# What Was The Last Book That You Read?



## EasyExpertWriting (Dec 16, 2012)

...and did you enjoy it?


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## Jeko (Dec 16, 2012)

The last book I finished was I Am Number Four. The story was excellent. The ending was _awful. _

Hoping the sequel will do the situation more justice.


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## Michael Tea (Dec 16, 2012)

The last book I finished was _Wyrd Sisters_, the sixth of the Discworld series. Since I am a fan of the series I enjoyed this as much as any other Pratchett book. The one before that - a collection of macabre short stories by Poe, Lovecraft and others - was also very good. The Poe story was rather disappointing, but the book introduced me to half a dozen other very good writers I'd never even heard of before I read it and that made up for it.


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## moderan (Dec 16, 2012)

What was the name of the collection? I'd like to know who the others are that you enjoyed.


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## FleshEater (Dec 16, 2012)

Gerald's Game by Stephen King. I never wanted a novel to end as badly as that...I didn't like it.


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## Michael Tea (Dec 16, 2012)

moderan said:


> What was the name of the collection? I'd like to know who the others are that you enjoyed.



_Classic Tales of the Macabre -_ the one by David Stuart Davies (apparently there's another one by Charles Keeping). My favorites were A Pair of Hands by Arthur Quiller-Couch, Thurnley Abbey by Perceval Landon, A Terribly Strange Bed by Wilkie Collins and The Last Leaf by O. Henry. The Horror in the Museum is standard Lovecraft stuff, which I was already acquainted with, and the Poe story was The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, which I'd already read a few times. Then there were other stories by Rudyard Kipling, Barry Pain, Bram Stoker, W.W. Jacobs and others... overall, the only writer I _did_ know of prior to buying the book (besides Poe and Lovecraft, who are very well-known) was Wilkie Collins, and I hadn't read any of his stories.

Note, the book only features one story from each writer. I guess the whole point of it was to introduce you to a variety of different authors rather than showcase how awesome two or three people were at writing horror stories.


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## moderan (Dec 16, 2012)

Michael Tea said:


> _Classic Tales of the Macabre -_ the one by David Stuart Davies (apparently there's another one by Charles Keeping). My favorites were A Pair of Hands by Arthur Quiller-Couch, Thurnley Abbey by Perceval Landon, A Terribly Strange Bed by Wilkie Collins and The Last Leaf by O. Henry. The Horror in the Museum is standard Lovecraft stuff, which I was already acquainted with, and the Poe story was The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, which I'd already read a few times. Then there were other stories by Rudyard Kipling, Barry Pain, Bram Stoker, W.W. Jacobs and others... overall, the only writer I _did_ know of prior to buying the book (besides Poe and Lovecraft, who are very well-known) was Wilkie Collins, and I hadn't read any of his stories.
> 
> Note, the book only features one story from each writer. I guess the whole point of it was to introduce you to a variety of different authors rather than showcase how awesome two or three people were at writing horror stories.


There are (or have been) a great number of such anthologies (I could recommend a few if you'd like). I couldn't find the actual table of contents anywhere...I'll assume the Jacobs was The Monkey's Paw?
The volume by Charles Keeping is everywhere, and has less than half as many stories. Funny, that.


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## Michael Tea (Dec 16, 2012)

It is the Monkey's Paw indeed! How did you know? 

Also: I've kind of already made up my mind on the next book I'm buying, but I'd like to hear some suggestions.


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## moderan (Dec 16, 2012)

It's the only story by WW Jacobs that any anthologist seems to remember.


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## beanlord56 (Dec 17, 2012)

_The Heroes of Olympus: The Mark of Athena _by Rick Riordan. The ending kinda snuck up on me, took me by surprise, and left me in tears. It's too much to tell without spoiling the entire book and the seven before it, but I can say that Percy and Annabeth have been through too much.


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## Freakconformist (Dec 17, 2012)

I've been reading the Mercy Thompson series from Patrica Briggs. It's the first time I have really gotten into a "werewolf" story. Unfortunately, I've gotten into trouble with the Library again and I can't check out anymore books until I pay the fine for leaving the last two books in my back seat for three months. I'm starting to think it would be cheaper if I just bought the books. :\


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## tepelus (Dec 17, 2012)

Fevre Dream, by George R. R. Martin, and yes, I enjoyed it very much so. You have to have a tolerance for river boats, though, since Martin likes to go on and on about them, and for vulgar language directed at the slaves. I haven't read anything in a while. I should probably pick up another book sometime and read.


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## SirThinkALot (Dec 18, 2012)

The Hobbit, mostly in preparation for the movie.  And yes I did.  But I knew I would, since I'd read it before(it was the first full novel I read).


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## FleshEater (Dec 18, 2012)

Just finished _Outer Dark _by Cormac McCarthy. The man has a way of killing man, woman, and child in the most beautiful, lyrical, disturbing and shocking of ways. I still haven't found a McCarthy novel I haven't enjoyed.


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## moderan (Dec 18, 2012)

tepelus said:


> Fevre Dream, by George R. R. Martin, and yes, I enjoyed it very much so. You have to have a tolerance for river boats, though, since Martin likes to go on and on about them, and for vulgar language directed at the slaves. I haven't read anything in a while. I should probably pick up another book sometime and read.


I think that's the vampire novel that Anne Rice wanted to write. Martin is so much the better stylist. Very enjoyable, as you say.


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## chicagoliz (Dec 18, 2012)

I'm reading War by Sebastian Junger.  I had just finished a book called Until Tuesday for my book club, although I did not think that book was particularly good.


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## Bruno Spatola (Dec 18, 2012)

Dexter is Delicious by Jeff Lindsay

Gets frickin' weird towards the end.


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## popsprocket (Dec 18, 2012)

Towers of Midnight - Robert Jordan/Brandon Sanderson

The last book comes out ridiculously soon, so I did a reread of the whole Wheel of Time series. Now I just have to sit on my thumbs and try not to die of anticipation.


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## FleshEater (Dec 25, 2012)

_Fight Club_...loved it.


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## dale (Dec 25, 2012)

"the house next door" by anne rivers siddons. it was a good story.


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## Leyline (Dec 25, 2012)

dale said:


> "the house next door" by anne rivers siddons. it was a good story.



I love it unreservedly. I think you may have to know suburban Atlanta folk to get it entirely.


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## moderan (Dec 25, 2012)

I just finished Alan Dean Foster's *Mission to Moulokin*, the second in his *Icerigger trilogy* and part of the overarching *Humanx Commonwealth* collection.
Foster is after classic space-opera feel in this story, which came about at about the same time as his novelization of "The Empire Strikes Back." He achieves that with aplomb. He's one of the most prolific and professional writers around-though his things rarely generate spectacular sales figures, his books stay in print and there's always new product. Space adventure on a level just above that of a Heinlein juvenile is his stock-in-trade, and there's nobody better at it.
*The Deluge Drivers* is the capstone of the trilogy. I've never read it before. I look forward to it.
The Humanx series features a human/insectoid alliance, several very believable alien races, and very little in the way of infodump. The novels are fast-paced and the characters and situations are almost always given a comic fillip. The author usually has a very breezy style, breathlessly chronicling the many novel situations his characters find themselves in. Characterization is good though not of much depth. Everyone who is supposed to be is likable, and the villains have enough shading in.
I give Mission to Moulokin three and a half out of five. Recommended for fans of the subgenre, and a good light read for the uninitiated.

Related authors:H. Beam Piper, Ron Goulart, James H. Schmitz, Robert Heinlein, Murray Leinster, E.E. (Doc) Smith


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## dale (Dec 25, 2012)

Leyline said:


> I love it unreservedly. I think you may have to know suburban Atlanta folk to get it entirely.



well, i think these people are recognizable to anyone in their basic class. i may be a poor boy now....but i was raised by a cape cod raised
mother. i related to their collective suburban mentality. i may have sounded a bit unenthused just saying it was a "good story". i thought it was
one of the better ghost genre stories i've ever read.


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## moderan (Dec 28, 2012)

I've now finished six of the Humanx novels.
First, the three "founding" novels-Phylogenesis, Dirge, and Diuturnity's Dawn. Then the "IceRigger" trio-Icerigger, Mission to Moulokin, and the Deluge Drivers.
This is a little off the main timeline but not too far off-course.
The next novel is Nor Crystal Tears, which precedes only the first three books. The narrative doesn't mention them, not do the Icerigger books have a lot to do with the rest of the series, despite a couple of cameos. Looking forward to digging into the main body of the series. The Deluge Drivers was a quick and easy read.
Just finished Mike Mignola's "Cosmic Odyssey", a graphic album that originally appeared as a four-part series. I like Mignola's style-a mix of Kirby-style figure work and foreshortening and Millerish minimalist backgrounds. The story is a kinda standard taking-over-the-universe bit, made interesting by some character work. Not as good as Watchmen or The Killing Joke but a good 80s DC product. This is pre-Hellboy work.


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## Whisper (Dec 28, 2012)

I just finished the novel _Directive 51_ by John Barnes. This is an apocalypse book, which is one of my favorite types of sci-fi novels. I’ve been reading this type of book since I was in high school starting with Stephen King's _The Stand_. If I was to make a list of my top 10 apocalypse books I’m afraid this book would not make the list. It’s not a bad apocalypse book; in fact for the first half of the book I was devouring it as it was done in the similar vein of _Lucifer’s Hammer_ in which you get a good bit of the buildup prior to the event and a lot of what happens to society afterwards. Too many times in this type of book it opens with events after the fact. So it was refreshing to get some buildup. I also like that the main characters were not your cookie-cutter type. One of the main characters is an overweight female and the other is in a wheelchair. The problem is that there are too many main characters so you sort of lose track of who is who and where they are. 

The other problem with the book is that it actually becomes too political. I don’t mind a little preaching and a little political commentary in my sci-fi (in fact I’m disappointed if there isn’t any as that is what sci-fi is supposed to be about), but this goes to extremes where characters of each affiliation become political caricatures of what the other believes them to be. There are also no mentions of African-Americans, Asians, Native Americans, Hispanics or any other ethnic backgrounds in any of the people that survive in the United States. In the end, this book started off good, but turned into a mess. 

Next Up: _Into the Storm _by Taylor Anderson.


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## Jeko (Dec 28, 2012)

The Power of Six. Not as powerful as I'd expected it to be.


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## FleshEater (Dec 29, 2012)

Finished _Invisible Monsters _by Chuck Palahniuk last night...loved it. 

What I loved about the novel, aside from the story, was how Chuck jumped all over the place in the story, and somehow made it all make sense. Genius.


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## Leyline (Dec 29, 2012)

dale said:


> well, i think these people are recognizable to anyone in their basic class. i may be a poor boy now....but i was raised by a cape cod raised
> mother. i related to their collective suburban mentality. i may have sounded a bit unenthused just saying it was a "good story". i thought it was
> one of the better ghost genre stories i've ever read.



Haha. I've never been able to even afford to shop in suburban Atlanta. 

But I have partied extensively with suburban Atlantans, in the bad old days. I didn't mean to imply that you didn't get it at all, and sorry if it came off that way. Just that many of the details rang so true and were so precise that I might have had an elevated opinion of it based on that. Even the ghosts are peculiarly subATL.


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## dale (Dec 29, 2012)

Leyline said:


> Haha. I've never been able to even afford to shop in suburban Atlanta.
> 
> But I have partied extensively with suburban Atlantans, in the bad old days. I didn't mean to imply that you didn't get it at all, and sorry if it came off that way. Just that many of the details rang so true and were so precise that I might have had an elevated opinion of it based on that. Even the ghosts are peculiarly subATL.



been through atlanta twice. drove through on the way to miami, and hitchhiked through on the way back. i pretty much walked the entire city of atlanta
on the way back. the traffic moves at light speed on the freeway. the only ride i got was from an old ass black man in a beat up truck, and that was a short ride. 
i think i got shot at, too. i heard the crack and smelled the gunpowder, but i was too young to really care. i was always bullet-proof at age 19. ha ha.
i loved the city, though. had a real high energy to it.


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## FleshEater (Dec 30, 2012)

_Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas_...pretty good, very funny. I felt Thompson was spot on in_ Part One_ but started to get almost bored with the story by the end of _Part Two_. Still would recommend it.


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## Circadian (Dec 30, 2012)

I just finished reading _Skulduggery Pleasant: Death Bringer _by Derek Landy.  I LOVED it.  Can't wait to get the next book.  Lucky for me, my birthday's coming up.  And it's no secret what I'm wishing for...


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## moderan (Jan 1, 2013)

I just finished The Barbecue Bible, by Scottsdale resident Steven Raichlen. It's a volume of recipes, with an international focus. It was so good that I went out and bought charcoal, even though I finished it after supper. I also bought some sugar cane, with which I will prepare Buccaneer Chicken, one of the featured recipes. The author has a show on PBS. The book is better. He's pretty colorless as a tv personality.


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## FridgeOtter (Jan 1, 2013)

I just finished _John Dies at the End_ by David Wong.  I didn't really expect to like it that much, but I was wrong. It was excellent.


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## moderan (Jan 1, 2013)

David Wong runs Cracked. He knows what he's doing as far as writing.


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## Katalina (Jan 2, 2013)

I just finished reading Daddy's Girls by Tasmina Perry and now I'm reading Trail of the Spellmans by Lisa Lutz.


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## Whisper (Jan 2, 2013)

I just finished the Sci-Fi yarn, _Into the Storm _by Taylor Anderson. I wasn't sure how I would like this, but ended up liking it probably more than I should. The story revolves around the crew of the World War I era destroyer USS Walker, which is transported to what looks to be an alternate prehistoric Universe. It's sort of _John Carter of Mars _meets _Lost World_. Although there were some small issues, I liked it enough that I’ll look into getting the second book as it kept me entertained.


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## Fats Velvet (Jan 2, 2013)

FridgeOtter said:


> I just finished _John Dies at the End_ by David Wong.  I didn't really expect to like it that much, but I was wrong. It was excellent.



Have you figured out the terrible secret of the universe yet?


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## Nee (Jan 3, 2013)

Hi everybody...
I just finished, *Friend of the Devil* by Peter Robinson.

It was fairly decent.


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## Thedancingswan (Jan 4, 2013)

Just finished *Meeting the Shadow: The Hidden Powder of the Dark Side of Human Nature* by _Zweig and Abrams_.I got this book out of curiosity. It's a collection of articles based on Jungian analyst. I am not a psychologist so I will not attempt to criticize anything academically. I would recomment if you like to analyse and seek to understand the world and seek to understand yourself. For me, it's very interesting because it discuss many aspect of the shadows we encounter in life, for instance, in literature, in work, in crime. It's about humanity and their full range of, perhaps, emotions; love, lust, hate, jealousy, rage, sympathy, appreciated. I would love to make my characters in my writing to expose to full range of these emotions. It is inspiring for me, although the dark side is pretty scary. Meeting the Shadow: The Hidden Power of the Dark Side of Human Nature by Connie Zweig - Reviews, Discussion, Bookclubs, Lists


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## Nee (Jan 9, 2013)

Place of Execution by, Val McDermid. 

It was made into great masterpiece theater two-part movie, a while back.


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## Jeko (Jan 9, 2013)

> I just finished reading _Skulduggery Pleasant: Death Bringer _by Derek Landy. I LOVED it. Can't wait to get the next book. Lucky for me, my birthday's coming up. And it's no secret what I'm wishing for...



I got to that one and got bored of Landy's repetitive, basic style. The only way he changed is from not pulling any punches to letting himself _be _punched. By me.



> I just finished _John Dies at the End_ by David Wong. I didn't really expect to like it that much, but I was wrong. It was excellent.



A friend leant that to me. Absolutely loved it. The pacing, especially.


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## FleshEater (Jan 14, 2013)

I just finished _The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo_. It was okay. In some parts it got slow, and went on and on about unnecessary characters. I would probably say the film is better than the novel (the American remake that is, I haven't seen the original films of these books; Swedish I believe).


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## Morkonan (Jan 15, 2013)

I read multiple books at a time, so it's hard to say which one was "The Last." 

I just finished "The Hammer and the Blade" by Paul Kemp, which is a mass market fantasy paperback that I picked up because I had already read everything of interest in that genre that was on the shelf at Barnes & Noble. It was a fun and fast-paced adventure story that truly evoked some good ol' Fafhyrd and the Grey Mouser sorts of adventures, from yesteryear. So, it lived up to its back-cover copy and I was satisfied with it. 

I'm currently reading "Phi", which is a book about the neuroscience of consciousness, but the scientific underpinnings are related as episodic entries told in story format as the character, the historical Galileo, interacts with notable individuals who have something scientifically or philosophically relevant to say on the matter or who example situations, in parable-like fashion, in order to explain certain concepts. Each chapter is followed with a "Notes" section to explain the meaning behind the story, complete with references and descriptions of case-studies. I must say it's very enjoyable and the book is of excellent hard-cover quality with heavy glossy pages very suitable for the many imprints of full color photographs and graphics contained therein.


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## garza (Jan 15, 2013)

_How the Scots Invented the Modern World: The True Story of How Western Europe's Poorest Nation Created Our World and Everything in It_, Arthur Herman, Three Rivers Press, New York, 2001.

Western civilisation turned a corner in the mid 18th Century, led by the Scots. Herman's account is historically accurate, well researched, and equally well written. He describes in fascinating detail how our ideas about democracy, capitalism, technology, and every other facet of modern life continue to be shaped by the writings of the Scots of 250 years ago. A great read, highly recommended.


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## Morkonan (Jan 15, 2013)

garza said:


> _How the Scots Invented the Modern World: The True Story of How Western Europe's Poorest Nation Created Our World and Everything in It_, Arthur Herman, Three Rivers Press, New York, 2001.
> 
> ... A great read, highly recommended.



Sweet! I've been wanting to read that book. Thanks for the good review, it'll inspire me to remember to buy it.


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## Jeko (Jan 15, 2013)

Bad Alice by Jean Ure.

Wow. Didn't expect it to be so engaging.


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## japolitis (Jan 15, 2013)

The last book I read was Where'd You Go, Bernadette: A Novel. This was such a fantastic story! Definitely in my top 5!


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## FleshEater (Jan 16, 2013)

Chuck Palahniuk's _Choke_​...pretty amazing.


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## FleshEater (Jan 18, 2013)

_post office:A Novel _by Charles Bukowski...I now have a great deal of insight into the lives of the mail room workers where I work.


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## Lilly Davidson (Jan 20, 2013)

Hi

I am loving '_Call of the Wild_' and '_White Fang_' by Jack London immensely right now. I have downloaded all his (22) books onto my Kindle for a bargain price. They are not all about the same subject but they mostly are I expect. 

I am really in the mood for anything similar by other authors, good adventurous novels about wild creatures and survival, especially wolves and dogs. Can anyone here recommend any for me please?


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## tepelus (Jan 20, 2013)

_The Merchant of Dreams_ by Anne Lyle. It's best to read the first book _The Alchemist of Souls_ first before TMOD, or you may be a bit confused by the relationships with the characters if you don't. Both are good books, the first one is better than the second, IMO. Now must wait patiently for book three of the series to come out.


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## FleshEater (Jan 20, 2013)

Chuck Palahniuk's _Damned_​...genius, brilliant!


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## CitizenUnknown (Jan 21, 2013)

Been working my way through _America Again: Re-Becoming The Greatness We Never Weren't _by Stephen Colbert and also re-reading _Fahrenheit 451 _by Ray Bradbury, the first is hilarious, the second is a wonderful classic_._


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## Whisper (Jan 24, 2013)

I just read _Lord of the Mountains: A Novel of the Change_. I'm not sure read is an accurate statement. I mostly just skimmed it, just to be done with it. I won't be getting anymore of his novels. The first couple of books in the series were good, but I think this has just gone on too long now. It's past being over. And I guess, it's pretty much over for me. I don't have anything on the burner now, but with me about to start my MA degree, I probably won't have too much time to read, other than textbooks. That's not to bad, though, history textbooks can be interesting.


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## Lilly Davidson (Jan 24, 2013)

Hi Whisper 
It is a shame not to have a good book on the go, just to relax and unwind. The trouble is finding one that really stimulates you mentally. I hope you do find something, and good luck with your degree.


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## FleshEater (Feb 4, 2013)

In the past two weeks I've read Requiem for a Dream and Chuck Palahniuk's Survivor.

Requiem for a Dream was okay, but the end wasn't very satisfying.

Survivor was funny, pretty solid.


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## Lamprocles (Feb 4, 2013)

Last one I read was The Dubliners by James Joyce. 

I was surprised how impressive I thought each of the 15 short stories were, next step is to take on Ulysses.


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## moderan (Feb 4, 2013)

Good luck with that.
This morning I finally finished *A Confederacy of Dunces*. I found it overwrought. It was hard to get through, and I fought through a good portion of it. The main characters I found seriously unlikable, the incidents in the text were sometimes hard to believe, the author's style was too oblique for the subject matter, and in general I don't think I'd recommend the book.


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## Nee (Feb 4, 2013)

moderan said:


> Good luck with that.
> This morning I finally finished *A Confederacy of Dunces*. I found it overwrought. It was hard to get through, and I fought through a good portion of it. The main characters I found seriously unlikable, the incidents in the text were sometimes hard to believe, the author's style was too oblique for the subject matter, and in general I don't think I'd recommend the book.



But it is interesting how so many television situational comedies from around 1965 and up stole so much from it though.


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## Jon M (Feb 4, 2013)

_The Fault in Our Stars_. The principal characters, and the author, are in love with their own quirkiness. The book has a hip self-awareness that is rather nauseating. A night of hanging out a friend's playing videogames and ruminating on Bigger Themes™ wherein several basketball trophies are broken becomes The Night of Broken Trophies. Really hoped for an insightful, mature story. Instead, what I got appears to be a book populated by young clones of the author, kids who think it is funny and interesting to constantly speak in metaphors, to preface their trite observations by name.

"Observation: this book sucks."


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## Nee (Feb 4, 2013)

The Leopard by, Jo Nesbo

A Spark of Death by, Bernadette Pajer

Both on MP3 audio. I don't know...they weren't awful. 

*But I have been sick so...


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## moderan (Feb 4, 2013)

Nee said:


> But it is interesting how so many television situational comedies from around 1965 and up stole so much from it though.


They couldn't have. The book was published in 1980. Granted, Toole likely wrote it around the time period you speak of, but outside of sheer clairvoyance, I don't see how such borrowing could occur.

edit:





> Toole had written the novel in 1963 during his last few months in the  Army in Puerto Rico. Returning to New Orleans, he was convinced it was  his masterpiece. He edited it for two years under the direction of *Robert Gottlieb*  at Simon and Schuster. But he eventually gave up as his mind slipped  into the snares of mental illness. For years the manuscript lay  abandoned in a box atop a cedar armoire. But in 1972 his mother  retrieved it and began submitting it for publication.


From:The Millions


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## Nee (Feb 4, 2013)

Damn. I thought I read that in high school. 
Oh man, now my heads all tweakin'.

Maybe it's the cough syrup.


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## Hemlock (Feb 4, 2013)

The Reef by Nora Roberts.


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## FleshEater (Feb 4, 2013)

Jon M said:


> _The Fault in Our Stars_. The principal characters, and the author, are in love with their own quirkiness. The book has a hip self-awareness that is rather nauseating. A night of hanging out a friend's playing videogames and ruminating on Bigger Themes™ wherein several basketball trophies are broken becomes The Night of Broken Trophies. Really hoped for an insightful, mature story. Instead, what I got appears to be a book populated by young clones of the author, kids who think it is funny and interesting to constantly speak in metaphors, to preface their trite observations by name.
> 
> "Observation: this book sucks."



This gave me a good laugh. Perhaps it was the seemingly semi-serious review you gave it.


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## Lewdog (Feb 4, 2013)

No one reads books anymore.  What is this 1993?


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## popsprocket (Feb 4, 2013)

The Hunger Games

It was given to me as a present about two years ago and I read the first page, discovered it was written in first person present tense, put it into my cupboard and never looked at it again. Then my sister pushed me to read it so I did.

Oh my god.

What the flying horse monkeys was the author smoking? She has absolutely zero clue on the point of sentence, paragraph, scene, or chapter breaks and just runs the whole thing together like it's nobody's business. I couldn't even tell you what the story was about because I was so busy gagging over the prose.


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## moderan (Feb 4, 2013)

Horse Feathers. I just read another one today. Whisper, by William Marshall. An excellent procedural set in Manila, with well-drawn characters, an extremely arch point of view, and a gutload of belly laughs. Not unlike an earlier version take on Carl Hiassen but without the ecowareness.


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## Morkonan (Feb 8, 2013)

popsprocket said:


> The Hunger Games
> 
> It was given to me as a present about two years ago and I read the first page, discovered it was written in first person present tense, put it into my cupboard and never looked at it again. Then my sister pushed me to read it so I did.
> 
> ...



I haven't read it, never intend to read it and believe it's very likely that it's worse than you've made it out to be... 

However, I do find it difficult to throw away books, even if they deserve it. If I owned a copy of "The Hunger Games", I'd try to throw it in the garbage... But, I might fail. There's just something about a "book" that shouldn't ever have anything to do with a garbage can. Yet, books that are that bad shouldn't be passed on to others, like herpes.

There should be a special Book Disposal Team one could call, in just such an emergency. Their job is to rid you of the festering pile of recycled tree guts that is threatening to contaminate your personal library. Upon request, they should speed to the scene and, forcibly if necessary, remove the offending manuscript from your possession. For a fee, of course. Then, you're removed from whatever ultimately happens to that book. 

It's like taking a dog you don't like to be put to sleep. No matter how much you may hate that dog (nobody should ever hate dogs, btw), you can't find any enjoyment in putting it down...


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## Kevin (Feb 8, 2013)

popsprocket said:


> The Hunger Games
> 
> It was given to me as a present about two years ago and I read the first page, discovered it was written in first person present tense, put it into my cupboard and never looked at it again. Then my sister pushed me to read it so I did.
> 
> ...


 Having just seen _Silver linings,_  I'm strangely drawn to Katness... I _might_ even read the book now. Oh the power of the picture over the written word.  Blasphemy, I know...


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## Lilly Davidson (Feb 8, 2013)

popsprocket said:


> The Hunger Games
> 
> It was given to me as a present about two years ago and I read the first page, discovered it was written in first person present tense, put it into my cupboard and never looked at it again. Then my sister pushed me to read it so I did.
> 
> ...



Hi 
LOL! That is so funny. I totally undertand, occasionally you do come across a book that you just simply hate. No matter how you try, you know you cannot get into it and wonder why and how anyone else can. 

I too don't like throwing books away, so I am an Amazon seller and at least make some pocket money out of them.


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## rotsuchi1 (Feb 8, 2013)

Magisterium by Jeff Hirsch. 
It was good, I devoured it in a day


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## Candervalle (Feb 9, 2013)

The Game of Thrones series. I...Can't...Stop...Reading. Otherwise, I'll forget which name belongs to what character.


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## Lilly Davidson (Feb 9, 2013)

Candervalle said:


> The Game of Thrones series. I...Can't...Stop...Reading. Otherwise, I'll forget which name belongs to what character.



Hi Candervalle, 
Have you seen the series? I have seen Series 1 and it is brilliant and addictive. Just awaiting Series 2 DVD set which comes out March - agonising wait.


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## Nee (Feb 9, 2013)

*The Last Lie*, by Stephen White

*Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, *by Philip K. Dick. MP3 audio

*For Us, the Living: Comedy of Customs, *by Robert A. Heinlein MP3 audio


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## Kyle R (Feb 9, 2013)

popsprocket said:


> The Hunger Games
> 
> It was given to me as a present about two years ago and I read the first page, discovered it was written in first person present tense, put it into my cupboard and never looked at it again. Then my sister pushed me to read it so I did.
> 
> ...



I know the feeling!

Perhaps it's just Katniss' voice you didn't like. Collins (the author) writes in a different style in her other series, _Gregor_. In that series her prose resembles that of J.K. Rowlings (third person, past tense, deep pov, whimsical). 

The first person prose of Katniss in _The Hunger Games_ was probably designed specifically for that character (similar to how J.D. Salinger wrote in the voice of Holden Caulfield only for that book.) When she gives public readings, she reads Katniss' thoughts in a strange, twangish accent, which again leads me to believe that the writing style isn't really her own, but that of the character she created.

*shrug!*

I thought the writing was pretty good. Writing a best-selling page-turner is harder than it seems. I've tried many times.  

Although, I did get bored often when she went into these long descriptions of the decadent food and beautiful clothing of the Capitol. I was thinking, "Who cares! Give me violence! Give me death!" *skims ahead* Lol.


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## Candervalle (Feb 9, 2013)

Lilly Davidson said:


> Hi Candervalle,
> Have you seen the series? I have seen Series 1 and it is brilliant and addictive. Just awaiting Series 2 DVD set which comes out March - agonising wait.



As a matter of fact I was drawn to the books by watching the series. I feel the same as you and I can't wait for the new season. The books have spoiled it for me somewhat though. The books give so much more detail than they could ever cram in a television series.


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## Lilly Davidson (Feb 9, 2013)

Nee said:


> *The Last Lie*, by Stephen White
> 
> *Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, *by Philip K. Dick. MP3 audio
> 
> *For Us, the Living: Comedy of Customs, *by Robert A. Heinlein MP3 audio



Hi Nee, 
I have made a note to read that Phillip K Dick book one day as it keeps getting recommended.


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## AshenhartKrie (Feb 9, 2013)

I'm currently in the middle of reading three books, one for English class and two for pleasure. 
My dad (who, like me is a huge sci-fi and fantasy junkie) gave me the first Raymond E. Feist trilogy for my birthday, and the second for Christmas (although I haven't gotten the second three yet, since I rarely see him), and I'm currently still on Magician. I absolutely love the writing style. I'm also reading Ancient Future, something I've wanted to read for a while and only just gotten around to doing so. 
The book I'm reading for English class is Of Mice and Men. I'm actually in the process of re-reading it, since it's a novel study and I have to re-read a book one or two times before I am able to break it down for the questions we recieve. At first I thought I wouldn't like it, but it's so sad. -weeps on best friend's shoulder-
John Steinbeck is an amazing author. 
And this is coming from someone who rarely reads outside of fantasy and sci-fi. 
And yes, I know that's a little closeminded of me.


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## Haze (Feb 10, 2013)

Lilly Davidson said:


> Hi Nee,
> I have made a note to read that Phillip K Dick book one day as it keeps getting recommended.



It becomes a little bewildering towards the end. When I read the final few pages I was left with a feeling that I'd discovered some amazing life-changing concept, but for the life of me I had no idea what it was. Confusion aside it's definitely worth the read. There's quite a lot of classics which can be a bit of a chore to actually work through, but _Androids _is consistently engaging.



I'm just about to finish *Brazzaville Beach* by William Boyd. It's more like a scrambled biography than a normal novel. I don't mean that in a negative way at all, the multiple perspective and timelines that Boyd use make it very engaging. I've noticed a lot of the time that writers hide slow plot progression and boring moments directly after cliff-hangers. They'll take you from Protagonist 1 and his/her daring sword battle with Antagonist 1, to Protagonist 2, who is reading a book on the economic difficulties of farming asparagus. I suppose the idea is to build tension and almost forcibly make you read through the least imaginative areas of plot to get back to the excitement. I've probably made it obvious that I don't approve of that technique. Boyd does something similar but with a key difference: There are no boring sections or badly paced areas to be found. I really don't mind the way he skips across the main character's life like a schizophrenic flea. Instead of flitting through areas which are of no consequence to each other, he slowly builds up each timeline with information brought in from other timelines. Sections of plot are given greater significance either by musings from the future, or context from the past. The whole thing is very well constructed, and brilliantly written. There's so much to say about this book that I could write for an hour and still not even mention the main character.*


*Who is well imagined and excellently voiced.


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## SunnyE (Feb 10, 2013)

Just finished Minder by Jennifer Kabay. I loved it! MC's are a little younger, but has some dark themes to it. She put some twists on the traditional mythical characters that I really liked. Had not heard of the author before, but was glad I bought it. Just saw it's free right now on Amazon if anyone's interested. 

Now I'm reading City of Bones from the Mortal Instruments. Haven't gotten far enough in to decide if it's as great as I've heard others say it is.


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## RJA (Feb 13, 2013)

I just finished, The Returners, by Mikey Neumann the other day. It's an incredible read and I highly recommend it to everyone. He's the writer of Borderlands, the first one, and was head of production on the second. Anyways, you can read it free at his site bozpublishing.com. It's a pretty swell story! I don't want to give a synopsis cause it takes away some of the power from the first chapter.


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore.


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

Haze said:


> It becomes a little bewildering towards the end. When I read the final few pages I was left with a feeling that I'd discovered some amazing life-changing concept, but for the life of me I had no idea what it was. Confusion aside it's definitely worth the read. There's quite a lot of classics which can be a bit of a chore to actually work through, but _Androids _is consistently engaging.




That is the problem with Phillip K. Dick in general--awesome concepts and interesting situations but, because of his paranoid/delusional schizophrenia he was always working out a lot of stuff that has more to do with the nature of what schizophrenia is like rather than an exploration of an interesting story. But hey, you take out all of that and you get some of the best science fiction movies ever made.


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## moderan (Feb 13, 2013)

What a load of hooey. PKD worked out his delusions on the page, truly...but his written work *by far *supercedes the pale versions of it that that have appeared on the silver screen.
In the case of "....Androids", the confusion at the end is exactly what he was reaching for. One of Dick's main themes was an exploration of what it means to be human. This was undertaken in a great many of his tales, from the very first "Therein Lies the Wub", "The Father-Thing", through his last "The Transmigration of Timothy Archer".
Some of the best science fiction movies ever made? Name one besides Blade Runner.
Then go ahead and tell me about the workings-out of paranoid delusions in Martian Time-Slip, Dr. Bloodmoney, UBIK, or The Man in the High Castle, and tell me how they don't relate to the human condition. Or how "Faith of our Fathers" is just psychedelic maundering.
But oh, you say, what about Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said. Isn't that just a working out of delusionary visions? A Scanner Darkly? The man was just insane, polluted by methamphetamine, poisoned by the creeping death of his own spleen and pancreas. Those things had no bearing on reality. He was just working out his problems.
Gubbish.


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## Stephanie1980 (Feb 13, 2013)

I just finished reading (just since a few days ago) the young adult novel by Beth Revis, _‘Across the Universe.’ _The book is set in the genre of Science Fiction/Murder Mystery. It’s also a Trilogy, so I am on pins and needles to start her second book (which is currently out) called _‘A Million Suns’_.  

The book is an easy read (as it is groomed for young adults). What I enjoyed most about this novel was how there are initially two protagonist, that she writes in her story, in first person narrative, and she switches back and forth between character’s perspective by titling each chapter either Amy or Elder, which are the main character names. The whole book is a back and forth between these two characters. The antagonist is Eldest (the current leader) of the ship and its human inhabitants. For a sci-fi book it has all the main elements, it’s set on a ship (Godspeed), they are in outer space, they are traveling to a new earth, people are frozen in cryogenic chambers, and the science is advanced. I was just waiting for aliens, but there were none, at least not yet. Murders happen which makes this a mystery kind of story. The story is mostly about Amy, a teenage girl who comes from earth past, and was frozen along with her parents, who are scientist and military, they are injected into the future, in hopes to travel to a new earth, but something went wrong, the human inhabitants, don’t want to revive the frozen people, and a leader is born and keeps secretes and it just goes on from there into more weird scenarios. It’s a fun read, but I wish the climax at the end of the novel was written longer, the author wrote the climax WAY TOO FAST, it was a very short chapter, which was disappointing because I wanted more. The buildup is well written and interesting, but the ending’s falling climax is rushed. Overall, I do recommend this novel to people who like space travel stories.   

On to book two now….. (coffee in hand)…..   

~Steph :cat:


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## Stephanie1980 (Feb 13, 2013)

AshenhartKrie said:


> I'm currently in the middle of reading three books, one for English class and two for pleasure.
> My dad (who, like me is a huge sci-fi and fantasy junkie) gave me the first Raymond E. Feist trilogy for my birthday, and the second for Christmas (although I haven't gotten the second three yet, since I rarely see him), and I'm currently still on Magician. I absolutely love the writing style. I'm also reading Ancient Future, something I've wanted to read for a while and only just gotten around to doing so.
> The book I'm reading for English class is Of Mice and Men. I'm actually in the process of re-reading it, since it's a novel study and I have to re-read a book one or two times before I am able to break it down for the questions we recieve. At first I thought I wouldn't like it, but it's so sad. -weeps on best friend's shoulder-
> John Steinbeck is an amazing author.
> ...



I remember when I was in english class (oh that was about 10 cough... cough.... 11 years ago) …. *lol…. And we had to read _A Tale of Two Cities _a novel by Charles Dickens, that an _Animal Farm _by George Orwell, who is still my favorite author, (love 1984, my all-time favorite book). _Dickens_ I remember was tedious to get through, at that age. Are you enjoying _Of Mice and Men?_


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

Moderan wrote: " Then go ahead and tell me about the workings-out of paranoid delusions in Martian Time-Slip, Dr. Bloodmoney, UBIK, or The Man in the High Castle, and tell me how they don't relate to the human condition. Or how "Faith of our Fathers" is just psychedelic maundering."

..."psychedelic maundering...?"

Chill dude. 
I met him, talked with him: and I liked him. And it turns out that even with his paranoid schizophrenia he was right about the FBI bugging his house.


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## moderan (Feb 13, 2013)

Nee said:


> Moderan wrote: " Then go ahead and tell me about the workings-out of paranoid delusions in Martian Time-Slip, Dr. Bloodmoney, UBIK, or The Man in the High Castle, and tell me how they don't relate to the human condition. Or how "Faith of our Fathers" is just psychedelic maundering."
> 
> ..."psychedelic maundering...?"
> 
> ...


I'm quite chill, thank you. 


Nee said:


> That is the problem with Phillip K. Dick in  general--awesome concepts and interesting situations but, because of his  paranoid/delusional schizophrenia he was always working out a lot of  stuff that has more to do with the nature of what schizophrenia is like  rather than an exploration of an interesting story. But hey, you take  out all of that and you get some of the best science fiction movies ever  made.



This is still birdpoop. Still waiting for those other movie titles. And you're still wrong about his work.


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## nicolam2711 (Feb 13, 2013)

Trying to read A Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling at the moment...but still finding that it isn't quite holding my attention. Anyone else read it?


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

anyone who knows someone with schizophrenia can clearly see its mark in his work. 

Blade Runner
Total Recall 
Adjustment Bureau
Minority Report
Screamers
Paycheck
imposer
A Scanner Darkly
Confessid'um Barjo
Next
Radio Free Albemuth 

...And if you do not think these are good movies then that is your opinion isn't it?


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

nicolam2711 said:


> Trying to read A Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling at the moment...but still finding that it isn't quite holding my attention. Anyone else read it?



The problem with it is Rowling sent it in expecting that they'd edit it and send it back to her for one more go through--like she had grown to expect with the potter series. But apparently, they just sent to the printers with no read through at all. She is rather angry at that. Even still, there are a lot of interesting psychological/interpersonal entanglements that I believe would have been more completely worked out if she had the chance to further develop them. 

I sure the next one will not suffer the same fate.


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## Deleted member 49710 (Feb 13, 2013)

I always find biography to be a really reductive approach to understanding a text. Sometimes the information is helpful, but whether the writer is schizophrenic or not, he's still trying to say something, to tell a story. And that story is bigger than just "I'm schizophrenic." If that's all you get, you're not reading very well.


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## moderan (Feb 13, 2013)

It isn't in dispute that they are good movies, or that Philip K Dick was schizophrenic, or expressed that in his work. That isn't what you said. You said that they are among the best sci-fi movies ever made. My opinion is that exactly one movie from that list makes the grade.
And you claimed that his explorations of his own psyche overwhelmed the story content of his work, which is quite clearly incorrect and not subjective.


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## nicolam2711 (Feb 13, 2013)

Nee said:


> The problem with it is Rowling sent it in expecting that they'd edit it and send it back to her for one more go through--like she had grown to expect with the potter series. But apparently, they just sent to the printers with no read through at all. She is rather angry at that. Even still, there is a lot of interesting psychological/interpersonal entanglements that I believe would have been more completely worked out if she had the chance to further develop them.
> 
> I sure the next one will not suffer the same fate.



This makes sense. It's hard to force myself to read it at times but I'm determined to finish it!


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

lasm said:


> I always find biography to be a really reductive approach to understanding a text. Sometimes the information is helpful, but whether the writer is schizophrenic or not, he's still trying to say something, to tell a story. And that story is bigger than just "I'm schizophrenic." If that's all you get, you're not reading very well.



Of course. 

But in Dick's case many people have had trouble getting through parts of his work: and the reason for that is his schizophrenia.


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

moderan said:


> It isn't in dispute that they are good movies, or that Philip K Dick was schizophrenic, or expressed that in his work. That isn't what you said. You said that they are among the best sci-fi movies ever made. My opinion is that exactly one movie from that list makes the grade.
> And you claimed that his explorations of his own psyche overwhelmed the story content of his work, which is quite clearly incorrect and not subjective.



"It isn't in dispute that they are good movies,..."

Yet you then say:

"My opinion is that exactly one movie from that list makes the grade."

To which I say: Okay. 

"you claimed that his explorations of his own psyche overwhelmed the story"

No I didn't.  But it doesn't matter. Believe what you like.


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## moderan (Feb 13, 2013)

Nee said:


> That is the problem with Phillip K. Dick in general--awesome concepts and interesting situations but, because of his paranoid/delusional schizophrenia_ he was always working out a lot of stuff that has more to do with the nature of what schizophrenia is like rather than an exploration of an interesting story_. But hey, you take out all of that and you get some of the _best science fiction movies ever made_.



Here are your original remarks.



moderan said:


> It isn't in dispute that they are good movies, or that Philip K Dick was schizophrenic, or expressed that in his work. That isn't what you said. _You said that they are among the best sci-fi movies ever made. My opinion is that exactly one movie from that list makes the grade_.
> And you claimed that his explorations of his own psyche overwhelmed the story content of his work, which is quite clearly incorrect and not subjective.



My response to your second set of remarks, with the list of movies. This list:





> Blade Runner
> Total Recall
> Adjustment Bureau
> Minority Report
> ...




And one of your responses, misquoting me:



Nee said:


> "It isn't in dispute that they are good movies,..."
> 
> Yet you then say:
> 
> ...



You did. It is preserved quite clearly, in black and white pixels. 
I didn't dispute that the movies made from PKD's work are good movies-that isn't and wasn't the issue (though I do in fact dispute that in some of those cases). I dispute that they are "among the best sci-fi movies ever made". That distinction is quite clear.
And the line about "working out a lot of stuff about schizophrenia rather than exploring what makes an interesting story" quite clearly means "claiming that his explorations of his own psyche overwhelmed the story".
You say that it doesn't because you don't want to be wrong. You're far out of your depth and just floundering around.


Nee said:


> Of course.
> 
> But in Dick's case many people have had trouble getting through parts of  his work: and the reason for that is his schizophrenia.



How long can you tread water?


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## Jon M (Feb 13, 2013)

About finished with Lionel Shriver's book, _We Need to Talk About Kevin_. Eva, the mother of the boy, emerges as a fairly complex character, one which I enjoyed getting to know. I'm probably alone in that I found her to be rather sympathetic. Other characters, though, like her astonishingly blind husband Franklin, in whose eyes Kevin could never, _ever_ do wrong, are not as well-drawn and unbelievable. But the prose is excellent and made the book a very entertaining read.


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## Nee (Feb 13, 2013)

schizophrenia is a view of external reality which in fact is not happening.  So when I say that "working out a lot of stuff about schizophrenia rather than exploring what makes an interesting story" I should have said That other people feel makes for an interesting story. 

However your interpretation saying "claiming that his explorations of his own psyche overwhelmed the story". Is fundamentally incorrect because you are putting the emphasis on *Self* (psyche) and not on *THEM*. 

But I can see how some may get those two points confused.


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## moderan (Feb 13, 2013)

Apparently you can tread water forever. Carry on.


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## Lewdog (Feb 13, 2013)

I have lived with someone with schizophrenia and been around others with the problem as well.  There are several degrees and types, but I don't think you would really notice it in fictional writing.  I guarantee if you read a poorly written story where chapters and paragraphs seemed disjointed you wouldn't be able to tell if it was written by someone with schizophrenia or just a poor writer.  I've talked to someone that dealt with a lot of writers in the show business industry and he said that a large portion of the writers are either dealing with depression, bi-polar disorder, schizophrenia, or some other kind of mood disorder.  Pancakes are good.


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## moderan (Feb 13, 2013)

Pancakes are good, I agree. Particularly with maple syrup and lots of fresh creamery butter. Maybe with some lil sausages.
I'm reasonably conversant with various types of mental illness, and I'm extremely familiar with the content and intent of one Philip K. Dick's work. And to an extent he was working out terms with his own conditions within his tales. But not at the expense of story, as is claimed. That's simply one person's interpretation, and is at odds with the general interpretation of the man's work.
We are talking about one of the most celebrated and decorated writers of the 20th century...also the father-in-law of a friend of mine. But I don't really have any skin in this game, so whatever.
I did just finish Clive Barker's That Hellbound Heart, a re-read, which I picked up just because it occurred to me that Barker's Cenobytes are literal depictions of various forms of mental illness. You could look up the terms hebephrenic, obsessive, etc., and understand why some of his characters acted and looked the way they did. Pretty positive way of addressing that stuff, it seems to me, and clever as well. I'm fairly sure it was intentional. Was made into the perfectly awesome movie Hellraiser, which became an ugly example of a devolving franchise. But the first and second were involving, well-acted, and well-scripted.


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## Erwin (Feb 13, 2013)

So far I've read:

A Clockwork Orange
Lord of the Flies
Catcher in the Rye
Nineteen Eighty Four


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## Nee (Feb 14, 2013)

Erwin said:


> So far I've read:
> 
> A Clockwork Orange
> Lord of the Flies
> ...



*Good start, now go for: 

War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells

Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury 

On the Road, by Jack Keroack 

Stranger in a Strange Land, by Robert Heinlein 

Dune, by Frank Herbert *


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## Lewdog (Feb 14, 2013)

Nee said:


> *Good start, now go for:
> 
> War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
> 
> ...



"Breakfast of Champions" by Kurt Vonnegut

"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald

"An American Tragedy" by Theodore Drieser


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## Nee (Feb 14, 2013)

Lewdog said:


> "Breakfast of Champions" by Kurt Vonnegut
> 
> "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
> 
> "An American Tragedy" by Theodore Drieser



Those are good also, but I suggested ones that already fit Erwin's pattern.


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## Lewdog (Feb 14, 2013)

Nee said:


> Those are good also, but I suggested ones that already fit Erwin's pattern.



Well she could read "Cat's Cradle" by Vonnegut which is pretty much along the lines of a Sci-Fi Socialism book.  I'm not sure how "Of Mice and Men" fits in with that list though.  You might as well add, "Grapes of Wrath" then.


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## Erwin (Feb 14, 2013)

Checking out Dune by Frank Herbert tonight. Thanks.


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## moderan (Feb 15, 2013)

Still waiting to find out about this John Strinbeck person. He a science fiction writer? Strikes me as a guy that's out standing in his field when the game is over. Kerouac should probably be coupled with McCarthy "The Road".

"Dune" is surpassingly good, and very very deep. Deeper than the previous foursome, though pop culture doesn't see it that way. I'll be interested to see what you think, Erwin.
I would recommend "The Man In The High Castle" as the Hugo Award-winner in series with Dune And Stranger in a Strange Land. Can't really go wrong with any of the recommended books-they're all classics.


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## Nee (Feb 15, 2013)

Modrean: 

McCarthy is nowhere near the level of writing of the others. 

And are you actually saying you've never read Steinbeck...?


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## moderan (Feb 15, 2013)

No. I've never read _Strinbeck_.


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## Nee (Feb 15, 2013)

Nor Kerouac I take it.


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## moderan (Feb 15, 2013)

Nee said:


> Nor Kerouac I take it.


Him I've read. _Keroack_,, I haven't. Or _Modrean_. I prefer professional presentations. I don't care to play "spot the typo" or "decipher the netspeak".


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## Ariel (Feb 16, 2013)

Currently I'm reading Asimov's "I, Robot" which, thankfully, has very little to do with the movie.  I'm always pleased, for some reason, when the movie does not follow the book.  I think it's because I don't feel bad about enjoying horrible movies when I know they don't follow the book they're meant to be based on.  I always just set them in this special category in my mind of "stupid but fun--good to fall asleep to."

I'm also reading the novel "True Grit."  It reads just like the new movie thus far with some very obvious but minor changes.  I'm reading this one to Fella because it's of a genre he enjoys and it is a nice quality time activity we both enjoy.  I actually read to him quite often.


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## dolphinlee (Feb 16, 2013)

I am working my way through Terry Pratchett again. I have just finished Thud.

Every time I reread one of his books I get another layer of his ideas. 

Pratchett is fun, funny and enthralling.


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## nicolam2711 (Feb 16, 2013)

Finally finished A Casual Vacancy...enjoyed it more in the second half of the book than I imagined. It's still no Harry Potter though.


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## Circadian (Feb 16, 2013)

dolphinlee said:


> I am working my way through Terry Pratchett again. I have just finished Thud.
> 
> Every time I reread one of his books I get another layer of his ideas.
> 
> Pratchett is fun, funny and enthralling.



Yay!  Another Pratchett fan.  I only know one other person who reads his books; everyone else is like "Who?"  Sadly, I've already gone through all the Discworld books my library has in stock.


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## Ariel (Feb 16, 2013)

I like Pratchett's work as well.  I haven't read a lot of his discworld series because there's just so much to read but the ones I have read I enjoyed.


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## moderan (Feb 16, 2013)

amsawtell said:


> Currently I'm reading Asimov's "I, Robot" which, thankfully, has very little to do with the movie.  I'm always pleased, for some reason, when the movie does not follow the book.  I think it's because I don't feel bad about enjoying horrible movies when I know they don't follow the book they're meant to be based on.  I always just set them in this special category in my mind of "stupid but fun--good to fall asleep to."
> 
> I'm also reading the novel "True Grit."  It reads just like the new movie thus far with some very obvious but minor changes.  I'm reading this one to Fella because it's of a genre he enjoys and it is a nice quality time activity we both enjoy.  I actually read to him quite often.



The movie I, Robot was developed from a script that had been pushed around various producers' desks and had nothing to do with Susan Calvin and co. It was tacked on at the last minute and hastily pulled together. The movie shows that. Asimov's work is seminal to science fiction and even to present-day robotics, as folks that work on artificial intelligence actually try to instill such directives, cognizant of their wisdom and utility.
From wiki and imbd:





> The film that was ultimately made originally had no connections with  Asimov, originating as a screenplay written in 1995 by Jeff Vintar,  entitled _Hardwired_.[SUP][2][/SUP] The script was an Agatha Christie-inspired  murder mystery that took place entirely at the scene of a crime, with  one lone human character, FBI agent Del Spooner, investigating the  killing of a reclusive scientist named Dr. Hogenmiller, and  interrogating a cast of machine suspects that included Sonny the robot,  HECTOR the supercomputer with a perpetual yellow smiley face, the dead  Doctor Hogenmiller's hologram, plus several other examples of artificial intelligence. The female lead was named Flynn, and had a mechanical arm that made her technically a cyborg.  The original "Hardwired" screenplay was a cerebral thriller that read  like a stage play, and representatives of the Asimov estate considered  the script "more Asimov than Asimov."
> The project was first picked up by Walt Disney Pictures for Bryan Singer to direct. Several years later, 20th Century Fox acquired the rights, and signed Alex Proyas as director.  Jeff Vintar was brought back on the project and spent several years  opening up his stage play-like mystery to meet the needs of a big budget  studio film. Later he incorporated the Three Laws of Robotics, and  replaced the character of Flynn with Susan Calvin, when the studio  decided to use the name "I, Robot."


The film had originally been planned long ago-the script was by Harlan Ellison, with some input from Ben Bova, who had teamed up for a short-lived tv series based on their short story "Brillo" (iron fuzz, get it?). But that never got made. Brillo did, as "Future Cop", starring John Schuck.


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## Ariel (Feb 16, 2013)

I'm disappointed that my copy of the book has the movie poster on the front.

(The word play for "Brillo" is hilarious).


----------



## Olly Buckle (Feb 17, 2013)

"The hundred year old man who climbed out of the window and disappeared." Brilliant, it so nearly stumbles into a 'same old plot' and avoids it beautifully, the flash backs over his life are incredible, and yet one suspends disbelief for them willingly, like the afternoon he spent explaining the mechanics of Indonesian politics to a deeply interested Richard Nixon, and there were several laugh out loud moments in a fine mixture of intellectual comedy and slapstick. Thoroughly recommended.


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## moderan (Feb 17, 2013)

amsawtell said:


> I'm disappointed that my copy of the book has the movie poster on the front.
> 
> (The word play for "Brillo" is hilarious).


It is. Both gentlemen are award-winners. My copy looks like this (I also have the companion volume):








If you like those, you should also like The Caves Of Steel, The Naked Sun, The Robots of Dawn, and Robots of Empire. That last book starts tying in to Asimov's famous Foundation series, seven novels in all. They're always in print, and cheap secondhand books are easy to find. I'd imagine they're easy to find online too.


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## Lilly Davidson (Feb 18, 2013)

Hi 
I finished '_White Fang_' by Jack London last night. I blarted like a baby toward the end! Anyone who loves dogs cannot fail to be deeply moved by this book in which the relationship of man and dog is described so brilliantly. In this case it is a wolf who is living with humans. What a beautiful book that describes the savagery of nature, the minds of dogs and wolves and the brutality of life in a harsh environment. It is every bit as good as '_Call of the Wild_'. Both excellent books. I am looking forward to reading all of Jack London's stories.


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## moderan (Feb 18, 2013)

Those are both very good. Jack London wrote well in a variety of styles. If you can find it, you might be interested in a tale by one Thomas A. Disch, entitled "White Fang Goes Dingo".
And thank you, Olly, that sounds like a good read. I shall commend it to a list.


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