What are you reading?

I'm reading Young Miles by Lois McMaster Bujold, an omnibus edition in her Vorkosigan sci-fi/space opera series. For folks that have read and enjoyed her recent fantasy novels (Curse of Chalion, Paladin of Souls, Sharing Knife etc), these are very much worth a look as well. She excels in creating great settings and filling them with vivid, involving characters, so much so that I hate to leave off sharing their stories when I reach a last page. She's an author that both my wife and I had overlooked for years, but has quickly become one of our favorites (always a treat as we now have a healthy back catalog of her work waiting for us to search out and enjoy!).
 
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I restarted 'A House for Mr. Biswas' by VS Naipaul. Naipaul is a tremendous author, often called 'the best living writer of fiction', and this book is definitely some seriously rich prose. I got hooked into him with the book 'Guerrillas' back in high school in the early 80's by my English Literature teacher ...
 
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I am trying to get every book of Dean R koontz read, and I am going good on my way, I think.
Great horror/fiction
 
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Just finished Baudolino by Umberto Eco. Contrary to what the international press might say, I don't think that this book can be compared to The Name of the Rose. While The Name of the Rose is certainly a crime story that features one coherent plot, Baudolino is a very picaresque novel with a highly episodic plot. I don't think it's very enjoyable and I can only recommend it to people who are serious Eco fans that are more interested in history lessons than story...
 
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Moved on to Scepters, the third in Modesitt's Corean Chronicles.
 
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i read umberto eco's focault pendulum about 5 years or so ago. it was a bit to 'cerebral' a fiction book for my taste but it was enjoyable and fascinating at the same time. i'll definately always have some vibrant imagery forever etched in my innerspace from that book. i finished the audacity of hope over a month ago but have postponing my 'review'. quick one though is if you have eyes and a heartbeat you should read it.
 
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I enjoyed Name of the Rose, but I didn't get past the third chapter of Baudelino. It almost seemed nonsensical, but that could have been the translation? Anyway, it was donated to the library.
@ curious
That's what they call a thumbnail review, I think :)
 
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Unfortunately, the last thing I read completely was ... erm...

People read books still?

I'm too busy ganking Horde. :)
 
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magerette said:
I enjoyed Name of the Rose, but I didn't get past the third chapter of Baudelino. It almost seemed nonsensical, but that could have been the translation? Anyway, it was donated to the library.
@ curious
That's what they call a thumbnail review, I think :)
Click to expand...
I had to read Name of the Rose for college, and it was hard to follow sometimes.
 
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I started reading Patriot Games by Tom Clancy. But i haven't continued reading it in a while. The series i really enjoy is the Dragonlance novels by Margret Weis and Tracy Hickman :D
 
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Karen Miller's The Innocent Mage. Quite good actually!!
 
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Bill Bryson's "Notes from A Big Country". Hilarious bundle of short pieces, describing the everyday experiences of the writer who was born and raised in the States, then moved for 20 years to a small village in England, and now has returned to the States again. He writes them as if he were talking to his fellow British citizens whom he has left behind. Some people may know Bryson as one of the most popular travel book writers of recent years. I stumbled upon him when I bought his excellent book "A Short History Of Nearly Everything", it immediately became one of my alltime favorites. It's about the history of the earth and the human species, seen from the perspective of the developing natural sciences and the current state of affairs in those fields, written in layman language and made further understandable by the use of very clever and apt methaphors. It's also sprinkled with very funny short biographies of important scientists, there were some brilliant but mad ones in the last 4 centuries I can tell you.
 
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Just started on Fritz Leiber's Lankhmar books - seem very good.
 
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Just finished Karen Miller's Innocence Lost and am nearly finished Modessitt's 6th book in the Corean Chronicles series. All are worth the time and effort.
 
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I'm reading "Maria, ihm schmeckt's nicht !" ("Maria, it doesn't taste him !" - hope this quick&dirty trannslation is correct ...) by Jan Weller, a hilarious book about a German (Jan) who marries not only his half-italian wife, but also her family ... ;)
If I'm correct, then this is already a bestseller here in Germany. ;)
 
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Just finished reading the whole 'Death Gate Cycle' by Weiss, Hickman...

The first couple of books started of pretty well, especially the third book 'Fire Sea' (my favourite), but the plot dragged on from there till the end. A few good moments and some funny bits, but not really to my taste. Though it seems Hickman is pretty popular among fantasy readers.

What would be a good fantasy book/s for someone relatively new to the genre? This and 'The Lord of the Rings' are the only fantasy I've really tried. Very much into SF - Philip K. Dick, Silverberg, Heinlein etc.

Currently looking forward to reading the sequel to "A Canticle for Leibowitz" One of my favourite books. Which until recently I never knew had a sequel.

'Saint Leibowitz and the wild horse woman' by Walter M. Miller, Jr.
 
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Depends on how much challenge you want in your reading. If you're looking for something considered "classic literature", you'd have different choices than if you want something "fun to read".

I'd offer up David Eddings and David Gemmell as good options. No redeeming social value, but certainly good fun.
 
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Yes, Eddings is easy. I also like Mercedes Lackey, Ray Feist and L.E. Modessit Jr. All are worth pursuing!!
 
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For fantasy I recommend Fritz Leiber's Fafhrd and Grey Mouser series, older tales that far surpass anything that's written today in the genre (even though I can't really say because I don't read contemporary stuff but I'm sure it's all abysmal from the little that I tried, i.e. Salvatore, Feist and a couple of other hacks). Off the top of my head, also The Worm Ouroboros by Eddison, The Face in the Frost (a very good short novel about two wizards), can't recall the name of the author though, and the books on mythic China written by Barry Hughart: Bridge of Birds and Eight Skilled Gentlemen. I also liked Zelazny's Amber books. You can read each one while taking a shower, they are so short.
 
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