vinay87
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Posts posted by vinay87
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I haven't read a single book since I finished Gibbon in February. I've tried picking up several books but nothing worked for me. I'm going to try sit through an entire nonfiction book, read a hundred pages every day and see if it works.
The book I'm reading is called Dresden : Tuesday 13 February 1945 by Frederick Taylor.
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I haven't popped in here in months. Been getting used to my new job, and life alone in a small town. I have loads of free time now, I will begin reading once more and hopefully write more as well! Both of that equal more time on this forum
I'm also going to save up to buy a Kindle
I can't keep buying books until I'm settled and I have enough money for a new bookshelf 
or the patience to set up a library in my house. -
I tend to read the Wheel of Time over and over again whenever I'm going through stuff. Besides that, not much else into my reading patterns.
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Had no idea JKR was writing again. Then again, I'm pretty sure I won't buy the book unless I find it second-hand.
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Put the D'Artagnan Romances up for hold while I read through India After Gandhi by Ramachandra Guha. It's an awesome read about India post 1947 which anyone remotely interested in the current situation in India should read.
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I recommend My Experiments with the Truth too. I've never heard of this book though, might look into it since I'm currently reading on Indian history myself.
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Completed The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon. I salute the man for writing this, and I hope I can read the entire collection some time before I die.
I'll try rereading this book before the year ends, it's a good month's read and I haven't really paid much attention for the last one-third of the book. The information density increases as the book ends and he jumps back and forth a lot. But it's still readable and this really could bethe greatest book on history ever written or even attempted. I recommend it to anyone who wants to learn about the Roman Empire.
Next up are the D'Artagnan Romances!
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Gibbon's still going on, haven't read much in the last month or so I'm afraid.
Bought a few new books, hopefully will be the last books I buy for sake of wanting to save money so I can move to another town for my next job.
1. The Nibelungenlied
2. The Song of Roland
3. Alexandre Dumas - Louise de la Valliere (Pocket hardcover! Cannot believe I found this!)
4. Alexandre Dumas - The Man in the Iron Mask (Bought a pocket hardcover!)
5. Charlotte Brontë - Jane Eyre (Read it before, bought it for the sweet gold embossed leather binding. Reserving it as a gift for my best friend though!)
I plan on finishing Gibbon within this week and beginning the D'Artagnan Romances immediately. I was waiting to get all the books and now that I have most of them, excepting the Vicomte de Bragellone, I can begin.
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buy now!!!
No explanation needed
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Well since the WoT is finished, (the final book is done btw, just in the prepublishing stage), there's no more reason to wait!
I know I'm pitching a difficult read, but trust me, tWoT is worth it! -
If there is no mention of Robert Jordan and the Wheel of Time on this thread, it would be blasphemy. Do read the Wheel of Time, it is the biggest Fantasy epic out there. RJ died in 2007 before he could complete it, he left the series with the 11th book and Brandon Sanderson was called on the finish the 12th book which had to be split into 3. The 12th and 13th books are by far some of the best books in that series, and although the series did lag in the middle, the wait is definitely worth it. The 14th book is due early this November so if what you say is true about Feist, then two of the biggest fantasy writers will have ended their decade spanning career simultaneously.
I only picked up Feist in November, reading through Magician, Prince of the Blood, The King's Buccaneer, the Conclave of Shadows series and the first book in the Darkwar trilogy. I have yet to read the Krondor series and the other series, which I forget the name of. Feist is definitely refreshing to read, I especially love Nakor, that little imp!
By way of suggestions, I agree with the David Eddings recommendation, if you love Feist, you will adore Eddings. The series are complete and you might find it interesting to know he wrote most of it with his wife, Leigh Eddings. Both of them have passed on sadly.
The Fantasy genre is headed for an entirely new generation.
I'd recommend you staying away from GRR Martin since he isn't likely to finish his series in the next decade. I stopped after his fourth book and won't bother returning to the series until it is finished or Martin's dead.
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Finished The Epic of Gilgamesh, this translation read like a bedtime story and was quite entertaining. It has definitely piqued my interest enough to want to buy an expanded translation some day.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the oldest epics to have been found, predating the Homeric epics by at least a thousand years. The story is of a king called Gilgamesh, two-thirds god and one-third man, in Uruk who is oppressing the people into tutelage. The Gods make a wild man called Enkidu and the story unfolds to reveal how Enkidu is "tamed" by a prostitute's vices and how he comes to meet Gilgamesh, fighting him until he loses.
Gilgamesh befriends Enkidu and together, they attack Humbaba, the god of a vast forest. Enkidu warns Gilgamesh against this but he doesn't listen to his friend's advice.
The story contains a lot of Assyrian mythology, and I haven't encountered any of these names before, so it was very interesting to read. I think a complete reread will let me enjoy the story further, when I have time for it.
At least only when I'm through with Gibbon, as for which I'm only about two-thirds of the way through it. It gets too tedious now, it's hard to keep track of all the Caesars who've ruled for barely a month or two. I will not stop though, this book is one of the best on history I've ever read.
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Hello there!
Just noticed Terry Brooks on your interest list and thought I'd pop in and talk about him.
He starts out really slow and it becomes highly clichéd Tolkienesque fantasy but his later books show more promise. However, he doesn't improve much beyond a limit, I used to love his books and found them really entertaining, but once I discovered other fantasy writers I felt Brooks had a lot left to learn.
As you might already know, you can start with The Sword of Shannara. His books are mostly standalone, grouped together in threes or fours. The groups tend to become continuous towards the later parts of the story and he has a few recurring characters in all of them. His "wise old man", Allanon, is really interesting but even so his novelty wears out in time.
On another note, do you read much fantasy?
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Hi Vinay
My son was recently saying that he would like to know more about Rome in its decline, which reminded me that I have Decline and Fall on the shelf, so I have been looking at it over the last few weeks. My Dad, who gave it to me, highly recommended it and said that the use of language is very enjoyable as well as the subject matter being very interesting. The edition he gave me was the Folio Society edition, which is two sets of four books each, which means that each individual book is only 300 pages or so long, which makes it seem much more manageable! Thanks for your comments, they have helped make up my mind to start on it some time this year!
Folio Society Edition?! I'm really envious of you right now! But I'd recommend getting an abridged version still, it's heavy duty enough as it is.
Yes, Decline is definitely enjoyable. I just finished the second part and now I'm on to the third (will begin tomorrow en route to work)
I started reading Gilgamesh, skipped the introduction and went right to the text. Only 20 pages left to go — which isn't saying much, the main story is just 60 pages long mind you. I'll add a "review" of sorts as soon as I'm done.
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A friend of mine also said Decline and Fall... is an easy read, and I think funny in parts? I think I bought the Wordsworth edition, so it's a bit different to yours.
I read a bit about The Epic of Gilgamesh in some non-fiction books I read quite a few years ago (by Zecharia Sitchen - I think his theories are similar to Erich Von Daniken's). It really piqued my interest in reading the original text. Does it look like being a difficult read (in terms of the style of writing)?
That is a really nice edition of Poe. I have a paperback copy of his complete tales and poems. It's obviously quite a lengthy book, so I've since bought The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym as a standalone book (I think that might be his longest story). I'll probably buy a couple of the shorter collections as well, just for ease of reading.
Ouch, the Wordsworth edition supposedly lacks all the chapters. That's why this is a difficult book to purchase. The Modern Library Classics edition is the only one with all of the chapters. And it's the only one which focusses on the religious part and not the wars. I want to buy the Wordsworth edition too. Decline is worth at least 2 reads from different editions
I can't stop ogling at the Poe book
I hope I get to open it before it is drenched in drool.The edition of Gilgamesh I purchased is a very short version, and apparently frowned upon since the entire thing is only 130 pages long and more than half of that is the introduction. I think a book like this is best for the first read. The language is really good, very easy and sounds like a fairy tale. It's from penguin and more of a retelling than a translation by N K Sandars. I like the book, despite the reviews since I'm not Assyrian and do not want to spend my time with footnotes and outdated references to dead kings. My reason for buying Gilgamesh is to hear a good story, which is why the poem must've been composed in the first place. Also, this is a prose retelling by the way.
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I'm in awe of you reading Decline and Fall..., Vinay. I bought it recently but it's such a daunting size (even the abridged version!) that it'll be a while before I psyche myself up to read it.
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I agree - great haul! I'd love to read The Epic of Gilgamesh one day, and I have the Crystal book on my TBR pile. Poe is an awesome writer, I think. Have you read anything by him before?
Decline is an easy read Kylie! If we have the same edition (modern library classics) then it is a really decent read! Though it's unedited to be honest. Begin it and you will not be tempted to stop midway!
Gilgamesh is a tiny book, at least the Penguin classics version is. Do buy it soon!
I bought the Crystal book because I'm interested in languages for my book.
I've only read Poe's Raven. I was hoping to buy this edition some day, or at least the complete Penguin edition but this was so much cheaper and looked so beautiful that I could not resist.
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Got a good haul today
2. The Epic of Gilgamesh
3. Adam Smith - Wealth of Nations (Books 1 - 3) (Pelican/Penguin classics edition)
4. David Crystal - How Language Works
I haven't finished Gibbon yet but I can't wait to begin Gilgamesh! -
If I remember A Fine Balance correctly, there were many issues there (if the book follows truth ) ,of racism or maybe it would be more accurate to call it persecution or segregation ., although maybe that wouldn't be the term for it there . I call it SHELVES .It seems there are many religions, many customs and beliefs ,and people are on different shelves because of that. Is the book accurate in that respect ?
It's a fascinating country to learn about . I have a Dr from there ,and my favorite x-ray ultrasound lady is also from there. She is the sweetest person I have ever met .I have found from talking to her that your country seems to feel that education is one of the greatest gifts a person can have . It is refreshing to talk to someone like that who feels so very lucky to have come here and both her kids are in college to become doctors,so she is very proud of them .
Well, people see racism differently here. I've never experienced it, because I live in a metropolitan city, or a tier 1 city as it is called hereabouts. Yes, people are segregated a lot here. I don't remember much of the book, since I was 13 when I read it, but I will add it to my wishlist/tbr for this year and get it ASAP and I'll get back to you on that later.
Yes, education is deemed the most important thing here. It's strange for a person to not get a college education here, and most choose Engineering or any science stream. Although don't get me started on the negative effects of that.
Racism always shocks me as well, and unfortunately even in these so-called enlightened times, it is still very prevalent. Homophobia is another thing that I have witnessed friends of mine suffering, and it shocks me. Sometimes I wonder if we are going forwards or backwards in our thinking! I love your attitude Vinay; my husband's best friend is Muslim - and he is also one of my closest friends. He come to our house every Friday night, and while he doesn't personally drink alcohol, he would never object to us having a drink in front of him. Similarly, he doesn't object to us eating pork or bacon when he is there, although we never would do, out of respect to his beliefs.
I know what you mean - when we can communicate about such things despite being phsysically thousands of miles away from each other, what do books mean, and what can they teach us? I suppose though, that if we didn't have books to raise questions in our minds, we might not be discussing such things with each other. To me, books are often the key that opens the door to a subject. They raise my interest, which leads me to find out more.
As for fiction - I think they can be just as useful as factual books, because they can make a subject more interesting. I never had any interest in say, the Tudor period in England, until I read Philippa Gregory's Tudor novels. While I appreciate that her work is heavily fictionalised, it does have a basis in fact, and reading those books made me look for more information about the period, because they are written in a more 'readable' way. Also, the dystopian novels like 1984 and The Handmaid's Tale (also, The Road - a book I loved and found intensely disturbing) make me think a LOT about the way the world could go. Like you, those kind of books scare me more than any book about ghosts or monsters. I love Stephen Kings books, but they don't scare me, because I simply don't believe that those kinds of things could happen.
With regard to my thoughts on the death penalty...before I read that book, I didn't have a strong belief either way. If someone had have asked me my thoughts on it, I would have said that I was probably against it, but wouldn't have given the subject much thought. The book discussed the whole issue in much more serious detail though (it was a factual book, although the film based on it was a fictionalised account). The book really made me look at my feelings and examine them, and think about precisely WHY I am against it. I didn't really sympathise with the character (in the book, there were two men on Death Row who Sister Prejean befriended, but in the film there was only one). It is made clear to the reader that there is no question of guilt - they ARE guilty. So it's not a case for me of a potentially innocent man being executed. I'm against it for several reasons, which may be the subject for another thread(!) I am relieved that it is not an option where I live, and hope that it never will be.
Re your last point: tiny change is still a step in the right direction, like you say. If a book - any book - can make a bigot question their beliefs, that can only be a good thing.
Thank you for starting this thread
It's very interesting to read and participate in.Homophobia! Funny you should mention that. India is a decade or so away from accepting homosexuals though. I'd expect my kids to bring home their gay friends and go "hush in front of dad, he's old fashioned." I don't have any opinion on homosexuals, pro or against though. I am not curious enough to wonder about it, though I do believe every person has a bit of a homosexual in him/her — I know there's a scale of a sort for this, I read about it but I can't remember the name right now. It's too early for India and homosexuality imo. But then again, it could be that I'm already growing senile and prejudiced at 25.
I've been wondering about this for a while, especially since as kids we were encouraged to find the "moral of a story" to take to our hearts. Gibbon's book really made me think why the Romans didn't learn from their mistakes. Even when their leaders were educated people. That's why I began thinking about this.Guess the fact that the question popped in from reading answers my question in the first place. Still, I'd like to hear any one else's opinion on the matter.
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A fellow GRRM fan I see!
The man is a genius but I hope he'd write more. He takes too long between books, so long that I've not dared touch his latest book just because I don't want to have to go through all the agony involved in the wait for the next one. I'd rather read once he finishes the series, if he ever manages to!
And Tyrion is such an interesting imp isn't he! Wait till you meet Brianna! She's another wonderful character. Or is she already there?
Nevertheless, enjoy the next book, imo it's the best of the lot so far!
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I think that is a wonderful question . In my own life, I'll have to agree with you regarding books we were assigned in school. I always loved to read,so it was one of the best classes for me, but many of the assigned books seemed boring back then,and I wondered why we had to read such boring things when there are so many more interesting books to read .
I guess maybe it's age for one thing, because if I'd go back now and read the same books, I'm sure I'd get much more out of them and understandd why they were assigned to us .
As far as life lessons and learning from books ? I think I learn something from every book I read. Some more than others, depending on the topic.
I also find books fascinating that have a child growing up in a really broken family ,and to see how they are able to overcome that, and whether they are able to become a better person than their role models in life were ,or whether they end up going down the same path and repeating the mistakes that they had already lived through
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People my age probably remember the race riots, back of the bus, drink out of different water fountains, no eating in our restaurants,etc .. It breaks my heart to see how people were treated in my lifetime . I have no experience firsthand with any of this other than seeing it on tv or in books . I do think that each generation improves though. There are still some people my age that are racists to some extent . I think people my kid's age are less so,and more open to associating and being close friends with people out of their "circle" . I think my grandkids are even better than that. They don't even seem to SEE color,they SEE people ,which is wonderful to me .
So,to answer your question ,just for me personally , I think I learn by EVERY book I read. I think I use each thing I learn like I am building a jigsaw puzzle,and each book gives me one more piece for my puzzle . It is helping me to see a whole picture .
Hello Julie, here's the reply I promised you.
The bit about the broken household rings true. I can see the appeal in that story, in a way it's next to formulaic but it's always got something new to offer. Harry Potter stemmed out that way if you've read it. So did many other books. In a way showing a person's growth is a way to churn out all the advice a writer has to offer. It's an amusing bit of a cheat when it comes to that, but it's a cheat that we love to read.
Racism always shocks me. Despite living in a country where the language spoken changes drastically with every 100 kilometers, where people eat completely different foods and have different likes and dislikes, celebrate the same festivals in shockingly different ways, I am a stranger to racism. I wonder if I've ignored it completely or if it is almost nonexistent here. The stories of racism from the west is always shocking. Thankfully yes, every generation improves. In some sects here non-vegetarian food is considered dirty and people will not eat in the same room as another who is eating meat, let alone on the same table. I am a part of that sect but I do not share the same views. I do not eat meat only because I see no reason to and have no cravings for it but I sit with my friends or even total strangers without any discomfort when they're eating meat. I think I'd be more appalled if they ate using the serving spoon than if they ate meat!
Books show these things, opening a window to worlds unknown but what does that mean when we, sitting thousands of kilometers away, can talk this way? The world becomes smaller every day so what do books have to offer.
Hi Vinay
Yes, I see what you mean . The saying here is What Doesn't Kill Us Makes Us Stronger .
Not exactly a pleasant way of putting it, but I find that the best way to learn a lesson is the hard way. If Life is always easy and wonderful then we really don't have to WORK at it and TRY harder to become a better person.
So maybe in a way, we need to study the things that happen to us that are difficult and it makes us think more about how we can make them better .
I think sometimes that all the unhappy events in my life have made me try harder to be more understanding of others and try to see other people's viewpoints instead of just wandering through life with blinders on .
Exactly! Medicine works best when it's foul tasting, I like to say. Although I wonder how strongly books affect us in this manner, life's experiences work well but do books share the same power? Or are we just overestimating the power of the written word?
What a great thread
I would say that certain books have made me more interested in certain subjects. For example, I first read Dead Man Walking, by Sister Helen Prejean, several years ago. Although prior to reading it, I was still against the death penalty, it wasn't something that I gave a lot of thought to, but since reading that book, while my views haven't changed in principal (I'm still totally against it), I definitely feel a lot more strongly about it.
When I read To Kill A Mockingbird (first time), I was about 14 years old. Until then I had never really been confronted with injustice and bigotry, having been brought up in a happy family - and I'd probably led a somewhat sheltered life, but that book opened my eyes and made me want to learn more about the persecution, injustice and ignorance that people suffer on a daily basis.
Other books which have affected me are A Clockwork Orange, and The Handmaid's Tale. A Clockwork Orange made me question the ethics of certain treatments, and whether it is justifiable to (a) try and alter someone's behaviour using such methods as were used on Alex; and the whole issue of treating symptoms rather than the cause of a problem (relevant in today's society still).
The Handmaid's Tale scared the heck out of me! And on a deeper level, made me realise the insiduous way in which authorities can make small changes, which people take no notice of at the time, until they suddenly realise that all their rights have been taken away.
So I'm not sure if I've learned lessons from books - but some books have certainly strengthened my beliefs, or made me question them - or have opened my eyes to things I was not necessarily aware of.
(Garbled a bit there - hope I made sense!)
You made sense to me!
That's what I mean. Books have that power to let you question your beliefs, but what do you take away from fiction? Books of history do help, those are real, but are fictitious stories just as real where their effect is concerned or do we subconsciously treat them any differently?
I've undergone that same kind of fear, 1984 is the best example. The thought that everything we have taken for granted like innocent love can be ripped away from us and wiped away from our minds is really horrifying. I find such books scarier than anything Stephen King writes.
Your thoughts about the death penalty seem interesting. How would you say you're feeling strongly about it now compared to before? You mean you're more adamant in your stance against it now than you were earlier? Was that because you sympathized with the character? I'm curious from a writer's point of view here now.
Sure wish I could remember thee name of that book .
After reading that, I feel that if we make ONE mistake like that, we are as bad as the murderers . We are participating in killing innocent people. NOT acceptible.
I also do not think that it is a deterrent to a crime in any way ,and we should not have the authority to choose who dies. That isn't our place to say .
Living your entire life behind bars like a zoo animal would be a lot worse than laying down, getting an IV and falling asleep permanently. MUCH too easy for them. Make them live, make them stay in jail .
Just my 2 cent's .
Julie, maybe you could try asking in the "what is the name of that book" section of the forum. Silly me, the irony being I've forgotten the name of that part of the forum!
I have read books that changed the way I thought about things. However, rather than being general life changing events, it is normally the case that they change my view on a distinct small set of things. The first book that comes to mind is: Reckoning with Risk (Gerd Gigerenzer). I didn't think I would get too much from this book, but his descriptions of statistical interpretations I found very relevant to some current issues (for example, should men routinely be tested for prostate cancer?). I had never before fully realised that the accuracy of a test depends on the risk category that one is in. For example, despite exactly the same test being done, a positive result from an HIV test is more likely to be accurate if the person is from a high risk background than a low risk background.
As I said, that is a very narrow change in my perspective on things, but I find this much more common than truly life changing alterations. Indeed I can't think of one book that I could say actually changed my life. On a personal level, some fiction books made me really think about my life, for example: Travels with my Aunt (Graham Greene) made me assess some things about me, but not in a sudden life changing way. Some philosophy texts also made me question how I view things, but again, I can't point to one and see a change with me after reading the book being dramatically different from how I was before reading the book.
So I would say that (sometimes) I do learn the lessons taught in books, but often they probably go straight over my head, or I read them and think "this book really is a warning about what's happening" but I wonder whether or not I actually fully take on board the message. This might be good in many ways, I would not like to be able to read a book and be influenced by it so much that I completely change, as you say, that would be quite scary.
A book about statistical interpretations? Whoa, that's the last placed I'd have expected advice to lurk around. The Graham Green book seems interesting, been a decade since I've read anything by him.
As to your thoughts, yes I see how change can be tiny. But isn't that all that's needed? If we can, to use Julie's example, make one racist question his character just a tiny bit, wouldn't that increase with rereads?
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Hi Julie! Thanks for reminding me about Mistry's book. I read it as a teenager and it flew over my head. I must revisit it soon.
I do agree about the books that sound depressing. They have a stronger dosage of the medicine we require, I believe. Happier lessons teaching us to thank nature for the wonderful life we have just aren't strong enough for us to absorb. Or that's just my view. I think we take in sterner lessons easily than softer ones. An interesting thing to notice! I will post more on this tomorrow once I return from work.
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I've been reading Gibbon's The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire and throughout my read I'm finding myself wondering why we never read books like these in school. Assuredly I'd not have understood the content of it back then and I'd have found it boring but surely they'd have made better lessons than the ones we've had.
The one thing I've always wondered is if we pay attention to the lessons taught by history or by the wisdom of writers. Sure we have bad writers now that a greater section of humanity is being educated, but we've had lessons handed down to us by people dead for centuries, if not millenia.
Do we learn from them?
I might be asking this out of boredom, and if it doesn't make any sense let me know, but I honestly wonder if we do change because of the books we read.
After this book, I've changed, perhaps much more than I thought I have. I do not know if that's happening every time I read a book. I do know some books contain that potential more than others. 1984 frightened me more than any other book around. To be honest something like that is happening here in India. The government wants to take action against Google and Facebook for letting people have debates about religion and to "write defamatory articles against certain politicians". It's a pretty controversial topic here as it clearly steps on our "freedom of speech". Censoring the internet is like burning books in my opinion.
So do you learn things from books? Fiction and non-fiction alike? Or has some book really changed your life?
I've always wondered about the power of books to alter lives, perhaps that is changing with time now as there are so many books now. Yet do we let them affect us or does the sheer population of books make us inert to the ideas they contain.
I've read several books which could be called life-changing but I've never felt the effects in my own life. The only book I could say has changed my view on life is perhaps The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery. Although I've read several books with bated breath, I've never felt any change in my life because of them. As a writer I find the fact that words can affect someone very overwhelming. As a reader, it scares me.
Again, I wonder if I'm being pretty vague here. Not really sure if this is the place for this topic either though.
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Complete TBR Pile (Queued books not included here):
Auel, Jean M. — The Earth's Children series
Cervantes, Miguel de — Don Quixote
Donaldson, Stephen — The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever
Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan — Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Short Stories (2 Volumes)
Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan — The Lost World
Mohammed — The Qur'an
Unknown — The Egyptian Book of the Dead
King, Stephen — Carrie
King, Stephen — The Stand
King, Stephen — The Eyes of the Dragon
Scott, Sir Walter — Ivanhoe
Scott, Sir Walter — Rob Roy
Sholokhov, Mikhail — Quiet Flows The Don
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Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson - A Memory of Light (The 14th and final book of the wheel of time)
Waited forever for this one. Can't wait to see how it ends!
Vinay's Book Log for 2012
in Past Book Logs
Posted
Yikes I'm late for this one.
Heya, I'm from Bangalore. Where are you from?