Books
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I owe you £20
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Hasn’t anybody mentioned James Ellroy in here- The Demon Dog of American crime fiction?. He’s a great crime-noir writer, probably best known for LA confidential which was made into a great movie. I’ve read all of his books at least twice. I recommend checking out his LA-quartet (The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, LA Confidential and White Jazz) and his Underworld USA-series (American Tabloid, The Cold Six Thousand and Blood’s a Rover). All great crime novels. Check him out, you won’t be disappointed!
Anyways, I read a lot of books across most genres. Some of my favorite writers are Haruki Murakami, Umberto Eco, William Gibson, Hunter S. Thomson (before he became senile), Knut Hamsun, Abo Rasol and Michel Foucault.
A few posts back, Michael was talking about old school SF and I would just like to add Isaac Asimov to his list, especially The Foundation-series. Asimov made me read SF.
I’m a bit embarrassed but at the moment I’m reading the last book in the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. The series started quite well off, but it started going downwards around book six. I guess it was just stubbornness and curiosity as to how it would end that made me read all the 13 books before the one I’m currently reading.
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I’m a bit embarrassed but at the moment I’m reading the last book in the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. The series started quite well off, but it started going downwards around book six. I guess it was just stubbornness and curiosity as to how it would end that made me read all the 13 books before the one I’m currently reading.
Someone who's taste has lead me onto MANY good books has always suggested this series and said it has highs and lows, but is worth it all in all, even if a bit predictable after around book 8-9? I will get around to reading, still working through The Magician series….
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Anyways, I read a lot of books across most genres. Some of my favorite writers are Haruki Murakami, Umberto Eco, William Gibson, Hunter S. Thomson (before he became senile), Knut Hamsun, Abo Rasol and Michel Foucault.
You have good taste. I'm reading Virtual Light by William Gibson at the moment and am a fan of Murakami and Hamsun.
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Seul: I never really liked Hunger. Sure, in its time it was quite revolutionary (at least in Norway) with focus on the indivudal psyche and the themes of angst and alienation. This was opposed to the literature at that time which focused on socieltal problems, which was the dominant view at that time, as exemplified in Ibsens plays. And I admire Hamsun for that. But I just could not relate much to it. Granted, I read Hunger in high school and I should probably read it again. But I think that Pan is the most beautiful book ever written.
Snowy: The Wheel of time series is not that bad. But the in the last books that Jordan wrote alone it seems to me that he ran out of plot and still tried to write long books. There is not so much going on to further the plot and instead he elaborates in length about things that isn’t really relevant. But the series got better when Brian Sanderson began to write. So in my humble opinion you get 10 OK to great books and 3 boring ones. I have not finished the last book so the verdict is still out on that one.
Thank you Sugar Mountain. You seem to have good taste too.
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An obligatory plug from a grad student of literature:
Everyone should read "Only Yesterday" by S. Y. Agnon, the only Hebrew writer to win the Nobel, and for good reason…
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Started pulp by bukowski last night. Finished the damned by palahniuk the other day. 50 pages into pulp and I haven't laughed this hard at a book in a long ass time
What was your thoughts on Damned? I enjoyed it more than some of his other recent books. Rant is still one of my favorites.
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Just picked up "Thinking, Fast and Slow". So far, it seems to be a masterpiece, though I've only read the introduction, first chapter, and an appendix with a seminal paper published in Nature on decision-making that lead to a Nobel Prize in Economics for the author.
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Rant was outstanding his best book since Survivor. I really enjoyed Damned. I have read all his fiction & non-fiction. My favorite being Invisible Monsters. My least favorite being Pygmy.
"Obstacles are stepping-stones That guide us to our goals"
