What are you reading tonight?

[Gary the Enfield]

Terry Pratchett's latest offering.

I shall wear midnight.

Wondering how long he'll keep on writing with the Alzheimers....

Is that the title?

Unseen Academicals was his usual brilliance but I suspect his books will become rarer.

Yes - I shall wear midnight is the title - it's been out in hardback for about 4-6 weeks - can grab it for a tenner in some supermarkets.

Jury's still out on Unseen Academicals - still not finished it...in fact my laptop is currently parked on top of it...

I usually get the paperbacks. U.A. is worth persevering with. A good take on football culture considering he doesn't particularly like the sport. Even Mrs Enfield enjoyed it, and she dislikes football in most forms.

[Worthy4England]

Terry Pratchett's latest offering.

I shall wear midnight.

Wondering how long he'll keep on writing with the Alzheimers....

Is that the title?

Unseen Academicals was his usual brilliance but I suspect his books will become rarer.

Yes - I shall wear midnight is the title - it's been out in hardback for about 4-6 weeks - can grab it for a tenner in some supermarkets.

Jury's still out on Unseen Academicals - still not finished it...in fact my laptop is currently parked on top of it...

I usually get the paperbacks. U.A. is worth persevering with. A good take on football culture considering he doesn't particularly like the sport. Even Mrs Enfield enjoyed it, and she dislikes football in most forms.

I certainly got more than half way through it, then it got put down due to other things, and hasn't been picked up again...

[William the White]

Tonight I finished David Mitchell's Black Swan Green - the third novel I've read by this very, very good writer.

I loved it. It tells the story of 1982 from the point of view of a 13 year old boy, with a disabling stammer, trying to live in an adolescent world of bullies at school, first sexual hints, parents struggling to keep together and a puzzling and frightening world of war and the bomb...

It is good. Very. Heartfelt. Funny. Truthful.

It is nothing like the other two novels I've read by this writer - it has a single narrator and a single narrative. It is more straightforward, more conventional. Easier.

I certainly preferred the other two - Ghostwritten and - especially - Cloud Atlas which I think one of the major British novels of the decade. But this novel has a lot of pleasure on offer also. I really do recommend it. a very good read.

I'd be interested in thebish's take, who I know has also read all three.

Am tempted to stay with Mitchell for the next choice also...

[Verbal]

Went to Waterstones today and picked up three books...they have a 3 for 2 offer on fiction, don't you know...

Got Camus's 'The Outsider' and Golding's 'Lord of the Flies', which have been on the to read list for a bit.

Also picked up 'Stone Junction' by Jim Dodge, which I hadn't heard of but looked cool. Anyone else read it?

[Prufrock]

Went to Waterstones today and picked up three books...they have a 3 for 2 offer on fiction, don't you know...

Got Camus's 'The Outsider' and Golding's 'Lord of the Flies', which have been on the to read list for a bit.

Also picked up 'Stone Junction' by Jim Dodge, which I hadn't heard of but looked cool. Anyone else read it?

Quite possibly my favourite book ever, certainly in the top few. Not particularly light, or light hearted, very introspectively philosophical. I loved it.

Lord of the Flies was ruined, I think, by studying it as a GCSE textbook, including one skin crawlingly awkward discussion of whether or not Simon or Piggy was masturbating. I think even so I quite liked it for a school book.

Never heard of the third one.

I finished last week 'The Justice Game', really really interesting account of the key trials of Geoffrey Robertson's career, from the obscenity trials of the 70s, featuring Oz, gay news, Mary Whitehouse, The Romans in Britain, to his work abroad including experience with the death penalty in the case of Michael X, all the way to questions of privacy when Princess Di tried to sue over pictures taken in her gym. All discussed in a simple yet comprehensive fashion with regards to the law, and with a more philosophical slant regarding things like the right to free speech/press, and our lack of a written constitution. Very highly recommended.

Then I read 'Rumpole at Christmas' in about 4 hours, by one of my heroes, John Mortimer. Belting.

Now I'm going to finally try Machiavelli's The Prince, got about 3 pages into the intro, but sacking it off and going straight in, can't be doing with that sort of thing beforehand.

[Bruce Rioja]

A guy at work has leant to me, and implores me to read, Fatty Batter by a guy called Michael Simkins. Apparently it's a 'must read' for those of us that still haven't quite come to terms with the fact that we were somehow overlooked by the test selectors!

[William the White]

Today I started novel number 4 by David Mitchell: The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet.

I'm three - short - chapters in and like it. There was some controversy from critics about this not making the Booker short list - even some naming it their novel of the year. It's already convincing me more than the two Booker listees I've read so far.

[Worthy4England]

A guy at work has leant to me, and implores me to read, Fatty Batter by a guy called Michael Simkins. Apparently it's a 'must read' for those of us that still haven't quite come to terms with the fact that we were somehow overlooked by the test selectors!

I shall have to put it on my list if it's any good then.

Got "Why are you so fat" about top sledging moments, at weekend (for Christmas - my daughter started early on the shopping)...So I can't read it yet

[mummywhycantieatcrayons]

I finished last week 'The Justice Game', really really interesting account of the key trials of Geoffrey Robertson's career, from the obscenity trials of the 70s, featuring Oz, gay news, Mary Whitehouse, The Romans in Britain, to his work abroad including experience with the death penalty in the case of Michael X, all the way to questions of privacy when Princess Di tried to sue over pictures taken in her gym. All discussed in a simple yet comprehensive fashion with regards to the law, and with a more philosophical slant regarding things like the right to free speech/press, and our lack of a written constitution. Very highly recommended.

Then I read 'Rumpole at Christmas' in about 4 hours, by one of my heroes, John Mortimer. Belting.

Now I'm going to finally try Machiavelli's The Prince, got about 3 pages into the intro, but sacking it off and going straight in, can't be doing with that sort of thing beforehand.

Have been meaning to get The Justice Game for a while...

Pru, you've got to download and listen to the podcast of this: http://www2.lse.ac.uk/publicEvents/even ... 0vSZT.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Brilliant stuff. How Jeremy Hutchinson is still that coherent is anyone's guess.

Good luck with the Prince... the intro is easier going than the body of the work! Perhaps this, another on my wish list, is an interesting way in?

http://www.politicos.co.uk/books/490808 ... chiavelli/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Also accompanied by a fine LSE podcast:

http://www2.lse.ac.uk/IDEAS/events/even ... owell.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I spoil you.

[KeeeeeeeBaaaaaaab]

Before it gets given to my brother for Christmas, I'm going to read The Biggest Ever Tim Vine Joke Book.

[Gary the Enfield]

Downloaded the Kindle app on the itouch.

Got the adventures of Sherlock Holmes free along with A Christmas Carol and Gullivers Travels all free.

Why pay £150 for a kindle?

[boltonboris]

Downloaded the Kindle app on the itouch.

Got the adventures of Sherlock Holmes free along with A Christmas Carol and Gullivers Travels all free.

Why pay £150 for a kindle?

Just seen that the app is also free! Cheers for that, Just downloaded it!

[thebish]

Downloaded the Kindle app on the itouch.

Got the adventures of Sherlock Holmes free along with A Christmas Carol and Gullivers Travels all free.

Why pay £150 for a kindle?

err.. maybe those who didn't want an i-touch?

[Dujon]

Yesterday I received a Kogan "e-reader" which I ordered a couple of days ago. It is shipped with 1500 books installed, most of which (at a quick shufti) I've never heard of. Still 'n all, I'm going to be busy sussing out the chaff and enjoying the wheat. Oh happy days.

As far as the unit goes I'm impressed. The "e-ink" system really does make the thing look like it presents a printed page. Formatting, in a book sense, is non-existent, but be honest, who buys a book just to enjoy large chapter headings? Not me, that's for sure. It's early days yet and I'm sure I'll find something to whinge about. Some might find it a nuisance, but I bought this unit for two reasons: I don't need some sort of fancy Wiifi conection and I can quite easily down load a book from the Internet to my desk-top computer and then transfer it to the Kogan.

[CAPSLOCK]

Bruce and Worthy

Fatty Batter is an absolute classic

[Gary the Enfield]

Downloaded the Kindle app on the itouch.

Got the adventures of Sherlock Holmes free along with A Christmas Carol and Gullivers Travels all free.

Why pay £150 for a kindle?

err.. maybe those who didn't want an i-touch?

Fair enough. But those who do have an i-touch can get for free what someone else will pay £150 just for the hardware.

[Lofthouse Lower]

That's a fair enough question. Bought a Kindle for my old man for Christmas, am tempted every day to unwrap it and give it a pop.

[thebish]

That's a fair enough question. Bought a Kindle for my old man for Christmas, am tempted every day to unwrap it and give it a pop.

bought one for my son for his 18th b'day - had been very sniffy about the idea before - but, having seen it, LOVELY peice of kit. I have no desire for mobile internet phones with sat-nav, cameras, video and apps for finding the nearest gay man wnting sex..... but - that's a gadget I'd be hapy to find in my stocking (except I won't!)

[Gary the Enfield]

That's a fair enough question. Bought a Kindle for my old man for Christmas, am tempted every day to unwrap it and give it a pop.

bought one for my son for his 18th b'day - had been very sniffy about the idea before - but, having seen it, LOVELY peice of kit. I have no desire for mobile internet phones with sat-nav, cameras, video and apps for finding the nearest gay man wnting sex..... but - that's a gadget I'd be hapy to find in my stocking (except I won't!)

Nor I. Which is why I have an i-touch.

[thebish]

That's a fair enough question. Bought a Kindle for my old man for Christmas, am tempted every day to unwrap it and give it a pop.

bought one for my son for his 18th b'day - had been very sniffy about the idea before - but, having seen it, LOVELY peice of kit. I have no desire for mobile internet phones with sat-nav, cameras, video and apps for finding the nearest gay man wnting sex..... but - that's a gadget I'd be hapy to find in my stocking (except I won't!)

Nor I. Which is why I have an i-touch.

(I should point out that I have no idea what an i-touch is! is it a posh MP3-player?) how big is the screen?