What book are you reading atm??

baron von something

Went a bit mad on the Dresden Files this month. I read numbers 4-10 and I'm now on number 11 in the series. I think that's probably enough wizards for me for a while

Dog of Tears

'The Scar' by China Mieville

bnt

After arguments in AH about the validity of IQ tests, I decided to read The Bell Curve.

It generated controversy for its coverage of intelligence and race, but more worrisome (in my opinion) is how many factors that you would normally ascribe to "socioeconomic status" are more strongly correlated with intelligence. Unemployment? Check. Teenage pregnancy? Check. Workplace injuries? Check. Meanwhile, schools and colleges have become so good at spotting the smart kids and guiding them to "knowledge industries" (STEM, Law etc.) that the result is a self-reinforcing "cognitive elite" who live and work in a different world to the rest of the people.

The book is over 20 years old now, based on research older than that, but I don't think the authors would change their conclusions and recommendations, given what has happened in the world since then.

Collie D

"Dark Places" by Gillian Flynn.

Girl survives her family being slaughtered and 25 years later is encouraged to look into the truth, her testimony having convicted her brother. Written in two time periods ie one chapter in modern day and the next at time of murders.

Half way through and seems good.

Sunny Dayz

Just finished The Fault in our Stars by John Green. I thought I would have shed tears reading this but I didnt. IMO there is too much focus on the teenagers trying to sound intelligent and literary that I didn't really pick up on the love, passion and lust of being a teenager in love which I recall from all those years ago as being very powerful emotions.

Haven't seen the film of the book though.

scream

Have just added Blood Splatters Quickly:The Collected Stories by Edward Wood Jr. to the other couple of anthologies I'm reading. I saw it was available for kindle and couldn't resist.

LenaClaire

Just finished Still Alice. It is a first person account of early on-set Alzheimer's. It was really well written, and having lost 2 grandparents to Alzheimer's a little scary as well.

zyanya

The Outside World, by Jorge Franco - described by Laura Restrepo as something between the Grimm brothers and the Coen brothers. Quite good and exciting so far

Annihilation by Jeff VanDerMeer - an expedition to a place where everyone disappears - three pages so far, and I'm already excited

eviltwin

Collie D wrote: »

"Dark Places" by Gillian Flynn.

Girl survives her family being slaughtered and 25 years later is encouraged to look into the truth, her testimony having convicted her brother. Written in two time periods ie one chapter in modern day and the next at time of murders.

Half way through and seems good.

Loved this even more than Gone Girl

eviltwin

Let Me Take You Down by Jack Jones. The story of Mark Chapman and the murder of John Lennon.

GLaDOS

No. 1 One Direction Fan wrote: »

Finally gotten round to starting The Count of Monte Cristo after is was recommended repeatedly on here, better be good

Well it took me a month (that'll teach me to get the unabridged version) but I finally finished this the other night.

Really enjoyed it, though the pacing is quite slow at times, especially in the middle.

Might try out the Three Musketeers at some point.

Birneybau

Just finished 'The Girl On The Train' today, fantastic though I figured out the end about halfway through.

Might start 'The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet' by David Mitchell tonight.

kylith

Almost finished From Hell.

Reading Stephen King's Under The Dome in the background. Not a big King fan, but I got it for Christmas and thought 'what the hell'.

LenaClaire

Aongus Von Bismarck wrote: »

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro.

I'm really enjoying this so far. He writes in a lovely terse style. The main character is growing up in an environment that she knows isn't as it should be. You know it isn't. The true horror of what is happening is revealed to the protagonist and the reader in subtle reveals. The innocence of childhood moving through the sudden realisation that her adult life has been predestined.

It's a short read, but utterly compelling.

I read this last night based on a couple of recommendations and I really enjoyed it!

KH25

Finished the uncut version of the stand the other night. Took forever to read because of just not having time to read but I really enjoyed it.

Started 'the long walk' by king (as Richard Bachmann). About halfway through already. Really enjoying it.

Barna77

No. 1 One Direction Fan wrote: »

Might try out the Three Musketeers at some point.

I read the Musketeers trilogy when I was a teenager. I couldn't put them down, they are so good.

figges

Disappointed by this. Maybe expectations were too high. Just didn't really find it all believably coherent. However well drawn the characters were I didn't really believe in any of them.

figges

First Kindle offering. John Richardson (of 8/10 cats) stream of consciousness in search of perfection. Funny and rings true in a gentle kind of way. Reads a bit like Seinfelds English cousin doing a similar kind of soul searching. Enjoying it.

Love the kindle btw.

Birneybau

figges wrote: »

Disappointed by this. Maybe expectations were too high. Just didn't really find it all believably coherent. However well drawn the characters were I didn't really believe in any of them.

?

wallywhittle

The spy who came in from the cold by John le carre. Absolutely brilliant read.

Jijsaw

The Professor + The Housekeeper by Yoko Ogawa.
Focuses on the housekeeper's relationship with an old mathematician who loses his memory every 80 minutes and can only recall back to 1975.
I'm 40 pages in and enjoying it so far, a good transitional book for anyone who wants a light read or who is in a reading slump.

figges

Birneybau wrote: »

?

You thought differently I guess.

DubiousV

In the middle of the Emperor series by Conn Iggulden. Really enjoying it, would recommend!

Gandalph

Moonwalking with Einstein.

Very enjoyable.

KH25

figges wrote: »

You thought differently I guess.

I think if you're on the mobile site the titles of posts don't come up. At least it didn't for me so I think thats what the poster was on about.

Birneybau

figges wrote: »

You thought differently I guess.

Nah, don't know what book you're talking about : )

clk1990

Just finished Choke (Chuck Palahniuk) ..... Really liked it.

On to Child of God (Cormac McCarthy). Seems promising.

figges

KH25 wrote: »

I think if you're on the mobile site the titles of posts don't come up. At least it didn't for me so I think thats what the poster was on about.

ah ok - did put the book name in the post title - wasn't aware of it not showing on some devices - ta.
The comments were about The Goldfinch.

GLaDOS

Have the Goldfinch on my "to-read" pile, got it for Christmas, have heard pretty mixed things about it though.

Birneybau

figges wrote: »

ah ok - did put the book name in the post title - wasn't aware of it not showing on some devices - ta.
The comments were about The Goldfinch.

Cool, I liked it (mostly).