In progress of writing my own stories I was wondering what books/book series you guys like and/or are your favorite. What is it/are they and do they inspire you in some way? Or does it/do they provide simply a source of entertainment? Express your opinions here.
My all time favorite is the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, I am ashamed that I have watched the film trilogy before reading the novel(s), but so far Tolkien's fantasy has captured my imagination and enabled me to think deeply about life, philosophy.
I think mine would have to be either the Inheritance series by Christopher Paolini or LotR.
I can't see myself reading anything other than The Kalevala right now though. Such an epic poem, and I'm not one for poetry either, but this book is just amazing, I've never read anything more beautiful (wait, nevermind, I read the D3 announcement).
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I hate the way you cling to ignorance and pass it off as innocence
The Fountain by Darren Aronofsky. Yeah like the movie.
Now, there isn't much text to read. It's actually a graphic novel, so I don't know if it would be considered a book(?). I'm not much of a reader but still thought I would share my favorite story. I just finished it last week, it's pretty short but yet really interesting. I'd recommended checking it out if you don't like reading that much but still like being told a tale, or even if you are a big reader. It's an awesome story.
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This body holding me, reminds me of my own mortality.
Embrace this moment. Remember... We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion.
I really liked "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
"The Picture of Dorian Grey" by Oscar Wilde, also quite interesting
at the moment im reading the last book of a fantasy trilogy called "His Dark Materials" by Philip Pullman
its been an enjoyable read
The Wheel of Time. Greatest series ever, and the next book is coming out this Tuesday!!!
It's a massive work that protrays the end of time, and how the Dragon Reborn, the savior of mankind, must unite the world before the Last Battle. Overall. Really though it's much more than that, with deep focus on characters. It's so much about everyone wanting different things, and people trying to get what they want, whether that be the salvation of the world, wealth, honor or just that pretty girl of theirs It's politics, scheming, backstabbing and plot twists that begin in in the first book and still have not fully unfolded yet. And it's 13 books so far!
I felt like that book was a little... short? Was a while since I rea dit, but it always felt like it could have been longer. Then again I am a fan of massive works.
PlugY for Diablo II allows you to reset skills and stats, transfer items between characters in singleplayer, obtain all ladder runewords and do all Uberquests while offline. It is the only way to do all of the above. Please use it.
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I like the Shannara Series by Terry Brooks. Great author, wonderful books.
He wrote a series about a fantasy world set after "The Great Wars," filled with magic and such. Then he wrote a new series based in our world where magic was starting to surface. And finally he wrote a series inbetween, connecting the two. So you get to read about our world falling apart and turning into a new world of magic. Pretty awesome. His stories are spread out over like 3000 years with the link connecting all of them being the magic and evolution of the races (Elves, Trolls, Dwarves, Gnomes, Man.) Quite different since you don't actually follow the characters through different books. Or if you do they're older and you're now reading about their grand children or decendents. Very good series.
In progress of writing my own stories I was wondering what books/book series you guys like and/or are your favorite. What is it/are they and do they inspire you in some way? Or does it/do they provide simply a source of entertainment? Express your opinions here.
My all time favorite is the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, I am ashamed that I have watched the film trilogy before reading the novel(s), but so far Tolkien's fantasy has captured my imagination and enabled me to think deeply about life, philosophy.
I couldn't really say a favorite, but since we're all nerds here, I will choose my favorite science fiction story... Snow Crash is a greaet sci-fi story, I would highly reccomend checking it out if you're into computers, tech, etc.
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Will be changed at some point, I'm too lazy right now.
I found it 15 or so years ago and I will still say that Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card is one of the greatest books ever written.
If you haven't read anything by Robin Hobb, I strongly recommend her work. Assassin's Apprentice and its subsequent books are wonderful as are all the books she has. The way she builds and develops her characters is wonderful and her writing has a certain grace to it that is rarely seen.
A relatively new author, Alan Campbell, has written a trilogy referred to as The Deepgate Codex. The world he built is amazing and the Hell that he created is unique and fascinating.
I would also recommend the books based on the MYST world. I don't know what they are called individually, nor do I know who wrote them, but they are good books in and of themselves.
Lastly, I particularly enjoyed The Last Rune, a 7 book series which is currently 2000 miles from me so I can't tell you the author. I think that the last book in this series is unnecessary, but they are all very well written and have a very driving plot.
That's it for now...maybe more later.
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“One thing a computer can do that most humans can't is be sealed up in a cardboard box and sit in a warehouse”
--Jack Handy
I second the Necroscope series. Brian Lumley has done a few different series that I like.
Anita Blake series - Laurel K Hamilton.
Silver Call dualogy - Dennis McKiernan
I loved Xanth series - Piers Anthony when I was a kid.
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Smiling is infectious.
Give, expecting nothing thereof. ------------ BoD - Come have some fun! Folks will always come and go, so enjoy them while they're meant to be in your life.
I like the Shannara Series by Terry Brooks. Great author, wonderful books.
He wrote a series about a fantasy world set after "The Great Wars," filled with magic and such. Then he wrote a new series based in our world where magic was starting to surface. And finally he wrote a series inbetween, connecting the two. So you get to read about our world falling apart and turning into a new world of magic. Pretty awesome. His stories are spread out over like 3000 years with the link connecting all of them being the magic and evolution of the races (Elves, Trolls, Dwarves, Gnomes, Man.) Quite different since you don't actually follow the characters through different books. Or if you do they're older and you're now reading about their grand children or decendents. Very good series.
YES! I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE! I'm reading Bearers of the Black Staff still. I feel like he lost some of his style over the years. My favorite of the old Shannara series will always be the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara, and then the Word and Void trilogy. The new ones are alright, but eh.
The funny thing is that he wrote Sword first, then he started W/V, not even thinking he'd ever connect the two and now, all these years later, here he is, doing just that. I was a poster at the Shannara fansite before I was ever here. That was back in...2005? 2006?
Anyway, my favorite books, in no particular order:
Dracula (for its progressive views on the industrial revolution in England and its well-executed epistolary format- I recently read the Mixquiahuala Letters and it was done rather poorly in that respect)
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (can't beat classic adventure!)
The Picture of Dorian Gray (it's annoying how cool thirteen year olds think they are after reading this, but Wilde does have excellent narrative skills)
White Fang (first chapter book I ever read, classic)
The Hobbit (not so much the rest of the Lord of the Rings, although I liked the Silmarillion)
More I can't think of...
In the last two/three-ish months I've just been reading any random thing I saw on the discount shelf:
Bone by Fae Myenne Ng
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
...And the Earth Did Not Devour Him by Tomas Rivera (for all you religion haters, you'd probably love this one)
The Mixquiahuala Letters by Ana Castillo (didn't read any of her poetry, although she wrote a lot in there)
The Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner - not a narrative, just... well, Google it.
Oo - I forgot about Word and Void trilogy - that was very good.
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Smiling is infectious.
Give, expecting nothing thereof. ------------ BoD - Come have some fun! Folks will always come and go, so enjoy them while they're meant to be in your life.
Don't get mad at me but I really don't read much which is weird coming from a person who loves to write stories. Maybe its because of the 800pg text books I have to read every five weeks. Although I haven't always had this distraction but it is my scapegoat now.
The last good book I can recall reading was Siddhartha about 13 years ago. It is really good though for those who are "lost" in their life. I also read most of the Holographic Universe a couple years ago when I was sorting out my own beliefs on our world. It was a very interesting read that combined both science and ideology.
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In progress of writing my own stories I was wondering what books/book series you guys like and/or are your favorite. What is it/are they and do they inspire you in some way? Or does it/do they provide simply a source of entertainment? Express your opinions here.
To be very honest, I just like reading things that are entertaining. For the most part, especially of more modern writing that's simply entertaining, there is nothing substantial to it. That's not always true, of course, especially in older books for entertainment purposes, since they can contain great historical significance and relate the opinions of the people of the time (and, subsequently, reveal a lot about, say, social ladders, gender inequality, etc.). I think for any good book to be fulfilling enough to be entertaining to me, though, I do need a bit of education and entertainment mingled together. I have to feel like something deep was explored, something important. If that's just a complex character at the end of things, I'm alright with that.
My all time favorite is the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, I am ashamed that I have watched the film trilogy before reading the novel(s), but so far Tolkien's fantasy has captured my imagination and enabled me to think deeply about life, philosophy.
Yeah, a big problem with the film adaptations is that, although they are artistic and beautiful, they stripped away a lot of what made the books what they were. For instance, the switch of focus on several female roles which were fairly insignificant in the books, while modernly accepted, is wholly divorced from the male pseudo-chivalry of the books.
My personal favorite? Legend of Drizzt. Fourty books in the "Forgotten Realms" series, which is like a combination of like five or six series all tied together happening together and at different times and the same time and whatever.
I'm on Legend of Drizzt Book 3 right now. It's a good book. If you have a life at all, do not pick it up.
It is true that the film trilogy is different in its own respect to the book(s) but personally I feel the film trilogy succeeds in what the book(s) can never achieve: Music. Howard Shore is just genius.
@ ScyberDragon
No offense taken, I too don't have the luxury of reading and most books I've read (aside from Lord of the Rings) are less than 20, most of them consisting of the Warcraft franchise.
Haha, yea, I read most of the Warcraft books. I say most because I start on (This Author is Censored) and I can't stand his work. :/
I gotta say though, I loved Lord of the Clans by Christie Golden and Of Blood and Honor by Chris Metzen and Rise of the Horde also by Christie Golden. Three of the best Blizzard books I've read.
I like Christie Golden and Chris Metzen's work. <3
If you haven't read anything by Robin Hobb, I strongly recommend her work. Assassin's Apprentice and its subsequent books are wonderful as are all the books she has. The way she builds and develops her characters is wonderful and her writing has a certain grace to it that is rarely seen.
I second this big time. All her series within the The Realm of the Elderlings are in my all-time favorite list. There are currently four series of three books each (the last volume in the latest trilogy is not out yet though).
As stated above one of her biggest strengths is the way she develops the characters, once you get into the story and get attached to the characters you are stuck. It's so grasping and you can really feel the emotions of the main character.
It's so hard to try to explain why I love these books, but anyway, I think you get my point.. I've got a huge emotional bond to them and have even re-read them several times. So if you like to read some really good fantasy based novels then Robin Hobb is my number one recommendation. (be aware though that the books are quite long, and there's four trilogies, although being separate stories they take place in the same world and in chronological order).
I completely forgot, I did read the sin wars trilogy about a year ago. Those were good although I felt somewhat bias being such a huge fan diablo. I went into the trilogy alreadythinking that they were awesome. I guess the fact that I wasn't disappointed is proof that they were good. I really enjoy a story of a characters origins before they become "heroes" and continue with them on this journey of becoming one. Oncethey are a hero, I loose interest.
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My all time favorite is the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, I am ashamed that I have watched the film trilogy before reading the novel(s), but so far Tolkien's fantasy has captured my imagination and enabled me to think deeply about life, philosophy.
I can't see myself reading anything other than The Kalevala right now though. Such an epic poem, and I'm not one for poetry either, but this book is just amazing, I've never read anything more beautiful (wait, nevermind, I read the D3 announcement).
I hate the way you cling to ignorance and pass it off as innocence
Now, there isn't much text to read. It's actually a graphic novel, so I don't know if it would be considered a book(?). I'm not much of a reader but still thought I would share my favorite story. I just finished it last week, it's pretty short but yet really interesting. I'd recommended checking it out if you don't like reading that much but still like being told a tale, or even if you are a big reader. It's an awesome story.
Embrace this moment. Remember...
We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion.
"The Picture of Dorian Grey" by Oscar Wilde, also quite interesting
at the moment im reading the last book of a fantasy trilogy called "His Dark Materials" by Philip Pullman
its been an enjoyable read
It's a massive work that protrays the end of time, and how the Dragon Reborn, the savior of mankind, must unite the world before the Last Battle. Overall. Really though it's much more than that, with deep focus on characters. It's so much about everyone wanting different things, and people trying to get what they want, whether that be the salvation of the world, wealth, honor or just that pretty girl of theirs It's politics, scheming, backstabbing and plot twists that begin in in the first book and still have not fully unfolded yet. And it's 13 books so far!
I felt like that book was a little... short? Was a while since I rea dit, but it always felt like it could have been longer. Then again I am a fan of massive works.
He wrote a series about a fantasy world set after "The Great Wars," filled with magic and such. Then he wrote a new series based in our world where magic was starting to surface. And finally he wrote a series inbetween, connecting the two. So you get to read about our world falling apart and turning into a new world of magic. Pretty awesome. His stories are spread out over like 3000 years with the link connecting all of them being the magic and evolution of the races (Elves, Trolls, Dwarves, Gnomes, Man.) Quite different since you don't actually follow the characters through different books. Or if you do they're older and you're now reading about their grand children or decendents. Very good series.
I couldn't really say a favorite, but since we're all nerds here, I will choose my favorite science fiction story... Snow Crash is a greaet sci-fi story, I would highly reccomend checking it out if you're into computers, tech, etc.
Recruiting for East Realm
Also recruiting for Sc2 on both EU and NA servers
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If you haven't read anything by Robin Hobb, I strongly recommend her work. Assassin's Apprentice and its subsequent books are wonderful as are all the books she has. The way she builds and develops her characters is wonderful and her writing has a certain grace to it that is rarely seen.
A relatively new author, Alan Campbell, has written a trilogy referred to as The Deepgate Codex. The world he built is amazing and the Hell that he created is unique and fascinating.
I would also recommend the books based on the MYST world. I don't know what they are called individually, nor do I know who wrote them, but they are good books in and of themselves.
Lastly, I particularly enjoyed The Last Rune, a 7 book series which is currently 2000 miles from me so I can't tell you the author. I think that the last book in this series is unnecessary, but they are all very well written and have a very driving plot.
That's it for now...maybe more later.
--Jack Handy
Anita Blake series - Laurel K Hamilton.
Silver Call dualogy - Dennis McKiernan
I loved Xanth series - Piers Anthony when I was a kid.
Folks will always come and go, so enjoy them while they're meant to be in your life.
YES! I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE! I'm reading Bearers of the Black Staff still. I feel like he lost some of his style over the years. My favorite of the old Shannara series will always be the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara, and then the Word and Void trilogy. The new ones are alright, but eh.
The funny thing is that he wrote Sword first, then he started W/V, not even thinking he'd ever connect the two and now, all these years later, here he is, doing just that. I was a poster at the Shannara fansite before I was ever here. That was back in...2005? 2006?
Anyway, my favorite books, in no particular order:
In the last two/three-ish months I've just been reading any random thing I saw on the discount shelf:
Folks will always come and go, so enjoy them while they're meant to be in your life.
The last good book I can recall reading was Siddhartha about 13 years ago. It is really good though for those who are "lost" in their life. I also read most of the Holographic Universe a couple years ago when I was sorting out my own beliefs on our world. It was a very interesting read that combined both science and ideology.
Find any Diablo news? Contact me or anyone else on the News team
To be very honest, I just like reading things that are entertaining. For the most part, especially of more modern writing that's simply entertaining, there is nothing substantial to it. That's not always true, of course, especially in older books for entertainment purposes, since they can contain great historical significance and relate the opinions of the people of the time (and, subsequently, reveal a lot about, say, social ladders, gender inequality, etc.). I think for any good book to be fulfilling enough to be entertaining to me, though, I do need a bit of education and entertainment mingled together. I have to feel like something deep was explored, something important. If that's just a complex character at the end of things, I'm alright with that.
Yeah, a big problem with the film adaptations is that, although they are artistic and beautiful, they stripped away a lot of what made the books what they were. For instance, the switch of focus on several female roles which were fairly insignificant in the books, while modernly accepted, is wholly divorced from the male pseudo-chivalry of the books.
Another great author I can read over and over again is H.P. Lovecraft. I have read a lot from him and it always gets better every time I read them.
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My personal favorite? Legend of Drizzt. Fourty books in the "Forgotten Realms" series, which is like a combination of like five or six series all tied together happening together and at different times and the same time and whatever.
I'm on Legend of Drizzt Book 3 right now. It's a good book. If you have a life at all, do not pick it up.
It is true that the film trilogy is different in its own respect to the book(s) but personally I feel the film trilogy succeeds in what the book(s) can never achieve: Music. Howard Shore is just genius.
@ ScyberDragon
No offense taken, I too don't have the luxury of reading and most books I've read (aside from Lord of the Rings) are less than 20, most of them consisting of the Warcraft franchise.
I gotta say though, I loved Lord of the Clans by Christie Golden and Of Blood and Honor by Chris Metzen and Rise of the Horde also by Christie Golden. Three of the best Blizzard books I've read.
I like Christie Golden and Chris Metzen's work. <3
I second this big time. All her series within the The Realm of the Elderlings are in my all-time favorite list. There are currently four series of three books each (the last volume in the latest trilogy is not out yet though).
As stated above one of her biggest strengths is the way she develops the characters, once you get into the story and get attached to the characters you are stuck. It's so grasping and you can really feel the emotions of the main character.
It's so hard to try to explain why I love these books, but anyway, I think you get my point.. I've got a huge emotional bond to them and have even re-read them several times. So if you like to read some really good fantasy based novels then Robin Hobb is my number one recommendation. (be aware though that the books are quite long, and there's four trilogies, although being separate stories they take place in the same world and in chronological order).
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