Masters of Atlantis by Charles Portis
Rainer, one of my biggest work-related regrets is that I didn't get to work on that Perec book.
(pointless?) book title contest:
i just had the shocking experience of stumbling upon an explicit website while trying to navigate back to the home page of freakwatchers.com.
no need to apologize.
I'm obsessed with the website www.goodreads.com.
I have wondered if Confederacy of Dunces is worth reading
I should finally read some Vonnegut.
Jim Thompson - Bad Boy
Evidence of parental sexuality was too painful for my pre-adolescent self to bear...anyone else ever do something like that?
Re: Terry Southern--I didn't know he'd written much other than the screenplay for "Dr. Strangelove" and "Candy," which I love. I'll definitely have to check out his other books.
Both my mom and dad had separate copies of "Candy," which I read when I was 12 and got so embarrassed for both of them that I stole both books and hid them (though I read the novel on the sly, obviously.) Evidence of parental sexuality was too painful for my pre-adolescent self to bear...anyone else ever do something like that?
If you give a teenage boy a candy bar with a ruler on the back of the package, he will measure his dick
Is the peanut chew a NJ/Philly thing?
Is the peanut chew a NJ/Philly thing?
Two of my favorite contemporary writers are Amanda Filipacchi (Love Creeps) and Jonathan Ames (What's Not to Love?; Wake Up, Sir!).
He's the guy that writes filth, right?
Should I read that Ames book?
- Everything is Illuminated*
*great book, awful movie
Did you ever go see Ames do his "Octopussy" show?
I love Wodehouse, and Waugh and all that jazz.
Should I read that Ames book?
Shamela/Joseph Andrews--Henry Fielding
I like the wacky, zany, zippy stuff from the 20s through 40s.
I also just noticed -- the book is dedicated "to Lou."
QuoteI also just noticed -- the book is dedicated "to Lou."
My old boss. I was his personal assistant from 1990 to 93.
J.S. Foer - Incredibly Loud and Extremely Close
Ooh I really really liked that too!QuoteJ.S. Foer - Incredibly Loud and Extremely Close
OK, now I am going to definitely read this book. You and an old college friend have both recommended it ...
Ooh I really really liked that too!
Let's keep this thread floating, floating, flloating out to sea ... we'll catch up to our selves on the other side.
Anybody read Robert Musil's unfinished "The Man Without Qualities"? Your opinion?
John E. Woods' translations of Buddenbrooks and The Magic Mountain kind of give me that same special something that Musil provides --- the translations are worlds away from the text-book versions most libraries keep on the shelves. The downside of visual Musil is that he is almost a dead-ringer for Weiner Cheney.
Musil is a paella of psychological / historical / spiritual / philosophical / political prose. If that makes your mouth water, check out his stuff.
I haven't read "The Man Without Qualities," but it's sitting on my shelf next to Svevo's "Zeno's Conscience" and a few other books...
I'm obsessed with the website www.goodreads.com. It's a library/book-cataloguing site that also has a social networking function. My user name is susannahlaura, if anyone is interested in creating a library. I'm in the process of editing mine, it's surprisingly fun!
It was at this meeting that I suggested that the time may have come to break free completely from existing constricting grids and perceive each front cover as a blank canvas upon which carefully chosen artists might express themselves within the negotiable bounds of a particular title or author identity. The Penguin brand identity would then rely wholly upon retaining orange, blue or green spines, and by placing Tschichold’s magnificent symbol in the top right corner of the front and back covers, unless there was a good design reason for placing it elsewhere. These suggestions were well received and for the following six months Sir Allen would sit alongside me at my desk in Harmondsworth for an hour or so almost daily, keeping a sharp eye on how the new look was developing. Here are three covers utilising existing images.
While I'm here, I recently re-read Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. Fascinating.
I forgot to answer Omar's Tim O'Brien question from another thread.
My favorite O'Brien books are The Things They Carried, Going after Cacciato, and July,July.
While I'm here, I recently re-read Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. Fascinating. Have you read it yet, Emily? (You mentioned you had it on deck.)
I just got my hands on Hollywood Babylon and Hollywood Babylon II at a yard sale. I've also been reading sections of Thom Jones's short fiction collection Sonny Liston Was A Friend Of Mine. Some of it drags, but it's not bad.
I'm a big fan of Thom Jones's Cold Snap collection (http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Snap-Stories-Thom-Jones/dp/0316472573).
"No One Belongs Here More Than You : Stories" (http://noonebelongsheremorethanyou.com/) by Miranda July is my new favorite book.
I love it so much because it is funny and also because her story telling is so unique.
Just check it out!
I'm currently reading Henry Darger: Disasters of War, which features several excerpts from his "Vivian Girls" epic. I wanted to read it after viewing a Henry Darger painting at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. I've fallen in love with it. I can see myself getting obsessed with him in the same way I was completely infatuated with Anaïs Nin. How can I get my hands on a complete edition of The Story of the Vivian Girls, in What Is Known as the Realms of the Unreal, of the Glandeco-Angelinnian War Storm, Caused by the Child Slave Rebellion? Yes, I realize this book was never completed... But still! I want to read all of it.
Isn't that book supposed to be like 4,000 pages long?
I got caught up in a John D McDonald fest, focusing on the Travis McGee novels.
Chuck Palahahahahniurgggggggghk is an FWD.plus his books can be read in like one sitting (a little under two hours)
Has anyone read House of Leaves? I've been thinking about picking it up..
Has anyone read House of Leaves? I've been thinking about picking it up..
I have actually read it twice. I recommend it if you don't judge me later.
I have actually read it twice. I recommend it if you don't judge me later.
I just finished Hell's Angels by Hunter S. Thompson and it put me in the mood to whip someone with a chain.
I'm reading No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy. It's good.
Oh yeah it is.I'm reading No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy. It's good.
It's awesome not just good
I also just finished reading The Book by Alan Watts. I've always been a big Alan Watts fan. Something about his approach to zen and philosophy really resonates with me. There's nothing particularly earth shattering in this book, but I believe that's the point.
Have y'all read any other McCarthy stuff? I rocketed through about 7/9 of the Border Trilogy a few months ago and abruptly stopped. What I read was really good. I'm wondering how No Country... compares. From what I've heard, Blood Meridian and The Road are the winners.
I also just finished reading The Book by Alan Watts. I've always been a big Alan Watts fan. Something about his approach to zen and philosophy really resonates with me. There's nothing particularly earth shattering in this book, but I believe that's the point.
Yeah, I have a feeling that it wouldn't resonate as much as an adult. But when I was 15 and didn't know my ass from my elbow, it totally knocked me on my elbow.
I would Chris L but I've got other stuff that takes precendent like some smelly old must paperback that will turn out to be uttter crap*.Have y'all read any other McCarthy stuff? I rocketed through about 7/9 of the Border Trilogy a few months ago and abruptly stopped. What I read was really good. I'm wondering how No Country... compares. From what I've heard, Blood Meridian and The Road are the winners.
Suttree is justly considered a masterpiece but you need to start Blood Meridian, like, tonight.
The Laughing Policemaen.
I'm currently reading Henry Darger: Disasters of War, which features several excerpts from his "Vivian Girls" epic.
Banham wrote the book "Brutalism: Ethics or Aesthetics," on which I based my entire senior thesis in 2006, and which I'll be damned if I can remember anything about now.
It was buried somewhere in the 2nd floor of my university's Fine Arts library. I think you can also get it online if you order it from amazon.co.uk or alibris.com. Yay for architecture!
*actually I'm about to start The French Connection, Dog Day Afternoon, and The Laughing Policemen.
I'm just bustin balls, B. Seriously, though, does The French Connection really need new readers at this late date? It's got to be a little moldy compared to recent big drug bust books, no?
Life is short is all I'm sayin.
"the devil in the white city" by eric larson
As I scrolled through this thread, my peripheral vision kept reading "Favre Books". Yikes.
I am on a George Saunders kick; in the past 3 weeks I read The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil, Civilwarland in Bad Decline, and I've started In Persuasion Nation. Fun stuff, if you hate humanity like I do.
I am on a George Saunders kick; in the past 3 weeks I read The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil, Civilwarland in Bad Decline, and I've started In Persuasion Nation. Fun stuff, if you hate humanity like I do.
My favorite current books are C.J. Sansom's Shardlake mysteries.
Although, looking back at that list now, the Adrian Mole book does seem hilariously out of place among the McCarthys, Selbys, and Ellroys.
Current: I'm obsessed with Continuum's 33 1/3 series. For those unfamiliar with the series, each pocket-sized volume concerns itself with a classic album. There are about 40 or 50 them and I've probably read about 20. I've run across a few duds so far (the volumes about the debut Ramones LP and U2's Achtung Baby were disappointing), but most of them are good to great.
Current: I'm obsessed with Continuum's 33 1/3 series. For those unfamiliar with the series, each pocket-sized volume concerns itself with a classic album. There are about 40 or 50 them and I've probably read about 20. I've run across a few duds so far (the volumes about the debut Ramones LP and U2's Achtung Baby were disappointing), but most of them are good to great.
Read Mike McGonigal's one on My Bloody Valentine's Loveless. Mike McGonigal is a nice man.
Current: I'm obsessed with Continuum's 33 1/3 series. For those unfamiliar with the series, each pocket-sized volume concerns itself with a classic album. There are about 40 or 50 them and I've probably read about 20. I've run across a few duds so far (the volumes about the debut Ramones LP and U2's Achtung Baby were disappointing), but most of them are good to great.
Read Mike McGonigal's one on My Bloody Valentine's Loveless. Mike McGonigal is a nice man.
Laurie, you know Yeti Mike too? The world shrinks yet again.
Is Bee Thousand the source material for Bee Movie?
Flann O'Brien
I really liked volume on Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea as well.THats the only one I've really liked. The Replacements one is a total letdown.
Beth, here are some recent (as in, in the last decade) books you might like:
Jonathan Lethem's Motherless Brooklyn, You Don't Love Me Yet, Fortress of Solitude, and Men and Cartoons
Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections
Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
Nathan Englander's The Ministry of Special Cases
Alice Munro's Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage
Haruki Murakami's The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
Shelley Jackson's Half-Life
Jhumpa Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies
Whatever that recent collection of 3 Rick Moody novellas is called
They've also been around for a while, but Philip Roth, Luc Sante, Don DeLillo, and Thomas Pynchon are all still writing interesting stuff.
Personally, I've really been into semi-forgotten obscure and/or experimental writers lately: David Markson, Frederic Tuten, Stanley Elkin, Flann O'Brien, Leonard Michaels, Roberto Bolano. And Donald Barthelme, though he's kind of famous and obscure at the same time. Some of these guys might be on the weird side, depending on your tastes.
Oh, and if you like sci-fi, Octavia E. Butler's work is amazing and terrifying.
I'm taking four reading courses this semester, so I haven't had a lot of time to read for pleasure. Luckily, I've been reading some pretty good stuff in my classes:
The Road, Cormac McCarthy
No Country For Old Men, Cormac McCarthy
Duane's Depressed, Larry McMurtry
Seven Guitars, August Wilson
Buried Child, Sam Shepard
Angels in America, Tony Kushner
This thread has provided me with a lot of stuff to check out, though, so thanks everybody!
a late thank you for this. I'll use my winter break well
I'm taking four reading courses this semester, so I haven't had a lot of time to read for pleasure. Luckily, I've been reading some pretty good stuff in my classes:
The Road, Cormac McCarthy
No Country For Old Men, Cormac McCarthy
Duane's Depressed, Larry McMurtry
Seven Guitars, August Wilson
Buried Child, Sam Shepard
Angels in America, Tony Kushner
This thread has provided me with a lot of stuff to check out, though, so thanks everybody!
Interesting selection there, rover96. You a theater major? Tony Kushner is my boy.
I just started my first Cormac McCarthy book (All the Pretty Horses). I'm only a little way into it, and my back is already up. Am I completely misguided to think of him as a more prolix Hemingway? And are run-on sentences a recurring schtick? If so, yuck: I'm not a fan of writing that calls attention to itself. It is possible,after all, to craft beautiful language that doesn't in effect mug for the camera.
Now I have to find something fun to read on my shelves
Just what do you imagine my bookshelves are like? I assure you, they're pretty much a desert.
Hate to admit it, but I envisioned you living in your own Hay-on-Wye. With blue inkwells and quills set up strategically throughout the house. Now I'm picturing you living in Jack Nicholson's barren white apartment at the end of Carnal Knowledge.
It's no Hay-on-Wye but here is one of my many bookcases:
QuoteIt's no Hay-on-Wye but here is one of my many bookcases:
Looks like you've got Careless Love there. I've always meant to read that. Any good?
Now I'm picturing you living in Jack Nicholson's barren white apartment at the end of Carnal Knowledge.
You would have loved the Godine offices back when I worked there: the company was in the basement of an old brownstone in Back Bay (in Boston, for any philistines out there). Lots of built-in dark wood shelves--probably mahogany or something fancy like that--loaded with books dating from the very beginning of the press, as well as various other typographical wonders from David's collection. I seem to recall there was a Persian rug in his office.
I second the recommendation of Last Train to Memphis & Careless Love. I really loved both parts, though Careless Love had a bunch more stuff I didn't know.
Careless Love is good, but his increasing degradation just goes on and on for hundreds of pages. More than a little depressing.
Apparently, Godine isn't just a quirky champion of off-the-beaten-track books, but also a stickler for printing method/quality.
Found this interesting article that also includes the only available picture of Godine on the Internet:
http://www.barnstablepatriot.com/david_godine_publisher_with_a_spine_news_50_9041.html
QuoteCareless Love is good, but his increasing degradation just goes on and on for hundreds of pages. More than a little depressing.
True. But the parts about the 68 Comeback Special are awesome. That (and the couple of albums he made around the same time) are my favorite period of Elvis, so I was glad to read about that.
I'm a huge fan of Kavalier and Clay...
Really? I feel like I've got to at least attempt Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, though it may take me years. I'm not as big on plot in books, though - I do enjoy the Graham Greene-style intrigue
I'm a huge fan of Kavalier and Clay...
Yes! Genius.
Did you read Yiddish Policeman's Union?
Really? I feel like I've got to at least attempt Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, though it may take me years. I'm not as big on plot in books, though - I do enjoy the Graham Greene-style intrigue
It's better as a mini series. I read the book years ago and forced myself to finish it.
I just bought a load of books to read over Christmas break:
- Lawrence Sterne, Tristram Shandy
- Malcolm Lowry, Under the Volcano
- Stendhal, The Red and the Black
I just bought a load of books to read over Christmas break:
- Lawrence Sterne, Tristram Shandy
- Malcolm Lowry, Under the Volcano
- Stendhal, The Red and the Black
Well those three are pretty fun easy reads
- W. Somerset Maugham, Of Human Bondage
Tonight I start on JG Ballard's Crash.
loved the book hated the film it was a valiant try thoughTonight I start on JG Ballard's Crash.
God help you, Dave. I hope you're not easily susceptible to the willies.
I seem to recall there was a Persian rug in his office.
He died on my birthday.
I'm a huge fan of Kavalier and Clay...
Yes! Genius.
Did you read Yiddish Policeman's Union?
Am spending my Christmas break reading "War and Peace." Is that really as sad as I think it sounds?
Still plowing through Crash, now praying for a quick end. I will say one thing for these gentlemen; they are enthusiastic about their automobiles!!!
He died on my birthday.
My mother gave up on the book and she grew up in a house where Yiddish was spoken all the time. Sadly the only yiddish I know are the words I scream in traffic.I'm a huge fan of Kavalier and Clay...
Yes! Genius.
Did you read Yiddish Policeman's Union?
I haven't yet, but I'm waiting for it to come out in paperback, which might have already happened - but I have a huge backlog right now anyway...
Am spending my Christmas break reading "War and Peace." Is that really as sad as I think it sounds?
QuoteIt's no Hay-on-Wye but here is one of my many bookcases:
Looks like you've got Careless Love there. I've always meant to read that. Any good?
It's the second part of the Elvis bio its a fantastic. Read both parts.
Just finished Part 1, Last Train to Memphis. Really great. Love the bit about the Teddy Bear named Pelvis.
I love that book. The second book gets sadder and sadder as it goes along, with less and less magic. Be careful, Rainer, if you go on to that one.
Re: Vonnegut, I enjoyed Bluebeard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluebeard_%28novel%29) a great deal.
Am re-reading "Rebecca" on this somewhat cold, rainy evening. Do any men enjoy this book, or is its appeal limited to women only?I liked it Susannah see its not all about Hard Boiled Noir for me.
Finished "War and Peace" a few weeks ago and have been reading Oliver Sacks's "An Anthropologist on Mars" ever since.
I am currently reading "A Tale of Two Cities" ... what stuff did you love reading in high school? What did you hate?
Dickens is pretty much anathema to teenagers
Dickens is pretty much anathema to teenagers
Yep. I've had teachers try to make him interesting at me for years, and every time it's gone over like a lead balloon
Are you sure you're not talking about Dikkens with two k's, the well-known Dutch author?
My pastor has suggested the start-up of a "serious" reading group, to spur discussion of ideas and issues that don't traditionally come up in church. So far, sounds pretty good. He wants to start with The Brothers Karamazov. Suddenly I am paranoid that I will look like an idiot. Should I/could I get through it?
I am finishing off George Saunders, his book of essays called The Braindead Megaphone. It's entertaining enough, but it doesn't approach his fiction, at least so far. He does include a nice tribute called Vonnegut in Sumatra. Saunders is often compared to Vonnegut (which I think does both a mild disservice, but whatever.) The piece acknowledges how Slaughterhouse Five turned his preconceptions about literature inside out. (Basically, he didn't need to have a dictionary by his side to understand it, and in the face of making actual points, it still manages to be fun, at least mostly.) Very nice.
My pastor has suggested the start-up of a "serious" reading group, to spur discussion of ideas and issues that don't traditionally come up in church. So far, sounds pretty good. He wants to start with The Brothers Karamazov. Suddenly I am paranoid that I will look like an idiot. Should I/could I get through it?
Dostoevsky is amazing. Don't worry too much about how "heavy" it is Dave, just enjoy the read. I'm sure your pastor will help place it within the context of the church. Afterall, if everyone "got it" then your pastor wouldn't have anything to teach regarding it. :)
I am a reading a Michael Chabon book called Summerland, that blends baseball, Norse mythology, and native-American folklore. It's intended for smart kids, so it's an easy read, Harry Potterish in many ways. After that I think I am going to continue working my way through Cormac McCarthy's works with his second novel, Outer Dark. But I might lose heart and pick up something else first.
I read the Story of the Eye by Georges Bataille for class.
I've been slogging through Denis Johnson's Tree of Smoke
just started thomas pynchon's against the day.
For some bizarro reason, I am always confusing him with Tom Robbins.
I am reading Portrait of the Aritist as a Young Man by James Joyce.
I loved 'Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.' Whenever I show it to someone, they act really surprised that it was any good.A lot of people told me to see it when it came out. Telling me to trust them that I'll get a huge kick out of something. Then when I saw it was based on a Mike Shayne book and pretty much aped the style of books in the film I was just giddy.
I'm reading Let It Blurt, Jim Derogatis's biography of Lester Bangs, and jesus jumping christ in a sidecar it is one of the saddest things I have ever read. It's not the best-written biography, but the story of this guy's life is depressing enough. Eesh.Rent Nico Icon once you done
I am currently captivated by "Death of a Citizen". More soon. Still waiting on the library to re-send the copies of Handling Sin and The Adventures of Hucklebarry Finn that they so cruelly recalled from me afore Iza finished withum.Glad your liking it Dave
Now I'm reading Thackeray's "Vanity Fair," which is great if you have patience for satirizing and moralizing simultaneously.
I am still slogging my way through Huckleberry Finn. Is this really the greatest American novel, Mr Saunders? Really?
I'm reading Red Dwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers. Pretty foncy, huh?
I am still slogging my way through Huckleberry Finn. Is this really the greatest American novel, Mr Saunders? Really?I re-read Huck Finn last year, and it certainly didn't change my life. I sense that one had to live in the time of Twain to be floored by it.
I am still slogging my way through Huckleberry Finn. Is this really the greatest American novel, Mr Saunders? Really?I re-read Huck Finn last year, and it certainly didn't change my life. I sense that one had to live in the time of Twain to be floored by it.
I "cheated" a bit, and actually listened to it as a recorded book 2 years back--and was profoundly moved by it. Not floored exactly, but moved. I loved it. Hearing the characters acted out, without having to do the work myself, made it easier, no doubt; in the same way that hearing an actor do Shakespeare is ultimately more satisfying than reading the play could ever be for me. But still--loved every minute of it, and was very sorry to have it end. The version I listened to was read/performed by Dick Hill, and I recommend it. He does a masterful job.
An excerpt: http://excerpts.contentreserve.com/FormatType-25/0857-1/060649-TheAdventuresOfHuckleberryFinn.wma
I read Huckleberry Finn decades ago, but I remember wanting to smack Tom when he cropped up at the end of it--and I had read Tom Sawyer several times. He's irritating even in his own book, but in Huck's he is insufferable. In part, I think--though, as I said, it's been years--because Huckleberry Finn is really quite a serious book, and Tom seemed incongruous.
I really liked Huck when I read it, but for some reason my strongest memory of it now is the part where he betrays his sex by snapping his legs together to catch something that is falling from a table, instead of spreading them wide to collect it in the skirt he's wearing as part of a disguise. I think I questioned the accuracy of the generalization, which certainly wasn't true at the time of my reading but may have been in the more skirt-wearing 1800s.
If you thought Tom Sawyer was annoying, just wait 'til you meet Today's Tom Sawyer.
For the next two days, I will be reading only:
Cases and Materials on Corporations (Second Edition)
by Thomas R. Hurst and William A. Gregory.
Who's jealous?
I finally finished "Special Topics in Calamity Physics" and am baffled by its positive reviews.
I finally finished "Special Topics in Calamity Physics" and am baffled by its positive reviews.That's a shame. I've got that one on my list. Only four days before I can read for fun again.
things that are kind of scatalogical but also smart. Any good ones that might satisfy these criteria?
Iit's somewhat controversial in the travel writing world
Luc Sante's Kill All Your Darlings.
Are any of you in a Secret Society?
Are any of you in a Secret Society?
I just read that a film version of CD Payne's "Youth in Revolt"--one of my favorite books in high school--is being adapted for a film to star Michael Cera! Thoughts?Well since its being trying to be made since it came out I'm not holding my breath. Loved the book when I read it years ago. the sequels not so much a bit over the top
next: 'blindness'
"There's, like, no plot"
"There's, like, no plot"
She's kind of got a point.
next: 'blindness'Oh can you post how this is when you're done? I've had it recommended to me a bunch of times but always in kind of dubious/awful contexts so I don't know what to do about it.
Can't wait for the film (http://www.apple.com/trailers/miramax/blindness/trailer/),
(http://i13.ebayimg.com/02/i/000/e8/f5/d65d_1.JPG)
(http://i13.ebayimg.com/02/i/000/e8/f5/d65d_1.JPG)
How respectful is it?
im currently reading what is the what by dave eggers. this is really interesting, does anyone else like it? also has anyone read the new david sedaris?
im currently reading what is the what by dave eggers. this is really interesting, does anyone else like it? also has anyone read the new david sedaris?
well i think palahanuik is a crummy writer, and i also was defeated by infinite jest. i did read some of his essays and short stories and i only thought they were alright. have you read any william t vollmann?
well i think palahanuik is a crummy writer, and i also was defeated by infinite jest. i did read some of his essays and short stories and i only thought they were alright. have you read any william t vollmann?
well i think palahanuik is a crummy writer, and i also was defeated by infinite jest. i did read some of his essays and short stories and i only thought they were alright. have you read any william t vollmann?
well i think palahanuik is a crummy writer, and i also was defeated by infinite jest. i did read some of his essays and short stories and i only thought they were alright. have you read any william t vollmann?
Talk about a trifecta of writers I hate, at least Palahniuk you can finish in like an hour or so. But Vollmann needs to learn not every little thought about a subject needs to be a chapter in a book. Or even made into a never ending series of books that never seem to get completed.
what do you like bruce?
"Predictably Irrational"-- just read. Pretty good book about the consistent errors people make in thinking about money.
"The Black Swan" by Nassim Nicholas Taleb-- pretty amazing. The author seems like a bit of a dick, but his point is a good one.
I'm considering reading the Dark Tower books by Stephen King. I haven't read anything of his except for The Stand, in middle school, which I liked a lot (but I like all books about everyone dying). Otherwise, I'm not too into horror or suspense writing. But people keep telling me they're really good, and I like to get lost in a story. Anyone read them?
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
I read it about a month ago after hearing the editor (whose name escapes me) on Jesse Thorn's show. It's entertaining enough, sort of hit or miss, but every once in a while there's a big belly laugh.
You won't hate yourself for reading it, Samir.
Currently reading Empire Falls by Richard Russo. This is the fourth of his I've read and he has yet to disappoint.
I would never put David Foster Wallace in the Canon of Terrible with Palahniuk and Eggers, but that's just me.
I just finished reading "Lush Life" by Richard Price--a recommendation from a fellow FOT! I really enjoyed it--kind of hard boiled and literary at the same time. Price wrote "Clockers" and many episodes of "The Wire," which I still have not seen, so perhaps there is a sub-thread dedicated to this book somewhere else on the board.
I'm teaching two new classes next Fall--history seminars to seniors, rather than just the freshman English classes I taught this year, so I'm currently finding material for them. One class is an Introduction to Media and Culture (kind of an intro crash course on Lit Theory and major cultural movements), and another is "Seminal Moments in the 20th Century," any suggestions are welcome!
Currently reading Empire Falls by Richard Russo. This is the fourth of his I've read and he has yet to disappoint.
Currently reading Empire Falls by Richard Russo. This is the fourth of his I've read and he has yet to disappoint.
Russo's a treat. I wish I'd've read Nobody's Fool before seeing the movie--I'd've appreciated Newman's performance a whole a lot more. Excellent all around.
Eagleton is a treat to read, although some past professors of mine have been kind of hostile to him.
He's dead wrong on Dawkins, too.
Eagleton is a treat to read, although some past professors of mine have been kind of hostile to him.
He's dead wrong on Dawkins, too.
How so? I'm pretty anti-Dawkins, but I haven't read enough to really defend my opinion - just that I tend to like a lot of his enemies from radically different disciplines, like Eagleton and Stephen Jay Gould. And I hate Hitchens, with whom he is often lumped (fairly or not) and have since before he was calling for Kissinger's head.
Would you come to Sunday School with me this week, yesno?
I am an atheist and appreciate Dawkins' arguments in "The God Delusion", but like yesno, I find Dawkins' approach way too aggressive toward religious people. He is definitely not doing good PR for us atheists. I respect those who believe in God and even envy them. Dawkins embarrasses me in the same way that the militant liberals at the Park Slope Food Coop embarrass me regarding my liberalism.*
*I am not dissing *everyone* at the Park Slope Food Coop...just those individuals who have zapped all the joy out of being pro-people.
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
If you want a more philosophically-grounded exposition of Darwinian ideas, I highly recommend Daniel Dennet's Darwin's Dangerous Idea. Dennet, Pinker, and Dawkins are definitely something of a mutual appreciation society, however.
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
ive been wanting to read this for months, but cant bring myself to spend the money on a hardcover. im waiting for it to be in soft/paperback.
im broke. always.
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
ive been wanting to read this for months, but cant bring myself to spend the money on a hardcover. im waiting for it to be in soft/paperback.
im broke. always.
Investigate your local public library!
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
ive been wanting to read this for months, but cant bring myself to spend the money on a hardcover. im waiting for it to be in soft/paperback.
im broke. always.
Investigate your local public library!
they have no idea what im talking about. although, i went downtown and it was checked out. i know im going to add it to my "library", so i'll probably just wait.
but in the same vein as the todd barry joke, i have have spent afternoons at barnes and noble reading books i know i wont ever buy but want to read.
Around here, there's something called interlibrary loan as well. But maybe that's just for the sticks.
Just getting into Cormac McCarthy now. He's an author I've pretty much ignored, with the exception of The Road, and I'm glad I stopped ignoring his other novels. I just finished No Country for Old Men (a quick and satisfying read) and am now reading All The Pretty Horses.
Have also been reading Blink and The Tipping Point. Just thought I ought to, in case there's something interesting in there. This is the equivalent of waiting until a movie comes out on video, and then waiting some more.
Just getting into Cormac McCarthy now. He's an author I've pretty much ignored, with the exception of The Road, and I'm glad I stopped ignoring his other novels. I just finished No Country for Old Men (a quick and satisfying read) and am now reading All The Pretty Horses.
Have also been reading Blink and The Tipping Point. Just thought I ought to, in case there's something interesting in there. This is the equivalent of waiting until a movie comes out on video, and then waiting some more.
I am working my way chronologically through Cor Double-Mac (thank you JJ Jackson!). Suttree is next. The first three were horrific. My therapist (don't judge) actually asked me to stop reading them. I'm sorry, I meant my "friend that I pay".
I am working my way chronologically through Cor Double-Mac (thank you JJ Jackson!). Suttree is next. The first three were horrific. My therapist (don't judge) actually asked me to stop reading them. I'm sorry, I meant my "friend that I pay".
I am working my way chronologically through Cor Double-Mac (thank you JJ Jackson!). Suttree is next. The first three were horrific. My therapist (don't judge) actually asked me to stop reading them. I'm sorry, I meant my "friend that I pay".
I judge you awesome. Cognitive behavioral? Freudian? I found cognitive behavioral to be most effective for me.
I'm about to start Things I've Learned from Women Who've Dumped Me (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Learned-Women-Whove-Dumped/dp/0446580694/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213273282&sr=8-1). Heavyweight lineup: Colbert, The Wizard of Oswalt, Odenkirk... Has anyone read this?
I am working my way chronologically through Cor Double-Mac (thank you JJ Jackson!). Suttree is next. The first three were horrific. My therapist (don't judge) actually asked me to stop reading them. I'm sorry, I meant my "friend that I pay".
I judge you awesome. Cognitive behavioral? Freudian? I found cognitive behavioral to be most effective for me.
I will email him right this moment and ask.
...and that's exactlywhy I don'tno one should read Palahniukanymoreever. He's disgusting.
I am working my way chronologically through Cor Double-Mac (thank you JJ Jackson!). Suttree is next. The first three were horrific. My therapist (don't judge) actually asked me to stop reading them. I'm sorry, I meant my "friend that I pay".
I judge you awesome. Cognitive behavioral? Freudian? I found cognitive behavioral to be most effective for me.
I will email him right this moment and ask.
Hey, he got back to me and said "Very close to traditional cognitive behavioral, with a dollop of voodoo."
I collect music reference books.
I collect music reference books.
My friend has this book that I think was titled The History of Rock & Roll. I do clearly remember a picture in it of Joey Ramone that was titled "Patti Smith".
I'll see what i can do. I'll be seeing said friend in a couple of weeks.I collect music reference books.
My friend has this book that I think was titled The History of Rock & Roll. I do clearly remember a picture in it of Joey Ramone that was titled "Patti Smith".
Oh how I would love a scan of this. It's possibly the only thing that would make me replace my Neil Numberman original.
I hate "business" books that take an essay's worth of idea and stretch it into 900 pages. That's what Friedman does. You get as much out of reading a good review of one of those books, as from reading the book itself.
They end up just being a string of anecdotes, which Malcolm Gladwell can do entertainingly, but just about no one else can.
I've just about finished Myra Breckenridge by Gore Vidal. I'd never read anything by him before, and had him pigeonholed as a John Cheever-ish observer of upper-middle class life. (I like Cheever, btw.)
Holy cow, was I wrong! It's a crazy book. It seems like a natural for an FOT reading list - weird sex, drugs, celebrity obsessions and psychoanalysis. And it's hilarious.
Did anyone see the interview (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/15/magazine/15wwln-Q4-t.html?_r=1&oref=slogin) with Gore Vidal in the NY Times a few weeks ago? For an 82-year-old, he's still spunky as hell.
As for me, I have been reading the same book for four months due to work and family requirements. But I had too many surrenders in the past year. I refuse to give up!
I hate "business" books that take an essay's worth of idea and stretch it into 900 pages. That's what Friedman does. You get as much out of reading a good review of one of those books, as from reading the book itself.
I hate "business" books that take an essay's worth of idea and stretch it into 900 pages. That's what Friedman does. You get as much out of reading a good review of one of those books, as from reading the book itself.
But when I heard the book was actually coming out, I started to worry. Among other things, I knew I would be asked to write the review. The usual ratio of Friedman criticism is 2:1, i.e., two human words to make sense of each single word of Friedmanese. Friedman is such a genius of literary incompetence that even his most innocent passages invite feature-length essays.
I've just about finished Myra Breckenridge by Gore Vidal. I'd never read anything by him before, and had him pigeonholed as a John Cheever-ish observer of upper-middle class life. (I like Cheever, btw.)
Holy cow, was I wrong! It's a crazy book. It seems like a natural for an FOT reading list - weird sex, drugs, celebrity obsessions and psychoanalysis. And it's hilarious.
Did anyone see the interview (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/15/magazine/15wwln-Q4-t.html?_r=1&oref=slogin) with Gore Vidal in the NY Times a few weeks ago? For an 82-year-old, he's still spunky as hell.
The World Is Flat would appear as no more than an unusually long pamphlet replete with the kind of plug-filled, free-trader leg-humping that passes for thought in this country. It is a tale of a man who walks 10 feet in front of his house armed with a late-model Blackberry and comes back home five minutes later to gush to his wife that hospitals now use the internet to outsource the reading of CAT scans. Man flies on planes, observes the wonders of capitalism, says we're not in Kansas anymore. (He actually says we're not in Kansas anymore.) That's the whole plot right there. If the underlying message is all that interests you, read no further, because that's all there is.
Nerding out with The Silmarillion. Second time reading it.
Nerding out with The Silmarillion. Second time reading it.
Been doing a lot of planning for this year's set of courses, so I've re-read The Catcher in the Rye, John Berger's Ways of Seeing, part of Plato's Republic, and a textbook. For fun, I read Chuck Klosterman's Sex, Drugs and Coco-Puffs, which was equal parts amusing and infuriating.
Klosterman always manages to pick examples to illustrate his ideas that, for whatever reason, I ENTIRELY disagree with. In the essay he wrote on the coolness/greatness divide of Billy Joel, he made an off-handed comment about how silly it is when people defend artists on the strength of their deep cuts, not their radio hits. The example he uses to illustrate this point is Dexy's Midnight Runners. But Dexy's WERE a great band--it's not their fault they were a one-hit wonder act in this country! Their deep cuts are great!
There were others, but that stuck out. My favorite line, though, was, "What in Andrew WK was that all about?"
I am reading Demons In The Spring by Joe Meno and it's already in my top 10 books of all time. And I'm not even finished yet! Also, it has a ton of beautiful illustrations in it.
susannah gets it...why not the dopes I know who want to talk about this book?!
i didnt jump on the chuck klosterman boat originally, but i just finished SEX, DRUGS, AND COCOA PUFFS. im only halfway impressed.
i would recommend it to friends, but i dont talk it up. i'd rather let me them figure it out on their own. it was worth the second-hand $7.
I finally finished No Country for Old Men and enjoyed it. Tied up some loose ends from the film. It was a pretty good read.
Then, inspired by the snippet I heard on fmu, I read A Good Man is Hard to Find and I was sort of surprised by the plot - never read it before & only caught about the middle on air. It was funny at parts.
And now I'm reading This is Your Brain on Music, and so far, so good. I skimmed it in the store & then sort of impulsively purchased it & I'm glad to have my own copy - it's oddly inspiring me to think about art projects.. so I'm happy with it & would go so far as to recommend it, even though I only just started it yesterday.
Anyone else read it/have an opinion?
susannah gets it...why not the dopes I know who want to talk about this book?!
Eh, I think a lot of people get it. It's a fun read, he poses some interesting ideas that are humorously phrased, etc. etc. What always strikes me about him (and this was even more true in Chuck Klosterman IV, which I legitimately disliked) is that he always manages to choose the exact WRONG example (in my opinion) to illustrate his points. Case in point: his essay in defense of Vanilla Sky. I hated that movie when it came out in 1999 or 2000, and nearly a decade later, I still hate it and think I probably haven't seen a worse movie. Too many terrible lines of dialogue ruled out any deeper philosophical meaning for me:
"The bathroom's over there, next to that girl who looks like Bjork."
"In the next life, I want to come back as the mole on your breasts."
"In the next life, we shall all come back as cats."
Sorry. Indefensibly bad, Klosterman.
That said, though, there's an eerie, lucid quality to his essay about encounters with serial killers, and a poignancy to his essay about the Guns N' Roses cover band, Paradise City.
Like the actual original scroll? where are you?
I just read my reading list for my new Science Fiction class. I think next time I'll read the essays before I add them to the course packet.
I just read my reading list for my new Science Fiction class. I think next time I'll read the essays before I add them to the course packet.
I am feeling that right now, JG. Cornel West's "Race Matters?" I don't even like that guy. "We Other Victorians" by Foucault? I don't even want to deal with that nonsense, much less any seventeen-year-old. Blergh.
I am reading Demons In The Spring by Joe Meno and it's already in my top 10 books of all time. And I'm not even finished yet! Also, it has a ton of beautiful illustrations in it.
Ooh, I have to get that! I love Joe Meno.
Like the actual original scroll? where are you?
Is that in Indianapolis right now? I actually did see the real one in Austin this summer, and took a few crappy camera phone pictures that I'll post if I ever get around to it. But the unedited scroll, with real names, toilet talk, and Kerouac actually acknowledging the sexism of the Beats, was published in a handsome edition by I think Viking (too lazy to check).
Incidentally, Flannery O'Connor is incredibly awesome.
I just finished Freedomland by Richard Price. First thing I've read by him. I was expecting crime fiction, and it is, to a great respect, a police procedural. But it's very ambitious, and it fulfills its ambitions, too. Great, great stuff. It's closer to late-period Philip Roth than to Ian Rankin.
I just finished Freedomland by Richard Price. First thing I've read by him. I was expecting crime fiction, and it is, to a great respect, a police procedural. But it's very ambitious, and it fulfills its ambitions, too. Great, great stuff. It's closer to late-period Philip Roth than to Ian Rankin.
If you enjoy being depressed, pick up Lush Life, by Richard Price. Even though it is set in the Lower East Side, Lush Life, to me, is the The Wire's lost 6th season.
If you didn't follow The Wire, this was the season where Clay Davis sold 1,000 liquor licenses in a 10 block radius and
turned a community pool into a indie rock/dodgeball venue--thereby solidifying Baltimore's up-and-coming status.
It's also the season where Carcetti makes a run for president, using the revitalized Western District, as well as its impressive statistic of Most FWDs Per Upscale Hot Dog Restaurant, as proof of his ability to lead.
The team's star linebacker has always lived on the edge and enjoyed the nightlife more than he should. But when he's found beaten nearly to death in the stadium parking lot, it's clear he's gotten himself into more than even he bargained for, and it's something that threatens to tear himself and his team's promising season apart.
QuoteThe team's star linebacker has always lived on the edge and enjoyed the nightlife more than he should. But when he's found beaten nearly to death in the stadium parking lot, it's clear he's gotten himself into more than even he bargained for, and it's something that threatens to tear himself and his team's promising season apart.
Omar, Can I borrow that when you're done? I make it a point to read every book recommended by Giants (and Tecmo Bowl) legend Phil McConkey: "Buckle up your chin strap and get ready to be smashed in the mouth—this is an explosive novel for anyone who thinks pro football is all about money, celebrities and fame."
Just getting into Cormac McCarthy now. He's an author I've pretty much ignored, with the exception of The Road, and I'm glad I stopped ignoring his other novels. I just finished No Country for Old Men (a quick and satisfying read) and am now reading All The Pretty Horses.
i just finished:
SHOTS IN THE DARK
(http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/0821227750.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg)
Thinking of tackling Jonathan Lethem's The Fortress of Solitude after that, even though I didn't much care for the only other book I've read by him, Amnesia Moon. Does anybody know if this one is as good as it's supposed to be?
i just finished:
SHOTS IN THE DARK
(http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/0821227750.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg)
That looks pretty great. I think that cover photo might also be in Luc Sante's Evidence, which holds a permanent place on my coffee table (...OF HORRORS!).
Thinking of tackling Jonathan Lethem's The Fortress of Solitude after that, even though I didn't much care for the only other book I've read by him, Amnesia Moon. Does anybody know if this one is as good as it's supposed to be?
I enjoyed most of it, there were parts of it that actually reminded me a lot of David Gordon Green's George Washington (if it were set in Brooklyn). I'm split on the other Lethem I've read. Motherless Brooklyn was pretty good (although it's been many years since I read it and I don't remember much about it now) but I absolutely hated You Don't Love Me Yet.
I just finished Portnoy's Complaint by Philip Roth. It's now in my top 5 list of "1st person, Self-Deprecating Novels."
Any other suggestions for this category?
I also liked Motherless Brooklyn. The Fortress of Solitude didn't do too much for me. Like The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay (another fat book that incorporates comic book myths and was shooting for "great book" status) I actually think that my own comic book fandom interfered with my appreciation of it. In all, I think that I liked Fortress a little more than Kavalier and Clay, but wouldn't wholeheartedly recommend it.
I just finished Portnoy's Complaint by Philip Roth. It's now in my top 5 list of "1st person, Self-Deprecating Novels."
Any other suggestions for this category?
So far I have:
-Various Charles Bukowskis
-Lolita
-A Confederacy of Dunces, even though it's not 1st person
-P.G Wodehouse
Anything I'm missing?
I just finished Portnoy's Complaint by Philip Roth. It's now in my top 5 list of "1st person, Self-Deprecating Novels."
Any other suggestions for this category?
So far I have:
-Various Charles Bukowskis
-Lolita
-A Confederacy of Dunces, even though it's not 1st person
-P.G Wodehouse
Anything I'm missing?
I just finished Portnoy's Complaint by Philip Roth. It's now in my top 5 list of "1st person, Self-Deprecating Novels."
Any other suggestions for this category?
Wonder Boys. (I'm pretty sure it's first person). Portnoy's Complaint is really great, isn't it? There are a few lines that still rattle around in my head, ten years after reading them.
I usually don't read books when I have already seen the movie, for fear that I've been tainted. For some reason I can't get over seeing the protagonist as a Hollywood celeb.
Wake Up, Sir! by Jonathan Ames.
i just bought this book from amazon. jonathan ames is one of the funnier writers i enjoy, but never have a chance to binge on his books because there so hard to find other than online. apparently the internet makes me forget a lot of things.
i just bought this book from amazon. jonathan ames is one of the funnier writers i enjoy, but never have a chance to binge on his books because there so hard to find other than online. apparently the internet makes me forget a lot of things.
I've never read him. Though I did go listen to him read at B & N when he put that book out. He was funny. I liked his reading voice too. He definitely inspired me to go purchase all those cute looking Wodehouse reprints. They're so pretty I want to wallpaper my house with their jackets.
http://www.overlookpress.com/wodehouse.php
ive looked into the Wodehouse catalog. it's insanely overhwelming, but a serious challenge im willing to take on.
ive looked into the Wodehouse catalog. it's insanely overhwelming, but a serious challenge im willing to take on.
I'm thinking of checking out Paul Auster's New York Trilogy. Any thoughts?
ive looked into the Wodehouse catalog. it's insanely overhwelming, but a serious challenge im willing to take on.
They're very fast and charming little trifles. Nothing to be intimidated about there.
New Sarah Vowell is out today, in case anyone else is a fan.I'm going to her reading on Friday! I had preordered the book in an order that isn't scheduled to ship for a while, so I'll buy a copy then.
I am reading Rendezvous with Rama. I am a dork.
I am reading Rendezvous with Rama. I am a dork.
The sequels aren't as good.
I am reading Rendezvous with Rama. I am a dork.
The sequels aren't as good.
I promise not to read them. Thanks for the heads up. So far it reminds me of House of Leaves.
Thee Rock Bible by Henry and Pattton. They did it again!
I just got Neal Stephenson's Anathem. It's almost 1000 pages long. God knows when I'll have the strength to take it on, much as I love the man's writing. But knowing I have it gives me a feeling of security.
I am reading "Soon I Will Be Invincible" by Austin Grossman, and I am laughing my ass off.
(http://bfgb.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/soon-i-will-be-invincible.jpg)
I just got Neal Stephenson's Anathem. It's almost 1000 pages long. God knows when I'll have the strength to take it on, much as I love the man's writing. But knowing I have it gives me a feeling of security.
I'm reading my favorite author, Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio.
Why?
Just started Dream: Re-imagining Progressive Politics in an Age of Fantasy by Stephen Duncombe. The author thanks Jason Grote in the acknowledgments, so his every word is suspect.
For me: just started Roberto Bolaño's The Savage Detectives and am totally digging it.
For me: just started Roberto Bolaño's The Savage Detectives and am totally digging it.
I started this a couple nights ago; it is pretty awesome. The section where Garcia Madero wonders through the Fonts' house in the dark and eats all their food is AMAZING.
Gets a little smutty from there on, but in a good way.
Just started Dream: Re-imagining Progressive Politics in an Age of Fantasy by Stephen Duncombe. The author thanks Jason Grote in the acknowledgments, so his every word is suspect.
Hey, that's my buddy. I love that book. Sometimes it seems like it doesn't know whether it wants to be an 05/06-type "what progressives should do now" book in the mold of What's The Matter with Kansas or Don't Think of an Elephant and more of an academic theoretical text, but I pretty much agree 100% with the ideas in there, and I appreciate that he keeps the ideas accessible to the average reader. Not everybody feels up for reading Žižek 100% of the time.
Just finished it. I'm persuaded. I have reservations about some of the people and organizations mentioned, but not his use of their example.
Just started Dream: Re-imagining Progressive Politics in an Age of Fantasy by Stephen Duncombe. The author thanks Jason Grote in the acknowledgments, so his every word is suspect.
Hey, that's my buddy. I love that book. Sometimes it seems like it doesn't know whether it wants to be an 05/06-type "what progressives should do now" book in the mold of What's The Matter with Kansas or Don't Think of an Elephant and more of an academic theoretical text, but I pretty much agree 100% with the ideas in there, and I appreciate that he keeps the ideas accessible to the average reader. Not everybody feels up for reading Žižek 100% of the time.
Just finished it. I'm persuaded. I have reservations about some of the people and organizations mentioned, but not his use of their example.
Jimmy McDonough's biography of Neil Young
Sure. Critical Mass, for one. Plenty of people do vital work that requires them to be punctual. What if a home health care provider needs to give someone medication on the hour, but can't because of a CM ride? Or working people who just need to be on time? Disrupting these people's lives doesn't seem ethical to me, and I wouldn't want an entity whose aims and values I share to be the guilty party. These are misgivings I have, not a blanket condemnation.Just started Dream: Re-imagining Progressive Politics in an Age of Fantasy by Stephen Duncombe. The author thanks Jason Grote in the acknowledgments, so his every word is suspect.
Hey, that's my buddy. I love that book. Sometimes it seems like it doesn't know whether it wants to be an 05/06-type "what progressives should do now" book in the mold of What's The Matter with Kansas or Don't Think of an Elephant and more of an academic theoretical text, but I pretty much agree 100% with the ideas in there, and I appreciate that he keeps the ideas accessible to the average reader. Not everybody feels up for reading Žižek 100% of the time.
Just finished it. I'm persuaded. I have reservations about some of the people and organizations mentioned, but not his use of their example.
Mind if I ask who and why? I'm just curious -- totally fine if you don't feel like sharing.
I got DeLillo's Underworld for Christmas, and holy s-hit that thing is a brick. I had no idea.
I'll probably finish it in 2010. Check in with you then.
Yeah, I've read White Noise (loved it), and Falling Man, so I'm very excited to get more into his stuff.
For me: just started Roberto Bolaño's The Savage Detectives and am totally digging it.
I started this a couple nights ago; it is pretty awesome. The section where Garcia Madero wonders through the Fonts' house in the dark and eats all their food is AMAZING.
Gets a little smutty from there on, but in a good way.
Yes! I just read that same passage. This is like an accidental book club!
That belongs on a "move titles I don't want to see" thread: "The Accidental Book Club."
I am enjoying Richard Wright's Black Boy.
I am enjoying Richard Wright's Black Boy.
Hey, I just found out there's a book by this name, too!
I am enjoying Richard Wright's Black Boy.
Hey, I just found out there's a book by this name, too!
Hay-O!
Thanks, Humor Buddy!
I am enjoying Richard Wright's Black Boy.
Hey, I just found out there's a book by this name, too!
Hay-O!
Thanks, Humor Buddy!
I don't understand what's happening here.
I am enjoying Richard Wright's Black Boy.
Hey, I just found out there's a book by this name, too!
Hay-O!
Thanks, Humor Buddy!
I don't understand what's happening here.
It's OK, there's not really anything to understand.
My brother-in-law beat me at chess so many times in a row over the holidays. I've decided it's time to step it up and purchased Silman's Reassess Your Chess. Those suckers at Yahoo Games won't know what hit them.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
Ben Nichols lead singer of Lucero just released a solo album based upon that novel.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
Ben Nichols lead singer of Lucero just released a solo album based upon that novel.
true story.
Last Pale Light in the West, straight outta Memphis.
Planet of Slums by Mike Davis.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
Yeah, I've read White Noise (loved it), and Falling Man, so I'm very excited to get more into his stuff.
Libra is my favorite.
Right now I'm in the middle of an article written by Tucker Carlson--who the book refers to as "the whitest man in America". The piece is about going on a piece keeping mission to Liberia with Al Sharpton and Cornel West. It's insane and feels like it would make a great movie: http://tinyurl.com/carlson-sharpton
Right now I'm in the middle of an article written by Tucker Carlson--who the book refers to as "the whitest man in America". The piece is about going on a piece keeping mission to Liberia with Al Sharpton and Cornel West. It's insane and feels like it would make a great movie: http://tinyurl.com/carlson-sharpton
Thanks for the link. That article is kind of awesome and and succeeded in making me relate to / enjoy the writing of Tucker Carlson. Gonna go scrub my brain with steel wool now.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
That book ruined me. It gave me nightmares for weeks.
Easily the most disturbing book I've ever read.
Also one of the best. I don't go for the gruesome stuff, either.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
That book ruined me. It gave me nightmares for weeks.
Easily the most disturbing book I've ever read.
Also one of the best. I don't go for the gruesome stuff, either.
Yeah, that book was rough stuff. It's a good book, but I'm 100% sure I'll never read it again. Like you say, the most disturbing thing I've ever read.
Planet of Slums was pretty mind blowing. :o City of Quartz is also worthwhile.Planet of Slums by Mike Davis.
Mike Davis is a gifted writer. Agree with his perspectives or not, it's well worth checking out his stuff, especially his books about L.A. The lens through which he sees and analyzes both the world and the world of southern California is fascinating and his writing well worthwhile.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
That book ruined me. It gave me nightmares for weeks.
Easily the most disturbing book I've ever read.
Also one of the best. I don't go for the gruesome stuff, either.
Yeah, that book was rough stuff. It's a good book, but I'm 100% sure I'll never read it again. Like you say, the most disturbing thing I've ever read.
I'm at page 200 or so, and every so often I'll find myself flipping to the author photo and staring into his mild, content face, and thinking, who is this maniac?
I just finished a Swedish non-fiction book called "Swedish Mafia". You may laugh, but it's pretty unsettling stuff. The rise of prison gangs, organized crime families, biker gangs, Balkan clans, etc. Very thorough book written by two reporters who've been covering this shit for years. Not alarmist, but with the subject matter you don't really need to be. It's also an indictment against Swedish law enforcement, who's been sleeping on the job for the last 40 years and is now faced with an overwhelming problem.
Anyway, a good read.
Now I'm starting on Let the Right One In, which was given to me as a birthday gift a couple of years ago. I figured I have to read the book before I see the film, because if I do it the other way around, I'll never get to the book.
Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. That's some heavy shit.
That book ruined me. It gave me nightmares for weeks.
Easily the most disturbing book I've ever read.
Also one of the best. I don't go for the gruesome stuff, either.
Yeah, that book was rough stuff. It's a good book, but I'm 100% sure I'll never read it again. Like you say, the most disturbing thing I've ever read.
I'm at page 200 or so, and every so often I'll find myself flipping to the author photo and staring into his mild, content face, and thinking, who is this maniac?
The only thing I can think of that's comparable in terms of bleakness is The Room by Hubert Selby Jr. Not that his other stuff is a terribly lighthearted, but that's a whole new level of ugly.
i've read "blood meridian" (twice!). what i'm reading now outdistances cormac, i think: roberto bolano's "2666," specifically chapter four, "the part about the crimes." i'm about 80 pages into that chapter and if things continue on their present course, i do not think i will need to read the word "rape" again for about 26 years.
i've read "blood meridian" (twice!). what i'm reading now outdistances cormac, i think: roberto bolano's "2666," specifically chapter four, "the part about the crimes." i'm about 80 pages into that chapter and if things continue on their present course, i do not think i will need to read the word "rape" again for about 26 years.
I finally finished off Blood Meridian last week, and as much as I've heard only great stuff about 2666, based on your description I don't think I can face it just yet. I need something lighthearted for now... I'm thinking John Hodgman's latest, perhaps.
Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman. I wonder what that guy would have thought about Twitter.There is a lot packed into that short read, dense and very interesting. I downloaded a lecture from him sometime ago, smart guy.
I'm taking a 20th Century Lit class called The Grotesque . The booklist is pretty amazing.
A few Edgar Alan Poe short stories
Flannery O'Connor - A Good Man is Hard to Find and other stories
Henry James - Turn of the Screw/ The Aspern Papers
Cormac Macarthy - No Country For Old Men
Nabokov - An Invitation to a Beheading
Patrick Suskind - Perfume
Paul Auster - The New York Trilogy
O'Connor - The Violent Bear it Away
and we also have to watch Vertigo.
Now THAT sounds like a great, great class.
Enjoy it. Do not drink while you read for this class.
About to start in on David Copperfield. I will become cultured, even if it kills me.
The Mote in God's Eye: a really good sci-fi novel.
About to start in on David Copperfield. I will become cultured, even if it kills me.
I love Dickens! He is one of my very favorites, and has been since I was 9.
Spin: ditto.
So far, I am finding out that many of the comedy heros of my youth are unbearably pretentious people.
Which Robert Bolano book should I read first: The Savage Detectives or 2666?
Which Robert Bolano book should I read first: The Savage Detectives or 2666?
I have begun to read Wodehouse's Leave It to Psmith. We will see if I stick with it.
I don't think that the factory farming of animals is needed to feed people in the sense of keeping them alive--just in the sense of giving them the food they want to eat. And many of the pseudo-foods Pollan complains about aren't keeping anyone alive, either.
Also, I love snack cakes.
...foo-like substances...
Up next is either The Kid Stays in the Picture
Up next is either The Kid Stays in the Picture
This is much more enjoyable if you know what Bob Evans sounds like then read it in his voice. Is it? You bet it is.
I haven't read the Evans book. But I thought the documentary of the same name was excellent.
Has anyone read the book "Easy Riders, Raging Bulls" by Peter Biskind? Really interesting book about Hollywood in the 60's and 70's. Although, it has a tendency to get a bit "tabloid-y" at times.
I wonder if that's actually true that processed food has enabled more hungry people to eat.
Also, Jon, I think that should be the name of your Foo Fighters cover band.
Well, my understanding is that the Food and Agriculture arm of the U.N., the W.H.O., World Bank, IMF, etc. work together to distribute food to third world countries (of course, because corrupt, self-interested governments get involved, this can get derailed). And much of that food comes from U.S. overabundance. In Kenya, for example, the staple food for many families is "unimix" - a concoction of corn oil and milk powder imported from other nations by the U.N. I am talking partially from knowing, and partially out of my ass. I would need to investigate further.
Also, Jon, I think that should be the name of your Foo Fighters cover band.That is a damn good idea, Jason. I think the name is good enough to justify the band! You're on drums.
Now, in a possibly futile attempt to keep myself sane during this movie project, I'm reading a Writers' Guild Fund benefit anthology wherein screenwriters write about their first jobs. It's called The First Time I Got Paid For It, and I picked it up for 2 bucks in a used bookshop in either Austin or Berkeley. So far it sucks, but I've only read the William Goldman and Alan Alda essays. I think I'll try reading it out of order.
Is there anyone here that has read or is currently reading the book "Nixonland," by Rick Perlstein? If there is, I would be interested to hear your thoughts because I am thinking about checking it out from the library. Because it is 700 pages long, I want to know if it would be worth my time to read it. The literary scribes seem to love it.
Paul Feig's SUPERSTUD was a superdud. I've never seen such a collection of awful similes. "my heart was pounding like a loan shark beating on a deadbeats door." ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww berrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrother.
I am reading The Road right now as a matter of fact. Haven't gotten very far yet, though.
Someone just checked this out at the library! : "How the Japs Fight"
I can't find it anywhere online, otherwise I'd post a pic of the cover.
Shit, I loved The Road so much. I love it's simplicity.
I'm reading a book about clouds. It's called The Book of Clouds. Mammatus clouds rule!
Shit, I loved The Road so much. I love it's simplicity.
Agreed. Although very different, I have not seen stripped down prose like that since James Ellroy's "White Jazz."
I openly wept at the end.
Shit, I loved The Road so much. I love it's simplicity.
Agreed. Although very different, I have not seen stripped down prose like that since James Ellroy's "White Jazz."
I openly wept at the end.
"I'VE GOT THE FLAME IN ME."
What an incredible line. When I read that, I imagined Tom screaming it to motivate himself after a series of bad calls.
Considered reading it around the time it came out but when i saw the trailer for the film i got excited and went out and bought it.
Considered reading it around the time it came out but when i saw the trailer for the film i got excited and went out and bought it.
Oh man, will you be disappointed.
I'm about to start on Blood Meridian, as soon as it comes in the mail. I'm reading it for the AV Club's new book club, Wrapped Up In Books. The last - and first - selection was Katherine Dunn's Geek Love, which was a pretty fun read but somewhat frustrating on a narrative level. Too many plots points not given proper impact and the like. I'd recommend it, though.
Considered reading it around the time it came out but when i saw the trailer for the film i got excited and went out and bought it.
Oh man, will you be disappointed.
I'm about to start on Blood Meridian, as soon as it comes in the mail. I'm reading it for the AV Club's new book club, Wrapped Up In Books. The last - and first - selection was Katherine Dunn's Geek Love, which was a pretty fun read but somewhat frustrating on a narrative level. Too many plots points not given proper impact and the like. I'd recommend it, though.
Considered reading it around the time it came out but when i saw the trailer for the film i got excited and went out and bought it.
Oh man, will you be disappointed.
I'm about to start on Blood Meridian, as soon as it comes in the mail. I'm reading it for the AV Club's new book club, Wrapped Up In Books. The last - and first - selection was Katherine Dunn's Geek Love, which was a pretty fun read but somewhat frustrating on a narrative level. Too many plots points not given proper impact and the like. I'd recommend it, though.
What by the film?
Considered reading it around the time it came out but when i saw the trailer for the film i got excited and went out and bought it.
Oh man, will you be disappointed.
I'm about to start on Blood Meridian, as soon as it comes in the mail. I'm reading it for the AV Club's new book club, Wrapped Up In Books. The last - and first - selection was Katherine Dunn's Geek Love, which was a pretty fun read but somewhat frustrating on a narrative level. Too many plots points not given proper impact and the like. I'd recommend it, though.
What by the film?
I think he means that the trailer for the movie has a lot more action than was present in the book.
Considered reading it around the time it came out but when i saw the trailer for the film i got excited and went out and bought it.
Oh man, will you be disappointed.
I'm about to start on Blood Meridian, as soon as it comes in the mail. I'm reading it for the AV Club's new book club, Wrapped Up In Books. The last - and first - selection was Katherine Dunn's Geek Love, which was a pretty fun read but somewhat frustrating on a narrative level. Too many plots points not given proper impact and the like. I'd recommend it, though.
I also frequent The AV Club and am looking forward to their Book Club take on Blood Meridian.
I may put off The Brothers Karamazov for the umpteenth time to catch up on some classic crime fiction, of which I've read unaccountably little beyond Chandler. Recommendations welcome.
I may put off The Brothers Karamazov for the umpteenth time to catch up on some classic crime fiction, of which I've read unaccountably little beyond Chandler. Recommendations welcome. I watched THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE last week and the dialogue was so sharp it made we want to check out the book, which doesn't often happen for me after watching a film adaptation first.
Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the number of 'must-read' classics out there. There's just not enough time in life.
I'm starting The Savage Detectives tonight. Exciting.
I may put off The Brothers Karamazov for the umpteenth time to catch up on some classic crime fiction, of which I've read unaccountably little beyond Chandler. Recommendations welcome.
I really enjoyed Hammett's Red Harvest and The Maltese Falcon. Also, if you want something super breezy but also super fun, check out any of the Fletch books by Gregory MacDonald. Yup, the movies were based on them. Sort of.
I may put off The Brothers Karamazov for the umpteenth time to catch up on some classic crime fiction, of which I've read unaccountably little beyond Chandler. Recommendations welcome.
I really enjoyed Hammett's Red Harvest and The Maltese Falcon. Also, if you want something super breezy but also super fun, check out any of the Fletch books by Gregory MacDonald. Yup, the movies were based on them. Sort of.
I'd also add Hammett's The Thin Man which I'm reading now. I think I already like it better than the two mentioned above (mainly because it's funnier). Denis Johnson's Nobody Move was a fun literary thriller similar to No Country for Old Men (McCarthy seems to have started a trend; Pynchon's got something similar coming out in August called Inherent Vice). Jim Thompson is also great crime fiction. Pop. 1280 is my favorite, but The Killer Inside Me is also great. After The Thin Man, I thought I'd dive a little deeper into Elmore Leonard for the summer (Hombre, Swag, La Brava, and Killshot).
I have given up on difficult reading. I am running through the Spenser series.
I have given up on difficult reading.
Joan Didion's The Year of Magical Thinking, and honestly I'm not sure what I think of it.
Joan Didion's The Year of Magical Thinking, and honestly I'm not sure what I think of it.
Did you read/like Play It As It Lays? I just started it the other day; so far really into it.
Shouldn't you be writing up Dressed to Kill right about now?
You should go to the library and check it out.
I am reading 'Misquoting Jesus', which is about the history of the Bible and the many hands and languages it has been through.
That and 'Physical Computing', which is about hooking up sensors and motors and whatnot to little microchips which leads into building world conquering robots and all that.
Re: 'Physical Computing' we may be Robuts already.
I am reading 'Misquoting Jesus', which is about the history of the Bible and the many hands and languages it has been through.
That and 'Physical Computing', which is about hooking up sensors and motors and whatnot to little microchips which leads into building world conquering robots and all that.
I really enjoyed "Misquoting Jesus" myself. The guys who do the Reasonable Doubts podcast use this kind of info to debate Xian apoolgists.
Re: 'Physical Computing' we may be Robuts already.
Quote from: fonpr link=topic=761.msg117628#msg117628 date=
Re: 'Physical Computing' we may be Robuts already.
Some of us more likely than others, but you're pretty low on that list, Fredericks.
Quote from: fonpr link=topic=761.msg117628#msg117628 date=
Re: 'Physical Computing' we may be Robuts already.
Some of us more likely than others, but you're pretty low on that list, Fredericks.
Hey Buffy,
Did you compliment me?
Mind= confused.
What do you know about the Psychologist from Watchmen?
Just started Simon Reynolds' Rip Up and Start Again: Postpunk, 1978-1984. Liking it so far. Anyone else here read it?
Just started Simon Reynolds' Rip Up and Start Again: Postpunk, 1978-1984. Liking it so far. Anyone else here read it?
Yeti #7 and J.G. Ballard's Super-Cannes just came in the mail today. I'm pretty psyched for both.
I like you, Fredericksy, warily. Don't take that personally - wary is more or less the buffcoat Way.
Just started Simon Reynolds' Rip Up and Start Again: Postpunk, 1978-1984. Liking it so far. Anyone else here read it?
i started it, and life got in the way - so i only made it 70-80 pages in. i liked it a lot, though, and it's on my get-back-to-it list. i also peeked ahead to the chapter about the fall, which only made me want to purchase mark e. smith's book. and any other book about the fall.
Just started Simon Reynolds' Rip Up and Start Again: Postpunk, 1978-1984. Liking it so far. Anyone else here read it?
i started it, and life got in the way - so i only made it 70-80 pages in. i liked it a lot, though, and it's on my get-back-to-it list. i also peeked ahead to the chapter about the fall, which only made me want to purchase mark e. smith's book. and any other book about the fall.
Yeah, I'm about 30 pages in, and I like it, but it's pretty freaking dense. Not dense as in academic (though, in true postpunk fashion, it is that), but dense as in music-nerd. It makes an interesting companion to Our Band Could Be Your Life, though: after 1976-77, the UK went in an art-school/pop direction, whereas the US went into a more populist but noisier one.
nabokov, "bend sinister." amazing, his ability to refigure sensation. with one exception ("invitation to a beheading"), i have been nothing less than dazzled by every word writ by the guy. one of - if not THE - best?
nabokov, "bend sinister." amazing, his ability to refigure sensation. with one exception ("invitation to a beheading"), i have been nothing less than dazzled by every word writ by the guy. one of - if not THE - best?
Agreed Pale Fire might be the single greatest work of literature in English.
nabokov, "bend sinister." amazing, his ability to refigure sensation. with one exception ("invitation to a beheading"), i have been nothing less than dazzled by every word writ by the guy. one of - if not THE - best?
Agreed Pale Fire might be the single greatest work of literature in English.
Thirded. I've read Pale Fire, Lolita, Pnin, Despair and Speak, Memory, and all are among my favorite books.
nabokov, "bend sinister." amazing, his ability to refigure sensation. with one exception ("invitation to a beheading"), i have been nothing less than dazzled by every word writ by the guy. one of - if not THE - best?
Agreed Pale Fire might be the single greatest work of literature in English.
Thirded. I've read Pale Fire, Lolita, Pnin, Despair and Speak, Memory, and all are among my favorite books.
i'm about halfway through all of it. i've been reading his novels in the order they were published. it's interesting to watch the same images/fixations pop up again and again; the puzzles get more fun with each new book. people who write VN off as a manipulative grump unburdened by human emotions (i've heard this complaint, or ones like it, several times) must not be reading the same books as me.
The Annotated Lolita is amazing. The games that man played with language and meaning are astounding. I certainly needed a guide to find them, let alone understand them.
Just finished up Michael Chabon's The Yiddish Policeman's Uniform. His ability to blend genre and literature so effortlessly never fails to impress me. I loved the little glimpses into the alternate history of the book, too (for example, the main character's favorite movie is Orson Welles's version of Heart of Darkness). I will say that it kind of stalled out right before the big reveal of the mystery that started the book but it coasted into a satisfying ending.
Speaking of alternate-universe Jews, I polished off Philip Roth's The Plot Against America in two days. What an awesome read. Now I am on to Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, which is OK but not great.
I am reading Sherlock Holmes for the first time, which is a trip. Next up is David Dark's The Sacredness of Questioning Everything. I love the premise, but I hope the writing style is less clumsy than the title.
I really love how casual Sherlock Holmes is about his cocaine use. He's just like "I'm bored so I do coke".
The new Kasper Hauser books, Obama's Blackberry and Weddings of the Times, are very funny.
Just started reading Blood Meridian, looking forward to all the bloodshed everyone keeps warning me about.
Hammett's The Thin Man. It's my first crack at his stuff and he's much funnier than I would have guessed. Though on the surface the style is very simple and direct, it's so compact that it took me a few hours of slogging before I finally got the hang of it.
'She was small and blonde, and whether you looked at her face or at her body in powder-blue sports clothes, the result was satisfactory.'
The new Kasper Hauser books, Obama's Blackberry and Weddings of the Times, are very funny.
Just started reading Blood Meridian, looking forward to all the bloodshed everyone keeps warning me about.
There are Kasper Hauser books? Besides SkyMaul(?) I mean?
Hammett's The Thin Man. It's my first crack at his stuff and he's much funnier than I would have guessed. Though on the surface the style is very simple and direct, it's so compact that it took me a few hours of slogging before I finally got the hang of it.
'She was small and blonde, and whether you looked at her face or at her body in powder-blue sports clothes, the result was satisfactory.'
While Hammett generally has a wit in his work, don't expect the funny in his other works like there is in The Thin Man. But I highly recommend Red Harvest.
Hammett's The Thin Man. It's my first crack at his stuff and he's much funnier than I would have guessed. Though on the surface the style is very simple and direct, it's so compact that it took me a few hours of slogging before I finally got the hang of it.
'She was small and blonde, and whether you looked at her face or at her body in powder-blue sports clothes, the result was satisfactory.'
While Hammett generally has a wit in his work, don't expect the funny in his other works like there is in The Thin Man. But I highly recommend Red Harvest.
Red Harvest is the only one of his books I've finished so far, but it's really great. I'm curious to read The Thin Man, Maltese Falcon, etc. because I'm so familiar with their movie adaptations I'm wondering if I'll like the stories more.
Just finished:
Jitterbug Perfume - Tom Robbins
Starting:
Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
In the middle of:
Infinite Jest - David Foster Wallace
The Stranger - Albert Camus
I just finished Nick Tosches's HELLFIRE last week. Holy moley, what a terrific book.
I got three more Tosches books from the library: THE DEVIL AND SONNY LISTON, KING OF THE JEWS and POWER ON EARTH. I will be reading them in that order (though I might move KING OF THE JEWS to the front of the line, since I suspect it's a biography of me).
Just finished:
Jitterbug Perfume - Tom Robbins
Starting:
Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
In the middle of:
Infinite Jest - David Foster Wallace
The Stranger - Albert Camus
So you're a simultaneous reader? Me too. When I was younger I used to sometimes have six or seven on the go at once, but now it's more like three. Even now, though, a book will occasionally fall off my radar and I'll find it in a bedside table drawer months later, half-read.
I have a problem w/ simultaneous/parallel reading, too.
It only got worse when I got a kindle. I don't think I'll ever finish a book again, although I do still plow through graphic novels.
Just finished:
Jitterbug Perfume - Tom Robbins
Starting:
Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
In the middle of:
Infinite Jest - David Foster Wallace
The Stranger - Albert Camus
So you're a simultaneous reader? Me too. When I was younger I used to sometimes have six or seven on the go at once, but now it's more like three. Even now, though, a book will occasionally fall off my radar and I'll find it in a bedside table drawer months later, half-read.
I just finished Nick Tosches's HELLFIRE last week. Holy moley, what a terrific book.
I just finished The Angel Riots by Ibi Kaslik and I'm feeling really really disappointed. Like, way more than I should be. All the reviews and profiles I'd read before the book were really complimentary, plus I keep hearing all about how great she is and the book was nominated for a Trillium prize and everyone I know who's met her says she is scary nice, so. The whole book was just super melodramatic and kind of humourless and overwritten and I had a ton of problems with it and I probably should not care so much, blah blah blah.
Mick Foley's Tietam Brown. It's... OK. Funny at times in a manic kind of way, but it feels like a YA novel with a lot of graphic sex thrown in. It received a surprising amount of serious critical praise when it came out, and the author used to be a pro wrestler who went by the name Mankind (pretty famous I think), so I was intrigued enough to give his first novel a try. Now I think a lot of the praise came out of the critics' surprise that this guy knows how to put a sentence together.
I've been subbing in all the Choose Your Own Adventures I never read as a kid. Thanks, eBay!
I've been subbing in all the Choose Your Own Adventures I never read as a kid. Thanks, eBay!
I've been subbing in all the Choose Your Own Adventures I never read as a kid. Thanks, eBay!
This should definitely be the next review thread on the board. But only if you have a copy of either Vampire Express or Space Vampire, which were the high points of the series. This had nothing to do with them being about vampires, by the way. That was just a coincidence.
If nothing else, I think we should at least have a "best Choose Your Own Advenutre cover" thread.
I've been subbing in all the Choose Your Own Adventures I never read as a kid. Thanks, eBay!
This should definitely be the next review thread on the board. But only if you have a copy of either Vampire Express or Space Vampire, which were the high points of the series. This had nothing to do with them being about vampires, by the way. That was just a coincidence.
If nothing else, I think we should at least have a "best Choose Your Own Adventure cover" thread.
I have copies of every single effing one, Wes(ley). And all the Time Machine books AND the D&D Endless Quest books. I went a little nuts in the early days of eBay. After I paid $50 for a Nerf Golf set from 1984 I had to let it go for awhile.
I've been subbing in all the Choose Your Own Adventures I never read as a kid. Thanks, eBay!
This should definitely be the next review thread on the board. But only if you have a copy of either Vampire Express or Space Vampire, which were the high points of the series. This had nothing to do with them being about vampires, by the way. That was just a coincidence.
If nothing else, I think we should at least have a "best Choose Your Own Advenutre cover" thread.
I have copies of every single effing one, Wes(ley). And all the Time Machine books AND the D&D Endless Quest books. I went a little nuts in the early days of eBay. After I paid $50 for a Nerf Golf set from 1984 I had to let it go for awhile.
I've been subbing in all the Choose Your Own Adventures I never read as a kid. Thanks, eBay!
This should definitely be the next review thread on the board. But only if you have a copy of either Vampire Express or Space Vampire, which were the high points of the series. This had nothing to do with them being about vampires, by the way. That was just a coincidence.
If nothing else, I think we should at least have a "best Choose Your Own Adventure cover" thread.
I have copies of every single effing one, Wes(ley). And all the Time Machine books AND the D&D Endless Quest books. I went a little nuts in the early days of eBay. After I paid $50 for a Nerf Golf set from 1984 I had to let it go for awhile.
Did you get any of the Wizards, Warriors & You books? I remember them being the finest of the choose your own adventure style books. I was always the Warrior, though, because the Wizard was kind of a douche.
This site (http://www.gamebooks.org/show_series_images.php?id=30) has covers of the whole CYOA series, including the shitty reissue covers and Australian variant covers. I think the spinoff thread needs to happen now. Also, I never knew there was a sequel to Space Vampire. Now I know why my life has felt empty all these years.
Trudging through "The Gulag Archipelago" by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. I just started chapter 3 (aka pg 93).
Reading Red Harvest by Dashiell Hammett. Cool book. I think it was the inspiration for Yojimbo/Fist Full of Dollars ect.
I'm for that.
Finished the Greek plays, now onto Obama's Dreams From My Father. So far it's as good as everyone says it is.
Yeah, I'm not going anywhere near Audacity of Hope. That's more like an actual politician book. I don't know that Dreams From My Father could have come out once Obama started running for major office.
I have a vague memory of reading that Agnew gag in MAD 400 years ago. Was it a real book, too?
I have a vague memory of reading that Agnew gag in MAD 400 years ago. Was it a real book, too?
Starting Remainder by Tom McCarthy. Anyone read it?
I'm on Bookmooch.
I read the first 30 pages last night. I didn't care for any of the text on those pages.
If you haven't joined already, these are great:
http://www.librarything.com/ (http://www.librarything.com/)
http://www.paperbackswap.com (http://www.paperbackswap.com)
I read the first 30 pages last night. I didn't care for any of the text on those pages.
Is it not so good, then? I was wondering ...
Based on these pages, I would recommend avoiding the book. The stuff I read included a staggeringly unfunny preface about not wanting to write the book, and a few short chapters featuring "rants" that were also not funny or remotely insightful. One of these rants was a bizarre attack on cops that seemed better suited to the first Body Count record. Cross is also not a fan of fat and/or lazy people.
David Cross is good on TV shows. But his comedy routines make me want to pour poison into the porches of my ears.
Nathan Rabin, who wrote this article http://www.avclub.com/articles/portraits-of-awesomeness-3-scharpling-wurster,8635/ (http://www.avclub.com/articles/portraits-of-awesomeness-3-scharpling-wurster,8635/) has a new book out called "The Big Rewind."That just came from Amazon! I haven't started it yet.
From what I've read I'd highly recommend it.
If you want something "different", heady, gritty but still accessible..
The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall changed my reading forever. I can't appreciate a work of fiction anymore because this was so good, and everything else is weak to me. You've been warned.
http://www.amazon.ca/Raw-Shark-Texts-Steven-Hall/dp/0002008408
The religious aspect may turn you off, but that's a shame, because this
(http://i231.photobucket.com/albums/ee183/gaughin/41t4rn-RhDL_SL500_AA240_.jpg)
is fan-fucking-tastic.
Trudging through "The Gulag Archipelago" by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. I just started chapter 3 (aka pg 93).
It would be awesome if this was a choose your own adventure book.
Read Camus's The Stranger for the first time. On to The Metamorphosis, also for the first time. I guess it's a classic existentialist kind of week.
I'm reading a Leni Reifenstahl bio. God she was loony tunes.Ever see the movie? That chick had nice legs.
I'm working, slowly, through City of Quartz, Mike Davis' scalding, Marxist history of Los Angeles. It's a bit old, but very thought provoking and explains the the strange malaise and lack of culture that made growing up and living here stressful and depressing for me.
http://www.versobooks.com/books/cdef/d-titles/davis_m_city_of_quartz.shtml
I'm reading a Leni Reifenstahl bio. God she was loony tunes.Ever see the movie? That chick had nice legs.
(http://i705.photobucket.com/albums/ww57/afamilyofturtles/lenireifensthal.jpg)
I started "Lolita" two days ago.
We'll see if all the fuss about Vladdy is justified. Oh, yes, we will see.
I'm reading a Leni Reifenstahl bio. God she was loony tunes.Ever see the movie? That chick had nice legs.
(http://i705.photobucket.com/albums/ww57/afamilyofturtles/lenireifensthal.jpg)
Sure have. I've got a weird obsession w/her.
I have been saving the latest Hodgman book for my vacation. Which starts tomorrow. No, I am not braggin'. But I am REALLY looking forward to it. His first was so much fun. I think the biggest laugh in the first book was when I was reading the "700 Hobos" part, reading all these great hobo names and then arriving at the hobo name of Terry Gross (http://www.e-hobo.com/hoboes/i/65282424).
Goddamn that's funny.
I have been saving the latest Hodgman book for my vacation. Which starts tomorrow. No, I am not braggin'. But I am REALLY looking forward to it. His first was so much fun. I think the biggest laugh in the first book was when I was reading the "700 Hobos" part, reading all these great hobo names and then arriving at the hobo name of Terry Gross (http://www.e-hobo.com/hoboes/i/65282424).
Goddamn that's funny.
I'm reading a Leni Reifenstahl bio. God she was loony tunes.Ever see the movie? That chick had nice legs.
(http://i705.photobucket.com/albums/ww57/afamilyofturtles/lenireifensthal.jpg)
Sure have. I've got a weird obsession w/her.
It has to be said, Triumph of the Will is an amazing film. Breathtaking and inspiring. Inspiring for evil, but she could direct the hell outta shit.
If you want something "different", heady, gritty but still accessible..
The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall changed my reading forever. I can't appreciate a work of fiction anymore because this was so good, and everything else is weak to me. You've been warned.
http://www.amazon.ca/Raw-Shark-Texts-Steven-Hall/dp/0002008408
This is a WATCHMEN spin-off, I take it? One of the detectives' diaries or something like that?
I picked up some books yesterday: Don DeLillo's UNDERWORLD and Henry Miller's SEXUS and PLEXUS. And a couple of weeks before that, I picked up Richard Price's LUSH LIFE and a couple others, none of which I've touched since. I'm calling a moratorium on purchasing new books until I read every one I own that I haven't read. This should keep me busy for the next three years.
I may put off The Brothers Karamazov for the umpteenth time to catch up on some classic crime fiction, of which I've read unaccountably little beyond Chandler. Recommendations welcome.
I read Brief Interviews With Hideous Men for the first time on my vacation, and now I just keep reading it over and over again.
I tried to read something a librarian recommended to me (http://www.blackthenovel.moonfruit.com/#/the-hustle/4520851664), but it really really really really sucked so I just went back to DFW.
Currently reading Rushkoff's book, Life, Inc. It's a little bit of a slog, but pretty good. And I'm actually learning things, which is really saying something, considering I devour anti-corporate books like candy.
Currently reading Rushkoff's book, Life, Inc. It's a little bit of a slog, but pretty good. And I'm actually learning things, which is really saying something, considering I devour anti-corporate books like candy.
I'm going to read some anti-academic books to balance the score.
Currently reading Rushkoff's book, Life, Inc. It's a little bit of a slog, but pretty good. And I'm actually learning things, which is really saying something, considering I devour anti-corporate books like candy.
I'm going to read some anti-academic books to balance the score.
Are there even such things? I don't think Allan Bloom counts. I think I'd totally be into them if there were, academia sucks.
Also, sorry if you're a corporation, Buffcoat. I thought you were a single dude.
I can't help noticing all the women the protaganist wants do look kind of like Scarlet Johanssen.
I can't help noticing all the women the protaganist wants do look kind of like Scarlet Johanssen.
What a weirdo!
I can't help noticing all the women the protaganist wants do look kind of like Scarlet Johanssen.
What a weirdo!
Clowes or me?
Currently reading Rushkoff's book, Life, Inc. It's a little bit of a slog, but pretty good. And I'm actually learning things, which is really saying something, considering I devour anti-corporate books like candy.
I'm going to read some anti-academic books to balance the score.
Are there even such things? I don't think Allan Bloom counts. I think I'd totally be into them if there were, academia sucks.
Also, sorry if you're a corporation, Buffcoat. I thought you were a single dude.
I can't help noticing all the women the protaganist wants do look kind of like Scarlet Johanssen.
What a weirdo!
Clowes or me?
Both of you, probably. But I was just making a dumb joke, trying to be ironic - you know, saying that someone would have to be a real weirdo to be attracted to the Scarlett Johansen type.
My daughter talked me into reading "The Giver", a Newbery winner; it's written at about an eighth grade level, but it describes a fairly inventive dystopian world. Very entertaining!
'The Russian Debutante's Handbook' by Gary Shteyngart. I liked 'Absurdistan', and so far I like this.
My daughter talked me into reading "The Giver", a Newbery winner; it's written at about an eighth grade level, but it describes a fairly inventive dystopian world. Very entertaining!
Try Flannery O'Connor if you haven't or haven't in awhile.
My daughter talked me into reading "The Giver", a Newbery winner; it's written at about an eighth grade level, but it describes a fairly inventive dystopian world. Very entertaining!
I suspect that a lot of the public schools in NJ assign this, as every semester I have to deny 3 or 4 students' proposals to write papers on it.
About a month ago, in a used bookstore in DC, I found a copy of Robert A. Heinlein's 1980 novel The Number of The Beast, which I read and liked when I was 11. It is the worst piece of shit I have ever read. I got about 150 pages in, thinking I could find whatever I liked about it as a kid (probably just parallel universes and descriptions of boobs), and eventually got so outraged that I tore the goddamn thing in half.
I just started it, but Pynchon's Inherent Vice is a lot of fun.
I just started it, but Pynchon's Inherent Vice is a lot of fun.
Yeah, I'm someone who's given up on Gravity's Rainbow twice but I'm 40-some pages into this and already really enjoying it. I'm getting Big Lebowski vibes off of it.
I loved The Crying of Lot 49 and have since started and put down every other of his novels, finding them either incpmprehensible or boring. I'll take a look at his new one. What do you mean by Big Leibowski vibes?
I'm currently reading The Crying of Lot 49 since I thought it might function as a Pynchon gateway and so far it's delivering.
About a month ago, in a used bookstore in DC, I found a copy of Robert A. Heinlein's 1980 novel The Number of The Beast, which I read and liked when I was 11. It is the worst piece of shit I have ever read. I got about 150 pages in, thinking I could find whatever I liked about it as a kid (probably just parallel universes and descriptions of boobs), and eventually got so outraged that I tore the goddamn thing in half.
I just had sorta similar experience reading through Naked Lunch for the first time. That is, I feel like if I had read it in grade school my mind would have been completely blown. But as an adult who is not that impressed with constant aimless descriptions of sexual torture and ejaculation, my verdict is: BAN IT AGAIN.
On the positive side, I'm reading Jerzy Kosinski's The Painted Bird right now and really enjoying it.
I think you don't readNaked LunchBurroughs so much as you turn the pages, mimicking the act of reading. It's really the only way to get through it.
Do comics count for this thread?I would think so, since the thread title is Favorite Books/Currently Reading. Comics would fall into the "currently reading", so I would say you're safe. There are comic threads, though.
Do comics count for this thread?Yes, and so do lifestyle magazines.
My two favorite parts of Gravity's Rainbow:
The Disgusting English Candy Drill (http://foner.www.media.mit.edu/people/foner/Fun/gravity.html)
The Story of Byron the Bulb (http://www.cse.psu.edu/~dhking/byron.html)
It's been quite a while since I read The Crying of Lot 49 but I don't remember enjoying it that much. The only previous Pynchon book I read with enjoyment was Vineland and that's considered one of his worst. Gravity's Rainbow was over my head and Mason and Dixon wore me down (even though it contained some very good bits).
V will probably take you like 3-4 months, but I think it's worth it. It's the first Pynchon I ever attempted, and I thought it was a lot of fun, and totally surprising.
Do comics count for this thread?
Do comics count for this thread?
Just call them graphic novels. I read Night Fisher the other night, also Ghost of Hoppers.
I was just living my life at the time, but it's a big book and kind of impossible to read quickly. Though on the other hand, it's written in a way where it's kind of impossible to follow everything that's going on, so maybe you won't miss much by skimming. I think it would be OK to read during school as long as you didn't have to do a lot of reading for class and such.
Do comics count for this thread?
Just call them graphic novels. I read Night Fisher the other night, also Ghost of Hoppers.
Do comics count for this thread?
Just call them graphic novels. I read Night Fisher the other night, also Ghost of Hoppers.
In that case I'm reading about 5 graphic novels a week.
I'm reading the new Nick Hornby, 'Juliet, Naked', and I have to say, it's pretty ace.
What NEW books are you guys looking forward to reading?
What NEW books are you guys looking forward to reading?
Are they actually graphic novels or do you mean monthly comic books (or just collected trades or HCs)? Whatever the case, what are you reading and what do you think about them?
-Haruki Murakami's 1Q84 - It got rave reviews in Japan, but no English translation has been announced yet.
-Jonathan Lethem's CHRONIC CITY - I'm a big Lethem fan. September.
-Dave Eggers's THE WILD THINGS - A long novel adaptation to go along with the upcoming movie he co-wrote. He's said that the novel is more his story and the movie is more Spike Jonze's. I can't wait for either. (Eggers also just released ZEITOUN, a nonfiction book about a Syrian man in New Orleans during and after Katrina; that was pretty good)
Jonathan Lethem is awesome.
I have a bad habit of buying books as soon as they come out and holding onto them for years. Here's an example: I bought a full-price copy of Simon Reynolds' Rip It Up And Start Again in 2005, still hadn't read it when I saw it half-price at Powell's in 2007, and finally got around to reading it a couple of months ago.
Do the FOT like Paul Auster? I'm a big fan of city of glass.I read Man in the Dark by Paul Auster and really dug the first hundred pages but thought it ended very weakly.
I am reading 'Youth in Revolt' - it's pretty okay, but I feel a little too old for it. Some funny bits.
I am reading Stanislaw Lem's "Mortal Engines", but I am NOT a nerd!
Finished Frankenstein last night. Read it for my Victorian Monsters senior seminar class but it was on my pile of books to read anyway. Not too bad. Has the bad Victorian habit of giving nearly every character a deep back story and using a lot of exclamation points when they speak. I was a bit thrown off by how much and how eloquently the creature spoke. But worth a read.
I'm now on to Mingering Mike, a book which I received from our own Chris L as my Secret Santa present last year. Interesting stuff - here's an intro (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/02/arts/music/02MIKE.html?ex=1178856000&en=ca85ca04a5c8cd1d&ei=5070) if you don't know the saga.
Do the FOT like Paul Auster? I'm a big fan of city of glass.
Do the FOT like Paul Auster? I'm a big fan of city of glass.
City of Glass is phenomenal. I'm also a fan of the movie he did, Smoke although it's obviously not in the same league.
I just finished The Crying of Lot 49, and I liked it, but man, if that's his most accessible book... hoo boy!
I am reading Stanislaw Lem's "Mortal Engines", but I am NOT a nerd!
I read Solaris a long time ago. Pretty mind-altering stuff!
I am reading Stanislaw Lem's "Mortal Engines", but I am NOT a nerd!
I read Solaris a long time ago. Pretty mind-altering stuff!
The movie (Tartovsky one) is not too shabby, either.
I am reading Stanislaw Lem's "Mortal Engines", but I am NOT a nerd!
I read Solaris a long time ago. Pretty mind-altering stuff!
The movie (Tartovsky one) is not too shabby, either.
Ha! Me and a friend were just discussing the differences between the book and the Tarkovsky film. Weird.
And nerdy.
Let The Right One In. It's pretty damned impressive.
Do the FOT like Paul Auster? I'm a big fan of city of glass.
City of Glass is phenomenal. I'm also a fan of the movie he did, Smoke although it's obviously not in the same league.
I liked City of Glass, too. I liked David Mazzuchelli's comic book adaptation even better though. The rest of Auster's books haven't done much for me.
I heard Flann O'Brien's 'The Third Policeman' is an incredible book, so I picked it up at the library.
IamBaronVonTito highly recommends the book, also.
I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
Really? I think this is one of the worst books ever written. As @clarencethomas might say, Cross needs to ZIP IT!
Comedians don't exactly have a great track record in the book department. I liked Woody Allen's book OK, but otherwise I am really wracking my brain trying to think of a comedian's book where I could read more than 3 pages at a time.I like all of Chris Elliott's books. Born Standing up by Steve Martin is good too.I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
Really? I think this is one of the worst books ever written. As @clarencethomas might say, Cross needs to ZIP IT!
Comedians don't exactly have a great track record in the book department. I liked Woody Allen's book OK, but otherwise I am really wracking my brain trying to think of a comedian's book where I could read more than 3 pages at a time.I like all of Chris Elliott's books. Born Standing up by Steve Martin is good too.I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
Really? I think this is one of the worst books ever written. As @clarencethomas might say, Cross needs to ZIP IT!
O4L: I've been listening to the audiobook, and there are some nice touches on there. Les Savy Fav perform the list of quirks for an indie filmmaker, and the intro is read by old chum H. Jon Benjamin. I've heard that there are a lot of spelling/grammar mistakes in the printed edition, I'm spared from those on the audio, which is nice. It's definitely uneven - but I liked sections of it a lot. The scrapbooking expose was funny, but the character stuff, even as Kenny Dupree, isn't. I'm about halfway in so far, more full appraisal to follow. REMAIN ON TENTERHOOKS.
I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
Really? I think this is one of the worst books ever written. As @clarencethomas might say, Cross needs to ZIP IT!
Comedians don't exactly have a great track record in the book department. I liked Woody Allen's book OK, but otherwise I am really wracking my brain trying to think of a comedian's book where I could read more than 3 pages at a time.I like all of Chris Elliott's books. Born Standing up by Steve Martin is good too.I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
Really? I think this is one of the worst books ever written. As @clarencethomas might say, Cross needs to ZIP IT!
OK, I can see Cruel Shoes - can check out Born Standing Up. I hadn't seen or heard of Chris Elliott's books, but being a fan of his from the Letterman days on, I'll look for them.Comedians don't exactly have a great track record in the book department. I liked Woody Allen's book OK, but otherwise I am really wracking my brain trying to think of a comedian's book where I could read more than 3 pages at a time.I like all of Chris Elliott's books. Born Standing up by Steve Martin is good too.I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
Really? I think this is one of the worst books ever written. As @clarencethomas might say, Cross needs to ZIP IT!
Chris Elliott's books are insanely silly. They are pretty much weird reworks of history with him being involved or past family members being involved somehow. The ones I've read are "The Shroud of the Thwacker" which is a parody of Jack The Ripper. He has a great funny role for Teddy Roosevelt and just a perfectly hilarious view on what the 1880s in New York was like.
Into Hot Air is about his climb to Mount Everest with the likes of Michael Moore and Tony Danza. It's a hilarious book and like I said before, they're both silly and very absurd.OK, I can see Cruel Shoes - can check out Born Standing Up. I hadn't seen or heard of Chris Elliott's books, but being a fan of his from the Letterman days on, I'll look for them.Comedians don't exactly have a great track record in the book department. I liked Woody Allen's book OK, but otherwise I am really wracking my brain trying to think of a comedian's book where I could read more than 3 pages at a time.I like all of Chris Elliott's books. Born Standing up by Steve Martin is good too.I like it so far.
(http://ebookstore.sony.com/comingsoon/i-drink-for-a-reason/image_s4.jpg)
Really? I think this is one of the worst books ever written. As @clarencethomas might say, Cross needs to ZIP IT!
I saw him at the Brooklyn Book Festival but chickened out and didn't talk to him. He seemed to perk up a little bit at my WFMU shirt, too - I know he likes the station.
. . it seems like everyone on this board would be a huge fan of "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" if you haven't read it already.
Interested in metaphors comparing Trujillo's Dominican dictatorship to the rise of Sauron? With a protagonist that has a body like Ignatius in "Confederacy of Dunces," the teenage angst of Holden Caulfied, and the comic book love of a Patton Oswalt?
Seriously one of the best books I've ever read, although it's quite sad so I can't get up the gumption to read it again yet. "Confederacy of Dunces" also might be one of my most favorite books ever.
Oh god, I attend one Gathering of the FOT and now find myself crawling into even the non-Best Show related threads... :p
I couldn't slog through all 64 pages of this so apologies if this book has already been mentioned. But it seems like everyone on this board would be a huge fan of "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" if you haven't read it already.
Interested in metaphors comparing Trujillo's Dominican dictatorship to the rise of Sauron? With a protagonist that has a body like Ignatius in "Confederacy of Dunces," the teenage angst of Holden Caulfied, and the comic book love of a Patton Oswalt?
Seriously one of the best books I've ever read, although it's quite sad so I can't get up the gumption to read it again yet. "Confederacy of Dunces" also might be one of my most favorite books ever.
Fully entrenched in Cormac McCarthy's Child of God. Of the four I've read, it's the most blatantly Faulknerian, but it's also the most pleasurable to read. It's nasty and horrific, of course, but kinda fun.
Did I just call Cormac McCarthy "fun"? I think AP Mike may've spiked my pizza last week.
Fully entrenched in Cormac McCarthy's Child of God. Of the four I've read, it's the most blatantly Faulknerian, but it's also the most pleasurable to read. It's nasty and horrific, of course, but kinda fun.
Did I just call Cormac McCarthy "fun"? I think AP Mike may've spiked my pizza last week.
It's the only Cormac McCarthy book I've read yet, and I loved it. I couldn't get through "All the Pretty Horses" (an Imus favorite, by the way--my dad's a big fan of the I-Man).
I want to give The Road a shot, but I'm steeling up the courage.
After Patton Oswalt's Italo Calvino reference during his last appearance on the show, I asked for a recommendation. He suggested Invisible Cities which I'm just about done with (it's a very fast read). Strange and wonderful stuff (I recommend the William Weaver translation). Similar in some ways to Jorge Borges who I like very much.
The one to prepare for is Blood Meridian. It was so unpleasant that I'm not sure whether or not I liked it.
After Patton Oswalt's Italo Calvino reference during his last appearance on the show, I asked for a recommendation. He suggested Invisible Cities which I'm just about done with (it's a very fast read). Strange and wonderful stuff (I recommend the William Weaver translation). Similar in some ways to Jorge Borges who I like very much.
I actually just picked up some Borges (Ficciones) at a used book sale. For some reason, I'm intimidated by it. Is this a good place to start with him? Is my apprehension warranted at all?
Similar in some ways to Jorge Borgeswhowhom I like very much.
By the way, I'm currently reading The Braindead Megaphone by George Saunders. I'd read Pastoralia prior to this, but this is a collection of his non-fiction. I'm pretty early on in it, but it's very readable and enjoyable so far.
No excuse not to read Borges. He's written a small handful of easily readable short stories. Some essays, some poems. Read that mofo.
By the way, I'm currently reading The Braindead Megaphone by George Saunders. I'd read Pastoralia prior to this, but this is a collection of his non-fiction. I'm pretty early on in it, but it's very readable and enjoyable so far.
The Braindead Megaphone is great! I haven't actually read any other of his books- I should get on that. Recommendations, anyone?
I'm reading Malcolm Gladwell right now. I just finished "Outliers" and "The Tipping Point" before that. Reading "Blink" right now. Pretty much my favorite author right now.I LOVED Tipping Point and Blink. Haven't read Outliers yet. Blink changed the way I thought about people, I guess I mean to say it made me rethink my first impressions.
By the way, I'm currently reading The Braindead Megaphone by George Saunders. I'd read Pastoralia prior to this, but this is a collection of his non-fiction. I'm pretty early on in it, but it's very readable and enjoyable so far.
The Braindead Megaphone is great! I haven't actually read any other of his books- I should get on that. Recommendations, anyone?
Oh boy, I love his short fiction. I would start with Civilwarland in Bad Decline, but Pastoralia is great too. Here's my obligatory annual nod to Jesse Thorpe for introducing me to Saunders via the Soil of Young America.
The future where humans interact with space lizards.
This is a pretty routine point, but I get the same kind of pleasure from reading Borges (or Calvino to a lesser extent) as I get from really good sci-fi. The way they just take some weird idea and run with it. Bad sci-fi authors write about dumb ideas poorly, and of course some sci-fi is just adventure stories in space.
Where Borges seems to take his ideas from history, literature, theology, and philosophy, your Iain Banks takes his from science. (Social science is included in here are the best sci-fi always has visions of weird societies. Ken MacLeod is great at projecting things like left libertarianism into the future where humans interact with space lizards.)
Oh god, I attend one Gathering of the FOT and now find myself crawling into even the non-Best Show related threads... :p
I couldn't slog through all 64 pages of this so apologies if this book has already been mentioned. But it seems like everyone on this board would be a huge fan of "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" if you haven't read it already.
Interested in metaphors comparing Trujillo's Dominican dictatorship to the rise of Sauron? With a protagonist that has a body like Ignatius in "Confederacy of Dunces," the teenage angst of Holden Caulfied, and the comic book love of a Patton Oswalt?
Seriously one of the best books I've ever read, although it's quite sad so I can't get up the gumption to read it again yet. "Confederacy of Dunces" also might be one of my most favorite books ever.
Fully entrenched in Cormac McCarthy's Child of God. Of the four I've read, it's the most blatantly Faulknerian, but it's also the most pleasurable to read. It's nasty and horrific, of course, but kinda fun.
Did I just call Cormac McCarthy "fun"? I think AP Mike may've spiked my pizza last week.
It's the only Cormac McCarthy book I've read yet, and I loved it. I couldn't get through "All the Pretty Horses" (an Imus favorite, by the way--my dad's a big fan of the I-Man).
I want to give The Road a shot, but I'm steeling up the courage.
The Road is actually a very easy read. You can probably make it through in a day or two. The one to prepare for is Blood Meridian. It was so unpleasant that I'm not sure whether or not I liked it.
No Country For Old Men is good but kind of unnecessary if you've seen the movie since they are almost identical. I haven't tried with any of the Border Trilogy since I've been warned away more than once.
Oh god, I attend one Gathering of the FOT and now find myself crawling into even the non-Best Show related threads... :p
I couldn't slog through all 64 pages of this so apologies if this book has already been mentioned. But it seems like everyone on this board would be a huge fan of "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" if you haven't read it already.
Interested in metaphors comparing Trujillo's Dominican dictatorship to the rise of Sauron? With a protagonist that has a body like Ignatius in "Confederacy of Dunces," the teenage angst of Holden Caulfied, and the comic book love of a Patton Oswalt?
Seriously one of the best books I've ever read, although it's quite sad so I can't get up the gumption to read it again yet. "Confederacy of Dunces" also might be one of my most favorite books ever.
I liked OSCAR WAO. I was led to believe one of my classes this semester had the book on the syllabus, but it doesn't. I have a decent Spanish vocabulary, but I wonder how people with no background would fare with the random words thrown in there. Obviously context helps a lot for the most part, but I remember thinking to myself at random times that even with context, somebody that hadn't taken a Spanish class would probably not understand this sentence, sometimes paragraph if the word was important.Fully entrenched in Cormac McCarthy's Child of God. Of the four I've read, it's the most blatantly Faulknerian, but it's also the most pleasurable to read. It's nasty and horrific, of course, but kinda fun.
Did I just call Cormac McCarthy "fun"? I think AP Mike may've spiked my pizza last week.
It's the only Cormac McCarthy book I've read yet, and I loved it. I couldn't get through "All the Pretty Horses" (an Imus favorite, by the way--my dad's a big fan of the I-Man).
I want to give The Road a shot, but I'm steeling up the courage.
The Road is actually a very easy read. You can probably make it through in a day or two. The one to prepare for is Blood Meridian. It was so unpleasant that I'm not sure whether or not I liked it.
No Country For Old Men is good but kind of unnecessary if you've seen the movie since they are almost identical. I haven't tried with any of the Border Trilogy since I've been warned away more than once.
Haha damn. I was planning on running through a lot of McCarthy this summer and decided on starting with BLOOD MERIDIAN. What little I read was very unpleasant for me. I got 25-30 pages in and decided I'd rather read something else, and then never went back to McCarthy over the summer. So THE ROAD is a good starting point?
I'm reading Malcolm Gladwell right now. I just finished "Outliers" and "The Tipping Point" before that. Reading "Blink" right now. Pretty much my favorite author right now.I LOVED Tipping Point and Blink. Haven't read Outliers yet. Blink changed the way I thought about people, I guess I mean to say it made me rethink my first impressions.
Oh god, I attend one Gathering of the FOT and now find myself crawling into even the non-Best Show related threads... :p
I couldn't slog through all 64 pages of this so apologies if this book has already been mentioned. But it seems like everyone on this board would be a huge fan of "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" if you haven't read it already.
Interested in metaphors comparing Trujillo's Dominican dictatorship to the rise of Sauron? With a protagonist that has a body like Ignatius in "Confederacy of Dunces," the teenage angst of Holden Caulfied, and the comic book love of a Patton Oswalt?
Seriously one of the best books I've ever read, although it's quite sad so I can't get up the gumption to read it again yet. "Confederacy of Dunces" also might be one of my most favorite books ever.
I liked OSCAR WAO. I was led to believe one of my classes this semester had the book on the syllabus, but it doesn't. I have a decent Spanish vocabulary, but I wonder how people with no background would fare with the random words thrown in there. Obviously context helps a lot for the most part, but I remember thinking to myself at random times that even with context, somebody that hadn't taken a Spanish class would probably not understand this sentence, sometimes paragraph if the word was important.Fully entrenched in Cormac McCarthy's Child of God. Of the four I've read, it's the most blatantly Faulknerian, but it's also the most pleasurable to read. It's nasty and horrific, of course, but kinda fun.
Did I just call Cormac McCarthy "fun"? I think AP Mike may've spiked my pizza last week.
It's the only Cormac McCarthy book I've read yet, and I loved it. I couldn't get through "All the Pretty Horses" (an Imus favorite, by the way--my dad's a big fan of the I-Man).
I want to give The Road a shot, but I'm steeling up the courage.
The Road is actually a very easy read. You can probably make it through in a day or two. The one to prepare for is Blood Meridian. It was so unpleasant that I'm not sure whether or not I liked it.
No Country For Old Men is good but kind of unnecessary if you've seen the movie since they are almost identical. I haven't tried with any of the Border Trilogy since I've been warned away more than once.
Haha damn. I was planning on running through a lot of McCarthy this summer and decided on starting with BLOOD MERIDIAN. What little I read was very unpleasant for me. I got 25-30 pages in and decided I'd rather read something else, and then never went back to McCarthy over the summer. So THE ROAD is a good starting point?
I've been meaning to read some Gladwell, especially after his guest spot in Scary-Go-Round, but I'm lead to believe he's a little psuedosciencey. Should I check him out?
By unpleasant, I was talking much more about the prose and writing style itself rather than subject matter. I simply did not enjoy reading it. But if you guys just mean unpleasant subject matter, do McCarthy's other books read similarly?
I was going to sort of make fun of Gladwell but chickened out. Grote broke the ice. Honestly, though, he's okay if you consider his origins as a magazine writer, whose job is to hype whatever he's writing about. He takes research and blows it up beyond what the actual researchers who came up with it would ever do.
I haven't read Outliers, and, although it's obvious the fact that success owes a lot to luck and circumstance, and then to hard work second, strikes me as being very, very worth saying, in a day where people believe we have a "meritocracy" contrary to all the evidence. (#1 predictor of how you'll turn out in life is how rich your parents are, not your own "merit." Also, there is less social mobility in the US and Britain than continental Europe. I've met plenty of smart people who think that we have a nation where smart, energetic poor people do better in life than dumb rich lazy people.)
If you like modern "secret hidden truth of whatever" authors, I'd recommend "Predictably Irrational" by Dan Ariely and everything Nassim Nicholas Taleb has written.
I've met plenty of smart people who think that we have a nation where smart, energetic poor people do better in life than dumb rich lazy people.
I like the way Gladwell writes but at the end of anything I read from him I have to ask "so?".
"their are outliers". ok.
"some decisions are made instantaneously". fine.
"some other dude invented stuff at the SAME TIME". so?
There's never any closure. Just more questions.
The message of all these books is basically, "No one knows anything," which is a hard pill to swallow, even for a hardened cynic.
No it isn't.
Why do you say that?
The message of all these books is basically, "No one knows anything," which is a hard pill to swallow, even for a hardened cynic.
No it isn't.
What do you mean by "it" dhere, F. Ricks?
What do you mean by "it" here, F. Ricks?
I just finished Jennifer 8. Lee's "The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures In The World Of Chinese Food." I'd recommend it for anyone curious about how Chinese cuisine changed when it came to America. I like her writing style, and there's plenty of fun tidbits (the D.C. boardinghouse where John Wilkes Booth and his accomplices planned Abraham Lincoln's assassination is now a Chinese restaurant called Wok n Roll).
In an effort to catch up withe the rest of you well-read humps, I've started reading a collection of Lovecraft stories.
I'm very much enthralled with the Brooklyn of yesteryear. All overgrown swamps and graveyards. If he were a alive now he would re-write "The Lurking Fear" to be about coke withdrawl the day before a job interview at The Strand Bookstore.
I acquired 2 collections of Borges' stories. So far, so good.Library of Babel FOR THE WIN!
I'm thinking of reading James Ellroy's latest, "Blood's A Rover." I have enjoyed the four other books of his that I've read, but man does James Ellroy bug me in real life.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCSGrwqIszk[/youtube]
In a Q&A about the book on the Facebook Ellroy fan page, he refers to the "Beethovian greatness" of the book. He also says, "Meticulousness, diligence, profoundly rigorous work habits all contributed to the greatness of this novel. During the odd moments that my super-human resolve faltered, I stared at the numerous portraits of Beethoven that adorn my pad."
I'm thinking of reading James Ellroy's latest, "Blood's A Rover." I have enjoyed the four other books of his that I've read, but man does James Ellroy bug me in real life.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCSGrwqIszk[/youtube]
In a Q&A about the book on the Facebook Ellroy fan page, he refers to the "Beethovian greatness" of the book. He also says, "Meticulousness, diligence, profoundly rigorous work habits all contributed to the greatness of this novel. During the odd moments that my super-human resolve faltered, I stared at the numerous portraits of Beethoven that adorn my pad."
I know what you mean, but it's pretty clearly an affectation. It's part of a strutting, attitudinizing public persona. I think so, anyway. Anyway, I don't let it bother me any more than when Jerry Lee Lewis or Little Richard or Cassius Clay (you probably know him as Muhammad Ali) calls himself "the greatest."
I'm about 100 pages into Blood's a Rover. If you like the others you've read (especially if American Tabloid or The Cold Six Thousand are part of that list), I'd say check it out.
Thanks MOS. I've read The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, L.A. Confidential, and American Tabloid. In other words, I've started but not finished two of his multi-book series.
You're probably right about Ellroy's public persona.
Thanks MOS. I've read The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, L.A. Confidential, and American Tabloid. In other words, I've started but not finished two of his multi-book series.
You're probably right about Ellroy's public persona.
Yah me too - I read him early on but never got around to the series ... and RE his persona, did anyone read My Dark Places? From what I remember it's pretty much his explanation for why he is the way he is.
Reading A Farewell To Arms by Hemingway, about two-thirds through. I'm enjoying it, but some of the writing feels goofy and some of the dialogue, especially between the protagonist and the love interest, is cheesy.I am completely unable to differentiate A Farewell To Arms from The Sun Also Rises in my mind- I have the differences between the locations okay, but that's about it- and I can never remember the titles. It's probably because we read them back to back in high school.
Probably going into Cormac McCarthy's All The Pretty Horses after this, or maybe The Sun Also Rises.
I finally got an NY library card because, for the first time, I'm doing research for a project where I don't actually want to own the books (in this case, commercially successful "realistic" plays). The first one was Neil LaBute's Fat Pig, which was offensive to me not because it's sexist or fattist or whatever but because it's shockingly fucking incompetent and moronic. The second was Adam Rapp's Red Light Winter, which (aside from being deeply misogynistic, whereas Fat Pig just pretends to be) was actually a pretty good read.
Reading A Farewell To Arms by Hemingway, about two-thirds through. I'm enjoying it, but some of the writing feels goofy and some of the dialogue, especially between the protagonist and the love interest, is cheesy.
Probably going into Cormac McCarthy's All The Pretty Horses after this, or maybe The Sun Also Rises.
I just finished the David Cross audiobook which would have been like listening to his stand up without an audience and would have been fine but throughout the entire recording he constantly berated the listener for not buying the book (by the way, the audiobook was five dollars more than the hardcover). I understand that reading a book is better and cooler than listening to an audiobook but I work fifty hours a week (for a meager wage I might add) and have kids to raise when I get home so lately listening to audiobooks at work is really the only way I can "read". I like David Cross as a comedian and when he's in something besides the latest CGI kidfest movie I usually like him as an actor but does he just think that if your career and/or lifestyle doesn't permit one to read that they should just stay dumb?
I have a friend who loves comedy and also happens to be severely dyslexic. He bought Cross's book from audible, and he was so angry that he was berated for listening instead of reading. I think Mr. Cross might have lost two fans out of this.
You know, fans of alternative comedy are the last people I would expect to be offended by Mr Cross's politically insensitive anti-audiobook screed. In fact, given Cross's love of jokes that fold in on themselves, your reaction to this setup might be the punchline to his intentional joke that we wouldn't even know existed were it NOT for the discussion that follows this type or reaction.
Or something.
I just finished the David Cross audiobook which would have been like listening to his stand up without an audience and would have been fine but throughout the entire recording he constantly berated the listener for not buying the book (by the way, the audiobook was five dollars more than the hardcover). I understand that reading a book is better and cooler than listening to an audiobook but I work fifty hours a week (for a meager wage I might add) and have kids to raise when I get home so lately listening to audiobooks at work is really the only way I can "read". I like David Cross as a comedian and when he's in something besides the latest CGI kidfest movie I usually like him as an actor but does he just think that if your career and/or lifestyle doesn't permit one to read that they should just stay dumb?I have a friend who loves comedy and also happens to be severely dyslexic. He bought Cross's book from audible, and he was so angry that he was berated for listening instead of reading. I think Mr. Cross might have lost two fans out of this.
Yeah, that's messed up. How does he berate the listener? Just randomly interjecting that they should be reading? What else is changed from book to audiobook?
I use the Kindle (and Stanza) apps on my iPhone for convenient anywhere reading. I can't see lugging around an extra device. Maybe good for vacations, but vacations for me always include book shopping. In any event the screens aren't that great. Grey on grey. The big one would be killer for comics if it were color.
Anyway, that's not why I checked out this thread. What I was supposed to say was that Amazon is finally introducing the Kindle here in Europe, and I sort of want to try it. Anyone got one? Tried it? Good/bad experience?
Good point. Didn't know there was a Kindle app for the iPhone. Guess screen size is a drawback on the iPhone, but other than that... yeah.
What?! Kindle has graphic novels? That sounds kind of terrible.
Graphic novel on the Kindle = person typing out 'heh heh.'
I usually skip the graphics and just read the word ballooons anyway.
I linger over the wonderful illustrations. Or at least take note of them.
Oh and I'm currently about halfway through Slaughterhouse 5 which I'm loving so far. I know I should have read it a long time ago but better late than never.
And you see the plot twists coming.
I rarely read short fiction but I read about E. Annie Proulx's Close Range - seems like a great choice to me.
I am reading Wonder Boys. I loved the movie, but hadn't read the book yet. The movie is very close to the book, but it's worth reading if only for the stuff about the life of a writer and the 'midnight disease'. I'm not a writer (though I've tried), but I identify with them for some reason. I love when writers write about writers and writing :)
I rarely read short fiction but I read about E. Annie Proulx's Close Range - seems like a great choice to me.
I am reading Wonder Boys. I loved the movie, but hadn't read the book yet. The movie is very close to the book, but it's worth reading if only for the stuff about the life of a writer and the 'midnight disease'. I'm not a writer (though I've tried), but I identify with them for some reason. I love when writers write about writers and writing :)
Just finished Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go. Fantastic, very moving and technically ingenious -- sort of an inversion of Great Expectations set in an alternate-reality present day England (more or less).
One of the best new books I've read in the past few years.
Is now a good time to mention that I don't OWN a television?Yep.
I'm about halfway through When Engulfed in Flames. My feelings on it are mixed so far.
Since you asked, here's what I thought of 'Engulfed in Flames' - http://areyougenehackman.blogspot.com/2008/06/all-beauty-you-will-ever-need.html
I just got through this audiobook. Surprisingly serious, reflective and not insane.
(http://23.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_krqtugKTyn1qzt30so1_500.jpg)
Since you asked, here's what I thought of 'Engulfed in Flames' - http://areyougenehackman.blogspot.com/2008/06/all-beauty-you-will-ever-need.html
I just got through this audiobook. Surprisingly serious, reflective and not insane.
(http://23.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_krqtugKTyn1qzt30so1_500.jpg)
I haven't read it, but I have the audiobook. It seemed to mark a new maturity for Mr. Sedaris.I much prefer the audiobook versions of Sedaris' work. Especially when it's a live recording. He adds just enough for it to be rather rewarding.
I've been re-reading all my Chris Ware stuff. Got into the first Rusty Brown last night. That dream scene in Jimmy Corrigan where he has to shoot his tiny horse make me sob every time.
I've been re-reading all my Chris Ware stuff. Got into the first Rusty Brown last night. That dream scene in Jimmy Corrigan where he has to shoot his tiny horse make me sob every time.
The last issue of Acme, from late 2008 I believe -- the one with the sci-fi story as its first half -- was incredible.
I haven't read it, but I have the audiobook. It seemed to mark a new maturity for Mr. Sedaris.I much prefer the audiobook versions of Sedaris' work. Especially when it's a live recording. He adds just enough for it to be rather rewarding.
I picked up a copy of "Vital Lies, Simple Truths: The Psychology of Self-Deception" after yesno mentioned it in the thread about "New Hope for the Ape Eared."
I picked up a copy of "Vital Lies, Simple Truths: The Psychology of Self-Deception" after yesno mentioned it in the thread about "New Hope for the Ape Eared."
And?
I just Google Books'd that for the quote, which I had read/heard elsewhere. So I hope it's good.
"Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior" is a pop science take on this same subject (I think). Pretty dang interesting.
Onto NOBODY MOVE by Denis Johnson. Fun little genre exercise.
Now reading SABBATH'S THEATER by Philip Roth. Like the other Roths that I've read from the same period, the prose is utterly mesmerizing. I'm not sure where the story is going yet, but I'm enjoying the writing so much that I kinda don't care.
Now reading SABBATH'S THEATER by Philip Roth. Like the other Roths that I've read from the same period, the prose is utterly mesmerizing. I'm not sure where the story is going yet, but I'm enjoying the writing so much that I kinda don't care.
That is one of his few novels I've still never gotten around to. I kind of overdosed on his stuff about ten years ago and haven't loved some of his more recent work, but the mid-career stuff is his best, I think, so I really ought to go back and check that one off my list. Of all his books I think 'American Pastoral' and 'The Counterlife' are my favorites. And 'Portnoy's Complaint', of course. It's as endlessly funny to me as the first Pee Wee movie.
Now reading SABBATH'S THEATER by Philip Roth. Like the other Roths that I've read from the same period, the prose is utterly mesmerizing. I'm not sure where the story is going yet, but I'm enjoying the writing so much that I kinda don't care.
That is one of his few novels I've still never gotten around to. I kind of overdosed on his stuff about ten years ago and haven't loved some of his more recent work, but the mid-career stuff is his best, I think, so I really ought to go back and check that one off my list. Of all his books I think 'American Pastoral' and 'The Counterlife' are my favorites. And 'Portnoy's Complaint', of course. It's as endlessly funny to me as the first Pee Wee movie.
AMERICAN PASTORAL is my favorite of the ones I've read. I really liked THE HUMAN STAIN as well. The one from this period that didn't do much for me is OPERATION SHYLOCK.
I just heard a lengthy interview with Roth on CBC Radio's Writers & Company. It's a good listen. There's a flash player here (http://www.cbc.ca/writersandcompany/audio.html) and podcast here (http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/index.html?arts#writersandcompany).
Now reading SABBATH'S THEATER by Philip Roth. Like the other Roths that I've read from the same period, the prose is utterly mesmerizing. I'm not sure where the story is going yet, but I'm enjoying the writing so much that I kinda don't care.
I'm reading I Can't Go On, I'll Go On a career-spanning, 700+ page Samuel Beckett reader. I'm looking forward to hearing from all the other FOT who are also currently reading this.
I'm reading I Can't Go On, I'll Go On a career-spanning, 700+ page Samuel Beckett reader. I'm looking forward to hearing from all the other FOT who are also currently reading this.
James Ellroy seems like a creep but I'm reading the final part of the Underworld series right now. Blood's a Rover. Its actually tough for me to get into this one although I had no problems with the others. It may have more to do with the fact that I watched/read some of his recent interviews than it does with the quality of the writing.
Yeah Im going to stick with it. I've also read that he's just trying to fuck with people, I guess that some of the sentiments expressed coupled with some of the less savory characters in the books can put a bad taste in mouth so to speakJames Ellroy seems like a creep but I'm reading the final part of the Underworld series right now. Blood's a Rover. Its actually tough for me to get into this one although I had no problems with the others. It may have more to do with the fact that I watched/read some of his recent interviews than it does with the quality of the writing.
I liked Blood's a Rover a lot. Ellroy does seem like a creep in interviews, but keep in mind he was the same creep when he wrote the other books. Plus it's hard to know when he's been serious in his interviews/public appearances. Someone called in recently reporting that they'd seen him at a book reading where he was saying things like "Rodney King deserved that beating" and kinds of other inflammatory shit, but I've read interviews where he was asked about his apparent political conservatism and he says something like "I just say that shit to fuck with people."
That's on my list too. I do love Beckett.
There's a lot of unreadable -- not Beckett-unreadable, but just plain unreadable -- stuff in the first third of this, mostly juvenalia, but I'm a completist so I read it anyway.
Yeah, that's great. I want to try it and see if I lose weight.
I am reading I Shudder: And Other Reactions to Life, Death, and New Jersey by Paul Rudnick.
I like him better than David Sedaris, who I don't like very much.
But this book is just cute, nothing more, really.
I am reading I Shudder: And Other Reactions to Life, Death, and New Jersey by Paul Rudnick.
I like him better than David Sedaris, who I don't like very much.
But this book is just cute, nothing more, really.
I just finished 'My Custom Van', Michael Ian Black's book which was very, very funny. Anyone else read it?
I'm pretty certain it's helping me understand why I can only absorb the first five minutes of "Democracy Now!"
I'm pretty certain it's helping me understand why I can only absorb the first five minutes of "Democracy Now!"
Too much truth, JN?
Celine's Journey Into the End of the Night. IT'S GREAT!
Lady Into Fox. It's a 1922 book about a lady who turns into a fox. The four-legged kind. It's not the template for the teensploitation 'girl with glasses takes off glasses and is suddenly hot' genre.
Pale Fire.
85 pages in.
Absolutely blowing my mind. I have no idea why I waited so long to read this.
My wife got me a book that's 'the best of WFMU's LCD (Lowest Common Denominator)'. I didn't know such a thing existed. Tom Scharpling interviews Neil Hamburger within, also there are some good bits about the history of WFMU and free-form radio in general, and comix, lots and lots of comix.
Just started Roland Barthes' Image Music Text. Hilarious!
Just started Roland Barthes' Image Music Text. Hilarious!
Currently reading Carl Wilson's 33 1/3 book on Celine Dion. A pretty amazing piece of criticism and philosophy, and actually making me kind of like her.
Currently reading Carl Wilson's 33 1/3 book on Celine Dion. A pretty amazing piece of criticism and philosophy, and actually making me kind of like her.
This book is wonderful. I was agnostic about Wilson (who's pretty ubiquitous in Canadian pop music criticism) and obviously not a fan of Celine Dion. But he really does some interesting stuff in this book.
Just started Roland Barthes' Image Music Text. Hilarious!
Don't you think he's a sweetie pie? I edited a book of his once and thought he was just darling. And, no, I am not being facetious.
Seriously? That's pretty great.
been reading "...supposedly fun..." by david foster wallace and I'm shocked by how funny and easy to read it is - it's just like a bunch of Douglas Adams essays.
Also reading 'hylozoic' by rudy rucker which is like douglas adams on some kind of stimulant.
The Cold Six Thousand by James Ellroy.
At this point in the book, one of the main characters is helping Howard Hughes invest money in Vegas casinos, helping the Mob skim off the top of that investment, and then siphoning the skim into legit businesses for laundering purposes. He is also using MLK's organizations as said legit businesses to help J. Edgar Hoover screw MLK.
That is one sliver of the story line. This is the fifth Ellroy book I have read and I still cannot figure out how he does it. Total OCD writing.
The Cold Six Thousand by James Ellroy.
At this point in the book, one of the main characters is helping Howard Hughes invest money in Vegas casinos, helping the Mob skim off the top of that investment, and then siphoning the skim into legit businesses for laundering purposes. He is also using MLK's organizations as said legit businesses to help J. Edgar Hoover screw MLK.
That is one sliver of the story line. This is the fifth Ellroy book I have read and I still cannot figure out how he does it. Total OCD writing.
I am reading 'Perfect Rigor' which is about Grigory Perelman, the guy who proved the Poincare Conjecture, posted it on the Internet, won prestigious prizes and was offered many jobs, and then rejected everybody and everything and dropped off the face of the earth.
It is a pretty interesting look into the late Soviet era mathematics world, so it's not 'A Beautiful Mind 2: A More Beautiful Mind'
Just saw a discovery channel doc about the guy beautiful mind is about. That's an insane story - should have been directed by David cronenberg or someone
Just saw a discovery channel doc about the guy beautiful mind is about. That's an insane story - should have been directed by David cronenberg or someone
He almost did with SPIDER, the movie that some call the 50th greatest of the 00's.
Reading Japrocksampler:How The Post-War Japanese Blew Their Minds On Rock'N'Roll by Julian Cope.
Highly recommended. Some of the band histories are completely nuts.
Reading Japrocksampler:How The Post-War Japanese Blew Their Minds On Rock'N'Roll by Julian Cope.
Highly recommended. Some of the band histories are completely nuts.
Listening to the audio book of Black Swan Green by David Mitchell.
Hmmm....I will investigate.Reading Japrocksampler:How The Post-War Japanese Blew Their Minds On Rock'N'Roll by Julian Cope.
Highly recommended. Some of the band histories are completely nuts.
And, from what I've heard, largely fiction.
Yeah, I'd like to hear more. I have a copy of Japrocksampler that I haven't read yet and I need to know what I'm getting into.
Anyone here reading Conquest of the Useless by Herzog? I'm about halfway through, and I think its pretty awesome. It's kind of like WG Sebald or Kapuscinski. But I'm religious about everything Werner Herzog. Despite my bias, I think he is a literary genius. I'll have to post some quotes.
I really really want to read some David Mitchell. I would love to read the Cope book, although the reviews of it on Amazon aren't very good. I never got to read Krautrock sampler either. I love me some Cope!
Too bad I didn't try to get into the Rogue Film School. At the end of the weekend you get a signed copy of Conquest of the Useless.
I will say, I really love how he doesn't instantly buy into the self-mythology that a lot of the comic book writers, publishers, and artists have created around themselves when reflecting back on that time. He'll print what they said to him or an interview and then undercut with some fact or reason why that might not be entirely the case. It's not done with any malice but just to make sure he's being fair and not idolizing these men and women too much.
I will say, I really love how he doesn't instantly buy into the self-mythology that a lot of the comic book writers, publishers, and artists have created around themselves when reflecting back on that time. He'll print what they said to him or an interview and then undercut with some fact or reason why that might not be entirely the case. It's not done with any malice but just to make sure he's being fair and not idolizing these men and women too much.
I remember reading a great article by Louis Menand in the New Yorker a couple of years ago reviewing that book and touching on some of the points you mention. Having heard the story of Frederick Wertham's witch-hunt against EC Comics and others so many times over the years, I was particularly surprised to learn that Wertham was essentially a progressive liberal whose ideas about censorship weren't all that extreme.
I just ordered this from Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195004566/ref=oss_product
To say I have high hopes would be an understatement.
Speaking of Louis Menand, I just started The Metaphysical Club. Kinda boring so far; I have to say that rich Harvard types during the Civil War is about the least interesting topic possible for me. I'd be more into that Norman Cohn book Mike just linked. I'll give it a few more pages - maybe the William James section gets interesting.
Just bought a copy of the Codex Seraphinianus from Abebooks for only $100. It's been out of print and going for $600 and up for some years. Since I've talked about it on this board a few times, thought I'd follow through.
I've been making my way through Paul Starr's The Creation of the Media--one of those essential books that are a bit fact heavy but still entertaining. For a more lighthearted romp through communications history, I can recommend Steve Coll's The Deal of the Century: The Breakup of AT&T.
Looks good! I'm looking forward to David Mitchell's new novel (http://www.amazon.com/Thousand-Autumns-Jacob-Zoet-Novel/dp/1400065453/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266595817&sr=1-1) in June.
very excited for Sam Lipsyte's THE ASK. Loved HOMELAND.
http://quarterlyconversation.com/the-ask-by-sam-lipsyte
Looks good! I'm looking forward to David Mitchell's new novel (http://www.amazon.com/Thousand-Autumns-Jacob-Zoet-Novel/dp/1400065453/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266595817&sr=1-1) in June.
Me too. I love this guy.
PS I will get you a galley if you want ...
I'm reading Let the Right One In for my book club. We meet tomorrow, and I'm less than a hundred pages into it. I should probably start reading right now.
I'm reading Let the Right One In for my book club. We meet tomorrow, and I'm less than a hundred pages into it. I should probably start reading right now.
I'm currently reading Steve Almond's Candyfreak.
I'm currently reading Steve Almond's Candyfreak.
I loved that book! He's truly a funny guy. I'm not really that much into candy, but I found one of those local gooey things he talks about at Whole Foods and tried it. It was pretty terrific. A Val-something bar? I just checked my copy and there's no index. THERE SHOULD ALWAYS BE AN INDEX.
I just ordered this from Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195004566/ref=oss_product
To say I have high hopes would be an understatement.
Oh, I"ve had the 5-Star bars too ... I also like the fact that they're small. When I feel like a piece of candy, getting a really well made little thang is pretty nice. And you don't feel you've gorged either, you know?
It's all so very continental or some shit.
Speaking of Louis Menand, I just started The Metaphysical Club. Kinda boring so far; I have to say that rich Harvard types during the Civil War is about the least interesting topic possible for me. I'd be more into that Norman Cohn book Mike just linked. I'll give it a few more pages - maybe the William James section gets interesting.
I read it when it came out. I really enjoyed it, and I love Menand's pieces in the New Yorker, but after I read it I decided to never read philosophy ever again. The whole business of philosophy seems to be just groundless speculation and its careful refutation. It's cool that the pragmatists broke through that and I love 'em for it, but that pragmatism wasn't already taken for granted shows how nuts philosophers are. Sometimes they get lucky and actually figure something out -- if you go back far enough in any science it'll start with brainstorming philosophers -- but then it starts being science and stops being philosophy. So what you're left with is what Van Morrison says: "Questions! Questions! Questions!"
I also have that book sitting on my shelf unread!
As a general matter I am a big fan of the pragmatists. They were non-contradictory. I generally like it when people take their ideas to their logical conclusions, and I generally don't like it when people argue against conclusions rather than the ideas they follow from.
I also have that book sitting on my shelf unread!
As a general matter I am a big fan of the pragmatists. They were non-contradictory. I generally like it when people take their ideas to their logical conclusions, and I generally don't like it when people argue against conclusions rather than the ideas they follow from.
Can you unpack "argue against conclusions"? It sounds cool but I can't understand it.
Yeah, I wish I could tell you that you should just jump right in, but nah, especially if you're not into Menand's articles. I just had 30 minutes to kill and instead of slogging through it I went for the collected version of the Marvel comic The Hood, which was a fun read. Why am I not giving up? I guess I'm hoping for some kind of payoff once we reach WW1?
Anyone here reading Conquest of the Useless by Herzog? I'm about halfway through, and I think its pretty awesome. It's kind of like WG Sebald or Kapuscinski. But I'm religious about everything Werner Herzog. Despite my bias, I think he is a literary genius. I'll have to post some quotes.
I really really want to read some David Mitchell. I would love to read the Cope book, although the reviews of it on Amazon aren't very good. I never got to read Krautrock sampler either. I love me some Cope!
Too bad I didn't try to get into the Rogue Film School. At the end of the weekend you get a signed copy of Conquest of the Useless.
Yeah, I read it and enjoyed it. There is a line somewhere in the book, and I'm paraphrasing, "I felt so alone, I buried the book at the edge of the jungle with a borrowed spade," that just epitomizes the whole Herzog scene, both good and bad.
Have you read Of Walking on Ice?
I will probably never read either, but I just bought unabridged copies of War and Peace, and Les Miserables. I will let you know how it doesn't turn out.
I'm now reading 'A Confederacy of Dunces'
I'm now reading 'A Confederacy of Dunces'
that's my favorite book. the audiobook is really good too; the reader does the characters in different voices and really makes each stand out.
I'm now reading 'A Confederacy of Dunces'
that's my favorite book. the audiobook is really good too; the reader does the characters in different voices and really makes each stand out.
I really love that book and if they ever pull of the impossible and make it into a film I've always imagined Zach G would be great for the Ignatius role.
How nerdy is it that I'm reading The Illuminatus Trilogy, again?
I'm now reading 'A Confederacy of Dunces'
that's my favorite book. the audiobook is really good too; the reader does the characters in different voices and really makes each stand out.
I really love that book and if they ever pull of the impossible and make it into a film I've always imagined Zach G would be great for the Ignatius role.
Honest to God, that's inspired casting.
Already Dead by Denis Johnson. I'm uneasy about where it's all going, particularly after I was let down by Tree of Smoke. I thought Jesus' Son was pretty much perfect and have been unsure where to turn with him.
Already Dead by Denis Johnson. I'm uneasy about where it's all going, particularly after I was let down by Tree of Smoke. I thought Jesus' Son was pretty much perfect and have been unsure where to turn with him.
Have you read Angels yet? That's probably my second favorite of his after Jesus' Son. His books are very different. And some are just plain weird (Fiskadoro, Resuscitation of a Hanged Man).
Already Dead by Denis Johnson. I'm uneasy about where it's all going, particularly after I was let down by Tree of Smoke. I thought Jesus' Son was pretty much perfect and have been unsure where to turn with him.
Have you read Angels yet? That's probably my second favorite of his after Jesus' Son. His books are very different. And some are just plain weird (Fiskadoro, Resuscitation of a Hanged Man).
I haven't. I was either going to read that or The Name of the World. Have you read that one?
Have you read Angels yet? That's probably my second favorite of his after Jesus' Son. His books are very different. And some are just plain weird (Fiskadoro, Resuscitation of a Hanged Man).
I'm now reading 'A Confederacy of Dunces'
that's my favorite book. the audiobook is really good too; the reader does the characters in different voices and really makes each stand out.
I really love that book and if they ever pull of the impossible and make it into a film I've always imagined Zach G would be great for the Ignatius role.
Just finished Mark E. Smith's Renegade. I guess you could call it his memoirs, though it's more just a 246-page rant against everyone and everything. Highly entertaining and recommended for The Fall fan...uh. I wish it was available as an audiobook.
Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gould was really great. To me, it had a Michael Chabon vibe to it. The book length looked intimidating but it was an extremely fast read. However that may have been the day where I subbed at the high school, sat there and only read the entire day while the student teacher ran the class. That was an easy 70 bucks.
The Hero With A Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. Amazing.
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls - Peter Biskind, in tandem with You Shall Know Our Velocity - Dave Eggers.
Got to finish that andsoon so I can get on to the (attractively trashy) Millenium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson.
Just finished Paul Auster's Invisible--typically Auster-y; if you're already on board with him, you will like it.
Next up:
(http://a5.vox.com/6a00d4141a65c9685e00f48d08c00d0001-500pi)
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls - Peter Biskind, in tandem with You Shall Know Our Velocity - Dave Eggers.
Got to finish that andsoon so I can get on to the (attractively trashy) Millenium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson.
Weird, I just finished the Biskind book. Some interesting behind-the-scenes stuff but ultimately the book became a slog and I couldn't wait to finish it. I try not to pay attention to the off-camera lives of directors, but it was disappointing to learn that all of the directors I admire so much are some of the worst human beings on Earth.
Next, I'm onto Norwood by Charles Portis.
Just finished Paul Auster's Invisible--typically Auster-y; if you're already on board with him, you will like it.
My thoughts exactly - I love Auster, but all of his books are essentially the same, and this one is no different, but with added ambiguous incest.
Just finished Paul Auster's Invisible--typically Auster-y; if you're already on board with him, you will like it.
My thoughts exactly - I love Auster, but all of his books are essentially the same, and this one is no different, but with added ambiguous incest.
I dunno, it seemed pretty unambiguous to me...
His books aren't all the same the way some other writers' are, but thematically or spiritually, they're all the same book. And there's nothing wrong with that, if you're a good enough writer, which he is.
It's freaking me out a little that the picture she chose for the back of the book is the same picture Auntie Christina uses for her avatar.
Just finished Paul Auster's Invisible--typically Auster-y; if you're already on board with him, you will like it.
My thoughts exactly - I love Auster, but all of his books are essentially the same, and this one is no different, but with added ambiguous incest.
I dunno, it seemed pretty unambiguous to me...
His books aren't all the same the way some other writers' are, but thematically or spiritually, they're all the same book. And there's nothing wrong with that, if you're a good enough writer, which he is.
Next up:
(http://a5.vox.com/6a00d4141a65c9685e00f48d08c00d0001-500pi)
George Saunders is great-- I heard "The 400 Pound CEO" on an episode of This American Life and knew then and there that I needed to read all of his stuff.
Just finished Paul Auster's Invisible--typically Auster-y; if you're already on board with him, you will like it.
My thoughts exactly - I love Auster, but all of his books are essentially the same, and this one is no different, but with added ambiguous incest.
I dunno, it seemed pretty unambiguous to me...
His books aren't all the same the way some other writers' are, but thematically or spiritually, they're all the same book. And there's nothing wrong with that, if you're a good enough writer, which he is.
I've only read City of Glass but that was pretty wild. I feel like university has screwed with my enthusiasm for postmodern literature, which I don't even necessarily know if this guy subscribes to.
On a completely different note, has anyone read the John Darnielle 33/3 book on Master of Reality?
City of Glass and the other two parts of The New York Trilogy are great, but my favourite of his, and possibly the novel that strays furthest from his usual concerns (although perhaps here they are just transferred to another medium) is Book of Illusions, which has a real emotional kick to it. In a way, I'd compare the similarity in themes and spirit in his books with a favoured band who don't stray too far from their initial sound (and I'm not saying that's always a good thing); a new novel or record is pretty much going to be some more of the stuff I enjoy, but slightly different from the last one.
Just finished Paul Auster's Invisible--typically Auster-y; if you're already on board with him, you will like it. Now finally working my way through Dennis Johnson's Tree of Smoke, which is great, and quite instructive for something I'm currently working on.
i know i'm opening the flood gates with this one, but can someone recommend a music biography. i enjoy similar tastes as the rest of you- no worries on feeling that out.
i guess i'm in a book rut and don't know what i want to read, but i feel like a good music biography would get me back on track. although, someone did mention the new chuck klosterman book to me recently. my feelings for that guy=love+hate.
Just finished Paul Auster's Invisible--typically Auster-y; if you're already on board with him, you will like it. Now finally working my way through Dennis Johnson's Tree of Smoke, which is great, and quite instructive for something I'm currently working on.
How did I miss this? What exactly are you working on where that CRUSHING book would be instructive? Espionage? Defoliants? Alcoholism? Murdering a monkey?
THAT ONE SUPER HORRIBLE SCENE?!
I loved that book, by the way. Hope it's working for you!
i know i'm opening the flood gates with this one, but can someone recommend a music biography. i enjoy similar tastes as the rest of you- no worries on feeling that out.
i know i'm opening the flood gates with this one, but can someone recommend a music biography. i enjoy similar tastes as the rest of you- no worries on feeling that out.
Have you read HELLFIRE by Nick Tosches? It's a Jerry Lee Lewis biography and it's amazing.
MOON: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF A ROCK LEGEND by Tony Fletcher is really good as well.
i know i'm opening the flood gates with this one, but can someone recommend a music biography. i enjoy similar tastes as the rest of you- no worries on feeling that out.
Have you read HELLFIRE by Nick Tosches? It's a Jerry Lee Lewis biography and it's amazing.
MOON: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF A ROCK LEGEND by Tony Fletcher is really good as well.
What these folks said. Hellfire's the best, and Neil Young's biography is pretty speedy. I loved them both. I really, really loved Clinton Heylin's Behind the Shades is pretty expansive, but equally great. I will literally read any rock biography at the drop of the hat. LITERALLY.
Avoid the Guns and Roses one.
Engage the Motley Crue one.
Ike
Seconding the love for HELLFIRE. One of the best books I've ever read. SHAKEY by Jimmy McDonough is really good too - it's a Neil Young biography.
crumbum - have you read The Child in Time? That's a corker.
I haven't. I was either going to read that or The Name of the World. Have you read that one?
crumbum - have you read The Child in Time? That's a corker.
The Child in Time is good, but I'd go with Enduring Love as McEwan's best.
The Child in Time
I am fearful that I have lost the ability to read.(http://img.infibeam.com/img/b09090aa/071/9/9780684859071.jpg)
Finished the Jack Handey book.
And I'm now reading Joseph Mitchell's Up in the Old Hotel. Damn Mitchell, why do make me long for a New York that is no longer around?
The Child in Time
This is about that Deep Purple song, right?
200 pgs. into American Tabloid and so far it's living up to the praise.
200 pgs. into American Tabloid and so far it's living up to the praise.
All 3 volumes of the trilogy are worth your time, but American Tabloid is definitely the best.
Child of God by Cormac Mc. What....the....fuck. Totally insane. Depraved, completely nuts.
Child of God by Cormac Mc. What....the....fuck. Totally insane. Depraved, completely nuts.
I liked this one a lot. It's very telling when something this ugly and insane is far from being his nastiest work. Compared to Blood Meridian (which scarred me for life), this is almost beach reading.
After a squillion people recommended it, I am finally reading "Ender's Game." I just passed the 100 page mark, and am getting the feeling I should have read it as a much younger person to really appreciate it.
If you have read it, let me know: Should I continue?
Welcome To Mars: Fantasies of Science in the American Century 1947-1959 by Ken Hollings.
A terrific book, although I recently found out you can apparently also get it as a podcast. It's like an Adam Curtis documentary in print detailing American culture and the narratives it creates in that period from the bizarre to the commonplace. To quote Rich Hazelton "UFOs, LSD, CIA, atomic weapons, suburbia, psychology, post-war science fiction films, cults, the cold war, the space race, Disney and more in a nicely woven essay, each year receiving a chapter."
Was disappointed that David Byrne's Bicycle Diaries ended up being so preachy and having so little to do with cycling at all.
Enjoying Kevin Rushby's Eating the Flowers of Paradise. He's a British journalist who goes back and forth to Yemen after getting addicted to chewing khat.
Now: METHLAND: THE DEATH AND LIFE OF AN AMERICAN SMALL TOWN by Nick Reding. Reportage on the origins and trajectory of the meth phenomenon in the US, using a small Iowa town as a lens. Didn't buy it because of the Best Show, but it does help explain what Pastor Josh and SCUM Force are up against. The grislier anecdotes of addiction gone wrong make this a possible Mike pick.
Parts of Methland were pretty wild but in the end I found it to be a bit lopsided and racist ... are you finding that?
Hmm, I think the writing is sometimes awkward and he seems out of his depth in some of the sociocultural stuff, but I haven't actually picked up on the racism. I guess you could say that with his central cast of characters being all white, references to the Mexican role in distribution have the effect of casting them as the beleaguering Other--is that kinda what you mean?
I'm wrapping up Casares' The Invention of Morel
I have an hour-and-a-half-long streetcar ride to work every day, so I got the collected stories of Guy De Maupassant out of the library and am plowing through them during my commute, because a friend recommended I do so. So far I'm liking them okay, but I gotta say I like his moustache way better:
(http://www.ebooks-library.com/images/Authors/FGDM.jpg)
I have an hour-and-a-half-long streetcar ride to work every day, so I got the collected stories of Guy De Maupassant out of the library and am plowing through them during my commute, because a friend recommended I do so. So far I'm liking them okay, but I gotta say I like his moustache way better:
(http://www.ebooks-library.com/images/Authors/FGDM.jpg)
I'm wrapping up Casares' The Invention of Morel
Like, don't like? Wha? this is in my to-read pile.
I'm wrapping up Casares' The Invention of Morel
Looking for something different to read next, can anyone recommend some good rock writing/(auto)biography?
Looking for something different to read next, can anyone recommend some good rock writing/(auto)biography?
Looking for something different to read next, can anyone recommend some good rock writing/(auto)biography?
I liked Stone Alone by Bill Wyman a lot when I read it about five years ago. It's long and full of minute detail (he kept extensive diaries) but I found well written and pretty engrossing. No big surprises but if you're interested in the inside story of their rise it's all there.
By the way, I remember another Stones book I came across years ago in a friend's recording studio. I've since fallen out of touch with him and can't remember what the title was. It was a compilation of Sixties and Seventies newspaper clippings and tabloid stories about the band that got into the sleaziest details about the sex and drugs side of things. Anyone know it?
Currently reading Dan Epstein's Big Hair and Plastic Grass: A Funky Ride Through Baseball and America in the Swinging 70s, and so far it's great. If you long for the days of crazy, drug-addled, loud-mouthed baseball players with afros and villainous facial hair, you should pick this book up.
Looking for something different to read next, can anyone recommend some good rock writing/(auto)biography?
I liked Stone Alone by Bill Wyman a lot when I read it about five years ago. It's long and full of minute detail (he kept extensive diaries) but I found well written and pretty engrossing. No big surprises but if you're interested in the inside story of their rise it's all there.
Currently reading Dan Epstein's Big Hair and Plastic Grass: A Funky Ride Through Baseball and America in the Swinging 70s, and so far it's great. If you long for the days of crazy, drug-addled, loud-mouthed baseball players with afros and villainous facial hair, you should pick this book up.
I lost interest in baseball after that era passed. Moved on to Rock and Roll.
Since then I've read JG Ballard's The Atrocity Exhibition, which further reinforced my opinion on his work (namely, I like the idea of it more than the work itself).
Since then I've read JG Ballard's The Atrocity Exhibition, which further reinforced my opinion on his work (namely, I like the idea of it more than the work itself).
Ballard's one of my favourites, though I haven't read all of his stuff. My sense is that The Atrocity Exhibition is an unusual one, for him. I especially like the novels he wrote in the last couple of decades: Cocaine Nights, Super Cannes, Millennium People, etc. They are all quite similar, and tend to be apocalyptic detective stories that focus on the societal ailments caused by too much civilization.
I just finished Empire of the Sun, which I'd avoided because it didn't seem as "weird" as some of his other stuff (and because I distrust anything with Steven Spielberg's stamp of approval), but holy cow, it's great. His preoccupation with the savagery just below the veneer of civilization becomes much clearer in this one.
Since then I've read JG Ballard's The Atrocity Exhibition, which further reinforced my opinion on his work (namely, I like the idea of it more than the work itself).
Ballard's one of my favourites, though I haven't read all of his stuff. My sense is that The Atrocity Exhibition is an unusual one, for him. I especially like the novels he wrote in the last couple of decades: Cocaine Nights, Super Cannes, Millennium People, etc. They are all quite similar, and tend to be apocalyptic detective stories that focus on the societal ailments caused by too much civilization.
I just finished Empire of the Sun, which I'd avoided because it didn't seem as "weird" as some of his other stuff (and because I distrust anything with Steven Spielberg's stamp of approval), but holy cow, it's great. His preoccupation with the savagery just below the veneer of civilization becomes much clearer in this one.
Yeah, I think I've just read the wrong two -- I didn't have the stomach for Crash, and Atrocity Exhibition was like a horrific version of a David Markson book. But I grabbed a whole bunch of his books for pennies on Amazon after he died, so I'm planning on going back for more. High-Rise in particular seems like a great concept.
I finished Jackson Lear's Rebirth of A Nation, a great history of transformations in the US 1877-1920. I'm now reading Tony Judt's Ill Fares the Land.I downloaded Rebirth of A Nation on my mom's kindle for when I'm home on school break and it's lying around. Over the past 6 months I've only gotten a third of the way into it, but I love it whenever I get a chance to read it.
I just finished Maus and am about to read Heart of Darkness,I had a hard time getting into "Heart of Darkness." My copy includes the story "The Secret Sharer" which I did enjoy.
I really liked Maus.
Honestly, I am not looking forward to Heart of Darkness.
Recently I've read: Lolita (fantastic, I really should give it a second read)
Recently I've read: Lolita (fantastic, I really should give it a second read)
Can't think of a single book I've read so many times as that one. Just gets more beautiful and more sad every time.
Just finished Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice. He was brilliant in his own crazy way, but I could barely finish this one. Anyone who's read it might understand.
Recently I've read: Lolita (fantastic, I really should give it a second read)
Can't think of a single book I've read so many times as that one. Just gets more beautiful and more sad every time.
Just finished Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice. He was brilliant in his own crazy way, but I could barely finish this one. Anyone who's read it might understand.
Blurb from the cover of my edition never seemed quite right:
"The only convincing love story of our century" - Vanity Fair
It's a book about an insane man who loves a child. What?! Did Vanity Fair even read the book? Humbert is very disturbed - I'll give you that Nabokov's texts operate on many levels but you cannot overlook that the man is sick... For shame!
I'm currently reading though McSweeny's 25 (I'm addicted to these things) and Ware's Jimmy Corrigan.
Well, I don't think they were talking about the pedophilia part. I think they were talking about the general messiness of their relationship, and the fact that Humbert is so demented by lust that he can't see what's right in front of him. So you could say that the VF blurb is cynical about relationships, but not necessarily shameful.
Well, I don't think they were talking about the pedophilia part. I think they were talking about the general messiness of their relationship, and the fact that Humbert is so demented by lust that he can't see what's right in front of him. So you could say that the VF blurb is cynical about relationships, but not necessarily shameful.
Wouldn't that make it "the most convincing lust story of our century" ..?
About 100 pages into Shakey and I'm finding it kinda boring. Maybe I'm not obsessed enough with Neil Young? Though he just met Stephen Stills so maybe things are about to get cooking.
The early parts of biographies are always boring though. I never give up on them until the subject starts really coming into his/her own. I suggest you stick it out, unless, well, maybe you really don't care that much about Neil Young.
The early parts of biographies are always boring though. I never give up on them until the subject starts really coming into his/her own. I suggest you stick it out, unless, well, maybe you really don't care that much about Neil Young.
And if you don't care that much about Neil Young, question your entire life.
About 100 pages into Shakey and I'm finding it kinda boring. Maybe I'm not obsessed enough with Neil Young? Though he just met Stephen Stills so maybe things are about to get cooking.
A Stranger in this World - Kevin Canty
book of short stories I happened across in the library. Surprisingly good, if not bleak, set of stories. Sort of that scraped-out alcoholic tone that shows up in a lot of Denis Johnson.
Just finished Cardboard Gods by Josh Wilker and it is AMAZING. Seriously, one of the best books I've ever read.
In case you haven't heard of it, it's basically a memoir about the author's unorthodox upbringing in the 70s, with each mini-chapter prefaced by a baseball card from his youth which exemplifies what was going on in his life at the time. But it's beautifully, wonderfully written. You definitely do not have to give two shits about baseball to enjoy it. I am currently recommending this to anyone who has the ability to read.
I just passed the 1000 page mark on Les Mis, about 450 to go. It's marvelous.
I am also reading Satiristas. I don't agree with much of it, but it's always entertaining. Penn Jillette is a self-obsessed tunnel-visioned dick.
I just passed the 1000 page mark on Les Mis, about 450 to go. It's marvelous.
I am also reading Satiristas. I don't agree with much of it, but it's always entertaining. Penn Jillette is a self-obsessed tunnel-visioned dick.
Don't agree with much of it? There's an underlying theme? I haven't read it, but have heard about it on all the comedians talking about comedy with comedians comedy podcasts, so I want to read it eventually.
I just passed the 1000 page mark on Les Mis, about 450 to go. It's marvelous.
I am also reading Satiristas. I don't agree with much of it, but it's always entertaining. Penn Jillette is a self-obsessed tunnel-visioned dick.
Don't agree with much of it? There's an underlying theme? I haven't read it, but have heard about it on all the comedians talking about comedy with comedians comedy podcasts, so I want to read it eventually.
The good points outweigh the silly ones about 3 to 1, but for comedians, many of these people are self-absorbed jerks who think the white hot light of truth shines out of their ass. Still, particularly the way the interviews flow structurally from one to another is very nicely worked out, as if all of these people were in one big room, and the next one to take a turn riffs on the previous comment.
Don't get me wrong, I think it's well worth your time, but the more self-important characters will stick with you long after you've forgotten many who made a few good points. Also, I don't know if I mentioned it, but Penn Jillette is a self-obsessed tunnel-visioned dick.
I started reading Ulysses. This is the first time I've advanced more than 10 pages in. I can do this!
Get the Bloomsday Book. It's like super Cliffs Notes. If you try to pay attention to what's actually occurring in the novel, you'll end up missing the little details, and vice versa.
I started reading Ulysses. This is the first time I've advanced more than 10 pages in. I can do this!
Made up my mind to tackle this in early 2011. Hopefully I'll be done with Brothers Karmazov by then.
I started reading Ulysses. This is the first time I've advanced more than 10 pages in. I can do this!
I started reading Ulysses. This is the first time I've advanced more than 10 pages in. I can do this!
I still haven't started on the new Gary Shteyngart novel. I'm going to put it off for as long as I can. The last way I want to escape our terrible present is to venture into our even worse future.
I'm about a third of the way through Joseph Wambaugh's The Onion Field. It's terrific so far, and I haven't even gotten to the "incident" yet. I'm dreading it.
"Cardboard Gods" by Josh Wilker.
Thank you for the recommendation, Scratchbomb (at least I think it was you in the chat). I loved it.
I've started reading "Big Hair and Plastic Grass" which I highly recommend to anyone who loves baseball. Or at least loved it when players like Richie Hebner had to dig graves in the offseason to make ends meet.
I am on page 1430 of Les Miserables. I am considering stopping 30 pages short.
Population bust alleviated by robots? Sex robots? Or just the robots fill in for the people? The space war really motivates me to take better care of myself so I can be around for that.
"Cardboard Gods" by Josh Wilker.
Thank you for the recommendation, Scratchbomb (at least I think it was you in the chat). I loved it.
I've started reading "Big Hair and Plastic Grass" which I highly recommend to anyone who loves baseball. Or at least loved it when players like Richie Hebner had to dig graves in the offseason to make ends meet.
I loved Big Hair and Plastic Grass so much that I'm going to check out Cardboard Gods. I just got an Amazon gift certificate, so the timing is perfect.
"Indecent Exposure" by Tom Sharpe. Hilarious and brutal. I can see why this guy was kicked out of South Africa.
So I'm thinking of reading something by Terry Pratchett, but he has so many books I'm unsure where to start. What is either a good place to begin or the book which is his best work?
Just finished Jernigan by David Gates and enjoyed it so much that I'm already into Preston Falls. Great stuff!
So I'm thinking of reading something by Terry Pratchett, but he has so many books I'm unsure where to start. What is either a good place to begin or the book which is his best work?
The Discworld series is written in such a way that you can pick up any of them and have a reasonably good idea of what's going on, but they are chronological. So it'd be best to start with The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic. Or if you want a non-Discworld offering to start you off, there's Good Omens, the biblical apocalypse novel he wrote with Neil Gaiman. It's quite good because he keeps Gaiman's worst excesses in check and vice versa.
there's Good Omens, the biblical apocalypse novel he wrote with Neil Gaiman. It's quite good because he keeps Gaiman's worst excesses in check and vice versa.
I'm currently making my way through a large number of short story collections from the "weird fiction" genre which, at its best, merges psychological horror with metaphysical horror. While the term "weird fiction" is mostly used for writers like Poe or H.P. Lovecraft, there are now quite a few contemporary practitioners of this artform. The granddaddy of them all is Thomas Ligotti who, sadly, has become much less prolific as the years go by, due to a combination of mental and physical problems. Ligotti, much like the Best Show, is one of those cultural artifacts you may not understand the first time around. I'd tried to read his collections The Nightmare Factory and Noctuary in the past and they left me blah, but last year I revisited The Nightmare Factory and it hooked me. This year was his most productive in some time, as it saw the release of both his newest original work, the nonfiction treatise The Conspiracy Against The Human Race, and an extensively revised edition of his first collection, Songs of A Dead Dreamer. I find reading them in tandem works as a sort of thematic decoder ring for Ligotti's more abstract ideas, since Conspiracy is Ligotti's dour personal philosophy laid bare.
I'm also reading work by folks who were inspired by Ligotti and, in his absence, have carried the torch of the contemporary weird- Joeseph S. Pulver, Sr., Quentin S. Crisp, Mark Samuels, Matt Cardin, and Laird Barron, just to name a few. A great many of these authors have either new work or reprints of rarer work forthcoming from Chomu Press, which Quentin S. Crisp founded after he became dissatisfied with being "ghettoized" in expensive hardcovers most people can't find and/or afford (due to its status as a niche genre, many weird fiction authors appear exclusively in small press publications).
So I'm thinking of reading something by Terry Pratchett, but he has so many books I'm unsure where to start. What is either a good place to begin or the book which is his best work?
The Discworld series is written in such a way that you can pick up any of them and have a reasonably good idea of what's going on, but they are chronological. So it'd be best to start with The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic. Or if you want a non-Discworld offering to start you off, there's Good Omens, the biblical apocalypse novel he wrote with Neil Gaiman. It's quite good because he keeps Gaiman's worst excesses in check and vice versa.
I shall keep all of those in mind. I recently turned on my KIndle and saw the first volume of Mark Twain's newly released autobiography, so I'll be spending time with that. But I'll definitely peruse through the Pratchett you kindly recommended and pick on.
I've never read Gaiman's novels, but I used to read "Sandman". I assume he's a bit overindulgent. I did however meet him when he gave a "Sandman" signing here in Salt Lake many years ago. At the time the comics illustrator, Mike Dringenberg, was living in the area so that might have persuaded him to come out here...
Tell us how the Mark Twain is. That's the book he didn't want published until he'd been dead 100 years, right?
Just finished Jernigan by David Gates and enjoyed it so much that I'm already into Preston Falls. Great stuff!
Having often seen her name but not knowing anything about her, I picked up Alice Munro's Runaway and am loving it so far. Will definitely work my back through some of her other collections.
Having often seen her name but not knowing anything about her, I picked up Alice Munro's Runaway and am loving it so far. Will definitely work my back through some of her other collections.
She is one of my favorite writers, the Canadian Chekhov. If I were ranking living short fiction authors, she would probably be number one. Sarah Polley directed a really good movie based on one of her stories called Away From Her which is really worth seeing. I would like to recommend some singular "best" collection, but she is the rare breed that your favorite book is the last of her's you've read. Sounds corny, but it is true.
Having often seen her name but not knowing anything about her, I picked up Alice Munro's Runaway and am loving it so far. Will definitely work my back through some of her other collections.
She is one of my favorite writers, the Canadian Chekhov. If I were ranking living short fiction authors, she would probably be number one. Sarah Polley directed a really good movie based on one of her stories called Away From Her which is really worth seeing. I would like to recommend some singular "best" collection, but she is the rare breed that your favorite book is the last of her's you've read. Sounds corny, but it is true.
Also recommended: Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage.
I just finished David Rakoff's latest book and really enjoyed it. I have a stack to choose from, but I think Patton is going to be next.
I just read Douglas Wolk's 33 1/3 book on James Brown's Live At The Apollo and dug it -- he connects the actual show to the Cuban Missile Crisis in a very novel way. Now about two-thirds of the way through Tom McCarthy's C and enjoying it quite a bit. It seems like it actually does what Jonathan Franzen claims to want to do: it takes the big, sprawling, postmodern novel and makes it legible and relatively easy to follow (it's also just over 300 pages). Franzen, by contrast, is just introducing contemporary themes and events to a 19th-century-style novel (I don't hate Franzen, I just don't think he's as interesting or exciting as people seem to think he is).
Oof, I've got the new Franzen to read for my lil book group. I've been kinda putting it off, not only because I have to read a ton of stuff for yoga school, but I just ... sometimes Important Books really wear me out.
I'm reading "The Road" and "The Law & Order Episode Guide: Complete through 1999" and "Departures" magazine, American Express' magazine for rich people and people who are pretty well off and want to read about the crazy stuff that the really rich people buy and do so they can admire and scorn their profligacy.
I'm reading "The Road" and "The Law & Order Episode Guide: Complete through 1999" and "Departures" magazine, American Express' magazine for rich people and people who are pretty well off and want to read about the crazy stuff that the really rich people buy and do so they can admire and scorn their profligacy.
The Road makes you never want to have children. Oops. I meant Departures Magazine does that.
Nanny till they're old enough for boarding school, then see em on ski holidays for cute pics!
I'm reading J. G. Ballard's short story collection, The Terminal Beach, and loving it. He's one of my favorite writers...
Less than 100 pages to go with Brothers Karamazov. If you people knew how long I've been reading it you'd bludgeon me to death (naturally).
I'm reading J. G. Ballard's short story collection, The Terminal Beach, and loving it. He's one of my favorite writers...
Isn't "Crash" a great book?
Manchild #5, which is a comic/oral history of the Raleigh Hardcore scene in the 80s, written/drawn by Brian Walsby. Awesome stuff. Jon Wurster has already had a few quotes/stories in the book.
I'm reading J. G. Ballard's short story collection, The Terminal Beach, and loving it. He's one of my favorite writers, but I've never read any of his short stories before. "The Drowned Giant" is one of the best stories I've ever read. After this I'll be moving onto The Complete Stories of J. G. Ballard which should keep me busy for a while.
[Jim] welcomed the air raids, the noise of the Mustangs as they swept over the camp, the smell of oil and cordite, the deaths of the pilots, even the likelihood of his own death. Despite everything, he knew he was worth nothing. He twisted his Latin primer, trembling with a secret hunger that the war would so eagerly satisfy.
Less than 100 pages to go with Brothers Karamazov. If you people knew how long I've been reading it you'd bludgeon me to death (naturally).
Less than 100 pages to go with Brothers Karamazov. If you people knew how long I've been reading it you'd bludgeon me to death (naturally).
Manchild #5, which is a comic/oral history of the Raleigh Hardcore scene in the 80s, written/drawn by Brian Walsby. Awesome stuff. Jon Wurster has already had a few quotes/stories in the book.
One of my high school classmates got killed as an innocent bystander outside the Fallout Shelter.
I'm reading J. G. Ballard's short story collection, The Terminal Beach, and loving it. He's one of my favorite writers, but I've never read any of his short stories before. "The Drowned Giant" is one of the best stories I've ever read. After this I'll be moving onto The Complete Stories of J. G. Ballard which should keep me busy for a while.
Going through the books of Matt Taibbi and Charles Taylor's Sources of the Self. The latter is for my philosophy thesis. Might be picking up some Habermas for that soon.
Less than 100 pages to go with Brothers Karamazov. If you people knew how long I've been reading it you'd bludgeon me to death (naturally).
Is it worth the effort? I read "Crime and Punnishment" something like ten years ago and really, really liked it. The ending was a bit of a let down, however...
I'm just about done with "The Monster" by Michael Hudson. I'm on a bender with regard to reading about the sub-prime lending crisis... God, I get so livid when I read this stuff...
If any of you think you're a big reader, you should add Finnegan's Wake in there. It's a relatively slim volume, comparatively. Don't let that fool you.
I made it to page 11. Ulysses page 78. Those are my two worst attempts of all time, excepting books that I just figured out were terrible.
I just finished Ed Koch and the Rebuilding of New York City by Jonathan Soffer. It's a fascinating read for those with an interest in urban history/big city politics.
I'm now waiting for my copy of Daddy's Boy which I snagged off Amazon for 45 cents.
I just finished Ed Koch and the Rebuilding of New York City by Jonathan Soffer. It's a fascinating read for those with an interest in urban history/big city politics.
I assume everyone with an interest in that kind of thing has read The Power Broker. No? What's wrong with you?
I finally picked up Wittgenstein's Mistress after a year or so of wanting to read it. Its great so far!
Just finished:
(http://images.bookbyte.com/isbn.aspx?isbn=9780140124897)
(not for fun.)
Where do you go from there?
Wouldn't the logical step to start reading about space?Or stop reading.
Wouldn't the logical step to start reading about space?Or stop reading.
Wouldn't the logical step to start reading about space?Or stop reading.
Seconded.
I thought I'd get to one or both of those eventually, but I was mostly being rhetorical. Like, "this guy just explained the whole history of everything, now what?" Not a bad book but sheesh that title is kinda overreaching a bit.
Just started reading V so far nobody has pealed there skin back to reveal that they are really a green alien.
Back at Foucault's Pendulum after an extended absence.
I'm too broke and already own too many unread books to buy any, but for some inexplicable reason I have this involuntary response to collections of identical books, like the 33 1/3 books or the BFI Film Classics series. I just want them all.
YES. See also: NYRB Classics. I've bought about 30 of them, and have only read the first 50 pages of one, John Williams' STONER. They were really good pages though!
YES. See also: NYRB Classics. I've bought about 30 of them, and have only read the first 50 pages of one, John Williams' STONER. They were really good pages though!
I can tell you a few that are worth reading, especially if you've already bought them:
Don Carpenter, Hard Rain Falling
Balzac, The Unknown Masterpiece
Patrick Hamilton, Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky (Hangover Square is even better, but not in the series.)
I was bored to tears with Foucault's Pendulum, lost my copy, and never got another. I guess Umberto Eco is OK, but he sometimes strikes me as a middlebrow version of postmodernism -- I'd rather just read Pynchon, DeLillo, or DFW. I'm confused most of the time, but I'd rather be confused than bored.
And also:
(http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1267238601l/4985140.jpg)
Connection to last week's show: I've been spending a lot of time in airports lately, and browse in the crappy bookstores looking at all the business books. I'm too broke and already own too many unread books to buy any, but for some inexplicable reason I have this involuntary response to collections of identical books, like the 33 1/3 books or the BFI Film Classics series. I just want them all. So I flip through the Harvard Business School Pocket Mentor series, and part of me (mostly superstitiously) thinks, if I learn all this MBA crap, I can reboot my life and have a career in TV. So I get them from the library, and they're just about the dullest thing I've ever read, like reading a memo. They take about as long to read as memos, too.
I'm too broke and already own too many unread books to buy any, but for some inexplicable reason I have this involuntary response to collections of identical books, like the 33 1/3 books or the BFI Film Classics series. I just want them all.
I finished War and Peace!!!!! My 70000 word summary is coming soon. I am reading Infinite Jest for the third time. Now that I am a more careful reader, I hope more of it sticks with me. I love the second chapter, the guy waiting for a weed delivery.
I finished War and Peace!!!!! My 70000 word summary is coming soon. I am reading Infinite Jest for the third time. Now that I am a more careful reader, I hope more of it sticks with me. I love the second chapter, the guy waiting for a weed delivery.
It ain't Infinite Jest, but it's pretty massive as far as music books go (plus many footnotes!).
(http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0226476960.MZZZZZZZ.jpg)
Highly recommended.
currently reading:
The Rest is Noise -- Alex Ross
slow going, but only because I have to stop listening all the time to listen to the music he's talking about.
currently reading:
The Rest is Noise -- Alex Ross
slow going, but only because I have to stop listening all the time to listen to the music he's talking about.
Searched the thread to see if there were any opinions on this- I'm considering it as a hopefully lighter/more enjoyable alternative to some of the stuff I'm supposed to be reading (http://www.amazon.fr/LEcole-Vienne-Dominique-Jameux/dp/2213599696) for a class.
currently reading:
The Rest is Noise -- Alex Ross
slow going, but only because I have to stop listening all the time to listen to the music he's talking about.
Searched the thread to see if there were any opinions on this- I'm considering it as a hopefully lighter/more enjoyable alternative to some of the stuff I'm supposed to be reading (http://www.amazon.fr/LEcole-Vienne-Dominique-Jameux/dp/2213599696) for a class.
It's very good, but I find it annoying to read about music when I'm not very familiar with it. You'll want to have recordings of the various pieces he mentions handy.
Reading Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, which is based on accounts of people who have fled. Like most people, I've been well aware of the country's extreme totalitarianism and famine, but this really adds another dimension to the history. Fascinating and frightening.
Reading Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, which is based on accounts of people who have fled. Like most people, I've been well aware of the country's extreme totalitarianism and famine, but this really adds another dimension to the history. Fascinating and frightening.
Does the book touch on the state of mind of the populace? Such as, do they buy the crap their regime spits out? I know that the regime has a really powerful propaganda arm but I've heard a few anecdotes that some of the people in NK believe it. Any truth to that or are they muttering under their breath?
http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Lacan/dp/0393329550My sister has started to psychoanalyze me with this:Code: [Select]http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Lacan/dp/0393329550
So i have started to read that too...
Bums me out man.
My sister has started to psychoanalyze me with this:Code: [Select]http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Lacan/dp/0393329550
So i have started to read that too...
Bums me out man.
I seriously have a hard time believing that Lacanian analysis is an actual thing (even though I know it is). Trying to analyze someone using Žižek seems even more insane (no offense to your sister). I love Žižek but I think his work makes a lot more sense as criticism/philosophy. But then again I've never been able to stick with a therapist for more than a few months, so Žižekian analysis might be exactly what I need.
Currently reading Graham Greene's Our Man in Havana. Plenty enjoyable at 30 pages in. I'm ashamed that it's taken me his long to get into Greene.
Currently reading Graham Greene's Our Man in Havana. Plenty enjoyable at 30 pages in. I'm ashamed that it's taken me his long to get into Greene.
I haven't read Our Man in Havana, Jason, but my favorites are Brighton Rock, The Heart of the Matter, and The Power and the Glory.
My sister has started to psychoanalyze me with this:Code: [Select]http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Lacan/dp/0393329550
So i have started to read that too...
Bums me out man.
My sister has started to psychoanalyze me with this:Code: [Select]http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Lacan/dp/0393329550
So i have started to read that too...
Bums me out man.
Lacan is in my personal Hate Pit. He and Derrida are forced to read each other's writings.
My sister has started to psychoanalyze me with this:Code: [Select]http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Lacan/dp/0393329550
So i have started to read that too...
Bums me out man.
I seriously have a hard time believing that Lacanian analysis is an actual thing (even though I know it is). Trying to analyze someone using Žižek seems even more insane (no offense to your sister). I love Žižek but I think his work makes a lot more sense as criticism/philosophy. But then again I've never been able to stick with a therapist for more than a few months, so Žižekian analysis might be exactly what I need.
I have a diametrically opposed notion of Žižek. I absolutely hate all of his so called philosophy and, I am not trying to be arrogant here, think he should adopt a little bit of methodology and tone down the rhetorical tricks and hokum. On the other hand i find his analysis of popular culture and movies at least entertaining and it makes for good reading and watching in case of his movies. I have only been recently introduced to him and if you have the right reading recommendation maybe my perception would shift. Or maybe my rejection is just rooted in my older sister trying to get a handle on me, because I am currently succeeding and she is not.
My sister has started to psychoanalyze me with this:Code: [Select]http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Lacan/dp/0393329550
So i have started to read that too...
Bums me out man.
I seriously have a hard time believing that Lacanian analysis is an actual thing (even though I know it is). Trying to analyze someone using Žižek seems even more insane (no offense to your sister). I love Žižek but I think his work makes a lot more sense as criticism/philosophy. But then again I've never been able to stick with a therapist for more than a few months, so Žižekian analysis might be exactly what I need.
I have a diametrically opposed notion of Žižek. I absolutely hate all of his so called philosophy and, I am not trying to be arrogant here, think he should adopt a little bit of methodology and tone down the rhetorical tricks and hokum. On the other hand i find his analysis of popular culture and movies at least entertaining and it makes for good reading and watching in case of his movies. I have only been recently introduced to him and if you have the right reading recommendation maybe my perception would shift. Or maybe my rejection is just rooted in my older sister trying to get a handle on me, because I am currently succeeding and she is not.
His one-off books on pop culture are far more fun to read, but they're also what give him a bad rap as a charlatan or whatever. His three or four major works -- starting with The Sublime Object of Ideology and ending with The Parallax View (I forget the others but he mentions them in the movie) offer a more coherent worldview.
But if you're into Classical or Enlightenment thought, you will probably never like his work. I have the advantage of being very much a dilettante, and a reluctant academic at best. To the extent that I use philosophy at all, it's for my writing, so I mostly just follow whatever I find interesting.
Is Žižek's stuff on David Lynch worth reading? To the degree that I'm interested at all, that has seemed like it would be a good way in.
Finished Our Man in Havana. Awesome, quick read.
I'm reading the short story collection, The Best of Saki (aka H. H. Munro). Very funny stuff. My bet is if you're a FOT, you will love this.
150 pages (and about 15 pages of footnotes) into Infinite Jest. Heavens, it's good. It's nearly indescribably complex, but I will take a shot at it in the next few days. I recall fighting through the filmography of James Incandenza as an excruciating chore, but it hits me as much funnier this time.
150 pages (and about 15 pages of footnotes) into Infinite Jest. Heavens, it's good. It's nearly indescribably complex, but I will take a shot at it in the next few days. I recall fighting through the filmography of James Incandenza as an excruciating chore, but it hits me as much funnier this time.
I've had this clunky hardcover of "Infinite Jest" sitting on a table for some time. I'm thinking of cracking it on my birthday and rea, like, four pages a day. I figure by my next birthday I should complete it. Would you recomend reading it this way or is it better to do the Bataan death march through it?
No, I don't have a problem with the number of pages. I'm just wondering if reading it in small chunks is a good way to read the book. That method worked quite well when I read "Gravity's Rainbow", not so much when I read "Finnegans Wake"...
I'm in the middle of The Turnaround by George Pelecanos. He writes some straight forward crime novels that are so heavily character centric and deal with such an atmosphere of being in DC. I really love what I've read of his so far.
I'm in the middle of The Turnaround by George Pelecanos. He writes some straight forward crime novels that are so heavily character centric and deal with such an atmosphere of being in DC. I really love what I've read of his so far.
I'm a big fan of his. I don't know what you've read, but I highly recommend The Big Blowdown, The Sweet Forever, and Hard Revolution.
Ohmyfuckingod, isn't Reginald about the funniest character ever?
You're probably right. I would venture to guess FoTs would love this as well. And in the event you read Saki and don't find Reginald awesome don't worry. The storry will be over shortly. Munro took the phrase "short story" very litterally...
DFK, have you read the piece that Jonathan Franzen did on Wallace this week.
The Laughing Policeman, by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo, one of the books in the esteemed Martin Beck series.
150 pages (and about 15 pages of footnotes) into Infinite Jest. Heavens, it's good. It's nearly indescribably complex, but I will take a shot at it in the next few days. I recall fighting through the filmography of James Incandenza as an excruciating chore, but it hits me as much funnier this time.
I have a copy of The Pale King, but I don't feel like I'm ready to take it on yet. The discussion of Infinite Jest is making me strongly ponder re-visiting it. I might just jump in midway or read bits like the aforementioned filmography.
Ohmyfuckingod, isn't Reginald about the funniest character ever?
You're probably right. I would venture to guess FoTs would love this as well. And in the event you read Saki and don't find Reginald awesome don't worry. The storry will be over shortly. Munro took the phrase "short story" very litterally...
Reginald is great, but I'm more of a Clovis guy. Clovis is the King of the Smartasses.
I have a copy of The Pale King, but I don't feel like I'm ready to take it on yet. The discussion of Infinite Jest is making me strongly ponder re-visiting it. I might just jump in midway or read bits like the aforementioned filmography.
I have a copy of The Pale King, but I don't feel like I'm ready to take it on yet. The discussion of Infinite Jest is making me strongly ponder re-visiting it. I might just jump in midway or read bits like the aforementioned filmography.
Have you cracked it all? I'm dying to read it, but I'm apprehensive about "unfinished" works published posthumously.
I started All The King's Men yesterday, and I was eyeing The Pale King for my next one, but I don't want to pay for a hardback if I haven't heard anything about it.
Ohmyfuckingod, isn't Reginald about the funniest character ever?
You're probably right. I would venture to guess FoTs would love this as well. And in the event you read Saki and don't find Reginald awesome don't worry. The storry will be over shortly. Munro took the phrase "short story" very litterally...
Reginald is great, but I'm more of a Clovis guy. Clovis is the King of the Smartasses.
Okay, I've been sold on Saki now, and I picked up a collection at the library.
Where do I start??
I have a copy of The Pale King, but I don't feel like I'm ready to take it on yet. The discussion of Infinite Jest is making me strongly ponder re-visiting it. I might just jump in midway or read bits like the aforementioned filmography.
Have you cracked it all? I'm dying to read it, but I'm apprehensive about "unfinished" works published posthumously.
I started All The King's Men yesterday, and I was eyeing The Pale King for my next one, but I don't want to pay for a hardback if I haven't heard anything about it.
I read All The King's Men two summers ago. That book was a slog. I appreciated its story but thought it really overwritten. What's your opinion on it?
Okay, I've been sold on Saki now, and I picked up a collection at the library.
Where do I start??
150 pages (and about 15 pages of footnotes) into Infinite Jest. Heavens, it's good. It's nearly indescribably complex, but I will take a shot at it in the next few days. I recall fighting through the filmography of James Incandenza as an excruciating chore, but it hits me as much funnier this time.
I've had this clunky hardcover of "Infinite Jest" sitting on a table for some time. I'm thinking of cracking it on my birthday and rea, like, four pages a day. I figure by my next birthday I should complete it. Would you recomend reading it this way or is it better to do the Bataan death march through it?
I believe Infinite Jest to be a totally rewarding task. If you're intimidated by the # of pages (and if you're not, you're inhuman), maybe try cracking it in the middle and working your way through that way. It doesn't have a clear beginning/end, so you can easily get by reading it from the middle and working your way back to the starting point.
And also, don't read the footnotes that look overlong. Most of the footnotes are rewarding, but not essential. Think of them as the "for fans only" section of the book.
Ohmyfuckingod, isn't Reginald about the funniest character ever?
You're probably right. I would venture to guess FoTs would love this as well. And in the event you read Saki and don't find Reginald awesome don't worry. The storry will be over shortly. Munro took the phrase "short story" very litterally...
Reginald is great, but I'm more of a Clovis guy. Clovis is the King of the Smartasses.
Okay, I've been sold on Saki now, and I picked up a collection at the library.
Where do I start??
With the collection you checked out?
You know, Adamfromhiinthemiddle, I disagree on this point. I am trying to read the book this time with the crazed focus of a grad student. I am about 1/6 th the way through, and there have been multiple cases of info that you can only pull from the footnotes greatly illuminating what's going on in the body of the book. I will point out the most recent one. In the first short section following the long rambling discourse 10-year-old Jim Incandenza is getting from his father, Pemulis is musing on a transaction he recently completed. (For people that don't know the book, there aren't chapters per se, but segments most frequently listing the year in which the segment took place; and the years are no longer numbered, so it's hard to say "turn to chapter 6 about mid-way through"; this particular segment is entitled "4 November Year of the Depend Adult Undergarment", year numbers having been sold to corporate sponsorship. And it's not the book's only "4 November Year of the Depend Adult Undergarment", making it even more difficult to find. But surely people who have read the book can't forget Jim's Dad's excruciatingly detailed description of the what he sees as the defining moment of his entire life.)
Anyway, you get this sentence: "DMZ is also sometimes referred to in some metro Boston chemical circles as Madame Psychosis, after a popular very-early-morning cult radio personality on MIT's student-run radio station WYYY-109..."
The thing is, unless you carefully read Jim Incandenza's Filmography, a footnote that runs 9 full pages, this sentence feels like a toss-off, when in fact it ties together one of the many unanswered mysteries at this point in the narrative; what exactly is happening to Prince Q______________'s medical attache?
Like I say, this sort of thing has occurred 4 or 5 times already; I really think the footnotes hold many of the keys to resolving some of the open questions of the narrative, although people should also be aware that there's about a dozen great ideas tossed out on each page, and most of those open questions will remain unresolved at the book's end.
I get a similar feeling when I read this book that I got when I read Clockers; not that they are structurally or stylistically similar, but whereas most people want a giant plot that resolves, you're reading these books to be educated about something you don't know. And every page of Infinite Jest as about 3 and a half educations. One of my buddies in the English Department said either the 4th or 5th time he read it, he tried to read it as poetry, just revelling in the flow of the prose, the wordplay and complexity. But there's plenty to enjoy even if you just want stories.
Sorry for the length of this.
I support your enthusiasm enthusiastically.
I read "Everything That Rises Must Converge" by Flannery O'Connor, and now I'm reading "The Demon Haunted World" by Carl Sagan.You're on the right path.
I don't know what that says about me.
I read "Everything That Rises Must Converge" by Flannery O'Connor, and now I'm reading "The Demon Haunted World" by Carl Sagan.
I don't know what that says about me.
Kinda gross alert!
I heard through some convoluted chain ending (or starting) at Cornell that Cosmos was inspired by stuff Sagan would say to his wife when they showered together. According to this story, he would draw diagrams on the walls with soap. Oh, the 70s.
Kinda gross alert!
I heard through some convoluted chain ending (or starting) at Cornell that Cosmos was inspired by stuff Sagan would say to his wife when they showered together. According to this story, he would draw diagrams on the walls with soap. Oh, the 70s.
Kinda gross alert!
I heard through some convoluted chain ending (or starting) at Cornell that Cosmos was inspired by stuff Sagan would say to his wife when they showered together. According to this story, he would draw diagrams on the walls with soap. Oh, the 70s.
In his writing about his marijuana experiences, which has been posted many places online (the largest piece I could find is here: http://forum.grasscity.com/general/219397-carl-sagans-essay-marijuana.html (http://forum.grasscity.com/general/219397-carl-sagans-essay-marijuana.html)), Sagan describes making a diagram in soap while high and showering with his wife, but it doesn't have anything to to with Cosmos. It's possible this kind of thing happened other times as well, but I suspect the story you heard may have been based on this essay and got distorted in the retelling.
Another stunner from Big George:
http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2011/06/13/110613fi_fiction_saunders (http://www.newyorker.com/fiction/features/2011/06/13/110613fi_fiction_saunders)
Bob Mould's autobiography "See a Little Light:The Trail of Rage and Melody". I'm trying so hard not to burn through this thing in two days flat, but man it's interesting. He writes that the Zen Arcade sessions kicked off with a pot of coffee that had a gram of crystal meth in it.
Bob Mould's autobiography "See a Little Light:The Trail of Rage and Melody". I'm trying so hard not to burn through this thing in two days flat, but man it's interesting. He writes that the Zen Arcade sessions kicked off with a pot of coffee that had a gram of crystal meth in it.
Does Bob talk about his involvement with pro wrestling at all? He was a booker (storyline writer) for WCW for a few years. I think Bob might be the #1 famous person I want to meet. But as much as I love Husker and Sugar, I'd just probably talk to him about Juvented Guerrera.
I couldn't resist. Picked this up on my Kindle and am tearing through it. It's REALLY good so far. I'm past Husker's break-up and onto his solo career pre-Sugar.
The thing I like about it -- Bob's not afraid to be a jerk and to admit that the money part of music is a huge consideration. He managed to do it without compromising what he wanted to sound like, but at the same time he just flat out says "I wanted to buy a house" and stuff like that. I also like that he's really driven about being in control of the business end and doesn't want to leave it in the hand of others, especially after he gets burned a few times (by SST, in particular).
There's also a lot of really weird guest stars who pop up. I had no idea Jon Stewart bartended at City Gardens in Trenton or that he hung out with Lizz WInstead. There's no mention yet of any of the MST3K guys but it's pretty remarkable how culturally influential the Twin Cities became. And Omar -- the Tom Browning thing is MINDBOGGLING.
I'm also right now reading The Miracle of St. Anthony, which is about St. Anthony's High School, the most successful high school basketball program probably ever that faces ridiculous odds just staying afloat. It's really good -- I think a non-basketball fan might like it, but not 100% sure.
But Bottom of the 33rd (by Dan Barry) -- I can't say enough good things about this book. It's about the longest baseball game in history but that's really underselling it -- it's more about the struggles of trying to make it big and what happens when you don't. This is one of the best non-fiction books to come out in a REALLY long time.
My Philly-New York commute largely sucks but it has increased my reading time exponentially. And it also fits in well with my new coffee addiction and the inordinate amount of time I spend at coffeeshops.
Currently reading 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks. It's very well-done so far, and it's one of the least alarmist pieces of dystopian fiction I've encountered. Most of what he describes could plausibly happen, in other words. I can't help but wonder what he'd make of this story in film form, though.
Currently reading 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks. It's very well-done so far, and it's one of the least alarmist pieces of dystopian fiction I've encountered. Most of what he describes could plausibly happen, in other words. I can't help but wonder what he'd make of this story in film form, though.
I you saw "Looking For Comedy in the Muslim World", it would be clear to you why he switched to books.
Currently reading 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks. It's very well-done so far, and it's one of the least alarmist pieces of dystopian fiction I've encountered. Most of what he describes could plausibly happen, in other words. I can't help but wonder what he'd make of this story in film form, though.
I you saw "Looking For Comedy in the Muslim World", it would be clear to you why he switched to books.
I actually liked that movie. I heard him say in an interview that he couldn't have made 2030 as a movie because there's no way anyone would give him the amount of money needed to make this story as a movie.
Book Question:
Yesterday's 135th anniversary of Little Big Horn reminds me that I sort of want to read a book about Custer. Is anyone able to give a decisive comparison between Evan S. Connell's Son of the Morning Star and Nathaniel Philbrick's The Last Stand? (FWIW, I found Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea pretty awesome, in the full older sense of that word.)
Currently reading 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks. It's very well-done so far, and it's one of the least alarmist pieces of dystopian fiction I've encountered. Most of what he describes could plausibly happen, in other words. I can't help but wonder what he'd make of this story in film form, though.
Currently reading 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks. It's very well-done so far, and it's one of the least alarmist pieces of dystopian fiction I've encountered. Most of what he describes could plausibly happen, in other words. I can't help but wonder what he'd make of this story in film form, though.
I bailed on this after about 40 pages. No one loves Albert Brooks more than me, but his prose is SO BAD. I'll get back to it eventually, but I'm in no rush.
Does the Mould book explain why they never retrieved their back catalog from SST and remastered their earlier releases ala Meat Puppets, Sonic Youth and other bands?
Does the Mould book explain why they never retrieved their back catalog from SST and remastered their earlier releases ala Meat Puppets, Sonic Youth and other bands?
He doesn't address it specifically in the book, but everything he says squares with the conventional wisdom that they couldn't work on it together and the other guys won't give up control and let Bob buy them out.
Someone left this on the Maplewood Train Station's "take a book, leave a book" rack. I am tempted to dig in.
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/5182OwA3-FL._SL500_AA300_.jpg)
I'm way late to the game on this one, but I just started American Psycho, and it's been amazing so far. On the side, I read one of the stories from Donald Barthelme's 60 Stories whenever I have a couple of minutes. About 24 stories in and I find it a bit hit and miss, but the hits are very strong.
Someone left this on the Maplewood Train Station's "take a book, leave a book" rack. I am tempted to dig in.
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/5182OwA3-FL._SL500_AA300_.jpg)
But Bottom of the 33rd (by Dan Barry) -- I can't say enough good things about this book. It's about the longest baseball game in history but that's really underselling it -- it's more about the struggles of trying to make it big and what happens when you don't. This is one of the best non-fiction books to come out in a REALLY long time.
Stephen King - Night Shift
I dunno. I tore through Cell last Fall and Lisey's Story this past Spring. I think he's still got it. I still get sucked in after the first page. His character, author Scott Landon, in Lisey's Story brings up how well-received his books are and how terrible the movie adaptations turn out. Uncle Stevie knows.
Stephen King - Night Shift
Classic. That was back when "Uncle Stevie" had skills. Scared me bad. Too bad so many awful movies were generated from this collection.
Just Kids, Patti Smith's memoir of her life with Robert Mapplethorpe. I can't say enough good things about it. Pure pleasure to hear her remembrances, inspirations, which are really worth paying attention to, as well as her way of storytelling. She's a fine writer of prose as well as poetry, not to mention her musical and artistic achievements, the part of her with which I was most familiar going in.
Currently reading 2030: The Real Story of What Happens to America by Albert Brooks.
I bailed on this after about 40 pages. No one loves Albert Brooks more than me, but his prose is SO BAD. I'll get back to it eventually, but I'm in no rush.
It's a total snooze, but then I read on Moss Hart's Wikipedia entry that he was in the closet, which suddenly gave the whole thing an interesting subtext (and made certain story points make infinitely more sense).
For the sci-fi people: a friend recommended the Succession Trilogy by Scott Westerfeld after I mentioned I needed to read some sci-fi to mitigate my general unhappiness about the decline of the space program. I've started it (book one, The Risen Empire), and am hooked. Within, find mote sized fighting ships with synesthesia-based controls, so the pilots can use all senses, unlike today's drone pilots who have to make due with sight alone. It's a mix of new and interesting ideas with a bit of the good old fashioned space opera feel to it as well. It's very good so far.
Try Mary Doria Russell's "The Sparrow".
Awesome. Ive been trying to get into the sci-fi genre. I started with the first book in the Foundation series by Asimov, but it didn't really click with me. Now I'm reading Gateway by Frederick Pohl. It seems like what I want from sci-fi is something thats focuses heavily on other races, different worlds, alien cultures etc, different species trying to co-exist in space.
Try Mary Doria Russell's "The Sparrow".
That sounds great! Will do
I read the Asimov stuff in high school and now would agree he's definitely more an ideas guy than a great writer. I believe he said that about himself on many occasions.
I read the Asimov stuff in high school and now would agree he's definitely more an ideas guy than a great writer.
I read the Asimov stuff in high school and now would agree he's definitely more an ideas guy than a great writer. I believe he said that about himself on many occasions.
I think he did say this, but he was pretty hard to hear through those eyebrows.
Right in the middle of Shakey right now.
Also reading an Edogawa Rampo short-stories compilation in fits and starts.
I love both of these books.
On page 32 of Nicholas Nissim Taleb's Black Swan (reading for research) and pretty much hating it. Weirdly convoluted prose, awkward attempts at humor, Malcolm Gladwell/Thomas Friedman style cherry-picked anecdotes designed to make elite types feel good about themselves.
On page 32 of Nicholas Nissim Taleb's Black Swan (reading for research) and pretty much hating it. Weirdly convoluted prose, awkward attempts at humor, Malcolm Gladwell/Thomas Friedman style cherry-picked anecdotes designed to make elite types feel good about themselves.Did understand Taleb's point correctly?
...
But rather than think about the depressing state of politics and punditry, let’s focus instead on bad sports movies—the very worst. There are so many. And they are bad in so many ways.
What do you consider the worst sports movie of all time? My possibly controversial answer: “Rudy.” The mister and I argue about this all the time. He thinks it’s a great movie. I think it’s depressing and dumb.
I get that we’re supposed to be impressed with Rudy’s perseverance. But goddamnit, he’s bad at football! It’s not admirable that he persists at it after it becomes clear that he’s always going to suck—it’s pathetic.
Come to think of it, Rudy and Friedman have something in common: They’re both bad at what they do, and they both receive unwarranted accolades for contributing nothing of importance to their respective fields.
Go Dog Go! P.D. Eastman (the kids love this crazy thing.)
I've read some sci-fi recently.
The City and the City by China Mieville, excellent
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi, so-so
Permutation City by Greg Egan, excellent
I've read some sci-fi recently.
The City and the City by China Mieville, excellent
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi, so-so
Permutation City by Greg Egan, excellent
I just finished Perdido Street Station by Mieville. Have you read it yet? That book was AMAZING! I am fixing to read The Scar. I also have The Windup Girl on my list. I'll have to check out that Permutation City book as well.
I enjoyed Denis Johnson's Train Dreams so much I'm rereading Angels and will follow that up with Stars at Noon, the only other book of his I haven't read.
I've read some sci-fi recently.
The City and the City by China Mieville, excellent
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi, so-so
Permutation City by Greg Egan, excellent
I just finished Perdido Street Station by Mieville. Have you read it yet? That book was AMAZING! I am fixing to read The Scar. I also have The Windup Girl on my list. I'll have to check out that Permutation City book as well.
Perdido Street station is very good, but I haven't yet read any of the followups. Just that and The City and the City.
Permutation City is weird, but it expounds on ideas I've thought about--cellular automata, ontology, nature of consciousness. I just read another of his books, Schild's Ladder, and it did many of the same things but with other scientific and mathematical ideas. It was an interesting read but I didn't get most of it.
I go back and forth with sci-fi, I'll find something I really like and go on a binge but then I'll encounter a book that's so badly written I'll abandon the genre for a while.
I enjoyed Denis Johnson's Train Dreams so much I'm rereading Angels and will follow that up with Stars at Noon, the only other book of his I haven't read.
I've only read Jesus' Son and I've heard, perhaps wrongly, that his work is rather variable in quality. What would you rank as his best?
Twisty Little Passages, a book about the history of Zork and similar games. Apparently there's a community of programmers developing these games (using in some cases the Z-machine used for Zork) just for their own fun and amusement. Games about being a pet dog or set in a world based on the book 'The Age of Wire and String', those sorts of things.
Just finished "Catch-22"Yes. There's #5 for you Mike.
Just finished "Catch-22"Yes. There's #5 for you Mike.
My daughter and I are reading Murder on the Orient Express together. I remember loving it as a kid, but man did it not hold up. That has to be the dumbest ending of a book ever.
If you don't like the first Foundation book, you can safely skip the rest of Asimov, with the possible exception of the first book of the robot series.
I read all the Robot, Empire and Foundation books. They all merge and get really weird toward the end, but not in the most interesting way. As I remember, I liked both Robot and Empire better than Foundation in the end. He's a much, much better idea guy than a writer.
Just recently finished these books:
John Barth, The Sot-Weed Factor
Joesf Skvorecky, The Engineer of Human Souls
Don Carpenter, Hard Rain Falling
Yann Martel, Life of Pi
I just started Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita on the recommendation of my girlfriend. Of the above, I enjoyed Don Carpenter's the most. If any other FOT has read any of these, I'd love to hear others' opinions on them. Also, if anyone has any book discussion suggestions for the small Midwestern public library at which I work, I'd love to hear that too!
Just recently finished these books:
John Barth, The Sot-Weed Factor
Joesf Skvorecky, The Engineer of Human Souls
Don Carpenter, Hard Rain Falling
Yann Martel, Life of Pi
I just started Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita on the recommendation of my girlfriend. Of the above, I enjoyed Don Carpenter's the most. If any other FOT has read any of these, I'd love to hear others' opinions on them. Also, if anyone has any book discussion suggestions for the small Midwestern public library at which I work, I'd love to hear that too!
I couldn't get past page 50 of Life of Pi, dunno why.
Hard Rain Falling is amazing, I totally loved it.
-AG
Bonus point of Best Show-related interest: Probably Don Carpenter's best-known work, out of a field of distressingly unknown candidates, would be his lone screenplay credit, the little-seen cult favorite Payday, which centers on a tour de force performance by Rip "Artie" Torn.
If you don't like the first Foundation book, you can safely skip the rest of Asimov, with the possible exception of the first book of the robot series.
I read all the Robot, Empire and Foundation books. They all merge and get really weird toward the end, but not in the most interesting way. As I remember, I liked both Robot and Empire better than Foundation in the end. He's a much, much better idea guy than a writer.
Troof. Quantity doesn't equal quality (see also: Steve Allen).
For Sprawling Space Opera/Hard SF/Multiple Worlds & Races type books - I'd recommend Peter Hamilton, although be warned, his books are ENORMOUS and rarely standalones, mostly he does big series. Also Alastair Reynolds.
I also liked the Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson - it's probably pretty dated now but it definitely falls into that hard SF category, where things have a "real" ring to them.
Oh, I could go on. Me, I'm reading Les Miserables now. Because I want to, that's why.
Oh, I could go on. Me, I'm reading Les Miserables now. Because I want to, that's why.
I read it last year! Let's get together soon and discuss the history of Parisian nunneries!
Just recently finished these books:
John Barth, The Sot-Weed Factor
Joesf Skvorecky, The Engineer of Human Souls
Don Carpenter, Hard Rain Falling
Yann Martel, Life of Pi
I just started Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita on the recommendation of my girlfriend. Of the above, I enjoyed Don Carpenter's the most. If any other FOT has read any of these, I'd love to hear others' opinions on them. Also, if anyone has any book discussion suggestions for the small Midwestern public library at which I work, I'd love to hear that too!
Despite the title, not even vaguely hippieish or Vietnam-related. It's more like a depressive, hyper-existentialist beat novel about West Coast lowlifes and pool hustlers who commit petty crimes, do prison time, attempt redemption, and think a lot about freedom and death. A little longer and slower than it needed to be, I still found it quite worth the read.
The only thing I can think of that might hinder your enjoyment of Hard Rain Falling, Mike, is that it is a bit slow going at times--lotsa (probably too much) interior monologue on existential themes. Give it a try though, its brilliant parts are worth it. This is how I described it on another blog:QuoteDespite the title, not even vaguely hippieish or Vietnam-related. It's more like a depressive, hyper-existentialist beat novel about West Coast lowlifes and pool hustlers who commit petty crimes, do prison time, attempt redemption, and think a lot about freedom and death. A little longer and slower than it needed to be, I still found it quite worth the read.
I actually met the writer of Hard Rain once or twice. I understand he's writing erotica now under another name. I can't say how I know. Hard Rain Falling is mostly entertaining but parts do drag. It's worth reading.
The only thing I can think of that might hinder your enjoyment of Hard Rain Falling, Mike, is that it is a bit slow going at times--lotsa (probably too much) interior monologue on existential themes. Give it a try though, its brilliant parts are worth it. This is how I described it on another blog:QuoteDespite the title, not even vaguely hippieish or Vietnam-related. It's more like a depressive, hyper-existentialist beat novel about West Coast lowlifes and pool hustlers who commit petty crimes, do prison time, attempt redemption, and think a lot about freedom and death. A little longer and slower than it needed to be, I still found it quite worth the read.
Just recently finished these books:
John Barth, The Sot-Weed Factor
Joesf Skvorecky, The Engineer of Human Souls
Don Carpenter, Hard Rain Falling
Yann Martel, Life of Pi
I just started Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita on the recommendation of my girlfriend. Of the above, I enjoyed Don Carpenter's the most. If any other FOT has read any of these, I'd love to hear others' opinions on them. Also, if anyone has any book discussion suggestions for the small Midwestern public library at which I work, I'd love to hear that too!
Thanks for the tip on Hard Rain Falling. It does look like something I would really enjoy. I'll check it out.
I'm currently giving Donald Barthelme another shot. I just finished The Dead Father and I'm halfway through Forty Stories. They're both more enjoyable than Sixty Stories, but there are still moments when the silly gets the best of him.
(http://desmond.yfrog.com/Himg864/scaled.php?tn=0&server=864&filename=cwzxr.jpg&xsize=640&ysize=640)
This lunged off the shelves at me on my most recent trip to the library. I know nothing about it, but the Title, cover, and jacket copy convinced me. Haven't started it yet.
(http://desmond.yfrog.com/Himg864/scaled.php?tn=0&server=864&filename=cwzxr.jpg&xsize=640&ysize=640)
This lunged off the shelves at me on my most recent trip to the library. I know nothing about it, but the Title, cover, and jacket copy convinced me. Haven't started it yet.
The Master and Margarita
A little something for the snobs, not the slobs, but I just finished When Nietzche Wept by Irvin D. Yalom and thought it a mighty, mighty book. A fictional encounter in Vienna between Friederich Nietzche and Josef Breuer, who was Freud's mentor and one of the forefathers of psychoanalysis. Starts out as a doctor/patient relationship and turns into something much more reciprocal, as each has a wisdom the other needs. Very moving and also a good primer on Nietzche's thinking, if you're looking for a not only painless but compelling way into that.
Recently picked up:
My Dead Dad Was in ZZ Top - Jon Glaser
Still finishing:
Supergods - Grant Morrison
How is Morrison's book? I find his comics writing to be either great or just flat out incomprehensible. I appreciate what he's going for but stuff like The Invisibles never spoke to me.
The Master and Margarita
How is it? I've had an old used copy on my shelf for a while.
The weird thing is that I think I picked it up because the band The Lawrence Arms made a reference or two to the book.
I just finished "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien and I don't think I'll ever read a book as good again in my life.
I just finished "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien and I don't think I'll ever read a book as good again in my life.
I've been trying to remember this title and author for a couple of years now after someone recommended it to me with similar extreme praise... all I could recall was that it was a war novel written in the last couple of decades. Thanks for inadvertantly jogging my memory!
The Psychopath Test.
I really like Jon Ronson. If I ever met him, I would subject him to the American exhortation, "Buck up there, little camper!"
The Psychopath Test.
I really like Jon Ronson. If I ever met him, I would subject him to the American exhortation, "Buck up there, little camper!"
I'm not sure if it's in that book, but Mr. Ronson did a segment on This American Life about a British man who faked his way into a mental institution and now can't get himself back out. I think. Now I'm suddenly unsure if I'm remembering this correctly.
REAMDE by Neal Stephenson
Russian Mafia/Hacker Mayhem in and around a World-of-Warcraft like game. There's some pretty funny material revolving around the writers
(http://img2-3.timeinc.net/ew/i/2012/03/21/the-sugar-frosted-nutsack-review_320.jpg)
REAMDE by Neal Stephenson
Russian Mafia/Hacker Mayhem in and around a World-of-Warcraft like game. There's some pretty funny material revolving around the writers
Over or under 1,000 pages?
Still trying to get through Spray Paint the Walls. The segues are kind of annoying in that they mention all these other people and bands, but don't really go into interesting detail about them...I know it all relates to the black flag story...but maybe the black flag story is just kinda boring. Get to the lawsuit already...I'd rather read a book about Würm or Hüsker Düde..or something with umlauts anyway.You show Tom Troccoli's Dog some RESPECT!
Really?! The more I read about the Kennedys, the more I dislike them. Not only did they come close to starting a nuclear war, they believed political power gave them a license to kill. I'm not surprised Robert Kennedy doubted the lone-gunman theory. It's probably because the Kennedys had made so many enemies in such a short period of time.An author on the most recentOn The Media makes it clear- they have the tapes- that Kennedy was the one who kept us out of a nuclear war. Listen to the last 15 minutes or so.
I'm reading Moby Dick. It's pretty good! Lots of stuff about whales, though. Is it about whales? Not sure I've read a book that spends so much time talking about whales before.
I'm reading Moby Dick. It's pretty good! Lots of stuff about whales, though. Is it about whales? Not sure I've read a book that spends so much time talking about whales before.
Bobby did target the Mob. This made them very unhappy.
Wait till you get to the 80-page drum solo.
I was very into whales as a kid. Never got around to reading Moby Dick, though.
Bobby did target the Mob. This made them very unhappy.
Yeah, especially after he just tried to use the mob to kill Castro. No one likes a double-crosser. Once you get into bed with the mob, you're supposed to stay in bed with them.
So now, acting on Mike's suggestion, I am reading Legacy of Ashes by Tim Weiner. A very readable, gratifyingly merciless history of the CIA that could as easily have been titled Nutjobs, Cock-Ups, and Clusterfucks.
I liked The Pale King. Ultimately it felt like more of a story collection than a novel, though. My opinion of DFW was strained a bit after reading his book 'Everything and More', about Georg Cantor, the (severely) troubled genius who came up with set theory and the idea about multiple types of infinity (and other things). I have a math background, but that was far in the past, and I'm not a pro like DfK (who I believe is very pro-DFW). There were some problems in the book with his descriptions of some mathematical ideas to the point where it really bothered me (although the historical background and discussion of the cast of mathematical characters was quite good). Same story in Infinite Jest where he described the kids using existence theorems to calculate things. Existence theorems don't help you do that. Anyhow I shouldn't let something like that bother me, but I did.
I will probably at some point read the biography, but will have to be 'ready' for it.
Next up is the second in the Succession series. I'm mostly in a sci-fi mood at the moment.
Just finished Empire of the Sun after putting it off for 20 years. It's a little samey, but I think that's part of the point. Didn't realize when I saw the movie so long ago that it was autobiographical; the stuff Ballard saw before he hit 15 boggles the mind. Very interesting, despite the monotony of extended passages of Japanese prison camp life. Found his burgeoning adolescent sexuality in the face of literal starvation to be handled extremely well. (At one point he brings a piece of hail to a woman who has shown him nothing but contempt throughout the imprisonment in lieu of water, and he can focus on is her tongue on his fingers.)
[Jim] welcomed the air raids, the noise of the Mustangs as they swept over the camp, the smell of oil and cordite, the deaths of the pilots, even the likelihood of his own death. Despite everything, he knew he was worth nothing. He twisted his Latin primer, trembling with a secret hunger that the war would so eagerly satisfy.
I liked The Pale King. Ultimately it felt like more of a story collection than a novel, though. My opinion of DFW was strained a bit after reading his book 'Everything and More', about Georg Cantor, the (severely) troubled genius who came up with set theory and the idea about multiple types of infinity (and other things). I have a math background, but that was far in the past, and I'm not a pro like DfK (who I believe is very pro-DFW). There were some problems in the book with his descriptions of some mathematical ideas to the point where it really bothered me (although the historical background and discussion of the cast of mathematical characters was quite good). Same story in Infinite Jest where he described the kids using existence theorems to calculate things. Existence theorems don't help you do that. Anyhow I shouldn't let something like that bother me, but I did.
I will probably at some point read the biography, but will have to be 'ready' for it.
Next up is the second in the Succession series. I'm mostly in a sci-fi mood at the moment.
Next up is Demons/The Possessed (whatever you want to call it) by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
Next up is Demons/The Possessed (whatever you want to call it) by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
HEAVY FRIGGIN' DUTY. Which translation?
It's the Andrew R. MacAndrew (that could be a Newbridge residents' name) translation. It's a 1962 edition titled The Possessed. From what I've read, the preferred or more accurate title is now Demons.
It's the Andrew R. MacAndrew (that could be a Newbridge residents' name) translation. It's a 1962 edition titled The Possessed. From what I've read, the preferred or more accurate title is now Demons.
Yeah, "The Possessed" was pretty much the invention of Constance Garnett, the first translator of Dostoevski into English who still commands a following. FD's title is more literally "The Demons" or "The Devils." Never heard of the MacAndrew translation. If it seems weak, there are others!
Well, in terms of fidelity to the original writer's intention, obviously the only way for us peons to judge is to appeal to authority. Google "best dostoevsky translation?" and you'll find a fair amount of discussion including from some who actually know Russian. I meant more like whether it seems to you to read easily, without a lot of awkwardnesses that make you think "Hmm, well, maybe that's a translation problem." My sense is that almost everyone prefers either Garnett or Pevear/Volokhonsky. The latter seem generally to be considered most faithful to FD's intentions, but some find them a little sloppy and crude and prefer Garnett, who may have gentrified things a bit but reads more like what English readers consider a classic 19th-century novel.
It's the Andrew R. MacAndrew (that could be a Newbridge residents' name) translation. It's a 1962 edition titled The Possessed. From what I've read, the preferred or more accurate title is now Demons.
Yeah, "The Possessed" was pretty much the invention of Constance Garnett, the first translator of Dostoevski into English who still commands a following. FD's title is more literally "The Demons" or "The Devils." Never heard of the MacAndrew translation. If it seems weak, there are others!
Next up is Demons/The Possessed (whatever you want to call it) by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
ndmvhc: Well, the original Russian censors cut it. Garnett's translation from sometime in the 1910's included it as an appendix. Pretty much every translation since then has restored it to its place (and it is central, more or less the equivalent of "The Legend of the Grand Inquisitor" in Karamazov.) I would tend to think any modern edition that made a big deal of including it is probably trying pretty hard to flag down some business. (That said, the MacAndrew translation might be utterly awesome, I wouldn't know.)
Hey Dave - did you ever finish Absurdistan?
Haven't got a chance to crack it open yet but i just got The Stories of Breece D'J Pancake in the mail.Good stuff. Sad stuff (both the stories in the book and his).
I rather liked Sleeper. I wish Brubaker would work in more pulpy SF area and it suits Phillips' art very well.
I am reading "Matter" by Iain M. Banks which is the last of the Culture novels I have not read before I read his new one, "Hydrogen Sonata." The entire Culture series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_series) is probably my favorite thing in genre fiction.
I am reading "Matter" by Iain M. Banks which is the last of the Culture novels I have not read before I read his new one, "Hydrogen Sonata." The entire Culture series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_series) is probably my favorite thing in genre fiction.
I'm two books into the Culture series and loving it very very much. I hope to get my third at Christmas. Here's a bit of a problem I have: apparently one of the Culture novels is not published in the Culture trade dress that they use here in the US. As a completionist who likes series to look like a set, that bothers me.
:-[I am reading "Matter" by Iain M. Banks which is the last of the Culture novels I have not read before I read his new one, "Hydrogen Sonata." The entire Culture series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_series) is probably my favorite thing in genre fiction.
I'm two books into the Culture series and loving it very very much. I hope to get my third at Christmas. Here's a bit of a problem I have: apparently one of the Culture novels is not published in the Culture trade dress that they use here in the US. As a completionist who likes series to look like a set, that bothers me.
That would bug me as well if I was close to having a set. But some of mine are trades, other mass market paperbacks, some hardcover, and some ebooks. Some I read from the library. I would love a Culture box set.
The one that is not in the series, is that Inversions? It's only sort-of a Culture book.
Yeah I think it's that one. But look at that hideous cover art: http://www.amazon.com/Inversions-Culture-Iain-M-Banks/dp/1416583785/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355179915&sr=8-1&keywords=inversions (http://www.amazon.com/Inversions-Culture-Iain-M-Banks/dp/1416583785/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355179915&sr=8-1&keywords=inversions)
Yeah I think it's that one. But look at that hideous cover art: http://www.amazon.com/Inversions-Culture-Iain-M-Banks/dp/1416583785/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355179915&sr=8-1&keywords=inversions (http://www.amazon.com/Inversions-Culture-Iain-M-Banks/dp/1416583785/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355179915&sr=8-1&keywords=inversions)
Boo!
BTW I hope you've read this essay: http://www.vavatch.co.uk/books/banks/cultnote.htm (http://www.vavatch.co.uk/books/banks/cultnote.htm)
Anathem: (1) In Proto-Orth, a poetic or musical invocation of Our Mother Hylaea, which since the time of Adrakhones has been the climax of the daily liturgy [...] (2) In New Orth, an aut by which an incorrigible fraa or suur is ejected from the math and his or her work sequestered [etc...]
Can anyone recommend a really great translation of Don Quixote? I attempted reading it a few years back and failed, but believe I have a pretty dry translation.
Can anyone recommend a really great translation of Don Quixote? I attempted reading it a few years back and failed, but believe I have a pretty dry translation.
I enjoyed the Samuel Putnam translation.
Can anyone recommend a really great translation of Don Quixote? I attempted reading it a few years back and failed, but believe I have a pretty dry translation.
I enjoyed the Samuel Putnam translation.
Noted. Thanks.
Can anyone recommend a really great translation of Don Quixote? I attempted reading it a few years back and failed, but believe I have a pretty dry translation.
I enjoyed the Samuel Putnam translation.
Noted. Thanks.
Avoid the Seth Putnam translation.
[does the chat room ever get used outside of 9p-12a EST on Tuesdays?].].
[does the chat room ever get used outside of 9p-12a EST on Tuesdays?].].
NO.
I'm reading MOBY DICK. It's a delightful read or something
Seems like music-oriented books come up as a topic of discussion fairly regularly on the show and among the FOT. I was thinking about organizing a music book reading club for us. Pick one a month. Alternate between new titles and titles considered essential reads [like Hammer Of The Gods or Our Band Could Be Your Life]. Maybe throw in a work of fiction from time-to-time. Pick a non-show night to meetup in the chat room to discuss the book [does the chat room ever get used outside of 9p-12a EST on Tuesdays?]. I was thinking of "Rock, Rot Then Write" as the group name since that seems to be the life cycle of book-writing musicians [they rock for a while then rot away outside of the spotlight before penning their memoir as a last cash-grab attempt].
Thoughts?
- The Saga of Coe Ridge - This is an anthropological study, as much as anything, of Coe Ridge, which was an all-black settlement in Kentucky that lasted from Reconstruction through the 20s. This might sound familiar to any Justified fans, since it was the basis for Noble's Holler featured in Season 3.
- I'm also attempting to read every John Le Carre book in order. Currently on A Small Town in Germany. s'good.
- Still running through Grant Morrison's Doom Patrol run, Mark Waid's Incorruptible and Irredeemable series, oh and I'm expecting my next Trade paperback of Chew (#3) in the mail today.
Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann. Almost done. Love it.Just finished. Loved it too. Now I have to watch the documentary about that crazy fearless tightrope walker.
[does the chat room ever get used outside of 9p-12a EST on Tuesdays?].].
NO.
I'm reading MOBY DICK. It's a delightful read or something
This is not strictly true. I have talked with people on occasion during off times. Tom even stopped in once; it was a sort of "why are you here", but it was still a nice surprise.
[does the chat room ever get used outside of 9p-12a EST on Tuesdays?].].
NO.
I'm reading MOBY DICK. It's a delightful read or something
This is not strictly true. I have talked with people on occasion during off times. Tom even stopped in once; it was a sort of "why are you here", but it was still a nice surprise.
Dave, I am pretty sure I was in there when that happened. Wasn't FoNPR in there too?
I just started reading Gravity's Rainbow.
Hoo boy...
I'm pretty sure.I knew it! That was kid of a surreal moment really when we were in there and then Tom comes in, "What are you guys doing in here?!"
Yeah. I read it, but I skipped about 200 pages of the middle because it was due back at the library. Skipping a fifth of the text didn't affect my comprehension of the book at all, which remained at or near zero throughout reading it. Much of my reading consisted of forcing myself to simply move my eyes across the text, hoping that it would mean something to my brain. It didn't.I just started reading Gravity's Rainbow.
Hoo boy...
I cannot defend that WHOLE book but there are some AMAZING moments in it. Two sections in particular are favorites of mine. But as a whole...?
Eh.
I knew it! That was kid of a surreal moment really when we were in there and then Tom comes in, "What are you guys doing in here?!"
Hey FONPR...hope you are doing well.
I'm pretty sure.I knew it! That was kid of a surreal moment really when we were in there and then Tom comes in, "What are you guys doing in here?!"
My GF
So speaking of Friend of the Show Michael Kupperman
Yeah. I read it, but I skipped about 200 pages of the middle because it was due back at the library. Skipping a fifth of the text didn't affect my comprehension of the book at all, which remained at or near zero throughout reading it. Much of my reading consisted of forcing myself to simply move my eyes across the text, hoping that it would mean something to my brain. It didn't.I just started reading Gravity's Rainbow.
Hoo boy...
I cannot defend that WHOLE book but there are some AMAZING moments in it. Two sections in particular are favorites of mine. But as a whole...?
Eh.
And for what it's worth, I don't think I'm super stupid. I loved The Crying of Lot 49, and have enjoyed other avant-garde literary fiction.
So good luck, I guess?
I'm reading Lawrence Wright's book about Scientology (Going Clear). I am a fan of sci-fi, a bit of a fan of the non-fiction cult horror genre and have read a couple books about Scientology, but this one sheds even more light on the extent to which young L. Ron Hubbard was an unintentionally hilarious unreliable narrator. I had heard about him deciding to attack a Mexican island while commanding a naval ship, sure, but not about the day he spent blowing things up underwater and drawing the conclusion that he'd sunk a sub when he saw some bubbles. Nor the sea adventure he organized in college that he ran away from in the middle of the night when things went sour. Nor had I heard much about the sex magick. I probably would have been OK with not hearing about that. On the other hand he started a wildly successful global cult when he was a few years younger than I am, so who am I to judge?
I'm reading Lawrence Wright's book about Scientology (Going Clear). I am a fan of sci-fi, a bit of a fan of the non-fiction cult horror genre and have read a couple books about Scientology, but this one sheds even more light on the extent to which young L. Ron Hubbard was an unintentionally hilarious unreliable narrator. I had heard about him deciding to attack a Mexican island while commanding a naval ship, sure, but not about the day he spent blowing things up underwater and drawing the conclusion that he'd sunk a sub when he saw some bubbles. Nor the sea adventure he organized in college that he ran away from in the middle of the night when things went sour. Nor had I heard much about the sex magick. I probably would have been OK with not hearing about that. On the other hand he started a wildly successful global cult when he was a few years younger than I am, so who am I to judge?
I haveto read that. I fucking loved "The Looming Tower"...
extremely angry about the boredom of fishing and expressing a desire to jump in the water and strangle themBy "them" I assume you mean fish?
extremely angry about the boredom of fishing and expressing a desire to jump in the water and strangle themBy "them" I assume you mean fish?
Personally, I'd rather be a cow wrangler than a fish strangler.
A lot of scholars and people I respect hail this as the best non-fiction book ever written.
Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
So far (I'm up to the 'Axial Age' ~800-200 BCE) there's a lot of focus on slavery, and I'm not sure this is going to change.
A few interesting items learned: the 'everything started with barter' theory is complete b.s., also that at one time Ireland priced most everything in units of 'bondmaids'.
Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
So far (I'm up to the 'Axial Age' ~800-200 BCE) there's a lot of focus on slavery, and I'm not sure this is going to change.
A few interesting items learned: the 'everything started with barter' theory is complete b.s., also that at one time Ireland priced most everything in units of 'bondmaids'.
Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
So far (I'm up to the 'Axial Age' ~800-200 BCE) there's a lot of focus on slavery, and I'm not sure this is going to change.
A few interesting items learned: the 'everything started with barter' theory is complete b.s., also that at one time Ireland priced most everything in units of 'bondmaids'.
I hate that book. It sets itself up to take down academic economics by repetitively pointing out that the barter theory is made up and inferring a conspiracy of the science from that.
Also here is a more informed opinion than mine:
http://noahpinionblog.blogspot.de/2013/02/david-graeber-debt-is-bad-or-something.html (http://noahpinionblog.blogspot.de/2013/02/david-graeber-debt-is-bad-or-something.html)
It's all about narrowing your focus so much that you just kind of forget about all the things that normal people care about.
Yeah, so whatever. I'm reading The Bible.
Did god tell them to do that or did they come up with that one by themselves?Yeah, so whatever. I'm reading The Bible.
There are a lot of good yuks in that, as I recall. I liked the part where some tribe invites the Israelites to share their land and they're all "OK, great, just get all your males circumcised and we can intermarry and everything will be cool" and then while all the males are rolling around in agony (no anesthetic in those days), the Israelites come in and slaughter them all.
Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
So far (I'm up to the 'Axial Age' ~800-200 BCE) there's a lot of focus on slavery, and I'm not sure this is going to change.
A few interesting items learned: the 'everything started with barter' theory is complete b.s., also that at one time Ireland priced most everything in units of 'bondmaids'.
That's one of my favorite books ever. There a couple of howlers in there, and the author is a complete asshole, but it's an amazing book. I'd like to re-read it.
Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
So far (I'm up to the 'Axial Age' ~800-200 BCE) there's a lot of focus on slavery, and I'm not sure this is going to change.
A few interesting items learned: the 'everything started with barter' theory is complete b.s., also that at one time Ireland priced most everything in units of 'bondmaids'.
I hate that book. It sets itself up to take down academic economics by repetitively pointing out that the barter theory is made up and inferring a conspiracy of the science from that.
Also here is a more informed opinion than mine:
http://noahpinionblog.blogspot.de/2013/02/david-graeber-debt-is-bad-or-something.html (http://noahpinionblog.blogspot.de/2013/02/david-graeber-debt-is-bad-or-something.html)
Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber
So far (I'm up to the 'Axial Age' ~800-200 BCE) there's a lot of focus on slavery, and I'm not sure this is going to change.
A few interesting items learned: the 'everything started with barter' theory is complete b.s., also that at one time Ireland priced most everything in units of 'bondmaids'.
I hate that book. It sets itself up to take down academic economics by repetitively pointing out that the barter theory is made up and inferring a conspiracy of the science from that.
Also here is a more informed opinion than mine:
http://noahpinionblog.blogspot.de/2013/02/david-graeber-debt-is-bad-or-something.html (http://noahpinionblog.blogspot.de/2013/02/david-graeber-debt-is-bad-or-something.html)
Noah's just throwing up squid ink there. That's probably his worst post ever. That and this one (http://noahpinionblog.blogspot.com/2012/02/lower-wages-can-be-good-thing.html).
I'll let you guys in on a little secret about how mainstream econ works. It's all about narrowing your focus so much that you just kind of forget about all the things that normal people care about. Once they get you seeing everything through tiny pinholes they cram a bunch of math through it, and you're so busy keeping up with that that you forget you ever cared about anything else. It's just a magician's misdirection. The thing that makes "Debt" so explosive, despite or because of being a huge woolly mess of a book, is that gets you to look at the big picture, the really really big picture again. Noah is doing the typical glib economist thing there and asking a lot of stupid questions, and complaining that Graeber didn't boil it down to some oversimplified math. Good! Graeber isn't claiming to have all the answers, the way economists do.
Also, there's not a single macro textbook in America that correctly explains where money comes from, so Graeber is not wrong there either.
Not to get all name-droppy, but I know Graeber fairly well (I was an NYC activist in another life), and I always liked him. Other people I know and trust have a negative opinion of him, however. I haven't spoken to him since Occupy and Debt made their respective splashes, though, and I haven't read Debt even though I bought it when it came out.
Right now I'm reading Red Dragon for work, and a bunch of comics for fun.
I recently finished Going Clear, the Scientology exposé by Lawrence Wright. I highly recommend it.
A couple of highlights from the book:
The L. Ron Hubbard era: Hubbard, a serial bigamist and lifelong philanderer, counsels his first wife that his journey is taking him onwards, and that a divorce would reflect poorly on him. Therefore, the best thing to do would be for her to commit suicide. (She didn't.)
The David Miscavige era: Miscavige keeps several ferocious dogs around the Sea Org compound. They routinely attack members of the Sea Org. Miscavige has custom military-style outfits made for the dogs, complete with epaulets bearing their rank: Captain. Most of the human Sea Org members are outranked by the dogs, so they have to salute the dogs anytime they wander past.
I recently finished Going Clear, the Scientology exposé by Lawrence Wright. I highly recommend it.
A couple of highlights from the book:
The L. Ron Hubbard era: Hubbard, a serial bigamist and lifelong philanderer, counsels his first wife that his journey is taking him onwards, and that a divorce would reflect poorly on him. Therefore, the best thing to do would be for her to commit suicide. (She didn't.)
The David Miscavige era: Miscavige keeps several ferocious dogs around the Sea Org compound. They routinely attack members of the Sea Org. Miscavige has custom military-style outfits made for the dogs, complete with epaulets bearing their rank: Captain. Most of the human Sea Org members are outranked by the dogs, so they have to salute the dogs anytime they wander past.
That book was packed with highlights. Miscavige didn't disappoint after we bid a sad farewell to LRH and his foibles.
Who are we?
I recently finished Going Clear, the Scientology exposé by Lawrence Wright. I highly recommend it.
A couple of highlights from the book:
The L. Ron Hubbard era: Hubbard, a serial bigamist and lifelong philanderer, counsels his first wife that his journey is taking him onwards, and that a divorce would reflect poorly on him. Therefore, the best thing to do would be for her to commit suicide. (She didn't.)
The David Miscavige era: Miscavige keeps several ferocious dogs around the Sea Org compound. They routinely attack members of the Sea Org. Miscavige has custom military-style outfits made for the dogs, complete with epaulets bearing their rank: Captain. Most of the human Sea Org members are outranked by the dogs, so they have to salute the dogs anytime they wander past.
That book was packed with highlights. Miscavige didn't disappoint after we bid a sad farewell to LRH and his foibles.
Who are we?
I recently finished Going Clear, the Scientology exposé by Lawrence Wright. I highly recommend it.
A couple of highlights from the book:
The L. Ron Hubbard era: Hubbard, a serial bigamist and lifelong philanderer, counsels his first wife that his journey is taking him onwards, and that a divorce would reflect poorly on him. Therefore, the best thing to do would be for her to commit suicide. (She didn't.)
The David Miscavige era: Miscavige keeps several ferocious dogs around the Sea Org compound. They routinely attack members of the Sea Org. Miscavige has custom military-style outfits made for the dogs, complete with epaulets bearing their rank: Captain. Most of the human Sea Org members are outranked by the dogs, so they have to salute the dogs anytime they wander past.
That book was packed with highlights. Miscavige didn't disappoint after we bid a sad farewell to LRH and his foibles.
Who are we?
Pete Townshend's 'Who I am' is kind of a slog. I need to be done with it and read 'Please Kill Me' next perhaps.
'Please Kill Me' next perhaps.Good choice.
Some time in the past year, I listened to an episode with a guest who had created a book full of fake essays that he had hired people at essay mills to write. I am having a really hard time figuring out who that was. Does anyone remember? Thanks.
Some time in the past year, I listened to an episode with a guest who had created a book full of fake essays that he had hired people at essay mills to write. I am having a really hard time figuring out who that was. Does anyone remember? Thanks.
That was Mindsploitation by Vernon Chatman. I'm reading it right now. Great read!
hello,Is there ever. http://www.friendsoftom.com/forum/index.php?topic=5419.0 (http://www.friendsoftom.com/forum/index.php?topic=5419.0)
I imagine there are more than a few KISS fans (or at least people who know a lot about KISS) on here.
I'm reading Dennis Perrin's Mr. Mike book. Has anyone else read it?
I'm reading Dennis Perrin's Mr. Mike book. Has anyone else read it?
OOh. Want to read that one. How is/was it? Dude had a unique vibe. Sinister undertones. Danger. Unusual in comedy, with the possible exception of the grim terrain worked by Gabriel Iglesias.
Started John Darnielle's new book Wolf in White Van this month. An interesting book essentially about RPGs. The timeline jumps around a lot, so it takes a while to connect the dots in the beginning story-wise, but it's really good.Rocket Propelled Grenades?
Kim Gordon's book Girl In A Band is pretty amazing.Agreed, I read a lot of rock books and (though you never know) it really sounds like her voice. I am midway thru Joey Ramone's biography written by his brother. It is a nice contrast to the Marky autobiography put out recently.
Plato at the Googleplex: Why Philosophy Won't Go Away
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/853930000 (http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/853930000)
Here's my review:Plato at the Googleplex: Why Philosophy Won't Go Away
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/853930000 (http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/853930000)
Is that your review?
You don't need to read them, Dave.
Just press them to your forehead for awhile.
Like a compress? Should they be cold?
Speaking of books, I finished rating the books I've read on Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5883186?shelf=read (https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/5883186?shelf=read)
Disappointed to see Mike gave low stars to that Wells Tower book. I liked it and just gave it out on a high recommendation.
I'm reading Chekhov's short stories lately. That's more my speed.
I'm reading Chekhov's short stories lately. That's more my speed.
I read Uncle Vanya recently. Did not induce belly laughs.
I'm reading Chekhov's short stories lately. That's more my speed.
I read Uncle Vanya recently. Did not induce belly laughs.
Did I say he was a laugh riot? I'm sorry you got the wrong impression.
I'm reading Chekhov's short stories lately. That's more my speed.
I read Uncle Vanya recently. Did not induce belly laughs.
Did I say he was a laugh riot? I'm sorry you got the wrong impression.
You did not. I was just being silly. I have "Fathers and Sons" by Turgenev on my nightstand. I have been holding off for a while. Recommend?
Just read the first two Jeeves and Wooster books, starting on the third.I loved "Uncle Fred in Springtime."
Finishing the last book in McCarthy's Border Trilogy - Cities of the Plain. I'm about half way through and I like it better than the 2nd book, but not as much as the first.
(http://i64.tinypic.com/2uqce54.jpg)
Untold story of the original Circle Jerks bass player. Author Hunter Bennett really did some detective work to put this together, and it pays off with one of the most interesting punk bios I've ever read. Rogerson was a real life Jon Wurster character from start to (sadly early) finish.
Sick On You
by Andrew Matheson
The Hollywood Brats story
(http://images.randomhouse.com/cover/9780399185335?alt=cover_coming_soon.jpg)
(http://i64.tinypic.com/2uqce54.jpg)
Untold story of the original Circle Jerks bass player. Author Hunter Bennett really did some detective work to put this together, and it pays off with one of the most interesting punk bios I've ever read. Rogerson was a real life Jon Wurster character from start to (sadly early) finish.
(http://i64.tinypic.com/2uqce54.jpg)
Untold story of the original Circle Jerks bass player. Author Hunter Bennett really did some detective work to put this together, and it pays off with one of the most interesting punk bios I've ever read. Rogerson was a real life Jon Wurster character from start to (sadly early) finish.
(http://i64.tinypic.com/2uqce54.jpg)
Untold story of the original Circle Jerks bass player. Author Hunter Bennett really did some detective work to put this together, and it pays off with one of the most interesting punk bios I've ever read. Rogerson was a real life Jon Wurster character from start to (sadly early) finish.
Was a fun read! I liked this tidbit:
(http://i68.tinypic.com/1rxkpd.jpg)
I've got a bee in my bonnet all of a sudden to have a squiz at Chabon and also Jonathan Lethem... this one's first cab off the rank purely because i couldn't find a copy of Motherless Brooklyn
interesting to know re: Lethem... I was thinking of maybe picking up Gun, With Occasional Music as it seems like praise for that one is almost universal (even from people who dont like his other stuff...), though i'm still intersted to check out some of his other stuff too. Interesting that you said that about Pynchon, because he's next on my list... i've read Crying of Lot 49 a few years ago and liked it, but not as much as i expected to. Then a friend of mine gave me his copy of Gravity's Rainbow and its been sitting on my bookshelf looking at me... maybe i should skip straight to that, if he's the master?