Whats everyone reading?

[mogzilla]

...hows the flu sequel coming along?

Thanks for asking! It's ongoing, mate. Shaping up real nice, I think, and should be well scrubbed up for Halloween release!

big happy face.

[TordelBack]

The first Flashman down, onto Flashman's Lady (allegedly the next one chronologically).

The original Flashman is an even better book than I had remembered, although I was surprised just how many of the really memorable events and set-pieces from the series are in this first one.  It feels very odd to be reading about the British army in Kabul, Kandahar and Jalalabad- when I read this book originally I only knew Afghanistan in the context of the Soviets and Massoud's mujahadeen, and now we seem to be a strange sort of full circle.  It's hard not to feel tragic resonances.

Coming at these essentially light books with and older mindset, Flashman seems not half the irredeemable cad he makes himself out to be.  Apart from his violent treatment of women and period racism (both of which are the specific and direct causes of many of his problems, if he could only see it), there's not a lot about Flashy that I can't empathise with - time and again I find myself thinking "in that situation, would I do anything different?".    What's more, it's interesting to speculate just how many legendary heroic actions have a figure closer to Flashman at their heart than even he allows.

[Dark Jimbo]

The first Flashman down, onto Flashman's Lady (allegedly the next one chronologically).

Techincally you ought to read the first third or so of Royal Flash first; then Lady, Mountain, and the rest of Royal.

[klute]

Im currently reading frank herbert's dune,i read it last about 20 years ago and just wondering if its still as good now as it seemed back then.

[Dandontdare]

Im currently reading frank herbert's dune,i read it last about 20 years ago and just wondering if its still as good now as it seemed back then.

ooh freaky coincidence time - as there was bugger all on telly last night, I rifled through my stack of free newspaper DVDs and ended up watching Dune again. A pretty good version I thought, but it does try to cram way too much plot in very quickly. After Paul and his mum are stranded in the desert, things just zip along almsot too fast to follow. I must go back and read the books again sometime.

[mogzilla]

now reading the prog and drop dead gorgeous. happy days.

[HOO-HAA]

now reading the prog and drop dead gorgeous. happy days.

A good combo! 

[TordelBack]

Techincally you ought to read the first third or so of Royal Flash first; then Lady, Mountain, and the rest of Royal.

So I gathered, but I've read Royal Flash a few times so I remember the Lola Montez/Bismarck stuff pretty well and figured it wasn't worth chasing up a copy when I was eager to read Flashman's Lady for the first time (which is great fun so far, and gels well with my new-found interest in cricket).  My real dilemma is what to do with Flashman and the Redskins when I get there, which I've also never read, and which I understand from Wikipedia should be both No. 6 and No. 12 in the reading order.. that one I think I'll have to get out twice.

The other thing I finished today was Sláine: Lord of Misrule, which warrants a separate longer discussion elsewhere - not what I was expecting at all, and while badly flawed in terms of structure, it was really enjoyable and actually pretty fascinating.  Langley's insanely detailed pen-and-ink work was a revelation - his Blood God is a very impressive creation. 

[House of Usher]

I wish I were reading Flashman!  

I have been reading The Rape of the Lock by Alexander Pope. I have never read anything by Pope before. I have heard great things about Pope, mostly written by other long-dead poets and literary critics. I thought it might be a touch old-fashioned and of little relevance to me or anyone else living in the 21st century, and I am now confirmed in this view.

The Rape of the Lock is a comic, satirical, mock epic poem about a real-life incident, the cutting off by surprise of a prized lock of a beautiful debutante's hair by an infatuated suitor unable to control himself, and the enmity that persisted afterward between their two families. It's about 24 pages long.

Please defend it if you read it and liked it. I am indifferent to it.

[Keef Monkey]

Just finished 'The Strain' today, was a cracking read. Being the second book it just dives right into things, so it lacks the creepy suspense of the first book, but the action is handled a lot better this time round I thought and it's rolls along at some pace. Very interested to see where book 3 goes.

Going to move onto either 'Things I Have Learned' by Karl Pilkington or 'I'm In The Band' by Sean Yseult next. The Yseult book is too big to lump around so will maybe read that but make Pilkington my on the move read.

[Paul faplad Finch]

I've never read any Flashman but I did pick up the complete McAuslan omnibus, figuring it would be an easier introduction to Fraser than such a long series as the Flashman books.Then I put it in a box and never read it.

This thread is forever reminding me of books I meant to read but never got around to. Like Klute and Dune. Bought all the Frank Herbert books when Sci-Fi did their first mini series and have yet to read any of them.

I think I had far more money than sense back then.

[The Legendary Shark]

Why not come and read some interesting conversations in tonight's Yap Shop session?

(Shameless Publicity Dept.)

[Keef Monkey]

All the Akira film fuss reminded me that I still haven't read the last book. Not sure why, think money reasons meant I just couldn't buy it and then the moment was gone. At any rate, I rectified that this morning. Akira is bloody marvelous.

[Zarjazzer]

Just finished the First Heretic a tale of the first chaos marines in WH40k. Some bits tho i found a bit odd still overall a good read. And for a princely £3.99 today I got Jules Verne's Journey to the Centre of the Earth, though I've seen the various movies I've never read the orginal so I'm looking forward to it.

[Jared Katooie]

Apart from his violent treatment of women and period racism (both of which are the specific and direct causes of many of his problems, if he could only see it), there's not a lot about Flashy that I can't empathise with - time and again I find myself thinking "in that situation, would I do anything different?".

While I too find it easy to empathise with Flashman, I still believe he is an iredeemable villain. You might want to reserve judgement until you've read Flash for Freedom, where he is at his most despicable.