What are you currently reading?

[Cancelly]

Started reading the manga Chainsaw Man, trying to finish a whole fking bible here

[leejacksonaudio]

"Peril" by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa

[Rudolph]

Okay, so I am done reading with Iron Widow. Unfortunately, I am not sure I can recommend it after all, as there is a morally very questionable chapter followed by a final act that feels incredibly rushed, given that it introduces a whole new setting, important plot revelations (including a few that sort of comes out of nowhere) and even a new character in a very short period of time.

 

Spoiler

First, you have a scene where our noble heroes successfully torture a bad guy for information and then cruelly kill him in what is intended to be some kind of poetic justice, and then several chapters later, the deuteragonist suddenly dies and is quickly replaced by a deus ex machina character whose existence had only been mentioned in passing before. Imagine if in, say, "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade", Henry Jones, Sr. were to get suddenly killed off after the tank chase scene and almost immediately replaced by the immortal knight guarding the Holy Grail as his sidekick, who would then join Indiana Jones in a final epic battle against Nazis.

 

A real shame, as the writing, the lore and the main character had been pretty good so far. :(

 

Edited September 27, 2021 by Rudolph

[Bubbabooie]

On 9/25/2021 at 12:53 PM, KillPixel said:

Hyperion by Dan Simmons

I loved that book. The third in the series was especially great, the series goes from like literate philosophical sci-fi to a rollicking action movie.

[Wad overdose]

matthew castello worlds on fire just read the prologue.

[ducon]

I read Voices from Chernobyl (La supplication in French) written by Svetlana Alexievich.

 

It’s an organized collection of testimonies from people who lived or worked near or on Chernobyl. Some of them were children born before or after, peasants, professors, scientists, workers, firemen, bureaucrats…

It’s like the Chernobyl mini-series but without the explanations of the explosion and with the people’s words. I thought that it would harder to read than I that. Maybe the series prepared me.

 

I’m now reading Les Luttes de classes en France au XXIe siècle by Emmanuel Todd.

[Widosm]

The complete works of H.P Lovecraft (not the whole thing).

Very atmospheric.

[mariopepper]

Jane Hinchey's book series. I am not sure you know about Ghost Detective Series - Jane Hinchey but if you do - that's cool :)

I am sure people have heard about Jane cause she is an Aussie author who writes cozy mysteries with plenty of laughs and mayhem along the way. She really puts something special in her books.. Who says murder can't be fun? :D

 

Edited November 6, 2021 by mariopepper

[ducon]

I finished the seven books of Elric of Melniboné’s cycle.

We all know Elric’s story and Stormbringer, "his" runic and evil sword, his romantic and desperate fight against Chaos.

Moorcock wanted to create an anti-Conan: he left his throne, he was feeble without drugs (or he needed Stormbringer to survive) and he was not a superhuman.

As Le Guin wrote elsewhere, it’s still a male story, the female heroins or companions are fucked by Elric and often killed by Elric.

Oh, I just realized that Melnibonéans are in fact… elves.

 

I’m reading now this book: Le livre d’or de Michael Moorcock.

 

Edited November 2, 2021 by ducon

[Yumheart]

Currently reading To Kill a Mockingbird for school. I don't dislike it, it's just not the kind of book I usually read. My two favorite novels are probably 1984 (wow, vewy owiginal) and Slaughterhouse-Five. I especially enjoyed Slaughterhouse-Five, it's got such a beautiful and zany sorta melancholy, it's hard to put into words.

[Swordofdanu]

On 10/28/2021 at 1:28 PM, ducon said:

I finished the seven books of Elric of Melniboné’s cycle.

We all know Elric’s story and Stormbringer, "his" runic and evil sword, his romantic and desperate fight against Chaos.

Moorcock wanted to create an anti-Conan: he left his throne, he was feeble without drugs (or he needed Stormbringer to survive) and he was not a superhuman.

As Le Guin wrote elsewhere, it’s still a male story, the female heroins or companions are fucked by Elric and often killed by Elric.

Oh, I just realized that Melnibonéans are in fact… elves.

 

I’m reading now this book:

 

One of my favourite authors ❤️ The Eternal Champion, Hawkmoon and Corum books are also very good and linked with the same multiverse which cross over now and then. (apologies if this is not new to you) 

I also enjoyed Dancers at the end of Time which is more sci fi than sword and sorcery. 

 

He (Moorcock) has a great writing style which is easy to get into and keeps you reading.  

[Avoozl]

I haven't really read anything in a while but the last book I read was Star Wars X-Wing Book 3: The Krytos Trap.

[ducon]

I read Les Luttes de classes en France au XXIe siècle by Emmanuel Todd.

The author pastiches Marx’ Les luttes de classes en France (The Class Struggles in France, 1848 to 1850) and tries to think the Gilets jaunes’ movement and the impoverishment of all the classes (even the top class).

For him, the Gilet jaunes’ movement is a revolt that has the same importance than 1968 in France. Who moved? He sees five classes in France:

• The top class, that controls the State, then from top to bottom,
• The educated class (petite bourgeoisie),
• The 50% centre and forgotten class (a majority of women: employees, craftsmen…),
• The proletariat,
• The immigrants and their descendants,
• The imaginary Jewish (that is also believed on top of the top class).

Of course, the Jewish people is everywhere in this classification, perhaps a bit more in the educated class.

The author explains that each class despises the class below (except the 50% centre that is completely forgotten).

So, who moved? The proletariat and the 50% centre. Against who? No, firstly not against: for their lives. Then against Macron (the French president) and Le Pen (the leader of the so-called populist right French party, someone like Trump but without the money). The Gilet jaunes won the struggle even if the repression was harsh and violent. Nearly 70% of the French population supported the movement. Macron was forced to give money and to stop the worst of his politics. Le Pen’s party was shown for what it was: a party that do not care about the people and that is somewhat like Macron’s party, a napoleonic (the third one) party, violent and greedy.

What are his conclusions? The author wants the creation of a new party that fights the pre-fascist two other ones (Macron and Le Pen) and that stops the uselessness of today’s democracy (in France) where France’s leaders can’t do what they are elected for (thank to euro and to Maastricht’s treaty). Thus, France must leave Germany’s tutelage, the euro and find help from… the USA.

 

Now, I’m going to read Le pouvoir rhétorique by Clément Viktorovitch.

Edited November 3, 2021 by ducon

[Sergeant G]

I'm reading a Cthulhu Stories collection by ole man HP, tis the season!  

[ducon]

Fhtagn!

[Jacek Bourne]

One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest

[Sergeant G]

13 minutes ago, ducon said:

Fhtagn!

He will Rise Again! Soon!

[SilentD00mer]

Journey to the Center of the Earth

[Plats]

Mythical creatures, some random book i borrowed in library

Edited November 2, 2021 by Plats

[RetroAkaMe]

I'm reading DW right now but I usually read some ducktales before sleeping.

[kalaeth]

been reading The End of Eternity by Isaac Asimov, recently I realised I had never read it, despite having a copy at home, so it's now my "current book".

(I don't read as much as I used too mostly because I haven't started commuting again, so it might take me a while to finish it) 

[7Mahonin]

I’ve been reading Tiger’s Ascent, which was recommended to me by a friend. I don’t usually read books like this but I found it to be quite enjoyable for a fantasy set in a fictional Asian empire. It sort of reminds me of the Art of War with its use of military tactics and politics that would’ve been used during a time period like that. I think it could’ve been a bit longer though. The author seems to skim over certain things while putting a lot more emphasis on dialogue, as well as being quite descriptive when it comes to the fighting conflicts in the novel. 

Edited November 13, 2021 by TelicAx7

[ducon]

I read this book (Livre d’or of Moorcock):

 

It’s not my favourite kind of fantasy or science fiction. It’s too high, too messy for me.

It’s a compilation of various Moorcock short texts, the first ones are more classical, I found that they were the best ones. The latter ones (Jerry Cornelius)… meh.

 

No, I’m reading this book:

I finished it (it’s rather short).

It’s Richard Malka’s pleading on December the 4^th 2020. It’s the written version. He re-established facts about the lies of the people who instrumentalized the caricatures in order to push their pawns.

 

Now, I’m reading this philosophical novel:

Edited November 20, 2021 by ducon

[ducon]

I’m also reading this book:

The French cartoonist was also well known as a jazz connoisseur.

This book contains his chronicles in French jazz magazines during the 60’s (and a bit later too).

[ducon]

I read Siné’s Jazzmaniaque.

Darn, I forgot that rock ’n’ roll was first considered as jazz. He met Malcolm X two weeks before his assassination: Malcolm X was not Muslim by faith, just by tactical choice.

 

I also read Le pouvoir rhétorique by Clément Viktorovitch, an awfully good book about rhetoric. He learns how to use it, many and many tips about how to convince, and most of all: to be modest. If you want to convince, you must admit to be convinced too.

There is no absolute rule, just errors not to do.

 

I’m now beginning La France sous nos yeux by Jean-Laurent Cassely and Jérôme Fourquet.

Edited January 9, 2022 by ducon

[Hawk of The Crystals]

OP revisits the thread the say: I am reading Dagon by H.P Lovecraft currently.

[valkiriforce]

Not something I'm currently reading, but a good and honest book I read last year: Every Man A Hero by Ray Lambert. The man talks about his time and service during World War II, and the years leading up to it. A fascinating time capsule and a good read.

[LadyMistDragon]

Jade Legacy, the last book in the Green Bone Saga. It's this really cool story set in an analogue of 1960s China and centering on two different crime families vying for control that pulls from many different popular culture depictions of organized crime. Plus, thanks to a thing called jade, certain people can use light magic to fight each other!

[adamastor]

I just finished re-reading The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha, one of my all-time favourites, and am now reading The Immortal Hulk, which is turning out to be one of my favourite runs of the character.

[ducon]

I read La France sous nos yeux by Jean-Laurent Cassely and Jérôme Fourquet.

It’s a good sociology and geography book about the recent evolutions of France and its populations.

What about wealthy people? They are living in a few places (centre of large towns, near the sea and in places that got hype). They are leaving their car, eat organic food…

What about people who live in the suburbs? They are living far away from the first category, they need their car for work or shopping, they eat in fast foods…

They also study how the American way of life (frenchified of course) and other ways of life (muslim, japanese, other religions…) spread.

 

Now, I’m reading Le Nouveau péril sectaire (Antivax, crudivores, écoles Steiner, évangéliques radicaux...) by Jean-Loup Adénor and Timothée de Rauglaudre.

It’s about cults (The New Sectarian Peril in English).