Summer reading recommendations?
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
I don't know if you like Sherlock Holmes, but if you do - get his complete collection which is worth a week or two's reading :-) [I've re-read the entire collection some 7-8 times; though I haven't done that in several years now]
Regards, Nish
Nish’s thoughts on MFC, C++/CLI and .NET (my blog)
My latest book : C++/CLI in Action / Amazon.com link -
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
You've probably read it already but Victor Hugo's Les Miserables has always been one of my favourites. Perhaps even a Shakespeare or two will do you good. If you're into that kinda thing of course...
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
I'd recommend Critique of pure reason[^] The woman in white[^] by Wilkie Collins. It is a great story and the way it is written is a delight: letters, diaries, newspapers... I enojoyed it too much.
A polar bear is a bear whose coordinates has been changed in terms of sine and cosine. Quanehsti Pah Nation States
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
This is not a classic, in fact it's only just been released. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini[^]. It is even more enjoyable than his first novel, The Kite Runner[^] which is a wonderful story. Both are excellent stories of the human spirit conquering the worst that society can be. :cool:
Chris Meech I am Canadian. [heard in a local bar]
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
I really enjoyed Alexander McCall Smith's No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency[^] series. Yes, it's a series, but most of the novels are self-contained and short. If you like science fiction, then Iain M. Banks' is a good bet, especially (IMO) Consider Phlebas[^] and Player of Games[^]. I'd also recommend (some of) his non-sf books, especially Crow Road[^] (others, like Complicity and the Wasp Factory are probably an acquired taste...). If you're in the mood for something slightly off-the-wall, try J.G.Ballard - I very much enjoyed Cocaine Nights, Super-Cannes and Millenium People (his most recent novels) as well as some of his first ones (The Drowned World, The Burning World, The Crystal World - NOT a series, but related, as they're all 'end of world/civilization' fantasies). What else....if you can find it, Harry Harrison's 'A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah!' was a nice piece of 'alternate-world' fiction, as was Stephen Fry's 'Making History'. Neal Stephenson - not his enormo-tomes of recent years (although I *did* enjoy, and would recommend, 'Cryptonomicon'), but 'Snow Crash', 'The Diamond Age' and 'Zodiac'. If you can find room for some non-fiction, I can heartily recommend Simon Singh ('The Code Book', 'Fermats Last Theorem' aka 'Fermats Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem') and Dava Sobel ('Longitude'). If you have an interest in 'alternative' music, Michael Azerrad's 'Our Band Could Be Your Life' is excellent (and not just because the title is taken from a Minutemen song!). Well, that lot would keep me going for a couple of weeks if I were on a 'lounging
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
Do you prefer fiction or non-fiction? I enjoy the Eragon series (2 books out of 3 published thus far) and the Harry Potter books. Right now I am reading a book called Fowl Weather about a guy, his wife, and how their flock of animals has taken over their lives. (They have three african greys and I have 2 cockatoos so I can relate.) I'm also reading one about strange small towns in America (one that hosts a non-moving parade, another that keeps a dead guy on ice...stuff like that). I also like anything by Isabel Allende.
______________________ stuff + cats = awesome
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
Books I immensely enjoyed recently on travel: Jostein Gaarder, "Maya", unless you have an inflexible view about religion Jurij Brezan "Krabat oder Die Verwandlung der Welt" unless you are allergic to some ideas that are usually labeled leftist. Or have a stubborn view of religion. (there should be an english translation, but I couldn't find one, probably hard to get outside germany. And don't mix it up with "Krabat oder Die Bewahrung der Welt", which is very depressive) Follower-uppers: Bulgakow, Master and Margarita. It's very russian so your enjoyment may vary. Oh, and maybe not a good idea either if you have inflexible views about religion. (There seems to be a pattern here) Patrick Susskind "The Perfume" not just because of the movie, but because it's a very intense novel about something undescribable. Also a recent discovery is Haruki Murakami. Weird, sometimes crude but always elegant, phantastic. Or, if you enjoy Bradbury as much as I do, there's always more Bradbury (until there ain't).
We are a big screwed up dysfunctional psychotic happy family - some more screwed up, others more happy, but everybody's psychotic joint venture definition of CP
My first real C# project | Linkify!|FoldWithUs! | sighist -
I really enjoyed Alexander McCall Smith's No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency[^] series. Yes, it's a series, but most of the novels are self-contained and short. If you like science fiction, then Iain M. Banks' is a good bet, especially (IMO) Consider Phlebas[^] and Player of Games[^]. I'd also recommend (some of) his non-sf books, especially Crow Road[^] (others, like Complicity and the Wasp Factory are probably an acquired taste...). If you're in the mood for something slightly off-the-wall, try J.G.Ballard - I very much enjoyed Cocaine Nights, Super-Cannes and Millenium People (his most recent novels) as well as some of his first ones (The Drowned World, The Burning World, The Crystal World - NOT a series, but related, as they're all 'end of world/civilization' fantasies). What else....if you can find it, Harry Harrison's 'A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah!' was a nice piece of 'alternate-world' fiction, as was Stephen Fry's 'Making History'. Neal Stephenson - not his enormo-tomes of recent years (although I *did* enjoy, and would recommend, 'Cryptonomicon'), but 'Snow Crash', 'The Diamond Age' and 'Zodiac'. If you can find room for some non-fiction, I can heartily recommend Simon Singh ('The Code Book', 'Fermats Last Theorem' aka 'Fermats Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem') and Dava Sobel ('Longitude'). If you have an interest in 'alternative' music, Michael Azerrad's 'Our Band Could Be Your Life' is excellent (and not just because the title is taken from a Minutemen song!). Well, that lot would keep me going for a couple of weeks if I were on a 'lounging
-
This is not a classic, in fact it's only just been released. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini[^]. It is even more enjoyable than his first novel, The Kite Runner[^] which is a wonderful story. Both are excellent stories of the human spirit conquering the worst that society can be. :cool:
Chris Meech I am Canadian. [heard in a local bar]
-
Do you prefer fiction or non-fiction? I enjoy the Eragon series (2 books out of 3 published thus far) and the Harry Potter books. Right now I am reading a book called Fowl Weather about a guy, his wife, and how their flock of animals has taken over their lives. (They have three african greys and I have 2 cockatoos so I can relate.) I'm also reading one about strange small towns in America (one that hosts a non-moving parade, another that keeps a dead guy on ice...stuff like that). I also like anything by Isabel Allende.
______________________ stuff + cats = awesome
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
I stand out too much by asking questions for answers to other questions... but do you like hard sci-fi? If so, most stuff from James P. Hogan is good (there are exceptions). I actually love RealTime Interrupt, but it is hard-sci-fi in programming related industry (AI and VR), so it depends on how much you want escape from the industry in your readng. Thrice upon a time has a bit of a love-story as well as the time paradox related theme. Inherit the Stars is my personal favorite, it is the first of a series, but stands on its own as many first books do. As a programmer I re-read the Rick Cook fantasy books, but only the first three are any good. The first is a stand-alone (Wiz-Biz is the first two books in one republished, Wizard's Bane is first by itself). Mostly anymore I have a large collection of myths and legends from various American Tribal histories. I also have a few on Celtic and other groups around the world. I have more variety in very few books than most people. :) the gentle term for me is eccentric. ;) If you want a variation on the vampire mythos, there is Children of the Night[^] I loaned my copy and never got it back (I am always prepared for this, I never loan something I am not prepared to give away, so I am never disappointed when it never returns). :) Burning water is good, Jinx High is okay, but Burning water is incredibly violent even compared to Children of the Night. All three books are in a series, but stand on their own with only the lead character, not the story to link them together. -- modified at 14:29 Wednesday 6th June, 2007
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
-
I stand out too much by asking questions for answers to other questions... but do you like hard sci-fi? If so, most stuff from James P. Hogan is good (there are exceptions). I actually love RealTime Interrupt, but it is hard-sci-fi in programming related industry (AI and VR), so it depends on how much you want escape from the industry in your readng. Thrice upon a time has a bit of a love-story as well as the time paradox related theme. Inherit the Stars is my personal favorite, it is the first of a series, but stands on its own as many first books do. As a programmer I re-read the Rick Cook fantasy books, but only the first three are any good. The first is a stand-alone (Wiz-Biz is the first two books in one republished, Wizard's Bane is first by itself). Mostly anymore I have a large collection of myths and legends from various American Tribal histories. I also have a few on Celtic and other groups around the world. I have more variety in very few books than most people. :) the gentle term for me is eccentric. ;) If you want a variation on the vampire mythos, there is Children of the Night[^] I loaned my copy and never got it back (I am always prepared for this, I never loan something I am not prepared to give away, so I am never disappointed when it never returns). :) Burning water is good, Jinx High is okay, but Burning water is incredibly violent even compared to Children of the Night. All three books are in a series, but stand on their own with only the lead character, not the story to link them together. -- modified at 14:29 Wednesday 6th June, 2007
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
I particularly love hard sci fi and have probably read everything there is short of stuff published in the last 6 months going all the way back to Jules Verne. Hogan is good, I also read the Rick Cook series and that's an ideal recommendation for a summer read for programmers in particular, good one! My only interest in myths and legends tends to be trippy fantasy stuff set in north america featuring native legends as part of it's theme, but as a child I *loved* sea stories and of course the mythos of HP Lovecraft.
"110%" - it's the new 70%
-
I particularly love hard sci fi and have probably read everything there is short of stuff published in the last 6 months going all the way back to Jules Verne. Hogan is good, I also read the Rick Cook series and that's an ideal recommendation for a summer read for programmers in particular, good one! My only interest in myths and legends tends to be trippy fantasy stuff set in north america featuring native legends as part of it's theme, but as a child I *loved* sea stories and of course the mythos of HP Lovecraft.
"110%" - it's the new 70%
John Cardinal wrote:
My only interest in myths and legends tends to be trippy fantasy stuff set in north america featuring native legends as part of it's theme
ahhhh, well then you came to the right place! Burning Water (Aztec theme)[^] (warning: exceptionally violent!) Sacred Ground (modern tribal)[^] (reading candy, nothing to think on too hard except trippy fantasy stuff)
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
-
Fiction unless it's about food in which case I love travelogues written by chefs or about food in general such as the absolutely brilliant: Heat[^] And The man who ate everything[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
I just started reading Heat last night. It seems interesting so far.
Using the GridView is like trying to explain to someone else how to move a third person's hands in order to tie your shoelaces for you. -Chris Maunder
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
Dean Koontz and Michael Crichton have some great books. If not any of those, then What To Read Next might help you find a good book.
Trinity: Neo... nobody has ever done this before. Neo: That's why it's going to work.
-
For those of us in the Northern hemisphere going into summer and potentially holidays it's traditional to stock up on books that can be read on holidays while lazing beside a large body of water sipping the beverage of your choice. A good summer read should be a book that suits the mood of a relaxing holiday, enjoyable, not too deep but thought provoking is ok (I.E. not War and Peace), definitely fiction (NO PROGRAMMING BOOKS), ideally a single self contained novel, not a huge series etc. I'm taking the summer off after a hard 5+ years of straight long hours, anyone have any summer reading recommendations? My recommendations for a couple of classics: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury[^] While I read it many years ago it's an all time classic and I'd recommend The left hand of darkness by Ursula LeGuin[^]
"110%" - it's the new 70%
Well here's some stuff I've either read or am enjoying right now, it's admittedly Sci-Fi lovers list :) Greg Bear: Eon Eternity Darwins Radio Darwin's Children The Forge of God Anvil of the Stars Vitals Peter Hamilton: The Night's Dawn Trilogy (The Reality Dysfunction, The Neutronium Alchemist, The Naked God) A Second Chance at Eden Fallen Dragon I'm looking into Misspent Youth / Commonwealth Saga and Void Trilogy Ian Douglas: Semper Mars Luna Marine Europa Strike Star Corps Dan Simmons: Hyperion The Fall of Hyperion Illium Olympos Children of the Night Edgar Rice Burroughs: A Princess of Mars John Norman: Tarnsman of Gor Outlaw of Gor Priest-Kings of Gor Nomads of Gor -- modified at 15:17 Wednesday 6th June, 2007
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog
-
I really enjoyed Alexander McCall Smith's No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency[^] series. Yes, it's a series, but most of the novels are self-contained and short. If you like science fiction, then Iain M. Banks' is a good bet, especially (IMO) Consider Phlebas[^] and Player of Games[^]. I'd also recommend (some of) his non-sf books, especially Crow Road[^] (others, like Complicity and the Wasp Factory are probably an acquired taste...). If you're in the mood for something slightly off-the-wall, try J.G.Ballard - I very much enjoyed Cocaine Nights, Super-Cannes and Millenium People (his most recent novels) as well as some of his first ones (The Drowned World, The Burning World, The Crystal World - NOT a series, but related, as they're all 'end of world/civilization' fantasies). What else....if you can find it, Harry Harrison's 'A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah!' was a nice piece of 'alternate-world' fiction, as was Stephen Fry's 'Making History'. Neal Stephenson - not his enormo-tomes of recent years (although I *did* enjoy, and would recommend, 'Cryptonomicon'), but 'Snow Crash', 'The Diamond Age' and 'Zodiac'. If you can find room for some non-fiction, I can heartily recommend Simon Singh ('The Code Book', 'Fermats Last Theorem' aka 'Fermats Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem') and Dava Sobel ('Longitude'). If you have an interest in 'alternative' music, Michael Azerrad's 'Our Band Could Be Your Life' is excellent (and not just because the title is taken from a Minutemen song!). Well, that lot would keep me going for a couple of weeks if I were on a 'lounging
I second Iain M. Banks, his Culture books aare great :)
-
I just started reading Heat last night. It seems interesting so far.
Using the GridView is like trying to explain to someone else how to move a third person's hands in order to tie your shoelaces for you. -Chris Maunder
-
Well here's some stuff I've either read or am enjoying right now, it's admittedly Sci-Fi lovers list :) Greg Bear: Eon Eternity Darwins Radio Darwin's Children The Forge of God Anvil of the Stars Vitals Peter Hamilton: The Night's Dawn Trilogy (The Reality Dysfunction, The Neutronium Alchemist, The Naked God) A Second Chance at Eden Fallen Dragon I'm looking into Misspent Youth / Commonwealth Saga and Void Trilogy Ian Douglas: Semper Mars Luna Marine Europa Strike Star Corps Dan Simmons: Hyperion The Fall of Hyperion Illium Olympos Children of the Night Edgar Rice Burroughs: A Princess of Mars John Norman: Tarnsman of Gor Outlaw of Gor Priest-Kings of Gor Nomads of Gor -- modified at 15:17 Wednesday 6th June, 2007
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog