What are you reading?

[JustLovelyJenn]

The Sound and the Fury... for American Lit... Someone save me...

[Melissa]

Shiver by Lisa Jackson. I just started it. Very creepy.

[ONLY]

I am now reading the 12th novel in the Anita Blake series "Incubus Dreams" by Laurell K. Hamilton. Thanks again to my girl, SS , for getting me hooked on the series

[Soft*Silver]

I am starting the hunger games today...I want to read it before I see the movie

[gotoseagrl]

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy ... lots and lots of pages.

[Fancy]

A Mercy
by Toni Morrison

True poetry in the writing, but gut wrenching and sad.

[LeftWriteFemme]

Stoneheart by Charlie Fletcher

[wolfsgirl]

Miss Peregrine's home for peculiar children by Ransom Riggs.

[aishah]

finished the hunger games trilogy. i can relate a lot to what katzchen wrote about it, being a survivor myself. i was kind of underwhelmed by the writing and found a lot of things frustrating (the ends of the books felt rushed, as though the author wanted to explain the plot tie-ups rather than actually writing them, the beginning of the last book is corny and boring, etc.). some of the violence wasn't written very believably. (some of it was.) i did really like the world creation and dystopian aspects, though, and i think by the middle of the final book the characters were all very realistic to me - especially the main character - not always likeable but very realistic. i enjoyed the last 2/3rds of the final book a lot. the rest was kind of meh.

think i'm going to read drag king dreams next.

[aishah]

actually i lied, i promised my friend i'd read forty rules of love first, so that's next

[Estella]

Gods Behaving Badly by Marie Phillips. Fluffy & funny ...

[justkim]

I am going to upload The Hunger Games to my Nook...I am looking forward to reading them since 9 our of 10 people I have spoken with have loved them. I was also told about The Wheel (s) of time series going to look into this series. Has anyone read this series?

[JustJo]

Originally Posted by justkim

I am going to upload The Hunger Games to my Nook...I am looking forward to reading them since 9 our of 10 people I have spoken with have loved them. I was also told about The Wheel (s) of time series going to look into this series. Has anyone read this series?

The Wheel of Time series starts out really well, but was dragged out far too long. Probably should have ended after about 3 books....

[aishah]

Originally Posted by justkim

I am going to upload The Hunger Games to my Nook...I am looking forward to reading them since 9 our of 10 people I have spoken with have loved them. I was also told about The Wheel (s) of time series going to look into this series. Has anyone read this series?

i agree with justjo - wheel of time is one of my favorite fantasy series but it's very long and sometimes boring/frustrating in parts. a song of ice and fire by george r.r. martin is another great epic series though. and if you're looking for something more along the lines of the hunger games (shorter ya fantasy) check out the wolves of mercy falls trilogy by maggie stiefvater

[Kätzchen]

Originally Posted by aishah

actually i lied, i promised my friend i'd read forty rules of love first, so that's next

"Forty Rules of Love First" has got to be the next book I get at Powells
(for summer reading).

Thank you, aishah.

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I am about a quarter of the way into the newest book I've been reading lately.

Boo, Catherine (Jan 2012). Behind the beautiful forevers. New York, NY: Random House Publishers. NYTs review (LINK).

When I'm through reading this book, I'm taking a break from reading books that are new to me. I like to sit and meld with them. I record notes in mine (thoughts I have while reading certain passages)... What about any of you here: do you find yourself doing that too?

[aishah]

it's just called "forty rules of love" and it's by turkish author elif shafak (i said 'first' because i meant i have to read it first before i read drag king dreams...hehe!) i started it earlier this evening though and it's really wonderful! and you're welcome.
http://www.elifshafak.com/kitaplar/the_frol.asp

how do you like "behind the beautiful forevers"?

• Memoirs of Munich by Jones.T, Cooper.D, and Butler.R.A.
• The Origins of the Second World War by Taylor.A.J.P.
• Munich, The Appeasement Crisis by Faber.D

[Tawse]

here's my take on The Hunger Games...


I start with a disclaimer. I like stuff that makes other people roll their eyes. I LIKE Keanue Reeves acting. I can easily get immersed into moves and books and even if I notice problems - as long as you don't assault me - I'll work with you. Heck even if you do assault me, if like the way you write - I'll still work with you.

What I really liked about The Hunger Games is the IMO more realistic portrayal of someone who is put into traumatic experiences - particularly the end of the book. I don't want to spoil it for anyone so I'll just leave it at that and the ones who have read it will hopefully understand what I'm talking about. If not, rep or pm me and I'll explain

I enjoyed falling in love with Katniss. She was young, she was fallible, she wasn't the uber hero - she was a girl who just so happened to do the right thing under pressure. The more time she had to think - the worse off she was. lol I can relate to that.

For me, THG is the series to beat in regards to YA Dystopian Fiction.

[foxyshaman]

Originally Posted by Kätzchen

"When I'm through reading this book, I'm taking a break from reading books that are new to me. I like to sit and meld with them. I record notes in mine (thoughts I have while reading certain passages)... What about any of you here: do you find yourself doing that too?

I really like to re-read books. I make notes in mine and underline and star and heck I even bend pages. When I reread books I am often struck by what I skimmed over, and what I thought was important at that time. I like to learn something *again*.

I primarily read non-fiction, but I do confess a love for collections of short stories in the fantasy realm. My two favorite editors are Terri Windling and Ellen Datlow. If their names are on it, I am going to like it. I also like some of Jeffrey Ford's work. He has one short (I am sure it was him) called "Kate the Lion Tailed Girl" that I retold at a Pagan Festival in the fall... the audience loved it. I just wish I had a costume befitting it...

Like you Katzchen I meld with my books. If they are super good, and not on loan from the library, they will stay by my bedside for weeks. Sometimes they get covered by other books, but buried underneath, is a warm feeling wrapped up in pages and words.

[Kätzchen]

~>> aishah & foxyshaman: when reading any particular book or article, I generally set aside my internal wiring (biases, etc) and read what is before me; as neutrally as possible with the eyes of a child (a child like wonder - Rachel Carson). After I have read the entire book or article, I then go back and re-read with whatever particular application of lens is necessary to help me understand the authors' particular views or other pertinent issues within that particular context of writing (genre, style of writing, method of claim delivery, etc).

When I finish my first reading of Catherine Boo's book on life in a Dubai slum, I'll go back and re-read in a critical fashion as I examine issues set forth in her text and make notes on things that may share sets of interests I study at an academic level. Usually by the time I have read a book for the fourth or fifth time, it's for pleasure - which by then, I've almost memorized the entire contents of said book or article.


~>> Tawse: I could identify with Katniss (re: the more time she had to think about things, the worse off she was. That is soOoOOOooo me, at times). I don't read enough dystopian material to know if THG is the series to top; but if THG is the series to top, then this might explain why I don't read material in this particular genre.

Best Lines Ever (in your post): "as long as you don't assault me - I'll work with you. Heck even if you do assault me, if like the way you write - I'll still work with you" (Tawse).