Mauvka Posted January 26, 2006 Share Posted January 26, 2006 they are a pale imitation to the the first series. Can you elaborate? Are you saying that the plot is basically the same, or are the books simply more of the same style? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oorag Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 I just finished The Once and Future King and it wasn't anything like I expected. I didn't realize The Sword and the Stone was from this. The cartoonishness of the opening chapters, as well as the constant anarchonisms spouted by Merlin and the narrator, actually made me put it down for a while. I thought it was one of the definitive collections of serious Arthur tales, like Le Morte D'Arthur, but it turns out it was just using Malory's Arthur as a background for social and religious commentary. Many times White comes out and says things like "Then they had a glorious jousting tournament, which I'm going to just skip. If you really want to hear about who knocked who off his horse, read Malory. He spends pages on the stuff." I would have liked to have read really read Malory firth, but I decided to plug along anyway. White's commentary was very interesting, though he got quite preachy toward the end. Still, the tragedy of the story really helped ennoble White's ideas, and ultimately I understood why it was a classic. Unfortunately the archaic cricketer and British Parliment references damage its accessibility and timelessness. I'm starting on Ilium now that I've remembered that I had waited to read it until after I read The Iliad. The Iliad turned out to be very cool, at least my translation, and I'm enjoying Ilium a lot as well. It has a lot of the Simmons hallmarks. Perhaps a bit too much similarity, as it does not seem to take place in the Hyperion Cantos universe. Apparently this one is going to make me feel bad about not having read Marcel Proust, like Hyperion did with Keats, but at least I'm following along with Shakespeare's sonnets and the Iliad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironmaid Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 I recently finished Tim Powers' Declare and Drawing of the Dark, and reread Last Call. I like Tim Powers SO much... I'll make a thread about his works soon, I promise! I just bought (saw a new translation) GRRM's Tuf Voyaging in hebrew. read the first 30 pages or so. looks nice, and GRRM is a trademark for good writing, so I'm hopeful. Also, I recieved Sean Stewarts' "Resuurection man" from cteresa (thanks!). Will get on it soon (after I finish Tuf. shouldn't take long, it's not a long book and in hebrew) Hei Lumer, I have hebrew reading firends that i'm trying to get to read GRRM. Can you tell how it is called in the translation and also if the full ASOIF is translated to hebrew? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stubby Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 I've now finished the first book (Sorcery Rising) in the Jude Fisher series "Fool's Gold." I thought it started pretty slow but it picked up the further I got. I'm still trying to find a couple of hard to get titles here in Oz (one by KJ Parker that is doing my head in trying to get) and one by GG Kay. If I can grab those I'll move on to them fairly quickly but in the meantime Fisher will do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matrim Fox Cauthon Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 just find Gnosis by Kurt Rudolph. some of it is outdated, but few others have managed to achieve his breadth of focus without devolving into hippie crap.That was another book that I frequently encountered. But I ended up buying The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels, Lost Chistianities: The Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew by Bart D. Ehrman (chair of department of religious studies at my university), and the comprehensive The Gnostic Bible edited by Barnstone & Meyer. I've begun Lost Christianities to give me more background on the early churches, forgeries, and such, but I haven't had too much time recently to get far into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gildor Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 Just finished the Briar King by Greg Keyes, damm good, going to have to get the second and then the thrird when it comes out soon double quick! Just started the first of the Conan Chronicles, and its pretty good so far, only read about 50 pages and that was on the history of the Hyborian age, which set the rest of the book up well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pat5150 Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 I just finished the forthcoming David Forbes book, THE AMBER WIZARD. The author offers us a solid effort. Like Brandon Sanderson last year, David Forbes shows a lot of potential, and could well become one of the bright new voices in the fantasy genre. Which is why I'm happy to have the opportunity to help generate some interest for his upcoming fantasy novel. There's a copy of the book up for grabs on the blog, if anyone is interested! Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calibandar Posted January 28, 2006 Share Posted January 28, 2006 I'm currently reading two books, which I usually don't do. In the eveings I read my beautiful copy of the The Thousandfold Thought by R.S. Bakker and on my lunchbreaks I leave my colleagues for what they are and read my first Dean Koontz books, "Odd Thomas". TTT is a fine continuation of the previous two Prince of Nothing books sofar, but I'm only 60 pages in. It seems some really grand stuff lies ahead though, and I already find it oh so hard not to read the 100 page glossary before I finish the narrative of this book. Odd Thomas is completely different, but also very good. I've heard some negative stuff about Koontz here, in fact most people in the Koontz thread only seemed to like "Intensity", but I have to say that Odd Thomas is a very engaging book sofar, 70 pages in. If this continues I will pick up Velocity, Intensity or Life expectancy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knight of Ashes Posted January 28, 2006 Share Posted January 28, 2006 Rereading Twelfth Night by whatsisname. One of my least favorite plots but I have new appreciation for the text. So no, A Wildling and Mormont, you don't have to lecture me for initially hating it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nobodymN Posted January 29, 2006 Share Posted January 29, 2006 Haven't had much time as of late but focusing on Jeff VanderMeer's thus far terrific Shriek: and afteroword. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isis Posted January 29, 2006 Share Posted January 29, 2006 Three quarters through The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje. I feel really lame for saying this but after seeing the film a few weeks back I can't help thinking that it told a better story than the book is doing. I know that is a bit of a stupid thing to say, but I struggled with the book to begin with. It takes 100 odd pages to get to any of the Count's flashbacks. The stories aren't so much woven as told in separate chunks. As I say, I haven't finished it yet so I could be totally wrong, but right now I am thinking: bloody incredible adaptation. Did it get an Oscar for that? I know it got best picture and a load of other noms. I just finished The Once and Future King and it wasn't anything like I expected. I didn't realize The Sword and the Stone was from this. The cartoonishness of the opening chapters, as well as the constant anarchonisms spouted by Merlin and the narrator, actually made me put it down for a while. I thought it was one of the definitive collections of serious Arthur tales, like Le Morte D'Arthur, but it turns out it was just using Malory's Arthur as a background for social and religious commentary. Many times White comes out and says things like "Then they had a glorious jousting tournament, which I'm going to just skip. If you really want to hear about who knocked who off his horse, read Malory. He spends pages on the stuff." I would have liked to have read really read Malory firth, but I decided to plug along anyway. White's commentary was very interesting, though he got quite preachy toward the end. Still, the tragedy of the story really helped ennoble White's ideas, and ultimately I understood why it was a classic. Unfortunately the archaic cricketer and British Parliment references damage its accessibility and timelessness. Firstly: yes, White's references to comtemporary public characters do take away from the story. Other than that, I loved it! The tragedy of Lancelot's life, the sadness of Arthur's honourable behaviour: I thought that at times it hit just the right notes of sentimentality and despair. It really pulled at my heart-strings. Merlin comes across as a bit of a loon but I can live with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sologdin Posted January 29, 2006 Share Posted January 29, 2006 oorag-- yeah, white's arthur seems silly at first, but it gets damned dire in the latter parts. it's similar, in some ways, to twain's arthur. but definitely read malory--worth every hour spent on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daeric Posted January 29, 2006 Share Posted January 29, 2006 I just finished Rifles by Mark Urban, a very fufilly read on the 95th rifles. Just starting on Warriors of Medieval Japan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nobodymN Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Finally reading Elantris by Brandon Sanderson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zollo Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Fyodor Dostoyevsky - The Devils Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winterfella Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Midnight Tides. 200 pages in and really enjoying it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herbie of High Heart Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Robin Hobb's Royal Assassin. Enjoying it a great deal. I had to put it aside for the next few days to write a paper, but I can't wait to get back to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pellegrina Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 The Poldark series I'm on the 7th one now. I don't ordinarily read sagas, but I love Cornwall and the 18th century, and ASOIAF has left me with a craving for something on that scale. Borrowing the books from the library is cheaper than finding the TV series on DVD! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scuba Steve Posted February 4, 2006 Share Posted February 4, 2006 Homer - The Iliad (Translation by Robert Feagles) I love Greek mythology, and Feagles does an amazing job translanting The Iliad. He also did The Odyssey, which I'm going to read next. ^.^' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lare911 Posted February 4, 2006 Share Posted February 4, 2006 Just finished Michael Stackpole's third book in the Dark Glory War series. The first book was nice, but this one was just okay. Now starting Robin Hobb's Ship of Magic. I really liked her Farseer Novels, and hope this series is as good. Bulgakov and Murakami are great! Also loved the Poldark saga. . .wish I could get copies of the BBC series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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