What book(s) are you reading?

[cowtime]

Right now I'm reading James Clavell's Shôgun for the first time

Great book. I've got most all of his stuff around here somewhere.

[peeplj]

Yesterday I finished Sharon McCrumb's "She Walks These Hills".
I like her books because not only are they good, they often take place in and around Mitchell Co., NC where I've got kin.

Excellent book! I've read several of her books, all wonderful. Highly recommended.

Dale, if you've not read her work yet, I think you'd like this author. Also Walden would.

--James

[hyldemoer]

Just finished;
"Rising Tide" about "the Mississippi flood of 1927 and how it changed America" by John M. Barry,
"Freedom Land" (a fiction perhaps) based loosely on the life of Osceola by Martin Marcus,
"Bayou Farewell" about "the rich life and tragic death of Louisiana's Cajun coast" by Mike Tidwell.

Currently;
"The Name of War" about "King Phillip's war and the origins of American identity" by Jill Lepore
"Chasing the Dragon's Tail" the "theory and practice of acupuncture in the work of Yoshio Manaka with Kazuko Itaya and Stephen Birch"
"Cajun Music; a reflection of a people" by Ann Savoy.

Lined up;
"the Male Herbal" about "preventative health care remedies for specific male problems, picking the right herb, preparation of herbal medicines" by James Green,
"Beer; a History of Brewing in Chicago" by Bob Skilnick.

[cowtime]

Yesterday I finished Sharon McCrumb's "She Walks These Hills".
I like her books because not only are they good, they often take place in and around Mitchell Co., NC where I've got kin.

Excellent book! I've read several of her books, all wonderful. Highly recommended.

Dale, if you've not read her work yet, I think you'd like this author. Also Walden would.

--James

My sister-in-law knows her and she is the one who told me about the books. The first one I read was "The Ballad of Frankie Silvers" because I am kin to her. That is my favorite, but I am biased here. Have you read that one?

And I agree, Dale and Walden need to look at her work if they've not already.

[Congratulations]

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction -- by Jon Stewart

My dad bought me that for Christmas the year it came out (knowing I have a crush on Jon Stewart), which was very difficult for him, being that he is a staunch conservative in the South. I can only imagine the wincing that went on as he placed that book on the counter for the cashier to ring up. When I opened it, I believe he said, "Merry damn Christmas."

[Walden]

So, if you don't mind sharing, what are you currently reading?

The Wisdom of Father Brown and Orthodoxy, both by G. K. Chesterton.

[TheSpoonMan]

So, if you don't mind sharing, what are you currently reading?

The Wisdom of Father Brown and Orthodoxy, both by G. K. Chesterton.

I read Orthodoxy a few months ago. One of the best books I've ever read.

Right now I'm speeding through Latin for Americans, volume two and Wheelock's Latin for the placement exams during the summer (I want to get into Latin III next year so I'll be able to finish high school with all four years. I've never taken I or II, and nobody in our school's gotten into III without both I and II, but I took Latin all through elementary school and have studied it independantly since, so with some touchup I should be right and ready).

[djm]

Recently finished "The Artful Dodger" autobiography by Nick Bantock.

Most of my reading is technical books or magazines. I was in a Chapters (large, barn of a chain bookstore) picking up a few mags. One of the girls working there, restocking magazines, saw me pick out Sky & Telescope. She asked me what is the difference between astrology and astronomy, as she couldn't understand why they were filed separately in the rack. This scares me.

djm

[FJohnSharp]

I'm trying to catch up on the classics

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, by Carson McCullers.



also
The new issue of Night Train, a literary journal of short stories.

[Innocent Bystander]

I've been browsing in the Oxfam shop, looking for cheapies. People ask me why I don't use the library. Their opening hours don't match mine.

Recently I've read Collected Stories of Eudora Welty.
I feel as if I could go down to that township she writes about, and recognise every one of the people there. Not in a good way.

The Complete Father Brown by G.K.Chesterton.
I like detective stories, but reading these on the trot was a big disappointment. GKC uses them more as a hobby-horse for his own ideas on Catholicism than anything else. It's irritating. And this book was supposed to be the "complete" Father Brown - but GKC did write some others, which I've read, and which aren't included.

The Witches of Chiswick by Robert Rankin.
This is complete trash. No plot, no ideas, just crap jokes from start to finish. Yuk. One to take on holiday and leave there. A sunbathing book.

Then I got THREE Minette Walters on the trot. Wow!
I read The Ice House years ago, and was impressed.
I picked up Disordered Minds
The Echo and The Shape of Snakes.
The last one is about institutionalised racism and I found it very disturbing. But a very fine read. The people are all too real. I couldn't help feeling there was a touch of autobiography in that, but I don't know enough about the author to say what.

Then I picked up Hard Times by whatsername - the Detective's name is V.I. Warshawski, and I can't remember the author's. Hunh!
But V.I. is so crotchetty and bad-tempered that when I found I had read it before, I didn't want to finish it. The detective with permanent PMT.

So I re-read Virtual Light by Ian Gibson. Lovely book. Good Science Fiction, good story. Well written, nice social commentary. Lovely little bits like: "The music was that old guy, was black, turned white, and then his face fell in."
Or "The guy in the films who was made out of metal and became governor of California."

And now I'm re-reading Changing Planes by Usula LeGuin

[Bloomfield]

I'm trying to catch up on the classics

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, by Carson McCullers.

If you haven't read it, you should follow that up with The Ballad of the Sad Cafe, also by McCullers. It's just a short read, but beautiful and powerful.

[Flyingcursor]

Congratulations
I hope "Breakfast at Tiffany's" was better than the movie.
I read "Fear and Loathing..." a few times in earlier years. I laughed heartily.
"Hell's Angels" by Thompson is pretty good too.
I didn't like "F&L on the Campaign Trail".


Henke

I read Shogun a long time ago. It was pretty good.

Emm I think I ought to read that one. Boring or not. Do you order Vanilla at Baskin Robins?



fel bautista I read a few books by Philip K Dick. The only one I can recall offhand was "Forever Man". I liked his short stories better.
I've read tons of Steinbeck. "The Grapes of Wrath" is an all time favorite.

Dale The history of Islam sounds interesting. I want to read "The Satanic Verses" too.

Bloom The L. Rust Hill book sound interesting. I'll look it up at the library. I've read "A Clockwork Orange" so many times I lost count. It's been probably 20 years since the last time though. I also read "Behold the Man" by Burgess. I haven't read "The Wanting Seed" yet but heard it's good.

Cynth How was that book about the flu epidemic? I've seen it and wondered if I ought to read it. It's interesting how books on World War I touch upon the epidemic as if it were a sideline.

JS The book about Russia sounds good. I went through a Russian history phase years ago. One of the best books ever is "In War's Dark Shadow" by W. Bruce Lincoln. It covers Russian history from around 1870 to WWI. I was surprised that Russia had a sort of "hippie" movement nearly a 100 years before the United States.

cowtime "Eleanor & Franklin" sounds interesting too.
You were the one who interested me in "Our Southern Highlanders" so maybe "She Walks These Hills" would be a treat. Peeplj obviously likes them.

Wow hyldemoer The history books all sound great. I might check "The Male Herbal" too.

I haven't read Chesterson but I think his name has popped up here a few times. Might be worth a look.

Currently I'm reading a book called "Dream West" an historical novel about John Charles Fremont, "The Pathfinder". Last week I read two other run-of-the-mill novels. One by a Hugh Cave was exceptionally bad. The dialog alone was worthy of a gag reaction.
Another, called "Run" was a pretty good popcorn read. A fast paced, gritty book that reminded me of a Terrentino movie.
Before that I re-read "Confederacy of Dunces". Always a classic.

[dwinterfield]

The Shape of Snakes.
The last one is about institutionalised racism and I found it very disturbing. But a very fine read. The people are all too real. I couldn't help feeling there was a touch of autobiography in that, but I don't know enough about the author to say what.

This is a mystery/crime story about a murder, spending a lot of time looking back through the lives of the participants. It seems pretty straightforward at the start and, as usual, I started to identify and relate to some of the characters. Big mistake. Exceptionally well crafted book.

[Bloomfield]

Congratulations
I hope "Breakfast at Tiffany's" was better than the movie....


Bloom The L. Rust Hill book sound interesting. I'll look it up at the library.

Breakfast at Tiffany's is great, with much more depth and style and sadness than the movie.

L. Rust Hill is hilarious. The book is really three shorter books in one volume, with the second and third ones (How to Lead a Good Life, and How to Retire at Forty) serious but well-written. Remarkable accomplishment to weave the humor and life's lessons together. And you'll be falling off your chair laughing when the "fussy man" lays out how to properly organize a family picnic, eat an ice cream cone, or set an alarm clock.

[SteveShaw]

Flora Britannica by Richard Mabey
The Cloudspotter's Guide by Gavin Pretor-Pinney (Cloud Appreciation Society)
The Beethoven Quartets by Joseph Kerman

I have never read a novel through in my life.