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What are you reading?

atrib said:
Finishing up Nabokov's Lolita. Strange to think I never got around to reading it before now. Good read, immersive, beautiful writing style, unconventional love story; enjoying it thoroughly.
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It is, for all that, a pedophile's view of life. And that does not mean that I think Nabokov was a practising pedophile.
 
4321lynx said:
atrib said:
Finishing up Nabokov's Lolita. Strange to think I never got around to reading it before now. Good read, immersive, beautiful writing style, unconventional love story; enjoying it thoroughly.
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It is, for all that, a pedophile's view of life.
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It is Humbert's view of life, not necessarily Nabokov's. But the way Nabokov handles the story and the characters, it never came across as repulsive to me, it never made me feel squeamish and wanting to put the book down.
 
atrib said:
It is Humbert's view of life, not necessarily Nabokov's. But the way Nabokov handles the story and the characters, it never came across as repulsive to me, it never made me feel squeamish and wanting to put the book down.
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Never read it. But I remember some reviewer, when it first came out, saying that some of his friends liked it, and they didn't even own a pornograph.
 
So, sometimes you just get to the point of needing to start reading when you can't wait for the next season of a show. So I'm reading the fifth book in the Expanse series. And let me tell you something, I was shocked at how simply written it is. I was expecting Tom Clancy and got Richard P Henrick. The show provides characters with more nuance and stuff below the surface, the book just kind of blurts it all out. It is definitely a good read so far, but it is much more of a simplistic storytelling than I had expected.
 
Jimmy Higgins said:
So, sometimes you just get to the point of needing to start reading when you can't wait for the next season of a show. So I'm reading the fifth book in the Expanse series. And let me tell you something, I was shocked at how simply written it is. I was expecting Tom Clancy and got Richard P Henrick. The show provides characters with more nuance and stuff below the surface, the book just kind of blurts it all out. It is definitely a good read so far, but it is much more of a simplistic storytelling than I had expected.
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Did you start with book five, or have you read the entire series?

I find that in a lot of book series, the later volumes tend to start with a quick character sketch for the main cast as they pop up, presumably for readers who have had long enough between books to forget, and for people who are starting somewhere other than book one. This tends to make the first few chapters of each sequel a little bit simplistic, as it broad-brushes stuff that was more subtly dealt with in the previous novels.

I haven't seen any of the TV show, so I don't know how closely it maps to the books; But IMO the books are excellent.
 
Just a PS, I liked Richard P Henrick... though technically only read two of his books. His books were much faster reads than Clancy. Of course, Clancy told a much larger story. I haven't been able to read Clancy since 9/11. I was lucky enough, however, to have started reading more of Clancy after Executive Orders was published, so I shot right through that trilogy one right after the other. I can't imagine finishing Debt of Honor and having to wait!
bilby said:
Jimmy Higgins said:
So, sometimes you just get to the point of needing to start reading when you can't wait for the next season of a show. So I'm reading the fifth book in the Expanse series. And let me tell you something, I was shocked at how simply written it is. I was expecting Tom Clancy and got Richard P Henrick. The show provides characters with more nuance and stuff below the surface, the book just kind of blurts it all out. It is definitely a good read so far, but it is much more of a simplistic storytelling than I had expected.
Click to expand...

Did you start with book five, or have you read the entire series?

I find that in a lot of book series, the later volumes tend to start with a quick character sketch for the main cast as they pop up, presumably for readers who have had long enough between books to forget, and for people who are starting somewhere other than book one. This tends to make the first few chapters of each sequel a little bit simplistic, as it broad-brushes stuff that was more subtly dealt with in the previous novels.

I haven't seen any of the TV show, so I don't know how closely it maps to the books; But IMO the books are excellent.
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Started with Book Five, so that probably explains that.
 
Vonnegut by the Dozen, a short zippy collection of opinion pieces (and whimsies) that Kurt Vonnegut contributed to The Nation between '78 and '98. I should add, I never acquired a taste for Vonnegut's fiction, but as an essayist, he's quick and provocative. The book was rather hard to find, as it came out under The Nation's imprint, and probably didn't get any exposure in brick & mortar stores. Best piece, so far: his appreciation of Mark Twain.
 
Finished Nemesis Games. Definitely interesting. I plot the screenplays and ponder how they’ll could transition into episodes.


I definitely want see an entire episode around Naomi that picks up after she leaps from the Pella and finishes with her being grabbed turning around and smiling. This would be a great time to have flashbacks going over her past.



I still feel odd about the pacing and the ease of the read.


When the rocks fall, Clancy could have written a chapter about a guy sitting at the watch post right before during and after the rocks come down. I know the story is around the main characters, but I just feel there is more there.



I shouldn’t complain. I can read these books quickly. It’d take much longer to get though a thicker narrative. I feel stupid complaining about it. Like I said before, I think the show oddly elevates the novels. Fills in gaps.

We’ll see, I guess. There is a decent amount of gap filling to make this turn into a season’s worth of shows.
 
The Revolt of Modern Youth (1925) by Judge Ben B. Lindsey with Wainwright Evans

My kind of book: antique (my copy is the 1926 second printing) and once controversial. Lindsey was a juvenile court judge in Denver, loaded with stories about flappers and their fellows getting in trouble. Most of the stories concern unplanned pregnancy.
But Lindsey is out to critique American society. He was a progressive, in favor of the economic independence of women, birth control, trial marriage, no-fault divorce, and ending the stigma of illegitimacy. He wants to reform the American diet, which he calls 'a dietetic horror'. He is for eugenics, and these passages are dated and sensationalistic.
Because the copyright is 1925, there are some howlers: "...of all the youth who go to parties, attend dances, and ride together in automobiles, more than 90 per cent indulge in hugging and kissing." (p.56)
Yet, he is always on the side of youth. Here's my favorite passage:
"That the Youth of today makes mistakes disturbs me somewhat but not excessively. That it is honest heartens and delights me much. Here it comes, with its automobiles, its telephones, its folly and its fun, and its open and unashamed refusal to bow down to a lot of idols made of mud; and it makes me hope." (p. 288)
 
Trying to get through The Duino Elegies by Rilke lately. I started them a few weeks ago and re-started them this past weekend, but with a four month old and poetry of my own to write, it's hard to get the time/energy.

My wife and I also stopped at The Goodwill Bookstore yesterday (an actual decent, second-hand bookstore) and I picked up a book on Edmund Spenser (a pre-Shakespearean poet), an early Selected Poems of Irving Layton, and The Divine Comedy by Dante.

Once I finally send my own poetry book to press I'm intending on diving into more of the poetry I own, more often. Buy more too. I have no idea what I'm going to be writing next, so am going to seek out some inspiration.
 
The Expanse - Babylon’s Ashes (not done yet)

I just love how this guy knows where he is going. The character universe is reexpanding, showing he knew he had plans for these folks from earlier on for down the road.
 
Jimmy Higgins said:
The Expanse - Babylon’s Ashes (not done yet)

I just love how this guy knows where he is going. The character universe is reexpanding, showing he knew he had plans for these folks from earlier on for down the road.
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I am greatly impressed by The Expanse. I understand that there's now a TV series, which is critically acclaimed; But I am a little wary of any adaptation of beloved literature.

Fortunately I understand the TV show is only available here via streaming services, to which I don't subscribe (nor plan to, due to age-onset luddism), which saves me from having to make a decision whether or not to give it a try.
 
rousseau said:
Trying to get through The Duino Elegies by Rilke lately. I started them a few weeks ago and re-started them this past weekend, but with a four month old and poetry of my own to write, it's hard to get the time/energy.

My wife and I also stopped at The Goodwill Bookstore yesterday (an actual decent, second-hand bookstore) and I picked up a book on Edmund Spenser (a pre-Shakespearean poet), an early Selected Poems of Irving Layton, and The Divine Comedy by Dante.

Once I finally send my own poetry book to press I'm intending on diving into more of the poetry I own, more often. Buy more too. I have no idea what I'm going to be writing next, so am going to seek out some inspiration.
Click to expand...

Oh, and recently I also picked up Poems New and Collected by Wisława Szymborska, a Polish Nobel Prize winner, thanks to a Goodreads recommendation. I've been enjoying it quite a bit. I also picked up the Collected Poems of Anne Sexton from a local, not enjoying it as much but I'm not deep into it yet.

And also I Am That by Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, who followed Advaita Hinduism. Very good, if not a bit repetitive.
 
bilby said:
Jimmy Higgins said:
The Expanse - Babylon’s Ashes (not done yet)

I just love how this guy knows where he is going. The character universe is reexpanding, showing he knew he had plans for these folks from earlier on for down the road.
Click to expand...

I am greatly impressed by The Expanse. I understand that there's now a TV series, which is critically acclaimed; But I am a little wary of any adaptation of beloved literature.

Fortunately I understand the TV show is only available here via streaming services, to which I don't subscribe (nor plan to, due to age-onset luddism), which saves me from having to make a decision whether or not to give it a try.
Click to expand...
I picked up where the show left off, so I haven't read the first four books, but in general, I'm getting a more nuanced feel in the show than the books, and the science is presented very well visually. The Expanse to me is atop the pedestal with Babylon 5 for best Sci-Fi/Space Opera/Fantasy ever on TV. This isn't a matter of stuffing a large novel in to 2.5 hours of a movie, but letting a moderate sized novel spill out into a 10 episode (~10 hr) season.
 
I started a few new poetry books mentioned above, but in practice I seem to be finishing Leonard Cohen's Book of Longing for a third time. It's reading a lot better after going through his biography a few months ago. Every night at about 9:30 I sit down and carefully read 4 or 5 more of it's poems.
 
The Ethical Slut

Anybody who wishes to embark into open relationships should read this. I wish I'd read it when I was young. It would have saved me a lot of grief. Not to mention cut down on number of pointless arguments.

It's just practical tips. The whole book. Very down to earth and meaty. No babble or page fillers. Even the section of how to be a good lover is amazing. Great tips for anybody starting out on a journey of your own sexual exploration. Stuff any woman should know, like how do you help your male lover to get a hardon again after he's lost it. I'm sure this is something every straight woman would love to learn at some point in her life.

It isn't trying to evangelise the lifestyle, and has plenty of sections helpful to anybody in any kind of relationship. Fundamentally it's about how to be a decent person in a relationship without compromising what is important to you. While more important in an open relationship, applies equally to a monogamous relationship.

I've been in open relationships my entire adult life. I've never had a normal monogamous relationship. I'm now 45 years old. Even I learned plenty from this book. The section about jealousy and how to deal with it is great. Applicable to anybody who has ever felt jealous.

I had a sad realization after reading this book. This is extremely low hanging fruit. This is stuff we should all have been taught in school in sex ed. The lies about relationship we've been fed by our Christian heritage is pure poison. Soul killing poison. No wonder so many women don't experience their first orgasm until they're 40+. They don't know their own bodies well enough to teach their male lovers how to push them over the edge. So they have no clue. And everybody is perpetuating a cycle of godawful sex and we're being fed the idiotic lie that people who aren't sluts are virtuous somehow. Even still today 2020. It's bizarre.

It's a book for anyone really. I highly recommend it.
 
Kicking myself.

Malafrena by Ursula le Guin has been on my bookshelves for about 40 years and I've never taken it down until 3 days ago. Even though I remember loving The Dispossessed. (I am a) Dickwit.


In other news, I have reverted to childhood and am revisiting Anne McCaffrey's Pern series, which is a lovely relaxing read.

Also. Finally scraped together the readies to get myself the Aubrey/Maturin series. Just arrived :joy::D :joy:
 
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