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| Thread: Favourite Books ... |  This thread is pages long: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 · «PREV / NEXT» |
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sorcerorkyle
Hired Hero
Sauron
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posted December 05, 2001 04:02 PM |
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fav. book huh?
mine is:
Microserfs
Harry potter series
nothing else, haven't found many good books, im gonnah try to other books,
J.R.R.Tolken series
and... crap i forgot, ahh who cares, it's not like any oh you cared anyway!
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those who appose me will be shot, willies be beaten.
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Lith-Maethor
Honorable
Legendary Hero
paid in Coin and Cleavage
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posted December 05, 2001 04:51 PM |
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heh...
Quote:
mine is:
Microserfs
...I never thought anyone but me had read that book...
...and yes, i liked the book, I'd say I'm living the whole Michael/"Barcode" thing at the time... 
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You are suffering from delusions of adequacy.
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sorcerorkyle
Hired Hero
Sauron
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posted December 05, 2001 06:21 PM |
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no, i like the book, did you?
well, did you like it? i liked it! i am learning C++ right know because of that book!
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those who appose me will be shot, willies be beaten.
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Slava14
Promising
Famous Hero
I am 16 now....
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posted December 05, 2001 07:01 PM |
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I would like to add Harry Potter and Anthony's Reincarnations to my list.
BTW, Hexa I don't know that writer too.
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I'm always happy to help.. unless I'm helping myself.
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Maniac
Disgraceful
Famous Hero
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posted December 05, 2001 07:31 PM |
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1.J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Ring".It is elemantary my dear Watson.Can't get enough of it.
2.L.Ron Habard's "Battlefield-Earth".Cool saga though the movie sucked.
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Samwise_Gamgee
Hired Hero
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posted September 24, 2004 02:31 PM |
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The Lord of the Rings-J.R.R. Tolkien
The Silmarillion-J.R.R. Tolkien
The Hobbit-J.R.R. Tolkien
I also like:
Harry Potter-J.K. Rowling
The Chronicles of Narnia-C.S.Lewis
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Age 13, and The Lord of the Rings master.
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Khaelo
Honorable
Supreme Hero
Underwater
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posted November 25, 2004 09:39 AM |
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Edited By: Khaelo on 25 Nov 2004
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casting
11 pages into a Google search of book threads on HC, and this is the best one that came up. Among other things, it has tons of suggestions which I want to jot down when it's not a quarter to three in the morning.  Resurrected!
I'm posting a list of books plus thoughts. Not all mentions are necessarily recommendations.
First, the obvious (i.e. already mentioned; if you're looking for new suggestions, skip this section):
*) George R.R. Martin, Song of Ice and Fire. Highly recommended. The only flaw I can think of with this one is the really long time Martin's taking to come out with the next installment...
*) Terry Pratchett, Discworld. My favorites within the series are the books on Death (fav: Reaper Man), the Nightwatch (fav: The Fifth Elephant), and some standalones like Small Gods. Rincewind is amusing, but Granny Weatherwax and Co. never captured me.
*) Robert Jordan, Wheel of Time. Eye of the World was solid enough to pique interest, but he lost me with the rest. The characterizations particularly annoyed me.
*) Terry Goodkind, Sword of Truth. The first two (Wizard's First Rule, Stone of Tears) are highly recommended. Goodkind's philosophical leanings become increasingly obvious as the series progresses, but I enjoyed the books up through Faith of the Fallen, this last being saved mostly by its nuanced villianess. The seventh book kind of falls flat, and the eighth comes across as little more than a lecture disguised as a novel. It irritated me such that I will not be continuing this series. But the first books are excellant.
*) Robin Hobbs, Farseer Trilogy, Liveship Trilogy, Tawny Man trilogy. I think this is collectively "Realm of the Elderlings," but don't quote me on that. In any case, the Farseer and Liveships are highly recommended. Farseer is a classic story/theme beautifully done. Liveships is more innovative, and also addresses a number of social issues that don't get seen in fantasy all that often. Hobbs's treatment is quite sophisticated. I haven't finished the Tawney Man yet and cannot offer an opinion.
*) Terry Brooks, Sword of Shanara and associated series. Only mentioned because Brooks occupies several shelves at the local chain bookstores. I don't know why; I was unable to finish Sword of Shanara. The characters didn't catch me, the plot was too familiar (Lord of the Rings), and basically nothing impelled me to keep reading.
*) J.R.R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings. THE must-read of fantasy, not much commentary needed here.
*) J.K. Rowlings, Harry Potter. I like them.
And a random collection:
*) Neil Gaiman, American Gods. Recommended, very solid. As a mythology buff, I particularly enjoyed it. He also co-wrote Good Omens with Pratchett, another good read. I'm trying to track down Sandman graphic novels.
*) Jacqueline Carey, Kushiel's Legacy. Non-traditional fantasy here. The world is a Renaissance-y parallel universe with sparing and subtle magic. The plots are intricate once they kick in, but the real pleasures of this trilogy are the beautifully done characters, particularly the heroine, and the luscious prose. Not for prudes, but recommended.
*) Anne Bishop, Black Jewels trilogy. Darker side of fantasy, worth a look. The high point was nuanced characters here as well. (I have my preferences.)
*) Two vampire series: Over the summer, I read Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake at the same time as Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's Saint-Germain. World of difference there! Hamilton's books are brisk, action and sex-packed, very contemporary, and basically fluff. Yarbro's are historical novels of various periods, slow moving, and very atmospheric. I wouldn't say either writer is particularly noteworthy from a technical standpoint, but they're is about as different as it gets for the vampire genre. I recommend some of Yasbro's work, not so much Hamilton.
*) Marion Zimmerman Bradley, The Mists of Avalon, Firebrand. The former gets all the publicity, but the latter is the better book. Its pacing is more manageable, among other things. I recommend Firebrand, which has just been put back into print. It's the story of the Trojan War, retold from Cassandra's point of view. Mists, a retelling of the Authurian legend from the POV of the women, has its momements, but it's a chore to get through. Unfortunately, since Mists was the hit, it's the one with all the follow-ups. Bradley has another series out as well, but I haven't read it.
I just know I forgot somebody's something somewhere. Since I tend to sell books back to the used-book store, I can't just scan my shelf to remember titles.  Anyway, as a huge fan of anthologies, I highly recommend the two Legends books, which are collections of novellas by major series writers in the fantasy field. They can give you a taste of a particular author's writing without investing in a whole book. Based on these (and Ender's Game which hooked me despite being sci-fi!), I plan to look into Orson Scott Card's Alvin Maker series.
Edit: broken BB code. Useless fact for the day -- an unclosed bold tag will not only bold the rest of your post but also your signature! Oooo.
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 Cleverly
disguised as a responsible adult
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terje_the_ma...
Responsible
Supreme Hero
Disciple of Herodotus
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posted November 25, 2004 02:02 PM |
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Khaelo, Khaelo... You don't read RJ for the solid and nuanced characters... You read him for the epic tale, imo...
My fav books (fist fantasy, then non fantasy):
1. Gotta say Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" (WoT). Not the best technically, but it was the one that got me into modern fantasy, and for that, my gratitude is so big that I won't stop being loyal to his works.
2. Robin Hobb. She has conquered this spot from GRRM and Pratchett with her brilliant "Tawny Man" trilogy. Her previous trilogies, "Farseer" and "Liveship Traders", weren't good enough to put her higher than a 5 place or so, but the Tawny Man lifted her works to new heights.
3. George R.R. Martin. His ASOIAF series looks to be a good one, but he loses a bit from killing some of the main characters just when we are startingto attatch ouselves to them.
4. Terry Pratchett. One of my fav satirists. The fantasy version of Douglas Adams.
5. Neil Gaiman. I haven't read much by him, just American Gods and some of his Sandman comics, but he has a knowledge about mythology that is very impressing, and a way of writing that I like very much.
6. C.S. Lewis. His Narnia books almost made me wanna be a Christian. Almost.
Outside (or above, or inside) the list, J.R.R. Tolkien's ghost floats around. His works are impossible to ignore, and though the characters aren't too strong, the epic tale is magnificent.
I used to like Terry Goodkind, and still read his books, but his ultra libertarian philospohy is killing a lot of pleasure for me. It's no fun reading a book where the main protagonist is a demagog...
So, non-fantasy authors.
1. Jens Bjørnebye. Norwegian anarchist who wrote books about the Norwegian shoolsystem, the court and prison system, and the history of bestiality. One of Norways largest and most influential intellectuals after WWII.
2. All Quiet On The Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque. Read it, and you'll never be positive about war again.
3. Fjodor Dostojevskij. I've only read "The Idiot", but I thought it was great, and intend to read some of his other books as soon as I can find the time to do so...
6. George Orwell. Loved 1984.
5 -->. More obscure Norwegian marxist authors...
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"Sometimes I think everyone's just pretending to be brave, and none of us really are. Maybe pretending to be brave is how you get brave, I don't know."
- Grenn, A Storm of Swords.
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Asmodean
Responsible
Supreme Hero
Heroine at the weekend.
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posted November 25, 2004 02:12 PM |
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I'll not repeat the above 2 lists, as they pretty much cover what I like to read too.
Other fave fantasy authours to check out:
David Eddings' Belgaraiad and Malloreon series - a bit naive but good story over 2 series.
Dragonlance series - just read the bloody things.
Peter F. Hamilton - VERY good science fiction. His Night's Dawn Trilogy shouldn't be missed, even though the books are the size of elephants.
Asimov - Amtrak series, go read it.
David Gemmell - I like all his books, so just pick one and dive in, I'd stay start with Legend.
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To err is human, to arr is pirate.
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terje_the_ma...
Responsible
Supreme Hero
Disciple of Herodotus
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posted November 25, 2004 02:27 PM |
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After actually reading some of the posts above, I would like to second Khaelo's recommendation of Harry Potter, and Asmodean's of Dragionlance.
Harry Potter: I thought these books were stupid books for children, but when I actually read them, I found out that they were so much more than that. A captivating universe, with more amazing and entertaining characyers and situations than I thought it was possible to conjure.
Dragonlance: I can't say the three books I've read so far were the best I've read, but they were nontheless entertaining and somewhat exciting. I have the trilogy of the Twins standing on hold in my bookshelf now, so I may be able to figure out if I like them or not soon.
I also want to mention Katherine Kerr. I bought eight of her books a few months ago, and didn't know much about her (just that she was famous/selling enough books to be translated into Norwegian). But I've asked somepeople over at wotmania.com, and I've heard nothing but good things about her since then. Hopefully, it'll be as good as they claim.
Finally, I would like to mention some political books.
- No Logo by Naomi Klein is a modern classic, that should be read by everyone who is interested in globalization, free trade vs fair trade and so on.
- Hegemony or Survival by Noam Chomsky. I've only read the first fifty pages so far, but it seems like a good analysis of American foreign poilcies from WWII to today. I never even knew about the National Security Strategy until I read this book.
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"Sometimes I think everyone's just pretending to be brave, and none of us really are. Maybe pretending to be brave is how you get brave, I don't know."
- Grenn, A Storm of Swords.
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privatehudson
Responsible
Legendary Hero
The Ultimate Badass
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posted November 25, 2004 04:07 PM |
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Terry Pratchett's Discworld series is a masterpiece, brilliant at sending up fantasy and our own world. I'd consider more readable, and a hundred times more enjoyable than Lord of the Rings myself. A must read for those who are interested in fantasy novels.
Another similar and almost as good author is Robert Asprin, specifically his Myth series. Well worth checking out too.
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AMtwis
Famous Hero
Wannabe-Pixelguy
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posted November 25, 2004 04:43 PM |
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As most of you people already mentioned my fav authors, I'll giva a little tip. I don't remember the authors, but they were 2, co-writing. It's a christian book. God My english is limited, but I think that it started with the rapture. Then Antichrist came. And after that, the seven seals will be broken. If someone knows what book(s) I'm talking about, please enlighten me and everyone else
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Khaelo
Honorable
Supreme Hero
Underwater
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posted November 25, 2004 11:35 PM |
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The Left Behind series? By Tim Layhaye and Jerry B. Jenkins?
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Cleverly
disguised as a responsible adult
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AMtwis
Famous Hero
Wannabe-Pixelguy
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posted November 26, 2004 07:38 AM |
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Thanks Khaelo! Yup, that's the series I'm talking about. I never finished them, I just finished book 1 and 3/4 of number 2
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Asmodean
Responsible
Supreme Hero
Heroine at the weekend.
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posted November 26, 2004 11:47 AM |
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This might be a good place to ask this question then.
A few years back I got 2 books from my library, the books were all about Gods like Time and War etc.
It's been so long that I can't remember what happened in the story, but the books were the same series of events from the different Gods perspectives. There were more as well but the library never had them.
Now I can't even remember who wrote them/what they were called.
Anyone know?
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To err is human, to arr is pirate.
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tigris
Supreme Hero
Supreme Noobolator
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posted November 29, 2004 01:06 PM |
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does anyone still read a bit of classic literature?
Or are you all in the post knut hamsun era(the best contemporan writer)? If you want to read something todaysh, at least read Truman's Capote's "In cold blood"(best non-fictive book ever IMAO).But still, go back to the classics folcks, they are always great!
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terje_the_ma...
Responsible
Supreme Hero
Disciple of Herodotus
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posted November 30, 2004 11:44 AM |
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You're not calling Knut Hamsun contemporary, are you? The guy died 50 years ago...
And he was a Nazi, who was sentenced to live the rest of his life in an asylum, cos the Norwegian authorities claimed that he was insane (how else could such a genious betray his country?).
Anyway, I think he's rather dull. I began reading the book he won the Nobel prize for, but it just didn't "speak" to me. And I found to much semi-fascist thoughts in it to my liking...
Like I said, of the "classic" writers from late 1800 to early 1900, I prefer Dostojevskij. And maybe Ibsen.
Btw, anyone here that's read Don Quijote? I started reading it a few months ago, but I didn't have time to finish it. I've heard it's great, though...
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"Sometimes I think everyone's just pretending to be brave, and none of us really are. Maybe pretending to be brave is how you get brave, I don't know."
- Grenn, A Storm of Swords.
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ratmonky
Famous Hero
Abu Hur Ibn Rashka
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posted November 30, 2004 06:05 PM |
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Don Quixote is great. i read it when i was in the 5th grade. i reread it again a few years ago and appreciated the book very differently than i did before. as for Ibsen he's my favorite Norwegian playwright, his Dollhouse and Ghosts are very interesting and psychological plays and Per Gunt is really wonderful.
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Moonshie
Tavern Dweller
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posted December 01, 2004 09:10 PM |
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favorite books
the Orson Scott Card Book ENDER'S GAME is my most favorite SciFi, including SNOW CRASH, my favorite Swords & scorcery would have to be The DRAGONLANCE SERIES, THE DARK ELF TRILOGY, AND THE ICEWINDALE TRILOGY!!!!
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LIFE IS SHORT SO LIVE WITH IT
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Rage08
Famous Hero
Making it in the real world
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posted December 02, 2004 07:45 PM |
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I'm not much of a reader, but I've read some dragons of pern books by Anne McGafferey and they aren't too action packed but I think they're pretty good books...
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