NOW READING

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I only read one in Bulgarian (Waste Lands) because I couldn't find it in English. It's definitely better if you read the originals.
As for The Wind..., I don't think it matters much where you read it. It reads well as a separate story, so both ways work in my opinion. I personally enjoyed reading it in the end, since going through all seven books wasn't enough and I wanted more of the Tower.
 
I've been reading Estonian translations thus far because I love their design. There are questionable moments, though, for example idioms that have been translated directly and don't make sense unless you know their origin.
 
Finally finished The Waste Lands. This one took a while as I felt it was a bit slow at times and wasn't as captivating as The Drawing... The pace was picked up again near the bridge part. I'm looking forward to reading the next book, it'll be the last one in Estonian and then I'll continue in English. I'm a fan of the horrific elements mixed into the story (anything from descriptions of rotting flesh to plain cruelty), but there hasn't been anything reeeealy scary yet. I wonder if there are any truly bloodcurdling parts in the books to come?
 
Oh, the title is Wizard and Glass without the articles. What adds great value is that the edition I'm reading has illustrations by Dave McKean :notworthy:.
 
I'm still not giving up on the King project, but the last half a year with Rage (the shortest book so far, no less) combined with lots and lots of theological/pedagogical literature I must read for school (the last exam two weeks ago forced me to memorise all of the Church's history, from 0 to 2018, from St. Paul to Nazism to Liberation theology to current issues in our country, lotsa Popes etc.) made me shake it a bit and I spent some time with Flannery O'Connor (whom I absolutely loved - she became one of my favourite authors, tbh), Graham Greene and G. K. Chesterton. They are all great, though to be perfectly honest, Greene might be a tad overrated - true, I only read his short stories, but so far he seemed more or less like an admittedly Catholic version of Roald Dahl. Which is not bad, mind ye, but he didn't manage to blow my mind. Has nothing on Evelyn Waugh, anyway.

...anyway, I've decided to raise the stakes and finally started with the Malazan Book of the Fallen today (after I gave up on Dune, the next series were a choice between the Witcher saga and Erikson's work - the former because I already have all the books and it will definitely be a shorter read - though, given my recent Rage experience I should probably shut up - the latter because I was really looking forward to it and Tom (our former parish priest) keeps forcing me to read it, he did so even during our last weekend's D'n'D session - considering the fact I hold his recommendations in very high regard, I felt the obligation).

I've managed to read about 50 pages of Gardens of the Moon and I must say I definitely expected it to be tougher. I kept reading about how big a mess it is, how everybody hated it and was completely lost until almost halfway through the book, even the author said as much (that the book is supposed to be brutal to the reader at first) so I expected something terribly unreadable. Okay, there's, like, a million of names and places and whatever, but I think that the reputation of the book is somewhat exaggerated. But maybe it gets worse, we'll see.
 
Well, to be completely honest, 1.) we play the Czech variant (Dračí doupě) because there's pretty much no-one around here playing the original, 2.) I'm no expert, I've been around a few blokes in high school who kept playing all the time and lately I've finally got around playing it myself - thanks to Tom and his friends. Actually, this last time, my wife played too, she was a rather convincing dwarfess :D
 
Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology.
I think I know Norse myths better than Gaiman, even though I say so myself, but I like him a lot as an author and really wanted to see his personal approach to the subject. Which, I'd say, is remarkable (on first impressions, haven't finished the book yet); he makes Asgard look like this forum sometimes.
I've read Norse mythology in numerous translations, retellings, synopses, you name it, not to mention quite a few academic papers discussing and analyzing it, and I'd never - yet - felt such sadness and empathy as when reading Gaiman's version. Well done sir.
 
Magnus said:
Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology.
I think I know Norse myths better than Gaiman, even though I say so myself, but I like him a lot as an author and really wanted to see his personal approach to the subject. Which, I'd say, is remarkable (on first impressions, haven't finished the book yet); he makes Asgard look like this forum sometimes.
I've read Norse mythology in numerous translations, retellings, synopses, you name it, not to mention quite a few academic papers discussing and analyzing it, and I'd never - yet - felt such sadness and empathy as when reading Gaiman's version. Well done sir.
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Got this book for Christmas and still need to read it. Can’t wait!
 
Just read Oh, to Be a Blobel!, a Philip K. Dick short story (in the Gollancz Minority Report collection). Quite funny, very sad, and with a strong
O. Henry
flavour. Man was one of a kind; because, or despite, of amphetamines, I can't say. Think you'd like him, @Onhell - unless you already know him of course.
 
The entire collection is a gem, and Faith of Our Fathers is nothing short of a masterpiece. Written more than half a century ago, it's still disturbingly feasible.
 
Saapanael said:
I’m only a quarter through The Wizard and the Glass (it’s a long one) but it feels like my favourite book in the series so far.
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That’s because it is hands down the best of the Gunslinger series. The flashback involving Susan Delgado (comprising about 75% of the book) is one of King’s best stories, could have been its own standalone novel, and I think would make a great film. I actually recommended it to someone in lieu of the entire series: “just start here, end there, and don’t bother with any of the crap at the beginning or the end, it’ll only confuse you.” I plan to go back and reread that excerpt.
 
JudasMyGuide said:
I'm still not giving up on the King project, but the last half a year with Rage (the shortest book so far, no less) combined with lots and lots of theological/pedagogical literature I must read for school (the last exam two weeks ago forced me to memorise all of the Church's history, from 0 to 2018, from St. Paul to Nazism to Liberation theology to current issues in our country, lotsa Popes etc.) made me shake it a bit and I spent some time with Flannery O'Connor (whom I absolutely loved - she became one of my favourite authors, tbh), Graham Greene and G. K. Chesterton. They are all great, though to be perfectly honest, Greene might be a tad overrated - true, I only read his short stories, but so far he seemed more or less like an admittedly Catholic version of Roald Dahl. Which is not bad, mind ye, but he didn't manage to blow my mind. Has nothing on Evelyn Waugh, anyway.

...anyway, I've decided to raise the stakes and finally started with the Malazan Book of the Fallen today (after I gave up on Dune, the next series were a choice between the Witcher saga and Erikson's work - the former because I already have all the books and it will definitely be a shorter read - though, given my recent Rage experience I should probably shut up - the latter because I was really looking forward to it and Tom (our former parish priest) keeps forcing me to read it, he did so even during our last weekend's D'n'D session - considering the fact I hold his recommendations in very high regard, I felt the obligation).

I've managed to read about 50 pages of Gardens of the Moon and I must say I definitely expected it to be tougher. I kept reading about how big a mess it is, how everybody hated it and was completely lost until almost halfway through the book, even the author said as much (that the book is supposed to be brutal to the reader at first) so I expected something terribly unreadable. Okay, there's, like, a million of names and places and whatever, but I think that the reputation of the book is somewhat exaggerated. But maybe it gets worse, we'll see.
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I was fine with GotM (loved it btw) but found the next two books quite hard tbh.
 
Finished Wizard and Glass. It was somehow very cozy to read about Roland's past, I'm a tad sad it's over. The final vision through the sphere was a cruel and interesting addition. It'll be cool to see how the gang continue their journey, knowing so much more about Roland than before. There was one particularly grotesque page where some kids hid an explosive inside a piece of meat and fed it to a dog, whose head then exploded.

RIP Susan. :goodbye:

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Wizard and Glass is a great read, definitely. Unlike some older fans I do however feel you've got some of the best parts in front of you.

Been reading The Themis Files by Sylvain Neuvel. A great science fiction series I stumbled upon while travelling. Very impressed with the writing - we're talking epistolary novels consisting of interview transcripts, diary excerpts etc. (the titular files), and yet for the relatively few words it gets so much done. The books are called Sleeping Giants, Waking Gods and Only Human.
 
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