So what is your August majesty reading?

[j d worthington]

The "complete" probably means in one part .

Oh JD , not seen you in a while . I was wondering based on my recent reading (you can find that as my first post in this thread) , what you do when you want to read something but realy can't seem to , because the story keeps throwing phrases , "lessons" and "truths" at you with which you sincerely disagree with ?

I realy realy hated the hard liner catholic stuff in some of those stories .

As there is no end to the number of writers who have such flaws, I long ago learned to not let it get to me that much, especially if otherwise their work is quite good. As to how I handle it... I try to keep the context in mind; attempt to "get" where they are coming from overall; absorb what about their thoughts on these things is worth considering and set the rest aside or reject it outright (though even there, if it is written well, taking note of that fact); and attempt to see how well they express what they are trying to say -- whether it sticks out like a sore thumb or is an organic part of the whole, etc. It can still irritate or sadden me, and occasionally make me wish I could give certain writers a good kick in the rear (Lovecraft, Bulwer, Cutcliffe Hyne, Buchan for their antisemitism and/or racism; Lewis and Chesterton for their more idiotic apologetics -- though, again, when it is integrated artistically into the whole I don't mind it all that much; etc.)

And speaking of... I am going through Lovecraft's Letters from New York again, and yes, some of the passages there are among the most egregious xenophobic utterances of his career (at least as published); yet there is an enormous amount to like, too; not to mention that you get to see him "with his hair down" and thoroughly likeable, ranging in his idioms from a sometimes racy slang to pungent satire to prose-poetic lyricism... even in the first letter in the volume!

Hmm I wonder how authentic the version is that I have! Its on the Niintendo DS, part of the 100 classic novels.

I would imagine it is taken from one of the earlier translations, so not particularly accurate. However, these are the ones which most people are familiar with, too, so you are hardly going to be odd-man-out here....

 

[Taltos]

Still reading Charles Stross The Merchants' War - should have finished it a while ago but somehow it's dragging.
At the same time started with Clifford Simak Mastodonia - a book which has really classic Simak beginning and characters.

 

[AE35Unit]

.
At the same time started with Clifford Simak Mastodonia - a book which has really classic Simak beginning and characters.

I have a Simak book (Night of the Puudly) with a story called Project Mastodon-related?

 

[biodroid]

Just finished Shadow's Edge by Brent Weeks, what a book, very awesome, and now reading something completely different, The Chamber by John Grisham, liking it so far.

 

[Connavar]

Im reading Moth second Lew Griffin book by James Sallis. Beautiful writing,challenging story. It also has alot of literary allusions,references mostly writers like Camus,Checkov.

Makes me want to go the library get books by those authors heh

 

[CyBeR]

I'm about a quarter way through 'Metro 2033' at this time and I must say I really like the book. I'm starting to have more and more trust in Russian SF authors, since they really seem to bring forward some very different stuff.
This starts off really slow and I keep on stumbling in the stations names. If I, like my parents, would've studied Russian in school, it may have been a lot easier...but right now, as I read quite happily along, each time a station name appears it's like I stumble upon a really pretentious stump.

Other than that, the plot's starting to move, and so is the mood. The darkness of the Metro is really becoming a tangible presence, off the page, and it reaches nicely into your mind. So far it's a fantastic exercise in atmosphere building...I hope it keeps it up.

 

[Talysia]

With the next Wheel of Time book due out in November, I'm starting a reread of the series, beginning with The Eye of the World.

 

[Taltos]

I have a Simak book (Night of the Puudly) with a story called Project Mastodon-related?

Doesn't seem to be - as Guttenberg had that story I read half of it - the characters and time travelling method are quite different. Seems to be only reusage of the Mastodonia name.

 

[Moontravler]

Warning: Mild spoilers re Guy Gavriel Kaye's Under Heaven.


Been a bit busy, so forgot to mention that I'd finished with GG Kaye's Under Heaven, and was extremely disappointed by the ending, and by how he treated a certain main character.

I was ecstatic about how fantastic the book was, by the time I was about three quarters in, and then he suddenly made these wierd decisions regarding the fate of certain of the characters; and the whole story just fell flat for me.

What a pity this site doesn't have spoiler tags. Lets just say that the woman the protagonist ended up with, didn't make sense for me, and worse, their relationship didn't ring true at all.

The woman I would have wanted him to end up with, just boringly faded out of the story. It would have been better if she had been tortured and decapitated, I swear - she would at least have contributed more meaningfully to the story, than the boring slap in the face the author deals this poor woman and us as the reader.

..and at a point, I went yaye!, when I thought he was going to let one of the other female characters become a Kanlin warrior, but... *sigh* -let me just say that her fate also disappointed me.

So yeah, I was riding a high for more than three quarters of this book, and then the author's plot choices just had my mouth hang open in confusion and outrage. Bah.

Anyway, it is a nice sketch of the Tang dynasty for what it's worth. Just don't expect too much from the plot. Even the protagonists' actions at the end of the story felt like a let-down to me.

 

[Connavar]

My last book was only 200 pages so im already on my next read that is River of Gods by Ian MacDonald. The prose is good so i hope for a good story. I have not a good record with huge SF books.

The book is a huge paperback that feels like its a ton when im tired,weak of 18 hours fasting that is Ramadan. Not the best timing to read a huge book like that

 

[digs]

Warning: Mild spoilers re Guy Gavriel Kaye's Under Heaven.

The woman I would have wanted him to end up with, just boringly faded out of the story. It would have been better if she had been tortured and decapitated, I swear - she would at least have contributed more meaningfully to the story, than the boring slap in the face the author deals this poor woman and us as the reader.

..and at a point, I went yaye!, when I thought he was going to let one of the other female characters become a Kanlin warrior, but... *sigh* -let me just say that her fate also disappointed me.

Completely agree! Glad I wasn't the only one who thought so. Although I did actually like where the 2nd character you're talking about wound up.

I'm reading If on a winter's night a traveller by Calvino. It's really good - interesting premise (although I'm not even sure if I've grasped the premise yet) and very well done - but I'm going verrrrry slowwwwlllyyyyy.

 

[GOLLUM]

I'm reading If on a winter's night a traveller by Calvino. It's really good - interesting premise (although I'm not even sure if I've grasped the premise yet) and very well done - but I'm going verrrrry slowwwwlllyyyyy.

You need to go slow with Calvino. It's a masterpiece that needs to be enjoyed like a good wine. HMMM...you sure have been picking up some good stuff lately....

Don't forget the Bruno Schulz edn. just published by penguin. I'm yet to dip into my copy but the street of crodiles collection was superb, so I'm confident this will be a very great read indeed.

 

[bluespider100]

I delayed reading through Revelation Space, but just finished Use of Weapons, great work again by IMB. now I'm on to reading Foundation's Fear - GB. any comments or opinion on this book?

 

[Tansy]

Still trying to get through Deadhouse Gates, once I get passes where I have already read (albeit a long while ago) I should be ok

 

[Nikitta]

Last night, I finished reading The Plague (Albert Camus). It was really good - reminding me a little of Kafka in places with the many rules, the (seemingly) hopeless struggle, the resigned accept of things and especially with the many odd meetings the journalist had when trying to escape the city.

Now, onto Narrating People by Sven Aage Madsen.

 

[J-WO]

Have you tried The Outsider by Camus? I read more than a decade ago and it still floats around me skull.

 

[Nikitta]

Have you tried The Outsider by Camus? I read more than a decade ago and it still floats around me skull.

Not yet. So far I've read The Fall and The Plague and I plan to read more of his work. He's really good.

 

[AE35Unit]

Finished 3001: The Final Odyssey, read it in a week-blisteringly quick for me! Now back to the rest of 2001 where Dave has to take over from HAL....

 

[Vertigo]

Finished 3001: The Final Odyssey, read it in a week-blisteringly quick for me! Now back to the rest of 2001 where Dave has to take over from HAL....

Ummmm isn't that kind of... the wrong order?

Just finished Robin Hobbs Farseer trilogy with Assassin's Quest. I confess I was a little disappointed and frustrated. She tells a good story that I enjoyed immensely but why, oh why did she have to make her main character, Fitz, so unlikable. I simply can't sympathise with him at all. I almost abandoned this book one third in, I found that the good storytelling only just compensates for my annoyance with Fitz. Really don't know if I will go on to the sequel series, do they all still have Fitz in them? One other complaint, I found that her characters are either too dumb or she gives us too many hints. Time and again I had figured out what was coming whilst all the characters were groping around in the dark. And I'm not generally that good at spotting twists. Consequently I kept finding myself wanting to shake the characters and shout at them "open your eyes - its obvious what's heppened/is happening/is going to happen."

Now going to have a look at Silverthorn, Feist's second Riftwar book. I'm a little apprehensive about this as well. I did enjoy the first one but didn't really find it lived up to the expectations I had of it.

 

[GOLLUM]

Not yet. So far I've read The Fall and The Plague and I plan to read more of his work. He's really good.

Outsider and The Plague are my favouirite Camus novels. Certainly a good novelist.