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Are you a BOOK SNOB? (Babes and Dudes Who Read Selectively)
Mod
Bukankah si pemuda ada menyindirnya dengan mengatakan si gadis boleh menikmati bilik tidurnya 'sepuas-puasnya' setelah berkahwin nanti. Malah semasa menunjukkan koleksi bukunya, si pemuda ada rasa bangga pula. Maka tak hairanlah si gadis menempelaknya balik dengan kata-kata yang lebih tajam.
Khairul H. wrote: "No, just weird. HAH! ;)So Called Classic Books That I Hate, Hate, Hate!"
Weird indeed. I prefer the word 'different'. Or maybe 'unique'. :)
By the way, I haven't read any of the books in that link. Leo Tolstoy is a pain, I think. Just look at the thickness of War & Peace. o.O
I came from a family who just loves reading so we tend to love to read different genres...I love English novels...
my mom love Malay novels...
my younger sister loves Islamic histories and Islamic motivation...
my other sister loves teen reads especially novels from pts...
my brother loves thrillers and fantasies...
so I get a chance to read different kinds of books..
somehow my family just read whatever books that's in the shelf...
it's good that we have different kinds of likeness, everybody gets to have different reads and not just the one they like best...
we're not snobs right???
huhu...
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I'm grateful to have a family who loves to read...I get the chance to read different books and not just English novels...
a book is a book...
if it has a good story, I'll read it, be it in English or Malay...
huhu
Mod
Well said.
Mod
Bukankah si pemuda ada menyindirnya dengan mengatakan si gadis bol..."
Baik. Saya baca cerpen itu sekarang!
Ayu wrote: "i don't read malay books, i've tried last month but can't keep up the reading after 10 pages, the words are too heavy i guess, but i love Ahadiat Akashah's (read more than 10 yrs ago-during school ..."hehehe yeah i guess u are......i tried reading malay books too but i can't get the hang of it....used to read Salmah Hamid and cerpen high school ....that's about it .....
I don't read Malay books. I don't read horror books. I guess I'm a book snob. Oh, same goes with non-fiction.
I don't read Malay books too and I would prefer to read to crime fiction thrillers and most definitely not romance and I like to choose books with splendid cover XDTherefore I suppose I'm a SNOB :p
Maybe... Hahah... I don't really know. I'd usually read just about anything. Though, I have to admit, I have a soft spot for fantasy. The idea to disappear into another world, that was something that I've always liked. And Harry Potter, well, it would continue to be my favourite series for many years to come -- if not forever. But... Yeah, I don't really read Malay Fiction. I tried, but it bores me half to death. I mean, I can read Malay Lit or any Classic Malay books -- just NOT Fiction. I tried, it's just... I dunno, it makes me wanna hammer myself in the head... Girl meets boy, boy's a really rich guy, boy likes girl, boy's mom doesn't like girl... Ya-da Ya-da... Ya-da... It bores me... It's the same thing over and over again...
Jack wrote: "Maybe... Hahah... I don't really know. I'd usually read just about anything. Though, I have to admit, I have a soft spot for fantasy. The idea to disappear into another world, that was something th..."I completely agree with you Bro...everything's gotta do with love,love and more love...no creativity of the sort. Period.
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The only problem is that, it's rare, Sci-Fi, fantasy and of sort in Malay. I don't really mind love stories, it's just that why does the girl have to be poor ALL the time? What's wrong with a rich girl? Tsk... It gets to me sometimes... And Don, I'm a girl... I understand how the nick could confuse someone... >.<
message 116:
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Khairul Hezry, I hate people but not you. You, I like.
(last edited Mar 09, 2011 04:44PM)
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Mod
When Malay authors do that, their readers will probably just roll their eyes because they can't relate to it. That attitude is ridiculous of course because it's fiction but there you are.
So when authors like FT write sci-fi they need to fit the story with the Malaysian or to be more accurate, Malay mindset. So you get 1511H KOMBAT . It's set in the future but discusses Islam, Malayan history and the Malay culture.
You cannot expect something like an Asimov or an Arthur Clarke story from a Malaysian author. Even if s/he is writing in English. At least not yet.
By the way, Nisah Haron has written 'Annyss Sophilea' which is Malay fantasy. So there's that.
Jack wrote: "The only problem is that, it's rare, Sci-Fi, fantasy and of sort in Malay. I don't really mind love stories, it's just that why does the girl have to be poor ALL the time? What's wrong with a rich ..."oops...apologies to you buddy. I assumed that you're a guy because of 'Jack' hahahaha :)
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Does this mean that you've finally read the novel? ***misty-eyed***
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Don -- It's fine, I got used to it after a while... Hahah... Now, I just find it funny when someone assumed that I'm a guy...Khairul H. -- Maybe I'll give FT a shot, I'd like to see (or rather) read what Malaysia author have in store. I'm sure there's a decent book or two... I might like it... I'll just have to remember to go to the largest MPH I could find since... Well... It's a Malay book, if you want to find a few decent one, you'd actually buy straight from the company or go to Jalan TAR... Major bookstore rarely stock any of it... Even if they do... Well, let's just say buying my mother's book had been a challenge... Boy, am I glad for the Book Festival... It's coming this April, I think...
Lol...is your name really Jack?? Just curiou
No, it's a nickname given to me by my friends. Sort of an inside joke. Been a while, but, it's still funny when they mention "Poor Jack"...
Lol...I thought that was your name, so it'll be weird. No offense btw.
Not really, Jack can be a short form of Jacqueline...
whats so weird about Jack as a female name? I have a male friend whose name is Julia.Btw, Jack, I think you got the wrong recomendation here. Why you people with all of those malay novels out there only FT is mentioned? Is that the ONLY malay novel you read?
Please, as for beginner to malay fiction, avoid faisal tehrani novel at all cost.
I have nothing againts FT, but as i mentioned before, FT novel is not for beginner. They give you the wrong impression about malay novel in general. Some of his are anticlimax, some are full of sermons (sorry if i use the wrong word) and some are just not fun to read although i admit, you can always learn something while reading his books.
Maybe you can try nisah harons novels for starter.
There's nothing wrong with having a different point of understanding buddy. In my world, Jack is a name with a low probability of being a female's name. In addition to my own personal expectations that Jack is generally a male's name.
Mod
Jack - You're not teaching English are you? Probably not. Never mind (I once knew a TESL student whose nickname was Jack. She was posted to S'wak and taught English there in 2002. Lost contact)
Encik Kerani -- Hahah... I'll try it anyway... What's the worst that could happen? I'll hate it, right? I'm sure that one day I'll find a really good Malay book that I wouldn't mind reading over and over again...Khairul H. -- Uhh... TESL? Nope, definitely not me. I can't teach, I've tried, I just felt like killing the student half the time >.< But, honestly, my English is not that good to be compared to a TESL student and/or a graduate.
Don -- Yup, I get what you're trying to say. It's not that strange for someone to think of Jack as a male name. It was once a male-only name. But, I could think of a female character named Jack ^^ Jack from Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz... Hahha
I agree with the part that Malay books lacks variety in genre/ story plot. Actually there exist interesting books in Malay, good authors too even from back then in 90's. the problem was the publisher had no marketing skills (*cough*DBP*cough*), and ALaf21 just happen to be a good publisher, so those kind of cheap light love story overclouded the good ones.I still believe we have lots of good authors, most of them mia after one or two books..most of them that survived opted for another publisher ( Ramlee Awang Murshid from DBP to Alaf21, but I still thinks his book with DBP are the best ), Tuah Iskandar ( his stories when he was still a journalist in Sarawak, i wish i could find all of them)..to name a few.
We even could found quite good love stories back then ( or maybe i have long graduated from them i dont know the latest trend anymore ) I remember two works of Lamia Aimal, one is "Akademi" the story about youths starting their life in this Academy where they teach all sorts of interesting subject there, military-style. Another one is "Martika" where Malaysia was invaded by aliens, and the main character was trapped in a shopping mall. back then, and even now, I still daydream about the possibilities of being trapped in a shopping mall, where all things are free for you to take..
Btw coming back to book snobs, i dont think i am a snob except for King's books. Would never ever lay my finger on any of his books..never!
...Ramlee Awang Murshid from DBP to Alaf21, but I still think his books with DBP are the best...The only book RAM published under DBP was Igauan Maut and it sucked. So i dont get you.
Btw coming back to book snobs, i dont think i am a snob except for King's books. Would never ever lay my finger on any of his books..never!
May i know why?
Mod
Mod
Please, as for beginner to malay fiction, avoid faisal tehrani novel at all cost."
In a forum like this, we should agree to disagree, and I agree with you that there are really good Malay fiction writers in Malaysia other than FT. It's just a coincidence that once his name is mentioned, that sort of starts all the recommendations that point to FT, FT, and FT.
Besides Nisah Haron, I love Sri Rahayu Mohd Yusop. If anyone would like to start reading her novels which are all published by Utusan Publication, I suggest that you read them in chronological order - from her first novel, Bukan Legasi Lalang, to her latest work, Impuls/Roh.
I picked up Bukan Legasi Lalang on a sheer coincidence - it was on sale during KLIBF, and because this author was totally new to me then, I guess a thin novel should be good as an introduction. Boy, how I love her since then!
On the other hand, encik_kerani, to say that any beginner should avoid FT novels at all cost is a harsh comment. Maybe his works are not your type, but that's just because as the saying goes, "every reader his/her book, every book its reader". FT happens to have written quite a wide array of fiction - science fiction, epistolary, history-based novel, fantasy, Islamic, etc. So it's almost natural for us to recommend one of them. Moreover, they are all well-researched. That's the important point here because readers who think that Malay fictions/literature are not as good as the English ones, usually pinpoint the lack of research and imagination in a Malay novel.
encik_kerani wrote: "...Ramlee Awang Murshid from DBP to Alaf21, but I still think his books with DBP are the best...The only book RAM published under DBP was Igauan Maut and it sucked. So i dont get you.
Btw coming..."
1. It is okay if you dont get me. There's a reason why there are wide varieties of books out there, because each and everyone's personal taste is different to start with.
2. I don't read King's because I am still not over with my great disappointment of the movie IT. A clown ghost that turned out to be a spider?? What kind of horror is that?? Btw i used to pick a book of Stephen King after that to test the water (couldnt remember the title, i forget things i dislike)..As far as i remember he went over describing every little details too much it becomes boring. An horror story should be fast-paced and adrenalin-producing, progressing slow and mentioning every little minute things...that's a fantasy.
Mod
The other thing that people disliked IT (the book) other than the spider was when the kids had group sex. Seriously, King?
Nurul wrote: "1. It is okay if you dont get me. There's a reason why there are wide varieties of books out there, because each and everyone's personal taste is different to start with.2. I don't read King's because I am still not over with my great disappointment of the movie IT. A clown ghost that turned out.... "
That was harsh, hurt me a bit as King's constant reader, and i am sure 98% people here dislike him for some reason, so i think i should speak my piece.
While i agree some of his works are downright ridiculous to many people, i really love his style of writing. When i took a book from another author, i felt like something missing so i will return to King's every now and then.
i also don't think King is a really horror author, as he barely scares me with his story. People who seek horror will be disappointed. But what did we (king’s fan) seek? For that, I don’t really know.
There are many others to choose if u hate IT. Try the short story collections for example; for me the best are Night Shiftand Skeleton Crew. Don’t take Just After Sunset!, except for N (one of the short story inside) even I didn’t think it was worth the money.
My true first English novel reading is Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales (also by King), fell in love and from it I started to plunge (quite) seriously into English reading.
Before, I don’t think I can finish Harry Potter book 1, and envy people who do so. Now I feel quite confident to finish even LOTR.
Is snob-things exist when u started to bash the author? I don’t like Stephenie Meyer but I don’t bash her. When someone write and started making money from it, while me myself can’t even hold a candle to her/his writing skill, I just don’t.
message 138:
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Khairul Hezry, I hate people but not you. You, I like.
(last edited Mar 12, 2011 12:46AM)
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Mod
Oh please. For every fan out there there is someone who is not a fan. It's called freedom of choice. So is bashing the author. The thread is called "Book Snob" after all. I don't think King cares about the millions of detractors he has out there. Yes, there are a lot of people who hate King including book critics who called him "a hack" and "untalented". Does he care? Nope, because he is too busy counting his money.
Early King is a joy to read compared to later King books. Carrie, Pet Sematary, Christine and most of the early period of his works (I would say anything before Misery can be considered 'early King') were good (not Tommyknockers though. That was horrible).
But then he became rich. No, not just rich. But RICH and it seemed like his editor(s) were afraid to tell him to cut down the pages because he was such a big star and all that and they didn't want to lose their jobs. King went on and on and on and on building up the story and detailed characterisation and back story and flashbacks and whatever and when we turned to the final chapter, the payoff was missing. That's why it was so disappointing to read late-King books.
You quote King's collection of short stories as a good place to start. I agree. King is best when he writes short stories. That's where his strength lies. It's when he starts to chop trees to write his next 600 page epic is when he gets boring. I second your suggestions of Night Shift and the other short story collections.
i also don't think King is a really horror author, as he barely scares me with his story. People who seek horror will be disappointed.
Wait, what? King is a horror writer. He writes about vampires moving into your neighborhood, a possessed car, grave-sites that bring back the dead to life. What do you call that? Romance?
If he doesn't scare you that just means he's not a good horror writer or you're not easily scared.
Sometimes he writes about life like 'Shawshank Redemption' or thrillers like Dolores Clairborne or collections like Full Dark, No Stars. Those aren't supernatural horror because there're no ghosties involved and Full Dark was all about psychosis and revenge but his forte is in writing about things that go bump in the night.
But what did we (king’s fan) seek? For that, I don’t really know.
You don't know what you seek from an author whose work you like to read? An author who mostly writes about the supernatural? Seriously?
Is snob-things exist when u started to bash the author? I don’t like Stephenie Meyer but I don’t bash her. When someone write and started making money from it, while me myself can’t even hold a candle to her/his writing skill, I just don’t.
Yes, I believe the snob-thing existed when she bashed the author. That's the whole point of this thread.
Speaking of DBP, I remember reading a number of book published by the company back when I was in High School. It was definitely something more -- though, I gotta say, it was definitely not easy to get through a book. For one, most of the book I came across had been of some literature award thing that I knew nothing about, but -- the value of it and the story, it could easily get me reading non-stop. So, here's what I learn so far and you can tell me I'm wrong, but -- If it's a Malay book, and it's really good -- do expect it to be extremely expensive and pretty much unknown. I hate it, but, it's kind of a reality of it all. I remember going to the DBP and heavens! I nearly chocked at the price tag. Alright, I have all seven of HP books, but I bought it once a year (kinda) and there I was standing -- looking at three to five interesting books (as a HS student) with that price tag... Bahhh...And King, honestly, I can even remember reading ONE book by Stephen King, but, I do find him amusing. Alright because of that ONE statement which I'm sure everyone's well aware of. But, I did watch the movie version of some book he wrote -- it's pretty grim and I can't help but wonder whether he had been unhappy or just like showing off his tortured Author brand or something... Oh well...
Anyway... I do agree with Khairul H., snobs exist but, I don't think that only those who bash one author or another is the only one known as. Some like to keep their opinion to themselves, but I gotta admit, I can be a snob as well...
message 140:
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Khairul Hezry, I hate people but not you. You, I like.
(last edited Mar 12, 2011 12:41AM)
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Mod
Was it in hardcover?
Alright because of that ONE statement which I'm sure everyone's well aware of.
No, I'm not aware of which statement you're referring to.
it's pretty grim and I can't help but wonder whether he had been unhappy or just like showing off his tortured Author brand or something
King grew up poor, living with his mother. His father abandoned the family when King was still a baby. He never met the man, doesn't even know how he looks like. A few of his novels featured fathers or father figures with a tortured soul (Pet Sematary, The Shining to name just two)
The famous story he likes to tell is that his first book, Carrie, was thrown into the wastebasket because he thought it was horrible. His wife saved it and sent it to the publisher. The rest is history.
It was like five years ago and I can't even remember the title, but it was definitely hardcover. It almost made me wish I have all the money in the world for a moment. Alas, it's fine even if I don't...Oh, the thing about JK Rowling is the better writer than Stephenie Meyers, that made me giggle longer than five seconds -- I actually giggled! I don't do giggle, I laugh like a maniac hahah
I'd like to say that I feel for him, but I can't. We all have our own past and then personal hell to face. So, I'm just gonna say, I'll try reading one of his books, but from the movie I've already learned that he can thought of interesting stories and I'm sure he will continue to do so for many years to come. Though, it's NOT just the stories for, it's how the stories were told that makes it interesting. Like how JK made a story of an orphan boy with magical powers. If you sum it up that way, it seemed bland, but when you read it in her words -- you'll see the magic.
Mod
Fairul wrote: "Nurul wrote: "1. It is okay if you dont get me. There's a reason why there are wide varieties of books out there, because each and everyone's personal taste is different to start with.2. I don't ..."
what? Bashing is a strong word, i think you sound even harsher than me. There is a fine line between criticizing and bashing. For example :
"King is a jerk!" "King is a loser!" <--this statement are called bashing the author.
"A clown ghost that turned out to be a spider?? What kind of horror is that??" ,-- this is called critics. And i didn't even talked about the author, i talked about his works!
And, like Khairul said, this is a SNOB topic afterall. I am not telling everyone to stop liking Stephen King. It's only for me and my own snobbish reason of not liking him. ( because encik_kerani was asking for it too). I am not trying to convert anyone and i hope King's fans could accept the fact that everyone's mind is different. some may be outspoken, some might be quiet. For me, i opt to speak out? Why? Because i like debate and i love to listen/read other's opinion because i don't have the ability to read mind. See, by stating my own opinion, we have learn more about King now. By now i have learnt that King's short stories are good and probably in years to come i might stumbled upon one and try to read that again. If I am to keep quiet with things i dont like (just like how you did with Stephanie Meyer), I would always think of King in that light.
Plus, I think I am the only one here who totally dont like King. So don't worry, you are not alone. its more like 98% of King's lover here and 2% of people like me.
No, I'm not aware of which statement you're referring to.>>The real difference is that [Harry Potter author] Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and [Twilight author] Stephenie Meyer can’t write worth a darn. She’s not very good. - King
Sai-fai melayu? Kalian perlu baca Fadli al-akiti.
>>Fadhli alAkiti? Dia hanya tulis, er.. DUA novel..
I agree. King is best when he writes short stories. That's where his strength lies. It's when he starts to chop trees to write his next 600 page epic is when he gets boring. I second your suggestions of Night Shift and the other short story collections.
>>Agree and agree.
Plus, I think I am the only one here who totally dont like King. So don't worry, you are not alone. its more like 98% of King's lover here and 2% of people like me.
>>2% seems too many. To think about it, i think you are alone. Its uncommon to dislike an author based on one book (IT).
Besides Nisah Haron, I love Sri Rahayu Mohd Yusop. If anyone would like to start reading her novels which are all published by Utusan Publication, I suggest that you read them in chronological order - from her first novel, Bukan Legasi Lalang, to her latest work, Impuls/Roh.
>>Thanks bunny. Would definately search for Sri Rahayu. Now we know that Utusan is really lame when it comes to promoting their author.
Yup, that's the quote. It was funny to me. Maybe because I'm a fan of JK and not a big fan of Stephenie. Well, maybe I just don't fall for sappy love stories or see how epic a love story could be? That reminds me, I would stay away from chick-lit if I could. I try my best not to associate myself with the pages filled with mindless lead character whining about their social life and how they don't have a boyfriend... >.< Tch...
And I think it's too bad that Malaysian Publisher doesn't know how to promote their author. I mean... COME ON! We have book festivals every single year, do something about it >.<
Mod
But I'm enjoying this, not because I love arguing, but I learn more from a healthy debate like this.
About bashing authors, now that I think about it again, we are each a fan of particular authors, and naturally we feel the need to defend our favourite authors when someone else bashes/criticizes them. Whichever side we are on, this is actually a publicity for the authors mentioned. Good or bad is still publicity.
Mod
Kuantiti tidak semestinya melambangkan kualiti, walaupun saya tidak bermaksud menggunakan kenyataan ini untuk menyamaratakan kesemua penulis fiksyen Melayu yang prolifik.
Walaupun baru menghasilkan 2 novel, Fadli Al-Akiti ternyata menunjukkan kematangan dan potensinya dalam Saga Horizon (perbandingan ini ialah untuk novel kedua beliau dengan novel fiksyen sains penulis lain).
Kalau baru suam-suam kuku membaca fiksyen sains berbahasa Melayu, juga boleh cuba Opera Angkasa karya Nazri M Annuar (I prefer this to Galaksi Muhsinin).
Bagi pembaca wanita yang ingin mendekati fiksyen Melayu, Nisah Haron dan Sri Rahayu sangat disarankan. Bukan kerana gaya penulisan mereka amat kewanitaan, tapi disebabkan faktor lenggok bahasanya yang lebih santai, tepat dan bernas (tak macam si Stephanie Meyers tu - hahaha!). Apabila membaca karya kedua-dua penulis ini, saya sering terdetik rasa cemburu 'Eh, memang macam ini cara paling sesuai untuk sampaikan sesuatu mesej, tapi kenapa tak terfikir dulu ha?'.
Mod
Kuantiti tidak semestinya melambangkan kualiti, walaupun saya tidak bermaksud menggunakan kenyataan ini untuk menyamaratak..."
Setuju dengan Bunnybaby. Bagi saya Saga Horizon oleh Fadli Akiti sangat bagus.
Mod
The other thing that people disliked IT (the book) other than the spide..."
Group sex? Kids? Holey ....
That was not in the film.
Oh I forgot. RTM sensorship, thank you.
Mod
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So, am I a snob? :)"
No, just weird. HAH! ;)
So Called Classic Books That I Hate, Hate, Hate!