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08-08-2006, 06:00 AM | #1 |
Shade of Carn Dűm
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: omni-presence
Posts: 329
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Next 5 books on your list.
This question has been seriously throbbing in my frontal lube now for the last few months. I believe it is simply the fact that I have only read about a fourth of my collection, which of course makes me wonder. Every time I finish a new novel, within moments my mind is high on possibilities. What to read next? What should I read? And also ‘What do I feel like reading’. So many genres out there each giving me different reactions. But I think we’ll stick with Fantasy Ficiton or Speculative Fiction for now. So, if you could, list the next 5 novels in this genre that you will read next (and maybe a real small answer of ‘why’). I know, the words ‘will read’ can be a real reading dilemma. But nothing is written in stone here.
At this moment, my list would go something like this. *Not in numerical order 1. The Princess Bride – William Goldman (in the mood for a humorous one) 2. Jhereg – Steven Brust (heard too much about him to ignore) 3. The Iron Dragon’s Daughter – Michael Swanwick (recommendation) 4. Meditations on Middle-Earth – Karen Haber (editor) (respectable authors and essays? Why not?!) 5. The People of the Black Circle – Robert E. Howard (Who wouldn't want to?!) -
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08-09-2006, 01:28 PM | #2 |
Cryptic Aura
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 5,997
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As luck would have it, I am, as the saying goes, between books and have recently compiled a list of druthers. The Iron Dragon's Daughter looks promising (although what it promises!), so perhaps I will append it here as Book 1 of Next List. We have been allowed but five--a limit which is only fair, else we'll end up with the kind of lists Nick Hornby made famous: Books Bought and Books Read.
1. William Gibson, Pattern Recognition. Neuromancer was a blast out of this galaxy with its incredible feat of imagination so why not sign on for another trip. 2. In case comics don't make the cut as books, here's two: Alan Moore's and David Lloyd's V for Vendetta and Brian K. Vaughan's Y: The Last Man. Alas, poor Yorrick! Recommended. 3. William Morris, The Well at the World's End. Progenitors deserve recognition too. And, yes, some were there before Tolkien. 4. Octavia Butler, Kindred, because I've been meaning to read some of her work and her recent death made me wish I had acted on the intent sooner. 5. The rest of the Thomas Covenant Chronicles by Stephen R. Donaldson. Does a series count as one book? Fascinating exploration of fantasy and mind.
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08-09-2006, 02:21 PM | #3 |
Fair and Cold
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Mmmmm....
Kate Atkinson's One Good Turn, because she is a goddess. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, because I have to keep up with the Joneses. The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More by Chris Anderson, because he's pushing a fabulous concept. Romantic Moods: Paranoia, Trauma, and Melancholy, 1790--1840, by Thomas Pfau, because he was my professor, and still is my friend, and even his most dry, academic thoughts are priceless. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, because I crave a story that has to do with love.
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~The beginning is the word and the end is silence. And in between are all the stories. This is one of mine~ |
08-09-2006, 03:57 PM | #4 |
Ghost Prince of Cardolan
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To keep it short, any books written by Terry Pratchet.
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08-09-2006, 04:33 PM | #5 |
Messenger of Hope
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: In a tiny, insignificant little town in one of the many States.
Posts: 5,076
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I've not heard of any that you all have listed. . .but that's alright.
My next five will be something as follows, I hope - Nelson by I don't remember - because I would really like to learn about Horatio Nelson. He seems like an interesting chap and I love that time period. The Unkown Shore by Patrick O'Brian - has to do with ships, which is fun. Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickons - excellent book - I've read it before, but I want to read it again because it is excellent and it's been a few years. Boys of '76 by I don't remember either - Interesting account of the Revolutionary War written by a man who lived in the Civil War period. Might read Jane Eyre, too, by Charlotte Brontë, but I'm not certain. If not that, then maybe Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis. Because it's an excellent book and I didn't understand it last time I read it. -- Folwren
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08-11-2006, 06:06 AM | #6 | |
A Mere Boggart
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: under the bed
Posts: 4,737
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Quote:
Anyway, I don't do planning - especially not about what I'm going to read or watch - that's what I do for a living, planning things, so in my free time all is chaos. As far as what the next books I read goes, it might be Neil Gaiman's Stardust. Or it could be the Earthsea books, as I randomly read the first chapter again the other night - a consequence of being sat in Davem's chair and being near the book. His Dark Materials is another possibility as I think it needs a good re-reading by me. However, I might read Under The Greenwood Tree as I have a 2nd hand copy beside the bed, that I bought a couple of weeks ago. Yet another book that's been hanging around is one about Plath that I can't remember the title of. I think it's Ariel's Gift. Then I've got The Conjuror's Bird, which seems to be based on the voyages of Captain Cook, and I've still never read that and it caught my eye the other day, likewise The Farm. Alas, there are new books out that I fancy, like The Cloudspotters Guide and Never let me Go, and if I get into Waterstones with their pesky special offers I might end up adding to the book stack instead.
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08-09-2006, 05:13 PM | #7 | ||
Shade of Carn Dűm
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: omni-presence
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I should probably try to finish the 'Sprawl trilogy'. The mans(Gibson) great, no matter what I think of him. Quote:
And, you can never go wrong with a good comic!
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08-11-2006, 03:23 AM | #8 | ||
Cryptic Aura
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 5,997
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Pratchett's Witches Abound has to hold the record for most one liners worked into a plot. Unless there's another of his books which I haven't read that beats it. Folwren, Child of the Seventh Age swears by Till We Have Faces. That's two recommendations I've heard in one week for it.
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I’ll sing his roots off. I’ll sing a wind up and blow leaf and branch away. |
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08-11-2006, 05:44 AM | #9 |
Bittersweet Symphony
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: On the jolly starship Enterprise
Posts: 1,814
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Mi lista de libros
1. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card (if I don't read it soon, I think my friend who lent it to me will kill me!)
2. To Reign in Hell: the Exile of Khan Noonien Singh by Greg Cox (hurrah for technically non-canon Star Trek!) 3. Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert (it's been ages since I read Dune so I hope I remember what's going on...) 4. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clark (the title alone intrigues me) 5. I, Robot by Isaac Asimov (something I really should have read already) |
08-11-2006, 05:26 PM | #10 | |
Dead Serious
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08-11-2006, 06:26 PM | #11 |
Illusionary Holbytla
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 7,547
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All these books you're recommending - and my library doesn't have any of them.
On my list is the rest of the Ender's Game series - I've read the first two now and am waiting for the third to come back to the library. Excellent books. I've also been meaning to try out Terry Pratchett - I keep forgetting. It seems like there should be more... *frowns at memory* I've hit several of them this summer - "This Present Darkness" by Frank Peretti and "Watership Down" are the two that come to mind (both thoroughly enjoyed). My next set of books will probably come from the books people have listed here. |
08-11-2006, 01:16 PM | #12 | |
Memento Mori
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Past The Point Of No Return
Posts: 1,117
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Y: The Last Man, also a great read. I am presently reading 'Jonathan Strange and Mister Norrell' by Susanna Clark. A very intriguing and enjoyable story. I also have plans to re-read both 'The Hobbit' and 'The Silmarillion' before the end of the summer as I haven't read either for some time.
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08-11-2006, 04:35 PM | #13 |
Fair and Cold
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Well, I wrote my honours thesis on Atkinson's Human Croquet and Not the End of the World, and I have corresponded with her, and am in awe of her, so I am biased...
Her Case Histories was a bit of a departure, at least on the surface, and I hear that One Good Turn also is.
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~The beginning is the word and the end is silence. And in between are all the stories. This is one of mine~ |
08-11-2006, 04:36 PM | #14 |
Fair and Cold
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I read Jonathan Strange... this summer, and was breathless from it. I think she is planning more follow-ups. I certainly hope so!
It starts out slow, but it weaves a spell. You enter her mind and don't want to leave it. Ever.
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~The beginning is the word and the end is silence. And in between are all the stories. This is one of mine~ |
08-23-2006, 08:30 AM | #15 | |
Shade of Carn Dűm
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: omni-presence
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1. The Clan of The Cave Bear - Jean M. Auel (a must read?!) 2. Revelation Space - Alastair Reynolds (after reading 'Chasm City' this author is a must read for me! 3. Gateway - Fredrik Pohl (kinda on'na SF kick here) 4. Meditations on Middle-Earth – Karen Haber (editor) (respectable authors and essays? Why not?!) 5. The People of the Black Circle – Robert E. Howard (Who wouldn't want to?!) Kept a few the same, but always thinkin'!
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08-23-2006, 09:22 AM | #16 |
La Belle Dame sans Merci
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Given that I'm just over a week away from my next semester... I doubt I'll have time to read anything in the coming months. However lack of time has never stopped me.
I've got a few chapters to go in Sex, Drugs, Einstein, and Elves by Clifford Pickover. I recommend it to anybody who wants a more open mind and doesn't mind the appearance of lack of structure and direction. He discusses Tolkien in it, if only briefly. I desperately need to finish Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment given that I'm studying it extensively this semester in an independent experiment with a comic book reading, short story writing, young professor. Comments in Portland made connecting its humanization and rationalization of violence to the microfiction Bowling Balls Sent Down Through Windows From Overpasses That Stretch Like Spider Webs Above by Ander Monson don't hurt matters any. In a quiet search to find topics of conversation between myself and my father, I have boosted the Dune series to a place of honor on my reading lists. I'd like to reread A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle since it's been several years and a paper I began to write this past spring renewed my interest. I've had Dr. Zhivago sitting on my bookshelf waiting for me for maybe two years now. Hm... I've reached five already? And provided the link to a cool story? And technically beat five given that Dune is more than one book? Fine. I'm done. I have to go to work anyhow.
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08-23-2006, 11:33 AM | #17 |
Silver in My Silent Heart
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1,2,3. LotR
Read it last... hmm... too long ago. 4. Silm Same reason 5. Forest Mage by Robin Hobb Thanks to my good friend Veikko, Robin Hobb is now one of my favourite writers. 6. Either reread His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman Same reason as 1-4 or Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling Not a great fan, but same reason... OR anything else... |
08-24-2006, 06:03 AM | #18 | |
A Mere Boggart
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: under the bed
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