What are you reading?

[FourFourSeven]

"Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege: 1942 - 1943" by Antony Beevor

[the_wolfs_howl]

Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne - Blech, I'm just glad I'm done with it and the paper for it is written and I never have to look at it again. I know the kind of humor he was going for with this, but...it was so long it just got way too ridiculous way too fast. No thanks.

[Jonathan]

I'm currently reading "Power For Living" by Jamie Buckingham.

[Lynna]

Just finished Scarlet, the sequel to Cinder by Marissa Meyer. I was skeptical of the series (The Lunar Chronicles) at first, but now I've officially stopped caring that they aren't perfect. I love them, and I'll be getting Cress out from the library soon...If I don't buy it first.

[Adie]

Finished The Ocean at the End of the Lane. It was lovely.
Started A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini.

[Kaori]

Since I last posted in this thread:

Finished reading v. 4 (the final volume) of Fr. Hopko's catechism series The Orthodox Faith. No new comments on this one.

Recently reread Humility by Andrew Murray, The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence, and The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, all of which are excellent.

Currently reading Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent (interesting) and Orthodox Theology: An Introduction by Vladimir Lossky (mind-blowing and unbelievably dense).

I'm wondering if there is anyone on CAA who likes the Chronicles of Narnia but hasn't read A Wind in the Willows. Fans of the former should definitely read the latter. A Wind in the Willows does not have allegory that is as consistent throughout the book as it is in The Chronicles of Narnia, but there are some particular places where the Christian content of the book is extremely clear to an adult reader (e.g. the chapter where Jesus Christ appears in an allegorical form), and it's incredibly beautiful. The book is also wonderfully affirming of the value of life and of physical creation, which is in line with Christian doctrine that is sound and not influenced by Gnostic tendencies. It is a children's book, but I've reread it twice now as an adult, and my appreciation for it has only deepened.

[John_Smith]

I'm wondering if there is anyone on CAA who likes the Chronicles of Narnia but hasn't read A Wind in the Willows.

*raises hand*
And its wikipedia page makes a reference to Theodore Roosevelt right at the top... I'm definitely going to have to read this! That is, sometime after I finish The Silmarillion. It's blasphemy that I haven't read this yet count myself as a Middle-earth nerd.

[GeneD]

I recently finished Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Only two more to go \(^_^)/ but... they only get longer from here on out T_T. I'm still enjoying them, but man, this one felt like it lasted forever.

I'm now reading Raising Steam, the latest Discworld book.

[Xeno]

I finished Girl at the End of the World by Elizabeth Esther about a week ago. Incredible book, and everyone I've recommended it to has been unable to put it down, same as I was unable to.

I also picked up Jesus is Better than You Imagined by Jonathan Merritt and When We Were on Fire: A Memoir of Consuming Faith, Tangled Love, and Starting Over by Addie Zierman.

I've been kind of on a Christian memoir kick lately, not sure why, but I'm finding them very interesting, so I'll keep reading them until I get worn out on them.

[mysngoeshere56]

Reading Dracula for my Gothic Lit class.

[the_wolfs_howl]

Bleak House by Charles Dickens

This was a loooooooooooooooooong book - 881 pages in my edition. But it was excellent - a really complex plot, tons of characters all with their own motivations and goals, two alternating tenses.... Basically, this is an epic fantasy novel set in London...minus the fantasy Brilliant, brilliant writing. It also has the distinction of being the first Dickens novel that has made me cry

*goes off to check out the most recent BBC adaptation*

[the_wolfs_howl]

To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

A really weird book. It's written in a stream-of-consciousness style, so it can be quite hard to keep track of what's going on. The writing itself is absolutely beautiful, full of wonderful descriptions and just a feeling of calm thoughtfulness. But the plot is just kind of blah, so I don't really care for it much.

[radical edward]

Currently on book 4 of the Mortal Instruments series.

[Chronicler1701]

I've been reading the Chronicles of Narnia recently, currently just starting The Silver Chair; after that, there's only The Last Battle. So far my favorite book is The Magician's Nephew. The description of Charn is incredible, and the Wood Between the Worlds is so peaceful, I love it.

I've also read the Alex Rider novels Stormbreaker through to Snakehead and all three of The Giver books.

[mysngoeshere56]

Finally reading Battle Royale.

[TheAlbinoMoose]

Finally reading Battle Royale.

I want to know if you like it! I'm thinking about reading it...

I recently read The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis (I wish it was longer), and am now reading A Blunt Instrument by Georgette Heyer.

[LastLfan]

I've been reading the Chronicles of Narnia recently, currently just starting The Silver Chair; after that, there's only The Last Battle. So far my favorite book is The Magician's Nephew. The description of Charn is incredible, and the Wood Between the Worlds is so peaceful, I love it.

I've also read the Alex Rider novels Stormbreaker through to Snakehead and all three of The Giver books.

There is now a fourth giver book "son" I highly recommend it, perfect finale

[Chronicler1701]

Oh, cool. I'll look into it, thanks.

[radical edward]

Currently reading The Fall of Five

[Phantom_Sorano]

Rereading the Harry Potter series. On Prisoner of Azkaban. <3

[radical edward]

Started the fifth Mortal Instruments book, City of Fallen Angels.

[Jonathan]

I'm currently reading Angels by Billy Graham.

[nillapoet]

I just finished Erasing Hell by Francis Chan.

[Kaori]

Currently reading The Diary of a Russian Priest by Alexander Elchaninov, a collection of distilled, well-thought-out, sometimes gem-like fragments. Thought-provoking in an “I don’t always agree, but it’s really fascinating” sort of way.

Recently finished Forty Stories by Anton Chekhov (Vintage Classics). Overall, a lot of these stories are very anecdotal and sometimes don’t seem to have much of a point, but Chekhov is marvelous at describing how people behave within society and individuals’ mannerisms and quirks. Some comments about specific stories are in order:

“Big Volodya and Little Volodya” made me actually viscerally angry (not at Chekhov but at the things he describes). There are several other stories about people doing horrible things to people and horrible things happening to people, but to me the most noteworthy one in this category after “Big Volodya and Little Volodya” is “The Peasant Women,” probably followed by “Sleepyhead.”. “Heartache” is not quite in the same category but is aptly titled and powerful in achieving its effect.

On the other end of the spectrum, “The Student” remains one of the most beautiful and meaningful short stories I have ever read. Chekhov has quite a satirical wit, which he turns on everyone, not sparing religious figures, but he must have had some sort of very genuine belief in the truth and meaning of Christianity in order to write a story like this which is about the way that the events of Jesus’ life are transformative and fill our lives with meaning.

[radical edward]

Finished book 5 of The Mortal Instruments.
About to start Urchin and the Heartstone, the second book in the Mistmantle Chronicles.

[GeneD]

I took forever to get through Raising Steam and then needed something preferably quick and straightforward. So now I'm reading Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, which I originally heard about via Noelle Stevenson, the cover artist, and then randomly saw at a book sale for cheap enough that it wouldn't matter if it didn't turn out to be good. It's definitely not bad so far.

[the_wolfs_howl]

Finally finished Mansfield Park by Jane Austen. Loved it! The romance was beautiful, and like all Jane Austen romances, very satisfying. It was particularly special to me, because I am Fanny Price

[scribbledreamer]

Just finished Dear Mr. Knightley by Katherine Reay. It's told entirely in letters, a technique I've always loved, but is difficult to pull off. I started it thinking it was going to be a pretty fluffly book, but it was so much more. The characters were strong, the emotion raw, and the writing beautiful. For a lot of it, you could forget it was told in a letter. It was such a great technique, though, because the author brings it back at just the right moment, as a reminder that the only reason the main character is disclosing certain information is because of the letter. So, yeah, it's a book I'd definitely recommend.

...I get a little too excited about books.

Also, has anyone read Uglies? I started it, but couldn't get a feel for the characters (and the dialogue was annoying me...) and decided to return it to the library without finishing it. Any reason I should keep reading?

[MomentOfInertia]

Just finished Dear Mr. Knightley by Katherine Reay. It's told entirely in letters, a technique I've always loved, but is difficult to pull off. I started it thinking it was going to be a pretty fluffly book, but it was so much more. The characters were strong, the emotion raw, and the writing beautiful. For a lot of it, you could forget it was told in a letter. It was such a great technique, though, because the author brings it back at just the right moment, as a reminder that the only reason the main character is disclosing certain information is because of the letter. So, yeah, it's a book I'd definitely recommend.

...I get a little too excited about books.

Also, has anyone read Uglies? I started it, but couldn't get a feel for the characters (and the dialogue was annoying me...) and decided to return it to the library without finishing it. Any reason I should keep reading?

I vaguely recall reading and liking something else by the author but, not being interested in Uglies.(Of course the library didn't have it either so I couldn't have read it even the description had interested me.)

[SincerelyAnomymous]

Currently reading King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry. It's pretty good so far.