Seems like a book coop.
Guy supports local authors and looks like they do some light publishing and promoting of local writing.
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What are you reading? (December 2012)
- Thread starter Maklershed
- Start date
Seems like a book coop.
Guy supports local authors and looks like they do some light publishing and promoting of local writing.
Small Singaporean bookstore started by young folks. Has an oddly fine awareness of design and identity for an independent venture and a strong creative initiative and community ethic. The documentary basically describes the origins of the store and its character.
And they're charming people, struggling* pretty nobly against landlord whim.
*They had to make an emergency appeal a little while back to make the rent. Which is only going to go up.
I'm almost finished with this and liked it quite a bit. It starts out really interesting with the old people enlisting for war, but it feels like it does too little with this. I was also expecting a bit more action than what I got, but the book has got some funny moments that got me laughing. Which is kind of rare for a book. For that price I'd definitely recommend it.
Oh, and it was in the Humble eBook Bundle so you may already have it.
With low expectations, maybe.
Guileless
Temp Banned for Remedial Purposes
I finished The Black Prism by Brent Weeks. I got it a while ago in a Kindle sale and started it on a whim without knowing anything about the plot or the author other than he is fairly popular around here. I chose it because I haven't read any fantasy since January, but I had no idea how long it was. That's the weird thing about e-readers, not having a sense of how many pages and how big the type is when you start a book. I wouldn't have chosen it if I knew how long it was because I've been reading giant books all year for some reason, bit I'm glad I did pick it now since it was a good read. I will keep reading the trilogy.
I just got an old Ian McEwan novel from the Kindle lending library called The Comfort of Strangers and also listening to the latest Gabriel Allon novel via Audible while out walking the dog.
I just got an old Ian McEwan novel from the Kindle lending library called The Comfort of Strangers and also listening to the latest Gabriel Allon novel via Audible while out walking the dog.
Yeah I thought it was a much better effort than his Night Angel Trilogy. I'm slowly reading through the second book, and from what I've read so far it's actually an improvement on the first. It gives off a very Sanderson-esque feel.
Dr.NoiseWater
Member
How is this book? It looks pretty cool, but I am judging it by its cover.
Dr.NoiseWater
Member
There are so many cool books on here I would like to read. I would have probably never known about them without reading everyone's opinions and posts!
Just to add my two cents, OP. For your list of resources, have you ever seen the NPR Sci-Fi/Fantasy flow chart? I posted it in another thread but I think its still relevant.
Here is a small pic of it... It can kind of guide anyone through a list of books that have been popular in both the sci-fi/fantasy genres. It helps you choose a book according to your tastes. Maybe everyone has already seen this but I thought it was awesome.
Just to add my two cents, OP. For your list of resources, have you ever seen the NPR Sci-Fi/Fantasy flow chart? I posted it in another thread but I think its still relevant.
Here is a small pic of it... It can kind of guide anyone through a list of books that have been popular in both the sci-fi/fantasy genres. It helps you choose a book according to your tastes. Maybe everyone has already seen this but I thought it was awesome.
You should check out the trilogy he wrote in the same world that came before that book. Starts with "The Blade Itself". Pretty much every Abercrombie fan I see talking about his books says to check out the trilogy first.
I'm halfway through the third one and it's been amazing so far.
(if you already know all this then please ignore my dumb post)
AngmarsKing701
Member
Awesome. Do you like revenge? Bloody, at all costs revenge? Then this is the book.
Edit: And I agree with post above this. Read the trilogy first.
AngmarsKing701
Member
Thanks for posting! That's a great flowchart. Major fuckup not having Abercrombie on it, but there are some books I'm looking into now.
Maklershed
Member
I'd recommend reading The First Law trilogy first if you haven't because you'll have more appreciation for the characters but to answer your question - it's great! I loved it.
eattomorro
Neo Member
Still reading Titanicus as my outside book(and so far it's pretty enjoyable), and finished Old City Hall by Robert Rotenberg last night. If you ever wanted to read about the inner workings of the Canadian justice system, this would be the book for you.
As for my new inside book going to start reading, The Metal Giants and Others: The Collected Edmond Hamilton, Volume One. My order for it came in last week and I'm super excited to get into it.
As for my new inside book going to start reading, The Metal Giants and Others: The Collected Edmond Hamilton, Volume One. My order for it came in last week and I'm super excited to get into it.
nakedsushi
Member
Ugh just finished this. I mostly skimmed the last half because the writing was just so bad.
The Wealthy Barber Returns by David Chilton
I feel bad for giving a 1 star rating to a book I got as a gift, but man, this book was bad. The jokes were bad. The writing was bad. The advice was stupid-simple or irrelevant to me because it's written for Canadians and I live in the US. Maybe I should have just started with The Wealthy Barber instead of this one.
The Wealthy Barber Returns by David Chilton
I feel bad for giving a 1 star rating to a book I got as a gift, but man, this book was bad. The jokes were bad. The writing was bad. The advice was stupid-simple or irrelevant to me because it's written for Canadians and I live in the US. Maybe I should have just started with The Wealthy Barber instead of this one.
I finished up A Feast of Crows and I feel it was a great addition to the series. Martin built out the world and developed his characters a bit more. It was also interesting to only hear half of the chronological story. I've just started A Dance with Dragons. Perhaps after reading that I can then traverse the Internet safely.
Thank you. I'll probably get to it after Dance.
nakedsushi
Member
What books do you recommend in the personal finance subject? I'd like to read one that cleanses my palate of this one.
I've read the The Big Sleep. And I'm now settling into Pooh Bear, the original novel. That shouldn't take long, so I'm thinking of reading Wind of the Willows.
Not a bad couple of books to put on the read before you die list.
Bring on the end of world, I always say. The following morning always seems so much sweeter.
edit:
The Pooh Bear stories are full of illustrations; so in case you've never seen the original covers, here they are:
Not a bad couple of books to put on the read before you die list.
Bring on the end of world, I always say. The following morning always seems so much sweeter.
edit:
The Pooh Bear stories are full of illustrations; so in case you've never seen the original covers, here they are:
sazabirules
Unconfirmed Member
I'm taking a personal finance course next semester and this is one of the books I ordered for it. I like it so far and probably finish reading it before the class even begins.
Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance In Your Twenties and Thirties by Beth Kobliner
I'm a little more than halfway through
And I'm really really enjoying it. Especially now that the separate characters are interacting.
And everyone loves Ninefingers, but I've seen no love at all for Jezal. He's such an asshole, and anytime where you maybe see a little good coming out, he flips the asshole switch on you. Slowly but surely though! Very loveable character, totally growing on me.
And I'm really really enjoying it. Especially now that the separate characters are interacting.
And everyone loves Ninefingers, but I've seen no love at all for Jezal. He's such an asshole, and anytime where you maybe see a little good coming out, he flips the asshole switch on you. Slowly but surely though! Very loveable character, totally growing on me.
Setre
Member
I'm a little more than halfway through
And I'm really really enjoying it. Especially now that the separate characters are interacting.
And everyone loves Ninefingers, but I've seen no love at all for Jezal. He's such an asshole, and anytime where you maybe see a little good coming out, he flips the asshole switch on you. Slowly but surely though! Very loveable character, totally growing on me.
Actually finished reading this the other day and completely agree with you about Jezal. Every time it switched to his perspective I had a grin on my face, such a loveable asshole.
I also finished Postmortal by Drew Magary today and really liked it. I felt the ending dragged a bit though and seemed out of place for John's character.
choodi
Banned
I'm a little more than halfway through
And I'm really really enjoying it. Especially now that the separate characters are interacting.
And everyone loves Ninefingers, but I've seen no love at all for Jezal. He's such an asshole, and anytime where you maybe see a little good coming out, he flips the asshole switch on you. Slowly but surely though! Very loveable character, totally growing on me.
I never got the "lovable" part of any of the characters. As a result I just didn't like the book and have put of reading the sequel, even though it is sitting on my kindle.
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
Finished off my re-read of The Hobbit (it had been close to a decade). Polished off A Clash of Kings in my fantasy reading momentum. I have a lot of sci-fi to read, so I'll probably swap genres. The Windup Girl perhaps.
Question: Clash of Kings started to lose my interest slightly. Should I bother continuing? Is Storm of Swords chock full of ten-out-of-ten plot twists? That's what I really liked about the first book and the first half of the second.
Question: Clash of Kings started to lose my interest slightly. Should I bother continuing? Is Storm of Swords chock full of ten-out-of-ten plot twists? That's what I really liked about the first book and the first half of the second.
There are so many cool books on here I would like to read. I would have probably never known about them without reading everyone's opinions and posts!
Just to add my two cents, OP. For your list of resources, have you ever seen the NPR Sci-Fi/Fantasy flow chart? I posted it in another thread but I think its still relevant.
Here is a small pic of it... It can kind of guide anyone through a list of books that have been popular in both the sci-fi/fantasy genres. It helps you choose a book according to your tastes. Maybe everyone has already seen this but I thought it was awesome.
Do you have a larger version of this?
I just got a Nook HD tonight, so I'm really looking forward to reading again (since it will be a lot more convenient now).
Gonna browse through the thread for stuff that may interest me, but some recommendations would be great as well.
If y'all had to choose only one book to represent your absolute favorite, which would it be. Doesn't necessarily have to be one you feel would be the best to recommend to someone, but the book that actually means the most to you.
For me, at this moment in time, it would have to be the Sandman series by Neil Gaiman.
A pretty decent review/summary:
http://www.energybulletin.net/stories/2012-09-12/review-too-much-magic-james-kunstler
EnergyBulletin said:
It's a book examining the predicament that humanity is facing regarding energy supplies and raw materials going further into this century. Humanity's demand for these resources is increasing, and all of the low-hanging fruit is gone. To be clear, Kunstler doesn't think that this will be apocalyptic - it just means that we'll be in for some historically significant stresses regarding how we live and run our civilization. He's actually quite a funny, cheerful guy, and if anything the historical content of his books (urban design, history of energy, streetcar history, etc) is downright fascinating.
It probably wouldn't be too popular a book around here, as many folks tend to have unusual faith in the idea that technology will somehow magically save the day.. hehe..
Finished Old Man's War yesterday. I liked it but it wasn't anything special. As I said, I think the concept with the old people was interesting, but the author didn't to anything with it. It had some funny moments but the action was a bit lacking. Nice if you got it during a sale or in the humble bundle.
edit: seconds late XD
Nooooo
I just saw this post and I started messaging you on IRC but you aren't logged in. I will have to wait to hear your post-sleep thoughts now!
If you haven't read The Urth of the New Sun, do so now and your mind will be blown further
And since I'm posting, might as well update here. I read Dusty! Queen of the Postmods, which is a more academic look at Dusty Springfield's career, musical influence, and cultural significance. I quite enjoyed it, though I think that was possibly colored by the fact that I'm a complete fanboy.
I am now reading Ursula K LeGuin's Four Ways to Forgiveness. It is not hitting the same heights as The Dispossessed or [/i]The Left Hand of Darkness[/i], but it is still great. I like the way she starts painting her worlds in really broad strokes and then sort of fills in the details as she goes. It really works well.
Just started:
My second favourite Russian author, and for my money the best short-story writer ever.
I'm an idiot, but how do you link the cover image to the Goodreads profile?
YEAH, HIGH FIVE! I think without him I probably wouldn't read at all.
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
Always been curious so gave this a shot. Darker than expected and I had a soft spot for the overly defined terms that left it accessible and ready to go in a situation where it might be read aloud to kids.
TekWar by William Shatner
Struck me as an average detective story with some slapdash sci-fi elements that didn't really add all that much. However, the Beth Kittridge stuff was strangely satisfying but not so much to pursue the series further.
Maklershed
Member
Finished The Lost World this morning and starting Roadside Picnic
Roadside Picnic by Arkady Strugatsky
Roadside Picnic by Arkady Strugatsky
I'm a little more than halfway through
And I'm really really enjoying it. Especially now that the separate characters are interacting.
And everyone loves Ninefingers, but I've seen no love at all for Jezal. He's such an asshole, and anytime where you maybe see a little good coming out, he flips the asshole switch on you. Slowly but surely though! Very loveable character, totally growing on me.
I just started this. I'm 16 pages in! Picked up the boxed set on pre-order and it arrived yesterday. Decided to pause the Ender quartet (I'm up to Xenocide) to give this a run.
Too early to have an opinion yet.
He was also a favorite character of mine, right up there with the drunk mercenary leader whose name escapes me.
Finished:
and
Neverwhere is probably my favorite Gaiman novel, but that's still far from being a favorite book. I appreciate his endless imagination and clever writing, but I do prefer deeper plotlines and characters. At least this one was easy to follow and a fun ride (coughAmericanGodscough).
The Fault in Our Stars is wildly different than something I'd normally read (teen cancer love story), but hey, I'm always up for trying something new. My wife enjoyed it and wanted to know what I thought. The first 100 pages were a little questionable simply due to the writing style... felt a little too pretentious and show-offy, and I just could not imagine 16 year olds talking like that. Really killed any kind of immersion. He did tone it down after the first 100 pages though, and I enjoyed it much more for that reason. In fact, when he's not trying to flaunt his cleverness and big words, he's a very good writer, especially with dialogue.
AngmarsKing701
Member
I finished The Name of the Wind two weeks ago (which I both absolutely loved and devoured) and just started this. This is a pretty large read and I'm enjoying it so far even if there does seem to be quite a bit of set up. I'm only 200 pages into this beast but looking forward to spending some more time with it. Sanderson hasn't let me down yet.
AngmarsKing701
Member
I finished The Name of the Wind two weeks ago (which I both absolutely loved and devoured) and just started this. This is a pretty large read and I'm enjoying it so far even if there does seem to be quite a bit of set up. I'm only 200 pages into this beast but looking forward to spending some more time with it. Sanderson hasn't let me down yet.
It's a great book. I am concerned about there being 10 of these tomes though. If it takes you 10,000 pages to tell a story, then it better be one helluva story or you killed your editor.
sparky2112
Member
Yeah, but he'll finish before Martin does. Unless Martin has a giant HBO fire under his ass, which I doubt.
That's it! I'm really looking forward to Red Country since I've read all the other books, just waiting for the library to get a copy back. Should be soon I hope!
Honestly I felt like the first half of the book (500 pages) was build-up. It was interesting build-up in a world I already love, so I didn't mind, and the payoffs in the second half are absolutely worth it. Aside from Mistborn, this is easily my favorite Sanderson novel (and he's my favorite author).
AngmarsKing701
Member
I love Sanderson too. I started with Elantris because it was a stand-alone. Haven't looked back since, though I haven't gotten to Alloy of Law yet.
Thankfully Sanderson writes like a machine and/or is secretly 3 people. So it actually seems feasible that he can finish this. Especially now that's he's done with Wheel of Time.
AngmarsKing701
Member
I didn't say he couldn't finish it. I'm just worried it's going to be a slogfest by the time we get into books 3, 4, 5, 6, etc. 10,000 pages is a shit-ton of story.
Nah I think he'll be fine. He's been working on the overall story for years and years... if he feels it will take that much to tell the story he wants to tell, I'm all for it. The world is certainly big and interesting enough to support it, just judging from the "intro" book.
sparky2112
Member
Plus, who better to learn from about story 'sag' than Jordan? Sanderson has a unique seat at that table particular table.