What are you reading?

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silvercamaro · #51 Post by **silvercamaro** » Wed Jan 16, 2008 9:49 pm

ulysses5019 wrote:My avatar buddy recommended his book, "Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself".

Sheesh, Uly. We've all known name-droppers. You're the first photo-dropper I've ever encountered.

mrkelley23 · #52 Post by **mrkelley23** » Wed Jan 16, 2008 9:50 pm

ulysses5019 wrote:
I'm just reading textbooks and incredibly underinformed lab reports.

Tomorrow starts my night class at Alcoa. That will be more bearable.
Did you ever watch Scientific American Frontiers with Alan Alda?

Actually, I still use some of those videos in class.

They were among the best digests -- Nova is almost always a single topic, but SAF tackled 4 or 5 topics per episode.

Catfish · #53 Post by **Catfish** » Thu Jan 17, 2008 9:19 am

mrkelley23 wrote:
ulysses5019 wrote:
I'm just reading textbooks and incredibly underinformed lab reports.

Tomorrow starts my night class at Alcoa. That will be more bearable.
Did you ever watch Scientific American Frontiers with Alan Alda?
Actually, I still use some of those videos in class.

They were among the best digests -- Nova is almost always a single topic, but SAF tackled 4 or 5 topics per episode.

My brother was on one of these shows (unless Alda narrated another science series). It was about reconciliation behavior among monkeys.

#54 Post by **Vandal** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 9:09 pm

Finished:

Lottery by Patricia Wood (outstanding)
Saving Faith by David Baldacci
The Pacific Between by Raymond Wong
4th of July by James Patterson

Now up:

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks - not really my genre but I'm trying to expand

After that:

A Stuart Woods novel, not sure which one

You can't write if you don't read...

Beebs52 · #55 Post by **Beebs52** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 9:48 pm

I'm reading an undiscovered writer, something newish, I forget who the publisher is. It's called The Centerpoint or something like that. Involves a college student and Mayan things. It's really engaging. I'll give a book review when I'm finished.

gotribego26 · #56 Post by **gotribego26** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 10:15 pm

Appa23 wrote:Plus, I got to use the line that was dying to use, when they asked if I wanted to cut the cord: "Isn't there someone more qualified in the room?"

You mean you weren't smarter than all her doctors?

gotribego26 · #57 Post by **gotribego26** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 10:22 pm

I'm trudging through "The Black Swan" - a follow up to "Fooled by Randomness" by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. Great books - about our lack of understanding of random events - "Balck Swans" are huge random events (ala 9/11, 1987 stock market crash).

The title comes fromt he fact that until they starting sending convicts to Australia, Englishmen thoguht all swans were white. They were surprised by Black Swans in Australia.

It all ties into the Bertrand Russel quote below - we are not good at anticipating or accepting random events.

Journalists are really bad at this - they have an almost pathological need to explain (and place blame for) the inexplicable.

dodgersteve182 · #58 Post by **dodgersteve182** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 11:03 pm

Just Finishe "The Glass Castle" by Jennifer Walls a great Memoir like Angela's Ashes. Now I'm reading "Signed Mata Hari" by Yannick Murphy. Very interesting, disturbing and sensual...

MarleysGh0st · #59 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 3:59 pm

I'm reading Tomorrow the World: In which Cadet Otto Prohaska Carries the Habsburg Empire's Civilizing Mission to the Entirely Unreceptive Peoples of Africa and Oceania, by John Biggins. Don't you just love the subtitle?

This is a prequel to the series he started with A Sailor of Austria, in which Prohaska is the captain of an Austrian U-Boat in WWI. This prequel is very rare in hardcover, but was just reprinted as a trade paperback by a small publishing firm right here in Ithaca. I, however, bought it at a nice discount from Amazon.

And I'm listening to the audiobook The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down by Colin Woodard.

#60 Post by **Vandal** » Fri May 16, 2008 12:45 pm

Time to catch up...

Finished:

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks
The Camel Club by David Baldacci
Timeline by Michael Crichton
Obedience by Will Lavender (debut novel - very good!)

Started: Rum Punch by Elmore Leonard (not my style at all, returned it to the library unfinished. Ack!)

Young Adult Novels:
Keeping The Moon by Sarah Dessen

Currently Reading:
A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck

wbtravis007 · #61 Post by **wbtravis007** » Fri May 16, 2008 12:57 pm

Vandal wrote:Time to catch up...

Finished:

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks
The Camel Club by David Baldacci
Timeline by Michael Crichton
Obedience by Will Lavender (debut novel - very good!)

Started: Rum Punch by Elmore Leonard (not my style at all, returned it to the library unfinished. Ack!)

Young Adult Novels:
Keeping The Moon by Sarah Dessen

Currently Reading:
A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck

I'm reading The Camel-toe Club, Shooting the Moon, and A Night Down Yonder.

I guess we have similar taste.

Sir_Galahad · #62 Post by **Sir_Galahad** » Fri May 16, 2008 1:13 pm

I am reading my first Patricia Cornwell book called The Last Precinct. I am about half way through and am enjoying it. I may decide to read more of her work.

MarleysGh0st · #63 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Fri May 16, 2008 1:21 pm

Are we reviving this thread instead of starting a new one with same title? Okay...

This is embarrasing. I'm still reading (or not reading) Tomorrow the World: In which Cadet Otto Prohaska Carries the Habsburg Empire's Civilizing Mission to the Entirely Unreceptive Peoples of Africa and Oceania, by John Biggins. I haven't been sitting down with a book, much, lately.

My audiobook listening has branched out since I got my MP3 player. Now I listen to one audiobook on CD when I'm in the car and another on the MP3 player while I'm walking or working out at the gym. Currently, these two are Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next: First Among Sequels and Terry Pratchett's Making Money.

MarleysGh0st · #64 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Fri May 16, 2008 2:00 pm

MMFF traditionally starts these threads. That reminded me that she hasn't posted here since Monday.

Perhaps MMFF Jr. has finally decided to come out and play?

gsabc · #65 Post by **gsabc** » Fri May 16, 2008 2:18 pm

Working on two:

The Groucho Papers by Stefan Kanfer, a collection of writings by Julius Marx, including some script excerpts from the movies and radio shows.

Who Hates Whom: Well-Armed Fanatics, Intractable Conflicts, and Various Things Blowing Up, A Woefully Incomplete Guide by Bob Harris (of J! and Trebekistan fame). Why all the wars, and whose ox is being gored by whom, etc. (A quick chorus of "National Brotherhood Week" and I'm outta here).

hf_jai · #66 Post by **hf_jai** » Fri May 16, 2008 2:20 pm

Promise not to laugh? I'm reading the first book in the second Warriors series. I think it's called The Vision [EDIT: it's titled The Sight], or something like that. My copy is up in the bedroom. I know they're childish, but they're fun too.

I just finished Variable Star, which is a novel written by Spider Robinson from an outline found in the estate of Robert Heinlein. It wasn't earth-shatteringly great, but not bad either. Worth the time it took to read, but probably not worth replacing the copy that Ricky chewed up.

Thanks to whoever recommended the Sarah Dunant novels. They sound right up my alley.

Oh yeah, I'm listening to an unabridged version of Water for Elephants that I downloaded from audible.com. Haven't gotten far enough along to know whether I recommend it or not.

Catfish · #67 Post by **Catfish** » Fri May 16, 2008 3:17 pm

I'm on 345 of 448 e-mail installments of Don Quixote from www.dailylit.com.
I'm about halfway through Schulz and Peanuts by David Michaelis. Today I received the new James Frey novel (really this time) Bright Shiny Morning. Whatever the provenance of his other two books, I thought they were fabu reads.
I just finished listening to The Queen's Fool by Phillipa (or is it Philippa?) Gregory, and tomorrow I will start the audio book of Lamb by Christopher Moore, my second-favorite book of all time.

tanstaafl2 · #68 Post by **tanstaafl2** » Fri May 16, 2008 6:33 pm

Downtown by Ferrol Sams. It is a bit odd. Perhaps his dotage is finally showing through.

ontellen · #69 Post by **ontellen** » Fri May 16, 2008 8:55 pm

You might as well start laughing now. I am reading Barbara Walters' Audition. I can't put the damn thing down. I have been mesmerized by TV since my Grandpa got one in 1953 when my Grandma died. The first show I ever saw was I Love Lucy.

She really takes me back to so many things I had forgotten about.

Just so I don't look like an idiot, before this I read The 6th Target by James Patterson, Love in the Time of Cholera, The Glass Castle and Pillars of the Earth.

Is that family in the Glass Castle nuts or what? Just when you think it can't get any worse, it does. I thought Angela's Ashes was bad they top them by a long shot, especially when you read the ending.

cindy.wellman · #70 Post by **cindy.wellman** » Fri May 16, 2008 10:06 pm

Finished: Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series and ordered Breaking Dawn.

Reading: Jillian Michaels, "Making the Cut" and Gilbert Morris, "The Honorable Imposter"

I'm still trudging through the Bible. (said in an affectionate way, of course) As much as I like to read, it wasn't until I borrowed the study/learning NIV Bible that Eric (dh) was using for his Old and New Testament classes that I was able to read it. I really enjoy the study version because of all the background and additional information it provides.

marrymeflyfree · #71 Post by **marrymeflyfree** » Fri May 16, 2008 10:11 pm

MarleysGh0st wrote:MMFF traditionally starts these threads. That reminded me that she hasn't posted here since Monday.

Perhaps MMFF Jr. has finally decided to come out and play?

No bambino yet-o. We are 5 days over. Well, officially 6 now that it is midnight. House arrest. Purgatory. Considering the first due date was May 1st, our psyches are now 16 days overdue.

We've been taking 2 or 3 walks every day, but the never ending rain today put the kibosh on that....so we went bowling instead. After the inevitable "so you brought your own bowling ball, eh?!" jokes, I discovered that I bowl much better pregnant than I ever did not-pregnant. Well, there were only a handful of attempts, but still. I broke 100 in all 4 games! WOo hoo!

10 Pound Balls · #72 Post by **10 Pound Balls** » Fri May 16, 2008 10:18 pm

marrymeflyfree wrote:
MarleysGh0st wrote:MMFF traditionally starts these threads. That reminded me that she hasn't posted here since Monday.

Perhaps MMFF Jr. has finally decided to come out and play?
No bambino yet-o. We are 5 days over. Well, officially 6 now that it is midnight. House arrest. Purgatory. Considering the first due date was May 1st, our psyches are now 16 days overdue.

We've been taking 2 or 3 walks every day, but the never ending rain today put the kibosh on that....so we went bowling instead. After the inevitable "so you brought your own bowling ball, eh?!" jokes, I discovered that I bowl much better pregnant than I ever did not-pregnant. Well, there were only a handful of attempts, but still. I broke 100 in all 4 games! WOo hoo!

Breaking 100 is my specialty.

Breaking your water.... you should try my friend 16 pound balls next time.....

silvercamaro · #73 Post by **silvercamaro** » Fri May 16, 2008 10:45 pm

Alas, it won't be the last time this child doesn't show up exactly when you expect him. You'll know exactly what I mean in 13-15 years.

I do hope he or she decides to make an appearance soon, though, for your sake. Let's try this:

HEY, BABY! We're having a good time out here in the world. Too bad you're missing all the fun stuff. Plus, we have this marvelous substance called FOOD. You'd love it, but we don't deliver, so you'll have to come try it for yourself. Or not. If you don't show up, don't blame us if we finish up all the yummies.

MarleysGh0st · #74 Post by **MarleysGh0st** » Sat May 17, 2008 6:40 am

Sorry you're still waiting for the big day, MMFF.

marrymeflyfree wrote: We've been taking 2 or 3 walks every day, but the never ending rain today put the kibosh on that....so we went bowling instead. After the inevitable "so you brought your own bowling ball, eh?!" jokes, I discovered that I bowl much better pregnant than I ever did not-pregnant. Well, there were only a handful of attempts, but still. I broke 100 in all 4 games! WOo hoo!

Hmmm. It occurs to me that giving birth in a bowling alley might be a great game show audition hook!

Catfish · #75 Post by **Catfish** » Sat May 17, 2008 10:35 am

ontellen wrote:Just so I don't look like an idiot, before this I read The 6th Target by James Patterson, Love in the Time of Cholera, The Glass Castle and Pillars of the Earth.

Is that family in the Glass Castle nuts or what? Just when you think it can't get any worse, it does. I thought Angela's Ashes was bad they top them by a long shot, especially when you read the ending.

I just love The Glass Castle. I bought the audiobook and listen to it repeatedly. It's amazing those kids survived. The author is on my short list of people I admire most.