LOTC Book Club [Positivity Thread]

[Spindle 651]

Hello.

 

Perhaps it's not my place to be composing threads on topics that I may not grasp in their entirety - seeing as I have only been scampering around this community for such a short time.  However, during my stint here it appears that with every refresh, or after albeit the now very rare instances I take a little break, there's a new post about the many failings and “problems” with Lotc. I don’t think I will ever shake this newfound association that the string of words “the problems with…” evokes. 

With that being said, this is me shining a light into this decrepit demi-monde in hopes of maybe airing out some cobwebs and dust.

Before I start rambling, this thread was inspired by @un-w

 

So I like books. 

 

I figured you people do too.

 

A book club thread seemed like a fun little way to break up the avalanche that is this:

 

Nothing against you hun @Slorbin

 

So don’t be shy! Go ahead and share whatever you’re reading or whatever you want to read.

 

Format (go ahead and copy this)

 

Favourite book or author?

The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
 
The first book you read, or the first one you remember reading?

The first book I can confidently say I can remember reading was Rowan of Rin. A pretty eccentric one but it was a big thing over here in Australia, especially in the 90s.

My parents read me a plethora of books when my brain was like a smooth marble. As a result, my childhood amnesia prohibits me from remembering anything about them. The hobbit was a pretty big one, which I later revisited like a lot of the other ones I had read to me. Another was a terrible translation of the odyssey. Honestly no clue why my dad thought it was a good idea to read this to a toddler.  

Books you want to read but haven’t got around to?
Fables by Jean de La Fontaine 

List some others you have read and talk about them:

So I’m either going to give something a star rating if I have nothing to say about them, or I’ll write a little line about why you should read it. These are my most memorable ones.

 

The Great Gatsby - 4 stars

The Odyssey - 5 stars (You need to make sure the translation is good. Really hit or miss)
Heart of Darkness - 4.5 stars (Conrad is astounding. Prose are unreal. And English was not even his first language)

Pride and Prejudice - 4 stars

The Divine Comedy - 5 stars (It’s a prerequisite. You just gotta) 

Arabian Nights - ??? (Cutest bedtime stories ever)

The Dream of a Ridiculous Man - 4 stars
Rashōmon - 4 stars

Zadig & Candide - 5 stars (Two books but you have to read both)

The Metamorphosis - 4 stars

The Count of Monte Cristo - 3.5 stars

I Am a Cat - 4 stars (Mimsy cat inspiration. Seriously good and a prerequisite for Japanese lit)

No Longer Human - 3 stars (Japanese Dostoyevsky)  
The Old Man and the Sea - 4 stars (Hemmingway was just a straight version of Mishima)

Faust - 4 stars (Might not count but all you spooky players should be reading/watching this)

A Wizard of Earthsea - 4 stars (The peak before the cesspool of modern fantasy. How’s it feel all you Patrick Rothfuss fans.

The Princess and the Goblin - 3.5 stars 

Notes From Underground - 4 stars

Dead Souls - 4 stars (Grandad of Russian lit)

 

 

Keep being cool,

 

 

 

Spindle/Elaine
 

 

 

[DISCOLIQUID 1963]

I'm suggesting the black company books for people who like darker writing, and 2nding wizard of earth sea!

 

[ronin_champloo 5951]

have u read the alchemist b4

[Unwillingly 11175]

I wrote this hastily so forgive me :')

 

Favourite book or author?

The Song of Achilles
 
The first book you read, or the first one you remember reading?

Varjak Outlaw Claw -- 3rd grade. It's about cats, as you can guess, but I oddly never got too invested in the Warriors series

 

Books you want to read but haven’t got around to?
The Hunger Games, believe it or not

Maurice (I've only watched the film)

All of Us Villains

 

 

List some others you have read and talk about them:

 

Night World: Dark Angel is one of my favorites. The story follows a girl (Gillian) who, after experiencing near-death, gains the protection of a mysterious guardian angel. I've read this one about three times now!

 

The Unwind Dystology: A futuristic, dystopian setting where the subject of abortion has reached a compromise, a process called "Unwinding" which surgically rebuilds "troubled kids" into a new person. The story follows protagonist Connor Lassiter and his pursuit of escaping his Unwinding -- there are four books! 

 

The Gone Series: A mysterious event has left a school of teenagers confused and shocked after discovering they've each developed supernatural powers and abilities. Engaging story with characters that actually feel and act like teenagers.

 

Song of Achilles: By far has the most beautiful writing. A retelling of the story of Patroclus and Achilles.

[BonesOfTheEarth 1564]

21 minutes ago, DISCOLIQUID said:

I'm suggesting the black company books for people who like darker writing, and 2nding wizard of earth sea!

 

I've never before met any fans of wizard of earthsea. It's always "like the tales of earthsea from studio ghibli?"

 

First favorite is the Lies of Locke Lamora into the Gentleman Bastards sequence

 

Next is Wizard of Earthsea

[Spindle 651]

2 minutes ago, BonesOfTheEarth said:

I've never before met any fans of wizard of earthsea. It's always "like the tales of earthsea from studio ghibli?"

 

First favorite is the Lies of Locke Lamora into the Gentleman Bastards sequence

 

Next is Wizard of Earthsea

Ursula Le Guin's prose are the best fantasy has to offer in my opinion

9 minutes ago, un-w said:

Song of Achilles: By far has the most beautiful writing. A retelling of the story of Patroclus and Achilles.

Added to the list!

[Spindle 651]

57 minutes ago, shartings said:

have u read the alchemist b4

Yes. What did you think?

[mmat 7461]

Tolkien is always going to have a place on my favourites list, and I'd say probably my favourite book ever is almost certainly the Silmarillion, for its combination of mythology and history of Arda.

 

I've also been listening to more modern fantasy authors lately like Brandon Sanderson (Stormlight Archive, Mistborn, Warbreaker, etc etc.) as well as science fiction mainly in the form of Warhammer 40k books. 

 

If you're a 40k fan looking for a comedic book with a lot of lore and serious subtext, listen to the Infinite and the Divine by Robert Rath. If you just like dumbass Orks being funny, listen to Brutal Kunnin'.

[Spindle 651]

18 minutes ago, mmat said:

Tolkien is always going to have a place on my favourites list, and I'd say probably my favourite book ever is almost certainly the Silmarillion, for its combination of mythology and history of Arda.

The Silmarillion was a major slog for me. Read it twice but still cannot say I'm a fan.

 

19 minutes ago, mmat said:

I've also been listening to more modern fantasy authors lately like Brandon Sanderson (Stormlight Archive, Mistborn, Warbreaker, etc etc.) as well as science fiction mainly in the form of Warhammer 40k books. 

As for Sanderson, he did well with finishing The Wheel of Time and I enjoyed The Way of Kings, but the longer the series goes the worse it gets. Put the fourth book down after a few chapters.

[mmat 7461]

3 minutes ago, Spindle said:

As for Sanderson, he did well with finishing The Wheel of Time and I enjoyed The Way of Kings, but the longer the series goes the worse it gets. Put the fourth book down after a few chapters.

 

I had the same problem. He seems to over-write a lot of stuff that doesn't add any real excitement to the story. 4 was probably the most difficult one to finish

[Hephaestus 1317]

Favourite book or author?

My favourites ebb and flow invariably so it's difficult to determine. I'm unsure if this counts as far as authors go, but my hands-down favourite writer has to be Adonis. From the western world, I'd say maybe F. Scott Fitzgerald.

 

All in all, probably Concerto Al-Quds by Adonis.

The first book you read, or the first one you remember reading?

Might've been The Alchemist. One could probably imagine from my username but, I started off reading a lot of mythology, so probably Percy Jackson too.

 

Books you want to read but haven’t got around to?

A writer—artist—I admire a lot but unfortunately haven't gotten around to enjoying the work of whom is Gustave Doré. I've been hoping to read London: a Pilgrimage for some time now. More recently though, I've been wanting to read The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay. 

List some others you have read and talk about them:

My recent reads (over the summer), new and old, are as follows. I had to check myself to make sure I wasn't being too pretentious.

 

The Death of Ivan Ilyich:   I read this book, surprisingly, for the first time in an evening while at the beach recently. The events of the book are told simply, being a good refresher read after other Tolstoy works which can sometimes be hard to keep up with. 4/5

Tender is the Night:   Fitzgerald’s prose never fails to leave me stunned, pure and simple. A tragedy which sometimes feels almost candy-flavoured. Despite being one of my favourite books, it’s  sometimes inconsistent and disjointed. 3.5/5

Dracula:   I find myself going back to Bram Stoker’s Dracula a lot, just because it’s without a doubt my favourite piece of vampire media. Every piece of the puzzle fits together to give you a suspenseful, well-paced horror show. 5/5

[Spindle 651]

5 hours ago, Hephaestus said:

Dracula:

 

I find myself going back to Bram Stoker’s Dracula a lot, just because it’s without a doubt my favourite piece of vampire media. Every piece of the puzzle fits together to give you a suspenseful, well-paced horror show. 5/5

I should probably get onto reading it. I hear the narrative style is weird.

 

5 hours ago, Hephaestus said:

Fitzgerald’s prose never fails to leave me stunned, pure and simple. A tragedy which sometimes feels almost candy-flavoured. Despite being one of my favourite books, it’s  sometimes inconsistent and disjointed. 3.5/5

One of the rare American authors I enjoy.

5 hours ago, Hephaestus said:

The Alchemist

The Alchemist seems like a common trend in this thread. I really did not enjoy it.

[Hephaestus 1317]

13 minutes ago, Spindle said:

I should probably get onto reading it. I hear the narrative style is weird.

 

The several narrative styles can sometimes feel samey, admittedly. Stoker's use of journal entries and letters to tell the story is certainly interesting.

 

15 minutes ago, Spindle said:

The Alchemist seems like a common trend in this thread. I really did not enjoy it.

 

Yeah, I picked it up before a flight and tried to get into it again recently. Maybe I was reflecting on the book from rose-tinted glasses because I didn't enjoy it as much.

[nyxiiy 28]

(Please feel free to send recommendations! I'd love to hear them <3)

 

Favorite book or author?

No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai

 

The first book you've read;

Hmmm, I'd say it was probably the Harry Potter Series? And right after that would've been Animal Farm which was what actually got me into reading funny enough..

 

Books you haven't read;

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata, Circe by Madaline Miller, and Battle Royale by Koushun Takami all seem like good reads!

 

List some others you have read and talk about them

 

Lovely Bones - 5 ⭐ (Absolutely heart wrenching)

The Inugami Curse - 5 ⭐ (A very charming and stylistic story, a must read for anybody into murder mysteries)

Escape from Spiderhead - 4 ⭐ (Tightly written but still somehow vivid and descriptive)

The Psychology of Time Travel - 4.5 ⭐ (Interesting take on the 'scientists gone mad' trope)

The Idiot - 3.5 ⭐ (tbh I had trouble getting into it, might re-read it with a different translation)

The Picture of Dorian Gray - 5 ⭐ (One of my favorite english lit books)

The Virgin Suicides - 4 ⭐ (A good book but couldn't look past some of the romanticizing it does)

The Song of Achilles - 5 ⭐ (*chefs kiss*)

Norwegian Wood - 3 ⭐ (A little too slow paced) 

Emma - 4 ⭐ (mmm a very fun book)

 

 

15 hours ago, Spindle said:

I should probably get onto reading it. I hear the narrative style is weird.

 

One of the rare American authors I enjoy.

The Alchemist seems like a common trend in this thread. I really did not enjoy it.

I haven't read the alchemist myself, and judging from this tread it seems to have mixed feelings about it. Would you all still recommend it?

[Spindle 651]

7 hours ago, nyxiiy said:

List some others you have read and talk about them

 

Lovely Bones - 5 <img src="> (Absolutely heart wrenching)

The Inugami Clan - 5 <img src="> (A very charming and stylistic story, a must read for anybody into murder mysteries)

Escape from Spiderhead - 4 <img src="> (Tightly written but still somehow vivid and descriptive)

The Psychology of Time Travel - 4.5 <img src="> (Interesting take on the 'scientists gone mad' trope)

The Idiot - 3.5 <img src="> (tbh I had trouble getting into it, might re-read it with a different translation)

The Picture of Dorian Gray - 5 <img src="> (One of my favorite english lit books)

The Virgin Suicides - 4 <img src="> (A good book but couldn't look past some of the romanticizing it does)

The Song of Achilles - 5 <img src="> (*chefs kiss*)

Norwegian Wood - 3 <img src="> (A little too slow paced) 

Emma - 4 <img src="> (mmm a very fun book)

We have similar taste!

 

7 hours ago, nyxiiy said:

I haven't read the alchemist myself, and judging from this tread it seems to have mixed feelings about it. Would you all still recommend it?

Personally I wouldn't.