What are you currently reading?, . . . besides this thread

Ah, I'm glad someone started this thread again!

I'm currently about halfway through Mary Reilly. I had liked the movie so much that I decided to pick up the book. I'm really enjoying it. Just in case anyone hasn't heard of it, it's the story of Jekyll and Hyde from the point of view of a maid in Dr. Jekyll's household. It's very psychological, and the relationship between Mary and Dr. Jekyll is fascinating. So far she hasn't actually seen Hyde, though she comes into contact with him quite a bit in the movie. I'm wondering if we'll ever see her actually meet him, or just hear about him from the other household staff.


Next up, I'm going to read America: The Book, put out by the people from The Daily Show. Really looking forward to it.

Along with my happy little book on physics, I'm reading The Catcher in the Rye. Because I've never actually read it. We are using a chapter from it in my interpersonal communications class, and it sparked my interest.

Ah... Catcher is possibly my favourite book of all time.

I'm reading a mess of little student papers on attention and perception and memory
But they can't last forever.
Can they?

After that, I'm starting to re-read The Subtle Knife. This is one of those things like so many where I loved the first book unconditionally, the second book (good as it is) is a bridge rather than a book, and the third one (amazing as it is) spreads out into so many things it never quite lives the promise of that first, fabulous book.

The only trilogy or series I can think of that DOESN'T do that is Lord of the Rings.

*is thinking Belorin is going to come roaring in any minute with flames of Amber's chaos in his eyes. . . *

I don't know, I'm reading more on Amber at the moment, and I really just can't get into Merlin. My sister keeps promising me more of Corwin, but no matter how much I read, he doesn't come back. But I figure Merlin is better than Buck Mulligan. Sorry Godric, I just had to take a break from Buck. I've absolutely no clue what the hell is going on in that book at this moment.

Thats cos you're a shiney galwegian drunkard-cum-conspiracy-nut, though

RE: HDM, i agree wholeheartedly with what Mantha just said. So much was laid out for the massive final battle that was such an anti-climax that i could've ripped the book in two. Still a wonderful series, especially if Pullman can expand on some of the left-overs with the other books he has planned.

Lets hope HP doesnt go the same way, eh?

Don't even joke about such things!
I'm reading Under the Hawthorn Tree at the mo which was my favourite book growing up-haven't read it in years and I have to say I can't really see what I liked about it so much - only on the first few chapters though

I was a little disappointed by The Amber Spyglass, considring how brilliant I considered the first two books in HDM to be. The little elephant things particularly irked me.
It is far from a crime to need a break from Ulysses, Banker, I don't thin I know of anyone who's actuallyred it straight through...

Amber Spyglass really did go off on a massive tangent. I understand Pullman wanted to impress upon us that the church's views on evolution were wrong and that, and that the lives of other intelligent and sentinent creatures were at stake too...but shortly thereafter the book decended into a silly anti-christian rant.

Which was a bit of a pain in the cunt, tbh.

You've got to admit that the liberation of what was left of God, as well as all the Dead, had a lot to recommend it as a statement, and was satisfyingly awful and pathetic (in the case of God) and more than a little moving (regarding the Dead). Actually it fit very nicely with the idea that your alternate or complementary instinctual self is animal, and natural, and dies with you. Any other variation on that is unnatural and needs to be brought back to the original arrangement. I'm with that.

Mum and dad saving your butt by dragging the twisted SOB Metatron down to the abyss with them was fab too. Least they can do, after the mess they made of it all. Really a great touch.

But yeah -- some massive tangents. Except the very, very end brought it all round full circle.

*is thinking these posts about HDM should be moved into their own new thread in Other Worlds forum. . . *