Not "fun summer reads" but I've recently finished Stoner by John Williams.
Edited by Tuscy on July 10, 2026, 7:54:17
What a beautifully written book. Gritty yet ethereal at the same time. Particularly enjoyable as earlier this year I finished At the Existentialist Cafe by Sarah Bakewell and Stoner is very existentialist. At the Existentialist Cafe is somewhat of a biography of several of the thinkers in Paris (mainly) and how their lives intersected and how their relationships influenced each other's work. Sartre, Camus, Beauvoir, etc. I enjoyed that so much I read Bakewell's other books -How to Live - The Life of Montaigne (a biography that digs into his writings) and Humanly Possible - 700 Years of Humanist Freethinking, Inquiry and Hope (a great study of humanism and it's history, in case you didn't get that from the title). Bakewell is super accessible in both her ability to break down concepts and her writing style. Just finished Trust by Hernan Diaz. He tells the story of a capitalist tycoon in the years leading up to the crash of '29 through 4 different viewpoints. Very cleverly done and easy to relate to each POV. Won the Pulitzer a few years ago. Currently reading Angel Down by Daniel Krauss. Just got started with this one. The entire novel is written as one sentence, which I thought might be a little annoying, but it hasn't intruded on my reading yet. After a couple of chapters, interested to see where he's going with it. Also a recent Pulitzer winner. Oh, and finished the first book of The Poppy Wars. Really enjoyed it and loved the concept but not sure I'll finish the series, mainly because I have so many other things in the queue.  Previous Message I've recently been enjoying this light little page-turner that's made a lot of Non-fiction bests of 2026 so far. Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939-1945 No idea how much Goebbels banned dancing, then allowed it, then banned it, then allowed it only on Tues-Thurs, then banned it again....it was like the pastor in Footloose but significantly more evil.
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Message Thread | This response ↓
Fun Summer Reads go here! - KingTalkyTiki July 9, 2026, 11:50:45
- Not "fun summer reads" but I've recently finished Stoner by John Williams. - Tuscy July 10, 2026, 7:53:40
- I have a bunch of (Philip K) Dick to get through if I find some down time* - ghost_of_clt July 9, 2026, 15:17:24
- Best recent history I read was A Nervous Splendor about Vienna in 1882-83 - DT July 9, 2026, 15:00:51
- Sidejack on my own thread: One thing I learned in this book that I never knew about... - KingTalkyTiki July 9, 2026, 14:45:40
- Currently reading Three Bags Full, the book on which Sheep Detectives is based. - larue33 July 9, 2026, 14:30:36
- also, do any of you use the good reads app, or how do you keep track of past/future reads?* - lcubed July 9, 2026, 14:17:25
- I’ve been using Goodreads since 2012. It’s great.* - DT July 9, 2026, 16:47:56
- Yes. Been using Goodreads for years * - bjl63 July 9, 2026, 15:51:21
- Calibre. It’s awesome to keep your library and list of books read in it. * - harb July 9, 2026, 15:10:12
- Spreadsheet with 800+ entries tabbed by year or group of years + future tab - Potomac July 9, 2026, 14:30:33
- I DO! I love it. I picked up reading as a hobby last year and I use it to track all my read books - DiamondDazzle July 9, 2026, 14:21:29
- Also, rereading Catch-22 and Something Wicked This Way Comes currently - reggiedunlop July 9, 2026, 13:53:46
- Just gave out these five history recs (more basic style) - reggiedunlop July 9, 2026, 13:52:17
- Been on a WWII era kick lately - bjl63 July 9, 2026, 13:32:02
- I just heard an author interview on NPR for a new book - Sounder July 9, 2026, 12:51:00
- if you enjoyed that, check out Somewhere There is Still a Sun by Michael Gruenbaum - lcubed July 9, 2026, 12:15:54
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