TL;DR: I am politely asking the /r/fantasy community to consider additional alternative suggestions for reading when asked for recommendations besides “go read Sanderson.” I am not asking Sanderson himself (or his fans) to change anything at all about themselves or their views. I am simply requesting that given the authentically motivated reluctance some readers may have with engaging with his work, we (as fellow readers) try not to present him as the “end all be all” immediate suggestion for further fantasy reading after finishing Martin/Rothfuss/Tolkien/etc. (I see it happen here on the forums incredibly often. Not linking/showing any posts because this is not a call-out of any individual.) Providing a wider range of alternative recommendations will foster a more inclusive community and thus a greater readership for fantasy literature as a whole, something I believe we can all get behind. Thank you. …
It’s been confirmed that the first new Nickelodeon Avatar: The Last Airbender project will focus on the original cast and will be set after the original show. The news was revealed at the San Diego Comic-Con.
Original Avatar creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko have teamed up with Nickelodeon to create new animated projects in the same universe. Three animated movies have so far been greenlit, with at least the first set for a theatrical release. The first movie will be directed by Lauren Montgomery (Voltron: Legendary Defender, The Legend of Korra). DiMartino and Konietzko will write, with OG Avatar writer Eric Coleman also on board. Further projects, including a new ongoing animated series, are also under discussion.
It’s assumed that the original voice cast will return. The precise storyline for the sequel is unknown, but DiMartino and Konietzko previously authorised a series of graphic novels dealing with subjects like the search for Zuko’s mother and …
I’ve read and heard the word epitome throughout my life, but until recently found out they were the same word. I don’t know why I never looked up the word when I read it, but I always read it as Epi-Tome. Like the start of epic and then tome. I have never felt dumber now that I know the pronunciation. I am well educated, and do things like this ……
2019 i was reading about 45-50 books a year. these were also big books, i could read a stormlight archive book in a week. i was reading loads, enjoying it, and the words on the page flowed.
cut to now, i’m reading a discworld novel and can only read about 20 pages in an hour. these pages are also MUCH smaller and should be able to read way more than that.
social media has killed my attention span, and also my speed of reading. the words feel so much more clunky now. my reading speed is also so much more notably slower and i hate it.
now i know you should only read for enjoyment, and it’s not a race, but it makes me sad seeing how much harder my brain has to work in order to read a book for an hour now. something i used to lose time in, now takes real effort and discipline. and this is all due to mindlessly scrolling online, watching short videos one after the other.
anyone else have this problem?
EDIT: jesus this blew up lol. i’m so glad i’m not alone on this. i’m gonna really …
Link: https://recommendmeabook.com
It is quite an interesting format, if you don’t like the opening you are reading, then you can skip and go to the next book opening. If the opening does capture your attention you can click at the bottom to reveal the title and author. It reminds me of blind date books where bookstores will wrap a random book up in paper (to prevent the title and author from being seen) and will write brief descriptions about it.
One of my criticisms, is that I wish the website would link to local bookstores instead of Amazon. Also, the library on the website is by no means complete, I noticed there are many books missing from it so I submitted some that I have read. But it should be noted that the website states, “You may submit a book you like, or your own book, but as a disclaimer, we may not be able to add every book that has been submitted.”
So what do you guys think?
Edit 1: You can also browse by genre, by clicking on the gear icon at the …
Edit: thank you to all those who made me realize that I am the problem in this situation. Matthew 7:1 and all that. If anyone still has advice on how to characterize Lolita, I would love to hear your suggestions!
I started reading Lolita by Nabakov a couple days ago and I’m 35 pages in. Like many others, I find the prose absolutely beautiful.
Last night, I asked my wife if she had ever read it. She said no and asked me what it’s about. I said that the basic plot is pretty well known—an old man falls in love with a 12-year-old girl. She said, “Why the fuck are you reading a book about pedophilia?”
I tried to explain that the book is so much more than that and tried to get into the beautiful writing, but I don’t think she gets it. She reads mainly shapeshifter romance novels that are straight-to-Kindle trash. I could have asked her why she enjoys reading books about women fucking werewolves, but I don’t think that would’ve been productive.
So how do you describe this book to people …
I’ve seen lists of best first sentences or favorite quotes, but what is the best final sentence of a book that you’ve ever read? Maybe it’s just a great line, maybe it’s great in respect to the story, or maybe it just connected with you.. but what is your favorite? Mine is cliche, but it has to be the one from The Great Gatsby: “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”
Copying the suggestmeabook thread, but with an SF focus!
Be it similar concepts/themes, similar writing style, similar characters, or perhaps two sides of the same coin - what books always come up together for you?
For example, I think of Tau Zero and Pushing Ice when I think of stories regarding ships approaching x% of the speed of light and the resulting time dilation / far future narrative. Tau Zero as a bare-bones psuedo-origin of the concept and Pushing Ice as something of the culmination of those types of stories (both with wonderful prose).
Or, more on-the-nose, The Gone World by Tom Sweterlitsch vs. The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway: both dealing with concepts of things ‘going away’ physically and metaphorically, with the latter being on the opposite side of the coin in regards to how it handles things (being faaaar more silly).
It was a really good year for sci-fi! Some really interesting books that made the list, and two in particular that are just amazing.
So let’s get into ‘em!
#6 - Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark - A murder mystery set in a steampunk version of Cairo with genies and magic.
The very cool steampunk/genies/middle-eastern mythology setting is definitely the star here - a very fun place to spend time! Extremely reminiscent of City of Brass.
It’s super plot-driven and feels almost like a screenplay for an action movie. In general that makes it a fun read, but that also means it didn’t feel like there were a lot of surprises here. As an example, a big part of the tension through the first 60% of the book is where the villain is getting their power - but the book is called Master of Djinn, so…
You’ll love it if: Steam punk genies sound fun, and you want to spend time with some badass lesbian detectives in fancy suits.
You might not love it if: You are …
I just bailed on Seveneves at about 80% because it just got too explainy. I was really enjoying most of it, but it devolved in walls of info dumps.
So, as the titles says, who are your favorite “Show, don’t tell” authors? Who throws you in the deep end and let’s you naturally discover their world building? What work of theirs is the best example of this style?
Bonus if it’s Hard Sci Fi but might be difficult since the genre naturally requires a lot of teaching science to the reader.
Some sci-fi where people jump from Sergeant to like Commander or a Corporal is ordering everyone around before they become a Lieutenant because they did something well… it just kind of takes me out of it. I know, maybe that’s weird.
Gene Wolfe was in the military and I think he writes the ranks, responsibilities, and attitudes reasonably well. I’d be interested in some military type sci-fi by folks who capture some of the culture and attitudes of the soliders. I’m less interested in great battles and more in just the behind the scenes stuff.
For reference I’ve read pretty much all of the “military” ones on the side bar. in addition to a handful of other ones, but I’m pretty open. I’d kind of rather NOT dive into a series right now.
EDIT: So many really interesting suggestions. I’ve read a few already. I definitely put off posting this for a bit thinking I’d be overwhelmed and here I am totally drowning…but …