LOL!

I'm not usually much of a war book guy but this thing is really well done and just a fascinating look at WWII from a really personal, relatable perspective. The sh*t these kids went through . . . it's heartbreaking but beautiful.

It was good, wasn't it? I was so pissed when they picked a pregnant Mia Farrow to play Daisy in the movie. Everyone else was about perfect, imo.

What about Betta's secret tortellini recipe? He promises not to tell Mario, then tells the whole world instead.



It makes me sad because I want to like him.

McSweeney's issue 25


Tin House issue 34

The Things They Carried is an amazing book! Try Going After Cacciato.

I'm working my way through Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon, which I read almost 17 years ago. I recall loving it, then. Now, all I can get from it is: Religion bad.

But maybe not as bad as her writing.

Shit, you're right. I forgot about that....



I'm headed out to B&N to redeem a gift card. I'm about to finish Bourdain's Nasty Bits, which is pretty good. This is cobbled together much in the same way as Klostermann's IV. I'd like to sit down for dinner and drinks with those two guys.

You're a more patient sul than I. I'd end up punching Klosterman. Repeatedly.

Picked up a number of things I've been wanting to read for a while, along with a few from recommendations in this thread, using gift cards I received as gifts.

I wonder if Betta has any idea that her recipe was printed in this book. I saw that whole thing more as a "screw you" to Mario than anything else.


Edit: Have either of you read Among the Thugs? Buford comes off as even more of a bonehead - albeit a likable one - in that book.

OK. I just read 20 pages of some random guy Raskolnikov met in a bar rambling about how he has spent all his money on booze and ruined his family (his daughter made a whore, even!). For what? So Raskolnikov can leave all of his money on the drunk's windowsill after dropping him at home. Pretty powerful so far, the man contemplating murdering an old lady pawner is willing to give all of his money to a perfect stranger.

Good read.

I need this book. My grandfather was in the 82nd, and even though BoB is about the 101st, that shit hit me hard. Brought back lots of memories of stories he told me, and those guys in the interviews all reminded me of him so much. He kept tight with all his buddies from the war, going on vacation with them every summer right up until he died. They all came from all over the country to his funeral. The bond among these men was amazing.

i'm reading 1984 now and i love it. i'm probably one of the few who did not read this in high school, but i'm glad i finally got around to it. kim il-sung must have used this book as his guideline in molding north korea.

a LOT of the stuff Orwell dreamt of in the novel has come true, in many many ways.

anybody read this? it is pretty fascinating.

KAFKA. FUCK.

Hear it ends in mid-sentence. That could be frustrating.

I'll probably try to pick up Among the Thugs at the library. I do like his writing.

Don't worry, you'll be so glad it's over that you won't mind how it ends.

I doubt it. I adored The Trial. One of my favorites.
[spoiler]
"Logic may indeed be unshakeable, but it cannot withstand a man who is determined to live. Where was the judge he had never seen? Where was the High Court he had never reached? He raised his hands and spread out all his fingers. But the hands of one of the men closed round his throat, just as the other drove the knife deep into his heart and turned it twice."[/spoiler]

This book is amazing.

Read this once again while killing time on my route. Much more enjoyable this time around.


No Country For Old Men has rekindled a taste for the pulpier novels. This one is a decent thriller,
and an easy read.

also

Michael Pollan - In Defense of Food

Sort of an extension to The Omnivore's Dilemma, but this one is more about food culture and nutritionism v. food. Since I'm on the side of food, I'll be interested to see how his case plays out.

i imagine effrim, sg, duff, other fans of fem lit would enjoy this.

Outstanding. I was fighting tears the last 20 pages.

i couldn't even hold them back.. was tearing up on the train. didn't really care what i looked like cause the book was so good.

I gave up on the sappy chick book my friend wanted me to read and started reading a Mozart biography last week. I've had this book for about 4 years and I'm finally reading it. It came highly recommended by a friend after he and I got into a discussion about Mozart at a bar. All of our other friends were listening and looking at us like we were crazy. It's highly likely that such a topic was never discussed at Timothy O'Tooles.



He also gave me this one, which I'll read next:

I won't pretend that I really, truly understood more than two thirds of this, if that. But I enjoyed it from cover to cover. A great book.







Very interesting but meandering at times. But an updated edition or sequel would be appreciated, the world has gotten much weirder over the past nine years.

I read that one about 10 years ago. Don't remember a thing about it other than I thought it was really good.

Delightful.

Both were spectacular. Loved every story.

Sherlock Holmes stories are wonderful. I'll have to pull out my volumes and give them a re-read.

Chuck Klosterman - Killing Yourself To Live

I loved it.

You guys should read Arthur and George by Julian Barnes, if you haven't already. Great account of Conan Doyle's life, much more historical than fiction.

I'm not too far into yet, but really enjoying it so far.
I love his sense of humor and attention to detail - particularly the obsessive music fan bits.

once you're done. do what i do. just pick it up and read a paragraph or two. just did that last night. he's so easy to read and easier to enjoy

Yeah, Klosterman's great bathroom reading. Not because it's low-brow or anything, but you can always just pick a page or two at random and get a kick out of it. I liked Killing Yourself a lot more than Cocoa Puffs. Haven't read the others yet.

I'm excited as ever to get this, just pre ordered my copy

The most definitive collection of Lovecraft available at last makes it to the shelves.
1008 pages. If only they would've broken it up into volumes, but I'll be happy just to have
it all with me by my bedside.

now reading


Little pocket books I sneak and read on my breaks at work

also

The Possibility of an Island - Michel Houellebecq
man I enjoyed the Elementary Particles so much, but this one I can't get past the first 20 pages.

slow reading

It's by Augusten Burroughs' brother John who has Asperger's Syndrome. The writing style is similar to his brother's, so if you like Augusten Burroughs, you'd probably enjoy this. It's really interesting, and it's pretty funny.

But fucking perfect.

the best passage is when he describes how he decided what music to bring along on his road trip

I've gotten into the habit of occasionally reading kid fiction, including re-reading a few books from my childhood. They're generally good stories and an effective way to distract from whatever else is on my mind that's given me a little bit of insomnia. I picked up Island of the Blue Dolphins a couple of years ago, along with about 25 other books, in a two-dollar bargain bag of books that my local library was discarding. I hadn't ever read it before, but, about three o'clock this morning I finally opened it, hoping to be back asleep within a chapter or two. Instead, I read the whole book straight through and loved it. Very well written for kid lit -- and based on a true story.

pretty sure i read that as a kid and remember liking it but don't remember it now.

what a fast read! liking this better than women, sure it's got it's share of women in it too
but the plot holds together better in my opinion.

Is the title a reference to Gaunilo's response to Anselm's ontological argument?

just curious