What is everyone doing to expand their minds this weekend?
53 thoughts on “Open Thread: Weekend Reading Edition”
I might try to re-read The Stranger by Camus. I’ve already read it twice, but it didn’t “take” each time, so maybe the 3rd time’s a charm.
(I’m obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed. Still, I really liked The Plague and The Fall, but I just have a hard time understanding The Stranger.)Report
I haven’t read The Stranger in years and I had similar difficulties, though this is largely due to the fact that I was in college and used my time to, ahem, not study.Report
The new Neal Stephenson novel, Reamde, just showed up this week.Report
The cover art writes the letters in different colors, so it’s a bit easier to puzzle out.
It’s the equivalent of typing it as “REAmDe”.Report
I’ll finish Ryan Avent’s ebook tonight which will fit well into a longer piece I’m working on. A big trial got continued, so I’m also looking forward to continuing to read Hadley Arkes’ First Things (which I can’t believe I didn’t discover until recently).Report
Yes, I’m reading Avent’s piece as well, though I’ve been dealing with sick babies too so not much reading. Too bloody tired.
I will be watching my shows also: Parks and Rec, The Office, and Modern Family on Hulu.Report
I downloaded Ryan’s Kindle single but haven’t looked at it yet. Any good?Report
Yes, it’s good so far though I’m not very far in.Report
Looking forward to it.
You know, truthfully, I think if I were to stop buying books and reading material right now I’d be well stocked and well satisfied for a year with what I have. Sigh.Report
Walter Jon Williams’s “Hardwired”, which is on my perennial re-read list.Report
One of my favorite authors. The Drake Maijstral books never get old.Report
You’ve got the e-books, right?
(Speaking of which, I really want him to get “Metropolitan” and “City On Fire” out as ebooks, because those are so good and I want to be able to tell people to buy them!)Report
Actually, I’ve got an old SFBC hardback that collects all three of them.
By the way, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that “Miss Aiah” is a homonym for “messiah”.Report
I never thought about that.
I kind of hope it wasn’t intentional, because it’s…well, it’s kind of cheesy. “A bit too on-the-nose”, was the phrasing I heard to describe something like that.Report
Oh, hoorah!!! Someone else who likes those. It depresses me mightily that there are only the three.Report
Great book, but Voice of the Whirlwind is my favorite of his.Report
I did like how it applied the future technology to the murder-mystery bit, although “Who Censored Roger Rabbit” had kind of already done the same thing (I don’t think they were related at all, it was just that two people had the same idea)Report
I should note, along with The Gated City I’m reading the White Luck Warrior by R Scott Bakker and Conscience of an Anarchist by Gary Chartier.Report
Just finished re-reading As I Lay Dying; ready for some light reading now, probably Pratchett.Report
Still trying to finish A Feast for Crows. My wife has only the epilogue to go in A Dance with Dragons, so she’ll undoubtedly be pestering me to read, read, read so we can discuss the tragedies and possibilities.
When I’m done with this series, I want to check out that Prince of Nothing trilogy you mentioned.
P.S. Sorry to hear about the babies being sick. Ours has been teething, hardly napping, and waking up repeatedly in the night hours. My coffee intake has doubled in the past month.Report
Ah, good to hear you’re catching up! I hope Daniel is reading this thread.
Also, the baby is doing better now. My sleep has suffered but not much else. Well, my brain has suffered too, but what else is new?Report
I am reading this thread! And as it happens, I too am making my way through A Feast right now —and enjoying it way more than I did the first time. I’m also planning on writing a post on it soon.
But this weekend, besides George R. R. Martin, I plan on finally reading a short story by Haruki Murakami.Report
I’m wrapping up Anatomy of an Epidemic by Robert Whitaker right now and it is excellent.Report
I just started Geek Love, not far enough in to make a judgment yet.Report
The Wife and I are headed on a road trip tomorrow. I will be listening to oodles and oodles of Dance With Dragons on the road.Report
I’m doing that thing I do, and am in the middle of several books at once, and all of them outstanding:
The Night Circus (light and very, very fun),
In The Beauty of the Lilies, by Updike (somewhere between light and not; beautiful),
Paul Berliner’s Thinking In Jazz (not remotely light; I can only reopen it when everyone has gone to bed), and
Oaxaca With Gusto. (This last is by recipe book person Dianne Kennedy, and is less a recipe book that a history and cultural analysis of the food of Oaxaca, Mexico. If you read this book, you will start cooking if you don’t already. Astounding level of scholarship.)
I think there is something wrong with me that I can almost never read one book at a time.Report
Hey! Speaking of what books we’re reading, am I remembering correctly that we were going to be doing some kind of linking to Amazon or some such thing when discussing a book or song or movie? Did that eve happen? Should I be doing something when I mention books?Report
I am going to a music concert where they will be playing this “rock” and “roll” music. Probably much too loudly.
What am I reading? A few things, as I’m wont to do: Gary Rivlin’s “Fire on the Prairie,” a political biography of the great Harold Washington; “Mothers United: An Immigrant Struggle for Socially Just Education”; and Linda Darling-Hammond’s newest book, “The Flat World and Education.” I’m finding all three thoroughly enjoyable.Report
I’m still finishing up my summer reading so I have two more indulgent spy novels from Daniel Silva to knock out.
As for expanding my mind, I will be entering the woods of my beloved Kentucky tomorrow morning and trying to bring home a few squirrels for the freezer. The air will be a crisp 48 degrees, the leaves are starting to change and I expect to have a big smile on my face when I come home.
Just finished Trollope’s “Barchester Towers” (fun, light read).
Next up is Frederick Douglas’ autobiography.
And I’m reading “My Man Jeeves” to my wife at occasional bedtimes.Report
I’m about 120 pages into Storm of Swords by GRRM. I’m getting a little bit of the “circling pattern” vibe that made me stop reading Robert Jordan but GRRM doesn’t have as bloated a writing style.
Also been checking out the DC Comics reboot (the “New 52”). They’ve got some great stuff going on, particularly Animal Man which I had assumed was lame because of the name but was thoughtful and creepy.Report
I think the first three books were good and that it was meant to be a trilogy. Nothing happened in the fourth book, just everything …maintained in position. So I thought of it as a circling pattern – everything’s in the air, but nothing is really happening. He strung it out until he died because it was profitable.Report
Actually, I have no idea why he strung it out, but the immense popularity and sales of the Wheel of Time had to factor in somehow.Report
’m getting a little bit of the “circling pattern” vibe that made me stop reading Robert Jordan
I’m working my way through Dance. Still pretty early on. How much of a conclusion does the ending have?Report
Keep reading Storm of Swords in particular.
Overall, I think the first three books do an amazing job of telling a story that’s broad and complex, without losing track of the overall narrative. Feast and Dance, not so much.Report
Yeah, I have already put down Feast, assuming I may return after burnout.Report
When I find the time, I want to do some analysis and try to quantify this (e.g. Game of Thrones has 9 narrators, including the one-off in the prologue, and only a few distinct threads: intrigue in King’s Landing, Jon at the Wall, the start of the wars, and Dany ; Dance has 18 narrators and more threads than I could currently name). Hopefully, the result will be of general enough interest to publish here.Report
Before embarking on your analysis, be sure to check this out if you haven’t already seen it.Report
Currently sifting my way through a bunch of Anton Chekhov short stories. I’ve especially liked Ward No. 6 and the Black Monk thus far. And the Student. So much packed into such a small space. He does an incredible job of just setting up a situation and letting it play out; very little moralizing.
Next up I have War of the End of the World by Mario Vargas Llosa. Never read anything by him, but his contemporary Marquez is one of my favorites.Report
1. Read Slanted and Enchanted: The Origin of Indie Culture by Kaya Oakes. I was suspicious of this book and worried that it would be merely self-congratulatory, but early on there is an interesting idea: indie culture is about work–hard work. She develops this idea talking about the Minutemen, a hard-working (of course) punk band from the early 80s.
2. Go to art galleries and the Menil museum. That’s my Saturday afternoon outing.
3. Call artists for an exhibit I am putting together. I have seven on my list to contact. Hopefully this will lead to a few studio visits this weekend as well.
4. Write a little in my blog (which is largely about my local art scene)
The art stuff sounds like a full time job, but it’s really my hobby. A hobby that is very import to me, but a hobby nonetheless. My career involves sourcing oil-field services and project financing.Report
I’m finally making my way through the mistborn series. I just finished Karen Chance’s latest in her Cass Palmer seriesReport
I started reading Game of Thrones back in early August. I’m now up to Feast for Crows now. I’m kind of disappointed with the way Feast for Crows had to be edited but I can understand. Favorite POV so far in Feast…, at Brienne’s chapter where she arrives at the Inn where Gendry is blacksmithing, would be Samwell and least favorite would be Brienne.Report
Not reading much lately but I was laughing at Michael Moore’s statement that patriotic Americans will be happy to wait to get healthcare. Almost sounds like Joe Biden telling us that paying more taxes is patriotic. Who do they think will believe their BS?
Sound mind in a sound body.
Up about a thousand feet, fifteen miles hiking and plenty of fording. Spectacular day, the leaves just starting to turn.
Nearly felt like I was in West Virginia.Report
I might try to re-read The Stranger by Camus. I’ve already read it twice, but it didn’t “take” each time, so maybe the 3rd time’s a charm.
(I’m obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed. Still, I really liked The Plague and The Fall, but I just have a hard time understanding The Stranger.)Report
I haven’t read The Stranger in years and I had similar difficulties, though this is largely due to the fact that I was in college and used my time to, ahem, not study.Report
The new Neal Stephenson novel, Reamde, just showed up this week.Report
How is that pronounced?Report
“REEM-dee” (it’s a play on “readme”)Report
The cover art writes the letters in different colors, so it’s a bit easier to puzzle out.
It’s the equivalent of typing it as “REAmDe”.Report
I’ll finish Ryan Avent’s ebook tonight which will fit well into a longer piece I’m working on. A big trial got continued, so I’m also looking forward to continuing to read Hadley Arkes’ First Things (which I can’t believe I didn’t discover until recently).Report
Yes, I’m reading Avent’s piece as well, though I’ve been dealing with sick babies too so not much reading. Too bloody tired.
I will be watching my shows also: Parks and Rec, The Office, and Modern Family on Hulu.Report
I downloaded Ryan’s Kindle single but haven’t looked at it yet. Any good?Report
Yes, it’s good so far though I’m not very far in.Report
Looking forward to it.
You know, truthfully, I think if I were to stop buying books and reading material right now I’d be well stocked and well satisfied for a year with what I have. Sigh.Report
Catching up on my DMZ.
In other news, how about that weather?
http://i.imgur.com/E1YOJ.jpgReport
Walter Jon Williams’s “Hardwired”, which is on my perennial re-read list.Report
One of my favorite authors. The Drake Maijstral books never get old.Report
You’ve got the e-books, right?
(Speaking of which, I really want him to get “Metropolitan” and “City On Fire” out as ebooks, because those are so good and I want to be able to tell people to buy them!)Report
Actually, I’ve got an old SFBC hardback that collects all three of them.
About the plasm books, WJW says
Metropolitan and City on Fire will be made available as soon as I clear the rights. Please stay tuned.
By the way, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that “Miss Aiah” is a homonym for “messiah”.Report
I never thought about that.
I kind of hope it wasn’t intentional, because it’s…well, it’s kind of cheesy. “A bit too on-the-nose”, was the phrasing I heard to describe something like that.Report
Oh, hoorah!!! Someone else who likes those. It depresses me mightily that there are only the three.Report
Great book, but Voice of the Whirlwind is my favorite of his.Report
I did like how it applied the future technology to the murder-mystery bit, although “Who Censored Roger Rabbit” had kind of already done the same thing (I don’t think they were related at all, it was just that two people had the same idea)Report
I should note, along with The Gated City I’m reading the White Luck Warrior by R Scott Bakker and Conscience of an Anarchist by Gary Chartier.Report
Just finished re-reading As I Lay Dying; ready for some light reading now, probably Pratchett.Report
New book in two weeks!Report
Still trying to finish A Feast for Crows. My wife has only the epilogue to go in A Dance with Dragons, so she’ll undoubtedly be pestering me to read, read, read so we can discuss the tragedies and possibilities.
When I’m done with this series, I want to check out that Prince of Nothing trilogy you mentioned.
P.S. Sorry to hear about the babies being sick. Ours has been teething, hardly napping, and waking up repeatedly in the night hours. My coffee intake has doubled in the past month.Report
Ah, good to hear you’re catching up! I hope Daniel is reading this thread.
Also, the baby is doing better now. My sleep has suffered but not much else. Well, my brain has suffered too, but what else is new?Report
I am reading this thread! And as it happens, I too am making my way through A Feast right now —and enjoying it way more than I did the first time. I’m also planning on writing a post on it soon.
But this weekend, besides George R. R. Martin, I plan on finally reading a short story by Haruki Murakami.Report
I’m wrapping up Anatomy of an Epidemic by Robert Whitaker right now and it is excellent.Report
I just started Geek Love, not far enough in to make a judgment yet.Report
The Wife and I are headed on a road trip tomorrow. I will be listening to oodles and oodles of Dance With Dragons on the road.Report
I’m doing that thing I do, and am in the middle of several books at once, and all of them outstanding:
The Night Circus (light and very, very fun),
In The Beauty of the Lilies, by Updike (somewhere between light and not; beautiful),
Paul Berliner’s Thinking In Jazz (not remotely light; I can only reopen it when everyone has gone to bed), and
Oaxaca With Gusto. (This last is by recipe book person Dianne Kennedy, and is less a recipe book that a history and cultural analysis of the food of Oaxaca, Mexico. If you read this book, you will start cooking if you don’t already. Astounding level of scholarship.)
I think there is something wrong with me that I can almost never read one book at a time.Report
Hey! Speaking of what books we’re reading, am I remembering correctly that we were going to be doing some kind of linking to Amazon or some such thing when discussing a book or song or movie? Did that eve happen? Should I be doing something when I mention books?Report
I am going to a music concert where they will be playing this “rock” and “roll” music. Probably much too loudly.
Low is playing downtown at Armstrong Hall.Report
First off, awesome picture.
What am I reading? A few things, as I’m wont to do: Gary Rivlin’s “Fire on the Prairie,” a political biography of the great Harold Washington; “Mothers United: An Immigrant Struggle for Socially Just Education”; and Linda Darling-Hammond’s newest book, “The Flat World and Education.” I’m finding all three thoroughly enjoyable.Report
I’m still finishing up my summer reading so I have two more indulgent spy novels from Daniel Silva to knock out.
As for expanding my mind, I will be entering the woods of my beloved Kentucky tomorrow morning and trying to bring home a few squirrels for the freezer. The air will be a crisp 48 degrees, the leaves are starting to change and I expect to have a big smile on my face when I come home.
And tomorrow night? UFC baby!Report
Just finished Trollope’s “Barchester Towers” (fun, light read).
Next up is Frederick Douglas’ autobiography.
And I’m reading “My Man Jeeves” to my wife at occasional bedtimes.Report
I’m about 120 pages into Storm of Swords by GRRM. I’m getting a little bit of the “circling pattern” vibe that made me stop reading Robert Jordan but GRRM doesn’t have as bloated a writing style.
Also been checking out the DC Comics reboot (the “New 52”). They’ve got some great stuff going on, particularly Animal Man which I had assumed was lame because of the name but was thoughtful and creepy.Report
What do you mean by “circling pattern”?Report
I think the first three books were good and that it was meant to be a trilogy. Nothing happened in the fourth book, just everything …maintained in position. So I thought of it as a circling pattern – everything’s in the air, but nothing is really happening. He strung it out until he died because it was profitable.Report
Actually, I have no idea why he strung it out, but the immense popularity and sales of the Wheel of Time had to factor in somehow.Report
’m getting a little bit of the “circling pattern” vibe that made me stop reading Robert Jordan
Not to spoil things, but keep reading.Report
Keep reading Martin or Jordan?
I’m working my way through Dance. Still pretty early on. How much of a conclusion does the ending have?Report
Keep reading Storm of Swords in particular.
Overall, I think the first three books do an amazing job of telling a story that’s broad and complex, without losing track of the overall narrative. Feast and Dance, not so much.Report
Rats.Report
Yeah, I have already put down Feast, assuming I may return after burnout.Report
When I find the time, I want to do some analysis and try to quantify this (e.g. Game of Thrones has 9 narrators, including the one-off in the prologue, and only a few distinct threads: intrigue in King’s Landing, Jon at the Wall, the start of the wars, and Dany ; Dance has 18 narrators and more threads than I could currently name). Hopefully, the result will be of general enough interest to publish here.Report
Before embarking on your analysis, be sure to check this out if you haven’t already seen it.Report
Currently sifting my way through a bunch of Anton Chekhov short stories. I’ve especially liked Ward No. 6 and the Black Monk thus far. And the Student. So much packed into such a small space. He does an incredible job of just setting up a situation and letting it play out; very little moralizing.
Next up I have War of the End of the World by Mario Vargas Llosa. Never read anything by him, but his contemporary Marquez is one of my favorites.Report
1. Read Slanted and Enchanted: The Origin of Indie Culture by Kaya Oakes. I was suspicious of this book and worried that it would be merely self-congratulatory, but early on there is an interesting idea: indie culture is about work–hard work. She develops this idea talking about the Minutemen, a hard-working (of course) punk band from the early 80s.
2. Go to art galleries and the Menil museum. That’s my Saturday afternoon outing.
3. Call artists for an exhibit I am putting together. I have seven on my list to contact. Hopefully this will lead to a few studio visits this weekend as well.
4. Write a little in my blog (which is largely about my local art scene)
The art stuff sounds like a full time job, but it’s really my hobby. A hobby that is very import to me, but a hobby nonetheless. My career involves sourcing oil-field services and project financing.Report
I’m finally making my way through the mistborn series. I just finished Karen Chance’s latest in her Cass Palmer seriesReport
I started reading Game of Thrones back in early August. I’m now up to Feast for Crows now. I’m kind of disappointed with the way Feast for Crows had to be edited but I can understand. Favorite POV so far in Feast…, at Brienne’s chapter where she arrives at the Inn where Gendry is blacksmithing, would be Samwell and least favorite would be Brienne.Report
Not reading much lately but I was laughing at Michael Moore’s statement that patriotic Americans will be happy to wait to get healthcare. Almost sounds like Joe Biden telling us that paying more taxes is patriotic. Who do they think will believe their BS?
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/09/24/michael_moore_patriotic_americans_will_wait_longer_for_healthcare.htmlReport
I am so close and yet so far to the end of Within a Budding Grove, after which I plan to take a break from Proust.
After that, I’m planning to read Something Wicked This Way Comes, then Neverwhere. Then probably The Pale King.
And then maybe back to Proust.Report
Sound mind in a sound body.
Up about a thousand feet, fifteen miles hiking and plenty of fording. Spectacular day, the leaves just starting to turn.
Nearly felt like I was in West Virginia.Report