Recommended Books?

[Schupac]

Has anybody read The Shack yet? I've had a lot of people recommend it to me, so I bought it yesterday. I'm not going to start it until I finish Thoreau's Walden, though.

I would definitely be interested to get a few more opinions on it, maybe somebody will hate it and lower my expectations which are very high at the moment.

My wife has read it and all I can pass along is more of the same…she loved it.  Considering how different our interests are I stayed away from it (she is reading these vampire love novels now - more of the lasting impact from the Twilight fad I suppose).  So funnily enough, you should let me know what you think of it.

Speaking of classics, I am reading “The War of the Worlds”.  Having seen both movies and  I figured I might as well read the original story. 

Anyone read “World War Z”?  I just grabbed a copy but have yet to start it.

I love all things Zombie, and I read WWZ in one sitting.  It's wonderfully well written and pretty interesting.  Doesn't really break any of the conventions of the genre, just handles them very well.

It's not just Zombie good, it's good.  With Zombies!

[feckless]

Anything by Ross Thomas (just finished "The Fools in Town are on our side") but Chinaman's Chance will get you addicted. 

http://books.google.com/books?id=Rcs6Wjh_OZMC&sitesec=reviews&source=gbs_navlinks_s

[dark_lord]

the last 2 books i have read have been great:

[Redz]

Had this one sitting around for about a year until I finally broke into it. Just a crazy amount of info about a sad amount of talented people who have done themselves in with various addictions.  It also goes to lengths to credit much of the artistic energy of many of the subjects to those very addictions.

The author does an excellent job of pointing out a lot of ironies, and influences.

The book is laid out in alphabetical order of the deceased (about 500 bios in all).  There are a ton of interesting stories - some really sad, some just pathetic.  I definitely learned a lot about some people I'd never heard of, and got some insight to others who I'd like to learn more about.

I took this book on vacation with me and made it about half way through.  I'll continue to read as my "current" book, but honestly it might work best as a bathroon book!  You can easily read a bio or two in a few minutes (or plow through a few more if your stay in the bathroom is lengthier  )



Genius and Heroin: The Illustrated Catalogue of Creativity, Obsession, and Reckless Abandon Through the Ages (Paperback)
~ Michael Largo

[BudweiserCeltic]

For those fantasy fans around here, I'm recommending one of the top fantasies of 2009... The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett, also known as The Painted Man in the UK.

Nothing groundbreaking here at the moment, but just a very cool book overall and well written... after the first half it really becomes outstanding in my opinion. Early word on the sequel, The Desert Spear, which should be coming out in a few months is really positive, so some of you might want to check it out.

There's also a novelette that should be coming out in a couple of weeks known as The Great Bazaar and Other Stories, and it should help setup the novel sequel mentioned above.

There are some minor differences in the text itself between the UK and US versions, so whichever version you read make sure the subsequent sequels follow the same version. Brett has mentioned that he has plans for 5 novels, and if not mistaken he has already sold movie rights for the series.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzUBYOJdG9M

[Neurotic Guy]

The movie 'Run Baby Run' was his book as well as the movie 'Mystic River.'

I believe you mean "Gone Baby Gone". Anyways, Lehane is a great writer. Definitely look out for the next movie based on one of his books. "Shutter Island", filmed all over the Boston area. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, directed by Martin Scorsese.

TP for you for mentioning Lehane as well as Cormac McCarthy!

Speaking of Cormac McCarthy I recommend "Blood Meridian" to any red blooded man I meat (not a typo, that's how manly they have to be). 

I know McCarthy gets a lot of run as a manly writer, but I picked up one of his earlier novels and couldn't get through it -- not because of blood and gore but because of the writing style.  Found him as hard to read as Faulkner.  You guys must be smart (or perhaps the later novels are an easier read). 

[Overrated]

Last month I finished When The Game Was Ours, easily the best book about basketball I've ever read. Any Celtics fan would love reading this, so do it!

Also, you can check out my review for the book here:
http://www.amazon.com/review/R739WZSZU7AGW

Any helpful "yes" votes would be appreciated too 

[looseball]

Basketball: for the Player, the Fan and the Coach
by Red Auerbach (1953)
still the basketball bible!

[Eja117]

I'm reading the Hobbit. I'd recommend that

[Cman]

Any Stieg Larsson book.  If you like mysteries.

[Neurotic Guy]

The movie 'Run Baby Run' was his book as well as the movie 'Mystic River.'

I believe you mean "Gone Baby Gone". Anyways, Lehane is a great writer. Definitely look out for the next movie based on one of his books. "Shutter Island", filmed all over the Boston area. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, directed by Martin Scorsese.

TP for you for mentioning Lehane as well as Cormac McCarthy!

Speaking of Cormac McCarthy I recommend "Blood Meridian" to any red blooded man I meat (not a typo, that's how manly they have to be). 

I know McCarthy gets a lot of run as a manly writer, but I picked up one of his earlier novels and couldn't get through it -- not because of blood and gore but because of the writing style.  Found him as hard to read as Faulkner.  You guys must be smart (or perhaps the later novels are an easier read). 

Well, my daughter got me "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy and I just read it.   It's great -- much more readable than my first McCarthy attempt, "The Orchard Keeper".

I must say he has an astounding vocabulary -- wow -- it's very readable but having Mr. Webster nearby wouldn't hurt.  It's like reading a long poem -- some of it you understand completely, some you don't.  There is enough simple language to leave you appreciating the story but enough depth to know you could read it a hundred times and continue to learn something new.   
 

[indeedproceed]

I was wondering if anyone here had read "The Historian" by Elizabeth Kostova.  I was tempted to grab a copy but have heard some mixed reviews about it so I held off.

I read that last year, and loved it.  It took me a little while to warm up to it, because it is a little unconventional (the story is basically told through long letters, and it is easy to lose track of who is telling the story), but once you get into it, it is a great book.  I would highly recommend it.

It was not your typical Dracula story.  Not as much action as you might expect.  There's a lot more about the pursuit of Dracula and, as the name might indicate, the history of Dracula (Vlad Tepps).  It was an interesting story, but if you are looking for an action adventure you can eliminate 95% of the book. 

He definitely was a creepy Dracula though once the author, ahem, "sunk her teeth" into him.

I liked the book a lot.  My wife did care for it.

I am a sucker for a novel when they really get into the history.  I suppose I could just read non-fiction, but novels like this make it a whole lot more interesting.

Chris: read some Bernard Cornwell stuff then.  Hugely entertaining.  He plugs some great characters into history and mixes and matches fact and fiction amazingly (and he explains which is which at the end of each book if you hadn't caught on).  His Saxon Chronicles are my favorite.  Uhtred is BADASS!

I ripped through "The Last Kingdom" to "Sword Song" in just over 4 days. I might give it a week and do it again. Uhtred Ragnorson, Uhtred who killed Ubba by the Sea, Uhtred who fell Swein Whitehorse and sent him to the corpse hall, Uhtred who will someday gut the spineless Alefric, the usurper, and he will dance in his guts and kill his sons, and then, he will once again be the Lord of Bebbanburgh.

Really guys, read these books. Just wow. I might wait a week and read them again, slower.

[Redz]

I was wondering if anyone here had read "The Historian" by Elizabeth Kostova.  I was tempted to grab a copy but have heard some mixed reviews about it so I held off.

I read that last year, and loved it.  It took me a little while to warm up to it, because it is a little unconventional (the story is basically told through long letters, and it is easy to lose track of who is telling the story), but once you get into it, it is a great book.  I would highly recommend it.

It was not your typical Dracula story.  Not as much action as you might expect.  There's a lot more about the pursuit of Dracula and, as the name might indicate, the history of Dracula (Vlad Tepps).  It was an interesting story, but if you are looking for an action adventure you can eliminate 95% of the book. 

He definitely was a creepy Dracula though once the author, ahem, "sunk her teeth" into him.

I liked the book a lot.  My wife did care for it.

I am a sucker for a novel when they really get into the history.  I suppose I could just read non-fiction, but novels like this make it a whole lot more interesting.

Chris: read some Bernard Cornwell stuff then.  Hugely entertaining.  He plugs some great characters into history and mixes and matches fact and fiction amazingly (and he explains which is which at the end of each book if you hadn't caught on).  His Saxon Chronicles are my favorite.  Uhtred is BADASS!

I ripped through "The Last Kingdom" to "Sword Song" in just over 4 days. I might give it a week and do it again. Uhtred Ragnorson, Uhtred who killed Ubba by the Sea, Uhtred who fell Swein Whitehorse and sent him to the corpse hall, Uhtred who will someday gut the spineless Alefric, the usurper, and he will dance in his guts and kill his sons, and then, he will once again be the Lord of Bebbanburgh.

Really guys, read these books. Just wow. I might wait a week and read them again, slower.

Oooh...I forgot about the Ubba slaying!

The Arthur series is excellent too.

[Redz]

And as fate would have it, the 5th book of the series is due out 1/19.  I hadn't even checked on this on in a long time!

http://www.amazon.com/Burning-Land-Novel-Bernard-Cornwell/dp/0060888741/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262660230&sr=8-10

[indeedproceed]

And as fate would have it, the 5th book of the series is due out 1/19.  I hadn't even checked on this on in a long time!

http://www.amazon.com/Burning-Land-Novel-Bernard-Cornwell/dp/0060888741/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262660230&sr=8-10

Ah, the gods smile upon us indeed! It will not be long now until Uhtred takes the walls of Bebbanburgh!