Try some Jack London. He wrote "Call of the Wild", which in my opinion is not his best work. I'm currently rereading "The Sea-Wolf". "Call of the Wild" and "Sea-Wolf" are two of a number of stories included in the book entitled "Tales of the North". These are sea and wilderness stories set in the 19th century. I've owned this book for about thirty years and pull it out every now and then to be thoroughly entertained. A good collection of Sherlock Holmes stories is also nice to have around.
That's definitely something worth having. I picked up a nice hardcover set on the cheap a couple years ago.
During my vacation I finished Dale Brown's Dreamland: Satan's Tail. Great military fiction and Dean Koontz's Odd Thomas. Now I am reading Storm Front by Jim Butcher. It is the introduction to the character Harry Dresden, Wizard.
I just got my greedy hands on the entire Dune-series.. For just around $20.. And also I managed to get a copy of "Band of Brothers".. Gonna be cool to find out if its as good or better than the tv-series..
I'm on a Larry Niven kick lately. If you enjoy s.f. then you should check him out. Right now I'm reading Footfall which is an alien-invasion novel written by Niven and Jerry Pournelle. It was written in 1985 and contains lots of dated pop culture references, but it's still quite good.
I don't read "books". I find that simply reading others minds is just as informative and with much more color commentary which ups the entertainment factor. Honestly, I think I'm about to start The Da Vinci Code.
I wasn't very impressed with it either. Had it not had a sensationalist plot line, I don't think it would have done as well as it did. Nothing like some good controversy to sell a book, when the writing is weak.
I was reading Simon Schama's 3-part History of Britain, and really enjoyed it. However, I gave up early on with the 3rd volume - when British history was then explained through the eyes of various writers and poets, it lost my interest. I thought it would be one small part, but after reading so much about Wordsworth and Rousseau, I gave up. Surely the French Revolution had a bigger impact on Britain than just what it did to various ex-patriot writers living in France.
true. I would not have a single problem with the book if it weren't for the blurb before the first page that intentionally blurs the line between fact and fiction. it's pulp fiction, which I normally love. I think that's what really got me- having the genre I love so much used in such an outright nasty manner. I mean, ia ia cthulhu fhtagn. I really do love pulp fiction.
Good score on Dune - it is excellent. I really like Band of Brothers - whether you will find it better than the series is a different matter. Different feel. The series was meant to be entertaining. The book is a history book - it reads great for a history book, but is more details oriented than a TV series. Both are excellent.
Well, I've had yet to read the books or watch the movies related to this story, so I thought I'd join the majority of Americans who've seen or read one of them. Not that I'm one for mainstream... But I'll give it a shot. (loads .357 mag)
eh. don't let my issues with the book spoil your reading enjoyment. trimmed of all the cultural baggage it's an entertaining adventure novel.
I just finished For Whom the Bell Tolls. That was a long read, but it was a good book and worth the time. I was thinking about reading Farewell to Arms next, but I don't know if I can take another Hemingway back to back... I think I need a good comedy after that one.
Till We Have Faces C S Lewis Two Years Before The Mast R H Dana Both of these I am rereading for the umpteenth time. I find myself rereading more and more as I get older. In part, I suppose, it has to do with valuing comfort over stimulation. Rumpole, James Herriot, the many and varied characters of the Deptford Trilogy - all are old, valued friends and part of me would simply rather settle down in their reliably congenial company than read anything new and untried. Over the last couple of years I have made some new friends, most significantly in the writings of Jane Urquhart and Annie Proulx. My favourites from these two writers are The Stone Carvers (Urquhart) and Bad Dirt (Proulx) but anything either has written is likely to be worthwhile. Another recent discovery is the New Zealand novelist C K Stead. His novels A Brief History of Modernism and Talking About O'Dwyer are excellent works in the realistic vein. goshawk
Just so y'all know, I'm reading Dune now. I hope you're happy with yourselves. As I flipped through the book and found the glossary at the end, I found myself thinking about Watership Down. What is it with me and books that are so complicated they need their own dictionary? At any rate, I'm still settling in on Arrakis and I'm enjoying every dry-mouthed minute of it.
That one is the best of the series. Don't worry, you'll pick up on the terminology pretty quickly. One thing to keep in mind, though - Herbert tended to gloss over the action scenes - lots of times he didn't even describe them, rather the events immediately preceding them, and then the aftermath. Although it has the feel of sci-fi action, it isn't really. That is why the prequels and "conclusion" that his son and Kevin Anderson wrote feel so out of character with the original series. Frank was more into the ideas of it all. I wouldn't be surprised if "God Emperor of Dune" was his favorite, as it, more than the others, seems to just slow down and "talk" through everything. The whole grand picture of the series, though, is quite impressive. In a way, the last two books written by his son are disappointing, trying to put a tidy finish on the whole thing. It seems incongruous with the flow of the story, and the general theme - which I won't spoil, in case you enjoy the first book and decide to continue.
