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Weekly "what are you reading" Thread #62

To discuss your weekly readings of books, textbooks and papers.

I'm putting aside fiction for a while, I recently started "Chaos: Making a new science" :marseysoylentgrin: by James Gleick, it's a pop science intro for Chaos Theory but a well-researched one which doesn't fall into quackery. Also thanks to our !mathematics friends for their textbook recommendations

!bookworms

@Aevann :#marseypin: pls

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Ive read Underground by Murakami and then No Country For Old Men.

Underground was a recommendation from someone on here, probably a year ago or something. I really enjoyed it, I thought it was so depressing but also really uplifting. I want to read more by him but Ive heard mixed things about his fiction.

No Country For Old Men was great. It took me a minute to get used to McCarthy's writing style, but once I did I couldnt put it down. Its better than the film, I can take Chiguhr more seriously when he doesnt have that silly haircut. :callit:

Im reading, or trying to read, The Divine Comedy currently. Ive read the introduction and the first canto but I havent had motivation to read this week. :marseygiveup:

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I want to read more by him but Ive heard mixed things about his fiction.

There's a line in one of his books that goes "If you can't understand it without an explanation, you can't understand it with an explanation".

That's how all his books are. He's the ultimate vibes author.

I love them.

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I'm sold then. He mentions one of his fiction novels at some point in Underground and it sounded interesting, but I don't remember the name. Something about creatures or spirits coming from underground to attack people.

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but Ive heard mixed things about his fiction.

Yea. From r-slurs. His novels are incredible!

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Anyone who dislikes Murakami has a terminal case of Can't Hang.

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I read No Country for Old Men about two weeks ago. I liked it a lot, although I think the movie is better and I never got completely comfortable with McCarthy's writing style. 90% of the time it was easy to figure out which dialogue belonged to which character or which character was doing certain actions without specification, but the 10% really irked me.


I was happy I saw the movie beforehand bc I don't think I would have found Chigurh's use of the cattle gun intimidating. Without seeing how it was portrayed in the movie, I think I would have found it stupid. I also didn't think his writing style made the coin toss gas station scene very effective, bc the dialogue in the book seemed rushed. In the movie, it was slow and imo more uncomfortable, which made it iconic.

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Part of it is that this particular book isn't as verbose when it comes to descriptions of setting as his other works (I think it was ironically supposed to be a screenplay when he first wrote it lol) which makes it harder to visualize the counter guy's face and his fear, for example

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I'm on the same boat. I feel the movie builds tension in a better, methodical way. The book is still great but the movie is a masterpiece.

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I liked no country better than BM to be honest. One of my favourite books ever.

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Im reading, or trying to read, The Divine Comedy currently.

I really wish I could read this because there's a lot in the story that resonates with me, but I know I could never get through it in a million years. There was a really good Italian documentary series about it this year. Dante: Inferno to Paradise. They went through the story and explained the context that a modern person wouldn't get. But it was only about 3 hours long. I wish someone would do that but in more detail. Make it 30 hours long.

And now I can't watch it again because there is no fricking way I'm signing up for PBS's streaming service. :marseygiveup:

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I'll check out that documentary, it'll be an interesting watch once I eventually get through it.

And now I can't watch it again because there is no fricking way I'm signing up for PBS's streaming service. :marseygiveup:

:marseypirate2:

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