2016 - Reading List

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I am currently selecting my "wish list" for 2016, and have the following books in there so far. My aim is to finish 10-20 books this year.

The below is my list so far....
  1. My Grandmother asked me to tell you that she's sorry - Fredrick Backman
  2. Calamity (Reckoners #3) - Brandon Sanderson
  3. Bands of Mourning (Mistborn #5) - Brandon Sanderson

  4. The Fifth Season: (The Broken Earth, Book 1) - N.K. Jemisin
  5. Career of Evil (Cormoran Strike, Book 3) - Robert Galbraith (J K Rowling)



  6. The Amazing Book Is Not on Fire: The World of Dan and Phil - by Dan Howell and Phil Lester

The above is how the target list stands as of today.

The other books not on the list, but as options are, "The Three Body Problem" and "The Dark Forest" by Cixin Liu and "Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future" by Ashlee Vance.

Happy to hear any more suggestions on what new books/authors I can consider for the remaining spots.


PS Pass on Scott Lynch, Robin Hobb, Stephen King, Jim Butcher, Jack Campbell, Scalzi, Goodkind, GRRM, Rothfuss (finishes his books), David Weber, Pierce Brown (very communist), et al.

I am really looking for new stuff. Also, what have you got on your reading list?
 
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Kakkle

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There's so many books on my shelves I haven't read so I just try and work through those. I've had to stop buying books now because my backlog is so big.


This is basically me of the last 5 years, haha.

I read only 8 books last year, and plan to read a book every 10 days this year, so 36 books all up. I'll use this thread as a personal check list of sorts.


#1 - Haruki Murakami - South of the Boarder, West of the Sun

Only the 2nd Murakami book I've read (previous one was After Dark), and really enjoyed it, despite being frustrated by the ending. I really enjoy his style of writing and plan to read a lot more by him in 2016.



#2 - John Buchnan - The Thirty-Nine Steps

I've always been a fan of the man-on-the-run/thriller genre movies, but have never really got around to reading text on the genre. This is a great introduction to that genre. Not convinced I'll read the books that proceed this, but it's a good little read regardless.
 

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The Richard Hannay books are good fun. North By Northwest is heavily based on The Thirty-Nine Steps, but I think the book is much better.

This year I thought I'd finally have a crack at Colleen McCullough's Masters of Rome series.
 

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I have about 150 to get through. Most I will pass on without reading but they were given to me by the owners of a holiday house selling up and trying to downsize, they already have a great collection so I hope there is some good stuff here. There's a lot of Saul Bellow who I haven't read if anyone has any opinions on his work.

Then there are about 20 books of my own I've bought or somehow got over the past 12 months.

As for 2016. I hope to complete 20 books.
 
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Read a lot going to and from work so thought I did alright at 39 novels last year. I don't really have aims as books can come in all shapes and sizes with IT being pretty big, and something like Ask the Dust a lot smaller. One year I did around 50, another around 10.

As for books this year:

20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill
The Bell Tolls for No One & Portions from a Wine-Stained Notebook by Charles Bukowski.
Absolute Midnight by Clive Barker
Holy Cow by David Duchovny

After that, not sure.
 
I haven't done much reading the past couple of years but I want to start getting back into it. I'm going to try to get through:

The rest of the Malazan series (4 books)
To Kill a Mockingbird
Heart of Darkness
The Silmarillion
Books 2, 3, 4 of The Giver Quartet
1984
The Road
Whatever I need to read for Uni

It'll be hard to get through that many books (mainly due to the size of each Malazan book) but I like a challenge.
 

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2016 so far.

-Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole.

-As I lay Dying - William Faulkner.
 
Since Christmas I've got through

Superforecasting: The Art & Science of Prediction - Gardner and Tetlock
Great book about what it takes to be a good forecaster. A must read I'd say for any working an analytical style job.

Submission
- Michel Houellebecq
Interesting alternative reality (for now?) book where the Muslim Brotherhood face off against the National Front in the French Presidential election in 2020 - with interesting results!

Waterloo: The History of Four Days, Three Armies, and Three Battles - Bernard Cornwell
Cornwell's first step into non-fiction and an extremely readable account of one of Europe's great battles.

Now I'm reading The Vital Question - Why is Life the Way it Is? - Nick Lane - it's a step down the popular science path but Christ it's very detailed and technical at the moment, especially for someone with a limited science background. Will see if the readability improves but wouldn't recommend at this stage unless your a super science nerd.
 

Demosthenes

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So far this year:

The Ascent of Money - Niall Ferguson
The Great Degeneration - Niall Ferguson
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Imperium - Robert Harris
Terms & Conditions - Robert Glancy

Currently reading Godel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter. I am probably only understanding about 80-85% of it, but it's very interesting.

I had most of January off, and I am going back to part-time study this year, so I don't expect to keep this rate up.
 
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Demosthenes

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It definitely helps to have a prior interest in programming or mathematics. It's the first book I have read in a long time where I am scrambling to get my head around some of the concepts. I have reread a couple of chapters several times, and will probably have to reread most of it again once I am done.

It's incredibly well-written though. He is dealing with some pretty esoteric ideas and the way he conveys them in order to make them understandable and engaging to a layman is pretty innovative and clever.
 

Kakkle

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2 months behind of my goal due to starting FT work. Hoping to make up some lost ground, got some serious reading done on the weekend.


#3 - Haruki Murakami - Dance Dance Dance

So much goodness in this book. The vivid imaginary I had as the story evolved was a joy in itself. Tempted to keep reading Murakami, but will take a break from him and scatter the rest of his books through out the rest of the year.

 
Man, I am lagging behind this year in terms of reading output compared to last year. Most of my hobby time has been on gaming lately.

My 2016 list:
Dead Eyes, novel written by a friend of mine
The Book Thief - Markus Zuzak
Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein
Love in the Time of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
 

Severe

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Man, I am lagging behind this year in terms of reading output compared to last year.
Same. 2014 was probably my peak. I think it will turn around though, I just needed a break. A few easy to read thrillers got me back in the rhythm.
 

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2 months behind of my goal due to starting FT work. Hoping to make up some lost ground, got some serious reading done on the weekend.


#3 - Haruki Murakami - Dance Dance Dance

So much goodness in this book. The vivid imaginary I had as the story evolved was a joy in itself. Tempted to keep reading Murakami, but will take a break from him and scatter the rest of his books through out the rest of the year.
Never read Murakami. For some reason I've always wanted to read something else instead. Any book you would recommend to start with?
 
1. End of Faith - Harris
2. Psychedelic Experience - Leary
3. Stillness Speaks - Tolle
4. Meditations on Violence - Miller
5. What the Dog Saw - Gladwell
6. The True Believer - Hoffer
7. Norwegian Wood - Murakami
8. Stumbling on Happiness - Gilbert
9. Lord of the Flies - Golding

Currently reading
10. Emergency - Strauss
11. Conquest of Happiness - Russell



Never read Murakami. For some reason I've always wanted to read something else instead. Any book you would recommend to start with?
Although it's the only one I've read so far, Norwegian Wood was great and I recommend it, I think it's also his most popular book. I loved it and will definitely be checking out more his work
 

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Books read in march 2016.

Nausea by Jean-Paul Satre.

Cities of the plain by Cormac McCarthy.

I'd recommend both books.
 
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Last four years I've aimed to read 30 books a year, only reaching the goal year (34).
This year seems promising with 9 read so far.
1. On Writing- Stephen King
2. Don Quixote- Cervantes
3. Stench of Honolulu- Jack Handley
4. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas- Hunter S Thompson
5. Death of Ivan Ilyich- Tolstoy
6. Rights of Man- Thomas Paine
7. Snows of Kilmanjaro- Hemingway
8. The Crossing- Samar Yazbek
9. Lonely Planet Unpacked- Various
 

Kakkle

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Although it's the only one I've read so far, Norwegian Wood was great and I recommend it, I think it's also his most popular book. I loved it and will definitely be checking out more his work



This is the general consensus. Norwegian Wood and Kafka On The Shore, seem to be the two that pop up the most when asked. Will be reading Norewegian Wood soon.



#4 - Aziz Ansari - Modern Romance


Not a bad insight into dating in the modern world. Thoroughly well researched book, a lot of cool facts. It's the kind of book you'd let someone borrow, and not really think or just forget to ask back for, hah.
 
1. The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the Future of Reason by Sam Harris
2. The Psychedelic Experience by Thomas Leary
3. Stillness Speaks by Eckhart Tolle
4. Meditations on Violence by Rory Miller
5. What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell
6. The True Believer by Eric Hoffer
7. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
8. Stumbing on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert
9. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
10. The Conquest of Happiness by Bertrand Russell
11. How to be a Straight-A Student by Cal Newport
12. Emergency by Neil Strauss
 

Sassafras

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Books read in april 2016.

Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka.

I found them both difficult reads, but rewarding.
 
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