Books!

Good morning sunshine!

Inspired by your airport problems -story, I was going to write a post about my airport problems going to Australia and back. Or, well, technically I did (it's in the draft posts, we'll see if I'll ever actually post it), but then came up with something else I wanted to talk about.
Books!

So I realized the other night, that during the last year I have read more books that probably the previous few years put together.
So I wanted to list all the books I've read. This has actually a little to do with the Australia trip too, because the only reason I've read so many books lately is that when I was there I went to a bookshop cause I had nothing else to do at the moment, and stumbled upon a book by an author I had happened to spot at the library here and read a trilogy by the autumn before, and after that I really fell into reading books again. So I will begin my list of books from when I went to Australia.

Näkymättömät kaupungit (Le città invisibili), Italo Calvino
A book I only really read because the architecture exams had some pre-excercises having to do with the book. But it was pretty good. Basically it's just descriptions of different kinds of imaginary cities. Quite cool cities. Cities I'm not sure you can really call all cities.

The Black Prism
The Blinding Knife, Brent Weeks
Then I went to the bookshop. Brent Weeks is a brilliant author. I read earlier his Night Angel trilogy, and now found the first two books of the Lightbringer in Australia. They are so good, he's among my at the moment favourite authors. I'm still waiting for the other two books of the series, and actually The Broken Eye is coming out in August. I am so excited! I think The Blinding Knife actually won the 2013 Legend Award for best fantasy novel.

The Magician's Apprentice, Trudi Canavan
I have meant to read more of Trudi Canavan after that, but it seems to me that her books are impossible to find (in Finland). The only book I can find in either the library or a bookshop is Rogue, the second book of a trilogy that is a sequel to another trilogy to which The Magician's Apprentice is a stand-alone prequel. So basically I guess I should get the trilogy in the middle next. I actually saw a panel or two that Trudi Canavan was on at WFC.

If I am Missing or Dead, Janine Latus
Not fantasy for a change. I swapped this book to The Magician's Apprentice when I was in Katoomba just to have something new to read. It's not a bad book, but the other books are better.

A Song of Ice and Fire (the five books published), George RR Martin
The last book I read in Australia was A Game of Thrones, recommended to me by a girl from New Zealand, who I met in Katoomba. I also bought my copy of A Clash of Kings there and started on that on my way back, and spent the rest of the spring and half of the summer reading the rest of the series. Another one of my at the moment favourite authors. And there are still two more books to come out. And not sign of a release date yet for The Winds of Winter. Maybe in 2015, I've heard a rumour. And being such a delightful author, Martin decided to end A Dance with Dragons not on one cliffhanger, but five (at least, depends on how you count). Five. Thanks a lot.

American Gods, Neil Gaiman
Again an author I got a glimpse of at WFC. After A Song of Ice and Fire I had a small break, because reading anything lighter (=anything) seemed weird, when all I wanted was the next book. But American Gods is good. Neil Gaiman is good. I actually borrowed this book from you.

The Fractal Prince, Hannu Rajaniemi
A scifi book, and a book by a Finnish author (who lives in UK, but still). His books are good, a little hard to follow, because of tons of words having to do with electric devices, of which most don't actually exist. I didn't realize it was a sequel to The Quantum Thief before I started reading and noticed the characters were the same. Another author who was (according to the attenders list) at WFC, though I didn't see him. Or didn't know it was him if I did.

The Alchemist of Souls, Anne Lyle
I book I got from WFC and began to read it there. The first part of a trilogy. I think you would actually like it. It tells about an alternative history where magic and another humanoid species exist on the earth. The time is Elizabethian (why is that not a word) London (Shakespear is in fact mentioned) and the other humanoid species that is capable of using magic has come over from the Americas to trade with the European humans. I can't really way much more without spoilers. I started to wonder a few days ago when the next book of the trilogy would be coming out. It turned out it already had. And the third one too. So now I'm waiting for them to come in the mail.

The Ocean At the End of the Lane, Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman's books are beautiful. You should read it. I don't know what more to say. I think one of the greatest lines in the book is this: "Inside, they [grown-ups] look just like they always have. Like they did when they were your age. The truth is, there aren't any grown-ups. Not one, in the whole wide world."

The Queen of The Tearling, Erika Johansen

Another book I got from WFC. A book that hasn't come out yet. It's release date is 8th of July this year. It's good. You should read it once it comes out. They're actually planning of making it into a movie already, and who ever it was who bought the film rights has gotten Emma Watson to play I assume the main character. Which is funny, because more than once in the book it's said she is plain and a bit chubby, and I'm pretty sure Emma Watson is either. Another series for which I am left to wait for the next book. Also, I'm still wondering, how is Tearling pronounced (since you would know)? It's the name of the kingdom. But if it's tear as in when you cry or tear as in when you rip something, I still don't know.

The Emperor's Blades, Brian Staveley

I actually just started this book a the other night, and now am fighting with myself between reading it and studying for a couple of exams I should get out of the way. It's another book that hasn't come out yet that I got an early copy or at WFC, though it's release date is closer: Jan 14th, aka next Tuesday. The annoying thing about an early copy is that instead of a map of the world, it has two pages on which only reads "Map spread". And I hate that, because there is nothing better than maps in fantasy books. Now when I'm reading all I can think is "I want to see where they are in the world!" Oh, I should start collecting fantasy world map posters! That would be so cool.

Oh.

That is a lot of books. 16. I have (soon) read 16 books in one year. That's like.. three weeks per book, and I haven't read all the time because I've had a lot of other stuff to do too, like you know, study. And most of them aren't thin books. The average length of the books in A Song of Ice And Fire is ~1000 pages. And I've had to read a few books for school that aren't listed here, because this is only the fiction I've read.

Well, that's... I just wish I had the time to keep up this pace with books. I want to read this many books.

Oh, books are great.

About the question you asked about the idea of a vlog.

Why don't you write all that stuff here? I am actually surprised that you haven't yet done a "Difference between USA and Finland" or something -post. I would've done that ages ago if i were you.

And weren't you just some time ago complaining about how you want to write cool and informative posts? And now you want to start a vlog to have all the stuff in your head said? Just write it all here!

Also, you'd have to get a pretty good video camera for a proper vlog, and they cost. Though I admit that random hits on youtube are more likely than random hits on a random blog (except from Malaysia. Someone please explain the 100 hits there?) , so if you want to reach a lot of people with the stuff you want to say, then that might work better.
And. Planning and filming and editing videos takes way more time than just writing.
But, I mean, other than that, sure.
Just put the stuff up here!

Also, pictures for Cinnamon! We're still waiting. And combining that and today's topic, again, do you think we should print it into a book just for ourselves, with the pictures? Once we have the pictures. Pictures!

~matu