what are you reading?

[Principessa21]

right now i'm reading fargo rock city by chuck klosterman, i really like his stuff.

Did you read his fiction book "Downtown Owl"? Excellent book.

How does it compare to Fargo Rock City and Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs? I really liked those two but haven't read anything else.

[dadofandrew]

Since the WW2 topic is being discussed, A Street Called Darwin was written by my cousin, about my uncle, a pilot who was killed in the war when his plane crashed. You'd probably have to special order it, but it is a nice read about how regular citizens of the greatest generation quite literally saved the world.

 

http://search.barnesandno...2871747k138683-_-Primary

[Brewtacular]

I'd recommend Wild Grass by Ian Johnson. Three stories about change in modern China. One about some peasants trying to sue the government, one about hutong's being destroyed in Beijing, and another about falun gong. Very interesting read. If anyone has read Peter Hessler this very similar. In fact, the writer seems to be a friend of his.

[JimH5]

Do either of you read Japanese? The wife has been unsuccessful in finding either Japanese ebooks or a good source of Japanese books in America. She has to rely on packing the suitcase when either we go there or her mother comes here.

Not sure if your wife has tried Kinokuniya. . .

 

http://www.yelp.com/biz/kinokuniya-bookstores-new-york-2

 

The Singapore store is loaded with Japanese & Chinese titles. The reviews of the NYC store are good, though I have not been there. . .

 

 

 

 

[Brewtacular]

re: Japanese books. Don't know where you live but there is a Mitsuwa Marketplace in Arlington Heights. They have a decent book store in there (can't remember the name). There is also a hidden book/video shop in an office park just behind Mitsuwa. Otherwise...CA has a number of Book-off's if you are ever out that way. I generally get annoyed at book stores here because I know how much it should cost...over there.

[GAME05]

i'm currently in the middle of "Nothing to Envy" by Barbara Demick (2010). she describes what ordinary life is like for North Koreans through the stories of several defectors she interviewed. between the life stories she does a good job of weaving in history and politics without going overboard.

[Brewtacular]

i'm currently in the middle of "Nothing to Envy" by Barbara Demick (2010). she describes what ordinary life is like for North Koreans through the stories of several defectors she interviewed. between the life stories she does a good job of weaving in history and politics without going overboard.

That book is at the top of my list. I can't resist North Korea and the dear leader. My offer to you is...after you finish the book...I will let you ship it to me at your expense!

Honestly, the reviews looked pretty good and it sounded very interesting.

[mothershipconnection]

I generally get annoyed at book stores here because I know how much it should cost...over there.

 

That's been the big problem. She has found Japanese book stores that ship, but they act like they're selling priceless treasures and not 600 Yen paperbacks. For now, it has just been easiest for her mom to send a couple paperbacks along whenever she ships us something. She's really hoping that the Japanese ebook market will pick up so that she has something akin to the market and prices of Kindle.

[GAME05]

That book is at the top of my list. I can't resist North Korea and the dear leader. My offer to you is...after you finish the book...I will let you ship it to me at your expense!

Honestly, the reviews looked pretty good and it sounded very interesting.

that's a heck of an offer:)

i know she won some awards for the book, and i haven't yet seen anything else out there that deals with the same subject. i'm liking that the majority of people she interviews started out completely believing in the socialist system, and only slowly progressed to opening their eyes. it's amazing how little these people have, and i've only just begun to reach the period of the early-90s famine.

 

i was interested in the book in part because i've always wondered how it is that the citizenry hasn't gone all Egypt on Kim Il-jung. reading this, i don't get the impression they ever will, and that foreign tanks rolling across the border definitely wouldn't be seen as liberators.

[mothershipconnection]

I'm about to start "Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader", which sounds pretty similar, but I didn't notice it was 800 and some odd pages until I already downloaded it.

[Hammer]

Just picked up the book "The Gold Coast" by Nelson DeMille. So far so good...300 pages in about 3 hours of sporadic interruptions...

[owbc]

Just did a quick read of Animal Farm--struck a chord considering the current events. Also reading more David McCullough--the Johnstown Flood was great and The Path Between the Seas is off to a very interesting start. The failed French Panama Canal is am amazing story.

 

Definitely adding "Nothing to Envy" to my "to-read" list based on the comments here :-)

[JimH5]

I just finished "But Didn't We Have Fun" by Peter Morris. A history of baseball from the 1830s to 1870. Very interesting read and a good understanding of how the game developed from an amateur exercise by social clubs into a competitive sport, with emphasis on winning and money.

 

And I'm just starting (again) "Satch, Dizzy and Rapid Robert" by Timothy Gay, a history of the black vs. white barnstorming games pre-Jackie Robinson.

[TooLiveBrew]

Started reading "Are We Winning?" first, good so far. Always been a fan of Will Leitch. After I finish that I am going to tackle "Baseball Between The Numbers". Heard great things about it.

BBTN is excellent, although if you're already relatively well-aware of newer stats already, there won't really be anything mind-bending. However, it's really well written, and nearly worth its price alone for the chapter title, "What if Rickey Henderson had Pete Incaviglia's legs?"

[tristarscoop]

Has anyone red "Room"? My book club picked it and I got through about 7 pages before I put it down. It's written from the point of view of a young boy who is a captive with his mom in a 10 x 10 room and I couldn't read the "kid-ese."

 

Has anyone got through it? Do I need to pick it back up?

[Cdiddy34]

reading diet for a new america. written in the late 1980's it brings to light problems with the american food system that STILL exist today.

[ilovebeer]

Front of the class, true story about Brad Cohen who has tourette syndrome and he became a award winning teacher, his book was made into a hallmark hall of fame movie.

[prophet]

Reading a really cool book called The Hunting Shack. It's an old book, set in northern Wisconsin woods, near Hurley. It was the authors first book, and he's from Wisconsin and still lives here. Really good so far. It's a murder/thriller but not a mystery, because they don't hide who the killer is. If you like thrillers, check it out.

[Brewtacular]

I just picked up The Last Days of Old Beijing. Hope it turns out as good as it looks.

Actually, I'm looking for some suggestions. I'm looking for some books on Taiwan since I'll be there in a few weeks. Particularly I'd like a good history book (not the 600+ page kind since I'm limited on time) or a travelogue, daily life kind of book.

[Hammer]

Lots of Nelson DeMille lately. Fiction mysteries w/ an adult twist here and there (not smut books...) http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[flosses like fossas]

I just picked up The Last Days of Old Beijing. Hope it turns out as good as it looks.

Actually, I'm looking for some suggestions. I'm looking for some books on Taiwan since I'll be there in a few weeks. Particularly I'd like a good history book (not the 600+ page kind since I'm limited on time) or a travelogue, daily life kind of book.

Brew,

I live in Taipei, if you'd like to get a beer and/or see a CPBL game while you're on the island, PM me. Here are a few book recommendations:

Pioneering in Formosa - WA Pickering. Oldie but goodie, 19th century Victorians roaming Taiwan and recording it.

The Minor Arts of Daily Life: Pop Culture in Taiwan - Jordan, Morris, Moskowitz. An interesting look at some of the "Why?"s and "How?"s of Taiwan.

Three Legged Horse - Ch'ing Wen Cheng. Some local short stories from the 1980s.

Hope this is useful. For more options, follow this thread.

[Brewtacular]

Flosses-

Well, I was only in Taipei a few days -back in May- but it made a great impression. It felt right, culturally at least, and made more sense to me than many of the other countries I've been to.

To help resurrect this thread I'll throw out some books I've read lately and/or just purchased.

Forbidden Nation - political history of Taiwan. Not bad, dry.

Pirate King; The Story of Koxinga. I love that dude. Basically gave the finger to China, Japan, and the Dutch and became a defacto deity.

Shockingly, I just got around to reading Slaughterhouse Five. Freaking awesome. I've been fan of Kurt V's other stuff but never had gotten around to this one.

A Wild Steeple Chase - Haruki Murakami - he's awesome and rate this up there on his list. His new book comes out later this fall, I believe.

On the just purchased list

Nothing to Envy - ordinary lives in North Korea

Egg on Mao - about a Chinese dissident

Farewell to Manzanar - about the Japanese internment camps

Beyond the Sky and the Earth - Some gal goes to Bhutan.

Wild Swans - audio book - doesn't really count but oh well.

Anyone have some good audiobook suggestions for the commute??

[mothershipconnection]

Nothing to Envy - ordinary lives in North Korea

 

Very good book. I'd give a higher recommendation to "Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader". It's super long, but very in-depth and interesting.

 

I'm about to finish "The Idiot" after having finally gotten around to reading "Crime and Punishment" all the way through.

 

When I get back around to North Korea reading, I have "The Cleanest Race" and "The Aquariums of Pyongyang" downloaded and ready to roll.

[flosses like fossas]

A Wild Steeple Chase - Haruki Murakami - he's awesome and rate this up there on his list. His new book comes out later this fall, I believe.

Anyone have some good audiobook suggestions for the commute??

1. a wild sheep chase. not to be that guy, just sayin'.

2. if i recall, there was an audio book edition of consider the lobster by david foster wallace that he read himself that was supposed to be great. either way, those essays are worth a go.

i'm currently immersed in the giant that is infinite jest. recently finished the milwaukee braves: a baseball eulogy by bob buege - great for a milwaukee/baseball nut, not great if you tire of minutiae and using the word whitewash in reference to a good pitching performance.

[rwa12]

In the middle of "The Visible Man" by Chuck Klosterman. I enjoy his writing style, am amused by how he inserts music into it, and am generally enjoying it. There are better books, but not a bad attempt at a novel by CK.