Books - What are you reading?

[Tango13]

Lefty said:

"The Martian" by Andy Weir. Started and read maybe 50 pages on Saturday night then stayed awake till gone midnight last night, about 250 pages in.

Really enjoying it, hardly high-brow literature but a ripping yarn.

Rumours that Fox have bought the movie rights don't surprise me - it's somewhere between Moon and Cast Away with a little bit of Gravity thrown in.

ETA, Drew Goddard to direct.

Edited by Lefty on Monday 21st April 09:58

I downloaded it onto my Kindle a while back for about 50p, like you say not exactly high-brow but very readable and funny in parts.

[silverthorn2151]

TheJimi said:

blindswelledrat said:

silverthorn2151 said:

Somehow I persuaded myself, weeks and weeks ago that I should try Dan Brown again and I have Inferno on my Kindle for the commute.

I am probably about 1/3 the way through it. This book has managed to beat any enthusiasm out of me for reading whatsoever.

It feels like I am reading one of those Dungeons and Dragons books from 1981.

.

at the rest of your post but:

Why on earth would you try a book, think that it is rubbish so try and read it again?
There are more good books out there than you could read in 10 lifetimes, no matter what your tastes, and yet you persevere with Dan Brwon for a second time?
WHat is your thought process?

He's trying the author again, not re-reading the same book. Giving Brown the benefit of the doubt, if you will.

I suspect that was his thought process

I don't really recall the decision to dip my previously bruised toe back into Dan Brown. It may have been triggered by the cheapskate in me finding a daily deal on Amazon irresistible but it could equally have been something else.

I enjoyed, but didn't become obsessed by the Da Vinci Code. I definitely read at least part of another and so on to the boring collection of words under discussion. Just feels like a bit of show off writing. Lord knows there are a lot of dreadful things one could read but when someone is consistently in the best sellers and you think it's awful you start to wonder...'is it me?'

No, no it isn't just me.

Just started a new bog book though. I got hold of both Sid Watkins books for one pee each (plus £2.80 p&p). Really very interesting so far.



edit:format dimwit

Edited by silverthorn2151 on Sunday 27th April 17:17

[lordstig]

Lee Child Bad Luck And Trouble

[TheJimi]

Thanks to a PH'er mentioning it on here, I'm currently going through The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher.

Good fun

[jimmyjimjim]

Under a month until the next one gets released.

The Codex Alera is also worth a read.

[GarryDK]

Just started A Dance With Dragons

[Blatter]

Into the Lion's Mouth

Very interesting book about a diving accident in the '70's. Some good research has gone into this book and it's criminal how the management got away with allowing these two guys to die.

[Liszt]

jimmyjimjim said:

Just finished 'The Martian' by Andy Weir.

"Apollo 13 meets Cast Away in this grippingly detailed, brilliantly ingenious man-vs-nature survival thriller, set on the surface of Mars."

Highly recommended. I enjoyed it enormously, one of the most interesting books I've read in a long time..

Just read this. Thought it was excellent.

[coppice]

blindswelledrat said:

coppice said:

Dan Brown ...right down there with Jeffrey Archer . Utterly dire. Sells shed loads too.

As an aside, I don't really understand the hatred for Dan Brown.
DOn't get me wrong, I think his writing is st and his books are tacky holiday reads (I conclude having read only one of them).
But so what? They are still pretty good page turners which is literally all that you ask of that kind of book surely?
WHy is it only Dan Brown that gets so much criticism in that kind of genre?
You never hear people scathing about David Baldaccis clichéd one-dimensional characters or the embarrassing contrived Americanism of the Jack Reacher books. People just buy them and enjoy them for the trash they are.
Why is Dan Brown held up against such higher expectation?

Happy to rubbish other bad writers but feel it to be a little unfair if I haven't read them first. But you are right - I read Da Vinci Code on holiday and certainly read it with attention- even though it was badly written tosh. But so were Harold Robbins and Alistair McLean- but not Ian Fleming . I re read a couple of Bond books when I first got a Kindle and was actually pleasantly surprised how beautifully written (even if terribly dated)they were.

A lot of it is down to taste- style of a book is far more important than plot to me. So Donna Tartt or Martin Amis writing an owner's manual for a strimmer would be unputdownable for me

[wombleh]

5potTurbo said:

CTO said:

5potTurbo said:

I've learned more from this in the last few days than in my prior 44 years on this planet, shamefully.

99p on Kindle as well.

Thanks

That's why we have it. We're cheapskates too.

Thanks for the tip, I picked that up too and was very engrossed. Bit morbid perhaps but think I'll be doing more reading of that era. "Nazi Gold" is one you may also find interesting.

[DaveBowman]

Currently thundering through the Hornblower series. Quite addictive reading. Fancy O'Brian's Aubrey series after this.

Any other recommendations within the genre? I have Sharpe lined up as well, as the Napoleonic period seems to be an interesting theme at the moment.

[Leg End]

DaveBowman said:

Currently thundering through the Hornblower series. Quite addictive reading. Fancy O'Brian's Aubrey series after this.

Any other recommendations within the genre? I have Sharpe lined up as well, as the Napoleonic period seems to be an interesting theme at the moment.

O'Brian's Aubrey Maturin series is, on the whole, a very good read. One or two of the earlier books, notably the second "Cost Captain" can seem a bit slow in parts, but this is mainly due to setting the background for the principal characters. There are 20 volumes, so should keep you occupied for a little while, plus fill up a shelf. Add to the enjoyment and read a nicely bound and produced edition.


If you are interested about the Navy in Napoleonic times N.A.M. Roger's The Wooden World is very informative.

[plasticpig]

DaveBowman said:

Currently thundering through the Hornblower series. Quite addictive reading. Fancy O'Brian's Aubrey series after this.

Any other recommendations within the genre? I have Sharpe lined up as well, as the Napoleonic period seems to be an interesting theme at the moment.

The Kydd series by Julian Stockwin and the Bolitho series by Alexander Kent.

[Cotty]

DaveBowman said:

Currently thundering through the Hornblower series. Quite addictive reading. Fancy O'Brian's Aubrey series after this.

Any other recommendations within the genre? I have Sharpe lined up as well, as the Napoleonic period seems to be an interesting theme at the moment.

Sharp set is definately worth a read. Love finding a new author and realising there are 10+ books in a series to get though. Bit like when I read the first Simon Scarrow book in the Eagle series

[bint]

Bit of an oddball one but I'm reading the Canterbury Tales. I never read it for Rnglish etc, and I have to confess to be cheating and going for a modern English translation.

[grumbledoak]

I am reading The Dreaming Void, by Peter F Hamilton. He is setting the threads up nicely, but by Ozzie's Beard the references the previous two books' characters are getting annoying!

[droopsnoot]

'Maximum Impact' by Jack Henderson. 9/11 predictor gets hunted by the FBI and others. Pretty good so far, relatively little in-depth thought required.

[Matt..]

I started the year so well but have had a break of a good few months from reading.

I've just finished...

The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game
It's well worth a read. Jumps around quite a bit though, but is an easy enough read, and doesn't get too technical with the football references!

Now moving on to...

My First Summer in the Sierra
I've been to 16 US national parks, and plenty of other US parks, so it's about time i read some John Muir! And it's free on Kindle.

[wombleh]

Just read the Greenwald book "No Place to Hide" about the Snowden NSA releases. I found it fascinating, but then I work in that area so YMMV ! The story of making contact with Snowden and battling with the governments for the Guardian to release the story has given me a whole load of respect for that paper, I may even attempt to read it at some point.

[Nom de ploom]

I'm nearly most of the way through A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving.

I absolutely love th eimagination and creativity that Irving brings to all his novels.

the pages turn with lyrical anecdotes and pitch perfect charafterisations, however, this one I'm finding a bit harder to consume. Not sure why, it might be that its a bit more political and obviously religious than his other works the latter of which would be a bit of a turn off for me normally anyway.

it is still beautifully written but it has started to fell like it is meandering a bit too much.

I'm at chapter 8 so I will finish it - any other thoughts from the PH massive?