- Joined
- Sep 10, 2013
Just finished up Thomas Jefferson's Crème Brûlée which I stumbled across in the library, this was a fun read since I enjoy history/food/eating. I also read the whole thing in the voice of Max Miller (of Tasting History).
What are you reading right now?
- Thread starter AtroposHeart
- Start date
Womble of Wimbledon
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Dec 13, 2022
I just finished a biography of Roald Dahl by Jeremy Treglown. I wanted to read one ever since I read that hit-piece on him in the New York Review of Books. I very much enjoyed it, not because it was especially well-written, but because his life is so fascinating and he himself seems like a great guy.
I am continuously astounded as how many people want to make him out to be some kind of monster, when all evidence points to him being a very impressive person, who was a bit cantankerous at times. He fought with bravery in the RAF in WWII, he wrote some of the most beloved children's books ever written, he wrote hugely successful screenplays, and he co-invented a type of shunt for children with hydrocephalus which helped thousands of children.
He did all this despite one child dying, another one getting massive brain trauma and nearly dying, his wife having three strokes and becoming a paralysed mute (a condition which he helped reverse by implementing an intense regimen of physio- and speech therapy), and he himself dealing with chronic pain and health problems most of his life. His children all adored him, he enjoyed a very happy marriage with his second wife, his family were devoted to him, and yet so many journoscum have wanted to tear him down over the years. Even this Treglown is pretty negative in his slant towards Dahl. I think he was a fantastic person.
Also, he publicly named the Jew, so surely he gets some sort of Kiwifarms Hall of Fame award.
I am continuously astounded as how many people want to make him out to be some kind of monster, when all evidence points to him being a very impressive person, who was a bit cantankerous at times. He fought with bravery in the RAF in WWII, he wrote some of the most beloved children's books ever written, he wrote hugely successful screenplays, and he co-invented a type of shunt for children with hydrocephalus which helped thousands of children.
He did all this despite one child dying, another one getting massive brain trauma and nearly dying, his wife having three strokes and becoming a paralysed mute (a condition which he helped reverse by implementing an intense regimen of physio- and speech therapy), and he himself dealing with chronic pain and health problems most of his life. His children all adored him, he enjoyed a very happy marriage with his second wife, his family were devoted to him, and yet so many journoscum have wanted to tear him down over the years. Even this Treglown is pretty negative in his slant towards Dahl. I think he was a fantastic person.
Also, he publicly named the Jew, so surely he gets some sort of Kiwifarms Hall of Fame award.
CowPox
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2022
I just finished "Confederacy of Dunces" it had alot of hype around it and now having read it i found it a bit underwhelming. It has its moments and the best part of the book for me is the Ignatius character, kinda a cross between the Dude from the Big Lebowski and Niles Crane from Frasier, a know it all neet who stands around 6'5 and weighs over 300 lbs with one yellow and one blue eye who and dressing in garish garb he rails against society while living with his mother. also its set in the 50's and there's a black character who talks like a nigger and its kinda amusing...
I think one of the reasons this was so heavily recommended is do to the author having killed himself somewhat young after failing to find a publisher for it, his mother rallied for it after his death where it found its audience and accolades, that being said it was a fine read i suppose the whole experience felt like a John Waters movie, strangely quirky.
My next read is "Tarzan".
*from a diffrent thread.
I think one of the reasons this was so heavily recommended is do to the author having killed himself somewhat young after failing to find a publisher for it, his mother rallied for it after his death where it found its audience and accolades, that being said it was a fine read i suppose the whole experience felt like a John Waters movie, strangely quirky.
My next read is "Tarzan".
*from a diffrent thread.
- Joined
- Jun 7, 2021
Got done with The Brothers Karamazov on Saturday morning. I’m still trying to sort my thoughts about it, given it’s such a great novel. I just hate that Dostoyevsky died before there could be a sequel, because it’s strongly needed.
Now on to Hunchback. It’s hard to read, because there’s so many French names and I’m trying to follow the events from the first two chapters. This is one of these books where I’m glad I read the intro, because I would have closed the book if Quasimodo wasn’t immediately introduced (he’s not even the main character, like the Disney movie had me expect). I’m trying to be patient with it, so I’ll see how it goes.
Now on to Hunchback. It’s hard to read, because there’s so many French names and I’m trying to follow the events from the first two chapters. This is one of these books where I’m glad I read the intro, because I would have closed the book if Quasimodo wasn’t immediately introduced (he’s not even the main character, like the Disney movie had me expect). I’m trying to be patient with it, so I’ll see how it goes.
- Joined
- Jan 18, 2019
I finished Clown in a Cornfield, and even though it wasn't what I expected I enjoyed it more than Dark Harvest. Firstly, I just took for granted that it took place during Halloween (it didn't); second, it takes its sweet time to go to the point, but when it does shit goes down quicker than lightning. This is not supernatural horror, and has a lot of moments with violence and gore.
Quinn Maybrook, after the death of her mother, moves from Philadelphia to Kettle Springs in Missouri because her dad took a job as the new doctor of the town. Even though Quinn regrets leaving Philly, she understands that her father needs change in order to stop tormenting himself about his wife's demise. She tries to make friends and to get used to the slower life of Kettle Springs, but soon she realizes that there are hidden tensions under the town quaint facade.
Quinn Maybrook, after the death of her mother, moves from Philadelphia to Kettle Springs in Missouri because her dad took a job as the new doctor of the town. Even though Quinn regrets leaving Philly, she understands that her father needs change in order to stop tormenting himself about his wife's demise. She tries to make friends and to get used to the slower life of Kettle Springs, but soon she realizes that there are hidden tensions under the town quaint facade.
Like I said, Clown takes its sweet time to get to the point. The book begins with an accident in Kettle Springs where a girl dies in front of her brother and friends. One year later, Quinn moves to the town with her dad. She get acquainted with a group of friends whose leader, Cole Hill, is the dead girl's brother, and the son of the richest man in town. The author spends a lot of time explaining the why, the what and the who, and I have to admit that the first chapters are almost completely devoid of tension, because IMHO the hints Adam Cesare leaves to the readers aren't scary/disturbing enough to make them worried about the characters' fate.
Another thing I didn't like is that the killer's motivation is very flimsy and not believable. When all is said and done and our heroes confront their enemy, the reasons behind the massacre left me very disappointed. Like I said, it's not a supernatural horror with the kids used as a sacrifice, so when the real cause of the killings is revealed, I couldn't help to think "Seriously?".
Anyway, shit goes down during a high-school party thrown in an barn in the middle of the cornfields around Kettle Springs: somebody masked as Frendo the Clown (the town mascot) appears and begins killing indiscriminately all the kids who are there. Who is this mysterious killer, and what's their goal?
From here onward, there's carnage, fire, explosions and shocking realizations. The author makes his killer a real sadist who isn't above decapitating people with a chainsaw or killing them with a crossbow. The few kids who organize a counterattack are tough, tho; there's the weapon expert, who of course has his body count, but almost everyone does what is needed to survive. Even Quinn's shy father has his moment to shine. Quinn, the main character, is strong without being a superwoman and thank god there're no romantic plots for her. The beginning of the book hints heavily that she will get together with Cole, but at the end of the story they just become very good friends because Cole has another love interest. It's something I appreciated a lot.
I give it a 7,5/10, it would have been an 8 if the author had worked more on his killer's motivations. There's a sequel, Clown in a Cornfield 2, that I already started reading and takes place one year later. It gives Scream vibes, and since I like that franchise I hope this one won't disappoint.
Another thing I didn't like is that the killer's motivation is very flimsy and not believable. When all is said and done and our heroes confront their enemy, the reasons behind the massacre left me very disappointed. Like I said, it's not a supernatural horror with the kids used as a sacrifice, so when the real cause of the killings is revealed, I couldn't help to think "Seriously?".
Anyway, shit goes down during a high-school party thrown in an barn in the middle of the cornfields around Kettle Springs: somebody masked as Frendo the Clown (the town mascot) appears and begins killing indiscriminately all the kids who are there. Who is this mysterious killer, and what's their goal?
From here onward, there's carnage, fire, explosions and shocking realizations. The author makes his killer a real sadist who isn't above decapitating people with a chainsaw or killing them with a crossbow. The few kids who organize a counterattack are tough, tho; there's the weapon expert, who of course has his body count, but almost everyone does what is needed to survive. Even Quinn's shy father has his moment to shine. Quinn, the main character, is strong without being a superwoman and thank god there're no romantic plots for her. The beginning of the book hints heavily that she will get together with Cole, but at the end of the story they just become very good friends because Cole has another love interest. It's something I appreciated a lot.
I give it a 7,5/10, it would have been an 8 if the author had worked more on his killer's motivations. There's a sequel, Clown in a Cornfield 2, that I already started reading and takes place one year later. It gives Scream vibes, and since I like that franchise I hope this one won't disappoint.
- Joined
- Aug 19, 2022
I'm reading a girly romance novel that I got off a little lending library shelf at the bus stop. It flip-flops between the male and female perspective and both are written so poorly and stereotypically it astounds me.
The female main is supposed to be getting over having been raped, and has a collapse-on-the-ground flashback on the side of the road. The male main finds her and physically carries her into his house. When the woman comes to, she immediately starts lusting after him and thinking about sex and how horny she is. Stupid men can't write women? No, actual woman author- I looked it up to make sure it wasn't just a penname.
The male main is mute but not deaf, and lives by himself. He taught himself sign language from a book because reasons- he doesn't know anyone else who uses sign language. The main character also speaks sign language because her dad was deaf. When they're together, she speaks in sign language to him even though he tells her not to because his hearing is just fine. She continues signing because she thinks it makes her special. Denying to speak to someone in the language they tell you to use is a major faux pas- what a bitch. The entire story is supposed to be "woman is understanding to the misunderstood mute and wins his love" but she's just a weird dog lady who has BPD-style fits and Victorian dramatic fainting spells, while he seems totally independent and successful living alone as a master craftsman. They're supposed to both be "moving past their traumas", and maybe she'd benefit from being around a non-neurotic person, but what exactly is he supposed to get out of being around a mentally unstable woman who literally won't speak his language?
I can't put it down because it's so hokey and I get such a laugh out of the attempt to summon up a small town aesthetic. For instance, the main character has moved there suddenly, and needs a job. She goes to the local family diner (mandatory location for uwu aesthetic small town novels) and is hired on the spot by a woman she has never met before. And to top it off, they comp her meal because "employees eat free! Tee hee you start tomorrow!"
You're killing me. I'm dying- laughing.
The female main is supposed to be getting over having been raped, and has a collapse-on-the-ground flashback on the side of the road. The male main finds her and physically carries her into his house. When the woman comes to, she immediately starts lusting after him and thinking about sex and how horny she is. Stupid men can't write women? No, actual woman author- I looked it up to make sure it wasn't just a penname.
The male main is mute but not deaf, and lives by himself. He taught himself sign language from a book because reasons- he doesn't know anyone else who uses sign language. The main character also speaks sign language because her dad was deaf. When they're together, she speaks in sign language to him even though he tells her not to because his hearing is just fine. She continues signing because she thinks it makes her special. Denying to speak to someone in the language they tell you to use is a major faux pas- what a bitch. The entire story is supposed to be "woman is understanding to the misunderstood mute and wins his love" but she's just a weird dog lady who has BPD-style fits and Victorian dramatic fainting spells, while he seems totally independent and successful living alone as a master craftsman. They're supposed to both be "moving past their traumas", and maybe she'd benefit from being around a non-neurotic person, but what exactly is he supposed to get out of being around a mentally unstable woman who literally won't speak his language?
I can't put it down because it's so hokey and I get such a laugh out of the attempt to summon up a small town aesthetic. For instance, the main character has moved there suddenly, and needs a job. She goes to the local family diner (mandatory location for uwu aesthetic small town novels) and is hired on the spot by a woman she has never met before. And to top it off, they comp her meal because "employees eat free! Tee hee you start tomorrow!"
You're killing me. I'm dying- laughing.
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2020
A couple of days ago, I was interested in looking into Penguin Classics’ Portable Library series. For the first time, these were actual books that I’ve never heard of up until this point:
There’s also Portable Book versions on Chekhov and Cervantes, and these honestly seem like good reads that could last me for the rest of the remaining year.
There’s also Portable Book versions on Chekhov and Cervantes, and these honestly seem like good reads that could last me for the rest of the remaining year.
Registration
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- May 14, 2021
Reading this. It is so fucking interesting learning about the lives, actions, interests of people that were bascially the first brazilians. If you told me that a french navigator brought up two natives from brazil, one died by scurvy and after a shipwreck he adopts this young fella and marry him with his daugther and raise them further.
and the native has 14 sons and daughters and lives it up to 94 year old in france. Man, history is so cool, even more when we get by scraps of information in these 3 initial decades. So fucking good.
and the native has 14 sons and daughters and lives it up to 94 year old in france. Man, history is so cool, even more when we get by scraps of information in these 3 initial decades. So fucking good.
- Joined
- Dec 17, 2019
Given Brown's hard-on for Classical Greece I think it was more a way to work some Hubris into the MC's character arc. It's also a bit hero's journey, the good guys have to lose something for their victories to matter, or it's just Mary Sueish. The MC reaping the whirlwind after sowing the wind is a theme in the second group of books too. The funny thing is I watched an interview with Brown and he couldn't figure out the YA label, it wasn't intentional on his part.
I've been reading Costin Alamariu's (Bronze Age Pervert IRL) Selective Breeding and the Birth of Philosophy and it weirdly works really well as a companion to Red Rising in explaining aspects of the Classic Greek mindset that Brown works into Red Rising. It was not something I was expecting, but welcome.
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2020
I'm much more inclined to agree with you now that I've started Dark Age. With that said I still maintain my view that the harshness of how Darrow is depicted in Morning Star was a response to Gary Stu accusations. He doesn't have a single serious and memorable solo feat in the books.
I am going to read BAPs books now. To be honest I dismissed them before. Thank you for your insight.
- Joined
- Dec 17, 2019
And that's entirely possible, I never thought of Darrow as a Gary Stu, if only because Brown does a good job in showing his growth, I can see how people would though. I really don't know how many modern protagonists are actually portrayed as competent, so it is possible that most millennials and zoomers just can't sort that from Gary Stus. Darrow is a bit of a blunt instrument, but he is very, very good at it. Maybe he did just want to demonstrate that other characters are also competent in their own areas and it's not just the Darrow show all the time.
Also funny, Victra is based on a woman he dated.
I can't speak to Bronze Age Mindset, I've only read a bit of it, but his actual academic work is good. It is a doctoral dissertation though, so it's dense. A good read though.
Sister Miriam Godwinson
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2022
I started John Scalzi's "Kaiju Preservation Society" and I am disappoint.
His previous books, namely the "Old Man's War" series, were passable with an occasional good moment and had an interesting premise. This one is profoundly meh and is the most Reddit-like piece of literature I have ever read, with oh-so-quirky humor and oh-so-zany characters whose oh-so-quirky personalities (or lack thereof) swiftly become grating and blur into one amorphous blob of NPCs whose names you do not even bother to remember because of how inerchangeable they are. The same jokes get reused constantly, LGBT characters are introduced purely for LGBT's sake, and the author manages to render a parallel dimension inhabited by literal Gozillas into a bland cardboard background instead of actually exploring it, which would have been amazing.
Sprinkle it all with modern wink-wink, nudge-nudge references (COVID-19! Wear masks! Capitalism bad!), and my verdict is "give this book a pass unless you enjoy laughing at cringe".
His previous books, namely the "Old Man's War" series, were passable with an occasional good moment and had an interesting premise. This one is profoundly meh and is the most Reddit-like piece of literature I have ever read, with oh-so-quirky humor and oh-so-zany characters whose oh-so-quirky personalities (or lack thereof) swiftly become grating and blur into one amorphous blob of NPCs whose names you do not even bother to remember because of how inerchangeable they are. The same jokes get reused constantly, LGBT characters are introduced purely for LGBT's sake, and the author manages to render a parallel dimension inhabited by literal Gozillas into a bland cardboard background instead of actually exploring it, which would have been amazing.
Sprinkle it all with modern wink-wink, nudge-nudge references (COVID-19! Wear masks! Capitalism bad!), and my verdict is "give this book a pass unless you enjoy laughing at cringe".
- Joined
- Jan 22, 2022
Started Lord of the Rings for the first time and just finished The Fellowship. Really beautiful so far, it's largely an account of the most extreme hiking trip you can imagine. A lot of vivid descriptions of the landscape and experience of roughing it in large swaths of untamed land. So far, in comparison, I'd say the movies are very faithful. There's some rearrangements or deletions but makes sense for the translation to screen in my opinion. Obviously Tom Bombadil was cut from the films for runtime which makes sense since those chapters are very standalone. As well as Frodo waiting for 17 years with the ring before he leaves the Shire.
Gandalf and Saruman's (Sauron's man) meeting and dialogue is fantastic. It's very vivid you can feel the evil pouring off the page. It's definitely very helpful going in with some familiarity of the geography and landscape for a lot of names and locations are thrown at you, but most of the characters are unfamiliar as well so it's discovered and explored with them. Boromir is great because he's basically just a prick the whole time and barely conceals that he wants to take the ring to Minis Tirith. Gollum I also really enjoy. Every character who encounters him describes Gollum as disgusting and malodorous. However, he weaponizes people's pity and keeps escaping death and capture because of it.
The ending is slightly different from the movie. The book ends with Frodo and Sam going off on their own, but unlike the movie Boromir is still alive and Merry and Pippin haven't been captured yet. There's a lot of quick lines from the book which they worked into the movie which I appreciate. I also greatly appreciate Tolkien clearly stating in his forward that the story is not allegorical for any war or country and is simply to be an entertaining tale.
I'd easily recommend it. It's not as slow going as I thought and made it through The Fellowship in a weekend. However there are annexes and indexes of lore and if you go in completely unfamiliar it may be overwhelming. Some might find it slow or boring as large portions of it are simply travelling through the terrain, but I find the descriptions very soothing and enjoyable, especially during the fall.
Gandalf and Saruman's (Sauron's man) meeting and dialogue is fantastic. It's very vivid you can feel the evil pouring off the page. It's definitely very helpful going in with some familiarity of the geography and landscape for a lot of names and locations are thrown at you, but most of the characters are unfamiliar as well so it's discovered and explored with them. Boromir is great because he's basically just a prick the whole time and barely conceals that he wants to take the ring to Minis Tirith. Gollum I also really enjoy. Every character who encounters him describes Gollum as disgusting and malodorous. However, he weaponizes people's pity and keeps escaping death and capture because of it.
The ending is slightly different from the movie. The book ends with Frodo and Sam going off on their own, but unlike the movie Boromir is still alive and Merry and Pippin haven't been captured yet. There's a lot of quick lines from the book which they worked into the movie which I appreciate. I also greatly appreciate Tolkien clearly stating in his forward that the story is not allegorical for any war or country and is simply to be an entertaining tale.
I'd easily recommend it. It's not as slow going as I thought and made it through The Fellowship in a weekend. However there are annexes and indexes of lore and if you go in completely unfamiliar it may be overwhelming. Some might find it slow or boring as large portions of it are simply travelling through the terrain, but I find the descriptions very soothing and enjoyable, especially during the fall.
- Joined
- Jan 16, 2023
I've started to read The Goodbye Cat by Hiro Arikawa, a collection of short stories centering around a love of cats. I'm a big cat lover and already the first and second tales stuck out to me in particular, though they're the only ones I read so far. Be warned on the 'tism feels and PL ahead as I describe them.
The first is about a cat that is adopted as an almost newborn the same time as a boy is born to the adopting parents. He grows up and bonds with the boy, the boy both seeing the cat as his "younger brother" and learning he almost got the cat's name - and would have preferred it. The cat himself lives with an older cat who tells him of the nekomata tale, and he decides to figure out a plan to make it work so he may live spiritually with his boy forever. It works - at twenty-three years old the cat passes on, but the boy, now young man, has a premonition: he states he likes his name after all and is glad his preferred name is with his cat, whom he will always see as his younger brother, and both would not mind forever being who he is nor a reincarnation with his cat and family all over again. As someone whose first cat lived with him from five to twenty-six years old and died peacefully in sleep loved by family in her dying moment, this tale means a lot to me. I would not mind a second chance to reincarnate and live with all my past pets.
The second is about a bumbling artist newly married to his editor nearly out of pity, complete with a daughter on the way. To her shock he adopted an abandoned newborn kitten, to her further shock, he's suddenly taking keeping house and scheduling far more seriously, and his sudden need to parent the kitten transfers entirely to their daughter as well. He continues to man up and become the man she always thought he could never be while continuing his artist career and creativity, and his big break comes when his sketches and talks on taking care of his cat and daughter, who themselves grow up and become adoring of one another, are sent in to a publisher that asks him to adapt it into a recurring slice-of-life manga and it becomes a smash hit. And, as someone who was ready to fucking kill himself so many years ago when a dying cat came up begging for help... well, I forced myself to unfuck myself to take care of her. And while I'm an eternal work in progress... she at least is doing absolutely lovely, in case you were wondering.
The second is about a bumbling artist newly married to his editor nearly out of pity, complete with a daughter on the way. To her shock he adopted an abandoned newborn kitten, to her further shock, he's suddenly taking keeping house and scheduling far more seriously, and his sudden need to parent the kitten transfers entirely to their daughter as well. He continues to man up and become the man she always thought he could never be while continuing his artist career and creativity, and his big break comes when his sketches and talks on taking care of his cat and daughter, who themselves grow up and become adoring of one another, are sent in to a publisher that asks him to adapt it into a recurring slice-of-life manga and it becomes a smash hit. And, as someone who was ready to fucking kill himself so many years ago when a dying cat came up begging for help... well, I forced myself to unfuck myself to take care of her. And while I'm an eternal work in progress... she at least is doing absolutely lovely, in case you were wondering.
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2018
I just finished The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. It was pretty good, I'd give it a solid 4/5. It's more of a low fantasy trilogy, with a late medieval setting where magic has mostly faded from common knowledge. It definitely has a darker and more cynical take on the genre, which may or may not appeal depending on your taste.
Just to follow up my previous post, I got maybe 200-300 pages into The Baroque Cycle only to have it repeatedly trigger my history autism. I don't mind creative liberties when it comes to historical fiction, but it needs to be less obvious.
Off the top of my head:
- The book starts with the protagonist witnessing a witch burning. This is used as a clumsy way to go "ohoho those primitive Americans are still burning witches, what a backwater." The only problem is that it's 1713. No one had been executed for witchcraft in over 20 years, and pretty much everyone agreed that the Salem witch trials had been a complete miscarriage of justice. The government had even paid out compensation to the victims.
- It makes Sir Isaac Newton gay, and spends a fair amount of time focusing on the implications of this. But this isn't supported by the historical evidence. It was dumb fanfiction made up to sell copies of a shitty 2007 biography of Sir Isaac Newton.
There were a couple others that also bugged me. Maybe I will get around to finishing it at some point, but going "hang on" and having to look up something I suspect is wrong breaks the immersion for me.
It ended up feeling more like a deconstruction of epic fantasy though, with a pretty cynical tone. The ending was not very satisfying. For most of the main cast, the takeaway from their character arc was that a person can't change their nature. Jezal and Logen both showed potential for change, only to end up basically where they started. I get the point with Logen, as it feels appropriate that he could never fully escape the reputation that he had built over a decade as the Ninefingers, but I thought Jezal had the potential to grow more as a character.
Bayaz, the Gandalf-equivalent being a manipulative piece of shit controlling events through his (((banking house))) is an amusing touch though. Although I was really not expecting him to survive the end of the trilogy. Having him die of his own magic radiation poisoning would have been a more satisfying conclusion, but maybe Abercrombie wanted to keep him around for the later books set in the same universe.
Abercrombie also has a weird thing for maiming characters. By the end, it felt like half the cast was disfigured or missing body parts in some form or another.
Bayaz, the Gandalf-equivalent being a manipulative piece of shit controlling events through his (((banking house))) is an amusing touch though. Although I was really not expecting him to survive the end of the trilogy. Having him die of his own magic radiation poisoning would have been a more satisfying conclusion, but maybe Abercrombie wanted to keep him around for the later books set in the same universe.
Abercrombie also has a weird thing for maiming characters. By the end, it felt like half the cast was disfigured or missing body parts in some form or another.
Just to follow up my previous post, I got maybe 200-300 pages into The Baroque Cycle only to have it repeatedly trigger my history autism. I don't mind creative liberties when it comes to historical fiction, but it needs to be less obvious.
Off the top of my head:
- The book starts with the protagonist witnessing a witch burning. This is used as a clumsy way to go "ohoho those primitive Americans are still burning witches, what a backwater." The only problem is that it's 1713. No one had been executed for witchcraft in over 20 years, and pretty much everyone agreed that the Salem witch trials had been a complete miscarriage of justice. The government had even paid out compensation to the victims.
- It makes Sir Isaac Newton gay, and spends a fair amount of time focusing on the implications of this. But this isn't supported by the historical evidence. It was dumb fanfiction made up to sell copies of a shitty 2007 biography of Sir Isaac Newton.
There were a couple others that also bugged me. Maybe I will get around to finishing it at some point, but going "hang on" and having to look up something I suspect is wrong breaks the immersion for me.
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- Joined
- Sep 10, 2013
Continuing my food-themed reading with The Coffee Lover's Diet by Bob Arnot, M.D. Usually I'm skeptical of anyone touting something as a miracle food or panacea but when you tell me that coffee is the solution to all my problems you have my full attention.
There's some very interesting info about the antioxidant levels on different coffees from different climates, Kenyan coffee in particular has me interested since it's rich in antioxidants but low in caffeine. I suspect I'm going to come out of this book as an even more annoying coffee snob than I already am.
There's some very interesting info about the antioxidant levels on different coffees from different climates, Kenyan coffee in particular has me interested since it's rich in antioxidants but low in caffeine. I suspect I'm going to come out of this book as an even more annoying coffee snob than I already am.
countrybumpkin
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Dec 13, 2022
Daddy, a collection of short stories by Emma Cline. I'm a big fan of Cline's novel, The Girls. Like most short collections, the quality varies.
Healthy Boy Brand
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2021
Started reading Jerry Ahern's Total War series as a wind-down from my more recent philosophical readings. Cold War apocalyptic turkey at its finest, gotta share probably the funniest-named fictional VPs with you fellow Kiwis
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2021
I'm plowing through Chappaquiddick: Power, Privilege, and the Ted Kennedy Cover-Up. It's pretty interesting how, thanks to local officials dropping the ball so hard, Ted Kennedy was able to basically kill a bitch and get away with it 
. Also baffling to see how many people were willing to go to bat for Ted just because of his last name.
. Also baffling to see how many people were willing to go to bat for Ted just because of his last name.
YourFriendlyLurker 2.0
kiwifarms.net
- Joined
- Dec 12, 2022
Haven't post in a while so here's my recent:
1) Starfish by Peter Watts. Interesting and much easier read than Blindsight. As usual interesting ideas and well-written horror, even though it seems that the author has some favourite ideas that he uses in every book he writes. Anyway, if you are into hard sci-fi, I would reccomend.
2) How to the read the Bible by Kugel. BIG and interesting read for anyone who is interested in historical context of Torah. Imo the writer could have spent less time trying to justify the field of ineterst to hard-core Christains and Judaists since those folks won't read it anyway.
3) The case against reality by Hoffman. I read that book after the interview of Hoffman gave to Fridman (actually, you may listen to interview and skip the book). Otherwise, an interesting read, especially for anyone interested in problems of conciousness.
4) The ego tunel by Metzinger. Imo looks well in pair with #3. The same idea of "transparent interface".
5) Reality+ by Chalmers. A nice essay on the problems of virtual realities and what they entail. In fact, I love Chalmers for his easy and open-minded approach to the matters he deals with. If you are a fan of Matrix, it's for you.
6) Im westen nichts neues by Remarque. I read in German and caught myself thinking how fucking good German suits to matters related to war. Overall, a great read even if you know shit about WWI.
7) A history of the Afterlife by Ehrman. Another review of Christian doctrine from historical point of view, this time it's about afterlife. The author's trying to follow the development of the early church's views on life after death and what came from it.
A house by Cerullian Sea by Klune. I don't read bestsellers and I don't read cozy fiction but once in while I decide to dive into that world of r/books and so I piked THAT. I can't reccomend it, at all. If you are looking for essays on grey morals and hard topics there are better candidates. If you are looking for gay romance, there are tons of free stuff in fanfiction. If you are looking for something paranormal, again there's better shit.
1) Starfish by Peter Watts. Interesting and much easier read than Blindsight. As usual interesting ideas and well-written horror, even though it seems that the author has some favourite ideas that he uses in every book he writes. Anyway, if you are into hard sci-fi, I would reccomend.
2) How to the read the Bible by Kugel. BIG and interesting read for anyone who is interested in historical context of Torah. Imo the writer could have spent less time trying to justify the field of ineterst to hard-core Christains and Judaists since those folks won't read it anyway.
3) The case against reality by Hoffman. I read that book after the interview of Hoffman gave to Fridman (actually, you may listen to interview and skip the book). Otherwise, an interesting read, especially for anyone interested in problems of conciousness.
4) The ego tunel by Metzinger. Imo looks well in pair with #3. The same idea of "transparent interface".
5) Reality+ by Chalmers. A nice essay on the problems of virtual realities and what they entail. In fact, I love Chalmers for his easy and open-minded approach to the matters he deals with. If you are a fan of Matrix, it's for you.
6) Im westen nichts neues by Remarque. I read in German and caught myself thinking how fucking good German suits to matters related to war. Overall, a great read even if you know shit about WWI.
7) A history of the Afterlife by Ehrman. Another review of Christian doctrine from historical point of view, this time it's about afterlife. The author's trying to follow the development of the early church's views on life after death and what came from it.
A house by Cerullian Sea by Klune. I don't read bestsellers and I don't read cozy fiction but once in while I decide to dive into that world of r/books and so I piked THAT. I can't reccomend it, at all. If you are looking for essays on grey morals and hard topics there are better candidates. If you are looking for gay romance, there are tons of free stuff in fanfiction. If you are looking for something paranormal, again there's better shit.