September 2010 reads

[peterbound]

Finishing up the Gap Cycle by Donaldson

Also picked up The Ninth Avatar by our very own T.D. Newton... gonna give it a spin.

[Isis]

I'm not doing very well with reading atm but this time it's for the right reasons.

Smilla's Sense of Snow by Peter Hoeg. Moody, original, immersive with a unique narrative voice and set in a new culture. Punctuated by moments of violence and atypical sex. I expected a 90s version of Dragon Tattoo, but I found something much stranger. I can see why Isis likes it though ;)

Because it's fucked up, depressing and yet whimisical at the same time? :lol: I'm saving this one for a Christmas holiday re-read.

I re-read Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections. I'd recently come across a copy at a garage sale. It was still good, very fluently written and engrossing, though at times he seems unsure about how much he means as satire and how much is realistic. I think this author does deserve to sit at the table with Phil Roth and DeLillo and I'm looking forward to picking up the much-hyped Freedom.

Coincidentally I'm reading this right now. I'm less than 100 pages from the end. It's so absorbing that I'm kicking myself for leaving it unread on the bookshelf for about seven years.

Just finished Pattern. Book two of KJ Parker's Scavenger series. Where the first book was more of a mystery 'what the hell is going on' escapade Pattern is something far more disturbing as you get further insights into the narrator's character. Also revisits a familiar theme of Parkers, that old soldiers never really come home.

Great stuff. Parker is one of the elite fantasy writers around and this so far has proved to be the best of her work that I've read.

That's music to my ears because I've just ordered the trilogy. This will bring me up to date with Parker except for the limited edition books, which I daresay I'll get hold of at some point. The other book I am reading (and have almost finished) right now is Parker's The Folding Knife. Thoughts on that in the KJP thread when I'm done...

[Nearly Headless Ned]

That's music to my ears because I've just ordered the trilogy. This will bring me up to date with Parker except for the limited edition books, which I daresay I'll get hold of at some point. The other book I am reading (and have almost finished) right now is Parker's The Folding Knife. Thoughts on that in the KJP thread when I'm done...

The other stuff Parker's I've read is The engineer series and The Company. Engineeer was thoughtful and interesting but a little slow paced. The Company felt a little rushed towards the end and didn't totally gel as a whole. Still, thematically I found it tremendously affecting. These poor veterans trying to make a better life for themselves without realising they're in a KJ Parker book. They'd be better off in a happy relationship in the Wheedonverse.

Loved The first of the Fencer series but couldn't get into Belly of The Bow.

The Scavenger is shaping up to be a work of the highest calibre. At the moment I'd rank it up there with what I've read of Leguin,Holdstock and Shirley Jackson. One of the best works of fiction I've read.

[ambyr]

The Company felt a little rushed towards the end and didn't totally gel as a whole. Still, thematically I found it tremendously affecting. These poor veterans trying to make a better life for themselves without realising they're in a KJ Parker book. They'd be better off in a happy relationship in the Wheedonverse.

Okay, that made me laugh. Yes, yes they would.

[beniowa]

Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord. A whimsical story in the form of a folk tale. I didn't find it very engaging or innovative though. I know it's being hyped by Larry and others, but sorry.

That's not too encouraging. I'll probably still try this, but I'll be sure to temper my expectations a bit.

[Ratatoskr]

Finished An Autumn War by Daniel Abraham. It's true what everybody says: This is a great series that gets stronger with each installment. Still not the first choice for those who crave a non-stop barrage of action and detailed fights and epic battles in each and every one of their books, though.

Read Ethan of Athos by Bujold, an early Vorkosigan saga novel that does not have our Proto-Tyrion-in-Space in it, but is every bit as much fun as any other story of the series I've read.

Currently reading The Ten Thousand by Paul Kearney, which shapes up to be an immensely entertaining, page turning faux-hellenic military fantasy. Maybe not quite on the level of, say, Pressfield's Gates of Fire, but anyone who liked that book or enjoyed the parts of Erikson featuring the Malazan army might want to check this one out.

[JewBear]

So far i've got through Perdido Street Station by China Mieville and then i hit the ground running and knocked over I am Legend by Richard Matheson one that i've been keen to read for awhile, The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks, and once the postman arrives i'll get started on The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, which comes highly recommended by most around here.

[Ski the Swift]

Reading through Peter Carey's "Theft: A love story". He is an Australian author and it's nice to read about places you've been and whatnot. Pretty good read thus far, I'm around halfway through it.

[Guinevere Seaworth]

I finally finished The Iliad. I was for me a frustrating and yet enjoyable read. There were some truly beautiful passages where the words just ring off the pages and other parts it felt like a complete slog. I for one got irritated by the actions of the gods, they seemed so petty and childish.

Some observations by someone who is not well versed in classical Greek literature so forgive me:

1) I was surprised that it ended with Hector's burial. No Trojan Horse or Achilles' death.

2) The graphic brutality of war. I lost track of how many decapitations, (insert organ) split, crushed, pierced ect.

3) Hector is the only Trojan to get significant screen time. Paris, Helen and Priam are fairly minor characters.

4) How is that I never heard of Diomedes? This guy is akin to Ajax as being a feared and skillful warrior and he also gets almost 2 whole chapters to himself.

[Raskolnikov]

I just breezed through Greg Egan's short story collection Axiomatic. I'm currently reading The Separation by Christopher Priest.

[Roland_85]

I'm halfway through Leviathan Wept and Other Stories by Daniel Abraham. So far it's really good.

[Cantabile]

I'm attempting to get through Ulysses. Again. For what seems like the hundredth time in my life. The first time I was 100 pages away, took a break, and had forgotten everything. Second time my bookmarker fell out and I had no idea what I read last so I said "screw it." Yadda yadda... Will honestly throw a mini celebration if I can finally get through.

[Nearly Headless Ned]

I'm attempting to get through Ulysses. Again. For what seems like the hundredth time in my life. The first time I was 100 pages away, took a break, and had forgotten everything. Second time my bookmarker fell out and I had no idea what I read last so I said "screw it." Yadda yadda... Will honestly throw a mini celebration if I can finally get through.

I didn't get past the 1st paragraph.

[BookWyrm]

1) I was surprised that it ended with Hector's burial. No Trojan Horse or Achilles' death.

2) The graphic brutality of war. I lost track of how many decapitations, (insert organ) split, crushed, pierced ect.

3) Hector is the only Trojan to get significant screen time. Paris, Helen and Priam are fairly minor characters.

4) How is that I never heard of Diomedes? This guy is akin to Ajax as being a feared and skillful warrior and he also gets almost 2 whole chapters to himself.

1. The Iliad and the Odyssey are actually a part of a series of stories called the Epic Cycle. There are supposedly eight books in it. One before the Iliad, four in between the Iliad and Odyssey and one after the Odyssey. The Trojan Horse is contained in one of the lost six. However if you want to, you can read Virgil's Aeneid which has the event, I think.

3. Once again, maybe you'd be interested in the Aeneid. The main character is the Trojan Aeneas, whom Diomedes almost killed before Aphrodite brought him to safety.

4. Diomedes is the baddest dude in the Epic Cycle. I love that web site. :D

[Guinevere Seaworth]

1. The Iliad and the Odyssey are actually a part of a series of stories called the Epic Cycle. There are supposedly eight books in it. One before the Iliad, four in between the Iliad and Odyssey and one after the Odyssey. The Trojan Horse is contained in one of the lost six. However if you want to, you can read Virgil's Aeneid which has the event, I think.

3. Once again, maybe you'd be interested in the Aeneid. The main character is the Trojan Aeneas, whom Diomedes almost killed before Aphrodite brought him to safety.

4. Diomedes is the baddest dude in the Epic Cycle. I love that web site. :D

Thanks BookWyrm! I was hoping someone would point out a few details for me.

[Arlingzen Bill]

Finished 1635: The Eastern Front last night. This is the book that pivots the focus of the series. The upcoming books' politics will be much more Byzantine.

I wonder if I would get murdered for hiding it now?

[Stone-Made-Soft]

I just finished The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar. It was amusing and short, which was exactly what I wanted. It definitely had a Gaiman/Pratchett vibe.

[Cuchulain]

Finished The Valley of Fear and The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes. With this I've completed my Sherlock Holmes marathon, having read all of Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories. The earlier tales are undoubtedly superior to the later ones, but in the end all of them are worth reading (and I really enjoyed doing so).

[Larry.]

Although I'm mostly offline this week, I am reading Tucker Max's just-released Assholes Finish First to make me laugh and to dispel this horrid mood I've been in for weeks. Twenty pages in and I'm laughin' like a mo'fo about every other paragraph at his douchebaggery.

[Cantabile]

I didn't get past the 1st paragraph.

I feel somewhat masochistic. It's almost like I'm reading it just to read it at this point. I appreciate his technique, but it's just not enjoyable for me. The bit where there was almost three pages straight of nothing but proper nouns in a list made me want to beat myself senseless with the book.

"A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" almost did make me quit after the 1st paragraph. Wish I had a copy on hand to quote it. I used to enjoy reading it aloud to people just for the, "...what drug are you on, and can I have some?" response I got every single time.