Which Book Are You Currently Reading?

[Cfrock]

Currently I am reading Ian Fleming's You Only Live Twice. As always with Fleming, it is exceptionally readable and I had to stop myself so I had some left to read today and tomorrow. So far the book is quite different to the film (not least because the book follows On Her Majesty's Secret Service while the film precedes it) but I would say that I am enjoying this premise a lot more. Bond, a shattered man after the murder of his wife, is given one last seemingly impossible mission, more as an attempt to get him back to his normal self than to achieve an intelligence objective. His mission: to convince the head of Japan's Secret Service, Tiger Tanaka, to grant the United Kingdom access to their Soviet intelligence network. With practically nothing to bargain with, and the UK's dwindling importance on the world stage, working against him, Bond agrees to do a personal favour for Tiger. That favour is to infiltrate the mysterious 'Castle of Death' on the island of Kyūshū and assassinate the foreign botanist who resides within.

Fleming's writing is wonderfully descriptive and gives a remarkable insight into the world of the 50s and early 60s. That is no less present in You Only Live Twice, a book which explores the often mysterious culture of Japan in detail and provides a Bond adventure that feels almost to be set on another planet. As usual, Fleming's casual racism and misogyny might seem strange, even offensive, to a modern reader, but it only really serves to make the world he writes about more vivid and more real. Bond's Australian contact describes the Japanese as "a separate human species" and the early chapters of the book focus heavily on Bond's attempts to adapt to a culture entirely foreign to his own, one that values honour above all else. The conversation he has with Tiger regarding suicide is fascinating and wonderful to read due to this clash of cultures.

All in all, I can't wait to crack on with this one. Brilliant so far.

 

[Skunk]

I am currently reading The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien. It's a book. Read it. Maybe. I don't know, I'm too busy remembering names, what they mean, and the people related to them in any way, shape, or form. Lots of people. So. Many.

 

[Doc]

I just finished The Fault in our Stars. Okay book, I guess. Not fond of love stories, and John Green was practically throwing metaphors in your face (not to mention a large portion of the book is based around a different book John Green wrote, where the characters all praised it, pretty cheap move there, Green)

 

[Sydney]

I just finished The Fault in Our Stars. I typically loathe reading anything over 300 pages -- rather reading anything in general -- but this was different. I could not put the book down for the life of me, and I found myself holding back tears at school today. A few of my friends refuse to read the book for whatever reason, but they have no idea what they're missing out on. Even though it's a great book, it's unbelievably depressing. I don't want to go into a lot of detail, but the story centers around love and the dreaded disease Cancer. It had me crying really hard in the middle (for which I explained in the depressing thread), and at the end for obvious reasons if you've read the book. If you haven't the read the book, it's a must.

10/10, but I'm soooo tempted to give it an 11/10.

 

[Mellow Ezlo]

I'm almost finished the Lord of the Rings series, finally.

Currently reading The Return of the King. Great book, great book indeed!

 

[Yuuago]

Reading Terry Pratchett's Dodger. I'm not quite finished with it, but nearly.

I remember, when it first came out, lots of people said they didn't like it, but I can't remember why. It's possible that they just didn't enjoy it as much as his Discworld series; fair enough, in that case. It isn't often that Pratchett comes out with novels set in the real world, so Dodger is a little unusual that way. But I don't think that was it... there's something I'm forgetting, I think. Regardless, I'm enjoying this. It isn't as good as some of his other novels, but it's still very enjoyable.

 

[Potatoeslol]

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick
"In addition to the P-38, there are four gifts, one for each of my friends. I want to say good-bye to them properly. I want to give them each something to remember me by. To let them know I really cared about them and I'm sorry I couldn't be more than I was--that I couldn't stick around--and that what's going to happen today isn't their fault."
I finished re-reading Looking For Alaska by John Green a few days ago. Probably one of my favorite books.

 

[Memory]

How To Be A Girl by Ivei Choi

http://www.wattpad.com/story/1432862-how-to-be-a-girl

 

[Blue Canary]

I'm currently reading Divergent. It's a lot darker than I thought. But of course, that makes me like it more. I'm just sad because the movie won't be as good (I can tell these things.)

 

[sailormars109]

I am currently reading The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan. It's the third edition to The Heroes of Olympus series. I'm currently about 3/4 of the way through and it's really interesting. I love books that deal with the Greek and Roman gods so this book is right up my alley.

I am also getting started on Extras by Scott Westerfeld. This book takes place a few years or so after Specials. I read the Uglies trilogy last year so I figured I would read Extras.

 

[Batman]

I am reading Dragons of Autumn Twilight, book one of the DragonLance Chronicles trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.

 

[Stitch]

I picked up Stephen King's Doctor Sleep, so I'll be reading that:yes:

 

[Cfrock]

I am currently reading Sex At Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What It Means for Modern Relationships, by Christopher Ryan and Cacida Jethá.

Friend of mine loves reading non-fiction and we have a little swap system going on were he lends me a non-fiction book for one of my fiction ones. He highly recommended this one and it really is a great book. In a nutshell, the book explores all the evidence that humans are not a naturally monogamous species and that we are silly to try to impose such a thing on ourselves. It's written in a very fluid and almost conversational style, something I particularly like in non-fiction because it feels like someone is teaching you things, instead of you just reading a big ol' load of facts and theories. This one is getting two thimbs up from me so far. Cracking read.

 

[Reaca]

A few weeks ago, I finished reading A Storm of Swords. Let me tell you: it was easily the best thing I've ever read in my life. The last third of the book was just twist after twist, and it was all really well-written.
Final Rating: 15/10

Since then, I've been reading the next book in A Song of Ice and Fire, which is A Feast for Crows. I went in knowing that it wouldn't be as exciting as A Storm of Swords. I do like how it develops more characters and expands on the world, along with setting up plotlines.

 

[Sydney]

The Apprentice by Tess Gerritsen, hmmmmm... 8/10, almost a 9/10. The ending was beyond rushed, and it's annoying how she fit the end scene into only a few pages. She has this fantastic build up to it, yet it fell completely flat. It doesn't seem normal for her to do that. I'm hoping the next book won't be so bad.