July 2018: Reading Thread

[Danny McG]

I'm having a "blast from the past" with two that were practically compulsory reading for a uk schoolboy in the very early seventies. If you hadn't read them you were uncool.

Skinhead and it's sequel Suedehead by Richard Allen.
The adventures of racist young thug Joe Hawkins.

 

[Toby Frost]

I've started Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. It's a sort of autobiographical graphic novel, although much more like a newspaper strip cartoon in style than a Marvel-type extravaganza. It tells the story of a girl growing up in Iran during the overthrow of the Shah and the rise of fundamentalism. As well as a reminder that fanatics poison everything they touch, it's surprisingly funny and charming. I'm not sure if I will get tired of the drawing style, but we'll see. So far, very good.

 

[Hugh]

I've started Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. It's a sort of autobiographical graphic novel, although much more like a newspaper strip cartoon in style than a Marvel-type extravaganza. It tells the story of a girl growing up in Iran during the overthrow of the Shah and the rise of fundamentalism. As well as a reminder that fanatics poison everything they touch, it's surprisingly funny and charming. I'm not sure if I will get tired of the drawing style, but we'll see. So far, very good.

I thought this was excellent.

 

[psikeyhackr]

Shards of Honor was mostly pedestrian.

The protagonists walked a lot.

 

[psikeyhackr]

Reading:

The World Beyond the Hill: Science Fiction and the Quest for Transcendence (1989) is a book about the history of science fiction, written by Alexei Panshin and Cory Panshin
The World Beyond the Hill - Wikipedia

It is a history of the stories and authors that created the Golden Age of Science Fiction up to 1945. It is interesting though I don't buy this transcendence stuff. Lots of curious details about the lives of authors.

 

[Hugh]

Reading:

The World Beyond the Hill: Science Fiction and the Quest for Transcendence (1989) is a book about the history of science fiction, written by Alexei Panshin and Cory Panshin
The World Beyond the Hill - Wikipedia

It is a history of the stories and authors that created the Golden Age of Science Fiction up to 1945. It is interesting though I don't buy this transcendence stuff. Lots of curious details about the lives of authors.

This looks interesting. Does it concentrate on any specific authors?

 

[psikeyhackr]

This looks interesting. Does it concentrate on any specific authors?

Asimov, Heinlein, de Camp, del Rey, Lewis Padgett, Campbell.

Nothing about Clarke.

 

[Hugh]

Asimov, Heinlein, de Camp, del Rey, Lewis Padgett, Campbell.

Nothing about Clarke.

Many thanks.

 

[tobl]

another month, new books. new Monster hunter memoires and new alex verus

 

[HareBrain]

Read Seoul Survivors by Naomi Foyle over the past few days. Goodreads review here.

Now for The Templars by Dan Jones. (Though not the @Dan Jones.)

 

[williamjm]

I finished Pratchett and Gaiman's Good Omens. I thought it was a very enjoyable book. It was somewhat reminiscent of Douglas Adams' work - if the Hitchhikers Guide was a comedy about a Sci-fi apocalypse, this is the equivalent for a biblical apocalypse. Crowley and Aziraphale were the most interesting characters, particularly when they interacted with each other, but even many of the minor characters were memorable.

 

[Bick]

I just finished A Town Like Alice, by Nevil Shute. I liked it. Its a gentle, well crafted, romantic drama in essence and Shute writes in an easy style that propels the story along. It has moments of good tension and I found it very readbale. I'd not read Shute before and it certainly reads as a novel written in 1950; it's of its age. That doesn't ever put me off, but it might some, as it wouldn't be considered 'PC' these days I guess (which matters not a jot to me). Recommended.

This was another book I read in between chapters of Dickens, so back to Charles now. I need to knock off the Dickens before I go away on summer hols, where I'll want to take some SF that doesn't weigh much. The Dickens is a hardback doorstop and unsuited to international travel.

 

[Randy M.]

I seem to remember reading that there are stacks and stacks of cuneiform tablets that they have not begun to translate.

For some reason that made me imagine some ancient editor's slush pile petrified.


Randy M.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Randy, maybe one of the tablets will be a form letter rejection.

"Dear Nebuchadnezzar, I was very pleased to receive your short volume on proper irrigation of rare desert plants, but due to the stratified nature of Babylonian society I do not feel there is sufficient interest to warrant publication. Best of luck in the future, Babyl Books."

 

[psikeyhackr]

Of course turning down Nebuchadnezzar would take big brass editorial balls.

 

[Brian G Turner]

I finished and enjoyed reading The Hobbit - I seem to be in a minority who prefer it to Lord of the Rings, but I guess that's a case of discovering a story at the right time.

And on the subject of re-reading I've picked up Dune by Frank Herbert again. Although I've read it perhaps 3-4 times it's still a thrilling start. However, I've never read any of the sequels for fear of diminishing the first book - I may take the plunge just for a sense of completion.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Never read The Hobbit, though I did see it at the theatre. Have no intention of watching the trilogy, mind.

I prefer The Silmarillion to Lord of the Rings.

 

[Vertigo]

Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds - good but he's written much better. More here.
The Fortune of War by Patrick O’Brian - Another consistently good offering from O’Brian, though somewhat different in that Maturin and Aubrey are not centre stage in the naval actions that occur.
Dark Matter by Crouch Blake - Contrary to most other reviewers' opinions I found this predictable and unexciting. More here.
Anomaly by Peter Cawdron - One of the better self-published books I have read. More here.

 

[Vince W]

I finished and enjoyed reading The Hobbit - I seem to be in a minority who prefer it to Lord of the Rings, but I guess that's a case of discovering a story at the right time.

And on the subject of re-reading I've picked up Dune by Frank Herbert again. Although I've read it perhaps 3-4 times it's still a thrilling start. However, I've never read any of the sequels for fear of diminishing the first book - I may take the plunge just for a sense of completion.

I reread Dune ever couple of years or so. I would say go ahead and read the rest of Frank's books, but ignore the rest.

 

[Parson]

I've finished listening to Looking Glass by Andrew Mayne. It is the follow up to The Naturalist and is just as good if not better. It is the story of a high end biologist and computer programer, who find himself hunting serial killers. -- The book is much better than my synopsis. -- I think part of the reason I like it so much is because it is a first person book, and it really lends itself to an audio presentation. The science in both these novels is pretty central and seems very believable to me. But I'm much more into physics than biology and psychology. These are both recommended.


Mayne has many books in print and at least one of them, Station Breaker, seems to be S.F. of the near future variety. I may read more of his stuff.