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Post by fitzoliverj on Mar 15, 2020 19:54:01 GMT
Hopefully this will be an unnecessary procedure, but just in case, I was thinking it might be a good idea if everybody here recommended a book that people should have on hand to keep them through any week or fortnight or three-month isolation (rather than simply your favourite book, or a book you think people would like or ought to read).
I'm going to kick off with a very very big and very very cheap book, Frank Muir's huge anthology of comic English literature. Perfect for delving into at random over a long period.
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 15, 2020 20:04:14 GMT
Hmm. I have a long list of stuff on my kindle I have not had the time for, yet. Among them steam punk Stephen Hunt‘s Mission to Mightadore, the latest Rivers of London release and Crooked River, the latest Pendergast novel. All three series are my absolute favorites and I just love the characters and world building in these. And of course I also have Sophie Aldred‘s audiobook on my iPad, and from what I heard, it also is most excellent. I think I am actually prepared for the sadly inevitable event that I either have to stay at home in quarantine or the temporary shut down of my work place. And there are worst things in life for an introvert than to be locked up for a couple of weeks with some good books. Honestly, sitting outside in the sun today on my balcony and actually dosing off over a comic book and some BF was the most relaxing thing I could have done in the situation.
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Post by Audio Watchdog on Mar 15, 2020 20:12:37 GMT
The Hot Zone by Richard Preston
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Post by timegirl on Mar 15, 2020 20:18:20 GMT
Good Omens, it’s hilarious, heartwarming, profound and packed with footnotes (they will keep you busy😉) !
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy another long and hilarious book plus it has the repeated word of “Don’t Panic” (something that we all need right now)
American Gods, it’s not funny like the other two but it is a long and intriguing urban fantasy novel that would keep you immersed for ages.
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Post by timegirl on Mar 15, 2020 20:19:13 GMT
Hmm. I have a long list of stuff on my kindle I have not had the time for, yet. Among them steam punk Stephen Hunt‘s Mission to Mightadore, the latest Rivers of London release and Crooked River, the latest Pendergast novel. All three series are my absolute favorites and I just love the characters and world building in these. And of course I also have Sophie Aldred‘s audiobook on my iPad, and from what I heard, it also is most excellent. I think I am actually prepared for the sadly inevitable event that I either have to stay at home in quarantine or the temporary shut down of my work place. And there are worst things in life for an introvert than to be locked up for a couple of weeks with some good books. Honestly, sitting outside in the sun today on my balcony and actually dosing off over a comic book and some BF was the most relaxing thing I could have done in the situation. Rivers of London is a brilliant book series!😀
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 15, 2020 20:24:39 GMT
Hmm. I have a long list of stuff on my kindle I have not had the time for, yet. Among them steam punk Stephen Hunt‘s Mission to Mightadore, the latest Rivers of London release and Crooked River, the latest Pendergast novel. All three series are my absolute favorites and I just love the characters and world building in these. And of course I also have Sophie Aldred‘s audiobook on my iPad, and from what I heard, it also is most excellent. I think I am actually prepared for the sadly inevitable event that I either have to stay at home in quarantine or the temporary shut down of my work place. And there are worst things in life for an introvert than to be locked up for a couple of weeks with some good books. Honestly, sitting outside in the sun today on my balcony and actually dosing off over a comic book and some BF was the most relaxing thing I could have done in the situation. Rivers of London is a brilliant book series!😀 So is the Invisible Library series (Fantasy) by Genevieve Cogman
the Jackelian Series (Steam Punk) by Stephen Hunt
and the Pendergast series (think X files) by Doublas Preston and Lincoln Child.
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Post by charlesuirdhein on Mar 15, 2020 20:27:50 GMT
New Suns. Original Speculative Fiction by people of color. It's good to get other perspectives, so much of fantasy/sci fi is default white.
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Post by grinch on Mar 15, 2020 20:31:40 GMT
Now might be the best time actually to read something as long as War and Peace.
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Post by timegirl on Mar 15, 2020 20:37:42 GMT
Oh and if during this time you do read American Gods and enjoy that you could immediately follow it up with the semi sequel/companion novel Anansi Boys, which is equally good and a bit more playful as well😊
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Post by sherlock on Mar 15, 2020 20:45:33 GMT
I have a massive book of the Sherlock Holmes canon in needing of finishing, I’ve been working through it on and off for years.
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 15, 2020 20:47:35 GMT
I have a massive book of the Sherlock Holmes canon in needing of finishing, I’ve been working through it on and off for years. Oh god. I got that for my kindle, too, since I got it for free a few years ago. I have only dabbled in it so far.
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Post by constonks on Mar 15, 2020 21:04:01 GMT
(Other than the next hundred-or-so books on the Doctor Who shelf...)
I had a plan to read the next book in a few series I'm in the midst of - but sadly, some of them I was picking up from the library and they've just been shut down for three weeks. So Narnia, Lord of the Rings and the Thrawn trilogy will have to wait.
But the next... - James Bond (#2 - Live and Let Die) - Rivers of London (#6 - The Hanging Tree) - & Hitchhiker's (#3 - Life, the Universe and Everything - that's a re-read*)
...are all on the shelf! I might also have to pick up the second Lethbridge-Stewart novel to go along with the theme.
I've also just picked up a copy of Flatland which is a quick read so I'll probably read that first, after I finish off Doctor Who and the Sea-Devils - hopefully later today!
*Although part of the point of the Hitchhiker's re-read is to go onto the Eoin Colfer sequel that I picked up on release and never finished!
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Post by sherlock on Mar 15, 2020 21:10:50 GMT
(Other than the next hundred-or-so books on the Doctor Who shelf...) I had a plan to read the next book in a few series I'm in the midst of - but sadly, some of them I was picking up from the library and they've just been shut down for three weeks. So Narnia, Lord of the Rings and the Thrawn trilogy will have to wait. But the next... - James Bond (#2 - Live and Let Die) - Rivers of London (#6 - The Hanging Tree) - & Hitchhiker's (#3 - Life, the Universe and Everything - that's a re-read*) ...are all on the shelf! I might also have to pick up the second Lethbridge-Stewart novel to go along with the theme. I've also just picked up a copy of Flatland which is a quick read so I'll probably read that first, after I finish off Doctor Who and the Sea-Devils - hopefully later today! *Although part of the point of the Hitchhiker's re-read is to go onto the Eoin Colfer sequel that I picked up on release and never finished!Oh it’s been too long since I read Hitchhiker’s. I have read the Colfer sequel but honestly can’t remember anything about it.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2020 21:35:15 GMT
The Hundred Year Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared - Jonas Jonasson
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Post by constonks on Mar 15, 2020 21:42:35 GMT
Oh it’s been too long since I read Hitchhiker’s. I have read the Colfer sequel but honestly can’t remember anything about it. I read the series back in high school (2005/2006 I believe) and it basically rewrote my own writing style into a cheap knockoff of Douglas Adams. I've dipped back into it a few times since then - mostly the first book - and listened to the radio series. Then I finally picked up my own hard copies of books 2 to 5 when I found the Pan Commemorative Versions of them used and thought that called for a re-read of the series (and finally finishing And Another Thing...)
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
Likes: 5,813
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Post by lidar2 on Mar 17, 2020 22:29:49 GMT
Wuthering Heights
My all time favourite novel ever
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shutupbanks
Castellan
There’s a horror movie called Alien? That’s really offensive. No wonder everyone keeps invading you.
Likes: 5,669
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Post by shutupbanks on Mar 17, 2020 22:48:02 GMT
My colleagues got me an omnibus of every Earthsea novel and short story by Ursula leGuin for my birthday. Might be a good time to knuckle down and finish it. I’ve been a terrible reader the couple months.
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Post by Digi on Mar 17, 2020 22:54:51 GMT
Some 'genre' favourites of mine:
The original Foundation trilogy by Isaac Asimov (Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation, in that order). Asimov as much as admitted in the foreword of one of the later sequels/prequels written after these three (that tied the Foundation and I, Robot universes together) that he only did it because the publisher threw a whole lot of money at him, so they're really nowhere near as good.
Tolkien's The Silmarillion. If it's your first time, feel free to skip the first section, "Ainulindalë". I'm a big Tolkienite, and I often skip it when re-reading. The rest of the book is great, but that first section is just unbearably dry.
James S.A. Corey's The Expanse series (upon which the terrific TV show is based).
Frank Herbert's Dune series. Just the ones he wrote, don't waste your time with the garbage his son has milked out of the brand with Kevin J Anderson.
Some non-fiction ones I've read in recent years and enjoyed/appreciated for one reason or another: - Bill Browder's Red Notice - Johnny Cash's autobiography, aptly titled Cash: The Autobiography - Barbara Demick's Nothing to Envy - David Lynch's autobiography Room to Dream (co-written with Kristine McKenna)
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 18, 2020 8:15:40 GMT
Some 'genre' favourites of mine: The original Foundation trilogy by Isaac Asimov ( Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation, in that order). Asimov as much as admitted in the foreword of one of the later sequels/prequels (that tied the Foundation and I, Robot universes together) that he only did it because the publisher threw a whole lot of money at him, so they're really nowhere near as good. Tolkien's The Silmarillion. If it's your first time, feel free to skip the first section, "Ainulindalë". I'm a big Tolkienite, and I often skip it when re-reading. The rest of the book is great, but that first section is just unbearably dry. James S.A. Corey's The Expanse series (upon which the terrific TV show is based). Frank Herbert's Dune series. Just the ones he wrote, don't waste your time with the garbage his son has milked out of the brand with Kevin J Anderson. Some non-fiction ones I've read in recent years and enjoyed/appreciated for one reason or another: - Bill Browder's Red Notice
- Johnny Cash's autobiography, aptly titled Cash: The Autobiography- Barbara Demick's Nothing to Envy- David Lynch's autobiography Room to Dream (co-written with Kristine McKenna) I love Foundation and Dune.
This reminds me, I still have the Foundation audio drama with Geoffrey Beevers in my audio backlog somewhere...
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Mar 18, 2020 9:20:04 GMT
Some 'genre' favourites of mine: The original Foundation trilogy by Isaac Asimov ( Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation, in that order). Asimov as much as admitted in the foreword of one of the later sequels/prequels (that tied the Foundation and I, Robot universes together) that he only did it because the publisher threw a whole lot of money at him, so they're really nowhere near as good. Tolkien's The Silmarillion. If it's your first time, feel free to skip the first section, "Ainulindalë". I'm a big Tolkienite, and I often skip it when re-reading. The rest of the book is great, but that first section is just unbearably dry. James S.A. Corey's The Expanse series (upon which the terrific TV show is based). Frank Herbert's Dune series. Just the ones he wrote, don't waste your time with the garbage his son has milked out of the brand with Kevin J Anderson. Some non-fiction ones I've read in recent years and enjoyed/appreciated for one reason or another: - Bill Browder's Red Notice
- Johnny Cash's autobiography, aptly titled Cash: The Autobiography- Barbara Demick's Nothing to Envy- David Lynch's autobiography Room to Dream (co-written with Kristine McKenna) I love Foundation and Dune.
This reminds me, I still have the Foundation audio drama with Geoffrey Beevers in my audio backlog somewhere...
Is that the BBC version from the 1970s? I remember it being absolutely packed with familiar faces. Gabrief Woolfe (Sutekh), Maurice Denham (Azmael), Julian Glover (Richard the Lionheart), David Gooderson (Davros)...
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