A Widow for One Year by John Irving
The Best of Roald Dahl

<b>battboyy</b> that <i>is</i> a very strange habit! I've not knowingly heard of any of those authors, let alone the individual novels.

With regard to the thread topic, I have just finished re-reading Philip K Dick's <i>Confessions of a Crap Artist</i> which was fun.

I should get out of the re-reading habit though and make a dent on the huge number of unread novels I have waiting!

I'm finishing up Renegades of the Empire by Michael Drummond. It's the story of how Direct X and other Techs make it in Microsoft, and the Story of the ousted Alex St. John, for you tech heads out there.

I'm also reading American Psycho and enjoying the hell out of it. Also paging through Rick Reilly's Life of Reilly, my fav sportswriter.

Next up for me is The Crow: The story behind the film and What is the Stanley Cup Doing in Mario Lemieux's Swimming Pool?, along with yet another scan through The Book of the Five Rings, just to set me back on track.

Moby Dick - I tried 4 times to start and after finally persisting through the first 50 or so pages, I find I'm really enjoying it. I've been wanting to read it for a while now.

Recent books:
Isabel Allande - House of Spirits
? - The Alchemist
Fitzgerald - the Great Gatsby
Hemingway - Old Man and the Sea
Swift - Gulliver's Travels
Louis L'Amore - The Walking Drum
Almost all the John Grisham Books
Harry Potter 1-4

Favorites:
Orwell - 1984
Carl Sagan - Demon Haunted World
J.D. Salinger - Catcher in the Rye
? - The Princess Bride

I'm glad this forum is starting, this is my first post in over a year. I was thinking - maybe we could start a thread or group entitled, "Catching up with Great Literature," which would include both the classics and contemporary books which are bound to become classics.

S. Morgenstern

Heh. William Goldman. The intro about the book being actually by Morgenstern is part of the frame story.

Doh, I had Amazon open in another window at the time and he was asking. Was just trying to help out. Guess I should have read more carefully.

I read this book years ago. There is one part of the book where they mention they had to cut out a scene for some reason, but if you send them a self-addressed stamped envelope, they will send you the scene. (Something along those lines. It's been a long time. If I can find my copy somewhere, I'll look it up.) Anyway, I sent for it, and they mailed me a brief letter (which I still have somewhere) stating that the scene could not be printed due to problems with Morgenstern's estate.

jim

This sounds like something humorously set up in anticipation of receiving letters. Not a bad publicity scheme, or a way to get the readers to feel involved in the book-producing process perhaps.

If I recall, Goldman says that the 'original "The Princess Bride"' by S. Morgenstern was read to him by his father, but upon reading the book in his adult life he realized that his father eliminated or greatly abbreviated many sections which were, frankly, quite tedious--those dealing with the intricacies of the politics, or sword-fighting/sword-crafting artistry... all to make the story of adventure more accessable to a young reader. This is the (clever) ruse under which Goldman "re"wrote the book, so as not to include anything that would get in the way of the adventure and fun.

I believe I just saw that a new edition has been published, with an extra chapter or something. I can't really recall other than that the cover boasted something that the non-anniversary edition did not include.

And for those who might find it interesting, there is a pirated copy published by Buccaneer Press which includes Goldman's "edited" passages published in red ink. It's an interesting curiosity to get one's hands on.

- M

At the moment I think the only book I'm actually reading is "The Rights of Man" by Thomas Paine.

Recent reading includes: a couple Frank Herbert collections, The Violent Bear it Away, and Everything that Rises must Converge -- both by Flannery O'Connor -- great stuff.

Alyoshka, those are some great essays in that book.

Tuan Jim

:) thanks all! It's been several years since I read the Princess Bride that I had forgotten who wrote it. Hell, I was never quite sure who wrote it anyhow... although I had a strong suspicion that Mr. Goldman was trying to pull a fast one. He's like the Andy Kaufman of authors.

Gamblor - I vaguely remember that part about sending in for the deleted scene. I think it's hilarious.

Did everyone see the movie too? How many times? And which was better?

I've seen the movie a couple dozen times - and laugh each time. Nonetheless the book is MUCH better.

Is the movie a bit of a standard classic to anyone else? It seems to be that kind of movie you can put in on any occasion and see again and again... kinda like "It's a Wonderful Life" or "Better Off Dead".

Robin Cook Abduction. This one is very fast moving and more engaging from the beginning.

<b>Lords of Discipline</b>

-pat conroy

Chuck Palahniuk's 'Invisible Monsters'. Im in the low 100s and so far it's pretty interesting. Once I'm finished I'm looking foward to begining King's 'Dreamcatcher' :D

[Edited by Samuel on 04-26-01 at 06:27 PM]

Currently Reading
 

I am currently reading "King Leopold's Ghost" it is a book about the atrocities that accord in the Congo "Free State" during King Leopold II reign over it.

Very informative, interesting, and exciting book.

Magoo

Right now I'm reading a non-fiction book about Lewis Merriweather and the expedition west.

I can't find it though......

I'll be finishing the "The Sun Also Rises" tonight.

7

James W. Huston's The Price of Power

My mind is in a strange state because in the past 3 weeks I've read 4 different distinct styles. I started out with Orwell's "Animal Farm", moved on to King's "Dreamcatcher", progressed to Hugo's complete "Les Miserables", and am now on Tolkein's "Lord of the Rings".

I'm nearing the end of The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Shea & Robert Anton Wilson. It's taking forever because I only read on the BART (public transpo) and it's kinda thick. I feel more at ease with my mortality now knowing that at least there are the lloiger waiting to feed on our souls and that they won't go to waste.:)
I've heard good things about On the Beach by Neville Shute and a comment from Renaldow on a different thread spurred me into buying it yesterday. That's next.

Re: Currently Reading
 

Though you have probably already read it, I'd recommend The Poisonwood Bible, by Barbara Kingsolver. The discussion group I belong to read the Kingsolver and King Leopold's Ghost came up several times during the discussion.

King Jesus, by Robert Graves

For those interested:
Just finished King's Dreamcatcher and Thompson's The Book of Revelation (very bizarre yet intersting and fun read-3 masked women kidnap a man and keep him hostage for sex.)
Right now reading Don Delillo's Running Dog - about a rumored porn film made in the hitler's bunker during his last days.

Shadow of the Hegemon, by Orson Scott Card

Everything We Had and Brighton Beach Memoirs