What are you reading?

[Snerrick]

7 minutes ago, gigpusher said:

Sometimes to start the fire in you again start with something easy. When you get out of the habit you don't want to be starting with War and Peace. Try a good page turner. 

Has anybody here actually read War and Peace out of interest?

[Ted Dansons Wig]

Just now, Snerrick said:

Has anybody here actually read War and Peace out of interest?

Yup.Wonderful book. Big fan of Tolstoy

[gigpusher]

9 minutes ago, Snerrick said:

Has anybody here actually read War and Peace out of interest?

I'll be honest and say I have read very few classics apart from those dictated by studies and I'm 99% sure that studies are the reason I've not read any more. I was thinking that once I have read my 52 books for the year that I might try and find a few of the free classics and see if 20 years of distance from being taught English would mean I could just find ones I enjoy. 

[Punksnotdead]

45 minutes ago, Snerrick said:

These are the best books I've read over the last year or so.

Fiction:

• The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende. Completely enchanting book chronicling four generations of a family in Chile.
• Girl Woman Other by Bernadine Evaristo. Follows a string of women of colour in the UK, with each chapter told from a different perspective. Deservingly won the Man Booker prize last year.
• Half Of A Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. A historical fiction book following several characters through the years before, after and during the Biafran-Nigerian war. Very evocative writing.
• East of Eden by John Steinbeck. An absolute masterpiece.
• The Dispossessed by Ursula K Le Guin. An incredible and very thought provoking science fiction novel with utopian/capitalist themes.

Non-Fiction:

• Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Matthew Walker.  
• Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health by Professor David Nutt.
• So You've Been Publically Shamed by Jon Ronson.
• Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About The World by Tim Marshall. Gives a great insight into geopolitical strategy.
• Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez.

As a lifelong insomniac, I've just bought Why we sleep - is it any good?

[Kizzie]

39 minutes ago, gigpusher said:

That one is on my want to read list. I keep my want to read list on a wishlist which I check weekly and buy any that are on offer. 

 

• Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez.

 

It's a good read, definitely an eye opener

[Gilgamesh69]

6 minutes ago, Punksnotdead said:

As a lifelong insomniac, I've just bought Why we sleep - is it any good?

Oh god, my friend read this earlier in  the year and I swear to god, he wont stop going on about it. Always giving random facts about how important sleep. Was hanging out in the summer and he was like "okay i have to go to bed at exactly this time or it'll mess up my sleep pattern!"

[Snerrick]

 

10 minutes ago, Gilgamesh69 said:

19 minutes ago, Punksnotdead said:

lifelong insomniac, I've just bought Why we sleep - is it any good?

Oh god, my friend read this earlier in  the year and I swear to god, he wont stop going on about it. Always giving random facts about how important sleep. Was hanging out in the summer and he was like "okay i have to go to bed at exactly this time or it'll mess up my sleep pattern!"

I was definitely guilty of doing this to my girlfriend after I'd read it! I thought it was absolutely brilliant in answer to the original question, very eye opening about how important sleep is to a frankly astonishing amount of things.

Edited October 13, 2020 by Snerrick

[WestCountryGirl]

25 minutes ago, Gilgamesh69 said:

Oh god, my friend read this earlier in  the year and I swear to god, he wont stop going on about it. Always giving random facts about how important sleep. Was hanging out in the summer and he was like "okay i have to go to bed at exactly this time or it'll mess up my sleep pattern!"

 

22 minutes ago, Snerrick said:

 

I was definitely guilty of doing this to my girlfriend after I'd read it! I thought it was absolutely brilliant in answer to the original question, very eye opening about how important sleep is to a frankly astonishing amount of things.

My brother was the same. I was with him on holiday while he was reading it and every day it was "oh my god! Listen to this..." "Did you know this?" etc. etc.

All very interesting stuff though!

[Punksnotdead]

31 minutes ago, Snerrick said:

 

I was definitely guilty of doing this to my girlfriend after I'd read it! I thought it was absolutely brilliant in answer to the original question, very eye opening about how important sleep is to a frankly astonishing amount of things.

Maybe it would be best if I didn't read it late at night then, in case it makes me anxious about getting off to sleep! 😄

[Quark]

59 minutes ago, gigpusher said:

I'll be honest and say I have read very few classics apart from those dictated by studies and I'm 99% sure that studies are the reason I've not read any more. I was thinking that once I have read my 52 books for the year that I might try and find a few of the free classics and see if 20 years of distance from being taught English would mean I could just find ones I enjoy. 

Love the Mark Twain (I think) quote that "a classic is something that everyone wants to have read but no-one wants to read".  Pretty much sums it up for me

If we're on self-help type books, my absolute favourite is a book called Essentialism by a guy called Greg McKeown. Like a lot of those kinds of books it can get a bit evangelical at times (he does bang on about "the way of the essentialist") but the core concepts are really, really good.  I make a point of reading it at least once a year.  If you've got a brain like mine that bounces all over the place and feeds off structure but struggles to put that structure in place, it's great. Very much recommended.

[Watergirl]

I recently read Billie Holiday’s ‘Strange Fruit’.  I am a massive fan of Justin Townes Earle and it was his interest in her that made me curious. Though obviously written with a ghost writer and presumably leaving out certain events, it is a fascinating read all the same.

Artists worked hard in those days! Matinee shows, evening performances, after hours joints. It was an around the clock job.

[stuie]

Just started this... quite a good start. Very strange that he wrote it in 2005 but couldn’t get it published because it was deemed unrealistic! 

[vintagelaureate]

22 hours ago, Baggins7 said:

I was never a big reader a couple of years ago but one of my favourite films is the shining so I decided to read the book, I’m now on my 19th Stephen King book and planning to work my way through his whole back catalogue. Some really good stuff and I enjoy watching films that have been based on books, which a large number of his have.

Regarding non fiction, Scar Tissue by Anthony Kiedis is great. Saw it recommended on here last year and it’s such a good read - and I’m not a RHCP fan

Scar Tissue is a great read. 

The Beastie Boys book is fantastic too.

[ShakeyCrash]

Reading Stasiland by Anna Funder. Embarrassed to say i have been reading it for months. Really good and interesting but keep finding other things to do. Looking at it now but a peanut butter, hazelnut and caramel brownie milk stout while listening to the super furry animals has won tonight’s battle

[Ted Dansons Wig]

11 hours ago, ShakeyCrash said:

Reading Stasiland by Anna Funder. Embarrassed to say i have been reading it for months. Really good and interesting but keep finding other things to do. Looking at it now but a peanut butter, hazelnut and caramel brownie milk stout while listening to the super furry animals has won tonight’s battle

That was a battle?

[WestCountryGirl]

Does anyone read on a Kindle or similar tool, and what would you recommend?

I never used to be a fan of them myself, but that was back in the days when I might read 3 books a year - at most! Buying so many books this year I just don't have anywhere to put them, and I know I could just give them away but I get very attached to stuff 😅 so just thinking it would be best I don't physically have them in the first place.

I've read a lot of things about how e-readers are killing the publishing industry, and this does concern me. The compromise I'm thinking in my head is that any e-book I read, and really loved, I would then buy a hard copy to keep, from my favourite independent bookshop.

[gigpusher]

1 hour ago, WestCountryGirl said:

Does anyone read on a Kindle or similar tool, and what would you recommend?

I never used to be a fan of them myself, but that was back in the days when I might read 3 books a year - at most! Buying so many books this year I just don't have anywhere to put them, and I know I could just give them away but I get very attached to stuff 😅 so just thinking it would be best I don't physically have them in the first place.

I've read a lot of things about how e-readers are killing the publishing industry, and this does concern me. The compromise I'm thinking in my head is that any e-book I read, and really loved, I would then buy a hard copy to keep, from my favourite independent bookshop.

I use a kindle. Wouldn't be without it now. I like that I can read one handed (keeps my other hand free for cuddling a dog) Also, back in the days when travel was possible it's great just to have your kindle fully loaded with an array of books. The only moral dilemma I have is having to buy books from Amazon but I must admit they do lots of great book of the day offers for 99p and from what authors say they still get the same amount of money they would always get. I have a huge books wishlist on Amazon and every couple of days I go in and check if any of them are on offer. I just bought Lowborn by Kerry Hudson for 99p today, Jeremy Hardy's the other day. It definitely for me makes reading more affordable particularly when you are reading a lot. Also, good for reading in low light. I can keep reading when my husband wants to sleep without disturbing him as much. 

Edited October 14, 2020 by gigpusher

[deebeedoobee]

2 hours ago, WestCountryGirl said:

Does anyone read on a Kindle or similar tool, and what would you recommend?

I never used to be a fan of them myself, but that was back in the days when I might read 3 books a year - at most! Buying so many books this year I just don't have anywhere to put them, and I know I could just give them away but I get very attached to stuff 😅 so just thinking it would be best I don't physically have them in the first place.

I've read a lot of things about how e-readers are killing the publishing industry, and this does concern me. The compromise I'm thinking in my head is that any e-book I read, and really loved, I would then buy a hard copy to keep, from my favourite independent bookshop.

I work with a publishing company.  Our ebooks give us more profit than print as they sell for the same as print and , after set up, it costs very little to upkeep.

I like my old kindle for travel as it weighs so little.

I also like it as I think it is more environmentally friendly ( I could be wrong here). I also have large book cases in my house that can bear no more.

Having said that, I do like a real book to hold from time to time. Also I want physical  books for photographic images or if im studying ( so i can scribble on them). So for me i like both formats.

[gigpusher]

16 minutes ago, deebeedoobee said:

I work with a publishing company.  Our ebooks give us more profit than print as they sell for the same as print and , after set up, it costs very little to upkeep.

I like my old kindle for travel as it weighs so little.

I also like it as I think it is more environmentally friendly ( I could be wrong here). I also have large book cases in my house that can bear no more.

Having said that, I do like a real book to hold from time to time. Also I want physical  books for photographic images or if im studying ( so i can scribble on them). So for me i like both formats.

Yes I always buy physical cookbooks because leafing through and looking at pictures is a big part of it. I was the same with not being able to physically have any more in the house. I gave away 11 boxes of books when I moved house. There are not many books that I revisit as there's always something new to read. 

[WestCountryGirl]

Thanks for your inputs @deebeedoobee and @gigpusher - that settles it. I will add a Kindle to the Christmas list! 

[Gilgamesh69]

To add: yeah e-readers are pretty great. Only issue I have personally is that it's so easy to add lots of books but then not actually finish any ha. At least when I buy a physical book I feel more compelled to actually read it.

 

But I'm poor so I try and only buy physical books if they're big and full of notes. I pretty much get everything secondhand too; the prices of books these days are shocking sometimes! 😬

[Homer]

If you've got a book you feel like you should read as opposed to actually want to, take it on a long haul flight with you and put the rest of your books in your check-in bag.

I broke the back of The Great Gatsby (destination: Mexico) and Albert Speer's Inside the Third Reich (New Zealand - it's over 800 pages I think) using that method.

[st dan]

1 hour ago, WestCountryGirl said:

Thanks for your inputs @deebeedoobee and @gigpusher - that settles it. I will add a Kindle to the Christmas list! 

Would definitely recommend the Kindle Paperwhite. I can’t fault it in any way.
If Santa is feeling kind .. they’re on sale for £79.99 today only for Amazon Prime day (usually £119.99). 

[gigpusher]

1 hour ago, Gilgamesh69 said:

To add: yeah e-readers are pretty great. Only issue I have personally is that it's so easy to add lots of books but then not actually finish any ha. At least when I buy a physical book I feel more compelled to actually read it.

 

But I'm poor so I try and only buy physical books if they're big and full of notes. I pretty much get everything secondhand too; the prices of books these days are shocking sometimes! 😬

You do get lots of 99p kindle books including some fairly new books. As I said I created a book wishlist and check it regularly and books are frequently reduced to 99p on kindle. As long as you are not desperate to have something straightaway you can actually get a lot of new-ish published books that way. I got Broken Greek for 99p and it's the best 99p I have spent this year. 

[philipsteak]

2 hours ago, Gilgamesh69 said:

To add: yeah e-readers are pretty great. Only issue I have personally is that it's so easy to add lots of books but then not actually finish any ha. At least when I buy a physical book I feel more compelled to actually read it.

 

Not just me then. I'm a big believer in giving up on a book if reading it has become a chore, but that bar seems to be lower on a kindle somehow