What book(s) are you reading?

[Joe Molotov]

Also, started reading this since it seemed topical.



Starts out by asking whether cops are even constitutional. (Then answering "no, but we're stuck with them anyway")

[benjipwns]

Up-front look at the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1937. Extremely interesting and eye opening. Orwell had some balls.

My favorite part of that is how it's decided what brigade/army Orwell gets assigned to. And that's like the most important component in how his experience plays out.

[meeb]

Why Religion is Natural and Science is Not

Just a random book that explores the cognitive differences between religion and science, without giving a value judgement to either. Basically it argues that appeals to agent causality are pretty natural and cross cultural. Whereas other than being sensitive to evidence and formulating hypotheses, science requires a lot of things that don't quite come as easy to humans.

[Rufus]

How does it define "natural"?

[meeb]

How does it define "natural"?

Forms of cognition that are relatively unreflexive. Things that come easily to humans with little, if any work. Language use is an example. Humans learn spoken language without clear directed instruction. We can speak without thinking about it.

Humans also know from a young age (babies just a few months old) that solid objects can't phase through other solid objects. We know this without ever having to learn it formally or think about it.

There is a more detailed description of what the author means by natural in the book. But I am on mobile so I can't type it all out now.

Also worth noting that he talks only of popular religion. He argues theological study is not cognitively natural in the same way popular religion is. And by popular he doesn't mean number of followers but things like "if I pray to god hard enough he will fix my cancer" that aren't necessarily theologically sound (theology would argue prayer is to align your will with gods, not to beg for stuff).

[Rufus]

Satisfactory answer.

[Kara]

Up-front look at the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1937. Extremely interesting and eye opening. Orwell had some balls.

My favorite part of that is how it's decided what brigade/army Orwell gets assigned to. And that's like the most important component in how his experience plays out.

My favorite part was when he went out of his way to talk about manana culture in Spain and thinking to myself, "Yup this is the fella who wrote an essay about brown people making him shoot a noble elephant while he was an agent of the British Empire."

Respect for volunteering and fighting in Spain doe.

[G The Resurrected]

This is what's in progress for me.

I jump around from book/book series on a whim somedays. My current fave read is Year Zero, it's fun to read thus far.



I also have a few graphic novels/comics I've been reading. I've been really into Saga, it's like Heavy Metal but with a real story and good characters.

[chronovore]

That's a lot of Scalzi on deck. I try to keep my Scalzi paced out, because I like to not eat all my treats at once. I especially like the books he's had read by Wil Wheaton.

I have an Audible.com subscription, but I may cancel because I'm not able to keep up with the books I've bought so far.

I also find it surprising how much a narrator can influence my enjoyment of a book. Oliver Wyman is off my list of acceptable readers now, because he has a few reading quirks which are really annoying to me, a limited set of voices for character types, and now I keep associating him with Larry Correia's work, and there's only so much fantasy I can deal with: government-sponsored werewolf hunters? Sure. Libertarian gun porn? No, thanks.

On the other hand, Tim Curry and Alan Rickman have read a few things for them, and those have been luscious.

[Kara]

I have an Audible.com subscription, but I may cancel because I'm not able to keep up with the books I've bought so far.

I also find it surprising how much a narrator can influence my enjoyment of a book. Oliver Wyman is off my list of acceptable readers now, because he has a few reading quirks which are really annoying to me, a limited set of voices for character types, and now I keep associating him with Larry Correia's work, and there's only so much fantasy I can deal with: government-sponsored werewolf hunters? Sure. Libertarian gun porn? No, thanks.

On the other hand, Tim Curry and Alan Rickman have read a few things for them, and those have been luscious.

I listen to enough Black Library Audio ( self-assessed L brehs) to run into this too. The full audio books can get downright ghastly with the voice work if the cast is too large (which they can often be in 40K shit).

They're handling multiple characters a lot better now at least, they even get multiple readers on more than the rare occasion. (Hearing Amberley Vail's voice. )

[octopushover]

Juggling between Vonnegut's Galapagos and Jason Priestley's memoirs.

[Eric P]

Just finished Greg Rucka's Alpha which is Die Hard in Disney World. It was an ok summer read. Nothing mind blowing but it only took like two hours to read.

[Olivia Wilde Homo]

(Image removed from quote.)

Conservatives are poutraged over this book for casting St. Ronnie in a very dim light, so I figure it's probably pretty good.

So far what I've read is that the Nixon administration was really good at using POW's as political props to distract people from how shitty the Vietnam War was going, and then waited until after the election to declare "peace with honor", even though we were still bombing civvies down in Cambodia, but nobody wants to hear the truth, they want to hear what makes them feel good, and what makes Americans feel good is AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM, GREATEST NATION IN THE WORLD, so instead of talking about dead Vietnamese children, here's a "victory" parade for the returning POW heroes and doesn't it feel good!

I can kinda see why conservatives might not be a fan.

I just finished this.  It is a great read but I found it inferior to Nixonland.  Which isn't a criticism against the book but Nixonland was so good and it perfectly captured the changing political environment in a way that I haven't found in any other book.  The Invisible Bridge tries to do the same thing but seems to be incomplete.  While Perlstein went really deep into Nixon for Nixonland, it seems like Reagan only got a surface level treatment by comparison, which I think does the book a disservice.  The book's strength, like Nixonland, is that is it very objective.  There is no real slant and I think Perlstein goes to great lengths to make sure that the book is as factual as possible.

I will probably check out the first book in the trilogy about Goldwater.

[Phoenix Dark]

Good work hosting that pic on imgur instead of direct linking Wikipedia so only people who already know about Sorry, only registered users can see this content. Please Login or Register. can get the joke.

the little things

[Robo]

I'm reading Don Quixote which is about the ingenious Spanish gangster who introduced wind turbine power to the kingdom of La Mancha in the 1600s after his father collapses in the family garden.  His older brother, Sancho, upset that he was not favored as his father's successor, attempts to convince him that his quixotic ideas are simply fantasy in a plot to gain control of the governorship of the family insula.  It's good, I like it!

[Phoenix Dark]

(Image removed from quote.)

Conservatives are poutraged over this book for casting St. Ronnie in a very dim light, so I figure it's probably pretty good.

So far what I've read is that the Nixon administration was really good at using POW's as political props to distract people from how shitty the Vietnam War was going, and then waited until after the election to declare "peace with honor", even though we were still bombing civvies down in Cambodia, but nobody wants to hear the truth, they want to hear what makes them feel good, and what makes Americans feel good is AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM, GREATEST NATION IN THE WORLD, so instead of talking about dead Vietnamese children, here's a "victory" parade for the returning POW heroes and doesn't it feel good!

I can kinda see why conservatives might not be a fan.

I just finished this.  It is a great read but I found it inferior to Nixonland.  Which isn't a criticism against the book but Nixonland was so good and it perfectly captured the changing political environment in a way that I haven't found in any other book.  The Invisible Bridge tries to do the same thing but seems to be incomplete.  While Perlstein went really deep into Nixon for Nixonland, it seems like Reagan only got a surface level treatment by comparison, which I think does the book a disservice.  The book's strength, like Nixonland, is that is it very objective.  There is no real slant and I think Perlstein goes to great lengths to make sure that the book is as factual as possible.

I will probably check out the first book in the trilogy about Goldwater.

Couldn't be argued that Reagan was a significantly less complex character than Nixon? I haven't read The Invisible Bridge but I'm not surprised that it only offers a surface look at such a vapid man. Whereas Nixon is like a multi-layered character from a great piece of literature.

[Reb]

I'm reading John Scalzi's Old Man's War, which is enjoyable, but not great.
And just started in Chuck Palahniuk's Choke, I'm not sure what to think of it yet.

[chronovore]

I'm reading John Scalzi's Old Man's War, which is enjoyable, but not great.
And just started in Chuck Palahniuk's Choke, I'm not sure what to think of it yet.

Choke is worth the effort, but not as much of a grabber as some of Palahniuk's other work. The payoff/punchline and flawless literary structure alone are worth the effort.

As far as Old Man's War, I thought it was pretty great, particularly in a light, fun, Heinlein throwback way, but without the Heinlein baggage.

[jakefromstatefarm]

Books came!






Thematic continuity

[Joe Molotov]

Ringworld was pretty good, but I never read any of the sequels.

[Olivia Wilde Homo]

I finished Byron Crawford's new book, Kanye West Superstar.  Like Crawford, I've never been a big fan of Kanye.  He's always been lyrically shit and his beats are overrated but I could be biased because I couldn't fucking stand the chipmunk voices over overdone soul loops that he liked to do that plagued rap for 2003-2005.  I wouldn't say that I'm a hater, I just never gave much of a fuck about the man.  It's a hilarious book.  For those who haven't bothered reading his other books, the subject matter seems almost secondary to his other interests, which is looking at internet porn, high profile rappers like Jay-Z who are mere marionettes of Israelis, the hilarious tales of overhyped-by-Pitchfork backpack rappers, and working minimum wage jobs.  KWS, like his earlier book Nas Lost, goes through Kanye's history while primarily focusing on the aforementioned topics but still ties it together.  I recommend it.

Couldn't be argued that Reagan was a significantly less complex character than Nixon? I haven't read The Invisible Bridge but I'm not surprised that it only offers a surface look at such a vapid man. Whereas Nixon is like a multi-layered character from a great piece of literature.

Maybe but Nixonland works well because he gives such an in depth look at Nixon that you understand why he did the things he did.  Not sure if Perlstein will write another book about Reagan so maybe we'll see more gaps filled in then, I don't know.  It's not a bad book but Nixonland remains to be the best.

[Eric P]

just finished Gone Girl, the Girl w/ the Dragon Tattoo of last year.  It was pretty good.  I'm curious to see what they've changed for the film.  This book has it all if you're a misogynist OR a misandrist.

[Eric P]

for Joe.

someone takes the Cthulhu mythos and has turned it into a tongue in cheek kinda sorta spiritual self help book

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J4EOLPI

Yog-Sothoth … Nyarlathotep … Shub-Niggurath … CTHULHU. The Great Old Ones: hideous monster-gods from beyond Time and Space. Ancient, eldritch horrors that populate the pantheon of weird-fiction writer Howard Phillips Lovecraft’s increasingly popular milieu, his so-called Cthulhu Mythos. Some claim that they are merely fiction, while others have convinced themselves that Lovecraft somehow intuited their objective existence. When faced with the weird, chimerical potency of the Great Old Ones, whether they are approached through fiction, magical practice, or, say, a table-top role-playing game, neither viewpoint really seems to satisfy. The Great Old Ones are protean, nebulous, unimaginable… and impressively persistent in their psychological and spiritual presence.

In "When The Stars Are Right: Towards An Authentic R’lyehian Spirituality", author Scott R Jones deftly breaks down the barriers between the rational and the irrational, between the bright logic of our daytime intellect and the fearful non-Euclidean symmetries of our darkest dreams. In the process, the truth of the Great Old Ones is revealed in all its cosmic resonance.

Beyond reason… beyond madness… beyond the unspeakable… lies the Black Gnosis: a new mode of being, a spirituality that anticipates a new appreciation of humanity’s place in an increasingly dire and indifferent cosmos. "When The Stars Are Right" asks the reader a simple question: “Are you keeping it R’lyeh?” The answers may surprise you.

"When The Stars Are Right: Towards An Authentic R’lyehian Spirituality" by Scott R Jones, with an introduction by Jordan Stratford '(Living Gnosticism: An Ancient Way of Knowing' and 'A Dictionary of Western Alchemy') and interior illustrations by Michael Lee Macdonald. Available in print and electronic book formats from Martian Migraine Press. Print editions may be ordered directly from MMP at martianmigrainepress.com

[Phoenix Dark]

I'm too much of a Nas stan to read Crawford's book about him. Does he at least acknowledge that It Was Written is dope?

[Joe Molotov]

for Joe.

someone takes the Cthulhu mythos and has turned it into a tongue in cheek kinda sorta spiritual self help book

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J4EOLPI

Sounds like just the thing to get my life right with Azathoth.

[Joe Molotov]

https://www.humblebundle.com/books

Posting this because 2 books that I really enjoyed are in the $1 tier, Lois McMaster Bujold's The Curse of Chalion and Neil Gaiman's American Gods.

[Groogrux]

Has anyone tried Kindle Unlimited yet?  I'm just wondering if it's worth $9.99 a month.

[fistfulofmetal]

I finished Jurassic Park today, which was fantastic.

Next I'm gonna start One Second After which is about a town struggling after a nuke goes off in high atmo which results in an emp. I hear it's real good.

[chronovore]

http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/07/joe-abercrombie-trilogy-half-a-king

New YA trilogy from Abercrombie

[Eric P]

Ishmael Reed's Mumbo Jumbo.  Holy fuck this book gives me the same feelings i get when i first discovered Vonnegut. 

[Kara]

In retrospect, starting a Viktor Frankl book after watching an episode of Rectify wasn't my wisest moment.

His story about deciding to give up his U.S. visa and stay in Nazi Austria.

Wish I could relate.

[benjipwns]

Just got done with:


Now moving into:

[Eric P]

That Waston and Holmes book is grand.

I'm currently reading two things.  The most recent volume of Dark Lore came out.  It's an annual journal devoted to Fortean history and lore.  More of an examination of the history and sociological aspects of "why did people believe this stuff" rather than "HOLY SHIT BIGFOOT"  Every year is full of fascinating topics.s

The other thing I'm reading is called Kid Power from small Canadian press Spectacular Optical.  I would pretty much instantly recommend this to any "weird kid" from the 80s.  It's a book full of essays about fucked up kids' movies and television programming.  This is "deep cuts" shit so no fucking Thundercats.

http://www.spectacularoptical.ca/2014/02/spectacular-optical-book-one-kid-power-to-launch-this-summer/

[benjipwns]

If Sean Hannity read the first part of this Stockman book he'd blast it as a left-wing Marxist attack on American Capitalism. Guy goes so balls deep and not mucking around with words into AIG, Morgan Stanley, Goldman, etc. Bush Admin officials, Greenspan, etc.'s shenanigans and asshole behavior. One part he's like "conventional wisdom says only an idiot would have invested in AIG after looking at their corporate structure, thankfully Goldman Sachs and Paulson ignored conventional wisdom." And he starts off the book shitting on Gingrich, Bush, Reagan and Nixon. (And Friedman.)

I wonder if Megan McArdle's written a review. 

Random line from the book:

During 2009-2012 the vultures feasted gluttonously in the Fed’s killing fields.

[Kara]

Sounds like a stamocap analysis to me.

[benjipwns]

Hey. Hey. We came up with the same idea first. You guys just got to name everything.

Stockman spends a whole section basically calling Jeff Immelt an asshole who was willing to destroy the market to protect his bonus. 

[Kara]

That's what happens when you leverage the power of states deformed workers' states.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

I always love the things that end up on either end of the spectrum (e.g. dual power) somehow. It either means it's right / an effective tactic, or ideologies preoccupied with human freedom secretly draw from the same well even though we wouldn't be caught dead together at the club.

[close]

[benjipwns]

ideologies preoccupied with human freedom secretly draw from the same well even though we wouldn't be caught dead together at the club.

Or Marx gets them get kicked out like Bakunin.

I think it's true about the same well because there are some inherent underlying ideas, for example, ownership of labor and the rejection of "this is the way things are" as an explanation for anything that if you do away with the whole ideology crumbles.

[Kara]

Or Marx gets them get kicked out like Bakunin. (Image removed from quote.)

IWA jokes.

[Phoenix Dark]

...David Harsanyi?
http://www.amazon.com/Obamas-Four-Horsemen-Disasters-Reelection/dp/1621570673

[benjipwns]

Hmmm...that book has some pretty positive reviews on there, might have to look for it.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

You should know by now that I read lots of garbage. The Democracy book had about three good chapters before descending into madness.

[close]

"This is not a book for the faint-hearted. In chilling detail, David Harsanyi exposes the brutal and bloody dangers looming ahead during Obama’s second term. Harsanyi outlines how the Nanny State progressive-in-chief has enabled the four horsemen of debt, dependency, national decline, and the culture of death. Yes, it is apocalyptic. No, it is not irreversible. Conservatives must pray, pick themselves up, and pull together to turn our country back from Obama’s highway to hell. America must heed Harsanyi’s prophetic work!"
—Michelle Malkin, New York Times bestselling author of Culture of Corruption

spoiler (click to show/hide)

I also read a Mark Levin book recently. 

Also had about three good chapters before descending into greater madness.

[close]

[Bebpo]

Finished reading Dr. Sleep, and it was super mediocre.  As someone who grew up and loved Stephen King horror stories (especially his short story anthologies), but hasn't read any of his stuff since his early 90s prime era...this was pretty disappointing.

It's a pretty thick, long novel for what essentially is a 300 page novel story.  The first half of the book is awful and dull.  Almost nothing happens for half of the damn book.  It just feels like filler as it's introducing the characters and watching how they slowly grow as time passes.  Then when the story actually starts halfway...it's a good action flick, but a short one and really safe that's over real quick without any big surprises.  So basically hundreds of pages of zzzz and then a few hundred pages of good popcorn thriller and then you're left wondering why you wasted time on reading it.

Not sure if King novels just aren't particularly good now that his way past his prime, or if this is just one of his weaker books in the last decade.  But definitely going to be hesitant to read any of his other post-2000 stuff since every book he writes is ridiculously long and Dr. Sleep was a book that was long for no good reason at all other than filler padding of a guy who needs an editor.


Now time to get into Yahtzee's books.

[Mr. Nobody]

30% done with Storm of Swords

really good so far but I've been neglecting it for like 3 weeks 

[Phoenix Dark]

Storm of Swords

[Squiddy]

Read the Alien Sex anthology.
It was okay.
Now I'm reading the sequel.

[benjipwns]

I hated the structure of this so much, at times it was starting to talk about something then cut to random other event then cut to "joke" panels then cut to random strike so it really only barely touches on anything. Frame story sucks too.

That said, enjoy some sensible Amazon reviews:

Thank you for giving me so much love for my country, June 5, 2014
By Chisholm - See all my reviews

I read this book for a Sociology class, and I can say that I have never read a book that I disliked this much. From the get-go, Howard Zinn’s, “A People's History of American Empire” carries a tone nothing short of disapproval towards America and its people. Zinn opens the prologue by going so far as to imply, or at least, agree with certain individuals, who say that the United States is “an empire of terrorists.” Yes, America has done horrible things for the sake of our nation—but so has every country. But Howard Zinn devotes every chapter to a past mistake of our country: the Wounded Knee Massacre of Indians, the “savior complex” of the soldiers fighting in the Spanish American War, the powerful money-making companies and their treatment of their workers, the treatment of blacks during wartimes, and the domination of the Philippines. Zinn poses his viewpoint in the most negative of lights. I had a hard time focusing the content after a while, because he was so blatantly portraying his opinions as facts. Furthemore, this book does not tell the story of an "empire", but rather, the story of minorities and other small groups of people. Zinn only focuses on fights between small groups of individuals. The poor vs. Robber Barons, himself, the civil rights activists, the poor people of Vietnam, American soldiers. There is no single America. This is a book solely describing the "battles" fought by and within America.

Also Zinn should change the title of this book from a "history" to "my opinions", because this book is jam-packed with bias and little jabs at America, the "terrorist nation". Zinn lets emotions guide this book far more than facts (I really need to see where he gets his information from, because half of these stories seem like they're relying on only one individual "witness"), and this is evidenced in the fact that he not only includes himself as narrator, but also as an activist, almost on the same page with MLK Jr.! He elevates his own "fight" against the American people. Then, in the way he portrays himself as narrator--single person on a stage, bright lights, podium, and cheering crowd--shows that he believes his ideas to be almost exalted. Overall, this book rubbed me the wrong way. If you want to read something to dampen your American patriotism feel free to read this book.

If you're a communist, you'll love this book, January 10, 2014
By Ltb "ltb" (USA) - See all my reviews

Parents need to beware of the books their children are reading in history classes, because so much misinformation and so many lies are being disseminated in our public schools, which have become nothing more than indoctrination centers for socialism/liberalism/progressivism/communism. Zinn, in particular, is polluting the minds of American youth with trash like "A People's History of the United States," which is not so much history as it is one big piece of steaming pro-communist propaganda. If your child is required to read this book, complain loudly and complain continuously until your school removes it from its required reading list.

A Simpleminded, Cynical & Very Angry Book, September 15, 2009
By Eliot (Palo Alto, CA. USA) - See all my reviews

There are three simple-indisputable-facts about Howard Zinn's book.

1) Jews appear only as big hearted victims.

2) Israel took not a single inch of Arab land.

3) Palestinians do not exist.

Zinn's many fans will explain away this simply enough. They will tell you that, although somewhat regrettable, American military aid for Israel is a minor issue. Although sad, the Israeli Palestinian conflict is not particularly significant or relevant to current events!

Is that what Howard Zinn and his loyal readers consider intellectual integrity? I wonder who the true racists really are.

Here are a few more questions to ponder as you read the book.

If the exploitation and enslavement of people of color is such an ingrained aspect of American culture why are so many people of color trying to enter America, and in some instances literally risking their lives to do so? Are we to assume that nonwhites are so lacking in intelligence that they are easy pray for the more sophisticated people of European decent?

If the views about class warfare Zinn expounds are really so blatantly obvious why are Zinn's political beliefs not more popular with working class Americans? Are we to assume that working class Americans, and those recently arrived in America, are the intellectual inferiors to the more established and affluent Americans and are thus easily taken advantage of and duped?

If, as Zinn maintains, America really did have advanced knowledge of the attack on Pearl Harbor and was responsible for our entry into World War II why doesn't Zinn side with the people who claim that 9/11 was an "inside job" engineered by the CIA? Is it possible that not all criticism of America is legitimate?

If America is really all about preserving the privileges of the rich and denying basic care for the working class why do we have a black President? A President who grew up without privilege and who has made public healthcare the focal point of his administration? Why was such an "un-American" man with such "un-American" views even elected President in the first place?

Excellent format for teaching kids to HATE AMERICA, August 28, 2011
By Natalie Harper - See all my reviews

This comic book is interesting and fun to read. But MY GOD, is it anti-American. People here keep saying "truth", but it's truth from a slanted view. Each short story is strictly about the bad stuff America did. Nothing about the other side of things, nothing about the good stuff America did do, etc. Add to that graphic depictions of horror on people's faces and tragic dramatizations, and you've got a great book for convincing young people to hate their country.

Can't Believe in Him Anymore, November 23, 2008
By Blue "lacestuff" (Seattle) - See all my reviews

After reading that Howard Zinn does not think it is important to investigate 9/11, I will have nothing more to do with him. I don't care how renowned he is. If he doesn't think it's important to stop the false flag operations that have gone on for many, many decades that have thrust us into wars that were instigated by interested 3rd party investors to cash in on the vast fortunes made when they finance both sides of a war, then he will get no support from me. Wake up people! Aren't you tired of being played like a puppet on a string. Watch "JFKII: The Bush Connection" and "Empire of the City: Ring of Power" on YouTube.

[Kara]

Howard Zinn pls why are you diluting your premier brand like this.

[benjipwns]

Zinn worked as the series editor for a series of books under the A People's History label. This series expands upon the issues and historic events covered in A People's History of the United States by giving them in-depth coverage, and also covers the history of parts of the world outside the United States. These books include:

A People's History of the Supreme Court by Peter Irons with Foreword by Zinn
A People's History of Sports in the United States by Dave Zirin with an introduction by Howard Zinn
A People's History of American Empire (American Empire Project) by Howard Zinn, Mike Konopacki, and Paul Buhle
The Darker Nations: A People's History of the Third World by Vijay Prashad
A People's History of the American Revolution by Ray Raphael
A People's History of the Civil War by David Williams
A People's History of the Vietnam War by Jonathan Neale
The Mexican Revolution: A People's History by Adolfo Gilly
A People's History of Australia from 1788 to the Present edited by Verity Burgmann. A four-volume series that looks at Australian history thematically, not chronologically.
A People's History of Science: Miners, Midwives, and Low Mechanicks by Clifford D Connor.
A People's History of the World by Chris Harman. It is endorsed by Zinn.
A People's History of Christianity by Diana Butler Bass.

[Joe Molotov]

If you were a communist, you'd love that book.

[Eric P]

The Moor's Account - a fictional telling of a failed Spanish conquistador's expedition to the new world.  I'm only about 79 pages in so I can't quite comment on it other than I'm enjoying it quite a bit.  It's very violent and has no quotation marks so it can start to feel a bit Meridiano de Sangre at times.  We're told at the outset that the story will be primarily about 3 survivors, so there's a lot of dread as we wait for these people to start dying by disease, accident, crocodile or native americans

[Eric P]

attention readers.

Subterranean Press is currently having a sale on their ebooks.  Everything is $3 or less.  This includes all of the Thomas Ligotti editions, the giant collection from KJ Parker, a handful of Joe Lansdale novellas and a 700 page Jack Vance collection.  You have to click "Purchase at Gumroad" to get the lower price.  Sale lasts until tomorrow.

http://subterraneanpress.com/store/ebooks

[Joe Molotov]

I read Gone Girl last week and The Ocean at the End of the Lane this week.

Just started:


I picked it up without knowing anything about the plot, but it seems pretty cool so far. It starts out with this teenage girl having a fight with her mom and running away from home, and then for reasons unknown, getting caught up in some kind of behind-the-scenes mage war. Just another day in Thatcher's England, I guess.

[Eric P]

fuck the south.

[Eric P]

the above book was crushing my soul to death, so I needed something radically different to break up the stories of murder.  (TNSWGYK takes place linearly so the front half is all white people murdering black people, black people get guns to try to protect themselves, white people go absolutely apeshit and murder a lot more people).

This book is part cultural explainer, part memoir, and part history of Korean pop culture.  It's fascinating to read about how direct government involvement basically gave rise to Korean pop culture through heavy investment in film, television and music in the form of damn near free money.

The explainer parts (please understand!)  detailing things such as han really helped contextualize why so many Korean films are about extreme melodrama and revenge.

if you watch a lot of Korean cinema this book may be very entertaining and informative.  The tone is light-hearted and you'll cringe when you read the school stories.

[Eric P]

attn: Joe.

[Joe Molotov]

A+++ title pun, would eldritch again

[Kara]

If you haven't read them, I also suggest you check out his short stories.

The Overcoat

[benjipwns]

Talk about poppin boners over Chief Justice Hughes brehs (the other recent book on this topic is even worse)

Now onto some feel good material:


Also:


Which spawned this:
http://www.frontpagemag.com/2013/ronald-radosh/mccarthy-on-steroids/
http://pjmedia.com/ronradosh/2013/08/07/why-i-wrote-a-take-down-of-diana-wests-awful-book/
And caused David fucking Horowitz of all people to take down a positive review off Frontpage.

Apparently it's split conservative historians like mad: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diana_West#American_Betrayal
And she wrote this in response:

ADDITIONAL COMMENTARY FROM THE BLOGOSPHERE


Saw that Reagan book mentioned a couple pages back but apparently it's part of a trilogy? So I passed it up since they didn't have Nixonland or the other.

[benjipwns]

That McCarthy mention reminded me, since I said something similar on GAF recently, why do people always run to McCarthyism? It seriously wasn't that bad compared to the fucking Red Scare which happened all over the West, imprisoning immigrants, the underclass, writers, union leaders, etc.

But a few actors get blacklisted (mainly from HUAC, not McCarthy even) and it's like the worst thing to ever happen in America.

And yes, I know this post answers my own question.

[Kara]

That McCarthy mention reminded me, since I said something similar on GAF recently, why do people always run to McCarthyism? It seriously wasn't that bad compared to the fucking Red Scare which happened all over the West, imprisoning immigrants, the underclass, writers, union leaders, etc.

But a few actors get blacklisted (mainly from HUAC, not McCarthy even) and it's like the worst thing to ever happen in America.

Do you think the social liberal intelligentsia cares about immigrants, proletarians, anti-establishment writers or union leaders (in particular, industrial or socialist ones)?

Brecht DA GOD.