I went out today and splurged a bit to buy some books. The first I've got is Consider Phlebas by Iain M. Banks. Since I enjoyed Against a Dark Background last year, I thought his first book in the Culture series would be worth checking out as well. I also picked up The Company by K.J. Parker, which had some all-around good reviews around in the past few years. Finally, I've got Old Man's War by John Scalzi. I enjoyed Agent to the Stars very much, so I hope this book would be a treat as well.
I've also been thinking about some reading goals for 2011. Here's what I decided to try for:
1. Read 48 books this year -- e.g. 4 books per month. I only hit 44 last year, so a stretch goal.
2. Read at least 20 books by authors I haven't read ever before
3. Finish at least 3 books in 7 different genres. I am thinking fantasy, sci-fi, urban fantasy, children, YA, mystery, historical fiction would likely to be the genres but I am not setting these particular ones as a goal necessarily.
I guess we'll see how that goes. I am reading Shadow's Edge by Brent Weeks right now, so you are likely to see the review for that pretty soon.
Yay, Old Man's War! That series is such a favorite of mine. Out of the 4 books (and one novella) I think I like OMW and the second book, The Ghost Brigades, best and it is a toss up any day which I enjoy more.
ReplyDeleteI've been curious about Parker and will be interested in your review. I often look at the Parker books when I'm shopping but have yet to pick any up.
Twenty new authors aught to be challenging. I may think about doing that.
ReplyDeleteI thought you were a strict e-reader reader. Is book buying, as you did in this purchase, more or less fun in electronic format or with real physical books?
Carl,
ReplyDeleteI am glad to hear the enthusiasm about OMW. I was a bit hesitant about it since the description doesn't necessarily sound like the sort of book I'd pick up, but I've been surprised by Scalzi before and I think it'll work out well.
Chad,
I do think twenty new authors will have me scrambling for book recommendations since it's just so much easier to pick up new books in the series from the authors I already know. But I hope the quest will be fruitful and I'll find some awesome new authors.
I have actually started e-reading only in the past few months after I got the iPad. I find that the reading experience for me is just as good on an e-book reader. Shopping is pretty different though.
The e-book buying experience itself is not all that fun. Especially when compared to the allure of a real book store, being able to touch book covers, flip through pages, etc. The redeeming feature of e-books is how fast you can buy them.
Have you ever finished a book in the series and wanted nothing else but to find out what happens in the next book and yet all the book stores are already closed? e-books are the ultimate cure for that.
So I switch between buying online and paper books as the mood strikes me. Certainly haven't switched all the way to e-books.
The thing to remember as you are reading it is that each of the four novels in the series are slightly different, and despite all the other things the book is about, it boils down largely to the relationship between a man, a woman, and a young girl. Very satisfying. Hope you like it.
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