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[pmcd9]

You are aware of what "plotte" means in quebecois slang?

She makes it farily obvious.

~Paul

[AugustWest]

Iberia by James Michener.  Pretty good travel writing.  I've never read any Michener before and I'm reasonably impressed.  A little wordy, but still good.

The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen.  Just picked this up and I'm not sure about it yet.  The protaganist seems to be wholly unlovable, but the writing is good (if a bit too consciously literary for my tastes).  I'm sticking with it a while longer.

Just finished re-reading Neuromancer.  Still good stuff.  He's SF's Elmore Leonard.  The matrix is his one big innovative idea, but he can hella write a gritty thriller.

Speaking of travel writers, anybody have any recommendations?  I've always enjoyed Paul Theroux and to a lesser extent Bill Bryson (Bill's a little too self-satisfied at his own wittiness for my taste.)  Anyway, I dig the travel writing.  Suggestions?

[miles]

Speaking of travel writers, anybody have any recommendations?  I've always enjoyed Paul Theroux and to a lesser extent Bill Bryson (Bill's a little too self-satisfied at his own wittiness for my taste.)  Anyway, I dig the travel writing.  Suggestions?

No recommendations, but Theroux's The Old Patagonian Express is on my list.  Any other suggestions for him?

[V-Adore]

I am trying to get into Jim Shepard's Project X, but I find it actively unpleasant to read -- one of those books about middle-school outcasts where the protagonists are both arbitrarily persecuted by everyone and roundly, deeply terrible people, so there is no fun there. I've had a class with Jim Shepard and he seemed interesting, but daamn.

Otherwise, I'm reading a book on improving my Japanese conversational style. I hope it works.

[arkabee]

i have not read the books in quite a while it would seem.  started that relationship book mr alohadawg suggested in a different thread, and picked up a collection of George Orwell stories too.  sadly, i realize in hindsight i'd never read Animal Farm nor 1984.  now i get to read them both, from the same book, for free; how splendid!

[side_show]

Speaking of travel writers, anybody have any recommendations?  I've always enjoyed Paul Theroux and to a lesser extent Bill Bryson (Bill's a little too self-satisfied at his own wittiness for my taste.)  Anyway, I dig the travel writing.  Suggestions?

No recommendations, but Theroux's The Old Patagonian Express is on my list.  Any other suggestions for him?

I really enjoyed: The Kindness of Strangers: Penniless Across America by Mike McIntyre,  the titles pretty self-explainitory - an autobiographical account about a guy who thumbed his way across the continental US without a penny, depending on strangers for food, shelter and transport.  A lovely book, lots of wonderful moments.

(It's been a major dream of mine to do this in Canada, but being female, I think it would be ill advised to do alone, and my SO is not game for it.)

[side_show]

Geek Love - Katherine Dunn

I'm reading it for the second time - anyone else read it?

YES. And it is awesome. I read it in seventh grade, and while I would not recommend it to seventh-graders in general, it broke me in just the best way.

Wow - yes, totally not a grade 7 book, but this coming from a girl who was such a dork that she read the uncondensed version of Les Miserable in grade 7.  I have forgotten much of the story as I read it several years ago, so it's very enjoyable to re-read it.

[AugustWest]

Speaking of travel writers, anybody have any recommendations?  I've always enjoyed Paul Theroux and to a lesser extent Bill Bryson (Bill's a little too self-satisfied at his own wittiness for my taste.)  Anyway, I dig the travel writing.  Suggestions?

No recommendations, but Theroux's The Old Patagonian Express is on my list.  Any other suggestions for him?

The Old Patagonian Express is probably my favorite, but Riding the Iron Rooster and the one where he canoes around the Polynesian islands are good too.

[AlohaDawg]

"Happy Isles of Oceania" by Theroux is the one where he paddles around in the Pacific.

[wombat]

Speaking of travel writers, anybody have any recommendations?  I've always enjoyed Paul Theroux and to a lesser extent Bill Bryson (Bill's a little too self-satisfied at his own wittiness for my taste.)  Anyway, I dig the travel writing.  Suggestions?

Tim Cahill.  If only for his titles:  Pecked to Death by Ducks,  A Wolverine is Eating my Leg, etc. More adventure travel sorts of things as you can probably tell from the titles.  I like the early ones better than the recent stuff - I think I didn't finish his most recent book yet.  I both love Bill Bryson and understand your reservations, so we might have similar tastes.

[Va]

Geek Love - Katherine Dunn

I'm reading it for the second time - anyone else read it?

Yes.  I stopped trying to recommend it to people after the looks I got the first few times.  Some people, sheesh.

[V-Adore]

Geek Love - Katherine Dunn

I'm reading it for the second time - anyone else read it?

Yes.  I stopped trying to recommend it to people after the looks I got the first few times.  Some people, sheesh.

Well, uh, you have to admit that it's not exactly the easiest sell. I mean, the book is about a family of forcibly-mutated carnival freaks, and then it keeps going from there. I am not inclined to judge too harshly those whom this premise squicks.

Speaking of troublesome premises: are there any Jasper Fforde fans in the house? If so, could you please explain what I'm supposed to be getting out of The Eyre Affair? I've thrown myself at it three times now, and every time I turn back within twenty pages because the tweeness chokes me.

[andalucia]

Man, I picked up the Eyre Affair because I'd heard Fforde's name bandied about on this board, and I thought it was hell of lame.  What should I have read instead?

[AugustWest]

Speaking of travel writers, anybody have any recommendations?  I've always enjoyed Paul Theroux and to a lesser extent Bill Bryson (Bill's a little too self-satisfied at his own wittiness for my taste.)  Anyway, I dig the travel writing.  Suggestions?

Tim Cahill.  If only for his titles:  Pecked to Death by Ducks,  A Wolverine is Eating my Leg, etc. More adventure travel sorts of things as you can probably tell from the titles.  I like the early ones better than the recent stuff - I think I didn't finish his most recent book yet.  I both love Bill Bryson and understand your reservations, so we might have similar tastes.

Have you ever read Colin Fletcher?  His books are all about hiking, but he's an excellent writer.  I recently picked up The Man Who Walked Through Time which is about his walk from one end of the Grand Canyon to the other, the first ever.  His Complete Walker is more of a hiker's manual but it's fun to read too.

[wombat]

I don't know Colin Fletcher.  I've kind of gone off travel writing lately (so maybe the lack of appeal of Cahill's last book isn't his fault, come to think of it) but I will keep it in mind.

Did you read Bryson's book about hiking the Appalachian Trail?  His companion with the obsession with Little Debbie snack cakes is one of the most memorable characters I've read about lately.  Although I grant that that may be because one of the reasons I stay out of the woods is the lack of access to cake.