16 votes

What are you reading these days?

What are you reading currently? Fiction or non-fiction or poetry, any genre, any language! Tell us what you're reading, and talk about it a bit.

16 comments

  1. [5]
    muh_tilde
    Link
    Currently reading The Last Emperox by Scalzi which is the conclusion to his interdependency trilogy. I'm about halfway through and though Scalzi is one of my favorites and I really liked the first...

    Currently reading The Last Emperox by Scalzi which is the conclusion to his interdependency trilogy. I'm about halfway through and though Scalzi is one of my favorites and I really liked the first 2 books I'm not super into this one. I'm hoping it ends strongly because so far it seems kind of predictable and contrived. It still has the trademark Scalzi humor but it's a bit too meta in some ways. Anyone else read it?

    4 votes
    1. [4]
      grungegun
      Link Parent
      I haven't. I read the first book, but that was when it first came out. Is the series worth finishing in your opinion? I really liked Old Man's War.

      I haven't. I read the first book, but that was when it first came out. Is the series worth finishing in your opinion? I really liked Old Man's War.

      2 votes
      1. muh_tilde
        Link Parent
        I would be say so. I remember the second one being really good. It's fun to watch Cardenia come into her own as emperox. I read a little more of the third one after I posted and he explained a...

        I would be say so. I remember the second one being really good. It's fun to watch Cardenia come into her own as emperox. I read a little more of the third one after I posted and he explained a couple things that were bothering me so I'm feeling better about it.

        2 votes
      2. [2]
        muh_tilde
        (edited )
        Link Parent
        Did you read the whole series of Old Man's War?

        Did you read the whole series of Old Man's War?

        1 vote
        1. grungegun
          Link Parent
          I read most of it. There were a couple I avoided, like the different POV retellings, but I liked it overall.

          I read most of it. There were a couple I avoided, like the different POV retellings, but I liked it overall.

          1 vote
  2. meatrocket
    Link
    It occurred to me that I haven't read a book for pleasure maybe since I was in middle school, or maybe my first couple of years of high school. I'm a college student. Tomorrow, When the War Began...

    It occurred to me that I haven't read a book for pleasure maybe since I was in middle school, or maybe my first couple of years of high school.
    I'm a college student.
    Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden was the easiest-looking book I owned that I hadn't read yet. It's a fairly run-of-the-mill YA type thing: Australian kids go camping for a week, and come back to find that their country and their small town has been invaded. It's nothing profound, but I'm liking it, and it's good to be reading something again.

    4 votes
  3. [3]
    grungegun
    Link
    I finished Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. It was good. I liked it a lot. The one thing that weirded me out was that so many people who revealed it didn't talk about the rape and pedophilia...

    I finished Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. It was good. I liked it a lot. The one thing that weirded me out was that so many people who revealed it didn't talk about the rape and pedophilia in the book. I liked the author's digressions though, and I thought some of his points were good, though he tends to set up straw men to argue with.

    3 votes
    1. [2]
      Adrian
      Link Parent
      I really enjoyed this book too. Another easier read is Norwegian Wood which is a little less surrealist

      I really enjoyed this book too. Another easier read is Norwegian Wood which is a little less surrealist

      1 vote
      1. grungegun
        Link Parent
        Cool. I'll give it a shot.

        Cool. I'll give it a shot.

        1 vote
  4. box0rox
    Link
    Still reading Domesticated: Evolution in a Man-Made World by Richard C. Francis The book covers the history of different domesticated animals: dogs, cats, livestock, and how they have been...

    Still reading Domesticated: Evolution in a Man-Made World by Richard C. Francis
    The book covers the history of different domesticated animals: dogs, cats, livestock, and how they have been genetically affected by domestication. It's in depth, but still very engaging and readable.

    3 votes
  5. BoltzmannEquation
    Link
    I started reading A Clockwork Orange. The movie is one of my favorite movies and I'm finally getting around to reading the book. Once you get around the slang it gets easier to read. If you...

    I started reading A Clockwork Orange. The movie is one of my favorite movies and I'm finally getting around to reading the book. Once you get around the slang it gets easier to read. If you haven't seen the movie you should check it out .

    3 votes
  6. ftmch
    Link
    The Hundred Year Marathon. A non-fiction book about US-China relations and how China is plotting to achieve hegemony. I'm one third into it, but so far, it's really interesting.

    The Hundred Year Marathon. A non-fiction book about US-China relations and how China is plotting to achieve hegemony. I'm one third into it, but so far, it's really interesting.

    2 votes
  7. aldian
    Link
    I'm listening to book 2 in The Dresden Files when I want just some filler, and I just picked up the Percy Jackson books to see how I like them.

    I'm listening to book 2 in The Dresden Files when I want just some filler, and I just picked up the Percy Jackson books to see how I like them.

    2 votes
  8. seventhaxis
    Link
    I quickly read through Cormac McCarthy's The Road. It's been on my list for some time and I'm glad I finally read it. Watched the movie after and I really appreciated just how faithful it was to...

    I quickly read through Cormac McCarthy's The Road. It's been on my list for some time and I'm glad I finally read it. Watched the movie after and I really appreciated just how faithful it was to the book. Next up is Seveneves by Neal Stephenson.

    2 votes
  9. Wes
    Link
    I've been reading Pandora's Star by Peter F. Hamilton. I'm really not sure how I feel about it yet. The book is long; I dare say almost a slog. There's so many characters that it took me ages just...

    I've been reading Pandora's Star by Peter F. Hamilton.

    I'm really not sure how I feel about it yet. The book is long; I dare say almost a slog. There's so many characters that it took me ages just to get everyone's names down. I'm intimidated by the sequel which is even longer.

    Now that I'm a little more into it though, I'm also really excited by it. It's scifi in a way that is not often explored.

    Premise spoilers
    How do relationships work when immortality is possible? Would space travel be abandoned if long-range wormholes are available? How might our society and expansion look if we'd only met friendly aliens?

    Many of the premises in the Commonwealth universe are different to traditional scifi I've read or watched. That's what makes it interesting to me.

    I'm about two-thirds through the book now, and do intend to finish. I think I underestimated this one though. I'll have to be ready to commit if I dive into another Peter F. Hamilton series after this.

    1 vote
  10. SkewedSideburn
    Link
    Slowly making my way through Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes by Edith Hamilton and My Best Friend - The Stomach (it's a sci-pop book about digestion, probably not translated to...

    Slowly making my way through Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes by Edith Hamilton and My Best Friend - The Stomach (it's a sci-pop book about digestion, probably not translated to English though)

    1 vote