Kevin's Watch

Yes, Guards! Guards! was the 2nd one I read - first was Pyramids. I did enjoy that one too and look forward to reading the rest of that series. I started out of order then decided to get them in the right order so going through the Witch books now.

I started reading Pratchet's books back in school, in publication order. Got something like 15 books in. Only bought 8 of them, picked up others in the school library. Wouldn't mind going back through and reading the whole series, but it's a lot of time to commit with that many books.


I've started a re-read of Ursula L Guin's A Wizard of Earthsea.


I've posted a review of Ben Peek's Black Sheep on my blog (sig link).

I'm Murrin wrote:I started reading Pratchet's books back in school, in publication order. Got something like 15 books in. Only bought 8 of them, picked up others in the school library. Wouldn't mind going back through and reading the whole series, but it's a lot of time to commit with that many books.

It's worth it.

Yay, everyone's reading Discworld. The world would be a better place if everyone read Discworld.

I'm Murrin wrote:Wouldn't mind going back through and reading the whole series, but it's a lot of time to commit with that many books.

They're quick reading. I've been reading them almost as long as he's been writing them. Think it was only up to Mort when I started.

--A

I'm Murrin wrote:I've started a re-read of Ursula L Guin's A Wizard of Earthsea.

It's been five hours, so I assume you're done. Heh. Short book.

I only had a bit less than an hour to read. Two chapters (the boat just arrived at Roke).

The Tombs of Atuan was always my favourite; I kept struggling to get back into the last two books when I tried to reread the series. I'm curious how they'll seem now, after well over a decade.

I'll need to hop over to the hangar to see Highdrake's list, but aren't there more than four Earthsea books? Or is that including the short stories?

There's a short story collection and a fifth book, but they didn't exist back when I bought the quartet.

(It's still always published as The Earthsea Quartet, with seperate editions for Tales from Earthsea and The Other Wind: An Earthsea Novel.)

Since Plains of Ra told me my ranyhyn, who is named for an Earthsea character, was coming to join me long before I had ever even heard of the cycle, while leaving me to discover the source of the name to my own devices, and since I read the cycle after the publication of all of the books and novels, my favorite is the short story Dragonfly and the last novel, The Other Wind.

But then, these stories focus on dragons, which I adore...

I'm Murrin wrote:I only had a bit less than an hour to read. Two chapters (the boat just arrived at Roke).

The Tombs of Atuan was always my favourite; I kept struggling to get back into the last two books when I tried to reread the series. I'm curious how they'll seem now, after well over a decade.

Tombs is my second favourite, after the last one, Farthest Shore. I've only read the original quartet.

I actually have the animated movie, but I can't bring myself to watch it.

--A

I hear it's better than the live action version, but not by much.

Interesting note: I've known for a long while now that Earthsea's characters are mainly non-white, but when I first read it as a child I didn't notice and everyone was white in my head. Reading now, Le Guin really does make it very clear these characters are all dark skinned. Shows how much your cultural bias can blind you to these things.

Avatar wrote:The problem for me with the early Pratchett books is that the characters feel a little flat. I loved them at the time, but they develop so much, and become so rounded, that the early and later books can scarce be compared.

Billy G. wrote:Started reading ASOIAF series by George Martin a month ago.

I just got to the end of the published books recently myself. Who knows when the next will be out...

--A

March, 2015 (?)

Martin makes Robert Ludlum look like a structured storyteller.

Hahaha, I knew I should have ignored them until they were done.

--A

So A Wizard of Earthsea ends with a note from the in-universe narrator which explains how they could not possibly have known the story they just told.

Started Consider Phlebas by Iain M Banks... which starts appropriately enough with a character drowning. Crazy Phonecians

Orlion wrote:Started Consider Phlebas by Iain M Banks... which starts appropriately enough with a character drowning. Crazy Phonecians

One of my favourite sci-fi novels. Maybe the first one I read that opened my mind to the possibilities that the genre could encompass, up 'til then I think I'd simply taken it for escapism.

u.

Just started The Black Company by Glen Cook. I've got an omnibus edition of the first three books. Very much enjoying it so far, already seeing the influences it had on Malazan.

Maskerade (TP) and I just finished Lords and Ladies which was excellent. This makes it 18 TP books so far!

Iolanthe wrote:Maskerade (TP) and I just finished Lords and Ladies which was excellent. This makes it 18 TP books so far!

Another two of my favorites.

Orlion wrote:Started Consider Phlebas by Iain M Banks... which starts appropriately enough with a character drowning. Crazy Phonecians

1st Culture novel isn't it? You read any of the others?

--A