JD Book Club: What Are You Reading Now?

[Scott]

I forgot to mention that I am currently reading the Foundation books

[Nathan]

First time or rereading? Those are definitely on my list, although after I get through more of Tolkien. I kind of stalled in the middle of Unfinished Tales--it's so slow going and such small print I can only read so much of it at a time--and relapsed back to the Star Wars tie-ins.

[Scott]

I read Foundation a couple of years ago but have always wanted to read the others...they are fairly quick reads so I'm hoping to blow through them pretty quick.

I remember being awed at Asimov's thoughts of the future in the 40's...it is pretty amazing how many things he nailed. 

[Nathan]

There are plans afoot for a film adaptation, apparently. Not far enough along for cast info or anything though.

[Phrubruh]

Now reading the short story Farewell Summer by Ray Bradbury.



This poignant, wise but slight "extension" of the indefatigable Bradbury's semiautobiographical Dandelion Wine picks up the story of 12-year-old Douglas Spaulding in October of 1928, when the warmth of summer still clings to Green Town, Ill. As in his episodic 1957 novel, Bradbury evokes the rhythms of a long-gone smalltown America with short, swift chapters that build to a lyrical meditation on aging and death. Playing at war, the imaginative Douglas and his friends target the town's elderly men, and the outraged 81-year-old bachelor Calvin C. Quartermain attempts to organize a counterattack against the boys' mischief. Rebelling against their elders—and the specter of age and death—Douglas and his gang steal the old men's chess pieces before deciding that Time, as embodied by the courthouse clock, is their true nemesis. The story turns on a gift of birthday cake that triggers Douglas and Quartermain's mutual recognition: "He had seen himself peer forth from the boy's eyes." Soon thereafter, Douglas's first kiss and new, acute awareness of girls serves as the harbinger of his inevitable adulthood. Bradbury's mature but fresh return to his beloved early writing conveys a depth of feeling.

[Phrubruh]

Finished "Farewell Summer". Farewell Summer is the sequal to "Dandelion Wine" which I am now starting. I guess I'm reading them in reverse order. The library got the sequal in before the original story.



World-renowned fantasist Ray Bradbury has on several occasions stepped outside the arenas of horror, fantasy, and science fiction. An unabashed romantic, his first novel in 1957 was basically a love letter to his childhood. (For those who want to undertake an even more evocative look at the dark side of youth, five years later the author would write the chilling classic Something Wicked This Way Comes.)
 
Dandelion Wine takes us into the summer of 1928, and to all the wondrous and magical events in the life of a 12-year-old Midwestern boy named Douglas Spaulding. This tender, openly affectionate story of a young man's voyage of discovery is certainly more mainstream than exotic. No walking dead or spaceships to Mars here. Yet those who wish to experience the unique magic of early Bradbury as a prose stylist should find Dandelion Wine most refreshing.

[Chris M]

The Perils of Peace by Thomas Fleming.  It covers the time period from after the American victory at Yorktown in 1781 until the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783 officially ending the American Revolution.  Pretty good read if you are into colonial American politics.

[Mikey D]

Finished:



Started:



Up Next:

[Phrubruh]

Just starting today "Master and Commander" by Patrick O'Brian.



The opening salvo of the Aubrey-Maturin epic, in which the surgeon introduces himself to the captain by driving an elbow into his ribs during a chamber-music recital. Fortunately for millions of readers, the two quickly make up. Then they commence one of the great literary voyages of our century, set against an immaculately-detailed backdrop of the Napoleonic wars. This is the place to start--and in all likelihood, you won't be able to stop.

and also starting today "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck



George and Lennie are drifters, moving from rural property to rural property, they go wherever work takes them. They stay for as long as their luck lasts, doing whatever the current job demands, but come what may George and Lennie stick together. George is small, fast to loose his temper and smart. Lennie is big, always affable and dim-witted. Lennie needs George to look after him, and George sometimes wishes that he was able to live life free and easy, free to gamble and booze his money away. Lennie's slow wit often gets him into trouble in the rough and tumble, male world of the rural society. Now "a few miles south of Soledad" George and Lennie are about to start a new job. Before they enter the property the two camp out overnight so George can enjoy the scenery. This proves to be the calm before the storm as the two are about to experience life-changing events.

This is a short book, being just under 100 pages, but it contains much to be thought about. Steinbeck describes in detail the harsh way men choose to live. He notes how, in this environment, some men rise to become leaders, being hero-worshiped in such a way that their word becomes almost gospel in the minds of other men. But Stienbeck, through the friendship of George and Lennie, also notes that there is another, more caring way for men to live Of course even those who follow a philosophy of caring live in the real world of struggle in which circumstances are not easy to resolve, and Steinbeck is well aware of this. Steinbeck's beliefs are informed by his knowledge of Christianity, but one does not have to slavishly follow that religion to agree with what he is saying. This book was first published in 1937, but is contains ideas that have finally flourished in the New Age Men's movement of the late Twentieth Century.

This book is stylistically interesting. Steinbeck deliberately wrote his prose in a way which imitates plays (drama). Events take place in a set 'scene' and characters enter, interact and leave. Dialogue, rather than action, is emphasized. The author, indeed, later wrote a theater version of this story. He did the same thing with the book <The Moon is Down>. Through Steinbecks skillfully woven dialogue we gain a good understanding of his main characters and Lennie is one of his most poignant creations. The climaxes of this tale, and there are more than one, are also memorable.

[Nathan]

“Within twenty-four standard hours we will sit firmly astride the communications link that connects the worlds of the Republic. . . . Our control will be a dagger thrust directly at Coruscant. This is the move that will win the war for us.”

With these ominous words, Pors Tonith, ruthless minion of Count Dooku, declares the fate of the Republic sealed. Commanding a Separatist invasion force more than one million strong, the cunning financier-turned-warrior lays siege to the planet Praesitlyn, home of the strategic intergalactic communications center that is key to the Republic’s survival in the Clone Wars. Left unchallenged, this decisive strike could indeed pave the way for the toppling of more Republic worlds . . . and ultimate victory for the Separatists. Retaliation must be swift and certain.

Shoulder to shoulder with a rogue Republic army officer and his battle-hardened crew, a hulking Rodian mercenary with an insatiable taste for combat, and a duo of ready-for-anything soldiers, the Jedi generals take to the skies and the punishing desert terrain of occupied Praesitlyn–to bring the battle to the Separatist forces. Already outnumbered and outgunned, when confronted with an enemy ultimatum that could lead to the massacre of innocents, they may also be out of options. Unless Anakin Skywalker can strike a crucial balance between the wisdom born of the Force . . . and the instincts of a born warrior.

[Phrubruh]

Finished "Of Mice and Men" and now reading "Quantum of Solace: The Complete James Bond Short Stories" by Ian Fleming.



"Quantum of Solace - the amount of comfort. Yes, I suppose you could say that all love and friendship is based in the end on that. Human beings are very insecure. When the other person not only makes you feel insecure but actually seems to want to destroy you, it's obviously the end. The Quantum of Solace stands at zero. You've got to get away to save yourself."

- James Bond (QUANTUM OF SOLACE)

This paperback, recently released before the debut on November 21, 2008 of the latest 007 movie of the same name, "Quantum of Solace," is actually a compilation of nine short stories written by Ian Fleming in two separate books (FOR YOUR EYES ONLY and OCTOPUSSY/THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS). According to Fleming's biographer John Pearson in his book THE LIFE OF IAN FLEMING, six or so of these short stories began as outlines for half-hour TV episodes written for CBS in the late '50s. The TV series never got off the ground but the short stories have survived. Several of them were made into full-length movies having absolutely nothing to do with the original stories (e.g. "Octopussy," "From a View to a Kill," and "For Your Eyes Only"). I can't imagine the next Bond movie, starring Daniel Craig as a much better 007 than any of the previous ones in my opinion, (Sean Connery excepted) has anything to do with the short story "Quantum of Solace," since it is only about a conversation between JB and the Governor of The Bahamas (the governor's name is never given) in Nassau after a dinner party. There's no action. No intrigue. No skullduggery. It's simply a story about a failed marriage. Suffice it to say, the short stories are well-worth reading on their own. Bond is his usual suave and deadly self and a staunch defender of Queen and Country against the West's old Cold War nemesis...the Soviet Union. Highly recommended.

[Darth_Anton]

Is Paris Burning?

Great book. It's about the German occupation of Paris, Hitler's orders to destroy it, the citizens struggle to liberate it and the Allies need to bypass it on their way to Berlin. 

[Nathan]

As the Clone Wars rage, Jedi Master Yoda must once again face one of his greatest adversaries: Count Dooku. . . .

The savage Clone Wars have forced the Republic to the edge of collapse. During the height of the battle, on Jedi Knight escapes the carnage to deliver a message to Yoda on Coruscant. It appears that Dooku wants peace and demands a rendezvous. Chances are slim that the treacherous Count is sincere but, with a million lives at stake, Yoda has no choice.

The meeting will take place on Vjun, a planet steeped in evil. The challenge could not be more difficult. Can Yoda win back his once promising pupil from the dark side or will Count Dooku unleash his sinister forces against his former mentor? Either way, Yoda is sure of one thing: This battle will be one of the fiercest he’ll ever face.

Just finished this last night. One of the best Star Wars novels.

[Nathan]

Defining that precise moment when a trend becomes a trend, Malcolm Gladwell probes the surface of everyday occurrences to reveal some surprising dynamics behind explosive social changes. He examines the power of word-of-mouth and explores how very small changes can directly affect popularity. Perceptive and imaginative, The Tipping Point is a groundbreaking book destined to overturn conventional thinking in business, sociological, and policy-making arenas.

[Nathan]

Sequel to Heroes Die.

Hari Michaelson, aka Caine, aka The Blade of Tyshalle, has gone soft. You can hardly say it's his fault, though. After all, his spine was severed seven years ago, in the climax of the Studio's all-time bestselling entertaiment: For Love of Pallas Ril. Hari has managed to leverage Caine's vast popularity into an upcaste to Adminstrator for himself. He's got a beautiful home, an adorable stepdaughter, even the woman he risked everything to save in Caine's final adventure: Pallas Ril, Overworld river goddess, known six months of the year as Shanna Michaelson, Studio Actor. Hari's in charge of the flagship San Francisco Studio, but it's floundering under his leadership. Some guys apparently were just never cut out for management.

Since the events of Stover's Heroes Die, in which Caine squared off against the god Ma'elKoth, a new religion has sprung up--Cainism. The Children of Ma'elKoth persecute the Cainists, but that particular war is small potatoes next to the bouts of unstoppable death about to be unleashed as earth's high-tech weaponry takes on the fiery thaumaturges of Overworld.