What Are You Reading?

[stonemonkts]

Junot Diaz - The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

That one just floored me. It's the first Diaz I've read, but he's pretty amazing. I'm not sure how well this reads for folks who are not bilingual, but Diaz' fluidity and skill weaving the two languages was something I did not think possible.

I discovered Diaz a few years ago in The New Yorker. It was a story with Yunior and it was great. I am not bi-lingual but know enough Spanish to fully appreciate his style...but I think he weaves his prose so well someone who didn't know a word of Spanish would get it. He was quite a find for me. I love surprises. Flying home on a plane packed with noisy tourists. He drew me right in, and kept me throughout. Wonderful, refreshing voice.

[Chazro]

Read the 1st 2 of Stieg Larsson's 'Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' trilogy, good stuff! Before I get into the 3rd and last book I decided to pick up Margot Mifflin's 'The Blue Tattoo'. If anyone watches the western 'Hell On Wheels', there's a character, Lily, that has this fascinating tattoo on her chin. It turns out that she's based on a real woman who was taken captive by Indians as a child during the 1800's. Very well written and I'm tearing through this one. Than I finish off the trilogy!

[Monte Smith]

I've been wanting to read Camelot 3000 since 1982 or so. Back in the day it was a 12-issue limited "maxi-series" priced at a buck or $1.25 per issue. Way outside my budget which had a ceiling of 75 cents. Anything more than that for a comic was just decadence. Anyway, I bought this paperback omnibus reprint for 15 dollars or so. That means I paid over $1.25 per issue. Decadence!

I've wanted to read this for a long time, but I figured it would be disappointing and creaky with age. Au contraire, this thing was a blast. I didn't really think about it being a British product, but though it was DC it basically comes out of the UK comic industry and has a lot of the 2000AD/Judge Dredd feel. The setting is a slightly under-imagined year 3000 (the Soviet Union and the USA both still exist) and the Earth is under attack by aliens. The aliens pursue a young man to Glastonbury, where a strange tomb is discovered. King Arthur quickly leaps out of it and commences kicking ass pretty much where he left off in post-Roman Britain.

[sozamora]

I've been wanting to read Camelot 3000 since 1982 or so.

When I first read this post, I could have sworn there was a related animated cartoon, but after further research I realized I was confusing it with this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Arthu ... of_Justice

[jaka]

I've wanted to read this for a long time, but I figured it would be disappointing and creaky with age. Au contraire, this thing was a blast. I didn't really think about it being a British product, but though it was DC it basically comes out of the UK comic industry and has a lot of the 2000AD/Judge Dredd feel. The setting is a slightly under-imagined year 3000 (the Soviet Union and the USA both still exist) and the Earth is under attack by aliens. The aliens pursue a young man to Glastonbury, where a strange tomb is discovered. King Arthur quickly leaps out of it and commences kicking ass pretty much where he left off in post-Roman Britain.

I had read part of it in the 80s, but probably didn't care that much then.
But you just convinced me. On my way to participate in the decadence of paying $1.25 an issue.

[Jazzooo]

On my new Kindle Paperweight, I've been breezing through a few short books--one was Looking for Dave Chapelle, which was kind of interesting, and some guide to trivia about every single Seinfeld show which I found entertaining, even though I don't remember every episode myself.

Now I'm reading a compilation of Philip K Dick short stories and enjoying them. I think I'd like to read a novel of his, to see how he extends his ideas. Where should I start?

[sozamora]

Now I'm reading a compilation of Philip K Dick short stories and enjoying them. I think I'd like to read a novel of his, to see how he extends his ideas. Where should I start?

'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?', which is what the film Blade Runner is based on. Plenty of other good ones, but that's a good place to start.

Last year, there was a Kindle Daily Deal with a bunch of PKD novels for 2 bucks each, so I stocked up.

[sozamora]

Stanislaw Lem - Imaginary Magnitude

Moliere - Tartuffe

[walto]

I liked Three Stigmata

[sozamora]

I liked Three Stigmata

I should read that soon.

[moldyfigg]

I just finished Pete Cherches' Lift Your Right Arm. It's a lot of fun and Pete is a very talented writer. You can get it on Kindle.

[sozamora]

I just finished Pete Cherches' Lift Your Right Arm. It's a lot of fun and Pete is a very talented writer. You can get it on Kindle.

My review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/541463258

[jaka]

In between "issues" of Camelot 3000, I'm enjoying this one very much:



Alden Bell - The Reapers Are The Angels

[steve(thelil)]

by John Strausbaugh

[Dr Dave]

Just finished this. It's hard not to come away from it thinking that Lincoln really was our greatest President, because he was the most human.

[sozamora]

Andrzej Sapkowski - The Last Wish.

This is Sapkowski's first collection of stories featuring the anti-hero Geralt of Rivia, best known to western audiences from the Witcher video games. The stories are fast-moving sword and sorcery fantasy that borrow heavily from fairy tale twisted inside out and set in a politically complex landscape. Quite a fun read.

[sozamora]

Caitlin R Kiernan - The Drowning Girl

Wow. Either an intricately layered and very creepy ghost story or an excruciating descent into madness by an unreliable narrator. Or both. Excellent. Often depressing, often exasperating, but brilliant.

[walto]

Nabokov is so fucking awesome.

[hornplayer]

Recently finished reading Anne Willan's memoir, "One Souffle at a Time."

Now into one I'm excited about -- "Zealot," by Reza Aslan. It's the story and history of the historical Jesus. VERY different from what we've been led to believe via the bible.

[Monte Smith]

I had the pleasure of working with Anne Willan on one of her cookbooks as a junior editor. Bet her memoir made you hungry.

I'll have to take a peak at that ZEALOT book, now the furor has died down. It seems like ground Renan covered in the 1800s, but I enjoyed Renan.

I've been reading some enjoyable crap for the past few weeks. Couple of WALKING DEAD prequel novels and the new James Bond from William Boyd (not a crap author). Also been reading the last Shusaku Endo book in my collection (KIKU'S PRAYER) and a metaphysical thriller by Charles Williams.

[drumsolo]

tried to read Vineland when it appeared, but gave up and never got to the subsequent ones.)

I got half way through his new one Bleeding Edge and stopped. I just didn't care about it enough to finish.

[Dr Dave]

Any fantasies I ever had about shipping out on a freighter have been thoroughly debunked.

[A. Kingstone]

I've subscribed to LQ since it's onset.

[Jazzooo]

I finished Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep--thanks, sozamora--and have decided that I like Dick's ideas better than his writing style. Next was No Beethoven, Peter Erskine's autobiography which I loved.

Now I'm reading ACtors Anonymous by James Franco. At first it was a bit hard to understand what he was doing but now I think it's pretty brilliant.

[Monte Smith]

That looks really interesting to me. Goes on my list.