What's The Last Book You've Read?

[nakadashi]

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61j0K0tnlGL.jpg

[polspy]

The aquariums of Pyongyang. Ten years in the north Korean gulag

[westell]

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage.

[moriz]

the Exorcism ... and Bob Ong ...

 

http://putingkastilyo.blogspot.com/

[moriz]

bob ong

[DaVincilog]

Now reading The Ocean at the end of the lane by Neil Gaiman

[Lord Superb]

I don't know if this is the right thread to be posting a book review/commentary/essay, but, heck, I'll do it anyway if only to encourage more people to read this marvelous fantasy trilogy.

 

It was five years ago or so, around Christmastime, since I first saw Patrick Rothfuss' The Name of the Wind in a bookstore. Thick and wonderfully illustrated, it sat there among the luminaries of the genre: Tolkien, Lewis, Jordan, Hobb, Salvatore, Brooks, Goodkind, Martin, Williams, and many others. I picked it up, looked at the back and read a passage from the book, ignoring the rave reviews that screamed "Buy it." I wanted to give it a try right then, my right hand moving unconsciously to a pocket of my jeans where my wallet slept. For some reason, however, I decided to put it back where I found it and went home.

 

Fast-forward to the present time, I was two weeks ago itching for a fantasy book so I could float in a Zen-like stasis, all the sources of my stress cast off like dirty clothes. That's what reading a fantasy book does to you. You don't have to be a believer or a non-believer of magic, don't have to impose your biases and dogmas. Instead, you just sit back and enjoy the book for what it is. No pressure at all. You can be as carefree as a child or as awestruck as a baby taking in the world for the first time.

 

It took Patrick Rothfuss seven years to write The Name of the Wind , another seven for the sequel, The Wise Man's Fear. The third and final installment in the Kingkiller Chronicles will be released...when the author eventually finishes it. Until then, one could see and appreciate the care with which the author planted and nourished the seeds for this book. To begin with, the prose is, simply put, elegant in its simplicity, yet ingenious in its execution, no pretensions at being literary at all. I relish the beautiful sounds the language makes, each dialogue and witty banter between characters, each song and poetry, each turn of phrase and figurative speech. The words pull you into a self-enclosed world until you lose track of time and your eyes hurt from lack of sleep.

 

Neither is the book a mere rehashing of old fantasy tropes. Here be no dragons roaring fire, no epic battles of different races, no magical rings or weapons of great power given only to the most deserving, no drawn-out court intrigues... At its heart, instead, is the story of the main protagonist, Kvothe, as he recounts his memories of growing up and eventually becoming a Renaissance Man of sorts: skilled in magic, alchemy, music, poetry, combat, and many things besides. This is where the book distinguishes itself from stereotypical fantasy. Whereas most books would paint the protagonist as being able to solve problems through a mere utterance of a spell, here Kvothe surmounts his problems by being clever, witty, daring, and sometimes just plain lucky. He will cheat if he has to, lie, murder, pick locks, steal, take vengeance for past wrongs against him, act the part of a spoiled nobility in order to get his way, court the girl he has feelings for but never presume the attraction is mutual.

 

Overall, Rothfuss strikes the right balance that is rare in the genre: He manages to be both fantastical on the one hand and plausible on the other. One particular example is the magic system introduced in this book. Without giving away any spoilers, let's just say that it's a mix of the Hermetic Principles, a dash of chemistry, metallurgy, quantum mechanics... Indeed, there are times in the book where magic is useless or impractical and the protagonist has to resort to other means.

 

So there. If you're looking for a refreshingly original fantasy/adventure book that will transport you, give this trilogy a try. You won't regret it. Moreover, it's best to start early before executive producers decide to make a movie or TV series adaptation of it, before the majority of people suddenly become self-proclaimed experts on the book and dictate that reading a fantasy book is "cool" after all, something to talk and tweet about among a newfound social circle hitherto inaccessible. Sheesh. I hate it when that happens. Imagine my reaction then when, in a movie theater, a teenage couple commented that LOTR is a rip-off of Harry Potter. Only self-control and my not wanting to ruin a good mood prevented me from throwing my fries at them.

Edited September 8, 2014 by Lord Superb

[99PercentCaffeine]

Hell Aint a Bad Place to Be.

 

 

http://www.4shared.com/download/kUaKCRWRce/WIN_20140912_144036.JPG?lgfp=3000

[Jasonkidd]

http://seminarinsiders.com/images/jack_canfield.png

[moriz]

The book that i read last time yung I am a Gangster ito yung link niya : http://putingkastilyo.blogspot.sg/2014/07/i-am-gangster-and-lover-story.html

[nakadashi]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/archive/b/bd/20130921202254!TheAcidHouse.jpg Edited September 21, 2014 by nakadashi

[Eddy Syet]

 

This.

[tog]

Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho

[Toni Tejada]

my yearbook.... book naman sya diba?

[breakingbad]

Clash of Kings - George R.R. Martin