[Nibile]

I'm currently reading "Land Grabbing" by Stefano Liberti, an Italian journalist. don't know if it's available in English. very interesting research about big companies buying a lot of land in Africa, Brazil and other countries, for massive production.

[andy popp]

Off the top of my head and in no particular order:

Catch 22*
Rings of Saturn*
Read a various times in my life so may have a different perspective in them now. Defo recommend*

Not read, but Austerlitz is certainly a masterpiece.

Has anyone, by any chance, read Bob Mould's autobiography, recently published?

[sheavi]

Not read Austerlitz but I really recommend Rings of Saturn - one of only a small handful of books I can be bothered to re-read. There is a film out based on the book.

[Dave Flanagan]

Personally I have been reading John Le Carre - have gotten through The Spy Who Came In From the Cold and the Karla Triology (Tinker, Tailor.... The Honourable Schoolboy and Smileys People) in about a week - fantastic writing, very few wasted words and excellent plot construtuction. Any other recommendations by him or just read the lot?

Snap. Reading them at the moment. That's a lof of reading in a week. Nice one.

[adam w]

Read them all. Even his weaker books are worth a read.

[Falling Down]

Has anyone, by any chance, read Bob Mould's autobiography, recently published?

I have a copy at home which is not yet read but flicked through. Looks good, quite a story...

[butters]

Personally I have been reading John Le Carre - have gotten through The Spy Who Came In From the Cold and the Karla Triology (Tinker, Tailor.... The Honourable Schoolboy and Smileys People) in about a week - fantastic writing, very few wasted words and excellent plot construtuction. Any other recommendations by him or just read the lot?

Snap. Reading them at the moment. That's a lof of reading in a week. Nice one.

When I find something I really like I tend to read them to the point where everything else becomes a bit irrelevant - thankfully it is not a comon occurence.  Think the last books that I devoured in a similar way was Stephen Donanldson's "Gap Sequence" - very good books but not for the faint hearted.

[casa]

just finished 'the short novels' of Steinbeck. Great book. Thought The Pearl was a really beautiful story

[cofe]

Personally I have been reading John Le Carre - have gotten through The Spy Who Came In From the Cold and the Karla Triology (Tinker, Tailor.... The Honourable Schoolboy and Smileys People) in about a week - fantastic writing, very few wasted words and excellent plot construtuction. Any other recommendations by him or just read the lot?   

Just finished Tinker Tailer... Quite enjoyed it, but despite being well written I felt the plot never quite developed into what I hoped it would – it almost just fizzled out. But then I read it on the Kindle, which I regret; there were a few times when I needed to flick back, and that's a pain in the arse on the Kindle. Still not fully sold on the Kindle. I might give it a year and read it again as a book.

Also read Krakauer's Into The Wild recently, which is excellent. Can't believe I hadn't read it before. Incredibly story, well told. I also read his short ebook – Three Cups of Deceit – about the whole Greg Mortenson affair.

Cyclist David Millar's autobiog next...

[saltbeef]

i don't know if its been mentioned before, but I recently read le metier and it is brilliant (even to non-cylcists)

[cofe]

i don't know if its been mentioned before, but I recently read le metier and it is brilliant (even to non-cylcists)

I read it last year word. Brilliantly written and a beautiful book. Also read Barry's earlier book, which is nowhere near as well written.

[Yossarian]

Cyclist David Millar's autobiog next...

That's a good read.

[Duma]

+1

[jamiev]

Devoured Atomised (Houllebecq) in a single evening and middle of the night Insomnia on Wednesday and thought it was tragic, riveting, very moving, and not at all unpleasant apart from the grisly descriptions of the Californian satanist murders.

Atomised is amazing - surprised that you haven't picked that up before. His other books are also worth reading though often darker and more challenging.

Is the Insomnia a reference to another book BTW or just you saying that you read it while suffering from it?

Personally I have been reading John Le Carre - have gotten through The Spy Who Came In From the Cold and the Karla Triology (Tinker, Tailor.... The Honourable Schoolboy and Smileys People) in about a week - fantastic writing, very few wasted words and excellent plot construtuction. Any other recommendations by him or just read the lot?

Le Carre: Read Russia House, Single and Single then Our Kind of Traitor back to back. RH was written immediately post Glasnost, S&S 2005 and OKOT in 2010/11. The usual superb, spare, precise writing, excellently drawn characters, and they paint a fascinating picture of societal change in Russia over last 20 years.

Agree w/ comments ref Atomised.

Fiction:
A Fraction of the Whole - Steve Toltz. A book to devour. Hilarious, heartfelt, moving, all with a deft, light touch.

Tom Wolfe: A Man in Full. His best, IMHO. Excoriating satire. Great setpieces. Big, bold 'great american novel'.

China Mieville - the City & the City. Crime + kafkaeque fantasy. Constructed around a (deliberately obvious) plot device / twist but really excellently done.

Non fiction:
Surely you are joking Mr Feynman. Prob been mentioned before. Anecdotes about his eccentric & extraordinary life. Very funny, and it's got SCIENCE in it too.

[Stubbs]

Tom Wolfe: A Man in Full.

I thought this was great, I was a bit daunted by the page count to start with, but I found it hard to put down and ended up reading it pretty quickly.

Just to echo what's been said above about the Millar biog - I thought it was very well put together and gave a real insight into the man.

Le Metier seems to be out of print, don't suppose I could borrow a copy off someone?!

[butters]

Le Carre: Read Russia House, Single and Single then Our Kind of Traitor back to back. RH was written immediately post Glasnost, S&S 2005 and OKOT in 2010/11. The usual superb, spare, precise writing, excellently drawn characters, and they paint a fascinating picture of societal change in Russia over last 20 years.

Cheers for that - just finished the Russia House book a few days ago and the difference between that and the previous ones I read is striking. Will add the other two to the list of things to buy sometime soon.

Got to agree with Cofe that Tinker, Tailor... does seem to end really quickly - noticed it when I read it and it almost seems that Le Carre wrapped it up in a hurry. A bit of a pity but a great book all the same. 

[Fiend]

Looks like Fiend's work:

Fuck off, my stuff is waaaaay better:



Game Of Thrones sounds too dry, political, and down-to-earth for me.

[chris05]

I'm currently reading "Blood Meridian" by Cormack McCarthy at the moment and I think it is brilliant. Unlike another book i've ever read.

It is a brilliant book, i have read it twice which I never usually do. Enjoyed all of McCarthy's books but Blood Meridian and the Border trilogy really stood out (and still do).

[psychomansam]

Fiction:
A Fraction of the Whole - Steve Toltz. A book to devour. Hilarious, heartfelt, moving, all with a deft, light touch.

Tom Wolfe: A Man in Full. His best, IMHO. Excoriating satire. Great setpieces. Big, bold 'great american novel'.

China Mieville - the City & the City. Crime + kafkaeque fantasy. Constructed around a (deliberately obvious) plot device / twist but really excellently done.

Non fiction:
Surely you are joking Mr Feynman. Prob been mentioned before. Anecdotes about his eccentric & extraordinary life. Very funny, and it's got SCIENCE in it too.

The city& the city : Brilliant book - one of those my mind just drifts back to and finds a semi-conscious reference to every now and then. I read it fairly by chance after a little googling for sci-fi with a political bent, and have it in a very large folder on my laptop called "sc-fi epub" (thankyou demonoid).

Hyperion Cantos
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperion_Cantos

Really rather good

[jamiev]

Le Carre: Read Russia House, Single and Single then Our Kind of Traitor back to back. RH was written immediately post Glasnost, S&S 2005 and OKOT in 2010/11. The usual superb, spare, precise writing, excellently drawn characters, and they paint a fascinating picture of societal change in Russia over last 20 years.

Cheers for that - just finished the Russia House book a few days ago and the difference between that and the previous ones I read is striking. Will add the other two to the list of things to buy sometime soon.

Got to agree with Cofe that Tinker, Tailor... does seem to end really quickly - noticed it when I read it and it almost seems that Le Carre wrapped it up in a hurry. A bit of a pity but a great book all the same.

well the other 2 (S&S & OKOT) are sitting on by bookshelf in sheff - you're welcome to borrow 'em. Agree ref Tinker Tailor abrupt finish too. Still great tho'.

[Oldmanmatt]

Adams.
Just re-read Dirk Gently.

Might stop laughing by Easter...

[tomtom]

I student on the field course I was just on had a full back tattoo (very well done) that resembled that... he was gutted when one of the lasses asked him if it was out of Harry Potter

[robertostallioni]

Adams.
Just re-read Dirk Gently.

Might stop laughing by Easter...

have you seen the tv series on iplayer (BBC4) at the mo. Very good actually. Like a funny Sherlock pisstake.

[tomtom]

Have you read any of the 'Lucifer Box' series by Mark Gastis Stallion? I suspect you'd like them... smutty, funny, well written...

[Fiend]

China Mieville - the City & the City. Crime + kafkaeque fantasy. Constructed around a (deliberately obvious) plot device / twist but really excellently done.

The city& the city : Brilliant book - one of those my mind just drifts back to and finds a semi-conscious reference to every now and then. I

Ohhhhh yeah. I know Mr Meiville is more famous for the classic Perdido Street Station and The Scar, but The City And The City is right up there in brilliance. Thoroughly intriguing and gripping.