Hey!! Let's get some action going! What are we reading? - Page 2038

kyrilson · 02-27-2022, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j.p.s

I'm halfway through Immune: a Journey into the Mysterious System that Keeps You Alive by Philipp Dettmer, published November 2nd 2021 by Random House (first published October 11th 2016).

I've been looking for a recentish book that does a good job explaining the immune system suitable for a lay person. It looks like I found it on my first try and also seems unlikely any other book would have done the job for me.I urge everyone to read the first two reviews on goodreads. (The second review is 1 star as an effective ploy, it is among the most useful to me reviews of a non-fiction book I have ever read.)

The material is presented in a way that is accessible and entertaining without being insulting. The author has a degree in information design, whatever that is. He is famous for his youtube channel, which I have not seen, but he certainly is skilled in presenting information.

The many full screen color illustrations are very well done and remind me of illustrations in Scientific American. (Which I haven't read in about 30 years, so I don't know what its current illustrations look like.) I don't think they render all that well on standard or color e-ink, so I keep a color LCD tablet handy for when an illustration comes up, which is also nice to have available for referring to the illustration while reading the following text on e-ink and sometimes rereading the preceding text on e-ink.

The guy that wrote that 1 star review is an asshat. Based on his text, it should not be one star at all.

Fbone · 03-01-2022, 04:59 PM

From the library I read Into the Wild [Warriors #1] by Erin Hunter et al.

I figured it was time to read this popular series. I like cats so I went for it. Barely finished it. The absurdity. The brutality. The mediocre writing. However, there were a few good elements. I felt the cat's grief was vividly portrayed (profound mental image) and the hardships of feral cats too. Though, I didn't like how housecats ("kittypets") were negatively viewed. It almost glamorizes intact ferals making it seem us "twolegs" abuse our pets by having them "cut." Anyway, it was all mewling cute for the first 50 pages then, to me, fell flat in a "crouch." Rated C- [2 stars].

spacepope · 03-03-2022, 03:52 AM

Read a few things recently...

Reread "Men, Women and the Mystery of Love: Practical Insights from John Paul II's Love and Responsibility" by Edward Sri on my plane ride back to the states. Very short, and it's interesting to re-read since I'm in a much better state of mind vs. the last time I read this (though I got a lot out of it the first time as well). Probably a book I'll reread decently often, but I should read the original text as well sometime - if I can get my hands on it affordably.

Now that I am staying with my parents until I find my next job, I am reading books off their bookshelves to pass the time, so I can lend my Kobo to my sister to let her see if she wants one of her own.

Read "The Magician's Nephew" (the first Narnia book) as my parents have the Narnia box set. Nice, one day read. I will definitely continue the series as I know it's a staple of fantasy/children's fiction and I think it would be a good thing to have read it.

Currently reading:

Fight Club - this is my sister's favorite book and she had a copy on the shelf at my parents' house, so I picked it up. Almost halfway through and this book is obviously just the logical end of an (extreme) nihilistic worldview. Probably gonna be a 2/5 from me but I cannot deny how easy and fast it is to read.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: Finally getting to this classic!
The Hunt for Red October: I love this movie, so seeing the book at my parents' house made me want to give the book a try. A little dense but I think it'll be fun to chip away at.

Uncle Robin · 03-03-2022, 04:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spacepope

Read "The Magician's Nephew" (the first Narnia book) [/LIST]

fwiw, it was not the first Narnia book. LWW was first, published 5 YEARS before MN, which was actually the penultimate book written in the series. Making it a very late prequel, really.

pdurrant · 03-03-2022, 04:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: Some of the Best from Tor.com, 2021. A recent freebie

A good collection of new short SF/Fantasy.

Next up: Iced by Felix Francis. His latest horse-racing based thriller.

Dazrin · 03-03-2022, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Robin

fwiw, it was not the first Narnia book. LWW was first, published 5 YEARS before MN, which was actually the penultimate book written in the series. Making it a very late prequel, really.

I never cared much for the last two books in the series (published order) so it bugs me that they try to get people to start with MN now.

Uncle Robin · 03-03-2022, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dazrin

I never cared much for the last two books in the series (published order) so it bugs me that they try to get people to start with MN now.

I was so young when I read LWW that the allegory escaped me. By the time got to the last couple the cloying Christianity choked me

ReadingManiac · 03-04-2022, 06:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spacepope

Enjoy!

I just finished the last novella (Evershore) and now I want more. Have to wait until the next book release, boo.

I have a lot of books I have my bookmark in at the moment, so I'll continue with one of those. I'm going to have a lot of downtime really soon so I hope I can plow through a few and reduce my currently-reading list.

I'm about 60% through and definitely enjoying, though a couple things push belief. His writing is good, no question there.

ReadingManiac · 03-04-2022, 06:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j.p.s

I'm halfway through Immune: a Journey into the Mysterious System that Keeps You Alive by Philipp Dettmer, published November 2nd 2021 by Random House (first published October 11th 2016).

I've been looking for a recentish book that does a good job explaining the immune system suitable for a lay person. It looks like I found it on my first try and also seems unlikely any other book would have done the job for me.I urge everyone to read the first two reviews on goodreads. (The second review is 1 star as an effective ploy, it is among the most useful to me reviews of a non-fiction book I have ever read.)

"Measles vaccination is far, far more important than preventing the disease. Our immune system has a library of all the illnesses we have faced and has an arsenal of weapons against them when an intruder from one of these diseases comes calling. It stops it in its tracks most of the time. But measles entirely destroys that library, all that built up immunity from colds, flu and all the other bugs that assailed us up until that moment are gone. You are now vulnerable to them all over again. I didn't know this about measles. For some it might mean only some more colds and flu, for others it might mean facing really dangerous diseases again."

I didn't know this! This book looks very useful.

spacepope · 03-04-2022, 06:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Robin

fwiw, it was not the first Narnia book. LWW was first, published 5 YEARS before MN, which was actually the penultimate book written in the series. Making it a very late prequel, really.

Interesting! I'm just going with the order of the box set in the room I'm staying in

I guess it's in chronological order rather than publication order.

pdurrant · 03-04-2022, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: Iced by Felix Francis. His latest horse-racing based thriller.

Which was OK. A bit too much back story interlaced with present day, and not enough action. But a quick enjoyable read even so.

Next up: Friday by Robert Heinlein.

Uncle Robin · 03-06-2022, 06:37 AM

Currently reading
Highly Irregular: Why Tough, Through, and Dough Don't Rhyme and Other Oddities of the English Language, by Arika Okrent and an informative, entertaining read it is so far. She writes about English every bit as well as she writes about conlangs

pdurrant · 03-06-2022, 08:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: Friday by Robert Heinlein.

Which was OK to good. A bit heavy-handed politically, but that's true of many Heinleins.

Next up: The Grove of the Caesars by Lindsey Davis. I hope I read this one a bit quicker than the last one!

spacepope · 03-06-2022, 11:54 PM

Picked up another book: Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. 200 pages in so far. I can't get enough of Sanderson it seems. This is my first foray into epic fantasy and I'm enjoying it so far. For it's length, $9.99 for the trade paperback was an absolute steal.

Number9 · 03-08-2022, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spacepope

Picked up another book: Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. 200 pages in so far. I can't get enough of Sanderson it seems. This is my first foray into epic fantasy and I'm enjoying it so far. For it's length, $9.99 for the trade paperback was an absolute steal.

And what a great book that is. I loved it. 😊

03-03-2022, 03:52 AM	#30558
spacepope Zealot Posts: 117 Karma: 5915366 Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: USA! USA! 🇺🇸 Device: Kobo Libra H2O, Kobo Clara, Kindle Paperwhite 3, Smartphone	Read a few things recently... Reread "Men, Women and the Mystery of Love: Practical Insights from John Paul II's Love and Responsibility" by Edward Sri on my plane ride back to the states. Very short, and it's interesting to re-read since I'm in a much better state of mind vs. the last time I read this (though I got a lot out of it the first time as well). Probably a book I'll reread decently often, but I should read the original text as well sometime - if I can get my hands on it affordably. Now that I am staying with my parents until I find my next job, I am reading books off their bookshelves to pass the time, so I can lend my Kobo to my sister to let her see if she wants one of her own. Read "The Magician's Nephew" (the first Narnia book) as my parents have the Narnia box set. Nice, one day read. I will definitely continue the series as I know it's a staple of fantasy/children's fiction and I think it would be a good thing to have read it. Currently reading: Fight Club - this is my sister's favorite book and she had a copy on the shelf at my parents' house, so I picked it up. Almost halfway through and this book is obviously just the logical end of an (extreme) nihilistic worldview. Probably gonna be a 2/5 from me but I cannot deny how easy and fast it is to read. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: Finally getting to this classic! The Hunt for Red October: I love this movie, so seeing the book at my parents' house made me want to give the book a try. A little dense but I think it'll be fun to chip away at.

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03-01-2022, 04:59 PM	#30557
Fbone Is that a sandwich? Posts: 8,297 Karma: 101697116 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Nook Glowlight Plus	From the library I read Into the Wild [Warriors #1] by Erin Hunter et al. I figured it was time to read this popular series. I like cats so I went for it. Barely finished it. The absurdity. The brutality. The mediocre writing. However, there were a few good elements. I felt the cat's grief was vividly portrayed (profound mental image) and the hardships of feral cats too. Though, I didn't like how housecats ("kittypets") were negatively viewed. It almost glamorizes intact ferals making it seem us "twolegs" abuse our pets by having them "cut." Anyway, it was all mewling cute for the first 50 pages then, to me, fell flat in a "crouch." Rated C- [2 stars].

03-06-2022, 06:37 AM	#30567
Uncle Robin Diligent dilettante Posts: 3,661 Karma: 52758936 Join Date: Sep 2019 Location: in my mind Device: Kobo Sage; Kobo Libra Colour	Currently reading Highly Irregular: Why Tough, Through, and Dough Don't Rhyme and Other Oddities of the English Language, by Arika Okrent and an informative, entertaining read it is so far. She writes about English every bit as well as she writes about conlangs

03-06-2022, 11:54 PM	#30569
spacepope Zealot Posts: 117 Karma: 5915366 Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: USA! USA! 🇺🇸 Device: Kobo Libra H2O, Kobo Clara, Kindle Paperwhite 3, Smartphone	Picked up another book: Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. 200 pages in so far. I can't get enough of Sanderson it seems. This is my first foray into epic fantasy and I'm enjoying it so far. For it's length, $9.99 for the trade paperback was an absolute steal.