WHAT ARE YOU READING
Quote: DRichAmazingly, I have never read any Stephen King.
Read 'It' or 'The Shining'. Or 'Christine'.
You'll be hooked and read all of
them. I bet I've read 'The Stand'
five times.
Quote: billryanI didn't care for modern horror so I was a latecomer to SK. One night I was killing time, waiting for Europe to open for business when I found a well-read copy of Salems Lot.
Salems Lot is a scary book, one I
won't read again. It's the other
side of the vampires in the
romance novels. How it would
be if vamps were real. Not pretty.
The Gunslinger series was fantastic.
I didn't like the final one, I feel
King sold us out. But the others
were great. Is any of his current
stuff any good, I haven't been
paying attention.
Stephen King has always had a particular genius for depicting the unattractive "common man" in modern society and for interweaving popular music and iconic lines from TV commercials and movies (i.e., popular culture) throughout his books. As he became gigantically successful, it seemed that his editors could no longer edit his books and his novels were the worse for it. Tommyknockers is a poorly written novel that I truly disliked -excessive, overly long, unattractive and boring. The great ones were It, The Stand, The Shining, Pet Sematary, Cujo, The Dark Half, Salem's Lot. His recent novel on the Kennedy Assassination titled 11/22/63 was also pretty good.
I would consider "The Stand" to be riveting for the first five-sixths of the book but I was very unsatisfied with the ending.
I liked his experiment with The Green Mile where he took a single book and sold it in installments, with each installment pretty much ending with a cliff hanger. A throwback to yesteryears dime novels and Republic serials.
My personal favorites are Needful Things and Misery. I've never read Dolores Claiborne but enjoyed the movie.
The Castle Rock cable series is based on some of his characters but I'm not sure how involved he was or if the events are part of Mr. King's canon.
Quote: gordonm888His recent novel on the Kennedy Assassination titled 11/22/63 was also pretty good.
Overly long but not bad for a
time travel book. I have Firestarter
on the shelf, but don't think I
ever read it. I disliked the movie
so much, I never read the book.
I wonder if it's worth my time.
I also like Insomnia and even
the ones he co-authored.
His time travel book was interesting
because it showed how impossible
it would be. You can't keep going
back to the same day in the past
and buying the same object and
taking it into the future. It shows
we really don't understand how
time works. There is only the present,
the past and the future are just
memories and expectations, in that
order, They don't really exist.
Stephen King has been unlucky with his film adaptations. The Shining, Stand by Me (a novella) and I guess the recent adaption of IT are notably good. Also Duel, which was another novella. But there are so many bad movies based on his books.
Edit: Carrie and Misery were also very successful.
Quote: gordonm888I remember Firestarter as being a good novel, but it was a long time ago. Then the movie came out and I though the movie was lame.
Stephen King has been unlucky with his film adaptations. The Shining, Stand by Me (a novella) and I guess the recent adaption of IT are notably good. Also Duel, which was another novella. But there are so many bad movies based on his books.
Edit: Carrie and Misery were also very successful.
Shawshank Redemption is notably missing from your list. Like Stand By Me, based on a King novella.
It was very interesting how the views of the war have changed. Today everyone seems to consider that the battle of Gettysburg was the major turning point and historians rave about the bayonet charge by the 20th Maine. Catton barely mentions that charge and ignores many things today's historians emphasize. As an example, he barely gives short shift to the 200,000 plus Negroes who took up arms for the Union and doesn't even mention the Confederate Terror Attack on NYC. Overall, it was a good read, though it hasn't aged all that well.
Quote: billryanI just finished Never Call Retreat. It was Bruce Catton's centennial history of the Civil War, written in the early 1960s.
It was very interesting how the views of the war have changed.
The CW was a big deal in the 60's,
lots of nostalgia involved. Lots of
people had grandfathers who were in
the war and they heard first hand
stories when they were kids.
Lots of nostalgia in the 60's in older
people for the 1900 era of their
youth. Before cars, radio, planes,
almost nobody had a phone. Women
wore long dresses with bustles.
Horses pulled all the wagons, there
was a bandstand in every small town
where they held concerts all summer.
A life the opposite of the one they
lived in 1962. Watch the Music Man,
life in 1910 was very much like that.
Quote: KeeneoneI have a hardcover of Catton's The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War in a box somewhere. I fondly remember looking over the pictures and maps.
My first book of history was the Junior edition of that book. The battle maps have a lot to do with my lifelong love of toy soldiers and dioramas.
Quote: EvenBobThe CW was a big deal in the 60's,
lots of nostalgia involved. Lots of
people had grandfathers who were in
the war and they heard first hand
stories when they were kids.
Lots of nostalgia in the 60's in older
people for the 1900 era of their
youth. Before cars, radio, planes,
almost nobody had a phone. Women
wore long dresses with bustles.
Horses pulled all the wagons, there
was a bandstand in every small town
where they held concerts all summer.
A life the opposite of the one they
lived in 1962. Watch the Music Man,
life in 1910 was very much like that.
In 1910, my Grandfather was most likely in a royal prison for speaking up for Irish freedom. My Grandmother was a struggling tenant farmer on land my family had owned for centuries but Queen Victoria gave to some lord for killing brown people somewhere. In 1917, they left Ireland and arrived in America with the clothes on their back, a promise of a job and an unexpected bun in the oven.
Life was very different.
My father was born in 1925, the same year his father died. His mother took her three youngest children back to Ireland where my grandfathers cousin stood up and married her. In 1928, they returned to America just in time for the Great Depression.
Quote: billryan
My first book of history was the Junior edition of that book. The battle maps have a lot to do with my lifelong love of toy soldiers and dioramas.
Civil War reenacting is huge now. It
began in the early 60's with the
centennial of the CW period.
I've known some reeinacters,
they're pretty odd people.
Quote: billryan
I would consider "The Stand" to be riveting for the first five-sixths of the book but I was very unsatisfied with the ending.
I liked his experiment with The Green Mile where he took a single book and sold it in installments, with each installment pretty much ending with a cliff hanger. A throwback to yesteryears dime novels and Republic serials.
My personal favorites are Needful Things and Misery. I've never read Dolores Claiborne but enjoyed the movie.
I agree with you about "The Stand." Riveting, but ending was juvenile fantasy.
I forgot about Needful Things! I did really enjoy that novel. The movie was pretty faithful to the book but somehow wasn't as good.
Quote: unJonShawshank Redemption is notably missing from your list. Like Stand By Me, based on a King novella.
You are right, of course. Funny, I never think of Shawshank as an adaption of a Stephen King work. I love the Shawshank film -it is so rewatchable - but can't quite identify why we all enjoy it so much. Maybe because everything is very good to perfect - casting, pacing, dialogue, acting and (of course) story.
King's novels seemed to decline after he was hit by a vehicle and injured terribly. I've always wondered about that. Maybe he could write a time travel novel where the accident didn't occur and he was a better writer, lol.
Quote: gordonm888
King's novels seemed to decline after he was hit by a vehicle and injured terribly. I've always wondered about that.
He suffered a lot of ongoing pain
and still does. Tends to interfere
with your creativity. What he was
doing walking down the side of
road every day is a mystery. Pretty
stupid. When I walked my dog I
would drive to a safe place, road
walking now is just asking to get
hit.
Does anyone read his stuff?
Quote: billryanI started to read The Gray Ghost by Clive Cussler, but didn't get through the second chapter. In the mid-1960s, newspapers ran a syndicated comic strip based on his book " Raise The Titanic" and I really enjoyed it. In college, I read a Dirk Pitt book and was unimpressed. A few years ago I read his two books on lost treasures and liked them, but his novels pretty much suck.
Does anyone read his stuff?
I've seen his books for years but
never trusted someone so prolific.
He's written over 80 books, at
times 3-4 a year. That's way too
many for them to be much good.
I've never seen his books discussed
anywhere, for good reason, probably.
I just scanned a few reviews on Amazon
and he gets a lot of critics who say
he writes on a Jr High level. That would
explain all the books, there were lots
of Hardy Boys books too. Easy to write.
and wow was he great - what an imagination
not going to point out any one specifically - many will want to read everything he wrote
there are a few of his short stories free at this link:
https://www.shortstoryguide.com/ray-bradbury-short-stories/
Quote: lilredroosterunless I missed something nobody mentioned Ray Bradbury
and wow was he great -
Just read Martian Chronicles and
you'll be hooked.
I bought four books on the subject and will report as I get through them.
Quote: KeeneoneI have a hardcover of Catton's The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War in a box somewhere. I fondly remember looking over the pictures and maps.
I'm visiting Vicksburg next week
Site of US Grants greatest victory
Really looking forward to this.
Quote: terapinedQuote: KeeneoneI have a hardcover of Catton's The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War in a box somewhere. I fondly remember looking over the pictures and maps.
I'm visiting Vicksburg next week
Site of US Grants greatest victory
Really looking forward to this.
I liked the Vicksburg area. Most of my time there was opening casinos but that part of the country suits me.
Quote: DRichQuote: terapinedQuote: KeeneoneI have a hardcover of Catton's The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War in a box somewhere. I fondly remember looking over the pictures and maps.
I'm visiting Vicksburg next week
Site of US Grants greatest victory
Really looking forward to this.
I liked the Vicksburg area. Most of my time there was opening casinos but that part of the country suits me.
Here's my RV schedule
Tonight, final night in Montgomery
Head to Birmingham 3 nights
Meridian 2 nights
Vicksburg 3 nights
Memphis 7 nights
Quote: terapined
I liked the Vicksburg area. Most of my time there was opening casinos but that part of the country suits me.
Here's my RV schedule
Tonight, final night in Montgomery
Head to Birmingham 3 nights
Meridian 2 nights
Vicksburg 3 nights
Memphis 7 nights
If you like fried chicken make sure you try a place called Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken. It started in the Memphis area and now has about 30 locations around the country. It is my favorite chicken and I eat it anytime I am in a city that has it. The one in Memphis is probably only a mile away from the main street attractions (Beale St)..
I just read 1863, A Civil War Scenario. It's an alternate history story where Jeff Davis detachs Longstreets Corp from the Army of Northern Virginia and sends them west to Vicksburg. Longstreet's men save Vicksburg, but what will happen in Pennsylvania without his Corp?
Currently reading The Chickamauga Campaign.from the Great Military Campaigns of History.
In the winter of 1862, Spring of 1863, Union General William Roscrans repeatedly out-maneuvers Confederate General Bragg and almost bloodlessly captures the key state of Tennessee. After Bragg flees from Chattanooga, Roscrans thinks his army is in turmoil and goes for the kill. He foolishly splits his army into three columns, that are soon spread out, some fifty miles from each other.
Bragg attempts to seize the moment by massing his army to attack one of the wings. The Confederate Cadre detest each other and much time is wasted, giving Roscran a chance to desperately reassemble his scattered commands. The two armies finally stumble into each other at Chickamauga Creek, which forever forth would be known as The River Of Death.
Quote: billryanI'I just read 1863, A Civil War Scenario.
When I was a kid the CW was
a lot more real to me. There
were plenty of people alive
who had fathers and grand
fathers in the war, My grandma
on my dads side, her grandfather,
my great grandfather, was in
the war. I have three letters
written by him from the
battlefield.
For the same reason First Blood is so great and “rewatchable”. There’s not a dull moment in the entire film.Quote: gordonm888I love the Shawshank film -it is so rewatchable - but can't quite identify why we all enjoy it so much. Maybe because everything is very good to perfect - casting, pacing, dialogue, acting and (of course) story.
Quote: Ace2For the same reason First Blood is so great and “rewatchable”. There’s not a dull moment in the entire film.
I dunno. It was on last week
and I saw parts of it. I thought
it was really dated and silly.
Stallone was a melodramatic
cartoon buffoon with his big
knife and his Vietnam war
vet Halloween costume.
Quote: DRichQuote: terapinedQuote: KeeneoneI have a hardcover of Catton's The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War in a box somewhere. I fondly remember looking over the pictures and maps.
I'm visiting Vicksburg next week
Site of US Grants greatest victory
Really looking forward to this.
I liked the Vicksburg area. Most of my time there was opening casinos but that part of the country suits me.
The battlefield was interesting. The Confederate and Union positions were well marked. Never seen so many monuments in my life.
Overall, the battlefield is underwhelming. Very few points can you get a sense of what happened. Back in the day, all trees were downed. An entire forest has developed on most of the battlefield obscuring what happened.
it wasn't at my library and I didn't want to buy it - I have limited space
I was surprised to find the book available free digitally, along with several other books by Gardner on the Internet Archive
they have a crawler - I guess if a book was ever uploaded they capture it and format it into their format
they say they have millions of books available, and they did have a couple of pretty obscure out of print books that I checked out
the books are easy to read, I mean easy on the eyes, the way the have them formatted
they also have movies and tv shows - not as much as books
what a great resource
https://archive.org/
Quote: lilredroosterEB mentioned a book in the Perry Mason series which I wanted to read
it wasn't at my library and I didn't want to buy it - I have limited space
I was surprised to find the book available free digitally, along with several other books by Gardner on the Internet Archive
they have a crawler - I guess if a book was ever uploaded they capture it and format it into their format
they say they have millions of books available, and they did have a couple of pretty obscure out of print books that I checked out
the books are easy to read, I mean easy on the eyes, the way the have them formatted
they also have movies and tv shows - not as much as books
what a great resource
https://archive.org/
OMG, it's unreal how much is on
this site. I'm speechless.
Quote: EvenBobI really like the Jack Reacher movies and I'm finally getting around reading some of the books. I ordered the first book in the series from eBay, it came today. I sat down and thought, well, let's see how badly this sucks.
140 Pages later I said, holy crap, this guy can write. I immediately whet on eBay and bought 10 more books. His writing style reminds me a lot of Stephen King. Lee Child's writing is descriptive, yet right to the point. He knows how to advance the story, he doesn't get lost in Flowery rhetoric. This book is literally a page Turner, you want to know what's going to happen next.
I love discovering something like this years after it's been on the market because it's like discovering buried treasure. I have 25 books to read. If I had discovered this in 1997, I would have had to wait every year for another book.
Quote: beachbumbabsI found him in 1997. Waited impatiently for (and bought) every book since. Only a couple are meh. The rest are stunningly good. Can't put them down. You'll be up all night several times.
Quote: gordonm888Strongly agree about Lee Child and his Jack Reacher books. I have read every one -like BBB, most I have waited for year by year (and I'm cheap -I wait until they are in paperback.) They are compulsively readable.
Although at some point I felt like tallying up how many people Reacher has killed (maybe another tally for people hospitalized) over the entire series of books. He has hurt more people than DarkOz.
Okay, based upon the above three recommendations, I recently purchased 24 of the Jack Reacher novels. This will certainly give me something to do this fall, if the NFL season gets cancelled.
I absolutely love them. At one point I owned nearly all of them, although over the years I've given many of them away. (About six or seven years ago I gave a bunch of them to a girl I knew, who was a big Mason fan.)
I was reading them back when I was 11 or 12 years old, believe it or not. I preferred them over The Hardy Boys. I love that courtroom drama.
All of them are easy reads... with every book it's almost all dialogue. And yes, they all have the same "theme." A client of Mason's gets into trouble, is accused of murder and it's up to Mason to figure out who really did it and prove it in court. I love how he does everything he can to protect his client, often times breaking the law himself. I can understand how they aren't for everyone but I love them.
Whenever I'm up for jury duty that seems to put me in the mood to re-read one of them. And then I find myself reading several of them over the next few weeks.
Reading them now really helps to show much life was different back then. (The first one, The Case of the Velvet Claws was written back in 1934... 86 years ago!)
Note that I'm not a big fan of the television series. Oh, the TV series was okay and I can't picture anyone but Burr portraying Mason, but the books are far, far better.
My favorites probably are:
Firestarter (way, WAY better than the movie. Arrgh! I hated the movie yet try to re-read the novel every few years.)
Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (Also better than the movie and the movie was GREAT!)
The Long Walk (LOVE this short story)
The Eyes of the Dragon
"A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
it is a truly great book IMHO
*
Charles Bukowski - in real life a derelict - a drunk, a compulsive gambler (horses), and not a very likeable guy
but wow - he could write
this is my favorite by him - he worked for a short time as a mailman - he really torched the USPS - hilarious
free to read on internetarchive.com
Joseph Mitchell's non fiction work "Up in the Old Hotel and other Stories" profiles some of the far out characters in NYC around the 50s
"Saloon-keepers and street preachers, gypsies and steel-walking Mohawks, a bearded lady and a 93-year-old “seafoodetarian” who believes his specialized diet will keep him alive for another two decades. These are among the people that Joseph Mitchell immortalized in his reportage"
also the real lives of traveling pro wrestlers
excellent stuff IMO
Quote: lilredrooster.....................
Charles Bukowski - in real life a derelict - a drunk, a compulsive gambler (horses), and not a very likeable guy
but wow - he could write
Yeah, I appreciate Bukowski's style -- there is no beating around the bush, he just gets straight to the point. His stories are both funny and disgusting, total degenerate.
Trying to read Rabbitt, Run by John Updike. I have to admit I'm not really enjoying it.
Last month I read Michelle Obama's Becoming; loved it. And also recently re-read Little Children. Tom Perrotta is one of my favorite authors. If you enjoy a well-written novel with good dialogue and slightly damaged characters, read Perrotta. I would probably start with Little Children, then maybe The Abstinence Teacher or Mes. Fletcher. His short story collections are also pretty great!
Wungee
liking it. Just got the first 2 books in
the series today. Each is almost 1000
pages. The books are usually better
than the movies/TV series, so we'll
see.
The Rats of Tobruk.
It's the story of an Australian Infantry unit that survived the siege of Tobruk in the early stages of WW2. Only about a third of their original number survived until they were relieved, and the healthy ones were put on a ship they thought was taking them home. Instead, they were sent right back into combat in New Guinea and only 11 of the original 100 or so lived to go back to Australia.
Shave the whales- A Dilbert book.
Quote: EvenBobWatching the Outlander series, really
liking it. Just got the first 2 books in
the series today. Each is almost 1000
pages. The books are usually better
than the movies/TV series, so we'll
see.
Read the 1st, but dropped the 2nd half way thru. Just lost interest.
Richard Feynman’s last Journey.
His attempt to visit Tannu Tuva
The man in the Rockefeller suit. The rise and fall of a serial imposter.
Quote: TumblingBonesRead the 1st, but dropped the 2nd half way thru. Just lost interest.
Started reading the first one today and was
immediately disappointed it is written in first
person. I generally don't like first person books
cuz it's so limited. You only ever hear the
viewpoint of the person telling the story.
I always consider first person books are produced
by lazy authors. It's much easier to write in first
person then third person.
In the TV series there are lots of scenes from the
1940s where the husband is looking for his missing
wife. If the books are written in first-person how
would she know what's going on in the 1940s.
George Pelecanos is a very unusual mystery writer
he's a white guy who grew up in DC and he writes about the underbelly of DC - black detectives chasing black criminals
he's no phony - he knows this stuff very well
I recommend "Right a Rain"
