Whatcha Readin'??

I notice there’s a films thread here… dont get me wrong I like nothing better than to sit down in front of a good gore fest… but I enjoy reading too (great what your OWN imagination can conjure up :wink: )

I’ve just finished reading ‘The Magic Cottage’ by James Herbert … pretty funky horror/chiller novel…

I’m now reading ‘The Fog’ by James Herbert… so far so good… great 80s style horror writing :yup: I’ve got an over-active imagination so books like that can frighten the shite out of me :tongue2: (like The Exorcist did when I was about 13yrs old)

Just wondering if anyone else reads much or if I’m the only sad bugger here that does hehe…

I also enjoy Fantasy and Sci-Fi novels too… :smiley:

Right now I’m reading “Shadow of a Dark Queen” (again) by Raymond E Feist

Favourite genres? Fantasy, Horror, Sci-Fi (in that order)

Suggested authors:

Fantasy

Raymond E Feist - The true master of Fantasy and way better than Tolkein ever was (See the Riftwar saga)
David Eddings - Good easy to read enjoyable fantasy (The Belgariad, The Malloreon)
Stephen Donaldson - Very meaty intellectual type fantasy (Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever)
Terry Pratchett - of course - everything he’s ever written

Horror

Well, I used to have every book Stephen King and James Herbert ever wrote. Am in the process of re-collecting em
Don’t forget Dean Koontz and Graham Masterson

Sci-Fi

E.E. Doc Smith - The Lensman series
Michael Crichton - Science fact-based fiction (Eg, Jurassic Park, Prey)
And definitely don’t forget Arthur C Clarke (I, Robot; Caves of Steel etc)

I wish I wouldnt need to read because of studying so I actually might do it on spare time too… :frowning:

Within last 12 months I have read:

K.Enqvist: Olemisen porteilla
- quite philosophical style approach to quantum mechanics

K.Hotakainen: Ritva
- one of best books I have read, pure fiction written in “childrens” way but about many adult things, a book that tickles when read, in Finnish so sorry :silly2:

J.R.R.Tolkien: Silmarillion
- read it again (then I went and bought Unfinished Tales but I havent even started it yet)

Generally I like fantasy and fiction - maybe historically accurate fantasy most. I really love far out books which makes you wonder how someone came up with an idea to write such. Oh yes… I like reading diaries and erotica too :slight_smile:

Hmmm- well, I’m an odd one, but I am passionate about history, and any1 that knows me knows that I am really enthralled with Central and Eastern European history… so just historical documents, writings, and the occassional biography… :slight_smile:
Currently I am reading “Walking Since Daybreak” by Modris Eksteins… this is the second time I’ve read this absolutely amazing, moving account of the Baltic during and after WWII. And Czeslaw Milosz’s “The Captive Mind” (prose by the famous Polish poet about life under a communist regime).
Next week I will reread Anna Karenina, however… been a while since I read a novel :wink:

FireWolf - good taste :slight_smile: I especially like Feist. I have a bit of a semi-personal connection, as I know some of the people in his stories. Are you aware that a number of his characters are based on SCA members who he has known? (The Barony of Gyldenholt, in fact, is based in Orange County, CA)

I like Feist & Eddings, (In fact, Shadow of a Dark Queen & the rest of that series is next on my reading list) but I think my favorite Fantasy author is probably Terry Goodkind - the Sword of Truth series, beginning with Wizard’s First Rule, and currently on book 9 or 10. Great writing!

At the moment, though, I am reading “The Prince” by Niccolo Machiavelli, “Windows 2003 Server Unleashed” so I can earn more money at work :wink: and “The Fountainhead” by Ayn Rand.

Ayn Rand - who would have thought?

Nice reading all…
BUT…
The hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy by Douglas Adams?

I am redaing it for fourth time now… :wise:

And… don’t panic… when u see an atrox dominant :laugh:

:beerchug:

Only read non-fiction.

ie. my studybooks :yup:

I wait for the movies. :smiley:

im reading “A BOY CALLED IT” true story about a boy that was beaten and bullied almost at will by his mother its the first of 3 books not to everyones Liking as its a very dark story

A boy Called It

David Pelzer

This is a very disturbing book: very disturbing indeed. We have to read it with the view that everything that Pelzer tells us is true.

This is the first book in a trilogy: this book is concerned with his early life.

David’s life starts out normally but after a few years it takes a turn not just for the worse but for the appallngly, obscenely worse. David is seriously, physically abused on a daily basis for the next seven years or so.

The attack that had me most horrified was the one where David is on holiday with his family and he has become trapped with his mother as his father and brothers play elsewhere. David has one of his baby brother’s soiled nappies slapped on his face and his mother tells him to eat the shit that’s on it. He refuses, and she attacks him again: she keeps coming at him. He is small and helpless. He is saved when the rest of the family returns but the taste and the smell stays with him.

David is beaten and bullied almost at will by his mother as his father stands by: apparently helpless, certainly not helping. David deserves an explanation from his father as to why he refused to help him. Moreover, David deserves an apology from his father for his own abject failure.

One of the weapons his mother uses against David is to stop feeding him: this she does on a significant scale. More than that, once David has learned to steal food and eat it whilst he’s at school and she clearly sees that he’s thriving, she forces him to regurgitate what he might have eaten when he gets home. She might make him re eat it sometimes, depending on her mood.

David is rescued at the end of the book; but he has suffered such an appalling series of attacks. He has been made the butt of everyone’s jokes and jibes, he’s been starved almost to death, he has lived in the most soul destroying fear and he did all of this when he was a small child.

How can someone so small survive such an onslaught? How has David come through the things he has described? Maybe we will learn his secrets in the following two books; but he has my admiration. Knowing that abused children usually go on to become abusing parents, we can only read with admiration the snippets we learn about David’s relationship with his own children.

There are many, many children who suffer in the way that David has but they don’t survive their childhood. There are children who suffer in the way that David has and they become monsters themselves.

Let David’s story be a lesson for us all: let anyone who even thinks of behaving anything like this, read this book and then seek help. Society needs our violent parents to seek help.

I would like to hear the mother’s story; and the father’s story and his brothers’ story.

This is a short book that doesn’t take much reading: it deserves to be read by all parents. It is an ‘X’ rated read, though, so don’t let very young children get hold of it.

got the 2nd book on the way to work today only took me 2 days the read the first the 2nd is much longer as is the 3rd but ill let you read them i dont want to give to much away. :girl:

oh and the 2nd is about teenage years only read the first page before i had to start work

I’m reading a book called ‘A Short History of Nearly Everything’ by Bill Bryson. It’s about science. =P

[QUOTE=Rain Man]
I’m reading a book called ‘A Short History of Nearly Everything’ by Bill Bryson. It’s about science. =P
[/QUOTE]

Very interesting and informative…short notes from a small island also is also good.(something like that lol)

Im reading ‘crowds and power’ by Elias Castinetti

Social and Crowd behaviour aspects and insights.

[QUOTE=jena]
im reading “A BOY CALLED IT” true story about a boy that was beaten and bullied almost at will by his mother its the first of 3 books not to everyones Liking as its a very dark story
[/QUOTE]

Great Books!!

I read the Pern Books by Anne McCaffrey, well, when new ones come out. Still waiting for the latest one, by her son, Todd, DragonsBlood to be on paperback…I don’t pay for Hardbacks :wink:

For those of you that like a laugh…chicks and dudes…try Janet Evanovich. Her Stephanie Plum books are hilarious…i’ve not met one person who didn’t like them, read them in order though, they make more sense.

I also just finished reading The Left Behind Series…about to start on the spinoff books from them.

:slight_smile: Hey some great reads mentioned here!

I don’t have much time for reading at the moment due to PE! :smiley:

I mostly read non-fiction either concerning Philosophy or History

Ayn Rand has had a mention by Shade. I have read nearly all her works, and although I am enthused by a lot of her philosophy I can not shake the point of view that her works are essentially quite heartless!

I can’t help wondering if she would have held on to all her beliefs if she had children or if her philosophy might have taken a more humanistic bent as a result.

My favourite philosopher is Voltaire who had a great sense of humour! :silly2:
eg. “Anything too stupid to be said is sung”

Some quotations from him pertinent today…
“Judge of a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities”
“To succeed in the world it is not enough to be stupid, you must also be well-mannered.” :smiley:

I love military history, in particular First World War and American Civil War

Currently reading Cold Mountain (nice easy read - good film)

I am reading “To kill a Mockingbird” but that is just for school purpose :smiley:

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^—< Camilla - completly off-topic…but i just noticed your avat…

you are real cute :wink:

[QUOTE=Essi]
J.R.R.Tolkien: Silmarillion
- read it again (then I went and bought Unfinished Tales but I havent even started it yet)
[/QUOTE]

Personally, I dodn’t like Tolkein (hides from the worldwide gasps), because although it was his imagination that sparked the fantasy genre, his writing style sucked big time

He said “Bla blah”
“Blah blah” she said

If you notice that is all her ever used, and frankly I found it annoying and it constantly took my attention away and pulled me back out of the story

Unfinished Tales, however, is really good. It spans across all the eras of Middle Earth, fills in some gaps about the myths and legends, and has some short standalone stories. Very enjoyable

[QUOTE=Runt]
I read the Pern Books by Anne McCaffrey
[/QUOTE]

Yeah I really enjoyed them, have most on softcopy here on my PC too

I almost forgot, Stephen Lawhead (Taliesin, Merlin, Arthur) these are pure fiction and several myths and legends mixed together in a way only artistic licence allows, but they work, and you feel yourself being drawn back into the british past

And one book I demand that ALL pe-ers read, is “Otherland” by Tad Williams.
That book is what PE is evolving into. Read it and you’ll understand

I have been “reading” the same book for nearly a year, lol. (not really reading it but meaning to) Mark Twain ‘Letters from the Earth’. He is playing the Devil writing back to God on the state of Earth. Basically, it is Twain’s way of debunking Christianity.

Before that it was ‘Please Kill Me’ and oral History of Punk Rock…

DD
:evilking:

Books. I read ALOT before. Before I found PE :smiley: But I do read a book right now. I dont think its transelated into other lages.
Tom Egeland (Norwegian top-journalist) - Sirkelens Ende
Sirkelens ende means “End of the Circle” simply.

Its not a “new book” before you say its a “Da Vinci Code”-ripoff. Acctually, both Da Vinci Code and “Holy Blood, Holy Grail” was written after this book.

It is a novel, speculating about if Christ ever died on the cross, the Quelle-manuscript and Rênnes-Le-Chateu.
Very good book, read it before :girl:

If Im to state a favorite author.. Oh my.
Well. Starting off with Neil Gaiman I love his work. His books and his comics.
And Yes, Terry Pratchett he just makes me giggle, I cant belive that imagination is even possible for a human mind to have.
Tolkien is a extremly good author, unfortunally Ive OD’ed on LOTR since all the plastic-figures after the movies, and everything is getting LOTRizified.
Imo I think his best work must be “The Hobbit”.
Douglas Adams Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy was awesome. And the follow-up books, deserves a place here. :slight_smile:
Its a long, long time since I read something from him, but my “former” favorite was Dean R. Koontz. Im not sure if Id like his books today. I should read one and find out.

If Im to mention some authors of comics books, a great passion of mine; Id say Warren Ellis: He’s creation “Transmetropolitan” might just have been a book. Its highly intellectual and critical.
Roman Dirge. For those who know who he is you might have allready guessed Im a fan of his. Same with Johnen Vasques. The infamous maker of “Invader Zim” have also made a great comic; JTHM (Johnny the Homicidal Maniac), Fillerbunny, Squee… He’s also the maker of the bunny in my siggy :smiley:

I could go on and on forever.

I’m also a big Chuck Palahniuk fan - I don’t just read science books. :wink: So far this year I’ve read Diary, Lullaby, and Survivor. He’s the guy that wrote ‘Fight Club’, which was later made into a movie.

I was gonna start a reading thread. Just hadn’t gotten around to it yet. Thanks UB for getting this going. I’m a huge reader. That’s not to say I’m huge…not that there’s anything wrong with that… :scared: anyway moving on. I’ve seen a lot of my favs listed here. I too am a Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Horror person. Some of the ones previously listed were, in no particular order:

David Eddings - Loved 'em all!
Raymond Feist - Ditto.
JRR Tolkien - I have the leather bound collectors editions of The Hobbit and LOTR.
Stephen R. Donaldson - For those of you who are un-aware, there is a new Thomas Covenant novel out.
Terry Goodkind - Currently mired in the Sword of Truth series. Awesome reads!
Stephen King - Duhhh!
I just recently read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams - Hysterical! :laugh:
I believe someone mentioned Stephen Lawhead - The Pendragon series is great.
I’ve read many of the Pern novels by Anne McCaffrey and many of the Shannara books by Terry Brooks and many of the Xanth novels by Piers Anthony. Just for a change of pace.

Now for some of the ones I don’t see yet:

Dave Duncan - The Tales of the King’s Blades - Not earth shattering but, entertaining.
Roger Zelazney - If you havn’t read the Chronicles of Amber yet, get your nose out of these forums and go get them. :wise:
For horror with a twist, try Clive Barker. Weaveworld is really cool.
and finally, I can’t believe nobody mentioned RA Salvatore. :eek:
I realize they’re very commercialized but, really good writing.

Well, that’s all I’ve got…next.