h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Well, here it is, just like I promised. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, check out Amy Pawloski's fan club. You get a mufflewump if you show up.

Anyways, the first author I'd like to recommend to everyone is Robert A. Heinlein, aka Admiral Bob. Even if you're one of those people who doesn't like science fiction, read his stuff. Spider Robinson is similar to Heinlein, but slightly (Ok, a heck of a lot) more humorous, if you prefer your stories crazy.

My favorite authors, in no particular order, off the top of my head:

Robert Heinlein
Spider Robinson
Anne McCaffrey
Christopher Stascheff
Alan Dean Foster
Mercedes Lackey
Piers Anthony
Orson Scott Card (maybe)
David Brin

I'll think of more later, and maybe expand my criteria for favorite author, so I can include some people whom I've only read a couple of books of...(Right now, I consider an author to be a favorite only after I have read a dozen books, or three series.) I may also include some of my favorite children's authors...(OK, so I enjoy children's books, and I don't have the excuse of reading to my kids, since I don't have any...)

Impressive. The only three on that list that I don't really like are McCaffrey, Stasheff, and Lackey. Probably because I haven't read much by them. I have some Stasheff stuff lying around my room, but I haven't gotten around to reading it yet. Too many other books.
Anyways, some of my other favorites:
Simon R. Green
Terry Brooks (he's visiting my school next friday, Oct. 12)
Fred Saberhagen
Christopher Rowley

Alan Dean Foster is probably my favorite, just because of how insane most of his stories tend to be. I have nearly all of his books. My favorite is probably Parallelities or Jed The Dead. Have you read the latest Pip and Flinx novel yet? I have that one lying around too, but right now I'm trying to finish Simon R. Green's Deathstalker series. Then I think I need to read Heart of Darkness for English. After that maybe...

Which Stasheff stuff do you have? How can I talk you into reading it, if I don't know what it is? Haven't read much Simon Green, except for Hawk and Fisher...I want to read _Blue Moon Rising_ (I think that's the title--it's the pre-Haven Hawk and Fisher book). I tend to prefer lighter stuff, but every once in awhile I jump into the dark stuff... For instance, I love _Into the Out Of_... If _Mid-Flinx_ is the latest, then I have it...

The two Stasheff novels I have are:
A Wizard In Midgard and A Wizard In Chaos

The new Flinx novel is Reunion.
Blue Moon Rising was a great book. Be sure to read Beyond the Blue Moon also. It comes after Haven, and is just as good as the others.

I tend to alternate between reading the light stuff and the dark stuff. Keeps it balanced, or something like that.

Oh, so you've got the books about Magnus, then... Haven't read those two, yet...

Can anyone join this conversation? It seems you both are missing one very important author--Terry Goodkind. He writes the Sword of Truth novels, which are the best epic fantasies I have ever read. The series starts with Wizard's First Rule and continues for six books. His stories, especially the most recent (Faith of the Fallen), are about moral issues just as much as fantasy.

~Wes

I've read Wizard's First Rule...You're right, it is good... (If you read my disclaimer after my list, you'll see that I only listed authors I'd read lots of...)

And of course more people can join... (Am I right, Vidmaster? This *is* your forum, after all... Don't let me take over...)

I've read Wizard's First Rule...You're right, it is good... (If you read my disclaimer after my list, you'll see that I only listed authors I'd read lots of...)

And of course more people can join... (Am I right, Vidmaster? This *is* your forum, after all... Don't let me take over...)

Hmmm...I don't know...
Of course you can join. I've been meaning to read goodkind for some time now, but there's so much other stuff I need to get around to. I should be done with the Deathstalker series by next Friday, then I'm reading the new Alan Dean Foster, and then maybe I'll read them.
Another author I've heard is good is George R. Martin, with his A Game of Thrones, and A Storm of Swords. At least I think that's what they're called. A friend at school recommended them to me.

I've been meaning to read The Game of Thrones for a while. I saw it recommended on a bookbot.
By the way, it's Terry Brooks signing night! You said he was coming to your school, Vidmaser? I'm going to Waldenbooks...

Cool. Brooks showed up after school and gave a little talk about the craft of writing. It was really interesting. I got him to sign my copy of The Sword of Shannara (which has been around for a while-my dad read it when it was new, which says something). I also found out that it isn't pronounced shan-nar-a, but rather shann-a-ra, with an ahh sound on the last syllable, instead of an uhh sound like everybody else pronounces it. Pretty cool.

Yeah, I found that out about the pronunciation too. Brooks said it wasn't his fault if English teachers didn't teach phonics any more. My friend and I talked with him for a few minutes, mostly asking questions. He seemed really nice--he invited an aspiring author in line ahead of me to send him his writing for advice. That would be really impressive to me.

Well, I keep trying to send people over here... Of course, I haven't been here lately myself... (But that's not important. And don't call me Shirley...) (Certainly one of you has seen 'Airplane'? Not a book, but oh, well...)

Yay! Somebody finally showed up! I appreciate your efforts to send people here, even though they don't seem to be working yet...

I've decided to start making a list of all the books I've read so far this (school) year. Currently the list is looking like:
Dune, Crime and Punishment (had to for English, actually turned out to be decent, although wierd), The First Book of Lost Swords, Deathstalker, Deathstalker Rebellion, Deathstalker War, Deathstalker Honor, Deathstalker Destiny, Interlopers, Heart of Darkness (also required reading), and Destiny's Road. I think that's all, but there may be some more I've forgotten. All have been good, but I haven't enjoyed the required reading as much as the other ones. I think there's something about being forced to read something that takes away from the experience...

Reading a required book usually means you have to write reader responses or discuss the book in class. Reading a book is fine, but discussing it in class and talking about symbolism (don't even get me STARTED on symbolism) are not fine. If I were given the choice to discuss a book in class, analyze symbolism or be thrown into a burning lake of fire from which there is no escape, I would have to think about it for a little while, then I would probably choose the class discussion.
Anyway, reading a required book is probably not as fun because there's the inevitable discussion at the end of the class unit. And maybe there's also something in it about the fact that the teacher knows much more than you about the book, something I can't stand.
Oh well. My $0.02. I wonder if there are any ranting, raving smilies denouncing book discussion? Nope. These ones will have to do:

~Wes

I'd have to agree with Ex Libris... Add the fact that you either end up reading to book over and over again, or forcing yourself to read slowly...*shudders* Probably why I'm not fond of The Time Machine... I had to take a couple of weeks to read a book that takes a couple of hours...

HI. Amy Powloski pointed my over here (i read that she's been trying to point a lot of people over here, but not many have fallen for the bait). You guys have seemed to just list some fav. authors/books, so that's what i'll do...

fantasy/sci-fi- Tolkien, Frank Herbert(anyone else enjoy or understand the Dune series?), Ray Bradbery, and (of course)D. Adams

Classics- Crime and Punnishment by Dostoyevski (one of my fav. thus far), Chesapeake by James A. Michner (sp?) (hard to read, but very satisfying), Candide by Voltaire, Parnassus on Wheels and The Haunted Bookshop by Christopher Morley (read those. period. theyre that good).

And I love all of John Grisham's books, as well as The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis.

peace.

Well, so far all we've done is list authors, trying to look for some common ground to talk about. I just read Dune at the end of this summer. I intend to read the rest of the series, but I haven't gotten around to it yet...so much to read.

Also I'm almost finished with Podkayne of Mars, another Heinlein novel. Not his best, but not bad either.

Which version of Poddy are you reading? The one that was originally published, or the one with three endings--publisher's, Heinlein's, and possible melding? Sounds horrible, I know, but it's not...