Author Topic: What books are you reading now?  (Read 4633 times)

Offline Strawboss

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What books are you reading now?
« on: August 24, 2017, 06:59:23 PM »
I read, a lot, more so in the winter obviously, but year round though. Almost always paperback. I like the physical, tactile feeling of a book in my hands, I looked at those computer books, never, not me. Almost always fictional novels loosely based or centered around historical events or characters usually with some sort of military theme. Clancy, Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, John LeCarre, Robert Ludlum, Frederick Forsythe, Steven Coonts, Dale Brown, Schaara, Greg Iles. In between those, maybe a Clive Cussler, Harry Turtledove, a Steven King. I have some special books that I have to be in the right mood to read, Sparticus,  a Ken Follett, Mark Twain, James Fennimore Cooper, the Stieg Larsson trilogy etc... I read a textbook last year about the Battle of Britain, weird. I'm now reading an author named Ted Bell whose fictional character Lord Alexander Hawk is part Jack Reacher, Mitch Rapp, Scot Harvath, James Bond, Steven Segal, Sean Connery, and Jack Ryan, all rolled into one man who works covertly for MI6 dispatching terrorists. Its a bit hokey sometimes but reads fast and makes you think about all the stuff that happens behind the scenes that we never hear about in the war on terror. Who is reading what here? Books, just books. I like books.
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Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #1 on: August 25, 2017, 04:23:39 AM »
I have an extensive collection of SF paperbacks (1000+) that haven't been read in years.  Just finished Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Endless Universe.  Not really a great fan of hers but that one was pretty good.
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Offline B.D.F.

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #2 on: August 25, 2017, 07:55:00 AM »
Just finished 'Beyond Band of Brothers' by Dick Winters. A decent read but honestly, not all that much there beyond what Ambrose already wrote IMO.

Before that, 'Commander in Chief'. About the relationship between FDR and Churchill between the time of Operation Torch (the Allied invasion of North Africa) and D-day. Excellent read, mostly told through diary accounts of the many people surrounding both men, some well known, some not so much but all having a first- hand view. What made it good IMO, was that it was just like real life: messy, full of turmoil, in- fighting, one gazillion changes to several plans, none of which were actually used, at least not as initially intended. And the fine balance that made it all work, or at least work as well as it did.

Brian
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Offline Conrad

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #3 on: August 27, 2017, 07:59:53 AM »
I'm rereading The Dark Tower series, kinda

Starting with Eyes of The Dragon, then The Talisman, Black House, and on to the Dark Tower series.
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Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #4 on: August 27, 2017, 02:20:09 PM »
I'm going to do that as well.  You started me on them aeons ago.
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Offline Conrad

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #5 on: August 28, 2017, 05:07:10 AM »
I'm rereading The Dark Tower series, kinda

Starting with Eyes of The Dragon, then The Talisman, Black House, and on to the Dark Tower series.

I'm going to do that as well.  You started me on them aeons ago.

 :thumbs:

I suppose that The Stand should be included as well.
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Offline Strawboss

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #6 on: August 30, 2017, 07:19:29 AM »
Just finished "The Green Mile" by King, good, the movie closely followed the book with one exception in the plot, I won't say what it was, but,  it was expedient and necessary in the movie.
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Offline O.C.

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #7 on: August 31, 2017, 04:18:58 AM »
Just finished 'Captain Fantastic' (Elton John) and now starting to read George Best autobiography
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Offline B.D.F.

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #8 on: August 31, 2017, 09:56:10 AM »
Not sure which one you have or what is in print now but if possible, get the earlier, edited version. The version King likes is about 300 pages longer (and the short version is a long book) and they are not only unnecessary to the plot, they are a long series of spokes that go nowhere. I believe he was trying to add depth to the idea of how bleak things were but got a bit carried away IMO.

Not throwing rocks at it, it is a great book IMO but the longer version is not an improvement and actually detracts from the book. Again, IMO.

Brian

:thumbs:

I suppose that The Stand should be included as well.
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Offline Conrad

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #9 on: November 13, 2020, 05:41:43 AM »
I think that I'm going to have to order this one.

The President Is Missing
by James Patterson, Bill Clinton

The President Is Missing confronts a threat so huge that it jeopardizes not just Pennsylvania Avenue and Wall Street, but all of America. Uncertainty and fear grip the nation. There are whispers of cyberterror and espionage and a traitor in the Cabinet. Even the President himself becomes a suspect, and then he disappears from public view . . .

Set over the course of three days, The President Is Missing sheds a stunning light upon the inner workings and vulnerabilities of our nation. Filled with information that only a former commander in chief could know, this is the most authentic, terrifying novel to come along in many years.



Total fiction, right? Or is it?

https://smile.amazon.com/President-Missing-Novel-James-Patterson/dp/1538713837/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=The+President+Is+Missing&qid=1605270878&sr=8-1
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Offline Strawboss

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #10 on: November 13, 2020, 05:55:58 AM »
Have a good read. ;D
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Offline Strawboss

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #11 on: November 13, 2020, 10:17:38 AM »
"Role of Honor" by John Gardner, A retired James Bond goes after a computer genius. I started it just after Sean Connery died and can't help thinking of his voice as I read his lines in the book.
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Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #12 on: November 13, 2020, 10:29:24 AM »
Medicare enrollment.
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Offline Strawboss

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #13 on: November 13, 2020, 10:42:07 AM »
BORING Jim. ;D You need some fiction..........oh, yeah, no really. ;D
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Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #14 on: November 13, 2020, 01:39:18 PM »
You're right.  I've read that Medicare book a couple of times and still don't understand it.


Last fiction book I read was Elric of Melnibone (book 1) by Michael Moorcock.  I've got the rest of the series but it's buried in the basement.  Maybe I'll try to find the other books this weekend.
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Offline greenie

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #15 on: November 15, 2020, 04:59:18 AM »
Between retirement, Covid control measures and a long recovery from an accident I have read more this year than I usually read in two year's time.

Killing England  (American Revolution)
Killing Crazy Horse (America's treatment of Native Americans)
Mexico by Motorcycle (starting in 1971 the author extensively toured Mexico on motorcycles)
Pandemic 1918 - Eyewitness Accounts from the greatest medical holocaust in Modern History (40K of America's 100K WWI deaths from Spanish Flu_
The Impossible Rescue - The True Story of an Arctic Adventure (1,000+ miles by dogsleds and Reindeer to rescue trapped whalers)
Dead Mountain - The untold story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident (mysterious deaths of entire hiking party 1960 Ural Mtns)
Island of the Lost - An Extraordinary Story of Survival at the Edge of the World (2 shipwrecked crews in Auckland Islands -unaware of the other. One group is industrious and survives - the other group - not so much)
Buried In the Sky - Story of Sherpa Climbers on K-2's Deadliest Day (Himalayan climbing industry's effect on Sherpas)
Midnight at Chernobyl (Communism's illustrative colossal failure)
White Hurricane - America's Deadliest Marine Disaster (250 people killed, 19 ships sunk, 19 others stranded)
Angels - Billy Graham
Run the Storm - (El Faro story - some of the crew were from Maine)
The Rape of Nanking - (why isn't this atrocity not better known? A precursor to Japanese WWII aggression)
Ten Hours Until Dawn - (1978 Massachusetts blizzard - a daring citizen rescue attempt of stranded tanker crew that could have/should have ridden out the storm, and the Coast Guard's rescue recovery  )

Offline connie_rider

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #16 on: November 15, 2020, 07:06:56 AM »
I read differing types of books. Generally my wife finds something she likes and I get interested.
To name a few;
Currently reading a series by CJ Box. It's about a game Warden in Wyoming that get's involved in chasing all kinds of bad guys. Has a lot of description of the outdoors in the Mountains.

Before that we read a collection of books that were written by Holocaust survivors.
(It's amazing that any of them survived)

Being Military type, I sometimes get into war novels or documentaries.

Ride safe, Ted

Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #17 on: November 15, 2020, 07:16:34 AM »
I've got basically a library on military books surrounding me in my office.  Typically WWII, Korea, Vietnam.  Lots AF books.  I just dug out an elementary school book on President Washington.  I'm going to read that next.  One of my favorite Navy books is the one about Taffy 3 in WWII.  I get goosebumps saying Taffy 3.  The bravery of that task force is amazing to say the least.  And we (US) let many of the survivors drown after the battle due to incompetence in the higher ranks.
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Offline connie_rider

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #18 on: November 15, 2020, 07:38:46 AM »
I need to look into a Taffy III book. A book about that battle is being read by someone on the other Forum.

Ride safe, Ted

Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What books are you reading now?
« Reply #19 on: November 15, 2020, 07:50:24 AM »
The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors by James D. Hornfischer.
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