Travel + Unemployment = Reading
The benefit of travelling and not working is plenty of time for reading. Since I left 4 months ago I have earned the right to wear my 'I Love Reading' shirt. Here is the list of books I have read in the order I polished them off. Some reccomendations too.
1. Bangkok Babylon by Jerry Hopkins - a collection of profiles of interesting expatriates living in Bangkok. Mostly old yanks.
2. Off the Rails in Phnom Penh by Amit Gilboa - similar book profiles some insane guys living in Cambodia in the early ninetees. Crazy times filled with drugs, guns and prostitutes.
3. Life of Pi by Yann Martel - an incredible novel that claims boldly 'will make you believe in god'. Very moving, beautifully told. Seriously... no bollocks.
4. Timeline by Michael Crichton - A decent thriller-type book based on an interesting take on time travel, using the theory of parrallel universes and organic processors. Cool ideas but disappointing application involving medievel times. Part way through the book I realised that I have seen the B-grade movie version which runied it for me. Keep visualising Paul Walker... dammit!
5. White Teeth by Zadie Smith - a huge story that follows 2 British families over three generations. Indians are funny. But it's a little too realistic which is well... a bit boring.
6. Are You Experienced? by William Sutcliffe - makes fun of backpacker stereotypes, funny.
7. Sex Slaves by Louise Brown - an academic look at Asian prostitution. This focuses on the girls that are forced into it through poverty. A plethora of horror stories about the inhumane conditions that they are forced to live and work in. Moral of the story: dont go to the cheap ones (kidding... very distastefully)
8. High Society by Ben Elton - Thoroughly entertaining read from the master of trashy yet insightful novels.
9. Dead Famous by Ben Elton - Another winner.
10. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling - im a big fan of the series, they are always entertaining and full of magical goodness. This movie will not be as exciting as the last one. Almost no action for most of the book, but engaging none the less.
11. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by JK Rowling - Just had to have another hit. In this one THE SHIT GOES DOWN!!! I wont give away anything; but this one sets the scene for a thrilling new phase in the series.
12. Toppa Mono by Miyazaki Manabu - An interesting biography on this Japanese underworld figure. Fascinating.
13. The Acid House by Irvine Welsh - A collection of short stories from the author of trainspotting. Gritty urban tales of Scotlands underbelly. Very inventive, crazy and hilarious.
14. A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson - ESSENTIAL!!! Read this and you will feel much smarter. It explains everything from the creation of the universe, human evolution and all our scientific breakthroughs in astrology, chemistry, geology and physics. Sounds dry but is actually highly readable and entertaining. It details many of the colourful characters in scientific history. Anyone who is curious about the world - which I hope is everyone - will love it, puts everything into place.
Phew!! Thats not to mention the audiobooks I have listened to on my ipod; including Bill Clinton reading his autobiography and the first 4 Harry Potter novels read by an excellent english gentleman. All of the books were great and have seen me through the quiet times. They have given me so much and I have given their authors... nothing. They were all illegal pirates costing between $3-$6 USD and the audiobooks were downloaded. Such good value!!!
1. Bangkok Babylon by Jerry Hopkins - a collection of profiles of interesting expatriates living in Bangkok. Mostly old yanks.
2. Off the Rails in Phnom Penh by Amit Gilboa - similar book profiles some insane guys living in Cambodia in the early ninetees. Crazy times filled with drugs, guns and prostitutes.
3. Life of Pi by Yann Martel - an incredible novel that claims boldly 'will make you believe in god'. Very moving, beautifully told. Seriously... no bollocks.
4. Timeline by Michael Crichton - A decent thriller-type book based on an interesting take on time travel, using the theory of parrallel universes and organic processors. Cool ideas but disappointing application involving medievel times. Part way through the book I realised that I have seen the B-grade movie version which runied it for me. Keep visualising Paul Walker... dammit!
5. White Teeth by Zadie Smith - a huge story that follows 2 British families over three generations. Indians are funny. But it's a little too realistic which is well... a bit boring.
6. Are You Experienced? by William Sutcliffe - makes fun of backpacker stereotypes, funny.
7. Sex Slaves by Louise Brown - an academic look at Asian prostitution. This focuses on the girls that are forced into it through poverty. A plethora of horror stories about the inhumane conditions that they are forced to live and work in. Moral of the story: dont go to the cheap ones (kidding... very distastefully)
8. High Society by Ben Elton - Thoroughly entertaining read from the master of trashy yet insightful novels.
9. Dead Famous by Ben Elton - Another winner.
10. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling - im a big fan of the series, they are always entertaining and full of magical goodness. This movie will not be as exciting as the last one. Almost no action for most of the book, but engaging none the less.
11. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by JK Rowling - Just had to have another hit. In this one THE SHIT GOES DOWN!!! I wont give away anything; but this one sets the scene for a thrilling new phase in the series.
12. Toppa Mono by Miyazaki Manabu - An interesting biography on this Japanese underworld figure. Fascinating.
13. The Acid House by Irvine Welsh - A collection of short stories from the author of trainspotting. Gritty urban tales of Scotlands underbelly. Very inventive, crazy and hilarious.
14. A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson - ESSENTIAL!!! Read this and you will feel much smarter. It explains everything from the creation of the universe, human evolution and all our scientific breakthroughs in astrology, chemistry, geology and physics. Sounds dry but is actually highly readable and entertaining. It details many of the colourful characters in scientific history. Anyone who is curious about the world - which I hope is everyone - will love it, puts everything into place.
Phew!! Thats not to mention the audiobooks I have listened to on my ipod; including Bill Clinton reading his autobiography and the first 4 Harry Potter novels read by an excellent english gentleman. All of the books were great and have seen me through the quiet times. They have given me so much and I have given their authors... nothing. They were all illegal pirates costing between $3-$6 USD and the audiobooks were downloaded. Such good value!!!
posted by Dave Tran at 2:31 pm
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home