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[Aimi]

A post in one of the Dragon Age forums inspired me to start rereading an old favorite: Guy Halsall's Barbarian Migrations and the Roman West, 376-568.

 

Don't let the somewhat bland title fool you; Halsall's book is an extremely comprehensive narrative and thematic study of the fall of the Western Roman Empire, with an incredible amount of attention to historiography and more than a few good jokes. (I particularly liked how he referred to an act by Dave Chappelle in his discussion of identity in history.)

 

If you're interested in understanding how and why the Roman Empire actually ceased to exist (spoiler alert: it's not the reason that you were taught in school), Halsall's book will get you there.

 

More recently, he has also written a book on the myth of King Arthur and the world in which Arthur, if he were real, would actually have inhabited. Surprisingly enough, it is titled Worlds of Arthur. Again, it's an excellent work of history and, uh, metahistory, backed by logical arguments and solid analysis. It was also designed more for the mass market, so a nonacademic reader won't have to deal with footnotes and citations (although it still contains a bibliographical essay at the end).

[CrimsonN7]

Just finished a Feast for Crows. And I've started on this

 

[Raizo]

Just finished a Feast for Crows. And I've started on this
 

Still working on that one. I think got as far as chapter 2 before I gave up. The problem is that by the time that book had come out I had forgotten who most of the minor characters were ( a lot of the characters who weren't Stark's, Lanniter's, Baratheon's or Tygerian's or characters closely associated with the above) , who the were aligned with and a lot of the basic geography of Westeros, and as such I was somewhat lost in chapter 1 trying to remember who the new point of view character was. I fear I may forced to re-read all the "ice and Fire" books before I can tackle this bad boy.

[NeonFlux117]

Currently I'm reading The Expanse novels, I'm about 300 pages in Abaddon's Gate. So far, it's pretty good, albeit a little slower than it's predecessors but still good.

 

 

[Jedi Ninja]

Steven King, The Dark Half

[mousestalker]

[Obadiah]

Dunno if this qualifies, but I just got through reading the Green Lantern Vol 3 collection, The End. Mostly I flip through these at the book store and put them down, but this one just grabbed my attention right off the bat. Its mostly self contained, and I think my reading benefited from not having read the first two volumes, so the intro of the new Green Lantern of Earth, Simon Baz, the fate of Hal Jordan and Sinestro (frenemies?), the source of the new threat they all face had an mysterious an epic feel. The plot is thematically similar to the movie, a new Green Lantern is created right at a time of unprecedented personal and galactic upheaval, and has learn to use his power on the fly to help the corps, its just way WAY better.

 

And... the story ends cleanly, and contains a beautiful long term epilogue for all the major characters.

 

[Jordan]

Like me, you're probably only here to post a picture of what you're reading.  Here's what I'm reading:

 

[Shepenwepet]

'Raising Steam,' a Discworld novel featuring none other than Moist von Lipwig, released today on Kindle. Has anyone had a chance to read it?

 

I have not, but I will someday. I usually wait for the paperback so it will fit on my bookshelf. Kids today with their kindles and their e-books...

 

Related: Have you seen the TV movie adaptation of Going Postal? I loved it. Plus it had Charles Dance as Vetinari.

[Naughty Bear]

I just purchased Thus Spake Zarathustra.

[Isichar]

I just purchased Thus Spake Zarathustra.

 

hah, I read that because it was referenced in a game series I liked when I was younger.

[OdanUrr]

I have not, but I will someday. I usually wait for the paperback so it will fit on my bookshelf. Kids today with their kindles and their e-books...
 
Related: Have you seen the TV movie adaptation of Going Postal? I loved it. Plus it had Charles Dance as Vetinari.

I've seen it. Initially I thought it'd be dreadful but I was pleasantly surprised to find it captured the essence of the book perfectly. Yes, it deviated at times from the source material but I felt it was a necessary compromise to deliver a great story with excellent performances. And, yes, I agree that Charles Dance was the perfect choice as Lord Vetinari.

[Naughty Bear]

hah, I read that because it was referenced in a game series I liked when I was younger.

I haven't gotten around to reading it yet, is it any good?

[BadgerladDK]

Can't be bothered finding an image of the cover, so you get text: Judas Unchained, part two of Peter F. Hamilton's Commonwealth Saga. It's great, as is most of his stuff. It's also slightly too long, as is most of his stuff. If brevity is the soul of wit, Mr Hamilton must be a real bore at parties.

 

Next up: Dragon Age Asunder to get ready for Masked Empire.

[Isichar]

I haven't gotten around to reading it yet, is it any good?

 

Eh, well its certainly interesting if your into philosophy. Granted I read it like 8-9 years ago so I can only remember the basic gist of it.

[Obadiah]

I just purchased Thus Spake Zarathustra.

 

But, it's free on the internet. I think its public domain now.

[AtreiyaN7]

Singularity Sky by Charles Stross.

 

[Aimi]

But, it's free on the internet. I think its public domain now.

Yes, if you can read German. Some English translations are also public domain by now, but most of them are pretty meh.

The real issue is that any public-domain version of Also Sprach Zarathustra would not come with any academic commentary. Philosophy is hard enough for laypersons to understand, and Nietzsche's style of expression and the fact that his works all had to be translated (and his sister-editor's efforts at deliberately distorting his ideas in print after his death) make it virtually certain that even an educated layperson won't really understand Nietzsche's philosophy after reading through any of his books. This is why it feels like there are a zillion teenagers in the Western world who read Zarathustra or Jenseits von Gut und Böse or whatever, digest basically none of it, and come to horribly wrong conclusions.

Hopefully, if one buys a newer copy of a Nietzsche work, one will have access to a Foreword or Introduction or to Appendices that help the lay reader get a clearer understanding of Nietzsche's philosophy.

[OdanUrr]

The Blinding Knife by Brent Weeks.

 

[Giga Drill BREAKER]

The Blinding Knife by Brent Weeks.
 

Love Brent Weeks have you read the Night Angel trilogy?

[OdanUrr]

Love Brent Weeks have you read the Night Angel trilogy?

 

Indeed, and it didn't disappoint.

[mousestalker]

[mousestalker]