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Old 10-19-2013, 08:48 AM   #1
DaveinJapan
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Question Which author had a big impact when you were young?

Hey all. I was thinking about some authors who've impacted me lately, and Michael Crighton came out near the top of my list.

I remembered my first experience with his style, in Freshman H.S. biology class of all places. The teacher assigned "The Andromeda Strain", giving us like a month or so to read it, and I put it off as I usually did with homework of any kind. But then, the very last weekend before the test, I laid down on the couch and started in on it - and I was hooked! I read the whole thing that weekend, enjoying every minute of it.

It turned out that I was the only kid in the class who could stomach reading it (even the smart kids had given up!), and everyone failed but me. I was NOT the brightest kid in that particular field to say the least, but I earned my one and only "A" that day.

And I've been a big M.C. fan ever since. Anyone have any stories, or thoughts on authors who impacted you in a similar way?
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Old 10-19-2013, 09:19 AM   #2
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The first was Edgar Rice Burroughs - Pellucidar.

Asimov, Clarke, Niven(a bit later)

Silverberg, Simak ...
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Old 10-19-2013, 09:45 AM   #3
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Jules Verne that a lot of you will know
and
many more that none of you have ever heard of. (due to the fact they are not translated into english/german/french or spanish)
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Old 10-19-2013, 10:05 AM   #4
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Bernard Cornwell for me. He was the first "adult author" I read, when I was thirteen. My Mum got me the first three books, Sharpe's Tiger, Sharpe's Triumph and Sharpe's Fortress from the library. I was absolutely bowled over by it. The way he describes the battles and daily life of the soldiers, added to his descriptive prose concerning the surroundings left me feeling as though I had been through the proverbial wringer. I know he may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it was just an incredible eye opener.
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Old 10-19-2013, 10:06 AM   #5
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Since I was young yesterday, I would have to say William Faulkner.




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Old 10-19-2013, 10:14 AM   #6
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Although I never read the full text, only an abridged version for younger readers, A Tale of Two Cities made a huge impression on me as a story.

In high school there were a few authors that had quite a big impact. Albert Camus, Dostoyevsky, John Knowles (A Separate Peace), William Golding, Harper Lee. I really enjoyed most of the books we covered in high school.

In my own personal reading, Tolkien made an impression on me that diluted after high school when I read authors such as Feist and Donaldson. But I absolutely loved Susan Cooper for her Dark is Rising series. I loved the Narnia books as well, but not quite as much. Another author I can think of is Ursula Le Guin. I particularly liked The Tombs of Atuan from Earthsea and Left Hand of Darkness.

Anyway - I think that covers the school years. There might be some that I've missed. I didn't encounter some of my favourite authors until later.
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Old 10-19-2013, 10:24 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Drib View Post
Since I was young yesterday, I would have to say William Faulkner.




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I would have listed him as well as Steinbeck but I did not read them when I was 'young' .... also John Irving....E.L. Doctorow...
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Old 10-19-2013, 10:42 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kennyc View Post
I would have listed him as well as Steinbeck but I did not read them when I was 'young' .... also John Irving....E.L. Doctorow...

I actually read him when I was a bit older, when I was in my young teens.




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Old 10-19-2013, 10:47 AM   #9
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and anyway, per the Jefferson Airplane, 'you're only pretty as you feel' -- applies to age as well.
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Old 10-19-2013, 11:09 AM   #10
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Albert Camus (in translation), Robert Frost, W.B. Yeats, W.H.Auden, Jules Verne (in translation) and Robert Heinlein, Barbara Tuchman, George Orwell (his reviews and essays), C.S.Forester, Mark Twain
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Old 10-19-2013, 12:09 PM   #11
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Cool Which author had a big impact when you were young?

In 3rd grade there was Carolyn Keene (the name attributed by the publisher to the author of the Nancy Drew series, who were actually a group of uncredited ghost writers who wrote them under contract).

Toward the end of 4th grade it was Robert A. Heinlein.

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Old 10-19-2013, 12:32 PM   #12
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The first series I remember being hooked on was Lucy Maude Montgomery, The Story Girl. I had read her other books by he time I was 7 and they were okay, but the Story Girl enthralled me. Next it was the Sacketts, by Louis L'amour. Go figure.

Another book/series I remember fondly from childhood is The Mouse That Roared, by Leonard Wibberley.

About 12 I discovered SF and it was Heinlein, Delaney, Asimov, Lieber etc. for many a year, interspersed with Taylor Caudwell, Leon Uris, and a fair chunk of Shakespeare.

The book that made me think the most is quite possibly Lord of the Flies. I didn't actually find it a fun read, but it still comes to mind on occasion.

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Old 10-19-2013, 12:37 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alansplace View Post
In 3rd grade there was Carolyn Keene

Why do you have Matrix (マトリックス) written in Japanese on your avatar? I thought it was Dresden themed?
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Old 10-19-2013, 12:51 PM   #14
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Cool huh?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Geralt View Post
Why do you have Matrix (マトリックス) written in Japanese on your avatar? I thought it was Dresden themed?

I don't have anything written on my avatar. It's just two pieces of a larger graphic from the web:

Click image for larger version

Name:	6pu8U.png
Views:	1536
Size:	743.0 KB
ID:	113679

I moved the staff closer to Dresden so it would fit in the avatar size specifications. I added nothing to the original.

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Old 10-19-2013, 12:54 PM   #15
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Well sorry it's off topic. But that doesn't change the fact that Dresden has Matrix written on his staff in Japanese. Weird.
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