So...What Are You Reading Now?

[MeiTow]

Seen these on a few boards and I like to peruse and see what people have been reading. So, tell us what you are currently reading, how you like it, would you recommend it, a summary (no spoilers please), etc etc if you like!

Currently I've been reading sci-fi/fantasy books for an online class I'm taking and this week we need to read both Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

I started with Herland because I'd never heard of the woman who wrote it and the title intrigued me. Femminists will get a kick out of the men in this story. LOL! Basic summary is three men hear about a civilization of women. They are warned that those that went looking for them never came back but the thought of three guys with their pick of women is too much for them and they go looking. I'm about 60% of the way through and I actually like it pretty well.

I'm not sure if I'll have time to read the other one as I've been super busy this week and I have to write my essay for the school week on Monday sometime. lol

[Ally]

Right now I'm in the midst of re-reading the 'Harry Potter' series (about halfway through 'The Half-Blood Prince' right now) but I've got quite the stack of book to read through when I'm done with the series. I think I'll probably go onto 'Freedom' by Jonathan Franzen when I'm done as I've been wanting to read it for ages, or 'Misery' by Stephen King, or 'Paint it Black' by Janet Fitch (I had a lot of fun at a local bookshops' recent going-out-of-business sale, and I bought a lot of books!).
If you want a recommendation, one of my all-time favourite books is 'Vernon God Little' by DBC Pierre. The plot is sort of hard to describe, but basically 15 year old Vernon Little is accused and charged with a murder he didn't commit, but skips town anyway to get away from everything. Actually quite a funny book, though it's rather black comedy, sort of reminiscent of a Chuck Palahniuk novel (I love his stuff too!).

[rockinwithrammstein]

I am currently reading a book called The Legend of Sigmar. It's from the Warhammer series (I guess it's a game like D&D?) I read a lot of things like that. Fantasy is my favorite genre and it seems that I always end up favoring the books written around characters from games I'd never heard of or know nothing about (Dragonlance, D&D, Warhammer, etc)

I love this book, it's well written and engaging. There are some one dimensional characters, but I've noticed that in a few of the others in the series' and they tend to get killed off. So...crossing my fingers, I suppose...as awful as that sounds lol

Spoiler

I also love when stories kill off a main character, too, is that bad?

[no_need]

Spoiler

I also love when stories kill off a main character, too, is that bad?

I don't think that's a bad thing! Sometimes it's a necessary plot point. For example, I am a big fan of Robert Jordan's "The Wheel of Time" series, but...

Spoiler

...the guy just couldn't seem to bring himself to let anyone die! To be honest, a few deaths among the main characters could have improved the book, in my opinion.

On the subject of TWoT, as a fantasy fan I think it's one of the best series out there. It's a classic good vs. evil story, but it's written in a very different way from most fantasy. For one thing, although there are 'witches' and 'wizards' throughout the story, they are not called such and the word 'magic' is never mentioned. You can forget all about your preconceptions about magic users from other series because of this. Might seem like a small thing to base liking a book on, but it made a big difference for me.

Right now I'm reading Terry Pratchett's Discworld series in the order of publication. My favourites are the ones with the Watch - I'm reading "The Fifth Elephant" at the moment and I just love Sam Vimes! In this book there are diplomatic problems between dwarves, humans and werewolves, and Vimes (the least diplomatic person ever to live) has to resolve them. Additionally features: unusual murders, a clerk with a suspicious walk, and a Dwarf Bread museum

[lcockitt]

I'm also re-reading the Harry Potter series - just finished the Chamber of Secrets. I love going back and re-reading books I've not read in a while, it feels a bit like visiting old friends.

[rockinwithrammstein]

I love going back and re-reading books I've not read in a while, it feels a bit like visiting old friends.

I'm the same way. Especially with the Sabriel series. Not a very popular book when I was in school, but I loved it anyway and even though it's a young adult/teen series I LOVE it to this day.

[Eliste]

I've just started The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi. I'm only three chapters in but really enjoying it. it's not at all what I expected, but it grabbed me straight away. Can't say I know enough to give a plot summary, but the world is very rich and the writing is good.

Sadly, everything else I've been reading has been college stuff, which while interesting to me, probably won't be to you.

[MeiTow]

Well, I was right in that I did not get a chance to read A Princess of Mars. Another book to finish after class is over, it seems. *puts it in the stack with Dracula, Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, and Island of Dr. Moreau*. I almost got through Herland (A chapter and a half left and I will probably finish it with my bedtime reading tonight if I'm not too tired).

The story for this next week is Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles. I've never read anything by him but I am eager to give this a try. I'm usually not a huge fan of "classics" (this is the second time I've tried to read Dracula...it's still boring as hell). I will also be happy when this class ends in a few weeks (December 12) so I can go back to reading stuff I actually have an interest in reading (ie all the books I already have that need reading lol). My cousin and I have decided to start a long-distance bookclub like thing in January as a way to keep in touch (she's the only one in my family I actually feel somewhat close to, sadly) so I will probably be reading some things that I wouldn't have thought of before. I also really need to finish King's IT (it's been my toilet book for, like, five years lol).

[Ally]

Don't worry MeiTow, I had the same problem with 'Dracula'! I really wanted to like it, but the book was overly long and wordy, took me an age to finish! As far as classics go, I'd recommend 'The Portrait of Dorian Grey' by Oscar Wilde, about a narcissist who fixes it so a portrait ages instead of him. Brilliant book, and 'Frankenstein' was really good once I got into it too.

[kuja.girl]

I just reread The Way of Kings. I finished it in under a week and it's over 1,000 pages. It's that good. The author, Sanderson, was the one tapped to finish the Wheel of Time series... which I hated. I got through 5 books before I gave up. The characters only ever felt half developed and good lord, the women were barely characters and more like plot points! It was horrible. And I agree with no_need's point - too many damned players in that story! ... Ok I'll stop :)

Just read The Way of Kings, the second book comes out in 2014 now that he's done finishing Wheel of Time for Jordon (like a 3-4 year wait arg!)
I also agree with rockinwithrammstein that the Sabriel series by Garth Nix is fabulous. I haven't been a fan of his other work, but that series is pretty wonderful and a quick read.

I'm reading some series I got on special: The Legend of Eli Monpress. So far it's amusing but not excellent.