|
Quote is not Edit inside the Universe.
Khurath fucked around with this message at 05:31 on Sep 12, 2009 |
#
?
Sep 12, 2009 05:28
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 15, 2024 00:10 |
|
|
I just finished The Spy With The Golden Torc by Simon Green. I really didn't like it. I almost didn't finish it. I also just finished rereading Princep's Fury by Jim Butcher. I absolutely adore both the series he's written, nearing my favorite contemporary fantasy author.
|
|
#
?
Sep 12, 2009 17:32
|
|
|
Fool The World: An Oral History of a band called Pixies by Josh Frank and Caryn Ganz: It's exactly what it sounds like, a biography of the pixies put together via interviews with members of the band, people who worked with the band, and members of other related groups at the time (such as Throwing Muses). It was very well done, and as a huge Pixies fan I found it fascinating. I definitely think the oral history style made it way more interesting than a standard biography because it was very cool to hear about the band's history from Frank Black, Kim Deal, David Lovering, and Joey Santiago themselves. Lots of cool tidbits about the band in here, and plus you get a chance to really feel the whole Frank/Kim tension as it built up and then led to the band breaking up. It was also interesting to hear how many of the songs from their albums were written way back before Surfer Rosa - some of the songs on the last album date back to prior to their first release. I highly recommend this for any fellow Pixies fan.
|
|
#
?
Sep 12, 2009 20:16
|
|
|
Just finished The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler. Maybe it's because of the classic Bogart film version, but I think of this as more or less the quintessential crime/detective novel. Nominally it's about a complex set of relationships that develops out of a blackmail scheme, and the unwinding of the scheme by the detective who is the main character. But, in addition to a very complex, engaging plot, what makes the book sparkle is the pacing (intense and fast), characterization and dialogue. An enjoyable read.
|
|
#
?
Sep 13, 2009 05:29
|
|
|
I just finished The Phantom of the Opera recently and I really enjoyed it. I've never seen the movies or any plays based on the book and I don't understand the romantic aspect some people associate with the book's phantom. It's told in that kind of Call of Cthulhu style where it's a man investigating the supernatural incidents and telling you how it happened. The last few chapters kept me on the edge of my seat. I'm currently reading The Truth by Terry Pratchett (a part of the Discworld series) and The Importance of Being Earnest, which is much like Twelth Night.
|
|
#
?
Sep 13, 2009 17:58
|
|
|
I just finished The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the Nation, volumes 1 and 2. It was entertaining throughout, and provided an interesting perspective on the Revolutionary War. Although it got a little bit preachy about the whole slavery issue, it didn't bother me very much. Since I tend to be pretty sensitive when it comes to that kind of stuff, I don't foresee many people having a problem with it.
|
|
#
?
Sep 14, 2009 01:02
|
|
|
Finally finished Ovid's Metamorphoses (the Penguin Classic translation). When I was a kid, I absolutely loved reading about the various Greek and Roman myths from children's books I'd get at the library. I've been on an epic poem kick for a while now, having previously read Das Nibelungenlied this summer (and The Epic of Gilgamesh) and laboring through the Divine Comedy. It was the latter that sparked my interest in Ovid, as Dante constantly refers to it. Overall, it's incredibly readable for having been written two millennia ago. It hits most of the big myths, with plenty of more obscure ones along the way, and meanders from story to story. There is a rough connection between each one, though the transitions are pretty forced at times. I also had my childhood fondness for the Greek gods pretty well shattered when it turns out they spent most of their time raping nymphs, who are then turned into trees mostly to escape. My favorite scene was the fight between the Lapiths and the centaurs, but it was all good fun. I'm pretty tired of reading poetry now, so I think I'm going to tackle Infinite Jest next, along with The Satanic Verses.
|
|
#
?
Sep 14, 2009 01:18
|
|
|
John Steinbeck's The Winter of Our Discontent I had no preconception about the plot or theme of this book going in - I just knew I liked Steinbeck, and knew that the title was intriguing. I read this over a period of a few months due to moving and starting a new grad program and all the wonderful adjustments that come with that - but I think the time between sections aided in my level of connection to the story. I grew to really like Ethan, to appreciate his way of thinking. I also got a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach that he was going to do something reprehensible, and ruin his life. The plot slowly unravels in a manner parallel to the development of Ethan's new life-view, and things didn't go the way I initially thought they would. In absolute terms, both what Ethan ends up doing and the consequences for it are much less extreme than what you originally think - but by the time you get there, the subjective morality of his character and the situation makes it seem ten times worse. I did thoroughly enjoy the novel from beginning to end - it's filled with great characters and many hilarious lines - but it left me feeling slightly depressed, and a bit unsure how to process various portions of it. I have a feeling it's going to be working its way around my brain for a while now. One thing I'm sure of, though, is gently caress Allen. I would belt that kid. Neo_Reloaded fucked around with this message at 03:54 on Sep 14, 2009 |
|
#
?
Sep 14, 2009 03:52
|
|
|
Last week read McCarthy's The Road and Hosseini's The Kite Runner. The former was my first McCarthy read, and I didn't find it boring or unnecessarily bleak like some (It is about the end of all civilization, after all). On the contrary, I found it quite suspenseful and immersing. I picked up Blood Meridian and it's next on my list. The latter I blew through in about 4 days. I had been putting off reading it for a long time and found it impossible to put down. His depiction of pre-war Afghanistan, even if through upper-class rose tinted glass, gives the reader a new way to think about the country and what has happened to it. Baba was my favorite character. I feel the plot became cliched during the climax, but I liked the ending anyway. Started The Picture of Dorian Gray today. babies havin rabies fucked around with this message at 06:51 on Sep 14, 2009 |
|
#
?
Sep 14, 2009 06:48
|
|
|
babies havin rabies posted:The latter I blew through in about 4 days. I had been putting off reading it for a long time and found it impossible to put down. His depiction of pre-war Afghanistan, even if through upper-class rose tinted glass, gives the reader a new way to think about the country and what has happened to it. Baba was my favorite character. I feel the plot became cliched during the climax, but I liked the ending anyway. If you found that appealing, you might also like The Places in Between by Rory Stewart, if you haven't already given it a go. It's a superb memoir of one man's walk (literally) across Afghanistan.
|
|
#
?
Sep 14, 2009 07:09
|
|
|
I just finished The Eagle by Jack Whyte, which was the last in the A Dream of Eagles series (Camulod Chronicles for you Americans). Today I picked up Order In Chaos, also by Jack Whyte, which is the last book in his Templar Knights trilogy. I also got it signed and listened to him speak for about an hour about his work which was really great. He also spoke about his upcoming trilogy, which will be about about William Wallace, James Douglas, and Robert the Bruce, and it sounds like they're going to be great. When I got my book signed I was actually starstruck for the first time in my life and didn't say much 
|
|
#
?
Sep 15, 2009 05:02
|
|
|
I just finished Freuds' On Dreams. It's a very interesting look at the meaning of our dreams. It's very short, and pretty easy to read. By reading it, you basically get a step-by-step guide of how to interpret your dreams.
|
|
|
#
?
Sep 16, 2009 02:29
|
|
|
Finished The Master and Margarita today. What an incredibly fun book to read, and the layers of depth kept going and going. It will definitely require another read to fully understand.
|
|
#
?
Sep 16, 2009 05:05
|
|
|
Black Juice by Margo Lanagan - This is ostensibly a short story collection for young adults, but a rather dark one at that (the opening story Singing My Sister Down in particular). Pretty good collection all in all - some stories didn't really grab me but they're well-written and tackle some interesting themes. The Virtues of War by Steven Pressfield - A fictionalized retelling of Alexander the Great's major battles in Europe and Asia. Pressfield's fantastic with depicting battle scenes and rousing speeches about glory and honor. However, the narrative seems really choppy and it's hard to get a clear picture of the timeline it follows since it jumps back and forth constantly between the present and various past events. Good read nonetheless, if not quite as well put-together as his earlier Gates of Fire. Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier - Never saw the movie and just happened to pick this up on a whim while browsing the shelves at the library. Really liked it - it tells the story of a wounded Confederate soldier trying to return home near the end of the Civil War, while his sweetheart tries to keep a rundown farm going. Reminded me a bit of McCarthy with the numerous passages describing landscapes and the dialogue sans quotation marks, as well as the sense of people trying to come to grips with the changing world they live in. Well into Pynchon's Against the Day now.
|
|
#
?
Sep 16, 2009 05:53
|
|
|
I just finished The Unfinished Clue by Georgette Heyer. This is my first proper Brit mystery about a bunch of rich people gathered in a house and one of them ends up dead etc. It was a fun read, very silly and very enjoyable, but I can't say I'd be inclined to read many more books like it.
|
|
#
?
Sep 17, 2009 01:06
|
|
|
Siddharttha which was excellent. It had a lot of pretty fundamental differences with western religion which I never would have thought about otherwise. A Thousand Splendid Suns was awful. If this wasn't required reading I never would have finished it. It was poorly written, had an amazingly repetitive plot, homogeneous settings, forgettable characters, and thanks to the colossally lovely final chapter had very little of a social message (I get the impression that husseini was trying to model the book on a folktale/myth, yielding archetypal characters, but he just didn't pull it off). It's also pathetic that my school's all school required book is contemporary, forgettable, and devoid of literary value. I would have much rather been required to read some classic.
|
|
#
?
Sep 17, 2009 01:51
|
|
|
Without Pants posted:Finished The Master and Margarita today. What an incredibly fun book to read, and the layers of depth kept going and going. It will definitely require another read to fully understand.
|
|
#
?
Sep 17, 2009 13:27
|
|
|
I just finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy. This book affected me more than I had ever imagined. It was so easy to become absorbed into the story and feel for the the Man and his son. As someone who does not have any kids I was amazed at how easily I began feeling a parental desire to protect the kid and empathize with the father, wondering what I would do in similar circumstances. And I just wrapped up Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher. I am working my way through the Dresden Files series and loving every minute of it. It is my secret sin. 
|
|
#
?
Sep 17, 2009 14:29
|
|
|
grumpy posted:And I just wrapped up Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher. I am working my way through the Dresden Files series and loving every minute of it. It is my secret sin. Just finished Turn Coat and stuck waiting until April 2010 
|
|
#
?
Sep 17, 2009 16:36
|
|
|
Just finished Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, it's the 2nd of a YA ?trilogy? about a girl in the far future that must compete in a Battle Royale type game, the first book Hunger Games is better. Easy read definately, but entertaining sci-fi world.
|
|
#
?
Sep 18, 2009 22:45
|
|
|
grumpy posted:I just finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy. This book affected me more than I had ever imagined. It was so easy to become absorbed into the story and feel for the the Man and his son. As someone who does not have any kids I was amazed at how easily I began feeling a parental desire to protect the kid and empathize with the father, wondering what I would do in similar circumstances. I also just finished The Road, and I kind of want to crawl up into a fetal position and sob for a while.
|
|
#
?
Sep 18, 2009 23:32
|
|
|
Just finished The Golden City by John Twelve Hawks which is the third book in the "Fourth Realm" series consisting of The Traveler and The Dark River. Pretty good conclusion to the series but its kind of obvious at one point that he regrets some of the more "futuristic" stuff he put in the first book since pretty early in the novel he mentions that the genetic engineering part of the Brethren is completely out of commission.
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2009 02:45
|
|
|
Zombie Lincoln posted:I also just finished The Road, and I kind of want to crawl up into a fetal position and sob for a while. Anyway, I just read Inherent Vice by Thomas Pynchon. This book wafts like smoke through the spliff-a-minute adventures of a hippy PI in 70's California, which involve surfer culture, floating conspiracies, shadowy organizations, and paranoia-fueled serendipity. Not as brilliant and demented as Gravity's Rainbow, but probably good enough for most Pynchon fans. Wrojin fucked around with this message at 03:48 on Sep 19, 2009 |
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2009 03:42
|
|
|
Even though I'm reading for school now, I might as well note this book: Mass Hate by Dr. Neil Kressel. He attempts to study psychological theory in order to ascertain potential reasons behind how a population can be turned from a general law-abiding citizenry and in the span of a few months or years, be turned into mass-murdering, raping, killers, using 1994 Rwanda, 1992-5 Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Holocaust, and Islamic fundamentalists, specifically, the 1993 WTC bombing. I could have skipped the first five chapters of the book, read the last three and walked away just as unsatisfied. Actually, it's not that bad, I just had a real bad premonition fro the preface, but by chapter 5, he does begin using various sociological and psychological theories and attempts to see how those various events intermix. I kind of hope this is just a primer and there are other works that attempt to delve into the same topics more deeply.
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2009 08:58
|
|
|
Just finished The Magicians by Zev Grossman. It starts out feeling like a modern take on Harry Potter and finishes as something of a screed against Narnia (and, by proxy, Christianity), but it's really about how your life is always going to suck if you just wait around for something to happen to you that'll make it better. It was really hard for me to put the book down, and I finished it in probably 5 or 6 hours, but I'm not entirely sure I enjoyed it. It's definitely making me think about the general malaise I seem to find myself in from time to time, but I don't really know how I feel about it as a work of fiction.
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2009 15:57
|
|
|
Finished Infinite Jest yesterday. Now onto something far fluffier. (USER WAS PUT ON PROBATION FOR THIS POST)
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2009 16:24
|
|
|
Just finished The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and found it to be a very enjoyable experience. The Radioman section of the book was more emotional than I expected. Just started Clive Barker's Abarat
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2009 18:12
|
|
|
I just read The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon. It was enjoyable and went back and forth between being really funny, very confusing, and somewhat sad. Some parts of the book didn't make much sense to me (I still don't understand how the Paranoids fit into the plot at all), and it kinda felt like this was a 400 page book crammed down into 150 pages by way of a dense and somewhat stream-of-consciousness writing style, but it works pretty well in combination with the themes of the book. I'll probably reread this at some point. I'm gonna tackle Gravity's Rainbow next, and I'm definitely glad that I read this much smaller book before trying to tackle 750 pages of Pynchon in one go. Oh, and after reading this and Infinite Jest recently, it sure seems like postmodern books enjoy ending one or two chapters earlier than you expect them to. I also continued my binge of band biographies: Nirvana: A Day by Day Eyewitness Chronicle, by Carrie Borzillo, which was written in a pretty interesting style of "January 1st, 1991: [stuff]. January 4th, 1991: [stuff]. etc" and was clearly very well researched and overall really interesting. Modest Mouse: A Pretty Good Read by Alan Goldsher, on the other hand, didn't really have much information that I didn't already know. The author could use a couple of good writing classes, because there were a few things about his prose that felt very amateur, but I did enjoy his eccentric and conversational style. I wouldn't recommend it that much, but if you like Modest Mouse it's not a bad read.
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2009 20:02
|
|
|
Off Season by Jack Ketchum the uncensored and uncut version. Pretty entertaining and sleazy read. I liked it, and was pleasently disgusted and amused. It reminded me of a drunk and coked up Stephen King. The Turnaround by George Pelecanos. I got a little burned out on Pelecanos after the last few books I read of him. I got stuck in one of the Derek Strange and Terry Quinn books and i got the impression that the characters in Pelecanos books were generally a little too black/white (no pun intended) for my taste and they mostly end with a big heroic shootout. I kind of expected a shootout at the end of The Turnaround but was pleasently surprised with it. The "who shoot that white guy?" part was pretty obvious, plus some other parts that got a little too well resolved, but all in all I really enjoyed it. Replay by Ken Grimwood. Read this based on some Book Barn recomendations and I liked it. Great idea and I couldn't put it down. Though The story got i tad bit stale and repetative in of the last replays(though what would you really expect?) and some of the directions the story took were a little uninteresting. The Chris Farley Show by Tom Farley & Tanner Colby.The Chris Farley biography. Read this a while ago but I have to mention it. I like Chris Farley and Tommy Boy + Tommy Boy 2 (Black Sheep) and I do think that he was a talented and genuinly funny actor, but I can't say that i'm a fanboy or anything. Great and haunting biography of the fat funny guy. Well written and does not put sugar on anything despite being co-written by a brother. This somehow stuck with me for while. Really tragic and a great description of addiction. something_clever fucked around with this message at 04:21 on Sep 20, 2009 |
|
#
?
Sep 20, 2009 03:02
|
|
|
something_clever posted:The Turnaround by George Pelecanos. I got a little burned out on Pelecanos after the last few books I read of him. I got stuck in one of the Derek Strange and Terry Quinn books and i got the impression that the characters in Pelecanos books were generally a little too black/white (no pun intended) for my taste and they mostly end with a big heroic shootout. Yeah, I noticed that too after reading several of his books (The Night Gardener and the "DC Quartet" books). He's a decent writer but that got pretty old. If he gets out of that rut with his later books, I'd want to read more of his stuff.
|
|
#
?
Sep 20, 2009 06:13
|
|
|
Just got done with Indignation by Philip Roth. Really entertaining and quick read. It's a coming of age type story set in the 1950s. It has a really big 'twist' The narrator is dying and remembers his first time living away from home but it is revealed relatively early on and you don't feel like it's a cheap trick. It was also nice not learning more about how depressing live is when you get old, which seems to be what Roth's recent novels were about (and which seems to be a recent theme in Paul Auster's work, too).
|
|
#
?
Sep 20, 2009 22:02
|
|
|
I just finished Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. I went into it completely cold and enjoyed it a fair amount. Mitchell uses interwoven narrative threads that reinforce each other. It isn't subtle, but it's effective. Reminded me of 12 Monkeys a bit.
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 03:20
|
|
|
I just finished The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. I don't ever remember seeing anything said about him in TBB, but I could be wrong. But it's easily some of the best fantasy I've read in a long while. Just started reading his next one Best Served Cold and it's just as good so far.
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 05:29
|
|
|
The Road Lovely stuff, was getting tearful at the end, love McCarthy.
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 13:51
|
|
|
Zubumafoo posted:I just finished The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. I don't ever remember seeing anything said about him in TBB, but I could be wrong. But it's easily some of the best fantasy I've read in a long while. Just started reading his next one Best Served Cold and it's just as good so far. There's a few of us that are pretty into him, and yeah, he's way, way better than anything else in recent memory. He quickly made me forget about all the fat dickheads who can't finish a loving story.
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 16:29
|
|
|
Ballsworthy posted:There's a few of us that are pretty into him, and yeah, he's way, way better than anything else in recent memory. He quickly made me forget about all the fat dickheads who can't finish a loving story. Way, way better than anything else in recent memory? Assuming you're talking about fantasy...come on now. How can you say that when recent memory includes the Mistborn Trilogy by Sanderson, The Night Angel Trilogy by Weeks, the Gentleman Bastard Sequence by Lynch, Malazan Book of the Fallen by Erikson, The Prince of Nothing by Bakker or Kingkiller by Rothfuss? Personally I think at least some of those are on par with The First Law Trilogy. EDIT: Ah how about a little content too: Finished the entirety of the Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson lately. I enjoyed it quite a lot. It starts off seeming shallow and gets deeper the further you progress in the novel. I thought it seemed to drag a bit in the middle of the third trilogy, but I certainly have no complaints after the ending, fantastic wrap up. The magic system is suprisingly innovative, basically there are certain people who can swallow metals and 'burn' them in order to gain abilities. Mistborn are those who can burn all metals while mistings can only burn one type. The ability depends upon the metal, Tin enhances the senses, Copper obscures people from detecting magic while Bronze detects it, Pewter enhances speed, strength and balance. Iron allows you to pull metal towards yourself and Steel to push them. I think the metal Atium refers to Platinum, and it allows you to see a few seconds into the future. Gold lets you see your alternative future selves. There are more metals but they are vital for the plot of the novel. The premise of the novel is basically a dissparate collection of mistings and a couple of Mistborn get together to overthrow a thousand year old dystopian empire, which arose because the Prophecised 'Hero of the Ages' failed his quest to save the world. Not all is as it seems though. Xachariah fucked around with this message at 18:21 on Sep 21, 2009 |
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 18:09
|
|
|
Xachariah posted:Way, way better than anything else in recent memory? Assuming you're talking about fantasy...come on now. How can you say that when recent memory includes the Mistborn Trilogy by Sanderson, The Night Angel Trilogy by Weeks, the Gentleman Bastard Sequence by Lynch, Malazan Book of the Fallen by Erikson, The Prince of Nothing by Bakker or Kingkiller by Rothfuss? Haven't read Sanderson, Weeks or Bakker, I guess I should? I liked Lynch's first one quite a bit, but still not near as much as Abercrombie. Rothfuss is one of the fat dickheads I mentioned before (yeah, I know, I made that thread about him, but Abercrombie really did make me forget all about him). As far as Malazan goes, I read the first half of the first one, said "this poo poo sucks" and put it down. Later I was told that yeah, that one does suck and you should start with number two, which I plan on doing one of these days but haven't gotten to it yet. Anyway, I guess I'm just a sucker for strong characterization, which Abercrombie delivers by the dumptruck-load. Say one thing for Logen Ninefingers. Say he is one complex barbarian. Edit: and yeah, I did mean fantasy, shoulda specified. Ballsworthy fucked around with this message at 20:35 on Sep 21, 2009 |
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 20:26
|
|
|
Ballsworthy posted:Haven't read Sanderson, Weeks or Bakker, I guess I should? I liked Lynch's first one quite a bit, but still not near as much as Abercrombie. Rothfuss is one of the fat dickheads I mentioned before (yeah, I know, I made that thread about him, but Abercrombie really did make me forget all about him). As far as Malazan goes, I read the first half of the first one, said "this poo poo sucks" and put it down. Later I was told that yeah, that one does suck and you should start with number two, which I plan on doing one of these days but haven't gotten to it yet. Aye I hear you on the first book of Malazan being a bit hard to get into, I definately advise sticking it out till the end of the second book, Gardens of the Moon becomes a hell of a lot better on a re-read when you actually understand things, acts way better asa prologue than a beginning. If you still don't like it after Deadhouse Gates then fair enough, can't ask for more. I do agree that Abercombie has great characterisation, I love how his protagonists are all deeply flawed. Though the gritty realism was a bit depressing at times. Still there has been a shitload of high quality fantasy books coming out recently that give the cream of the crop a very good run for their money. Should be plenty of good reading material for a while yet. EDIT: As a bonus, some of the aforementioned authors have shocking work ethics. Steven Erikson has cranked out a high quality 1000 page book every single year since he started writing Malazan. Brandon Sanderson is similarly prolific, going as far as you give a constantly updated estimated time to completion on all his current writing projects on his website. Abercombie released each part of the First Law Trilogy on consecutive years, and Brent Weeks released all three books in his trilogy at the same time. Honestly Rothfuss and Martin can learn a thing or two from these guys about buckling down and writing till your fingers bleed. Xachariah fucked around with this message at 21:02 on Sep 21, 2009 |
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 20:45
|
|
|
I am also a sucker for gritty realism and generally think that depressing = effective. I do agree that the state of fantasy fiction is pretty good these days, better than when I was a kid at least.
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 21:03
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 15, 2024 00:10 |
|
|
I should say, I've read all the Malazan books, both of the Lynch's books so far. Same with GRRM and Rothfuss. I haven't read the other authors you mentioned though. I did enjoy The First Law more than Lynch's and Erikson's stuff. That's not to say I didn't like those books, because I am a big fan of both of them. I just liked Abercrombie's stuff better. I think I might check out some of the other author's mentioned after I finish Best Served Cold (Which I highly recommend if you haven't read it yet)
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2009 23:13
|
|