Book talk

[WhoTom]

My reading habits are all over the place. For example:

 

Sci-fi: Asimov, Bradbury, Clarke, and other classics, plus modern sci-fi. And of course, all five books in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy "trilogy." (If you like The Guide, you might also enjoy Adams' Dirk Gently novels.)

 

I don't read a lot of westerns, but I enjoyed the Lonesome Dove series.

 

Off-beat stuff: Kurt Vonnegut, Tom Robbins, Tony Vigorito.

 

I also read murder mysteries, courtroom dramas, and psychological thrillers, and flat-out comedies.

 

In non-fiction, I'm a science geek who also indulges in Eastern philosophy (mainly Taoism and Buddhism, not as religions but as a way of life.)

 

Others mentioned Dharma Bums (Kerouac) and Catch-22 (Heller). I liked both of those, although Catch-22 took a while to grab me. If you're reading it and thinking about giving up, give it a few more chapters - it'll be worth it.

 

 

[US Egg]

3 hours ago, transplantbillsfan said:

 

I'll have to read it.  I loved The Longest Day.  Have you read that?  Any similarities in style?

Never read 'The Longest Day', but I will, and soon.

 

Have held that book in my hand and put it back too often.

Edited February 19, 2021 by I am the egg man

[Dr. Who]

I like an obscure sci-fi writer named R.A. Lafferty. Arrive at Easterwine is one of my personal favorites, but his work of historical fiction about Native Americans in Oklahoma, Okla Hanali, is arguably his best book and very good.

 

Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parsifal is the greatest medieval epic, by turns humorous, amorous, and mystical. I recommend the Cyril Edwards translation.

 

Ted Hughes' selected translation of the Metamorphoses, Tales From Ovid, is well done if you are interested in mythology in late antiquity. 

[transplantbillsfan]

Oh I completely forgot to mention him, but I like Dan Brown books a lot, too.  Again, it's total "fluff" reading, but thought-provoking nonetheless and the writing is action-packed enough to keep you consistently turning the pages.

 

All the Robert Langdon books are good, but Davinci Code, Origin, and Inferno are the best among them... probably in that order.  His 2 books outside of the Robert Langdon series (Deception Point and Digital Fortress) are also good.

 

He writes good mystery books and the Langdon books (a few of which are now Tom Hanks movies) focus on a Professor of "Symbology," so you can kinda guess where they go.

 

I would call them fun Summer reads.

[Augie]

45 minutes ago, transplantbillsfan said:

Oh I completely forgot to mention him, but I like Dan Brown books a lot, too.  Again, it's total "fluff" reading, but thought-provoking nonetheless and the writing is action-packed enough to keep you consistently turning the pages.

 

All the Robert Langdon books are good, but Davinci Code, Origin, and Inferno are the best among them... probably in that order.  His 2 books outside of the Robert Langdon series (Deception Point and Digital Fortress) are also good.

 

He writes good mystery books and the Langdon books (a few of which are now Tom Hanks movies) focus on a Professor of "Symbology," so you can kinda guess where they go.

 

I would call them fun Summer reads.

 

I read Davinci Code, Origins and Angels and Demons. Good, easy but fun reads. My kind of style. I enjoyed them all. 

 

I don’t know if it was the Christian Brothers at St Joe’s HS or the Jesuits at Xavier for college taking the required philosophy and theology classes, but it might explain my enjoyment of light easy reading. Some of that stuff in college I had to read word by word, then go back and read the paragraph again. 

 

 

.

Edited February 20, 2021 by Augie

[transplantbillsfan]

1 hour ago, Augie said:

 

I read Davinci Code, Origins and Angels and Demons. Good, easy but fun reads. My kind of style. I enjoyed them all. 

 

I don’t know if it was the Christian Brothers at St Joe’s HS or the Jesuits at Xavier for college taking the required philosophy and theology classes, but it might explain my enjoyment of light easy reading. Some of that stuff in college I had to read word by word, then go back and read the paragraph again. 

 

 

.

 

Don't worry I completely agree!

 

I spent college with Shakespeare and postmodernism... which I loved... along with plenty I trudged through like Jane Austen.

 

And then I continued my education into my profession with Moby Dick (I very strongly dislike that book for a LOT of unnecessary whaling stuff tangential to the plot) and Ayn Rand (strong feelings of her works.... but they aren't boring) and so, frankly... I am at the point where I want "easy" and "mindless," since my day job involves the opposite. 

 

That said, give me a challenge that really piques my interests and I'm stoked. That's why I loved Surfing With Sartre so much.

Edited February 20, 2021 by transplantbillsfan

[US Egg]

Thought I saw someone cite Dicken's in this thread.

 

'Oliver Twist' is a legendary read. Read it twice.

[RaoulDuke79]

So I was going to order some of the books that were recommended and my wife says just buy a Kindle and get the e-books so we don't have a bunch of books laying around. Which brings me to the question, do you folks still read hard copies or has everyone gone electronic?

[WhoTom]

1 hour ago, RaoulDuke79 said:

So I was going to order some of the books that were recommended and my wife says just buy a Kindle and get the e-books so we don't have a bunch of books laying around. Which brings me to the question, do you folks still read hard copies or has everyone gone electronic?

 

I read both, but since we subscribed to Amazon Prime, I've been reading a lot of e-books. Every month they release free books for subscribers. Often, they're the first books in a series. If I like it, I'll purchase more from that author.

 

I know some people really prefer the feel of a hard copy, but I find the tablet easier to hold. Also, when we travel, it's nice to have several books in one tablet.

 

[Bill from NYC]

I read almost exclusively non-fiction. The following book is one that I learned a great deal from, and I think it would be very hard not to gain from this book in some way:

Tom, *****, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks (Donald Bogle)

 

    The author is a UPenn professor, who has probably watched every single movie in which there was a black actor. In this book, Bogle points out the demeaning, stereotyped roles they played. He also pointed out the ridiculous premises of certain movies, for example Rocky ll." 

    He tells us how Sidney Portier was virtually de-sexed, and describes how in "To Sir With Love," he was harassed, tormrnted, underpaid, and assaulted, yet he ripped up a job application so he could stay there and continue to help white students!

    The chapter on Mulattoes was fascinating. He correctly states that there were movies about "passing for white" as if this was a normal condition that many black people faced. The movie "Pinky" was mentined in the chapter. It starred Jean Crain. The premise was just as ridiculous (if not more) as Rocky ll.

    Times have clearly changed, but this book serves as an eye opener and a history lesson of sorts. It is now frequently used as a textbook which is good, but drove up the cost.

 

[BillsPride12]

Not a huge book guy but I do like reading a few Sports books a year.  Right now I am currently reading Three Ring Circus by Jeff Pearlman about the Kobe-Shaq Lakers dynasty years.  Probably not the reading material the OP was looking for but for any Sports fans looking for some good light reading it's a pretty good behind the scenes look at those Laker teams.  

[Gugny]

3 hours ago, RaoulDuke79 said:

So I was going to order some of the books that were recommended and my wife says just buy a Kindle and get the e-books so we don't have a bunch of books laying around. Which brings me to the question, do you folks still read hard copies or has everyone gone electronic?

 

I have an old school Kindle that I used to bring with me when I traveled more.  I like it a lot, but I still prefer hard copies.

[RaoulDuke79]

1 hour ago, Gugny said:

 

I have an old school Kindle that I used to bring with me when I traveled more.  I like it a lot, but I still prefer hard copies.

From a storage and convenience factor the Kindle makes much more sense. I just downloaded the Kindle app on my tablet and bought Cosmic Bandidos for $2.99, so I'm going to venture into the electronic realm for the first time. 

Edited February 20, 2021 by RaoulDuke79

[US Egg]

We have a couple of very nice glass enclosed bookcases in our home, the antiquated displaying of books lives on in our house.

 

Hard covers only.

[transplantbillsfan]

8 hours ago, I am the egg man said:

Thought I saw someone cite Dicken's in this thread.

 

'Oliver Twist' is a legendary read. Read it twice.

 

Haven't read that, yet.

 

A Tale of Two Cities is one of my all time favorites.

7 hours ago, RaoulDuke79 said:

So I was going to order some of the books that were recommended and my wife says just buy a Kindle and get the e-books so we don't have a bunch of books laying around. Which brings me to the question, do you folks still read hard copies or has everyone gone electronic?

 

Mentioned this earlier in the thread, but I very much prefer hard copy books. In fact, I have NEVER read an E book. Seems harder on the eyes.

 

As a teacher, when I'm done with the books I just bring them to my classroom library for students to read.

[transplantbillsfan]

1 hour ago, RaoulDuke79 said:

From a storage and convenience factor the Kindle makes much more sense. I just downloaded the Kindle app on my tablet and bought Cosmic Bandidos for $2.99, so I'm going to venture into the electronic realm for the first time. 

 

Cosmic Bandidos is such an awesome book and a wild ride! Enjoy!

[Brit]

On 2/18/2021 at 5:29 PM, poblano said:

Have you ever read latin american authors?

I'm mexican and not so good in english, 

that's why I don't read in english and most of my readings are of those authors, and classics, like  Dickens, Dostoyevsky, Balzac(😍) and recently i read east of eden  and grapes of wrath and want to read more of Steinbeck.

all this without being an avid reader.

 

 

 

 

 

I love Jorge Luis Borges. Has some great stuff. However, the number of Latin American authors translated and readily available in England are not that many. 

 

[Brit]

A few years ago I came across Christopher Hitchens and his work as a book reviewer. Read some of the books he wrote essays about and then went looking for more good reads - I found the Guardian newspapers list of 1000 books to read before you die and have been working my way through it ever since (although the list includes trilogies and series, some up to 40/50 in number, so the total is closer to 1400 or so.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/jan/23/bestbooks-fiction

 

The list is a good way of finding new authors. Currently reading through Chester Himes (A Rage in Harlem), have read 4 of his books this year so far. Although there are some books on this list that I just wonder at their inclusion.

 

Some authors I like but have not seen listed here: 

George MacDonald Fraser - the Flashman series. All are good but the earlier books are brilliant. Comedy gold.

Nevil Shute - 'A Town Like Alice' and 'On the Beach'. All his books are great - On The Beach should be a must read for any politician who may have their finger on the big button at some point.

Elmore Leonard. All his books ooze cool characters. So much of his stuff has been turned into movies or TV shows. Crime and some Westerns. Sometimes both (Justified came out of a bunch of his short stories about Raylan Givens).

Hilary Mantel. Salman Rushdie. Both produce books that are long reads and get a while to get used to. But love Wolf Hall and Midnight's Children.

Cormac McCarthy - Notably 'The Road' and 'All the Pretty Horses'. Again he is stylistically very different. Writes bleak, bleak novels. 

Ed McBain - 87th Precinct series. Light crime novels. One of the first police procedurals. As he wrote so many of these it will take a long time to read them all.

Edited February 24, 2021 by Brit

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

5 hours ago, Brit said:

 

 

 

Cormac McCarthy - Notably 'The Road' and 'All the Pretty Horses'. Again he is stylistically very different. Writes bleak, bleak novels. 

 

if you like McCarthy’s style, you might check out stuff by the late Kent Haruf. I love his stuff and style— very minimalist writer. But the topics of his book are much better and less bleak than McCarthy. Would highly recommend Plainsong and its sequel, Eventide.

[T&C]

I see no one has mentioned cookbooks... I must have 40+ of them, used to collect them. Some of them date back to the 1940's but most are between then and 1980 but mostly 50's and 60's. Also have a signed Paul Prudhomme hardcover and some old ones from churches and such. Some have personal notes in pencil in them regarding an adjustment of the recipe. The way they used to use lard... surprised a lot of people lived to their 90's.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

On 2/17/2021 at 10:25 PM, transplantbillsfan said:

I realized there were no book threads. Don't we have readers here? Where are we? What are we reading? I always look for new suggestions. The truth is, I am an English teacher and teach upper-level English students, so my liesure reading stuff ends up being "fluff."

 

So despite the fact that my favorite all-time book is Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig, I have been reading a ton of Stephen King lately. Right now I'm on book 3 of The Dark Tower series, but over the last few years I've also read his newest books The Outsider and The Institute and Sleeping Beauties along with some of his classics like The Shining and Salem's Lot, and The Stand... I loved all of them. I firmly believe King belongs in the Canon... he's the modern Hemingway.

 

I usually read one nonfiction book simultaneously with a fiction book. I guess that must be my ADD... so I've also read a good amount of nonfiction. I'm not bringing up all of the titles because some of them are political, but I also love reading surfing memoirs and different types of philosophy or logic books. I think my favorite recent non-fiction book is called Surfing with Sartre. It's a philosophy book that essentially connects surfing with academic philosophy.

 

I would love some suggestions... or just to hear what you guys are reading.

 

I have pretty eclectic reading taste.  Let's see....not necessarily recent reads, but favorites

 

Nonfiction

A History of the World in Six Glasses, Tom Standage.  very enjoyable way of looking at human culture and history as being influenced by our beverages of choice.

The Terrible Hours, Peter Maas.  Submariner "Swede" Momsen is a hero and role model to me - the man who faced barrier after barrier and persevered

The Mold in Dr Florey's Coat, Eric Lax.  I read this while I was still working in academe.  For anyone who thinks Penicillin was invented by Ian Fleming, eye opening education in the difference betweeen drug discovery and drug development

Dark Invasion, Harold Blum (still reading)  About actual German espionage in America during WW I and the fight against it. 

 

My favorite Steven King book is an old one...The Green Mile. 

 

On 2/18/2021 at 8:03 AM, Captain Hindsight said:

I just finished the Martian. They made it into a movie with Matt Damon, but the book was better

 

Love The Martian.  Haven't seen the movie.

[transplantbillsfan]

16 hours ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

I have pretty eclectic reading taste.  Let's see....not necessarily recent reads, but favorites

 

Nonfiction

A History of the World in Six Glasses, Tom Standage.  very enjoyable way of looking at human culture and history as being influenced by our beverages of choice.

The Terrible Hours, Peter Maas.  Submariner "Swede" Momsen is a hero and role model to me - the man who faced barrier after barrier and persevered

The Mold in Dr Florey's Coat, Eric Lax.  I read this while I was still working in academe.  For anyone who thinks Penicillin was invented by Ian Fleming, eye opening education in the difference betweeen drug discovery and drug development

Dark Invasion, Harold Blum (still reading)  About actual German espionage in America during WW I and the fight against it. 

 

My favorite Steven King book is an old one...The Green Mile. 

 

 

Love The Martian.  Haven't seen the movie.

 

I actually just ordered A History of the World in Six Glasses on Amazon because it sounds like the kind of nonfiction read I enjoy.

 

Thanks for the recommendation! 

[Buddo]

Thomas Pynchon is a writer I would recommend, but he isn't going to be for everyone. He has a style of his own, but is bitingly observant, and funny with it, in his characters.

 

Talking of funny - Terry Pratchett, who has just the best takes on some of the absurdities of life, contained within his 'discworld' series - and some of the funniest turns of phrases you will see written.

 

Thought provoking Sci-Fi, would be Philip K Dick, who manages to fit in more stuff in small novels, than should be allowed. None of the movies made of his stuff, actually covers even remotely all the things he puts in the novels.

 

 

[transplantbillsfan]

3 hours ago, Buddo said:

Thomas Pynchon is a writer I would recommend, but he isn't going to be for everyone. He has a style of his own, but is bitingly observant, and funny with it, in his characters.

 

Talking of funny - Terry Pratchett, who has just the best takes on some of the absurdities of life, contained within his 'discworld' series - and some of the funniest turns of phrases you will see written.

 

Thought provoking Sci-Fi, would be Philip K Dick, who manages to fit in more stuff in small novels, than should be allowed. None of the movies made of his stuff, actually covers even remotely all the things he puts in the novels.

 

 

 

One of my Graduate classes focusing on Postmodernism essentially revolved around Pynchon's works.  Gravity's Rainbow was good, but there's a disgusting scene in that book that haunts me to this day.

[ndirish1978]

Do I read? Yes. Do I read some books because I feel obligated to read certain "must reads?" Yes. But the stuff I actually enjoy is pretty much just sci fi / fantasy. Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfuss stand out in those genres as current authors.

[Augie]

On 2/21/2021 at 2:04 PM, T&C said:

I see no one has mentioned cookbooks... I must have 40+ of them, used to collect them. Some of them date back to the 1940's but most are between then and 1980 but mostly 50's and 60's. Also have a signed Paul Prudhomme hardcover and some old ones from churches and such. Some have personal notes in pencil in them regarding an adjustment of the recipe. The way they used to use lard... surprised a lot of people lived to their 90's.

 

I have a rack in the kitchen full of cookbooks. My mother asked me which ones I used the most and I pointed to my iPad on the kitchen table. I subscribe to America’s Test Kitchen, used to do MasterClass and will google anything that looks interesting on the Food Network or elsewhere.

 

I’ve taken a bunch of cookbooks to Goodwill, but there are special ones I need to keep. We have certain books with special recipes I refuse to give away, including some Middle Eastern cookbooks (the wife is Lebanese and we do an occasional feast). 

 

Probably my favorite “cookbook” is a 3 ring binder I put together with my favorite recipes. It’s broken down by categories (fish, chicken, vegetarian, etc) and it’s my hand chosen favorite stuff all in one place. 

 

I should probably look into some reading of more substance, and maybe I will mix more of that in with my light reading content. 

[ndirish1978]

8 minutes ago, Augie said:

 

I have a rack in the kitchen full of cookbooks. My mother asked me which ones I used the most and I pointed to my iPad on the kitchen table. I subscribe to America’s Test Kitchen, used to do MasterClass and will google anything that looks interesting on the Food Network or elsewhere.

 

I’ve taken a bunch of cookbooks to Goodwill, but there are special ones I need to keep. We have certain books with special recipes I refuse to give away, including some Middle Eastern cookbooks (the wife is Lebanese and we do an occasional feast). 

 

Probably my favorite “cookbook” is a 3 ring binder I put together with my favorite recipes. It’s broken down by categories (fish, chicken, vegetarian, etc) and it’s my hand chosen favorite stuff all in one place. 

 

I should probably look into some reading of more substance, and maybe I will mix more of that in with my light reading content. 

 

Is America's Test Kitchen worth the sub? I purchased half the stuff in my kitchen on their recommendations. 

[Augie]

30 minutes ago, ndirish1978 said:

 

Is America's Test Kitchen worth the sub? I purchased half the stuff in my kitchen on their recommendations. 

 

I’d probably say no, but we are not as frugal as we should be. I do like and trust the product reviews as well. I just got an email that they were charging my credit card to renew and thought about shutting it down. Maybe next year. As I mentioned, I have a notebook full of my favorite stuff and I really enjoy their content and recipes. BUT, there are so many FREE options it’s probably wasteful. 

 

I’ll see stuff that looks good on TV then look it up and make it.  Maybe I need a life?   🤷‍♂️  

 

I like cooking enough that I let it ride for another year and pray that before it comes due again we are having more people over for dinner! 

 

 

.

Edited February 24, 2021 by Augie

[T&C]

2 hours ago, Augie said:

 

I have a rack in the kitchen full of cookbooks. My mother asked me which ones I used the most and I pointed to my iPad on the kitchen table. I subscribe to America’s Test Kitchen, used to do MasterClass and will google anything that looks interesting on the Food Network or elsewhere.

 

I’ve taken a bunch of cookbooks to Goodwill, but there are special ones I need to keep. We have certain books with special recipes I refuse to give away, including some Middle Eastern cookbooks (the wife is Lebanese and we do an occasional feast). 

 

Probably my favorite “cookbook” is a 3 ring binder I put together with my favorite recipes. It’s broken down by categories (fish, chicken, vegetarian, etc) and it’s my hand chosen favorite stuff all in one place. 

 

I should probably look into some reading of more substance, and maybe I will mix more of that in with my light reading content. 

If they don't mention aspic they must be modern.

 

Some of the names of the recipe's from the 40's 50's are a real hoot and the way they are worded sometimes are the same. I keep them because they remind me how my Grandma on my Dad's side used to cook back when I was a kid.

[reddogblitz]

Cool thread.

 

If I had to pick one book as my favorite it would be All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren.

 

Someone mentioned Dickens.  I really like his stuff. My favorite would be David Copperfield.  Although Great Expectations is also excellent.

 

My brother turned me on to a guy a few years ago no one has mentioned, Ian McEwen. Have read Nutshell, The Atonement, The Innocent, and am now reading Amsterdam.  All are excellent.

 

I also really like Kurt Vonnegut. My favorite being Player Piano.

 

I'm not super big on King. I did read The Institute recently and thought it was excellent.  Have also read The Green Mile, Buick 66, Carrie, and The Stand.

 

I also like Ray Bradbury a lot.  Dandelion Wine and Fahrenheit 411 especially.

 

I really like 1984 as well.  Really the part up until he gets captured.

 

I read real books exclusively.  No electronic readers for me.

 

 

[transplantbillsfan]

On 2/24/2021 at 12:47 PM, ndirish1978 said:

Do I read? Yes. Do I read some books because I feel obligated to read certain "must reads?" Yes. But the stuff I actually enjoy is pretty much just sci fi / fantasy. Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfuss stand out in those genres as current authors.

 

See. I'm over the "must reads" at this point. Some of the "must reads" truly are... but it's really all dependent on taste.

 

I loved plenty of "the classics" like King Lear, The Stranger by Camus, Catch 22, etc.

 

2 books I absolutely detested are considered "must reads." Hated Moby Dick. Hated War and Peace. In fact I stopped reading War and Peace 400 pages in... which is a fraction of the book.

 

Oscar Wilde once said "taste is indefensible."

 

It's the truth.

 

This thread is meant to see if we can find some with similar tastes who might open us up to new books and authors. I actually just got 2 books this week that were direct recommendations from @Hapless Bills Fan and @GoBills808. I can't wait to read the books, but even if I don't like them it says nothing about them or me. It's just different taste.

[Joe Ferguson]

Stephen King's the Stand was a classic. It was so good that I read it twice.

I also recommend reading Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park, way way better than the movie.

[transplantbillsfan]

1 hour ago, Joe Ferguson said:

Stephen King's the Stand was a classic. It was so good that I read it twice.

I also recommend reading Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park, way way better than the movie.

 

Absolutely on Jurassic Park and even more so on The Lost World... book was fantastic, movie was all right then terrible after the gymnastics scene.

 

Also really liked a few of his other books, including The Andromeda Strain and Micro.

[RaoulDuke79]

I forgot to mention Kitchen Confidential. Great read for the foodies out there. But if you're into books and food you've probably already read it. RIP Anthony Bourdain.

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

On 2/26/2021 at 6:12 PM, RaoulDuke79 said:

I forgot to mention Kitchen Confidential. Great read for the foodies out there. But if you're into books and food you've probably already read it. RIP Anthony Bourdain.

that is a solid book. I remember reading it when it came out (1999 or 2000?), when Bourdain wasn’t nearly as famous. 
 

There are some other pretty good chef/insider biographies. I remember really liking the book Heat, about a writer who goes and works for Mario Batalli at Babbo. I actually liked that one better than Kitchen Confidential. 
 

 

 

 

[twist_to_open]

Although Spielberg wrecked the movie, Ready Player One was a really good read, and I'm not just saying that because I'm a Rush fan, it was really popular when it came out.