What book(s) are you reading?

[Emcee77]

Jerusalem. Alan Moore. Long, long book. A real commitment to complete. Currently at 67%

Oh man. That's one that I am dying to read. Please let us know what you think when you get through it.

I recently finished Mason & Dixon by Thomas Pynchon (after trying and failing to get through it once before). It was magnificent, but definitely a challenge to get through. I hear that Jerusalem is similar.

I'm about 10% of the way through The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy. (Read All the Pretty Horses a few years ago, always wanted to finish the Border Trilogy.) So far it is about a kid trying to trap a wolf? I am into it because McCarthy is great to read from the standpoint of style and he has this way of storytelling that just makes you feel that something terrible could happen at any moment, but so far nothing has really happened except a kid is kind of obsessed with wolves. Hopefully it will become clear where this is going soon.

 

[EvilleIrish]

I'm a little over halfway finished with Fortune's Fool. It's essentially a biography of Wilkes Booth and has been really interesting as there isn't a whole lot on his journey to political fanatic.

 

[NorthDakota]

Just finished July 1914: Countdown to War by Sean McMeekin

Fantastic breakdown of the month or so between the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and the first roll out of troops for war. It details the numerous "WTF are you kidding me?" moments of diplomatic incompetence, geopolitical posturing by skilled diplomats, and basically destroys the notion that Kaiser Wilhlem II was a warmonger who marched Europe into war.

Churchill called the month leading up to World War I the greatest drama story ever told, this book breaks it down with access to resources we simply didn't have until recently (mainly with Russian interests).

This story needs to be a miniseries on Netflix or HBO.

https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin/dp/0465060749

It put me on such a World War I-era binge that I'm onto The Campaign of the Marne by Sewell Tyng, though I'm worried it's dated since it came out in 1935.

Kaiser Wilhelm is a G.

 

[wizards8507]

It's a blank book. And it's #1 on Amazon. This is trollery of the highest order.

 

[NorthDakota]

It's a blank book. And it's #1 on Amazon. This is trollery of the highest order.

I think I'm going to send this to my Rhode Islander fam. Not sure how they'll take it.

 

[Buster Bluth]

Have you listened to Dan Carlin's podcasts on WWI, Blueprint for Armageddon? I loved it.

Oh yes. In fact I believe July 1914 and The Campaign of the Marne are both referenced books in the the podcast.

Blueprint for Armageddon probably ranks as his #2 series for me, behind Ghosts of the Ostfront. The Khan series is also dope as hell.

For the record, for all history lovers on IE, Carlin is lauded among historians for his pop history popularity but I would caution one criticism: he is known for putting too much emphasis on primary sources. Sometimes it's better to wait a few decades and let all of the facts be balanced. From what I've read, his love of reeling off long quotes has painted an ultimately inaccurate picture in parts of his podcasts.

 

[Buster Bluth]

Kaiser Wilhelm is a G.

I can't agree with that. Seemed like an incompetent guy in the wrong place at the wrong time.

German diplomats desperately wanted better relations with the British and he foolishly alienated them with a naval arms race that really didn't have a use in the first place. What was a great land power like Germany going to do with an elite navy? And given that the shelf life of an worldclass battleship in those days was short, it's an elite navy that wouldn't have even lasted long enough to build on for a generation...

Then there's the fact that he gave Austria a "blank check" to do as they wished to Serbia. He assumed he got the point across that the Austrians would invade immediately and achieve a fait accompli. But no, Austrian incompetence ruled the day as they sent their military home for harvest leave, thus allowing the Russians the time to make diplomatic maneuvers to guarantee Serbia's security. Austria dragged Germany into a European war (versus merely a Balkan war) and it happened do in large part to Germany's diplomatic incompetence.

It's fair to say that France and Russia wanted a European war more than Germany and Austria, but the incompetence of Germany and Austria is how it happened. Kaiser Wilhelm was definitely not a G. But he wasn't a warmonger either.

 

[Valpodoc85]

Oh man. That's one that I am dying to read. Please let us know what you think when you get through it.

I recently finished Mason & Dixon by Thomas Pynchon (after trying and failing to get through it once before). It was magnificent, but definitely a challenge to get through. I hear that Jerusalem is similar.

I'm about 10% of the way through The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy. (Read All the Pretty Horses a few years ago, always wanted to finish the Border Trilogy.) So far it is about a kid trying to trap a wolf? I am into it because McCarthy is great to read from the standpoint of style and he has this way of storytelling that just makes you feel that something terrible could happen at any moment, but so far nothing has really happened except a kid is kind of obsessed with wolves. Hopefully it will become clear where this is going soon.

If your an Alan Moore guy and like to read this is great. He certainly goes on with long descriptive tracts about Northampton. Agree with McCarthy. If you like that kind of thing try the Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey. Quick read. Jack london lite.

 

[IrishLion]

To all my "Malazan" readers, I found this quote while wading through some /r/Malazan comments (currently starting "Dust of Dreams" on my first re-read):

Karsa, on the other hand, is basically libertarianism on megasteroids.

That is astute.

 

[ACamp1900]

Kaiser Wilhelm is a G.

My aunt apparently confirmed about a year ago that we are his lineage somehow... still waiting to have that explained to me.

 

[zelezo vlk]

ACamp is Kaiser of the Ghetto confirmed.

 

[pkt77242]

Has anyone besides me read the Traitor Son Cycle series by Miles Cameron (Book 1 is The Red Knight)? I have read the first 4 books and it is a very good series. Not as good as GRRM/Erikson, more in line with Joe Abercrombie but still very enjoyable.

 

[greyhammer90]

Reading Discworld

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

Just finished in succession:

1. Ordinary Men by Browning
2. The Painted Bird
3. The Rape of Nanking

Has anyone else read one of these? As a 30-something I never realized how disturbingly malevolent people can be when societal rules are stripped away.

 

[Blaise]

The Phenomenon.. Its by Rick Ankiel.. Talks about his battles with anxiety and his comeback.. Its an interesting read

 

[Black Irish]

"Sons of St. Patrick: A History of the Archbishops of New York from Dagger John to Timmytown."

It's interesting as a history of the Catholicism in America and how it evolved and grew through the development of America. The most notable thing to me so far is how New York City was not the center of power for the Church early on. It took a while for the Diocese of NY to become the unofficial head of the American Catholic Church.

 

[zelezo vlk]

Finished The Devil and How to Resist Him, a dense book by an English Dominican from the 1950s about the 3 Temptations of Christ in the Wilderness and how they relate to us. Very informative, but so very much was packed into a tiny book. It truly felt like my brain was being pulled and stretched in order to make room for whatever wisdom I could glean.

 

[IrishLion]

Trying to finish out my re-read of the Malazan series, but stopped at Half Price Books to pick something up for my wife, so I checked the clearance section while I was there.

Picked up "Eye of the World" and "Magician: Apprentice" for $2 each. Never read anything from Wheel of Time, and haven't read any Feist, but they are both on my to-read list, so I didn't want to pass up the bargain.

Anybody familiar with Feist? Is there a suggested order to read the separate series that he has created? I think "Magician: Apprentice" is the general starting point, but not 100% sure.

EDIT: Awww dammit. I just realized that the Feist book was on clearance because it is only half of the first book in the Riftwar Saga. Gotta make another trip to HPB.

 

[ACamp1900]

The Phenomenon.. Its by Rick Ankiel.. Talks about his battles with anxiety and his comeback.. Its an interesting read

I want to get this one...

 

[Emcee77]

The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood. The Hulu show has caused a stir and I'm curious what all the fuss is about, and the e-book is available free if you have Amazon Prime. About 15% of the way in, it's holding my interest but too early to say more.

 

[wizards8507]

Has anyone read Ben Sasse's book yet?

 

[IrishLion]

Finished my re-read of Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen.

Took a break before starting Esselmont's spin-off series to read Gaiman's American Gods.

I had it on my shelf for a long time without having read it (along with 10 other books on my "waiting to read" list), so when I saw that the show had finished its first season, I figured it might be a good time to dive into it. Plus, if a movie/show is coming out that is based on a book, I always go to the source material first, that way I can judge the adaptation appropriately.

I thought the book was excellent, and will now probably pick up more works by Gaiman. My only previous experience with his work was The Graveyard Book, which I highly recommend, though it is a unique offering intended for the YA audience.

I spotted the twist that was coming about halfway through the book, but that didn't make the conclusion any less suspenseful or fulfilling. I thought it worked well.

I also spotted the "secondary" twist super early (probably as early as possible within the narrative). Catching both things made me feel accomplished, but I don't think Gaiman tried super hard to hide them.

It's a "fantasy," but in a loose and unique sense, and it was a welcome reprieve from the Malazan world of high fantasy.

Now I'm gonna abuse Sling's free preview of Starz and binge the TV show this weekend.

 

[ACamp1900]

Finishing up 'We, The Drowned'... started it a couple years ago, enjoyed it but it's a long book cut into four acts,.. each act is really a completely separate story about this Danish town and after the second act I took a year plus pause... picked it back up a week or so ago.

Just picked up The Halloween Tree, figured I'd give Bradbury a try after all these years since I really disliked 451 back when I was forced to read it.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Needed something a bit lighter than my usual fare, so I decided to order Andrzej Sapkowski's The Last Wish, which is the first collection of Witcher short stories that the games are based on. Very much enjoyed it. It's straight-forward easy reading with lots of action, yet it manages to touch on some deep topics without getting bogged down. It also helps that I'm already invested in these characters, and it was cool getting the backstory on characters and events that are only alluded to in the game.

Just started on the second collection of short-stories, Sword of Destiny, last night.

 

[zelezo vlk]

Crushed Graham Greene's Our Man in Havana while on vacation 2 weeks ago and killed half of Evelyn Waugh's Scoop. Greene was fantastic. I've read a bit into Canticle for Leibowitz, but feel the need to stop before I start yet another book without finishing my list.

 

[Emcee77]

Finished my re-read of Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen.

Took a break before starting Esselmont's spin-off series to read Gaiman's American Gods.

I had it on my shelf for a long time without having read it (along with 10 other books on my "waiting to read" list), so when I saw that the show had finished its first season, I figured it might be a good time to dive into it. Plus, if a movie/show is coming out that is based on a book, I always go to the source material first, that way I can judge the adaptation appropriately.

I thought the book was excellent, and will now probably pick up more works by Gaiman. My only previous experience with his work was The Graveyard Book, which I highly recommend, though it is a unique offering intended for the YA audience.

I spotted the twist that was coming about halfway through the book, but that didn't make the conclusion any less suspenseful or fulfilling. I thought it worked well.

I also spotted the "secondary" twist super early (probably as early as possible within the narrative). Catching both things made me feel accomplished, but I don't think Gaiman tried super hard to hide them.

It's a "fantasy," but in a loose and unique sense, and it was a welcome reprieve from the Malazan world of high fantasy.

Now I'm gonna abuse Sling's free preview of Starz and binge the TV show this weekend.

How did Malazan hold up on a second read? I read the first book a couple of years ago on Whiskey's rec, and I enjoyed it, but I had some literary fiction I wanted to read so I didn't continue. I figured I could use some light reading about now so I finally decided to pick up a copy of Deadhouse Gates.

Let us know what you think of the American Gods show. Although I liked the book, I found it a little disappointing because I felt it missed an opportunity to say something a bit more substantial about contemporary America. I'd be interested to know if the show does the book one better there.

P.S. after I first read it I was sure that our Whiskeyjack was named after the character in American Gods -- until I read Gardens of the Moon. What were the chances of there being two Whiskeyjacks??

Needed something a bit lighter than my usual fare, so I decided to order Andrzej Sapkowski's The Last Wish, which is the first collection of Witcher short stories that the games are based on. Very much enjoyed it. It's straight-forward easy reading with lots of action, yet it manages to touch on some deep topics without getting bogged down. It also helps that I'm already invested in these characters, and it was cool getting the backstory on characters and events that are only alluded to in the game.

Just started on the second collection of short-stories, Sword of Destiny, last night.

Interesting. That's the one that Netflix is making into a series, right? I didn't know there were books. I might check them out.

 

[Emcee77]

I am about 25% of the way through Deadhouse Gates, and I am liking it way more than Gardens of the Moon. Not sure why exactly ... might just be that the series gets easier to read as you get more familiar with the Malazan mythology. But I think I might be hooked.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

I am about 25% of the way through Deadhouse Gates, and I am liking it way more than Gardens of the Moon. Not sure why exactly ... might just be that the series gets easier to read as you get more familiar with the Malazan mythology. But I think I might be hooked.

Gardens of the Moon is challenging because Erikson just tosses you in the deep end of his massive fantasy world. Deadhouse Gates is easier for the reason you mention above, and Memories of Ice is the best of the series. I've found that it's rare for someone to get through the 3rd book without finishing the series.

 

[zelezo vlk]

Smh, I got myself sucked into A Canticle for Leibowitz. I gotta get serious about reading every day or else I'll never finish these books. I'm about halfway through and enjoy it, but mostly am distracted by the transition from the first era to the second. It was pretty obvious to me that these were two separate stories that were pieced together later, which is fine, but distracting for me. I hope the jump to the final era is smoother

 

[ACamp1900]

A Column of Fire comes out soon I believe... hoping it lives up to the other Kingsbridge novels and isn't as political as some of his other recent works