Matthew Posted October 7, 2003 Report Posted October 7, 2003 I'm actually reading, and enjoying, Thomas Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow. The last time I attempted to read this, after about one hundred pages, I took the book, and threw in the closest trashcan. This time, I'm seeing the connections, and how the book mirrors this crazy, messed-up, modern world. Quote
ghost of miles Posted October 7, 2003 Author Report Posted October 7, 2003 Man, I really have to get to that Pynchon someday. I've read only THE CRYING OF LOT 49 and liked it a lot. Currently starting Eric Ambler's A COFFIN FOR DIMITRIOS. Quote
Christiern Posted October 7, 2003 Report Posted October 7, 2003 UNIX for Mac OS X An absorbing book with a happy ending, I bet. Quote
Matthew Posted October 8, 2003 Report Posted October 8, 2003 (edited) Man, I really have to get to that Pynchon someday. I've read only THE CRYING OF LOT 49 and liked it a lot. Currently starting Eric Ambler's A COFFIN FOR DIMITRIOS. GofM: How's the Ambler book? I was thinking of getting a couple the next time I go to the bookstore. Edited October 8, 2003 by Matthew Quote
BruceH Posted October 9, 2003 Report Posted October 9, 2003 Bad Bet: the Inside story of the Glamour, Glitz, and Danger of America's Gambling Industry, by Timothy O'Brien. Will you find this book informative, fast-paced, and fascinating? You can bet on it. Quote
Uncle Skid Posted October 9, 2003 Report Posted October 9, 2003 Bad Bet: the Inside story of the Glamour, Glitz, and Danger of America's Gambling Industry, by Timothy O'Brien. Almost picked that one up the other day -- looks pretty good. With all the new and proposed casinos popping up everywhere, it seems to be appropriate (and necessary) reading. The description reminds me of a book I picked up in Reno years ago: Always Bet on the Butcher: Warren Nelson and Casino Gambling, 1930S-1980s by Warren Nelson. Interesting account of the Nevada gaming industry. Now reading.. A People's History of the United States : 1492-Present, by Howard Zinn. Fascinating, and sometimes disturbing, account of America history from a different perspective. Incidentally, this book is also available for download on emusic.com. Just finished Effortless Mastery - Liberating the Master Musician Within, by Kenny Werner. A bit "new-agey" at times, but overall a good read. It certainly has helped make my practice time more relaxed and focused. Re-reading random sections of The Demon-Haunted World: Science As a Candle in the Dark, by Carl Sagan. Quote
Brandon Burke Posted October 9, 2003 Report Posted October 9, 2003 I'm reading three books right now: * John Fahey - How Bluegrass Music Destroyed My Life * The VICE Guide to Sex, Drugs & Rock n Roll * Cult Baseball Players, Danny Peary (Ed.) Quote
BruceH Posted October 9, 2003 Report Posted October 9, 2003 (edited) Almost picked that one up the other day -- looks pretty good. With all the new and proposed casinos popping up everywhere, it seems to be appropriate (and necessary) reading. The description reminds me of a book I picked up in Reno years ago: Always Bet on the Butcher: Warren Nelson and Casino Gambling, 1930S-1980s by Warren Nelson.  Interesting account of the Nevada gaming industry. Re-reading random sections of The Demon-Haunted World: Science As a Candle in the Dark, by Carl Sagan. I'm now on the chapter about state lotteries, which is riveting. The part about New York's first attempt at a legal lottery made me go back and re-watch one of my favorite films, Force of Evil, which is about the small numbers rackets ("policy") in NYC being swallowed up by a larger lottery before being legalized. I may look for that Warren Nelson book. That Sagan book----------whew! Depressing stuff! * * * Brandon--nice avatar! Edited October 16, 2003 by BruceH Quote
ghost of miles Posted October 9, 2003 Author Report Posted October 9, 2003 Man, I really have to get to that Pynchon someday. I've read only THE CRYING OF LOT 49 and liked it a lot. Currently starting Eric Ambler's A COFFIN FOR DIMITRIOS. GofM: How's the Ambler book? I was thinking of getting a couple the next time I go to the bookstore. Wonderful so far. I'm about 2/3 through; great sense of atmosphere, good dry, semi-sarcastic British wit at times, great renderings of characters, and the story clips along. I'd definitely recommend it to anybody who likes suspense/political intrigue tales. Quote
jazzbo Posted October 16, 2003 Report Posted October 16, 2003 My boss made me read Michael Chricton's "Timeline." It was amusing. . . I haven't read a bestseller in so long it was interesting to see how it was written. Everything was spelled out, fell into place. If only life were like that! Now I'm into more familiar territory with "Beyond the Essene Hypothesis." Quote
ghost of miles Posted October 16, 2003 Author Report Posted October 16, 2003 Can't believe I've never read it before, but OUR TOWN, by Thornton Wilder. And getting ready to start EUGENE DEBS: CITIZEN AND SOCIALIST, by Nick Salvatore. Love those Hoosier radical roots! Quote
Granta Posted October 17, 2003 Report Posted October 17, 2003 Some of the things I've read since the Blue Note board closed and when I found this one: Nobody's Fool - Richard Russo The Haunting of L - Howard Norman Life and Times of Michael K - J.M. Coetzee Erasure - Percival Everett Corpsing - Toby Litt The Book Against God - James Wood What Was She Thinking? (Notes on a Scandal) - Zoe Heller The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon Chasing the Dime - Michael Connolly Cradle Song - Robert Edric Nobody's Fool was the best. And so much better than Empire Falls, for which Russo won the Pulitzer. Erasure was the biggest surprise - and a fantastic read. Now I'm reading A Special Relationship by Douglas Kennedy and some William Trevor short stories from his Collected Stories. Quote
ghost of miles Posted October 28, 2003 Author Report Posted October 28, 2003 Stretchin' my toes out by the hot-stove w/Irwin Silber's PRESS BOX RED, the story of Commie-pinko ( ) sportswriter Lester Rodney, who covered sports for the Daily Worker, and who helped the push to eliminate the color line in professional baseball. Quote
king ubu Posted October 28, 2003 Report Posted October 28, 2003 I read Jonathan Safran Foer's "Everything is illuminated" on my vacation. It's been quite some time, believe me, that I have read a book which so thoroughly amused me, and at the same time, moved me. One of the best books I've read since quite some time! Anybody read it? Just bought Eugenides "Middlesex", but no time to read it right now. Others on my stack are: Franzen (Corrections), McEvan (Atonement), and of course much german stuff (Ingeborg Bachmann, Robert Musil). Other future reading shall include Paterson by W.C. Williams (anyone knows it?), some Blake, Elliott, Whitman etc. ubu Quote
ghost of miles Posted October 31, 2003 Author Report Posted October 31, 2003 Still reading PRESS BOX RED, but now I have a work book started... I tend to have a book that I read while eating breakfast, a book that I read while sitting in my study, and one that I read while taking breaks at work. A little crazy that way! In any case, I am starting James Ellroy's WHITE JAZZ for the third time. I've blitzed through most of his other books, but for some reason the style is SO amphetamine-jagged in this one that I always end up putting it down after about 50 pages. I figure that reading it in short bursts at work might just do me the trick of getting through it. Quote
pryan Posted October 31, 2003 Report Posted October 31, 2003 (edited) Today I will finish off George Plimpton's Shadowbox, a book I've really enjoyed. It's my first taste of Plimpton's work and I am mightily impressed with his style/humour/story-telling ability. I also finished reading Darwin's The Origin of Species, which is for a course I'm taking called, aptly enough, 'Darwinian Revolution'. That took a while to get through: a lot of detail, reiteration, etc. He's a good writer, though. Edited October 31, 2003 by pryan Quote
street singer Posted November 17, 2003 Report Posted November 17, 2003 Picked up Philip K. Dick's "Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?" on Saturday. Had finished it by Sunday. Couldn't put it down. Thoroughly enjoyed it. This was my first book by the author - seeing as how I've always enjoyed Blade Runner, I figured this was as good a place as any to start. Where should I go from here? Anyone have a favorite by this author? Quote
jazzbo Posted November 17, 2003 Report Posted November 17, 2003 (edited) I've been reading Philip K. Dick since I picked up a copy of The Zap Gun in Gianopolis' Book Store in Addis Ababa. I LOVE his work! It's a good time to start because now a lot of his work is in print, more than was in the seventies and eighties when I was desperately trying to find it all. There is an interesting thread that I started that I started that has a lot of suggestions. I'll dig that one up and pop it up for air, and here's a link: Favorite PKD Novel thread I'd say, after Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep you could really enjoy The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch! Edited November 17, 2003 by jazzbo Quote
street singer Posted November 17, 2003 Report Posted November 17, 2003 There is an interesting thread that I started that I started that has a lot of suggestions. I'll dig that one up and pop it up for air, and here's a link: Favorite PKD Novel thread I'd say, after Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep you could really enjoy The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch! Thanks for the link and the suggestion! I could've sworn I ran across a Philip K. Dick thread on here recently... However, when I did a search, I found nothing. Strange... Completely off topic, but... You post as "Lon" on the Decware site, right? I'm a lurker over there. Just bought a used SE84C Select a little over a month ago - got a good deal on it, around $500. Enjoying it very much! Quote
jazzbo Posted November 17, 2003 Report Posted November 17, 2003 That's right, I'm Lon . . . for some reason I wanted to have some fun as jazzbo over here though every where else I've always been Lon, Lon Armstrong, or Lonson (my full first name, a family name). I've had a Decware amp for more than six years, and have my third one on order (the EL34 Monos). I'm going to have to sell one I think soon, but having three Decware amps. . . it's like being truly rich! I love these amps, and I love the Radial RL-2 speakers as well! Glad you have one. It makes you want to listen and listen and listen. . . . Quote
jacman Posted November 17, 2003 Report Posted November 17, 2003 The Summer Game-Roger Angell, a perfect book for the off season. i just started EVEREST-Kangshung Face, by Stephen Venables, i love mountain climbing/survival/adventure books. Quote
ghost of miles Posted November 17, 2003 Author Report Posted November 17, 2003 Terence Faherty, KILL ME AGAIN. He's an Indianapolis mystery writer, known best for his Owen Keane series (involving a failed seminarian); this is a re-print of the debut of his Scott Elliott character, a former actor & WWII vet who's trying to pick up the pieces of his career by working as a private investigator in late-40's Hollywood. The plot concerns an attempt to make a sequel to a Casablanca-style movie (Faherty originally used the actual movie and the actual stars, but was told by the Bogart estate that he couldn't). Also leafing through some books about the Negro baseball leagues. Quote
Jazzmoose Posted November 18, 2003 Report Posted November 18, 2003 Started rereading John Irving's The Hotel New Hampshire; couldn't tell you why, exactly... Quote
BruceH Posted November 18, 2003 Report Posted November 18, 2003 (edited) Seeing the film Master and Commander has inspired me to reread C. S. Forester's novel Beat To Quarters. Why not read one of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin novels rather than a Hornblower? I don't know...just feeling contrary, I guess. Edited November 18, 2003 by BruceH Quote
jacman Posted November 18, 2003 Report Posted November 18, 2003 Started rereading John Irving's The Hotel New Hampshire; couldn't tell you why, exactly... love his stuff, on my to reread list: A Prayer For Owen Meaney. Quote
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