What are you reading?

13468978

Comments

  • hullcityfanhullcityfan Banned
    edited May 2013 Posts: 496
    I'm reading a Book.Its Young Bond Blood Fever.
  • edited May 2013 Posts: 2,189
    I just finished Alistair MacLean's The Guns of Navarone and now I'm on to his other first big book, HMS Ulysses.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    I'm currently reading ""Sherman's March"" from Burke Davis.
    Anyone interested in the American Civil War of 1861-65 should read this.
    William Tecumseh Sherman brought devastation and hopelessness to the Georgian and Carolina's people. He completely destroyed their economy, laided waste the livestock.
    Burn to the ground houses, churches, public buildings, all in the hope to bring an end to the Civil War and to make sure that the Southern States would never get the idea of making war against the North again.

    Enlightning to say the least!

    From a northern point of view, Sherman was pretty cool. Even to this day the mere mention of Sherman's name in the south brings the southerners to spit. :))
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,459
    Sandy wrote:
    Being a fan of suspense and detective stories it's amazing that I had only read one Agatha Christie book before (Murder on the Orient Express). That is about to change, however, because I just started reading The Mysterious Affair at Styles. So far so good, very enjoyable.

    Oooh, I love Agatha Christie! I really do. I think you are in for some real treats, @Sandy. And you have the whole lot to go through; take your time, it will give you pleasure for years. I have my favorites, of course. Here are a few off the top of my head: The ABC Murders, Hallowe'en Party, Sleeping Murder, By The Pricking Of My Thumbs, What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw (aka 4:50 From Paddington), and Death on The Nile.

    For me, I am currently rereading two classics: Doyle's A Study in Scarlet (trying to get my review done today) and Fleming's From Russia With Love (one of my favorite Bond novels).
  • Posts: 14,799
    Sandy wrote:
    Being a fan of suspense and detective stories it's amazing that I had only read one Agatha Christie book before (Murder on the Orient Express). That is about to change, however, because I just started reading The Mysterious Affair at Styles. So far so good, very enjoyable.

    Oooh, I love Agatha Christie! I really do. I think you are in for some real treats, @Sandy. And you have the whole lot to go through; take your time, it will give you pleasure for years. I have my favorites, of course. Here are a few off the top of my head: The ABC Murders, Hallowe'en Party, Sleeping Murder, By The Pricking Of My Thumbs, What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw (aka 4:50 From Paddington), and Death on The Nile.

    For me, I am currently rereading two classics: Doyle's A Study in Scarlet (trying to get my review done today) and Fleming's From Russia With Love (one of my favorite Bond novels).

    I used to read lots of Agatha Christie. Not anymore I am afraid, not a big fan of whodunits. That said, she did write a short story featuring a character named... James Bond. The title was The Rajah's Emerald.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 23,449
    I have just completed the 3rd edition of the famous 21st Century Astronomy textbook, arguably the best book in its kind.

    58a4f3acc656b9aa692840897c96320a.jpeg

    So why on Earth (or elsewhere in the galaxy) did I embark on this mission? Have I gone back to school? No, I haven't, but I'm fascinated by what astronomy has to offer. And a college textbook is the best way to get a clean scientific approach to exactly that.

    I spread the chapters evenly over an eight month period, concentrating on one major part of the book at a time. In fact, the periodic one or two week school holidays offered the best opportunity to complete one such part, usually comprising somewhere between four and six chapters, and now, yesterday in fact, I turned the final page. I have read it in fascination and selectively memorising a lot of material. But as it isn't my intention to go to back to school, I haven't 'studied' the book or worked out all of its exercises and challenges. That said, I have found a lot of useful material for my own physics classes and I'm sure my pupils will appreciate the astronomical angle. ;-)

    Huge recommend!
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 17,728
    Ludovico wrote:
    Sandy wrote:
    Being a fan of suspense and detective stories it's amazing that I had only read one Agatha Christie book before (Murder on the Orient Express). That is about to change, however, because I just started reading The Mysterious Affair at Styles. So far so good, very enjoyable.

    Oooh, I love Agatha Christie! I really do. I think you are in for some real treats, @Sandy. And you have the whole lot to go through; take your time, it will give you pleasure for years. I have my favorites, of course. Here are a few off the top of my head: The ABC Murders, Hallowe'en Party, Sleeping Murder, By The Pricking Of My Thumbs, What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw (aka 4:50 From Paddington), and Death on The Nile.

    For me, I am currently rereading two classics: Doyle's A Study in Scarlet (trying to get my review done today) and Fleming's From Russia With Love (one of my favorite Bond novels).

    I used to read lots of Agatha Christie. Not anymore I am afraid, not a big fan of whodunits. That said, she did write a short story featuring a character named... James Bond. The title was The Rajah's Emerald.

    Yes, I find that Ian Fleming was a much more descriptive writer than Agatha Christie when it came to delineating characters and describing places and physical descriptions of all kinds. The "psychological moment" was the key to Christie - the moment that revealed the mystery was key, nothing else mattered very much it seems to me.
  • LicencedToKilt69007LicencedToKilt69007 Belgium, Wallonia
    Posts: 523
    I have read for the third time "Diamonds Are Forever" and I'm going to read "The diamonds smugglers" soon.
  • Posts: 14,799
    Dragonpol wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    Sandy wrote:
    Being a fan of suspense and detective stories it's amazing that I had only read one Agatha Christie book before (Murder on the Orient Express). That is about to change, however, because I just started reading The Mysterious Affair at Styles. So far so good, very enjoyable.

    Oooh, I love Agatha Christie! I really do. I think you are in for some real treats, @Sandy. And you have the whole lot to go through; take your time, it will give you pleasure for years. I have my favorites, of course. Here are a few off the top of my head: The ABC Murders, Hallowe'en Party, Sleeping Murder, By The Pricking Of My Thumbs, What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw (aka 4:50 From Paddington), and Death on The Nile.

    For me, I am currently rereading two classics: Doyle's A Study in Scarlet (trying to get my review done today) and Fleming's From Russia With Love (one of my favorite Bond novels).

    I used to read lots of Agatha Christie. Not anymore I am afraid, not a big fan of whodunits. That said, she did write a short story featuring a character named... James Bond. The title was The Rajah's Emerald.

    Yes, I find that Ian Fleming was a much more descriptive writer than Agatha Christie when it came to delineating characters and describing places and physical descriptions of all kinds. The "psychological moment" was the key to Christie - the moment that revealed the mystery was key, nothing else mattered very much it seems to me.

    That is the problem with "key" novels, the crime and resolution of the mystery matters more than the investigation, the (stock) characters, anything else.
  • edited July 2013 Posts: 4,622
    On @PerilaguKhan's recommendation, I am about 130 pages into the very gruesome, somewhat macabre, David Stone debut espionage thriller, The Echelon Vendetta (2007), featuring the very formidable CIA "cleaner", Micah Dalton. Not for the faint of heart.
  • Posts: 1,405
    I'm currently reading "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by William Shirer.
    Excellent book about Nazism. I learned a lot about the 1938 Munich pact.
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 17,728
    I'm currently reading "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by William Shirer.
    Excellent book about Nazism. I learned a lot about the 1938 Munich pact.

    Yes, I've read parts of that one myself. Excellent and very detailed book by a man who had met many of the key players in the Nazi hierarchy.
  • Posts: 53
    I'm slowly moving toward the end of Arnold Schwarzeneggers Total Recall. Even in paperback it's a big book but surprisingly readable. Of course it doesn't just cover his film career but his body-building and political career also. In fact his movie career doesn't really begin to take off until about half way through (about page 300!).

    Recommended if: a)you're an Arnie fan b)you're a biography fan or c)both.
  • SandySandy Somewhere in Europe
    Posts: 4,012
    Ludovico wrote:
    Dragonpol wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    Sandy wrote:
    Being a fan of suspense and detective stories it's amazing that I had only read one Agatha Christie book before (Murder on the Orient Express). That is about to change, however, because I just started reading The Mysterious Affair at Styles. So far so good, very enjoyable.

    Oooh, I love Agatha Christie! I really do. I think you are in for some real treats, @Sandy. And you have the whole lot to go through; take your time, it will give you pleasure for years. I have my favorites, of course. Here are a few off the top of my head: The ABC Murders, Hallowe'en Party, Sleeping Murder, By The Pricking Of My Thumbs, What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw (aka 4:50 From Paddington), and Death on The Nile.

    For me, I am currently rereading two classics: Doyle's A Study in Scarlet (trying to get my review done today) and Fleming's From Russia With Love (one of my favorite Bond novels).

    I used to read lots of Agatha Christie. Not anymore I am afraid, not a big fan of whodunits. That said, she did write a short story featuring a character named... James Bond. The title was The Rajah's Emerald.

    Yes, I find that Ian Fleming was a much more descriptive writer than Agatha Christie when it came to delineating characters and describing places and physical descriptions of all kinds. The "psychological moment" was the key to Christie - the moment that revealed the mystery was key, nothing else mattered very much it seems to me.

    That is the problem with "key" novels, the crime and resolution of the mystery matters more than the investigation, the (stock) characters, anything else.

    I think the great thing about Christie is the way she plays with the reader's mind, playing tricks at us, not the crime itself. I find it very enjoyable, she had something wicket in her that few other crime authors have and that is why she remains so popular.

    At the moment I'm reading:

    - Alexander McCall Smith's The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (very good so far, not actually about solving cases but about human beings);
    - George R. R. Martin's A Clash of Kings (making the series last, who knows when it will end);
    - Lauren Weisberger's The Devil Wears Prada (don't judge me, needed something light to go through >15h air travel).
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    edited July 2013 Posts: 12,459
    Oh, I love The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, @Sandy! I have read nearly all in that series. The writing is lovely; please continue on with this. I think you will enjoy it very much. I certainly have.

    He has some other series, too, but so far I have only really gotten into this one. It is a favorite.
  • Posts: 5,772
    Who-ology, a trivia book about Dr. Who. Very, very interesting, and I learned quite a few things.
  • edited July 2013 Posts: 12,837
    I am the Secret Footballer

    Book by this columnist http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Secret_Footballer

    Never heard of him, bought the book, finished it a few days ago and now I'm obsessed with who it could be. There's a website devoted to finding out who he is.

    There was an interview where it sounded like Dave Kitson but they said it was an actor. Then I read a brilliant theory that Kitson was the actor who the radio people got as a red herring. But the front of the book has a red shirt, which could be a reference to Kitsons red hair.

    Or is it all a hoax, just some journalist? This is up there with who shot JFK.
  • Posts: 1,817
    A Tale of Two Cities
    I'm enjoying it very much. So far the story isn't really the big thing, it is the language, the style, the descriptions. From the famous incipit I was captivated by it.
  • the cuckoo's calling.
    Robert Galbraith (J.K Rowling) if you like crime novels you'll probably like this,it also proves J.K Rowling can write something other than harry potter.
  • Posts: 7,653
    Jeffery Deaver XO Because mr Deaver is a good thriller writer
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,459
    Oh, I read The Cuckoo's Calling about a month ago! I thoroughly enjoyed it, @valentinzukovsky ,and I read it not knowing it was JK Rowling.

    It is not the usual crime/thriller/gory fare we often get nowadays, is it? (I like some of that, too, though; I like Val McDermid, for instance). Yes, I liked it a good bit. The sequel is written. I read there is already a BBC series in the works for the main character. I wish Rowling well - I'm happy to see her finally, genuinely, moving on from Potter (and I say that as a huge Potter fan).
  • Posts: 1,817
    It's embarrassing but I haven't finished Dickens' novel... Most of my reading time is focus on the books and readings for the lectures I give and that's pretty much academic stuff. I enjoy it but I just hope I've more time for literature and fiction.
  • 007InVT007InVT Classified
    Posts: 893
    I have read for the third time "Diamonds Are Forever" and I'm going to read "The diamonds smugglers" soon.

    I just picked up The Diamond Smugglers and can't wait to start it. It's a rare treat to read some Fleming I have not read already. Those days are numbered. I think this is the last book of his now I haven't read.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,371
    I finally decided to get back into reading, and while I'm saving the Fleming Bond novels for a proper marathon with the entirety of them, I went with 'Three Act Tragedy' by Agatha Christie. It dives right into the main point of the book, but it seems that the plot and characters are just out and about right now and it's pretty confusing as to what is really going on. Sticking with it, though, for the heart of the novel to come in: the investigation and unravelling of the mystery.
  • Posts: 1,817
    Now giving some time to geopolitics and international affairs with Robert Kaplan's The Revenge of Geography

    13330422.jpg
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 23,449
    I returned to a four book series I read four years ago and was dying to read again: Arthur C. Clarke's Space Odyssey novels.

    2001.jpg

    Naturally my favourite book in this series is the first one published: 2001: A Space Odyssey. Clarke was such a fantastic dreamer, thinking up larger-than-life SciFi concepts, very intelligent and with great consideration towards scientific accuracy when possible. A classic, not only in film but also in book form. Its sequel, 2010: Odyssey Two, has a very beautiful story to tell as well. I won't spoil its climax but man, some of Clarke's ideas make me happy just thinking about them. Two more books were published after that: 2061: Odyssey Three and 3001: The Final Odyssey. Though not as dynamic and extravagant as the former two, both of these are a real treat for any fan of the so-called hard science fiction genre, especially the space themed kind. Tom Hanks at one time showed interest in bringing these two books to film as well.

    Clarke's Space Odyssey feels like it was written for me. These stories allow me to dream, to have hope in our future, to expand my vision on the universe.

  • edited October 2013 Posts: 7,653
    Michael Crichton - Eaters of the dead, one of the early books written as a travel journal by an Arab diplomat who visits the Viking homelands and fights a monster that makes the Vikings scared.
    Anne Cleeves - Red Bones, A detective situated on the Shetland Islands.
    Norman Davies - Vanished Kingdoms, a history book about kingdoms in Europe that can be found in our history books and are no more around today like Burgundy, Aragon, Galacia and such.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    DarthDimi wrote:
    I returned to a four book series I read four years ago and was dying to read again: Arthur C. Clarke's Space Odyssey novels.

    2001.jpg

    Naturally my favourite book in this series is the first one published: 2001: A Space Odyssey. Clarke was such a fantastic dreamer, thinking up larger-than-life SciFi concepts, very intelligent and with great consideration towards scientific accuracy when possible. A classic, not only in film but also in book form. Its sequel, 2010: Odyssey Two, has a very beautiful story to tell as well. I won't spoil its climax but man, some of Clarke's ideas make me happy just thinking about them. Two more books were published after that: 2061: Odyssey Three and 3001: The Final Odyssey. Though not as dynamic and extravagant as the former two, both of these are a real treat for any fan of the so-called hard science fiction genre, especially the space themed kind. Tom Hanks at one time showed interest in bringing these two books to film as well.

    Clarke's Space Odyssey feels like it was written for me. These stories allow me to dream, to have hope in our future, to expand my vision on the universe.

    Those books are great, especially 2001. If any of you have seen the film and scratched your head in confusion the last half hour or so, read the book. It is spelled out on the page for you.
    Currently reading DARK RIVERS OF THE HEART by Dean Koontz, halfway and great so far. I would say this is one of his better novels, originally published in 1994.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,371
    @SaintMark, have you read Crichton's 'Prey'? I own it and read almost all of it a long while ago, but like an idiot, I stopped and never picked it back up.
  • LicencedToKilt69007LicencedToKilt69007 Belgium, Wallonia
    Posts: 523
    I'm reading a Stephen King book called "Dome" (reading in my mothertongue) and it's a messy writing after a few chapters... Good God, I hope it's getting better in some pages...
Sign In or Register to comment.