Elixir Sue Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 Holy shit, I just opened this thread to post that I'm reading Mansfield Park. I'm ashamed to admit it'll be the first Jane Austen novel I've ever read. Link to post Share on other sites
austrya Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 I've read Emma and Pride & Prejiduce and both were good. Link to post Share on other sites
NightOfJoy Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 Same here, I Link to post Share on other sites
dmait Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 >Great read, though. I think it's great because it reads as fiction even though it's non-fiction, which plays into the story even a non-history buff can appreciate. That's true. It reads like fiction. It's unusual for this type of book to be a pageturner. >When you finish it get the companion book (I checked it out from the library) to check out some of the landmarks described in the book. It's a coffee table-type picture book and I forget the name of it. Pretty nice companion piece. Great idea. It would also be interesting to visit some of the places mentioned. On a similar note, Lincoln died in a boardinghouse across the street from Ford Theater. Within hours after he was removed to the White House, the room in which he'd been staying with various doctors was rented to a tenant who slept in the bed with Lincoln's bloody sheets. Amazing. Link to post Share on other sites
Good Old Neon Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 I picked this up today. Looking forward to it. I think you'll have fun with it, it's a great read - a near perfect blend of sadness, joy, perseverance and straight-up comedy. Link to post Share on other sites
Three dollars and 63 cents Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 I've been wanting to read this for awhile, but the campus library's copy is perpetually checked out, and it doesn't come out in paperback for a few more months. I was pleasantly surprised that it won the Pulitzer. He worked on it for something like ten years. I've heard nothing but good things about it. Someday I might actually finish The Satanic Verses. I've been reading it on and off since November, and I still have about 200 pages to go. Link to post Share on other sites
la* Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 Great read, though. I think it's great because it reads as fiction even though it's non-fiction, which plays into the story even a non-history buff can appreciate. When you finish it get the companion book (I checked it out from the library) to check out some of the landmarks described in the book. It's a coffee table-type picture book and I forget the name of it. Pretty nice companion piece. Count me in as another huge fan of Manhunt. Nonfiction at its best! I also really liked the companion book that Lammycat mentioned. It's called Lincoln's Assassins: Their Trial and Execution and the photos included are stunning. I just finished this and loved it. It was one of those (rare) books that I thought about all the time and wondered what would happen next: Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 A la* recommendation always adds a book to my list! Link to post Share on other sites
explodo Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 I just finished this and loved it. It was one of those (rare) books that I thought about all the time and wondered what would happen next: Isn't T.C., like you, another fine product of the University of Iowa? I think his short story, "Greasy Lake," is about 1/20th of why I went the literature degree route in college. Link to post Share on other sites
bobbob1313 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 I found Confederacy of Dunces to be the funniest book I've ever read. First time I read it was on a monthlong cross country camping trip.....and my traveling partner/girlfriend got pissed because I kept on laughing, sometimes to the point of tears, while we were driving. I continue to recommend this book to all who will listen. Ugh, I could not get through Confederacy of Dunces. I thought he was simply the most obnoxious character I'd ever read... I think you'll have fun with it, it's a great read - a near perfect blend of sadness, joy, perseverance and straight-up comedy. I've actually decided to save it until I'm done with class in a few weeks and instead am rereading This book blew my mind the first time I read it, and it did the same the second. I borrowed it from a friend to reread today, and I'm hoping it has a similar effect the third time around. It always leaves me feeling very odd, but also very focused and renewed. Link to post Share on other sites
jimmyjimmy Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 I really enjoyed that one. NR: If I have a guilty pleasure it's this guy's work: It's just damn funny. Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Video's of Junot D Link to post Share on other sites
kidsmoke Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 NR: If I have a guilty pleasure it's this guy's work: It's just damn funny. That is one terrific book! Christopher Moore always leaves me laughing, and the worlds he creates are intriguing little places! Have you read "You Suck!" ? I'm not into vampires so I thought I wouldn't like this one, but once I had read just the first page, I was hopelessly hooked. Could hardly put it down until I'd finished it. Highly recommended. Link to post Share on other sites
bobbob1313 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 I haven't been able to get into any of his books since Lamb. Lamb is, however, the funniest book I've ever read, hands down. I've never laughed that hard out loud at a book. Link to post Share on other sites
jimmyjimmy Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 That is one terrific book! Christopher Moore always leaves me laughing, and the worlds he creates are intriguing little places! Have you read "You Suck!" ? I'm not into vampires so I thought I wouldn't like this one, but once I had read just the first page, I was hopelessly hooked. Could hardly put it down until I'd finished it. Highly recommended. I've read them all excluding the current title. Found it for $4 used, in hard cover first edition just the other day. I haven't been able to get into any of his books since Lamb. Lamb is, however, the funniest book I've ever read, hands down. I've never laughed that hard out loud at a book.Lamb is his best work for sure. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Hollinger Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 Just starting the first two, about halfway through the third... Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 Feeding the Monster is decent. Mnookin basically had all-access to the Sox for the season. Link to post Share on other sites
austrya Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 The Omnivore's Dilemma was really good. Link to post Share on other sites
Reni Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 is anyone here familiar with the Seminary Co-Op Bookstore which is underground, beneath the Chicago Theo. Seminary? Apparently, it is one of (if not THE) largest academic bookstores in the nation - though they carry all kinds of stuff. Seminary Co-Op Bookstore Founded in 1961 by 17 book lovers who invested $10 each, this consumer-owned bookstore has built its holding to over 100,000 titles ranging widely across the humanities & social sciences. The flagship store on University Avenue is widely regarded as one of the best academic bookstores in the world. A prof was telling me about this place the other day - and I can't believe I hadn't heard of it before......Chicago's best kept secret? I may have to take a field trip. Link to post Share on other sites
austrya Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 That looks like a pretty cool place. Link to post Share on other sites
austrya Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 I finished Mansfield Park the other day. Now I'm reading: Link to post Share on other sites
poppydawn Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 Just added "Drop City" to my list. Currently reading: The subject is interesting enough to keep me reading (woman adopting a child from Vietnam, ruins marriage with Vietnam vet husband, befriends Vietnamese immigrant in the process). The writing's pretty stilted, though. I just finished books by Richard Russo and Tom Perrotta, so I think just about any book is going to seem stilted after that. Link to post Share on other sites
Sir Stewart Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 Was it The Abstinence Teacher you just finished? Link to post Share on other sites
poppydawn Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 Nope, "Little Children". I'm waiting for "The Abstinence Teacher" to arrive from the library. Link to post Share on other sites
Good Old Neon Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 is anyone here familiar with the Seminary Co-Op Bookstore which is underground, beneath the Chicago Theo. Seminary? Apparently, it is one of (if not THE) largest academic bookstores in the nation - though they carry all kinds of stuff. Seminary Co-Op Bookstore A prof was telling me about this place the other day - and I can't believe I hadn't heard of it before......Chicago's best kept secret? I may have to take a field trip. Was my first thought.... Link to post Share on other sites
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