46 replies to this topic

[facool]

what books are you reading this month??

I'me reading THE WATCHMAN, by Robert Crais.

What about you guys??

[husker]

This seem like a rather vague topic.

I hope to read the first book in Eragon and Sabriel. Hopefully I like both so I can read more in the series.

[FolkRockFan]

Well...the month's not over yet, so I can only go with what I've read SO FAR this month

Erica Kennedy's "Bling." This wasn't bad. I didn't think that she had to go with so much back story...and the asides to explain things...but it worked all right for her first novel. Not bad overall.

Chuck Palahniuk's "Choke." I figured that this would be a lot like "Fight Club," seeing as the latter novel was the one that made this guy famous. But, it's not like it at all. It's a pretty good read if you like Chuck P's fast-paced and really weird writing style.

I re-read Stephen King's "The Bachman Books." The old edition with "Rage." You know - before he became concerned about the whole school shootings thing and had that novella replaced with "Thinner." Yuck.

Oh, and I also read "Cell" (another King novel). It's not as good as some of his older books. I liked it, but not enough to re-read at some point in the future.

Right now I'm waiting for Anthony Swofford's "Jarhead" to show up. I saw the film and really want to read the book because I'm betting that the guy's novel explains things more thoroughly. As in, why in the world the unit did half of the things that they did...what was on the guy's mind...that sort of thing. The stuff that the movies can't often show us.

[rvalkass]

I'm reading Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson. Its a good book simply becuase it keeps you laughing all the way through, especially due to the fact that you can relate to every observation and opinion expressed.

[TypoMage]

Hey Husker I just read Eragon too, It was ok. I read all of the Brians books, ( By Gary Paulson ) In two days, yea they are kind of easy but very enjoyable. I like books about people surviving in the wilderness.

[salamangkero]

I'm currently reading The Exquisite Thing, an erotic novel by Joyce Maciver. )@mn, I'd like to write like her! Erotic, hot, yet at the same time subtle and non-vulgar

Oh, and while I'm at it, I'd also like her heroine's power of seduction

[fffanatics]

Personally, i do not have time to read books for fun anymore. Between working, college, research and fraternity events and such i spend most of my time reading school books. This past week i read about 15 different research papers published in SIGRAPH about real time render of plants, soft shadows, hard shadows, prt, etc. that i need for research. They are hard core programming papers but are very interesting and the realistic graphics they produce is amazing. For me, this is somewhat my fun reading cause its much better than a book for women's studies or something like that

[Unregistered 012]

I am currently reading the new Halo book, Ghosts of Onyx. by Eric Nylund. It is a good book and is interesting. I think it is better than the other 3 Halo books. But other than that for school i am reading Call of the Wild. Dont know how it is by though.

[Roconza]

Right now i'm reading the readwall series of books,I love the first book Marlfox so much that I am now trying to read the whole series so far I have read Mattimeo,Redwall,Triss and right now I'm reading The Pearls of Lutra.I love these books for thoses whom don't know redwall is fantasy series that centers on a diffrent group of aninals depending on the book which is most a diffrent story and character each book.It may sound lame but it is really a great series of books,I think it is good series with very good storys byBrian Jacques you sould check it out I think you'll like if you like books like Harry potter and Eragon.

Edited by Roconza, 16 March 2007 - 05:16 AM.

[Lethe]

The Quest - Wilbur Smith: It was an absolutely awesome series, and now it's even better.
GTO manga- Really interesting read and extremely comical.

[Casino.Royale]

I'm going to be reading Star Wars: Jedi Quest. I was at my school's library and somehow the book caught my eye, I figured they didn't have any so never bothered looking. Hopefully I can find some more Star Wars books their.

[Vardigon]

I'm currently reading two books. I've just about finished one of them. The first is The Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix. It's a composite of his three books Sabriel, Lirael, and Abhorsen. It's not the absolute best fantasy series that I've read in my life, with such authors as David Eddings and Terry Brooks being better, I think, but it's certainly entertaining. I really like the unique ideas that he's had for his system of magic: necromancer bells, two (perhaps three) different forms of magic, one of them made by a pact in the beginning of time. The other is a brand of literary fiction, horror, science fiction, weird fiction: the collected Tales of HP Lovecraft, edited by Joyce Carol Oates. Haha! Now there's an excellent author. I've read two of his so far: The Outsider, and The Music of Erich Zann. Both of these had situations where reality started out all too real, and then by the end was a cacophony in outer space, which is all too like him. That's how gothic stories go in general: they have a mostly real setting, but then an element of the supernatural that tweaks your senses for a moment before overtaking you completely, sending you off into a nebulous realm where only the author's ideas reign in either splendor or chaos.

The introduction of the latter is quite a read, and she really provides some insight into the inner workings of Lovecraft's mind, and how he viewed the world.

Quite good stuff.

Edited by Vardigon, 10 June 2008 - 05:48 AM.

[mm22]

A book I've recently read and I would recommend to anyone interested in science is 'Electric Universe' by David Bodanis. It narrates the history of electricity and how it changed the world in a well-balanced mix of history, narration and science. In particular history and science are intrinsically related as some scientific findings are only possible in a precise historical period and, why not, some historical events may be well influenced by scientific advancements.

Some basic scientific and technical knowledge would help understanding the matter but it's not indispensable to grasp the essence of the book, that reads almost effortlessly.

edit: fixed typos//

Edited by mm22, 10 June 2008 - 12:15 PM.

[Vardigon]

mm22, on Jun 10 2008, 08:13 AM, said:

A book I've recently read and I would recommend to anyone interested in science is 'Electric Universe' by David Bodanis. It narrates the history of electricity and how it changed the world in a well-balanced mix of history, narration and science. In particular history and science are intrinsically related as some scientific findings are only possible in a precise historical period and, why not, some historical events may be well influenced by scientific advancements.

Some basic scientific and technical knowledge would help understanding the matter but it's not indispensable to grasp the essence of the book, that reads almost effortlessly.

edit: fixed typos//

I was recently watching a video on Google that dealt with that subject, I believe. It talked about a model of the universe that related to some type of plasma cosmology. They posited such things as instantaneous energy transfer from one point of the universe to another (which might be nothing new), and they related it to mythological stories of old societies, and put forth the idea that the night sky was different thousands of years ago, and that's how we got such symbols as the cross and ouroboros, etc. Also in the same video was the concept that the sun was black/hollow on the inside, and the reason it hadn't already died out or swelled to such a great extent was that it was "portaling" so to speak, energy from other parts of the universe. Does this sound like what you read?

[mm22]

Vardigon, on Jun 11 2008, 07:40 AM, said:

Also in the same video was the concept that the sun was black/hollow on the inside, and the reason it hadn't already died out or swelled to such a great extent was that it was "portaling" so to speak, energy from other parts of the universe. Does this sound like what you read?

well not exactly what that book talks about... that is more "down to earth", laying down facts and scientific discoveries, certainly there are a few open questions left by any discoveries as in most cases we are only to make use of certain natural phenomena but we do not deeply understand what's beyond them...

anyway what you mention is certainly very interesting and fascinating... these thoughts always make me realize how insignificant humanity is and how insignificant our problems, wars, politics, anything... are when compared to the whole universe and what's still obscure about it!

Vardigon, on Jun 11 2008, 07:40 AM, said:

and put forth the idea that the night sky was different thousands of years ago, and that's how we got such symbols as the cross and ouroboros, etc.

certainly the Sun occupied different positions in the (apparent) sky at the same period of the year, this is due to the phenomenon of 'precession' that can be justified by geometric reasons. This results in zodiac constellations being shifted from the position they occupied when ancient Greeks gave them the names we all use nowadays, the shift is about "one zodiac sign" so that anyone born under a certain sign was actually born when the Sun was in the nearby zodiac constellation (be it the one before or after, i forgot )

[legolos13]

i am reading hte shadow in the deep


Shadow in the Deep is the third book in L.B. Graham’s five book series titled, The Binding of the Blade. Filled with action and suspense, this novel will keep you up at night, as you read about the fantastic journeys in Kirthanin. The story picks up where the second book, Bringer of Storms, leaves off. The armies of men from Werthanin, flee from the city of Col Merena after being defeated by the armies of Malek. And Cheimontyr, lord of the Vulsutrym, rampages southward across the lands of Kirthanin. However the hearts of the men are dampened at the loss of the great prophet, Valzaan, who was swept away into the sea by Cheimontyr, the Bringer of Storms. Now the full command of the army of men is left to Aljeron Balinor, a strong warrior who led the armies weeks before in the civil war between the men of Werthanin. But now opposing sides must join together to fight against the true evil in the land, the power traitor Titan Malek.
As Aljeron and his disheartened army flee from Col Merena in the few ships that are at the seaport, they are faced with a difficult decision. Aljeron recalls Valzaan’s instructions to him before he died.

“My duties have collided. My duty to my men, as sworn before Allfather to watch over and care for them, has led me ashore tonight to these men. My duty to Valzaan, Allfather’s prophet, who made me swear that I would seek Harak Andunin and Sulmandir, will take me north. These recent weeks have taught me that I am not in control of my own destiny, and that powers much larger than I are at war in this world. I can only be faithful to the tasks set before me. The rest is out of my hands.”

In this passage you read after Aljeron decides to go to Harak Andunin, the home of the Father of Dragons, Sulmandir, and possibly their only hope to win the war. As he and his men leave the other ships, which contain the rest of the army, who are heading south, seeking aid among the Suthanin, they meet with a strange old man, who Aljeron has met before. The old sailor Synoki, appears at the ruins of Col Merena, burnt and broken by Malek’s armies. Synoki, convinces them to let him and his friend Cinjan come with them on their quest. But still, doubt lingers on in Aljeron’s heart, knowing so little of this strange man. As Aljeron, and some chosen friends, along with Synoki, and Cinjan continue north, Malek’s army continues to move southward, seeking to destroy all of the good in Kirthanin that remains.
Meanwhile, the army of Werthanin marches southward, and the Benjiah, the young prophet, must take up the staff of Valzaan, and wield the power of Allfather. He seeks guidance from his uncles, Pedraan and Pedraal, after having strange visions and dreams. He thinks that in his strange dreams, Allfather is trying to tell him something. After discussing it with his cousins, he approaches Caan, the leader of the army, while Aljeron is away.

“They walked through the camp, making a straight line to the place where they had dined with Caan and the others the night before. They found him sitting alone with Gilion, talking quietly together. When they had secured Caan’s attention and made clear their desire to speak with him alone, Gilion graciously excused himself with a formal bow. “Yes?” Caan asked, eyeing the three of them curiously. “The time has come for us to travel by another road,” Benjiah said, and he could see from the looks on their faces that his firm tone had surprised not only Caan but his uncles. “What do you mean?” “I have had a dream from Allfather,” Benjiah began, “In fact, I have had it three times, and it calls me to a dragon tower. I have work to do there, work that cannot wait. I am going with all speed to the dragon tower east of here, across the Barunaan.”
“The journey there will take you across the open Suthanin plains, and we do not know of the movement of Malek and his hosts. If they have made better time than we expect, you could ride right into his company.” “That is all the more reason we must make haste.” Caan looked from the determined face of Benjiah to Pedraal and Pedraan. “The two of you are planning to go as well?” “We promised Wylla to take care of him, and even though he may not need our care so much as we had once thought, we will go with him wherever his road leads us.” Caan nodded. “Even if you make good time and get across the plains before Malek’s hosts come down from the north, he will almost certainly come down between you and us. It may be hard, if not impossible, for you to rejoin us there, if that was your plan.” “It was,” Pedraal conceded, “and we will deal with what we find after the tower when we get there.””
Now skipping ahead a bit:
“Caan put his strong hand on Benjiah’s shoulder. “It sounds like you must. I will not try to stop you or tell you not to go where you believe Allfather is leading you. Valzaan believed in you, and I believe too.””

Thus Benjiah and his uncles start their journey to the feared dragon tower, where legend says the evil Grendolai, created by Malek, still dwells. As they make their way across the plains, Benjiah continues to have visions from Allfather, and by the time he reaches the tower, he is assured of his mission, whether he lives to see the end or not.
Meanwhile Aljeron continues his journey across the harsh plains of Nolthanin, fighting against the elements, and the strange creatures they find there. But fear is growing in the heart of Aljeron, for he still mistrusts Synoki and his strange companion. And as they journey continues, they finally, confront each other.

“Aljeron stood up, leaving Saegan to watch over Evrim. He saw that Cinjan and Synoki had approached, and both looked down at Saegan and Evrim with impassive faces. A sudden , overwhelming rage boiled into Aljeron’s blood. Almost without thinking, he stepped over to Synoki’s horse, reached up with his powerful hand, grabbed Synoki by the front of his cloak, and pulled him off the horse. In a single fluid motion, he had Synoki down in the snow, half buried and bewildered. In the same fluid motion, his free hand brought Daaltaran none to gently against Synoki’s throat.
He saw Cinjan drop to his feet, holding a sword in one hand and a long, nasty-looking dagger in the other. He didn’t draw near, however, because one end of Erigan’s staff, still dripping with serpent blood, was planted firmly against his chest. Cinjan had one eye on Aljeron and the other on the fierce gaze of the Great Bear.
Aljeron turned his attention back to Synoki. “Now look, you, this is the second time we’ve fought for our lives since leaving Avram Gol, and while you might have fallen from your horse and been unable to help the last time, neither you nor your friend here lifted a hand to help us this time. You have some explaining to do, old friend. So you’d better start talking and it had better be good, or the life I helped save from the Forbidden Isle is going to end here at the end of my sword. Speak.””

As Graham leads you on a vibrant journey from page one to the end of the book you will continue to unearth the truths from his entrancing style of writing. Perfectly blending action, love, hate, and betrayal into this wonderful tale, Graham has truly written a worthy third addition to his Binding of the Blade series.

[reezer]

I'm reading:
The Swarm: It is better than I thought after reading some reviews
and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: I can't stop giggeling when I read it.

[arnz]

Robbins and Edwards. Guide to being Happy. Usually read when under stress situations or coming home after somethings gone wrong/and/or have been under the pressure cooker for most of the day.

[LadyAshk]

legolos13, on Jun 13 2008, 01:51 AM, said:

i am reading hte shadow in the deep
Shadow in the Deep is the third book in L.B. Graham’s five book series titled, The Binding of the Blade. Filled with action and suspense, this novel will keep you up at night, as you read about the fantastic journeys in Kirthanin. The story picks up where the second book, Bringer of Storms, leaves off. The armies of men from Werthanin, flee from the city of Col Merena after being defeated by the armies of Malek. And Cheimontyr, lord of the Vulsutrym, rampages southward across the lands of Kirthanin. However the hearts of the men are dampened at the loss of the great prophet, Valzaan, who was swept away into the sea by Cheimontyr, the Bringer of Storms. Now the full command of the army of men is left to Aljeron Balinor, a strong warrior who led the armies weeks before in the civil war between the men of Werthanin. But now opposing sides must join together to fight against the true evil in the land, the power traitor Titan Malek.
As Aljeron and his disheartened army flee from Col Merena in the few ships that are at the seaport, they are faced with a difficult decision. Aljeron recalls Valzaan’s instructions to him before he died.

“My duties have collided. My duty to my men, as sworn before Allfather to watch over and care for them, has led me ashore tonight to these men. My duty to Valzaan, Allfather’s prophet, who made me swear that I would seek Harak Andunin and Sulmandir, will take me north. These recent weeks have taught me that I am not in control of my own destiny, and that powers much larger than I are at war in this world. I can only be faithful to the tasks set before me. The rest is out of my hands.”

In this passage you read after Aljeron decides to go to Harak Andunin, the home of the Father of Dragons, Sulmandir, and possibly their only hope to win the war. As he and his men leave the other ships, which contain the rest of the army, who are heading south, seeking aid among the Suthanin, they meet with a strange old man, who Aljeron has met before. The old sailor Synoki, appears at the ruins of Col Merena, burnt and broken by Malek’s armies. Synoki, convinces them to let him and his friend Cinjan come with them on their quest. But still, doubt lingers on in Aljeron’s heart, knowing so little of this strange man. As Aljeron, and some chosen friends, along with Synoki, and Cinjan continue north, Malek’s army continues to move southward, seeking to destroy all of the good in Kirthanin that remains.
Meanwhile, the army of Werthanin marches southward, and the Benjiah, the young prophet, must take up the staff of Valzaan, and wield the power of Allfather. He seeks guidance from his uncles, Pedraan and Pedraal, after having strange visions and dreams. He thinks that in his strange dreams, Allfather is trying to tell him something. After discussing it with his cousins, he approaches Caan, the leader of the army, while Aljeron is away.

“They walked through the camp, making a straight line to the place where they had dined with Caan and the others the night before. They found him sitting alone with Gilion, talking quietly together. When they had secured Caan’s attention and made clear their desire to speak with him alone, Gilion graciously excused himself with a formal bow. “Yes?” Caan asked, eyeing the three of them curiously. “The time has come for us to travel by another road,” Benjiah said, and he could see from the looks on their faces that his firm tone had surprised not only Caan but his uncles. “What do you mean?” “I have had a dream from Allfather,” Benjiah began, “In fact, I have had it three times, and it calls me to a dragon tower. I have work to do there, work that cannot wait. I am going with all speed to the dragon tower east of here, across the Barunaan.”
“The journey there will take you across the open Suthanin plains, and we do not know of the movement of Malek and his hosts. If they have made better time than we expect, you could ride right into his company.” “That is all the more reason we must make haste.” Caan looked from the determined face of Benjiah to Pedraal and Pedraan. “The two of you are planning to go as well?” “We promised Wylla to take care of him, and even though he may not need our care so much as we had once thought, we will go with him wherever his road leads us.” Caan nodded. “Even if you make good time and get across the plains before Malek’s hosts come down from the north, he will almost certainly come down between you and us. It may be hard, if not impossible, for you to rejoin us there, if that was your plan.” “It was,” Pedraal conceded, “and we will deal with what we find after the tower when we get there.””
Now skipping ahead a bit:
“Caan put his strong hand on Benjiah’s shoulder. “It sounds like you must. I will not try to stop you or tell you not to go where you believe Allfather is leading you. Valzaan believed in you, and I believe too.””

Thus Benjiah and his uncles start their journey to the feared dragon tower, where legend says the evil Grendolai, created by Malek, still dwells. As they make their way across the plains, Benjiah continues to have visions from Allfather, and by the time he reaches the tower, he is assured of his mission, whether he lives to see the end or not.
Meanwhile Aljeron continues his journey across the harsh plains of Nolthanin, fighting against the elements, and the strange creatures they find there. But fear is growing in the heart of Aljeron, for he still mistrusts Synoki and his strange companion. And as they journey continues, they finally, confront each other.

“Aljeron stood up, leaving Saegan to watch over Evrim. He saw that Cinjan and Synoki had approached, and both looked down at Saegan and Evrim with impassive faces. A sudden , overwhelming rage boiled into Aljeron’s blood. Almost without thinking, he stepped over to Synoki’s horse, reached up with his powerful hand, grabbed Synoki by the front of his cloak, and pulled him off the horse. In a single fluid motion, he had Synoki down in the snow, half buried and bewildered. In the same fluid motion, his free hand brought Daaltaran none to gently against Synoki’s throat.
He saw Cinjan drop to his feet, holding a sword in one hand and a long, nasty-looking dagger in the other. He didn’t draw near, however, because one end of Erigan’s staff, still dripping with serpent blood, was planted firmly against his chest. Cinjan had one eye on Aljeron and the other on the fierce gaze of the Great Bear.
Aljeron turned his attention back to Synoki. “Now look, you, this is the second time we’ve fought for our lives since leaving Avram Gol, and while you might have fallen from your horse and been unable to help the last time, neither you nor your friend here lifted a hand to help us this time. You have some explaining to do, old friend. So you’d better start talking and it had better be good, or the life I helped save from the Forbidden Isle is going to end here at the end of my sword. Speak.””

As Graham leads you on a vibrant journey from page one to the end of the book you will continue to unearth the truths from his entrancing style of writing. Perfectly blending action, love, hate, and betrayal into this wonderful tale, Graham has truly written a worthy third addition to his Binding of the Blade series.

The book I am going to be reading this month will be - The Heartbreakers

[Evolke]

Strangly enough for me, Im not reading any boos at the moment because we've just come out of holidays and I didn't really get a chance to sit down and relax. Which is a huge difference because Im a huge book worm
I've got a couple books on loan (which I've gotta remember to return otherwise the librarian will be very angry ) one of which I have barely started (Ops) but Ill probably start reading it. Its called- Child of Tibet. Its about a woman born in Tibet just after the Chinese invasion and her struggles through out her child hood. Its a lovely book so far, though her story is full of misery and her childhood to me sounds like a horrible experience. But I think more books from those who are in exile from Tibet should be written, more people shold tell their story and their struggle so the world can see what death and destruction the Chinese Authorities have cause to many inoccent people. Thats entierly my view.

Hah- I've turned this simple question into a complex answer

[xpress]

Hmmm....I want to complet three books this month.
Gray Hat Hacking....second edition. A book about grey hat hacking or ethical hacking.
Stealing the network..How to own a shadow...very interesting.
and The Life Of Swami Vivekanada...part1....

[veerumits]

Now a days i reading Article on Ramayama The holly book because here a greate festival come in India DIWALI a a GOD Ram's story to victory with Rawan in Discussion Topic.

The Rāmāyaṇa (Devanāgarī: रामायण) is an ancient Sanskrit epic attributed to the Hindu sage (maharishi) Valmiki and an important part of the Hindu canon (smṛti). It was the original story on which other versions were based such as the Khmer Reamker, the Thai Ramakien, the Lao Phra Lak Phra Lam the Malay Hikayat Seri Rama and the Maranao Darengan.

and in study time i am reading Rocx Book To PHP and MySqL

Edited by veerumits, 22 October 2008 - 06:28 PM.

[Running With Scissors]

I just started a book called 50 50 Secrets I Learned Running 50 Marathons in 50 Days-and How You Too Can Achieve Super Enudurence. Its written by Dean Karnazes who is a New York Times best selling author. I'm not really a marathoner but I do run cross country and track so I just thought I'd read this book because I'm a distance runner. I'll probably start doing marathons when I'm out of college.

[joeblogg]

i'm reading digital fortress by dan brown. its a really good book which i would recommend to anyone who liked the da vinci code and anyone who like action, technology, hostages and all of that stuff.

[armondtimesbelize]

To let you in on something really weird. I find my self these days reading Stephen King book. I really like his work especially Twilight and Breaking Dawn. He read has good work. lol. But other books i like to read include Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Leonardo DaVinci and others. lol.