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What are you reading? (October 2014)

Z

Zona

Member
Woorloog said:
In my experience, every single author has some odd quirks in their writing. Either they use one or more odd/rare words often, or a character always does something specific (braid-tugging for WoT fans...).
There's always something... and yes, they make drinking games very possible. And in some cases very, very dangerous.
Pretty sure TV tropes had some drinking game ideas...
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I don't know what your talking about. *Smooths Skirt*

Anyway since my last post I've read

Range-of-Ghosts_Elizabeth-Bear.jpg
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It seem to be a fantasy version of the mongrel empire at the death of Möngke Khan. I'm enjoying it even though it's less... out there then the last book I read from this author.

Also
ficudehi.jpg
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I enjoyed this one. The idea of a fairy tail retold is hardly new but this one was well done and the WW1 era setting was a cherry on top for me. Given that my taste in novels is mostly in the science fiction and fantasy realm it was also nice to get a well written female protagonist.

Finally

1186579.jpg
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I read all three of the books in this trilogy. It was ok, nothing really bad to say but nothing hugely good either. I did enjoy empire for being an odd cross between imperial China and imperial Rome.
 
B

bennywhatever

Member
I'm getting towards the end of Snow Crash and this is one awesome/crazy book.

I'm to the part right after Hiro is on the life boat with the 3 mafia guys and they just took out the Bruce Lee yacht and are heading towards the raft where YT and Raven just went
and I can just tell that shit's about to get real.
 
M

Mr.Swag

Banned
Anything like Nevermore put there? That book felt like Harry Potter for adults to me, would like to read something similar.
 
B

bennywhatever

Member
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
 
S

Substance D

Banned
bennywhatever said:
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
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Read "A Scanner Darkly" by Philip K Dick. It's probably the best book I've ever read, sci-fi or otherwise.
 
W

Woorloog

Banned
bennywhatever said:
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
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The Robot series and the Foundation series (including prequels and sequels) by Isaac Asimov.
Many Arthur C. Clarke's works, Earthlight is probably my favorite.
Frank Herbert's Dune (i need to find his other books, never seen them anywhere).
Larry Niven's Ringworld.
What else...
Robert Heinlein has interesting books but nothing i'd call a favorite.
 
H

Haly

One day I realized that sadness is just another word for not enough coffee.
If we're talking Asimov era (50-60s), I'd say Foundation, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, and Childhood's End cover the big name authors I'm familiar with.

Some more modern classics include Book of the New Sun, HItchhiker's Guide, Neuromancer, Ender's Shadow and Snow Crash.

And on the literary side of things you have 1984.
 
B

besada

Banned
bennywhatever said:
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
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Ringworld, Larry Niven
Footfall, Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
Lucifer's Hammer, Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
Dune, Frank Herbert
Whipping Star, Frank Herbert
2001: A space Odyssey, Arthur C. Clarke
Rendezvous with Rama, Arthur C. Clarke
A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller Jr.
A Fire Upon the Deep, Vernor Vinge
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Robert A. Heinlein
Dhalgren, Samuel Delany
The Dispossessed, Ursula K. Le Guin
The Space Merchants, Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth
The Man in the High Castle, Phillip K Dick
Behold the Man, Michael Moorcock
More than Human, Theodore Sturgeon
To Your Scattered Bodies Go, Phillip Jose Farmer
Gateway, Frederik Pohl
Camp concentration, Thomas Disch
Rossum's Universal Robots, Karel Capek
Titan, John Varley
The Best of C.M. Kornbluth, Cyril M. Kornbluth
Doomsday Book, Connie willis
Death World, Harry Harrison
The Iron Dream, Norman Spinrad
 
T

thomaser

Member
Almost done with the "Collected Stories" of Pushkin. Only his non-fiction history on Pugachev left. "The Captain's Daughter" was a good read, and "Queen of Spades" was brilliant.

In other news, Patrick Modiano from France was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature today. He's supposedly a very well known novelist, but only in France. I've never heard of him before. He has written a lot, and we'll likely see many of his books show up outside France pretty soon. Publishers are scrambling to re-print old and forgotten translations of his works as we speak.
 
F

FlyinJ

Douchebag. Yes, me.
Haly said:
Some more modern classics include Book of the New Sun, HItchhiker's Guide, Neuromancer, Ender's Shadow and Snow Crash.

And on the literary side of things you have 1984.
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I'm not really that into sci-fi these days, but I've read and enjoyed all of those listed (except the Ender's stuff... hated it).

Any other recommendations of more modern sci-fi I may be into? I'd also be into hard sci fi if it isn't too beard-stroking...
 
T

TheXbox

Member
FlyinJ said:
I'm not really that into sci-fi these days, but I've read and enjoyed all of those listed (except the Ender's stuff... hated it).

Any other recommendations of more modern sci-fi I may be into? I'd also be into hard sci fi if it isn't too beard-stroking...
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Contact is alright, The Mote in God's Eye is superb.
 
M

Mr.Swag

Banned
bennywhatever said:
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
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Vonneguts 'Sirens of Titan'
 
M

Mumei

Member
besada said:
You know, I like many classics. But if you'd compared it to Jane Austen, I would have known it wasn't for me. And as I was reading, all I could think of was, this is like Jane Austen in Chinese.

I'll still finish it once I reach my fifty, though.
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Eh. I'm not sure that Austen would be my personal point of reference. It's more like Zola or (I've heard, since I haven't read him yet) Balzac (especially in terms of scope), at least in its naturalism, attention to detail, and much wider range of character perspectives (in terms of number, age, class, etc.). I think the resemblance to Austen comes from the primarily upper-class setting - and the incisive character writing - but it's much more wide-ranging than that. I don't recall spending extended periods in the Austen that I've read seeing things from the perspective of the maids, for instance.

It's not that there's no resemblance, anyway; I just think it's encompasses that - and more. It is a novel of manners, but it covers a wider range of social class, I suppose is one way of putting it. There's a wonderful entry about Xueqin (and his only published work) in The Literary 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Novelists, Playwrights, and Poets of All Time, which concludes with a quote by Andrew H. Plaks, saying, "As a result, the work stands in its own cultural milieu as the major works of Homer, Virgil, Murasaki, Dante, Milton, Cervantes, Goethe, and more recently Proust and Joyce, do in theirs: as an encyclopedic compendium of an entire tradition in a form that itself serves as a model against which to judge works of less imposing stature."

Cyan said:
Wait now I think I should maybe actually read it.
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Well, this is what I've been telling you.
 
H

Haly

One day I realized that sadness is just another word for not enough coffee.
FlyinJ said:
I'm not really that into sci-fi these days, but I've read and enjoyed all of those listed (except the Ender's stuff... hated it).

Any other recommendations of more modern sci-fi I may be into? I'd also be into hard sci fi if it isn't too beard-stroking...
Click to expand...
I'm not sure precisely what you mean by "bread-stroking", but I'm going to assume you mean sci-fi stories written by neckbeards for neckbeards.

Try The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate, by Ted Chiang, which is a novella. It's a quick read, so this is a good a place as any to get started. If you enjoy that, you can move on to his short story collection Stories of Your Life and Others.

If you want to go into space and see aliens, then I recommend China Mieville's Embassytown and Ann Leckie's Ancillary Justice.

If you want something easy to digest, then James S.A. Corey's Leviathan Wakes and Hugh Howey's Wool are good choices for pulp sci-fi.

Student of sociology? I'll echo beseda here and recommend Ursula K. Le Guin's The Dispossessed, which is part of a loosely related series of books known as The Hainish Cycle. Every book in the Hainish Cycle is good, but her style is not for everyone.

I only have one other cyberpunk novel in my library and it's River of Gods by Ian McDonald, which is pretty good, but it's no Neuromancer, so there you go.

Caveat: These recommendations aren't really based off the titles you quoted because those are all standout works within their respective subgenres (okay, maybe not Ender) and they're tough acts to follow. They're just a bunch of selected books from my library that are "modern" and "good". Only Le Guin isn't "modern", because her sci-fi stuff dates back to the 70s.
 
N

Nappuccino

Member
Substance D said:
Yup :)

I'm currently trying to make it through "The exegesis of Philip K. Dick" but it's been pretty tough. Reading about his descent into madness just isn't doing it for me.
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I feel like his madness, while interesting, isn't enough to read about in depth. Most of it works best as anecdotes and inspiration for his writing.

Also, I've been reading this to review for class

JDpUabm.jpg


I've finished three of the stories and only one was pretty good. I'm a bit disappointed since it is clear Stroud can write when he wants to. However, his use of place seems a bit lacking (sure, his stories have had a range of several 100 years of time, but the writing voice doesn't make anything interesting of it). Then we have his endings to his stories which . . . are a bit lacking. They just kind of end and not in an open-ended artistic way . . . just kinda like he was done telling the story so it ended.

I'll keep on trucking (I mean, I have to review it as a whole), but ever time it grabs me, it pushes me back out just a few pages later.
 
H

hardcastlemccormick

Banned
bennywhatever said:
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
Click to expand...

Stanislaw Lem's stuff is always a knockout. I adore Solaris (and both movies).

Neuromancer is probably my favorite book.
 
N

Necrovex

Member
Finished the second volume of Pluto, the first volume of What a Wonderful World, and I'll be starting on the second volume of 20th Century Boys. So much manga goodness. One day I may even go back to my Kindle and finish reading that dreadful Goodkind novel.
 
T

TTG

Member
I finished Catch-22, had an absolute ball throughout most of it. I don't mean to say that the last three or four chapters were flagrantly bad or underwhelming even, but when it came time to drop the hammer, it did so in a relatively rote way. Nately's whore so carried it though, she's fantastic.

Anyway, the book is incredible funny and charming, taking aim at institutions as well as many human traits. All you need is a good bit of tolerance for the nonsense. A real feather in the cap for all the absurd humor and a black eye for the inane jokes.
 
A

Apt101

Member
I am closing in on the conclusion of the audio book version of The Gray Man, which was free on Audible for a while. I think I'm into spy thrillers now. Good genre fiction, I recommend it.

One has to suspend their disbelief when the super spy goes two days with hardly any sleep, a bullet wound in his thigh, cracked rib, and grievous knife wound to the stomach and still bests four armed men in hand to hand combat. But I'll be damned if it isn't entertaining.
 
K

Krowley

Member
bennywhatever said:
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
Click to expand...


Off the top of my head....

Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke is pretty damn great.

Wild Seed by Octavia Butler is basically a perfect novel, but almost as much fantasy as Sci-Fi.

Ender's Game is excellent.

Sphere by Michael Crichton.

And I'll throw in another recommendation for Ringworld. I've never gotten around to reading the sequels but the first book was a blast, and stands alone very well.
 
M

Mumei

Member
Necrovex said:
Finished the second volume of Pluto, the first volume of What a Wonderful World, and I'll be starting on the second volume of 20th Century Boys. So much manga goodness. One day I may even go back to my Kindle and finish reading that dreadful Goodkind novel.
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I saw you read the first volume of Pluto! :D
 
N

Necrovex

Member
Mumei said:
I saw you read the first volume of Pluto! :D
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The third volume is on reserve at the library. ;-)

Also, another book question, is there a good non-fiction going into detail of the systematic racism that exists within the police force? I wouldn't mind brushing up on my criminal justice knowledge.
 
M

Mumei

Member
Necrovex said:
The third volume is on reserve at the library. ;-)

Also, another book question, is there a good non-fiction going into detail of the systematic racism that exists within the police force? I wouldn't mind brushing up on my criminal justice knowledge.
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I haven't read many books about racism specifically within the police force, though if you were looking for something less specific about racism in the criminal justice system more broadly I might be able to help. I've posted a couple studies highlighting racial bias among police officers from books I've read or articles I've come across, too, but it's not like the books were about that specific thing. For instance:

Mumei said:
A 2002 study found that individuals with more Afrocentric features were judged by college undergraduates to have stereotypical African American traits; a 2005 study found that observers believed that individuals with more Afrocentric features were more likely than others to behave aggressively. A 2004 study had 182 police officers examine photographs of male students and employees. Half the participants were shown white faces and the other half were shown black faces. The officers were split into thirds: One third judged the stereotypicality of the person's face; how stereotypical the face was of people of that person's race. The second third, told that some of the faces might be criminals, was asked to indicate whether a person looked criminal. The last third was asked to rate attractiveness on a scale. Each officer only did one of the measures. More black faces than white faces were believed to appear criminal. Black faces who were rated about the median for stereotypical black features were significantly more likely to be judged criminal than black faces that were rated below the median. The study authors concluded that the police officers thought black faces looked more criminal, and "the more black, the more criminal."
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Mumei said:
In today's depressing news that isn't really news:

In a new study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, researchers asked college students and police officers to estimate the ages of young children who they were told had committed a crime (both misdemeanors and felonies). In both groups, respondents were far more likely to overestimate the ages of young black boys than young white boys; they were also less likely to view black children as innocent.

“Children in most societies are considered to be in a distinct group with characteristics such as innocence and the need for protection,” study author and professor of psychology at UCLA Phillip Atiba Goff said of the study. “Our research found that black boys can be seen as responsible for their actions at an age when white boys still benefit from the assumption that children are essentially innocent.”

The goal of the study, according to researchers, was to determine the extent to which respondents dehumanized young black children, and how this racist dehumanization can lead to violence and unjust treatment. “f human childhood affords protections against harsh, adult-like treatment, then in contexts where these children are dehumanized, they can be treated with adult severity” — specifically in the criminal justice system, researchers wrote.

As Philip Bump at the Wire notes, college students tended to overestimate the ages of young boys who were presented as having committed a felony by 4.53 years, meaning that 13 and 14 year old children were determined by respondents to be legal adults. Police officers tended overestimate these boys’ ages by 4.59 years. Overall, researchers note, participants viewed black children aged 10 and older as “significantly less innocent than other children of every age group.”

There was also a correlation between the police officers’ responses and their record of using force against people suspected of a crime, specifically young black boys, though Goff noted that “future research should try to clarify the relationship between dehumanization and racial disparities in police use of force.”
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B

besada

Banned
Krowley said:
And I'll throw in another recommendation for Ringworld. I've never gotten around to reading the sequels but the first book was a blast, and stands alone very well.
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You should definitely read the Ringworld Engineers. The others, Ringworld Throne and Ringworld Children, are good, but not great like the first two. And the companion series is probably only for Knownspace fanatics. If you love the Puppeteers and wondered what life on their rosette planets were like, than they're nice.
 
K

Krowley

Member
besada said:
You should definitely read the Ringworld Engineers. The others, Ringworld Throne and Ringworld Children, are good, but not great like the first two. And the companion series is probably only for Knownspace fanatics. If you love the Puppeteers and wondered what life on their rosette planets were like, than they're nice.
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Yeah, I'll probably tackle the second book eventually. The worldbuilding in the first was really intriguing, and it had just the right mix of humor and action.
 
S

sparky2112

Member
Woorloog said:
In my experience, every single author has some odd quirks in their writing. Either they use one or more odd/rare words often, or a character always does something specific (braid-tugging for WoT fans...).
There's always something... and yes, they make drinking games very possible. And in some cases very, very dangerous.
Pretty sure TV tropes had some drinking game ideas...
Click to expand...

Me, I punch a puppy every time an author uses the word 'chortled'. Strike that shit from the English language RIGHT NOW.
 
S

sparky2112

Member
Jintor said:
I read this doohickey:

Pretty good. But yeah... recommend me more oral histories! More! MORE. Some fictional ones if you can swing 'em, too. Or some other one orientated around cities. Oral histories are pretty difficult to find for some reason, I thought there'd be a lot more than there are.
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As someone who spent all of one afternoon in London/England (business), I want to check this out immediately. Very cool.
 
B

bennywhatever

Member
Great recommendations guys, thanks!
I went most of my life only reading silly young adult books my sister recommended or required school reading, then just plain not reading for about 5 years. Now I'm 27 and have been addicted to audiobooks for about a year, so I can finally cross some "classics" off my list.

I might have to check out A Scanner Darkly. I really liked Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, so I'd love to check out another Dick novel.

Haly said:
If we're talking Asimov era (50-60s), I'd say Foundation, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, and Childhood's End cover the big name authors I'm familiar with.

Some more modern classics include Book of the New Sun, HItchhiker's Guide, Neuromancer, Ender's Shadow and Snow Crash.

And on the literary side of things you have 1984.
Click to expand...

I've actually read most of those and I'm finishing Snow Crash right now - all great, great Sci Fi. When it comes to modern Sci Fi, I'd also recommend "The Long Earth" series.
 
N

Necrovex

Member
Mumei said:
I haven't read many books about racism specifically within the police force, though if you were looking for something less specific about racism in the criminal justice system more broadly I might be able to help. I've posted a couple studies highlighting racial bias among police officers from books I've read or articles I've come across, too, but it's not like the books were about that specific thing. For instance:
Click to expand...

I'll take the broader subject books if they aren't too overly technical and if they are well written!

I will probably read it once I complete Greenwald's book. I should also read Malala book too.
 
D

DarkChronic

Member
Last night I finished The Blade Itself. I enjoyed it, but I'm still on the fence if I want to continue the series or not. For someone who has read it all - worth it? How's the payoff?
 
K

kswiston

Member
DarkChronic said:
Last night I finished The Blade Itself. I enjoyed it, but I'm still on the fence if I want to continue the series or not. For someone who has read it all - worth it? How's the payoff?
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Pretty much every character arc has a major payoff in Last Argument of Kings. Things start to pick up in the next book when things kick into gear in the North.

Also, Jezal becomes a little more bearable as the trilogy progresses.
 
M

mackattk

Member
Been reading the Maze Runner series. Even though they are teen books, it is actually kind of nice considering how fast paced and easy to read these books are.

Things just start to get extremely repetitive, but I will plow and through and finish reading the books.
 
N

Nakho

Member
MarshallH said:
I'm currently reading the "The Cemetery of Forgotten Books" series by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. Very impressive work, would definitely recommend them.
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Isn't it called The Shadow of the Wind? Anyway, it is an incredible book, I recommend it wholeheartedly.
 
N

Nakho

Member
bennywhatever said:
I'm getting towards the end of Snow Crash and this is one awesome/crazy book.

I'm to the part right after Hiro is on the life boat with the 3 mafia guys and they just took out the Bruce Lee yacht and are heading towards the raft where YT and Raven just went
and I can just tell that shit's about to get real.
Click to expand...

Shit is about to get EXTREMELY real. God, I loved this book. Wish it had a more developed ending...

bennywhatever said:
In respects to Sci-Fi novels, what are some of you guys' favorite "classic" Sci-Fis?

I really enjoyed "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" and "I, Robot," but I know there are a lot of other really good ones out there. I particularly like the robot-themed ones.
Click to expand...

In addition to all the other great books already said by others gaffers, I can't recommend enough End of Eternity, by Asimov. Such a sweet, short, self-contained book, with some of the best plot twists I've ever seen.
 
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