Author Topic: What are you reading?  (Read 845401 times)

birdless

  • Lochage
  • *****
  • Posts: 581
  • Five is right out.
Reply #375 on: April 04, 2008, 10:02:02 PM
I love Tad Williams's and Robert Herbert's styles and characterizations. Is anyone with familiar enough with their work to recommend some similar authors?



G. Foyle

  • Extern
  • *
  • Posts: 2
Reply #376 on: April 11, 2008, 02:35:51 PM
Just finished:
Heat by George Monbiott

Now:
Black Man by Richard Morgan



Listener

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 3187
  • I place things in locations which later elude me.
    • Various and Sundry Items of Interest
Reply #377 on: April 11, 2008, 04:42:08 PM
"Time Enough For Love" by Robert Heinlein

2nd reading

"Farts are a hug you can smell." -Wil Wheaton

Blog || Quote Blog ||  Written and Audio Work || Twitter: @listener42


Ocicat

  • Castle Watchcat
  • Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 3722
  • Anything for a Weird Life
Reply #378 on: April 11, 2008, 08:24:36 PM
"Time Enough For Love" by Robert Heinlein

2nd reading

I just gave that another read a few months ago.  I thought it held up very well.  You enjoying it?



jrderego

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 687
  • Writer of Union Dues stories (among others)
    • J. R. DeRego - Writer
Reply #379 on: April 11, 2008, 08:28:58 PM
The 10 Cent Plague (The Great Comic Book Scare and How It Changed America) by David Hadju.
A Room with a View by E. M. Forster.
Japanese War Crimes of WW2 by Tanaka.

"Happiness consists of getting enough sleep." Robert A. Heinlein
Also, please buy my book - Escape Clause: A Union Dues Novel
http://www.encpress.com/EC.html


Tango Alpha Delta

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1778
    • Tad's Happy Funtime
Reply #380 on: April 11, 2008, 09:02:32 PM
Just finished Duma Key ... now ready for a trip to the library.

This Wiki Won't Wrangle Itself!

I finally published my book - Tad's Happy Funtime is on Amazon!


Russell Nash

  • Guest
Reply #381 on: April 12, 2008, 01:41:26 PM
Just finished Duma Key ... now ready for a trip to the library.

Is that the one the movie Duma was based on?



Windup

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1226
Reply #382 on: April 12, 2008, 03:17:30 PM
Just finished: Tim Krabbe's The Rider

Currently Reading: A History of Warfare by John Keegan

Next Up: The Working Life by Joanne B. Ciulla

"My whole job is in the space between 'should be' and 'is.' It's a big space."


Tango Alpha Delta

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1778
    • Tad's Happy Funtime
Reply #383 on: April 12, 2008, 03:42:41 PM
Just finished Duma Key ... now ready for a trip to the library.

Is that the one the movie Duma was based on?

Whoops... Duma Key is the new Stephen King; nothing to do with cheetahs or Russian legislators.

(I meant to say that originally...)

This Wiki Won't Wrangle Itself!

I finally published my book - Tad's Happy Funtime is on Amazon!


jodymonster

  • Palmer
  • **
  • Posts: 54
Reply #384 on: April 13, 2008, 12:23:38 AM
Whoa, it's been way too long since I looked at this thread. My 'to read' pile just got bigger. 

I finished PEEPS (and the sequel, The Last Days), by Scott Westerfeild, and followed it up with Infected, by- does anyone here not know buy now? Scott Sigler.  I wouldn't suggest reading both of those in the same week, especially if it happens to be the week Norm runs a story like "Eggs" on the Drabblecast.  Waaaay too many parasites.  I thought nothing could be more horrifying than the real life parasites we have on this planet, many of which are described in PEEPS.  Then I read Infected.  My nightmares have years worth of new material. 
That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy both books (and the drabblecast).  I just kinda OD'ed on the subject, to the point where I don't even want to think about the books enough to give a decent critique.  I'll say this much:  PEEPS is quick and fun and has an interesting spin on vampires.
 The Last Days I was disappointed with.  It felt like a rushed, not as well thought out sequel.  Infected is also fun, but in a much more disturbed and psychotic way.  Kinda reminded me of Chuck Palahniuk, but with aliens. 

I don't know if I posted about this one before, but even if so it's worth bringing up again.  A while ago I finished Kindred, by Octavia Butler.  It's an absolutely beautiful book I can't believe no one ever recommended to me.  It's kinda historical fiction with time-travel.  An African-American woman living in California in the 1970's is repeatedly pulled back in time to save an ancestor of hers living in the Southern USA in the early 1800's.  This is the kind of book where the second you finish it you want to read it again, to soak up any little bits you might have missed.  I can't wait to read it again.

Lastly, I just finished Second Variety and I'm halfway through Paycheck, both Philip K. Dick short story collections.  They are both everything you would expect of him.  I'm enjoying them greatly. 

Next time I'll check in more often and try not to post huge paragraphs.


"If you're going to be crazy, you have to get paid for it or else you're going to be locked up." -Hunter S. Thompson


Ocicat

  • Castle Watchcat
  • Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 3722
  • Anything for a Weird Life
Reply #385 on: April 13, 2008, 05:14:12 PM
A while ago I finished Kindred, by Octavia Butler.

If you liked Kindred, I recommend Lion's Blood by Steven Barnes.  It's an alt-history where African's colonized the Americas.  They use Celtic (white) slaves.  It's never quite explained how the African/Islamic nations are more advanced, and Europeans less so, but once you accept the premise it's a wonderful book.  It goes much further than reversing the skin colors, and has a lot to say about the cultures involved.  And fantastic characters and good storylines.  Highly Recommended.



Tango Alpha Delta

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1778
    • Tad's Happy Funtime
Reply #386 on: April 13, 2008, 07:14:04 PM
A while ago I finished Kindred, by Octavia Butler.

If you liked Kindred, I recommend Lion's Blood by Steven Barnes.  It's an alt-history where African's colonized the Americas.  They use Celtic (white) slaves.  It's never quite explained how the African/Islamic nations are more advanced, and Europeans less so, but once you accept the premise it's a wonderful book.  It goes much further than reversing the skin colors, and has a lot to say about the cultures involved.  And fantastic characters and good storylines.  Highly Recommended.

I don't think it's that much of a stretch to suppose that the Caliphate could have taken an edge over the Europeans at some point during their struggles against each other.  Islam could have dominated the "Age of Enlightenment" just as easily as the Christian world did - if it was only a question of technology.  The Arabs are fond of reminding us that they invented the "zero", among other things. 

My impression is that the Europeans were better able to form "nations" than the Muslim cultures of the time, and were able to channel their energies into conquering/consolidating power instead of internecine conflicts that ultimately weakened them.


(If you care to do a search for "The Years of Rice and Salt" by Kim Stanley Robinson, it explores similar turf.)

This Wiki Won't Wrangle Itself!

I finally published my book - Tad's Happy Funtime is on Amazon!


wintermute

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1291
  • What Would Batman Do?
Reply #387 on: April 13, 2008, 09:49:03 PM
The Arabs are fond of reminding us that they invented the "zero", among other things.

Alas, the Arabs did not invent the zero. Four cultures developed the idea of using a placeholder symbol to denote "no value" (the Greeks did; the Romans did not, for example). However, the realisation that zero was a number in its own right, and you could perform mathematical operations on it came about only once: In India in the 5th Century AD. Their decimal notation system, complete with zero made it to Persia, where they remain named "Hindu numerals". The association between Arabic numberals and Arabia is purely because they came to Europe most directly from Arabia.

On the other hand, Arabs did invent such things as algebra.

Science means that not all dreams can come true


Listener

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 3187
  • I place things in locations which later elude me.
    • Various and Sundry Items of Interest
Reply #388 on: April 14, 2008, 03:38:01 PM
"Time Enough For Love" by Robert Heinlein

2nd reading

I just gave that another read a few months ago.  I thought it held up very well.  You enjoying it?

Even more so than the first time, perhaps because now I'm more mentally-equipped to deal with Heinleinism.

"Farts are a hug you can smell." -Wil Wheaton

Blog || Quote Blog ||  Written and Audio Work || Twitter: @listener42


Windup

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1226
Reply #389 on: April 14, 2008, 10:45:45 PM
"Time Enough For Love" by Robert Heinlein

2nd reading

I just gave that another read a few months ago.  I thought it held up very well.  You enjoying it?

Even more so than the first time, perhaps because now I'm more mentally-equipped to deal with Heinleinism.

Heinleinism?  I'm curious about what you mean by that...

"My whole job is in the space between 'should be' and 'is.' It's a big space."


Leon Kensington

  • Matross
  • ****
  • Posts: 296
  • Supreme Overlord of Earth
Reply #390 on: April 15, 2008, 03:40:28 AM
Just Finished:  99 Coffins by David Wellington

Currently Reading:  1984 by George Orwell

Next Book:  Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher or
                Protector's War by SM Stirling


Hey, does anyone know of some good steampunk?  I just finished Mur Lafferty's Wasteland and now find I have a slight addiction to steampunk.



DKT

  • Friendly Neighborhood
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 4980
  • PodCastle is my Co-Pilot
    • Psalms & Hymns & Spiritual Noir
Reply #391 on: April 15, 2008, 05:47:28 PM
Hey, does anyone know of some good steampunk?  I just finished Mur Lafferty's Wasteland and now find I have a slight addiction to steampunk.

Some people would argue that it's not exactly steampunk, but I'd highly recommend China Mieville's Perdido Street Station or The Scar.  (And FWIW, I know that Mur's a fan of Mieville.)


DKT

  • Friendly Neighborhood
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 4980
  • PodCastle is my Co-Pilot
    • Psalms & Hymns & Spiritual Noir
Reply #392 on: April 15, 2008, 05:48:09 PM
John Scalzi's The Ghost Brigades and Jen Pelland's Unwelcome Bodies.


Listener

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 3187
  • I place things in locations which later elude me.
    • Various and Sundry Items of Interest
Reply #393 on: April 15, 2008, 08:01:19 PM
"Time Enough For Love" by Robert Heinlein

2nd reading

I just gave that another read a few months ago.  I thought it held up very well.  You enjoying it?

Even more so than the first time, perhaps because now I'm more mentally-equipped to deal with Heinleinism.

Heinleinism?  I'm curious about what you mean by that...

Heinlein's outlook on politics, governments, family structures, and sex.

"Farts are a hug you can smell." -Wil Wheaton

Blog || Quote Blog ||  Written and Audio Work || Twitter: @listener42


birdless

  • Lochage
  • *****
  • Posts: 581
  • Five is right out.
Reply #394 on: April 15, 2008, 09:46:02 PM
Some people would argue that it's not exactly steampunk, but I'd highly recommend China Mieville's Perdido Street Station or The Scar.  (And FWIW, I know that Mur's a fan of Mieville.)

I'm looking for something to read, and Miéville has been a hot topic here in recent weeks, so I'm looking online at our library here at the university where I work and they only have one Miéville book: King Rat. Is it any good? There's also a large GRRM collection, including Song of Ice and Fire. Which one should I go for?



Roney

  • Lochage
  • *****
  • Posts: 440
Reply #395 on: April 16, 2008, 09:29:47 PM
I'm looking for something to read, and Miéville has been a hot topic here in recent weeks, so I'm looking online at our library here at the university where I work and they only have one Miéville book: King Rat. Is it any good?

Yes.  It's quite different from his three later adult novels (leaving aside Un Lun Dun) which are set in a full-on fantasy world where everything is invented: King Rat is set in a very recognizable '90s London, and the fantasy element comes from... well, fairy tale characters given a Miéville urban fantasy twist.

The tone and the themes are familiarly Miéville, though, by which I mean gritty, relentless and downbeat.  It's not quite as grim as I've managed to make it sound, because there's usually some possibility of hope or small personal victories for some of the characters, but it tends not to be the outcome they were looking for.

I'd give King Rat a shot, but if you end up not liking it because it's insufficiently fantastic or too obsessed with drum 'n' bass, I wouldn't let it put you off trying Perdido Street Station or The Scar.



DKT

  • Friendly Neighborhood
  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 4980
  • PodCastle is my Co-Pilot
    • Psalms & Hymns & Spiritual Noir
Reply #396 on: April 16, 2008, 09:57:53 PM
What Roney said.  That one's in my TBR pile, but I know that it's a bit different from the other stuff (even Un Lun Dun).  And I'm pretty sure it's not steampunk. 


Windup

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1226
Reply #397 on: April 17, 2008, 03:16:05 AM

Heinleinism?  I'm curious about what you mean by that...


Heinlein's outlook on politics, governments, family structures, and sex.


IC. I always found the family structure stuff the most interesting.  Politics and governments, not so much.  He took a rather absolutist Libertarian view in later years (or at least, that's what comes across in the last few novels) and I've found that a bit of a turnoff as my own thinking on the subject evolved.  Though I often think about the family structures described in The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.

"My whole job is in the space between 'should be' and 'is.' It's a big space."


birdless

  • Lochage
  • *****
  • Posts: 581
  • Five is right out.
Reply #398 on: April 17, 2008, 04:35:19 AM
I'm looking for something to read, and Miéville has been a hot topic here in recent weeks, so I'm looking online at our library here at the university where I work and they only have one Miéville book: King Rat. Is it any good?

Yes.  It's quite different from his three later adult novels (leaving aside Un Lun Dun) which are set in a full-on fantasy world where everything is invented: King Rat is set in a very recognizable '90s London, and the fantasy element comes from... well, fairy tale characters given a Miéville urban fantasy twist.

The tone and the themes are familiarly Miéville, though, by which I mean gritty, relentless and downbeat.  It's not quite as grim as I've managed to make it sound, because there's usually some possibility of hope or small personal victories for some of the characters, but it tends not to be the outcome they were looking for.

I'd give King Rat a shot, but if you end up not liking it because it's insufficiently fantastic or too obsessed with drum 'n' bass, I wouldn't let it put you off trying Perdido Street Station or The Scar.

Cool, thanks! I'm gonna check it out, along with Song of Ice and Fire. I wished they had Perdido Street Station. It gets mentioned favorably a lot around here. Maybe my local library has it... The cool thing about the university library though, is that since I'm staff, I can check it out for up to a year.



wintermute

  • Hipparch
  • ******
  • Posts: 1291
  • What Would Batman Do?
Reply #399 on: April 17, 2008, 11:55:27 AM

Heinleinism?  I'm curious about what you mean by that...


Heinlein's outlook on politics, governments, family structures, and sex.


IC. I always found the family structure stuff the most interesting.  Politics and governments, not so much.  He took a rather absolutist Libertarian view in later years (or at least, that's what comes across in the last few novels)
Very much so. He's often quoted as saying that "you can only truly own what you can carry in both arms at a dead run".

If you can make it through The Cat Who Walks Through Walls, that's an excellent primer on his social and sexual politics. I wrote about it here and here, if you want more details.

I have honestly never hated a book so much.

Science means that not all dreams can come true