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Post by berkley on Jun 18, 2022 21:41:18 GMT -5
At Bertram's Hotel Agatha Christie This is the first Miss Marple book I've read, and it definitely reads alot like Poirot.. only the police inspector was someone else...the titular character is simply a witness, whl really isn't involved in the story until the end... and then just as a witness. I wonder, is that how they all are? Definitely an interesting way to present your main character... you definitely won't know she was the lead if theb ack of the book didn't tell you so. The mystery itself was both out of nowhere and obvious at the same time, but definitely had some really interesting characters, as has been the case with the other Agatha Christie books I've read. I sort of hope Bertram's exists out there somewhere... I would definitely stay there!
It's been so long since I read Agatha Christie that my memory of details is hazy but I think at least a few if not all of the Miss Marple books are indeed like that - she solves the mystery but isn't really the main character of the story. One of the first ones I read, and a favourite back in the day, was like that, I believe: 4:50 from Paddington.
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Post by Prince Hal on Jun 20, 2022 22:53:35 GMT -5
At Bertram's Hotel Agatha Christie This is the first Miss Marple book I've read, and it definitely reads alot like Poirot.. only the police inspector was someone else...the titular character is simply a witness, whl really isn't involved in the story until the end... and then just as a witness. I wonder, is that how they all are? Definitely an interesting way to present your main character... you definitely won't know she was the lead if theb ack of the book didn't tell you so. The mystery itself was both out of nowhere and obvious at the same time, but definitely had some really interesting characters, as has been the case with the other Agatha Christie books I've read. I sort of hope Bertram's exists out there somewhere... I would definitely stay there! If you've yet to read it, try "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd." That's all I'm saying. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2022 4:50:55 GMT -5
Currently reading The Diary of a Bookseller, written by Shaun Bythell, proprietor of an independent bookstore in Wigtown, Scotland.
I found this interesting:
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jun 21, 2022 5:58:22 GMT -5
At Bertram's Hotel Agatha Christie This is the first Miss Marple book I've read, and it definitely reads alot like Poirot.. only the police inspector was someone else...the titular character is simply a witness, whl really isn't involved in the story until the end... and then just as a witness. I wonder, is that how they all are? Definitely an interesting way to present your main character... you definitely won't know she was the lead if theb ack of the book didn't tell you so. The mystery itself was both out of nowhere and obvious at the same time, but definitely had some really interesting characters, as has been the case with the other Agatha Christie books I've read. I sort of hope Bertram's exists out there somewhere... I would definitely stay there! If you've yet to read it, try "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd." That's all I'm saying. I've definitely read that one.. I'm sure there's a review here somewhere.. definitely a good one! |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jun 21, 2022 8:52:08 GMT -5
At Bertram's Hotel Agatha Christie This is the first Miss Marple book I've read, and it definitely reads alot like Poirot.. only the police inspector was someone else...the titular character is simply a witness, whl really isn't involved in the story until the end... and then just as a witness. I wonder, is that how they all are? Definitely an interesting way to present your main character... you definitely won't know she was the lead if theb ack of the book didn't tell you so. The mystery itself was both out of nowhere and obvious at the same time, but definitely had some really interesting characters, as has been the case with the other Agatha Christie books I've read. I sort of hope Bertram's exists out there somewhere... I would definitely stay there! If you've yet to read it, try "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd." That's all I'm saying. It just entered the Public Domain in January. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Jun 22, 2022 13:13:07 GMT -5
I just finished A Universe from Nothing by Lawrence Krauss. Krauss writes well and the book is actually a quick read even if it forces us to stop and think hard on several occasions (since I most definitely do not have the smarts of a physicist!), and I truly appreciate how he presents his hypotheses as just that: hypotheses. Not to say they're random guesses or just-so stories; his hypotheses are based on hard and convincing data... but they'll remain hypotheses until we can find experimental ways to test them properly. Not only doesn't Krauss hide from the fact, he actually emphasizes it. That's very honest, and makes his points more convincing in their humility.
That being said, I never felt that Krauss explained things as well as a Richard Feynman would have. I feel that he often spends too much time on things we're very familiar with (what the Big Bang is, say) and too little on his main arguments ("there is something instead of nothing because nothing is unstable"). In the end he presents his arguments cogently, I think, but I'd like to be able to explain his ideas without having to go back to find what his arguments were in the first place. People like Richard Dawkins, Nick Lane or Sam Kean are very good at that when explaining things to a lay public.
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jun 24, 2022 12:10:20 GMT -5
A friend re-posted this on Facebook, originally posted yesterday by author David Gerrold. I think some members of this forum might find this interesting...
I just downloaded my copies of the files a few minutes ago. Hopefully I'll get around to reading it in the next few days (although this weekend is going to be a bit hectic for me).
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jun 24, 2022 21:39:59 GMT -5
I'm not a fan of sending money like that (no consumer protection if something goes wrong), but for $5 that's very tempting...
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,220 
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Post by Confessor on Jun 25, 2022 3:28:21 GMT -5
I'm not a fan of sending money like that (no consumer protection if something goes wrong), but for $5 that's very tempting... Paypal actually offer a lot of protection for buyers I find. And the one and only time I've ever needed to use it -- when a company I'd bought a couple of hundred pounds worth of product from when bust before they had delivered -- they were brilliant: I had my money back within a couple of weeks. |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jun 25, 2022 3:32:32 GMT -5
I'm not a fan of sending money like that (no consumer protection if something goes wrong), but for $5 that's very tempting... Yeah, it's no big deal for small sums like this, esp. if you're pretty sure you can trust the other party. I also purchased two books from Paul Kupperberg this way (scanned pdf files of his two Spider-man novels from the late '70s, Crime Campaign and Murder Moon). It's quick and no fuss. |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jun 25, 2022 4:06:54 GMT -5
Feminist Philosophy and Science FictionJudith A. Little (ed.), 2007  Although the title would seem to indicate some kind of dry academic tome, this is in fact a (really good) collection of short stories. Yes, it’s probably primarily meant to be used in an academic setting, and there are scholarly introductions for the entire book and then two shorter ones for its two main sections (under the headings ‘Human Nature and Reality’ and ‘Utopias and Dystopias’), but if you want, you can skip over those and just get to the stories (although I found them pretty interesting). The stories are, obviously, loosely thematically connected, all of them dealing with themes that have been prevalent in feminist thought. In the first section, the focus is more on what it means to be human and the differences, whether there truly are any outside of simple biology, between women and men. The contributions in the second section tend to focus more on misogyny and social structures. The reason I snapped this book up when I saw it on a discount shelf in a bookstore about a decade ago is that it features work by some outstanding writers, like Alice Sheldon (best known under her pseudonym James Tiptree, Jr.), Joanna Russ, Vonda McIntyre and, in particular, Octavia Butler. In fact, there’s two stories by Butler, including one considered by many her best short story, “Bloodchild,” about a community of humans living on a planet in a sort of grotesque relationship with a giant insect-like alien species that lays their eggs in human hosts. A few other stories worth highlighting include “No Woman Born” by C.L. Moore (first published in 1944) and “Survival Ship” by Judith Merril (first published in 1951), because both include what are really ahead-of-their time concepts. In the former, Moore posits the transplant of a woman’s brain into a mechanical body that’s a series of metal-rings held together by electromagnetic pulses, while in the latter, Merril describes an interstellar ship that consists of a large outer ring section that creates artificial gravity by centrifugal force, with extensive botanical gardens to create a supply of oxygen for its human crew. Two stories in the very last sub-section, which deal with androgyny or perhaps better stated, post-binary gender perceptions, also really stuck with me: “X: A Fabulous Child’s Story” by Lois Gould (originally published in 1972) and “Options” by John Varley (first published in 1979). Gould’s story is about a child who’s is the subject of an experiment in which only the parents and the child itself know its biological sex, while it presents itself to the rest of the world without gender designation. Varley’s story deals with a future human community living on the Moon in which people can change their biological sex in a relatively easy process. He really delves into how something like that could alter human psychology. Anyway, in conclusion: highly recommended.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jun 25, 2022 20:49:35 GMT -5
Currents of Space
by Isaac Asimov
I picked this up as a hard cover at a used book store, mostly just out of the novelty of it being a Hard Cover... I suspect it's from the old sci fi book club, but it doesn't actually say anywhere on the books that it is, just the original publishing date of 1952.
The novel itself is pretty decent, but the pacing is pretty odd... and one of the main characters has a complete personality change at one point. There's definitely an interesting look at a very oligarchial society in there, though.
I thought Fife was really interesting too..he did the FDR thing (which, in 1952, was probably fresh in people's minds) where he always sat behind his desk so people didn't realize he was a little person. (or maybe just had short legs? It was super clear, but seems like it was abnormal when later events warranted a description). It was too bad they didn't go more into him... I liked him alot more the the good guys.
And, of course, it fits into the 'Galactic Empire' trilogy... which means they mention Trantor, which I guess makes it a sort of prequel to Foundation. Definitely far from Asimov's best, but worth a quick read.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jun 25, 2022 20:57:51 GMT -5
The MisconceiverLucy Ferriss, 1997 This is a near-future (now much nearer than when it was written) dystopian tale, which depicts society in America in 2026, fifteen years after Roe v Wade was overturned (well, Ferriss was only 11 years off). Based on a series of laws enacted in the aftermath of that decision, women are effectively second-class citizens who are, e.g., prohibited from having jobs if they’re married, contraception is illegal and homosexuality has also been functionally outlawed. The central character, a woman in her mid-20s named Phoebe Chambers, is a software technician who works for a company in upstate New York that tracks down computer viruses and debugs systems infected by them. However, she also has a secret vocation: she’s a ‘misconceiver’, which is what illegal abortionists are called, and demand for the services she and many others provide is high. She ends up getting caught, though, and sent to prison. Another inmate helps her escape, and she spends some time as a fugitive, albeit barely surviving the experience. During this period, she also confronts many of her own insecurities, inner demons and life choices, and wonders about the morality of some of the latter. There are many thought-provoking aspects to this story, esp. now that it looks like Roe v Wade will indeed be overturned, but there’s also many parts where I thought it dragged a bit (the parts in the latter half in which Phoebe is doing her soul-searching). Be warned, though: it’s not for the squeamish, as there are several pretty detailed descriptions of abortions being performed (including in the first few pages) as well as the consequences of a botched procedure. I recommended this to my wife based on your review, and she just finished it.. she was in process when the Roe v Wade decision dropped, which was kind of surreal. I think she had trouble getting over that it was not as good as A Handmaid's Tale, but she read it pretty quickly, so that seems good. This is just the sort of thing that makes me happy we have this thread  |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Jun 25, 2022 21:17:12 GMT -5
Feminist Philosophy and Science FictionJudith A. Little (ed.), 2007 Have not read that anthology but that is a fantastic group of SF authors. Can't go wrong |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jun 26, 2022 3:32:08 GMT -5
I recommended this to my wife based on your review, and she just finished it.. she was in process when the Roe v Wade decision dropped, which was kind of surreal. I think she had trouble getting over that it was not as good as A Handmaid's Tale, but she read it pretty quickly, so that seems good. (...) Handmaid's Tale is definitely a better written book; like I noted in my review, Misconceiver meandered a bit at places. But yeah, reading it now in the wake of Roe indeed being overturned is an unsettling experience. |
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