What Are You Reading Right Now

[Selene]

The beginning of North and South is kind of boring, but it's worth to keep going. The book tackles and raises many interesting questions in relation to class and gender questions of the time.

[Spoo]

20 minutes ago, March Hare said:

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. A sort of dark, humourless Jane Austen. I don't really even know why I am still reading it, except that it's ALMOST like Austen, and it's fun to compare-troll

Oooh! Perhaps I’ll have a read myself. I have watched the miniseries with Richard Armitage (), and I liked it a lot. 

[Esstrosa]

Hemingway collection first time reading this I hope it's good

[FadedRose]

David & Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell and Lies my Teacher told me by James Loewen for summer homework

And Revolutionary by Krista McGee for fun.

[sprinkles287]

The expanse series - it’s fantastic! 

[Mr Sneezy]

No Middle Name. It's the latest Jack Reacher thriller by Lee Child.

[I love Alan Rickman]

This post  

[bloom]

right now i'm reading The Conquest of Bread. 

[March Hare]

Dangerous Skies by Suzanne Fisher Staples, in the Dutch translation.

(A book which, by the way, may answer a lot of questions some people seem to have about how to distinguish class privilege from racial privilege.)

[SleepingPhlox]

"13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do".  Honestly I was in the bookstore and wanted to buy something just so I was coming away with a treat, but it has turned out to be really, really interesting.

[Kaze Wo Hiku]

The Good Omens Script Book by Neil Gaiman

[Former Empath]

.

Edited September 14, 2019 by Empathic Mystery

[March Hare]

The Vampire Lestat, by Anne Rice.

[Heathcliff]

On 9/9/2019 at 7:26 PM, March Hare said:

The Vampire Lestat, by Anne Rice.

I would like to try and read Anne Rice again at some point, I think she may be underrated. Ages ago as a kid I was given an audiobook of Memnoch the Devil, which seemed very interesting.

[Heathcliff]

I'm currently reading The Cockroach which is a very short book by Ian McKewan.

It's a ridiculous satire on Brexit. It has a cockroach who suddenly realises he has become the Prime Minister- it's not good to compare politicians to insects, but so far I think he just about got away with it, mainly because Ian McKewan is a really good writer.

It has the idea of "Reversalism" which is where the flow of money is reversed. So you have to pay to go to work- but you get given money for shopping.

It has a scene that made me laugh where the Prime Minister suggests "Walking back to happiness" is a perfect anthem for Reversalism, and makes his cabinet sing 'Yay yay yay yay ba dum be do'. 

 

[March Hare]

20 hours ago, Heathcliff said:

I'm currently reading The Cockroach which is a very short book by Ian McKewan.

It's a ridiculous satire on Brexit. It has a cockroach who suddenly realises he has become the Prime Minister- it's not good to compare politicians to insects, but so far I think he just about got away with it, mainly because Ian McKewan is a really good writer.

It has the idea of "Reversalism" which is where the flow of money is reversed. So you have to pay to go to work- but you get given money for shopping.

It has a scene that made me laugh where the Prime Minister suggests "Walking back to happiness" is a perfect anthem for Reversalism, and makes his cabinet sing 'Yay yay yay yay ba dum be do'. 

 

That sounds like satire meets Die Verwandlung by Kafka, and if so I want to read it, because you can take a woman out of University (without a diploma), but can you take University out of a woman?

[Heathcliff]

1 hour ago, March Hare said:

That sounds like satire meets Die Verwandlung by Kafka, and if so I want to read it, because you can take a woman out of University (without a diploma), but can you take University out of a woman? 

Yes, it definitely is- I've never read Die Verwandlung (I've heard of it under its translated title, The Metamorphosis) but I've checked and in Ian McKewan's book, the character's name is very similar, and it opens  with almost the same sentence. It's a direct reference.

I don't know what the actual story in Die Verwandlung is like, but I imagine it's almost nothing like The Cockroach. Ian McKewan's book is entirely a satire on Brexit and current British politics- it's a book with a very clear opinion (pursuing Brexit as we are is almost madness). I'm no fan of Brexit, but (despite some of the stupid posts I've made on this forum in the past) when I'm being rational I'm not 100% happy with a satire that says "one side is so obviously right that the opposing side is farcical and bonkers". 

However, I really like McKewan's writing, and if you're interested definitely check it out. It's short so even if you don't like it much it's quick to finish.

(If you find you like Ian McKewan, On Chesil Beach is a good fairly quick read too.)

Edited October 22, 2019 by Heathcliff

[aggedy_ann]

At home: Prince - The Beautiful Ones

in my purse (for when I get stuck waiting): Keith Gave - The Russian Five

in my car (audiobook): Rob Lowe - Love Stories

[Bondi]

Currently reading Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire, an old expanded universe novel set between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. It's really good, and really, it could still be canon if they wanted it to be, at least based on the movies alone. I haven't really read much other expanded universe stuff. I read Splinter of the Mind's Eye last month, which I did enjoy as a look into the direction Star Wars could have taken had the movie tanked. Of the two, I'll say that Shadows seems more polished and better written, though both are entertaining. 

[Chanel_no5]

Finally getting to read the latest Stephen King, "The Institute".  Can't say much about it yet, I'm still at the "setup" part. 

 

[Bondi]

Guess I'm still on a Star Wars kick. Finished the Thrawn trilogy today. They're not perfect by any means, but I really like them and they capture the essence of the movie characters very well. Thrawn and Mara Jade are also great characters. 

Currently reading the 2015 Darth Vader comic book series and am enjoying it so far. Definitely recommended. Dr. Alphra, who works with Vader in this series, is a great edition, and Vader also gets his own droids, evil counterparts to C3PO and R2-D2.

[black_mage]

Junji Ito's Uzumaki, it's pretty creepy.

[Cutelittlenose]

I finally finished Kazuo Umzz's Drifting Classroom perfect Edition Volume 1.

Now I'm going to finally finish reading Wish by Clamp and read the first volume of the Boys Over Flowers manga.

[sprinkles287]

Brene Brown’s “Daring Greatly”. She’s becoming my personal hero. I love her work on vulnerability and courage. She’s got a Netflix special too.

And because I need to get some fiction fun in too, I’m reading the Wheel of Time Series.

[aggedy_ann]

2 books right now:

We are the Luckiest: The Surprising Magic of a Sober Life by Laura McKowen

And

You Play the Girl by Carina Chocano 

Still trying to finish Love Life by Rob Lowe (audio book) but I keep forgetting to switch off the radio in my car