literature

Geek literature from the New York Times or the recesses of online. Our favorite stories showcase geeks.

Lord of the Rings: Pippin was No Fool!
I should start off by saying that I absolutely love the Lord of the Rings movies. Peter Jackson is a genius and they are hands-down the greatest Fantasy movies of all time. BUT, they still aren’t even close to as good as the books.
By Mackenzie Tittle4 years ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Reading in the Dark" by Seamus Deane
I have never heard of this book in my life, I simply found it at the library and thought it would be something good to read. I did not look at the blurb or the cover really but instead, paid attention to why it was called Reading in the Dark. I too, like to read in the cover of darkness with maybe a small lamp (it would probably explain my terrible eyesight too). One thing I found out whilst exploring this book is that the stories within are each connected to various ideas of life, learning, poverty, death, art and the list goes on. Each a philosophical realisation, each a very realistic picture of the lives of those we sometimes forget. This book may not have been what I thought it was going to be about, but it has really opened my eyes to a brand new aspect of Irish Literature.
By Annie Kapur4 years ago in Geeks
5 Short Fantasy Books for Beginners
Fantasy books are exciting and suspenseful, but can be difficult to get into at first. It’s hard to become attached to characters when the story is so long, and it’s easy to put down a book if it’s taking you too long to finish it. But what if you don’t have all the time in the world? Maybe you only want to read something on your lunch break, or maybe you want to finish a book over the weekend.
By Mark Jani4 years ago in Geeks
Book Sabbatical: March
This month it was hard for me to stay focused. I had most success in my audiobooks, but also am finishing some non-library books that will be revealed in the April blog. I enjoyed the dash of non-fiction this month which is unusual for me, but makes me feel in touch with real life. I hope to continue stretching my smarty pants muscles and learning more about writing well. My plan for April is to continue digging into books on my shelf and to re-read a couple favorites. Find me on Instagram @hannah_marie._author or Facebook @HannahMarie.author!
By Hannah Marie. 4 years ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Mikhail and Margarita" by Julie Lekstrom Himes
I have to admit, I read Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita over ten years' ago now - it has been an awfully long time. I have seen it here and there but since, I have focused my strengths with Bulgakov on his other novels such as Heart of a Dog - which I would have to say is possibly my favourite by him. This book is a slice of history which I really did not know about before - I had heard of what happened in not a lot of detail, but to learn all of this information puts his career into a lot more context than it once did. It also puts into context the tyranny of the Soviet Union and the lengths that they really went to when it came to silencing people that they did not deem friendly to the state.
By Annie Kapur4 years ago in Geeks
Blindness Novel
In the last days of last February, I had the opportunity to read the novel "Blindness" by the creative Portuguese novelist, José Saramago, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Although the novelist does not leave the reader a breather while reading his novel; Because he did not resort to detailed titles, and did not divide the novel into sections, but rather took the reader in an endless narrative in the interesting worlds of the novel, but the genius of the text, the continuity of the momentum and vitality of events, and the acquisition of the recipient tempts you to stay in the circle of wonderful excitement.
By Raheem4 years ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Unconsoled" by Kazuo Ishiguro
Kazuo Ishiguro is an amazing writer. When I was younger, I read books by him including Never Let Me Go, Remains of the Day and The Buried Giant. - I've loved reading Ishiguro's books because of his presentation of human nature both good and bad. He has a way of giving each character he creates and insane amount of goodness in order to create a connection with the reader, but then again they can also go to the darker, deeper aspects of humanity that are not such good attributes to have. His last book to do this, I would say was Klara and the Sun in which he demonstrated the good and bad in the responses from human to AI. Ishiguro went above and beyond in order to give us a window to what our own humanity could possibly become. In An Artist of the Floating World he does this once again - the light and the dark both come through the characters and their actions. In The Unconsoled, Ishiguro repeats this once again, but with a discomfort that some critics have still not been able to shake because of the madness of the writing style.
By Annie Kapur4 years ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Suttree" by Cormac McCarthy
Cormac McCarthy is an absolutely brilliant author with some great literature from over the course of more than forty years of writing. His book All the Pretty Horses is in my own favourite books of all time list and I have read many others by him too. I was recommended the book Suttree - a book by Cormac McCarthy I hadn't really heard of before and I was immediately excited about it. Online reviews stated that it was written in the style of William Faulkner and seeing as William Faulkner is one of my favourite writers of all time - I didn't imagine that this book could do any wrong for me. Though, be that as it may, I held off judgement until I had read the book. And it was amazing.
By Annie Kapur4 years ago in Geeks
Books to Check Out: What I Read in March 2022
I had a hard time picking out books to recommend this month. I went wild with the audiobooks, so I have a lot more than three to choose from. However, I think I’ve picked my favorites from my recent choices, and I’m more than excited to send them out into the world for others to check out as well.
By Sam4 years ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Lemon Table" by Julian Barnes
I've read quite a bit of Julian Barnes in my time. My favourite Julian Barnes book is obviously The Man in the Red Coat because it's all about one of the most fascinating cultural movements in artistic history - the Belle Epoque. The Man in the Red Coat really does showcase the beauty of Julian Barnes' prose, as we also see in some of his other works, notably The Sense of an Ending. But, as I'm reading The Lemon Table I'm starting to discover that maybe I don't know him as a writer as well as I thought. I have been left in a very positive state of confusion by these stories and I couldn't be happier about it. Of course, it's heavily descriptive, it's mundane and not a lot happens at all - it's definitely my kind of book.
By Annie Kapur4 years ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Red Dog" by Louis de Bernieres
Another Louis de Bernieres novel so soon? Of course. But this one is a lot shorter and I only found it because I was trying to get another book. Honestly, I was quite surprised at this book because it's different to the two de Bernieres novels I have already read. Over a decade ago I read Captain Corelli's Mandolin and as recent as a couple of days ago, I finished Birds Without Wings. One thing I've noticed about Louis de Bernieres novels is that he will always attempt to emotionally attach you to something, whether it be a cause or an idea and then, he will subvert it. For example: in Birds Without Wings, we have a very clear idea of the fact that we are supposed to like certain characters over others, but this is subverted later on in the book - not so that we do not like them anymore, but just so that we think about our opinions of them, formed throughout the course of the book. I think a similar thing can be said about Red Dog. So let's get into the review...
By Annie Kapur4 years ago in Geeks
"Absalom, Absalom!" by William Faulkner
This is by far one of my favourite books of all time and definitely in my personal top five when it comes to American Fiction. It is an excellent novel to read in order to learn about power dynamics and the way in which power can go to a man's head very quickly and come crashing down around him. A definite plus when you are living through a constantly changing world.
By Annie Kapur4 years ago in Geeks