[Manhunter71]

I know this has been well-discussed recently, but after reading 4 really good books in a row I feel I must resurrect this thread.

So - I have just finished reading "Dante's Equation" by Jane Jensen, and before that "The Snow Garden" by Christopher Rice (son of Anne Rice), "The Rule of Four" by Ian Caldwell & Dustin Thomason + "The Dumas Club" by Arturo Perez-Reverte.

4 entirely different books but they were 4 books that I could not put down

The last one I read was the Jane Jensen book,and, although I found this quite hard to get into at the beginning - I really couldn't stop when I got to the 3rd or 4th chapter.
In her usual style, Jane Jensen just pulled me straight into the story, and for 2 whole days I thought I was a character in that book

I urge anyone who hasn't read it yet to do so immediately

-

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Recently I finished Christopher Phillips' Socrates Cafe, an awesome book about the author's experience of being a sort of modern day philosopher/student taking the wisdom on the road, to the people, as a very real and applicable thing for one's every day life. I've always hated it when people keep such beautiful, useful things as philosophical discussion and inquiry in ivory towers and use sophistry and highminded bullshit to maintain their status above the layman.

Now I'm reading Plato's The Last Days Of Socrates. It's just sublime.

I've also just started Susan Faludi's Stiffed: The Betrayal Of The American Man, an investigation into the perceptions of what it means to be masculine, how it has been upheld, and how it all had eroded, why, and what it means. It's quite a fat book and will mostly stay at the bedside.

I'm also reading bit by bit Jean Nouvel: The Elements Of Architecture by Conway Lloyd Morgan. Nouvel is one of my favourite architects and this tome gives some insight to how he thinks and works.

[lumi]

I've been reading stories by the Celts for a class. They tend to be good reads, and have some humor to them. There's one guy who couldn't be killed unless he was under a roof over a tub next to a river, and he had to have one foot on the tub's edge, with the other on the back of a goat. He couldn't be killed in any other position.

[artwking4]

I've been trying to finish reading The Two Towers so I can read Return of the King. I wish it would go faster. I really want to read something else, like Terry Pratchett.

[omloflump]

Just finished F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and I really enjoyed it. Before that I read Hearts Of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, which is a truly great book.

[Tramboi]

I'm reading Neil Gaiman's American Gods and I just finished Baudolino by Umberto Eco.

[LauraMac]

I just finished Baudolino by Umberto Eco.

Heyy - I just got that yesterday and it's next up for reading. How is it??

Just finished a re-visit to Cormac McCarthy's "The Border Trilogy" and a new reading of Alexander McCall Smith's "The Sunday Philosophy Club"

[Tramboi]

Originally Posted by LauraMac

Heyy - I just got that yesterday and it's next up for reading. How is it??

Just finished a re-visit to Cormac McCarthy's "The Border Trilogy" and a new reading of Alexander McCall Smith's "The Sunday Philosophy Club"

Very very good! But I can't tell too much, it would spoil it for you (and others)

I love Eco's stuff in general... Especially Foucault's Pendulum (not sure for the english title) that puts GK3 and even more Da Vinci Code to shame
(I love GK3 btw, don't flame me :p )

[JoeX111]

I've just recently finished reading Bad Business, The Godwulf Manuscript , and God Save the Child by Robert B. Parker, along with Small Gods by Terry Pratchett.

At the moment, I'm bouncing around between reading the collected Bone graphic novel by Jeff smith, Fletch by Gregory McDonald, and Mortal Stakes by Robert B. Parker.

In the pipeline for the future is Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchet, Hex And The City by Simon R. Green, the rest of Parker's Spenser novels, and the Judith Grossman translation of Don Quixote once it hits paperback on the 1st of May.

[Kolzig]

I've read David Kushner's Masters of Doom for some time now, haven't yet finished it, because I'm a bit lazy reader.

[LauraMac]

I love Eco's stuff in general... Especially Foucault's Pendulum

Ahh Me too. And that was the title here in the US at least.

Fletch by Gregory McDonald

Another great series. And just almost anything by Terry Pratchet, never grows old- well nuff said.

[tknaps]

Originally Posted by Tramboi

I love Eco's stuff in general... Especially Foucault's Pendulum (not sure for the english title) that puts GK3 and even more Da Vinci Code to shame
(I love GK3 btw, don't flame me :p )

YES! Finally found someone that agrees with me on that Foucault's Pendulum is a work of art - Da Vinci Code is more like a high strung american action movie (i.e. entertaining but not much else)

Anyway, just about to round up Neal Stephensons "Baroque Cycle" trilogy:

http://www.nealstephenson.com/

Not quite decided on it yet (still 500 pages left), but at times this has been really tedious, other times it has been good fun. It's close to 2700 pages in total which I think could easily have been edited down to at least 2000 without degrading it any (on the contrary...). Maybe a 3.5/5 in total unless he blows me away with the ending. I fear it might culminate in a tedious wrapping-up though... He needs to find a better editor before moving on to his next work.

Not quite decide what to move onto after this. "Rule of four" maybe, or go back to Sci-Fi. Still haven't read my favourite author's latest, "Baudolino", but I feel for something a bit lighter now after Stephenson-mania. The books-to-read list is ever expanding...

[100ja a.k.a. mr_mitja]

The last one I read was Frederic Beigbeder's "Windows on the world", which is basically book about 9/11. It was a nice read. Currently I'm reading Nick Hornby's "How to be good" and a selection of modern day japanese novels.

[Catnip]

The last book I read was The Ghost Writer by John Harwood. I was so excited about this book that I bought it in hardcover, which is something I rarely do. However, I found that I was somewhat disappointed. I felt it was a very good effort for a first novel, but the descriptions of the book that I read were very effusive in their praise, and I now feel they were overly generous. I felt that the "secret" of the ending was predictable. It was a very interesting premise for a book, however.

I'm now re-reading the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books (it has been several years since I've read them!) and I'm enjoying every minute.

[Manhunter71]

Originally Posted by Tramboi

I'm reading Neil Gaiman's American Gods and I just finished Baudolino by Umberto Eco.

Hey! I'm reading that book also (American Gods that is) - I actually bought it about 6 mths ago and read a couple of chapters, but then I bought other books I wanted to read more.

After finishing the Jane Jensen book a couple of days ago I decided to give it another go

[Manhunter71]

Originally Posted by 100ja a.k.a. mr_mitja

Currently I'm reading Nick Hornby's "How to be good" .

That's a great book, and Nick Hornby is one of my favourite authors. I only really got into him a few years ago after my brother gave me "About A Boy" for my birthday - since then I read everything he had written and thoroughly enjoyed them all

[SamNMax]

I don't read. And don't tell me that reading is important, because that's bullshit. The problem is, books aimed at my age are shitty, Schoolastic published crap written by no talent authors. I would read better books, but, let's face it, I'm not ready for that commitment.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Erm, how old are you?

[SamNMax]

Thirteen.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Really? So, what do you think of us 'old farts' here?