Books: What are you currently reading?

[Arrow Grut]

The Autobiography of Malcom X, about 60 pages in. Very good book. Next on the list is a walk in the woods and then after that is Metro:2033.

[Mossman]

Finally got around to finishing Inferno by Dan Brown. Better than Lost Symbol, but still too padded out and a bit too much running and escaping and not enough clues in the first 1/3 of the book for my liking. Fairly satisfying ending with a good twist.

[Mossman]

Originally Posted by Aldin

Just finished reading _The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo_ and am mystified by how it was such a big deal. It is monstrously slow and features a bunch of relatively unlikable characters that tend to be odd for the sake of being odd. Every revelation felt like a let down because it had very little heft to it - there wasn't much in the way of "whoa, I didn't see that coming" moments - not a good sign for a mystery. It does have some graphic, icky, sexual stuff, which I more or less conclude must have been the draw, but I don't "get it". And finally, considering the title, the book didn't have much to do with the titular character. I foolishly bought this and the sequel at the same time. Now I have a book sitting on my shelf that I have no desire to actually read.

~Aldin, disappointedly

I liked it a lot and loved the sequels. I had the advantage of being warned in advance that the first half was very slow and not all that well-written, but that if I slogged through, it would be worth my while, so the first act didn't discourage me like it does a lot of people. I liked it for the mystery. Lots of icky sex but I thought it served the plot and character development. The characters weren't likable but I found them believable and bought into their situations. Different strokes, I suppose.

[Son of Arathorn]

Started (and finished) Jim Butcher's Storm Front yesterday. About what I expected, decent (but not terrific) writing, with a plot thick enough and characters likeable enough to warrant reading the next book.

[Heroscaper Guy]

Originally Posted by Arrow Grut

The Autobiography of Malcom X, about 60 pages in. Very good book. Next on the list is a walk in the woods and then after that is Metro:2033.

A Walk in the Woods is hilarious! Definitely recommend it if you've ever hiked on part of the Appalachian trail.

[Dad_Scaper]

Originally Posted by Aldin

Just finished reading _The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo_ and am mystified by how it was such a big deal. It is monstrously slow and features a bunch of relatively unlikable characters that tend to be odd for the sake of being odd. Every revelation felt like a let down because it had very little heft to it - there wasn't much in the way of "whoa, I didn't see that coming" moments - not a good sign for a mystery. It does have some graphic, icky, sexual stuff, which I more or less conclude must have been the draw, but I don't "get it". And finally, considering the title, the book didn't have much to do with the titular character. I foolishly bought this and the sequel at the same time. Now I have a book sitting on my shelf that I have no desire to actually read.

~Aldin, disappointedly

I agree with this post absolutely, word for word. Do not read the sequel! You will be wasting your time, just be glad you didn't also buy the third!

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is not even the best Scandinaivan detective fiction I ever read, because I liked Henning Mankell's Faceless Killers more. Don't read the other ones, Aldin!

Let's see, the last few books I read:

The Windup Bird Chronicle, Haruki Murakami
The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards, Kristopher Jansma
Half a Life, V.S. Naipul

Now I'm working on The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt. So, basically it's been a string of books where I'm reading contemporary literature, but now I have Jim Butcher's Skin Game from the library calling me, so I have to wrap up The Goldfinch quickly so I can get back to Harry Dresden, calling me from my briefcase.

[Dr.Goomonkey]

Last Saturday I picked up The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, so I'm re-reading that dandy little trilogy. Right now I'm finishing up The Restaurant at the End of the Universe.

Great books, I had forgotten how much your view of the world and people changes while reading these though.

[Agent Minivann]

Recently finished The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, by Heinlein. I really liked it. I've started on Stranger in a Strange Land, as well. Heinlein seems to be my kind of writer.

I also recently finished the first book of The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan. I thought it was tedious. I'll give the second one a chance before I bail on the series.

Also working on Red Mars, by Kim Stanley Robinson.

[Arch-vile]

Originally Posted by Agent Minivann

I also recently finished the first book of The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan. I thought it was tedious. I'll give the second one a chance before I bail on the series.

I just started that one. I'm two chapters in. I like Jordan's style of writing so far (not that there is much to go by yet) - I set out looking to get immersed in his world and he is succeeding there. It does feel Tolkien-esque; Jordan begins his epic tale in a small village with unlikely heroes, and the plot will take a while to speed up. I'll see where it goes.

[Aldin]

Originally Posted by Agent Minivann

I also recently finished the first book of The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan. I thought it was tedious. I'll give the second one a chance before I bail on the series.

If you found the first one tedious, I can't recommend bothering with the second. The first three books were of roughly similar quality. Books 4-6 saw the series slow down, but maintained interest because of the investment the reader has in the plot and characters. Books 7-9 grind to a halt. Numbers 10&11 are more interesting, but still ponderously slow. After Sanderson takes over in the wake of Jordan's death, books 12-14 fly pretty quickly to the conclusion in a satisfying, but abbreviated feeling way.

~Aldin, who spent over twenty years reading the series

[caps]

Originally Posted by Aldin

If you found the first one tedious, I can't recommend bothering with the second. The first three books were of roughly similar quality. Books 4-6 saw the series slow down, but maintained interest because of the investment the reader has in the plot and characters. Books 7-9 grind to a halt. Numbers 10&11 are more interesting, but still ponderously slow. After Sanderson takes over in the wake of Jordan's death, books 12-14 fly pretty quickly to the conclusion in a satisfying, but abbreviated feeling way.

~Aldin, who spent over twenty years reading the series

Yup.

[1Mmirg]

Yeah, I lost interest somewhere around 7, I think, so it looks like that matches with your rough analysis, Aldin. Just didn't bother to pick the next one up after that.

It is a cool idea, overall, and I enjoyed it, but I just couldn't keep up the interest and finally asked myself, Why am I trying to?