Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Your Turn

It's been awhile since I asked what is the last book you read or would want someone to read?

133 comments:

VIPblonde said...

Last book I read

OneEyeCharlie said...

Last book, Malcolm Gladwell "David and Goliath". May start Clavell's "Shogun" next

TanishaDelill said...

I want everyone to read my book. It's on Amazon.com. The First to Fall, Tanisha D Jones.

MontanaMarriott said...

Octavia Butler's Wild Seed.

Beetlejuice said...

60 bucks!? Thats a book i don't want to buy used.

OneEyeCharlie said...

OK. VIP got me with that one (slow hand clap)

Single Man in Love with Love said...

Reading Orange is the New Black currently...I know I'm late but I like reading books that are turned into shows before watching the show/movie.

Oh and I love breast...not really related to this topic at all but I just wanted you guys to know how much I really enjoy the female body!

sandybrook said...

I think Ill pass reading VIPs book. The last book I read was called Swimming With Piranhas and for good reason too....

Anonymous said...

"The Architecture of Happiness" by Alain de Botton

Baba said...

Last book I read was How To Talk To A Widower by Jonathan Tropper. Would recommend everything he's written...

Susan said...

Water for Elephants. I loved it.

I really want to read Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald because I am obsessed with F. Scott Fitzgerald. I love the classics.

Meatros said...

House of Leaves and I would recommend it - although it's a difficult read. Very surreal...

Stephie said...

Right now I'm reading The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. Really enjoying it.

Seven of Eleven said...

I finished "The Cuckoo's Calling" and Joe Hill's "NOS4A2", now reading "The Husband's Secret" by Laine Moriarty. Next up is "The Goldfinch".

Jim Butcher and GRR Martin need to write faster!

Beetlejuice said...

Amazing book, one of my favorites.

sandybrook said...

@Tanisha your book seems to have been received very well.

Merlin D. Bear said...

Last book, "High Plains Moon - A Novel of the Undead West", Glenn R. Sixburg - currently working on "Magic Bites", Ilona Andrews.
Recommendations?
Dependent on the genre.
Historical romance/horror, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's St. Germaine series. (I've been collecting her since 1979)
Supernatural detective/urban fantasy, Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files". It's like Phillip Marlowe meets Harry Potter.
Secret read? Anything by Laurell Hamilton but especially her "Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter" series.

NapAssasin said...

Let's Pretend This Never Happened
Night Circus
The Messenger

Highly reccomend all three.

Barton Fink said...

Clinical Psychopharmacology, seventh edition. It was dry reading.

Violet said...

I'm about 15 years too late but I just read the secret history by Donna Tartt. Weird but I loved it.

Seven of Eleven said...

@Merlin, I love Jim Butcher! James Marsters (Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) narrated all but one of the audiobooks. He's totally Harry Dresden to me now.

msgirl said...

Seven, I was so excited for Goldfinch - loved her first book, never finished her second, same with the third. I do know people who liked it tho.

I never reread anything (well except for 5 books) but am rereading The Malazan Book of the Fallen, for all you sf/fantasy fans, it's that good.

Just finished Ancillary Justice, great book. Presently reading Islandia.

Kelly said...

The Husband's Secret. Loved it! Highly recommend.

Cecilia00 said...

Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

aemish said...

I am reading Zealot by Reza Aslan right now. I love him. No God But God was an interesting read as well.

WritergirlinLa said...

Vertical - the follow up book to Rex Pickett's Sideways. Miles and Jack go on another road trip. Loved it.

auntliddy said...

Orc-shogun awesome. U will like.

Karen said...

@Meatros, I loved House of Leaves! I gave a copy to my brother for Christmas this year.

mitchellaneous mvdiz said...

I've been reading all of Jen Lancaster and stacey Ballis' books again.

AndrewBW said...

Last books read:
From Russia With Love, by Ian Fleming
1959: The Year That Changed Everything, by Fred Kaplan
The Village: A History of Greenwich Village by John Strausbaugh

Currently reading:
Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety, by Eric Schlosser
Forensic Accounting For Dummies, by Frimette Kass-Shraibman and Vijay S. Sampath

Snapdragon said...

I read The Goldfinch last year... Not as good as The Secret History but better than The Little Friend. There's a point where Goldfinch begins to drag a bit, but it picks up again after T. leaves L.V. (that will make sense in context, and it is not very spoilery). Love Hobie (in my head, I cannot picture anyone but STEPHEN FRY!) and Boris.

Last book I started was Ripped by Shelly Dickson Carr. I am super fascinated by the Ripper case, but I couldn't finish this. Was just too predictable.

As I'm a fan of the Bridget Jones series, I did read the third book (Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy). I thought what with the major development that was all over the news that I wouldn't like it, but I did. It's bittersweet and really captures well the despair of loss and the prospect of happiness to follow (while not forgetting our past happinesses).

Next up for me is The Luminaries. I don't know anything about it, but it came highly recommended by people whose taste in books I trust.

aemish said...

The book I would want everyone to read would be Love, Soul & Freedom by Denise Breton and Chris Largent.

If you like Rumi and are in the mood for a little spiritual diagnostic, this book will deliver.

Snapdragon said...

@Meatros @Karen -- SUCH A WEIRD BOOK. I love it. Did you know that the album Haunted by Poe is a sort of companion piece? Poe is the author's sister.

TinselSass said...

Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad. ... Wonderful, poignant, very human.

Next up... Douglas Rushkoff's Present Shock. (I'm trying to make sense of this increasingly nonsensical fast-paced world.)

@SnapDragon... How do you add italics? Thanks in advance?

Spiffypaws said...

11/22/63, really good if you're a history buff and/or like Stephen King books. Just started Goldfinch

element said...

The book of Joe by Jonathan Tropper. I agree with @Baba. Also recently finished Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn. About to start Red Moon by Benjamin Percy.

The Real Dragon said...

Does Pop up Books count?

laesmralda said...

I just finished Serena by Ron Rash and it took awhile to get into but it was intense starting toward the middle. It should be interesting to see Jennifer Lawrence play this character when the movie comes out.

Karen said...

@Snapdragon, I remember reading/hearing that around the time I read the book. Thanks for the reminder! I want to re-read now that it's been a few years so I might need to download that album.

Jennabean said...

Loved that book. I was starting to lose faith in SK but that and under the dome brought back.

Jennabean said...

STYXX by sherilynn Kenyon. I love all of her dark/were/ sleep hunter books. Such a guilty pleasure, just like CDAN.

Caraface said...

I just finished A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. Highly recommended.

I've never been able to get through House of Leaves. I have a copy, I've started it so many times, and I just can't.

If you've read The Shining, then be sure to read the sequel that came out last year, Doctor Sleep. It's a great follow up, and does the first book justice.

Snapdragon said...

@TinselSass: you have to enter it as raw HTML code. <i>Hi there!</i> becomes Hi there!

You can also substitute the i with a b for bold and a u for underline.

Hope this helps :)

liliesrnice said...

The one book I recommend to everyone is Never Let Me Go By Kazuo Ishiguro. I've read A LOT of books but this one will always stick with me. One of the best things I've ever read. Oh and thanks for the other suggestions. Putting lots of books on my Goodreads list!

Squeezebox said...

"Storm Kings: the Untold History of America's First Tornado Chasers" by Lee Sandlin.

Did you know that back the when the eastern US was still mostly covered by forest, Indians and pioneers discovered what they called "wind roads" - massive wide, winding paths through the forests surrounded by the remains of blown-down trees?

Did you know that Benjamin Franklin once rode horseback alongside a tornado?

Did you know that it used to be against the law for weather forecasters to use the word 'tornado' in their forecasts?

Did you know that a major tornado outbreak in the 1800s led to newspaper editorials speculating that the it might be due to climate change, and that the climate may have changed as a result of the nation's massive deforestation as it was settled?

If you like history and if you're fascinated by tornadoes or weather of any sort, you will find this book so much fun to read.

Jessi said...

Just finished The Bronze Horseman and started Sharp Objects last night.

Hammer_Girl said...

Another GoT AND Dresden Fan? You are now my #1 bitch (and I say that with affection).

Hammer_Girl said...

Easier for me to list this way, I have read all of Jim Butcher, George R R Martin, Laurell K Hamilton, Dennis Lehane, Greg Iles, and Michael Connelly. Absolutely love them all.

Sherry said...

"Behind the Beautiful Forevers" Katherine Boo and "State of Wonder" by Anne Patchett.

Seven of Eleven said...

@Hammer_Girl

:D

Did you ever watch the Dresden Files tv show?

TalksTooMuch said...

Hey, Nap, I've been reading Night Circus for like a year! Can't get past aboot a third

Sherry said...

@liliesrnice: I loved the movie Never Let Me Go with that gorgeous haunting soundtrack but I can imagine the book is much better as they always are.
@Caraface: I renamed that book a 1000 Sad Moments. Good gawd that book was difficult to read. Love the author however.

TalksTooMuch said...

Hammer, Dennis Lehane is my all-time top two writer

JSierra said...

I'm currently reading the Anita Blake series thanks to the suggestion of my cdan homies.

The red tent will always be my favorite book. Simply fabulous. I also read the entire tomorrow series by John Marsden every year since I was in high school.

Hammer_Girl said...

Lol, yes I did. Did you know Nic Cage produced it?

TalksTooMuch said...

I've heard those are both good books, Charlie! I love Malcolm Gladwell and my mom says Shogun is the shiznit

Hammer_Girl said...

Her Merry Gentry series is good too. A word of advise though, don't bother with collections where she has a short story in them. They are always a snippet of a main book, not original material unless it states so on the cover.

Kristin Wigs said...

@TTM I'm with you. I keep having to start over bc so much time passes between when I put it down and tried again.

Kristin Wigs said...

Night Film by Marisha Peshl
If Gone Girl and Dennis Lehane had a make out baby. Read it and immediately turned back to the first page to start again.

TalksTooMuch said...

@Kristin, it's become awkward, because it was a present, so I've taken to reading a couple of pages before parental phone calls

TalksTooMuch said...

So like Gone, Girl Baby, Gone? Did not like Gone Girl but will check this book out, just because you are awesome, Kristin

Snapdragon said...

@Kristin, thanks! Sounds good!

Kristin Wigs said...

@TTM I hate when gifts turn into book report assignments.

TalksTooMuch said...

You and me both, Kristin

Del Riser said...

Last book, And The Mountains Echoed, by Khaled Hosseini.

@OneEyeCharlie, Clavell is marvelous. Shogun is a terrific book, as is Gai-Jin.

I've read my Gary Jennings books so many times I've had to replace them.

I read all of:
Barbara Kingsolver
Dennis Lehane
Jeffrey Deaver
Michael Connelly
Stephen Hunter
Iain Pears
Daniel Silva
Lee Child
Dan brown
Margaret George

I actually read most anything put in front of me.

I highly recommend all the above named authors.

TalksTooMuch said...

Okay, if we're doing favourite authors, I feel like I need to mention my other top-two guy, along with Dennis Lehane. Love Lawrence Block, especially the Matthew Scudder series, but I've got them all

Worstcompanytoworkfor said...

@TANISHA...YOUR BOOK COSTS TOO MUCH...your price point needs to be lowered..but i will buy it to support you...

PugsterMom said...

"Who Wrote the Bible" by Richard Elliott Friedman. It was very eye opening.

Kristin Wigs said...

Hammer, TTM what does one read after Gone Baby Gone and Shutter Island?

TalksTooMuch said...

Start at the beginning! A Drink Before the War is tough, racial overtones, but so good. Then Darkness Take My Hand. He also wrote Mystic River, but although the Peen made a good movie out of it, I wasn't really a fan

TalksTooMuch said...

Bwawhaha, Ray!

Hammer_Girl said...

I didn't care for Mystic River either. I agree with TTM, start at the beginning with Drink Before the War. I personally love series, and Kenzie & Gennaro are very well written characters you get attached to. Hell the psychotic Bubba is my favorite character though.

@TTM- Have you ever read Greg Iles before? To me he is right up there with Lehane. He has some stand alone books, however a few feature a protagonist named Penn Cage and they are great books. I highly recommend them.

Hammer_Girl said...

I have The Night Circus on my iPad but haven't even started it. I've had it on there well over 6 months I think.

TalksTooMuch said...

I have not, but I am writing down his name, Hammer! Ladies, we should totally do an International CDaN Book Club! By that I mean drink wine and hijack Off Topic threads once a week when skimpymist isn't looking

luvgossip said...

Never Let Me Go caused a shitstorm in our book club that we talk about years later! Some of us weren't that thrilled with it and the woman who proposed it went off! She never came back and called us all immature bitches!

@ Stephanie - Devil in the White City is awesome.

Hammer_Girl said...

Nominate a day/night on the weekend and I will jack the shit out of it;)

Hammer_Girl said...

My hands are pretty full during the week....

RowdyRodimus said...

Ok, to be honest the last book I read was Journey Into Darknmess: The Story of True Story of Kane. I coudln't find my old copy so I ordered a copy off Amazon and it came in yesterday, I opened it to check it and read the entire thing just for the hilarity of Katie Vick.

Yes, it's based on the wrestler Kane and yes it tells his story as if the character is a real person. YES, it is so bad it's great.

If you asked yesterday if would've been The Divine Comedy. I have eclectic reading habits.

TalksTooMuch said...

NapAssasin, help a girl oot and do a quick recap so my mom will stop sighing at me

TalksTooMuch said...

I'm good with Sundays; Kristin, does that work for you? Say the third Sunday of every month? I don't think there is an OffTopic thread on the weekend, so how aboot we just pick the lamest Blind Item Almost Revealed or something and go to town?

Hey, anyone could join! Kristin, you in?? Anyone else?

TalksTooMuch said...

Rowdy, I do like 'em well-read! Any stage craft in your past?

Kelly said...

I'm in @TTM Well, for as much as I can; during school I get most of my reading through text books. :( But my one true love is reading.

RowdyRodimus said...

I played Daniel from Daniel in the Lion's Den in fourth grade.I have Starcraft installed on my computer if that works lol

They wanted me to do some musicals in high school but I always got stage fright thinking of singing on stage. That was before I discovered the magic of beer. Actually, thinking of that makes me want to go sing Karaoke again. I haven't been in years once I quit drinking anything after they changed my meds.

Runswithscissors said...

Pillowbook by Sei Shonagon.
Actually lots of books, but I recommend this one to all of you who love gossip. It's a diary written by a Japanese court lady in waiting, it's like reading juicy gossip, who is bedding who, backstabbing to become the empress' favorite or the General's courtesan, etc.
she describes things beautifully, and sometimes she is snobbish. It's a first hand account of living in a Japanese court.

VeeBee said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

@luvgossip....ouch! Lol
Please tell me she sttormed out. Just to complete my visual.

BaronessOrczy said...

The Story of Ferdinand

TalksTooMuch said...

Awesome, Reno!

Lo Key says stop with the censorship already! said...

Crap I can't remember cuz I read like 3-4 books simultaneously... My next one will be the last of A Song of Ice and Fire (been putting it off cuz I don't want to be caught up and have nothing to look forward to). I just read a book called "Mutants" about human mutants and one about the Mutter Museum... I'm reading The Christ Conspiracy upstairs and rereading my way thru Terry Pratchett's Discworld series in between.

all points pilates said...

This is my first post besides my test one. Have been enjoying TTM and Charlie for weeks now. I love Malcom Gladwell, and am so glad to be reminded of Shogun. I want to read that again. I remember getting carried away by that one.
Anybody read The Good Earth?By Pearl Buck. Amazing.

all points pilates said...

I love his books! The Proust one is great too.

TalksTooMuch said...

Yay, Lovelyloie, welcome! I think I've read that, will have to check.

Kristin Wigs said...

@TTM & @Hammer I'm in! So long as Night Circus isn't the first book. We'd be setting ourselves up for failure.

Kimba said...

Genghis Khan, and the Making of the Modern World - now I know how to kick butt Mongol style.

The Resilience Imperative, Cooperation Transitions to a Steady State Economy by Michael Lewis - so I can learn how to make this crumbling world better, + Mongol tricks

And for funsss,

Uncle Johns bathroom reader Weird Canada - so I can kick but Trivia Pursuit style!

OneEyeCharlie said...

Greetings LovelyLoie. I actually read The Good Earth years ago (I would have been in 5th or 6th grade). I believe it sparked my fascination with the Far East.

OneEyeCharlie said...

Sign me up as a Jim Butcher fan

SueRH said...

I read that when it first came out, very interesting.

Rose Lizenberg said...

Double Down by Halperin & Heilman (sp?). About the 2012 Obama/Romney election. All kiiiinds of behind-the-scenes juiciness. Highly recommended.

annanaannnaaaa said...

Not the last finished, but I highly recommend Kissing in Manhattan by David Schickler.

Buddy Bones Smith said...

One of my favorites!

Buddy Bones Smith said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

The Magic of Saida by M.G. Vassanji. Multiple story lines, slow going at the start, but a page turner by the end.

Buddy Bones Smith said...

Tana French is an Irish novelist that has 4 mystery/thriller books that are engrossing. They are all connected to the "murder squad" in Dublin, and one member is the focal point of each book. They are very well written and not easily forgotten.

I'm off to Amazon to check some of the other suggested books out!

keeshlo said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
TalksTooMuch said...

Keeshlo, you in? That makes it Reno, Kristin, Hammer, me and keeshlo if he/she is down. Hammer, how about we try your Greg Iles fellow first, if you can suggest a book and are okay with re-reading it? We could see if we could all round up a copy by next Sunday, the 26th?

Hammer, let us know what book, keeshlo, let us know if you are in!

Everyone else is welcome, too! Sounds like we're all a bunch of read-y mofos!

TalksTooMuch said...

Del, I love Dennis Lehane as well, have you read any Harlan Coben?

TalksTooMuch said...

My very favourite book in the whole world is "Good Omens" by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, it got me interested in the Discworld series but isn't a part of it. If you haven't read it, you totally should

Seven of Eleven said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
megyourpardon said...

Love all his books!!

Seven of Eleven said...

@Mauexelle, I too love how King weaves his Dark Tower works into other books. 11/22/63, my Amazon review reads like a fangirl letter, and I loved Dr Sleep, too. And yes on Tana French!

@msgirl, is Goldfinch third in a series? Should I try the first before reading Goldfinch?

Never Let Me Go - it's one of those books that you get or you don't. Dystopian, wavering ending. I saw the movie last year after reading the book and liked the movie more than the book (very rare).

Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale" is another favorite. I didn't care for the movie as much, but liked the book.

Three books I re-read yearly:
*The Stand (S King)
*The Host (S Meyers
*On Writing (S King)

Dennis Lehane is brilliant. I had the privilege of having face to face time with him. Smart, funny, very low key (now Low Key lol), and just brilliant.

I feel bad that I can't pimp my writer friends here.

TalksTooMuch said...

So.jealous re: Dennis Lehane! Also love The Stand, Seven!

feraltart said...

I would love to join the book club. The time difference might stuff me, but I'll try. Am currently reading Middlesex which I thought would have a very earnest tone but instead is very jaunty.

elspeth said...

If you haven't read anything by Greg Iles, you're in for a juicy, well-written pleasure. Just because you're a Mississippian, doesn't mean you're a dumb illiterate hick -- Faulkner, Welty, Grisham, anyone?

Anonymous said...

The Red House by Mark Haddon

TalksTooMuch said...

Awesome, feral, once Hammer lets us know which Greg Iles book to start with I will post and then we can all start reading!

That's good to know, elspeth!

Hammer_Girl said...

*rubs hands together and cackles*
How about we start with The Quiet Game. It's the first Penn Cage book.

Kristin Wigs said...

@Hammer BLAMMO! Bought. Bc I care the most.

TalksTooMuch said...

All right, did everyone get that? Reno, feraltart, keeshlo and anyone else? The Quiet Game by Greg Iles, first meet up next Sunday, January 26. Woot woot! Wine, much wine! I will put my email addy on my profile in case anyone has any suggestions. You guys rock, this is gonna be so much fun!

RowdyRodimus said...

Starting Stephen King's newest, Doctor Sleep today. I got it for Christmas but haven't gotten around to reading it.

Hammer_Girl said...

Lol @ Kristin

@RowdyR- I just finished Dr Sleep, stuck with it. I put it down a few times due to slow pacing, but once it picks up it gets good.

RowdyRodimus said...

@Hammer Girl, I try to never not finish a book. Of all the books I've read, the only one I couldn't get through was The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. It was just waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too dry for me. I guess after hearing how hilarious it was, I was expecting something else and not jokes about the number 42.

It also didn't help that I find British humor to be, for the most part, crap.

Hammer_Girl said...

I'm the same way. The one book I never finished was World War Z. After 2 months I said screw it and moved on to something else, and I'm a big fan of that genre.

RowdyRodimus said...

I somehow finished World War Z but it left me wondering what everyone saw in it. Then again, I hate Zombie stuff. It's just not entertaining. I really don't see what people see in The Walking Dead, that comic sucked from the beginning.

Hammer_Girl said...

I can't do comics, however graphic novels like the 30 Days of Night were decent. I hate how now authors are making their books into comics (Stephen King, Laurell K Hamilton).

Buddy Bones Smith said...

I downloaded a sample to check it out, and the first part literally made my hair stand on end! The movie version of Dick Halloran, played by Scatman Carrothers (sp?), is one of my favorite characters, so I was happy to "see" him again. I had to wait several weeks to download the rest, but it was worth it.

Buddy Bones Smith said...

Oooooohhhhhhh!!!!!! May I join? I've read all of Greg Iles' books and love them! When I heard he had been in a near-fatal car accident a couple of years ago, I'm ashamed to say that my first thought was, WHAT ABOUT THE LAST PENN CAGE BOOK!?!?!?

Seven of Eleven said...

Dr Sleep is fantastic!

TalksTooMuch said...

Absolutely, Meauxelle! The more the merrier! Jan 26, be there or be funky! Or be there AND be funky!

Hammer_Girl said...

@Meauxelle-I had the same reaction about the accident! The new book should be out the end of April though:))

anon said...

The Once and Future King and The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd are two of my very favorites.

I'm dying to read the Game of Thrones series but there's a similar series and the author died before he finished writing them. I'm not starting GoT until JRRM finishes the whole deal. No way I'm reading all that and then he doesn't finish the last book.

liliesrnice said...

Middlesex is one of my other favorite books!

Del Riser said...

@TTM yes I've read Harlen. My house has five huge bookcases in it. I've read nearly everyone at one time or another. I really have too many favorite authors to properly list.

all points pilates said...

Hello! Yes, everyone usually reads The Good Earth in middle school. I got so much more out of it as an adult, having had a few more struggles in life.
K, back to snarking!

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