Books - What are you reading?

Books - What are you reading?

Author
Discussion

droopsnoot

11,810 posts

241 months

Sunday 5th February 2023
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I've just finished "Sea of Greed" by Clive Cussler and Graham Brown. Someone is causing oil wells to increase in pressure and it affects the world's oil supply, and NUMA have to find out why and put a stop to it. A good book, it's similar to most of his stories but I enjoyed it.

V1nce Fox

5,508 posts

67 months

Sunday 5th February 2023
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The Blade Itself. Sort of a mix of Game Of Thrones meets Pratchett. Great characters in it.

Skyedriver

17,661 posts

281 months

Sunday 5th February 2023
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Levin said:
benjipeg said:
just started brave new world on my runs after JR podcast with lex friedman were talking about it - 1hr30 in - bit crazy it was written 1931!!
It is an absolutely exquisite book. I reread it in the past few months and, while I liked it the first time around, it has gone up even further in my estimation since. Huxley continued to revisit the concept in his later years. Brave New World: Revisited has Huxley revisiting his own thoughts decades later and providing thoughts on things he might have done differently. Island is the direct opposite, being a vision of a utopian society rather than a dystopia. The latter I didn't enjoy quite so much, but certain lines ('Here and now, boys') make it worth a read.

For companion texts, 1984 is by far the most obvious. That said, Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, is thematically more similar to Huxley's dystopia than Orwell. Both Bradbury and Huxley envisioned a world of unlimited entertainment limiting freedoms, whereas Orwell's vision is much more violent.

Some pages ago, I mentioned Amusing Ourselves to Death, by Neil Postman. His opening prologue is worth reading if you've read both Huxley and Orwell. It's short, and freely available online. There's a tendency to treat the two visions as competing, though Huxley wrote to Orwell, expressing an opinion that his World State would likely arise from Airstrip One. You may have already guessed as much, but I am a fan of both books.
Tried to read Brave New World many years ago and failed to finish it. Maybe I should try again.
Fahrenheit 451 I enjoyed way back 50 years ago, tried watching the film a lot of years later and was disappointed.

towser

919 posts

210 months

Sunday 5th February 2023
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V1nce Fox said:
The Blade Itself. Sort of a mix of Game Of Thrones meets Pratchett. Great characters in it.
Fantastic book......The Bloody Nine, Rudd Threetrees, The Dogman. Sandor Glokta etc....I loved Abercrombie's First Law books, as you say great characters and world building.

peterperkins

3,148 posts

241 months

Monday 6th February 2023
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On the Beach.. (Nevil Shute) 1957

Post Russia V China nuclear war drama.

A little bit too much family filler in places but a solid read and wrist slashingly depressing at the end.

I wanted the pills in the red box and a large brandy just like everyone else.

Slowboathome

3,242 posts

43 months

Monday 6th February 2023
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peterperkins said:
On the Beach.. (Nevil Shute) 1957

Post Russia V China nuclear war drama.

A little bit too much family filler in places but a solid read and wrist slashingly depressing at the end.

I wanted the pills in the red box and a large brandy just like everyone else.
Same here. Read it at an impressionable age. Grim stuff.

MesoForm

8,859 posts

274 months

Monday 6th February 2023
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Skyedriver said:
Tried to read Brave New World many years ago and failed to finish it. Maybe I should try again.
Same, it was my friend's favourite book but I just couldn't get into it.
I've been enjoying reading some Philip K Dick short stories "between books", there are some Kindle megapacks of about 15 stories for 50p on Amazon and I find they handy for the times when I don't want to start a whole new book but need something other than the news to read for 30 minutes.
Just finished "Foster, You're Dead!" which is (according to Wiki) a satire about consumerism and cold war paranoia where the government encourage the population to buy bomb shelters, and the manufacturers keep upgrading them to make people keep buying them. A bit of Covid foreshadowing with people not believing the hype getting ostracised as "protection deniers".

tertius

6,838 posts

229 months

Monday 6th February 2023
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Slowboathome said:
peterperkins said:
On the Beach.. (Nevil Shute) 1957

Post Russia V China nuclear war drama.

A little bit too much family filler in places but a solid read and wrist slashingly depressing at the end.

I wanted the pills in the red box and a large brandy just like everyone else.
Same here. Read it at an impressionable age. Grim stuff.
Many of Nevil Shute’s works are rather tragic, but he does tell beautiful simple stories. I am a big fan of Parsifal.


Edited by tertius on Saturday 18th February 20:56

p1doc

3,111 posts

183 months

Monday 6th February 2023
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towser said:
Fantastic book......The Bloody Nine, Rudd Threetrees, The Dogman. Sandor Glokta etc....I loved Abercrombie's First Law books, as you say great characters and world building.
he does do a great job of bringing characters to life-bloody nine still my favourite
new rory clements book the english fuhrer out now picked up in tescos getting my meal deal lol

jimwilli

245 posts

101 months

Monday 6th February 2023
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Not my usual type of books but didn't know what to read next so have taken the recommendations here. I did the SAS book which the rogue heros programme was based on i enjoyed it. Think ill try the stalingrad book after these 3 listened to the podcast with the author today on we have ways.

Got4wheels

427 posts

25 months

Wednesday 8th February 2023
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I've started a new module as a part of my English and History degree. Medieval to Romantic. So these books take me up to the 19th century. Anyhow, first off the rank was Sir Gawain and The Green Knight. It's one of those books that can only be appreciated once you've analysed it. For only 70 or so pages it does ramble on somewhat, but I did enjoy it. It's quite an interesting combination of theology, class, chivalry, temptation, Arthurian mysticism and surprisingly homoeroticism. Fortunately I read the translated version over the original Middle English.

So far, it's the only book I've read that I'd struggle to recommend, but enjoyed reading and understanding.

Michael

coppice

8,562 posts

143 months

Thursday 9th February 2023
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A book I feel a bit guilty at not having read (along with some other embarrassing omissions ) but the film was wonderful, if I suspect, a very loose interpretation - books aren't film scripts and 'the film of the book ' is rarely anything like .

I am just finishing the Matthew Parris book and have enjoyed it hugely . I enjoy his op ed pieces in The Times and the book reveals the younger Parris as being even more awkward and spiky than he is now - but self deprecatory and very funny too . He writes beautifully .

thebraketester

14,192 posts

137 months

Thursday 9th February 2023
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Having just read Anthony Bourdain Kitchen Confidential, I am now half way through Stephen King ‘The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon’. It’s quite a slow one but I am too deep into the woods to stop reading it.

My target is to read 6 books this year which will double the amount of books I have read… ever.

Edited by thebraketester on Thursday 9th February 20:09

towser

919 posts

210 months

Thursday 9th February 2023
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A few recent titles :

"Dead Find" by TF Muir - latest in a detective series set in St Andrews, fairly standard storyline (gangland murder, shallow grave etc...), nothing overly controversial or boundary pushing but I'm kind of hooked on these books so enjoyed this one. 3/5

"Company of Liars" by Karen Maitland - a road trip, murder mystery with slight paranormal overtones set during the plague in England. An inventive, well told story - great characters and storyline with plenty of twists and strangeness. Well worth a read. 4/5

"Body in the Marsh" by Nick Louth - a far too long and very obvious whodunnit. Trying too hard to be edgy and I have to say far too many blantantly sexist undertones - not sure if it was trying to be a commentary on misogny in the police but very ham fisted. Didn't enjoy. 2/5

"The Kingdom" by Jo Nesbo - years since I've read a Nesbo book. This was decent enough - a story of two brothers, their past, their bond, their dream and the lengths they'll go to for each other....also features what must be the most dangerous stretch of road in Norway given the number accidents that happen on it in this book. 3/5


Ransoman

884 posts

89 months

Friday 10th February 2023
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Just finished - The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russel.

Just started my first ever Terry Pratchett - Mort.

tertius

6,838 posts

229 months

Friday 10th February 2023
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Ransoman said:
Just finished - The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russel.

Just started my first ever Terry Pratchett - Mort.
A brilliant Pratchett, with my favourite character, Death.

Slowboathome

3,242 posts

43 months

Friday 10th February 2023
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Got4wheels said:
I've started a new module as a part of my English and History degree. Medieval to Romantic. So these books take me up to the 19th century. Anyhow, first off the rank was Sir Gawain and The Green Knight. It's one of those books that can only be appreciated once you've analysed it. For only 70 or so pages it does ramble on somewhat, but I did enjoy it. It's quite an interesting combination of theology, class, chivalry, temptation, Arthurian mysticism and surprisingly homoeroticism. Fortunately I read the translated version over the original Middle English.

So far, it's the only book I've read that I'd struggle to recommend, but enjoyed reading and understanding.

Michael
Studied that as part of my degree in the original Middle English. Bloody hell it was hard work.

Shame really, because the subject matter and themes are interesting.

some bloke

1,025 posts

66 months

Friday 10th February 2023
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I have just finished the American Civil War, by John Keegan. It was interesting to read how the US was back then, without the world-dominating culture it has now. I won't spoil it by telling you who won.

I have just started re-reading Barrow's Boys by Fergus Fleming for the 4th or 5th time - it's a brilliant book about Arctic exploration and the hunt for the NW passage and getting stuck in the ice for years at a time in the 19th century.

Nightmare

5,182 posts

283 months

Friday 10th February 2023
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towser said:
V1nce Fox said:
The Blade Itself. Sort of a mix of Game Of Thrones meets Pratchett. Great characters in it.
Fantastic book......The Bloody Nine, Rudd Threetrees, The Dogman. Sandor Glokta etc....I loved Abercrombie's First Law books, as you say great characters and world building.
He gets better and better too. The ‘half an x’ series is brilliant and Red Country is one of the only books I’ve immediately reread. Love his characters

Just read ‘He who fights with Monsters’ which someone recommended. Very lightweight but highly entertaining

droopsnoot

11,810 posts

241 months

Sunday 12th February 2023
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I've just finished "The Dark Hours" by Michael Connelly. Detective Renee Ballard is trying to solve two cases while the police department struggles with public hostility and a lack of funding post-Covid. A great book, as all of his are, I've got through this very quickly as it encouraged me to read "just one more chapter" every time I picked it up.