Just been given Blockbuster by Tom Shone for my birthday. I look forward to reading about how George Lucas was great at the time.

I disagree, I read Dune on holiday and found it perfectly readable. It helped that I'd seen the film so could visualise some things already and that I had a basic understanding of the plot before the book went crazy with it. Haven't read any of the others yet though. There's a new one out soon, I'm told its a reworking of one of the sequels.

Also, the Del Ray release is US so we shouldn't have to worry too much.

I just found it a bit dry - ironically. I never really liked any of the characters. It is a superbly envisioned universe though, one of the most original in SF.

A couple of the sequels are actually very good, but it becomes something of a soap-opera later on.

Slaughterhouse Five (Kurt Vonnegut)

After initially thinking "What the Hell?!" I actually found myself getting rather interested. I read it all in one go, though it was quite short so it's no achievement really. It was funny and interesting and disturbing in roughly equal measures. Not too bad.

For a second then I thought you were saying that the book wasn't much of an achievement!

A great book, and one which changed the way in which people viewed World War II, always a good thing*.







*except in the case of David Irving, of course.

Currently reading Burton On Burton that I picked up in Fopp for a couple of quid. I think a Tim Burton DVD fest might be in order.

Have not read a book in over a month. I think my brain is crumbling inside. Off to the library this evening.

You've given me an urge to go and watch some Tim Burton films now! I really want his book. What's it like?

After weeping my eyes out reading 'On Chesil Beach' in bed last night, I decided to try and change pace by starting 'This Book will Save your Life' by A.M. Homes. I only managed the first fifty or so pages as it was late, but so far it's utterly compelling and written in the immediate, first person style that I aspire to write a novel in one day. And it has donuts on the cover.

I finished Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer yesterday.

Setting out to tell of the (American) author’s journey to the Ukraine to search for the woman who rescued his grandfather from the Nazis, it is actually the young Ukranian Alex who helps him on his search who becomes the central figure. An engaging and compelling narrative, it is told in revealing letters from Alex to the author, his accounts of their search and the author’s historical accounts of generations in the village, Trachimbrod, from which his grandfather was saved. What is probably most impressive is the language used for Alex’s sections – clumsily translated English that gradually improves as the book progresses.


I'm curious to know how much - if any - of it is true.

It's reasonably interesting - each chapter's dedicated to one of his films (and a few other things that didn't happen, like Superman Lives) with a bit of insight about what was going on around each project - it's not hugely in depth, but there's a bit of insight there (and he likes using the word 'weird' a lot). It's probably more of a 'borrow or pick up cheap' than a keeper.

I really love that book, and the movie did a great job with it. The actor playing Alex got the pidgen English down perfectly and Elijah did a lovely job playing Jonfen.

Finally went to the library yesterday and am ploughing through Washington Square by Henry James. I enjoy his gentle satire.

No wonder my friend, Dan, idolises him then. I'll have to steal the book off him and give it a read.

Bought Richard Morgan's 'Black Man' today, and met him too. Nice guy.

Jubei, I have your copy too!

World War Z

Awesome, won't add to what has already been said but I really, really enjoyed it!

The Time Travellers Wife

Been about a year or so I think since I first read this and the second read has proved to be even more enjoyable, it is such an amazing story and for some reason it has so much more meaning to me now which has made it all the more powerful. I actually love this book.

You can read the whole first chapter of Ian McEwan's latest novel 'On Chesil Beach' in the New Yorker, here.

Just starting David Mitchell's Number9dream - another bargain from Fopp.

Fopp does good sometimes with books

The first two are fantastic, particularly the third in the series, Children of Dune. (The second, Dune Messiah, is oddly much shorter and sort of just feels like a bridge between the first and third books, but it's still great.)

From God Emperor of Dune onwards, it takes place thousands of years later and as Adam notes, it gets very soapy. I couldn't give a fig so I stopped.

Picked up some good suggestions just now, as usual. Thanks folkses...

Are the later ones the books written by Herbert's son and Kevin J. Anderson? Anderson's stuff tends to get quite soapy in general.

Actually, I was referring to the second trilogy that Frank Herbert wrote; he did six in total, the first three of which are good IMO. I've not read any of the prequel books though I know some people who enjoyed them. (The only one I'm really interested in is the Butlerian Jihad one, about the holy war thousands of years before that they talk about all the time... that sounds somewhat interesting.)

Ah, cheers for clearing it up. I've never been completely clear on the chronology of the Dune books.

You will come away wanting to smoke. Lots.

I done bought my first Neil Gaiman books today. Stardust and Neverwhere. Did I done good?

You done very good Ade. The film of Stardust comes out soon, so you'd best get a'crackin.

I finished 'Cat's Cradle' by Kurt Vonnegut today. A darkly humourous take on the end of the world that had me engrossed from the start.

Ed is speechless, clearly.

Splendid. Then crack I shall. I still have two Jasper Fforde books I wanted to get through first, but they can wait.

The film is released on my birthday no less, assuming of course that is the UK release date I've seen banded about. If so, I might well go watch it before the Prince gig. Should make for a jolly ace day, all in all. Woop.

'Fraid not, dudes. UK release is 19th October.

That's a huge difference to the US. We get it August 10th.

I know. It's a bastard, isn't it? Well, not for you, obviously. Or me - I've already seen it

Finished reading Phillip K Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? last night. Incredible book, absolutely nothing like Blade Runner though. Well worth reading if you haven't.

It is and it isn't. Like the best PKD film adaptations Bladerunner is only loosely based on the book and as such manages to craft a screenplay that works. The book (if i remember rightly, I haven't read it in a while) deals more closely with whether Deckard is a replicant and the implications and status of replicants (both animal and human versions) in society.

I was just reading about BladeRunner on wikipedia and saw an nice quote by PKD "After I finished reading the screenplay, I got the novel out and looked through it. The two reinforce each other, so that someone who started with the novel would enjoy the movie and someone who started with the movie would enjoy the novel"

I also saw something about Soldier, which I'd never heard of, an unofficial 'side-quel' to BladeRunner. Might have to look that up.

EDIT: It also mentions another Directors cut, due to be released this year. Has that happened? Apparently this time Ridley Scott is actually happy with it.

Sarah lent me Neil Gaiman's American Gods, as well as 1602 and the first two of the Sandman books at the weekend. I've never read any of his stuff before so I hope he's as good as everyone says. I wanted to read Neverwhere but Sarah's brother's reading that so I couldn't borrow it which is a shame as I've been told that it's one of his best.

I've read 1602, a nice re-imagining - although the names are a bit dodge - Ironman is a beast in 1602, although he might not be in it till the second volume. Also, I have American Gods lying around waiting to be read. I bought it for a friend and he really liked it so he's lent it to me to read. Looking forward to it as me and he have similar tastes in books.

Bloody hell, it was due out in February originally!



Be warned, it is by P.W.S. Anderson.

Excellent book.
As for Soldier, it's in the same universe, and that's about it.

The new cut is here, or it will be...
For Replicantophiles, I'd also recommend the Westwood Blade Runner game, and Alien Zone 2.

Unless part of it is down to interpretation, the book makes it very clear that Rick is human, there is another bounty hunter though who Rick and him think is a replicant. The book has huge plotlines and issues about Mercerism and animals and so on which is completely missed out in the film, and the Nexus-6's and Rachel are very different indeed, plus all the stuff about Specials that I thought was very interesting.

I agree though, the 2 compliment each other perfectly. As a result of reading the book, I don't see it as better than the film (like many book-films are), nor is the film better. They're both 2 different and excellent stories, that have a couple of similar bits and names. If anything, reading the book has made me like the film more, as I can now watch it and think of the book aswell, and vise versa.

'This Book will save your Life', A.M. Homes.

Finished this last night and I can't recommend it enough. It's utterly compelling from the first page and written in a style so clever and unusual it draws you in effortlessly. It's so easy and fun to read it's not hard to forget how skilled the use of language and narrative complexities are. The pace is fantastic, never dwelling on one instance for too long, moving with the desire of the reader from one moment in our protagonist's life to the next. Every character and situation is believable (no matter how fantastic or far fetched) and you genuinely care what happens to each and every one of them. More than that it's wonderful to read a really life affirming piece of contemporary fiction, it leaves you feeling better about human nature than when you started reading it.

If you don't believe me, believe Steven King:



The only downside is the title and the fact the cover is decorated with lots of frosted donuts (relevant to the plot). You look like you're reading a self-help book for fatties.

I got a new book today Can't wait to finish what I'm currently reading now.

What I'm currently reading now is the [b]Memory, Sorrow and Thorn[b] 'trilogy'. I'm just about to finish Siege, and i don't know whether to go straight to Storm or read Black Man first. Decisions decisions. If I do read Storm first it's going to be another couple of weeks probably before I finish it, although I do have a weeks leave next week so...

Exact problem I had with it. Couldn't read it on the train. Did make me want to eat doughnuts though.

It is a superb book. And anything that makes me feel better about human nature has to be fairly convincing.

My current read looks like a self-help book for the depressed - it's called Stumbling on Happiness. It's actually a very witty and accessible exploration of the psychology of how (and often how badly) the human brain pre-empts feelings and expectations. And each chapter is opened with a Shakespeare quote. Still, the flourescent pink and banana skins don't help its appearance.

I see what you mean



The font does make in look a bit like a girly version of Franzen's 'The Corrections' though.

Here's the cover of 'This Book will Save your Life' - see what a mean? Looks like a fatties' guide to weight loss.

That's a good one. Our cover had an upside-down bowl of cherries on it, so it was slightly more subtle.

Finally had some free time and finished Slaughterhouse 5.

Brilliant.

I just bought Black Man by Richard Morgan. Now I'm umming and ahhing as to whether to read it now and get a new book for the long train journey on tuesday or to save it.

Am currently reading "The Damned United" which is a fictional account of Brian Clough's 44-day reign at Leeds United. It's pretty good, but some of the author's stylistic traits are beginning to grate somewhat.

Just finished the first Flasman book. Bally good fun

Have a choice between This Book Will Change Your Life or The Religion by Tim Willocks. Willocks has written some of my favourite books so I'm going for The Religion first. Hopefully TBWCYL next, but there is a new Harry Potter and Apples to read as well.

I had some book tokens so bought myself another A.M. Homes, 'Music for Torching' and the latest Anne Tyler, 'Digging to America'.

Two of the finest contemporary female authors in the business I'd say. Girl power, etc.

Aye, it tis, and the second one is pretty good as well (that's as far as I've got, so far!).