The Good Books Thread/ATARnotes Book Club!

[Yertle the Turtle]

Anyone here read Dracula by Bram Stoker? 

I expected it to be the scariest thing I would ever read but I guess what was scary in the late 1800's isn't so scary in today's modern society (especially with the many renderings of vampires we have available to us now).

I loved it. You're right, it wasn't anywhere near as scary as I expected, but still pretty good, and an all time classic. Much recommended.

[S200]

Just finished Crime and Punishment...

Russian classics are prolly not what I'd go in for... It really took me a long time to get through.

[peterpiper]

I can't remember who recommended 'Conversations with friends' but I read it, and wow. It was great. I loved all the characters, and the descriptions were lucid and impactful. I highly recommend this for anyone who likes good current books (and is a lefty ), and I have to say I severely judged it from its cover, but I'm glad I opened and read through the first page.

[elysepopplewell]

I can't remember who recommended 'Conversations with friends' but I read it, and wow. It was great. I loved all the characters, and the descriptions were lucid and impactful. I highly recommend this for anyone who likes good current books (and is a lefty ), and I have to say I severely judged it from its cover, but I'm glad I opened and read through the first page.

Hey! What kind of book is this? I'm keen to know more

[peterpiper]

Hey! What kind of book is this? I'm keen to know more

It's about a college student named Frances who gets into an affair with an actor (Nick), after befriending a photographer or journalist or something (I can't remember) who happens also to be the actor's wife. The actor is not mediocre but his career never took off -- he's a little miserable and his marriage isn't going so well. Frances as a character feels very similar to most protagonists in novels I've read (I feel like I'm stereotyping the temperament of a typical author, but it's true). What made it really different, however, were the range of characters we got from Frances' interactions with the world of people around her etc.

The thing about this book is that the characters seem very real, which means - I suspect - that while the author has denied that the book is an 'auto-fiction', I can't help but feel that the characters themselves are very much based on people she has known in her life. The acute judgments seem almost too perfect, unless they were inspired by other characters from other books. So there's that added sense of realism. Like the problem I have with most contemporary books is that all the characters feel pretty much the 'same' as the narrator/author. In this book, it's not the case at all -- there were many reactions that the characters showed that made them feel like they were disparate or different from one another (how they see things, how they respond), which made it so good.

Also there were a lot of discussion on power structures and interpretations of cultural theory floating around as well, which, some of it - if my memory serves me right - I semi-disagreed with, but it was nevertheless really empowering to read lmao. Like the kind of feeling when you read about someone liking the same thing as you and you have this moment of 'ahhh it's so good to be alive'.

[elysepopplewell]

It's about a college student named Frances who gets into an affair with an actor (Nick), after befriending a photographer or journalist or something (I can't remember) who happens also to be the actor's wife. The actor is not mediocre but his career never took off -- he's a little miserable and his marriage isn't going so well. Frances as a character feels very similar to most protagonists in novels I've read (I feel like I'm stereotyping the temperament of a typical author, but it's true). What made it really different, however, were the range of characters we got from Frances' interactions with the world of people around her etc.

The thing about this book is that the characters seem very real, which means - I suspect - that while the author has denied that the book is an 'auto-fiction', I can't help but feel that the characters themselves are very much based on people she has known in her life. The acute judgments seem almost too perfect, unless they were inspired by other characters from other books. So there's that added sense of realism. Like the problem I have with most contemporary books is that all the characters feel pretty much the 'same' as the narrator/author. In this book, it's not the case at all -- there were many reactions that the characters showed that made them feel like they were disparate or different from one another (how they see things, how they respond), which made it so good.

Also there were a lot of discussion on power structures and interpretations of cultural theory floating around as well, which, some of it - if my memory serves me right - I semi-disagreed with, but it was nevertheless really empowering to read lmao. Like the kind of feeling when you read about someone liking the same thing as you and you have this moment of 'ahhh it's so good to be alive'.

Oh wow! This sounds like it's a really fulfilling read? I'll definitely give it a go at some stage!

[hums_student]

Dang... Can't believe I never knew this thread existed. Guess where I'm hanging out from now on ... 

Anyway, some good books I've read and would 100% recommend:

Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury - Absolute masterpiece. I'm not usually a fan of dystopian novels since most of the well known ones are YA, and 1984 is too *mainstream*  But this book is amazing. Unlike other dystopian classics it doesn't really criticise a political viewpoint / party. Instead it paints the perfect (and horrifying) representation of 'ignorance is bliss'. Would definitely recommend if anyone's looking for a book that's not too long to read.

11/22/63 - Stephen King - Warning, this is a *long* book, but definitely worth a read. I'm a big fan of Stephen King, and this is definitely my favourite book by him. Kind of different from his usual horror style, but I absolutely adore the combination of science fiction and politics.

The 3 Body Problem - Liu Cixin - Not many people know this book, since it wasn't originally written in English. Kind of like 11/22/63 but taken to a whole new level, it perfectly combines science fiction, history, politics, and philosophy, though the 'science' elements are pretty hardcore and took me a lot of googling to understand the book. Would 100% recommend to anyone interested in science and politics.

Dead Souls - Nikolay Gogol - Another translated work, it was a bit difficult to read at first but once you get into it it's hard to put down. It's an interesting portrayal of pre-revolution Russia. I also thoroughly enjoyed Gogol's short story collection, which he definitely wrote whilst high.

Flatland - Edwin Abbot - Yet another book that combines science fiction with politics / history / social issues. Part one talks about the world of 'Flatland' (a 2D world) which bears a resemblance to Victorian society, part two talks about a square's experience travelling to a one dimensional and three dimensional world. Very interesting (and short) book.

The Book Thief - Marcus Zusak - One of the few YA novels I've enjoyed. Absolutely loved the fact that the narrator was Death himself, you don't see a lot of that in YA novels.

Someday I'm gonna make a post ranting about everything wrong with some of the most popular YA novels out there, starting with Detergent ahem Divergent.

[Joseph41]

Hi friends!

The strength of this thread has led to a brand new board called Books and Reading, which you're in right now!

[prickles]

Hi friends!

The strength of this thread has led to a brand new board called Books and Reading, which you're in right now!

I wonder why insanipi is moderating it?

[sweetiepi]

I wonder why insanipi is moderating it?

I live and breathe books, that's why
(Truth be told I was at home in the massive Dymocks in Sydney, nearly a month ago )

[Joseph41]

I wonder why insanipi is moderating it?

We put the usernames of all 220,969 ATAR Notes users into a hat; hers was randomly selected!

[prickles]

We put the usernames of all 220,969 ATAR Notes users into a hat; hers was randomly selected!

Ahh yes, that makes so much more sense now 
I was kidding, there is absolutely no one else in the world of AN that could have possibly taken the role

[zofromuxo]

4 hour workweek by Timothy Ferriss

Don't let the title put you off from reading this.
Yes, it sounds like a scam, but the content is interesting for the most part, if you can stomach the clique of a title.
If you ever wondered what lifestyle design is, this is the book that started it all.

I was put off reading this as many said the ideas/concepts Tim pitch are outdated and know to the masses. I will agree to an extent, but I think Tim does explain things in a way that is more interesting and I enjoy the examples incorporated for some of the more 'technical' ideas such as how to negotiate remote working conditions and away from the company office (When this book was published in 2007, remote working wasn't a huge thing like now).

I don't advocate nor agree with everything this book says like the Muse creation section wasn't interesting to me at all nor the Dreamlining section.
But the Elimination and Delegation section of the book had some interesting tools and concepts that I incorporate in my life and have improved my life significantly.
Overall, I think if you want to get into freelancing or want to build a more 'fulfilling' life, this could be the book for you.

[eliseeeeee_m]

Honestly, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is amazing! I fell in love with everything about it after studying it part of the Romanticism elective in Extension 1. 

[Owlbird83]

My favourite book series ever are:
A Court of Thorns and Roses- Sarah J Maas
The Infernal Devices- Cassandra Clare
Vampire Academy- Richelle Mead
Percy Jackson- Rick Riordian