"The Algebraist", Iain M. Banks. Not quite done it yet, but I can see why it got a Hugo nod.

I picked up Ray Raphael's Founding Myths, about the mythology that's been built up around our Founding Fathers. Really, really interesting stuff, most of which I didn't know. Occasionally it goes a little textbook-y, but I don't mind that so much (in school I was always the geek who read her history textbooks for fun).

I just finished Dan Simmons' Ilium. I never read anything of his before. It was an interesting sci-fi tale where half the book is set in ancient Greece. A good read, some cool ideas I have't read elsewhere before.

Just finished Stardust: The David Bowie Story. Working now on The Day After World War III (for the second time) and the rule books for the Aftermath RPG from Fantasy Games Unlimited (ca. 1985) (for the first time) for a post-apoc campaign I'm building. I'm also still working on McSweeney's collection of modern horror stories and The Secret History of the American Revolution by Carl Van Doren.

I'm reading Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit. It's--uhh, well--it's Hegelian.

I recently read Ilium. Good book, although I found it kind of bewildering at first with how many characters and Greek names (mostly from The Illiad) it threw at me right from the start. I'm glad I persevered with it, as it turned out to be a great story.

Currently I'm reading Eon, and working through the rest of Greg Bear's catalog. Kind of kicking myself for not having read his stuff earlier, as his stories are entertaining and I've read pretty much all of Brin and Benford, the other 2/3 of "The Killer B's."
Bear strikes an interesting balance between the aforementioned two--Brin tends towards a more fantastic style, whereas Benford is hard science fiction all the way.

I have been reading Engame, volumes I & II by Derrick Jensen. Some of the most enjoyable writing I've ever read in non-fiction. The (true) stories he tells are alive and moving, and most importantly they are very well placed and on topic. Furthermore, he is, as far as I have read (and I read quite a bit on this stuff), the most important and lucid writer on environmental issues in our time. His argument for the rejection of pacifism is complete and persuasive. His argument for the rejection of civilization is even moreso. I have consistently been challanged to think and rethink old assumptions. Which has surprised me as I agree with most of his premises right off the bat (he lays out all of his premises right at the start of the books, which I find to be a refreshingly honest and careful approach, even for a philosophy text.) I can't really recommend it enough.

If you haven't read the Hyperion novels, check them out. Good stuff there.

I consider Greg a friend (well, a good acquaintence, anyways), and I have yet to read any of his stuff. He won't tell me which ones he recommends (short of the latest ones to be published), so I never get around to it. We DO share a love of Lovecraft, though. The topic of conversation always seems to turn to old Howard Philips.

If it seems like I'm name dropping, it's because I am! heheheh

As for what I am reading, I am on a Warhammer 40k kick right now. I picked up the Eisenhorn omnibus on the recommendation of someone in the forums. So far, I like it. I also got "Horus Rising" a the same time, so we'll see how it goes.

Nicholson Baker's "The Mezzanine" may actually be the funniest, most insightful book I've ever read. I can't reccomend it enough. It's HIL-ARIOUS, and truly touching. And at just over 100 pages, you can read it in an afternoon. I've read it three times now, and I like it more each time.

Basic plot teaser: The book has no plot, and takes place over a span of under 30 seconds, following the musings and meanderings of one office worker's mind from the time he steps on an escalator to the time he steps off, one floor up.

I'm currently reading American Psycho. I saw the movie when it came out; but I never thought about reading the book until it was on the list of books to read in 101 Things To Do Before You Die.

The first chapter seems like he's just talking about clothes; but it picks up from there.

Needed something soothing a few days ago and something I could crack open in a Restaurant and just read. So I dug through my bookshelf and looked for the rattiest tattiest worn out spine... I passed over a couple of duct-tape reinforced volumes and arrived at: The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul - D. N. Adams (Rest In Peace). I love the nuances of this book. I can open it at just about any page and become immediately engrossed in his dialogue. Dirk Gently is like a human Sam and Max... minus the bunny but Plus a giant Eagle!

IF TPBs count, I recently finished Frank Miller's The Dar Knight returns and am trying to find time to read the Watchmen and Make Love: The Bruce Cambell Way.

Try and find a time to read Watchmen, definitely. It is the graphic novel that shows what the medium is really capable of. It's mature, it has great, deep, believable characters (despite the fact that they are sort of superheroes) and more dimensions than you will notice during the first read. A true classic.