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Ah, you've read it then! I've not that impression of Wolfe as of yet in the book (about halfway). It almost seemed like he was high with the rest of em' half the time? I was under the impression (from the preface) that it was all written from first hand accounts + him going through the "pranksters" archived material (video etc). If he's not actually blasted, I think he's written the book very convincingly.

 

The Yage Letters sounds very interesting based on the wiki alone, might check that out - thank you!

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Anyone read Annihilation? Saw the movie and a friend gifted me the book, haven't read it yet. Curious how different it is to the movie, was intrigued by concept of the other lifeform

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Anyone read Annihilation? Saw the movie and a friend gifted me the book, haven't read it yet. Curious how different it is to the movie, was intrigued by concept of the other lifeform

I didn't like the movie, book was pretty good. Whole trilogy is, but definitely out of left field with some parts of it. Movie took things a totally different direction in the end, but the book/trilogy is overall weirder no doubt. Good overall, not great, imo. Solid and perfect for that sorta mood i think

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Ah, you've read it then! I've not that impression of Wolfe as of yet in the book (about halfway). It almost seemed like he was high with the rest of em' half the time? I was under the impression (from the preface) that it was all written from first hand accounts + him going through the "pranksters" archived material (video etc). If he's not actually blasted, I think he's written the book very convincingly.

 

The Yage Letters sounds very interesting based on the wiki alone, might check that out - thank you!

 

 

Shit sorry man, my div, thought you'd finished it ;{

 

Without spoiling further, it has some superb reporting, the separation in agendas is kinda what i was alluding to. Don't think Wolfe ever believed in the potential psychedelics may have had in the same way an advocate like Kesey & the Pranksters did, but he def had a good time. The irony eh. Dr Hunter Thompson's "Hell's Angels" is similar but far more scathing.

 

If you can filter the odd pining exchange between Burroughs & Ginsberg (of which there are a few), you get a real sense of the wonder, logistics & mythology of the compounds involved in The Yage Letters. Burroughs was pretty solid w/his previous anthropologial research into the various cultural contexts of mind-altering compounds in the Americas. Def not Castaneda & a world away from contemporary DMT eulogies.

 

The headfuck that is Robert Anton Wilson's "Illuminatus! Trilogy" might float your boat, but it's marmite for most, love<>hate. Vineland follows up some of the themes around the subject in Wolfe's book. Prob one of my favourite books on the legacy of & fall-out from the '60's.

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Anyone read Annihilation? Saw the movie and a friend gifted me the book, haven't read it yet. Curious how different it is to the movie, was intrigued by concept of the other lifeform

Reading the Southern Reach trilogy was genuinely one of the highlights of last year for me. Get involved.

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Anyone read Annihilation? Saw the movie and a friend gifted me the book, haven't read it yet. Curious how different it is to the movie, was intrigued by concept of the other lifeform

Reading the Southern Reach trilogy was genuinely one of the highlights of last year for me. Get involved.
Same. Might reread soonish.
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Ah, you've read it then! I've not that impression of Wolfe as of yet in the book (about halfway). It almost seemed like he was high with the rest of em' half the time? I was under the impression (from the preface) that it was all written from first hand accounts + him going through the "pranksters" archived material (video etc). If he's not actually blasted, I think he's written the book very convincingly.

 

The Yage Letters sounds very interesting based on the wiki alone, might check that out - thank you!

 

 

Shit sorry man, my div, thought you'd finished it ;{

 

Without spoiling further, it has some superb reporting, the separation in agendas is kinda what i was alluding to. Don't think Wolfe ever believed in the potential psychedelics may have had in the same way an advocate like Kesey & the Pranksters did, but he def had a good time. The irony eh. Dr Hunter Thompson's "Hell's Angels" is similar but far more scathing.

 

If you can filter the odd pining exchange between Burroughs & Ginsberg (of which there are a few), you get a real sense of the wonder, logistics & mythology of the compounds involved in The Yage Letters. Burroughs was pretty solid w/his previous anthropologial research into the various cultural contexts of mind-altering compounds in the Americas. Def not Castaneda & a world away from contemporary DMT eulogies.

 

The headfuck that is Robert Anton Wilson's "Illuminatus! Trilogy" might float your boat, but it's marmite for most, love<>hate. Vineland follows up some of the themes around the subject in Wolfe's book. Prob one of my favourite books on the legacy of & fall-out from the '60's.

 

 

All good! Nothing spoiled heh. Thank you for your responses, lots of the context is lost to me (being born in 89'), I can only base it/try to understand as much of the context as possible from reading (I mean, I get it - but the magnitude/essence/feeling of what was happening is so well captured in some of these books).

 

I did some "google research" today after you name dropped a few authors here and found a ton of books I probably otherwise wouldn't have found out about. I didn't realize (never really thought about it tbh) there were so many counterculture books published that were actually accepted as... I don't know, literary achievements (not the right term but I can't think of a better one ATM?). I've now got about 8 books queued up following EKAAT. Hunter S Thompson is a given, but tbh I thought he was really one of the only authors in this... vein?... Ignorant, I know.

 

But yeah, I've got my next couple years of reading charted out I think - next up will be the Illuminatus material. 

 

Thanks again!!

Edited by Bulk VanderHooj
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Read about 6 of those Jack Reacher books in a row, sure book snobs will snort at this. Snort all day long!

 

I'll probably finish this book up (Die Tryin') then I've got either Imajica (Barker) or H.P Lovecraft lined up next.

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Loved Illuminatus! in my early twenties. Read it a few years ago again. Idk, it's a product of it's time.. I wouldn't call it "good literature" but it's entertaining at least. Maybe it now works again better with all the post-truth shit going on? It's really an amalgamation of conspiracy theories written into a novel form with some Timothy Leary style psychology and Discordian philosophy dropped on top. Compared to some of Wilson's other books the Leary fanboyism doesn't come through that much though.

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"The Complete Stories of Leonora Carrington".

 

You'd think a volume of short stories written by a surrealist painter would be interesting throughout.

 

Unfortunately, no.

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on a scifi binge and just finished alastair reynolds' revenger. now onto [see below, p sweet cover]

also playing deus ex and watching x-files inbetween. gonna go crazy

 

200px-TheDreamMaster%281stEd%29.jpg

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currently on the second book of the Southern Reach Trilogy, and I finished The Invention of Morel last week which was pretty interesting. Also trying to hype myself up to read more Bolaño but after 2666 I'm a bit burnt out.


on a scifi binge and just finished alastair reynolds' revenger. now onto [see below, p sweet cover]

also playing deus ex and watching x-files inbetween. gonna go crazy

 

200px-TheDreamMaster%281stEd%29.jpg

 

 

og deus ex? was really disappointed with Mankind Divided.

Edited by MadellisTheSixth
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^

man i've have 2666 on my shelf for like 5 years and i just can't begin. it's a mastodont piece. had a period of reading thicker books, with the first part of the man without qualities being the culmination. after that it's most often been 3-400 pages maximum with a couple of exceptions

 

regarding deus ex, it's MD. never played any of the other ones so i can't really compare. but am having fun nonetheless :)

 

how's the southern reach trilogy? wanted to read annihilation after having seen the movie, but decided not to. can't remember why though.

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^

man i've have 2666 on my shelf for like 5 years and i just can't begin. it's a mastodont piece. had a period of reading thicker books, with the first part of the man without qualities being the culmination. after that it's most often been 3-400 pages maximum with a couple of exceptions

 

regarding deus ex, it's MD. never played any of the other ones so i can't really compare. but am having fun nonetheless :)

 

how's the southern reach trilogy? wanted to read annihilation after having seen the movie, but decided not to. can't remember why though.

 

 

2666 is worth the time imo. pretty harrowing to get through around the middle but it's a fkn beautiful novel in the end.

 

ah wicked, I thought the art in MD was pretty amazing at times and Ed Harrison's work on the soundtrack is absolutely stunning. felt like the story was pretty weak in the end but i did still have fun. HR was pretty fantastic so def recommend it if you enjoy MD.

 

really loved the annihilation book! I was also a bit sceptical going into it for some reason, but it was a really rewarding read after watching the film.

I honestly had never read anything like it before, even just the descriptions of the world around the character's was really interesting haha. The second book is meant to be a bit of a drag to get through, but I'm enjoying it so far.

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Just finished Tess of the D'Urbervilles, holy shit that ended up getting crazy towards the end

 

For the most part the story is relentlessly tragic which made me think of Grapes of Wrath (which I hated for that reason) but the sense of closure and of reprieve for the lovers towards the end of the book was beautiful.

 

Also beautiful descriptive imagery of the English countryside through the changes of season

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Just finished Tess of the D'Urbervilles, holy shit that ended up getting crazy towards the end

 

For the most part the story is relentlessly tragic which made me think of Grapes of Wrath (which I hated for that reason) but the sense of closure and of reprieve for the lovers towards the end of the book was beautiful.

 

Also beautiful descriptive imagery of the English countryside through the changes of season

Yeah, my 19th century lit. professor in university called Hardy a sadist for what he made Tess go through.

 

Hardy also did quite a number on Jude the Obscure as well, by the way. Equally good, I’d say, if not more so.

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