What are you reading right now?

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lomuamart
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What are you reading right now?

Post by lomuamart »

Running in conjunction with the thread on a book sharing/library system here in HH, what are you reading at the moment - if anything?
Personally, I've just finished off "1421 - The Year China discovered the World - Gavin Menzies.
I don't normally read historical/factual stuff, but this book was amazing. It supposed that the Chinese had circumnavigated the world 80 years before Columbus discovered the Americas, 300 years before Cooke discovered Australia and New Zealand and 400 years before any European saw Antartica. Etc etc. Amazing stuff and only written in 2003 after 15 years of research.
Other than that - I'm halfway through the second book of "Lord of the Rings", but that's proving hard work.
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Post by redzonerocker »

interesting choice of book lomu,my type of reading material.
i would recommend to anyone thats interested in factual books to to read 'the fingerprints of the gods' by graham hancock.
similar, but deals with facts of discovery & travel by several different cultures such as the incas, aztecs & egyptians way before the explorers you mentioned.
i have his latest book, 'supernatural' but am saving that for my next trip out at the end of the year.
i read the whole trilogy of 'lord of the rings' before i saw the films & it did make the viewing more enjoyable :thumb:
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Post by dtaai-maai »

Stick with L of the R, lomu. I first read it when I was 11 and have gone back to it umpteen times since. Every time I read it I find something new, but there are some (big) bits I invariably skim...
The 1421 book is one I've been wanting to read for a while, since I saw a documentary on the History Channel.
I'm dipping into a book called Watching the English, written by a social anthropologist whose name I forget (book's elsewhere right now). It's a serious study of English (not British) behaviour, queueing, 'my home is my castle,' (and so is my car apparently!), stiff upper lip, standoffishness, etc, etc, but it's written in a very down to earth, layman-friendly and often humorous style.
And I've just finished The Bookseller of Kabul by a Norwegian female journalist named Asne Seierstad, who spent 4 months in 2002 living with the family of... erm, well, a Kabul bookseller. Fascinating picture of life in post-Taleban Kabul.
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Post by lomuamart »

I picked a few up from Dawn's shop before it closed.
Of note to me are:
"Spies"- Micheal Frayn. Well, I assumed it was gonna be a le Carre thing. Totally wrong. Two young boys, set in Hertfordshire during WW2. They think they've found a German spy. The results of their imagination are not good. Tremendous book.
"Bridget Jones Dairy" - I'd seen the film (the first one) and didn't like it. The book is hilarious.
Robert Crais - got three of his and had never read any of the detective series before. The wit and plots suit me down to the ground, especially "LA Requiem"
And, being a Brit, there was "House of Cards" by Michael Dobbs. It's a political satire about England. Made into a TV series years ago, I'd followed it. The book is a hundred times better.

Maybe I've made the wrong decision about splitting the threads about "reading" and "book sharing". I don't know.
Let us know what you think and we can do the necessary.
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Post by GLCQuantum »

Just started my re-read of ' Cat And Mouse ' by James Patterson. Can't remember half the book, and I know I thoroughly enjoyed it the first time, so going through it a second time. I'm sure most of you have seen the movie with Morgan Freeman I believe, so I won't go into detail.

Always liked his style of writing, nice, short, punchy chapters that makes you want to keep reading just that little bit more. My favourite from him so far is 'when the wind blows' which is about inhumane government experiments.
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Post by GLCQuantum »

Also picked up a load of books from Dawns shop Lomu.

I think it was the last day open. Got someone to pop down there for us as I was working and pick up as many books as they could. She came back with a great little collection including some nice Stephen King Hardbacks. I hope she gave you a good price for those Dawn. :cheers:
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Post by STEVE G »

Lomu, the Gavin Menzies “1421â€
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Post by lomuamart »

[quote="STEVE G"]Lomu, the Gavin Menzies “1421â€
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Post by DawnHRD »

GLC, aaah, you're the person who had a lady come in requesting horror? The Stephen King's were mine, previously (a few have doggy toothmarks! :oops: )

I'm reading the last few of a dwindling collection that I got from the shop in the last few days. Just started "The Palace of Heavenly Pleasure" by Adam Williams, about the Boxer Rebellion in China. Too early to say if it's any good, yet (only about a chapter into it).
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Post by caller »

Blind willow, sleeeping woman. The latest collection of short stories by Murakami - if you're a fan (I'm No.1), you'll love it!
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Post by lomuamart »

As I'm on a historical theme:
"Tragedy in Paradise" - Charles Weldon M.D.
Apparanetly a true story of an American doctor in Laos during the Vietnam War helping the Pathet Lao. It was donated by a traveller years ago and I havn't got past page 100 on a number of occasions. Probably just not in the right frame of mind.
For you old hippies out there - a copy of Howard Marks "Dope Stories". I never got further than Morocco on his travels.
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Post by dr dave soul monsta »

right at this moment i am reading HHAD


in between i am reading a book by R Kernspecht "on single combat"
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Post by lomuamart »

dr dave soul monsta wrote:right at this moment i am reading HHAD


in between i am reading a book by R Kernspecht "on single combat"
'Cor, that must be interesting.
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Post by buksida »

An interesting book called "Moondust" where the author tracks down and interviews the remaining 9 Apollo astronauts who walked on the moon, of course they're all in their seventies now.

Quite apt since yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the space race; the Sputnik launch.
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Post by chelsea »

Last year in HH I bought a book called Marching Powder (Author Rusty Young).

Is a true story about a Brit Drug Smuggler who gets jailed in Bolivia worst jail.
Is great reading and comes well recommeded
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