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internet inc posted:If I had to read one nonfiction book about space travel, which one would it be? I'd like to know more about the moon landings but it could really be anything else. I liked "Packing for Mars", by Mary Roach. Lots of well-written bits about the logistics of getting humans ready for such a trip.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:11
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BOOKS ARE FOR NERDS *SWIRLIE* I just finished A Slip of the Keyboard and enjoyed it and it bummed me out a lot less than The Chris Farley Show did also everybody should read more bleak Russian sci-fi and then sit in the bath in the dark and wonder about things in a profoundly depressing way. It's very liberating Subjunctive posted:I liked "Packing for Mars", by Mary Roach. Lots of well-written bits about the logistics of getting humans ready for such a trip. Was just gonna recommend this. Enjoyable and a good place to start off
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Apr 24, 2016 03:12
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Dan Abnett is the best and most compelling author there is.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:12
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reminder if you want to check out the best thread in the good ol barn head on down to the child loving and literature thread we will test you book-dick and find you lacking
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Apr 24, 2016 03:12
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Epic High Five posted:also everybody should read more bleak Russian sci-fi and then sit in the bath in the dark and wonder about things in a profoundly depressing way. It's very liberating I am in the mood for depressed bath reading: recommend some bleak Russian sci-if?
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Apr 24, 2016 03:14
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Subjunctive posted:I am in the mood for depressed bath reading: recommend some bleak Russian sci-if? "We Who Are About To..." by Joanna Russ also not Russian but still something that will trouble you on levels you didn't know you had, but I also recommend the short story "The Matter of Seggri" by Ursula K Le Guin Epic High Five fucked around with this message at 03:18 on Apr 24, 2016 |
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Apr 24, 2016 03:16
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Epic High Five posted:"We Who Are About To..." by Joanna Russ ALso not Russian, but soviet-bloc, Stanislaw Lem's stuff is a great bleak read. Maybe try Return from the Stars or The Invincible quote:Lem singled out only one[22] American SF writer for praise, Philip K. Dick—see the 1986 English-language anthology of his critical essays, Microworlds. Dick thought that Stanisław Lem was probably a false name used by a composite committee operating on orders of the Communist party to gain control over public opinion, and wrote a letter to the FBI to that effect. Stanisław Lem was also responsible for Polish translation of Dick's work, and when Dick felt monetarily short-changed by the publisher, he held Lem personally responsible (see Microworlds).[23]
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Apr 24, 2016 03:20
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:ALso not Russian, but soviet-bloc, Stanislaw Lem's stuff is a great bleak read. Maybe try Return from the Stars or The Invincible The Invincible was actually somewhere on my To Read list. I shall bump it up to the next in line, thanks I fuckin love me some Philip K Dick. Halfway through Ubik on 3/15 my buddy called me demanding to know what day it was, and DID I KNOW WHAT DAY IT WAS THIS IS IMPORTANT and I started freaking out It was the most surreal experience I've had since I stopped doing lots of drugs constantly I also recommend goddamned near anything by Ursula K Le Guin game people The Lathe of Heaven is my favorite short book of all time
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Apr 24, 2016 03:23
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I'm looking for some lighthearted fantasy fiction as a pallete cleanser for all of the complex political stuff I've been reading lately. Like, if it could be a literal JRPG in novel form that would be great.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:26
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I highly recommend that Witcher 3 book (More seriously: Is it just me or is this thread showing up in Games subforum and not BB?) LegalPad posted:I'm looking for some lighthearted fantasy fiction as a pallete cleanser for all of the complex political stuff I've been reading lately. I'm just finishing up the Greatcoats series by Sebestian de Castell and it's really really good. It's basically a homage to the swashbuckling adventures of the three musketeers (except called Greatcoats). Good characters, pretty drat funny/witty and just a nice read. It's a little dark at a few points but generally pretty light. Xaris fucked around with this message at 03:32 on Apr 24, 2016 |
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Apr 24, 2016 03:26
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LegalPad posted:I'm looking for some lighthearted fantasy fiction as a pallete cleanser for all of the complex political stuff I've been reading lately. Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart is basically the most lighthearted fantasy novel of all time. Like, after you read it, you feel like the world is a better place, because it's just that nice a book. If you want more comedy-slapstick type fantasy, maybe Another Fine Myth by Robert Asprin. If you want something a little more brainy, but still funny, try Terry Pratchett's stuff.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:28
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^ ^ ^ good instinct ^ ^ ^LegalPad posted:I'm looking for some lighthearted fantasy fiction as a pallete cleanser for all of the complex political stuff I've been reading lately. I recommend picking up one of those old 800 page game guides for Final Fantasy 7 realtalk: Guards, Guards by Terry Pratchett
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Apr 24, 2016 03:29
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Epic High Five posted:"We Who Are About To..." by Joanna Russ Hieronymous Alloy posted:ALso not Russian, but soviet-bloc, Stanislaw Lem's stuff is a great bleak read. Maybe try Return from the Stars or The Invincible OK, I got Return from the Stars; sadly no Russ available via Kindle. Thanks!
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Apr 24, 2016 03:30
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Subjunctive posted:OK, I got Return from the Stars; sadly no Russ available via Kindle. Thanks! Whaaaaaat, buncha jerks Also the Matter of Seggri I mentioned is in a larger book of short stores, The Birthday of the World. Recommended highly.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:33
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welcome to games
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Apr 24, 2016 03:33
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I like to play Kirby, what is a good piece of literature to couple with this?
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Apr 24, 2016 03:36
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No Such Thing posted:I like to play Kirby, what is a good piece of literature to couple with this?  the grimdark adventures of link
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Apr 24, 2016 03:36
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No Such Thing posted:I like to play Kirby, what is a good piece of literature to couple with this? http://www.amazon.com/Kirby-Luvero-ebook/dp/B00VQJ03CY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1461465424&sr=8-1&keywords=kirby+book
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Apr 24, 2016 03:37
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let me tell you about esports.......
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Apr 24, 2016 03:37
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Hey book barn, you might like Epistory, give it a shot friends  Alternatively you might also like Dear Esther 
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Apr 24, 2016 03:39
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Macaluso posted:Hey book barn, you might like Epistory, give it a shot friends Firewatch is a good audio book too
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Apr 24, 2016 03:41
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Thanks Xaris, Hieronymous, and Epic High Five!
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Apr 24, 2016 03:42
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LegalPad posted:I'm looking for some lighthearted fantasy fiction as a pallete cleanser for all of the complex political stuff I've been reading lately. There's a weird genre out of Russia right now called LitRPG where they write about people playing MMOs. No depth whatever. Lots of powers and unique poo poo. They're garbage.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:43
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CaptainScraps posted:There's a weird genre out of Russia right now called LitRPG where they write about people playing MMOs. No depth whatever. Lots of powers and unique poo poo. They're garbage. Haha that sounds terrible.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:48
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CaptainScraps posted:There's a weird genre out of Russia right now called LitRPG where they write about people playing MMOs. No depth whatever. Lots of powers and unique poo poo. They're garbage. :puke: Oh yeah I do recommend nerds check out Guards Guards by Terry Pratchett. It's imho the best intro to the Discworld series and it really showcases the humor and deconstruction of old sci-fi tropes that marks the whole series. I've actually re-read it more times than my old Hitchhiker's Guide at this point
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Apr 24, 2016 03:51
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Oh man. Let's see. Try "AlterWorld" by D. Rus. Such garbage. He gets chosen by a dark god and unlocks power after power and more people in Russia upload themselves into the game so they can be in his clan. Not kidding.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:53
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If you liked the first half of Starship Troopers, I recommend The Forever War by Joe Haldeman (get the version with the marine on the cover with the half goggles) If you like the second half of Starship Troopers, I recommend Atlas Shrugged or some other similar sort of self-insert garbage philosophy dumps
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Apr 24, 2016 03:55
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CaptainScraps posted:Oh man. Let's see. Try "AlterWorld" by D. Rus. Such garbage. I can't stop reading through these synopsis. quote:A world where he could find adventure, companionship, and success all wrapped up in the singular package of The Dragon's Wrath. The game offered him a chance, a chance for salvation... a glimmer of hope. 
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Apr 24, 2016 03:56
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I'd like to recommend one of my favorite short story collections, "Orientation" by Daniel Orozco. Where a lot of short fiction is thematic, Orozco focuses on capturing an experience. His stories look at small moments in people's lives, mundane or significant. It's often darkly funny, but his best work hits that sweet spot of economy of language, ambiguity, and memorable imagery that makes for powerful short fiction. Oh, and it's not genre fiction, if anyone cares.
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Apr 24, 2016 03:56
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Also, poetry! I really like Gabrielle Calvocoressi's "The Last Time I Saw Amelia Earhart"quote:Save Me Joe Louis
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Apr 24, 2016 04:03
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I'm illiterate and only know how to read shitposts and anime subtitles.
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Apr 24, 2016 04:06
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same, and my girlfriend says I don't listen, either
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Apr 24, 2016 04:19
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p sure there's some books written entirely in emoji at this point also if you're an illiterate moron but want to pick up chicks by pretending to be smart, I recommend Finnegan's Wake because you can just make poo poo up if someone asks you and it's probably a true thing that actually happened in the book
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Apr 24, 2016 04:22
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Any advice on weening myself off of my bad habit of reading mostly short-reads and articles as opposed to long-forms and novels? I used to be a voracious reader but I've fallen out of the habit hard. It's mostly been replaced by listening to podcasts and the like.
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Apr 24, 2016 04:23
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citybeatnik posted:Any advice on weening myself off of my bad habit of reading mostly short-reads and articles as opposed to long-forms and novels? I used to be a voracious reader but I've fallen out of the habit hard. It's mostly been replaced by listening to podcasts and the like. Getting an ebook reader helps a lot because it becomes much easier to snatch moments to read when you otherwise couldn't, there are a lot of free books in the public domain, etc. If you're reading short form stuff on your phone because you have your phone right there, keep an ereader in the other pocket.
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Apr 24, 2016 04:25
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citybeatnik posted:Any advice on weening myself off of my bad habit of reading mostly short-reads and articles as opposed to long-forms and novels? I used to be a voracious reader but I've fallen out of the habit hard. It's mostly been replaced by listening to podcasts and the like. What Hieronymous said and also I recommend dredging up a nice long book from the past that you know you enjoy to get you back in the habit of not killing the story off in 1-2 sittings. I'm doing this myself, as I fell into the habit of podcasts while I play video games. I blame audiobooks for this bad habit.
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Apr 24, 2016 04:28
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Getting an ebook reader helps a lot because it becomes much easier to snatch moments to read when you otherwise couldn't, there are a lot of free books in the public domain, etc. If you're reading short form stuff on your phone because you have your phone right there, keep an ereader in the other pocket. Yeah, that's basically how it's going for me. Parsing through my OldReader aggregator for articles during breaks at work. It doesn't help that I'm a Luddite and prefer the feel of a book in my hand, which I'm starting to realize just means I'm using it as an excuse to not pick up and finish my copy of Smoke Gets In Your Eyes or Wolf Hall. Epic High Five posted:What Hieronymous said and also I recommend dredging up a nice long book from the past that you know you enjoy to get you back in the habit of not killing the story off in 1-2 sittings. I'm doing this myself, as I fell into the habit of podcasts while I play video games. I blame audiobooks for this bad habit. I do a LOT of document review, which is why I've been listening to podcasts so much. Which has led to me looking for short, punchy stuff on history, science, or politics which is probably just furthering the issues I'm having with sitting down to read. Could also just be due to me needing to change some stuff up at home. I tear through books when I'm traveling or on vacation but if I'm home it's all internet articles all the time. citybeatnik fucked around with this message at 04:33 on Apr 24, 2016 |
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Apr 24, 2016 04:31
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citybeatnik posted:Any advice on weening myself off of my bad habit of reading mostly short-reads and articles as opposed to long-forms and novels? I used to be a voracious reader but I've fallen out of the habit hard. It's mostly been replaced by listening to podcasts and the like. Try reading some page-turners to get you back into the groove of things. The Martian by Andy Weir and The Great Train Robbery by Micheal Crichton come to mind.
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Apr 24, 2016 04:32
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LegalPad posted:Try reading some page-turners to get you back into the groove of things. "try reading Michael Crichton" - a monster
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Apr 24, 2016 04:34
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citybeatnik posted:
The other good thing about an e-reader is you can change the text size to larger if your eyes get tired. Maybe try some books that are basically long-form science articles. Malcolm Gladwell's stuff, Michael Pollan, Influence by Cialdini, Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely, Moonwalking with Einstein, etc.
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Apr 24, 2016 04:38
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