What are you reading?

[Thinking Skins]

So I've recently become an avid reader. Never thought it would happen, but its kinda become one of my favorite hobbies after a day of work. Right now I'm reading through "Fall of Giants" by Ken Follett. I don't know how good of a book it'll be, but it was recommended to me by the lady at Barnes and Noble because I liked "Pillars of the Earth" by the same author. But when I told her WHY I liked Pillars of the Earth (basically the character Jack - I just thought he was so similar to me), she seemed less excited about recommending this book to me.

So I'm trying to see what others are reading and what they think of these books as possible things to add to my to read list. And if you've read Pillars of the Earth and know of books with characters like Jack, please recommend them.

[Burgold]

Was there ever a more open invite for me to pitch my book? It came out in the Summer and is a lovely little fractured fairy tale. Got as high as 48 in Amazon's top 100 (in the category of Satire) at one point. Anyway, check it out.

Many years ago, Jacque, was tricked into selling his last cow to M. Au Paulet for an amount that wasn't worth beans. The greedy monopolist guarded all his cattle closely, thus depriving the world of the milk of human kindness. The world soured as the last milk curdled. John, the owner of a small failing business, is tricked by a strange little man to sell his company for three thousand shares of an unknown stock called BEAN (Biomicroscopy Endoscopic Arterial Neurosurgery). To his surprise, the BEAN stock grows rapidly. So rapidly in fact, that he finds himself questioned by the FBI, FTC, and practically other organization with an F in their name. In order to preserve his name, John breaks into BEAN headquarters and is soon recruited by Mr. Tucker to try to bring kindness back to the world. Whisked away, John must fight bureaucrats, dragons, labor unions, and a very powerful corporate giant. But despite all the obstacles, John won't quit, not 'til the cows come home.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/B008...kd#reader-link

I've actually also enjoyed a lot of Charles deLint in the fantasy category. He does a brand of modern urban fantasy mixed with folktale and horror.

[Koolblue13]

I've been reading My Time in France by Julia Childs for the last few weeks. Picking it up and putting it down.

I'm also just getting into the second book in the Ishmael trilogy by Daniel Quinn. Those books are great.

Bill Brysons A Walk in the Woods I would highly recommend. Just read it at home, because you'll LOL a lot.
---------- Post added November-20th-2012 at 09:04 AM ----------

[/COLOR] Burg, you are a quick one. How much did you pay TS to start this thread?

[Thinking Skins]

Was there ever a more open invite for me to pitch my book? It came out in the Summer and is a lovely little fractured fairy tale. Got as high as 48 in Amazon's top 100 (in the category of Satire) at one point. Anyway, check it out.

Many years ago, Jacque, was tricked into selling his last cow to M. Au Paulet for an amount that wasn't worth beans. The greedy monopolist guarded all his cattle closely, thus depriving the world of the milk of human kindness. The world soured as the last milk curdled. John, the owner of a small failing business, is tricked by a strange little man to sell his company for three thousand shares of an unknown stock called BEAN (Biomicroscopy Endoscopic Arterial Neurosurgery). To his surprise, the BEAN stock grows rapidly. So rapidly in fact, that he finds himself questioned by the FBI, FTC, and practically other organization with an F in their name. In order to preserve his name, John breaks into BEAN headquarters and is soon recruited by Mr. Tucker to try to bring kindness back to the world. Whisked away, John must fight bureaucrats, dragons, labor unions, and a very powerful corporate giant. But despite all the obstacles, John won't quit, not 'til the cows come home.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/B008...kd#reader-link

I've actually also enjoyed a lot of Charles deLint in the fantasy category. He does a brand of modern urban fantasy mixed with folktale and horror.

I remember when you announced this a few weeks back, I wanted to look it up but didn't have a title or know anything about it. So am I right that its called "a climbing stock"? I'll definitely buy a copy. And when's the next booksigning?

[HailToTheRedskins14]

I'm kinda weird in that I either read the classics or some sports-related book. Recently I really enjoyed my first time reading Watership Down by Richard Adams. That book was just awesome. Also read Oliver Twist over the summer and it is probably the best book I've ever read. I hated to see it end. I started on A Tale of Two Cities but had trouble getting into it after the first 3 or 4 chapters. I'll probably try to go back and read it. I also have Gone With The Wind sitting on my shelf, but I'm so intimidated by it I can't even start it. It's just huge. (That's what she said).

As for sports, I read War Room recently which was awesome. Basically follows the draft with Belicik, Scott Pioli, and Thomas Dmitroff. Also follows some of the players. That year was a good year for Georgia in the draft with David Pollack, Thomas Davis, and a couple others, so it was really interesting. I highly recommend it to any football fan, which would be all of yall. I also read Education of a Coach about Belicik but can't remember much about it. Play Their Hearts out is a really good basketball book about the scum of the earth AAU coaches.

Did a lot of reading over the summer and got burnt out. I was thinking about picking up World War Z right now but doubt I have the energy to do much reading. Might be a good change of pace from those classics though.

[FanboyOf91]

Well, at least when I get the time...

[Burgold]

I remember when you announced this a few weeks back, I wanted to look it up but didn't have a title or know anything about it. So am I right that its called "a climbing stock"? I'll definitely buy a copy. And when's the next booksigning?

Thanks. Yeah, it's called "A Climbing Stock"

The odd thing is that the publisher still hasn't released the paper version even though it has had pretty decent sales for a first book. There's a bunch of backstory about his business model, but I don't know what I can or will do about it. That side is pretty frustrating because I had actually arranged interviews on NPR's All Things Considered and NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams that fell through because the publisher failed to get them a copy of the book or galleys.

It's crazy how some businesses seek out reasons to fail.

At any rate, thanks for the interest. Right now, it's available in a kindle, nook, and tablet/PC format.

[pointyfootball]

I'm reading "Once An Eagle" by Anton Myrer right now. Really like it so far (1/4 way thru the 1250+ pages). I also am a huge Follet fan, especially Pillars of the Earth & the sequel "World Without End". "Fall of Giants" is book 1 of the Century Trilogy, but I hate reading a book and then having to wait months/year for the next book to come out. 2nd book of that trilogy is out now.

If you like historical fiction, Bernard Cornwell has written a few good ones as well. Many of his are series, so you have to research which book to start with.

[Thinking Skins]

Nobody's reading any fantasy or science fiction?

I just finished the Maze Runner series (I wasn't too impressed by it) and then the City of Ember (books 1 and 2). Liked City of Ember, but book two got kinda lame towards the end.

---------- Post added November-20th-2012 at 08:51 AM ----------

I'm kinda weird in that I either read the classics or some sports-related book. Recently I really enjoyed my first time reading Watership Down by Richard Adams. That book was just awesome. Also read Oliver Twist over the summer and it is probably the best book I've ever read. I hated to see it end. I started on A Tale of Two Cities but had trouble getting into it after the first 3 or 4 chapters. I'll probably try to go back and read it. I also have Gone With The Wind sitting on my shelf, but I'm so intimidated by it I can't even start it. It's just huge. (That's what she said).

Wow. I got through Oliver Twist, but it was painful. its weird because people always told me I would love that book because I should be able to relate to Oliver, as a bad kid, but I just didn't like it. Dickens uses too many filler words that add nothing to the story but just makes reading more painful.

I will say that Great Expectations by Dickens was a better read, but still not on the level of some of the stuff I've read since.

But on the level of GWTW, I'm thinking of reading East of Eden by Steinbeck - I was so close to buying it on Sunday, but its just so intimidating that I decided against it. Maybe one day.

[Die Hard]

The Way of the Superior Man: A Spiritual Guide to Mastering the Challenges of Women, Work, and Sexual Desire -- David Deida.

[SteveFromYellowstone]

Right now I'm on the 3rd book (Storm of Swords) of the "a Song of Ice and Fire" series, which has recently been made into a TV series on HBO called 'Game of Thrones'. Very, very good book series. You feel really connected to the characters because each chapter is from the point of view of one of the characters. For me, it's a series of books that are very hard to put down.

[Burgold]

Wow. I got through Oliver Twist, but it was painful. its weird because people always told me I would love that book because I should be able to relate to Oliver, as a bad kid, but I just didn't like it. Dickens uses too many filler words that add nothing to the story but just makes reading more painful.

There's a practical reason for that. Dickens was literally paid by the word and so he tended to streeeetch things out. Most of his stuff started as serials. Another interesting note was that his Christmas Carol (Scrooge) he thought was some of his poorest writing and a story he thought would flop horribly. Same with Tchaikovsky and the Nut Cracker Suite.

[Thinking Skins]

I'm reading "Once An Eagle" by Anton Myrer right now. Really like it so far (1/4 way thru the 1250+ pages). I also am a huge Follet fan, especially Pillars of the Earth & the sequel "World Without End". "Fall of Giants" is book 1 of the Century Trilogy, but I hate reading a book and then having to wait months/year for the next book to come out. 2nd book of that trilogy is out now.

If you like historical fiction, Bernard Cornwell has written a few good ones as well. Many of his are series, so you have to research which book to start with.

I agree that I hate buying a book that's in a series before the series is finished. But there are worse things, particularly reading a badly written novel. And the way things have gone lately, I've read a few bad novels so if Fall of Giants is good enough, the I won't mind waiting a few years or so to finish the trilogy.

What's interesting is that I'm not so much a fan of historical fiction. This is what got me into trouble when I was at Barnes and Noble. I like characters, especially smart characters. Throw in a moral dilemma or a section where they're forced to take on the church or question their faith in God and I'm probably hooked. That's what got me about Jack (and Aliena) from Pillars of the Earth. Same goes for the main character from A Lesson Before Dying.

People said I would like Ender's Game because of Ender being a genius, but the world was too trivial for me and Ender never really faced a decision point so it kinda read like just a story of conquests.

---------- Post added November-20th-2012 at 09:09 AM ----------

There's a practical reason for that. Dickens was literally paid by the word and so he tended to streeeetch things out. Most of his stuff started as serials. Another interesting note was that his Christmas Carol (Scrooge) he thought was some of his poorest writing and a story he thought would flop horribly. Same with Tchaikovsky and the Nut Cracker Suite.

Yeah, too bad I learned that after the fact.

[Bang]

Just finished "the Psychopath Test" by Jon Ronson.

Ronson is a trip. He's a mousy little guy from Wales who's a neurotic mess.. prone to anxiety attacks, slightly paranoid, and he writes about the weirdest subjects.

In "Psychopath test" he learns about and hangs out with psychopaths, some real, some maybe not. We find out a lot of interesting things about them, like how many of them are likely in very high and powerfl positions, and how if the psychiatric community diagnoses you as a psychopath, there's really nothing that will ever convince them otherwise. if you are a true psychopath and they fnd you, they will lock you away forever.
It tells of experiments in a few asylums with psychoactive drugs, etc.

Does't sound very glamorous, but it's an interesting book, and Ronson himself is hilariously funny, in that dry english sort of way.

He's written others.. "the men who stare at goats" was made into a movie, but the book is a bit different.. about the US military's actual attempts to unlock psychic powers and use them against our enemies.
in "Them" he hangs out with extremists.. all kinds.. political extremists, death defiers, survivalists.. all the extreme craziest of the extreme crazies... and tries to determine what makes them extremists.

Very interesting author.

I just picked up an started "Into the Fire".. a marine Medal of Honor winner's story in Afghanistan.

~Bang

[No Excuses]

Currently awaiting my next book in the mail.

Synaptic Self: How Our Brains Become Who We Are by Joseph LeDoux.