What are you reading?

[Kirino_Matsuyama]

The book I was just reading took an abrupt turn for the terribly boring....350 pages in
It feels wrong, but I took my friends advice and instead of powering through I tossed it aside and now I'm starting this bad boy. I have no idea what it's gonna be about cuz I got it out of a random bundle of mystery books I bought off some old Japanese woman but here goes nothing again!

Have you ever read any Matsumoto Seicho? He's definitely one of my favourite Japanese novelists.

霧の旗

Pro bono (English version)

At the moment I'm reading this book:

 

[Kodama]

Some deadpool once in awhile... got this huge ass omnibus that will take me awhile...

 

[Rakim]

Have you ever read any Matsumoto Seicho? He's definitely one of my favourite Japanese novelists.

霧の旗

Pro bono (English version)

At the moment I'm reading this book:

View attachment 473

No I haven't I'll look him up. What's kiri no hata about? Please tell me its a mystery

Also would you consider him to be 純文学？

 

[Kirino_Matsuyama]

No I haven't I'll look him up. What's kiri no hata about? Please tell me its a mystery

Also would you consider him to be 純文学？

Hi Rakim,

Actually I think that Kiri no hata (Pro bono) might not be the best Matsumoto Seicho book to recommend. I like it because I can sort of relate to Kiriko's (the main character) defiance and stubbornness. I don't want to give anything away though in case you read it. Matsumoto's most famous book is probably Suna no utsuwa (Inspector Imanishi Investigates in English). It's quite a long story but I like how Matsumoto describes the countryside, especially Fukuoka.

I have to confess that I'm not a big fan of Haruki Murakami, I've only read one of his book but for some reason I couldn't get into it.

Two other books that I really enjoyed were The Master Key, by Masako Togawa and 刺青殺人事件 (The Tattoo Murder Case) by Akimitsu Takagi.

Anyway, my taste might be totally different to yours

I'm not bilingual, so most of the books I read are in English.

 

[DaMulder]

@Mattis: Go for it! Shakespeare has got some powerful stories to tell, even if the language is "different".

@OldFarT : You won't regret picking up Frankenstein! Such a cool book!

 

[Rakim]

Hi Rakim,

Actually I think that Kiri no hata (Pro bono) might not be the best Matsumoto Seicho book to recommend. I like it because I can sort of relate to Kiriko's (the main character) defiance and stubbornness. I don't want to give anything away though in case you read it. Matsumoto's most famous book is probably Suna no utsuwa (Inspector Imanishi Investigates in English). It's quite a long story but I like how Matsumoto describes the countryside, especially Fukuoka.

Spoiler

I have to confess that I'm not a big fan of Haruki Murakami, I've only read one of his book but for some reason I couldn't get into it.

Two other books that I really enjoyed were The Master Key, by Masako Togawa and 刺青殺人事件 (The Tattoo Murder Case) by Akimitsu Takagi.

Spoiler

Anyway, my taste might be totally different to yours

I'm not bilingual, so most of the books I read are in English.

Oh I assumed you were Japanese because of your name lol.

I see I see. Interesting stuff. I really like mystery novels so this all sounds good to me so far.
Also I'm very much a noob when it comes to Japanese literature so new recommendations are always welcome ^_^

For Murakami I've only read some of 1Q84, but I really liked it. Very easy to read. Some people complain that his style is too western, but as a westerner I guess that wouldn't bother me as much. I wanna get around to finishing that sometime. Which one of his did you read?

 

[Kirino_Matsuyama]

Oh I assumed you were Japanese because of your name lol.

I see I see. Interesting stuff. I really like mystery novels so this all sounds good to me so far.
Also I'm very much a noob when it comes to Japanese literature so new recommendations are always welcome ^_^

For Murakami I've only read some of 1Q84, but I really liked it. Very easy to read. Some people complain that his style is too western, but as a westerner I guess that wouldn't bother me as much. I wanna get around to finishing that sometime. Which one of his did you read?

I think the Murakami book was called After Dark (アフターダーク). If Murakami was given a project to write as much as he could about eating at Denny's and then a dream or something, I guess I could understand the book more or his objective. It just wasn't about anything and left me feeling frustrated and wanting my time back :)

After Dark does have a lot good reviews though, so maybe its the type of book that isn't for me.

 

[Jakester]

I'm being very lazy and listening to Audibles rather than read but it still counts! I'm listening to Don Quixote by Cervantes. Bit of a random choice.

 

[Araviel]

Re-reading the Song of Ice and Fire series, currently at A Feast for Crows. Still a bit bummed the tv-series went past the book releases.

Just finished The Power by Naomi Alderman (I plow through 2-4 novels a week so mix up series reading a bit). It was pretty good, something new. It's a dystopia story about what would happen if women gained social control through the development of an ability to electrocute anyone by using a new organ. It's been hailed a feminist read, for reasons I can't really understand as I see it more as tale of human nature and how our abilities to hurt and maim seep through our history, cultures and societies. Didn't care much for the rape scenes, but guess they don't do any worse than what's in A Song of Ice and Fire so... Also got around to read Atwood's The Handmaiden's Tale (haven't watched the show, it got recommended when I bought The Power) it was alright and really highlights the dangers and hypocrisy of religious fundamentalism.

 

[Revan]

Also got around to read Atwood's The Handmaiden's Tale (haven't watched the show, it got recommended when I bought The Power) it was alright and really highlights the dangers and hypocrisy of religious fundamentalism.

I met Margaret last year at a New Scientist festival and got a signed copy. I still need to read it however.

 

[Jakester]

Re-reading the Song of Ice and Fire series, currently at A Feast for Crows. Still a bit bummed the tv-series went past the book releases.

I stopped watching the TV series when it caught up with the books. I will definitely have to read re-read the books as I've forgotten many of the characters in the seven years I've been waiting but I want to time it right. After all, I don't know when George will ever get round to finishing it!

 

[moon child]

Started reading this last night, I’m already halfway though it.

 

[Schmeman]

I've been slowly reading The Dark Forest by Cixin Liu, the sequel to The Three Body Problem. The book has a really interesting premise, and it's very engaging, but for some reason I have a hard time reading a ton of it at once. Thus, I'm slowly making my way through it.

Spoiler: The Dark Forest

I'm also reading through the core rulebook for Cyberpunk 2020. I've played D&D with friends, and have never really enjoyed it... that is however, until I decided I'd try being a dungeon master. Turns out I enjoy creating my own stories and running them myself much more than playing the game. Which is great, because it seems as though all my friends prefer the opposite. I've never really been a fan of the standard fantasy setting, so I'm looking for a new system, with a new setting, and Cyberpunk looked interesting.

Spoiler: Cyberpunk 2020

Meanwhile, I plan on reading many different cyberpunk books, as to get myself into the spirit of the genre. I picked up used copies of Neuromancer and Snow Crash, and am looking for anything else I can come across.

 

[ShinChuck]

I just finished up 1984, so now I'm working on Phantastes by George MacDonald and The Aeronaut's Windlass by Jim Butcher. I like to have something classic and some modern fantasy going at the same time so I can match my mood.

 

[Mystere]

Wow, some highbrow stuff in here.

Allow me to lower the tone:



Every evening, as I stroll around the park, this audiobook makes me involuntarily chuckle, and this in turn helps clears a path ahead as mothers, joggers, and dog walkers cautiously find alternate routes.

 

[Truck_1_0_1_]

I'll be starting Casino Royale in about 3 weeks, when I head off for my honeymoon (I usually read 1 or 2 books a trip).

Just a question, has anyone read Romance of the Three Kingdoms?

What is the definitive version, as I'm looking to pick it up? Many thanks!

 

[ShinChuck]

I'll be starting Casino Royale in about 3 weeks, when I head off for my honeymoon (I usually read 1 or 2 books a trip).

Just a question, has anyone read Romance of the Three Kingdoms?

What is the definitive version, as I'm looking to pick it up? Many thanks!

Married? Congrats!

I read the Moss Roberts Unabridged translation several years ago. It's a more modern translation and the more familiar names (at least if your introduction to the series was via the KOEI games), which was a big help for me. Especially in the unabridged, there are a TON of names to follow.

That being said, I'm no expert, and I've seen people say they greatly prefer the flowery language of the Brewitt-Taylor version.

http://threekingdoms.com/ has the Brewitt-Taylor version with the modern names, though. Best of both worlds?

 

[Lan Di-sama]

I've been re-reading the Wind Up Bird Chronicle (Murakami), but I've been so busy it's taking me almost the entire summer. Definitely in a rut with it, but hoping to get back into it when things settle down a bit.

Probably my favorite of his, and the first of his that I read back in 2010 or so.

I think the Murakami book was called After Dark (アフターダーク). If Murakami was given a project to write as much as he could about eating at Denny's and then a dream or something, I guess I could understand the book more or his objective. It just wasn't about anything and left me feeling frustrated and wanting my time back :)

After Dark does have a lot good reviews though, so maybe its the type of book that isn't for me.

I've read several of Murakami's novels, After Dark was one of the most forgettable. I would definitely give him another shot. I might recommend one of his earliest, Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World (the sci-fi element in this one is pretty cool) or a short story collection like Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman (if you read several of his shorts you'll have a better idea as to whether or not his style is for you).

 

[Truck_1_0_1_]

Married? Congrats!

I read the Moss Roberts Unabridged translation several years ago. It's a more modern translation and the more familiar names (at least if your introduction to the series was via the KOEI games), which was a big help for me. Especially in the unabridged, there are a TON of names to follow.

That being said, I'm no expert, and I've seen people say they greatly prefer the flowery language of the Brewitt-Taylor version.

http://threekingdoms.com/ has the Brewitt-Taylor version with the modern names, though. Best of both worlds?

Many thanks, ShinChuck! I will take a look at both version and decide at that point :)

And yes! Tying the knot on the 15th of September and then flying to Italy for 2 weeks the next day!

Excited to be back in the motherland :)

 

[mue 26]

I definitely sympathise with @Kirino_Matsuyama, I've only read two Haruki Murakami novels (Wind up Bird and Hard Boiled Wonderland) and I got absolutely nothing out of either of them. I know so many people who really like his stuff, that I'm always tempted to give him another go, but I've also heard that all his novels follow a similar formula (which, I presume, is to spend hundreds of pages saying nothing at all), so I just can't bring myself to do it. There are too many other books to read.

I am a fan Banana Yoshimoto however, and there are certain similarities between her and Murakami's writing style I suppose. But her novels have more emotional depth, in my opinion.