What You're Reading the Week of 28 Oct 2006

Sword of Honour Evelyn Waugh I read The First Casualty by Ben Elton this week, a well written 1914-18 war crime story; finished Uncle Tungsten by Oliver Sacks also excellent. And I'm part way into Amy Tan's Saving fish from drowning - so far so good, but too early to be sure.

Just started The Beginning Place by Ursula K. Le Guin.

On October 23, 2006 at 08:00 GMT, I've finished reading Flags of our Fathers by James Bradley.
I loved this book, I had shed a few tears when reading about the lives of those American Soldiers who fought in Iwo Jima. This movie is gonna be shown next week in my country ( Philippines ) and I'm excited to see it .

On October 24, 2006 at 06:00 GMT, I've started reading the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon and finished reading it on October 25, 2006 at 14:00 GMT. The story is very interesting , about a mentally challenged kid trying to solve the death of a neighbor's dog , and there he discovers some mysteries in his family .

On October 26, 2006 at 14:00 GMT, Ive started reading the book Casino Royale by Ian Fleming . At 00:00 GMT of October 28 , I've only completed reading only 5% of the entire book ( one chapter only cos I'm so busy busy busy ) . The movie version is gonna be shown here three weeks from now.

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Just started reading If This Be Treason: Translation and Its Dyscontents, A Memoir by Gregory Rabassa. {BTW, the y in Dis/Dysfunction is his own spelling.} Magnificent. Rabassa is a master translator; I remember his name from One Hundred Years of Solitude, Garcia Marquez's masterpiece, as well as from some of Vargas Llosa's works. Rabassa is proving to be quite amazing and impressive. I highly recommend this book.

Started Mary by Janis Cooke Newman last night. She will be doing an election day event at our public library so I had better get busy with the hefty volume of 707 pages

I've just started Gilda Joyce Psychic
Investigator by Jennifer Allison. It's a children's mystery.

This week it's two books from the public library. They always end up getting priority because there's a deadline to return them.

Signor Marconi's Magic Box by Gavin Weightman, which is so-so but peripherally related to a project I was doing at work. I'm almost finished, so it will probably go back to the library this week.

Just started Stronger in the Broken Places by James Lee Witt, former Director of FEMA (pre-Brown, pre-Katrina) which so far is very interesting. (BTW, nobody seems to have this one and the Touchstone is coming up as another book by the same name, different author.)

I also have an online "reading assignment" of sorts from a friend who sent me a link about something he's involved in. Started that last night; it will probably require a few visits to the website to read it all.

Which reminds me: has anyone done much cataloguing of e-books (PDFs and the like)? I have quite a few reports saved and it might be worthwhile to catalog some of them; I believe some even have ISBNs.

Still working on Jane Eyre... I'm enjoying it, but it's going very slowly; it's hard to read quickly and my reading time has been very limited recently.

I'm currently listening to The Stolen Child, finally getting it from the library. I'm about 40% of the way through, and so far it's interesting and well-written, very evocative, but I would have a hard time pointing the the plot.

halfway through gormenghast !! very good!!

Just finished Kilroy Is Here by Gordon Willis.

I have read many odd books - The Saragossa Manuscript by Count Jan Potocki, Notes of a Hypocrite and much else. This was probably one of the oddest.

Next - I might resume reading and reviewing my Du Bois collection. Haven`t decided yet.

I'm reading The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov, and the italian versione of Jesus Video by Andreas Eschbach.

Alhana, I'm a huge fan of The Master and Margarita, have just re-read it in the last 6 months, and envy anyone reading it for the first time.

nicoletort, since you were kind enough to ask my opinion of Joe Menno's book, I think I should make it clear that it's highly unusual for me to harbor a visceral, near-rabid dislike for a piece of fiction, but my initial impulse on finishing The Boy Detective Fails was to run with it to the back patio, douse it generously in Quik-Start fluid, and gleefully watch while it burned, right down to its very last vacuous page. Fortunately (I think) I was able to abstain from such an irrational response, so I'll only note that I found Mr. Menno's book to be almost surreally vapid, monumentally inane, and an utter waste of my very valuable reading time, the cloying equivalent of a 300-odd-page 'smiley face'. I have since passed it on to one of my older sons, who'd expressed an interest in it when he saw me reading it, and after a number of serious, multiple caveats, I made it his.

I'm continuing with reading Arnaldur Indridason's Silence of the Grave. After that I'm returning to some non-fiction that i've had on standby.

Have nearly finished Pete Hamill's Downtown: my Manhattan A lovely blend of history and guidebook. I picked it up after reveling in his Forever:a novel which, despite its dishwater title, was one of the most engrossing reads I've had in years. Still working on The Gangs of New York, which doesn't lend itself to late night reading. I think I'll take up 1776 next, as I recently had the opportunity to hear David McCullough speak, and several other things have pushed me in the direction of that period of history lately.

Why aren't my posts appearing??

Well, that one did, but the one listing what I'm reading didn't - grrr!
OK, one more time - half way through History of God by Karen Armstrong,just started The Murder Room and still slogging through Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, though finding it slow going.

#16:do you read a lot of P J James, mlfhlibrarian? I enjoyed The Murder Room

I'm re-reading Best American Essays 2003--one of my favorite in the BAE series (I've read all of them except about four from the mid-1990s--took it on as a project this summer). Best American Essays 2006 has excellent essays but is rather lugubrious.

Am reading Wuthering Heights and The other Boleyn Girl.Nice,quiet reading for the Winter evenings.My hubby can't believe I'm so quiet.Happy Reading!

I just finished Russell Banks' Cloudsplitter, which was gripping and thought-provoking. I'll be starting Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go tonight. Still listening to The Moonstone and Dancing Shoes (there's too much time when my kids don't want to listen to a book in the car--we may be on that one 'til Christmas!).

Russell Banks is one of my favorite American writers, cabegley, and his last novel The Darling is one of his best. And as compelling as his portrayal of John Brown was in Cloudsplitter, I recommend comparing it to Bruce Olds' take on Brown in Raising Holy Hell, a terrific book too.

Still going on with Bill Clinton's autobiography at breakfast time, just about to start Birthright by Nigel Robinson and dabbling in a bit of H.P. Lovecraft in the evening.

I'm reading A Distant Mirror by Barbara W. Tuchman and although I'm progressing slowly, I'm enjoying the wealth of information about the 14th century.

It's always cause for rejoicing when the prize-winning British novelist William Boyd has a new book and his latest, entitled Restless, has immediately become one of my favorite new books of the year. I tore through it in only 2 days last week - it's impossible to put down once you begin - and it's definitely recommended to the max. If you're unfamiliar with Boyd (a crying shame!), then I especially recommend his wonderful novels Any Human Heart, Brazzaville Beach, or A Good Man in Africa, and you may thank me later, of course, but whatever you do, don't miss Restless, because it's nothing short of dynamite.

Just finished The True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey. It was a great read and I learned a lot just by his descriptions of what life was like for the first generation after the people from the penal colonies in Australia. It sounds like they were still treated like prisoners and serfs and were persecuted by a corrupt police service. It took a bit longer than I usually take to finish this because sewing for Halloween took up a solid two weeks of my time. Now with a purple tooth fairy/princess, a whale, and a red devil (that looks a bit like an overdressed red pimp) under my belt I can get back to reading again. That's what happens when you let your grandchildren design their own costumes for you to execute. It never quite looks like what you envisage as that character.
BTW I just started a new group about how library thing has affected your reading to hear peoples opinions about how LT has changed what they read or how much they read. Pop over and weigh in on this topic because I'm really curious if others find their reading has increased dramatically and become more focused in their area of interest.

laytonwoman3rd - A great companion book to Gangs of New York is Banished Children of Eve by Peter Quinn which gives another view of the same time frame. I loved that book and it started me on a quest for more information about that time. Fascinating history and the events that brought about those riots were so widespread that it was amazing how it all came together at one time.

mlfhlibrarian, you aren't the only one finding Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell slow going. I've put it down and picked it back up at least a dozen times which requires me to re-read a good portion of it to reestablish where I was in the book and to refresh my memory. I'm determined to finish it, but so far it hasn't grabbed me enough to stay with it in one go.

cabegley,
I share your opinion of Cloudsplitter by Russell Banks and as I see by the following message, there are other books that I can be searching for about John Brown. It goes on my shelf of must keep and must re-read books.

I kissed Jonathan Strange... goodbye at page 250 and never looked back, just terminally boring.

That is my feeling about One Hundred Years of Solitude I keep wondering what I am missing because a book so highly honoured and praised should not seem so terribly bad to me, should it? I mean it's just boring and pointless so far. If someone could enlighten me about it's meaning or direction I could perhaps have another go with some purpose and clarity but as it is, I can't understand why it was so highly praised.

LouisBranning,
Clicking on your link for Restless took me to the Gary Larson Far Side Collection The Chickens are Restless Maybe you should check your touchstone link - it may have picked up the Larson book by mistake.

warbrideslass: thanks for the recommendation; I checked out Banished Children of Eve on Amazon, and it does sound like my kind of book--and it combines two of my abiding interests--New York City and the American Civil War. I'm with you on One Hundred Years of Solitude. I took it from the library, and even with a renewal I just couldn't get involved in it. Oh well, there is room for individual taste, even with regard to books generally acknowledged to be "great". That's why we have chocolate AND vanilla.

I've been having trouble today with messages disappearing after I click on "submit" which hasn't happened before.
So I'm re-typing this one. I've started a new group about how LT has affected your reading with two topics. One about if your volume of reading has increased and the other about has your type of reading changed or have you found books you wouldn't have otherwise read etc. Pop over there and voice your experience. I've been very curious because my reading has increased dramatically and I've also been focusing more on my specific areas of interest and found books that I wouldn't otherwise have found.

Currently reading my first Neil Gaiman book - Anansi Boys.

So far, I like his writing style and humour, and if this book is indicative of his other work, I'll certainly be reading more.

I've started Our Mutual Friend; the clocks went back last night so Dickens is perfect for dark evenings in London!

I must read True history of the Kelly Gang - unfortunately, I've got a hardback copy and I definitely prefer paperbacks. (I have weak wrists). :)

warbrideslass, I loved The True History of the Kelly Gang--I think Peter Carey is brilliant! You may also like Oscar and Lucinda, also by Carey, which is one of my favorite books of all time.

Hello deargreenplace,
Your message #35 moves me to write a caveat...Neil Gaiman's work can pall quickly if taken in very large quantity. Space the pleasure out, is my epxerienced advice.

American Gods is a good follow-up to Anansi Boys but wait until Christmas before rading it, if you want to continue to enjoy the experience. A word from a long-time reader of Gaiman's.

I've been preparing for National Novel Writing Month (11/1-11/30, write 50,000 words, GO!), so have focused on Character and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card and other such writing-guide tomes. I found time to immerse myself in delight with Sixpence House by Paul Collins which reinforces my long-standing desire to travel to Hay-on-Wye ASAP armed with scads of money and a new, larger home to send the books I buy there back home to Austin.

I finished the new Mark Puls biography of Sam Adams (Samuel Adams: Father of the American Revolution) (ugh!) and posted a review. Now I'm on to David Liss's A Spectacle of Corruption and Sherlock Holmes: The Unauthorized Biography by Nick Rennison (which is fabulously interesting so far).

Am back up to a few books at a time with -

A Blood-Dimmed Tide by Rennie Airth - follow up to an earlier novel. Not sure if it will become a series, but I like the setting - this one is 1932 England.

The Hanged Man's Song by Sandford is another in the Kidd series. They won't win prizes, but they sure are fun.

The House Next Door got interrupted by my vacation and I have a slim chance of finishing it by Halloween.

Just finished The Wall of the Sky, The Wall of the Eye a collection of short stories by Jonathan Lethem. It was unbelievably good. He has an amazing imagination and way of plunging you deep into a story and making you swim for the surface. Excellent and highly recommended if you like stories with a hard edge and a hefty dose of weird.

Finished V: To Conquer the Throne by Tim Sullivan Saturday night and moved right on to V: Prisoners and Pawns by Howard Weinstein (the next book chronologically according to a timeline I'm using but not according to the original publishing order; Throne actually came out two years after Prisoners and Pawns).

To Conquer the Throne was pretty vanilla and forgettable. (I enjoyed another of Sullivan's "V" novels that I read recently, V: The Florida Project, a bit more.) I just couldn't get into this particular set of characters for some reason (this novel focuses on London based Visitors and resistance members). Also, it didn't really seem like a lot was really happening until the last two or three chapters or so. For more on this, see my review.

I can tell already that I'm going to like Prisoners and Pawns better as it is one of the relatively few "V" novels to actually feature the main characters from the television series. Also, Weinstein co-wrote one of the best of the "V" novels that I've read so far, V: East Coast Crisis.

warbrideslass - don't worry, you're definitely not the only one who doesn't understand all of the praise heaped on One Hundred Years of Solitude. I just couldn't get into it, couldn't be bothered to figure out which of the thirty seven characters with the same name was being referred to, didn't care.

I had the same experience with Love in the Time of Cholera, actually. Read it, didn't care, figured it might have lost something in translation, read the first 50 or so pages in Spanish, and nope, didn't care then either. I'm a compulsive book-keeper, even for books I don't really want to re-read in the forseeable future, but I gave that one away. Garcia Marquez is just not my cup of tea, I guess.

Blink by Malcolm Gladwell and On Art and Life by John Ruskin

#42: totally agree:magic realism isn't for me either.

I tried to read One Hundred Years of Solitude in the early 70s and barely got to page 50, and had no idea how anyone could possibly get through it. I went back to it in 1990 and it was a completely different circumstance: the story and the language flowed beautifully, the almost quaint magical-realism seemed perfectly suited for the story, and I thought it was an unforgettable piece of work. And as much as I've admired it over the years, I think Love in the Time of Cholera is a better book and have recommended it to many who've been disappointed in OHYoS. (In Marquez's memoir Living to Tell the Tale one of the more fascinating sections in the early part of the book is when he tells how me came to write OHYoS and the inspiration for each of its characters and situations, great stuff.)

I am reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, its pretty good o far, Im on page 70 right now and I need to finish it for school for tommorow. Gotta get reading. This is my Halloween read.

Just finished the (rather disappointing, I found) Anansi Boys, and am currently finishing up Klezmer by Joann Sfar, a graphic novelist whose work I generally admire. I am still working on the endlessly entertaining Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice for all Creation, a faux agony aunt column written by a geneticist for those from all different species who are suffering from amorous difficulties. Meanwhile I have just started to reread A Tale of Two Cities for a Dickens reading group, and am already groaning over my high school underlining (I haven't read it since). A friend just sent me Paul Auster's New York Trilogy, after I told him how much I enjoyed Book of Illusions, so I can't wait to jump into that as soon as I have a chance.

Having finished up Stalinist Values, which underwhelmed me a bit (see my review), it's time for something light and fluffy for a change; in this case Ellen Kushner's The Privilege of the Sword.

LouisBranning:
Maybe I enjoyed The Boy Detective Fails so much because I was (am still) reading The Fountainhead and The Count of Monte Cristo at the same time, so it was nice to take a break and read a simple story.

Other than that, I'm 100 pages away from finishing The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult. I'll probably start re-reading The Kite Runner for my book club meeting, since I last read it two summers ago.

I never read more than one book at a time until I started LibraryThinging. Wonder why that is.

Just finished While Europe Slept by Bruce Bawer and am now reading Walking the Bible by Bruce Feiler.

For audiobooks, I just finished Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome and have started Hard Times by Charles Dickens.

Finished Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Marukami and was glad to experience this imaginative author. I must say I found the character of Nakata rather cloying towards the end.
Reading now The History of Love by Nicole Krauss - very nice use of language. Also started The Apple: New Crimson Petal Stories by Michel Faber. And The Plot Against America by Philip Roth - I never knew that Charles Lindbergh had been a U.S. President.

Amandameale, Roth's novel is pure fiction, what's often referred to as "alternative history", and fortunately for us all, Charles Lindbergh was never a US president. And good luck with The History of Love, one of my favorite books from last year, and I was elated to meet the beautiful and very gracious Nicole Krauss on her book tour as well.

Amandameale, I finished The History of Love just last week. Loved it. You won't be disappointed ;)

Ex Libris - loved it.
Me Talk Pretty One Day - hated it
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman by Murakami- just started, but liking it so far.

I feel like I've been reading The Beginning Place by Ursula K. Le Guin forever. It's such a little book, and I enjoy it whenever I pick it up, but I just can't seem to find the enthusiasm for it. Hmm.

Yesterday I read the Griffin & Sabine Trilogy, (Griffin & Sabine, Sabine's Notebook and The Golden Mean), for a bit of a break. I only recently acquired a copy of the last book, so it was nice to read back over the series in its entirity. My dog enjoyed having me sit still for a longer period of time, too; quality lap-sitting time, you know. ;)

Just to weigh in on Jonanthan Strange & Mr Norrell - it took me forever, (just shy of two weeks, which is a very long time for me to spend with a book), but in the end I really enjoyed it and am glad I read it. I'm looking forward to Susanna Clarke's short story collection.

I'm reading Ilium by Dan Simmons. It's not at all what I expected (a straight alternate history), but it's more engaging than I thought it would be when I realized it wasn't what I thought. But it's long, and I'm not sure how long I'll keep reading it before I jump to The Blind Side by Michael Lewis.

I need to read seven more books by November 12 to hit my goal of 200 in one year, and it's looking good, at this point.

Just finished Darkly Dreaming Dexter, which I thought was fun but others may not like, and started The Cat Who Walks Through Walls.

Am reading Wuthering Heights by Bronte and have just bought The Beloved by P.Greame-Evans.I'm enjoying Wuthering Heights cause it takes me into another world and another time and is very descriptive.
Happy Reading!

I weigh in on the positive side for Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. It had an admittedly slow start, and it never got heart-poundingly exciting, but it was a very good story and well written. I think it's a work that builds upon itself, and needs time to fully appreciate. It certainly has flaws, but for a first novel it's quite impressive. I would really recommend to anyone going 200 pages before abandoning.

Finished frankenstein, am now reading a Tale of a Tub by swift.

I finally finished The Beginning Place, so now I'm on to Rose by Jeff Smith and Charles Vess, with plans to start Five Children and It by E. Nesbit as soon as that's done.

I just zipped through The Privilege of the Sword with a good bit of enjoyment (see my review) and will now pick up After the Ball.

Print: Tempting faith : an inside account of political seduction by David Kuo. Interesting, though slow moving, story so far.

Unabridged audio: Fancy Strut by Lee Smith. A little soap opera-ish, but still kinda fun; the narrator is pretty good.

Finally reading some P. D. James, one of my wife's favorite authors, and she had suggested A Certain Justice as a good one. As I don't seem to have much time to read, and when I do, tending to read lengthy novels, I will read some shorter novels until my copy of Against the Day shows up in my mailbox. James writes well; I am about midway through the book...

I'm a Brit and have read many of P D James books (Nog:#64) and have enjoyed them. Does she sell or is she read in the USA? Just interested.

Right now I'm knee-deep in cowboys and Indians, with less than a hundred pages to go in Blood and Thunder: An Epic of the American West, Hampton Sides' extraordinary history of the American conquest of the West, and it's easy to understand why the book's earned nothing but rave reviews so far: it's impeccably researched, beautifully and perceptively written, and laced throughout it all is the nearly unbelieveable story of Kit Carson, the illiterate mountain man who reluctantly, but very deservedly, became an American icon even during his own lifetime. Steven Spielberg has already optioned the book, but there's no doubt at all that his primary focus will be on Carson's amazing story, and it should make one hell of a great movie.

LouisBranning: THANK YOU
I wondered how I had lived so long (46 years) without knowing that Lindbergh had been President. I even re-read the book jacket to be sure. THANK YOU for setting me straight.
alhana: I'm about halfway through The History of Love and it really is delightful.

Amanda, perhaps you've misunderstood my initial reply, or maybe you've omitted a word from your above post, but I'll repeat once more, Charles Lindbergh was never an American president, and while Roth's terrific book reads like the 'truth', it's only fiction, pure fakery, and a very well-imagined alternate history.

Hazelk - #65 - I think she does fairly well here - she's one of my favorite authors and I hope someday to complete my Dalgleish collection. I wonder if the movie version of her Children of Men will prompt more sales? As it's a departure for her, maybe not. Rendell is another of my favorites, but I don't think she's as popular as James is over here.

Yes Bookmarque (#69), I like Rendell too.

Currently reading some non-fiction: The Classical world: An Epic History of Greece and Rome by Robin Lane Fox. Excellent stuff.

Hi all - just joined your group and I love it already. I just read through this post and there must be a gazillion books that I have never heard of that I want to read. Luckily, I can read a book a minute and I have a money tree growing in the back yard to support my habit.

This week, I am reading Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys and I am enjoying it so far (although not nearly as much as Neverwhere, which is one of my faves.

I need to finish this book quickly, though, because I am going on vacation on Friday and I don't want to bring it along with my juicy new book that I will start - Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts - it is super long and I LOVE long books.

Thanks again for all the new TBRs...

Oh yeah - I absolutely LOVED Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell - but I could see how some would consider it slow. Personally, I got lost in the details...

I am currently reading Skinny Legs and All by Tom Robbins

so far an interesting read

I read The Right Attitude to Rain by Alexander McCall Smith last week. A nice book following Isabel Dalhousie on from The Sunday Philosophy Club, and apparently Friends, Lovers, Chocolate too, which I must have missed. There were some lovely touches, and it is a nice relaxing before bed read, but somewhat insubstantial. I kept thinking something was about to happen, and it didn’t really. Nice touch at the end though.

As for this week, finally got hold of Richard Ford’s new book, The Lay of the Land, and am enjoying it immensely so far.

Brad Meltzer's "Book of Fate" was topnotch. I love all of his books. The most bizarre nonfiction book I have ever read (having just finished it last week) was "Running With Scissors". I knew the movie would be coming out soon and wanted to read the book first. I am now reading John Grisham's newest which is also nonfiction, "The Innocent Man".

Recently finished:

Wit'ch Fire by James Clemens
Dragon and Phoenix by Joanne Bertin

Currently reading:

Death on Demand by Carolyn G. Hart

History of Love is my all time favorite book. I have read it three times so far, explored reading guides online. Every reading reveals something I missed the time before. Like the layers of an onion. LOVED it!

I have just recently completed The Thirteenth Tale, by Diane Setterfield. I was able to get an advanced reader's copy and devoured it in two sittings over a weekend.

Now I am working on The Speed of Light by Elizabeth Rosner. The struggles of the adult children of a Holocaust survivor. Hits home, since I am the child of a Holocaust survivor myself. That's another story.

Also reading a new release: On Agate Hill by Lee Smith. Set in and around Raleigh NC after the Civil War. We meet plucky orphan Molly Petree in the form of her diaries, letters, memorabilia.

Just started The Phoenix and the Carpet by E. Nesbit. While I like children's lit, (and Nesbit in particular), I think this will be the last one I read for a while. I find myself craving things with a bit more substance to them.

Just begun: A long way down by Nick Hornby. Seems to be fun for now.

Just started Full of life by John Fante ... and way back at comment 47, sycoraxpine mentioned starting the New York Trilogy by Paul Auster ... IMHO, that's still the best stuff he's ever done.

KromesTomes (and all you others who have spoken about New York trilogy )-- I have a friend who loves reading books set in NYC - she is normally a lighter, mystery reader but loves to try anything - (she is in my book group and every month complains that we are not reading a mystery and every month ends up loving the book). Would this be a book to recommend to someone like that?

re message 81:

Yes if she doesn't mind not having a clear-cut resolution at the end. It's been several years since I read New York Trilogy by Paul Auster but I seem to remember feeling the stories were more about the journey than the destination. Perhaps I should add it to the re-read pile.

KromesTomes, I just finished John Fante's startlingly good novel Ask the Dust last month, the first book of his I'd ever read, and now have Full of Life on my new year's reading list, along with two others of his as well. And I could kick myself now because about 6 years ago I had a chance to pick up a first ed. of Dago Red for less than $100, but I passed on the chance, and have regretted it more than a few times since.

Just finished Three to Get Deadly by Janet Evanovich and am currently reading The Count of Monte Cristo by Dumas and Color: A Natural History of the Palette by Victoria Finlay.

For interest I'm reading Walsingham: Elizabethan Spymaster and Statesman. There are a lo-ot of names but it is interesting.

My loo book is Pistache by Sebastian Faulks - very witty. The James Bond goes shopping story is a good example.

And for light entertainment Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and The Well of Lost Plots by Jasper Fforde. The former at bedtime, the latter at work (we're closing the office and have nothing to dooooooooo!)

I loved reading Never Let Me Go thought it rather apt in our current times. Have just finished reading My Dirty Little Book of Stolen Time by Liz Jensen enjoyed the concept of time travel. I am just started Amy Tan's Saving Fish from Drowning finding it interesting so far despite my disappointment at discovering via Google that bibi chen never existed.

Re: John Fante ... I've also read Ask the Dust and The Road to Los Angeles ... really gritty, down-to-earth stuff that has yet to disappoint me ... I seem to recall a recent movie based on one of his books ... anyone seen it?

Another Fante note: I got all three of these books in the nice Ecco/Black Sparrow paperback editions, all at separate used book sales, all for under $2 a piece ... I just had to gloat a bit!

Re: New York Trilogy ... not really recommended if your friend is expecting a "standard" mystery experience ... as the other poster hinted at, these stories use kind of a mystery framework to get into more existential questions about personal identity, etc.

I recently finished Gustaw Herling 's book of three novellas, The Island. I first read it ages ago and it has not lost it’s ability to shock after a second reading.

The Tower is told in the first person by a Polish officer who borrows a friend’s house to rest after the end of the Italian campaign in World War II, and then brilliantly shifts and centers the story around an 18th century leper. My favorite of the three;

In The Island, the rich, selfish Carthusians living on Capri in their fortress-monastery in the 17th century bar the monastery doors when the plague ravages the island, that is, until the islanders begin to throw corpses over the wall. There’s also a sub plot involving a romance between a stone mason who has lost his sight and a beautiful young woman. The writing is so gorgeous that it literally brought a tear to my eye;

The Second Coming depicts the painful last years of Pope Urban IV, and involves a brilliant sub plot whereby a parish priest is condemned for an act of heresy after having confessed doubts as to Christ’s physical presence in the Eucharist, and is exposed to the July sun and starved to death in a cage. And while the plague rages, the faithful await the Second Coming, and Jews and heretics accused of profaning the Holy Host are burned, hanged or beheaded.

Amazing stories, beautiful writing.

I just finished Ghostwritten by David Mitchell. Brilliant book!
Now I'm finishing Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett and then I'll move on to Novecento by Alessandro Baricco.

I'm reading Anna Karenina by Tolstoy. It's a two-volume edition and I just started volume two.

I'm in the middle of The Virtu, and I'm finding it difficult to put down.

morphidae (#84):
I'm also currently reading The Count of Monte Cristo (unabridged); are you abridged or unabridged?

(and a side note: I love Janet Evanovich for something light in between heavy stuff)

The unabridged version is hands down what you need to read in order to do the story justice.

I just finished Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro. This book absorbed me. I'd read Brave New World recently, and I believe this is a response to that book. I found Never Let Me Go much more engaging and thought provoking (I think it's a bit of an unfair assessment on my part, since it's at least partly because Brave New World shows its age).

I'll be starting Tipping the Velvet, by Sarah Waters, tonight. I loved Fingersmith, and I hear this is very good. It's a first novel, so I'm a bit leery, but we'll see.

And regarding the discussion on The Count of Monte Cristo--unabridged or nothing! What a fantastic book! I know it's long, but it rockets along. It's in my all-time top 10.

I honestly don't know. I'm reading it through www.dailylit.com.

I just bought and started The Ladies of Grace Adieu, the latest by Susanna Clarke. I'm only into the first story, but I'd say Clarke excels within the limits of the short story! But maybe that's because I pooped out 2/3 of the way through Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell three times?

I am ashamed to say I've spent three days reading three novels by Martina Cole. They're nasty, vulgar and yet I can't put them down. I'm going to continue with Our Mutual Friend tomorrow, though it's frightfully tame in comparison.

I've finally finished King Dork by Frank Portman, which I really enjoyed (LouisBranning - thanks for the tip on the 1st ed you posted last week. I'm going to examine my copy!).

I've been picking out books for a 9-day work trip (and 13 hour flight each way), so my list for the next while is:
The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick
Specimen Days by Michael Cunningham
Siddhartha by Herman Hesse
I think I might need one or two more, but space and weight are an issue right now...

I'm currently reading Classic Irish Short Stories selected and introduced by Frank O'Connor. Great selections that contain not only the classics by the likes of Joyce, Bowen, and O'Faolain, but some great stories by obscure authors like Mary Lavin, James Plunkett and Bryan MacMahon.

Having knocked off After the Ball, a good read about a period I seldom visit (see my review), the next book up is The Longest Winter.

I just Finished The Toyminator. I don't know aboutthe rest of the world but Robert Rankin is severly underappreciated in the US. He's amazing!!! I'm currently reading Jasper FForde's The Fourth Bear. Another author with a wonderful imagination. Next up is The Meaning of Night by Michael Cox.

AKT, I read The Meaning of Night a while back, and though I found it a little 'wordy', and even a bit ponderous and predictable in its second half, I wound up enjoying it finally, and hope you do as well.

I read Vikram Chandra's much-anticipated new novel Sacred Games last month and really enjoyed a great deal of it, but also thought it had a couple of very distracting structural inconsistencies, and one real whopper of a plot flaw, which, in the end, rather soured my appreciation of it as a whole and was disappointed with it when I finished. And please be aware that Chandra sort of thumbs his nose at his Western readers by including literally hundreds of Hindi/Mumbai slang words that are all untranslated and unitalicized, with no glossary included either, so while the meaning of many of the terms are embedded in the text and mostly understandable, it makes for an extremely 'foreign', and often annoying reading experience. If you check Amazon UK you'll see a string of 5-Star reviews on this one, but because of the reasons I've stated, I'd only allow it 3-Stars max, and can only advise, 'Proceed at your own (reader's) risk'.

Right now I'm about 150 pages into Brit novelist Tim Willocks' marvelous new swashbuckler The Religion and it's positively delicious so far: a dark and bloody adventure story set in 16th century Europe with the Knights of Saint John opposing the Ottoman emperor Suleiman the Magnificent, the cross versus the crescent, all centered on the epic siege of Malta, and it's blood, guts, and gore, with no room at all for the faint-hearted, and simply a thrilling story so far.

LB - I was looking around this website for information about Shantaram, which I just started reading yesterday. I noticed that when you had started Sacred Games a couple of weeks ago you were saying that it was probably better than Shantaram. Has that opinion changed? I would hate to get into that monster of a book and realize it is boring. It seems that most people love it, though. I would be interested in your thoughts on it.

Concetta, I absolutely loved Shantaram, one of my favorite novels of the last few years, and Chandra's book can't touch it. Plus I also understand that Greg Roberts is working on a sequel to it right now, and I can't wait.

Just started the roots of heaven by Romain Gary.

Read Witch Child a few days ago. I was disappointed - it was a cool idea and good execution/writing, but the plot got to the central crisis/conflict, and then just stopped. It felt like I accidentally bought a copy that only had the first 2/3s of the book.

I started American Gods and The Messenger yesterday for group reads in other forums, and am so far enjoying both (although I barely got 20 pages into The Messenger before I had to put it down and go to sleep).

>105 Concetta: : I think that Shantaram is excellent, possibly the best book I've read this year. Though I haven't read Sacred Games yet.

GreyHead and LouisBranning - thanks so much for the response and the recommendation - I am going on vacation and would hate to lug that giant book with me unless it is great - I CAN'T WAIT TO READ IT.

I have to say, the first chapter has already reeled me in - but I can't figure out how to pronounce "Prabaker" (and that kind of thing causes me to lie awake at night - I need therapy ;-) )

I am now reading On the Road by Jack Kerouac - I am ashamed to say but I have trying to read this book for seven years and have never completed it - this time I will

Recently finished:

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen
Death on Demand by Carolyn G. Hart

Now reading:

A Good Hanging by Ian Rankin
Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris

Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman. So far I'm really enjoying it.

I finally managed to get some significant reading in this week (though unfortunately at the cost of studying).

I finished The Copernican Revolution by Thomas Kuhn, at long last! I started that book in the summer, but slowed down in the middle because I was only halfway through after a couple of weeks and had a lot more books I wanted to read before the summer was done, and then I didn't have much time once school started again. It was a really good book, though, and well worth the effort. I've read several other things about Copernicus in the last couple of months (for a history of astronomy course), and this is the only one that really gets into why Copernicus did what he did and why it was important for the history of science. A lot of the other authors seemed just to want to make him seem bad.

Also in the past week I read Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, for the Read YA Lit discussion. I found it enjoyable and thought-provoking, but I'll save further comment for that group. I liked it enough that I bought and started the sequel, Pretties, today.

Hazel --

Yes, P D James is known here. We have had all of the Dalgleishes on television - including the new red-headed version! LOL

Jack

P.S. Folks here do read her books as well

There's now a thread open for What You're Reading the Week of 4 Nov 2006 

So brewergirl, how are you liking Walking the Bible? To date, it is my favorite book.

I also just finished The Toyminator and before that The Fourth Bear. Jasper Fforde is just brilliant. I think this is his best Nursery Crime novel. Some of Rankin's jokes are cheesy but it still kept me interested to the end.

unbearable lightness of being in aberwystwyth