Book Baton™
Khaled and Michael punked me into following the fish. So here goes.
Number of Books on the Shelf
Some 30. Most of my books are in a house in Sweden where I like to relax. On the topic of comics, however, I have some 50-70 pieces.
Last Book Purchased
I’ve been buying more comics than books lately. The most recent book I got, however, was The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown, although technically this was a gift from my sister.
Book Reading Right Now
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. It is an excellent read. It’s kinda like watching War of the Worlds, it’s thrilling while it lasts, but you do not expect to walk away thinking too much about it.
Last 5 Books Read
- Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Fantastic book my cousin insisted I read. Not too cleverly thought out—now I have to borrow the rest of the series from him. Expect a film version of this soon, by the way. - Leviathan by Paul Auster
A great, although somewhat slow read. Paul Auster never ceases to impress me with his strange stories often involving himself.
I’m afraid I cannot remember three more books to put on this list. I haven’t read much these last two years, and I’ve only just picked it up again. Chances are though, that the books would’ve been authored by Arthur C. Clarke.
Books That Mean a Lot to Me
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
A chilling vision of the future. Since I learned theory of education, I’ve known that rewarding people for correct behaviour is a far more potent catalyst of behavioural change than punishment for incorrect behaviour. Knowing this has given me an an entirely different view of the world, of politics etc., than I had before. Reading Brave New World with this in mind, made the message of “Soma”, the joy-producing drug rewarded to people not asking questions and doing their job, so much more powerful. In a way, this book compares to 1984 by George Orwell, except for the fact that 1984 based it’s society on punishment for incorrect behaviour. - Dune by Frank Herbert.
Dune is one of those books that impresses by the sheer size and detail of all aspects of the created universe. In that sense, it is comparable to Lord of the Rings or Star Wars. It’s inspiring that simply placing letters on a page can open such a world. - Rendezvouz with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke
If it wasn’t for Dune, this is probably the best piece of Science Fiction ever written.
Passing This Along To?
I’m a bit late to this game, so take it and run with it if you want to.
Good choices; here’s some soma.
I read Rendezvous a while ago, and was really surprised at how much of an impression it left, compared to how little actually happens in the course of the story. But it somehow manages to capture a sense of exploration (apropos), the void of space and the mystery of a potential alien encounter.
I started the sequel, but it killed me in the first 50 pages. I’ll have to return to it eventually.
I’d be interested in what comics you’re reading. I read some part of a graphic novel every day, so my list would be endless, but I’m pretty interested in what you’re reading though…
See, I knew there was a reason you and I get along so well. Have you read the other books in the Rama series? There are three I believe.
Oh, if you finish Da Vinci Code and decide it wasn’t a horrid waste of brain matter do not fool yourself into picking up another Dan Brown book. The book he wrote on cryptography was laughable. It was clever but just irritated the hell out of me.
I have to agree with you about Herbert. I read the entire Dune series (with the exception of the books his son wrote) in about 2 weeks.
I think, though, that for absolute large scope of story I’d have to go with Asimov’s Foundation series.
For absolute confidence in a story I know that anything Robert Heinlein writes will be top notch. The great thing about Heinlein is the manner with which he resolves real historical conflicts with his earlier stories. For instance, earlier stories posited a moon base. Then, we took to long to get there, so he kept his stories in that universe but added an alternate timeline. I think he did that three times. “Oh crap, no martians. Oh well, new timeline.” Paradoxes? Ha! We scoff at your puny paradoxes.
I think the most wonderful thing about Heinlein is that he expected his readers to just figure crap out. For instance, he never explains terminology. A “torcher” was someone that flew ultra long distance space missions at high speeds. You just had to pick that up from the context. Heinlein never forces a character to explain things to people in that universe for the benefit of the reader. Also, the narrator never jumps in to give a definition.
And, if the “science” in Heinlein’s work doesn’t quite make sense, who cares? New timeline! His, is fiction written for the fun of it not to show off what a big brain he has.
Sorry, can’t talk about books and not expect me to be all long winded about it. :)
Michael,
First of all, sorry, your comment got into moderation for unknown reasons.
Secondly, your mind exploring article is great. I wish I could write like that. As for the connection to Rendezvouz, it’s spot on. Almost more so with the sequels. You have to pick up Rama II again and get past those 50 pages. I remember it to be a slow start, but once you get past that it really is a fantastic book. You get some really great answers to some of the unanswered questions in book 1. It’s a mind stimulator like no other.
In my honest opinion, Clarke’s Rama series is the best book series Clarke has written. I hold Rama in higher regard than his 2001 series (which is also fantastic).
Khaled,
I was hoping you would ask :)
The short and sweet answer would be: belgian comics. The longer answer is:
I have almost the entire series now, which is quite a feat because they’re hard to come by. Fantastic drawings, great stories. Clearly a source of inspiration for George Lucas. Just look at this cover
Gaston , Spirou et Fantasio , Id?es Noires etc. All comics have fantastic drawings.
An impressively drawn sideproject by M?bius, although it does get pretty strange around the end. Also a source of inspiration for George Lucas.
Chris,
I have read the entire series. In fact, this very discussion makes me want to read them again. The series concists of
(The II is referring to the naming of the spaceship rather than the order of the books)
All fantastic books. I swallowed them whole.
As for The Da Vinci Code, don’t spoil it now I’m reading it! As mentioned, I don’t expect it to be epic, but for now it’s thoroughly enjoyable.
I must admit I’ve only read Dune, Dune Messiah and Children of Dune (1 2 3), and not 4 5 and 6 (yet). That said, they’re the only books I’ve read them in both Danish, Swedish and English.
I have never been interested in Heinlein. After all, I didn’t really enjoy Starship Troopers. Then again, my cousing who tricked me in to reading Ender’s Game also recommended Heinlein. Now there’s you. Maybe I should reconsider.
Argh, damn you all. While writing this I’ve actually added the whole Rama series and Robota to my Amazon shopping basket. Should I purchase? Stay tuned.
You know you will, you don’t have the power to resist :P
Although the post is actually bookish, I haven’t been in a bookish mode for quite a while, and will therefore focus on the more important aspects, the comics:
So do you read them in French, Flemmish, or translated to Danish or English? Personally, I would read more comics in French, but I don’t seem to understand the damned language. On the subject of comics, however, I fancy pretty much anything. I really like Franquin, although I’ve only ever read any of his comics in Danish. The Id?es Noires are totally fabulous. Oh, and I’ve also read a whole lot of Valerian, also in Danish.
In other comics I’ve always enjoyed Asterix most of all. It’s still my favorite, but lately I’ve gotten a bit hooked on Usagi Yojimbo and will eventually have a collection, so far I only have the first book.
I did. Now I’m just waiting impatiently for it to arrive. I can’t wait.
I’m sure you know how difficult it is to track down comics in Copenhagen. I took the consequence and simply bought them in Danish. I always prefer the original language, but the problem is this only works for me when the original language is English. My french simply isn’t good enough.