The World of Ice & Fire (A Song of Ice and Fire #0)

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

This thread is to discuss The World of Ice & Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones, a prequel in the A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin.

Pages: 326 pages

Length: 1 month (January)

Participants: SarahKat, Caterina, Rebecca, Jill, Jade, Lorraine

Everyone reads at their own pace during a Buddy Read. Because participants can be at different parts of the book at different times, it is extremely important to mark spoilers so that the book is not ruined for someone who is not as far along as others!!!

Mark spoilers by placing {spoiler} before the text and {/spoiler} after the text but use the < and > instead of the { and }.

[Lorraine]

I hope to start this book first week of January. Big book! I plan to take note as I cannot seem to remember who is who!

[Jade.]

Hi! Can't wait to buddy read this book with y'all! I'll probably start next week.

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

I ordered a copy from Amazon. The delivery date is March but I'm going to see if it ships this week. If not the library has a copy.

[Jill]

Take a close work at the artwork throughout the book. It is gorgeous and all approved by GRRM as how things should look. Some things are different than you’d expect from viewing HBO’s versions.

A note about GRRM’s co-authors on this. They’ve been running the largest, best-known ASOIAF website since long before anyone at HBO heard of the books and have become GRRM’s friends. It’s been said that he actually contacts them now and then when he needs to check on a background fact he’s forgotten. (I don’t know if that’s true, but it’s one of those things that is frequently repeated in the fandom.) Anyway, when his publisher asked him to do a reference book like this when the TV series became so huge, he asked them to help out so he’d get it put together faster. As it was, he had so much extra content that the publisher cut a large section out, which then became the basis for Fire and Blood.

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

The illustrations are why I really want to own a copy of this book and especially read it in physical form!

That's some really interesting trivia Jill! I hadn't heard that before.

[Caterina]

Hi everyone! I probably won't get start until next week. The illustrations look so beautiful. Can't wait to dig in.

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

I have started this on ebook. I can't wait for my physical copy to get here. I don't think my phone screen does justice to the illustrations.

The ebook version also says it's 763 pages long. I don't know if that's just because the pictures fit in there weirdly or what.

Also, my library has this in the Dewey Decimal area under 813: American fiction, which I guess is valid. But you'd think it would be with the rest of the ASOIAF series which is in sci-fi/fantasy.

Anyway, I have made it through Ancient History and The Conquest. Just about to start The Targaryen Kings.

(view spoiler)[I'm a little disappointed about how little information there is on some of this stuff. Nymeria, the Doom of Valyria. I guess I wanted a deep dive into it but we have a lot to cover.

I liked the ancient history stuff. It was helpful to have it all laid out with who came first and where and why they aren't there anymore. All the words were familiar of course but I hadn't really thought much about the history of it until now.

The Conquest has been fun to read too. I know some of that was in Fire and Blood. I need reminders now and then though. I don't have a memory for this like Jill does 😁

I'm not sure which one it is now but my favorite illustration is the ravens flying to let everyone know Aegon is now the king. There's a faint dragon behind all the birds. It's just so pretty. It is now my phone's lock screen.
Also, I loved the severed hands section and that there's a picture included. Brutal. (hide spoiler)]

[Jade.]

Hello, everyone! I am gonna start reading this book today!

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

I've just finished the Targaryen Kings section.

A lot of the first half was just the same information, only less-so, from Fire and Blood. But again, I liked the reminder because my memory sucks. So that was still fun to read. The rest of it just made me sad that the second one isn't out yet because I want SO much more information on these people!

Which king does everyone find the most intriguing?
(view spoiler)[ I loved the Jahaerys section of Fire and Blood mostly because of all the drama with his kids. But I desperately want more details about Baelor and his reign. Some things he did seemed super likable, like walking to Dorne and making peace with them, getting... someone? Out of the pit of vipers... But then other things are super questionable like, locking his sisters away so they stay pure. Bad and good, I want more about it! I'd love some stuff from the sisters' POV as well.

Aerys II: I've never really wondered or asked why Aerys was considered the Mad King but now I know. I guess I had always pictured him as starting out that way but it was more of a slow descent wasn't it? Paranoia so bad it just drove him crazy, and how did I not know he was held prisoner at Duskendale for months??

I like that we are in the section of the book now where characters from ASOIAF are showing up. Barristan Selmy defeating that 2-headed Blackfyre... Maelys? Tywin Lannister prior to Robert. Rhaegar Targaryen. Lots of name-dropping at this point. Excited for the next part. (hide spoiler)]

[Jill]

I think one of my favorite things is finding the mistakes the maester who’s writing this makes. He has perfectly good reasons for believing that there are no more giants or children of the forest, but we know from reading the main series that Jon and Bran have interacted with them.

As for Aerys, I think his problems had to have started at least with Summerhall. I don’t think any of the few survivors of that came away without problems. Heck, Rhaegar was a newborn, but some of his issues seem to have come from prophecies made there.

Apparently, GRRM plans to write Fire & Blood Part 2, at which time we should get more backstory on things like Baelor the Blessed. I just want the full story of Summerhall, darn it! ( And TWOW, obviously, but I’m not holding my breath.)

[Jill]

Running out of ASOIF stuff to read, would anyone be interested in joining me in reading some things written by scholar/fans of the series? Some of the things I’d like to read include
Chivalry in Westeros: The Knightly Code of A Song of Ice and Fire (I’m especially interested in this, Brienne fangirl that I am)
Beyond the Wall: Exploring George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire
Game of Thrones Psychology: The Mind is Dark and Full of Terrors (Volume 4)
Mastering the Game of Thrones: Essays on George R.R. Martin's - A Song of Ice and Fire
Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon: Game of Thrones and the Official Untold Story of the Epic Series
There are several more books of this nature if none of these interest you. There’s also The Ice Dragon, which isn’t really ASOIAF, but it is sort of Westeros-related .

[Rebecca]

That's a big tempting list, Jill. I'd probably be willing to to read some of these (or most of these) because I love books about book and television series.

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

Summerhall yes! I was so disappointed there wasn't more information in this. I kept flipping back and forth thinking I missed something. Nope.

My physical copy should be here tomorrow so I took a small break so I can finish this in all its glory.

I'd be interested in some of those Jill. Especially the Psychology one. There's also a philosophy one I'd like to read. I'll have to see how much I can get them for on thriftbooks or amazon or something though. My library has none.

[Rebecca]

It looks like the psychology one is an audible plus title if you have audible

[Jill]

I know the psychology one is on Kindle. In fact, all of the ones I linked to are kindle. I think I’ve seen the philosophy one is Kindle, though I haven’t gotten around to adding it to my library yet. I’m definitely interested in it as well.

Re: The lack of detail about Summerhall. I have a feeling GRRM is saving the details of that for some big reveal in either the main series or for Dunk and Egg.

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

I'm almost done with the history of all the kingdoms now. There's a ton of material here if HBO just wants to make Martin their cash cow for the next few decades.

I found the North and the Westerlands the most interesting, but probably just because I'm biased towards the big houses in the main series. I actually really loved the history of the castles themselves in these sections.

Some things that stuck out: (view spoiler)[The Skagos rode badass unicorns!

The story of Castamere was interesting. I knew the lyrics to the song but I don't think I knew what actually happened. I also didn't realize it was Tywin who did it. I figured it was long before his time. He was 19, and he sealed the who population in their mines when they went down there to hide, and then diverted the river to drown them. Gives new meaning to the song knowing the situation. (hide spoiler)]

As for the other books Jill suggested, Rebecca are you for sure in for all of them? I think I can get most of them for cheap on thriftbooks so I'm interested. If you want to come up with a schedule I'll treat them like a confirmed series. If we start in February, pick a shorter one please. I'm pretty booked up already.

[Jade.]

I've started this book today, and it's really interesting so far. gosh, I just love the dragons! I've always been a huge fan of the dragons.

[Rebecca]

SarahKat wrote: "I'm almost done with the history of all the kingdoms now. There's a ton of material here if HBO just wants to make Martin their cash cow for the next few decades.

I found the North and the Wester..."

I think I will do all of them, but definitely either a shorter one in February or waiting until March to start. My February is also looking a little full as well.

[Caterina]

I am still reading. About 1/3 of the way through.

So far, this book has felt like a less detailed Fire and Blood. I am at Aegon III's reign, which is where F&B ended, so I'm sure things will get more interesting going forward.

I would love a Fire and Blood 2, but I want Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring more. Still hoping against all hope 🤞

[Lorraine]

Starting tomorrow! Finally!

[Jade.]

Just finished this one! I really loved the history, it was so interesting. The illustrations are so beautiful! I am just a huge fan of the dragons (the series and this book).

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

I'm still holding out hope for Winds of Winter too.

Glad you all love it. I'm glad I got the physical copy. Now I want the Fire and Blood illustrated versions to put on my shelf.

Waiting to hear from Jill to add those extra books

[Lorraine]

I could not get into this one. Not sure why. Maybe because it's not a story ... My electronic version was not great either. A lot of pictures were missing. I will certainly try to find a physical copy and give it another try.

[Caterina]

I also struggled to get through this book, and I am not sure I liked it all that much.

I appreciate that there's so much history writted about Westeros. The illustrations were so nice and I loved them all. I would have loved even more illustrations! Beyond that, I found myself wanting more information about certain aspects of the history and less information about other parts. For example, in the Iron Kings section, I wanted to learn more about their gods and where they came from, and I wanted a lot less information about the salt wives, rapes, deflowerings, etc. I'm using the Iron Islands as an example, but that was my experience in almost every section. So it made for a rather unsastifying read.

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

I agree I wanted more information about a lot of this stuff. These little tastes of history were interesting but there's no way to absorb it all. There were bits and pieces that I really enjoyed, but others were just getting through it. I like that I have it as a reference though. This series comes up in conversation a lot with my husband and a few friends so I like that I can be like "Oh, Garth the Gardener. Yeah I know where to find stuff about him!"

It isn't really the type of book to read cover to cover.

[Lorraine]

I was happy to learn more about the period before the GOT events. It was interesting to understand how Jamie became the ‘Kingslayer’ and learn more about Tywin. But I agree this is more a reference book that a story you can read cover to cover in one shot.

[Rebecca]

I’m still working on this one and finding that I’m more successful when I’m dipping in and out of it, reading sections every few days. It’s a lot at once, but not enough at the same time.

[Caterina]

@SarahKat- I'll definitely come back to this book many times. I am trying to imagine any of my friends bringing up Garth the Gardener in casual conversation... and I'm chuckling. I love reading, but I somehow ended up very few friends who read. Or watch Game of Thrones.

@Lorraine- The section about Tywin was one of the most interesting ones. I knew the general story of the Rains of Castamere, but I enjoyed learning more about the Reynes and the Tarbecks.

@Rebecca- "a lot at once, but not enough at the same time" is so on point!

[Lisa]

@Rebecca - That's how I'm reading it also. I am enjoying it very much that way. The illustrations are awesome throughout.

[Jill]

It sounds as though theGame of Thrones Psychology: The Mind is Dark and Full of Terrors (Volume 4) is a popular idea if anyone else wants to join in. What does everyone think?

I wish we knew more about Joanna Lannister. Anyone who could keep Tywin in check sounds like a fascinating character. And as a Brienne fangirl (in fact, I’m wearing my “The Tarth Knight rises” sweatshirt today), I’m dying to learn more about how House Tarth is connected to the Targs. Please, George, all I’m asking for is a 1,000 page book(& please don’t kill Pod).

[Rebecca]

Jill wrote: "It sounds as though theGame of Thrones Psychology: The Mind is Dark and Full of Terrors (Volume 4) is a popular idea if anyone else wants to join in. What does everyone think?

I wi..."

I do like the idea of starting with that one because it's in the audible+ library, so I won't have to acquire it :-)

[Jill]

I’ve already downloaded it from Audible. Haven’t started yet. I’m good with whenever everyone wants to start. February or later?

[SarahKat, Buddy Reads]

Jill wrote: "I’ve already downloaded it from Audible. Haven’t started yet. I’m good with whenever everyone wants to start. February or later?"

Can we do March? The February buddy reads are already up. And I will probably order a physical copy of that one

[Rebecca]

I’m putting it on my list for March

[Jill]

March works for me!