Just tell me about books you want to read, have read, are reading, etc.
Any English translated Love Live work I can locate, be it official or dojinshi, manga or text. While I am happy to read just about anything I can find related to the franchise, I tend to gravitate toward those centered on Nico and Maki.
Unfortunately, despite the vast amount of material out there, it is being translated far too slowly to satiate my desires. This multimedia project may be the thing that finally drives me to learn Japanese.
Death From the Skies! by Dr. Phil Plait. It's about potential end of the world scenarios that occur naturally. Phil's awesome.
Do not trust this guy! He won't even tell us about his books!
(http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/grthfsh.gif)
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I recently read a great little book about a lonely young man that rebelled against his father's wishes, struck out on his own and became a great leader before his life was cut tragically short. He spent many years as a vagabond, travelling from city to city and hostel to hostel, never really having a place to call home, selling what wares he could just to eek out a meager existance. However, it was during this time that he formulated his world views that would eventually lead him to greatness. Eventually, after initially trying to avoid military service, he does join the army and finds himself in a new world where his mindset and talents can be put to great use and he rises quickly through the ranks, earning multiple commendations as he does so. With a solid foundation of military morals beneath him and recognition of his efforts for his people, he then moved on to seeking a position in politics and actually acted as a spy against a rival political faction by infiltrating their ranks as a comrade-in-arms. These actions lead to him actually turning coat, joining that political faction and almost instantly rising to the top ranks via his great ability in public speaking. In the years to follow, he became a well-recognized author, he reorganized his country's army into a powerful fighting force which then became a dominant force on a global scale and even found time for love. Tragically, that love would not be enough to save him from an early death as the vile forces of the world unite and turn against him and his grand vision. Many inspirational quotes can be found in his work, such as the following:
"If today I stand here as a revolutionary, it is as a revolutionary against the Revolution."
"Do not compare yourself to others. If you do so, you are insulting yourself."
"The only preventative measure one can take is to live irregularly."
I would highly recommend this life-changing book (http://tinyurl.com/m5479ud) to anyone and everyone that loves not only a good drama, but an all-around good read. There is so much wonderful insight to life, love and living to be found within these powerful pages of prose. Give it a look.
omfg best Spam reply 2014
In all seriousness, I agree that Celdia's post is probably one of the best spam replies, although...... I'd only consider it #1 if Dome had posted it.
Anyway, books I like:
I'm a big Lord of The Rings (and The Hobbit) fan. I loved the story because it was so captivating, and I just couldn't put the books down besides to eat, drink, and sleep (almost forgot to do that last one). The characters were probably my favorite part in the story, for their lovable (and not so lovable) personalities, hilarious moments, ("AND MY AXE!"; "It comes in pints!? I'm getting one.") and my ability to relate with them. For example, the story of the Ents really moved me. There wasn't really a point where I could definitively say that one type of people were really at fault for things, and others were not (take the Elves and the Dwarves, for example). All in all, I have to say that LOTR really defines greatness in literature, at least for me.
A Song of Ice and Fire:
These books don't just skim the details like other books. Although these books are probably considered an encyclopedia of porn in some circles, (and I know some think of the books in such a manner, as my supposed colleagues often speak ill of the books in words such as "that's just a porno!", and "that's gross!") I am one of the people who recognize the literature the books are. Although I can't honestly say that I'm completely in favor of the whole 'kill half of the major characters per book' formula, I can say that it also keeps me at the edge of my seat, and makes me want more. As I made pretty clear just now, a bunch of the characters are great, which makes me sad that eventually they're going to be killing each other. The lore is very deep and complex, and instead of wondering what I'm not being told, I wonder if there's anything left to be told. I've always loved the deep complexity of some books out there, and those that I can find really do give me much enjoyment. To top it all off, there's still more coming! Talk about dedication (or love of money).
WARNING, SPOILERS AHEAD:
Graceling: Although I only read the first two books, I'll summarize the first one for those who have not read it.
Book 1, Graceling: The first book of the trilogy gave the trilogy its name. The book follows Katsa, the niece of king Randa of the Middluns. At an early age, Katsa discovered that she had a grace (great natural skill) for fighting. Throughout her childhood, she was used by her uncle to bring displeasure to those whom he did not favor. This lead to her being known as a 'murderous dog', greatly feared by others. Eventually a Lienid named Po arrives at Randa's court, searching for his kidnapped grandfather. Katsa and Po make fast friends. Eventually, Po leads Katsa to begin to question her compliance to Randa's every whim, causing her to eventually lash out, and threaten him unless she can have freedom. As Po is at court, he and Katsa begin to spar, causing both to revel at the skills of the other. They eventually fall in love, not before Katsa expresses her distaste in courtship and marriage. The duo eventually discover that Leck, the king of Monsea, is responsible for the kidnapping, as well as influencing the minds of others. His daughter, Bitterblue, is taken under Katsa's wing, and she teaches her how to fight. Leck is killed later on in the book, leaving a happy ending. For a more definitive idea of the book, read it.
They are coming... (http://www.amazon.com/Max-Brooks-Boxed-Set-Survival/dp/0804137889/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1411601089&sr=1-8&keywords=max+brooks)
I absolutely adore the story telling method Brooks uses in WWZ. By quilting together a series of interviews of individuals who survived the war we get a much more interesting perspective than one limited by a single narrator.
These books can be read in either order as one is a novel and the other as a handbook or guide. However, I still recommend reading the guide first as WWZ makes multiple references to it.
Quote from: Toshiko on September 24, 2014, 08:12:52 pm
Racist.
I'm not racist. It would just surprise me if Dome posted something like that in spam.
Quote from: Toshiko on September 24, 2014, 08:12:52 pm
Racist.
This is my best spam topic by far, anyway (http://ffhacktics.com/smf/index.php?topic=9140.0)
and this is good, too (http://ffhacktics.com/smf/index.php?topic=7675.0)
Anything by Edgar Rice Burroughs or Anne Mccaffrey.
Battle Royale by Koushun Takami
(version translated by Yuji Oniki)
And of course, the Elric of Melniboné series, because no, my name does not fucking come from some derpy ass anime.
Favourite ever: The Fountainhead. So I like Ayn Rand, don't judge me.
Favourite recently: A Song of Ice and Fire series. Although I admit, I had to force myself through A Dance With Dragons. It was just so slow compared to the rest.
I have also recently read Gardens of the Moon, from the Malazan Book of the Fallen series, and would like to continue that series, but have a difficult time finding English books in China.
Also, fuck you spell check. I spell "favourite" with a "u". Same with colour.
Quote from: Rufio on September 25, 2014, 06:56:36 am
I spell "favourite" with a "u". Same with colour.
Do you also spell cheque and aluminium?
Also, I should mention that I am a fan of Michael Crichton and Dan Brown. The world is a lesser place without the former and I anxiously await the next work of the latter.
I am not ashamed to admit that the only Crichton book I ever read was Jurassic Park. A friend of mine in middle school also read a couple other of his books, so I got a tiny bit more exposure that way. I was reading Kurt Vonnegut at the time instead, because fever dreams were more interesting to me.