What book are you reading atm??

mikemac2

John Grisham has been mailing it in for years. I think he doesn't even try anymore

I finished The Rooster Bar

Load of ****e

His last good book was Sycamore Road which was amazing. Everything after it was middling to terrible

eviltwin

Mars Bar wrote: »

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Honestly, don't think I'll ever be much of a fan of Gaiman.

I found that book an absolute chore

WestWicklow1

Jupiter's Travels by Ted Simon for the third time!!

Four years around the world on a Triumph motorcycle.

If you read this and enjoy it, you'll read his other books.

gingernut79

Just finished Martina Fitzgerald's Madam Politician, and Invisible Women. Halfway through Shane O'Mara's in Praise of Walking. Re-read Goodnight mister Tom before Christmas - it was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster. I've a planned re-read of Chris Hadfield's An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth waiting for me aswell.

adox

About a third of the way through My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell.

Pretty dark stuff about a 45 year old teacher grooming and having a relationship with his 15 year old student but utterly riveting so far.

voldejoie

adox wrote: »

About a third of the way through My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell.

Pretty dark stuff about a 45 year old teacher grooming and having a relationship with his 15 year old student but utterly riveting so far.

Dying to read this, must get around to it soon. Glad you're enjoying it!

I'm currently reading Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino. It's a collection of essays and while some are stronger than others, it's an excellent read and she is clearly a gifted writer.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43126457-trick-mirror

Rasputin11

What's the definitive book on Malcolm X? Looking to learn a bit about him.

Foweva Awone

"The Nightshift Before Christmas", a follow-up to Adam Kay's "This Is Going To Hurt - Memoirs of a Junior Doctor." More of the same, a very enjoyable read, very very funny. However I'd advise anyone sensitive to pregnancy loss to give it a miss - there's a description of him carrying out a late-term abortion, very difficult to read. (In fairness he does warn you it's coming so you could just skip that part!)

I'm now on to Katy Brand's "I Carried A Watermelon", half memoir half homage to the Dirty Dancing movie. Something a bit different, I'm enjoying it so far.

Neames

Just finished The Thirst by Jo Nesbo.

Very good detective novel.

branie2

Blue Moon, the latest Jack Reacher novel

bladespin

branie2 wrote: »

Blue Moon, the latest Jack Reacher novel

Let us know what you think, bit of a Reacher fan here.

Currently on Bill Bryson 'At home', love Bryson, this is a quirky new slant on the everyday things at home.

GS11

Bought the 1st Witcher Book 6 months ago and read a few chapters, thought it was okay.

Watched the tv series over the xmas, so finished it, enjoyable enough and very close to the TV version Which is good I think.

DrumSteve

Currently reading Living With The Gods by Neil MacGregor...

gormdubhgorm

The bloodied field Croke Park. Sunday 21 November 1920 - by Michael Foley - (2015)

Well researched, well written managed to really capture the atmosphere. And covered it from the perspective of all sides, not just one which I found refreshing.

EmmetSpiceland

Finished ‘Nothing Human Left’ by Simon Ashe-Browne there earlier. My god, what a book! An absolute barnstormer.

Part ‘Catcher in the Rye’, part ‘Portrait of the Artist’ and part ‘Butcher Boy’...but a more D4, modern, and sophisticated, version with “nods” to ‘American Psycho’ throughout.

Haven’t read anything that good in ages. I guess anyone who’s read any of the author’s contributions to publications like ‘Guts Magazine’, and others, shouldn’t really be surprised by how good it is but I still was.

Be prepared for some fairly graphic depictions of the life of a teenage boy, especially one who’s a little “unhinged”, if you’ve read any of Leonard Cohen’s novels you’re probably already desensitised to descriptive masturbation sessions so wouldn’t have much to worry about.

It took me quite a long time to get my hands on this book and, I have to say, it’s incredibly refreshing to see that there are still precious gems hidden under the mountains of utter manure that is modern Irish fiction.

Haven’t laughed out loud reading a book in a very long time. Actually laughing, now, not just using a pretentious line as it is given to “clever” books like ‘Catch 22’ or when some nerd says it about Terry Pratchett ones.

I actually feel bad for the next book I’m going to read because there is no way it’ll be anywhere near as good. I’m not much of a “re-reader” but I reckon I’ll be going through this one again during the summer.

Incredible.

I've just started A Little Hatred by Joe Abercrombie. Only 30 pages in but I'm loving it so far. It's set a good bit later than the First Law trilogy with sons and daughters of older characters taking up the story. Hopefully nine fingers will appear at some point.

Nigzcurran

Daily sport

Thargor

EmmetSpiceland wrote: »

Finished ‘Nothing Human Left’ by Simon Ashe-Browne there earlier. My god, what a book! An absolute barnstormer.

Part ‘Catcher in the Rye’, part ‘Butcher Boy’...but a more D4, modern, and sophisticated, version with “nods” to ‘American Psycho’ throughout.

Haven’t read anything that good in ages. I guess anyone who’s read any of the author’s contributions to publications like ‘Guts Magazine’, and others, shouldn’t really be surprised by how good it is but I still was.

Be prepared for some fairly graphic depictions of the life of a teenage boy, especially one who’s a little “unhinged”, if you’ve read any of Leonard Cohen’s novels you’re probably already desensitised to descriptive masturbation sessions so wouldn’t have much to worry about.

It took me quite a long time to get my hands on this book and, I have to say, it’s incredibly refreshing to see that there are still precious gems hidden under the mountains of utter manure that is modern Irish fiction.

Haven’t laughed out loud reading a book in a very long time. Actually laughing, now, not just using a pretentious line as it is given to “clever” books like ‘Catch 22’ or when some nerd says it about Terry Pratchett ones.

I actually feel bad for the next book I’m going to read because there is no way it’ll be anywhere near as good. I’m not much of a “re-reader” but I reckon I’ll be going through this one again during the summer.

Incredible.

Wow how have I never heard of this? Sounds right up my alley thanks. Just got it for £2.50 on Amazon aswell.

barrier86

Thargor wrote: »

Wow how have I never heard of this? Sounds right up my alley thanks. Just got it for £2.50 on Amazon aswell.

Can you link it. Not coming up for me on amazon

eh i dunno

barrier86 wrote: »

Can you link it. Not coming up for me on amazon

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nothing-Human-Left-Simon-Ashe-Browne/dp/0956308368

The Princess Bride

The Princess Bride wrote: »

Started on Ulysses yesterday.

Ipso wrote: »

We'll either see you in a month when you're done or in a few days announcing your next book

2 weeks in, and the lack of quotation marks is doing my head in, but I shall persevere.

Arghus

The Princess Bride wrote: »

2 weeks in, and the lack of quotation marks is doing my head in, but I shall persevere.

It's a tough book to read without a bit of help.

I tried to read it myself as a young fella, but I couldn't get past the chapter that begins with:

"Ineluctable modality of the visible..."

I'd say that sentence is the point where a lot, if not most, of people say fck dat and the book goes onto the bookshelf and that is it.

There's no point saying Ulysses isn't a tough book, it is. I wouldn't have got through it myself eventually if I hadn't had to do it for college and there was lectures and other sources to lean on.

Very rewarding if you stick with though and some chapters aren't all that unapproachable. As a tour-de-force of pure literary genius it's untouchable: Joyce was absolutely the fcking man.

On another note:

Just Finished book five of The My Struggle series by Karl Ove Knausgaard. I've been banging on to anyone who will listen about these novels.

They are unlike anything I've ever read before. They are fictionalised or semi-factual or totally factual memoirs recounting the author's life - how much of it is actually 100% true is a subject of debate, but a lot of it certainly rings true - they really foreground the minutiae of living, there's so much given over in the novels to the basic and banal business of being alive. He doesn't just write about the dramatic and memorable, but about getting dressed in the morning, eating, drinking and all the thoughts that fill up the day - and his honesty about himself, his thoughts and his actions is bracing in its unguardedness and less than flattering nature.

The novels have a hypnotic and cumulative effect, when something dramatic does happen it feels truly momentous. I've never felt more like I was subjectively inside someone else's head than I have when reading these books. Someone else's equally as messy head. They are truly amazing. Required reading IMHO.

Just started Doctor Faustus by Thomas Mann.

GoneHome

Reading Pat Marry's autobiography at the moment, he's a former detective inspector in the Gardai, great read so far

Earthhorse

Arghus wrote: »

Just Finished book five of The My Struggle series by Karl Ove Knausgaard. I've been banging on to anyone who will listen about these novels.

They are unlike anything I've ever read before. They are fictionalised or semi-factual or totally factual memoirs recounting the author's life - how much of it is actually 100% true is a subject of debate, but a lot of it certainly rings true - they really foreground the minutiae of living, there's so much given over in the novels to the basic and banal business of being alive. He doesn't just write about the dramatic and memorable, but about getting dressed in the morning, eating, drinking and all the thoughts that fill up the day - and his honesty about himself, his thoughts and his actions is bracing in its unguardedness and less than flattering nature.

The novels have a hypnotic and cumulative effect, when something dramatic does happen it feels truly momentous. I've never felt more like I was subjectively inside someone else's head than I have when reading these books. Someone else's equally as messy head. They are truly amazing. Required reading IMHO.

I read the first one of these and though I think your description of the style is accurate I had the opposite reaction. Really boring and mundane. Felt like I was in the company of a completely solipsistic bore.

friendlyfun

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Half way through The Beekeeper of Aleppo, recommended in this thread and recommended here again. Its been brilliant so far.

Just downloaded Under the Hawthorn Tree;

This is the first book in the famine trilogy. "The Great Irish Famine" brilliantly recreated through the story of three young survivors. Ireland in the 1840s is devastated by famine. When tragedy strikes their family Eily, Michael and Peggy are left to fend for themselves. Starving and in danger of ending up in the dreaded workhouse, they escape. Their one hope is to find the great-aunts they have heard about in their mother's stories. With tremendous courage they set out on a journey that will test every reserve of strength, love and loyalty they possess.

Anyone read it?.

Foweva Awone

Noel Some Cornbread wrote: »

Half way through The Beekeeper of Aleppo, recommended in this thread and recommended here again. Its been brilliant so far.

Just downloaded Under the Hawthorn Tree;



Anyone read it?.

Ah that was my favourite childhood book, and I've reread it a few times as an adult too. I think you'll really enjoy it! The sequel Wildflower Girl is very good too, I think there are a couple of later sequels that weren't so good.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Foweva Awone wrote: »

Ah that was my favourite childhood book, and I've reread it a few times as an adult too. I think you'll really enjoy it! The sequel Wildflower Girl is very good too, I think there are a couple of later sequels that weren't so good.

Its great how childhood books can stay with us. My fav was Black Beauty and like you I've read Beauty a few times as an adult too.

Robbusquets

The Sound and the Fury - William Faulkner

voldejoie

Noel Some Cornbread wrote: »

Half way through The Beekeeper of Aleppo, recommended in this thread and recommended here again. Its been brilliant so far.

Just downloaded Under the Hawthorn Tree;



Anyone read it?.

Foweva Awone wrote: »

Ah that was my favourite childhood book, and I've reread it a few times as an adult too. I think you'll really enjoy it! The sequel Wildflower Girl is very good too, I think there are a couple of later sequels that weren't so good.

It's a childhood favourite of mine too, like Foweva Awone I also loved the first sequel but the last book in the trilogy (Fields of Home) not so much. They're great books though, hope you enjoy