I think it’s a good book that just goes on a little longer than it should. Slaughterhouse 5 is a better book in my humble opinion; it’s shorter, more digestible, and the humor is more to my liking.
I read Catch-22 a while back. I loved the writing, but after about half way through I realised I had no idea what was going on. I may try it again at some point. I'm part way through Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia now. It's good but it is taking me a while to get through.
Three books concurrently: Street Without Joy Bernard Fall Last and First Men Olaf Stapledon Elfhome Wen Spencer
I’ve just finished reading Dune Messiah, the second of the trilogy (technically, there are actually six in the series but the book I’m reading only hosts the trilogy). I thought the second had far more interesting concepts that the first.. and the plot thickens. If anyone wants an overview of how difficult life is to be considered a “Messiah” amongst a vast group of people who “believe”, then this is the book to read. I was fascinated by the themes explored in book two, especially the part where Spoiler: warning this contains spoilers the Tleilaxu decided to resurrect the dead Duncan Idaho in the form of a ghola so that they could manipulate him with other gholas i.e so that he could resurrect the people the he loves, including his beloved wife, Chani, who passes away before giving birth to twins. He does not give in to the Tleilaxu’s schemes, however, though that would have made life a lot easier for him and I think I somewhat admired his decision not to. A better more interesting read than the first book, and a whole lot more shorter. I look forward to progressing to the third book.
My intention is to read 10 books before Christmas and just finished the first - Troy - Our Greatest Story Retold - By Stephen Fry. All in all an excellent book. Both Trojans and Greeks really were rotters! Not to mention the gods… Now reading The Thursday Murder Club - by Richard Osman (Debut). By all accounts this is an excellent book too.
I read people raving about The Thursday Murder Club and I am now considering reading it. I am about to finish reading a classic that took me way too long to finish, so I am considering reading an entertaining cozy murder mystery with humor (I hear).
Reading The Cornbread Wars, the story of a plucky country gal and her retired-musician husband and their epic battle against the evils of Big Sugar. It's sort of Julia Child meets Erin Brockovich.
Direct me to a cornbread recipe you like, I'm actually pretty flexible about such things. Spoiler I'm a Chicago boy who can still appreciate a good New York style slice!
Just finished Robert Jordan's The Eye of the World, the first book of the giant The Wheel of Time series. Better than I remember, but still an introductory novel. As all introductory novels to giant series do, this one spends an awful lot of time explaining its own lore which, while interesting, can get quite tedious. But the cyclical nature of time that Jordan takes makes for a very interesting turn of how wide that gap of time really is. In the ruins hidden in the forests and in the blight we gain only small glimpses of the lurking bombshell later, but it is fun to see it creep here and there in passing. Many things to be returned to, if innocuous scene setting at the moment. The characters are mostly interesting, but Jordan spends so so much time individualizing them that it does drag at times. Still, most named characters take on a real life of their own, and I can see any one of them. Not to mention, Jordan's use of established races in the real world is pretty clever considering his interest in time. What really gives me interest in this novel is his use of corruption. Evil plagues and corrupts in many interesting ways an though the basic light versus dark exists, the light's power is polluted by endless corruption as the wheel of time spins further on. The lore is dense and highly weaved. I'm excited to revisit book 2, The Great Hunt, soon. Also excited for the coming TV series, though it will ruin some aspects foreshadowed in the novels.
I've been avoiding that one for a long time. I do love epic fantasy, and it has plenty of good reviews, but I have so many other things that I want to read that I'm reluctant to devote my time to one behemoth. Maybe someday; maybe not.
I know my short bit didn't really do it justice. The novel is entirely worth reading and the series goes through waves of being some of the best there is in epic fantasy. I consider Jordan quite a bit better than Martin or Tolkien, making through the first four books as I had previously. But he does ramble a bit and I've heard some of the middle novels get really irritating in their cyclical fruitlessness of trying to change intended paths of the wheel. I think I'm finally at place to take on the beast in full form though. I'll let you know if it is worth the journey. Right now I just need to catch back up to @Dogberry's Watch .
Reading my way through Asterix the Gaul. Currently reading Asterix and the Normans. Found a fine site that explains some of the Latin jokes and word plays and adds a dimension I didn't appreciate the first time I read the series.
Eh? Doko? (Huh? Where?). I've searched your postings for "recipe" and save the one quoted here I'm coming up blank, and we don't have any PMs. The only thing I can find about cornbread from you are your enthusiastic opinions about the absence of sugar.
I am so sorry! It was Friedrich who requested the cornbread recipe and to whom I sent it. Enthusiastic? Please, my views on sugar in cornbread are fervent, equally only by my disdain for red tomatoes in anything referred to as green chili.
@Catriona Grace , ohhhh could you, please, send me the recipe as well? Or post it on the forum? I have been hunting for a good cornbread recipe for a while now, tried out a few to disappointment . . . . looking for one with which I can produce a good outcome (not all recipes are equal).
