otto
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Posts: 478
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Post by otto on Apr 30, 2024 14:22:49 GMT
Both the LOTR books and the Peter Jackson films are great by the way. Films made a lot of necessary changes (and a few unnecessary ones) but the basic themes, characters and arcs were all similar to the books and hit all the right notes. Is it cool to hate LOTR now or something? Not cool just right. (Films not books - nobody should hate the books.)
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otto
New Member
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Post by otto on Apr 30, 2024 14:27:34 GMT
NGL this might be the best thing I've read on the internet in a decade. Sir you have found this Tolkien/language nerd's G spot.
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JonFE
Junior Member
Uncomfortably numb...
Posts: 1,484
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Post by JonFE on Apr 30, 2024 14:41:06 GMT
It's been a long time since I got my hands on the Greek translation of LotR, but I think/hope they didn't translate any of the names...
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wunty
Full Member
Pastry Forward
Posts: 5,167
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Post by wunty on Apr 30, 2024 14:53:31 GMT
I didn't even know it existed, despite being a big Clive Barker fan. Huge blind spot. It's quite rare to find his books in second-hand bookshops in my experience, but I got lucky with this. I slowed right down for the last couple of hundred pages as I didn't want it to end. Just got hold of second hand copy of Coldheart Canyon. Plopped through my door yesterday. Looks to be the same print that I used to own as I recognised the cover immediately. Will get started on it tonight!
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Post by DrStrangelove on Apr 30, 2024 14:54:44 GMT
I find that you have not experienced Tolkien until you have read him in the original Klingon.
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nazo
Junior Member
Posts: 1,136
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Post by nazo on May 7, 2024 7:38:20 GMT
Leviathan Wakes - James S.A. Corey
The first of the Expanse books. I really enjoyed this; it's told in a straightforward fashion, focussing on events and character actions over detailed description of everything, which is how I like my books. It probably helps that I've seen the series and had could visualise things from that though. It plays out more or less how I remembered with a few differences, possibly down to me remembering wrong. An obsession with whores and brothels gives it a slightly puerile feel at times. I'd like to ready the others in the series if I can clear my backlog.
4/5
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Post by skalpadda on May 7, 2024 16:06:40 GMT
NGL this might be the best thing I've read on the internet in a decade. Sir you have found this Tolkien/language nerd's G spot. If you want more I highly recommend grabbing The Letters of JRR Tolkien (easy to find a .pdf online) and doing a search for "Ohlmarks". Believe it or not I was really trying to edit myself down above. I read up on this because I ran across a university paper that discussed the different translations about a decade ago. It's interesting and I think I still have it somewhere, but it's all in Swedish.
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otto
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Post by otto on May 7, 2024 16:57:17 GMT
Thanks, I will look it up. Your posts did prompt a distant memory I have of reading the Carpenter biography of Tolkien years ago where I think this was mentioned, but I couldn't remember any of the detail.
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Post by LegendaryApe on May 7, 2024 20:29:23 GMT
skalpadda, This might look familiar. Never seen these before, the art is gorgeous.
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otto
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Post by otto on May 8, 2024 6:41:52 GMT
Thanks for sharing those, they're wonderful. She got Gollum a bit wrong but otherwise note perfect.
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Post by skalpadda on May 8, 2024 14:09:37 GMT
skalpadda , This might look familiar. Never seen these before, the art is gorgeous. Oh yeah, Tove Jansson is a national treasure in both Sweden and Finland. That's the edition I borrowed from the library back in the day.
No edition of The Hobbit was translated by Ohlmarks btw.There was also an earlier Swedish translation of The Hobbit and Tolkien didn't like that either. From The Letters... I won't be an apologist for that one though, because it's just silly and doesn't have any of the positives (subjective or not) of Ohlmarks' LotR translation.
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Rich
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Posts: 1,816
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Post by Rich on May 14, 2024 18:36:59 GMT
Audiobooks
Rebel Fleet - B V Larson
Aliens conscript a group of humans to fight in an intergalactic war. Everyone is a bit of dick and the whole structure of the alien fleet is based around the idea that everyone fights each other to gain rank. It's fairly bad but entertaining.
I'd decided pretty near the end that I wasn't going to get the next one, but it was so easy listening that as soon as it ended I did get the next in the series Orion Fleet, which is more of the same. I'll get the next ones at some point I'm sure.
The audiobook narrator was ok but nothing special, though clearly has never heard a Mancunian accent and just appeared to guess at Australian which is quite funny every time one particular character speaks.
6/10 each
Carl's Doomsday Scenario and The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook - Matt Dinniman
The next two in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series. Carl and Donut the cat continue their descent into the dungeon aliens have built beneath the service of the destroyed/resource harvested Earth as part of a universal reality TV running man type show. It's ludicrous and great. Doomsday Scenario is a little dull as not much actually happens though the characters are still brilliant and keep it going. Cookbook is much better.
As fun as the writing is though, its the narration that makes these. Jeff Hayes does a superb job and you'd be forgiven for thinking there was a full cast behind the mic. Will be taking a break before the next book but looking forward to it.
7 and 8/10
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otto
New Member
Posts: 478
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Post by otto on May 15, 2024 9:12:50 GMT
Audiobooks
The Hail Mary Project
Near future 'hard' scifi from the author of The Martian, about an attempt to save the planet because of [yadda yadda yadda] - full of very interesting ideas but also plenty of McGuffins and plot devices that break one's suspension of disbelief (would love to list them but bit spoilery). But worst of all is the narrator whose use of verbal emphasis really makes you want to punch him in the face. On balance it's worth an Audible credit but not going to give it more than 7/10.
The Murderbot Series
Killer android hacks itself to achieve autonomy and takes on nasty big corporations. The first four in the series are currently available as part of an Audible subscription (but only until this weekend so get listening) - they are also all under four hours. These are great - especially the first two - and I will definitely listen to the (full length) fifth in the series. In this one, the American narrator is much better than the previous guy, less stylised, much easier to listen to, a good fit for the content. 9/10.
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Bongo Heracles
Junior Member
Technically illegal to ride on public land
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Post by Bongo Heracles on May 15, 2024 9:21:56 GMT
Shards of Earth - Moon Sized Aliens start appearing around the galaxy and start treating inhabited planets like Play-Doh. A rag tag crew of misfits and aliens are chased around while trying to stop them.
Actually pretty good. Its funny, tense and a good reading from Sophie Aldred. The only problem is that the cast of aliens is so large its hard to keep a track of them. I didn't realise it was a trilogy when I started it, so am on to the next one now which is also decent. Another Adrian Tchaikovsky winner.
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otto
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Post by otto on May 15, 2024 9:26:05 GMT
I have to say I didn't find Shards of Earth up there with the other Tchaikovsky novels I've read, and I got stuck on the second which is in my unfinished pile... Somehow despite the space operatic angle it didn't quite land for me, I think I was missing a character that I could be invested in and also, well, a plot...
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Bongo Heracles
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Post by Bongo Heracles on May 15, 2024 9:41:10 GMT
Its no 'Children of...' for sure but I always love a precursor/unknowable horror in the void story.
But, yeah, it didn't help that most/all of the characters are written as absolute twats.
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Rich
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Post by Rich on May 15, 2024 15:39:47 GMT
I enjoyed Hail Mary, it was a lot of fun despite its flaws. And I quite like Ray Porter as a narrator. He can only do about 5 voices but always manages to hold my attention.
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Post by Reviewer on May 15, 2024 15:59:35 GMT
For some reason I gave the newest Richard Osman but ok a go and I don’t want to sound like a book snob but it’s shit and I gave up halfway through. I imagine most people reading are the sort that like midsomer murders or that one in the Caribbean.
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MolarAm🔵
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Post by MolarAm🔵 on May 16, 2024 0:17:27 GMT
Well yeah, they're cosy mystery books. It's like an entire, massively popular genre. Not for me personally, but I suppose there's some comfort in knowing more or less exactly what you are going to get.
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