/lit/ - Literature

>22 going on 23 soon
>Illinois
>Ron Chernow's Hamilton book I haven't picked up since 2015

Pretty good at capturing Hamilton as the creator of America's politico-economic structure; but like the musical it fails to capture how much of a smug, elitist cunt he also could be. The reason why the Federalists are dead while the Democrats still exist, is because you don't openly talk about a semi-permanent "aristocracy of merit", while shitting on the "dregs" of society.

You talk about the "equality and importance" of all, while your political deeds don't nearly match your populist talk.

>>9487184
>25
>Texas
>Principles of Texas Criminal Law


It's good because my test is tomorrow and the professor wrote this book as a supplement.

>26
>NYC
>Moby Dick and The Essential John Maynard Keynes.

I enjoy Moby Dick, though I'm only 100 pages on. Queequeg is a lovely character and reminds me of Caliban from The Tempest. Melville seems to be making the most apparently savage character (he is a cannibal, after all) into the noblest, and he does so with such skill that I find myself anxious about his fate and also use him as a barometer for the characters he interacts with. Of course the language is brilliant and his knowledge of history and philosophy deep. I've had to google various references, as when he's comparing the stern of the ship to the Three Kings of Cologne or the deck Canterbury Cathedral where Becket bled, etc., etc. Sometimes I think he's a bit of a show off, but he limits himself and all is well.

John Maynard Keynes has an interesting outlook on probability that I am struggling to fully grasp, where basically if you are pretty sure that X will cause Y in 1 day, but then not certain whether it will cause Z in a year, you can say Y is more probable. Who cares though, really.

>20
>australia
>Epictetus' Discourses

Surprised how funny Epictetus is, but yeah haven't worked out how to actually put stoicism to use yet

>19
>East TN
>none, I am waiting for my paycheck and I will go and buy a praised meme-tier book. I was thinking Pynchon or Joyce.

suggestions? I last read Moby Dick, Pride and Prejudice, and stuff

>>9487281
I'm a lawyer. Please just follow your dreams.

>>9487295
Is it really that bad? I've been considering it.

>20
>AL
>The Iliad trans. Fitzgerald.
Only read through the introductions today, after finishing Things Fall Apart, will seriously pick it up tomorrow

>>9487295
>>9487305
how can you now consider whether or not to be a lawyer?

>25
>presumably law school

>>9487311
I'm not that guy I'm only 19

>>9487311
Are you good at handling bullying and intimidation?

>>9487317
oh

>>9487318
i'd eat ass if i had ass to eat

>15
>NYC
>Anti-Oedipus

>>9487305
I work from 8-6. Most mornings I'm in court, which means I have to prep in the evenings when I'm home. I'm getting a bit older so I want to start dating for purposes of meeting someone I can settle down with, but I hardly have time. I want to make friends, too, but I hardly have time. When I pursue either of these, my hobbies are tossed by the wayside. I went from reading a book a week to a page a week, and from wanting to write a book to wanting to get some sleep.

All that said, as far as careers which are interesting and stimulating in and of themselves, law has to be up there. It's just horrible sacrificing your life to it. And before you say "oh, well I just won't do THAT type of law," understand that you will, because there is no alternative. The better you are, the more work you get. And nobody can afford to be anything but great because of the state of the market.

Sorry for the rant. Another long fuckin' day.

>>9487348
I appreciate it. Thanks for being honest about it

>22
>california EUGH
>voices from chernobyl
i fucking love it. the few stories of selfless heroism inside are worth wading through the endless despair that is humanity

>18
>New Orleans (going to Loyola next semester)
>The Guns of August by Tuchman
>Democracy in America by Alexis De Tocqueville with The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith as a companion text.
>Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

Guns of August is great, but it's fucking infuriating how stupid WWI was.

Democracy in America is surprisingly easy to comprehend, along with Wealth of Nations

Persepolis is an interesting and informing view into female life in Iran. Entertaining too, though I started it yesterday, and I'm almost finished now. albeit it's a graphic novel, it's still very educational.

>21
>Australia
>Demons

Only at the intro chapter, I can see potential.

>>9487370
New Orleans guy here>>9487367

I've read every book by Dostoevsky except The Idiot and Demons, the latter of which I've been trying to get my hands on a copy for a while. I know nothing about it though because I want to go in blind.

>19
>mx
>Nausea by Sartre
This is my 7th try to read it but I still can't get through it
send help

>24
>Toronto
>Bleeding Edge

Eh, it's enjoyable, but definitely Pynchon lite like everyone says. Honestly all the pop culture nerd shit doe capture the moment, but almost feels too cliche sometimes, like a step above big bang theory.

>>9487184
23
texas
1805 version of the prelude by wordsworth and joe by larry brown

>>9487288
larry brown, barry hannah, eudora welty. all southern writers.

>>9487184
>22
>Constantinople
>Walden by Henry David

Really comfy. Could only probably do it justice by reading it in the isolation of a country. Sometimes too digressive.

Here is a picture in the classical style to make me look smart

Thorty sal ks
Below the salt
By Thomas B Costain
Picked it up with a 1st edition
QB7 by leon uris, they were free

>>9487285
There is a great read-guide for Moby Dick out there which will help you out with all the references and give you page-long explanations of it. I can look it up if you care for me to

>25
>Buenos Aires
>Danielewski - "The Familiar" vol 2
The characters, places, and relationships are becoming less random and more evident and in the second volume i am getting used to the experimental Format where you are really interacting with the text through various mediums less than strictly "reading" it.

If you liked gravitys rainbow or Ulysses you'll like this series if you can ride out the confusion and just stick with it. It makes more and more sense as you progress in the series

19
USA
Story of Philosophy by Will Durant and A Brave New Word

Both are great

>>9487607
Not him but I'd appreciate it if you could post it. I just finished reading it a few days ago, and I want to see everything I missed

>>9487184
>20
>IL
> Crime and punishment

Wtf is his problem? I was empathizing with him up until he gets super butthurt his sister is getting married and that sets him off and he chimps out and murders his land lady.

I mean Christ sake he just spent a night listening to former clerk that ruined his family's life talk about how worthless he is and then Raskolnikov acts like his life's over because his sister will be getting some dick.

>>9487790
>that post
>anime reaction pic
I don't like you.

>>9487793
What is his problem? From what I've seen so far this guy has it made. He just has to play nice with his brother in law and he can live an easy life. Why does he act like his sister got whored out?

>>9487790
>I was empathizing with him up until he gets super butthurt his sister is getting married and that sets him off and he chimps out and murders his land lady.
That's not how that worked you simpleton.
Raskolnikov is triggered by the idea that Dunya will be married to provide for the family monetarily, which adds a driving insult to his standing discomfort with living in poverty and being unable to produce a career from his time at University. Dunya's marriage (or rather, the circumstances therein) are merely the catalyst for Raskolnikov's undertaking the murder of the old woman which he had already intended to do - believing himself to be capable of forcibly transcending morality through strength of will, a nihilistic conceit similar to Nietzsche's Ubermensch.

>>9487622
Is it as unreadable and fucking pretentious as of house of leaves?

How do you even afford those books in argentina?

>>9487801
Thank you for pissing some wisdom on me. I've only just started reading so 19th century philosophy is not something I pick up on quickly.

>>9487808
Go read Notes From Underground first, Pevear and Volokhonsky translation, including the foreword. It sets up the dichotomy of Humanitarian Socialism followed by Social Nihilism in 19th Century St. Petersburg that is the central undercurrent of Dostoevsky's oeuvre. Plus its 200 pages soaking wet.
I first read C&P at 18 and while I felt I understood it pretty well, it rapidly opens up when you know the historical and philosophical background.

>>9487816
I will do just that. Arigato amigo.

>>9487184

>22
>NC
>Conversations with Ulrich Beck

I'm finishing out my Sociology undergrad soon. Need to figure out which theorist I should write a paper on in comparison with Beck's ideas on modernity. I'm leaning Foucault or Bourdieu at the moment because they seem the most contemporary, but it might be better to go earlier and compare similar ideas about structure across time with Durkheim, Weber, or Marx. Any thoughts?

>18
>sf
>catch22/fellowship of ring/iq84

I hate this place

Age:25/ location: Vancouver, Canada/Book: Crytonomicon

>19
>UK
>Cibola Burn (Expanse book 4)

Good shit. I'm going to be disappointed when I get to book six. I'm thinking of picking up some more classic scifi stuff.

>>9487184
>20
>the Netherlands
>Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain, translated to Dutch, and it's pretty awful (which I assume is so because of the translation)

>19
>GERMANY
>dune

It is pretty nice

>24
>SoCal
>The Sound and the Fury

Absolutely amazing.

>22
>Australia
>Never Let Me Go - Ishiguro

Really nice, I went in pretty blind so seeing the plot unfold is enjoyable. Ishiguro's writing style is very comfy too.

21
Alabama
I,robot

Really good so far. Uni work has been difficult so it's been nice reading something fun

>35
>hungary
>Oswald Spengler: The Decline of the West

Astonishing. Completely changes your perception of history.

>23
>Austria
>The Pale King

22
France, Paris
Currently reading Les Chants de Maldoror

>17
>NZ
>All the Pretty Horses

Just finished, a testament to anyone who craves a lifestyle no longer liveable

>22
>Australia
>Peter Carey's Collected Short Stories

Thoughts: Some guy he is. Style: Intelligent. conceptual at the level of Pynchon, but with a far more structure of narrative and focused thematic range. My one gripe is his authorial voice: cynical and detached. It bugs me that he's too afraid to show any passion. No surprise, though, since he's Australian, and a mixture cynicism+pessimism and a sprinkling of skepticism is our national spirit.

>>9487184
>23
>Ha
>I don't read books, I just come on here to shitpost like i know something about anything you faggots are talking about. I just take dismantle your arguments by forcing you to question the validity of your own statement. I know I've won when You stop responding. I hope it's because your readdressing your beliefs.

>24
>London
>Fathers and Sons.

Great writing style and very amusing. Translation by Rosemary Edmonds seems good and my edition contained a 70 pg lecture by Isiah Berlin which was very interesting

>>9487994
What is and how is 1Q84? I found a copy of it in a collection I got from a garage sale but I haven't picked it up. I heard it was pretty good, but that's about it.

>>9487184
>25
>NYC
>In Search of Lost Time; ask reading the War of Art by Steven Pressfield. They're both excellent.

26
chicago
the ontology of time - alex chernyakov
most in-depth read of aristotle and heidegger's temporalities i've ever come across. it's good

>20
>Liverpool
>Space Race/On Intelligence
Von brauns escapades through collapsing nazi Germany is pretty interesting. Jeff might be on to something with his memory theory but I feel like he's missing something, maybe that's always going to be the case when you try to fit such a complex task into 300ish pages.

>20
>Luhndun
>Numbers in the Dark by Italo Calvino

It's good. Not his best works, but I'm having trouble writing my own short stories right now so I've decided to revisit some of his for inspiration and guidance.

19
New York
Metaphysics by Aristotle

Good. Critiquing Platonism from a brand new system is unconvincing if that system has failed to sway you, but I can't really see the Forms as the substance/essence of instantiated particulars anymore. Reading the Organon and Physics first helped.

>24
>New Jersey
>The Idiot
Dostoevsky is one of my favorites, and this is one of his few long works I haven't read yet . I know this is unpopular here, but I think I prefer good old Constance Garnett to the P & V translations I've previously read.

>18
>Leaf land
>the crying of lot 49
It's good but I don't think i'm getting everything from the book

>22
>DC
>Heart of Darkness

It's interesting.

>22
>Rome
>Orientalism

Postcolonialism is God tier

>>9487285
>show off
nah, he just read so much and so widely that that was how he thought, those allusions were what immediately came to head

>>9488842
you'll feel that way with any Pynchon

>>9487184
>20
>UK
>Crime and Punishment

In the last quarter of the book now and I'm really enjoying it, I'm loving everything to do with Raskolnikov torturing himself about things that have happened.

>26
>BRhue
>How to make friends and Influence people

It's helping me a lot, trying to use every wisdom from this book.

23
Cambridge
Troilus and Criseyde - Chaucer

I read the first book today while sitting on jury service, but wasnt really concentrating and sort of zoned out trying to interpret old english. Might have to reread that again tonight. I read some of his other non canterbury tales stuff previously and enjoyed it, especially the house of fame

>>9489176
Or middle english as i meant to write

>>9487377
Where do you struggle?
I enjoyed a german translation a few months ago (austrian, don't speak french). It helps to know a bit about existentialism beforehand.

>>9488934
Perfect, I have 4 of his books.

>>9487823
Do you watch a lot of anime? Not being judgemental, just curious.

>>9487607
Am him, would also appreciate it. Thanks friend-anon

>25
>Southern California
>Heart of a Dog

>>9488278
Nah it's liveable, go to a poor country.

>22
>Wisconsin
>Roughing It by Mark Twain
It's a fun collection of adventures. About to go on a 5 month hiking trip so I'm glad to be getting into more Twain, he's my style.

>>9487790
>he chimps out and murders his land lady
Whew lad. People actually believe this nonsense.

22
Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Economics in one lesson by Henry Hazlitt

Marathoned the first 20 pages, very enlightening.
So far it has gone over common fallacies in economics and he debunks them very clearly.
Spooky how well he describes Bernie and other economic lightweights.
Wanted to know more about the economy, it's the first book on a list I'm planning to read.

>>9487184
21
Italy
Gravity's Rainbow which I'm liking a lot, it has some really funny moments
Also Borges' Book of Dreams

>>9487184
>19
>Bumfuck Connecticut
>Spring Snow by Mishima
I like it a lot, it's a nice blend of slice of life and tragedy, really comfy. I love the way Mishima describes every scene, it's vivid and the characters are interesting.

>>9489721
I just added this to my Kindle, looking forward to it.

>>9488701
I want to read this. Im curious as to why its in bizlit recommended reading. How do you like it so far?

>>9489738
If you like movies like Tokyo Story you definitely won't regret it

>23
>Brazil
>IJ

I've just reached the middlepoint of it, picking up my pace. It's been good so far, despite the initial slog of first hundred, two hundred pages.

26
London
Oliver Twist

Enjoying it more than I expected. I always avoided Dickens because I thought he'd be dreary, but it's pretty good.

>>9488305
I really liked True History of the Kelly Gang.

>25
>Midlands, UK
>Spring Snow by Mishima

>>9489721
reading at work and had to go to the bathroom for a little cry when he the princess almost smiled

>>9489740
same reason Das Kapital is there; it's good fiction
>eyy

24
California
The story of Christianity by Justo Gonzales and some introductory poetry anthology I got for cheap on kindle. They're both fun and interesting

>>9487343
Do you have any prior knowledge of Marxism and Psychoanalysis?

>>9487184
>18
>OK, USA
>Atlas Shrugged (40% in): It's an amazing story I don't care if Rand was a bitch
>JR (70pages in): Funny at times but makes me feel retarded

>>9489721
>18
>Bumfuck Connecticut
>East of Eden by Steinbeck
This is the third time trying to read it since 2014 but I will finish it now and it's still as comfy and biblical as I remember it to be

22
Lexington, Kentucky
The Seven Pillars of Wisdom

>>9487184
26
six four by hideo yokoyama
its good, touches on a lot of public and private information and how people deal with it when its outside and personal. i would recommend but it gets confusing with the characters. a lot of reviews online say its slow but thats only if you are pulled in by the six four case or the MCs daughter. otherwise it really hits you each chapter. very clever book IMO

>18
>just west of NYC
>Infinite Jest
On about page 320 and starting to find it hard to keep going.
Some of the banter is pretty amusing but nothing has really happened yet, I might have to DROP

>>9488260
Perfect in every way. Bachelard has a wonderful little commentary on the imagery. Sleep tight.

>21
>north of Toronto
>Mimesis by Erich Auerbach

It's pretty interesting, and it's introducing me to thinking about literature in different modes that I hadn't previously considered. I hadn't fully considered the simple fact that literature is just a representation of reality, and the way that Auerbach explains how different genres and time periods dealt with this representation is greatly engaging/mind-opening.
Can anybody else recommend any other good criticism/theory books?

>26
>Germany
>Satantango

Preddy gut.

>>9487790
>I was empathizing with him up until he gets super butthurt his sister is getting married and that sets him off and he chimps out and murders his land lady.

you're reading the wrong book broseph

ITT everyone reads lit core

god, dont you guys step outside the box?

>>9487276
I just finished reading Chernow's big biography about Washington and loved it. It was interesting to see that Hamilton, Jefferson, and Madison all sort of schemed against him, with Jefferson arguably being the worst of the bunch. Do you think the book you're reading is worth looking into for a larger picture of the founding fathers / major figures, or would you recommend finding a different biography of him?

>"18"
>none of your business, fuck you
>Kosmos, Gombrowicz
>it's genius, i love it. I masturbate with profundity now

>17
>Santa Catarina, Brazil
>De Senectute

Besides being very good, it isin't a hard reading

>>9489740
I'm not sure why it'd be in a bizlit list. But I'm really liking it so far. In typical Dostoevsky fashion, all the characters are totally crazy and become mouthpieces for his ideas about politics and philosophy. Prince Myshkin is an interesting character too. It's also really funny at times, especially Lizaveta Prokofyevna's outbursts.

>>9489740
The Idiot is amazing.

23
Central Illinois
Teatro Grottesco
My second Ligotti book (The Penguin release of SoADD and GS being my first) and I'm in love with this guy's writing. Weird fiction has always been a passion of mine, having read just about all of HPL and Robert Chambers and Ligotti blows them out of the water.

>>9491266
I'm trying to read as much of the litcore canon now to get an idea of what makes it so great, what is deserving of praise and/or why it's categorized as such before stepping out into the wild, unplowed lands of less-read literature. There's so much out there.

>>9487184
>26
>American Southwest
>Count Belisarius
It's great from a literary standpoint but I worry about whether or not Robert Graves is a charlatan to proper classicists, so there's that.
>Society of the Spectacle
Debord frequently approaches a sensical, pertinent critique of the modern condition which is pretty sweet considering the book was written 50 years ago, but every time he gets close he bubles the entire thing with unfounded metaphors and poetic rhetoric that leaves a whole fucking lot to be desired so... reading Debord often feels like pic related.

If you anons havent tried doing two books at once, I recommend it. It works super well if you plan out what you're reading so that one can color the way you read or understand the other.

22
California
Rereading Blood Meridian

It feels a lot easier to read after reading Moby Dick

>>9487348
You might have more time if you cut out 4chan and internet use entirely. I did that back when I was working a more time consuming job and it made it so I had time to follow my dreams and work a well-paying job. I was surprised to see how much more time I had for myself when I didn't browse the Internet. It's a goddamn time sink man and you get nothing for it.

>>9492007
robert graves is a charlatan to everybody

>proclaimed that claudius's spirit spoke to him or something
>stopped doing it immediately because it made him sound retarded and he probably just wanted to push books
>his lit buddies started attacking nabokov on his russian or some shit, and he got BTFO


listen, I loved the Claudius series in high school...but you know what? It was the GOT of its time.

>>9492034
Yeah that's the feeling I'm getting. Currently working on my PhD in Greek Archaeology; I've just come across the whole "White Goddess" fiasco which is good for a few keks. That said, anthropologists need to be fucking checked and balance because the rampant anti-classicism in American schools right now is grotesque as fuck.
>his lit buddies started attacking nabokov on his russian or some shit, and he got BTFO
Elaborate on this one, anon, haven't heard it

18
Michigan
Leaves of Grass
I am doing an "All-American" summer. I am trying to find the soul of my country by reading only American writers that really focus on an aspect of America or look at America as a whole. Then I will finish this off with a month of riding around the country all August. Wish me luck on my quest to capture the essence of my country, boys. And feel free to recommend me anything that might be what I'm looking for.

20
Jutland
"Ojeblikket" - Soren Kirkegaard

i think it's pretty good, a bit rough getting through some of the pages at times tho.

>>9487184

> 23
> Netherlands
> The Hero of our Time by Lermontov

>>9487184
>22
>Brazil
>Red Plenty

Pretty cool. I'll probably end up turning into a russiaboo though.

>>9492042
I wish you luck. Steinbeck is definitely in your vein. Depends on the time period your looking for, I think Damon Runyon would be fun. The back cover of Guys and Dolls says "America adopted his voice as its own" so take that for what you will.

>>9487184
>25
>NYC
>Point Omega by DeLillo
pretty good so far. Very similar to Zero K which I read last year

>>9487581
Holy shit Barry Hannah reference on here! Airships is amazing

29

Michigan

The doctrine of fascism

It's comfy as fuck

>>9489605
>>9487766
Had to look for it a bit but here it is.

https://chasingflukes.com/reading_guide-overview/glossary-contents/

What you should do in my opinion to save the flow of your reading, go back to the glossary at the end of each chapter. That way you won't be interrupted.

>>9487184
>20
>Trenton, NJ (back home from Rutgers NB)
>Gravity's Rainbow, not reading it consistently enough, not really sure what to make of it yet but it reminds me of Vonnegut just a little crazier

>>9487377
I fucking hate that faggot, with his pretension, commie shit and his stupid fucking bad eye.

>22
>England
>Runaway Horses - Yukio Mishima

>>9488701
Wya in Jersey, G?

>18
>Denmark
>Steppenwolf

I like it fine so far.

>>9487184
>24
>Poland
>Infinite Jest

I'm unironically enjoying it. It's broadened my vocabulary a lot, the characters are interesting, I like DFW's sense of humour and the book's written well enough for my admittedly low standards.

>>9488464
Not the anon you replied to.

1Q84 is so-so, Murakami's written better. I've read it like three or four years ago and it failed to make a lasting impression.

27
Netherlands
Mao II by Don Delillo. Its ok i guess. Im now at the hostage part. Whats his deal with elevators though?

>>9487184
>24
>Spain
>Season of Storms by Andrzej Sapkowski.

I have to finish The Witcher saga. After that, I'll keep with Russell and Schopenhauer.

>>9487363
That's a good one anon, I liked it very much as well.
Some of those accounts will stick with you forever.

>>9487377
Sartre should be read from the depths of a deep depression to be fully appreciated.
But keep reading, you'll be in one in no time!

>>9487378
>32
>Alaska
>also Bleeding Edge
I like it. I'm about half way through, I'm interested to see Pynchons take on 9/11, but I'm guessing it won't deal with "truther" conspiracies so much as the lead-up to the event.
I've bought "the last circle" (about the PROMIS software) and "the montauk project" as supplement material.
The youtuber George Webb goes into detail about the current use of these systems.

>>9487622
So where would you say the learning curve plateaus? I got halfway through the first book and was sick to death of hearing about random Californians.

>>9487184
>21
>California
>Animal Farm
I watched the cartoon of it years ago but finally reading it for the first time. I have like 30 pages left but it's really good so far and funny at times.

>24
>Germany

I've finished If On A Winters Night A Traveller yesterday which I loved and I've started Madame Bovary today, which has some awfully bland prose in comparison. Will it get better?

>>9487184
>22
>England, Wiltshire
>War and Peace

It's pretty good. I've just gotten into it. Out of the 500 characters, how many am I going to have to keep track of?

>>9494391
I can remember reading that book as a kid. It's what got me out of that 'communists are kinda cool' stage.

>>9493291
Thanks you anon friend, much appreciated.

>>9492028
Thanks anon. I am truly going to give this a go. Also gonna sell my TV am Doing PS4.

>>9487581
thank you btw

>>9492088
tell me about Aurora

>20
>Alabama
>Confessions by Augustine
It's pretty good. I'm reading my dad's copy so it's interesting to see the little things he wrote in it and the passages he underlined.

>>9487184
19
Florida
The Count of Monte Cristo

I really enjoy the story so far.

>>9487184
19, St Andrews, Scotland.
Moore's Clinical Anatomy, I hate it. Makes me wish I just bit the bullet and studied psychology rather than medicine.

>20
>Nowhere, CA
>Picture of Dorian Gray
It's slowly turning into one of my favorite books. I love the different themes of romanticism vs modernism, science as the reigning doctrine of thought, etc, etc. Really fun to read too.

>22
>Ontario
>LETTERS: A Novel
I kind of want to kill myself. It's confusing as fuck, but I'm 500 pages in and like it enough that I don't want to quite, plus it makes me laugh frequently enough. But the difficulty is killing me (and being a pleb doesn't help).

>>9487184
>24
>Saskatchatoon Canada
>Stoner , it's breddy gud

>>9493325
Central Jersey by the shore

>>9487184
>18, 19 in Oct.
>Idaho
>The Picture of Dorian Gray

Finished Chapter 2 last night. Fantastic dialogue, great bantz from Lord Henry. I'm imagining Tom Hardy as Henry, Benedict Cumberbatch as Basil, and Eddie Redmayne as Dorian.

Reminds me a lot of Alan Boyce/Young At Heart (The "X" Files).

20
Philippines
Letters from a Stoic

>>9492042
You are at the perfect place to read On the Road. I would recommend doing that ASAP.

>shanghai
>21
>foucault's pendulum

Fucking dope.

>25
>California
>The Histories by Herodotus

I've been on and off this book for over a year, I'll read one of the books in it then move on to something else just because some parts get pretty dry. I've finally decided to try finishing it, I've got 3 of the books in it left so hopefully not too painful.

>18
>Anchorage
>Blood Meridian
I'm only about a quarter of the way through it but I'm loving it so far. I just recently starting reading again so I read at a pretty slow pace though. I just can't stay focused for very long

>18
>nyc
>Lolita

pic related

>18
>Spinoza and subsequent interpretation / reading by deleuze
>Doing western philosophy canon chronologically
>also some speculative realism

>Buenos Aires
>21
>the fountainhead
Too long, but the story is interesting but Sometimes repetitive ...aaand the way to write of ayn rand is incredible, I can not believe how it develops some paragraphs that are very easy to read and at the same time uses complex grammar. If you want to write ayn rand it is obligatory.

>23
>Florida
>Hard Rain Falling - Don Carpenter

I'm not really sure how I feel about it desu

>22
>Miami, FL

>Crime & Punishment
Started off pretty slow so far, but I enjoyed the officer's monologue in the bar. Not too far in the book though so we'll see

>Hull's Options, Futures, and Other Derivative Securities
Fantastic

>The Republic
Never read any Plato before apart from the allegory of the cave. Love it so far, I'm finishing up book 2 right now.

>The Wealth Of Nations
Just started it; no opinion

>Tao's Introduction to Measure Theory
Just started but love it so far; Tao has a great gift for organizing and presenting information and drawing connections.

19
Melbourne
The master and margarita

Bretty good so far I'm really liking it.

>>9493291
thank you for this

>26
>New Hampshire
>The No Hellos Diet by Sam Pink
His books have been guilty pleasures since they are quick reads and different. Taking a break from 1Q84.

>23
>DC
>Steppenwolf by Hesse

I'm loving Steppenwolf so far. I couldn't have started reading it at a better time in my life.

>>9496086
wew

>21
>Ohio
>Dubliners
About halfway in rn, and I was pretty confused at the nature of some of the stories at first, especially the seemingly abrupt endings of some of them, though now I've gotten the hang of their themes. I suppose I should blame it on my neglecting of modernism. The writing of course is really excellent (though I have to admit it takes an acquired taste to really enjoy), but I just completely missed the subtlety of the ending of "Two Gallants" and such. Favorite so far is A Little Cloud, I am on /lit/ after all

>18
>Vancouver
>Frankenstein
The book is actually so much better than I thought it would be. It's the first book that I've really tried to examine in such depth and the use of character pairing is incredible

>19
>Washington state
>Paris in the Terror by Stanley Loomis

It's great, I never knew there was this much intrigue in the French Revolution. I wish we had learned about this in school instead of dindu rights and muh slavery.

>Almost 21
>Canada
>The Once and Future King
I'm about halfway through, and its pretty enjoyable so far. Started off a bit eh, but found its footing fairly quickly, and really takes off in the second book.

>22
>Vancouver
>Finished TCOL49 yesterday, picked up Chekhov again today. Specifically "Ward # 6"

>19
>British Columbia
>Flight Vol.8

> 31
> SoCal
> My Struggle Volume 4

It's fantastic. Already way better than Vol 3 and potentially better than Vol 1. The opening pages of him riding on a bus to a comfy northern Norwegian town really tripped the old serotonin dispensers.

>19
>Newcastle Upon Tyne
>Just started Foundation, just finished Shadow of the Torturer

Liking Foundation, but I wasn't a big of a fan of the Wolfe. I enjoyed Wolfe's writing, but it wasn't nearly as deserving as all the praise I see it getting as of yet. I'm going to continue with the series, hoping it gets better.

>>9487184
>19
>Stavanger
>Dubliners by Joyce

>>9487184
22
infinite jest
It's fun. I'm at page 150 atm. It's funny at times. Generally i like reading it, as i still get some insights from it.

>>9495932
But On The Road is bad. Check out Dharma Bums if you really need some Kerouac.

>>9487184
>20
>Ontario
>Lud in the Mist

>>9487184
20
Colorado
The Call of Cthulhu and Other Weird Stories

Pretty fucking enjoyable

>>9487184
20

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Infinite Jest and I fucking hate it so much I wanna go back in time and beat DFW to death with the book's spine to his skull before he has time to kill himself. He has a lot of technical skill but nothing in the way of substance, spends most of the book displaying redundant and easily-forgotten visual or sensory descriptions of things that make no difference, 50% of the plot is a rip-off of The Brothers Karamazov, all the characters are borderline fucking retarded, the way it is written, whether it is first or third person, shows crystal clear that even the writer confuses himself with his pretentious wannabe-overly-acrobatic voice, and it's mostly just a huge "show-off" type of book from pseuds to pseuds. There is nothing happening in this stupid story that couldn't be simply put in 400 pages or less, but this mongoloid needs to jerk off on the page over 1100 pages (le footnotes!) to show everyone how this pack of drug addicted imbeciles wiped their asses or made their beds so that pseudo-intellectual fools with zero knowledge of literary value go "what a prose!"

These are the same people who complain of Will Self's naturalist writing style.

This book is so pathetic and tryhard it makes me appreciate my life, family and friends more. Today I foster happier relationships with those I love, I am a more attentive and caring partner, a better son, a nicer friend, and an all-around more positive human being just because I appreciate so much every living second I spend NOT reading "Infinite Jest". And whenever something bad happens, I just think back to myself "well, it could be worse, I could be reading Infinite Jest right now".

>>9498032

>People not realizing Infinite Jest is satire

He's literally laughing in all your faces from hell as we speak. Infinite Jest was his grand trolling scheme to trick retards into actually reading it all and then try to find meaning in it

>23

>Germany

>none, I only come to /lit/ to shitpost and shill for Radical Feminist and other Cultural Marxist agenda

>>9498074
I realized too late.
It may be too late for me, but not for others.

>>9488934
Thank you for confirming this, just finished aforementioned and got sick of the whole "non-describing the intangible by highlighting/dramatizing its intangibility" thing pretty quick. Intentionally trying to confuse a reader does not put you in my good books. Reads like a poor Kafka imitation except he finishes what he starts and the pace doesn't drag.

Happy I read it though.

I'm >>9496117

>>9498074
Thanks for the headsup.

>>9488906

are you the dude who wanted to quit? did you?

>>9498074
It had value, you just take what you want. I've never been big on literary merrit, still what he wrote has quite a bit of substance which you can or can not accept.

>19
>Mexico
>Just finished 'The Last Wish' by Andrzej Sapkowski. Later will start 'Jerusalem' by Moore.

>>9487184
>19
>Deuteronomy
It's cool but I'm definitely ready to be done with the Torah at this point

>>9496691
I didn't like the first 75% of SOTT, I did like the last quarter but it still wasn't one of my favorites. I continued anyway and by the end of BOTNS it was my all time favorite book. You should definitely keep going but if you don't like COTC too then you probably won't like the rest either.

>>9487599
I went to Sweden this summer for a long solo hike through the massive forrests for 10 days, i read it there. The thing is, it didn´t affect him but it did affect me, you get lonely as fuck. I was alone for 9 days and I felt lonely as fuck, I do not recommend his lifestyle.

>18
>Greece
>Report to Greco by Kazantzakis

It's amazing how he fuses Christianity and Buddhism with Nietzche and Bergson. You feel like a companion to his spiritual journey. Every sentence of his has a special
transcendent, heroic quality that manages to overcome the passivity of nihilism.

>>9488464
I wouldn't recommend it. I finished it last night. You should read kafka on the shore or wind up bird chronicles instead.

>>9487288
>East TN
No way! Anywhere near Kingsport? Also, you can never go wrong with Joyce, though if you're starting out I would recommend dubliners or portrait.

>20
>Tennessee
>Cyrano de Bergerac. It's okay so far, nothing great, but that might be due to the translation. It's pretty funny, though, and there aren't some interesting ideas about poetry.

>>9488183
If you don't know German but you know English why would you not read the English translation?

>>9487184
18
Papua New guinea
Rereading A clock work orange I like the original ending better than the alternative ending is that bad

>18
>Ontario
>Rainbow Six
It's good and I like it but I can never finish it. I end up putting it down for a bit and having to start over because there are two plot's that I'm sure link up at some point but I wouldn't know. I bought it in the eighth grade and now I'm in senior year.
>inb4 do you even read?
I've read countless novels double the size of this one but I can't seem to point out the reason behind me not finishing it.

22
Caracas, Venezuela
My gf recently gave me Ana Karenina. I've love it since I started it. I'm also finishing The Plague by Camus since starting it by February, I've hated it through and through and I only read it when I take a shit, so that's why it has taken me so long. When I'm home I also read The complete short stories by Julio Cortázar. I love the guy and even in there are some whatever stories his prose is from another world so it's really enjoyable to read them. Just finished his Last round book and thought it was kind of weak.

>21
>Brazil
>Cuchulain of Muirthemne
One of the coolest myths i've ever read about.

>22
>Mexico City
>Gilgamesh (direct translation from Akkadian to Spanish by Jorge Silva Castillo)

I'm at the middle of it, after Gilgamesh and Enkidu defeat the Bull of Heaven. I haven't even finished and it has already become one of my favorite poems, if not one of my favorite books of all time. I think it also has to do with the translation. It's such a shame that Silva Castillo died last year, and didn't revise his translation to include the new section of Tablet V that was revealed in 2015.

>24
>Kuala Lumpur
>Islam's Quantum Question
Actually I'm just interested in reading the chapter on Evolution. Prior reading this, I read Sapiens but it doesn't touch much about evolution although it gave succinct info.

Any recommendations on a good, non-laborious book on Evolution?

>>9498147
Yeah, that's me. No, not yet. I probably won't until sometime early next year, honestly. But that's not to say I'm not working on any writing atm, desu.

>>9487184
>21
>Montana

I'm currently jumping between books, as I get bored easily, but right now I'm in the middle of Goblet of Fire. Where Harry Potter gets good in my opinion.

Aside from that, I'm nearing the end of Fellowship of the Ring, started the first in the Wheel of Time series, and am reading Moby Dick for when I don't feel like reading anything else.

24
United Kingdom
Lost Scriptures: Books That Did Not Make It Into The New Testament, Bart Ehrman

It's awesome. Normally for decent translations of these you need to pay textbook prices, but it's very affordable.

>>9500446
Seems God has an editor.

>20
>France
>Belle du Seigneur

>>9487184
>20
>Manitoba
>Currently juggling between pdfs of:
>Hegel's Ladder
>From an Ontological Point of View
>&
>The Fate of Wonder: Wittengenstein's Critique of Metaphysics and Modernity

Having a great deal of fun going between the texts (which I have found to be oddly engaging so far) and I think there are some salient links between the respective subject matters.

All of them provide some interesting methodological tools which have helped out my comprehension,
and luckily for me have been rather charitable in either explaining terminology or avoiding it altogether which does wonders when attempting to fit pieces together or looking at them side-by-side.

>>9487184
>19
>Tokyo
>The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea by Yukio Mishima

Started reading it whilst commuting to university since the train ride is long but I read it during free time to avoid conversation with the same exact people I am always bunched up with. Fascinating book though.

>>9487348
At least you have the weekends. I'm a doctor and this weekend is one of my monthly golden ones that consists of about 60h continuous time I'm not at the hospital.

>>9487184
>18
>SoCal
>Siddhartha, definitely shaping up to be one of my favorites works

>23
>tokyo
>pale king

the BEST book the BEST words

>>9496139
I've read up to Struggle 5 which was brilliant, even better than 4. I'm just waiting for the 6th and last one to come out in September. Got a big essay on Hitler in it apparently. Looking forward to that.

I really do think it is a modern master piece and I treat the whole thing like one big book. He seems to just be able to write about anything and it is mesmerizing.

Fan boy here obviously... If I were to order them on both my enjoyment level and a literary level it would be: 1+5 same, 2+4 same, then 3. How about you?

>29
>tokyo
>Empire of the Sun, Ballard

its ok

>23
>España
>The death of Artemio Cruz
Was skeptic at the start but it gets better as you keep reading

>18
>Massachusettses
>Norwegian Wood
It's like a porno but instead of jerking off I want to cry.

>>9501138
Update: just finished it. The ending was one of the most beautiful things I read as of late.

bump

>>9501266
I'm set on reading this after finishing the current book that I am reading. This description stirs my interest even more.

>>9487184
>18
>CT
>The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell

>25
>MA
>Grace Paley reader

Beautiful.

>>9501113
It's better than that you slag.

>search thread
>nobody from my country
oh well
>18
>Zagreb
>a collection of Gjalski's stories (ok-ish) and Krleža's Ballads (a bit repetitive here and there, but otherwise very good)

>18
>Seattle
>The Arms of Krupp
its good

>>9487184

>20
>Edinburgh
>The Glass Bead Game

Really loving it, first Hesse work i've approached so far. It makes me feel very warm and cozy, reminds me of my home town of St. Andrews. Although I can't help but feel depressed at how lacking my own education seems in comparison to the schools of Castalia :(

>19
>Indiana
>True at First Light
makes me want to shoot a lion

>>9487184
>20
>USofA
>Ginchin Funakoshi's Autobiography: Karate-Do

Very high quality. enjoying it very much. There's this particular story of the legend of Master Matsumura where he won a match without striking a blow. Maybe one of my favorite legends ever.

>>9487184
>turned 21 last week
>brazil
>at home, I read 1 greek play and 1 KJV bible book.

finished the first play that was aeschylus' the suppliants, it was pretty comfy. now reading Job, but just started it. When outside, I'm reading the book of disquiet, which is kind of amazing and a bit sad, but I like it, its like the perfect book to read outside because of the short "chapters"

>>9487184
>15
>FL
>Melanchthon and Bucer

I feel like philip is trying to create logical arguments more on morals than on scripture, and I like that. The only thing I can find any problem with is his stance on free will in that it doesn't really clarify anything.

Can someone help me with this?

23
Salt lake city

Just finished mein kamf
Now reading God: A Biography
And listening to the audiobook of The Idiot

Loved mein kampf for its historical aspects. It was neat seeing the other side of the narrative that i feel is skewed.

God: A biography is good so far [about halfway thru] but it just feels like he is reaching sometimes. And feels a little forced. Interesting though

The idiot is good, i listen to it at work, just started part two. Its not my fave dostoevsky book, that would be based crime and punishment.

>>9488193
>19
>california
Me too. I've read it before, but on this second read I'm realize how fantastic it really is.

>>9489618
how are you liking it? I picked it up recently and it looked really neat.

>24
>Australia
>Dhalgren

It's breddy good, nothing much happens but I'm still enjoying it.

26
New Zealand
Moby Dick
The Way Of The Tarot by Jodorowsky & Costa

Moby Dick is brilliant as I'm sure you know. Even though most of the references are probably over my head it's still an incredibly enjoyable book with prose oftentimes so beautiful that it makes me laugh with joy.

I'm only at the start of the tarot book but it's already quite interesting and has me admiring how complex and varied the symbolism in each card is.

>>9487184
>26
>City of Belgium
>Look homeward, angel

Its great but I somehow have a hard time getting into it.

19
Texas
A Tale of Two Cities. It's alright so far

>21
>Michigan
>brave new world

I'm quite enjoying it, it's more subtle than other dystopian novels I read. Next I will read gulag archipelago

>17
>denmark
>Roadside picnic
I played the Stalker games and watched the movie inspired by the book. Liked it very much, since it had quite a different tone than the games and the movie.

32
Sweden
Behind The Lines - Hanoi
Unenlightening book. Feels politically correct.

>>9488255
you're reading it in english i assume? how do you like the book so far?

>>9487184
27
Baltimore
Moby Dick: It's bretty gud. Not a style I care for but I can certainly see a type of mastery at work and understand why it's so highly respected.

>24
>Florida
>Hitch-22 by Christopher Hitchens
>Hombres Buenos by Arturo Perez-Reverte

Hitch-22 is supurb. Hitchens was the Voltaire of his generation.

I just started Hombres Buenos, so I can't really say how it is, but I love historical fiction and if nothing else it will help me improve my Spanish.

>>9487184
>18
>Ohio
>Fooled by Randomness

I just finished it actually. It was good, but I'm an autist so I'd prefer something more technical.

His comments in the postscript about trying to maximize enjoyment causing unhappiness caused me a mild crisis.

>>9487184
>25
>Florida
>The Bible and Don Quixote

I just finished Deuteronomy this morning; those five books were laborious to get through but rewarding. I hope to finish the whole Bible by Fall.

I'm nearly halfway done with the second part of Don Quixote. I've enjoyed it immensely.

>>9487288
>>9499042
>23
>TN
>Wages of Destruction & The Sword and shield
Fellow TNigger reporting.
WoD busts a lot the the 'nazi war machine' myth and depresses me how better off europe would be without another world war. barely touch S&D, but p neat based on what little ive read. the Soviets basically invented spycraft.

>>9508007
Did you skip thru the genealogy in the OT or did you suffer thru that too?

>>9504011
i couldn't get past the choirboy parts of the first few pages, is the rest worth it?

>24
>the Netherlands
>Wool

Story got me right in. It's about people living inside a huge silo underground and nobody may go outside for some reason. The silo consists of floors and the very top floor has screens mounted on its walls to show outside through cameras mounted outside the Silo. People who are condemned must go outside to clean the camera lenses once in so often, but the air is so toxic they die. So some people choose not to clean the lens cause yolo dying anyways.

20, Montana, and The Crippled God by Steven Erikson

>>9487926
do you go to UNC

>22
>India
>Just finished Post Office by Bukowski, starting America Alone by Mark Steyn

Post Office was a pretty good read, dunno why Bukowski gets a fair amount of hate from /lit/. The parts of him delivering mail early in the book were hilarious.

>21
>IA
>Sea of Poppies by Ghosh
A lit professor recommended it. Only about 100 pages in, but I'm enjoying it so far.

>>9487184
>23
>Waterloo Ontario
>Consider the Lobster

>>9487184
>28
>Tijuana, Mexico
>Camus' The Plague
I'm very critical of existentialism and get mad at the book sometimes, but it's fine, for the most part.

>19
>India
>Voices of Chernobyl

>21
>Ukraine
>Great Expectations by Dickens
Even though I'm only 13 chapters in, I feel completely enthralled and glad that I'm reading it despite some cynical faggots on here claming Dickens is a melodramatist. The language is was written in , though, is quite elaborate and outdated which slows me down (besides, notice, my English isn't as good as I'd like it to be). All in all, Dickens is a Victor Hugo of The English language but more humorous.

>20
>Minnesota
>Pnin by Nabokov

I ordered a bunch of Nabokov and this is the one I'm starting with. Great so far

>>9508007
Are you reading Don Quixote in Spanish?

>>9487184
>17
>Switzerland
>Froth on the daydream by Borris vian
>The World of Yesterday by Zweig
>My life by Trotsky
>Mein Kampf by Hitler

really

>>9510745
What do you think of Zweig, his style in German in particular? Have you ever compared translations?

>18
>Washington (state)
>Dante's Inferno

It's for school but I don't hate it so far

>>9510760
I'm reading a translation
But i rode die Schachnovelle in german. Make me love german and Germany

>>9510767
>18
>still attends school
Americans are retarded, I'm telling you.

>>9510788
and that translation is the best I rode. Don't remove the style of Zweig

>>9510788
>>9510797
*read

>31
>Miami Beach, FL
>The Undivided Self: Selected Stories, by Will Self
I'm just trying to pick up reading again. This was recommended and seemed to be an easy start, and it has been.

>>9487184
>16
>India
>The catcher in the rye
Its pretty fucking good

>>9487184
>24
>Currently living in the US
>Gravitys Rainbow

It's pretty good, it's too early in for me to grasp a sense of the plot - also, it's taking me forever to get through it, which is making me kinda impatient. I will probably enjoy re-reading it with a guide very much, however.

>20
>Southern California
>Herland
Definitely not a good book, but I just feel like hating men (myself) right now. Also reading Frankenstein and The Island of Dr. Moreau for class.

>>9511461
Then become a trap, you pathetic wretch

>>9511480
You definitely wouldn't be suggesting I become a trap if you were looking at me. I'm comfortably a guy, pretty /fit/ too. I'm just in a bit of a slump because I'm in love with a lesbian, all of my other friends are women that are maturing in life a bit before I have, and I live in the barracks of social justice warriors. Just a bit of a slump is all.

>>9487184
>22
>based Italy
>Crime and Punishment -> meh

>>9487184

>20
>northern england
>the fall - albert camus

nothing measures up to la peste

>>9512029
Can you read French or you're just one of those faggots who read translations?

22
Arequipa, Perú
The Corrections
I only just started it today but it seems pretty good. The mother, Enid, is already starting to grate on me and the father reminds me of my grandfather. Looks promising.

21
NC
Ulysses

Posted in the last one of these; was in the middle of Sirens and hating it, about to break up with my girlfriend.

Finished Cyclops last week, called up my lady. We flooded her sheets in a pool of sweat and other unspeakable juices. Two hours in the evening, two hours the following morning.

>>9510851
MOOOOODS!

>>9487184
> 26
> Canada
> Bazaar of Bad Dreams by Stephen King

It's crap. Probably never reading King again after this

>19-ish
>indiana
>Tramway engines

my i'm babysitting niece, who's a huge fan of Thomas the tank engine. Reading these stories to her as she goes to sleep is maximum wholesome. Makes me wish I was either a train, or that I had my own kids.


either one is perfectly fine.

>19
>Mexico
>Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

>>9491122
Where were you during the Transy stabbing

>18
>Australia
>Mere Christianity
This book has made me a Christian. I'm not memeing or being ironic, I have been genuinely moved. You believe that you are reading these words right now; you believe this because this is what your senses are telling you, and in order to function properly you simply must trust these senses. You must have faith that you are not being deceived. With that established, I would propose that embracing one’s own spirituality is not too far a reach; my senses, as far as I can tell, indicate that there is a God. I have trusted these instincts in the same way you trust the words in front of you are real. Obviously this is not proof; there is no proof of anything. The only certainty one can have is that you are indeed experiencing something. Come to think of it, your ideas of ‘existing’ may very well be an illusion, so even that is uncertain.

>>9508061
Mein kampf? Yes, try the audiobook

>18
>Sweden
>Sun and Steel

Breddy good, I like what he's on to, purely sociologically.