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Well I just finished The Call of the Wild.

It was pretty good, however I thought that there were parts that dragged though.

I just started Elantris by Brandon Sanderson. I picked it up last spring after reading rave reviews on LibraryThing. I can't believe it's taken me so long to get to it.

Originally Posted by MidnightRain The film was cringe-worthy. It could have been so much better.

Swap Paul Walker with a CPR dummy and the movie is instantly 10x better.

Originally Posted by MidnightRain State of Fear was interesting. Not one of my favorites, but a quick read that I enjoyed. My favorites by Crichton are Timeline and Sphere. Jurassic Park and The Lost World are also quite good, and much better than the films. (Especially in the case of The Lost World, which was absolutely butchered.)

State of Fear has been my favorite of his books. Jurassic Park and Lost World were great. Timeline was okay, I wasn't a big fan of Andromeda Strain though. I have Rising Sun but haven't gotten to it yet. I love the movie though.

I've just finished Cormac McCarthy's The Road, and it is well deserving of its heaping praise.

I'm also currently reading what I consider to be one of my favorite novels of all time, Michael Chabon's The Yiddish Policeman's Union. I can not recommend this novel enough, read it.

Just started re-reading Snow Crash (yay Stephenson). After that I'm not sure, probably dig deep in my library, maybe some F. Scott or Hemingway (yay Lost Generation).

Just got in this month's Penthouse......... great read!!!! Highly recommended for everyone.

Finished The Fountainhead. Ayn Rand sure likes trials.


I'm not sure what's next.

Just finished the last Star Wars book in the Legacy of the Force arc - Invincible. I've got a bit of mixed feelings about it. The book is unevenly paced. There's too short (about 4 chapters) a build up before everything reaches the climax and heads towards a conclusion. The action is pretty intense (and sometimes a bit more gruesome than your standard SW book... even for a non-Yuuzhan Vong storyline) but it seems to sputter to a slow finish like a sprinter who's forced into a marathon. It seems like there should've been another book or two before this one as the tone of the book felt like they were just wrapping up various plot threads* without explaining how they arrived at those conclusions. The shortest way to describe this perception is like if I was describing a 'Lord of the Rings'-style story in vast detail then, near the last chapter, I say, "And then stuff happens, THE END".

Also, while they were building up Jacen Solo aka Darth Caedus as a villain in the previous books (brilliantly I might add), it seems, just like the overall story, they just rushed him to a weak end. Plus, unlike previous books, I never got the feeling like there were Machiavellian plots unfolding and Jacen was more maniac as a Sith rather than calculating.

Also, (a bit of a minor point but still) it seems to be short for a SW novel clocking in at 299 pages. Usually those are reserved for the young adult (read: teen set) novels so I can't help but feel like that's the audience who this was written for (which doesn't make sense as the SW fans I know tend to be in their 20s).

* like the space battle between Admiral Daala & Bu'uatu is completely ignored even though you find out the 'winner' of said battle; the assassination attempt on Tenel Ka & her daughter is glossed over (though, to be fair, it was partially due to the conclusion); Zekk is MIA (potentially dead depending on future book releases) out in space w/o a ship & minimal life support; Fett is a major character for about 3/5ths of the book and is pretty much relegated to background fodder afterwards and becomes a footnote by the end of the book; Prince Isolder is never mentioned again.

Overall, I'd have to give 2/5 stars.

I just finished reading the Long Dark Teatime of the Soul By Douglas Adams again. Still love the
God Made from Guilt

World War Z by Max Brooks... fantastic!!! I couldn't recommend this book enough!

Almost done with Chuck Palahniuk's Snuff...should be able to blaze through the last couple of chapters tonight. I think it's the best thing he's done since Lullaby.

Up next: Diablo Cody's autobiography, Candy Girl.

Originally Posted by metaphysicalstyles World War Z by Max Brooks... fantastic!!! I couldn't recommend this book enough!

Yes. I love that book. I want that guy to create a zombie series for tv. And don't make it jokey either. Make it serious.

And I recommend Labyrinth by Kate Mosse to anyone who is looking for a very entertaining, light read. It has a lot of elements of The Da Vinci code to it but it's exponentially better.

I've been re-reading the ender's game novels, up to xenocide. I also just started listening to the audiobook of Cory Doctorow's Little Brother.

I just finished re-reading Nine Princes in Amber by Zelazny. Such a fantastic series!

Side question - has anyone read any of the Amber pre-quels, written by John Gregory Betancourt?

I'm on book 5 of the Wheel of Time series, Fires of Heaven, I believe.

Originally Posted by blackjaw I'm on book 5 of the Wheel of Time series, Fires of Heaven, I believe.

i've read those many times since high school, it's a shame the author died before finishing the series.

It is a shame that Robert Jordan died so prematurely, but they have hire a ghostwriter to finish the series from notes and dictations that Jordan left behind.
Just frinished Reaper's Gale by Steven Erikson, A Deeper Blue and Sister Time by John Ringo, and i am starting Hell's Gate by Linda Evans and David Weber.

Currently reading At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon. Boring, but not without a bit of charm.

Weird request .. can anyone recommend some books set in the 1800s in the south?

Finished State of Fear last night, have to say I like Prey better. Am going to start Next today. Went to a used book store over the weekend and picked up a bunch of Crichton books, and also watched the A&E miniseries Andromeda Strain, which was on last night.