What book(s) are you reading?

[IrishLion]

Finished the Dark Tower series. I have some questions for others who have read it and remember the ending pretty well lol.

 

[gkIrish]

I just finished the Eye of the World. I liked it but got a bit tired of the constant running away from evil beings plot. It seemed like the entire book was just about them traveling.

I remember someone in this thread telling me that there are a lot of twists and people who you think are "good" turn out to be bad and vice versa. Does that happen in the sequels? I don't want to keep reading if it's going to be more of the same.

 

[Emcee77]

Reading "The Oath" by Jeffrey Toobin. His editorializing is annoying (even to someone who generally agrees with him) but it's fascinating all the same.

 

[wizards8507]

I'm all in on the Star Wars hype so I started reading the first of the "new canon" novels. This one is A New Dawn, and tells the story of what Kanan and Hera from Rebels are up to at the infancy of the rebellion. Nothing heavy, but good fast adventure reading in a familiar universe.

 

[zelezo vlk]

Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis. It was highly recommended on a podcast and I must say, I enjoy it immensely.

 

[zelezo vlk]

I finished the book. The only word that comes to mind:

Powerful

 

[zelezo vlk]

Diary of a Country Priest. I'm struggling to get into it.

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[IrishLion]

Decided to read through the Malazan series again before Erikson's next novel, "Fall of Light," comes out.

I'm on "Deadhouse Gates" right now. I hope to get the series done in the next month or so, that way I can read "Forge of Darkness" in early April just before "Fall of Light" drops.

 

[pkt77242]

Night of Knives by Ian Esselmont

 

[Emcee77]

Lolita. About 3/4 through. It is less obscene but more shocking than I thought. You sometimes hear people say stuff like, "It's amazing how Nabokov makes you sympathize with a pedophile!" I don't know who these people are who are sympathizing with Humbert. I'm not getting that at all. He's anything but sympathetic or identifiable. And it's rare for me to say that about anybody.

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

The Cannabis Manifesto - It's obviously written in favor of cannabis being legalized but the history is really great ammo for anyone who carries a similar view.

It further develops a view of cannabis as a wellness product that I've internally held for quite some time. His elaboration on that stance is helping my own view deepen. I would often espouse these views to others in couched terms because I didn't want to appear too "hippy dippy" but his explanations are only furthering my conviction on the matter.

 

[woolybug25]

Lolita. About 3/4 through. It is less obscene but more shocking than I thought. You sometimes hear people say stuff like, "It's amazing how Nabokov makes you sympathize with a pedophile!" I don't know who these people are who are sympathizing with Humbert. I'm not getting that at all. He's anything but sympathetic or identifiable. And it's rare for me to say that about anybody.

I talked to somebody that read it, and my impression from them, was that how the book ends is where the empathy is drawn from people. It's also maybe not necessarily him as a person, but the story itself has a weird feel to it. So I think what people may think as empathy for him as a person, is really just situational empathy. But I don't know, haven't read it.

It's a bizarre novel. I keep wanting to read it, but I know the entire storyline already.

 

[Emcee77]

I talked to somebody that read it, and my impression from them, was that how the book ends is where the empathy is drawn from people. It's also maybe not necessarily him as a person, but the story itself has a weird feel to it. So I think what people may think as empathy for him as a person, is really just situational empathy. But I don't know, haven't read it.

It's a bizarre novel. I keep wanting to read it, but I know the entire storyline already.

Yeah, I think you are right, I'm getting close to the end now, and I think I'm starting to get where those sorts of comments are coming from, if I see where this is going.

Classic case of commenting too early, before all the facts are in.

The wordplay is as good as advertised. Even if you know the plot, it's still probably worth reading. Some parts are almost laugh-out-loud funny.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

I just finished the Eye of the World. I liked it but got a bit tired of the constant running away from evil beings plot. It seemed like the entire book was just about them traveling.

I remember someone in this thread telling me that there are a lot of twists and people who you think are "good" turn out to be bad and vice versa. Does that happen in the sequels? I don't want to keep reading if it's going to be more of the same.

Oh man. The Wheel of Time series drove me nuts. Put it down in the middle of Book 8, and never came back to it, which is unprecedented for me. I almost always finish a series once I start it, even if it really drops in quality, simply because of the time investment involved. Couldn't do it with Jordan.

Night of Knives by Ian Esselmont

What do you think so far? I haven't read any of his Malazan books, but from what I've heard, they're worth your time if you really like Erikson's world, but Esslemont isn't nearly as talented a writer.

 

[gkIrish]

Oh man. The Wheel of Time series drove me nuts. Put it down in the middle of Book 8, and never came back to it, which is unprecedented for me. I almost always finish a series once I start it, even if it really drops in quality, simply because of the time investment involved. Couldn't do it with Jordan.

Can you elaborate on why you did that? I would rather not invest the time if all the books are similar to the first. I liked the characters but the ending was extremely predictable.

I guess maybe I'm used to Game of Thrones so this book kind of bored me. I am willing to keep reading if it gets better though.

 

[pkt77242]

What do you think so far? I haven't read any of his Malazan books, but from what I've heard, they're worth your time if you really like Erikson's world, but Esslemont isn't nearly as talented a writer.

This is the first of Esselmont's books that I have read, and I would rate it as an enjoyable and fast read (took me about 3.5 hours), but it definitely falls short of Erikson's quality.

Now I am reading The Judging Eye by R Scott Bakker. I read the original trilogy (The Prince of Nothing series) and thought they were very good and so far this book is pretty good as well. You can tell the author has a background in philosophy.

Also Whiskey are you ever going to read the Name of the Wind?

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Can you elaborate on why you did that? I would rather not invest the time if all the books are similar to the first. I liked the characters but the ending was extremely predictable.

I guess maybe I'm used to Game of Thrones so this book kind of bored me. I am willing to keep reading if it gets better though.

The Wheel of Time series is notable for establishing a lot of modern fantasy tropes. Which is why I picked it up in the first place; not because it's an objectively great series, but because it's been very influential in one of my favorite genres. So that's a potential red flag for you; if you're looking for a fantasy series that's unpredictable/ cuts against genre conventions, you're barking up the wrong tree. Jordan is very predictable.

But that predictability was comfortable for a while, at least for someone who enjoys the genre. The protagonists start out as naive boys, completely mystified by the women in their lives and the supernatural enemies that hound them. But they steadily mature as the series goes on, learning to hold their own with the women and knocking down a series of mini-bosses (the Forsaken) along the way in anticipation of a final showdown between Rand and Shai-tan. The increasingly ridiculous explosion of magic and world-threatening peril at the climax of every book gets a little tedious, but Jordan holds it together for a good long while.

But then he starts resurrecting the mini-bosses at a certain point, and the protagonists inexplicably start acting like morons around women again; so what looked like progress through the first 6-7 books just goes up in smoke, and you've wasted hundreds of hours on a derivative series. The gender politics especially annoyed the hell out of me. They're forced, unnatural, etc.

In short, The Wheel of Time is worth reading for those who love fantasy, and don't mind wading through 12 long and predictable books to gain a better understanding of the genre. But they're deeply flawed; to the point where I walked away in the middle of the 8th book.

This is the first of Esselmont's books that I have read, and I would rate it as an enjoyable and fast read (took me about 3.5 hours), but it definitely falls short of Erikson's quality.

Now I am reading The Judging Eye by R Scott Bakker. I read the original trilogy (The Prince of Nothing series) and thought they were very good and so far this book is pretty good as well. You can tell the author has a background in philosophy.

Also Whiskey are you ever going to read the Name of the Wind?

Loved the Prince of Nothing series. Definitely going to be picking up The Judging Eye. And yes, The Name of the Wind is on deck as well. I've been tied up trying to finish The Brothers Karamazov for months now.

 

[zelezo vlk]

I've been tied up trying to finish The Brothers Karamazov for months now.

Nice.

 

[woolybug25]

I've been tied up trying to finish The Brothers Karamazov for months now.

It would have to come with great reference, from someone I knew shared my taste in literature, to pick up any Fyodor Dostoevsky novel again. Crime and Punishment was exhausting to read. I think I picked it up four or five times before I actually finished it.

 

[zelezo vlk]

It would have to come with great reference, from someone I knew shared my taste in literature, to pick up any Fyodor Dostoevsky novel again. Crime and Punishment was exhausting to read. I think I picked it up four or five times before I actually finished it.

The Idiot?

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[woolybug25]

The Idiot?

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Jk. I've been told its a must read, but again, Crime and Punishment has me not willing to take a chance on anything from Dostoevsky. If The Idiot is anything like C&P, then my psyche simply cant take another hit like that.

 

[IrishLion]

This kind of exists between the worlds of "What are you reading?" and "What are you watching?" but the Dark Tower movies are officially on.

King announced today on his Tweeter machine that Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey are official as the main characters Roland and the Man in Black.

The movies will NOT start with the first book. They will begin somewhere in the "middle," and be set in the modern day. That probably means that they begin with "The Drawing of the Three" in order to establish Eddie and Susannah right away, making their character transitions a bit more dramatic.

This also means that Idris Elba's Roland will remain mysterious for a while, as will his intentions for drawing Eddie and Susannah into a new world. It ALSO means that Roland's past, his flight following the Man in Black, and his discovering Jake will be explored in a later movie or via the TV show (if that still happens). Introducing Jake later will also make a big part of his plot much more impactful.

 

[pkt77242]

Now onto The White Luck Warrior by R Scott Bakker.

 

[zelezo vlk]

Finished The Diary of a Country Priest

My priest even encouraged me to give up reading it because it was so boring, but relented when I told him I only had 100 pages left. It took a while to get going, but once I got about 125 pages in, it was no issue. When I was 50 pages in and struggling, I looked online to see if I was missing a theme that may unlock what I was reading. Instead, I found a review saying that if reading a book is normally a dessert or delicacy, then The Diary of a Country Priest is a carrot eaten whole, unwashed, and raw. I agree.

Now I'm onto The Idiot; I'm about 100 pages in and I already enjoy it much more. I'm just flying through the book.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Here's a rare 10m recording of Tolkien reading from The Hobbit.

 

[ACamp1900]

Cashed in an Amazon card with a volume of Washington Irving, Lost Mans River by Peter Matthiessen (loved Killing Mister Watson and this is the sequel), Mohicans and The Greatest Knight... Should keep me busy...

Finishing up Life on the Mississppi currently.

 

[ACamp1900]

Been wanting to read this one for some time. I hope it was as good as advertised.

It was very good. Only thing is it was in parts... Fathers story, then Sons story then grand sons story... I'm not the biggest fan of that structure but it worked well here, great read.

 

[pkt77242]

I have a couple of light work weeks coming up so time to get back to reading the Game of Thrones series (about halfway through book 1 right now). Hopefully I can finish the first 3 during that time.

Also Whiskey have you read Name of the Wind yet?

 

[pkt77242]

I have a couple of light work weeks coming up so time to get back to reading the Game of Thrones series (about halfway through book 1 right now). Hopefully I can finish the first 3 during that time.

Also Whiskey have you read Name of the Wind yet?

Finished book one last night and now about 1/4 of the way through book 2.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Finished book one last night and now about 1/4 of the way through book 2.

What'd you think of the first book? A Storm of Swords is the gem of the series.

I have a couple of light work weeks coming up so time to get back to reading the Game of Thrones series (about halfway through book 1 right now). Hopefully I can finish the first 3 during that time.

Also Whiskey have you read Name of the Wind yet?

I have not yet, though it's on deck as soon as I finish the Aspect-Emperor series, which is a continuation of R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series. I read the latter in law school and enjoyed it, and the first book of his follow-up trilogy (The Judging Eye) didn't disappoint.

I'd recommend it for anyone who enjoyed Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. Both series are well grounded in European history, though Bakker's involves a lot more philosophy and theology as well.