What Book Have You Read Recently?

Snoopy · 03-11-2007, 11:59 AM

Hi,

Thought I'd start a sister thread to the movies one; seemed appropriate in view of the nature of the site I thought!

What have you read and what did you think of it?.........

(I'm just half way through one...)

s.

cavalier · 03-11-2007, 02:24 PM

The Big Bumper Book of...

um, actually halfway through Bleak House. I do love reading Dickens and really enjoy his style, but can't help feel that this one is a bit too much.

The last book I read was Junk(y), excellent

Snoopy · 03-11-2007, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cavalier

um, actually halfway through Bleak House. I do love reading Dickens and really enjoy his style, but can't help feel that this one is a bit too much.

Hi,

Haven't read Dickens since my school days so quite a while ago! But the BBC dramatisation of Bleak House was simply fabulous - if you haven't seen it I strongly recommend getting it on DVD; - and then my partner got me the book for Christmas. It's very heavy going isn't it, with not much dialogue...

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Bleak House's 'terrific' cast hailed

s.

cavalier · 03-11-2007, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snoopy

Hi,

Haven't read Dickens since my school days so quite a while ago! But the BBC dramatisation of Bleak House was simply fabulous - if you haven't seen it I strongly recommend getting it on DVD; - and then my partner got me the book for Christmas. It's very heavy going isn't it, with not much dialogue...

s.

Thanks for tip, I'll see if I can find it, but not till after I've finished reading the book. It is a little heavy but I'm well into it now and cant wait to find out what's going to happen.

cavalier · 03-11-2007, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snoopy

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Bleak House's 'terrific' cast hailed

Gillian Anderson of X-Files fame?

Snoopy · 03-11-2007, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cavalier

Gillian Anderson of X-Files fame?

The very one! Strangely enough she was in a period drama last night called House of Mirth that I've taped...

Bleak House was adapted for the screen by Andrew Davies (all hail) which basically means you know it's going to be top drawer.

Andrew Davies (writer) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Enjoy the rest of the book in the meantime...

s.

Francis king · 03-14-2007, 02:21 PM

last non fiction book I read was.... the bedroom secrets of the master chefs, by Irvine Welsh... I like fiction which doesn't make me work too hard, I want entertainment, not social commentary and politics disguised as fiction, and welshie fits the bill... don't know how u do Dickens... wading through the pages of descriptives... eew...

cavalier · 03-15-2007, 12:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Francis king

last non fiction book I read was.... the bedroom secrets of the master chefs, by Irvine Welsh... I like fiction which doesn't make me work too hard, I want entertainment, not social commentary and politics disguised as fiction, and welshie fits the bill... don't know how u do Dickens... wading through the pages of descriptives... eew...

Just my opinion, but Dickens entertains better than most of the writers who simply write for entertainment. I get your point about descriptives, that's what I was referring to as being "too much" in the early part of Bleak House. Still, he's the finest writer, the English language has ever known.
I've read a couple of Welsh books, Trainspotting which I thought was a genuinely fantastic book, and Porno which was horrendous.

Francis king · 03-15-2007, 01:42 AM

each to their own, cav

YO-ELEVEN-11 · 03-15-2007, 01:54 AM

Right now im reading A LONG WAY GONE , MEMOIRS OF A BOY SOLDIER" by Ishmael Beah

So far it is a good book.

cavalier · 03-15-2007, 04:03 AM

Just so Francis, just so

Snoopy · 03-16-2007, 04:33 PM

Happiness.

By Matthieu Ricard.

An authority on the subject, being the happiest (tested) person in the world this is an informative and stimulating look at the subject most (if not all people) are interested in. It is described as a guide to developing life’s most important skill, as Ricard argues that happiness is state of mind and yet it is often confused with pleasure and the seeking of pleasure, which can only ever offer transitory experiences. In considering the subject the book intertwines science and Buddhism, considering all the topics he sees fit such as brain activity, meditation, the ego, compassion, time, ethics, altruism and death.

Highly recommended.

s.

http://www.comparative-religion.com/...orld-6656.html

Snoopy · 04-01-2007, 06:56 PM

The Experience of Meditation: Experts Introduce the Major Traditions. Ed. by Jonathan Shear.

The title says it all really, an inter-faith look at the topic of meditation, from the perspectives of Buddhism, Christianity, Sufism, Taoism, TM and Yoga. Each section has broadly the same headings for ease of comparison, i.e. Historical Background, Method, Experiences, Further Results and Interpretations.

s.

PS Anyone else read anything lately??!!

cavalier · 04-09-2007, 04:39 AM

Misreadings, Umberto Eco

It opens with a story called "Granita" a Lolita story in reverse.

flowperson · 04-09-2007, 05:04 AM

Hi All

I'm re-reading Stephen Mitchell's translation of the Tao Te Ching. It is simply stupendous in its simplicity and insights. How anyone was able to write so knowingly about the intersections of religion and science 2,600 years ago is beyond my ability to understand. A gigantic work of influence in the east and comparable to Pythagorean theories and works in the west IMHO.

flow....