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Jul 23rd, '08, 04:01
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Read any good books lately?

by fencerdenoctum » Jul 23rd, '08, 04:01

This isn't a pickup line, or is it?

Seriously folks, I found this website http://www.goodreads.com where you can post books you've read, want to read, and such and review them. I really like it and thought I would pass it everyone's way.

If you decide to use it, add me to your friends list! I'd love to see what everyone is reading! pm me for my addy.

I thought this would be fun because tea is always a great companion to a book.

Yourn,
Fencer

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Jul 23rd, '08, 04:19
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by bi lew chun » Jul 23rd, '08, 04:19

I have an account at Goodreads, and it is indeed a pretty cool site. However, they automagically contacted everyone in my Gmail contacts list without making it clear that this would happen, and sorta made me look like an ass when I went into work the next day. Perhaps they've changed this process to just query whether any of your contacts are using the service already, instead of contacting them without your agreeing to it.

I do love to know what others are reading though. 8)

I finally decided to stop buying new books and try to make a dent in those I already own. I recently finished A Fan's Notes and The Great Gatsby, and now I'm onto the second volume of The Twelve Kingdoms and Hamlet's Mill.

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Jul 23rd, '08, 09:22
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by hop_goblin » Jul 23rd, '08, 09:22

I am currently reading "Bobby Fischer Goes to War: How the Soviets lost the most extraorndinary chess match of all time". It is a great read thus far. For anyone interested in chess, this book is a must read. It is full of politics, chess, and an intimate life of a chess player. Who would of ever thought that we would actually be fighting part of the cold war on a chess board! Really!

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Jul 23rd, '08, 10:58
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by olivierco » Jul 23rd, '08, 10:58

Currently reading:

Alpha Dogs: The Americans Who Turned Political Spin into a Global Business James Harding

The Company: A Novel of the CIA Robert Littell

Journaux de guerre : 1914-1918 Ernst Jünger

Anthologie de la poésie française: Du XVIIIe au XXe siecle

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Jul 23rd, '08, 11:15
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by chamekke » Jul 23rd, '08, 11:15

I've heard complaints about privacy issues with both GoodReads.com and Shelfari.com.

As it happens, both sites are blatant copycats of Librarything.com, which I joined shortly after it first started up three years ago. LibraryThing spawned a host of imitators, none of which (IMO) measures up to the original model. And I can testify that its creator, Tim Spalding, is meticulous about respecting privacy.

My LibraryThing homepage: http://www.librarything.com/profile/chamekke
(with links from there to my library catalogue and reviews)

For those who are interested, here are my books on tea.

Books I'm reading now, though ... hmm, I'm actually between books, but I'm about to start The Long Emergency.

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Jul 23rd, '08, 11:30
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by xine » Jul 23rd, '08, 11:30

I'm in between some book....Just finished Ian McEwan's Saturday, half way through Stephanie Meyer's Twilight and maybe reading I Capture the Castleby Dodie Smith.

I'm going on vacation next week...should I bring along a non-fic (United States of Argula) or fiction...(Capture the Castle)? :)

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Jul 23rd, '08, 11:31
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by Wesli » Jul 23rd, '08, 11:31

Currently not reading!!! :D

I just finished Eater by Gregory Benford.

I'm thinking of either Epictetus or Sun Tzu next.

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Jul 23rd, '08, 13:54
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by Eastree » Jul 23rd, '08, 13:54

This past Friday I finished the complete Sherlock Holmes collection, all by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, of course. 1122 pages, and well worth it.

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Jul 23rd, '08, 20:32
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by bi lew chun » Jul 23rd, '08, 20:32

chamekke wrote:I've heard complaints about privacy issues with both GoodReads.com and Shelfari.com.

As it happens, both sites are blatant copycats of Librarything.com, which I joined shortly after it first started up three years ago. LibraryThing spawned a host of imitators, none of which (IMO) measures up to the original model. And I can testify that its creator, Tim Spalding, is meticulous about respecting privacy.
Good info to have, thanks. I signed up at LibraryThing, and I think I'll abandon GoodReads.

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Jul 23rd, '08, 22:18
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by chamekke » Jul 23rd, '08, 22:18

Eastree wrote:This past Friday I finished the complete Sherlock Holmes collection, all by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, of course. 1122 pages, and well worth it.
Ooh! Was it Baring-Gould's Annotated Sherlock Holmes?

Sherlock Holmes is indeed awesome. I was a member of The Bootmakers of Toronto back in the day. Waaaay back in the day - actually, before they had a website to link to!

Confession: I always wanted to start up a feminist Sherlockian group called The Window-Breaking Furies (cf. "His Last Bow") ... but never got around to it ;-)

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Jul 24th, '08, 00:09
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by hop_goblin » Jul 24th, '08, 00:09

Wesli wrote:Currently not reading!!! :D

I just finished Eater by Gregory Benford.

I'm thinking of either Epictetus or Sun Tzu next.
AhMan, I love Sun Tzu. My favorite part was when Sun Tzu was trying to show the emperor an example of obedience and used his concubine. I wont tell you what happened but lets just say that these women couldn't use the excuse of having a headache anymore! :lol:

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Jul 24th, '08, 00:23
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by fencerdenoctum » Jul 24th, '08, 00:23

I feel like I need a commentary to really get into Sun Tzu. I really enjoyed The Book of Five Rings though. My copy came with Family Traditions on the Art of War by Yagyu Munenori. It was a pretty interesting read.


Fencer

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Jul 24th, '08, 01:44
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by Wesli » Jul 24th, '08, 01:44

Ooh yeah Fencer, that one's on my list.

Bill, I've read it before... But actually I forgot that part, so don't spoil it! :P

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Jul 24th, '08, 11:44
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by hop_goblin » Jul 24th, '08, 11:44

Wesli wrote:Ooh yeah Fencer, that one's on my list.

Bill, I've read it before... But actually I forgot that part, so don't spoil it! :P
I wont spoil it Wes.. I got my copy at a garage sale for only 50 cents. If you read Sun Tzu, it reveals a lot about the conflicts abroad tactically I mean.

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Jul 24th, '08, 14:28
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by Thirsty Daruma » Jul 24th, '08, 14:28

Reading the Judge Dee mystery novels. As a plus, tea is ALL OVER these stories. Judge Dee the Chinese magistrate drinks it to ponder, serves it to torture victims, praises the stuff...

A good paen to tea.

As far as LibraryThing goes, it always struck me as like Google Books - books you own but not necessarily read, whereas GoodReads and maybe even Shelfari are books you read but don't necessarily own.

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