Grand unified books thread

[mongers]

Re-reading LOTR for the first time in a long while, what struck me was 'The Shadow of the Past' is as near perfect a scene-setting chapter for a 'fantasy' novel as one could wish to find. 

[Syt]

I don't know if you could get away with such a big and obvious exposition dump nowadays.

[Josquius]

The question is why a Barnes and Noble clerk had to do a search for one of the best selling authors of the decade.

  You really think today's store clerks can name the top-selling authors of the decade?

This is one of the reasons why I think Waterstones survived (and is doing pretty well in the UK - started turning a profit again over the last 4-5 years) and Borders collapsed. Waterstones hire people who are into reading - so there's stuff like no central "corporate" list of recommendations, it's shaped by the staff in the store. Borders just employed bored teenagers

Yeah, have to say I haven't bought anything from Waterstones in years- and I think they did used to be just another shop in the past.
But they sure have a nice vibe about them these days.
Helps that the Newcastle shop is a super scenic building too

[Sheilbh]

Yeah similar in the ones I visit. Obviously if possible I try to use an independent bookstore () but there aren't enough of them around everywhere and Waterstones have definitely moved from just being a sort of book version of WH Smiths into as you say shops in nice buildings with good vibes and, generally, it feels like people who care.

[Maladict]

The Waterstones in Newcastle is pretty good, but my favourite is the one near the British Museum.
And Hatchards, which is owned by Waterstones.

[The Brain]

Read Holland's book as far as the surrender of France. I'll leave the rest for now, my focus right now is up to that point of the war. The book was OK, since Holland isn't a historian I didn't let minor problems (and they are minor) stop me. Most problems were things that weren't really wrong but could be misleading for someone who doesn't know much. There is little analysis, much of the book is individual human scenes taken from autobiographies etc.

[The Brain]

Next up is The Blitzkrieg Legend: The 1940 Campaign in the West, by Frieser. The authour was (is?) with the Military History Research Office of the Bundeswehr, so I hope it will be a bit meatier.

[grumbler]

Next up is The Blitzkrieg Legend: The 1940 Campaign in the West, by Frieser. The authour was (is?) with the Military History Research Office of the Bundeswehr, so I hope it will be a bit meatier.

That one does look good.    at the Kindle price, though.  Let us know what you think.

[Razgovory]

Finished They Thought they were Free..  The book is a series of interviews of 10 Nazis in post-war Germany.  What they thought of Nazism, why they joined the party, what they believed in etc.  First part is good, it's interesting to know what the rank-and-file Nazis thought.  2nd part is about the German "character".  That's much less good.  I'm wary of Sonderweg explanations and blanket statements about whole groups of people.  The third part is really odd: It's about why the American occupation failed and what can be done to save the soul of Germany (The book was published in 1955).  So basically that whole part is garbage.  Germany did change, but it took more than a few years.  Syt said it took about the two generations and I take his word for it.

Sadly, Germany seems more invested in the idea of a pluralistic democracy than America does these days and they certainly are more dedicated to the cause of peace.

In short: Raz does not recommend.

[viper37]

Lucky's Marine.

I like this one.  It's still fast food sci-fi, but I like it, I find it very funny

Lucky Lee Savage is a lance-corporal marine in the distant future.  There are various regional human power, among which, the Cardinal Order, the Empire (Lucky's faction) and the Union.  No one is the good guy here, for a change.  Only some are less worst than others

Lucky is a lance-corporal whose greatest fear is to be promoted

Each marine has an integrated AI at their disposal, which controls various functions to their bodies, like combat stimulants and nanobots to repair physical damage or protect them from exposition to radiations or the vacuum of space.  Most damages, like a missing limb, can be repaired in some time.  Makes for grittier stories, with vivid, gorier descriptions.

Also, Lucky's AI seems unique in that it's the only AI able to speak and engage in coherent conversations.  And it's a smart-ass AI, often sarcastic, and constantly joking with Lucky.  At some point of the story, the AI is forked and integrated into another character and it makes for even funnier reading

They say you'll love this if you liked series like Firefly or Alien, and I tend to agree.  There's this constant sarcasm typical of Joss Whedon's humor, and a lot of actions typical of the Alien movies.

I highly recommend this one if you fall in the above categories, it makes for fun reading.

[Sheilbh]

Finished They Thought they were Free..  The book is a series of interviews of 10 Nazis in post-war Germany.  What they thought of Nazism, why they joined the party, what they believed in etc.  First part is good, it's interesting to know what the rank-and-file Nazis thought.  2nd part is about the German "character".  That's much less good.  I'm wary of Sonderweg explanations and blanket statements about whole groups of people.  The third part is really odd: It's about why the American occupation failed and what can be done to save the soul of Germany (The book was published in 1955).  So basically that whole part is garbage.  Germany did change, but it took more than a few years.  Syt said it took about the two generations and I take his word for it.

Sadly, Germany seems more invested in the idea of a pluralistic democracy than America does these days and they certainly are more dedicated to the cause of peace.

In short: Raz does not recommend.

On Sonderweg, I've recommended it before but I really recommend The Light That Failed.

One of the points the authors make is that in the post-Cold War Germany was the model, but there is a post-war/democratisation sonderweg in Germany which didn't really work in the context of CEE.

[grumbler]

Inspired by The Brain, I picked up the Kindle version of Operation Red, an analysis of the fighting between Dunkirk and the French surrender.  I've never read an account of that period that went into any detail.  I'll keep you posted.

[Maladict]

This came in the mail today, lockdown reading sorted

[Syt]

I didn't know Julian wrote a book about Gore Vidal

[The Brain]

Inspired by The Brain, I picked up the Kindle version of Operation Red, an analysis of the fighting between Dunkirk and the French surrender.  I've never read an account of that period that went into any detail.  I'll keep you posted.

Please do so. I noticed it while shopping but didn't pull the trigger because I thought I had enough books in the shopping cart.