Literature

[Harakiri]

Wheel of Time is definitely my favourite series. I'm reading it for the third time, so I remember what has happened and can read the books Brandon Sanderson is writing. The release date for the next book is November 13 or something? I'm excited! Only one more book after that one to draw the epic series to an end. :) Robert Jordan tells a wonderful story. :D Brandon Sanderson is supposed to be starting a series too, which looks interesting. After I finish with my very long reading list I'll look into them. :)

I've tried to read the series and I got through the first book and that was it. It's the same with Thomas Covenant. Same with LoTR. Same with Sword of Truth. Me and epic-y LoTR type fantasy don't mix. I love dark fantasy though.

 

I bought The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. Haven't read it yet and with my birthday coming up and more books on the way it more than likely will collect dust for a couple months before I start reading it.

[Lenin64]

I'm not really one to re-read books, but I picked up House of Leaves again. It's just such a great, confusing-yet-not book, even if it is kind of full of its own symbolism about itself which is hilarious. Just gives that descent into madness feel like no book I've read before.

[i_love_burritos]

I'm not really one to re-read books, but I picked up House of Leaves again.Just gives that descent into madness feel like no book I've read before.

 

[bleep] yes. :thumbup:

 

Can anyone give any recommendations on good horror/sci-fi short stories ?

[tripsis]

Just finished reading Battle Royale Novel...

I don't know why but the best things to read, I find, are either Shakespeare or Novels from other countries which have been translated...

 

I hate to say it but I think most literature nowadays fall into two categories; really really dull or really really crap *coughtwilightcough*

Just look at what the most famous book of the past two years is; TWILIGHT. Harry Potter is like... the only good thing out recently, and that just ended!!! #-o

 

But yeah, Battle Royale... I still have to finish Genesis(Undone to USA) by Karin Slaughter.

There are plenty of great books that have come out recently :) But "famous" =/= "good." There are a lot of hidden gems out there, you just have to spend time looking for them, rather than reading whatever popular book is out at the moment. But if you want to talk good and popular, I like Dan Brown's books :P

 

Someone on the thread mentioned Graceling. I read that book, and it was pretty good.

That was me :) Great book. I have the prequel - Fire - sitting at home. I'll start that up in a week or so!

[Serpent Eye]

I just finished reading Columbine by Dave Cullen.

 

Columbine, to me, is best described as a "nonfiction novel," that recounts the events that occurred on, and leading up to, April 20, 1999, when two students -- Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold -- shot and murdered twelve students and one teacher at Columbine High School, in Columbine, Colorado. Twenty-four other students/faculty were injured directly in the attacks, or while attempting to escape the school.

 

As I said, this book is nonfiction. Dave Cullen is a journalist, and he was there on the day of the shootings, and followed the story for many, many years afterward. The book really kept my eyes glued to the pages, and I finished reading its 443 pages in just a few hours' time. The book retells, of course, the tragic points of the murders themselves, but delves deeper by looking at the events prior to the school shooting; the spotlight is shone on the earlier lives of the two killers, a chapter is devoted to explaining the thought-process of what it means to be a true psychopath, and countless stories are told from the point of view of the victims and their families.

 

For some reason, tragedies like the Columbine High School massacre have always been interesting to me, and this book kept staring at me from the bookshelf at my local bookstore. I finally picked it up on a whim, and am glad I did so. I thought I knew a lot about this incident before, but this book really shed a whole new light on it. It was a very emotional read, and I'm not ashamed to admit that it made me tear up at more than one point. It's a thought-provoking and informative book, and I really would suggest it to anyone interested in the subject, although again, it really isn't for the lighthearted (he goes into somewhat graphic detail of the violence that occured, etc.)

[Saru Inc]

Reading is more boring than idk what. OH MY GOD its boring. Just sitting still. Non stop. *shudders*

 

 

I prefer writing, and everyone says I'm an excellent writer, though my grammar tends to be lacking.

 

 

edit: nvm I totally love reading about shootings/serial killers. But I seriously have to walk around while reading them. I've read like 30 in the past month. but those aren't real books, more like documentaries.

[Azvareth]

Reading Ulf Lundell's "Jack" at the moment. Ulf Lundell is like Sweden's answer to Bob Dylan. He started out as a writer though, and wrote Jack when he was in his 20's. Really good book and very much relatable.

[Skull]

Just finished John Green's An Abundance of Katherines. I really enjoyed it, it's cool to read a book by an author that you sort of know what the person is like (He has a YouTube channel and is one of the guys who organized VidCon). Anyways, good book although maybe just a little predictable.

[Lenin64]

Reading is more boring than idk what. OH MY GOD its boring. Just sitting still. Non stop. *shudders*

Do you ever watch television?

[Serpent Eye]

Reading is more boring than idk what. OH MY GOD its boring. Just sitting still. Non stop. *shudders*

Do you ever watch television?

 

+1 :twss:

 

Reading isn't a physical experience, it should be about exercising the mind.

[Nom]

I prefer writing, and everyone says I'm an excellent writer, though my grammar tends to be lacking.

 

Major facepalm.

 

... I've slowed down on the reading lately. Started reading Dune while I was waiting for an oil change, never picked it back up after. Meh.

[nine naked men]

I'm not really one to re-read books, but I picked up House of Leaves again.Just gives that descent into madness feel like no book I've read before.

 

[bleep] yes. :thumbup:

 

Can anyone give any recommendations on good horror/sci-fi short stories ?

 

Dionaea House is an online kinda ARG in the vein of House of Leaves. It's pretty awesome.

 

Also, for Sci-Fi:

I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream, by Harlan Ellison.

The Last Question, by Isaac Asimov.

The Last Answer, also by Asimov.

 

All available to read online. I recommend Stephen Donaldson's The Gap Cycle series, and The Stainless Steel Rat series by Harry Harrison for actual sci-fi books.

[Saru Inc]

Reading is more boring than idk what. OH MY GOD its boring. Just sitting still. Non stop. *shudders*

Do you ever watch television?

 

We don't have tv in my house, my parents cut it off to save money. And when I'm at the computer I honestly don't sit still sometimes i seriously pick the laptop up and walk around and play. Which isn't very efficient.

 

I prefer writing, and everyone says I'm an excellent writer, though my grammar tends to be lacking.

 

Major facepalm.

 

... I've slowed down on the reading lately. Started reading Dune while I was waiting for an oil change, never picked it back up after. Meh.

 

 

Why the facepalm.

[Mr_Adam]

Usually I'm a fast reader, but lately I've been reading at a deathcrawl pace. It took me forever to finally finish The Dark Tower (a couple weeks ago), and although the middle often had me losing interest, I thought the end was really good.

 

Currently I'm reading Dante's Divine Comedy, out of interest and so I can be a pretentious asshat to everyone I talk to :twss:

[EmEss]

There are plenty of great books that have come out recently :) But "famous" =/= "good." There are a lot of hidden gems out there, you just have to spend time looking for them, rather than reading whatever popular book is out at the moment. But if you want to talk good and popular, I like Dan Brown's books :P

 

 

I never read Popular books, unless every one of my friends has and won't stop pestering me to read it.. like what happened with twilight.

 

EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW~ Dan Brown XD

I'm sorry but I've read almost all of his books and... Yeah... I hated them.

Angels & Demons, The Da Vinci Code, Lost symbol... Deception Point... I could barely get through them, thankfully they were all Library books so I didn't waste money...

[Lateralus]

Why the facepalm.

 

People who write well are almost always voracious readers.

[Saru Inc]

Why the facepalm.

 

People who write well are almost always voracious readers.

 

Almost always, not always. The only thing I don't like about reading is having to sit still. And I've read a lot of interesting books and am at a loss for others.

[Range_This11]

Almost always, not always. The only thing I don't like about reading is having to sit still. And I've read a lot of interesting books and am at a loss for others.

Walk laps around your local track while reading. Problem solved.

[Saru Inc]

well currently I'm reading a book about the brain at my job. Only when its slow though, and its not slow often.

[Harakiri]

Why the facepalm.

 

People who write well are almost always voracious readers.

 

I write a ton and I tend to read most of the time more than I watch TV or do anything else with electronics.

 

Reading the newest Vampire Hunter D book and more than likely going to be picking up a bundle of books from B and N for my birthday.

[Nom]

Why the facepalm.

 

People who write well are almost always voracious readers.

 

Almost always, not always. The only thing I don't like about reading is having to sit still. And I've read a lot of interesting books and am at a loss for others.

 

There's that, but I was angling more for the fact that being a good writer and having bad grammatical skills are two contradictory attributes. You might be a good storyteller, but writers write.

[Saru Inc]

Why the facepalm.

 

People who write well are almost always voracious readers.

 

Almost always, not always. The only thing I don't like about reading is having to sit still. And I've read a lot of interesting books and am at a loss for others.

 

There's that, but I was angling more for the fact that being a good writer and having bad grammatical skills are two contradictory attributes. You might be a good storyteller, but writers write.

 

Ok explain to me how I'm not writing? Seriously. Thats like saying "you may love playing tennis. But tennis players are tennis" if I have a problem with my backhand or something. I'm still improving.

Anyways, its more of I was never taught proper grammar, as I was effectively truant from 1st grade to 8th. So most of the basics had already been learned, so I'm really just playing catch up. I mean most mistakes I catch, but for example my teachers say I have problems with tense shifts and run ons/fragments. So...

 

and tbh don't take my tif posting style as any inclination to how I write. I really don't pay attention to the rules when posting, and just throw in a couple commas so I don't get thrown in a fire by the grammar nazis on patrol.

[tripsis]

They're saying that being a good writer is a way of stringing together words in an eloquent and grammatically correct fashion. You can be great at coming up with stories - and even telling those stories - but not great at writing them down with good grammar, proper structure, etc. Being a good storyteller does not automatically make you a good writer.

[Saru Inc]

No I completely understand, simply disagree.

[i_love_burritos]

Don't you also have to "sit still" while writing ?