For me books are far more enjoyable but after I’ve updated Instagram and Goodreads I can’t be arsed writing another post on what I’m reading.
Suppose I could just stick a list here.
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Watch the mad rush when (if) Winds of Winter finally comes out.
Rather ironically, I think it will be a cold day in hell.
The mediums are just too different. Movies are usually done in a couple of hours and tv shows are an hour at most, and even when binged, a series can be done in a day.
Chances are for popular shows, that someone else will have watched it too, and so a discussion is natural, whereas with books, chances are nobody else is currently reading it, unless it’s part of a big series and has just come out.
I’m currently reading Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee and The Midnight Club. I’m guessing nobody else on here is currently reading either of those, and potentially never have read either. Even if they have, their opinion isn’t going to influence if I do or don’t read them, as it might with tv shows or movies; for example I might have watched ROP or HOD if everyone was saying they were great, but the general consensus is they are okay or a bit crap.
Even when I have read a book which is amazing, I’m always aware that my tastes can be very singular or they are very well known books anyway so there’s almost zero point in throwing it out as a recommendation
That’s a good point. TV and film are more part of the Zeitgeist and will often allow you to participate in something communal. Lost, when watched contemporaneously in the 00s is probably the best example of that I have ever experienced. Books with very rare exceptions are not and so need to play on different things to land.
Interesting options for books though given the conversation and the adaptation of BMHAWK that exists. Have you seen it? If so, how is the book in comparison?
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So, many types of books, scattered readership, less chance of communication. Fewer series and movies corrals the viewers that led to a discussion/debate.
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I generally read non fiction if anyone is interested I can share my Goodreads
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Did he make it as a writer?
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:0)
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Finally got round to finish The Midnight Club. I’m a slow reader in general, but it took a week more because I was watching movies instead of reading. I’m sure most people could polish it off in a day.
Anyway, I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t at all what I was expecting. I imagine the tv series will have used it more as a jumping off point than a straight adaptation.
Started to read Melissa Reddy’s “believe us”.
Yup one mention of Stoke and the 6-1 cheered me up 
In the interest of giving things a fair chance Ive been on a Shakespeare binge recently. Much more engaging to read as willing adult than an unwilling child 
some of it is truly excellent, some less so, but must admit at his best the geezer genuinely had a way with words and wonderfully philosophical mind
SiFi-Fantasy
- Dune (by Frank Herbert more so that those in that universe)
- Foundation (Asimov)
- Lord of the Rings (Tolkien)
- Thomas Covenant trilogies (the first two trilogies rather than the last one) (S. Donaldson)
- Many coloured land (Julian May)
- The Forge of God and Eon (Greg Bear)
- Ring World (L niven)
Non-SiFi - any book by V S Niapaul
- most books by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
- The elementary particles (M Houellebecq)
- 1984 and Animal Farm (Orwell)
- Candide (Voltaire), A death in Venice (T Mann), Mephisto (another Mann), some Twain and War at the end of the World (Vargas Llosa)
- Russian authors in general but Pushkin and Dostoevsky (not read load of them but still good)
There are other which I’ve probably forgotten but these have been great to date…
I wish I still read as I used to…
I know I don’t have the time or patience to read The Lord of the Rings so I decided to give it a go on audiobook and I’ve got mixed feelings as I close in on the end of The Fellowship of the Ring. Its slow to get going (which is where I always bailed out as a reader in the past) but it picks up once they leave the Shire and the chapter in Moria is phenomenal, feels ominous and dangerous.
However, the book has shuddered to a halt again now that they’ve gone to Lothlorian. Just trying to grind through these chapters now but finding them intensely tedious.
I’ve never got into audio books. Not sure whether that is down to cost or just a lack of time to listen to them properly.
Audible which is part of Amazon costs roughly £7 per month which includes 1 book each month. It’s a decent deal and gives a different option of something to listen to if you take public transport to commute.
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There is a reason why the films merged events, timelines and characters… It’s very slow in parts. I always found the 3rd book the most enjoyable.
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I find them incredibly difficult. I love long form podcasts and so I don’t think it’s an issue of paying attention in a passive way, but its definitely an issue remember which character is who from just hearing their names. Planet Money did a full reread of Gatsby a couple of years ago after it become public, and despite seeing both the Redford and Leo version of the film I gave up on this within about 15 minutes after having to rewind it several times to remember who was who.
One thing the book does well is it undulates its tempo, and even the stakes of what is being described, in ways that make the journey feel more real and makes you feel their fatigue and loss more than if it was 1000 pages of breathless action. So after having narrowly survived an encounter (not all of them) they are physically and emotionally shattered and need a break before trying to rouse themselves to continue their quest and I think the chapter in Lothlorien was a needed intake of breath before they continued. It soon enough ramped back up, and you will get this several more times throughout the book.
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