I've been reading "Blindness" by Jose Saramago lately. Before that, I was reading "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. I seem to have a penchant for morbid, harrowing tales lately.

 

What's everyone else reading? Anything more upbeat?

Federal tax code

Federal tax code

 

Anything more upbeat?

 

:-D

During the day I read medical records.  This is why I haven't touched a novel in years.

With an 8-hour flight, I wanted some decent reading material* - I found "Alek" by Alek Wek to be pretty interesting. If escaping the war-torn countryside of Sudan and eventually ending up as a supermodel qualifies as harrowing, you might be interested:

 

 

*Thanks again to the Cleveland Public Library

I'm reading "Backstage Passes and Backstabbing Bastards" by Al Kooper, a book on signing with your baby (ASL) and a book called The Happiest Baby on the Block which is about how to deal with colic.  Yeah, my reading is changing, for sure.

When You Are Engulfed in Flames, by David Sedaris.  Very good, as always.

^Ditto on "Engulfed in Flames" - I started it on the return flight but with a colicky baby in the seat behind me I couldn't finish it.

^Ditto on "Engulfed in Flames" - I started it on the return flight but with a colicky baby in the seat behind me I couldn't finish it.

 

Sounds like you should've talked to rockandroller. :-D

The terror by dan Simmons. Outstanding.

^Ditto on "Engulfed in Flames" - I started it on the return flight but with a colicky baby in the seat behind me I couldn't finish it.

 

Sounds like you should've talked to rockandroller. :-D

 

LOL.  I'm sure you guys couldn't care less, but the little book I'm reading is really good.  It talks about what they do differently in countries (and there are many) where virtually NO babies have colic, and a theory about the first 3 months of life being the "4th trimester."  I've heard this echoed by other specialists as well - that human babies aren't really "done" cooking in there after 9 months but they have to come out when they do or else women wouldn't be able to physically give birth because their heads would be too big.  Colic takes place the first 3 months of life you know, and the book gives you a combination of approaches to try that, they claim, if employed ALL TOGETHER, can nearly instantly stop a colicky baby from crying.  I sure hope it's true :)

The terror by dan Simmons. Outstanding.

 

I really wanted to check that out when I picked up "Blindness" the other day. I think I need to go for something waaaay lighthearted for my next read, though. :)

^ I wish I had some good suggestions for Colic last summer for my son. Nothing worked.

 

I'm reading Meditations on the First Philosophy by Rene Descartes. (Intro to Philosophy sounded like an easy A for the Semester)

The Dark Tower Series.  On book two.

On top of the Uniform Commercial Code and a host of other uninteresting topics, Born to Fight by James Webb.  It provides great insight into the minds of Southerners (no, not Cincinnatians), their heritage, and how their identities were established.  Really interesting.

I liked The Road, although it was horribly depressing. Still looking forward to the movie, though. I guess I'm a sucker for that stuff (Requiem for a Dream is a favorite of mine)

 

Right now I'm reading Good Calories, Bad Calories which is an interesting perspective on what it means to "eat healthy". I'm not sure I totally agree with him but if nothing else it points out how little scientific fact is actually behind a lot of our dietary recommendations. It can be a little dry at points with all the references, but some portions are really interesting.

 

 

 

I liked The Road, although it was horribly depressing. Still looking forward to the movie, though. I guess I'm a sucker for that stuff (Requiem for a Dream is a favorite of mine)

 

Yeah, for some reason, I am, too .. and then I wonder why I get so horribly depressed afterwards. Cormac McCarthy is amazing, though. If you liked "The Road", I'd recommend "Blindness".

Next on my list is "To Kill the Irishman"

The terror by dan Simmons. Outstanding.

 

I really wanted to check that out when I picked up "Blindness" the other day. I think I need to go for something waaaay lighthearted for my next read, though. :)

 

Yeah, there is nothing lighthearted about the terror.  Though oddly I found something so appropriate about reading a 750 page novel about a ship getting stranded in the arctic on an excursion to find the northwest passage while looking outside seeing a foot of snow dropping and knowing it was 30 below out there.  Of course I don't have the same thing lurking outside as the crew of the HMS Terror did... poor bastards.

I've been reading "Blindness" by Jose Saramago lately. Before that, I was reading "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. I seem to have a penchant for morbid, harrowing tales lately.

 

What's everyone else reading? Anything more upbeat?

 

I read both those books back to back over the summer.  Great books, but yeah, they are a little morbid.

 

I just finished The Suicide Index, which I really liked.  Not very upbeat, though.

 

I'm currently reading a crazy book called 2012 that I got for Christmas.  I thought it would be about the world ending according to the Mayans, but so far its an autobiography about taking mind expanding drugs and quantum physics.  Not sure if I'm going to finish it, but I'll give it another 50 -100 pages.

Next on my list is "To Kill the Irishman"

 

I read that.  Very interesting book.  I find it amazing that 20-30 years ago there would be approximately 30 gangland bombings in one year.  In places like Cleveland Heights, South Euclid, Lyndhurst, etc.  Isn't that crazy?  Can you imagine if there were regular car bombings today?

 

I also read "The Road."  I thought it was a good book, but depressing.  Don't ever give that book to someone who is suicidal, they may just end it all after reading that book.

 

I am currently reading "Killing Yourself to Live" by Chuck Klosterman.

I also recently read "The Brief Wondorous Life of Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz.  I thought it was a very good book full of comedy and tragedy (plus, I think the title is fantastic). 

^Ditto on "Engulfed in Flames" - I started it on the return flight but with a colicky baby in the seat behind me I couldn't finish it.

 

Sounds like you should've talked to rockandroller. :-D

 

LOL.  I'm sure you guys couldn't care less, but the little book I'm reading is really good.  It talks about what they do differently in countries (and there are many) where virtually NO babies have colic, and a theory about the first 3 months of life being the "4th trimester."  I've heard this echoed by other specialists as well - that human babies aren't really "done" cooking in there after 9 months but they have to come out when they do or else women wouldn't be able to physically give birth because their heads would be too big.  Colic takes place the first 3 months of life you know, and the book gives you a combination of approaches to try that, they claim, if employed ALL TOGETHER, can nearly instantly stop a colicky baby from crying.  I sure hope it's true :)

 

I have a friend who swore by that book. I implemented a couple strategies on his recommendation. The most effective I found was the rocking back and forth while making a loud "shhhh" sound in their ear.  It emulates the motion / sound of blood moving inside the womb. Also, running the vaccuum. There's truth to the "4th trimester" thing.

 

I'm not reading anything of note these days. I keep having a preponderance for these ridiculously long novel series where the author spaces the books out over numerous years and never really brings the storyline to conclusion. Dark Tower series, I'm looking in your direction. I keep forgetting what happened and having to go back to the beginning. (Wheel of Time, I'm looking at you too (plus, to add insult to injury, not only did Robert Jordan take 20 years to write the series, but he DIED before finishing the last novel)).

 

Time for something new. I hear Dune is good......

Forget Wheel of Time.  Wheel of Time cannot touch the Fire and Ice series by George Martin.  Game of Thrones, etc.  Read those first.  There's a new one coming out soon.

Forget Wheel of Time. Wheel of Time cannot touch the Fire and Ice series by George Martin. Game of Thrones, etc. Read those first. There's a new one coming out soon.

 

I gave up on WOT years ago after the 6th or 7th book. Who can keep track?

 

You're not the first person to recommend Fire & Ice. I'll have to check it out.

Next on my list is "To Kill the Irishman"

 

That Danny Greene was a character!  Another good book on Cleveland underworld is about the "Sugar Wars".

Wheel of Time cannot touch the Fire and Ice series by George Martin.  Game of Thrones, etc.  Read those first.  There's a new one coming out soon.

 

A Song of Ice and Fire is probably my all time favorite series. HBO has purchased the rights to it and supposedly it's already gone through a couple of script iterations. I really hope they don't blow it if it get green lit. A Dance with Dragons was supposed to be out months ago but it's still totally up in the air as to when it'll be done (according to his own blog entry).

Wheel of Time cannot touch the Fire and Ice series by George Martin. Game of Thrones, etc. Read those first. There's a new one coming out soon.

 

A Song of Ice and Fire is probably my all time favorite series. HBO has purchased the rights to it and supposedly it's already gone through a couple of script iterations. I really hope they don't blow it if it get green lit. A Dance with Dragons was supposed to be out months ago but it's still totally up in the air as to when it'll be done (according to his own blog entry).

 

Didn't know move versions were that far along.  Sweet.  HBO is a good place for it, since the themes are so... adult.

 

The first one does start out a little slow, just because there are so many characters and relationships to introduce.  I've had friends who love the genre give up on Game of Thrones about 1/3 through.  DO NOT DO THIS.  The payoff is there.  Plus, the third book is in a class by itself.  Anyone who read six WOT books owes it to themselves to at least read Martin's first three.  I got through 3.5 WOT books and could not continue.  The only aspect of that series I liked was "the ways."  But I couldn't get over how Jordan would name people to match their initial personalities (loyal, naive, etc).

Next on my list is "To Kill the Irishman"

 

That Danny Greene was a character!  Another good book on Cleveland underworld is about the "Sugar Wars".

 

although it's been awhile since I read it, there's an excellent novel about Cleveland set chiefly in the 50's & 60's called "Crooked River Burning" by Mike Winegardner (published a few years ago). Lots of politics, local characters and media personalities of the time, like TV pundit Dorothy Fuldheim.

 

Wheel of Time cannot touch the Fire and Ice series by George Martin.  Game of Thrones, etc.  Read those first.  There's a new one coming out soon.

 

A Song of Ice and Fire is probably my all time favorite series. HBO has purchased the rights to it and supposedly it's already gone through a couple of script iterations. I really hope they don't blow it if it get green lit. A Dance with Dragons was supposed to be out months ago but it's still totally up in the air as to when it'll be done (according to his own blog entry).

 

Didn't know move versions were that far along.  Sweet.  HBO is a good place for it, since the themes are so... adult.

 

The first one does start out a little slow, just because there are so many characters and relationships to introduce.  I've had friends who love the genre give up on Game of Thrones about 1/3 through.  DO NOT DO THIS.  The payoff is there.  Plus, the third book is in a class by itself.  Anyone who read six WOT books owes it to themselves to at least read Martin's first three.  I got through 3.5 WOT books and could not continue.  The only aspect of that series I liked was "the ways."  But I couldn't get over how Jordan would name people to match their initial personalities (loyal, naive, etc).

 

Reading ASOS now, my third read through of the series. I was hoping that ADWD would be done by the time I finished AFFC, but since by GRRM's own admission he 'doesn't like writing' I'm not holding my breath....

 

Just hoping he finishes before he dies, he doesn't look so hot these days.

I didn't read the last (fourth) one.  Huge fans told me it sucked.  It's all that one girl, they say.  Maybe I'll read it when school's over, just to get ready for the next one.  I didn't realize he was in bad shape.  That's the worst, when they go, and that's happened to a lot of series.

 

There is graffiti on a toilet paper dispenser in a bathroom at school that says something nasty in Tolkien language.  You have to have not only read the Hobbit, but taken the time to personally translate the map from the front, in order to be in on that joke.   

The fourth definitley has a different feel to it...kind of hard to put your finger on. But yeah, it's only half the characters, and its a bit disjointed. I still enjoyed it though.  I don't think GRRM is actually in bad shape, but he just looks like hell and he's not getting any younger.

He is the modern master of a genre that can often be too full of itself.  To make it work it has to be deeply detailed, which he does.  But he adds an awareness and a realistic filth level that it never had before.  And I love his device of running you through different people's minds to see everything.  It needs to become a movie fast, I can't believe more people don't know about those books.  It will make you like that stuff again.

^

I think there is a whole series of Cleveland private eye books, but I forget the author.  One is titled "Pepper Pike", after the suburb.

 

@@@@

 

I've gotten interested in "bohemia" and "scenes", so am reading stuff on that every so often:

 

Right now Im working on :

 

Decline, Renewal, and the City in Popular Music Culture: Beyond the Beatles (by Sara Cohen)

 

The book is mostly about Liverpool music culture (hence the subtitle about the Beatles) and business.

 

 

I don't remember what those are called either, but he's still writing them and they're going into sci-fi Indiana Jones territory.

I'm currently reading "The Modern Middle East: A History" by James Gelvin. I'm a history buff so I enjoy reading books like this just as much as I enjoy Tom Clancy (my favorite author) novels.

^

I think there is a whole series of Cleveland private eye books, but I forget the author.  One is titled "Pepper Pike", after the suburb.

 

 

www.lesroberts.com

 

The Milan Jacovich series

 

Pepper Pike (1988)

Full Cleveland (1989)

Deep Shaker (1991)

The Cleveland Connection (1993)

The Lake Effect (1994)

The Duke Of Cleveland (1995)

Collision Bend (1996)

The Cleveland Local (1997)

A Shoot In Cleveland (1998)

The Best Kept Secret (1999)

The Indian Sign (2000)

The Dutch (2001)

The Irish Sports Pages (2002)

King of the Holly Hop (2008)

 

Les’ introduction to Cleveland came when he got the job of creating a lottery game show for Ohio. It ultimately became Cash Explosion Double Play. He moved on to create similar shows for Michigan and Illinois, but couldn’t forget Cleveland. He moved there permanently in 1990 and says his years in Cleveland have been the best ever. It’s where he’s felt the most at home, developed the most significant and lasting relationships of his life and experienced the most success and fulfillment in his career. He’s been twice nominated for both the Shamus and the Anthony Awards, and has several times been voted “Cleveland’s Favorite Writer.” He won the Cleveland Arts Prize for Literature in 1992 and the Sherwood Anderson Literary Award in 2003. He is past president of the Private Eye Writers of America and the American Crime Writers League. He writes regular book reviews for Cleveland’s Plain Dealer and articles for the Currents section of the Chagrin Valley Times. He’s also written some pieces for the Washington Post Book World, Northern Ohio Live and Cleveland Magazine.

 

I know this is a little off topic but I could really use the help. I was recently going through my stuff in storage and happened upon a rather old book that I forgot I had. It's "History of the United States" by Matthew Page Andrews (not to be confused with "Brief History of the United States"). It was published in 1919. The book as a whole is in decent shape but I'm wanting to find out how much it would cost to get it repaired. So if anybody could help me with that I would be extremely grateful.

 

Another cool tidbit about the book is that whoever had it back in the day they decided to write some poems on the first few blank pages.

 

Hi all,

 

Last week I completed reading the Armistead Maupin series that started with "Tales of the City" and ends seven books later with " Michael Tolliver lives". I also completed "In This House of Brede" by Rumer Godden. This week I started reading "They Have Killed Papa Dead!": The road to Ford's Theater, Abraham Lincoln's murder and the rage for Vengeance, by Anthony Pitch. Warm nuzzles and bear hugz to all.

 

Jim S.

 

 

I know this is a little off topic but I could really use the help. I was recently going through my stuff in storage and happened upon a rather old book that I forgot I had. It's "History of the United States" by Matthew Page Andrews (not to be confused with "Brief History of the United States"). It was published in 1919. The book as a whole is in decent shape but I'm wanting to find out how much it would cost to get it repaired. So if anybody could help me with that I would be extremely grateful.

 

Another cool tidbit about the book is that whoever had it back in the day they decided to write some poems on the first few blank pages.

 

Your best bet would be to check with the Strong Bindery, located in Loganberry Books on Larchmere (near Shaker Square). I'd recommend calling ahead - they'd likely want to see it before giving you any kind of quote. http://www.loganberrybooks.com/

this winter i went on a tear with an addictive tokyo author -- haruki murakami. i have almost finished reading everything he ever wrote. he has a japanese/western sensibility and he describes urban experiences very well. i am very curious if there are there any other uo fans of his?

I finished the second Dark Tower (a series I am rapidly losing interest in but am determined to read the next, uch, FIVE).  Now I'm on 'The Stand'.

 

Yeah, I'm on a Steven King high these days.

I finished the second Dark Tower (a series I am rapidly losing interest in but am determined to read the next, uch, FIVE).  Now I'm on 'The Stand'.

 

Yeah, I'm on a Steven King high these days.

 

I stopped after the third. I felt like the whole concept was too complicated for him to handle. The concept reminded me of an anthology series I started reading about 20 years ago with a similar idea of people from various time periods congregating in some "otherworld" to accomplish some task or other. That had the added attraction of each book in the series being written by a new author who in many cases just threw out the ideas of the previous author. I think I only got about 2 books into that series too before aborting mission.

 

Since I'm getting all nerdy, now another good series (older one) is the Elric of Melniboné series by Michael Moorcock. Originally written in the 60's / 70's. Not your traditional fantasy themed novel.

Variations On A Theme Park. One of those books about the death of public space and the fall of American cities blah blah bah and etc. you know how it goes  :)

I gave up on the 2012 book I was reading.  I'm on to The Watchmen.  Trying to finish it before the movie comes out.

Watchmen is AWESOME!!!!  Not remotely overrated

 

And now I'm on 'The Stand.'  Pretty good so far but there have got to be 7 or 8 ongoing storylines I have to keep track of

Watchmen is AWESOME!!!!  Not remotely overrated

 

And now I'm on 'The Stand.'  Pretty good so far but there have got to be 7 or 8 ongoing storylines I have to keep track of

 

:clap:

Watchmen is AWESOME!!!! Not remotely overrated

 

And now I'm on 'The Stand.' Pretty good so far but there have got to be 7 or 8 ongoing storylines I have to keep track of

 

Keep going with the Stand. It's worth it. One of King's better books.

MTS, I am thrilled that you're (apparently) a fan of series.  Based on a few of your posts, I never really took you for a fan of comics, or at least the more mainstream stuff.

 

One of the cool things about the Watchmen is how the characters are allegories to some minor Charlton/DC superheroes i.e. Dr. Manhattan = Captain Atom; Night Owl 1,2 = Blue Beetle 1,2; Rorscharf = Question; Comedian = Peacemaker; Silc Spectre 1,2 = Black Canary 1,2; Ozymandias = ..... not sure actually

 

MTS, I am thrilled that you're (apparently) a fan of series.  Based on a few of your posts, I never really took you for a fan of comics, or at least the more mainstream stuff.

 

One of the cool things about the Watchmen is how the characters are allegories to some minor Charlton/DC superheroes i.e. Dr. Manhattan = Captain Atom; Night Owl 1,2 = Blue Beetle 1,2; Rorscharf = Question; Comedian = Peacemaker; Silc Spectre 1,2 = Black Canary 1,2; Ozymandias = ..... not sure actually

 

Yes I wanted to be in the movie, but they won't let me.