The Eurobricks Book Club.

[Peppermint_M]

Hello. I return once more to the Culture and Mulitmedia sub forum to spread a little more culture.

I thought it would be a cool idea for us all to share recommendations of online short fiction. If you can post a link with the title and author and mybe a brief synopsis and I will index it here by genre.

To start us off:

By the Waters of Babylon by Stephen Vincent Benét. A post apocalyptic tale written in the 30s, quite ahead of it's time.

So. Do you have any stories you'd like to share?

[brickme]

Don't think the whole book qualifies as short but here are the first three chapters to my favorite book

http://www.alagaesia.com/eragonexcerpt.htm

This book is AMAZING if you like lego castle read it. It's the best. It's about a simple farm boy, eragon (no this is not a retelling of star wars though it does look like it) and he finds a mysterious blue stone. What could it be?

Great idea Peppermint M

brickme

[Peppermint_M]

Heh, I read Eragon about 6 years ago. Sadly never been able to read it again.

And He Built a Crooked House by Robert A. Heinlein. Hard SF from the master. It's got maths, 4th-Dimensional physics and construction!

[Natman8000]

Has anyone read Dark Troopers by Joe Schreiber? That is one of the best star wars books I've ever read. I seriously recommend it. Basically, take zombies, and give it a slight star wars twist. If you ever wanted to read about having a climb a mountain of corpses to escape the living dead version of your brother, this book is for you.

[def]

I think a book club is a cool idea, but I think if it were like a real book club, that would be great. Agree on a book, and then spend the next month or so discussing it. I like reading, but it's a bummer that I can barely discuss them. I just finished Orson Scott Card's Shadow of the Hegemon and am now halfway through a book that Amazon "recommended" for me, the Anubis Gates by Tim Powers. I'd love to have people to chat with about these books.

If this is a good idea to people, I would recommend to sticking to books from the Sci-fi Masterworks and Fantasy Masterworks series since they are established greats.

[Peppermint_M]

A "real" book club sounds like a good idea, but sometimes we don't have the time for entire novels, long books and analytical discussion. What with work, school and the brick. Plus the forum would be clogged with discussion of a book each month, we'd need a Books subforum...

What I am looking to do is to assemble a list of short fiction, interesting articles and suchlike from the internet, to provide members with a small "reading room", maybe to inspire a new MOC or just while away a half hour or so when there is a lull on the forum.

I probably shouldn't have called it a Book Club, but the definition used in my school library was essentialy a group meeting to chat about stuff that was fun to read. Point out the book, the author and a brief plot discription or sum up a magazine article. Then you could go and find the book or magazine if you were interested enough to read more.

[def]

Fair enough

[The Eye]

It's kind of sad but funny how few book topics there are.

I haven't read anything good lately, but for those who have forgotten, why not read that new Hardcover LEGO BOOK that came out last year? I bought it late but still enjoyed every page of it. Brings back good memories.

[Icee77]

*cough* * puts on reading glasses*

I would recommend Code Talker by Bruchac, Joseph. Very good read. if you like lego castle you should read those Warhammer books.

[The Legonater]

*cough* * puts on reading glasses*

I would recommend Code Talker by Bruchac, Joseph. Very good read. if you like lego castle you should read those Warhammer books.

Oh yeah, I have the book- it was neat. That's the one with the Navajo Marines, right?

I, personally, would recomend the Republic Commando series (and pretty much any other Star wars Karren Traviss book) to any Starwars fan- she is a terrific author, and this series proves it.

Edited May 16, 2010 by The Legonater

[Icee77]

Oh yeah, I have the book- it was neat. That's the one with the Navajo Marines, right?

yep. it takes place during ww2

[Professor Flitwick]

A "real" book club sounds like a good idea, but sometimes we don't have the time for entire novels, long books and analytical discussion. What with work, school and the brick. Plus the forum would be clogged with discussion of a book each month, we'd need a Books subforum...

What I am looking to do is to assemble a list of short fiction, interesting articles and suchlike from the internet, to provide members with a small "reading room", maybe to inspire a new MOC or just while away a half hour or so when there is a lull on the forum.

I probably shouldn't have called it a Book Club, but the definition used in my school library was essentialy a group meeting to chat about stuff that was fun to read. Point out the book, the author and a brief plot discription or sum up a magazine article. Then you could go and find the book or magazine if you were interested enough to read more.

Not to mini-mod, but if it isn't a Eurobricks Book Club, then wouldn't all this fall under the criteria of the 'What are you reading?' thread?

[Peppermint_M]

Not to mini-mod, but if it isn't a Eurobricks Book Club, then wouldn't all this fall under the criteria of the 'What are you reading?' thread?

Ahem, this thread came first. As the first post came in April and mine was January...

As my first post pointed out, it is for short fiction when one wants a quick read on the internet. Not for long novels, or that scary book club reading dictatorship claptrap. Sadly it didn't seem to take off and was going the way of all inactive threads until you bumped it up to minimod.

Fellows have the moderation rights hereabouts, so def or myself would have merged the threads if they were supposed to go together.

I am loath to shut this down, mainly due to the vain hope of others wanting to add the odd recommendation, but I might have to if anymore posts pop up that are not really contributing to the intent.

Ho hum...

[mikey]

...

By the Waters of Babylon by Stephen Vincent Benét. A post apocalyptic tale written in the 30s, quite ahead of it's time.

...

This is a great thread, i dont get to read much fiction anymore, but i used to really enjoy the classic sci-fi authors. I thought this was an interesting and thought provoking tale, although i found the style a little dry. Just the right length for a quick diversion. Im not sure if this was supposed to be analytical thread, but the concept of this was quite intriguing. In that once the 'Gods' are revealed as 'Men', then it was thought possible to rebuild their works.

My thought was perhaps that has significance for post-enlightenment industrial society. How important was the realization that no 'God' exists? Did that influence the course of science, and our subsequent manipulation and transformation of the world?

[The Legonater]

yep. it takes place during ww2

yeah, I read that- it was nice.

[Peppermint_M]

This is a great thread, i dont get to read much fiction anymore, but i used to really enjoy the classic sci-fi authors. I thought this was an interesting and thought provoking tale, although i found the style a little dry. Just the right length for a quick diversion. Im not sure if this was supposed to be analytical thread, but the concept of this was quite intriguing. In that once the 'Gods' are revealed as 'Men', then it was thought possible to rebuild their works.

My thought was perhaps that has significance for post-enlightenment industrial society. How important was the realization that no 'God' exists? Did that influence the course of science, and our subsequent manipulation and transformation of the world?

I have to say that the way science and knowledge has rocketed to such hights, beyond what many of the most forward thinking had ever dreamed of would astonish the SF writers of the past.

Many things we take for granted today would be seen as near godlike even back in the 30s. If such a cataclysm that occured in the past of that story, you can be sure that any survivors descendants would see our most mundane as devine.