SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion
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What Else Are You Reading?
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What Else Are You Reading in 2018?
Finished Lavinia last night, which seems to be one of Le Guin's lesser known books. Written relatively late in her life (it was published in 2008), it is told from the point of view of Lavinia from the Aeneid, who gets maybe a few lines in the original work.Lavinia qualifies for both SFFBC challenges I'm trying this year, "Buried Alive!" and "TBR Cleanup 2018" under category 2, "a book by an oldster or a youngster." Le Guin was 79.
I decided to squeeze in one more book even though curling starts in two hours! It's only right to start The Vegetarian, right? My other Korean option was The Impossible Fairy Tale, but I thought it's high time I try The Vegetarian.
Esther wrote: "Allison wrote: "well, while everyone is curling or *ahem* not curling, I am trying to catch up. City and the City was a cool thought experiment and metaphor, but I wish I could have had that integr..."I am wondering about that aspect of the book. It is both interesting and disturbing.
Curling eh? God only knows what crap sports they're going to show on our TVs. Rarely see curling. And we only ever get a little bit of the ice skating. The local channel here in Australia usually has 3 channels it can show stuff on and they all usually have the same sports on at the same time. Sometimes one of the channels will be showing a repeat of the earlier stuff but the other two are still identical. Why the hell they can't have three different things is beyond me. They're the same with the Summer Olympics. All we ever see is the swimming or the running and sometimes they fit something else in between the races. And it's the same on all three channels. Hmmm just remembered they have 4 channels this year.....yeahhhh.I'm currently alternating between The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin on my iPad, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Burrows (paperback) and Armada being read to me by Wil Weaton when I have sore eyes or I'm busy doing other stuff.
Loving The Immortalists so far. I've had to put the iPad away for a few days because my last 3 books have been on there and the screen is stuffing around with my eyes and exhausting me.
Armada isn't as good as Ready Player One and it seems that he decided to mash all of the plots of a heap of different movies and books into one. But I'm persisting with it. Having Wil Weaton reading it to me is rather fun. Yesterday I had to spend hours doing girly things with my nails and I listened to the book on my iPod while I was doing it and so it was very much two birds, one stone. I'm enjoying that. Might listen to more. Especially since I found my old iPod nano a few days ago. I'm not usually one for Audiobooks and this is the first time I've actually put up with one longer than 30 minutes. Even though I did put Hitchhikers Guide on when I was packing up the house to move once but that doesn't count because I've read that book at least 20 times over the years and it was just on in the background and it didn't matter if I missed any of it.
The GLPPPS seems to be a rather lovely book of letters. I'm only a little way into it but it seems to be a nice one to read before bed.
Same here, all the channels show the same stuff. This year (at least to my knowledge) there isn't even the option to livestream all the venues. In Sochi I was able to watch up to five things at once, two on TV (with PiP), two on my laptop (the streaming software had a kind of PiP) and one on my tablet. It was very nice for watching all four live curling games at once :D This year I'm at the mercy of the TV people, I'll just have to watch what they decide to show.I read the first of three parts of The Vegetarian. It's disgusting, disturbing and I'm disliking almost every minute of it. I knew it wasn't a happy story about cows dancing on rainbows, but ugh. That doesn't mean the book is bad, though, just that I wasn't prepared for this level of ugh.
Never heard of it before actually. Just read about it and I might just give it a miss. I believe that I feel like reading a nice book at the moment so back to The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society it is. It's my nighttime book and even though it's 10.30am not pm here it's what I'm in the mood for. Might do some sewing later and listen to Armada while I'm at it. Really enjoying this new found freedom (that many have discovered before) of being able to do other stuff and still read a book.
The Olympics in the US is full of all sorts of puff pieces on US athletes and we seldom see sports that Americans aren't expected to do well in. I liked watching them in France because we got to see more of the CrossCountry Skiing, and the even where they ski and then shoot targets. Plus they never postponed the skating events to Prime Time, everything was shown real time, even in the middle of the nightI finished Murder in Clichy which was pretty good
I'd expect all countries tend to focus on showing their own atheletes competing. I've gotten so used to being able to rely on the live feeds, for instance in Rio I didn't watch TV at all, just the streams. I looked at the schedule to see what I wanted to watch, and then picked that from the feed. Now I haven't been able to find anywhere that shows everything, which completely sucks. I did however manage to get the BBC livestream working, so that I was able to watch some VERY interesting curling, instead of the stupid match they showed on local TV. That China-Switzerland match was great, I can't belive they made such a blunder in the Olympics! (Both teams moved a single stone at the same time and touched another, thus making it impossible to know if China won, and they went into an extra end and Switzerland won.)I'm going to do my absolute best to try and stop talking about curling now. I'm so sorry!
CBRetriever wrote: "The Olympics in the US is full of all sorts of puff pieces on US athletes and we seldom see sports that Americans aren't expected to do well in. I liked watching them in France because we got to se..."That ski and shoot, is the Biathlon. I think that the best the US ever placed was third and it was Patton that did that. Although maybe not.
thanks, I couldn't remember the name when I made the post and the French had several good contenders in the sport
None of the Olympic sports I like ever get full broadcasts. Only in the past couple years has curling been included.I’m also a big fan of fencing and team handball. All we ever get of those are brief clips.
I don’t know why team handball isn’t broadcast. It looks like soccer or hockey but scores like basketball, and it’s usually nonstop action. It’s basically the anti-curling.
https://youtu.be/q6RcTHNlxto
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https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Trike wrote: "I’m also a big fan of fencing and team handball. All we ever get of those are b..."Thanks for the link Trike. I must be living under a rock. I never heard of that sport. The handball I used to play was in a squash court with a hard rubber ball about the size of a tennis ball. You flung the ball against the front wall in an attempt to have your opponent miss the return after one bounce. All four walls came into play.
Eric wrote: "Trike wrote: "I’m also a big fan of fencing and team handball. All we ever get of those are b..."Thanks for the link Trike. I must be living under a rock. I never heard of that sport. The handbal..."
Most people haven’t because they never show the matches. That’s true of most Olympic sports, sadly.
For instance, I think the Beijing olympics was the first time I’d ever seen broadcast of badminton, which was nearly 20 years after it became an Olympic sport. It was riveting to watch players who are that good.
Trike wrote: "Most people haven’t because they never show the matches. That’s true of most Olympic sports, sadly."It is all about the network making $$$$$$ while they attempt to fit the sports coverage in between commercials. Why it is easy to read a book during a telecast sporting event. Lots of commercials.
Hope this is the right section to post this. I’m very new to the group. I am currently reading “Mockingbird” by Walter Tevis. So far it’s a great book! 👍
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Haha yes! I know the Olympic chatter is throwing this off a little. Glad you're liking it!
Allison wrote: "Haha yes! I know the Olympic chatter is throwing this off a little. Glad you're liking it!"Well, at least I mentioned that I read during the multiple, many, unrelenting, commercial breaks during TV sports coverage. :)
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Well, at least I mentioned that I read during the multiple, many, unrelenting, commercia..."
I have been enjoying watching how people include something about reading in their discussion of various events ^^. Y'all crack me up.
there is no way to watch tv without a book with you: in the ads ( if on a commercial station) in the boring bits eg car chases or fights, at the beginning and end with all of the credits.
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Haha!
I also take a Kindle with me to read when a passenger in a car, standing in line, waiting for a meal to arrive when the other person goes to get drinks or to the Toilet.So this means two books going at once. At the moment I am reading the last John Conroe Demons accord , and also going through some old stuff eg Raymond fiest , I was trying to get rid of some old books in the collection and got hooked on re reading the series.
I just started reading a steampunk mystery novel called, “A Curious Beginning”, by Deanna Raybourn. It’s off to a great start so far!
I read (listen anyway) while walking the dog. My current audiobook is La Belle Sauvage. It is really good and the narrator is fantastic.
Trike wrote: "None of the Olympic sports I like ever get full broadcasts. Only in the past couple years has curling been included.I’m also a big fan of fencing and team handball. All we ever get of those are b..."
Fencing is only exciting with naked blades.
I will bow to the team handball.
Kateb wrote: "there is no way to watch tv without a book with you: in the ads ( if on a commercial station) in the boring bits eg car chases or fights, at the beginning and end with all of the credits."I used to do Cross Stich during commercials.
I'm reading two at the moment -- a new bio of Hitler, Becoming Hitler: The Making of a Nazi, and a re-read of The Summer Tree. Hard to imagine two more different books!Also Dj, yay cross stitch!! I'm currently working on this design by Teresa Wentzler, which is one of four (one for each season).
Michele wrote: "I'm reading two at the moment -- a new bio of Hitler, Becoming Hitler: The Making of a Nazi, and a re-read of The Summer Tree. Hard to imagine two more different books..."Teresa Wentzler, makes the coolest Dragons. Complicated as all heck but oh so amazing when they were done.
I used to do cross stitch. And embroidery. I pulled a little embroidery kit out the other day from where it was hidden so I can start it up again while I'm listening to audiobooks. I also used to quilt and make Bears and do all sorts of fun stuff. Then we kept moving. I've just got a sewing room set up in this latest house which is good.
Jacqueline wrote: "I used to do cross stitch. And embroidery. I pulled a little embroidery kit out the other day from where it was hidden so I can start it up again while I'm listening to audiobooks. I also used to q..."I got distracted by my reading and writing, so I gave it up. Might pick it back up someday, stranger things have happened.
I got distracted by Netflix and super fast internet. I just got really lazy I suppose. And now that I've rediscovered reading I'm finding time for it again too. Thanks to audiobooks. Still spend way too much time on here still though.
Finished
Promise of Blood the first of the Powder Mage series. Onto book two
The Crimson Campaign. Fun stuff!
I started Night of the Triffids (British Fantasy Award winner for Best Novel (2002)) and sequel to Day of the Triffids on which several movies have been based.
Day of the Triffids has put me off looking at meteor showers for life.... Loved it though. Read it when I was at school back in the dark ages.
Jacqueline wrote: "Day of the Triffids has put me off looking at meteor showers for life.... Loved it though. Read it when I was at school back in the dark ages."Day is an excellent novel, timely even today. Night is like reading a tween adventure novel.
So that would be as different as Night and Day then Bill hahaha
Just started a series "Destiny's Crucible" and it is very good. Think "1632 series" without the wobble.
Anna wrote: "My other Korean option was The Impossible Fairy Tale"I started this yesterday, I thought I'd try to read as many of the Korean things on my TBR during the Olympics as possible. Can not recommend, this is so disturbing. The only reason I haven't DNFed it yet is because I want some reason for all the horrible things I've had to read. I want them to turn out to have been an illusion or a dream, I want someone to bleach my brain.
Since my last post, I’ve read:1. Armada by Ernest Cline. Although this was derivative of other things I’ve read and seen, I liked it better than I expected. I thought it shared both strengths and weakness with the author’s earlier publication, Ready Player One. My review.
2. Books 8, 9, and 10 in The Wheel of Time, which I’m reading through for the first time. I’m still enjoying the series a lot. I really haven’t had any difficulty with boredom or “slogginess”.
Book 8 review.
Book 9 review.
Book 10 review.
3. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. Since the beginning of last year, I’ve tried to fit in one classic book per quarter, not counting the SF&F classics on our group shelf that I would have read anyway. This was my first quarter choice for this year. I intentionally tried to choose something I thought would be light and easy, because I didn’t want to get too bogged down with anything heavier while I’m still working my way through WoT. This definitely met that criteria. It was a fun read, with lots of humor. My review.
Tonight I plan to start New Spring, the prequel novel in The Wheel of Time. I debated a bit about when to read it, but I decided in the end that I would just read it in publication order. I usually find that reading things in publication order fits my preferences best.
YouKneeK wrote: "Tonight I plan to start New Spring, the prequel novel in The Wheel of Time. I debated a bit about when to read it, but I decided in the end that I would just read it in publication order. I usually find that reading things in publication order fits my preferences best. ."That's always my preference too. I think in this case it works out pretty well too.
Dear YouKneeK, it's either been too long since your last post or you're a reading machine ;-).. Them Jordan books is Long.
Ha, I think it’s been about a month since my last post, so there definitely isn’t anything impressive going on here aside from my posting procrastination. :)
Jacqueline wrote: "So that would be as different as Night and Day then Bill hahaha"LOL! I was just thinking the same thing.
Here's my latest batch of reviews:I listened to Red Sister, which I really loved: ★★★★★ - (My Review)
I also listened to Ethan of Athos which finished much better than it started - ★★★½☆ - (My Review)
I also read, Reaper Man which I enjoyed but it wasn't as good as Mort - ★★★½☆ - (My Review)
review of Too Like the Lightning:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
currently listening to:
The Weaver
currently reading: Splintered Light: Logos and Language in Tolkien's World
Why am I having such bad luck with my (South) Korean reads? I started Shelter by Jung Yun, and only a few pages in something violent is described. I don't expect the rest of the book to be like this, but it's making me question my choices. The weird thing is that I was expecting all three of my recent Korean reads (the others being The Vegetarian and The Impossible Fairy Tale) to be more along the lines of literary fiction, not nightmare inducing torture and violence.
Just finished The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. What an absolutely beautiful book.
just finished vol V of Martin Gilbert's biography on Winston Churchill.Going to read Tales of Neveryon, by Samuel R. Delany.
Tales of Nevèrÿon
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SciFi and Fantasy Book Club
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Now on to whatever is due next at the library.