What are you reading?

[Kaori]

Pigeon Feathers by John Updike. It’s hard to know what to say about this book (concisely, at least), because it’s a short story collection, and my reactions to the stories varied quite a bit. The first half of the book I mostly disliked, not because the stories were poorly written, but of the way that the human relationships in these stories have gone horribly wrong: men who are arrogant and filled with self-loathing; parents being cruel to grandparents; husbands and wives snarling at each other, or talking utter trivial nonsense; quarrelsome wives and cold, angry husbands; women who are seduced and used; boys who choose to pursue girls based purely on physical desire, even though the two are clearly not suited to each other and have nothing in common. As a literature major, I’ve read tons of books with relationships gone wrong (some D.H. Lawrence books read like handbooks on how to ruin a relationship), and it usually does not prevent me from appreciating a good piece of literature; but for some reason, I had a really strong reaction to some of Updike’s stories. The cruelty the characters showed to each other was what bothered me most deeply, followed closely by Updike’s portrayals of lust.

About halfway through the book, though, the tone of the stories dramatically shifts, possibly because of a spiritual crisis that Updike experienced not long before publishing this collection—he emerged confessing Christianity and remained that way until his death. My favorite stories from the collection are all from approximately the latter half of the book: “Pigeon Feathersâ€

[kairo14]

Volume One, the works of John Owen :The Person of Jesus Christ and the Glory of Jesus Christ.

[Thalos]

I am reading a collection of Søren Kierkegaard's letters whenever I can sit down in silence and concentrate, as well as Sergei Lukyanenko's Night Watch for sheer entertainment, and Edgar Allan Poe's short stories when I need a little break.

[rocklobster]

Started Pinheads and Patriots by Bill O' Reilly.

[ShiroiHikari]

So The Hunger Games was a huge disappointment.

Is that so? I've never heard a bad word about it. Do explain why you were disappointed in it.

[Atria35]

Is that so? I've never heard a bad word about it. Do explain why you were disappointed in it.

While I'm not Hat, I also was disappointed in it.

[spoiler]There were numerous things that were written without any thought or knowlege of it- most of the weapons in it can be thrown, for instance, when IRL that's just not true and not able to be done- or isn't effective if you do- and then you had the basic survival skills that were displayed that were wrong or silly, such as having a sleeping bag in a tree. And then said tree was a willow tree..... at a time where the main couldn't find water. Willow trees only grow near water.[/spoiler]

EDIT: Also, I've finished Starship Troopers. Yay!

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

Well, to me, the end of the book made me feel like there was no real point to the entire thing. I actually enjoyed the first two-thirds, but let me put it like this, if you don't mind spoilers.

[spoiler]Our main character wins the Hunger Games and then just goes home. Aside from think "The Capitol is bad :<" like, once, there isn't any real reason why we read this. She spends all this time surviving and fighting to the death, but she doesn't really change, and when she wins, that's all that happens, she just goes home, this is all done. There's no real reason for why we read Katniss' story instead of any of the other 73 Hunger Games' champions.[/spoiler]

Apparently stuff actually matters in the sequels, but I hated that ending so much there's no way I could read more.

[rocklobster]

Atria, stay away from the movies based on Starship Troopers. That is, unless you like So Bad It's Good. They really have very little to do with the book.
Anyway, I'll be starting Fading Echoes by Erin Hunter. Almost caught up with the current arc!

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

I'm reading American Gods: The Author's Preferred Text by Neil Gaiman. I'm liking the premise, it's very well-written, there are some interesting characters but one sex scene early on is rather inappropriate and seemed unnecessary.

[Atria35]

Starting Pilgrim's Progress.

[FllMtl Novelist]

Finished I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells today. I practically devoured it. It's creepy like no other book I've read (maybe I should start reading horror?), and somewhat disturbing. I loved it.

Also, on my library's edition of the book, the cover looks like a notebook that's been ripped, with blood splatters on it. For some reason, I think that's so cool. XD

[Atria35]

Finished I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells today. I practically devoured it. It's creepy like no other book I've read (maybe I should start reading horror?), and somewhat disturbing. I loved it.

Just looked it up, and it looks awesome. It's so on my to-read list!

Any case, put down Pilgrim's Progress. Just couldn't get into it! So I'm reading Name of the Wind while I'm in school, and Game of Thrones while at my apartment.

This is not including the Shakespeare plays that I will soon be reading for class this semester (there are 5 on our list for class. I haven't read any of them- good news for me! I won't be bored.)

[Seto_Sora]

Currently working my way through "Crime and Punishment" by Dostoevsky... as well as a few others, which are too many to list. ^_^

SDG

[Nanao]

Currently working my way through "Crime and Punishment" by Dostoevsky... as well as a few others, which are too many to list. ^_^

SDG

that was an excellent, but rather long, read. i love how Dostoevsky gets into the minds of his characters. it's frighteningly realistic at times.

currently working on The Count of Monte Cristo and another Agatha Christie mystery for some lighter reading.

[rocklobster]

risa, you should check out Gankutsuo when you finish Monte Cristo. It's an anime about Monte Cristo IN SPACE!
anyway, Fading Echoes had an epic cliffhanger. Now, to move onto Fablehaven by Brandon Mull.

[Edward]

I've almost finished The Silmarillion, and then I'll start Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett.

[FllMtl Novelist]

Now, to move onto Fablehaven by Brandon Mull.

I liked those books well enough, but they felt slow to me, especially the first one. Post what you think when you're done!

[rocklobster]

Actually, I have to change it. I got my Interlibrary loans in and they get first priority because they have shorter, non-negotiable deadlines. So, I'll be reading The Riven Kingdom

[Htom Sirveaux]

. . . and then I'll start Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett.

Good man.

[Davidizer13]

I started The Stand (uncut version) by Stephen King a couple days ago. I've seen Bibles with less pages than this monster - you could kill someone with it. It's just the right size to do it, too, it fits right in my hand and everything. As for the story itself, it's still introducing characters and pulling itself together, but it's looking like a good one so far. It had better be.

[the_wolfs_howl]

Now I'm reading Sense and Sensibility to my little sisters. Slightly less amazing than Pride and Prejudice, but still. I can't keep from grinning at every description of Marianne, because she is so much like me.

[Radical Dreamer]

Sun Stand Still, by Steven Furtick, pastor of Elevation Church. It's a book about having audacious faith, and it's pretty good so far! XD

[Atria35]

Becasue they had them in the library, I picked up and read Chronicles of Narnia for the first time. The entire series.

One of the things that reminded me more than anything about how dated this was, was in book six, when [spoiler]Puddleglum burns himself.[/spoiler]
They treat it with butter and salad oil.

Nowadays, most people know you never, EVER treat a burn with butter and oil. It deepens the burn and creates an excelent environment for breeding bacteria.

[Atria35]

Well. I ended up picking up a few more books at the library that I've been dying to read. Next up? Book 2 in Diskworld: The Light Fantastic.

[rocklobster]

Now starting Child of Flame by Kate Elliot. It's the fourth book in the Crown of Stars series.

[FllMtl Novelist]

Finished The Runaway Princess by Kate Coombs the other day. I picked it up because one of the newer members (Sissy) liked it. I liked it too; it was a fun tale. ^^

[Htom Sirveaux]

Started reading The Chronicles of Narnia after my dad & I saw Voyage of the Dawn Treader at the two-dollar theater last night. Beginning with The Magician's Nephew, because I usually prefer to read a short series in chronological order according to the mythos of the story's universe.

It's been ages since I've read these things, so apart from what I've seen in the movies, the story is all but new to me.

[FllMtl Novelist]

Finished Vampirates: Demons of the Sea by Justin Somper tonight. I'm... not sure what exactly to make of it. XD

[uc pseudonym]

Question: do we have enough people here to create any threads for discussion of epic fantasy series? I know we have Wheel of Time readers, though I'm no longer one of them. Only a few of us follow Malazan and I'm not sure we have anything to say about A Song of Ice and Fire. I've seen Sanderson books here but I don't know if that would lead to real discussion. Thoughts?

Stormfront by Jim Butcher

I dislike first person and I'm not much of a fan of detective novels or urban fantasy. This book is all of those but I still enjoyed it. The author clearly knows what he's doing mixing hardboiled detective stories with wizards and the narrative tone is generally fun. I may return to the series after covering other new authors. For anyone who has read more: does the series remain with episodic "cases" or does it develop a larger plot?

The Painted Man by Peter V Brett

I take an implicit recommendation from books I see in this thread unless they come with a negative review. That's why I'm listing this again. The biggest problem with this book is that every setting features characters that exist to be hated by the reader and then humiliated. This happens at least five different times and only one of those characters has even the slightest redeeming quality. The simplistic moral framework hurts the book a great deal.

Not all aspects of the book are bad. The world-building is a mix of interesting and weak. It's nice to see someone who portrays real poverty instead of having peasants live like feudal lords. On the other hand, I'm tired of seeing fantasy worlds where everything is medieval Europe except one place that is Muslim (not medieval height of civilization Muslim, either, but the worst of sharia law). So considering just how many good fantasy books there are, I don't recommend reading this one.

The Dying Earth by Jack Vance

It would have helped if I had known the first book in the trilogy is a collection of short stories. I knew D&D borrowed liberally from Vance, but I was surprised just how many of the core concepts they took directly. Unfortunately, that makes this book feel like someone wrote out several D&D sessions (I hate to say that, since it's such a common empty criticism, but there are adventure hooks, encounter chains, and so on). Vance's Lyonesse trilogy might have had less impact, but I think it's a much better example of his work for modern readers.

[Atria35]

Stormfront by Jim Butcher

I dislike first person and I'm not much of a fan of detective novels or urban fantasy. This book is all of those but I still enjoyed it. The author clearly knows what he's doing mixing hardboiled detective stories with wizards and the narrative tone is generally fun. I may return to the series after covering other new authors. For anyone who has read more: does the series remain with episodic "cases" or does it develop a larger plot?

I haven't read it, but I have a friend who's a HUGE fan. He says that it does develop a larger plot.

EDIT: FInished The Light Fantastic, onto The Whitechapel Gods