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Someone needs to read better adult books.
I recently read Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea books, really interesting in that first half are kids lit and the second half were written 30 years later for a grown audience.
Best of both worlds! Though I did find the kids books way more fun.
Yeah, you get to book 4 and you’re like "Is everything ok, Ursula?
I was prepared but I can imagine it was quite the surprise
Whoaaaaa! No way! I just finished the first one and loved it. Can’t wait to keep going. That’s so cool!
If you haven’t already check out the “shelved by genre” podcast. They just did the entire Earthsea series (over multi episodes) and the podcast is seriously hilarious and insightful.
I’ll try to remember that for when I finish the series
Don’t want to push it too hard, but they do two episodes per book. Best enjoyed by listening after you finish each book.
If you’re into magic treehouses in your books, you can ease the transition from kids books to adult books by going via the Fantasy genre.
Granted, there will be more swords involved than in a kids book…
The adult books in fantasy are just about as bad as regular fiction in regards to the image. There’s still war, rape, affairs, etc…just dressed up with magic and swords. Maybe the change of environment makes it seem more distant?
Read something that isn’t made by george
Hah, yeah, I quit ASoIaF 3/4 of the way thru the series because I got sick of nothing but people walking all over the continent to be met by fights, death, and misery. All the political intrigue was gone. It read like even Martin didn’t know wth he wanted to do and was just stretching it out for money and time. After the first 3 or four books the thing sucked. I read The Expanse instead. Fantastic series.
Even though I was a bit thonge in cheek in my post, there are a lot of great adult fantasy stories were nobody ever dies.
Did someone say magic tree house?
High school English classes kind of beat the habit of reading out of me. I mean first of all there was this sense of new = not valid; To Kill A Mockingbird was the newest work of literature I studied in high school, written in the 60’s about the 30’s, everything else was 19th century or older. The Canterbury Tales, Shakespeare, Poe, the goddamn Bronte’s.
I stopped going to book stores. I stopped going to the library. Adult reading is like rubbing wood chips in your eyes. It’s dry and awful.
My grandmother handed me a book. A paperback novel called Utopia by Lincoln Child. It’s a kind of whodunit mystery thriller set in a futuristic theme park, and the main character has a teenage daughter who has an mp3 player. And that caught me off guard. Because I was a teenager with an mp3 player. This book was new. It was written by someone who was still alive, about characters who were my age and my generation. And the book was kinda okay.
I miss my gramma.
Man, same here. In Germany, all we did was read scripts for drama plays. There’s nothing more boring. We read only one enjoyable book, which was Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451.
Only recently have I started enjoying books again and it started with the Hyperion Cantos. I also read a shit ton of books with my little daughter, ranging from Toto the Ninja cat, over Stitch head and Amelia Fang to Harry Potter and Roald Dahl classics. It’s a lot of fun, especially since I get to do all of the voices. Sometimes we laugh so hard, it’s difficult for her to fall asleep :)
I recall two enjoyable books, both by Morton Rhue, being boot camp and the wave (and one that I liked but most people didn’t, kafka’s metamorphosis. Sure didn’t like having to interpret that though).
At least early on they tried making us read enjoyable books, as in modern books aimed at teenagers, they just… weren’t very good.
I think the peak of unenjoyment for me was Das Parfüm, which is technically somewhat modern. I tried reading it and was so bored I just couldn’t continue, ended up reading a synopsis somewhere and pretended to know what i was talking about.
At least it never killed reading for me because by the time school made me read books I was already reading fantasy novels in my free time anyway.
I read mostly three things: fanfics mostly on My Little Pony, literature for degree and scientific papers(mostly unrelated to degree).
This is why I read genre fiction rather than literary fiction. Sure, you and your book club can look down on me but until you’re reading a book that isn’t a variation on a theme of “unsuccessful professional moves back to coastal small town to look after their mother who has dementia”, yous can all get to fuck.
Sounds like someone is shaming people who like adult books, rather.
No, it’s just saying adult books have heavy topics sometimes
If I say i think apples suck im not necessarily shaming people that eat apples
The “you tell me who’s winning” pretty much shows that that’s what they’re doing though…
what do you think the “who” is referring to?
Where does it say “sometimes”? If it did, I’d never have commented
Assumption on ny part. After careful consideration I think I was in the wrong in my comment
Hm, yeah you are.
no it doesn’t?
This is basically the “everybody secretly likes pop music” reverse snobbery angle. It’s so difficult to imagine that other people have different tastes from you.
it’s not saying everybody likes kids books. it’s just saying you shouldn’t shame people who do.
I like the take that science fiction and fantasy is just a better form of fiction because you could take literally any fiction story about a mopey 30 year old who has to take care of their sick parent and a science fiction story has the potential to write an equally compelling story except this time there’s a killer robot on the loose or they’re on Mars or something.
All good stories are human stories, even science fiction. There’s nothing inherently better about setting your story in the “real world”.
“Human stories” are depressing and boring as fuck. I’ve already dealt enough with people dying of illnesses and being in shitty relationships and all that bullshit in my own life. I don’t need to be reminded of it by reading or watching a dramatized version. Put that shit in a metaphor the characters can solve their problems by blowing up.
The only reason people set books in the real world is to try to appeal to the sensibilities of reactionary realists. http://soulism.net
Interesting concept. It’s going to take me a while to get through this, but I look forward to trying. Thanks for sharing
Apparent tl;dr:
Soulism, also known as anarcho-antirealism, is a branch of anarchist thought that views reality and natural laws as unjust hierarchies needing justification through good work and the ability to be dismantled. Soulists extend this principle to reality itself, believing that our experiences, or consensus reality, are sculpted by society and cultural biases, rather than objective truth. By rejecting the objective existence of reality, soulists argue that we can reshape our perceptions to align with kindness, empathy, and respect for marginalized identities. This extends to supporting mental, racial, gender, and other diversities, while using the concept of “magic” as a means of influencing and understanding our perceptions of the world. In doing so, soulists aim to destroy the concept of an objectively true reality, promoting a more empathetic and inclusive societal framework.
Fascinating! Sounds like something I’d read about in Disco Elysium, honestly
I love reading all sorts of books, and I think most people do too. Those who judge others for what they read are just a loud minority.
Define “adult book”
I’ll grant that the stories can be better in kids books but adult books have better pictures.
I’m never ashamed of what books I read, especially since they are on a kindle and no one ever looks at the title. Besides, you’re just as likely to find LOTR, Dune, Foundations, pretty much anything from Dumas, among others on my kindle. If i’m reading books that are well written, have a decent plot and make me never want to put the book down, then who the fuck cares that I’m reading hunger games, harry potter or the golden compass… not any friend i’d want to keep.
Its the same with movies, though i find those less compelling overall. But damn if i’m not going to go see any new finding nemo or minions movie.
Wasn’t Animal Farm marketed and widely believed to be a “kids” book??
It is part of the children education curriculum in the US for McCarthyism reasons.
This is me every time I recommend Bone by Jeff Smith. It’s a kid-friendly book but I’ll be damned if it isn’t a lovely 1000+ page adventure anyone can enjoy
