What book(s) are you reading currently?

[spitalhouse]

I have four books on the go at the moment:

History Of Western Philosophy by Bertrand Russell; Das Kaptal by Karl Marx; Crime And Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky and Mr Tickle by Roger Hargreaves.

Regards.

[Satiros]

I'm currently re-reading James Blish's Cities In Flight series. It's still wonderful.


My favorite author is J.G. Ballard, and I'll prob re-read the books I have of him after I'm done with Blish.

I'm also a big fan of Philip Roth, Henry Miller, Michel Houellebecq and some others.

[haldane4]

Originally Posted by Satiros

My favorite author is J.G. Ballard, and I'll prob re-read the books I have of him after I'm done with Blish.

I loved High-Rise and am planning to re-read it before the film appears - God knows what they've done to it.

Currently reading Seven Days In New Crete by Robert Graves.

[anklebiter]

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown.It's a prequel to The DaVinci Code.pretty good too.Been unable to put it down.Hoping to see the movie if it's still playing when I finish reading it.

[Mal Hombre]

The Compleet Molesworth by Geoffrey Wilans and Ronald Searle

[crazybikerme]

Almost wet myself laughing!!!

....................I just gotta meet a Honey Badger...............!!!

[scoundrel]

Not Austen's finest book (that would be Emma) but her most accessible and charming book. Instantly readible and full of humour, it is also subtle, rich in irony as Austen always is, and pioneers various techniques of story-telling now taken for granted, such as the use of free indirect speech: the novel is narrated by Austen in the third person, yet we see the action all from Elizabeth Bennet's point of view, very much as if she were narrating in the first person. This clever trick is used to make sure that where Elizabeth is deceived, we are fooled as well, and it also gives us priveleged access to Elizabeth's complex and fascinating inner life.

The story is famous and has been adapted for film and TV many times: IMO the best versions are the 1995 BBC adaptation with Jennifer Ehrle as Elizabeth and Colin Firth as the definitive Mr Darcy, followed by the surprisingly good 2005 Hollywood film with Keira Knightley as Elizabeth. These are both good, but the book is better. The book is fantastic actually.

The evolving relationship of Elizabeth and Mr Darcy is full of comic and complex misunderstandings. Its a third person narrative so we get to see the cards held by both players. Darcy has been a fool to himself by slighting and insulting the girl without first checking her out properly, and doesn't realise until the disastrous first proposal how badly he has let himself down. He is vain and fatheaded, but his confusion isn't all his fault.

Elizabeth is really classy and uses wit and humour where another girl would use temper tantrums and insults to express her wounded and affronted spirit, but Darcy is actually quite clever and would have got the message, except Elizabeth is transmitting garbled signals, because she feels other feelings which she is extremely slow to admit, even to herself. Not to put too fine a point on it, her ill feeling towards Darcy, the intensity of it, is in no small part the fury of a woman scorned. She would bite her tongue rather than say so, but she checked Mr Darcy out when he was being too bad tempered and short sighted to have a proper look at her. He was rude, offensive and seriously affronted her: but he was still good looking...

Its only late in the piece, during her visit to Darcy's family home, (she is desperate not to go but dares not tell her uncle and aunt the back-story, so is sneaking in and out having been assured by the local folk that Darcy is away and not expected back) that a few misconceptions and self-deceptions are straightened out in her own mind. One of these is what she really thinks of Mr Darcy as a man:

[Elizabeth and Mr and Mrs Gardiner, her uncle and aunt, are being shown the pictures in the picture gallery by Darcy's housekeeper: they have come to Mr Darcy's own portrait]

''And that...is my master,and very like him. It was drawn at the same time as the other portrait [Mr Wickham's], about eight years ago''.
''I have heard much of your master's fine person'', said Mrs Gardiner, looking at the picture; ''it is a handsome face. But Lizzy, you can tell us whether it is like or not.''
Mrs Reynold's respect for Elizabeth seemed to increase on this intimation of her knowing her master.
''Does that young lady know Mr Darcy?''
Elizabeth coloured and said ''A little.''
''And do you not think him a very handsome gentleman, ma'am?''
''Yes, very handsome.''

In its context, this is a really telling admission. Austen's heroines are never overtly sexual (she was an unmarried gentlewoman writing in Regency England FHS) but she is incredibly good at conveying the sexual tensions and undercurrents without the slightest indecorum. Elizebeth likes Mr Darcy, and that's the truth, even when she also hates him. He isn't totally a fool for thinking she is giving him positive feedback, because actually she is, in spite of herself. The mind says one thing, but the red blood corpuscles say something else.

Oh man is this clever stuff!

[Mal Hombre]

Monster Nation by David Wellington,This is the first zombie novel i have read and it is very good.The zombies are very much in the George A Romero tradition-indeed author Wellington was born in Pittsburgh
like Romero.The story is told through the eyes of three main characters, a National Guard Captain and interestingly two zombies one,Dick is a mindless ,armless apetite on legs ,the other Nilla has retained her mind but has lost her memories even her real name.The plot builds to an unexpected conclusion.I would recommend this book to anyone not perturbed by gore.

[graftzig]

"The man who laughs" by Victor Hugo.

[MaxJoker]

Originally Posted by graftzig

"The man who laughs" by Victor Hugo.

Excellent choice

I recently finished reading these two very interesting books ( Still wish Man didn`t throw himself into the mix so often though as occasionally it can come across as a travel guide) , which combined probably best describe and explain the birth and death of the Mongol empire. A great read , mind you would have enjoyed more details on the major battles but then i`m a tactical fanatic



Just started this



So far so very good