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@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social cover
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Enema_Cowboy

@[email protected]

Software Developer. Blue Geezer in TX. Veteran. EVE Online player. Fan of pop-culture image responses. I like to cook, but I'm not very good at it.

I block MAGAs, "Conservative Christians", self-described patriots, chuds, crypto-bros, anti-vaxxers and other assorted louts.

Location: Fort Worth, TX

#CSharp #FSharp @GraphTheory

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

Enema_Cowboy , to bookstodon
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@bookstodon I just finally read Watership Down. What an amazing book!

Enema_Cowboy OP ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@bookstodon

SallyStrange , to bookstodon
@SallyStrange@eldritch.cafe avatar

10 authors, of whose books I've read at least five:

Ursula Le Guin
Kim Stanley Robinson
Octavia Butler
N. K. Jemisin
Becky Chambers
Iain M. Banks
Martha Wells
M. R. Carey
Lois McMaster Bujold
Vonda McIntyre


@bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@greybeard @SteveClough @n0madz @SallyStrange @bookstodon

The Day of the Triffids author?

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@SteveClough @greybeard @n0madz @SallyStrange @bookstodon

I need to read Mudwich Cuckoos.

skaeth , to bookstodon
@skaeth@writing.exchange avatar

What are your thoughts on DNF (Did Not Finish)-ing books? Do you feel guilty about it? Do you worry you missed out on something? Or are you confident in dropping a book and reaching for the next one?

At what point are you most likely to DNF, if ever? What sorts of things cause you to DNF?

My friend, book blogger Kriti, was musing on these questions a while back, and it sparked this new post: https://armedwithabook.com/dealing-with-dnf-the-practice-of-did-not-finish/

@bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

I only remember three books which I DNF'ed.

  1. Quicksilver, I wasn't willing to go another run through the weeds with Neal Stephenson.
  2. Digital Fortress, flawed premise and unbelievable characters.
  3. The Streets of Laredo, McMurtry pissed me off in chapter 2, by making the fate of the Hat Creek crew even worse.
Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

I like Stephenson's writing, but every one of his stray thoughts don't deserve an entire chapter. I could have done without the Bobby Shaftoe with MacArthur sequence in Cryptonomicon in favor of a lest abrupt ending.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

I'm usually pretty choosy about what I read. I spent a while investigating what versions of Don Quixote (Rutherford), The Iliad and Odyssey (Fagles), and Ulysses (1961, Vintage Publishing).

Right now I've been working on reading the books that many were forced to read in school. I just finished the revised edition of All the King's Men and I'm starting Watership Down.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

Some books were a real beating to finish:

● The New American Bible, Revised Edition†
● Human Acton*
● Atlas Shrugged*†
● The Canterbury Tales
● Ulysses
● The Once and Future King
● The Illuminatus Trilogy

  • About 30 years ago I was a libertarian. 😬
    † Needed a more competent editor.
Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@bobthomson70 @skaeth @bookstodon

Ah, the Jack Reacher books. I stopped reading those after I finished The Enemy. That book was a goddamn joke. I was an Army Officer during the time and place that the book is set.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

I managed to get through high school without reading a lot of the usual books. I would see allusions to classic literature, and I felt like I should know what they are.

I think that I am enjoying these books a lot more now that I would have if I had been forced to read them as a youth.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

I read that book back in the 1970s, inspired by D&D and Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and the film Excalibur. I regret that I don't remember much other than it was a very difficult read.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

I've been trying to work through this list with a sprinkling of other recommended books. Although I do not have any plans for reading Finnegan's Wake after reading Ulysses.

https://sites.prh.com/modern-library-top-100#top-100-novels

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@mvilain @skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon @GreatDismal

I'm wondering if I gave up too soon on the Baroque Cycle. I think I got to the point with Samuel Pepys and the gold in the treasury.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@mvilain @skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

I find Herbert a difficult read, but I've read Dune at least twice.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@enno @skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

Do you think those books would look okay in a Kindle format? Some books that have a lot of maps in them are difficult to read on a Kindle device (Oasis).

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@skaeth
I should have stopped with the first Dune book.
@mvilain @bluGill @bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@mvilain @Jennifer @skaeth @bluGill @bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Jennifer @rdviii @mvilain @skaeth @bluGill
@bookstodon

A dune kitten?

appassionato , to bookstodon
@appassionato@mastodon.social avatar

Latitude: The Astonishing Adventure That Shaped the World

The world-changing true story of the mission to discover the shape of the earth . . .'This rollicking story of adventure and scientific exploration is as gripping as any novel . . . a book that sparkles with intelligence and wit'

@bookstodon




Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@appassionato @bookstodon

At first I thought it was Dana Sobel's Longitude.

SimonRoyHughes , to writingcommunity
@SimonRoyHughes@thefolklore.cafe avatar

Before buying an alleged translation ask yourself (and do the research): does the purpoted translator know the source language?

Before heeding the plaudits of a review of a translation (or of a "translation"), ask yourself (and do the the research): does the reviewer know the source language?

A "translation" by someone who doesn't know the source language is a (perfectly legitimate) retelling by an insecure writer (best case).

A review by someone who doesn't know the source language is only semi-competent as a review.

@translators @writingcommunity @writing @reading @bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@SimonRoyHughes @translators @writingcommunity @writing @reading @bookstodon

One thing I wonder about is how readable is Don Quixote to a modern speaker of Spanish?

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@derpoltergeist @SimonRoyHughes @translators @writingcommunity @writing @reading @bookstodon

Thank you for your response. My hypothesis was that it would be similar to reading Shakespeare.

dilmandila , to bookstodon
@dilmandila@mograph.social avatar

I just binged on Silo, the Apple TV series, and it's so hooking. Kind of a fresh take on dystopia. Now I want to read the books, they are by Hugh Howey, and I wonder if they are worth a read? Anyone got an insight?

@bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@GregHester @dilmandila @bookstodon

I used to follow Hugh Howey on Twitter. I wonder if he's active on another platform.

Enema_Cowboy , to bookstodon
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@bookstodon For some reason I imagine Stephen Daedelus as being portrayed by David Hyde-Pierce.

Enema_Cowboy , to bookstodon
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@bookstodon

I have just finished reading All The Kings Men (restored edition). Willy Talos would be a better candidate for office than some Democrats and every Republican.

Well_Worth_A_Read , to horrorbooks
@Well_Worth_A_Read@horrorhub.club avatar

Did you have a good holiday? I have been feeling kind of blah and not reading too much lately but I did manage to finish this short story about strange goings on in the aftermath of a hurricane. My review of Dead Cats of Civilization is posted at https://wellwortharead.blogspot.com/2023/12/dead-cats-of-civilization-by-douglas.html
@bookstodon @horrorbooks

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Well_Worth_A_Read @Jennifer @bookstodon @horrorbooks

I've can only recall three books on my fiction DNF list, all from well-known authors that pissed me off.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Well_Worth_A_Read @Jennifer @bookstodon @horrorbooks

  1. Digital Fortress by Dan Brown. The writing was not credible and clearly wasn't vetted by anyone with a background in digital security.

  2. Anathem by Neal Stephenson. I have a love/hate relationship with Stephenson. He writes beautiful prose and has some cool ideas, but he diverges on far too many tangents.

  3. Streets of Laredo by Larry McMurtry. McMurtry stuck his finger clearly in the eye of Lonesome Dove fans in chapter 2.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Well_Worth_A_Read
The worst book in that I've read in that regard is The Enemy, by Lee Child. I was in the Army around the time that book was set in, and I've spent more time at Fort Irwin than I would have liked. Too bad there aren't any soldiers with which he could have consulted.
@Jennifer @bookstodon @horrorbooks

kimlockhartga , to bookstodon
@kimlockhartga@beige.party avatar

@bookstodon
My Best Books of 2023 List:

Black River Orchard, Chuck Wendig
Blue Hour, Tiffany Clarke Harrison
Bread and Circus (poetry) Airea Dee Matthews
Chang-gang All-stars, Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
Clytemnestra, Costanza Cosati
The Deep Sky, Yume Kitasei
Every Drop is a Man's Nightmare, Megan Kamalei Kakimoto
Good Night, Irene, Luis Alberto Urrea
The Infinity Particle (graphic novel) Wendy Xu
Lady Tan's Circle of Women, Lisa See
Land of Milk of Honey, C Pam Zhang
Normal Rules Don't Apply: Stories, Kate Atkinson
Old God's Time (content warning), Sebastian Barry
Ordinary Notes (nonfiction) Christina Sharpe
Red Rabbit, Alex Grecian
Reproduction, Louisa Hall
Sea Change, Gina Chung
The Skin and its Girl, Sarah Cypher
Stamped From the Beginning: A Graphic History of Racist Ideas in America Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, Joel Christian Gill (illustrator)
A Stone is Most Precious Where it Belongs, Gulchera Home
Thin Skins: Essays, Jenn Shapland
The Vaster Wilds, Lauren Groff
White Cat, Black Dog: Stories, Kelly Link
The Wind Knows My Name, Isabel Allende, Francis Riddle (translator)

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@kimlockhartga
My 2023 List:

Call for the Dead, John Le Carre
Red Rising, Pierce Brown
Code That Fits in Your Head, Mark Seeman
The Damned Engineers, Janice Holt Giles
Mistborn, Brian Sanderson
Anansi Boys, Neil Gaiman
Parable of the Sower, Octavia Butler
Circe, Madeline Miller
Neverwhere, Neil Gaiman
The Giver, Lois Lowry
Wild, Cheryl Strayed
Born a Crime, Trevor Noah
Ulysses, James Joyce
The City We Became, N. K. Jemisin
The Golden Age, John C. Wright

@bookstodon

Likewise , to bookstodon
@Likewise@beige.party avatar

Kindles are a uniquely portable magic.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@RVLara23 @Likewise @bookstodon

My father has managed to convince relatives living in different cities to let him use their library cards for eBooks.

appassionato , to bookstodon
@appassionato@mastodon.social avatar

The Proud Tower
A Portrait of the World Before the War, 1890-1914

"The diplomatic origins, so-called, of the War are only the fever chart of the patient; they do not tell us what caused the fever. To probe for underlying causes and deeper forces one must operate within the framework of a whole society and try to discover what moved the people in it."

@bookstodon


Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@appassionato @bookstodon

I need to read this. I loved The Guns of August.

ExcessivelyDiverting , to bookstodon
@ExcessivelyDiverting@romancelandia.club avatar

50 books to read before you die

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/entertainment/news/50-books-to-read-before-you-die/ss-AA1hbkwi#image=1

@bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@ExcessivelyDiverting @bookstodon

That slideshow made me sea sick.

Narayoni , to bookstodon
@Narayoni@mastodon.social avatar

Defense Attorney Fetyukovich is giving me vibes with his use of psychology, lol.
"Well, so you see on the one hand the man was not cautious enough, he lost his head, got frightened, and ran away leaving evidence on the floor, but when two minutes later he strikes and kills another man, then all at once the most heartless and calculating sense of caution comes to our service." from @bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@yunchtime
Behemoth's exploits make a fine addition to .
@Narayoni @bookstodon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Narayoni

@yunchtime @bookstodon

Tinido , (edited ) to bookstodon German
@Tinido@chaos.social avatar

Emily Wilson, who translated the Odyssey to apoplectic rages of the manosphere from Academia to Podcastia, has a beautiful portrait in the New Yorker.
@bookstodon
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/09/18/emily-wilson-profile

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Jantar @Tinido @bookstodon

Have they never read The Illiad? The only thing that gets Achilles out of his funk is Patroclus getting killed.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Jantar @Tinido @bookstodon

I recently just finished Circe and the discussions between Circe and Telemachus cause me to believe that Leopold Bloom in Ulysses was more heroic than Odysseus, son of Laertes.

EgyptianAphorist , to random
@EgyptianAphorist@mindly.social avatar

When a population becomes distracted by trivia, when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious public conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when, in short, a people become an audience, and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; -death is a clear possibility.

—Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

https://www.youtube.com/@Yahia.Lababidi

( Collage by Joe Webb)


Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@EgyptianAphorist @bookstodon

IMHO, those that watch "reality television" in the US during the SAG-AFTRA strike are crossing the picket line. Those that appear are scabs.

lunalein , to bookstodon
@lunalein@federatedfandom.net avatar

@bookstodon folks, do you listen to audiobooks? If so:

  • Do you have favorite narrators? Or the opposite? Ever started or quit listening to something because of the voice?
  • if you’re talking about a book, do you say you’ve read it?

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@lunalein @bookstodon @JMaverickJacks1 @paulcowdell

I miss Don LaFontaine.

Private
Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@betaquarii @bookstodon

Yay! I haven't read any of them, so more cool books to read.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@furicle @betaquarii @bookstodon

Fire Upon The Deep seems to me like you're getting thrown in the deep end of the pool in the beginning of the book.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@betaquarii @bookstodon

Mission of Gravity
Little Fuzzy
Flowers for Algernon

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@Gords @betaquarii @bookstodon

Lathe of Heaven is a very approachable book.

Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@janbartosik @furicle @betaquarii @bookstodon

I loved Rendezvous with Rama. For some reason that caused me to remember The Mote in God's Eye and Ringworld.

NickEast , to histodons
@NickEast@geekdom.social avatar

I'm poked up to say that my gigglemug is tight as a boiled owl, now bitch the pot my sauce-box is thristy... 😂

@linguistics @linguisticsmemes @histodons


Enema_Cowboy ,
@Enema_Cowboy@dotnet.social avatar

@NickEast @linguistics @linguisticsmemes @histodons

Here is some Flapper Slang in case you're interested.

https://clickamericana.com/topics/culture-and-lifestyle/entertainment-culture-and-lifestyle/the-flapper-dictionary-1922

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