• Welcome to OGBoards 10.0, keep in mind that we will be making LOTS of changes to smooth out the experience here and make it as close as possible functionally to the old software, but feel free to drop suggestions or requests in the Tech Support subforum!

Pit Book/Discussion Thread

thought this was most appropriate here:

so i decided i want to re-read Gatsby. I went to the library to get a copy, and the only one they had was filed under "Young Adult Fiction". So I creeped around in the YA section trying to find it, while all the 12- and 13-year olds, and their parents especially, looked at me sideways.
 
thought this was most appropriate here:

so i decided i want to re-read Gatsby. I went to the library to get a copy, and the only one they had was filed under "Young Adult Fiction". So I creeped around in the YA section trying to find it, while all the 12- and 13-year olds, and their parents especially, looked at me sideways.

Ooof. Rough.
 
Back to the top for Christmas!

I've been swamped, and just now finished ' The Woman in White'.

Slow at points, but entertaining and creepy. I think this would be a great gift for someone that likes to read a chapter or two before bed.
 
Just finished Lord Jim by wakephan's BOI Joey Conrad. It was pretty good, exponentially better than HoD (i.e. it actually had characters and a plot), but the ending was disappointing. Not credible and not satisfying.
 
I am currently reading High Crimes: The Fate of Everest in an Age of Greed by Michael Kodas. I'm only about 25% in, but am finding it really interesting so far. I loved Into Thin Air, and although I have no interest in mountaineering, always find Everest books and documentaries fascinating. This book focuses on the dark side of Everest (e.g. people lying about summiting, stealing people's oxygen tanks, leaving partners on the mountain, etc). Pretty effed up stuff so far.
 
I'm also listening to The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Apparently if you've ever been in med school or even in some bio courses, etc, you have heard about or studied "HeLa" cells. This book is about the woman the original cells came from and the repercussions for her family (who didn't know for years that these cells were the basis for TONS of medical research). Interesting to think about the ethics of the situation, but also just about how much has been learned from everything.
 
I'm also listening to The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Apparently if you've ever been in med school or even in some bio courses, etc, you have heard about or studied "HeLa" cells. This book is about the woman the original cells came from and the repercussions for her family (who didn't know for years that these cells were the basis for TONS of medical research). Interesting to think about the ethics of the situation, but also just about how much has been learned from everything.

I read this over the summer and it was fascinating.
 
I am currently reading High Crimes: The Fate of Everest in an Age of Greed by Michael Kodas. I'm only about 25% in, but am finding it really interesting so far. I loved Into Thin Air, and although I have no interest in mountaineering, always find Everest books and documentaries fascinating. This book focuses on the dark side of Everest (e.g. people lying about summiting, stealing people's oxygen tanks, leaving partners on the mountain, etc). Pretty effed up stuff so far.

I just read the sample on Amazon and I think I'm going to have to pick that one up.
 
I just finished my second Jesse Ball novel, The Curfew. He is simply the best avant-garde writer today. His books are short, and not altogether difficult, but at the same time, they are some of the most challenging I've ever come across.

Here are the two I've read, both of which I'd highly recommend:

ball-samedi_the_deafness.jpg


41GxhkMQrbL.jpg
 
Anyone else read The Art of Fielding?

I highly recommend it. I've got about 50 pages left. Was reading it on bus to work and missed my stop by about 7 blocks.

Just finished this actually. Received it as a gift for Christmas and fired through it in a few days, despite its length. Pretty damn good read, if at times overly melodramatic.

Very well written and excellent story-telling. I found my moods really following those of the characters, especially Henry.
 
OH yeah, I got that for xmas too. I need to start it. It's 4th on my list right now after all the other xmas boox.
 
Art of Fielding made like every major publication's list for top books of the year.

I just wrapped up Homage to Catalonia by Orwell. Salinger's Nine Stories before that. I'm doing a little non-fiction now (New Black Man by Mark Anthony Neal) before taking on Franzen's Freedom.
 
I read The Alchemist the last few days. It was a short read but I really enjoyed it, especially since so many parts were relevant to my life right now. It's funny how books do that sometimes. Anyone have a good, similar suggestion for me to start on?
 
I read The Alchemist the last few days. It was a short read but I really enjoyed it, especially since so many parts were relevant to my life right now. It's funny how books do that sometimes. Anyone have a good, similar suggestion for me to start on?

eta: nm

I haven't read one of his novels yet, but Salman Rushdie writes stories in similar settings.
 
Last edited:
Midnight's Children is a good start for Rushdie; I wouldn't hop right into the Satanic Verses.

However, he is very long-winded.
 
I read The Alchemist the last few days. It was a short read but I really enjoyed it, especially since so many parts were relevant to my life right now. It's funny how books do that sometimes. Anyone have a good, similar suggestion for me to start on?

If you're down for more Paulo Coelho, I really like the Devil and Miss Prym.
 
I scooped up the LaValle and Bell on account of Townie's recs at the library the other day, as well as Nabokov The Gift. Started Big Machine.

I remember a discussion here about the different translations for the Brothers Karamazov (as part of a larger discussion about Russian translations in general) and somebody advocated a certain translation pretty strongly. Anybody remember which translator?
 
Back
Top