Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Empirical Data

SF or fantasy, dark or light, blonde or brunette, what book are you reading right now? (If you're not reading one right now, what book did you last finish?) List one title only, please.

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm reading "Clockwork Heart", which is a steampunky political romance thing. Tasty so far.

Michael Merriam said...

Bloodchild and other Stories by Octavia E. Butler

Kelly McCullough said...

I can't list only one and still be honest about what I'm reading. These are the books that I read parts of yesterday (excluding editing reading):

Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner-YA Fantasy

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman-Contemporary Fantasy

Plants in Hawaiian Culture (Kolowalu Books) by Beatrice H. Krauss and Thelma F. Greig-Social/botanical textbook

Anonymous said...

Sorry, I'm with Kelly, too:

Italian Folktales by Italo Calvino (translated collection of Italian folk- and fairy-tales)

Three Roads to Quantum Gravity by Lee Smolin (Analysis of where the field of physics is headed as the theory of quantum loop gravity interacts with Eistein's relativism. Black Holes.)

Network Geek said...

I'm about three chapters away from finishing Snow Crash. Can't believe it took me this long to get around to reading this one.

Douglas Hulick said...

The main piece of SF/F fiction I am reading right now is "Alphabet of Thorn" by Patricia McKillip.

Anonymous said...

Hah, I'm not the first one to say more than one!

I got finished with The Guns of August, about the lead up to the Great War. Great read and exhausting.

I'm currently on Dan Simmons' Hyperion and a Collier book on the Indian Rebellion of 1858.

katster said...

I just started reading Michael Chabon's Yiddish Policeman's Union because I have to start my Hugo reading somewhere.

I just finished Jeff Carlson's Plague Year and enjoyed it.

-kat

Etoiline said...

I'm reading The Great Book of Amber for the first time. Yes, I am sadly behind in my appreciation of Zelazny, though I read one of his stand-alone books many many years ago.

I'm really loving it, and very sad I didn't pick up this huge fantasy work earlier.

Anonymous said...

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. (It's for a book discussion group I'm in.)

I loved the first three Amber novels. The remaining just seemed like he was milking the franchise.

Beth Plutchak said...

I just finished "Money - Whence it came from where it went" by John Kenneth Galbraith. This history of of money ends in the early 1970s, which was current time when the book was written. Interesting for a current reread.

^JR^ said...

The Draco Tavern, Larry Niven

Kelly Swails said...

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. (YA fantasy)

Bill Henry said...

I'm reading "The Yiddish Policeman's Union" -- with the slight problem that another novel, which I'm reading in manuscript for a friend, is giving Chabon's book some serious competition for my attention.

Thanks, folks! The range and depth and breadth of answers is very satisfying.

Scientifically speaking (and make no mistake, science is the paramount aim here), I think the only thing we can conclude from the given sample is that more men than women have trouble following instructions. But we knew that already, didn't we?

; )

Michael Damian Thomas said...

Last night I finished Scardown by Elizabeth Bear.

Anonymous said...

Lavinia, by Ursula K. Le Guin.

Also My Dearest Friend: Letters of Abigail and John Adams.

Anonymous said...

"Rewired" - Kelly and Kessel's Post-Cyberpunk anthology is the last touched. I'm another one of those who can never read one thing at a time though. -CJD

Anonymous said...

Reading:
Dave Eggers, _Heartwarming Work of Staggering Genius_

Just Finished:

Kelly McCullough, _MythOS_
Barth Anderson, _Magician and the Fool_

Gave up on (for the second time):
Marissa Pessl, _Special Topics in Calamity Physics_

DJHD

Anonymous said...

Oh, wait, we're doing Just Finished books too, Dave? Joy! Let me assemble my list. Hmm, how far back to go... two weeks? Three?

;-)

Anonymous said...

On reflection, Bill did mention 'just finished' in his original question.

Must read all the words, Murphy.

tate hallaway said...

Technically, the last book I read was RUNAWAYS: TEENAGE WASTELAND a Marvel graphic novel by Brian K. Vaughan (illustrators: Adrian Alphona and Takeshi Miyazawa).

lydamorehouse said...

And, since I'm two people I can also add: THE NEW AVENGERS: ILLUMINATI (Bendis, Reed, Cheung).

Last non-graphic book that I finished was Jo Walton's HA'PENNY.

Bill Henry said...

And the reports keep coming! Thank you all again.

As for people reading more than one book at a time, I *assume* it -- especially among writers. My own average is four to five.

But there's always the one at the top of the pile, isn't there? The one you're *really* reading.

That's the one I was looking for.

Anonymous said...

I'm currently reading Spin by Robert Charles Wilson, Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay, Brasyl by Ian McDonald, and the 2007 Best American Short Stories guest-edited by Stephen King.

I just finished We Few by John Ringo and David Weber - a military Sci-Fi book - and You're Not Fooling Anyone When You Take Your Laptop Into a Coffee Shop by John Scalzi.

Kelly McCullough said...

That's why I listed only the books that I had actually read the previous day (the 3 I'm really reading) as opposed to all of the books I'm dipping toes into--maybe 8-10.

Anonymous said...

The one at the top of the pile? I assume people have different reading material for different occassions/times of day.

I have the one(s) loaded onto my mp3 player - audiobooks - that I listen to while I work for hours every day. I have the one in the bathroom - admittedly I only read 10 to 15 pages of that a day. I have the one in my pack that I carry with me at all times and from which I read at every opportunity. I have the one I use to take breaks from paperwork and writing. It's on my desk.

That's four piles and they each have their place.