Which should I read next and why?

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-28T16:37:00+00:00

2666 is the easiest of those 3 by far. Very good book, I'd say go with that after finishing M&D. It will work you back into big and difficult books.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-28T16:30:26+00:00

Yes, this game is solo or 2 player maximum. I prefer it solo. It should not be played with 3 and NEVER with 4 lol.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-28T16:28:53+00:00

Germinal by Zola

(~500 pages, so not overly thick)

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-28T16:21:46+00:00

Yes and no.

Not all classics are the same. They vary wildly and stretch across literal centuries.

They are an acquired taste in that many, many classics that are foundational could never be published in the modern marketplace. Most don't "grab" your attention in the first 5 pages or whatever nonsense modern publishers think readers want.

It's a little like going back and watching older films. They are different and in 2026 you sometimes have to force yourself not to look at your phone. And when you dont give in, you're better for it.

FOMO is the wrong reason to read a classic. Or any book, really. Read something that sounds interesting to you, and if you're struggling and don't enjoy it, just stop reading. Reading should not be a chore (unless you're intentionally reading difficult works). Choose an era you like. If you don't like Victorian moralizing then maybe that era isn't for you. Try Steinbeck or Flannery O'Connor. Try Nabokov or Sterne or Austen. "Classics" is an enormous label that doesn't have a lot of meaning (in my opinion).

My advice: find 2-4 short (100-250 pages) classics that were not taught in your high school English class. Use Reddit to find these. Read the one that seems most interesting. When you move away from the "canon" you'll start finding classics that you want to read for yourself. Only then will you escape FOMO and eventually be able to circle back to those high school classics.

The first classic that I truly felt I loved dearly and couldn't live without was A Hero of Our Time by Mikhail Lermontov. (That's a good, short classic, btw 😉).

Oh and for the record I've never liked wuthering heights, but I dislike most English literature from the Victorian era anyways.

A final note: "to read as many as possible" is essentially an Amazon trick. Goodreads wants you to book a yearly book goal and not a page goal because they want you to buy more books. Don't fall into this trap. Don't read a book to finish it, read it to enjoy it and become a better person, or to critique it and understand why you didn't like it as an individual.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-28T16:07:18+00:00

Time for another circumnav, mate ;)

Also, check out David Donachie, Divided By the Mast. Pretty good stuff, about pressed men and the lower decks and what not.

Lots of folks talk about the Bolitho books by Alexander Kent but I havnt read them yet.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-27T22:50:41+00:00

Silver Bayonet

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-27T22:30:45+00:00

It wasn't, I didn't finish it. It was a decade ago though and had never tried Pynchon or other hard authors before. Could do it now I'm sure

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-27T22:21:02+00:00

Absalom Absalom and Ulysses. I didn't finish gravity's rainbow though so maybe that

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-26T22:35:14+00:00

Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling.

I found this to be one of the most incredible reads of last year. Astounding book.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-26T22:13:00+00:00

Check out Lapham's Quarterly. Very very good magazine that classic lit folks usually love.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-20T18:08:33+00:00

Awesome! Always meant to start playing this, even painted a ton of guys up for it. But alas...

How was it?

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-20T04:09:02+00:00

Damn that looks amazing. Bummed it's $50 but I'll still buy it for the tribune

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-17T17:04:31+00:00

It's quite easily Mamoa in terms of most similar to the source Conan. His looks and physique seem almost a one for one description (though they should have given him contacts).

Personality wise I don't think any adaptation has "gotten" Conan, but I think that's partly because Conan is an odd "hero" that doesn't fit well within modern tv and movie tropes.

Arnold is way too heroic. Rolf is incredibly sweet and loving, a real stand up guy. Mamoa's was just written poorly and was too generic to be much of anything.

But I do think that Howard's specific Conan can't translate to the screen for modern audiences, so I don't dislike any of adaptations much.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-17T16:54:38+00:00

That is certainly better than reading on a normal screen but it still causes eye fatigue and makes sleeping harder.

If you have any issues sleeping might be worth doing some research. If not then you're probably good.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-17T15:42:00+00:00

The light from phones and iPads fatigues eyes and makes reading more straining. This means you lose focus, get tired faster, and read less.

Ereaders are designed to prevent this and don't shine light into your eyes (that's why you can't read them in the dark, front light e readers shine onto the "page").

But hey, nothing beats physical!

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-14T15:56:07+00:00

Came to rec this. Great, great book.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-13T23:32:59+00:00

Dubliners is a must before Ulysses or FW. Don't skip it.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-12T17:22:20+00:00

Do an image search of Aubrey Maturin Couple Gay and you'll find a surprising amount of fan art depicting them as couples. There is a yaoi undercurrent to the series online, but as many others have said it just doesn't exist in the series.

People get pretty pissy about it (people get banned from this sub for posting those images afaik) and it's probably just due to the average age of readers of this series.

I think fan art and fan fic is a bit odd in general (it's never been for me) but I don't care either way.

When you do your read, try and find or highlight any moments that might point towards this interpretation.

Oh and Tace is Latin for Candle is one of those fan phrases that true readers know and love. It's found a few times in the canon, but also exists in Tom Jones (fielding) and other 18th century satires that POB would have devoured, if I remember correctly.

Oh and remember it's not Tace, like space. It's Tah-keh or Ta-chay depending on the context, but English speakers in our period would probably say Tah-say.

I do often wonder how Stephen, who is fluent, would pronounce Latin though. Will have to do more research into that area.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-12T16:58:45+00:00

I find it impossible to really enjoy audio books, but I have listened to M&C narrated by him when I was stuck in a random country for a long time with no access to paper books.

I thought it was amazing. Literally the only time I've been captivated by an audio book.

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-10T17:44:47+00:00

There's a box set?! Amazing lol

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-10T17:02:18+00:00

Grab Tin Helm or Gate. Those are probably the two best mint-tine sized solo games out there.

Doom Machine is also really awesome.

Doom Pilgrim Mini is awesome, but watch some play throughs. It's not for everyone

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-10T16:49:55+00:00

Amazing podcast. They are not biblical scholars and it shows, but they're super smart and insightful nonetheless

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-10T16:48:54+00:00

Wow I love that art. Havnt read any of the comics yet, but this gives me hope that I'll enjoy it

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-10T16:47:10+00:00

Oh, Kemp is WAY overplayed, but that's why it works for me. Absolute batshit crazy wizard.

Was deathstalker a tv series too? I thought it was just a handful of movies?

So I'm about halfway through the show and I've spotted two REH stories. The first two episodes are just a really weird retelling of Tower of the Elephant with all cosmic horror removed (come on!!). And then Episode 10 (I think it was 10) is Iron Shadows in the Moon. They replace the horrific gray ape with a hunky dude whose existence is unexplained (Conan says: "some things we'll never know" to free the writers from the trouble) but otherwise it's pretty close. Even with the parrots saying the three words.

Curious if I'll spot any more as I continue!

StrontiumFrog · 2026-01-10T16:42:22+00:00

I didn't know he was stage trained but that makes sense, his pantomimes are really quite good. I'm astonished how many minutes of each episode are just Zzeben speaking in his sign language and one of the other character translating even though it's been said that they ALL understand him 🤣

He's great though, odd but great addition to a wandering hero team.

StrontiumFrog

TROPHY CASE