this post was submitted on 13 Jun 2023
35 points (100.0% liked)

Literature

5416 readers
7 users here now

Pretty straightforward: books and literature of all stripes can be discussed here.

If you're interested in posting your own writing, formal or informal, check out the Writing community!


This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 

There's a thread about how people find new books, and one of my favorite ways to find things to read was browsing comments from the weekly 'What are you reading' threads in r/truelit and r/books. So what is Lemmy reading?

I'm finishing The Passenger, and about to jump into John Williams' Stoner. Excited to see what is next!

top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Kebab@beehaw.org 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Currently I'm finishing the fifth book of the Wheel Of Time by Robert Jordan. Next will be the sixth book of the Wheel Of Time by Robert Jordan :)

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] oscillonoscope@beehaw.org 7 points 1 year ago

I just finished up reading The Return of the King for the first time since childhood. I like it a lot more than I remember. I think two things stuck out at me most: how dense it was compared to modern fantasy and how great the hobbits were portrayed. Fantasy tends to portray great heroes that came from nothing (ex. the chosen one/orphan trope). However, the hobbits were solely because they were common that they were able to do things the great heroes of their age couldn't.

Since then I've started reading Vineland by Thomas Pynchon. I kept hearing Pynchon's name come up for about a month at random and figured I should pick up one of his books. He has a very frenetic style that can be a bit difficult to parse but I'm loving his sense of humor.

[–] TheTrueLinuxDev@beehaw.org 7 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The Expanse, the whole book trilogy!

[–] ice9@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

Amazing series, be sure to check out the novellas as well! There are some guides online that will tell you where they happen chronologicaly

[–] probodyne@feddit.uk 3 points 1 year ago

It's a bit more than a trilogy lol. It's a nonology!

[–] BobKerman3999@feddit.it 7 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I'm re-reading all the discworld novels from sir Terry Pratchett, currently at Soul Music.

That's great! Whenever I'm feeling down, his books are mental comfort food that help me re-center. GNU sir Pterry!

[–] Deebster@beehaw.org 5 points 1 year ago

You're a few ahead of me on the re-read; Lords and Ladies is my next one. I'm taking my time though, I started in 2019.

GNU Terry Pratchett.

[–] ag_roberston_author@beehaw.org 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Making my way through Tigana by Guy Gabriel Kay. Really enjoying it so far.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] theDuesentrieb@beehaw.org 6 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Just finished Children of time by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Absolutely amazing uplift-scifi, but you better stay away from it if you have arachnophobia

load more comments (4 replies)
[–] FearTheCron@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago (9 children)

The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin. I love reading science fiction from people with engineering and science backgrounds. Another good book I finished recently was Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.

[–] dynamism@beehaw.org 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Project Hail Mary was such a fun read for me! I loved how concrete the engineering problems were throughout the book. It kept me tied to the stakes of the story.

Haven’t been able to finish Three Body Problem, unfortunately, it kind of lost me within the first 100 pages. May have to give it another shot! I hear a lot of good things about it.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] Maerman@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

If that's your vibe, try Blindsight by Peter Watts. It's a very technical examination of the phenomenon of consciousness which isn't afraid to get into the weeds, but never quite gets lost in them.

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (7 replies)
[–] Stalinwolf@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 year ago (2 children)
load more comments (2 replies)
[–] lardasshardass@beehaw.org 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Though I'm not much of a reader anymore, my wife has been absolutely obsessed with Sarah J Maas' Throne of Glass series. I enjoy listening to her talk about it and sum up the stories, wouldn't be surprised if it ended up on Netflix soon.

Any recommendations for audiobooks to listen to at work? I'm big on science/science fiction and philosophy, anything that challenges my way of thinking really.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] adi@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Just finished Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer (loved it, just discovered the "new weird" genre and it's totally my vibe). Now started reading The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco, the structure of the book and the setting seems cool and intriguing.

[–] lyam23@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago

Both great reads. I'd also recommend the second and third books following Annihilation, just know they are quite different. Good, but different.

[–] Dave_r@reddthat.com 2 points 1 year ago

If you liked Anniliation and the rest of the trilogy (well worth it!), Check out Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfeild.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] CrimsonOnoscopy@beehaw.org 5 points 1 year ago

Terry Pratchett's Jingo, currently. After that, more discworld.

[–] Abel@lemmy.nerdcore.social 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Bumped, a feminist dystopia where only teenagers can reproduce. The book is very confusing to get into (it's narrated by two teenagers in 2036, so you need to learn alll the slangs) and the writing style rubbed me off as amateurish, but it's been very entertaining nevertheless. It gets even funny when you get what's going on because teens be teens.

[–] BakChorM33@lemm.ee 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] ElusiveQuality@midwest.social 4 points 1 year ago

Just started book 8 of The Expance series

[–] somethingclever@beehaw.org 4 points 1 year ago

I’m reading through Le Guin’s Earthsea cycle for the first time, and I’m currently on Tales from Earthsea. Fantastic, unique books.

[–] flashgnash@lemm.ee 4 points 1 year ago (6 children)

I'd highly recommend We are legion we are Bob and off to be the wizard to any fellow tech nerds

We are legion we are bob is about a guy whose brain is uploaded as an AI into a Von Neumann probe and sent into space to explore the universe.

Off to be the wizard is about a guy who finds out the world is some kind of simulation, and there's essentially one big file detailing absolutely everything that can be edited, uses it to go back in time and live as a wizard and make spells with his programming skills

Both of them have plenty of nerdy references and humour, would highly recommend

load more comments (6 replies)
[–] styxbane@beehaw.org 4 points 1 year ago

I am deciding between finishing the long way to a Small angry planet or starting howls moving castle

[–] deigge@feddit.de 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Since November I'm slowly working through the The Witcher books. Just finished the 5th book recently and currently looking for a book I can read before I continue with the 6th book. Normally I read mostly in german but I'm thinking about picking a english book as my next book.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] hybridhavoc@darkfriend.social 3 points 1 year ago

@pptouchi
I'm reading Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

[–] Witch@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Just got a few books from my local library that I'm excited to start. I'm starting off with "Focused Forward: Navigating the Storms of Adult ADHD" by James M. Ochoa which I picked out because it was the smallest book in the ADHD category, ha.

I also got a book on Linux/Unix, Diabetes, a workbook for Bipolar, a healthy snack book, and an organization book. Not too too sure if I'll be able to finish it all by the time they're due, but its a nice varied selection.

load more comments (2 replies)

Roots by Alex Haley The Boat of a Million Years by Poul Anderson Ten Years of Madness: Oral Histories of China's Cultural Revolution by Feng Jicai

[–] ASH3S@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago

I'm currently reading Oblomov by Goncharov, after it I might jump to "Ears of corn under your sickle" by Karatkievič

[–] Mummelpuffin@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago

Well, I'm using Bookwyrm to keep track of that.

[–] TheSkoomaCat@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago

I've been getting into beekeeping so I'm soaking up as much info as I can. Just finished up Honey Bee Democracy by Tom Seeley. Fantastically interesting book regarding honey bee swarm preferences and decision making. Next up is an English translation of Beekeeping for All by Émile Warré, mostly because I want to read his thoughts on his hive style and management practices.

[–] tlwright@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I'm working my way through Thinking, Fast and Slow at a chapter a day. It took me a minute to get his point (well near the 30% mark, that is) but it's illuminating about how people think.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] howler0502@sopuli.xyz 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Currently reading "Spies: The Epic Intelligence War Between East and West," by Calder Walton.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] overlordror@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago

I usually keep a couple books going so I can switch between them. I'm currently reading The Escape Artist by Jonathan Freedland and Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea by Rita Chang-Eppig.

[–] CheeseQueen@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I really need to get back into reading, the last series I read was The Stormlight Archive and I really want to read some more Cosmere books

load more comments (3 replies)
[–] troyunrau@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Started book #9 of Malazan this morning on a flight. It's been a long ride, and I'm looking forward to a climax. That's literature, right? ;)

Last night I started reading Children of Time out loud to my GF as we fell asleep. It triggered an excellent conversation about biological imperatives and evolution. Plus, Portia is cool ;)

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] ice9@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

I really enjoyed the Expanse books, so just started one of the Author's other series, the Long Price Quartet

[–] Profilename1@sopuli.xyz 3 points 1 year ago

I've been reading Manufacturing Consent lately after hearing so much about it. It's very interesting through the new introduction and the first part, where the propaganda model is explained, but it drags some as the authors try to apply it to certain historical events, like the 1984 Nicaraguan Election.

Still, it's interesting, and while the model still applies to mainstream media today, the advent of the internet, smartphones, and social media's resulting displacement of mass media has lessened its effectiveness.

Kim Harrison’s Demons of Good and Evil that just came out yesterday :)

My partner is almost done with it already and is dying to talk about it but I’m taking my time xD

[–] eli@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 1 year ago (5 children)

Currently listening to Dust by Hugh Howey (book 3 of the Wool/Silo books)

Ive also been slowly reading MaddAddam by Margeret Atwood (book 3 of the MaddAddam series)

load more comments (5 replies)
[–] ebike_enjoyer@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Finished the sequel to Becky Chamber’s A Psalm For The Wild-Built. Can’t recommend this series more highly for a glimpse into a calming and peaceful alternative future.

load more comments (4 replies)
[–] HisNoodlyServant@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago

After quitting Reddit finally getting to my book backlog. The Expanse: The Sins of Our Fathers and then got to pick another old Star Trek book.

[–] katco@mstdn.social 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Finally almost finished with Neuromancer.

Then I'll be flipping to work mode and reading "The Grammar of Systems: From Order to Chaos & Back".

[–] frosty99c@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

I'm reading the savage detectives by Bolaño. I read it about 6 months ago and haven't stopped thinking about it. Re-reading it now in Spanish to help practice the language and it's great. He writes pretty simply and i can't put it down!

[–] B4tid0@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, a

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments
view more: next ›