What Are You Reading Now?

[BigPiney]

Stoner by John Williams. Read the first chapter before bed last night and it was stunningly good.

I am halfway through. It is very good. Can't believe I have never heard about it.

[bluegoose]

I am working my way through East of Eden for the 2nd time. I LOVE this novel. However, I am having trouble getting through the chapters where Cathy Ames shows up and Adam marries her. I just wish they'd get to California already.

It's my favorite book. Last year I pulled it out to re-read a chapter I was thinking about and ended up reading the whole thing.

[SteelBlue]

I am halfway through. It is very good. Can't believe I have never heard about it.

We read his novel Butcher's Crossing in our book club and it was also good. But Stoner is on another level. Did you end up trying The Waitress Was New?

[bluegoose]

We read his novel Butcher's Crossing in our book club and it was also good. But Stoner is on another level. Did you end up trying The Waitress Was New?

I really liked Butcher's Crossing. Was just thinking about it yesterday. Not my favorite book of the year by any means, but I'd give it a solid 4/5.

[BigPiney]

We read his novel Butcher's Crossing in our book club and it was also good. But Stoner is on another level. Did you end up trying The Waitress Was New?

I haven't yet.

[Pelado]

Based on earlier comments in this thread, I just checked out both East of Eden and Stoner on the Libby app. EofE is an e-book while Stoner is of the audiobook variety. Now the big question is whether I'll actually read (or listen to) either one before they are auto-returned.

[BigPiney]

Based on earlier comments in this thread, I just checked out both East of Eden and Stoner on the Libby app. EofE is an e-book while Stoner is of the audiobook variety. Now the big question is whether I'll actually read (or listen to) either one before they are auto-returned.

I'm listening to Stoner. The reader does a good job.

[falafel]

Based on earlier comments in this thread, I just checked out both East of Eden and Stoner on the Libby app. EofE is an e-book while Stoner is of the audiobook variety. Now the big question is whether I'll actually read (or listen to) either one before they are auto-returned.

I have the audiobook version of East of Eden right now and I think the narrator is very good. His voice and manner of speaking seem to match the writing style and period pretty well.

[falafel]

It's my favorite book. Last year I pulled it out to re-read a chapter I was thinking about and ended up reading the whole thing.

I have called it my favorite book for a number of years, but then I decided I couldn't have read my favorite book only once. Then I found out someone chucked my "nice" paperback that I had marked up and underlined in college and I'm really bummed by that. I named my son Sam largely because Samuel was such a force for good in that novel.

[SteelBlue]

I am halfway through. It is very good. Can't believe I have never heard about it.

I had the same thought and so I did a little digging and discovered that Stoner was largely ignored upon publication in 1965. It was completely out of print until NYRB editors resurrected it with their reprinting in 2006. That reprinting caught on big in Europe and it was translated into French and Dutch where it really blew up. All the Euro talk got the US market going (funny because the reprinting was American) and now it's considered a classic. Williams died in the 90's and never got to see that work get the appreciation it deserved.

[Pelado]

I'm listening to Stoner. The reader does a good job.

Finished it. Pretty, pretty good. Didn't realize when I started that the book was as old as it was. Honestly, with the title "Stoner", I was expecting a much different story.

I have the audiobook version of East of Eden right now and I think the narrator is very good. His voice and manner of speaking seem to match the writing style and period pretty well.

I started the audiobook last week. I'm enjoying it so far but it's quite a bit longer than my last read/listen. And I fell asleep during my last listening session, so I'll probably have a bit of a problem finding a good spot fron which to pick up the story.

[SteelBlue]

Finished it. Pretty, pretty good. Didn't realize when I started that the book was as old as it was. Honestly, with the title "Stoner", I was expecting a much different story.

I believe the title has a lot to do with why more people haven't picked it up.

[Clark Addison]

I’ll be the contrarian here on Stoner. I got the audiobook and thought it was just ok. I did think the first part was good. but liked it less as it went on. I thought pretty much all of the supporting characters didn’t have much depth, and while Stoner had a bit more, his passivity and lack of character growth didn’t make him too compelling to me. It kind of reminded me of a Willa Cather novel if she stopped taking Prozac and decided she hated people.

Just one dummy’s opinion though. Glad some of you are enjoying it.

[SteelBlue]

It kind of reminded me of a Willa Cather novel if she stopped taking Prozac and decided she hated people.

This made me heartily chuckle. I'm slow reading Stoner and am on chapter 5. I'm still all in on it.

[Donuthole]

I’ll be the contrarian here on Stoner. I got the audiobook and thought it was just ok. I did think the first part was good. but liked it less as it went on. I thought pretty much all of the supporting characters didn’t have much depth, and while Stoner had a bit more, his passivity and lack of character growth didn’t make him too compelling to me. It kind of reminded me of a Willa Cather novel if she stopped taking Prozac and decided she hated people.

For me, this is describing Demon Copperhead to a T.