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Last Book You Read



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22.02.2011 - 21:14
Mikyz

I realize not as many people read books, as people watch movies and listen to music but I still think it would interesting to see what kind of books our fellow metalheads read. So, I'd like you guys just to give me the name and author of the last book you read along with a brief description of the genre and topic.
I'll start:

Cockroach By Rawi Hage

I don't really know to which category this book belongs to but nevertheless this book perfectly depicts the life of an outsider from the perspective of said outsider. It follows the life of an exile, who migrated to Canada following some kind of middle eastern crisis ( I believe the Lebanese Civil War) , and is living a poor and desperate life, which is contrasted with that of a cockroach. This book depicts how he adapts and copes with the environment, there also is an intricate love story cleverly weaved into the whole debacle. Highly Recommended + The author's writing style is unique, he has very clever, hypocritical and satirical descriptions.

Also If you like something this deep and well written, you should check his other book Deniro's Game.
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Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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22.02.2011 - 22:12
ErnilEnNaur
Account deleted
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows - J. K. Rowling

Recently finished it for the second time and it was a pathetic ending indeed. Lame plot devices (The I win! wand) and conveniences crammed into a story that she didn't know how to finish properly, copious amounts of time wasted on camping and weddings, deaths, deaths, deaths (Hedwig, Dobby, Mad-Eye, Lupin, Tonks, Fred, Snape and on and on) and more pointless deaths for the sake of drama, horrible chapter titles (The Forest Again), overuse of the same stupid expressions (landing spread-eagled; the curse missed them by half an inch), characters destroyed by goofy writing and inconsistencies (Lupin wanting to abandon his child), the exposition filled "climactic battle" (I own the wand! No, I own the wand! Boom! Voldemort's dead!), the cheesy as hell King's Cross chapter, the cheesier than cheesy epilogue, the fact that Ron Weasley and Percy didn't die.

Way to end the series, J.K. Lucas.
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22.02.2011 - 23:04
ErnilEnNaur
Account deleted
Written by Ernis on 22.02.2011 at 22:49

And she made Dumbledore gay...


Dumbledore's not gay, I will never accept that. She might just as well have said that Ron was an android the whole time, it makes no sense. As far as I am concerned, if it's not in the book, then it didn't happen.

Quote:

And after she saw Daniel Radcliffe naked, she decided the film version needs to contain scenes where Harry Potter is naked (whether 'twas in the book or not)...
And she... ah damn... money corrupts a lot apparently...


I don't care if he is naked as long as the film's good. Unfortunately, there's no screenwriter alive that could turn that absolute piece of garbage last book into a good film.

Quote:

But hei... doesn't matter that much anyway because Potter will never ever beat Frodo and the Fellowship...


In the box office he might. FOTR was the least successful of the LOTR films financially, but I couldn't care less, because it was the best.
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23.02.2011 - 00:02
Valentin B
Iconoclast
I find the whole HP series impossibly overrated, so it's nice to have an easy reason to thrash the movies apart from the 3rd one(which was imo actually quite good, and the 2nd one was decent)

as for me, i don't usually read books, but now i'm 70%-done with my German grammar book(mostly exercises), i'm actually impressed i got this far given what a horror story Teutonic grammar is, no bullshit there. i still can't speak to save my life, but at least i got most of the grammar good, which was quite a feat, considering it took me 6-7 months to fill in 120 pages of exercises. sayonara!

now i'm doing something similar but with a Norwegian book. i wanna (in this order):
-learn Norwegian(like Swedish, it's actually really easy if you know some English and German)

-move to Norway sometime in the next year(s)

-work there

-study there

-burn it up with insane amounts of RAW STYLE there (actually, wait... this might be the first)
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23.02.2011 - 00:45
X-Ray Rod
Skandino
Just a few days ago I finished Orwell's 1984.

Even though I'm aware he's very well known... I never really knew anything about his books.
So I didn't have any expectations for this (specially since it was jsut for a school work)
Damn... I found it awesome. I can see how it can be a true classic. It maded me think a lot. I loved the atmosphere of that world, so perfect yet so fucked up.
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29
Like you could kiss my ass
Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
Rod, let me love you.
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23.02.2011 - 09:09
Mikyz

Written by Guest on 22.02.2011 at 22:12

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows - J. K. Rowling

Recently finished it for the second time and it was a pathetic ending indeed. Lame plot devices (The I win! wand) and conveniences crammed into a story that she didn't know how to finish properly, copious amounts of time wasted on camping and weddings, deaths, deaths, deaths (Hedwig, Dobby, Mad-Eye, Lupin, Tonks, Fred, Snape and on and on) and more pointless deaths for the sake of drama, horrible chapter titles (The Forest Again), overuse of the same stupid expressions (landing spread-eagled; the curse missed them by half an inch), characters destroyed by goofy writing and inconsistencies (Lupin wanting to abandon his child), the exposition filled "climactic battle" (I own the wand! No, I own the wand! Boom! Voldemort's dead!), the cheesy as hell King's Cross chapter, the cheesier than cheesy epilogue, the fact that Ron Weasley and Percy didn't die.

Way to end the series, J.K. Lucas.


I somewhat Agree, I actually read 1 through 6 in French and only the last one in english, as far as writing style goes it was fine imo, but as a story the end is forgetful, it didn't have as much impact as I thought it would have. I was hoping for something more epic than a magic wand, and a protection spell or whatever his mom cast on him before she died making him impervious to Voldemort's spells. It wasn't bad but it wasn't as good as I wanted it to be, after all this is a story for kids there always is a derivative ending to these stories.
----
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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23.02.2011 - 15:47
Tranquillizer
Account deleted
The last fiction book I read was Bram Stokers Dracula, I took it out of pure curiosity. With all the movies and the impact it had on popular culture I really wanted to check out the book that started the whole thing. I can say its one of the best fiction works I have ever read. Stoker was a master at what he did, building suspense, dialog, and even the way narration is made is just genius IMO. Also the croatian edition had a really cool extra part which talked about the actual vampire paranoia that was on in these parts in the 18th century.
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25.02.2011 - 04:56
wormdrink414

Fiction: Number9dream by David Mitchell. Anyone who is fond of quirky prose, meta-fiction, and Japanese culture should definitely check it out. It normally takes me 2+ weeks to finish a 300+ page novel, but I finished Number9 over the course of a weekend.

Nonfiction: Hitch-22 by Christopher Hitchens. It is a memoir, and I know how boring memoirs can get, but Hitchens has done more, and been acquainted with more interesting people in his 60-some years than the Dos Equis guy. That and he is one of the most skilled non-fiction writers alive.
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08.03.2011 - 19:16
Gathering Storm
Account deleted
The last book I read was The tunnel by Ernesto Sabato, it was pretty good I realy enjoyed it a lot, it´s really hard to tell you guys what it´s about, but it´s a pretty damn good read. And right now I´m reading The catcher in the rye by J.D. Salinger. I think it´s turning out to be one of my favorite books, I´ll let you know when I done with it And Wormdrink414, I think I´m gonna look into Number9dream, sounds like my kind of book
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08.03.2011 - 23:00
Mikyz

I've just finished reading, The Definitive Book of Body Language by Alan & Barbara Pease, I've been meaning to read this but I couldn't find it in any bookstore until two days ago, so I was pretty excited to give this a read. It's exactly as the title says, it clearly explains what each position and other body features mean and in which context to use/counter them. It's very helpful, I'm going to give this a second read but I'll take my time, so I can properly absorb all the information it offers.
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Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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09.03.2011 - 00:20
Kitty

"Viking Warrior" by Connie Mason. thought i was going to read a historical/adventure drama, ended up reading a something between a cheesy love story and pr0n. eh
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...And I meowmeowmeow!
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12.03.2011 - 09:53
Icarus
!PROSLACKER!
Story of Stuff, it was a big scope on ecology and environmental problems with industry, I still found some sources not being totally creditable so I guess that was the only down side. The rest of the book was an awesome documentary type read! recomend it, now on to "The God Delusion".
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-At live's eve our flames will cease-
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13.03.2011 - 01:06
ErnilEnNaur
Account deleted
Written by Icarus on 12.03.2011 at 09:53

Story of Stuff, it was a big scope on ecology and environmental problems with industry, I still found some sources not being totally creditable so I guess that was the only down side. The rest of the book was an awesome documentary type read! recomend it, now on to "The God Delusion".


When your done with that one, read Victor Stenger's "God, A Failed Hypothesis". Reading those two books back-to-back is very good for learning to differentiate between good and bad arguments
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19.03.2011 - 05:19
Icarus
!PROSLACKER!
Well actually went ahead and started with "letter to a christian nation". Sam Harris is a real hero.
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-At live's eve our flames will cease-
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20.03.2011 - 09:17
ErnilEnNaur
Account deleted
Written by Icarus on 19.03.2011 at 05:19

Well actually went ahead and started with "letter to a christian nation". Sam Harris is a real hero.


I like that he sees the problems in religion, points them out and invites people to think critically of their beliefs, but I don't like his suggested solution to "make it fundamentally embarrassing to be religious" one bit. It won't work. Anyway, he's better than Dawkins, so what am I complaining.
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20.03.2011 - 18:26
Yasmine

Written by Guest on 20.03.2011 at 09:17

Written by Icarus on 19.03.2011 at 05:19

Well actually went ahead and started with "letter to a christian nation". Sam Harris is a real hero.


I like that he sees the problems in religion, points them out and invites people to think critically of their beliefs, but I don't like his suggested solution to "make it fundamentally embarrassing to be religious" one bit. It won't work. Anyway, he's better than Dawkins, so what am I complaining.


True because making it embarassing to be religious doesnt make people give it up it makes them hostile, which should be embarassing, but often isn't.

The last book I read was Herodotus' "The Histories".
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"Both optimists and pessimists contribute to our society. The optimist invents the airplane and the pessimist the parachute." G B Stern
"Society is like a stew. If you don't stir it up every once in a while then a layer of scum float u
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20.03.2011 - 19:45
Mikyz

Written by Yasmine on 20.03.2011 at 18:26

True because making it embarassing to be religious doesnt make people give it up it makes them hostile, which should be embarassing, but often isn't.

The last book I read was Herodotus' "The Histories".


I actually have to read Herodotus for my Civilization course, seems like a boring read, any words of motivation for me?
----
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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21.03.2011 - 01:05
Yasmine

Written by Mikyz on 20.03.2011 at 19:45

Written by Yasmine on 20.03.2011 at 18:26

True because making it embarassing to be religious doesnt make people give it up it makes them hostile, which should be embarassing, but often isn't.

The last book I read was Herodotus' "The Histories".


I actually have to read Herodotus for my Civilization course, seems like a boring read, any words of motivation for me?

Well the Xeres part is good, it does read a little less like an information bank at that point, so you'll want to hope you get that far quickly. However I will say this if you've ever read "the Republic" you'll survive it with ease.
----
"Both optimists and pessimists contribute to our society. The optimist invents the airplane and the pessimist the parachute." G B Stern
"Society is like a stew. If you don't stir it up every once in a while then a layer of scum float u
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09.04.2011 - 17:10
Sophist

Hesiod - Theogonia
I wanted to finally get some info on all the Greek deities and other mythical beings, turns out there was a whole lot of fornication involved.
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11.04.2011 - 17:46
Bulletdodger

Written by Sophist on 09.04.2011 at 17:10

Hesiod - Theogonia
I wanted to finally get some info on all the Greek deities and other mythical beings, turns out there was a whole lot of fornication involved.


And that is one of the reasons that ancient Greek mythology is the best mythology

And that was the last book I read as well .
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Aus dem Paradies, das Cantor uns geschaffen, soll uns niemand vertreiben können.
David Hilbert
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11.04.2011 - 17:50
Bulletdodger

Written by X-Ray Rod on 23.02.2011 at 00:45

Just a few days ago I finished Orwell's 1984.

Even though I'm aware he's very well known... I never really knew anything about his books.
So I didn't have any expectations for this (specially since it was jsut for a school work)
Damn... I found it awesome. I can see how it can be a true classic. It maded me think a lot. I loved the atmosphere of that world, so perfect yet so fucked up.


If you are getting into dystopian novels, read Zamyatin's We. The writting style is unlike other dystopian novels, and the idea behind it as well.
----
Aus dem Paradies, das Cantor uns geschaffen, soll uns niemand vertreiben können.
David Hilbert
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11.04.2011 - 17:51
Tranquillizer
Account deleted
Written by Sophist on 09.04.2011 at 17:10

Hesiod - Theogonia
I wanted to finally get some info on all the Greek deities and other mythical beings, turns out there was a whole lot of fornication involved.


Not to mention a castration or two...
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11.04.2011 - 20:27
Sophist

Written by Bulletdodger on 11.04.2011 at 17:50

Written by X-Ray Rod on 23.02.2011 at 00:45

Just a few days ago I finished Orwell's 1984.

Even though I'm aware he's very well known... I never really knew anything about his books.
So I didn't have any expectations for this (specially since it was jsut for a school work)
Damn... I found it awesome. I can see how it can be a true classic. It maded me think a lot. I loved the atmosphere of that world, so perfect yet so fucked up.


If you are getting into dystopian novels, read Zamyatin's We. The writting style is unlike other dystopian novels, and the idea behind it as well.

Yes, "We" is a really good dystopian novel.
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19.04.2011 - 23:44
Luneth
Account deleted
'The Nameless City', H.P Lovecfraft
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20.04.2011 - 02:32
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
I just realized how long it's been since I read a book. Shame on me.

The last one I finished was The Ark Sakura by Kobo Abe. It's part of some apparent "absurdist movement" of which I have very little knowledge, but I can see why it's tagged as an absurdist novel. The events that take place are surrealistic, the dialog is almost nonsensical throughout (most of which focuses on insignificant matters), and the characters are so far above and beyond characterization (as they are only consistent in their inconsistencies), which all contributes to the overall feeling of confusion. It's a truly bizarre story about a lone wolf in need of companionship in order to properly escape the inherent destruction of the impending apocalypse.

Even though I initially felt The Ruined Map was a stronger overall work (and the plot was thoroughly enticing), something in me is drawn to the surrealism of The Ark Sakura.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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20.04.2011 - 02:35
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by Mikyz on 22.02.2011 at 21:14

Cockroach By Rawi Hage

I don't really know to which category this book belongs to but nevertheless this book perfectly depicts the life of an outsider from the perspective of said outsider. It follows the life of an exile, who migrated to Canada following some kind of middle eastern crisis ( I believe the Lebanese Civil War) , and is living a poor and desperate life, which is contrasted with that of a cockroach. This book depicts how he adapts and copes with the environment, there also is an intricate love story cleverly weaved into the whole debacle. Highly Recommended + The author's writing style is unique, he has very clever, hypocritical and satirical descriptions.

Also If you like something this deep and well written, you should check his other book Deniro's Game.

Hage is a brilliant author. Many people in the literary world preferred D's G, but I found a supreme sense of identification after reading through Cockroach. I love how he abuses the comma to increase momentum and give the reader a shot of adrenaline, only to have such a swift and simple ending come crashing down in a mere second. Not many authors are able to pull of such stylistic presence without looking pompous and losing sight of the actual story.
----
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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20.04.2011 - 07:47
EmperorGonzo
Account deleted
Just got done re-reading for the 10th time Phillip K. Dicks "Man in the High Castle"
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20.04.2011 - 08:36
Mikyz

The last books I read were:

Freakonomics written University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and New York Times journalist Stephen J. Dubner, it's really fun to read, it analyzes real life situation with economic tools and the result are astonishing.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy, needless to say you will never a book with so little action that is this addictive, it's the story of a father and son trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic where there is nearly nothing left, this one the Pulitzer prize needless to say it's a must read.
----
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone.
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20.04.2011 - 11:18
Deadsoulman

Written by Troy Killjoy on 20.04.2011 at 02:32

I just realized how long it's been since I read a book. Shame on me.

The last one I finished was The Ark Sakura by Kobo Abe. It's part of some apparent "absurdist movement" of which I have very little knowledge, but I can see why it's tagged as an absurdist novel. The events that take place are surrealistic, the dialog is almost nonsensical throughout (most of which focuses on insignificant matters), and the characters are so far above and beyond characterization (as they are only consistent in their inconsistencies), which all contributes to the overall feeling of confusion. It's a truly bizarre story about a lone wolf in need of companionship in order to properly escape the inherent destruction of the impending apocalypse.

Even though I initially felt The Ruined Map was a stronger overall work (and the plot was thoroughly enticing), something in me is drawn to the surrealism of The Ark Sakura.


If you enjoy that kind of absurd stuff, you might be interested in Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami.The book is split in two different stories that seemingly don't have much to do with each other (or do they?), one "normal" story in a kind of fucked up present Tokyo, the other very strange in a semi-medieval dreamworld. It deals with the power of dreams and self-talk as well as with the inadequacy of some people with the modern world, that kind of stuff. It's a quite bizarre and entertaining read.
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20.04.2011 - 12:21
Ragana
Rawrcat
Written by Mikyz on 20.04.2011 at 08:36

Freakonomics written University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and New York Times journalist Stephen J. Dubner, it's really fun to read, it analyzes real life situation with economic tools and the result are astonishing.

I was searching for that book not so long time ago as well, but haven't found it (here) yet. I hope I'll get it eventually. That seems to be one of the few interesting books that have something to do with economics.
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