In town today I was looking at Simon Scarrow books since my dad has taken a liking to them but since I have no idea which ones he's read so I'll probably get him a book token for Father's Day instead. Unless anyone can suggest authors similar to Simon Scarrow or anyone else who writes books about Romans. :sweat:

In Waterstones they had free previews of the next Terry Pratchett book for children, Dodger, so I grabbed one. I've heard it might be in the same universe as Nation but I haven't read that.

I just finished Burmese Days. I spent a lot of the book wondering where Orwell was going with it, but hooo, I see now. Orwell is the master, I bow to him, and am ashamed for ever thinking of doubting his ability. :lol: Has anyone here read it?

Ray Bradbury passed away last night at the age of 91. :(

He's been my favorite author since I was a high school kid. Not only did he have an amazing literary ability, but he seemed like a genuinely good person. His speeches and interviews were just so filled with enthusiasm and confidence that you'd want to hug him, then go gallivanting off to Mars together. I wish that I'd had the opportunity to meet him sometime. It would have meant a lot to me just to gush at him a little bit and let him know how much I admired his love for life.

I've always said that there would only be two celebrity deaths that I'd ever care about: Alan Rickman and Ray Bradbury. It's an odd feeling to know that he isn't around anymore. Honestly, I'm probably going to pick up one of his books tonight and just cry.

I heard about that earlier today. :( I knew how much you admire him, so my first thought was actually "oh no, Knerd's going to be so sad."

Fahrenheit 451 is the only book of his that I've read thus far, but I can say that I really enjoyed it. It was clear that he was a very talented writer with plenty of things to say and this is definitely a big loss for the literary world. :( Though it's not much comfort, at least he did live a long life.

Oh yeah, a long and full life. You don't see very many people who are still so mobile and coherent at 91.

Be prepared, you guys - I'm going to force all of you to start reading his short stories this year! Right now, consider it a gentle suggestion, but I might get more rabid later on. :ninja:

Sure, throw some recommendations at me. :)

:lol:

But really, I think that "The Golden Apples of the Sun" is his best collection. There are some truly wonderful short stories there and it isn't heavily science fiction. It includes my two absolute favorites: 'The Fruit at the Bottom of the Bowl' and 'Sun and Shadow.'

But if you want to dive straight into science fiction and read some awesome stuff about Mars, then "The Martian Chronicles" is a fun way to get addicted to his writing. It all takes place in outer space, but some of the chapters are surprisingly emotional and sentimental.

I'll keep an eye out for those. :) And yeah, I like science fiction.

Sad news. :(
Thanks for the recommendations. Maybe more people will be inspired to check out Bradbury's work.

He was indeed a wonderful writer.
Cat's Cradle is my very favorite, though.

188/200 books! Almost done with my goal!
:DDDD

Skrae, you must be thinking of Kurt Vonnegut instead. :yes:

Who, fun fact, I've run into around town. He'd occasionally visit Woodstock and has the reputation of not being very nice to his fans. I didn't have the courage to even try approaching him the one time I spotted him. :lol:

Is anyone else taking the O.W.L. exams on Muggle Net while they're up?
I'm kind of fixated on them right now.

No, I didn't know about those. Thanks! I just signed up and will probably take a few this afternoon.

Which tests have you taken already?

No problem! MuggleNet has been tweeting about them for a few days now, so I thought I'd share!
I just started this morning and have tackled Potions, Charms and Muggle Studies so far.
I've managed an Exceeds Expectations in each one so far, so that's pretty exciting! Though I am kind of hoping I can snag at least one Outstanding by the time it's all said and done.

Good luck crazy people who take optional exams. :P

Haha. Thanks, Kat!
I haven't had to take real ones in a long time, so optional ones aren't as taxing. :)

I just got my results for this year of university yesterday so the thought of any more exams made my stomach turn a bit. ^^;

Haha. That is definitely understandable! How'd you do?

I got into fourth year honours (I'm at a Scottish university) without any resits so I'm glad for that but it seems a lot of people are graduating this December with designated degrees.

Oh god, I took a few of the tests and now I'm positive that I would flunk out of Hogwarts. :lol:

No more for me. My ego just took a massive hit!

Aww, I bet it's especially hard if you haven't seen the format before.

I might (whisper it) actually finish a book today. If the cat feels like moving any time soon so I can do everything else that needs doing. :sweat:

Got a cat pinning you down? :lol:

I did yes. Had to physically lift her, still curled up, before I was allowed to move. :)

Still managed to finish the book anyhow. Will have to add some of Lovecraft's weird fiction recommendations to the never-ending mental list of 'things to read'. Going to read War Horse before going back to the Devil and Sherlock Holmes, think it's going to be a fairly easy read.

Be sure to tell us how War Horse is! I've heard wonderful things about the film, but no one really talks about the book anymore. I'm curious to see if they measure up to one another, especially since it really started as a children's novel.

Originally Posted by Knerd

Oh god, I took a few of the tests and now I'm positive that I would flunk out of Hogwarts. :lol:

No more for me. My ego just took a massive hit!

Oh no!!
Which ones did you take?

I got my first Outstanding on one last night! Granted, Arithmancy really isn't that difficult if you're good with numbers. :3


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Yeah, I'm interested to hear how War Horse is. While the film got rave reviews I have no interest in seeing it... something about movies where a horse is the central character just don't pique my interest, and there have been so many of them in recent years.