I've only gotten about a third through it, so maybe it gets much better. I really want to like it, there's just not a lot going on to pull me in.
Or I'm in one of my weird reading ruts when it comes to fiction.
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What are you reading? (November 2014)
- Thread starter Maklershed
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Or I'm in one of my weird reading ruts when it comes to fiction.
H.Protagonist
[-_-]/
I've only read the Rider series and the Foreigner books (<-- which I also really enjoyed) from her. I'm reluctant to dive into anything else of hers at the moment since everything else seems really sci-fi and I'm kind of on an urban paranormal or fantasy kick. I get what you're saying, though. Maybe that's why I'm avoiding her other stuff? Rider at the Gate felt very light and enjoyable, though, so it's worth a pick up if you see it at the store, IMO.
I've been reading Tanith Lee's Night's Master but not really enjoying it. Weird too, because it's kind of what I enjoy writing. (Folktales and such.)
I just haven't found a book I've enjoyed since I put Consider Phlebas on hold for being so generic.
Do it. You won't regret it.
Le Guin is my queen.
What do you feel in the mood for, then? Or if you're not sure and that's why you're floundering on books, what do you normally like to read?
I try to switch between nonfiction and fiction, but the last two fiction choices have kind of been a bust.
I thought maybe picking up something light like a fantasy YA novel would be good considering all the dense readings I have to do for my research, but it's hard to find stuff that's in the vein of Garth Nix's Abhorsen stuff, Diana Wynne Jones's Howl's Moving Castle, Lloyd Alexander's Prydain Chronicles or Tanith Lee's stuff. Something short and sweet.
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
I plowed through A Wizard Of Earthsea and now I see the charm. I got very wrapped up in the story and details and the prose didn't bother me as much. I like the world LeGuin has built and I like that the story doesn't overstay its welcome.
Lofty word usage and endless references to lands abroad ruled by men of strange tradition are what usually drive me away from fantasy. In this case, it made me wary but didn't really matter once the second and third acts began.
Lofty word usage and endless references to lands abroad ruled by men of strange tradition are what usually drive me away from fantasy. In this case, it made me wary but didn't really matter once the second and third acts began.
themagicalkitsune
Member
Just started Stephen King's "The Stand".
I'm about 20% into The Peripheral and it's probably common knowledge here, but I'm going to go ahead and say it anyway: it's a new sci fi book by William Gibson. We're back to Neuromancer style in the sense that it's about a future world, really cool characters and interesting internet themes(not cyberpunk though). So yea, that's kind of a big deal.
H.Protagonist
[-_-]/
Oh, Lawd. Wrote a crap ton of recommendations out, then went and browsed through your GoodReads list and had to cross off like 90%. Haha.
*The Thief (Megan Whalen Turner) - A thief, a magus, and a rather difficult little mission. Fantasy, compact world/story, clever, not shallow but not heavy. It's a bit slow at first, but it has payoff, and if you want something relaxing to read, this might be an option. There are also two more books in the series that are even better, IMO, so you'd have something to look forward to too if you liked it.
Engaging, and not too heavy, but not quite fantastical fantasy per se:
Bartimaeus Trilogy (Jonathan Stroud) - Victorian London, magic and djinns. Was really, really engrossing, intelligently written, and entertaining. Might be a bit more serious than you're looking for, but it's worth a read for sure.
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell - Alternative history angle: Magic revival in England around the time of the Napolenoic Wars. Not what I'd call short, but the prose is clever/witty and Austen-esque without being heavy or mired.
Hmmm... Listing these out I'm getting a real sense of what kind of fantasy I've been reading lately... -_-;
I'm a little over 80 pages into this and I don't know what to think. Guess I'll keep reading.
Pretentious drivel that made me feel soiled after reading it.
nintendork666
Member
I'm around 150 pages deep in Robert Jordan's The Eye of the World right now.
That is the feeling I am kinda getting from it, but I have admit that I am enjoying all the world building.
Oh no, I hope I didn't waste too much of your time.
But thank you so much for the recommendations! I've heard of the first two, but wasn't too sure how they stood up. I have Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell at my parents' house. I got about halfway through, but this was also back when it was first published. I should revisit it one of these days.So if someone said they enjoyed the Ghibli's Earthsea adaptation more than the books, what would happen to you?
The question wasn't directed to me but.
I had a science teacher in middle school who liked the sci-fi channel miniseries more than the novel.
At least the Ghibli movie is pretty.
Oh no, I hope I didn't waste too much of your time.
H.Pro, this is probably true about every book that you want Pau to read.
Tan exagerado!
If I already own the book, chances are it's there because I have no space in my apartment.
One day I will get a real place with beautiful shelves and bring all my books with me and we will live happily ever after.Just finished the Liveship Traders trilogy, I did enjoy it but i think the Farseer Trilogy was better.
My main problem with this trilogy was the number of times the character got the wrong end of the stick when it came to personnel relationships, pretty much every time a character would come to a conclusion about a situation, what they thought was actually the opposite of what was going on, you would have thought that by the end they would have learned to at least consider other possibility's with the number of times their assumptions turned out to be wrong. By the end the misunderstandings actually annoyed me a little.
Other than that the story was pretty good, I quite liked how it was slowly revealed that Amber was the Fool, the few hints earlier in the books made me think that Amber was the Fool only to dismiss the thought a few chapters later when something happened that made me think it was just a coincidence, It wasn't until the slave earring she wore was discussed that was obviously the one Fitz gave to the Fool that I knew for sure.
The world is certainly getting interesting, looking forward to the Tawny Man trilogy.
Other than that the story was pretty good, I quite liked how it was slowly revealed that Amber was the Fool, the few hints earlier in the books made me think that Amber was the Fool only to dismiss the thought a few chapters later when something happened that made me think it was just a coincidence, It wasn't until the slave earring she wore was discussed that was obviously the one Fitz gave to the Fool that I knew for sure.
The world is certainly getting interesting, looking forward to the Tawny Man trilogy.
itsjustsurvival
Member
Have finally gotten around to reading The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov. Enjoying it so far.
moojito
Member
Finally got round to finishing Storm Front by Jim Butcher. Took me a couple of tries to get into it, but by the end I thought it was pretty good. Plenty more where that came from as well it seems, which is nice.
Moving onto the color of magic by Terry Pratchett, another one I've had a couple of stabs at in the past without any success, but all those people recommending it can't be wrong.
Moving onto the color of magic by Terry Pratchett, another one I've had a couple of stabs at in the past without any success, but all those people recommending it can't be wrong.
SniperHunter
Banned
Just finished reading Masters of Doom last night. John Carmack is fucking incredible and an inspirational fellow
The Color of Magic is probably one of his weakest books, so don't feel bad about skipping it. I think Mort, The Hogfather, Wyrd Sisters, or The Wee Free Men are better places to start and give you an idea of what his more mature style and stories are like.
H.Protagonist
[-_-]/
Oh no, I hope I didn't waste too much of your time.
No, no, not at all. My eyebrows just climbed progressively higher as I went through your list and understood just how much you've read and what a challenge I'd signed myself up for. ^_^ We like a lot of the same stuff, so I think I'm the one who's really benefiting here by trolling through your picks.
Give The Thief a try. Like I said, it's slower paced, but enjoyable nonetheless. A decent breather book. I was surprised at how much I liked the Bartimaeus trilogy, too, when I read it.
I also remember Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell being a pleasant surprise when I picked it up on a whim. There's something about English sensibilities and the social dances they did back then that made it such an entertaining read. It's worth finishing, for sure.
Ah, and, it's not fantasy, but since you're such a Pratchett fan, have you ever read Red Dwarf?
The 'it's at my parent's house' excuse, eh? Well, I know one book that's short and available to read any time that she could have at the press of a button.
It's cold outside, wrong kind of atmosphere...
Hey ReadGAF, I'm looking for a couple of Non-fiction recommendations. The only real economics primers I've read so far are The Ascent of Money and I suppose to some extent Freakonomics and Superfreakanomics. I'm looking into maybe some kind of economic primer about the transition from feudal/agrarian economics to industrial economics and its effects on nations, and also specifically Asian historical economics. If anyone has recommendations I'd love to hear them (though I'll also trawl the OP after I leave this comment)
Hey ReadGAF, I'm looking for a couple of Non-fiction recommendations. The only real economics primers I've read so far are The Ascent of Money and I suppose to some extent Freakonomics and Superfreakanomics. I'm looking into maybe some kind of economic primer about the transition from feudal/agrarian economics to industrial economics and its effects on nations, and also specifically Asian historical economics. If anyone has recommendations I'd love to hear them (though I'll also trawl the OP after I leave this comment)
I'm a little over 80 pages into this and I don't know what to think. Guess I'll keep reading.
Better writing than 90% of the fantasy drivel thats popular now.
It ain't what you're particularly after, but you can't miss E.P. Thompson's Customs in Common
william_557
Member
Five centuries if english verse though i have it on the shelf and haven't read much of it
The Expanse, book 3. It's good, and i really like multiple PoVs handed well, but the series as a whole lacks.. something. I can't exactly pinpoint what, and i have no complaints that i can ground in evidence, but.. there's something missing.
The Baron in the Trees is great. Really great.
The Path to the Spiders' Nests is extremely hit or miss; but could be worth a shot.
The Baron in the Trees is great. Really great.
The Path to the Spiders' Nests is extremely hit or miss; but could be worth a shot.
Broken: fantastic true story of a former Olympian turned soldier and then a very long series of unfortunate events follows. Both heart-breaking and uplifting to see the power of the human spirit/mind triumph. To be a movie soon (of course)
Yesterday's Gone: episodic book series that is kind of like the TV show The Leftovers with a heavy supernatural spin. Cross between the Walking Dead and The Leftovers. Basically one day 99.9% of the world's population ups and vanishes. It follows the stories of separate characters (but of course they will soon be connected). It's decent, but really addicting, starting Season 2 today. I'm a huge Hugh Howey fan (Wool, Sand, and his short stories) and the first episode of Season 1 of this series was in a Dystopian Future collection that Hugh Howey was in.
Yesterday's Gone: episodic book series that is kind of like the TV show The Leftovers with a heavy supernatural spin. Cross between the Walking Dead and The Leftovers. Basically one day 99.9% of the world's population ups and vanishes. It follows the stories of separate characters (but of course they will soon be connected). It's decent, but really addicting, starting Season 2 today. I'm a huge Hugh Howey fan (Wool, Sand, and his short stories) and the first episode of Season 1 of this series was in a Dystopian Future collection that Hugh Howey was in.
I recommend from The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some Are So Rich and Some So Poor by David S. Landes.
He was (dead) an economic historian form Harvard. In this book he tries to explain why the West develop the conditions for the Industrial Revolution. He makes his argument by describing different parts of the world. The chapters on China and Japan are particularly interesting.
Landes argument for the disparity in wealth boils down to the difference in cultural elements that allowed economies to utilize science as a tool for economic development. Because the book compares different cultures and that combined with the authors witty tone the book is somewhat controversial. Being accused of having a Eurocentric view of history, that is unjustified in my opinion.
You should read this paper from him Why Europe and the West? Why Not China? To see if you are ok with his arguments and writing style. I still would recommend this book if only for immense amount of anecdotes that it has.
User 479360
Banned
Drake
Member
Started reading Malazan book of the fallen again. I read the 1st 4 books about a year and a half ago, but I forgot a lot of the major plot points. Started re-reading Gardens of the Moon which I should finish in the next couple of days. It's gonna take me forever to get through all 10 books, but I'm looking forward to it.
Maklershed
Member
If I remember correctly this was covered in Guns, Germs, and Steel. Might be worth looking into.
bengraven
Member
Glad to know that one of her trilogies I haven't read sounds just as emotionally frustrating as her "main" trilogies. Since I read the Tawny Man trilogy first, the "Amber" reveal isn't something that will shock me too much (though i still am up in the air about the Fool's sex...). But I'm glad to know I might not have missed too much.
Yea I'm still not sure about that either,
by the end of the Liveship trilogy i was certain he Fool was female, first few chapters of the Tawny Man trilogy and I am unsure again
OfWhiteSkinOnRedLeather
Member
Currently about 2/3 of the way through Deadhouse Gates. Read GofM just before this. I'm gonna take a break and read a few lighter and shorter books after the one. Plus, my library doesn't have the next book, but has the fourth and fifth books for some reason. smh
sparky2112
Member
I see what you did there.
Dead Prince
Banned
i need to hurry and be done with Malice so i can just read
i just buy random books.
i just buy random books.
Finished up The Boy Would Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To. It was alright, gripping enough that it got pretty intense in the later portion, but just really bogged down with dialogue that makes a YA labeled book feel even more YA (a label I don't like anyway). Still gave it 3/5 since It was hard to stop reading at a point and it was a fast enough read.
Now to decide what is next. Really debating Contact now since seeing Interstellar, but will decide later.
Now to decide what is next. Really debating Contact now since seeing Interstellar, but will decide later.
Glad to know that one of her trilogies I haven't read sounds just as emotionally frustrating as her "main" trilogies. Since I read the Tawny Man trilogy first, the "Amber" reveal isn't something that will shock me too much (though i still am up in the air about the Fool's sex...). But I'm glad to know I might not have missed too much.
Wow I read those books so long ago, loved them! Glad others are enjoying them as well. I read them right around the time I read A Song of Ice and Fire. Unfortunately most my knowledge of them is gone but I too read the Liveship Traders so a lot of it was spoiled already.
Parmadillo Marshmallow
Member
I'm around 150 pages deep in Robert Jordan's The Eye of the World right now.
I just finished that one and am about 150 pages into book 2. Glad I picked up the series. Great read even if it's pure Tolkien thievery. Honestly I don't care and I will probably read most of the series. Heard that there are some middle books to skip, like 6-9 or something like that.
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