Jump to content

The Latest Reading Thread


Raithe

Recommended Posts

The Many Deaths of Joe Buckley

 

An amusing book, that Baen are publishing with all proceeds from this collection will support two charities, both founded, supported, and run by Baen readers: Operation Baen Bulk, which sends books, ereaders, and other supplies to our men and women in uniform, and ReadAssist, which allows disabled readers free access to Baen ebooks.

 

If you don't realise it, but in many, many books that Baen publish there will turn up a "Joe Buckley" who invariably is killed off in so many different ways.

He's the Sean Bean of the collected Baen Universes.

 

This book collects many of those deaths, along with the various perspectives of the authors, and how this tradition started.

 

To swipe some from the collections Introduction by John Ringo,

 


To be clear, Joe Buckley is not only a real person, but a really great guy.

 

Unless you meet him online.

 

Joe is one of those people who in person is very kind, caring and inoffensive, and online suddenly changes into, well, not quite a troll but rather sarcastic and, alas, it must be said, occasionally obnoxious.

 

Furthermore, back in the Elder Days of the Internet (not the very elder days of war dialing or the slightly less elder days of BBS and GEnie but elder nonetheless), when the concept of every website having a forum, Facebook, et cetera was not even a gleam in the eye of a Stanford dropout, Joe used to frequent one of the very first web forums, called Baen's Bar. It had been created at the behest of Baen Books founder Jim Baen specifically so he could have long conversations "of cabbages and kings" with his authors and their fans. Joe was a frequent poster, as was I.

 

In Joe's case, however, his internet persona tended to rub certain authors the wrong way. They knew he was a fan and many of his comments were on point, however...

 

See above.

 

Then Joe Buckley was immortalized in flaming death aboard the RMS Cutthroat (along with several other poor people who had the audacity to nil David Weber during a cutthroat spades game. None of whom even KNEW Joe Buckley.)

And thus, the legend was born. I, ahem, admit to some expansion thereof.

 

Eventually it got to the point this remembered post from Baen's Bar:

 

To anyone who knows.
I'm planning my first submission to Baen Publishing. I've followed all the formatting guidelines and it's already been professionally edited. No guarantees but fingers crossed. However, I have one question: Who is "Joe Buckley" and is it required to kill him in the book to get published by Baen? Sincerely, Xxxxx

 

(The answer by the way is: No, but it helps.)

 

  • Like 1

"Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I bought a copy of John Grisham's Gray Mountain at the DFW airport to read on the plane this morning. Frankly it stinks. About 100 pages in I realized I really didn't know what was going on and I didn't care. That guy hit big on one or two books but he's just mailed it in since.

 

I gave the book to the guy in the seat behind me. He was going on to Louisville and hopefully he'll like it better. If not that book might have three owners in one day

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Latest thing I read is the Kate Daniels series. It's a female version of the Dresden Files. For anyone willing to give it a shot be aware that book 1 is weak.

"because they filled mommy with enough mythic power to become a demi-god" - KP

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ilona Andrews is the pen name for a writing couple, and I quite like what they did with the Kate Daniels stuff. As Sarex said, the first book can be considered a little weak by some, since it was a little rough around the edges as they establish the world. But it's got some good ideas and fun characters. Also, unlike a lot of urban fantasy stuff, they don't push the romance aspect just because they have a female lead.

"Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Continuing my quest to read long forgotten authors. Just finished "Sacrifice", http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/22928 It's a romance but also a little disturbing.

It's about a woman who is loved by several men who are willing to sacrifice everything for her, except the man she loves, and therefore she has to sacrifice everything for him.

"Moral indignation is a standard strategy for endowing the idiot with dignity." Marshall McLuhan

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My girlfriend plays WoW and a while ago I bought her a bunch of the lore books since she never played the original games and isn't into RTS. She's finished with them, so I'm reading 'em now. Currently on "Lord of the Clans". Some are good, some are absolutely awful. Lord of the Clans falls somewhere in the middle. Still, feeling all nostalgic and probably going to install WarCraft 3 after this.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been reading Carey Elwes autobiography on The Princess Bride.  It is a great read.  Before that I read the biography of Jay Sarno, the man who built Caesar's Palace and circus Circus.  That was a great precursor for my trip to Vegas. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I got dragged into a fine bookstore --under protest, mind you. Walked out with a First Edition copy of T.E .Lawrence's Seven Pillars of Wisdom.

 

Since I gave up reading books years ago, I don't know what to do with it. I have no space for it in any of my bookshelves and it's too large, heavy, and expensive to "read" it comfortably.

 

Any ideas or pro-tips on the actual physical techniques of reading a large heavy tome? Whatever muscle memory and skills I possessed have completely atrophied. I prefer to read on a tablet sitting up in bed, or laying down on my sides on a sofa, or sitting down on my commuter train. But now, I need adequate EXTERNAL light source and a comfortable support to uphold the actual book.

"Things are funny...are comedic, because they mix the real with the absurd." - Buzz Aldrin.

"P-O-T-A-T-O-E" - Dan Quayle

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This came out of nowhere. Harper Lee is going to have her second novel published.

 

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorite novels growing up and has certainly influenced my views on social justice and basic human decency.

 

The film adaptation was of course, just as good.

Edited by Leferd
  • Like 3

"Things are funny...are comedic, because they mix the real with the absurd." - Buzz Aldrin.

"P-O-T-A-T-O-E" - Dan Quayle

Link to comment
Share on other sites

American Sniper, its an honest and unapologetic perspective of what it means to be a Navy Seal in battle arenas like Iraq

 

I recommend it  to all who enjoy insight into the minds of special force soldiers and what they have to do during war  :geek:

"Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss”

John Milton 

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” -  George Bernard Shaw

"What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am a bit surprised so many of you are interested in American Sniper.  He seems like a classic unreliable narrator to me, and so I've avoided a good deal of the story, both in book and movie form.

 

Unreliable I think is an understatement. The guy is a proven liar.

 

These are slightly dated as they don't have all of the information that came to light in Ventura's libel suit, however the pertinent points are still made.

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/07/30/the-complicated-but-unveriable-legacy-of-chris-kyle-the-deadliest-sniper-in-american-history/

http://mpmacting.com/blog/2014/7/19/truth-justice-and-the-curious-case-of-chris-kyle

http://www.thedailysheeple.com/american-sniper-lies-and-propaganda-to-divide-a-nation_012015

 

 

 

As for what I'm reading book wise:

 

Non-Fiction -

http://www.amazon.com/History-Money-Banking-United-States/dp/0945466331/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8 (highly recommended)

 

Fiction -

http://www.amazon.com/House-Chains-Malazan-Book-Fallen/dp/0765315742/ref=bseries_primary_0_0765315742 (also highly recommended; probably the best fantasy series I've ever read, and I've read many)

Edited by Valsuelm
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Read the Farseer trilogy by Robin Hobb and all I can say is that I am not touching any of her work ever again. I don't even know why I read all 3 books to be honest... I guess I was hoping that it would get better by the end. The main character is so unlikable, that it boggles my mind why she would make him like that.

 

Anyways there are more books that continue the series, but a quick read through the plot showed me that things don't improve in later books.

 

As such I wouldn't recommend these books.

"because they filled mommy with enough mythic power to become a demi-god" - KP

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been reading Carey Elwes autobiography on The Princess Bride.  It is a great read.  Before that I read the biography of Jay Sarno, the man who built Caesar's Palace and circus Circus.  That was a great precursor for my trip to Vegas. 

 

Just want to update and say the Carey Elwes book lost me.  It started out great, but got really boring when it just became page after apge of how great everyone was on the movie.  It may be true, but it was tough to sustain a narrative with.

 

Now I am reading the Scientology book "Going Clear".  It is pretty good so far.  Although I'm seeing a bunch of parallels to L. Ron Hubbard and the bad guy in Pillars of Eternity.   :geek:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now I am reading the Scientology book "Going Clear".  It is pretty good so far.  Although I'm seeing a bunch of parallels to L. Ron Hubbard and the bad guy in Pillars of Eternity.   :geek:

 

Shhhh! Do you want them to sue Obsidian or something?!?!

  • Like 1

Free games updated 3/4/21

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Trying to get through the PoE Collector's Guidebook. But between watching the Warriors and playing Eternity, I just end up wanting to fall asleep after I get through a couple paragraphs.

"Things are funny...are comedic, because they mix the real with the absurd." - Buzz Aldrin.

"P-O-T-A-T-O-E" - Dan Quayle

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I stated this a few months ago and got away from it. But I picked it up again last week. It's The Heart of Everything That Is by Bob Drury & Tom Calvin. It's about Red Cloud and the Lakota Sioux during the late 1860's beginning with the founding for the Bozeman trail and ending with the fight over the Powder River country. What history calls "Red Cloud's War"

 

For anyone with an interest in history or how an inferior military force can defeat a superior one it is worth a look. So far I have thoroughly enjoyed it, Red Cloud was a remarkable man. I was curious if he had any living descendants. His great, great, great granddaughter is a high school student in South Dakota. From her FB page she looks like a typical American teenager doing typical teenager stuff. I wonder what Red Cloud would have thought of that. 

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

That is a really nice edition. I always loved Dune. Up until book 3 at least. After that it REALLY lost it's way.

  • Like 1

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Where can I get that?

 

http://www.foliosociety.com/book/DUP/dune

 

 

 

They are definitely pricey, but I prefer to find them second hand in fine bookshops. The binding and material is top notch and the commissioned art is very high quality.

 

Other Folio Society editions in my collection:

  • Revolt in the Desert - T.E. Lawrence
  • The Travels of Marco Polo
  • The Foundation Trilogy - Isaac Asimov

 

FDT.jpg

 

 

FDT_13473616042.jpg

Edited by Leferd
  • Like 1

"Things are funny...are comedic, because they mix the real with the absurd." - Buzz Aldrin.

"P-O-T-A-T-O-E" - Dan Quayle

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks. I love collector edition books. I have many. But not enough yet to cover a wall. But soon!

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some historical mystery fiction...

 

Philip Kerr - The Lady from Zagreb (reading it right now)

 

Alan Furst - Night Soldiers, Midnight in Europe and Spies of the Balkans (whipped through these in two weeks)

 

and to mix stuff up, Angles of Attack by Marko Kloos, a little military science fiction.

  • Like 1

sonsofgygax.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...