Summer Reading Thread

[babybear]

Really, really good.

cool- just saw an interview with him yesterday on Sunday Morning and he's an interesting fellow

[beaterdit]

just read The Martian this weekend (blew out my back so spent it on the couch reading)...entertaining! thx for the recco

also, from this thread I enjoyed The Son
i intensely disliked Infinite Jest's writing style so much that i couldn't continue for those that got through it, is it worth going back to and enduring for a later payoff?

good thread!

I found it hard to get into, I struggled for the first 300 pages or so but was determined. Pushed through and I have to say it was worth it. His writing really starts to flow and you really get inside the characters. The end won't agree with everyone but I liked it. Wallace was a fucking genius.

Been finally plodding through Hesse's Glass Bead Game although not nearly as fast as I'd like... mixing in perhaps my 10th re-reading of William Gibson's Neuromancer

The glass Bead Game is one of the best books I've ever read. Definitely deserving of the Nobel prize IMO. Also liked Narcissus and Golmund a lot and I re-read Siddartha every couple years. Real easy and quick read and a great intro to Herman Hesse.

I'll second McMurtry's Lonsome Dove and it's sequel(s?).

Also really like a lot of John Irving's work. The World According to Garp and A prayer for Owen Meany in particular. Of course The Cider House Rules is good too.

Loved pretty much all McCarthy's stuff, especially no Country for Old Men, but the border trilogy and Blood Meridian were awesome too.

Used to have a real thing for Tom Robbins, his earlier work is great, the later stuff, not so much. Another Roadside Attraction, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, Still Life With Woodpecker are all great light reading. More involved are Jitterbug Perfume, most people's favorite, and my personal favorite, Skinny Legs and All.

Have been tempted to try Gravity's Rainbow so last summer I read Inherent Vice as a primer since I've read that's maybe Pynchon's most accessible novel. Disapointed to say I didn't really care for it. With all the wackyness I couldn't really get behind the characters. The movie looks good though.

I'm halfway through The Goldfinch right now and I like it a lot.

Great thread. Reading books makes you more smrter.

[babybear]

Another good one to add to the list that I just finished- the arsenal of democracy
excellent WWII read about the build up of the US military and the Ford/ Detroit contribution. good stuff

also Charlie Wilson's War was excellent- I had not seen the movie yet so it was exciting and also pretty darn funny too

and hey beaterdit- good to see you 'round these parts again

[Danno]

just checked out No Country for Old Men from the library. Also checked out Harry Potter to read to my daughter (chapter a night) if she's into it, or read myself if she isn't. Let's see if I can get back into this reading thing.

[The AD]

I just finished "All The Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr and really enjoyed it.

[mtbcat]

yep surprised no one else has had the chance to read
really enjoyed also .

[up an down]

the invention of nature by andrea wulf.. she describes the life and times of alexander von humboldt and how he set new trends regarding the way nature was regarded and how he greatly influenced his contemporaries and some very well known younger scientists/pro thinkers,,, quite good.. it was on many best of 2015 lists

[dunfree]

Barbarian Days - William Finnegan.

Interesting book. A surfer who put together an interesting life outside of surfing manages to convey the passion and the feeling of surfing while also noting the cost and just how boring it can be to those who aren't down with the bullshit. Reflective on things other than his own radness and acknowledges there is much more to life than just barbarianism and the addiction.

[Danno]

Because I read a lot for my job, I haven't read an actual book in god knows how long. And that's wrong. I want to get back into reading books, both because I know it's good to do and because I want to model that behavior for my daughter (4 1/2). Plus I have a long bus commute every day that could be better spent than fucking around on my phone. But it's daunting; I have tried on occasion and just can't keep it up. But I figure once I am back in the groove, it will be easier. So here's what I need:

I need first and foremost a novel that grabs you right from the very beginning. I mean RIGHT from the very beginning. I may only read 15 pages on the bus, and I need those 15 pages to make me want to read the next 15 to find out what happens. I need it to be interesting, but not super heavy, a lighter read. But not complete fluff, it has to at least make me think a little.

Any suggestions?

Heh,

almost two years later and I finally read a book! This reading stuff is pretty cool, it may actually catch on. First full book I have read, not counting to my daughter, in many years. Really loved that feeling of having a book I really wanted to make time for, picking it up whenever I had a few minutes to spare.

What did the trick, what made me realize I have the time, is I had gotten into the habit of looking at my phone in bed, before sleep. Sometimes 5-10 minutes, sometimes more than 30. Totally wasted time, and it made me realize that at minimum, I DO have the time to read in bed. And it worked.

I read the Emerald Mile, based on personal recommendations, but it was funny to come in here and see it highly recommended. Really dug that book.

Next up is Under the Banner of Heaven.

[Flyoverland Captive]

^^^ That's a rather dramatic shift in tone from one book to the next. Lol

[Danno]

^^^ That's a rather dramatic shift in tone from one book to the next. Lol

Yes, it is (though I have only read a few pages of UTBH). It's a book I have always wanted to read, and Krakauer -- for all the legit criticisms one could level at him -- is a good writer that I knew would make for good reading.

[hatchgreenchile]

"The Worst Hard Time".....very interesting if you like environmental disaster reads.

[The AD]

Has Ed Abbey's "Desert Solitaire" been mentioned yet? It's one that's been on my list for a while and just started it a couple days ago.

[Danno]

Since reading Under the Banner of Heaven, I have read the Water Knife, The Dog Stars, and The Goldfinch.

I really liked the water knief and the dog stars, both post-apocalyptic tales that were well done. The Goldfinch was extremely well-written, a very good book, but it never really grabbed me, I didn't love it. Now reading Station Eleven, which I am really digging. I guess I'm into the post-apocalyptic stuff, lol.

I read in fits and starts, it took me months to finish the Dog Stars for ex, but I am definitely glad I am back in to it.

[dookeyXXX]

I guess I'm into the post-apocalyptic stuff, lol.

Have you read:

A Boy And His Dog - Harlan Ellison
The Girl With All The Gifts - Mike Carey
Damnation Alley - Roger Zelazny
On The Far Side Of The Cadillac Desert With Dead Folks - Joe Lansdale

[Danno]

Yes, no, yes, no

Ellison and Zelazny were two of my most favorite authors in my teens and twenties.

[~mikey b]

So have you moved on to big boy books yet?

[Organic Mechanic]

Hi Gang I just wrote a book for you guys, it's available here http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/POWthebook or
at POW the book on FB . I think you'll like it. It's set in Crested Butte in the 90's and follows four ski bums who find themselves pulling a heist. As a lifetime skier and reader I just didn't think a good ski bum caper story was out there so I wrote it. I know I don't have a presence here on the forums but you are the people I wrote it for, so maybe you could check it out. If you are interested, use coupon code BOOKSHIP18 and get free shipping until Monday. Thanks, Tim

[reckless toboggan]

Does it feature a hot tub that is also a time machine?

[bluespark]

I'm going to re-read

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-r...about-terrain/

I bought this book 20 years ago in the Valdez thrift store and found it to have a unique perspective on a wide range of mountain life/history/ecology issues.

Definitely a good read to estivate to, and I hope i find it as interesting now as I did back then.

[SkiBall]

Since reading Under the Banner of Heaven, I have read the Water Knife, The Dog Stars, and The Goldfinch.

I really liked the water knief and the dog stars, both post-apocalyptic tales that were well done. The Goldfinch was extremely well-written, a very good book, but it never really grabbed me, I didn't love it. Now reading Station Eleven, which I am really digging. I guess I'm into the post-apocalyptic stuff, lol.

I read in fits and starts, it took me months to finish the Dog Stars for ex, but I am definitely glad I am back in to it.

Dog Stars was a good read. Just read City of Thieves. Easy read, good story.
Also working my way through Brown Dog (J Harrison) and just got Papillion I am about to jump into.

[::: :::]

Just started “Carry Me Home” re the civil rights era in Birmingham...some interesting stuff I never understood

[dookeyXXX]

I always equate the term "Summer Reading" with books that are light and easy, quick and fun, pulpy and exciting.

So, on that note, here's a few I've read recently that fit the bill:

The Extra - Michael Shea
A sci-fi/horror novel set in a future, dystopian L.A. where movie extras are, well, expendible. Really well written, fast-paced, and while it's mostly a gory action type of story, there is some socio-political undercurrents lurking between the pages.

Haiku - Andrew Vachss
While best known for his hard-boiled series of Burke novels (highly recommend: Hard Candy; Blossom; Down In The Zero; Footsteps of the Hawk; False Allegations; Dead and Gone; Down Here from the series), he takes a bit of a side-step with this novel. It's kind of a heist plot populated by a rag-tag band of homeless men. Just a bit off-kilter, but still staying in the crime/noir-styled genre.

Requiem For A Ruler Of Worlds - Brian Daley
If you're in the mood for some Old School '70s/'80s-styled galaxy tripping sci-fi, then this is a solid choice. I recently re-read Daley's Han Solo Adventures (recommended if you are an OG Star Wars fool, specifically one who really really likes the original trilogy) and this novel carries over some of the fun, quick-paced adventure stylistics, as well as great characters. Daley is a very easy-going writer, who knows how to set things up quick without them feeling half-baked. A rollicking yarn for sure.

Pirate Latitudes - Michael Crichton
I've only ever read Jurassic Park (and recall being so sucked into that book that I read it in a single seating in less than a day), so I don't have much experience with Crichton, but I dig pirates. This book is a high-action swashbuckling adventure that moves along at a great clip, has well-defined characters, and plenty of gritty charm.

[Organic Mechanic]

"I always equate the term "Summer Reading" with books that are light and easy, quick and fun, pulpy and exciting."

That's exactly what mine is! Come on help a brother out! My Ikon pass is way too expensive. I just made mine into a $2.99 ebook, what have you got to lose? Ski bums who pull a heist!? How can you not be interested in that?
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/POWthebook

[nogophers]

The Comeback. It's an awesome comparisson between Greg LeMond & Laurent Fignon with an exciting recap of the epic 1989 battle.

https://www.amazon.com/Comeback-LeMo...ds=greg+lemond