Book Thread

Lumeinshin · 2022-11-06T17:40:17+00:00

This thread is for posting about what books you've been reading or one that has stuck with you since you read it. Think of this as a general book thread, fee...

Arkana

I have been reading "Vistas of Infinity" by Jurgen Ziewe, after I enjoyed his book Multidimensional Man. They are about "astral projection" but you could just as well take them as books on meditation, awareness, and a very detailed dream journal. I read by the books by Robert Monroe as well on the same topics and enjoyed them a lot. If nothing else they engage the imagination about potential and possibilities of reality, regardless of how much they can actually be verified or confirmed. This quote about how he believes life after death is, from his own hyper aware "dream experiences" are is definitely a very good concept to consider at least.

ig

been going through the entire lotr universe for the 5th time already. Also bought blood meridian, its arriving on the 29th. Yall have any recommendations on what I should read next?

Lumeinshin

I've not been reading as much lately, just been busy and lazy to be honest.
I did finish all the books in the Jacques McKeown series and I enjoyed them all quite a lot.
I am currently reading The Grief Doctor by Jack Anderson, its definitely well written and interesting, although currently i'm not able to give an interesting synopsis that would do it justice since theres so many questions right now.

There was a bit of time though the other day where I went to my local bookstore and bought a couple books, so I now have flowers for algernon in my list of books to read as well as a book called Touching Cloth which is a memoir of sorts about a priest living on contemporary times. I thought it might be interesting to see how the church functions now and a bit behind the scenes stuff.

ig Blood Meridian is on my list to read too! I don't have much in the way of recommendations though. I suppose it'd depend on what you liked about LOTR

foox

I recently finished "Children of Men" about a year after I watched the movie. It is a very well written book that kept me hooked on it and coming back to it every day till it was finished. P.D. James' did a great job of making the reader feel for the protagonist and experience the book through their eyes, something that I always appreciate in a book. It was a bit of a cold shock coming from the movie since they are different enough from one another that it was no surprise to me to learn that the movie's director had only read a summary of the book.

I'm looking into reading a Kafka next but not sure which one, since they all seem very interesting. Any suggestions?

music liker

I am currently reading the Great Gatsby for school, and Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli for my own enjoyment.

sanner

music liker Stargirl is fun or cute. I read it when i was really young but i remember enjoying it. Please update when you finish the book

music liker

sanner
This isn't actually the first time I'm reading it, so I'll write a short bit of my thoughts here.

I think it's a neat subversion of the manic pixie dream girl trope. Sure, she might be one, but Star is clearly a way deeper person than just an object. It kind of annoys me how, in the end, after all of the character development she underwent, she just goes back to the same old quirky, lonely girl. Maybe that's about being true to yourself, but I found it kind of stupid. It's a great book, though. I wish I could go on Hot Seat.

sanner

I'm currently reading some of Kahlil Gibran's collected prose and poems-- specifically the ones regarding love. Some of the passages are difficult to understand, maybe because the book is translated from Arabic, maybe because I'm just not expressive enough to understand. Overall it's an enjoyable read; the works are short and have some twist to the telling, waves a lot of the repetition. His writing is "beautiful" if you get enjoyment like that out of text.

Cyrus Wendell

I am currently reading Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene and Milton's Paradise Lost. I'm trying to read as much literature as "the greats" did to improve my style. I think I have clunky command of it now but hopefully with time and practice I can develop a unique voice as an author.

Doc

I'm trying to listen to Cormac McCarthy's "Blood Meridian". I'm learning it is one of those books I need to actually read and not just listen to. I'm lost as to what is happening. From what I can tell it seems like the main character is wandering around Mexico killing Indians with a group and nothing else. I know I am missing something huge since it's a famous and well respected book. I can't see what everyone else sees just by listening to it.
The last two books I listened to on audio were Gene Wolfe's "The Shadow of the Torturer" and "The Claw of the Conciliator". I didn't get why people love them either. They get better on rereads is what I am told. I want to put it to the test after finishing some other books on my backlog. These will also be read and not listened to the second time around to help ensure I understand what is happening. Judging by my reaction to these last three books I am feeling like a pleb for not appreciating them.
The last book I actually read is Michael Crichton's "Jurassic Park". I would heavily recommend this book. The suspense is wonderfully done since the start of the book and I read it all in almost two weeks. I think it's a great book if you are looking for a sci-fi thriller without too much science talk.

Katabazi

Doc I adore the Book of the New Sun, so I'm interested in why the first two books in it didn't catch you as much as say me or the countless others who've read and loved them.

Doc

Katabazi

The books felt like they were trying to be a gothic version of "The Hobbit", where the main character takes a huge journey to some unknown land. It fell flat on it's face in my opinion because it had no whimsy to it. A long journey to a distant land should be fun, or full of adventure. The way it is narrated as a diary takes out any tension to the fights. You know he will live, because he is writing. He is also a jaded person, which gave a cynical tone. The worst offense is the entirety of it felt meandering. Like the main character was just talking in order to fill up space. I thought most of the first half before the suicide could have been cut out. I liked the worldbuilding and explanation of the torturers guild before that, but most of it could have been skipped over with no real consequence. I also disliked that once things got interesting after the garden section the book ended and all momentum reset during the second one.
The second book starting off with new characters and in a different setting was jarring to me too. It's not even fully explained what happened in the tunnel until two thirds of the book are done. I may be misremembering some details on that though.
I do like to think it was because I was listening to a very old recording of it, and so I couldn't get the full experience, which is why I got a physical copy and will read that when I am done with some other books.

JacksonDailey

Katabazi The Book of the New Sun is an amazing but i agree it is easy to get lost while reading them. The Book of the Long Sun is a tad bit easier to follow and is equally as good in my opinion. If you need help with understanding anything Wolfe related I would go to http://www.urth.net/
It's a very old website of BOTNS fans that have compiled a lot of explanations for the stuff that happens in the novels.

Megaloschemos

The Urantia Book and Emerald Tablets of Thoth are like the mechanics of mind to me, and I am about to check out The Four Agreements of Toltec Wisdom. It looks so good to me already, I know it will be a favorite.

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