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yes

14 (82.4%)

no

3 (17.6%)

Total Members Voted: 16

Voting closed: July 12, 2005, 09:51:44 pm

[acoxcae]

First, let me say: I vote "YES."  I think you people might have some pretty interesting things to say on the subject of interesting literature, especially after cold demolishing a 15-page thread on the subject of your respective readings.

Anyway, I'd be down with:

Salinger - Franny and Zooey (suspicious that I've never read it, as it's only ~200 pages, and therefore well within a weekly reading period)

or, and I don't know how you people feel about this genre, (the McSweeney's folk):

Salvador Plascencia - The People of Paper

I've read an excerpt and a few reviews on McSweeney's lately, and it sounds excellent.  Just a thought.

acoxcae

[CortJstr]

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

I just bought that knowing nothing about it but based just on the author. So it's good then?

[wombat]

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

I just bought that knowing nothing about it but based just on the author. So it's good then?

Well, yeah, if you like that sort of thing, it's definitely the sort of thing you'll like.

[V-Adore]

Catching up with this thread, I remembered that I have a serious problem, which is that I can't read any fiction anymore except mysteries.  I no longer understand the point of reading about fake people unless one of them is dead and we don't know why.  The only thing mentioned in this whole thread that I could likely tolerate would be rereading John Le Carre.  The only regular sort of fiction I have managed to read in the last few years was American Gods by Neil Gaiman.  If any of the books are sort of like that one, could someone point that out?  Otherwise I think I will have to just lurk.

I hate to just pimp my pet book again, but Geek Love is great if you need a reason to care about imaginary people, strictly because it has an immensely novel premise for the conditions of its imaginary people. Also it is sort of mystery-oid at points.

[arkabee]

which is that I can't read any fiction anymore except mysteries.  I no longer understand the point of reading about fake people unless one of them is dead and we don't know why.  .

if they have to be physically dead, then i can not help you.  but what if we don't know why they are dead inside?

[AlohaDawg]

To amend my previous post (given that I'm plowing through the last Harry Potter book in anticipation of the next one)

(And understanding that at least 14 1/2 snorts of derision were made upon reading the above)

I think I would be interested in reading and discussing Franny and Zooey.

And just as an aside, did anyone else here read Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things?

[acoxcae]

It's OK Dawg - I too am crusing through the previous Harry Potter books.  My SO works at a bookstore, so we're getting copies on release day, and she'll be working the "Midnight Madness party.  I have a shameful desire just to go and snigger to myself, but I'm afraid that I'd get depressed, since I'm just a small tweak of inhibition and fanaticism away from them.

All chuckles about anyone's Potter-reading habits are welcome at this point.

acoxcae

[AugustWest]

Hey, I pre-ordered ours months ago and I'll probably be the first to read it.

[CortJstr]

Hey, I pre-ordered ours months ago and I'll probably be the first to read it.

You'd better hope that it's not like the last one where a bunch of people got the book at midnight, ran home to read it, and discovered several repeated signatures at around page 400.

[wombat]

I hate to just pimp my pet book again, but Geek Love is great if you need a reason to care about imaginary people, strictly because it has an immensely novel premise for the conditions of its imaginary people. Also it is sort of mystery-oid at points.

Reading the description of this on Amazon, it sounds like my sort of thing, actually.

if they have to be physically dead, then i can not help you.  but what if we don't know why they are dead inside?

NOOOOO.  That would be a book about people's feelings.  There is nothing I hate like a book about people's feelings.

[Choop]

I hate to just pimp my pet book again, but Geek Love is great if you need a reason to care about imaginary people, strictly because it has an immensely novel premise for the conditions of its imaginary people. Also it is sort of mystery-oid at points.

Reading the description of this on Amazon, it sounds like my sort of thing, actually.

if they have to be physically dead, then i can not help you.  but what if we don't know why they are dead inside?

NOOOOO.  That would be a book about people's feelings.  There is nothing I hate like a book about people's feelings.

So, then, no Smilla's Sense of Snow?

[pmcd9]

You know what's a fun read?  Archie Comics.

~Paul

[acoxcae]

You know what's a fun read?  Archie Comics.

Oh hell yeah - then we could analyze the visual and literary symbolism, and explore the psychological underpinnings of Archie and Veronica's relationship.

Or we could just laugh at their antics, but that seems so pedestrian.  I'm sure Archie is just riddled with deep literary symbolism, and it's just seething mad at not being discovered yet.

I'm down.

acoxcae

[slink]

I would happily read any Palahniuk again, and the others I'd be up for. As for which to read first, I would recommend starting with Survivor. It's the first one I read.

I'll have a proper look through when it's not just before work and come up with some comments.

[wombat]

So, then, no Smilla's Sense of Snow?

As a matter of fact, that's one of those wildly successful books that I read and was totally, utterly mystified about why it was supposed to be so great, although I can't remember the details.  Wait - it's coming back to me - like it was a whole long book about people's feelings and sort of a mystery and then out of nowhere it had this science-fictiony ending?  

Hey - comics - now there's a idea.