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Talk about anything under the sun or stars - but keep it civil. This is where we really get to know each other. Everyone is welcome, and invited!
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Postby eriador » Fri Feb 08, 2008 11:27 pm

Narnia is super interesting, at least to me. My ONLY objection to them is the blatant theology, and that's a matter of personal preference. On Narnia, my final suggestion would be see for yourself. If you're like me, it's probably a good idea to give them a read, even if you'll end up retching (figuratively) by the end.

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Postby KennEnder » Sat Feb 09, 2008 1:36 am

Okay, this all seems pretty harsh and unfair.

Just because a person doesn't enjoy a book doesn't mean s/he is a bad reader. On the other hand, it also doesn't mean the author is a bad writer. It could be that the two are simply incompatible.

As an illustration, take classic movies. (Yes, I know.) My dad likes a lot of "classic" movies, but mainly the old westerns or war movies. Erol Flynn, John Wayne... But my mom prefers the "Gone with the Wind" and "Casa Blanca" style. Me? I like "Terminator" and "Back to the Future" and "Star Wars." They're all "classic" movies, but each has its own adherents, and often times people who enjoy one type can also appreciate or enjoy another. But not everyone who likes "classics" likes them all.

That being said, I also don't think Lewis tried to "hide" religion in his books. At least, no more than Orwell hid the fact that his books were political satyr or than Clancy hides the fact that his books are speculative modern warfare. Clancy is an excellent writer, his books are revered by many - but not EVERYONE can appreciate them. And those that do not enjoy Clancy (or Lewis or Tolkien or Pullman) are not (necessarily) less intelligent or capable of critical reading. Sometimes it's just not your style.

The trick is to learn the difference between when a book is bad because it is not your style, and when it is truly bad.
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Postby Eaquae Legit » Sat Feb 09, 2008 9:02 am

The trick is to learn the difference between when a book is bad because it is not your style, and when it is truly bad.
That is more what I was trying to get at, but I was in a bad mood and it came out super-harsh. I'm sorry about that.
"Only for today, I will devote 10 minutes of my time to some good reading, remembering that just as food is necessary to the life of the body, so good reading is necessary to the life of the soul." -- Pope John XXIII

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Postby eriador » Sat Feb 09, 2008 1:17 pm

I like both of your points.... Kenn, you're too nice. EL, you're to mean (in the good way, if you know what I mean...). I'll slide myself in the happy equilibrium ;)

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Postby Warmaker » Sun Feb 17, 2008 11:29 pm

I'll tell you this, I'm not a judge of the quality of writing. I'm not a career author and don't claim to be a good one, and I'm not an expert of who is or isn't. I am simply a man who likes stories. I am a judge of story content. The Narnia books were, to me, uninteresting and stupid. The quality of the literature carries less importance than the originality of the actual story that is being told and the creative character creation.
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Postby keats » Wed Mar 05, 2008 11:41 am

Yeah. Avoid 'em. C.S. Lewis packs in too much theology to make the story interesting. Though I'll be the first to admit I'm biased.
They were awesome precisely because they pack in theology. The Last Battle was my favorite.
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Postby keats » Wed Mar 05, 2008 12:19 pm

Along with Ender's and Speaker, which I have to assume that everyone here has either read or will read, here are some winners:

Illuminatus! (or, the Illumantus Trilogy, or, How I found Goddess and what I did to her when I found her--that might be a title for the Principia though--so much time, so little to read!). Robert Anton Wilson + Robert Shea

Foundation (THINK BIG!) Aasimov

The Count of Monte Cristo (the recent movie of the same title has little to do with the novel) Dumas

Hyperion--Simmons (helps to know your Chaucer, Joyce and of course, Mr. John Keats, five feet high).

A Game of Thrones--Martin (an amazing writer)

The Bead Game--Hesse

The Eight--Neville (Historical Fiction--fun one)

I, Clau Clau Claudius (Graves)

The Spear of Destiny--Ravenscroft (ok, this one is either unintentional historical fiction because the author is insane or it is non-fiction, but either way, the book is a great read)

Some movie/poetry/book combos

The Caverns of Socrates (Mckiernan)/The Matrix
The Ancient Mariner (Coleridge)/Master and Commander
The Odyssey (Homer)/O Brother, Where art Thou?
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Postby locke » Thu Apr 24, 2008 1:48 pm

saw this in today's shelf awareness and I think this book sounds like a great choice for May's pick:
The Art of Meeting an Author in a Cafe

Two years ago, before the Shelf had offices or employees, our mail went to a post office box in Seattle. Once a week, my ritual was to collect the mail, go to a café and eat lunch--just to get out and feel social. One day at the luncheonette counter, I saw the owner of the restaurant sidle up to a man sitting three stools down from me and say, "Hey Garth! How's the book coming?" I glanced sideways over at the man. He looked, well, not scary. (Okay, fine. He's spiffy.) I wondered: do I introduce myself? Could he be the feared author who gloms on to anyone in publishing? I took the risk. It turned out that he knew about the Shelf and that he wasn't the glom-my type. So, about once a month we'd meet for lunch and talk book biz. A few months later, he came to lunch with a large box--the manuscript. Gulp.

Of course, we all have stories in this biz about loving a book, hating the author, and vice versa. I liked Garth and his family. We were neighbors. I really didn't want to hate his book.

I took the manuscript home and stared at it for a week. The title page read "The Art of Racing in the Rain." Hmm. Okay. Good title. I dove in.

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein is told from the point of view of a dog named Enzo who aspires to be a racecar driver like his owner, Denny. The TV is left on during the day while Enzo's owner is working, so he's learned a lot about the world. (He's often quite miffed at not possessing opposable thumbs.) Through Enzo, we learn the story of how his master fell in love with his wife, Eve, the addition of their daughter Zoey, and how it all tragically unraveled. Have a box of Kleenex near.

Early on in my reading, I kept trying to meld the baker from The Godfather (the only other Enzo I've known) with the early moments of the movie Splash where Daryl Hannah the mermaid learns to speak English from watching TV. But I quickly learned there were no models for Enzo. He was completely original and calming in a Zen-like way. You're totally under the spell of a dog who's telling us his completely believable and authentic story.

The test of a good book for me is to read it, put it away, then see if I can still hear the voices, miss the characters and wish it hadn't ended. I said nothing to anyone about Garth's book for three weeks after I had read it. Later as I was playing with marketing ideas for it, I knew it was special and brilliant. (I'm still very partial to a campaign based around "What Would Enzo Do?")

When I called Garth to tell him what I thought, he said, "Well, I'm glad you liked it, because my agent just turned it down." Then began the saga. During the next few months, several more agents passed on this gem. The rejections came with explanations like, "It's not what they are looking for." "No one knows how to market it." "Too much (or too little) like everything else."

What the--? Hello? Did you even read it? Arrgh! I was incensed. I think it's one of the hardest things to bear in this biz: when the good books don't make it.

But finally, Garth found an agent who understood The Art of Racing in the Rain. It went out, and the offers started to come in. They started small and progressively got, well, almost other-worldly. Keep in mind that Garth had published two other books to critical acclaim, but without significant sales numbers.

In the end, the fine folks at HarperCollins won it for $1.2 million, English-only rights. I saw Garth about a week after this, running along the lake, near the neighborhood where we both live. I stopped him by asking if he was that "rock star author Garth." He laughed and answered, "My Mom calls me everyday lately and says, 'Really? Are you sure they want it? Did you hear that number right?' "

The Art of Racing in the Rain will be out in mid-May. Get ready. Read this wreckingly great novel. Meet Garth. Get him in your store.

We at the Shelf think it's going to be huge. I'm almost afraid of walking into Target one day and seeing little stuffed movie tie-in Enzos everywhere.

No one should begrudge Garth a smidgeon of his success. I certainly can't. This, of course, has nothing to do with the fact that my daughter stars in his book trailer. Ahem. Click here to see it.--Jenn Risko
So, Lone Star, now you see that evil will always triumph because good is dumb.

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Postby Petra » Fri Oct 31, 2008 12:47 pm

I've gotten some strange taste in books lately, but here were a couple I liked:

Emergency Sex and Other Desperate Measures--Great non-fiction about three UN peacekeepers in war zones in the 90's. Caused a bit of a stir way back when.

World War Z--Oral history of the zombie wars. Nuff said.

Switching Time--This is a tough read. If you have a problem with really graphic depictions of child abuse, stay away. But it is a great account of a woman who integrated the 17 facets of her Multiple Personality Disorder. [/b]
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Postby locke » Wed Nov 05, 2008 4:20 am

Interesting, sounds like something to keep in mind for upcoming months.

For December I am currently thinking a 'best of 2008' would be appropriate, using Hugo/Nebula or NBA awards or some such for the nominees.
So, Lone Star, now you see that evil will always triumph because good is dumb.

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Postby Hector.Victorious » Sun Nov 23, 2008 2:55 pm

I just read Tuesdays with Morrie. It was really quite good. Its one of those books you can't put down because the story just captures your attention.
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Postby Quack » Tue Dec 09, 2008 9:14 pm

I second the recommendation of Robert Anton Wilson's stuff. Grand masta discordian he be. Also, the film Maybe Logic, which features RAW blathering on in his home in the later years, is a fun watch.

Also, in a similar vein: Poker Without Cards. The full text is online. It's about media framing, bucky fuller-ology, profiling, and yes... poker without cards. Reading it is possible in a day - it's written as a series of 'real' transcripts from recorded conversations between a psychiatrist and... a dude who may or may not be the main character. Reading it is like drinking a huge bottle of mana potion.

Also, yes, Neil Stephenson's work. Snow Crash is almost required reading among us-all-types, but I really want to get around to Cryptonomicon this winter.

If you like Neil, Tad Williams' Otherland series is a good read. About near-future where the "internet" is experienced through VR, features an MMORPG. Gamers may like.

Also, locke - I just started reading "Vellum" by Hal Duncan - which I too, received from someone who was very insistent that I read it ASAP. It's hard for me to get into... his writing is very theatrical and maybe a tad showy. ? Don't know. We'll see.
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Postby Laura » Fri Apr 03, 2009 11:00 am

I've just gone through pages 1 and 3 of suggested books.
For many years C.S. Lewis was my favorite author, and have reread not only the Chronicals but the space trilogy. In times of conflict or depression I have gone back to read favorite exerts. Aslan singing Narnia in to existence is the best.

I discovered audio books through the Harry Potter series. Jim Dale is such an excelent reader that he got the first Grammy for best audio book of the year. He also has the Guninnes record for the greatest number of distinct voices. I have listened to them all multiple times.

Anne McCaffrey's series about a planet called Pern and the friendly dragons there. She has done some very extensive work of creating a culture and society far beyond just dragon riders. A whole new world. http://pern.srellim.org/intro.htm

Audio books is what brought me to OSC. The first one I listened to was 'Crystal City', the last of the Alvin series. It was so good that I uesd interlibrary loan to listen to the others in order. Which caused me to research some of the historical facts that are true also in our time line.

If anyone likes romantic stuff try an author named Santa Montefiore.[/url]
Laura

To God all times are soon. paraphrase fromC.S.Lewis Chronicals of Narnia

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Postby ^Peter » Sat May 09, 2009 6:17 pm

Chronicles of Narnia is one of my favorite series, too :) .

I would suggest Angels & Demons by Dan Brown. It's a fast-paced thriller, well-written, and very hard to put down. Most people probably know about that Da Vinci Code controversy. Angels & Demons is the first book Brown wrote with the character Robert Langdon, so this one is as, if not more, controversial then its predecesor. However, I am a catholic on my way to confirmation, yet I still enjoyed it. Those who are offended by Brown's Langdon trilogy need to get over it and remember its all fiction. So, yeah. I recommend Angels & Demons.

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Postby Jeesh_girl15 » Thu May 21, 2009 4:13 pm

I just read Tuesdays with Morrie. It was really quite good. Its one of those books you can't put down because the story just captures your attention.
The librarian at my school recommended that book to us. She said it was a good book, but we wouldn't understand it til we're older. She told us to wait til we're out of college at least to read it.

The librarian also told us about this book called Who Moved My Cheese.

I haven't read either of them, but she says they're both very good.

Also, I was wanting to see/read Angels and Demons. It looked like a nice fast paced book/movie, and I love that. Fast paced literature is so easy to get involved in (at least for me).
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Postby ^Peter » Thu May 21, 2009 4:23 pm

Read the book first. The movie was good, but it massacred the original plot line.
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Postby Jeesh_girl15 » Thu May 21, 2009 4:26 pm

I'm guessing you're not out of college. So the movie was good. How was the book?
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Postby ^Peter » Thu May 21, 2009 4:27 pm

What's that supposed to mean?

The book was very exciting. I literally could not put it down.
Last edited by ^Peter on Thu May 21, 2009 4:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby Jeesh_girl15 » Thu May 21, 2009 4:31 pm

I dunno. Most times, and almost all times, the book is better than the movie. Hardly any times, but still sometimes, the movie is better than the book.

I've never seen/read either of them, so how should I know?
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Postby ^Peter » Thu May 21, 2009 4:36 pm

I meant the college thing. I'm only 14, of course I'm not out of college. I probably do read as much as college students do, though. Too much time on my hands, I've got to do something.
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Postby Jeesh_girl15 » Thu May 21, 2009 4:40 pm

*off topic*
Oh, come on. I was reading at a college level when I was 12. Not that I'm dorky, or anything, cause I'm pretty popular at school. And I have way to much time on my hands since soccer, basketball, and volleyball are over. Here comes summer... love to love it and hate to love hating it.
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Postby locke » Mon Jun 01, 2009 4:12 pm

I'm seriously thinking about making a new book club selection, The Angel's Game, Carlos Ruiz Zafon's second novel is coming out this month:
“The whole of Barcelona stretched out at my feet and I wanted to believe that, when I opened those windows, its streets would whisper stories to me, secrets I could capture on paper and narrate to whomever cared to listen...”

In an abandoned mansion at the heart of Barcelona, a young man, David Martín, makes his living by writing sensationalist novels under a pseudonym. The survivor of a troubled childhood, he has taken refuge in the world of books and spends his nights spinning baroque tales about the city’s underworld. But perhaps his dark imaginings are not as strange as they seem, for in a locked room deep within the house lie photographs and letters hinting at the mysterious death of the previous owner.

Like a slow poison, the history of the place seeps into his bones as he struggles with an impossible love. Close to despair, David receives a letter from a reclusive French editor, Andreas Corelli, who makes him the offer of a lifetime. He is to write a book unlike anything that has ever existed--a book with the power to change hearts and minds. In return, he will receive a fortune, and perhaps more. But as David begins the work, he realizes that there is a connection between his haunting book and the shadows that surround his home.

Once again, Zafón takes us into a dark, gothic universe first seen in The Shadow of the Wind and creates a breathtaking adventure of intrigue, romance, and tragedy. Through a dizzingly constructed labyrinth of secrets, the magic of books, passion, and friendship blend into a masterful story.
For those that don't know, Shadow of the Wind is the best book written in the last four or five years, an unbelievably beautiful and staggering work that captivated me from page one, comparable to American Gods in how outstanding it is.

Zafon has this to say about his books on Amazon:
Years ago, when I began working on my fifth novel, The Shadow of the Wind, I started toying around with the idea of creating a fictional universe that would be articulated through four interconnected stories in which we would meet some of the same characters at different times in their lives, and see them from different perspectives where many plots and subplots would tie around in knots for the reader to untie. It sounds somewhat pretentious, but my idea was to add a twist to the story and provide the reader with what I hoped would be a stimulating and playful reading experience. Since these books were, in part, about the world of literature, books, reading and language, I thought it would be interesting to use the different novels to explore those themes through different angles and to add new layers to the meaning of the stories.

At first I thought this could be done in one book, but soon I realized it would make Shadow of the Wind a monster novel, and in many ways, destroy the structure I was trying to design for it. I realized I would have to write four different novels. They would be stand-alone stories that could be read in any order. I saw them as a Chinese box of stories with four doors of entry, a labyrinth of fictions that could be explored in many directions, entirely or in parts, and that could provide the reader with an additional layer of enjoyment and play. These novels would have a central axis, the idea of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, set against the backdrop of a highly stylized, gothic and mysterious Barcelona. Since each novel was going to be complex and difficult to write, I decided to take one at a time and see how the experiment evolved on its own in an organic way.

It all sounds very complicated, but it is not. At the end of the day, these are just stories that share a universe, a tone and some central themes and characters. You don’t need to care or know about any of this stuff to enjoy them. One of the fun things about this process was it allowed me to give each book a different personality. Thus, if Shadow of the Wind is the nice, good girl in the family, The Angel’s Game would be the wicked gothic stepsister. Some readers often ask me if The Angel’s Game is a prequel or a sequel. The answer is: none of these things, and all of the above. Essentially The Angel’s Game is a new book, a stand-alone story that you can fully enjoy and understand on its own. But if you have already read The Shadow of the Wind, or you decide to read it afterwards, you’ll find new meanings and connections that I hope will enhance your experience with these characters and their adventures.
The Angel’s Game has many games inside, one of them with the reader. It is a book designed to make you step into the storytelling process and become a part of it. In other words, the wicked, gothic chick wants your blood. Beware. Maybe, without realizing, I ended up writing a monster book after all... Don’t say I didn’t warn you, courageous reader. I’ll see you on the other side. --Carlos Ruiz Zafón
So, Lone Star, now you see that evil will always triumph because good is dumb.

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Postby randystelph » Thu Aug 13, 2009 4:58 pm

has anyone ever read stephen king's series The dark tower? there are 7 books, and if you like enders games then you will absolutely fall in love with the dark tower series. my two favorite series that i have read, and i cant think of any other more addicting books. I introduced both series to my school, and the dark tower series had multiple kids (17 to be exact) skipping up to a week of class per book depending on how slow of readers they were. it takes place roughly 4000 years in the future on earth, which is in a post-apocoliptic state where esentially the most advanced weapons are the equivalent of a .45 revolver with an extended barrel(carried by gunslingers alone. which in this setting there is only one gunslinger left.) A you will follow a man named Rolland Deschain through 7 300-700 page books that tell his tale on his quest for the Dark Tower . PLEASE, i can't stess enough how absolutley amazing this series is, and ignore your initial judgment of stephon kings books, because i actually hate all of his books that i have read aside from these.(and i have read almost all in search of books as absolutely amazing as these.) read these books and be a tower junkie. trust me.
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Postby Darth Petra » Wed Oct 07, 2009 7:15 am

I recomend Silence of the Lambs. It was actually as good as the movie, which I was doubting.
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Postby bmirheli » Fri Dec 18, 2009 6:37 pm

World War Z by Max Brooks, This book stuck out of the shelf of my college library and I hate to admit it but i picked it up solely because it was about zombie's. But as i got into the story i had to glance back at the cover to make sure i wasn't reading another OSC book and not know it. It has such a powerful human factor and it's told entirely from survivors point's of views. If you need something to tide you over until Shadows in Flight comes out (i know i do) i suggest picking it up.
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Postby Graff^ » Thu Feb 25, 2010 3:06 pm

I highly recomeend(sp?) Evil Genius and it's sequel Genius Squad
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