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Book thread: Distractions welcome

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    bongibongi regular
    edited January 2010
    oh also you should all join www.shelfari.com

    bongi on
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    DarricDarric Santa MonicaRegistered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Quoth: What did you think about Nation (if you've read it)? I just finished it, and, I wasn't overwhelmed.

    Darric on
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    QuothQuoth the Raven Miami, FL FOR REALRegistered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Darric wrote: »
    Quoth: What did you think about Nation (if you've read it)? I just finished it, and, I wasn't overwhelmed.

    i enjoyed it but the main character felt like a tiny vimes sort of

    the beginning broke my heart so hard

    Quoth on
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    lostwordslostwords Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Ehh, I tried keeping track of my books with librarything but got lazy and stopped halfway through cataloguing my books. Does shelfari do anything new to make it worth the effort?

    lostwords on
    rat.jpg tumbler? steam/ps3 thingie: lostwords Amazon Wishlist!
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    ButlerButler 89 episodes or bust Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Reading Blind Lake right now. I'm only about 10% of the way through it, been good so far, feels like it's building to something.

    Butler on
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    bongibongi regular
    edited January 2010
    lostwords wrote: »
    Ehh, I tried keeping track of my books with librarything but got lazy and stopped halfway through cataloguing my books. Does shelfari do anything new to make it worth the effort?

    i'm on there

    bongi on
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    lostwordslostwords Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Do you have nude pics there as well? Or even tasteful model glamour shots

    lostwords on
    rat.jpg tumbler? steam/ps3 thingie: lostwords Amazon Wishlist!
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    bongibongi regular
    edited January 2010
    hundreds

    bongi on
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    lostwordslostwords Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Sold! Not really, but hrm, I have been meaning to catalog all my books. Which would take a whole days probably :( lazyness will probably win out though

    lostwords on
    rat.jpg tumbler? steam/ps3 thingie: lostwords Amazon Wishlist!
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    PeenPeen Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    How is shelfari better than goodreads?

    Peen on
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    IvarIvar Oslo, NorwayRegistered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Langly wrote: »
    Grey Ghost wrote: »
    What is this Wheel of Time thing even about

    misogyny

    braids and the tugging thereof

    Ivar on
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    NogsNogs Crap, crap, mega crap. Crap, crap, mega crap.Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Im reading Good Omens right now by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaimen.

    It is the tits

    Nogs on
    rotate.jpg
    PARKER, YOU'RE FIRED! <-- My comic book podcast! Satan look here!
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    MonkeyfeetMonkeyfeet Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    I gave Good Omens to my secret satan.

    I never read it myself but I knew it would have to be awesome

    Monkeyfeet on
    sig1.jpg
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    QuothQuoth the Raven Miami, FL FOR REALRegistered User regular
    edited January 2010
    book is excellent but i feel like too many fanboys hype it and then some people are let down by it not being the second coming of the christ child

    Quoth on
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    DrIanMalcolmDrIanMalcolm Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Man I have so many books on my to-read shelf. After I finish High Crimes I have to get to Carter Beats the Devil, Under the Dome, Tarzan of the Apes, Manhood for Amateurs, Masters and Commanders: The Military Geniuses Who Led the West to Victory in WWII, Power Failure, Rocket Men, all of the Necronomicon, and I want to read The Raw Shark Texts again

    DrIanMalcolm on
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    BalefuegoBalefuego Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    I need to just buckle down one day and tear through some Under the Dome

    setting aside the time is a hassle though

    Balefuego on
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
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    celandinecelandine Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Started Inherent Vice. So far am enjoying it. I like Pynchon's absurdity better in small brilliant doses as part of an otherwise realistic novel.

    celandine on
    I write about math here:
    http://numberblog.wordpress.com/
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    simosimo Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    celandine wrote: »
    Started Inherent Vice. So far am enjoying it. I like Pynchon's absurdity better in small brilliant doses as part of an otherwise realistic novel.

    i liked it a lot. most similar in style to lot 49 probably, but i thought it was better

    there isn't the same scope or moments of brilliance as in against the day or gravity's rainbow, but it's a much easier read

    it also helped that it was set in the 60's, so i got a lot more of the references

    simo on
    bugss2.jpg
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    beavotronbeavotron Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    oh hey the book thread!

    do any of you guys remember the story i posted here before about the little bird that i found on the road who i held while he died?
    well... there is an animal behaviourist who i really admire named marc bekoff.
    he wrote The Emotional Lives of Animals a book which discusses his theories on animal sentience and whether it exists at all, and if it does exist, if it's adaptive.
    His work is pretty controversial, as he refers to animals as "he" and "she" not "it" and believes that animals have complex emotions that we don't understand. he uses empirical methods for some of his research, but throws in anecdotal stories to keep the reader interested. For scientific non-fiction, his books are very engaging.

    anyways, after reading his last book, i sent him an email to tell him how much i loved it and to tell him my story about the bird.
    he published it in his most recent book!

    it's called the animal manifesto: http://www.amazon.com/Animal-Manifesto-Expanding-Compassion-Footprint/dp/1577316495/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1264975607&sr=8-1
    and if you check it out on amazon, you can look inside, go to the index and my name is in the "n" section... i take up three pages!

    I am published in a book about SCIENCE!

    beavotron on
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    NeoTomaNeoToma Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Quoth wrote: »
    book is excellent but i feel like too many fanboys hype it and then some people are let down by it not being the second coming of the christ child

    I think this happened with me. While awesome, I found it no where near as good as any of their individual works. Of course i read ti right after finishing Small Gods and Sandman. So probably anything i read after that would've felt lacking.

    NeoToma on
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    beavotronbeavotron Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    beavotron wrote: »
    oh hey the book thread!

    do any of you guys remember the story i posted here before about the little bird that i found on the road who i held while he died?
    well... there is an animal behaviourist who i really admire named marc bekoff.
    he wrote The Emotional Lives of Animals a book which discusses his theories on animal sentience and whether it exists at all, and if it does exist, if it's adaptive.
    His work is pretty controversial, as he refers to animals as "he" and "she" not "it" and believes that animals have complex emotions that we don't understand. he uses empirical methods for some of his research, but throws in anecdotal stories to keep the reader interested. For scientific non-fiction, his books are very engaging.

    anyways, after reading his last book, i sent him an email to tell him how much i loved it and to tell him my story about the bird.
    he published it in his most recent book!

    it's called the animal manifesto: http://www.amazon.com/Animal-Manifesto-Expanding-Compassion-Footprint/dp/1577316495/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1264975607&sr=8-1
    and if you check it out on amazon, you can look inside, go to the index and my name is in the "n" section... i take up three pages!

    I am published in a book about SCIENCE!

    bottom of the page is lame, i'm excited about this.

    beavotron on
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    Grey GhostGrey Ghost Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    Beavs that is awesome! And I do remember that story, it almost made me cry

    Grey Ghost on
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    DrIanMalcolmDrIanMalcolm Registered User regular
    edited January 2010
    You better put that in your resume

    DrIanMalcolm on
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    IoloIolo iolo Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    simo wrote: »
    celandine wrote: »
    Started Inherent Vice. So far am enjoying it. I like Pynchon's absurdity better in small brilliant doses as part of an otherwise realistic novel.

    i liked it a lot. most similar in style to lot 49 probably, but i thought it was better

    there isn't the same scope or moments of brilliance as in against the day or gravity's rainbow, but it's a much easier read

    it also helped that it was set in the 60's, so i got a lot more of the references

    Oh shit - the Amazon.com page for Inherent Vice now has a song playlist, "designed exclusively for Amazon.com, courtesy of Thomas Pynchon"!!!

    I'm not sure I even believe that it's from him and oh god I think I'm hyperventilating...

    Iolo on
    Lt. Iolo's First Day
    Steam profile.
    Getting started with BATTLETECH: Part 1 / Part 2
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    Bloods EndBloods End Blade of Tyshalle Punch dimensionRegistered User regular
    edited February 2010
    I just finished God's Fire. It was... different. Aliens and the Inquisition do not get along at all.

    Bloods End on
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    Dublo7Dublo7 Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    I just started re-reading The Brothers Karamazov. TBK is the book that ignited my love of literature and reading. It's even better than I remember it being.

    Dublo7 on
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
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    Dead LegendDead Legend Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    bartleby, the scrivener is such a waste of fucking space

    Dead Legend on
    diablo III - beardsnbeer#1508 Mechwarrior Online - Rusty Bock
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    QuothQuoth the Raven Miami, FL FOR REALRegistered User regular
    edited February 2010
    that story kind of infuriated me in high school

    it has grown on me in my old age

    "i would prefer not to" entered my verbal repertoire and has yet to depart

    Quoth on
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    celandinecelandine Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Quoth wrote: »
    that story kind of infuriated me in high school

    it has grown on me in my old age

    "i would prefer not to" entered my verbal repertoire and has yet to depart
    I love to say that.

    Also, a Thomas Pynchon playlist is a great idea. The book needs music.
    (Sad story: I wrote tunes to some of the songs in Gravity's Rainbow. I can't see a "song" in a book without needing to make up a tune to it.)

    celandine on
    I write about math here:
    http://numberblog.wordpress.com/
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    UsagiUsagi Nah Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    I've just started rereading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and I forgot how much of a hard time I have with philosophy-type things

    Usagi on
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    Dead LegendDead Legend Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    well if the teacher asks why i didn't annotate bartleby i will just use "i prefer not to"!

    and then i will seriously look into testing out of english because it is seriously distressingly depressing to me

    Dead Legend on
    diablo III - beardsnbeer#1508 Mechwarrior Online - Rusty Bock
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    ButlerButler 89 episodes or bust Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Just started on "Guns, Germs and Steel". I've been meaning to read this for years. Best part is, it's required reading for the class I'm doing on plant breeding, so it counts as homework. 8-)

    Butler on
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    beavotronbeavotron Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    i'm going on a week long trip!
    need some good reads
    i prefer scientific non-fiction

    particularly in the biological sciences, not really into reading books on physics or chemistry so much.

    recommend some things!

    beavotron on
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    UsagiUsagi Nah Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Beavo, I'm almost done with Every Living Thing and I really am enjoying it

    also, haven't read it yet but I've heard great things about it is Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex

    Usagi on
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    celandinecelandine Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    beavotron wrote: »
    i'm going on a week long trip!
    need some good reads
    i prefer scientific non-fiction

    particularly in the biological sciences, not really into reading books on physics or chemistry so much.

    recommend some things!

    I had a wonderful time with "Time, Love, Memory," a biography of Seymour Benzer, the first genetic behaviorist. Lots of fruit flies, and their mutations. Fruit flies lost in time. Suicidal gay fruitflies. You'll love it.

    celandine on
    I write about math here:
    http://numberblog.wordpress.com/
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    Cilla BlackCilla Black Priscilla!!! Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    I've been reading Ilium by Dan Simmons and good lord it's some of the best science fiction I've ever read. Is everything by Simmons this good?

    Also Bonk is really good and everyone should read it. Stiff isn't quite as good but is still really fun and interesting. I own Spook but haven't gotten around to reading it yet.

    Cilla Black on
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    LanglyLangly Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Oh hey so by the way Neil Gaiman is coming to the University where I work and doing a thing
    An Evening with Neil Gaiman is presented by The Office of Academic Affairs together with Creative Campus, the College of Arts & Sciences, the College of Engineering, the English Department's program in Creative Writing, and is funded in part by a grant from the Southern Arts Federation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Alabama State Council on the Arts.

    Neil Gaiman has long been one of the top writers in comics and graphic novels; he also writes books for readers of all ages. He is listed in the Dictionary of Literary Biography as one of the top ten living post-modern writers, and is a prolific creator of works of prose, poetry, film, journalism, comics, song lyrics, and drama. From his captivating DC Comics Sandman series, to his direction of Beowulf, screenplay writing and direction of Stardust, and most recent release of the animated feature Coraline. Gaiman is current, successful, and artistic. He was chosen for this engagement because of his relevance to multi-disciplinary art forms and educational aspirations of our students.

    Thursday, February 18, 2010

    Bama Theatre - Tuscaloosa, AL

    7:30 pm

    Free Tickets required

    Ohhhh yeah

    Langly on
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    Shazkar ShadowstormShazkar Shadowstorm Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Dublo7 wrote: »
    I just started re-reading The Brothers Karamazov. TBK is the book that ignited my love of literature and reading. It's even better than I remember it being.
    i am in a class on tolstoy and dostoyevsky but i am so behind in the reading >.<

    i read tbk in high school was baller

    Shazkar Shadowstorm on
    poo
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    QuothQuoth the Raven Miami, FL FOR REALRegistered User regular
    edited February 2010
    neil gaiman is going to alabama but he won't come to miami

    fffffffffffff

    Quoth on
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    LanglyLangly Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Tuscaloosa is a modern day metropolis.

    We even have a barnes and noble now! Just got it this year.

    Langly on
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