books on wednesday
Jul. 9th, 2014 10:29 pmBeen awhile.
What have you recently finished reading?
Hobbit, LotR, Silmarillion. It's been well over a decade since I read Hobbit and LotR (I believe the last time was when The Two Towers was still in theatres), and longer than that for the Silmarillion. They're still quite good. The plot in LotR manages to feel remarkably uncontrived, for something that must have required a great deal of adjusting to get the timing to work out just so. The voice of Gandalf in my head will always be John Huston, and Frodo is Orson Bean to a lesser extent. (I have no mental image of Merry or Pippin, other than Merry as 'the less annoying one.')
The Silmarillion is... well, it's really its own beast. LotR reads for the most part like a twentieth-century novel (appendices aside); the Silmarillion is a lot more like Bullfinch's Mythology. People are idiots and what characterization there is, is drawn in huge bold unsubtle strokes. Ovid at Myths Retold is slowly covering the whole thing. ("Feanor's entire personality, motivation, and story arc can be summed up as GIVE ME BACK MY FUCKING SILMARILS.")
What are you currently reading?
Rereading VP classmate Phoebe North's Jewish generation-ship YA Starglass, since the sequel / second half shipped on Monday. I enjoyed this on first read a year or two ago; I expect it'll hold up. Unlike 20th century generation ships, the passengers are well aware they're on one, which is an interesting twist.
What do you think you'll read next?
Starbreak, in which the generation ship reaches its planet. Looking forward to it!
What have you recently finished reading?
Hobbit, LotR, Silmarillion. It's been well over a decade since I read Hobbit and LotR (I believe the last time was when The Two Towers was still in theatres), and longer than that for the Silmarillion. They're still quite good. The plot in LotR manages to feel remarkably uncontrived, for something that must have required a great deal of adjusting to get the timing to work out just so. The voice of Gandalf in my head will always be John Huston, and Frodo is Orson Bean to a lesser extent. (I have no mental image of Merry or Pippin, other than Merry as 'the less annoying one.')
The Silmarillion is... well, it's really its own beast. LotR reads for the most part like a twentieth-century novel (appendices aside); the Silmarillion is a lot more like Bullfinch's Mythology. People are idiots and what characterization there is, is drawn in huge bold unsubtle strokes. Ovid at Myths Retold is slowly covering the whole thing. ("Feanor's entire personality, motivation, and story arc can be summed up as GIVE ME BACK MY FUCKING SILMARILS.")
What are you currently reading?
Rereading VP classmate Phoebe North's Jewish generation-ship YA Starglass, since the sequel / second half shipped on Monday. I enjoyed this on first read a year or two ago; I expect it'll hold up. Unlike 20th century generation ships, the passengers are well aware they're on one, which is an interesting twist.
What do you think you'll read next?
Starbreak, in which the generation ship reaches its planet. Looking forward to it!