Sometimes it can be mood. I feel I sometimes have to put something away if I'm not feeling in the mood for it. For example, a few years ago, someone lent me The Terror by Dan Simmons. I had found it hard to get through and shelved it for a few months. Then I picked it back up and I didn't find it so hard to go through and enjoyed it quite a bit.
It's very different from a lot of King's material, given the heavy historical fiction aspect of it. Of all his works it's the one I've enjoyed the most. I can remember more about it than any other, too. Starting the new year off with The Twilight War, a history of Iranian-American relations.
The Andromeda Strain over here, nearly finished. Then I'll watch the movie. Buildup's been great so far. Not sure if I'd like King, pretty sure he's hit and miss given how prolific he is. Certainly got to check him out sometime regardless.
Mean Street, a memoir about driving taxis in 1970s-1990s Toronto. Lots of pimps, crackheads, prostitutes, and deadbeats from the sound of things.
Just finished The Last Days of Night by Graham Moore. This is by the same guy who wrote The Imitation Game. I was very excited to be reading this. It's essentially the story about Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse and their battle to electrify America. It's a very engaging story. My first time reading Graham Moore as I didn't read The Imitation Game, but he'll be one to follow up on for sure.
I just finished The Biography from Brian Cranston which I enjoyed before that I read Tom Baker's which is very good. Right now I am perhaps going to read Sherlock Holmes or Red Mars by KSR
Re-reading The Best of Clarence Day (by Clarence Day) containing Life With Father and Life With Mother and others. One of my favorite books of all time.
With zero sarcasm, that actually sounds like an awesome read, I will have to get it since I have taken a Toronto taxi or two myself.
Miniatures: The Very Short Fiction of John Scalzi Just started this collection of humorous science fiction and I'm really enjoying it. I like that most are rather brief and different within the sf/fantasy genre. One story is about people telling about their experiences with "Alien Animal Encounters" and another is about possible futures that a company lets people experience for a fee in "Alternate History Search Results" where all the possible futures depend on the death of Adolf Hitler back before WW2. The wild range of butterfly effects that follow each different way he is done to death are fun to imagine.
One of the more interesting aspects of the book was that the industry was changing throughout his time driving -- one of the stories he shares is from before cabbies were even using radios.
re-reading The Iron Hand of Mars by Lindsay Davis. It's a detective novel cum love story set in 1st century Rome, France and Germany, about 20 years after the Varus-desaster. I rather like the whole series because of the hero's dry humour. In my opinion people get beaten up too often and the descriptions of the state of the dead bodies or parts thereof that get found in every volume are a bit too detailed, thank you, but otherwise the series is well written, entertaining, historically accurate and generally a good read. Most are available as audiobooks, some even with a full cast . These are highly recommendable as the cast is really excellent. Next on my list is The Suspicions of Mr Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House by Kate Summerscale. Has anyone read that one yet? Did you like or dislike it and why?
In the middle of Trevor Noah's memoir, Born a Crime. Beyond that, my reading for the next few months will be focussed on a course I'm taking.
Guess as a Great White Northerner, I just find it so odd that someone from the heart of Dixie cares about Torronno cabbies...that is a story in itself!
Hah! Well, you've heard of train nuts? I'm a transportation nut, in general. I read memoirs from truckers and cabbies, or nonfiction pieces about shipping and trucking or metro rail networks, or bicycles. A lot of men in my family drive trucks, so that may account for it.