Literature

[Harakiri]

http://iwl.me/

 

 

What authors are you like? I don't hold any validity to it's findings, but still fun.

 

After trying different pieces, I'm Tolkien, Hemingway, and Gertrude Stein. Not sure who the last person is, nor how the heck I write at all like the previously two. Interesting....

 

Apparently my horror stuff is like Stephenie Meyer, my Pokemon fan fiction is like Dan Brown, and the fantasy novel I've been working on is like Jonathan Swift (though I don't know who he is).

 

God almighty, I hope I don't write as bad as Stephenie Meyer!

[Zygimantas]

Haha, I put in a little story I did for school last year and I got Stephen King :lol:

[ThurinEthir]

http://iwl.me/

 

 

What authors are you like? I don't hold any validity to it's findings, but still fun.

 

After trying different pieces, I'm Tolkien, Hemingway, and Gertrude Stein. Not sure who the last person is, nor how the heck I write at all like the previously two. Interesting....

 

Apparently my horror stuff is like Stephenie Meyer, my Pokemon fan fiction is like Dan Brown, and the fantasy novel I've been working on is like Jonathan Swift (though I don't know who he is).

 

God almighty, I hope I don't write as bad as Stephenie Meyer!

Haha I put in a 55 word story I had to write for English last year (the whole thing is basically a sexual innuendo...or is it?) and I got Meyer. Most of my other writing gets me Orwell (!) or J.D. Salinger, which is somewhat strange since my English teacher in 9th grade was the only one in the school that didn't force us to read The Catcher in the Rye.

Then I also put in an assignment that was to write something as poorly as possible and I got Dan Brown. Ahahaha.

I started A Game of Thrones (first book of A Song of Ice and Fire) a few days ago...I haven't really gotten to anything yet but I guess it's good. Otherwise I'm forcing myself through Guns, Germs, and Steel for my AP Bio homework (it's an interesting book, but I have to keep a journal tracking my thoughts from reading and that kinda kills it). I also have to read some book about the last years of the Roman Republic for Latin. Fun...<_<

[Saru Inc]

Ok yea that site is crap. I just put in a decent quote from Ernest Hemingway, and it said the [bleep]ing writer was Anne Rice? The vampire lady?

[Serpent Eye]

Finished reading The Lost World tonight. God, I love that book. Dinosaurs eating people are win. :thumbsup:

 

What should I read next? :unsure:

 

- - -

 

Ok yea that site is crap. I just put in a decent quote from Ernest Hemingway, and it said the [bleep]ing writer was Anne Rice? The vampire lady?

 

Let it be noted that in 2004, Anne Rice devoted all of her future books "to the Lord," and as such, has stopped writing anything to do with vampires. Now she writes about angels and that sort of thing, her two latest published books being about the life and times of Jesus.

 

:cry: :thumbdown:

 

R.I.P. Lestat.

 

- - -

 

Edit: Also, for the sake of science and discovery, I Copy+Pasted everything above from my post into that website, and it compared it to Stephen King. I'm sensing a trend...

[Hawks]

Pasting in most of my blog entries it says Cory Doctorow, whoever the heck he is.

 

Literature says P.G. Wodehouse (for dialog) & J.R.R Tolkien (for narratives)

 

Copy pasting this post up to here, it says: Cory Doctorow. Again, I have no idea who he is.

[Satenza]

Finished reading The Lost World tonight. God, I love that book. Dinosaurs eating people are win. :thumbsup:

 

What should I read next? :unsure:

 

- - -

 

Ok yea that site is crap. I just put in a decent quote from Ernest Hemingway, and it said the [bleep]ing writer was Anne Rice? The vampire lady?

 

Let it be noted that in 2004, Anne Rice devoted all of her future books "to the Lord," and as such, has stopped writing anything to do with vampires. Now she writes about angels and that sort of thing, her two latest published books being about the life and times of Jesus.

 

:cry: :thumbdown:

 

R.I.P. Lestat.

 

- - -

 

Edit: Also, for the sake of science and discovery, I Copy+Pasted everything above from my post into that website, and it compared it to Stephen King. I'm sensing a trend...

 

Actually I read in The Guardian she has turned away from Christianity now.

Here.

[Satenza]

I finished Demons/The Possessed by Dostoyevsky last week, which was another excellent book. I believe I have read all of his novels now.

I read The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Short Stories, Fiesta: The Sun Also Rises, The Old Man and the Sea, Death in the Afternoon and A Moveable Feast all by Hemingway over the last few weeks.

The Myth of Sisyphus again by Camus.

Finnegan's Wake by Joyce, which was a love/hate experience.

 

A man after my own heart. Though I do notice a lack of For Whom The Bell Tolls, which is my favourite Hemingway novel after The Sun Also Rises. Demons is very close to Dostoevsky's best (second only to The Brothers Karamazov and perhaps The Idiot), and is supplemented nicely by The Myth of Sisyphus.

 

 

That was simply my recently read list. For Whom The Bell Tolls is probably my favourite Hemingway alongside The Sun Also Rises but both are quite different to each other. I agree that Karamazov is probably the best Dostoyevsky. It is filled up with great characters like Father Ferapont who literally sees the demons around him, what an excellent chapter that is. I read Camus again because of the chapter on Kirilov in The Myth of Sisyphus, he is a most interesting man.

[Harakiri]

http://iwl.me/

 

 

What authors are you like? I don't hold any validity to it's findings, but still fun.

 

After trying different pieces, I'm Tolkien, Hemingway, and Gertrude Stein. Not sure who the last person is, nor how the heck I write at all like the previously two. Interesting....

 

Apparently my horror stuff is like Stephenie Meyer, my Pokemon fan fiction is like Dan Brown, and the fantasy novel I've been working on is like Jonathan Swift (though I don't know who he is).

 

God almighty, I hope I don't write as bad as Stephenie Meyer!

Haha I put in a 55 word story I had to write for English last year (the whole thing is basically a sexual innuendo...or is it?) and I got Meyer. Most of my other writing gets me Orwell (!) or J.D. Salinger, which is somewhat strange since my English teacher in 9th grade was the only one in the school that didn't force us to read The Catcher in the Rye.

Then I also put in an assignment that was to write something as poorly as possible and I got Dan Brown. Ahahaha.

I started A Game of Thrones (first book of A Song of Ice and Fire) a few days ago...I haven't really gotten to anything yet but I guess it's good. Otherwise I'm forcing myself through Guns, Germs, and Steel for my AP Bio homework (it's an interesting book, but I have to keep a journal tracking my thoughts from reading and that kinda kills it). I also have to read some book about the last years of the Roman Republic for Latin. Fun...<_<

 

For a lot of people A Song of Ice and Fire is a great fantasy series, I am not a huge fan though. I read through the whole first book, but I ultimately did not enjoy it too much. Then again, I'm not the biggest fantasy reader. Though Malazan Book Of The Fallen has really piqued my interest. I like urban fantasy much more than fantasy though, The Dresden Files is my favorite book series ever. It has horror, action, comedy, fantasy, great characters, and a great story. Everything I need in a book.

[Serpent Eye]

Actually I read in The Guardian she has turned away from Christianity now.

Here.

 

Interesting article! I haven't kept up much with her in recent years, as I own every book she's published, so this is news to me! However, near the end of the article they quote her as saying, "I remain committed to Christ as always but not to being 'Christian' or to being part of Christianity," which doesn't really do much to confirm whether or not she'll stick to giving up on writing about vampires.

 

:thumbup: + :thumbdown:

[Saru Inc]

My parents made us watch the article when she became a Christian. I just lol'd and emailed them the link.

[Zygimantas]

So, I started to read " The Power of One" for Lit class ( summer reading) and it doesn't seem that good. It better get interesting, or I'll want to shoot myself before school even starts <_<

[Serpent Eye]

Thought I'd share some pictures of my growing collection of books. :grin: All I have is my (cheap) webcam, so the pictures aren't the best quality, heh.

 

[hide=One]

 

This bookcase contains my favorite books. The top shelf is nothing but books by fantasy-fiction author Tamora Pierce, seven copies of which she signed for me when I drove to see her at a book signing last year! :thumbup: Other favorites include J. K. Rowling, Cate Tiernan, Joe Abercrombie, Michael Crichton, Anne Rice and Diana Gabaldon.

[/hide]

 

[hide=Two]

 

This bookcase contains some other books I enjoy that I wouldn't classify as "favorites," and my small manga collection (top shelf and almost entire second shelf: mostly Claymore and Full Metal Alchemist.

 

The books piled to the right on the ground (I ran out of bookshelves!) are my collection of dictionaries, reference, and writing books. I'll get a fourth bookcase soon. <_< [/hide]

 

[hide=Three]

 

THE BOOKCASE OF ETERNAL SLOPPINESS. Fear it.

 

This bookcase originally held all of my non-fantasy fiction, but I buy so much fantasy-fiction that it kind of got overrun... Basically the only organization going on here is that my collection of classics (Dracula, Peter Pan, The Divine Comedy, etc.) is on the top shelf. Other than that... uh... I'll get around to sorting it out eventually.[/hide]

 

:)

[Hawks]

Tamora Pierce owns.

 

Currently reading William Goldman's abridged The Princess Bride, finished the 8th volume of Death Note recently.

[Harakiri]

Thought I'd share some pictures of my growing collection of books. :grin: All I have is my (cheap) webcam, so the pictures aren't the best quality, heh.

 

[hide=One]

 

This bookcase contains my favorite books. The top shelf is nothing but books by fantasy-fiction author Tamora Pierce, seven copies of which she signed for me when I drove to see her at a book signing last year! :thumbup: Other favorites include J. K. Rowling, Cate Tiernan, Joe Abercrombie, Michael Crichton, Anne Rice and Diana Gabaldon.

[/hide]

 

[hide=Two]

 

This bookcase contains some other books I enjoy that I wouldn't classify as "favorites," and my small manga collection (top shelf and almost entire second shelf: mostly Claymore and Full Metal Alchemist.

 

The books piled to the right on the ground (I ran out of bookshelves!) are my collection of dictionaries, reference, and writing books. I'll get a fourth bookcase soon. <_< [/hide]

 

[hide=Three]

 

THE BOOKCASE OF ETERNAL SLOPPINESS. Fear it.

 

This bookcase originally held all of my non-fantasy fiction, but I buy so much fantasy-fiction that it kind of got overrun... Basically the only organization going on here is that my collection of classics (Dracula, Peter Pan, The Divine Comedy, etc.) is on the top shelf. Other than that... uh... I'll get around to sorting it out eventually.[/hide]

 

:)

 

I would post a pic of my bookcases, but I have thrown all of the books I want to keep in boxes and put those boxes in the back of the closet. So I have very few books on the shelf, basically just things I need to read. Which is like, twenty books. I wish I could see the books on your shelf more clearly, I can tell the spines of some, but others I cannot.

[Dupin]

Thought I'd share some pictures of my growing collection of books. :grin: All I have is my (cheap) webcam, so the pictures aren't the best quality, heh.

 

[hide=One]

 

This bookcase contains my favorite books. The top shelf is nothing but books by fantasy-fiction author Tamora Pierce, seven copies of which she signed for me when I drove to see her at a book signing last year! :thumbup: Other favorites include J. K. Rowling, Cate Tiernan, Joe Abercrombie, Michael Crichton, Anne Rice and Diana Gabaldon.

[/hide]

 

[hide=Two]

 

This bookcase contains some other books I enjoy that I wouldn't classify as "favorites," and my small manga collection (top shelf and almost entire second shelf: mostly Claymore and Full Metal Alchemist.

 

The books piled to the right on the ground (I ran out of bookshelves!) are my collection of dictionaries, reference, and writing books. I'll get a fourth bookcase soon. <_< [/hide]

 

[hide=Three]

 

THE BOOKCASE OF ETERNAL SLOPPINESS. Fear it.

 

This bookcase originally held all of my non-fantasy fiction, but I buy so much fantasy-fiction that it kind of got overrun... Basically the only organization going on here is that my collection of classics (Dracula, Peter Pan, The Divine Comedy, etc.) is on the top shelf. Other than that... uh... I'll get around to sorting it out eventually.[/hide]

 

:)

 

I would post a pic of my bookcases, but I have thrown all of the books I want to keep in boxes and put those boxes in the back of the closet. So I have very few books on the shelf, basically just things I need to read. Which is like, twenty books. I wish I could see the books on your shelf more clearly, I can tell the spines of some, but others I cannot.

 

I wish I had bookshelves. My books are pretty much just piled on any open surface within reach of my bed or a chair.

 

I spot the Harry Potter books on the first shelf. (It seems you're missing a couple.) The only other ones I could make out were on the top of shelf 3. Are those Barnes & Noble Classics? I recognize the format on the spines. I've been reading a few of those recently, as they have all the random books I've always wanted to read but never got around to.

[Dreamtongirl]

I'm reading Looking For Alaska by John Green at the moment (Much to Wongtong's dismay. Hahaha sucks for you.). I'm only a little past half way, but i absolutely love it. Not too sure why either. I just love the characters and the (to me) relaxed style of writing.

[Serpent Eye]

Tamora Pierce owns.

:thumbsup:

 

[hide=(Lengthy) Story & Pic]In (I think it was) May of last year, she did a book signing in Portland, Oregon, which is only a five-hour drive from where I live. I have never really been on a "roadtrip" by myself before, but this was too big of an opportunity to miss! On the day of, I got up pretty early and started the long drive all by myself. On the way there, I listened to the CD recording of her book Melting Stones. The signing was at a Barnes & Nobles in the local mall, but it wasn't until 7:00pm, and I arrived in Portland at around noon, so I had seven hours to kill, haha. </nerd> I sat in a chair for seven hours at Barnes & Nobles and read about three books.

 

The employees at the store started setting up the podium, table, and chairs, and as soon as I could, I snagged myself a seat in the front row, right in front of where she would be speaking at the podium. She finally arrived, and walked quite sluggishly to the podium, and in a very quiet voice (despite having a microphone) started speaking to us. We were all quite flabbergasted, as she was coughing very hard, very often, and continually had to stop and take a sip of water, all the while apologizing for having a cold. After about FIVE MINUTES of this awkward torture, with all of us just staring in shock, she said quite slowly but clearly, "Nothing gives me greater joy than seeing the looks of shock on all of your faces..." She had been PRETENDING the entire time to have a cold, hahaha. She's an evil, evil, evil woman, and I love her. <3:

 

At any rate, she didn't even read from Bloodhound (she was on tour promoting it), but instead just took Questions and Answers the entire time. Finally we were all able to form lines to have her sign our books. When it was my turn, I stepped up to her and one of the employees followed me up as well. She said, "Tamora, this is the boy we talked to you about who has been waiting here for seven hours." THEY TALKED TO TAMORA PIERCE, ABOUT ME!!! ME!!! I had a very nerdy moment, and she was asking me about how the drive was, etc.

 

She asked if I had any questions for her, so I asked the one question that has always bothered me -- in her Tortallan novels, Alanna and the other characters visibly and physically interact with their gods, and have a deep connection with them; however, in her Circle of Magic novels, the characters only ever talk about their deities (Mila of the Grain, the Green Man, etc.) but despite all of this, they never actually interact with them on a physical level. Do the gods truly exist in her Circle of Magic novels? Or are they similar to the deities in our world, where the characters just rely on their faith in believing that they exist? Her answer was very simple: Yes, the gods in her Circle of Magic novels do truly exist, she just "wanted to write books without having to write about the gods."

 

She was only able to sign four of my books, so I ran to the back of the line after she was done, and waited for about another hour and a half at the end of the line. I finally got up to her again, and she just kind of chuckled on seeing that I had waited so long to get more signed.

 

All in all, she ended up signing my copy of Bloodhound, my entire Protector of the Small series, and my entire Circle of Magic series, for a total of seven books. She personalized my copy of Bloodhound. Her inscription is as follows:

 

Jeremy -

Well met -

Tamora Pierce 05/05

rock!

 

I managed enough courage to ask a random lady if she would take a picture of Tamora and I together, while she was signing my copies of Squire and Lady Knight. She just kind of leaned in to me, but I went nerd-mode and rested my hand on her back, so I could rub it in people's faces that I actually touched her :P. Please note, I look terribly haggard in this picture... I had just completed the five-hour drive, followed by sitting around for seven-hours in the same spot, followed by sitting/waiting in line for about two more hours. :P

 

[hide="Those aren't bags under my eyes... I'm just winking at you......][/hide][/hide]

 

I wish I could see the books on your shelf more clearly, I can tell the spines of some, but others I cannot.

 

If you want to know what a certain book is, feel free to ask and I can tell you the title and author. :thumbsup:

 

I spot the Harry Potter books on the first shelf. (It seems you're missing a couple.) The only other ones I could make out were on the top of shelf 3. Are those Barnes & Noble Classics? I recognize the format on the spines. I've been reading a few of those recently, as they have all the random books I've always wanted to read but never got around to.

 

I definitely have them all :P. My copies of Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets are paperback, so they are kind of small, tucked into the left corner. Then hardcover copies Prisoner of Azkaban through Deathly Hallows are to the right. To the right of that is my copy of Beedle the Bard, followed by my copies of Quidditch Throughout the Ages and Fantastical Beasts and Where to Find Them.

 

And yes, those are all from the Barnes & Nobles Classics collection. Aren't these books such a great deal?! You can get some of the most inspiring novels ever, for cheap prices! For instance, The Count of Monte Cristo is a whopping 600+ pages, and only cost $7.96, NOT including the 10% savings I get from my Membership card. :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

[Racheya]

I c ur manga there Serp :P

 

Definitely FMA, not sure what else. Looks like a Shounen Jump one of some sort and possibly Battle Royale? Hard to tell.

 

I don't have enough room for all my books, I've got a shelf stacked high to the ceiling and that's it. I tend to borrow most of my books anyway.

 

 

Anywho, after watching the BBC Drama Sherlock, I've been considering reading some of the original Sherlock Holmes novels. Has anyone read them? Are they good reads? :)

[Serpent Eye]

I c ur manga there Serp :P

 

Definitely FMA, not sure what else. Looks like a Shounen Jump one of some sort and possibly Battle Royale? Hard to tell.

 

U be spyin on my bookz.

 

Bizenghast

Claymore

Full Metal Alchemist

.hack

Inuyasha

+ a few random others

[Hawks]

I need to take pics of mah awesome multi-layer bookshelf. There's junk in the back hidden and all sorts of awesome not-books on it...

 

I have one random volume of Naruto (#27) and the first 7 volumes of Hikaru no Go. And like 12 random issues of Shonen Jump.

[Serpent Eye]

I need to take pics of mah awesome multi-layer bookshelf. There's junk in the back hidden and all sorts of awesome not-books on it...

 

I have one random volume of Naruto (#27) and the first 7 volumes of Hikaru no Go. And like 12 random issues of Shonen Jump.

 

I hope you read the novel I wrote for you on page 11 :evil:

[Dupin]

Anywho, after watching the BBC Drama Sherlock, I've been considering reading some of the original Sherlock Holmes novels. Has anyone read them? Are they good reads? :)

 

I read them all, and they're definitely worth the time. There are a bunch of short stories that take about a half hour each to read, and a few novellas that take a bit longer. I really liked them because you can read one each night before bed, and they're quite entertaining. I would reccommend the Barnes & Noble Classics volumes. There are two volumes which together contain every story published, in chronological order, plus some of Sir Conan Doyle's notes.

[Serpent Eye]

Finished reading Scott Sigler's Contagious, and just read his newest book, Ancestor, in one sitting yesterday. :blink:

 

I'm so, so happy I discovered his books - Ancestor was so badass! I highly recommend it to anyone who likes Michael Crichton and Jurassic Park, but I urge you to start with his first book, Infected, and work your way up to Ancestor, as it makes a lot of references to people and events that take place in the first two books.

 

- - -

 

Currently reading The Magickers by Rhondi A. Vilott Salsitz, who published the book under the pen-name Emily Drake.

 

It was quoted as being "America's version of Harry Potter," a testament I am forced to agree with only because a lot of the ideas and names seem like they were plucked right out of the Harry Potter books. <_< Just a few examples:

 

[hide=Here Be Spoilers]

• The book is about Jason Adrian, a young boy aged 11, who goes to Camp Ravenwyng during his summer vacation. As it turns out, Camp Ravenwyng is more-or-less a recruiting grounds for young witches and wizards.
  
• Jason's parents have both passed away, and he lives with his step-mom, -dad, and -sister, all of whom he feels separate from.
  
• One of the central characters is a boy named Henry Squibb [facedesk]
  
• Once at camp, all of the kids have to visit a special wishing well that decides which cabin they will sleep in. (aka Sorting Hat)
  
• One of the central characters is afraid of spiders
  
• One of the characters is a bookish Asian girl (*cough*Cho Chang*cough*)

[/hide]

 

The list of similarities goes on and on.

 

I will say that the writing itself is excellent; I only wish the ideas were more original.

[re4p3r1]

Finished reading Scott Sigel's Contagious, and just read his newest book, Ancestor, in one sitting yesterday. :blink:

 

I'm so, so happy I discovered his books - Ancestor was so badass! I highly recommend it to anyone who likes Michael Crichton and Jurassic Park, but I urge you to start with his first book, Infected, and work your way up to Ancestor, as it makes a lot of references to people and events that take place in the first two books.

 

Hm I've heard of Scott Sigel, never got a chance to read his books but if one of his books brews a comparison to Jurassic Park, one of my all time favorites, then he must be worth it :)