My favorite reading month of the year! November 2023 in a Nuttshell

My favorite reading month of the year! - November 2023 in a Nuttshell
#booktube #reading #books
November 2023 in a Nuttshell is my November wrap up video of books I read in November as well as my December TBR.
Demon Copperhead and the Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
The Bone Clocks and Slade House by David Mitchell
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman
The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin
1984 by George Orwell
River of Blue Flame by Tad Williams
Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee
The City and the City by China Mieville
I now have a Patreon that has some cool benefits, including access to my discord server! This is 100% optional and thank everyone for their support!
/ thefantasynuttwork

[@ANIME121ADDICT]

I love you talking about literary/contemporary fiction mate, keep up the variety, David Mitchell rules

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Mitchell is soooooooo good

[@i_dont_know_who_i_am69]

Mitchell is probably the best when it comes to combining literary/contemporary with SFF, wish more people in the SFF community know about his books, but looks like he's more popular among literary fiction readers.

[@R1glet]

been following you for so long and its amazing how much your taste in books changed from 3 years ago and happy late birthday!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you! And I’m so happy to be finding new areas to read in, it’s illuminating

[@nayannahoover1803]

Fellow West Virginian here! I came across a video on 2toramble’s page where they had you on for a bit. I decided to visit your page and later subscribed. Now that I’ve watched this video, everything makes sense lol! I really enjoy your videos, keep it up!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you so much, nice to meet you!

[@justjuanreader]

So glad that you are enjoying His Dark Materials!!! One of my all time faves.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It’s great so far

[@Johanna_reads]

Demon Copperhead is stalking me on my Kindle screen! Love what you had to say about The Poisonwood Bible as well. Grandmother book! 🤣

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’m definitely a grandma 👵

[@agentswarley]

My favourite genre is fantasy, HOWEVER, I love hearing what books you read and how you liked them, no matter the genre. I also enjoy other genres from time to time, it all just depends on the reading mood. Also, your videos are always a joy to watch. I hope you have a great December!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you so much!

[@RedFuryBooks]

I want to read more Mitchell as well - I've only read Cloud Atlas and loved it. I haven't read any other Kingsolver, but did enjoy The Poisonwood Bible. I guess I'm a grandmother too lol. I'm glad you liked The Forever War! It made my top 10 sci-fi. I didn't like Forever Free, but can recommend Forever Peace as a solid follow-up. I enjoyed your wrap-up and Happy Holidays!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

You should definitely give Bone Clocks a whirl, such a sprawling book, it’s something special! Happy holidays man!

[@ChasingForever]

I think you will enjoy "The Folding Knife." Allen's review introduced me to K J Parker. "The Folding Knife" remains one of my favorites. Parker's main character characters possess a rare self-awareness I don't often find with other authors. Happy belated birthday. Some of the best people were born in November.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you so much!

[@civoreb]

China Mieville is too unique for us peasants 😂. Everyone has similar authors to them except him. A true treasure.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Hahaha

[@JordansShelves]

Never hesitate to share the non sff books you're reading Jimmy. As someone who reads a bit of everything, I love to hear about them.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thanks! I think most people read somewhat wide so hopefully folks don’t mind haha

[@verosnotebook]

First, belated happy birthday 🎉😊 Lots of titles I like too. Pullman’s His Dark materials is amazing and deal with deep philosophical topics (innocence, knowledge, etc.). Yes they are children’s book but as an adult you will see a lot more. I mean he even brings Milton’s Paradise Lost! Really liked The City & The City and should read more Mieville, and Mitchell. Have a great December 📚

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you so much!!!

[@MaedBetweenthePages]

Definitely also had that experience before where you read something, arms folded, ready to be righteous in your hatred, and then get humbled when you love it 😂 Never been happier to be wrong :)

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It’s the best time to be wrong!

[@user-ss4gu3ni9l]

I LOVED Le Guin's short story "the ones who walk away from omelas" highly recommend it, interesting themes. Ive already read Earthsea but have yet to check out her scifi stuff. maybe ill read Lathe of heaven after i read left hand of darkness.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I will read that!

[@BooksWithBenghisKahn]

Glad to hear my pick of Disgrace ended up making an impact for you as it did me, and I can confirm that coming back to it after 10 years was just as if not more impactful. Seems like it was a tremendous reading month, and now the Bone Clocks is an absolute must read for me as is Forever War.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

You’ll probably love at least one of the two

[@e.matthews]

Happy belated birthday! What an awesome penultimate month Your description of Demon Copperhead reminds me powerfully of The Great Believers, a book that makes me tear up every time I think of it, so I think Kingsolver is in my near future. Thanks for the reccs Jimmy!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thanks! I’ll check out that book

[@samcostello2861]

I'm so glad that you enjoyed Bone Clocks. David Mitchell is such a great author. I'm also glad that you're choosing to stick with Otherland. Tad Williams' books are the epitome of a slow burn, but the payoff is so worth it. Reading a series by Tad Williams is like watching a season of The Wire. You're sitting there, absorbing everything, trying to keep track of all of the information, and all the while you're thinking, "This is one of the greatest television shows of all time? Really?" But if you're patient and stick with it, you come to appreciate how everything comes together in the end, and then you look back on the whole experience and think, "You know what? That was actually pretty awesome!"

[@thefantasynuttwork]

That’s always been my experience with Tad, so hoping he can turn this Otherland ship around lol

[@WordsinTime]

That’s a great reading month! I’ve only read Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell and I didn’t love all of it but it had some great high points. I read The City & the City and liked the setup but it didn’t overly pay off for me. 1984 is a top 10 book for me. I describe the ending as a sledgehammer to the soul. And I had a very similar reading experience to you with The Forever War. Otherland book 1 tested my patience so I’m glad I dipped out haha

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Yeah do not continue Otherland cause it’ll probably put you in a slump hahah

[@onfaerystories]

Man, you baffle me! Johanna talked about Disgrace in her recent video and told us about the trigger warnings and I was like "nope, not for me", and now you made me reconsider everything! I just added it on my library list and will possibly read it before Stoner (I read Augustus last month and it's one of my favorite reads of the year!). The Forever War sounds so good as well (the time dilation aspect of it), though I'm not into alien in my sci-fi (would you say it plays a big role?). I've read 1984 (loved it, but I agree Animal Farm beat it for me too for its originality, wittiness and humor. I'm just a sucker for well realized allegories 👌), The Golden Compass (and The Subtle Knife -- I need to read book #3. It went into a direction that didn't really sit well with me, but at the same time I'd like to see the full picture in order to properly talk about it), and The Lathe of Heaven (I read it on Kindle Unlimited and from what I remember I liked the concept but it was so short I felt everything wasn't fleshed out enough and apparently missed the Orwellian references 🥴 But it could be my Kindle because I've read My Cousin Rachel by Du Maurier and found out it was an heavily abridged version 💀).

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Disgrace is a really really tough read so I obviously advise caution around those trigger warnings. Forever war definitely has a good amount of alien pieces, it leans into the scifi aspects

[@Johanna_reads]

It is extremely disturbing, but I agree with what Jimmy said in the video. Coetzee has near-flawless characterization skills in depicting a lecherous scholar and several complicated relationships. I am in awe of both books but I personally preferred Stoner. 😅

[@curtjarrell9710]

Happy to see you mixing it up and having fun doing it. Happy reading.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank ya!

[@matthewbeaty4344]

I love that you had such a good reading month reading so broadly. Good lit is good lit!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

We eating good 😊

[@pythonbile]

Definitely gonna be reading The Bone Clocks and China Miéville this month based off your recommendations! This really was a stacked month, hopefully that trend continues. Thanks for the upload!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@esmayrosalyne]

Always knew you were secretly a grandma, thanks for the confirmation! No but really, I love seeing you just embrace the mood reading and branching out into all kinds of different directions! Consider me completely sold on David Mitchell and Barbara Kingsolver!! And dang, I really need to read some of those classics as well. 1984 and Lathe of Heaven sound so fascinating 🤩 Great wrap-up Jimmy. Hope you will end the year with a bang!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thanks! You should definitely try out Mitchell, he’s incredible

[@caseyknolla8419]

Great to hear how well the month went. I've been in a slump, so your diversity of suggestions is inspiring and helpful. Very open to branching outside of fantasy/sci-fi. Stoner was one of the best books I've read at your recommendation.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I hope your slump ends soon!

[@midrangemonroe1]

I am wrapping up Perdido Street Station tonight and it just might be the best thing I've ever read. So insanely imaginative. Will definitely have to check out the other Mieville books you mentioned!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

ITS SO GOOD

[@phen0menos]

Bone Clocks (which I also read last month), The Lathe of Heaven, 1984, and Northern Lights (The Golden Compass) are all top-tier books for me! That's a stacked month

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It was a ridiculous month

[@burge2695]

Added a few of these to my tbr thanks! I loved his dark materials when i was about 14 and have been meaning to re-read these ugh! 2024!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Glad to hear it!

[@chadia25]

Great wrap up. You read a lot this month. Picking up Slade House as soon as possible. The Bone Clocks was awesome. Put Demon Copperhead on my TBR too. Thanks for all the great recommendations. ❤

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thanks for trusting me to mess up your tbr 😁

[@dawsonbradley569]

Barbara Kingsolver is probably my favorite author for contemporary fiction! I’m glad I’m not the only fantasy reader that likes her too lol! The Bean Trees is really good, and The Lacuna was great too!! She is a great author to read between fantasy books.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I bought all her books 😆

[@dawsonbradley569]

@@thefantasynuttwork great decision! I look forward to hearing your thoughts on them in the future.

[@bookswithnate]

Sounds like a great and informative reading month! Forever War is an important read for me, glad you liked it. Definitely some reads in there I need to get to as well. Cheers!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I wanna read more from Haldeman

[@nihad-m]

0:17 "Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it." one of my favorite quotes. Happy belated birthday! 🎉

[@thefantasynuttwork]

GREAT quote, good to see you Nihad!

[@Wouter_K]

Sounds like a very interesting and intense collection of reads. Thanks for sharing. I'll definitely add some of these to my TBR. No need to disclaim that some people might find something lame as far as I'm concerned. I'm only here to hear what you experienced. As for 1984 it is on next years TBR as well. I saw the movie but was planning on reading the book. As a bonus I'm also reading "Julia" by Sandra Newman, which apparently is a very interesting exploration of the 1984 world from the perspective of Julia, the main female character from the book.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I wanna read Julia!

[@samm8190]

If you need ideas for another random way to select patron books, you could always roll those huge D&D dice

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Just need that 80 side dice hahah

[@TheBeeesKnees]

Yayyy!! I hope you have another great December reading month too and bring in the new year with a bang 🎉🎉

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you friend, probably will DNF every book and just play COD TBH

[@TheBeeesKnees]

@@thefantasynuttwork 💅still a baddie moment of you if you ask me

[@thefantasynuttwork]

@@TheBeeesKnees ❤️❤️❤️

[@ColinsCornerYT]

Very interesting and varied month in November man. I’m happy you had such a great month!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thanks brother! Happy reading

[@groofay]

Glad to hear The Golden Compass did it for you, and you had a great reading month! I've been meaning to reread His Dark Materials this winter, so I think I'll be starting on that soon.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Great Christmas book haha

[@groofay]

@@thefantasynuttwork No more heartwarming a tale than little Tony and his pet fish in the sub-Arctic

[@patsmythos]

So glad you loved Poisonwood Bible! Totally agree that some of our peers wouldn't be into it. Seems like we had similar thoughts about it, I also loved how well Kingsolver created distinct voices for the four daughters.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

She has some amazing passages in there. What an epic family drama

[@kuiperkineticliterature7586]

George Orwell's essays are great, including the ones that aren't about the craft of writing! One of the most compelling essays I've read on the topic of socialism is "The Lion and the Unicorn," which Orwell wrote as a democratic socialist while experiencing the events of World War II. There's a 25-hour audiobook titled "Essays" by George Orwell that I found to be one of my best uses of an Audible credit. The long introspective ones are great, but so are the shorter ones like "Some Thoughts on the Common Toad," which entertain while often delivering a surprise nugget of insight. Orwell actually began with non-fiction: his first published book was a memoir, "Down And Out In Paris And London," which paints a picture of urban poverty in the 1930's that is harrowingly honest yet also full of moments that are deeply funny.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I will get that audiobook!

[@oscarandino9230]

I hope you're having a great month and had a great Thanksgiving. I would love a forever war review.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thanks my friend

[@annak_reads]

I love His Dark Materials! Demon Copperhead sounds so interesting. Glad you had a great reading month. I read Sandkings this month and loved it, I've missed GRRM's writing. (Also, The Folding Knife is very good)

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Yesssssss GRRM love makes me so happy

[@jersy6406]

I'm really excited about you reading The Folding Knife. I binged a bunch of Allen's videos recently and now I want to get into K J Parker and Daniel Abraham myself. Ice is an interesting book. It absolutely didn't work for me at all, but I'm interested in your opinion and think you might really like it. The Poisonwood Bible sounds like it could be up my alley.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’m excited for some KJ Parker!

[@readbykyle3082]

Jimmy's "top ten authors of all time" list is about to graduate from 48 to 50 members 😎 Bone Clocks sounds so interesting. It's on audible plus so I may check it out soon, and Demon Copperhead has been on my library hold list for it seems like ever 😂 Lathe of Heaven is so good, mt favorite Le Guin so far.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Plenty of people have been dropped from that list as I’ve read more lol

[@mellies.8822]

Ups, just screamed out loud „Yes“ when you pulled out „Folding Knife“ 😅 I‘m excited for your thoughts 😊 It’s probably my favourite Parker

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I have high hopes!

[@angelaroberts-757]

Ok, love David Mitchell. Loved The Bone Clocks. Probably won't read Demon Copperhead, as I'm still trying to recover from The Poisonwood Bible. It's basically about abuse, different kinds. But it was so triggering and sad for me. 1984 is really good. The first time I read it, I was so blown away. I haven't read China Mielville yet. But I hope to. Ursula K. Leguinn is great.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Yessss

[@masoninho8]

His Dark Materials is one of my favourite series of all time. Really changed my perspective on a lot of things as a kid. Books of Dust, while good, is not more adult. I'd say it's more middle grade. Again, still good. Also, Happy Birthday!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Oh! I may have been misinformed about the Books of Dust! Appreciate it!

[@SheWasOnlyEvie]

I demand not a review but a discussion of The Folding Knife with Allen when you finish it!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

If I like it 😆🤔

[@SheWasOnlyEvie]

@@thefantasynuttwork Would be even better if you didn’t like it. 👀

[@thefantasynuttwork]

@@SheWasOnlyEvie you’re right hahah

[@asajohannesson2012]

As I understand it, the Nobel Prize is given to a author for their body of work, not for a particular book. Great wrap up. I really like Nineteen Eighty-Four and The City & the City, so I should probably read The Lathe of Heaven.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

You’re right I was mistaken

[@samm8190]

Great to see another video from ya Jimmy. I’m rapidly trying to read Book of the New Sun to catch up with you. 😅😅😅😅

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’ve started book three and it’s great!

[@darthandy6161]

I’ve read 3 Mitchell books and Bone Clocks has been the next one on my TBR for quite a while. Your review helps boost it for me. I feel like if you enjoy Mitchell, Murakami may also be for you.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

He’s one I really want to try

[@josephcorcoran7137]

I read the Forever War twice; once as a civilian, then while serving in the military on a deployment. I love that book. But that second read was not the same. When I got home I thought back to that book, the change from being away and returning. There was a weird disconnect. It was real. Something I still deal with. I don’t know if I’ll ever read Forever War again, but Joe Haldeman is a great writer. And even though it’s Scifi He captured those tones of change pretty accurately.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Well said, I’ve never served but knowing Haldeman did gave me some confidence that he was getting a lot of that experience correct. Thanks for sharing this

[@MattVickers]

The Bone Clocks has been on my list for so long, really must pick it up. Also loved His Dark Materials as an adult getting back into reading and fantasy specifically

[@thefantasynuttwork]

That’s great to hear!

[@BookishChas]

Great video Jimmy! I would love to hear your thoughts once you finish His Dark Materials. It’s such a great series. I haven’t read the Book of Dust series yet. I just recently finished Earthsea, and I plan to read everything Le Guin wrote.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Earthsea is really great!

[@andrenobrega85]

The Bone Clocks is such a good read. It was my first novel by Mitchel and I'll be sure to get through more. About Orwell, I can say that many of his other novels are at least as well written as the two most known books. His Dark Materials is probably underrated or at least rarely mentioned around here, but I found it so smart and so well written. I was considering rereading it this year, but I didn't get to it, probably will get to it in 2024.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I also feel like HDM is underrepresented on booktube

[@andrenobrega85]

@@thefantasynuttwork it's probably the idea that it is children's or teen fantasy, which, as you mentioned, is not the deepest or fairest of interpretations. Also read The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by him and laughed quite a bit. By the way, being myself a guy that reads both speculative and so called literary fiction, I'm quite happy to see you indulge your curiosity to try new stuff and then talk about them on the channel. Hope the good month is the beginning of a trend!

[@joycerollins2582]

I totally loved The Poisonwood Bible!! And of course Demon Copperhead. She is really able to put you into the place and time. Just a great author!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

She’s incredible

[@JosephReadsBooks]

It is nice to have a wrap up where I have read half the books 😂. If you want a short trippy novel by Joe Haldeman I suggest All My Sins Remembered. Great video!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thanks for the recommendation!

[@LiteratureScienceAlliance]

Rhyan loves David Mitchell and is now reading Cloud Atlas!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Great taste!

[@deanryland6663]

Loved the bone cloak was totally hooked from the first chapter. His character work is great read it earlier this year and is definitely top 10 for the year. loved slade house too. Not sure you will like Otherland been a few years since i read it but think it was the journey not the destination and i think it gets weirder as it goes on

[@thefantasynuttwork]

So happy you also enjoyed Mitchell

[@barrilrayder]

life and times of michael. k is great too, super short but every word drips rivers of meaning.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I definitely will read it

[@Jay_Mike]

Nice wrap up, I’m curious for your and Allen’s talk about folding knife ha

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’m sure there will be loud talking lol

[@adamk42]

Could have sworn I already left a comment but I must have deleted it by accident. Anyway, glad you had a great reading month Jimmy! I added a few authors to the ever growing tbr. Lathe of Heaven and The Dispossessed are Le Guin's best scifi work imo, but I still have a couple to read. I'm sure you'll get to it at some point but do check out "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" by her as well. It's freely available online and only takes 15 minutes to read

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’m definitely gonna read it!

[@lieslherman]

What a wild and fantastic line up!! I always want to be hard on Oprah's Book Club picks but honestly, she probably does have a lot of gems in there worth picking up. XD Also, didn't realize you'd done missionary travels when you were younger--that's really interesting! Glad your birthday month (Happy Bday!) ended up being a good one reading-wise!!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you so much! Oprah has some bangers on there 🤣

[@mariareadsssf]

So glad you had a great reading month.Thank you for you motivation to read David Mitchel. I tried long time ago "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet" and I struggled, but that was probably because I was still developing my English undersranding. Looking for similar feel books to "Piranesi" a lot of people recomended "The Bone Clocks" and "Slade House". November was just average for me, except a short story from the collection "Unexpected Stories" by Octavia E. Butler, "A Necessary Being". I loved how she used body language in that story. It felt like watching a sacred ritual.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Butler is excellent!

[@Danny_Matson]

Would love a Bone Clocks review. Cloud Atlas is one of my absolute favorite books so I'm looking forward to you reading it (When, Jimmy??😅).

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Soonish!

[@stellaisteeth]

I had a bad experience with Kingsolver's book Flight Behavior (and with her as a person). Flight Behavior was mandatory reading for first years at my university. She also came to the school to talk about the book and commented on the main character's name, Dellarobia, which she named after the wreath made of ingredients local / native to an area. The name echoes the book's ostensible themes about living with the environment. But Kingsolver also quipped that she had to set the book in the rural South, not in a city, because then Dellarobia's name would be less powerful... she said that the only ingredients local / native to cities that people could use to make a wreath were discarded needles. It was a callous take

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Yeah tbh I could feel her bias against cities even in demon copperhead, this confirms it lol

[@bardsandbooks]

So sad to hear that Otherland is going downhill. I picked up the first 2 books and Tad Williams is an author that is on my list for pretty much all his work! That’s largely thanks to you as well 🤘🏽

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It may work for you!

[@CurieBohr]

The shelves behind you look great.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Hey thanks!

[@KFoxtheGreat]

Yeesss, I'm so glad you enjoyed Lathe of Heaven so much. It absolutely blew my mind the first time I read it and was my pathway to reading PK Dick

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It made me wanna read more PKD immediately

[@KFoxtheGreat]

​@@thefantasynuttwork I don't recall if you've read A Scanner Darkly, but it had a similar affect on my brain space. Plus, it has a fantastic movie adaptation

[@thefantasynuttwork]

@@KFoxtheGreat it’s my next one!

[@KFoxtheGreat]

​@@thefantasynuttwork this makes my heart happy

Longtime viewer. I’m currently reading Demon Copperhead. I within a couple hours of the book’s setting, so it’s it weird knowing where most of these places are when she name drops them. I also read Slade House a few years ago but I don’t remember much about it.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It feels very familiar

[@EricMcLuen]

I had to check a couple times for when Lathe was written as it is incredibly relevant today. You can tell it and Dispossessed were written at the end of the Vietnam War due to their social commentary. But they both do read like a thought experiment essay more than a story sometimes which is not a bad thing as she does pose a lot of questions. Have similar feelings on Otherland. The real world stuff was a lot more interesting than the cyberspace scenes that seemed put in because Tad thought it was a neat idea. If you want some nonfiction about drug addiction, Methland. It is about the meth crisis in small town Iowa that goes into how it started and its effects on individuals and communities.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’ll check that out. I also agree, I found the real world sections of Otherland much more compelling than the off the wall VR stuff

[@Patricia-mm2mr]

Jimmy if you need someone to co-lead an existential crisis book club, I'm your gal 😂

[@thefantasynuttwork]

We definitely need this lol

[@danielstares4784]

Image quality looking absolutely crisp

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you, I work hard on it hahah

[@thatguy7331]

Hey! A fellow West Virginian. Are you still living there? Glad you enjoyed Kingsolver. She's a national treasure

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I am not, I moved around 2018

[@readingwithrebeccanicole]

Welp, I'm adding Demon Copperhead to my tbr now. I'd love to see you do a full review for The Golden Compass. I actually thought the story was slow when I read it 😂 but I'd love to hear more of your thoughts

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Maybe I was just in a good mood 🤔😂

[@thiswitchburnsforbooks]

Brother is very good and it’s is in Kindle Unlimited if you have that. Super fast paced shouldn’t take you to long. Excited to hear what you think. 1984 is one of my favorite books of all time probably behind the hobbit. (Haha very different books) and the Orwell estate allowed another author this year to release ‘Julia’ the story of 1984 from her POV planning on reading that in 2024.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Oh I didn’t know about Julia, I wanna read that for sure

[@thiswitchburnsforbooks]

@@thefantasynuttworkoh and Juniper books has a Orwell set that has his essay in it, if you want a cool set with all of his work.

[@Thecatladybooknook_PennyD]

You'll like Brother.... it's a fast read. I read it years ago. Yay The Folding Knife!!!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Hoping I love this one from Parker!

[@akellerhouse83]

Man. You did have a good reading month. I'm VERY interested in the Barbara Kingsolver books. I've seen the Demon Copperhead book everywhere too. I thought my Nov wasn't productive for reading, but I actually read 7 books and some of them were really good. I read A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay, the Matthew Perry memoir, the new Sanderson book, the new Jim Butcher book, Bookshops And Bonedust by Travis Baldree, and Tigana. Oh, and a self-pub witch mystery. So my month was pretty good too!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

The new Butcher book almost got me to start that series

[@akellerhouse83]

@thefantasynuttwork I thought it was pretty good. I think the next one will be excellent. I don't know how much you would like it though...

[@strombolibones]

Dang you called my ass out on this one McNutty but I had every intention of watching the rest later! 28:35

[@thefantasynuttwork]

🤣🤣🤣

[@CNavo.TheNextChapter]

China Miéville is one of those authors i havent read anything by yet. If you have a recommendation where to start with his books, id appreciate it. Sold on The Forever War too. Otherwise sounds like a nice diverse month of reads and glad you had a good b-day reading month. -Cheers

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Perdido for sure! It’s fantastic

[@jeroenadmiraal8714]

Moid has a cool interview with Joe Haldeman

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It’s great!

[@thatsci-firogue]

You'd like Word for World is Forest. A powerful and short piece on colonisation.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It’s probably gonna be my read after Dispossessed

[@thatsci-firogue]

I need to restart Dispossessed. If I remember correctly WfWiF is only 110-120 pages long

[@kurtdoe1]

Glad you read 2 Mitchell books. As I was saying in your previous video, Bone Clocks is maybe the worst place to start reading him because it's the book that ties all his other books together. All of his books are in the same universe and many of the characters are connected through, uh, things I won't spoil here. The point is that there is a progression in publication order that Bone Clocks is the culmination of. The books after still also exist in the same universe under the same rules. Anyway, even though you started where you did, I would recommend beginning at the beginning with "Ghostwritten" and read them in order (tho you can skip Number9Dream, imo it's terrible, but still has all the links).

[@andrewhanson405]

I checked out Otherland series from the library when it was first released but decided against reading it because it seemed too chunky. However, the series has always stayed on my tbr for the past 26 years as one I'll get around to eventually but after your two star review, for the second installment, I think that I have finally come to the conclusion that this is one I'll be passing on.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Tads other stuff is great though!

[@demidrek-heyward]

yeee

[@thefantasynuttwork]

LETS GOOOO

[@micahhall8822]

Can't wait for you to return to Osten Ard. Don't let Other land turn you off!!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It won’t! No worries

[@thatsci-firogue]

You going in expecting to hate a book was exactly my experience with Stoner. Tbf the way it was pitched sounded like the most boring thing imaginable haha In November I read: *Classic* The Yellow Wallpaper / Charlotte Perkins Gilman *Fantasy* Kithamar 2: Blade of Dream - Abraham's one of the Goats of Modern Fantasy imo Witness 1: The God is Not Willing - Not my favourite Malazan book so far. Most of the newer characters took a long time for me to latch onto and i didn't realise a certain aspect about a character i wasn't jiving with at all until I watched an interview with Steven Erikson and already I'm appreciating that character more on now knowing that. I was under the weather while reading the last half so that didn't help. *Sci-Fi* Flowers for Algernon / Daniel Keyes - If it wasn't for Wall of Storms, this would be my book of the month. *Silkpunk* Dandelion Dynasty 2: Wall of Storms - Book of The Month and one of my favourites of the year! I'm currently reading: *Classic* The Three Musketeers / Alexandre Dumas *Fantasy* Liveship Traders 1: Ship of Magic Wars of Light & Shadow 1: Curse of the Mistwraith

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Stacked month!

[@Beyond0Eternity]

If you want to learn more about the opiod epidemic, I highly recommend Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe as it covers the entire history.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you!

[@zkinak2107]

It was really interesting to hear how Demon Copperhead affected you personally. I personally loved how Kingsolver meandered in regards to Demon’s character arc with overcoming addiction. I was so stressed that the book was going to turn into one of those “protagonist meanders and doesn’t grow as a person kind of stories.” Kingsolver showed nonlinear growth with Demon, which I appreciated a lot. I’d love to see you give a dedicated review for this book! I’d highly highly recommend you check out Ruth Ozeki’s “The Book of Form and Emptiness.” The book is told through the perspective of the literal book itself and it presents a narrative of dealing with grief, how to stop living in the past and what living an cluttered life, both spiritually and materialistically looks like and how it can effect the people around you. The use of the unreliable narrator is also really interesting.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

That sounds fascinating!!

[@jasonsouth1652]

If you want to try expanding your empathy like you were saying I would recommend goodnight punpun by inio asano

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’ve had it on my list for a good bit

[@thatsci-firogue]

Who let this old man out of the home? JK Happy belated birthday, Jimmy 🎂

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Thank you!

[@Uppernorwood976]

Northern Lights (Aka The Golden Compass) was the book that made me a reader, along with The Hobbit. The last few chapters blew my mind, and I still think they are beautifully written. It’s also a masterclass in efficient writing in general. I love huge fantasy tomes as much as anyone, but Pullman conveys more story and world building in 300 pages than most authors manage in a 1,500 page trilogy. The second book is even better at this if anything. The Book of Dust sequels are the opposite imo.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’m with you on efficiency

[@hr6280]

If you get a chance to get back into the Culture series from Iain M Banks, please do yourself a favor and pick up Use of Weapons. Its got an interesting sotry structure, its poetic, and the ending is a guuuut punch, since i know you like your dark endings like perdido

[@thefantasynuttwork]

It’s my next culture book and definitely high up on my tbr

[@angelaholmes8888]

Here's what I read in November Back to the prairie by melissa Gilbert memoir Waypoints by sam heugen memoir Holly by Stephen king Practical magic by alice Hoffman The mind series by s.t abby Your a mean one Matthew prince Window shopping by tessa bailey All I want for Christmas by Maggie knox Kulti by Mariana Zapata Cytonic by Brandon Sanderson Savage run by cj box

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Great month!

[@playermartin286]

Did you ever read "small things like these" by Clair Keegan? Short book, about 100 pages, not a word wasted

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I haven’t but I’ll look it up!

[@davidslone2937]

“Imagine a ruin so strange it must never have happened.” I told you the Poisonwood Bible would absolutely knock your dick off. Also, as a fellow Appalachian that grew up in a town where it snowed OxyContin year-round, there are few things that moved me like Demon Copperhead. Cheers and happy holidays, Jimmy! Edit for Orwell: the Road to Wigan Pier explores the horrific living conditions of industrial towns in Europe. I’d highly recommend!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

You have great taste my friend!

[@Karl.Zimmerman]

Since you read more China Mieville and LeGuin, when you get a chance you should read Embassytown, which is not only Mieville's sci-fi book, but is explicitly his hat tip to the influence LeGuin has made on his writing. It's hard for me to objectively look at the Otherland series, since I've read it like five times over the last 25 years or so. I will say, though, that if you approach it as a plot-based or mystery-based story, you're going to be let down. You have to approach it as a character-focused adventure, strap in, and just enjoy watching the bizarre worlds that the deeply-realized characters happen to ping into.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Embassytown is my next Mieville!

[@swisswatermethod1781]

I love the His Dark Materials trilogy. I read it when I was in my mid thirties and found it pretty mature. The themes get darker and pretty affecting the more the series progresses. I’ve had The Lathe of Heaven for ages and haven’t got round to it so you’ve bumped it up the TBR!

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Excellent! Happy reading

[@JaikiratSandhu-yv1oj]

How many people in that top 10 list now ? 20-30 ?

[@thefantasynuttwork]

People obviously have dropped off lol

[@merphynapierreviews]

You baited me into a book video and instead hit me with "Hey guys we're getting older and death is coming" I'm on Bobby's side for this video Let me know when you pick up "Ice" - I just looked it up and it looks really interesting 👀

[@thefantasynuttwork]

You’re welcome but siding with Robert is a point of contention 🤨

[@kah-thurak]

Sadly, my experience with Otherland is that each subsequent book is a little worse than the one before. The premise is great and it carries the first book, but I did not like the ending/resolution at all and the way there is just too long.

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Dang lol

[@andrewkraus9339]

Not this time but I have occasionally skipped to the raffle lol

[@thefantasynuttwork]

Fair play hahaha

[@andrewkraus9339]

@@thefantasynuttwork I usually do go back and watch the rest after I swear

[@Morfeusm]

Pls do a full review of the City and the City. More traction Mieville gets on Booktube the better! Also I only skimmed through video and watched full random picks, I am sorry 😞 Also pls random question if you have time: why do you think Rylan Cahil didn’t work for you and would you give his series a second chance? Thanks and ps I liked the morbid joke at the beginning! Edit: Mitchell is strange. I liked some of his books some others read like pretentious nonsense… Cloud Atlas was on the edge, I liked Bone Clocks but Ghostwritten was utter garbage AKA potential was there but it was rough debut IMO. Number 9 dream was okay. Not sure if I continue with this author though…

[@thefantasynuttwork]

I’m glad someone enjoyed my dark humor hahah. I thought Cahill’s first book was a bit too derivative and I found the writing pretty rough. I actually reread half of book one and still felt the same after a few months. I will probably try book two at some point because I’d like to love this series since there’s a lot of excitement about it

[@Morfeusm]

@@thefantasynuttwork fair enough! I noticed I edited my comment and lost the heart icon lol