book nook (et al)

[dilshad{property of Tira}]

i thought that i would start a thread where Folks could post about books (poems, plays, media stuff ) that they want to reccomend..

i have just finished reading Neil Gaiman"s novel, American Gods.. Gaiman is most prominently know for His series of Sandman comics which were publied by DC and later made into Graphic Novel collections.
in Gods..he picks up on a favorite theme of his , Gods and people.. the idea of the God(s) whose powers wane or die with the decrease of Their adherents is an old one. but Gaiman handles it well with fresh insight and gusto.. as well as pathos  (whitness the off stage death of Thor).. i also loved the protatgist.. Shadow.. deftly draw with only a few strokes.. and with depths that are plumbed only as events warrent them... if You have not read the Sandman books.. RUN.. do not walk to get them.. then have a gander at Gaiman's novels


i read a wide variety of books, science fiction, history ( both fiction and real ), science books, fantasy and classics.. but my main love and passion has always been science fiction.. i read the first installments of Dune when they came out  in Alalog about 40 years ago.. there is one writer and his works that i would like to reccomemed.. Olaf Stalpeton, and in particular his Last and First Men and Starmaker...

Last is a seminal book of SF that is not that well know.. written in the early decades of the last century it is the chronicle of the human race for the next eight million years.. a long detailed and wonderful book.. filled with solid English prose..tho not written as propchey.. it is intresting to see what HAS been realized in the real world since it's publication....  Starmaker expands the work of Last.. being no less than the history of the universe..[

well that's my 2 cents (for now).. what tickles your fancy ?.. care to share ?

dakota{Property of Tira}
 

[Arlon]

 Hmm... okay, I'll chime in on this one. While we're on authors in general, My favorites have to be Anne McCaffrey and Isaac Asimov. Ms. McCaffrey has published innumerable novels in several seemingly-different series: The Dragonriders of Pern is probably her best-known series, and ALL of those are wonderful. She also did several novels about living starships known as "brainships", beginning with The Ship Who Sang and encompassing several sequels, all with the shellpersons themselves as the viewpoint characters. Her novels on the Talents, beginning with To Ride Pegasus, provide entertaining and very thoughtful peeks into the parapsychic Talents.
 And why, you ask, do I mention all of those together? Because, once you read enough of each of them, you discover that they all interconnect. The ship novels build on the foundations laid by the Pegasus series, and the Pern novels are set on a world colonized through one of the agencies detailed in the ship novels, thereby connecting those two series as well. Ms. McCaffrey has created for her readers an entire universe, rich in detail and long on diversity, in which one could very easily lose oneself for hours at a time and never, ever get bored.
 UNfortunately I will have to go into Asimov in a later entry; as one of the foremost masters of science-fiction he deserves much attention, and a look at my clock tells Me that I am out of time for now. Work beckons, dammit.


....Arlon

[Faramir]

Asimov is one of the best, his Foundation series was interesting reading. However, the best writer, in My opinion, was Robert A Heinlein.

[Taryn]

Right now I am embroiled in a series of books, they are mysteries, one of my major downfalls... *chuckles* but the series I am reading is written by Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown The two authors aren't all human, Rita is human, but the second is a cat... *chuckles* All the stories take place in a small town called Crozet, Virginia which is about 30 minutes outside of Charlottesville, Virginia... the book I am currently reading is the 4th book in the series, the name is Pay Dirt. The synopsis of the book reads...

For the inhabitants of Crozet, Virginia, the premier place for gossip is the post office, where along with the mail one can pick up the juiciest tidbits this cozy Southern town has to offer. Lately, though, there seems little to dish about in Crozet, except for the computer virus threatening to hit businesses on August 1, and the stale romantic trangle of a young bank executive, his nw wife, and his unforgiving ex-girlfriend. Even the animals, usually so transfixed by the goings-on of the humans, are wishing for a little action...

It's both funny, riveting and all-around fun to read... for those of you who like mysteries, or who have ever read The Cat Who books will enjoy this series of books as well...

[Shylina Marie]

I think my tastes vary so much... I have two authors that I have read all of their series..... mainly because I love the stories of the byzantine era and the stories of the amish...  Bertrice Small  who created an entire saga about a family called O'Malley... which leads to the Leslie familys.... (( yes they are classed as romance novels..... reallllllllly graphic ones))........to stories written by Beverly Lewis.......that through a completely different culture... show me that faith... hope...trust and understanding  can make a difference in every day life.  call me the odd duck because sci fi does not hold my interest nor does too many mysterys except for the classics of agatha christie. 

[kelsey]

not so strange Shy.  I too like Bertrice Small novels....and yes they are pretty..errrr...grapic as you call them....

I don't read as much as I used to....When I do I tend to read a wide variety, except for Science fiction...just never could get into Sci-fi books.

Besides Small, I enjoy Nora Roberts, Patricia Cornwall, Johana Lindsay, Kathleen Woodweis and James Patterson...I also like some of the classics too......Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes.

And I am a little strange in that I also like to read different history books.  Right now I have one waiting for me on George Washington's crossing of the Delaware.

Kels

[Kitya]

I read a little of everything... *chuckles* Mostly fantasy, sci-fi, and mysteries tho.

I don't get to read much anymore due to kidlet... so if you really want the books I'm reading a LOT... it would be board books (the cardboard "chewy books", as I call em, for kids). Specifically, "Kiss Goodnight", "What's Wrong Little Pookie"," Moo, Baa, LALALA",  "The Best Mouse Cookie". Yeah... I can almost do all of em by memory!

MY books, however, are a plethora of writers. My main ones are Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar series... which I own all of, and Terry Pratchett's Discworld Series... which I own... about a third of. I also read Anne Rice, Anne McCaffrey, Heinlein, The Ender's Game series (can't remember who wrote em off the top of my head), Leo Frankowski (Modern polish engineer goes back in time 12 years before the Huns invade Poland and well.. changes history. very good! except for the last one... it sucked) I ADORE Agatha Christie.. no one will ever write a mystery like she did. I also read Elizabeth Peters, who writes a very good mystery collection centered around an English archeology family during the 40's. Get to learn all kinds of cool Egyptian history at the same time. I also read "The Cat WHo"'s My dad got me into those.  I also own all of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, and in highschool actually wrote out all the dancing men and added in the extra ones to make a full alphabet, and my friends and I wrote secret messages to each other with it.

Oh yeah...and poker strategy books too... in all my spare time. *laughs*

Kitya

[LadyMuse]

I ditto Kit with the Valdamar series and am only missing like 2 trilogies from it. I just can't get them here. I also read Marion Zimmer-Bradly I own ALL od the Darkover series and all but the last book of the Avalon series. I highly reccommend the Avalon series. I also read and own almost anything Nora Roberts has written. Then there are the books by Michael Z. Williamson such as FreeHold which both OE and Myself enjoyed and JOhn Ringo's There will be Dragons series.

Oh and Sis, Orson Scott Card wrote the Ender's Game series, which I enjoyed as well LOL.

At the moment I am reading Dianne Duane's: So You want to be a wizard series. Yes I knwo it is technically written for the younger age group but it is an AWESOME set of books. I had never read it before and OE bought them and told me to read them. There are 8 books in the series snd I am almost done book 5.

 LM

[Amber]

I really cannot afford to buy books, and our local library is...very small. -lol- But when I was younger, I loved to read Stephen King and anything by R.L. Stine.  Now as far as I know R.L. Stine hasn't been popular since I was 12 or 13, and that's when I started getting into Romance novels.  (My parents loved to read, Dad was a SciFi, Horror, Avid Destroyer reader, and Mom loved those Romance novels.)  You wouldn't think a Romance novel would be any good, but I particular was very involved in the stories behind Catherine Coulters characters.  Her women are just so strong and there, that it's really cool to read about them. 

Now that I'm a bit older, I've really only read two series (though I read them all of the time).  His Dark Materials is a trilogy that I absolutely adored to read when they first came up.  They are by Philip Pullman and here in the U.S., they are releasing a movie based on the first book The Golden Compass.  Even if you don't want to read the book before you see the movie, I can't blame you, but the movie looks awesome from the previews (The blonde James Bond is in it, and so is Nicole Kidman if little else, see the movie for the scenery).  The other series that has made a complete and utter impact on me as an adult, has been the Harry Potter series.  I am so afraid that now that the 7th and final book has come out, that I have nothing to look forward to, I am hoping J.K Rowling will write something else (She says she is going to, but that doesn't mean anything).  I just hope that her newest books will reflect some of the writing style and witty genius she used in the Harry Potter books, because I miss her already and it has only been a few months since the 7th book was read in two days.

Well I guess another series that I completely got into when I could borrow the books, was the Dragonlance series by Magaret Weiss and uhmm..oh I can't remember his name right now..it's a Terry something I think.  I haven't read the side novels by other people, but the main books written by them, it's one of those where you get so involved with the characters, that if they die, you're bawling your eyes out.  But like I said, books are expensive and I'm saving up for baby so.. -lol- I am sure if you ask me this question in a few more months, my answer will be more like Kityas with the cardboard "chewy" books. -lol-

[Sands]

Great thread....

perhaps this one needs to be brought out in front for everyone to enjoy and share...
also I would love a football/sports board....but Rags and I go at it over football to much...lol

anyway..back to books....

I usually have 2-3 books going at once..
right now Im reading the "dead Room" by Heather Graham

James Patterson' series of books of the Women's Murder Club...on the second book..."Second Chance"

And of course if I always have the vampire books going...I discovered a series of books by JR Ward...a secret band of brothers...six vampire warriors..defenders of their race...."The Black Dagger Brotherhood"

Thats it for this week...LOL

[Lilac]

well.. lets see... blood.. horror.. death.. violence yeah.. thats me

I have nearly everything Laurell K Hamilton has done.. I would have to say she is one of my favorites.. I love the preternatural stuff.

some of my favorite books that arent LKH?

Dean Koontz - The Face, Intensity, the Odd Thomas books
Stephan King - Desparation.. after I read this book I thought, oh man.. this would make an awesome movie.. I was thinking big screen not like TV as they did this year.. I was hoping for at least something on the same level as the stand or Nightmares/Dreamscapes -le sigh- not so much so.. was just... alright.
Robert McCammon - I dont think any of his books ever let me down.. and I have read nearly all of them.
Sherrilyn Kenyon - The Dark Hunter series.. really enjoyed these.
Jeffery Deaver - The Blue Nowhere, Devil's Teardrop

and now am reading "Midnight Mass" F.Paul Wilson

course I have read alot more by the authors listed.. those are just a few that stood out

[Faramir]

Now,  John Norman's  Gor series is pretty good, at least the first dozen or so that is.  John Carter of Mars wasn't half bad, neither were Howard's  Conan series though most of them were taken from unfinished manuscripts and story outlines after his death and finished by DeCamp and Lin Carter. I also found the Hornblower series by C S Forester damn good reading as was the Bolitho series by Alexander Kent.

and TT, your taste in football teams is almost as bad as mine, I'm a Rams fan.

[Kitya]

Thanks Muse... *chuckles* I was having a brain fart and couldn't go look at the books since Roy took em on the ship with him... AGAIN. I swear, we need doubles of some series, just so I have them to read at home too.

Amber, I highly recommend Sandra Boynton's board books. The illustrations are funny and the stories are pretty cute. We currently own two, but they're on Kymlet's wish list. Also, get a touch and feel book! We have "Animals at the Farm" and she loves it! She actually surrounds herself on the floor with all her books and sits there and "reads" them to herself... it's hysterical to see her sitting there "dadadaadadada" *flip*"dadadDAADADAA!! (this is during an exciting part of the book)"*flip* etc... I'm trying to get it on video, but thus far, every time she hears the *ding* of the camcorder she stops reading and comes over peer into the lens.

Hmmm football.. that could be volatile... *whispers* Goooo Texans!!! *then does a boogy dance to celebrate Navy finally beating Notre Dame after 43 years*

[dilshad{property of Tira}]

i am glad to see all the responses to this thread.. but i would also like to see the reasons WHY Peoples are attracted to a particular Author ?.. the style of Steven King and Conan Doyle ?.. the concepts and gritty humor of Heinlien.. the attraction of the genre itself (Vamp, Romance hight Fantasy)

i have enjoyed Anne McCaffrey  for years and grew up cutting my teeth on Asimov.. who while best know for his SF books wrote on a huge range of subjects... among them a delightful serious of mystery short stories..where with a clever and ironic twist.. the the butler dies not do the crimes.. but he does solve them ( Jeeves meets Sherlock Homes sorta stuff)
 

the Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown  stories sound intriguing and the concept reminds me of Don Marquis and his Archie and Maribel stories..http://www.donmarquis.com/archy/  check out the one the "lesson of the moth"...i have always loved the concept of how the stories get written.. and the lack of Caps makes them look like something by e e cummings (who  am also fond of ))

i have not read much romance,., but if the Clan of the Cave Bear counts i have read a lot of Jean Auel's
books.. with Her increasingly randy cave people

I've read James Patterson with his tight prose and twisty plots.. and have gone thru with pleasure each time.. the collected works of Sherlock Homes.. as well as Doyles Proffor Challanger books

Read a bit of Prachett and some Cristie.. who i first met up with after seeing the wonderful PBS series of Hercule Pirot teleplays..i have always been too lazy to get into mystries.. which is strange.. cause i adore figuring out things in SF.. like who were the HeeChee in Fredricks Pohl's Gateway Books ( i wasn't even close ..lol)

Oh Marion Zimmer-Bradly .. i stared reading Her stuff when they first came out as Ace doubles ( for the younger of you.. that is to say most.. Ace paperbacks use to publish novellas in a wonderful; way.. two to a book.. with two covers.. You'd Read one then  flip the book over and starting from the other side.. read another)

Love Card's Enders Books.. i think that Speaker to the Dead and XENOCIDE are the best.. i think i've read Dianne Duane's Star Trek Books.. certainly Her name on a spine will make me pick it up.

oh.. and at long last// i am reading in full a Gorian book.. it was on sale at the local library for 50 cents and begged to be bought.. i have read parts of Norman (Mainly FIGHTING SLAVE) and have been put off my his lenghty digressions to discuss minutia.. but i his Early books.. it adds to.. rater than distracts from the flow of the story...

oh... Yes.. most of Howards Conan stories were re written after His death by a plethora of  writers.. but his other works stands strong.. KING KULL, BRAN MAC MORM, SOLOMAN KANE.. and if You enjoyed ERB's Martian novels.. Howard's interplanetary ALMURIC...

well that's enoff for now.. i gotta get choring in camp soon..

smiles

dakota {Property of Tira}

[Amber]

As for Football.  Go STEELERS! -heh-  And a Rams fan? -snorts- I live an hour and 10 minutes north of St Louis, and I can just honestly say.. I am soooo sorry that your team sucks ass.