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Thread: What are you reading?

  1. #751
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    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    So now i am all about post modernism and post-post modernism
    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    Also, i read a review somewhere that said that there were two masterpieces written in the 90's, with one being Infinite Jest and the other being Underworld. This, to me, is very promising.
    The only other classic postmodern book that I enjoyed (other than all of Virginia Woolf's stuff) was Vonnegut's "Breakfast of Champions."

    90s lit, I liked Kingsolvers' "The Poisonwood Bible" and I think that is in the "masterpiece" category, as well as Eugenides' "The Virgin Suicides."

    Mistry's "A Fine Balance" was written in the 90s, as was Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried."

    But, frankly, a lot of current lit I find extremely boring. Some authors overlap others, it's like they're all ripping each other off.


    Oh, um, I've been reading a ton of nonfiction.
    Last edited by allegro; 11-24-2016 at 09:20 AM.

  2. #752
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  3. #753
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    ^^ I gotta finish that friggin' book!!

  4. #754
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    Quote Originally Posted by allegro View Post
    ^^ I gotta finish that friggin' book!!
    Me too... now seemed like a good time.

  5. #755
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    @allegro , i loved The Poisonwod Bible and Breakfast of Champions too.
    but i am now falling in love with DeLillo, Borges, Pynchon, Barth, Calvino, Nabakov, Palahniuk. etc etc etc.

    I've read Vonnegut of course, and Hunter S, but a LOT of this stuff is new to me. I fucking love it.

  6. #756
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jinsai View Post
    Me too... now seemed like a good time.
    I have to finish "Wolf Hall," first, ugh.

  7. #757
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    got a kindle 5 g on amazon and"unlimited" great! goal i set was 10 pages a day for a year
    -louie

  8. #758
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    one kindle paperwhite for me and the wifey each (since, having no need for TABLET tablets and enjoying tactile keyboards and both having laptops, we are JUST using them, them being the paperwhites, as ereaders and have hundreds of books in epub, liek, delillio and borges and such for me and anne rice + SK for her, plus calibre to convert to .mobi) and the amzon fire8 hd for mom (since she wants it for like tablet type functions.)

    Cyber Monday! paperwhites were $99 and fire hd 8 32gb and minus special offers was $104.
    We got outta there for right at $400 w/shipping and tax-i thought i did pretty fucking good.

    Saved $70 methinks

    All apologies for absurd sentence (see above)
    Last edited by elevenism; 11-30-2016 at 09:42 AM.

  9. #759
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    Quote Originally Posted by allegro View Post
    The only other classic postmodern book that I enjoyed (other than all of Virginia Woolf's stuff) was Vonnegut's "Breakfast of Champions."

    90s lit, I liked Kingsolvers' "The Poisonwood Bible" and I think that is in the "masterpiece" category, as well as Eugenides' "The Virgin Suicides."

    Mistry's "A Fine Balance" was written in the 90s, as was Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried."

    But, frankly, a lot of current lit I find extremely boring. Some authors overlap others, it's like they're all ripping each other off.


    Oh, um, I've been reading a ton of nonfiction.
    furthermore, read infinite jest. most people i tell to read House of Leaves first as a primer, but i STRONGLY doubt you will need to do this. Also, DO read HoL, as it is most certainly NOT just a "bestseller."

    As far as the extremely boring aspect, did you read Underworld or Libra (DeLillo?) Barth? Any Pynchon?

    Out of all these, i find it hard to believe that you would find Barth's Lost in the Funhouse collection boring.

    And then Infinite Jest, Infinite Jest, Infinite Jest. Methinks you will adore it.

    Edit: oh, and Nabakov's Lolita. This, despite its controversial subject matter, is just like pretty much the most beautiful and stunning prose i have ever read. Hint: it was written in english, so here we have a russian master falling in love w/t "american language."
    Last edited by elevenism; 11-30-2016 at 10:02 AM.

  10. #760
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    The authors you mention: typical GUY authors. They don't appeal to me at all. I've read snippets, don't like the voice, plot, premise, etc. I don't enjoy deliberate literary gymnastics, either. Been there, done that.

    I've been reading almost ENTIRELY non-fiction. I "adore" that.

    When I said "boring," I meant the stuff written in the last 20 years. My above post was about 90s books.

    I have stacks of books here on my shelves plus on my to-read list that I want to read, not looking for suggestions but thanks anyway.
    Last edited by allegro; 11-30-2016 at 10:24 AM.

  11. #761
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    Quote Originally Posted by allegro View Post
    The authors you mention: typical GUY authors. They don't appeal to me at all. I've read snippets, don't like the voice, plot, premise, etc. I don't enjoy deliberate literary gymnastics, either. Been there, done that.

    I've been reading almost ENTIRELY non-fiction. I "adore" that.
    this i can understand.
    we like what we like.
    I DO enjoy deliberate verbal gymnastics.
    IJ is stunning in that wallace is able to write in so many different ""voices."
    What non-fiction are you reading, btw?

    Also, random literary situation, my wife insists that i read all Jane A.

    Also, DO read Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden.

    Edit: if i can read Kingsolver and The Awakening and Yellow Wallpaper, cn't you read the occasional "guy" book?
    Last edited by elevenism; 11-30-2016 at 10:26 AM.

  12. #762
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    My next book on the list is a book about trees and taxonomy and tree-identification. And the importance of trees in our eco structure.

    The fiction I am reading is Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" again because we are seeing the play at the Goodman Theater for the 5th time in a few weeks.

    The current non-fiction is an interesting book about how the food industry is jamming salt and sugar into foods to make people addicted and fat.
    Last edited by allegro; 11-30-2016 at 11:15 AM.

  13. #763
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    Quote Originally Posted by allegro View Post
    My next book on the list is a book about trees and taxonomy and tree-identification. And the importance of trees in our eco structure.
    oh lord,this summons nightmarish memories.i had to read such a book in school and then go out in the woods and prform a sample(nature preserve is how there are woods in The Big D)and i was absent when the class went so my father and i had to do it alone or i would fail.it was cold and raining.
    myspacebarisbrokenitseems.

    edit: i fixed it. i was pressing the wrong button lolololol

    So: arboreal taxonomy. is this solely to increase knowledge, or an actual interest? what is the next book? The previous?
    Last edited by elevenism; 11-30-2016 at 11:02 AM.

  14. #764
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    My husband and I have done such identification work through classes at the Chicago Botanic Garden, including a 12-week Botany course. Yes, I like arboriculture, horticulture, botany, etc.

    My husband read this book about Oaks and passed it on to me, so it's also on my To Read list.
    Last edited by allegro; 12-01-2016 at 11:50 AM.

  15. #765
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    Quote Originally Posted by allegro View Post
    My husband and I have done such identification work through classes at the Chicago Botanic Garden....
    My husband read this book about Oaks and passed it on to me, so it's also on my To Read list.
    to each her own

    for me, i look forward to the sheer bliss i anticipate finding in the 80-100 postmodern, new sensitive, and magical realism books i plan to read in 2017 on my hot ticket new kindle paperwhite.
    and although i am a few days late on this, i give thanks for these things, the kindle and the books.
    Last edited by elevenism; 11-30-2016 at 12:42 PM.

  16. #766
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    @allegro the more of these post modern books i read, the more i see what you mean about their overlapping.
    Wallace took a LOT from DeLillo for instance.
    But i'm still in love with it all.

    So y'all, what else should i read that doesn't fall into the realm of postmodernism?
    Is there any stunning like contemporary realism going on i need to be aware of?

    (also, while this was once the sort of thing up with which i would not put, i've given up on not ending sentences with prepositions as language is fluid and this linguistic rule seems to be fading, and since last year's OED WOTY was a fucking emoji, i've pretty much fucking given up.)

  17. #767
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    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    @allegro the more of these post modern books i read, the more i see what you mean about their overlapping.
    Wallace took a LOT from DeLillo for instance.
    But i'm still in love with it all.

    So y'all, what else should i read that doesn't fall into the realm of postmodernism?
    Is there any stunning like contemporary realism going on i need to be aware of?

    (also, while this was once the sort of thing up with which i would not put, i've given up on not ending sentences with prepositions as language is fluid and this linguistic rule seems to be fading, and since last year's OED WOTY was a fucking emoji, i've pretty much fucking given up.)
    Well, "THE" book right now is THIS ONE, which I bought as soon as Oprah started losing her damned mind over it but it's sitting here on my Kindle. If you get it, too, we could read it together here in a mini ETS book club and discuss? Maybe we can see if anybody else wants to read it, too?

    Dangling participles, ending sentences with prepositions, it's still frowned upon in grammar; but "emoji" couldn't enter the OED until it entered both the written and spoken lexicon, with examples of each; their word of the year is mostly based on what's trendy for that year. By the way, this is a must-read for Grammar Nazis.
    Last edited by allegro; 12-03-2016 at 07:51 AM.

  18. #768
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    Since you mentioned House of Leaves (which I loved) what do you think about S.? I'm trying to read it...again...and it's hard to get into. It's not that the story is bad (it kind of is) but the meta-story is horrible. You're given two protagonists and no reason at all to care about either and you almost actively hate one of them before you're out of the intro.

    And I need to read Underground Railroad. I read Underground Airlines and that was a great alt-history book, now it's time to read the real-history.
    Last edited by allegate; 12-01-2016 at 06:08 PM.

  19. #769
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    Quote Originally Posted by allegate View Post
    Since you mentioned House of Leaves (which I loved) what do you think about S.? I'm trying to read it...again...and it's hard to get into. It's not that the story is bad (it kind of is) but the meta-story is horrible. You're given two protagonists and no reason at all to care about either and you almost actively hate one of them before you're out of the intro.

    And I need to read Underground Railroad. I read Underground Airlines and that was a great alt-history book, now it's time to read the real-history.
    Okay so now we have THREE people who can be in the Underground Railroad ETS Book Club!

    The Underground Railroad isn't realistic, either (in the book, the Railroad is really a subterranean transport vs. just a secret network).

    The Underground Airlines looks awesome!
    Last edited by allegro; 12-01-2016 at 06:42 PM.

  20. #770
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    Ok @allegro , i'm down. i will get the book as soon as i get my kindle (which i've already ordered.)

  21. #771
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    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    Ok @allegro , i'm down. i will get the book as soon as i get my kindle (which i've already ordered.)
    Sounds like a plan.

  22. #772
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    Ditto here. I think my library has it digitally even so I don't have to wait for it to come in.

  23. #773
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    This kindle paperwhite + all the books i already had for it, it's like something i would imagine in a dream or expect to be passed out to people like me in a literal heaven.

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    Finally getting around to start reading Haldeman's The Forever War

  25. #775
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    okay @allegro , i've never been in a book club. how do we do it? do we read the whole book and then discuss it or read a certain amount at a time?
    i read the new SK to try out my Kindle, but it is charging now and will be ready to work again soon

  26. #776
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    i'd like to jion the ets book club?
    -louie

  27. #777
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    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    okay @allegro , i've never been in a book club. how do we do it? do we read the whole book and then discuss it or read a certain amount at a time?
    i read the new SK to try out my Kindle, but it is charging now and will be ready to work again soon
    Generally, what we do is start a new thread, announce the book we will be reading, give it a reasonable deadline so that people can have a chance to GET the book (but not too much time because in our prior experience people kept putting it off for MONTHS and even when we reached the deadline and started discussing the book, people were bitching that they hadn't gotten it, yet), and then we start reading it, generally in small installments so that everybody is "on the same page," so to speak.

    I could guide the discussion, if you'd like, since I have experience in this stuff.

    The big key is that we are all at the same point in the book, nobody jumps ahead of the discussion so that there are no "spoilers."

    Make sense?

    Lit classes are pretty much set up the same way.

    I'll go start a thread, now, even if only three or four of us are interested.

  28. #778
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    I'll get it tonight. The structure of reading like this is going to be new as usually I just blow through books, should be fun.

  29. #779
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    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    What non-fiction are you reading, btw?
    Side note, I'm reading The Witches - Salem, 1962 by Stacy Schiff, but I think I'm going to give up on this and pick up The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege by Marilynne Roach. Seems to be more rooted in an organized and undramatic representation of a subject that I'm becoming newly fascinated with.

    I know the question wasn't directed towards me, but I've always been fascinated with non-fictional biographies of musicians and visionaries. I really liked Maynard Solomon's books on Mozart and Beethoven, and I have Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: A Biography by Piero Melograni in my Amazon cart. Sometimes it really just depends on the subject matter almost more than the author in these cases, but I've heard this one is very good. Been meaning to get around to finishing The Music and Life: Beethoven by Lewis Lockwood.

    I've been on the lookout for a good biography about Nikola Tesla... by all accounts he sounds like one of the most fascinating people who ever lived. I'm not sold that I need to read the book about Steve Jobs.

    Biographies about authors can be just as fascinating as the books they wrote. A while back I read Lewis Carroll: A Biography, and it was interesting. The representation there is more positive and sympathetic than I've heard other biographers have concluded regarding his (arguably) plutonic fascination with Alice Liddell.

    Also, random literary situation, my wife insists that i read all Jane A.
    I've promised to give Pride and Prejudice another try. Emma didn't make me want to lose my mind, but I couldn't stand Persuasion.

    Also, DO read Grapes of Wrath
    I try not to make assumptions, but I would assume @allegro has read Grapes of Wrath?

  30. #780
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    @Jinsai , let me know if you find that good Tesla biography!

    Another stunning life story is that of Rasputin. I wish i could remember who wrote the one i read, although i am fairly certain it was simply titled Rasputin.

    And last time we talked about it, unless i dreamed it, Allegro told me she had not read Grapes of Wrath; i said something about its heavy religious symbolism and she said something about wanting to read it that much more, unless i dreamed it.

    I think it is further back in this thread where we were talking about Mary Shelly and Ralph Ellison and symbolism. I would look but i am tired, no sleep last night!

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