I know we've had a books thread before, but I couldn't find it so I'll start a new one.

What's everyone reading at the moment? I'm in the middle of Orwell's classic, 1984. Winston Smith is currently being tortured. Thoughtcrime!

I'm writing an article about bi/multilingualism, so today I'm racing through a fab book called 'Multilingualism in the English-Speaking World' by Viv Edwards. Probably not everyone's cup of tea, but there's some really surprising stuff in there.

Am also re-reading a book in German (I think it's by an Irish author), about a cat, a rat and a mouse, which is about how the enlightened system of 'government' in the house/garden (the cat won't prey on rodents) breaks down when the house's owner dies and the food supply runs out. The cat finds himself turning 'savage' and the rat tries to get other animals to stand up for their rights. It's fun.

Best book I've read recently is 'The Ascent of Rum Doodle' by WE Bowman. It's a farce about some incompetents climbing a mountain and gets increasingly ridiculous as it goes on.

Having just finished 'Join Me' by Danny Wallace, I've moved on to 'The Dirt', a book about Motley Crue. I've hardly heard anything by them and I'm not bothered by what I did hear... fortunately the book isn't concerned with this either. It's just the ultimate extension of how far you can take 'rock and roll'. They were, quite frankly, scum. It's hilarious. I'm just glad I never knew them personally.

I am currently reading "The Turbulent Term of Tyke Tyler" to a class full of 10 year olds.

After that I shall read them "Only Snow" by Allan Ahlberg. Given the weather, it's very appropriate, for those who can remember their Primary School days.

i really liked 1984, but i prefered animal farm.
I read join me in a day. I thought it was fun. I've been a bit ill recently, so i've found time for Man And Wife by tony parsons, how to be good by nick hornby, and the lawnmower celebrity, which was awful and i don't remember who it was by. I also reread tipping the velvet, ten imaginary years (a book about the cure up to disintegration era) and backwards which is a red dwarf novel.

I'm reading candide by voltaire at the mo but it's all a bit clever for me.

Right now, I'm reading The Ethics of Star Trek, and struggling to get into it, which is disappointing because I've read a lot recently, including Are You Dave Gorman? (Dave Gorman and Danny Wallace), Join Me (Danny Wallace), and God's Debris (Scott Adams). I went into Waterstones a few weeks ago to buy Join Me and Are Yo Dave Gorman? and couldn't find them anywhere in the comedy section. They were hidden away in the travel section. Silly me.

Are you a Joinee now Damian?

"I'm coming to take you to lunch"-Simon Napier-Bell. It's about Wham! and how he got them to be the first band to play in communist China. It's really good.

I've got a couple of (dodgy) passport photos of me in my house, but can't find them. If that situation persists I'll take some more and send him one.

Animal Farm is good, but unfortunately I had to study it for GCSE English back at school. You read the book and analyse it so much you eventually get sick of it and can't enjoy it for what it is - you've always got to search for the "deeper meaning".

i'm currently reading "I, Lucifer" by glen duncan. its about the devil being given a last chance to go to heaven by god but he has to spend a month as a human. its very clever and very funny. it basically lays into the bible, and tells stories from the devils point of view. i'm not religious in any way so its interesting to have a comic devillsh twist put on things. imagine the garden of eden from the devils point of view. i highly recomend it.

alex

Has anyone noticed the ads at the top of the page relate to the subject matter in the thread? Currently they're trying to sell me cheap Orwell books! This can't be coincidence.

Yep - that's how Google ads work. Use certain words a lot and things happen. Let's try it...

Sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge sponge.

Edit: I think they're clever enough to spot repeat instances of the same word in this way...

But if we were all to start talking about sponges, perhaps only once or twice per message, then perhaps we could trick them.

hmm. How are we going to hold up a discussion about sponges for long enough to fool google ads?

Sponge, I say unto thee, sponge.

I'll stop doing this soon as it's kind of taking the thread off topic. Still reading the utterly vile 'The Dirt' and have 'Love and Poison' (Suede's biography) lined up next.

I have just finished reading Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold. I found it quite uplifting in a way.

Mind you Bethan cried every time she opened the book. I guess that's daughters for you!

(And I don't think it mentioned sponges.)

I can't read, due to being a sponge

This whole sponge business just isn't happening, is it?

Sponge.

Perhaps Google doesn't make much money from advertising sponges? I wonder if they make money from things like stationery, like pens, pencils, and rulers?

Hey, who knows? Maybe they'll start thinking we're all huge SpongeBob Squarepants fans. There's already a thread dedicated to it!

Finished 1984. How depressing. Going to read Anne Frank's diary next. Something tells me things ain't gonna cheer up...

So find a book you can colour in, instead.

Or one of those magic painting books. Instead of a paintbrush you could use a tiny makeup brush that has, instead of bristles, a tiny sponge!!!!!

Oh yes, tenuous or what?

One nil!

I read that a few weeks ago and thought it was wonderful - really just couldn't put it down. And it made me cry a couple of times, too.

Not enough to need a sponge though.

I'm reading Life of Pi now.

Ooh I read that recently. Let me know what you think of the ending. Will say no more...

For a second there I thought you were "lampooning me"! (Copyright Peep Show 2003)

Loved the book, thoroughly entertaining given that the principal characters were a 16-year-old boy and a Bengal tiger!

...the ending. Part of me thought "hmm, bit of a cop-out", but mostly I thought "that's actually quite clever". In another book the ending might have undermined the rest of the story but it made me smile. Difficult to explain without spoiling!

Now moved on to 'An Equal Music' by Vikram Seth. Read about 100 pages today (slow day at work!) so I think you could say I'm getting into it...

A good idea - or at least I think so.

I've just read Brick Lane, which was great, and am now on the sixth No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency book, which is better than the last couple and very entertaining.

All the stuff at the top is about make-up and cosmetics now - I think the sponge message has finally sunk in...

Not when I checked it wasn't - was about discussion boards!

I do read a bit of fantasy, but not usually sci-fi...that's the genre I currently find myself immersed in though; The Man In The Maze by Robert Silverberg. My bandmates are convinced I'm obsessed with space or something...the two songs of mine that feature on our CD both mention the moon and one is about Area 51. It's all a coincidence...

I'm also reading something about writing, and some stuff on ancient history/mythology.

It's one music biography after another for me right now. I've done Motley Crue's "The Dirt", in spite of never having heard a note of their music and have also just finished Suede's "Love and Poison", a book which suggests that Brett Anderson isn't a very nice man at all. I'm also reading things which suggest their new project is doomed before it starts...

That reminds me, I bought James' Folklore when it was released and still haven't read it...

I've just finished 'Captain Corelli's Mandolin'. Despite hearing about it being everyone's answer to the question "book you couldn't finish?", I absolutely loved it.

I just bought John Robb's Stone Roses book for £3. John Robb stayed at my house once. Not as my guest, mind. He's a top bloke.

i finished Glen Duncan's "I, Lucifer" which was the wittiest book i read in ages. i also got hold of the sound track which is great aswell. if you've seen the new lucozade advert (black and white bird thing?) thats part of it, breakfast in clerkenwell by "the real tuesday weld" brilliant. a book with a soundtrack, how cool is that?

alex

How does that work? 'Songs inspired by the book'?

I read "I, Lucifer" recently. It wasn't really as good as I expected, although it did seem to give a pretty accurate portrayal of what the Devil might do if he were given a human body for a month.

I've just read some of Charlie Brooker's "Screen Burn" which is one of the funniest things I've seen in ages, so I'll buy a copy soon. A sample bit I read from it tonight ... "Gloria Hunniford is still presenting TV programmes - but they're on Channel 5 so she may as well be reading Ladybird books to worms in a skip".

The guy's a hero of mine - apart from making a dog's dinner of "Nathan Barley" after the TV Go Home website and book were so good.

My god, it's not really two and a half years since any of us read a book, is it?

I'm reading a book at the moment, which might be very good. I just want to make sure all the loose ends get tied up before I recommend it, because it will be VERY irritating if it doesn't make sense at the end.

I'm re-reading The Miracle of Castel di Sangro by Joe McGinniss. I'd recommend for football fans out there, although he's obviously written it such that non-football fans won't feel left out.