Anyone read any good books recently ?

[redmonaco]

'What was lost' by Katherine O'Flynn .........excellent book which reminds you what freakin idiots we are in falling for the whole 'consumerism is the path to happiness' lie and what we have given up to live that life.

:?

Alan

Don't your watches and Motorbike make you happy then Alan??? :roll: :wink:

[Griff]

An old favourite is John Christopher's 1956 'No Blade of Grass'
(aka 'The Death of Grass').

Cheers :)

Don't know that - I'll have a look on Amazon now!

Edit - Oh, snap! Out of print, and GBP40 for a used one! Wow. Time to try abebooks.com , I think!

I have just got a copy from Abebooks cost £15.
In the uk the title was called The Death of Grass.
Here is some interesting info on the author via this link:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Christopher

The author still appears to be alive.
Not sure just how good a writer he is thought of, but his books do seem to be collectable from fans of global disaster type sci fi.
I will post an opinion after I have read my copy of the aforementioned novel 8)

[rfrazier]

For a variety of reasons, I've been rereading (parts of) some classics. Last week it was the first few chapters of Marx's Capital, and the first few chapters of Darwin's The Descent of Man. Rereading works like these tell you more about how your ideas have changed than anything else.

What is really cool is that they are available on-line, as are zillions of other classics.

Best wishes,
Bob

[cricketer]

For a variety of reasons, I've been rereading (parts of) some classics. Last week it was the first few chapters of Marx's Capital, and the first few chapters of Darwin's The Descent of Man. Rereading works like these tell you more about how your ideas have changed than anything else.

What is really cool is that they are available on-line, as are zillions of other classics.

Best wishes,
Bob

I'm tempted more towards classics too at the moment Bob. I bought Senecas ' On the shortness of life' and Aurelius' "Meditations' recently. I find I need to read books which really make me think about things a little more these days. I recently read 'Black Mass' by John Gray and this challenged a lot of what I took for granted.

cheers

Alan

[Griff]

That's interesting!
After I read Earth Abides, I went and bought myself a 4lb hammer.
Anyone who has read the book may get a laugh out of that!!! :shock: :D :lol:

[Qatar-wol]

I will post an opinion after I have read my copy of the aforementioned novel 8)

Yes, please.

And on-;ine books? Try Project Gutenburg. :)

[Richie]

Hi,

Just read a couple of books. Firstly "The Making of Taxi Driver", one in a series also including Scarface. An excellent insight into the film ( one of my favourites for absolutely ages ), plus bits you wouldn't find out elsewhere ( Keitel was originally marked down for playing Travis, Blood Desaturation to get the rating down etc.. ), and having just googled it I see that there is a 70 minute DVD with the same title, with Schrader, Scorsese, Bob and Keitel featured ( One for Santas List :wink: )

Also perused "Dance Dance Dance" a MH novel which is a good yarn, and if I'm not mistaken the protagonist is the same fellow as in "A Wild Sheep Chase". A good read,

Cheers, Richie :)

[chrisb]

That's interesting!
After I read Earth Abides, I went and bought myself a 4lb hammer.
Anyone who has read the book may get a laugh out of that!!! :shock: :D :lol:

You are Ish, and I claim my £5

on the subject of John Christopher "A Wrinkle in the Skin" is worth a read.

[Mrcrowley]

Reading Good Omens by Terry Pratchett - bloody hilarious. There's a fallen archangel called Mr. Crowley :D

[sundial]

Reading "THE APPLE SOURCE BOOK" ... 'cos I'm an appleholic ... it has lots of info about the two thousand plus varieties of English desert and cooking apples ... including history, growing, recipes, cider etc etc

http://www.england-in-particular.info/o ... o-asb.html

dunk

[A.Pottinger]

That sounds great Dunk. Thanks for the recommendation. I'm a fan of the apples too.

Oh! Russets-a delicious variety! :)

My reading list what I want to be reading is long, and I'm frequently, out of necessity, going between books.

Just started some vintage Sherlock Holmes, from the original Strand Magazine. Very enjoyable, and not necc. elementary ;)

Best wishes,
AP. :)

[davie0146]

eight lives down by chris hunters

about the exploits of an EOD officer in iraq.

read it in a day :lol:

and jjust now i am rereading Gary Linderers ray martinez etc siz silent men books, Vietnam LRRPS.

i tend not to read much fiction except Sven Hassel and the eric helm vietnam ground zero series and the odd government publication :lol:

[rincewind]

Just finished "The power of the dog" by Don Winslow, an excellent and epic novel charting 3 decades of the USA'S war on drugs, the duplicity of the actions of all sides and the political drivers behind them. Well worth a read !

I'd also heartily recommend the Bangkok Eight by John Burdett. :)

[sundial]

That sounds great Dunk. Thanks for the recommendation. I'm a fan of the apples too.

Oh! Russets-a delicious variety! :)

My reading list what I want to be reading is long, and I'm frequently, out of necessity, going between books.

Just started some vintage Sherlock Holmes, from the original Strand Magazine. Very enjoyable, and not necc. elementary ;)

Best wishes,
AP. :)

I have spent a lot of time in Gloucestershire/Herefordshire recently ... we buy Russets for ourselves and friends there for just 20p per pound ... unfortunately all Russets were sold out last Monday at the fruit farm we normally go to ... But have Ida Red to try which keep 'til April .. Have a freezer full of apple juice too ... All English ... so much better than all the foreign supermarket apples and juice

dunk

[Griff]

Just finished Robert A Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land, i.e. the original uncut version
When Heinlein first wrote Stranger, his editors at Putnam required him to drastically cut its original 220,000-word length, and to remove some scenes that might have been considered too shocking at the time. The resulting edited version was about 160,000 words when first published in 1961. In 1962 this version received the Hugo Award for the Best Science Fiction Novel of the Year. After Heinlein's death in 1988, his wife Virginia arranged to have the original uncut version of the manuscript published in 1991 by Ace/Putnam.

The book is quite a read, with some very thought provoking stuff in it.
I enjoyed it a lot, and I can see why it is thought of as a classic. This uncut version has to be the one to get!! :wink:

[mr1973]

Digging a bit into semiotics (again), now these:





and finally this one this week:

[Karl]

just finished this, really enjoyed it



karl

[rfrazier]

This is what I've been reading this evening. Not for the first time. ;)



I might be about as hard on books as I am watches and bicycles. I seem to remember tossing this one against a wall some time in the past (and I foolishly put it on Reserve for students many years ago).

Best wishes,
Bob

[Luso]

I´m reading volume 9.
Quite interesting! :D
I wonder what watches he would choose to wear today.
He also tended to flip his watches on a rather regular basis...

[swanbourne]

I've just finished Cussler's "The Treasure of Khan" and now reading Michael Chichton's "State of Fear". Next on the list is Robert Harris' "The Ghost".

Eddie

[Quinny]

Just about halfway through "The Difference Engine" by William Gibson, read Neuromancer, Mona Lisa Overdrive, Count Zero, Pattern Recognition and Spook Country before.

Decided I wanted all of his books somewhere mid december, so now I have a William Gibson shelf. Think I'll have read them all by mid-february. (I get to read for 2 hours every day on the train...)

[rickf]

I just finished "Master and Commander" by Patrick O'Brian and I must say I was sorely disappointed. I really wanted to like this book because I love the subject matter and period in history. Unfortunately I could not wade through the nautical terms and the early 19th century idiom. It was like watching a movie on an airplane with no headphones. You see something going on that might be good but you really don't entirely understand what's happening. My opinion seems to be in the minority though since there are so many positive reviews of the book.

I'd appreciate if anyone has recommendations for this genre (e.g. is Horatio Hornblower any good?)

Rick

[rfrazier]

I just finished "Master and Commander" by Patrick O'Brian and I must say I was sorely disappointed. I really wanted to like this book because I love the subject matter and period in history. Unfortunately I could not wade through the nautical terms and the early 19th century idiom. It was like watching a movie on an airplane with no headphones. You see something going on that might be good but you really don't entirely understand what's happening. My opinion seems to be in the minority though since there are so many positive reviews of the book.

I'd appreciate if anyone has recommendations for this genre (e.g. is Horatio Hornblower any good?)

Rick

Hornblower is okay. So are the ones by Alexander Kent. But the O'Brien books are the best by far. :twisted:

Best wishes,
Bob

[rickf]

I just finished "Master and Commander" by Patrick O'Brian and I must say I was sorely disappointed. I really wanted to like this book because I love the subject matter and period in history. Unfortunately I could not wade through the nautical terms and the early 19th century idiom. It was like watching a movie on an airplane with no headphones. You see something going on that might be good but you really don't entirely understand what's happening. My opinion seems to be in the minority though since there are so many positive reviews of the book.

I'd appreciate if anyone has recommendations for this genre (e.g. is Horatio Hornblower any good?)

Rick

Hornblower is okay. So are the ones by Alexander Kent. But the O'Brien books are the best by far. :twisted:

Best wishes,
Bob

Like I said, I'm apparently in the minority. Just couldn't bond with it.

Rick

[Richie]

Hi Again All,

I just finished "Margrave of the Marshes" John Peels autobiography, A cracking read, first half written by him and second half finished off by Sheila and the family.

A brilliant read for anyone who knows anything about music ( This obviously excludes anyone who likes the beatles ) :)
Richie

[swanbourne]

When I've finished my current books, I've got a collection of P G Wodehouse "Jeeves and Wooster" to start. :D

Eddie

[Stuart]

If you haven't, you MUST read Herman Wouk's "The Winds of War", and "War and Remembrance". Massive 2-volume historical fiction with accurate World War 2 analysis, and shrewd commentary on the politics that drove the war from British, American, Jewish, German and Russian perspectives. The best war stories ever published, and admirable and enjoyable literary style.

If you like these, then read his equally excellent, 2-volume, gripping analysis of the history of Israel from the creation of the state until the 6-Day War, "The Hope" and "The Glory".

Am just finishing "Crime and Punishment". It is heavy but if you persevere you get caught up in a thrilling study of why good people fall into crime.

[ralphy]

It was like watching a movie on an airplane with no headphones.
Rick

Going off-topic here, but your comment brought a smile to my face when I read it.

For many years I was a 'business flyer'; spending countless hours in aircrafts and being subjected to hundreds upon hundreds of films on-board. I found that I rarely saw a film completely through from start to finish; rather seeing it many times over - but in parts. The result of this was that I could recite complete dialogues from parts of films - but also being completely unable to describe the plot..........

So, to the infuriation of mrs ralphy I frequently respond to a actors lines in a film we watch on tv, but often cannot tell her what happens next!

R

[rfrazier]

Rick,

Maybe you need this. It comes with a picture of USCGC Polar Sea on the front. :)



Actually, the character of Maturin is used to introduce unfamiliar notions. But, in any case, I took the picture of the above book just for fun. There are plenty of good novels in the world, so if the O'Brien ones aren't for you, you've still plenty left from which to choose.

Best wishes,
Bob

[Mrcrowley]

Reading Richard Hammond at mo. 'Tis good.

[tertius]

I just finished "Master and Commander" by Patrick O'Brian and I must say I was sorely disappointed. I really wanted to like this book because I love the subject matter and period in history. Unfortunately I could not wade through the nautical terms and the early 19th century idiom. It was like watching a movie on an airplane with no headphones. You see something going on that might be good but you really don't entirely understand what's happening. My opinion seems to be in the minority though since there are so many positive reviews of the book.

I'd appreciate if anyone has recommendations for this genre (e.g. is Horatio Hornblower any good?)

Rick

Hornblower is okay. So are the ones by Alexander Kent. But the O'Brien books are the best by far. :twisted:

Best wishes,
Bob

Like I said, I'm apparently in the minority. Just couldn't bond with it.

Rick

Have to agree with rfrazier here - O'Brien's are head and shoulders above the rest. If you can I would persevere.

For Napoleonic era stuff Forester is in second place I would say, and worth reading in its won right and perhaps useful as a primer for Aubrey/Maturin. One snippet about the Hornblower books is that they weren't written in chronological order, so you do occasionally come across slight out-trades.

An alternative worth seeking out (though not covering the same era) is Alexander Fullerton's Everard novels, especially The Blooding of the Guns (a superb fictionalised acocunt of the Battle of Jutland) and Sixty Minutes for St. George (the raid on Zeebrugge). Can be hard to find though.

[swanbourne]

I read "The Tunnels of Cu Chi" about 15 years ago and decided to read it again recently but I must have lent it to someone :( . If you haven't read it, it should be on your "must read" list.

Eddie

[rickf]

Rick,

Maybe you need this. It comes with a picture of USCGC Polar Sea on the front. :)



Actually, the character of Maturin is used to introduce unfamiliar notions. But, in any case, I took the picture of the above book just for fun. There are plenty of good novels in the world, so if the O'Brien ones aren't for you, you've still plenty left from which to choose.

Best wishes,
Bob

I just saw this post today, Bob. I'm not sure if you were joking with this but it truly is exactly what I need! I think I'm a relatively patient sometimes stubborn reader. If I start a book I will almost always finish it. If people whose opinions I trust say something is good I will give it a more than a fair chance. I think I will give the next book in the series a try. Thanks to you and tertius for the encouragement.

Rick

[Griff]

Just finishing... No Blade of Grass, then my next book will be...............COCO THE CLOWN (1951), hardback

By Nicolai Poliakoff.

[blue-dread]

Have just finished:-

Blackwater (The Rise of the World's Most Powerful mercenary Army) by Jeremy Scahill.

It is apparent from the the off that the author is biased and that's a great pity as, I believe, Blackwater & the Bush creeps can and have and still DO enough for fair minded people to know wickedness when they see it.

Scary
http://www.tz-uk.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... er&start=0

Alistair

[jd]

Interesting to see O'Brian discussions... for what it's worth, I much prefer the later Patrick O'Brian books, though I've read them all. The characters develop over the series, so the human stories become more interesting than the naval ones. IMO.

One of my favourites from last year was Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle, a massive trilogy that combines history, science and rollicking adventure. Cryptonomicon is excellent too.

[rickf]

Interesting to see O'Brian discussions... for what it's worth, I much prefer the later Patrick O'Brian books, though I've read them all. The characters develop over the series, so the human stories become more interesting than the naval ones. IMO.

One of my favourites from last year was Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle, a massive trilogy that combines history, science and rollicking adventure. Cryptonomicon is excellent too.

I agree with you on Stephenson. If you haven't yet, try Snowcrash as well.

Rick

[rfrazier]

Interesting to see O'Brian discussions... for what it's worth, I much prefer the later Patrick O'Brian books, though I've read them all. The characters develop over the series, so the human stories become more interesting than the naval ones. IMO.

That's why I like the earlier ones. For human interest, I'll read Jane Austen. ;)

Best wishes,
Bob

[hogthrob]

I've just finished The Mission Song by John Le Carre. Another good read from Le Carre, who seems to be improving with age. Although the book is written about the DR Congo, I suspect it is inspired by the Mark Thatcher / Simon Mann coup affair in Equatorial Guinea.

I was slightly mystified by some of the praise that is quoted on the cover, which describes the book as "extremely funny", as it didn't make me laugh. Lack of jokes aside, it is well worth reading. Recommended.

[tertius]

Rick,

Maybe you need this. It comes with a picture of USCGC Polar Sea on the front. :)



Actually, the character of Maturin is used to introduce unfamiliar notions. But, in any case, I took the picture of the above book just for fun. There are plenty of good novels in the world, so if the O'Brien ones aren't for you, you've still plenty left from which to choose.

Best wishes,
Bob

I just saw this post today, Bob. I'm not sure if you were joking with this but it truly is exactly what I need! I think I'm a relatively patient sometimes stubborn reader. If I start a book I will almost always finish it. If people whose opinions I trust say something is good I will give it a more than a fair chance. I think I will give the next book in the series a try. Thanks to you and tertius for the encouragement.

Rick

Its not a bad idea actually - I have that book, though not that edition, and even though I'm a (very indifferent amateur) sailor I find it an extremely useful reference.

I mean who the h*ll can remember, for example, what a snow is off the top of their head?

[rickf]

I mean who the h*ll can remember, for example, what a snow is off the top of their head?

This is a perfect example of what I run into when trying to read the book. If you look up "snow"on wikipedia, here's the definition:

A snow (pronounced "snoo") or snaw, is a sailing vessel. A type of brig -- snows are often-referred to as "snow-brigs" -- snows were primarily used as a merchant ship, but saw war service. The twin brigs Lawrence and Niagara, American war-ships of the Battle of Lake Erie were both snows.

Snows carried square sails on both masts, but had a small trysail mast, sometimes called a 'snowmast', stepped immediately abaft the mainmast. This mast could carry a trysail with a boom, with the luff of the trysail hooped to it. Sometimes, instead of a trysail mast, snows carried a horse on the mainmast, with the luff of the trysail attached to it by rings.

Just to understand this definition I now have to look up "brig", "trysail", "luff" and "horse". Aaaarrrgh. While it's an interesting subject in and of itself, this really interferes with the enjoyment of the novel. I may give it a go though.

Rick

[tertius]

I mean who the h*ll can remember, for example, what a snow is off the top of their head?

This is a perfect example of what I run into when trying to read the book. If you look up "snow"on wikipedia, here's the definition:

A snow (pronounced "snoo") or snaw, is a sailing vessel. A type of brig -- snows are often-referred to as "snow-brigs" -- snows were primarily used as a merchant ship, but saw war service. The twin brigs Lawrence and Niagara, American war-ships of the Battle of Lake Erie were both snows.

Snows carried square sails on both masts, but had a small trysail mast, sometimes called a 'snowmast', stepped immediately abaft the mainmast. This mast could carry a trysail with a boom, with the luff of the trysail hooped to it. Sometimes, instead of a trysail mast, snows carried a horse on the mainmast, with the luff of the trysail attached to it by rings.

Just to understand this definition I now have to look up "brig", "trysail", "luff" and "horse". Aaaarrrgh. While it's an interesting subject in and of itself, this really interferes with the enjoyment of the novel. I may give it a go though.

Rick

Though if you look it up in The Oxford Companion ... etc. what you get is a definition that starts (iirc) "Two-masted merchant vessel ..." (obviously then followed by all the other guff) and to be honest that is all you need to know (perhaps even that's a bit much) to be able to follow the story.

Now, as a bit of a sailing bore, I actually like all that, and I do think it really adds to the story and rooting it in its time and place. Whilst I agree that it makes the reading a little bit harder work, I do think it also makes it ultimately more rewarding.

As a small aside I don't know if you've read any Dickens but there is a quite a bit of this sort of thing (not sailing obviously) going on. Now typically in classics like that you get footnotes to help you out. And I still remember a reference in David Copperfield to a sandboy, and the footnote explained that sandboys were basically sand merchants who bought sand at something like a shilling a ton and then sold it for tuppence a pound to inns and taverns to spread on the floor - hence the expression happy as a sandboy (work it out :)). Now I never knew that before and I just love this sort of unusual and, to me, fascinating learning.

(PS i may well have got the actual quantities/costs wrong but its the broad indication that matters. ;))

Anyway I hope it encourages you to give O'Brien another go, and if you don't like it, well there are millions of other books out there, some equally good ...

[in_denial]

[

I mean who the h*ll can remember, for example, what a snow is off the top of their head?

Sadly, I can :roll: I loved C.S. Forester's novels as a child, and quite enjoyed Kent's, although his writing style. Really got up. My nose. Dudley Pope's 'Ramage' novels were much more fun, but Forester was the ultimate as far as I was (and am) concerned.
I was a fussy eater as a kid, but one morning before breakfast I was reading a passage describing a meal Hornblower was eating, and it made such an impression on me I asked for cheese for the first time, and have loved it ever since! Still waiting to try a Ragout of beef, though. And ship's biscuit with weevils.

Currently I'm reading Alastair Reynolds' SF novels - great space opera!

-- Tim

[jd]

Interesting to see O'Brian discussions... for what it's worth, I much prefer the later Patrick O'Brian books, though I've read them all. The characters develop over the series, so the human stories become more interesting than the naval ones. IMO.

That's why I like the earlier ones. For human interest, I'll read Jane Austen. ;)

Best wishes,
Bob

Something for everyone then! There's lots of source material around if you like the real stuff... Cochrane's exploits for example, that inspired Aubrey's early career. I've got a book about him but not got around to reading it.

There are also a few guides/companions that are quite good in themselves. The map of voyages is interesting. I haven't read an O'Brian for a few years so might have another go before long.

[jd]

I agree with you on Stephenson. If you haven't yet, try Snowcrash as well.

Rick

I read that first, it's great. I also like Diamond Age a lot, although I seem to be in a minority there. The co-authored books tend to be average though.

[bootneck]

I've just finished 2 books by the same author

Don't tell my mum i work on the oil rigs she thinks i'm a piano player in a whorehouse (what a title)

and

This is not a drill

Funniest books i've ever read, just a guys funny stories about working on the rigs and the life it entails actually had me crying with laughter in parts both by Paul Carter
I highly recommend these as light reading absolute quality

[rfrazier]

Flashman and the Redskins. After MacDonald Fraser died, I decided to whip out some Flashman and have a re-read. Great stuff.

Best wishes,
Bob

[Griff]

An old favourite is John Christopher's 1956 'No Blade of Grass'
(aka 'The Death of Grass').

Cheers :)

Don't know that - I'll have a look on Amazon now!

Edit - Oh, snap! Out of print, and GBP40 for a used one! Wow. Time to try abebooks.com , I think!

I have just got a copy from Abebooks cost £15.
In the uk the title was called The Death of Grass.
Here is some interesting info on the author via this link:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Christopher

The author still appears to be alive.
Not sure just how good a writer he is thought of, but his books do seem to be collectable from fans of global disaster type sci fi.
I will post an opinion after I have read my copy of the aforementioned novel 8)

Well, I have finally finished this after reading some other books too.

The book was a surprise
It is not a long book, being a smallish paperback, and only some 190 pages.
It is however a well written novel, and the underlying theme of a grass virus is well expalined and put in a believable scenario.
There are some shocks and brutal events, and it is very interesting how the author portrays the way people can become brutal, savage, and determined, but in a way necessary for the good of the majority within a group of desperate people.
I enjoyed the novel very much. The images are written in a very vivid way, and there is a surprise in one character.......of a small and slight man in build, but who turns out to be something very different in actions and events. The book is made all the more riveting by his prescence.
The scenario depicted by a desperate and splinter section of a failing British government is also a shock, and a terrible twist to add to the events
A great read!! :wink:

[chrisb]

Well, I have finally finished this after reading some other books too.

The book was a surprise
It is not a long book, being a smallish paperback, and only some 190 pages.
It is however a well written novel, and the underlying theme of a grass virus is well expalined and put in a believable scenario.
There are some shocks and brutal events, and it is very interesting how the author portrays the way people can become brutal, savage, and determined, but in a way necessary for the good of the majority within a group of desperate people.
I enjoyed the novel very much. The images are written in a very vivid way, and there is a surprise in one character.......of a small and slight man in build, but who turns out to be something very different in actions and events. The book is made all the more riveting by his prescence.
The scenario depicted by a desperate and splinter section of a failing British government is also a shock, and a terrible twist to add to the events
A great read!! :wink:

Good, now try "A Wrinkle in the Skin" by the same author

[Griff]

Just ordered a copy from amazon
Is it any good!??