Books and reading stuff

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Ivogoji
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Ivogoji »

Still reading lots of fanfiction.

Midway through Sorrow of Manchuria by C. L. Werner, the sequel to his earlier fanfic Koumajutsu: The Coming of Bagan. It's even more despair ridden and hopeless than the previous story. Dealing with the aftermath of Bagan's rampage through China and the evil the monster unknowingly unleashed, it's an exceedingly grim work, not for the faint of heart. It's excellently well written though and truly succeeds as a cosmic horror story with the genre fluidness typical of the kaiju movies it draws inspiration from.

On the subject of China I've also been reading Hachin, a Mulan AU fanfiction. Instead of attacking the imperial city, Shan Yu decided to head back to the Huns' encampment to regroup- but not before seizing Mulan and taking her captive. Forced to integrate herself into Hun society while Shan Yu plots his next scheme to conquer China, Mulan faces a task much harder than infiltrating the army disguised as a man, with the stakes much higher if she fails. I love these kinds stories. Such a solid premise. Despite dealing with some really dark subject matter the fic mostly stays lighthearted like it's source material; there are a lot of touches here that wouldn't feel out of place in official Disney media. Shan Yu is here depicted a bit more sympathetically than in the movie, though the author never lets us forget how much of a monster he is. The story also draws greatly on the historical background of the Huns of Asia and is full of interesting details about the time period Mulan (supposedly) takes place in. All around a really impressive work.

Had the luck to discover Amulet of the Sun, one of the few Gunbuster fanfics out there. Written without any knowledge of Gunbuster's sequel Diebuster, it follows the life of Noriko and Kazumi after their return to Earth 12,000 years in the future. The author's interpretation of the distant future of humanity is interesting, but the story mostly focuses on the appearance of a new threat that requires Gunbuster to be reconstructed to save the world again. Noriko and Kazumi are very in character and I applaud the story for being able to capture their personalities so well.

Also recently finished reading the epilogue portion of Convergence, a Pokemon fanfic I've been following for a while. The main body of the story is already finished, but there is technically one chapter left before the fic is completed. It's been an enjoyable read and I hope the author begins another Pokemon story soon. In the meantime I've been snooping around for another Pokemon fanfiction to keep me satisfied; there are a couple that seem promising.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Jeffery Mewtamer »

As I mentioned in the Anime thread, I recently finished the first volume of Sword Art Online's light novels.

Haven't started any new fanfics, and I'm now up to chapter 276 of Pokedex One-shots and recently passed the point it covered 500 pokemon.

Started reading Book 3 of Floating Point, and I'm now waiting for the next serial installment(with how long Stefan Gagne's Chapters tend to be, I'm a bit relieved that, now that he releases each new chapter in several installments. So I'm completely up to date with all the serial web novels I'm following. Part of me says I should check out the stories listed on Top Web Fiction, but fear starting down that Rabbit hole might bury me alive in millions of words.

As I hinted in the pet peeves thread, I recently went on a shopping spree for new audiobooks, having exhausted everything previously purchased that isn't Scripture(Note to self: at least try to read Deuteronomy and Numbers before school starts).

I'm still working on ripping and organizing my new purchases, but here's what i got:
Audio CD versions of the Novelizations of the Star Trek Reboot Movies.
I am Spock, Leonard Nimoy's autobiography read by Leonard Nimoy.
Leonard, a biography of Leonard Nimoy written and read by William Shatner.
The Radio Dramas of A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back(still waiting on my copy of Return of the Jedi to ship).
Audio CD version of The Dark Forces Trilogy, which will be my first foray into The Star Wars Extended Universe and Amazon reviews gave me the impression it's a good starting point for OT era EU material.
The First, second, and fourth volumes of a Five-part biography(The fifth volume isn't out yet, and the third volume didn't get a recent reissue on Audio CD like the volumes I purchased) of Lyndon B Johnson. Never thought I'd buy a Biography of a post FDR President, but the most recent Choice Magazine Listening featured
an interview with the author that totally sold me that it should be an interesting and entertaining listen, especially since the author seems to have a strong belief that history writers should strive to make their work as entertaining as novels and that most history writers fail in this regard.

Didn't need to rip I am Spock(couldn't find an unabridged Audio CD version and had to settle for MP3 CD), I've ripped all the Star Wars and Star Trek stuff, and I've ripped the physically largest of the LBJ volumes(34 discs!) leaving just the two smaller volumes of LBJ to rip(though consider the larger volume was two hardcover CD Albums and the two smaller volumes are each a box of CD Envelopes, I estimate I still have ~50 discs to rip). And then there's the task of organizing it all(The 34 Disc monster I mentioned had no CDDB data what so ever, averages 14 tracks a disc, and the only reason I even have each disc in a correctly numbered folder is that track 1 of each disc starts with an announcement of the disc number. Most of the Star stuff is much shorter(I don't think any of it goes into the double digits), but there's at least one where I don't even know which disc is which and listening to the opening of each track offers no clues And nearly all of it has split chapters/episodes.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by taco chao »

Rereading the Mistborn series, currently at the tail end of The Well of Ascension.

Also, read The Martian for the first time seeing what all the fuss is about... wondering if I should watch the movie, or just stick with the book. Mostly just a question of whether it'll be worth my time, really. I feel like a lot of stuff (the messages between Earth and the Hab, for one) might not translate to the screen all that well. Not to mention I'm concerned it'll wind up cutting out some of the meticulous details from the book to sell better.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Mamkute »

I am in the middle of reading The Space Trilogy by C.S. Lewis. Turns out, despite his major fame for Narnia as a fantasy series, he also made a series of science fiction books, equally as slathered with religious undertones. I only read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, so I was mostly unfamiliar with Lewis's works. He is a very good author, with a pleasant writing style, but his blatant religiosity rubs me the wrong way.

The main enjoyment I find in the series is the writing, and how it is Science Fiction very much before it became a popular genre, like late 30's and early 40's.
And I am looking into reading some more religious themed works in the near future. I am thinking Paradise Lost, but that may be a bit lofty of a goal for me. Old English may deter me too much.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Jeffery Mewtamer »

Since my last post, I've listened to the Radio Dramas of A New Hope and The Empire Strikes back as well as started the Dark Forces trilogy.

I'm nearly up-to-date with Pokedex Oneshots, being on chapter 335 of 340. Once that's done, I will have completely cleared my backlog of fanfiction, something which I don't think has ever happened since I got back into fanfiction a couple of years ago.

In my scriptural readings, I've finally finished the Torah. Here's hoping I can maintain a faster pace for the rest of the Old Testament.

Is C.S.Lewis really that obvious in his religious underpinnings? I've read all seven books of the Chronicles of Narnia, and went in knowing they're supposed to be biblical allegory yet I only remember a few obviously Christian references and doubt I would've have gotten the Christian part if I hadn't known to be on the look out:
In Lion, Witch, and Wardrobe: Aslan's Resurrection, though I've encountered too many works where death is cheap or certain characters are immune to death for this to stand out.
In Silver Chair: Caspian being revived by Aslan's blood in Aslan's country, but I've seen plenty of non-Christian afterlifes in fiction.]/spoiler].
In The Magician's Nephew: The forbidden fruit.
and even, in last Battle: The destruction of Narnia doesn't seem to parallel what I know of the Book of Revelation to well.

Still, I'm interested in hear Lewis's take on oldschool Science Fiction, so thanks for making me aware of the fact he wrote science fiction.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Mamkute »

All books are pretty different. The first is mostly just a very fun descriptive piece about Mars, although it gets somewhat moral heavy towards the end. The second is a very explicit Adam and Eve allegory on Venus, also with cool descriptions about the world. This is where religious themes became too much for me, but I pressed on. The last is set on Earth, and is the building and fighting against a distopian sort of organization.

The books present a sort of Religion versus Science kind of idea, which is the most annoying. It isn't really anti-science, but more arguing about a loss of ethics that has been associated with science.
Edit: The last book, rather, is about morality v. the kind of science that absolutely disregards morality. Which I can get behind. It was mostly the second book which was overwhelming in faith in God sort of morals.
And don't go in expecting thorough, scientific explanations. All in all, though, it is recommended.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Chaos the Light Chao »

Paradise Lost is pretty readable as far as epics go. Just don't lose concentration or you'll suddenly find yourself in the middle of an epic simile with no idea what Milton is going on about.

Do recommend reading it.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Ivogoji »

A quarter of the way through Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

Have almost caught up with a new Pokemon fanfic, Reset Bloodlines. It's another take on the Peggy Sue theme popularized by Ashes of the Past, with Ash being sent back in time to the beginning of his journey to prevent the end of the world. A few details distinguish this setting from its inspiration however, namely the inclusion of Bloodliners, humans possessing the powers and skills of Pokemon. There are some other wrinkles in the plot such as certain events taking place a lot earlier than in canon (like Iris and Paul showing up after Ash reaches Vermilion City) and the unexpected presence of characters from the Pokemon Adventure manga. All around a pretty interesting story. This should satisfy for present time with Convergence being finished.

Getting close to completing A Long and Weary Way, a Lord of the Rings fanfic detailing Aragorn's search for and capture of Gollum during the opening chapters of the novel. Extremely long story. I hope to finish it soon and begin the author's prequel story revolving around Aragorn's years of service to Gondor under the identity of Thorongil.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Ivogoji »

I've finished reading Order of the Phoenix as well as Half-Blood Prince and will start on Deathly Hollows soon.

Finished Hachin and might look up that story's (unfinished) sequel soon. Mature, gripping fic, strongly recommend it.

I've caught up with Pokemon Reset Bloodlines now so that craving for another long Pokemon fanfic is back. I might give the story that inspired it, Ashes of the Past, a go though I'm kinda spoiled by its (many) imitators by this point; I already know what to expect and few of the fic's novelties are novel anymore.

Hmm. Might read Hogwarts Houses Divided after I finish the canon Harry Potter books. I don't usually care for HP fanfiction and I've got something of a bone to pick with the fandom as a whole, but I've heard good things about this story so maybe I'll give it a chance.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Mamkute »

I have finished my C.S. Lewis trilogy a few weeks ago.

I then read 1984 for the first time, something I felt I missed from high school. Very good read, surprising ending. 2+2=5 and all that.

I am now in Paradise Lost, something I have always wanted to read after having read the Golden Compass series. I am in book 3 (out of 12) and it is pretty good, although definitely an old English thing. Chaos' advice is definitely important. The similes are weird. I am glad I am reading this after the Iliad, though. Having classical epic poetry background is nice for this.

After Paradise Lost, I am either going to go for the Bible, or more likely, re-read the Golden Compass series.

Ivo, how are you liking Harry Potter? Have you read it before? (My default assumption is that most people have, but I am not sure.) If you have not what was your impression of the end of Half Blood Prince? If you have read it before, what are you feeling like you are picking up now that you have not from previous readings?
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Ivogoji »

Mamkute wrote: Ivo, how are you liking Harry Potter? Have you read it before? (My default assumption is that most people have, but I am not sure.) If you have not what was your impression of the end of Half Blood Prince? If you have read it before, what are you feeling like you are picking up now that you have not from previous readings?
I like Harry Potter well enough, it's middle tier.
I've read all the books when I was in school, this is a re-reading.
Half-Blood Prince is probably the most well written of the books. People tend to complain about the romantic subplots but they didn't bother me. In my first reading I didn't pay much attention to stuff that wasn't Voldemort's backstory so it stands out a bit more on this reading. Somehow I completely failed to notice that Harry was made Quiddich Captain in my first reading so that and basically the whole presence of Quiddich in this book was new to me. Also knowing Snape's true loyalties this time around put a very different perspective on a lot of plot developments. Although I really don't get why the book is named after him, he's absent for most of the action and the Half-Blood Prince's Potions notes are of almost trivial relevance to everything that's going on (no, that plot point can't be exercised from the story because Slughorn, but why the heck does the title come from that?). This is mostly a story about Harry and Dumbledore. The scene of them in the cave is one of the most emotionally gripping moments in the whole series ("I'm not worried, Harry. I'm with you.") and always stood out vividly in my mind. My other favorite moment, which stood out to me in both reading, was the conversation between Harry and Rufus Scrimgeour about mid way through the book, where Harry answers the Minister's proposal to use the Chosen One as a propaganda symbol by showing him the scars on the back of his hand. My least favorite things about Half-Blood Prince are the evaporation of Luna and Neville from Team Potter for an entire twenty chapters. I mean, what could be more disappointing than that after Order of the Phoenix? Other than that though it was a decent book, probably my second favorite in the serie, I think I enjoyed it more this time than on my first read through.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Jeffery Mewtamer »

Recently listened to the audiobook versions of the novelizations of the first two Star Trek Reboot movies and find myself hoping Beyond gets the same treatment. I'm also about halfway through I Am Spock and will probably start on Leonard soon after.

With Constitution Day right around the corner, I'll probably start on the Constitution Box Set I purchased recently. Sadly, it does not seem to include an unadorned reading of the Constitution as I had hoped, but a radio documentary on the framing of what is supposed to be the foundation of the United States federal government should be interesting reading.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

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Well, since my last post, I've read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the fanfic Hogwarts Houses Divided, another Harry Potter fanfic called A Court of Three Sisters, the first two novels in the pulp serial The Spider, several Sonic fanfics, a couple Ghost in the Shell fanfics, and I've started L. Frank Baum's The Sea Fairies.

On the look out for more Harry Potter fanfiction.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by CasualCollision »

I listened to the first two Bobiverse books during my camping trip. Good reads/listens, totally recommend it. Every advancement and discovery that the Bobs made were exciting to listen to with all the new possibilities and opportunities that came with them. I can't wait for the third book which is coming out in June. Still sad that Delta Pavonian civilization got wiped out and my favorite Bob Homer died.
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Re: Books and reading stuff

Post by Ivogoji »

I've powered through a bunch of Sonic fanfics recently and plan to make a complete tour of several authors I like. Makes me feel young again.

Currently a little more than half-way through The Count of Monte Cristo. Very long book but greatly entertaining.
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