# [October]What are you reading?



## Kramodlog (Oct 2, 2013)

The heavier book I'm reading is _The_ _Map and the Territory_ by Michel Houellebecq. Well written, funny and some interesting reflections on modern society, art and tourism in France.

The book I read before going to bed is _the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: The Restaurant at the End of the Galaxy_. Does it need a description?

My graphic novel is the second trade paperback of Saga. I just bought it with issue # 13 and 14. Can't wait to dive into it.


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## delericho (Oct 2, 2013)

I managed to get caught up on my reading for the year late last month - the first time that's been true since January. In fact, I'm actually ahead, having finished "Johnny and the Bomb", by Terry Pratchett, at the end of September.

Currently reading "Mockingjay", the third part of the "Hunger Games" trilogy. I haven't quite gotten into it yet, but it's okay so far I guess.

Next up will be the latest Pathfinder ("Sword of Valor"), followed by the next novel in Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin series, "The Nutmeg of Consolation".


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## Zombie_Babies (Oct 2, 2013)

Technical documents (still) and Bukowski's Post Office - one of the funniest damned things I've ever read.


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## Jhaelen (Oct 7, 2013)

"Antagonists", a supplement for Ars Magica.


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## Zombie_Babies (Oct 7, 2013)

Moving on to Women today.  Can't wait.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 7, 2013)

I'm curious to know what you'll think of it.


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## EricNoah (Oct 7, 2013)

Print: Just gave up on a book about Krakatoa.  Will be starting The Daedalus Incident http://www.amazon.com/The-Daedalus-Incident-Michael-Martinez/dp/159780472X/ soon.  Oh and I'm going to be done with Atomic Robo #7 soon. http://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Robo-Volume-She-Devils-Pacific/dp/098689852X

Audiobook: Giving The Darwin Elevator a try - http://www.amazon.com/Darwin-Elevator-Dire-Earth-Cycle/dp/0345537122


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## Zombie_Babies (Oct 7, 2013)

So far I'm really enjoying it.  The man could do funny better than just about anyone and he does it with more layers than just humor, too.  I've got a ways to go with it still but I'm sure I'll continue to be entertained.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 7, 2013)

For me it was the start of him going downhill... umm literary wise. He was making money with his books and conferences at that time. So he was always drunk and didn't need to get out of the house much. It affected his writing. Women is still good, but not has punchy has Post Office or Factotum.


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## Herschel (Oct 7, 2013)

While waiting for the final installment of the Thomas Covenant series I have on the table right now Inferno by Dan Brown and Packers Pride: Green Bay Greats Share Their Favorite Memories​


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## Jet Shield (Oct 7, 2013)

I really need to get some new books. I've been re-reading books I bought more than 10 years ago. That's sad.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 7, 2013)

You'll be surprised what happened to publishing since Gutenberg started printing books.


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## Umbran (Oct 7, 2013)

Working my way through GRRM's,_ A Clash Of Kings_ during my commutes to and from work.


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## Jet Shield (Oct 7, 2013)

goldomark said:


> You'll be surprised what happened to publishing since Gutenberg started printing books.




I was so sure the printing press was just a fad, like the wheel.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 7, 2013)

Is Glurk still mad about inventing the wheel before inventing patents and royalties?


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## Nellisir (Oct 8, 2013)

Just finished Jack Vance's _The Green Pearl_. Had a better time with it than the first book.


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## Crothian (Oct 8, 2013)

I'm reading an excellent book called the Golem and Djinni.


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## Dwimmerlied (Oct 8, 2013)

I didn't bother reading non-fiction for a very long time (years)because I wasn't satisfied with anything. For the last year tho, I've started again. I was intrigued about gaming roots and have read Conan, Fafhrd etc and just now have finished Elric (Sailor on the Sea's of Fate); all pretty cringeworthy to be honest, but nice as some sort of mental exercise (trying to identify common threads, themes and commentary blah blah).

Some of the Elric concepts are pretty cool, but god, I found the "conflicted soul" stuff a bit hard to bare at times! 

I'm also reading Future Eaters by Tim Flannery. Science captures the imagination


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## Kramodlog (Oct 8, 2013)

I do not get Elric. Sure the concept of an anti-Conan sounds interesting, but writting and the plots are so lame...


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## delericho (Oct 8, 2013)

goldomark said:


> I do not get Elric. Sure the concept of an anti-Conan sounds interesting, but writting and the plots are so lame...




Which bits of Elric are you reading? I ask, because Moorcock actually wrote the end of the story first, and then went back and wrote a whole bunch of prequels.

I've read those first two anthologies, "Stormbringer" and "Stealer of Souls" - the two cited in Appendix N, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. I avoided the prequels, both because I'd heard bad things about them, and also because, well, prequels suck.


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## Dwimmerlied (Oct 8, 2013)

I think I'll only go as deep as the main series ey. I find the tortured soul stuff reads like teenage angst and I find it hard to care about the protagonist because of it. I cringe at the moments of self doubt and insecurity. I don't know if that's because it's not well done or I'm not a good audience for it.


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## Zombie_Babies (Oct 8, 2013)

goldomark said:


> For me it was the start of him going downhill... umm literary wise. He was making money with his books and conferences at that time. So he was always drunk and didn't need to get out of the house much. It affected his writing. Women is still good, but not has punchy has Post Office or Factotum.




I can see that.  Something of his charm stems from his having to scramble to get by - and not caring enough to really scramble to get by.  Now that he's made it there's less for him to do and less for him to avoid doing.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 8, 2013)

delericho said:


> Which bits of Elric are you reading? I ask, because Moorcock actually wrote the end of the story first, and then went back and wrote a whole bunch of prequels.
> 
> I've read those first two anthologies, "Stormbringer" and "Stealer of Souls" - the two cited in Appendix N, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. I avoided the prequels, both because I'd heard bad things about them, and also because, well, prequels suck.



An anthology called the Elric Cycle. Stormbringer is in it.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 8, 2013)

Zombie_Babies said:


> I can see that.  Something of his charm stems from his having to scramble to get by - and not caring enough to really scramble to get by.  Now that he's made it there's less for him to do and less for him to avoid doing.



Exactly.


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## Hand of Evil (Oct 8, 2013)

The Rose & The Thorn: a Riyria Chronicles - this is the second book on how Hadrian and Royce team up.


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## Nellisir (Oct 9, 2013)

This: http://www.cedarbureau.org/installation-and-maintenance/roof-manual/?


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## Zombie_Babies (Oct 9, 2013)

goldomark said:


> Exactly.




Still, the humor seems to be there.  I imagine it'll be good overall but just not as good as Post Office and Factotum.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 9, 2013)

I find it disappears. What becomes worthy after is his poetry. "Today I woke up. Took a dump and picked up the mail. Drank a fifth and went back to sleep."


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## Zombie_Babies (Oct 9, 2013)

Not terribly into poetry but I must admit the thought of his does intrigue me.


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## Nellisir (Oct 10, 2013)

Just finished _Shades of Grey_, by Jasper Fforde.  And...apparently the sequels aren't out yet.  ARGH!

Excellent, fascinating book.


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## Gilladian (Oct 12, 2013)

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein. WWII girl pilot story - she ends up in Ravensbruck for 6 months - the story is written as a series of flashbacks after her rescue... poignant and realistic and so, so sad. It is a companion, not really a sequel, to Code Name Verity. They're YA novels, but I suggest that if you want to read about heroism, give them a try. They're worth it.


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## Rhenny (Oct 13, 2013)

Non-Fiction:  Of Dice and Men by David Ewalt

Fiction:  The Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear both by Patrick Rothfus.

I enjoyed them all...still finishing The Wise Man's Fear .


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## Nellisir (Oct 14, 2013)

I just finished The Great Game, by Michael Kurland, which does 1890's detective fiction with Moriarty as the protagonist and Holmes as, frankly, the buffoon.  Frankly, I found it dull and uninspired.  All the women were plucky freethinkers, and all the men were bold and resolute, except the villains.  No character development whatsoever, and the plot was some strange assassination thing with the aim of bringing about WWI, so the Order of Wotan (not introduced until the end of the book), could rise up (all 12 members) and take control of Europe.  Or something.  I really didn't care.


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## Nellisir (Oct 14, 2013)

In other news, it's book sale time again.  Since it's the first week, I went for books that I really wanted, or that looked really interesting and might not be there next week.  I got:
_The Years Best Science Fiction, Vol. 1 & 21,_ edited by Gardner Dozois (1983 & 2004, btw). Now I need 2-6, 10-12, 15, & 19.
_The Last Witchfinder_, by James Morrow.  Looked interesting, good comments on the back cover.
_Grave Goods_, by Ariana Franklin. Enjoyed the first book in the series.
_The Difference Engine_, William Gibson & Bruce Sterling. I keep missing this one somehow.
_Vellum_, by Hal Duncan (a little nervous about this one.  Incidently, there is someone in town that gets advance preview copies of a lot of sf books, and donates them afterwards. There are a few in each sale.)
_The Bellini Card_, by Jason Goodwin. _The Jannisary Tree_ was good.  
_The Absent One_, by Jussi Adler-Olsen.  Loved the first book.
_Shardik_, by Richard Adams (not sure what to think about this one; I took it down and put it back about five times, but a) it seemed OK when I flipped through it, b) I've actually heard of it, and c) _Watership Down_, people.)
_SHE_; _King Solomon's Mines_; and _Allan Quatermain_, by H. Rider Haggard.  Three novels in one book. Classics. 
_The Years Best Fantasy Stories, Vol. 3 & 5_.  These are from 1977 and 1980.
_The Dictionary of Imaginary Places_: The Newly Updated and Expanded Classic.  I think I actually have this, but the older edition and in paperback.  This is hardcover.  If someone is interested in the other one, PM me.


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## Zaukrie (Oct 15, 2013)

Republic of thieves by Scott Lynch.....if you have not read the Locke Lamoria books, you should.


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## Nellisir (Oct 18, 2013)

Read _Faceless Killers_, by Henning Mankell, so I could remember if I wanted to get more of his books.  I think I shall. I really disliked _The Man from Bejing_, but the Wallander books are better. I wonder if anyone ever dies in Scandinavia during the summer? 

I also read most of the stories in _The Year's Best Fantasy Stories, Vol. 3_.  This is a weird book (and probably a weird series).  It's almost like a Lin Carter vanity project.  Maybe it is.  He edited it, wrote one story, "co-wrote" another from fragments of a story left by Clark Ashton Smith, and there are at least two or three stories which "have never been published before".  So it's not a "Year's Best" as we might expect today, with the best stories that were printed in Year X; it's the best stories (maybe) that Lin Carter had around.

That said, some of them were quite good.  It was very interesting to read and see how the tone of fantasy has changed since 1978.

Working on _The Years Best Science Fiction Vol. 21_.  I love "Year's Best" books, particularly anything edited by Gardner Dozois.  Top-notch stories spanning the full range of the SF genre. It's interesting to read the older ones because occasionally I'll run across a story I've read before (usually in _Best of the Best_, Dozois' culling from 25 years of Years Best), such as "Ej-Es", by Nancy Kress, which is sad and haunting and not your usual super-science story.


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## Nellisir (Oct 19, 2013)

Second weekend of the book sale.  I like to list what I got in hopes that something will spark a conversation or someone's interest, but that never seems to happen, so I won't make you read through it this time.  (Except I did score _Wolf Hall_ and _The Little Sister_, both of which I'd struck out on for several years.)


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## Nellisir (Oct 24, 2013)

Read _The Outfit_, by Richard Stark.  Starring Parker, as in the character that's Jason Statham's recent film is clearly adapted from/based on.  Basically, the novel reads like a Jason Statham movie.  Crook with quasi-moral sense gets screwed over by other villains, takes revenge.  It's not high literature, but it was a nice quick read.

Meant to read something different, but got sucked into _The Little Sister_, by Raymond Chandler instead. Oh my god this guy can write.


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## Kramodlog (Oct 24, 2013)

Anyone read _Arctic Rising_ by Tobias Buckell and _2312_ by Kim Stanley Robinson? Any good?


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## trappedslider (Oct 24, 2013)

goldomark said:


> Anyone read _Arctic Rising_ by Tobias Buckell and _2312_ by Kim Stanley Robinson? Any good?




Arctic Rising was okay, not something i'd want to buy, but it was worth checking out form the library.


 finshed up both John Grisham's new book "Sycamore Row" and Veronica Roth's "Allegiant" so right now i'm not reading anything


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## Zombie_Babies (Oct 24, 2013)

I finished Women.  It was ok.  I'm back to Iain Banks for now with Song of Stone.  Not that far into it but it does seem interesting.  Oh, I also forgot to order Palahniuk's new one ... again.  Dammit.


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## Nellisir (Oct 29, 2013)

I read _The Little Sister_, _The Boy in the Suitcase_, and _The Bards of Bone Plain_ over the weekend.  Talk about a mixed bag.
Raymond Chandler gets five stars, straight up.  I would read his grocery list.

_The Boy in the Suitcase_, which is another Scandinavian thriller (Denmark this time), gets 3.5 stars.  It's good, and there are a few twists, but I think the protagonist (and her husband) should have been developed sooner.  She really comes off as a complete kook for 9/10ths of the book, and it's completely unclear until the end what her husband sees in her.  It's still not clear if she's actually bipolar, or just has A Really Big Trauma In Her Past that screws her up.  Possibly both.

_The Bards of Bone Plain_ gets 2.5 stars.  I hate to rate McKillip so low, but this was pretty much phoned in.  The characters are thin, the plot is unclear, and frankly I'm not totally certain what happened at the end.


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## Crothian (Oct 29, 2013)

Raymond Chandler is great.  I made a point of reading everything of his I could find a few years ago.  It was a good decision.


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## Nellisir (Oct 29, 2013)

Crothian said:


> Raymond Chandler is great.  I made a point of reading everything of his I could find a few years ago.  It was a good decision.



The only thing I have left of his to read is _Poodle Springs_, which is the unfinished manuscript he left behind when he died, and which was finished by Robert B. Parker.  I have it on my shelf, but was waiting until I'd read _The Little Sister_ to read it.  From what I've heard, the Raymond Chandler part was/is (the first 4 chapters) a bit weird and clunky, but Parker turned it into a decent story.  Will read it soon.

Lyrical.  That suits.  I certainly like reading, but it's a delight to read Chandler just for the sake of reading; to see the ebb and flow of his language as he writes.


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