Spoilers What Book Are You Reading?

[Scepticalscribe]

These past few days, I have been reading Patrick Cockburn - 'The Rise of Islamic State' (timely, and necessary reading), and Shadi Hamid , whose work 'Temptations of Power - Islamists and Illiberal Democracy in a New Middle East' is also very well worth looking at.

Today's post brought a lovely book by Nicholas Ostler (who has written excellent stuff on language 'Empires of the Word' was superb) called 'Ad Infinitum - A Biography of Latin', and the second of two books by Sarah Chayes that arrived this week, 'The Punishment of Virtue'.

Her most recent book, 'Thieves of State - Why Corruption Threatens Global Security' - which received stellar reviews, arrived yesterday.

 

[LadyX]

What Book Are You Reading?

Just finished reading Maus I: My Father Bleeds History. Wow, what an absorbing book. Very moving and powerful story. This is one of the best Holocaust memoirs I’ve ever read, it’s very compelling and unique. Loved the illustrations. Maus I is a really good read, it’s outstanding.



---------

The last five chapters are collected in a second volume titled Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began. Will start this tonight.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Just finished reading Maus I: My Father Bleeds History. Wow, what an absorbing book. Very moving and powerful story. This is one of the best Holocaust memoirs I’ve ever read, it’s very compelling and unique. Loved the illustrations. Maus I is a really good read, it’s outstanding.



---------

The last five chapters are collected in a second volume titled Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began. Will start this at night.


Image

I am delighted that you enjoyed it so much; and I am also very pleased to learn that the book is every bit as good as the reviews I had read when it came out suggested that it might be.

In any case, I'll keep an eye out for it.

 

[LadyX]

I am done reading the second (and final) volume of Maus. Very interesting. Difficult to put down. Gripping and fitting conclusion. Loved it.

 

[Dynasty211]

Vagos, Mongals & Outlaws - fascinating book about a guy who infiltrated some dangerous biker gangs and lived to tell about it

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Currently in the middle of 'Thieves of State' by Sarah Chayes. A deeply disturbing, uncomfortable and very unsettling but powerfully written - and exceptionally well argued - read.

 

[Don't panic]

after gorging myself with a few Terry pratchett books, I am about half way through Cryptonomicon.

i am liking it so far, though it does get a bit verbose at times, or off mildly relevant tangents.
i like all the cryptostuff and math obviously, but also how all soldiers are depicted with a similar palette, no matter which side they happened to fight for

 

[Scepticalscribe]

after gorging myself with a few Terry pratchett books, I am about half way through Cryptonomicon.


Image


i am liking it so far, though it does get a bit verbose at times, or off mildly relevant tangents.
i like all the cryptostuff and math obviously, but also how all soldiers are depicted with a similar palette, no matter which side they happened to fight for

Ah, excellent.

A rollicking read, the sort of work that is almost on steroids. Actually, I read that book years ago; it came highly recommended (and - quite literally - by the hand of) the very same friend who had introduced me to the writings of Terry Prachett.

I read some of his other stuff as well.

 

[a.guillermo]

I just picked up my first Star Trek novel, The Wounded Sky. From what I'm reading so far, I'm not horribly enjoying it as much as the tv show... I think I just need to give it some more time.

 

[Apple_Robert]

The U.S. history nerds should be familiar with the following book which, in my opinion, is one of the best history books ever written on the period (1848 - 1861) just before the Civil War.

If you have never read David Potter's colossal work, make a point to check it out.

The Impending Crisis, 1848-1861

 

[Scepticalscribe]

The U.S. history nerds should be familiar with the following book which, in my opinion, is one of the best history books ever written on the period (1848 - 1861) just before he Civil War.

If you have never read David Potter's colossal work, make a point to check it out.

The Impending Crisis, 1848-1861

Actually, I have read quite a bit on the American Civil War; my father had a decent library on the subject and encouraged my interest in reading further on the topic.

Is this seriously good, - and worth recommending - or just an account that has won a degree of popular acclaim?

 

[Apple_Robert]

Actually, I have read quite a bit on the American Civil War; my father had a decent library on the subject and encouraged my interest in reading further on the topic.

Is this seriously good, - and worth recommending - or just an account that has won a degree of popular acclaim?

It is seriously good, and worth recommending, Scribe.

In my opinion, this book is well above James McPherson, Gary Gallagher and several other well known writers on the subject of the Civil War. It is well referenced throughout. The aforementioned writers, along with several others (including Allen C. Guelzo etc) often refer and reference Potter's book in their works.

If you want to learn something about this period of the Civil War that you may not already know, this is the book, in my opinion.

I am reading it for the second time, and find it hard to put down, even though I know how it ends.

I have what I call a fair sized library (700+ books) with most dealing with the Civil War and Revolutionary War. And Potter's book is one that I cherish (nerd wise).

I will be shocked if the history lover in you doesn't get totally immersed in the book. I have several others I can recommend as well, should you wish to expand further.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

It is seriously good, and worth recommending, Scribe.

In my opinion, this book is well above James McPherson, Gary Gallagher and several other well known writers on the subject of the Civil War. It is well referenced throughout. The aforementioned writers, along with several others (including Allen C. Guelzo etc) often refer and reference Potter's book in their works.

If you want to learn something about this period of the Civil War that you may not already know, this is the book, in my opinion.

I am reading it for the second time, and find it hard to put down, even though I know how it ends.

I have what I call a fair sized library (700+ books) with most dealing with the Civil War and Revolutionary War. And Potter's book is one that I cherish (nerd wise).

I will be shocked if the history lover in you doesn't get totally emerged in the book. I have several others I can recommend as well, should you wish to expand further.

Thanks for your reply and feedback. Much appreciated, and it does sound as though this would be well worth reading.

For now, - for a variety of personal and other reasons - I am re-reading a treasured and battered copy (my father brought it back from a long holiday to the US in the 1950s, his name, written in fountain pen, still on the fly leaf) of 'A Distant Trumpet' by Paul Horgan.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

It is seriously good, and worth recommending, Scribe.


I will be shocked if the history lover in you doesn't get totally emerged in the book. I have several others I can recommend as well, should you wish to expand further.

Well, doubtless you will be more than happy to learn that - on your strong recommendation - I have ordered it this evening…….

Many thanks for the recommendation.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Well, doubtless you will be more than happy to learn that - on your strong recommendation - I have ordered it this evening…….

Many thanks for the recommendation.

Big history smile here.

I look forward to discussing the book with you.

I do want to go on record as saying that I am not responsible for the many late, late night readings that will soon come your way, or that sunshine will have to be pumped into your flat to remind you of the day, as you stay buried in the book.

Upon your mentioning, I added "A Distant Trumpet" to my Amazon wish list. While I am not a big historical fiction reader, (even though I have "The Killer Angels" and "The Last Full Measure") the time period of the book struck my fancy. Thank you for mentioning it.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Big history smile here.

I look forward to discussing the book with you.

I do want to go on record as saying that I am not responsible for the many late, late night readings that will soon come your way, or that sunshine will have to be pumped into your flat to remind you of the day, as you stay buried in the book.

Upon your mentioning, I added "A Distant Trumpet" to my Amazon wish list. While I am not a big historical fiction reader, (even though I have "The Killer Angels" and "The Last Full Measure") the time period of the book struck my fancy. Thank you for mentioning it.

Yes, I look forward to discussing it with you, when I receive it and manage to read it. I'm one of those for whom sitting through the night reading a book holds no fears whatsoever; it is what I do, and have done, for decades.

Anyway, the American Civil War was a mutual interest of my father and I, and we had vague plans to do a tour of some Civil War battle fields together at some stage, but it was not to be.

Re 'A Distant Trumpet', I understand that a perfectly atrocious and utterly forgettable movie was made which purportedly was based on the book. Avoid at all costs. But the book is excellent. An epic and sprawling tale.

Actually, the book is beautifully written, and well deserves that old adjective 'epic', as it is epic in scope and range. It is richly layered and nicely nuanced, redolent with an encyclopaedic knowledge of (and, I suspect, love for) US history threaded through the narrative, and is something that is particularly evident in the backstories of some of the main characters (names such as Polk, Buchanan, Grant, are tossed as casually in the fabric of the back story as the far better known Jackson and Lincoln).

Reading it, one can see that the story telling is almost leisurely, allowing character and setting and atmosphere to develop, and offering a richly woven tapestry of background detail that makes this - to my mind - an excellent account of the Indian campaigns of the early, mid and on to the late 1880s. I hope you enjoy it.

 

[TheRudder]

Started on Michael Haag's 'The Templars: History & Myth'. Interesting stuff, especially if you're interested in secretive and shady organisations!

 

[monokakata]

I'm just about to finish "H is for Hawk," by Helen Macdonald.

It's a spectacular book, combining the author's love for hawks with her depression following her father's death, all woven together with T. H. White's ("The Once and Future King") attempt to train a goshawk many years before.

It's gnarly and can be hard to read (because of the content, not the writing, which is beautiful). Macdonald is unflinching about herself and her goshawk, her life, her friends, everything.

I can't remember the last time I took pen and paper and wrote out passages I might use as epigraphs, but I did it with this book.

 

[LadyX]

When the future is unclear, who holds the key to destiny? Sequel to the spellbinding, award-winning fantasy adventure, Sabriel.

-----------

Lirael has never felt like a true daughter of the Clayr. Abandoned by her mother and ignorant of her father’s identity, Lirael resembles no one else in her large, extended family living in the Clayr’s Glacier. She doesn’t even have the Sight – the ability to See into the present and possible futures – that is the very birthright of the Clayr.

Nonetheless, it is Lirael in whose hands the fate of the Old Kingdom lies. she must undertake a desperate mission under the growing shadow of an ancient evil – one that opposes the Royal Family, blocks the Sight of the Clayr, and threatens to break the very boundary between Life and Death itself. With only her faithful companion, the Disreputable Dog, to help her, Lirael must find the courage to seek her own hidden destiny.

-----------

Garth Nix draws readers deeper into the magical landscape of the Old Kingdom and weaves a spellbinding tale of discovery, destiny and danger.

 

[CrickettGrrrl]

Image

Ahhhh, I had forgotten about "the Disreputable Dog". I must reread this series, the first time was a bit of a blur as I read so I wouldn't think, thanks for the reminder.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Image

Ahhhh, I had forgotten about "the Disreputable Dog". I must reread this series, the first time was a bit of a blur as I read so I wouldn't think, thanks for the reminder.

An absolutely brilliant trilogy, and Lirael is - to my mind - the best of the three; in fact, - while I liked 'Sabriel', - a lot - this was a series that only got better as it progressed. Actually, I think both 'Lirael' and 'Abhorsen' could be viewed as two parts of the same book.

A fantastic, clever, inventive, entirely original, brilliantly conceived, beautifully written book, with terrific characters (and, a bonus this, in the fantasy world, some great female characters), a wonderfully original magical system, and an excellent and well told narrative. What is there not to like? This trilogy is one of my personal favourites in the field of fantasy.

 

[LadyX]

Ahhhh, I had forgotten about "the Disreputable Dog". I must reread this series, the first time was a bit of a blur as I read so I wouldn't think, thanks for the reminder.

An absolutely brilliant trilogy, and Lirael is - to my mind - the best of the three; in fact, - while I liked 'Sabriel', - a lot - this was a series that only got better as it progressed. Actually, I think both 'Lirael' and 'Abhorsen' could be viewed as two parts of the same book.

A fantastic, clever, inventive, entirely original, brilliantly conceived, beautifully written book, with terrific characters (and, a bonus this, in the fantasy world, some great female characters), a wonderfully original magical system, and an excellent and well told narrative. What is there not to like? This trilogy is one of my personal favourites in the field of fantasy.

So far it starts off much better than Sabriel. I remember with Sabriel it took me some time to get into the story. But not with this one, I'm already hooked!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

So far it starts off much better than Sabriel. I remember with Sabriel it took me some time to get into the story. But not with this one, I'm already hooked!

Agreed, re taking some time to get into Sabriel the first time I read it; however, on re-reading it, I found it raced along a lot better, because the world had become more familiar with the subsequent books.

Lirael is just perfect; it is a first rate, rollicking fantasy, and just grabs you by the scruff of the neck. Powerfully plotted and beautifully written, I like the fact, too, that it grants itself a leisurely pace to allow for generous character development, which pays off handsomely as the characters and their narrative and growth arc are the story and you have become completely invested in them and in their fate.

Garth Nix himself has remarked that both Lirarel and Abhorsen should be read as two parts of the same book.

 

[ucfgrad93]

I am currently reading In Enemy Hands the 7th book in the Honor Harrington series.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie' by Muriel Spark.