okaycomputer Member since Dec 02nd 2002 8090 posts
Mon Dec-05-11 10:40 AM
"Hey, it's Winter. Time for another PTP Books post."
What are you reading?
What are you gift-giving?
What are you hoping to gift-get?
Me?
Reading: I've made several feeble attempts to read The Marriage Plot by Jeffery Eugenides, who up until this book I would call one of my favorite authors. I hate this book right now. I hate all of the characters and everything they do and think. Granted, I'm not too far in (70 pages or so) but I also have no desire to read any further.
So for now it's back to Westeros for a bit and finishing up Storm of Swords.
Gift-Giving: Giving books as gifts always scares me. But I am giving Game of Thrones to my sister-in-law, a fantasy fan who also lives in a cave (Vermont) and has most likely never heard of this series. Does anybody have any experience getting others to read GoT? How did it go over?
1. "I'm almost through Quicksilver" In response to Reply # 0
which is the first book in a trilogy by Neal Stephenson. Each of the books is in the range of 800 to 1000 pages so they'll take some time to get through but that doesn't stop me from buying more.
~ ~ ~ All meetings end in separation All acquisition ends in dispersion All life ends in death - The Buddha
3. "RE: Hey, it's Winter. Time for another PTP Books post." In response to Reply # 0
>What are you reading?
right now? Habibi by Craigh Thompson. And... man.
Recently been on a mini Neil Gaiman kick, having read one of his short story collections, followed by Neverland. Prior to that, Elijah Wald's books on Josh White and Robert Johnson, both excellent.
>What are you gift-giving?
dunno yet!
My kids are getting some dumb stuff (bad chapter books based on comics, but they LOVE them) from me for sure. Think I'll also get them a Shel Silverstein book of poetry they don't already have to offer some quality counterbalance.
>What are you hoping to gift-get?
meh, I keep a pretty good handle on my reading. Last few years my mom has given me stuff that's been okay, but not awesome, so I wouldn't mind a year off from book gifts.
> >Recently been on a mini Neil Gaiman kick, having read one of >his short story collections,
I picked Smoke and Mirrors up around Halloween and still haven't returned it. Very readable, fun stuff. I though Troll Bridge especially was really haunting, and loved The Goldfish Pond.
---- I check for: Serengeti, Zeroh, Open Mike Eagle, Jeremiah Jae, Moka Only.
12. "no... Fragile Things" In response to Reply # 10
I was familiar with at least one of the stories which had been adapted into graphic form (haven't read many non-comics the past few years, you realize). But boy, does that man have a way with words.
>>What are you reading? > >right now? Habibi by Craigh Thompson. And... man. > >Recently been on a mini Neil Gaiman kick, having read one of >his short story collections, followed by Neverland. Prior to >that, Elijah Wald's books on Josh White and Robert Johnson, >both excellent. > >>What are you gift-giving? > >dunno yet! > >My kids are getting some dumb stuff (bad chapter books based >on comics, but they LOVE them) from me for sure. Think I'll >also get them a Shel Silverstein book of poetry they don't >already have to offer some quality counterbalance. > >>What are you hoping to gift-get? > >meh, I keep a pretty good handle on my reading. Last few years >my mom has given me stuff that's been okay, but not awesome, >so I wouldn't mind a year off from book gifts. > >
8. "still reading a lot of GWOT stuff" In response to Reply # 0
Currently reading The Gamble: General David Petraeus and the American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2006-2008. And I'm about halfway done with Chernow's Washington: A Life.
------- "A man who is good enough to shed his blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards. More than that no man is entitled, and less than that no man shall have." - TR
11. "I decided it was time to read a grown-up book" In response to Reply # 0
>What are you reading?
So I'm about halfway through Crime and Punishment. I'm hoping it will really get it's hooks into me soon. So far I'm enjoying it but am still at that point that where if something else came along I could pretty easily put it aside. I generally like Russian authors, although my exposure has been more on the short story side, so I'll stick with it and hope it builds to something magnificent by the end, a la Death of Ivan Ilyich.
> >What are you hoping to gift-get? >
I'm not sure if I'll go so far as to drop a hint, but Kid Koala just dropped a graphic novel/album that I would love to receive but probably won't spring for myself.
---- I check for: Serengeti, Zeroh, Open Mike Eagle, Jeremiah Jae, Moka Only.
13. "Reading A Clash of Kings right now" In response to Reply # 0
I don't even read books normally, but I bought the first four volumes of A Song of Ice & Fire on the strength of the TV series. Can't wait for season 2!!
15. "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay" In response to Reply # 0
Have been told many times (for a long time), by many people, that I should read this book. I've recently started, and I'm liking it so far.
Last book I read was Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. Holy shit, that 'kid' is annoying. Got to a point where I started hoping that bad things would happen to him. Great book to brainwash your children into becoming well behaved. Though kids today are probably a lot more sophisticated than those in the 19th century.
Next on the reading list.
(re-read) Battle Royale - Koushon Takami Who's Afraid of Post Blackness - Toure 1Q84 - Murakami A Game of Thrones - George RR Martin
23. "As much as I love comics, I did not enjoy that book" In response to Reply # 15
I've made my opinion on K&C known in various COTW posts, but I'll see it here too: that book is waaaaaaaaaaaay overrated. Don't get me wrong, there are brilliant sequences in it, and even a brilliant section or two, but it's infuriating to try and get through. Chabon cannot write a simple sentence to save his life, and it makes me want to staple his shirt to his body if I ever see him in public. Which actually isn't that far fetched since he lives in Oakland.
"The Escapist" mini-series as written by Brian K. Vaughan>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Kavalier and Clay.
16. "recently" In response to Reply # 0 Tue Dec-06-11 01:49 AM by astralblak
finished:
White Boy Shuffle - one of the strangest experiences I've ever had with a novel. moments were great overall it was pretty awful read, but by the end i definitely understood and dug the themes message of the work
Visit From the Goon Squad - i can't believe this won the prizes it did. Just cant!
Drown - Junot is the fucn TRUTH
reading:
Savage Detectives - was captivated for the first 50 pages, dug the end of the first section now near page 300 I'm very indifferent to finishing it
up next: Black Arts West, Society Must Be Defended, The History of Money and Hollywood Left & Right
This has been sitting on my bookshelf for a while, I need to get back to it.
>Savage Detectives - was captivated for the first 50 pages, dug >the end of the first section now near page 300 I'm very >indifferent to finishing it
I, and many others, had a similar experience. I put the book down for a long while and one day picked it up and flew through to the end and ended up enjoying the experience as a whole. I'm not sure what made those last pages easier to get through, the style stays pretty continuous throughout. Anyway, I think it's perfectly ok to put it down for a while and pick it up later, but I do think it's worth finishing.
17. "Headspin, Headshots & History: Growing Up in Twin Cities Hip-Hop" In response to Reply # 0
Just started that one yesterday, shouldn't take me too long to get through. After that I'm gonna get back into A Feast for Crows and maybe start in on The Best American Short Stories of the Century that's been sitting on my bookshelf since Christmas.
25. "Started 'River Gods' last night." In response to Reply # 0
I can tell it's going to give me a headache already. It's very heavy on Hindi (Hindu?) jargon and I can't be bothered to look up all the words in the included glossary. Also, they chose a really jarring font for the Kindle edition for some reason.
26. "this time of year pisses me off for books" In response to Reply # 0
This is usually the time of the year all the books I'm looking forward to come out, and I can't buy them for myself because I'm expecting others to buy them.
So if one of you wants to be awesome, get me 1Q84 by Murakami.
Most of the cats I buy books for aren't big readers, so I end up getting bestsellers: the new Tom Clancy, the new memoir, etc. I think this year I'm picking up Diane Keaton's, Bill Clinton's, a couple graphic novels for other people.
As for myself, I'm making my way through old Dorothy Parker, Dickens (yes A Christmas Carol - tis the season), Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihaliyi, some Isak Denison, and I'm really looking forward to reading The Pilgrim Hawk by Glenway Wescott.
"Your current frequencies of understanding outweigh that which has been given for you to understand." Saul Williams
30. "you guys, when you buy Wordman the Murakami book" In response to Reply # 26
inscribe it to him so he can't exchange the thousand extra copies.
A book dealer I used to hang out with would become apoplectic at the idea of inscribing books (unless you're the author). He was like, We don't sign SHIRTS we give to people, why would we sign BOOKS?
~ ~ ~ All meetings end in separation All acquisition ends in dispersion All life ends in death - The Buddha
34. "Just finished Habibi, working on a couple others" In response to Reply # 0
I've got this 'Science Fiction Hall of Fame' collection from 1970 (some of the stories date back as early as 1934 I think) that I jacked from my parents' bookshelf forever ago and am just now developing a taste for. I really like what I've read so far. Some of the stories are genuinely awesome, and others are just awesomely kooky. The ideas in this book can be oddly prescient at times, which makes for an interesting clash with some of the stuff that doesn't hold up so well. Like this passage I read last night where a time traveler from the year 3000 is describing his affinity for "negro music".
Got a ton of shit on hold with the library so hopefully I'll be back soon with more to report.
35. "about to begun colson whiteheads zone one" In response to Reply # 0
finished akata witch a discovery of witches pym
it was a witchy nov lol
still taking off and putting back on the shelf history of white people harlem is nowhere immortal life of henrietta lacks
~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
45. "My book club is about to polish off 2666" In response to Reply # 0
So that's what I'm reading. We've never read anything by a woman, which is weird considering the makeup of the group. So our next book is going to be "The Violent Bear it Away," which I read a long time ago but haven't revisited since.
Not giving any books for gifts this year. I've done that to the point of it being sort of obnoxious in the past and need to remind friends and family that I'm not just an asshole who implicitly criticizes their reading habits. And that's not to say that this is what a book means when you give it as a gift, only that people have (with reason) discerned that this is at least one of my book-giving motives. Lesson: Don't give more than one person Augustine's "Confessions". Sure, everybody should read it at least twice, but you can just tell them and then let them go to the library.
>What are you hoping to gift-get?
Volume Two of MM y Pelayo's "Heterodoxos".
______________________________
"Walleye, a lot of things are going to go wrong in your life that technically aren't your fault. Always remember that this doesn't make you any less of an idiot"
46. "RE: Hey, it's Winter. Time for another PTP Books post." In response to Reply # 0
>Reading:
The Rape of Nanking - Iris Chang. I'm almost done and this book is messy. Messy in the sense of the brutality described. It was a good springboard to learn about the Sino-Japanese war for sure but not the definitive piece of work that's for sure.
I have Drown on my bookshelf and after reading some of the replies up above I'm wondering if I should put it in front of my Iran book that's on loan from the library. I've been on a history kick lately and Drown might knock me out of that.
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