[Ceebs]

Sounds like a save it until I have nothing else to read day.

My problem with huge casts is not remembering characters, it's that those novels always cut away from a character I am really enjoying to one I don't really care about. I spend all my time slogging through to get back to the one I want to read about.

Those First Law books were like that. I loved them when the focus was on Ninefingers, and they felt like a slog when they shifted to the inquisitor.

[Cyan]

Sounds like a save it until I have nothing else to read day. My problem with huge casts is not remembering characters, it's that those novels always cut away from a character I am really enjoying to one I don't really care about. I spend all my time slogging through to get back to the one I want to read about.

Way of Kings is most definitely like that. I enjoyed the book, but there was too much stuff packed in that I wasn't all that excited about. "Woo, yeah! Bridge battles!" was often followed by "oh... we're back to whatshername talking to people" or "oh... another flashback chapter."

I'll still pick up the next one as soon as it comes out, of course. ;)

[Ceebs]

Way of Kings is most definitely like that. I enjoyed the book, but there was too much stuff packed in that I wasn't all that excited about. "Woo, yeah! Bridge battles!" was often followed by "oh... we're back to whatshername talking to people" or "oh... another flashback chapter." I'll still pick up the next one as soon as it comes out, of course. ;)

slut

[Maklershed]

Since we're nearing the end of the month - any interest in getting a book club book going for June?

How is The Mistborn Trilogy? Never read any books by that author.

Only read the first Mistborn book so far but it was great. I loved it. Definitely recommend it.

[Cyan]

Since we're nearing the end of the month - any interest in getting a book club book going for June?

The reaction to Infinite Summer was lukewarm. Any suggestions?

[nakedsushi]

Started reading this b/c the hardcover was sitting on my desk at work for the longest time, but stopped reading it. Bad, bad, bad writing. I guess if you liked Ready Player One and Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and don't care about writing, plot, or character development, you'd like this.


Strange Flesh by Michael Olson

It just seems like a very gratuitous book and very juvenile male. Lots of sexual deviancy, objectification of women, lame acronyms for technology (imagine if all of technology was named by 11 year old boys), not a very original plot, and a kind of lame and boring virtual world. Am I selling it to you yet?

[Ashes1396]

Girl with a dragon tattoo could only ever be a bad translation. Though I suppose bad writing isn't all about grammar, etc.

[Cyan]

Girl with a dragon tattoo could only ever be a bad translation. Though I suppose bad writing isn't all about grammar, etc.

Yeah, the translation ain't the problem with that one. It's poorly constructed and has an extraneous main character.

[Ashes1396]

Finished that.. Now onto: Fahrenheit 451 is a 1953 dystopian novel by Ray Bradbury.

Finished that. Now onto

Brave New World is a novel written in 1931 by Aldous Huxley and published in 1932. Set in London of AD 2540 (632 A.F. in the book), the novel anticipates developments in reproductive technology and sleep-learning that combine to change society. The future society is an embodiment of the ideals that form the basis of futurology.

[Salvor.Hardin]

Finished that. Now onto

Enjoy it. Easily the best popular dystopian novel out there. It's quite perplexing to me that 1984 gets all the love.

[Ashes1396]

Yeah, the translation ain't the problem with that one. It's poorly constructed and has an extraneous main character.

Fair enough. I like crappy badly written books with a decent story I suppose. ;)

[Cyan]

Enjoy it. Easily the best popular dystopian novel out there. It's quite perplexing to me that 1984 gets all the love.

What, you don't love Big Brother?

1984 has the big, obvious dystopia of a totalitarian dictatorship running your life and demanding obedience. Brave New World has the subtler, more pernicious dystopia where you do what you want and it still works out to obedience.

The big, obvious one is more popular--not that surprising.

[Ashes1396]

Enjoy it. Easily the best popular dystopian novel out there. It's quite perplexing to me that 1984 gets all the love.

It's been sitting on my shelf forever. And now I'm reading it on iPad. Strangely fitting.

It's part of my fifty to read this year list. I'm glad I got round to it.

@cyan: getting round to 1984 sometime this year. Yes, I'm cheating, but who cares really. ;p

Fiction aside, Orwell is the better writer in my opinion.

[br0ken_shad0w]

Now that I'm done with The Way of Kings, I'm going to take a break from Brandon Sanderson even though I want to read the Mistborn trilogy eventually.

What I want to read next:

Dune's been on the back of my mind since high school. However I read the first few pages and all the weird names are off-putting. Though it didn't help I tried to read it at 4 in the morning near the tail-end of my night shift. Does it get better as I read more of the book?

[Yenrot]

Brave New World

Possibly my favourite book ever.

[nakedsushi]

Girl with a dragon tattoo could only ever be a bad translation. Though I suppose bad writing isn't all about grammar, etc.

Oh yeah, I don't mean that Girl is high literature or anything, but at least it was entertaining to read. This was like Girl with the Dragon Tattoo with an even more lame narrator, and not that entertaining to read.

[Woorloog]

Reading this right now:

Chronicles of The Black Company by Glen Cook

Not sure i really like it... The writing is what TV Tropes calls Beige Prose, very minimalistic and, well, dry.
I love that it tells about mercenaries but the rest... So far i haven't found the characters, the setting, or whatever passes for plot in it to be very interesting.
Ah, well, i'll read some more and post impressions later on.

Is there any good scifi or fantasy about mercenaries, other than this?

[8BitsAtATime]

I read Blockade Billy..it was pretty good. I loved the short story at the end of the book, Morality. I gave it a second read right after I finished it. Right now Im giving Carrie a read.

[Pepboy]

I need more. now.

I just finished Mistborn Trilogy, and while I enjoyed the characters, world/setting, and overarching plot, I was not a huge fan of the writing style. In particular the dialogue and the repetitive nature of the internal monologues. Therefore, I am worried that the Way of Kings will have similar issues without the awesome setting. Could someone give a 2 sentence spoiler-free description of the world?

On a related note, is Alloy of Law worth reading immediately, or should I wait for paperback/lower Kindle price?

[Salvor.Hardin]

Just started these two





Should be a nice few days of reading as both seem to be written extremely well.

[Ceebs]

My novel reading list of shame is growing by leaps and bounds this year. Just read through the first 4 books of The Mortal Instruments series. It's pretty fucking awful, but I could not stop reading.

Starting up Cloud Atlas to was the shame away.

[Witchfinder General]

Panic - David Marr

Cronulla.  Henson.  Hanson.  Wik.  Haneef.  The boats . . . Panic shows all of David Marr's characteristic insight, quick wit and brilliant prose as he cuts through the froth and fury that have kept Australia simmering over the last fifteen years. 'Turning fear into panic is a great political art: knowing how to stack the bonfire, where to find the kindling, when to slosh on a bucket of kero to set the whole thing off with a satisfying roar . . . These are dispatches from the republic of panic, stories of fear and fear-mongering under three prime ministers.  Some chart panic on the rise and others pick through the wreckage left behind, but all grew out of my wish to honour the victims of these ugly episodes: the people damaged and a damaged country.' – DAVID MARR

The content of the book is hardly surprising to anyone with a passing interest in media and politics (or is a regular Media Watch viewer) but Marr so beautifully elucidates the issues with liquid, hypnotic prose that it gives much urgency and poignancy to the current state of shock 'n' awe in Australia.

[twisteddeeds]

Currently rereading through the malazan series and novellas.. read the first 7 then stopped due to moving house.. also reading them one after the other... roughly 5000 pages and ongoing now lol

just finished


now onto

[Maklershed]

Finished Great Expectations and staying on a classic literature kick with The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson / Those Extraordinary Twins


Pudd'nhead Wilson/Those Extraordinary Twins by Mark Twain

[CracknutWhirrun]

I just finished Mistborn Trilogy, and while I enjoyed the characters, world/setting, and overarching plot, I was not a huge fan of the writing style. In particular the dialogue and the repetitive nature of the internal monologues. Therefore, I am worried that the Way of Kings will have similar issues without the awesome setting. Could someone give a 2 sentence spoiler-free description of the world? On a related note, is Alloy of Law worth reading immediately, or should I wait for paperback/lower Kindle price?

You should just wait. It was an entertaining book but nothing so great that you have to read it immediately

[Ashes1396]

Oh yeah, I don't mean that Girl is high literature or anything, but at least it was entertaining to read. This was like Girl with the Dragon Tattoo with an even more lame narrator, and not that entertaining to read.

Yeah, fair enough. ;)

[Cyan]

I just finished Mistborn Trilogy, and while I enjoyed the characters, world/setting, and overarching plot, I was not a huge fan of the writing style. In particular the dialogue and the repetitive nature of the internal monologues. Therefore, I am worried that the Way of Kings will have similar issues without the awesome setting. Could someone give a 2 sentence spoiler-free description of the world?

Sanderson's style doesn't change, no. But the setting is pretty sweet--a world wracked by constant storms and endless war, featuring dudes with badass magic swords called shardblades. Try reading the first bit, with an assassin chasing down a king, and see what you think.

[nakedsushi]

I just finished Mistborn Trilogy, and while I enjoyed the characters, world/setting, and overarching plot, I was not a huge fan of the writing style. In particular the dialogue and the repetitive nature of the internal monologues. Therefore, I am worried that the Way of Kings will have similar issues without the awesome setting. Could someone give a 2 sentence spoiler-free description of the world? On a related note, is Alloy of Law worth reading immediately, or should I wait for paperback/lower Kindle price?

I felt the same way after the trilogy, especially about the third book. It was so long and repetitive that I wanted it to end halfway through. I'm putting off reading Alloy of Law till I forget the pain of slogging through the third book.

[Shiv47]

Finished:



Started:



The Power of Habit was very interesting, as I have habits of my own I'd like to change, and the book lays out pretty well how scientists have determined that habits work, and how we can try to go about changing them. Engines of Change I picked up on a whim at Costco, and it's very readable and interesting, coming from someone who's never been overly interested in cars.

[Dresden]

Man, I had no idea this was out. Picked it up immediately. Can't wait.



That said I wish it had the crazy-cool and elegant setting of his Long Price quartet.

[aidan]

Man, I had no idea this was out. Picked it up immediately. Can't wait. That said I wish it had the crazy-cool and elegant setting of his Long Price quartet.

Sooooo goooooood. Plus, there's a nice little surprise in the review quotes section at the beginning of the novel.

[thomaser]

Just started Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Doesn't seem like my kind of book judging by the blurb on the back (just a love story?), but I have read his One Hundred Years of Solitude, and that was so good that I trust him to write something much more interesting than just another love story. 20 pages in, and it's already seems as if I'm in for a treat. I'm in the middle of exams, though, so I won't get to really delve into it for another week or two.

[dr3upmushroom]

Finished Great Expectations and staying on a classic literature kick with The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson / Those Extraordinary Twins Pudd'nhead Wilson/Those Extraordinary Twins by Mark Twain

I'm really liking Connecticut Yankee in Arthur's Court, I'm planning on reading Pudd'nhead Wilson next.

[awm8604]

Finally reading the Song of Fire and Ice books after having been enthralled by Game of Thrones on HBO since last Summer. I love the writing style so far.

[Dresden]

Sooooo goooooood. Plus, there's a nice little surprise in the review quotes section at the beginning of the novel.

Aw yeah. Dropping everything to dive into this once it arrives.

[sparky2112]

Lots of Abraham love on this page, and with that, I'm currently nearing the middle of The Dragon's Path. I'm liking it okay (I certainly can't fault Abraham for his style, pacing, etc.), but I dunno...I think my fantasy days may be limited. I know it's early for this series (what, it's supposed to be around 5 books?), but via these relatively small stories being told, I'm not seeing anything more than your vanilla fantasy. Maybe at some point it all explodes into something much bigger and/or different. Right now, it feels like comfort food (which is what 90-ish % of fantasy is...)

Keep in mind, this is coming from the guy that did a re-read of Game of Thrones recently trying to come back up to speed with Martin (I didn't read past Thrones back in the day when I first tried the series) and while it felt good if a bit frivolous on my first read, the re-read struck me as soap-operaish to the point of not wanting to continue.

[Quote]

Finished it, Loved it.



I'm about 40% done. I love Time Dilation concepts though I haven't gotten to that part yet. I'm enjoying it very much so far.

[Pepboy]

You should just wait. It was an entertaining book but nothing so great that you have to read it immediately

Thanks! I was worried I'd forget too much of the setting, but I'll hold off for now.

Sanderson's style doesn't change, no. But the setting is pretty sweet--a world wracked by constant storms and endless war, featuring dudes with badass magic swords called shardblades. Try reading the first bit, with an assassin chasing down a king, and see what you think.

Good idea, I forgot about sample chapters since I so rarely use them. I'll give it a shot when I'm ready for more Sanderson.

I felt the same way after the trilogy, especially about the third book. It was so long and repetitive that I wanted it to end halfway through. I'm putting off reading Alloy of Law till I forget the pain of slogging through the third book.

Yeah, I think I might be a little burnt out on his style for now. Was thinking of checking out the City & the City after finishing up Stranger in a Strangeland. These threads have yet to disappoint!

[lightus]

What I want to read next: Dune's been on the back of my mind since high school. However I read the first few pages and all the weird names are off-putting. Though it didn't help I tried to read it at 4 in the morning near the tail-end of my night shift. Does it get better as I read more of the book?

I didn't see anyone else respond, so I figured I might. Yes, it does get better. I remember being a little put off with the odd names and such myself. Fair warning though: this is the best book in the series.

I've read three other Dune books and while they are readable, none capture the original magic of the first.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I just finished reading The Hunger Games trilogy. I thought it was pretty good for what it is. It kept me entertained, nothing more nothing less.

Now I'm on the Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men. I absolutely loved The Road, so I was looking forward to this one. It started a bit slow, but it's getting pretty good now. If only I could break myself away from games and school work to finish it!

[Cyan]

Downbelow Station by C.J. Cherryh

An... interesting book. Cherryh is a fairly big name in scifi, but I've barely read anything of hers (the rather dull and unfulfilling Rimrunners was it until now). Thought I ought to remedy that.

Downbelow Station is not what I was expecting. It's an epic, in the sense of being about large-scale events and having a lot of characters to keep track of. It's also dated--it was published in the early 80s, and it shows. In the exposintro most of all.

We've got two main sides and a bunch of neutrals trying to stay out of it, plus the noble savage aliens. But what the book is really about is the side effects of war--the breaking down of social structures, the fear and hunger and injury, the inhuman nature of pragmatic decisions.

If this sounds dull... well it was, for about the first three quarters. Then, at the last, it all clicked into place and Cherryh perfectly stuck the landing.

Good stuff.

[Mumei]

Feminism is For Everybody by Bell Hooks I was always interested in the topic. Influenced by a gaffer's post here(Mumei), I bought the book. I'm almost done with it now. Very interesting read, yet as Mumei said, it assumes that you're already a feminist. Other than that I've been enjoying it a lot.

I was reading this thread at the library for book ideas when I saw this post for the first time. I don't know how I missed it, but I am happy to hear that someone else picked it up!

And I can send you a PM with some reading suggestions on the topic another gaffer sent me if you're interested.

I'm 12% into 3K and I can see why people have problems with it. There are a lot of people and names and places and events to remember, and there's always something happening, someone scheming and it all takes place machine gun style. You really have to keep your wits about you and re-read if you have to. Actually I'm having less problems with the names of people since I played the Dynasty Warrior series, but does the author really have to name everyone including the cook? ;) Deer and the Cauldron looks cool, thanks for sharing!

I'm 23% of the way in, and I have pretty much taken to not caring about somebody's name or who the hell they are until they A) survive at least five pages and B) appear to be characters who actually matter.

I actually feel like as I get further, it is becoming much more interesting (since I now feel like I have the major characters and where they are - particularly spatially and in terms of alliances - in relation to one another).

[Piecake]

Lots of Abraham love on this page, and with that, I'm currently nearing the middle of The Dragon's Path. I'm liking it okay (I certainly can't fault Abraham for his style, pacing, etc.), but I dunno...I think my fantasy days may be limited. I know it's early for this series (what, it's supposed to be around 5 books?), but via these relatively small stories being told, I'm not seeing anything more than your vanilla fantasy. Maybe at some point it all explodes into something much bigger and/or different. Right now, it feels like comfort food (which is what 90-ish % of fantasy is...) Keep in mind, this is coming from the guy that did a re-read of Game of Thrones recently trying to come back up to speed with Martin (I didn't read past Thrones back in the day when I first tried the series) and while it felt good if a bit frivolous on my first read, the re-read struck me as soap-operaish to the point of not wanting to continue.

I enjoyed the Dragon's Path quite a bit because while it seems like a very traditional fantasy novel with a traditional setting, seemingly traditional conflict and traditional character roles, the actual characters are actually quite fascinating

What i mean by that, is that when you think of main characters who are nobleman in fantasy, you really do not think of characters like Gender and Dawson. Cithrin and Wester are a bit more typical (Wester a lot more so), but their situation is really quite interesting and different from any fantasy that ive read. Plus, those characters just feel so believable that I simply find it fascinating.

Reading the second book right now, and I am quite liking it so far

The Long Price Quartet definitely is a lot more unique from the get go. I would also consider The dagger and the Coin different from traditional fantasy fare, but it a more subtle way

[nakedsushi]

Reading (as much as anyone can read a cookbook) through this:


Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking by Fuchsia Dunlop

So far, it's a great introduction to home-styled Chinese dishes. I think the hardest thing about this book is getting the right ingredients, but if you have a Chinese or Asian market nearby, it should be my problem. I recommend it to anyone who's interested in cooking more at home and likes Chinese food.

Also making my way through:


Wool Omnibus Edition by Hugh Howey

The first story blew me away. It wasn't anything new but (story about the end of the first story) when he got outside and everything was green and the sky was blue, I really really was happy for him and wanted to believe that's how it was. Then when his display died, aaaah, that was soul-crushing.

[RedSwirl]

Finally got down to reading through Escape From Camp 14. Most harrowing nonfiction thing I've read since Night.

[Randolph Freelander]

[SaltyDoughnut]

Hey GAF,

For my school's summer reading I have to choose one play to read and then either two short books or one longer book. I've laid out all the options below and was wondering if you all had any suggestions. (I can also choose books that are off-list, but they have to be classics of some form) - edit: and as a side note we will also be reading Great Expectations and Oedipus Rex

One Play
Death of a Salesman - Arthur Miller
A Streetcar Named Desire - Tennessee Williams
The Doll House - Henrik Ibsen
An Enemy of the People - Henrik Ibsen
Antigone - Sophocles
The Glass Menagerie - Tennessee Williams
Our Town - Thornton Wilder
A Raisin in the Sun - Lorraine Hansberry
Fences - August Wilson
Pygmalion - George Bernard Shaw

+

Two Short Books
The Awakening - Kate Choplin
Billy Budd - Herman Melville
Persuasion - Jane Austen
The Turn of the Screw - Henrik Ibsen
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Cry, The Beloved Country - Alan Paton
Ethan Frome - Edith Wharton
Their Eyes Were Watching God - Zora Neale Hurston
A Farewell to Arms - Ernest Hemingway
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - James Joyce
The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Stranger - Albert Camus
Sula - Toni Morrison

OR

One Longer Book
All the King's Men - Robert Penn Warren
All the Pretty Horses - Cormac McCarthy
Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
As I Lay Dying - William Faulkner
Emma - Jane Austen
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
Moby Dick - Herman Melville
Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
The Mayor of Casterbridge - Thomas Hardy
Native Son - Richard Wright

[Haly]

Good premise ruined by awful execution. That ending was everything that's wrong about sci-fi.

[Mumei]

Hey GAF, For my school's summer reading I have to choose one play to read and then either two short books or one longer book. I've laid out all the options below and was wondering if you all had any suggestions. (I can also choose books that are off-list, but they have to be classics of some form)

I haven't read enough of those myself to give you informed suggestions (though I will say that I bought the Lydia Davis translation of Madame Bovary and am looking forward to whenever I get around to reading it because just opening to random pages and reading a sentence is an experience all in itself), but I will say that I really, really wish my school had done summer reading lists like that.

[Cyan]

Hey GAF, For my school's summer reading I have to choose one play to read and then either two short books or one longer book. I've laid out all the options below and was wondering if you all had any suggestions. (I can also choose books that are off-list, but they have to be classics of some form)

Pride and Prejudice is wonderful, and also not all that long. For plays, it sounds like you've mostly got modern angst choices. Antigone is ancient angst. Pygmalion is great fun; it's what My Fair Lady was based on. That'd be my pick.

[Ceebs]

Hey GAF, For my school's summer reading I have to choose one play to read and then either two short books or one longer book. I've laid out all the options below and was wondering if you all had any suggestions. (I can also choose books that are off-list, but they have to be classics of some form) - edit: and as a side note we will also be reading Great Expectations and Oedipus Rex

I would go with Ethan Frome and The Stranger (it's super short, and there is TONS to write about if you have to do a paper on it).

I am probably odd, but Ethan Frome was one of my favorite required readings from High School.