What are YOU reading?

[Sundog]

Last Dorsey book I read was Florida Roadkill (decided to get to the origin of Serge), and I have Hammerhead Ranch Motel on deck. I love Serge's passion for all things Florida. Reading John D's Barrier Island at the moment, but it's not part of the Travis M. series.

James Lee Burke is definitely at the top of my list right now. Just listened to a Hackberry Holland book, Rain Gods, and enjoyed the south Texas setting. A departure from that of the Louisiana bayou with Dave Robicheaux, but many similarities between the characters.

[popcornjack]

Finishing up this:



All I can say is that it's freakin' amazing!!

[Tequila Revenge]

Finishing up this:



All I can say is that it's freakin' amazing!!

Just started that the other night and COULD NOT put it down to go to sleep. Looking forward to the journey.

[East Texas Parrothead]

Finishing up this:



All I can say is that it's freakin' amazing!!

Just started that the other night and COULD NOT put it down to go to sleep. Looking forward to the journey.

It wasn't my cup of tea. Several of my friends have read it. The men seem to like it more than the women. Wonder why?

[East Texas Parrothead]

I want Gilles Marini to play Matthew, the French vampire, in the film version of A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES. Would he be perfect for the part or what?????

[drunkpirate66]

Finishing up this:



All I can say is that it's freakin' amazing!!

Just started that the other night and COULD NOT put it down to go to sleep. Looking forward to the journey.

This book is everything that The Corrections tried to be. I have tremendous respect for Franzen. He put his soul . . . and ten year's of work . . . into Freedom. Other than The Road by Cormac McCarthy, no other book has had such an effect on me. With the passings of Mailer and Updike and McCarthy . . . and Roth mailing it in as of late . . . Franzen has established himself as the standard for prose in American literature. There is no other. Chabon, perhaps, on his best day. There is no reason that Freedom should have denied the Pulitzer. Tinkers is poop . . . in comparison.

Another must read is Room by Emma Donaghue. Dark. Very dark.

[SchoolGirlHeart]

This book is everything that The Corrections tried to be. I have tremendous respect for Franzen. He put his soul . . . and ten year's of work . . . into Freedom. Other than The Road by Cormac McCarthy, no other book has had such an effect on me. With the passings of Mailer and Updike and McCarthy . . . and Roth mailing it in as of late . . . Franzen has established himself as the standard for prose in American literature. There is no other. Chabon, perhaps, on his best day. There is no reason that Freedom should have denied the Pulitzer. Tinkers is poop . . . in comparison.

Another must read is Room by Emma Donaghue. Dark. Very dark.

Who the heck are you, and what have you done with Jon??

[drunkpirate66]

This book is everything that The Corrections tried to be. I have tremendous respect for Franzen. He put his soul . . . and ten year's of work . . . into Freedom. Other than The Road by Cormac McCarthy, no other book has had such an effect on me. With the passings of Mailer and Updike and McCarthy . . . and Roth mailing it in as of late . . . Franzen has established himself as the standard for prose in American literature. There is no other. Chabon, perhaps, on his best day. There is no reason that Freedom should have denied the Pulitzer. Tinkers is poop . . . in comparison.

Another must read is Room by Emma Donaghue. Dark. Very dark.

Who the heck are you, and what have you done with Jon??

It is a well kept secret around here that I am actually quite a smart son of a b*tch. Equal parts wise as$ . . . nice as$ . . . and brain.

In all serious I have a Master's in Fine Arts and love to read. I always target the Pulitzer and National Book Award front runners. I have been a fan of Franzen and Chabon for years. Gary Shteyngart, author of Super Sad True Love Story, will knock your balls off.

(Popcorn and I have been known to text and talk often about literature but if asked we will deny it).

[SchoolGirlHeart]

This book is everything that The Corrections tried to be. I have tremendous respect for Franzen. He put his soul . . . and ten year's of work . . . into Freedom. Other than The Road by Cormac McCarthy, no other book has had such an effect on me. With the passings of Mailer and Updike and McCarthy . . . and Roth mailing it in as of late . . . Franzen has established himself as the standard for prose in American literature. There is no other. Chabon, perhaps, on his best day. There is no reason that Freedom should have denied the Pulitzer. Tinkers is poop . . . in comparison.

Another must read is Room by Emma Donaghue. Dark. Very dark.

Who the heck are you, and what have you done with Jon??

It is a well kept secret around here that I am actually quite a smart son of a b*tch. Equal parts wise as$ . . . nice as$ . . . and brain.

In all serious I have a Master's in Fine Arts and love to read. I always target the Pulitzer and National Book Award front runners. I have been a fan of Franzen and Chabon for years. Gary Shteyngart, author of Super Sad True Love Story, will knock your balls off.

(Popcorn and I have been known to text and talk often about literature but if asked we will deny it).

Who knew??! Learn something new every day!

[drunkpirate66]

This book is everything that The Corrections tried to be. I have tremendous respect for Franzen. He put his soul . . . and ten year's of work . . . into Freedom. Other than The Road by Cormac McCarthy, no other book has had such an effect on me. With the passings of Mailer and Updike and McCarthy . . . and Roth mailing it in as of late . . . Franzen has established himself as the standard for prose in American literature. There is no other. Chabon, perhaps, on his best day. There is no reason that Freedom should have denied the Pulitzer. Tinkers is poop . . . in comparison.

Another must read is Room by Emma Donaghue. Dark. Very dark.

Who the heck are you, and what have you done with Jon??

It is a well kept secret around here that I am actually quite a smart son of a b*tch. Equal parts wise as$ . . . nice as$ . . . and brain.

In all serious I have a Master's in Fine Arts and love to read. I always target the Pulitzer and National Book Award front runners. I have been a fan of Franzen and Chabon for years. Gary Shteyngart, author of Super Sad True Love Story, will knock your balls off.

(Popcorn and I have been known to text and talk often about literature but if asked we will deny it).

Who knew??! Learn something new every day!

I implore you to read Freedom. There is no book that I am aware of that details American life in the years following 9/11 through contradicting politics and friendships better. The prose is state of the art. The characters have tremendous depth. It is often funny - insightful. It is no beach read . . . Unless you are some drunken wise as$ living in Key West right now then maybe it is. Quite challenging, I felt. Well worth it.

[popcornjack]

Finishing up this:



All I can say is that it's freakin' amazing!!

Just started that the other night and COULD NOT put it down to go to sleep. Looking forward to the journey.

It wasn't my cup of tea. Several of my friends have read it. The men seem to like it more than the women. Wonder why?

in thinking about that, my initial response is that I think the male characters are slightly more rounded and complete, whereas the female characters don't seem to have as much depth and don't make the same breadth of journey, emotionally, that the male characters make. A perfect example is that you see so much of Joey and watch as he grows and not only changes but comes to realize why he's changing and the effect his upbringing has had on him, whereas Jessica , as a character, is presented almost as an afterthought, with no real insight into her life.

[popcornjack]

This book is everything that The Corrections tried to be. I have tremendous respect for Franzen. He put his soul . . . and ten year's of work . . . into Freedom. Other than The Road by Cormac McCarthy, no other book has had such an effect on me. With the passings of Mailer and Updike and McCarthy . . . and Roth mailing it in as of late . . . Franzen has established himself as the standard for prose in American literature. There is no other. Chabon, perhaps, on his best day. There is no reason that Freedom should have denied the Pulitzer. Tinkers is poop . . . in comparison.

Another must read is Room by Emma Donaghue. Dark. Very dark.

Who the heck are you, and what have you done with Jon??

It is a well kept secret around here that I am actually quite a smart son of a b*tch. Equal parts wise as$ . . . nice as$ . . . and brain.

In all serious I have a Master's in Fine Arts and love to read. I always target the Pulitzer and National Book Award front runners. I have been a fan of Franzen and Chabon for years. Gary Shteyngart, author of Super Sad True Love Story, will knock your balls off.

(Popcorn and I have been known to text and talk often about literature but if asked we will deny it).

We're gonna bore Chris to death on the drive to Tampa talking about this book.

[drunkpirate66]

This book is everything that The Corrections tried to be. I have tremendous respect for Franzen. He put his soul . . . and ten year's of work . . . into Freedom. Other than The Road by Cormac McCarthy, no other book has had such an effect on me. With the passings of Mailer and Updike and McCarthy . . . and Roth mailing it in as of late . . . Franzen has established himself as the standard for prose in American literature. There is no other. Chabon, perhaps, on his best day. There is no reason that Freedom should have denied the Pulitzer. Tinkers is poop . . . in comparison.

Another must read is Room by Emma Donaghue. Dark. Very dark.

Who the heck are you, and what have you done with Jon??

It is a well kept secret around here that I am actually quite a smart son of a b*tch. Equal parts wise as$ . . . nice as$ . . . and brain.

In all serious I have a Master's in Fine Arts and love to read. I always target the Pulitzer and National Book Award front runners. I have been a fan of Franzen and Chabon for years. Gary Shteyngart, author of Super Sad True Love Story, will knock your balls off.

(Popcorn and I have been known to text and talk often about literature but if asked we will deny it).

We're gonna bore Chris to death on the drive to Tampa talking about this book.

I could spend a week of my life talking about Richard Katz alone (who is me other then the fact I have no musical talent whatsoever).

But there is certainly a funny image of us talking about interpersonal dynamics of Freedom and the presentation of contrast between father and son . . . liberal and conservative . . . and the hypocrisy created . . . while N - Sync rocks on the car stereo as Chris is puking out of the window.

[drunkpirate66]

Finishing up this:



All I can say is that it's freakin' amazing!!

Just started that the other night and COULD NOT put it down to go to sleep. Looking forward to the journey.

It wasn't my cup of tea. Several of my friends have read it. The men seem to like it more than the women. Wonder why?

in thinking about that, my initial response is that I think the male characters are slightly more rounded and complete, whereas the female characters don't seem to have as much depth and don't make the same breadth of journey, emotionally, that the male characters make. A perfect example is that you see so much of Joey and watch as he grows and not only changes but comes to realize why he's changing and the effect his upbringing has had on him, whereas Jessica , as a character, is presented almost as an afterthought, with no real insight into her life.

Women have no soul out of the kitchen. Not Franzen's fault. I am surprised they got more then a foot - note, honestly.

(I am in trouble now . . . .)

In all seriousness, I disagree somewhat with your statement. The entire foundation of the book is based on a female's journal. Her perspective. Her actions setting forth the main struggle and conflict in the novel. In THAT regard . . . women are very well represented.

Without Patty's journal there is no story. She is the protagonist. The novel is HER journey - coming to terms with her feelings for both men and her subsequent actions. Everything that happens in the story, directly or indirectly, is because of her.

[Brown Eyed Girl]

Jon has a nice ass? We're gonna have to see pictures.

So, I'm sitting here waiting for the man in the big brown truck to deliver my Kindle. Now comes the challenge of figuring out what to download before I leave. A friend suggested Let the Great World Spin...has anyone read it?

I still have a couple of "real" books I'll be taking with me. Found 3 Cups of Tea at the used bookstore, so this will be good chance to read it. The other one I found is this:



Thought it might be appropriate for my trip to Hawaii. Seems to have gotten good reviews overall, although a rather depressing subject.

Compellingly original in its conceit, Brennert's sweeping debut novel tracks the grim struggle of a Hawaiian woman who contracts leprosy as a child in Honolulu during the 1890s and is deported to the island of Moloka'i, where she grows to adulthood at the quarantined settlement of Kalaupapa. Rachel Kalama is the plucky, seven-year-old heroine whose family is devastated when first her uncle Pono and then she develop leprous sores and are quarantined with the disease. While Rachel's symptoms remain mild during her youth, she watches others her age dying from the disease in near total isolation from family and friends. Rachel finds happiness when she meets Kenji Utagawa, a fellow leprosy victim whose illness brings shame on his Japanese family. After a tender courtship, Rachel and Kenji marry and have a daughter, but the birth of their healthy baby brings as much grief as joy, when they must give her up for adoption to prevent infection. The couple cope with the loss of their daughter and settle into a productive working life until Kenji tries to stop a quarantined U.S. soldier from beating up his girlfriend and is tragically killed in the subsequent fight. The poignant concluding chapters portray Rachel's final years after sulfa drugs are discovered as a cure, leaving her free to abandon Moloka'i and seek out her family and daughter. Brennert's compassion makes Rachel a memorable character, and his smooth storytelling vividly brings early 20th-century Hawaii to life. Leprosy may seem a macabre subject, but Brennert transforms the material into a touching, lovely account of a woman's journey as she rises above the limitations of a devastating illness.

I love my used bookstore.

[East Texas Parrothead]

Women have no soul out of the kitchen. Not Franzen's fault. I am surprised they got more then a foot - note, honestly.

(I am in trouble now . . . .)

In all seriousness, I disagree somewhat with your statement. The entire foundation of the book is based on a female's journal. Her perspective. Her actions setting forth the main struggle and conflict in the novel. In THAT regard . . . women are very well represented.

I'm middle-aged ... and my female friends who read it are middle-aged. No one I know acts like Patty Berglund. I think that's why it didn't resonate with us. Or maybe it's a Southern thing.

The male friends who've read it thought it was well done, but have commented that it was pretty bleak.

It's interesting to hear different perspectives on it.

[popcornjack]

Women have no soul out of the kitchen. Not Franzen's fault. I am surprised they got more then a foot - note, honestly.

(I am in trouble now . . . .)

In all seriousness, I disagree somewhat with your statement. The entire foundation of the book is based on a female's journal. Her perspective. Her actions setting forth the main struggle and conflict in the novel. In THAT regard . . . women are very well represented.

Well represented, perhaps, but not well rounded. The bulk of her journal is about her making excuses for her behavior, and it is only in the addendum, and the subsequent final chapter at the lake house, that she recognizes and apologizes for her actions. The other female characters aren't even given that much of an opportunity. Connie is described in the same terms throughout the novel, Carol's only change comes early on in the novel, when she meets Blake, Merrie Paulsen is nothing more (with her husband) than a member of a Greek chorus, Lalitha is there solely to provide an out clause for Walter (evidenced by how quickly she disappears once her reason to be is fulfilled) and Linda from the last chapter is nothing more than a mash up of Merrie, Carol and a little bit of Patty.

[drunkpirate66]

Women have no soul out of the kitchen. Not Franzen's fault. I am surprised they got more then a foot - note, honestly.

(I am in trouble now . . . .)

In all seriousness, I disagree somewhat with your statement. The entire foundation of the book is based on a female's journal. Her perspective. Her actions setting forth the main struggle and conflict in the novel. In THAT regard . . . women are very well represented.

I'm middle-aged ... and my female friends who read it are middle-aged. No one I know acts like Patty Berglund. I think that's why it didn't resonate with us. Or maybe it's a Southern thing.

The male friends who've read it thought it was well done, but have commented that it was pretty bleak.

It's interesting to hear different perspectives on it.

No argument here. I will, however, offer this thought . . . there is a ton of stuff that happens in Freedom that is not grounded in reality or meant to be. The two lead male characters (rock star and West Virginia liberal land buyer upper) have unrealistic jobs and interactions. Not to mention the son and his buying and selling for United State military . . . really? So as much as I agree that the lead female character acts in a manner not common to most . . . I think we can agree that most all of the characters are quite above (or below) the normal baseline for society. I do think that the female lead has the most power and/or influence. Without her, and her journal and analysis of prior events, much of the plot is non - existent. The effect woman have on men in Freedom greatly outweighs the effect the men have on them. Its all point of view - I suppose.

[drunkpirate66]

Women have no soul out of the kitchen. Not Franzen's fault. I am surprised they got more then a foot - note, honestly.

(I am in trouble now . . . .)

In all seriousness, I disagree somewhat with your statement. The entire foundation of the book is based on a female's journal. Her perspective. Her actions setting forth the main struggle and conflict in the novel. In THAT regard . . . women are very well represented.

Well represented, perhaps, but not well rounded. The bulk of her journal is about her making excuses for her behavior, and it is only in the addendum, and the subsequent final chapter at the lake house, that she recognizes and apologizes for her actions. The other female characters aren't even given that much of an opportunity. Connie is described in the same terms throughout the novel, Carol's only change comes early on in the novel, when she meets Blake, Merrie Paulsen is nothing more (with her husband) than a member of a Greek chorus, Lalitha is there solely to provide an out clause for Walter (evidenced by how quickly she disappears once her reason to be is fulfilled) and Linda from the last chapter is nothing more than a mash up of Merrie, Carol and a little bit of Patty.

Touche'.

[East Texas Parrothead]

Women have no soul out of the kitchen. Not Franzen's fault. I am surprised they got more then a foot - note, honestly.

(I am in trouble now . . . .)

In all seriousness, I disagree somewhat with your statement. The entire foundation of the book is based on a female's journal. Her perspective. Her actions setting forth the main struggle and conflict in the novel. In THAT regard . . . women are very well represented.

I'm middle-aged ... and my female friends who read it are middle-aged. No one I know acts like Patty Berglund. I think that's why it didn't resonate with us. Or maybe it's a Southern thing.

The male friends who've read it thought it was well done, but have commented that it was pretty bleak.

It's interesting to hear different perspectives on it.

No argument here. I will, however, offer this thought . . . there is a ton of stuff that happens in Freedom that is not grounded in reality or meant to be. The two lead male characters (rock star and West Virginia liberal land buyer upper) have unrealistic jobs and interactions. Not to mention the son and his buying and selling for United State military . . . really? So as much as I agree that the lead female character acts in a manner not common to most . . . I think we can agree that most all of the characters are quite above (or below) the normal baseline for society. I do think that the female lead has the most power and/or influence. Without her, and her journal and analysis of prior events, much of the plot is non - existent. The effect woman have on men in Freedom greatly outweighs the effect the men have on them. Its all point of view - I suppose.

It really has been interesting to hear people's reactions to the book. It just wasn't for me.