We don't have a "what are you reading" thread. Let's do it!
I don't get a lot of recreational reading time right now, but I finished Squirrel Girl up through the current trade paperback. Best. Superhero. Ever. If you have ever liked comic books or laughing, please read them!
Also got a fun math book for my dad for his birthday, "Things To Make and Do in the Fourth Dimension" by Matt Parker, which I'm trying to survey before I hand it off to him. Non-recreational right now is mostly math stuff.
I read the Old Man Logan series recently and by the end I felt like this was a very extended What If? issue.
Recently bought the first few collected "Transmetropolitan" books for a friend for xmas, which made me feel like re-reading my copies. Spider Jerusalem is amazing.
Also reading a few books on my nook. Just started "The City Stained Red" by Sam Sykes (Arizona native, why not), finished up Jim Hines new book (the first in the "Janitors of the Apocalypse" series. It was fun), and tried to slog through the "Mortal Engines" series after seeing the trailer for the next Peter Jackson produced flick based on it (Got through the first, trudged through the second, gave up on the third book and just read a plot synopsis).
I... may read a bit too much. Like, a book a day if I'm not careful about it. I usually remember to blink occasionally at least!
I've had an uninspiring couple of days, but a week or two ago I finished Paul Auster's latest, 4 3 2 1. It was a little slow to start off, but it was constantly surprising in really refreshing ways. Needs some time invested (it's over 800 pages), but I'd recommend it.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/TheSalvationWar (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/TheSalvationWar)
Bluddygoodread.
And nuclear devices do not explode, they initiate.
I've been reading Steven Hawking's "A brief history of time" on and off. I'm not much of a reader these days...
I'm still waiting for the next book of the "Song of ice and fire" series, so I can finally watch GoT again. I'm impressed I managed no going past the books in the series, although there were a couple of spoilers
Been on a Bill Bryson rampage(?) recently.
Notes from a small Island, Thunderbolt Kid and Notes from a Big Country.
Very funny guy, paints amazing pictures.
Recently finished "The furthest station" by Ben Aaronovitch. It's the latest in his series of police comedy supernatural themed books. Awesome read, very funny.
Today I've been reading Girl Genius comics...just about to start volume 16.
It's 38 Celsius here today, so a good day to stay inside and read in front of the cooler. :-)
I've been reading WWII air war books lately. Enemy Coast Ahead, Fighter: The True Story of the Battle of Britain, Ginger Lacey Fighter Pilot, 633 Squadron, Nine Lives.
I usually have a couple of books going at the same time though, so I have Harry Turtledove's Earthwar series open, and I've just started The Fat Mexican, along with Enemy Coast Ahead.
Quote from: Willybomb on January 20, 2018, 10:11:26 AM
I've been reading WWII air war books lately.
That reminds me of a book I saw on the shelf at Barnes and Noble earlier today:
(http://sfreviews.net/large_covers/ack_ack_macaque.jpg)
Yep. Thats.... a thing.
My bookreading has considerably declined since I got a smartphone a year ago. I really have to force myself to read more these days.
Richard Ford - The Sportswriter.
I haven't been reading as often lately, but I've been reading The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver when I have time.
Right now I'm reading
The Death of Expertise by Tom Nichols, which is pretty discouraging. I'm also reading an advance copy of
Rethinking Incarceration by a colleague of mine, Dominique Gilliard. Heavy stuff but appeals to my particular interests.
I probably need to read something fun and lighthearted next. Haha.
Quote from: peterc on January 20, 2018, 08:31:06 AM
Been on a Bill Bryson rampage(?) recently.
Notes from a small Island, Thunderbolt Kid and Notes from a Big Country.
Very funny guy, paints amazing pictures.
Bryson is hilarious! Add
A Walk in the Woods to your list if you haven't read it already.
I'm always trying to read self improvement stuff... recently finished...
7 habits for highly effective people
The inner game of music
Forensic structural engineers handbook
Now I'm working theough Relax into Stretch. And next up will be the brutal PMBOK - Project Managers Body of Knowledge for the PMP certification.
I just finished Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson, one of the best I've read in a long time. I'm not typically much of a fantasy reader, but I was recommended the the Stormlight books back in April or so, and between then and Oathbringer's release in November, I read all 9 of the cosmere-related novels and all of the novellas/short stories, probably close to 5000 pages in total. Worth every bit of it. He weaves such immersive worlds, and they're all subtly connected in a way that forms pieces of a larger story. The guy's a storytelling genius.
Quote from: peterc on January 20, 2018, 08:31:06 AM
Been on a Bill Bryson rampage(?) recently.
Notes from a small Island, Thunderbolt Kid and Notes from a Big Country.
Very funny guy, paints amazing pictures.
Such a good author. He's actually from Des Moines, where I live. (Although it's kind of a Hemingway/Oak Park situation where he hated it here and wanted nothing more than to get away, so he hopped on a plane to Europe as soon as he was old enough and never looked back - but we still proudly claim him anyway!) In Thunderbolt Kid, he talks about some amusing incident that happened in a middle school cafeteria, and at the time when I read it, my church was meeting every week that very same cafeteria. His childhood took place mostly along my route to work - so it was fun to hear how things used to be here back in the 50s and 60s.
One Summer: America, 1927 is also great if you haven't read it yet.
Quote from: aion on January 20, 2018, 09:17:35 PM
Such a good author. He's actually from Des Moines, where I live. (Although it's kind of a Hemingway/Oak Park situation where he hated it here and wanted nothing more than to get away, so he hopped on a plane to Europe as soon as he was old enough and never looked back - but we still proudly claim him anyway!)
I spent most of my childhood in Oak Park and I often laugh about this. He called Oak Park "The land of broad lawns and narrow minds."
That said, Oak Park is now very progressive and bears little resemblance to the town he strongly disliked.
I've been on a long string of zombie/post-apocalypse fiction serials: Arisen, The Remaining, The Tide, V Plague, The Last Town, The Gathering Dead, Extinction Cycle, Zombie Fallout. Plus a lot of programming and computer science books.
Top-Bar Beekeeping - Les Crowder
The Market Gardner - JM Fortier
Born Again Dirt - Noah Sanders
There is a bit of a theme here...
Quote from: pickdropper on January 20, 2018, 09:27:05 PM
I spent most of my childhood in Oak Park and I often laugh about this. He called Oak Park "The land of broad lawns and narrow minds."
That said, Oak Park is now very progressive and bears little resemblance to the town he strongly disliked.
Yeah, Oak Park is easily my favorite neighborhood in the Chicago metro. Frank Lloyd Wright houses are probably viewed a little more favorably today than when Hemingway was growing up, and that neighborhood basically belongs to him, which is most of the charm for me.
If anyone's into historical fiction, I strongly recommend the Marching With Caesar (http://a.co/fC4OpHJ) series by R.W. Peake.*
The books are written from the first person perspectives of (now a couple) Roman legionaries in a very honest and frank manner.
Peake is a retired Infantry Marine with a History degree and really nails what it's like to be a soldier on top of paying the real history as much due diligence as possible while still telling an engaging story (where Peake deviates from known history or makes some conjecture on his part, he spells out in the forewords).
*NOTE: I've linked to what's now technically the second book in the series, Conquest of Gaul, because there's a lot of redundancy between it and Birth of the 10th Legion and I think it makes more of an impression. If you think you may need to ease into the blood and guts, Birth of the 10th Legion may be more your speed.
I'm about halfway done with The Joy of Home Distilling (http://amzn.to/2Dv0Du7). I recently finished Vonnegut's Player Piano (http://amzn.to/2GbhHHo).
Vonnegut is one of my absolute favorites! Cat's Cradle and Breakfast of Champions are both classic. I'm also a big fan do Phillip K Dick. Nobody does dystopian future like Dick, and apparently I like me some dystopia.
I used to really enjoy reading Stephen Hawkings and Brian Green, but it's been a while since I've picked up any pop-sci books.
I've got a few math books, and a biography or two waiting on the shelf but it's nearly impossible for me to find time for that stuff between kids and my job.
I think the last actual-paper book I read was an English translation of the Kalevala, very fun read, that was.
Kurt Vonnegut was one of my favourite authors. In school, we read Slaughterhouse 5 and I was really knocked out.
That was one of those school moments when you secretly say, "sometimes this school thing is pretty cool". :)
I read several of his other books and they were also excellent.
I guess I got lazy here in my middle-old age and haven't picked up a book recently. oops.
( I do read things on the net to keep up my skills .... heh )
This thread reminds me... I've got a list of books to get and read somewhere on this desk. Why these ones? Because I'm horribly nosey and want to see what the fuss is about.
Heidegger
Nietzsche - Zarathustra
Kierkegaard
Clauswitz
Epictetus
Plato - The Republic
Hobbes - Leviathan
Confucius - Analects
Heraclitus - Fragments
Schopenhauer
Marcus Aurelius - Meditations
Machiavelli - The Prince
I want to get them in good Penguin Classic editions -- I've found those to be very readable, with fascinating forewords on the historic context and stuff. Yes, I know about Project Gutenberg. No, I want them in hardcopy :)
Quote from: alanp on January 28, 2018, 07:06:13 AM
This thread reminds me... I've got a list of books to get and read somewhere on this desk. Why these ones? Because I'm horribly nosey and want to see what the fuss is about.
Heidegger
Nietzsche - Zarathustra
Kierkegaard
Clauswitz
Epictetus
Plato - The Republic
Hobbes - Leviathan
Confucius - Analects
Heraclitus - Fragments
Schopenhauer
Marcus Aurelius - Meditations
Machiavelli - The Prince
I want to get them in good Penguin Classic editions -- I've found those to be very readable, with fascinating forewords on the historic context and stuff. Yes, I know about Project Gutenberg. No, I want them in hardcopy :)
I wasn't a philosophy major but I have had the chance to read at least part of most of the things on your list in my life (no Heraclitus, Clauswitz, or Epictetus, though).
I humbly suggest adding the Tao Te Ching, read right after Confucius, and possibly The Tao of Pooh (yes, really) to go along with it. It can be read in about an hour and understood either in a lifetime or in ten minutes, I'm not sure which.
I also think that despite being dry, adding Aristotle's Analytics and/or Ethics to the list will help contextualize all the other Western philosophy. But I wouldn't blame anyone for just skimming it, so it might not be worth a purchase.
Wow, it's been almost a year since anyone posted to this thread?
I've spent the last week binge reading the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
If you like fantasy, this is a really good series. Amazing world, realistic characters, and well written. The first bit of the 2nd book was a bit slow, but the third book more than made up for it.
I read Ready Player One a few months back. It was somewhat problematic and difficult to get into, but once it got going it was fun and imaginative. The pop culture references were handled in such fun ways. But ultimately it seems like it came together as a stream of ideas that was looking for a plot to hold them together, and unfortunately that plot is no where near as good as the ride.
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 10:06:07 AM
Wow, it's been almost a year since anyone posted to this thread?
I've spent the last week binge reading the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
If you like fantasy, this is a really good series. Amazing world, realistic characters, and well written. The first bit of the 2nd book was a bit slow, but the third book more than made up for it.
I'll have to check it out.
I finally decided to dig in an read the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I'm currently on book 6. I should finish the series sometime around April.
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 12:59:56 PM
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 10:06:07 AM
Wow, it's been almost a year since anyone posted to this thread?
I've spent the last week binge reading the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
If you like fantasy, this is a really good series. Amazing world, realistic characters, and well written. The first bit of the 2nd book was a bit slow, but the third book more than made up for it.
I'll have to check it out.
I finally decided to dig in an read the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I'm currently on book 6. I should finish the series sometime around April.
April of 2023?
Isnt there like twenty or so books in that series, I remember wanting to start reading that in high school and at that point there was an alarming amount ofbooks. Thatwas over fifteen years ago when i had long hair.
Quote from: jjjimi84 on January 26, 2019, 04:39:09 PM
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 12:59:56 PM
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 10:06:07 AM
Wow, it's been almost a year since anyone posted to this thread?
I've spent the last week binge reading the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
If you like fantasy, this is a really good series. Amazing world, realistic characters, and well written. The first bit of the 2nd book was a bit slow, but the third book more than made up for it.
I'll have to check it out.
I finally decided to dig in an read the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I'm currently on book 6. I should finish the series sometime around April.
April of 2023?
Isnt there like twenty or so books in that series, I remember wanting to start reading that in high school and at that point there was an alarming amount ofbooks. Thatwas over fifteen years ago when i had long hair.
Yeah, maybe not April. I plan on finishing book 6 of 14 this weekend. I believe I started reading them in November. May or June is probably more realistic as most are 800-1000 pages.
Quote from: alanp on January 24, 2018, 01:54:58 AM
I think the last actual-paper book I read was an English translation of the Kalevala, very fun read, that was.
One of the main characters, Väinämöinen, was heavily into DIY music gear: he built a kantele (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kantele) from the jawbone of a pike.
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 05:29:47 PM
Quote from: jjjimi84 on January 26, 2019, 04:39:09 PM
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 12:59:56 PM
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 10:06:07 AM
Wow, it's been almost a year since anyone posted to this thread?
I've spent the last week binge reading the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
If you like fantasy, this is a really good series. Amazing world, realistic characters, and well written. The first bit of the 2nd book was a bit slow, but the third book more than made up for it.
I'll have to check it out.
I finally decided to dig in an read the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I'm currently on book 6. I should finish the series sometime around April.
April of 2023?
Isnt there like twenty or so books in that series, I remember wanting to start reading that in high school and at that point there was an alarming amount ofbooks. Thatwas over fifteen years ago when i had long hair.
Yeah, maybe not April. I plan on finishing book 6 of 14 this weekend. I believe I started reading them in November. May or June is probably more realistic as most are 800-1000 pages.
From memory, I found book 6 or 7 really slow going...or maybe it was book 8. When Brandon Sanderson took over to finish the last few books, things really picked up.
I wouldn't be terribly upset if GRRM let Brandon Sanderson finish the Game of Thrones books. At least they would be done.
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 09:11:47 PM
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 05:29:47 PM
Quote from: jjjimi84 on January 26, 2019, 04:39:09 PM
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 12:59:56 PM
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 10:06:07 AM
Wow, it's been almost a year since anyone posted to this thread?
I've spent the last week binge reading the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
If you like fantasy, this is a really good series. Amazing world, realistic characters, and well written. The first bit of the 2nd book was a bit slow, but the third book more than made up for it.
I'll have to check it out.
I finally decided to dig in an read the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I'm currently on book 6. I should finish the series sometime around April.
April of 2023?
Isnt there like twenty or so books in that series, I remember wanting to start reading that in high school and at that point there was an alarming amount ofbooks. Thatwas over fifteen years ago when i had long hair.
Yeah, maybe not April. I plan on finishing book 6 of 14 this weekend. I believe I started reading them in November. May or June is probably more realistic as most are 800-1000 pages.
From memory, I found book 6 or 7 really slow going...or maybe it was book 8. When Brandon Sanderson took over to finish the last few books, things really picked up.
I wouldn't be terribly upset if GRRM let Brandon Sanderson finish the Game of Thrones books. At least they would be done.
Once I finish book 8, I'll let you know which one I guess you are referring to. It could be 6, but I need more info. ;-)
Eh, I didn't like Sanderson's continuation. It didn't feel the same. I am glad the series was finished, though!
Not that I liked the ending, but I won't spoil anything.
I didn't mind the change of author. But yeah, opinions seem split on that. As you say, I'm glad that the series got finished.
I also read Fire and Blood over the holiday break. Was really excited when I heard there was a new book in the Game of thrones series, but it turned out to be a prequel. It was interesting, but a large part of me couldn't help but ask why he didn't spend his time writing the last books, rather than doing a prequel, which in itself was only part one of two.
Quote from: alanp on January 26, 2019, 09:25:38 PM
Eh, I didn't like Sanderson's continuation. It didn't feel the same. I am glad the series was finished, though!
Not that I liked the ending, but I won't spoil anything.
/me throws books into the fireplace
This is really getting out of hand. I need at least one new bookshelf but I have nowhere to put it.
(https://www.dropbox.com/s/d0k8t4w74bag59z/2019-01-22.jpg?raw=1)
Quote from: alanp on January 26, 2019, 09:25:38 PM
Eh, I didn't like Sanderson's continuation. It didn't feel the same. I am glad the series was finished, though!
Not that I liked the ending, but I won't spoil anything.
Sanderson is an odd author to me. I love his world building. He is fantastic at ramping up, building tension, writing characters, and weaving plot threads together.
And utter garbage at climaxes.
His stories always end in these massive, enormous, big "epic" battles that really just end up as a messy 18 POV collection of smash cuts between characters. Everything gets muddled and messy, he will kill off a half dozen characters you care about in a page and a half with no time for caring about them, spend another 40 pages on the dull characters and plot threads that he forgot were still hanging around till then, and then messily tie everything together with a vaguely mystic hand wavey denouement that you can't tell if is meant to be religious allegory or just "deep". Usually with a little wink at the camera and then the story just stops.
Its frustrating as hell. I read his books voraciously, but I've never finished one of his series (including Wheel of Time) feeling satisfied.
(and this is all just my opinion, obviously)
Yeah, I don't know why, but I love Sanderson's stuff. I first read his finishing of Jordan's books, the Wheel of Time. I thought he wrote Mat better than RJ did, like waaaay better. I also liked the small character changes and developments that, after reading the rest of his material, are obviously his choices. I loved the world of WoT, but Jordan's obvious style is tough to read, especially his treatment of women. Nynaeve is like one of the worst characters ever for the longest time.
So since I've read just about everything Sanderson has ever written, I have found he has a unique style that I just really enjoy. Hard to wait for the continuation of any series he's done.
One set of books that I'm also eagerly waiting for is a guy named Robert Jackson's series called Foundryside. I had someone recommend it, and found I couldn't stop reading it.
Also, if you really like buddy-cop style movies, you may really like the buddy-antihero series by Michael J. Sullivan, called The Riyria Revelations. Quite a cool setup, and characters that are realistic. I enjoy his style because he writes the whole series before releasing anything, so the editing process is done on a completed work, so there's less to tie up at the end, because he paces and reveals things along the way, moving elements of the story around. Then the books get released over time, but only after the whole set is written. Not a good way to write a whole series, but very satisfying to read because there aren't plot holes or issues with the completed set of stories, as is common in long series like WoT or GoT.
I got like 80 pages into the GoT book, put it down and have no desire to continue. The content is just not worth the story in my opinion.
Jacob
Before I had a tablet/laptop: I visited the library every week and read (on average) two non-fiction books a week. Now, I read (on average) one book a year. I'd really like to change this but I just cannot seem to shift my habits.
Apropos of nothing: anyone else experience this phenomena: reading before bed then dreaming the book you were reading! As in, a complete non-visual dream...you dream about the story you were reading awake. Some of my favorites.
worked through the Franklin Barbecue book ... its fun to read how other people do things and its interesting to read the parallels in outside interests ... I found a torrent of nothing but bbq books so I'll probably work through a couple others over time.
Quote from: madbean on January 27, 2019, 02:40:12 AM
Before I had a tablet/laptop: I visited the library every week and read (on average) two non-fiction books a week. Now, I read (on average) one book a year. I'd really like to change this but I just cannot seem to shift my habits.
I have dealt with a different problem. Pretty consistently during my life I have read during my down time. On the bus, waiting for something, even on my lunch break when I was working through college. During work shifts doing overnight security. I read a LOT of books. Fiction, non-fiction, history, biographies, all sorts of stuff. And most typically, I read fiction before going to sleep every night, by lamp light in bed.
Well, as we all do, I got married, and for a while my wife tolerated the lamp, but at some point she refused to let me read at night before bed, because it kept her awake. Especially when she had to get up early and I didn't, this caused friction that was not worth the fiction.
I resorted at first to using my old, first gen iPod, to jerry-rig an e-reader, but then I learned about audio-books. That was huge for me. I also now have a kindle, but I actively listen to audiobooks through just about all the various audiobook apps you can get.
Also, having a phone has diminished some of my reading. In those downtimes I usually am on that thing. Fortunately, I'm still reading, it's just not always books anymore. News, articles, blogs, research on various topics I'm interested in. And now, I read a lot for work, so whereas once I read in my downtime from work, I now do a lot more reading as a part of my work and it balances out a bit.
One of the things my kindle has done for me is help me put my distracting phone down. All it does is give me words to read. No email, no facebook, no Youtube. Just the book. Plus ebooks cheaper than buying physical books, and they store much more compactly.
Jacob
Quote from: jkokura on January 27, 2019, 03:02:02 PM
Quote from: madbean on January 27, 2019, 02:40:12 AM
Before I had a tablet/laptop: I visited the library every week and read (on average) two non-fiction books a week. Now, I read (on average) one book a year. I'd really like to change this but I just cannot seem to shift my habits.
I have dealt with a different problem. Pretty consistently during my life I have read during my down time. On the bus, waiting for something, even on my lunch break when I was working through college. During work shifts doing overnight security. I read a LOT of books. Fiction, non-fiction, history, biographies, all sorts of stuff. And most typically, I read fiction before going to sleep every night, by lamp light in bed.
Well, as we all do, I got married, and for a while my wife tolerated the lamp, but at some point she refused to let me read at night before bed, because it kept her awake. Especially when she had to get up early and I didn't, this caused friction that was not worth the fiction.
I resorted at first to using my old, first gen iPod, to jerry-rig an e-reader, but then I learned about audio-books. That was huge for me. I also now have a kindle, but I actively listen to audiobooks through just about all the various audiobook apps you can get.
Also, having a phone has diminished some of my reading. In those downtimes I usually am on that thing. Fortunately, I'm still reading, it's just not always books anymore. News, articles, blogs, research on various topics I'm interested in. And now, I read a lot for work, so whereas once I read in my downtime from work, I now do a lot more reading as a part of my work and it balances out a bit.
One of the things my kindle has done for me is help me put my distracting phone down. All it does is give me words to read. No email, no facebook, no Youtube. Just the book. Plus ebooks cheaper than buying physical books, and they store much more compactly.
Jacob
Yeah, the Kindle has really been helpful as its backlight is subtle enough that I can read it without it being a distraction. A significant improvement over a lamp.
I have a Nook, and I, quite literally, take it everywhere I go. I read constantly. I have it in my lap as i type this in fact. I'll work through several books a week. I... may have something of a problem quite honestly.
But I love it. I don't have that many physical books around anymore. Well, novels anyway. The Nook isn't great for anything with a lot illustrations or that you will jump between pages a lot. So reference books, textbooks, cookbooks, all that fun stuff I still keep around.
Just means the 300 odd paperbacks I would be hauling around otherwise now fit in my pocket. And the newer edition has a nice soft backlight that lets me read when I go on walks after sundown.
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 09:11:47 PM
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 05:29:47 PM
Quote from: jjjimi84 on January 26, 2019, 04:39:09 PM
Quote from: pickdropper on January 26, 2019, 12:59:56 PM
Quote from: mjg on January 26, 2019, 10:06:07 AM
Wow, it's been almost a year since anyone posted to this thread?
I've spent the last week binge reading the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson.
If you like fantasy, this is a really good series. Amazing world, realistic characters, and well written. The first bit of the 2nd book was a bit slow, but the third book more than made up for it.
I'll have to check it out.
I finally decided to dig in an read the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I'm currently on book 6. I should finish the series sometime around April.
April of 2023?
Isnt there like twenty or so books in that series, I remember wanting to start reading that in high school and at that point there was an alarming amount ofbooks. Thatwas over fifteen years ago when i had long hair.
Yeah, maybe not April. I plan on finishing book 6 of 14 this weekend. I believe I started reading them in November. May or June is probably more realistic as most are 800-1000 pages.
From memory, I found book 6 or 7 really slow going...or maybe it was book 8. When Brandon Sanderson took over to finish the last few books, things really picked up.
I wouldn't be terribly upset if GRRM let Brandon Sanderson finish the Game of Thrones books. At least they would be done.
Im guessing it was indeed book 6 you found slow. I thought 7 and 8 went fairly quickly.
My sister has started reading the Wheel of Time series. (It means she stops bugging me for a good while on what book from the shelf to pick next.)
Apparently, she really doesn't like Matrim Cauthon -- she thinks that he's childish and annoying.
Well, I retort, Egwene and all the other women around him are condescending, high-handed, and patronizing. "Don't forget to put your socks and shoes on before you go out, Mat! You know you'll forget!", and if I was surrounded by women like that, then I'd be an annoying little shit, too.
But all the women in WoT are like that!, my sister cries.
Doesn't change my position.
Read Junot Diaz's The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao recently. It's incredibly well written. I (spoilers) really kept hoping the title was a lie, though. The ending hurts a lot.
Also reread the Te-Tao Ching, which is as weird as I remember, and The Tao of Pooh, which I don't think has aged well now that I'm older -- I find the author to be judgmental in many of the ways he praises Pooh for not being, and while I still think it's clever to use the Pooh books to explain the concepts of Taoism, Hu's analysis feels like it misses the mark most of the time.
https://www.amazon.com/Build-Metal-Working-Scrap-Complete/dp/1878087355/ref=pd_ybh_a_sccl_5/139-8757473-1242458?pd_rd_w=jZrUb&pf_rd_p=48b4f440-2099-4e34-afeb-210417d3bf51&pf_rd_r=T4RF464PP43WVFXYN169&pd_rd_r=f1f28cba-4ca3-428d-b825-9176d7a7dfe8&pd_rd_wg=70ubW&pd_rd_i=1878087355&psc=1 (https://www.amazon.com/Build-Metal-Working-Scrap-Complete/dp/1878087355/ref=pd_ybh_a_sccl_5/139-8757473-1242458?pd_rd_w=jZrUb&pf_rd_p=48b4f440-2099-4e34-afeb-210417d3bf51&pf_rd_r=T4RF464PP43WVFXYN169&pd_rd_r=f1f28cba-4ca3-428d-b825-9176d7a7dfe8&pd_rd_wg=70ubW&pd_rd_i=1878087355&psc=1)
Just ordered this. Should be a very entertaining read -- while I'm not really a metal working and welding guy, I enjoy learning things here and there.
I also ordered Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus, while I was at it. Those three are spendy enough for now.
I'm a slow reader but I tell myself I absord more that way. I read a handful of books a year and try to mostly read the classics. I typically read at night before bed. I don't care for audio books as I think it's a different experience since it hits my brain thru a different sensory path and I also tend to skip back and forth a bit.
I finished up Borges' Labyrinths not too long ago. Fantastic stuff
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AM-JKLX7bSyOy9efJ0X4IPNFI_BXxUY1HIUgUt9h00O_4luBgQOAHodH3hPaFay3B7FWAViUujNKYk7-WeLj35m25-7VCzMrMq_s5PR9vtLkytQdQbSZ5jAWPoCGGOQtpTfg12RCqvPHtnT0r7XUwKn_tEqO_A=w800-h640-no)
Currently reading Manley P Hall's The Secret Teachings of All Ages
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AM-JKLVBlqsEaevgC25kqPaF9p9rQ5g417vxMf_vATApN537FuNtVRvv1yFhXfcB_cDnWq_7FV1fIF2U9s4JRkxKPOx6jHB1GzOJGCwre_XkO7e1AKDwUpyLFG4ojIadMvAaTAK-PdfRVFNtIiopPjZ1i3uaJQ=w800-h640-no)
My old LOTR book binding went out several years ago and I ditched it. I had been looking for a replacement for it recently and was excited to see a new edition, so I just got a it and the matching Hobbit edition recently. There is a matching Silmarillion (which I have not read) edition coming out soon that I will be getting as well. I guess that will be my next read.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AM-JKLXVv9jGs-g_HWWqz3QJ97q4Q1g00r3TQbre5sAlJMvCrCe1b4b3tHikHp4CWDuFk6k3HJGttXUfg8rGVJU1oEOtiqm_lGE7gMJzjoBjHSmX0uovMETShA_3vW4kV7_l2x_mV6pyT8GtHXimb35WjKVhww=w800-h640-no)
My wife got me every Calvino book I didn't already own last year (mostly short story collections). I've been slowly making my way through a zillion of his short stories but I guess I'll have to dig something else out soon since I'm on the last one.
Started on Marcus Aurelius, and found a really good quote... "You are meant to stand straight, not to be held straight."