• Bags ( Bags@piefed.social ) 
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    1 year ago

    I just started the Zones of Thought series by Vernor Vinge last Friday. I’ve been binging another author’s work (Greg Egan) for the last several months, but finally finished his last novel, so reading something by a new author has been refreshing and exciting! The story immediately fell into a trope that I haven’t been a fan of in the past (High-tech race meets low-tech feudal race), but it is already way way more interesting and deep than the last novel like that which left a sour taste in my mouth (Fire Time by Poul Anderson) and I’m enjoying it a lot!

  • DagwoodIII ( DagwoodIII@piefed.social ) 
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    1 year ago

    “Written On The Dark” by Guy Gavriel Kay. He’s one of my favorite writers and this one doesn’t disappoint. A tavern poet is strong armed into helping the provost investigate the murder of a noble. Events snowball, and the poet finds himself dealing with assassins and psychics.

    Action, humor, romance, and real emotions. I’d recommend it to anyone who wants a good story.

  • Hungarian was my first language but I haven’t had to use it much over the past 15-20 years. When I read English I move pretty quickly because there’s no mental step between “see word” and “recognize meaning/context,” but I find myself “reading out loud on mute” I Hungarian now, if that makes sense. So, getting my reading performance up to what it is for English is the challenge.

    • Zagorath ( Zagorath@aussie.zone ) 
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      1 year ago

      but I find myself “reading out loud on mute”

      The proper term for this, if I’m understanding you correctly, is “subvocalising”. And it’s something a lot of people (myself included) always do when reading, even in a language they’re fluent in.

      But it sounds like when you’re reading Magyar you might have a little more of a third step beyond just subvocalising, which is mentally needing to translate the word. Does that sound correct?

  • I finished Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik. I liked her standalones, and decided to try one of her series. (Her new standalone The Summer War is coming out in September!). It’s an interesting second book, because it pulls back on a he military focus/stakes of the first book and becomes a diplomatic intrigue with personal stakes while still keeping the fish-out-of-water/curiosity themes. And it still manages to slip in a few dragon fights and action scenes as gripping, if not more so, than in first.

    Then I picked up Wild Seed by Octavia Butler. Very different vibe. Good so far.