Piers Anthony and Johnathon Kellerman were so nice to me when I emailed them. I was shocked they answered me but so happy

I messaged an author on Instagram, and he responded ♥️. Said thanks for my sweet message, it was really nice. But agree, just keep it normal 😆. I think someone who has toiled over some work for months/years is prob always happy to hear someone has liked it.

His work isn't going to be for everyone.

Tolkien's work embodies his expertise which is the study of languages. There is a formality and structure in his approach that would not be as easily accessed for modern readers. Think of it like Shakespearian language. Unfortunately, if you come from the movie, that would make the transition to the book even more jarring since the use of language is very much modernized in the movie.

I've written to Michael Moorcock and Brent Weeks before. Didn't get a response from M.M. (He's eighty, I really didn't expect one), but I did from Weeks. Nice guy!

You must read Brat Farrah.

I'm with you on this one. I'm reading it as well. I'll tell you something, though. I read the Hobbit first about nine years ago. I "powered through it" at first and then found myself reading it. When it was over, I was little sad it was done.

I haven't found the same happening with LoTR.

The landscape, the history, the world building - it's all so full and alive. The writing is just unbelievably bland. This is, in fact, my third time trying to read the book. I'm not giving up on this time because I know it's a good book in the sense that its worth reading for what it offers story wise.

Honestly, I could do without frequency of the songs. It isn't the first time I've come across songs in a book, but the frequency is a bit much for me.

Not only an author but she and her father were hugely instrumental in live theatre in NZ.

Don't understand how Missourians will put up with that. People need to start standing up against the fascism that republicans are trying to instill in America.

Have you discovered Josephine Tey yet? The Daughter of Time, Miss Pym Disposes, Brat Farrar and The Franchise Affaire are among the best detective/mystery stories ever written.

At that age? I'll bet! Incredible story though. Among his best.

Just a sidenote. I've been in offices where its really obvious that they went out and bought a bunch of used books and threw them on a shelf. No shade, but please remove stickers from the spines, so it doesn't look like you're selling books on the side.

That's insane, but I think your overall point is true. These same types complain whenever a gay couple appears in a book because it's "too sexual" for children to read, but the existence of a gay couple isn't any more sexual than a straight couple would be.

Yeah, he sucked. But he gets better. My understanding is his son helped, but I may be wrong. If I recall correctly a conversation I once read his biggest issue is he was still thinking in terms of children's books. That may just be something I'm mis-remembering though. Wait until you get to Frodo and Sam walking through Mordor. Better get some coffee.

Amazing book. I've read 50 pages but I am careful about my eyes, so a slow pace.

>Yeah, these rubes are having a heyday, at a time when one would have thought this kind of regressive, ignorant, paranoid thinking was dead and buried.

It reminds me of an old episode of Family Guy when Meg Griffin becomes a zealot and participates in a book burning where people burn math and logic textbooks. At the time, viewers complained because "that's outlandish. It can't happen here." How wrong they were...

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As someone who loves Tolkien. It ain’t for everybody. Without an understanding of the lore that you get in the Silmarillion some of references in the songs won’t make much sense. For me that was part of the majesty of my first read of the book. Like I said tho. It’s not for everybody

Kaladin honestly has to become a less exciting character in later books, he shouldn’t have to shoulder the whole of Roshar.

Tolkien's not a specialist in scintillating dialogue, but he's not bad at it either, in the archaic style he favors, and the "meaningless details" you so dislike are much of the substance of his work—one suspects, based on your description, that the problem here is more your attention span coupled with a general lack of exposure to classic English literature. Anyway if you want snappy dialogue read some Wodehouse.

Try the audio book. I’m finding my patience and comprehension improved with that.

Speaking as a librarian, I would rather deal with the inconvenience of somebody purposely misshelving material forever than implement a surveillance policy that would impinge on the privacy of our patrons.

You're free not to like it; why would anyone here want to convince you otherwise?

What is so bad about the dialogue, in your opinion? Paste in a few examples.

What sorts of meaningless details does he include? An example or two would be interesting to talk about.

If you’re skipping entire pages you’re not actually reading the book. No shame in just putting something down you don’t like.

Thanks! Writing it down as one to get my mum for her birthday - it was her who gave me her Agatha Christie books to read as a child, too. She loves the French mystery writer Fred Vargas, very uniquely weird with a lot of eccentric characters, the first Three Evangelists one is probably a softer introduction than the first Adamsberg novel The Chalk Circle Man.

The second half of the first volume ("Swann in Love") is a masterpiece. I got bogged down after that and got stuck in the middle of the third volume.