Re: A new book thread

by DJ_Smerk Tue 19 May 2009, 11:43

All based on a linguistic misinterpretation.

by Demelza Tue 19 May 2009, 12:46

Does anyone hear from Matt?

Who was, "A Massive Zebra?"

by Brass Monkey Tue 19 May 2009, 12:47

Hmmm, Welsh jokes and sci-fi books and yet no-one has mentioned "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep".

Maybe it wasn't funny.

No. It's not funny.

Never mind.

by DJ_Smerk Tue 19 May 2009, 12:51

I laughed. Mostly at the latter reaction to your own punchline.

by Merlin Tue 19 May 2009, 13:33

Brass Monkey wrote:Hmmm, Welsh jokes and sci-fi books and yet no-one has mentioned "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep".

Maybe it wasn't funny.

No. It's not funny.

Never mind.

yes it is!

PS One of the best sci fi films ever made IMO.

by Chivalry Augustus Tue 19 May 2009, 14:04

Big_Bad_Bob wrote:Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card.

Coincidentally, Ender's Game is the very book I had started reading just prior to this thread. I'm a hundred pages in or so, and whilst I would say the writing is a little clunky to start with, it's very imaginatively done and seems like it will really blow up two hundred pages down the line. It's a book I've been meaning to read for a while, but seeing as it's pretty much the last thing I've got to read...

...DADOES? is a great book but not PKD's best. They certainly missed a trick in not naming the film after the book, imo. And the film's pretty tame relative as well. Blade Runner's one of those films that I remembered as being good until I watched it again and realised it's just Harrison Ford playing the same character he always plays.

Edit: I've seen Sunshine as well and it's a wee bit messed up. Good special effects and, all told, a decent sky fi flick,

by Chivalry Augustus Tue 19 May 2009, 16:43

Just looking through my book shelves, here's some great books for any other gheys:

Gateway, Frederik Pohl
The Forever War, Joe Haldeman
Shaman's Crossing, Robin Hobb*
Ringworld, Larry Niven
Dr Bloodmoney, Philip K Dick
The Blade Itself, Joe Abercrombie*
Assassin's Apprentice, Robin Hobb*
Non-Stop, Brian Aldiss
The Book of Skulls, Robert Silverberg

* - 1st in a trilogy

by freddled gruntbuggly Thu 21 May 2009, 10:25

C.J. Cherryh's Chanur series.
David Brin's Uplift series.

by JGK Thu 21 May 2009, 10:33

For sci fi - also try Neverness by David Zindell.

by Bradman Thu 21 May 2009, 11:29

'Tropic of Capricorn' and 'The White Hotel'.

by Zat Thu 21 May 2009, 11:32

George W Bush was once asked what was his favourite book as a child. he answered 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'. A nice picture book, with a little hole in each page that the caterpillar supposedly ate through.

Only problem was that said book wasn't published until Bush was at least a teenager...

by Bradman Thu 21 May 2009, 11:35

He probably mistaked it for his flight training manual, the few times he was actually on a National Guard base doing flight training.

by Zat Thu 21 May 2009, 11:35

'mistaked'?

by Bradman Thu 21 May 2009, 11:39

'mistaked'. Yeah as in 'margherittas. Or..... wait for it ... irony.

by Zat Thu 21 May 2009, 11:40

Ah, as in OPEC.

by Bradman Thu 21 May 2009, 11:50

Or 'I'm just so farked up I didn't realise my running mate had to change his address to be my running mate, I whipped two guys who'd served in Vietnam despite using Daddy to keep my ass out of the place, I fry people at the drop of the hat but wasted a trillion bucks trying to arrest someone who's still living with Hoffa and Elvis on a beach somewhere, I'm the only US born cabinet member kept out of nuclear war plans.....etc, etc.'

I don't need the abuse of the English language to find things wrong with him.

by Zat Thu 21 May 2009, 11:51

Bradman wrote:I don't need the abuse of the English language to find things wrong with him.

Yeah, but it's fun.

by Bradman Thu 21 May 2009, 11:55

True.

by Demelza Sat 23 May 2009, 00:32

Which book would you recommend that everyone should read? There's a couple I've read over and over again and it makes me feel jealous of my friends that have never read them. I want to feel the way I did again when I first read them.

Has anyone here ever read, 1066 And All That, by Sellar and Yeatman?
One of my favourites when I was growing up and can still really make me chuckle Very Happy

by tac Sat 23 May 2009, 00:55

Two books I think eveyone should read, and probably most have, are "Winter of our discontent" and "The Power and the Glory".

by PeterCS Sat 23 May 2009, 01:05

New books and hanky-pankies.

by PeterCS Sat 23 May 2009, 01:07

The Willow Wand or A Social History of English Cricket, by Derek Bierley.

A lot of overlap between the two, but brilliant, drily humorous, critical books.

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