2018 50 Book Challenge

clockwise · Jan 4, 2012

dwyhajlo said:
2. Crash by J.G. Ballard
The infamous novel that was the inspiration for the infamous David Cronenberg film. I suppose that this ranks quite highly in the pantheon of transgressive fiction. The transgression isn't located in just the literal aspects of the novel - the endless cataloging of disfigurement, gruesome car crashes, bodily fluids, "weird sex", etc. - but also the philosophical ideas that Ballard managed to sneak in among all the prurient material, which went beyond the limits of what most people would dare conceive. I can imagine that the idea of human activities (ALL human activities) being molded, shaped, and mediated by a technology as everyday as the automobile was fairly revolutionary at the time that this was written. It still has the capacity to shock and to make you think.

I have read Ballard's Cocaine Nights and Super-Cannes, both very entertaining and thought-provoking. I can recommend both. Will definitely pick up Crash one of these days!

slide13 · Jan 4, 2012

Steve B. said:
It's not worth the read. If you want the same genre try Fahrenheit 451.
And you might really like The Picture of Dorian Gray.

I would disagree, I thought Brave New World was a decent read. It's been a while but I enjoyed it. Fahrenheit 451 is better, so not a bad idea to read that as well, but I wouldn't cross Brave New World off a list.

Now The Picture of Dorian Gray is something I tried to read a couple times but just couldn't get into. It's been years though, maybe I should give it another go.

Steve B. · Jan 4, 2012

Waterloo, WI, eh? I grew up close to there. Wouldn't mind moving back. My parents live in Columbus.

3. The Shooters 2008 WEB Griffin
The spectacle, blood and gore are turned up. The fornicating and Famous Grouse swilling turned down. And Castillo finds out he has an illegitimate son (surprise).

The only claim to fame on these books is that they're all 7-800 pages, and real page turners. I've enjoyed all 3, with 1 more to go before the serious reading.

clockwise · Jan 7, 2012

Clockwise counting 3/50: Dorothy L Sayers - The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club (1928)

Amateur detective Lord Peter Wimsey solves another murder case. Sayers wrote her much acclaimed series of mystery novels in the 1920s and 1930s, the golden age of British whodunits. In addition to the actual mystery solving, the attraction of these novels comes mainly from the social satire and Wimsey's dry humour. This is about the sudden death of a 90 year old General inside a posh gentleman's club and the complex will of his estranged sister, dead only hours before, or is it after (?), the General's heart stops.

Sayers is never as interesting as Conan Doyle but should rate up there with Agatha Christie. I have now read 3 of the 11 novels in the Wimsey series.

zeusbheld · Jan 8, 2012

finally finished a book:

American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin.

at 721 pages, it's not small. a comprehensive overview of the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, with a focus on his involvement with the atomic bomb project in world war 2, and his persecution by McCarthyites in the 50s. the prose is a bit dry at times but Oppy was a fascinating character and his work, for better or worse, did much to shape the world we live in. i wasn't in love with the prose style (these guys have to the ungainly tendency to reach for big words even when the big word doesn't lend any more precision). also, i like historical biographies that explore the lurid, gossipy details in interesting ways, like Evan S. Connell's Son of the Morning Star.. that said, i do highly recommend it, if you have any interest in Oppy, physics, WW2 history, the atomic bomb, the cold war, or the McCarthy witch hunt.

clockwise · Jan 10, 2012

Clockwise counting 4/50: John Le Carre - A Most Wanted Man (2008)

I love Le Carre's books, he is a unique author - his style, his mood, his special world of deceit all has the touch of genius. I have read most of his novels and my favourites are The Spy Who Came in From the Cold; Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and maybe especially The Honourable Schoolboy - all counted among the true classics of the espionage genre. Le Carre is now 80 years old but his more recent novels show that he remains (almost) as brilliant as he was several decades ago.

This one is about the War on Terror, ethics, lies, power play, religion and human weakness. It's a story about individuals trying to follow their moral compass and the "super" power whose agents are trained to get the job done, not think. Some wonderful character studies as in all Le Carre novels, not as complex and ultimately satisfying as his best works but still very very good.

It feels just fine to be ahead of the pace this year, 50 should not be too hard. Working on something thick at the moment.

javyn · Jan 10, 2012

slide13 said:
Now The Picture of Dorian Gray is something I tried to read a couple times but just couldn't get into. It's been years though, maybe I should give it another go.

Eh...I feel like I should read Dorian Gray since I'm about to pick up Huysmans' Against The Grain, but I am just averse to Oscar Wilde. I think being cast as the lead in Importance of Being Earnest scarred me my freshman year in HS.

Steve B. · Jan 10, 2012

javyn said:
Eh...I feel like I should read Dorian Gray since I'm about to pick up Huysmans' Against The Grain, but I am just averse to Oscar Wilde. I think being cast as the lead in Importance of Being Earnest scarred me my freshman year in HS.

Read it. You'll like it.

kwilkinson · Jan 11, 2012

kwilkinson said:
Starting off with two books. First one may not count, was started on Dec 27th. Second one started yesterday morning, so totally counts.
1) Reading Between the Vines by Terry Theise-- A beautiful look at the philosophy of wine enjoyment. Everybody writes books on the facts of wine, Theise wrote a book on why wine is so important to us.
2) The Billionaire's Vinegar by Benjamin Wallace--- Pretty fascinating read about a German collector in the 80s who claimed to have a collection of bottles owned by Thomas Jefferson due to some engraving and the letters "Th. J" on the bottles. Really good read and delves into the much broader topic of wine counterfeiting in the auction market as a whole.

3) To Cork or Not To Cork by George Taber. Really fun, fast (finished in two days though it's 250 pgs) read. Fascinating look into the history of cork, the cork industry, etc etc, alternative closures, and whatnot. Very informative and good to read.

Steve B. · Jan 12, 2012

4. Black Ops- WEB Griffin 2010

Charley Castillo does NOT do any Famous Grouse. Does link up on a permanent basis with a defected Russian spy, and gets bounced by the President. But then he gets hired by some other high rollers to do the same thing on a private basis and all's well that ends well.

TheDelta · Jan 12, 2012

I'll jump in as a first time poster. Finished "The Game of Numbers" by Nick Murray yesterday as I have every intent of becoming a financial advisor with a respected firm within the next year. Also simultaneously listening to "Good to Great" by Jim Collins. I'm through 5 of the 7 disks that came in the audiobook.

I have a feeling my list will be split down the middle between fiction and non-fiction as I have a ton of non-fiction stuff I would like to start (Art of War, The Prince, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, etc.) but also would like to read some classic fiction. Read the novel "Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norell" toward the end of 2011 and thoroughly enjoyed the wordiness (compared to my previous readings) so I think my next fiction mountain is Charles Dickens. Just not sure which of his works to go for first.

Obviously any recommendations for must reads are welcomed. I enjoy reading but up until now I haven't strayed much into that of classics, or anything outside of younger target audiences (enders game series, Eragon, Bourne series)

Oh ya, and Hi everyone! maybe from here I'll start to post in the actual clothing style part of this as well!

Steve B. · Jan 13, 2012

TheDelta said:
I'll jump in as a first time poster. Finished "The Game of Numbers" by Nick Murray yesterday as I have every intent of becoming a financial advisor with a respected firm within the next year. Also simultaneously listening to "Good to Great" by Jim Collins. I'm through 5 of the 7 disks that came in the audiobook.

I have a feeling my list will be split down the middle between fiction and non-fiction as I have a ton of non-fiction stuff I would like to start (Art of War, The Prince, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, etc.) but also would like to read some classic fiction. Read the novel "Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norell" toward the end of 2011 and thoroughly enjoyed the wordiness (compared to my previous readings) so I think my next fiction mountain is Charles Dickens. Just not sure which of his works to go for first.

Obviously any recommendations for must reads are welcomed. I enjoy reading but up until now I haven't strayed much into that of classics, or anything outside of younger target audiences (enders game series, Eragon, Bourne series)

Oh ya, and Hi everyone! maybe from here I'll start to post in the actual clothing style part of this as well!

Scroll back a bit and there's a link to"1001 books to read before you die". The list is intimidating, but it will give you anything you want to know...

Welcome to the thread. So far there's a lot of interest, which is much better than last year when there were only 2 of us who finished. 4 books a month- that's the best way to think of it IMO.

FLMountainMan · Jan 13, 2012

Keep meaning to post. So far for 2012:

Litigators by John Grisham. Typical light read, even more so than usual. I'd rate in the middle-of-the-pack in his body of work.
1491 by Charles Mann. Interesting. In the same cultural apologetics vein as Diamond, but if you ignore the biases, it's a really interesting book.
Through My Father's Eyes by Timothy Richard Tebow. Killed some time.
Before I Sleep by S.J. Watson. Good novel, not great.
2003 Anthology of Science Fiction edited by Gardner Dubois. Awesome read.

Currently reading:
The Iliad (second time)
He Talk Like a White Boy by ...forget the guy's name, played the army husband of Denise on the Cosby Show. Pretty garden variety black conservative stuff, I'm losing interest about midway through.

clockwise · Jan 13, 2012

Steve B. said:
Welcome to the thread. So far there's a lot of interest, which is much better than last year when there were only 2 of us who finished. 4 books a month- that's the best way to think of it IMO.

End up at 48 books for the year and narrowly fail, to the amusement of those who know it should be 4.17 books per month.

One thing I decided to change from last year is to try to avoid being off the pace from an early stage, it just creates too much stress. I will aim at no less than 5 books a month - at least until the summmer.

And welcome to the thread TheDelta!

Steve B. · Jan 13, 2012

FLMountainMan said:
Keep meaning to post. So far for 2012:
Litigators by John Grisham. Typical light read, even more so than usual. I'd rate in the middle-of-the-pack in his body of work.
1491 by Charles Mann. Interesting. In the same cultural apologetics vein as Diamond, but if you ignore the biases, it's a really interesting book.
Through My Father's Eyes by Timothy Richard Tebow. Killed some time.
Before I Sleep by S.J. Watson. Good novel, not great.
2003 Anthology of Science Fiction edited by Gardner Dubois. Awesome read.
Currently reading:
The Iliad (second time)
He Talk Like a White Boy by ...forget the guy's name, played the army husband of Denise on the Cosby Show. Pretty garden variety black conservative stuff, I'm losing interest about midway through.

As a scifi buff myself this sounds very interesting!

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