So What Are you Reading?: Generations
- Thread starter captcalhoun
- Start date
I've actually been reading a series of political/historical essays, by an American I hadn't heard of. I read one and ended up being pulled in to the entire collection. It was fascinating, provocative writing to a degree I haven't discovered in a while. Since it was just the one guy, there naturally wasn't anything much in the way of alternative angles, though the author was pleasingly unreliable in his actual positions - the tone was playful and speculative but also entirely serious. The essays certainly quoted from a very wide range of literary sources; memoirs, records, novels, many of which were new to me (I'll be hunting some down). I found it very absorbing, and it actually hurt my head trying to hold in my mind the entirety of what he was proposing or exploring, which is always great. It truly challenged me; my mind is still turning a lot of his arguments and observations over.
What I appreciated most, though, is that I felt like his proposals explained something I had vaguely intuited or observed about our societies, but never quite gotten a logical angle on, and made a case for why it might be so. One of those moments when someone else comes in with an angle on a matter that differs enough from, and is based in considerably more knowledge than your own, and fills in a hole. And then raises more questions. The collection as a whole attempted, among other things, to explain a model for the development of what the author argues is the predominant ideological worldview of the modern world, with most of the political divisions people are familiar with being comparatively smaller disputes within the context of that system. Rather a grand project, but the author was always clear that this was an opinionated and certainly individual approach, and it was really more interested in seeding doubts about what he, at least, saw as entrenched assumptions about historical cultures and worldviews.
Some of his positions seem unlikely to me, but many others were illuminating.
I hope the next thing I read is this fascinating.
What I appreciated most, though, is that I felt like his proposals explained something I had vaguely intuited or observed about our societies, but never quite gotten a logical angle on, and made a case for why it might be so. One of those moments when someone else comes in with an angle on a matter that differs enough from, and is based in considerably more knowledge than your own, and fills in a hole. And then raises more questions. The collection as a whole attempted, among other things, to explain a model for the development of what the author argues is the predominant ideological worldview of the modern world, with most of the political divisions people are familiar with being comparatively smaller disputes within the context of that system. Rather a grand project, but the author was always clear that this was an opinionated and certainly individual approach, and it was really more interested in seeding doubts about what he, at least, saw as entrenched assumptions about historical cultures and worldviews.
Some of his positions seem unlikely to me, but many others were illuminating.
I hope the next thing I read is this fascinating.
Just posted my review of Worlds of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Volume One: Cardassia: The Lotus Flower: An Overabundance of Colons by Una McCormack.
Right now, I'm reading Trill: Unjoined from the same series, and The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay.
Right now, I'm reading Trill: Unjoined from the same series, and The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay.
Hee hee!
I started "What if?" by Randall Munroe last night. Read merely the preface to the UK edition and the introduction, but I'm already loving it 
(I read some over a shoulder of a man who was sitting next to me on the London Underground, and I wanted to read more).
I also started "Rise of the Federation" #1, and am already 50% in. I didn't read the Romulan War books, so I'm a bit out of the loop, but I'm enjoying it anyway.
(I read some over a shoulder of a man who was sitting next to me on the London Underground, and I wanted to read more
).I also started "Rise of the Federation" #1, and am already 50% in. I didn't read the Romulan War books, so I'm a bit out of the loop, but I'm enjoying it anyway.
Continuing my exploration of the loosely linked 80's TOS novel continuity that I started with The Wounded Sky a couple months ago, I am now making my way through The Final Reflection. I've been curious about this alternative take on Klingon culture for a while, and curious to see which impulse will kick in: obsessive compulsive desire to try and figure out how it fits with newer continuity; or my rebellious streak that will accept it as having it's own entity as part of a loose continuity that also has it's own distinct identity, reality and verisimilitude.
Re-reading the first 3 TITAN books
Have you read "The Sundered"? An awesome book in itself, and gives a deeper perspective on "The Red King"
I've just brought and started to read, the novelization of DS9s The Search by Diane Carey. I'm four chapters in and I had a laugh out loud moment already.
Also finished the latest DS9 novel The Missing a good read overall but there was a issue or two that I had...
When the main cast first see the USS Defiant and spend most of a chapter glazing out of an observation window at her whilst Sisko stands in the background like a proud and anxious parent. Plus, there is Bashir's 'wistful English "this won't hurt a bit tone"'
Also finished the latest DS9 novel The Missing a good read overall but there was a issue or two that I had...
Enjoyed Mr Kiss & Tell (Veronica Mars) by Rob Thomas/Jennifer Graham.
Now I'm part way through Takedown by John Jackson Miller. So far So good
Now I'm part way through Takedown by John Jackson Miller. So far So good
There's a new VERONICA MARS novel out? How did I miss that?
(Time to trek down to the library, I think, once it stops snowing, of course.)
Re-reading the first 3 TITAN books
Have you read "The Sundered"? An awesome book in itself, and gives a deeper perspective on "The Red King"
ahem.. no?
must correct that then !I am reading them again because those were the first books i bought but i didn't understood that well the characters . After the Orion's Hounds i gave up to trek lit because i stumbled upon Vengeance TNG or something about mirror universe and i was annoyied about all the melodramas and sad tones and yes.. i thought that every ST book was the same . Then i started ST ENT but i never wanted to read DESTINY trilogy thinking that would be same sadness and dark story . Of course one day i was bored and kindle was insisting in showing me the trilogy at a good price , i bought it and after that the choo- choo train started lol
Yup. I think it came out last week and it popped up as a recommendation. I hadn't heard that it was due out (or even that there was a second)
Finished out The Poisoned Chalice last night. I really liked it. There's a few issues with it but it really felt like the lynchpin of The Fall, doing most of the heavy lifting in terms of bringing all the myriad threads together. Swallow really gets the Titan crew. Some very minor issues with some plot conveniences and I did think the covert ops story went on a little too long. However, it did give us the unlikely Tuvok/Nog friendship which I enjoyed. Overall though, probably my second favorite of The Fall so far. Though, Mr. Swallow is very fond of characters pointing at their collars to indicate rank when they don't have their pips on. ;-)
Started up Peaceable Kingdoms last night. I'm only two chapters in but it's a little dry. Not bad, but lacking something. I thought the recap of the event so far was pretty well handled and didn't feel as... repeat-y as some of the recaps are. My goal right now is to finish this by Friday so I can have read all of The Fall in one month.
Started up Peaceable Kingdoms last night. I'm only two chapters in but it's a little dry. Not bad, but lacking something. I thought the recap of the event so far was pretty well handled and didn't feel as... repeat-y as some of the recaps are. My goal right now is to finish this by Friday so I can have read all of The Fall in one month.
Last edited:
I'm now about 1/2 of the way through the DS9 Millennium trilogy that came out in 2000. It's been almost 15 years since I read these. I'm trying hard to follow all of the time travel in these books. 
Next up is going to be a re-read of the Shatner novels - presuming I can find them all...
Next up is going to be a re-read of the Shatner novels - presuming I can find them all...
Enjoy!Re-reading the first 3 TITAN books
Have you read "The Sundered"? An awesome book in itself, and gives a deeper perspective on "The Red King"
ahem.. no?
A few months ago I had my Great Re-Read of USS Titan Series
It was great, especially re-reading those first books, because being already familiar with the crew I had a better understanding and less confused of who they were while being introduced to me... if that makes sense.
I'm glad for this reminder, I meant to look for those follow up novels, but I keep forgetting about it...haven't thought of it lately at all...
Similar threads
