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What'cha Reading?

Mightyblue

aggro table, shmaggro table
(He/Him/His)
I'm not Masterthes, but not all writing is created equal; I can read 4-5 pages (average paperback word density) of material in a few minutes from your average fiction novel compared to 1-2 non-fiction depending on the subject. So your average fantasy or sci-fi novel I'm going to plow through in a few hours barring extremely convoluted/purple prose.
 
Masterthes, do you just spend all of your free time reading books? And even if that's true, how do you have that much free time?
I'm an aide at a school where I work. I usually work in the Library, but we've been closed to students due to the pandemic, so I've been doing hall monitor stuff so I get a fair amount of reading done, and I really have no social life outside of work, so pretty much all I do is either read or watch stuff
 
I can usually read on average 200 pages a day, depending on how I like a certain book, or in some very rare cases, like with that Mick Foley book, I read that in one day, and that's almost 400 pages
 

Violentvixen

(She/Her)
Yeah, I'll chime in as another voracious reader, I'm already at over 30 books read this year, I just don't post about a lot of them here. I do cycle between books and games by season, I tend to read more in the summer when there's more natural light.

This seems weirdly rude?
I read it as jealousy, we're all readers here!

I'm not Masterthes, but not all writing is created equal; I can read 4-5 pages (average paperback word density) of material in a few minutes from your average fiction novel compared to 1-2 non-fiction depending on the subject. So your average fantasy or sci-fi novel I'm going to plow through in a few hours barring extremely convoluted/purple prose.
This is also very true. Although personally I tend to have to slow down the most for fantasy. I find the made-up place names hard to keep track of as they usually sound similar enough to real places that I get confused and have to re-read sections or flip back to remind myself what is going on. Science fiction names are usually either based on a science concept or so off the wall my brain can deal with it and move on.
 
I found nothing wrong with that question. I know the last five years or so, my reading abilities have escalated to freakish levels. It's all good
 

lincolnic

can stop, will stop
(he/him)
Before the pandemic, my subway rides to/from work and before bed were my reading times. On average I'd read two books a week. Working from home has had the unfortunate knock-on effect of cutting out about an hour and a half of reading time every day since I'm no longer taking the train, so now I only really read before bed. I'm getting through a book a week and I feel like I'm going so slowly!
 
Ooh, I really liked The Buried Giant, I should check this out. (And probably some of his more famous books too)
Re: Ishiguro: I haven't had time to read Klara and the Sun yet, but one thing that comes up again and again is how nice Ishiguro is as a person. People who interview him for a profile, or have him on a podcast, or worked on such-and-such an edition of his books, they all say he's just a wonderful person.

I'm currently reading David Peace's Tokyo Year Zero, which is written in this repetitive, incantatory, compulsive prose that will turn off at least half of the book's potential readers but fits well for the protagonist's disintegrating mind in a sick body in the sweltering heat in a defeated country. I'm not going to be recommending it to many people, but I quite like it.

Also reading Sabbath's Theater by Philip Roth, which I think is his longest book. Unstinting, unsparing, and unpleasant, but it comes by its spleen honestly. I've also got an advance copy of Blake Bailey's new Roth biography; I'm looking forward to reading it in a few months, though I may want to read a few more Roth books before I read his life.

I also read Courtitia Newland's A River Called Time. Review forthcoming, but short version is that it has remarkable ideas buried in execrable prose.
 

zonetrope

(he/him)
I read it as jealousy, we're all readers here!
Ditto. Being in that flow state where all I want to do is read is the best feeling, but it can be really hard both to find time and get myself into that mental space.

Speaking of, thanks for posting about The Midnight Library, VV — I just finished it and basically couldn't put it down. I really needed a book like this right now.
 
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Paul le Fou

24/7 lofi hip hop man to study/relax to
(He)
I used to read a lot more, but it's dropped off a lot in recent years. I think gaming has supplanted it recently (they've been fighting back-and-forth for time all my life), plus lifestyle and setting changes (moving in), not to mention smartphone addiction... Unless I pick up something that really grabs me, like Gideon the Ninth and Harrow the Ninth did, I don't get a lot of reading in. I want to read more, but sometimes I pick up a book and try to start and my eyes just slide right off the words or I get distracted almost immediately.
 

Violentvixen

(She/Her)
Speaking of, thanks for posting about The Midnight Library, VV — I just finished it and basically couldn't put it down. I really needed a book like this right now.
Ooh, I'm glad you liked it! And yeah, it was just what I needed as well. Uplifting dark magical realism? I still haven't quite figured out how to explain it to someone.
 
Moving on to a book that will probably be a safe bet to be one of my favorite books of the year: The Star Wars Archives by Paul Duncan
 

Paul le Fou

24/7 lofi hip hop man to study/relax to
(He)
I started reading Piranesi and it was so crazy how the first lines were "Hello, Paul Scheible! I, Susannah Clarke, have written this book specifically for you, as I believe it will be extremely your shit."

Very strong Gormenghast vibes, and also along pretty similar tonal lines as a series of short stories I used to write about an explorer in fantastical places. At least, this is true where I am at 15~20ish pages in.
 

Bulgakov

Yes, that Russian author.
(He/Him)
I started reading Piranesi and it was so crazy how the first lines were "Hello, Paul Scheible! I, Susannah Clarke, have written this book specifically for you, as I believe it will be extremely your shit."

Very strong Gormenghast vibes, and also along pretty similar tonal lines as a series of short stories I used to write about an explorer in fantastical places. At least, this is true where I am at 15~20ish pages in.

We just recorded coverage for that one on our podcast. It's fun! The episode will be airing in mid-May.
 

lincolnic

can stop, will stop
(he/him)
I had some praise for Piranesi on the previous page but I'm gonna say it again here, Piranesi was very good!
 

karzac

(he/him)
Yes, I meant that question in a time of disbelieving awe! But a job with downtime where you can read makes a lot of sense!
 

Exposition Owl

more posts about buildings and food
(he/him/his)
I've never read anything else by Kazuo Ishiguro so curious to try a new author.

If you end up liking the book, then I highly recommend Ishiguro's The Remains of the Day. I think it's one of the best 20th-century novels written in English. His Never Let Me Go is masterful, too.

Also, Ishiguro has written the lyrics for some great songs by the U.S. jazz singer Stacey Kent. Here's one, for instance:

 

Violentvixen

(She/Her)
If you end up liking the book, then I highly recommend Ishiguro's The Remains of the Day. I think it's one of the best 20th-century novels written in English. His Never Let Me Go is masterful, too.

Also, Ishiguro has written the lyrics for some great songs by the U.S. jazz singer Stacey Kent. Here's one, for instance:

Writing those lyrics is wonderfully random and I love it.

Never Let Me Go is one I've heard from other people, I'll have to check out The Remains of the Day too, thanks!
 

clarice

bebadosamba
I remember watching the movie adaptation of Never Let Me Go and enjoying it. One of these days it would be nice to read it.

Right now, i'm reading Amor nos Tempos do Cólera (don't know the english title).
 

Violentvixen

(She/Her)
I remember watching the movie adaptation of Never Let Me Go and enjoying it. One of these days it would be nice to read it.

Right now, i'm reading Amor nos Tempos do Cólera (don't know the english title).
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez? 100 Years of Solitude is one of my favourite books of all time, but Love in the Time of Cholera just didn't click for me. I should revisit it sometime.
 

clarice

bebadosamba
That's the one! I'm enjoying it so far. I like Márquez' prose. Let's see if i'll have a stronger emotional response after reading more of it.

(i also love 100 years, and i was itching for a reread, and i thought to myself it would be silly to reread 100 years before reading other stuff by márquez, so that's why i'm reading love in the time of cholera haha)
 

Violentvixen

(She/Her)
I know a lot of people who like Cholera better so I'll be curious what you think!

Anyway, work had Imbram X Kendi give a virtual talk for our Diversity & Inclusion series (which as an aside is pretty freaking cool) and I realized that despite hearing and reading so much from him I still hadn't read his book. So starting How To Be an Antiracist.
 
Because it's National Poetry Month, I'll be trying to read a few narrative/epic poems, starting with Paradise Lost by John Milton. I'm pretty sure I've probably listed this in my currently reading feed a few times, so wish me luck here. I'd really like to have this under my belt
 

shivam

commander damage
(he/hiim)
i finally got the 4th book of the Legend of Condor Heroes series by Jin Yong, so i'm super excited to revisit the Wulin and see what the martial arts masters have to say to each other!
 
So, the Milton didn't work out for me. I think I'm just going to have to forget about it at this point. Oh well.

So now, going back to speculative fiction and giving The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell a try. I'm like 50 pages and it's written really well, but I'm wondering when good stuff is going to be occurring (with the flashback sections, anyway)
 

Exposition Owl

more posts about buildings and food
(he/him/his)
So now, going back to speculative fiction and giving The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell a try. I'm like 50 pages and it's written really well, but I'm wondering when good stuff is going to be occurring (with the flashback sections, anyway)

I really, really liked that book. Stay with it--you'll be glad you did.

ETA: FYI: When I finished The Sparrow, I remember feeling like there was so much being set up for the sequel (called Children of God) that I wanted to move on to it right away. The book definitely comes to a stopping point, but Sandoz's personal journey isn't anywhere near over at the end.
 
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lincolnic

can stop, will stop
(he/him)
It's been a few years since I read The Sparrow, but I remember it being a bit of a slow burn. I think I might give it a reread soon, thanks for the reminder!
 

Paul le Fou

24/7 lofi hip hop man to study/relax to
(He)
I finished Piranesi over the weekend. Loved it. What a book!

Today on lunch I picked up The Ladies of Grace Adieu and while I don't remember very many details of JS&MN and feel like I'll probably miss a lot of references or whatnot, hopefully that won't be a huge detriment to the stories.
 

Patrick

Magic-User
(He/Him)
I have Piranesi loaded up on my Kindle, but I’ve been putting off starting it. I feel like I’m too distracted right now and I really want to give it the attention it deserves.
 
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