Books Galore

A couple weeks ago Sarah and I went to the local Barnes and Noble to pick up some book, because we like books. We weren't planning on getting much while there, just one thing. We left with much more.

Sarah's Picks:


The Night Circus
She had initially dismissed this book because of all the hype that it was receiving. She had since read a sample portion online and decided that she had to get it. She devoured the book in the week after we got it and she loved it. I really don't know much about it's plot, because I intend to read it and I HATE spoilers. I like to go into a book knowing as little as possible.

The Lightning Thief
This novel is easily summarized as Harry Potter but with Greek mythology and stuff. I don't really know much about it. Sarah's started reading it. She doesn't have much to say about it yet. It certainly hasn't grabbed her as well as The Night Circus and Harry Potter have.

Fray
This is a Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic book set in the future, with a new Slayer. I don't know anything about this one, because she hasn't started reading it.

Henry's Picks:


REAMDE
This novel was my first pack and has been really interesting so far. I'm 120ish pages in already and I can't wait to get trough the other 900 or so. I central feature of the book is the fictional MMO of T'Rain, which wasn't just designed to be a compelling game, it has certain, other special features that make it incredibly interesting. There's also a plot separate from the game. Weird, I know.

Starcraft: Ghost -- Spectres
Do you enjoy psychic, sci-fi space assassins? Now, would you enjoy them more if there were even more dark? That's my understanding going into Starcraft: Ghost -- Spectres (Which I had originally thought I should write as Starcraft: Ghost: Spectres. I chose the way Amazon and Blizzard's site has it. The Starcraft wiki has it the double colon way.). I haven't started this book yet, but I will once I finish REAMDE in a couple months. I have a secret love for Starcraft novels. I've read far more than I'd like to admit. This leads me to...


Starcraft Frontline: Volume 3
A collection of short stories in graphic novel format. Again, I love Starcraft, so why not buy a short story collection set in that universe? Exactly.

Gnomes
A coffee table book about the fictional gnomes upon which garden gnomes are based. It also details the garden gnome's many relatives, such as dune gnomes. It's a pretty strange book, but I like much of the artwork, and I have strange affinity for gnomes. One page features gnome boobs, so that was pretty traumatizing.

Time-Traveling Gnomes

I had what may be an awesome idea. It takes place in an alternate history earth where several key points in history went differently and have severely impacted the future. Why did these events happen differently? Because a gnome (like a garden gnome) invented a time machine and accidentally screwed it all up. Now, it's up to your band on gnomes to use the time machine to go back in time and set events straight. Armed with a history book and your diminutive stature, you have to set history right, for better or worse.

The idea first came to me as an gnome-based RPG. I was trying to come up with a good hook for a gnome RPG and was having trouble. The trouble with such small gnomes is that they aren't disposed to grand, heroic acts because of their size.

Speaking into Joan of Arc's ear to guide her to action.

Ensuring Hitler meets his end.

Being the second gunman.

Acting as Einstein's inspiration.

The gnomes can debate and examine these points in history. If they aren't sure that what they've been sent to do is the right thing, they can look for evidence that maybe it is. They can choose not to do it and see what they outcome is. They get to remold the world from these critical points in time, setting new and different events into motion. Changing history.