Books! How do you read and what do you read?

Medusa said:
I've just looked this up and it does look like a good read. Pleased to see that Reese Witherspoon does the audio version. If I do catch it - it will almost certainly be over audio.
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I heard Harlan Coben talking about it on NPR and it sounded like the two of them had a ball from start to finish. First she called him and he was tickled to get a call from her, though he hadn't met her.
She had an idea for a novel and he thought it was a fine one. So he wrote it, but used her plot idea and called her almost every day to get her thoughts about the main character.
 

Della said:
I heard Harlan Coben talking about it on NPR and it sounded like the two of them had a ball from start to finish. First she called him and he was tickled to get a call from her, though he hadn't met her.
She had an idea for a novel and he thought it was a fine one. So he wrote it, but used her plot idea and called her almost every day to get her thoughts about the main character.
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That is super cool for both of them. :cool:
 
This was a “interesting” read… It’s set in Sweden, and the pace was very languid. Interesting dynamics between the characters, but the plot got kind of muddled about 3/4 of the way through and I had to really focus to pick the thread back up

Overall, I’d give it a six out of 10

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I so a lot of reading with my ears. I use audio books for fiction and some history, and read them while driving, walking, ironing my shirts and sheets, and cooking my meals.

Also, I read improving books that make me a better person. In most cases I read with my eyes since I often have to go back and reread certain parts.
 
Just read the Dan Brown book "Secret of Secrets".

It was an interesting read, although it followed his tried and tested formula of picking a location for the main action, and giving the reader an armchair tourists view of that location. In this case it was the city of Prague where all the main action took place. There's even a map showing the centre of the city and it has various important places marked out so that you can follow the action as it moves around the various landmarks. I've never been to Prague although my wife has, but from the story I think it would be an interesting place to visit. So I'm beginning to wonder if Dan Brown gets any sponsorship from the local tourist board wherever he sets the action?

I won't divulge any spoilers, but the main character is Robert Langdon, and as he's always been portrayed by Tom Hanks, it's him who I saw in my mind's eye when I read the story. There is one major twist in the story that is kept almost till the end, so it keeps you reading till the last page of the Epilogue.

It's quite a long(ish) book of nearly 700 pages, and has over a hundred chapters, but that's the way he writes them. I think it's so that each chapter can become a short scene in a filmed version of the story. It's a good tactic, because it does a lot of the hard work that some poor studio hack would have to do in order to make the story filmable. So he's inviting the film studios to get involved by this writing method I think.

Marks out of ten? Around 6/10 or 7/10 I think. It could have been less formulaic possibly, but then again I suppose it's what we've come to expect from Mr Brown, so he's treading a well-worn path with this one.
 
BJintheUK said:
Just read the Dan Brown book "Secret of Secrets".

It was an interesting read, although it followed his tried and tested formula of picking a location for the main action, and giving the reader an armchair tourists view of that location. In this case it was the city of Prague where all the main action took place. There's even a map showing the centre of the city and it has various important places marked out so that you can follow the action as it moves around the various landmarks. I've never been to Prague although my wife has, but from the story I think it would be an interesting place to visit. So I'm beginning to wonder if Dan Brown gets any sponsorship from the local tourist board wherever he sets the action?

I won't divulge any spoilers, but the main character is Robert Langdon, and as he's always been portrayed by Tom Hanks, it's him who I saw in my mind's eye when I read the story. There is one major twist in the story that is kept almost till the end, so it keeps you reading till the last page of the Epilogue.

It's quite a long(ish) book of nearly 700 pages, and has over a hundred chapters, but that's the way he writes them. I think it's so that each chapter can become a short scene in a filmed version of the story. It's a good tactic, because it does a lot of the hard work that some poor studio hack would have to do in order to make the story filmable. So he's inviting the film studios to get involved by this writing method I think.

Marks out of ten? Around 6/10 or 7/10 I think. It could have been less formulaic possibly, but then again I suppose it's what we've come to expect from Mr Brown, so he's treading a well-worn path with this one.
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Hi, I found this book in our library, started reading it but around pg 50 just could not get into it returned it Sue
 
Sliverfox said:
THE HAMPTONS LAWYER by James Patterson and Mike Lupica

Along story about a female lawyer who has cancer.
Trying win a murder case.

It has you trying to keep up with who did & who didn't do it.
Once deeper into the book you are wondering will the lawyer get murdered or will the cancer win.
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HI Sliverfox, thanks for the heads up.I read the other book these 2 wrote together'House of Wolves: Murder in the Family'. The story is about the Wolf family in San Francisco who own a NFL football team& paper, all the kids are involved with family business. I liked it, great read Sue.
 
The book I'm reading now is' History Matters' by David Mc Cullough. He was my #1 favorite historian, read all of his books he died in 2022. This book is edited by his daughter, Dorrie who worked with him for 30 yrs& his long time historian researcher,Michael Hill. The book contains never before published essays/speeches he gave over the years Its 169 pgs,enjoying it
 
Sliverfox said:
Folks,, have a question...........Do you very carefully mark library books you have read?

I had been marking the top or bottom of the closed book with pencil or pen.

One of the ladies asked me not to do that.
But I could put my initials on inside page. ??
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No, but what's the reason for it?

If you actually write on a book before returning it to the library, I'm surprised they don't charge you for it..
 
Sliverfox said:
Folks,, have a question...........Do you very carefully mark library books you have read?

I had been marking the top or bottom of the closed book with pencil or pen.

One of the ladies asked me not to do that.
But I could put my initials on inside page. ??
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If you can't tell if you've read a book before, then what was the point of reading it in the first place.
If you read it a second time and it doesn't seem at all familiar, then what's the harm in reading it again?
 
When I was I child, I wrote my name in books that were mine. I don't do that any more.

I just realized yesterday that my husband passed his weird book rules on to our children. Be careful with paperbacks so cover isn't bent. Don't write in books. Don't dogear pages.

Yeah, I made the mistake of grabbing the book my son gave me for Christmas, and immediately got bombarded with the rules. I told him it's my book and I don't follow those rules because I don't want to. It's not like they are valuable, except for the words inside.
 
WheatenLover said:
When I was I child, I wrote my name in books that were mine. I don't do that any more.

I just realized yesterday that my husband passed his weird book rules on to our children. Be careful with paperbacks so cover isn't bent. Don't write in books. Don't dogear pages.

Yeah, I made the mistake of grabbing the book my son gave me for Christmas, and immediately got bombarded with the rules. I told him it's my book and I don't follow those rules because I don't want to. It's not like they are valuable, except for the words inside.
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I was the last of 5 children and when I got old enough to read young adult paperbacks that were in the house, I appreciated the good shape they were in. I read many James Bond novels and none of them were dogeared or were the covers curled or begging to stay open. So I can appreciate your husband's POV.
 
OldFeller said:
I was the last of 5 children and when I got old enough to read young adult paperbacks that were in the house, I appreciated the good shape they were in. I read many James Bond novels and none of them were dogeared or were the covers curled or begging to stay open. So I can appreciate your husband's POV.
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Well, yeah, but it's not like I'm a book destroyer. Covers don't curl, and the books still close. I'd have to break the spine for something really bad to happen. Or leave a book in the damp, so foxing and mildew result.

I'm probably casual about books because we had so many of them. About 50,000 at the office, and another 6,000 at home. My husband had an online bookstore, and when you sell books, you have to draw lines and pitch them if they are no good or not selling, and have a minimum price and condition you'd sell them for. These were out-of-print books. My husband did not sell reading copies -- the books were in good shape. Reading copies are like overused library books. Readable, but don't take it to the prom.
 
I'm reading a biography of Titanic's Second Officer Charles Lightoller, and it's riveting. I bought it for $90 nearly 20 years ago. For years, I kept it locked away, with my other ocean liner books, from sticky fingers and potential juice spills and am just now catching up on reading everything.

It's riveting. This man must have had some seriously fantastic stories to tell his grandchildren. Not only did he survive the sinking of the Titanic, of course, but he also had been shipwrecked on a deserted island, survived a fire at sea, panned for gold in the Yukon Territory, worked as a cowboy, and helped evacuate British soldiers from Dunkirk on his own personal yacht.

I see a brand-new biography is due out this April. I can't wait! I almost never buy hardcover books because they're ridiculously expensive, but I may make an exception.
 
KSav said:
I'm reading a biography of Titanic's Second Officer Charles Lightoller, and it's riveting. I bought it for $90 nearly 20 years ago. For years, I kept it locked away, with my other ocean liner books, from sticky fingers and potential juice spills and am just now catching up on reading everything.

It's riveting. This man must have had some seriously fantastic stories to tell his grandchildren. Not only did he survive the sinking of the Titanic, of course, but he also had been shipwrecked on a deserted island, survived a fire at sea, panned for gold in the Yukon Territory, worked as a cowboy, and helped evacuate British soldiers from Dunkirk on his own personal yacht.

I see a brand-new biography is due out this April. I can't wait! I almost never buy hardcover books because they're ridiculously expensive, but I may make an exception.
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What's the title/author? I might check it out.. sounds interesting.
 

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