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Post by geoffrey on Jul 13, 2022 15:28:52 GMT -6
The Princess and the Goblin — George MacDonald You beat me to it, plus its sequel, The Princess and Curdie. Please note that George MacDonald was one of C. S. Lewis's favorite authors, and Lewis held these two books to be amongst MacDonald's best.
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Post by tombowings on Jul 14, 2022 5:34:33 GMT -6
Thank you very much for the suggestions, everyone. I really appreciated it.
Though I'm still looking through the options for nightly reading, I gave my daughter Dinosaurs at Dark this afternoon. She picked it up and started reading while I was cooking. It was perfect for her interest and reading level. She isn't a very fast reader yet (she'll be in 1st grade this September), but eagerly consumed two chapters.
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Post by stevemitchell on Aug 5, 2022 11:20:57 GMT -6
Philosophy: Who Needs It by Ayn Rand. (A question I occasionally asked myself as a philosophy major in college.) Judging from the essays in this book, Ms. Rand doesn’t need Plato—or Kant—or the German Idealists—or the Logical Positivists—or the Existentialists. Come to think of it, she really doesn’t need anyone aside from Aristotle. You may or may not agree with her strongly stated positions, but I did enjoy (and agree with) her savage takedown of B. F. Skinner.
The House That Stood Still by A. E. Van Vogt. An attorney in California stumbles across a plot involving a group of immortal humans and an alien spaceship. Not in the first rank of Van Vogt’s fiction, but far from his worst.
Lost Face by Jack London. Short stories with a Yukon/Great North Woods setting, including the classic “To Build a Fire.”
The Quick and the Dead by Louis L’Amour. A veteran frontiersman helps an Eastern family cross the plains en route to a homestead in the Colorado mountains, dodging Indians and outlaws along the way.
The Ottoman Endgame by Sean McMeekin. Over an 11-year period, the Ottoman Empire, and then Turkey, fought in five separate wars, including World War I. This book provides an overview of these conflicts and how they shaped the development of modern Turkey and the Middle East.
Guns of the Timberlands and The Man from Skibbereen by Louis L’Amour. Timberlands was one of L’Amour’s earliest novels, and features a rather wooden (no pun intended) hero in a rather linear plot. Skibbereen, from much later in his career, is a decided improvement, with an Irish immigrant having to learn how to survive in the West.
The Green Round by Arthur Machen. A short novel from late in Machen’s life, with a theme of another realm of existence interpenetrating our own—resulting in phenomena sometimes horrifying, sometimes mystical.
Later by Stephen King. Published a part of the Hard Case Crime paperback series, but this is really a horror story. Somewhat in the vein of the movie The Sixth Sense—a young man can see, and communicate, with the dead—but there are worse things out there than the dead. . . .
Sinner Man by Lawrence Block. An early novel by this great crime and suspense writer. A man accidentally kills his wife, but rather than face the consequences, he decides to flee to another city and assume a new life—as an enforcer for the mob!
Night Squad by David Goodis. A disgraced cop finds himself contending with two criminal factions—and his former police allies. A very gritty story from another master of crime and suspense fiction.
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terje
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Blasphemous accelerator
Posts: 204
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Post by terje on Aug 8, 2022 14:48:53 GMT -6
I recently read The Worm and His Kings by Hailey Piper, a cosmic horror novella that feels more Clive Barker than HP Lovecraft.
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Deleted
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Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2022 17:07:23 GMT -6
Over halfway through The Count Of Monte Cristo and I feel like someone should slap me for having never read this wonderful book before. There are no wasted chapters here! Dumas was a master of his craft in every conceivable form, and the influence this story has had on genre fiction since is apparent. Nobody spoil it for me. I can't wait to see what happens next.
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Parzival
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Is a little Stir Crazy this year...
Posts: 347
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Post by Parzival on Sept 20, 2022 12:24:32 GMT -6
The Count of Monte Cristo is the other perfect book that could be described by the Grandfather in The Princess Bride: “ Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles...”
Well, except for the giants and monsters (although in a metaphorical sense, maybe…).
Great book. I probably need to read it again.
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Post by tdenmark on Oct 13, 2022 5:38:32 GMT -6
The DaVinci Code.
I've avoided reading this book for a long time, but I finally broke down and started.
I can see why it was popular, it's a fast read, I'm already half way through. I could see some inspiration for a Raiders of the Lost Artifacts adventure in here.
On audiobook I'm reading Stephen King's new book Fairy Tale. I was hoping it would read like The Talisman or Eyes of the Dragon, but it's not anywhere near as good as those books. I'm a little over a 3rd of the way in and so far not loving it. For me Stephen King has two kinds of book: brilliant page turner or boring drivel. So far this is more of the latter.
Next in line I have another one of Leigh Bracket's Eric Stark books I'm looking forward to.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2022 17:36:39 GMT -6
I find that each new book I choose to read weirdly synchronizes with the one I finished before, always quite by accident.
For months, I had planned to read "The Demon Princes" series by Jack Vance. I decided to pick up book 1 of that right after finishing "The Count of Monte Cristo" (absolutely excellent) and in the prologue, it's called the science fiction "Count of Monte Cristo". I can't make this stuff up.
Book 1, "The Star King", was excellent, by the way, and I expect nothing less of Jack Vance. What a wordsmith! I'm about to start "The Killing Machine" tonight.
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Post by tombowings on Oct 16, 2022 0:26:32 GMT -6
I'd agree on that assessment of the Demon Princes. My favorite is the third book in the series. I could really tell that Vance has a great time writing it.
Speaking of Vance, I read the Blue World this weeks. Great world building. It was definitively a flawed work (glaring lack of characterization), but a fun adventure nonetheless.
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Post by tombowings on Oct 23, 2022 0:27:45 GMT -6
I've decided to be more active on this thread. This week I read Jack of Shadows. I enjoyed the adventure, but I never really connected with the protagonist. Nevertheless, I was engaged by Shadow Jack's struggle simultaneously to embrace and reject the premise of layer meaning over his otherwise nihilistic world view.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Oct 23, 2022 13:16:40 GMT -6
I'd agree on that assessment of the Demon Princes. My favorite is the third book in the series. I could really tell that Vance has a great time writing it. Speaking of Vance, I read the Blue World this weeks. Great world building. It was definitively a flawed work (glaring lack of characterization), but a fun adventure nonetheless. I'm on the third book you mentioned right now. I did enjoy the second, as it was very different from the first, and that's the same reason I enjoy the third. Vance is weaving a lot of unique personalities, locations and plots into this saga. Each of the five titular Princes really has a unique style that brings it together, and the allies that Gersen makes along the way complement him well. I think Gersen himself is the weak point of the story, though, to be honest. I understand his motivations and he's not badly written, but his personality just seems bland compared to other characters. Maybe that's the point, though. He's a revenge-obsessed blank slate who was molded from a young age for revenge. That is his personality, so to speak. I really enjoy the poet character, Navarth, in the early chapters of Book III and the mystery of who that girl is. I'm sure that'll play out as the book goes along. It's interesting that the major vice of Viole Falushe seems to be carnal pleasures. He's just as twisted and evil as the two guys Gerson has killed already, but in a very different way. It's kind of funny that he started out as basically what they'd call an incel nowadays. Can't wait to read more and find out what happens there. I know he's got to die but I'm sure it'll be entertaining and unique.
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Post by tombowings on Oct 24, 2022 7:46:35 GMT -6
You'll also enjoy the villain in the 5th book, who is just as zany as Viole Falushe.
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Post by Finarvyn on Oct 24, 2022 18:23:04 GMT -6
Just started Dead Man's Hand by the son of Jim Butcher. Not as good as Dresden Files (so far) but pretty decent if you like modern-day urban fantasy. The protagonist is a failed witch in Boston who is accused of murdering his former instructor and is now trying to prove his innocence. Jim Butcher is one of my all-time favorites, so being not quite at that level isn't a bad thing. Particularly for a first book.
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Post by tdenmark on Oct 30, 2022 16:17:26 GMT -6
I finished The DaVinci Code. I heard someone describe it as "the worst book I couldn't put down" which is an accurate description. It could serve as good inspiration for an Indiana Jones style adventure I guess. I'm glad to be done with it and don't need to read any more Dan Brown books.
I just got a stack of Andre Norton books, and am reading Secret of the Lost Race. I haven't read her work since I was a tween, but she's just as I remembered; easy to read and full of interesting ideas.
I'm also working on Daredevil Omnibus #1. It is entertaining reading his humble roots. Its got a bit of that goofy tone a lot of comics had in the 60's, fun to read.
Yeah, I tend to read several books at the same time, I'm still working on Stephen King's Fairy Tale in audiobook format.
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Post by tombowings on Oct 30, 2022 22:28:33 GMT -6
You've got to hand it to Dan Brown though; he is to end of chapter cliff hangers what Raymond Chandler is the simile.
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Post by tdenmark on Oct 31, 2022 0:30:25 GMT -6
You've got to hand it to Dan Brown though; he is to end of chapter cliff hangers what Raymond Chandler is the simile. In America we used to have newspaper comic strips, not just the funnies, but there were runs of Flash Gordon, Tarzan, Spider-man, and soap opera like strips. They'd each be between 3-5 panels, and the last panel would ALWAYS end with a cliffhanger resolved in the next day's strip. This is exactly how Dan Brown writes. Exceedingly short chapters each following this formula: 1. Resolve the question from the previous chapter. 2. Move the story/plot forward a little with the occasional twist. 3. End on a question or cliffhanger. This is why the book is hard to put down, even though the writing is pretty mediocre. There is a good lesson in there for the aspiring writer.
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Post by tdenmark on Oct 31, 2022 0:32:52 GMT -6
UPDATE!
Cormac McCarthy just dropped a new book: The Passenger.
I'm dropping everything and reading this right now! Anyone else a Cormac McCarthy fan? Let's read it and talk about it.
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Post by ochrejelly on Oct 31, 2022 18:01:09 GMT -6
I’ve only read The Road by him and and was a little overwhelmed by the bleakness of it all
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Parzival
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Is a little Stir Crazy this year...
Posts: 347
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Post by Parzival on Oct 31, 2022 18:23:31 GMT -6
Decided to read Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations.
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Post by tdenmark on Oct 31, 2022 20:34:21 GMT -6
I’ve only read The Road by him and and was a little overwhelmed by the bleakness of it all Many have experienced that. Some of his books are hard to take because he's so effective at writing bleakness and violence, sometimes in a way you don't even realize at the time until you stop and ponder "what did I read? My God, that's horrible." It is in the subtext. But he goes far beyond that, he's just as good at writing about the beauty of a sunset or the love of a parent for their child. The Road is particularly bleak. Blood Meridian is particularly violent. Personally All The Pretty Horses is my favorite.
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Post by sirjaguar on Nov 5, 2022 18:02:35 GMT -6
I liked All the Pretty Horses, but my favorite of McCarthy's so far is The Crossing. I, too, am looking forward to The Passenger. But it's not in my hands, yet.
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Post by tombowings on Nov 10, 2022 23:37:16 GMT -6
At night, I have been reading my daughter Fairy Tales from All Nations before she goes to sleep. It has a huge about of material that could easily be mined for D&D adventures, more than any other fairy tale book I've encountered. www.gutenberg.org/files/34956/34956-h/34956-h.htm
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oldskolgmr
Level 3 Conjurer
Can the Cleric heal me? What? Alright, the Clerk will have to do.
Posts: 99
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Post by oldskolgmr on Nov 11, 2022 16:47:23 GMT -6
Recently I've finally read my first Michael Moorcock book, Jewel in the Skull. I loved it.
I purchased two Elric Compilations since I can't find more Hawkmoon at the local used bookstore.
I did finally come across the last three Hawkmoon books, and I swooped those up.
I'm digging Elric. The compilations are not organized by publication date, but it's all good stuff.
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Post by Zenopus on Nov 11, 2022 17:39:26 GMT -6
Recently I've finally read my first Michael Moorcock book, Jewel in the Skull. I loved it. I purchased two Elric Compilations since I can't find more Hawkmoon at the local used bookstore. I did finally come across the last three Hawkmoon books, and I swooped those up. I'm digging Elric. The compilations are not organized by publication date, but it's all good stuff. If you like those, I'd highly recommend the first Corum trilogy by Moorcock. He's another Eternal Champion, with some similarities to Elric, but more a straight hero rather than an anti-hero. When I first picked it up in high school, the opening words hooked me:
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Post by geoffrey on Nov 15, 2022 13:37:57 GMT -6
Today I finished reading the 1986 publication of The Maze of Peril by John Eric Holmes. It was a lot of fun, like a 1970s game of D&D. One thing, though, nonplussed me:
Halflings and humans wanting to snog each other? Umm... I know that I would have no interest in snogging a 12' tall woman or a 3' tall woman.
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flightcommander
Level 6 Magician
"I become drunk as circumstances dictate."
Posts: 370
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Post by flightcommander on Nov 15, 2022 20:58:51 GMT -6
The off-color jokes write themselves here, so I'll just say: Maze of Peril is a fun read, as are the Boinger and Zereth tales from Dragon.
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Post by raymond on Nov 16, 2022 17:54:30 GMT -6
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Post by stevemitchell on Nov 16, 2022 19:30:39 GMT -6
A great anthology, and an excellent introduction to the genre!
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Post by Vile Traveller on Nov 17, 2022 3:02:14 GMT -6
I am drawing close to the last Biggles book. The titular character starts as a fresh-faced (and soon neurotic) RFC pilot in WWI, carries on as a footloose adventurer between the wars, leads a sort of Flying Dirty Dozen squadron in WWII, and ends up (rather sadly) as the Special Air Police after the war. If time flowed normally in his world he and his gang would be in their 50s or 60s by then, but let's not dwell on that.
I last read these as a teenager when they were ripping yarns that had me on the edge of my seat. Now they're just as tense, but in the sense that the protagonists are so overconfident, forgetful, and generally careless that it's a wonder they make it to the end of any book. I want to see a TV adaption, done as a comedy but with all the characters acting completely straight. It could be Blackadder Goes Fourth hilarious. They're also an interesting insight into the end of empire as seen from the English point of view.
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Post by stevemitchell on Nov 20, 2022 17:25:53 GMT -6
The Usurpers by Geoff St. Reynard. Hideous creatures form another dimension have arrived on Earth, disguised as human beings. A small band of Englishmen become aware of their existence and fight to drive them back to their home realm. A fun bit of pulp SF from the 1950s.
Backfire by Dan Marlowe. Marlowe wrote hard-edged crime and suspense novels back in the 1950s and ‘60s. Here, a somewhat shady detective tries to cover up the real facts about his partner’s death, and keeps falling deeper and deeper into a web of lies.
Space Prison by Tom Godwin. An old favorite of mine. Aliens intercept an Earth colony ship, and leave about half its passengers and crew stranded on a hell-world named Ragnarok. The survivors, over several generations, use their limited resources in a plan to confront the aliens and seize one of their starships.
The World of Null-A, The Players of Null-A, and Null-A Three by A. E. Van Vogt. Set 500 years in the future, when the Earth is dominated by the philosophy of Non-Aristotelianism, this interplanetary (and eventually intergalactic) epic follows several near-identical men named Gilbert Gosseyn, each possessed of superhuman powers. The first two novels are classics of 1940s SF—the third book, written decades later in Van Vogt’s career, is a more minor work, although it does tie up several plot threads from the earlier novels.
Run to Earth by Mary Elizabeth Braddon. A lengthy Victorian “sensation” novel from the author of Lady Audley’s Secret. Two different sets of murders—a disputed inheritance—a kidnapping—Ms. Braddon keeps the pot boiling, although her reliance of coincidence is a bit excessive.
Bohemians of Sesqua Valley by W. H. Pugmire. A collection of Lovecraftian tales, mostly connected to Pugmire’s mystical Sesqua Valley site.
The Flood, The Levee, The House, The War, The Fortune, and Rain by Michael McDowell. The brilliant and ominous Blackwater saga—a mix of Southern Gothic and generational drama, following the lives and fortunes of an extended Alabama family over a 50-year period. Complete with swamp monsters and phantoms!
Lucky at Cards by Lawrence Block. A crooked gambler plans to steal a rich man’s money—and wife. Well, as usual in this kind of book, things don’t go exactly to plan. Another early, and entertaining, crime thriller from Mr. Block.
The Admirals by Walter R. Borneman. The author compares and contrasts the four admirals who achieved five-star rank in World War II—Admirals Leahy, King, Nimitz, and Halsey. Very well done.
Normandy ’44 by James Holland. A detailed treatment of the D-Day landings and the subsequent campaign in Normandy. The narrative ranges from high-level strategy meetings to man-to-man and tank-to-tank encounters in the bocage. The author also provides a useful reassessment of the generalship and tactics on both sides.
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