f13.net forums - A non-necro Book Thread

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May 03, 2024, 05:51:44 PM

we're back, baby

Been a while since a book thread has been recent, so thought I might get the ball rolling again.

Friedman, The World is Flat --

Parts are excellent (mostly the first half or so). The whole "what America is doing wrong" part is pretty blah. Friedman seems to ignore every parcel of knowledge he showed about economics in this section. Haven't read the last section yet about Islam.

I gotta say I respect the guy. Very well-thought out analysis, and shows a huge depth of knowledge. Also, very interesting if you catch him on radio or TV. Had a pretty good interview on Imus one morning.

Fareed Zakaria (sp?), The Future of Freedom --

Great book. Zakaria is extraordinarily well-read, and his analysis is thought-provoking. Makes great points about the Rule of Law and liberal societies vs. democratic societies. He pulls out and presents the results of quite a few economic studies and regression analyses to back up his points, without winding down into boredom.

I like his theories about the problems of too much democracy, and democracies tendencies towards being illiberal. The whole balance between equality and liberty is too often ignored by the "common wisdom" political hacks/writers of today.

Piers Paul Read, The Templars --

History of the Templars, but alot of information here on some of the Crusades as well as European history. Only about half way through it because I got distracted by a couple of titles further down this list.

Maybe not for everyone.

Erikson, "The Malazan Book of the Fallen" series --

Ohhhhh. Great fantasy series. Been loving it. Finished book two, and waiting for books 3-5 to come via mail.

Set to be 10 books long, the series is on book 6 in the UK with book 7 coming out this winter. Erikson is no Jordan.

I'd sum up the books as Cook meets Tolkien. Most of the Amazon reviews compare him to Martin, which is a problem. It <isn't> very like Martin. It's Cook's Dread Empire written in Tolkien style, with a backstory comparable to Tolkien. The comparisons to Cook's Black Company are also somewhat misleading. Much of Cook's viewpoints (moral ambiguity, good grasp of the military rank and file, etc.) are here, along with some of his gritty style; but at heart it has much more in common with the Dread Empire or Passage At Arms.

The parts of the series dealing with the common soldier sometimes come off as ripped right from Cook. Erikson also has Cook's habit of making logical jumps that are faintly hinted at in the text and that tend to confuse or frustrate some readers.

No elves, dwarves, or assorted orc/goblin whatevers. There are a couple non-humans running around, but it's more like if the Neanderthals had survived to the Roman Empire. Human ancestors or related species. It's people slaughtering other people, and nary a black hat to be seen.

The magic system is pretty good. Again, hinting at Cook. The various sorcerors, mages or whatever can level cities, but as often tend to end up surprised with a knife in the back or stalemate each other.

E.E. Knight, "Vampire Earth" series --

Okay, I <hate> most modern fiction that has anything to do with vampires. It's pretty much all Anne Rice style androgynous Euro-fags in leather pants conducting romantic liasons with poorly disguised author surrogates. (Yes, that sentence was off the cuff.... I <really> hate that shit.)

This series is set in the near future, 2070 or thereabouts. Global collapse through malign climate manipulation and highly contagious viruses, and vampiric aliens (Kurians) wielding superscience/pseudomagic have shown up and have humanity under it's heal. One of the characters coins the term "technomagic" which is fairly descriptive.

Pockets of human resistance hold out in the wilderness, while most of the formerly populated areas are under control by the Kurians. Humanity is aided by a pacifistic species related to the Kurians who use similar technomagic (hinted at psychic powers or nanites or whatever) to endow the resistance with some preternatural abilities.

The Kurians bunker up, and have a number of servants straight out of Nosferatu. Appear to be ugly, inhuman killing machines that have been bioengineered to pray on humanity. And no leather pants.

The main character takes over a spying/saboteur role, and the best parts of the book are his looks at the surviving collaborational elements of human society.

The Kurians have a Lovecraftian feel to them, as if one of that authors long-dead races or civilizations rediscovered Earth and got on the job of exploiting it into the ground.

_______________________________________

That's all for now. I'll look around and see what else I went through since last time. I think I have a book or two from Tim Powers and some Moorcock lying around.

I don't really go for fiction much. Right now I'm reading an excellent book on the wonder of science with a healthy dose of debunking, via one of my favorite authors (and favorite people in general) Richard Dawkins, the book is Unweaving the Rainbow. Filled with some great layman explanations (fairly non-scientific, but a good read) and also some nice poetry.

I won't list the other books I'm reading, just dry tech manuals and financial books. Next book will probably be one to help me focus my guitar practice on chord progressions and new chord voicings. We just got in a sheaf of pro-neocon propaganda, so I'm going to help my girlfriend evaluate them for addition to our library collection, some fun stuff.

Erickson is a great read. However, there are only 5 books out now with the 6th due in Feb. of next year. If there was a 6th, I would have imported it by now. :P

If the series hasn't been fully released here in the US, you can pick them up through Amazon.ca instead of the UK version for cheaper shipping. I know I have seen a US version of Deadhouse Gates at the local store.

Last book I read was a re-read of "Feersum Enjin" by Iain M Banks. Nice all round sci-fi novel (as are all Banks' sci-fi stuff) - once you get used to the pidgin english one character thinks in.

Alastair Reynolds has a new one out so will probably pick that one up too at some stage. Hard sci-fi with interesting plots.

I've gone totally off multi-book series. I just find it so hard to get the least bit interested in the old story of a boy's reluctant rise to world-saving god/chosen one.

I go in waves of fiction/nonfiction. After a few months of nonfiction, I am rereading the GRRM series in preparation for book 4 next month. I am actually catching a lot more this time around- there are some completely obvious plot points that I missed the first time through in my race to find out which major character he was going to maim or kill next.

Also reading Harrington on Hold 'Em vol I (II is next...duh). Easily the best tournament book I have ever read. I would recommend it, but I don't want anyone else playing well against me! Forget I said anything...

Have read two books recently. One fiction, the other more in a spirituality / non-fiction vein.

The first was The Hundredeth Man which is about a detective pair in Mobile, Alabama that is just stunning for a first run author.

The second is The Lakota Way which provides a profound look at both the Lakota culture and a perspective of the author's journey through life in today's world.

I highly recommend both books, the first for a good page turner the likes of Thomas Harris and the second because it is good for the soul.

In theory, George R.R. Martin's next Ice and Fire book is coming out soon. His current book was so gigantic it collapsed under its own weight and he apparently is turning it into two books. I am eagerly awaiting that, more than anything else. This isn't your typical fantasy where you know from the second page onward who lives and who dies (orphan boy/girl with hidden talent for magic lives, kindly wizard mentor dies, etc.). He'll off anyone, and I want to see who goes next.

Quote from: Triforcer on August 19, 2005, 12:45:30 PM

Nov. 1 according to Amazon. I had heard Nov. 8 when the announcement you're alluding to surfaced. Anyhow, it's soon, and that makes me happy.

For the "Ice and Fire" contingent: http://pub26.ezboard.com/basoiaf

Like WAP, I'm re-reading currently and picking up much more this time around. The website above is one of the most active and focused forums anywhere... it's all GRRM ASOIAF all the time. But the people are extremely knowledgable and many topics extremely interesting if you're as much into the series as I am.

Thanks for the Erikson - Book of the Fallen series recommendation. Never heard of it, going to look into it pronto.

Quote from: Triforcer on August 19, 2005, 12:45:30 PM

Yes. And so far he has not Jordan'd himself thankfully!

Cue someone saying he has in 5..4..3..2.. (bonus points if you say something completely dumb about the plot) Common, we need to have the same Martin argument in every book thread! :-D

I just added the rest of Cook's Black Company books to my Amazon wish list. I'm really going out on a limb thinking my relatives will buy them in some sort of order.

Quote from: Mr_PeaCH on August 19, 2005, 01:24:47 PM

Thanks for the Erikson - Book of the Fallen series recommendation. Never heard of it, going to look into it pronto.

In the US, Book 1 Gardens of the Moon is out in paperback. Book 2 Deadhouse Gates is out in trade paperback.

Also coming soon:

Richard K. Morgan's new Takeshi Kovacs book is out in September/October.

Steven Brust has supposedly delivered a finished manuscript for the next Vlat Taltos novel. (either called Dzur or Dzurlord)

Nov 8th for ASoIaF? Fuck! Setember 14th stuck in my mind for some reason. Arrgh. I had it timed out almost perfectly too- I will finish the 3rd book in the next 10 days or so (I am midway through the 2nd now)...it would have been sweet.

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Steven Brust has supposedly delivered a finished manuscript for the next Vlat Taltos novel. (either called Dzur or Dzurlord)

That makes me very happy. I love that series, but just can't get into the prequels. The Dumas-lite thing just annoyed the everliving fuck out of me for some reason.

His standalones Gypsy and Agyar (particularly the latter) were good too.

Quote from: Rasix on August 19, 2005, 01:51:17 PM

Yah, still remember our last discussion on Martin. I'll just keep it to a: "Martin is a fine author, but I much prefer Cook, Bujold, Brust and Gaiman as contemperary authors in this field" and move along.

The Company books can pretty much be read in any order, except you probably want to read Bleak Seasons, She is the Darkness, Water Sleeps, and then Soldiers Live.

I started the series with Bleak Seasons, and worked my way back. And enjoyed it pretty well.

Quote from: WayAbvPar on August 19, 2005, 02:03:43 PM

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Steven Brust has supposedly delivered a finished manuscript for the next Vlat Taltos novel. (either called Dzur or Dzurlord)

I think the original date WAS September. It just slipped.

That reminds me, we're seeing some stuff that was out of print hit bookstores again.

Brust has a few: Gypsy (written with Robin Hobb, using her first pen name), Agyar, and Freedom and Necessity (written with Emma Bull, who wrote War of the Oaks)

Freedom is kind of a slog, as it's 19th century socio/political thriller. Engels makes an appearance. Ugh.
Gypsy is alright. Kind of a Hugarian folklore riff in a modern US city.
Agyar was pretty good.

Zelazny has a few: Lord of Light is somewhere between scifi, fantasy, and religious parable. And very, very good. This Immortal is also excellent.