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What'cha Reading?
- Thread starter Falselogic
- Start date
Nemesis Games was great, my favorite in the series so far. Now, reading Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson
Violentvixen
(She/Her)
Only a little into Have you Eaten Yet? by Cheuk Kwan, but loving it so far. I wasn't quite sure what a book about Chinese restaurants around the globe would cover exactly, but it's a really well-written profile of immigrants and their families and what it's like in so many different locations. Fascinating stuff.
John
(he/him)
I'm primarily an ebook reader now, and have been in the Amazon ecosystem for a while. I was going to get a head start on the next TT book club selection, but the publisher has set the ebook price higher than the physical copy, so I started looking elsewhere. My local library's physical and electronic copies are all checked out, including interlibrary loans, so I jumped to the Internet Archive while it's still letting people lend books. I've used it in the past, but it's always a slightly unwieldy experience to navigate in a browser, and even harder from a phone, where I do the most of my reading, just from convenience. I did find a "solution" to make reading an IA lent book usable for me, and I thought I'd share.
First, create your Archive account, and check out the book that you want, for whatever duration. Then, download the Adobe Digital Edition software to a computer, and your phone. Create an Adobe account if you don't have one already, and log into the Navigate back to the Archive web page, and look for the Encrypted Adobe PDF link. Download that on the computer, and launch it with the Adobe Digital Edition software. That should sync up your DRM between the IA and Adobe, and adds the book to your cloud account. Finally, log into the Adobe software on your phone, download the new book in the app, and start reading. You may have to adjust the contrast/background if some of the scans don't show up right, I found the greyscale one worked best for me.
You may have better luck cutting out the PC middleman than I did, possibly if you have an Android device. On my iPhone, I couldn't launch the link to the encrypted PDF, but I know Androids let you do more with the file system. It's still not as good an experience as a properly formatted Kindle ebook, but it's much better than just going to the IA webpage through a phone browser. They let you check out books for 2 weeks at a time, and there are three copies of Uprooted on there at the moment, so two of you could also use the service. It probably won't last forever, because the publishers won their lawsuit earlier this year to stop IA from lending transformed physical books (i.e. scans).
First, create your Archive account, and check out the book that you want, for whatever duration. Then, download the Adobe Digital Edition software to a computer, and your phone. Create an Adobe account if you don't have one already, and log into the Navigate back to the Archive web page, and look for the Encrypted Adobe PDF link. Download that on the computer, and launch it with the Adobe Digital Edition software. That should sync up your DRM between the IA and Adobe, and adds the book to your cloud account. Finally, log into the Adobe software on your phone, download the new book in the app, and start reading. You may have to adjust the contrast/background if some of the scans don't show up right, I found the greyscale one worked best for me.
You may have better luck cutting out the PC middleman than I did, possibly if you have an Android device. On my iPhone, I couldn't launch the link to the encrypted PDF, but I know Androids let you do more with the file system. It's still not as good an experience as a properly formatted Kindle ebook, but it's much better than just going to the IA webpage through a phone browser. They let you check out books for 2 weeks at a time, and there are three copies of Uprooted on there at the moment, so two of you could also use the service. It probably won't last forever, because the publishers won their lawsuit earlier this year to stop IA from lending transformed physical books (i.e. scans).
I just got done with a reread of Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett. I haven't read it in twenty years. I didn't much care for it the first time around, but had a much better experience this time around. Now, sadly I had to DNF Yumi. It wasn't working for me, so instead I'm hoping for a better time with Skyward.
Just finished up Masters of Doom. Very fun read for the most part, though it kind of stinks that all the exciting, collaborative stuff is in the front 2/3rds and the back is just kind of a slog through hard feelings and disunity. Telling the story chronologically that's obviously how this has to go, but it still ends a bit more sour than it began.
Just coming off of another high profile biography, namely Washington: A Life, the scholarship in Masters of Doom in general felt a little weak in comparison, though probably better researched than the subject honestly deserved. If you're into classic games, almost certainly a "must read".
Just coming off of another high profile biography, namely Washington: A Life, the scholarship in Masters of Doom in general felt a little weak in comparison, though probably better researched than the subject honestly deserved. If you're into classic games, almost certainly a "must read".
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Was very pleasantly surprised to find a new book from Nick Harkaway at the library the other day, Titanium Noir. I've been a fan of his since The Gone-Away World, so I'm looking forward to getting into this. First chapter sets up the world nicely so far!
Zeroville by Steve Erickson
I enjoyed this one. Not his typical epic fantasy but a fun story. Tress > Yumi > Frugal Wizard
Summer of '49 by David Halberstam
This was very enjoyable and left me wanting more. Could've been longer, honestly!
Finished up my re-listen of Nona the Ninth and therefore of the current Locked Tomb series. I think Nona might be my least favorite, as it's the most straightforward and has less stuff that rewards re-reads than the first two books had (they are CHOCK FULL of hints that become obvious and innocuous little phrases and wording that change meaning entirely with hindsight), and I found that the flashback chapters tended to drag. But it still makes me excited for Alecto the Ninth and I hope we hear some news about that sooooooon
In the meantime, I'll be back to Jeff Vandermeer's Hummingbird Salamander which took a break when the Locked Tomb demanded my full attention.
In the meantime, I'll be back to Jeff Vandermeer's Hummingbird Salamander which took a break when the Locked Tomb demanded my full attention.
Ended wrapping up the month with Under the Red Hood by Judd Winick. Always loved the animated movie, so it was cool reading the comic. Going to start off August with an epic reread: Swan Song by Robert McCammon
I read through all three with my girlfriend and every time a flashback chapter came up in Nona I just heard "UUUUGGGGHHHH".
Recently read The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart on my girlfriend's recommendation. I don't usually go for fantasy novels, but this one was pretty well-written! I feel like it had maybe one or two characters too many, but the author does a pretty good job of tying everyone into the overarching story. There are two more books that follow, we're gonna read those too.
July was a busy month. A road trip vacation and working through some long books put a damper on finishing volumes, but I still managed to sneak five completions in:
Le Cycle de Tschai: Le Chasch by Jean David Morvan and Li-An 2000
One of the few Jack Vance adaptions is this French language comic series. It follows the novels closely in terms of plot, but has to invent many of the visual details. It's a lot of fun to see this material actualized. I'm having a blast reading in French; they've proved to be a great way to build comprehension and I plan on doing more graphic novels in the language once I'm through these.
Living with Intensity by Susan Daniels and Michael M. Piechowski 2008
Textbook covering Kazimierz Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration through the lens of of Gifted development. Eye-opening stuff, but mostly centered around describing the theory. At this point I'm really looking for something with a little practical application.
Shane by Jack Schaefer 1949
Westerns are a genre of literature I have almost no experience with so I put together a list of fifty influential or celebrated novels to whittle away at as the mood strikes. I only knew of Shane's reputation as one of the classics of the form, and, well, it was fine enough, but definitely dated in its attitudes. The story was compelling but it centered around a specific argument for masculinity that defines a man as an all-capable hyper-rational superman except for the fatal and unescapable flaw of being required to act hot-headed and foolish when one's reputation is under question. This is conception of gender is easily pierced from a modern perspective but I read an essay that proposed this was a kind of balm for a generation dealing with a sense of powerlessness and lack of purpose coming out of World War 2. Interestingly, the plot centers around a conflict between ranchers and homesteaders in Wyoming '89 and casts the homesteaders as the heroes, a position Schaefer would later regret as he came to view homesteaders as the first wave of civilization that would destroy the west. Still, if this represents the "classic" mode of Western I can see why there was need for a revisionist movement.
True Grit by Charles Portis 1968
Thank God for True Grit. Almost the complete opposite of Shane: nuanced, piercing, immaculate, and highly entertaining. Mattie Ross is one of the great narrative voices in literature. Even if the rest of the Westerns list turn out to be duds this novel alone justifies the project. A perfect book.
How to Train Your Dragon - Cressida Cowell 2003
Road trip listen. I was pushing for a Redwall novel but this is what the family settled on. Can't say it was the most compelling story but it got us through Nebraska which is all I was asking. The writing was pretty good. Silly of course, but there was imaginative metaphor and clever description. You could easily do a whole lot worse with a modern children's book. David Tennant was a great choice to narrate, but whoever mixed the audio did a terrible job. Had to constantly adjust the volume, sometimes line by line, as Tennant would shift from bellow to whisper. Something something fired for that blunder.
Le Cycle de Tschai: Le Chasch by Jean David Morvan and Li-An 2000
One of the few Jack Vance adaptions is this French language comic series. It follows the novels closely in terms of plot, but has to invent many of the visual details. It's a lot of fun to see this material actualized. I'm having a blast reading in French; they've proved to be a great way to build comprehension and I plan on doing more graphic novels in the language once I'm through these.
Living with Intensity by Susan Daniels and Michael M. Piechowski 2008
Textbook covering Kazimierz Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration through the lens of of Gifted development. Eye-opening stuff, but mostly centered around describing the theory. At this point I'm really looking for something with a little practical application.
Shane by Jack Schaefer 1949
Westerns are a genre of literature I have almost no experience with so I put together a list of fifty influential or celebrated novels to whittle away at as the mood strikes. I only knew of Shane's reputation as one of the classics of the form, and, well, it was fine enough, but definitely dated in its attitudes. The story was compelling but it centered around a specific argument for masculinity that defines a man as an all-capable hyper-rational superman except for the fatal and unescapable flaw of being required to act hot-headed and foolish when one's reputation is under question. This is conception of gender is easily pierced from a modern perspective but I read an essay that proposed this was a kind of balm for a generation dealing with a sense of powerlessness and lack of purpose coming out of World War 2. Interestingly, the plot centers around a conflict between ranchers and homesteaders in Wyoming '89 and casts the homesteaders as the heroes, a position Schaefer would later regret as he came to view homesteaders as the first wave of civilization that would destroy the west. Still, if this represents the "classic" mode of Western I can see why there was need for a revisionist movement.
True Grit by Charles Portis 1968
Thank God for True Grit. Almost the complete opposite of Shane: nuanced, piercing, immaculate, and highly entertaining. Mattie Ross is one of the great narrative voices in literature. Even if the rest of the Westerns list turn out to be duds this novel alone justifies the project. A perfect book.
How to Train Your Dragon - Cressida Cowell 2003
Road trip listen. I was pushing for a Redwall novel but this is what the family settled on. Can't say it was the most compelling story but it got us through Nebraska which is all I was asking. The writing was pretty good. Silly of course, but there was imaginative metaphor and clever description. You could easily do a whole lot worse with a modern children's book. David Tennant was a great choice to narrate, but whoever mixed the audio did a terrible job. Had to constantly adjust the volume, sometimes line by line, as Tennant would shift from bellow to whisper. Something something fired for that blunder.
Finally finished Swan Song. It was still enjoyable, but could've been 200 pages shorter. Anyway, back to Brandon Sanderson with Starsight, I also started The Making of The Return of the Jedi by J.W. Rinzler, and Fae and Fare: book 2 of The Wandering Inn by Pirateaba
I liked Skyward slightly better, but I'll still read the next book in September. Now, reading Hide by Kiersten White
Hide was great. Now, reading Trust by Hernan Diaz
Trust was really good. I can see why it was one of the Pulitzer winners. As of right now, I have no interest in reading Demon Copperhead, but that may change eventually. Getting back to horror with Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie
I visited my brother out west and he wanted to send back a photo for our parents, so he lent me his copy of Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow to put it in for the flight. Once the photo had been delivered, I started actually reading the book, and it turns out it's pretty good! It's basically the story of two college kids who start making videogames together, Carmack and Romero style, set around the year 2000. It's pretty light reading, but the characters are well-drawn and the book deals deftly with questions of disability, racial identity and sexism. The author clearly knows a lot about games, although I think she doesn't 100% trust the readers to have that same familiarity, so you occasionally get a bit of clunky exposition explaining some of the touchstones games of the era. Still, Suikoden gets a name check at one point, so I feel like I'm in good hands here.
Finished Our Share of Night yesterday. There's some of it that didn't work for me (the ending felt really rushed and... pat?), but most of it was evocative, disturbing, and thought-provoking in the right ways. There's a lot in there about colonialism, generational wealth/trauma, and oppression of working class and indigenous people. I'm not sure it's one I'll recommend to many people (its attempt to straddle contemporary literature and horror makes it neither fish nor fowl, parts of it are quite dark, and it's pretty long), but it's one I'll be thinking about for a long time.
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Episode Thirteen was really very good, one of my favorites of the summer. I also ended up readingMarvel 1602 by Neil Gaiman. Now, reading Severance by Ling Ma
Severance isn't working for me, so instead I'm reading Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka
Notes was fairly meh, but at least it was short. Anyway, back to The Expanse with Babylon's Ashes
I've been reading Vernor Vinge's A Fire Upon the Deep at the recommendation of our own @MCBanjoMike and I'm really enjoying it, but the edition the library gave me is A) a very large book with B) very small print, so it's going much more slowly than books normally do for me. I'm about halfway through now, maybe I'll finish it by the end of the week.
Awesome, I’m glad you’re enjoying it!
I remember seeing that one on the list of science fictional inspirations in the manual for Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri years ago, which was enough to get me intrigued, but I still haven’t read it. Maybe I should get on that.
Great book. I always meant to go back and read the other books set in the same universe, but I haven't gotten around to it yet.