literature
Geek literature from the New York Times or the recesses of online. Our favorite stories showcase geeks.
"The Thorn Birds" by Colleen McCullough
It has been a few years since I’ve read “The Thorn Birds” by Colleen McCullough. I read it for the first time when I was nineteen and it was the first book I read before I started university reading from then on for a few months. I discovered the book after a re-read of Margaret Mitchell’s “Gone with the Wind” that I was doing in order to compare the book to the movie and see exactly what I really thought about the casting choice for Scarlett O’Hara. I was told online by someone on Reddit that “The Thorn Birds” was basically the Australian version of “Gone with the Wind” and that it would make me emotional in the same way. And it didn’t. It made me far more emotional than I’d ever been with “Gone with the Wind”. I was actually so emotional that whilst I was at work, I finished the book and had to excuse myself so that I could go and cry in the foyer. The book managed to change my opinion on how epic a 20th century novel could really be and to this day, even when I think about it - I can feel the same tears start to well up in my eyes. Only if there was more communication between some of the characters, most of this mess would not have occurred and everyone would be okay.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
“Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud and the Last Trial of Harper Lee” by Casey Cep
This book is something I read purely because for a while, I had been interested in what this has to do with Harper Lee. By the time I read it, I knew what the book concerned, but I hadn’t got a clue what that had to do with the writer Harper Lee except for the writing of “To Kill a Mockingbird”. So, when I did read it, I paid extra attention to the first two sections in which Casey Cep seeks to teach the reader about racial politics in the courtroom during the early 20th century in the Southern States of America. It is by no means a pretty sight but it is able to tell the reader why Harper Lee felt that, especially in the state of Alabama, it was important to write a book that struck the heart of the political community, their wrongs and the way in which they treated certain skin colours as worse than others even when under oath.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
20 Books of 2020 (Pt.31)
Welcome to part 31 of our journey! You will have noticed that part 30 ended on a great note and we covered some of the new projects I'm working on this year. What I wanted to go through today is communities of reading and what they mean for people who enjoy books. I want to go through the pros and cons briefly and look at ways in which reading communities may be able to improve their aspect on inclusion.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
"Interview with the Vampire" by Anne Rice
It has been just about twelve years since I first read “Interview with the Vampire” by Anne Rice and what a great year it was. I became so obsessed with the Vampire Chronicles series that I began to draw comic strips dedicated to depicting the storyline of each of them. I drew out each character in some sort of manga style and used the dialogue from the book and yes, I began with Daniel and Louis finding each other in that San Francisco apartment and Daniel having the living shite scared out of him. “I am flesh and blood but not human…” God I love that part because you get all excited that it is really about to go down for the next series of over ten novels. The way in which I discovered it was through the film. I hadn’t actually seen the film but I had heard that it was good and I knew there was a book to it and so I wanted to read the book first. By the time I read the book, I put off seeing the film and “Queen of the Damned” until I had finished the series. Back then only up to “Blood Canticle” was out and I had to wait ages for the next books. This first book in the series changed my entire perception of what vampire fiction could be and that modern fiction could also be beautifully written in a style that was both provocative and suggestive.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
“Lotte in Weimar” by Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann’s “Lotte in Weimar” is often considered to be one of his many masterpieces and in my opinion it is Mann’s greatest novel. There are many key factors that one has to concern themselves with when looking at this statement of ‘masterpiece’ though and what makes Thomas Mann’s work a ‘masterpiece’. It is both artistic and well-constructed. It is character-driven and context dependent. But, context dependent as it may be, it is transcendent of its times, moving into our own and into the future with ease of access and applicable to the situations that will always concern humans - love, death, time and influence. When we have a look at this character-driven narrative, at first we believe that it is Lotte herself that is driving this narrative forwards with her focus on her want for her old life, whereas it is actually Goethe who drives the narrative with his aspect of celebrity though he does not appear physically for quite some time in the novel. Lotte is a woman of her time but she is also a woman who requires control of her own future, it is a question of whether she actually gets this because she is famed as the woman who is constantly associated with Goethe. The image of women and womanhood in the novel is a strange one because we have so many varying personalities. First of all, we have the personality of the self-driven woman who is Adele, the new and true-blooded Weimar woman. Then we have the opposing side which is basically Lotte - the woman who wishes herself to be self-driven but constantly finds herself hanging on to her past. There is little for Lotte in her future except returning to this past in order to confront it and the reader will always know that this is something that drives her. Her self-drive does not come from feigning a modernisation of herself as a woman, but rather treating herself as having an individual story in which certain plot points require editing, revisiting, revising and confronting in her autobiography and saga of romance.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S Thompson
It has been about ten years since I first read the book “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” by Hunter S Thompson and when I did read it, I hadn’t actually heard of the film yet. I had only heard of the book because I’d seen the crazy cover in a bookstore and thought it looked fairly interesting. Initially, from the cover, I thought it would be more comedic than psychedelic than it actually was. My first reading experience of it was fairly strange because I’d never really read anything like it before and really, because it was true, that only made it all the more strange as an experience. This book really did manage to change my opinion of the way I looked at journalism. I had never really read any journalism like this before and I had always thought that journalism had to be boring and rigid like something in the Telegraph or the Times. Hunter S Thompson’s Gonzo Journalism made me interested in the way in which I viewed more modern, more exciting journalistic experiences.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
Children of Blood & Bone: Book Review
‘Children of Blood & Bone’ was written by a Nigerian-American author, Tomi Adeyemi. As someone who almost never picks up a novel, her story was actually worth a read. The way she writes is just impeccable- it makes you feel like you’re in the story, experiencing it yourself. Anyway, without further ado, let me explain why Ms Adeyemi’s ‘Children of Blood & Bone’ is one of the best fantasy novels of the century.
By Chidimma Benjamin6 years ago in Geeks
Glass Sword Review
SYNOPSIS Following Maven's betrayal, Mare must now find the other newbloods before he does. She would hate to think what would happen if he did. He has seen the list after all, so its only a matter of time before he starts hunting them down. With Cal by her side, and Shade alive, surely she can find them. It is a battle against the clock. A battle of wills. Who will kneel. Mare? or the mad boy king, Maven?
By That Bookish Kat6 years ago in Geeks
"Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad
The first time I read “Heart of Darkness” by Joseph Conrad was roughly the same weekend I was reading “The Island of Dr. Moreau” by HG Wells. I was twelve years’ old and I had to take a book home from school. I took “The Island of Dr. Moreau” then thought that it was too short so picked up “Heart of Darkness” as well. I had one very interesting weekend ahead of me and one that would pretty much scare the crap out of me. The first reading experience I had of this book was not the one I had planned from the title and the first chapter of the book. From the first chapter it looked like an adventure through the Belgian Congo but as you get into the book, it is absolutely terrifying and totally not what you expect. It completely changed my perception on literature from that time period of the late 19th and early 20th century and how terrifying books from that time can really actually get.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
Review of ‘Thorn’ (Dauntless Path #1)
Synopsis Hunted meets The Wrath and the Dawn in this bold fairytale retelling--where court intrigue, false identities, and dark secrets will thrill fans of classic and contemporary fantasy alike. Princess Alyrra has always longed to escape the confines of her royal life, but when her mother betroths her to a powerful prince in a distant kingdom, she has little hope for a better future. Until Alyrra arrives at her new kingdom, where a mysterious sorceress robs her of both her identity and her role as princess--and Alyrra seizes on the opportunity to start a new life for herself as a goose girl. But as Alyrra uncovers dangerous secrets about her new world, including a threat to the prince himself, she knows she can't remain silent forever. With the fate of the kingdom at stake, Alyrra is caught between two worlds, and ultimately must decide who she is and what she stands for. Originally self-published as an ebook and now brought to life in hardcover with a refreshed design and completely revised text, Thorn also features an additional short story set in-world, The Bone Knife.
By Cyn's Workshop6 years ago in Geeks
Review of ‘Don’t Call the Wolf’
Synopsis Fans of Leigh Bardugo and Holly Black will devour this gorgeously imagined fantasy about a dark forest besieged by monsters--and the wild queen who has sworn to drive them out. A fierce young queen, neither human nor lynx, who fights to protect a forest humans have long abandoned. An exhausted young soldier, last of his name, who searches for the brother who disappeared beneath those trees without a trace. A Golden Dragon, fearsome and vengeful, whose wingbeats haunt their nightmares and their steps. When these three paths cross at the fringes of a war between monsters and men, shapeshifter queen and reluctant hero strike a deal that may finally turn the tide against the rising hordes of darkness. Ren will help Lukasz find his brother...if Lukasz promises to slay the Dragon. But promises are all too easily broken. This Eastern European fantasy debut, inspired by the Polish fairy tale "The Glass Mountain," will take you on a twisting journey full of creeping tension, simmering romance, and haunting folklore--perfect for readers who loved An Enchantment of Ravens and The Hazel Wood.
By Cyn's Workshop6 years ago in Geeks
20 Books of 2020 (Pt.30)
Now that we've reached a milestone in these lists, I just want to say how happy I am that you've all come on this journey with me so far. I managed to get more reading done because of the international lockdown situation that's been going on but slowly, I want to ease away from reading four or five books a day purely out of the fact that I'm not really going anywhere or doing anything. I want to get back to normal, my two to three books a day are more than enough to see me through. I'm starting a bunch of new projects as you've seen and more will be on the way hopefully.
By Annie Kapur6 years ago in Geeks
