What books are you reading right now?

I didn't read the Harry Potter series until last summer. When they first came out, I, too, was all, "ugh, so much hype." Since then, I've read the entire series twice more, and the sixth and seventh books...um, well, a lot more. I liked the movies well enough up until Half-Blood Prince, because it left all my favorite parts out. The book goes more into Voldemort's back story, and the movie almost completely skipped all of that. Boo. Also--and I was just talking about this the other day--several of the supporting characters get the shaft in the movies. Tonks, Neville, and Ginny are the ones I immediately think of, and the movies make Ron a lot more...clownish...than he actually is.



Oh-- and I finished What Alice Forgot last night. I liked it a lot, not just for the story, but for how it made me really think about my own life, and what I'd forget if I suddenly lost all my memories from the last ten years.

At the moment, I'm reading The Reluctant Reaper, by Gina X. Grant. Kinda goofy, light read...this would be one of those books I'd take to the beach.

 

I'm going to echo some Harry Potter sentiments.

I will fully accept the fact that my passion for these books may have a lot to do with me being one of the younger members on here and the series came along right at my formidable years.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was released in the US in 1998. I was eight.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released in the US in 2007. I was 17.

This book series was a key part of over 9 years of my life.

It is a young adult series, but it is so much more than that. It was a way to escape every shitty thing that was going on in my life over that decade, many of which found an echo in the book that kept me strong. When my family was falling apart throughout middle school, I identified with Harry and clung to the idea of finding my Molly and Arthur Weasley who would love me as their own, even if I wasn't blood. It made me want to find my Sirius, who would love me and support me. After my assault, I looked up to Hermione and Ginny who were strong, passionate female role models that didn't need to be defined by a man they were with. The books helped me learn friendship. They helped me build courage and strength. They showed me it's admirable to stand up for what I believe in, regardless of popularity.

As cheesy as it sounds, I honestly believe I am a better person than I would be if the Harry Potter series never happened.

It's more than just a few YA books about witches and wizards. It's an escape, a guidebook for a better life. It truly is magic.

 

I confess, I sometimes read erotica/porn.

I recently finished a book titled Turned-On Tourists. It was published in 1978. Yes, it's porn or erotica, depending on your definitions. In the back pages there are ads for other books, and one of the categories is titled Family Ties. The book and other books from the publisher reminded me of something that I had previously questioned: What was the deal with incest fantasies in the '70s and '80s?

 

FWIW, it's not just the younger readers who enjoy it. I started reading the series in 2005, when I was thirty-two years old. I enjoyed it as entertainingly written, but more than that, an interesting example of a series that evolves as the characters age.

The first book is written toward readers around the eleven-year-old age of the characters: lots of jokes, broader rather than overly nuanced, comparatively straightforward in the message of Harry learning to begin accepting himself and finding self-confidence. By the end of the series, the book is written toward a basically adult level: nuanced, thoughtful, with pain and sadness tempered sparingly with humor, and exploring in interesting ways ideas about life and death, loss and living, love and identity.

It's true that in a sense, there is little or nothing "new" in Harry Potter. It is a fairly classic retelling of the archetypical young-hero-finds-himself-as-he-journeys-to-defeat-evil narrative. But it's a good retelling, with refreshingly novel flourishes enriching the central conceit.

The first time I read the series, I thought it was a very nice YA series. The more I have re-read the series, the more I see depths in it, nuances and texture that emerge with revisitation. And that, to my mind, is the hallmark of good literature.

I do also have to say, the Harry Potter series is, to my mind, an excellent example of why one should always read books in preference to seeing the movies upon which they were based. The first couple of Harry Potter movies weren't too bad: a little flatter and less rich than the books, but no more so than a lot of other decent film adaptations of books. But the more complex and thoughtful the books got-- with each in the series becoming progressively deeper and richer-- the worse the adaptations got, if for no other reason than there was no way to cram all the plots and character development that took place in the books into a two-hour film. That, plus the poor choices of the various directors, and the inevitable tendency of Hollywood to emphasize action scenes rather than character development.

 

Finished Fahrenheit 451 I must say that I was disappointed. I'm trying to pick my next adventure.

 

Okay, this book is annoying and terrible. 25% through, and I've thought quitting twice. I'm giving it a couple more chapters.

 

East of West -- Jonathan Hickman & Nick Dragotta
Death has had a falling out with the other four horseman and is looking revenge.
Graphic novel.
This book rocks and does a great job of combining western with science fiction.
If you like Saga, or Jonathan Hickman's other series The Manhattan Projects you should enjoy East of West.

 

I'm on to In the Garden of Beasts, by Erik Larson.

 

Finished The Reluctant Reaper. God, that was painful.

Also finished I Love You, Beth Cooper. It was...hmmm. I was annoyed by the characters, and was rolling my eyes at most of the situations. But some of the jokes were laugh-out-loud funny, and for the most part, I guess I enjoyed it.

Next up is Sweetie, by Kathryn Magendie.

 

I enjoyed ITGOB, it's a pretty good read.

 

Dangerous Women edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois.
Big old door stop of a book but I love short story anthologies and this one has some of my favorite authors in it.
Jim Butcher, S.M. Sterling, Lev Grossman, too many to list.
Dangerous Women: George R.R. Martin, Gardner Dozois: 9780765332066: Amazon.com: Books
There is even a Dance of Dragons story.

 

I've really been enjoying it to no end.
George has always done a great job as an editor and the theme is one that appeals to me.
I really loved the Wild Cards series too.