September Reading Thread

[Ori Vandewalle]

I've started reading Adrian Tchaikovsky's Children of Time which, unbeknownst to me, features lines like, "Portia is far larger than her tiny ancestress, half a metre from fangs to spinnerets, an arachnophobe's nightmare." So... this is going to be a fun read...

 

[Brian G Turner]

I've finished Destroyer by BGT and now I'm reading The Third Man before continuing the trilogy

Oh, no! Should I have set up a more dramatic cliffhanger to keep you going?

In the meantime, am re-reading Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. So far am very much enjoying it. Interesting to see how high the emotional stakes are from the start of the book.

 

[Parson]

Oh, no! Should I have set up a more dramatic cliffhanger to keep you going?

In the meantime, am re-reading Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. So far am very much enjoying it. Interesting to see how high the emotional stakes are from the start of the book.

In my opinion this is THE book to introduce someone to S.F. I've recommended it to newby readers many times and all of them have loved it. It tends to be us hard core S.F. people who find things* to complain about in this book.

*(picayunish things in my opinion)

 

[Ian Fortytwo]

I'm currently reading Dragon Mountain, by Katie & Kevin Tsang. A brilliant story involving kids, mountains and dragons. It's the first in a series.

 

[Danny McG]

Oh, no! Should I have set up a more dramatic cliffhanger to keep you going?

Not in the least, it's very rare I go directly through a trilogy, tbh I've a tendency to get fed up then, it's like plodding through a Peter Hamilton mega tome!
I usually read one, then something else in between, then book two etc.
This harkens back to the days when a typical trilogy took 3 years to be published, we all got used to the long wait in between!

I've a feeling that, between book 2 and 3 of the Destroyer series, I'll be catching up with the Bobiverse (see, Dennis makes us wait)

 

[Danny McG]

And I've finished The Third Man, what a mob of unlikeable characters!

Now begins book 2 of BGT's space trilogy.... let's see what they do on this alien moon

 

[Steve Harrison]

Just started reading Dune. Not sure how I missed it back in the day, but my daughter just finished the book and loved it.

The start was hard going with so much exposition but it's starting to flow nicely now.

 

[Ori Vandewalle]

The start was hard going with so much exposition but it's starting to flow nicely now.

Like the spice!

 

[Brian G Turner]

I usually read one, then something else in between, then book two etc.
This harkens back to the days when a typical trilogy took 3 years to be published, we all got used to the long wait in between!

Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to nag. That makes a lot of sense.

In the meantime, halfway through Ender's Game we suddenly get a POV scene from Valentina. It's a little jarring after Ender has been the focus for everything so far. I figure this helps seed the sequels. But am still enjoying the psychology of it - and the battle school, which is my primary reason for reading it. Research.

 

[BAYLOR]

The Di Vince Code by Dan Brown

I think im one of the few people on Earth who hasn't read this book. Im reading it now.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

I think I'm one of the few people on Earth who hasn't read this book. I'm reading it now.

I have not, and I have no intention of doing so. I'm allergic to massive bestsellers in general.

 

[Vertigo]

Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to nag. That makes a lot of sense.

In the meantime, halfway through Ender's Game we suddenly get a POV scene from Valentina. It's a little jarring after Ender has been the focus for everything so far. I figure this helps seed the sequels. But am still enjoying the psychology of it - and the battle school, which is my primary reason for reading it. Research.

I still hold to the fact that the only way I could make Ender's Game plausible for me was to add about 6 years onto all of the children's ages.

 

[BAYLOR]

I have not, and I have no intention of doing so. I'm allergic to massive bestsellers in general.

The way I look at it is , If I had avoided them altogether, I would have missed out on some pretty good books. To each his own.

 

[Randy M.]

I still hold to the fact that the only way I could make Ender's Game plausible for me was to add about 6 years onto all of the children's ages.

I think I felt that, too, though possibly such intense training would work to mature a child sooner.

For me, I found Speaker for the Dead a much, much better book. The "trick" behind Ender's Game seemed like it should have been obvious to anyone who ever watched the original Twilight Zone. Overall, I thought it a pretty thin novel, but it would be hard to recommend Speaker... without someone reading Ender's... first. That it remains a major s.f. novel for so many people, I suppose indicates I'm just not the audience for it.

Randy M.
[Pssst ... wanna read good s.f.? Here, try this, Gateway by Fred Pohl! ]

 

[Vertigo]

I think I felt that, too, though possibly such intense training would work to mature a child sooner.

For me, I found Speaker for the Dead a much, much better book. The "trick" behind Ender's Game seemed like it should have been obvious to anyone who ever watched the original Twilight Zone. Overall, I thought it a pretty thin novel, but it would be hard to recommend Speaker... without someone reading Ender's... first. That it remains a major s.f. novel for so many people, I suppose indicates I'm just not the audience for it.

Randy M.
[Pssst ... wanna read good s.f.? Here, try this, Gateway by Fred Pohl! ]

That pretty much echoes my feelings too. Speaker was an altogether fuller and more satisfying book for me.

 

[AE35Unit]

Finished Fear Nothing by Koontz. Onto the sequel Seize the Night

 

[Parson]

I still hold to the fact that the only way I could make Ender's Game plausible for me was to add about 6 years onto all of the children's ages.

This is why I love/hate this forum. Ender's Game is one of the few books I give a no doubt 10 out of 10. And now someone throws up an absolutely sensible objection. Sigh! Once again my allusions are dashed.

Speaker for the Dead -- I give an 8 out of 10, but it did make a major impression on the way I've done funerals since reading it.

Xenocide a shaky 7.

 

[kythe]

This is why I love/hate this forum. Ender's Game is one of the few books I give a no doubt 10 out of 10. And now someone throws up an absolutely sensible objection. Sigh! Once again my allusions are dashed.

Speaker for the Dead -- I give an 8 out of 10, but it did make a major impression on the way I've done funerals since reading it.

Xenocide a shaky 7.

I thought Ender's Game was alright. Even though it was originally meant as a stand-alone book, it works better as a precursor to Speaker for the Dead. Speaker has some of the best concepts I've read in any book, especially the title - speaking for the dead. I appreciate the handling of vastly different intelligent life forms and how they come to mutual understanding. I also like the idea of the piggies having a "third form" and how this plays into the story. Overall, Speaker for the Dead is very philosophical. I never finished Xenocide. It also had good concepts, but the story is so slow moving it became boring.

 

[Vertigo]

This is why I love/hate this forum. Ender's Game is one of the few books I give a no doubt 10 out of 10. And now someone throws up an absolutely sensible objection. Sigh! Once again my allusions are dashed.

Speaker for the Dead -- I give an 8 out of 10, but it did make a major impression on the way I've done funerals since reading it.

Xenocide a shaky 7.

In fairness, once I'd made that mental adjustment to the ages I thought it a very good book.

 

[Hugh]

Brian Aldiss: “Who Can Replace a Man?” (Aka “Best Science Fiction Stories of Brian W. Aldiss”)
Overall I thought it disappointing for a “Best of...” collection - enjoyed about a third, the others on the tedious side.