November's adventures in Reading needed...

[Pyan]

Birthday book...

Wiffle Lever to Full - Daleks, Death-Stars and-Dreamy-eyed Nostalgia at the Strangest Sci-fi Conventions by Bob Fischer.

 

[Razorback]

My latest read is The Gateway Trip: Tales and Vignettes of the Heechee, by Frederik Pohl. It’s a 1990 work, but the second (and longest tale) in the book, “Merchants of Venice”, reads like 1950s pulp fiction. I’m found it quite refreshing and enjoyable. The rest of the stories were of a more current style, and perhaps a bit pedestrian. I enjoyed them, but I think you need to have read as least some of the prior Gateway work to appreciate them. My mass-market paperback copy also has a lot of black and white drawings. I know some people prefer having everything left to their own imagination, but I appreciated them. I wish more science fiction works would provide a little supplemental artwork (including diagrams and maps). It may be problematic from a printing standpoint, but the publishers could provide such material online and readers who do not like it never have to see it. I rate this work a 7 out of 10.

 

[dwndrgn]

Bloodring and Seraphs by Faith Hunter, post-apocalyptic fantasy/scifi with angel-like beings and magic. Soon I'll get my hands on book 3 which is Host. I recommend this series for anyone who likes magic and fantasy and an interesting look at the Catholic relgion.

 

[murphy]

Bloodring and Seraphs by Faith Hunter, post-apocalyptic fantasy/scifi with angel-like beings and magic. Soon I'll get my hands on book 3 which is Host. I recommend this series for anyone who likes magic and fantasy and an interesting look at the Catholic relgion.

Just received Bloodring yesterday. Will have to put it at the top of my TBR pile. In the meantime, I am reading The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks. To early to say anything about it yet.

 

[Tillane]

Well, finally finished The Execution Channel (nanowrimo is a blessing for writers, but plays merry hell with your reading habits). It's an interesting book, and asks a lot of uncomfortable questions, but I'm not sure I'd actually say I enjoyed it. Quite apart from anything else, the ending struck me as rushed and way too neat given what had gone before. Maybe I'm being a little harsh - it's one of those books I'll probably have to re-read sometime to be sure exactly what I make of it.

Anyway, onwards. Next up I have either Lukyanenko's The Last Watch, Morgan's Broken Angels, or - largely because of the kerfuffle in the preceding pages (thank you, O divine Chronners, for adding to my reading list), Keyes' Flowers For Algernon, which I haven't read in quite some time and is now crying out for a re-read.

 

[HoopyFrood]

This week I will mostly be reading King Lear -- William Shakespeare.

And...something else which I've forgotten at present. Darn it.

 

[Nesacat]

Am currently reading and having a lot of fun with The Travels of Marco Polo (Wordsworth)

 

[Rothgar]

Finished Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson, I think that was one of the most complex stories I've ever read. I just started reading the sequel Green Mars.

 

[kenpat]

New here so hello all. Rereading Robert Jordans WOT series. Just finished book 1 now started 2. (Forgotten most of it since I read it when it first came out) One a month should take me through to September 2009 just in time for the final one to be published.

 

[j d worthington]

What with more hours being added to my work schedule, topped off by being very ill today, I've switched to a different part of my planned reading, and am revisiting Tolkien's work, beginning with The Silmarillion. Once again, I cannot help but be massively impressed with the language used here, which is often quite musical and certainly sonorous and almost incantatory; there is also so much rich thought in this book, as well. In many ways, I think this is my favorite among his works.....

 

[Raith]

I'm reading 'MAIA" by Richard Adams. I was going through a box of 'not so old ' books, in fact I had just put them in the closet 3 moths ago, tops. I found this book in the box, and was utterly perplexed as to where it might have come from. I asked my parents because they give me their old books on occasion, which I seldom read. They had never seen it, which didn't surprise me since they read mostly stephen king and dean koontz. So I figured I was meant to read this phantom book. It has been awesome and I absolutely love it, one of the best reads i've ever come across. So glad it mysteriously appeared in my home. I like a good long read, so this one is good for me. If anyone else has read it and liked it..or not, let me know. But keep in mind I'm only halfway through , so don't spoil the ending!

 

[Overread]

Well I read and finished a book at last (got a few on going - and nearly finished ones still). Anyways manages to get hold of a copy of Nausicaa of The Valley of the Wind book 1 - well read it in one sitting. Its short and comic style (and it goes from right to left and back to font).
Must say the story is very different to the film version and yet the characters feel very similar to who they are in the films - the only difference being the second in command of the armed forces who is getting a better show in the books.

 

[iansales]

Finished Alastair Reynolds' House of Suns. Disappointing. Now started The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford.

 

[Taltos]

Finished Butchers Furies of Calderon - a lot of action and entertainment. The second half of the book was all action and extremely fun to read. The only "problem" was that "main" characters have too high survivability rates - i.e. I don't believe some of those escapes are possible - and thats reading fantasy book
Now for something very different Keyes and Flowers for Algernon- I've read the short story years ago, but now the discussion in this thread made me pick up the book.

 

[Connavar]

Im just about to finish Rocketship Galileo by Robert Heinlein. At first it felt dated in story,characters but as soon RAH gets going ideas,adventure wise i started enjoying it.

My fickle reading mood is back to SF.

Next its beteween CJ Cherryh and Pad Cadigan books. Space opera vs cyberpunk hmm...

 

[Lobolover]

J.D.-any negative aspects?

 

[Lysalis]

Reading Empress, book 1 of the Godpeaker trilogy of Karen Miller. I like it very much.

 

[j d worthington]

J.D.-any negative aspects?

To The Silmarillion? A lot of people find the "high", somewhat distanced tone a bit off-putting, but considering that this is supposed to be a compendium of tales passed down, told and retold, from the First Age, I'd say that's perfectly fitting.

As for my own take on it... it's an old favorite of mine, which I've read many times in the 30+ years since it was first published....

 

[kale]

Ratcatcher-James McGee then loping into my first Simon R. Green novel...what have I got in store?

 

[Pyan]

Mr Green?

Lots of excitement, derring-do, really original main characters, and a rattling good read, to string a few cliches together.

True, nonetheless