What are you currently reading?

[SPG]

I'm reading through the novelization of ALIEN as written by Alan Dean Foster. I love its intro, and the rest so far (up to when Kane is brought back onto the ship) reads a little like a "classic" sci-fi book as well as differences that were probably in earlier drafts of the movie.

[Biodegradable]

An update on my David Thorne obsession from my last post. I spent the entirety of August reading his entire bibliography and now I'm stuck waiting for the bugger to get around to writing his next book.

 

Here's the collection as it stands now. Thanks to the colour of the Crows book it looks like a giant square fried egg, which is fun. :^P

 

[Pezl]

I'm currently reading this because of graduation, since im still studying school.

 

 

[Skittle]

Over the past few weeks I've been slowly picking away at The Hobbit, after watching the movies a while back and wondering what the differences between the two mediums were. So far, it's been alright! The language is a little wordy and can be obtuse to parse at times, (Likely just my fault...) but regardless of that it's been a really fun experience. Hopefully, it can get me back into a reading mood overall, as I've been collecting books I'm intent on reading for a long time: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Don Quixote and the first Halo Novel to name a few.

 

Once I finish it I'm thinking of reading some Discworld, but my mind is fickle when it comes to deciding future activities. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[ducon]

I read thid book:

 

It’s an interview with a philosopher. He won’t drink your blood.

Jacques Bouveresse died last year, he was an analytical philosopher (Russell, Carnap & co) in France, that is original; France is not known for this.

He tells his childhood (his parents were peasants), his studies (religious then philosophical), who he met and fought (intellectually of course), who are his models (Carnap, Musil, Wittgenstein…) but not absolute models and who are not.

 

Now:

[Denim Destroyer]

Not currently reading as I finished it the other night, William Gibson's Neuromancer. I found the plot itself interesting but Neuromancer suffers the same problem a lot of other science fiction does where random names/places are thrown out there with no context. Still an interesting read but world building was the books high point.

 

[ducon]

I read:

 

Lots of things about music and mathematics (notes, tones, modes, rhythm, composition, composers…)

 

Now:

[Wyrmwood]

On 9/26/2022 at 1:28 AM, SPG said:

I'm reading through the novelization of ALIEN as written by Alan Dean Foster. I love its intro, and the rest so far (up to when Kane is brought back onto the ship) reads a little like a "classic" sci-fi book as well as differences that were probably in earlier drafts of the movie.

 

I remember reading that when I was like 10 or 11, my mum wouldn't let me watch the movie, I'd seen a clip (the air-vent scene) and really wanted to see the rest. Luckily the local library let me borrow the book, I actually ended up seeing Aliens first.

 

Don't if I misremember but I swear 

Spoiler

In that novelization, when the Alien stuck people to the wall they slowly turned into the Alien eggs.

 

I'd love to know if I remembered this right.

[ducon]

I finished:

 

Not so interesting. It was published in 1962 and Russell seems talking in a pub with a friend. There is nothing really hair-raising here.

 

Now:

[cracky-bracky]

I found this new book called "Of Mice and Men" which I've been reading over a second time since I didn't really pay any attention in the middle parts of the book. (the ending is super, super sad btw :( ) I'm also about to read Frankenstein and I'm surprised I haven't read it before, lol.

[Sonikkumania]

I'm reading an history book, a compilation of wartime diaries from 1941 to 1943 that belonged to a Finnish Waffen-SS voluntary Jorma Laitinen. He describes daily activities on the eastern front since the start of Operation Barbarossa, including war crimes (which he didn't participate in), artillery shellings and firefights.

[ducon]

I read this book:

 

How French big bosses got rich, it was published in 2003 but it’s still up to date: the same guys are in the place.

I know why I stopped voting in 1995.

 

Now:

 

Oh, I also read this one:

 

Now that the three cards are drawn (or maybe not), the three pilgrims are trying to reach Lud and to actually save Jake.

 

Now, the next one in the series:

Edited October 16, 2022 by ducon

[bfadam]

The Count of Monte Cristo ( by Alexandre Dumas père ) 

The Difference Engine  ( by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling ) 

The inheritance of ROME ( by Chris Wickham )

 

and a couple of others lol ( I have problems reading one book at a time ) 

[vyruss]

2 minutes ago, bfadam said:

The Count of Monte Cristo ( by Alexandre Dumas père ) 

The Difference Engine  ( by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling ) 

The inheritance of ROME ( by Chris Wickham )

 

and a couple of others lol ( I have problems reading one book at a time ) 

 

I read that exact edition of the Count of Monte Cristo for a literature class - that book is a total banger.

[bfadam]

Just now, vyruss said:

I read that exact edition of the Count of Monte Cristo for a literature class - that book is a total banger.

yeah I listened to the musical ( the Frank Wildhorn one ) years ago and finally decided to read the book, planning on reading lots of books from the 1800s 

[LadyMistDragon]

I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett. Two more and I'm done!

[ducon]

On 10/19/2022 at 4:01 PM, bfadam said:

The Count of Monte Cristo (by Alexandre Dumas père)

One day I’ll read them all.

[MrFroz]

Six AM, a Heavy Rain fanfic.

[ducon]

I read this book:

 

From Archimedes to Cavalieri, then Newton and Leibniz (and their famous controversy), then Euler, Cauchy and finally Weierstraß.

All about calculus.

 

Now:

[Silhouette 03]

Just now, jamesdean88 said:

Orwell- Animal farm

Oh, that's a good one. Such a well constructed allegory. I had to read that back in High School. You enjoying it?

[Silhouette 03]

Just now, jamesdean88 said:

Of course, especially since this satirical novella coincides with current events in the world

Glad to hear it. I've read 1984 as well, and it's terrifying how relevant Orwell's ideas about control and absolute power are relevant today. I highly recommend 1984 as well. It's depressing, yet hopeful in some areas.

 

If you want a recommendation on another book which message is relevant today, I'd recommend you take a look at Fahrenheit 451. It's message about censorship is still really relevant today, and it has some really good character development for the protagonist.  

[ducon]

I read this quite short book:

 

One full day of a prisoner in a sovietic gulag, how men are being deshumanized.

 

Fuck you ebay:

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/3GUAAMXQHO9Re0iK/s-l1600.jpg

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/3GUAAMXQHO9Re0iK/s-l500.jpg

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/3GUAAMXQHO9Re0iK/s-l400.jpg

 

Finished:

 

It’s about computing, how to compute with and without a computer, Ada Lovelace, Leibniz, Turing… and even a very short history of programming languages.

 

Next:

 

It’s about the relations between art (painting) and mathematics, especially the perspective rules and their history. Good book!

 

Now:

 

That I also read. It’s about group theory, started from symmetries in geometry.

It’s the first really abstract book from this collection, it even talks about normal subgroups, simple groups and the simple group classification.

An error: 12ℤ and ℤ are isomorphic (as groups).

 

Now:

 

About infinity in mathematics: potential infinity, actual infinity; relations with religion beliefs (that forbade actual infinity) and calculus; how potential infinity was replaced by actual infinity by Cantor.

As usual, still an tiny error here or there.

 

And now:

Edited November 5, 2022 by ducon

[ducon]

I read:

 

It’s about creativity in mathematics: of the mathematicians, of cultures (ethnomathematics), of situations in everyday life where mathematics are hidden…

 

Newt one is:

[Herr Dethnout]

[HeatedChocolate]

Metro 2033, I'm riding on a Russian sci fi kick that started when I read Roadside Picnic not long ago.

[Dusty_Rhodes]

Calvin Coolidge's Autobiography. Pretty interesting little read. It's short but well written, very American. Unsurprisingly, as Cool Cal was a president (a great one at that), but his writing style is very enjoyable. He talks much about his upbringing in rural Vermont and his career in law. It's interesting to see how he went from poverty to president over the course of 20 years. Almost done with it. I'll probably re - read a classic soon, maybe Narnia or To Kill a Mockingbird. I also have been meaning to read Saint Augustine's Confessions and Bob Dylan's Chronicles Vol. 1 as I've had them both for two months and still not cracked them open heh. 

[LadyMistDragon]

The Shining. Like I probably still like IT better but that's because of the time I read it. There's just something so painfully human that Stephen King arguably never matched again/

[Silhouette 03]

40 minutes ago, LadyMistDragon said:

The Shining.

Sweet. How far are you into it?

[LadyMistDragon]

4 hours ago, Silhouette 03 said:

Sweet. How far are you into it?

I'm about 60 percent finished with it. They're just thinking of taking a snowmobile from the hotel.

[Wyrmwood]

I was going to post that I'm working my way through IDW's Transformers Comics, then I realized everyone here is reading more highbrow stuff and don't want to seem stupid. Damn, I just did. Anyway it's mostly great, full of intelligent humor, absolutely nothing like the crappy Michael Bay films, even when there is stupid over the top stuff its all tongue in cheek.

 

Grew up reading Marvel's Transformers so it's a bit weird that at nearly 50 I'm reading Transformers again but I love it.