Books: 2011
Fourth update of the books read list for 2011. *6* new books this time, but 4 of them are re-reads.
Neuromancer, by William Gibson.
The Diamond Age, by Neal Stephenson, read by Jennifer Wiltsie
New Spring, by Robert Jordan.
Magician: Apprentice, by Raymond E. Feist.
The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien, read by Rob Inglis
Magician: Master, by Raymond E. Feist.
The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss
Submarine, by Edward L. Beach. Jr., Captain, USN (Retired)
Storm Front, by Jim Butcher
The Wise Man's Fear, by Patrick Rothfuss
Fool Moon, by Jim Butcher
A Player of Games, by Iain M. Banks
With the Old Breed, by EB Sledge
U is for Undertow, by Sue Grafton
Silverthorn, by Raymond E. Feist
A Darkness at Sethanon, by Raymond E. Feist
The Two Towers, by J.R.R. Tolkien, read by Rob Inglis
The Return of the King, by J.R.R. Tolkien, read by Rob Inglis
I've had this update sitting on my desktop for a week or two now, and hadn't gotten around to posting it. Today, I am superbusy in lab, so of course I am taking time out to post it now. Makes sense, right?
@With the Old Breed - famous memoir of a grunt fighting in WWII in the Pacific, at 2 of the bloodiest battles of that incredibly bloody campaign. The reason his memoir is so famous is mostly because he doesn't pay any real lip service to the greater strategies of the battles, nothing is seen from the viewpoint of the generals. It is entirely just a description of his day-to-day life in the meat grinder. It's also interesting that after the war, he earned his PhD and became a Professor of Microbiology and Ornithology. Very cool. As for my impressions, it didn't impact me very deeply or all that hard, after James Bradley's Flyboys, or Ambrose's Band of Brothers. I'm not sure why. I certainly don't want to belittle the hell he went through, but I guess without that context of the battle plan, all you see is the futility of war, without any of the reason for the insanity. And that's just too depressing to enjoy. (Which I think was his entire point!)
@U is for Undertow - Sue Grafton, at this point on book 21 of her Kinsey Milhone alphabet series, is just coasting and running by the numbers. These past 2 or 3 books she;s tried shaking up the formula by going with multiple POV characters, shifting timelines, etc. But, I felt that the original formula was working very well for her, and while I totally understand her desire to try something different once in a while, I wish she'd go back to the old way. This one especially ended very anti-climactically, and almost accidentally. Her books have never been very heavy on denouemont, with only 2 or 3 pages per, but in this one it seemed especially sparse. Though, I may just be remembering the older ones with rose-colored glasses.
@Silverthorn and A Darkness at Sethanon - The last 2 books of Feist's Riftwar Saga. Now that I've read them while a little older, I'm seeing them a little less rosily. The stories are still very compelling and exciting, and I still love the characters, but knowing what I know now about writing, I see how clunky he is. Feist writes in a loose 3rd person omniscient POV, and switches back and forth between POV characters willy nilly, even within the same paragraph. I still love the series. A Darkness at Sethanon - the siege of Armengar specifically, is what first prompted me to wanting to write my own fantasy work. I won't get into here my thought trains, but suffice to say, I really was moved by that sequence in the book. Looking back at the Riftwar now, I see how closely my own initial outlines for my fantasy novel series clones the Riftwar. Thankfully, the books I (hopefully, eventually) write are already well past a resemblance to his work.
@The Two Towers and @The Return of the King- I've finally pinned down why I don't get into Tolkein the way I do other books, or the way other people do Tolkein. I may get flamed by this, if anyone actually even reads these posts, but here it is: The Lord of the Rings is the single most un-American book series I know. OK, so that's gross hyperbole, but the point is, it's incredibly un-American. The very nature of how Tolkein describes people belies the fact that it's entirely based on a Victorian, or maybe Georgian belief in a rigid class system, where the nobility are noble inherently because of their superior lineage. The descendents of the men of Numenor are all described as king-like and valiant and regal and honorable, and so on. And then he describes the men of the hills around Gondor (who are not descended from Numenorians) as lesser men, and repeatedly refers to them as swarthy. Samwise loves Frodo as a servant loves his master. His every waking thought is for the honor and glory and well-being of Frodo, or even Frodo's gardens. Frodo doesn't discuss his decisions with Sam in a democraatic way, and when discussing their fate with Faramir, is frequently talking for Sam, as well as Smeagol. The whole thing reeks of a class system based on assumed superiority of breeding and heraldry. I cry foul, and humbug!
Furthermore, well, I'll stop there. that's enough, and I think it gets my point across. Anyway, the point being - people? Honorable and noble based on their merits and actions, not their parentage. At least, in America they are. (Actually, in America, it's based on their notoreity and wealth, but I digress...)
Next up in my reading adventures? The first book of Gene Wolfe's Wizard/Knight duology. I have yet to read a single word Wolfe has written, yet apparently, I am under the impression he is one of the masters of genre fiction. I heard much buzz about these books when they came out a few years ago, and I look forward to diving in. Also, on reserve at the library is a collection of the best of Wolfe's short fiction. I really am developing a serious love of the short story.
Anyway, that's all for now.
No worries,
Matt
I've had this update sitting on my desktop for a week or two now, and hadn't gotten around to posting it. Today, I am superbusy in lab, so of course I am taking time out to post it now. Makes sense, right?
@With the Old Breed - famous memoir of a grunt fighting in WWII in the Pacific, at 2 of the bloodiest battles of that incredibly bloody campaign. The reason his memoir is so famous is mostly because he doesn't pay any real lip service to the greater strategies of the battles, nothing is seen from the viewpoint of the generals. It is entirely just a description of his day-to-day life in the meat grinder. It's also interesting that after the war, he earned his PhD and became a Professor of Microbiology and Ornithology. Very cool. As for my impressions, it didn't impact me very deeply or all that hard, after James Bradley's Flyboys, or Ambrose's Band of Brothers. I'm not sure why. I certainly don't want to belittle the hell he went through, but I guess without that context of the battle plan, all you see is the futility of war, without any of the reason for the insanity. And that's just too depressing to enjoy. (Which I think was his entire point!)
@U is for Undertow - Sue Grafton, at this point on book 21 of her Kinsey Milhone alphabet series, is just coasting and running by the numbers. These past 2 or 3 books she;s tried shaking up the formula by going with multiple POV characters, shifting timelines, etc. But, I felt that the original formula was working very well for her, and while I totally understand her desire to try something different once in a while, I wish she'd go back to the old way. This one especially ended very anti-climactically, and almost accidentally. Her books have never been very heavy on denouemont, with only 2 or 3 pages per, but in this one it seemed especially sparse. Though, I may just be remembering the older ones with rose-colored glasses.
@Silverthorn and A Darkness at Sethanon - The last 2 books of Feist's Riftwar Saga. Now that I've read them while a little older, I'm seeing them a little less rosily. The stories are still very compelling and exciting, and I still love the characters, but knowing what I know now about writing, I see how clunky he is. Feist writes in a loose 3rd person omniscient POV, and switches back and forth between POV characters willy nilly, even within the same paragraph. I still love the series. A Darkness at Sethanon - the siege of Armengar specifically, is what first prompted me to wanting to write my own fantasy work. I won't get into here my thought trains, but suffice to say, I really was moved by that sequence in the book. Looking back at the Riftwar now, I see how closely my own initial outlines for my fantasy novel series clones the Riftwar. Thankfully, the books I (hopefully, eventually) write are already well past a resemblance to his work.
@The Two Towers and @The Return of the King- I've finally pinned down why I don't get into Tolkein the way I do other books, or the way other people do Tolkein. I may get flamed by this, if anyone actually even reads these posts, but here it is: The Lord of the Rings is the single most un-American book series I know. OK, so that's gross hyperbole, but the point is, it's incredibly un-American. The very nature of how Tolkein describes people belies the fact that it's entirely based on a Victorian, or maybe Georgian belief in a rigid class system, where the nobility are noble inherently because of their superior lineage. The descendents of the men of Numenor are all described as king-like and valiant and regal and honorable, and so on. And then he describes the men of the hills around Gondor (who are not descended from Numenorians) as lesser men, and repeatedly refers to them as swarthy. Samwise loves Frodo as a servant loves his master. His every waking thought is for the honor and glory and well-being of Frodo, or even Frodo's gardens. Frodo doesn't discuss his decisions with Sam in a democraatic way, and when discussing their fate with Faramir, is frequently talking for Sam, as well as Smeagol. The whole thing reeks of a class system based on assumed superiority of breeding and heraldry. I cry foul, and humbug!
Furthermore, well, I'll stop there. that's enough, and I think it gets my point across. Anyway, the point being - people? Honorable and noble based on their merits and actions, not their parentage. At least, in America they are. (Actually, in America, it's based on their notoreity and wealth, but I digress...)
Next up in my reading adventures? The first book of Gene Wolfe's Wizard/Knight duology. I have yet to read a single word Wolfe has written, yet apparently, I am under the impression he is one of the masters of genre fiction. I heard much buzz about these books when they came out a few years ago, and I look forward to diving in. Also, on reserve at the library is a collection of the best of Wolfe's short fiction. I really am developing a serious love of the short story.
Anyway, that's all for now.
No worries,
Matt