What the heck did you read in 2010?

[maianhvk]

Originally Posted by Redcard

Did you read Twilight in Vietnamese, maianhvk? I'm not wanting to start a war here, but I didn't really find it that well written in English, and was wondering if the writing was better in a different language?

I read it in English, and I don't want to start any war either, but in my opinion the Twilight saga is well written. You might think it isn't, Redcard, I'm not that huge admirer of Twilight anyway, no worries I just like the interesting story.

I also tried the translation but I found it terrible. In Vietnamese it sounds too romantic and pathetic and Bella seems to be incredibly stupid and she acts like a lunatic in some situations. I stopped reading immediately after the two first paragraphs.

Originally Posted by Redcard

(I've heard that Steig Larrson's stuff is supposedly better in English than the original Sweedish, but none of my Sweedish friends have read him and so could not tell me.)

I plan to read his Millennium trilogy this year, copied it to my beloved Kindle already but I'm too busy with final tests coming close I'll read the English version, so I won't tell the differences between 2 versions. But in case you want to know how the Vietnamese translation is, I can spare some time to read and tell you later

[maianhvk]

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

I think he's terrific, and would like to learn Italian well enough to read (or at least get the gist of) all of his untranslated writing.

I like that book too, he's got a fine sense of humor and the eyes of reality.

Hey, I was almost about to learn French to read French novels Because of some incidents I quitted after a month trying to figure out what my teacher said, and now you make me want to learn foreign language: I may not come back to French, but German is an option.

[DavidRM]

My 2010 Reading List

Fiction
Red Thunder by John Varley.
The Skystone by Jack Whyte.
Insatiable by Marne Davis Kellogg.
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead by Tom Stoppard.
Trading Tatiana by Debi Alper.
Runaway Twin by Peg Kehret.
The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden, with drawings by Garth Williams.
The Family Trade by Charles Stross.
The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror by Christopher Moore.
The Hidden Family by Charles Stross.
The Clan Corporate by Charles Stross.
Bite Me: A Love Story by Christopher Moore.
Wireless by Charles Stross.
Fiction: A Pocket Anthology, Third Edition edited by R. S. Gwynn.
The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler.
Last of the Amazons by Steven Pressfield.
Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett.
Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 by David Petersen.
Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 by David Petersen.
Nation by Terry Pratchett.
The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh.
Cell: A Novel by Stephen King.
Nobel Lies by Charles Benoit.
The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett.
The Bookman's Wake by John Dunning.
The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson.
The Figure in the Shadows by John Bellairs.
Lines and Shadows by Joseph Wambaugh.
May There be a Road by Louis L'Amour.
On My Way to Paradise by David Farland.
The Translated Man by Chris Braak.
Wizard in Waiting by Mark Fassett.
Haiku by Andrew Vachss.
Extraordinary Engines, edited by Nick Gevers.
Draculas by J.A. Konrath, Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, and F. Paul Wilson.
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman.
Salem's Lot by Stephen King.
Monster Hunter International by Larry Correia.
The Letter, the Witch and the Ring by John Bellairs.
Tripwire by Lee Child.
The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett.

Nonfiction - Writing
How to Become a Famous Writer Before You're Dead: Your Words in Print and Your Name in Lights by Ariel Gore.
Rejection, Romance & Royalties: The Wacky World of a Working Writer by Laura Resnick.
Other Spaces, Other Times: A Life Spent in the Future by Robert Silverberg.
The War of Art: Winning the Inner Creative Battle by Steven Pressfield.

Nonfiction
My Life in France by Julia Child.
Looking for Calvin and Hobbes: The Unconventional Story of Bill Watterson and his Revolutionary Comic Strip by Nevin Martell.
The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferriss.
A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage.
A People's History of the United States: 1492-Present by Howard Zinn.
The New Elite: Inside the Minds of the Truly Wealthy by Jim Taylor, Doug Harrison, and Stephen Kraus.
You Are Not a Gadget: A Manifesto by Jaron Lanier.
Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth and Happiness by Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein.
Creative Capitalism: A Conversation with Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and other Economic Leaders, edited by Michael Kinsley.
Frankenstein: A Cultural History by Susan Tyler Hitchcock.
Wrong: Why Experts* Keep Failing Us--And How to Know When Not to Trust Them by David H. Freedman.
House Thinking: A Room-by-Room Look at How We Live by Winifred Gallagher.
Bounce: Mozart, Federer, Picasso, Beckham, and the Science of Success by Matthew Syed.
The Devil's Broker: Seeking Gold, God, and Glory in Fourteenth Century Italy by Frances Stonor Saunders.

RPG
GURPS: Mysteries by Lisa J. Steele.
GURPS Discworld by Terry Pratchett and Phil Masters, illustrated by Paul Kidby.
GURPS 4e Low-Tech.

I count 64 books for 2010. This year I didn't list any of the books I didn't finish. There were 20-ish books I started and didn't finish for one reason or the other. If I hadn't wasted my time one those, I probably could've finished another 5-10 books, at least. Ah, well. So it goes sometimes.

Happy reading!

-David

[Bookworm_Girl]

Originally Posted by DavidRM

My 2010 Reading List
Nonfiction
My Life in France by Julia Child.
Looking for Calvin and Hobbes: The Unconventional Story of Bill Watterson and his Revolutionary Comic Strip by Nevin Martell.
The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferriss.
A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage.
I count 64 books for 2010. This year I didn't list any of the books I didn't finish. There were 20-ish books I started and didn't finish for one reason or the other. If I hadn't wasted my time one those, I probably could've finished another 5-10 books, at least. Ah, well. So it goes sometimes.
Happy reading!
-David

I am glad to know that I am not the only person who has read A History of the World in 6 Glasses. I bought it on a whim while browsing in Borders one day. It is probably the non-fiction book that I recommend to people most often. It is a quick and easy read but entertaining for its unique perspective.

[SeaBookGuy]

It's been on my TBR for a while now - my library has the e-book.

[yochillum]

I can safely say that I didn't read as many books in 2010 as I'd like. Mainly because I didn't get my Kindle until December . That said, I noticed a couple of posters mentioned reading some Christopher Moore, who is right up there with my favorite modern humor writers. I've read the bulk of his books (the last couple to be dealt with soon) I have to say that my favorite among them so far is Lamb. It was the book that introduced me to him as a writer, and I still find it to be his masterwork. One book that I finished recently is Johannes Cabal: The Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard. If you enjoy very clever dark comedy pieces, this one should definitely be on your reading list. He recently released a sequel- Johannes Cabal:The Detective, but I haven't read it just yet. If the first book is any indication of the talents of this new author there are many great things to come.

[mgrunk]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

In a word, Chesterton.

Yes! So, fiction? Apologetics? Both?

Ender's Game and the rest of that series - loved the first, had my kids read it too.

A Thousand Splendid Suns - ok
Drowning Ruth - blah
Everfree - ok
Edenborn - Sagan - loved - reread - I want the first book as an ebook!
Water for Elephants - blah
A Fire Upon the Deep - loved!
Spin State - good - reread
Infinity Beach - loved - reread
Cell - Stephen King - good - reread
Three Cups of Tea - ok
Under the Dome - blah
Sarah's Key - started off good, weak ending overall I'd never reread it'
Orthodoxy - Chesterton - love
a few Fr. Brown mysteries by Chesterton - good except I don't like mysteries much
Arise from Darkness - Groeshel - loved

I've read lots more but they were unnotable - I'm not having good look w/ the free Kindle book offerings. I just don't like them much. I'm reading Watchlist and find it tedious. That's why I have so many rereads in my list (there are more).

In paperback, I'm reading Ben Bova's Mar's Life and don't like it as much as I wanted - too political. I loved the first book though, Mars.

I want to read the Night Dawn Trilogy again, but it's such a time investment, that I can't get the energy together.

[DavidRM]

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

I am glad to know that I am not the only person who has read A History of the World in 6 Glasses. I bought it on a whim while browsing in Borders one day. It is probably the non-fiction book that I recommend to people most often. It is a quick and easy read but entertaining for its unique perspective.

A friend of mine recommended the book, actually. I enjoyed 6 Glasses a lot. A great high level history of civilization.

-David