Books Read 2012

Everything else!

Moderators: Bakhtosh, EvilHomer3k

User avatar
A nonny mouse
Posts: 780
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2007 8:38 am

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by A nonny mouse »

Archinerd wrote:
A nonny mouse wrote: Currently reading:
The Triumph of the Fungi: A Rotten History by Nicholas P. Money
hmm. This looks like something I might like. Let us (me) know if it's good.

So far it is good. Not too dry and he gives just enough science and mycology without it being dull. Each chapter is a different fungus (infecting a different plant; e.g coffee, cacao, elm, chestnut) that is short enough that he doesn't belabor the story of that particular fungus (or depending on your bowels, short enough for a 'chapter on the toilet' kind of read - without your legs going numb :wink: ). I would recommend it if you like this type of book.

another one I would HIGHLY recommend is Salt: A world History by Mark Kurlansky. Probably one of the best books I have read. It doesn't seem like that interesting of a subject, but the way ties the history, etymology, and geography together is great.

Kurlansky wrote a few others, namely Cod: A Biography of the fish that changed the world and The big Oyster: A history on the half shell (about New York and the oyster beds, etc). I have read all, and liked Cod, and thought the Big Oyster was o.k.
I find television very educational. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book. - Groucho Marx
User avatar
SlapBone
Posts: 3263
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:08 pm
Location: Bayou City

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by SlapBone »

Just read a pretty cool little collection of short stories by Daniel Woodrell called The Outlaw Album. For those who may not know, Daniel Woodrell wrote Winter's Bone which was made into a gripping 2010 movie of the same name.

In researching this book on Amazon, I came across an excellent review by a user named Thomas Pluck, which ultimately resulted in my purchase. You got to love it when the readers write as well as the writers:
Daniel Woodrell has been called a regional writer. That's what we call writers who don't write about suburban Connecticut. It's insulting and dismissive, and I'd burn John Cheever's stories for light to read this collection by.
User avatar
Bad Demographic
Posts: 7772
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2004 9:21 am
Location: Las Cruces, NM

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Bad Demographic »

So far this year I've read:
The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde
I've been wanting this for a while and got it for Christmas. Yay!
15 year old Jennifer Strange is the acting director of Kazam, an employment agency for wizards who provide magic-based solutions to mundane problems (e.g., completely replacing the wiring in an old house using magic instead of taking out walls, etc.). But magic is fading, has been for quite some time, and the work is drying up. Then the seers begin predicting the death of the last dragon, that Jennifer is somehow involved, and that something big is coming.
I really enjoyed "The Last Dragonslayer", I'm even tempted to re-read it already. Book 2 is not due out (in the US) until November. :(

Technically this is YA. I'm finding I'm enjoying a lot of YA books now - this one, "The Hunger Games", "Howl's Moving Castle" and others.

The Affair by Lee Child
I had started reading Terry Pratchett's Thief of Time but I finally made it to the front of the library request queue for The Affair so figured I'd better get that read first.
The year is 1997. Jack Reacher is still in the Army and he is sent to investigate the grisly murder of a woman in the small town next to an Army base. He is to work off-base and undercover to look for a civilian connection while another officer investigates on base. Reacher soon learns there were two other very similar murders in town.
Lots of pretty standard Jack Reacher fare but set back in time. I thought this one was pretty good but I can't vouch for how discerning my tastes are when it comes to Reacher stories - I've liked most of them.

Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett
Can a human make a clock so precise that it can stop time? Somebody want to try it. Death doesn't think this is a good idea so in his strangely moral fashion he sends his granddaughter to deal with it.
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." Voltaire

Black Lives Matter
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Isgrimnur »

Fighting the Flying Circus by Eddie Rickenbacker

It won't win any awards for the writing, but that's now why you read a first person account of dogfighting over the trenches. I enjoyed reading it and will likely be picking up a flightstick in the near future to go play Rise of Flight.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
deadzone
Posts: 1265
Joined: Wed Dec 29, 2004 10:07 am
Location: Cypress, TX.
Contact:

Books Read 2012

Post by deadzone »

Finished Carrion Comfort and reading Columbine now.
docD
Posts: 419
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2004 12:09 pm

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by docD »

Currently Reading
Ready Player one

Finished reading
The Detachment
Night Circus
Catching Fire
The Appeal

Next up
Mocking Jay
User avatar
SlapBone
Posts: 3263
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:08 pm
Location: Bayou City

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by SlapBone »

Been toying with buying The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt since it came out and I finally pulled the trigger a week ago. The book arrived the other day via UPS at 5pm and I was finished by 11:30pm. Overall, an excellent read (especially if you are looking for a good Western). If you have seen the Trinity movies (spaghetti western with Terrance Hill), cross that with The Unforgiven and you will have a little bit of an idea. It definitely has a darker bent to it though.

Also read The Rook by Daniel 0'Malley. There a lot of different descriptions of the book but it reminded me a lot of the Brian Lumley Necroscope books. Little bit of X-Men, a whole lot Sy Fy channel original movie. Urban fantasy horror at it's most commercial.
User avatar
YellowKing
Posts: 30125
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2004 2:02 pm

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by YellowKing »

Finally finished A Dance with Dragons. Good but didn't really wrap up a lot of plot threads.
User avatar
Scuzz
Posts: 10899
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 5:31 pm
Location: The Arm Pit of California

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Scuzz »

I finished Clash of Kings by George RR Martin last night. I think I liked it better than the first book, maybe because while I still have no idea where this will end up the story lines do seem a little more drawn. (I know they will probably change :) ).

So far I am enjoying the series. I am going to take a break before diving into the third book and hopefully I wont be lost when I start the third book.
Black Lives Matter
User avatar
Baroquen
Posts: 4709
Joined: Fri Oct 22, 2004 12:45 pm

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Baroquen »

I took a break after 'A Clash of Kings' too. Will probably read a few more assorted books before getting back to that. I just got A Dance with Dragons for my birthday, along with that new King novel. Might try that next.

Just finished Ed McBain's "The Mugger". Never read him before, it was a 99 cent sale on Kindle, and I read 68% of it in one 10 mile session on the treadmill. So it was a quick, easy read. I had the mystery figured out by chapter 4, but I'll chalk that up to the book being written in the 50s I think. Crime drama maybe wasn't as sophisticated then?

Anyway, I'm finishing up "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest" soon too. More entertaining. I suspect I'll be a little sad to finish the series but we'll see. The end could still be a disappointment I suppose.
User avatar
A nonny mouse
Posts: 780
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2007 8:38 am

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by A nonny mouse »

Ed McBain is awesome, especially the 87th precinct novels.

He also writes under the name Evan Hunter.
I find television very educational. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book. - Groucho Marx
User avatar
GreenGoo
Posts: 42239
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:46 pm
Location: Ottawa, ON

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by GreenGoo »

silverjon wrote:And I won't be updating this thread with anywhere close to everything I read over the year. Too onerous when I could be using that time to read.
I only came in here to get directions on how to get away from here.
User avatar
silverjon
Posts: 10781
Joined: Wed Mar 12, 2008 7:16 pm
Location: Western Canuckistan

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by silverjon »

I'm currently reading the final installment of Gregory Maguire's "Wicked Years" series about the darker side of the Land of Oz, a bunch of stuff by and about the Marquis de Sade, a book on home style (mostly photos, but still), and another on zen philosophy.

I only write anything in-depth about the stuff I really love enough to share and/or that I think would have a broad appeal.
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Isgrimnur »

I look at some of these as warnings of stuff to avoid as well.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
silverjon
Posts: 10781
Joined: Wed Mar 12, 2008 7:16 pm
Location: Western Canuckistan

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by silverjon »

The direst stuff I read wouldn't even be on any of your collective radar, most likely. Or it'll be one of those examples where my tastes run counter to popular opinion.
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Isgrimnur »

Beating Back the Devil: : On the Front Lines with the Disease Detectives of the Epidemic Intelligence Service

A 2004 book about the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service. This two year program of epidemiologists takes the best and brightest of medical professionals and puts them on the front lines of responding to emerging health threats. These professionals are on call at all times for their stint, being summoned up to investigate around the country and around the globe.

The book covers some of their training and chapters about responses to polio, West Nile, smallpox, listeriosis, AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, MRSA, anthrax, and SARS, as well as the troubles to be found in refugee camps from a war torn area.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
SlapBone
Posts: 3263
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:08 pm
Location: Bayou City

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by SlapBone »

Finished The Atrocity Archives by Charles Stross. Great mix of Stepenson style hacker lore, spy thriller, Lovecraft horror and the movie Office Space. Was barely half-way through the book when I ordered the next two in the series that are available and then pre-ordered the one that will release in July. From zombie servants to comic book Nazi occultists, this book covers a really wide range of narrative. If the geeky side of you finds any of what I've said interesting, then you owe it to yourself to check it out.
User avatar
silverjon
Posts: 10781
Joined: Wed Mar 12, 2008 7:16 pm
Location: Western Canuckistan

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by silverjon »

Stephen King - 11/22/63
Really enjoyable, even though nothing can quite top the Red Dwarf take on taking on the Kennedy Assassination via time travel. But this is a thoughtful, engaging tale, maybe one of King's best in a long time. I'm not even inclined to say it should have been cut by a hundred pages or so, because the meandering bits of the plot add warmth and depth instead of just wordcount. An interlude in Derry is both creepy, Derry being Derry, but a pleasure to see some familiar faces from the past. A clear-eyed perspective on all that was wrong in Ago cuts the nostalgia by just the right amount. Recommended to more than just fans.

For those who say King spins a good yarn but tends to not know how to end things, in his afterword here, he credits son Joe Hill with coming up with the idea he ended up using, because it was better than his own.
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
User avatar
LawBeefaroni
Forum Moderator
Posts: 55315
Joined: Fri Oct 15, 2004 3:08 pm
Location: Urbs in Horto, outrageous taxes on everything

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by LawBeefaroni »

Finished Sex on the Moon.

Sex on the Moon is non-fiction and it's about a promising young NASA intern who steals some moon rocks. No spoilers there, it's on the cover I think. I was expecting a zany heist story. Turns out it's more than that. It offers a bit of an inside look at the Johnson Space Center and the NASA co-op program. It tracks the amazing reinvention the main character, from a graduate student filing rocks in Utah to an astronaut candidate riding in THE shuttle simulator. And illustrates the inevitable consequences that resulted from trying to sell Apollo moon rock. There's a bit of a love story and brief profiles of other actors. I'd give it 4 stars of 5 for a fun, quick, popcorn read.
" Hey OP, listen to my advice alright." -Tha General
"No scientific discovery is named after its original discoverer." -Stigler's Law of Eponymy, discovered by Robert K. Merton

MYT
User avatar
Bad Demographic
Posts: 7772
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2004 9:21 am
Location: Las Cruces, NM

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Bad Demographic »

The Mall of Cthulhu by Seamus Cooper
Sometimes you get really lucky. I was wandering the stacks at the library looking for one more book - because the book I had reserved, The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle: The Thing Beneath the Bed by Patrick Rothfuss, was only as long as a children's picture book so I knew I needed another book - when I spotted The Mall of Cthulhu. With a title like that I had to pick it up. And the description on the back - about a coffee shop barista and a lesbian junior FBI agent taking on Cthulhu cultists - was intriguing. It turned out to be a really great choice.
It's equal parts comedy and action with a little horror thrown in. I made the mistake of starting to read this on the bus and had to put it away. I really didn't want to try to explain to other bus riders what was so funny.

Edit to add:
I'll probably be buying this so I can lend it out.
Last edited by Bad Demographic on Mon Feb 20, 2012 3:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." Voltaire

Black Lives Matter
User avatar
Jaymann
Posts: 19317
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2004 7:13 pm
Location: California

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Jaymann »

silverjon wrote:Stephen King - 11/22/63
Really enjoyable, even though nothing can quite top the Red Dwarf take on taking on the Kennedy Assassination via time travel. But this is a thoughtful, engaging tale, maybe one of King's best in a long time. I'm not even inclined to say it should have been cut by a hundred pages or so, because the meandering bits of the plot add warmth and depth instead of just wordcount. An interlude in Derry is both creepy, Derry being Derry, but a pleasure to see some familiar faces from the past. A clear-eyed perspective on all that was wrong in Ago cuts the nostalgia by just the right amount. Recommended to more than just fans.

For those who say King spins a good yarn but tends to not know how to end things, in his afterword here, he credits son Joe Hill with coming up with the idea he ended up using, because it was better than his own.
I finished this last week. As you say, spins a good yarn, but I found the ending unsatisfying. Which of the Red Dwarf books does the JFK take?
Spoiler:
I actually started writing a story on this idea circa 1983(!). I was going to boast that I anticipated the "obdurate" past by 30 years, but King says he started working on this around 1972. I actually found my typewritten manuscript in the garage:
Small, insignificant changes are easy enough to bring about, but the time flow seems to possess an inertial quality of sorts, and any major changes in the flow require a significantly greater amount of energy expenditure to effect. The greater the change, the more difficult it is to accomplish...You might find yourself thwarted at every opportunity by some or other unforeseen circumstance.
If you envision the past as the Mississippi River - throwing a rock in wouldn't make much difference. Exploding an atomic weapon in it would drastically alter the course, but eventually water would find its way down to the Gulf.
Jaymann
]==(:::::::::::::>
Black Lives Matter
User avatar
silverjon
Posts: 10781
Joined: Wed Mar 12, 2008 7:16 pm
Location: Western Canuckistan

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by silverjon »

The crew of the Red Dwarf attempted to meddle with the Kennedy assassination in an episode called "Tikka to Ride". Ep 1 series 7, I believe.

I liked the ending because I thought it was appropriate.
Spoiler:
Sometimes, that's just the best you can hope for. I would have found a happier ending unsatisfying, personally, because it would have undermined the rest of the story. This way had closure, even though it seemed to leave everything except Jake pretty much where we started. Balance is restored. Things are how they were meant to be.
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
User avatar
Fretmute
Posts: 8513
Joined: Wed Oct 20, 2004 7:05 pm
Location: On a hillside, desolate

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Fretmute »

Bad Demographic wrote:The Mall of Cthulhu by Seamus Cooper
Sometimes you get really lucky. I was wandering the stacks at the library looking for one more book - because the book I had reserved, The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle: The Thing Beneath the Bed by Patrick Rothfuss, was only as long as a children's picture book so I knew I needed another book - when I spotted The Mall of Cthulhu. With a title like that I had to pick it up. And the description on the back - about a coffee shop barista and a lesbian junior FBI agent taking on Cthulhu cultists - was intriguing. It turned out to be a really great choice.
It's equal parts comedy and action with a little horror thrown in. I made the mistake of starting to read this on the bus and had to put it away. I really didn't want to try to explain to other bus riders what was so funny.

Edit to add:
I'll probably be buying this so I can lend it out.
If you liked that, you might want to check out the Monster Hunter International series by Larry Correia. It's not exactly high art, but they're entertaining reads. They're probably a little further into the action spectrum than Mall . . ., if that will influence you one way or the other.
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Isgrimnur »

Acceptable Loss by Kregg P. Jorgenson
The true-to-life story of a Ranger who volunteered to serve on a Blue Team in the Air Cavalry, racing to the aid of soldiers who faced the same dangers he had barely survived in the jungles of Vietnam. Whether enduring NVA sniper attacks, surviving "friendly" fire, or landing in hot LZs, Jorgenson discovered that in Vietnam you never knew whether you were paranoid or just painfully aware of the possibilities.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
Blackhawk
Posts: 43487
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 9:48 pm
Location: Southwest Indiana

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Blackhawk »

I'm going to use spoiler tags for the various discussions, just to keep this thing neat.

Finished, 2012

Pegasus Bridge: June 6, 1944 - Stephen Ambrose
Assassin's Quest - Robin Hobb
Fool's Errand - Robin Hobb
Golden Fool - Robin Hobb
Fool's Fate - Robin Hobb
The Sleeping Dragon - Joel Rosenberg
The Sword and the Chain - Joel Rosenberg
Asperger's From the Inside Out - Michael John Carley
The Infernal City - Greg Keyes
Warlord Rising - Michales Joy
Magician: Apprentice - Raymond Feist
Magician: Master - Raymond Feist

I've gotten very little reading done this year, and much less non-fiction than usual. What I have read has been all over the place, and I've got at least a half dozen half finished books I've started in the last ten months. I think it is just a reflection of what 2012 has been for me, personally.
Last edited by Blackhawk on Tue Oct 23, 2012 1:15 pm, edited 5 times in total.
(˙pǝsɹǝʌǝɹ uǝǝq sɐɥ ʎʇıʌɐɹƃ ʃɐuosɹǝd ʎW)
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Isgrimnur »

Blackhawk wrote:I loved her characters, and I'm sorry to be done with the series.
Then go read the Rain Wild Chronicles
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
Pyperkub
Posts: 23583
Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2004 5:07 pm
Location: NC- that's Northern California

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Pyperkub »

Pyperkub wrote:Haven't read much this year - too many Steam sale games so far.

Finished:
Thieves' World: First Blood (Thieves' World/Tales from the Vulgar Unicorn)
Inheritance (Eragon bk 4)
The Liberation of Max McTrue

Currently reading:
The Heroes
Infinite Reality
11/22/1963
Expert Oracle Database 10g Administration
Active Directory
Bump to get some finished items in. It was fun revisiting Sanctuary, and the shared world stories were interesting. Inheritance was some good page-turning (button-clicking on Kindle?) to finish the series with an epilogue that seemed to go on forever. I enjoyed this series, though it seemed like some things that were foreshadowed got cut just to keep the book size down. Overall it did tie up the series well. Max McTrue is more of a novella that my friend Kim published (YA), but the first 60-75% is just great characterization of how one day can change a teen's life. It gets a little weaker towards the end, but she really writes her characters well.
Black Lives definitely Matter Lorini!

Also: There are three ways to not tell the truth: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
User avatar
Blackhawk
Posts: 43487
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 9:48 pm
Location: Southwest Indiana

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Blackhawk »

Isgrimnur wrote:
Blackhawk wrote:I loved her characters, and I'm sorry to be done with the series.
Then go read the Rain Wild Chronicles
It's on the list. I've heard it is the followup to the Liveship Traders, which I would probably read first. Of course, I'm not big on maritime fiction, but I'll be giving it a whirl at some point. For now, though, I think I may want to read a few lighter books as a break - some good old fashioned fantasy adventure with heroic heroes and villainous villains. Hobb is great and her characters really drew me in, but more than two trilogies in a row and I'll be sitting in the dark moping all year.
(˙pǝsɹǝʌǝɹ uǝǝq sɐɥ ʎʇıʌɐɹƃ ʃɐuosɹǝd ʎW)
User avatar
tjg_marantz
Posts: 14688
Joined: Fri Oct 15, 2004 12:54 pm
Location: Queen City, SK

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by tjg_marantz »

Finished:

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
The Girl who Played with Fire
The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest (if that is the right order)

Against All Enemies Tom Clancy
Dear or Alive Tom Clancy
Locked On Tom Clancy

Reading:

Op-Center 4: Acts of War Tom Clancy

Pending:

Op-Center 5-12
Net Force 1-10
Tom Clancy's Power Plays
Robert Ludlum (last two Covert-One, the last 3 or 4 Bourne Books, then all the other Ludlum books)

I see a pattern developing.

So how do I update this thread as I finish books? Copy paste my list and move them from Pending to Reading to Read?

First time taking part.
Home of the Akimbo AWPs
User avatar
silverjon
Posts: 10781
Joined: Wed Mar 12, 2008 7:16 pm
Location: Western Canuckistan

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by silverjon »

The only rule is there are no rules
wot?

To be fair, adolescent power fantasy tripe is way easier to write than absurd existential horror, and every community has got to start somewhere... right?

Unless one loses a precious thing, he will never know its true value. A little light finally scratches the darkness; it lets the exhausted one face his shattered dream and realize his path cannot be walked. Can man live happily without embracing his wounded heart?
deadzone
Posts: 1265
Joined: Wed Dec 29, 2004 10:07 am
Location: Cypress, TX.
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by deadzone »

Finished reading:

Carrion Comfort
Columbine
Ender's Game
Wool, Omnibus Edition

That my friends, was a good run! I loved every one of those books. Especially Ender's Game and Wool. Man, those were just so great! I highly recommend both. :)

Oh yeah, currently reading some trash called "Contagious" to clear my mind. Your basic Zombie Apocalypse book with a sort of interesting difference in which people get infected, get crazy and violent and then die and turn into your basic zombie. Entertaining at the very least.
User avatar
Blackhawk
Posts: 43487
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 9:48 pm
Location: Southwest Indiana

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Blackhawk »

I just finished up The Sleeping Dragon by Joel Rosenberg, the first of the Guardians of the Flame series. I read it (and loved it) in high school, and was curious how well it had held up. There were some fun moments in what is essentially a bit of light, fun heroic fantasy, although the writing annoyed me a bit. The pacing was off, and the dialog was awkward. It was the first novel of an author that went on to write dozens, though, so I'm going to stick with the series. They're quick reads, anyway. Besides, there are twice as many books out now as when I read it the first time, and I'm curious to see where the story has gone in the last 20 years.

Besides, I've had a lot of heavy stuff in my life this year, and those who have read my Project thread know that I'm setting myself up for a couple more years like that. I could use some light, fun reading over the dark, gritty stuff.

/note - just read that Rosenberg just died last year, so the series is complete as written.
(˙pǝsɹǝʌǝɹ uǝǝq sɐɥ ʎʇıʌɐɹƃ ʃɐuosɹǝd ʎW)
User avatar
gwartok
Posts: 707
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2004 5:36 pm
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by gwartok »

deadzone wrote:That my friends, was a good run! I loved every one of those books. Especially Ender's Game and Wool. Man, those were just so great! I highly recommend both. :)
Btw, the kindle versions of Wool 1,2 & 3 are free on amazon today.
Xfire/Xbox Live/Steam Tag: gwartok
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Isgrimnur »

SKYJACK: The Hunt for D. B. Cooper

A bit of a disjointed ride. To me, some of the suspects began to run together, and the narrative jumps around so frequently, that I had a hard time remembering who was who.

It's as much a look at the people that become obsessed with the case as it is with the suspects in the case.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
SlapBone
Posts: 3263
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:08 pm
Location: Bayou City

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by SlapBone »

Getting some Steampunk in with The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack by Mark Hodder and Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding. Enjoyed both of them enough that I bought all the sequels. And for those who care about such things, Spring Heeled Jack is more of a Sci-Fi Steampunk while Retribution Falls would be more Fantasy Steampunk.
User avatar
Odin
Posts: 20732
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:29 pm
Location: Syracuse, NY

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Odin »

tjg_marantz wrote:So how do I update this thread as I finish books? Copy paste my list and move them from Pending to Reading to Read?

First time taking part.
As I finish a particular book, I move it from my "current" list to my "finished" list, then I type in the new one I've started. In your case, I suppose you'd copy from Current to Finished, and from Pending to Current, then you'd add new items to pending as appropriate. If there's an easier way to do it, I haven't found it. But this is only my second or third year.
User avatar
Baroquen
Posts: 4709
Joined: Fri Oct 22, 2004 12:45 pm

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by Baroquen »

I'm slogging through Gaiman's "American Gods". I'd read the Sandman stuff ages ago, so I knew what I was getting into, but it's a little too out there for me. It's a fine read, but just not my thing so I'm stalling. Don't want to quit halfway through. Don't want to start something else, so yeah. Stalled. After that I'll probably go through the new Stephen King book, or back to the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series.

I read the early Rosenberg books when I was in high school too. Remember them as fun, light reading too. Also remember I enjoyed the first few books best, less so, the more recent ones. I didn't go back to them, thinking they wouldn't hold up, and too much of a backlog to worry about it.
User avatar
A nonny mouse
Posts: 780
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2007 8:38 am

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by A nonny mouse »

Archinerd wrote:
A nonny mouse wrote: Currently reading:
The Triumph of the Fungi: A Rotten History by Nicholas P. Money
hmm. This looks like something I might like. Let us (me) know if it's good.
I thought it was quite good. The last chapter is a whole bunch of fungal pathogens of various plants/crops packed together (each pathogen still specific to a plant - for the most part), which felt like he either needed to meet a deadline or ran out of steam. Or it could be there wasn't enough info for a whole chapter for each.

Either way, I thought it was worth reading and had enough history mixed with the science to fulfill my trivia-ish craving while reading a non-historical nonfiction book.
I find television very educational. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book. - Groucho Marx
User avatar
A nonny mouse
Posts: 780
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2007 8:38 am

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by A nonny mouse »

Baroquen wrote:I'm slogging through Gaiman's "American Gods". I'd read the Sandman stuff ages ago, so I knew what I was getting into, but it's a little too out there for me. It's a fine read, but just not my thing so I'm stalling. Don't want to quit halfway through. Don't want to start something else, so yeah. Stalled. After that I'll probably go through the new Stephen King book, or back to the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series.

I read the early Rosenberg books when I was in high school too. Remember them as fun, light reading too. Also remember I enjoyed the first few books best, less so, the more recent ones. I didn't go back to them, thinking they wouldn't hold up, and too much of a backlog to worry about it.
If you are stalled with American Gods, try Gaiman's Anansi Boys. It is actually a "spin-off" of American Gods, but I read it first, and thought it was a better read. But I also liked American Gods. Have not read the Sandman books.

Yah, I know you said you didn't want to start anything new, but sometimes it is better to keep with the same author than trudge through mud when you are not in the mood for a book.

On a related note, have you ever started a book you didn't seem to like, and then pick the same book up at some other point in time and love it?
Maybe this is one of those cases? Speculation.
I find television very educational. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book. - Groucho Marx
User avatar
A nonny mouse
Posts: 780
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2007 8:38 am

Re: Books Read 2012

Post by A nonny mouse »

Odin wrote:
tjg_marantz wrote:So how do I update this thread as I finish books? Copy paste my list and move them from Pending to Reading to Read?

First time taking part.
As I finish a particular book, I move it from my "current" list to my "finished" list, then I type in the new one I've started. In your case, I suppose you'd copy from Current to Finished, and from Pending to Current, then you'd add new items to pending as appropriate. If there's an easier way to do it, I haven't found it. But this is only my second or third year.
This is my first time taking part, and I do it the same way as Odin. Move books from the "currently reading" list to "completed" list, without adding another message to the thread (unless I am commenting on something).
I find television very educational. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book. - Groucho Marx
Post Reply