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[Misc] What Book are you Currently Reading?









Fignon's Ponytail

Well-known member
Jun 29, 2012
4,479
On the Beach
They're all legends, amazing athletes. But do they ever allude to performance enhancing drug taking/blood doping by them or their teams, or do they maintain innocence? It was even more rife in the Hinault era than now.

In the case of Fignon, he vehemently opposed drug use of any sort all the way through his book, but does admit to one incident during a period of injury and low morale in which he was tempted, had a bad experience with it, and then never did it again. Certainly alluded to others doing it though, but no names mentioned. As for Lemond - hes been anti drugs for a long, long time and, as far as I know, never had any question marks against him unlike a lot of others of that era. Hinault I have no idea about tbh...certainly nothing I've read says he took anything, just that he was an absolute animal on the bike through sheer talent and tenacity.
 




RossyG

Well-known member
Dec 20, 2014
2,630
I’m midway through Doctor Sleep by Stephen King having watched and enjoyed the three-hour cut of the film version. So far, I’d say the film did a great job in streamlining the story whilst still keeping the feel of the novel (and acknowledging Kubrick’s The Shining).

And the novel itself is very readable and gripping. Typical Stephen King and that’s a good thing in my view.
 




Cowfold Seagull

Fan of the 17 bus
Apr 22, 2009
22,115
Cowfold
Blloody Southerners, by Spencer Vignes. Basically an account of the late Brian Clough, and Peter Taylor's tenure at the Albion.

I found it a facinating read, with many amusing anecdotes from ex players who played for him at the time. If you haven't read it l would recommend you purchase of borrow a copy, you won't be disappointed.
 


Palacefinder General

Well-known member
Apr 5, 2019
2,594
Minor issue in the grand scheme, but I do get hacked off with review sound bites that are given to one book by a particular author e.g. ‘A Scintillating Thrill Ride’ and then used on the jackets of all subsequent books by that author as though they relate to that book. Similarly, big name authors who lend (sell) jacket sleeve endorsement to other authors, culpable parties Steven King, Lee Child, David Baladacci et al, authors whose books they probably haven’t even read.

As you were.
 


Weststander

Well-known member
Aug 25, 2011
69,339
Withdean area
In the case of Fignon, he vehemently opposed drug use of any sort all the way through his book, but does admit to one incident during a period of injury and low morale in which he was tempted, had a bad experience with it, and then never did it again. Certainly alluded to others doing it though, but no names mentioned. As for Lemond - hes been anti drugs for a long, long time and, as far as I know, never had any question marks against him unlike a lot of others of that era. Hinault I have no idea about tbh...certainly nothing I've read says he took anything, just that he was an absolute animal on the bike through sheer talent and tenacity.

I’m not a cynic that distrusts any of them, in fact I was probably naive. Roche, Kelly and Armstrong were heroes to me. But once LA, Ullrich, Jalabert, Pantani, Virenque, Roche, Riis, etc, etc were all named or admitted to it, it does make one wonder about all the top cyclists through the last 55 years. How could one cyclist overcome other supreme athletes who had the advantage of systemic doping or EPO cheating?

I watched titanic battles up huge mountains in the Pyrenees, Alps and Appenines, where Roche, Armstrong, Riiis and Pantani broke the will of their rivals. Some still live in the memory.

Doesn’t stop me still love the sport though,
 




Beach Hut

Brighton Bhuna Boy
Jul 5, 2003
72,327
Living In a Box
Had sort of resigned myself to having to wait halfway through the year to be able to buy the paperback version of Bill Bryson's 'The Body - A Guide For Occupants' but have just this very morning scored an Airport Exclusive copy at Gatwick. Result! :clap:

Bryson is one of the very few authors I would pay the full price as he is so good.

Hardback of his latest book is £20, out of interest what are they charging for the paperback version ?
 


Tom Hark Preston Park

Will Post For Cash
Jul 6, 2003
72,372
Bryson is one of the very few authors I would pay the full price as he is so good.

Hardback of his latest book is £20, out of interest what are they charging for the paperback version ?

The 'airport exclusive' paperback version is £14.99. Guess the full release paperback version due out (I think) in May will be a few quid cheaper than that
 






Dinner with Gotsmanov

Well-known member
NSC Patron
May 30, 2014
1,593
Worthing
Blloody Southerners, by Spencer Vignes. Basically an account of the late Brian Clough, and Peter Taylor's tenure at the Albion.

I found it a facinating read, with many amusing anecdotes from ex players who played for him at the time. If you haven't read it l would recommend you purchase of borrow a copy, you won't be disappointed.

Just finished this too, cracking piece of work IMHO. Some great debunking of the Clough myth.

Now on The Second Sleep by Robert Harris, a novel about a post-Technology Britain, although that is not immediately apparent when you start reading.
 


Gwylan

Well-known member
Jul 5, 2003
31,836
Uffern
Just finished this too, cracking piece of work IMHO. Some great debunking of the Clough myth.

Now on The Second Sleep by Robert Harris, a novel about a post-Technology Britain, although that is not immediately apparent when you start reading.

It's signposted pretty early on though when the priest starts smoking. But it's an intriguing book. I do think Harris is an excellent writer - his Cicero trilogy were all riveting reads
 


Cheshire Cat

The most curious thing..
BORDERS-A3-Lanscape-4.jpg
 




Petunia

Living the dream
NSC Patron
May 8, 2013
2,312
Downunder
I’m about to re-read this........
EBE0EE60-65AD-46A1-8BF1-504BF9C81E40.jpeg
 


RossyG

Well-known member
Dec 20, 2014
2,630
I’m about to re-read this........
View attachment 120920

Which book are you about to read? The Koonz book mentioned in the caption or the book in the photo, which is a 2008 publication called End of Days written by the “psychic” Sylvia Browne?

The latter was written after several SARS outbreaks, so isn’t that much of a prediction.
 




Petunia

Living the dream
NSC Patron
May 8, 2013
2,312
Downunder
Which book are you about to read? The Koonz book mentioned in the caption or the book in the photo, which is a 2008 publication called End of Days written by the “psychic” Sylvia Browne?

The latter was written after several SARS outbreaks, so isn’t that much of a prediction.

I hadn’t realised that. I read the Dean Koontz book years ago so thought I’d dust it off and read it again.

This is the bit I found in the Dean Koontz book. I guess it’s the Wuhan connection but a very confusing post that I lifted from the Book of Face! Serves me right I suppose:lol:

“ ‘To understand that,’ Dombey said, ‘you have to go back twenty months. It was around then that a Chinese scientist named Li Chen defected to the United States, carrying a diskette record of China’s most important and dangerous new biological weapon in a decade. They call the stuff “Wuhan-400” because it was developed at their RDNA labs outside of the city of Wuhan, and it was the four-hundredth viable strain of man-made microorganisms created at that research center. ‘Wuhan-400 is a perfect weapon. It afflicts only human beings. No other living creature can carry it. And like syphilis, Wuhan-400 can’t survive outside a living human body for longer than a minute, which means it can’t permanently contaminate objects or entire places the way anthrax and other virulent microorganisms can. And when the host expires, the Wuhan-400 within him perishes a short while later, as soon as the temperature of the corpse drops below eighty-six degrees Fahrenheit. Do you see the advantage of all this?’ Tina was too busy with Danny to think about what Carl Dombey had said, but Elliot knew what the scientist meant. ‘If I understand you, the Chinese could use Wuhan-400 to wipe out a city or a country, and then there wouldn’t be any need for them to conduct a tricky and expensive decontamination before they moved in and took over the conquered territory.’”
 






Barry Izbak

U.T.A.
Dec 7, 2005
7,424
Lancing By Sea
Dead at first sight, Peter James
 


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