What Are You Reading Now?

[BoylenOver]

"Prodigal Summer" by Barbara Kingsolver. I really enjoy it, as I do all of her books. It's beautifully-written, and the way she weaves concepts found in nature with the way the characters of the story experience life is well-done.

[happyone]

Just finished "We Where Soldiers Once...And Young"

Interesting read. I think that is one of my favorite "new" war movies, which convinced me to read the book.

Sgt. Major Plumbly is my newest hero.

Very good book, one of my favorites on Viet Nam. If you are interested in Viet Nam, you might also look at the books of David Hackworth. He was a contemptary of Hal Moore.

[Eddie]

Very good book, one of my favorites on Viet Nam. If you are interested in Viet Nam, you might also look at the books of David Hackworth. He was a contemptary of Hal Moore.

I haven't been interested in Viet Nam per se - I'm much more of a WWII buff to be honest.

I stumbled across the movie to this book a while back when switching channels and couldn't turn the channel. Then I went and got the movie from the beginning to see what I'd missed. Then I went looking for the book (when I remembered) and just got to finishing it.

Well worth the read, and it has increased my interest in Viet Nam beyond where it was. I'll have to look into this author as you suggest.

[woot]

Just finished "We Where Soldiers Once...And Young"

Interesting read. I think that is one of my favorite "new" war movies, which convinced me to read the book.

Sgt. Major Plumbly is my newest hero.

I also really enjoyed that one. My all-time favorite war book is Blackhawk Down, though. That one I just couldn't put down.

I finished "Why Evolution is True" by Jerry Coyne a while back, and found it to be the best introduction to the evidence for evolution I've read, even better than Dawkins' recent book on the same subject.

I'm almost done with "Eating Animals" too, and while I don't think it's as good or as generally informative as "The Omnivore's Dilemma" or "Fastfood Nation," it is very entertaining and quite a bit more intense.

[Flattop]

When I was in high school I ordered the first book in the Time-Life World War II series. My father then bought the rest of the series for me. The family business of book binding was still going in those days, and my father said he had connections from which he could purchase the series at a discount. Even better for me, all 38 of them showed up on the same day so I didn't have to wait a few years getting just one a month.

Anyway, I have been re-reading some of the volumes in recent years. Up this time are

Return to the Philippines
The Battle of the Bulge
Bombers Over Japan
Across the Rhine

[bluegoose]

I just finished reading "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins. I'm sure that its been commented on before in this thread, but I don't know by whom.

Great book. Its been awhile since I've read such a compelling book that actually keeps me awake reading late at night (I'm usually out within a minute of hitting the pillow). I was the third one in my family to read it, behind my wife and my 9 year old son. Each of us enjoyed it immensely, which is I think one of the great things about it - that it appeals to both genders and all ages from young to old.

Just starting the sequel today - "Catching Fire", which my son says was even better than the hunger games.

[Brian]

half way through "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok. Really digging it.

[LA Ute]

half way through "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok. Really digging it.

One of my favorite books from my high school days. My old paperback is still on a bookshelf in one of the kids' rooms.

[Green Lantern]

I just finished reading "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins. I'm sure that its been commented on before in this thread, but I don't know by whom.

Great book. Its been awhile since I've read such a compelling book that actually keeps me awake reading late at night (I'm usually out within a minute of hitting the pillow). I was the third one in my family to read it, behind my wife and my 9 year old son. Each of us enjoyed it immensely, which is I think one of the great things about it - that it appeals to both genders and all ages from young to old.

Just starting the sequel today - "Catching Fire", which my son says was even better than the hunger games.

I just finished it too, but I'm holding off on Catching Fire for a bit because my understanding is that it will leave me dying to read book three, which doesn't come out until later this year.

[RobinFinderson]

Just finished Asterios Polyp, by David Mazzucchelli. It is a graphic novel, and a pretty brilliant one at that.



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[happyone]

I finally finished Rebels and Traitors. It is fairly long, just under 800 pages. I enjoyed it, but then again, I'm a sucker for English history. It covers an era that I'm not really knowledgeable about. Most of my knowledge comes from the movie Cromwell with Richard Harris and Alec Guiness.

I like Lindsey Davis as an author, but she normally writes mysteries set in Emperial Rome, so this was something of a departure for her. It is a straight historical novel that covers the years 1636-1656/7. The novel opens with the execution of Charles I and then flashes back 10 years to introduce the main characters. She goes into the causes of the Civil War and how it goes from an attempt to reform the monarchy and limit the power of the monarch, to actually replacing it with a Commonwealth. It ends just before the Restoration.

If anybody knows of a good biography of Oliver Cromwell or Charles I, I would like to learn more about them and the era in general.

I saw Paul Johnson on CSPAN's Booknotes and with that and LA Ute's recommendation, I will start his Churchill next

[Green Lantern]

I finally finished Rebels and Traitors. It is fairly long, just under 800 pages. I enjoyed it, but then again, I'm a sucker for English history. It covers an era that I'm not really knowledgeable about. Most of my knowledge comes from the movie Cromwell with Richard Harris and Alec Guiness.

I like Lindsey Davis as an author, but she normally writes mysteries set in Emperial Rome, so this was something of a departure for her. It is a straight historical novel that covers the years 1636-1656/7. The novel opens with the execution of Charles I and then flashes back 10 years to introduce the main characters. She goes into the causes of the Civil War and how it goes from an attempt to reform the monarchy and limit the power of the monarch, to actually replacing it with a Commonwealth. It ends just before the Restoration.

If anybody knows of a good biography of Oliver Cromwell or Charles I, I would like to learn more about them and the era in general.

I saw Paul Johnson on CSPAN's Booknotes and with that and LA Ute's recommendation, I will start his Churchill next

Have you ever heard of An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears? It's a novel set in England right after the Cromwell era. A few of the primary characters are fictional but most of the cast is drawn from actual history. It's a RASHOMON-style murder mystery, with four different narrators recounting their wildly differing accounts of events. Absolutely engrossing and a fascinating insight into the time period. I loved it.

[happyone]

Have you ever heard of An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears? It's a novel set in England right after the Cromwell era. A few of the primary characters are fictional but most of the cast is drawn from actual history. It's a RASHOMON-style murder mystery, with four different narrators recounting their wildly differing accounts of events. Absolutely engrossing and a fascinating insight into the time period. I loved it.

No, I haven't. I'll look it up. Thanks

edit - the library has it, so it is now on my list to read

[Flattop]

Alpha Strike, book 8 of the Carrier series by Keith Douglass.

Throughout the Carrier series, the crew of the USS Thomas Jefferson deal with crises around the globe. In book 8, they face off with the Chinese over the Spratly Islands.

I have enjoyed the series so far.

[OhioBlue]

Finished The Help and liked it quite a bit. I enjoyed listening to it on audiobook as the southern accents and different voices for the main characters really helped add some realism.

Now starting Ender's Shadow also on audiobook and for reading with my eyes a book called Stiff.