Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Flying Dice]

Starship Troopers really resonated with me with its whole Duty & Honour brothers-in-arms camaraderie. I really liked the world it portrayed, and how it was portrayed. I liked the indoctrination, both that which was directed at the characters in-book as well as the ideas the author clearly tried to instill in the reader.


Maybe some more Heinlein perhaps? Or is Starship Troopers one-of-a-kind in his career?

You'll enjoy more Heinlein, though most of his work pushes free love rather than that particular strain of politics. Short list of recommendations:
-The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
-Time Enough For Love
-The Cat That Walked Through Walls

Of course, almost everything he wrote is worth reading, even the "Young Heinlein" novellas. A tip: Don't read Number of the Beast until you've read most of his other works, as it draws on quite a number of them. It is very, very fun, though.

[Bouchart]

Can anyone recommend some classic 19th century literature?  Lately I've read through Dracula, Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Picture of Dorian Gray.

[Osmosis Jones]

Can anyone recommend some classic 19th century literature?  Lately I've read through Dracula, Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Basically, anything by Alexandre Dumas; 3 Musketeers and Count of Monte Cristo are his most well known, and for good reason. They are excellent reads.

[Capntastic]

Can anyone recommend some classic 19th century literature?  Lately I've read through Dracula, Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Read Frankenstein and I'll let you know the proper interpretation of the book.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Think about it: The sailor is a scientist himself, trying to discover the secrets of magnetism, and is failing- with a starving and near mutinous crew urging him to give up. A possibly corrupt man, who, in lieu of returning home empty handed and becoming a disgrace- owing his patrons large sums of investment money- gives in entirely to his fevered madness in hopes of spinning a yarn so engrossing that his excursion doesn't seem a waste at all.

That is what the book is about.

Consider the parallels between the sailor's research, and his 'Frankenstein' character's. One is seeking the truth of magnetism, a physical force that has seemingly magical properties. The other is seeking the truth of life itself; the soul and mind and spirit, metaphysical things that extend into this world via the body. In the case of Frankenstein's monster, a pastiche of sewn together corpses. This is where you can really spend a good deal of focus, trying to solve these riddles woven into the story.

Or, we can suppose that, if Frankenstein does exist, he is obviously a paranoid delusional. Whether the Creature exists or not, he is trying to chase it into the icy poles and destroy it. Now, suppose Walton, the sailor, finds him and tries to nurse him back to health and sanity. We have this line, from the book:

"He then told me, that he would commence his narrative
the next day when I should be at leisure. This promise
drew from me the warmest thanks."

So, knowing that Frankenstein is not in his right mind, we can then assume that he thinks Walton means to kill him- everyone else is out to get him, why not this random sailor? So, to prevent his death, Frankenstein, a well-educated and well-read man, creates his own Thousand and One Nights scenario. He has absolutely no reason to keep his tales from being as insane and unreal as possible; he feels that he must twist every detail into some glorious and meaningful drama. His own manias have overwhelmed him, and nothing he says can be taken for truth.

[Enzo]

Can anyone recommend some classic 19th century literature?  Lately I've read through Dracula, Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Jules Verne - 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea + Journey to the Center of the Earth
Charles Dickens - Oliver Twist + Great Expectations
Mark Twain - Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Robert Louis Stevenson - Treasure Island

I don't care if half of those are children's books they're awesome.

[Capntastic]

Tom Brown's School Daze is alright if only for being the origin of the Flashman character.

[Osmosis Jones]

Mark Twain - Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

If you're reading Huck, you've also got to read Tom Sawyer. A great pair of books.

Call of the wild is pretty cool as well (*geddit?*), but I can't remember who it's by.

[varnish]

Call of the wild is pretty cool as well (*geddit?*), but I can't remember who it's by.

Jack London. I really like his short stories, "A Piece of Steak" is a favorite.

Joseph Conrad is turn of the century, but worth reading. Heart of Darkness, Lord Jim, etc. Nostromo is excellent.

Zola is interesting. Germinal is pretty good, and it isn't as absolutely bleak as some of his other novels.

I don't think anyone has mentioned Sherlock Holmes yet, but those are classics, (obviously) from the era. They're usually quick fun reads.

[Osmosis Jones]

If you're reading Sherlock though, make sure it's the actual books by Arthur Conan Doyle. Copyright is up on that, so there are tons of what is basically badly written, published fan-fiction out there.

[Flying Dice]

Going to second the Jack London short stories.

[moocowmoo]

Can anyone recommend some classic 19th century literature?  Lately I've read through Dracula, Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde, and The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Crime and Punishment. Dostoevsky is like no other.

[Skyrunner]

Did someone say To Kill A Mockingbird already? It is quite heartwarming.

Cosmos, for !!science!!.

[BranRhi]

If your still looking for a fantasy series I can totally recomend anything by Robin Hobb, specifically the Farseer, Tawny Man and the LiveShip Traders trilogys. No other fantasy series even compares imho.

[Kofthefens]

If your still looking for a fantasy series I can totally recomend anything by Robin Hobb, specifically the Farseer, Tawny Man and the LiveShip Traders trilogys. No other fantasy series even compares imho.

I have read those, but thanks.

[Fiskav]

.