Books and Reading 2010
Continued from 2009.
Date: January 5, 2010
Categories: Things We like
Saturday, 27 April 2024
Life, the universe, pies, hot-pink bunnies, world domination, and everything
The most recent new book I read… I guess that was The Engines of God, by Jack McDevitt. I enjoyed its ingenious solution to the Fermi Paradox, but there was something about the writing style that made me gloss over boring sections of text and miss important details. I think it’ll be a book that gets better upon multiple re-reads.
I just finished JS&MN and am reading The Light Fantastic. Then I have 5 other Discworlds.
I haven’t read anything in forever, which is pretty sad form someone who’s an admitted bibliophile.Here’s what I want to read:
The Andromeda Strain
House of Leaves
Snow Crash
A History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, which my AP English teacher lent me a couple of months ago and that I haven’t even opened yet.
Finish reading Brisingr I just haven’t been able to get through that book.
And many many others. I had a list all written out –several lists, actually, updated every time I go to a book store–but I lost them. There are so many random papers scattered about my room.
*goes to look for papers* Wait, I found one. Bloodhound by Tamora Pierce.
I’ve never read House of Leaves, but people say it is seriously creepy.
Snow Crash I really liked.
I read Bloodhound. I liked it, not as good as Bisingr though.
House of Leaves has been on my to-read list for ages…perhaps this semestre…
Must-read- Little Brother by Cory Docterow
I’m reading Thucydides and Herodotus right now.
I’m reading The Magician’s Nephew by C.S Lewis. It’s awesome!
Do you get all the Christian references?
No. What are they?
I haven’t read the book (or have I? I don’t remember), but C.S. Lewis was a famously earnest Catholic, so there are probably too many references to list.
His friend Tolkien was Catholic, but Lewis was Church of England (Anglican/Episcopal).
Really? Hm. I guess I had assumed he was Catholic, as his works are highly esteemed and widely read in the Catholic community.
Probably due to his book as an apologist. He practically set the standards for modern religious apologists.
Um… the entire story is based on Bible stories just with the names changed.
Actually, Lewis was an Anglican. (His friend Tolkien was Catholic.) And Lewis emphatically denied that the Narnia books were allegory. He imagined the religious elements in them as arising from the specific world of Narnia, not as any kind of one-to-one correspondences with Christianity. There are many pagan elements in the stories, in fact Lewis claimed to be a Christian pagan among pagan Christians (unless it was the other way around; I’m quoting from memory from a very long time ago).
[I didn’t see Robert’s reply until after I posted.]
He must have had deeper self-awareness than that.
It makes sense creatively and within his logic. His stories grew from the pictures in his mind. That they would take on a shape bearing many similarities to Christianity isn’t surprising since by then he was a devoted Christian. But he’d been an equally devout atheist before that, was enamored of ancient mythology and other subjects in ways that would fail many conservative litmus tests. But as a literary academic, he was very precise in his terms as to what allegory is and is not.
Alright, I’ll take your word for it. It’s a semantic issue ultimately, anyway.
Jinx!
XD
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a) One God, represented by Aslan.
b) the creation story in Narnia is a lot like the one in the Bible. At least, they’re similar in the sense that creation was made in steps and that it is good.
c) Mankind brings something bad into creation.
Those are the ones I can remember, I haven’t read the book in ages…
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Here are a few more (I don’t feel like re-reading it, so…)
-The whole “going to heaven” thing when they die (the last one)
-The heathens are all evil (and seem very turkish)
-Girls don’t fight (or do anything interesting)
-The evil is brought to Narnia by a woman, who also tempts what’s-his-name with an apple (what vanillabean said about the creation story)
-There’s a king who’s “chosen by god” who can right all wrongs and is perfect, e.t.c…
I liked it when I was younger, but now it awakens a sort of hidden (not very) feministic fury when it’s SPOILER Susan, the only “grown-up” female role, who doesn’t go to heaven, or when “battles are ugly when women fight” (and glorious otherwise), or…
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You’ve all missed the most important one, in the first book: Aslan had to die as a voluntary sacrifice to save humanity (the children) from the consequences of their sin (Edmund’s treachery). Then he was resurrected.
Of course, but I was only looking at the Magician’s Nephew.
Oh, so you were. Sorry!
Oh, right. I must have slept through that part in religion class. *epic fail at trying to remember when she was awake in said class*
Yes, there are lots of religious elements in the Narnia stories, but most of them can be found in other religions beside Christianity. In fact, some Christian groups disapprove of the series, claiming it promotes witchcraft and pagan beliefs. Lewis’s own point was that he created a religion that was native to Narnia, as it were. Aslan may resemble Christ, but both of them also resemble self-sacrificing gods from numerous mythological traditions.
SPOILER SPOILER bookgirl_me, not quite all the “heathens” are evil. One of the followers of Tash ends up in Narnia’s heaven after the last battle. Lewis was at great pains to show that the soldier’s character was more important than his conscious allegiance. This is another unorthodox “theological” development that earned Lewis a lot of criticism from some Christian groups.
In spite of the old-school-tie attitude towards females, I always thought the only memorable human character was Lucy.
Aslan as Jesus/God, the two kids as Adam and Eve, that one witch as the devil, and so on.
Almost done with Thirteen Reasons Why. Cried myself to sleep last night. Good book. READ IT.
I’ve read that, and it’s an excellent book that really packs a punch. That sort of book, though, makes me think intensely about the subject rather than cry. It takes a certain type of emotionally charged writing to make me cry. That book is full of emotion, but isn’t expressed in a way that for me inspires tears. I feel like I’m being redundant and not making sense.
You’re not! I get what you’re saying, but it seems to be the opposite for me… I don’t cry from books much of time (For movies, I’m guilty. :oops:), but anything with someone dying that I get attached to can leave me in tears. At the beginning I felt that it wasn’t even based off a true story, so I didn’t have many actual feelings. Towards the end I got to know the girl so much and feel bad for her twisted life. I didn’t cry at the end, though, just after realizing how much stuff was messed up in her life…
I nearly cried too.
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The only part I disliked is that Hannah sometimes it’s almost like a revenge. And the teacher-… I just felt a bit like she was blaming others. He couldn’t have known! Also, the bit about the girl with the baggy clothes walking away at the end… I don’t know, it irritated me. The description, not the message. I mean, OMG she started wearing a sweatshirt she’ll commit suicide is a lousy description. Hunched shoulders, rings under the eyes, something more real.
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Well, Hannah all but admitted to having the desire to kill herself. I didn’t quite get your first question….
And about Skye, didn’t it say that she had been wearing those types of clothes for years? I think the point was that he was hearing those same footsteps, and whether or not Skye was thinking of suicide, he didn’t want to regret anything anymore. I thought that the moral was great and powerful.
I really want to read that book. It’s been on my list for a long time but I really never got the chance to read it because I have a LONG list. Lots of recomendations from friends…
Really? I never knew that.
Anyway. I just finished Choke by Palahniuk, which was brilliant, and before that I read Bukowski’s Post Office, which is even more so.
Am currently reading a book explaining biological and evolutionary reasons and consequences of “belief” in the human brain, and will then go on to either Angela’s Ashes or Women, another Bukowski.
8 – What is it about?
I’m ALMOST finished reading Tess of the D’Urbervilles. It’s got such a tense ending!!
It’s about a girl who kills herself and leaves behind cassette tapes with the thirteen reasons why she killed herself, with each reason being a person. You see it through Clay’s eyes, who is constantly wondering why he is on it, because he hears some pretty crazy things on the tapes.
I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. We had to read that in AP English when I was a senior…it was probably one of the worst things I’ve ever encountered. Oddly, the first good friend I made in collegeland loved it. Huh. To each her own, I suppose.
(11.1 is about Thirteen Reasons Why. 11.2, I assume, refers to Tess.)
Yes, it’s definitely about Tess. Haven’t read the other one. Sorry for the confusion…
I am almost finished with the fourth book in the Wheel of Time series.
I find it interesting how Robert (the author) can create such long books out of what seems like such a little topic when you are first introduced to it.
I’m reading Mr. Midshipman Hornblower right now. It is quite good.
Those are by CS Forester right? My dad wants me to read them. But right now I’m a bit busy with The Iliad right now. But I plan to read Hornblower when I finish.
Yup! It is by C. S. Forester. Do read them; this one at least is quite good and I’d suspect the next ones are too.
They are! *loves the second one especially*
Oh yes, Hornblower is wonderful! I’m afraid that after Beat to Quarters I started having troubles, on account of having read the prequels before the originals… Also I have this strange dislike of Lady Barbara for absolutely no reason whatsoever.
I need to read more Terry Pratchet. The list of books at the library was long and intimidating, though, so I haven’t read anything by him other than the ones I’ve found at the library. And I’m not even sure I could check them out, because Mom, at last count, was not letting me get books from the library, because then I would disappear, and that wouldn’t be great.
I need to read Artemis Fowl, too… Agh.
I’ve only read one of his books… But I have The Color of Magic in my room. I want to try and read as many Discworld books as possible. After I finish my pile of books, I’m going to dive into Discworld.
Has anyone read I Am The Messenger? That’s what I’m reading right now.
I’ve only read The Color of Magic too, but I’ve been trying to find more. There are barely any Discworld books in my library… I’m really disappointed.
And for other books – I’ve recently finished reading Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy. Hilarious and amazing book, that.
I guess I’ll just start with that one and go from there…
I’ve been wondering which to start with. That’s the logical place, though.
I Am The Messenger- Loved that one. Spunky. Different and a bit… *stops making sense* I liked it, despite a few plot flaws.
I really should get past page forty-two…
Yes, you should read AF. They are a cool combo of funnies and techno.
By Artemis Fowl, you can just read 1-3… the rest aren’t very good. 4 is okay, but one of the things that happens ruins the chances for any good sequel.
Really? I enjoyed the first one the most, but the rest were all good to me… At least, by Artemis Fowl standards.
Hmm… I loved the series, until SPOILERSPOILERSPOILER they killed Root.
I understand that… I didn’t like that too much. He might have been trying to shock the reader, but it really just annoyed me.
I know! All authors just love killing of characters! Paolini, JK, erct.
I think killing characters can often be a good thing. For example, SPOILERSPOILERMINORHARRYPOTTER7SPOILER,ALTHOUGH IF YOU DIDN’TSEETHISCOMINGYOUKINDOFDESERVEITSPOILER all those people killed in the Deathly Hallows showed that it really was a dangerous time for Harry. I was really sad about how HERECOMEBIGGERSPOILERS,BEONYOURTOES Moody died, and Fred, or maybe it was George, and Dobby, (that one was sad. If I had cried, I would have cried at that one.) and all those other people, but if nobody had died, the book wouldn’t have been as good. The whole book was about a war with one of the most powerful wizards ever, if nobody had died, it wouldn’t have been realistic.
Of course, not all deaths are justified. Sometimes authors do kill too many, or do it to the wrong ones, or just do it at the wrong times. But killing is definitely justified. (Of course, I may be biased here, what with my writing on BiP…)
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Yeah, but that was the last book, and you weren’t going to see the other characters anyway… Plus, it was built up that way for there to be a big ending in which anybody could go. I liked that ending…. Although, I didn’t think she had to kill SPOILERSPOILERSPOILERSPOILER Collin.. That was just depressing.
I finished Pellucidar by Edgar Rice Burroughs a couple of days ago. I recommend it to anyone who found Journey to The Center of The Earth (The book– Jules Verne) interesting.
Let’s see, other books I read recently… The Naming, Going Bovine, Star Trek- Probe. That’s it in the last week, I think.
Must read Going Bovine. I own it anyway. Keiffer, do you still have it?
Yeah, I still have it. I’ll bring it to school on Monday, okay? Unless we have a huge snow storm…
No, you can keep it. I just <strike?got checked out a bunch of books from the library.
Has anyone read the book “Julie Of The Wolves”?
Me!
18- I have. I thought it was okay. It got more interesting towards the middle. Why?
18- I did. I don’t remember much. I don’t know that I found it particularly wonderful. I liked The Cry of the Crow much better…I remember sobbing my eyes out in a tent when I had finished…maybe I just like it because it’s associated with the summer I slept in a tent though.
I’m currently not reading anything. No, wait, that’s not true. I’m reading Jasper Fforde’s The Eyre Affair, but not very intensely. It’s by my bed and sometimes when I feel like reading at night I pick it up…but something about it is just not grabbing me. Anyway, I’m not reading at school, because I’ve got a big transcendentalist book project in a couple/few weeks, and I need to read my transcendentalist book, but I don’t want to, because reading for a class is just a chore. So the due date draws nigh, and I struggle with my GPA, and don’t read anything…OH GOD THE MADNESS.
Ahem.
Anyway.
19- Why? Because I’m reading it for a school book group.
20- It is a kind of a tear jerker.
Hi. *The lurky GAPA delurks*
I just checked out Eragon from the library and have every intention of reading it. All the museblog discussion for and against finally got to me.
In other reading news: I’m reading The Story of the Stone aka Dream of the Red Chamber (translated into English) and I love it even though it’s hard to keep straight who’s who. It’s even more confusing than War and Peace. It’s a reaaaalllly long book, so I’ll be reading it for a long time, probably taking breaks to read other things. Like Eragon.
I think I was inspired to get Eragon by seeing Avatar today. The dragons are so cool!
Another book I read recently was I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, who also wrote 101 Dalmations (which during my teens I read every summer). I liked it. It’s told through the diary of the main character, a girl who just finished high school and lives with her off-beat family in a decrepit/romantic castle in England. Love, angst, family drama. It reminded me of The Fountain Overflows by Rebecca West, but much happier.
Has anyone seen the movie of I Capture the Castle? Is it good? I just came across it in the wikipedia entry.
You’ll be finding the plot of Eragon rather similar to a million other books/movies/whatnot, I’m afraid. Also, you should do delurk more often.
I am very much for the Inheritance cycle, but the books do get better as they go along.
The movie is pretty good. I don’t really remember my impressions of it in greater detail as I saw it a while ago.
Thanks. I’m curious about it so I’ll watch it one of these days.
Eragon is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Brisingr is better!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I took it out from the library twice-not because it was any good, but because it was not memorable at all, and I forgot I read it.
You’re using too many exclamation points!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Eragon is pretty good. I started reading Eldest, but was a bit overwhelmed with all the new characters, and the dwarves and stuff.
Brisingr is fun to say. Brisingr! Brisingr! Brisingr! (LOL, imagine if I was a Dragon Rider and I said “Brisingr” repeatedly for fun.)
Is the Shawshank Redemption good?
Has anyone here read the Alex Riders? The new one, “Crocodile Tears is OK, but I think that the books are beginning to get predictable. SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER he gets dragged into a mission, almost dies, gets captured, almost dies, escapes, almost dies, saves the world, THE END.
Thanks for the pie, Piggy.
And the differences of opinion over Eragon continue. Well, I’ll probably like it well enough because I haven’t read that many books about dragons. So it’ll seem new to me.
Oh, no, it’s not just ripping off books about dragons.
I thought Eragon was okay, but not deserving of that many exclamation points…
I’ve never read Eragon or felt particularly motivated to do so even though my sister owns the book. I guess there was a phase that went through my school last year about it, but I had my head so into Harry Potter at the time that I just ignored it. My younger sister read Eragon and liked it though. Maybe I’ll try to read past page 10 now….
I’ve made it to page 45.
Eragon really isen’t that good. It is very much like Star Wars A New Hope. But Eldest is quite good. Brisingr is on a whole new scale. It is very oringanl.
Well, you did get farther than I did at least. How is it?
I’m liking it well enough — Not LOVING it but I’m definitely diverted. I’m on page 200 now. And all the praise for Brisingr makes me want to read through to that one.
Brisingr’s better, since by then the author’s figured something out, or whatever, and the plot becomes more creative.
I’ve been wanting to reread Eragon… Never gotten around to it though.
Hmm… Brisigr is more interesting because the plot is much more original, but somehow the book seems to be all about the author tying up loose ends.
22- I Capture the Castle is great!
I remember you liked it. You and Axa and Oxlin all gave it rave reviews — so I figured it must be pretty good. Thanks for the tip!
I just got Octavian Nothing! In english! *squee* Is it good?
I didn’t really like it.
31- Mm ah. It’s pretty good. I’m afraid I expected it to be all full of treason and intrigue, so it was rather disappointing when it wasn’t. Still, I enjoyed it.
I have just finished Great Expectations. It’s very good.
We started reading Anne Frank’s diary in English, which I haven’t read in four years ( since I was in fourth grade ) so I expect it to be better this time around…
I’ve been reading “The History of Middle-earth,” along with “Unfinished Tales,” and just read “The Silmarillion” and “Children of Huren.”
All of these are by Tolkien, and so far, I love them all! “Children of Huren” has a bit more structure, so maybe that’s why I like it more.
I was thinking of rereading “His Dark Materials” after all of these, but they seem to have ran away from my book-case.
Children of Hurin is sad. I sort of sad at the end.
I think that I am going to get around to reading the Lord of the Rings because my school book group may…
I am a book FANATIC! Here are some of the books I have read so far…
-The Long Walk (currently reading)
-The Name of This Book is Secret (one of my favorites)
-The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (UH-MAZING)
-The Mysterious Benedict Society
-Eragon, Eldest, and Brisingr (Inheritance Cycle)
My favorite authors are Philip Reeve, Douglas Adams, Pseudonymous Bosch, and sooo many more.
I find it strange how I’ve read all of those (except Inheritance Cycle; never had the desire). The Long Walk (By Stephen King) is absolutely wonderful.
You should try them. In my opinion they are really good. I read each of them like 3 times…yeah, I’m obsessed with books, it’s not even funny.
Maybe I will one day. Right now I still have a pile of books that I bought with Christmas gift cards. It’s big.
I understand…I have my own “list”
HOLY CAKE YOU’VE READ LARKLIGHT? I love that series! I love that series so much!
The Name of This Book is Secret is one of my favorites too. Have you read all three?
Yeah. I’ve read all three. I feel so happy that I have found someone that has read Philip Reeve’s books. I love him!
SFTDP
Same to The Name of This Book is Secret. I have read them all too.
LAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRKLLLLLLLLIIIIIIIIIGHHHHHHHHHHT
I’m 15 and I still love that book. Those books, that is to say (though the first was the best)
Yeah I agree, I enjoyed the first one too. Have you read his other series??? It starts with Mortal Engines. I really liked that too.
Of course, the Mortal Engines Quartet is also excellent.
Yes quite.
SFTDP
I’m currently reading Seeing Redd. It’s good so far, but I’ve been lazy lately when it comes to reading (Aaaand just about everything else).
Wow…well, great minds think alike ;D
I am also reading The Looking Glass Wars but I didn’t finish it yet.
That’s cool! I bet you’re finished now… I am currently reading the second in The Mysterious Benedict Society, and it reminded me how entertaining Trenton Lee Stewart is!
Yay, super-fast moderation! So, yeah, I’m really into comic books right now. Has anyone ever read Foxtrot or Baby Blues?
Omigosh I love those !! I love comics in general *squee*
There’s a Calvin and Hobbes thread on here if you would like to visit it..
Currently reading:
Born On a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by [need I say? ]
Needless to say, HG2TG is one of the funniest books I have ever read. My friend and I were reading it together during Study Hall, and it was taken away from us because we were laughing so hard. What is the order of the rest of the books in the series?
1. HG2TG
2. The Restaurant at the end of the Universe
3. Life, The Universe, and Everything
4.So Long and Thanks For All the Fish (my personal fav.)
5. Mostly Harmless
6. And Another Thing (This was NOT written by Douglas Adams but is still part of the trilogy)
Does it deserve to be part of the trilogy? I’m not really sure…. I’ve been boycotting it.
Have you read And Another Thing…? If you have, then you would see that it doesn’t really deserve to be in the trilogy. It’s in another universe, by a different author, excludes my beloved Marvin (if it’s in an alternate universe, then why not keep him alive?), and is just not the same… I will say it’s okay as its own, and I did chuckle at some of the things. It’s simply not the same series.
I just finished reading “Bud, Not Buddy” today. It was good.
That sounds vaguely familiar……What was it about? I think I might have read it, but I’m not sure.
*googles it* *reads wiki synopsis* Ah, yes, I remember reading that. I think it was probably something Mom had me read for social studies. Or maybe I just read it for fun. I forget. I’ve always wondered if that whole warm water thing works to make someone wet the bed.
According to Mythbusters, it doesn’t.
SPOILER WARRIORS SPOILERS WARRIORS SPOILERS.
Yesterday I was looking through Code of the Clans, and I was reading the first story about code twelve (the one that says you should always help a kit in danger, whatever Clan it’s from). It was really sad (I cry easily, and that sort of thing sets me off), but in it, the three drowned kits appear as they would have been. But in the first series, Firestar sees Swiftpaw as he was when he was an apprentice, and not with his warrior name. In The New Prophecy, one of the cats sees Shrewpaw (I think) and his littermates who died as kits. I don’t know if Code of the Clans came before or after The New Prophecy, but it’s odd.
Has anyone read “A Mango Shaped Space”?
Yeah. I liked it, but it’s not one of my favorite books, partially out of jealousy
(envy?) for Mia. (That is the main character’s name, isn’t it? I haven’t read it in a while.)
You just read it!!
I liked it, but it really annoyed me when she’d say how she saw each letter.
That’s one of my favorite books ever. Ever since I read it, I’ve always thought it would be so awesome to have synesthesia.
43.2~ Really? I actually liked it, probably because it gave me more of a feeling what it would be like to synesthetic.
I have finished re-reading the Harry Potter series and I can little details I did not notice before…Also, I need new book suggestions…anyone know some good books???
Percy Jackson and the Olympians which is the best book in the entire world must read must read
No, wait. I’m trying to get over that now… *headdesk* But I mean, if you haven’t read it…it’s still worth reading.
Something by Edgar Rice Burroughs, or Stephen R. Donaldson, or Under the Dome by Stephen King. That was good, although I had to steal it from my dad.
That’s extremely strange. I was just going to ask if anyone had read Under The Dome. I’ve been staring at it. I don’t know if I’m ready for such a book. Not only the massive size of the thing, but from the looks of it, it’s complex. I’ve only read one Stephen King and one Agatha Christie (I hate that about me), and I plan on diving into one of them soon. I’m taking out Pet Semetary. Comments?
Under the Dome was a good book. I suggest it.
Such a small suggestion for such a large book. I think I’m gonna’ do it. After I finish the other books I took out.
Then, maybe one day I’ll read The Stand. O.O
I’ve read it. It was extremely good. I love how Rick Riordan was able to put the different gods in there without making the book complete nonsense. The series was well written. It also got me more interested in Greek mythology.
We are surprisingly similar… *narrows eyes* Perhaps you’re my long lost twin!
Actually I’d forgotten about how you probably haven’t been around long enough to know that I’m obsessed with the series. And it also got me much more interested (or more obsessed) in Greek history and mythology. Yay for Percy Jackson!
But like I said, don’t encourage me…I’m trying to stop obsessing over it.
She does remind me of you when you first came on.
That would be AMAZING! I have always dreamt of having a long lost twin…*sighs dreamily* After I read the series I went on wikipedia (even though most people don’t think it’s that accurate) and I searched some of the gods and read their “pages” just for the fun of it…yeah, I’m weird, but proud.
I went to Barnes and Noble today. I got two Terry Prachets, and four Agatha Christies.
*is happy*
*imagines buying mini-authors the size of action figures*
The new Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie trailer looks awesome. Has anybody seen it yet? It’s available to watch on IMDb. It looks like it really captures the spirit of the book; I laughed the whole way through.
I’m kind of wondering whether or not to buy the first three books becasue it feels like a shame just buying the fourth one. I read the original series online, which I’ve heard is basically the first three books. Of course, I could be smart and check them out from the library… I think I’ll do that once I can drive myself there.
The fourth book is my LEAST favorite, even though a lot of people liked it. Seriously, it had sparse laughs, and only a small remnant of a plot.
I’ve been reading Terry Pratchet.
Yeah, I got Color of Magic from the library, and read it all in the first two days. Need to get more… Hm.
Okay, I wrote that days ago with intent to write more, but it’s getting ridiculous, so I’m posting.
(In case you’re curious, it appears to be four days since I wrote it. Really? Only four? Anyway…)
I live about four minutes from the library…I go there often….
I haven’t been reading as often as I would like too and am now sad…
It seems that the homework increases and I am not able to do anything I used too…like reading.
Gah…I am reading nothing right now. (New Moon certainly doesn’t count!) I made a list of books I wanted to read that I found on a website, but I left it at home when I last went to the library. I did, however, get an alarmingly large book about The Beatles by The Beatles. It was all fine and dandy, too, although I did cry a bit (because I always do) until I got to that page… *shudders* Gosh, that image [of John and Yoko] is going to give me nightmares… But I did get some good quotes.
Anyway, moving on to brighter subjects! Does anyone have any book reccomendations?
Finally I have a release date for Lord Sunday. I’ve been reading these books just to encourage Garth Nix to finish them already and move on to bigger and better things. Like the next Old Kingdom book! SQUEEEEE!!! I seriously CANNOT WAIT.
I also just remembered about Nancy Farmer’s latest creation, The Isles of the Blessed. I remember reading The Land of the Silver Apples, looking at the book jacket, and thinking, “Aw, man, I have to read another one of these?” Seriously, series are not Nancy Farmer’s thing.
I need to start reading fantasy series again (such as Dragonlance: I only have four more fat books to go until I have read ALL of the ones by the original authors), but I need to be able to drive to do so. My mom isn’t willing to buy/check out fantasy books for me anymore.
I just read To Kill a Mockingbird for school, and it takes its place as the best book I have ever personally read. (LOTR was read to me by my dad.) It’s just so deep and funny and emotional and everything else that makes a book great. If you haven’t read it yet, do so immediately.
52- The end is indeed very happy and satisfying, even if the middle is rather grim.
I know, but the author manages to push through such a powerful message to the reader in the grimness.
Sooo… Books I want to talk about:
1) Leviathan , by Scott Westerfeld.
I just read this one. I liked it a lot (Steampunk! Whoo!), though the cliff-hanger ending struck me as unneeded, even more so knowing that the next book comes out in October . *Sighs*
2) Lloyd Alexander’s Westmark , The Kestrel , and The Beggar Queen .
I first read this trilogy…one year ago? Two? Either way, I liked it then, and adore it now. *Drifts into Westmark fantasizing state*
Keller is my favourite. If I lived in Westmark, Old Kasperl would be my Muse .3) The Shrinking of Treehorn , by Florence Parry Heide, illustrated by Edward Gorey.
I read this many years ago for the first time, and have got a sudden urge to talk about it.
Anyone read any of these books?
Hey, Swat? Yeah, I’ve recently realized the striking resemblance you have to one of my friends. I have already asked her if she was you, but she denied it.
Besides Harry Potter, she’s read everything you have.
1) The Long Walk, By Stephen King (I recommended it)
2) The Name of This Book Is Secret (One of her favorites)
3) All of Phillip Reeve’s books, and he’s her favorite author
4) The entire Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy Series
5) She’s “not yet” finished reading The Looking Glass Wars Series
6) The Percy Jackson series
I’m sure there are more.
That’s a bit creepy…are you sure??? Maybe we just like the same kinds of books??? Eh. I don’t know….
I just read The Picture of Dorian Gray, after years of being tantalized by its title and premise. It was…gosh, I don’t even know. It was a very pretty book, with lots of flowery writing and description of beauty and sin and metaphor and stuff. I am not inclined to say I liked it very much, but the truth is I could hardly put it down, even while knowing perfectly well that I didn’t like it much, or agree with it much, or understand it particularly well. I believe whole passages were lost on me, though certainly there was nothing that I couldn’t have understood–I think I just got a little bored every now and then, and let my mind wander off to the gothic bits even while I was reading about beauty and art and philosophy. It reminded me rather of The Scarlet Letter in that respect–a book that I cannot put down, without a great deal of plot and with a great deal of discussion of very abstract matters–without very likable characters and yet so very interesting.
I was also not prepared to see Dorian Gray as such a nice, pure youth. I always imagined he started out very refined and charming and evil, but it was rather more depressing to watch him slide into wicked ways and have thoughts of being good but then never actually follow through–though still not very depressing, as I always knew it was coming.
And now, my favorite quote:
“They say when good Americans die, they go to Paris.”
“Really! And where do bad Americans go to when they die?”
“They go to America.”
Besides Percy Jackson (Tee hee), are there any other really good books that I should read? I’ve started to find myself a bit stuck, and I’m looking for something good (especially in a series), I don’t really mind the genre. Thanks!
The Mysterious Benedict Society…very intriguing series. Also, The Looking Glass Wars trilogy was amazing!
Already read Mysterious Benedict Society, which I thought was decent, but never The Looking Glass Wars…maybe I’ll try that one then.
There’s another “zomg Greek gods are real” series. It’s called *looks* “The Cronus Chronicles” and the first book is “(The) Shadow Thieves.” It’s really good.
Sometime I have to write a ‘zomg the Egyptian gods are real’ series. To add to my planned book where vampires are actually evil.
I’ve heard of it, I’m definitely going to look into it! Anything with Greek gods is good.
Thanks!
*shivers*
She’s read The Mysterious Benedict Society also.
I’m currently reading the second in that series, but for some reason it’s taking me forever! I do like it, though. As for The Looking Glass Wars trilogy, haven’t finished it. I just have to read the third one.
Okay. Fishy, you are REALLY creeping me out right now….
The third one in The Looking Glass wars was EPIC!
You must read it soon.
Hey, I’m only saying what I observe… I don’t know what I’m going to read next. Maybe The Running Man, or The Gunslinger.
Oh, Fishy. *sigh*
Now that we’ve established that, yes, SWAT and I are long lost twins, we’ve been communicating by secret telepathic signals since birth but never realized it until we met on MB. *insert creepy music*
And now we’re going to destroy the world!
So true, so true.
WORLD DOMINATION!
I feel so happy to have finally found my twin!
Actually, Fishy and I believe you might be long-lost triplets. One of our friends is uncannily similar to you two, yet she insists that she’s never gone on MuseBlog…
Ok, now THAT is just creepy….
‘Tis very much so. We shall get to the bottom of this conspiracy!
We should!
But maybe we should take this to another thread…hmm? Perhaps the nonexistent “Long Lost Multiples Thread”
Yes, I wonder if the GAPAs have accounted for musers that need to talk about long lost relatives! I suppose the Random thread is the safety net for those kinds of conversations… Most certainly not the Books and Reading thread. So, what book did you end up picking?
Yeah, maybe we should bring it up on the Random Thread….
Well, I looked up The Looking Glass and I’m (hopefully) going to the library tomorrow after the snow clears out because right now all the roads are still pretty icy, and I’m going to take a list with me of everything you guys have suggested to check out! Yay!
What about the Abhorsen trilogy by Garth Nix (or the Keys to the Kingdom series by the same author)? Or (anything by) Tamora Pierce (she usually writes in Quartet format), or The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper (a series you can find in almost every library), or A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline l’Engle, or…
Never heard of the Abhorsen trilogy/Keys to the Kingdom, so I’ll look that up.
I started a Tamora Pierce, (my younger sister is a HUGE fan of hers) but I can’t really remember anything about it, maybe I’ll try to get around to reading it again and see…
The Dark is Rising sounds familiar, but I haven’t read it. Once again, I’ll look it up.
I’ve already read/own A Wrinkle in Time! Great book!
Hmm…The City of Dreaming Books. Never heard of that one, but I’ll look it up.
Thanks for the suggestions!
READ ABHORSEN TRILOGY. You will thank yourself for doing so.
SFTDP:
Another one of my favorites (yes, I have a lot) would be “the city of dreaming books”. It’s eccentric but you’ll love it if you like books.
This is kind of random…. But I would recommend The Book of Lost Things. Has anyone read it? I read it a long time ago, and the grim fantasy felt so classic. It should be more popular… Also, it’s by John Connoly.
I kind of actually like all those books everyone is calling cliche. O.o. I love Harry Potter, Eragon, and Warriors, and I think Twilight is pretty decent once you get past the screaming fangirls. But my all time favorite authors are Tamora Pierce (Circle of Magic, Tortall) and Diane Duane (Young Wizards). I found I new (to me) series called The Cry of the Icemark (can’t remember the author) that I would recomend to all fantasy readers.
As you can probably tell, I’m a fantasy girl.
I love Tamora Pierce too! It’s funny, the way the style of her writing is/seems very different between the two universes. I can’t wait for the book that is supposed to come out about Triss going to Lightsbridge (not sure I spelled that one right).
Oh, I loved Young Wizards! Then Nita got whiny and I dropped off…
I didn’t really mind Nita’s attitude, but the fact that Dairine kind of took over bugs me. I still love YW, it’s the best premise for any book ever, I think.
As Dairine gets older, her power level drops off rather sharply (as heartbreakingly demonstrated in Dilemma).
I started that series and really liked it, but between oen thign and another I never finished it. I always meant to. I’d have to go back and reread all of them though.
Tamora Pierce is my absolute favorite one of my favorite authors!
I want to read that soo much! What’s your favorite book/ series? I love Daine and the original Circle of Magic, but all of them are great. Magic Stones (the one about Evvy) was a big let down, and I’m not especially fond of Will of the Empress.
I didn’t like the Will of the Empress either- it was sort of slow and pretty disappointing, then finally action, but still… I didn’t read the one about Evvy, partly because I never cared for her that much as character. I loved Briar and Triss best (along with Rosethorn and Niko) and their The Circle Opens books (the one about Briar and Evvy was the first Tamora Pierce book I read ever and I was hooked). I like Beka’s books so far (Terrier, that is, since I haven’t read the second one), I liked the Tricksters series too (except that I kept on thinking the trickster = Kokopelli) and the first two Alanna books (number three was kinda disappointing, number four was okay but not as good as the previous two). It´s been a while since I read Daine- I remember loving the first two books but I can’t remember what happened in book number 4. I didn’t really like the Daine/Numair relationship, so I guess that put me off a bit.
I feel that for stories that are primarily action/adventure, the romance bogged down the plotline and felt out of place. The Will of the Empress had waaaay too much hormones and romance and political intrigue for me to like it. Also there were lots of references to events that had occurred between The Circle Opens books and that book that quite frankly sounded more interesting than the Will of the Empress itself.
I will second the recommendation of Beka’s book. I haven’t read Evvy’s book or Beka’s second book, despite being much of a fantasy girl myself (duh) I haven’t read all that much lately that isn’t fanfiction.
Yes, like when Alanna’s moping over Jon (or was it indecision?) basically ruined book 3.
I’m almost done with the Eragon trilogy. It’s hard not to keep reading but I have other things to do! As many on this blog have pointed out, it’s got some flaws (what doesn’t?) But I’m really enjoying it anyhow.
I received Brisingr for Christmas, and started rereading Eragon and Eldest over break, with the intention of finally getting around to Brisingr, as well…..Of course than break was over, and I’ve been halfway through Eldest for a good three weeks or so now, I’ve got the nasty feeling that it’ll be summer before I get back to the series, at which point I’ll have to start back with Eragon again…..And read it for the fourth time and Eldest for the 2 1/2th time.
And then when the fourth book in the trilogy finally comes out…..Yeah. College makes reading anything difficult. I still haven’t finished The Lost Symbol completely (started it on the plane down), although I got to the point where things were pretty much resolved, so….
I’d like to reread those… They weren’t too terrible, though clichéd, and I have a habit of almost never seeing the downside of something, especially not while reading.
Of course, I keep being hindered by my worry of what people will think of me… I really need to stop worrying about that. Maybe I could go write a post on the Random Thread about all the things that I’m somewhat ashamed about, just to try to start on the road to not worrying about it. Hm. Or, since most of the things I’d be admitting are related to books, right on this thread.
I read chunks of Musicophilia, which is really excellent. It’s entertaining in a sense but also informative–for anyone who likes neurology and psychology, that is.
Right. A list of all the embarrassing confessions I can think of.
1) I read Star Wars books for fun.
2) I liked Twilight.
3) I had and probably would have again an obsession with one of those hundred part series of really short books. (Not so embarrassing…)
4) I… Read sixty year old science fiction? Okay, that one’s not embarrassing at all.
I don’t have as many as I thought I would. Two and a half? Really?
Whatever, it’s still a start. I’ll keep thinking.
Huzzah! I’ve finally finished The Mysterious Benedict Society and The Perilous Journey. Now, who knows! I think I’m going to read Larklight, and finally understand what my (supposed triplet) friend has been raving about Phillip Reeve.
You will enjoy it to the most maximum degree.
I also suggest Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve.
Yeah, I was going to choose it, but I wanted something really short.
Ahhhh… I understand.
I just read The Jungle by Upton Sinclair and it is terrible! Well written, but the things those characters had to go through…especially when Brother Jonas fell into the leaf lard. *SHUDDER* I am SO glad I don’t live in 1906, when the book was written.
I wouldn’t say it was terrible, even though I haven’t really read it. Pseudo read me an excerpt, and it involved chickens. It was kind of disturbing, but not terrible. Although, that might just be me… red paint and flowers, all that jazz. I already had a bad image of chickens that was her fault…
Sorry, I’ll stop rambling now.
Terrible in an OMG-how-horrific way, not a badly written way.
I didn’t read it but my S.S teacher gave an in-depth conversation about what the book was about (all about the food part though). This was all right before lunch. Guess was what was on the menu. That’s right, hot-dogs. *shudders*
I think things have changed a bit since The Jungle was published..hopefully…
Read Fast Food Nation. They haven’t.
At least people don’t dissolve in vats of whatever anymore. *crosses fingers* and by the way, I will NEVER. EVER. IN A MILLION YEARS read Fast Food Nation or watch *SHUDDER* Supersize Me.
Okay, forget that. I just read the chapter on meatpacking and E. Coli.
I
NEVER
WANT
TO
EAT
AGAIN.
We read an excerpt from that in class, the part when they were talking about people getting shipped out in butter. The first thing I think, obviously, is “That’s why they call them Butterfingers!”
I’m never eating those candy bars again.
I am – oh wait, I’m not. Nestle makes them.
I have, once again, run out of books to read. I mainly choose books by peer recomendations…suggestions on what to read anyone?
Try Everlost or Unwind by Neal Shusterman. Great author!
As for me, I’m leaving tomorrow, so I want to have an extra book (almost done with Larklight). Right now I’m choosing between the Girl who loved Tom Gordon and Pet Sematary. I’m going for Stephen King. Any suggestions?
If you want something scary how about The Shining?
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is a very good book.
You should read it.
If you haven’t read it yet, try Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman- he’s amazing.
Thanks! I’ll check it out.
Alright, am I being pranked!? Seriously, I AM FREAKING OUT.
65.1.1- The Unknown Triplet has read that… *shiver turns into rigorous spasm*
65.2- I just took that out also!
From the library I checked out-
1) The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King (By the way, this is before reading these replies)
2) Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
3) Murder on The Orient Express by Agatha Christie
4) Downsiders by Neal Shusterman
The Girl Who Loved Ton Gordon is a very good book, and coincidentally, I’m reading it right now… seriously, here’s the first sentence:
“Mom’s knuckles were white on the steering wheel, a typical Mom-weekend sight.”
-Keiffer Lining
I discovered a graphic novel version of Maximum Ride in the library? Unsurprisingly, it was terrible.
Ah yes, I’ve seen those. Fang looks nothing like what I imagined him like… D:
67– I’ve been looking around for that, just because I have to read every book that I hear of. I’ve seen a few excerpts from that, and they didn’t look all that terrible, though.
Books I’m currently reading:
Anthem by Ayn Rand. I actually really like this. It’s short and extremely concise, but has a good message and an interesting point of view
The First Five Pages by Noah Lukeman. This is a book about the publishing industry that is really interesting. It talks about why books are thrown out and gives lots of great tips on improving writing. It’s not boring at all, unlike many help-y books.
I read the Ayn Rand book. My teacher wants me to enter an essay contest on it. It was good.
Fishy–Murder on the Orient Express is really good. Do you like the Poirot books or all of them?
Eh-heh. I’ve only read And Then There Were None. It was really good, so now I’m going to start reading more. I plan on staying with Poirot, because my friend (the one and only Unknown Triplet) loves him. Although, I do want to read the ABC Murders one of these days.
I just finished Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie. ‘Twas flammy.
SPOILER THREE ACT TRAGEDY SPOILER THREE ACT TRAGEDY
There are two murders. The first one makes no sense, at all. The second one does make sense, but Poirot has trouble (!) connecting the first to the second. How he does is flammy. Christie is a genius.
Reccomended book of the month: Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer. It’s very interesting, though a bit strange. I can barely put it down. Definitely reccomend it, especially for people who like sci-fi.
–Silver Keiffer
Ooh. * takes suggestion * What’s it about?
It’s about an asteroid crashing into the moon, making it come closer into the earth’s orbit, which in turn creates all of these natural disasters. It’s the diary of one girl who tries to survive through with her two brothers and her mom.
The Golden Compass = FULL OF WIN
The movie of GC = decent
The Subtle Knife = FULL OF SUCK
The Amber Spyglass = I don’t know because I haven’t finished SK yet
Really, though, the Subtle Knife is pretty bad. Unless you really want to know what happens in the overall plot, don’t read it.
Funny, The Subtle Knife was my favorite.
Which one’s Subtle Knife?
I’ve got the all three in one book edition and thus cannot remember which is the title of second book and which is the title of the third book.
Subtle Knife is second, Amber Spyglass is third.
Oh, ok. I haven’t read those in ages, can’t remember which is my favourite.
Meh, one thing that I don’t like about it is that it focuses on Will for the first 20 pages or so, and since Will is pretty much a swing-and-a-miss character, it doesn’t grab you like Golden Compass does.
I liked Will a lot. It grabbed my attention more than Golden Compass did. I’d rather start in my world, with characters from my world, rather than have it all blast into your face at once.
Yeah- Will’s cool. *is going to read the books again*
The Amber Spyglass was the weirdest of the trilogy in my opinion. You’ll see when you get there. I don’t remember much about the Subtle Knife but the Golden Compass was really good, and the movie not that bad either. Remember how lots of people thought it was really “controversial?”
Yeah, The Amber Spyglass was the strangest. It keeps switching from one universe to the other.
Okay….
Last night I finished reading Jane Eyre for the first time, then skimmed through all three books- Golden Compass, Subtle Knife, and Amber Spyglass.
Yeah, Subtle Knife’s the best of the trilogy. Will=awesome.
I love Jane Eyre!!!!!!
I just started Gone (sorry, I would italicize it, but I’m tyiping this on my iPod) by Michael Grant. It’s really good so far, if a bit strange.
I realized while I was away that the ABC Murders is one of the Poirot books… Anyway, I finished Murder on The Orient Express, and absolutely loved the ending. Are all of her books that good? I plan on going in sequence to the next book. The next one is Three Act Tragedy. Since her books seem to give me a reading-speed boost, I’m going to read them between every book! That way I can read more books in general, and read more of Agatha Christie’s! The next book I will read is The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon(Then, of course, Three Act Tragedy.).
Eh, her books are pretty good but I find that if I read several of them (4+) in a row I get depressed. I despised the Miss Marple and the non-Poirot ones because they were creepy and there were random marriages at the end…anyway, read some and see what you think.
In one word, for your first question, yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
Ooh, Murder on the Orient Express is a great book.
I just received in the mail a book that I ordered from Target, entitled Party of One: A Loner’s Manifesto. I’ve only read the introduction and part of the first chapter, but I can tell I’m going to enjoy it. It’s basically a long essay about people who by nature like to be alone and the amount of prejudice and flak they receive from mainstream society. Being one of those people, I find it a fascinating and extremely relatable read. *dives back into book*
fireh–How did you like Jane Eyre?
I quite liked it, in general.
But when it turned out Mr. Rochester already had a wife I wanted to strangle him.
THE GIRL WHO LOVED TOM GORDON SPOILERS SPOILERS POSSIBLE SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS.
I just finished it… and loved it! The only thing, was the ending. It was a bit unsatisfactory… I mean, it was just a “bear?” I get the idea that it was something more, but… I don’t know. Some kind of battle would have been nice. It was still a great book! I was a little confused as to who tipped off the police, but assumed it was the God of the Lost. Who is it supposed to be?
I finished The Shining by Stephan King and…WOW. It was amazing and very haunting. When I went to sleep I thought REDRUM was going to appear on my mirror any second. It probably didn’t help that I was reading at night, but still. If you want a creepy, yet very exciting book, I recommend it highly. I am now going to attempt Under The Dome, and then The Stand, which I have been wanting to read for a very long time.
What’s with this thread being dead? Well, not dead, but slow? This is my favorite thread and I can’t even count on it!
This…thread..WILL NOT DIE! I refuse to let it. In fact, if no other posts come here, I will post ALL the books I have read since September! All 80 something of them!
COME BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!
That’s a nice threat, actually.
Hmm…how’s the Hound of the Baskervilles? We’re about to read it for school.
Keeping in mind I’m not a huge fan of mysteries.
Not too bad. We read it for school last year. It was pretty interesting.
Sherlock Holmes is always nice.
I would love to own a huge hound…
Recent books under discussion:
Mom just checked Murder on the Orient Express out of the library, because she thought I would like it. I haven’t started reading it yet, though.
Haven’t read any of the others. Need to read more.
On a different subject, I’ve been reading Jane Austen recently. That is, my dad is reading Sense and Sensibility to us, because we’re acting in a play of it, and Mom and Dad like Jane Austen, so they decided to read it to us. It’s not bad, though the ending’s annoying. (I already read it, but my sister hasn’t and so we’re reading it again anyway. I don’t mind. It’s fun going through it again.)
And I just (As in, five minutes ago) finished reading Waiting for Godot for school. Blegh. Seriously, it’s a two-act play full of absolutely, positively, nothing. It goes around in circles, doesn’t make sense, and just… Urgh. Wouldn’t ever read it if I didn’t have to.
Murder on the Orient Express is one of my favorites! Hercule is an amazing detective! I also recommend The ABC Murders. Very good plot.
Yeah, Mom says it’s good. She misplaced it, unfortunately, and so I don’t know where it is and can’t read it yet. I’m looking forward to it.
I’m re-reading Freedom and Necessity by Steven Brust and Emma Bull. It is a wonderful book, filled with intrigue and letters and the year 1849. I recommend it.
Just bought The Absolute Sandman IV off barnes&nobel (would have been $100 in the store, got it marked down to 60 on the site, and paid in gift cards :D)
eeeeeeeeeeee I can’t wait
I love Delirium. “I’m A VEry gOod dRIveR.”
I was her for Halloween ^^
Well, at the Drama club Halloween party. Couldn’t go anywhere on Halloween She’s so fun to make a costume for though.
I just started the Maximum Ride series. AMAZING. Why didn’t I keep reading the first time I started it? (By the way, now I’m eternally afraid of all Erasers.)
POSSIBLE SPOILER MAXIMUM RIDE POSSIBLE SPOILER MAXIMUM RIDE POSSIBLE SPOILER
The first Max is soo good, but then they start to go downhill pretty fast. The fourth book is eternally lame, and contains no plot. It is a shameless “save the whales” fest for 200+ pages. Not, mind you, that saving the whaled is wrong, but it’s not Max!! And I honestly feel sorry for the erasers. They had no choice, just like the flock, and they got the evil side of the stick.
Well, I just finished the first one, and I’m still in the process of getting my hands on the second, and so far I like them but don’t love them. They are good, and the cliffhanger and plot is exciting, but it’s not really a 5 star book in my mind. Maybe 4-4.5 if I was going to rate it.
They get better until the fourth book.
Books 1, 2, and 3 are decent. Books 4-5 are boring and cliched. Just read the first trilogy; everything’s pretty much wrapped up there.
Grrr… Silver Lining needs help desperately! I have to find two books to suggest to my [failing] book club, which consists of two boys and two girls. The parents read it too. Anyway, one boy hates reading, the other one only reads violent fantasy books that everyone else can’t stand, one girl likes boring old-fashioned books in which everyone lives happily ever after, and one girl (moi) likes humour, realistic fiction, lyrical prose and mystery. The last book we read was The Lightning Thief.
So. I think that this book club is dying (it’s been around since third grade), but I need help anyway! Please, someone, anyone?
Hmm…. well, for a change of pace for everyone, I suggest “And Then There Were None”. It’s slightly violent, old fashioned (Takes place around the 1930’s) and lyrical. And mystery. It’s by Agatha Christie. And, everyone lives happily ever after, except they’re all dead.
“Everyone lives happily ever after, except they’re al dead.” Hmm. That reminds me of Blackadder in a rather disturbing way. I think I’ll read it.
Hummm, the first HG2G? That one has a pretty happy ending.
Maybe Peter and the Starcatchers. Huckleberry Finn? Alice in Wonderland. Harry Potter (probably already been read :D).
And I don’t really want to go downstairs to look at my books because it’s cold down there, so I’ll get back to you with more later.
Ok, I just had to go downstairs to get an encyclopedia book and came up with a couple of more.
Sabriel (The whole dang series, for that matter!). Summerland. The City of Ember. AND DANGIT I FORGOT THE LAST ONE! Oh, well.
Thanks for the suggestions, guys. My mom and I found a couple titles. I’m hoping that everyone will just pick “Life As We Knew It.” I wouldn’t mind reading that again.
Ranger’s Apprentice!Both my mom and I read them. Some violence, not exactly a happy ending, due to the fact that it’s a series (Book 7 recently came out in the U.S.; book 9 is avalible in Australia), and it’s pretty realistic; there’s no magic except for mind control.
Anyone have any stories of books with typos in them or messed up in any way?
I have three such tales. I will tell them in order of awesomeness.
1. In my copy of The Divide, an entire section, a little more than a chapter, is printed twice, replacing the text that was supposed to be there. The replaced text, unfortunately, is a major event in the plot and until I realized the text was not actually in my copy the book (sadly on the second read. :P), I had no idea how SPOILER the characters broke out of jail ENDSPOILER and just went with it.
These next two stories tie in sheer awesomness.
2. My copy of Peter and the Shadow-Thieves has a messed-up cover. It’s a hardcover book and the raised bumps that are supposed to be on the front are printed upside-down on the back! Weird! When I got the book, I knew something was wrong, but didn’t pay any attention to it until I finished reading the book and closed the back cover.
3. There’s a typo in one of the American verions of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. At the bottom of page 283, “Professor” is spelled with two r’s. (like, “professorr”). When I found this typo, I was ecstatic. My thoughts were: “OMG I found something WRONG with Harry Potter! I’m amazing!” Then, I sent the typo in to Mugglenet; that’s how excited I was.
I’ve already asked this question before, but can anyone else find the typo mentioned above in their copies of CoS?
There’s no typo in my copy.
And there’s no typo in my mom’s copy, either.
I dunno about my copy of CoS (I’m not at home). It does have the whole ancestor/descendant mistake in it, however. I remember checking that at one time. (Y’know, Tom Riddle is the last remaining ancestor of Salazar Slytherin. That typo.)
My copy of Tales of Beedle the Bard–that is to say, the collector’s edition, had a couple of typos. I posted them on the ‘blog somewhere at some point, I believe, but I don’t recall right off what they were–except that they didn’t appear in the standard edition.
I have a major typo with my copy of the last PJO. It’s binded upside down, and the text on top is cut off!!!!!!!!! And I have two Muse issues with typos, or maybe it’s just one issue with two typos, I don’t know.
My favorite typo is in a book of sheet music I bought in high school One entire page of a Beatles song is printed in mirror image. Fortunately, reading backwards isn’t difficult for me, although music is somewhat more challenging than text.
Ha. What song was it?
There was a half-page in The Giver that had three typos in two sentences.
AM found a book where all the pages had been printed upside down. The cover was normal, it’s just that the pages are flipped. I think it’s backwards, too.
Or perhaps the cover was upside down and backwards, and the pages were all the right way round. Didn’t think of that, did you?
SFTDP
I found it in my copy! I don’t know why I’m so happy!
In the first edition of How to Spell Like a Champ, there are multiple misspellings in their spelling lists. Of course, they updated them pretty darn quickly.
In one of the Warriors books, talking about Ravenpaw: “How different he was from the nervous apprentice he had once been, bullied by his fierce mentor, Tigerpaw!” TigerPAW.
I think our copy of Anne of Green Gables has a section of it that’s upside down and backwards. It’s funny.
I finally used my half-year old borders gift card and got 4 Pratchetts, the Abarats, and Bleak House.
85- Good, series, yes. The new one is coming out…. tomorrow? Oh, no, but in a few days. I got this little excerpt booklet…
I haven’t been reading much lately with excess homework and History Day in a week (EEK). My excuse is that we’re reading Tuesdays with Morrie in class. I’m still making my way through ‘Salem’s Lot. I know, that’s sad (about ten pages a day since last Saturday, not even), but at least I’m enjoying it. I won’t be on MuseBlog much this following week, and maybe not at all, but I didn’t want anybody to think I left!
When’s your History Day?! The nineteenth? Regionals or states? MAKE IT TO NATIONALS FISHY….PLEASE! ( If you’re competing. )
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That should do it – now then…
Just finished the book a couple minutes ago, and it was amazing. Apart from the Architect wanting to destroy the House and Arthur = the New Architect, though, the ending wasn’t that surprising.
68 (Pax)- I have so much love for Anthem. I read it at a time in my life when I really needed to know that I was not alone in thinking that way. It’s my favourite of her works. And now you’re all going to assume that I’m going to go John Galt somewhere. I hate how Ayn Rand gets such a bad rap. Her critics are worse than her hardcore fanatics. And the fanatics are pretty annoying. Le sigh.
87 (misprints/errors)- Heehee. I preordered the fourth HP book back in the day. My copy arrived. It was missing 70-odd pages. Right at the climax in the graveyard. I freaked out and temporarily exchanged copies with a friend. Because he reads slowly. Ah, good times.
87.3- I REMEMBER THAT AS WELL.
-nostalgia trip-
90- OH MY GOD IT CAME OUT I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR SINCE I WAS LIKE 13 OH NOES I FEEL OLD.
I have a frightfully dull, blow-off class this semestre and have therefore been going on a reading binge. Because we all know that boring classes = reading time! Awesome things that I have read in this class:
1. The Baron In The Trees, by Italo Calvino
—–It’s amazing. Calvino in general is amazing. He restores my faith in the good things in life. It is the life story of a boy who vows to live in the trees. And all his fantastic adventures. I am miserable at explanations.
2. The Man Who Was Thursday, by GK Chesterton
—–It’s been on my reading backlog since I came to the blog. I finally read it. I feel like such a good person.
3. Heart of Darkness + The Secret Sharer, by Joseph Conrad
—–More or less what I was expecting. Decent, though somewhat depressing reads, both.
4. Gravity’s Rainbow, by Thomas Pynchon
—–I’m currently on this one. It’s…a trip. I am not going to even try to explain it. But so far it’s great.
I didn’t really like Anthem. I mean, you’re right about the hardcore fans – what is so great about Ayn Rand? I guess that promotion is kind of the point. But really.
86.4 (Ducky): I’m really enjoying Ranger’s Apprentice, too. I shall be reading the seventh book quite soon.
87 (Cello-Playing Mathematician): Misprints: The only misprint in my books that I recall right off hand is in my copy of Gypsy Rizka, where there is a Greek letter Beta where one has no business being.
Has anyone read How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford? Parts of it annoyed me, but it was so whimsical and sweet and funny and sad. I cried at the end and I can’t remember the last book that made me cry. I thought it was very good. I want her to write a sequel…but, then again, a sequel would ruin the existing ending.
Also read recently: Eoin Colfer’s Airman. Quite good. I liked it better than the Artemis Fowl books. I do wish Isabelle had been more developed though.
I would appreciate some recommendations for an individual who likes fantasy, Steampunk, adventure, some sci-fi, minimal romance, and well-written books in general. (This individual is known to you all as Cerulean Pyros.)
The Hunger Games. Discuss.
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I love those books, although the comparison to Rome is a bit too obvious, in my opinion. Especially in the second book. (Team Peeta, by the way.)
Agh! It’s torture not being able to read the next book!
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The second one is such a cliffhanger.
Peeta is obviously a bit kinder and book-cleverer than Katniss, but Katniss is sort of wilderness-survival-smart. Which I think is awesomely cool.
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I don’t know enough about Rome to see the comparison (read: my World History class was useless). I’m currently going through a Hunger Games phase, though, and I love these books. I’ve actually had dreams I’m in the games a few times, which was kind of scary, but I’ve never actually had to kill anyone/been killed/seen anyone killed in those dreams. They either take place before everyone’s in the arena or after there are only a few people left; in the latter scenario I’ve usually formed an alliance and am making a plan with my allies.
I’m Team Peeta all the way, too, although formatting it like that brings to mind twilight. Anyway, I don’t see what anyone would see in Gale–I just find him vaguely annoying. A good friend to Katniss, I’m sure, but still not much more than vaguely annoying. Peeta, on the other hand, I adore. It’s ridiculous that he’s loved Katniss for eleven years (since he was FIVE, for goodness’ sake!), but at the same time it’s so sweet! He’s a character with depth, and I appreciate that.
Ican’twaitforMockingjayohmygoodness.
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To have a small fangirl moment: NO WAY!!!! Team Gale Forever!!!! He loved her first, he loved her best!!!
My goodness, I am so excited for whenever the third one comes out: anyone know when that is, exactly? That book makes me cry, all the time, even on the third, fourth time reading. I miss Rueeeeeeeeeeeee. I’m crying just thinking about that poor baby. Other than Rue and Gale, of course, my favorite character is the Avox girl. I don’t know why, really, but I love her.
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I wouldn’t blame Katniss for not jumping to the Avox girl’s defense, but I’m amazed that she forgave Katniss so easily.
Peeta WAAAAY beats Gale. He’s so much mellower.
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The last book comes out August 24 of this year and I absolutey cannot wait.
I loved Rue, too. She was one of my favorite characters… It’s so sad she had to die. That scene was beautiful and yes, it made me cry.
Actually, I tend to prefer characters involved in the Games over characters who are “back home.” Rue>Prim, Peeta>>>>>Gale, and so on. And I love Cinna!
By the way, technically Peeta loved (or at least had a crush on) Katniss before she ever met Gale. The boy with the bread, remember? And Peeta is obviously so wholly in love with Katniss, and such a good person.
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I want Gale and Katniss to be together, because they seem better for each other… But I wouldn’t mind if Gale fell in love with someone else, and then she liked Peeta. But I would prefer Peeta getting over Katniss. The thing is, he is so madly in love, and she is so… NOT. At all. I just discovered two things. No, three!
1) The next book’s title
2) The next book’s cover
3) SHE IS WRITING A SCREENPLAY. EPIC MOVIE TIME.
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Yes, Katniss has really done nothing to deserve Peeta. That’s true. But that could change in the next book!
And I knew there was going to be a movie of The Hunger Games, but she’s writing it? YES. This is going to be AMAZING.
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She seems kind of stuck between both of them, actually. Not so much in the first book, but in the second book. Gale seems kind of like a jerk to me, actually.
Tesseract- The main comparisons to Rome I saw were that the Hunger Games seemed very similar to Gladiatorial Tournaments, and that Romans would make themselves puke after meals so they could eat more. (So I’ve heard, anyway. I’m not sure if it’s true, but it’s a fairly common myth, so it seems very likely that she based that part off of the book off of it.)
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I don’t know if I’d say Gale is a jerk, per say, but I don’t like him very much. I understand why he’s the more intense, guarded person that he is, but frankly I prefer Peeta’s personality.
In the first book, Katniss didn’t really appear stuck between them at all–it was more of a general confusion about Peeta than being torn between the both of them. Occasionally she’d think something like “Oh… I wonder what Gale thinks watching me make out with Peeta… He isn’t my boyfriend, but if I opened that door, would he be? I don’t know… maybe… Oh look someone else trying to kill me,” and that would be the end of it. But by the second book Gale had admitted to being passionately in love with her, and I guess that changed things.
Honestly, I preferred the first book, before the advent of everything with Gale. There’s something about the Games that latched onto my brain (they’ve made it into a handful of my dreams, even), and the first section of Catching Fire was focused too much on the angsty “who do I choose” situation. I began to enjoy the book much more once they got back into the world of the Games–the victory tours, the Quarter Quell, and so forth.
I don’t know if it’s even accurate to call it a “who do I choose” situation, though… It’s some of that, but Katniss doesn’t really want to have to pick either, does she? She wants to basically be a hermit for the rest of her life.
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Well I seem to be the only one who prefers Gale. He actually knows Catnis, not just some idealized version of her from far off. And she liked him too. I just don’t like Peeta very much for some reason.
Pax and Fisheh are team Gale.
Has anyone read Wicked? I would love to discuss it.
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Alright everyone, it’s not that Katniss doesn’t deserve Peeta… She is not a bad person! She simply does not like Peeta. Peeta isn’t even that wonderful to me…
No, she isn’t a bad person! She just doesn’t return the same kind of tender protection and love he has for her.
No, she doesn’t, but it’s because she doesn’t like him like that… It doesn’t mean she doesn’t deserve him. If she loved him, then she would protect him and love him just like he does to her.
88- ♥ ♥ ♥ BLEAK HOUSE ♥ ♥ ♥
Hmm, bookssssss…
I am nearly done with the Complete Works of Jane Austen…just Emma and Lady Susan to go. I love Austen. And having read Pride and Prejudice fully I can finally say that it deserves its ridiculous amounts of praise. I’ve always liked the story but always felt that it was a little overrated. Well, it’s not.
I’m trying to reread The Last Unicorn but it’s really hard! It’s a gorgeous book but I know the ending and I keep choking up even when nothing on the page really warrants it. Or when I’m not even reading it.
I went to Powell’s the other day…I got The Surgeon’s Mate, Ship of the Line, and Folk of the Air.
A really good book for lovers of Victorian literature: What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew. It’s v. interesting.
I love Jane Austen too! I need to read the rest of them… I’ve just read Pride and Prejudice, which is probably my favorite, Sense and Sensibility, and Emma.
And I’ve read What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew. It is rather interesting.
Ugh, I forgot to get it out of the library. For reference for the play of Sense and Sensibility we’re doing. Ah well, probably too late now.
I-Man:
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I loved how the ending was totally unexpected for me. I never even questioned the Will’s real motives. I thought that Arthur would just take control of the House, and I think that’s what he thought, too.
It’s also amazing to me how I never made the connection that since Arthur is the Heir to the Architect it’s kind of obvious that he would take over the Architect’s job: creating the universe.
Genius on Nix’s part. But I still like The Old Kingdom better. Write faster, Mr. Nix!
Nooooo! There aren’t any Advanced Readers’ Copies for Mockingbird! Now I can’t leech off of the librarians for a copy… I cannot wait 5 months!
That stinks.
I highly recommend The Phantom Tollbooth. One of my favorites!
Ah yes. Very good book. I second that recommendation.
YAY! I have found the book thread!
Anyone have some recommendations?
Recommendations…What genres do you like?
I love fantasy
The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin.
If you’re looking for fantasy, some MBers have found Gormenghast absorbing. It’s probably different from what you’re used to.
I will check if my library has it thanks!
oh! I should read that. I have a copy… somewhere. Storage at college, I believe >.< Oops. I put everything away and now I want it out but I can't get it until the end of the summer.
The Guardians of Ga’Hoole is a pretty good series.
I am so mad! I really want to read the new Maximum Ride, Fang. But I can’t get it till my birthday. In 40 days.
Oh, Fang is so sexy. It’s pretty good, and the wait will make you appreciate it more, right? There’s a funny excerpt at the end from his blog that I especially liked.
I’m probably not making you feel any better though. (Sorry!)
Wait, do him and Max get together? I’m not reading the end of the series so PLEASE SPOIL IT FOR ME!
humph!
Has anyone read the Pearl? I have to read it for English
Ooh, I read that book! No one in my English class liked it at all. We ranked it right up there with Boy of the Painted Cave and the Golden Goblet, which we also believed were terrible. The important thing is to remember that Steinbeck has written much, much better stuff than this, especially Of Mice and Men, which is awesome.
I read it in 7th grade. It’s good. Keep some tissues nearby, though.
Personally, I hate it so far…… I find it boring beyond belief….. Granted I have only read Chapter 1…. And I don’t plan to read it any faster than nessacary…..
The is just odd. Ring of Power anyone?
Finished Guardians Of Ga’Hoole!
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Poor Coryn.
In the last few books the owls’ technology got sort of … unbelievable. Butter? Compass? Berry juicer? PRINTING PRESS? Owls have talons, with no opposable thumbs.
There’s going to be a movie! You can find the trailer online and it looks epic! *squee*
Yeah, the ending was kinda sad
And the movie looks AWESOME!
I read the books and their technology is a bit out there but who cares?!
(That punctuation is called an interrobang!)
we all reed muse.
I know that. I just want to use the awesomeness that it has given me.
*wince* You were on an I-pod or I-Phone, right? *wince*
I am-or rather was, on a computer at the library at school, which doesn’t have a spell-check. Yes, I can spell pwningly, but I rely on my spell-check to catch my typos.
I have so many books on my ‘Need to Read’ list.
The complete list belongs on the lists thread. I’ll move it there, along with another list I’ve been meaning to write.
I think I am going to re-read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy! *is excited*
*is slightly excited on your behalf* *goes home to watch Scrubs* Or at least I think I will now.
I’m currently working on the series A Song of Ice and Fire. Nearly done with A Game of Thrones. They’re quite compelling! A bit slow at first, but then they really hook you.
How is A Game of Thrones? My brother has it and I’ve been contemplating it.
Anyway, I’m a bit scared about my reading schedule. I read four books this last quarter (of school). That’s my lowest ever. Hopefully in the Summer I’ll go back to reading more than the average bird. All in all though it wasn’t a bad school year. I think 35 or so, which may not seem a lot to the mega-readers out there, but it’s enough for me (it would be better if the last quarter had more). This summer I would like to try and read twenty… Have I mentioned that I got a nook for my birthday? And the a boatload of money from my confirmation? Yeah. I have books at my house that I need to read… I know that I shouldn’t ask, but any suggestions? I think I’m reading The Stand during the Summer. Currently I’m reading the second Dirk Gently book (I bought the first one but haven’t read it yet).
A Game of Thrones is truly excellent but… somewhat explicit in parts. I wouldn’t recommend it for people who are easily squicked out.
104- Do you mean to tell me that Guardians of Ga’Hoole is finally over? And that I stopped reading it three books before the end? I feel a bit silly now. I read it since fifth grade when I got the first three at a scholastic book sale and I stopped two years ago because I got sick of it…
The books I’ve been reading lately are quite a strange mash-up of genres…My new favourite book though is Feeling Sorry For Celia by Jaclyn Moriarty. Very funny book!
I finished The Great Gatsby yesterday, and it was pretty good, but I’m not sure I fully understood it…oh well, I’ll read it in high school. I think it was given to me by my English teacher, who was laughing at me for reading Harry Potter. Maybe she wants me to read something more challenging.
111- Harry Potter is appropriate for all ages!
So, this Summer I hope to finish a multitude of literature. I finished The Gunslinger earlier, and I must say I did enjoy it. Is anyone a Stephen King junkie (I’ve only read four, so I can’t be considered one quite yet)? Does anyone like the Dark Tower series? Please no spoilers, but I would love opinions. My brother has the second Dark Tower book, but I don’t know if he would give it to me, unless he’s already read it. Books I have and need to read:
1) The Book Thief
2) Battle Royale
3) If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
4) The Maze Runner
5) Ender’s Game
6) Interview With the Vampire
7) Everwild
8 ) Daniel X 2
9) The Color of Magic
What should I read next?
How about attempting to conquer The Stand or Under The Dome?
Gr. I don’t feel like I am quite into the Summer Reading zone quite yet to read those in less than a week.
I agree, but apparently my teacher doesn’t.
GAPAs, I think a new thread would help this dead thread.
But for books, I have read these so far this summer:
1) The Gunslinger
2) Everwild
3) The Maze Runner
4) The Running Man
I am currently reading Battle Royale, which I am enjoying very much. The Running Man by Stephen King disappointed me a bit. Once I knew what was going to happen I expected something more exciting and complex, like The Long Walk(My favorite Stephen King so far), but it turned in to what seemed to be a social commentary. Looking at it as such I suppose it was a very good book, but I simply look at Stephen King books for a beautiful writing style with a rush of a clever plot, and if that’s what it was meant for, it fell short for me.
Has anyone read Battle Royale? It’s a bit like the Hunger Games, but it was written before and it’s concept is different.
I read The Gunslinger. Well, rather, I listened to it. I liked it very much.
Halfway through, my dad says:
“Is this to weird for you?”
I kind of wanted to slap him. XD I said:
“Dad, to weird for me? Are you okay?” It was funny.
Before I start spamming the suggestions thread for a new Books thread I will vent…
Who else has read the Book Thief? I finished it about twenty minutes ago (about 1:30AM over here) and I bawled my eyes out over a book for the first time. I don’t even know what made it so amazing, it just was. I felt so utterly connected with the characters.
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Oh, and when she went over to Rudy’s dead body I had to stop reading for a second because I couldn’t see through my tears. Man, how much of a loser I must have looked like… A fourteen year old guy holding a book with tears dripping down his face. Good thing no one was there. >.>
I just finished the Septimus Heap series. They were suprisingly good. I don’t know, maybe I just like series about magic, but I loved them! I wish there were more… Oh well, maybe there will be! There wasn’t really an ending, after all…Mmm, I need new books. Badly. Any suggestions?
Heh. Don’t get me started on suggestions. Well, if you haven’t read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy yet, it can be very helpful here. Plus, it’s absolutely hilarious. Other from that, I would suggest The Mysterious Benedict Society. I don’t know, you seem like you would like it.
Yeah, both of them were really good. I have also read the sequel to The mysterious benedict society But I am going to read THGTG 2 and 3. As soon as I can get them. Which could be a while…
There is actually a third one if you haven’t read it yet. *psst* I still need to read it. *un-psst* Do you know Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, or Stephen King? Any books by them are great reads.
117- No, I have not. What is it about?
I am reading a Stephen King book, but shhh…My parents think it would give me nightmares. Ugg.Hmm, haven’t heard of Terry Pratchett, I will look him up at the library soon. Neil Gaiman is awesome! Anyways, thanks. The Patience Goodspeed books are about this girl from Nantucket Island who goes on a whaling ship…They are really funny!!
SFTDP! Has anyone read The voyage of Patience Goodspeed ? It’s really, really good.
Anyone read the Sandman series?
I’ve just started it, and oh my gosh it is just… delicious. I had been having an art block for the last month and the Sandman was the perfect food for my inspiration.
Neil Gaiman. Is. A genius. If you have not read his books GO NOW. Run.
((The only downside is that none of the nearby libraries have the next volume of the Absolute Sandman, so I’m stuck rereading it until I can get to a Barnes and Noble bookstore…))
Yes! Just finished Preludes and Nocturnes. I’m now thinking about being Death next Halloween.
Also, seconding your claim that Neil Gaiman is a genius.
Ooh, now that’s a cool idea! You could wear her top hat and everything… even if no one knew the character you would still have the best costume ever.
AKHGDLFSG:ADGI:FGUA YES
SO MUCH YES
I absoluetly LOVE the Sandman books. I own the first book (the small collection of the comics–there were like 12 volumes or so), and also “The Absolute Sandman Volume IV,” which I spent all my x-mas money buying last year. So worth it.
Also shadowfire–last year my costume was Delirium
I’ve just finished The Passage, by Justin Cronin. My, what a beautiful(and don’t forget horrifying) book.
Dracula is 100x more awesome than Twilight. Just saying.
At least a hundred times. Probably more. Although it’s spoiled somewhat by the fact that, since I didn’t read it in 1897 when it was first published, I already knew what Dracula was. Oh, well. Still a marvelous book.(Except Van Helsing’s funny speech. That bug you?)
I’m currently reading The Mark of the Horse Lord by Rosemary Sutcliff. Has anyone else ever read anything by her?
What are people’s opinions on how I should read the Discworld series for the first time? In publishing order, or what? I’ve had a lot of people argue about this for me.
122- Personally, I just read them in random order. Publishing order might be nice, though.
Sorry for posting again so soon, but I just discovered that another Artemis Fowl book has come out, and that there will be just one more.
*sigh*
I really don’t like Artemis Fowl. Not anymore. It’s not deep enough for me, and I think I started reading it too late to really get into it. If I had started in 4th grade, like everyone else, maybe I would have been part of the diehard fanbase. But I have to finish the story.
I don’t think I’ll buy it, like the 5th and 6th one. I’ll just check it out of the library.
I don’t think I’ll read it at all. I loved the first three or four books, but after that either I got too old or it went downhill or all of the above.
How many were there after The Opal Deception? That was the last one I read. If it’s not too many, I might catch up, just for the sake of completeness.
Seriously, you should stop at number 5. The Time Paradox was illogical, boring, and just plain dumb. It did not feel like an actual AF book, more like a bad fanfiction. I didn’t even bother reading The Atlantis Complex.
Which one is number 5?
Ummm… The Lost Colony. That was pretty good. And to answer your earlier question, there will be eight books total, with the one that just came out, The Atlantis Complex, being the seventh.
Yeah, I thought the sixth one was crummy, too. I mean come ON, Artemis! You’re not the egotistical genius we know and hate anymore!
And the way that Eoin Colfer just snuck Opal in there…it almost seems like he felt an obligation of some sort.
I read all of them, simply for the sake of completion. But the first one was easily the best.
I agree, I think they got worse with each new installment. My favourite one is easily the first.
What Discworld book should I start with? I think the library has only two…
The Color of Magic is the first. Which two does your library have?
Alright, I finished Mockingjay. I have much to talk about. Please somebody talk to me about it.
Me too! Wow, that book was awesome (though I didn’t like the person Katniss chose at the end, but I could understand). The topic, too… *is still blown away*
You may talk to me. (And I know there are others on here who have already read it.)
Just make sure that you post a spoiler warning for the benefit of all poor people reading the Recent Comments.
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I found it confusing to the point of what was important and what was not. It seemed that the whole sequence of going to the capitol had little point, no? I mean, now that I’ve read it I understand that it was just that her mission failed because of the betrayal, therefore having some sort of point. But what do you think? What frustrated you?
So, no one at all (including the GAPAs) has ever read anything by Rosemary Sutcliff?
I just read I Shall Wear Midnight, by Terry Pratchett.
First impressions (VERY FULL OF SPOILERS):
.
.
.
1. Wow. This is a lot darker than any of the Tiffany Aching series so far. You get a real feel for all the little hidden crimes that only the witch of the town knows about. The Feegle shenanigans (which provide much of the humor) are also de-emphasized, and we actually get a look at what a Wee Free Man will do when his people are threatened. It’s not pretty.
2. OH MY GOD ESK IS BACK ESK IS BACK ESKARINA SMITH IS BACK *dorky happy dance*
3. At first, I hated the fact that the Roland/Tiffany romance that Pratchett had been building up for three books simply fell apart in the interim between WS and ISWM. Then I realized that it made sense- it was sad and disappointing, but it made sense for both their characters. Relationships break down, sometimes even before they get started properly. What I still don’t like is Preston- Pratchett shouldn’t have introduced a replacement love interest so abruptly. It was grating and rushed, and what could have been a very heartwarming scene at the end just seemed hokey.
4. There are inconsistencies. Like… Nanny Ogg apparently has a very good singing voice, even though she’s been incredibly bad at it for the last three “witch†books. Very little things, mentioned only in passing, but I can’t help connecting it with the fact that Mr. Pratchett has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. It’s worrying and a little sa
d.
If this were EXTRABLOGGIAN WEBSITE
, I would “like” 129.1.
I couldn’t leave the sentence unfinished!
There. I “liked” it for you.
And I “liked” it again! Forgetting that I “liked” it a year ago. Wow. My nostalgia trip is kind of sad.
I LOVE TIFFANY ACHING !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I Shall Wear Midnight is good, but Wintersmith is deffenently the best. I think that ISWM is just made as a conclusion to the series- it’s sopposed to just tell you what happens at the end, not really a big plot/theme/anything, just a sort of “And they all lived sort-of-happily ever after”. However, it was still good- the seconed best in the series.
Oh sorry I didn’t say SPOILER.
Has anyone here read Jane Slayre ? It’s really good. (SPOILERALERTJANESLAYRESPOILERALERTJANESLAYRESPOILERALERTJANESLAYRESPOILERALERTJANESLAYRE) It’s the classic novel, with some additions. Jane comes from a family of Vampyre Slayers, and she’s raised until she’s ten by a family of vampyres. Zombies, too, are present throughout the story. It’s quite good.
Does anyone have any novels that are set primarily around Christmas sometime in the 1800s? I’d like one that was set in America, though that’s not necessary. Don’t bother mentioning A Christmas Carol, I already know that one.
Dickens had five Christmas books. the others are The Chimes, The Cricket on the Hearth, The Battle of Life, and The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain. none of them are set in America though
pretty much all the American Girl dolls have a Christmas-time book..
Nobody has mentioned Looking for Alaska or John Green. That’s disturbing. Looking for Alaska was amazing; it made my cry so much. It was an overall good book- the plot, the writing, the uhm, everything.
I still need to read Paper Towns; I haven’t been able to do much reading lately.
I just went through all of the past book threads (because who really needs to sleep when you can procrastinate on that, too?), and not one person has mentioned John Green. This is blasphemy! What do you do with your lives without John Green?
not really book-related, but i mention vlogbrothers from time to time and nobody ever picks up on it, which makes a sad ebeth sad. museblog would fit right in with nerdfighteria.
hank actually just wrote a song about phineas gage
Oh yes I LOVE the vlogbrothers and Nerd Fighters in general. I’m surprised it hasn’t come up more often too.
Looove the vlogbrothers! I never have time to watch the vids, though.
I don’t know why more MBers don’t watch their videos.
The last book I read was Water for Elephants. I liked it, I think. Not so much certain–how to put it–ecchi parts of the book, but it’s been the first book in a while that couldn’t put down until I was finished with it.
It was also supposed to have started as a NaNo novel, which was why I read it. I think it gave me an inferiority complex now. And kept me from typing anything at all the night I read it. Ehehehe…
So, no one else has heard of or read anything by Rosemary Sutcliff? Including the GAPAs?
I confess that I hadn’t until now. The wikipedia entry gives me the impression I’ve got a lot of great stories waiting for me.
I needed to return 1984 and Princess Bride a month ago. But no worries since it’s the school library, and they don’t bill us.
1984 freaked me out since it’s like a train wreck you can’t stop staring at mixed with total mindscrew. A good book, to be sure, and how the world went down really interested me, but… America went socialist and absorped the British Empire? Well, considering this takes place after WWII, but did the World Wars go differently here?
Princess Bride is even better than the movie, and Fezzik warms my heart and I love Inigo soooo muchhhh. Westley and Buttercup are so much more dysfunctional here. And Humperdinck did all this because Noreena was bald! Guy has serious issues, man,
134–Koppar: I have! I read Black Ships Before Troy as a serial in Cricket magazine. It ran from April 1997 to December 1997, though I first read those issues more recently. I recall it as being an excellent telling of the Trojan War. I’ve probably read some other things by Rosemary Sutcliff in Cricket, but I’m not sure what.
So, a few books I want to talk about at the moment:
1) The Queen’s Thief books by Megan Whalen Turner (The Thief; The Queen of Attolia; The King of Attolia; A Conspiracy of Kings).
I discovered this series during the summer and am head-over-heels in adoration. I am not really entirely sure why.
I know that I think Eugenides is thoroughly wonderful–he is the only character to ever cause me to fall out of my chair in sheer awe, despite the fact that I have encountered many, many wonderful characters over the years.
I always enjoy a good bit of subterfuge and court intrigue and things that seem one way, but are actually another–there’s a lot of all that in these books.
I also know that I am hooked upon the world of the series and desperately want to know what happens next.
Unfortunately, I may have to wait as long as five years to find out, given the amount of time between the releases of the first four books. (The Thief came out in 1996! It’s as old as I am! {Impatience.})
2) Roller Skates by Ruth Sawyer.
This was my favorite book when I was about ten. (Was I really ten so long ago? On second thought, was I really ten so recently? I’m not sure which.) I rediscovered it on my bookcase the other day and instantly remembered everyone–Lucinda and Tony and Trinket and the Princess–and how delighted I was that Lucinda staged a performance of The Tempest on a table. I do hope that I am not the only one here to have read this–has anyone else?
3) I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith.
Given that I discovered this book thanks to the MuseBlog, I cannot believe that I am only now getting around to saying: I read it. I adored it. I thank you a thousand times for recommending it, all of you who did.
I’ve nearly memorized the scene where the Mortmains first meet the Cottons, my favorite part. (“I’m not green all over! It’s just that we’ve all been dyeing!”)
So, is anyone else enamored of these books? (If you don’t like them, feel free to tell me that, too! I just want to talk to someone who has read one or more of them!)
I just got finished reading Feet of Clay from the Discworld series by Terry Pratchet, and oh my god that book was amazing! I read the description on the back, which mentions murders and kings and clay footprints, and expected a hilarious and witty novel about murders and politics, with probably some commentary on human intelligence. What I found in the story was all of that, plus blasphemy, philosophy, finding oneself, views on racism, arsenic (lots of arsenic), and a whole lot more. Out of the few Discworld books I’ve read (only six or seven) I think this one was the most wicked. I swear, Terry Pratchet is a genius!
So I finished reading all my Discworld books about a week ago, maybe longer, and I’m just now getting around to posting about them. I got Color of Magic, Witches Abroad, Wee Free Men, and Men at Arms, and read them in that order. Color of Magic I’d read before, it was still funny but nothing especially surprising.
Witches Abroad I absolutely loved. It was amazing and wonderful and genius.
Wee Free Men was also great, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.
Men at Arms I loved as well, and I really can’t decide which one I liked better, Men at Arms or Witches Abroad
Right now I’m plotting acquiring more of these books, but Mom says she doesn’t want to get me any books for Christmas, and she’s pretty certain not to get me any bookstore gift cards either, so I don’t think I can buy them.
Which leaves me the library. Which definitely has at least a few Discworld books, since I’ve checked several out before.
And I have yet to convince my sister to read them. Well, she’s planning on reading them at some point in the future, but that’s not really as soon as I would like.
I would like to second Randomosity’s statement that Terry Pratchet is a genius.
Dead thread…*pokes with stick previously used for poking jellyfish*
I’m reading The Spellmans Strike Again, which I stole from my mom because I didn’t have anything to read and Revenge of the Spellmans was funny.
It’s. Amazing.
They mention Doctor Who! and are so, so funny…
I love Rae! She’s amazing, even if she blackmail’s practically everyone she meets and locks Izzy in the filing room.
I just finished And Another Thing!
(It’s Eoin Colfer’s attempt at sort-of-finishing HG2G) Excellent! He threw in a bunch of references to the rest of the series, and it tied it up pretty well.
(And Wowbagger’s back. I loved the guy, even though he only appeared for, what, two chapters in Life, the Universe, and Everything?)
Anyone else read it?
It was ok. I admire his humor in the book, but I have to say that I didn’t really want them to add anymore. Even Douglas Adams seemed done with the series (although he might have wrote another), and to have Eoin Colfer finish it didn’t seem right. He does a good job, but overall he takes the series more into fantasy than science fiction (his area of expertise). Douglas Adams also liked fantasy, but he seemed to always of Sci-fi be up on the scale in HG2G (there were mentions of gods and immortals). Also, I don’t like the character of Random.
Mockingjay: Too depressing, too much fighting, but ultimately satisfying.
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Yes. I swear the author kills off every character she introduces in this book.
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I’d say that it is appropriately depressing; it is an anti-war book, after- all. The fighting was fine, but Tess, I agree she killed too many people. I grudgingly accept Prim’s death as integral with the plot, but Finnick? Not necessary. His survival would have been such a glimmer of hope, but the way I see it, the ending wasn’t entirely happy. I understand having the deaths, but the way it’s done seems almost meaningless. But yes, satisfying after much thought indeed.
I know! It’s so sad!!!
I read The Ring of Solomon over winter break. I would say that it’s not as good as the other Bartimaeus books, but it’s still worth reading. You get to see what Bartimaeus was like before SPOILERPtolomeySPOILER. What I thought was a little disappointing was that Bartimaeus’s footnotes aren’t as random or witty as in the original trilogy. They’re mostly defining terms that people who read the other books know by heart. But it’s really worth it for the final third of the book. Bartimaeus gets really awesome and BA. (Not the Bunny Apocalypse kind. Or maybe that could also apply.)
I’m reading A Series of Unfortunate Events again. I’m always very amused by Mr. Snicket’s writing style (I’m drawing a blank on his real name). I’m only on the fourth one. I didn’t like The End when it first came out, but I’ll check back here in a couple of weeks and write what I think now.
Daniel Handler.
I liked The End! What was wrong with it?
I was very dissatisfied how V.F.D. and the Sugar Bowl were never satisfactorily explained. I realize now that was the entire point. Of course, I was only reading them for plot back in 8th grade. Now I’m definitely going to read deeper into them.
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I thought Bartimaeus was absolutely spot-on, right down to the footnotes. Yasmira didn’t engage me as much as Nathaniel or Kitty, though… thank goodness for Faquarl.
Definitely agree with you about Faquarl.
Let me just say that if it weren’t a school library book, I would flush Catcher in the Rye down the toilet. It’s not that great of a book to begin with, but the edition they make us read is dumbed-down and has all these bolded words with glossary annotations, like they don’t expect us to know what “ridiculous” means.
Also, I didn’t like Amy Adam’s portrayal of Julie in Julie and Julia when the movie came out, but I just read the book and I take it back- she was right all along. Even as a narrator, Julie Powell is obnoxious, egotistical, and ridiculously sensitive.
BUT I just found the greatest book- The Savvy Convert’s Guide to Choosing a Religion. If there was a Unitarian bible, this might be it.
Catcher in the Rye is one of those books that seems fairly worthless upon first read, but whose quality improves enormously after analysis. However, the analysis also has to be quality analysis, and I mean really quality analysis. I’ve heard so many of my fellow students who had a different English teacher than me complain about how pointless the plot was and how the book didn’t even say anything about humanity or anything. Catcher in the Rye is not a book to be read for plot, not in the least. Any analysis of it should begin with the idea that Holden is an unreliable narrator, and from there NOT go to “so how does that affect the plot?” because the plot does not matter. We did a psychoanalysis of Holden in our class through different lenses (what are Holden’s feelings on death? how about his feelings on women? on childhood? etc.) and put our results together to make a complete picture of Holden’s psyche.
If your teachers have already told you the answers to what Holden’s psyche is all about, the book won’t work, by the way. You have to discover that yourself, and it’s not something you can answer in five minutes. If you can, something’s gone wrong in the analysis.
I loved that book, by the way. I hated it when I first started, since Holden was whiny and the plot was pointless and the language quickly became grating. Then, after I began analysis, I hated it even more, since Holden was even whinier and the plot was even more pointless and the language was even more ridiculous. And then I hit that level where everything started to fall into place, and I got why Holden was whiny, why Holden needed to whine in-story, why the book wouldn’t work if he didn’t whine, why the plot didn’t need to have an external plot, because the whole thing is focused internally, on Holden. At which point it became one of the best books I’ve ever read.
SFTDP. And another thing. What’s with all this Eragon muck?! I mean, there we sit during library period among dozens of Harry Potters, Lord of the Ringses, Terry Pratchets, and Anne Tyler- and all my classmates can say is, “I can’t find Brisingr! Where’s Brisingr?”
The movie was better than the book. Eragon was written by a teenager with little imagination and even less vocabulary It shows.
Eragon put me to sleep. It might have a good plotline…but I don’t know, since I gave up after a while.
My friends don’t like Harry Potter. It’s really, really sad. One is in love with Eragon, and the other has only read SS and then decided that it was “boring and the writing wasn’t good.”
SIGH…
Of course, the first friend read the first six HPs, loved them, then got to the end and declared that en didn’t like the series.
I enjoyed the Inheritance Cycle, but I have to admit that it maybe could have been slightly better done in a whole lot of ways.
About Harry Potter: It’s fun to see how J.K. Rowling’s style changes through the books, especially the first three. In SS, she actually writes from Ron’s point of view, in the troll in the bathroom scene. I thought that was very interesting.
I’d always been confused about that- in my 1997 copy it says “hearing himself cry the first spell that came into his head” but in the most recent release, which my friend has, Harry “waited for Ron to cast the first spell that came into his head.”
I don’t understand why they’re releasing all these new ones with just vague sketches on the covers. I like Mary Grandpe’s pastel artwork a lot better.
That’s so weird! I guess she decided to be more consistent with her writing!
There are enough plot anomalies that I think she must have had a very lax editor. *does not want to blame J.K.R. for anything*
I just finished The Shining. I shall have nightmares for all eternity, and then some.