What book are you currently reading?

Question

What is it about and do you recommend it?

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

These are recently finished, or in progress:

An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro. I read it three times over to dig out the innuendos and the timeline. It is fascinating. Set in Japan 1900-1950, it is an autobiography of a Japanese artist and how the war changed his society and values.

The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. You either love this one or hate it. It smacks your soul broadside. I loved it. Set in modern day Paris, it is the story of an eccentric concierge ( a frumpy 57-year-old woman) and the extremely wealthy inhabitants of her apartment block. The story is told in first person, but there are two speakers, the concierge and Paloma, 12-year-old daughter of one of the residents. Both of the protagonists have personal secrets that they do not want to share with anyone else.

The Hare with the Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal. It slowed down in the middle, but I liked the book overall. Set in Europe and Japan from about 1870 to modern time, it is a true story of Edmund's trying to discover his family history through the objects that have been passed down to him - a collection of 264 Japanese Netsuke carvings, a few photographs, letters and scrapbooks. The book takes you to Paris, Vienna and Odessa where his relatives had lived.

My Name is Red by Benim Adim Kirmizi. Fascinating murder mystery, set in the Ottoman Empire. The first chapter has the corpse of the murder victim talking to us.

Tanit · Answer

Never Let Me Goby Kazuo Ishiguro (I've actually just finished reading it, in English

).

It's about a group of kids who grow up in a boarding school. There is something not quite right about the school, and the teachers (called "guardians" in the book) behave in a weird manner: we are given some hints that this is not a normal school, and that students are being prepared for a peculiar, sad and horrible future.
I will not add more, so as not to spoil the plot in case you're going to read it. Definitely recommended.

Gigilian Nguyen · Answer

Hi,
I watched Never Let Me Go on TV months ago. It's a very touching story, I did enjoy it.
About my book, it is English Grammar In Useby Raymond Murphy (Cambridge University Press), as I am having an examination of English next moth, ha ha.

The book would be very useful to those who have wondered:

What is the difference between I did and I have done?
The structures after I wish?
What is the difference between like and as?
When do we say used to do and used to doing?
....

The book contains 136 units. Each of them has a particular Grammar content with exercises.
It has 7 appendixes with regular/irregular verbs, orthography, British English vs American English,...
It will be very great if you can take a look at it.
GN

Ptrenglish · Answer

The Power of Now by Eckhart Toller. It's about letting go of...Everything to have everything. An inspiring book! For those who are seeking true happiness.

Mayabee · Answer

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery.

Stormy · Answer

I'm reading Lee Child right now. A book called "The Affair" - another book about former marine soldier Jack Reacher. (And I am convinced that one day, Jack and I will be very happy together.)

From Lee Child's own website:

In 1997, Reacher's orders are: go undercover, keep your distance, monitor the investigation. The local sheriff is Elizabeth Deveraux, a beautiful woman and an ex-Marine MP. She has all the skills she needs, but she's making no progress. Why not? Is there a reason she doesn't want the killer identified? And there's constant pressure from the Pentagon, too. Shadowy figures from the world of politics want the killer unmasked—but only if he's a civilian. Any other result would be a catastrophe. Reacher and Deveraux can't get near the base. There's a shadow force in the woods, enforcing a quarantine zone around the fence. But side by side they piece together the evidence—and their partnership becomes more than professional. Eventually the army's official investigation produces a cast-iron prime suspect—and so does Reacher's undercover search. But Reacher's answer is not the same as the army's. If he keeps quiet, will he be able to live with himself? And if he speaks out, will the army be able to live with him?

It's an extremely thrilling book! A real pageturner!

Stormy · Answer

Hitch 22 - the memoirs of Christopher Hitchens.

Audray · Answer

Just finished The Woman In The Fifth by Douglas Kennedy.
You need something very much, you want that something very much. You think that is the thing that may help you. That happens when you feel down and lonely. Then, you don't want that anymore. Too much! You don't know what to do and don't know how to get rid of it. Maybe never. Does everything happen only in your mind or is realty?
There was a movie too based on this novel, but I haven't seen it.

Who is the woman, Margit?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/debra-ollivier/kristin-scott-thomas-the-woman-in-the-fifth_b_1609529.html

Andreandi · Answer

I'm reading Ken Follett: Fall of Giants. It' s about the Ist World War. That is, the political conflicts among the countries that led to the war.

Audray · Answer

I'd love to read it but I don't have enough time now, because when I start a book like that I can't stop reading it. I'm sure I will end up again after 3:00 am still awake, still reading.

Now I'm reading The Husband Trap, just few pages before falling asleep Then, I should read also The Wife Trap and The Wedding Trap
Two sisters, twins. One of them, Jeannette, changes her mind and is not willing anymore to marry Adrian, The Duke. Then Violet, her sister, takes her place and the game starts.

What book are you currently reading?

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