviet literature, but soon I will be returning to Narayan and Mahfouz. Moscow 2042 is quite good, quite droll in some places. I don't have it at hand, or I would quote him on prophets and beards, for example. Basically, the plot is that an exiled writer gets a ticket to go visit Moscow in the future (2042 -- knock wood, I'll live to see this, though it probably seemed like forever in the early 80s when written). Pure communism is practiced only in Moscow, which is walled off from the rest of the world, and it has reached new levels of brutality. On the other hand, most Muscovites are also secret Simites (followers of a writer very much like Solzhenitsyn with a pinch of Tolstoy thrown in). It should surprise no one that ultimately the government is overthrown and a new Tsar comes to power. Indeed, I wouldn't go quite so far as to say Putin has tsar-like powers, but the Russian character does seem to respect or at least respond to authoritarianism. One interesting twist is that the writer is venerated in the future because of a book he wrote, which turns out to be one he hasn't yet writen -- and which contains his report on what he found in the future. Several people, in the future as well as the present, try to get him to change the book to see if it will change the future, but he wisely refuses. Then I read Venedikt Erofeev's Moscow to the End of the Line, which is sort of a prose-poem on alcohol consumption and its consequences. I didn't find it particularly enjoyable, but it was engaging, sort of like watching a writer labor under deep compulsions. I was reminded a bit of Christopher Smart's For I Will Consider My Cat Jeoffry actually. Also reading a non-fiction book called Divided Cities for a book review. Then back to my master plan for the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted February 18, 2010 Report Share Posted February 18, 2010 Also reading a non-fiction book called Divided Cities for a book review. Then back to my master plan for the year. That looks interesting! A few years ago I did a taxi tour of the scenes of the Troubles in Belfast. I was amazed to see 40 foot high steel barriers separating the sectarian areas of the city. Most Brits have no idea of this and fondly imagine you have to go Israel to see such things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlhoots Posted February 18, 2010 Report Share Posted February 18, 2010 Patti Smith: Just Kids Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted February 20, 2010 Report Share Posted February 20, 2010 To get in shape for the upcoming baseball season: Mariners 2010 Annual Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted February 20, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2010 Also reading a non-fiction book called Divided Cities for a book review. Then back to my master plan for the year. That looks interesting! A few years ago I did a taxi tour of the scenes of the Troubles in Belfast. I was amazed to see 40 foot high steel barriers separating the sectarian areas of the city. Most Brits have no idea of this and fondly imagine you have to go Israel to see such things! I'll second Bill's sentiments--will have to check this book out as well. Getting ready to start Kevin Starr's EMBATTLED DREAMS: CALIFORNIA IN WAR AND PEACE, 1940-1950: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted February 20, 2010 Report Share Posted February 20, 2010 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzmoose Posted February 20, 2010 Report Share Posted February 20, 2010 I'd be very interested in hearing what you think of that one, Lon. Looks interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted February 21, 2010 Report Share Posted February 21, 2010 It is interesting so far. The author's premise is that the nature and character of Ancient Egypt and ancient Egyptians is not best served by Western interpretations; as an Egyptian he feels he brings a different insight into the facts and suppositions. So far I know from the preface that he subscribes to the very interesting theory of Osman re: an Egyptian dynasty and the Jewish kings and leaders Mosses, David and Solomon. And that he believes that a certain huge block of limestone in the form of a lion with a man's head may be much older than 4500 years. Of what I've read before he seems to be presenting a view of ancient Egyptian character and religion that is consistent with some of the western versions, the more open minded ones. He, as some more modern Western scholars, sees the multiple "gods" as "angels" and all aspects of the one true god Re (Ra). He is going to make claims that Egyptian religion is the fountainhead and bedrock of Judeo-Christian-Islamic religious thought and expression, a claim that I will have little animosity towards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sal Posted February 21, 2010 Report Share Posted February 21, 2010 "Soccernomics: Why England Loses, Why Germany and Brazil Win, and Why the U.S., Japan, Australia, Turkey--and Even Iraq--Are Destined to Become the Kings of the World's Most Popular Sport" by Simon Kuper & Stefan Szymanski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzmoose Posted February 21, 2010 Report Share Posted February 21, 2010 It is interesting so far. I guess my main concern is "scholarship or crackpot rant"; sounds like it falls into the scholarship camp. I'll definitely have to check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pasta Posted February 22, 2010 Report Share Posted February 22, 2010 Star Trek: Phase II : The Making of the Lost Series by Judith and Garfield-Reeves Stevens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted February 22, 2010 Report Share Posted February 22, 2010 So What: The Life of Miles Davis. John Szwed's biography of Miles Davis, which I will read during my business trip the next ten days. Nothing helps reading like long lay-overs in airports.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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