It's on the backburner for now.  I stalled out with C22 and The Dark Tower III, both of which I was reading when my twins were born, so they both got shelved as I had no time for them.  I've since taken care of DTIII, but have no timetable for C22 as of right now.  It was pretty hilarious though.

 

I’m planning on it. I’ll let you all know my thoughts when I finish.
 

That's probably my favorite Crichton book. Haven't read any of his stuff since high school I would guess (although I read many of them several times), but I would like to again someday.

Currently reading this thread.

Oh very cool.  When I finish I'd like to chat with you a little about what you thought.  Currently reading through all of his novels (not the early medical stuff he did under other pseudonyms) and I'm about a third of the way through the library.  I really enjoy his work.

 

Hah, I think I read Five Patients back in like 6th grade.  At some point it dawned on me that I was reading about cutting edge 1975 medical technology, something that had completely lost any edge it might of had 20+ years later.  Lesson learned after that; don't blindly read something because of the author's name.

 

My point exactly.  I at first was like "I'm going to read everything ever written by Michael Crichton!" and then I picked up one of his "John Lange" 1970's books and I was like uhhh yeah I'll just read his novels thank you very much.

 

I bought Westworld for the same reason. It was sealed at some flea market-like bookstore, and only when I got home did I realize that it was just the screenplay (and also that there was a movie!).

I definitely saw his Electronic Life in a bookstore today and almost bought it. Just barely dodged that bullet.

Reminds me, in 6th grade my whole class wrote our favorite authors. I was one of the few who got a response; a signed postcard from Crichton. Granted I'm sure his secretary had those prepped, hundreds at a time, but it was still pretty cool. Still have it too.

I am currently reading the instruction manual for Rampart. It's quiet a read.

Nice.  I have most of his movies (even stuff like Lawnmower Man and Sleepwalkers) and most of his pre-2000s books.  I've also been slowly replacing the trashed old paperbacks I've lugged around for 20-25 years with nice new trade copies.  The only older ones I haven't read are a couple of the Bachman books, and The Talisman.

 

just finished Fahrenheit 451, scary how Bradbury predicted all this shit that is going on today

Walking Dead Compendium 1. Found it at a yard sale for a buck!

Finished Galapagos (which I did not enjoy as much as Deadeye Dick, to my surprise),



and started Everything's Eventual



Nearly done with A Clash of Kings as well

I got the marvel comics unlimited app. I've been reading comics on my tablet like it's going out of style.

Any eras or series in particular? I have wanted to get into reading comics for a long time, mainly Marvel, but I feel the need to start from the beginning and that becomes overly daunting.

You can’t go wrong with most 80s and early to mid 90s Marvel. That is where most of the big names were, John Byrne, Chris Claremont, Jim Lee, and Frank Miller just of the top of my head. 

 

Finished reading The Story of the Stone. I thought it was phenomenal--I actually had to resist the urge to pick it up and start over, which I feel is saying something since the book is over 2,500 pages. Really interesting character and life study. I'd recommend it to people who are interested in seeing characters develop and interact as humans over the course of their lives rather than cardboard cutouts or tropes. It's not a story-driven book. It's a character-driven one. However, be aware of what you are getting into. It's a wonderful read, but it is long and very daunting.

After reading The Story of the Stone, I got inspired by the Crichton comments and read The Andromeda Strain and The Terminal Man. Thoroughly enjoyed both of them, though Andromeda's ending felt a little like a copout to me. I'm about to read The Great Train Robbery (got a 3-book compilation hardcover from a library sale of those three Crichton titles). I'm looking forward to it.

I also finished listening to Slaughterhouse Five. Brock, barrel, I really can't see how you guys like it. I don't understand why it's a classic. It is one of the worst books I've ever read/listened to. I hated every minute of it, and I couldn't wait to finish. I'm really curious as to what you (or anyone else who has read it) find great about it or why you consider it a "classic." I just don't see it.

I'm just over halfway done listening to Fahrenheit 451, and I love it. Really enjoying the story and the world Bradbury has created.

I dunno, every Vonnegut novel I've read has been various degrees of hilarious, so maybe it depends on your sense of humor

Barnes and Noble was having a sale so I picked up The Way of Kings and Gardens of the Moon. Just in case I didn't have enough long ass fantasy series I planned on reading/finishing

Interesting. I didn’t find anything funny at all. It could very well be a sense of humor thing.

One thing that was confusing to me is that it is touted as one of the best anti-war novels of all time, but I never got that sense. It came across as so fatalistic that it sounded like war was an inevitability. If war was going to happen, it was going to happen, “and so it goes.”
 

Finished A Storm of Swords



and The Dark Half



I heard ASoIaF peaks at book 3... I guess we shall see


Started The Forever War. Still reading Everything's Eventual. Not sure what else is on deck. I have some Gaiman books, a few remaining Vonneguts, a ton of high fantasy, and some King stragglers as well.

https://www.amazon.com/History-Fa...=


The History of Farting by Dr. Benjamin Bart...

Found it at a Half Price Books in St Louis a few weeks ago and couldn't pass it up..

There's another one called the Future of Farting that I will be buying after I finish this one. ....

Finished listening to Fahrenheit 451 and Starship Troopers. Really enjoyed both of them. Highly recommend. Both give some pretty interesting ideas to think about.

I'm starting to read Les Miserables for the first time. I've already read The Hunchback of Notre Dame, so I've experienced Hugo's writing style. I love his descriptions and characters, but I hate his lengthy side chapters. We shall see how I far in this tome.

I'm also listening to She: A History of Adventure by H. Rider Haggard. Classic late 1800s adventure novel. Simple, fun read.
 
Interested in hearing your thoughts on it when you finish this book. I loved Stormship Troopers, and The Forever War is supposed to be a sort of response to it. Also, Heinlein really enjoyed Haldeman's book, so I'm interested in reading it at some point.

 

I tried Starship Troopers 20+ years ago and failed to finish it.  I'll return to it at some point but TFW grabbed me immediately.  Safe bet most anyone would enjoy/love it.