Books I've Read

From Nvm

See also: Books I Want to Read, Books I've Got But Haven't Read Yet, Books I'm Reading and Collections of Stories I'm Working Through
The older version of this document (which was less easy to update) is at http://neil.mckillop.org/reading/ - I'll add the historical information here when I get time.

January 2009

• Wish You Were Here by Mike Gayle — Borrowed this from Vik and read it in two sittings. It was certainly readable and I enjoyed it, but it's my least favourite of Gayle's work. It felt a little trite and the dialogue seemed pretty, for lack of a better word, malevolent.
• The Sound of Laughter by Peter Kay — Christmas present from Liz. I enjoyed the book, read it in just a few sittings, there was quite a bit of crossover from his stand-up material though.

December 2008

• The Ringworld Engineers by Larry Niven — I enjoyed this. Always meant to read it after really enjoying Ringworld. Some fascinating imagery.
• Earth by David Brin — I enjoyed this. Not quite sure I was happy with the last quarter of the novel nor the final resolution, but it has some interesting ideas. Not to mention the whole 'World Data Net', Brin describes this wonderfully, it was a pretty accurate prediction of the current state of our internet.
• Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell — Picked this up on a whim and really enjoyed it. I found one section a little hard to read (Sloosha's Crossin' an' Ev'rythin' After - I'm sure I counted seventeen apostrophes in one sentence) but really enjoyed the world Sonmi-451 lived in - I'd like to see more of that. I'm not 100% sure I got the overall message of the book, the interconnected aspect, I might go read some critical reviews. Will try to read some more David Mitchell.

November 2008

• Temple by Matthew Riley — Didn't enjoy this anywhere near as much as Ice Station, the first Riley book I read. Far too over the top (not that Ice Station wasn't) and just didn't engage me. Hasn't put me off the author when I'm in the mood for something light though.
• Whit by Iain Banks — I liked this, Isis was a fascinating character. The ending seemed a little contrived, but it could have been worse.
• Roderick by John Sladek — This was a strange book. I enjoyed it, there were some interesting ideas. The entire premise was a little shaky.. Roderick enroles in school - he has tank tracks, a square steel body and tries to convince everybody he is a robot - they all assume he's crazy and is a boy in a special iron lung.. then he starts to slowly replace parts of his body all the while trying to convince people he is a robot, but nobody believes him.. Also, there were numerous strange paragraphs of gibberish.. unconnected words and phrases.. I'm not sure if that was to illustrate his mental processes but it was very frustrating. Anyway, worth a read.

October 2008

• The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom — Great book. I'm gonna try to get hold of Tuesdays with Morrie.
• Hell Island by Matthew Reilly — Meh, kept me entertained. Pretty much the definition of an airport novel.

September 2008

• Ice Station by Matthew Reilly — This was an unbelievable, unrealistic, over the top, mindless novel, not the sort of thing I normally read. I loved it though :-)
• Wolves Eat Dogs by Martin Cruz Smith — I got this because I read (I think in slashdot) that it "deals extensively with radiation and radiation poisoning" - if I'd know it was part of a (I assume, from the synopsis) detective series I might not have bothered - I'll give it a try though. Just read it, meh, it was alright, not what I was looking for though.
• Space by Stephen Baxter — I preferred Time to this book, but I still enjoyed it.

August 2008

• East of Eden by John Steinbeck — It took me a while to get through this - not quite sure why - it was a superb book, might even be up there in my top ten. One of the few fiction novels I'd consider reading again some day too.

July 2008

• Down and Out In the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow — I liked this, will try to read more of his work.
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J K Rowling — Finally got around to reading the last in the series. The story was okay, the dialog was far too preachy and moral for my liking though.

June 2008

• Little Brother by Cory Doctorow — Liked it. I plan to work my way through a good chunk of the bibliography.

May 2008

• The Postman by David Brin — I enjoyed this, the idea behind the postman is fascinatingly complex. I'll get around to watching the movie soon I think.
• The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman — Not that bad. Nothing special though. The reason I read this entire series was to find out about the wheeled creatures Dawkins made a reference to. There wasn't much about them really. I definitely enjoyed the first book in the series more than the second or third.
• The Definitive Book of Body Language by Allan Pease — I was reading this for a small insight into some poker bluffing. It was okay, I guess I learned a lot of this information already elsewhere.
• Idlewild by Nick Sagan — I enjoyed this a lot. I'll definitely look out for the sequel. Reminds me a little bit of the Ender's Game series.
• The Life and Times of Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson — I enjoyed this, it's only my second Bryson book (the other was A Short History of Nearly Everything), so I haven't actually read his main staple, the travel books yet. Next on my list.
• The Snow by Adam Roberts — This was a birthday present from Vikki. I chose it 'cause of the post apocalyptic aspect. I liked it.
• The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman — It was okay, not much of plot though, it certainly feels like a bridge between the first and third in the trilogy. I'll read the third one next though.
• Harrington on Hold 'em Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments, Vol. 2: Endgame by Dan Harrington — This was okay, my end game needed work. I think I'll go back and read Vol 1 before moving to Vol 3 though.

April 2008

• The Cutting Room by Louise Welsh — Somebody recommended this to me as 'a female version of Bukowski' - it's certainly not that. I did enjoy the writing, though the whole premise was a little tame.
• Perdido Street Station by China Mieville — Got this back from Sandy after having left it at his flat for nearly a year. I'm trying to figure out where I left off, think I got it. Just finished, it was a good sci-fi book, some fascinating characters in that strange world of Mieville's.
• Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle — I've read this before - it's one of my favourite Holmes stories. I read it again in preparation for the Literati bookgroup next month, still as enjoyable. Reminds me strongly of the old audiobook I had when I was very young, damn scary hound howling noises (and there seemed to be a lot more running away from the hound on the moors). The theme was Ride of the Valkyries.
• The Bridge by Iain Banks — I enjoyed this a lot. I'll definitely read more of Iain Banks (as well as his sci-fi alter ego), I've only read The Wasp Factory to date, enjoyed that too.

March 2008

• The Eye of Sibyl Other Stories by Philip K Dick — Some interesting ideas but left wanting as usual.
• Just A Geek by Wil Wheaton — Interesting book, I'd like to read his other one, Dancing Barefoot.
• Principles of Economics by Peter Navarro — This was a lecture series, it was interesting, I've added one of Navarro's books to my list.
• Slant by Greg Bear — I enjoyed this book, some interesting ideas - like a network of toilets that diagnose public health concerns - although I kind of found the overall plot lacking a bit of substance. I figured out this was the sequel to Queens of Angels, haven't read that yet, will add it to my list.

February 2008

• Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie — This was a present from my mum in Christmas 2007. I decided to read it as a change from a lot of technical stuff I've been reading recently. It was a great book, I felt completely drawn in from the very beginning - which I didn't expect from a book dealing with the Nigeria-Biafra war.
• The Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford and Other Stories by Philip K Dick

January 2008

• The Darkness of Wallis Simpson by Rose Tremain — Novel for Dec bookgroup.
• Ham on Rye by Bukowski — Read this while I was boarding in France, it was a decent book. Was interesting to see his early years, though I prefered the weathered character.
• Bringing Down The House by Ben Mezrich — Recommended by my mum, it was an interesting book. Really wants me to go look further at blackjack theory now.. :-p
• Miles and Me by Quincy Troupe — This was recommended alongside a number of other books (including The Dharma Bums and Unnberable Lightness of Being). I liked the novel. It was a little strange and I'm not quite sure what I think of Miles. However, I've gotten hold of two of his albums and plan to listen to them later.

December 2007

• The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
• Rainbow's End by Vernor Vinge — Interesting book. Nothing really new though. A little contrived at times.

November 2007

• Harrington on Hold'em: Volume I: Strategic Play by Dan Harringon — Decent poker book.
• The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac — This was okay, was expecting something more Bukowski-like but this was mellow in comparison, I couldn't be less interested in Zen or meditation at this stage of my life.

October 2007

• Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami — I enjoyed reading this book, but it annoyed me quite a bit. There were so many unanswered questions and things I'd like to have known. I'll still be reading some more of Murakami's stuff though.

September 2007

• South of No North by Charles Bukowski — A few great shorts in this collection.
• Phil Gordon's Little Green Book by Phil Gordon — Borrowed this from thinker. Not the best poker book I've read, the theories were fine, but I wasn't interested in reading a play-by-play account of how he'd play particular hands only for him to indicate his play would change 'depending on the table situation', obviously.
• The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat by Oliver Sacks — Fascinating book.

August 2007

• The Eyre Affair by Jasper Forde — A recommendation from bigkev. I enjoyed the book, quite a surreal read.

July 2007

• The 5th Horseman by James Patterson — Vikki's dad gave this to me a while ago. It's a bit of a trashy novel but I enjoyed it, read it very quickly as well - it's one of those Da Vinci style novels, 137 chapters..

June 2007

• If Chins Could Kill by Bruce Campbell — I love this guy. This was an excellent book.
• Fluke by James Hebert — This is a small paperback Vikki got me for my birthday, I've been reading it when I'm in the sauna. Haven't read any James Herbert for at least seven or eight years..
• Manifold: Time by Stephen Baxter — Fairly heavy sci-fi, but I enjoyed this alot, especially that journey forward trillions of years and the narrative about cosmological changes. I'll look out for the rest of this series, plus I want to get my teeth into Baxter's other series.
• Eccentrics by David Weeks & Jamie James — This, along with the Shakespeare tomb, is my 'bathroom book'. This was reasonably interesting. There was an interesting parallel between eccentrics in society and darwinism for the social organism.
• Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut — This was okay.

May 2007

• The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney — This is the book for the Phoenix book group, May 2007. It was the 2006 Costa Book of the Year.. not sure who votes for that however.. It was a decent book, sometimes I felt that large parts could have been missed out completely though.
• Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut — This is the meetup.com bookgroup book for June. I enjoyed the style.
• Time And Again by Jack Finney — This was a good book. I was expecting more science fiction, but still enjoyed it.
• The Magic Goes Away by Larry Niven — This was an excellent book. I'd like to read the others in the trilogy. I almost read this in one sitting, partly in the park and then later in the pub. I was worried reading it out doors though, my copy is a present from Vik, a signed first edition. There are some interesting parallels to be drawn between mana and our current natural resources. 2007-05-04.

April 2007

• The Divine Invasion by Philip K Dick — This was a fascinating premise.
• The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins — Found this again after having lost it for a while. It's inspired me to add a whole load of new books to my wish list so far. Superb book.
• High Fidelity by Nick Hornby — I like this book. Read it in almost one sitting (cat nap in between) when I couldn't get to sleep whilst staying at my parents over Easter. I wasn't sure if I'd already read the book.. I've read the screenplay and watched the movie so I couldn't quite remember. I enjoyed reading it though, I like the style. I have his other novel 'How to be Good', Vikki got it for me, I'll read that soon.

March 2007

• Love Eternally by Deborah Wright — This was Vikki's book that I found in the bathroom, I'm reading it on and off. Interesting idea, guy dies and becomes a ghost, has to learn what love truly is before he can 'pass on'.
• Selling The Wheel by Jeff Cox and Howard Stevens — I like the way this was presented, with a story. Didn't get much from it though.

February 2007

• Explorers of the New Century by Magnus Mills — This is the February sci-fi bookgroup novel, I enjoyed it.
• Small Island by Andrea Levy — This is the Ottakar's bookgroup novel for Feb, I enjoyed it.
• Stewie's Guide to World Domination by Steve Callaghan — This was a bit of a waste of time to be honest.
• Jennifer Government by Max Barry — This was a good book, I enjoyed it. The anti-virus virus was interesting. Was a birthday present from Vikki.
• Why Don't Penguins Feet Freeze? And 114 Other Questions from NewScientist — I enjoyed this - I plan to look out for the other compendiums of the Last Word column.
• The Virgin Guide to Poker by Alex Tanner — The first in a series of books I plan to read before I go to my first live game on the 19th of this month.

January 2007

• S is for Silence by Sue Grafton — I recommended this to one of the bookgroups I'm in because we couldn't decide on anything else and this was a book I recently noticed had spent the most time (or a lot of time) in the New York Times Bestseller List this year. after: This book was okay, but I didn't realise it was part of a huge crime series, otherwise I wouldn't have recommended it. It was interesting, and made me want to know what happened, however there were a few moments that reminded me of The Three Investigators or the Secret Seven, things happened too easy or conveniently for the main character..
• Post Office by Charles Bukowski — I'm glad I read Woman first. This novel didn't stir up the same feelings (and, hell, admiration) that Woman did. Though I enjoyed it.
• Arthur & George by Julian Barnes — This is for January's Ottakar's bookgroup. - Just finished a few days before the group, this was an excellent book. It makes me want to read Doyle's autobiography (and more of Barnes' books).
• Northern Lights by Philip Pullman — I read some great things about this trilogy as a whole (evolution creating a creature that utilizes seedpods for wheeled locomotion) looks good, enjoying this first book so far. Borrowed from my little sister. after: This was good, I'm looking forward to the next two in the trilogy.

December 2006

• For a Breath I Tarry by Roger Zelazny — Excellent short story.
• Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien — This was a Christmas present from Vikki, she said it was one of her favourite books from school. It sounds like my favourite genre. Just finished it a few days after Vikki gave it to me, I enjoyed it. There were a couple of things that made me think, particularly, harvesting wheat, barley and other crops simply to keep the species from going extinct..
• Climbing Mount Improbable by Richard Dawkins — Another good book of Dawkins'. The 'dance of the bees' and it's evolution were particularly interesting.

November 2006

• Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov
• So You Want To Be A Wizard? by Diane Duane — I listened to the unabridged audio book of this. It was interesting to see how many similarities exist between it and the Harry Potter series. It wasn't bad, I would have preferred to have read it as the voices were quite annoying. I simply don't like Kitt's mexican accent and Fred sounded like a retired chain-smoking drag queen. Interesting ideas behind magic and wizardry though.
• The Rest of the Robots by Isaac Asimov
  • Robot AL-76 Goes Astray by Isaac Asimov
  • Victory Unintentional by Isaac Asimov — This is my all-time favourite Asimov story. I first read it around age 10 I think, and it's always stayed in my mind. I think it's quite funny, when I read it I imagine the robots with heavy upper class British accents.
  • First Law by Isaac Asimov
  • Let's Get Together by Isaac Asimov
  • Satisfaction Gauranteed by Isaac Asimov
  • Risk by Isaac Asimov
  • Lenny by Isaac Asimov
  • Galley Slave by Isaac Asimov — This is a good example of why I generally don't like Asimov stories. This book had a recycled plot, wasn't particuarly interesting or entertaining, in fact it was pretty boring. It just seems like Asimov relishes the opportunity to bounce his ideas around despite the result having no literary merit whatsoever.

October 2006

• River Out of Eden by Richard Dawkins — Only the second of Dawkin's book that I've gotten around to reading (after the Blind Watchmaker). I'm going to track down The Selfish Gene and read that before getting his new book, The God Delusion. Fascinating writer.
• Cal by Isaac Asimov
• Left To Right by Isaac Asimov
• Frustration by Isaac Asimov
• The Instablity by Isaac Asimov
• Rautavaara's Case by Philip K Dick
• Put What Where?!: Over 2,000 Years of Bizarre Sex Advice by John Naish — This was recommended somewhere, Vikki bought me it as a birthday present. after: Does what it says on the tin, but this book was pointless. I shouldn't have bothered. I have no real interest in all the mistakes and fallacies previously made by non-scientists.
• Minority Report by Philip K Dick — Been meaning to read this for a while. Didn't realise it was so short. The book entitled Minority Report is actually a collection of his short stories. I've decided to list them here individually as I read them so I can keep track of which of his stories I've actually read. The book was okay. Meh.
  • We Can Remember It For You Wholesale by Philip K Dick
  • Faith of our Fathers by Philip K Dick
  • The Electric Ant by Philip K Dick — I kinda like the idea of somebody not knowing they are an android, and the whole reality-is-my-creation thing.. But I've seen it all before.
  • Oh, to be a Blobel! by Philip K Dick — Nonsense. I get it, but bah.
  • What The Dead Men Say by Philip K Dick — I like the idea of half-life. Felt like a Scooby Doo mystery though.
  • War Game by Philip K Dick — This was anticlimatic.
  • Second Variety by Philip K Dick — Not too bad, I've seen a cheesey movie that must have been based on this. Replicant or something like that.
  • Imposter by Philip K Dick — Predictable.
• Things My Girlfriend and I Have Argued About by Mil Millington — I've been subscribed to Mil's mailing list for a long while and bought this for Vikki, always meant to read it myself too. after: Enjoyed it. I didn't really click with Pel though..

September 2006

• Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami — This was the September 2006 bookgroup novel. I enjoyed it, very surreal. There were a few parts I'm not sure I understood. Thought it was a new novel (read it in one night, because I hadn't got around to it and the bookgroup was looming) but no, 1985.
• The Perfect Store: Inside Ebay by Adam Cohen — This has been recommended in a list of 'books entrepreneurs should read', though I'd always planned to get around to reading this (along with a few other dotcom success stories). Coincidentally, I bought this on ebay.

August 2006

• We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver — This is the August 2006 Ottakar's book group novel. Not bad, kept my attention.
• Soul of a New Machine by Tracey Kidder — It was listed among a list somewhere of books all geeks should read. It's interesting. after: I liked this book, it's old now, written around the time I was born but still an interesting book. I feel like a learn a little about management too, mushroom management.
• Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down by Stuart Payne (aka Nicey and Wifey). I enjoyed this book, it wasn't anything like I expected (I was expecting more of a story, this is actually notes of dunking biscuits, sitting down and the history of biscuits) - actually I'm not sure why it made my list - I've never heard of www.nicecupofteaandasitdown.com. It was a 24th birthday present from Vikki. Got through it very quickly and learned some tea and sitting down related trivia.
• Ringworld by Larry Niven — Jamie recommended this, but it's a classic I've been meaning to read for ages, didn't realise it wasn't already on my wish list. Got it as a 24th birthday present from Vikki. after: Good book, the author uses the phrase ego-smashing to describe the view afforded by the ringworld to it's inhabitants at night. Fascinating idea, fascinating book.
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki — One of those cult self-help books, the first of a bunch I plan to read. The book was kinda interesting although some of his advice included "Join the marines, or a religious order" to learn discipline and signing up to these pyramid style schemes to learn marketing. Hmm.. I've read he is a repetitive writer, so I read the abridged version and still thought it was repetitive.

July 2006

• A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka — This is the July 2006 Ottakars book group novel. Not sure what I thought of it. I think I liked it, it kept my attention either way.
• The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick — I liked this, interesting novel.
• The Witches of Chiswick by Robert Rankin — This was a present from my dad at Christmas. The idea was interesting, but the writing was awful. Tedious nonsense, it seemed like Rankin was trying for a surreal Douglas Adams feel but I didn't think he pulled it off at all.

June 2006

• The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold — I think Vikki bought this as a present for me, she has read it already though. Looks interesting - it was mentioned in the foreword to one of my favourite books, The Time Traveller's Wife.
• First Meetings in the Enderverse by Orson Scott Card — Vikki bought this for my 24th birthday. I love the Ender series so it was interesting to read the original short story and hear a bit more about Ender's parents. I couldn't get to sleep one night so read the whole thing in one sitting.
• The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown — Where do I start with this. It's been on my list for more than two years. I'm surprised I hadn't got around to reading it yet. I enjoyed it, though I was expecting more contravesy after all I've heard about it. I'll be checking up on all the 'facts' soon.
• It's All Fun and Games Until Someone Loses An Eye by Christopher Brookmyre — Emma bought me a signed copy of this last year because I love using the expression in the title. I hadn't got around to reading it yet, partly because I didn't really know what it was about. It is our bookgroup book this month. I loved it. I got to about page five and it reminded me of Jagged Alliance: female mercenary computer hacker, I thought 'cool'. It's also based on some characters from Lanarkshire and Glasgow, so I liked some of the local references.

May 2006

• Under The Skin by Michel Faber — This was our bookgroup book this month. I liked this book.
• By His Bootstraps by Robert A. Heinlein
• The Algebraist by Iain M Banks
• How to Walk in High Heels by Camilla Morton — Vikki has left this in the bathroom, so I'm slowly reading it whenever I'm in there, ahem.

April 2006

• 21 Ways to Build a High Profit Business by Brian Tracey— Just a random choice in my effort to read a host of business books, this is common sense babble

March 2006

• Player of Games by Iain M Banks — Good book, I think I've liked everything I've read of Banks' so far, will try to read more

February 2006

• Alien 3 Screenplay by William Gibson — Didn't know he had even written this first rejected first draft, it was ok, far better story than the actual Alien 3 at least.
• Women by Charles Bukowski — Read this as part of the Ottakars book group. Really enjoyed it, I'm trying to get hold of some of his other novels and his poetry

January 2006

• I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison
• The Last Question by Issac Asimov — Interesting short story, referenced in a slashdot article dealing with google and the singularity
• Lives of the Monster Dogs by Kirsten Bakis — Referenced in a novel I read recently, can't remember which. Sounds good. after: I ended up reading this as the first book in the Ottakar's book group I joined, I enjoyed it.

December 2005

• Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K Dick
• The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester — Recommended on the Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List
• Legend by David Gemmell — Recommended on the Internet Top 100 SF/Fantasy List

November 2005

• Life of Pi by Yann Martel— Slashdot recommendation
• Basic Rights: Information for Young People in Scotland by Bob Stead
• The Dilbert Future by Scott Adams
• The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger — A present from Vikki, never heard of it before, but just started the first two chapters, it seems like I'll enjoy it. after: One of the best books I've ever read

September 2005

• Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll — I've been meaning to read this for ages. Got it from Project Gutenburg.
• Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by JK Rowling — A present from Vikki
• Girlfriend in a Coma by Douglas Coupland — 23rd birthday present from Vikki

August 2005

• Redrobe by Jon Courtenay Grimwood
• Remix by Jon Courtenay Grimwood — Bought this on ebay after Edward recommended it (though it made its way onto my list before that)

July 2005

• The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Leguin — I enjoyed this. Had some interesting ideas. Time dilation, a clockwork device to keep your beer liquid in a world that was constantly frozen.. Multisexed individuals.. Fascinating.
• Red Phrophet by Scott Orson Card
• The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks — I enjoyed this book, very gothic, delightfully wicked, and nice twist. I'm making a point to read more of Iain Banks.
• Seventh Son by Scott Orson Card — Excellent book, looking forward to getting into this series, the main character is cool.

June 2005

• I,Robot by Issac Asimov — Bought this in Nantwich after James' wedding to read in the car on the way home.
• The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams — Bought this for Vikki to read before the movie comes out, thought I'd refresh my memory too
• Cyborg by Martin Caidin — This is the book on which The Six Million Dollar Man was based. Should be interesting.
• The Restaurant At The End Of The Universe by Douglas Adams — Bought this for Vikki to read before the movie comes out, thought I'd refresh my memory too
• Super Toys Last All Summer Long by Brian Aldiss — Short story that the inspiration for AI came from
• Robots and Empire by Issac Asimov — Bought this in Nantwich after James' wedding to read in the car on the way home. Battled through it a little, I find some of the dialogue frustrating. That is, unnecessarily aggresive and condescending.
• Linux Server Hacks by Rob Flickenger — Borrowed from tam, it's a good book. I like the small-hack style, will try to read more.

May 2005

• Hey Nostradamus by Douglas Coupland — Kimberly bought this for my Christmas, 2004
• Generation X by Douglas Coupland
• His 'n' Hers by Mike Gayle

April 2005

• The Wizardry: Consulted by Rick Cook
• The Wizardry: Compiled by Rick Cook
• Steal This Book by Abbie Hoffman — This was too dated to be of much interest. Would have been an interesting book if I'd read it when it was released.
• The Wizardry: Cursed by Rick Cook

March 2005

• Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
• Blood Music by Greg Bear — Referenced in wikipedia entry for grey goo. "The classic sci-fi novel about ecophagy."

Feburary 2005

• A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson — Slashdot recommendation - was definitely worth reading
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
• Mr. Commitment by Mike Gayle

January 2005

• Without Remorse by Tom Clancy
• The Straw Men by Michael Marshall Smith
• Just One Look by Harlan Coben — Recommended by Emma, one of her favourite books.

December 2004

• Against A Dark Background by Iain M Banks

November 2004

• The Island of Doctor Death by Gene Wolfe
• Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson
• The Cuckoo's Egg by Clifford Stoll
• Wizard's Bane by Rick Cook — Book 1 of the Wiz Biz series. Recommended by Jamie

October 2004

• ASP.NET Database Programming by Jason Butler & Tony Caudill

September 2004

• The Nanny Diaries by Nicola Kraus — This is the first book set for the Glasgow Book Group, we're meeting on the 11th of July 2005 to discuss it. I'm looking forward to going. I have no idea what the book is about..

August 2004

• Foundation by Issac Asimov
• Foundation and Empire by Issac Asimov
• Tik-Tok by John Sladek — Apparently a parody of Asimov's 3 Laws. Sounds fun.
• Second Foundation by Issac Asimov

July 2004

• Carmilla by J Sheridan Le Fanu

June 2004

• TAP by Greg Egan
• Permutation City by Greg Egan

May 2004

• Bill The Galactic Hero by Harry Harrison

FIELD_MESSAGE_relacla

March 2004

• Children of the Mind by Scott Orson Card
• The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison — Quite liked this, sort of a Dirk Gently in outer space.
• Thirty Something by Mike Gayle
• Black Dog by Stephen F Booth — Another of Sarah's books, not bad either.
• The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams — Listened to this as an audio book. Was pretty weird, Norse gods? Hmmm..

February 2004

• The Surgeon by Terry Gerritsen — One of Sarah's books. Not too bad.

January 2004

• Sudden Wealth by Robert Llewellyn

December 2003

• Ender's Game by Scott Orson Card — Excellent Book. I'm working my way though the series now.
• Xenocide by Scott Orson Card — Excellent, really enjoying this series, must get the next one.
• Just For Fun by Linus Torvalds — Borrowed this from Richard at 2600, have wanted to read it for ages.
• Speaker for the Dead by Scott Orson Card
• Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
• Flatland by Edwin A Abbott — Weird, but cool.
• Excession by Iain M Banks — An excerpt from this book is on Martin Ling's website, got me interested. Just finished, excellent book. I'll need to look out for more Banks' novels.

November 2003

• The Dilbert Principle by Scott Adams
• Zodiac by Neal Stephenson
• I Am Legend by Richard Matheson — This is the book on which The Omega Man was (loosely, I hear) based. Just read it in one go, interesting idea, pretty different from The Omega Man, its got vampires in it for a start.
• Spock vs Q by Cecelia Fannon
• Red Dwarf: Better Than Life by Grant Naylor
• Red Dwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers by Grant Naylor

October 2003

• All Tomorrow's Parties by William Gibson — Third part of the bridge trilogy. Not really enjoying the trilogy as much as I have Gibson's other stuff..
• Cyberpunk by Bruce Bethke
• One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey — Borrowed this from Avril, one of the classics I've got to read. Update: Read it, great book.
• The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides — I'm reading this but I've a sneaking suspicion I read this sometime before I started recording what I'm reading...
• Stealing The Network: How to Own The Box by Ryan Russell — Amazon review was favourable, I like the idea of fictional stories carrying the reader to the technical ideas.

September 2003

• Spares by Michael Marshall Smith — One of my favourite novels
• A Midsummer-Night's Dream by William Shakespeare
• Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson — Major7 recommended and loaned this book to me. Said it changed his life. I've read far too much psychology for this to be anything more than self-help business mangement nonsense.
• Plague Dogs by Richard Adams — By the guy who wrote Watership Down, good story, but I'm finding some of the author's style irritating. This might be on the 'current' list for a while, I'm only reading it when I'm in certain moods. (Done, took about a month, good book though).
• Idoru by William Gibson
• My Legendary Girlfriend by Mike Gayle — Liked it, am looking for more of Mike Gayle's books after reading one I borrowed from Sarah (this one I borrowed from bigkev). Seems like light reading - I get through them very quickly, but some of the ideas are quite thought provoking. I just recommen
• Microserfs by Douglas Coupland — I've heard so much about this book over the years, I should have read it long ago. If you're a geek you should read it, was enjoyable with some cool ideas and observations. One thing that bugged the hell out of me though: sometimes Coupland's use of language

August 2003

• Sherlock Holmes and the case of The Disappearing Scientists by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• Elegance by Kathleen Tessaro — I keep reading all these girly books belonging to Sarah and am enjoying them alot, its creeping me out a little.
• 1984 by George Orwell — Read this ages ago, but felt like reading it again. Just finished, opinion doubleplusgood.
• Rim: A Novel of Virtual Reality by Alexander Besher
• Dinner For Two by Mike Gayle — Good book, fun dialogue. Am going to look for more of his stuff. Borrowed from Sarah.
• Sherlock Holmes and the case of The Sussex Vampire by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• Virtual Reality by Howard Rheingold — Waste of time. I read the first couple of chapters before realising the book was written in 1991, thus horribly out of date, but curses, I can't not read a whole book no matter what I think of it half way through. Goes on far too much, in a creepy way.
• Red Star, Winter Orbit by William Gibson — Short story, but I'm noting it here so I don't read it again (only by about 2/3s of the way through this sitting did I realise I'd read it before and knew the ending).
• Sherlock Holmes and the case of The Empty House by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• Virtual Light by William Gibson