I could have sworn we had one of these. But for the life of me, i can't find the thread.
Opened up the e-reader again. Still had LOTR on there.
I've read that book/those books three times prior.
Once in dutch and twice in english.
And yes, english is the far superior version.
First time reading the digital version :p.
E readers are less enjoyable than a book, honestly. But it is alright. And it has allowed me to get a few books from my childhood i could otherwise not find anywhere.
Like 'coriolis, the stormplanet'. Which is pure nostalgia for me qnd which i will soon read again, i think. It was my first scyfy book.
Might buy a digital copy of 'wasp' while i am at it. Another scyfy classic. And maybe the tschai quadrology . Which i recommend to any scyfy fan.
Anyways... i love the LOTR movies. Always will. But the books... they can't be surpassed. Tolkien's care for and in his writing is just so elegant... the slower burn of the story works so well. And with the paths frodo and his friends take, with the battle of pelennor fields, more focus on tertiary characters in a fleeting yet believeable manner, ... the whole experience in the books feels so much richer and believeable.
And of course, tom bombadil. Who was a complete surprise when i first read the fellowship only after watching the first film.
I'm flogging through the "Destroyer of Worlds" quintet of books. Finally in the fifth one. Amazingly dense material, quite well done.
Has anyone else read ALL the Well of Souls books?
I've gotten lazy lately, so I've taken to listening to audiobooks on YouTube. I've been through several in the last few weeks. Right now I'm listening to a Jack Reacher novel. I've recently listened to Hitchens read his book God is Not Great, Dawkins reading his book, and I heard Freud's book, The Future of an Illusion.
Then I listened to some really good Dick Francis novels, so now I'm on to Lee Child.
🤓
Quote from: Gawdzilla Sama on September 04, 2023, 06:51:40 PMI'm flogging through the "Destroyer of Worlds" quintet of books. Finally in the fifth one. Amazingly dense material, quite well done.
Has anyone else read ALL the Well of Souls books?
Can't say i read any. What are they about?
Quote from: Mr.Obvious on September 05, 2023, 01:01:09 AMCan't say i read any. What are they about?
Destroyer of Worlds (DoW)or Well of Souls (WoS)?
DoW is set "five hundred years before Ringworld". It's a complex mosaic of competing civilizations and Byzantine politics at a galactic level. Nessus, the original Pierson's Puppeteer, is heavily involved. Written by Larry Niven and Edward Lerner. (Several other books have this title, be advised.)
Well of Souls was created by a race that the Creator created. The Markovians evidently created all the races in the galaxy, by meeting at Midnight at the Well of Souls. (But it's actually not that simple.) Jack L. Chalker is frightening at times, he's a genius at creating alien races and then putting them in deep shit for your entertainment. ("The Run to Chaos Keep", for example.) How does the Titanic relate to the end of the universe? Read on.
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51nrIkdiiaL._SY445_SX342_.jpg)
This is a story written by the same guy who made Charlie the Unicorn and Llamas With Hats. It's got his usual sense of humor, though toned down a bit, as well as the morbidity that tends to creep into some of his videos. I'm not quite finished with it yet, but it's pretty interesting so far.
I just finished listening to the audiobook version of Echo Burning, by Lee Child.
I thought I'd read it before, but if I did it must have been a very long time ago, because I didn't remember any of it.
At least it wasn't read by an AI, which usually don't pronounce all of the words and names correctly.
It was, of course, a very well written book, and I enjoyed it tremendously.
🤠
Napoleon. A Life. By Andrew Roberts.
That great emperor is my hero.
My friend, Terry, gave me the book Heat 2, recently. I hadn't seen the first movie, Heat, but I did manage to find it on YouTube and watched it so I'd have some idea what the book was about.
The movie was pretty good. How could you possibly go wrong with Deniro and Pacino?
The book starts off about where the first movie ended, but then I think it's going to turn into a prequel.
I expect to enjoy it. I'll let you know if I do.
I'm listening to a guy read it while I'm reading the book. First time I've ever done it this way, I expect it to be an interesting experience. 🤓
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMmI0MTdiZGMtZTM5YS00ZDY5LWEzYjktZDEwZmMzZTg3MWIxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzc5MjA3OA@@._V1_FMjpg_UX1000_.jpg)
?????
(https://lwcurrey.cdn.bibliopolis.com/pictures/169572.jpg?width=768&height=1000&fit=bounds&auto=webp&v=1662235813)
I remember reading that about 40 years ago. Very enjoyable read!
Very close on the date.
QuoteFootfall is a 1985 science fiction novel by American writers Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. The book depicts the arrival of members of an alien species called the Fithp that have traveled to the Solar System from Alpha Centauri in a large spacecraft driven by a Bussard ramjet. Their intent is conquest of the planet Earth.
They call in a bunch of SciFi authors. A certain Mr. Anson was among them. [wink]
Now I'm listening to George Carlin read his book, Brain Droppings. It's pretty hilarious! 😄
I'm listening, on YouTube, to the audiobook version of The Fungus, something I read about 30 years ago. It's scary as hell, much more than silly stuff like vampires or werewolves or ghosts, or any of that other supernatural crap.
😱
Dune Messiah. The movie should be interesting.
The Holy Bible...
Just kidding.
The Wholly Babble? 🤣
I'm reading the whorls on the bottom of somebody's foot. Purely platonic, of course.
Have you ever read When Whorls Collide? 🤓
I read that and I stubbed my toe.
There's a manual for reading those whorls. It's called The Game's A Foot.
But there are three feet in the yard, Jeffery Dahmer.
Bought an ebook version of ´the shining´. Heard it differs from the film substantially. Heard most prefer the movie over the book, but think the book is pretty damn good too. Here is to hoping.
It is starting off well, in any case
Dune Messiah. Evidently Herbert wanted to show the dangers of despotism. It opens with the peripheral groups from the first book having a conclave with the intent of unseating the Maudi. Empress(?) Irulan is deep into the game.
Finished the shining. Loved it. Honestly, didnt think it would live up to the movie. But it iq just as great, in a different way.
It iq also strange, to know the story in one way and see it veer off into something else. I do suggest it, to fans of the movie.
Still rereading the lord of the rings. But my ereader is acting up. Not sure what i need to do to be able to read it again. Need to reaffirm that i already purchased it or something.
In the meanwhile, i was given the kyoshi duology from the ATLA-universe. And that is really shaping up nicely.
Am now in 'the rise of kyoshi'.
F.C. Yee has a writing style that really hits the spot for me.
I'll be checking out if he has any other books i can pick up.
Project Hail Mary, Andy Weir. Heavy on science, even surpassing The Martian. Defo a nerd-a-thon.
The rise of kyoshi is turning out to be a real pageturner. I am about in the final fifth of the book. I'll have finished it in less than a week, a week tops, it seems.
But: you really need to have watched 'avatar the last airbender' first.
There are nods and inside jokes, like any good prequel has. But it also relies heavily on you understanding how this world works. It goes into it, sure, but you will really benefit from the visual image of the superpowers in this world.
@Shiranu , if you have not read it yet: i suggest it to you wholeheartedly.
I remember a few years back you said you preferred tlok over atla. And while i vehemently dissagree, this prequel takes one of the reasons you listed and actually does it in a good way.
I won't say what. Wouldn't want to spoil you. But it has some good characterbuilding and storytelling to boot. (Which i also found lacking in most of 'tlok'.)
16 Roger Zelazny Books.
Almost through 'doctor sleep'.
Actually really happy with the slightly similar slightiyvdifferent book and movie universes in this franchise.
Kind of like the dexter books and show, but less different.
I'm not reading it, but I was suddenly reminded of the existence of Real Men Don't Eat Quiche by Bruce Feirstein. I had forgotten what a cultural moment it was because it seems to be largely forgotten today. Weird this is this:
Quote from: Real Men Don't Eat QuicheAre you a Real Man? Would you like to be one? In the past, to was easy to be a Real Man. All you had do was wage war, cheat at poker, drink yourself blind and find someplace to dump the toxic waste.
But today Real Men are expected to cope with things like the 55 mile-per-hour speed limit, low-tar cigarettes, women who demand meaningful relationships, and restaurants that spin.
I dunno. Some of this stuff sounds like the sort of things so-called men's rights activists say today. Difference is, this but was supposed to be humorous. Shitheads like Andrew Tate read it and mistook it for a new book of the Bible.
I dipped into it, and I'm unsure if it has aged particularly well. It's filled with New Yorker-styled cartoons and the first one has the caption:
Quote from: Real Men Don't Eat Quiche"It's tough! I can never tell when she wants be soft and sensitive like Alan Alda or when she wants me to ravage her like a wild boar."
Where's the joke?
It's kinda interesting because I could see myself laughing at this in 1982. I would've been 10, so I wouldn't have understood it, but I would have still laughed. But today, I don't even see why it's meant to be funny. Maybe in 1982, crassness like "ravage like a wild boar" wasn't seen as much. Doesn't reflect well that it seems bland today.
I guess I'm not a "real man," 'cause I really like quiche, and eat it every chance I get! 🤣
Quote from: Unbeliever on March 24, 2024, 08:47:36 PMI guess I'm not a "real man," 'cause I really like quiche, and eat it every chance I get! 🤣
Are you Alan Alda?
The dip I took mentioned Alan Alda an awful lot. Either the author really hated Alan Alda or just saw him as a quintessential quiche-eater. Which is funny because he's probably most famous for his role on M*A*S*H and on that show, he was a womanizer.
Currently reading the ocean at the end of the lane, by gaiman.
It is pretty good so far. Still early in though.
Mars, by Ben Bova. Return to Mars lurks in the shadows.
Quote from: Mr.Obvious on March 25, 2024, 07:31:58 AMCurrently reading the ocean at the end of the lane, by gaiman.
It is pretty good so far. Still early in though.
Did he turn some inanimate object or concept into a character yet?
Not yet. But it could happen for sure
Quote from: Mr.Obvious on March 26, 2024, 01:53:31 AMNot yet. But it could happen for sure
I would bet all of my money on it. It seems to be his trick.
Authors tend to have tricks that they kind of default to and sometimes it's noticeable. Like when Stephen King wrote a Sherlock Holmes story where Dr Watson solves the case doing the very observation/deduction thing Holmes tends to do, and he made it so horrible an experience that he hoped it would never happen again.
Gaiman seems to make things that are not people into people. He turned the fucking TARDIS into a person so it could talk to the Doctor and prove they had nothing to say to each other.
I read his book of norse mythology, which didn't have that, but I imagine is not representitive of most of his original work.
Don´t think it happened in his collab with pratchett in good omens.
Then again, that was a collab.
Qnd i´m trying to think what it would be in coraline. The beldam is an entity, but a monster like any other. So are the rats.
The tunnel, mayhaps? It gives eldritch horror vibes. But I would say that is a stretch.
I think that covers my neil gaiman read works, tbh.
Not a traditional book, but I've been rereading "Solutions and Other Problems" by Allie Brosh. It's almost more like a really thick comic book than a traditional book. Nothing has made me laugh harder. The tales of the bizarre situations she got in when she was a kid, the way she draws the bewildered faces of her parents, it just tickles my brain. I originally picked it up as a gift for my sister, but before I bought it, I read through some of it to see if she would like it. I liked it so much I binge read it that night so I could finish it before I had to hand it over. Recently, I bought myself a copy because I wanted to read it again.
There's a section of the book which was very sad. Allie gave a warning in advance, but given the tone of the book, I wasn't sure how seriously to take it. It wasn't a joke. This book made me cry and laugh at the same goddamn time. I don't know how she accomplished such black magic. Much good. Big recommend.
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71CXxL5kXHL._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg)
Finished gaiman's 'the ocean at the end of the lane', short and made mz a tad sad, but a good enough story.
I like the undefined, otherworldly evil angle. But thought it worked better in coraline, as it was just a tad too vague here.
Gaiman tried too often to describe something indescribable. But he didn't quite hit the homerun on that for me, every time. Hard thing to do, mind you. But it kind of made it seem like, at times, he was just winging it on the fly.
But, again, definitly worth a read.
SPECIAL STAFF U. S. ARMY
HISTORICAL DIVISION
(HISTORICAL MANUSCRIPT FILE)
FILE NO. 8-5
JS-5
ACC. NO. 851-5
TITLE: 4th Air Army Operations, 1944 - 1945
Japanese Studies in World War II
AGENCY OF ORIGIN
Historical Section, G-2, GHQ, FEC
OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF MILITARY HISTORY
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WASHINGTON 25, D. C.
Ignatz by Ron Goulart
More of a novella or maybe a fairly long short story. I mostly read it because Goulart is the ghost writer behind William Shatner's Tek series and I wanted to see what some of his original stuff was like. What fooled me was the publisher of this thing on Amazon calls it "important." Not so important that it's not available on Project Gutenberg, so I didn't have to pay for it. As-such, it feels like a half-baked premise.
The premise involves this guy who's returned to his home town to visit and finds it's in the thrall of some quack doctor who has found a way to turn people into cats as a form of therapy. Lounge around like a cat for a few days can do wonders for your stress, I guess. Problem is, our hero hates cats and has taken to protesting the good doctors tent meetings or whatever until he is confronted by a bunch of purring puss-pusses and he runs away never to return.
If that description sounds half-baked, it's because it is. It may be polished like a final draft, but the story idea is like a first draft or the idea you write down when you wake up after you'd just had a weird dream.
I shouldn't be too critical. Goulart is dead now because he was from an earlier time where writers needed to produce to earn money and publishers would take almost anything. Especially magazines. But it just doesn't fly these days. Probably why this is one of the works on PG but not on his Wikipedia page.
Bought the 14th installment of 'seuls', a belgian comic, yesterday.
I read it in dutch, instead of french. Called 'alleen' in dutch, which means 'alone'.
It's a pretty good comic by Gazzotti and Vehlman, not sure if they have it in english.
Follows 5 kids who wakr up in an abandoned city, and who try to figure out where everyone went.
It gets pretty surreal after a few volumes.
And i'll be honest, i was losing interest at at number 10. It was getting convoluded and too intricate.
But now, they have somewhat gone back to basics in the action department, the squad, who had split up are now back together, not too much focus on secondary characters and a new hook in the mystery department.
It is nice, really enjoyed it. It is back on track.
If you ever get the chance, in english, i would recommend.
SPECIAL STAFF U. S. ARMY
HISTORICAL DIVISION
(HISTORICAL MANUSCRIPT FILE)
FILE NO. 8-5
JS-5
ACC. NO. 851-5
TITLE: 4th Air Army Operations, 1944 - 1945
Japanese Studies in World War II
AGENCY OF ORIGIN
Historical Section, G-2, GHQ, FEC
OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF MILITARY HISTORY
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WASHINGTON 25, D. C.
But in that instant of darkness, the night swept in. A great wing folded over the abyss. Many owls hooted. Many mice scampered and slithered in the shadows. A million tiny murders happened somewhere.
︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵
Reading: Ray Bradberry, The Halloween Tree
I was thinking, geez, in the insect world alone the carnage is off the charts. Not to mention all the fish in the sea. Hardly any creature on this planet, big or small escapes being eaten alive.
"IMPERIAL GENERAL HEADQUARTERS
Navy General Command
Established 25 Apr 45"
It's my birthday tomorrow, but i'm required to go to a reception for work. Not too bad, was going to celebrate my birthday saturday insteaf anyways
But the gf insisted i open my gift today, as we might hardly see one another tomorrow.
She got me the full dark tower series.
I am excited to give it a try.
Heard some of you say it was a bit of a slog, but i do really like that she got me this. It's a big gift and i would not have bought it for myself in a while, while wanting to.
She knows me well ^^
Is that the one that has lobstrosities?
Only one way to find out, i guess
I read part of it decades ago, don't remember it very well.
Reading "MARS LIFE", the third in Ben Bova's "Mars" trilogy, from the '80s. Never read him before, this trilogy was a good read.
Half whay through the gunslinger after a day.
It's a bit absurd/surreal, which i am usually not the greatest fan of.
But i was expecting that in part after seeing that movie with the gf. And it works better on paper, though i do feel like i am missing lot of context.
But intriguing enough. Enough mystique. Enough gritt.
Darker feel than the movie, which is an improvement.
I like it so far.
Quote from: Mr.Obvious on May 30, 2024, 03:18:00 PMIt's my birthday tomorrow, but i'm required to go to a reception for work. Not too bad, was going to celebrate my birthday saturday insteaf anyways
But the gf insisted i open my gift today, as we might hardly see one another tomorrow.
She got me the full dark tower series.
I am excited to give it a try.
Heard some of you say it was a bit of a slog, but i do really like that she got me this. It's a big gift and i would not have bought it for myself in a while, while wanting to.
She knows me well ^^
Well, I haven't done it myself, but when you get to the end, it ends kind of anti-climatically and then King himself apologizes for it and says there's a real ending but you won't like it. It's just a couple pages later. But you're really not going to like it. And it's the kind of stupid idea I would have come up with.
So, just remember it's the journey with this one.
Aight.
No spoilers though!
We'll see. Can't be worse than how GOT ended.
But ... it was an epic whimper!
I found, on YouTube, an audiobook version of a great book that I read many years ago, called The Time Ships. It's by Stephen Baxter, and is a sequel to the original TheTime Machine. The time traveler returns to 1891 and decides to go back to the future in order to save Weena, because he left her in a somewhat precarious situation.
But, as often happens with the best-laid plans o' mice and men, he finds that he will be completely unable to save Weena from her fate.
Wonderful adventures ensue!
Started that one. May go back to it.
It's certainly worth returning to!
Quote from: Unbeliever on May 30, 2024, 04:07:43 PMIs that the one that has lobstrosities?
encountered those rhis week
Quote from: Mr.Obvious on June 13, 2024, 12:34:54 PMencountered those rhis week
IIRC, they don't show up until the second book?
Quote from: the_antithesis on June 13, 2024, 12:41:18 PMIIRC, they don't show up until the second book?
yeah prologue
dig-a-chick
Seriously, I only read the first two books and don't recall any of what happens in either of them except for, I dunno, vague ideas. The impression I get is that, conceptually these books cover what would be the first two chapters of a regular book.
I'm easily discouraged by big, fat books. I was trying to read Infinite Jest a couple weeks ago and just wasn't enjoying it, so I stopped. I read It and Battlefield Earth when I was younger and stopped reading both about halfway through for about a month before completing them.
I mostly got annoyed that I had read two books and it didn't feel like the story proper had started yet. I had the third book all those years ago, but never cracked it open. I guess I was just done.
I heard that Battlefield Earth was the worst movie John Travolta has made. I've never read the book, though.
Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey.
Quote from: Unbeliever on June 13, 2024, 01:57:02 PMI heard that Battlefield Earth was the worst movie John Travolta has made. I've never read the book, though.
Any catalog that contains the Devil's Rain makes for a lively debate as-to which is the worst movie they ever made.
(https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/villains/images/2/25/Corbis.jpg)
But, yeah. The movie is pretty bad. Interestingly, it stops about halfway through the book. They were hoping to make a sequel to finish the story, but it was terrible, so, no one wanted to pay for more of it.
My boss gave me a collection of 'sandman' comics.
It is hsi favorite comcic series.
Halfway through the first collection book, of three. I wouldn't go as far qs to agree wirh it being my favorite set of media. But it is pretty darn good, i gotta say.
Went to a second hand bookshop the other day.
It is going out of business, which is really a bummer.
But on the positive side, i found a pristine edition of 'animal farm' which i'm gonna gift to a friend.
And a nice looking copy of othello, which is great as i'm directing a play which is a soft parody of othello.
As well as a mint version of 'on the origin of species' which i haven't yet read. And a decent copy of robinson crusoe, which i also haven't read. All for less than 15 euro's.
I am reading a chapter in my Pathophysiology textbook about Disorders of the Bladder and Lower Urinary Tract and taking notes.
If I have to write "sphincter" one more time...
I'm currently reading a book called Nonstandard Notebook: Mathematically Ruled Pages for Unruly Thoughts, by Tim Chartier and Amy Langville.
On the back of the cover it says "Revolutionary Notebook that challenges us to play outside (and with) the lines."
🦧
Quote from: LoriPinkAngel on January 01, 2025, 09:06:04 PMI am reading a chapter in my Pathophysiology textbook about Disorders of the Bladder and Lower Urinary Tract and taking notes.
If I have to write "sphincter" one more time...
Last time I was in Cairo I saw the Sphincter. Very impressive sitting there in front of the pyramids. Didn't see any kaiju around. Must have missed that show.
Started reading on the origin of species for the first time. It is funny how well thought out some of the arguments are, and how crude some of the others are.
Telegraphs his confidence level, doesn't it.
I found a book by a fellow named Euclid, called The Elements.
Pretty gripping story, with a good plot and a lot of suspense.
And plenty of sequels.
He does have a good angle on the plane facts.
I was able to get all 13 books in 4 volumes.
Sounds like Jack L. Chalker, he of the flaming word processor.
So, I read Dreamcatcher by Stephen King and I have thoughts.
I first encountered this story through the movie. I remember thinking that it felt like reading a Stephen King novel. I can't quite explain the reasons for this. I think it's because other adaptations tend to leave out or reduce things. I can see the director going through the book and coming upon something and going "Ha, ha. No, Stephen. We're not doing that." It felt like a slavish adaptation or one that captured the flavor of read a King book. I still don't know what that may mean or if it's true.
Decades later, I finally read the book. It is one of two books that he's apologized for and weirdly, both Dreamcatcher and Tommyknockers are about aliens. I guess he has other alien books. Under the Dome? IDK And he's probably apologized for every single one of his books at one time or another. But these two he apologized because he felt the quality wasn't good. Dreamcatcher does have problems. Let's count them.
1) he was on a lot of drugs when he wrote. Much like Tommyknockers, although that was cocaine. Cocaine is why movies from the 80's are the best because they could get producers high on cocaine to agree to the dumbest shit. However, Dreamcatcher was not cocaine, so it's probably differently than if it had.
2) It was Oxycontin because he'd been hit by a truck. He was in a lot of pain and couldn't write for more than a few hours and wound up writing the whole thing longhand. That pain shows through. His novels are often unpleasant, being horror stories, but it seems excessive here.
3) Much of the concepts here have been used elsewhere. This may be just what having a 30+ year career is like. You are going to tread ground you've been on before. Or it's a factor of the circumstances where he wasn't really able to come up with fresh ideas at the time. I don't know but It, Stand By Me ("The Body"), It Grows On You (from Creepshow), Firestarter, Tommyknockers, And probably others I'm missing. I wouldn't call it a greatest hits so much as just borrowing ideas he'd already used elsewhere.
4) Overall, though, the story feels half-baked. The concepts here are very esoteric but they don't quite gel. The ending of the book has an epilogue where character discuss what happened in a vain attempt at explaining it to the reader. It don't work.
So, not a strong outing, but it's probably one that should never receive a re-edit. It's an unpleasant novel because it came from an unpleasant place. Like a confession elicited under torture. It is not eloquent because it is raw.
Or it could be just a day in the life of a horror aficionado. I was like that at one point. When I was swimming down the Mekong to get back to base I'd travel (ie. float) at night and hide during the day. Brush piles along the river were handy impromptu pied-à-terre but I scared the crap out of a couple of locals who moved some firewood candidate and found a face looking up at them. This is when I started creating movies in my head. Discipline required to keep the story straight and fear to keep me hidden and not screaming when I bump the steel sticking out of my leg.
I actually wrote all that up and sent it to Stephen a few years later. He wrote back and said "If you ever need a job, come see me."