Aren't books great

[DarthBane]

Anyone read Michael Caine's autobiography yet? I was thinking of buying it last week.

[Zippykins1]

Originally Posted by DarthBane

Anyone read Michael Caine's autobiography yet? I was thinking of buying it last week.

Yes, it's a good read. Didn't realise quite how much he drunk back in the day.

[Punchbowl]

Read a fuck tonne over the past few weeks:
Hellbound Heart
Perdido Street Station
The Genesis Secret
The Skin Gods
The Haunting of James Hastings
The Wasp Factory
Dead Air
Neverwhere
And just started Domain.

[CitizenSnips]

What's Perdido Street Station like? I've heard a little about it and it sounds mental-not sure whether to think its brilliant or nonsense.


Have just finished reading The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe. Bloody fantastic it is. Does a great job of involving you in the infectious enthusiasm of the whole Merry Prankster experiment, but at the same time doesn't gloss over its flaws.

[Punchbowl]

Perdido is very good, but can be a bit of a slog towards then end. I'm not one for hi-fantasy in my books, especially sci-fi, but this was a very well written book, with just one or two dips. I'd recommend it.

[CitizenSnips]

Perdido is very good, but can be a bit of a slog towards then end. I'm not one for hi-fantasy in my books, especially sci-fi, but this was a very well written book, with just one or two dips. I'd recommend it.

(Sorry, this post slipped by me). Sounds worth it, then. I'm not one for big fantasy elements either but if it works...

Since we were discussing Bret Easton Ellis on another thread, and a few people seem to know him, has anyone else read Imperial Bedrooms yet? Kiba?

[Kiba.]

Not yet, Snips. I think Lunar Park is probably the last Ellis novel I'll read. He's a good writer but some of his comments through social media suggest that he's as much of an asshole as his characters. I know that shouldn't put me off his work, but it does a bit when there's so many other talented authors.
Imperial Bedroom revisits the Less Than Zero characters and I don't think I want to. I'm sure they're as vacuous and soulless as they ever were, just with different issues.

[ebrown]

I've lately read the wind up bird chronicle, and absolutley loved it. Murakami is the only writer that can make boiling pasta or ironing interesting.

After that I started reading Women by Bukowski but I can't seem to enjoy it. Maybe I'm just fed up witch Chinaski's antics, since I've read a couple of Buk's books in recent months.

[CitizenSnips]

Kiba, your whole post is pretty much spot on. Bedrooms is pretty poor, I reckon, and Ellis himself is a total dick. I suppose it doesn't invalidate his work, but it's still a shame. He should also probably be put on some kind of watchlist as well, given his resemblance to his characters.

Trying to get through Don Quixote at the moment. A slog, but a pretty enjoyable one. I can see why Terry Gilliam tried to make the film- it's almost like if a Monty Python film was stretched out so every sentence lasts five minutes.

[Jeffbiscuits]

I got a couple of Richard Matheson short story collections from Amazon for a couple of pounds. I Am Legend is possibly my favourite book but I've never read any of his other stuff. Starting them tonight.