/culture/ - arts & literature

>>638
> BLAME!
Really great manga. As far as sci-fi manga goes imo it's only surpassed by Akira and Alita. Also, read Eden! if you haven't already.

>>635
>>633
How's 1q84? Diving into a long Murakami's novel feels comfy but I think that over time I grew tired of his style, he just uses the same characters archetypes and plot structures in every novel.
I want to give a shot to his short stories tho, can anyone recc a good one to start with?

>>773
>>780
I think this theme is quite common with japanese literature. Most authors tend to focus mostly on the aesthetic and atmosphere while leaving the real content behind. There are some exception tho.

>>804
A real masterpiece, read "If on a Winter's Night a Traveler" if you haven't already

I just finished Elantris by Brandon Sanderson, and was hooked all the way through from the second page. Excellent fantasy novel. I am now a few chapters into House of Leaves, and it looks like it's going to be as spooky as people say.

This is my favorite book: A Little Princess.
Never understood why The Little Prince is more popular, I think this book is way better.

Sara's dad and his relationship with Sara is admirable and makes me wish we had more father figures like Mr. Crewe in our media.

Even when she's starving, Sara chooses to feed a girl that looks hungrier than her. This shows that dignity is a state of mind.

There's also a movie and I think one anime based off this book: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3WJrWZ_npg

…but I am absolutely in love with this book's ending. 'Since you know what hunger feels like…'

Bit of an FDA binge, but "Bracing for Armageddon?: The Science and Politics of Bioterrorism in America", "Hitting America's Soft Underbelly: The Potential Threat of Deliberate Biological Attacks Againist the U.S. Agricultural and Food Industry", and "In Food We Trust: The Politics of Purity in American Food Regulation".
First is a book going over the most likely bio-terror methods and their expected outcome. The book sounds like "doomsday is upon us", but it actually spends most of the text arguing while bioterrorism can kill many it is extremely unlikely to happen making the billions invested in its prevention wasted money and that said billions wasn't spent in response to an actual threat, but instead post 9/11 and anthrax letters paranoia. The book suffers from trying to balance being both an overview of Bio-terror and a sociological study on what caused the fear of it making both thesis come out half baked. It's a nice book if you want a quick overview of bioterror and it's history, but if you want something in-depth I'd go with Seth Carus book on the subject and a standard history of post-9/11 America. The books most interesting chapter is it going over what the author thinks a pandemic would play out like. His guess is eerily similar to covid even predicting the rise of anti-vaxxers.
"Hitting America's Soft Underbelly" is a more indepth bio terror book with a trade off when it comes to generality. The book was fun to me though because I lived near farms and what they said rang true. The average farm has terrible security to the point I could walk up to a chicken house and inject the chickens with god knows what. Overall more of a government report than a fun read.
"In Food We Trust" is a history of the FDA and critique of it's lack of power. The books best part was that it brought big news stories everyone forgot about, jack in the box salmonella, PB salmonella, Chilean grape scare, and analyzed them in depth. Another point of interest was how it went over how weak the FDA is, underfunded and staffed, inability to force companies to recall products, and more. One downside is that the book isn't trying to be a full history of the FDA, but instead it's trying to explain how the FDA's flaws developed. The book sped through or straight up skimped 'unimportant' eras. Overall a good book.
Jesus I gotta start reading more fiction.

>>936
I really got into the Brandon Sanderson books, all the cosmere things. He also cranks out books like crazy, which is nice. I really like the way he settles climaxes in his books. His books play out like a movie in my head.

I got pretty darn spooked out by the House of Leaves when I read it too.
I honestly checked the date of this post to make sure it wasn't me, lol.

I'm currently reading All Quiet on the Western Front, though.

>>936 here. I took a break from House of Leaves, and am currently reading the second Mistborn book by Brandon Sanderson, and The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu. Both are really good.

Started reading The Cheese and the Worms by Carlo Ginzburg. It's a very classic study of popular ideas in the 'subordinate culture' in the 1500s, focusing on the two trials and eventual execution of a miller named Menocchio by the Holy Office.

Recently finished reading Rendezvous with Rama, started reading Magician by Raymond E. Feist. I read Magician and the rest of the Riftwar Saga back when I was a kid.

>>974
Ooh, I remember liking Rama as a kid. Nothing really "happens" in that book, but there's still something gripping about it.

Been reading Don Quixote on my work breaks. Really enjoyable book, its shockingly similar to modern novels in its style and prose. After that I am going to read The Fall of Gondolin by Tolkien.
>>678
Let me know what you think about the Silmarillion, I really like that work.

Picked up Isaac Asimov's Foundation in the beggining of the month and been reading it a few pages everyday when i find the time.
The worldbuilding is something really amazing and characters are incredibly well written and 3 dimensional
I can see why it is considered one the most important science fiction work of all time
I will be getting the sequels

Just finished Inside Mr. Enderby and am about to finish the other 3 books in the series. They're pretty comedic, a bit immature, romps about a flatulent poet, a good 5 of the big gags in the book are fart jokes, and his adventures ranging from cheating accusations to drunk antics. I think the main standout of the book is how it manages slapstick comedy pretty well for a non visual medium.
The book got a bit frustrating at the end when Enderby hooks up with a rich milf, he was living off his moms money and his poetry before her, but abandons her because he can't take being an adult. They were a good-ish couple to, so it was a shame to see them break up. It didn't help Enderby abandoned her without telling either. The story has those complex character vibes, so you can understand his actions and still want him to be better.
Also yes this is by the guy who wrote clockwork orange. The book is surprisingly like clockwork orange as both stories follow a person alienated from society who get a chance to be redeemed, but give it up only to be saved last second. Enderby being an ex-catholic and writer also makes the story a bit of a writers insert.

Just started Discworld! I didn't really know where to start, so I asked a buddy and he actually had a print copy of Guards! Guards! that he let me borrow. Loving it so far!

I'm currently reading three books:
The Myth of Sisyphus - Albert Camus
Capitalism and Freedom - Milton Friedman
The Selfish Gene - Richard Dawkins

Haven't had much time to read lately, right now I'm still stuck in Dune. I hope during my Christmas break I can get through it.

Been reading Yuria 100 Shiki lately, it's a pretty entertaining ecchi manga with a premise that hooked me in from the start.
The art is amazing and I never get tired of the wrestling moves the protagonist does on the horny dutch wife. Something about the comedy in it makes me feel like the mangaka "gets it".

>>990
Capitalism and freedom
How is this book? By the title it would seem to me that it were written by a capitalist and therefore prone to selective information. My question is, is it actually critical, or does it read more like a defense of capitalism?

>>990
i used to carry this copy of the myth of sisyphus in my messenger bag everywhere i went when i was 17-18 years old and just started college.
i always hoped a cutie would come up to me while i read it and say that I'm really cool and want to be my friend (but that never happened, obviously). i don't think anyone thought i was cool, they probably thought i was a tryhard (i clearly was, obviously).

>>995
It's one of the most influential books on economics. The writer was one of the cornerstones of the "Chicago school" and an economic advisor to both former US President Reagan and former UK Prime Minister Thatcher. It's definitely written from a pro-capitalist, specifically supply side, point of view, and the central idea of it is basically the "the freer the markets the freer the people" maxim.
Though, strangely, it's not as anti-state assistance as some other books in that vein are and actually argues for a GMI. It's still packed with ideas that I find downright absurd, like getting rid of licensing for medical professionals.

>>999
>Reagan and Thatcher
Oh god. Yes I did read some reviews after I posted that and I realized it's pretty much neoliberal thought (from what I read). I asked because I've been reading Sowell's Basic Economics and while it's been illuminating it also omits some of the more bleak consequences of the very same principles he advocates for free markets, you know, the stuff we perceive every day comingfrom big corp.
I just wish there was a less biased book on economics. Well, I suppose there are, I just gotta look for them .

>>1000
>you know, the stuff we perceive every day comingfrom big corp.
Most hardcore liberals would argue that the existence of megacorps that are a law unto themselves is a product of government intervention. Without entering into a parasitic relationship with the state these organisations would inevitably become inefficient, lose focus, and collapse under their own weight. The fact that legislators also refuse to let large corps collapse for fear of short term economic consequences is its own issue.

I don't think you're ever going to find an unbiased take on economics, any author that purports to be is trying to hide his biases which is worse, in my opinion. The best economics book I've read is J.A. Schumpeter's Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy, it's full of these insanely clever detached observations and almost anti-ideological in that Schumpeter throws sand in the face of all the conventional positions at the time (written in the '30s).

tl;dr; capitalism is doomed to fail because the more wealth it creates in society the more it breeds a sense of antipathy among the intelligentsia, the same way the Church's fostering of literacy and learning eventually led to the enlightenment. Socialism, on the other hand, is completely impossible in practice and every Socialist regime will have to adopt market reforms to survive. They'll become essentially capitalist societies where everyone has to wave a red banner and pretend they're doing Socialism. In fact, this phony Socialism will be even more capitalist than capitalism since there can be no independent labour movements, the state and industry are one and the same, and any dissenters can be branded enemies of the people.

>>1001
Thank you for the rec of Schumpeter. I guess then I'll have to read a bit of different authors with different viewpoints.

I've been very dissapointed with all the books I've been reading recently.
I read metro 2033 and it sucked. I got halfway through metro 2034 and that was even worse so I gave up. Then I read roadside picnic and it was okay but kinda boring with only a couple of chapters about the actual interesting stuff. I read how to win friends and influence people and that was incredibly retarded.

Maybe I'm just reading the wrong books but it feels like everything is just bullshit by people who don't know how to convey information concisely.

I think I'd like to read something that has all the classical greek stories from the age of heroes. Does anyone know anything like this? I know nothing about greek mythos so I don't know where to start.

Has anyone read of Yukio Mishima? Would like to get into his literature but I only know about him tangentially. I have read the Hagakure, which was important to him, but none of his work.
Is reading his book regarding the ethics of the samurai in modern Japan a good start? If I were to read this, where should I go next?

>>1060
Confessions of a Mask and Kinjiki is probably the most representative of who Mishima was as self-referential works. Temple of the Golden Pavillion also elaborates on his thoughts of beauty and destruction. I wouldn't take any of his contemporary commentary on post-war Japan seriously, he had always been a fringe figure domestically.

I've been reading Pascal's works, right now Lettres Provinciales and Pensées. I've also been tackling SICP but it's difficult not to have a hard time with it. I'm stuck on chapter 2.1.2 But it's a long time endeavor, I guess.

>>880
Honestly, speaking both languages (even though I'm a native Spanish speaker) I'd consider starting with Russian right away. If Spanish is tricky when it comes to verbs, wait until you hear about them in their actual version in Russian. If you can, start with it ASAP.

>>1060
I've read most of his shorter books that have been published in English. I've got the Sea of Fertility sitting on my shelf too; eventually I'll get around to it but it's a bit of an investment and I haven't been in a Mishima mood for a while.

The Sailor Who Fell From Grace with the Sea is probably his most quintessential novel and embodies a kind of anti-subtlety that's common in Japanese literature and really damn delicious when done well. It's plainly allegorical and you basically know everything that's going to happen in the book as soon as you hear the premise, but the suspense of waiting for it to play out is so intense.

Confessions of a Mask is also essential Mishima, but I'd read one or two of his novels first. There are some extremely good musings and hot takes in there. I remember him reflecting on the concept of purity and beauty for a few paragraphs before concluding that purity is the most degenerate thing of all and dropping the topic alltogether.

Mishima's only sci-fi story, Beautiful Star, is also getting published in English in a few months time, I'm extremely excited. He was actually a big fan of the genre, surprisingly; Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke was one of his favourite novels.

>>1064
I visited the Yukio Mishima museum in Kawaguchiko. It all starts making a lot of sense after you learn about his relationship with his wife and children, it's truly amazing how he captured that longing for something else, something freer where he can express himself, despite his sexuality and all of that which it entails.

I found this fun campy book series from the late 80s / early 90s about a hacker who gets summoned into a fantasy universe and realizes that magic is a lot like programming. I am on the second book and really loving it. It is definitely written by an actual programmer.

>>1087
>gets summoned into a fantasy universe and realizes that magic is a lot like programming.
We finally found what all the damn isekai LN authors are ripping off! lol

>>1088
I think all isekai are actually ripping off A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain published in 1889.

>>1089
Exactly, I've been saying this for years. It even has a long title that explains the premise of the plot.

boogiepop

It is a truth universally acknowledged that Murakami Haruki novels seem always similar to other Murakami Haruki novels.

Why might that be, and why does no one level that accusation at Jane Austin.

I'm currently reading the fifth installment of the Dune series - Heretics of Dune - albeit I'm not the biggest fan. I'm halfway through, and it feels like it won't get close to God Emperor of Dune.

I've also started with a translation of Ursula K. Le Guins "The Dispossessed" in my native tongue. I already have an English copy of it, but the form factor and small text makes it near impossible for me to read.

>>1150
I've always felt uneasy about reading translations if I know the original language. Feels wrong.

>>1151
I think it depends how well the translation is made and how much the story depends on its original language.

For myself, if I read older English books I often have to look up words which can become a fun killer, especially when I'm tired and reading after work

>>804
Invisible Cities.
You just finished.
I'm starting.
1 page in.
Loving it.

Oh boy, the last three months I was subscribing to the audiobook service. Digested more books in this period, than throughout my university (which I will finish sooon). It helped with my eyes, too.

Murakami's Dance Dance Dance - definitely the most dreamy position I read from him. I can recall so many scenes from this book, yet can't really connect them in anything that would make sense. I am not really a gifted thinker - prefer style over substance, and Murakami's writing is just so good in this aspect.

I also decided to read "What I talk about when I talk about running", which I recommend. A lot of self-reflection from Murakami, and some advice for kids.

Kawakami's Heaven. This one hurted. I will just say it is about bullying, and it is quite graphic.

1984 - gived up on this lecture in highschool, it was too boring. The audiobook service had a radio drama version, which was fantastic.

Also finished Kafka's Metamorphosis, only because it is a classic. I found it tremendously boring, even in the audio form. Gregor Samsa is just like me, though.

Now I read Crime and Punishment for the third time. There is a fair bit of humour in this book juggled with a feeling of hopelessness. Sonya? She just like me, for real.

>>984
Why did Penguin put a picture on the cover which makes Enderby look jewish?

Nothing in the the text supports that.

Quick reviews of some works I finished
>Brutes or Angels: Human Possibility in the Age of Biotechnology
Surprisingly tame compared to the title. Its just "bioethics 101" when it comes to human modification. It explains an issue, the benefits, and then ends with the cons of it. If you've read any book on transhumanism or bio ethics this book is to simple for you. The only interesting factor was the religious sections were it explain different religious views on bioethics. Again if you read a book on relegion and bioethics doesn't add much.
>Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses
A work about the authors relation to moss and her cultural identity. It manages to capture your attention when talking about some pretty dense moss facts. I say it's a nice intro to bryology.

>>1193
>A work about the authors relation to moss
That sounds fantastic and very cute
Moss facts appeal to me

My books are totally insane and will make you laugh!!! heh… okay back to my padded cell i go

files.catbox.moe/4s8yl4.pdf
files.catbox.moe/f21v69.pdf
files.catbox.moe/82sced.pdf
files.catbox.moe/irz98h.pdf

just bought some manga from amazon. im reading death note and fullmeteal alchemist

>>1209
"Cuckqueens aren't real, take your meds"
I cackled

>>1211
Yeah that is one of my fav lines too haha. Always glad to make sushi roll laugh!

i got this book called recipies from the garden of contentment. its the palace cookbook of the chinese emperors. i figured i could use this to learn to cook. so i made one of the rice dishes and it was nice

also trying to read mahmoud darwish poetry but i dont like it

Books on the occult. Specifically those that influenced my grandparents' beliefs… I'm trying to edit them (two books, one is in ancient french and I'm working on a translation into modern english and modern french, another that's just got minor spelling errors here and there) and then figure out a way to preserve them. Also trying to write a short story myself but it's fanfiction, LOL