All About Books/Periodicals

[Arnock]

I mean it felt rushed even without that context. There were some scenes, particularly action ones, where things just happened, quickly, and with little sense of import. On the other hand, it was a big improvement, and the first book in a long time where it was possible to like Egwene.

Hmm, could be true. The first time I read it I was just so happy that it wasn't just another Crossroads, and the second time I read The Gathering Storm right after.

Man, how Jordan ever managed to convince himself that it was just "one more book" when he died I'll never understand.

I remember hearing an interview with Sanderson saying that Jordan was expecting the final book to be ~900,000 words long, which is about 3 times the length of most of the other books, I'm pretty sure the publisher would have managed to convince him that it wouldn't exactly be feasible =P


Only about halfway through MoL myself, seems pretty good so far.

[Nooska]

Well, when Jordan was expecting that it included the last 2 books as well (really need to finish the Earths Childrne book I'm on so I can start on aMoL)

[Cogglamp]

Read an interesting book about sugar plantations called Sugar Barons. Amazing the amount of wealth and outright greed that occurred during that age.

To lighten things up a bit, I'm now reading Gulag: The History. Sweet jesus, no wonder Russians like to drink themselves to death. Terrible things recounted in this book. Makes you feel darn lucky to live where and when I do.

[Passionario]

Pariah: Eisenhorn vs. Ravenor is awesome.

[Klaudandus]

Have I mentioned that Sidebooks is awesome for reading comics on an iPad?

[Cogglamp]

I'm finishing up The Better Angels of our Nature: Why Violence has Declined by Stephen Pinker. It's been a great book that is a wonderful voice for logic and reason and very well written. Highly recommend it.

[Nooska]

Just from the title, does he actually document that violence has declined? (compared to when?)

[Cogglamp]

Yes, it's a complete history of violence and the book catalogs the decline for the first 5 (massive) chapters. It goes back prehistoric archaeological sites and brings it forward to current events.

[Klaudandus]

w00t! Peter Watts is writing a sequel to "Blindsight"!

[KysenMurrin]

In the last year or so I've gotten increasingly into comics. I've gone from buying the occasional graphic novel to regularly buying series trades - I'm keeping up with Hawkeye, Batwoman, Locke & Key, Saga, Prophet, The Unwritten. I'm buying Chew in the hardback editions as they come out. I'm working through some older, completed stuff too, currently Transmetropolitan and Y: The Last Man.

The first time I'd even bought a comic that wasn't a self-contained single volume was when I read the Sandman series last August. But now I'm buying something every couple of weeks.

There is really some great work out there in comics right now.

Anyway, I'm just feeling impatient because the latest Locke and Key and Hawkeye trades are out tomorrow and I'll be buying them on Saturday.

[Klaudandus]

check out Last Stand of the Wreckers, a 5 issue miniseries available as a TPB

also, get Irredeemable, it's awesome.

[KysenMurrin]

Is Irredeemable the one that's kind of a what if Superman went bad? I've been thinking about reading that.

[Klaudandus]

Yes. Incorruptible is its sister title, not as good, but still pretty fun.

[Flex]

From author perspectives really hard to go wrong with Gail Simone written stuff. I am also a big fan of Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Grey's work. Fables is a really solid series too when I stopped reading it, the end of the main myth arc. Stay away from The Walking Dead, that shit gets stupid.

[KysenMurrin]

I've looked at Fables but it's one of those things where it's so big now - so many volumes and spinoffs - that I don't really want to get into it.

For example, I know Lauren Beukes has written on Fairest, which is a spinoff of Fables, and I'd be interested in reading that... but how much of the rest would I need to pick up first?