Book review thread

**Fragony** · 08-29-2007, 11:37

*bump*

Last King of Scotland.

ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, I saw the movie first, kinda liked it, it's nothing like the book. It could have been a much better movie actually, why exclude cool warscenes and a daring hostage liberation-action? Probably because it follows the strict rules of Hollywood, english bad, scottish good, Israewho? The main character sure is a lot more believable then the movie character, imho the only thing that saves the movie after having read the book is Forrest Whitacker, who is absolutily terrifying as Amir.

The Kite Runner <--

Incredibly moving. Read it. Really. Now. Excellent writing, great character, you will have a hard time sympathising with the main character at first, bit of a whiner, but you will grow fond of him eventually. The star of the show is afghanistan, it's pretty cliche in it's paradise gone wrong aproach, but the description of the afghan community, their life there, makes it hard to put it aside, cliches aren't bad by default.

**Kralizec** · 08-29-2007, 13:32

Is that De Vliegeraar in Dutch? My parents have a copy, I suppose I'll have to borrow it one of these days if it's that good.

**Fragony** · 08-29-2007, 15:06

Yeah, but it's horribly translated, english version is only 12 pleuro so it shouldn't press yours budget too much.

**Ramses II CP** · 08-31-2007, 17:07

Sci Fi: Everything you can find by Stanislaw Lem. Lem is a Polish author who spent much of his life behind the iron curtain, and his take on science fiction is unique. Good translations of his books are fairly available since Solaris came out a few years ago. In particular I recommend Pirx the Pilot and The Cyberiad, both very accessable short story collections with a thoughtful bite.

Fantasy: I've been reading the Gotrek and Felix omnibuses from Warhammer's Black Libray lately. I can't say they're exceptionally well written, but they're $11 for high page count and highly entertaining reads.

Non-fiction: Collapse from Jared Diamond is a must read. It discusses the failed civilizations of the past, and points out some aspects our own civilization has in common with them. Also Dawkin's The God Delusion and Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. I'm about to start Hitchen's God is not Great, but for all his brilliance I usually find his writing too stilted and vitriolic to be convincing.

Political: The Looming Tower, Lawrence Wright. Heavily researched and well composed background to the 9/11 attacks.

Seconding some from above, Ender's Game and Snowcrash are excellent. The Selfish Gene needs Dennet's more serious Darwin's Dangerous Idea as a companion, but both are already slightly out of date.

I bought Brian Herbert's Butlerian Jihad books on the assumption that no one could too badly %$&^ up such a great premise, and I was sadly mistaken. They're so terrible I couldn't bring myself to give them away free at Starbucks for fear of reprisal attacks by Left Behind nuts.

**Conradus** · 08-31-2007, 17:28

I just finished Douglas Adams 'A Hitchhiker's guide through the galaxy'. Without doubt one of the funniest books I've ever read. Adams' style and humour are absurd, but they make me laught out loud. Few books can claim that.

**Lord Winter** · 09-01-2007, 06:45

Just finished rereading, A Song of Ice and Fire, By G.R.R. Martin, one of my favorite fantasty series. The story is set in Westeros a medevil kingdom at the brink of civil war. It is fairly well written though I wish he would tone the sex down a little, but what really makes this series stand out to me is the unpredictabilty and the lack of any real clear cut good and evil characters. Sure their are some how you defenitly would not call nice men but thier is no evil magic power to fight or really any peerly good side ethier. Each has its own faults and downfalls.

The first in the seires is A Game of Thrones

**sapi** · 09-01-2007, 10:38

I must re-read some of Martin's works - that series in particular - as I have the feeling that I was a tad too young when I first read them, and that some of the background stuff went straight over my head

He's got some very nice books out there, though

**Sasaki Kojiro** · 09-14-2007, 05:10

Has anyone read any of the books from this list?

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ad...ooks_1-19.html

**Lemur** · 09-14-2007, 05:24

Originally Posted by Sasaki Kojiro

Has anyone read any of the books from this list?

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ad...ooks_1-19.html

I've read quite a few of them. And there are some really great ones they left off. I'm partial to Savage Arena, a truly gut-churning account of high-altitude climbing. Another personal fave is The Sex Lives of Cannibals, which is a both deeply funny and nauseating.

Most of the ones from that list that I've read are the "classics." The newer books, not so much.

P.S.: I just finished Cormac McCarthy's The Road, and I'm a shaved marmoset if I can figure out why it won so many awards. Kinda like how out of all the wonderful Graham Greene books, they teach kids The Heart of the Matter, the only one he wrote without a trace of humor. What is it about unrelenting grimness and awards?