littlek wrote:I found a new-ish Niven book to read. The Draco Tavern features a multi-species tavern for interstellar travelers and xenobiologists. It's set in the near future which is a tough era to write for. It's fun. I'd missed Niven.
I too loved Larry Niven's stuff, particular the Tales of Known Space stuff (I don't think the Draco Tavern stories were a part of it - but they were really good too). Is it all reprints of previous stories or is there some new stuff?
Aldistar wrote:hingehead wrote:
Don't go past the third....
Really? Do they get that bad?
I thought so. I tried to read Plains Of Passage twice and failed, very rare for me (although I think Samuel R. Delaney's Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand whipped me too). Anyone else agree or disagree?
The only book I read on holidays was Audrey Niffenegger's (sp?) 'The Time Traveller's Wife'
I really liked it but on reflection it was just a modern romance wrapped around a science fiction/fantasy premise. Nicely written and constructed it was almost like an advanced exercise in narrative sequencing. That isn't meant to denigrate it by any means, it was a thoroughly enjoyable read.
I read through Plains of Passage and have stopped there, mostly because that is the last of the series that I own. It was not as good as the first few but it was alright. I will probably give the rest of the series a shot when I get around to buying them.
I just finished the complete Chronicles of Narnia. I had never read it before and found it to be cute.
Currently, I have started Homer's Odyssey.
Started a new book last night (well 3am - body clock still screwed from the journey back from Rome):
Q & A: A Novel by Vikas Swarup
So far so good.
Recently finished "The Girls" by Lori Lansens. The concept for the story was interesting -- a (fictional) autobiography of conjoined twins written in alternating chapters from their quite different points of view. It is set in southwestern Ontario where I grew up and everything resonated with me -- the landscape, the people, the buildings. I really enjoyed it.
just read
Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer. it's part Mormon history, with emphasis on Mormon "Fundamentalists", ie. polygamists, and the rest is about the Lafferty brothers, who killed their youngest sibling's wife & baby girl in accord with a revelation received by the oldest brother. It's not a must-read, but worthwhile for anyone curious about the history of one of the world's fastest growing religions.
here's one fascinating excerpt; i presume quoting parts of 2 paragraphs won't violate copyright: (*Bountiful* is in British Columbia, and *Short Creek* is Colorado City, AZ)
Quote:Tracing a mazelike series of lines with her index finger, Debbie attempts to demystify an incredibly complicated schematic diagram...Upon closer examination, the diagram turns out to be her family tree.
When Debbie was fourteen, she felt "impressed by the Lord" to marry Ray Blackmore, the community leader. Debbie asked her father to share her divine impression with Prophet LeRoy Johnson, who would periodically travel to Bountiful from Short Creek to perform various religious duties. Because Debbie was lithe and beautiful, Uncle Roy approved of the match. A year later, the prophet returned to Canada and married her to the ailing fifty-seven-year-old Blackmore...because he happened to be the father of Debbie's own stepmother, Mem, she unwittingly became a stepmother to her stepmother, and thus a stepgrandmother to herself.
I'm re-reading this
for probably the 10th or 12th time
hamburger first brought one of her books home from the library when I was around 10 or 11 - I still love them
I've got a bunch of books going, but the highlight at the immediate moment is Danube by Claudio Magris (translated from the italian by Patrick Creagh).
Love it so far. To quote the back cover, "In this fascinating journey Claudio Magris, whose knowledge is encyclopaedic and whose curiosity is limitless, guides his reader from the river's source in the Bavarian hills through Austro-Hungary and the Balkans to the Black Sea. Along the way he raises the ghosts that inhabit the houses and monuments - from Ovid and Marcus Aurelius to Kafka and Canetti - and in so doing sets his finger on the pulse of Central Europe, the vital crucible of a culture that draws on influences of East and West, of Christendom and Islam." That quote is probably by Edward Steen, whose words are bolded just above - "Neither a travel book, not vast prose poem, nor a history, nor philosophy, nor voyage of discovery, but often all at once".
I'm reading 'A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail '. This is a 1998 book by Bill Bryson. Very good and a humorous book which revolves around the history (and a bit about ecology, sociology) of the Appalachian trail, wherein the author walks the trail with his college chum. It reads far better than my meager description of it.
BTW, I read recently where the movie version of this book is still stalled but what is firm is that Robert Redford has committed to produce and play the lead role of Bryson. Some of the other important details are up in the air as the '07-'08 Writer's Strike put the kybosh on the existing plans at the time. Barry Levinson (Rain Man) is in talks to direct the movie.
Sadly, Paul Newman had dropped out as possible lead as he retired from acting in '07 and just recently announced he has throat cancer for the last 18 months.
I'm nearing the end of Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin.
Mortenson became devoted to building schools in Pakistan when, while descending from K2, he accidentally followed the wrong trail, winding up in a small village called Korphe.His inspiration came upon seeing the poverty and illiteracy as well as the kindness and willingness of the villagers to help provide their children with the chance at an education.
His only requirement for the schools was that they were open to female students as well as male. Most villagers were happy to help their daughters become educated, even in the face of increasing danger from the Taliban.
The book is one of the most inspiring I've ever read, because of his totally selfless dedication, his respect for the various traditions of the Muslim sects found in each tribe.
There is a part that is both terrifying and funny as he is interogated by the US military, interested in Mortenson's possible knowledge of where bin Laden was hiding.
This book should be required reading for anyone, especially for those interested in working in that part of the world, and especially for anyone working for the State Department. Even more important, it should be required reading for the US military.
I'm in line for Three Cups of Tea...
Ragman, that was the only Bryson book I've really enjoyed..
his takedown of Iowa in another book, name of which I now forget, and read after the Appalachian Trail book, defused my interest in him as a writer. I say this as a person who has read literally hundreds of travel 'memoirs'.
Osso: thanks for replying. I agree. Looking forward to the movie with Redford.
I found some of the Amelia Peabody books by Elizabeth Peters at MY Goodwill.
I'm enjoying them and will look for more.
http://www.ameliapeabody.com/bookshelf.htm
is my night-time reading right now.
I just found a stack of classic old Larry Niven books. Even if I have read them before, it'll be fun to do so again.
Have you read Singularity Sky, by Charles Stross? A very nice sci-fi treatment of Knowledge Singularities.
I just finished "A Girl Named Zippy" by Haven Kimmel. It was my own selection for my book club, and I was a little nervous about it. Everyone had expressed a preference for something light and fun to read -- one member just had surgery and wanted something diverting to read while she recovered, etc.
I really liked it! Great voice and really good storytelling. Reminded me a bit of David Sedaris. You're tempted to say it's cuter and more innocent than him, but there is actually a lot of darkness too, which I think rounds it out and keeps it from being too frou-frou.
Best American Short Stories 2007, guest selector Stephen King.
Short stories seem to be getting longer....
A biographie of Käthe Kollwitz
