Meredith ([info]cheerfulstoic) wrote,
@ 2008-08-12 14:24:00
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Current mood:unsatisfied
Current music:Grand Funk Railroad - "Some Kind of Wonderful"
Entry tags:books

Book Blegging
I keep an ongoing list of books that I want to read, mainly culled from reviews in various newspapers or my favorite book nerd website. Although the length of this list is as strong as ever the quality of the books on it seems to be falling off of late. Very rarely am I attracted by a review and then find the book unreadable, but there's been a lot more meh. I don't like meh.

Therefore, I need your help. Please tell me something you've read recently (or maybe not so recently) that really knocked your socks off. Fiction, nonfiction, scifi, classics, trashy bodice-rippers, whatever, as long as you turned the last page and thought, "Damn, that was a great book."


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[info]marstheinfomage
2008-08-12 06:48 pm UTC (link)
same pair i've been recommending to people for the last few years, with varying success:

Douglas Adams, "Last Chance to See" (yes, that Adams, but it's non-fiction)
Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods" (one of the Discworld books)

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[info]marstheinfomage
2008-08-12 06:50 pm UTC (link)
oh if you do find something to knock your socks off, please share! it's been years since i've read anything better than a 6/10

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[info]cheerfulstoic
2008-08-12 10:28 pm UTC (link)
Mating by Norman Rush
Prague by Arthur Phillips
A Trip to the Stars by Nicholas Christopher
These all have a very similar feel, so if you don't like one you probably won't like the others. I'm also generally a fan of Salman Rushdie, Tom Robbins and Jasper Fforde. If you like books in general and Douglas Adams in particular, you will probably like Jasper Fforde. Start with The Eyre Affair.

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[info]cheerfulstoic
2008-08-12 07:02 pm UTC (link)
I have read and enjoyed Last Chance to See. It reminded me of Bill Bryson's travel writing, which I also like very much.

I did read one of the Discworld books years ago, after hearing everyone I knew rave about them. It utterly failed to make an impression. I don't recall the title; depending on exactly how long ago it was, I may have a record it in the giant list of books I've been keeping for years. I think it might have had a turtle in it.

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[info]cheerfulstoic
2008-08-12 07:06 pm UTC (link)
Actually, it might have been that one.

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[info]marstheinfomage
2008-08-12 08:02 pm UTC (link)
a little talking turtle, or a giant flying one? :P
the latter occurs pretty much throughout the series, as the world rides atop it.

(Discworld shares the same property as the Hitchhiker's Guide - reading the quotes from the book is more often than not more entertaining than reading the actual book)

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[info]cheerfulstoic
2008-08-12 08:12 pm UTC (link)
A talking turtle. A cranky one.

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[info]marstheinfomage
2008-08-12 08:28 pm UTC (link)
yeah, that'd be it :)

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[info]tacologic
2008-08-12 07:11 pm UTC (link)
Chuck Klosterman - Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs

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[info]cheerfulstoic
2008-08-12 08:11 pm UTC (link)
I own this. I especially love the essay about The Sims. And the one about women who are in love with John Cusack really being in love with Lloyd Dobler, except that when I'm in love with John Cusack I'm in love with Rob Gordon instead. I never saw Say Anything until a year or two ago, and I was unimpressed.

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[info]tacologic
2008-08-12 08:21 pm UTC (link)
I recommend his other work as well, if you've not checked those out. Klosterman IV is especially cool.

And yeah, Say Anything didn't do much for me, but I appreciate its place in the pop culture lexicon.

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[info]lynore
2008-08-13 03:52 am UTC (link)
Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse (moody)
Lizard Music by Daniel Pinkwater (funny and silly)
Kant and the Platypus Umberto Eco (smarter than everyone)
Snowcrash What? Some people still haven't read it
An Incomplete Education Best bathroom book ever and will make you smart 'n stuff. You can get it on Amazon, it is out of print now
Spineless Wonders: Strange Tales from the Invertebrate World One of the coolest books about nature/animals ever.
The other one: Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation: The Definitive Guide to the Evolutionary Biology of Sex

There are many more but I have to do other stuff now. :)

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[info]cheerfulstoic
2008-08-13 01:21 pm UTC (link)
Wow, a whole list of books I not only haven't read, I hadn't heard of! :-D I will look for them at the library this evening. I've been meaning to get around to reading some Eco for ages but never quite made it. I like the title on that one, which is always a good start.

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[info]andymant
2008-08-14 01:06 pm UTC (link)
Peony by Pearl Buck
Scepticism Inc by Bo Fowler (yes it is intentionally mispelled. very funny.)
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (very unique graphic novel, i loved it)

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[info]cheerfulstoic
2008-08-14 08:04 pm UTC (link)
I have Persepolis. I bought it for a class in college, and I liked it, but generally graphic novels are not my thing. They're hard to find in libraries and I'll be damned if I'm spending $15 on a book that only keeps me occupied for half an hour. I'm looking forward to when the movie gets to the top of my Netflix queue though.

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