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Jack Aubrey
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I'm reading Hell's Angels by Hunter S Thompson. I also started watching Season 2 of Sons of Anarchy 2 weeks ago.
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Finished the goddamn Kerouac book. Too much bullshit to wade thru, too few payoffs.

 

Rapidly going thru this:

 

md10467449962.jpg

 

Son of famed 'Beat writer' managed two books before he died of self-neglect/abuse at 33.

"Speed" predictably tells about his experiences in NYC in the mid-60s as a meth head. A little rough around the edges, but well-written (somewhere between Kerouac and WSB).

Best line: "I'd seen bad protoplasm before, but this guy seemed like he'd sat down at some formation clinic and signed up to be horrible." :LOL:

 

"Kentucky Ham" is about rehab and is much more downbeat and cautionary in tone, so far.

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8efa1fd00ec605ebe631e1b9e833eacfdba8bb9a_480x480.jpeg?v=1448029409

 

Supposedly outtakes from, or a sequel to "On the Road". I dunno...

Part 1 is mostly observations ("sketches") of New York City.

Maybe the road shows up in Part 2.

 

So far, it's a bit of a slog. The prose is pretty dense, and Penguin somehow managed to squeeze 500 words on a page. I jumped ahead to the cassette transcripts (Part 3) just to give my eyes a break.

 

A report, just because reading this damn thing felt like an assignment! :yes:

 

Breakdown of structure:

 

Part 1: sketches of NYC

Part 2: background info on "Cody" (ie: whatshisnuts in "On the Road")

Part 3: long section of transcribed taped-conversations covering several nights (and presumably several tapes). Boring but well-punctuated.

Part 4: long section of bullshit finally approaching readability about 80 pages from the end.

Appendix: A. Ginsberg's mildly enlightening and rather pretentious footnotes.

 

Takeaways:

Not a sequel to "On the Road". Maybe a companion piece for scholars.

Kerouac can write but is often f*cked up on something which doesn't help his prose. His life is nowhere near as interesting as he thinks it is.

Kerouac often attempts to be a mythic American hipster version of James Joyce, even attempting some of his writing techniques, which fall flat every time.

Holy misogyny, Batman! That's no way to describe a lady! :tsk:

 

I'd only recommend this one to hard-core Kerouac fans.

Edited by vaportrailer
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The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins. Started, but don't think I'll finish it. I like horror but nonstop child abuse isn't my cuppa tea.
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The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins. Started, but don't think I'll finish it. I like horror but nonstop child abuse isn't my cuppa tea.

 

Hi, Hunted Witch!

I've never heard of that book, but I'll be sure to stay away from it. Thanks!

I have a friend who is compelled to finish whatever book she starts reading -- even if it's terrible. Poor thing :(

There are so many great (and not-so-great) books to read...why bother with something that isn't jazzing you?

 

http://www.readbreatherelax.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Dogs-Reading-Book-2013-e1412098927242.jpg

"Rough..."

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Sticky Fingers- the life and times of Jann Webber and Rolling Stone magazine, by Joe Hagan

 

I thought I would like it more than I actually did. I only made it half way through. :P The writing was ok, not great, and Wenner and stories about him turned out to be pretty annoying. . .

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Steven Pinker - Enlightenment Now!

 

 

Making the case for reason in an age of media hysteria

I'm not familiar with the author but the subject makes a lot of sense!

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://m.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DENHqT8s7Hic&ved=2ahUKEwjJk8ClhJneAhUwTd8KHaQOAdAQjjgwAHoECAUQAQ&usg=AOvVaw2Wrr9u532Zx3KtpnbcqMOj&cshid=1540176529653
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Accessory to War: The Unspoken Alliance Between Astrophysics and the Military, by Neil DeGrasse Tyson & Avis Lang. Edited by pjbear05
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Vermilion Sands - Harold JG Ballard

Not the guy who owned the Maple Leafs. :(

I liked some of the ideas here, but the writing style was rather precious, with heavy reliance on quasi queasy-poetic similes and mysterious women.

Also features a headache inducing 3-D cover (glasses included). wtf?

 

The Two-Minute Rule - Robert Crais

Good page-turner about a recently released prisoner trying to solve the murder of his son.

Reading his novels makes me want to visit LA, or at least eat a churro.

 

Currently reading a short bio of Dr Seuss (pronounced "soice" apparently) which is sadly academic and somewhat dry. The author seems to tie himself in knots with his baroque interpretations of Seuss's writing. Theodor Seuss Geisel had an interesting and at times tragic life (never had children of his own, bullied in school, wife committed suicide, sister drank herself to death, and, as a 14-year-old, he was once humiliated in public by a mean-spirited Theodore Roosevelt), so it's odd that something this compelling generates a book like this. Maybe it gets better.

 

http://i.imgur.com/oJAdrgk.jpg

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Sticky Fingers- the life and times of Jann Webber and Rolling Stone magazine, by Joe Hagan

 

I thought I would like it more than I actually did. I only made it half way through. :P The writing was ok, not great, and Wenner and stories about him turned out to be pretty annoying. . .

 

Did it solve the mystery of why Wenner hates prog?

(ie: is it true that Jon Anderson once beat the shit out of him?) :D

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Sticky Fingers- the life and times of Jann Webber and Rolling Stone magazine, by Joe Hagan

 

I thought I would like it more than I actually did. I only made it half way through. :P The writing was ok, not great, and Wenner and stories about him turned out to be pretty annoying. . .

 

Did it solve the mystery of why Wenner hates prog?

(ie: is it true that Jon Anderson once beat the shit out of him?) :D

 

:LOL: :LOL: I didn't read that in the part I got through, but I wouldn't be surprised. A LOT of people didn't like Wenner. Apparently, though, his first spouse, a wife, was brilliant, beautiful and charismatic. She was behind a lot of his early success, as the author tells it.

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Sticky Fingers- the life and times of Jann Webber and Rolling Stone magazine, by Joe Hagan

 

I thought I would like it more than I actually did. I only made it half way through. :P The writing was ok, not great, and Wenner and stories about him turned out to be pretty annoying. . .

 

When you think about it, do we really need a full-length book to tell us that Wenner is a nincompoop (which we already knew)?

 

One or two chapters would have sufficed. :cool:

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Sticky Fingers- the life and times of Jann Webber and Rolling Stone magazine, by Joe Hagan

 

I thought I would like it more than I actually did. I only made it half way through. :P The writing was ok, not great, and Wenner and stories about him turned out to be pretty annoying. . .

 

When you think about it, do we really need a full-length book to tell us that Wenner is a nincompoop (which we already knew)?

 

One or two chapters paragraphs would have sufficed. :cool:

Fixed.
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Cassandra Clare- City Of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1)

 

This is a dreadful teen read. Also...sort of addicted. I wanted something light to read, and easy. Found it cheap. It's awful but compulsive. I think I'd have loved this more had I read it at 12...and yet I am 28 and can't quite seem to put it down!

 

Oh dear...

 

It's like Buffy. Cheesy ass vampire shit!

 

Then again I do love that show...

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