I finished The Stranger by Albert Camus. It was an amazing little book. It's really interesting because the main character isn't one that you exactly sympathize with, but at the same time I found myself forgetting that little fact. It's a wonderfully written book that hits on what life is "all about" in a strange little way with an intriguing protagonist. He undergoes quite a change throughout the short novel and it gave the story some depth that was refreshing to see after some of what I've read this year.

I gave it 5*/5 and I would definitely recommend this because it's a short read that is really poignant. I need to give much thanks to J. Brown for recommending this book to me a few days ago.

Next up is The Pillowman which has finally arrived at the library and is ready for me to pick up. This was Kimbell's emphatic recommendation from a couple weeks ago in another Lounge thread.

Solo, I also really enjoyed The Fall, by Camus. It's similarly quite short but I thought it was powerful.

I just finished "The Nothing That Is: A History of Zero."

After reading a streak of horrid books, it is a relief to find this gem and read it. It took me all of two days to read it. I challenge anyone to read it and say they know everything in it. The book covers the use of zero in many cultures, and how it was ignored, and even thought of as evil. It even explains some truly interesting math concepts. I highly condensed book that demands multiple readings. The author is a math teacher at Harvard. If he is half as good at lecturing as he is at writing, he would be worth the full charge alone.

I have some book by Joyce Carol Oates. I have been meaning to read something by her for a long time. I picked to book randomly, by finding the most recent book the library had (2002). Review soon.

Just started on Jasper Fforde's The Well of Lost Plots. Hilarious tale of detective who enters into a fictive work and begins to help the characters rewrite their roles and the story while also trying, I think, to solve a crime.

Been reading Dharma Bums by Kerouac. I prefer it to OTR thus far. Kerouac just seems like such a cool dude, and his writing style may not be the most elegant, but the reading just rolls.

On the advice of a friend I started reading Blood and Thunder with the subtitle: The Epic Story of Kit Carson and the Conquest of the American West. A bit grandiose for the title (conquest of the southwest to California really) but it fits well enough. The writing is crisp, non-preachy (All Praise to Zeus for That), presents the facts in a colorful way, and weaves the story about more than just Kit Carson. The cast of characters is varied and ranges from the interesting and often neglected John C. Fremont to the Navajo Chief Narbona all set against the backdrop of unbridled greed, cultural clash and misunderstanding, land lust, political shenanigans, human slaughter, vast chicanery, and an ocean of deceit and treachery, all within a wilderness harsh and unforgiving. Good Stuff and well told - My kind of book.

Le Misanthrope

Lucky Jim
Kingley Amis's

Just finished this alleged modern classic and I’m left feeling distinctly underwhelmed. It’s a light comic novel but it rarely raised more then a smile from me. The Hero James is a young man embarking on his first job after leaving the army his a lecturer in history in a provincial English university. He is personal and likable enough, rather bored and a little directionless he is drifting into a career and relationship he doesn’t really want. I liked Jim even if I did want to give him a good slap now and again particularly when the plot took a unexpected and totally unbelievable twist. I felt he was a mostly a believable character whose failing and shortcoming I empathised with its just that he didn't do anything particularly funny nor did his misadventures teach me anything about the human condition.
I know some people really love this book Presumably "Lucky Jim" the poster, Id like to hear from them as to why.

Never read it, but love the line I heard in a PBS promo for a film of it: "I used to want to change the world. Now I don't even bother to change me socks." (sic)

Just picked up 'The Road' by Cormac Mccarthy, looks fantastic.

If anybody has any opinions of the following books (my next few reads), I'd appreciate it:

-The Road, Cormac McCarthy

-Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follet

-Prince of Tides, Pat Conroy,

-Brave New World, Huxely

Thanks alot guys.

The Road. Awesome book. Well written, albeit in McCarthy's strange way. Not light and perky, but I'm sure you knew that before you bought it.

Pillars of the Earth. This book held the title as my favorite book for a few years. Be prepared for some long nights. I found it really hard to put this book down to go to sleep some nights. Definitely Follet's best.

Prince of Tides. If you like Pat Conroy you'll like this book. I actually liked Lords of Discipline and Beach Music (I know, I'm a chick) better than Prince of Tides, but I really liked this as well. Conroy is a really fluid writer.

Brave New World. Haven't read this since High School, but it is not as good as 1984 in my recollection, but it was a long time ago.

I read Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea a couple months ago and judging by your review if anyone wants to read a book about zero they should choose The Nothing That Is: A History of Zero. Bio was decent at parts but overall the author seemed far too caught up in his own hype, trying desperately to make the whole world revolve around zero (though I guess at least he would argue that it does).

I've only read "Brave New World" but I very much recommend it. I found it a bit tough to get into at first, as Huxley does some strange things with words and sentences and there is quite a bit of description of the technology and the world as it is, but the result is a very uniquely written work with a decent amount of humour to offset the other, less pleasant (but still great) aspects of the novel. There is fair amount of philosophy in it, but he integrates it well so it doesn't come off too heavy-handed. It gets compared to "1984," and they are similar in some ways, but I think it's closer, at least in theme, to "Notes From Underground" (in the determinism/free will aspect). Anyway, it's a fun book and a good read once you understand what Huxley is shooting for and some of the ways he goes about it.

I think I give the slight edge to Brave New World over 1984. Both are amazing and I've have to reread both right next to each other to make a decision. I do know that I read BNW more recently, so that might be why I give it the edge. It's pretty natural with me.

I was searching the library catalog to see if they had any Batman movie and the first thing that popped out was a book called "Técnicas de masturbación entre Batman y Robin" (translation: "Masturbation techniques between Batman and Robin"), of course I had to get the book out of the library. I read the first 10 pages and was very confused, it was written in disjointed paragraphs. Apparently it was experimental writing and with the goal of being funny. I found one funny paragraph. I think I'll return the book.

This is my usual experience with porno too.

I actually browsed online a bit and it is not porn, it was a Colombian novel. It looks like it got good reviews, it seems that the author is well known in Colombian literary circles. The reviews I read said the plot was good but that the weird narrative hurt the book a bit.

Thanks for the input guys. I'm already half way done with 'The Road', it's really great. I think Pillars will be next, that book looks massive though and is a bit intimidating.

Post-Apoc books are among my favorites. If anybody has any other suggestions with this genre I'd love to hear it.

If you haven't read The Stand by Stephen King, then that is certainly one I'd recommend.

I remember that Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven was enjoyable, but take that with a grain of salt, it must be 15 years since I read it.

Emergence by David Palmer is a really good book.

Skip the Pesthouse by Jim Crace. It tried to be like McCarthy and failed miserably.

Probably my favorite book in this genre is Resurrection Day by Brendan Dubuis. Awesome book. It is an Alternate History book after the Cuban Missile Crisis and is a real joy.

Malevil was a slight but fun post-apocalyptic book by the guy who did Day of the Dolphin.

I've only read Brave New World and The Road, although I've read other Follet books. Brave New World is one of those classics that you dont feel like its a homework assignment having to read it. Its easy, its fun, and its thrilling. I'm not saying I dont get value out of reading The Aeneid but I wouldnt describe it as fun or thrilling. Excellent book, would recommed.

The Road is really hit or miss, but I really enjoyed it. It was the first (and so far only) McCarthy novel I've read, so I was completely unaware of his writing style. Definitely takes some getting used to. The plot and action in the book are sort of like carrots...most of it is beneath the surface. Meaning that if you read it like you'd read a Dan Brown book, it is BORING, but if you are interested in character development and relationships, its fascinating. Again, would recommend.

Currently reading Invasive Procedures by Orson Scott Card with Aaron Johnston. Just over halfway through it, and its pretty terrible, would not recommend. Its sort of a "worst case scenario genetic engineer/dystopia" kind of book but its just so childishly written and boring. Characters are extremely one-dimensional and cliche, action is predictable and boring, "philosophy" is, as mentioned earlier, childish.

Someone bumping the Scrabble thread in OOT reminded me that I finished Word Freak by Stefan Fatsis a couple weeks ago. Very good read, even if you're not that into Scrabble. I've played maybe once in my life and I still thoroughly enjoyed it. All the characters in the book are very interesting (as you might expect from professional Scrabble players), but I thought the parts about the authors growing obsession with Scrabble and his rise through the ranks were my favourite parts. I also enjoyed the few nuggets of Scrabble strategy though that might just be me.

Finished 'The Road' by Cormac Mccarthy. I really really enjoyed it. For those who don't know, its a post-apoc book following a father and his son amidst total destruction and emptiness. All the have is each other and the world that the author paints is very haunting and strange. I recommend this book.

Read this a few years ago. One of the posters here a long time ago was the guy who set the odds for the tournaments.

The Road really bummed me out, but is a story I will never forget.

Really liked Brave new World.

Ken