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Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
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02-06-2008, 10:04 PM
The bug the Eragon haters have is that Paolini rips sooo much off other authors. Acceptable and the norm in Shakespeare's day and age, but copyright laws have come a long way since then. It's like Star Wars in a Lord of the Rings casing, and he does it too much for it to be a tribute. I think he borrows a lot of Pern as well. I can't really judge; I got tired after only a couple of pages. ^ ^;
I've only just got into Charles Dickens myself, and I think I like him because he's just so quirky. xD I don't know much about him, though, only odds and ends, and it's been a while since I finished Great Expectations and don't feel confident I'd be able to keep concise if I went off on one about what I thought of it. But I didn't like his writing for years, so I think I get where you're coming from. xD
: ) Plenty of people do think reading lots improves your writing - it certainly expands your vocabularly, and I know I was never taught grammar properly at school. Anything I've learnt I've learnt by applying what I've heard in speech, and reading. So there's a lot to be said for that. Also, I find after I've read a really good book, my own creative juices froth.
I'm just back from the one TV series, Torchwood that's on at the moment that keeps me glued to the sofa. It was a terribly sad episode - an alien whale-type creature was being cut up for illegal meat (disgusting thought) and it was hurting terribly. Torchwood were trying to stop the people doing it, and... It's the sort of thing you really have to see for it to make sense. But the writers for it and Doctor Who, which it's a spin-off from, are fantastic.
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sukishine
(っ◕‿◕)&...
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02-06-2008, 11:44 PM
Well, I still have to respect Paolini at least some because he was so young when he wrote it and just writing those books had to take great effort even if they aren't all his own original ideas.
My uncle doesn't like Dickens either except for A Tale of Two Cities. Other than that he really dislikes his writings. I can't really judge either because I've only read about a hundred pages into Oliver Twist and I still could not really get into it. I just wasn't looking forward to reading the next page.
I really do need a larger vocabulary. I have the word choice of a fifth grader. -__-;;
Wow. I'm don't think I'm really into alien type shows or stories. A little too sci-fi for me. I have never heard of Torchwood.
I saw most of Persuasion the movie last night on tv and it was really good but hard for me to understand parts of it because I missed the beginning. It makes me want to read the book all the more.I really love Captain Wentworth's character at the end. <3
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Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
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02-07-2008, 07:50 AM
Yes, he's been more devoted than me in that respect - at least he actually wrote a book (and then wrote more.) It'll be good if he matures a bit, people reckon, then he could be a really good writer. : ) Especially considering his early success (plagiarism tolerated or no.)
I found my way into Dickens by reading some of his short stories. Particularly The Signalman - a ghost story - and A Christmas Carol (the Muppet songs on my mental radio were a bit of a distraction, but I enjoyed it nevertheless.) I have a little book of his other Christmas writings as well. He's easier to absorb in small bites like that, and I think, because I'm Christmas-obsessed (the plants, the food, the heartfelt Christian sentiment...) I found it easy to be carried away in the sensuousness of it. : )
Did I mention he travels in time and space? (The Doctor, not Torchwood, not strictly... oh, it's confusing.) Plenty of people who watch them don't think of themselves as major science fiction fans (I stop outside Hitchhiker's and H. G. Wells, personally. I can't get on with Star Wars or anything gung-ho. Torchwood is JUST tolerable.) It deals a lot with human interactions, and how we'd respond to aliens. They're particularly fond about writing about the World Wars (The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances in series one, the one with the Wire in series two, um... The Family of Blood and the other one in season three... the fairies in Torchwood kill Jack's entire regiment... AND they meet Shakespeare!) And then there's the Christian overtones running through Doctor Who (he's known as The Lonely God, he meets the beast, or the devil, and many of his other names... those episodes are brilliant, and the Master - who you could compare to Lucifer - calls his telephone network ArcAngel.)
cx And there are lots, and lots, and lots of fan-written published stories to accompany the series. It's a lot more interesting than what I imagine to be typical Sci-Fi, so give if you do ever get to catch an episode - of any of them - give it a chance? ^ ^ You may not like it even so. But I guess it's like me with Eragon. xD
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sukishine
(っ◕‿◕)&...
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02-07-2008, 06:04 PM
I couldn't write those books either. He just probably needs a few years to get those creative juices flowing. :3
Hmm...maybe after I finish reading some books on my list I'll go into his short stories. I never thought about reading small bits of his work. That'd be much easier to understand.
Christmas obsessed, huh? xD
I'm not really since it's not even the real birthday of Christ. It was just pinned to that date. But I do love Christmas music. I wish I could sing it all year long without that being weird. >.>;
The show does sound interesting. Creepy but interesting. I don't even know if we have that show. Hey, if there are fairies and Shakespeare there then it must be a good show.:B
I would probably like some parts of it at least. But my favorites are fantasy that is more subtle and there needs to be romance, humor, and adventure.
I don't even know if I'll like Eragon yet. I shall see.
But there is one author I do not plan on reading unless of course I am forced to in college. -__-;;
Steinbeck.
Grapes of Wrath is required in high school because the book is about Oklahoma and I live in Oklahoma. Thankfully, I'm home schooled but my sister wasn't at the time. Steinbeck is a seriously sick man.
Books are ways of escape from reality and all he did was take reality and worsen it.
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Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
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02-07-2008, 07:30 PM
I've only heard of Steinbeck in passing, but I suggest you never, ever read The Wasp Factory. It freaked me out so much. I enjoyed it, in a twisted way, that it was well-written and I could applaud him for being successfully disturbing, but... well, I'm not going to forget it in a hurry.
My sister's watching the Shakespeare episode on DVD. xD The actor's reallyreallyreally good looking. The only bugbear I have about it is he recites Sonnet 18 to Martha (the Doctor's current companion/sidekick), and says he may write it for his Dark Lady (she's black). Sonnet 18, while the most famous, was written for a MAN. Considering how liberally homoerotic the writer makes everything else, I can't believe they missed this trick. I suppose he had to use the sonnet most people would know, but even so... Dx
Why am I Christmas obsessed? xD Well, reading Dickens it's the sentimentalised Victorian version of things. And all the glorious decorations. The way he writes about the trees. And yes, the carols. We used to do a service at my primary school, and a giant thing with all the other schools in the area. We sung hymns every assembly, and I grew up with quite a few Bible stories. I'm not Christian - I agree with most of the principles, but I can't believe in a God - but it's been a fairly big part of my life. I'm entirely fascinated by the stories, particularly angels (and not just after reading the book xD).
As for subtle fantasy, that's how I like things - when there's something potentially going on, an undercurrant, but you're not quite sure whether it's true or not. (This is why I loved Chocolat, Lollipop Shoes was maybe a bit overt, but I loved it all the same!)
When was the genuine date of Christ's birth (excluding all the calender mishaps)? I thought it was the sixth of January, but I might be getting that confused with the twelve days.
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raszala
(っ◕‿◕)&...
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02-07-2008, 07:41 PM
oh wow!
what a cool idea! ^^
i haven't finished a book this year, but maybe next week or so ^^
alright, i think this will be my list-post then <3
*bookmarks the whole thing*
raszala's book list:
1. Joanne K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
2. Terry Pratchett - Night Watch
3. Terry Pratchett - The Truth
4. Terry Pratchett - The Wee Free Man
5. Terry Pratchett - Guards! Guards!
6. Terry Pratchett - Going Postal
7. Terry Pratchett - Mort
8. Terry Pratchett - Making Money
9. Terry Pratchett - Wyrd Sisters
10. Terry Pratchett - Moving Pictures
11. Terry Pratchett - Reaper Man
12. Terry Pratchett - Witches Abroad
13. Terry Pratchett - Lords and Ladies
14. Terry Pratchett - Men at Arms
15. Terry Pratchett - Soul Music
16. Terry Pratchett - Feet of Clay
17. Terry Pratchett - Hogfather
18. Terry Pratchett - The Fifth Elefant
19. Terry Pratchett - Thief of Time
20. Terry Pratchett - Monstrous Regiment
21. Terry Pratchett - Thud!
22. Terry Pratchett - A Hat Full Of Sky
23. Terry Pratchett - Wintersmith
24. Terry Pratchett - Strata
25. Terry Pratchett - Equal Rites
Books read: 25/30
Page count: 9698/9000
Pensum of books: 83,33%
Pensum of pages: 107,75%
P.S. I realized that i just forgot to update after every book, so the order isn't right ^^'
Last edited by raszala; 01-10-2009 at 08:47 AM..
Reason: wow o_O i read a lot since i last was here
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secretdae007
The Colors of a Dae
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02-08-2008, 01:38 AM
whee! Starting the Odysses! Though I've read some of the stories before, now I have an actual book ^^
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Knerd
I put the K in "Misspelling"
☆☆ Assistant Administrator
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02-08-2008, 11:33 PM
Sadly, I haven't been making much headway with my book. I managed to get through about 50 pages this afternoon, so I'm a little more than halfway done, but it doesn't feeling like it. I'm still slogging through.
But the interesting thing is how many comments people have been making. It seems like reading Dostoevsky automatically makes me a subject of conversation. Random people just approach me and start talking about the characters. I love it.
Edit:
I was hoping to find one specific book in the library today, but it wasn't on the shelf despite the fact that it was in the catalogue. It apparently disappeared even though no one has taken it out. But while I was searching for it, I found another great book that I wanted to read anyway. So it's all good, I suppose.
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Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
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02-09-2008, 07:39 AM
It's so frustrating when you can't find things. Books meander away from the small school library that we have, and then it's even worse with the books from the psychology room.
What's also frustrating is trying to borrow out a DVD and finding, for the fifth time, someone has beat you to it. xO At least they played The History Boys on TV over Christmas, which put me out of my misery. :3
I'm not making much headway with my book either. xD I lay in the bath yesterday and read it for about an hour, but only managed twenty pages.
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secretdae007
The Colors of a Dae
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02-09-2008, 01:33 PM
Knerd: I haven't been doing much in the reading department either, actually. I've been sick for about a week now and then balancing my part time job and school work... yeah >.> not really working out now...
Chaitealatte: See, my school's library is big, so it's probably difficult to keep track of all the books and what not. Thus, some do go missing without their notice -.-; I took out a DVD once (the Godfather parts 2 and 3) and it was missing a disc D:
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Simplixity
(っ◕‿◕)&...
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02-10-2008, 12:34 AM
Yay..I just updated my book list.
Just read Titus Andronicus for English class. Talk about a violent play. Figures though that I would get the part of a girl who was raped and got her tongue and hands chopped off. x.x
The other two books, Lolitaand Sex, Drugs, and cocoa puffs I read under the influence of another friend. Lolita was...a difficult read for me, everything from the vocabulary to the concept of pedophilia.
-Edit-
Oops..I forgot to put 1984on my list. I have to say that at first I couldn't get into the book at all, but then after the 30th page or so I couldn't stop reading. The whole idea of a future world like that was really scary..and the ending was so disappointing. I mean, throughout the entire book it gave you hope..and then..all that for nothing.
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Knerd
I put the K in "Misspelling"
☆☆ Assistant Administrator
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02-10-2008, 06:58 PM
1984 isn't one of my favorite books, but it got me interested in the dystopian genre. I suppose you could say that it opened the door to a lot of greater novels.
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Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
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02-10-2008, 07:44 PM
*has 1984 on her list too*
It's going to be so hard to read without thinking of Brave New World, though. xO
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Knerd
I put the K in "Misspelling"
☆☆ Assistant Administrator
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02-10-2008, 07:51 PM
If you like those two, check some of these out:
We by Yevgeny Zamyatin
The Wanting Seed by Anthony Burgess
Make room! Make room! by Harry Harrison
Neuromancer by William Gibson
Logan's Run by William F. Nolan
I always liked these better than the typical dystopian fiction you read in school.
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Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
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02-10-2008, 07:55 PM
I'll take note and keep an eye out. ^ ^
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Kyoko Otonashi
\ (•◡•) /
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02-14-2008, 03:57 PM
I just finished Beka Cooper: Terrier
And now i'm sad that the second book doesn't come out until April v.v
That makes for a sad, sad Kyoko. So in the mean time i am working my way through all the other Tamora Pierce books.
Right now i picked up First Test ^^
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secretdae007
The Colors of a Dae
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02-14-2008, 04:05 PM
Does starting Death Note count xD I haven't been doing much reading because my classes require so much reading D:
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tentenpuff
(ο・㉨・&...
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02-15-2008, 06:59 AM
Does manga count? xD;
I don't think it would for me, though... They're so short, it's like a children's book.
My friend challenged me with the idea that the this was a quantity, not quality kind of thing...
But I defended that it wasn't to see how many books you can read in a year, it's to motivate you to read that many good books in a year.
I don't remember who said this, but I think this quote would be fitting: "The man who doesn't read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read."
Or something like that. >>;
Anyway, I finished Inkspell a few days ago...
I thought it was okay. It was better than Inkheart, but...
A lot of times I'd have to force myself to read on just to move along. ^^;; And my friend pretty much spoiled the ending for me. :<
I'm thinking of reading the Twilight series, with the vampires and stuff? I'm not really into that kind of thing; - the teenage love vampire thing - but it's a really popular series right now in my school, and everyone raves about how magnificent it is, so now I want to read and see for myself. =P
At the moment, I'm reading Fire Star, the third book to Chris D'Lacey's dragon series... It's pretty good so far, I'll say. I'm about halfway so far, and it's a pretty interesting read. :3
But it's sort of a kiddie book, 9-12, so... >>;;;
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Sedge
*^_^*
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02-15-2008, 07:43 AM
Would a book count if you started reading it in 07, but finished it in 08? @,@ Because that would be 2 books off my list already. D:
I think I'll start small and go for 25...
Sedge's I Can Read Book List
1) The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray (Historical/Fantasy | 819 pages | ****)
2) The Search for the Red Dragon by James A. Owen (Fantasy | 336 pages | ****)
3) Fingersmith by Sarah Waters (Historical | 582 pages | ****1/2)
4) Uzumaki by Junji Ito (Horror | 250 pages | *****)
5) Exquisite Corpse by Poppy Z. Brite (Gay Cannibal Serial Killer Romance | 240 pages | ***)
6) Loop by Koji Suzuki (Sci-fi/Horror | 288 pages | **1/2)
7) The Abduction of Sita (Classic/Mythology | 110 pages | ***1/2)
8) The New Victorians by Rene Denfeld (Nonfiction | 330 pages | ****)
9) The Areas of My Expertise by John Hodgman (Complete World Knowledge | 228 pages | *********)
10) Serial Killers & Mass Murderers by Nigel Cawthorne (Nonfiction/See Title | 323 pages | ****)
11) The Mist by Stephen King (Horror/Scifi | 230 pages | ***)
12) The Girl Next Door by Jack Ketchum (Horror | 370 pages | ****1/2)
13) Women Empowered: Inspiring Change in the Emerging World by Phil Borges (Nonfiction | 111 pages | *****)
14) It's the Little Things by Lena Williams (Nonfiction | 266 pages | ***)
15) Race Manners by Bruce A. Jacobs (Nonfiction | 208 pages | ****)
16) Red Bird by Mary Oliver (Poetry | 78 pages | ****)
17) Case for Ghosts: An Objective Look at the Paranormal by J. Allan Danelek (Nonfiction | 220 pages | ***1/2)
18) Sixty Poems by Charles Simic (Poetry | 108 pages | ****)
19) Ghosts and Other Mysteries by Dorothy Burtz Fiedel (Nonfiction | 93 pages | ****)
20) Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot (Poetry | 56 pages | ****)
21) Telephone Ringing in the Labyrinth by Adrienne Rich (Poetry | 108 pages | **)
22) Hafiz of Shiraz: Thirty Poems an Introduction to the Sufi Master translated by Peter Avery (Poetry | 160 pages | ***1/2)
23) Poems from Guantanamo: The Detainees Speak (Poetry | 84 pages | *****)
24) Kill the Body, the Head Will Fall: A Closer Look at Women, Violence, and Aggression by Rene Denfeld (Nonfiction | 182 pages | ****)
25) Shadows of the Night: Queer Tales of the Uncanny and Unusual edited by Greg Herren (Horror | 201 pages | ***)
26) Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk (Horror | 272 pages | ***1/2)
27) Oedipus the King by Sophocles (Classic | 128 pages | ****)
28) The Essentials of Hinduism by Swami Bhaskarananda (Religion | 247 pages | *****)
29) Bhagavad Gita translated by Stephen Mitchell (Religion | 224 pages | *** 1/2)
30) Eastern Philosophy For Beginners by James Powell (Religion | 192 pages | *** 1/2)
31) For Her Own Good by Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English (Nonfiction | 400 pages | ****)
32) In God's Name by Jules and Gedeon Naudet (Religion | 272 | ****)
Total Books: 32/50
Total Paged: 7,156/15,000
Hopefully I won't totally fail. @,@
Working On!
Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters
The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
The Persian Boy by Mary Renault
Boudicca by M.J Trow
The Ramayan of Valmiki
In the Pond by Ha Jin
Death Rat! by Mike Nelson
The Carnivorous Lamb by Agustin Gomez-Arcos
And many, many, many more.
Last edited by Sedge; 09-06-2008 at 02:56 AM..
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Chaitealatte
Dead Account Holder
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02-15-2008, 07:51 AM
@tentenpuff - I think it says in the opening posts that Manga counts. :3
I'm keeping my graphic books seperate from my... all-text books. I've got Dramacon on my list, and I'll probably re-read Nausicaa and doubtless get back into a Card Captor Sakura groove sometime. xD
I'm just counting the two side-by-side. ;3
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Sedge
*^_^*
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02-16-2008, 02:42 AM
- I think I'll go ahead and include comics in mine, since I don't read many. So my whole list won't just be comics that I finished in 30 minutes. @,@
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kitkat
(^(エ)^)
Banned
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02-16-2008, 07:23 AM
Helloo everyone. I haven't visited in a while O:
I finished one of my books, it took longer to read.
strange enough i am having trouble finding time to
read Inkheart xD it just doesn't captivate me :B
I started reading 'The Giver' all my friends in my
english class said it was boring, but i think it
is very interesting, and they don't really read very
much. Oh and I checked out another book called
Warriors Field Guide: the clan of secrets(not sure
on the title).
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secretdae007
The Colors of a Dae
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02-16-2008, 04:08 PM
I don't think I'll be counting manga... mostly because it really only takes me about 40 minutes or so to read ^^:
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Knerd
I put the K in "Misspelling"
☆☆ Assistant Administrator
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02-16-2008, 05:31 PM
If you want it to count, it can count. We're not picky here. =)
The point of the challenge is just to get yourself reading. It doesn't matter what you read, or how much you read, or how often you read - You just want to set a goal and keep working towards it. How you get there is entirely up to you.
Actually, my latest book is a graphic novel: Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth. I didn't like it at first, but it grew on me. The entire thing is a bit dark and depressing. The story itself is dull, but I got incredibly attached to the characters and their lives. I suppose the illustrations really helped out in that respect.
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Alaunt
Cute Things Kill People
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02-16-2008, 05:46 PM
I just started a new book. It is called Across the Face of the Earth. It is by Russell Kirkpatrick and I'm really liking it. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good medieval book.
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