Book Discussions

Comment

Comment by DebinSC on December 30, 2009 at 9:04pm

Can't recall which Roths were there other than Portnoy and Goodbye, Columbus. I hope to have more time to peruse her library on our next trip.

I may have to re-read Oryx and Crake before trying the new Atwood. It's been a while and I can't recall the details now, though I remember I enjoyed it.

Comment by Bebop on December 30, 2009 at 8:47pm

No, it is always in use at the library. Maybe I'll just buy it. It sounds like a companion piece to Oryx and Crake /i> which I think is just brilliant.

Which Philip Roth books did you find? Had you read them? Are you going to?

Comment by DebinSC on December 30, 2009 at 8:02pm

Coyote Summer sounds interesting, Andy. Let us know how it turns out.
I have not had a chance to read lately but I'm sure I'll fit it in over the coming winter weeks. Bebop, we found some autographed Philip Roths in my aunt's apartment.
Alan gave me some books for Christmas so my "to read" pile continues to grow.

B, have you read the new Margaret Atwood yet?

Comment by Bebop on December 30, 2009 at 7:50pm

I recently read David Plouffe's account of the election called The Audacity to Win. Fascinating. I relived that whole year which I had followed very closely. I just finished Philip Roth's latest novella called The Humbling. It is vintage Roth and well worth the read. I've recently discovered Douglas Coupland and am working my way through his books. Right now I'm reading Miss Wyoming.

Comment by Andy P on December 30, 2009 at 7:25pm

I was down to my last book, Nora Roberts "One Summer". About 2 photographers on a cross country photo shoot. It's a formula story with the expected outcome but well told.
I went to the thrift store for a bag of new ones yesterday, my trading partner is in Florida for the winter.
First out of the bag is "Coyote Summer" by W. Michael Gear. Set in the Wyoming territory 1825. Indians, traders and a displaced Boston philosophy student.

Comment by Andy P on December 23, 2009 at 7:14pm

Keith, that's a compelling motivation to read Nest Stop.
My stack of traded books is dwindling. I enjoyed Split Second by David Baldacci. That was the first of his I actually read, many others were heard on tape. Now I'm zipping through Hornet's Nest by Patricia Cornwell, one of the main characters is Andy, lol. She's another that I found through 'books on tape'.
Don't ask for a book report. Just give me compelling characters in a story that keeps my interest.

Comment by Keith on November 1, 2009 at 5:14pm

Today, I just finished Nest Stop, Reloville life inside America's new rootless professional class, by New York Times journalist Peter T. Kilborn. Kilborn does a commendable job of chronicling the move in American society from our agrarian roots, to our nomadic ways of today. Many of us have hopped on the "Relo" bandwagon, either as children of vagabond parents, or as College/University Grads seeking a "better life". Kilborn tells the tale of many of our generation who have taken over many if not most of the upper echelons of Corporate America, as well as those in the upper positions in Government. While the Military has often been identified as career filled with relocations, Kilborn has as his main focus, those outside the military. Using both a psychological as well as a sociological approach Kilborn does a commendable job of humanizing the results of this trend in America toward moving onward and upward. I enjoyed the read.

Comment by DebinSC on July 20, 2009 at 8:23pm

I love Oliver Sacks' books, Das. Have you read An Anthropologist on Mars? If not, and you liked the Man who mistook..., you should definitely read it.

Comment by Keith on July 20, 2009 at 12:03pm

Want to have a deeper understanding of your brain? Jill Bolte Taylor's My Stoke of Insight is fascinating. Jill Bolte Taylor got a research opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: She had a massive stroke, and watched as her brain functions -- motion, speech, self-awareness -- shut down one by one. An astonishing story.

If you've not previously heard of www.TED.com, you might want to take a look. Ms. Taylor's 18+ minute talk is on their Top 10 list, and something we found compellingly interesting to watch. Her book is no less compelling. A fascinating journey through ones brain, and its functions.

Ms. Taylor also has a website: http://www.mystrokeofinsight.com/

Comment by sjasis on July 20, 2009 at 11:47am

I had a hard time putting it down too! Glad you liked it :)

• First
• Previous
• Next
• Last