Funny that, I just picked up a copy of Fahrenheit 451 yesterday.

"The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway

f451 is really good, but i've never read anything else by bradbury, though i've been told that his other stuff is way more far out sci-fi reading.
confederacy of dunces really isnt that good? it's been recommended to me, but i haven't read it yet.

and PLEASE, PUT DOWN "the sun also rises" and all other hemingway books.

i whole-heartedly agree. hocus pocus is good, but not his best. his "worst" is still better than most other author's "best".

oh, and about 2 days ago i decided i'm going to try to become the next (maybe even first) big vonnegut scholar. looks like i have something to put my english (and history) major towards.

I wouldn't say Confederacy is bad by any means..it's a pretty amusing book, it just hasn't 'grabbed' me I guess. Everyone I talk to loved it. I would still recommend checking it out.

Not a fan of Hemingway I take it. I've just always been curious. I did enjoy "The Old Man and The Sea" but that's the only thing I've read of his.

Also does anyone use Swaptree.com? I think it's still invite only but it's a nice trading site for books, dvds, music, and games. I've started using it in the last month. If anyone is interested I can find out about sending invitations.

Papillon by Henri Charriere.

Mao has to be ranked as one of the worst, if not the worst, human being. He cared nothing about anything but power for himself.

Haruki Murakami - After Dark. A good effort by Murakami, on par with Kafka on the Shore. Meaning it is a great book for those looking to read something by him, and decent for fans. Not as involved as Kafka, and not nearly as involved as Wind-Up Bird Chronicles. Almost feels like an extended short story or novella rather than a new nove. This is supernatural Murakami, not realistic murakami, and for them what need an occasional Murakami fix, it suffices. I'd rate it 7/10 compared to general fiction, 4/10 for Murakami. Story about a couple of characters which takes place during one night.

Christopher Moore - You Suck. Another merely OK novel from one of my favorite authors. Perfect beach reading material. Funny, not at all serious. Extremely entertaining. Great to see old characters. He dedicated this book to all the fans who screamed for a follow-up to Bloodsucking Fiends, and while it's nice to get "the rest of the story" (although not quite...), I wouldn't say it's even as good as his other feel-good-reminiscing-about-characters-from-books-past, The Stupidest Angel. Again, 7/10 for general fiction, 5/10 for Moore.

Chuck Palahniuk - Rant. What is it about authors mining their own backlist for novel ideas? This is like Fight Club meets Haunted, with a bit of Survivor thrown in for good measure. Again, a stalwart effort by P, just that it's more familiar than not. A for effort, C for entertaining fans with something new, different, and surprising. What is it with his penchant for pathology?

I like all these authors, they are among my favorites, but c'mon guys, how 'bout something we can sink our teeth into for a change? I would not dissuade anyone from reading any of these, they are still good books with more to them than most of the dreck being pumped out nowadays, and any of them would make for a agreat introduction to the works of these authors. Read them if you want to check out a great new author or are looking for what you like from them already. All three are kinda like a new AC/DC album--you know what you are getting, and sometimes that's a good thing.

It's gut-wrenching. I haven't seen the movie yet. And I don't care if the world's most annoying actress is in it. It still looks good.

Recommended by my brother

Just finished The Dharma Bums by Kerouac (for the third time...I'm not a wannabe hippie ******bag, I swear! I've never even seen a coffee shop!!). Just started 101 Reykjavic, by Hallgrimur Helgason. All about sexual depravity in modern Iceland. How depressing.

Don't listen to Kilgore. Hemingway was an amazing author.

I just knocked that one off earlier this summer after a bunch of personal recommendations. I found it a little strange at first, but I loved it by the end. How far are you?

Vonnegut is my all-time favorite. Finished



last week on vacation, and it has to be my favorite so far- at least as cynical as all of his others I've read (I think five) combined.

I ended up moving on to something else. I will read it someday, I've started it a few times now. I don't know why, I just can't get into it.

Just finished this yesterday.

Yeah, it's definitely a love it or hate it book. I've really never read anything else remotely like it.

Currently reading the Scarlet Letter by Hawthorne and The Van by Roddy Doyle. I love the later of the two. The other one is just for school preparation (teaching).

^I love transcendentalism and anti-transcendentalism.

Reading Stephenson's Cryptonomicon and Gibson's classic Neuromancer.

Cyberpunk FTW.

new Gibson is sitting on my table waiting `spook country'

Ooh I will check that out soon. Loving Necromancer so far.

I've liked cyberpunk since I got into anime and after reading Snow Crash I was hooked. Good stuff.

Just finished Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safron Foer.

I'm now reading To The Lighthouse by Woolf.

In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio