In which we discuss what we are reading (novels/non-fiction, etc) and possibly offer reviews once we have finished reading them.

Currently reading:

1. Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari
2. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
3. Quiet by Susan Cain

Just finished reading "House of Secrets" by Chris Columbus (writer, director and producer) and Ned Vizzini. It's a kids book. I picked it up because Columbus's name was on it. If you IMDB him you'll know why, hint - Goonies. . . Unfortunately I can't recommend it. It's quite bad despite an interesting premise. The writing fluctuates between been basic and showing a bit of flair. The situations fluctuate between childish and fairly dark. The book feels shizophreniac, like it doesn't know what it wants to be or that everytime they felt inspired they had to remember who it was aimed at and had to pull back towards it been childish. Which is rubbish really. The biggest problem are the three central characters. They're all quite horrible and horribly written with no redeeming qualities. I wouldn't even recommend it to kids.

This past week I've been reading a lot, finished these three:

'How to stop time' - Matt Haig. Beautiful book, I love Haig's writing. Every page is profound. It's about a man who ages extremely slowly and is over 400 years old. It deals a lot with searching for what matters most in life, on finding one's place in the world, etc. Highly recommended.

'Reasons to stay alive' - also by Matt Haig. I finished it in a couple of hours. It is his personal account of his depression and anxiety, how he almost committed suicide but at the last minute decided not to, and how far he has come since then. Also deals a lot with life's big questions and what matters most. Haig is just brilliant.

'Turtles all the way down' by John Green. I love John Green from he and his brother's Youtube videos, so really wanted to read this book. It's not my usual genre (YA) but it deals a lot with mental health (in particular OCD) which I found interesting. It is definitely a YA novel but there are some parts that really stood out for me.

Currently reading: 'Collected poems' by Sylvia Plath, 'After you' by Jojo Moyes, 'David & Goliath' by Malcolm Gladwell and 'The Collected Writings' by Zelda Fitzgerald.

Not really a novel, but it is what I have been reading everyday for the past month. Wanted to get into computer graphics so I have been reading this and doing a bit of linear algebra

Just finished book 2 in the Dresden Files series. Was fantastic.

Finished, pretty decent read.

Ready player one. Brilliant read!

I'm keeping that till after the movie.

Fantastic read about the Pathfinder Platoon's decision to stay and engage a much larger rebel force rather than withdraw and abandon a village of mainly women and children in the Sierra Leone Civil War.

Armada novel by Ernest Cline. great read !

@Magius
I said the same thing when I read the books synopsis. I guess it pays when an IP is so old and obscure that no one can claim copyright infringement.

As long as there's a "Death Blossom" in it. . .

Finished, fantastic. A dramatization of real story.

Just finished.

A good series of light urban fantasy books. The closest comparison would be The Dresden Files, just set in London. Also without the accumulated weight of the built up mythology that has dragged that series down recently. This was the fifth book on the series, started reading the sixth with the seventh to release in November

I saw this on Google Play and for some reason I had to have it.



Great read: "Fergus was a stubborn little fellow, wild and undisciplined but he eventually trained my parents".

Another book that appealed to me somehow



Very funny.

Just finished this again.

History in a hour books - both excellent