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Xander77 posted:The first two Wolfhound novels. Are any of these translated to English? Can't seem to find any. Wouldn't surprise me if there isn't but it looks neat so I figured I'd ask.
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Feb 27, 2022 14:15
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Zurtilik posted:Are any of these translated to English? Can't seem to find any. Wouldn't surprise me if there isn't but it looks neat so I figured I'd ask.
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Feb 27, 2022 21:49
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Jedit posted:If you liked that, or if you like the sound of it but think it's a heavy read, you might want to look at The Comic Book History of Comics by Fred van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey. It covers much the same ground, but in the form of a comic strip using illustrations in the style of whatever it's currently discussing. Thanks; I'll add it to my 'Books To Read' list! The Invisible Bridge: The Fall of Nixon and the Rise of Reagan by Rick Perlstein - The latest in the 'Nixonland' books that were recommended to me by a goon (I don't remember who it was, but many thanks for the great recommendation!). There's a lot I could say about this book, which is excellent, but here are a few takeaways: 1. Reagan was a bastard. I knew this already, but Perlstein makes me hate Reagan's worthless guts even more than I already did (sorry if this is getting too political for Book Bran). 2. Many of the problems we're facing today -  -obsessed politicians letting the rich and powerful walk, racist populism, flag-waving nationalism, among many others - have definite echoes in 1970s post-Watergate America. A common phrase on SA is "history rhymes" and "time is a flat circle", and reading this has shown me how true that is.3. Nixon, Kissinger (to some extent), Richard Viguerie, Roger Stone, and Jesse Helms (the Mitch McConnell of his day) all have a lot more of a hand in creating the world in which I - and probably many of the others who post here - had to grow up in. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series, Reaganland, which covers 1976-1980. F_Shit_Fitzgerald fucked around with this message at 23:31 on Mar 1, 2022 |
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Mar 1, 2022 23:26
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F_Shit_Fitzgerald posted:Looking forward to reading the next book in the series, Reaganland, which covers 1976-1980. Sounds super interesting. Will check that out. I've finished the first two books of the original Earthsea Trilogy. Really enjoyed them both, Tombs of Atuan was fantastic, and cant wait to read how it wraps up.
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Mar 2, 2022 19:27
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If Reagan were born 50 or 60 years later he'd have a podcast called Reaganland.
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Mar 2, 2022 21:59
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He started off as a sports announcer, so that's pretty plausible, actually. I could see Reagan giving Joe Rogan a run for his money with charming homilies about how people on welfare are all cheating scum.
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Mar 3, 2022 02:16
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I just plowed through The Woman by Jack Ketchum and Header by Edward Lee back to back. I was really into the super over the top hardcore horror stuff about ten years ago and yeah it still rules.
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Mar 5, 2022 06:47
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The End of Policing - Alex Vitale. One of the best books I've read recently, other than the Perlstein ones I've mentioned recently. Vitale tackles five or six of the major issues with policing - the "War on Drugs", school policing, gang suppression, etc - and gives an in-depth analysis on why the police suck so bad at their job. At the end of each chapter is a set of 'good government' reforms that are intended to fix the problems (but often don't make an appreciable difference) and then alternatives to the current militarized police model. I can't recommend this book enough. A lot of it is infuriating, but it's a clarion call for action to defund and abolish the police once and for all.
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Mar 5, 2022 21:10
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 Listened to all of this at work today. I really did not expect it to be as pornographic as it was.
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Mar 6, 2022 02:21
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Shitstorm Trooper posted:
I got excited at first thinking this was a new The Goon comic!
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Mar 7, 2022 01:48
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BaseballPCHiker posted:I got excited at first thinking this was a new The Goon comic! If you like The Goon you'd probably at least be amused by that kinda stuff. Really over the top and absurd.
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Mar 7, 2022 20:40
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Between Two Fires by Christopher Buelman drat. This is probably the best fantasy novel I’ve ever read. It’s also *technically* more of a horror novel than a fantasy novel, and also technically some (very well-researched) historical fiction, but I love how it straddles all those lines and in the end is ultimate its own sort of thing. There’s so much to love about this book, but my favorite thing is how each part begins with some Biblical-style text about the actions of the fallen angels and their ongoing war in heaven, with the refrain that the Lord made no answer. Then the last part just starts with the passage: ”And the Lord Answered which is metal as gently caress and perfectly fit the tone of the story. Also, the last part where the Pope is witnessing a battle between angels and devils, and it’s mentioned that he [spoilers]won’t remember most of what he witnesses because angels and devils are incomprehensible to the human mind, but he’ll always remember the moment that two angels carried a black-winged devil into the river, calmly whispering into it’s ears, and when they emerged there were three angles then…well drat, that’s the ultimate picture of the spiritual battle that’s going on. I also liked that Thomas got his sword blessed and was ready to go on a demon-killing-spree, but ultimately the sword proves mostly useless against the devil’s, and the futility of violence plays a big part in his arc. The slow realization that Delphine is some kind of Gnostic/Cathar Jesus is just amazing, too. Just an amazing book. Perfect use of Judeo/Christian mythology to create a very lived-in fantasy world. Another book I just finished reading was Tender if the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica. This book has got a lot of attention recently, and eh…I thought it earned it and was a good horror novel. On its face it’s blatantly about factory farming and how horrible that is, and lays out a real clear case for that in a “The Jungle” kind of way, but there are also elements to the story about dehumanization and how people who commit crimes against humanity ultimately lose their humanity. Since it was a translated work I thought maybe the intent would be lost in the translation, but no, it’s just a really good horror/dystopian novel even translated in English. Highly recommend
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Mar 8, 2022 06:04
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I just finished the first book in the Dead River series, Off Season. Still loving me some Jack Ketchum.
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Mar 9, 2022 00:35
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F_Shit_Fitzgerald posted:The End of Policing - Alex Vitale. One of the best books I've read recently, other than the Perlstein ones I've mentioned recently. Vitale tackles five or six of the major issues with policing - the "War on Drugs", school policing, gang suppression, etc - and gives an in-depth analysis on why the police suck so bad at their job. At the end of each chapter is a set of 'good government' reforms that are intended to fix the problems (but often don't make an appreciable difference) and then alternatives to the current militarized police model. Thanks! This has been in a pile of mine for a while, thanks to the Verso book club. I'll bump it up on my tbr. A similar rec is Repeal the Second Amendment: The Case for a Safer America by Allan Lichtman. It's pretty much the same formula and gives a pretty decent survey on the history of the legal/social discourse around the 2nd Amendment and how the NRA twisted it all to create the hellworld we live in now. And most of the examples come from the last ~15 years of rising gun violence. It's also a bite-sized read. Goodreads is telling me that it's 328 pages, but it's a small book with large print and I finished it easily in an afternoon.
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Mar 9, 2022 05:02
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Just finished Offspring, so that's the whole Dead River series done.
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Mar 9, 2022 23:06
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Read Ovid's Metamorphoses. It's wonderful. It's brutal and sweet and funny. No wonder it's still read centuries later.
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Mar 16, 2022 00:11
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BaseballPCHiker posted:Sounds super interesting. Will check that out. A word of warning: Reaganland, at least for me, is proving to be a tough read. I'm having to take it in bits and pieces because I get so upset reading about loving Anita Bryant and Phyllis Schafly. Definitely not saying 'Don't read it', but just be aware that this book is where Perlstein really gets into the rise of the so called "New Right" and the culture war grievance stuff that we still deal with today. MathMathCalculation posted:Thanks! This has been in a pile of mine for a while, thanks to the Verso book club. I'll bump it up on my tbr. Cool; thanks! This sounds right up my alley.
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Mar 16, 2022 00:26
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F_Shit_Fitzgerald posted:A word of warning: Reaganland, at least for me, is proving to be a tough read. I'm having to take it in bits and pieces... Just finished the last book of the EarthSea Trilogy. What a fun enjoyable little read. The last book was a bit uneven to me, didnt like it as much as the first two, but I did enjoy the ending and am glad to have read it. Also about 1/2 way done with Studs Turkel - Working, which is great. Quick and easy to read in sections, and its a great look back at labor in the 70s and how it was slowly transforming. Automation and the computer age has changed so much over the 50 intervening years that at times its a wonder that some of these jobs ever existed in large numbers. Also disheartening to read of people dealing with the same bullshit from managers 50 years ago that still happens today.
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Mar 16, 2022 13:04
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Besettelse og åndsutdrivelse i Bibelen, historien og vår egen tid (Possession and Exorcism in the Bible, History, and Our Own Time) by Tormod Engelsviken. I've had the book since the late 1990s I think. I don't know how I acquired it exactly. Anyway it was poo poo. It's the only book by a "theologist" I've ever read and man does the text not hold up to even rudimentary scrutiny. Like he's just contradicting himself every other sentence, and the Bible every other. (I'd hoped it would be an actual look into what the title said.)
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Mar 16, 2022 13:12
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War in European History Updated Edition by Michael Howard. It's a short book where each chapter covers what the author considers a different period of warfare in Europe and the social and technological conditions that led to it. The book raises some interesting ideas, but its brevity means that many of them aren't developed beyond the sentence or paragraph they're brought up in.
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Mar 16, 2022 16:58
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So, some books I’ve read recently that I’ve been meaning to post; 40 More Years: How the Democrats Will Rule the Next Generation by James Carville, this book came out in 2009 and the author is a longtime Democratic strangest. It was interesting reading this book after 4 years of Trump. Carville’s main argument is that repeated Republican incompetence as well as demographic trends in the US will lead to the Democrats becoming the dominant party for the foreseeable future. I found myself half agreeing with this book. While I don’t think Carville is wrong in his assessment, I do think he overstates his case. Furthermore, his argument smacks of the complacency that led to Trump winning in 2016 (although his analysis of why Obama beat Hillary in 2008 primaries also shows why Trump beat her in the 2016 election). I also read Cocaine Blues, Flying too High, and Murder on the Ballarat Train, the first three books in the Phryne Fisher Mysteries by Kerry Greenwood. I’ve been trying to find another detective series to follow since I read most of the Hercule Poirot books and this seems to fit the bill.
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Mar 19, 2022 15:49
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Finished American Psycho on to Necroscope.
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Mar 19, 2022 22:38
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I finished the Sun Also Rises, January's Book of the Month. A group of friends travel to Pamplona for the Fiesta de San Fermin and prove themselves to be The Absolute Worst People. And to think it all could have been avoided if the narrator simply hadn't gotten his junk shot off in World War I.
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Mar 20, 2022 06:05
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Meaty Ore posted:I finished the Sun Also Rises, January's Book of the Month. A group of friends travel to Pamplona for the Fiesta de San Fermin and prove themselves to be The Absolute Worst People. And to think it all could have been avoided if the narrator simply hadn't gotten his junk shot off in World War I. the fishing wasn't the worst though
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Mar 20, 2022 06:30
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Shitstorm Trooper posted:Finished American Psycho Great book. Have you seen the movie?
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Mar 20, 2022 23:28
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Armauk posted:Great book. Have you seen the movie? Yeah, I've seen the sequel too. 
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Mar 21, 2022 00:04
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Shitstorm Trooper posted:Yeah, I've seen the sequel too. One of the best Shatner vehicles, if a bit long.
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Mar 21, 2022 00:22
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The American Psycho movie is one of the rare cases where it is better than the book I think
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Mar 22, 2022 01:03
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bowmore posted:The American Psycho movie is one of the rare cases where it is better than the book I think Also Starship Troopers.
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Mar 22, 2022 03:08
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Just finished “el lugar” by Mario levrero, an Uruguayan “sci-fi” book from the 80’s that hasn’t been translated into English This dude wakes up in an empty room with his last memory being of crossing the street. He is in a line of interconnected empty, cold rooms that allow no backtracking, eventually the rooms get populated with people that speak a weird language and physically look slightly off. Each family lives in their "room" and never leave, their food gets magically replenished every "night", when the lights get turned off. After a while he meets up with other "real humans", who all have equally bizarre stories about how they reached "el lugar"; "The place". One woke up in an abandoned temple in an abandoned city, another got lost in the woods, etc. I say "sci-fi" because at points it gets surreal, and the how and why the situation happened aren't the point. It's more about what do we really know about how we live everyday? Why do we push forwards every day? Our neighbours speak our same language and we never talk to them, why should it matter if we couldn't unjderstand them? It reminded me of Cube, Lost, and any other media where they go "answers? We don't have those, but have a bigger mystery". It's short and good. It does get a bit uncomfortable, the main character is an rear end in a top hat.
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Mar 22, 2022 03:20
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Meaty Ore posted:I finished the Sun Also Rises, January's Book of the Month. A group of friends travel to Pamplona for the Fiesta de San Fermin and prove themselves to be The Absolute Worst People. And to think it all could have been avoided if the narrator simply hadn't gotten his junk shot off in World War I. Bilirubin posted:the fishing wasn't the worst though lol, agreed on both counts. Just american tourists doing their annoying thing, but the fishing interlude was very calming and nice. That englishman was just so drat nice.
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Mar 22, 2022 03:21
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lifg posted:Also Starship Troopers. Woah woah woah woah woah. Starship Troopers is one of my favorite books.
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Mar 22, 2022 05:14
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Shitstorm Trooper posted:Finished American Psycho on to Necroscope. That's going to be a tonal shift, particularly if you move on to the Necroscope sequels.
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Mar 22, 2022 11:20
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I got distracted with Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke after I got about an hour into Necroscope. I dunno how I'm gonna feel about it. I'm used to Lumley's kinda Conan the Barbarian take on Cthulhu Mythos stories and the start of Necroscope was pretty dry. Edit:Finished Things Have Gotten Worse. UwUnabomber fucked around with this message at 02:51 on Mar 23, 2022 |
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Mar 22, 2022 19:12
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Meaty Ore posted:I finished the Sun Also Rises, January's Book of the Month. A group of friends travel to Pamplona for the Fiesta de San Fermin and prove themselves to be The Absolute Worst People. And to think it all could have been avoided if the narrator simply hadn't gotten his junk shot off in World War I. I like to think the title is a dick joke, especially since the narrator lost his junk. The book does a good job of capturing the sense of lost purpose in the interwar period.
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Mar 24, 2022 07:02
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Finally finished Heretics of Dune, Herbert was really horny in this book. It was a compelling read, loved the setting and the characters but I'm definitely gonna need to watch a recap/explanation video because the more philosophical bits went over my head. Maybe sex is bad? 
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Mar 24, 2022 07:05
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Mayman10 posted:Finally finished Heretics of Dune, Herbert was really horny in this book. It was a compelling read, loved the setting and the characters but I'm definitely gonna need to watch a recap/explanation video because the more philosophical bits went over my head. Maybe Herbert was older and old male scifi writers inevitably write more horny by the decade?
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Mar 24, 2022 15:40
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ulmont posted:Maybe Herbert was older and old male scifi writers inevitably write more horny by the decade? This is why God made humans mortal - otherwise male scifi writers would get Too Horny and ruin us all.
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Mar 24, 2022 16:08
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I quit Dune after God Emperor. I might also quit Necroscope because I got distracted again and literally read Fight Club in one sitting putting it off.
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Mar 24, 2022 21:49
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bowmore posted:The American Psycho movie is one of the rare cases where it is better than the book I think Last of the Mohicans
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Mar 25, 2022 07:03
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