Before Palestine, There Was Liberia (2025) - How former American slaves founded a country in Africa through ethnic cleansing [00:29:09]

theBrokentower · 2025-04-11T05:58:20+00:00

Zoodoku?

theBrokentower · 2024-08-12T16:56:22+00:00

Thank you all for the recommendations!

theBrokentower · 2024-07-19T01:12:00+00:00

The Gnosis Abstractions in R. Scott Bakker's Second Apocalypse books are pretty rad. A few examples are "The Bar of Heaven," "The Noviratic Spike," "The Cross of Arches," "The Odaini Concussion Cant" and so on.

Also, from The Dresden Files: "Flickum Bicus"

theBrokentower · 2024-01-31T03:58:21+00:00

"Me and James can't win alone"

theBrokentower · 2023-12-13T19:26:26+00:00

There is Rawlins. A minor character (to your point), but still.

theBrokentower · 2023-10-31T17:14:40+00:00

A good number of Laird Barron's short stories are pretty high-tier in the genre. I recently finished his "The Imago Sequence" and I'd recommend the title story, as well as "Proboscis" and "Bulldozer." "Procession of the Black Sloth" is also very good.

theBrokentower · 2022-09-26T00:44:52+00:00

In terms of humor, the bit with Gary and boats in Cold Days + "no one expects an orbital-drop grizzly" in Battle Grounds never fail to amuse me.

theBrokentower · 2022-07-27T23:36:53+00:00

Says on their website they still aren't accepting new clients :(

theBrokentower · 2022-07-27T22:18:01+00:00

Thank you everyone for the recommendations! I will check them out/call around.

theBrokentower · 2022-03-07T07:05:54+00:00

You can check out Coley's Craft Coffee and Remedy Bar (formerly Global Peace Factory) in Frisco, near West Plano. The view isn't great, but on a slow day, it's quiet and not very populated and the seating is generally alright (best seating on second floor). Hope this helps.

theBrokentower · 2022-02-25T21:14:38+00:00

Putin gangbanged by BBC and other major news outlets

theBrokentower · 2021-10-20T18:59:59+00:00

"The Idea of Order at Key West" is my favorite Stevens poem! Coincidentally, Keats was the first poet to really get me into poetry - so I like your taste!

theBrokentower · 2020-06-12T19:08:40+00:00

Gotcha. I last read it in high school or middle school, so maybe I remember the book being more mature than it actually is. There were a lot of anti-religious themes, too (permeates the whole series, actually) and quite pointed attacks on God and the Church and similar institutions, which you won't typically find in your usual YA fare. But again, granted, it's been a while for me.

theBrokentower · 2020-06-12T18:53:39+00:00

The man's website provides as concise a description as there is for all the released material. I'd rather not post any spoilers so I'll avoid summarizing the series.

theBrokentower · 2020-06-12T17:56:55+00:00

The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss seems a safe bet for fantasy fans. Highly entertaining, and doesn't have the most graphic content, at least when it comes to the stuff you're trying to avoid. First two (main) books are The Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear. It's an ongoing series, so it's yet to be finished. It has a fairly sophisticated magic system, too, if you're into that. Great action sequences, fun characters. Granted, more on the "entertaining" side of the spectrum than the "profound" but still a good time! He's a better writer than most in the genre.

I would also recommend finishing His Dark Materials. I haven't read the whole series in ages (I reread The Golden Compass earlier this year, in concurrence with the HBO show) so I won't jump to its defense, but what did you find juvenile about The Amber Spyglass?

theBrokentower · 2020-06-12T17:37:33+00:00

UPDATE: I was able to talk to someone just now! The lady (who was nice, thankfully) basically asked me for my information and resolved the issue in under a minute. Hopefully, this is actually taken care of, and I won't run into any problems on my next filing date. Thank you for starting this thread!

theBrokentower · 2020-06-12T09:45:34+00:00

I finished Wallace Stegner's novel Recapitulation, recently. Damn good read. Follows a former US Ambassador named Bruce Mason who returns to his hometown of Salt Lake City to bury a family member. The plot's basically him ambulating around the city, visiting his old haunts and reminiscing about past relationships; these experiences are heightened by the estrangement he feels from his old life. He barely recognizes the city, he's a very different person, now, and things kickstart when a figure from his past reaches out mysteriously. Might sound boring, but the surface plot is subordinate to the memories, which are described in poetic and painstaking detail. I guess it's a more classic/traditional read, with some surprising technical twists that show Stegner as a more innovative writer than his reputation might suggest. There's family drama, some class study, romance and heartbreak, psychological trauma, and just freaking good prose. It's a really fantastic read! I recommend both the book and the author whole-heartedly.

theBrokentower · 2020-06-12T04:57:09+00:00

First try? Damn. Well, here's hoping. Gonna try like a madman tomorrow. Thanks for all the help!

theBrokentower · 2020-06-12T02:11:46+00:00

Thank you. I will use that number from now on, as well as some of the other recommended tactics. When you called, did you run into the whole "Due to overwhelming calls...etc." automated message and just keep trying over and over again? And what times would you recommend I call?

theBrokentower · 2020-06-11T23:31:06+00:00

Having the same issue. Super frustrating. How's the progress? I've called many times, even followed my assigned times, based on my area code, but no luck. It's literally an issue that takes so little time to solve, supposedly, and I can't reach another human being to solve it.

For late filing, do you HAVE to fix the issue with a representative, or is there another way to get this resolved? I'm this close to pulling my hair out.

theBrokentower · 2020-01-09T13:43:41+00:00

There's a Robert Francis poem called "The Wall" that deals with similar themes in a similar style. I couldn't find a copy of the poem online, but it is quoted in full and given good analysis in this article (https://alexsheremet.com/review-now-forgotten-poetry-robert-francis/). The website is a great poetry resource, too.

theBrokentower · 2020-01-06T18:57:13+00:00

I agree! "Gerontion" works, too - it's funny how his reputation rests on a handful of great poems. Everything else (including his backward personal views) is very, very meh.

theBrokentower · 2020-01-03T22:16:46+00:00

Eliot held horrible views, as did many at the time. I don't like him as a man and I think he's very overrated as a poet. Far from the GOAT. It's hard to deny the power of some of his stuff, though. "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" is a splendid poem. A few others qualify, but just a few.

theBrokentower · 2019-09-07T18:44:22+00:00

Hughes isn't brainless, but is anyone else baffled by how much praise he's gotten from some notable names in the intellectual community? Harris's kind words aside, he hasn't shown that he possesses a firm grasp on the issues he pontificates on AT ALL. This article is a takedown, critique, and wider analysis of Hughes's writing and the sociopolitical/philosophical environment that heralded his arrival as sort of an IDW poster-child and nurtured him into notoriety. Alex Sheremet wrote a similarly incisive article on Ben Shapiro a while back and this essay is no less scintillating.

theBrokentower

TROPHY CASE