What book is everyone reading at the moment?

[aofl]

Nineteen Eighty by David Peace. It's the first of his novels that I've tried, and I'm not at all sure that I want to read any of the others.
Not that it's badly written - the reverse, the writing is brilliant and compelling. It's just that the subject matter, the Yorkshire Ripper murders (graphically described), plus Peace's extraordinary insight into his characters' inner darkness is very unsettling. Distuburbing even. I'm having to read it a chapter at a time.

I decided to read, and just finished, Nineteen Seventy-Four by Mr Peace based on your post. I suspect I will pursue this series to its conclusion, but I must admit Nineteen Seventy-Four, with too many characters and a rather abrupt denouement, did not completely satisfy.

A

 

[Bikewer]

Adventures From The Technology Underground by William Gurstelle. (also known for Backyard Ballistics)

A cross-country examination of the fascinating folks that hobby in the fields of rocketry, punkin chunkin, Tesla coils, flamethrowers, air cannons, and similar toys.

We're talking about the big stuff here; Tesla coils that can cause ionized discharges 50 feet in length, and air cannon that can fire pumpkins nearly a mile.
Fun stuff, and Gurstelle writes cleverly.

 

[SRW]

I actually ended up enjoying the Dean Koontz book. Odd Thomas was a likeable hero, and the supporting cast -- even Elvis -- were human(ish) and interesting. I bought the next one in the series ("Brother Odd") today as a holiday gift for Mr.Sis.

I enjoyed both of these However I read them in the wrong order.

Just finished Thomas Paine By Christopher Hitchens, Actually is Called Rights of Man A Biography of Thomas Paine, but that is to much to type this morning. Because of this I am reading everything I can find by Paine.

 

[boojum]

Killed Cartoons -- Casualties from the War on Free Expression edited by David Wallis. This book has short accounts of editorial art killed (or "spiked") by newspapers and magazines because of the the potential for controversy.

 

[Father Dagon]

Göran Dahl's Radikalare än Hitler? De esoteriska och gröna nazisterna. Inspirationskällor. Pionjärer. Förvaltare. Ättlingar. (More radical than Hitler? The esoteric and green nazis. Sources of inspiration. Pioneers. Inheriters. Descendants.)

P.S. If you nag me enough, I'll write a book report.

P.P.S. "Inheriters" is the best translation i could find. "Förvaltare" is probably not to be translated into "managers" etc.

 

[Francesca R]

"Suicide of the West" by Richard Koch and Chris Smith

 

[sackett]

Like Nothing in the World, Stephen Ambrose's history of the building of the transcontinental railroad. Good pop history, just the thing to balance on your stomach in bed.

 

[Slimething]

I've just started Terry Pratchett's Going Postal. I've been on a Pratchett tear of late and I'm pretty well hooked.

On the lighter side, a friend just presented me a copy of The Far Side Gallery by Gary Larson. Maybe I'll post a book report on it.

 

[Agamemnon2]

Right now, I'm reading Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita. And The Origin of Species. The former for fun, the latter while commuting from work.

Today I bought and read, cover to cover, Neil Gaiman's Stardust. Quite an enjoyable read, all things considered.

 

[CplFerro]

Democracy in America by Alexis de Toqueville. The man obviously knows things.

Cpl Ferro

 

[Mister Agenda]

White Man's Burden by William Easterly. How can we ACTUALLY help Third World Countries develop?

 

[Worm]

The Penguin History of the USA - Hugh Brogan

Slightly heavy going, but very readable.

 

[Wildy]

Just started A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah.

 

[sackett]

The Longest Journey, E. M. Forster, 1922. Odd, the way he switches between tedious and rapid-paced. I don't often read novels, but E. M. can hold my interest.

 

[HawaiiBigSis]

<snip>Today I bought and read, cover to cover, Neil Gaiman's Stardust. Quite an enjoyable read, all things considered.

I liked that better than I thought I would too.

Currently reading "The Sunbird" by Wilbur Smith. So far, it's shaping up to be a cracker-jack adventure story, as expected.

 

[Darth Rotor]

The Consolation of Philosophy

Boethius

DR

 

[Foster Zygote]

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, to my son, pretty much every night.

 

[The Whether Man]

Neverness, by David Zindell.

 

[Wildy]

Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Baghdad's Green Zone by Rajiv Chandrasekaran.

Finished the other book in a day.

 

[Agamemnon2]

I liked that better than I thought I would too.

Me too, really. It was a relief, of sorts, to read a fantasy book that was short and was not intended as a massive epic or "part one of the ________ trilogy" as so many examples of the genre are. 200 pages, 10 chapters, short and enjoyable, like a dessert (sure, you could eat more of that pudding, but you'd get sick eventually).

I finished The Master and Margarita last night. It was probably one of the most interesting reading experiences I've had this year. Magical realism as a style is one that appeals to me, as traditional fantasy and sci-fi have gotten tiresome to me. Mind you, Bulgakov's style was somewhat hard for me to follow at times, and the large cast of characters with unfamiliar Russian names were somewhat tiresome to keep tabs of. The language barrier was an issue, too, I feel, as it is my habit to read all books in English, regardless of what the originals are written in and the availability of Finnish translations.

Over the holidays, I also sped through Terry Pratchett's Making Money, which proved as enjoyable as always. Next up, I need to finish The Origin.