Topic: Books You're Currently Reading?

@FuriousMachine Thought this might be of interest to you 😉, maybe it's on YouTube as well, since you need a (afaik, free) subscription to listen, but ,anyway, see what you think.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct74s0

Edit: I heard it on the radio and our previous communication came to mind.

@BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN Thanks mate! I started listening (didn't need an account), because I've really grown fond of the author (she's a Mass Effect fan, like me!), but seems like their discussion will mostly concern a novel I haven't read yet (but will soon), so I bookmarked it for later. Again, thanks for the heads-up, really appreciate it. 🙂

I see that you plan on leaving literature behind for a bit... it was Fosse that did it, right? I bet it was 😉
So, no more Norwegian classics for you, then?

@FuriousMachine Your very welcome, man, hope you enjoy listening to the whole episode when you get around to it.

Haha, no, it wasn't Fosse that did it😉😂 . It was a sense of having read all the Classics that I wanted to read combined with a lack of interest in contemporary fiction. But, since then, I have dug a little deeper, and Proust may well have reignited some of my lost love for reading. But, whilst I am leaving my options open in the long-run, there is still only a finite amount of now-deceased European authors works to read in the end, and I only really like Faulkner, Hemingway and Fitzgerald in terms of the Americans, and whilst people like Knausgaard and the legendary Fosse are still with us, I feel like I can, in summary, only extend my run for so long.

If I like Murakami ,though, probably the writer who writes in the most 'modern' style, on my relatively short list, I feel like I might be able to expand somewhat into the contemporary sphere, but only in terms of being able to enjoy similar writers.

So far, I have only been able to add some Faulkner that I haven't read yet, a couple of Fosse's books, Knausgaard's My Struggle ,of course, Voltaire's Candide and Henry James' The Golden Bowl ,the last two ,Knausgaard's work and the Faulkner novel are meant to be similar to Proust, according to the internet.

Edit: I may actually choose to leave things there, after finishing Remembrance of Things Past because of a)the feeling that I have read enough of the literature that I am interested in already and b)the fact that it would free up my time to focus on activities that I would like to devote more time to, i.e reading manga, watching films, playing acoustic guitar, exploring art and listening to music, and c)It is one of the best books I have read, so far, and feels like good place to leave it.

@BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN Right, I see. Well, hopefully you'll have plenty to give you joy, whether it is classic literature, art books or something else entirely 🙂

Finished N.K. Jemisin's The Stone Sky. The third and final entry in the Broken Earth saga, it is exceedingly satisfying, with Jemisin properly doing right by her characters, their journey and the world they inhabit. It is a testament to the shades of grey she's used to weave this tale that it is anything but clear which side will prevail in the final confrontation and, at least for me, which side should prevail, until the very last pages. I'm happy with the result, but would probably have been so had it gone a different way as well. Fantastic series that will stay with me a long time, I think. Five stars.
If you like dystopian sci-fi/fantasy, you should definitely check this out. But don't just take my word for it, she won the HUGO award for best novel three years in a row, one for each entry in the trilogy. She is the first and, so far, only author to have achieved this, which is quite the accomplishment.

I've also read some short stories and novellas. Stephen King's Gray Matter, from his Night Shift collection, was a fun short story about the nasty fate of a drunken recluse who drank a bad beer. Four stars.

The fantastically entertaining Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells, is the third novella in her "Murderbot Diaries" series and again we get to meet another bot with a great personality for Murderbot to awkwardly interact with. The humans aren't all that bad, either (except for the bad ones). Five stars.

Exit Strategy is the fourth novella in the series and there's slight dip in quality from the other ones, in my opinion, as I didn't find the story quite as engaging this time around. Still, highly enjoyable and Murderbot is still an entertaining character (though this novella was missing an ART or a Miki type character). Four stars.

Now it's time to try out J.D. Oswald and his Broken Ghosts

@FuriousMachine Yeah, I hope so too, thanks, man! So where do you stand on Art books, or Art, in general, then?

@BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN It's not really something that interests me. While I can appreciate some works of art, I don't really seek it out. I have a reprint of Edward Hopper's "Nighthawks" hanging on my wall and that's about the extent of art in my life 🙂

I finished The City & The City. It took me a few chapters to settle into it, but I liked the concept. Not much character development here, they are purely vehicles to guide us through this strange setting.

Up next I'm reading Fear by Robert Peckham.

I finished The Guermantes Way and am now moving on to Cities of the Plain both, part of volume 2 in a three-volume series of books by Marcel Proust, entitled Remembrance of Things Past , the two books constitute parts three and four of the septology, respectively.

Edit: Skipping ahead to The Captive ,the fifth book in the septology, now, as I wasn't really interested in the content of the fourth book.

Edit II: I've read about all I want to of the septology now, and am moving on to Piet Mondrian: A Life by Hans Janssen. And then I hope to have a look at/will have a look at instead, what is allegedly the best translation to English of Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.

Then I might get Candide by Voltaire and have a look at some samurai history and art books. swordsmanship too, etc.

Finished Broken Ghosts by J.D. Oswald last night which I thought was a fantastic coming of age story and quite a cosy read. Some truly wonderful characters, not least of which the village (and forest) of Llancwm itself. I really loved this one and will absolutely read more of Oswald's. Five stars, easy.

Also read Battleground, a fun little Stephen King short story where revenge comes in a small package, from his Night Shift collection. Four stars

Next up is the first full-length novel in the "Murderbot Diaries" series by Martha Wells, Network Effect.

I felt like I read as much as I needed to of Piet Mondrian: A Life to gain an insight into the artist's character, i.e to achieve the purpose that inspired me to read the book in the first place, and plan to return to watching The Irishman before moving on to my next Art book, which should be something on the Yorkshire-born artist, David Hockney, and I also intend to look at books about the African American artists, Thornton Dial and Hale Woodruff, respectively, next week.

I also plan to move on to Wisden Cricket Monthly and Jazzwise, the contemporary sports and music magazines.

@FuriousMachine I'm glad you enjoyed 'Broken Ghosts'.

I finished reading 'Fear' by Robert Peckham which I found really interesting and have more things to read because of it 😀.

I also finished 'The Runner' fantastic book. I'll probably read 'Chinese Whispers' soon,
I Will be gutted when it's over. I better start looking up what books by Peter May to read next.

Today I read Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 15. (only 3 volumes remaining) and 'A Dog's Heart' by Mikhail Bulgakov, after reading that I'll bump 'The Master & Margarita' closer to the top of the TBR.

Next up though I'm going with 'EUREKA everything you ever wanted to know about the ANCIENT GREEKS but were afraid to ask' by Peter Jones. The titles a mouthful but I'm looking forward to diving in.

Hope you have all had a great weekend of reading.

@MightyDemon82 Yeah, just my kind of novel. Looking forward to getting to Inspector McLean; I've boosted it high up on my scheduled reads, but there are still a few others between then and now.

I may have said it before, but I think Chinese Whispers is the best in the series. It's also worth checking out the short story The Ghost Marriage, too. I enjoyed it, but it felt a bit slight. I read it immediately after "Chinese Whispers" and wanted more! Seeing as it was published 6 years after the last novel, I can only imagine how the fans who had waited rhat long for a reunion with Margaret & Li felt.

I warmly recommend the "Lewis" series that introduced me to Peter May when considering what of his to read next. It's kind of bleak, but oh so good! Edinburgh policeman Fin Macleod is forced to return to the birthplace he had firmly left behind, to help investigate a brutal murder and gets uncomfortably close to his own past.

It may feel less "exotic" to a native Scot than it did for me, but it was the main motivator to include Isle of Lewis/Harris on our road trip last year. The isles felt so vivid in my mind after reading the books, I just had to see it for myself. Happily, the place was a lot brighter and cheerful than the books (the way May describes it you'd think it killed his puppy or something 😉). I don't know if you've been, but I can really recommend a trip to the Gearrannan Blackhouse village, it really helped contextualise the novels for me and was a fascinating site to explore.

OK, that turned into quite the rave, but, as you can tell, I am a big fan

I've almost read one fifteenth of Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, that is to say, about a hundred pages, excellently translated by Christine Donougher, and am thoroughly enjoying it. I can already see why it is hailed as Hugo's masterpiece.

Edit: Read about a fifth of it now and it's certainly quite promising so far. There are references to the battle of Waterloo for all you history buffs out there. The Abba song kept popping into my head, whilst reading that section, unfortunately. 😂

@FuriousMachine How are you? What are you currently reading?

I'm currently digging through Les Miserables by Victor Hugo and just recently passed the halfway mark, it's 1,300 pages long altogether, well, 1,304 technically, but that's splitting hairs, anyway I find it to be a thoroughly good read so far and would highly recommend adding it to your list of classics, if you feel you're up to the challenge!

Do mangas count in this thread? (Should we have a separate thread for that?)

I've been reading Blue Period recently, which I absolutely love. I'm onto Vol 8 now.

For those who don't know, it's about a teenager who discovers a love of art and the trials and tribulations they go through trying to get into Tokyo University of Arts.

It's pretty grounded but very well written. Some nice characters.

@get2sammyb We have this one for anime and manga: https://www.pushsquare.com/forums/ps_general_discussion/manga...

I guess manga are technically books though!

@Kairuuu Haha noted! Thanks!

I stumbled upon a video clip of the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Demond Tutu giggling and joking like a couple of mischievous ten year olds. Investigating I found out they had spent some time together discussing Joy and Happiness and that it had been recorded and published in 'The Book of Joy'. Managed to pick up a used copy for a few quid and have made a start at reading it over the last few days.

Now I'm not really religious at all but find it interesting to read the thoughts and ideas of two such revered and respected icons. It's nothing revelatory so far but is an easy going pleasant enough read and has given me a few lifestyle reminders like trying not to miss any opportunity to show a bit of kindness to those around me.

I'm really glad I found it and am currently trying to decide who would most benefit from being gifted it when I'm finished with it. I think I'd recommend it to anyone on here who needs a bit of reaffirmation about the goodness people can do in simple ways.

@get2sammyb I mention anything that is bound like a book as it's still classed as reading a book. although if I really wanted to talk in depth about it I'd jump on the specific thread.

I recently finished 'EUREKA' by Peter Jones which was very good and had info on the ancient Greeks in bite size chunks. Informative and entertaining at the same time. Also Finished @What you are looking for is in the library' by Michiko Aoyama and translated by Alison Watts a nice palate cleanser before heading into bigger books.

Next up I've started 'Agents of Chaos 1: Hero's Trial the next book in the New Jedi order series (book 4 of 19).