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Eric Ladd Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2004 August 16 Location: Canada Posts: 4505
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Posted: 2012 May 06 at 3:42am | IP Logged | 1
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John Byrne wrote:
we might as well be speculating on what would have happened if the Martians had sided with the Nazis. (Hm, War of the Worlds II?) |
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Slightly off topic, but have you see the trailer to Iron Sky? Lots of intended camp in this movie.
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Andrew Hess Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2004 April 16 Location: United States Posts: 9846
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Posted: 2012 May 08 at 8:47pm | IP Logged | 2
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Due to a comment by my good friend* Bradley Krawchuk, I am looking to read 100 books this year, starting May 1 (why put it off?).
For this exercise, I am not going to include graphic novels or TPB (which I can read in an hour, easy) but will include books on CD; seeing as I now have about an hour of commuting every day, seems like a good use of time.
*by that I mean, "someone I have never met nor even really interacted with much (that I can remember) but who has really good ideas"
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Andrew Hess Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2004 April 16 Location: United States Posts: 9846
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Posted: 2012 May 08 at 8:54pm | IP Logged | 3
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1) "The Rook" by Daniel O'Malley
A novel about a mutant, super-powered operative of England's supernatural secret service, who not only has to stop what looks to be an invasion by Belgium's Scientific Brotherhood of Scientists (must sound better in German) but also find out who stole her memory.
An interesting First Novel, but in places tries too hard to be Douglas Adams-ish witty. Entertaining, tho.
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Andrew Hess Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2004 April 16 Location: United States Posts: 9846
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Posted: 2012 May 15 at 8:55pm | IP Logged | 4
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2) "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, as read to me by Tim Robbins
The most beautifully written crime drama I've ever "read": lush descriptions and cryptic but fully realized characters. I've put off reading this until now, and with my commute decided to listen to classic books I've tried in the past, with name narrators.
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Chris Cottrill Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2010 September 26 Location: United States Posts: 375
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Posted: 2012 May 16 at 6:58pm | IP Logged | 5
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"The Wind Through the Keyhole" Stephen King A Dark Tower novel.
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Brad Brickley Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2004 April 29 Location: United States Posts: 8290
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Posted: 2012 May 16 at 7:18pm | IP Logged | 6
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"The Wind Through the Keyhole" Stephen King A Dark Tower novel.
**
I have that in the queue, I really enjoyed the Dark Tower series.
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Andrew Hess Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2004 April 16 Location: United States Posts: 9846
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Posted: 2012 May 16 at 9:06pm | IP Logged | 7
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hmm, I lost track of the Dark Tower after "The Drawing of the Three." I think at that point i was getting disenchanted with all things King, and never went back to that series (tho I've tried a few of his other books since).
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John Bodin Byrne Robotics Member
Purveyor of Rare Items
Joined: 2004 April 16 Location: United States Posts: 3911
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Posted: 2012 May 17 at 7:52am | IP Logged | 8
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After a fairly steady diet of zombie fiction, I read Stephen King's latest, "11/22/1963" which deals with time travel and the JFK assassination. Very good read, had a "Byrne" kind of feeling from a time travel perspective, IMO.
I've also been reading "The Hollows" series by Kim Harrison. It's more or less "girl" fiction, with a female protagonist and some gratuitous romance/sex in each book, but the urban fantasy world that she's created in "The Hollows" (which takes place in a somewhat alternate version Cincinatti) is very compelling, as are the characters themselves. Not the best stuff I've read, but it's kind of a fun romp. Feels a bit like an Americanized version of Harry Potter for adults, sort-of. Also, with werewolves, witches, vampires, and demons, what's not to like?
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Andrew Hess Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 2004 April 16 Location: United States Posts: 9846
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Posted: 2012 May 20 at 9:49pm | IP Logged | 9
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3) "Taft 2012" by Jason Heller. Mildly amusing book about the 27th President appearing in modern times after a mysterious disappearance, tries to adjust to this new world, public groundswell forms behind him to have him run as 3rd party candidate . . . you've heard it all before.
What could have been a biting satire of consumerism, politics, or any number of things, instead becomes a barely-drawn background to a book that is not about much of anything.
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Matt Reed Byrne Robotics Security
Robotmod
Joined: 2004 April 16 Posts: 36069
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Posted: 2012 May 21 at 9:06am | IP Logged | 10
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Having just finished an excellent book on the Teapot Dome scandal, I find it hard to believe that there would be a groundswell of support big enough to nominate a president who essentially sold his position at the White House to Big Oil. The media being what it is would have a field day with a candidate like that. Even die-hard Republicans distance themselves from Taft!
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Matt Reed Byrne Robotics Security
Robotmod
Joined: 2004 April 16 Posts: 36069
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Posted: 2012 May 21 at 9:16am | IP Logged | 11
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Finished the book on Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett. Excellent. Hightly recommended for anyone with an interest in Southwest history and the lives of these two men. I've always been interested in cowboys, gunslingers and the Old West, so this book was right up my alley. A happy case of perfect timing, I was in Costco over the weekend and noticed THE LAST GUNFIGHT: THE REAL STORY OF THE SHOOTOUT AT THE OK CORRAL AND HOW IT CHANGED THE AMERICAN WEST by Jeff Guinn. Snatched it up and am now just starting it.
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
Joined: 2005 May 11 Posts: 133514
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Posted: 2012 May 21 at 9:25am | IP Logged | 12
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Gave up on AIRPORT. When I started, it had much the same feel as HOTEL, which I quite enjoyed, and I thought the fact that the whole book takes place in the span of about seven hours might add something -- but instead, I all too often found myself thinking Yes! Yes! We know! Get on with it!!Still working on THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH. "Working" perhaps not a fair word. It's very well written, and doesn't feel like work.
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