Book Discussion/Reviews

I finished reading "The Green Mile" the other day. It was great. I've seen the movie many times over the years, so I was very familiar with the story. Glad I decided to read it.

Now I am reading this H.P. Lovercraft collection. I'm not really into it. I read the first few stories, got board, and skipped ahead to Cuthulu. If I'm into that one, I might backtrack to the ones I skipped.

The Road is a fantastic read, if you liked that pick up Blood Meridian next. I wonder if McCarthy will be able to publish another novel before dying.

Recently I was trying to read Gravity's Rainbow, but after about 180 pages I just couldn't get into it, so I started Underworld by Don DeLillo instead.

I'm reading Stephen Kings sequel to Mr. Mercedes.

Cool, must read. What's it called?

I'm sure it will.

i have just ordered nanni balestrini's we want everything b/c it's apparent we maybe in need of a left strategy at the mo and why the fuck not this can get the ball rolling.

Ice Queen? Autobiographic?

Finished "The Call of Cuthulu" last night, what a let down after all the praise I have heard my whole life about said masterpiece. Oh well, back to Stephen King for me, about to start "End of watch".

Brandon Sanderson - Way of Kings
Carl Sagan - Demon Haunted World

Just finished The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. It had its moments but overall I found it to be pretty boring and I could do with a fantasy book that doesn't have ridiculous names for once (Kaladin, The Parshmen etc).

I am now reading Singularity is Near by Ray Kurzweil. Then I have Fingerprints of the Gods and Magicians of the Gods by Graham Hancock....busy times ahead

Books about Metallica. Which ones have you read and what did you like (or dislike) them for? I enjoyed Birth School Metallica Death recently, especially part 2 (1991-2014).

I've read the book "This Monster Lives" multiple times and loved it more each time.

Well.....

Metallica: Enter Night: The Biography (Mick Wall)
Liked it a lot. Wall has been interviewing the band since the 80s so has that "I was there" to flesh out the stories. He also doesn't let his own views influence the writing.

Metallica: Justice for All. The Truth About... (Joel McIver)
Hmmmm yeah. Good up until TBA and then he lets his own feelings about the band and music become too influential. Having said that, it's not just a straight biography it's also a critique of the band and their music which is why (certainly for me) it felt quite jarring to have such negativity appear in the narrative.

Birth School Metallica Death / Into the Black (Ian Winwood, Paul Brannigan)
Really enjoyed these two volumes although it was a total cash grab to split the books.

Metallica Unbound: The Unofficial Biography (KJ Doughton)
Recently just bought this off eBay after having read it back in the early 90s. haven't re-read it yet so can't comment on content but it's quite well respected as Doughton ran the band's first fan club so has the first hand experience of the early days.

Metallica: This Monster Lives (Joe Berlinger)
Love this book. I've read it multiple times. This is required reading to complement the film as it fleshes out certain parts and gives a broader context of things shown in the film. Particularly interesting is the longer transcript of the "FUCK!" scene which really shows how they nailed the essence of that encounter with some judicious editing.

To Live Is To Die: The Life & Death Of Metallica's Cliff Burton (Joel McIver)
As McIver is clearly a fanboy for the pre-TBA years I figure this would be a book that was well researched. And it was. Even though I have very strong feelings about the way he handled the writing of his other Metallica book, here McIver does a great job of not venerating Burton to Gog status and does an excellent job of portraying him as a person. Lots of interviews with key people (such as Cliff's girlfriend at the time) and what not. Well worth checking out.

I've got the 33 1/3 TBA book on order and also The Frayed Ends of Metal (which I read back in high school).

@jaysee,
Thanks for the detailed review, looks like This Monster Lives will be my next read. I've heard negative opinions about Mick Wall's pavé, as he's apparently ruthless about their later years. Into The Black addresses the controversies in a nice constructive way and helps making sense about their discographic silence. Business wise, Metallica have never been so interesting, I'm curious about their new music as much as the way they will 'share it with the universe'.