I have a few things on the go at the moment. The Greatest Show on Earth by Dawkins, E.L. Doctorow's The Book of Daniel, and Hurtson's Their Eyes Were Watching God. Also occasionally poking at the Egyptian Book of the Dead.
I love Poe. I listened to Native Son on audio book a couple months ago. Great book. Very suspenseful. Highly recommended...
I read American Son for my 20th Century American Literature class earlier this year. Fantastic book, I would recommend it to anybody.
I'm reading The Lost City of Z by New York Times reporter David Grann. I was a bit hesitant picking it up, because the title seemed a little sensational, and I also am not a huge fan of historical nonfiction, especially 20th century era. But eight chapters under my belt, and none of that matters anymore because I. LOVE. THIS. BOOK. It mostly focuses on early 20th century explorer Fawcett and his obsession with finding a city he called Z deep in the Amazon. I havent read a book that has elevated my heart rate in quite some time! I just finished chapter eight today, which details some of the beasts that live in the Amazon. I knew they existed, but the writing. WOW. It just took me there.
I'm currently reading The Bourne Supremacy by Robert Ludlum. It's pretty good, but very different from the movie - just like The Bourne Identity which I finished a few days ago.
March 1. Time for a monthly update of what I'm reading. I'm currently reading two books: 1. The Writer’s Handbook 2001, Sylvia Burak (ed). This contains a large collection (about 500+ pages) of articles on writing by various authors, followed by a market guide. 2. Cujo by Stephen King. On audio book, I'm listening to another Stephen King, Desperation. In February, I completed three books. (The dates are the day I finished) 1. The Witching Hour by Anne Rice 2/18/10 Good, but long. I started this one in December. 2. Childhood’s End by Arthur C. Clarke 2/24/10. This was okay. It was interesting to read a 1950s sci-fi and see what predictions came true, and where he was actually behind his time. 3. Memos from Purgatory by Harlan Ellison 2/11/10 I think this one fell short. I wasn't crazy about it. I also read one magazine, a short story anthology. Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine April 2010 issue 2/25/10 Magazine And I completed 10 audio books: 1. Jefferson and his Time Vol II: Jefferson and the Rights of Man by Dumas Malone 2/1/10 2. The Winner by David Baldacci 2/5/10 3. Relic by Douglas Preston/Lincoln Child 2/9/10 4. Frankenstein I: Prodigal Son by Dean Koontz 2/12/10 5. The Federalist Papers by George H. Smith 2/13/10 6. Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt 2/17/10 7. The Innocent Man by John Grisham 2/19/10 8. Communist Manifesto & Social Contract by Ralph Raico 2/19/10 9. Split Second by David Baldacci 2/23/10 10. Jefferson and his Time Vol III: Jefferson and the Ordeal of Liberty by Dumas Malone 2/28/10 The Jefferson and his Time series by Dumas Malone (which were my month's "bookends") are considered the definitive biography of Thomas Jefferson. If you're interested, they're recommended. I love David Baldacci's books (he writes thriller novels) and recommend them all. The Winner was excellent, one of my favorite Baldacci books so far. Split Second was also very good, and was the kickoff to the "King and Maxwell" series. Relic was very good. So was Koontz' Frankenstein. I recommend both. Angela's Ashes was good. It was a memoir, and although there were sad moments, it was mostly very light-hearted and often very funny. Good light reading as a break from the heavy stuff. The Innocent Man was excellent, perhaps the most memorable book I read this month. Highly recommended. The rest held my interest, but weren't good enough to merit recommending. Charlie
I waited 'till the book of the month thread for march was up. I would ask you how good is it, but somehow I'm guessing that that question doesn't needs an answer.
In my opinion, you need to be in the right mood for it. Otherwise it will fall flat. If I was forced to read it quickly, I wouldn't enjoy it.
Every Living Thing - James Herriot I'd hoped to have Dorian Grey by now but I don't (Cursed be all those who do not return library books by their due dates).
On Writing-Stephen King I started reading this about a two months ago.. but school is dragging me out a little. It's a good read.
I am supposed to be reading The Crucible for my English class, but I think I will read The Host again instead.
I warn everyone who is reading this book: While there's some good advice in On Writing, there's a part where he advises against outlining and plotting. That advice may work for some, but for many (especially new writers just starting out) it can lead to dead ends, false starts, frustration, and writing that is horrific, and not in the way that Stephen King novels are supposed to be horrific. I tried to follow that advice and wrote 100 pages of pointless tripe that went no where before I threw it all out and plotted my book, which has benefited greatly from my ignoring his advice. Charlie
Right now I'm making my way through the Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series, I'm on book number three or the Titans Curse I am completely loving these books! they're at a lower reading level then other stuff i read, but the characters and plots are great, they're extremely addictive and just really fun great stories.
All this talk of the Percy Jackson books made me want to read them. So I just checked my university's library system... and every one of the five books have multiple holds on them. Looks like I'll have to wait a while to see what all the fuss is about.
At the moment I'm reading: Green Dolphin Country, Elizabeth Goudge The Screwtape Letters, C S Lewis Nation, Terry Pratchett The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larrson The Liar, Stephen Fry The first two are for book groups. Goudge certainly could write well, but I feel she lets her attention lapse quite often, and the results can be "purple" or just flabby. Lewis was an accomplished writer, and although I don't agree with much on the theological side (which is ok, because Lewis establishes at the outset that his narrator is a downright liar) it is good fun. I've just started Nation, but Pratchett's wonderful skill at creating a whole world and mythos is clearly at work again. Only Neil Gaiman does it better, in my opinion. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo looks as if the plot will be good but it seems to keep getting bogged down in clunky exposition. Maybe that will clear up once the territory is established. I'm usually a big fan of Stephen Fry, but so far The Liar seems to be just a vehicle for as much juvenile gay innuendo as he can manage. He can do so much better than that.
