Needing book recommendations

[Caspian]

So my job leaves me a lot of time to read. I'm nearly done with the authors and book series I'm currently on and looking for some new authors or series to check out.
Already read:
Caught up on Game of Thrones series, I'll get the next one when it comes out in the next decade or so
Nearly done with all of Haruki Murakami's stuff. If you haven't read it and you're into good fiction with some odd twists you need to check it out (start with Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World)
Halfway through with the Harry Dresden series.
Read assorted economics stuff published for the public (freakonomics books and a couple of Thomas Sowell's stuff)
Just looking for some new stuff to read so I'm less likely to kill myself out of sheer boredom at work. Stuff thats on paperback is preferred since I'm traditionally cheap.

Thanks

[cidbahamut]

Re: Needing book recommendations

Dune.

[Feba]

Re: Needing book recommendations

I've heard good things about the so called "Second Murakami"; Murakami Ryu. Can't really say I'm at all familiar with his work, or how much (if any) of it has been released in English. Only Murakami (Haruki) book I've read completely was the English translation of Wild Sheep Chase, although I've read a fair amount of his essays in Japanese.

There's another option; pick up a series you enjoy in a second language. Obviously something like Spanish or French would be much more leisurely than Japanese, plus at the end you come away with a huge amount of language knowledge.

I've been really interested in John Green lately, due to his work on youtube; I'm hoping to pick up copies of his novels while I'm back in the states (under a week!). Lots of award and acclaim there. Other than that, I tend to be more interested in non-fiction and foreign languages, obviously, and a lot of what I try to read about is East Asian economics, politics, history, that sort of thing, so sort of a narrow field of interest. It does seem to me that people generally tend to enjoy finding a few things that they're really interested and digging into them than just wading around for their entire life. It feels good to be good at something. So I mean, my advice is, find some stuff you like, and dig deeper into that, then keep digging in the directions your interests pull you. Like, when I'm not reading about East Asia, I've got a thing for trains.

[Taskmage]

Re: Needing book recommendations

If you enjoyed the Freakonomics books, I'd recommend Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, and The Honest Truth about Dishonesty by Dan Ariely.

[Jarre]

Re: Needing book recommendations

Peter F Hamiltons Reality dysfunction and following 2 books. Huge space opera with tonnes of horror inserted into it and graphic detail.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Needing book recommendations

I always liked The Green Mile. Provided you've not already seen the movie its a very good read and not all that scary as Steven King books go. It sits somewhere between The Shasshank Redemption and The Stand in that its a prison story with some supernatural elements. Its also fairly light reading compared to most of King's massive tomes.