[Nicodimas]

Onto more serious books..

I dropped the Last Day. I wasn't super 100% into the author basically getting political at then end...but a great conclusion to the series. It was neat to see the change of a character that resonates. Yup, that's how it would be.

If your looking for something fun and that will like tomorrow make you want to /bunker in. One second later. You will drop it in one sitting..its short and interesting.

https://www.amazon.c...ne+second+later

I like this series cause you will look around your room and appreciate civilizations graces, but wonder what occurs if they just kinda...stop.

This post has been edited by Nicodimas: 26 January 2017 - 04:58 AM

[Abyss]

Just finished Abraham and GRRM's coffee guy's ASHES OF BABYLON. Solid entry in the series, lots of good moments for all the main cast. If I had one critique it would be that at no point did I ever feel like they were in real jeopardy, even if the bigger challenges and consequences were suitably epic. Fun book, totally worth the dollars.

[polishgenius]

I'm halfway through The Arm of the Sphynx, by Josiah Bancroft. Seriously guys, it rocks. The most straight-up fun series I've read in time, but it's properly well written too. If the work of China Mieville and Jim Butcher had a child, it might look something like this.

[Abyss]

Just finished BANDS OF MOURNING. Totally enjoyed. Brandon really really nails the cast of this series.
Was going to start LIBRARY AT MT CHAR next but I think I need to jump straight into more MISTBORN, so ARCANUM it is..

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

But Library is only ~380 pages!

[Abyss]

Splitting the difference... ARCANUM in ebook, LIBRARY in earbook. WIN WIN MEEEEEEEEEEE.

[End of Disc One]

For Arcanum, if you care about this sort of thing, there are charts of each star system in the book. I think Brandon's pretty good about including these things on his website for those who do audio.

[LadyMTL]

Abyss, on 27 January 2017 - 01:15 PM, said:

Splitting the difference... ARCANUM in ebook, LIBRARY in earbook. WIN WIN MEEEEEEEEEEE.

Let me know if you think Library is good, it's been on my "to buy" list for a while now but for some reason I can't bring myself to pull the trigger.

As for moi, right now I'm doing a Malazan re-read (am on Memories of Ice) and am also reading Shetterly's "Hidden Figures" on my Kindle. HF is pretty good so far, I can't really give a full critique as I'm only on page 23.

[Salt-Man Z]

Maia Irraz, on 27 January 2017 - 05:39 PM, said:

Let me know if you think Library is good, it's been on my "to buy" list for a while now but for some reason I can't bring myself to pull the trigger.

There's 3-4 of us here already who'll tell you you should read it right now.

[EmperorMagus]

EmperorMagus, on 18 January 2017 - 07:57 AM, said:

Been reading Plato's Republic (for a class) this past week. Gotta admit it has a certain charm to it. Undoubtedly one of the cleverer books I've read. (understatement of the year goes tooooo)

I wrote this a couple of weeks ago about Plato's "The Republic".

Yeah, screw that vigorously and continuously.

It is one of the most (actually, the most) brilliant book I have ever read. I'm on book 7 right now and not only am I constantly grinning while reading it, I feel profoundly stupid each time the professor starts talking about the content I just read an hour ago.

The book is good on so many different levels it keeps blowing my mind over and over again.

[amphibian]

EmperorMagus, on 27 January 2017 - 10:39 PM, said:

EmperorMagus, on 18 January 2017 - 07:57 AM, said:

Been reading Plato's Republic (for a class) this past week. Gotta admit it has a certain charm to it. Undoubtedly one of the cleverer books I've read. (understatement of the year goes tooooo)

I wrote this a couple of weeks ago about Plato's "The Republic".

Yeah, screw that vigorously and continuously.

It is one of the most (actually, the most) brilliant book I have ever read. I'm on book 7 right now and not only am I constantly grinning while reading it, I feel profoundly stupid each time the professor starts talking about the content I just read an hour ago.

The book is good on so many different levels it keeps blowing my mind over and over again.

I do prefer Socrates/Plato over Aristotle, as it seemed pretty clear that Socrates as Plato's mouthpiece was very clearly in on the joke of this being hypothetical thought experiments and rudimentary guides to life, rather than absolute guides made physical by glorious teachers etc.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

I'm tired and don't have much to say about it at the moment, but I really wish House of Suns gets a sequel. Reynolds teased some intriguing ideas at the end.

[EmperorMagus]

amphibian, on 27 January 2017 - 10:46 PM, said:

EmperorMagus, on 27 January 2017 - 10:39 PM, said:

EmperorMagus, on 18 January 2017 - 07:57 AM, said:

Been reading Plato's Republic (for a class) this past week. Gotta admit it has a certain charm to it. Undoubtedly one of the cleverer books I've read. (understatement of the year goes tooooo)

I wrote this a couple of weeks ago about Plato's "The Republic".

Yeah, screw that vigorously and continuously.

It is one of the most (actually, the most) brilliant book I have ever read. I'm on book 7 right now and not only am I constantly grinning while reading it, I feel profoundly stupid each time the professor starts talking about the content I just read an hour ago.

The book is good on so many different levels it keeps blowing my mind over and over again.

I do prefer Socrates/Plato over Aristotle, as it seemed pretty clear that Socrates as Plato's mouthpiece was very clearly in on the joke of this being hypothetical thought experiments and rudimentary guides to life, rather than absolute guides made physical by glorious teachers etc.

What I find brilliant about Plato isn't the ideas he represents perse.

I've always beleived that I'm a "critical thinker", but what I'm getting from this book over and over again is how limited/rigid my thinking is.

The concept of never accepting what you think you know as reality and looking past your limitations constantly by using "dialectics" ... It's absolutely brilliant.

Especially the way it's nestled within the text, I personally did not see it at all during my own reading. When the prof explained it though...

[Mentalist]

Less than 60pgs left in "The Liar's Key". I'll probably finish it over the weekend so I can start a new book in commute next week.

[amphibian]

EmperorMagus, on 27 January 2017 - 11:20 PM, said:

amphibian, on 27 January 2017 - 10:46 PM, said:

EmperorMagus, on 27 January 2017 - 10:39 PM, said:

EmperorMagus, on 18 January 2017 - 07:57 AM, said:

Been reading Plato's Republic (for a class) this past week. Gotta admit it has a certain charm to it. Undoubtedly one of the cleverer books I've read. (understatement of the year goes tooooo)

I wrote this a couple of weeks ago about Plato's "The Republic".

Yeah, screw that vigorously and continuously.

It is one of the most (actually, the most) brilliant book I have ever read. I'm on book 7 right now and not only am I constantly grinning while reading it, I feel profoundly stupid each time the professor starts talking about the content I just read an hour ago.

The book is good on so many different levels it keeps blowing my mind over and over again.

I do prefer Socrates/Plato over Aristotle, as it seemed pretty clear that Socrates as Plato's mouthpiece was very clearly in on the joke of this being hypothetical thought experiments and rudimentary guides to life, rather than absolute guides made physical by glorious teachers etc.

What I find brilliant about Plato isn't the ideas he represents perse.

I've always beleived that I'm a "critical thinker", but what I'm getting from this book over and over again is how limited/rigid my thinking is.

The concept of never accepting what you think you know as reality and looking past your limitations constantly by using "dialectics" ... It's absolutely brilliant.

Especially the way it's nestled within the text, I personally did not see it at all during my own reading. When the prof explained it though...

Keep in mind that Socrates did actually teach using this method and he fucked up badly in the later stages of this by making mortal enemies of the rich and famous. Learning by dialectics and by someone telling you that you are a stupid asshole in front of a public that you do not want to be exposed as a stupid asshole in front of tends to make some people very, very mad.

Socrates probably thought that since he was a very good part time soldier and that he kept the right political friendships. But people like that don't do fist fights much and he turned out to not have the right set of friends.

I think the way I do grappling is dialectic in a sense because I can proceed on assumptions that get tested on steadily better people and thus the fuck ups and errors get pointed out fairly quickly. It's also rather Socratic in that the answer/correction isn't usually supplied right away. I have to either intuit it myself/get a private class/wait until the teacher teaches that move/series. So sometimes I do get mad when I get caught in the same stuff over and over. But other times, when I'm truly exploring new-to-me territory, I don't mind being blown up by someone on the mats.

[EmperorMagus]

amphibian, on 28 January 2017 - 07:45 AM, said:

Keep in mind that Socrates did actually teach using this method and he fucked up badly in the later stages of this by making mortal enemies of the rich and famous. Learning by dialectics and by someone telling you that you are a stupid asshole in front of a public that you do not want to be exposed as a stupid asshole in front of tends to make some people very, very mad.

Socrates probably thought that since he was a very good part time soldier and that he kept the right political friendships. But people like that don't do fist fights much and he turned out to not have the right set of friends.

I think the way I do grappling is dialectic in a sense because I can proceed on assumptions that get tested on steadily better people and thus the fuck ups and errors get pointed out fairly quickly. It's also rather Socratic in that the answer/correction isn't usually supplied right away. I have to either intuit it myself/get a private class/wait until the teacher teaches that move/series. So sometimes I do get mad when I get caught in the same stuff over and over. But other times, when I'm truly exploring new-to-me territory, I don't mind being blown up by someone on the mats.

As a matter of fact, "Apology" was an assigned reading before we even started on Republic. The point that "acting this way will get people hate you" got across very well.

I still find it awesome though. Something I found really interesting was what happened when I applied it to my own internal thinking. Something happened on the bus today that annoyed me and I tried doing it to my own thought processes. Immediately, I realized something; I was doing the exact same thing as psychologists do in cognitive behavioral therapy. They try to find the person's internal assumptions, then they convince the person that those assumptions do not reflect reality and through changing their thinking (cognitive) the patient's actions are changed as well (behavioral). Exact same principles.

[Mentalist]

Wrapped up "Liar's Key". fun book, good laughs, strong pacing, decent plot in a settign that continues to be interesting, and characters that don't annoy me like Jorg did. Will be reading the last book once it hits mmpb.

next for the commute I'll read "Foul Tide's Turning", the second Far-Called book by Stephen Hunt.

At home, about a third into "Mirror Empire", already hunting round the City for an available copy of the sequel.

[Andorion]

Mentalist, on 28 January 2017 - 09:44 PM, said:

Wrapped up "Liar's Key". fun book, good laughs, strong pacing, decent plot in a settign that continues to be interesting, and characters that don't annoy me like Jorg did. Will be reading the last book once it hits mmpb.

next for the commute I'll read "Foul Tide's Turning", the second Far-Called book by Stephen Hunt.

At home, about a third into "Mirror Empire", already hunting round the City for an available copy of the sequel.

How is Stephen Hunt? I have been interested in his books for some time.

Finished Alastair Reynolds' Poseidon's Children trilogy.

This is a very interesting series. The scope and epciness expands with each book. The first book is quite small-scale for Reynolds, though it has a few of his markers. The last book is filled iwth classic Reynolds tropes.

Reading wise I quite liked book 1 even though it was slow. Book 2 was excellent. Book 3 has a slow middle but a pretty epic ending.

I am reading Ilona Andrews latest Innkeeper book and then I will go back to Janny Wurts.

On the Classics front, only 110 pages into Charles Dickens' Bleak House. Its all sunshine and laughter, which makes me profoundly uneasy.

[Mentalist]

Andorion, on 29 January 2017 - 01:43 AM, said:

Mentalist, on 28 January 2017 - 09:44 PM, said:

Wrapped up "Liar's Key". fun book, good laughs, strong pacing, decent plot in a settign that continues to be interesting, and characters that don't annoy me like Jorg did. Will be reading the last book once it hits mmpb.

next for the commute I'll read "Foul Tide's Turning", the second Far-Called book by Stephen Hunt.

At home, about a third into "Mirror Empire", already hunting round the City for an available copy of the sequel.

How is Stephen Hunt? I have been interested in his books for some time.

Finished Alastair Reynolds' Poseidon's Children trilogy.

This is a very interesting series. The scope and epciness expands with each book. The first book is quite small-scale for Reynolds, though it has a few of his markers. The last book is filled iwth classic Reynolds tropes.

Reading wise I quite liked book 1 even though it was slow. Book 2 was excellent. Book 3 has a slow middle but a pretty epic ending.

I am reading Ilona Andrews latest Innkeeper book and then I will go back to Janny Wurts.

On the Classics front, only 110 pages into Charles Dickens' Bleak House. Its all sunshine and laughter, which makes me profoundly uneasy.

The first novel had a VERY sloooow and trope-filled start. But once it got going, there's really neat character arcs, and plot developments. Basically, once one of the main characters stops dropping hints about his dark and troubled past and says who he was and starts acting. Unfortunately, up to that point (and it takes 100-odd pages), the pacing was slow and the whole thing seemed quite generic in the "idyllic village is raided by mutant airship pirates"-type of way. As always in such cases, I hesitate to recommend, since people's tolerance for slow, annoying set-up beginnings tends to vary.

Once you get through that, there's some really neat stuff. Nothing earth-shattering and super-epic, but a fun adventure tale.

[Andorion]

Mentalist, on 29 January 2017 - 06:00 AM, said:

Andorion, on 29 January 2017 - 01:43 AM, said:

Mentalist, on 28 January 2017 - 09:44 PM, said:

Wrapped up "Liar's Key". fun book, good laughs, strong pacing, decent plot in a settign that continues to be interesting, and characters that don't annoy me like Jorg did. Will be reading the last book once it hits mmpb.

next for the commute I'll read "Foul Tide's Turning", the second Far-Called book by Stephen Hunt.

At home, about a third into "Mirror Empire", already hunting round the City for an available copy of the sequel.

How is Stephen Hunt? I have been interested in his books for some time.

Finished Alastair Reynolds' Poseidon's Children trilogy.

This is a very interesting series. The scope and epciness expands with each book. The first book is quite small-scale for Reynolds, though it has a few of his markers. The last book is filled iwth classic Reynolds tropes.

Reading wise I quite liked book 1 even though it was slow. Book 2 was excellent. Book 3 has a slow middle but a pretty epic ending.

I am reading Ilona Andrews latest Innkeeper book and then I will go back to Janny Wurts.

On the Classics front, only 110 pages into Charles Dickens' Bleak House. Its all sunshine and laughter, which makes me profoundly uneasy.

The first novel had a VERY sloooow and trope-filled start. But once it got going, there's really neat character arcs, and plot developments. Basically, once one of the main characters stops dropping hints about his dark and troubled past and says who he was and starts acting. Unfortunately, up to that point (and it takes 100-odd pages), the pacing was slow and the whole thing seemed quite generic in the "idyllic village is raided by mutant airship pirates"-type of way. As always in such cases, I hesitate to recommend, since people's tolerance for slow, annoying set-up beginnings tends to vary.

Once you get through that, there's some really neat stuff. Nothing earth-shattering and super-epic, but a fun adventure tale.

I am quite used to slow starts by now - Curse of the Mistwraith, Dragonbone Chair, Ironship - so I don't think that will be a problem. Putting this on this years list then

BTW have you read anything by KJ Parker?