Books

peterstorey

"Inverting the Pyramid" by Jonathan Wilson. A history of football formations (useful read for people who still think ManU play 442). I was a bit disappointed - it's a bit of a dry textbook read and very putdownable in places. Not uninteresting, useful for plugging some of the holes in my knowledge of the world game but not very exciting.

Dresilved

Thats the understatement of the century, Camus is a genius, the Outsider the Fall and the Plague are all masterpieces, reccommending the Myth of Sisyphus is a bad place to start Camus though, its his "philosophy of the absurd" , I cant believe you read this stuff as a teenager, you need to reread this stuff my friend, anyone who wants to read Camus should start with the Plague, its an easy read (compartively speaking) and flows like a good novel and if you choose to interpret its undercurrent then thats a bonus for the reader

Dresilved

Cormac not conor, have you read his latest, "The Road", its also being turned into a movie, hes a very acquired taste, love his style personally

Dresilved

great read, same author as black hawk down, saw him lecture 4 years ago with Durant the helicopter pilot who survived that whole ordeal

Dresilved

It is somewhat a chick-book but its still a decent read due to the paradoxs caused when he continually runs into himself in past present and future, the fact that he meets his wife in the past when shes just a child and him as a fully grown adult is a bit weird though, but doesnt get all paedo thankfully
Thought that thousand splendid was better than kite btw,

Dresilved

Read all of his novels, great style, loved the Eiger Dreams short stories, getting off his usual adventurer topic you should try Under the banner of heaven, its absolutely gripping. Krakauer is a top story teller, couldnt even watch into the wild after reading the book, was worried it would spoil it

Dresilved

"The windup bird chronicles" is one of the best books I've ever read, its an absolute masterpice, easy to read with many many dark twists and strange goings on - other wordly, Murakami is potentially the most intelligent living author, you will thank me for this if you read it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Win...ird_Chronicles

brad-dyrak

Agreed. Read most of Camus's stuff, and the Plague was a favorite. Myth of Sisyphus was a bit of a bitch. "Revolt, Rebellion, and Death" was kind of cool as well. Totally different look at his work, it being his wartime stuff for Combat.

brad-dyrak

Just read "The Road" on a plane over the weekend. Good book. Reminded me of Hemingway with the clipped dialog that is also somehow father-and-son warm. His style is very sparse, but he somehow seems to cram a hell of a lot of dread into it. One scene in there was just horrorfying.

I didn't read "No Country for Old Men", but saw the movie and am guessing it did a pretty good job of capturing the tension, with so little dialog for exposition.

brad-dyrak

It's been my favorite book for years. Read the Constance Garnett and the newer translation (forget the names), and can recommend the new translation.

Dresilved

Sounds like we have similar tastes in books, have you read any Jose Saramago, definitely definitely recommend "blindness"..they're making it into movie at the moment, has a real Camus feel about him, couldnt put it down, compelling

brad-dyrak

Cheers mate. I'll give it a look. Also just got "Windup Bird Chronicles".

Dresilved

What a book it is! outstanding read, if you end up liking Murakami, you're a lucky bastard cause you've got some other classics from him like "Kafka on the Shore" is definitely on a par with "Windup", and "Wild sheep chase" is just so mysterious and abstract, was a tad disappointed with "after dark" - his latest one, still good, but "Windup" is just different class, let me know your thoughts on it when your done.

brad-dyrak

Working on "Moby Dick" and a book on quantum theory atm, so it may a while, but I'm very much looking forward to it.

peterstorey

I don't think I've ever finished anything Russian except a few Chekov short stories (not bowled over) and a Lermontov novella (crap). Anna Karenina and the Bros being among the failures. I didn't like Moscow much either so maybe I don't get the Russian sensibility

brad-dyrak

Definitely not everyone's taste, for sure. Dostoyevsky, Sholokov, Turganev, and Bulgakov would be my favorites. I actually lived in Russia for a piece, drawn there largely because I had so fallen for the literature. Had the best time of my life there for a time in the south. Then spent a dreadful winter in Moscow which was grim, no doubt. Dire place it was, though it sounds like I wouldn't recognize it these days.

SmashedHombre

Currently reading Memnon by Scott Oden and to be honest it's just fantastic. One of my favourite pastimes is researching historical figures, in particular histories Generals, giants who changed the very world. I've always had a special fascination with the likes of Parmenion, and Hannibal but above all Memnon of Rhodes. The mercenary captain who dared defy the Alexander the great. A man who's name should be up there alongside Alexander as one of the finest minds of our time, but has instead been relegated into virtual obscurity by his conqueror. I like to think I knew a fair bit about Memnon beforehand, but this book is just wonderfully researched. Oden has sculpted an entire life, hopes, dreams, ambitions whereas before all I had were facts and figures. I can't rate it highly enough, it really is 'unputdownable'

Dresilved

What was the "scorched earth" thingy he proposed, was it burning all the land and crops?

uae

Smashed, how does the book compare to the Troy series by Gemmel?

SmashedHombre

Memnon had served with the Macedonian army so he basically knew that the their army was the best trained army on the planet and that the Persians had no hope of defeating them in a pitched battle. Scott Oden uses a brilliant anology early on that a farmers crude damn could stop a flowing river, but if one small twig gives way then the whole damn would crumble. Although the Persians had the numbers, their soldiers were not anywhere near the quality of the Macedonians and it only takes one man to turn and run to set a whole army to flee, no matter how big. Memnon basically said the only hope they have of beating Alexander was to cut off his supply lines. The Persian empire was huge and was made up of lots of individual satraps, or client kingodms. If the Persians could stop the gold and food supplied reaching them, the Macedonians so far from home would find it next to impossible to win the war and be either destroyed or forced to retreat back to Macedon. So yeah, it was mostly a case of denying them supplies by driving off livestock, destroying crops, shelter, anything the enemy could use basically. Many agree that if the Satraps had listened to Memnon, their most able General, Alexander would not have conquered most of Asia. Unfortunately they ignroed his advice utnil too late, and the rest is history.

I have to admit when I was reading Memnon, I did find myself thinking Oden's style is quite similar to Gemmell's. He is quickly becoming a favourite author and I haven't even finished one of his books yet! I would recommend him to any Gemmell fans, or any history or fantasy fans in fact.

ERICSAGOD

Smashed. Have you read any of the Steven Pressfield series of books, e.g.

Alexander: Virtues of War

Alexander: The Afghan Campaign

Gates of Fire

I've really enjoyed his books so far.

I am currently really enjoying the third in the Emperor series by Conn Iggulden.

It's a series of four books about Julius Ceasar.

kinkster

Manchesters Finest written by David Hall

Its about growing up as a boy in manchester during the events of the munich air disaster and the subsequant rebuilding of the Busby Babes

very moving and detailed account with interviews etc of the people of manchester living at that time. Also gives an insight as to how life and football was in those days, back when wythenshaw was a leafy suberb and tommy taylor took the bus to home games.

SmashedHombre

No, although I have recently ordered some Steven Pressfield along with Ben Kane and Sam Barone from Amazon, which should arrive any day now. I am really loving my historical fiction at the moment. Aye, I have read the Emperor series. Although admittedly it was some time a go and my memeory of it does kind of merges with a lot of the Simon Scarrow novels. I might have to give it a read again sometime soon as I have a habit of speed reading books I haven't read before, which I really need to get out of.

Dresilved

Ghengis Khan

I read this a few months ago, although there is very little Mongolian written record from that time, most of the research has come from Chinese records from first hand account of regions and cities he invaded and conquered, Khan was also surley one of the greatest "generals" of all time. He certainly was not the monster history has protrayed him as

ralphie88

Just back from France so thought I'd share my views on my holiday reading -

Simon Jenkins - 'Thatcher & Sons' - very dry at times but fascinating stuff all the same. Shows just what a fuck up Thatcherism is - whether practiced by the bitch-queen herself or Major, Blair or Brown. The stuff about the mishandling of the Falklands conflict in particular was enlightening.

John Niven - 'Kill Your Friends' - Dross. Still trying to work out how I polished off all 300 pages in two days though.

James Robertson - 'The Testament of Gideon Mack' - The best fiction I've read in about 10 years. Absolutely brilliant stuff that I just feel like reading all over again. ***** Ralphie Rating.

Tim Winton - 'The Riders' - Truly shocking stuff with nothing redeeming about it whatsoever. Somehow this dirge was Booker-nominated.

Alex

Read The Road a while ago, good read

SiYuan

Animal's People by Indra Singh is the best book I've read this year.


Had me in stitches and tears in points of time.


Get it, or regret it.

VII