Book blogs

[Krisvalkyrie]

Does anyone else keep book blogs?

Mine is at www.studentofsaga.wordpress.com

I post book reviews, etc there - would love to have folks check it out and comment, etc.

kris

[geoff_tropheus]

Re: Book blogs

Kris,

I am looking to start up a new book.  What would you suggest?

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Book blogs

For reading or writing?

If you are looking for a book to read, what genre?  Do you like fiction or non fiction?  

If you like non fiction I would highly recommend Three Cups of Tea, if not I would recommend The Enchantress of Florence by Salmon Rushdie.  

I have more reviews on my librarything page -

My librarything

If you give me a better idea of what you like to read I can give a better recommendation.

Kris

[Philbert]

Re: Book blogs

Kris:
I read your review of Three Cups of Tea, and I am curious...what mountain was the author climbing? Anapura (K2), or Mt. Everest? Were the people Budhist or Muslim who saved him? I am assuming K2 and Pakistan, since the review text made reference to a "witchunt", and last I checked we weren't at war with Tibetians or Nepalis.
Never made it to Nepal, spent a good bit of time in the "-stans" during my misspent youth...where the people are as disparate
as, say, Back Bay Boston and Thibadouex. Afghans (pre-Aryans) dislike and are sooo different from the Pashtun tribesmen (vast majority of the Taliban are Pashtun), and the Northern Uzbeks are basically Mongolian descent from the 1000 people left there from Ghengis Khan when he left the conquered country a few thousand years ago.
Northern Pakistan is even more convoluted , and I am curious where the author had his epiphany.

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Book blogs

Philbert - great insight!

It was K2, and it was Pakistan.  The people were Muslim but had been Buddhist in the past.  I think you would enjoy this book a lot.

Kris

[blacksmith37]

Re: Book blogs

On the otherhand; I listen to a lot of books on tape as even with XM radio I find very little on the radio worth listening to while driving.
I avoid anything that has been abridged. And I find ScFi does not seem to lend itself to audio well , and I am otherwise a fan of that genre.
I will try about anything; I listen to all of the first tape or disc before I decide to finish it. I have heard so many I occationally start one for the second time; but I deliberatly listened to one twice ; it has subsequently been made into a TV series, "Dexter" ( a sympathetic psycotic serial killer- who would guess?).
I am listening to a biography of Einstein now. As I took it from the library, I never thought I would like it but it is quite interesting.
I have heard 2 of Salmon Rusdie's, but the library has not gotten more of his work as it is politically incorrect.
My point is, try anything (from a no cost library).

[Philbert]

Re: Book blogs

While I am woefully behind on fairly current literature, there are 2 books that I find many have not read that I always keep a copy of and read again and again.
If you like to read...not look at words and imagine what is going on, but read beautiful prose, and enjoy eloquence coupled with a mastery of language and skillful weaving of action occuring at multiple levels while being laugh-out-loud funny...I heartily recommend "Giles Goat Boy" by John Barth.
Another delightful book, easier to read and real 70's lifestyle, is "Another Roadside Attraction" by Tom Robbins. As one reviewer put it, the cynicism of our times precludes a book such as this from being written and published in our current environment of automatic belief in sinister conspiricies and evil puppetmasters controlling our lives through misinformation. This is a delightful book, and deals with, of all things, the "true" facts of the ressurection of Jesus of Nazereth 2000 years ago.
Centered around a counterculture roadside rest area and restaurant, complete with organic hotdogs, a flea circus, and other oddities in the Oregon countryside, there is no other book like this out there.
Let Amanda be your pinecone. (Gotta read the book to understand that statement!)