I just finished Kate Elliott's Crown of Stars cycle. As with any long running series I am glad and saddened that it is over.
In this case a little more saddened because I wanted Alain to have something, anything besides what he got.
Working on further "Oprah's Book Club" reading: Iron Council by China Mieville. I'm enjoying it so far; I'm even planning on doing illustrations for it. I still don't really understand why it's gotten bad reviews from people on amazon and such. Maybe because the two central characters are homosexual or because of the socialist overtones. Some have complained it's pretentious, which is fine, I suppose, but no more pretentious than the Chronicles of Narnia, The Matrix, or Star Wars; which I feel are more pretentious because they portray one set of characters (and one set of morals) as completely good and completely right.
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I never understood the bad reviews either, though I also tend to think that the gay revolutionary subplots didn't win Mieville too many new friends. As for the "book club" thing - I would not only watch, but probably also tape, any Oprah show where she got into any of the Mieville books - I'd love to see what she'd make out of High Cromlech or the Gengris. C'mon, Oprah - bring out The scar!
Finally - please post any inchman drawing you make on your website? I was thinking of statting them up for D&D, and good pics are always appreciated.
I never understood the bad reviews either, though I also tend to think that the gay revolutionary subplots didn't win Mieville too many new friends. As for the "book club" thing - I would not only watch, but probably also tape, any Oprah show where she got into any of the Mieville books - I'd love to see what she'd make out of High Cromlech or the Gengris. C'mon, Oprah - bring out The scar!
Finally - please post any inchman drawing you make on your website? I was thinking of statting them up for D&D, and good pics are always appreciated.
Inchmen are on the top of my list. Along with Toro's helmet, that poison gas golem and too many other things.
Just started The Viking Funeral, by Stephen J. Cannell; cop thriller I guess, not really my line, but am starved for something to read and somebody left it at my house.
After checking out the review in the latest Dragon magazine, I picked up Perdido Street Station by China Mieville. Very good story so far: imaginative, packed with weirdness, and flooded with setting. I'm really enjoying it.
Golden Fool by Robin Hobb's. It's the 2nd book in her 3rd trilogy. Great series actually. Start with The Farseer trilogy then Liveship Traders & lastly Tawny Man. I have to admit I zoomed thru the Farseer trilogy but I dragged a$$ getting into the Liveship Traders. I ended up pushing myself thru to 1/2 the 1st book simply b/;c of peer pressure. Usually if it doesn't grab me within the 1st 3 chapters, that's it for me. I'm glad my co-worker kept insisting me to keep going. We both agreed that you could read Farseer trilogy & then go to Tawny man but it's so much better if you read Liveship in between the 2.
When I'm done with this trilogy I'll be picking up the last 2 or 3 of the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett. LOVE THESE!
"The Sky People" by S.M Stirling. Love old school sci-fi!!
I'm re-reading "Moby Dick"...it's awesome.
I'm re-reading "Moby Dick"...it's awesome.
That's REALLY scary. My wife gave me a deluxe edition for Christmas and I'm halfway into it now (for approximately the 3rd time). Of course, with STAP underway, I guess it's not that big of a coincidence!
I finished Anansi Boys, and it turned out to have a nice amount of darkness and horror in it. I was afraid the whole book was going to be a bit witty and British and low-key, but I guess Neil Gaiman can't write anything without a freaky horror doll or a psychopathic menace from the dawn of time or something popping up somewhere. So I was satisfied.
Still reading The White Goddess. The dude has started to claim that he discovered the answer to the 666 number of the beast riddle through "poetic analepsis", which to me seems to be another word for "yeah, I made it up. With my imagination."
He claims that is what all scholars do, but they don't admit it, and says that because he ha admitted it he will now not be taken seriously by other scholars. He was right about that I guess.
Is this text worth reading?Designing Virtual Worlds - Richard Bartle
Bad me, not getting back to you on this.
It's very much worth it. Despite the prediliction of these kinds of books to stray into dry academic prose, it doesn't. Bartle keeps it very readable and approachable.
The Art of War - Sun Tzu
Poland - Robert Michner
The SEVEN SPIRITUAL LAWS of SUCCESS - Deepak Chopra
Just reread A Spell for Chameleon by P. Anthony; been a while; liked it, will probably dig up the rest of the series as I am due for some well thought out humor.
just started what looks like a D&D book called "the Kingless Land" or something close to that.
Just reread A Spell for Chameleon by P. Anthony; been a while; liked it, will probably dig up the rest of the series as I am due for some well thought out humor.
just started what looks like a D&D book called "the Kingless Land" or something close to that.
That's the Ed Greenwood series, right? It's a pretty good series. I'd never read any of Greenwoods books, after reading that series I think I probably should, I enjoyed it. Happy reading.
i am currently reading the killing song by don Bassingthwaite. in the dragon below trilogy. he is good author. i highly recommend it to anyone seeking a good plot and great characters.
Got 40 pages left on Perdido Street Station. This is one of the best endings to a book (so far...) I've encountered.
I can't wait til World War Z comes out in paperback.
World War Z is pretty darn amazing. It's going to be a movie at some point, and I hope that they decide to go with some of their casting from the audiobook (Henry Rollins from Black Flag as a mercenary, Mark Hammill from Star Wars as a soldier, Alan Alda from M*A*S*H as a government director guy, the guy that played Jesus in The Big Lebowski as the interview subject from Cuba).
(Small almost spoilers for Perdido)
Mieville breaks some of the rules by introducing new characters (well, practically new characters) at the very end of the book. On the one hand, it helps the narrative even if there are other ways to have done it, but on the other, there could have been other ideas to introduce these elements without feeling as rushed and tacked on.
the guy that played Jesus in The Big Lebowski as the interview subject from Cuba).
John Turturro. He starred in an earlier Coen bros vehicle, Barton Fink. My last name is Barton so a couple folks got a lot of mileage outta that one.
Wicked and Son of a Witch - Gregory McGuire
The Art of War - Sun Tzu
Poland - Robert Michner
Don Quixote - Cervantes
currently I am reading
The Return of Martin Guerre by Natalie Davis (a revisionist historians take on the famous french case)
and
In Search of Herne the Hunter by Eric Fitch (a look into the orgins of the herne the hunter legend).
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I tend to read multiple books at once, so I finish (on average) about two books a week. Right now, I am reading:
Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris
Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien and Christopher Tolkien
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Magic: the Gathering - Time Spiral by Scott McGough
Thunderhead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
The Codex by Douglas Preston
Picked up the following from B&N this eve:
Perdido Street Station - China Mielville
Swords and Devilry - Fritz Leiber
A trilogy of books (Magic's X/Y/Z) - Mercedes Lackey
Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein
ImagineFX - February 2007 issue
I'll be a happy little reader now. :D
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Picked up the following from B&N this eve:
Perdido Street Station - China Mielville
Swords and Devilry - Fritz Leiber
A trilogy of books (Magic's X/Y/Z) - Mercedes Lackey
Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein
ImagineFX - February 2007 issueI'll be a happy little reader now. :D
How you like that Fritz, eh? I think he's funnier than all getout.
*Spoiler alert- book premise and storyline included*
There is a book called Werewolf about a guy that is several hundred years old that some fanatics have captured to try to recreate a formula for his were powers; is an interesting book where the evil of man is much worse than the werewolf. The Desden File book Fool Moon is a great werewolf story, I think there are five different types of werewolves in that one and Harry has to find if one is the murderer; hehe tuff job. I, of course, loved the first Howling story and Silver Bullet by Stephen King is a good tale to chill the blood. There are a few others I have, but these are my favorites.
How you like that Fritz, eh? I think he's funnier than all getout.
Haven't read it yet, I'm speed-reading through the Lackey trilogy. Finished the first, almost done with the second. :)
the guy that played Jesus in The Big Lebowski as the interview subject from Cuba).John Turturro. He starred in an earlier Coen bros vehicle, Barton Fink. My last name is Barton so a couple folks got a lot of mileage outta that one.
He's got a big role in their underrated "Miller's Crossing" as well.
How you like that Fritz, eh? I think he's funnier than all getout.
Fritz is awesome. Definitely funny in a "sometimes you just gotta laugh" way rather than a Terry Pratchett way.
I love how Fafhrd and the Mouser always break up and then discover that they need each other to beat the bad guys. It's good to see selfish heroes in fantasy ;)
I love how Fafhrd and the Mouser always break up and then discover that they need each other to beat the bad guys.
Sorta like the Tenacious D movie...
Sort of trudging through the first book of the Dark Tower series by Steven King. My girlfriend loves these books but I just can't get into them. 6 more to go though.
On the horizon is Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko (and the sequels when they come out), the Earthsea series by Ursula K. Le Guin, and finishing up the Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander (started it awhile ago and for some reason never finished the 4th and 5th books).
I am really looking forward to Nightwatch since I love the movie. (highest grossing Russian films ever, I think. I would recommend it.) From what I read though, the movie only covers the first division of the first book, so I don't know how they will treat the 2nd and 3rd movies related to the books.
Just finished Exit A by Anthony Swofford last night. I liked it as well as Jarhead because me and him have very similiar stories to tell.
I am currently (this morning) not reading anything but I have a few choices. I bought Three Musketeers by Dumas a few months ago; I believe it is time to read it.
"Underground" by Haruki Murakami. A series of interviews from the survivors of a Sarin gas attack on the Japanese subway system in March of 1995.
Twilight in the Desert - about the Oil Business in Saudi Arabia
Holy Cow - the autobiographical account of an expatriate wife in India
Carnage and Culture - a history of some of histories greatest battles and how they shaped culture
While waiting for the next Song of Ice and Fire book, I have borrowed Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson. I think this is very good high fantasy, and I enjoy the way he writes. The bad thing after reading this and G. G. Martin, the regular D&D books seems so medicore.
I just finished "If Whispers Call," which was Don Bassingthwaite's book in the Dark*Matter series. I've got "Of Aged Angels" by Monte Cook up next. Picked up both at my friendly used bookstore.
King Arthur Flour's Whole Grain Baking.
Murakami's Underground was amazing. All real interviews with survivors from the Aum Shinrichyo (sp?) lead attack on the Tokyo subway system with Sarin gas. After each interview, Murakami sent a manuscript to each of the survivors so that they could evaluate what was written, edit out parts that they didn't want revealed about themselves or clarify points that may have been lost in the initial interview. What results is a series of poignant accounts of normal human beings finding themselves amidst the absurd and inhuman. In the postscript, Murakami also interviews members of Aum about their experiences in the cult and their feelings about the attack.
Since the survivors all had editorial control over what was published, there is no exploitation or media abuse (Murakami always struck me as a decent sort and this proves it). It's amazing to see who stopped to help others (and often wound up getting themselves in worse condition because of it) and who said,"It's someone else's problem" and tried to go on with their day. It kind of brought me up short to consider whether I would stop to help in that kind of situation or not. Especially since living in New York, where ignoring your fellow human beings is a required "skill".