Book Thread

Underworld is damn good. It starts overcooked and ends undercooked, but it's all the same a damn fine sausage.

I hated White Noise when I read it, but so many people I respect seem to think it's wonderful.

I'm finishing Michael Pollan's most recent book, Cooked. Makes the argument that the process of cooking - broadened to include fermentation - is the hinge on which humanity's social evolution has swung. If you don't find it convincing - I did - it's still filled w/ all sorts of things that can make you a better person. I like how Pollan sets sights on the same subject from multiple angles in his books - the content is usually interesting enough to sustain long sits, and the structure makes it easy to put down when you need to.

not the most brilliantly written book, but very compelling

the chicago history parts are far better than the murder plot. i imagine as a new chicagoan the history is fairly interesting to you

Agree completely.

the history is very interesting, especially since i'm super into architecture to begin with. i'm pretty close to done with it, and i think next i'm going to read a confederacy of dunces.

purchased the good soldier svejk

jesus jones wrote:a confederacy of dunces.

this was a wonderful read btw.

I'm taking a break between books in 1Q84. I've finished the first 750 pages or so and it is an interesting read. It can be pretty damn repetitive but given the length of the novel I don't mind. Much more story driven than what I'm used to reading so I've been enjoying the change of pace.

I am currently starting "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and will finish the Murakami afterwards. Also going to study the history of Czechoslovakia to get more out of Svejk on my second attempt.



Also, not a huge fan of this edition but its the girlfriends; If I love it I'll probably try to purchase a different edition.

top 5 book for me. love that messed up family

Just a stop gap between the Irish masters and Gravity's Rainbow. I'm enjoying this 'experimental fiction' collection a lot.

Michael K. wrote:

Currently reading this. Never read a Chabon book before. Sorta Pynchonesque, but without the important/EVERYTHING MEANS SO MUCH quality that Pynchon weaves into his literary bombast. I like reading about a place I spent a lot of time in, so that's fun, and I like reading about pop culture. That said, even though this has so much weighted in its favor, I'm not finding it the effervescent page-turned I hoped it would be. Could use shorter chapters, I think.

Miniboss started paging through this book and pretending to read it while I was cooking dinner. Then she said "Dad, this book isn't very good." She's not yet three and already smart as a whip.

I hit a bit of a wall in my reading. I still have yet to finish 1Q84, I quickly quit 100 Years of Solitude (will return to later), and started Blood Meridian but could not get into it for the life of me.

Think I'm going to just finish the Murakami. I'm really curious about "The Recognitions" and will likely supersede the rest of my "to read" list if I can scrounge together the $15 dollars or so to buy it.

Also want to get my hands on "Gravity's Rainbow". Did you get to this yet Soma?

No. I've read two short novels and another short story collection since the Barthelme. I keep putting it off. 'One more 200 pager and I'll tackle the behemoth'.

That book is a motherfucker.

Finishing 1Q84 today. Bought Gravity's Rainbow and think I'm going to just attack it tonight/tomorrow.

I am 122 pages into The Brothers Karamazov. Does this shit get better? I thought for 70 pages it was satire and then Wikipedia told me that isn't the case.

This may be another Proustian situation where there is an exponential fall in my interest level, but this book is absolutely doing it for me. Admittedly I'm less than 10% deep but I'm having trouble prying myself away from this thing already.

Remember last year when I was like "maybe I should read Gravity's Rainbow" and everyone got all 'lol, college, fuck you, idiot' on me. That was fun.

But yeah. I think I am going to try again with that book really soon.

Actually, it was you were reading David Foster Wallace when Michael K responded with "COLLEGE" and then he preceded to recommend that you read Pynchon where you pointed out that you own Gravity's Rainbow already but have not read it.

but if you like your version better you should go with that one. It isn't like this is easily verifiable information found on page 1 and 2 of this exact thread.

I feel like what I was referring to may have gone down in LoPP1. Or I am just delusional. Either way, doesn't really matter.

delusional. matters.

At some point this month I am going to read The Crying of Lot 49. I'll probably let you guys know what I think about it.