Book central - let's talk about our reads

[Penthesilea]

Hi BetterMostians,

we've had some book-threads in the past, but most were for a specific purpose (ebooks, book-club, etc.). They never really took off or went dormant years ago. However, books have come up here and there, scattered in the most unexpected threads. That's a bit of a pity, since most people won't see those discussions.

How about a central book thread similar to our Movies thread: feel free to talk anything related to books you read or want to read in this thread. Recommodations, asking whether someone has read a specific book, moaning about a disappointing book, discuss books currently talked about in the media, etc.

Novels, biographies, non-fiction, sci-fi, historical, love-stories,
ebooks, paperbacks, coffee-table books,
critically acclaimed literature, amusing pasttimes and guiltiy pleasures
 - don't be shy, all genres are welcome!

No rules, just one little request: it would be great if everybody could put book-titles in bold. This way it's easy to skim through the thread and just look if a title catches your attention. Enjoy!

[Penthesilea]

To start off, I'll copy a conversation we've had in the amazing Race thread recently:

Also, read The Bucolic Plague. It's a great read!

I've just been reading the last two pages of this thread. The show isn't shown here at all, so I don't follow the thread and thus didn't know Josh Kilmer-Purcell/maybe Beekman now (?) and his hubby are on it.

I haven't read The Bucolic Plague, but it's supposed to be good. But before you read it, read "I'm not myself these days" by Josh. Very good book. It's hilarious in places. I started out literally LOLing. I cried from laughter - and later for real. Goes from outraging hilarious to heartbreaking.
After you've read that one, you might need The Bucolic Plague for a happy ending.

i already have the 2 books and 1st season region 1 dvd on my amazon wish list!

Nope not on TV here.. searched Sky - our version of TIVO - and its not on any channel at all in the UK.  

Chrissi - since Josh isn;t known here how did you find the book?

Leslie (MaineWriter) recommended it to me. In fact, she started to read it out loud to me when we were driving home from the Alsace last year. I begged her to stop; I needed to use the restroom before she could read on, it was so funny.

Thanks for the tip.  I've added this to my E-reader!  

[   ]

A new post on Josh and Brent's website.  A must-see for the "It Gets Better" movement!

http://beekman1802.com/colin-youre-amazing/#comments

[Penthesilea]

Christmas is near. Do you give away books? Wich books do you hope to get?

[Jeff Wrangler]

Christmas is near. Do you give away books? Wich books do you hope to get?

I love giving books as gifts, but I find it difficult to make a gift book a surprise because it can be difficult for me to find out whether or not the intended recipient already has the book I'm thinking of giving. 

[Meryl]

Nice thread, Chrissi. 

I've just started on "I'm Not Myself These Days" and am enjoying it.  It'll be fun to learn more about Josh's drag days.   

I'm planning to give a friend "Dropped Names" by Frank Langella.  I finished it recently and found it very entertaining.  It's full of vignettes of celebrities now passed on who came into contact with him either briefly or for longer relationships.  It's not politically correct and has some funny and poignant moments.

[Front-Ranger]

The book at the top of my list to read is "The Making of Brokeback Mountain" but, sigh, it hasn't been written yet! I just finished Julie and Julia by Julie Powell, and enjoyed it immensely. I'm now about one-third of the way through Little Princes: One Man's Promise to Find the Lost Children of Nepal, by Conor Grennan. It is surprisingly upbeat for a book about child trafficking. The book I'm hoping to get for Christmas is Dangerous Work: Diary of an Arctic Adventure, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

[Luvlylittlewing]

I just finished NW by Zadie Smith and Merry Christmas Alex Cross by James Patterson.  I'm trying to decide what to download on the Kindle to read next.  I want to read the latest offering in The #1 Ladies Detective Agency Series.  I try to read a book a week.

I rarely give books as gifts, but I receive tons of them.  You should see my library!

[Jeff Wrangler]

Right now I'm finally reading A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains, by Isabella Bird. It's her account of her sojourn in Colorado in 1873.

Isabella was quite a character. You can look her up on Wikipedia.

[Sason]

Great idea for a thread, Chrissi!

I have nothing to add at the moment, I don't read much these days.

Since Brokeback I spend way more time at the computer than reading!   

[Mandy21]

I'm with Sason.  Last few years, books have interested me less and less, and I'm sad about that.  Used to be voracious since very young, now it takes me a month to get thru just one.  Maybe it's just been too long since I've found a good page-turner.