What Book Are You Reading? - Part VII

Bruno, J.K. Rowling seems to have actually done a lot of in-depth research, with lots of nudges and winks to medieval grimoires:
www6.aeonflux.net/~io/

But, it’s true that even if it is well-researched, it’s not very systemic. I mean, Gamp’s Third Law? What the… I mean, why, just why? For that, my favorite fantasy author, hands down, is Terry Pratchett. He’s so funny that once I laughed so hard that I couldn’t breathe for almost two minutes, the themes are deep and insightful, and the world-building is solid. The magic system is almost psionic.

The Wee Free Men would be very appealing to lucid dreamers, I should think. (Please, please, please do not let the cutesy title, the phonetic Scottish accents, and the prepubescent witch protagonist put you off.) It’s a fairy tale for the Critical Thinking generation-- all about living, as well as dreaming, lucidly. Seeing what’s there, and not what you want to. Thinking, then thinking again.

Reading it over recently, made me want to read The Science of Discworld sequel. The first Science of Discworld made it clear that it wasn’t going to be like other “Science of Fiction Series” books, because Pratchett knew that would be silly. His Discworld is a total fantasy. So, he wrote a short story set in Discworld about the wizards creating a miniature universe that was completely devoid of magic, and collaborated with science writers to explain how that world-- our world-- worked. It must be a little dated by now, but I thought it was a brilliant twist.

The sequel was more about how society works: memes, tribal mentality, and so on.


Unfortunately, I also recently read Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now and I didn’t like it much. For someone who seems to claim to speak from some sort of Socratic irony, I found the tone pretty declamatory. The preface that turned me off follows…

To my understanding, to seek and take under due consideration the arguments of those who disagree with one, are not only a necessity of critical thinking but of an enlightened attitude. I didn’t have a problem reading this at all, until I saw that he responded to the critics as gracelessly as that.

The rest, I saw as self-aggrandization disguised as humble disclaimers, and a very unattractive “ventriloquist” writing style that Tolle takes on with the reader.

Duma key, by Stephen king.

I really like it. Not scary yet, but very thought-provoking…

How is the Holographic Universe? I’m also curious of what you think of How to read the Aura. Let me know, please. :content:

Now I’m trying to finish And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie… I only got maybe two chapters into it before? Already on the 5th now, and I restarted from chapter 1.

The Holographic Universe is actually quite good. I was surprised at how much information it offers and how easy it was to understand it. Talbot has researched the topic quite well and has a lot of data to support the theory, and a very interesting theory it is. It explains so much.

I just started the aura book so I don’t have much to say about it…yet.

Alberto Cousté’s Tarot or the Imagining Machine (a Portuguese version), also by Cousté the Biografía del Diablo (The Devil: a Biography). By Vilém Flusser, História do Diabo (History of the Devil); and by Nogueira, O Diabo no Imaginário Cristão (The Devil in Christian Imaginary). Saint Augustine’s De Civitate Dei (City of God, Latin), Aquinas’s “De Potentiæ” and the Summa Theologica, which brings us back to Aristotle’s τὰ φυσικά (On Nature), τὰ μετὰ τὰ φυσικά (Beyond Nature), Περὶ Ψυχῆς (About the Soul).

Considering picking up LaVey, La Boétie, Milton, Blake and Dante.

Read a few books while i was away. Anne Frank’s Diary was a favourite, as well as most of the Jungle Books and Black Swan Green. I’d recommend all three for sure. I wrote more than I read for sure, though.

Black Swan Green was coolly written. It was like, something would happen to the main character in one chapter, the chapter would end, and then the author would fast forward the story a bit and go on into a new chapter without telling the reader what the hell happened. It was infuriating but great.

The Phantom of the Opera, by Gaston Leroux. :smile:

Currently I’m reading “The Host” by Stephanie Meyer, but I still haven’t gotten into it… I may just read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the galaxy again ^^

Pretty soon I’ll start reading Night by Elie Wiesel.

I really want to read it.

I’m currently reading:
EWOLD by Stephen LaBerge(very interesting, almost done with my first reading of it)
Eye of The World by Robert Jordan(about a quarter of the way through, I’ve been reading it off an on, getting sucked into the never ending world that is Wheel of Time)
Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein(I’m a bit in, but got sidetracked from reading it by the other 2 books).

dreamcatcher by stephen king

i am reading two books that i highly recommend to ages 12/14 and up [depending on what books your parents think are appropriate].

the knife of never letting go, by patrick ness - a good sci-fi book about humans who settle on a new planet and went to war with aliens. the aliens release a germ that kills all the females, and enables the males AND the animals of the planet to read/hear each others minds uncontrollably and with no censors. everything they think is broadcasted to the whole town.

the hunger games, by suzanne collins - a book about the future of north america being run by an awful government. there are 12 districts, and every year there is a horrible event called “the hunger games”, in which a boy and a girl are selected from each district, put in an extremely large nature-like arena, and are forced to fight to the death on live TV while the rest of the country watches. the last child alive is the winner.

Everyone’s reading that book at my school. It’s driving me insane.

I’m currently reading Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice. I hope I end up enjoying it; I bought all three books without ever having read any of them. Heh. So far, it’s gripping.

I LOVE Anne Rice. I have ready almost everyone of her vampire books and Mayfair Witches (the witching hour) I love how she takes you back in time. I almost love her books for that alone more so then for the vampires. Although you really feel like you get to know her characters. :content:

just finished up edge of victory 1 conquest… i love star wars

wow :eh:
A lot of read really deep, interesting, cool books…
:wam: And what have I been reading?
Maximum ride, by James Patterson :hurray:
Its really cute and funny series…
Its abouts these people who were being experimented on, and became Avian Hybrids.

just finished The Golden Compass. My next LD I think I’m going to find out what my Daemon would be. Now I’m reading the second book to the trilogy. :content:

reading the new testament… wow i guess i thought this was facebook or something lol!