Melbourne Beats

apophenian wrote:Perdido St Station by China Mieville is one of the best books I have read for ages...

highly recommend his books 'the scar' and 'iron council' as well.

this book is making me tired during the day becoz i can't stop reading it at night!

a comic, whose father has been always a righteous community spirited and highly committed jew, is given a box of his old mans' journals. they depict atrocities of genocide and the holocaust from a SS p.o.v and suggest the comic's dad is in fact, ex SS- and not the man everyone thinks he is

or is he?

highly recommend this one!

Re-reading Last Exit For Brooklym. I'm looking for inspiration to finish writing a novel I've been working on for years.
Waiting to borrow the Ozzie Osbourne biography.

Yay for China Mieville! http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/ap ... arke-award

Finished up "Goodby 20th Century" - Sonic Youth Biography.
Its fairly up to date compared to some of the earlier bios on this epic NY band.
Was awesoem listenign to Daydream Nation vinyl boxset and the 3 previous albums, Ciccone Youth and Rather Ripped all on vinyl whilst unabel to put down the book until finished.

I just finished Papillon.

Wow.

Recent highlights: Tofu Landing by Evan Maloney, Hearts and Minds by Amanda Craig, The Norseman's Song by Joel Deane. I highly recommend all three.

Bob Franklin's short stories, Under Stones are wonderfully dark. Another good collection of short stories is "Both Ways is the Only Way I Want It" by Maile Meloy.

Superfreakonomics - very interesting read.

Having finished the Night's Dawn trilogy by Peter Hamilton last month I felt like someone had died.

It was over 5000 pages of the most epic sci fi I have ever read.

Reading The Algebraist by Ian M Banks now and its just not the same.

It's good, it's just not as good.

so i read the first 'girls with the dragon's tattoo' by Steig larsson

anyone read 2&3 - worth buying?

I bought that for Tina. Is it any good?

i liked the first one...good writing, good story, good characters...

youthful_implants wrote:I bought that for Tina. Is it any good?

i did the same for my better half - she can't put it down.

Feigan wrote:

youthful_implants wrote:I bought that for Tina. Is it any good?

i did the same for my better half - she can't put it down.

nice one!!

ghetto kitty wrote:so i read the first 'girls with the dragon's tattoo' by Steig larsson

anyone read 2&3 - worth buying?

If you liked the first, you will like the other two. Main character becomes a little more "superhero-ish" but they're still very good.

okays, thanks rob, i will buy...

Chuck Phalinuk, sometimes he enthralls me, other times he loses me.
reading 'the diary' now.

i couldn't get into those steig larrson books. i really tried too. i'm more interested in the story of his life (and death). would read

I've got about 50 pages to go in American Physco. I have seen the movie. But I had no idea about the book. It has deeply effected me. That an my current concern about plastic.

It is one seriously pornographic book. I am thouroughly enjoying the nightmares I am having though, wish I could show them to you.

Anyone else know other books like this?

That book was amazing. I needed quiet time after i finished it.

Chuck Phalinuk has come close with his horror stories. I think its called 'Haunted' and the narrtative is mega origional, read that one next D!

I am about to begin the Baroque Cycle of 3 books by Neal Stephenson, who wrote one of my all time favorite books, Snow Crash.

AND - the chick who works at Minotaur is GOLD. She ranted with me for ages about good cyber fiction, etc etc, lady knows her shit! I made a new friend today

gnat wrote:i couldn't get into those steig larrson books. i really tried too. i'm more interested in the story of his life (and death). would read

I'm half way through the last one.

I don't mind them.

he has quite a cult following

american psycho is srsly a fucked up read

worse than naked lunch for diff reasons

just read the beast- swedish novel by Anders Roslund & Borge Hellstrom

very heavy subject matter- about the fallout when a vicious paedophile escapes prison. social implosion, renegade revenge acts and lots of grief. really good read. enjoyed immensely but the chapters written from the POV of the paedo are absolutely abhorrent and emotionally jarring

i read american psycho in high school. one of my mates used it as a center piece of a scultpure he made. teachers made him put the book in a glass case so other kids couldnt read it lol.

im up to book 4 of Sott Pilgrim. gettting ready for the movie!

DBoy wrote:I've got about 50 pages to go in American Physco. I have seen the movie. But I had no idea about the book. It has deeply effected me. That an my current concern about plastic.

It is one seriously pornographic book. I am thouroughly enjoying the nightmares I am having though, wish I could show them to you.

Anyone else know other books like this?

Kill your Friends by John Niven. Seriously sick, seriously funny. It's also about the music industry so you will like I think...

Trust your taste for sure mate. Will line it up next.

i met an irish guy in the city once at the tram stop whose name was for serious patrick bateman. totally pissed and funny as

regaled me with quotes from the movie for about half an hour then staggered about, threw up in the bin and walked off

as i recall he had been thrown out of the lounge and wanted me to go in and retrieve his jacket

Brain wrote: Kill your Friends by John Niven. Seriously sick, seriously funny. It's also about the music industry so you will like I think...

on my list too now.

ghetto kitty wrote:

Brain wrote: Kill your Friends by John Niven. Seriously sick, seriously funny. It's also about the music industry so you will like I think...

on my list too now.

You'll love it...

Just started reading Girl With Dragon Tattoo... not bad so far, def not a hard read, can see i will get through it pretty quick tho.

I'm on the last 100 pages of the third Charlie.

Very easy read - compelling too.

i liked it.

currently reading some more science fiction this one by Peter Hamilton.

I read the nights dawn trilogy prior to this and this one, the first of the commonwealth saga, is looking to be even bigger.

Feigan wrote:I'm on the last 100 pages of the third Charlie.

Very easy read - compelling too.

i liked it.

welkl i am almost finished the first one, Salander needs a tie up other than that, have enjoyed it, fast read, easy read, but totally kept me entertained and wanting more...

Getting my hands on the last 2 on Wednesday night......

Did NOT see the brother coming, did however see wether Harriet was still alive or not, and saw the death of her father as well, but didn;t see the brother.... HOLY SHIT HEY!

i almost got confused then and let an almighty cat out of a bag.

Good pick up on Harriet, quite a disturbing scenario in the end. Second & third are also enjoyable.

has anyone seen the movie yet?

In the last two months I have read:



Incredible book and the best thing I have read in YEARS. Absolutely epic at 650 odd pages long but smashed through it in a weekend away. Basically a post-vampire apocalypse story set in a depopulated North America.

Am currently half way through:



Keeping with my reading theme, its a post-zombpocalypse (zombie apocalypse). Written in more of a documentary style with interviews building to make up the whole picture. Really interesting read and quite riveting despite the disjointedness of it all. Cannot wait til they adapt this for a movie.

Oh yes, and Scott Pilgrim as well. The last volume is released tomorrow.

Feigan wrote:i almost got confused then and let an almighty cat out of a bag.

Good pick up on Harriet, quite a disturbing scenario in the end. Second & third are also enjoyable.

has anyone seen the movie yet?

NOOOOOO lucky!

yeah i am not sure how some of that book will be on film, they must have left bits out, cause there was so way they would get an M Rating if they stayed true to the book....

Wants to see film now.....

mecka wrote:In the last two months I have read:



Incredible book and the best thing I have read in YEARS. Absolutely epic at 650 odd pages long but smashed through it in a weekend away. Basically a post-vampire apocalypse story set in a depopulated North America.

Started reading that and really enjoyed the first bit, but then couldn't get into the second part. I'll give it another go when I finish my current one: "Menagerie of False Truths" by Greg French, which is a great book about a guy and his relationships with the autistic people in his life, and how that helps him see things from different perspectives. Highly recommended!

ghetto kitty wrote:

Brain wrote: Kill your Friends by John Niven. Seriously sick, seriously funny. It's also about the music industry so you will like I think...

on my list too now.

Just read it. Full on! Liked it but it made me wanna give up the music biz - have lent to other hardnuts in the music industry hahah.

Also read recently (partly while overseas)

"The Other Hand" by Chris Cleave. AMAZING story about immigration set in Britain.
5 stars. heartwrenching, incredible story. I cant say anything else, you just have to read it.

"Her Fearful Symmetry" by Audrey Niffenegger (who wrote time traveller's wife)
loved this too, basically a ghost story, but great characters.

installed the kindle app on my phone and downloaded all the free books. currently reading the jungle book rad.

huge wrote:installed the kindle app on my phone and downloaded all the free books. currently reading the jungle book rad.

kipling FTW

youthful_implants wrote:

huge wrote:installed the kindle app on my phone and downloaded all the free books. currently reading the jungle book rad.

kipling FTW

Real books FTW.

hey the kindle app has me back reading again so i like it.

ive got plenty of real books, they're just all inboxes as im lacking a bookcase.

reading Dead Man Running, tis about the Bandidos. So far there have been these moments like and others time its been

really good read so far, and i tell you this book gives such a good background history to Melbourne, Australia and America re bikie gangs and underworld crime that may not have hit the news.

quiet roar wrote:

youthful_implants wrote:

huge wrote:installed the kindle app on my phone and downloaded all the free books. currently reading the jungle book rad.

kipling FTW

Real books FTW.

agree. cannot find anything good, nor read the screen book. hate!
my ipad has no book programs on it any longer. plus i love the smell & tactile feel of books.

oh, one other amazing recent read
"The Short and Wondorous Life of Oscar Wao" but Juniot Diaz. AMAZING. If you like anything spanish, read this book.

ghetto kitty wrote:"The Short and Wondorous Life of Oscar Wao" but Juniot Diaz. AMAZING. If you like anything spanish, read this book.

pretty good book, i read that last year.

yah, took me a while to get into it, but i loved the characters....

ghetto kitty wrote:oh, one other amazing recent read
"The Short and Wondorous Life of Oscar Wao" but Juniot Diaz. AMAZING. If you like anything spanish, read this book.

Great book!

quiet roar wrote:

ghetto kitty wrote:oh, one other amazing recent read
"The Short and Wondorous Life of Oscar Wao" but Juniot Diaz. AMAZING. If you like anything spanish, read this book.

Great book!

its definitely got the Wao factor

hmm. you must be feeling a bit poorly

recently -
"Water For elephants"- Sara Gruen. awesome. about the carni/circus world in america in the 30's-40's, which was brutal and unforgiving, rough and terrifying. great characters, loved it.

"Burnt Shadows' - Kamila Shamsie. Loved this one, beautifully written and poignant story. one of those ones that weaves through time and places effortlessly, draws you right in. highly reccommend.

bought off ebay and re read all of Jeff Noon's books. Vurt really is a masterpiece but he kind of pushes the envelope of his ideas in Pollen heheh still mega fun though.

Tried to read the first of Neal Stephenson's Baroque trilogy, too heavy for bed, kept knocking me out. Will read upright one day.

finished Steig Larsson trilogy yesterday. Took me two weeks to do the last two books. Have been up till 3am every night reading the last one. Loved it.

and am now reading "the Slap" - great so far, Again, love any books set in melbourne and love stories told from different viewpoints, but its only gonna last the week.

browsing amazon or fishpond seems to get me nowhere, so srsly, i have been through all 15 pages of this thread tonight, realised that I have read most of the fiction mentioned by everyone and ordered 7 reccommedations I haven't read to keep me going through summer.

Under The Skin - Michael Faber
The End of Mr Y - Scarlette Thomas
The Quiet Girl - Peter Hoeg
The Passage - Justin Cronin
Hearts & minds - Amanda Craig
The post birthday world- Lionel Shriver
Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby - Tom Wolfe

My reading habit is ridiculous. There is not enough books in the world.

gosh you do well GK, i fall asleep after a few pages each night lol

taken me ages to read "Dead man Running", not bad read, but not the best


one book i read has turned into a TV series on foxtel - The Secret Diary of a Call Girl. Book was good, tv show is good.