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[Christoff Yurievich]

I finished Slaughterhouse-Five today but I'm going to wait for the September thread to talk about it. I don't want it to get lost.

Though I will say I am confused by the narrative, or whatever that was.

“America is the wealthiest nation on Earth, but its people are mainly poor, and poor Americans are urged to hate themselves. To quote the American humorist Kin Hubbard, 'It ain’t no disgrace to be poor, but it might as well be.' It is in fact a crime for an American to be poor, even though America is a nation of poor. Every other nation has folk traditions of men who were poor but extremely wise and virtuous, and therefore more estimable than anyone with power and gold. No such tales are told by the American poor. They mock themselves and glorify their betters. The meanest eating or drinking establishment, owned by a man who is himself poor, is very likely to have a sign on its wall asking this cruel question: 'if you’re so smart, why ain’t you rich?' There will also be an American flag no larger than a child’s hand – glued to a lollipop stick and flying from the cash register.

Americans, like human beings everywhere, believe many things that are obviously untrue. Their most destructive untruth is that it is very easy for any American to make money. They will not acknowledge how in fact hard money is to come by, and, therefore, those who have no money blame and blame and blame themselves. This inward blame has been a treasure for the rich and powerful, who have had to do less for their poor, publicly and privately, than any other ruling class since, say Napoleonic times. Many novelties have come from America. The most startling of these, a thing without precedent, is a mass of undignified poor. They do not love one another because they do not love themselves.”
― Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five

Also I read Two Hearts, a coda to The Last Unicorn. Speaking of which, I adored that book. Schmendrick is just cool enough to be liked but stops just short of a Mary Sue. I'm going to watch the movie this weekend. I realize it's going to be not as good, but I can hope for not terrible at the same time.

No wait, I just did a Google search for Schmendrick to make sure I spelled it right and I saw some images. Nope. What the fuck, Rankin Bass.

 

[TestMonkey]

I'm pretty much neutral about Gaiman but this book is pretty good. Like a modern Roald Dahl. Takes serious topics and is direct about them. The obvious Pratchett influence doesn't hurt either.

 

[Mumei]

No wait, I just did a Google search for Schmendrick to make sure I spelled it right and I saw some images. Nope. What the fuck, Rankin Bass.

I know the art style leaves a lot to be desired, but Peter Beagle wrote the screenplay and it actually is worth giving a shot even if you've read the book first.

You should also check out the comic book adaptation. It is gorgeous.

Cover:

Scans (spoilered for spoilers, of course)

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[Verdre]

Also I read Two Hearts, a coda to The Last Unicorn. Speaking of which, I adored that book. Schmendrick is just cool enough to be liked but stops just short of a Mary Sue. I'm going to watch the movie this weekend. I realize it's going to be not as good, but I can hope for not terrible at the same time.

No wait, I just did a Google search for Schmendrick to make sure I spelled it right and I saw some images. Nope. What the fuck, Rankin Bass.

Not exactly a Last Unicorn story, but there's another Schmendrick story in Beagle's short story collection Sleight of Hand called "The Woman Who Married the Man in the Moon" It's a story about Schmendrick from before The Last Unicorn, when he's wandering the world eternally inefficient.

And listen to Mumei. The movie is a nice adaptation even if it isn't always the prettiest thing. The comic is lovely, but the characters are way too pretty.

 

[Hop]

The Girl on the Train was good, didn't blow me away. Still, keeping at it with the bestsellers and award winners and whatnot.

 

[Peru]

Reading The Hunchback of Notre-Dame for school, and holy shit it fucking DRAGS. There's a section I shit you not 40 consecutive pages long that only depicts the Notre-Dame Chuch and Paris' overall architectural structure in the 15th century, with names of obscure churches, villages, families and people I presume to be historically important sprinkled everywhere in between- as someone who is in no way familiar with French culture, it's being a rather challenging read.

Hugo was deliberately political in adding those sections - seeking to make a case for the historical and aesthetic value of older architecture in the face of increasing urban modernization.

 

[Number45]

I've finally called time on my Infinite Jest read (I don't have the enthusiasm required for the book right now, I've finally decided). Going to start:

... tomorrow.

 

[Jintor]

The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger is very good.

I only just started it, but The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet seems pretty good so far.
I also hear constant praise for The Passage.

I really enjoyed The Help and The Handmaid's Tale. Dune, 11/22/63, and The Great Gatsby of course are excellent but I assume they fall under the obvious category.

The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet is absolutely fantastic and a pretty quick read.

Have you read H is for Hawk, by Helen MacDonald?

Thanks for the advice, friends. I ended up putting in my basket:

Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World (Murakami)
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (Murakami)
The Handmaid's Tale (Atwood)
Down and Out in Paris and London (Orwell)
Modern Romance (Ansari and Klinenberg)
On the Road (Kerouac)
How to Think More About Sex (Bottom)
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Chambers)

I'll mull it over tonight and probably pull the trigger once I clear out a bit more shelf space

buying physical books again after 2 years is kind of exciting

 

[whatevermort]

I'm currently reading - well, about to finish - this:

It's absolutely marvellous. It's ostensibly about pushy gym parents and their gymnast daughter, but also it's somehow a super-tense thriller, and obviously there are other things going on. Basically: read this if you like good words put into a good order.

When that's done, I'm either reading Tana French's Trespasser (the fifth in her Dublin Murder Squad series, which I love a lot) or Zadie Smith's Swing Time.

 

[DemWalls]

Reading The Hunchback of Notre-Dame for school, and holy shit it fucking DRAGS. There's a section I shit you not 40 consecutive pages long that only depicts the Notre-Dame Chuch and Paris' overall architectural structure in the 15th century, with names of obscure churches, villages, families and people I presume to be historically important sprinkled everywhere in between- as someone who is in no way familiar with French culture, it's being a rather challenging read.

Then I can tell you you may as well ignore the existence of any other novel by Hugo going forward :lol:

They're all like that, no exception. L'homme qui rit has more digressions like that one than any actual plot.

 

[sparky2112]

The unabridged Les Miserables has a 100+ page section on the history of the Paris sewers in the part where

Spoiler

Valjean carries Marius

. I consider it a badge of honor that I read every word.

Uh, that sounds really interesting to me, but then I'm a sucker for history/engineering projects.

 

[itsbenoclock]

Just finished reading Orwell's '1984' and whilst it was overall enjoyable I found myself skimming through pages which were just droves of ideological posturing, talking endlessly about what the truth is yadda yadda, could of cut a lot of that repetitive nonsense out imo as I still understood exactly what was happening and the subtext.

Started 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' today, got to page 50 and may have to do this one in parts since I'll probably turn insane otherwise.

 

[Saphirax]

Finished LA Noire. Great companion piece for anyone reading or has read the LA Quartet. You'll notice a lot of familiar names and events. Now for a change of pace with Revelation Space (this IS the first book in the reading order for the revelation series, right?).


Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds

I'm 50% into RS and the characters couldn't be duller if you tried. Other than that it's decent so far.

 

[sparky2112]

I'm 50% into RS and the characters couldn't be duller if you tried. Other than that it's decent so far.

My issue was that and the fact that the cast of characters is so small. It felt as though he was telling a 'big' story but not populating it as such.

 

[AngmarsKing701]

Cross posting this from the Writing-GAF thread, because I think some of Reading-GAF might be interested in this tech and what it might become.

By the way, this might be interesting to some folks here. Just children's books currently, but I can imagine this being tied to Audible to really bring books to life.

Campfire uses Watson to bring physical books to life

 

[Christoff Yurievich]

I'm pretty much neutral about Gaiman but this book is pretty good. Like a modern Roald Dahl. Takes serious topics and is direct about them. The obvious Pratchett influence doesn't hurt either.

I found the graphic novel first and it was great. Even got my son to read it. Then I read the book proper and it was even better.

I know the art style leaves a lot to be desired, but Peter Beagle wrote the screenplay and it actually is worth giving a shot even if you've read the book first.

You should also check out the comic book adaptation. It is gorgeous.

Cover:


Scans (spoilered for spoilers, of course)

Oh my, that is nice. I'm going to have to find a copy.

Not exactly a Last Unicorn story, but there's another Schmendrick story in Beagle's short story collection Sleight of Hand called "The Woman Who Married the Man in the Moon" It's a story about Schmendrick from before The Last Unicorn, when he's wandering the world eternally inefficient.

And listen to Mumei. The movie is a nice adaptation even if it isn't always the prettiest thing. The comic is lovely, but the characters are way too pretty.

Oh I'm watching the movie, I just don't know what's up with them turning everyone into hobbits.

I'm going to put his other stuff on my to-read list. I'll eventually get there. :/

 

[TechnicPuppet]

Can anyone recommend me a fantasy series to give a go. Need to be a beginner one. I have read Tolkien years ago and not interested in Game of Thrones. I recently read the Painted Man and really enjoyed it so I will try the next ones in that series.

 

[GasProblem]

Just got Assassin's Quest by Robin Hobb. Loved the first two books. Can't wait to read this one. Fuck Regal. After that I'll probably read the Liveship Traders trilogy by Robin Hobb.

 

[many places]

Can anyone recommend me a fantasy series to give a go. Need to be a beginner one. I have read Tolkien years ago and not interested in Game of Thrones. I recently read the Painted Man and really enjoyed it so I will try the next ones in that series.

Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.

 

[AngmarsKing701]

Can anyone recommend me a fantasy series to give a go. Need to be a beginner one. I have read Tolkien years ago and not interested in Game of Thrones. I recently read the Painted Man and really enjoyed it so I will try the next ones in that series.

Memory, Sorrow and Thorn by Tad Williams (starts with The Dragonbone Chair). Perfect time to pick it up as Williams is returning to this land with a new installment early next year.

The First Law trilogy (and its stand alones set in the same universe) by Joe Abercrombie. If you like your fantasy gritty and dark, this is a great series.

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. As mentioned above, a very enjoyable trilogy. If you like that, then Sanderson has a whole 10-book (only 2 published so far) series he's writing now for you to dive into.

Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb. Another classic by many standards, and she's continued to write in this universe, with a recent trilogy focused on these characters again.

Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix. A fantastic trilogy that doesn't get enough love imo.

The Girl Who ... series by Catherynne Valente. Stunningly written.

That should get you started. Brian McClellan, Mark Lawrence, Brent Weeks also have series that will get some love. I've read Weeks's Night Angel trilogy and thought it was "ok" while I've not read McClellan yet and only the first of Lawrence's "Thorns" series.

 

[Funyarinpa]

Can anyone recommend me a fantasy series to give a go. Need to be a beginner one. I have read Tolkien years ago and not interested in Game of Thrones. I recently read the Painted Man and really enjoyed it so I will try the next ones in that series.

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin. Easy to follow, beautiful themes and worldbuilding, immaculate prose, interesting characters, interesting and emotional story.

The only pet peeve I have with it is the classical "men do everything while women stay at home" viewpoint, but the books are pretty much a great argument that you can have a varied and interesting cast even if the cast is all male/female.

 

[kinn]

Yup! Mainline is:

Revelation Space
Redemption Ark
Absolution Gap

There a bunch of side story stuff that take place in the same universe. I would recommend Chasm City between Revelation Space and Redemption Ark if you haven't read it yet.

I seconded this recommendation. Chasm City is a great read.

It's Hard sci-fi so it can be a little dull I guess. And the cast does get expanded in the later books.

Another by the same author but not the same universe, Pushing Ice. Great read.

 

[Maklershed]

When should I read Chasm City? When I've completed the primary trilogy?

 

[Woorloog]

When should I read Chasm City? When I've completed the primary trilogy?

Well, it is a stand-alone novel that is also something of a prequel. I'd say whenever.
Also, it is pretty good, certainly one of Reynold's better works, IMO.

I
It's Hard sci-fi so it can be a little dull I guess.

Soft scifi is dull! All those super techs and no one bothers using them properly.

 

[sparky2112]

It's Hard sci-fi so it can be a little dull I guess.

Speaking of, there's this:

What a slog. The first 65% of this book is full of superfluous plot with *some* info-dump, but this last part 5,000 years into the future is a TON of info-dump. The concept is interesting, but it seems just beyond the reach of even Stephenson's considerable talents...

Still, I/we will always have Cryptonomicon and The Baroque Cycle...

 

[xeroborn55]

Picked up lots of good books from this thread over the last few months. thanks everyone.

First a disclaimer. I mostly listen to audiobooks these days. I'm teaching myself how to program in my free time, and if I have time to read a printed/kindle book it will be a programming one. I do, however, drive 45 min to work and back every day, so I listen to audiobooks.

Yesterday I finished Mr Mercedes, by Stephen King. Loved it, but then I've been a fan of Stephen King since I was a kid. The reader, Will Patten, did an excellent job. This was one of those rare audiobooks where the narrator might have made the story better.

Started Red Rising this morning on the drive in. Intriguing start. My girlfriend LOVED it, so I'm curious to dig in.

 

[Quote]

I seconded this recommendation. Chasm City is a great read.

It's Hard sci-fi so it can be a little dull I guess. And the cast does get expanded in the later books.

Another by the same author but not the same universe, Pushing Ice. Great read.

House of Suns too! Probably my favorite.

When should I read Chasm City? When I've completed the primary trilogy?

I'd read it before Redemption Ark only because of a small thing. It doesn't really matter but my memory is poor so I wouldn't have realized a connection at a certain part.

His characters in the Revelation Space series can see seem small, but he creates ridiculously huge worlds that actually feel huge. I think the only time i've had that feeling was Hyperion.

 

[Mumei]

Oh my, that is nice. I'm going to have to find a copy.

Unfortunately it appears to be out of print (both the deluxe and regular editions), but it looks like there are still pretty reasonable prices on the latter for used copies.

 

[Maklershed]

NEW THREAD IS UP

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1272357

NEW THREAD IS UP