The Official Book Thread

[tim290280]

really nice tim congrats, EU messed up the college system Bsc level like mine was reduced from 4-5 years to a 3 year course, wich makes in my opinion necessary to study at masters level before thinking of getting a phd or not.

Our BSc is a 3yr degree, but to do honours (which qualifies you for postgrad) you need to do a 4th year. The 4th year is an honours project and some course work, essentially a mini-masters degree project. I then enrolled in a masters but upgraded to PhD. I agree, you do need a minimum of study and background courses to be able to attempt a postgrad. 3yr courses don't necessarily do this, especially in arts and humanities areas where you might have 3 contact hours a week (as opposed to the 25-35 of sciences, engineering and medicine).

Back on topic: picked up a few more books for the holiday.
James Patterson - Worst Case
Lee Child - Gone Tomorrow
Matthew Reilly - Seven Ancient Wonders

 

[tim290280]

Just finished Lee Child's Bad Luck and Trouble. Great book, couldn't put it down for the last 100 pages.

Don't know what I'll start next. Probably the Patterson book as I haven't read any of his stuff and Worst Case was something I was interested in when I was buying the Dexter books.

 

[lifterdead]

I just got a copy of The Road, by Cormac McCarthy. Pretty good so far.

On a side note, I wanted to ask who your employer is, Tim. Oddly enough, I knew an Australian in WA who worked for the government, and it sounds like she might be vaguely involved in similar work as you. It had something to do with salt levels in soil and environmental concerns.

 

[El Freako]

I read The Road a month ago. Awesome book.

 

[tim290280]

I just got a copy of The Road, by Cormac McCarthy. Pretty good so far.

On a side note, I wanted to ask who your employer is, Tim. Oddly enough, I knew an Australian in WA who worked for the government, and it sounds like she might be vaguely involved in similar work as you. It had something to do with salt levels in soil and environmental concerns.

Sounds like an interesting book.

PM sent.

 

[tim290280]

Ok I've almost finished James Patterson's book Worst Case. Not a fan of his writing style. His ideas are ok, characters aren't sterotypes but they might as well be, but it is with his actual writing that everything falls down. This story is supposed to be in first person narrative. But it switches between past and present tense and 1st and 2nd person narrative. Just a shambles of language. The best examples of first person narrative I have read have been the Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice (although unnecessarily waffly) and the Dexter books. This just reads awkwardly and as a result doesn't flow as quickly as a crime thriller should. His editor should be shot!

 

[Natzo]

pre-ordered : Stephen Hawking's, The Grand Design

 

[Rageking]

pre-ordered : Stephen Hawking's, The Grand Design

Going to buy it either first or second week.

Finished reading The Three Kindoms couple weeks ago, kept me busy all summer.

 

[tim290280]

Back from holidays with a lot of reading time done.

Worst Case - James Patterson
If it hadn't been a light and easy read I wouldn't have bothered. Crap writing, boring story.

Seven Ancient Wonders - Matthew Reilly
This book felt like it was aimed at a much younger audience. I wasn't really engaged, but it was fast paced and entertaining.

Road Kill - Martin Cusworth
I tried to like this, as my friend's dad wrote it. Ultimately this story was pretty much a dad's fears for his daughters. Ultimately uninteresting and not particularly well written.....

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - that dead guy
Reads like a first draft. I gave up on this with the intention of coming back to it later. Hard to get past his pointless descriptions of his home renovations or the trip that lead to the meeting friend that lead to a catch-up that lead to a discussion that lead............... bored now.

Hell Island - Matthew Reilly
Short book he did that is meant to be a bridge between books. Quite good, definitely superior to the Seven Ancient Wonders book.

The Power of One - Bryce Courtenay
Excellent book. I've found this to be a good blend of epic and literary insight story-telling with a more accessible style and sensibility.

 

[Natzo]

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - that dead guy
Reads like a first draft. I gave up on this with the intention of coming back to it later. Hard to get past his pointless descriptions of his home renovations or the trip that lead to the meeting friend that lead to a catch-up that lead to a discussion that lead............... bored now.

Totally agree with Tim's description, I have it and I don't want to read it... boring....

 

[lifterdead]

Ok, just finished several books.

The Road, Cormac McCarthy- Slightly disappointed. Not a bad book, but wasn't in the mood for it. It was the last book I read over summer vacation and not what I had in mind for relaxing. Not that I thought it was too depressing; just the writing style isn't what I normally enjoy.

The Terror, Dan Simmons - A mix of historical fiction and horror. Right up my alley. I love Dan Simmons and this is his best work I've read to date. Accounts for all the historical facts of the lost expedition Sir Franklin took in search of the Northwest Passage, relates all the grisly details with a twist. Good stuff, and at 900+ pages, enough to satisfy any demand.

Currently reading Unintended Consequences, by Jon Ross. Banned in Canada, once a best seller on Amazon, now out of print. VERY controversial. More on that later.

 

[tim290280]

^^ I was looking into Cormac and wasn't really swayed to read his stuff. The Unintended Consequences looks interesting though.

I've just finished reading Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child. Great read. Took me about a day to read it. This one was told in the first person and had a few more little details that the writer/researcher in me admired.

 

[Skeptic]

I just finished The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest - The dead guy.

With not reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I can't really compare, but I enjoyed this book... however I do agree that there was alot of needless description of a lot of things. Did anyone else notice at some stages through the books that the translations seem to be a bit off?

 

[tim290280]

however I do agree that there was alot of needless description of a lot of things.

I was reading an article today about how we should read what takes our mood. The current literatzi want us to only spend our time reading the classics and "great" novels. I actually have swung away from this thinking, the thinking that a book can be worth it, even if you have to stick with it and persevere. I no longer stand for the needless description, self indulgent waffle, the banal and preachy. Give me something interesting and involving, especially in the first 50 pages or so, otherwise I'm tossing the book aside.

I read Robinson Crusoe and The Prince and the Pauper when I was eleven. BORING. Gave them up and read Douglas Adams. I literally gave up on regular reading mid-way through high school as a result of reading the classics. I thought anything "decent" was also hard work to read. But on the other end of the spectrum I pledge to never read James Patterson again.

 

[Skeptic]

I want to read a few of the classics because of curiosity really, I'm still a rookie at this whole novel thing, purely because it takes me so long to get through a book haha

 

[tim290280]

^^ A good book shouldn't take too long to read though. Average novel is 140,000 words or so. Should only take a few days to read.

If you only manage a page or two at a sitting then clearly it isn't engrossing enough, or is poorly written so you don't take things in, such that it takes so long.

 

[Skeptic]

Hehehe I'm a really slow reader, and often I don't get much time to sit down and really have a solid read, doesn't matter how interested I am in the book. Its something I've been trying to work on though.

 

[tim290280]

Few more books read of late:

Tara Moss - Hit
I was apprehensive about reading a novel by an ex-model. Fortunately she is quite good and is actually somewhat of a method writer (apparently she got choked out by a wrestler and got a lap dance at a strip club to be able to write about it). Recommended.

Lee Child - Worth Dying For
Great. Took me just over a day to read. Couldn't put it down.

Michael Critchon - Timeline
Meh. I got two thirds of the way through and then just gave up. I know what was going to happen, and the story was ok, the characters were fine, just everything was telegraphed and there wasn't enough pace to really keep my interest.

Jeff Lindsay - Dearly Devoted Dexter
Brilliant. Great story, well written, completely engrossing.

 

[tim290280]

Just finished a long one:

Andy McDermott - The Tomb of Hercules.
Entertaining and non-stop action. Have to say though that there are some terrible language gaffs that were not picked up in editing. Aside from that I was very impressed with this book. Had a running joke about how the plot line references Bond films - Brilliant.

 

[tim290280]

Not sure about this book I've just finished.

John Sandford - Phantom Prey
Fast paced police detective novel. Story was fine, characters fine, just felt like this could have been done better. I'm not sure I will bother with any more books in this Prey series.