2226 replies to this topic

[Tybre]

Just finished reading the first chapter of Vampire Science. Brilliantly written. Just absolutely brilliant.

[DaveBond21]

Just finished THE BEACH by Alex Garland for the second time, and the first for 10 years. It's an excellent novel. I still can't believe what a mess they made of the movie.

The movie was surely a stinker, imo. Is the book's storyline different?

Yes. The movie replaces Brits with Americans, sexual tension with actual sex and also omits important characters and events. Actually I recommend the book, because the movie's plot is different enough that it doesn't spoil it for you.

[bondrules]

Rise of the Fourth Reich, Jim Marrs.

Very interesting. Actually is a real page turner. The author makes pretty good arguments. I'm halfway through. What I'm getting so far is that the Germans were played out by our side. Finance the Nazis, instigate and touch up on their deepest insecurities, and you have yourself a war (and a boatload of money playing both sides of the war). I guess it's easy to toy with a nation's inferiority complex. Putting the book aside, I can see how they felt. Germany before the 1700's had no significant contributions to humanity. No wonder they felt inferior to the Brits (and even the french?). Before the 20th century, sans 5 or 6 classical composers, Germans were only good for war. It's ironic that after becoming Nazis, the Germans were able to deliver so many breakthroughs in science and logistics. Too bad they were the animals they were, killing so many.
As for the cold war, the very elite where the only ones in the know. The cold war was a big sham orchestrated to spend on arms, create little wars (afghan), and continue to make insane amounts of dough.

[Kilroy6644]

Just finished The Snow Empress, by Laura Joh Rowland, and since I don't have the next book in the series yet, I've decided to give Heart of Darkness another go. Maybe I'll like it better this time.

[Jackanaples]

ITV recently showed a profile on the Scots thriller writer Ian Rankin. Said program reminded me that I'd always meant to read his series devoted D.I. John Rebus.

I finished the first of them, KNOTS AND CROSSES a couple days ago. It read very much like an early novel, and Rebus was nowhere the hard man detective I was hoping for. But I figure to give Rankin some time and a few books to sort of find himself and his series.

I'm anticipating that with some of the later installments that Rankin achieves a Michael Connelly level of mastery of the form. That'll be worth reading through the early work to get to. Started book two, HIDE AND SEEK yesterday.

[AgentBentley]

The Likeness by Tana French.

A bit too long (700 pages in pocket edition), but still interesting thriller set in Irish university and police environment.

[DrMaybe]

About 150 pages into Transition by Iain Banks. It has most of his trademarks, i.e. graphic torture and violence (this part of his authorship is getting a bit old for me) and an inventive plot. It is supposed to be one of his non-SciFi books, but it has strong SciFi tendencies. So far, it's not my favorite Banks, but I have every hope that it'll pick up.

[elizabeth]

im reading The Davinci Code by dan brown. it's become really big now and i thought i would pick it up. i'm starting to regret i did. its scary! what with all the corporal pain and the dead body, but i like the cryptology aspect of it, and the fact that i can understand most of the french.

Edited by elizabeth, 09 October 2009 - 10:18 PM.

[RedKelly]

Just started Hurricane Gold, not bad so far like the other Bond books I read it very quickly which is what I like.

Also I finished Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury. It wasn't a bad story but the fact that Bradbury writes everything like a poem really bothers me.

[elizabeth]

Also I finished Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury. It wasn't a bad story but the fact that Bradbury writes everything like a poem really bothers me.

ray bradbury is a great author, but i've never read dandelion wine. i've read the illustrated man and the martian chronicles, which i loved very much, but i did not like fahrenheit 451. i mean, i liked the descriptions of the future technology, but, like you said, i didn't like the way he wrote it.

[Qwerty]

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. Very good so far.

[JimmyBond]

I've finished my Al Franken Book, and the next book I wanted to read is called "Time on My Hands." A book with what I have to say is a wonderfully bizarre premise where a person is approached by a man with a time machine and is allowed to travel through time. The only caveat though is he has to prevent Ronald Reagan from becoming President.

If I can't get ahold of that in time, I'll pick up the sixth book in the Hitchiker's trilogy. I'm really curious if a new writer will be able to channel Douglas Adams. I don't have high hopes, but you never know.

[Tybre]

Picked up the novelization of TND pretty much just because it was there and only cost $.075, so shall be reading that shortly.

Also still in the midst of slowly re-reading A Study in Scarlet. And I picked up 4.50 from Paddington again today, read about another chapter and a half, maybe two. Almost continued reading Vampire Science as well, but couldn't bring myself to read. Really I haven't been reading too much lately. Just haven't quite been in the mood for it I guess.

[Qwerty]

Picked up the novelization of TND pretty much just because it was there and only cost $.075, so shall be reading that shortly.

Pretty solid Bond novelization. Hope you enjoy it.

[Kilroy6644]

A Canticle for Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller Jr.

[AgentBentley]

Bought a couple of books during a recent trip to Europe.
I'm now reading a Flemish/Belgian thriller called "The Blind Spot" by Jo Claes. It combines a real archeological project in Turkey with life in the student town of Leuven. Well done.

[Roebuck]

A Canticle for Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller Jr.

One of my all time favorites. I’m sure I’ve read the sequel (Saint Leibowitz and the Wild Horse Woman) but it didn’t leave much of an impression.

[Kilroy6644]

A Canticle for Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller Jr.

One of my all time favorites. I’m sure I’ve read the sequel (Saint Leibowitz and the Wild Horse Woman) but it didn’t leave much of an impression.

I really enjoyed Canticle. I really enjoyed the religious aspect of it, although I'm not very religious myself. There was an excerpt from the sequel in the back of the book, but I didn't read it. I elected instead to move on to....

Nothing Lasts Forever a.k.a. "Die Hard," by Roderick Thorp. The former is the original title, but it was reprinted as "Die Hard" to tie in with the movie, and that's version I got. I'm not far enough into it to make any comparisons with the movie, other than some details that seem pretty inconsequential.

[Kilroy6644]

Nothing Lasts Forever a.k.a. "Die Hard," by Roderick Thorp. The former is the original title, but it was reprinted as "Die Hard" to tie in with the movie, and that's version I got. I'm not far enough into it to make any comparisons with the movie, other than some details that seem pretty inconsequential.

I finished this yesterday. Quite good. The ending was a surprise, though. I didn't see that coming.

Now I'm reading Tales of the South Pacific, by James Michener.

[Tarl_Cabot]

The Tourist CIA agent thriller to be made into a movie with George Clooney...I was underwhelmed. A poor man's Jason Bourne.

[elizabeth]

i work at a library now, which is great because i LOVE books, so during my breaks (if i get any), i'm going to read This Side of Paradise by f. scott fitzgerald, who also wrote The Great Gatsby. he's my favorite author and i really want to check it out (no pun intended).

[Eric Stromberg]

i work at a library now, which is great because i LOVE books, so during my breaks (if i get any), i'm going to read This Side of Paradise by f. scott fitzgerald, who also wrote The Great Gatsby. he's my favorite author and i really want to check it out (no pun intended).

You've got good taste, elizabeth. Robert Redford, TMWTGG (if I recall correctly) and now F. Scott Fitz.

He's my favorite author and This Side of Paradise is my favorite book of his. Some parts are so well written that when I first read them I had to set the book down for a few minutes just to calm myself! Enjoy. You are in for a treat.

[Eric Stromberg]

Now I'm reading Tales of the South Pacific, by James Michener.

Kilroy, what do you think of it so far? This has been on my to read list for years. Part of the problem is finding it in any format other than paperback.

[Kilroy6644]

Now I'm reading Tales of the South Pacific, by James Michener.

Kilroy, what do you think of it so far? This has been on my to read list for years. Part of the problem is finding it in any format other than paperback.

I'm really enjoying it. I've yet to read a Michener I didn't enjoy immensely (that's not saying much; I've only read three...). It's different than the others I've read, although the only thing they had in common with each other was the quality of writing. I really don't know how to describe it, except to tell you not to expect a cohesive novel. It really is Tales.

Can't help you with the paperback problem though.

[Vauxhall]

The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East by Robert Fisk. At the current rate of progress, I should finish it in earlyish 2011... Very interesting though.

[ACE]

The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East by Robert Fisk. At the current rate of progress, I should finish it in earlyish 2011... Very interesting though.

Brill book!

In amongst a pile of screenplays and other stuff for work, I am concurrently reading:

Defend the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5 by Christopher Andrew
Transition by Iain Banks
Madame Bovary by Gustav Flaubert

[elizabeth]

i work at a library now, which is great because i LOVE books, so during my breaks (if i get any), i'm going to read This Side of Paradise by f. scott fitzgerald, who also wrote The Great Gatsby. he's my favorite author and i really want to check it out (no pun intended).

You've got good taste, elizabeth. Robert Redford, TMWTGG (if I recall correctly) and now F. Scott Fitz.

He's my favorite author and This Side of Paradise is my favorite book of his. Some parts are so well written that when I first read them I had to set the book down for a few minutes just to calm myself! Enjoy. You are in for a treat.

yep, it's TMWTGG.

The Great Gatsby is my favorite fitzgerald book. i just love all the color imagery and all the drama of the '20s. the film is even better. that's what got me into robert redford!

[Tybre]

Tonight I have decided I am going to re-read my entire library of Tolkien (which contains every Tolkien book released to date; possibly every one he's ever penned, but then Children of Hurin only just came out not too long ago so who can be sure) in the order I originally read them in, which means I shall be beginning with The Hobbit. Quite looking forward to it. It'll be nice, re-reading the book that made me want to dedicate my life to writing.

Also, wrapped up the TND novelization and a few other books I had left unfinished. TND was pretty good. In true Benson form, engaging, entertaining, but at the end of the day a bit shallow. Other books were, for the most part, good. Crusade in Europe I have mixed feelings over. Part of why it took me so long is it's...Well, I hope Eisenhower's writing improved for his Presidential memoirs (which I still, sadly, have yet to locate and read). Crusade in Europe is immensely entertaining, especially if you're into war and that sort of thing, but at the same time, it's like a history book with personal passages interspersed. As an example, here is the GoogleBooks limited preview. Reading just the first two pages of the first chapter alone really gives you an idea of what the book is like. Still, I loved it, for the most part.

[Vauxhall]

The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East by Robert Fisk. At the current rate of progress, I should finish it in earlyish 2011... Very interesting though.

Brill book!

In amongst a pile of screenplays and other stuff for work, I am concurrently reading:

Defend the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5 by Christopher Andrew
Transition by Iain Banks
Madame Bovary by Gustav Flaubert

Yes, enjoying it so far, although I'm not getting a lot of free time for reading right now. Also very keen to get into Defend the Realm, although for points of convenience, I may have to wait until it comes in paperback as I'm not sure I can justify carrying it on the train to work! Are you enjoying it?

[Brian Flagg]

The existing Dr. Who thread is an unwieldy mess with its blanket of spoiler shields, so I'll post this here. Perhaps a classic Dr. Who thread is in order.

Received ABOUT TIME 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Dr. Who by Tat Wood and is this book a monster! 500+ pages of Wood's detailed analysis/exploration of Pertwee-era WHO. I'll admit to being largely unfamiliar with this period of the show, but I've remedied that with both this book and the few DVDs available. The Brigadier is known to me from the first Tom Baker season, but it'll be interesting to see his relationship with the Third Doctor.

I grew up worshipping Tom Baker's incarnation as The Doctor and after decades away from the program, I look forward to exploring his predecessors' work on the show.

I can't speak to what the Handbooks and the others include (I've never read them), but the About Time authors assume the reader knows more than a bit about DW and takes it from there, as there's not much in the way of episode summaries, other than a brief--and often amusing--reminder of what a given story is about.

Continuity is seriously looked at and scrutinized--but then so is everything about DW! They aren't afraid to take shots at the shoddy production, but then they give credit when things look impressive, too.

Behind the scenes battles are covered: producers, the BBC, the actors and their feuds. Endlessly interesting and a goldmine for Whovians.

The essays are thought provoking and there's much more detail in the books than can be described here about every aspect of the show--except the aforementioned episode synopses!

Another amusing aspect of these books is the inclusion on the cover of a given era's worst special effect or monster. In vol. 4, which covers the Tom Baker era, the giant rat from "The Talons of Weng-Chiang" is featured on the cover.

The scathing but obviously affectionate humor is part of what makes this series so much fun to read. I've never even seen much outside the Tom Baker era, but I still want to get all of these books! The first edition of vol. 3 went out of print and is still fetching HUGE $$$ on the secondary market! The second edition adds 200+ pages of additional material.


ABOUT TIME Vol. 2 is next on my shopping list.