The "what are you reading" thread:

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by Traianvs
I'm reading my first Terry Pratchett book ever. It's called Guards guards. It's a Dutch translation though, which sucks enormously. I'll never make that mistake again

Y'think it sucks because it is in Dutch or because you don't like Prachett? I've read "Guards, Guards" twice and enjoyed it immensely.

[Julian Delphiki]

Young Stalin by Simon Sebag Montefiore.

[Boris Godunov]

Originally posted by Zkribbler


Y'think it sucks because it is in Dutch or because you don't like Prachett? I've read "Guards, Guards" twice and enjoyed it immensely.

Given how much Pratchett's books are based on English word play, I imagine it's the fault of the translation.

I'm currently reading "When Christ and His Saints Slept," by Sharon Kay Penman. It is historical fiction about the war between King Stephen of England and Maude, Henry I's daughter. I picked it up on recommendation because I enjoyed Follet's The Pillars of the Earth a lot. So far it's ok--but I can't say I'm emotionally drawn to the characters, as there are too many and the leaps in time are rather jarring.

I picked up a cheap copy of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere, which will be next on my list.

I'm also working my way through Joseph Campbell's The Hero of A Thousand Faces, but I only read a few pages a week.

[Alinestra Covelia]

Pillars of the Earth was amazing. After that I read Valley of the Horses.

I would recommend them to anybody over the age of 14. (I read them when I was 11.)

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by Boris Godunov

I'm currently reading "When Christ and His Saints Slept," by Sharon Kay Penman. It is historical fiction about the war between King Stephen of England and Maude, Henry I's daughter. I picked it up on recommendation because I enjoyed Follet's The Pillars of the Earth a lot. So far it's ok--but I can't say I'm emotionally drawn to the characters, as there are too many and the leaps in time are rather jarring.

Penman has trouble with her beginnings. They tend to be long, rambling, and without much relevance to the rest of the story. This book will get a lot better once she starts concentrating on Maude.

I hope you got the hardcover, like I did. It is gorgeous!

[Traianvs]

I have finished Pratchett's book now. Good stuff. Luckily the translation improved after a while, or maybe I simply needed to get used to Pratchett's style.

The problem for me was that Pratchett has a very colloquial writing style, so the obvious thing for a translator to do is to translate it into informal Dutch. Alas, the translator used "The Netherlands Dutch" instead of Flemish Dutch, which causes a lot of wordplay to sound awfully corny and awkward at times.

(FYI Flemish people seriously dislike northern dialect, whereas the Dutch often consider Flemish to sound very funny.)

I'll pick up an English version in the future. Was a refreshing read.

Now I'll commence Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond (in Dutch translation). I know I'm one of the very few people around here who hasn't read it yet. I had several common ideas about life cycles of civilizations during my archaeology studies, so I'm interested to see how exactly he's putting everything into perspective.

[Sirotnikov]

Mechanized Infantry (also Tank Warfare, selected chapters) by Richard E. Simpkin

Quite a good book that gives a strong grasp on the role of combined infantry-armor forces, and discusses alot of tactics and logistics issues.

I can say that many of the predictions are true today.

--

Basic Economics: A Citizen's Guide to the Economy by Thomas Sowell.

To Laugh All the Way: Dealing with Banks and Insurance Companies by Shlomi Sheffer.

Retailing by Michael Etgar & Aharon Meidan
--

Point of No Return by Ronen Bergman, which is a huge and great historical essay on Iran, and the Israeli-Iranian relationship.

Some of it is a bit speculative or exaggerated, but most of the speculations are probably as close to the truth as we can tell.

[Traianvs]

I. Gontsjarov's 'Oblomov'

After 120 pages the protagonist still hasn't left his bed. Nice!

[Zkribbler]

I started Dante's Devine Comedy a few days ago. So far, it isn't blowing my hair back.

A buddy gave me a book for Christmas. I haven't unwrapped it yet and left it at work. He has good taste in books, so whatever it is, I probably switch over to it over the weekend.

[Nostromo]

Patrick Süskind, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

[Traianvs]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
I started Dante's Devine Comedy a few days ago. So far, it isn't blowing my hair back.

A buddy gave me a book for Christmas. I haven't unwrapped it yet and left it at work. He has good taste in books, so whatever it is, I probably switch over to it over the weekend.

Why not? I thought the book was terrific, especially the first half. Then it started slacking a bit, but the end is a masterpiece once again.

There are several versions of the book by the way. Do you have a translation in verse or prose? More importantly, do you have a version with explanatory footnotes? Mine had a few hundreds of pages in notes. A good thing too, cause even if you have a fair knowledge of Italian / Classical medieval history or theology it's difficult to know what or who Dante is referring to...

[Lord Avalon]

Still working on Cryptonomicon.

Also read a bunch of graphic novels: Spawn collecctions 4-6; Hellboy - Conqueror Worm, Strange Places, and The Troll Witch and Others; Wasteland 3 Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos.

Pearls Before Swine - Nighthogs. Just started The Ratvolution will not be Televised.

Oh, and read Vel's SMAX Guide, Version 4.0.

[Julian Delphiki]

The Waning Of The Middle Ages by Johan Huizinga.

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by Traianvs
Do you have a translation in verse or prose? More importantly, do you have a version with explanatory footnotes? Mine had a few hundreds of pages in notes.

Prose, not poetry. No footnotes.

[Imran Siddiqui]

I'm almost through "Breaking Dawn", the final book of the Twilight series (slogging through it more likely), and am reading "The Subtle Knife", the second book of the His Dark Materials trilogy (much better written than the first series).

Prior to that I read Malcolm Gladwell's "The Tipping Point".

Next I'll read Chalbon's Hugo and Nebula award winner "The Yiddish Policeman's Union". And after that "Duel" by Thomas Flemming (of the famous Hamilton, Burr duel)