[Ap2000]

Ap2000, on 05 August 2011 - 02:45 AM, said:

Ordered Murakami's new book 1Q84.
It was quite expensive, 32€ (usually I buy books for 5~12€), but it's fresh off the press and nearly 1000 pages huge.
This will be the first time I read a book with this many pages. Wind-Up B.C. was 600 pages and it seemed already long and large, but this one must weight a whole kilogram.

OH MAN TSUKI (I think it was YOU, or ERI) you have tainted all of Murakami's books with penises for me for eternity.
Whenever I try to seriously think about "what does this mean ?" or "what's the relation here ?", it's FEMALE SUPPRESION and PENII !!

EDIT:
This also might have made me more critical against his upcoming books (I haven't read yet).
I am experiencing this right now with 1Q84.

I'll try to watch the Norwegian Wood movie soon with my parents so we have three perspectives:
1.) read the book, absolutely adores it (me)
2.) read the book (my mom)
3.) hasn't read the book (my dad)

[Tsuki]

Ap2000, on 18 September 2011 - 03:50 AM, said:

OH MAN TSUKI (I think it was YOU, or ERI) you have tainted all of Murakami's books with penises for me for eternity.
Whenever I try to seriously think about "what does this mean ?" or "what's the relation here ?", it's FEMALE SUPPRESION and PENII !!

You're welcome. I aim to please.

I've been reading a lot lately (and not posting very much at all *shame*). Read The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt, it was an excellent book (nonfiction, obviously). It's a history book, but read very much like literature. Very good read and taught me a lot about ancient civilizations/history of that part of the world I did not know very much of. I've always had a passing interest in Egyptian history and this was a really satisfying read. It took a while to get through, it's a fairly large book with pretty small font, and I was only reading it about 20 minutes a day. But I really recommend it to anyone who has any interest in Ancient Egypt at all.

Finished Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, which was a frightfully silly book. I'm glad I read the original, they were very alike/identical, just with very silly (not in a negative way) zombies, kung-fu, and ball jokes. Yes, ball jokes, with Austen's prose written surrounding them.

Got through yet another Philippa Gregory book, The Virgin's Lover. I didn't like it as much I thought I would, probably since it had Elizabeth as one of its main characters. And I couldn't understand/relate to the main male/female characters at all. Very strange dynamic they had, but I still enjoyed the book. Taking a break from the series for now.

And now I am currently working my way through John Scalzi's remaining books. The sarcastic wit of his characters really tickles me the right way, they are all well written and fleshed out. Has an eye for detail, but doesn't expound laboriously on any one point. His Old Man's War series has been great so far, but I'm finding the last two a little less than stellar. That wit is great in the characters, but sometimes Scalzi can overuse it. His one-shots Agent to the Stars and The Android's Dream are really good, but I definitely recommend Agent to the Stars and Old Man's War so far. Good hard science fiction, with great character development, good writing style, and fairly original (and fairly plausible!) ideas.

[sadude]

Tsuki, on 18 September 2011 - 04:53 AM, said:

Finished Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, which was a frightfully silly book. I'm glad I read the original, they were very alike/identical, just with very silly (not in a negative way) zombies, kung-fu, and ball jokes. Yes, ball jokes, with Austen's prose written surrounding them.

I still intend to finish this. I was going to ask if you think it's worth it to read the original, but you pre-emptively answered that.

[freezingkiss]

I just finished reading 'Catherine of Aragon: Henry's Spanish Queen' by Giles Tremlett. EXCELLENT. Does anyone else have a Goodreads account here?

[neshcom]

I finished up Soul Identity last night. A decent spy-thriller story gets buried under a "now I'm a believer" cliche and extreme coincidences that pale in comparison to the major Mary Sue/Gary Stu going on. The main character is a 32-year-old divorced bachelor, well-off security consultant whose only problem is that he doesn't have a beautiful woman living with him. His parents work for him, he is extremely smart, and doesn't let anything go undetected. Not but days into the story does he meet a stunning Russian programmer who falls in love with his smarts, cool head under immense pressure, and witty retorts. His continued survival constantly hinges on ineptitude and extreme luck checks. The plot takes "right person, right time" to a whole new level.

I will unlikely be buying Soul whatevertheseuel.

BTW, can anyone recommend any good tragedy/sci-fi/futuristic/future-tech books?

[aine]

neshcom, on 10 October 2011 - 08:03 PM, said:

BTW, can anyone recommend any good tragedy/sci-fi/futuristic/future-tech books?

Obligatory Stanislaw Lem's Solaris recommendation. Trust me, you won't find better. And skip the movies at least until you read and digest it if you're ever tempted to watch them. They don't give the book justice, even if each has its own virtues.

Also, anything by Philip K. Dick is always a good choice. I'm halfway through Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said now and it's excellent and gripping. I'm looking forward to an epic finale. I wanted to start catching up with his books with the classic Do Androids Dream..., which I guess deal with similar issues, but all copies were out in my library.

[YuuakuRisa]

I am reading the House of Night book Awakened : )

[YuuakuRisa]

neshcom, on 10 October 2011 - 08:03 PM, said:

I finished up Soul Identity last night. A decent spy-thriller story gets buried under a "now I'm a believer" cliche and extreme coincidences that pale in comparison to the major Mary Sue/Gary Stu going on. The main character is a 32-year-old divorced bachelor, well-off security consultant whose only problem is that he doesn't have a beautiful woman living with him. His parents work for him, he is extremely smart, and doesn't let anything go undetected. Not but days into the story does he meet a stunning Russian programmer who falls in love with his smarts, cool head under immense pressure, and witty retorts. His continued survival constantly hinges on ineptitude and extreme luck checks. The plot takes "right person, right time" to a whole new level.

I will unlikely be buying Soul whatevertheseuel.

BTW, can anyone recommend any good tragedy/sci-fi/futuristic/future-tech books?

The Mark has some tragedy and sci-fi mixed in with some family drama. It's writen by M.R. Bunderson

[Petit Hulk]

If you look at the bottom corner of your posts, there is a button called "edit". Use this instead of double posting.

And I haven't read anything lately. I bought IQ84, but I haven't started it yet. Eh, it's hard to read when I write and vise versa.

[Ap2000]

Petit Melon, on 18 December 2011 - 05:41 AM, said:

If you look at the bottom corner of your posts, there is a button called "edit". Use this instead of double posting.

And I haven't read anything lately. I bought IQ84, but I haven't started it yet. Eh, it's hard to read when I write and vise versa.

Did you buy all three books/three-in-one ?
I still haven't finished it, it's so fucking huge.

[Petit Hulk]

I got the digital version after seeing how much space it would take up.

[Petit Hulk]

I will not let this thread die.

I'm reading The Hunger Games because I finally got around to going to that "kindle lending library" I get with a prime membership and it was the first selection. The premise reminds me of Battle Royale, but I'm all for a heroine that's not useless!(please don't let her be useless) I was a little miffed at the "oh white people so speshul with their blue eyes and blonde hair" bullshit at the beginning, but that's just because I've been so conditioned to seeing the perfect specimen of an american I've grown to hate/bore of it.

In any case, with Korra debuting in Spring (please spring) and that book getting a film adaptation, can it please be the start of a strong heroine era?

[cadmonkey]

I read Battle Royale several years ago, and I'm still trying to decide whether I should read The Hunger Games. One part of me thinks I'll enjoy it, but the other part thinks I'll just read it and complain about how it ripped of Battle Royale at every corner. I'd like to hear your opinion when you finish it off.

As for me, I just picked up Cradle to Cradle, because all of my architecture friends are doing it. From what I've heard, it's about how we're all terrible people and need to be more sustainable.

[Ap2000]

Petit Melon, on 18 January 2012 - 01:59 AM, said:

I will not let this thread die.

I'm reading The Hunger Games because I finally got around to going to that "kindle lending library" I get with a prime membership and it was the first selection. The premise reminds me of Battle Royale, but I'm all for a heroine that's not useless!(please don't let her be useless) I was a little miffed at the "oh white people so speshul with their blue eyes and blonde hair" bullshit at the beginning, but that's just because I've been so conditioned to seeing the perfect specimen of an american I've grown to hate/bore of it.

In any case, with Korra debuting in Spring (please spring) and that book getting a film adaptation, can it please be the start of a strong heroine era?

So you didn't finish 1Q84 ?

I'm 1/3 into the 3rd book right now.

[neshcom]

I'm gonna wait on the Hunger Games series until I see the movie. Movie then book >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> book then movie.

Currently reading Stuff White People Like. Eh, it's okay, but I expected anything that tried to follow Freedom for me would just completely whiff it.

[Petit Hulk]

Ap2000, on 18 January 2012 - 02:49 AM, said:

So you didn't finish 1Q84 ?

I'm 1/3 into the 3rd book right now.

I'm about halfway through the first book or so, I suppose, because it's not very far. The thing about Murakami v Collins is that Murakami requires brain power and Collins doesn't. So I can read Collins at work with no problems with interruptions but if I'm interrupted during Murakami's books I have to go back and reread what I was trying to read otherwise I feel like I missed something, unless it was a pasta making session of course :P And I haven't had time for a dedicated reading session lately. I hate being engrossed in a chapter and having to put the book down for other obligations. :(

I'm at 30% now, and the thing I predicted back from the beginning happened. So far it reminds me of a friend I used to have that wanted to write comics and their thing was "I want to make it like THIS and we'll add THIS from THIS" ect. It's not that it's not enjoyable, it's just a tad predictable. But we'll see how things play out now that I'm about to hit the fighting part. The only thing I'm really missing from Battle Royale was the social commentary, but I think that may be too deep for a YA novel, and one that takes place in a post apocalyptic world at that. I keep thinking I make things out to be worse, but it's not bad. Not all meals have to be steaks lol

[Petit Hulk]

Okay, I finished it. I had an inkling of how it would end, and once the "twist" occurred, I knew exactly how it would happen. It was a nice ride for what it was. I wish it could've been written for an older audience so the author could get some more meat on it, but eh, chicken wings are good too, eh? I'll read the rest of the books in the series because it's a nice mindless ride. I suppose the one thing I didn't like was that we never got a complete character arc in the book. In that sense I feel cheated because there really wasn't much growth at all. But that's a complaint for something that's really not common to that genre at all. It's like complaining there's no character growth in an Alien flick. I've noticed that I enjoy books more where the characters dictate the action and not the other way around. /shrug

Since I read Battle Royale back in junior high, I'm going to reread it when I can to properly judge the two because they are similar to the point that I wonder if the author knew of it and decided to make her own version. At least she's no Cassandra Claire

[aine]

Petit Melon, on 19 January 2012 - 03:41 AM, said:

It's like complaining there's no character growth in an Alien flick.

What are you talking about?? I don't think you've even watched the movie if you didn't notice their wonderful growth cycle.

[Petit Hulk]

^^

To continue my books on the science of health (see Good Calories, Bad Calories; Why We Get Fat; Wheat Belly; Fast Food Nation; Protein Power) I'm now reading The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living: An Expert Guide to Making the Life-Saving Benefits of Carbohydrate Restriction Sustainable and Enjoyable. Yeah, mouthful. Anyway, the best part of this is the SCIENCE part, and it is the most interesting. Since I'm allergic to gluten, I basically am forced to eat low carb

[sadude]

^^ Science of health? Dude, read this. It's actually what I'm re-reading right now since I got the Kindle version.

And speaking of the Kindle..!!! Hold on, post and/or PM incoming.

[ella]

chicken soup for the soul: twins and more
a new song (mitford book) by jan karon

[Petit Hulk]

ella, on 20 January 2012 - 05:47 AM, said:

chicken soup for the soul: twins and more
a new song (mitford book) by jan karon

Are you a twin?

[enmi]

I've been re-reading the Dragonriders of Pern series since Anne McCaffrey recently passed away. It was one of my favorite series when I was in junior high/high school.

[Ap2000]

Enmiz, on 03 February 2012 - 01:01 AM, said:

I've been re-reading the Dragonriders of Pern series since Anne McCaffrey recently passed away. It was one of my favorite series when I was in junior high/high school.

Yeah... as (probably) many others I read PORN there...

[showraniy]

I just read The Road by Cormac McCarthy yesterday, and holy crap, it changed muh dang life. The few friends who read only read romance novels and fanfiction primarily, so I'm not sure if this book is commonly read or not, but jeeeez it's so bleak, depressing, horrific, and awesome. Maybe I'm just way too interested in the human condition especially in times of crisis, but before this book, I didn't know there were anyone as morbidly fascinated with that as me. I wanna see the movie, but I'm a total wimp against visuals of mutilated people, so I'm afraid to watch it.

Anyone else read this book or know of it? I'd never heard of it before.

[YuuakuRisa]

As of now I'm reading the Game of Thrones graphic novels. They're 3.99 each vol. on itunes.

It reminds me so much of Once In a Blue Moon vol.1, the colors not so much the story line.

I also have to finish reading The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri for English. So far it's a very interesting read.

[Plum]

I read all three of the Hunger Games books. I did not enjoy them. I lamented the lack of character depth, the fact that a perfectly interesting world basically went to waste, and that the mood was totally monotonous from the first chapter to the last. I rushed through the end just so I could be done with the books, basically.

[Ap2000]

Plum, on 23 April 2012 - 10:53 PM, said:

I read all three of the Hunger Games books. I did not enjoy them. I lamented the lack of character depth, the fact that a perfectly interesting world basically went to waste, and that the mood was totally monotonous from the first chapter to the last. I rushed through the end just so I could be done with the books, basically.

I don't understand why you did something optional that displeased you.

[Sabaku Ika]

I read the Hunger Games recently and I liked it, but not enough to keep reading through everything. Now, I'm working on John Dies at the End by David Wong and it is exactly my kind of book. I think the author might be a reincarnation of me from the future. Or something.

[Plum]

Ap2000, on 23 April 2012 - 11:29 PM, said:

Plum, on 23 April 2012 - 10:53 PM, said:

I read all three of the Hunger Games books. I did not enjoy them. I lamented the lack of character depth, the fact that a perfectly interesting world basically went to waste, and that the mood was totally monotonous from the first chapter to the last. I rushed through the end just so I could be done with the books, basically.

I don't understand why you did something optional that displeased you.

The first book wasn't so bad, so I was trapped into the second two by my OCD. Once I finished one portion, as much as I hated the experience of the subsequent portions, it would have driven me nuts if I didn't complete it. It's one of my quirks.