THE GREAT BOOK SLAUGHTER

[Placid Dingo]

Well, while we're throwing everything back on, I might take the chance to ask about some of the works ON the list that are yet to be commented on. I'll start with a set of ten.

The Tao Teh Ching ; Have only read our version (for shame!) but I suspect is keep.

The Epic of Gilgamesh. ; No idea on this one. Thoughts?

Beowulf. ; As above.

Evasion - Anonymous ; I haven't even heard of this, or any of the rest I'm about to list;

The house of spirits -  Isabel Allende ; As above

Über Das Altern - Jean Amery ; As above.

The Skinner - Neil Asher

The Wasp Factory - Ian Banks

Giles Goat Boy - John Barth

The Ascent of Man - Bronowski




Who can speak for any of the above?

[Juana]

I haven't read the whole of Gilgamesh, or at least all at once, but I dunno if I'd keep it. It's a wonderful story and you catch glimpses of it in a lot of other stories (Noah and the Ark, for example), but I dunno.

Beowulf is a good story, and I enjoyed the hell out of it. Keep it.

[Rumckle]

Farenheight 451 wasn't well written enough to really do the ideas justice, and other dystopias have done the same kind of thing better.

I agree

[Epimetheus]

I'm confused. What does this list mean and what are the people posting doing to it?

[Faust]

Well, while we're throwing everything back on, I might take the chance to ask about some of the works ON the list that are yet to be commented on. I'll start with a set of ten.

The Tao Teh Ching ; Have only read our version (for shame!) but I suspect is keep.

The Epic of Gilgamesh. ; No idea on this one. Thoughts?

Beowulf. ; As above.

Evasion - Anonymous ; I haven't even heard of this, or any of the rest I'm about to list;

The house of spirits -  Isabel Allende ; As above

Über Das Altern - Jean Amery ; As above.

The Skinner - Neil Asher

The Wasp Factory - Ian Banks

Giles Goat Boy - John Barth

The Ascent of Man - Bronowski




Who can speak for any of the above?

I think I was the one who suggested the house of spirits. Its a strange little story told from the point of three generations of women in a family documenting the problems of latin america which runs thematically with the controlling men they encounter.
Its got some light fantasy magic in it but for the most part its autobiographical about troubles in Chile.

The reason I specifically suggested it as a Discordian book is because a major factor of the book is the death of magic and freedom with the rise of fascism.

[Placid Dingo]

Nice.

OK, so, LMNO/Hover Cat for F451 : Rum and I opposed, but I think the lesser known books is the better angle at present, especially if we want to add a bunch back.

Consider Gilgamesh off.

[AFK]

I'm confused. What does this list mean and what are the people posting doing to it?

I think it's like any other list.  Good for conversation/debate. 

[Adios]

When I was a kid I was always in the library. Once I read a book called The Whistling Mountain. I was in my early teens and I still remember that book. It doesn't belong on the list, but this thread reminded me of that book.

Hawk,
terminal bookworm.

[Phox]

Comment: This sort of system is not going to get us anywhere. Especially if different people have differing ideas of what exactly this list is about.

[LMNO]

Reply: Were we actually going to do something with this list if it ever got finished?

[AFK]

Perhaps we should employ some e-Democracy.  

[hooplala]

We were going somewhere with this? 

[Phox]

We were going somewhere with this? 

Well, if the point is to actually get it down to 100, then we are going about it the wrong way. If we just want to bitch about our varying literary tastes, extol the virtues of certain authors, complain about minute grammatical mistakes in printings, and generally be assholes to one another over yet another thing, then we're doing it right. 

[hooplala]

We were going somewhere with this? 

Well, if the point is to actually get it down to 100, then we are going about it the wrong way. If we just want to bitch about our varying literary tastes, extol the virtues of certain authors, complain about minute grammatical mistakes in printings, and generally be assholes to one another over yet another thing, then we're doing it right. 

It's not going to get down to 100 by someone just randomly picking titles and cutting them... they need to be discussed thoroughly. 

But I'll take one from the team, cut the Wise Book of Baloney.  My guess is its the least read book on the list... the reason it hasn't been cut yet is probably due to many people in this thread having pieces within its covers.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

Terry Pratchet and Warren Ellis deserve a little representation, I think.