Books

[Little Bird]

Batsocks, as much as the smell of new books is lovely, you can't beat the smell of old books. Vellum specifically.

I used to work in Marsh's Librarywhich was an absolute honour and rare opportunity.

every morning walking in the front door always presented the most welcoming smell of really old books. It was the best job I ever had. Wish I could have stayed there forever.

[LonelyLullaby]

You know it's weird that up-to date I haven't read anything by Stephen King, considering his popularity
I remember starting up on The Shining but kind of not going through with the whole book.. I don't know, I don't like horror because it either really scares me or doesn't scare me at all (I pay attention to special effects, in movies for example) and I don't like either one :coffee:
The gate to his house though is awesome
I really have to pick up Lord Of The Rings and Harry Potter; I haven't gotten to them yet. And I'd love to work at the library, you're right- there's some kind of mystique in old books

[Leigh]

i get scared so easily, i've never been able to get through a Steven King book, i always get freaked out and end up returning it to the library before I finish it. I've tried to get through 'Salem's Lot and The Shining and couldn't do either ^_^

[Little Bird]

Tell you what, a book of short stories by Stephen King is a nice easy starter option into his books. The one I have is Nightmares & Dreamscapes. I had read a few of his books before this one (which was years ago) and found this was a great way to get into his style of writing without getting too bogged down into a lengthy read.

[LonelyLullaby]

I might try this I'm really curious about him.. I mean if not necessarily horror just him as a writer

[Eibhlin]

you know, a book of his that i really enjoyed that wasn't too horrorish was The Eye of the Dragon, of course it has been atleast 10 years since i read it...but if memory serves me it wasn't. i must admit though, the only book of his that instilled a lasting (paranoia?) fear, was Cujo. Esp. since where we currently live no one seems to have heard of this invention called a leash...and so i am often wondering if some rabid stray dog is going to attack my kids...but anyways!

[Angel_Eyes]

Ah, other books that I grew up with and loved were R.L. Stine's Goosebumps books. I read The Barking Ghost, The Haunted Mask, The Horror at Camp JellyJam, Monster Blood, Night of the Living Dummy, Night of the Living Dummy 2, Say Cheese and Die!, The Scarecrow Walks At Midnight, A Shocker On The Shock Street, Welcome to Dead House and a couple of other where you got to choose what you wanted to do... I remember that one was about an amusement park.

And then...





Ahhhh! I got that book last February and I love it! Brings back so many memories. :D

[Little Bird]

To be honest, I don't think there is any particular specially well written books by him, in my opinion but he does tell a good story and there's no-one else like him really.

[Lissa]

Prozac Nation by Elizabeth Wurtzel (the story of my life)

[LonelyLullaby]

Eibhlin well that's one book I won't be touching ;) But I'll probably get something by him eventually. Probably the book that Kiera recommended..
And Lissa now I have to check out that book ;)

[Eibhlin]

i am currently reading Blackwood Farm, by Anne Rice
i think she is a very good writer if you are into vampires and such

[LonelyLullaby]

I can't believe that this thread is brought back ^_^ I forgot about it
You know someone else told me that they just got an Anne Rice book
There are so many authors that I still have to get my hands on that I think I'll collect more books than I'll be able to cover in a life time
But I have to read at least something by her
:dir: thanks for bringing this up

[bluediamond]

I dont read much, but im just a little facinated by this book. 'A picture of Dorian Grey' i think its by Oscar Wilde, but ive not looked into it yet.

Anyway, i found this and if any people have read it, can you let me know if its worth a read.

The Picture Of Dorian Grey

The Picture of Dorian Grey This story is about wanting to stay young and not knowing the consequences of such a desire. Everything starts out in Basil Hallward's studio. Basil is a painter that is obsessed with Dorian Grey, a young beautiful gentleman that catches everyone's eye. On this particular day, Basil is accompanied by Lord Henry, one of his close friends. Dorian posses for a portrait and then retires to the garden with Lord Henry. They talk about youth and its great importance, about how it shouldn't be taken for granted, etc. When the picture is finished, Dorian makes a simple wish. He asks for his picture to grow old instead of him. Dorian keeps the picture and is fond of his new friend, Lord Henry. They go everywhere together and Henry teaches Dorian new things about life that he never knew existed. Dorian falls in love with an actress from the lower sides of London. But after she messes up in one of her plays, he despises her and decides never to see her again. He goes home and realizes that his picture has changed, it had grown old. The next day he is told that the actress he used to admire had committed suicide. Dorian fells no sorrow and Lord Henry tells him to take it as if it were just part of a play, a tragic scene that had come to a dramatic end. He realizes that his stupid wish had come true, so he decides to hide the painting so no one else can see it. As the years go by, people start to hate the once beloved Dorian Grey. Rumors are spread that he is a bad influence and that evil follows him wherever he goes. Many people don't believe that nonsense, and are still blown away by his ravaging good looks. They can't believe that such a handsome man can do such terrible things. Then one night, Basil visits him. They have a chat about the reputation that Dorian is getting on the streets. Basil tells him that such affairs, as he had been known to be a part off, were bad for the soul. Dorian tells him he no longer has a soul, and decides to show him the picture he once had painted of him. The picture had become horrid, old, and had lost all the beauty it once possessed. Basil is amazed and can't believe his own eyes. Dorian becomes mad at him, he blames him for all that has happened in his life, for he was the one that started the whole thing. Dorian takes a knife and stabs his good friend to death. The next day he gets rid of the body and of all the evidence that can link him to the murder. Dorian continues his life as if nothing had ever happened. A couple of days later, he is confronted by James Vayne, the actress's brother, the one he had sent to her death 18 years before. He wants to kill him for what he had done, but his good looks and his young face save his life. Now everywhere he goes he is afraid of being killed, until one day he goes hunting with a friend, and they shoot Vayne by mistake. Dorian feels without troubles and decides to make good instead of evil. He goes home and stabs the painting that had caused him all this pain. A chilling cry is heard, and his servants enter the room. They find the picture hanging on the wall, as beautiful as it ever was, and their master lying dead on the floor. He had changed into an old horrid figure and was stabbed to death. This book was an excellent choice because it had a very interesting way of looking at life. At the beginning I thought it would be the usual story, but then as the plot unwraps, one can't leave the book for a second. You always want to know what will happen to Dorian Grey. Grey is an amazing character, at the start he was just blooming like a flower, but under the influence of Lord Henry, he matures and becomes a creature of evil. He realizes his mistakes and wants to change them, but it is too late. This story shows us that you can't have everything forever, one has to live life as one is. Dorian tried to stay young forever and it brought him nothing but pain. We can't make such mistakes because we only live once, we have to take Dorian's example and make our lives better, and worth living.


:lalala:
Dave

[JThisWay620]

I recently read "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Housieni. A fantastic story teller. There's no grand literary style here but simply a superb tale about friendship and choices. PLus it's an easy read so it won't bog the mind down.

I love fantsay and the one that reallt sticks out of my mind is the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind. If anyone is interested I defintely suggets this series to tackle, though I will warn that after the 5th book in the series the story becomes disjointed amnd drags, mainy becuasthe author feels that the books become a forum for him to discuss Ayn Rand Objectivism philosphy to the point of ad nauseum. Still a good read with rewarding, provocative thoughts, just too dull at times.

[Little Bird]

Dave, it is by Oscar Wilde, and Irish writer too....just to clarify.

I am currently reading Jewel's Chasing Down the Dawn. Only got it (at last) about a week ago and decided to leaf through a couple of pages a few nights ago. It is a real easy but enjoyable read. Almost like Jewel is sitting with you right there telling you her stories or that she has written you a personal letter. Very warming.

I still have the rest of Himalaya by Michael Palin to read. I watched the entire BBC series and loved it. The book so far is brilliantly interesting to me. But with so much information to take in about all the different cultures etc. along the Himalyas, I just had to put it down for a few days.

I LOVE this thread. I had forgotten about it. Thanks for resurrecting it Andrea.