What have you read recently?

[lsbcal]

I find that reading a little bit of fiction makes my life feel richer and beats watching stocks go down. Here are a few books I've gotten from the library and read in the last few months:

Blue Shoes and Happiness by Alexander McCall Smith, one of his series about a lady detective in Botswana. Done in a lighthearted and humerous way. I think the first book in this series is The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

Dreaming of Bones by Deborah Crombie. Second book in her Kinkaid & Gemma mystery series. Well written in a style that reminds me of P.D. James. A believable plot line.

At Risk by Stella Rimington. The author is a former director of MI5 so she knows what she's talking about. Story about a female MI5 officier who pursues two terrorists in Britain.

[deepc]

Mostly non-fiction, "Line Upon a Wind" by Noel Mostert about Britain's war at sea from 1793-1815. Also "Stressed Out About Nursing School" by Stephanie Thibeault as I go off to school this fall (and am not really stressed about it, but open to learning anything I can before I get there.)

Finally, a great read by Neil Gaiman titled "The Graveyard Book". A piece of young adult fiction that's a Newberry Award winner, it's innovatively written and one of a kind, highly recommended.

[Westernskies]

For entertainment, I read most of the posts in this forum...

Always factual, never fictional... or was it always fictional, never factual?. I forget...

[lsbcal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Westernskies For entertainment, I read most of the posts in this forum.. Always factual, never fictional... or was it always fictional never factual?. I forget...

It's a fact that I read the fiction in my previous post .

For nonfiction, I found this one interesting:
Wealth, War and Wisdom by Barton Biggs. It covers a lot of 20th century market movements in the US and other developed countries. Biggs has lived though a lot of financial and geopolitical turmoil.

[Meadbh]

My current Trashy Novel is Jeffrey Archer's "A Prisoner of Birth". I'm on page 100 of a 600 page book and so far it's got me interested in the plot. It's a whodunnit based around a murder trial and if I know Jeffrey Archer, the innocent guy who's likely to be convicted for the murder will get his revenge in the end. Archer spent time in jail for fraud and had plenty of time to do literary research there!

[Dawg52]

Old Yeller. Someone gave my 97 year old aunt the book and she wanted me to read it since I have a dog. How could I say no? Up next, Big Red.

[vicente solano]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meadbh My current Trashy Novel is Jeffrey Archer's "A Prisoner of Birth". I'm on page 100 of a 600 page book and so far it's got me interested in the plot. It's a whodunnit based around a murder trial and if I know Jeffrey Archer, the innocent guy who's likely to be convicted for the murder will get his revenge in the end. Archer spent time in jail for fraud and had plenty of time to do literary research there!

Meadbh: I listened to it as an audiobook. To tell you the truth I found it disppointing, too predictable. And I am your regular best seller reader!

[Leonidas]

I'm mostly a reader of nonfiction now. The last novel I read was Heyday by Kurt Anderson. The most recently completed nonfiction book was The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes - an examination of FDR's handling of the Great Depression. Next up are Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt and Paper and Iron: Hamburg Business and German Politics in the Era of Inflation by Niall Ferguson.

[Moemg]

I'm reading the new Maeve Binchy book "Heart & Soul " . I'm also reading "Spend till the end " .

[Dreamer]

Okay, this is embarrassing, but here goes. Fatal Tide by Iris Johansen, Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas by James Patterson and Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. My 20 yr old daughter has 5 of the Shopaholic books and some other books by Sophie Kinsella. She said she really liked reading them and I saw there was a movie out, so decided to give the first book a try. I was at my DD's apt, when I started reading it. I told her that I did not think I was going to be able to read the book, as it goes against everything I believe in, money wise. I told her that several times and she told me that I did not have to read it. I hate to not finish a book that I start reading. Then I became hooked, wondering how this was all going to end. I kept wondering if this is how people who run up their credit cards, etc, in real life, think. Example: She would throw away bills unopened, so she would not have to worry about them anymore. Anyway, I will probably end up reading the other 4 books, just as a way of sharing things with my DD. I am definitely into light reading at this time!

[Moemg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dreamer I am definitely into light reading at this time!

Sometimes chick lit is what is needed .Especially if you are reading on a beach . My DD and I have shared many lite books.

[IndependentlyPoor]

Just finished P.D. James' Innocent Blood, and my head is still spinning. It was one of the most unusually constructed books I have read. P.D. James' usual clear-eyed take on English class and society in a situation that unfolds rather than being reconstructed as it would have been in a whodunnit.

[lsbcal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by IndependentlyPoor Just finished P.D. James' Innocent Blood, and my head is still spinning. It was one of the most unusually constructed books I have read. P.D. James' usual clear-eyed take on English class and society in a situation that unfolds rather than being reconstructed as it would have been in a whodunnit.

Thanks IP, this is a P.D. James I was not aware of. Now have a request at the library for it. DW is interested in it too -- and she's a voracious reader so I better watch out and start turning the pages fast when it arrives .

[Meadbh]

Just finished Tuesdays with Morrie, by Mitch Albom. Very sad, but inspirational.

[CuppaJoe]

Stephen King's "Ur." Quick, entertaining, forgettable.

Just started "The Cook's Illustrated How to Cook Library" Oi ve, the purees, to die for. Don't miss the section on appetizers. For me cookbooks are fiction.

[bbbamI]

Criminal rap sheets.

[CuppaJoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bbbamI Criminal rap sheets.

Fiction? Friction?

[bbbamI]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CuppaJoe Fiction? Friction?

Fact is stranger than friction fiction....

[Rich_in_Tampa]

I know he's an old timer, but I just discovered Ken Follett and love it. Big John LeCarre fan. Anything by Updike.

Got a Kindle 2 for my recent b'day and loading it up. Keep the suggestions coming.

[lsbcal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa I know he's an old timer, but I just discovered Ken Follett and love it. Big John LeCarre fan. Anything by Updike. Got a Kindle 2 for my recent b'day and loading it up. Keep the suggestions coming.

If you like spy novels then a few author's I've read are:
David Ignatius, Agents of Innocence is reputed to be a fairly accurate picture of what a case officer actually does. James Woolsey, former CIA chief, is supposed to have liked this one.

Alan Furst, does a good job of describing WW2 conditions in Europe.
Check out the reviews on Amazon. Some I've read are Red Gold, Blood of Victory

Eric Ambler, A Coffin for Dimitrios -- writer discovers life story of common crook and murderer in central Europe, copywrite date is 1939

Charles Cumming, a new writer. A Spy by Nature -- young man interviews for MI5 and gets involved in operation against American agents in London. Apparently the author had a brief go at the intelligence world in real life.

And there is Stella Rimington's books I mentioned above.