429 replies to this topic

[Sabres Fan In NS]

Eleven, on 02 September 2012 - 12:08 PM, said:

I have finished Larson's In the Garden of Beasts.  Nowhere near as good as his other two books.

On to some fiction:  Smilla's Sense of Snow, by Peter Hoeg.  Mostly because I've never read anything that takes place in Greenland before.

Good choice.

[Eleven]

Sabres Fan In NS, on 03 September 2012 - 09:21 AM, said:

Good choice.

It's sad (or at least, the first section is), but suspenseful.  I'm really enjoying it.  And the translation is exceedingly well-written, which is good, because I myself have a lot of writing to do today, and I always feel like I write better after reading something that is written well.

[nfreeman]

Couple of items for this thread:

1. Has anyone read any David Eggers?  He was recommended to me recently. Among other points, he was described as being similar to Jonathan Franzen, who I think is terrific.

2. Just switched to reading the paper every day on the kindle fire. Highly recommended.

[d4rksabre]

Finished the newest edition of Beowulf yesterday and finally went back to reading Theodore Rex.

My girlfriend's parents always bring me books from their basement, of which they have an extensive collection. I make requests on topics and then when they come up from Ohio they bring me a bunch. They always have something. Her dad is a genius.

So yesterday they delivered the following to me:

I had requested anything on "old engines" and was given the best possible resources, including:

Audels Engineers and Mechanics Guide 4, © 1921.

Horseless Carriage Days by Hiram Percy Maxim, a 1962 reprint of a 1937 edition.

Excuse My Dust by Bellamy Partridge © 1943.

On top of that, I'd requested anything on Herbert Hoover, and was given:

The Shattered Dream by Gene Smith © 1970

The Crisis of the Old Order by Arthur Schlesinger © 1957

They had also just returned from Australia, so for something completely different they had bought me a book on Jackaroos.

Jackaroo, A Memoir by Michael Thornton © 2011

[weave]

Nearly all of my reading is fluff.  Fiction.  Tending towards science fiction and action/adventure.  I read almost exclusively for entertainment.

Just finished a book by Robert Ruark.  His greatest claim to fame was a book detailing an African adventure.  It led to a long running series of articles over many years for Field and Stream magazine and more African adventure stories. I love African adventure stories and found a hardcover written by him in a used book store called The Honey Badger.   Sounds like an African story, right?  It's not.  It is the tale of an author who goes through a mid-life crisis.  The lead character is not terribly likeable, he's a womanizer and a bigot.  But I found the book very well written and engaging.  It wasn't what I was hoping for but I enjoyed it nonetheless.  It's a good story, and Ruark's literary style provides plenty of character development and interesting, believable dialog.  And he manages to weave a little African adventure story into this tale.  And he uses the animals and people that the lead character comes in contact with to draw parallels to the lead characters life.  

If you like Hemmingway or Steinbeck I think Ruark will work for you as well.

[Eleven]

nfreeman, on 22 September 2012 - 10:03 AM, said:

Couple of items for this thread:

1. Has anyone read any David Eggers?  He was recommended to me recently. Among other points, he was described as being similar to Jonathan Franzen, who I think is terrific.

2. Just switched to reading the paper every day on the kindle fire. Highly recommended.

Eggers has a MASSIVE ego that comes out in his work.  Be prepared for that.

weave, on 22 September 2012 - 10:51 AM, said:

Nearly all of my reading is fluff.  Fiction.  Tending towards science fiction and action/adventure.  I read almost exclusively for entertainment.

Just finished a book by Robert Ruark.  His greatest claim to fame was a book detailing an African adventure.  It led to a long running series of articles over many years for Field and Stream magazine and more African adventure stories. I love African adventure stories and found a hardcover written by him in a used book store called The Honey Badger.   Sounds like an African story, right?  It's not.  It is the tale of an author who goes through a mid-life crisis.  The lead character is not terribly likeable, he's a womanizer and a bigot.  But I found the book very well written and engaging.  It wasn't what I was hoping for but I enjoyed it nonetheless.  It's a good story, and Ruark's literary style provides plenty of character development and interesting, believable dialog.  And he manages to weave a little African adventure story into this tale.  And he uses the animals and people that the lead character comes in contact with to draw parallels to the lead characters life.  

If you like Hemmingway or Steinbeck I think Ruark will work for you as well.

I like Hemingway and Steinbeck, so I'll give that a shot sometime.  Sounds like a Richard Russo or Jane Smiley novel.

[bunomatic]

Reading The Philosophy Gym by Stephen Law.

[TrueBluePhD]

The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver.  You know you're a geek when you pick this up for leisure reading, but whatever, it's awesome.

[gohansrage]

Yesterday I started and finished The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.  It's a children's adventure novel and I adored it. Filled with wonderful puns and considerable admiration of plays on words and thoughts.  If you enjoyed Alice In Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass I highlt recommend Tollbooth.  

After Tollbooth, I started Children and Fire by Ursula Heigi.  Too early to make a determination on quality, I will be sure to let you know if it's worth reading.

In my queue after that:

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlin
Watchmen by Alan Moore
A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin (A Song of Ice and Fire Part 3)

[Eleven]

gohansrage, on 01 October 2012 - 03:44 PM, said:

Yesterday I started and finished The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.  It's a children's adventure novel and I adored it. Filled with wonderful puns and considerable admiration of plays on words and thoughts.  If you enjoyed Alice In Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass I highlt recommend Tollbooth.  

After Tollbooth, I started Children and Fire by Ursula Heigi.  Too early to make a determination on quality, I will be sure to let you know if it's worth reading.

In my queue after that:

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlin
Watchmen by Alan Moore
A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin (A Song of Ice and Fire Part 3)

Gotta read Phantom Tollbooth every decade or so.

[weave]

Started Steven Hunters' 47th Samurai.  I mentioned Hunter much earlier in this thread.  He's the writer behind the book that became the movie Shooter (Mark Wahlberg).  That book was the first of what became a franchise involving a character named Bob Lee Swagger.  I enjoyed all of them.  I'm not enjoying this one.  It has Hunters' typical style, which I enjoy alot, but the premise is a bit of a laugher.  It is like watching a late 80's - early 90's Schwarzenegger movie.

[Spun]

Great thread everybody!

Most recent: Illicit: how smugglers, traffickers, and copycats are hijacking the global economy by Moises Naim

Current: Life of Pi:  a novel by Yann Martel

Next: Live From New York an Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live by Tom Shales & James Andrew Miller

Edited by Spun, 01 October 2012 - 05:19 PM.

[Potato]

gohansrage, on 01 October 2012 - 03:44 PM, said:

Yesterday I started and finished The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.  It's a children's adventure novel and I adored it. Filled with wonderful puns and considerable admiration of plays on words and thoughts.  If you enjoyed Alice In Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass I highlt recommend Tollbooth.  

Phantom Tollbooth was my favorite book as a kid!


...I recently read Generation Me by Jean Twenge.  Highly entertaining.

[MattPie]

Spun, on 01 October 2012 - 05:17 PM, said:

Current: Life of Pi:  a novel by Yann Martel

I haven't done enough to warrant a biography yet, WTF?

[Spun]

Until you get there, embellish!  Or fill the pages with anecdotes of others (fluff)!

A lot of people don't know that the pronunciation of Pi is like pea not pie.  The character's name is Piscine (the French word for pool!).

[PASabreFan]

Game Change, the back story of the 2008 presidential campaign. HBO turned it into a miniseries.

Very tightly written and fascinating so far. The most interesting revelation to me was that it was Chelsea Clinton who was the lone holdout advising her mother not to run in 2004 because she had promised the voters of New York she would complete her first term. Mom listened, Kerry got the nomination and asked some kid named Barack Obama to give the keynote address at the convention.

The rest was history, including, apparently, Hillary's hopes of winning the White House.

Oh yeah, there's also the gossip that party leaders feared Bill's continuing infidelity would blow up in Hillary's face (sorry) in 2008 if she ran then. The biggest wigs secretly encouraged Obama to run, while showing public support for Hil.

Edited by PASabreFan, 02 October 2012 - 02:38 PM.

[gohansrage]

Bumping because I like this thread and I don't want it to be buried:

1. Children and Fire was OK.  I won't complain but I'd pass.

2. I enjoyed The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Heinlien much more than I expected.  I usually find his work too militaristic but this was very fleshed out.   It's strengthe was sentient computer Mike's desire for human interaction.  Mike really paved the way for my all time favorite sci-fi character, Lt Commander Data.

3. Watchmen by Alan Moore is so much more than a comic.  It was the fourth time I read and I really took the time to admire the use of paneling and what can really be described as shot structure.  It's a brilliant novel that happens to be graphic.

4.  On the note of graphic novels, I read Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi.  A story of a girl before, during, and after the Islamic revolution.  It's split into two parts, and I found the first considerably more enjoyable than the second.

5.  I read Martin Dressler by Steven Millhauser.  A close observation about the American Dream at the start of the 20th century, I enjoyed it immensely.  I would like to warn here that the majority of people in our book club did not like it, but those who did liked it a lot.

Next on my reading list:

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin (I finished Book 2 in July and still haven't started 3.  I have to get on it.)

[Eleven]

Persepolis is excellent.

[MattPie]

I'm going to plug a friend's book, "Conversations with a Motorcycle", by Jack Riepe. Great, funny book about riding and places where I bike can take you. I haven't finished it, but I'm loving it. It's self-published and selling very well, it's being kept in-stock at some book stores in NYC. But you can't buy it on Amazon or other big places.

http://jackriepe.blogspot.com/

[gohansrage]

MattPie, on 21 December 2012 - 02:22 PM, said:

I'm going to plug a friend's book, "Conversations with a Motorcycle", by Jack Riepe. Great, funny book about riding and places where I bike can take you. I haven't finished it, but I'm loving it. It's self-published and selling very well, it's being kept in-stock at some book stores in NYC. But you can't buy it on Amazon or other big places.

http://jackriepe.blogspot.com/

Is it a memoir or fiction?

[MattPie]

gohansrage, on 21 December 2012 - 02:35 PM, said:

Is it a memoir or fiction?

That's an ongoing discussion. It's a memoir but there's stretching of the truth.

[Hank]

Looking for a recommendation-

I enjoy series based off a character, my favorites are:

Any series from Robert B Parker (Spenser, Stone, Randell)

The jack reacher series by lee child

The Prey series by John Sandford

And to a lesser extent the women's murder club by Patterson

Based on my preferences can anyone make a recommendation on a new series for me?  Thanks in advance...

Edited by Hank, 21 December 2012 - 08:04 PM.

[gohansrage]

I know what you mean Hank.  That's not really my style but I'll give it a shot...

- Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan (Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger).

-  Song of Ice and Fire books (Give it a chance even if you don't like fantasy).

- Stephen King's Dark Tower series

That's all I can think of now sorry.  Like I said they are not my cup of tea.

[Eleven]

Maybe the Derek Strange and/or Nick Stefanos detective novels by George Pelecanos?

[weave]

Currently reading With The Old Breed, an autobiography about a Marine infantryman who served in the Pacific theater in WWII.

[d4rksabre]

weave, on 22 December 2012 - 08:55 AM, said:

Currently reading With The Old Breed, an autobiography about a Marine infantryman who served in the Pacific theater in WWII.

What do you think of it? My girlfriend loves stuff like this.

[weave]

d4rksabre, on 22 December 2012 - 11:08 AM, said:

What do you think of it? My girlfriend loves stuff like this.

I am enjoying it.  It isn't a blow by blow account.  There is little detail of actual fighting.   It is more of a chronolgy of events and occurrances and his thoughts and impressions as the battle dragged on.  I like the perspective he is sharing.

[Claude_Verret]

weave, on 22 December 2012 - 02:18 PM, said:

I am enjoying it.  It isn't a blow by blow account.  There is little detail of actual fighting.   It is more of a chronolgy of events and occurrances and his thoughts and impressions as the battle dragged on.  I like the perspective he is sharing.

If you enjoy this book you may also enjoy Helmet For My Pillow by Robert Leckie.  The excellent HBO miniseries The Pacific was largely based upon the first hand accounts detailed in these books.

[Sabres Fan In NS]

If anyone is interested in biographies I'm about half way through a good one.

"Muhammad:  A Biography of the Prophet".

It's well written by a non-Muslim (actually a former Nun) ... Karen Armstrong.  It is not religious at all.  An excellent account of the life of Muhammad (PBUH) and the times in and around Arabia during his lifetime.

Like most famous people no one really paid much, or any attention, to Muhammad early in his life, before he became famous.  So there is not too much specific until he was about twenty, when he became somewhat known in the Meccan merchant community.  All we know about his early life is that his father died before he was born and his mother died when he was 6.  After that he was raised by his uncle.  He began his ministry at about age 40 ... I say about because no one knows for sure when he was born, as no real records were kept in those days.

As I said, it is an excellent historical account of the times and his life.  The first biographers of Muhammad actually started their work during his lifetime, so there are accounts that are believed to be generally accurate.

This book came out right around 9/11.  There is a follow-up to it that I am planning to read after I finish this one.

[d4rksabre]

Sabres Fan In NS, on 23 December 2012 - 10:39 AM, said:

If anyone is interested in biographies I'm about half way through a good one.

"Muhammad:  A Biography of the Prophet".

It's well written by a non-Muslim (actually a former Nun) ... Karen Armstrong.  It is not religious at all.  An excellent account of the life of Muhammad (PBUH) and the times in and around Arabia during his lifetime.

Like most famous people no one really paid much, or any attention, to Muhammad early in his life, before he became famous.  So there is not too much specific until he was about twenty, when he became somewhat known in the Meccan merchant community.  All we know about his early life is that his father died before he was born and his mother died when he was 6.  After that he was raised by his uncle.  He began his ministry at about age 40 ... I say about because no one knows for sure when he was born, as no real records were kept in those days.

As I said, it is an excellent historical account of the times and his life.  The first biographers of Muhammad actually started their work during his lifetime, so there are accounts that are believed to be generally accurate.

This book came out right around 9/11.  There is a follow-up to it that I am planning to read after I finish this one.

I'll have to check this out. I've been building a collection of books about the Middle East that I hope to get to this summer. The people, culture, religion. This would make a good addition.

[d4rksabre]

Just finished the first half of Tom Brokaw's "The Time of Our Lives". It's a quick but smart read, which you would expect from one of the last great journalists. He's spent a great deal of time so far on the housing market and the future of our spending habits. All I can say is I'm thankful I'm young enough to have avoided the housing bubble bursting. As long as I can find a job that pays okay, it should cost me a lot less to buy a home in the next 10 years that will likely see small appreciation rather than much more depreciation.

[Eleven]

Sabres Fan In NS, on 23 December 2012 - 10:39 AM, said:

If anyone is interested in biographies I'm about half way through a good one.

"Muhammad:  A Biography of the Prophet".

It's well written by a non-Muslim (actually a former Nun) ... Karen Armstrong.  It is not religious at all.  An excellent account of the life of Muhammad (PBUH) and the times in and around Arabia during his lifetime.

Like most famous people no one really paid much, or any attention, to Muhammad early in his life, before he became famous.  So there is not too much specific until he was about twenty, when he became somewhat known in the Meccan merchant community.  All we know about his early life is that his father died before he was born and his mother died when he was 6.  After that he was raised by his uncle.  He began his ministry at about age 40 ... I say about because no one knows for sure when he was born, as no real records were kept in those days.

As I said, it is an excellent historical account of the times and his life.  The first biographers of Muhammad actually started their work during his lifetime, so there are accounts that are believed to be generally accurate.

This book came out right around 9/11.  There is a follow-up to it that I am planning to read after I finish this one.

Armstrong's books on religion are terrific.   A History of God is amazing.

Now, if we can get her stuff not only translated into Arabic (I'm sure that's happened), but also distributed in certain countries (I'm sure that hasn't), we'll go a long, long way.

Edited by Santa Claus, 23 December 2012 - 10:22 PM.

[Claude_Verret]

d4rksabre, on 23 December 2012 - 08:49 PM, said:

Just finished the first half of Tom Brokaw's "The Time of Our Lives". It's a quick but smart read, which you would expect from one of the last great journalists. He's spent a great deal of time so far on the housing market and the future of our spending habits. All I can say is I'm thankful I'm young enough to have avoided the housing bubble bursting. As long as I can find a job that pays okay, it should cost me a lot less to buy a home in the next 10 years that will likely see small appreciation rather than much more depreciation.

An investment guru, William Bernstein, has a famous quote that is very true..


"A young person saving for retirement should get down on his(or her)  knees and pray for a market crash."

Although I probably don't quite qualify as a "young person" by his standard, I've used the events of the past few years to not only catch up on my retirement savings, but get way ahead.

Edited by Claude_Verret, 24 December 2012 - 09:00 AM.

[Sabres Fan In NS]

Santa Claus, on 23 December 2012 - 10:22 PM, said:

Armstrong's books on religion are terrific.   A History of God is amazing.

Now, if we can get her stuff not only translated into Arabic (I'm sure that's happened), but also distributed in certain countries (I'm sure that hasn't), we'll go a long, long way.

"A History of God" is high on my *to be read soon* pile.  My wife has read it and agrees with your assessment.

We picked up these books on Muhammad (PBUH) at a small book shop / cafe that we frequent in Sarajevo.  We buy the books in English for home, but read the Bosnian language versions while at the shop.  It's a great way to practice the *real* language.  We speak and understand pretty well, but we learn a lot of slang ...  I could tell you a number of funny stories about slight mispronunciations, but I digress ... This shop caters to locals, tourists and foreign university students.  So, the books are in many languages.  I'm pretty sure I remember seeing them in Arabic.

I'm certain that any Armstrong book would not go over well with any of the *hot heads* out there.  Heavy sigh!

[d4rksabre]

The second half of Brokaw's The Time of Our Lives is an absolute powerhouse. It's been some time since an author has touched me like this. I want to carry it with me everywhere I go in life.

[Vanek-Man]

Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski.

Really thick but very in detail book. Recommend it for any sports fan, but essp the soccer fanatics and i know there is a few on here.

[Sabres Fan In NS]

Vanek-Man, on 27 December 2012 - 01:25 AM, said:

Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski.

Really thick but very in detail book. Recommend it for any sports fan, but essp the soccer fanatics and i know there is a few on here.

Thanks for the heads up.  I'll have to check that out.

[DR HOLLIDAY]

Vanek-Man, on 27 December 2012 - 01:25 AM, said:

Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski.

Really thick but very in detail book. Recommend it for any sports fan, but essp the soccer fanatics and i know there is a few on here.

Read it great book..........I am half way through Neil Youngs "Waging Heavy Peace", if you like Neil at all I recommend reading it.

[d4rksabre]

"Early Motorcycles: Construction, Operation and Repair" by Victor W. Pagé. First written in 1920, this thing is a monster of knowledge. I might learn more from this single book than I ever would have in Engineering school.

[Eleven]

qwksndmonster, on 26 December 2012 - 09:31 AM, said:

My gf got me Ballad of The Whiskey Robber which is "A true story of bank heists, ice hockey, transylvanian pelt smuggling, moonlighting detectives, and broken hearts."  This book seems a little too up my alley

Well, based upon your description, I bought this book.  It was excellent.  Read it cover-to-cover on Saturday.  Thanks for turning me on to it.