Friday OT #1 - Cunning Linguists

[klamath632]

1. Robert Anson Heinlein. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, Stranger In A Strange Land, and Starship Troopers are my favorite books.
2. Anne McCaffrey. Dragonriders of Pern, Crystal Singer, etc.
3. Robin McKinley. The Blue Sword, and The Hero and The Crown are amazing stories, and the writing is beautiful.

Edit: Gotta add Timothy Zahn and Orson Scott Card in there as well. Both great writers with a huge collection of great stories.

 

[Angie]

1. Robert Anson Heinlein. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, Stranger In A Strange Land, and Starship Troopers are my favorite books.
2. Anne McCaffrey. Dragonriders of Pern, Crystal Singer, etc.
3. Robin McKinley. The Blue Sword, and The Hero and The Crown are amazing stories, and the writing is beautiful.

Edit: Gotta add Timothy Zahn and Orson Scott Card in there as well. Both great writers with a huge collection of great stories.

Ah, Orson Scott Card. Such a good author, such amazing universes - such a turd in real life.

 

[cloneswereall]

J.D. Salinger - Holden still says a lot of the things that I wish I could say out loud in public. For instance whenever I have large group meetings and am meeting a lot of new people for the first time and will likely never see again: “I am always saying "Glad to've met you" to somebody I'm not at all glad I met. If you want to stay alive, you have to say that stuff, though.”

Chuck Palahniuk - I really like writers that embody the Dark Romantic side of literature and explore the darkness that dwells within people.

Kurt Vonnegut - Dystopias forever!

Ray Bradbury

 

[Angie]

J.D. Salinger - Holden still says a lot of the things that I wish I could say out loud in public. For instance whenever I have large group meetings and am meeting a lot of new people for the first time and will likely never see again: “I am always saying "Glad to've met you" to somebody I'm not at all glad I met. If you want to stay alive, you have to say that stuff, though.”

Chuck Palahniuk - I really like writers that embody the Dark Romantic side of literature and explore the darkness that dwells within people.

Kurt Vonnegut - Dystopias forever!

Ray Bradbury

This dude has good taste. :wink:

I love Bradbury, too. Farenheit 451 may be one of the most progressive novels of the 20th century. I love reading it and then comparing it to Vonnegut's short story, Harrison Bergeron​.

 

[cloneswereall]

This dude has good taste. :wink:

I love Bradbury, too. Farenheit 451 may be one of the most progressive novels of the 20th century. I love reading it and then comparing it to Vonnegut's short story, Harrison Bergeron​.

I love reading "Harrison Bergeron" with my 10th graders. Every time: "Did... did she just really kick down the door and shoot them with a shotgun like a gangsta?"

 

[ImJustKCClone]

My thoughts went the same direction as KentKel. Aaron Sorkin writes the most amazing, intelligent, witty, thoughtful dialogue of anyone in the screenwriting business. I've loved pretty much everything he has written (of course, it helps if they pick the right actors who can pull of the rapid-fire speeches).

For straight books...
Tom Clancy (the early ones that he actually wrote...not the later special ops & rainbow six stuff)
Dean Koontz (Strangers, Watchers, & Lightning are my favorites)
F Paul Wilson (Repairman Jack Series)
Lincoln Child & Douglas Preston (together and separately)
James Rollins
William Bernhardt (series about a rather hapless lawyer from Tulsa who occasionally gets paid in chickens, and his rather diverse staff)

Pretty eclectic choices.
There are many other authors I like, but these seven I have read & re-read.

 

[jcyclonee]

Tom Clancy and Clive Cussler. They're not great writers but are great storytellers.

On a related note, the next off-topic better have something to do with oral









communications.

 

[Farnsworth]

showing how much of a reader I am, this is the only author mentioned here that I actually have read a book of.

Same here. Sadly I've only read two books the whole way through, both post high school. Cheated my way through book reports. Thank you cliff notes

 

[ImJustKCClone]

While I'm not a huge fan of the authors overall, there are two other books that I have read and re-read. Both involve post-apocalyptic rebuilding of society, and begin with diverse character lines that merge somewhere at or beyond the middle of the story:
The Stand (Stephen King)
Swan Song (Robert McCammon)

 

[Angie]

I love reading "Harrison Bergeron" with my 10th graders. Every time: "Did... did she just really kick down the door and shoot them with a shotgun like a gangsta?"

That short was my intro to Vonnegut - we read it in a TAG class in 7th grade. It was equal parts intriguing and bad-***. I really enjoy all of Welcome to the Monkey House. That and Salinger's Nine Stories​ were always my two plane reads when traveling.

 

[Dandy]

Vince Gilligan, head writer of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul.

 

[klamath632]

I haven't read Stephen King in a long time, but when I was in my teens, I loved those books. The stories that stand out to me the most still are Pet Sematary, IT, Cujo, Christine, The Raft, The Mist, and Salem's Lot. The Raft, it's just a short story, but I've re-read it a few times over the years... that's one of the creepiest stories I've ever read and I still don't like to swim in lakes because of it.

 

[GoCubsGo]

No mention of Hemingway yet?

 

[ImJustKCClone]

I haven't read Stephen King in a long time, but when I was in my teens, I loved those books. The stories that stand out to me the most still are Pet Sematary, IT, Cujo, Christine, The Raft, The Mist, and Salem's Lot. The Raft, it's just a short story, but I've re-read it a few times over the years... that's one of the creepiest stories I've ever read and I still don't like to swim in lakes because of it.

I liked his early stuff, but later on it just seemed like he focused on grossing people out with various bodily fluids rather than building the suspense. That's probably just me, though. I know a lot of people have liked the recent series he did (gun tower, gun fighter...something like that) but I haven't rekindled my interest in King enough to read them.

 

[RING4CY]

Who is/are your favorite writer(s)? It can be anyone from someone who is featured regular on Cracked.com to an 18th century Russian novelist. Who makes you think, or laugh, or you just like their style?

Myself.

 

[Leidang]

Novelists:
Steven Brust
Glen Cook
Jim Butcher
Patrick O'Brien
Bernard Cornwell
Simon Scarrow
Robert Low
F Paul Wilson
John Connolly
Preston & Child
Michael Connelly
Mel Starr
Charles Finch
Graham Masterton

I also read a lot of military history but generally don't have reoccurring authors. Exceptions are Christopher Duffy's works on the Seven Years War and Ian Knight's works on the Anglo-Zulu War.

 

[Mr Janny]

I like your husband. If you haven't already you should check out 'The Great Shark Hunt', it's a collection of his writings over the years, articles, letters, essays, etc. Easy to get through in small chunks and probably my favorite HST book. Brilliant, hilarious stuff.

I'll echo HST. He'll always be known for Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and that's fine. But, the people who only know him for that, are missing out. The guy was one of the most brilliant political writers of all time. Generation of Swine, Kingdom of Fear, Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail, they're all fantastic.

I'll throw out Remarque as well. One of the more influential people when it comes to the way I see the world.

 

[Gonzo]

No mention of Hemingway yet?

I guess I took my cue from the title of the thread, which to me implied sharp, cunning, quick-witted, etc. as opposed to best writer, which is why I threw Twain out there. But yeah, Hemingway's not bad.

 

[cydline2cydline]

http://www.cyclones.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10700&ATCLID=209412391

 

[NorthCyd]

When I was a kid I loved Jack London books. Also JRR Tolkien. The Hobbit was the first book I ever read. I use to love the original Dragon Lance trilogy that I think was written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Then Vonnegut. Sirens of Titan is one of my favorite books.