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Hey there poindexter. Read any good books lately?

GodofWhimsy

Member
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Tschumi

Member
I can't say it's a new one, but I've started reading some John Grisham, starting nice and early, from his debut Time to Kill.. fun to just put myself in a mental place where these are his first words, try to pick out instances of naivety and stuff ~ you kinda feel a bit of the energy he must have been running on, it's inspiring.
 

Mr Hyde

Member
Currently reading Doctor Sleep. It's okay, but I'm getting a bit tired of King. Didn't like the movie very much, it felt unnecessary and the novel pretty much so too. Gonna hold off on a verdict until I'm finished though.
 
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Sidney Prescott

Unconfirmed Member
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Tyson Fury's Autobiography.

Came out a couple of years ago, but still a good read. I am not a huge Boxing fan but I know of Tyson and he's been very open about his mental health struggles. It is really inspiring to see how he managed to bounce back after sinking in to depression. I would recommend this book to everyone. Even if you're not a huge fan of the guy. It's one of the most honest insights I've seen in to how mental health can take a toll on someone. Very relatable for me, as someone who also has struggled with mental health and anxiety.

I remember watching an interview where he made it a point not to edit it too much either, so it's true to how he was feeling at the time of writing it. Great book, and I appreciate someone in the spotlight being open about these things. Especially someone who has to be tough, being a boxer isn't easy.
 

J-Roderton

Member
I’ve set a goal for the year to read 30 books. Shouldn’t be too difficult I think. Just finished up:

-Fable: The Balverine Order
Short and sweet, especially likable if you’ve played the Fable games.

-On The Beach
Apocalyptic novel about some folks in Australia waiting for radioactive dust to come and kill them. Really sad but kinda chill at the same time. Loved it.
 
Just finished Star Wars: The Light of the Jedi. It’s the first book set in the High Republic era. It explores new concepts about hyperspace travel and the Force. I thought the novel did a good job setting things up.
 

Arkam

Member
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Before a Fall: A history of Pride Fighting Championships. This was a very solid read if you are a Pride fan or even just curious what the hell that crazy Japanese promotion was all about. The book does an excellent job setting up how and why Pride was created with a detailed history of Catch Wrestling, Judo, BJJ and their major players. Lots of backstage information about how the Orgs were started and operated. The actual fights from Pride covered in the book are limited to the most impactful and often presented as the "story arc" of a specific fighter.

Going in I already knew a lot about Pride. The Yakuza ties, the lack of testing, the short notice fights, the couple works, etc. Despite that there were still many new revelations that have impacted my perception of a few people and events.

Not sure where this book is available. I crowd funded the author Lee Daly for this project a couple years ago. Not sure if it was a limited print or what. If you loved Pride like I do, its worth the legwork to get a copy.
 
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Sidney Prescott

Unconfirmed Member
Okay, I don't care what anyone says. Goosebumps are still awesome. I will never get rid of these books. Still love them like I did when I was younger. Currently reading The Haunted Mask. It's still good.

R.L. Stine is a great writer. Even as an adult, you can appreciate his writing. I still adore the TV Show too, despite how cringeworthy it is at times.

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Finished Latro in the Mist (combo of Soldier of the Mist and Soldier of Arete). It's probably the best ancient-greek historical fiction I've ever read. The style takes a few chapters to get used to, if there's any downside (Latro forgets the previous day )
 

BigBooper

Member
Finally gotten back in a little bit.

Finished up Morning Star from the Red Rising series by Pierce Brown. This one was kind of a slog that I didn't feel with the first two books. I was really struggling to keep going about halfway through, but it picked up some in the last third. Definitely not as good as the first two books. I kind of get the feeling that the author wrote this while thinking of the possibility of a tv show or movie, and spent way too much time expanding the universe and detailing every little thing. Not especially enjoyable. Gonna have to be a while before I start the next book if I do.

I've started Hearts in Atlantis by Steven King. I think I'm about a third of the way through Low Men in Yellow Coats and I'm really enjoying this book so far. Steven King gets dismissed too often as kind of schlocky writing, but he has some of the best storytelling in the business. I didn't like his earliest books so much where he tried to prove how literary he was, but he has really mastered his craft. The story so far is really comfortable and engrossing. It's not very complex, but I can see the change coming.
 
Motel of the Mysteries by David Macaulay published 1979

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Just picked this up in hardcover. A wonderful satire of the Howard Carter King Tut excavation, where in the far future a similar archeologist tries to piece together a history using the remains of a Las Vegas motel. They mistake bathroom "artifacts" for religious iconography and think of a TV set as a holy shrine. They come up with a hilarious alternate history as a result of the misinterpretations. Lots of great illustrations in this funny book.

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IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
I forgot how much of a dick Henry III was, but then again, Simon de Montfort wasn't that much better. He is remembered for being a heroic revolutionary (Napoleon once called him the greatest Englishman, which is amusing considering Simon was French) , but in reality he was just a arrogant Nobel who was thrifty for power and rode the coat tails of this father. However, I don't agree with the method of his death. No man deserves to have his balls cut off his dead corpse and shoved in his mouth.

The book is wonderfully written and really paints a vivid picture of the events that lead up to Simon and his 'magnificent seven' take over. Highly recommended if you're into medieval history.

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IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
I forgot how much of a dick Henry III was, but then again, Simon de Montfort wasn't that much better. He is remembered for being a heroic revolutionary (Napoleon once called him the greatest Englishman, which is amusing considering Simon was French) , but in reality he was just a arrogant Nobel who was thrifty for power and rode the coat tails of this father. However, I don't agree with the method of his death. No man deserves to have his balls cut off his dead corpse and shoved in his mouth.

The book is wonderfully written and really paints a vivid picture of the events that lead up to Simon and his 'magnificent seven' take over. Highly recommended if you're into medieval history.

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Done. Had nothing to do today and it's cold as shit in the South West of England, so I stayed in and finished the above book. Fantastic read. Still think Simon De Montfort was a bit of a cunt, but then again, so was Henry III.

Now onto the next books, which I'm really looking forward to. I decided to move onto fiction and I've been really, really looking forward to this one.

Kazuo Ishiguro is IMO, one of the greatest living authors around. I consider Remains of the Day to be one of the greatest books ever written and I really cannot wait to get into Mr Ishiguro's new work of art.

See you on the other side GAF.

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CloudNull

Banned

I am in the 3rd act of this book and it will probably end a solid 4 out of 5. It’s a unique take on sci-fi, almost sci-fi mixed with fantasy. It’s from the same author who wrote the young adult series eragorn. A super easy read with pacing that only drags in a few spots.

Before this I just finished:


A fantastic book but I still think A Brave New World is the best dystopian book out of the three classic.
 

BadBurger

Many “Whelps”! Handle It!
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Average for a King novel. It's not quite a horror, it's quite not a thriller, and it's far from a mystery as some of the summaries I've read claimed it was. It took too long to get going anywhere then concluded with in a fizzle. It had a few cool moments but I can't recommend this one unless you're a fan of King and

the Dark Tower multiverse.
 
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BigBooper

Member

I am in the 3rd act of this book and it will probably end a solid 4 out of 5. It’s a unique take on sci-fi, almost sci-fi mixed with fantasy. It’s from the same author who wrote the young adult series eragorn. A super easy read with pacing that only drags in a few spots.

Before this I just finished:


A fantastic book but I still think A Brave New World is the best dystopian book out of the three classic.
I agree with you about A Brave New World, but Fahrenheit 451 does have one of the most memorable dystopian worlds of all fiction I think.
 

CloudNull

Banned
I agree with you about A Brave New World, but Fahrenheit 451 does have one of the most memorable dystopian worlds of all fiction I think.
For sure. I actually think it is more memorable than the dystopian world in A Brave New World and 1984 but I feel A Brave New World is more align with how I see the world going. Not factually but it just seems like it is closer possibility. I am grateful that I finally got around to reading Fahrenheit 451.... it has been on my list for ages.
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
Moved on to nonfiction now. I'm halfway through this book and it's certainly an interesting read.
Dr Bruce Greyson has been studying NDE (near death experiences) for fifty years. This book is an account of his work and the experience's from his patients.

The book so far is pretty convincing and some of the experiences are pretty mind-blowing. Although I'm a atheist, I do think that death is not the end and there is something else after your body dies. So far so good.

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I read some more of Children of Dune today. About 200 pages in now.

You can really see the fractures for the whole empire starting to come apart in this one. Herbert is very good at drawing upon the history of the past ones and how it all affects the current rulers, how they have inherited so much from the past, and are defined by it, despite their prescience into the future. The twins possessing all the memories of their ancestors and trying to resist their Aunt's fate, Alia who has seemingly become possessed by her evil grandfather, whether consciously or unconsciously. It is cool but also not nearly as fast paced or action oriented as the first book. I can see why fans of the first might not be into this, a lot of it is slow plotting. This feels, like the second, more like a slow boil. Lots of chess pieces being set up and then bam! I love it.

Herbert draws a line from the use of genetic engineering in this space opera to the inbred kingdoms of medieval Europe and they share the internal strifes and struggles as well. Theirs is an essentially theocratic monarchy the legacy of rule passed down from male heir to male heir. Leto II shows the very reluctancy to follow The Golden Path that his father Paul did. The chosen one refusing the call to destiny. It's classic storytelling, of course. Just with a lot of sci fi political intrigue for fans of the first two. Like the first, we cut between the family struggling to maintain their empire and a secret plot in the shadows.

My favorite character is probably Duncan Idaho. Swordmaster of the Atreides, he was Leto I's right hand man, who was the family's ambassador to the Fremen, and who sacrificed himself to save Paul on his way toward becoming the new ruler of Dune. In the last book, his body was essentially cloned, mind wiped and programmed for a secret assassination plot, then delivered as an unassuming gift to the family. This twisted clone ended up becoming basically the children's step father. His unwavering loyalty to the family, which somehow remained in his genetic code, won out against his reprogramming, and he lives on to the third book, where he is still serving the family, now following the unstable and plotting Alia, loyal as always, but his pre-memory instincts keeping him sharp. I already kinda know what happens but I can't wait to see this book play out.
 
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BigBooper

Member
Finished up the Low Men in Yellow Coats part of Hearts in Atlantis. I really enjoyed it as a entertaining novella. Some parts of it made me very uncomfortable though, especially where King seems to spend a lot of time describing what penises look like and what they are doing, both adult and juvenile. Of course that's used to build up some of the suspicions of the reader and certain characters in the story, but I could do with less of that. Also, I did not at all suspect that Ted had a
direct connection to the Dark Tower. That was a welcome reveal since I thought he was probably just mental.
I'm curious if the rest of the compilation has the same kind of thing. Very happy to continue reading this.
 

AJUMP23

Parody of actual AJUMP23
I'm going through Mark Twain's A Tramp Abroad. The style of writing is a lot of fun and the way the story is weaved with folk tales and stories is excellent.
 

CloudNull

Banned
I'm thinking of reading Tender is the Flesh after I finish my next Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) detective novel, but I'm kind of scared. Has anyone read it? Is it as horrifying as it sounds?
Holy shit that sounds wild. Let me know your thoughts if you end up reading it.

The next two books which I just received. I think I’m going to read liftoff first.
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BadBurger

Many “Whelps”! Handle It!
The Midnight Library via Audible, read by Carey Mulligan. A depressed British woman who's life is passing her by stumbles into an otherworldly library in-between the worlds of the living and the dead. Still very early in but it's very good so far.

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Troubled Blood (Cormoran Strike #5). The now thoroughly famous private detectives on another case, this time their first cold case, attempting to discover the fate of a woman who disappeared nearly forty years ago and may have been the victim of an infamous serial killer - who is still alive and imprisoned nearby. I am about 10% through the Kindle edition and it is a return to form for J.K. Rowling after a rather boring #4 in the series.

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BlueAlpaca

Member
Just finished Dune audiobook, it wasn't bad but I was disappointed honestly. One of the greatest sci-fi books, I expected more. Definitely not going to read the rest of the books, especially with their reputations as lesser than the first.

Anybody here into audiobooks? I recently started exercising and music just wasn't enough to keep me from being bored on the treadmill. I barely can find anything interesting to watch on TV so that doesn't work for exercise either. Audiobooks are my savior now, I listen to them when exercising, before bed, and whenever I'm in the mood. Dune was the first, I think I'll go for a classic next. Don Quixote maybe.
 
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CloudNull

Banned
The Midnight Library via Audible, read by Carey Mulligan. A depressed British woman who's life is passing her by stumbles into an otherworldly library in-between the worlds of the living and the dead. Still very early in but it's very good so far.

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This is on my list to read. Will probably pick it up in my next set of books I get. It is supposed to be really good.
Anybody here into audiobooks? I recently started exercising and music just wasn't enough to keep me from being bored on the treadmill. I barely can find anything interesting to watch on TV so that doesn't work for exercise either. Audiobooks are my savior now, I listen to them when exercising, before bed, and whenever I'm in the mood. Dune was the first, I think I'll go for a classic next. Don Quixote maybe.

I use to do Audiobooks everyday on public transit. With Covid I have stopped using them and have to actually carve out time to read now. I might go back as things slowly go back to normal and things get more hectic.
 

BigBooper

Member
Just finished Dune audiobook, it wasn't bad but I was disappointed honestly. One of the greatest sci-fi books, I expected more. Definitely not going to read the rest of the books, especially with their reputations as lesser than the first.

Anybody here into audiobooks? I recently started exercising and music just wasn't enough to keep me from being bored on the treadmill. I barely can find anything interesting to watch on TV so that doesn't work for exercise either. Audiobooks are my savior now, I listen to them when exercising, before bed, and whenever I'm in the mood. Dune was the first, I think I'll go for a classic next. Don Quixote maybe.
I do, but almost exclusively on long drives. Occasionally the performance of the narrator adds to the experience. I got a couple of DnD audiobooks from audible that I'm sure I wouldn't have enjoyed as much if I read them.
 

Guileless

Temp Banned for Remedial Purposes
I listen to audiobooks while walking, commuting, or just doing household chores. Currently listening to Les Miserables. It's taking a while.
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
I wish was still in contact with the person who recommended this series to me........so I could slap them across the face.

Fuck me, this series is tedious. Did Brando Sanderson have dirt on the editor or hold them to gun point? Absolutely no reason for these books to be as long as they are. You could cut a good 50% from each book and you wouldn't lose anything of value.

Book one was okay and was an interesting idea, although the overall world and a majority of the characters were dull. Book 2 was absolute dog shit. Almost 750 pages and the plot hardly goes anywhere at all.

However, I have this thing where if I start a series then I HAVE to finish it. This is why I've never started the Wheel of Time series, because if I hate it at book one then I'm fucked.

Anyway, I'm 100 pages into this and it's so far better than book 2, but that's not saying much and I still have hundreds of pages to go.

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Shai-Tan

Banned
Just finished Dune audiobook, it wasn't bad but I was disappointed honestly. One of the greatest sci-fi books, I expected more. Definitely not going to read the rest of the books, especially with their reputations as lesser than the first.

Anybody here into audiobooks? I recently started exercising and music just wasn't enough to keep me from being bored on the treadmill. I barely can find anything interesting to watch on TV so that doesn't work for exercise either. Audiobooks are my savior now, I listen to them when exercising, before bed, and whenever I'm in the mood. Dune was the first, I think I'll go for a classic next. Don Quixote maybe.
I have trouble following more densely written books in audio format because my mind will wander for a second and I'll miss an important detail. I mostly stick to pulp garbage like the Dan Abnett Warhammer books. Non fiction is easier to listen to due to repetition. I'd like if anyone has suggestions for any kind of fiction (literary, sci fi, fantasy, short stories, anything) that I won't have to rewind over and over
 

CloudNull

Banned
I have trouble following more densely written books in audio format because my mind will wander for a second and I'll miss an important detail. I mostly stick to pulp garbage like the Dan Abnett Warhammer books. Non fiction is easier to listen to due to repetition. I'd like if anyone has suggestions for any kind of fiction (literary, sci fi, fantasy, short stories, anything) that I won't have to rewind over and over
Check out CyberStorm. Incredible book that is a standalone title and super easy to read/listen too. The author did a follow up series which is full blown SciFi. I have yet to dip my toes into that series but I highly recommend Cyberstorm.
 

Tenaciousmo

Member
I was on a junji ito binge lately, read no longer human, tomie and re read uzumaki.

No longer human is creeping up real close to uzumaki as a favorite. It's oppressive nature really hit hard imo. Great depressing story with a fitting end for such a despicable main character.

Just started reading ordinary men from Christopher R. Browning this morning and noticed i read 3x faster with my finger... i dont know why i can't emulate the same speed with just my eyes but, it feels weird, but hey i will be reading more books if i can nail the speed down without a the finger
 

BadBurger

Many “Whelps”! Handle It!
I finished J.K Rowling's most recent detective novel. It was OK. Looking forward to the eventual Max season of it on TV.
 

mango drank

Member
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Klara and the Sun (no spoilers)
I read this based on the earlier mention of it in this thread, and also because I'd seen the movie adaptation of Never Let Me Go a few years back--I loved the movie and I'd always meant to get around to reading some of Ishiguro's stuff. Klara felt like a cross between Never Let Me Go and A.I. Artificial Intelligence. It had the same eerie fever-dream feels as both movies, similar themes, similar near-future vaguely dystopian settings, similar bittersweetness. Overall, it was pretty good, and I enjoyed the experience. Ishiguro does a masterful job of putting you inside the humanlike-but-clearly-not-human internal experience and mental processes of the main character. There are stretches of genius in the book, and I was in awe of the author's ability to stir up the moods he did. And while the magic trick of getting me to feel pangs of empathy and sadness for a robot were impressive, overall the book felt a little looser and less impactful than I was expecting, given the author's reputation. But still, good stuff, and I definitely understand the appeal. This stuff is right up my alley. I'll check out more of his books soon.
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
iP3Yrjw.jpg


Klara and the Sun (no spoilers)
I read this based on the earlier mention of it in this thread, and also because I'd seen the movie adaptation of Never Let Me Go a few years back--I loved the movie and I'd always meant to get around to reading some of Ishiguro's stuff. Klara felt like a cross between Never Let Me Go and A.I. Artificial Intelligence. It had the same eerie fever-dream feels as both movies, similar themes, similar near-future vaguely dystopian settings, similar bittersweetness. Overall, it was pretty good, and I enjoyed the experience. Ishiguro does a masterful job of putting you inside the humanlike-but-clearly-not-human internal experience and mental processes of the main character. There are stretches of genius in the book, and I was in awe of the author's ability to stir up the moods he did. And while the magic trick of getting me to feel pangs of empathy and sadness for a robot were impressive, overall the book felt a little looser and less impactful than I was expecting, given the author's reputation. But still, good stuff, and I definitely understand the appeal. This stuff is right up my alley. I'll check out more of his books soon.

Read Remains of the Day next. Easily one of my favourite books of all time.

In terms of my reading, I've gone back to nonfiction and I'm half way through this beautiful little book.

If you're interested in Stars and how the first starts formed in the universe, then I highly recommend this book.

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Just finished George Orwell's 1984 for the first time.

About that ending...
For some reason, the whole time I was expecting some kind of happy ending. With the protagonist's or humanity's triumph over big brother. Some kind of pay off at the end of all this pain.

But nope! It just got darker and darker. And right into torture until they totaly break him. Brainwash him. Turn him into one of them. And once he is fully converted into loving big brother he is executed. The end.

Dark as fuck!
 

TheUsual

Gold Member
Feels like I'm really late to the party on it, but I've been reading Dune. After seeing the movie trailer for the movie adaptation, I've decided to check it out. Really liking it so far.
 
I was on a junji ito binge lately, read no longer human, tomie and re read uzumaki.

No longer human is creeping up real close to uzumaki as a favorite. It's oppressive nature really hit hard imo. Great depressing story with a fitting end for such a despicable main character.

Just started reading ordinary men from Christopher R. Browning this morning and noticed i read 3x faster with my finger... i dont know why i can't emulate the same speed with just my eyes but, it feels weird, but hey i will be reading more books if i can nail the speed down without a the finger

I think thats the manga version right?

I read the original novel version of No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai just 2 months ago.

It was very well written and interesting. But also extremely bleak and dark.

There was a movie version that I watched this year. Not a great film. But it got me interested in the original material.
 

Tenaciousmo

Member
I think thats the manga version right?

I read the original novel version of No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai just 2 months ago.

It was very well written and interesting. But also extremely bleak and dark.

There was a movie version that I watched this year. Not a great film. But it got me interested in the original material.
The manga really made me want to read the original too. i believe the bleak and dark following the manga
 

Pilgrimzero

Member
Recently read To Kill a Mockingbird which was FANTASTIC. If you've only seen the film I highly recommend the book.

Also, a sci-fi fantasy novel called "Gideon the Ninth" via Audiobook. The reader being a brit made it such a pleasure to listen to and the 2 main characters Gideon and Harrowhawk are such great frenemies. Currently listening to the sequel "Harrow the Ninth".
 

BadBurger

Many “Whelps”! Handle It!
I am almost done catching up on The Forgotten Realms, the period between The Time of Troubles and the Second Sundering - I've been reading all of the books I missed. On the final one, The Herald: The Sundering by Ed Greenwood. Only three chapters in and it's funny how much better of an author he is than Salvatore and the others they hire to crank these books out.
 

BigBooper

Member
I am almost done catching up on The Forgotten Realms, the period between The Time of Troubles and the Second Sundering - I've been reading all of the books I missed. On the final one, The Herald: The Sundering by Ed Greenwood. Only three chapters in and it's funny how much better of an author he is than Salvatore and the others they hire to crank these books out.
You ever tried an audiobook for The Forgotten Realms? Any recommendation on best start, or just start with the first? I've not read any of them, but I've got a long trip coming up and I need something to listen to. I read a couple of the Drizzt books and liked them.
 
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