readers advisory for all discussion

Hey guys!

I'm looking to buy some books for my husband for Christmas. He likes reading, but he doesn't like 90% of books out there so it's a little hard to find something he'd actually read. Here's what he likes/likes to read about:

Video games
Comic books, other geeky things
US history (focus on presidents and the big wars)
Very strong, masculine male characters with a heroic streak
Politics (not necessarily in the real world; stuff like Game of Thrones is good!)
Slightly quirky books, but nothing too crazy.

Some of his favorite books:
Ready Player One
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
Jurassic Park
The Prince
Fight Club

He wants something that grabs him immediately, but does not necessarily need a fast-paced plot. Here's some stuff he's probably not be into:

Dystopia, intense sci-fi, psychological thriller, anything that requires too much suspension of disbelief (AND ALL MY FAVORITE BOOKS DAMMIT).

Thank you so much for any recommendations!

what kind of comic books does he like? because chris ware just came out with Building Stories, and i haven't explored the whole thing yet, but it is amazing, and a really hefty, gifty thing. it is a box full of all his ...well building stories... that take place in one... building, but there are all different formats of books inside and it is spectacular piece of art and packaging. plus, he kind of rules.

i mean - ahhhh!!!!


http://pantheonbooks.tumblr.com/post/...

Hi karen! Oh that's been on my to-read list for a while, and the tumbler post (ahhhhhh!!! indeed!!!!) pretty much clinches it for me. I'll probably buy it pretending it's for him, and then not actually give it to him.. I don't know how he feels about these types of comic books. I know he's into the really good Batman classics (The Long Halloween, The Killing Joke, etc), Avengers and Watchmen. I don't think he's ever tried reading anything even remotely "alternative". What's a good place to start?

well, there is a new-ish batman that is supposed to be awesome because it is the first one in like a million years where you get to see batman's eyes and this is a big deal for some reason. i am planning on reading it (same thing - i am going to buy it "for sean" but i am going to read it: Batman: Earth One.)

but for non-dc/marvel stuff, Mike Mignola is pretty great. and very masculine.

the comics-lit stuff i like is probably not going to be the same stuff he would like, though, cuz i'm all - oooh, a bunny!(Fluffy) but chris ware is phenomenal. he does take some effort to read. lots of detail, and very very dense for sequential art. but so ...genre-elevating.

the sandman stuff is very well-regarded The Sandman, Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes, but i haven't read any myself. and the Y: The Last Man, Vol. 1: Unmanned series, and The Walking Dead, Book One and all that. still dc, but not superhero-y.


Nature of the Beast: A Graphic Novel is very very masculine, but just dumbfun, don't expect great litterature.

i will try to think of some book-books, too...

Thanks! I've been dabbling in Sandman and I really like it so far. It's violent, dark, creepy/spooky, funny, beautiful, very Neil-Gaiman-y, the whole package.

The best bet so far is Y: The Last Man. Sounds like something he might enjoy, considering all the amazing reviews and the bitchin plot (I'm excited to read about the brain-washed sister).

Invisible Monsters

i don't think he'd like any palahnuik but I think he'd like that one or survivor.

I'm not sure if this would qualify but it's quirky and yet not that unbelievable Beat the Reaper

I wonder if he would like Harry Turtledove alternative history books. Guns of the South introduces modern weaponry and tactics into a Civil War setting, Videssos books have a lot of details about Roman infantry warfare and are quite light on the fantasy stuff, dealing more in politics and actual battles, there are also some books about the second waorld war that I haven't got around to reading yet.

Guns of the South sounds awesome!! I've added that one and Y: The Last Man. I will probably end up getting Survivor for him later, since he already likes Fight Club.

I loved Beat the Reaper, D. Unfortunately, I've already told him the play-by-play and ruined everything.. But we both loved that one part with the bone!

How about Monster Hunter International? And is he interested in bios at all, or mainly fiction centered on US history?

I don't think he's ever read a bio that interested him enough. But if it's on the right topic, he might like it. What do you have in mind, Tracey?

I don't think I had anything specific when I asked (if I did, it's gone!), but I wonder if he'd be interested in one of my favorites, Barbara Hambly. She has a series of antebellum mysteries centered around a free man of color in Louisiana (hence the title of the first book, Free Man of Color :D), and her other recent books have been historical fiction/bio. Oh, and then there's Renfield, an alternate view of Dracula.

I'm not sure he likes mysteries per se. He's more into BLOOD! WAR! HEROES!! VIDEOGAMES!!! Maybe not in that order or together.

His favorite plot type is politics, and just remembered that he loves Dune too. So it's not so much the environment or setting as the political intrigue that's going on in the center of it.

hmmm are you dating my exboyfriend....

what about the furst books about spys...

where is greg he reads these kinds of books.

nah, just married him apparently. So I don't know about the Furst books.. I looked them up, but he's a little too "'Murica! Fuck yeah!" to read Soviet/Poland-centric books.

Hold on! "BLOOD! WAR! HEROES!!" = David Gemmell. (And did you see the mention of MHI above? It might suit.)

Ooh, that looks good! Any one series in particular by him? I'm just gonna add Legend to the list for now. MHI was actually surreptitiously added to my own to-read list, but I guess I can let him read it too.

Anyone read Snow Crash? I'm not sure if he would be into it, any thoughts?

Sasha wrote: "Ooh, that looks good! Any one series in particular by him? I'm just gonna add Legend to the list for now. MHI was actually surreptitiously added to my own to-read list, but I guess I can let him re..."

Sharing is good. Sometimes. ;)

Legend's a perfect place to start. In the same ballpark - but with a female main character - is Sheepfarmer's Daughter. I wonder if he'd go for Gardens of the Moon. It's got all sorts of politics and blood and battle and whatnot, but ...

I didn't get a notification for this! Oh well..

Gardens of the Moon sounds promising, it sounds a little like Game of Thrones with the politics and the epicness. But it looks like it's hard to read, so maybe? And I'm pretty sure he would never even open Sheepfarmer's Daughter, unfortunately, because of the cover even. He's just not very adventurous when it comes to female protagonists.

Gardens of the Moon and its series seems to pretty much split readers; people either love it so much they want to marry it, or hate it with a passion. I was actually down the middle on it; I liked some of the writing and some of the characters, but hated the author's approach that every single word, including the chapter headers, was of utmost importance for maximum enjoyment. At the moment I'm not willing to put that much work into a book unless it's for a doctorate... So yeah, hard to read, in a way. :)

maybe national book award winning Going After Cacciato or john sayles (more wars than you can shake a stick at) A Moment in the Sun or war on buffalo? Butcher's Crossing or more private wars The Adjustment

If you want something sort of like Game of Thrones but fairly quick and easy to read I'd recommend Glen Cook'sThe Black Company.

Tuck, Going After Cacciato is a really good choice for him. I like that it has elements of twisted comedy in it, it'll probably go over well. And Greg's recommendation for Black Company will probably be a good book to follow Game of Thrones.

And now I have enough gifts for his birthday, our anniversary, and next Christmas! Thanks everybody :D But if you have any other recommendations, I would love to look them over.

i forgot one, robert stone's national bookaward winner Dog Soldiers

there are also these, which i meant to suggest a while back, but gr isn't working properly at my work, and i can't make links. is frustrating.

Empire State

and

Seven Wonders

superhero-noir!

I like the looks of Seven Wonders, I will definitely check it out!

As an update, I couldn't resist giving him Y:The Last Man. It's just a waiting game now.

I can't believe I haven't added anything to this thread yet, your husband & I have such similar teaste!

Sasha - has he ever read any Peter S Beagle? I realize he is becoming my go to person, but I genuinely think your husband would enjoy the work if he doesn't already because Beagle is a HUGE Tolkien fan and that really reflects in his work without overcoming it.

I would have recommended Gaiman, but that was taken care of already. Also he might enjoy The Prestige as it a certain something that I have loved in all the novels you mentioned he likes.

For Video games: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I think he would really enjoy it !

How about science fiction? Lots of war and politics in space. I really like the Honor Harrington series and it's offshoots, by David Weber. The main character is a woman but there are a lot of good supporting characters, and it has LOTS of complicated politics, especially later in the series.

The troy trilogy by David Gemmell!

Loooove those books! Strong heroes and characters in general, epic, simply epic.

So we had our present exchanges and he came away with Guns of the South, the Barnes and Noble Star Wars trilogy, and Y: The Last Man, Vol. 1: Unmanned. He's so frickin picky!!! He loved Star Wars, which he's reading right now. He made a weird face at Guns, but said he'll read it. And the premise for Y:The Last Man was too far-fetched for him. Boo. At least he's honest so I don't keep buying books he hates.

No fear, I shall keep buying books for him until he breaks. And I shall report!

Yes! Keep reporting! I was going to recommend The Walking Drum, as it is kind of adventure!history!hero!and Cheese! mix/grab bag. Maybe next year.

I am very interesting in getting some updates about your husband. I'm pretty baffled by what he considers too far-fetched. Can he be lured into a book with humor? I feel like he might like some books by Christopher Moore, mostly A Dirty Job and Coyote Blue, but I can't tell if they'd be too far fetched.

If he doesn't regularly buy comic books, I could recommend some of the newer releases he might like. I think I'd recommend Ex Machina, Vol. 1: The First Hundred Days. It has a real world setting and involves politics.

i agree with Christopher Moore. Also agree with invisible monsters. If he likes graphic novels you can try the walking dead.

Jasmine wrote: "Invisible Monsters

i don't think he'd like any palahnuik but I think he'd like that one or survivor."

survivor may not grab his attention, at least not like invisible monsters

I didn't notice if anyone responded to your question about Snowcrash, but after reading your first post, that was the first thing that came to mind, since your husband's reading tastes sound just like my husband's, and he loves Neal Stephenson.

Thanks!! I already have Snowcrash, so I'll just add it to his growing reading pile. He's still on Star Wars, by the way :P

I was thinking of Neal Stephenson, too...

Its old, but Rotunda by Siegrist is a great read!

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/83...