Best books you've read in the past couple months?

[januaryman]

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

Interesting coincidence, Januaryman - I'm reading The Imperfectionists now, as well as listening to The Dubliners on audio.

Ah! Just saw this, SeaBookGuy! What were your thoughts on Imperfectionists? I enjoyed it, but it's not a classic, in my mind. Not like Dubliners. (Who was reading the book, an Irishman? That might be interesting to listen to.)

[SeaBookGuy]

I'm almost finished with The Imperfectionists, finding it overall rather grim. If you recall the story about the "old" guy and his "much younger" girlfriend (27), where the picture of her gets circulated ... near the end of the story, we find out he's only 41 - I had thought he was more like 60 the way the author put such a fine point on it!

I haven't listened to any Dubliners stories in a while. I believe the reader has more of an generic English accent than a heavy Irish one, at least for the omniscient third-person voice. I ripped the stories from a CD set and put them on my Sony e-reader actually, for times when I just didn't feel like actually continuing with the ebook, downtime, etc.

[rhadin]

Vicki Tyley's three Down Under mysteries: Thin Blood, Sleight Malice, and Brittle Shadows, all of which are available at Smashwords.

Also excellent is Annmarie Banks's An Unfettered Mind, which is free at Smashwords.

[shanghaichica]

Originally Posted by shanghaichica

Since the start of the year the best i've read have been:

The Twilight Saga- Stephenie Meyer
The Passage- Justin Cronin
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas-John Boyne

Adding:

In the dark-Mark Billingham
A good day to die/The Business of dying - Simon Kernick.

[benham]

I have Sleepyhead by Mark Billingham but haven't read him yet

[Steve Anderson]

In the past couple months? Tough, but I'd have to say The Warsaw Anagrams by Richard Zimler about an elderly Jew in the Warsaw Ghetto who tries to solve the murder of his young nephew. Grim and felt a little disjointed at times, and yet it's stayed with me. Always a sign of a good one. I reviewed it here, by the way.

There are others. My secondary book is the German version of Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada, based on the true story of a modest Berlin couple who decide to resist the Nazis after losing their son in the war (Jeder Stirbt für Sich Allein, or Alone in Berlin [UK]). Really enjoying it when I can get to it.

But there's so many!

[thinkpad]

Two latest books in the Paks series:
Oath of Fealty and Kings of the North

[Ron.]

The Keep is what I just finished reading so it is the best until I finish the next book

[MikeOxlittle]

Originally Posted by BenBanned

Just finished Tunnel People

"First published in the Netherlands in 1996, this book chronicles Voeten’s five-month exploration of the society that exists underneath the streets of Manhattan. Voeten, an accomplished war photographer and reporter, didn’t write about the people who lived in the tunnels under New York from the point of view of an observer. He lived in the tunnels, grew to know the people who lived there, and came to understand not just how they got there but also the society they have created. Like Jennifer Toth’s Mole People (1993) and Matthew O’Brien’s Beneath the Neon (2007), Voeten’s book captivates readers with its compassionate portraits of the people and their surroundings, while exploring the surprisingly varied reasons why these men and women wound up living just beneath the surface of the reader’s world."--David Pitt


I recomend this to anyone especially interesting if youv'e ever ridden a NYC subway.

There is a documentary film called Dark Days which examines this subject as well. Well made film with soundtrack by DJ Shadow.

Check it out.

[BenBanned]

The black and white documentary is awesome. Its less of a story than most docs but instead makes you feel like your experiencing what you see. Plus who doesn't like Dj Shadow?

[skydiamond]

However, Harlan Coben is one of my favourites! And I really enjoyed his newest Live Wire!

[jumpingjack42]

"The Passage" by Justin Cronin - I know it had mixed reviews but I loved it.
A close second to that - I'd say "World War Z" by Max Brooks.

[ReneeMR]

Water For Elephants and Cutting For Stone

[rhadin]

I just finished The Miracle Inspector by Helen Smith. It is a well-written book and one worth reading. It felt like an incomplete story to me, as if the author suddenly became compass-less. However, the journey from the start to the current finish is worth taking. I would rate the tale as 4 stars because of my feeling it is incomplete.

[Kerfuffle]

Originally Posted by Steve Anderson

My secondary book is the German version of Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada, based on the true story of a modest Berlin couple who decide to resist the Nazis after losing their son in the war (Jeder Stirbt für Sich Allein, or Alone in Berlin [UK]). Really enjoying it when I can get to it.

But there's so many!

I second this. I read the English translation a few months ago and it is a fantastic book, really worth reading. Don't be put off by the setting if you are not interested in WWII and the Nazis. The book is universal in its treatment of people living under oppression.

I really enjoyed it.