(My avatar and signature are of Dakota Fanning, Queen Susan. I'm using her as my character Alice in Unilluminated, a Role-play over in the Ditto Town part of the forum. I photoshopped her to look like the character, so that's why she looks different. The character is a Jinn (or genie) so that's why the signature says "what is it you wish for?" )[/off-topic]

I believe we have some Sherlock Holmes books in my house (or at least one of them), but I don't think I've ever read them/it.

I saw the trailer for the Percy Jackson movie and decided to check out the books. Has anyone else read them, and, if so, could they tell me if they're any good?"

P.S."Brooklyn!"

I saw the trailer for the Percy Jackson movie and decided to check out the books. Has anyone else read them, and, if so, could they tell me if they're any good?"

I read them last year, and really liked them. You may not want to go by me though, I started them after about six months straight of Tolkien, so my brain was fried already:P. They start out pretty carefree and mostly funny (kinda like a Princess Bride sort of adventure) but the get more and more serious, and the last one is really good. Rick Riordan's writing gets from good to great (at least in my opinion). There's tons of Greek mythology stuff in it, which actually interested me a lot, and since the author give personalities to different creatures and such it made it pretty interesting for me.

I'm a veterinary majour so I'm allowed to read books like this

Really? Awesome! I seriously wanted to do that when I was younger, but now I think I'll just study for a vet-tech. Sorry, off topic there...

Woah! This thread has progressed and left me far behind during my absence...

I started reading The Count of Monte Cristo yesterday. I think I'm going to like it. Edmond Dantes seems like just my kind of protagonist. What is the best translation in the opinions of the illustrious members of NarniaWeb? I'm reading the Penguin Classics version, so it's translated by Robin Buss.

That's what I just started reading! Even down to the same translation! But I have no clue as to whether it's the best or not.

Hey everyone! Just dropping quickly in to the book forum! A lot of people have told me that I need to get on here..so, yeah....here I am.

I'm actually not reading anything at this moment, because I'm really overloaded with homework. But I just finished reading Ted Dekker's Blink and I'm hoping to start the Pendragon Cycle soon by Stephen R. Lawhead. I've heard they're really good.

Thanks for your opinion, greenleaf! It all sounds really interesting. I'm definitely checking them out as I really like the Ancient Greek/Roman myths and such. Anything set in Ancient Times really. In school we did more than one year of Ancient Times and more than one year of Medieval Times, and both fascinate me.

Anyway, I finished The Sherwood Ring last night, and you can read my review of it here.

After I finished it, I went ahead and read another one of my sister's books. Escape from Warsaw (previously titled The Silver Sword which I think is a better title personally consider the important part the silver sword played in the story) by Ian Serraillier. It was a very easy read and I finished it off in a few hours. It's about these four children who escape Warsaw during World War II and go off to Switzerland to meet up with their long-lost father. It was good, if somewhat rushed in some parts. The author did not dwell on descriptions and covered a lot of ground with only a few sentences (i.e. "They made their way up the road to the village. Passing the village, they continued on to the next, and then the next, until they had reached the border."). I suppose it makes sense to do so, as it would end up being an incredibly long book otherwise.

The characters were a little two-dimensional, without much character development (aside from a couple of them). But you grew to care for them in a fond way, and wanted them to make it to their father. All in all it was good story told fairly well. It's based on actual events (although the characters are fictitious), so that was cool.

P.S."Brooklyn!"

Books, my obsession. Here is a list of my favorites.

1. Jane Eyre
2. The Hobbit
3. Emily of New Moon
4. Romeo and Juliet
5.A Wrinkle in Time
6. The Chronicles of Narnia
I am about to start Pride and Prejudice.
I have a good literary taste for an eleven year old. Do I not?

Welcome Happy Giant and Rachel111!

Lady Courage: Very nice! We'll have to trade opinions.

Rachel: I've read all of those books except Emily of New Moon and I liked all of them that I've read that are on your list.

I figured out what books are on the reading list for my lit class this quarter:

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
The Stranger by Albert Camus
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

It seems like a bit of an eclectic mix to me, although I see some common themes. I haven't read any of them yet, so that's fun. It's my second quarter in a row reading something by Shelley. Hopefully Frankenstein is better than The Last Man. I can never go buy books without comparing my class reading list to others' and getting envious. Oh well.

I'm also reading Phaedo by Plato for a Philosophy class as well as something by Descartes. I know just about nothing about either of them.

Ruby, how did you like Blink? Have you read any of Dekker's other books?

Welcome here, Rachel111. Great favourites you have listed! There are a lot of book lovers on NWeb, so you're in good company.

Kate, out of your reading list I've read the Camus, the Miller, and the Douglass. Actually, The Stranger I struggled through in French (L'Étranger) for my grade 12 high school French class. Both Stranger and Salesman I found depressing; Douglass' life narrative was fascinating, and I have always meant to read Frankenstein. Never heard of Metamorphosis. I'm curious to know your thoughts, particularly on Camus and Miller.

Can I invite myself to this party? I'm pretty good at moving books around. I promise not to get distracted and read too many...

Most definitely. I can't promise not to get distracted, though.

HappyGiant wrote...

I read so much! So tomorrow I'll be reading something totally different, but today I'm eading this SUPER LONG AND SUPER, SUPER, BORING book, How To Read A Book.
The irony of it all!

I have to read a similar book for school- How to Read Slowly . Now who wants to do that?

I went to the dump today and found a few things- Last of the Mohicans (a nice old copy), Lord of the Flies, Little Women, The Red Badge of Courage and a few other books.

Kate: I read Frankenstein last year for lit class and I liked it alot. It was kind of despressing but it was interesting and the worldview analogy was great (though I severly disagree with it.)

I finished Sense and Sensibility and loved it to bits- I was crying by the end! More on that later though, right now I have to go to bed

You disagree with mankind playing the role of God by creating a Frankenstein monster? I'd think that was a fairly kosher belief?

I finished Sense and Sensibility and loved it to bits- I was crying by the end! More on that later though, right now I have to go to bed

Oh! I love Jane Austen! I just recently finished reading Pride and Prejudice and I absolutely loved it! Unfortunately for my family I walked around speaking as the characters did for two days afterward!
I had read the book a few years back for school but there's nothing that takes the fun out of reading more than being forced to read something and tear the work apart. As it was, I do not remember liking it even HALF so well as I do now. It has become one of my favorite books!
Currently I'm reading Northanger Abby. (I'm in a Jane Austen mood. ) And next I plan on reading Sense and Sensibility.

I am about to start Pride and Prejudice.
I have a good literary taste for an eleven year old. Do I not?

I like them! Emily Of New Moon has been my favorite book for years! I just finished re-reading it a little while ago and was reminded of how lovely it was. I'm in the middle of Emily Climbs right now. (Also a re-read.) And congratulations on reading Pride and Prejudice at such a young age! I only read it in high school but I wish I had read it sooner.

I also just finished reading a book called The Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George. (yes, I do often have more then one book going on at the same time.) It was a take-off of the 12 dancing Princesses fairytale. It was alright and fairly entertaining but it's not the best book ever. The plot had loopholes and I kept thinking "How did he know how to do that?" or "Why did that happen?" and so on.....

Backing up a couple of pages…

Not to burst your bubble, but the sequel to S&C, The Grand Tour, is really not very impressive. I quit a bit less than halfway through. It was boring, confusing, and I missed the banter between the cousins. I also felt that parts of the characters' personalities became exaggerated.

Aw, that's too bad. I'll get it from the library sometime, though. Ooh, there's a third one? Not in the US, it appears.

The Mislaid Magician is available in the US. Kate, if the banter is part of what you missed in Grand Tour, you might want to try reading Magician. It returns to the letter format of the first one and, while still not being as good as Sorcery and Cecelia, was still pretty enjoyable.

It looks like I might have to wait a few weeks to read it…

Thanks for pointing this out!

In the LB synopsis, Aslan blows Jill and Eustace to Narnia on his breath.

Wasn't this in SC? I'm with you on this Believing in Narnia book!

Rachel111: welcome to the books thread! And you have excellent taste for an 11-year-old! I also like Jane Eyre, The Hobbit, Narnia, and P & P. I don't remember what I was reading at your age. I would probably be embarrassed to find out. Probably a lot of fairy tales...

Kate: you're on the quarter system? Impressive reading list! I've read Phaedo, Metamorphosis, and The Stranger [all in translation ]. I liked Metamorphosis the most and I want to read Kafka's The Trial. But I thought Camus' existentialism really depressing. I've also read Frankenstein and part of The Last Man. I rarely finish assigned books assigned during the school year. But I do try to finish them during holiday and summer breaks. You didn't like The Last Man? I loved the part I read and would love to finish it! I haven't read anything by Descartes. In French literature, I prefer Rousseau [philosophy], and Chateaubriand, Hugo, and Dumas [fiction].

Glenstorm: nice dump! I loved Little Women and The Red Badge of Courage. I mentioned earlier, maybe in the old forum, that I read part of The Last of the Mohicans and didn't like it. [But I love the movie! ] Still, I thought it was better than Cooper's The Pioneers. The book by Cooper I want to read most and bought for 50 cents a few weeks ago is The Spy. It's a mystery set during the American Revolution.

You disagree with mankind playing the role of God by creating a Frankenstein monster? I'd think that was a fairly kosher belief?

Exactly! When man tries to play God what does He create? Monsters!

Mar_Girl- Believing In Narnia is a fanfic right? wow. Gingern is so not a lepord!

Haha, no. It's a pretty solid book on the spiritual insights of Narnia and its characters. I think she's correct about that. It's just that she gets small things wrong that make me want to headdesk. Latest one: she said that Aravis grew up, married Shasta/Cor, and became the Queen of Narnia. *groans*

Enjoy Sherlock Holmes, Queen Susan!

I have a good literary taste for an eleven year old. Do I not?

Wow, yes, you do. I love all those, save Emily of New Moon which I haven't read yet (and I can give or take R&J). Welcome to NW's book thread!

jo--you've never heard of Kafka's Metamorphisis?? I've never read it, but I have heard of it.

The Mislaid Magician is available in the US. Kate, if the banter is part of what you missed in Grand Tour, you might want to try reading Magician. It returns to the letter format of the first one and, while still not being as good as Sorcery and Cecelia, was still pretty enjoyable.

Ooh, cool! Thanks for letting us know.

Good novels don't have to be hard
In praise of books half-read Do you stop reading books if you're tired of them? When in the book do you stop reading? It takes a lot to make me stop reading. Or, if the book is boring.
How old are you in writer years?
Fairy tales older than previously thought
What publishers say and what they really mean Here's my favorite:

"In the tradition of X": the author has plagiarised X.

Quotation marks added by me.
Some brave soul edited Dan Brown's writing I am dying for someone to do the same to Stephenie Meyer.
Not especially book-related, but...
Nerd Venn Diagram
Rather violent and gory yet hilarious cartoon on apostrophe abuse
Savage Chickens cartoons!
Auditions in Ancient Greece
Goldilocks as a movie adaption

Kate- I listened to Frankenstein, and didn't care for it. My Dad, who also listened to it, was not impressed either. His comment was that Frankenstein (the doctor of course) was a very weak man, no backbone, very feminine. Of course, it was written by a woman... But honestly, that's one of my pet peeves: when an author writes about the opposite sex and does a bad job- masculine woman and feminine guys. I know, I know, the lines between them are blurring (to the great misfortune of the world), but there are still things that distinguish them from the other sex.

You disagree with mankind playing the role of God by creating a Frankenstein monster? I'd think that was a fairly kosher belief?

Exactly! When man tries to play God what does He create? Monsters!

That is an interesting concept that was food for thought when I heard it. If I was going to be exact however, I would argue that man can't create life. But that's nit-picking, the story is what if someone found out how to imbue the breath of life in a lifeless form.

Oh! I love Jane Austen! I just recently finished reading Pride and Prejudice and I absolutely loved it! Unfortunately for my family I walked around speaking as the characters did for two days afterward!

Ha ha! That's hilarious! I loved it too, and Mr. Darcy is one of the few men I have ever got starry-eyed over! And isn't Elizabeth witty? I loved her! Speaking of which, you should try this personality quiz- http://www.strangegirl.com/emma/quiz.php. Here's my result-