A Game of Thrones by George Martins
Best thing I've read since The Lord of the Rings, and thats saying a lot.
Best thing I've read since The Lord of the Rings, and thats saying a lot.
What are you reading?
- Thread starter Joe
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Reently finished reading Aldous Huxleys 'The Doors of Perception', now working my way through Oscar Wildes essays which I might add are highly fascinating. Was never one for fantasy books which I think most people on the forums are I just read all the shit most people have already read because im a very slow reader.
just finished freemasonry and the birth of modern science (also called the invisible college) great book on the founding of the royal society
right now i'm reading the prince by machiavelli, just so i can play civ better
next not sure, either the art of war or one of my physics books, not sure which one tho
for fiction i'm reading the dark tower book 4, not sure what will be next tho
right now i'm reading the prince by machiavelli, just so i can play civ better
next not sure, either the art of war or one of my physics books, not sure which one tho
for fiction i'm reading the dark tower book 4, not sure what will be next tho
Well, unfortunately there are a lot of books in my collection that I have purchased, but have neglected to actually read. I guess the ones right now that I am actually trying to finish would be:
The House of the Dead by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and
The Gods Themselves by Isaac Asimov
The House of the Dead by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and
The Gods Themselves by Isaac Asimov
I'm truly surprised; 5 pages worth of recommendations, rants, dismissals, and sci-fi and not one word has been uttered about Ray Bradbury. I recently finished Fahrenheit 451 and it blew me away, for the third time.
I'm also surprised that there'd be this many intelligent posts. No offense to the excellent members of society here, but I was convinced that the world had gone mad and declared books were for old people and anyone who reads books should be ostracized, but I've been proved immensely wrong.
Now, In addition to Fahrenheit, Quicker Than the Eye is a very quirky book that's excellent for all types for reading. 1984 is the quitessential Sci-Fi book and you should cripple yourself like Ben made you do so when you didn't buy Psychonauts if you haven't read this book. Orwell crafts his words so well and slaps the reality of Big Brother so well in your face it's like you've become a masochist.
For reading with an equally dark, yet not as dark tone, House of the Scorpion, despite its somewhat childish name, strikes a chord with many readers and provides a twist on being in and out of the corruption that you've become comfortable with. A coming of age novel that makes the character mature but in reality doesn't allow him to escape the limitation until he's killed the thing that keeps him tethered to his world and keep him crashing into the real one.
As for the Bourne books?
Robert Ludlum makes a stunning trilogy that captures the intensity of Jason's experiences and brings you through hell and back and entices you with action, wit, and overall awesomeness. It absolutely fucks that Ludlum died, and the books written posthumously don't deserve your time.
I cannot even beign to fathom that a bunch of hoopy froods like you guys except Zeldy have failed to mention Dougls Adam's magnum opus, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. In this 5 book trilogy, Douglas Adams kills us and brings us back in an alternative universe thanks to the incessant laughter caused by reading the series. We see the destruction of the universe, find that 42 is the answer to life, the universe, and everything, God told us "Sorry for the Inconvenience", Humans are all part of a massive computer, mice are 30x smarter than us, The Golgafrinchans killed off the original ancestors and became our ancestors, all while sipping multitudes of Pan-Galactic Gargle Blasters. Next to 1984, This book is the alpha and the omega, the zenith and the epitome of Sci-Fi.
The works of Tom Clancy are powerful, subtle and rich. The Hunt for Red October is my personal favorite; therefore, do not watch the movie. If you have, break out the eye bleach.
Another book of note is titled "God is Not Great". I know there'd going to be tons of flak for this book, it is really a fresh look on how we perceive religion. Thumb through it, at least.
For the More Mainstream Audience:
The Aretemis Fowl Series by Eoin Colfer
and... I'm too tired. I'm sure I'll post some more or edit this one. Come to think of it, I haven't been able to read for a while. Cryptonomicon looks nice. Thanks to the guys who brought it up. You really know where your towel is.
I'm also surprised that there'd be this many intelligent posts. No offense to the excellent members of society here, but I was convinced that the world had gone mad and declared books were for old people and anyone who reads books should be ostracized, but I've been proved immensely wrong.
Now, In addition to Fahrenheit, Quicker Than the Eye is a very quirky book that's excellent for all types for reading. 1984 is the quitessential Sci-Fi book and you should cripple yourself like Ben made you do so when you didn't buy Psychonauts if you haven't read this book. Orwell crafts his words so well and slaps the reality of Big Brother so well in your face it's like you've become a masochist.
For reading with an equally dark, yet not as dark tone, House of the Scorpion, despite its somewhat childish name, strikes a chord with many readers and provides a twist on being in and out of the corruption that you've become comfortable with. A coming of age novel that makes the character mature but in reality doesn't allow him to escape the limitation until he's killed the thing that keeps him tethered to his world and keep him crashing into the real one.
As for the Bourne books?
Robert Ludlum makes a stunning trilogy that captures the intensity of Jason's experiences and brings you through hell and back and entices you with action, wit, and overall awesomeness. It absolutely fucks that Ludlum died, and the books written posthumously don't deserve your time.
I cannot even beign to fathom that a bunch of hoopy froods like you guys except Zeldy have failed to mention Dougls Adam's magnum opus, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. In this 5 book trilogy, Douglas Adams kills us and brings us back in an alternative universe thanks to the incessant laughter caused by reading the series. We see the destruction of the universe, find that 42 is the answer to life, the universe, and everything, God told us "Sorry for the Inconvenience", Humans are all part of a massive computer, mice are 30x smarter than us, The Golgafrinchans killed off the original ancestors and became our ancestors, all while sipping multitudes of Pan-Galactic Gargle Blasters. Next to 1984, This book is the alpha and the omega, the zenith and the epitome of Sci-Fi.
The works of Tom Clancy are powerful, subtle and rich. The Hunt for Red October is my personal favorite; therefore, do not watch the movie. If you have, break out the eye bleach.
Another book of note is titled "God is Not Great". I know there'd going to be tons of flak for this book, it is really a fresh look on how we perceive religion. Thumb through it, at least.
For the More Mainstream Audience:
The Aretemis Fowl Series by Eoin Colfer
and... I'm too tired. I'm sure I'll post some more or edit this one. Come to think of it, I haven't been able to read for a while. Cryptonomicon looks nice. Thanks to the guys who brought it up. You really know where your towel is.
I'm surprised about the amount of sci fi and fantasy books you guys are reading. Many people I know don't even read books.
Right now, I'm reading 'The Red Badge of Courage', and I just finished 'A Farewell to Arms' a little while ago.
Did anyone ever read 'Stardust' or 'American Gods'? Pretty good stuff.
Right now, I'm reading 'The Red Badge of Courage', and I just finished 'A Farewell to Arms' a little while ago.
Did anyone ever read 'Stardust' or 'American Gods'? Pretty good stuff.
I recently finished RingWorld by Larry Niven. Kind of expected it to end and the sequel was just tacked on. Oh well.
Teela Brown I think was a very annoying character.
Teela Brown I think was a very annoying character.
I just got around to reading Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency. Good read so far.
I also just bought True Enough by Farhad Manjoo. I read some excerpts and it looks like an interesting read. It's about how modern technology allows propaganda and nonfactual information to spread.
I also just bought True Enough by Farhad Manjoo. I read some excerpts and it looks like an interesting read. It's about how modern technology allows propaganda and nonfactual information to spread.
Whose translation? I read the Pinsky translation and really enjoyed it.InProgress said:
I'm reading:
Robert Elsmere by Mary Augusta Ward, which was a huge blockbuster when it was published in 1888, the best selling novel of its decade. I love seeing what people like me were probably reading a century or more ago. It's good if you are into the era, a little preachy if you are not.
Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn, the first book of the Tales of the Otori. Very good, though it hasn't totally hooked me yet.
The Birthday of the World, a collection of stories by Ursula K. LeGuin. I could fire off a fangirly squee over LeGuin's writing, but I will refrain.
I was actually thinking of recommending a couple books to this board, particularly for the people who like military games and RTS.
The Face of Battle [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Face_of_Battle] by John Keegan who fills me with awe at his encyclopedic knowledge of military history. He also wrote A History of Warfare which I started and haven't finished. Again, fangirly squee redacted.
Catapult: Harry and I Build a Siege Weapon [http://www.powells.com/biblio?isbn=9780156005562] Not only is this book a funny as hell story of two guys building a trebuchet in their back yard, it's also a very entertaining look at the history of ballistic weapons. The section on Archimedes' defenses against the Roman invasion of Syracuse was so very cool.