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[!--QuoteBegin-Wicker Man+Jan 27 2006, 10:15 PM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Wicker Man @ Jan 27 2006, 10:15 PM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]I read somewhere that it's a great book but the reason some people don't like it is because it is force fed at school. Anyone else think this is a possibility?
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The last book I hated because it was force-fed to me in school (and I would have hated it anyway) was "The Good Earth" I think by J.S. Pearlman... not sure. WHAT A HORRIBLE BOOK! After that, in highschool, it got SO much better with books like "Catcher in the Rye" and "Lord of the Flies". Both brilliant books I'm glad I was given to read.

[!--QuoteBegin--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]I say I've read "at least" 3 because I think I've read one or two more, but can't remember for sure. I've read so many of those legal thrillers by various authors that after a while they all start to blend together in my memory.
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Symptoms of too much cowbell [!--emo&:D--][img src=\'style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/biggrin.gif\' border=\'0\' style=\'vertical-align:middle\' alt=\'biggrin.gif\' /][!--endemo--]
 
[!--QuoteBegin-Conor+Jan 30 2006, 09:00 PM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Conor @ Jan 30 2006, 09:00 PM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]Along from the fact that this book was written 3 or 4 times for updating purposes, it has a lack of continuity about it.  At the start there is a lot written about the early days, then the "golden years" are taken in very quickly with the amount of praise for RiR and DoD etc dragging out the end of the book [!--emo&:huh:--][img src=\'style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/huh.gif\' border=\'0\' style=\'vertical-align:middle\' alt=\'huh.gif\' /][!--endemo--]
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That's true but it's a default very common in those type of books. For example I noticed similar problem in White line fever by Lemmy (Motörhead) where the last 3 or 4 albums and tours are summarized in 20 pages whereas there are a full chapter dedicated to each of the early albums...
 
I'm starting Romeo and Juliet in English class. It's brutal trying to understand old English, but I guess you get used to it...hopefully because I don't know how much more I can take of hearing seemingly complete gibberish.
 
I'm reading a Roddy Doyle book called "Oh play that thing". I find it hard to get into despite the typical Irish wit and I dislike his writing style. I don't see why dialogue has to be presented like a play narrative, only you don't know who's saying what.
 
Right now, I'm reading the Farseer trilogy by Robin Hobb. Anybody interested in fantasy novels, or in fact novels set in a (roughly) medieval/feudal era, should read his books. The sense of atmosphere and character he puts into them is amazing. And the twists and antagonists really get you hooked into it. A great read.
 
[!--QuoteBegin-Wicker Man+Feb 2 2006, 12:47 AM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Wicker Man @ Feb 2 2006, 12:47 AM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]I'm starting Romeo and Juliet in English class. It's brutal trying to understand old English, but I guess you get used to it...hopefully because I don't know how much more I can take of hearing seemingly complete gibberish.
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Shakespearian English (1500's) is considered Modern English. And when I read him in school I found him a drag, but it is an aquired taste and now I rather read shakespeare or the king james version of the bible over what passes for literature today...
 
[!--QuoteBegin-Onhell+Feb 3 2006, 12:40 AM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Onhell @ Feb 3 2006, 12:40 AM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]I rather read shakespeare or the king james version of the bible over what passes for literature today...
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Traditional literature against Nu-literature? [!--emo&:rolleyes:--][img src=\'style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/rolleyes.gif\' border=\'0\' style=\'vertical-align:middle\' alt=\'rolleyes.gif\' /][!--endemo--]
 
[!--QuoteBegin-Ascendancy+Feb 3 2006, 09:09 PM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Ascendancy @ Feb 3 2006, 09:09 PM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]Yay! I finally finsished Lord of the Flies
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So? What do you have to tell us about it?
 
[!--QuoteBegin-Maverick+Feb 3 2006, 08:22 PM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Maverick @ Feb 3 2006, 08:22 PM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]So? What do you have to tell us about it?
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It is possibly one of the most boring books i've ever read. About two thirds of the way in the book picks up from deadly boring to just dull. I really don't think that a bunch of 10 year olds could possibly succesfully hunt and kill pigs, and hunt and kill humans. Another problem is that they use Piggy's glasses to start a fire, which is impossible because Piggy was quite clearly short-sighted so his glasses would not be the correct type to start a fire (correct me if i'm wrong). Also, the book ends badly in my opinion because little is said about the boys rescue and what the naval officer thinks about them killing Piggy and Simon.

What I don't understand is how Lord of the Flies won the Nobel Literature award and is described as "Terrifying and Haunting" when Harry Potter is darker than that.

Saying that, I think Golding's use of symbolism with The Conch and the Fire is good because it really does show the Good vs. Evil, Civilisation vs. Savagery theme in the book which must have been quite important with Nuclear War as a constant threat back in the time when it was published.
 
[!--QuoteBegin-Ascendancy+Feb 3 2006, 08:57 PM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Ascendancy @ Feb 3 2006, 08:57 PM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]What I don't understand is how Lord of the Flies won the Nobel Literature award and is described as "Terrifying and Haunting" when Harry Potter is darker than that.
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Maybe LotF is haunting on a more metaphorical level. Harry Potter does not give us moral lessons but LotF is a grreat book with themes that make us think how sick humanity really is!
 
*goes to commit suicide in a discreet corner to let the dumb inherit the earth* [!--emo&:(--][img src=\'style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/sad.gif\' border=\'0\' style=\'vertical-align:middle\' alt=\'sad.gif\' /][!--endemo--]
 
I'm reading Lord of the Flies as well. Since I'm reading other books simultaneously I've only read the first four chapters or so but it's great this far. I'm also reading Dune which is absolutely excellent. Compared to most fantasy/SF novels it creates a very powerful and convincing world and the story and characters are very interesting. Definitely a must read for any science fiction fan.

Other stuff I've read lately is Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (probably the first book I've read for school that I really liked), various short stories by Isaac Asimov and The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams (marvellous book although not quite as good as its predecessor).
 
Of mice and men is the only steinbeck book i've enjoyed (didn't get past a third of grapes of wrath...ugh) and Isaac Asimov is a very good author. iRobot was fantastic similar to R.U.R but much more ingaging and detailed.
 
I'm reading Foucaults' Pendulum by Umberto Eco. The beginning of the book just sucks. Bla,bla,bla a lot of philosophy and I'm about to sleep. He gets better afterwards though. Now I'm actually interested in reading it! I'm just hoping it'll stay as good as it is now.
 
If you don't like the philosophy part of the book, you probably already lost the point of the book...
Any way, I'm reading Brave New World Revisited. It's amazing how right Aldous Huxley could be. He single-handedly shows the elements that'll either lead tot he total demise of humanity, or will cause it to go down the path shown in Brave New World.

Also, because I see a lot of people are bitching about the books they were given to read at school, so will I. We were told to read "The novel of the miop [man with bad eye-sight at long distances, don't know the english word for it] Teenager". It's the auto-biography of Mircea Eliade, a leading authority in the history of religions. This book was written when he was still a teenager, so the title is apropriate.

But the book i found pretty awfull. I mean, it's a more or less continuos whine that he's ugly and with bad luck at girls while all his friends are beautifull (yes, he uses the word for his male friends. Also, he describes one of them like you would describe a girl) and he also says how he used to go every saturady to get laid at whore-houses. It's pretty sad, nicely written, but still I don't think it should be reccomended in class-rooms...

Edit- I forgot to say that this book proves that emo's have been around for longer than you thought, cause it was written in about 1924-1926. [img src=\"style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/biggrin.gif\" style=\"vertical-align:middle\" emoid=\":D\" border=\"0\" alt=\"biggrin.gif\" /]
 
I just read Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. I must say that it is a pretty good read, although a bit depressing as it highlights the horrors we're all potentially capable of.

The story is basically that of a man who goes up the Congo River, back in the late 19th Century, in order to retrieve a White ivory trader whose methods have been deemed "unsound." He is witness to the abominations of European colonialism at the time and to the darkest side of the human mind.

This novella served as the basis for the 1979 film Apocalypse Now, which itself is the inspiration for the Maiden song 'The Edge Of Darkness'.

Here's one of my favourite quotes from the book:

[!--quoteo--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--quotec--]Droll thing life is—that mysterious arrangement of merciless logic for a futile purpose. The most you can hope from it is some knowledge of yourself—that comes too late—a crop of unextinguishable regrets.[/quote]

 
I got around to reading Lord of the Flies last week and I completly disagree with Ascendancy on it being boring. I found it a great read and everything was so symbolic. My copy of the book had already been used as someone's book for school and I think the only thing that helped my simple mind pick up on the deeper meaning of the book was the persons notes that were joted down on the side of the pages explaining what some things represented. I have to agree with Ascendancy on the ending though, I was pretty disappointed by that but it was only the very last pages that disappointed me. I think the given ending could have been expanded on but I guess the author thought his wasy was better and who am I to agure with that.
 
Just finished the Dark Tower series by Stephen King.

Its LotR meets The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly. Thats pretty much what King said. Enjoyed a ton though.
 
[!--quoteo(post=129519:date=Feb 22 2006, 05:37 PM:name=Ascendancy)--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Ascendancy @ Feb 22 2006, 05:37 PM) [snapback]129519[/snapback][/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--quotec--]
I actually thought there was too much symbolism. It was as if anything that moved, or didn't move was a symbol of something. Why do we need so much symbols?
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Sometimes symbols and flowery language clutter stories and take away some of the harsh reality of the situation. I prefer books with a harsh message that conveys it's point in a clear manner, not a maze of metaphors. Books like 1984, Animal Farm and Brave New World have a basic point of symbolism that is society in general... Animal Farm more so about communism.

A healthy balance is needed like in LotF where there is symbolism that teaches us a lesson, not confuses us with over-complicated language ::
 
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