Reading The Martian by Andy Weir, and The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch. The latter is about a gang of thieves that undertake an elaborate heist. Kind of like American Hustle in a fantasy setting. Great fun.
I'm still working on An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth. It's actually being pretty inspirational for me, as I'm looking for a new job and trying to define what it is I want out of the new job. I wonder if NASA needs a web developer... Anyway, it's taking me a good long while to read, because by the time I get the baby settled, house clean, and work done, I'm usually too tired to read. But I do like all the detail about what it actually takes to get into space safely.
On a 1984 re-read currently. Gaiman's Stardust cued up for a re-read after that. Just read State of Wonder by Anne Patchett. Well-crafted prose but totally ridiculous.
How was it? I'm curious about it...largely because of the title and that it somehow got enough attention to be adapted as a big-budget Tom Cruise flick.
It's pretty good. It flows well, doesn't get bogged down during the repeating segments, and kept my interest throughout. There were some changes to the aliens and the mechanism of the time loops (and it gives a brief explanation of their origins), but overall the film is pretty faithful to the novel's broad strokes, while making some changes to the details and characters. It's a fast read. I recommend it.
I've just read my first book of 2014, yeah that's not good. It saddens me how little time I have to read and I have to try and make time to read more. I just read David & Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell. I love to read his books, he has such an effortless way to tell a story, to drive home his point. I've read all his books, while I liked David & Goliath a lot, it seamed a bit more forced then his other books.
I finished The House on the Borderland by William Hope Hodgson. It dates back to 1908 and was cited as an influence by both HP Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith, and that becomes very obvious in the second half of the book-- more Smith than Lovecraft. In fact, if I had just read a couple of those chapters blind, I would have assumed it was Smith. Great book, though. If you like that sort of thing, this is the sort of thing you'll like.
The Psychopath Test by Jon Ronson. I've just finished Them: Adventures with Extremists and Lost at Sea: The Jon Ronson Mysteries. Next up is Frank: The True Story that Inspired the Movie and a re-read of The Men Who Stare At Goats.
^^^Lost at Sea is on my TBR (or more precisely To Be Listen To) list. I am currently listening to Thirteen: 13 Spine-Tingling Tales edited by Scott Harrison which it seems is only available as an audio book. Several different authors and several different narrators. I am onto the fifth story and so far the stories are average.
I just read The Scarlet Letter, which I enjoyed greatly despite its "classic" status. Next in the great march through American classics, Tom Sawyer! I've not read it in years, so it will be a real pleasure.
i am listening to We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, narrated by Bernadette Dunne.
The slipcase edition of Witzend that I pre-ordered months ago just arrived yesterday. I feel like taking a week off of work and dropping some acid while I read it.