|
Post by bixaorellana on Mar 11, 2011 19:32:29 GMT
Ha -- Kimby, did you have the same problem with the hippo hunt that I did? It's what opens the book & bored the pants off me. Thank goodness I persevered, though. Here's the info on the Egyptian series: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilbur_Smith
|
|
|
Post by foreverman on Mar 12, 2011 5:33:53 GMT
Ooh, I didn't recognize the author's name, but I too was turned onto The River God and loved it, though it took about 50 pages to overcome my initial resistance. What is the name of the sequel, and what is this new book about? Is it in the same series, or a whole other period? The book following River God is called 'The Seventh Scroll", another very good book which I can recommend. Following is 'warlock', then 'The Quest'...................
|
|
|
Post by foreverman on Mar 12, 2011 5:37:30 GMT
Yes, they do, but we know we're being misdirected, don't we? Don't we?? I guessed who the local bad guy was fairly early on. Do you think we were meant to, or is Child slipping? Definately not, his latest book 'Worth Dying for' is well worth reading, one of his best in my opinion............ ............I guess all of us blokes want to be Jack Reacher.......... ;D
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Mar 12, 2011 6:08:11 GMT
Whew! That's a relief. I just love Lee Child and Jack Reacher.
|
|
|
Post by cheerypeabrain on Mar 12, 2011 20:01:44 GMT
Today I found myself in a bookshop (as you do) with a few minutes to kill before my appointment at the hairdresser's....not feeling able to face the trashy magazines that are all there is to read whilst I'm waiting for the chemicals to transform my sad drab locks into glittering vibrant tresses....and I had left the book I'm reading atm at home...so I asked an assistant to recommend something. She suggested this one... www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/products/barbara+erskine/time27s+legacy/7891103/Can't make up my mind about it....
|
|
|
Post by foreverman on Mar 13, 2011 1:47:57 GMT
I would imagine it would be a pretty good book. I remember reading one of hers a few years ago called 'Edge of Darkness', I think it was called that...............I really enjoyed it.... I must look out for more of hers...
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Mar 13, 2011 2:23:52 GMT
Why are you having trouble making up your mind about the book -- writing style?
My mother always says she only goes to the beauty parlor in order to read the magazines she's embarrassed to buy. ;D
|
|
|
Post by cheerypeabrain on Mar 13, 2011 16:06:12 GMT
It's a bit bland Bixa...and I feel terrible saying that when I know how difficult it is to write. It just isn't my sort of book. I've almost finished it because I couldn't sleep last night. It reminds me of the sort of story you find in some womens' magazines.
|
|
|
Post by foreverman on Mar 14, 2011 5:52:24 GMT
I went to the local Library book sale a few weeks ago and picked up a few for $1 each. I am reading one now, Robin Cooks 'Shock'. It's the first one of his I have read and I must say I quite like his style of writing. Its good to find an author you like even though I know he has been around a long time.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 14, 2011 6:05:27 GMT
Oh, I picked up a Robin Cook book that was forgotten by somebody in the basket of one of the municipal bicycles last week. I haven't read it yet, though.
|
|
|
Post by auntieannie on Mar 14, 2011 20:39:30 GMT
I have started "the lost language of plants" by Stephen Harrod Buhner.
absolutely brilliant as the cover suggests. I much prefer the look of the young author on the cover than the current pic on his website. People could be turned off by his hippy attire. He is saying such important truths in what I have read so far, I don't want it lost on some just because they think it is some gobbledegook!
|
|
|
Post by auntieannie on Mar 14, 2011 20:40:16 GMT
that's amidst trying to understand phytochemistry, and trying to remember anatomy, physiology and embryology details.
|
|
|
Post by cheerypeabrain on Mar 15, 2011 19:34:57 GMT
I thought about reading that book auntieannie...looks right up my street!
|
|
|
Post by bjd on Mar 29, 2011 9:48:23 GMT
I just finished Alan Furst's latest "Spies of the Balkans". I had been waiting for it to come out in paperback. It's good -- one of the better ones.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 29, 2011 14:15:19 GMT
I just finished Alan Furst's latest "Spies of the Balkans". I had been waiting for it to come out in paperback. It's good -- one of the better ones. Oh,I 'm so glad you enjoyed this BJD!!!! I remain in awe of his attention to historical detail. I saw a gentleman at my local cafe with a copy of Spies of Warsaw,and commented to him about Fursts other novels. He was of Greek origin,this man,and said he had read Spies of the Balkans because of it being based in Greece and, being smitten with, started on his other novels. I am reading Lords of Misrule, by Jaimy Gordon, a current bestseller that a neighbor gave me. It's a fascinating read that brilliantly captures the inside world of small time horse racing. The characters,the language,all beautifully written. I don't know that I would have picked this up on my own,however,my neighbor and I have such similar taste in books and she insisted I read it.
|
|
|
Post by fumobici on Mar 29, 2011 15:40:59 GMT
Currently reading Gammora by Roberto Saviano, pretty amazing (true) story. It's pretty lurid, being an account of the recent history of the various crime families and syndicates based around Naples. It's an Italian language edition as I like reading a book or two in Italian before I go there as it helps me get into the habit of thinking in Italian rather than English. Finding a copy in the US wasn't easy, I had to settle for a used copy from some bookstore in NJ. My cat thinks it smells very interesting which worries me a bit.
|
|
|
Post by bjd on Mar 29, 2011 15:47:22 GMT
Fumobici, there was also a movie based on the book.
|
|
|
Post by fumobici on Mar 29, 2011 15:59:09 GMT
Fumobici, there was also a movie based on the book. I know but I can't even imagine writing a screenplay from the book. It isn't a story per se and hasn't any real narrative arc that would translate into a satisfactory basis for a film. It's basically reportage of a journalistic sort with some first person accounts to flesh it out.
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Mar 30, 2011 0:10:45 GMT
That didn't stop Charlie Kaufman from crapping all over The Orchid Thief.
|
|
|
Post by lola on Apr 3, 2011 13:47:27 GMT
I just finished The Silent Land, by Graham Joyce, attracted to it by a positive NYTimes review, enjoyed it a lot. It expands into the supernatural elements in a compelling way. I think it could make a great film, too.
A young couple is skiing in the French Alps when they're buried by an avalanche. They dig themselves out and make their way back to the resort hotel, but find it deserted. No one answers when they try to phone out, and when they notice that candles don't burn down they begin to realize something unusual is happening.
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Apr 3, 2011 15:22:39 GMT
Ooooo ~~ that is so much my cup of tea!
I'm reading Flight of the Swan, by Rosario Ferré.
I bought this on discount to add to my slender store of emergency books -- those to be taken on trips or only read if disaster should strike & I'd run out of library books. Probably if I'd noticed that she was the author of The House on the Lagoon, I wouldn't have bought it. I'm glad I didn't notice, as I'm enjoying this book. It's about a ballet troupe from Russia who get stuck in Puerto Rico in 1917. The plot and characters all work, plus there is a subtle humor running through it that makes it truly enjoyable.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 5, 2011 22:03:31 GMT
I'm just about to start "Jesus and Buddha on Vacation," a manga by Hikaru Nikamura. Apparently, Jesus is quite pleased to be mistaken for Johnny Depp in the streets of Tokyo.
|
|
|
Post by joanne28 on Apr 8, 2011 13:36:39 GMT
I read Submarine by Joe Dunthorne. A coming-of-age book, it reminded me of the Adrian Mole novels. It was a pleasant little time-waster, perfect for the flight.
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Apr 8, 2011 15:23:10 GMT
Flight? Where are you?
I mostly don't read coming-of-age novels, although will make exceptions if recommended by people I trust.
|
|
|
Post by lola on Apr 8, 2011 16:34:27 GMT
I'm just about to start "Jesus and Buddha on Vacation," a manga by Hikaru Nikamura. Apparently, Jesus is quite pleased to be mistaken for Johnny Depp in the streets of Tokyo.
|
|
|
Post by joanne28 on Apr 8, 2011 19:06:52 GMT
Bixa, I was in England from March 18 and flew back this Monday. A great trip, very busy and my DH says he won't allow me to overschedule as I did. HA! This I have to see. We did stay with4 different sets of friends from Kent to Derbyshire so yes, it was action-packed.
|
|
|
Post by Kimby on Apr 9, 2011 23:49:02 GMT
The book following River God is called 'The Seventh Scroll', another very good book which I can recommend. Following is 'warlock', then 'The Quest'................... So I got Seventh Scroll from the library and started it, but as it is a rather heavy tome in hardcover, I took a paperback version of Dan Brown's Deception Point to Wisconsin to visit my parents. And on Monday I will pick up a book at the used bookstore that I have been waiting for: Committed (the sequel to Eat, Pray, Love). And I recently bought Greg Mortenson's 2nd book Stones Into Schools (his first was Three Cups of Tea). And the Girl Who Played with Fire is waiting in my nightstand as well. Such a wealth of reading materials to choose from. And here I sit playing on the computer....
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Apr 10, 2011 0:18:51 GMT
Joanne, you went all the way to England, how could you not overschedule, with that chance?! Sounds glorious.
That's what has stopped me in the past from following up some books -- the sheer size. Sheesh, I love to read, but what I just wrote sounds like a whiny 6th grader looking for an easy book report.
|
|
|
Post by foreverman on Apr 25, 2011 10:33:50 GMT
Just finished 'The Judas Gate' by Jack Higgins, now reading 'The Silent Sea' by Clive Cussler
|
|
|
Post by joanne28 on Apr 27, 2011 13:58:47 GMT
I've been steadily munching through the entire canon of the Brother Cadfael mysteries. I'm nearly finished no. 18. I started this because I had a visit planned to Shrewsbury, where most of the books are set. I did get through 10 or 11 before we got there so I decided I might as well finish them off. I really enjoy these - they fall into the genre of 'after dinner books", much like after dinner mints - a pleasant little taste but not too filling. Perfect for relaxation.
I've also started Barney's Version by Mordecai Richler. Once I've finished that, I plan on seeing the movie. I am having a hard time separating Mordecai from Barney. Still, it's a good read.
|
|