![]() |
#31 | |
Banned
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 125
Karma: 124174
Join Date: Jul 2019
Location: Hilbert Space
Device: NOOK Glowlight plus 2
|
Quote:
I found most of the kindle unlimited books to not be books I enjoy when I did have a kindle but then again I don't really read a lot of fiction in my adult years so I may be off base here but probably not since you largely agree with me , it seems, and also you get what you pay for and the price is only what ? $9.99 ? So it seems obvious they would be crap or largely crap. So I would simply answer your question here (some of this maybe surperfluous or extraneous) : (1) If you like something an author writes, read more of his stuff. An author whom you find interesting is more likely to have written other material that will please you than an author you have no knowledge of. (3) Modern books are usually better than older ones. This is partly because modern books benefit from more up-to-date knowledge (tho they don't always), and partly because the publishing business is now very competitive, unlike in earlier days, years, or centuries; and competition means the best will generally rise to the top (ie, get published). A great many older books ('classics') are much overpraised, but it took me a long time to figure out that it was the books which were lousy, and not my taste. (4) Don't waste your time reading lousy stuff, even if it is supposed to be 'important'. If it's lousy, chances are it's not important at all, at least for your purposes. |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#32 |
Karma Kameleon
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 2,960
Karma: 26738313
Join Date: Aug 2009
Device: iPad Mini, iPhone X, Kindle Fire Tab HD 8, Walmart Onn
|
I hear you about older books. As much as I like EE Doc Smith Sci-fi....Neil Stephenson writes far better. But...then again...Asimov's Foundation and Herbert's Dune hold up very well IMHO.
And yes, I am, the type that reads most every book from my favorite authors. |
![]() |
![]() |
Advert | |
|
![]() |
#33 | |
Grand Sorcerer
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 7,196
Karma: 70314280
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Atlanta, GA
Device: iPad Pro, iPad mini, Kobo Aura, Amazon paperwhite, Sony PRS-T2
|
Quote:
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#34 |
Grand Sorcerer
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 11,310
Karma: 43993832
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Monroe Wisconsin
Device: K3, Kindle Paperwhite, Calibre, and Mobipocket for Pc (netbook)
|
I agree. Time is the one commodity that we never have enough of and can't be replenished. Once it's gone, it's gone. Each book is a new adventure is how I see it. You may find a given trip isn't to your liking but if you limit yourselves to the main line authors of the day you may miss out on a gem as well.
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#35 |
Gentleman and scholar
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 11,479
Karma: 111164374
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Space City, Texas
Device: Clara BW; Nook ST w/Glowlight, Paperwhite 3
|
You state that as if it's a fact (...it was the books which were lousy, and not my taste). Can you back that up with specific examples? Would a modern author like James Patterson be better than classic authors like Raymond Chandler or Dashiell Hammett?
|
![]() |
![]() |
Advert | |
|
![]() |
#36 | |
Karma Kameleon
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 2,960
Karma: 26738313
Join Date: Aug 2009
Device: iPad Mini, iPhone X, Kindle Fire Tab HD 8, Walmart Onn
|
Quote:
Forever War by Haldemon must b appreciated for the time period it was written. Just reading it today...it's not very good story telling. Of mice and men didn't hold up well, IMO and I loved that book when younger. To Kill A Mocking Bird...still awesome. Opinions. Of course |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#37 | |
Grand Sorcerer
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 7,196
Karma: 70314280
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Atlanta, GA
Device: iPad Pro, iPad mini, Kobo Aura, Amazon paperwhite, Sony PRS-T2
|
Quote:
![]() Your criticism is true for pretty much any book. If the reader isn't familiar with Victorian London, then the actions and attitudes of Sherlock Holmes makes very little sense. The same sort of thing is true of Shakespeare, Milton and Homer. Quite a bit of Heinlein's science has been bypassed by events. That's certainly true of Jules Verne as well. I suspect how well a book holds up depends a lot on how familiar the reader is with the attitudes and knowledge of the time period of the book. IMPO, Of Mice and Men has held up quite well, but it only makes sense if you are familiar with the Great Depression and how it effected people. |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#38 | |
Banned
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 125
Karma: 124174
Join Date: Jul 2019
Location: Hilbert Space
Device: NOOK Glowlight plus 2
|
Quote:
Anyway, here are some examples of newer books possibly being better : "A Gentleman in Moscow", by Amor Towles "The Heart", by Maylis de Kerangal "The Sympathizer", by Viet Thanh Nguyen "Seveneves", by Neal Stephenson "The Rosie Effect", by Graeme Simsion "Patriot and Assassin", by Robert Cook "Turtles All the Way Down", by John Green "The Hunger Games", by Suzanne Collins "The Cat’s Table", by Michael Ondaatje etc...etc... Last edited by Raphi'Elohim; 08-04-2019 at 07:20 AM. |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#39 | ||
Gentleman and scholar
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 11,479
Karma: 111164374
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Space City, Texas
Device: Clara BW; Nook ST w/Glowlight, Paperwhite 3
|
Quote:
Quote:
What modern book is better than what classic? Why is, let's say, The Scarlet Letter just objectively not a good book? Or The Grapes of Wrath? If those aren't good examples, please do point me to what you are referring to. You say that you know it is the book that is at fault and not just your taste. If that is true, then you should be able to point to some specific proof. |
||
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#40 |
Wizard
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 1,221
Karma: 8381518
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Oaxaca, Mexico
Device: Paperwhite 4 X 2
|
A. Back in the day of paper books, I haunted the "remainder" tables. At my local B&N I'd have six or seven tables of books, many hard back, for less than $5. I think those days are gone.
B. Back in the day, "magazines" like "Black Mask" and "Hitchcock Mysteries" gave new writers a place to start. Those are gone now, too. C. My biggest problem with "Indie" books is a total lack of proofreading or editing. Words are dropped from sentences, using the wrong word is common, and some otherwise good books desperately need editing. A friend of mine wrote a science fiction novel, hired and editor, and then complained and threw out all her work because "she changed everything I'd written". That's what was needed. Basic grammatical errors were rampant. D. There was a day when fledgling writers and reporters had finished high school. But, they knew the basic of writing, of grammar, of spelling. No more. I asked a man who worked for me, had a degree, and couldn't write to tell me what a sentence was. After some thought he said, "A bunch of words with a period at the end." That's how he wrote, too. Others would check a thesaurus and, thinking synonyms all mean the same thing, would pick a word they'd never heard and use it. Professors, who also couldn't write, loved it. I have favorite authors but most of them are dead and probably won't be writing any more books. Sometimes I enjoy reading a book a second or third time but it's usually not rewarding. I was taking a writing class forty-years ago and a fellow student, named Aldo Bartlett, was 87-years old. He had a third-grade education because he was the oldest boy in the family when his father died and he had to go to work at the age of ten. He worked for the railroad. He retired from the railroad quite young and decided he wanted to be a reporter. He inquired at a newspaper and they wouldn't consider someone who had even attended high school. So, he hired a professor of English from a local university, Harvard, and learned to write. Then he talked an editor into letter him be a proofreader for a month with no pay to show what he could do. He got a job as a proofreader. He learned about who, what, when, where, and sometimes why and moved up to writing obituaries and society news. And then became what is a rarity today, a reporter. I get $.99 books and sometimes free books from Amazon. If I start the book and it's horrible I don't suffer when I toss it. I usually toss it and move on but I have been own to make comments in a review after saying I read only 10% of the book. When I read paper book our local bookstore would let me read pre-publication copies and give them my opinion. The pre-pubs had information on the back cover of how many copies were planned and the advertising budget. I read a book with an incredible planned run and a large advertising budget and it was horrible. I asked the bookstore owner what was going on and he laughed. "That author is their best-selling coffee table book author. Cooking, travel in Europe, that sort of thing. He's threatened to go to another publisher if they don't publish and promote his mystery." Thanks, Amazon, mot just for my Kindle, books by great authors, and giving no authors a chance but thanks, too, for my britches, umbrella, watch, and pocket knife. |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#41 |
Wizard
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 1,069
Karma: 12500000
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Okanagan
Device: Sony PRS-650, Kobo Clara
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#42 |
Grand Sorcerer
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 7,196
Karma: 70314280
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Atlanta, GA
Device: iPad Pro, iPad mini, Kobo Aura, Amazon paperwhite, Sony PRS-T2
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#43 |
Karma Kameleon
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 2,960
Karma: 26738313
Join Date: Aug 2009
Device: iPad Mini, iPhone X, Kindle Fire Tab HD 8, Walmart Onn
|
Mark Greaney has dome a good job of continuing the series. Eric Van Listbader has done a good job with the Bourne series as well.
Many of the top authors have turned themselves into editors/co-authors using their name to sell books they has SOME level of being written by others. It’s what I’d do if I could 🤓 |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#44 | |
Grand Sorcerer
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 7,196
Karma: 70314280
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Atlanta, GA
Device: iPad Pro, iPad mini, Kobo Aura, Amazon paperwhite, Sony PRS-T2
|
Quote:
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#45 | |
Wizard
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 4,763
Karma: 246906703
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: USA
Device: Oasis 3, Oasis 2, PW3, PW1, KT
|
Quote:
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
|
![]() |
||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
"date" reports correct time zone and time; UI reports a time several hours off | Synthead | Kindle Developer's Corner | 17 | 01-05-2015 05:10 AM |
iLiad An idea to mitigate boot time (and app launch time) -- For future use | Antartica | iRex Developer's Corner | 14 | 11-05-2006 02:16 AM |