This Week I are mostly reading (contd)

WesternNight

Currently reading No Country For Old Men by Cormac McCarthy. Interesting style.

Honey-ec

WesternNight wrote: »

Currently reading No Country For Old Men by Cormac McCarthy. Interesting style.

His writing style actually reminds me of Roddy Doyle's, only without the humour, obviously.

Finally finished "Mrs. Dalloway" last week. Now let us never speak of it again...

"Grapes of Wrath", here I come.

Censorsh!t

Reading Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut. Like it a lot so far.

miamee

I'll be starting Terry Pratchett's 'Dodger' shortly.

Merkin

Just finished Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay which was alright, if a little disappointing. Started on Secrets of the Tides by Hannah Richell last night and have finished half of it, really engaging!

SarahBM

Just finished reading Tess of the D'Urbervilles. Very disappointed with the ending. Totally enjoyed it up until the last 2 chapters.


Going to start Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell. Havent read one of her books in a while.

eire4

Finshed a re read of John Connolly's second novel Dark Hollow. What a great follow up to his great debut novel.

Callan57

Starting ..... This Blinding Absence of Light by Tahar Ben Jelloun

marozz

Just starting .... The Wrong Kind of Blood by Declan Hughes

Callan57

The Nightmare by Lars Kepler

coolhull

Hitler: A Study in Tyranny, by Alan Bulloch....... Old, but brilliant

Censorsh!t

Finished The Awakening by Kate Chopin the other day.

And I am now half way through Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, which I'm really enjoying.

Going through books at the speed of light these days.

eire4

Finished a re read of John Connolly's The Killing Kind last night. Another action packed and enjoyable read from the Dubliner.

miamee

Reading 'Dark Lies the Island' by Kevin Barry as well as 'Dodger' by Terry Pratchett.

Reading two as Dodger is hardback and too heavy to carry on the bus to work!

Callan57

Finished Lars Kepler's The Nightmare and now I'm moving on to The Misunderstanding by Iréne Némirovsky

Daisy78

Wuthering heights, its been on my bookshelf for ages. After that its the master and the margherita.

Censorsh!t

Daisy78 wrote: »

Wuthering heights, its been on my bookshelf for ages. After that its the master and the margherita.

The Master and Margarita is a brilliant book.

I'm currently reading We by Yevgeny Zamyatin, often described as the first dystopian novel.

Minderbinder

I'm getting through some real classics lately. Nineteen Eighty Four and now I'm reading Crime and Punishment. The former was much easier to get through but both very enjoyable.

Callan57

Starting The Testament of Mary by Colm Tóibín

johnny_ultimate

Finished 2666 yesterday. Wonderful, exhausting, terrifying, beautiful, funny and upsetting - is this five part epic a genuine masterwork? From its witty, almost lighthearted opening segment about the complex relationship that forms between four literature academics, to the fourth which features almost three hundred pages of unrelenting murder, despair and violence, we're led through a huge spectrum of emotion. Although Bolano's outlook on the contemporary word - personified through his vivid realisation of the the Mexican city of Santa Teresa (a fictionalised version of Ciudad Juárez) - is inherently bleak and pessimistic, there is a deep and frequently moving sense of humanity at the core of the novel that keeps you hooked. It's a self-reflective work at times, occasionally referencing the sheer bulk and ambition of the great novelists, but hardly arrogant. Section two, perhaps, feels a little thin compared to others - possibly explained by the fact Bolano rushed its completion as his health declined - but mostly the book feels fully formed. As you finish the last pages - semi-demystifying the cult author Benno von Archimboldi after the academics of section one were almost consumed by their search for him - you'll feel thoroughly satisfied even if it ends on a cheeky open-note rather than a definitive punctuation mark. Not anywhere near as challenging or obtuse as the sheer bulk of the tome might suggest, this is engrossing literature, and recommended to anyone.

Callan57

Finished Neil Gaiman's Fragile Things & now it's on to Daughters of Rome by Kate Quinn

emeraldstar

The Other Countess by Eva Ibbotson. It's alright; it's aimed at older kids/teenagers and not the most enthralling read ever.

IvyTheTerrible

The Tree of Seasons by Stephen Gately.

I really like the style of writing.

Censorsh!t

Finished Laughable Loves by Milan Kundera. I absolutely loved The Hitchhiking Game. The other stories were good, but didn't really love them.

Now starting Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale

highlydebased

"The Rules of Attraction"- Bret Easton Ellis. Couldn't get into American Psycho so this might be a good appetiser!

Callan57

Finished Daughters of Rome & tonight I'm starting Ghostwritten by David Mitchell

eire4

Finished a re reading of The White Road by John Connolly. Very enjoyable read.

Monkeybonkers

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

Belle E. Flops

Have finally got around to starting The Hobbit.
I've been meaning to read it for years. I have read the LOTR trilogy (and loved them) but never got around to the Hobbit and I decided that I had to read it before I saw the film!

emeraldstar

Belle E. Flops wrote: »

Have finally got around to starting The Hobbit.
I've been meaning to read it for years. I have read the LOTR trilogy (and loved them) but never got around to the Hobbit and I decided that I had to read it before I saw the film!

A far easier read than LOTR, I think - not so drawn out and more light-hearted.

SarahBM

emeraldstar wrote: »

A far easier read than LOTR, I think - not so drawn out and more light-hearted.

I agree, the Hobbit is more fun, but I read the LOTR before I read the Hobbit which was silly.

I was hoping to get it read again before the film came out, but I wont get the chance.

Paddy Samurai

emeraldstar wrote: »

A far easier read than LOTR, I think - not so drawn out and more light-hearted.

+1

I agree on the Hobbit ,I was unable to get into LOTR ,despite 3 failed attempts.

SarahBM

started the Life of Pi today. been wanting to read it for a long time, so doing it for our 2 person book club

MagicMarker

SarahBM wrote: »

started the Life of Pi today. been wanting to read it for a long time, so doing it for our 2 person book club

Snap! Just started it a couple of hours ago.

Callan57

All That I Am by Anna Funder

Say it Aint So

How to win friends and influence people by Dale Carnegie

IvyTheTerrible

A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute.

adrian522

Just finished News of a Kidknapping by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

Excellent account of the political kidnappings that took place in Colombia during the early 1990s and the events of the time. focuses on 9 particular victims.

Currently reading Far to Go by Alison Pick. Seems good. It's a novel based aroud the time just before and just after the Nazi occupation of Czechzlovakia. Made the 2011 Booker long list (I'm planning to read all of those books, this is the 4th one I've tried and they've all been pretty good).

Tom Joad

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute.

Am two thirds of the way through this at the minute and while it is a good read I am really underwhelmed by it, would be interested to hear your views on it.

Monkeybonkers

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute.

Think this was the first book I read this year. Had heard of Nevil Shute but didn't know anything about his style. Enjoyed the book. Hope you like it

IvyTheTerrible

Tom Joad wrote: »

Am two thirds of the way through this at the minute and while it is a good read I am really underwhelmed by it, would be interested to hear your views on it.

Monkeybonkers wrote: »

Think this was the first book I read this year. Had heard of Nevil Shute but didn't know anything about his style. Enjoyed the book. Hope you like it

I'm half-way through and I really like it. I had read Shute before so I liked his understated style of writing.

Seifer

Just finished The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.
You often see it on many peoples' must read lists and it is now firmly on mine. An epic story told during a time period that I really didn't know much about previously.
The ending is inspired.

Sunshineboo

Just finished Afterwards by Rosamund Lupton. One of the best books I have read from start to finish. It really grips you and there are a lot of twists during the way.

Tom Joad

Seifer wrote: »

Just finished The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.
You often see it on many peoples' must read lists and it is now firmly on mine. An epic story told during a time period that I really didn't know much about previously.
The ending is inspired.

An amazing book and is fairly high on my all time favourite books - have you tried of Mice and Men?

Tom Joad

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

I'm half-way through and I really like it. I had read Shute before so I liked his understated style of writing.

Just finished it last night and have changed my mind on it - its nice after some of the heavier books I have read lately to read something simple but well written and actually feel good - think I will read the Beach next..

Seifer

Tom Joad wrote: »

An amazing book and is fairly high on my all time favourite books - have you tried of Mice and Men?

No, I haven't but I have it marked for the future now. Saw the film years ago.

Tom Joad wrote: »

Just finished it last night and have changed my mind on it - its nice after some of the heavier books I have read lately to read something simple but well written and actually feel good - think I will read the Beach next..

Read the The Beach recently. I had seen bits of the film but the book seems to go a completely different way. A good read.

I will be reading Seven Years in Tibet next (No, I haven't seen the film and yes I'm going travelling in the new year :P)

Reekwind

Finished Bulgakov's Heart of a Dog earlier this week. It's a really special little read that

Jumped straight into Colin Imber's The Ottoman Empire. It's pretty dense in places but push past the dreadful opening chronology and there's some interesting insight into the workings of the Empire and its institutions

Call Me Jimmy

Tom Joad wrote: »

Just finished it last night and have changed my mind on it - its nice after some of the heavier books I have read lately to read something simple but well written and actually feel good - think I will read the Beach next..

You won't be disappointed with the beach!

IvyTheTerrible

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

You won't be disappointed with the beach!

On the Beach or The Beach? Two very different books!

Call Me Jimmy

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

On the Beach or The Beach? Two very different books!

I meant The Beach, real good read although I was quite a bit younger when I read it. Must read it again now actually see how it stands up.