View Full Version : Anyone read any good books lately?
Just finished "Helliconia Spring" by Brian Aldiss......excellent read.
Just need to get my hands on "Helliconia Summer" now
What you been reading?
Savey :)
I'm currently reading Worms Eat My Garbage by Mary Appelhof, but that won't be of much interest to anyone who doesn't have/want a wormery.
My fiction recommendation would be The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger and my non-fiction recommendation would be Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach. Both are superb reads.
RandomHero
29-Nov-05, 19:45
i've recently read Porno by Irvine Welsh, Popcorn by Ben Elton, The Liar by Stephen Fry and The Ninth Life of Louis Drax by Liz Jensen.
Anyone read any of those?
i've recently read Porno by Irvine Welsh, Popcorn by Ben Elton, The Liar by Stephen Fry and The Ninth Life of Louis Drax by Liz Jensen.
Anyone read any of those? Im just waitng on porno to arrive from amazon, What like is it? I've just finished the marabou stork nightmares and it was just brilliant. Any word on porno being made into a film?
Just finished "Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking" by Malcolm Gladwell. Its a good read, I recommend it, it makes you not think.
About to buy something by Carlos Castenada....
RandomHero
29-Nov-05, 20:22
Yes there has been talk of Porno being made. Apparently the difficulty is getting Ewan McGregor to do it. It's a good book. I enjoyed it because I knew at some point in the book Begbie would catch up with Renton!
Phoebus_Apollo
29-Nov-05, 20:25
I`ve just started reading "Uylleses" by James Joyce and it`s tough but the prose is beautiful....
I cant wait to read it. In fact im going to read trainspotting again whilst im waiting. I was watching the Acid house just the other night too, What do you think of it?
"One man tango" by Anthony Quinn..and "This and That " by Bette Davis..thoroughly enjoyed both.
Hi all,
I'm mad about horses so my favourite books are inevitably horsey!! ;)
The Horse Whisperer is my absolute favourite book ever, but I am also a huge fan on Samantha Alexander's 'Winners' series - she's published 4 different series (Hollywell Stables, Riding School, Riders, Winners, and probably more that I don't know about as well).
Anyone else heard of her?
Peach x
Just finished Terry Pratchet, Thud.
Currently reading Michael Palin, Sahara
porshiepoo
29-Nov-05, 22:42
All time favourite, 'Gone with the wind'.
'the games people play' by Eric Berne.
Any of Martina Cole's books.
'horse Whisperer'
moonshadow
29-Nov-05, 22:48
i love reading. ive always got a large amount of books waiting to be read next.
memoirs of a giesha is one of my favourites
RandomHero
29-Nov-05, 23:05
Terry Pratchett is good. Was in a stage adaptation of one of his books. Got really nervous coz wasnt sure if i cud play the part well and live up to all the pratchett fans' expectations!
just reading the Diary of Anne Frank - delightful, but chilling knowing what happened to her eventually.
I've read everything by Colleen MacCullough, especially the Rome series (first man in Rome, etc).
Gabriel Garcia Marques' 100 years of solitude ( I think the name might be this in Portuguese). The house of Spirits, Daughter of fortune, Portrait in Sepia and other books by Isabel Allende are great.
My last read: The White Mare ( Jules Watson), especially interesting because part of it is in ancient Caithness ( you can get it at the library, by the way).
I'm on my third Dan Brown novel, Digital Fortress... they are quite good.
Just started reading THE DA VINCI CODE," but can't decide whether I like it enough to finish the book. I will read on and decide later what I think of the story. Has anyone read THE DA VINCI CODE by Dan Brown?
Mad Martigan
30-Nov-05, 17:39
I loved Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code. His other books - Angels and Demons, Digital Fortress & Deception Point are also worth a read. James Patterson's 4th of July is a fast paced Thriller with some good twists.
I've got a queue of books that I've yet to read including:
'Mary, Mary' and 'Lifeguard' by James Patterson
Michael Crichton's 'State of Fear'
Neal Stephenson's 'Criptonomicon'
Tried to read the Dan Brown Da Vinci book but gave up as I had read a lot of books about the Templars and Holy blood/Holy Grail type books and too me he was trying to make a story out of facts I already knew.
Can't argue with the amount of books he has sold but check out the above types of books, very interesting
i read Nineteen Eighty Four by George Orwell not that long ago
I have just finished reading Hotel Babylon and then The Little Prisoner which was an amazing story, well worth the read.
The Lance Armstrong biography "Its not about the Bike" This is one of the most inspirational biographies I have ever read, and comes from the truly remarkable life experiences of a determined young man. I loved every word!
Defintely advise this book to anyone, sporting or not.
Anything by Patricia cornwall or Ian Rankin. Just as well Patricia Cornwall doesn't come with pictures though it can be a bit gory. I only get time to read on holiday the rest of the year its study with OU.
Phoenix200416
01-Dec-05, 13:58
My fave books of all time are the Earth Children Series by Jean M Auel. Anyone else read them?
I've read them all.
Clan of the Cave Bear - Book 1
The Valley of Horses - Book 2
The Mammoth Hunters - Book 3
The Plains of Passage - Book 4
The Shelters of Stone - Book 5
Just started reading THE DA VINCI CODE," but can't decide whether I like it enough to finish the book. I will read on and decide later what I think of the story. Has anyone read THE DA VINCI CODE by Dan Brown?
Yes, Marion.Its fun to read and he is really good at twisting historical fact into plausible fiction. Good fun.
My fave books of all time are the Earth Children Series by Jean M Auel. Anyone else read them?
I've read them all.
Clan of the Cave Bear - Book 1
The Valley of Horses - Book 2
The Mammoth Hunters - Book 3
The Plains of Passage - Book 4
The Shelters of Stone - Book 5
Yes, pheonix. Really good books, I agree, though I didn't enjoy Shelters of stone as much as I did the valley of horses or the mamoth hunters. I thisnk that Ayla's adult children will one day face one another, what do you think?
porshiepoo
01-Dec-05, 16:43
Did anyone read
'The enchanted wood'
'The folk of the faraway tree'
etc?
I absolutely loved them as a kid and lost myself in the exploits of moonface and silkie and co in the land of take what you want, many a time.
Karaoke Queen
01-Dec-05, 16:57
I loved that books! They were my absolute favourites! All the different lands at the top of the tree were just magical to me as a child!
Oh Gawd, no, pleeeaaaase! Noooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!
My younger son has been into these books for about a year. I have to read a chapter to him whenever it's my turn to take him to bed, so I must have read most of The Enchanted Wood and The Magic Faraway Tree several times. I'll have to go out and buy him The Folk of the Faraway Tree just to get a change! I'm now at the stage where I can read a whole chapter aloud without absorbing anything whatsoever. But I must still be putting sufficient effort into it because he's still happy. :)
Maybe Silkie is Rheghead's fairy. ;)
As an adult, I find these books incredibly tedious. Every adventure is much the same as the previous one, and all the characters are unbelievably one-dimensional. Perhaps I would have liked them if I'd read them as a young kid because I was an avid Enid Blyton reader: I loved the Famous Five, The Secret Seven and many others whose names I don't recall, so maybe I would have liked the tree-folk too.
The influence of wartime austerity on Enid Blyton's writing is everywhere in those books. The highlight of almost every adventure is the consumption of "luxury" foods: cake, ice cream, etc, and there's a lot of emphasis on thrift. It took me ages to figure this out btw, I didn't know when the books were written. And they're so much more naive and simple than more recent children's books -- not sure whether this is a good thing or a bad thing lol.
I much prefer reading Roald Dahl or Ms Wiz. :)
I haven't read a proper book in months: I've been too busy working or passing spare moments on here, but this busy period is coming to an end, so I'm taking careful note of the comments on this thread. I have a few unread Ian Rankins lying around, and I still have to read Robin Cook's The Point of Departure about the events leading up to the Iraq War, so they'll keep me busy for a while. I like the sound of The Time Traveler's Wife too.
I have just read, 'State of Fear' by Michael Crighton. The story was a bit 2 dimensional but the facts behind the story were quite thought provoking.
Read "Timeline" BY MC......its very good, lots of interesting scientific conjecture.....film wasn't quite as good......
Anyone like Wilbur Smith?
Oh Gawd, no, pleeeaaaase! Noooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!
My younger son has been into these books for about a year. I have to read a chapter to him whenever it's my turn to take him to bed, so I must have read most of The Enchanted Wood and The Magic Faraway Tree several times. I'll have to go out and buy him The Folk of the Faraway Tree just to get a change! :)
I am surprised you haven't got him hooked on more worthy books.
How about?
Willy wonker and the magic wormhole.
The Adventures of the lonely Atheist.
The Mighty Atom
Lord of the String Theory
The Mad Physics Professor and the Enchanted Alternative Universe.
The Brick-By Paul Debrick
A football hooligans story....
He regularly works on the rig i'm on!!
Like Doc Szin, I was an avid Enid Blyton reader too, when I was in primary school. I thought her books were brilliant, I could hardly put one down after I'd started reading it! :) As well as The Famous Five and The Secret Seven, I also loved her Mystery Series and Adventure Series. I read some of her Mallory Towers and St Clare's books too. They took place at boarding school, but weren't quite as exciting. And let's not forget the Noddy books, also written by Enid Blyton....
willowbankbear
01-Dec-05, 20:40
I just returned Frank Skinners autobiography, It is certainly rather amusing in Franks particular comic style. I didnt finish it tho, cause ive been extremely busy with my new son & decorating the house top to bottom, Ye`ll ken how it is, but i did enjoy what i did read
Yes, Marion.Its fun to read and he is really good at twisting historical fact into plausible fiction. Good fun.
Ju, thank you for your input. I will remember what you say as I read the book remembering that it is fiction and not a historical fact. I am certain I will determine that as I read The Da Vinci Code.
lassieinfife
01-Dec-05, 21:39
I enjoy anything by James Patterson, Jeffery Deaver,Patricia Cornwell,John Sandford,tried to read the Da Vinci code but couldn't get interested:p
The highlight of almost every adventure is the consumption of "luxury" foods: cake, ice cream, etc,
If Enid Blyton was alive today I know what she would say her favorite fizzy drink is - "lashings of ginger beer" (with lots of freshly made cucumber sandwiches)
Was that her or was that Comic Strip Presents "Five Go Mad in Dorset"?
Did anyone read
'The enchanted wood'
'The folk of the faraway tree'
etc?
I absolutely loved them as a kid and lost myself in the exploits of moonface and silkie and co in the land of take what you want, many a time.My daughter, now 22, loved me reading those to her, they were her favourites!
I like reading books about life after death.Between Life and Death by Dolores Cannon is good as is another of hers,Keepers of the Garden.The Only Planet of Choice is by transceiver,Phyllis v. Schlemmer.Destiny of Souls is good as well,by Michael newton.PH.D.Another favourite is ,We Speak No Treason by Rosemary hawley Jarman.It`s about Richard 3rd,in my opinion a much maligned Richard 3rd.I read all these books again and again.I recently bought from a charity shop a compilation of six of Jane Austens novels and didn`t do much at all until I had read them.This seems to be a Jane Austen year for me,apart from the books ,I recently visited the museum in Bath where she lived for a time and she was born a couple of miles away from my village.
porshiepoo
04-Dec-05, 00:58
Has anyone read an adult book about people that become fighters of some eel type creatures in their sleep? If they die in their dreams then they die for real? It was a great fiction book that I read many years ago only I can't remember the title or the author, and I'd love to read it again. Cheers!
porshiepoo
04-Dec-05, 01:09
No I think that was called 'Teenage Mutant ninja turtles'. Duh!!!!!!!
Finished Sharon Osbournes autobiography last week and really enjoyed it lots of laughs in it :) reading Jeffrey Deavers 12th card just now and its good also.
Anyone read any of the horsey books by Samantha Alexander?? :confused:
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