NTSMS - Non Therion Society Members Society
Main Forum => Enter the voids of the OT-forum => Topic started by: deathdancer on August 17, 2007, 12:50:28 pm
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Hope there isn't a topic like this somewhere lost.
If there is "Now playing", why not "now reading"?
I am now reading:
Song of Ice and Fire: Clash of Kings (that is the second book in series) by George R. R. Martin
I'm at the page about 700 of 800.
The book is amassing.
It is a fantasy book, time is about middle age
It has lots of main characters, and it is very realistic. Person you think is a main character suddenly dies in most absurd ways, and another character takes it's place.
It is full of wars, lies, plots, adventures, games of destiny...
It reminds me of LOTR, but it isn't so black & wight (orcs and man). Every almost every character has good and bad sides.
What book are you reading, what is it about?
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Genial! :bow: Thank you for this topic!
I’m reading a book… um… some books in the same time as always…
”The brother” by Zsuzsa Thury. It’s the story of the life of a Hungarian writer, journalist, who was born around 1900, survived during the two world wars and later went to live in the States… well, my mom gave it to me. I’m not a fan of history and/or family books, but the life of that man has lots of similarities with mine.
”Adulruna” by Thomas Karlsson, which needs no presentation.
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Charles Dickens - Great Expectations
...in english
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Anne Bishop - Sebastian + Jacqueline Carey - Kushiel´s Dart - and another book about classical singing...
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I am now reading:
Song of Ice and Fire: Clash of Kings (that is the second book in series) by George R. R. Martin
I'm actually reading George R.R. Martin's Dream-Songs at the moment. It's a collection of his short stories. I'm on the last one in the book... they've been pretty mixed overall, a couple of really good ones though.
Song of Ice and Fire is a potentially awesome series :wicking:... I'm patiently waiting for him to finish the next book (although I gotta say I did find Feast For Crows a little dissapointing, but I have every confidence it'll get back on track!).
You're right though... it's just MASSIVE!!
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I'm just a few pages away of finishing the Glass Bead Game by Hermann Hesse.
It's a pretty dense book I must say... but it is damn good! Especially at the end of the biography and the part with the postumous works of the protagonist. However, I must reckon that I feel quiet "young" for such a reading. I think that within some years after bearing the weight of age for a while, I'm gonna enjoy that book much more than now. It' been a while since a book gave me that impression... and it's rather good because it makes me feel as if I still have lots of things to live. :)
What book is next?... I don't know yet :unsure:
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I have read The Alchemist's House and now...
I don't know - maybe another book by Meyrink - Valpurgis Night or Golem;
or The Writer's Diary by Virginia Woolf. Virginia is one of my favourite writers :wub:
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Song of Ice and Fire is a potentially awesome series :wicking:... I'm patiently waiting for him to finish the next book (although I gotta say I did find Feast For Crows a little dissapointing, but I have every confidence it'll get back on track!)
What didn't you like in A Feast For Crows? A Game of Thrones was setting up the pieces, A Clash of Kings was... well, what the title suggests. A Storm Of Swords was the aftermath (a pretty serious one), while A Feast For Crows is setting up the pieces again. It is a bit slow, but I still found it enjoyable. Too bad all the best characters are left for later...
I can't make up my mind and start reading one book. Currently, I'm reading:
Roger Zelazny - The Amber Chronicles (currently on the second book, Guns of Avalon) - a fantasy masterpiece by a wonderful writer. The equivalent of someone retelling you his dream in more detail than people usually remember after dreaming. I've read the whole series in Croatian when I was much younger and it was one of the best book I've ever read. Now I'm reading it in English. Still a wonderful read.
Douglas Adams - The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul - To quote the back of the book:
When a passenger check-in desk at Terminal Two, Heathrow Airport, shot up through the roof engulfed in a ball of orange flame the usual people tried to claim responsibility. First the IRA, then the PLO and the Gas Board. Even British Nuclear Fuels rushed out a statement to the effect that the situation was completely under control, that it was a one in a million chance, that there was hardly any radioactive leakage at all and that the site of the explosion would make a nice location for a day out with the kids and a picnic, before finally having to admit that it wasn't actually anything to do with them at all.
No rational cause could be found for the explosion - it was simply designated an act of God. But, thinks Dirk Gently, which God? and why? What God would be hanging around Terminal Two of Heathrow Airport trying to catch the 15.37 to Oslo?
Funnier than Psycho . . . more chilling than Jeeves Takes Charge . . . shorter than War and Peace . . . the new Dirk Gently novel, The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul.
I'm trying to concentrate on these two books right now. In the works also are Stephen King's The Dark Tower series (stuck on Wizard and Glass, the fourth book), Kierkegaard's The Seducer's Diary and a bunch of others I'd rather not even think about. I wanna read 'em all at once but I'm too lazy.
Ahwell.
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What didn't you like in A Feast For Crows? A Game of Thrones was setting up the pieces, A Clash of Kings was... well, what the title suggests. A Storm Of Swords was the aftermath (a pretty serious one), while A Feast For Crows is setting up the pieces again. It is a bit slow, but I still found it enjoyable. Too bad all the best characters are left for later...
That's exactly it... all the best charaters and best parts of the plot are missing. I understand why Martin made the choice to split it... but the split is too one-sided, leaving too much peripheral rubbish in Feast for Crows, and I ultimately I found it was disappointingly forgettable. That's why I also expect it to get back on track, because the next book will almost certainly catch up with the good bits.
For me the split is entirely wrong - instead of going by character set he should have taken them all forward to the same chronological point... For example, because of the way he's done the split, I now know for certain where some of the characters I've yet to catch up with WON'T turn up... which is a bit like a spoiler really. I loved the way all the charaters entwined their stories... but none from FFC will mix it up with those characters in Dance With Dragons. Possibly. :fish:
...I'm also beginning to wonder if he can truly deliver the climax that the opening 3 books deserve. :ninja:
I actually suspect he's in need of a good harsh editor to say "For f**k's sake Georgie... you just don't NEED half of this shit!!" :biggrin:
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A tree grows in brooklin , i have to finish it cause it will go all the way to Prague in a few days :)
yo yo yo
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Ehmmm? ::) Looking forward to that novel :wink2:
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Ehmmm? ::) Looking forward to that novel :wink2:
Be there soon , promise :)
yo yo yo
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I'm reading Homer's Iliad. Very cool. . . if you can get past the long boring lists of names. . . But the fighting, OH SO COOL! I mean, the descriptions of the armies, like waves battering the soar. And heroes as wild boars, trapped lions, oh my! *orgasms*
~The (Astoundingly Flagrant) Cretin~
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I have Homer´s Ilia too, but I didn´t read it yet.
And I agrre to Triocton about "Song of Ice and Fire" - I hope to remember all the story and people when reading the next book...
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Finished reading:
Song of Ice and Fire: Clash of Kings (second book in series) by George R. R. Martin
Now reading:
Song of Ice and Fire: A Storm of Swords (third book in series) by George R. R. Martin
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I gave up a tree grows in brooklin since i prefer praha to have it, im readin Milo and the phantom tallbooth now
yo yo yo
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I've just finished it, but since I was unable to post while actually reading it, I'll hare it anyway:
"Extremely loud and incredibly close" - Jonathan Safran Foer. It's absolutely marvelous. It's the story of a 9 year old boy whose dad died at 9/11 and who, after finding a strange key among his dad's stuff, decides to try it in every keywhole in New York, until he discovers what the key opens.
Marvelous. Gorgeous. Superb. Exhilarating.
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And what did the key opened? :roll-eyes:
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Currently reading "Lord of the Flies" for English. It's not precisely my style of book, but I prefer "Robinson Crosoe" in its genre. :lol3:
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And what did the key opened? :roll-eyes:
Cannot tell you. See for yourself :biggrin:
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Reading The Writer's diary of Virginia Woolf finished.
Coming after..."Bdelost, tot vse! Gustava Meyrinka cesta k nadsmyslu" written by D. Z. Bor
You can find there detailed Meyrink's biography. Last pages inscribe his strong friendship with Prague publisher Oldrich Neubert. Evidence about this frienship are proclaimed by till this time uknown and unpublished letters. These letters bring out some hazily parts of G. Meyrink's life.
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Now reading: "The Black Book" by last years Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk. I've only read 100 pages or so of this book and man!... this guy is great!! :bow:
The way he describes things (especially gestures and situations), and the cinism he uses to treat some slippery subjects has already put him into my top ten of favourite authors. Wonderful!
... just keep reading his Black Book :ninja:
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So the book called "Bdelost, tot vse!" Gave me some interesting informations about G. Meyrink.
For example that G. M. knew within common drugs also drugs like peyote.
There are also written very interesting iformations about lot of important Czech political and artistic characters in connection with secret societies and so.
It has suprised me how many people were concerned about these things in era when G. M. lived.
Oncoming:
Gustav Meyrink: "Walpurgisnacht" (or Valpurgis Night)
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Song of Ice and Fire: A feast of crows (that is the 4. book in series) by George R. R. Martin
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This one still awaits me... hope you enjoy it... and, don't tell me who died :wink2:
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I'll be doing notes on "The Lord of the Flies" for my unit test, that will be next week. Last 4 chapters of this book are the best. If you've watched the movies, they're crap compared to the book. Well, they're crap period.
And I'm reading some poetry from Pablo Neruda for Spanish.
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This one still awaits me... hope you enjoy it... and, don't tell me who died :wink2:
WARNING!!! may be SPOILER!!!
Nobody yet... but as reading those books before this one... ANYONE can die at ANY TIME.
Just look at Robb Stark at the "Bloody Wedding". Everything was boring and peaceful, i was just looking how long do I have to read this crap. And in last 2 pages of the title... everybody just suddenly dies. Not even a reader knows WTF just happened :lol:
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Did anyone read The Perennial Philosophy by Aldous Huxley?
I am going to buy it ASAP.
And as I decided to read all Meyrink's works printed in Czech - now reading: Der Engel vom westlichen Fenster
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now reading: Thomas Karlssons - Adulruna
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now reading: Thomas Karlssons - Adulruna
Nice one, Shelley! :biggrin:
Cheers!
Markus
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woooow! if I could buy it ;)
me - Zofia Nałkowska - Granica (boarder)
what a boring book!
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Thank you so much, Markus - it´s so interessting!!!!
Agnes, why do you read it?
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Metamorfosis - Franz Kafka (again)
yo yo yo
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Metamorfosis - Franz Kafka (again)
Ah... love it...
I wrote many essays of it.
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Is it that one where he slowly turns to a bug?
That was the only one book by Kafka which I like...
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Yes, that's it. I'm not able to decide if I like that or not though. :blink:
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Is it that one where he slowly turns to a bug?
That was the only one book by Kafka which I like...
Wll , he didnt "slowly" turn into abug , he (Gregory Sammsa) just awakes like one , ya know , just like one of those days you just dont belong , common
yo yo yo
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I followed Markus with reading Hermann's Hesse Demian. And I must agree with his opinion.
I can only recommend.
The part about Cain also remind me Old English heroic epic Beowulf, where Grendel and Grendel's mother are seen as punished by the Curse and mark of Cain.
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Next book I'll be reading for my English curriculum: "To Kill a Mockingbird" from Harper Lee. :unsure:
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Just recently I finished reading "Hitman: Enemy Within", which was much better than you'd at first think. You have to marvel at the writers ability to keep you tense even when nothing is really "obviously" happening. At the moment I'm reading "The Essential Tales and Poems Of Edgar Allan Poe".
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Ah, Edgar Allan Poe.
Read a few of his poems and his tales, and I've got to tell you, he rules. :biggrin:
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Well, I prefer Lovecraft, but Poe is definitely amazing.
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The mountains of madness - H.P. Lovecraft (again...damn i have to buy new books)
o yo yo yo
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What are those Lovecraft's about?
I hear about it all the time but nothing specific?
What are the themes?
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I'm finishing "Las luces de septiembre" - Carlos Ruiz Zafon (in Spanish this time, Luthy! :wOOt:).
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Well, most of Lovecrafts stories are intertwined by a concept known as the "Cthulhu Mythos". Lovecraft created an assortment of deities, all cruel and malevolent in nature. It's somewhat difficult to understand unless you peruse his stories.
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Hoot, a children's book
yo yo yo
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Currently re-reading Assimov's foundation saga :)
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Currently re-reading Assimov's foundation saga :)
My dad used to be a huge Asimov fan. We've got a lot of his books here, but I've never bothered to read them... Any good?
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My dad used to be a huge Asimov fan. We've got a lot of his books here, but I've never bothered to read them... Any good?
From my point of view... all of them are good. The foundation and the robot's sagas are my faves though. Old-school sci-fi at its best. They do a good nice and light reading for the holydays or after a tedious jobday. You should try them. :alien:
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Hmm i am reading 2 volumes
They are about templer knights (my fav)
And the writer is a polish guy named : Henryk Sienkiewicz
The action is happening in Poland :nosweat:
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Too many books for one moment:
Geoffrey Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales - such a great book for someone who loves satire! Recommend!
Hermann Hesse: Franz von Assisi
Holger Kalweit: Das Totenbuch der Germanen
(both in Czech, of course :blush: )
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Libretto of "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg". Tomorrow I go to the opera house! :yeha:
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My sister lent me some books of Pratchett. First I read ”Mort”, in Hungarian, and though I’ve found it great, I was surprised because I couldn’t find that famous humour I’ve heard of… Or I didn’t have an eye for that.
The second book I’ve read was ”The colour of magic”, in English. I was literally suffering while reading, because I still didn’t get ”the feeling”. What, who is this, how come, what is this person doing, where are we in space and time… :insane: But in the middle of the book my attitude changed somehow, I managed to accept the unexpected turns of the book, and I began to enjoy it very, very much…
Now I’m reading ”Moving pictures”, in Hungarian, and I’m crying of laughter. Since I usually read on the subway too, people keep watching me :blink: when this stupid woman tries to make order on her face or wipes her tears :roll:
Good that I didn’t give up. ^_^
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I have read only a few Pratchett's books. For example Hoghfather (there's some British movie based on this novel - and it's great x), The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents, Soul Music and Science of Discworld (this was fantastic - not so funny but lot of information from physics and wave mechanics..).
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I haven't read anything by Pratchett yet - to my great shame.
But I'm currently reading "My name is Red", by Orhan Pamuk, a Turkish guy who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2006 with this very title. The book is really extraordinary, and it helps me understanding a little bit of culture of the country where a bit of my heart is :innocent:
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Just finished reading "El Caballero de la Armadura Oxidada" ("The Knight of the Rusty Armor") for Spanish... One word to it: short. At least I got it out of the way.
It just talks on how to get out of your "armor" and find your inner self... I'd rather read a book from Thomas K. about that. :lol3:
I'm about to finish the first part to "To Kill a Mockingbird" for English. I guess I'm kind of even starting to like it. The beggining seems really boring and even silly, but as it goes on, there's a whole bunch of events happening, a lot having to do with racism in the Americas... And well, you know, I'm just getting to the trial that appears in the 1963 (or something!) movie (which was nominated for a few awards) as the main part of the story.
It's pretty good, actually better than I thought it would be.
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The Slavian and Scandinavian - Medieval History of War and Cooperation
Mongol War 1241
The history of Torture
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Einar Már Gudmundsson - Englar Alheimsins (Angles of the Universe)
I am reading it fifth time now... thin book with serio-comic characters.
The author reflects in his book a true life story of his own brother.
There's also a movie based on this book.
Very sad, and nice...
Eight lights by Leo Pavlát.
In the book are more than half of the chapters - lights filled with texts inspired by Torah, Talmud and midrashes...
And finally an antalogy of stories written by Karen Blixen...
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Fatal Revenant by Stephen R Donaldson.
Donaldson is a master! He's one of the original greats from the fantasy fiction genre, and his characters are beautifully crafted, complex and flawed.
Although he is from the USA, he kind of has a British style of writing to me. He recently did a book tour for this new publication and I'm pleased to say that mine is a signed and dedicated copy :). I also got my favourite books ever signed too, all five books from his sci-fi space opera The Gap Sequence (yes, he did actually write them too - I didn't just get him to randomly sign my fave books!).
Anyway, it's strange, Sci-fi doesn't generally appeal to me, but my fave story ever is from that genre. I think it's down to his fantastic story-telling ability and plot and character development. :thumbup:
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... Harry Potter - book 7
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... Harry Potter - book 7
You know, I only read up to book 5 and then ditched it. :lol3:
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Andreas Eschbach: Der Nobelpreis.
The noble price has been corrupted, a candidate has been pushed by bribing and blackmailing. To this end, a young girl has been kidnapped, whose father gets his brother - a skillful picklock and industrial spy - out of jail in order to help him.
Masterful storytelling by Eschbach, as usual, well thought-out and full of surprising turns. It takes a very philosophical twist at the end. :) Highly recommendable, as everything I've ever read by this author.
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Anne Rice - Violin :thumbup:
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Hi Saphira!
I read this book long time ago. I don't like a lot Anne Rice, but I was recommended to read this one and I didn't regret this. I enjoyed it a lot :wOOt:
Good choice :lol:
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Tnx..Probably I like her because I first saw the film Interwiev with the vampire which is not that bad and than read the book... :DI wanted to read also the Vampire Armand but the book in library is only in croatian language.. I reccomend Umberto Eco:The name of a rose :) to everyone whose got enough of nerves couse it*s really hard to get throug although it*s a fantastic story.. :)
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Bleeding hearts by Ian rankin :thumbup:
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Just finished "The final meeting" by Sándor Márai.
I'm not sure if that is the exact the title in English (I read it in Spanish).
Good stuff, I must say. Psycological, depressing and very well writen. The best of this book, from by point of view, is that it leaves all the interpretations and possible explanations to the reader. You can think about it for weeks and still find new meanings (and feelings too) around the plot. Highly recomended (Somehow, I feel that Lucy will agree with me :wink2: )
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Sounds good ::)
I'll search for it in our library.
But now I am busy with reading another great book. I think it will take me a lot of time to read and understand... and remember - maybe more than half a year.
Anyway - thank You Alu for good tip. :)
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Hm... Could you find the original Hungarian title in the book? Or tell me the Spanish one please, I have no idea which one of his books is this. ??? My guess is a book from 1942 that is called "The candles burn to stubs" or something like this. :)
Thank you for reading Hungarian literature! :bow:
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Hm... Could you find the original Hungarian title in the book?
The original title is something like this:
"A Gyertyak Csonkig Egnek" ... How the heck do you pronounce that? :blink:
I've just read in a Chilian page that the original title has nothing to do with its title in Spanish, which was actually set by the editorial that re-issued the book (you know, the classic "lets change the title to attract more people and sell more books! ::) "). I'm sure that's the reason why you didn't know, which book it was.
Anyway, I read following my mom's suggestion. It seems that Márai has become a favorite among the Colombian "oldies" :wink2: .
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George R.R. Martin - Song of Ice and Fire: A Feast of Craws (in English)
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Harry Potter 6...
:tomat:
I'm not even saying how come I ended up reading it. :unsure:
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Dan Brown - Angels and Demons
what an awesome book
:bow:
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"A Gyertyak Csonkig Egnek" ... How the heck do you pronounce that? :blink:
Hehe... :roll-eyes: that's it. :thumbup: I liked that one too!
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Nowadays I read : Runes from Lars Magnar Enoksen
and of course again and again my lovable Half-brother from Lars Saabye Christensen
:wub:
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Blood canticle by Anne rice
Its really amazing but you got to read "Blackwood farm" first because they are continued stories ;)
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Franz Fühmann - Prometheus. Die Titanenschlacht.
Jostein Gaarder - The Solitaire Mystery
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At the moment I'm reading a book written by a slovene writer Samo Petančič- Anor Kath, Pota Magov..it's a s-f but really good..It's about the rising of Anor Kath..the ancient power..and sorcerers trying to control and posses it..fantastic story..but I'm the only one who can read it.. :shifty:
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Earlier this topic, Alu was reading a book by the 2006 Literature Nobel Prize winner. Before leaving to Argentina, I was looking for a good read in the plane, and I found "My name is Red" by exactly the same guy, Orhan Pamuk.
Give him a try, you won't regret it. I'm currently reading another of his books, "The New Life". I was so thrilled when I found the book's original title and I could understand it - without the dictionary! :wOOt: I've been trying to deal with Turkish (hmm... guess why :innocent:) but it's horrible :ninja:
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Currently reading New Scientist Magazine - an article about swearing
F%&K! B*(!0cKS!! Wan&£rs!!!
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Been reading Metal Hammer (Spanish edition) :)
And the Spanish magazine Bajista (for bassists only!) :biggrin:
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The bloody instructions book for my new home theatre set :nosweat:
yo yo yo
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I bought "Requiem for a Dream" by Hubert Selby Jr and "A Million Little Pieces" by James Frey. Cannot decide which to start first, as I got 20h of train trip ahead of me :unsure:
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Currently reading New Scientist Magazine - an article about swearing
F%&K! B*(!0cKS!! Wan&£rs!!!
When in London, I visited some libraries, and I found more than one book about swearing. I was going to buy one, but I finally decided by "A spot of bother", by Mark Haddon: the Spanish or Catalan edition are now too expensive, and in London I found it in the pocket edition :lol3:
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I got seventh book of Harry Potter, so... I'm somehow swallowing that. :-\
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Tolkien - The Silmarillion...haven't read it in English yet..only in Slovene..but this is way better.. :wub:..I can not understand how can they translate a very clear sentence in something completely different..
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Metal Hammer (German edition) :wicking:
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This (http://www.macguff.fr/goomi/unspeakable/WEBIMAGES/CARTOON/w029-books.jpg)
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John Osborne - Look Back In Anger..I'm forced to read it.. :disgust:...(because of the matura exams)..
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I'm currently reading my x-mas gift: The special edition of One Hundred Years of Solitude made by the Royal Spanish Academy and the Association of Spanish Laguage Academies to celebrate Gabo's 80 b-day and the 25th anniversary of his Nobel prize. Just one word: this book has been, is and will always be a killer :bow:
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I am reading some Castaneda stuff now.
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I finished reading "A Million Little Pieces" in Turkey, and now I'm not the last few pages of "Requiem for a Dream". Next: a looot of anatomy, probably, as my exams are coming up next month.
Luthy: I want some Mark Haddon too :bawl:
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Percy Shelley - Selected Works
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Stephen King - The dark tower
yo yo yo
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von Clausevitz - Philosophy of War
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A Cosmopolitan :lol3:
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A Cosmopolitan :lol3:
great..I see I'm not the only one up here reading also stuff like that..I mean look at stuff like that..you can't actually read them since there are mainly adverts in it..from time to time I check out a bit fashion magazines..Elle and Vogue..I find it..dunno how to say..interesting?..
right now I'm reading Moliere - Tartuffe..again something I need for school..but this one is one of the best things I've been reading lately..
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For English... "Romeo and Juliet"
It's sort of cool, but when you begin to analize it, you start thinking... Damn, what was going on in Shakespeare's head?! :ninja:
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For English... "Romeo and Juliet"
It's sort of cool, but when you begin to analize it, you start thinking... Damn, what was going on in Shakespeare's head?! :ninja:
Opium was in fashion those days so ... whi knows :D
yo yo yo
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For English... "Romeo and Juliet"
It's sort of cool, but when you begin to analize it, you start thinking... Damn, what was going on in Shakespeare's head?! :ninja:
Opium was in fashion those days so ... whi knows :D
yo yo yo
Not only that, was Shakespeare some sort of sexually perverted mind?! :ninja:
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A Cosmopolitan :lol3:
Wow, I didn't know you liked that kind of scientific litterature Livi :whistle:
right now I'm reading Moliere - Tartuffe..again something I need for school..but this one is one of the best things I've been reading lately..
Molière was a master, and it's a pleasure to read in French :thumbup:
Not only that, was Shakespeare some sort of sexually perverted mind?! :ninja:
I'm sure the guy would be serious metalhead had he born at the end of the last century.
Errrmmm... now reading... oh yes! I'm still reading Gabo's 100 years of solitude :)
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I'm sure the guy would be serious metalhead had he born at the end of the last century.
Maybe... All I'm sure about is that Romeo is Emo. :lol3:
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these days i have been reading some gnostics subjects, but i use to read about many different topics, mostly horror histories :pop:
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Wow, I didn't know you liked that kind of scientific litterature Livi :whistle:
It's ok once in a while, requires 0 intelectual effort so it makes you disconnect :insane:
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right now I'm reading Moliere - Tartuffe..again something I need for school..but this one is one of the best things I've been reading lately..
Molière was a master, and it's a pleasure to read in French :thumbup:
emm..I'm not reading it in French..yet..only in slovene..maybe later someday I'll try it in French..
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I'm currently reading my x-mas gift: The special edition of One Hundred Years of Solitude made by the Royal Spanish Academy and the Association of Spanish Laguage Academies to celebrate Gabo's 80 b-day and the 25th anniversary of his Nobel prize. Just one word: this book has been, is and will always be a killer :bow:
I've the same book, same edition, Alu. I read the novel long years ago (perhaps first year in the Uni... a looot of time :insane: ), and some day I'd like to read it again. When I'll have time enough... some day, some month :unsure:
Luthy: I want some Mark Haddon too
I'll lend it to you when finished... if you happen to appear by Barcelona by then :lol3:
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F. Beigbeder - L'amour dure trois ans..(in English that would be something like..Love lasts for 3 years..)
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Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevski -_-
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Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevski -_-
:bye:
Is that about the guy Raskoljnjikov or something who killed that old woman and then just couldn't shut up about that! :biggrin:
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Is that about the guy Raskoljnjikov or something who killed that old woman and then just couldn't shut up about that! :biggrin:
yep, Raskoljnikov (in my book). But there are different translations. Anyways that guy is insane :lol3: I wonder if anything happens with his sister and that guy Razumihin... :lol: :lol3:
If anyone knows, please do not spoil the book for me :lol:
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Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevski -_-
This one is another killer :bow:
I have read three times, and well, about Raskolnikov's sisters I can tell that... you'll have to finish the book to know if she does something with Razumikin or not :biggrin:
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I read Crime and Punishment at a kinda inappropiate age: around 12 or 13. I cannot even remember how it finished :wacko:
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I'm suposed to be reading it next year or the year after for English... But my parents have an edition of it in Russian, I think. :ninja:
I will read it eventually... -_-
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Roland Topor's short stories
and
de Sade - 120 days of Sodoma
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I read Crime and Punishment at a kinda inappropiate age: around 12 or 13. I cannot even remember how it finished :wacko:
Join the club! :ninja:
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Ok, sort of out of the topic, but I just came back from watching "Love in the Time of Cholera", the movie. :whistle:
Thumbs up! :thumbup:
I haven't read the book, but I have to admit I liked it. :biggrin:
Aluqak, since I can see you're a Gabo fan, go watch it, you probably will like it!
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Aluqak, since I can see you're a Gabo fan, go watch it, you probably will like it!
I already have seen that movie and.... :unsure: .... well, you better go and read the book TheOne, you wiil probably like it better.
Gabo's book shouldn't be taken to the cinema by a very simple reason, Gabo's "magic" stands in the way he tells the story, in the words he uses, in the analogies he makes. As you cannot show that in a movie... the magic is gone :bye: . That's only my opion of course, but thanks for the suggestion anyway :thumbup: .
Oh! by the way, now reading La joie de vivre (the joy of life) by Emile Zola.
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Do Androids Dreams of Electric Sheep?
Yes, it's the book Blade Runner is based upon :ninja:
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Do Androids Dreams of Electric Sheep?
Yes, it's the book Blade Runner is based upon :ninja:
:unsure: .... errrmmm... I haven't read it.
*Adds a new title in his "To read someday" list* :ninja:
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Do Androids Dreams of Electric Sheep?
Yes, it's the book Blade Runner is based upon :ninja:
I am putting in my "must be read" list also! My ex-girl read that book and she said it is great!
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i'm reading the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighiere, i know everbory knows this book and of course i have read it before but it was 15 years ago so i decided to read it once more
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Nietzsche...
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A sheep reading Nietszche... weird :lol3:
Perhaps you could read "Three bags full" : http://www.curledup.com/3bagsful.htm
I already read it, and it's worthy! :nosweat:
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Matjaž Zupančič - Vladimir
..again sth that I need for my matura exam at slovene classes..but it's quite good..even saw the play in theatre..and it rocked! :thumbup:
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It's just soooo good , im still a kid in the bottom i guess
http://www.suhsd.k12.ca.us/mvm/netlinks/1hoot/Z.jpg
yo yo yo
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@ Swannie: Yesterday evening I started to read P. Ackroyd's Fiction diary of Oscar Wilde and I must say it is great! :) Thank Youf or good recommendation. I think I finish the book tomorrow! ((:
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Now reading:
Dostoievsky's A Gentle Creature (also known as The Meek Girl). Once again, Fyodor Mikhailovich is blowing my mind out, what a master! :bow:
Next: My name is Red... by you know who :ninja:
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I borrowed from our library "My name is Red" also...but the book was so big that I would not have been able to read it in 21 days... Not in English. :( I will wait till some publishing house will publicate it in my native language....
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Mark Haddon - The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-time
Winner of the Whitbread book of the year! Really an impressive achievement and a rewarding read! Highly recomend it to all!
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Sounds interesting - especially the title of the book 8-)
Notices down the name of author and book title... on her long long long list...
Today I ended the Oscar Wilde's fiction diary and also Antikrista by Amélie Nothomb. I liked even her first book. Her novels are very short but very intensive about feelings...and personalities.
Now I plan to read
George Orwell: 1984
Mary Shelley: Frankenstein
Bram Stoker: Dracula
I am not sure which book to take into the bus to Norway :/
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Mark Haddon - The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-time
I remember mentioning that one somewhere around. Very good indeed.
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My wife just got back from the book fair so i ll start a new one
"Coropus: Fictions about fictions"
yo yo yo
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"Animal Farm" from George Orwell. :ninja:
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"Gift of Love" by Jude Deveraux. Its got 5 short stories in it written by different writers but compiled by Jude. I've read 1 story so far and its very good ^_^ basically I've borrowed it from my best friend so I'd better finish it fast :ninja:
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Hmm...tomorrow I'm supposed to go to the library to borrow a book that I have to read for school...it's called U registraturi, written by a Croatian writer Ante Kovačić...
There was a TV show, also called U registraturi, and I watched it twice...and hopefully book will be as good as the TV show, although, from what I've heard...it's not... :P
We'll see...
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Just started ..Jonathan Stroud - The Amulet Of Samarkand..of course not in English..in Slovene..it would take to much time to read it in original...I hope it's as good as I was said.. :)
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Just started Agatha C. "The witness of the prosecussion"
yo yo yo
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George Orwell - "Animal Farm"
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George Orwell - "Animal Farm"
I sort of liked it, but it is depressing in some points. :ninja:
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"1984" was worse... for me it was much more depressing than this book... but both of them are well written :)
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Diálogo de Vultos by Fernando Ribeiro ..
well, the only problem is..that I can´t speak portugese well.. but..who cares? ^_^
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A friend gave me a book... It's printed from net. He didn't give me the title page so I don't know what I'm reading, he will tell me when I read it all :fish:
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Again reading..Tracy Chevalier : Girl with a pearl earring and also just started F. Dürrenmatt : Die Physiker(the last, 4th book for matura exams)
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I adore that book about the painting! Well I love all Johannes Vermeer's paintings! :D
I have read the book many times and movie + soundrack I bought both (unfortunatelly the soundtrack has someone else - she lost the cd)...
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Jack London's "The Star Rover".
I know I should read some books for my studies but these are not possible to read in the public traffic. So I always read something non-study in public traffic (further only MHD). This book was recommended to me years ago. Today I finally got it and it seems very great to me.
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Just finished the memoir "Night" by Elie Wiesel, Nobel Peace Prize Winner.
I almost cried while reading it. :unsure:
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After all Your words You told me about the book - it seems very good to me but exactly not much good for my hyper-sensitive soul :D
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After all Your words You told me about the book - it seems very good to me but exactly not much good for my hyper-sensitive soul :D
It has quite a few very strong parts, like when the Nazis are executing people... :ninja:
Not a book for people with heart problems or sensitive souls.
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I finished Castaneda's A separate reality - Further conversations with don Juan. I read it in English and it was quite difficult, I didn't understand it fully... I have to read it again or find it in Hungarian.
Right now I'm reading Anna and the king of Siam by Margaret Landon, in Hungarian. Anna and the king (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0166485/) is one of my favourite movies... :blush: I'm curious to see if I will like the book better, as always, or the film. :)
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I think that reading in Hungarian will be much better :) I am sure I could not understand much if I read Castaneda in English :)
Anna and the King (: I loved that movie. I had it on videocassete but as I do not have a tv anymore I do not use the vidorecorder either.
I think that better would be if You read the book before seeing the movie cause the fantasy has much more space than but - I understand not always it is possible to read a book before seeing a movie.
I think the book will be better as usual. But the movie is great also especially Jodie Foster...
The Star Rover I read now is simply great book. Very good. I think soon it will near the top of my favourite books.
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Reading Hamlet.
I was going through my books yesterday and I found this book with some Shakespeare's tragedies and the Hamlet is I think the first tragedy on the list so I started reading it even though it was not my intention to actually read the whole thing...I was only planning on going through the book, just to see...to remember...but I ended up reading the half of Hamlet...didn't get to anything else :P...so now I have to finish it :D
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Hey Hamlet is the best book on this earth! :bow: I love it!
Now I'm reading all the four books I need tomorrow for my slovene matura exam-essay..boring..except..Tartuffe..well and maybe Die Physiker..
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Reading Hamlet.
What Bart Simpson said for Hamlet: "All characters dead and the play is boring... only Shakespeare could do that!" :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
Btw, I like Shakespeare. :) Misti I recommend you to read "Titus Andronicus". :thumbup: If you liked Sweeney Todd and that South Park episode "Scott Tenorman must die" you'll definitely like Titus Andronicus too. ;D
Titus Andronicus may be Shakespeare's earliest tragedy, believed written sometime between 1584 and the early 1590s. The play is by far Shakespeare's bloodiest work. The play lost popularity during the Victorian era because of its gore, and has only recently begun to revive its fortunes.
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I love Shakespeare...but unfortunately I own only Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Othello and King Lear...also read A Midsummer's night dream (which is btw my all time favourite)
Misti I recommend you to read "Titus Andronicus". :thumbup: If you liked Sweeney Todd and that South Park episode "Scott Tenorman must die" you'll definitely like Titus Andronicus too. ;D
Yes, I've heard about it, but I never knew these details :D
The play is by far Shakespeare's bloodiest work. The play lost popularity during the Victorian era because of its gore, and has only recently begun to revive its fortunes.
I must say you got me pretty intrigued so I'll make sure to borrow it from the library... :D
as soon as I renew my membership :nosweat:
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I finished Castaneda's A separate reality - Further conversations with don Juan. I read it in English and it was quite difficult, I didn't understand it fully... I have to read it again or find it in Hungarian.
I really liked this book, but I prefer from Journey to Ixtlan and the next ones ;), because in the 2 firsts books the allucinogen theme is very strong and that is not so "funky" for me. I prefer the path of the warrior theme :)
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I also not so much for hallucinogens so I think from 3rd book it is better. :) But I liked to read the previous ones to - just to be in picture :)
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"Of Mice and Men", the last book in my English curriculum this year. :biggrin:
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I also not so much for hallucinogens so I think from 3rd book it is better. :) But I liked to read the previous ones to - just to be in picture :)
+1
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Actually, I liked those parts too... :blush: And especially the parts connected to water. :)
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Currently I am reading René Descartes - Meditations on First Philosophy
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I also not so much for hallucinogens so I think from 3rd book it is better. :) But I liked to read the previous ones to - just to be in picture :)
+1
+2
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Currently I am reading René Descartes - Meditations on First Philosophy
After few more pages I need to say that his "doubt way" of thinking fits me in my current longterm mood (crisis for L) a lot.
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I started to read once again an excellent book of hermetic nordic theme in spanish. It is called "El destino de los dioses" -Interpretaci0n de la mitología N0rdica The fate of the gods - An interpretation of the Nordic Mithology (Author - Patxi Lanceros / from Spain). It's about the big importance and the role of Fate in the Nordic Mythos. The book has 3 parts:
1.- Ases y Vanes: Estructura y dinámica de la mitología N0rdica (Aesir and Vanir: Structure and dinamic of Nordic Mithology)
- La primera guerra (the first war)
-Ases (Aesir)
-Vanes
-Tras la guerra (---- war :p)
2.- Balder y Loki: Tragedia y destino.
- Balder: el dios-símbolo (Balder: The god-symbol)
- Loki: la sombra diab0lica (Loki: The diabolic shadow)
3.- Ragnarok: El destino de los dioses (Ragnarok: The fate of the gods)
-El poder del destino en la mitología N0rdica (The power of fate/destiny in Nordic Mythos)
-El destino, el mundo y los disoes (Fate, the world and the gods)
Conclusi0n.
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Gods, monsters and men , we ll day together in the end :pop:
yo yo yo
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Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" :unsure:
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Encore Proence . really nic... nah it sucks up to now :(
yo yo yo http://www.plume-noire.com/culture/books/provence.html
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Kate Mosse - Labyrinth :bow: :wub: Brilliant! Really a book I've been looking forward and it's even better than I expected!
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Neil Gaiman - Coraline
wonderful, absolutely.
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Did someone around here read both - "Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals" and for example some Castaneda books or "Four Agreements" by Ruiz? :unsure:
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Why, are those similar? :)
I just started to read "Ungeduld des Herzens" by Stefan Zweig, in Hungarian. It's about... compassion... :unsure:
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I think that in result they are talking about the same. - very very freely said.
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Huh..I've started reading this..about a week ago...and I'm still at the beggining.. Bob Curran - The Creatures of Celtic Myth..
Giants, demons, fairies,monsters..merfolk..halflings..solitary fairies and sprites..witches, wizards and wise women.. ancient heroes...anything you want.. :)
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Well, after a month or so, I finally got something worth reading... and it is a good one :lol: .
I'm now reading "Historia secreta de Costaguana" (the secret story of Costaguana) by Juan Gabriel Vásquez.
It's a delicious and very cynic story about Colombia's history during the 19th century, written in the most hilarous Colombian Spanish I have read in ages.
And you know, it's pretty odd, because it's the first time of my life that I read something written by someone of my age, and say: "Man, this guy is a mature author now".
It makes me realize that I am part of the mature and adult generation :afaid: . Man, I'm a freaking fossil!
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Huh..I've started reading this..about a week ago...and I'm still at the beggining.. Bob Curran - The Creatures of Celtic Myth..
Giants, demons, fairies,monsters..merfolk..halflings..solitary fairies and sprites..witches, wizards and wise women.. ancient heroes...anything you want.. :)
Fairies?! :wOOt:
now I know which book to read next :D
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Currently reading Orhan Pamuk's "The Black Book". I recall mentioning him before, he's truly amazing, his way of writing, the hidden quotes ("Sometimes it snows with snow, and sometimes with darkness"), the huge amount of Turkish culture.... it's really helpful, and I am sooo thrilled when I find a name I recognize ("Yay, I was there with Jack!") :wOOt: ^_^
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Heya Livi!
That was one of the best books I read last year. Pamuk really has a very nice and original way to tell his stories. Every time I read one of his book I fell a huge need to go to Istambul and explore that city. :thumbup:
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Next the "Dictionary of Jewish-Christian Dictionary" for studies I borrowed from our SH new translation of book written by Norwegian journalist. "Bokhandleren i Kabul, et familiendrama"- The bookseller of Kabul.
The journalist (Åsne Sierstad) was working in Serbia, Baghdad, Iraq, Afhghanistan and Pakistan. This story comes from her experiences in Afghanistan where she decided to live for some time in family of one bookseller.
And it's very far from being funny. Anyway it's very interesting reading.
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I'm reading a book of Franz Kafka's short stories. Somehow it's about time to read them again. I found one on the subway today touching me more than usual. Sorry, my Queen, I just have to post the whole English translation here. :blush:
Before the Law
Before the law sits a gatekeeper. To this gatekeeper comes a man from the country who asks to gain entry into the law. But the gatekeeper says that he cannot grant him entry at the moment. The man thinks about it and then asks if he will be allowed to come in later on. “It is possible,” says the gatekeeper, “but not now.” At the moment the gate to the law stands open, as always, and the gatekeeper walks to the side, so the man bends over in order to see through the gate into the inside. When the gatekeeper notices that, he laughs and says: “If it tempts you so much, try it in spite of my prohibition. But take note: I am powerful. And I am only the most lowly gatekeeper. But from room to room stand gatekeepers, each more powerful than the other. I can’t endure even one glimpse of the third.”
The man from the country has not expected such difficulties: the law should always be accessible for everyone, he thinks, but as he now looks more closely at the gatekeeper in his fur coat, at his large pointed nose and his long, thin, black Tartar’s beard, he decides that it would be better to wait until he gets permission to go inside. The gatekeeper gives him a stool and allows him to sit down at the side in front of the gate. There he sits for days and years. He makes many attempts to be let in, and he wears the gatekeeper out with his requests. The gatekeeper often interrogates him briefly, questioning him about his homeland and many other things, but they are indifferent questions, the kind great men put, and at the end he always tells him once more that he cannot let him inside yet. The man, who has equipped himself with many things for his journey, spends everything, no matter how valuable, to win over the gatekeeper. The latter takes it all but, as he does so, says, “I am taking this only so that you do not think you have failed to do anything.”
During the many years the man observes the gatekeeper almost continuously. He forgets the other gatekeepers, and this one seems to him the only obstacle for entry into the law. He curses the unlucky circumstance, in the first years thoughtlessly and out loud, later, as he grows old, he still mumbles to himself. He becomes childish and, since in the long years studying the gatekeeper he has come to know the fleas in his fur collar, he even asks the fleas to help him persuade the gatekeeper. Finally his eyesight grows weak, and he does not know whether things are really darker around him or whether his eyes are merely deceiving him. But he recognizes now in the darkness an illumination which breaks inextinguishably out of the gateway to the law. Now he no longer has much time to live. Before his death he gathers in his head all his experiences of the entire time up into one question which he has not yet put to the gatekeeper. He waves to him, since he can no longer lift up his stiffening body. The gatekeeper has to bend way down to him, for the great difference has changed things to the disadvantage of the man. “What do you still want to know, then?” asks the gatekeeper. “You are insatiable.” “Everyone strives after the law,” says the man, “so how is that in these many years no one except me has requested entry?” The gatekeeper sees that the man is already dying and, in order to reach his diminishing sense of hearing, he shouts at him, “Here no one else can gain entry, since this entrance was assigned only to you. I’m going now to close it.”
MY door won't be closed in front of me.
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You know, I don't like Kafka... but this is nice :)
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Currently I'm reading once again The case of Charles Dexter Ward of H.P. Lovecraft. It's amazing the writting structure of this book and also the occult content is very interesting.
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"my feudal lord" by Tehmina Durrani. Its a hardcore book going into the deepest of the dark side of Pakistani culture that most people in the country are aware of..its an autobiography of her and how her life was smothered by her 2nd husband and the cruelty of her family..Im just blown away by every page of this book!! :blink:
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Michael Ondaatje - The English Patient
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I started reading The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova recently, but I think it'll take me a long time to finish, having in mind my recent Perfect World obsession :lol3: which doesn't leave me much time for reading :nosweat:
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The complete sociology tread by Max Weber
yuck!!! hahahaha
yo yo yo
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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain
Summer reading... ¬¬
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Tad Williams:
Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn - The Dragonbone Chair
Cool fantasy book.
A little hard to understand some parts and is it really happening or is it imagination, and hard to understand current location too.
But I'm getting used to it.
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Stephenie Meyer - Breaking Dawn :blush:
go on, laugh, but I'm a huge fan of the series :wub: and the final book is as good as I expected it to be. :biggrin:
:wub:
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Old Prague Legends- Retold by Magdalena Wagnerová. :biggrin:
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Old Prague Legends- Retold by Magdalena Wagnerová. :biggrin:
:biggrin:
I'm currently reading another of the books by Peter Høeg... Fantastic. As always.
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oh, Noaidi! I´m reading book by Peter Høeg as well! :D
- Představy o 20. století (in original : The History of Danish Dreams)
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Me too! :lol3:
And thanks to it I adore Danes more and more ((:
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Old Prague Legends- Retold by Magdalena Wagnerová. :biggrin:
:biggrin:
:biggrin:
I'm reading a book of Čapek. :)
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I just finished the "The History of Danish Dreams" what persuades me - again - that I am not able to read that book at a haul.
Now I am reading another 2 books:
"Tales of the Night" by Peter Høeg. I already have read this book but I liked it so much back then that I have to read it again now.
and "Kurkien taru: Romaani 1400-luvulta" (The Kurki Family Saga" or in Czech "Burning Rapids/Hořící peřeje") by Lauri Haarla. - This one is also very interesting cause it made me start to search some historical informations about Magnus II. Tavast/Tawast / Maunu Tavast, etc. And surely it will need much bigger research in future. :D
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"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn"
And so, the school's English program has gone nuts! :drunk:
After J.D. Salinger's alcohol and mental trouble filled "Catcher in the Rye" and Elie Wiesel's shocking and moving "Night" they give us this.... :ninja:
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Hey! Catcher in The Rye is a good read :D :biggrin:
One of rare books I had to read for school that I really enjoyed :biggrin:
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Hey! Catcher in The Rye is a good read :D :biggrin:
One of rare books I had to read for school that I really enjoyed :biggrin:
I loved it too. I'm saying that after those amazing books we read in 9th, they're giving us Mark Twain?! :ninja:
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I read Catcher in The Rye few weeks ago as well :D (and also because of school =)) )
Great book!I have still on my mind one part :
"Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all.Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around - nobody big, I mean - except me.And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff.What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff - I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them.That's all I do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be."
Now I am still reading The History of Danish Dream by Peter Høeg and book by Frída Á. Sigurdardóttir - Night Watch
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Im reading "The talented Mr Ripley"
yo yo yo
PS Hell of a movie too
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Just started The Idiot by Dostoievsky...
As usual it starts with one or two paragraphs take let you completly :blink: ed , and then you have no choice but to continue reading to understand what the heck is going on. Yep, Fyodor Mikhailovich is definitively one of the best.
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Conn Iggulden - Emperor- The field of swords
This is the third book from collection Emperor.. and I have one more to go.. (there are 4).. it's a great story about Roman history, especially about Cesar.
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Ottfried Preußler: Krabat. (Available in English as "The Satanic Mill" resp. The Curse of the Darkling Mill) This is more or less a children's book which deals with a Sorbian myth. I wanted to read it because it was recommended to me by a friend and because I noticed that the villain in the book is one-eyed and associated with ravens. :ninja: Also, my mom was born in the Sorbian region.
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Reading Pride and Prejudice...for school :D
so far so good ;D
I'll tell you more about my impressions when I finish it :)
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I'm reading a little anthology of 5 Finnish novels. Now I am reading the first one - and I have to say - it's fantastic. I haven't feel so well about a book for very long time :)
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Today I am going to start reading a book I bought 2 months ago. "The Tales of Torah (15 biblical muses)" by Jan Divecký. I am looking forward to it a lot! :wOOt:
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Tad Williams - Shadowmarch
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Ottfried Preußler: Krabat. (Available in English as "The Satanic Mill" resp. The Curse of the Darkling Mill) This is more or less a children's book which deals with a Sorbian myth. I wanted to read it because it was recommended to me by a friend and because I noticed that the villain in the book is one-eyed and associated with ravens. :ninja: Also, my mom was born in the Sorbian region.
Looks interesting, I´m searching for it now ;). Btw I´m reading ¨Cábala or (Kabbalah) and other texts¨ of Helena Blavatsky. Interesting book with a thousand pounds of Information. Quite heavy reading but very fruitful
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Currently reading "I, Claudius" from Robert Graves.
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I wish to read the last book from The Imperator.. but I just don't have enough time to read that too.. I have too much stuff for studies..
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I found yesterday in my home Carl G. Jung - Man and his Symbols in English . The dark side of my mother books is revealing now :ninja:
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Finally got it.. Conn Iggulden - Emperor, The Gods of war :wOOt: :bow: :wub:
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No One Writes to the Colonel (El Coronel no tiene quien le escriba) from Gabriel Garcia Marquez for Spanish.
Fahrenheit 451 from Ray Bradbury for English.
I'm loving both.... I'm still on Claudius and will soon be starting reading some Asimov after I finish up Marquez.
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No One Writes to the Colonel (El Coronel no tiene quien le escriba) from Gabriel Garcia Marquez for Spanish.
That's one of my fave from Gabo :thumbup: . And Assimov :bow: , you will finish your fisrt book without noticing it. Good choices young One.
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Thanks Al. ^_^ Well, Gabo's books are school required, but well, for these last two years, all books I've been reading for school have been pretty enjoyable (except Mark Twain's books, I don't know why they put them in the 10th grade curriculum... They stop being pleasing after you reach age 12) And I know that next semester we'll be reading 100 Años de Soledad (A Hundred Years of Solitude)
And Asimov is for Spanish too, but at least I got to choose what I'm reading. :biggrin:
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And Asimov is for Spanish too, but at least I got to choose what I'm reading. :biggrin:
:blink: Whaaaat! You have to read Assimov for school. Man, that's what I call progress.
I want my school money and time back [url=http://www.smiley-faces.o
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Free choice book. :lol3:
Somebody picked Isabel Allende, someone picked up some Tom Clancy... And someone picked up a book on how to increase self esteem. :lol3:
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Legends of Blood: The Vampire in History and Myth by Wayne Bartlett and Flavia Idriceanu. Hehe. One pretty interesting book :innocent:
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A few days ago I finished reading Kafka's The Metamorphosis - and may I say - the book is brilliant! I mean - wow! I'm thrilled...
I love this kind of books - where meaning is hidden under the surface, books from which you can read out more words than it's written...
Kafka did a great job with this novella, in an odd and unusual way he managed to depict one really usual situation... :)
I will most certainly read more of his books - this is the only one written by him that I've read so far
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Hi Mystique,
if you learn a little about Kafka himself, you'll probably understand even better the book (if you have not done it already). I mean, he always felt as "the other" in all aspects of his life... That, and a lot of other things I don't remember now from the course I did about Kafka in the Uni :unsure:
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Hey Luth,
yes, I know quite a bit about Kafka, we've learned about him not so long ago in our Croatian class, thus I remember a lot about his life. It is quite interesting how much he actually left of himself in this book (I suppose in the other books as well)...that's what I like about him as well...he lived his literature...and now he keeps on living through his books...if you know what I'm trying to say...
All in all, quite an interesting character he was :)
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Has anyone read anything from Horacio Quiroga? (Our very own Latin Edgar Allan Poe!)
If you haven't, you should! Especially if you're a fan of Poe. :biggrin:
I've read a few of his short stories for school... I loved them!
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Has anyone read anything from Horacio Quiroga? (Our very own Latin Edgar Allan Poe!)
If you haven't, you should! Especially if you're a fan of Poe. :biggrin:
I've read a few of his short stories for school... I loved them!
I read! Yup, it's great, very good short stories, the kind I like. If you're interested in him, you must read about his life to understand his stories... all death around him :afaid: It really helps you to understand his way of writing... (damn! Second time in two days I recommend to read the biography of the author to understand his work... I don't usually recommend it... but in those cases I think it's really important!).
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I read some of his short stories when I was in high school, and I liked them a lot. mmm.... it's been a long time since that, I think that I will give'em another try.
* Puts Horacio Quiroga in his "to read during the holydays" list *
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If you're interested in him, you must read about his life to understand his stories... all death around him :afaid: It really helps you to understand his way of writing... (damn! Second time in two days I recommend to read the biography of the author to understand his work... I don't usually recommend it... but in those cases I think it's really important!).
And second time in two days that somebody tells you they've already done it for school. :lol3:
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Marry Hoffman - City of stars..second book from collection Stravaganza.
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Charlaine Harris - Dead Until Dark :wub:
me likes this kind of fiction by the way :nosweat:
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Starting The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality. As if i didnt have enough science already ::)
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I know I should be studying.. but I'm reading.. Mary Hoffman - City Of Stars, second book out of three.. from Stravaganza collection..
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Stephen King - Geralds' game.
Pretty good so far!! just got it today and already half way through it!! :lol:
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The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
Ah, romanticism. My favourite period in literature, I may say. :)
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Herman Melville - Moby dick :nosweat:
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Just finished Asimov's "Pirates of the Asteroids." Pretty good book, the beginning was sort of slow, but it picked up and became exciting soon after.
The book for my Spanish report. :lol3:
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The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
Ah, romanticism. My favourite period in literature, I may say. :)
I love this so much!!!! :wub:
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The Trial - Franz Kafka
ah, Kafka :biggrin: one damn awesome writer :biggrin: :wub:
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(http://www.private-eye.co.uk/pictures/covers/small/1225.jpg)
Private Eye magazine
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(http://www.private-eye.co.uk/pictures/covers/small/1225.jpg)
Private Eye magazine
It's nice to see that there are still people in this forum who get into highly intelectual reading. A real example to follow :thumbup: .
To bad that here in Spain, that kind of litterature have such a low profile.
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(http://www.private-eye.co.uk/pictures/covers/small/1225.jpg)
Private Eye magazine
To bad that here in Spain, that kind of litterature have such a low profile.
I ll add mexico in that thought too, but we ll still reading it whatsoever :P
yo yo yo
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My last read was Brisingr - 3rd volume of the Inheritance cycle, I just finished it today, and it was a nice choice ^_^
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Ralf Schnell: Geschichte der deutschsprachigen Literatur seit 1945. :ninja:
(https://www.metzlerverlag.de/images/buchcover/978-3-476-01900-4.jpg)
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Plato - The republic (again, damn what a complicated book to read)
yo yo yo
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Oscar Wilde - The Picture of Dorian Gray :bow: omg I'm like...thrilled by this book! THRILLED! :yeha:
@Serp: Thank you sooooo much!! I've wanted this book like forever! :huglove:
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Alan F. Elford - "Gods of New Millenium". :hug2: :hug2:
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Currently I am reading a book written by Haruki Murakami. It's called "Kafka on the Shore".
I have to say that from the beginning I didn't get used to the way how Murakami writes - I am almost in a half and it haven't changed.
It tells several stories of different people - young boy Tamura who escaped from home, Mr. Nakata, Mr. Óshima... and so on.
I would like to finish the book cause it has some very interesting and useful parts but I am reading it with little feeling of being disgusted.
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Michael Peinkofer: Die Bruderschaft der Runen ("The Brotherhood of Runes" - available only in German afaik). A mystery / crime novel about a sinister secret organisation which is trying to wreak havoc in Scotland in the 19th century but which is said to be rooted in oh-so-ancient times. Not a must-read, honestly. I may have a bit of knowledge about runes, but I've never heard of "dark, forbidden runes" as the book claims. The plot is too conventional and foreseeable for my taste. Still I mean to finish the book because it's fairly entertaining and because it uses quite a good German, but I'm not likely to recommend it or to keep a lasting impression.
I'll update you if the book surprises me with a good ending.
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I'm re-reading "Cien años de soledad" (A hundread solitary years... or something similar) from Gabriel García Márquez. I already read it long long time ago, and now I've the 40th Anniversary edition, plenty of prefaces of postfaces (English Killer Stupid Joke strikes again :ninja: )... One of the best books in Spanish, and one of my fav. I MUST read it again :whistle:
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Michael Peinkofer: Die Bruderschaft der Runen ("The Brotherhood of Runes" - available only in German afaik). A mystery / crime novel about a sinister secret organisation which is trying to wreak havoc in Scotland in the 19th century but which is said to be rooted in oh-so-ancient times. Not a must-read, honestly. I may have a bit of knowledge about runes, but I've never heard of "dark, forbidden runes" as the book claims. The plot is too conventional and foreseeable for my taste. Still I mean to finish the book because it's fairly entertaining and because it uses quite a good German, but I'm not likely to recommend it or to keep a lasting impression.
I'll update you if the book surprises me with a good ending.
It's very visible that Germany and CZ are neighbours. :) This book is translated to Czech already for a year or such.
I am curious about Your updates a lot.
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Oh, I didn't know that. :unsure:
Well, if you ask me: Don't bother reading it. The end is far worse than I expected. (Beware - spoilers!)
The evil brotherhood gets hold of the heroes and intends to sacrifice the heroine with a mystical sword in a circle of stones during a lunar eclipse. Not only that the eclipse is badly described, astronomcially very incorrect... As the chief villain raises the sword high in order to kill the poor brave young lady, a bolt of lightning hits the weapon and changes everything. :roll-eyes: :fish:
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No problem. I just remembered that it was for a long time in the bookshops placed in "new". :)
And about the story... and its end - I thought so :ninja: : ))
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Mircea Eliade - Myth and Reality. Very interesting book but a little bit hard to read it due the Complex use of quotes and other writers, books, etc
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I'm re-reading "Cien años de soledad" (A hundread solitary years... or something similar) from Gabriel García Márquez. I already read it long long time ago, and now I've the 40th Anniversary edition, plenty of prefaces of postfaces (English Killer Stupid Joke strikes again :ninja: )... One of the best books in Spanish, and one of my fav. I MUST read it again :whistle:
Exactly one year after I started reading it again. Good choice Luthy.
I just finished Narcis and Goldmund by Hermann Hesse. Good stuff for a change but, have you noticed that Hesse made virtually the same book two or three times with different historical backgrounds? ... alright, alright I will leave good old Hermann a break for a while.
I'll be reading soon "El olvido que seremos" (literally "the oblivion that we will be") from Hector Abad Faciolince (a Colombian journalist). It's my mother's x-mas gift, and I think it's about the changing paradigms during the 20th century in a politicallly unstable country. More comments on that book soon.
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I dropped the reading of Murakami. It wasn't really my cup of tea. (I usually do not do this :blink: ).
And today I was in the library... borrowed The Tempest by Shakespeare, tragedies by Sofoklés and "Transformations" by Ovidius... Also have some Hungarian translation on the list... and currently I am reading Jacob's Room by Virginia Woolf. It's the last book by her I haven't read yet :)
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Oscar Wilde - The Picture of Dorian Gray :bow: omg I'm like...thrilled by this book! THRILLED! :yeha:
@Serp: Thank you sooooo much!! I've wanted this book like forever! :huglove:
awww shy) thx - i was afraid i wouldn't pick the right christmas present for you but the trick from last year worked like a charm :whistle: - this year i HAD a pencil to write you something on the cover :biggrin: ... oh, and don't forget His help in choosing and writing .ss shy)
Now reading: The Keys of psychic magic by Z. M. Slavinski - donno if there's an english version of this book :-\
(http://www.positivatrgovina.com/images/kljucevi-psihicke-magije.jpg)
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@Serp: Hey! What's this book about? I guess I can get it in my hometown library :) (Don't need any translations..)
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awww shy) thx - i was afraid i wouldn't pick the right christmas present for you but the trick from last year worked like a charm :whistle: - this year i HAD a pencil to write you something on the cover :biggrin: ... oh, and don't forget His help in choosing and writing .ss shy)
don't you worry, you picked the best Christmas present :wub:
xD and of course I won't forget His help xD mmm) hihi
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@Misty: shy) awww) .ss shy) xd (i realized now we almost don't write words anymore just our abbreviations :nosweat: :whistle: )
@Saph: It's a handbook on how to prepare yourself for The Path, showing you some exercises how to relax and explore yourself mentally.
(i added "mentally" cause i knew u all would think of something else under "exploring yourself" - seriously people, u r all obsessed with dirty thoughts :disgust: ... ... ... :blush: :whistle: XD XD XD )
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I wish I could just find time to read something.
I have so many books on my list and no time.
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@serp: thanks. let me know what you thnk about it when you fnish it :)
I started last book from Stravaganza collection, City of flowers by Mary Hoffman.. :)
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I am still dwelling over "The Bible Unearthed. Archeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts." Actually, It's very very interesting reading. It's so great to read about the historical and archeological stuff connected to Bible. All the "lies" and "truths"...
Sometimes my studies are so interesting! :)
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Azimov - The foundation part 1. Looks interesting. Spaaaaaaaaaceeeee
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Hi folks,
I've just finished "Das Evangelium nach Satan" by Patrick Graham ("The Gospel according to Satan", French original "L'evangile selon Satan"). It deals with, oh well, an ancient mystic scripture which the church is trying suppress, a sect trying to get its hands on it, genuine demons, Templars, Illuminati, a conspiracy in the Vatican, a world-conspiracy which holds virtually every important industry, and of course the fate of the whole world is at stake. Amazingly innovative. :fish: :lol3:
Especially the first part is full of quite hard, depressing descriptions of misery and cruel violence. The novel does include one philosophical thought, but even that one is not new. But apart from all these drawbacks it does make a very enthralling reading and I can recommend it to you if you like this kind of entertainment. :thumbup:
Cheers!
Markus
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Azimov - The foundation part 1. Looks interesting. Spaaaaaaaaaceeeee
Do read the other four parts too, they are incredibly good books, one of my favourites. :)
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Dad's got a pretty big Asimov collection, so I'm thinking about reading that series as well. :lol3:
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It deals with, oh well, an ancient mystic scripture which the church is trying suppress, a sect trying to get its hands on it, genuine demons, Templars, Illuminati, a conspiracy in the Vatican, a world-conspiracy which holds virtually every important industry, and of course the fate of the whole world is at stake. Amazingly innovative. :fish: :lol3:
Umm... I forgot to mention it has mad old nuns and "I can see dead people" as well. I just miss some space aliens, and there should have been more time-travelling, too. :lol3:
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I just miss some space aliens, and there should have been more time-travelling, too. :lol3:
Don't reveal the topics of the next volumes before time! :D
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I'm reading L'Etranger by Albert Camus...for school...
heh, I kinda even like it :thumbup:
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[/quote]
Umm... I forgot to mention it has mad old nuns and "I can see dead people" as well. I just miss some space aliens, and there should have been more time-travelling, too. :lol3:
[/quote]
Jajajajaja you are funny man. Space aliens never let you down.
Lavalien
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Hi folks,
now I'm reading that "Bella & Edward"-series by Stephenie Meyer. It was warmly recommended to me by from several sides, and also I wanted to know what the current hype is about. I'm not too impressed - as was written here about the movie the books seem somewhat empty in content. Ten percent of the books consist of variations of one single scene: "Furtively I wondered what he found about me. I was sure he'd leave me, and the hole was about to open up again. He must have seen the pain in my eyes, because he took my face in his cold, hard hands, locked his ember eyes on mine and said with his velvet-voice: 'I could never live without you, Bella. Do you know that?'" There are other modules like that, which altogether make up half of the whole series. :lol3:
What I really like about the books are the very vivid descriptions. That's done really skillfully: Highly detailed descriptions, yet easy and fast to read. This is really impressive and is enough for me to like the whole series. But I think in order to fully appreciate these books and get really excited about them I'd need a second X-chromosome. :wink2:
Cheers!
Markus
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I'd need a second X-chromosome. :wink2:
You should try that! :wOOt:
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Well, the good High Priest has done my job for me. I was thinking about reading at least one of those books to see if I was right about it all being overrated. :lol3:
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Hey!
So Markus thank you for comment on Twilight books .. I was also told I should read it coz it's good.. but than I got a movie and I must say it's not that bad at all but not smth that would make me think.. more or less it makes you love a computer made face of Edward. If there is any other observation you will have about this let us know coz I still somehow wish to read it.. but I seriousely lack time so if it's really sort of trivial literature like some.. romance novels from Victoria Holt or smth than I won't waste time on it..
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haha the Twilight series...read it... :lol3: what to say about it? I completely agree with what Markus said about it. :D
I must admit I really enjoyed it though, perhaps because I was in the mood for this level of cheesy-ness back then :lol3: (yeah, I do have periods when I like cheesy stuff, shoot me if you want :nosweat: ) plus, the books really are easy to read, that's why it wasn't hard for me to read all four of them at once :nosweat:. I'd say the books are something to kill the boredom with, something to spend the spare time on. But nothing to make this big a fuss about... IMO.
However, the movie I didn't like at all. It was boring and well...not made as good as I thought it would be.
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Hey there!
If there is any other observation you will have about this let us know coz I still somehow wish to read it.. but I seriousely lack time so if it's really sort of trivial literature like some.. romance novels from Victoria Holt or smth than I won't waste time on it..
I yet have to read the fourth book and I will tell you if I discover anything new.
I do enjoy the reading a lot, but I don't see any deeper content in it. There is no real conflict IMHO, so yes, it's just nicely made entertainment.
(Still I'm eager to get my hands on the fourth one so I can see how everything turns out. :lol3:)
Cheers!
Markus
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Oscar Wilde - The Picture of Dorian Gray :bow: omg I'm like...thrilled by this book! THRILLED! :yeha:
My Fav author , I strongly recomend "The importance of being Ernest"
yo yo yo
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Now reading: Herbert West: Reanimator and Other Stories by H.P. Lovecraft
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/515A1WX7VnL._SL160_.jpg)
after that:
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales also by H.P. Lovecraft
(http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/images/c0/c375.jpg)
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Lovecraft is a very interesting reading full of dark ancient symbolism and trully description of the astral planes. From Lovecraft I strongly recommend The Chase of Charles Dexter Ward, The Whisper in the Dark, Pickman´s Model, Dunwich Horror, In the quest of Kadath (i don´t remember the exact title).
Lavacraft :evil2:
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Arthur C. Clarke & Stephen Baxter: Firstborn.
After the devastating sunstorm a new attack is threatening mankind: Obviously a cosmological weapon has been launched at earth, a bomb that makes use of the mysterious dark energy that is the driving force behind the expansion of the universe.
This is science-fiction at its best: Imaginative, well researched, realistic - it is imaginable that the described human technology will be developed in the next few decades. The book seems somewhat anti-climactic with the solution coming rather unspectacularly without a dramatic last-minute-showdown. But still the story remains suspenseful until the very last page. This is far better storytelling than the 08/15 last-minute-solution you get with most cheaper stories.
I must admit that I didn't understand the very last chapter, but this may be because I haven't read the first book of this trilogy yet. Apart from this the story is easy to follow even without knowing the first two books. I have read the second one, though, "Sunstorm", which I can recommend most highly with its thrilling story, the realistic technology and its highly detailed and well researched descriptions of human life on the moon - as if the authors had been there themselves.
Definitely the best book I've read in a while. Go and get it! Meanwhile I will make up for the missing first part.
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Gabriel Garcia Marquez- Cien Años de Soledad (One Hundred Years of Solitude) :biggrin:
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Lovecraft is a very interesting reading full of dark ancient symbolism and trully description of the astral planes. From Lovecraft I strongly recommend The Chase of Charles Dexter Ward, The Whisper in the Dark, Pickman´s Model, Dunwich Horror, In the quest of Kadath (i don´t remember the exact title).
Lavacraft :evil2:
The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath :) yes, his novels and short stories are really interesting - I just finished "The Colour Out of Space" and I love it! I still haven't read The Dunwich Horror but I saw the movie and I didn't like it very much...it was more like a comedy to me :blink:
Lavacraf :thumbup:
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Hi folks,
right now I'm reading the fourth and last book of "Bella & Edward". While the first three were decent, but nothing special to me, this one is really good. Fine storytelling from different viewpoints, with really new developments in every chapter and almost on every page, not too easy to foresee. Plus all that boring "How can he love ME?" - "Oh, I could never live without you." in every third paragraph has vanished. :wOOt: This one I can really recommend.
Cheers!
Markus
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That isn't boring. -_-
:lol3:
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That isn't boring. -_-
:lol3:
xD I second that! :D
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I'm reading "Tales of Mystery and Imagination", from E. A. Poe (who doesn't know the author? :ninja:), in English. I used to read a lot of books in English as a professional reader, but I quitted it so... I decided to read something really good in its own language, for not loosing the practice :lol3:
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That isn't boring. -_-
:lol3:
How come that I knew that you'd say that? :ninja: :lol3:
Seriousl, it isn't boring; in fact it's quite touching - but it does get boring and annoying when you have to read it three times on each page. That's what I meant to say. :biggrin:
Cheers!
Markus
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I finished 2 books - one from Mika Waltari and second by Stef Penney. Both were wonderful.
Now I am reading a book which I got from V. (my bf) to my b-day. (He knew that I wanted that one :D ) It's new translation from contemporary Icelandic literature - Árni Thórarinsson "Tími nornarinnar" (In Czech it's The Witch Time, well it's easy to get from tími - time and nornarinnar like nornas... x) ). It's some detective story but ... it's not any typical cheap "crimi". The author works so strongly with descriptions of the atmosphere that it's like movies from Icelandic director Kormákur. So I like that a lot for now. :)
There are waiting another 2 books for me. Both are this year's edition. One Irish and one Czech ("samizdat" literature). Will write about that further. :)
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Richard Dawkins --- The God Delusion.
Funny, very well written and a straight-to-the-jaw punch on the face of religious freaks. A very entertaining book, and very useful for folks looking for strong arguments against all the religious non-sense of our society. Highly recommended. :thumbup:
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Finished with Twilight saga in english... it's not really that bad as I thought.. the movie sucks big time since all that's really important was left out but the books are great! Really smth to read when you need smth that won't be hard and leave a heavy impact on you.. even thou it still left an impact on me.. idealism and stupid romanticism is back in my mind.. :roll-eyes:
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Shakespeare's "Macbeth" for English.
Man, I'd make this a graphic novel. :biggrin:
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I'm finishing the second book from Stieg Larsson, "The Girl Who Played With Fire"... I'm terribly hooked on that saga :ninja:
I have a strange feeling when reading it... as if I had to read "Johnsson" or "Niemann" at any moment... I don't know why :lol3:
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Apart from a textbook on solar observation I'm reading the Fever-series by Karen Marie Moning. In short it's about a young woman who discovers that she can see the Fae, mythical, powerful, alien and very dangerous creatures that are threatening to invade our world. Her sister has been murdered, and she makes this discovery in the search for her sister's murderer. She finds an ally, but what his actual goals are, on which side he really stands remains unclear.
I hate the fact that she separated the story into so many books; this makes the books too short for my taste and brings too many repetitions (for each book contains summary information from the earlier books so each book can be understood without knowing the earlier ones). But I like the story! It's full unexpected twists and turns and dares to be dark. Moning even dares - beware of spoiler! - to let the big bad thing happen that the heroine is struggling to prevent. Recommendable if you enjoy fantasy and aren't scared by some rather explicit sexual descriptions.
Cheers!
Markus
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@Markus: Green sweaty alien sex? :lol3:
Topic: I should be reading George Orwell's "1984", but I can't check it out of the school's library for obvious reasons. I think that whenever I can pass by a book shop, I'll get myself a copy. I mean, not only is this book summer reading, but really, I've wanted to read it. I've read Orwell before, and I liked it. -_-
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Nah, not that kind, young One. :lol3:
A certain kind of Fae has the ability to arouse women by its sheer presence to a level that would be thought impossible. It can kill this way if it wants to. The heroine starts undressing without thought under that influence. A typical passage is "A bra was on the museum-floor. It was mine." It gets more explicit than that, though.
Basically, the whole story is much like Lovecraftian lore. The Fae are more tangible, though. They can disguise themselves as human and will then pass as human for most human eyes, with just a few exceptions. And some of them interact with humans. There is a maze of political games among the Fae, and some include certain powerful humans in their plans. As I said it's a nice reading; too bad that Moning has chopped it into too short books, presumnigly just to be able to sell more copies.
Cheers!
Markus
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mmm.... sounds like a good travelling book to me. I'll try to check it out during my next trip.
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Tales of Canterbury , could the Decameron get any better?? IT CAN!!
yo yo yo
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Finished reading:
- Katherine McMahon: The Alchemist's Daughter
- Paulo Coelho: O demonio e a senhorita Prym
- Valerio Massimo Manfredi: Lo scudo di Talos
- Patrick Suskind: Das Parfum
Now reading:
V. M. Manfredi: L'impero dei draghi
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@saph: is coelho really good? cuz like I have this book, the witch of portobello, bought it quite some time ago, thought it might be interesting, but then I heard all this people say how boring coelho is and how pretentious he sounds and all, and then I started putting it off, I was like I'm gonna read it after I'm done with this, and then something else came up, so I never got to read it...I probably will sometime, maybe after I'm done with what I'm reading at the moment...I was just wondering...what you (and if anyone else read him too) thought about him....
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I'm reading "Ensayo sobre la ceguera" ("Blindness" in the English version), from José Saramago, for second time. The most terrible reading, the the one I like the most... Someday I've to dare to watch the movie (I've heard it's not bad) :ninja:
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Mysti, I like Coelho. :) I envy the ease, the lightness how he writes, and I like his style. I even like the things he says about life, I think he's mostly right. Sometimes I feel that he's trying to convince me, and that he's too much, or too heavy... but I still like him. Try to read the "alchemist" (I don't know the exact title). If you don't like mysterious-overdecorated-oriental-touchy literature, then you probably won't like him. But still I think he's worth a reading. :)
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I used to like a lot Coelho when I was younger, Misty. My fave was and still is The Alchemist (yep, that's the right title Lucy :wink2: ). However, with time his books become redundant and quiet cheesy. So, I would say, give it a try, but some moderation is advised. Have a nice reading Misty :)
Oh... now (trying to) read (and to get rid of) "... y si habla mal de España es español" (... and if he talks badly about Spain, he's a Spaniard) by Fernando Sánchez Dragó. I don't like the style and misanthropic views exposed in this book, but somehow I'm still sticked to it. I would be very surprised if I finish it.
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@Lucy: mysterious, overdecorated, touchy you say :D I should like him then. :lol:
k then, thank you guys for sharing your opinions with me - I'll go with what I have at home first, and then I'll borrow The Alchemist from the library. ;)
[edit]: I'm half way done with The Witch of Portobello. I might as well finish it today. I dunno, the book is captivating, I can't deny that, and you just can't stop reading it once you've started. However, I think he's pushing the philosophy too hard. Sometimes it's just, as Lucy said, too much. The book could work without that as well. As for his style...well...I must say it is kind of odd for me, but that's mostly because I'm so used to romantic writers (e.g. O. Wilde, E.A. Poe etc.); I simply like their style better. But it is simple and fluent (I agree with you on this too, Lucy), which makes the book pretty readable.
All in all, Coelho is not as bad as I've been told, but he's not something too special either. Just a decent read.
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@Misty: Sorry for a late reply. I see everyone else already told you what I would and what you later discovered yourself. I like the way he explains life and relations with nature and other people but at the same time I hate this "God" attitude. God will do that, god will punish you for that, devil is trying to make you whatever... That was what disturbed me most in the Miss Prym book. That was the first book I got from him to read and maybe I'll read some more. He's not that bad or anything but it's just not my cup of tea. I really need to be in a mood for such books or they make me feel mad.
Now I'm enjoying last 100 pages of Manfredi's "Imperium of dragons".. I love such historical books with a story that makes me feel :thumbup:
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Greg Bear: City at the End of the Time
This is a science-ficition-novel about parallel worlds a possible death of the universe. It plays in two times: "Ten Nulls", our current age, and "Fourteen Nulls", a remote future when the universe is 10.000 as old as now. In "Fourteen Nulls" the final fortress of civilization is threatened by the "chaos of Typhon" - a violently spreading zone where dimensions and natural laws are changing all the tiime, leading to incomprehensible and horrible destruction. But some force is invading their past, our presence, and about to destroy our world - or the worlds at our age of the universe - as well.
I like the book. The reading could be easier with a better structure of the sentences, but luckily there aren't all too many different persons playing as in many SF- or fantasy-novels. The mood is often gloomy, but that's alright with me. The story is suspenseful and enigmatic, and the descriptions are really fantastic. The author dares to let the "big bad thing" really happen and tries to describe the undescribable, which I always like a lot. I hate those novels where some incredible, huge change is hinted at, but the heroes manage to prevent it just in time so that everything stays the way we are used to. If you're into epic stories and imaginative SF I can really recommend this one!
Cheers!
Markus
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Now I´m reading The Mahabarata. This is the veda book of Indian mithology tradition. Very beautiful version made from a french called Jean Claudie Carriere.
Also I finally got the last book of Carlos Castaneda to complete the saga : ¨The Fire from Within or Internal Fire¨.
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Nick Drake> Nefertiti, the book of dead
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A series by Croatian author Marija Jurić Zagorka called Grička vještica. It has seven books, and right now I'm on the third. It's simply awesome, I don't know why I didn't start reading them earlier, and I had the series at home like all my life. The books are my mom's :D .
It's about witch persecution in Croatia (to be more specific, in Zagreb and surrounding area), but the story is mostly revolved around one main love story, and few others :D . But it's very well written, and it's on historical basis, which means you can learn a bunch about that time and history of Zagreb...plus it's very well written and very readable and...well I just love that kind of books...
I also started reading Night World by L.J. Smith yesterday, brought to me by my cousin from Canada...yeah, can't say I'm very impressed...after reading what I mentioned above this seems too childish and too easy and...not challenging enough...so I quit after 50 pgs.
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Ok, I had to get it as an e-book, but anyway...
"1984" by George Orwell. It's simply awesome how Orwell drew from the political situation (in a somewhat exaggerated way though) of his time and create a clearly fictionalized but at the same time realistic world. I've only had it for a few hours, and I already finished one third of it. :biggrin:
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Brian D'Amato: "In the Courts of the Sun: The Sacrifice Game" (in German available as "2012 - Das Ende aller Zeiten" which means "2012 - The End of all Times")
I stumbled across this book when I saw the big "2012" on the cover, and it was a lucky strike. Absolutely unasideable; I devoured the first 300 pages at once, reading until I dropped.
It's about a half-Maya named Jed who learnt a board game from his mother before he lost her and his whole village in a massacre. She used this game to predict little events as a kind of local shaman: When will Dad come home? What can heal my current illness? After some very moved life Jed uses the game for stock exchange speculations and makes a fortune with it.
Then some old contacts of him get him into a group of scientists, financed through somewhat dark private channels, who are working on an ancient Maya prophecy that seems to predict the end of mankind for the winter solstice 2012. Oh well, we've all heard about this a gazillion times, haven't we? :lol3: They find out that this prediction was made using a highly sophisticated version of said game and send Jed - or rather a copy of his mind - into the past in order to learn the game. Their hope is that they might replay that game, find out more details about the impending doom and prevent the catastrophe at the last second.
Jed tells his story with a refreshing openness and irony. The book is not only extremely suspenseful and full of apparently well-researched scientific facts (Jed keeps talking about animals and plants with their Latin, scientific names - he's very educated. :biggrin:) but also full of humour. For instance Jed is talking to a female scientist whom he finds very attractive. They are discussing languages and Jed tells her that there are no infixes in English, just pre- and suffixes. That's when she suddenly asks: "What about fucking?" - :blink: "Pardon?" :blink: - "You know, as in Ala-fucking-bama!". :roll:
Go. And. Get. A. Copy!
Cheers!
Markus
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Hi Markus!! This book seems very intersting, really! :lol3:
I'm reading now a book of short stories by Haruki Murakami. In English I think it was edited in two books: "Dabchick" and "A Perfect Day for Kangaroos"... First reading about this Japanese author, and I must say I like it a lot. His stories talk about normal and fantastic things with a hard division... all of them are strange, some are very strange, like the one about a man who was vomitting during 40 days with no illness at all and no feeling bad... just the same days when a strange man he didn't know was phoning him and saying just his name before hunging it up :insane:
Just before that I read the first Harry Potter in English... I read it once, some time ago, but I didn't enjoyed it too much. After watching the last movie (which I liked a lot) I decided to read it again, and I did... now I want to read the other ones, too :fish:
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Those sound interesting, Luth. :)
Say, are you reading the Potter-series in the English original or in a translation? I think that this is a great occasion to start English books as the Potter-series begins with a children's book and gets more and more adult with each book.
Cheers!
Markus
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Hi Markus,
I'm reading it in the original English. But I'm very used to read in the original English... I even worked reading in English for two editorials :nosweat: That means I've no problems with English reading... what DOESN'T MEAN I must have the same skills in writing, even less in listening or speaking :insane:
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Oh, I wasn't aware of that, Luth, sorry! :unsure: But congrats! :)
Cheers!
Markus
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Oh, I wasn't aware of that, Luth, sorry! :unsure: But congrats! :)
Cheers!
Markus
Don't worry... perhaps I did not speak so clearly as I thought :lol3:
Besides that... what is a better training than reading about conspirations about world domination in this very forum? :ninja: :ninja: :ninja:
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The only better option is to actually gain world domination and define our English as the worldwide standard for perfect English. :ninja: :nana:
My current book is turning into a jungle- and city-jungle adventure in ancient Maya times. Still unasideable!
Cheers!
Markus
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A pair of days into reading "1984" and I'm done.
It feels quite short despite the fact that it encompasses so many events.
As I already said, it's great. I read it for educational purposes (I assume, if not, for pure pleasure) but I recommend it highly to anyone who likes this mid-20th Century feeling (kind of like the one you get with the Fallout and BioShock video game series) and intriguing conspiracies, mad dictatorships and such stuff.
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I have just finished the 888 pages of "In the Courts of the Sun".
After the middle part which plays in ancient Maya times, the third part is again in the present, or rather the near future, exactly in 2012. It has a pretty surprising, disturbing and challenging ending - and then you get to know that this is only "the end of the first book". :wacko: The next one doesn't seem to be out yet; I can only hope that they publish it before the world ends.
Cheers!
Markus
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...And as probably the biggest disappointment this school year (and next year, for that matter) my English program does not have the dystopian fiction I was looking forward to... There's no "1984" or "Brave New World" in the program...
Instead, I'm getting Sophocles' "Antigone." Hopefully, it'll be as painless as possible. :ninja:
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hey! :D I really liked Antigone :biggrin: it's not that big of a pain really - you just shouldn't let yourself approach the book with the ''ugh, it's boring, and I'll die reading it'' attitude. that's the mistake most students do...imho. I don't know why most of them don't like the 'old' literature and feel so revolted by it...oh well...I do like it and I can say it, they don't know what they're missing ;D
so just try to get into the story...it's actually pretty interesting ;)
good luck!
[edit]: @t: Right now I'm reading the fifth book of Grička vještica series. and I'm loving it. :bow: Her works should have been translated to English. If I ever get the chance, I'll do it myself ;D ( :lol3: I haven't even started my studies yet and I'm already too ambitious :lol3: )
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Right now I'm reading the fifth book of Grička vještica series. and I'm loving it. :bow: Her works should have been translated to English. If I ever get the chance, I'll do it myself ;D ( :lol3: I haven't even started my studies yet and I'm already too ambitious :lol3: )
(@Misty: SLINIŠAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!! :blush: Siniša is the name of main male character in the book and he is ... :bow: :wub: - and I thought I had a real life :nosweat: need to go out more :ninja: :whistle: ) I have Plameni inkvizitori 1&2 here and am about to start reading them...again :wub: - - - started today and just finished reading Kći Lotršćaka: Divljan (yes, another main male character) :drool: :wub: shy)
...you might have the chance to translate it :D unless I do it first XD :whistle:
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ahhaha Sinišaaa :D :D :D that man (fictional character, that is -.-) is gonna kill me (and if you thought you had no real life, you should see me reading the books and ecstasy on my face when there's something related to him xD -.- pathetic, I know)
btw, emperor Josip is not that bad either op2) xD -.- I should probably get a life.
as for her other works, I will try to read them all when my university starts (I hope I'll have time though), as I'll have no time to do it during these holidays...
hahah okay, let's do it like this - I'll translate a half, and you'll translate the other half, and that way we'll be done faster XD :biggrin:
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George R. R. Martin - A Clash Of Kings, the second book from "A Song Of Ice And Fire!
Just s it's written on the cover : "Grabs hold and won't let go. It's brilliant!" :thumbup:
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The Road. I've just started so I can't say much about it but I read the film (with Viggo Mortensen from LoTR) review for it's debut at the Toronto International Film Festival and was intrigued.
Review from Amazon.ca:
Cormac McCarthy sets his new novel, The Road, in a post-apocalyptic blight of gray skies that drizzle ash, a world in which all matter of wildlife is extinct, starvation is not only prevalent but nearly all-encompassing, and marauding bands of cannibals roam the environment with pieces of human flesh stuck between their teeth. If this sounds oppressive and dispiriting, it is. McCarthy may have just set to paper the definitive vision of the world after nuclear war, and in this recent age of relentless saber-rattling by the global powers, it's not much of a leap to feel his vision could be not far off the mark nor, sadly, right around the corner. Stealing across this horrific (and that's the only word for it) landscape are an unnamed man and his emaciated son, a boy probably around the age of ten. It is the love the father feels for his son, a love as deep and acute as his grief, that could surprise readers of McCarthy's previous work. McCarthy's Gnostic impressions of mankind have left very little place for love. In fact that greatest love affair in any of his novels, I would argue, occurs between the Billy Parham and the wolf in The Crossing. But here the love of a desperate father for his sickly son transcends all else. McCarthy has always written about the battle between light and darkness; the darkness usually comprises 99.9% of the world, while any illumination is the weak shaft thrown by a penlight running low on batteries. In The Road, those batteries are almost out--the entire world is, quite literally, dying--so the final affirmation of hope in the novel's closing pages is all the more shocking and maybe all the more enduring as the boy takes all of his father's (and McCarthy's) rage at the hopeless folly of man and lays it down, lifting up, in its place, the oddest of all things: faith.
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Frank Schätzing: Limit
Some years ago I've read "Der Schwarm" by this German author, available in English as "The Swarm: A novel of the deep". That one was highly recommendable - very suspenseful and very well researched. The scenario is that the seas start to behave strange - attacks by usually peaceful sea creatures are just the beginning. When I heard that a new Schätzing is available I bought it without hesitation.
"Limit" plays in the year 2025. Space travel has been revolutionised by a new technology, but it's strongly influenced by private enterprise, much more than by state agencies. There is a huge space station in orbit. Moon-dust is exploited for Helium-3 which will ensure a clean, eco-friendly energy supply on Earth. Right now a space hotel is being opened. The novel plays in James-Bond-like high-tech and big-style settings like the space and moon stations, but also in places like Shanghai (which I've recently visited myself). I've only just begun it and read 400 of 1300 pages... Still it's not all too suspenseful, but I guess it's gaining momentum now. And once more it's very well researched - all the physical claims are correct, and Schätzing's vision of the society in 2025 seems realistic to me. He also refers to contemporary events and developments a lot. So it's a very good reading, and I suppose it will become a fantastic reading soon.
Cheers!
Markus
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Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
I'm in first few capitols and it's very nice. I read a review on this book by one of my favourite authors - Neil Gaiman so I decided to try this book and for now I am satisfied.
It's big long book with nice characters and it's mysterious! :)
Oh and there genre is fantasy :)
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"The white castle" by Orhan Pamuk.
Finally could find, this one! Strange, puzzling and very well writen. Typical Pamuk stuff. :thumbup:
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I bought in Belgium "The secret Supper" By Javier Sierra...
mmm just too Davinci Codish so far :( disappointing
yo y yo
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Ok, for classes over the past semester I've read "Antigone" by Sophocles, "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen, "The Three Sisters" by Anton Chekhov (my favorite out of these, so far) and "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin. Overall, not so bad.
And I just finished reading "The White Castle" by Orhan Pamuk. The lead guitarist of my band just told me I had to read it. I agree now. And I agree with Aluqak. This is one of those books you have to read! :thumbup:
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Hi folks,
I've ordered "The White Castle" yesterday. The reviews on amazon.de were not so encouraging, but after your enthusiastic reactions I decided to give it a try. I'll tell you how I like it, of course.
Cheers!
Markus
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Croatian renaissance literature :unsure:
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"Things Fall Apart" by Chinua Achebe :thumbup:
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"Malinche" by Laura Esquivel
A historic novel about Cortes' Aztec lover and her roll in the fall of the Aztec empire. A little bit naive, quiet straight to point, and very well written. Typical Esquivel stuff. If you've liked her other books, you are gonna enjoy this one too.
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"Malinche" by Laura Esquivel
A historic novel about Cortes' Aztec lover and her roll in the fall of the Aztec empire. A little bit naive, quiet straight to point, and very well written. Typical Esquivel stuff. If you've liked her other books, you are gonna enjoy this one too.
I read it not long ago... Not a bad book, but I felt it was less than I thought. Even so, I enjoyed it!
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"Malinche" by Laura Esquivel
A historic novel about Cortes' Aztec lover and her roll in the fall of the Aztec empire. A little bit naive, quiet straight to point, and very well written. Typical Esquivel stuff. If you've liked her other books, you are gonna enjoy this one too.
I´ve only read one book of her and didn´t like it. The book is called ¨ La ley del amor (The love law)¨
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I began reading "Cry, the Beloved Country" by Alan Paton for school.
Man, this book is depressing. And I hate the way the dialogue is written. ¬¬
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I began reading "Cry, the Beloved Country" by Alan Paton for school.
Man, this book is depressing. And I hate the way the dialogue is written. ¬¬
What is it about?
I have to read "The Econometrics" and am already going to cry. It's so damn boring and badly written so that it's hard-understandable.
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I began reading "Cry, the Beloved Country" by Alan Paton for school.
Man, this book is depressing. And I hate the way the dialogue is written. ¬¬
What is it about?
Apartheid in South Africa. It's growing on me as I keep reading it. The hate turned into a mild disgust. It's an issue with the way dialogue is written. I'm such an elitist. :lol3:
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Douglas Preston: Credo (originally: Blasphemy)
A new particle accelerator is launched. Just before it reaches full output, the main screen turns black, and a greeting appears instead of visualised data from particle collisions. The mysterious speaker claims to be God who wants to give mankind a new message...
After an enthralling prologue the book turns a bit slow as characters and plots are established, but soon it gains momentum and becomes very suspenseful. There are some terribly cruel scenes towards the end, but most of all it becomes a book about the nature and role of religions - and religious fundamentalism in the USA. I'm not sure if the ending is happy or not, i.e. it gives e something to think about - which is a clear sign for a good book. Recommend! :thumbup:
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Signs and symbols, an ilustrated guide to their origins and meanings, Miranda Bruce-Mitford and Philip Wilkinson(and many more)
Got this book today from my bf as a gift for our first 3 months together and Women's Day.. a great gift, I'm glad I received it! :)
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I have realized i´ve been reading the ¨fire from within¨ of Castaneda for a year now hahahaha. I need to finish that book.
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Because of my useless studies I feel I'll be reading 148 pages of The Book of Lies by Crowley for more than a year :biggrin: :fireevil:.
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I'm reading now Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters.
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Currently reading "La Pelle" (The Skin) by Curzio Malaparte. A very raw picture of the European society and morality, as opposed to the American "values". Everything portrayed during the "liberation" at the end of World War II.
So far, I've had many good laughs and an everlasting sense of uncomfortable certainty. Jeezz, this guy really knows how to put things in its place ... with the delicacy of an Uruguayan central defender, of course. :wacko:
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Hey bookworms,
today I received four books I had ordered recently: One travel guide to Catalonia and one to Barcelona :ninja: as well as Dante's Divine Comedy and a Lovecraft Anthology. I'm starting with Lovecraft because I'm somewhat in the mood for that. I've already re-read some of my favourite stories by him: "Azatoth", "Nyarlathotep" and "Polaris". :thumbup:
Ia! Ia! Cheers!
Markus (ftaghn)
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According to BlackRose's recomendation (that's a joke, of course), I'm reading Nietzsche :biggrin:
Interesting if someone here tried to read "A Complete Guide to Asatru" (or its name was like that) by Raymond Kidwell........ :disgust:
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Lovecraft! Oh yeah!
It's been a while since the last time I read one of this stories (12 years? :huh:). Anyway, I think I'll put him in my "to re-re-read list". :nosweat:
Now reading another book from my new favourite Colombian writer: Juan Gabriel Vasquez. It's called "Los informantes" and it's about the hidden persecution that the German and Italian citizens suffered in our country at the end of WW2.
As usual, it's a very well written story, about the history of history in a forgotten country. I particularly love the sarcasms he uses and the small hints he gives about every day's life in Bogotá.
Check this one out and (if not in Spanish) pray that the translators haven't screwed it up.
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Hey, please, share your thoughts about La Divina Commedia later, will you, Markus, please! :)
I'm reading one of the Discworld books at the moment. :roll:
P. S.: Ftaghn indeed! :lol3:
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Hey, please, share your thoughts about La Divina Commedia later, will you, Markus, please! :)
I'm reading one of the Discworld books at the moment. :roll:
I WILL LET YOU KNOW.
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I only accept personal appearance. :biggrin:
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:roll: :roll: :roll:
Which one are you reading, Lucy?
Cheers!
Markus
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"Reaper Man", where good old Death retires in pension. :) It's especially funny when early in the morning I go "AHHA-HA-haa-HAA-aa!" on the subway. :biggrin:
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I can imagine that scene. :lol3:
Is that the one where those creepy cosmic book-keepers send Death to pension, so noone really dies anymore and life-force accumulates? That would also be the one where, errrmmm... I just say SQUEAK!
Cheers!
Markus
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Yes. But please, don't tell me spoilers, otherwise I'll tell you in advance how Divina Commedia will end. -_- ^_^
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:D I adore Discworld :D And also some other stuff out of the Discworld series are fantastic.... for example a book about cat called Maurice... "The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents"
And I loved "Soul Music"
I stared to read them one after another from the beginning but not always I have time for it... now there are "Pyramids" waiting for me :)
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Yes. But please, don't tell me spoilers, otherwise I'll tell you in advance how Divina Commedia will end. -_- ^_^
I know that already. :nana:
But don't worry, I won't tell you any spoilers, I don't do that. I'm only telling you stuff that you'll understand when you get there and not earlier. I've already said one of those, and I'll add that Azrael impressed me.
In fact I can't tell you any spoilers because it's so long ago that I've read this one, but I guess it would make a nice entry for my re-reading-list.
Cheers!
Markus
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I'm reading Terry Pratchett's series about witches - The Wee Free Men, A Hat Full of Sky and now I am reading the Wintersmith :)
It's pretty cool. Cause I love winter and I like the main character (Don't know her name in English :/ - wikipeding - Tiffany Aching). I like also the other witches... :) especially Esme Weatherwax and the other one... which dies in this book Miss Treason I think... and another one :D brave character of Horace - Cheese on the run :D
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Finished the Wintersmith.
Now I continue in reading "Elegance of the Hedgehog" by Muriel Barbery.
It was a big besteseller around the Europe and I didn't really trust it might be good but now - I quite like it - it is supposed to be funny, a literal comedy but - well people like me does not see it as comedy but as a tragicomedy cause it is so much telling the truth about life.
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Currently reading "The parallel Rambla" by the Colombian writer Fernando Vallejo. This is one of the most misanthropic, anti-religious, atheistic, anti-patriotic, and funny things I've read :roll:
Here is a small quote just to give you an idea: "... And that night the old man couldn't sleep, and he started counting sheep, then soldiers entering a battalion, and finally, cardinals going to a conclave: one son-of-a-bitch, two son-of-a-bitches, three son-of-a-bitches..."
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Let History Judge: The Origins and Consequences of Stalinism by Roy Medvedev
The Rise of Modern Japan by W.G. Beasley
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Now Terry Pratchetts's
Faust Eric. One of the funniest books by him :lol3:
And something for my studies: Marc Stern - Gelebte Jüdische Fest (in Czech of course)
Simon Philip de Vries - Jüdische Riten und Symbole (also in Czech)
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Starting tonight: Virginia Woolf - To The Lighthouse. That woman was a genius.
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Edgar Allan poe's complete stories :cht: (second try... in less than year :blush: )
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Edgar Allan poe's complete stories :cht: (second try... in less than year :blush: )
What has kept you off the first time, Alu?
Cheers!
Markus
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Starting tonight: Virginia Woolf - To The Lighthouse. That woman was a genius.
"applause smile" yes, she's genial. Wish I could write the same way like she does... she's my idol. Enjoy the book :)
To Aluqak - Poe is fantastic! :wOOt:
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Poe is awesome!
But I'm reading something even more awesome:
The Shadow Out of Time, by H. P. Lovecraft.
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What has kept you off the first time, Alu?
Its weight :biggrin: . I started reading it a year ago in Spain, but due to its weight I decided to pack it with the rest of my stuff while moving across the Atlantic (I didn't want to break my back in the process). Then, in the meanwhile I started reading other stuff (see my previous posts), and know, almost a year later, I remember that I still had this one to read. So, here I am starting it all over again.. and yep, it is awesome! :bow:
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"applause smile" yes, she's genial. Wish I could write the same way like she does... she's my idol. Enjoy the book :)
Yes, I agree! And of course I'm enjoying the book, I never even doubted :)
Unfortunatelly, I only read her Mrs Dalloway, hopefully I'll read all of her works sometime in the future.
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I strongly recommend The Waves :) for first reading, when I was about 15, I absolutely didn't get it and finished it in quarter... but now I can read it million times and still feel same great about it!
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I just finished a little tiny book - selection of novels by Faroean writer William Heinesen - called Gamaliel's obsession.
It's so great. :) He's great. Anytime I read his novels I want to live on Faroe Islands. I absolutely adore the way he writes.
Now I can choose amongst another Heinesen or Icelandich Siguradóttir or Icelandic Laxness or someone from Finland.
I read some Israeli/Jewish litrature and still - I have to say that the northern literature tells me much much more.
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I´m reading an occult nobel of Franz Berdon called ¨Frabato the magician¨. It is an interesting novel about some secret moves in the early esoteric Nazi era in Germany. Here is a wiki resume:
¨Though cast in the form of a novel, Frabato the Magician is in fact the spiritual autobiography of Franz Bardon. Frabato was the author's stage name during his career as a performing magician, and it is Frabato who occupies center stage in the novel as well. Set in Dresden, Germany, in the early 1930s, the story chronicles Frabato's magical battles with the members of a powerful and dangerous black lodge, his escape from Germany during the final desperate days of the Weimar Republic, and the beginning of the spiritual mission which was to culminate in Bardon writing his classic books on Hermetic magic. More than a novel, Frabato the Magician is itself a work of magic which gives insight into Bardon's other books as well as revealing the dark occult forces which lay behind the rise of the Third Reich¨
Here is the link where you can download the book:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/301829/Frabato-The-Magician-
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"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson. I ate it in 2 days.
Now I am reading second part: "The Girl Who Played with Fire".
There was written on the cover by someone that it's like drug. And he was right. I hesitated really long until I decided to start to read this "bestseller". I would like to say that it's fantastic and it is but in some ways it shows so much about the problem which news, papers, parliaments, police and whole society keeps quiet. Everyone knows this is happening in every second but simple people (I mean not in police, normal fair people like or you..) use to push out of their mind cause it's not nice to think of these and important people do not wish to solve that cause they are the consumers of this "industry" also. Seldom, they talk about it with disgust meanwhile they are doing the same. But rather they shut up not to make this problem too visible.
I got a very deep relationship to the one of the main characters - called Lisbeth Salander. I had never seen such an accurate describtion of my personality anywhere else. I am her and she's me. Sounds strange but if You read that... and know my past - You would understand.
I would not recommend this book to people with sensitive stomach. Cause it talks very openly about
physical torture on women
sexual abuse and torture on women
black (protitute) sex industry
men who hate women
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I forgot to tell why I like this books so much - the assholes always get punished.
At least somewhere when in reality not.
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Just starting Pamuk's - Snow
So far, so good. I really like how this guy writes, and this particular book has a special taste that brings you to some uncomfortable places: the east-west and religious-atheist dichotomies ... but told from an atheist-Muslim point of view :unsure:
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I'm bit envious, cause I tried to read Pamuk and his way of writing didn't really fit me much, but maybe it wasn't the right novel in the right time. So I plan to try at least some of his other novels later again. :)
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I've only read The White Castle from Pamuk so far.
I hope to get time to read some more from him soon... But with this load of research and summer work I foolishly left for the last month of my holiday... Oh god... :ninja:
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Selected Tales by Edgar Allan Poe. Love it. Love him. Right now, he's my second favourite author. Right after Mrs. Woolf :biggrin:
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1984, George Orwell.
For long time I wanted to read it, but didn't until now. I looked for it in the library but it was not there :blink:. Past week I saw a second-hand and not-so-new books market, and found the book for 4 €, so I decided to buy it.
I've read 1/3 of the book, and I think it's really interesting for now :ninja:
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Oh, 1984 is great, but :afaid: Have a nice reading, Luthy!
I'm reading "101 questions your cat would ask its vet - if your cat could talk" by Dr. Bruce Fogle. Fantastic! :lol3: I got it from my mom as a b-day present. I wonder why I got all things connected to cats? :blink: Everyone clearly knows that I'm SLIGHTLY addicted. :biggrin:
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1984 is an amazing book. I loved it. Finished it in like 3 hardcore reading sessions. :biggrin:
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More than half a book in two hardcore sessions. Perhaps tomorrow or the next I'm able to write about it again :nana:
PS. Really interesting right now. Sometimes one must read the classics that have influenced so many works (literature, cinema, tv...) to understand them. And HOW BAD an influence may be (thinking in the :starwars: reality show named "Big Brother" :ninja: ).
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Selected Tales by Edgar Allan Poe. Love it. Love him. Right now, he's my second favourite author. Right after Mrs. Woolf :biggrin:
1984, George Orwell.
You girls are reading really good stuff there :thumbup:
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1984 read. I think I'm going to comitt suicide...
In spite of that, I think it's a really good book. It makes think, pessimist as it may be. And I've been able to track some references to it in other books, movies and TV series.
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Yeah, it's terribly depressing. But surely a good description of totalitarian regimes.
Cheers!
Markus
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Yup. I don't value a book for how happy it makes me, but for how it moves me, in one way or another. Of course, before reading the book I already knew some of the plot, or at least what it was about... But this didn't prepared me for its end. I was (and am) thinking about it a lot afterwards the finish of the reading, and that's a good thing.
Btw... I don't know if any of you watched a good sci-fi series called "Babylon 5". I have watched all its 5 seasons for second time (the first one I watched it when showed in the TV, several years ago, and now I've watched it in a row, from Internet). Just when finishing it I re-read "The Lord of the Rings", and I realized how many relations were between both fictions (of course, not by chance). But the next reading has been "1984", and I've seen several very direct relations too! (one of them, the "Minipax" thingy, and other very important facts).
I like to discover the influences between fictions I like (be it a book, a movie, a TV series...).
PS. And, of course, I'd like to torture and kill the first person who had the fantastic idea to create an awful reality show related with the book... "Big Brother"... How they have corrupted the book... GRRRRRR!!!! :ninja: :ninja: :ninja:
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fter Niemi's book I got from the library a book I have been interested in since my early childhood
- Otfried Preussler's "The Satanic Mill/The Curse of the Darkling Mill (originally: Krabat)" (In Czech it's The Sorceror's Apprentice - and I like this name best!)
And all I have to say that it's great stuff. I read some horror/thriller books but this "fairytale for adults" sometimes scared me more than the others.
And actually it has great backround too cause it comes from a legend of Lusatian Serbs. Very interesting!!!
And Czechs even made a children movie on it :o :o
Read more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Satanic_Mill
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Some old Croatian renaissance literature. Not too bad, better than the medieval literature I was struggling with the whole first semester :lol:
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I am now reading a book "Sidra Noach" from Czech Jewish author David Jan Novotný. It's a new book (out now) and it seems quite good to me so far.
It's connected with the floods which happend in Czech Rep. in 2002 (it was so called: thousand-year water). And this line connects a bunch of people and we watch their thoughts, lives...
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Pamuk's Snow: done! Really, really good stuff. TheOne, I think you a gonna like this one too.
Now beginning to read The Double by my all time favourite Fyodor Mikhaylovich ... :unsure: (well.... Dostoyevskiy). So far, I can only say one thing: strange!... very strange.
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Hi.
I must confess that i never been a great book reader. Even at university, i took the title without reading a whole book...and i studied Politics!
But, as we´re getting older, we must care health, and i started cycling...on a static-bike (i dont know if is correct in english...).
So, in my cycling sessions, sometimes i see something on tv, in others make newspaper´s puzzles...and when i´m bored with them, i read books: Some Tom Sharpe´s, books about inquisition, Crusaders...and now Scandinavian Sagas.
I discovered them last year when we went to Iceland in Easter.
Sagas are tales about ancient Scandinavian or German history. They are based in oral tradition and usually being wrote in the Middle Ages. They mix reality and fiction, and could be written in prose or verse.
I started reading Snorri Sturluson´s "Younger Edda", to learn a bit the world of the nordic myths and their verses, and after that, i´ve read "Bosi´s Saga", the first one i found. i must say that is not easy to find Sagas in spanish, but i found two of them!!!!!
"Bosi´s saga" is about Bosi and his friend´s Herrauðr´s adventures seeking a vulture´s egg inscribed with golden letters. Is a very-very-easy-to-read book; it has no more than 60 pages, and lots of explanations on each page. The particularity of this book is that they are three scenes with explicit sex, something strange on Middle Ages literature.
Now i´m with puzzles again; after that, Eirik the Red´s Saga and the Greenlanders Saga are waiting me.
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Hey JR!
Sagas are great! I've only got the chance to read a small compilation of Icelandic sagas, which I bought in Spain btw. The book is called "La saga de Fridthjóf El Valiente y otras sagas islandesas" from Miraguano Ediciones. I got in the Feria del Libro in Madrid and while buying it, I talked to one of the guys from the editorial house. They have small collection of them (about 8 books of real sagas) and apparently, they are going to translate some more (there one or two more books coming, he said). May be you can find more info in their website: www.miraguano-sa.es
Good reading everyone! :thumbup:
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Hey JR!
Sagas are great! I've only got the chance to read a small compilation of Icelandic sagas, which I bought in Spain btw. The book is called "La saga de Fridthjóf El Valiente y otras sagas islandesas" from Miraguano Ediciones. I got in the Feria del Libro in Madrid and while buying it, I talked to one of the guys from the editorial house. They have small collection of them (about 8 books of real sagas) and apparently, they are going to translate some more (there one or two more books coming, he said). May be you can find more info in their website: www.miraguano-sa.es
Good reading everyone! :thumbup:
Hey Aluqak!!
I have several Saga´s references taken from here:
http://islandia.foroactivo.com/sagas-islandesas-f8/
...but my particular bookseller does not get me any...the two i´ve got were bought in a bookshop in the capital ... I hope to have luck with the rest. For now I have no hurry.
Cheers! :drunk:
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Hey JR :)
Indeed, sagas are wonderful. :) How do You like Havamal and Voluspa?
The Greenlanders saga is nice... We have some nice books about that - but as I checked out they are not from English - but the books originate in here (like the collection of northern ballads - they are pretty fantastic) - unfortunatelly I don't know that the collection would be translated to English :( or any other language.
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I've just readen Solaris, from Stanislav Lem. A classic I had to read... And pretty good. I know why it's a classic now :cht:
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Hey JR :)
Indeed, sagas are wonderful. :) How do You like Havamal and Voluspa?
The Greenlanders saga is nice... We have some nice books about that - but as I checked out they are not from English - but the books originate in here (like the collection of northern ballads - they are pretty fantastic) - unfortunatelly I don't know that the collection would be translated to English :( or any other language.
I found very interesting both, but specially Havamal.
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Beowulf for my English class. :D
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Beowulf
:bow: That's what I call fun reading!
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The Odyssey by Homer is an awesome read. Symphony X made a song about it too.
The Towers of the Sunset by L.E. Modesitt, Jr. is one of my favs.
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J. R. R. Tolkien - The Book of Lost Tales, Pt I. :)
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Just finished "Greenlanders Saga", now is Eirik The Red´s time.
Cheers!
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So how did You like it Jo Ta? :)
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Oh yeah. Even more than tales, previous explanations are very-very interesting. You know, the context, and all that things that make Sagas more understanding. Sometimes remind me the Bible with all this genealogy !!!
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:lol: Well You are right, that surely reminds me of that too :nosweat:
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Pavao Čuturić, some Croatian story from the romantic period. Nothing special, rather boring *yawns*
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Richard Dawkins - The Selfish Gene
Christopher Hitchens - God's Not Great
Oscar Wilde - The Importance of Being Ernest
Also, from time to time: Haruki Murakami - What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
I've discovered audiobooks and I think I'm in love. I find it easier to concentrate, especially regarding polemic literature, when I hear the arguments, preferably while playing some reflex-heavy game (something with cars whizzing by, for instance). If I try to read something like that, I take a break every now and then to argue with myself. Or just give up. I need to multitask, otherwise I get bored.
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Matija Mažuranić - Pogled u Bosnu (engl. A Glance Into Ottoman Bosnia) *sighs*
@Nighthawk: Have you read Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion? Is it any good?
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@Nighthawk: Have you read Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion? Is it any good?
I have.
Well, it depends. It's definitely a good read :)
As for what the book sets out to do:
1) If you're a firm theist (or deist, or any kind of adherent to the idea of the supreme), chances are Dawkins' aggressive approach will put you off. His arguments might bounce off, good though some of them are, if for no other reason than because he's unapologetic in his firm denial of the validity of faith in a higher power. Given a chance, he'll explain why that's not a valid option.
2) If you're a wavering borderline atheist, there's a good chance he'll push you over to our godless side. We have cookies ;D
3) If you're an irrational atheist (and by that I mean not atheistic because you believe Reason demands it, but because), he gives a good case why you're as wrong as firm theists.
4) If you're a rational atheist, he's preaching to the choir but gives a few good examples of arguments theists use to give validity to their claims and offers a few rebuttals.
Now, those are just my predictions that may or may not turn out to be true for some people.
I'd recommend the book no matter what your stance on faith and religion is. If Christians, Muslims and the like can have their say as to why their sets of religious beliefs hold great(er) merit, then it's only fair that we have a chance to explain why reason and why materialism. More books are needed and more patience in explaining.
Patience is hard to find, though. When you see a certain point as obvious, self-restraint is needed in elaborating why it's obvious to those who don't see it as such. Dawkins does a good job trying to explain his views, but he does so from within his value system. Not to the point theists tend to take it, but a certain degree of acceptance must be made in good faith (sic), just so you see the world from his point of view. Which is shorn of everything but the material, because that's the only thing we can witness, manipulate and explain. From that which is blatantly real, he explains why god (or gods) isn't a good idea. Even if they do exist :biggrin:
Sorry for the longish answer. Hope it was useful (http://ntsms.megatherion.com/Smileys/default/smiley.gif)
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We have cookies ;D
I should know :biggrin:
I was interested because I, as a rational atheist, like to see other atheist's view of things, no matter if it's similar to mine or different, so the fact that this book was written from the author's point of view is just a plus, not a minus.
Anyway, thanks for your review, seems interesting. I'll take some time to read it next month, during holidays. Will let you know what I thought about it.
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We have cookies ;D
I should know :biggrin:
Yess, our army grows ever so larger! Soon we shall rule the world! :biggrin:
I was interested because I, as a rational atheist, like to see other atheist's view of things, no matter if it's similar to mine or different, so the fact that this book was written from the author's point of view is just a plus, not a minus.
When I said "the author's point of view" I primarily meant "the rational atheist's point of view", since the way rational materialists perceive the world is incompatible with the irrational spiritualistic view. For them to understand at what point our paths differ (which is the get-go), they need to imagine the author's view of the world. If they smuggle in the standard deus ex machinas, the whole thing fails. Unless they realize what they're smuggling.
If you're interested in books much more personal, I could recommend Hitchens. "God is not great" is, admittedly, the only book of his I've read, but I've read him in Vanity Fair and watched a lot of his TV appearances. He's a bit more personal, though I'm not sure if he'd admit it :biggrin:
Anyway, thanks for your review, seems interesting. I'll take some time to read it next month, during holidays. Will let you know what I thought about it.
Please do :)
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After a very long time I began to read books again..
Right now I'm reading Robert Jordan - The Eye of the World, Book One of THE WHEEL OF TIME
and also Don Miguel Ruiz - The Mastory of Love - A Practical Guide to the Art of Relationship
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That Dawkins stuff sounds pretty good.
I need to get two copies. One for myself and one for my girl. :biggrin:
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Chaim Potok - The Chosen
Interesting reading :) It suprised me - I didn't want it to read cause the title "The Chosen" scared me away - I hate when the Jews do think of them that they are THE CHOSEN ONES, that's so stupid.
But actually it appears the title is meant in a different way - I cannot even say in which way really... but it's not that as I thought. It describes well the difference between chasidic jews and other maskilim for example... :) Nice.
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I'm reading a book that can take ages to be finished... exactly, as long as it's written! My sister is writing a novel, and she is giving to me the chapters as soon as she writes them. Right now, I've read the second one :nosweat: She's very good at writing, she used and use to win a lot of local or small literature competitions, and I think she is finally going for something more important. And I am not only one of the first readers, but a critics too!
If any time her novel is published (it's not easy, but I really think she has the hability), I'll claim being her first critic... thus, being partly the author too! :fish:
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Now, that's fantastic, Luth! Best of luck for your sister.
What is her novel about, if I may ask? When will it be published in English? :biggrin: What do we have to do for a signed copy?
Cheers!
Markus
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:lol:
I won't tell anything else about the novel in the open part of the forum... Of course nobody will ever read that and use it against the author, but I prefer not to say anything in open field :ninja:
About the signed copies, and the English translation, I'm working on that. You'll be the first one to know :insane:
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But of course you may admit that this is another ploy in our struggle for world domination. I mean, everybody knows that we're going for that, and literature is an important stone in the mosaic.
Cheers!
Markus
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I wanted to read something different from the habitual, so i borrowed the book from a friend: The lost symbol - Dan Brown. I started on monday and I have founded very interesting, very fluid and easy to pictured in the mind.
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I always reading several books at the same period of time...I think the book which is focus on is «Orlando furioso» di Ludovico Ariosto by Italo Calvino, of course the Chinese version.
Sometimes I compare different translation with the same book, because different translation provide different version and sometime I need more infomation to cease the confusion made by translated term. I think I read 3 Chinese versions when I got into The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco……If I find the English version maybe I will read it again? I don't know even a little about Italian……
Now I think I met the same problem in «Orlando furioso» di Ludovico Ariosto, I knew a little about Orlando furioso before, but the strange translated terms confuse me again……
Maybe I just make the thing of reading too complicate……
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I'm currently reading Orientalism by Edward Said. Superfluous Postmodernism at its best. :ninja:
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I always reading several books at the same period of time...I think the book which is focus on is «Orlando furioso» di Ludovico Ariosto by Italo Calvino, of course the Chinese version.
Sometimes I compare different translation with the same book, because different translation provide different version and sometime I need more infomation to cease the confusion made by translated term. I think I read 3 Chinese versions when I got into The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco……If I find the English version maybe I will read it again? I don't know even a little about Italian……
Now I think I met the same problem in «Orlando furioso» di Ludovico Ariosto, I knew a little about Orlando furioso before, but the strange translated terms confuse me again……
Maybe I just make the thing of reading too complicate……
Congratulations! :bow: I still can't believe that you are such an expert of European culture. I know much less about Chinese one. :)
Well, The name of the rose is a very hard reading, I guess in every language, because Eco has used so many old languages and concepts. Orlando is the same difficult, and as I understand, you are reading some kind of academical literature? Wow wow wow... :)
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I read The Name of the Rose, and I really enjoyed it. I think the difficult part is not the meaning, but to be able to read all the longs discussions of the characters. But, as I liked the subject of these discussions, it was not hard for me to read it :ninja:
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I read The Name of the Rose, and I really enjoyed it. I think the difficult part is not the meaning, but to be able to read all the longs discussions of the characters. But, as I liked the subject of these discussions, it was not hard for me to read it :ninja:
I only saw the movie but I like it. In my carreer we read a lot of stuff of Umberto Eco but the themes about Theories of Communication.
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Hey Monade,
I suppose it's pretty difficult to translate literature between languages which are as different as Chinese and European languages. I already notice that sometimes nuances and subtleties get lost in translation between German and English. How much more difficult must it be to translate poetry between Chinese and English! But I like your approach to compare several translation a lot. :thumbup!:
Cheers!
Markus
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I read The Name of the Rose, and I really enjoyed it. I think the difficult part is not the meaning, but to be able to read all the longs discussions of the characters. But, as I liked the subject of these discussions, it was not hard for me to read it :ninja:
+1 On that one. I've read it twice, and both times I got pretty much into it. I got dreams about it while I was reading it! :blink:
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What is it about? :unsure: I know that I seem stupid for this question but I never was too much into Eco...
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What is it about?
It's about killing monks and reading forbidden books :ninja:
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It's about killing monks and reading forbidden books :ninja:
Ah yes, Tuesdays (http://www.koalicija.net/hamsterz/Smileys/koulishn/zubo.gif)
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Oh Kris you brought me back to reality :innocent:
I was surprised by previous post. :wOOt:
I think The name of the Rose must be more popular in Europe than in Asia. But I didn't imagine many of you do have read it! It is fascinating, however it's such a thick book :blink:
Kris, the story in The name of the Rose is mainly about several bizarre deaths in an Italian abbey in 1327, interspersed with affairs about religious debates in real history. Ooops my synopsis sucks :blush: But it is a great book. I think this book is a summit of both detective story (well, as Eco said it's a detective story, which does seem to be in a detective story form) and historical story (no doubt :wink2:). Eco is so good at middle age's subject :thumbup: and cheating :wink2:
In Eco's Baudolino, even he declaimed at first that he's a liar, I wondered all throughout the book that where the lies began and where the lies ended.(In this way, a little like Lolita ;)) Inconceivable writer.
Congratulations! :bow: I still can't believe that you are such an expert of European culture. I know much less about Chinese one. :)
Well, The name of the rose is a very hard reading, I guess in every language, because Eco has used so many old languages and concepts. Orlando is the same difficult, and as I understand, you are reading some kind of academical literature? Wow wow wow... :)
Wow the word expert just frighten me :alien:
I learnt a little about European culture from some books in interest :roll-eyes: a bit of academical literature I think, far from enough :unsure:
Thank you. I am flattered. :blush:
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I read The Name of the Rose, and I really enjoyed it. I think the difficult part is not the meaning, but to be able to read all the longs discussions of the characters. But, as I liked the subject of these discussions, it was not hard for me to read it :ninja:
I only saw the movie but I like it. In my carreer we read a lot of stuff of Umberto Eco but the themes about Theories of Communication.
Wow! Theories of Communication :biggrin: I am still waiting for better version of Eco's book in academic theme. The existing Chinese version is horrible :blink:
Hey Markus,
I have sooooooooooo much to say about translating :hop:
It's saying that poem is what lost in translation. So is literature. Maybe whole thought get lost more or less in expressing and translating.
Poetry translation is a big subject. In China there always several versions of the classics, and a lot of versions of famous poet's poetry. I mean, each publisher may have its own Chinese version of Dante,Yeats, Baudelaire and so on. But the Chinese translations' quality doesn't promise well nowaday. Compare several translations is very important and needed. Or you may find the poet you fall in love with one version :wub: seems totally unbearable in other version :tongue: .
As you mentioned German, I recall that when I selected a course about Kant's Kritik der praktischen Vernunft, the Chinese version I choosed drove me crazy :spock: At that time I just thought, between the translator and I, there must be one whose Chinese failed! :cht: Kant's thought and sentences is difficult, and that translator make it worse. It relieved when I turned into other version. :insane:
I think in some extent, to translate philosophy ideas between languages both hurt the language and the philosophy :disgust:
And poetry is something mixed literature and philosophy, and in some places beyond them. So poetry translation is something I think incredible and fascinating :)
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Sounds interesting, thank You Monade! :)
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Sounds interesting, thank You Monade! :)
my pleasure :)
What is it about?
It's about killing monks and reading forbidden books :ninja:
After I finishing my post I found Aluqak had given a more pertinent brief introduction already :thumbup: How can I neglected the forbidden books! :blush:
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An article on Croatian grammars in 18th century.
Interesting, but I don't feel like doing this atm :unsure:
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In China there always several versions of the classics, and a lot of versions of famous poet's poetry. I mean, each publisher may have its own Chinese version of Dante,Yeats, Baudelaire and so on. But the Chinese translations' quality doesn't promise well nowaday. Compare several translations is very important and needed.
This all sounds very interesting, in my country there is usually just one translation that's "accepted" by the broader public and publishers. At many times these are very old translations, they are trying to "retranslate" them from time to time, but they are really difficult to find. I guess it's also different in China because it's such a big country, I don't even know what dialect is "official" from the many spoken ones, how do books get published?
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In China there always several versions of the classics, and a lot of versions of famous poet's poetry. I mean, each publisher may have its own Chinese version of Dante,Yeats, Baudelaire and so on. But the Chinese translations' quality doesn't promise well nowaday. Compare several translations is very important and needed.
This all sounds very interesting, in my country there is usually just one translation that's "accepted" by the broader public and publishers. At many times these are very old translations, they are trying to "retranslate" them from time to time, but they are really difficult to find. I guess it's also different in China because it's such a big country, I don't even know what dialect is "official" from the many spoken ones, how do books get published?
Before Universal Copyright Convention became legally effective there were many old translations :) They still can be find in old book shops, and many of them have been put into electronic libraries :hop:
At that time there were some classical Chinese versions (a kind of literary language used in China for old time)as well. Even there are many dialects in spoken languages, the written languages are relatively fewer. :P
The Chinese Mandarin is official Chinese language, when other languages of Chinese minority nationality are also put into publish ;)
After China joined Universal Copyright Convention there was only one new version at most in term of protection for copyrighted works. Always, those exceed protection for copyrighted works are not in this restrain :wink2:
@Topic
Jorge Luis Borges: Conversations
Review his other works when reading this book :biggrin:
and I am still searching for other versions of Orlando furioso :wacko:
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Monade, I have one personal question for You about the Chinese literature...
Have You ever read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_of_the_Red_Chamber (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_of_the_Red_Chamber)
I tried to many years ago, when I was about 14 or 13 years old but I definitely didn't get it and stopped after about 50 pages.
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Monade, I have one personal question for You about the Chinese literature...
Have You ever read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_of_the_Red_Chamber (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_of_the_Red_Chamber)
I tried to many years ago, when I was about 14 or 13 years old but I definitely didn't get it and stopped after about 50 pages.
OH YES！It's the masterpiece of Chinese literature. I think I screw up my courage to read it in the same age :wink2:
Which version did you read? I think to translate it is a hard issue. Compared with the other 3 in the Four Great Classical Novels in China, Dream of the Red Chamber has much higher literary value. The poems in it are hard to translate. And the sounds, even the parts of Chinese character in the characters' name have meaning and their fate suggestions in it. If I said translation is a difficult thing, to translate Dream of the Red Chamber is nearly impossible :evil2: At least this work won't be easier than to translate Ulises in other language. :wink2:
So that's ok of you to didn't get it in such a young age. :) Many people major in Chinese literature I knew has working on it for life long time. :lol:
There are many versions of Dream of the Red Chamber with annotations be publish every year. Maybe you already knew there is studies of it, probably called Red-ology in English. A complicated book, absolutely wonderful.
I suggest you already know about the whole story :) If you still have interesting in it and want to have a transition to get in it, I recommend this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moment_in_Peking (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moment_in_Peking)
Lin yutang's novel Moment in Peking.
At that time, many Chinese auther's English was as good as- if not better than- their mother tongue. He was one of them. He treasured Dream of the Red Chamber a lot that he wanted to translate it to make the world enjoy it. He ending up with Moment in Peking, which has similar infrastructure and narrative rhythm. That was originated written in English, which he tried he best to imitate Dream of the Red Chamber's feeling. He just couldn't put it in other language.
I'm glad to introduce these thing to you :thumbup:
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Oh, thanks a lot :) Well I think I will have to try to read it again.
We have only one translation to Czech language - and that's already quite old but this is not a kind of literature here that would be translated more times in one century I'm afraid. :-\
The books look like this:
(http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQORXnnbdAWRERpriy9-l572-D21BrRpSgbza3h3xJOn-cXpbmg) (http://www.antikbuddha.com/photos/11633.jpg) (http://www.antikbuddha.com/photos/11634.jpg)
I'll look for it with my next visit in the municipal library :)
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Oh, and thanks a lot for the suggestion too! :wub:
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That's my pleasure :wink2:
I have to say the Czech version is nicely designed! :wOOt: I'm not sure where they chose these title pictures from, but these suited every parts perfectly :thumbup:
Thank you for showing these. :wub:
Moment in Peking is a historical novel covered turbulent events in China from 1900 to 1938 , while Dream of the Red Chamber was written in the middle of the 18th century during the Qing Dynasty. They are different in age and content, but spirit is alike :)
Enjoy :wub:
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I'll tell You when I finish them! (I mean, finish the reading of them :lol: )
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Moment in Peking is a historical novel covered turbulent events in China from 1900 to 1938
I HAVE read it at least 5 times, and I ADORE it. I didn't know about the story of the novel. :blink:
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I'll tell You when I finish them! (I mean, finish the reading of them :lol: )
I'd love to :wub:
Moment in Peking is a historical novel covered turbulent events in China from 1900 to 1938
I HAVE read it at least 5 times, and I ADORE it. I didn't know about the story of the novel. :blink:
WOW！at least 5 times! :blink: :blink: :blink:
Yes, Moment in Peking is no doubt a historical novel. In this way it was different from Dream of the Red Chamber. In Dream of the Red Chamber, that when these stories took place isn't a such important affair.
In my memory, Lin yutang wrote something about that on the preface of original version. I found it out from the internet:
"
TO THE BRAVE SOLDIERS OF CHINA WHO ARE LAYING DOWN THEIR LIVES THAT OUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN SHALL BE FREE MEN AND WOMEN THIS VOLUME WRITTEN BETWEEN AUGUST 1938 AND AUGUST 1939 IS HUMBLY DEDICATED.
"
The early twentieth century of China is such chaotic years. Writing that done as a classic background novel is a great job.
Having read it for 5 times! WOW you must be very familiar with the modern history of China. :thumbup:
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Actually, my grandma had it on the bookshelf among her books. :) This is one of the books I've re-read many times. Hm...Goes and takes the book in hand yet from her own bookshelf
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Nor reading this:
(http://www.e-steve.co.uk/Jo/Discworld/Images/Feet%20of%20Clay.jpg)
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Finished it about week ago or so... now reading stuff for school - I will need to do a seminary work on it and present it in front of the other students.
It's Yiddish Civilisation by Paul Kriwaczek:
(http://img.tesco.com/pi/Books/L/36/9780753819036.jpg) Czech version looks like this: :) (http://www.slovart.sk/buxus/images/obalky_velke/CZ7119.jpg)
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Seems like an interesting reading, Kris. The covers look beautiful, too!
Cheers!
Markus
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I'm sorry... but...
:roll:
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What do You find funny about it? :blink:
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You arrived too late... A weird wizard made some changes with words, and instead of saying "A", it appeared "B". Unluckily, Notessomes made the wizard stop a few time before you joining us today :fish:
PS. I that post, it appeared
"Life long and prosper
Mr. Spock"
instead the "Cheers, Markus".
:lol3:
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Borrow some books from school library just now :whistle:
Fromm Erich Escape from Freedom
I became interested in Fromm's thought from the course Marxism in the World. Yesterday I finished its exams but I still want to some books on it.
Faust
want to read it again :bow:
Fang Bi (Mao Dun) Norse mythology ABC
A surprise when I searched for Faust. I didn't know this writer had edited such a book. It seem to be a great one to review these story. :wOOt:
Stefan Zweig Chess
I like Zweig so no more explaination :biggrin:
For the winter holiday I could keep these until March, I am selecting my holiday storage :lol3:
Some books I have still not find, I will go there again after my finals finished :btfly:<<<let me try this :lol:
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Currently reading Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhyss for English, and The Modern Middle East by Mehran Kamrava for History.
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Currently re-reading "La ciudad y los perros (title that was horrible translated to English as The time of the Hero :disgust: )" by the last Nobel Prize laureate, Mario Vargas Llosa
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(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__HpgSiJ0hp8/TBLjLiuX7CI/AAAAAAAAAMY/2oUmd3-BvP8/s1600/runemarks.jpg)
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Looks like fun, Kris! do you enjoy it?
Cheers!
Markus
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Yes - I am reading quite slowly cause it is in English but I like it. It is from that author who wrote the novel Chocolate - later there was based a movie on it with Johny Depp and Juliet Binoche :)
I like Chocolate novel a lot so when I saw this while working at the bookshop I bought it - got to it only now though. But I already found out there's Czech translation so I want to buy it too ... cause some words I really do not understand - seem to me as some slang only and cannot find anywhere what does it mean.
I can send You the book later to read it :) I think it's going to be awesome :)
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Oh, slang in original books! That's really a challenge - hard to understand but highly interesting once you've got the hang of it. Yeah, comparing to the translation helps. Sometimes it's enough to read the unknown words out loud - when it's just dialect this will help you to understand. But when it's really you don't have a chance unless you've found some really good online dictionary.
Wow, what an offer! Yeah, sure, I'd love to borrow it. I can just take it home in August. :)
Cheers!
Markus
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(http://www.leqtor.com/static/covers-puntuals/El-cementiri-de-Praga.png)
Prague's Cementery, from Umberto Eco. No, it has nothing to do with the fact I'm going to Prague :lol3:
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:roll:
How do You like it? So far I have never read anything by Eco... but they say it's good tough quite a lot complicated by the way he writes.
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I've just started reading it, I can't give an opinion yet. But I've already read some Eco books (The name of the Rose, Baudolino, The Focault Pendulum), and I like him :innocent:
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I finished the book Runemarks. It's actually very sad to me somehow....
But there are certainly a things to remember. :)
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Markus, have You got the book? I sent it on Monday.
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Indeed, Kris, that package was from you! :wOOt: :wub:
There was a package in the mail that arrived last Thursday but I wasn't at home. Due to Pentecost, today ways my first chance to fetch it. Thank you so much! It would have been very kind if I could have taken it back home from Prague, but you've even sent it to me.
Thank you very much. I'm really looking forward to reading it - at a first glance it looks very interesting indeed.
Cheers!
Markus
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I'm glad it arrived fine :)
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I've just started reading it, I can't give an opinion yet. But I've already read some Eco books (The name of the Rose, Baudolino, The Focault Pendulum), and I like him :innocent:
I also like Eco. Even can say he's one of my fave writers.
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Peter Høeg's "The Quiet Girl"
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My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk.
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Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
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Joanne Harris: Runemarks
Oh Kris, this one is really so much fun! There's an author who has obviously read the Eddas. So many allusions woven into the text that you will recognise only when you know the old stories. You know how much I like deciphering stuff like that on my own, before the author reveals the solution, so I'm enjoying this a lot. Like the criss-cross-scars on Lucky's lips or the fact that he's threatening Maddy with arrow and bow at first. Wandering One-Eye was simple, of course. :)
Thank you very much!
Cheers!
Markus
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Oh I am glad You like it! :) I thought so! I enjoyed exactly the same about it! :)
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Looks like I will need to read Runemarks too.. the way you rite about it, it makes it sound very promising :)
Robert Jordan: The Wheel of Time, book five - The Fires of Heaven
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I can really recommend it. :thumbup: It's a very fast reading, though - I started it just yesterday and read 150 pages before finally going to sleep.
Oh, what I also like is that the author is being quite creative with the Nordic stories without twisting them. She has found a way to do so by adding stuff, but leaving the traditional core intact.
Cheers!
Markus
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Hey folks,
last Saturday I finished "Runemarks". Oh well... finishing an enjoyable book always leaves me somewhat glum because it's like leaving friends. I didn't find the ending overly sad; it would have been a bit cheesy without this trace of mourning. And Sugar becoming the new <N.N.> is just hilarious, isn't it? :roll:
Thanks again, Kris - I'll bring the book back home soon!
Cheers!
Markus
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"Approaching the Snow Queen" by Yevgeniy Golovin.
And I'm not sure if he is sane.
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Siren, is that You?
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Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien - in this edition. (http://www.harpercollins.co.uk/Titles/38091/the-lord-of-the-rings-j-r-r-tolkien-9780261103252) In English. :ninja: Hell my personal vocabulary is very very very weak. And I am only in the Prologue.
I'd love to buy this one: http://www.tolkien.co.uk/titles/47957/the-legend-of-sigurd-and-gudr%C3%BAn-j-r-r-tolkien-9780007317240 (http://www.tolkien.co.uk/titles/47957/the-legend-of-sigurd-and-gudr%C3%BAn-j-r-r-tolkien-9780007317240)
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The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly.
It's a strange book. Imho not a typical fantasy. The author himself is Irish and well known for his "mystery" (detective) books about Charlie Parker.
This is of course a different kind. Lot of it is based on folk tales like Red riding hood, Snowhite and Rumpelstiltskin - on whom is based the main "badass" character The Crooked Man.
In the beginning I thought (and the plot on the cover make it look like that) it's a children's book but now I would defnitely not put it in a child's hand even if he/she would be around 12yo.
I have to say that The Crooked Man really give me creeps. It's a really sick character.
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Currently reading The Last Wish, a collection of fantasy short stories by Andrzej Sapkowski.
The Witcher series of video games is based on the works of this author, and to be honest, I'm enjoying the books as much as I enjoy the games.
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"The Street of the Four Winds" (http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_King_in_Yellow/full#THE_STREET_OF_THE_FOUR_WINDS) from "The King in Yellow" by Robert W. Chambers. Just a quick short story that the cat lovers among you might like a lot. :)
Cheers!
Markus
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:-) After long time when I finally have it at home I read again:
(http://www.knihy-zabrana.cz/4000-3687-large/j-r-r-tolkien-hobit-ilustrovany.jpg)
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And soon you'll be able to watch in the cinema :whistle:
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Well, not exactly soon :D
As I saw the trailer, I am pretty interested how they will manage to make the movie...
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Alamut by Vladimir Bartol.
This is a really good book. :cht:
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Hey folks,
recently I've read the "Breach" trilogy by Patrick Lee. Well-done science fiction with a lot of suspense, the right rhythm of riddles and solutions, some interesting ethical question in the end and a certain feeling to it. Good stuff!
Also read "A Colder War" by Charles Stross (http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/stories/colderwar.htm). Imagine the cold war not being only about nukes but also about Lovecraftian horrors. If you enjoy :cht: this short novelette may be worth reading for you.
Cheers!
Markus
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I'm currently reading Swedish Death Metal by Daniel Ekeroth. A great documentation of the history of Death Metal in there, including a few chronicles about a certain late-1980's youngster we all know as Chris. Hell, it covers all the stuff he did up to his second or third album, not to mention his anecdotes about his first gig.
I'll spoil this part of you, but the way he described it is way too funny not to comment on; it apparently happened at a youth center, where the audience consisted of five metalheads that headbanged and fifteen immigrant kids who were really confused as to what the hell was happening. :lol3:
The best part? I found in York University's Library. I'm so glad I'm here at York. :biggrin:
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Dear Dr. One,
thank you for pointing our attention to that specific item, which is of the greatest interest to our common field of studies!
Yours sincerely
Markus
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Just finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows for the 3rd time, I think :)
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I just finished this awesome book :) It's years since something got me so deeply.
(http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176142284l/596751.jpg)
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Has it, Kris? :) What was so touching about it, if I may ask?
Cheers!
Markus
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Yes :)
When I read the first 2 pages (first novel is called The Bamboo Sword) I was in the tram and I had close the book because it was so sad I would start crying. :)
There are (except one or two I think) stories about samurai describing situation when their time was almost over. After centuries of wars the Tokugawa family brought Japan to "peace" and lot of the samurai were not needed anymore - not as warriors. They simply lacked the positions for them. So the samurai became ronin ("unemployed" samurai) and they had to start settling into mundane jobs - llike merchants etc. It had to be hard for someone being born and brought up in war to suddenly lack the fight and "become peaceful". I mean, it's not anything rare - look at the veterans from WWI and WWII - after they came back from war, nobody employed them. The same happens to people for example in U.S. Army - the soldiers come back from Iraq or Afghanistan and when they are out of service - nobody employes them.
So each story describes a life of such people. Samurai looking desperately for a position to feed his family... and such. It's very sad reading if You ask me. The author describes it very well and there isn't lack of the samurai culture & ethiquette description - I want to say that I do not of course believe that all samurai would be noble honorable men, always there are better and worse, good and bad - but by the original ethiquette they were supposed to be the righteous, honorable, noble ones. And with exception of those few stories about some other caste people than samurai - the story describes such a life of lower or higher rank samurai with their families - with all his/their mistakes. But You simply cannot start feeling sorry. Noble person holdin service for years and then - turning into a poor person not being able to feed own family not cause of being bad - but because of lack of jobs.
Each story is very touching. You can see how the huge dominion is filled with intrigues and such. Stories are quite short but it's enough. Usually they have no good or bad ending.
I like the fact how Fujisawa shows the samurai (also 2 his other books are like this - based on this two books two movies were made - awesome ones!) as people, like each other - with their everyday life, family problems, survival problems - not just as a killing machine which is so very favourite in our time...
"How are things with your wife?" Hankuro asked.
"Not so good," Jinnai replied with a scowl. "When I got home last night she knew right away that I was drunk and barred the door."
"What did you do?"
"I just lifted the whole thing off its runners. Women can be so childish sometimes."
For example - this part made me laugh. Given away from the context it might seem rude but when You read the whole story it's bit funny cause You know that Jinnai is not a bad man who would be hurting his wife, they just lack money and have a lot of children so both are not satisfied - he goes sometimes for a drink with his friend and the wife does not like it of course but it is not any major problem.
I loved the book so much that I immediatelly spent the money I did not want to spend and bought it on Amazon. Hope it arrives home this week.
Every single story made me hold my breath until the end even thought it's not any action movie :) AND the author is absolutely brilliant with describing intimate things. So... gently nothing explicit which would disgust You. Only few authors do that. Now it's so modern to be explicit and also describe sex and intimate stuff the most disgusting way it's possible cause - I do not know - is it cool or what? Fujisawa's literature lacks this horrible thing and does not insult women and their dignity and does not make intimate things profane.
I can surely say already now, that this is going to be one of few on the list of the best books of my lifetime. :)
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Lately I finished Solaris by Stanislaw Lem. I liked that book very much... if Your mind diggs into it - You can definitely reach some kind of other view on the things. :)
Now reading The Thanatonauts by Bernard Werber... next book on the list is Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles. :) As You already know NASA decided to call the Curiosity's landing on Mars Bradbury's Landing... so during the chat with JPL while they were broadcasting the news I decided that this book is definitely something I should read and I am sorry I missed that one so far even though I read so much of other Bradbury's stuff. :)
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I recently finished a compilation of H.P. Lovecraft stories. Quite good, but the man's stuff is definitely heavy reading, even if the story is only a couple of pages long.
Right now I switched to Snow by Orhan Pamuk.
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How do You like it? I have to say so far I wasn't able to get into Mr. Pamuk's work... I tried few books but non of them got me so after some pages I put them away.
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I dig it. It's enjoyable. It also reminds me a lot of certain someone.
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I dig it. It's enjoyable. It also reminds me a lot of certain someone.
I know what You mean :)
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Plato "Dialogues"...
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Harry Potter VI. :unsure:
I've never seen the films, and now we've watched I-V because we had those on DVD. Now I've jumped on the next book... this stuff is still so contagious as it's been five? years ago.
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Not bad, Lucy! Enjoy your reading. Are you reading translations or the original?
Cheers!
Markus
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A combination of Michael Sipser's Introduction to the Theory of Computation, North American Popular Music by Glen Appel, David Hemphill and Matthew Vanderwoude (the last is also a pretty awesome professor), Computer Organization and Design by David Patterson and John Henessy and The C Programming Language by Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie.
Academia doesn't leave me time to read comic books. :ninja:
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For me original Harry is too difficult to understand - Rowling's language I mean. I read translations. Harry Potter is great!
@Lucy - we can talk about Harry if you have some time :)
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Hey Lucy! :-)
Great! I really loved Harry Potter in original language! The Czech translation was well made but somehow... I cannot imagine Hogwarts without the proper sound of British English! :wub:
Next to the stuff I need for studies... It's "Golden Compass" and "Miss Smilla's Sense for Snow" :-) in English, using Kindle :-)
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I've read them (twice) in English too. True: you must imagine the British English when you read. If not, it's not the same :insane:
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With my English it would end with a dictionary (but there is a way..since I remember the Polish version, I can understand more or less, the English one ;) )
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That's quite smart! I mean, you can only expand your language abilities by going to their limits - i.e. read stuff that is a bit too difficult for you to understand without a dictionary or other help (like having read the translation before). :thumbup:
Cheers!
Markus
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unfortunately, I forget the new words very quickly.. :(
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I need to use dictionary too - with some books. Luckily the smartphones are quite a big help. You can search immediately without need to carry a huge dictionary with you all the time.
The Amazon Kindle is even more amazing in this - it has built-in explanatory dictionary - so when you do not know the word you use the cursor to reach it and it shows you the explanation for the word in English (with and example of use) - that's pretty amazing.
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it seems to be usefull! But I don't like reading from pdf/smartphone/e-book reader. It's healthier to read from the *normal* books.
I would like to have a nice bookcase, of course full of good books - I can't find a nice picture of it, but I'm pretty sure, that you know what I mean and you can imagine that yourself :)
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Hm, I don't agree with your opinion fully. I don't find any comfy and healthy to read pdf (or any other such format) from the pc/notebook or smartphone display (it shines). But the old version of the Amazon Kindle is different - its display does not have built-in light which means you have to use outer light to read (like with book), so it is the same like if you were reading books or newspaper.
I always wanted a nice huge library myself. But you know what - I had to move several times and that's what makes you think (and I plan to move in next year again). It's ok if you have 20 books. If you got 200 - it's not that ok anymore. I love printed books, don't get me wrong and I will always want to buy them but if I have to choose between paper book and kindle book in case that I already have that book - for example: in Czech but I do want to read in English - I will not buy the same book in a different language. It takes place (and e-books tend to be cheaper). Also it is good for studying as it allows you to make notes and then it extracts the notes in txt format - so you do not need to rewrite them yourself by hand - that's in my case great loss of time, if you know what I mean :) And then, if you need about 3 books for a lesson - each of 500 pages - and you can have kindle versions instead - then my choice is quite clear. I have to carry quite a heavy bag to school/work already and I do not want to carry external frame pack (the huge travelling backpack which usually alpinists use) everyday ;) I already got damaged backbone well enough.
Still with my favourite book or book I liked a lot in the kindle version, I will want to buy it in the paperback (or hardcover if necessary). End certain kind of books won't ever be made as e-books and other certain kind of books simply have to be printed :)
So I only think that both have its advantages and disadvantages. :)
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I agree with you :-) Sometimes it's better to have an e- version. :-)
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Too much said in few hours... it's not fair :ninja:
Agnes, when I started reading books in non-adapted English, believe me, I had a lot worse English than you. I began with the dictionary on my side, looking at it so often that I very soon grow tired of it. I quickly decided that context works better than dicctionary, except when I really want or need to know the meaning of a word. In fact, apart from NTSMS, reading books that way has been the other way to improve my English :cht:
And, about Kindle... I have it too. I do love the smell, the touch, the sight, the weigh of a paper book, and I'll always love. But I have two problems:
1. Overcrowded bookshelves at not so big home.
2. More than 2 hours per day on train (where I read a lot, of course).
Kindle is really good to be able to carry some hundred books, and be able to get some of them "easily" (mainly in English, as those are not so easy to get). Sight is not tired beucase there's no light, as Kris already say: that's the main goal of electronic ink! Of course the experience of reading is not the same... but it's worth to have!
I will never stop buying books, despite the fact that some day the books will throw me away from home... but having Kindle will delay that moment for some time! :wink2:
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Miladies,
in fact I've been considering a Kindle for a while... I think similar to you: I'm fond of owning books physically and I'll always want to buy printed editions of books that mean something to me. But books that are just for some good entertainment or to get some facts - why not get them as a Kindle edition?
Also, there are nice additional services: Free classics of literature, the translations you mentioned, a free integrated 3G-connection for downloading with the Paperwhite 3G...
Some questions to the Kindle-owners among you:
- The regular Kindles have a black-and-white display and those with colour displays aren't so well to read in bright light, right?
- If so, don't you miss the colours for certain books?
- Can you really read the Paperwhite properly in bright sunshine?
- How do you get your e-books into the Kindle? I don't have wireless LAN at home. Can I download the books with a regular computer and cable them into the Kindle?
- What about other e-book-readers? Kindle isn't the only one... is it the best?
Cheers!
Markus
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Markus... no time to answer now. Wait until the Abend and I'll explain :biggrin:
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Hey Markus,
1) the old versions of Kindle are black & white, yes... the newest version (Kindle Fire, I think?) is backlit (you can choose how strong the light is), even though my friend has got this new version, I cannot share any experiences with it... but it looked nice when I saw it for few minutes. Maybe it is possible to turn the backlight off fully, I am not sure.
2) I do not buy colourful books on Kindle so no, I do not miss it at all, so far
3) I've got no problem with strong bright sunglight/daylight (you can change the fonts usually, the size, the spacing between words, the contrast backround/letters) - darkness is a problem if you do not have the light from outside though. Fortunately I've got my Kindle with the cover which has built-in little lamp. The lamp uses the Kindle battery so you do not need to buy any extra batteries.
4) Amazon sends them via wi-fi or whispernet (3G) to your Kindle, or you can download them and add them to your Kindle via cable - it has the same regular mini USB like cell phones (at least smartphones - it is some time ago since EU unified the USBs for these machines - thank God....). This way you also charge it. I do not have the cable for the Kindle - friend forgot to give me that one so I use my cell phone cable for charging it. If you do not use the wi-fi or 3G much, it can last for few weeks before you need to charge it again :)
5) I do not have any experience with non-Kindle e-readers, but Elena has some other e-reader, Sony maybe or something like that?
Now it's time for Luthy, to share her experience or correcting me :insane:
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Kris said almost all I wanted... I'm too late!! :ninja:
I don't have the paperwhite, either, but I'm pretty happy with my Kindle. It's exactly as a book, regarding the light: is there external bright fantastic shining light? You'll read it perfectly. Is there only a dim light? You'll read it with difficulties. There's no light? You'll knock your head with the wall :fish: In that, the experience is the same than with a paper book, except that a paper book can have different shades of white, and Kindle only has one :evil2:
I don't read colourful books, either: for those, I stick to paper. I use Kindle mainly for too-weighthy books impossible to carry everyday on the train without growing new muscles you were not aware of, and free books you can freely have through Kindle.
If I buy the book in Amazon, I use the Whispernet thingy. If I get by other means, I download it to my device with the cable
And I don't know too much about other devices... Kindle has been the first and, up to now, the only e-book I used. I'm pretty happy with it, though: I only must remind to recharge it from time to time (almost a month without need... and I do read for 2 hours per day!) and thousands of books ready to fit inside that tiny thing...
Even after that, I have to say: paperbooks are the best, do not say good bye to them!! Simply use the one you need best to the moment :nana:
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Thank you very much, miladies! Your answers are very helpful to me. So I'll get myself a Kindle or ask for one as a birthday present in summer. :)
Right now I was reading a cute little short story named "Eldritch Application" (http://www.scp-wiki.net/eldritch-application). It's about the fictitious SCP Foundation, an organisation that tries to lock up dangerous objects or beings. Hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.
Cheers!
Markus
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How do you like your Kindle, Markus? :)
I have just finished "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Flew_Over_the_Cuckoo%27s_Nest_%28novel%29)". Have you read it? I have found it amazing, but very disturbing, it made me really sad. :( It would be great to talk about it!
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Ey Lucy! I read this novel... but so long, long ago, that I remember almost nothing!! Apart that I lasted to realize that the narrator was crazy, and that from that moment I understood the book a lot better... :unsure:
Perhaps I should re-read it someday! :evil2:
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I only saw the movie. I'll check the book though too :)
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George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" saga. Currently starting the second book, "A Clash of Kings".
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I've read the first two... but I don't want to read more. I want to discover in the series what happens... :ninja:
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I've got first two books at home in English and also Kindle version of the first one, yet I haven't managed to read them still.
And I want to read the books and maybe then watch the series.
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I've read the first two... but I don't want to read more. I want to discover in the series what happens... :ninja:
So you're telling me you haven't watched season 3 yet? :ninja:
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I had... But season 3 covers only half 3rd book :ninja:
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Well, I want to get through four (maybe the fifth one) too before season 4 comes up to then not be as shocked as what happened in that one scene and to criticize the show from the point of view of knowing the source material.
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Hey folks,
my Kindle is doing fine and I think I'll feed it with the Cuckoo's Nest so we can chat about it. :)
Cheers!
Markus
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Thanks! :wOOt:
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Hey folks,
the cuckoo's nest is waiting on my Kindle, but for the time being it has to queue after these following two books:
Margarete Wein: Abland. Traumernte aus sieben Jahren (Offland. Dream harvest from seven years). This should have been quite interesting - dream diary entries. But as fascinating or touching or scary these scenes and stories may be - I don't know the author nor does she tell anything about herself, so the dreams stay meaningless for me. A pity!
Christian Morgenstern: Phanta's Schloß (Phanta's Castle). Part of a book with all his poems that I bought as an e-book for less than 2 Euro. :blink: What a find! I already know his amazing "Galgenlieder", where he is doing incredible things with and to the German language. "Phanta's Schloß" is different - also very imaginative but more serious, poetic, philosophic... If you can find a translation in your language, give it a try! If you speak German, go for the original!
Cheers!
Markus
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Vladimir Solovyov: A Short Tale of the Antichrist. :evil2:
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Due to immense amounts of schoolwork, I've only recently started on the third book in George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire", "A Storm of Swords".
However, due to one (pretty awesome) university course, I've read Alexander Pushkin's "The Queen of Spades" and "Boris Godunov", Mikhail Dragomarov's "Notes on the Slavic Religio-Ethical Legends", Prudence Jones' and Nigel Pennick's "A History of Pagan Europe", the olden "Lay of the Host of Igor", Alexander Griboyedov's "The Trouble with Reason" and a good bit of a book called "Flesh of the Gods: The Ritual Use of Hallucinogenics" by Peter T. Furst.
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Hey there, folks,
all the Slavic stuff the young One mentioned reminds me of some recent reading of mine:
Jorge Pilay: The Old Gods of Rus.
Recommendable, albeit a bit misnamed. The full title should read "On the Difficulty of Finding the Old Gods of Rus" because you don't really get a lot of information on the ancient Slavic pagan belief system. You don't get a lot of information because there isn't a lot of information! The author explains very well why there isn't much definite to be said. He traces possible connections and parallels to other ancient beliefs as well as remnants of the ancient Slavic paganism in Russian folklore, so he shows a way to reconstruct the old beliefs. However, it is not possible to draw as detailed a picture as we have from Greek, Roman or Germanic mythology.
And, seriously: I will always prefer an honest, profound "We don't really know" to any bold dubious claims. :thumbup: If you can get a copy of this essay, do read it!
Cheers!
Markus
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Hey folks,
me again. So how did I like the "Antichrist"? Worth reading, but far from being great.
This was written at the end of the 19th century and makes two remarkable statements about the 20th century: It would be a century of the last great wars, the worst of them being fought worldwide for cultural dominance. And there would be Asian dominance. Well, Asia's economic power is increasing greatly now, and the 20th century was indeed marked by two terrible great wars. The prediction is wrong in so far as that Asia's rise is coming later than predicted and that the last great war wasn't begun by Japan but by Germany. Still I find this quite remarkable.
The Antichrist is drawn quite interestingly at first: An extremely smart man, a genius, a friend and benefactor of all mankind. A vegetarian, by the way! He brings peace to the world and ends poverty and famine. His only mistake is his great pride, his hubris, that there could be no greater man than him, not even Christ.
However, Solovyov doesn't make enough from this basic idea. His Antichrist remains plain, simple, straight-forward. He has no doubt, no conflict, no real development. Thus he stays pretty bloodless and uninteresting.
Solovyov makes some prophecies fulfill quite interestingly (I have to re-read the Revelation of John in order to check for allusions I might have overseen) while towards the end he seems to lose his delight in writing and just scribbles the remaining prophecies down one-on-one without interpreting them.
I can imagine this to be interesting material for a Therionic opera but it requires some work to turn this into a good plot with good characters (i.e. authentic, interesting, emotionally touching and intellectually challenging).
Cheers!
Markus
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I'm translating (and reading, of course) F. Barrett's "The Magus"... Actually, it is one of the silliest books I've ever seen... Huge sentences and unknowns animal species make the process even longer... I'm really bored )