Topic: Reader's Nook

[tarascon]

Suggest a book to read or mention what you are currently reading or plan to read soon.
The genre is open and so is the approach; you can write a long review or simply post a title/author you'd like to share.

The last book I read was The Book of Air & Shadows by M. Gruber which I enjoyed. Today I began Bartleby & Co. by Enrique Vila-Matas.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2004/aug/14/featuresreviews.guardianreview9

THIS THREAD IS MUTUALLY OFFERED BY AUTUMN & MYSELF. This is a merged thread...

[xtopave]

Today I began Bartleby & Co. by Enrique Vila-Matas.

Now that you mention a Catalan author I recall La sombra del viento by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. Beautiful!!

[tarascon]

^ Yes, yes, yes!

Also check out The Book of Disquiet by Lisbon born author Fernando Pessoa.

[xtopave]

It's Public Domain so I'm checking it out right now. Looks pretty crazy.

[tarascon]

^ He was a very cool, very bizarre person.
Btw, did you read Zafon in the original? I did not. 

[xtopave]

Btw, did you read Zafon in the original? I did not. 

Spanish is my native language so yes, I did. 

[tarascon]

^ German is my first tongue but followed very closely by English (I came to the New World when I was 2). I've only read one book (Confessions of Felix Krull by Mann) in my "native" language... Which segues into my next recommendation.
How German Is it? by Walter Abish.

[bubu]

A portuguese author I really like is Josè Saramago, i read his books in Italian (portuguese is too difficult) which is my language,his atheist point of view made his life difficult in the catholic Portugal, he exiled himself in Lanzarote (Spain) after his governement in 1992, ordered the removal of The Gospel According to Jesus Christ from the European Literary Prize's shortlist, claiming the work was religiously offensive. He died there in 2010.
The latest I read and bought is Cain (Caim),which is the final novel by  the Nobel Prize-winning author,  it was first published in 2009.
The novel is told through the eyes of Cain as he witnesses passages from the Bible that add to his increasing hatred of God.

[tarascon]

I've read most of Saramago's stuff except Cain. Actually, I haven't heard of it... so thanks for the lead. To date my favorite of his: The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis.

On January 25th I'm taking a train from Los Angeles to Detroit. I bought these books today for the trip:

1. The Road to Jerusalem by Jan Guillou
2. The Good Son by Michael Gruber
3. The Long Ships by Frans Bengtsson
4. Gods Without Men by Hari Kunzru

[Autumn]

tarascon gave me this idea... I wanna know what you're reading! I wanna know what it's about, what you like or don't like about it and if I should read it.

Currently reading Lauren Fox. Still Life with Husband. She's a local author that comes into my bakery. She is very sweet! Anyway the book is about a woman that encounters a sort of stale phase in her marriage and pursues another man. I love the parts about my city, but I hate reading what I feel like might be becoming of me if I'm not careful.
You should absolutely read it if you're into scandal, Milwaukee or crappy marriages.

[xtopave]

I'm not in a reading phase right now. I'm trying to read Livro do Desassossego by Fernando Pessoa and alternating with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. Not making much of a progress with any of them.

[tarascon]

Rasputin's Bastards by David Nickle.

Aging Cold War Russians, KGB remote viewing and strange, powerful children who may prove to be the harbingers of doom.
Unfortunately (as a marketing ploy), the author is compared to Stephen King--an author I detest--and for that reason I passed this book up several times before actually buying it. I'm glad I finally ignored the blurb and got the book... it's well-written, darkly funny, and way better than anything King ever wrote.

Btw, may I add that something like this thread exists... Here: http://www.diasfora.co.uk/index.php/topic,4692.0.html
Perhaps someone can merge these two. 

[Autumn]

But t, it's just a list. I want details!

[tarascon]

I understand but details can sometimes be spoilers. 
And as far as recommending that someone read a particular book is a responsibility I shall pass on; what people like and don't like is a hard call--all I can do is hope someone will be intrigued enough to want to check the book out.

I'm also reading Mao: The Unknown Story by Jung Chang & Jon Halliday, a biography of the Chinese tyrant and sociopath. It's a good bio but requires--at times--a strong stomach.

[6pairsofshoes]

I'm reading Maurice Merleau-Ponty's Phenomenology of Perception in the new Landau translation.  It was originally published in 1945.  I'm also reading Minette Walters' The Ice House (a mystery, not as good as her The Sculptress).  So far, the Merleau-Ponty, as difficult as it is, is more compelling than the mystery novel.

I read anything and everything.  And I take issue with the dismissal of Stephen King.  I once thought that he was just another pulp novelist and, thus, not deserving of respect.  Then somebody gave me a copy of Pet Sematary.  I was surprised.  He is a gifted writer.  His descriptions and plots are quite skillful, even if they are executed in a limited genre.  Is it high art?  No.  But his books are entertaining and well-crafted.

Nobody accuses K-pop of being art music, but it's entertaining and professionally executed.  There's a popular niche for it.  You don't have to like it.