Also, just listened to some of your new album, congratulations on that. You're really talented. My favorite of the ones I heard was Fresh Start, I hope you're happy with it, you're allowed to be proud of yourself.

Rosewater is absolutely one of my favorites of Vonnegut, it will always have a special place in my heart. And hey, don't beat yourself over things you have no control over, try to be kind to yourself and allow yourself a moment to breath. I'm not good at getting people to kick those kinds of habits but if you ever want to talk I will respond.

To answer your question, I might suggest Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis. It's one of my favorite books of all time, I can't stress enough how much of a good book it is. As well as all things Salinger like Nine Stories.

Please be well.

For a few years now The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho has sat on my bedside table for a comfort read if I need a little helping hand in the morning. The book has been there at 4am and been finished in one sitting as a beautiful morning sunrise greeted me. Always going to hold a special place in my heart.

When I was 14, there was a bit of an issue in Beaconhous Margalla Campus, the school I went to. Specifically, that if it rained, the streets would get flooded and it would be difficult for cars to get there. So of course, one day it flooded.

I went to the IB block to avoid the rain and sat down on a chair, waiting for it to subside. And on the chair next to me was a book. Someone must have left it there for it was half way open. It was called Scorpia, of the Alex Rider series. I waited a bit, picked it up and just started reading straight from it where it had been left off.

I immediately got introduced to Julia, the main villain of the book, a smart femme fatale who I immediately got the hots for. That ignited the way to Young Adult fiction for when I was a teenager and began to read more stuff like that. The tension and subtle action left me very interested.

I finished the book, then opened it back to its halfway point. Being the good boy I was, I left it there the way I found it and went home.

Magic :Р

Honestly, I am still preparing to read this book because it's... so monumental. And I keep looking for my Secret Santa. :-)

That is actually a great story, very interesting in my opinion.

I stumbled across that book also. I have it in front of me now. The cover on my edition has an orb of light in the place of a man's face. I'm not sure if that's the same version you have, but wow, it may not seem like much to you but I'm blown away by your story.

If you feel that you want to pass the book along you can definitely try to leave it in one of those free libraries. That book will definitely make someone's day. I have it out in front of me because I've been meaning to read it again soon.

I found one walking one day. It was an old book on the secrets of metaphysics, missing it's front cover.

Cool book. Written in 1953.

That is so amazing. Hmm... Certainly makes me wonder.

I still haven't read that book but I love all of his work.
Did the book live up to your expectations?

Ohhh.. I get it.. I was trying to understand at first where the book shop was. I thought at first you meant the book shop was in Sweden. But it was in Netherlands. Ah, makes much more sense now. Yes. Used bookstores are amazing. I wish I had the opportunity to visit more shops but I don't travel much. Sounds like it was definitely a good book, even if it wasn't a novel.

It wasnt a novel, but a book with quotes, lyrics and pictures about love, its quite nice and turned out to be a great way to practice some Swedish.

It was just so random finding a Swedish book in a random small second hand shop in the Netherlands, during the time I actually lived in Sweden.

Random finds like that is why I love going to second hand shops.

That's so interesting, what an amazing contrast. I found some information for this book you're referring to. Back then it was reviewed by a writer for the New York Times who wrote, "It is a book that bubbles with laughter and high spirits, that glows with gentleness and affection, that sings with joy in life itself." What incredible luck. I'm surprised you were able to dry it out, was it a paperback or hardback? Sounds like it was something that cheered you up either way.

Oh yes, serendipity is another good word to describe these unlikely discoveries. What great experiences. Even just to find a book titled Good Omens by itself seems awesome, but that it meant something to you personally is even more special.

ah, how was it? I haven't read any Harry Potter yet.

Hmm.. I understand what you're saying.. I think short stories can still be great though. But I have felt that way before too. It happens to me sometimes with movies, in which the movie is so great I don't want it to end.

I just pulled that book off the shelf and started reading that story. It's masterful. Hadn't read it before you mentioned it. It has a range of emotions in it but still manages to make me laugh. Typical Vonnegut. It's interesting when I bought this book of his short stories I didn't think much of it, and wasn't planning to read it anytime soon, but it's a lot better than I expected. Thanks.

Sounds like something from the twilight zone. Very strange, but interesting.

Was it a good book? You mean it was ironic because the title was in English? That seems like such a neat story though.

I've read that book off and on over the years, I remember it does have a foreboding, ominous feeling to it. Did it lead you to learn more about George Orwell eventually?

Hmm.. Yea that's confusing.

I haven't had good luck with short stories. I feel like they always end right when they're getting interesting... the ideas I really want to hear about are glossed over because there's no room to explore them.

My favorite vonnegut short story, Thanasphere, is in that collection! I highly recommend. Not every story is as quirky and memorable, but that one story makes it worth it.

When I was around 18, a mentor of mine was talking about the book The Omnivore’s Dilemma when I was assistant teaching for her in Pennsylvania. Over the next year or so I kept thinking about that book occasionally, but totally forgot the title, so I couldn’t buy it for myself.

Eventually, I was on a trip in Maine and went into a tiny bookstore to see if I could find something interesting to read during my stay. There were no other customers in the bookstore, it was very quiet, and the one employee was just sitting at the register.

I slowly started making my way around the perimeter of the bookstore, carefully looking at all of the titles that were sitting at eye level for me, not touching anything. About 10 minutes into my browsing, a book simply fell from an upper shelf onto my head. To this day I have no idea what could have possibly caused it to fall.

The book was The Omnivore’s Dilemma. I bought it immediately. I love it. I’ve read it several times in the many years since. Thank you, bookstore ghost!

What are your favorite Vonnegut books? I'm sad... to say... I read in high school, but with some depression that hit in early 20s I kind of lost my will to read. I'm turning 30 in a month... I don't really know how the time flew. I want to get back into it. I loved God Bless You Mr. Rosewater and Slaughterhouse Five. My brain just won't put effort into concentrating on reading anymore. I do other things- read music on the cello. But nothing is like getting into a good book. Any suggestions on good starting places to get anchored again? I don't know if Ligotti is welcoming or friendly to someone who hasn't read in a while...

It’s been a while, but I was totally underwhelmed. For an end of life meditation, I found it remarkably unconsidered. To have accomplished everything he did, that guy had to be wound extremely tight, be exceptionally controlled, and had to be excellent at delivering what was expected of him. That’s how the book felt to me: locked down, controlled, and exactly what you would expect from the description. Maybe that’s part of it-guys like him live in a world that self-doubt and reflection just aren’t part of, but it felt to me like we never really got behind the mask.

Anybody know where to find "And the World Remained Silent" by Elie Wiesel.

It's the original version of "Night". It was written in Yiddish and never published. I have not had any luck finding it, even untranslated into English so I wanted to see if anyone else had any luck. It seems like it would be very interesting to read and it would be interesting to see the differences between it and Night.