So roughly 30 years ago I was in a dusty military thrift shop in southern Arizona. My dad had just deployed overseas and my mom was “thrifting”, a favorite hobby of hers. As any kid would do I wandered off on my own, eventually finding myself in the book section. It had maybe 40 books, mostly romance (those Army wives loved them some romance).
On the shelves I found one single book that looked interesting. Some strange ‘The Wheel of Time’ thing. It was a paperback and the thrift shop wanted 49 cents for it, and with at least two dollars burning a hole in my pocket that was a fantastic deal.
Once home I tore through this book faster than anything I had ever read. But it ended in such a cliffhanger. A really confusing, abrupt cliffhanger. It felt like there should be way more. And that is when I realized it wasn’t a complete book! It was a promotional copy of The Eye of The World, by Robert Jordan. It was about the first 6 or so chapters. Imagine reading a …
The Bechdel test gets tossed around a lot as a metric for sexism in books/movies/tv/etc. Much of the conversation is dominated by arguing over whether or not the Bechdel test is even valid. The answer to that, I feel, is “it depends what you’re trying to figure out with it.” This post is an attempt to see how some of /r/Fantasy’s favorites fare when the Bechdel test is applied in a systematic fashion, rather than the cherry-picked way it usually is discussed.
#What is the Bechdel test?
It was first articulated by cartoonist Alison Bechdel in 1985 - here’s the comic that originated it. For something to pass the Bechdel test, it must meet three criteria:
Feature two or more women
That talk to each other
About something other than a man
That’s it. It’s obviously not a high bar. And any feminist will tell you it’s not a great test for whether a work is actually feminist or not. Powerfully feminist works can fail it, and mysoginistic works can easily pass it. The Twilight movie, …
I’m not that experienced fantasy reader, but 2020, for obvious reasons, was a perfect year to start.
In last 3 months of 2020 I’ve binged the entire ASOIAF, mistborn era 1, book of the ancestor, a lot of novels and non-fiction.
And now, after i finished book 3 of the wheel of time series, i was done. Burned out. I just didn’t want to start book 4, another heavy trilogy or worse, stormlight archive, but that’s what my tbr list is, basically.
And then i remembered that Dresden files exist and people say it’s a good palate cleanser series.
To be honest, the concept of reading lighter books to refresh my brain after heavy books was completely foreign to me. What do you mean i can read something when I’m tired of reading to relax and keep reading?
But when i picked up storm front, it clicked. It feels so good. No huge info dumps, no 22 Jons where one of the main character’s name is Jon, no huge worldbuilding terminology and vocabulary. And so …
Tolkien’s writing here is masterful. Knowing what is coming up ahead in LOTR adds immense weight to the chapter. We are first introduced to Gollum in this chapter and the One Ring also makes an entrance here. The tone changes from mystery, to suspense to horror seamlessly as the tension builds.
There is nothing major going on except for 2 beings having a conversation. Both Bilbo and Gollum are putting on acts while hiding something. Gollum, his desire to feed on Bilbo, and Bilbo hiding the ring.
The best part is the climax where Gollum grows inquisitive and inquires about what was in Bilbo’s pocket and him quickly approaching Bilbo.
On a related note, this scene was wonderfully brought to the screen in the first Hobbit movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=md7EJTuqngI
When I finish a really good book, I will ‘quit’ reading for a while. My brain is like:“Hey buddy, let’s not start the next one now. Let’s wait a little.”
I feel like I have to recover. So many things go trough my mind about that book that if I would start another one, I just wouldn’t be interested in it at all.
The better the book, the longer it takes to recover. My longest ‘recovery’ has taken months. But most were about a week or two. The one that took months was so intense. I felt like would never experience such a book again.
A few books that gave me that experience:
Name Of The Wind (Patrick Rothfuss)
Animal Farm (George Orwell)
Maus (Art Spiegelman)
Surely You’re Joking, Mr Feynman! (Richard. P. Feynman)
Do you have it too or am I just weird?
Also what books gave you this experience?
Edit: It is called a Book Hangover!
There seem to be 3 kinds of people:
The first one experiences it like me. When a book is …
You can’t beat it. It’s so easy to purchase books online and get them at your door within a few days. Sometimes that’s our only option (especially in these times), but I’d still happily spend my time roaming around a second hand book store.
The atmosphere just hits differently too. You might not find exactly what you were searching for, or you may, even still you’re bound to come across something that ignites your curiosity.
Plus second hand books always spark my interest in the history behind them. The amount of owners, many, or just one, where the book has been, has it once been in the hands of someone in a different country? These curiosities make the experience all the more worthwhile.
Do you feel the same too?
Edit: Thanks for the awards :)
Ever since the beginning of COVID, I feel like I’ve lost all energy and interest in the things I used to love, including books and reading. My entire life has been rooted in a love for books. Get this: I’m a librarian and an English literature professor. Not being able to read anymore is giving me an identity crisis.
Has anyone else experienced this? Does anyone have any idea how I can solve this problem? I feel so strange and alone in this experience and I’m desperate for some help!
I absolutely adored this book. I am a huge fan of Michael Crichton, and this gave me very similar vibes. The attention to scientific detail and humor is everything. I loved how much detail was provided when Mark Watney solved problems, and how he used a realistic tone to explain how he was feeling. The movie adaptation was entertaining, but I felt like Matt Damon was an odd pick for Watney. My only real criticism of the book as well as the movie, is that the end seems rushed. In both cases, a few more pages/running time would wrap things up nicely. Overall, I have to thank this sub for this recommendation, and I’m going to read Artemis next.
Edit: Wow, lots of love for this book! I appreciate all the feedback, especially the lively debate around Artemis. I’m not sure who I would pick to replace Matt Damon, but I’d say someone like Domhnall Gleeson. I loved his performance in Ex Machina. Also, I don’t really do audiobooks, but I appreciate the recommendations, and I’m sure others …
About a year ago, a new author - Isabel Fall - released her first published story in Clarkesworld: “I Sexually Identify as an Attack Helicopter”. Seeing as we’re right around its anniversary, I thought it might be a good time to discuss the story and take a retrospective look at its place within the SF world. If you are unfamiliar with the story, an archived link to it can be found here. At the time, it made a rather big splash. Many, such as Peter Watts, showered it in praise, an extremely promising first story from an up-and-coming writer.
However, there was also harsh backlash. Critics called it transphobic, accusing the author of being a neo-Nazi, the text of being something written by a cis-white man with no personal stake in the story being told. Some critics of the story later admitted to not actually reading the story, reacting purely to the title and the existing backlash. The backlash became so intense that Clarkesworld pulled the story, Isabel Fall was …
I bought the first edition paperback when it came out in 2009 but couldn’t get into it back then. I think it was just a little too arcane for me.
Started again a couple of weeks ago and have just finished part 5. The world-building in this book is phenomenal. It has crept into my dreams and my day-dreams. I know I need to continue reading but at the same time I’m conscious that I’ll only read this for the first time once. Very few books have done that to me recently. Maybe Hyperion or House of Suns, both of which I read for the first time last year, but then I just wanted to press forward and know more. Here, I want to savour what I’m reading. Let each part sink in a little while and digest before going on.
Did you feel the same way when you read Anathem? What other books deserve savouring as opposed to “binging?”
The title says it all. I’m just looking for recommendations on science fiction books with elements of fantasy-like themes in them.
Thanks
Is it just me that found the Culture books rather hard to penetrate? I don’t hate them by any means, I just didn’t find them to be page turners (having read up to Inversions except Excession, which I do plan on reading soon) and feel like they are a bit overrated based on my enjoyment of them, but having started the Algebraist (on audiobook) I’m finding it much more compelling.
I know it’s his only book to have been nominated for a Hugo, but is it generally considered his best book by /r/printSF?
I’m looking for a read with a MC similar to Dr. Chef from The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, or Maia from The Goblin Emperor. Any suggestions would be awesome. Thanks guys
Edit: Thank you very much to everyone for your suggestions. This is just what I was looking for.
#Tom Cruise#
# | Film | Year | Domestic | Worldwide |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Cocktail | 1988 | $172MM | |
2 | Rain Man | 1988 | $355MM | |
3 | Born on the Fourth of July | 1989 | $161MM | |
4 | Days of Thunder | 1990 | $158MM | |
5 | Far and Away | 1992 | $138MM | |
6 | A Few Good Men | 1992 | $243MM | |
7 | The Firm | 1993 | $270MM | |
8 | Interview with the Vampire | 1994 | $224MM | |
9 | Mission: Impossible | 1996 | $458MM | |
10 | Jerry Maguire | 1996 | $274MM | |
11 | Eyes Wide Shut | 1999 | $162MM | |
Magnolia | 1999 | |||
1 | Mission: Impossible II | 2000 | $215MM | |
2 | Vanilla Sky | 2001 | $101MM | |
3 | Minority Report | 2002 | $132MM | |
4 | The Last Samurai | 2003 | $111MM | |
5 | Collateral | 2004 | $101MM | |
6 | War of the Worlds | 2005 | $234MM | |
7 | Mission: Impossible III | 2006 | $134MM |
#Will Smith#
# | Film | Year | Domestic | Worldwide |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Bad Boys II | 2003 | $139MM | $273MM |
2 | I, Robot | 2004 | $145MM | $353MM |
3 | Shark Tale | 2004 | $161MM | $375MM |
4 | Hitch | 2005 | $179MM | $372MM |
5 | The Pursuit of Happyness | 2006 | $164MM | $307MM |
6 | I Am Legend | 2007 | $256MM | $585MM |
7 | Hancock | 2008 | $228MM | $629MM |
8 … |