Read more books - 2017 edition • Non-Gaming • Books • Eurogamer.net

rice_sandwich 14 Feb 2017 12:51:00 6,452 posts
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This is a reboot of the old 'Read 52 in 52 weeks' thread. But instead of reading 52 books the aim is just to read more books than you usually do.

Feel free to post your read so far list and whatever else about books. You should still post on the seldom used but useful 'Rate the last book you read' thread to give recommendations etc.

rice_sandwich 14 Feb 2017 13:30:54 6,452 posts
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I read about 35 books in 2015 and 25 in 2016. This year I'm aiming for about 30 books or about 12000 pages. Most books seem to be 3-400 pages so seems a reasonable target to shoot for. Reading regularly is the main thing.

2017 so far

Non-Fiction

1. The Genius of Birds
2. Food Rules

Fiction

Nothing yet. Will probably reread The Guest Cat for starters. I love it.

Dougs 14 Feb 2017 13:34:23 94,595 posts
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Couldn't we just use the "rate the last book you read" thread?

rice_sandwich 14 Feb 2017 13:39:44 6,452 posts
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Could do but the separation of the 52 games thread and the rate the last game thread works well as they have different purposes/audiences.

You also don't want me going all crazy noodle and actually rating absolutely everything I read. Happy to follow the majority view, though.

Salaman 14 Feb 2017 15:11:43 23,838 posts
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I've read 3 books so far. Working on number 4. No way will I do 1 a week but I'd be happy if I manage 15-20 this year.

simpleexplodingmaybe 14 Feb 2017 15:16:30 13,958 posts
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Apparently I'm on a big non-fiction kick this year - up 4-2 against fiction.
I'm guessing that now I'm reading for pleasure again instead of reading to escape my postgrad research my interests and attention span are both broadening back out to where they were before I went back to uni.

Listening to Robin & Josie's Book Shambles has helped really flesh out my too read pile and amazon wishlist too.

THFourteen 14 Feb 2017 15:20:34 53,819 posts
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I read more books last year than in the last 5 years combined i think.

Two reasons for this

1) ditched the ipad in favour of a kindle for my commute
2) was reading battletech books - very easy to read and lots of them. Think i must have read about 25

Expecting that number to decrease massively this year, already mid feb and not read a single book due to buying a 2DS

wuntyate 14 Feb 2017 15:30:11 14,926 posts
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Doing okay this year so far. Finally finished my re-read of It and have since read the new Rebus (Rather be the Devil) and quite a good book by Blake Crouch - Abandon (which took me by surprise, really enjoyed it).

Started a Graham Masterton jobbie now and still working my way through Hal Duncan's Vellum. Then it's on to David Mitchell's Slade House.

I've always got one on the go on the kindle and something different in hardback / paperback for whatever I'm in the mood for.

Dougs 14 Feb 2017 15:37:14 94,595 posts
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I'm reading the book of the new BAffleck film, Live by Night. Or Day, I forget. It's garbage. Shame, as I like Lehane generally.

PazJohnMitch 14 Feb 2017 15:42:51 15,986 posts
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1 crazy noodle is already approximately 0.9 times too many.

simpleexplodingmaybe 14 Feb 2017 16:40:04 13,958 posts
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The Power by Naomi Alderman is probably my favourite of what I've read so far. Sci-fi in a contemporary setting in which women gain the power to electrocute people and the social and political fallout of that. Lots of modern issues of sexism and refugees and stuff like that. Not quite as preachy as that makes it sound though.

nickthegun 14 Feb 2017 16:44:49 82,264 posts
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I'm reading Lord of Light. Nearly 50 years old and still fantastic.

robc84 14 Feb 2017 19:01:11 14,506 posts
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I don't get much spare time for reading, what with kids and my daily commute being by car 90% of the time.

I've been working my way through A song of ice and fire series over the last couple of years. Slow I know but I keep taking long breaks. On book 5 now, although 4 and 5 so far have been a bit meh.

Looking forward to getting this one done and moving on to something else.

TheBear 14 Feb 2017 19:03:55 4,732 posts
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robc84 wrote:
I don't get much spare time for reading, what with kids and my daily commute being by car 90% of the time.

.

Audiobooks are your friend. I got into them last year and it's transformed my commute. 2-4 hours a day of 'reading' in audiobook format.

Rodney 14 Feb 2017 21:49:53 4,465 posts
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That's called 'listening'.

wuntyate 14 Feb 2017 23:51:36 14,926 posts
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@robc84 toilet breaks man. They are my reading salvation. Careful though as too many will give you piles, especially if you get to a good bit of the book.

Uh. Apparently.

Anyway I notice you're staying out the nioh thread. Wise man. Wise.

simpleexplodingmaybe 15 Feb 2017 00:26:54 13,958 posts
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aaaaaaaawwwwwwww yeah

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/feb/15/philip-pullman-unveils-epic-fantasy-trilogy-the-book-of-dust

robc84 15 Feb 2017 06:41:47 14,506 posts
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@wuntyphyve

Ha, I'll bear that in mind

Salaman 15 Feb 2017 09:16:02 23,838 posts
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simpleexplodingmaybe wrote:
The Power by Naomi Alderman is probably my favourite of what I've read so far. Sci-fi in a contemporary setting in which women gain the power to electrocute people and the social and political fallout of that. Lots of modern issues of sexism and refugees and stuff like that. Not quite as preachy as that makes it sound though.

Finished that just a few days ago. I quite liked it as a yarn. Less so as a comment on society and the role of women therein.

I read it right after 'Magpie murders' which also uses the 'book within a book' device, so I was a little bit put off by that at first.
The reviews on goodread were bizarre, from 1-2 stars, calling it incoherent drivel to 5 stars holding it up as some sort of 1984 for male-female roles in society.

JoelStinty 15 Feb 2017 09:23:40 8,922 posts
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Salaman wrote:

simpleexplodingmaybe wrote:
The Power by Naomi Alderman is probably my favourite of what I've read so far. Sci-fi in a contemporary setting in which women gain the power to electrocute people and the social and political fallout of that. Lots of modern issues of sexism and refugees and stuff like that. Not quite as preachy as that makes it sound though.
Finished that just a few days ago. I quite liked it as a yarn. Less so as a comment on society and the role of women therein.

I read it right after 'Magpie murders' which also uses the 'book within a book' device, so I was a little bit put off by that at first.
The reviews on goodread were bizarre, from 1-2 stars, calling it incoherent drivel to 5 stars holding it up as some sort of 1984 for male-female roles in society.

Sadly i suspect because she is a woman writing Sci-fi. Suspect Good Reads isn't free from internet warriors charms.

Talking of sci-fi, someone recommended Cixin Liu's The Three Body problem the other day, any good?

simpleexplodingmaybe 15 Feb 2017 10:02:32 13,958 posts
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I've got Three Body Problem on my wishlist. Obama was really hot on it in an NYT interview I read with him on books he read while in office.

I didn't think there was anything too controversial about how the social commentary ran through The Power. I'm just not sure it always kept up with the pace of the personal narratives. It could be a real hit if the producers of Broadchurch get their adaptation of it right.

mal 15 Feb 2017 15:44:55 29,326 posts
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This year I've been mostly getting round to reading books I've had on the shelves for a while. Firstly, in non-fiction, Einstein Lived Here by Abraham Pais. It's a sequel to his first book about Einstein, and possibly therefore a bit of an amalgam of all the bits of research not good enough to make the first book, but I've never read that, and to be honest right now, fuck that. Definite hillbilly. I got this book as a prize for some shit I did in school.

Next I read The Catcher in the Rye (Salinger) which I bought during my first job as an adult, which tbh might have been the more salient time to read it and expand my horizons. As is, the protagonist seems a bit too much of a dick, but I can live with that.

And currently I'm a few chapters in to Watching the English by Kate Fox which I must have bought soon after publication. Its written in a lively style, but the dissection of english manners sometimes cuts a little too close to the bone.

simpleexplodingmaybe 15 Feb 2017 16:01:55 13,958 posts
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I feel like I missed the opportunity to read Catcher In The Rye. Like if I hadn't read it by the time I'd finished uni then it wasn't going to happen. Too old to get with it now I think.

JoelStinty 15 Feb 2017 16:05:28 8,922 posts
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First time i read it, i too thought that holden was a twat, but i re-read it a few years ago and i got on with him a lot more, the last couple of chapters hit me quite hard. Not sure whether my mindset being different from where i read it first to second time round was a part of that.

rice_sandwich 16 Feb 2017 07:03:55 6,452 posts
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2017 so far:

Non-Fiction

1. The Genius of Birds (Jennifer Ackerman)
2. Food Rules (Michael Pollan)
3. Absolutely on Music (Haruki Murakami)

Fiction

Nothing yet.

I realised I don't need to buy any books this year as my to be read pile is around 30 to 40 books. I seem to have gone off Kindle last year and gone back to paper books. A big part of this is the big improvements in Waterstones book shops. They've just done up one near my office and it looks amazing. Loads more books on show, many more themed tables and a lot more outward facing covers and free standing shelves.

PazJohnMitch 16 Feb 2017 07:39:15 15,986 posts
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The books I read tend to be all fantasy and alternate whether or not they contain dragons.

I think the Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is the only non-fiction novel I have ever read. And that was a few years ago.

rice_sandwich 16 Feb 2017 08:12:01 6,452 posts
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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is a good one.

spindle9988 16 Feb 2017 08:31:53 5,128 posts
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I have just finished the 4th game of thrones book which was a bit of a struggle. I've heard the 5th is mustard though, so will be starting it tonight.

PazJohnMitch 16 Feb 2017 08:59:59 15,986 posts
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Much better than 4 but weaker than1-3.

simpleexplodingmaybe 16 Feb 2017 09:01:07 13,958 posts
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I'll third The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks