If teen girls now enjoy stories about people brutally killing each other in an arena then my opinion of teen girls has gone up!
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What are you reading? (January 2012)
- Thread starter Maklershed
- Start date
If teen girls now enjoy stories about people brutally killing each other in an arena then my opinion of teen girls has gone up!
If you remember, will you give me some positives and negatives about the text after the class ends? I would appreciate a student's perspective. Thanks!
Just finished reading the last of the Hunger Games trilogy - wonderful books! Don't be put off that they are for young adults.
I saw that the third book is regarded as a bit weaker than the other two, but I didn't feel like this; I felt that it was just as good as the first two, if not better. It reminds me of the first of the Mistborn trilogy, which I also thought was excellent.
I saw that the third book is regarded as a bit weaker than the other two, but I didn't feel like this; I felt that it was just as good as the first two, if not better. It reminds me of the first of the Mistborn trilogy, which I also thought was excellent.
For me it's not written in a very brutal / impactful way.
Katniss fucking butchers dudes with no character without a second thought and there is more emphasise on how she has to kiss this boy loads.
So I finished Book 2 of the Wheel of Time, The Great Hunt. Wow, so much stuff happened in this book and I thought it was really good! It's a shame this series eventually gets mediocre in the middle, or so people say, because I think it's pretty awesome so far. I also like how Rand is building up a harem of pretty girls who all want him, yay!
I'm also reading Catch-22 for the GAF bookclub but I'm only 1/4 through, oops lol. I think it's taking me a while to get used to Joseph Heller's writing style.
I'm also reading Catch-22 for the GAF bookclub but I'm only 1/4 through, oops lol. I think it's taking me a while to get used to Joseph Heller's writing style.
Then you'll love the rest of the books.
Good bathroom reading. I've read through all of it already, as it's filled with plenty of quotes that use great words like atavistic and kerfuffle. Good for enhancing your vocab, and it's one of those things you can flip to any page and just re-fresh your mind a bit.
Some useful tips for starting up your own business, but lots of it is ego stroking by the author for the author. There is also far too much touchy-feely garbage at the end of each chapter. "Now, my dear reader, take out that notepad, and just write, write, write. Feel your dream. See your dream. Touch your dream. Write your dream. You're doing it now. You're already on your way." Uuuuuugh. Anyone who doesn't have the mental age of a 13 year old can see past this guy's schtick. Still, some of the advice is pretty good, so I'm sticking around for that.
Don't do it, unless you want to drown in unexplained technobabble that has no meaning outside of the world itself.
Really didn't see the point of the novel...at all. One of the more difficult books that I've ever forced myself to trudge through for the sake of saying that I read it.
I get that it's considered a classic, and hugely influential in the realm of science fiction, but I really thought it was nigh-incomprehensible.
Read some Philip K. Dick instead. I recommend The Man in the High Castle or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.
do not... DO NOT.... listen to this poster. for the love of god do not listen.
Thus begins my tour of "What Are You Reading Thread Regulars:"
~220 pages in, pretty great so far.
is that what the wachowski bros. movie is based on? might have to check it out before the film hits.
just started a dirty job by christopher moore over here.
Bah. It just wasn't for me.
My favorite author! I absolutely love that book. Can't wait for his new one in a few months.
Buckethead
Banned
Finished A Game Of Thrones.
Wished I had skipped it and went straight to "A Clash of Kings", to be honest.
The extra characterization was nice but I think a lot of the changes made for the TV show were for the better.
Still reading the novel gave me a deeper understanding of everything going on in the world and had a more firm grasp on who's who.
Wished I had skipped it and went straight to "A Clash of Kings", to be honest.
The extra characterization was nice but I think a lot of the changes made for the TV show were for the better.
Still reading the novel gave me a deeper understanding of everything going on in the world and had a more firm grasp on who's who.
cool. this is my first time with any of his stuff.
If you enjoy that one I would suggest starting his San Francisco vampire trilogy (it has plenty of crossover characters with A Dirty Job) or Lamb.
Thus begins my tour of "What Are You Reading Thread Regulars:"
~220 pages in, pretty great so far.
You should check out The Thousand Autumns Of Jacob De Zoet when you're done with Cloud Atlas, it's pretty great.
Meatpuppet
Member
Just finished A Very British Coup by Chris Mullens. Really enjoyable political thriller (though very much an easy read). UKGAF get on this, even if I am about twenty years late to the party!
VonRehausen
Banned
Now reading:
nakedsushi
Member
Making progress with this. I think it was a free ebook of the day or something and that's how it ended up on my Kindle.
The Score by Richard Stark
So far, it's like Ocean's 11.
The Score by Richard Stark
So far, it's like Ocean's 11.
AlimNassor
Banned
Just finished Out Of The Dark by David Weber. It was a nice realistic alien invasion set in the 2010, and then it has the single most random pointless twist ending I've ever seen. Jumping the shark barely begins to describe how random this twist was.
That ending really was goofy as hell. Makes you wonder just what on earth he was thinking when he came up with it.
Started this, need to finish the series up. I'm having trouble remembering who everyone is unfortunately. Need to go look for some kind of summary.
Probably going to start
No way. It's good you didn't skip it and I disagree totally about the TV series changes being good. You'd be fairly lost in Clash of Kings if you didn't read it.
Maklershed
Member
charlemagne
Member
Buckethead
Banned
Yeah I can see that.
Going to start it next week.
Need a little breather.
I'm pretty noted on GAF for being anti-all the sex scenes to make way of more important stuff in the story, but aging up the kids for one, is a welcomed change..
Speaking of Game of Thrones:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0070R40V6/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Here is a free version of it, downloaded it this morning and it's the full thing. Seems to only work for Australians though, so you need to change your Kindle country to Australia to download it, shouldn't be too hard.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0070R40V6/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Here is a free version of it, downloaded it this morning and it's the full thing. Seems to only work for Australians though, so you need to change your Kindle country to Australia to download it, shouldn't be too hard.
28 Posts Later
Member
Started reading The Witcher short stories 'The Last Wish'. Seems pretty interesting so far, the writing style is fast and light, primarily made up of dialogue. The opening story is that told in the opening cut-scene of the first game, so I have a clear idea of locations and the creatures involved. Something I'm thankful for given the lack of description.
Probably going to get around to reading the Lord of the Rings trilogy afterwards, I've been putting it off for far to long.
Probably going to get around to reading the Lord of the Rings trilogy afterwards, I've been putting it off for far to long.
Just finished Stories of Your Life and Others.
Transcribed below, taken with some liberty, are my words after reading every story,:
I learned about Chiang from reading The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate, which blew me away. I could scarcely believe that nearly every single short in Stories would comparable with (The Evolution of Human Science) or even better as (Tower of Babylon) Merchant. When I first read his Wikipedia page, I had scoffed at the label of "Speculative Fiction". I felt like it was a classification used by people who felt that "Science Fiction" was somehow diminishing, just as with "Graphic Novel" and "Comics".Myself said:
This is the first time I felt that "Speculative Fiction" is the most appropriate label in existence to describe an author's work.
Every one of his stories focuses around one or two key thoughts, which Chiang follows to their logical conclusion. Unlike typical sci-fi/fantasy, however, he does not concern himself with world building, prose, characterization, plot or action, anymore than is strictly necessary to see his idea through. Perhaps this is why he has never written anything of great length. I felt like I was reading a philosophical treatise, or s mathematical proof, except his initial axioms are simply ideas, "what if?" scenarios, unburdened by typical fiction trappings. He explores concepts to such a minute detail that I have to take some time readjusting to reality after reading his stories (particularly after Hell is the Absence of God). It is the first time I've encountered a fiction author that made such heavy use of logos to stimulate my imagination.
And now I'm extremely sad that the book is done.
Salvor.Hardin
Banned
I recall there being a gaf book club thread about this a while back so I decided to pick it up. A third into it and I'm enjoying the book quite a bit. Here's hoping I finish it with even half the praise that just about everyone else lavishes it with.
I recall there being a gaf book club thread about this a while back so I decided to pick it up. A third into it and I'm enjoying the book quite a bit. Here's hoping I finish it with even half the praise that just about everyone else lavishes it with.
I'm not sure I've ever wanted to like a novel more, but it just didn't click with me at all. Hope you like it.
Finished King Lear. 'Twas wonderful.
After that, I read Coraline by Neil Gaiman, and then The Complete Poems of Sappho translated by Willis Barnstone. I didn't realize just how little of her work still remains, but what little there is is beautiful.
Now I'm reading The Ancestor's Tale, by Richard Dawkins.
After that, I read Coraline by Neil Gaiman, and then The Complete Poems of Sappho translated by Willis Barnstone. I didn't realize just how little of her work still remains, but what little there is is beautiful.
Now I'm reading The Ancestor's Tale, by Richard Dawkins.
I finally finished Kyril Bonfiglioli Mortdecai Trilogy, wherein our hero Charlie Mortdecai enjoys the perks of a very minor title, his own personal thug, an impressive lack of morals, an equally impressive amount of snobbery, and an awful lot of booze and good food. This all helps him get through misguided attempts at criminal capers, espionage, mystery solving, and the occasional Satanic ritual. When I raved about the first novel earlier in this thread I mentioned how damned funny it is, with cattiness dripping off the page and laugh out loud moments coming fast and furious. Having now read all three novels in the series - Don't Point That Thing At Me (1973), After You With The Pistol (1976), and Something Nasty in the Woodshed (1979) - I can confirm that they're still incredibly funny, right up to the point where they suddenly aren't. The mixture of boozy hijinx and astonishingly black humor works brilliantly and the books are surprisingly powerful when the laughs stop. Highest possible recommendation.
Inspired by Series 2 of Sherlock, I've belatedly returned to reading the Sherlock Holmes canon, where I'm currently roughly two-thirds of the way through the first beefy paperback volume. (Specifically, I'm in the middle of "The Reigate Puzzle".) What can I say? These are immortal classics and I'm kicking myself for not having read all the Holmes stories ages ago. Still, better late than never.
FnordChan
Clever Pun
Member
Dude is fucking brilliant. I haven't loved everything he's written, but some of his stories just punch you in the back of the head and make you go "oh holy shit." "Tower of Babylon," "Story of Your Life," "Understand." Oh, and "Exhalation," of course. "Alchemist's Gate" is on my list to check out asap.
And your analysis is right on. Chiang basically takes a premise, changes reality so that the premise is true, and then takes it to its logical conclusion.
Which is an immense oversimplification of course, since I've tried the same thing and never gotten close to the same results.
I've never read any Chiang, but your description reminds me of Jorge Luis Borges. Is that an apt comparison? If so I need to check out Chiang ASAP!
Clever Pun
Member
That's cool, I requested Stories and Alchemist's Gate from my library. I should probably have them in a week or so.
Adam Blade
WWKC
Keen, I hope you enjoy OST as much as I did...
I'll let you know!
Maklershed
Member
Just finished Robopocalypse. It wasn't Dickens but it was one of the funnest books I've read in awhile. Think of it as a cross between World War Z and Terminator. I would love to see a film adaptation of it.
Next year, by Steven Spielberg.
nakedsushi
Member
Just saw this on SF Signal. Ebook is free today!
Of Blood and Honey by Stina Leicht
Link here: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B004LDLJ3O/sfsignal-20
Of Blood and Honey by Stina Leicht
Link here: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B004LDLJ3O/sfsignal-20
February's thread is here folks http://neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=34744753