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Post by mossy on Sept 8, 2015 17:20:29 GMT -5
John Le Carre - The Spy Who Came In From The Cold
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Post by Deleted on Sept 15, 2015 11:15:29 GMT -5
George R. R. Martin - A Feast For Crows
Still a great book but on the outstanding level of the other books in the series I've read so far. I've been reading through lots of reviews online and most people seem to be criticizing Cersei's chapters. I disagree completely, Cersei and Jaime carried this book for me pretty much. Sam and Arya's chapters are good, Sansa's above average. The whole Dorne and Iron Islands sections of the book I found quite average though because it's difficult to connect emotionally to the characters who just keep popping up and disappearing again.
Brienne's chapters I found were the worst though. My main criticism of Tolkien is the way he describes a character's journey in horrendously boring detail. GRRM 'does a Tolkien' here, we are told about every forest she walks through, every hill she climbs, every town she passes etc. It's just not engaging reading at all. I quite like her character but I feel like only about two of her chapters actually matter: the one where she sets off and the one where she is hanged by Lady Stoneheart. All the rest of it was really unnecessary imo.
8.5/10 I think, looking forward to Tyrion and Daenerys returning in A Dance With Dragons.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2015 6:06:48 GMT -5
Stephen E. Ambrose - Band of Brothers
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Post by mossy on Sept 29, 2015 22:03:28 GMT -5
Just finished the first Game Of Thrones book.
Been meaning to read them for ages but they're so huge I saved this one for when I had two 12 hour flights.
Enjoyed it but there wasn't much different/extra to the TV series so hoping for more from the next book...
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Post by mossy on Oct 27, 2015 16:25:07 GMT -5
A Clash Of Kings
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Post by Deleted on Nov 11, 2015 15:45:18 GMT -5
Wow, that's cool I've only read the first few chapters so far, but I do like it. This is actually the first time I'm reading a John Green book - although I've seen The Fault In Our Stars (and loved it), I haven't seen this movie yet. I'll let you know what's my final verdict on it once I'm done with it Sounds good! If you like Paper Towns, I highly recommend reading Looking for Alaska. I read it before Paper Towns, and it was one of the best books I've ever read. It's funny, sad, and dark, but in a cool mix that makes the story stand out from others. I just randomly remembered today that I told you I'll get back at you on this... I've actually never finished the book! I just couldn't get into it properly, I liked it at first but...I don't know, maybe I'm too old for it Plus I'm kinda having troubles with concentrating recently... Anyway. I'll probably watch the movie eventually, and if I enjoy it, I'll try to finish the book (hate leaving them uncompleted). Another book that I just couldn't "get" was The Book Thief and everyone loves it so much. I'm starting to think something's wrong with me. I started reading a John Grisham book a couple of weeks ago... It's called The Racketeer. Far more my cup of tea, but then again I study law so...
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Post by World71R on Nov 11, 2015 21:55:42 GMT -5
Sounds good! If you like Paper Towns, I highly recommend reading Looking for Alaska. I read it before Paper Towns, and it was one of the best books I've ever read. It's funny, sad, and dark, but in a cool mix that makes the story stand out from others. I just randomly remembered today that I told you I'll get back at you on this... I've actually never finished the book! I just couldn't get into it properly, I liked it at first but...I don't know, maybe I'm too old for it Plus I'm kinda having troubles with concentrating recently... Anyway. I'll probably watch the movie eventually, and if I enjoy it, I'll try to finish the book (hate leaving them uncompleted). Another book that I just couldn't "get" was The Book Thief and everyone loves it so much. I'm starting to think something's wrong with me. I started reading a John Grisham book a couple of weeks ago... It's called The Racketeer. Far more my cup of tea, but then again I study law so... Hey! Thanks for the reply. But yea, I agree with not getting into the book as well. It's a good book, but it just doesn't have an appeal to it that lures you in, snags you, and doesn't let go, like Looking for Alaska does. I like the journey Q takes to search for clues to find Margo, but there are just some areas where it does have cliches. Nevertheless, it's a pretty enjoyable story, and I cannot complain too much because reading it was well worth the time. The movie is the same case, but I won't go into too much detail considering you haven't seen it yet. The Book Thief is one book I wanna read, but after watching the movie (sort of the opposite way to go), it seems like it'd be a confusing read. Hopefully it's the other way around because I feel like there is a strong story that lies within it.
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Post by mossy on Nov 12, 2015 8:21:57 GMT -5
I just randomly remembered today that I told you I'll get back at you on this... I've actually never finished the book! I just couldn't get into it properly, I liked it at first but...I don't know, maybe I'm too old for it Plus I'm kinda having troubles with concentrating recently... Anyway. I'll probably watch the movie eventually, and if I enjoy it, I'll try to finish the book (hate leaving them uncompleted). Another book that I just couldn't "get" was The Book Thief and everyone loves it so much. I'm starting to think something's wrong with me. I started reading a John Grisham book a couple of weeks ago... It's called The Racketeer. Far more my cup of tea, but then again I study law so... Hey! Thanks for the reply. But yea, I agree with not getting into the book as well. It's a good book, but it just doesn't have an appeal to it that lures you in, snags you, and doesn't let go, like Looking for Alaska does. I like the journey Q takes to search for clues to find Margo, but there are just some areas where it does have cliches. Nevertheless, it's a pretty enjoyable story, and I cannot complain too much because reading it was well worth the time. The movie is the same case, but I won't go into too much detail considering you haven't seen it yet. The Book Thief is one book I wanna read, but after watching the movie (sort of the opposite way to go), it seems like it'd be a confusing read. Hopefully it's the other way around because I feel like there is a strong story that lies within it. The Book Thief is really good. I've not seen the film.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2015 8:50:49 GMT -5
I'll give it a try eventually.
I was going through a bit of a rough time when I first started reading it, so it was a bit too heavy and morbid for me.
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Post by mossy on Nov 12, 2015 10:32:56 GMT -5
I'll give it a try eventually. I was going through a bit of a rough time when I first started reading it, so it was a bit too heavy and morbid for me. Yeah, it's not the happiest read of all time that's for sure :-)
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Post by mossy on Nov 15, 2015 5:32:03 GMT -5
A Storm Of Swords part 1: steel and snow.
Just started part 2, hope I like it as much as @rfb
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Post by Deleted on Nov 27, 2015 17:53:59 GMT -5
Harlan Coben - Missing You (named after the John Waite song...)
Recommended if you're into crime thrillers (like I am); read it in a mere couple of days; which hasn't happened to me in a long time.
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Post by mossy on Dec 11, 2015 13:39:58 GMT -5
A Storm Of Swords part 2.
That epilogue! Was not expecting that ending after having seen the TV show.
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Post by theyknowwhatimean on Dec 11, 2015 14:00:08 GMT -5
Reading Owen Jones's The Establishment: And How They Get Away With It, and On the Road, by Jack Kerouac.
I know Bon Dylan's a big fan of On the Road, do anyone Dylan fans on here know if any of his songs were specifically influenced by it? Only, I was listening to Mississippi the other day, and some of the lyrics reminded me of Kerouac.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 11, 2015 14:25:56 GMT -5
Reading Owen Jones's The Establishment: And How They Get Away With It, and On the Road, by Jack Kerouac. I know Bon Dylan's a big fan of On the Road, do anyone Dylan fans on here know if any of his songs were specifically influenced by it? Only, I was listening to Mississippi the other day, and some of the lyrics reminded me of Kerouac. On The Road Again for example Subterranean Homesick Blues was inspired by Kerouac aswell but I'm not sure if it was On The Road specifically
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Post by Deleted on Dec 16, 2015 12:45:18 GMT -5
Stanley Scotch and The Land of Giants
I read it to my son Stanley. He liked it. I refuse to rate something I wrote. You can check it out on Amazon if so moved.
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Post by uǝɥʇɐǝɥ on Dec 16, 2015 13:48:55 GMT -5
Gravitys Rainbow
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Post by mossy on Dec 17, 2015 3:51:26 GMT -5
Been meaning to read that for a while, would you recommend it? I read Inherent Vice recently, which people say is a lite version of Pyncher, but I really enjoyed it. Much better than the film where the ambiguity just made the plot senseless.
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Post by uǝɥʇɐǝɥ on Dec 18, 2015 11:12:03 GMT -5
Been meaning to read that for a while, would you recommend it? I read Inherent Vice recently, which people say is a lite version of Pyncher, but I really enjoyed it. Much better than the film where the ambiguity just made the plot senseless. One thing thing that interests me about the book is that the author ; Pynchon , the pompous artist he is, really puts thought into the role of these 400 allegedly "stereotypical people" , often as a first-person narrator. The main character, Slothrop, is very similiar to Doc Sportello in terms of his different layers - and like Sportello, at some point, Paranoia comes over him (his obscene condition, his relationships, the government...) It often reads like a collection of anecdotes. But the psychological subtext is what it keeps it all together. The book was written in the 70's reflecting the 40's and it's also very interesting to see how priorities change during war time ( humor, religion, psychology,...) I think some of it reflects even more in todays life and politics. So if you read Inherent Vice, you should be perfectly prepared. It's a pretty tough read an I'm not through yet as well. I'm German and I'm listening to the original 1200 pages edition on Audible. So it should be actually less complicated for you. I get your criticism for Inherent Vice. Allthough I think it's one of the best movies I've ever seen. It's actually not that complicated(?) -maybe like Boogie Nights a little slow halfway in.
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Post by mossy on Dec 19, 2015 14:06:06 GMT -5
Been meaning to read that for a while, would you recommend it? I read Inherent Vice recently, which people say is a lite version of Pyncher, but I really enjoyed it. Much better than the film where the ambiguity just made the plot senseless. One thing thing that interests me about the book is that the author ; Pynchon , the pompous artist he is, really puts thought into the role of these 400 allegedly "stereotypical people" , often as a first-person narrator. The main character, Slothrop, is very similiar to Doc Sportello in terms of his different layers - and like Sportello, at some point, Paranoia comes over him (his obscene condition, his relationships, the government...) It often reads like a collection of anecdotes. But the psychological subtext is what it keeps it all together. The book was written in the 70's reflecting the 40's and it's also very interesting to see how priorities change during war time ( humor, religion, psychology,...) I think some of it reflects even more in todays life and politics. So if you read Inherent Vice, you should be perfectly prepared. It's a pretty tough read an I'm not through yet as well. I'm German and I'm listening to the original 1200 pages edition on Audible. So it should be actually less complicated for you. I get your criticism for Inherent Vice. Allthough I think it's one of the best movies I've ever seen. It's actually not that complicated(?) -maybe like Boogie Nights a little slow halfway in. I'll give it a go when I finally finish this GOT binge.
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Post by The Escapist on Jan 2, 2016 15:01:44 GMT -5
Lolita - Vladamir Nabokov (7/10)
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Post by davidjay on Jan 2, 2016 15:29:41 GMT -5
Bertrand Russell - In Praise of Idleness.
A fascinating collection of essays about working to live, rather than living to work. Written in the mid 30s, but increasingly relevant now, at a time when people are under pressure to work harder than ever.
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Post by Ross on Jan 2, 2016 16:51:25 GMT -5
Leading - Alex Ferguson with Michael Moritz
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2016 10:13:47 GMT -5
Girl on the train
Overrated Average Predictable
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Post by The Escapist on Jan 3, 2016 10:17:38 GMT -5
Girl on the train Overrated Average Predictable My nan downloaded that recently, as everyone was raving about it. I take it it would be unwise for me to do the same?
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