Reading Books For Pleasure

[starrynightin64]

Lingus - Marianna Zapata

 

[FurryFury]

Fire Season: Field Notes from a Wilderness Lookout by Phillip Connors 3/5 This nonfiction book took me into a world I will never live in. I am romantic about watch towers and fire jumpers. The reality though is that I like indoor plumbing and a library close by. Also I have inhalant allergies that could be an issue. Being at core and introvert though, I enjoying seeing and learning through the eyes and words of Phillip Connors.


Blue Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews 3/5

Around the holidays I enjoy reading holiday novels to put me a bit more in the mood. So many are religious and/or full of family drama, both of which I find off putting. This one was light, fun and had a list of dos and don'ts, recipes as well as a music list. It's not my normal thing but I liked it well enough to read more next year.

Vegan Cooking for Carnivores: Over 125 recipes so tasty you won't miss the meat by Roberto Martin 3/5

I found the title a bit puzzling but after reading the book I get it. Some people are considered carnivores or more accurately omnivore, and would like to give a single shit about animal life becoming vegan when it seems completely daunting. I personally think with Portia DeRossi's foreword and Ellen's afterword it should have had a big stamp put on it that read "Lesbian Approved".

Anyhow my fav parts were the pantry and list of items the chef found particularly good and recommended. Love that. I also enjoyed his little note about white pepper vrs black.

Most of these recipes have pictures which is always a plus. But most of them were way to much damn trouble. Many were the kinds of recipes I'd be happy to try in a restaurant, particularly in a sampler platter but only want to attempt at home if I crave it. It's a good solid book for a lot of reason. If you don't mind spending more than 30 minutes in your kitchen and have that kind of time it could be awesome.

 

[desertslave]

The Railroad that Never Was: Vanderbilt, Morgan and the South Pennsylvania Railroad - Herbert Harwood

Okay, I'm a train geek. I have a grandfather on one side and a great grandfather on the other side who were both engineers for the Pennsylvania Railroad. My dad and I used to geek out in the freight yards of Enola, PA (at one time the largest switching yard in the eastern US), ride narrow-gauge lines wherever we found them, and go out of the wait to find crossings and museums.

I stumbled on this book by accident, got a free chapter, and got sucked in. The business shenanigans are fascinating, as are the rivalries and back-room arrangements. I know the physical area very, very well, and I've gotten a whole new appreciation for the engineering courage this project brought forth. Now I want to travel back to my home state and explore with fresh eyes. I'm just sad that my Dad never got a chance to read something like this, he would have loved it.

 

[FurryFury]

What a great find for you!

The Railroad that Never Was: Vanderbilt, Morgan and the South Pennsylvania Railroad - Herbert Harwood

Okay, I'm a train geek. I have a grandfather on one side and a great grandfather on the other side who were both engineers for the Pennsylvania Railroad. My dad and I used to geek out in the freight yards of Enola, PA (at one time the largest switching yard in the eastern US), ride narrow-gauge lines wherever we found them, and go out of the wait to find crossings and museums.

I stumbled on this book by accident, got a free chapter, and got sucked in. The business shenanigans are fascinating, as are the rivalries and back-room arrangements. I know the physical area very, very well, and I've gotten a whole new appreciation for the engineering courage this project brought forth. Now I want to travel back to my home state and explore with fresh eyes. I'm just sad that my Dad never got a chance to read something like this, he would have loved it.

 

[seela]

I finished Olaf Stapledon's Last and First Men last night.

I read about half of it when I was a teen at least once, but I hated it and didn't finish. Clearly that's just one more sign of what an unstable, stupid and whining brat I was back then, because now I loved it.

It's a book that's a little hard to get into. It doesn't read like a regular book, but it's more like a history book or a report. The story is relayed into the writer's brain by a human from the very distant future and recounts the history of humans until their looming demise.

Despite a few very glaring anachronisms it felt so fresh to me. It's almost impossible for me to understand it was written in 1930. At first it was hard to get into the book because of how it was written, but after a while I couldn't put it down anymore. The stories in the book are similar in many respects, but the writer's humor, warmth and humanism are amazing and I think the ending is just beautiful.

It's hard to say which one I like more, this one or Stapledon's Star Maker. They're both excellent books, really some of the finest SF has to offer. A very warm recommendation to both.

 

[FurryFury]

Funny how we receive things in different ways at different ages.

I finished Olaf Stapledon's Last and First Men last night.

I read about half of it when I was a teen at least once, but I hated it and didn't finish. Clearly that's just one more sign of what an unstable, stupid and whining brat I was back then, because now I loved it.

It's a book that's a little hard to get into. It doesn't read like a regular book, but it's more like a history book or a report. The story is relayed into the writer's brain by a human from the very distant future and recounts the history of humans until their looming demise.

Despite a few very glaring anachronisms it felt so fresh to me. It's almost impossible for me to understand it was written in 1930. At first it was hard to get into the book because of how it was written, but after a while I couldn't put it down anymore. The stories in the book are similar in many respects, but the writer's humor, warmth and humanism are amazing and I think the ending is just beautiful.

It's hard to say which one I like more, this one or Stapledon's Star Maker. They're both excellent books, really some of the finest SF has to offer. A very warm recommendation to both.

 

[James1324]

I finished Olaf Stapledon's Last and First Men last night.

I read about half of it when I was a teen at least once, but I hated it and didn't finish. Clearly that's just one more sign of what an unstable, stupid and whining brat I was back then, because now I loved it.

It's a book that's a little hard to get into. It doesn't read like a regular book, but it's more like a history book or a report. The story is relayed into the writer's brain by a human from the very distant future and recounts the history of humans until their looming demise.

Despite a few very glaring anachronisms it felt so fresh to me. It's almost impossible for me to understand it was written in 1930. At first it was hard to get into the book because of how it was written, but after a while I couldn't put it down anymore. The stories in the book are similar in many respects, but the writer's humor, warmth and humanism are amazing and I think the ending is just beautiful.

It's hard to say which one I like more, this one or Stapledon's Star Maker. They're both excellent books, really some of the finest SF has to offer. A very warm recommendation to both.

Had the very same reaction to Last and First Men when I first picked it up. As you say, it's a difficult book to get into. But more luck on my second attempt, and it's very much worth the initial slog.

Of the two, though, Star Maker gets my vote. The scale of the story, the mind-boggling variety of different worlds, Stapledon's sheer audacity in trying to cover such a timeline! There's a sense of awe in the novel that goes right back to Wells' The Time Machine.

Sad that Stapledon is not particularly well-known these days. He's arguably as important to the British science fiction tradition as Wells or Huxley.

 

[seela]

Had the very same reaction to Last and First Men when I first picked it up. As you say, it's a difficult book to get into. But more luck on my second attempt, and it's very much worth the initial slog.

Of the two, though, Star Maker gets my vote. The scale of the story, the mind-boggling variety of different worlds, Stapledon's sheer audacity in trying to cover such a timeline! There's a sense of awe in the novel that goes right back to Wells' The Time Machine.

Sad that Stapledon is not particularly well-known these days. He's arguably as important to the British science fiction tradition as Wells or Huxley.

Star Maker's story is huge, that's true. Star Maker was easier to get into as well. I think I need to read it again, it's been years since I read it.

I thought Last and First Men owed a lot to The Time Machine, too. I read a bit more about Stapledon this morning and found this: Two Letters to H. G. Wells. "A man does not record his debt to the air he breathes in common with everyone else."

 

[FurryFury]

Secondhand Souls by Christopher Moore was a good follow up to his book A Dirty Job. A funny urban supernatural novel set in San Fran. Love. It.

City of Thieves by David Benioff I've never been to Russia during WW2. I love it when a book takes me somewhere I've never been and makes me CARE.

Wonder by R.J. Palacio This very popular juvenile novel lives up to it's popularity and then some. It's hones in on kindness and empathy. I loved it.

 

[seela]

I'm re-reading the first two books of Hugh Howey's Silo series so that I can read the third. Really enjoying them. They're entertaining, not too deep, quick read. Everything I need right now.

I breezed through Wool in two days and am now about half way through Shift. Good stuff.

 

[La damnee elle la licorne]

 

[FurryFury]

I can't either. I tend to just turn off my brain.

I am considering, speaking of brain, retraining myself to print and cursive with my left hand.

I've read doing more tasks with your left hand can benefit your brain. I'm also fairly certain I was born left handed. My mother hit my hand when I tried to use it to write or draw however.

Last evening I had a conversation with one of my guests, about audiobooks. For slightly different reasons we are both advised to take more of our literature by ear , but I just cannot do it.

My guest too, cannot find a great solution.

 

[La damnee elle la licorne]

 

[FurryFury]

I wish I had tried this decades ago when we were homeschooling. Turns out the way we are even told to make letters is from a right hand perspective. Someone needs to come up with a whole different way that is intuitive for left handers.

 

[IrisAlthea]

Last evening I had a conversation with one of my guests, about audiobooks. For slightly different reasons we are both advised to take more of our literature by ear , but I just cannot do it.

My guest too, cannot find a great solution.

It's the same for me.
I'm trying to get better at it by listening to podcasts. I've found that it works with interviews/conversations at least, so I might try an audiobook with much dialogue.

 

[seela]

I recently finished Norma by Sofi Oksanen.

It was completely different than I expected, both stylistically and thematically. I did enjoy it, even if especially at the beginning the book felt a little insignificant after When the Doves Disappeared.

Sofi's text is always so pleasurable to read. It's easy and light, yet poignant, vibrant and full.

 

[La damnee elle la licorne]

 

[IrisAlthea]

I recently finished Norma by Sofi Oksanen.

It was completely different than I expected, both stylistically and thematically. I did enjoy it, even if especially at the beginning the book felt a little insignificant after When the Doves Disappeared.

Sofi's text is always so pleasurable to read. It's easy and light, yet poignant, vibrant and full.

I have liked everything I have read by her so far.

 

[seela]

I have liked everything I have read by her so far.

What have you read, what's your favorite?

Norma wasn't her strongest book, but I did like it. It was in a completely different genre than her previous works, but it ended up having a very strong stamp of political and social issues on it. From what I've read, it has received mixed reviews and I think it's partially because people expected her to continue in the theme and style of Purge and Doves.

 

[IrisAlthea]

What have you read, what's your favorite?

Norma wasn't her strongest book, but I did like it. It was in a completely different genre than her previous works, but it ended up having a very strong stamp of political and social issues on it. From what I've read, it has received mixed reviews and I think it's partially because people expected her to continue in the theme and style of Purge and Doves.

I've read Purge and the one where a direct translation of the Swedish title would be Stalin's cows.

It's sad if she's wound up in a fixed category, because her language is great and she has interesting things to say.

 

[seela]

I've read Purge and the one where a direct translation of the Swedish title would be Stalin's cows.

It's sad if she's wound up in a fixed category, because her language is great and she has interesting things to say.

Yes, it's always sad if a writer gets lumped into a box and "isn't allowed" to write anything else. Her voice definitely is interesting.

 

[FurryFury]

Beyond Shame by Kit Rocha 3/5


We Bought A Zoo by Benjamin Mee 4/5


My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem 4.5/5

 

[starrynightin64]

Masters at Arms & Nobody's Angel
(first 2 of the series)
By Kallypso Masters

 

[Cute3Kitty]

I pick up my book . . .I see the book mark well into the last third of the pages and feel sad.

I don't want this book to end. I rarely want any book into which I immerse myself to end. That is why I tend to prefer series of books.

Does anyone else feel this way?

KC, it's the book you recommended, The Angry Angel. I didn't want to read it when I read the word Dracula as I didn't enjoy that book. I read one chapter as I often do to get a taste and see if it grabbed me. It did!

Thanks for the recommendation. I would say this has a BDSM feel to it as well as a neck biting lusciousness.

Fury

I have stopped reading a book just because of that so many times! Especially if it is a series I am reading I just don't want it to end. Books for me are like an alternate world and when I am reading it I get so immersed that I can't stop thinking about it. The one series that really had a big impact was the Blood Trilogy by Kay Hooper. I loved the idea of paranormal phenomena mixed with crime. It was a great read.

 

[FurryFury]

I might look into that.

It seems we are of like minds.

I have stopped reading a book just because of that so many times! Especially if it is a series I am reading I just don't want it to end. Books for me are like an alternate world and when I am reading it I get so immersed that I can't stop thinking about it. The one series that really had a big impact was the Blood Trilogy by Kay Hooper. I loved the idea of paranormal phenomena mixed with crime. It was a great read.