PDA

View Full Version : How to decide what to read...



Jad
June 19th, 2005, 11:02 PM
its funny whats happening with me today, today I decide to change some of my life style, so I charged up my credit card, and decided to purchase some books online but you know what I have forgot?
I forgot to decide what to read, I'm used to tech reading, so I can pick my needs of tech, but right now i'm not able to decide what I want to read about other than tech. and politics, I have no experience in other readings,
well I think I'll try light weight novels and see how it will goes.

asimon
June 19th, 2005, 11:25 PM
I too sometimes wish for a change of my life style. I sit too much in front of computers, when in fact I would rather want to sit in front of a good book.

If you want to know what books other Ubuntu users like, have a look at Top 5 books you have read (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=14183).

Lovechild
June 20th, 2005, 12:04 AM
Well, that depends on what kind of stories you like - I personally enjoy books like the Harry Potter series and the Narnia books (strangely I really hate Lord of the Rings though - don't shot me please). Stephen King's Dark Tower books are also excellent, abide a tad odd.

Lots of good books out there just waiting to be read.

TravisNewman
June 20th, 2005, 12:33 AM
I could never get into the Lord of the Rings books, though I like the storylines. Something about his writing is hard for me to get into. The harry potter books are great. Piers Anthony's Incarnations of Immortality series is fantastic.

mrtaber
June 20th, 2005, 12:42 AM
Call me slow, but I've just gotten around to reading "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"--I intend to read the full set. Fun.

Mark

gil-galad
June 20th, 2005, 01:47 AM
I recommend Richard Adams' Watership Down

I would recommend Tolkien, but thats not light reading.

I also recommend going down to your local library instead of ordering books online [-X

FLeiXiuS
June 20th, 2005, 02:00 AM
Well I'm no so much of a book reader. I get bored after long stories ;-). I'm one with news articles and documents. My subscription to InfoSec is alll that matters to me :-). Also the redhat magazine that pours in. If no lovely articles on Slashdot/Linux Security always interest me.

carlc
June 20th, 2005, 03:41 AM
Well, that depends on what kind of stories you like - I personally enjoy books like the Harry Potter series and the Narnia books (strangely I really hate Lord of the Rings though - don't shot me please). Stephen King's Dark Tower books are also excellent, abide a tad odd.

Lots of good books out there just waiting to be read.

I will second the Dark Tower series. I have not completed the series but I have enjoyed the books so far.

One of my favorite books is "Fathers and Sons" by Ivan Turgenev. I am not sure what you are looking for so I am not sure if this book is for you.

benplaut
June 20th, 2005, 03:46 AM
anyone else read the Artemus Fowl books? 1, 2, and 3 are good (albeit low level), but 4 is just an attempt by the author to make a little bit more money on a series that's storyline was finished in 3...

bored2k
June 20th, 2005, 03:51 AM
Being a brother of an abid Science-Fiction freak -who has probably read every single line of Star Wars ever-, I would recommend Stephen King for some quick "wow!" books. Rage, Dark Tower, Nightmares and Dreamscapes, The Green Mile, The Langoliers.
Brian Herbert's Dune.
Michael Moore - Stupid White Men is probably my favorte book ever.

Count of Montecristo. But wait, that is not light. Nevermind.

CoriolisSTORM
June 20th, 2005, 03:52 AM
I prefer anything by Timothy Zahn or the Hyperion/Endymion series by Dan Simmons. Quite some good books if I do say so myself.

gil-galad
June 20th, 2005, 04:29 AM
I prefer anything by Timothy Zahn or the Hyperion/Endymion series by Dan Simmons. Quite some good books if I do say so myself.

Hyperion was fantastic! One of the best Scifi books I have read. :)

tread
June 20th, 2005, 04:32 AM
I can't believe no one has mentioned Terry Pratchett yet!

weekend warrior
June 20th, 2005, 09:10 PM
Congratulations on your decision Jad, welcome to the reader's club. :)

Bof! tough topic though! I read pretty religiously - everything I can get my hands on, but I think if you haven't read fiction for a while you shouldn't go into anything long and involved too quickly. Since you like tech and politics you might might like the short stories and novels by Philip K. **** (http://www.philipkdick.com/). You probably already know a couple of his stories, Bladerunner is from his "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "Minority Report". These are fun to compare with the looser (oddly enough for ex. "Blade Runners" isn't even a term used in DADOES) film versions. Don't be surprised if they're different, his novels are more complex than the films.

There are also a number of other films influenced by his ideas, The Truman Show took its premise from "Time Out of Joint", Total Recall from "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" just to name two. A couple other novels from him are "The Man in the High Castle" - a bit more effort to get into but it's a fascinating alternate history set in the 1970's where the Axis won WWII and the USA is divided between Germany and Japan and "A Scanner Darkly", set in the drug subculture so pretty surreal but excellent, and scheduled for film release in 2006.

Overall - fast, enjoyable, interesting reading for someone into tech and politics - from a very unique writer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_K._****).


HTH

trivialpackets
June 20th, 2005, 11:37 PM
Congratulations on your decision Jad, welcome to the reader's club. :)

Bof! tough topic though! I read pretty religiously - everything I can get my hands on, but I think if you haven't read fiction for a while you shouldn't go into anything long and involved too quickly. Since you like tech and politics you might might like the short stories and novels by Philip K. **** (http://www.philipkdick.com/). You probably already know a couple of his stories, Bladerunner is from his "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "Minority Report". These are fun to compare with the looser (oddly enough for ex. "Blade Runners" isn't even a term used in DADOES) film versions. Don't be surprised if they're different, his novels are more complex than the films.

There are also a number of other films influenced by his ideas, The Truman Show took its premise from "Time Out of Joint", Total Recall from "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" just to name two. A couple other novels from him are "The Man in the High Castle" - a bit more effort to get into but it's a fascinating alternate history set in the 1970's where the Axis won WWII and the USA is divided between Germany and Japan and "A Scanner Darkly", set in the drug subculture so pretty surreal but excellent, and scheduled for film release in 2006.

Overall - fast, enjoyable, interesting reading for someone into tech and politics - from a very unique writer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_K._****).


HTH
Ayn Rand Atlas Shrugged. Interesting, not normally what people would think of me when I talk about great books, but it was powerful and kept me reading. Terrific read, but not light reading.

weekend warrior
June 22nd, 2005, 10:48 PM
Atlas Shrugged looks interesting. You know the title, book cover and little blurb I read on it reminded me of another novel I read a couple years back, "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman. Oddly enough though, I remembered it because Greek Gods were strangely absent from Gaiman's book. He had Norse, Egyptian, Slavic, Irish etc. and the modern "gods" - Internet, Tech, TV, Media... but no Greek gods!

That doesn't take away from the nice premise in "American Gods" though - all those deities settling down to become "ordinary" people once they lose their power as they're forgotten by those who once worshipped them. There are good, serious themes as well like power vs. destiny but also balanced with sillyness; the part when TV uses I Love Lucy to talk to Shadow (main character) is great. Gaiman also knows how to use some good play on words - Wednesday (the other main character) > Woden's day > Woden > Odin.... plenty of hidden Indians. Ok, I won't spoil anything else. You'll figure out who Shadow is soon enough, well before the tree scene.

It's a good read for someone interested in mythology and can follow a sometimes meandering road-trip novel. If memory serves, American Gods was the 2002 Hugo Award winner - even though it's straight fantasy, not sci-fi.

Brunellus
July 2nd, 2005, 05:21 AM
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

I tore through the six hundred-odd pages of this over two feverish days. I have not recently been as emotionally-engaged in anything else I've read. Other than perhaps Ron Chernow's recent biography of Alexander Hamilton.

Ride Jib
July 2nd, 2005, 05:46 AM
I just finished reading The Firm by John Grisham. It was an excellent book, so I went to the store to find another of his books, only to find out that pretty much all that he writes about it lawyers. I mean, yeah... one book about corrupt lawyers, murder, mafia and so on is excellent, but how many different storied can your write about corrupt lawyers?

I'm really meaning to pick up The DaVinci Code one of these days. I hear it's pretty good.

Jad
July 2nd, 2005, 09:28 AM
well for somereason I've purchased (The 8th habit from effectiveness to greatness) I like the title, but still didn't touch any inside papers heh lazy me,

thank you guys for suggestion and recommendations
you rocks

Brunellus
July 2nd, 2005, 04:11 PM
I just finished reading The Firm by John Grisham. It was an excellent book, so I went to the store to find another of his books, only to find out that pretty much all that he writes about it lawyers. I mean, yeah... one book about corrupt lawyers, murder, mafia and so on is excellent, but how many different storied can your write about corrupt lawyers?

I'm really meaning to pick up The DaVinci Code one of these days. I hear it's pretty good.
there's a lot to write about in the law. if you don't believe me, you should see the stacks of papers I see at work (not an attorney, but I work at a law firm).

gil-galad
July 2nd, 2005, 06:14 PM
The Summons is the best John Grisham book I have read. I strongly recommend it.