By Apollo Go To PostA Wild Sheep Chase is a really different and deeper read if you’ve read Murakami’s first two novels. They add a lot of context to the MC and the rat’s relationshipI looked it up, I heard they're kind of hard to find though.
By FermentedFungi Go To PostI looked it up, I heard they're kind of hard to find though.
They were but the first two books were released as a collection a few years ago
By noal Go To PostI need to contribute more here.
Currently re-reading Easy Riders, Raging Bulls.
Finished that. Started 'Down And Dirty Pictures'
I just seem to go with the flow..
Been reading the Meg series after seeing the movie.
Amazing how badly they screwed the possibilities.
Still, every time I read a line from Jonas Taylor I hear Statham's gravely voice which is a bonus.
Amazing how badly they screwed the possibilities.
Still, every time I read a line from Jonas Taylor I hear Statham's gravely voice which is a bonus.
Only a third of the way in, but Little Drummer Girl is excellent. My first Le Carre book and he just absolutely knows how to describe characters and keep a fast paced prose. Completely engrossing.
Finished up After Dark by Murakami, enjoyed the characters and the way the passage of time was treated in it, the plot was a but iffy.
By reilo Go To PostOnly a third of the way in, but Little Drummer Girl is excellent. My first Le Carre book and he just absolutely knows how to describe characters and keep a fast paced prose. Completely engrossing.Just finisbed it. Quite an astounding read.
By noal Go To Post
Just finished listening to The Spanish Civil War by Beevor. I fully recommend the book to anyone with even a passing interest in history or politics - the past gives us great insight into the political struggles of today, and of how we need to be vigilant. Beevor is a fantastic writer, very thorough and comes across as an extremely studious researcher. I'll have to get another of his sooner rather than later, perhaps Arnhem. I also recently read Crashed: How a Decade of Financial Crises Changed the World by Adam Tooze. It can feel quite heavy at times (especially if, like me, you aren't well-versed in economics), but it's extremely enlightening. Tooze looks not only at how political and economic events happened, but why they happened. It may leave you feeling a little depressed, mind - it seems that very little if anything has been learnt. The political and policy issues that allowed the various crises to explode are still there, writ large as ever.
Moved on to A Live in the Sand: Britain, France and the struggle that shaped the Middle East by James Barr. So far it's very interesting, albeit on a topic I know shamefully little about. The early chapters certainly give a very different impression of how the world was 100 years ago - Britain and France still heartily embracing imperialism and empire-building, the world was their playground.
By Roberto Larcos Go To PostAny recommendations for WWII books that aren't geared towards academics?
Cornelius Ryan's A Bridge Too Far.
How do we feel about this?
She Pulled Her Debut Book When Critics Found It Racist. Now She Plans to Publish.
She Pulled Her Debut Book When Critics Found It Racist. Now She Plans to Publish.
Her debut novel, “Blood Heir,” was six months away from publication, but it was already getting pummeled. The controversy started in January, when some readers argued that Zhao’s depiction of slavery was racially insensitive. It quickly snowballed into an online pile-on, as some commenters who hadn’t read the young adult fantasy book expressed outrage about its contents.
Zhao was stunned. “There were so many voices chiming in, and only a few people had read the book,” she said in a recent interview at her publisher’s office.
Overwhelmed by the criticism, she told her publishers to cancel the novel’s June release.
She came up with the plot for “Blood Heir” in 2014, during a family trip to Russia. She imagined a fictional empire where a group of people called Affinites, who have special powers, are feared and trafficked for labor by the powerful elite — a system that is challenged by a fugitive princess who wields magic. In describing the plight of Affinites, Zhao aimed to invoke real-world issues, including human trafficking and indentured servitude in Asia.https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/29/books/amelie-wen-zhao-blood-heir.html
“What I sought to interrogate and critique was the modern-day epidemic of human trafficking and endured labor,” Zhao said. “It wasn’t something I had seen in Y.A. literature.”
She also drew on her own experience as an immigrant and her feeling of being powerless and not belonging, she said.
After Delacorte sent out advance reader copies of the novel to reviewers, librarians and booksellers, many of the early responses were positive. But those were soon drowned out by blistering critiques. “This book is about slavery, a false oppression narrative that equates having legitimately dangerous magical powers that kill people with being an oppressed minority, like a person of color,” a reader wrote on Goodreads.
Started listening to LotR having read it in my early teens
What a book. The lore dump when Gandalf returns to Bag End 👍
Not a huge fan of Rob Inglis' character voices so far
What a book. The lore dump when Gandalf returns to Bag End 👍
Not a huge fan of Rob Inglis' character voices so far
Disney War is a fascinating story if you’re interested at all about Disney in the late 80s/early 90s. Katzenberg seems like a huge dick 😂
Been reading this lately and I’m almost done. It’s a memoir in English written by a Chinese millennial who grew up in China. Fascinating read and touches on her family life during such events like the rapid growth of the 90’s, Falun Gong, the SARS epidemic, and the 2008 Beijing Olympics. As well as recounting her family’s various stories of living in Mao’s China.
By Perfect Blue Go To Post
Been reading this lately and I’m almost done. It’s a memoir in English written by a Chinese millennial who grew up in China. Fascinating read and touches on her family life during such events like the rapid growth of the 90’s, Falun Gong, the SARS epidemic, and the 2008 Beijing Olympics. As well as recounting her family’s various stories of living in Mao’s China.
Oh I need to pick this up
By Roberto Larcos Go To PostAny recommendations for WWII books that aren't geared towards academics?I’m late af on this but check out Rick Atkinson’s Liberation trilogy.
Picked up a used copy of Ladies & Gentleman, the story about Lenny Bruce.
Man, this guy was wild, I only knew some of his standup but all the rest is crazy.
Man, this guy was wild, I only knew some of his standup but all the rest is crazy.
Currently reading the Witcher books.
Pretty suprised how good they actually are. First two are just short stories that establish characters, world etc. Works pretty damn well and once the main story starts with book 3, it's damn good.
I'm still in the middle of the books, so I can't judge the entire series yet, but so far I'm pleasently suprised.
Anyone who enjoyed the story and wants to get the bigger picture including the politcal backround and how everything happened, you're in for a really good series.
Pretty suprised how good they actually are. First two are just short stories that establish characters, world etc. Works pretty damn well and once the main story starts with book 3, it's damn good.
I'm still in the middle of the books, so I can't judge the entire series yet, but so far I'm pleasently suprised.
Anyone who enjoyed the story and wants to get the bigger picture including the politcal backround and how everything happened, you're in for a really good series.
By Pennywise Go To PostCurrently reading the Witcher books.It's a good romp. Don't think I'd recommend the series to someone not familiar with the games though. Maybe with the Netflix series coming out that will change.
Pretty suprised how good they actually are. First two are just short stories that establish characters, world etc. Works pretty damn well and once the main story starts with book 3, it's damn good.
I'm still in the middle of the books, so I can't judge the entire series yet, but so far I'm pleasently suprised.
Anyone who enjoyed the story and wants to get the bigger picture including the politcal backround and how everything happened, you're in for a really good series.
There's also an 8th prequel book now set before the main series called Season of Storms. Don't know if you were aware of that but it was released last year I believe.
By bacon Go To PostIt's a good romp. Don't think I'd recommend the series to someone not familiar with the games though. Maybe with the Netflix series coming out that will change.Yeah I got it, but I'm gonna read it after I'm done with the first 7 books.
There's also an 8th prequel book now set before the main series called Season of Storms. Don't know if you were aware of that but it was released last year I believe.
I get your point. It's definitely far easier to get into it, if you played the games or followed them at least.
Still think that you can get into the world without the games, but especially the monsters are something that you'll enjoy alot more due the visual image of the games, on top off the explanation what it actually is.
There are a couple of creatures that go in the books without any good description.
By Pennywise Go To PostYeah I got it, but I'm gonna read it after I'm done with the first 7 books.Oh for sure! It's not a badly written series by any stretch but I wouldn't have gotten the same level of enjoyment without knowing most characters from the games already. Some great characters not in the games though (maybe as Gwent cards but whatever). Geralt's Company was awesome.
I get your point. It's definitely far easier to get into it, if you played the games or followed them at least.
Still think that you can get into the world without the games, but especially the monsters are something that you'll enjoy alot more due the visual image of the games, on top off the explanation what it actually is.
There are a couple of creatures that go in the books without any good description.
I've actually been thinking of doing a re-read some time now. Might actually pick up physical copies this time around. Some of the books didn't even have official English translations back when I read them haha.
I recall the ents in The Two Towers being among the most boring parts of the books, but Treebeard"s dialogue is a delight
It's crazy how well they hold up in that regard
It's crazy how well they hold up in that regard
Just finished up Dance Dance Dance by Murakami. This is the 6th book I read of him (I think), enjoyed it's rather subtle flow, was expecting it to build upon the previous book but it kinda just veered in a different direction.
I’ve had a goal to read through more books and read consistently this year and it’s been starting off pretty well. I’ve read three books so far in 2020 and currently on my fourth. The books I’ve read so far have been Skyward by Brandon Sanderson, A River in Darkness by Masaji Ishikawa and The Forever War by Joe Haldeman - all of which were fantastic. I’m now reading The Expanse series, starting with Leviathan Wakes. I’ve never seen the show but now I’m pretty interested to check that out as well.
I still think he's gonna finish it this year, but there's still the next one with A Dream of Spring, while he also pretty much said that he's gonna do Fire & Blood 2 after Winds.
Reading the blog post, he also admits that his speed of writing is down massively compared to 10 years ago..
Reading the blog post, he also admits that his speed of writing is down massively compared to 10 years ago..
By Pennywise Go To PostI still think he's gonna finish it this year, but there's still the next one with A Dream of Spring, while he also pretty much said that he's gonna do Fire & Blood 2 after Winds.Well, connecting all those stories, hundreds of characters and events must be a gargantuan task. Maybe seeing how the show ended, he's more determined not to end up the same way thus lenghtning the writing process?
Reading the blog post, he also admits that his speed of writing is down massively compared to 10 years ago..
By Lupercal Go To PostWell, connecting all those stories, hundreds of characters and events must be a gargantuan task. Maybe seeing how the show ended, he's more determined not to end up the same way thus lenghtning the writing process?It's not going to be easier compared to the first book for sure, stories are getting bigger and with the way he writes (not someone planning in advance), it's just bound to get more complicated.
However I guess it's just mostly the age, combine that with the books getting more complicated and you got the reason.
I do wish they would go faster, of course. Way way back in 1999, when I was deep in the writing of A STORM OF SWORDS, I was averaging about 150 pages of manuscript a month. I fear I shall never recapture that pace again. Looking back, I am not sure how I did it then. A fever indeed.
His quality is still pretty much on point. I went through Fire & Blood amazingly fast and the quality is exactly what you'll expect from him.
I don't think the TV show affected him that much with his creative process.
I mean he surely had some second thoughts about alot of things and I'll expect some things have changed. I just don't think they had a major influence, given that the TV show left the source material on it's own by quite a margin in S4 already and massively changed alot of important points and characters.
I thought they had gotten the ending from GRRM ?
Well, he's 71 now, if his publisher isn't pushing for a ghost writer or something to help him now, they'll never do it.
I'm hopeful for the book in 2021 but I'm not going to be mad if it gets delayed again.
Jim Butcher is delivering 2 books this year, I have enough on my plate.
Well, he's 71 now, if his publisher isn't pushing for a ghost writer or something to help him now, they'll never do it.
I'm hopeful for the book in 2021 but I'm not going to be mad if it gets delayed again.
Jim Butcher is delivering 2 books this year, I have enough on my plate.
By Lupercal Go To PostI thought they had gotten the ending from GRRM ?Ending points and the broad strokes.
Well, he's 71 now, if his publisher isn't pushing for a ghost writer or something to help him now, they'll never do it.
I'm hopeful for the book in 2021 but I'm not going to be mad if it gets delayed again.
Jim Butcher is delivering 2 books this year, I have enough on my plate.
Dude hasn't even got everything planned ahead yet.
There's a pretty good quote how his creative process works :
“I think there are two types of writers, the architects and the gardeners. The architects plan everything ahead of time, like an architect building a house. They know how many rooms are going to be in the house, what kind of roof they're going to have, where the wires are going to run, what kind of plumbing there's going to be. They have the whole thing designed and blueprinted out before they even nail the first board up. The gardeners dig a hole, drop in a seed and water it. They kind of know what seed it is, they know if planted a fantasy seed or mystery seed or whatever. But as the plant comes up and they water it, they don't know how many branches it's going to have, they find out as it grows. And I'm much more a gardener than an architect.”With a book of that size and his age and generally slow writing, it's not that suprising. At least he's focusing on it for some time now instead of writing for the shitty TV show.
As I said. Winds of Winter won't be the big issue, but there's still one more book with A Dream of Spring. Unless he massively cuts down or handles the major plot points and only focuses on a few characters, it's gonna be a hard maybe.
He also never gave a proper date before, that July date was never a promise and more of a joke.
I still believe in a early 2021 release.
I wonder how much has he rewritten for Winds of Winter, and if he went through another Meereenese knot.
I wonder how much has he rewritten for Winds of Winter, and if he went through another Meereenese knot.
Feel like I need to re-read the last 2 books at least before WoW comes out, and I wasn't a big fan of them the first time around.
Fuck it, I'm sure there are plenty of long-form synopses out there
Fuck it, I'm sure there are plenty of long-form synopses out there
The estate of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has sued Netflix over its upcoming film Enola Holmes, arguing that the movie’s depiction of public domain character Sherlock Holmes having emotions and respecting women violates Doyle’s copyright.https://www.theverge.com/2020/6/25/21302942/netflix-enola-holmes-sherlock-arthur-conan-doyle-estate-lawsuit-copyright-infringement
Enola Holmes is based on a series of novels by Nancy Springer starring a newly created teenage sister of the famous detective. They feature many elements from Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories, and most of these elements aren’t covered by copyright, thanks to a series of court rulings in the early 2010s. Details from 10 stories, however, are still owned by Doyle’s estate. The estate argues that Springer’s books — and by extension Netflix’s adaptation — draw key elements from those stories. It’s suing not only Netflix, but Springer, her publisher Penguin Random House, and the film’s production company for unspecified financial damages.
wat