What Are You Reading?

Vanity | June 27, 2014 | Tax-chick

[Tax-chick]

What are you reading? There used to be a quarterly "What are you reading?" thread, but I haven't seen it for a long time. I got a lot of good book suggestions that way, and I miss it.

So here's a thread! If you're reading something interesting you think others would like, or something boring you'd recommend we all avoid, jump in! If you have a ping list of FReepers who might be interested, ping them!

[meowmeow]

I'm reading The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan

That was a fascinating book!

I just finished Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children and Hollow City. Quick, fun, mindless summer reads. This morning I started A Tale of Two Cities which is part of my Read All My Favorite Books from Childhood project this year. Jeez! I don't remember it being so hard. Apparently I've gotten dumber over the years!

[airedale]

The Scarlet Sisters by Myra MacPhearson which is the biography of two sisters, Victoria Woodall and Tennessee (Tennie) Clark on, who lived in the Guilded Age. They were the first women stockbrokers, Victoria was the first woman to run for president; they ran around with Cornelius Vanderbuilt; influential in the spiritualist movement and were friends with Queen Victoria. They started from nothing with an abusive alcoholic father who was a con man and a slattern of a mother. Like their father they were con’s. They were also very involved in the free love movement.

[I still care]

I think ACG and Small is one of the very best books I ever read. He is probably the best short story writer ever IMHO. Anyone that can make an intriguing tale out of eating a piece of fat bacon, or not filling out the correct paperwork - the man was a genius.

[Chuzzlewit]

no have not read the ERB written novels. I do plan on it at some point, when I finally get tired of classic fiction.

[I still care]

On Audible I have been listening to this:

http://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/William-Shakespeares-Star-Wars-Audiobook/B00E3C43YK/ref=a_wl_c1_1_17_ttl

It’s hysterical. Click the audio sample button below the picture for a try.

[airedale]

A murder long ago. It’s really a mystery not scary at all. Well worth the read, but it builds very slowly. If you start the first book and like it you need to read all 3 since its really one story. They have to be read in order. If you don’t like the first book after a bit then don’t bother with the other 2 since the pacing and style don’t change. Both my wife and I read all 3 and liked the books.

[CatherineofAragon]

That’s a good idea. I’m going to pull up my library account, too...I need to renew those books, anyway.

[yarddog]

I think “The Vagabond Virgin” was on Perry Mason just a few days ago.

[Cecily]

Easy Riders and Raging Bulls by Peter Biskind (a book I happened to see at the library). Its is about Hollyweird in the 1970s and the directors who came to prominence during that decade.

[Nepeta]

I do most of my reading in FanFiction. I know, there's more than a little bit of dross out there, but much of it is written in earnest, and I find quite a few diamonds in the rough.

Oh, and I [ahem] write some myself.

When Mutant X was still airing somewhere, I wrote an alternate universe version of it with Mason Eckhart as the hero!

[Dr. Thorne]

American Gun - Chris Kyle

[airedale]

Good book. I have read all of her books and recommend all of them. Very accessible history. I also recommend David McCullough. The Johnston Flood and The Great Bridge are two of my favorites.

[CatherineofAragon]

LOL, I'm already getting good ideas. I've been wanting to read A Tale of Two Cities for some time. I need to get into more of the classics. A Freeper asked me to read The Divine Comedy with him. I liked the idea, but reading it according to a schedule didn't work for me, if that makes sense. I ended up getting it and reading most of it myself.

The Egan book WAS interesting, and harrowing. Unfortunately he had to break out into FDR worship toward the end.

[jonno]

Otherwise, I’m on the 2nd to last chapter of ‘Against All Things Ending’ - the 9th book in the Thomas Covenant series by Stephan R. Donaldson (two previous trilogies, and now a quadrilogy?).

If you like epic fantasy, SRD is a master. I started reading this series over 30 years ago. With the latest installment (The Last Dark) published just last year, SRD has quite the run going....

Be fore-warned though, I find that I need to have a dictionary handy when reading this guy.

[Nepeta]

Finished Starship Troopers this morning; had not read any Heinlein since forcing myself to read Time Enough for Love, which I most definitely did not grok.

[Mich Patriot]

Finished this very lunch period...

[meowmeow]

I'm more enthused about reading the classics again now that I have a Kindle...mainly because I can make the print big enough to see! I had a lot of old classics on the shelf and the print was teeny-tiny (although they were beautiful old books). I got rid of all of them as I downloaded them on the Kindle - usually for free!

[Nepeta]

I think “The Vagabond Virgin” was on Perry Mason just a few days ago.

All of the Perry Mason novels are quite readable, but the earliest ones from the 1930s have a Perry who is considerably more dashing than the tv version--he takes a lot of chances, drives recklessly, but he still has Della.

[Ghost of SVR4]

[onedoug]

Finishing Herman Wouk’s “The Hope”, then going right into “The Glory”. Also Eugene Rogan “The Arabs: A History” (nonfiction).