Damn. I thought I only had to read the first one but the list says Dune CHRONICLES. I have to read ALL of them before I can cross them off. Almost everyone I talked to said the first book is the best and the rest aren't as good.
The fist book was.. uh.. OK, I guess. It wasn't great. There were a lot of opportunities to make things really epic that just weren't taken. Most of the battles could have been more exciting. Feyd-Rautha Harkonen fights a gladiator in one chapter and that combat sequence is done well but the other ones are lacking somehow. The big battles are also glossed over and slow. You can do so much more with those sand worms.. but again, you only get a glimpse. There are chances for so much epic awesomeness but maybe that's not what Herbert is good at.
For all of his talk about "feints within feints" and plots and secrecy, the characters sure seem to be rather black and white. Barron Vladimir Harkonen is clearly E V I L. He is also fat and Russian.. predictable for a cold war era author perhaps. Paul, on the other hand, is always good. He is brave and strong and smart. He leads the Fremen in the desert against their.. Russian.. oppressors.. Hello? Afghanistan?
There are some neat plot twists and turns, but the reader always knows about them. They are secret from the characters but not the audience. I suppose I'm more used to having to figure things out or discover the nuanced details of the characters as you progress thru the book.. but that doesn't really happen here.
I guess we'll see what the other two have to offer..
**Addendum: not much is the answer. I got 100+ pages thru Messiah and NOTHING has happened. Revenant Duncan Idaho is neat. The naked sword-fight against the practice drone was neat.. but that is all that there was in the first half of the book. I had accidentally started reading Children of Dune first and didn't even realize it. It was totally ho-hum too.
He does write pretty, though. These are three of many great passages.
Dune P31
Paul shrugged. " Then she said a good ruler has to learn his planet's language, that it's different for every world. And I thought she meant they didn't speak Galach or Arrakis, but she said that wasn't it at all. She said she meant the language of the rocks and the growing things, the language you don't just hear with your ears. And I said that's what Dr. Yueh calls the mastery of life.".
Dune p230
What do you despise? by this are you truly known.
Dune p277
And I am a desert creature, Kynes thought. You see me, Father? I am a desert creature.
He felt the bubble lift him, felt it break and the dust whirlpool engulf him, dragging him down into the cool darkness. For a moment, the sensation of coolness and moisture were blessed relief. Then, as his planet killed him, it occurred to Kynes that his father and all the other scientists were wrong, that the most persistent principles of the universe were accident and error.
Even the hawks could appreciate these facts.
Messiah p19
"We of the Tleilexu believe that in all the universe there is only one insatiable appetite of matter, that energy is the only true solid. And energy learns. Hear me well, princes: energy learns. This we call power"
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
#61 The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
Starts off a little slow, but by the end I thought this is one of the best SciFi books I have read so far. Humans expand thru the universe and have found life on other planets, but no intelligent life until now. Daring young captain Rod Blaine is sent on a mission to investigate a probe entering the Empire's space that must have been launched from an intelligent species somewhere. The star that the probe came from appears as a small speck of light alone in the "eye" of a constellation that is thought of as a face of a "god".
After investigating the probe, they are sent to investigate the mote. Once they meet the "Moties" they need to find out if they will be friend or foe.
This is the first book by Jerry that I have read. I did read Ringworld by Larry, and I think I see Jerry's influence here. My guess is that Larry wrote the science / space stuff and Jerry wrote the character development and the intriguing plot. I found the characters thin and the plot simple in Ringworld, but the science was super cool. They seem to compliment each other well.
One criticism that I have is that they chose not to write a future where humanity has progressed to men and women being more equal. Sally is a very important and influential character. She is a scientist and an aristocrat. She is very powerful and independent, but she is the only female on the ship. No women sail in the Galactic Navy. When the main conflict is over she is expected to take her place as Rod's wife and have no further ambition following that.
They can predict space travel, but not equality?? Come on, boys..
P 444
"You are so cold! Can you not rejoice with me? We are saved!"
"Study Renner."
"Yes... I know that look. He wears it playing poker, when his down card is an unexpected one. It does not help us. But her has no power, Charlie! A wanderer with no sense of responsibility!"
"Perhaps. We juggle priceless eggs in variable gravity. I am afraid. I will taste fear until I die."
p 454
"No use." said Charlie. "Taste the irony. For millions of years we have been in a bottle. Its shape has shaped our species to our detriment. Now we have found the opening, and now the Navy pours thru to burn our worlds."
P 457
They stood for a long time on the balcony outside Rod's suite. Faint sounds of a city after dark floated up to them. The Hooded Man rose high in the sky, his baleful red eye watching them with indifference: two human lovers who would send squadrons of ships into the Eye itself and keep them there, until they too passed away...
It took most of the book, but i finally found some things worth quoting. The first two are from Moties.
After investigating the probe, they are sent to investigate the mote. Once they meet the "Moties" they need to find out if they will be friend or foe.
This is the first book by Jerry that I have read. I did read Ringworld by Larry, and I think I see Jerry's influence here. My guess is that Larry wrote the science / space stuff and Jerry wrote the character development and the intriguing plot. I found the characters thin and the plot simple in Ringworld, but the science was super cool. They seem to compliment each other well.
One criticism that I have is that they chose not to write a future where humanity has progressed to men and women being more equal. Sally is a very important and influential character. She is a scientist and an aristocrat. She is very powerful and independent, but she is the only female on the ship. No women sail in the Galactic Navy. When the main conflict is over she is expected to take her place as Rod's wife and have no further ambition following that.
They can predict space travel, but not equality?? Come on, boys..
P 444
"You are so cold! Can you not rejoice with me? We are saved!"
"Study Renner."
"Yes... I know that look. He wears it playing poker, when his down card is an unexpected one. It does not help us. But her has no power, Charlie! A wanderer with no sense of responsibility!"
"Perhaps. We juggle priceless eggs in variable gravity. I am afraid. I will taste fear until I die."
p 454
"No use." said Charlie. "Taste the irony. For millions of years we have been in a bottle. Its shape has shaped our species to our detriment. Now we have found the opening, and now the Navy pours thru to burn our worlds."
P 457
They stood for a long time on the balcony outside Rod's suite. Faint sounds of a city after dark floated up to them. The Hooded Man rose high in the sky, his baleful red eye watching them with indifference: two human lovers who would send squadrons of ships into the Eye itself and keep them there, until they too passed away...
It took most of the book, but i finally found some things worth quoting. The first two are from Moties.
Friday, August 14, 2015
#65 I Am Legeng by Richard Matheson
This is actually a rather short book that is followed by several short stories that have nothing to do with the title work. I did not read all of the following shorts, but they were quite good.
The copy of this book that I read had a big picture of Will Smith on the cover and said "Now a major motion picture!" The book and the movie are so totally different that you can't really compare the two.
Matheson gets really into the depressive psychological self mutilation of Robert Neville, the last man on earth. A plague has turned everyone into zombie / vampires and he is holed up in his house utterly alone. He battles the drive to survive with the anguish and guilt of being the only survivor. Matheson really likes to get into the mind of all of his characters. He sets it up really well so that you can feel what they are feeling. It is a little scary at times.
Neville, while on a good manic streak, heads to the local University's library and studies up on medicine to try to figure out what happened and how to combat / cure it. He gets deep enough into medical jargon and has everything based well enough in reality to make a really plausible seeming explanation of where zombies and vampires came from. Being a medical person myself, I found this aspect really COOL!
p32
But are his needs any more shocking than the needs of other animals or men? Are his deeds more outrageous than the deeds of a parent who drained the spirit of his child? the vampire may foster quickened heartbeats and levitated hair, but is he worse than the parent who gave society a neurotic child that became a politician? Is he worse than the manufacturer who set up belated foundations with money made from handing bombs and guns to suicidal nationalists? s he worse than the distiller who gave basterdized grain juice to stoltify the further the brains of those who, sober, were incapable of progressive thought? ... Is he worse than the publisher who filled the ubiquitous racks with lust and death wishes? Really, now, search your soul, lovie - Is the vampire so bad?
All he does is drink blood.
p78
He stood there for a moment looking around the silent room, shaking his head slowly. All these books, he thought, the residue of a planet's intellect, the scrapings of futile minds, the leftovers, the potpourri of artifacts that had no power to save men from perishing.
The copy of this book that I read had a big picture of Will Smith on the cover and said "Now a major motion picture!" The book and the movie are so totally different that you can't really compare the two.
Matheson gets really into the depressive psychological self mutilation of Robert Neville, the last man on earth. A plague has turned everyone into zombie / vampires and he is holed up in his house utterly alone. He battles the drive to survive with the anguish and guilt of being the only survivor. Matheson really likes to get into the mind of all of his characters. He sets it up really well so that you can feel what they are feeling. It is a little scary at times.
Neville, while on a good manic streak, heads to the local University's library and studies up on medicine to try to figure out what happened and how to combat / cure it. He gets deep enough into medical jargon and has everything based well enough in reality to make a really plausible seeming explanation of where zombies and vampires came from. Being a medical person myself, I found this aspect really COOL!
p32
But are his needs any more shocking than the needs of other animals or men? Are his deeds more outrageous than the deeds of a parent who drained the spirit of his child? the vampire may foster quickened heartbeats and levitated hair, but is he worse than the parent who gave society a neurotic child that became a politician? Is he worse than the manufacturer who set up belated foundations with money made from handing bombs and guns to suicidal nationalists? s he worse than the distiller who gave basterdized grain juice to stoltify the further the brains of those who, sober, were incapable of progressive thought? ... Is he worse than the publisher who filled the ubiquitous racks with lust and death wishes? Really, now, search your soul, lovie - Is the vampire so bad?
All he does is drink blood.
p78
He stood there for a moment looking around the silent room, shaking his head slowly. All these books, he thought, the residue of a planet's intellect, the scrapings of futile minds, the leftovers, the potpourri of artifacts that had no power to save men from perishing.
Thursday, August 6, 2015
#37 20,000 Leagues under the Sea by Jules Verne
This is the first book I ever read not-on-paper. Usually when I return one book I pick up my next one. This visit was cut short by unexpected circumstances and I had to leave without anything to read that day. I purchased this book on my phone for 99c.
I had initially thought the book - being 150 years old - might be difficult to read but I found it not so. After a moment's thought I realized that it was first written in French (duah) and I am reading an abridged translation of Verne's words - not the original writing. Naturally they smoothed out some of the rough patches.
This is a great book of adventure, but I wouldn't really call it "science-fiction" per se. Maybe it was science fiction when Verne wrote it.. submarines were in their infancy at that time and the technology in the Nautilus was still quite a ways off.
The book has periods of truly gripping and suspenseful adventure interspersed with pages of M. Aronnax, Conseil and Ned Land talking about fish. Describing the fish they see. Discussing fishing. Classifying different fish and what orders and families they belong in. Talking about cooking fish. More calcifying the fish they see on their travels.. ugh. Meanwhile the exciting bits go by a bit too quickly. I still enjoyed it, but there is a big *meh* factor throughout.
p224
It was an indescribable spectacle! Ah, why could we not communicate our sensations? Why are we imprisoned under these masks of metal and glass? Why are words between us forbidden? Why did we at least not live the life of the fish that people the liquid element, or rather that of the amphibians, who, during long hours, can transverse as they like the double domain of land and water?
p378
Here may be seen the primordial rocks that have never known the light of heaven, the lower granites that form the powerful foundation of the globe, the profound grottoes dug out of the stony mass, the outlines of such incomparable clearness, the border-lines of which stand out black as if due to the brush of certain Flemish artist. Then, beyond, an horizon of mountains, an admirable undulating line composing the background of the landscape. I cannot describe the effects of these smooth black polished rocks, destitute of moss, without a stain, and with such strange forms solidly resting on a carpet of sand that sparkled in the electric light.
p507
It was vulgar misanthropy that enclosed Captain Nemo and his companions in the sides of the Nautilus, but a sublime hatred that time could not quench.
I had initially thought the book - being 150 years old - might be difficult to read but I found it not so. After a moment's thought I realized that it was first written in French (duah) and I am reading an abridged translation of Verne's words - not the original writing. Naturally they smoothed out some of the rough patches.
This is a great book of adventure, but I wouldn't really call it "science-fiction" per se. Maybe it was science fiction when Verne wrote it.. submarines were in their infancy at that time and the technology in the Nautilus was still quite a ways off.
The book has periods of truly gripping and suspenseful adventure interspersed with pages of M. Aronnax, Conseil and Ned Land talking about fish. Describing the fish they see. Discussing fishing. Classifying different fish and what orders and families they belong in. Talking about cooking fish. More calcifying the fish they see on their travels.. ugh. Meanwhile the exciting bits go by a bit too quickly. I still enjoyed it, but there is a big *meh* factor throughout.
p224
It was an indescribable spectacle! Ah, why could we not communicate our sensations? Why are we imprisoned under these masks of metal and glass? Why are words between us forbidden? Why did we at least not live the life of the fish that people the liquid element, or rather that of the amphibians, who, during long hours, can transverse as they like the double domain of land and water?
p378
Here may be seen the primordial rocks that have never known the light of heaven, the lower granites that form the powerful foundation of the globe, the profound grottoes dug out of the stony mass, the outlines of such incomparable clearness, the border-lines of which stand out black as if due to the brush of certain Flemish artist. Then, beyond, an horizon of mountains, an admirable undulating line composing the background of the landscape. I cannot describe the effects of these smooth black polished rocks, destitute of moss, without a stain, and with such strange forms solidly resting on a carpet of sand that sparkled in the electric light.
p507
It was vulgar misanthropy that enclosed Captain Nemo and his companions in the sides of the Nautilus, but a sublime hatred that time could not quench.
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
#30 A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
When I first dug in to this book I thought it might be a bit difficult to get thru. It is written in the first person narrative style - the main character speaking directly to the reader. Alex speaks to you using that futuristic cockney slang that Malcolm McDowell so brilliantly brought to horrorshow life in Stanley Kubrick's film. You do soon get used to all the listos and glazies and such, O My Brother, so it is not that bad after all.
There is an introduction before the edition that I read that gives the impression that Burgess isn't as fond of this work as everyone else is. If I remember right, Kubrick wasn't all that proud of the film version either. Perhaps bringing to life a character as horrible as young Alex puts you off a bit.
And Alex is thoroughly awful. Believe it or not, Kubrick changed some things to clean him up a little bit. Burgess' Alex is absolutely detestable.. and he attempts to ingratiate himself to the reader by referring to himself as "You Humble Narrator" and your "Friend". Ugh - barf.
Normally, in a philosophical work such as this, the deeper message is more nebulous.. something you are forced to ponder and piece together.. but not here. Burgess comes right out and tells you the precise meaning and explains the metaphor - right in the book - of the "clockwork orange". He spends pages explicitly detailing the meaning of what he is saying about human nature and crime and punishment. I guess I am used to some more obscurity for things of this nature.
The book is divided up into three sections, each begins with Alex being asked "What's it going to be then, eh?" This particular line gets to the heart of the major philosophical issue in the book: CHOICE. Alex chooses to be who he is (evil) and the justice system takes away his ability to choose. I suppose he should be locked up for life because he only chooses to hurt people for his own gain, but I suppose he should not have his humanity stripped from him even if he is a shitty human.
P44
They don't go into what is the cause of goodness, so why the other shop? If lewdies are good that's because they like it, and I wouldn't ever interfere with their pleasure, and so of the other shop. And I was patronizing the other shop. More, badness is of the self, the one, the you or me on our oddy knockies, and that self is made by the old Bog or God and is his great pride and radosty. But the not-self cannot have the bad, meaning they of the government and the judges and the schools cannot allow the bad because they cannot allow the self. And is not our modern history, my brothers, the story of brave malenky selves fighting with these big machines? I am serious with you, brothers, over this. But what I do I do because I like to do.
There is an introduction before the edition that I read that gives the impression that Burgess isn't as fond of this work as everyone else is. If I remember right, Kubrick wasn't all that proud of the film version either. Perhaps bringing to life a character as horrible as young Alex puts you off a bit.
And Alex is thoroughly awful. Believe it or not, Kubrick changed some things to clean him up a little bit. Burgess' Alex is absolutely detestable.. and he attempts to ingratiate himself to the reader by referring to himself as "You Humble Narrator" and your "Friend". Ugh - barf.
Normally, in a philosophical work such as this, the deeper message is more nebulous.. something you are forced to ponder and piece together.. but not here. Burgess comes right out and tells you the precise meaning and explains the metaphor - right in the book - of the "clockwork orange". He spends pages explicitly detailing the meaning of what he is saying about human nature and crime and punishment. I guess I am used to some more obscurity for things of this nature.
The book is divided up into three sections, each begins with Alex being asked "What's it going to be then, eh?" This particular line gets to the heart of the major philosophical issue in the book: CHOICE. Alex chooses to be who he is (evil) and the justice system takes away his ability to choose. I suppose he should be locked up for life because he only chooses to hurt people for his own gain, but I suppose he should not have his humanity stripped from him even if he is a shitty human.
P44
They don't go into what is the cause of goodness, so why the other shop? If lewdies are good that's because they like it, and I wouldn't ever interfere with their pleasure, and so of the other shop. And I was patronizing the other shop. More, badness is of the self, the one, the you or me on our oddy knockies, and that self is made by the old Bog or God and is his great pride and radosty. But the not-self cannot have the bad, meaning they of the government and the judges and the schools cannot allow the bad because they cannot allow the self. And is not our modern history, my brothers, the story of brave malenky selves fighting with these big machines? I am serious with you, brothers, over this. But what I do I do because I like to do.
Sunday, July 19, 2015
#42 the Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
When I first picked it up, I was thinking I might be overdosing on King Arthur. My level of interest quickly heightened when I saw that it was the Arthurian legends from the FEMALE perspective. And naturally it was quite good.
All of the characters, no matter how strong their convictions or how powerful they are, show a lot of insecurities and have a very high capacity for self doubt. I found it interesting on how quickly all of the women flowed back and forth between jealousy - almost to the point of hostility - and supportive sisterhood. Viviane, Igraine and Morguase have a sisterly relationship that is based on equal parts love and resentment; magical power and subjected duty; guilt and sacrifice.. and pride.
Gwenhwyfar and Morgaine constantly stab and forgive each other. Each feels like the other one got what she should have had. They are horribly envious of each other, but somewhat comfortable in the knowledge that the other doesn't have it that good either. They accuse and forgive - several times - within the span of just a few breaths.
It is tragic, but beautiful. ..why the "but"?.. It is tragic AND beautiful.
Perhaps this is somewhat of a glimpse of what goes on in a woman's mind all of the time.. if so.. yikes.
p48
They had reached the door of their lodging; Gorlois his face turning dark with wrath, pushed her angrily within. "You will not speak to me in that voice, lady, or I shall beat you in earnest."
Igraine realized that she had actually bared her teeth like a hunting cat, and her voice hissed as she said "Touch me at your peril, Gorlois, or I shall teach you that a daughter of the holy isle is no man's slave or servant!"
p726
"Why should we all meet in one afterlife? Why should there not be many paths, the Saxons to follow their own, we follow ours, the followers of Christ to worship him if they choose, without restraining the worship of others?"
Kevin shook his head. " My dear, I do not know. There seems to be a deep change in the way men look at the world, as if one truth should drive out another - as if whatever is not in their truth, must be a falsehood."
"But life is not as simple as that," Morgaine said.
"I know that, you know that, and in the fullness of time, Morgaine, even the priests will find it out."
"But if they have driven all other truths from the world, it will be too late." Morgaine said.
p758
There is no sorrow like the memory of love and the knowledge that it is gone forever.
Gwenhwyfar and Morgaine constantly stab and forgive each other. Each feels like the other one got what she should have had. They are horribly envious of each other, but somewhat comfortable in the knowledge that the other doesn't have it that good either. They accuse and forgive - several times - within the span of just a few breaths.
It is tragic, but beautiful. ..why the "but"?.. It is tragic AND beautiful.
Perhaps this is somewhat of a glimpse of what goes on in a woman's mind all of the time.. if so.. yikes.
p48
They had reached the door of their lodging; Gorlois his face turning dark with wrath, pushed her angrily within. "You will not speak to me in that voice, lady, or I shall beat you in earnest."
Igraine realized that she had actually bared her teeth like a hunting cat, and her voice hissed as she said "Touch me at your peril, Gorlois, or I shall teach you that a daughter of the holy isle is no man's slave or servant!"
p726
"Why should we all meet in one afterlife? Why should there not be many paths, the Saxons to follow their own, we follow ours, the followers of Christ to worship him if they choose, without restraining the worship of others?"
Kevin shook his head. " My dear, I do not know. There seems to be a deep change in the way men look at the world, as if one truth should drive out another - as if whatever is not in their truth, must be a falsehood."
"But life is not as simple as that," Morgaine said.
"I know that, you know that, and in the fullness of time, Morgaine, even the priests will find it out."
"But if they have driven all other truths from the world, it will be too late." Morgaine said.
p758
There is no sorrow like the memory of love and the knowledge that it is gone forever.
Friday, May 22, 2015
#47 The Once and Future King by T H White
This is the the first real book that I have read about King Arthur. I have seen several movies, but no books. The first 1/3 of this book is Disney's The Sword in the Stone. Almost exactly. Young Arthur, called Wart, is tutored by Merlin and squires for Kay until he pulls the sword from the stone. Classic tale of the orphan kid who is secretly the heir to the throne.. kinda ruined by having seen it before. I found it a bit hard to get into.
The middle part of the book mainly follows Lancelot and his adventures and his relationship with Guinevere. There are a few throw away chapters about a really colorful and lovable character called King Pellinore. He is a great character - very Don Quixote like - but his story was a little out of place in this book I thought.
The final part covers the tragic end of the Arthur, Lance, Gwen love triangle. I felt that was very well done. It really pushes how great of a king Arthur was ( and will be?). He did the best he could in his time, but the world was just not quite ready for that much justice.
I think White was going for a collection of stories of the rest of Arthur's life. He references other authors works directly and says to look there for a recount of the main big conquests of King Arthur and the KORT. Perhaps some of the things that I found odd here (Pellinore) will make more sense once I do read the rest of the stories..
I am reading Mists of Avalon by Bradley next, so we shall see.
p312
It is the tragedy.. of sin coming home to roost... He did not know he was [sinning].. but it seems, in tragedy, that innocence is not enough.
p432
The king sat looking at his fingers, and they waited while the old thoughts ran sideways across his hands like crabs.
p517
An enormous eagle owl... opened his eyes when the bells rang. Before he had opened them he might have been a stuffed owl, a dowdy bundle of feathers. The moment they had dawned, he was a creature form Edgar Alan Poe. You hardly liked to look at him. They were red eyes, homicidal and terrific. Seeming to actually give out light. They were like rubies filled with flame. He was called the Grand Duke.
The middle part of the book mainly follows Lancelot and his adventures and his relationship with Guinevere. There are a few throw away chapters about a really colorful and lovable character called King Pellinore. He is a great character - very Don Quixote like - but his story was a little out of place in this book I thought.
The final part covers the tragic end of the Arthur, Lance, Gwen love triangle. I felt that was very well done. It really pushes how great of a king Arthur was ( and will be?). He did the best he could in his time, but the world was just not quite ready for that much justice.
I think White was going for a collection of stories of the rest of Arthur's life. He references other authors works directly and says to look there for a recount of the main big conquests of King Arthur and the KORT. Perhaps some of the things that I found odd here (Pellinore) will make more sense once I do read the rest of the stories..
I am reading Mists of Avalon by Bradley next, so we shall see.
p312
It is the tragedy.. of sin coming home to roost... He did not know he was [sinning].. but it seems, in tragedy, that innocence is not enough.
p432
The king sat looking at his fingers, and they waited while the old thoughts ran sideways across his hands like crabs.
p517
An enormous eagle owl... opened his eyes when the bells rang. Before he had opened them he might have been a stuffed owl, a dowdy bundle of feathers. The moment they had dawned, he was a creature form Edgar Alan Poe. You hardly liked to look at him. They were red eyes, homicidal and terrific. Seeming to actually give out light. They were like rubies filled with flame. He was called the Grand Duke.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
#58 The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen R Donaldson
Lord Foul's Bane (book one of three)
I was thrown off by the story starting in the modern mundane world for the first two chapters. As a plot device, it was very well done in that it gave you a real feel for the hero (anti-hero) and where he was coming from. Covenant is so resistant to his fate, so afraid of loosing his bitterly constructed defenses that he does his heroic ( and villainous) deeds because he HAS to... not at all because he wants to.
Here is a man coming from the cruel and painful normal world who is thrust into a beautiful, ideal world. This wondrous would is troubled and he helps only in spite of himself. His main goal is to make it back to the world that treats him so badly still in one piece with his sanity intact. He suddenly finds himself in a much better place, but he rejects it because he is so used to having to be tough and fight to survive. It is a far cry from the humble, tragic heroes struggling against a controlling Orwellian dystopia or the proud, honor-bound fantasy heroes following their fate.
p331 a funeral song.
Death reaps the beauty of the world - bundles old crops to hasten new.
Be still heart: hold peace.
Growing is better than decay: I hear the blade that severs life from life.
Be still, peace: hold heart.
Death is passing on- the making way of life and time for life.
Hate dying and killing, not death.
Be still, heart: make no expostulation.
Hold peace and grief and be still.
I could have sworn I made a post after finishing the Illearth War (book two), but it sure does not appear to be here..
The Power That Preserves (book three)
Mr. Covenant is more resigned to his interaction with The Land and has more control over things overall. He is still a jerk, but on his third trip he is softened a bit. He knows what to expect from The Land and the people therein.. which makes is a bit predictable for the reader as well. The same formula kinda looses some steam the third time around. There is still some epic awesomeness - kick ass battle scenes.. a siege.. crossing a river of lava.. slaying creepy not-main-villain-but-still-bad-guy. Old characters come back and play out their tragedies. Others suffer and die (much to Covenant's dismay) so that he can accomplish what he needs to. He sorely hates that there is all of this blood on his hands, but there is nothing he can do about it. This all contributes to Covenant's spiral of self loathing and I really did end up pitying him in the end.
p272
Dreams roiled in his unconsciousness giving him no consolation. Again and again he relived the double-fisted blow with which he had stabbed Pitten. But now he dealt that fierce blow to other hearts - Llaura, Manethrall Rue, Elena, Joan, the woman who had been killed protecting him at the battle of Soaring Woodhelven - why had he never asked anyone her name? In dreams he slew them all. They lay around him with gleams of light shining keenly out of their wounds like notes in an alien melody. The song tugged at him, urged - but before he could hear it, another figure hove across his vision, listing like a crippled frigate. The man was dressed in misery and violence. He had blood on his hands and love of murder in his eyes but Covenant could not make out his face. Again he raised the knife, again he drove it with all his might into that vulnerable breast. Only then did he see that the man was himself.
p334
The turbulent wind seemed to snatch the sound to pieces, tatter it instantly. In a place where echoes were common, his call disappeared without resonance or answer; the wind tore it away as if to undo his purpose, make him unheard. Nevertheless he summoned his trust, pried himself up the hillside to stand waiting on the vantage of the test. A suspense like the either / or of despair filled him, but he faced the western mountains as if he know neither distrust nor fear.
I was thrown off by the story starting in the modern mundane world for the first two chapters. As a plot device, it was very well done in that it gave you a real feel for the hero (anti-hero) and where he was coming from. Covenant is so resistant to his fate, so afraid of loosing his bitterly constructed defenses that he does his heroic ( and villainous) deeds because he HAS to... not at all because he wants to.
Here is a man coming from the cruel and painful normal world who is thrust into a beautiful, ideal world. This wondrous would is troubled and he helps only in spite of himself. His main goal is to make it back to the world that treats him so badly still in one piece with his sanity intact. He suddenly finds himself in a much better place, but he rejects it because he is so used to having to be tough and fight to survive. It is a far cry from the humble, tragic heroes struggling against a controlling Orwellian dystopia or the proud, honor-bound fantasy heroes following their fate.
p331 a funeral song.
Death reaps the beauty of the world - bundles old crops to hasten new.
Be still heart: hold peace.
Growing is better than decay: I hear the blade that severs life from life.
Be still, peace: hold heart.
Death is passing on- the making way of life and time for life.
Hate dying and killing, not death.
Be still, heart: make no expostulation.
Hold peace and grief and be still.
I could have sworn I made a post after finishing the Illearth War (book two), but it sure does not appear to be here..
The Power That Preserves (book three)
Mr. Covenant is more resigned to his interaction with The Land and has more control over things overall. He is still a jerk, but on his third trip he is softened a bit. He knows what to expect from The Land and the people therein.. which makes is a bit predictable for the reader as well. The same formula kinda looses some steam the third time around. There is still some epic awesomeness - kick ass battle scenes.. a siege.. crossing a river of lava.. slaying creepy not-main-villain-but-still-bad-guy. Old characters come back and play out their tragedies. Others suffer and die (much to Covenant's dismay) so that he can accomplish what he needs to. He sorely hates that there is all of this blood on his hands, but there is nothing he can do about it. This all contributes to Covenant's spiral of self loathing and I really did end up pitying him in the end.
p272
Dreams roiled in his unconsciousness giving him no consolation. Again and again he relived the double-fisted blow with which he had stabbed Pitten. But now he dealt that fierce blow to other hearts - Llaura, Manethrall Rue, Elena, Joan, the woman who had been killed protecting him at the battle of Soaring Woodhelven - why had he never asked anyone her name? In dreams he slew them all. They lay around him with gleams of light shining keenly out of their wounds like notes in an alien melody. The song tugged at him, urged - but before he could hear it, another figure hove across his vision, listing like a crippled frigate. The man was dressed in misery and violence. He had blood on his hands and love of murder in his eyes but Covenant could not make out his face. Again he raised the knife, again he drove it with all his might into that vulnerable breast. Only then did he see that the man was himself.
p334
The turbulent wind seemed to snatch the sound to pieces, tatter it instantly. In a place where echoes were common, his call disappeared without resonance or answer; the wind tore it away as if to undo his purpose, make him unheard. Nevertheless he summoned his trust, pried himself up the hillside to stand waiting on the vantage of the test. A suspense like the either / or of despair filled him, but he faced the western mountains as if he know neither distrust nor fear.
Saturday, January 24, 2015
#19 Slaughterhouse- five by Kurt Vonnegut
Vonnegut is a CRAZY m-f'er. Holy scatterbrain, batman. I suppose random hopping around in the timeline of the story is a really useful device in a book about someone who comes unstuck in time. I hadn't realized before that twice an many people died in the firebombing of Dresden as in the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima. So it goes.
p167
Trout, incidentally, had written a book about a money tree. It had twenty-dollar bills for leaves. Its flowers were government bonds. Its fruit was diamonds. It attracted human beings who killed each other around its roots and made very good fertilizer. So it goes.
p167
Trout, incidentally, had written a book about a money tree. It had twenty-dollar bills for leaves. Its flowers were government bonds. Its fruit was diamonds. It attracted human beings who killed each other around its roots and made very good fertilizer. So it goes.
#13 Animal Farm by George Orwell
After plodding through the last book over the course of several months, this one went by in the blink of an eye. 141 pages, but feels shorter. I'm left not quite knowing what Orwell feels about communism, but sure doesn't like people in power. He seems to extol the virtues of a society where all are equal and everyone works for the common good to the best of his abilities, but any form of government can be perverted from it's ideals and corrupted by certain individuals.
It made me really hungry for bacon..
It made me really hungry for bacon..
#64 Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
I was actually looking for more by Arthur C. when I found Susanna. This was a slow book. It took me quite a wile to get through it. It was very interesting, but not exciting. There is very little action, but it was not dull. I enjoyed reading it, but was not eager to jump back into it after putting it down. It is a very different kind of story altogether. Set in the early 1800's, it is based upon the two magicians in the title of the book trying to bring Magic back to England.
Norrell is a real wizard type. Very bookish, reserved, quiet.. cowardly and narcissistic too. He is a real jerk through most of the book.
Strange is more the Sorcerer type. He has a much better feel for the magic as opposed to Norrell's knowledge. Since he did start out as Norrell's apprentice (later nemesis), he has plenty of knowledge too. He is WAY more charismatic and downright dashing at times.
Stephen and the Fairy are have a great dynamic, as do Childermas and Viniculus. I think Viniculus is my favorite character, but I wish there was more about him.
It is odd that neither of the main characters in the title of the book are involved in the ultimate climax of the story.
p469
It may be laid down as a general rule that if a man begins to sing, no one will take any notice of his song except his fellow human beings. This is true even if the song is surpassingly beautiful. Other men may be in raptures at his skill, but the rest of creation, by and large, unmoved. Perhaps a cat or a dog may look at him; his horse, if it is an exceptionally intelligent beast, may pause in cropping the grass, but that is the extent of it. But when the fairy sang, the whole world listened to him. Stephen felt the clouds pause in their passing; he felt the sleeping hills shift and murmur; he felt the cold mists dance. he understood for the first time that the world is not dumb at all, but merely waiting for someone to speak to it in a language it understands. In the fairy's song the earth recognized the names by which it called itself.
ooOOooohh... that's good.
#49 Childhood's End by Arthur C Clarke
A book about first contact.. and last contact. Benevolent overlords come to Earth just in tome to prevent us from destroying ourselves. They teach us to live in peace, but some wonder if they have an ulterior motive. Of course there is way more going on with the aliens than just a friendly greeting from the stars, but this book goes somewhere no other story has. They wait for signs of Humanity growing out of it's childhood and help us to the next stage. The end of the book with it's first person view of total loneliness and desolation; the feeling of accepting one's ultimate fate; the evaporation of.. everything.. was so well written it just left me with an odd, empty kind of feeling.
Thursday, January 22, 2015
#44 Ringworld by Larry Niven
This was the most sciency of the Sci Fi books I have read so far. The characters are good. Fun adventure. But it felt like Niven used the story as a backdrop / stage for his neato futuristic inventions. That is just an observation, not really a criticism. It actually suited me just fine for what it is. I'll take it.
#67 The Sword of Shannara trilogy by Terry Brooks
Just finished Sword / Elfstones / Wishsong of Shannara by Terry Brooks. They were good, but it was kinda like reading the same book three times over.
This post of FB is what got me thinking about creating this blog. I got a few comments from a few different friends and there was more of a discussion than I had expected. I didn't want to keep my wall littered with my reactions, but I did want to put my thoughts somewhere. It just took a while to get there (here).
Wishsong of Shannara p251
It was the kind of autumn day fond memories conjure up of a milder season's passing when winter snows lie deep about.
#36, #39 The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds by HG Welles
This was my reaction on FB:
Just finished reading War Of The Worlds and The Time Machine - both by HG Wells. Both are excellent. At 180 and 115 pages respectively, some of their contemporaries should take note... but their notes would be longer than his books.
Really.. does a good Sci Fi / Fantasy book HAVE to be thousands of pages long? Is nobody capable of excellence AND brevity? Maybe it is just what you have to do to make money as an author nowadays or something like that. You won't get published unless you hit at least the 300 page mark. That is a total guess, but maybe there is something there.
Both books are absolutely riveting and being a fraction of the size of many other works, are also very accessible.
Just finished reading War Of The Worlds and The Time Machine - both by HG Wells. Both are excellent. At 180 and 115 pages respectively, some of their contemporaries should take note... but their notes would be longer than his books.
Really.. does a good Sci Fi / Fantasy book HAVE to be thousands of pages long? Is nobody capable of excellence AND brevity? Maybe it is just what you have to do to make money as an author nowadays or something like that. You won't get published unless you hit at least the 300 page mark. That is a total guess, but maybe there is something there.
Both books are absolutely riveting and being a fraction of the size of many other works, are also very accessible.
#20 Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
This is NOT a quote from Frankenstein's monster : "Fire BAD!!"
This is: "Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why, in that instant, did I not extinguish the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed? I know not; despair had not yet taken possession of me; my feelings were those of rage and revenge. I could with pleasure have destroyed the cottage and its inhabitants and have glutted myself with their shrieks and misery."
Shelley is brilliant here. You really feel everything that happens to the monster (named Adam), and it is quite powerful. He is not some giant mindless humunculus, he is an ultra intelligent child trying to discover how to get by all alone in the world. At first I thought the book might be an accusation of an absent God that created Man and left him to become wicked and evil when he just wanted affirmation and love.
Later on that thought evolved into a round-about argument FOR organized religion. Adam wanted some sense of acceptance and direction from his creator. If we consider ourselves to be Adam and God to be Frankenstein then it could be said that unlike Frank, OUR creator did did tell us that he loved us. He DID leave a list of instructions for us to follow. It is called the Bible.
I personally think that a lot of what is in the Bible is instructions on how to be cruel and malicious; how to keep women, slaves, and poor people in their place; and whom you can and cannot commit genocide toward. There are also many great stories and examples of caring and goodness and how one really ought to behave in the good book too.. but that's all I will say about that here.
This is: "Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why, in that instant, did I not extinguish the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed? I know not; despair had not yet taken possession of me; my feelings were those of rage and revenge. I could with pleasure have destroyed the cottage and its inhabitants and have glutted myself with their shrieks and misery."
Shelley is brilliant here. You really feel everything that happens to the monster (named Adam), and it is quite powerful. He is not some giant mindless humunculus, he is an ultra intelligent child trying to discover how to get by all alone in the world. At first I thought the book might be an accusation of an absent God that created Man and left him to become wicked and evil when he just wanted affirmation and love.
Later on that thought evolved into a round-about argument FOR organized religion. Adam wanted some sense of acceptance and direction from his creator. If we consider ourselves to be Adam and God to be Frankenstein then it could be said that unlike Frank, OUR creator did did tell us that he loved us. He DID leave a list of instructions for us to follow. It is called the Bible.
I personally think that a lot of what is in the Bible is instructions on how to be cruel and malicious; how to keep women, slaves, and poor people in their place; and whom you can and cannot commit genocide toward. There are also many great stories and examples of caring and goodness and how one really ought to behave in the good book too.. but that's all I will say about that here.
#9 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
When I picked it up I quickly realized that I had indeed read it before. Also a high school lit class. It is all very dark and depressive. It is a story of an outsider trying to fit in to the neat clean world. Something was slightly amiss when Bernard was created and he is full of anxiety, which has generally been engineered out of society totally. He is an unlikable character. You pity him, but he is a jerk.
There is also John, who is again an outsider trying to make it in the larger and more sterile "real" world. But the world is just to real for the both of them and you end up feeling that you DO need to be "normal" to be able to get by. It almost becomes an argument FOR the establishment. Which is slightly distressing.
It is a wonderful world that Huxley painstakingly colors for you, but isn't it nice when the hero wins? Maybe he wasn't going for that.. maybe it isn't meant to be nice.
There is also John, who is again an outsider trying to make it in the larger and more sterile "real" world. But the world is just to real for the both of them and you end up feeling that you DO need to be "normal" to be able to get by. It almost becomes an argument FOR the establishment. Which is slightly distressing.
It is a wonderful world that Huxley painstakingly colors for you, but isn't it nice when the hero wins? Maybe he wasn't going for that.. maybe it isn't meant to be nice.
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
#8 The Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov
Asimov didn't write Science Fiction here, he wrote a book about politics and sociology set in a futuristic world. It is not about space travel and wondrous technological gadgets, it is bout how people use these things to shape their world, deal with problems and save the galaxy form going back into the dark ages. He has made an allegory set in space to the real fall of an empire in Rome. In doing so he writes an essential piece of literature that absolutely everyone should read.
#55 The Last Unicorn by Peter S Beagle
L O V E D THIS BOOK!!! It was absolutely brilliant. The film is another all time fave, and the novel is just over the moon. It is a masterpiece of a fairy tale. Everything in the movie is there plus some more that just makes it even better. Delightful. I can't say enough good things about this story.
#11 The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Skip it. The film is one of my favorite of all time. Don't wreck it with the book. I have spoken to others that liked the book too but it did nothing for me. It is partly Goldman's writing style and his narcissistic NEED to put himself into his book. About half of the the book is a fictional account of him abridging the original work by a ..fictitious.. S Morgenstern. To his credit he does say at the beginning that if you just want to read about Westley and Buttercup and the whole gang - just read the normal text and ignore everything in italics. DO THIS. There are some nifty tidbits that are not in the film.. but all the sludge about Goldman himself making an abridged version for his ..fictitious.. son is lame and boring. It's not about YOU, dingus.
#12 The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan (books 1-3)
I read the first book and I really liked it. then I saw.. wait.. how damn many 700 - 800 page books are in this damn series?? about a dozen or so? F that. I need to make some progress here. I can't commit a whole year to Robert freaking Jordan. Wait.. what's that you say?? He DIED and someone else kept writing MORE books? Youvegottabefreakinkiddingme.. ugh. Some day RJ, some day...
That being said, these books are REALLY good!!
The Eye of the World is where it all begins. Classic feel of the naive small town kids that will eventually end up reshaping the world. Rand AlThor is a shepherd. Matt is a joker. Perrin is a shy blacksmith. Egwene is Rand's girlfriend. Nynaeve is the young Wisdom (wise woman) of the village. Powerful Sorceress Moraine, of the Aes Sedai order, and her brooding Warder Lan show up just before the evil Trollocks start prowling near the village - all looking for the boy from the prophecy.
They escape and Rand inherits his father's magical sword. They are chased by a horde of baddies, but Moraine - though mistrusted by the kids - shows her power and fends them off. They meet Min, a girl of their own age that can sometimes see peoples futures. They meet the Princess Elayne - who can do magic herslef and has a crush on the hero Rand. The meet an intellectual Oiger Loyal - who just might be my favorite character. They meet an old Bard, Thom, who travels with them to protect them as much from Moraine as the Trollocks. They find out that Lan is actually the heir to a kingdom - that lies in ruin and is overrun with enemies and exterminated of all humanity. Mat gets a cursed dagger. Perrin learns how to talk to wolves. They all make some pretty powerful enemies and some pretty dangerous friends.
It is a HUGE setup with lots of threads that the ta'vern (people who have strong influence on the lives of those around them) are sure to knot up severely before all is said and done.
The Great Hunt went rather quick for its almost 700 pages. All of the main characters are back and some cool new ones too. It is a classic quest. Bad guys were broken out of the dungeon and stole a treasure. The Horn of Valere - which can summon long dead heroes to fight for you. There is a conventional overland chase that maintains a level of suspense while introducing you to the countryside and the history of the world. There are three separate travel segments thru magical mirror-worlds also. Jordan really gets some great fantasy elements going. There is a betrayal by one who was assumed to be a good guy (gal). Two heroes captured, two escape, and naturally are later rescued. Two parts where different characters are tempted by visions of their possible futures. An increasing of the innate powers of several heroes. And it all ends in an epic battle that still leaves many questions about what is next to come. And this is only book two!
I do really like Jordan's casual equality of men and women. One of the most feared organizations in the land is all women. The Aes Sedai are FAR more powerful that any male group because they have magic. Men so not have access to magic because it makes them insane. The MAIN main character is a male, but the women have their own story lines and really move the plot.
The Aes Sedai remind me a lot of the Bene Gesserit order from Frank Herbert's Dune.
p139 "Oh, very well. The best of mean are not buch better than housebroken." Nyaneve paused, and added half to herself, "But then, the best of them are worth the trouble of housebreaking." ... "Housebreak him?" [Egwene] muttered. "If her hasn't learned manners by this time I'll skin him alive."
"Sometimes that's what it takes." Niura said, walking quickly. "Men are never more than half-civilized until there wedded."
p627 "but you had better do the best you can to make sure the rest of us aren't noticed either. If we are, you will surely be seen, and if that's not enough to hold you, I promise you i'll make you curse the first kiss your mother ever gave your father. Do we understand each other?"
The Dragon Reborn is a little slower than the first two installments, but no less good. Rand is starting to loose it and walks off to both keep the others safe from himself and to track down the magical sword he keeps dreaming of. Perrin is trying to not go wolf crazy and is scared of what happens in his dreams too. The ladies take Mat to Tar Valon to cure him of the dagger sickness.
Egwene learns how to travel and fight in the dream world with the help of a powerful magic ring. The citizens of at least two major cities all start having the same bad dreams when their governments are taken over by disguised Forsaken. ..there is just a whole lot of dreaming going on.
Nynaeve, Egwene and Elayne have to face down numerous enemies in Tar Valon and in the wider world. It is clear that they are powerful, but are still really inexperienced. They do get Mat healed up and he proves that he, too, is a badass fighter. Still weak from being recently cured by the Aes Sedai, he kicks the crap out of two Warders-in-training with a quarterstaff. He does have help by a.. side effect?.. of the healing process giving him super duper luck. He wins at everything.
He hooks back up with good old Thom Merrilin again and they go to rescue the ladies when they find that there is a price on their heads. Jordan should just stop pretending that Thom is written out of the story. I won't believe him gone now until we SEE him die. Even then, maybe not..
Over all, I am really liking this series. the books are long, but they read quick. I'm totally hooked.
p57 " I knew an old Illaner woman, once," she said slowly. "When she was young, her mother arranged a marriage for her with a man she had never even met... she said she spent the first five years raging against him, and the next five scheming to make his life miserable without his knowing who was to blame. It was only years later, she said, when hi died, that she realized he had really been the love of his life... Just because fate has chosen something different for you instead of you choosing it for yourself doesn't mean it has to be bad."
p214 "A man is the easiest animal to put on a leash, and the hardest to keep leashed."
p236 The owl blinked at her, and she jumped. "Ah yes, Verin said.. he keeps down mice. They chew paper" ** I NEVER PUT THAT TOGETHER BEFORE. THIS IS WHY WIZARDS HAVE FAMILIARS!! **
p653 For a heartbeat that took centuries he hung, wavering, balanced on the brink of being scoured away like sand before a flash flood.
That being said, these books are REALLY good!!
The Eye of the World is where it all begins. Classic feel of the naive small town kids that will eventually end up reshaping the world. Rand AlThor is a shepherd. Matt is a joker. Perrin is a shy blacksmith. Egwene is Rand's girlfriend. Nynaeve is the young Wisdom (wise woman) of the village. Powerful Sorceress Moraine, of the Aes Sedai order, and her brooding Warder Lan show up just before the evil Trollocks start prowling near the village - all looking for the boy from the prophecy.
They escape and Rand inherits his father's magical sword. They are chased by a horde of baddies, but Moraine - though mistrusted by the kids - shows her power and fends them off. They meet Min, a girl of their own age that can sometimes see peoples futures. They meet the Princess Elayne - who can do magic herslef and has a crush on the hero Rand. The meet an intellectual Oiger Loyal - who just might be my favorite character. They meet an old Bard, Thom, who travels with them to protect them as much from Moraine as the Trollocks. They find out that Lan is actually the heir to a kingdom - that lies in ruin and is overrun with enemies and exterminated of all humanity. Mat gets a cursed dagger. Perrin learns how to talk to wolves. They all make some pretty powerful enemies and some pretty dangerous friends.
It is a HUGE setup with lots of threads that the ta'vern (people who have strong influence on the lives of those around them) are sure to knot up severely before all is said and done.
The Great Hunt went rather quick for its almost 700 pages. All of the main characters are back and some cool new ones too. It is a classic quest. Bad guys were broken out of the dungeon and stole a treasure. The Horn of Valere - which can summon long dead heroes to fight for you. There is a conventional overland chase that maintains a level of suspense while introducing you to the countryside and the history of the world. There are three separate travel segments thru magical mirror-worlds also. Jordan really gets some great fantasy elements going. There is a betrayal by one who was assumed to be a good guy (gal). Two heroes captured, two escape, and naturally are later rescued. Two parts where different characters are tempted by visions of their possible futures. An increasing of the innate powers of several heroes. And it all ends in an epic battle that still leaves many questions about what is next to come. And this is only book two!
I do really like Jordan's casual equality of men and women. One of the most feared organizations in the land is all women. The Aes Sedai are FAR more powerful that any male group because they have magic. Men so not have access to magic because it makes them insane. The MAIN main character is a male, but the women have their own story lines and really move the plot.
The Aes Sedai remind me a lot of the Bene Gesserit order from Frank Herbert's Dune.
p139 "Oh, very well. The best of mean are not buch better than housebroken." Nyaneve paused, and added half to herself, "But then, the best of them are worth the trouble of housebreaking." ... "Housebreak him?" [Egwene] muttered. "If her hasn't learned manners by this time I'll skin him alive."
"Sometimes that's what it takes." Niura said, walking quickly. "Men are never more than half-civilized until there wedded."
p627 "but you had better do the best you can to make sure the rest of us aren't noticed either. If we are, you will surely be seen, and if that's not enough to hold you, I promise you i'll make you curse the first kiss your mother ever gave your father. Do we understand each other?"
The Dragon Reborn is a little slower than the first two installments, but no less good. Rand is starting to loose it and walks off to both keep the others safe from himself and to track down the magical sword he keeps dreaming of. Perrin is trying to not go wolf crazy and is scared of what happens in his dreams too. The ladies take Mat to Tar Valon to cure him of the dagger sickness.
Egwene learns how to travel and fight in the dream world with the help of a powerful magic ring. The citizens of at least two major cities all start having the same bad dreams when their governments are taken over by disguised Forsaken. ..there is just a whole lot of dreaming going on.
Nynaeve, Egwene and Elayne have to face down numerous enemies in Tar Valon and in the wider world. It is clear that they are powerful, but are still really inexperienced. They do get Mat healed up and he proves that he, too, is a badass fighter. Still weak from being recently cured by the Aes Sedai, he kicks the crap out of two Warders-in-training with a quarterstaff. He does have help by a.. side effect?.. of the healing process giving him super duper luck. He wins at everything.
He hooks back up with good old Thom Merrilin again and they go to rescue the ladies when they find that there is a price on their heads. Jordan should just stop pretending that Thom is written out of the story. I won't believe him gone now until we SEE him die. Even then, maybe not..
Over all, I am really liking this series. the books are long, but they read quick. I'm totally hooked.
p57 " I knew an old Illaner woman, once," she said slowly. "When she was young, her mother arranged a marriage for her with a man she had never even met... she said she spent the first five years raging against him, and the next five scheming to make his life miserable without his knowing who was to blame. It was only years later, she said, when hi died, that she realized he had really been the love of his life... Just because fate has chosen something different for you instead of you choosing it for yourself doesn't mean it has to be bad."
p214 "A man is the easiest animal to put on a leash, and the hardest to keep leashed."
p236 The owl blinked at her, and she jumped. "Ah yes, Verin said.. he keeps down mice. They chew paper" ** I NEVER PUT THAT TOGETHER BEFORE. THIS IS WHY WIZARDS HAVE FAMILIARS!! **
p653 For a heartbeat that took centuries he hung, wavering, balanced on the brink of being scoured away like sand before a flash flood.
#100 The Space Trilogy by CS Lewis
I very much enjoyed this series. The first two books, Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra, are better. Well..they are lighter and more fun than That Hideous Strength. THS is rough and gritty. It seems rather wordy.. which is an odd criticism of a book. The action was really slow and plodding but it finally got to a nice conclusion. Over all I thought they were great, but definitely second to the Chronicles of Narnia which - and I just had to check again to make sure - are somehow not on this list.
#50 Contact by Carl Sagan
This is the first book that I picked up after starting the attempt to complete the list. Everyone has seen the blockbuster movie and I thought that is held up to the book pretty well. There were some alterations here and there, but I don't think it harmed Sagan's vision or message. It was a good book, but I wasn't overwhelmed by it. It didn't feel to me like one of those.. "ooohh.. but you gotta read the BOOK!" ones. The film is so well done that you aren't missing much.
I feel like I do the comparison between book and film too much, and that wasn't my intent really here.. but that is where it has gone and it will go there again.
I feel like I do the comparison between book and film too much, and that wasn't my intent really here.. but that is where it has gone and it will go there again.
The Quest begins
This brings us roughly up to July 13th 2013. On this date, I saw the list posted on a friend's Facebook page. I said I had 15 and vowed to get to 100. I fudged the 15 a bit.. For example I counted the Foundation trilogy by Isaac Asimov, but I had only read the first book. I have since made good on all of the ones that I fibbed about and have read nothing not-on-the-list. Current total on this date is 26.
I am glad that I have decided to write all of this down because I find that I don't have a very clear memory of the plot lines and my reaction to the books I read a long time ago. I think that a brief reaction posted here will help keep them fresh in my mind.
I am glad that I have decided to write all of this down because I find that I don't have a very clear memory of the plot lines and my reaction to the books I read a long time ago. I think that a brief reaction posted here will help keep them fresh in my mind.
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
#5 A Song of Ice and Fire by George RR Martin
I first heard about Game of Thrones from some friends of mine that I.. um.. play Dungeons and Dragons with. Yep, that is in the present tense (though we don't get together nearly as often as any of us would like to). When Season One of the show came out on DVD I bought it, watched it, then binge read all of the books. I don't have HBO so I am not current on the show, but I don't mind so much because I know what is coming.. WINTER, of course.
Martin does with food what Tolkien does with plants. There are several very well explained meals throughout this series that describe every course down to the slightest detail. It struck me as the same way that JRRT gets into his foliage. John gets teased for his over descriptiveness, but not so for George. I need a Paul and a Ringo to complete the comparison.. Maybe I'll settle for a Richard. Maybe I'll skip it.
I think my favorite character might be Tyrion, but it is hard to say.
I don't think George is up to the task with the shows on HBO. If he tries to push it and whip the books out quicker, I fear that they will sour a bit. Oh well. It has been great so far, all long series fall off a bit here and there, don't they? He hasn't lost step yet, but I fear he will.
This is how I WANT the "Song" to end: CAREFUL!! THERE ARE SPOILERS AHEAD!!
When Rob was King of the North - after he heard that there was no one left to be his successor - before he got married - he wrote a letter and sent it to the wall. The actual contents of the letter were never raveled, but the substance was pretty clear. He was putting Jon Snow in as a full Stark and releasing him from his duty to the Night's Watch. He was to be his heir and the next K in the N if Rob died (haha .. if).
Jon never would break his vows, but he actually wouldn't really have to. They leave all claims to lands and titles when they swear their oath... to which he had NONE at the time. He was granted this standing after he swore. And, If anyone could release him from his vows, the Lord of the Stark house probably could - and certainly the K in the N. But again, he would not technically have to. He did swear to wear no crown, but he could be Steward of the North - holding the place of the king without actually being king.
Oh, and he is also still Lord Commander of the Night's Watch making him the most powerful man north of the neck. He'd be a great person to lead the armies of men against the White Walkers. I hear you saying, "But what about the end of Book 5 - Dance with Dragons? That can't happen." The answer: Melisandre learned things from Thoros. Figure it out for yourself.
Now, for the second part. Daenerys.
This is a little less complicated. She takes her Unsullied, her Khalisar, and her Dragons over to Dorne and all of Westeros quakes with fear. They give up all claims to the throne pretty quickly and she is queen.
This all just in time for Winter. Just in time to find out that the Wall has been thrown down and the Walkers are coming to destroy everyone. She joins up with Jon Snow (Stark) and eventually destroys the Walkers and saves the world.
Daenerys and Jon rule TOGETHER, but never actually marrying because he can't due to his vows and she doesn't really want to anyway. They can't have children because she is barren, which is also fine with Jon SNOW. The fall in love despite all of this and rule the whole continent from Herenhall singing a SONG of ICE (snow) and (dragon) FIRE.
There you have it, folks. You heard it here first.
oh, and as a first order of business they legitimize all natural born children as true heirs of their households... making Gendry into Lord Baratheon so he can marry Arya. :)
Martin does with food what Tolkien does with plants. There are several very well explained meals throughout this series that describe every course down to the slightest detail. It struck me as the same way that JRRT gets into his foliage. John gets teased for his over descriptiveness, but not so for George. I need a Paul and a Ringo to complete the comparison.. Maybe I'll settle for a Richard. Maybe I'll skip it.
I think my favorite character might be Tyrion, but it is hard to say.
I don't think George is up to the task with the shows on HBO. If he tries to push it and whip the books out quicker, I fear that they will sour a bit. Oh well. It has been great so far, all long series fall off a bit here and there, don't they? He hasn't lost step yet, but I fear he will.
This is how I WANT the "Song" to end: CAREFUL!! THERE ARE SPOILERS AHEAD!!
When Rob was King of the North - after he heard that there was no one left to be his successor - before he got married - he wrote a letter and sent it to the wall. The actual contents of the letter were never raveled, but the substance was pretty clear. He was putting Jon Snow in as a full Stark and releasing him from his duty to the Night's Watch. He was to be his heir and the next K in the N if Rob died (haha .. if).
Jon never would break his vows, but he actually wouldn't really have to. They leave all claims to lands and titles when they swear their oath... to which he had NONE at the time. He was granted this standing after he swore. And, If anyone could release him from his vows, the Lord of the Stark house probably could - and certainly the K in the N. But again, he would not technically have to. He did swear to wear no crown, but he could be Steward of the North - holding the place of the king without actually being king.
Oh, and he is also still Lord Commander of the Night's Watch making him the most powerful man north of the neck. He'd be a great person to lead the armies of men against the White Walkers. I hear you saying, "But what about the end of Book 5 - Dance with Dragons? That can't happen." The answer: Melisandre learned things from Thoros. Figure it out for yourself.
Now, for the second part. Daenerys.
This is a little less complicated. She takes her Unsullied, her Khalisar, and her Dragons over to Dorne and all of Westeros quakes with fear. They give up all claims to the throne pretty quickly and she is queen.
This all just in time for Winter. Just in time to find out that the Wall has been thrown down and the Walkers are coming to destroy everyone. She joins up with Jon Snow (Stark) and eventually destroys the Walkers and saves the world.
Daenerys and Jon rule TOGETHER, but never actually marrying because he can't due to his vows and she doesn't really want to anyway. They can't have children because she is barren, which is also fine with Jon SNOW. The fall in love despite all of this and rule the whole continent from Herenhall singing a SONG of ICE (snow) and (dragon) FIRE.
There you have it, folks. You heard it here first.
oh, and as a first order of business they legitimize all natural born children as true heirs of their households... making Gendry into Lord Baratheon so he can marry Arya. :)
#3 Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
There are no bad books on this list, but I keep feeling like I am having the same reaction over and over. This too is very good. I have not read much further in the series, but I hear it is worth following thru with. Some day maybe.
He had some pretty accurate predictions about video games used for actual war and the use of the tablet in social life and school. The book does feel at times like it is a set up for all of the other books that branch out from it.. There are non-central characters that are too fleshed out for the amount of involvement they have in the plot. I suppose that is meant to keep you coming back for more.
That being said, it has the best depiction of war in space that I have read yet.
I just saw the movie a couple days ago. Follows the book pretty exactly. Not bad, not great.
He had some pretty accurate predictions about video games used for actual war and the use of the tablet in social life and school. The book does feel at times like it is a set up for all of the other books that branch out from it.. There are non-central characters that are too fleshed out for the amount of involvement they have in the plot. I suppose that is meant to keep you coming back for more.
That being said, it has the best depiction of war in space that I have read yet.
I just saw the movie a couple days ago. Follows the book pretty exactly. Not bad, not great.
#17, #31, & #34 all by Robert Heinlein
#17 Stranger in a Strange Land.
This was good-but-not-great I thought. I borrowed all of the Heinlein books from my dad and read them all back to back to back. SSL got stuck inside the middle of all of those other books that run together when I was reading it. Perhaps I was looking for a continuation of the larger Heinlein story and found this one was not attached to anything else and therefore didn't enjoy it as much.
#31 Starship Troopers
Loved the movie, was warned that the book differed from it quite significantly, liked the book. They just don't have much in common except for the title. The movie is more about the society of soldiers ( and big booms, bugs, and boobs.. who am I kidding..) . The book is more about the experience of an individual soldier.
#34 The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
This is my favorite of the three Heinlein books on the list. This ties in (slightly) to the Lazarus Long books (a character in many other novels) and perhaps that is responsible for my bias toward it. I really loved the depiction of the main character bounding over the surface of the moon. It is so desolate and desperate.
That being said, my personal favorite Heinlein books are not here.
-All you Zombies- (the dashes are part of the title)
This is a total mind f***. If you are not already a somewhat depraved individual, skip this book. It is WEIRD in the weirdest of ways. DO NOT try to read anything about it before you actually pick up the book. It would really easy to find a major spoiler (don't wikipedia it). It is in a collection of other (fantastic) short sorties titled 6 X H (Six by Heinlein). It captures the essence of Heinlein and distills it down to one short story.
My other personal favorite is:
Have Spacesuit, Will Travel.
The main character is - in my mind - Frank Germann. My dad. It is about a 16 or 17 year old kid that wins a used space suit in a contest. The kid is a genius and wants to be a "spacer". He fixes up the suit and is then abducted / rescued by an alien. Everything he does, thinks and says I totally picture a 16 or 17 year old version of my father doing. This is a rare PG rated book by the usually very perverted Mr Heinlein. Suitable for pretty much anyone. .. space-suitable ;~)
This was good-but-not-great I thought. I borrowed all of the Heinlein books from my dad and read them all back to back to back. SSL got stuck inside the middle of all of those other books that run together when I was reading it. Perhaps I was looking for a continuation of the larger Heinlein story and found this one was not attached to anything else and therefore didn't enjoy it as much.
#31 Starship Troopers
Loved the movie, was warned that the book differed from it quite significantly, liked the book. They just don't have much in common except for the title. The movie is more about the society of soldiers ( and big booms, bugs, and boobs.. who am I kidding..) . The book is more about the experience of an individual soldier.
#34 The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
This is my favorite of the three Heinlein books on the list. This ties in (slightly) to the Lazarus Long books (a character in many other novels) and perhaps that is responsible for my bias toward it. I really loved the depiction of the main character bounding over the surface of the moon. It is so desolate and desperate.
That being said, my personal favorite Heinlein books are not here.
-All you Zombies- (the dashes are part of the title)
This is a total mind f***. If you are not already a somewhat depraved individual, skip this book. It is WEIRD in the weirdest of ways. DO NOT try to read anything about it before you actually pick up the book. It would really easy to find a major spoiler (don't wikipedia it). It is in a collection of other (fantastic) short sorties titled 6 X H (Six by Heinlein). It captures the essence of Heinlein and distills it down to one short story.
My other personal favorite is:
Have Spacesuit, Will Travel.
The main character is - in my mind - Frank Germann. My dad. It is about a 16 or 17 year old kid that wins a used space suit in a contest. The kid is a genius and wants to be a "spacer". He fixes up the suit and is then abducted / rescued by an alien. Everything he does, thinks and says I totally picture a 16 or 17 year old version of my father doing. This is a rare PG rated book by the usually very perverted Mr Heinlein. Suitable for pretty much anyone. .. space-suitable ;~)
#15 The Watchmen by Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons, and john Higgins
I'm not sure whom to properly credit with creating a graphic novel, so I put the writhe, artist, then colorist all up there. I first read the Watchmen when the movie came out (2009). I did read it before I saw it and I was totally blown away. I had never much gotten into comic books - not that there is anything wrong with that.. some of my best friends are comic book people..
I was surprised at first to see this on the list here, but I got over it is in instant. "Of COURSE the Watchmen!! Why shouldn't it be in the top 100??"
I don't know if this actually exists or not, but I feel that there may be some bias against comics and graphic novels as "books". Some might look down their nose at those picture books and say, "that's not real reading.." If that ever is the case for anyone you know, throw this one at them. Aim for the head (which is probably too big anyway).
I was surprised at first to see this on the list here, but I got over it is in instant. "Of COURSE the Watchmen!! Why shouldn't it be in the top 100??"
I don't know if this actually exists or not, but I feel that there may be some bias against comics and graphic novels as "books". Some might look down their nose at those picture books and say, "that's not real reading.." If that ever is the case for anyone you know, throw this one at them. Aim for the head (which is probably too big anyway).
#46 The Silmirillion by JRR Tolkein
I have read this book several times over too. It is more a collection of short stories about the history of Middle Earth than one contiguous book. That is nice because you can just pick it up and read about Beren and Luthien then put it back down again. There are soooo many characters that it gets a little hard to keep track of them all. It is so tragic and so epic.. I love it! I am sure they are thinking about giving this one to Peter Jackson too, but I think it would be really hard to make this into a movie. Which is just fine with me (but it would be neat;).
Sunday, January 18, 2015
#2 The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Borrowed girlfriend-at-the-time's (and still good friend - Siri Rea) copy of this book. I think it was just after high school. Most books on this list are either very earnest or simple and whimsical.. an exciting adventure or a stern criticism.. a gritty surrealism or a pensive introspection.. this one is a comedy. I have many still left to read, but I doubt any will be called a comedy.
It was a lot of fun. I took my time reading it - I wasn't as much of a reader at that point anyway - and I really enjoyed it. I am glad to see that the next books in the series are NOT included in this list. I tried to read The Restaurant at the end of the Galaxy, but I totally lost interest.
I believe in the book it listed a date for Earth's destruction ( can't remember what it was) but I am pretty sure Siri carried around a bath towel that day..
It was a lot of fun. I took my time reading it - I wasn't as much of a reader at that point anyway - and I really enjoyed it. I am glad to see that the next books in the series are NOT included in this list. I tried to read The Restaurant at the end of the Galaxy, but I totally lost interest.
I believe in the book it listed a date for Earth's destruction ( can't remember what it was) but I am pretty sure Siri carried around a bath towel that day..
#1 Lord of the Rings Trilogy by JRR Tolkien
See the 1st post of the blog. My favorite part is the Mines of Moria. I just may reread this sometime again too.. maybe..
#6 Nineteen Eighty-four by George Orwell
This was maybe a high school assignment too. Who were these teachers? I guess when you are writing a course curriculum when Communism and the Cold War is still quite fresh, you want to hammer the people-who-call-each-other-comrade thing as being "bad".
This is a book where the pop culture references have far outlived the popularity of the original work. Everyone knows "big brother", but maybe it is even more fitting that most people don't quite know where it came from.
This is a book where the pop culture references have far outlived the popularity of the original work. Everyone knows "big brother", but maybe it is even more fitting that most people don't quite know where it came from.
#9 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
10th grade English class I think.. I couldn't remember if I had read this or not before so I did read it again a few months ago. I am pretty sure that I got a LOT more out of it this time. It is a great little book. Were Orwell and Huxley clinically depressed? Uber pessimistic? They seem so sure that society is headed to a dark place. The reality is that things generally get better over all ( ..I think, but maybe I am just one of the brainwashed pawns on their novels..), but crushing oppression makes a much better source of a struggle in a book. It is not as interesting to read about the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Wait.. I think I just said that totalitarianism is more fun. I'll go with it. ALL HAIL ME!
p221
Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the overcompensation for misery.. happiness is never grand.
Wait.. I think I just said that totalitarianism is more fun. I'll go with it. ALL HAIL ME!
p221
Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the overcompensation for misery.. happiness is never grand.
#7 Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
I also read this one in 8th or 9th grade. For school I think, but again, that was long ago. I USE COMMAS WHERE I WANT TO. I PUNCTUATE CREATIVELY. DEAL WITH IT. It was my first read of a futuristic dystopia. I'm pretty sure I liked it at the time, but I do have to go over this one again.
#99 The Xanth Series by Piers Anthony
Why am I starting at 99? Because that is the first one on the list that I read. It was in junior high when my friend Jeremy Tompkins introduced me to the land of Xanth. A Spell for Chameleon was the best (if I remember right from 25+ years ago). Several of the early books were pretty good, but the puns get a little old after a while. I have not completed the whole series, but enough to mark it comfortably off the list and not feel like I cheated. Perhaps I'll go back and reread them someday.
The Quest
I have always been a fan of Science Fiction and Fantasy movies and books, but I decided that I had been in a rut for a while. For several years I had been reading nothing but JRR Tolkien. I read and re-read the Lord of the Rings and the Silmirillion several times. I had read the unfinished tales and all of the other works by Tolkien, the Atlas of Middle Earth (by Karen Wynn Fonstad), a collection of short stories by other authors inspired by Tolkien.. and I thought I might have a problem.
I needed to branch out a little.
I know my dad was a big Sci Fi fan, so I borrowed his Heinlein books ( he had almost all), Ender's Game (by Card), Foundation ( Asimov) and then went on hunting for other works in the genre.
In July 2013 a friend and coworker posted on his Facebook page a list of NPR's top 100 Sci Fi and Fantasy books of all time. THIS IS WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR! I went thru the list and checked the ones I had already done - I cheated a little - and got about 15 I think.
I decided then to make this into a to-do list. A QUEST! Why not call it a quest?. can't possibly get much dorkier than I already am.. sure.
I had started posting my thoughts on books that had just completed on Facebook, but then thought there must be a better way. A blog just seemed to make sense.
This is written 90% just for me. If some other people are interested in spectating on my journey thru the list.. great. I won't get too analytical and will try not to spoil major plot points. I'm just laying down my thoughts. That's what these things are meant for, right?
Well.. here goes
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