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| Thread: Recommend books! |  This thread is pages long: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 · NEXT» |
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JollyJoker
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Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 16, 2010 09:28 AM |
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Recommend books!
I start this thread to invite everyone to recommend NEW books you are currently reading. I emphasize NEW books, not the old stuff, everyone knows already about anyway. So this is basically not about your favorite books of your lifetime, but current, actual reads you may want to recommend.
I start with a fantasy trilogy, that beats everything I've read so far in fantasy by a mile, including Martin's Ice & Fire (which is just fizzling out due to too long periods between books and too much plot dispersal.
Joe Abercrombie, First Law Trilogy
Book 1: The Blade Itself
Book 2: Before they Are Hanged
Book 3: Last Argument of Kings
Do yourself a favor and read it in English, please.
The writer is extremely talented, his writing style is superior, his characters are original, the plot... well, what plot? 
For me, it's one of the strengths of this trilogy, that you have somewhat trouble to identify the plot - in this, the book follows the way, Martin has paved, on the heels of interesting characters through a time of chaos and havoc.
Abercrombie can create a character, and he can write dialogues. Or create running gags. You will chuckle quite often, darkly, more often than lightly, mind you. The whole thing has an incredible speed about it, an atmosphere of events cartwheeling about each other.
In short, I would recommend this to everyone who likes to read a well-written immersive tale.
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baklava
Honorable
Legendary Hero
Mostly harmless
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posted April 16, 2010 01:45 PM |
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Better than Martin?
I'll make sure to check it out.
Alright let's get some diversion in here, if you guys haven't read the Master and Margarita yet, you've got my blessing to start.
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"Let me tell you what the blues
is. When you ain't got no
money,
you got the blues."
Howlin Wolf
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JollyJoker
Honorable
Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 16, 2010 01:54 PM |
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The trouble with Martin is, that it lost focus somewhat. Clerly, it would have been better to stick to the original plan and finish it in an acceptable amount of time.
In a way, Abercrombie reads like a younger self of Martin.
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baklava
Honorable
Legendary Hero
Mostly harmless
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posted April 16, 2010 01:58 PM |
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True that.
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"Let me tell you what the blues
is. When you ain't got no
money,
you got the blues."
Howlin Wolf
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Carcity
Supreme Hero
Blind Sage
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posted April 16, 2010 02:07 PM |
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I'm currently reading a book called Any human heart by William Boyd, I think it's half old but it's very good and I recommend it to you.
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Why can't you save anybody?
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Corribus
Hero of Order
The Abyss Staring Back at You
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posted April 16, 2010 03:46 PM |
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@JJ
Quote:
The trouble with Martin is, that it lost focus somewhat. Clerly, it would have been better to stick to the original plan and finish it in an acceptable amount of time.
The expansiveness of Martin's saga doesn't bother me, but the time lag between novels certainly does. The first three novels came out in a space of four years (one every two years: 1996, 1998, and 2000). In the last decade, he's only released one, and it was really only half of a novel. At that rate, I just can't keep my interest, no matter how good the writing is.
Anyway, I just finished (yesterday) Song of Kali, by Dan Simmons. Not surprisingly, it was excellent.
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JollyJoker
Honorable
Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 16, 2010 04:08 PM |
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Strangely enough I couldn't get too warm for Simmons, even though I tried two times already.
Could be a question of translation. *Sigh* Have to give him a go in English then, I suppose.
For Martin, you can overdo it with viewpoints and characters, and delivering only half a book tells that story quite explicitely. The time frame is of course unacceptable.
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Fauch
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 16, 2010 07:44 PM |
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some good books I read :
"Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama" by Daniel Goleman
"le système totalitaire" (totalitarianist system?) by hannah arendt
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DagothGares
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Undefeatable Hero
No gods or kings
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posted April 16, 2010 07:58 PM |
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Johannes Cabal, the necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard is very enjoyable. It's very witty and clever in its own way. I always recommend books to be read in the original language, so english here, of course. It isn't too serious, until the ending, but I heartily recommend it for its dark and cynical humor and, well, it starts getting more and more serious towards the ending. It's hard to explain what else is good about it. An enjoyable read nonetheless!
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If you have any more questions, go to Dagoth Cares.
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Warmonger
Promising
Legendary Hero
fallen artist
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posted April 16, 2010 08:04 PM |
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Ludwig Wittgenstein - Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus
I really dislike English translation I own, but this one will blow your mind for sure.
Mostly because not many people are capable of understanding theoretical philosophy using formal logic to analyze basics of language  Threat it as a challenge.
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The future of Heroes 3 is here!
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Geny 
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
What if Elvin was female?
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posted April 16, 2010 08:09 PM |
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Quote:
Alright let's get some diversion in here, if you guys haven't read the Master and Margarita yet, you've got my blessing to start.
Seconded.
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DON'T BE A NOOB, JOIN A.D.V.E.N.T.U.R.E.
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JollyJoker
Honorable
Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 16, 2010 08:09 PM |
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Quote:
Johannes Cabal, the necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard is very enjoyable. It's very witty and clever in its own way. I always recommend books to be read in the original language, so english here, of course. It isn't too serious, until the ending, but I heartily recommend it for its dark and cynical humor and, well, it starts getting more and more serious towards the ending. It's hard to explain what else is good about it. An enjoyable read nonetheless!
I think, I'll give that one a try.
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mvassilev
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 16, 2010 10:08 PM |
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Atlas Shrugged is always well worth reading.
So is Catch-22.
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Eccentric Opinion
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DagothGares
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Undefeatable Hero
No gods or kings
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posted April 16, 2010 10:16 PM |
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DEVICES AND DESIRES OR THE COMPANY BY K.J. PARKER!
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If you have any more questions, go to Dagoth Cares.
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Corribus
Hero of Order
The Abyss Staring Back at You
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posted April 16, 2010 10:36 PM |
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Ironically, in a thread about reading, nobody seems to be able to read.
FYI:
Quote:
So this is basically not about your favorite books of your lifetime, but current, actual reads you may want to recommend.
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I'm sick of following my dreams. I'm just going to ask them where they're goin', and hook up with them later. -Mitch Hedberg
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DagothGares
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
No gods or kings
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posted April 16, 2010 10:53 PM |
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Mine are legitimate, because they're all from after 2006... (off to tweak my second suggestions)
EDIT: I'm perfectly aware I sound like a small child!
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If you have any more questions, go to Dagoth Cares.
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mvassilev
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 16, 2010 11:22 PM |
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I'm not reading anything right now, so I'm just naming good books.
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Eccentric Opinion
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Carcity
Supreme Hero
Blind Sage
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posted April 16, 2010 11:51 PM |
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I'm actually reading the book I recommended.
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Why can't you save anybody?
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Fauch
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
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posted April 18, 2010 01:06 AM |
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according to quick searches it could be interesting. that man had a crazy life.
I am curious about the tractatus one, although, sometimes simplicity may be better. from what I read on Internet it talks about phenomenology.
"Being generous : The art of right living" by Lucinda Vardey and John Dalla Costa. Generosity is an act of generation.
"L'expérience extrême" by Christophe Nick and Michel eltchaninoff. Are we really free to take our own decisions? and what is the power of television?
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Jiriki9
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Altar Dweller
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posted April 18, 2010 03:41 AM |
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Probably, for many people "stuff we all allready know about", but I just read the first three books of Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth saga - "Wizard's First Rule", "Stone of Tears" and "Blood of the Fold" - and I found them REALLY great! Couldn'T stop reading, actually ^^
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