*cracks the whip*
Jul. 11th, 2007 10:35 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nilchanceExcept, you know, not really.
So I'm doing that 'read 50 books in a year' project, starting yesterday. I'm looking for something to read, and I'd love some recommendations. Fiction, non-fiction, heavy reading, summer beach fare, whatever, just give me something to pick up and devour. Even if I don't end up reading it, I'm a recovering bookseller; I love to see what other people are reading.
So I'm doing that 'read 50 books in a year' project, starting yesterday. I'm looking for something to read, and I'd love some recommendations. Fiction, non-fiction, heavy reading, summer beach fare, whatever, just give me something to pick up and devour. Even if I don't end up reading it, I'm a recovering bookseller; I love to see what other people are reading.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 02:45 pm (UTC)Anything by Holly Lisle, especially Talyn.(fantasy/romantic suspense).
And I'm about to start reading the non-fiction book Trickster Makes the World, focusing on the mythology of Trickster gods and such.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 05:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 03:02 pm (UTC)lunar park (http://www.amazon.com/Lunar-Park-Bret-Easton-Ellis/dp/0375727272/), by bret easton ellis :: currently re-reading, and it's still the best book i've read since way before i read it the first time. (disclaimer: see above.)
frontiers (http://www.amazon.com/Frontiers-Michael-Jensen/dp/0671027212/), by michael jensen :: i recently finished this one, and while i thought the plot was needlessly twisty in some places, it was still a darn good read, and i can recommend it without a disclaimer!
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 03:03 pm (UTC)Hit the gay romance line, babe. Seriously, this genre is up and coming and has some fantastic books that you can read. I've bought all the books from Romentics (http://www.romentics.com/non_flash/Romentics.html) and they are just really fun. Somewhat typical in the romance novel stream, but the topics are good and the sex HOT HOT HOT!!
I'd also recommend a series called 'The Sword Of Truth' by Terry Goodkind (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_n_0/104-1187613-6835134?ie=UTF8&rs=1000&rh=n%3A1000%2Cp%5F27%3ATerry%20Goodkind%2Cn%3A17). There are currently eleven out of the twelve books out and it is fantastic. It's a romance/action/fantasy series that keeps you on the edge of your seat and rooting for the main characters like crazy!
Then, I'd also recommend the Valdemar series (http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltguides/fullview/ZBPU3MRQY6VD/ref=cm_syt_dtpa_f_1_rdssss0/104-1187613-6835134?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=sylt-center&pf_rd_r=0KJ96QXJZCPK9B149CSR&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=253457301&pf_rd_i=0739435248) by Mercedes Lackey. Such a rich world and it has awesome hints of gay stuff, so it's fun too!!
Lastly, I'd recommend basically anything by Anne McCaffrey (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/104-1187613-6835134?%5Fencoding=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=books&field-author=Anne%20McCaffrey). I most heartily recommend the PERN series and the Rowan series. Both are sci-fi fantasy, the first dealing with a group of colonists moving to a planet and having to create dragons to battle this parasite that comes and eats everything. The second deals with Earth as it's in a planetary alliance and the only transportation through space is with the help of Telepaths and Telekinetics.
Hope that helps!
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 03:16 pm (UTC)Andrew Vachss packs a hell of a punch with simple words, short chapters, gritty NY Noir-ish detective-ish fics. Start with Blue Belle or his short-story collection.
Orson Scott Card, Ender's game. One of those rare 'perfect' books.
Phillip Pullman, The Golden Compass. Sooo cool.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 03:27 pm (UTC)http://morgandawn.livejournal.com/tag/books (I am finishsing up the Dresden file series and having a blast with it. very fun)
also
http://del.icio.us/morgandawn/bookstoread
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 04:14 pm (UTC)Part 1
Date: 2007-07-11 04:57 pm (UTC)In the fiction line up:
The Summoning Series by Tanya Huff.
Tanya Huff is a Canadian writer, and esp. given
Also by Tanya Huff, the Blood Series. Started reading Huff here because everyone I know who reads more sf/fantasy than I do (which is very nearly everyone who isn't a coworker and/or my family) had been rec'eing her forever. Then Lifetime started the badly produced but staring lots of pretty people Blood Ties series, and I had very pretty actors populating both Vicki and Fitzroy. They were generally better written than the summoning series, but still not great.
Basically, good fan fiction has spoiled me.
If you haven't read the Temeraire books by Naomi Novik, I strongly reccomend those. Books 1-3 are currently available, and book four is her very special birthday present just to me. (Okay, really, it's the publisher's unknowing present to me as it comes out the day before my birthday, but hey, you know, this is my world). They're basically being marketed as Patrick O'Brien's MAster and Commander series, but with dragons who talk. The books are srongly done popular fiction, although as with most series, the quality seemed to fall of a bit in the 3rd. 18th century men in war told from the point of view of a Naval captain who finds himself having to "go into harness" (i.e. the belief is that dragons can only be tamed by putting them into harness imediately after birth and the dragons imprint on the handler who harnesses them). That POV works well because as readers we're introduced to the world just as he is, so it's an excellent way to sneak in narration and world building without exposition dumps. The characters are lively, the world has several lovely surprises that I liked, and I'm a sucker for Age of Sail settings. (Dragons are like ships of the line but obviously in the air.) Novik is a fan fiction writer who's gone pro, and the books are also interesting for their metacommentary on fandom as well as looking at the ways that someone who's written a fair amount of slash can convert those narratives into something marketable and published by a mainstream press.
A lot of my friends also like Tamora Pierce, but I haven't gotten around to reading that yet.
Re: Part 1
Date: 2007-07-11 06:21 pm (UTC)Part 2
Date: 2007-07-11 04:58 pm (UTC)Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know and Doesn't by Stephen Prothero. I should warn you off the bat that the book makes no mention of Paganism whatsoever.
However, at my day job, I see plenty of evidence that people don't know much about the religions of the world. This boggles my mind, as 1)I grew up Catholic in Evangelistic World, so I got a crash course in comparative religion from a very young age 2)I grew up, despite being a devout Catholic, being told that I was going to hell along with the Jews and unlike many folks with a Catholic upbringing, I was taught that most of Catholicism, and thereby Christianity, evolved out of Judaism (After all, Jesus was Jewish). As a result, when I got to college, I spent some time studying Judaism. Not with an eye to converting--more with an interest in the roots of the religion I'd been raised in (which, incidentally, was also how I got interested in paganism). At any rate, I took at least two or three classes that focused on religion while I was there, including a world religion course. I find it very hard to do what I do and not know at least the basics about religion.
I heard about this book, like the previous one, on The Daily Show which, along with NPR, is where I get most of my book reviews these days.
I'm not 100% sure I agree with everything the book says, but I did find that it taught me a few things I didn't already know about some Eastern religions (namely, I don't know as much about Buddhism as I should), and I liked his basic argument that although Europeans aren't devout the way that Americans claim to be, they know factual information about their religions that Americans don't. (Many Americans, including those who self-identify as Christian think there are verses in the Bible that aren't, can't name the four gospels, and so on.) Also, it hasa quiz. Who from onlineland doesn't love a quiz?
The other non-fiction I'm reading is Six Frigates which is a history of the founding of the US Navy. It caught my eye because 1)I have a thing ::glares at
Hope something in there works for you and/or isn't a repeat of stuff you've already read.
Re: Part 2
Date: 2007-07-11 06:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 05:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 05:02 pm (UTC)Feels like poetic justice - am over here reading your of bastard saints series (only on chapter 2 but intriguing & well written thus far...) - and you're asking for book recs.
The Once and Future King by T H White is a bit of a cult classic, a retelling of the Arthurian legends. White is a contemporary of Tolkein and had a similar academic background and I have always felt that this book was written partial as a response to the hype over Tolkein's reworking on myth and legend.
That said, it's not satirical or bitter, just a wry look at society through the lens of mythology and despite being over 50 years old its perception and impact is just as fresh as it ever used to be - people, after all, don't change though the technology might. It's a good story too, and in a very readable style.
Other recommendations would be The Count of Monte Christo by Andre Dumas - forget the movies - this is an epic that is so finely plotted it's amazing that one writer could hold it all in his head. And if you like Dumas, there are of course the series of 5 D'Artagnan romances beginning with The Three Musketeers and ending with The man in the Iron Mask (the middle 3 are harder to come by)
I think those are my all time two favourite books though, closely followed by Naomi Novic's Temeraire (or His Majesty's Dragon in the US I think) for a bit of lighter fantasty!
Enjoy
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 06:03 pm (UTC)Anything by Barbara Hambly. She's a little drier, but she's got a brilliant, spare prose and writes amazing mysteries in both the historical and fantasy fields. Her Benjamin January series is exquisite. She's written about vampires, Nazis, mages, dragons, demons... I adore her beyond belief.
The House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. One of the VERY few books that's ever actually scared me. It's a strange, weird read, but it's totally worth it.
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. Post-Apocalyptic, gender issues, procreation issues, ideological issues...what more could you ask for. Another book I reread regularly.
I have issues with her writing overall, but for a fast, fun read I like Charlaine Harris. She's one of the few authors that can hold my gnatlike attention span right now and I can finish one of her books in a day or less.
Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldman. It's nonfiction and it's one of the few 'writing advice' books that's ever clicked with me. She's a very 'in-between' woman; a Jew by birth who came to embrace a lot of Eastern (Zen) philosophy. It's an absolutely engaging book even if you're not a writer or plan to be one. She also wrote the excellent Wild Mind.
Dance of the Dissident Daughter by Sue Monk Kidd. It's a memoir type book about a woman spiraling from her Christian upbringing into paganism and again, it's just an interesting and intelligent book.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 06:23 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-16 04:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 06:49 pm (UTC)Obsidian Trilogy (The Outstretched Shadow, To Light a Candle & When Darkness Falls) by: Mercedes Lackey & James Mallory.
The Demon Child Trilogy (Medalon, Treason Keep & Harshini) by: Jennifer Fallon.
All the above are fantasy, and also I'm planning to read "The Dream Hunter" by: Sherrilyn Kenyon. :)
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 08:51 pm (UTC)just about everything by Jennifer Crusie - she writes "romance" but it's consistently fun, smart and full of interesting, quirky individuals who avoid most of the cliches. froth, but lots of fun
I second Robb Thurman, Naomi Novik and Tanya Huff as enjoyable authors - Huff's Smoke and ... series is especially fun, as there's some fannish TV meta in there.
Sharon Kay Penman has written a series of excellent (fictional) histories of England's kings (beginning 1180? through the War of the Roses) - they're wonderfully researched and the details feel *real*. she also has several mysteries featuring Eleanor of Acquitaine.
Donna Andrews Meg Lanslow mystery series (all have 'bird' titles, the first one is Murder with Peacocks) are filled with fun and unusual characters, and lots of humour.
non-fiction:
just about anything by Bill Bryson - he has written amazingly about his experiences and discoveries in Australia, the US, Europe and England, as well as some really fantastic works on language and science.
happy reading!
no subject
Date: 2007-07-11 10:58 pm (UTC)The Romantic by Babara Gowdry.
Our lady of the lost and found by Diane Schu... I can't see it from where I am sitting.
The Other Lover Sarah Jackman
no subject
Date: 2007-07-12 03:38 pm (UTC)I read lots of things - many many things on the internet - but most of the things that are printed on actual paper are non-fiction. Um, okay...
I read this book recently called The Boy Who Was Raised As a Dog: What Traumatized Children Can Teach Us About Loss, Love and Healing by Bruce D. Perry and Maia Szalavitz. It counts as one of those books that changed my understanding, shifted my paradigm, of how our brains work and drove home the point of how our brains are CONSTRUCTED in infancy/childhood and how that affects our later life - including how trauma, at any age but particularly at young ages, physically changes our brains' ways of interacting with the world. The stories can be harrowing but it's well worth it and I like the style of the author. It's one of the texts that made me decide that I'd like to be a clinical child psychologist.
Oh! Here's one that I got in pdf form from a wackass website.
DMT: The Spirit Molecule - link is to a pdf. Yes, I'm a big giant hippy, everyone knows it. I can count the number of times I've taken psychedelics on my fingers but each time it was not about "getting high" for me. Psychedelics are a spiritual, for lack of a better word, experience for me - something to be respected and not undertaken lightly. I'm thinking that soon I'll take some again - it's been a few years - to "check in" to that part of my consciousness.
Also, I don't think you have her friended but I wanted you to see this - Yoga + Fibromyalgia.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-12 05:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-14 06:27 am (UTC)A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb. I'm not sure how to sum it up without giving away too much. But it's a ghost story with a twist.
The Thief, The Queen of Attolia, The King of Attolia by Megan Whelan Turner. A political intrigue fantasy angst-fest with a quirky main character.
Anything by Diana Wynne Jones; my favorites are Howl's Moving Castle, THe Homeward Bounders and Archer's Goon.
City of BOnes by Cassandra Clare. Suddenly able to see demons and the hunters sent to kill them, Clary is drawn into a strange world.
These are all classified as YA, but they deserve a much wider audience.
(And that's just the top shelf of my book case...)
no subject
Date: 2007-07-14 10:41 am (UTC)'Gossamer Axe', by Gael Baudino, is hard to find; but I thought it was very good. It has a bisexual woman as the main character, trying to win her female lover back from the Sidhe.
Have you read anything by Ellen Kushner? 'Swordspoint' is a must! It's got romance, intrigue, witty dialoge, luscious writing, and a good story.
I actually got to meet her when I went to Wiscon in May with my friend, Kestrelsparhawk. I was too chicken to ask for an autograph, though. (Yeah, I'm still excited about it!)*big grin*
There's a series of English mysteries set in the Georgian period that I liked very much. They're written from the pov of a teenage boy who gets taken in by Sir John Fielding, a blind magistrate who solves crimes. I've read many Victorian mysteries, so it's fascinating to see how these differ from them. Much lustier, grungier time period, for sure. Whether you like these or not would largely depend on your tolerance for the murder parts of the mysteries, I suspect.
I'm in the 50bookchallenge livejournal, too. I've been reading mainly non-fiction, as I want to expand my reading tastes (and get away from reading so much fanfic), so it's been slower going. But I've really enjoyed most of what I've read so far this year.
Of those titles, I'd particularly recommend:
'No Applause, Just Throw Money', by Trav S.D. It's about the history of vaudeville theater & it was great.
'Bachelor Girls', by Betty Israel. History of women living single. I read a lot of "women's studies" type books & I liked this one very much.
"The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History", by John M. Barry. Absolutely horrific, but I think it should be a must-read. I would read a chapter then go talk to the doctor I work for about it, freaking out. *shudders*
"Dancing in the Streets: A History of Collective Joy", by Barbara Ehrenreich. An overview of the history of ecstatic religious/secular celebrations. She's a very approachable writer.
'Spymistress: The Life of Vera Atkins, the Greatest Female Secret Agent of World War II', by William Stevenson. The author's a bit of a fanboy for Vera, since he knew her; but it's still a good read. Lots of behind the scenes manuevering that will really piss you off at various governments, and admire the men and women who took on the tasks that their governments were too chickenshit or prejudiced to do. There's a lot of info in it, so it's not a fast read, but it's enlightening.
"Ladies of Labor, Girls of Adventure" by Nan Enstad is the latest title I just finished. All about labor/class politics, working women's culture, and the shirtwaist workers' strike in the 1900s. I found myself very indignant for those poor factory girls! Again, a title that has me wanting to read more by this author and find similar books, for further study.
I meant to reply to your entry earlier this week, but I kept getting distracted by work. Hope you enjoy yourself with this-I'm finding it a lot harder to make goal than I ever expected, myself. But I've read a lot of new material that I wouldn't have without 50bookchallenge, so it's still an achievement for me.
Pesti
no subject
Date: 2007-07-17 02:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-07-19 03:05 am (UTC)I don't know whether to be more appalled at the death toll, the speed of the virus' mutations, or the amount of sheer stupidity that exacerbated the situation!
Pesti
no subject
Date: 2007-07-15 06:48 am (UTC)You may have read some of these already, but I'll throw them out there just in case!
Time-Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
In the Company of the Courtesan - Sarah Dunant
World War Z - Max Brooks
We Thought You'd Be Prettier - Laurie Notaro(she's freaking hilarious!)
Garlic and Sapphires - Ruth Reichl
Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman
American Gods - Neil Gaiman
Good Omens - Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
Tipping the Velvet - Sarah Waters
Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde
no subject
Date: 2007-07-16 07:45 am (UTC)*The Liaden Universe* by Steve Miller and Sharon Lee.
Wonderfully realized characters? Check
Imaginative, but real universe? Check
Fantastic alien race? Check
Romance and true love? Check
A rich background, skillfully drawn? Check
Rip-roaring, rollercoaster, Saturday afternoon movie cliff-hanger of a good time? Check
I read my original paperback copies of the first three books in the series, *Conflict of Honors*, *Agent of Change*, and *Carpe Diem* until they literally fell apart (Scotch tape was my friend).
For a start go to: www.korval.com
There you'll find a complete list of all of the books in the series. There are two volumes that contain the stories written to this point that you can purchase through the site.
If you decide to read them, do let me know what you think. I, like Anne McCaffrey keep these books on my "comfort shelf" near my bed. Whenever I can't sleep these are the books I re-read.
no subject
Date: 2007-07-31 02:48 am (UTC)The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Polan. Very readable on modern foodchains. It may be fun for thinking about a post DeathKnell world and is scary and interesting for the real world.
Similarly, if you haven't read them Guns, Germs and Steel and Collapse, both by Jared Diamond, are good and are basically a duology on how societies rise and fall (respectively). Fascinating stuff if a bit scary.
And because it does one of the things that I love out of deathknell, Downbelow Station by C. J. Cherryh. It was one of the first novels I read with massively alternating POVs and I've been addicted to that mode since then (and have a terrible time finding it). It's space war done very personally.
oops, forgot one
Date: 2007-07-31 02:58 am (UTC)