What book did you last read?

[mug]

I just read Looking for Alaska by John Green. It was awesome, it had a nice balance of teenage angst and actual deep emotional writing. I got choked up at some parts.

And there was a blowjob scene. 9/10

[Juggers]

Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King. 7/10

Really great read, but talk about dragging ass. I know that battles in real life are weeks and weeks of planning for only five minutes of action, but it doesn't make for such a great book.

[Bourdain]

I liked the concept of Calla, the slow place and change in setting made for great tension before those sporadic battles. But yeah, towards the end and leading to 6 & 7 I thought was really contrived. Actually, I didn't enjoy how the story pans out at all beyond that but hey.

Wizard & Glass was great, the Mexican Western take and horseback shoot-outs made for fun moments, I especially remember Cuthbert and Roland getting the drop on the baddies, then having a gun pulled on them, ending with Alain. The Susan Delgado angle sucked, the worst character by far, and even Rhea who should have been a master antagonist was terribly written.

[Juggers]

I can see what you mean. I'm a few chapters into Song of Susannah, and I get the feeling King's just clutching his head throughout all of this going "Wtf should I do with these guys now?" Also it doesn't feature Jake nearly as much as it should. He's the real hero of this story.

Wizard and Glass was pretty awesome, and Cuthbert is my favorite character. I hope they get back to him and how it all ended with Gilead further than just Roland trying not to remember any of it. I agree with you about Delgado too, really nothing more than a ball of depression and sappiness. I dreaded the story going back to her during that book. All the other characters were better.

I don't know why Stephen King thinks NYC is such a great setting, especially considering he can put these characters in any place from any of his books ever. I never thought I'd be wanting for more creativity in one of his books.

[Bourdain]

Well, you probably know you're nearing the end of the series, and, especially after the end of pt 5, it's all about the Dark Tower. Don't expect anything more from the past, ka is a wheel, and it's rolled long past Roland's old ka-tet.

I agree King seemed to me to be at a complete loss trying to cram in as many references from his previous works, stuff that, in all honesty didn't need to be there, didn't add anything and detracted from the focus of the main quest. About NYC, I would have much preferred a location that held a lot of significance in some of his previous works, like Derry or Jerusalem's Lot, but I didn't mind it. Overall it seems jarring and stark contrast to the main locale and he could have worked it better, but I don't really mind it.

The rest of the story doesn't suck, but man oh man it's a massive let down after pts 1 to 3.

I loved Jake, Roland's betrayal was spectacular, letting him drop into the pit. I thought the moment was handled beautifully and his comeback later was agonising, in the good way lol. Really felt for the little one. But as Roland's apprentice, again I'm disappointed, and that's all I'll say as I don't want to spoiler you.

[Juggers]

Aw damn. I was hoping Cuthbert and Alain would come back in some magic way at the end, if only to tell Roland he did a good job and pat him on the butt before he walked into the tower. They really dropped a bombshell about the old times in Calla, hinting at how it ended, and I'm disappointed they don't really expand on that.

I don't think he should've ended it so quick, but I guess he didn't trust himself to keep it very interesting. It seemed at the end of Calla that this series could go on indefinitely as he wrote other books, maybe picking up a character from an old one here, walking through the aftermath of a story there, it would've been very interesting. Then again, maybe the idea is too Kingdom Hearts for King's style.

Have you checked out the Gunslinger comic book? The first arc was just a retred of the Susan Delgado story, but the newer arcs are going through what happened at Gilead and Roland's other friends. The upcoming arc is called The Fall of Gilead, actually. The art is outstanding, and the only real drawback is that it's very text heavy for a comic book.

They're also redoing The Stand in comic form. That one comes off much better in comics, actually. The most recent issue with the pyromaniac Trashcan Man was very epic.

[Ramona]

Battle Royale

I've probably read it 5 times now, I just love it. I'm not much of a reader but this really gets me going.

[Bourdain]

I bought the first volume not too long ago, featuring Roland fighting Cort for his guns. I have some parts of the comic saved on my computer but really need to get hold of the rest before I start reading. Same for The Stand too (Stand and It are the best King novels).

[fallen angel]

i cant remeber the last book i read i think it was city of ashes could be wrong though

[Daenerys]

Just finished Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I've read this book probably no less than 30 times now. There is just something about Hogwarts that makes me want to revisit it many times without it getting old.

Also, reread Star by Star by Troy Denning, the eleventh novel in the Star Wars EU NJO series. A real tearjerker it was.

[Wilham]

Angels and Demons.

It was a good book. Better then Devinci Code. I give it a 8/10.

[Daenerys]

^ they're practically the same. Swap out "Louvre" with "Vatican", and they would read the same.

[Orochimaru]

I've not read a fictional book for a long time. Do non-fiction ones count?

[Satchmo Omega]

I last finished The Lies of Locke Lamora. I am currently reading The Final Empire first book of the Mistborn trilogy.

[mug]

I just finished 1984 by George Orwell, it was absolutely fantastic, though I found the end portion of the book to be confusing, I'll be re-reading it soon.

Not usually do I go for conspiracy style books, but this was definitely a classic.

I also read God is not Great by Christopher Hitchens, I found it a fascinating monologue on religion. It sucks that I have to return it to my aunt tomorrow :(

Best non-fiction book I've read in some time.

I've not read a fictional book for a long time. Do non-fiction ones count?

Absolutely, if you read it in entirety.

[Daenerys]

1984 is a fantastic book. Aside from everything else that makes it special, the interation between characters was memorable.

Anyway, just finished reading the Colour of Magick by Terry Pratchett. I can't believe I held off from reading his work for so long, I loved this book. After the first 5 pages I was hooked and read it all in one sitting.

[Bourdain]

lol, Chris Hitchens is one of the biggest political hypocrites I've ever read. Leaves a sour aftertaste.

I've had a lot of free time since university, I read:

I am Legend by Richard Matheson: A, the characterisation of protagonist Robert Neville was sublime, and I mean that with no hint of exaggeration. His emotions and experience were palpable, despite the subject matter. And it is probably the most original take on the vampire genre since ever. Watched the movie after, garbage, then watched Seven Pounds which was surprisingly good. Will Smith has become a pretty good actor in recent years.

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien: A+. Even better than when I first read it. If you haven't, then I really don't know what to say. You're missing out on probably the best English read ever.

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King: C. Passable effort. King is really a pretty tired writer now, definitely the feeling he's out of fresh ideas and even when he isn't (I'm thinking Cell, The Regulators, Dark Towers 5-7 as well as Tom Gordon) the technical writing is bland and unimaginative. Stick with the earlier works if you want to read the good stuff.

Murder in Samarkand by Craig Murray: A-. Non-fiction account of the author's experiences and role in his position as British ambassador to Uzbekistan, and the subsequent crushing of his career after speaking out at human rights abuses by the Uzbek regime and British complicity. Mind-boggling stuff, you couldn't make any of this up.

Notes from the Hard Shoulder by James May: B. The Top Gear presenter puts together a collection of his writing from British newspaper The Daily Telegraph. Comes off as a grumpy old man with the heart of kid. Very endearing and very, very funny. An easy read, but that's okay, definitely recommended.


I am currently reading The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth. Just started it, but the attention to detail lends massively to the swelling tension. The story is basically about an intriguing hit-man hired by a French nationalist group to assassinate the de Gaulle. The movie was amazing, which is why I picked this up. Hasn't disappointed thus far.

Finished it, it's fucking A. A+ even.


By the way, Amazon is probably the best place you can go to buy books. I picked up about 8 quality reads for 15 quid. I'm sure the American site does it better. :(

[Johnnu]

The Blue Sword

Eh picked up because it was recommended to me.
Not bad.

[Daenerys]

lol, Chris Hitchens is one of the biggest political hypocrites I've ever read. Leaves a sour aftertaste.

I've had a lot of free time since university, I read:

I am Legend by Richard Matheson, the characterisation of protagonist Robert Neville was sublime, and I mean that with no hint of exaggeration. His emotions and experience were palpable, despite the subject matter. And it is probably the most original take on the vampire genre since ever. Watched the movie after, garbage, then watched Seven Pounds which was surprisingly good. Will Smith has become a pretty good actor in recent years.


As is always the case.

Although I do like the film for one thing: the main character actually has had a white wife. I hate it when it's always a white girlfriend but black wife, for some reason that really makes me want to kill something.

[mug]

lol, Chris Hitchens is one of the biggest political hypocrites I've ever read. Leaves a sour aftertaste.



Eh really? Elaborate please? I found the book to be pretty straight foward and interesting, but perhaps I missed something.


I just read some book from the 'Clique' series. Horrible piece of teenage shit, my friend told me to read it. It was basically a 100+ pages of "OMG! OMG!"

[Comic Book Guy]

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, translated by Irene Testot-Ferry.

It's a quaint read. For a children's book, it also works for adults too. Very quaint. . . and affecting.

[Bourdain]

Eh really? Elaborate please? I found the book to be pretty straight foward and interesting, but perhaps I missed something

Putting aside his jumping jack politics which I referenced, the problem with his book is this:

Chris Hitchens isn't a scholar. His trade is journalism, and what he excels in is jingoistic polemic. This book to me read as a "my view on such and such, no balanced debate".

Which is perfectly fine. Except that he truly believes this is a balanced look at the subject.

He fails to address key aspects, he broadly brushes contingents into single boxes, all round it is a short-sighted view on the subject matter.

If you would like me to go further in-depth, be prepared for a tl;dr to end tl;drs.

[Jenna Berry]

I'm almost finished with Flowers for Algernon. Omg so good. :D

[mug]

Putting aside his jumping jack politics which I referenced, the problem with his book is this:

Chris Hitchens isn't a scholar. His trade is journalism, and what he excels in is jingoistic polemic. This book to me read as a "my view on such and such, no balanced debate".

Which is perfectly fine. Except that he truly believes this is a balanced look at the subject.

He fails to address key aspects, he broadly brushes contingents into single boxes, all round it is a short-sighted view on the subject matter.

If you would like me to go further in-depth, be prepared for a tl;dr to end tl;drs.
Well then I do understand what you mean, he didn't exactly give a multi-faceted view. But, I found the book interesting and imformative regardless. It didn't sway my own views on religion, so I agreed and disareed on different parts of the book, but it was generally factual I think.

So I have no problem with it, myself.

[Eclipse]

Third Book in the Penndragon Series. I've been wanting to get the fourth, but I have no moneys to buy it at the moment, and no job in order to earn said moneys needed to buy it. :TT

[Comic Book Guy]

Still Alice by Lisa Genova.

Affecting read, the protagonist being a psychology professor descending into early onset Alzheimer's disease.

[Daenerys]

Twilight.

I've been reading a lot of African Lit recently.

The River Between ~ Ngugi wa Thiong'o
So Long a Letter ~ Mariama Ba

[Harken]

Dune= A+

Simple put its a masterpiece of creation. Great characters and tough choices. A world created by a writer that is so well put together you believe in its existence. Economics, politics, religion and geology intermixed into a massive and impressive story.

Dune Messiah (teh sequel)= B

Only 1/3 the size of the first dune and overly not as impressive. Story is strong and interesting enough for a read.

The Picture of Dorian Gray= C

A passing grade, but just barely. Everything interesting about the book was censored or scared out by the society in which Oscar Wilde lived. Its hinted at that Dorian becomes a hideous man but really no exploration of it, and only its side effects. If you have a hard on for English high society you'll give this a A+, otherwise avoid.

I Have no Mouth and I must scream= A

Under 6000 words and reportedly (from wiki) written on one night as a response to a picture by the friend of the writer. Incredibly shocking and well written. You'll think about it for a while and be generally impressed... and maybe sad too if you're that kinda person who gets sad at books.

[PradaBrada]

I don't read the manga, I just watch the fillers

[Johnnu]

Ah filler.
That's some good shit.

But seriously. A book im currently reading is Hadrian, the Restless Emperor.

[Daenerys]

The only thing stopping me from reading Dune is that it's science fiction. Not sure when I started disliking that genre but I have to give Dune a chance eventually.

Vampire Hunter D

[PradaBrada]

Naruto = F

I think I'll confound my critics by devoting this review not to describing apolaustic fruitcakes in general, but this manga's writer in particular. But first, let me pose you a question: Is the writer actually concerned about any of us or does he just want to justify, palliate, or excuse the evils of his heart? After reading this review, you'll unmistakably find it's the latter. In the past, manga like Naruto would have been tarred and feathered and ridden out of town on a rail for trying to scapegoat easy, unpopular targets, thereby diverting responsibility from more culpable parties. While the writer has been beating the drums of nihilism, I've been trying to uplift individuals and communities on a global scale to make the mangas stroppy warnings understood, resisted, and made the object of deserved contempt by young and old alike. In doing so, I've learned that its stooges are unified under a common goal. That goal is to accelerate our descent into the cesspool of mandarinism. Perhaps I'm reading too much into this mangas homilies, but they don't seem to serve any purpose other than to egg on negative externalities in the form of evasion, collusion, and corruption.

Some people think I'm exaggerating when I say that it's really hard to take something as putrid as this manga very seriously. But I'm not exaggerating; if anything, I'm understating the situation. Naruto says that it has been robbed of all it does not possess. What balderdash! What impudence! What treachery!

Everybody loves a good game of hide-and-seek: find the person, find the hidden item, or, in Naruto's case, find the hidden agenda. This manga draws odious, bitter big-mouths to it like rats to the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Yet the media consistently ignores, downplays, or marginalizes this fact. When I say that as long as I live and breathe, I will strive to let the writer know, in no uncertain terms, that he would rather talk about making changes than actually make them, I consider this to mean that its victims have been speaking out for years. Unfortunately, their voices have long been silenced by the roar and thunder of Naruto's peons, who loudly proclaim that women are crazed Pavlovian sex-dogs who will salivate at any object even remotely phallic in shape. Regardless of those vicious proclamations, the truth is that once people obtain the critical skills that enable them to think and reflect and speculate independently, they'll realize that the manga's confidants remain largely silent when asked about the correlative connecting the manga to antagonism. The rare times they do deign to comment they invariably skew the issue to prevent people from realizing that Naruto somehow manages to get away with spreading lies (it is a refined story with the soundest ethics and morals you can imagine), distortions (anyone who disagrees with it is ultimately shabby), and misplaced idealism ("metanarratives" are the root of tyranny, lawlessness, overpopulation, racial hatred, world hunger, disease, and rank stupidity). However, when I try to respond in kind, I get censored faster than you can say "premisrepresentation". In a nutshell, we'll know soon enough just how crafty these types of warlords can be.

[Harken]

The only thing stopping me from reading Dune is that it's science fiction. Not sure when I started disliking that genre but I have to give Dune a chance eventually.

Vampire Hunter D

I am the exact opposite. I love science fiction.

[Harken]

The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair: A-

Most people have heard of this book or even read it, especially if you were educated in the US. Its a shocking 1906 tale of the horrible practices of the meat packing industry as well as labor laws of Chicago (and I guess most of america at the time). Immediately following the release of the book laws were changed to really regulate the food industry.

The book follows a man from Lithuania named Jurgis, whose last name I cant spell or pronounce, and his family. Its basically goes from bad to worse over and over again and then worser. Its a powerful book that will resonate with immigrants to this country, people who have ever struggled and anyone with a heart.

My only problem is that the last chapter or so is basically a pamphlet but I wont go into much detail on what or why but I will say if it had a better ending I would have gave it a solid A.

[Ralkage]

L Change the World -

Author: by some mysterious person who didn't want us knowing his real name. I'll find out his/her name one way or the other. :hm

If you enjoyed reading about Beyond Birthday well your going to love this book even more. All I am going to say is that L mentions a few guests we were very fond of in the Anime/Manga series of Death Note so this is a definite read for those Otaku's out there or Visual Readers in general.

[Comic Book Guy]

Stardust by Neil Gaiman.

[Harken]

Vittorio the Vampire by Anne Rice B

This tale of a Italian Lord's son turned vampire is really interesting but somewhat disappointing. The book begins with Vittorio telling you how powerful a vampire he is and then he goes into how he became a vampire. His story is interesting enough and I believe the book is well written but the whole love story element follows that horrible 'love at first sight' theme that I just hate. I guess when you lived hundreds of years ago and everyone was butt ugly then you suddenly see someone attractive then you can fall in love at first sight.

Personally I think its crap and used to often in vampire books.

Though if that interests you at all then you'll enjoy this. Even if you don't you will find this a solid enough read to justify your time... I just wish there was more violent dismemberment.

[talkie]

Harry Potter actually. :lmao

I need to hit up the bookstore. Been too busy to read like I use to.

[PradaBrada]

Why We Suck by Dr. Denis Leary: A+

[Harken]

Children of Dune by Frank Herbert A++

Simple put its the best of the three. Amazing book that returns to the things that made the first superior to the second and it really focused in on these things. The return of a character or two that were missing in the second book made this a simple choice as one of my favorite books of all time.

[Tyki Mikk]

Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand.

1069 pages of tiny text. While it is fiction and certainly has its... very weird... moments, it also deals with Objectivism. So if you are into philosophy and lots of fancy words with a truckload of scenario fiction then you'll probably like this book. It does at points take baby steps in getting its message across for the casual reader, but overall its definitely not light reading.

[PradaBrada]

The Quantum Theory of Gravitation, by Vasily Leonidovich Yanchilin.

The writer presents the main ideas surrounding General Relativity, Quantum Mechanics and the impasse where physicists have found themselves in the past decades since Einstein.

The writer postulates that General Relativity is in fact wrong, something that Einstein himself also acknowledged, and he then presents a solution to this problem: a theory of gravitation which is based on principles of quantum mechanics, i.e. a theory of gravitation, which agrees with quantum mechanics.

The crystal clear argumentation paired with the occasional jabs here and there make this book a gem which definitely should not be missed. I should note that the reader requires a general understanding of physics as a whole, but don't let that scare you, give it a try!

[Comic Book Guy]

Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen.

[SuperRaiden]

American Conspiracies (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_PtTKwwh_xBc/SxdYoZe-2kI/AAAAAAAAGu8/RmcRlDvwmEc/s400/jesse-ventura1.jpg)- By Jesse Ventura.

A mere glance at the table of contents is all that it takes to turn a reader away from this book. Jesse's questioning of the validity of events, such as the terrorist attacks on Sep. 11, sounds downright crazy. However, Jesse does present a coherent argument in each chapter, and makes one wonder why in many instances, further investigation never occurred. I certainly recommend reading this.

[Juggers]

9/11 theories :hah

[Daenerys]

a book on how jews did 911? interesting

Eclipse ~ Stephenie Meyers

[SuperRaiden]

9/11 theories :hah

a book on how jews did 911? interesting


My case in point.

No, he didn't say that there was some sort of major conspiracy behind 9/11. If you look at many of the interviews he's done, he says that he simply doesn't know what to conclude. But what he does find odd was that as a governor and former marine, why the four fateful planes on that day were never intercepted, and why a certain person at one point, refused to give the order. These are known facts, not secret information that he found in a secret gave on Gullaboo Island next to Hollie's stash.

[Hanzo Hasashi]

Holy Bible

[Comic Book Guy]

The DC Comics Guide to Writing Comics by Dennis O'Neil.

[Tyki Mikk]

Rereading Red Dragon.

So I like the Hannibal books. >.>

[Harken]

God Emperor of Dune by Frank Herbert B

A solid book with a few problems stemming from the author's personal point of view and time period ... unexplained orgasm comes to mind and the heterosexual male having a heart attack at the sight of two women kissing....

The book takes a futuristic strange society and culture and makes it stranger by jumping thousands of years into the future. The effects of century long breeding programs combined with static 'living dinosaurs' of humans past makes for a very interesting and somewhat complex relationship between main characters. Add in the god-like perspective of a once human emperor and you have some heavy stuff.

Not my favorite in the series but not the worst that I have read so far either.

[Subrosian]

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown.

[PradaBrada]

Physics of the Impossible by Michio Kaku

[Bourdain]

Michio Kaku

This guy is the man. He is completely listenable and passion is entirely infectious in all his interviews.

[Bourdain]

The last few books I read:

The Dogs of War by Frederick Forsyth: C

A fantastic concept with Forsyth's trademark no-nonsense deadpan style full of meticulous attention to detail but ultimately fails to deliver. A London mining tycoon discovers billions of dollars of untapped platinum reserves in a completely backwards African republic. To get his mitts on it he hires a crew of mercenaries to plan and stage a coup, in order to set up a puppet president and gain a lease to the national mining rights. But they soon find themselves with stiff competition as rival mercenary crews and the Russians get involved, in a race of arms-smuggling and underworld activity.

Plot threads are sloppily resolved or cut short of their potential due to political cheapshotting (it's no secret Forsyth is a staunch Conservative and he doesn't miss an opportunity to completely waste the Russian threat, due in no small part to the bumbling bloated political Communistic ideologies, he essentially destroys a thread that could have shot the tension into the stratosphere) and the conclusion, in my humble opinion, is diabolical.

The first 2 parts get an A for the sheer realism (every step of the way you completely believe this could happen), but the last part ("The Big Killing") falls flat on its face.


Danse Macabre by Stephen King: A

A class in the inner workings of the field of modern horror, from the master of the genre himself. King explores radio, television, movies and literature, examining and positing his own analyses of why we pay to have the shit scared out of us. A must for any Eng Lit student and horror aficionodo.


Ship Hydrostatics and Stability by Adrian Biran

A simple breakdown of the basics in the field of naval architecture.

[PradaBrada]

This guy is the man. He is completely listenable and passion is entirely infectious in all his interviews.

iknowrite :pimp Dr. Kaku is by far my favourite alive physicist, also 2nd favourite physicist of all time right after Sir Isaac Newton himself

[Bourdain]

I love the old school jack-of-all-trades myself. For example, guys like Biruni and al Haytham were around hundreds of years before Newton, but they posited amazingly astute theories concerning gravity and astrophysics, the latter was also hundreds of years ahead in his thinking as he developed a scientific method that isn't unrecognisable even in our modern age.

But what I especially love is that these guys weren't just physicists, they were mathematicians, engineers, astronomers, physicians, pharmacists, philosophers, historians, all rolled into one. It's quite hard to explain but there's something especially amazing because of that; I'm here in uni studying one field while these guys were all over the place, breaking ground all the time in multiple fields and constantly pushing the boundaries.

[PradaBrada]

I've heard of those guys, never read any of their personal work though.

The main reason I love Newton is for practically introducing the concept of mathematics into physics. Without this guy, we wouldn't have physics and as a result all the other sciences as we know them today.

But what I especially love is that these guys weren't just physicists, they were mathematicians, engineers, astronomers, physicians, pharmacists, philosophers, historians, all rolled into one.

Homo universalis. If all men aspired to be this great we would be advancing a hundredfold faster than we already are.

Also, a physicist is by definition already a mathematician, engineer, astronomer and philosopher :cookie therefore I'm already all of those except for historian :kewl

[Tyki Mikk]

Changes, by Jim Butcher

It was epic.

From a series with one of those modern day "what if all the myths, legends were real and alive today?" settings, featuring a wizard (who at first) just trying to get by in Chicago.

And has a talking skull named Bob.

I'm gunna reread this book again.