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Hey guys, I just picked up a collection of short stories by H. P. Lovecraft at a thrift store and I gobbled it all up. I need something similar after I finish his complete works. EDIT: Oh god I've never started a new page before I'm scared.
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Oct 31, 2009 06:50
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criptozoid posted:I don't want to sound snarky but... the gospels? Noooooottttt quite what I'm going for.
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Oct 31, 2009 07:53
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My girlfriend's native language isn't English. She wants to read more to improve her language skills, but finding books she enjoys has been a struggle (I don't read much fiction.) However, I told her some stories about the ridiculous romance novels available in America, bodice-ripping and so on, and she thinks they sound kind of hot, so I want to get her a few books on my next trip back. The more ridiculous (and graphic) the better. She reads at maybe a low high-school level, and paper books would be superior to e-books. Any recommendations?
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Oct 31, 2009 13:18
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I'm looking for a good book on Darwin. I'd love for one that characterizes the man as well as his research. Ideally, there would be a good amount of stories and anecdotes about his research. Not looking for a heady read, just an enjoyable one that I can learn more about the man and the study! Thanks!
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Oct 31, 2009 14:12
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TraderStav posted:I'm looking for a good book on Darwin. I'd love for one that characterizes the man as well as his research. Ideally, there would be a good amount of stories and anecdotes about his research. Not looking for a heady read, just an enjoyable one that I can learn more about the man and the study! Perhaps Darwin, His Daughter, and Human Evolution. The book focuses on how the pain caused by the death of his beloved daughter affected Darwin's intellectual development. It's written by a descendant of both Darwin and Keynes (the famous economist).
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Oct 31, 2009 15:06
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I use to enjoy reading allot, but for about the last year I've fallen out of the habit. This summer I actually picked up about 6 or so books but couldn't get through more than a chapter of any. So, what's a decently-written book that would keep me turning the pages? Da Vinci Code?
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Oct 31, 2009 18:34
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kinkster posted:So, what's a decently-written book that would keep me turning the pages? Da Vinci Code? Well, that may keep you turning the pages, but it is one of the worst-written books I have ever finished. Doesn't seem to matter: a lot of people like the story so much they can ignore the infelicities in the prose. Harlan Coben's thrillers are, in my opinion, much better. "Tell No One", "The Woods", "No Second Chance". Lee Child's Reacher shoot-em-ups are pretty good, and although they get close to 500 pages, they have enough thriller elements to keep the pace moving. Michael Connelly's Bosch books are very well written, and if you like police procedurals with thriller elements, the stand-alone "The Poet" is a good place to start.
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Oct 31, 2009 19:09
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I'm looking for a non-fiction book about organized crime. I would like the focus to be on the masterminds that are pulling the strings, and I want it to feel kind of personal.
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Nov 1, 2009 04:10
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I've read Cats Cradle and Slaughterhouse 5 by Vonnegut, and I absolutely loved them. What other works by him should I look into? Also, I want to start into Charles Bukowski. I've read a couple of his poems, along with his novel Pulp. Any suggestions?
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Nov 2, 2009 01:08
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Ghost Boner posted:I've read Cats Cradle and Slaughterhouse 5 by Vonnegut, and I absolutely loved them. What other works by him should I look into? I read Bukowski's Post Office. It was good if you like that style. It definitely puts you in a time and place. It kind of reminds me of Henry Miller in that respect.
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Nov 2, 2009 22:03
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Good Guy Chucky posted:Just finished The Farseer Trilogy and enojoyed it a lot. I thought all 6 books were great, and read The Tawny Man trilogy directly after the Farseer Trilogy. I then made my way through the Liveship Traders trilogy, which takes place in a different part of the same world and during the time in between the other two trilogies. In hindsight, I wish I had read the Liveship Traders trilogy before the Tawny Man - its by no means necessary but some things would've made more sense had I read them in chronological order, even though they don't include the same cast of characters.
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Nov 3, 2009 00:01
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Okay, christmas is coming up (I like to be ready in advance) and I want to get my dad a really good book. Lately he's been raving about Pillars of the Earth by Follet. He loves the medieval setting and the focus on the people, not the nobility. In the past he has also enjoyed Pompeii, The Da Vinci Code (yeah I know), and he likes humor as well. I thought of giving him some Pratchett but he hated Monty Python and didn't get into Adams at all, he just really doesn't get british humor so I don't think he'll like him. Other non-book stuff he enjoys... He loves anything french (he's quebecker), their humor (Le Diner de Cons, La Soupe au Choux), travel - especially in europe, hmm... Yeah anyways you get the picture. I am thinking of maybe giving him The Lies of Locke Lamora, since the magic elements are not too bad, but apart from that I have no idea. Help?
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Nov 3, 2009 23:22
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I'm also looking for a new book about organized crime or hired killers. Anything, fiction or non-fiction, that focuses on stuff like the Mafia or Yakuza, famous hitmen or assassins, drug syndicates, or anything along those lines. Liked: The Godfather by Mario Puzo Donnie Brasco by Joseph Pistone (nonfiction first-hand account of an undercover FBI agent's infiltration of the Mafia) Hit Man and its sequels by Lawrence Block (fictional collections of short stories about a wistful hitman and the contracts he takes) Jhereg and its sequels by Steven Brust (fantasy series about a witty assassin who works for a Mafia-like organization) The Way of Shadows and its sequels by Brent Weeks (fantasy series about a street urchin who apprentices with a legendary assassin) Disliked: The Godfather Returns and Revenge of the Godfather - weren't written by Mario Puzo so they didn't feel right Prizzi's Honor by Richard Condor - the first one was alright but the sequels were garbage edit: vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv thanks a ton, can't wait for my next library trip! The Ninth Layer fucked around with this message at 01:44 on Nov 4, 2009 |
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Nov 4, 2009 01:11
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The Ninth Layer posted:I'm also looking for a new book about organized crime or hired killers. Anything, fiction or non-fiction, that focuses on stuff like the Mafia or Yakuza, famous hitmen or assassins, drug syndicates, or anything along those lines. The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb is a pretty solid fantasy series about a prince's bastard son who becomes an assassin. I'd also suggest Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora if you like Brust's style. Puzo's The Last Don is pretty good. He also wrote Omerta but I didn't care for it much myself that I recall. As far as non-fiction: Wiseguy and Casino by Nicholas Pileggi are both good. I also recall that The Outfit by Gus Russo was a really good look at the Chicago mob's beginnings. Finally, Blow by Bruce Porter is good - it's a bio of George Jung who was a hugely successful drug smuggler during the 70s and 80s.
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Nov 4, 2009 01:41
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Ghost Boner posted:Also, I want to start into Charles Bukowski. I've read a couple of his poems, along with his novel Pulp. Any suggestions? I really liked Women and Ham on Rye, both were fun reads. But if you're just getting into Bukowski, try Run with the Hunted, a collection of fiction and poems that spans his career. It's what got me into him.
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Nov 4, 2009 04:40
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bad movie knight posted:I need some more literary horror, along the lines of David Searcy's Ordinary Horror or House of Leaves, preferably less than ten years old. Contrary to that statement, I also need a non-mythos starting point for H.P. Lovecraft, unless The Call of Cthulhu really is his best work. Necronomicon 880 pages of pure insanity.
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Nov 4, 2009 08:26
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Cosinetta posted:Okay, christmas is coming up (I like to be ready in advance) and I want to get my dad a really good book. Lately he's been raving about Pillars of the Earth by Follet. He loves the medieval setting and the focus on the people, not the nobility. Lion Feuchtwanger is also brilliant, though most of his novels are out of print in English. Jew Suss seems to be reasonably easy to find in used bookstores though and is good enough that I'd prefer to be given a worn old copy more than a new one of just about anything else in the field. It was so successful at the time the Nazis even bothered to make a propaganda film adaptation to combat it, where the main character is changed into a baby-eating monster. Also mentioning Marguerite Yourcenar's The Abyss, which I have on the shelf but haven't got round to reading. People seem to fawn over it and, again, it's not too far outside your range so you might want to look into it.
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Nov 4, 2009 10:02
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I really like historical biographies/autobiographies and eyewitness accounts of history either about or written by obnoxious liars, loudmouth windbags, failures, and other people whose lives are invariably more interesting than successful, kindly old dears. Anything that's simultaneously edifying and gossipy, preferably with an author whose bias is evident all over the place. Stuff I've read that's like this: Trelawny's Records of the Author, Shelley, and Byron and Confessions of a Younger Son, both of which were great and filled with exaggerations, lies, and boasting. Samuel Pepys diaries were similar fun for me. Lots of Roman bitches like Martial, and Juvenal and the famous satirists too. I rarely come across the kind of thing I like, and I find it difficult to describe, but I'm open to any suggestions. (No fantasy. And no Umberto Eco, please. Thanks!) Facial Fracture fucked around with this message at 20:24 on Nov 4, 2009 |
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Nov 4, 2009 20:14
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Facial Fracture posted:I really like historical biographies/autobiographies and eyewitness accounts of history either about or written by obnoxious liars, loudmouth windbags, failures, and other people whose lives are invariably more interesting than successful, kindly old dears. Anything that's simultaneously edifying and gossipy, preferably with an author whose bias is evident all over the place. This is a stretch, but David Lee Roth's autobio "Crazy From The Heat" was hilarious. It is essentially a sequence of unrelated anecdotes. He says in the introduction that readers should not take him entirely seriously, that he will sacrifice honesty for the sake of an interesting story every time.
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Nov 4, 2009 20:44
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Facial Fracture posted:I really like historical biographies/autobiographies and eyewitness accounts of history either about or written by obnoxious liars, loudmouth windbags, failures, and other people whose lives are invariably more interesting than successful, kindly old dears. Anything that's simultaneously edifying and gossipy, preferably with an author whose bias is evident all over the place. Suetonius' "Lives of the Twelve Caesars", for starters. Also Procopious' "Secret History", a hatchet job on emperor Justinian. Casanova wrote a notorious autobiography. Another famous one is that of soldier/painter/sculptor and self-aggrandizing egomaniac Benvenuto Cellini. Lorenzo Da Ponte also had an eventful -and improbable- life. He was born a Jew, then converted and became a catholic priest. His piety is somewhat suspect, since he hung out with Casanova and sired a number of children after being ordained. He wrote the librettos for many Mozart operas, eventually migrated to America and ended up his life as a professor of Italian Literature in Columbia College. James Boswell is famous for his biography of Samuel Johnson, but his London journal is also enjoyable and full of decidedly raunchy bits. Boswell was a depressive, insecure fellow with parental issues and, except for his biographical masterwork, he failed at pretty much everything he attempted in life. By the way, kind and decent men can have interesting lives. Look at Benjamin Franklin for example.
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Nov 4, 2009 21:17
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flistputt posted:This is a stretch, but David Lee Roth's autobio "Crazy From The Heat" was hilarious. It is essentially a sequence of unrelated anecdotes. He says in the introduction that readers should not take him entirely seriously, that he will sacrifice honesty for the sake of an interesting story every time. I've never been much of a Van Halen fan, but I'll keep that in mind for Christmastime reading. Thanks! criptozoid posted:Great suggestions I've read Lives of the Twelve Caesars and Boswell's bio of Johnson, but the other suggestions are wonderful and I'd probably never have come up with them on my own. I'll be ordering Cellini's Vita as soon as possible. No arguments, by the way, on the the interesting nature of the lives of decent men; I just enjoy reading about the tedious self-aggrandizers and useless bastards. Thanks so much!
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Nov 4, 2009 21:49
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apophenium posted:Hey guys, I just picked up a collection of short stories by H. P. Lovecraft at a thrift store and I gobbled it all up. I need something similar after I finish his complete works.
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Nov 5, 2009 12:54
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prinneh posted:How similar? I haven't read any of it, but there are people continuously writing within the Lovecraft-mythos. I can't remember the names of these spin-off authors, but I do know that they write short stories in a very similar vain. Personally though, I'd stick to Lovecraft. Maybe, just maybe, you should pick up the Maltese Falcon trilogy by Dashiell Hammett or anything by Raymond Chandler? Their gritty, dark detectives might just do the trick. The prose is very different, of course. Maltese Falcon trilogy?
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Nov 5, 2009 16:43
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Facial Fracture posted:I really like historical biographies/autobiographies and eyewitness accounts of history either about or written by obnoxious liars, loudmouth windbags, failures, and other people whose lives are invariably more interesting than successful, kindly old dears. Anything that's simultaneously edifying and gossipy, preferably with an author whose bias is evident all over the place. . .. . Similarly, I just finished re-reading Machiavelli's "The Prince" and I'd be really interested in a good, detailed, clear and intelligible history of Italy during that time period -- ideally, something like "The Agony and the Ecstasy," but covering the politics of the era rather than the life of Michaelangelo. And I second the preference for non-umberto-eco, at least not right now. His stuff's great but I'm looking for something more accessible and mass-market right now.
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Nov 6, 2009 20:11
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Renaissance Italy; no Umberto, please. I just took a look on amazon, and though I can't vouch for its quality without having read it, this looks like a good deal: http://www.amazon.com/Borgias-Their-Enemies-1431-1519/dp/0547247818/ref=pd_sim_b_1 The fact that you can purchase it as a "package" with the same author's book on the Medicis for under $25 looks like a decent bargain for a primer on the two scheming, all-powerful families. Also, both books seem like pretty straightforward, made-for-reading-not-for-research fare. If you're looking for something more focused, something that's less of a big, sloppy overview, these both look interesting (and would probably supply some of the same information as the above books, albeit in a more specific context): http://www.amazon.com/Fire-City-Savonarola-Struggle-Renaissance/dp/0195327101/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b http://www.amazon.com/Cardinals-Hat-Ambition-Everyday-Borgia/dp/1585676802/ref=pd_sim_b_24 The subheading of the second book-- Money, Ambition, and Everyday Life in the Court of a Borgia Prince--looks like it might hold some interest for someone who has just finished The Prince. Hope these are of some use to you!
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Nov 6, 2009 21:58
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I love the hell out of all of Christoper Moore's books. What other authors are similarly hilarious?
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Nov 6, 2009 22:10
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I've been reading Paradise Lost, and while the annotations in my edition are certainly making sense of things, I think it's finally time I cracked open the Bible. I'm told it's been quite influential.  Now, I understand there are special "study" editions of the Bible geared towards scholars -- ones with annotations, attached essays, etc. I'd like to get one of these, something that's fairly non-denominational in its analysis. I guess I'm looking to read the Bible for the questions it posits, not the answers it provides. Any recommendations, or are we all still reading The God Delusion? 
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Nov 8, 2009 00:34
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thegloaming posted:I've been reading Paradise Lost, and while the annotations in my edition are certainly making sense of things, I think it's finally time I cracked open the Bible. I'm told it's been quite influential. It's not a book but I usually just use https://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com for any bible reading or quoting needs. A good book on scholarly study of the bible is this. It's Hebrew Bible/Old Testament only though.
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Nov 8, 2009 00:48
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thegloaming posted:I've been reading Paradise Lost, and while the annotations in my edition are certainly making sense of things, I think it's finally time I cracked open the Bible. I'm told it's been quite influential. Someone started a thread with a similar question a few days ago, so check that out if you haven't already. The consensus choice seems to be the The New Oxford Annotated Bible http://www.amazon.com/Annotated-Revised-Standard-Apocrypha-Hardcover/dp/019528478X
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Nov 8, 2009 02:03
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Facial Fracture posted:Someone started a thread with a similar question a few days ago, so check that out if you haven't already. The consensus choice seems to be the The New Oxford Annotated Bible http://www.amazon.com/Annotated-Revised-Standard-Apocrypha-Hardcover/dp/019528478X Wow, I totally missed that thread. Thanks for telling me about it, and the quick and dirty rec!
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Nov 8, 2009 04:07
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Hello, I would like to read books about serial killing and home invasion, preferably from the POV of the serial killer or home invader, that are not part of the Dexter series. Also, I would like to read a post-cyberpunk book that is like Little Brother by Cory Doctorow but not as bad.
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Nov 10, 2009 06:25
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Dr. Pwn posted:Hello, I would like to read books about serial killing and home invasion, preferably from the POV of the serial killer or home invader Jack Vance's Bad Ronald, only he doesn't invade the house, he hides there in a secret room until people move in. (Link points to Lulu because the original edition is hard to find and extremely pricey.)
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Nov 10, 2009 08:28
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Where would be a good place to start for a beginner to the works of H.P. Lovecraft? Preferably something fairly easily available?
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Nov 10, 2009 09:00
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Dr. Pwn posted:Hello, I would like to read books about serial killing and home invasion, preferably from the POV of the serial killer or home invader, that are not part of the Dexter series. Red Dragon was less bad than Hannibal and Hannibal Rising. I don't think that any of Harris's book were particularly transcendent, but they're usually easy and cheap to find.
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Nov 10, 2009 14:11
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Dr. Pwn posted:Hello, I would like to read books about serial killing and home invasion, preferably from the POV of the serial killer or home invader, that are not part of the Dexter series. Killer on the Road, by James Ellroy. Prepare for some serious head-fuckery. It's the fictional memoir of a serial killer, and it's absolutely ghastly. In a good way.
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Nov 10, 2009 16:39
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Could someone recommend some non-fiction prison novels? Preferably biographies of inmates or anything that just goes over day to day life in prison.
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Nov 12, 2009 20:00
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paolucciasiasi posted:Could someone recommend some non-fiction prison novels? Preferably biographies of inmates or anything that just goes over day to day life in prison. Erving Goffman's Asylums (which I recently finished) has a lot about the kind of organization that an inmate's life is subject to, and the ways in which they adapt to this kind of life. It's not exclusively about prisons; it's got stuff about prisons although it's primarily about closed wards in psychiatric hospitals. Then again, reading about it makes it seem like there's not THAT much difference between the two. Just give it a look and see if it's the kind of thing you'd be interested in. v  v
Psychosomatic Tumor fucked around with this message at 22:14 on Nov 12, 2009 |
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Nov 12, 2009 22:11
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Could someone recommend good reality twisting type stuff? Could be scifi or mental illness stories, whatever. I love Murakami and Philip K Dick.
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Nov 13, 2009 20:40
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Ayato posted:Could someone recommend good reality twisting type stuff? Could be scifi or mental illness stories, whatever. I love Murakami and Philip K Dick. Jorge Borges and J.G. Ballard are authors you should really look into (if you haven't already) if you enjoy PK Dick. Also amazon just put Ballard's complete short stories on sale for about 20 bucks if your interested (http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Stories-J-G-Ballard/dp/0393072622/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258148728&sr=1-1)
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Nov 13, 2009 22:48
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Can anyone help me with a book about Java (the island) or Jakarta (the city)? My girlfriend is from there orginally and I really want to get her something nice in time for Christmas. Every search I do returns a few really dry research style texts, some tourist guides and thousands of books about the bloody programming language. I would really like something with lots of pictures, and subject is not nearly as important as location. Natural history, city life, architecture, food; something that gave an overall view of Indonesian life would be amazing. Can anyone recommend anything?
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Nov 13, 2009 23:50
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