What are you reading?

[Kaori]

Just finished reading The Death of Ivan Ilych and Other Stories by Leo Tolstoy, a volume collecting four of Tolstoy’s shorter works.

Family Happiness: The first part is a love story about how a couple met, courted, became engaged, etc. The second part is about their life after they marry. Thankfully, Tolstoy does portray the problems and conflicts that arise in their marriage; otherwise the story would be completely unrealistic. About three-fourths of the story was sickeningly sweet, and the ending managed to be too facile (the resolution was unconvincing because it was too sudden) and unsatisfying at the same time. I can’t say I enjoyed this story.

Master and Man: The story of a master and his servant taking a journey into the forest. This story got off to a rather slow start, but it gained interest once it became clear that the characters were in actual danger of freezing to death in a snowstorm. I found the ending and the change of heart that one character experienced, to be too facile, however.

The Kreutzer Sonata: A frame story which is mostly narrated by a man who murdered his wife; he explains about his marriage and how he came to murder his wife, while delivering along the way a scathing social commentary. His deranged ramblings were rather reminiscent of the narrator of Dostoyevsky’s Notes from Underground, despite the fact that the author is different. This was a fascinating story, partly because of the premise, but mainly because of the way that I was made to think in order to sift through all the opinions of the unreliable narrator. Some of his comments are very applicable and relevant to today; some describe Russian society at the time but don’t really apply to contemporary society; some of the narrator’s opinions are just weird.

The Death of Ivan Ilych: I can’t possibly speak highly enough of this story; it is definitely the gem of this collection of stories. It ranges from stinging criticism against the banality of society to psychological realism that touches me because I see myself in the characters; there are even a few moments of black humor. As the story of a man’s spiritual journey, it is well-developed, realistic, and very uplifting. Absolutely brilliant.

[rocklobster]

Just started Soul of the Fire, book 4 in the Sword of Truth series.

[Okami]

I just finished Sex God by Rob Bell. It was my second run through, and I feel like I learned more about myself from the experience.

In following, I am now reading Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. Continuing the theme of spirituality....and learning how to grow in it, especially.

[yukoxholic]

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden as well as The Beethoven Sonatas and the Creative Experience by Kenneth O. Drake.

[Atria35]

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

That book made me cry.

[the_wolfs_howl]

I finished reading The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and that made me curious, so now I'm reading A Study in Scarlet to see where it all began.

[SnoringFrog]

The Shadow Rising by Robert Jordan.

Despite a 3-year hiatus in reading this series (called the latter end of high school), I actually remember most of what's going on.

[Kaori]

Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad. It is told in a rather roundabout manner, but the story essentially tells how a man driven by idealism shatters his career, then in a new setting rises from the ashes of that failure. Conrad has his reasons for approaching his subject in such a roundabout way, giving it from several angles instead of as one straightforward narrative, but the ramblings of the narrator do get to be a bit too much at times. Conrad's skill as a prose stylist, however, is exquisite.

[bigsleepj]

I've finished Dan Simmons' Ilium, which I'll easily put onto my list of Best Science Fiction Novels Ever.

[Seto_Sora]

I am currently reading "What He Must be To Marry My Daughter". I am passionate about this book! Everyone should read this! Its the best book out there for singles! Like, its totally AWESOME!!!


SDG

[shade of dae]

Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad. It is told in a rather roundabout manner, but the story essentially tells how a man driven by idealism shatters his career, then in a new setting rises from the ashes of that failure. Conrad has his reasons for approaching his subject in such a roundabout way, giving it from several angles instead of as one straightforward narrative, but the ramblings of the narrator do get to be a bit too much at times. Conrad's skill as a prose stylist, however, is exquisite.

Lord Jim is on my list of "To read", along with The Secret Agent, also by Joseph Conrad. Based on your review, I think I'll read Lord Jim first, though. Sadly, the only work I've read by Joseph Conrad is Heart of Darkness which, although short, was very thought provoking and gave insight not only into the issue of England's colonization of Africa, but also into the darkness that is in the heart of every human. Conrad's prose style was the first thing I noticed while reading it, however. Although he dealt with such a grim subject, the writing itself was gorgeous and really helped set the pensive, dark mood, almost as though you could feel the darkness yourself.
But perhaps I'm rambling. I just thought it was an excellent read.

In other news, now that school is out, I've had quite a bit of time to read and have recently finished:

Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissinger.
To be perfectly honest, my first reaction was something along the lines of "How can people like football that much?!". The level of devotion to the sport displayed by the citizens of Odessa seemed almost impossible to me. Then again, I am by no means a sports fan, so I'm generally oblivious to anything sports related. However, it was much more interesting to me to read the motivation behind the devotion-- the extreme highs and lows of the economy, and the instability of the oil market, which led, I think, the citizens to cling to the one thing that never changed: high school football. The other issues chronicled, like racial and class-related issues were also interesting and helped the reader to better understand Odessa.
If you're not a sports fan, I would recommend it for the psychological aspects. I don't even know what a quarterback is and I still enjoyed the book. Or, if you are a sports fan, the games were well-described and intense, so I would definitely recommend it.

The Innocence of Father Brown and The Wisdom of Father Brown, both by G.K. Chesterton
I would be tempted to compare these stories to Sherlock Holmes, but I really haven't read Holmes in a while, so I'll just say that they are in a similar vein. All of Chesterton's Father Brown stories are mystery stories that focus on a short, rotund, and rather unassuming priest named Father Brown solving various mysteries. Father Brown himself is very likable and deals not only with the cold hard facts of the case, but the people themselves and uses a fair bit of psychology. He also takes everything from a Christian perspective, not in the contemporary, often annoying way, but in an almost mystical manner. It's hard to describe, but great to read. He does have a habit of bashing Presbyterians (or any denomination other than Roman Catholic), though. Anyways, the stories are short and fun and I highly recommend them.

The Plague by Albert Camus
I'm not really sure what to say about this novel. I don't think I can do it justice by writing a review after having read it only once; there's just too much to process. There were some passages that evoked strong feeling for me and made me re-evaluate some of my actions and beliefs, so I'm grateful for that. I will say, though, that Tarrou's quest for sainthood confused me, perhaps because I'm not sure what he really means by "Sainthood". So, I would suggest reading it, because it really was a good book. If any of you have read/ are reading it, I would like to know what you thought of it.

Wow, that was a long post. I'll have to cut it shorter next time.

[Kaori]

Wow, shade of dae, that's some hefty reading!

Lord Jim is on my list of "To read", along with The Secret Agent, also by Joseph Conrad. Based on your review, I think I'll read Lord Jim first, though. Sadly, the only work I've read by Joseph Conrad is Heart of Darkness which, although short, was very thought provoking and gave insight not only into the issue of England's colonization of Africa, but also into the darkness that is in the heart of every human. Conrad's prose style was the first thing I noticed while reading it, however. Although he dealt with such a grim subject, the writing itself was gorgeous and really helped set the pensive, dark mood, almost as though you could feel the darkness yourself.

I haven't read The Secret Agent and can't compare the two, but Lord Jim was pretty good. It just required a high degree of patience, because the narrator (Marlow) often takes such a long time to get to his point.

I don't think I've read Heart of Darkness since high school, but I do recall it being quite a favorite of mine at the time--great book.

Current reading:

Rob Roy by Sir Walter Scott. This is my first time encountering Scott as a novelist, but I don't really have much to say about the book besides that it would have been twice as good if told in half as many pages. Scott's attention to historical detail and the Scottish dialect are admirable, I suppose, but he is just too verbose, IMHO.

[rocklobster]

I'm about to finish The Darkest Hour, the final book in the first Warriors series.

[Htom Sirveaux]

I'm trying to get through The Alchemyst. This is, I think, going to be the last contemporary fantasy title I read for a very long time. I'm just sick of the inevitable "But magic isn't REAL...Is it?" And "You see, normal people are already ignorant, but we use [enter magical substance here] to keep them from seeing all the magical stuff!"

Maybe somebody, somewhere, will write a contemporary fantasy where the protagonist is a ditz who goes, "Magic? Okay!"

You, my dear Flummoxed (for that is what I've been calling you mentally), are someone who needs to read Discworld. I had the same problem and Terry Pratchett saved me from settling for mediocre fantasy.

Also along the lines of unique, non-formulaic fantasy, I'm on book two of Glen Cook's Black Company novels, Shadows Linger. Even better than the first. I love the idea of giving Raven a separate spot as a main character. Raven is fantasy's Wolverine.

[Hohenheim]

I finished reading Notes from Underground, by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

The narrator of the book, the Underground Man, really is quite the sad and crazy man. The situations he puts himself into, just so he can interact with people, are depressing. Even so, you can't help but feel great pity for him as you see his life continually get worse and worse, by his own doings no less. Not one of my favorites, but this is still a good book to read if you want to find out how important it can be to live in community, and how dangerous it is to live in total isolation.

[bigsleepj]

I really admired Notes from Underground, though I believe more people admire the book than actually like it. It is well written for what it is; essentially a window into a pathetic mind.

[ShiroiHikari]

Lately I'm reading and enjoying an abridged version of Les Mis. It took me a long time to get through the beginning of the book, but by this point it's really picked up and it was hard to put it down last night.

My husband and I are reading The Hobbit together. Rather, he's reading it aloud and I'm listening. I'm enjoying it now, but when I was trying to read it on my own, I quickly got bored of it. This is definitely a book that benefits from being read aloud.

I also recently read Little Girl Blue: The Life of Karen Carpenter.

[Hohenheim]

[quote="bigsleepj (post: 1402935)"]I really admired Notes from Underground, though I believe more people admire the book than actually like it. It is well written for what it is]

I agree with you on this. I mean, I can appreciate some of the themes present in it, but I get the feeling that there may have been a couple of ideas here that Dostoevsky and I would've disagreed on. In any case, it really was well written when considering the subject matter.

[ich1990]

“King Lear" by William Shakespeare

It is a political thriller, at its core, and has enough backstabbing, villainy, feints, and insanity to make it one of the better representatives of its genre. Unfortunately, everyone in the entire story is doing so much and feeling so much and talking so much, all the time, that I found myself burned out and ready for the story to conclude long before it did. Perhaps I could have used an intermission. 8/10
[quote="bigsleepj (post: 1402935)"]I really admired Notes from Underground, though I believe more people admire the book than actually like it. It is well written for what it is]Personally, I prefer the adjective "honest" to "pathetic", as he is essentially a person who is entirely honest with himself. He has none of the social and psychic filters most people employ to separate themselves from reality. Unlike those "normal" people around him, he understands exactly what he is doing, why, and how it will affect others. He knows what his existence means (and doesn't mean) and he can't sugar coat, ignore, or make up for that harsh reality (though he tries, he fails). And the weight of it crushes his mind.

Thus, I saw the whole work as an illustration of the necessity of an external existential bedrock. Without Truth (God) to orient ourselves towards, and grace to cover our mistakes, we would end up like him --if we were honest with ourselves. Another put it more succinctly, Notes from Underground "cried Truth from the blood".

[FllMtl Novelist]

You, my dear Flummoxed (for that is what I've been calling you mentally), are someone who needs to read Discworld. I had the same problem and Terry Pratchett saved me from settling for mediocre fantasy.

'Flummoxed'? Now, I've been called Fu, but 'Flummoxed' is just random! XD

I'll probably read Terry Pratchett when I get the chance. I've got this list I'm moving through at the moment...

Currently I'm reading a book that I think is called Zodiac Unmasked (which I picked up at the library on a whim and probably won't finish because it's so long), and Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis (which I'm enjoying very much).

[bigsleepj]

Thus, I saw the whole work as an illustration of the necessity of an external existential bedrock. Without Truth (God) to orient ourselves towards, and grace to cover our mistakes, we would end up like him --if we were honest with ourselves. Another put it more succinctly, Notes from Underground "cried Truth from the blood".

That's an intriguing way of viewing the novel, I'll admit, and is possibly what Dostoevsky meant. Looks like I may need to re-read the novel again.

[Seto_Sora]

The most amazing book ever!!! "What He Must be to Marry My Daughter"!!! This is an amazing book and I highly recommend it!!! I agree with every principle!!! Its awesome!!!

SDG

[Kaori]

The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde. The play clearly hearkens back to Shakespeare’s festive comedies in the arbitrary way in which the characters fall in love, the motifs of disguise and mistaken identity, and the absolute profligacy of engagements at the end of the play. Very lighthearted and amusing; overall, I enjoyed it. I am just a little bothered by the fact that the denoument seems a bit flawed to me:
[spoiler]Algernon is still named Algernon, not Earnest, at the end of the play, which seems to bode ill for his engagement to Cecily.[/spoiler]
Someone let me know if I am missing something, though.

Wilde wrote that it was written on the principle “that we should treat all the trivial things of life seriously, and all the serious things of life with sincere and studied triviality.â€

[shade of dae]

Wow, shade of dae, that's some hefty reading!

It's really fun, though. I've always loved reading, but I haven't really started reading books like these until a few years ago. Now I feel like there's so much fascinating literature to read and so little time to read it in. I'm working on it though.

I just finished Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Altogether it was enjoyable, I thought it was interesting to see the change in both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth's personalities after they committed the murder. Before, Macbeth didn't want to kill the king- he was aware that it would be wrong to kill such an honorable man especially since the king had just rewarded him graciously (albeit at the cost of another man's life). Lady Macbeth urged Macbeth very strenuously to kill the king, even questioning his manhood when he showed doubts. However, after the deed, Macbeth didn't hesitate to kill Banquo and his son when he became suspicious, he didn't even show remorse over the fact that they had been best friends. Banquo was in the way of Macbeth's goals, so he had to go. Lady Macbeth was the one who ended up wandering the halls in her sleep, trying to wash the blood of the innocent men off from her hands, desperate to be rid of her sin. Ultimately she took her own life, while Macbeth fought to the death to keep his grip on the throne. What spurred them to change in such a drastic manner?

One thing that did bother me was that the three weird sisters had prophesied at the beginning that Banquo's sons would be king, yet in the end it was Malcom who became king. If all the other prophesies came true, why didn't that one?

Also, I'm about halfway through both Mere Christianity and Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis.
Mere Christianity is a fascinating book that I appreciate because of Lewis's writing style. He is always logical and frank, choosing to make his points in plain, everyday English so that everyone can appreciate his works. I'll write more about the content when I actually finish it.
Out of the Silent Planet has been fun so far. The beginning was certainly interesting. Dr. Ransom, a philologist, stumbles across a somewhat suspicious house during his walking tour and meets two men, one of whom used to be his old classmate. Before he knows it, he has been rather rudely denied of his whiskey, drugged, chased through the house, and ultimately knocked out. He then wakes up on a space ship heading towards Malacandra, where ever that is and learns that he is to be something of a human sacrifice to a bunch of aliens. Right now, he's gotten away from the scientists and spent a fair amount of time wandering around the planet, only to come across a native inhabitant. I look forward to seeing what will happen next.

So much for cutting it short, but oh well.

[rocklobster]

Just started Game Change.

[Atria35]

Stepped out to meet a friend this afternoon, after I asked for book reccs from here and before I got books reccs from the good people here And picked up The Shining from the library, so I could take a peek at the original story.

[Kaori]

[quote="bigsleepj"]I really admired Notes from Underground, though I believe more people admire the book than actually like it. It is well written for what it is]
Without shame, I will admit to liking it. And whether or not the narrator comes across as being pathetic, I would argue that Dostoevsky certainly does not intend the reader to stand aloof from him. Throughout the book, he displays a perverse and illogical tendency to do evil, which he can’t get rid of even when he tries, and he makes the reader implicit in this when he says at the end, “I have in my own life merely carried to the extreme that which you have never ventured to carry even halfway.â€

[uc pseudonym]

Where There is no Doctor edited by David Werner

Basic health care for third world countries with limited medical technology. It is not terribly well known in the US, but because it is provided free or at income-scaled cost in other countries, it is one of the most widely used medical handbooks in the world. As such it is useful but not terribly involving reading. Except that many of the illustrations are unintentionally humorous.

Foreign to Familiar by Sarah Lanier

I have to re-read this. It is still depressing.

One thing that did bother me was that the three weird sisters had prophesied at the beginning that Banquo's sons would be king, yet in the end it was Malcom who became king. If all the other prophesies came true, why didn't that one?

The character Banquo was partially based on a historical figure of the same name. Today there is debate about this that I don't exactly remember, but the people of Shakespeare's time believed Banquo was an ancestor of the House of Stuart. James I was part of that line, so the sisters are likely referencing the current kings. On that note, historical sources suggest that the real Banquo was an accomplice to the murder.

[ich1990]

I am currently reading Les Miserables. Thankfully, the Battle of Waterloo is moving at a faster pace and with more interest than the previous few hundred pages. I don't think I will ever forget Cambronne's famous last word. "The Guard dies, it does not surrender!" is moving, but "Merde!" is so much more expressive.

@ich1990: Oh, I loved The Road! One of the most amazing (if emotionally draining) works of fiction I've ever read. You should totally see the movie if you haven't already. It's incredibly accurate as a book-to-film translation.

No I haven't seen it yet, but I plan to. Thanks for the reminder.

Have you read any other works by Cormac McCarthy, by any chance? If so, are all of his works this good or did he just get lucky?

Surprised by Hope: Rethinking the Church, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church, by N.T. Wright.

An excellent choice. I have read that one recently as well, and my thoughts are very similar to yours. There is a lot to disagree with in there, but they are almost totally side-issues. On the big points, he is pretty solid, compelling, and fun to read. Along with C.S. Lewis' The Great Divorce this volume has completely changed my view of the afterlife.

That's an intriguing way of viewing the novel, I'll admit, and is possibly what Dostoevsky meant. Looks like I may need to re-read the novel again.

As always, the Pevear (English) translation is recommended. If you do re-read it, let me know what you think. I would appreciate hearing your insights.

[Htom Sirveaux]

@ich: I tried reading All the Pretty Horses once, but I got bored with it. But there's a movie version out (which I haven't seen). Also, he wrote No Country for Old Men.