Do you read?

[maqroll]

Anyone read this?

[maqroll]

5 hours ago, 8pints said:

Just finished this

I liked it, very weird in a good way.

Unsure about what to read next. Any suggestions?

Best thing I've ever read.

Edited April 6, 2018 by maqroll

[TheAuthority]

Just burned through this in 48 hours:  Moving, difficult, enraging and ultimately hopeful. 

Ray Hinton was an innocent man imprisoned on death row for 30 years. A powerful book about growing up as a black man in the US, the US criminal justice system and ultimately about never giving up on your own humanity.  Highly recommend.

 

[mjmooney]

I also loved The Master and Margarita (although it's probably not for everyone), and Nabokov's "Ada" (I'd add "Pale Fire". Pretty much everything by Nabokov, tbh). 

But I couldn't get on with "A Confederacy of Dunces" at all. Gave up after about four chapters. 

And now we know the origins of maqroll's screen name. 

[V01]

Just finished The Three-Body Problem. I'm not sure what to make of it. I think I enjoyed it but it was a slog.

[leemond2008]

Quote

From Mark Z Danielewski, author of the cult bestseller House of Leaves, comes the astonishing Only Revolutions, a shoot-from-the-hip American road novel about Sam and Hailey - two wayward and wild kids who magically career across the American mainland and from the Civil Rights Movement to the Iraq War and beyond.

Powered by an ever-evolving fleet of cars, these two teenagers never age and never stop. They crash parties in New Orleans, barrel up the Mississippi, and blast through the Badlands, cutting a nation in half as they try to outrace History itself.

And where this journey takes them is what sets the pages, even the actual book, turning. Alternating between Hailey and Sam, this kaleidoscopic novel spins the strangest, most gripping and lyrical love story published in more than a generation.

I've just started reading this, I'm not too sure what to make of it so far, I love House of Leaves and was looking forward to Danielewski;'s next crazy idea.

OK so it is 2 poems in one book...2 loooooong ass poems in one book.

there is no front or back of the book you pick which end you start from and after ever 8 pages you flip the book to the other side and read 8 pages, one side is from Sams point of view and the other is Haileys (you see, revolutions)

each page has half the words the right way up whilst the other half are upside down (depending on which way you are reading it) each set of text on every page has 180 characters (so the upside down part has 180 characters, you see, revolutions) 

The only problem is that the poems are wrote in such a way that they don't always make sense and there are some words that are blatantly extended puuuuuurely to hit the 180 quota.

 

Its a cracking idea to force a different way of reading but I'm not too sure how well executed it is in this instance, I'll continue to persevere with it though.

[mjmooney]

3 minutes ago, leemond2008 said:

I've just started reading this, I'm not too sure what to make of it so far, I love House of Leaves and was looking forward to Danielewski;'s next crazy idea.

OK so it is 2 poems in one book...2 loooooong ass poems in one book.

there is no front or back of the book you pick which end you start from and after ever 8 pages you flip the book to the other side and read 8 pages, one side is from Sams point of view and the other is Haileys (you see, revolutions)

each page has half the words the right way up whilst the other half are upside down (depending on which way you are reading it) each set of text on every page has 180 characters (so the upside down part has 180 characters, you see, revolutions) 

The only problem is that the poems are wrote in such a way that they don't always make sense and there are some words that are blatantly extended puuuuuurely to hit the 180 quota.

 

Its a cracking idea to force a different way of reading but I'm not too sure how well executed it is in this instance, I'll continue to persevere with it though.

I recommend the long poem book I mentioned on the previous page - "The Long Take", by Robin Robertson. 

[chrisp65]

Although I've already read my book for this year (the current John leCarre), thought I'd give this one a spin...

 

[TheAuthority]

On 16/04/2018 at 02:54, leemond2008 said:

there is no front or back of the book you pick which end you start from and after ever 8 pages you flip the book to the other side and read 8 pages, one side is from Sams point of view and the other is Haileys (you see, revolutions)

 

Have you read the Alexandria Quartet by Lawrence Durrell?

[mjmooney]

6 hours ago, TheAuthority said:

Have you read the Alexandria Quartet by Lawrence Durrell?

Yep. And Peter Matthiessen's Shadow Country trilogy does something similar. 

[BOF]

Help!  I'm looking for some gift fantasy recommendations please.  From some sleuthing, the person is currently reading Neil Gaiman's 'Norse Mythology'.  Thank you.

Quote

Neil Gaiman, long inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction, presents a bravura rendition of the Norse gods and their world from their origin though their upheaval in Ragnarok. In Norse Mythology, Gaiman stays true to the myths in envisioning the major Norse pantheon: Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin’s son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki?son of a giant?blood brother to Odin and a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator.

 

[Chindie]

2 hours ago, BOF said:

Help!  I'm looking for some gift fantasy recommendations please.  From some sleuthing, the person is currently reading Neil Gaiman's 'Norse Mythology'.  Thank you.

 

If they like Gaiman, his best solo novel is American Gods. It's the story of a convict whose wife dies shortly before he is released, which then leads to him becoming embroiled in the story of the gods of the old world in the new world. There's a sort of sequel called Anasi Boys which people also rate.

His best novel overall is Good Omens, written with Terry Pratchett, which everyone should own and have read. That is a comic fantasy about Armageddon, whereby an angel and a demon, who have lived on Earth since the dawn of man, learn that the End Times are coming and decide to try to subvert it because they quite like the way things are.

Also basically everything Pratchett wrote is great.

[A'Villan]

On 06/04/2018 at 14:20, TheAuthority said:

Just burned through this in 48 hours:  Moving, difficult, enraging and ultimately hopeful. 

Ray Hinton was an innocent man imprisoned on death row for 30 years. A powerful book about growing up as a black man in the US, the US criminal justice system and ultimately about never giving up on your own humanity.  Highly recommend.

 

I think I'll give this one a read. Thanks for the post.

Blue Rage, Black Redemption is a worthwhile read. About Stan 'Tookie' Williams, the founder of the Crips gang. A moving story and whilst not an innocent man in a general sense, possibly innocent of the crime he was ultimately put to death for. A sad indictment of the U.S.A really. Shows the mentality and decisions a lot of young men make in order to get through the challenges of their environment, that is the Blue Rage of the Crips I guess. Then the beauty of what I believe to be a more innate quality of human nature and that is faith and good will, and for Tookie that would be Black Redemption. Ultimately Arnold Schwarzennegger decided that Williams was not sincere in his efforts of reform, citing that Williams still acknowledged people on the wrong side of the law at the time of the appeals for his death penalty to be overturned, and Williams was put to death. Whether he was completely innocent in the crime that took place is not my place to say, though someone more involved in the case would be one victims Mother, who campaigned to have Williams released from prison. Make of that what you will.

I have, and I would recommend anyone to, read up on Fred Hampton. Shows how truly messed up the U.S.A is and how difficult it can be for POC to live. Assassinated at age 21, Hampton organised support for the homeless, community education, rallied for equality (not just for POC) and was a public speaker, among other positive endeavours. A part of the Black Panther Party, Hampton was seen to be a threat to 'American culture' and was therefore assassinated by the very people responsible for the upkeep of security, the FBI. I would try and source reading focused on the good work that Hampton was doing and his political persuasion than I would the corruption surrounding his death.

The Book of Five Rings - Miyamoto Musashi. Often referred to as the worlds greatest Samurai, this is a book on strategy. Highly recommend, especially if you are interested in self discipline or martial arts.

The Psychopath Inside. Not finished this one yet but an interesting read. A renowned psychiatrist who specialises in psychopathy one day takes a brain scan of a psychopath that turns out to be himself! I am pretty confident the remainder of the book takes a scientific as well as a more personalised reasoning as to why psychopaths are not the monsters we make them out to be and can be brought up in loving, law abiding homes and provide just the same. I personally have had a psychopath in my life and they are quite different, so it has been interesting to take a scientific tour, as for me I am always looking to overcome prejudice but I had little reason to from my personal experience. It was a timely reminder that people with all sorts of brain structure, from the common to the psychopath to the schizophrenic are capable of destroying lives and we all need assistance in learning to live as a community.

[AVFC_Hitz]

Reading this at the moment. Hoping to watch the documentary afterwards, too. Brilliantly written.

[LillisGotUsUp]

I’m enjoying reading Mark Meynell’s When Darkness Seems My Closest Friend. Making sense all over the shop for me. 

[mjmooney]

Kate Atkinson's "Life After Life" and "A God In Ruins". Both excellent. 

[A'Villan]

The Nazi Officer's Wife. Highly recommended.

The Third Reich, The Rise And Fall of The Nazis. Bit of a history lesson I suppose.

[Rodders]

Donna Tartt's The Secret History - took a bit of time to get into it, but now completely gripped a third of the way in, excellent writing.

[A'Villan]

Lucius Septimius Severus' rise and reign as the first African emperor of Rome makes for some interesting reading. He died trying to annex Britain, though not in battle. And supposedly was part of an African cabal that planned a takeover of the empire and succeeded, though its leaders ended up in a fatal battle among one another for who would take the mantle. Only one prevailed and started the Severus dynasty as his sons would go on to co-emperor Rome after him.

Pontius Pilate is less interesting or consistent in the accounts that I have come across. The man who coined the phrase 'to wash ones hands of something' through his supposed reluctance to sentence Jesus to death. On the other hand he is said to be a vulgur, intolerant and corrupt man with disdain for the customs of other cultures. So found it odd he would sympathise or be reluctant to sentence Jesus, when he supposedly held no regard for others.

The Red House Report. In 1944 American intelligence discovered plans for the Nazi regime to create The Fourth Reich. Elite German industrialists were ordered by the Nazi's to plan for a future rise to prominence through the EU.

[theboyangel]

Have begun reading through James Clavell’s Asian Saga, starting with King Rat.