What Are You Reading Now.

Discussion in 'Discussion of Published Works' started by Writing Forums Staff, Feb 22, 2008.

  1. Friedrich Kugelschreiber

    Friedrich Kugelschreiber marshmallow Contributor

    Joined:
    May 8, 2017
    Messages:
    4,744
    Likes Received:
    5,937
    Curious if you'll consider it worth your time.
     
    EFMingo likes this.
  2. EFMingo

    EFMingo A Modern Dinosaur Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2014
    Messages:
    5,167
    Likes Received:
    6,733
    Location:
    San Diego, California
    I'll be finished by Sunday, so I'll let you know. So far it's very noticeable that this is the early stages of novel writing being accepted as a genre. I have an old copy from 1945 which has nice illustrations, but it still has summaries of the chapters at the beginning of each chapter, as was customary in the beginning of the novel as a genre. I've learned to skip them. It is charming though, even with its listing and telling of events.
     
  3. Krispee

    Krispee Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 4, 2012
    Messages:
    1,430
    Likes Received:
    1,145
    Location:
    UK
    And what rabbits they are; rabbits with powers.

    Yeah, there are some weird warrens in there, that's for sure.
     
  4. Iain Aschendale

    Iain Aschendale Lying, dog-faced pony Marine Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Feb 12, 2015
    Messages:
    18,851
    Likes Received:
    35,471
    Location:
    Face down in the dirt
    Currently Reading::
    Telemachus Sneezed
    I'm currently re-reading The State of the Art, which is a mixed bag of short stories by the late Iain M. Banks. He's my hands-down favorite author but this contains some of his earlier work. It's a little less polished, a little less sure of itself in some stages, and that sort of thing is really heartening to read in that you can see that at least this one of the "greats" didn't spring fully-accomplished from his own forehead.
     
  5. Bone2pick

    Bone2pick Conspicuously Conventional Contributor

    Joined:
    Aug 23, 2018
    Messages:
    1,718
    Likes Received:
    1,929
    The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. I'm enjoying it, but I'm continually taken aback at just how many semicolons he peppers in. Admittedly, I haven't read anything from that era in a while.

    “My good Utterson,” said the doctor, “this is very good of you, this is downright good of you, and I cannot find words to thank you in. I believe you fully; I would trust you before any man alive, ay, before myself, if I could make the choice; but indeed it isn’t what you fancy; it is not as bad as that; and just to put your good heart at rest, I will tell you one thing: the moment I choose, I can be rid of Mr. Hyde. I give you my hand upon that; and I thank you again and again; and I will just add one little word, Utterson, that I’m sure you’ll take in good part: this is a private matter, and I beg of you to let it sleep.”
     
  6. EFMingo

    EFMingo A Modern Dinosaur Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2014
    Messages:
    5,167
    Likes Received:
    6,733
    Location:
    San Diego, California
    Jesus that's a lot of run-on. Some hate for the common use of a period, I guess.
     
    Rzero and Bone2pick like this.
  7. Night Herald

    Night Herald The Fool Contributor

    Joined:
    May 23, 2012
    Messages:
    1,393
    Likes Received:
    2,621
    Location:
    Far out
    Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. I'm not sure what I think about it. It's well written for the most part, but I'm neither invested nor particularly entertained. I think I haven't paid it the attention it deserves. It's short enough that I'm guaranteed to finish it, short enough even that I'll probably take a second listen in a bit.
     
    Iain Aschendale and EFMingo like this.
  8. Sergeant Mirror

    Sergeant Mirror Member

    Joined:
    Jul 9, 2019
    Messages:
    27
    Likes Received:
    14
    For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
     
  9. EFMingo

    EFMingo A Modern Dinosaur Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2014
    Messages:
    5,167
    Likes Received:
    6,733
    Location:
    San Diego, California
    So I've finished it now and...I had a hard time getting all the way through. I understand that it is entirely satire and regarded by many as the greatest English satire of the Restoration/Enlightment period, but it's also a travelogue. By book 3 of it I was super tired of the recurring methodology, and book 4 just put me off entirely. In the end, I wasn't disappointed, just not interested. And I don't feet like it brought anything new to my perspective, but I recognize it would be a drastic shift at the time. Book 4 also is confusing in that it refutes or converts it's own satirical points. It's a difficult novel under the surface, but not in ways I particularly enjoy. Not on my recommended list.
     
  10. Friedrich Kugelschreiber

    Friedrich Kugelschreiber marshmallow Contributor

    Joined:
    May 8, 2017
    Messages:
    4,744
    Likes Received:
    5,937
    I think I would agree.
     
  11. Dante Dases

    Dante Dases Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Sep 25, 2008
    Messages:
    3,455
    Likes Received:
    176
    Location:
    West Yorkshire, England
    I just don't think Banks' strength was in short fiction. He was at his best when he could really explore a concept at length. I had similar thoughts about the same book when I read it a few years ago.

    Having just finished the near-glorious The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel, I'm returning to some space opera myself. Gareth L. Powell's Embers of War and its sequels will be my summer read, alongside Miranda Kaufman's Black Tudors. For work I'm meant to be reading a couple of books on the Middle East, but they'll wait until I'll good and relaxed.
     
    Iain Aschendale and Lemex like this.
  12. Rzero

    Rzero Reluctant voice of his generation Contributor

    Joined:
    Oct 29, 2018
    Messages:
    1,742
    Likes Received:
    3,088
    Location:
    Texas
    I'm currently reading Noir by Christopher Moore. This is something like my eighth Moore book, and it does not disappoint.

    I'm also trudging through I Sing the Body Electric by Ray Bradbury. I'm a fifth of the way through, and I'm bored to tears. I love his novels, and I enjoyed The Illustrated Man, but so far, there's not a lot of the type of Bradbury stories I love in this one. I'm starting to see how he was able to write for hours a day every day of his life and still only release half a dozen novels. Most of these stories (and I'm only through six of them) lack anything resembling a plot. I don't think he had a concept; I think he just wrote, which apparently covers about half the advice in his writing manual: just write all the time. I haven't read it yet. That's just what I heard.
     
    Iain Aschendale likes this.
  13. Iain Aschendale

    Iain Aschendale Lying, dog-faced pony Marine Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Feb 12, 2015
    Messages:
    18,851
    Likes Received:
    35,471
    Location:
    Face down in the dirt
    Currently Reading::
    Telemachus Sneezed
    Looking at his bibliography I find I'm only certain of having read Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles. IMHO F451 was important conceptually but I don't recall actually enjoying it much, and TMC I actively disliked as I was slogging through it. Dunno, never felt inclined to pursue more after those two.
     
  14. Friedrich Kugelschreiber

    Friedrich Kugelschreiber marshmallow Contributor

    Joined:
    May 8, 2017
    Messages:
    4,744
    Likes Received:
    5,937
    It was pretty boring.
     
    Iain Aschendale likes this.
  15. J.T. Woody

    J.T. Woody Book Witch Contributor

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2018
    Messages:
    4,129
    Likes Received:
    8,662
    I've read Lamb and The Serpent of Venice (just bought the sequel for my library, too). They were great. Good to know the others will be as good.
    I have my eye on Sacre Bleu
     
    Rzero likes this.
  16. Rzero

    Rzero Reluctant voice of his generation Contributor

    Joined:
    Oct 29, 2018
    Messages:
    1,742
    Likes Received:
    3,088
    Location:
    Texas
    I actually loved everything about Fahrenheit 451 except for the fact that it's half a book. It's as if he just ran out of ideas and stopped writing, much like some of his (and a lot of my favorite authors') short stories. It would be like ending 1984 as soon as they meet up in the room for the first time. There was no closure on any thread.

    If you ever decide to try again, I highly recommend Something Wicked This Way Comes. It's poetry. In a good way.
    Lamb is my favorite so far, and I'm told it will likely remain so. I still haven't read The Serpent of Venice, but I will. According to my brother, who is a Christopher Moore addict, Sacre Bleu is good, but it's his least funny work. If you get a chance, definitely read Island of the Sequined Love Nun and the two Grim Reaper books. I'm going to read the vampire trilogy next.

    Edit: And if you enjoy those, check out Damned and Doomed by Chuck Pahlaniuk.
     
  17. EFMingo

    EFMingo A Modern Dinosaur Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2014
    Messages:
    5,167
    Likes Received:
    6,733
    Location:
    San Diego, California
    Something Wicked is in my opinion his best novel. The illustrated man in there is awesome.
     
    Rzero likes this.
  18. Zeppo595

    Zeppo595 Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Sep 28, 2019
    Messages:
    718
    Likes Received:
    691
    Isn't it weird how TWO of the major dystopian books (brave new world/faranheit) involve this idea of outcasts of society reading Shakespeare to stay 'human.' Which is a notion I'm sure Shakespeare himself would have mocked/found ridiculous.

    There is a speech Ray Bradbury gave where he said writers should read one short story, one poem and one essay per day to help fill your head with ideas for stories. I've always kept that in mind.

    I guess I have a soft spot for the guy cos we have the same damn name.
     
    Dogberry's Watch, EFMingo and Rzero like this.
  19. Beloved of Assur

    Beloved of Assur Active Member

    Joined:
    Jan 26, 2013
    Messages:
    204
    Likes Received:
    105
    Location:
    The Sacred City of Ashur
    The non-fiction "Religion and Society in Ancient Thessaly" and the fiction in the Belgariad series
     
    Teladan likes this.
  20. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Mar 7, 2013
    Messages:
    17,674
    Likes Received:
    19,889
    Location:
    Scotland
    Started reading our next forum book club selection, Lonesome Dove. I've read it before, a long time ago. I'm enjoying it again.
     
    EFMingo and love to read like this.
  21. Bone2pick

    Bone2pick Conspicuously Conventional Contributor

    Joined:
    Aug 23, 2018
    Messages:
    1,718
    Likes Received:
    1,929
    Did he have a low opinion of all literature, or just his own stories?
     
  22. minstrel

    minstrel Leader of the Insquirrelgency Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2010
    Messages:
    10,742
    Likes Received:
    9,991
    Location:
    Near Sedro Woolley, Washington
    I'm reading The Complete Guide to DAZ Studio 4. The workers who are building an extension on our house have packed up my entire library in boxes, so I can't get to my regular books. Aargh. This will last probably another four weeks!
     
    jannert likes this.
  23. Historical Science

    Historical Science Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Dec 3, 2015
    Messages:
    804
    Likes Received:
    1,388
    The Plague by Albert Camus
     
  24. Friedrich Kugelschreiber

    Friedrich Kugelschreiber marshmallow Contributor

    Joined:
    May 8, 2017
    Messages:
    4,744
    Likes Received:
    5,937
    Can You Forgive Her? by Anthony Trollope. I think I will be reading Trollope for the foreseeable future.
     
    Last edited: Aug 17, 2020
  25. Night Herald

    Night Herald The Fool Contributor

    Joined:
    May 23, 2012
    Messages:
    1,393
    Likes Received:
    2,621
    Location:
    Far out
    I've embarked on The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams, the first in his Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy. It isn't bad, quite decent actually, but I wouldn't call it amazing yet. It's very slow-going, like the reviews say, though it is supposed to get really good later on. I'm just not sure I care enough to spend 30+ hours with this story, to say nothing of the sequels. We'll see, I guess.

    I'm also reading Wyrd Sisters, my first even non-audiobook Discworld novel. It works just as well in print, I find, though I do apply the voices from my favorite DW narrator Nigel Planer. I've been a bit disappointed with my last few Discworld listens, all of which were later entries to the series; but this early installment is one of the really good ones.
     
    Bone2pick and Krispee like this.

Share This Page

  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
    Dismiss Notice