Ready Player One has gotten quite an interesting reception. I know many, many people who adore it, but I also know some people who thought it was dreadful. Seems pretty polarizing.
As an 80's kid, I think I need to check it out eventually.
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
What are you reading? (October 2012)
- Thread starter Maklershed
- Start date
As an 80's kid, I think I need to check it out eventually.
Koroviev
Member
Just read American Vampire Vol.1 and Vol. 2 saw it on the forum and was intrigued.
This is really the first comic I have read. The story is fantastic. Anyone who has not heard of it should check it out your in for a treat.
Not Batman?
The House of Leaves
Most original book I've read so far.
I did like it too but mostly for the story. I did like the unusual layout at first but towards the end it started to just feel like gimmick and annoyed me so much. Still, I think it's good and creepy horror book and one of best in the genre in ages.
This sounds so good.Just read American Vampire Vol.1 and Vol. 2 saw it on the forum and was intrigued.
This is really the first comic I have read. The story is fantastic. Anyone who has not heard of it should check it out your in for a treat.
It's tough for me to seriously get into graphic novels, though. There are so many I want to buy, but if a series really clicks with me then it means I'll have to end up spending over $100 to see the full story =[
Indeed, I love almost everything from this book: the story itself, characters, the narrative and the writing style (references, references of references, the truant/Zampano notes/side stories, academic/documentary notes, etc...), the odd layout doesn't bother me that much I think it adds to the atmosphere of the book.
I'm actually near the end (490/709) and it has been quite a ride.
finowns
Member
Are you doubting my love for Batman? No I have never read the comic but I have watched the cartoon and the movies my whole life. As I am typing this I can hear the score to Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. I'll seriously consider naming my first born Bruce or Wayne whether boy or girl.
I got the vol.1 and vol.2 used off of amazon for 20 dollars; it was worth it.
Koroviev
Member
No, I'm just pointing it out because your avatar looks like a comic book representation of Batman, lol.
Interesting. I think I have like a $20 gift card so maybe I'll pick up the first three trades. Thanks for the recommendation.
One thing I've always wondered about this book is does the layout make it difficult to know how to read the book?
TinMachine
Neo Member
gregor7777
Banned
And the James Bond books any good? I've only ever watched the recent Bond movies and I like them well enough. I didn't even know there were Bond books lol.
sparky2112
Member
You don't say...
Finished
Awesome book. Everybody should read it.
and
Not so great but not bad either. Great if you're a DJ historian I guess. 3.5 stars.
Just started
And it's very good thus far.
Also, this. What's a good James Bond book for absolute beginners?
Awesome book. Everybody should read it.
and
Not so great but not bad either. Great if you're a DJ historian I guess. 3.5 stars.
Just started
And it's very good thus far.
Also, this. What's a good James Bond book for absolute beginners?
bengraven
Member
AV is great. It's one of the reasons I read comics again after taking a decade off.
The art is great sometimes, but others I'm not so sure.
nakedsushi
Member
It's not as difficult as you would think. I found it more distracting because you would be all into the story, flip the page, and then have to jump out of the story and turn the book or figure out where you needed to read next. I was more annoyed than delighted by the weird page formatting issues. And the colored text.
I agree with what the previous poster said. It was fun the first few times. Then it got gimmicky.
I've only read Casino Royale and it was a fun and quick read. There was a lot of setup for the entire series in that one, but it wasn't too bad of a slog. The books definitely have a different vibe than the movies though. I think the CR book was set in an earlier time than the movie, and its language is a little dated. I know with the next books in the series there are some pretty offensive terms for different races in it, but hey, the book was written the 1950s or whatever so maybe that was ok back then.
Neffarias_Bredd
Member
Finished Erikson's Reaper's Gale yesterday. Loved it, can't wait to read Toll the Hounds.
Tehol and Bugg are one of my favorite literary pairs
Tehol and Bugg are one of my favorite literary pairs
bengraven
Member
I've always loved reading. I've always had ideas of being a writer in fact.
But I don't think I've ever been as addicted to reading as I am now. I brought home a huge stack of novels on Friday, of which I started reading THREE at the same time. Then yesterday, after discovering my library's graphic novel section, I went home with another huge stack of comics. Now I'm typing this from the library and I don't want to go home. I have a bunch of graphic novels, that book on Marvel history, and a book by the writer of Swan Song (Five) in my recycled library bag...and I'm not done. I will probably be here for another two hours and get more books.
And I plan on coming back all day tomorrow.
I'm addicted. I actually saw a look of worry in my wife's face when I walked in yesterday with another bag of books.
edit: BUT I HAVE A 100 BOOK LIMIT BITCHES - take it to the LIMIT
But I don't think I've ever been as addicted to reading as I am now. I brought home a huge stack of novels on Friday, of which I started reading THREE at the same time. Then yesterday, after discovering my library's graphic novel section, I went home with another huge stack of comics. Now I'm typing this from the library and I don't want to go home. I have a bunch of graphic novels, that book on Marvel history, and a book by the writer of Swan Song (Five) in my recycled library bag...and I'm not done. I will probably be here for another two hours and get more books.
And I plan on coming back all day tomorrow.
I'm addicted. I actually saw a look of worry in my wife's face when I walked in yesterday with another bag of books.
edit: BUT I HAVE A 100 BOOK LIMIT BITCHES - take it to the LIMIT
Boogie9IGN
Member
To those asking, I think the James Bond books are pretty damn good. Granted they're written during the cold war and have almost nothing to do with the movies (apart from Casino Royale) but they're really fun if you're a fan of the series!
Finished The Blade Itself. Holy hell, that was damned good. Wasn't expecting something that great.
The ending was laughable in that there literally isn't one. You're ready to get into another exciting chapter and then it ends. But whatever, not really bad considering it's only the first book of a trilogy, but this was even more jarring than the usual fantasy series book :lol
Already downloading Before They Are Hanged, though I'm not sure if I should hop right into that or read those American Vampire trades.
The ending was laughable in that there literally isn't one. You're ready to get into another exciting chapter and then it ends. But whatever, not really bad considering it's only the first book of a trilogy, but this was even more jarring than the usual fantasy series book :lol
Already downloading Before They Are Hanged, though I'm not sure if I should hop right into that or read those American Vampire trades.
Mackenzie 92
Member
Yeah, the
Bloody Nine reveal and POV was so awesome
Still my favorite POV in any fantasy series. I would probably read a whole book with nothing else, just the
Bloody Nine raging and killing.
Buckethead
Banned
Basic science stuff but still cool.
Kyleripman
Member
is anyone reading this?
is it ANY good?
Yeah, I liked it.
Maklershed
Member
Finished The Sisters Brothers and on to book 2 of The First Law Trilogy
Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie
Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie
^Nice. I'm already excited to get started on that. So impressed with Abercrombie after the first book.
Taking a quick break from the First Law trilogy:
Sci-fi short story collection, it's really good so far. He does a great of constructing each setting and really drawing you into the world. These all seem pretty bleak, basically each one is set in the future and has some sort of horrible environmental or societal problem brought upon the world by people. Very interesting, though. They move at a quick pace so that each story is allowed a satisfying conclusion, and again I have to compliment his world building. A little reminiscent of Blade Runner I think. Rain-slicked streets, haggard street merchants, constant advertising and neon lights, powerful corporations, etc.
Taking a quick break from the First Law trilogy:
Sci-fi short story collection, it's really good so far. He does a great of constructing each setting and really drawing you into the world. These all seem pretty bleak, basically each one is set in the future and has some sort of horrible environmental or societal problem brought upon the world by people. Very interesting, though. They move at a quick pace so that each story is allowed a satisfying conclusion, and again I have to compliment his world building. A little reminiscent of Blade Runner I think. Rain-slicked streets, haggard street merchants, constant advertising and neon lights, powerful corporations, etc.
Finished this. It was quite good, but sprawled a lot in how things ended up. Large plot points weren't forgotten as much as going out of sight and handled indirectly. Lots of characters getting to shine in the spotlight. I'm not used to storytelling like that but it was very interesting to say the least.
Lots of great scenes in it, like a man staring down the barrels of an English warship, a mid aged man standing on the roof of a brothel telling the story of how he ended up on Dejima, a glimpse of Edo life from a foreigners eyes, and tons of strategic moves from all involved players going around.
One of the best I've ever read. Rare to read something that is so fiercely genuine. It's sad without being maudlin, with clear honest wit and a deep passion for what the characters--the glorious women, the worthless indelible men--struggle for, against, w/e.
Something I should've hit up earlier in life.
Hydrargyrus
Member
I never bothered with the third book. Book 2's ending just left me not wanting to read anymore.
This is a long shot, but was wondering if anybody could help me. I was reading a book on my wife's kindle, and the screen ended up stopped working. I have no idea what the book was called, but it was about the history of medicine, and it was actually pretty good. I have only got through the first chapter so far, but it was talking about how doctors back in the day would self experiment on different herbs/chemicals.
I would love to read the rest of it, but I don't think I can't remember the name of the book, and she has no idea what book I am talking about.. lol
I would love to read the rest of it, but I don't think I can't remember the name of the book, and she has no idea what book I am talking about.. lol
Koroviev
Member
This is a long shot, but was wondering if anybody could help me. I was reading a book on my wife's kindle, and the screen ended up stopped working. I have no idea what the book was called, but it was about the history of medicine, and it was actually pretty good. I have only got through the first chapter so far, but it was talking about how doctors back in the day would self experiment on different herbs/chemicals.
I would love to read the rest of it, but I don't think I can't remember the name of the book, and she has no idea what book I am talking about.. lol
The Emperor of Maladies?
Not quite. One thing I remembered about this book was that it mentioned this drug trial (go down to clinical trials).
It also mentioned how doctors found out numbing agents and anesthesia. It went into using things like heroine or cocaine to numb pain of surgery.
From what I have read so far has been pretty fascinating.
TheChewyWaffles
Member
Read The Dog Stars in Oct. Ambivalent. Some of it was gripping, some of it was poignant, but in the end I left feeling empty.
This is a long shot, but was wondering if anybody could help me. I was reading a book on my wife's kindle, and the screen ended up stopped working. I have no idea what the book was called, but it was about the history of medicine, and it was actually pretty good. I have only got through the first chapter so far, but it was talking about how doctors back in the day would self experiment on different herbs/chemicals.
I would love to read the rest of it, but I don't think I can't remember the name of the book, and she has no idea what book I am talking about.. lol
Even if your wife's Kindle is not working, you could download the Kindle program onto your computer (free) -- enter her account information -- and then all her books would be there. You should be able to find it then.
Here's the link for Kindle for PC:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311
Yikes...that doesn't sound good. Because of a jarring non-ending like what I described? Or you just didn't enjoy where it took the series?
Last Argument of Kings is easily the best volume in the series, and a tremendously well-crafted conclusion to the trilogy.
BanShunsaku
Member
Finished The Gun by C.J. Chivers last night. Although the book is primarily about the history of the AK-47, I actually found the most interesting section of the book was about the troubled history of the M16.
After seeing Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Book Store posted on the previous pages I thought I would give it a shot, picked it up for my Kindle and loving it so far.
After seeing Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Book Store posted on the previous pages I thought I would give it a shot, picked it up for my Kindle and loving it so far.
Witchfinder General
punched Wheelchair Mike
Just finished:
Quarterly Essay - Political Animal: The Making of Tony Abbott by David Marr
Brilliant piece by Marr as always.
Just started:
Expert Political Judgement - Philip. E. Tetlock
Having read and loved the seminal Future Babble by Dan Gardner, I decided to read the book that Gardner's work was inspired by.
Fascinating stuff thus far.
Quarterly Essay - Political Animal: The Making of Tony Abbott by David Marr
Brilliant piece by Marr as always.
Just started:
Expert Political Judgement - Philip. E. Tetlock
Having read and loved the seminal Future Babble by Dan Gardner, I decided to read the book that Gardner's work was inspired by.
Fascinating stuff thus far.
Bookdepository has 5% off on everything in customers' wishlists from now until November 7th. I have unread books to last me several years, but I love small promotions like these, so I want to buy at least one book.
So... do you people have recommendations for awesome non-fiction books? I like popular psychology, statistics, history and books about literature, but I'm open for anything as long as it's good and perhaps a little surprising. Some of the non-fiction I've enjoyed most include Freakonomics, Guns, Germs and Steel, The Rest is Noise, and anything by Umberto Eco, Malcolm Gladwell and Stephen Hawking.
So... do you people have recommendations for awesome non-fiction books? I like popular psychology, statistics, history and books about literature, but I'm open for anything as long as it's good and perhaps a little surprising. Some of the non-fiction I've enjoyed most include Freakonomics, Guns, Germs and Steel, The Rest is Noise, and anything by Umberto Eco, Malcolm Gladwell and Stephen Hawking.
BanShunsaku
Member
In regards to Red Country - I've read the First Law Trilogy in full but not The Heroes or Best Served Cold - is it best to read the other two stand alone novels before I read it or does it really not matter?