Friday, September 27, 2013

Conan the Valorous


Looks pretty cheesy right? I picked up this Conan book at the library almost as a joke, but figured…what the heck. I might as well give it a try.

I was more than a little surprised at how well written and thought out the plot of this novel was. Wow. This read about a “barbarian” tromping through a world of chaotic magicians, sorcerers, and gods also had some really down to earth moments. It actually made me question some of my preconceptions about honor, doing the right thing, and what it means to be an individual in a world that doesn’t always make sense. Conan was actually a pretty three-dimensional character in this book and not the flat “Arnold” you might have seen onscreen.

I did this post as part of the Armchair Squid’s monthly book “meet up.” What were some of the best books you encountered this month? What’s on your “must-read” list?

20 comments:

  1. I'll have to see if it's available as an eBook.

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  2. Nice to be surprised by a book like that!

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  3. I learned quite a lot about Conan during my A-Z project this year. The guy's been around a long time! First appearance: 1932.

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    1. Yeah, the original author had a pretty unusual life, but thankfully he wrote plenty of stuff down:)

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  4. My ex-husband had all the older Conan books and I did read a few. Surprisingly, yes, he's a much more complex character than many people realize.

    I guess this month the best book I've read/am reading is "The Time Machine" by H.G. Wells. Yay, classics!

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  5. Pretty nice surprise that it ended up being so good!

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    1. Yeah, I find it nice to be proven wrong sometimes:)

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  6. I love stumbling upon unexpected treasures like this. Thanks for sharing!

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  7. The original stories are all pretty good, and incredibly imaginative. One of the classics of fantasy fiction.

    mood

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    1. I've totally been meaning to read those, guess I better now:)

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  8. I'll have to read it! Thanks so much for reviewing it! :)
    -Michelle

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  9. Haven't read any Conan yet, but I'm a big fan of pulp. I should try it out. Currently reading WOOL, and it's good stuff!

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    1. I'll have to checkout _Wool_, but I think you'd dig Conan:)

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  10. Yeah, I would have expected a somewhat laughable read as well. But now I am going to add this to my TBR list :)

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