Current book being read/just finished

[Troy Loney]

I read a lot and I read fast. I can easily read a 300-page book in a couple hours.

My wife is the same way and I'm jealous of both of you. I love to read, but I'm not a fast reader. Not slow either, but I wish I could go through my lists faster as I'm adding more than I'm taking off

That's an impressive skill, I wish I could read that fast. I typically get through about 30 pages an hour

[Idoit40fans]

Thats a out how fast i am. I can actually retain information if i focus on reading fast and go about a page a minute or so, but when im not focused it slows down to like a page every 2 minute or maybe 2 pages in 3 minutes.

[Shyster]

I don't read as fast as my mother does. She can be scary fast if high comprehension is not needed. Back when book stores were more common and Waldenbooks was all over the place, she would go in and just stand at the shelves and read a decently sized book in maybe 30 minutes. I would go browse around the store for something to buy, and by the time I was done shopping she would have finished whatever she picked up.

It can be a little annoying at times, because books don't last—for example, I wait years for GRRM to finally cough up another book and then read it in less than 12 hours. I also used to buy Harry Potter books at the midnight release parties, drive home, read straight through the night, and be done with the book by somewhere around 10 a.m.

[Idoit40fans]

If i could read like that, thats pretty much all i would do.

[Hockeynut!]

I read pretty quick too. Sometimes too fast and I feel like I miss out on the quality of the writing, especially when the prose is enjoyable. I like audio books for that reason, as I can't rush through them to find out what happens next, and I appreciate the writing more.

[pittsoccer33]

even as a kid one of my biggest gripes about reading was how uncomfortable it was. laying on my back holding up a book, or laying on my stomach propping my shoulders up with my arms. both hurt eventually.

that's why I love ebooks. I can sit in my easy chair and read on my tv.

[shafnutz05]

Despite living a good 40 minutes away, I still love being able to visit Chester County Library in Exton, PA. It's a huge library, but when I go there, I find myself just getting absolutely lost between the stacks. I'll even sit down and read a magazine or two if I have the time.

[Idoit40fans]

even as a kid one of my biggest gripes about reading was how uncomfortable it was. laying on my back holding up a book, or laying on my stomach propping my shoulders up with my arms. both hurt eventually.

that's why I love ebooks. I can sit in my easy chair and read on my tv.

Haha that was always so annoying. Still a problem laying in bed with my phone.

[eddysnake]

Writeup on the movie
http://www.slashfilm.com/new-inherent-vice-image/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Digitalgypsy66]

My wife can do that, read a book at a bookstore or library in one sitting. Ah, the free time we had before becoming parents...hours spent at Barnes and Noble/Books a Million, reading and enjoying life. Now, our kids love bookstores (and libraries, naturally), but it's too expensive for us to hang out there too often.

[eddysnake]

Inherent Vice is really great so far, it's one of those books where you start and don't want to put it down, but I don't want it to end either, so I've been milking it to keep it going.

[Troy Loney]

Inherent Vice is really great so far, it's one of those books where you start and don't want to put it down, but I don't want it to end either, so I've been milking it to keep it going.

Great setting with some great characters, I reall enjoyed that book, will definitely reread at some point.

[eddysnake]

Inherent Vice is really great so far, it's one of those books where you start and don't want to put it down, but I don't want it to end either, so I've been milking it to keep it going.

Great setting with some great characters, I reall enjoyed that book, will definitely reread at some point.

have you read anything else by Thomas Pynchon?

[Troy Loney]

Yeah, V, Vineland Gravity's Rainbow & Crying Lot of 49.

I like Vineland and Inherent Vice the best....they are just easier books.

[eddysnake]

I'll admit it took me a good bit to get use to his style, but it's flowing pretty well now. I have a feeling you probably benefit a bit more from reading his books in large chunks than spacing them out (which I'm doing now and have definitely went back to reread earlier stuff again)

[Troy Loney]

Authentically, or how white people choose to remember those good old days?

It's just super dense and basically gives an equal amount of attention to every development of the decade from:

The H Bomb Debates, Brown vs Board, The election of Eisenhower, the ascent of Nixon, the development of suburbs, mcdonalds, and franchising. Motels and the spread of the highway system. The growth and power of GM. Television - Milton Berle and Ed Sullivan. The beats. Eli Kazan and Brando's relationship. Just read the elvis passage, and stopped at james dean today.

I'm only like 140 pages in and absolutely loving it.The sections on the h-bomb / MacArthur was great stuff

I finished yesterday. I found the marilyn monroe and hugh hefner stuff boring, and was a little upset to learn how the 1960 election actually played out. Or atleast that kennedy won because Castro basically sided with the soviets after he took power, thus the Eisenhower/Nixon regime was too "soft" on communism. There is a great quote at the end of the book from Dean Aschecon about the TV political candidates and how it changed politicians running for national to completely fake people.

[Gaucho]

Yeah, V, Vineland Gravity's Rainbow & Crying Lot of 49.

I like Vineland and Inherent Vice the best....they are just easier books.

V. is my favorite with Gravity's Rainbow close second. But I love everything Pynchon has ever written. Well, except maybe his earliest short stories.

[Troy Loney]

I enjoyed V more than Gravitys Rainbow, that was just too much stuff going over my head. Those are both just really demanding books, the sort of book that I'll need to reread just to get a better appreciation..for all the stuff i missed the first time around.

[PensFanInDC]

even as a kid one of my biggest gripes about reading was how uncomfortable it was. laying on my back holding up a book, or laying on my stomach propping my shoulders up with my arms. both hurt eventually.

that's why I love ebooks. I can sit in my easy chair and read on my tv.

Is there anything you don't use your TV for?

[Troy Loney]

Finished Motherless Brooklyn last weekend. Good read, definitely recommend it.

[eddysnake]

really enjoyed Inherent Vice, looking forward to seeing how it plays out in the theater. Loved all his characters he created.

[dodint]

Looking for a travel/road trip book to escape with this weekend. Might as well start with the obvious, Travels with Charley in Search of America by Steinbeck. Depending how it is I might follow up with Steigerwalds take-down of it.

Steigerwald lacks the prose of Steinbeck, but his book is much meatier and dare I say more interesting. I'm about halfway through and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. The tone isn't so much "haha, Steinbeck was a LIAR!" as it is "his book was sold as nonfiction which is really dishonest, and here's why."

If you were a fan of Travels With Charley and not overly sensitive the Steigerwald book is very good. Thoroughly researched, nice pacing and tone, and his beef is more with the publisher than with JS himself. Also, the Pittsburgh tie-in is nice as he references 'home' a good bit. Dogging Steinbeck is a fun read.

[PensFanInDC]

King is releasing a 5 part Drawing of the Three prequel that follows Eddie as a child. Very interested in that. His new book Revival also looks good.

[dodint]

That's the one part of the King corpus that I haven't delved into at all. The Dark Tower stuff is just too much fantasy to work for me. I might try it someday after he's dead and everything is published but for now it's just too much.

Speaking of King, my wife (a runner) and I listened to The Gingerbread Girl on audiobook on the way to the beach this weekend. I told her it was a story about a woman runner who moves to a beach house and lives happily ever after. The opening line kind of betrayed me, though. Decent novella.

[Gaucho]

Finished Motherless Brooklyn last weekend. Good read, definitely recommend it.

Lethem's latest, "Dissident Gardens", was a little ... laborious. Still, not a bad read.