I’ve finished a number of books but have yet to update either the “What I Recommend” or “What I Am Reading” pages, and since I have a bunch to unload, I’m just going to do it here. First, though other news. If you go over to Gamestooge and click on “About Us” you’ll see that I am now the Senior Writer over there. Also If you go over to 2old2play you’ll see that I’m a contributor writer there as well! Now all the work I do over there is free, but hey people are reading my writing which is a start, right? Lets hope so!
Okay, this is going to be quick and dirty:
The Thin Red Line by James Jones – Buy it – By far the best war novel I’ve ever read, Jones’ portrayal of the assault on Guadalcanal by American troops during WW2 is unforgiving. Jones prose and story is so powerful its focus is not on the action but rather the people in it, exploring how humans can and do kill each other and the toll it takes on all of us. I can’t recommend this book enough to those who wish to see past the hollow glory that warfare provides… A scathing rebuttal of those who would have us believe war is noble and the greatest endeavor man has ever participated in
The Prince of the Marshes by Rory Stewart – Check it out at your local library – Mr. Stewart went to Iraq in August of 2003 as part of the temporary Coalition Provincial Authority that the United States and Allies set up in Iraq before the Iraqi elections. He served for a year there as a deputy governor of Amara then Nasiriyah in Southern Iraq. This book’s value comes in that Stewart doesn’t pull any punches, he just reports the facts as he witnessed and what he witnessed was largely corruption, chaos, and incompetence. Not that you should be surprised by that, like it or not, Iraq is our generations Vietnam, an ugly wound that will only be healed once all of us are gone…
A Theory of Fun for Game Design by Raph Koster – Niche Book – This book would only interest you if you’re at all interested in Game Design (any type digital, analog, board, card, etc.) Koster recognized that in his field there was no authority or theory behind how games should be designed, what makes them interesting, compelling and fun to those who play them. Game Designers largely grope in the dark while making their games, at best they were operating intuitively and hoping for the best. It’s one of the reasons copying is so blatant in the industry. Koster tries to provide a foundation for further research and theory to be built upon. Beginning with what “fun” means and how that applies to humans. Koster states that fun is merely learning and that games are a great way for us to learn. That games are serious business worthy of serious scholarly study and that as such games should begin to live up to their historical stature.
I don’t recommend getting this from Amazon as the folks there are selling it for close to $100, instead check out half.com for a better deal, well worth the read if your interested at all in the emerging field of ludology.
The Wolf of Wall Street by Jordan Belfort – Avoid – Mr. Belfort has quite an opinion of himself, despite the fact that as far as I can tell, no one really cared much about him until this book came out… Unless you were once an employee of his brokerage firm or knew the man there isn’t anything here for you to read. Full of shallow conversation, ridiculous hyperbole, and needless swearing (not to mention one unbelievable incident after another). This book will be my first experiment in making a false book, I wouldn’t want it to end up in anyone Else’s hands, I’d just feel too guilty doing that to somebody… Terrible just terrible. One more thing, I question whether Mr. Belfort actually knows the definitions of some of the words he uses… Complete narcissistic tripe.
Elric of Melnibone by Micheal Moorcock – Buy it – Moorcock is hailed as one of the creators of “new fantasy”, trying to separate himself from the epic archetypal stories as told by J.R.R Tolkien as his many imitators, this is where he got started. If you’re a player of either Warhammer or its Sci-Fi cousin 40k, these should especially interest you as Moorcock is the largest influence on the idea of chaos in the Warhammer worlds. Elric of Melnibone is the first in a 6 part series introducing us to Elric a dark anti-hero. The emperor of a nation declining into decadence and beholden to demonic forces, Elric is an albino, weak of body, philosophical and strong of mind. He sustains himself through drugs and his vampiric sword… I’ve just started these and haven’t been disappointed and excellent start to a series and definitely not in the normal vein of the genre. You can find the books in the series individually at either half.com or abebooks.
There you go all caught up on what I read, and if you think you’re going to purchase one of these please use the links above as I get a small bit of the proceeds!
Coming up next, Analog Gaming 2
Having read a lot of Elric, I’m pleased to see someone else getting into them. Its a curious world. It’s good to see you having time to read, considering the relative chaos of government. Talk to you later, and we’re working on your August assignment.
Georgia,
Yeah I’m on the weird of the white wolf now, I like it but its definitely different from a lot of the fantasy I’m familiar with… its vague and haunting, echoes of Lord Dunsany who did it best I think, I’d like a little more meat to parts but I’m enjoying it