Books - What are you reading?

I enjoyed Solaris a lot when I read it last year. It reminded me of some Philip K Dick stuff in terms of the style of writing and using science fiction as a genre to explore broader social themes. I read a few of Stanisław Lem's short stories under the title The Three Electroknights which were all very different to Solaris, much more high concept but they were great too.

Currently reading this as a change of scene. It’s alright. Not Horowitzs finest work but it’s keeping my attention.

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I bought this out of a mild curiosity to find out a bit more about someone I only knew from reading Heart of Darkness, and knowing that Chinua Achebe had criticised him.

It's a brilliant book, which I didn't really expect, combining biography and the inspiration for his works really well, and I found it way more readable than I expected.

Just finished bullsh*t jobs by david graeber. I really enjoyed it and i think its a solid addition to the books about the working world and shorter working weeks. It kept me well entertained

Now you go back to your 5 day working week

I’m going to give that a read. My job is pointless. It could be done by our customer all on their own. I literally send emails all day.

But until my employer figured this out I’ll keep taking the money.

Will check that collection of stories out! Short sci fi is my shit.

I'm reading the second of two 33 1/3 books I bought now (Spiderland, having read In The Aeroplane Under The Sea).

Perhaps they're not indicative of the rest, or perhaps it's a genre of book I like I lot more in theory than in practice, but both have started with long histories of various small-town bands the members were in before they formed the bands that made the albums, they never sound very good and there's always someone called Brian.

I think I might get the Abbey Road one, because I think I'd actually be more interested in what guitar John used and read the debates about whether George or Paul played bass on that song.

My missus pronounces it "donkey shot". Guess which book I found?

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I've been listening to the Lord Of The Rings audiobooks whilst I've been working. I enjoyed The Fellowship Of The Rings for the most part but found The Two Towers a bit of a drag! A feo me has been reading them recently and had the same experience. I should probably crack on with Return Of The King or I'll never get round to it.
Also, where's a good place to start with Steven King? I reckon they'd make good driving audiobooks.

Why is the word ‘quixotic’ pronounced like it is? It should be ‘key-otic’ surely?

I dont know if any of these are audiobooks but I liked

Misery
IT
Carrie
Under The Dome
Different Seasons (4 novellas - two of which have been made into the best SK film adaptions)
The Shining
The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon (this is excellent, but pretty short)
Salems Lot (this is terrifying, I imagine driving alone in the dark would shit you right up)

I've not read The Stand or the Dark Tower series' but they should keep you going a long long time

Thanks! The Kubrick adaptation of The Shining is one of my favourite films so maybe that's the obvious place to start. I've heard good things about The Stand, maybe I'll wait until I've got a busy period at work with lots of driving to get stuck into the 50 hour long audiobook, ha ha.

I’d also heard The Stand was one of his best. I’ve got it in the queue for after I’ve finished the 3rd ‘Book of Koli’ instalment that just came out.

where's a good place to start with Steven King?

The first two thirds of any of his books. The man cannot do endings for shit.

The man cannot do endings for shit.

Word. So many of his books just meander slowly till they eventually run out of energy. I think this may have improved over time, but a real thing in his earlier work.

Found The Stand fairly boring, myself. Dramatic final scene but it felt like a cheap trick more than something thematic.

Bingo. Don Quick Oats himself.

No idea but I give you "Southwark" and a million other examples closer to home :)

It’s more that the word comes from the dudes name, but is pronounced differently to how his name is pronounced. Always seemed odd to me.

How is his name pronounced? Don "Key hote ay" is how I've been saying it but I've no idea.

Because we're English and we didn't win two world wars only to go and learn foreign.

Something like that, I think. But quixotic is pronounced ‘quick-sotic’.

quix•ot•ic kwĭk-sŏt′ĭk

" from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxlF3qGf7yE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qzsoBEtfkg

Been a busy few months:-

Chernobyl by Serhii Plokhy
Running with the Kenyans and The Rise of the Ultra Runners by Adharanand Finn.
Endure by Alex Hutchinson plus the one called Cardio or Weights first or something.
Some random P.G. Wodehouse book for our book club.
Humble Pi by Matt Parker
Endless Perfect Circles by Ian Walker

Now on The Sleeper Awakes by H.G. Wells (read along with The Time Machine and The Chronic Argonauts).