Currently Reading

[Stormbringer]

boromir a viking

I thought that was awesome though. ¬_¬

[Sly Boots]

boromir a viking

I thought that was awesome though. ¬_¬

Me too

I don't know whether or not this is controversial, but I thought the animated Boromir did a better job of the character than Sean Bean.

It's been many moons since I last saw it, mind.

[Snowy]

Books, then ¬_¬

On the back of a post in Movies about Master and Commander, I have read the first three in Patrick O'Brien's Aubrey & Maturin series. Superb books but holy crap they take some work! They are written with what must be as close to historical accuracy as possible, especially linguistically. Each book opens with an illustration showing the sails of a square rigged 18th century warship and 21 different elements thereof - and the books then assume that you have studied it You do pick up a lot as you go along though.

Likewise the dialogue and the behaviour of the characters feels completely right for the period, but takes some serious work. Never have I been more grateful for the Kindle's dictionary and wikipedia functions! Each novel is a great sprawl, with the narrative quite unconstrained by the overall plot arc, but this makes for a very enjoyable read. They are not easy but they are hugely rewarding, being beautifully written windows into a bygone time, and I wholeheartedly recommend them.

That said, I have taken a break now (although I will be going back in due course). I am now reading Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft, and it is a wonderful piece of escapism.

The Tower of Babel is the greatest marvel in the world. Immense as a mountain, the ancient Tower holds unnumbered ringdoms, warring and peaceful, stacked one on the other like the layers of a cake. It is a world of geniuses and tyrants, of airships and steam engines, of unusual animals and mysterious machines.

Soon after arriving for his honeymoon at the Tower, the mild-mannered headmaster of a small village school, Thomas Senlin, gets separated from his wife, Marya, in the overwhelming swarm of tourists, residents, and miscreants.

Senlin is determined to find Marya, but to do so he'll have to navigate madhouses, ballrooms, and burlesque theaters. He must survive betrayal, assassination, and the long guns of a flying fortress. But if he hopes to find his wife, he will have to do more than just endure.

This quiet man of letters must become a man of action.

I am only about 40% in, but am utterly captivated.

[Wrathbone]

I'm reading Bob Woodward's Fear: Trump in the White House, and it's exactly as entertaining and terrifying as you might expect. The man most directly to blame for Trump getting elected appears to be Steve Bannon, who seems every bit as repugnant as Trump except with some strategical nounce.

[Maturin]

Glad you liked O'Brian's books Snowy. It's great seeing Aubrey rise up slowly through the ranks as the books progress and his reputation increases.

But I agree, it's different to reading most historical novels. With these, it feels at times like you're actually reading a novel that was written 200 years ago, just after the Napoleonic wars. So you're tackling the naval technical stuff as well as the old-fashioned prose (which I find quite charming).

[Hatredsheart]

I'm reading Bob Woodward's Fear: Trump in the White House, and it's exactly as entertaining and terrifying as you might expect. The man most directly to blame for Trump getting elected appears to be Steve Bannon, who seems every bit as repugnant as Trump except with some strategical nounce.

Just got that now, it's my "next to read" after my current tome.

[Sly Boots]

I'm reading Bob Woodward's Fear: Trump in the White House, and it's exactly as entertaining and terrifying as you might expect. The man most directly to blame for Trump getting elected appears to be Steve Bannon, who seems every bit as repugnant as Trump except with some strategical nounce.

I read the previous one, that came out a few months ago, Fire and Fury. It was at once fascinating and depressing while containing little we didn't already know about Trump.

[Alan]

Im quite interested in picking that up though I feel the gold will be mined out of it by other media quickly.


Finished off Mythos by Stephen Fry. A retelling of Greek mythology with a Fry spin which adds a few chuckles. At the start my head was a bit spinny with the sheer number of names thrown at you but once that settles down and you realise it’s mostly scene setting you can stop worrying about committing every name to memory. At that point it becomes way more manageable and compartmentalised.

I enjoyed it but I felt it was missing some spark somewhere. Maybe because he focuses on the more “moral of the story” myths and doesn’t touch the more bombastic things? Either way, I do enjoy Fry’s style and humour and some of the etymology is very interesting.


I picked up, on a similar theme, Gaimans Norse Mythology. The only Gaiman I know is American Gods TV and the Stardust movie which is a big favourite of mine so aye... I also have Anansi Boys too because it was cheap but I think I should read American Gods first because I think this is a sequel of sorts?

[Hatredsheart]

Norse Mythology is excellent, a great retelling that's got great humour too.

[Sly Boots]

Im quite interested in picking that up though I feel the gold will be mined out of it by other media quickly.


Finished off Mythos by Stephen Fry. A retelling of Greek mythology with a Fry spin which adds a few chuckles. At the start my head was a bit spinny with the sheer number of names thrown at you but once that settles down and you realise it’s mostly scene setting you can stop worrying about committing every name to memory. At that point it becomes way more manageable and compartmentalised.

I enjoyed it but I felt it was missing some spark somewhere. Maybe because he focuses on the more “moral of the story” myths and doesn’t touch the more bombastic things? Either way, I do enjoy Fry’s style and humour and some of the etymology is very interesting.


I picked up, on a similar theme, Gaimans Norse Mythology. The only Gaiman I know is American Gods TV and the Stardust movie which is a big favourite of mine so aye... I also have Anansi Boys too because it was cheap but I think I should read American Gods first because I think this is a sequel of sorts?

I don't believe NM is anything related to American Gods. However, AG is great so you should definitely read it (fwiw I far preferred the book to the show, which I gave up watching after 4-5 episodes). If you're in a bit of a Gaiman mood I highly recommend Neverwhere, probably my favourite of his. Although Anansi Boys is good too.

[Alan]

I’ll tell you in a few weeks if I’m in a Gaiman mood or not

[Mantis]

Had an urgent call-out for work last night and found myself at a hotel in the arse end of nowhere with nothing to do and none of my usual comforts that I take on trips away. So I booted up the Kindle app on my phone and picked something at random from my unread list. My choice landed on a little book called Shadows of the Dreamspire, which I had totally forgot that I had bought. I'm a few chapters in and it's been alright so far.

[Sly Boots]

Had an urgent call-out for work last night and found myself at a hotel in the arse end of nowhere with nothing to do and none of my usual comforts that I take on trips away. So I booted up the Kindle app on my phone and picked something at random from my unread list. My choice landed on a little book called Shadows of the Dreamspire, which I had totally forgot that I had bought. I'm a few chapters in and it's been alright so far.

I've heard the author is a right twat though... ¬_¬

[Gibby]

To be fair, he is!


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[Sly Boots]

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