What Are You Reading Now?

[Tom_Wescott]

I'm currently reading the Dutton diaries and the lost Ripper suspect files, kindly lent to me by the Cartel.

Actually, I have a number of books going - Stephen King's 'Full Dark, No Stars', John Bennett's 'JTR: Making of a Myth', Keven McQueen's 'The Axman Came From Hell', a recent authorship question book, 'Will Contested', and the latest issue of Famous Monsters magazine.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[DVV]

I consider The Island of Dr Moreau as his best work, and it has inspired many a great book - such as The Invention of Morel by Bioy Casares, and more recently Mo Hayder excellent Pig Island.

[Rob Clack]

HG Wells' The War of the Worlds.

First read it over 30 years ago and have just finished it for the 5th time. It's a book I never seem to tire of.

Can't really go wrong with H G Wellls. I read some of his books in the late 80s. The Invisible Man, The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau as well as The War of the Worlds. All Classics, have a fondness for The Time Machine which I have read several times.

Rob

[DVV]

...have ordered 3 Evelyn Waugh for X-mas : Decline and Fall, A Handful of Dust, Brideshead Revisited.

[DVV]

Currently re-reading "Die Wolfshaut" by (genius) Austrian novelist Hans Lebert (1919-93), published 1960.

Sordid and mysterious murders occur in a remote Austrian village, some years after WW II, as a resurgence of its nazi past (collective crimes).

Never translated into English, although considered the most important Austrian novel of its time, said to have influenced prominent Austrian writers (Jelinek, Ramsmayr, Haslinger, etc).

[Carol]

HG Wells' The War of the Worlds.

First read it over 30 years ago and have just finished it for the 5th time. It's a book I never seem to tire of.

Hi John,

I agree with you - what a book! I first read it in June 1963 when I was supposed to be revising English Literature for the GCE's. The suspense at the end was unbelieveable I thought.

At the moment I'm reading Martin Fido's 'The Crimes, Detection and Death of Jack the Ripper'. I'm really enjoying it and it has a great map of Whitechapel and environs which I am finding very helpful. The map is looking very Christmassy now with me using yellow, red and blue marker pens and making corresponding notes in the same colours! I found the book in almost brand-new condition complete with its dust cover, in a second-hand book shop in Dunster, Somerset, when we were on holiday in England last summer.

Carol

[John Bennett]

HG Wells' The War of the Worlds.

First read it over 30 years ago and have just finished it for the 5th time. It's a book I never seem to tire of.

[kensei]

I find pure fantasy escapism to be a great distraction from some of the stresses I have going on in real life at the moment, and I'm a 40-something comic book geek, currently reading the graphic novel "Green Lantern- The Sinestro Corps War." Superhero action combined with very trippy science fiction.

[mariab]

Haven't re-read Faulkner's A rose for Emily in years. Right now I'm so behind in my work (and in my reading list for Ripperology) that I don't have time at all to read non work-related stuff. Unless I get a book as a gift, which is gonna be very specific, as my friends know what I like.
The only time I'm gonna be caught (re)reading lit is when I'm sick in bed or depressed and semi-catatonic. LOL. In that case I'd be (re)reading either some classic or one of my favorites. When I'm procrastinating from work I often read new stuff (for free) at the amazon site, from serious books to the silliest stuff.

What's funny is, a couple years ago when I started as a lurker on casebook, I was using Ripperology to chill when procrastinating from work. However, nowadays it doesn't work anymore, Ripperology has become work and I need something “faraway from home“ to chill when procrastinating. LOL. But I still chill reading criminology related stuff online (which might appear weird to some people).

[Supe]

Doug,

Interesting question. I usually read several at once in bed before sleep. Right now they are the mystery The Widow's Cruise by Nicholas Blake (C. Day Lewis); Shakespeare Without Tears by Margaret Webster (rereading for third or fourth time), and The Age of the Picts by W.A. Cummins.

Don.

[Doug Irvine]

I thought it would be nice to have a thread where we could discuss the books we are reading. It doesn't have to be about Jack The Ripper or serial killers, just whatever book you happen to be reading. I picture this thread as an informal book club sort of thing.
The book I'm reading right now is William Faulkner's Light In August. I really enjoyed A Rose for Emily when I read it High School. I just never got around to reading any of his novels till now.