#Endless Tower

[vestaignis]

Бесконечная башня из книг Idiom от Матея Крена (Matej Kren).

В современное время люди все меньше времени уделяют чтению, - это общемировая проблема. Многие века именно книги были главным источников знаний и мудрости в мире. Сейчас эта функция все больше отходит к Интернету, но все равно лишь малая часть печатной продукции, созданной за сотни лет, имеет свой оцифрованный вариант. Впрочем, последнее не очень волнует массовое сознание – все больше людей пользуется Всемирной Сетью и все меньше библиотекой.

Обеспокоены этой тенденцией и в городской библиотеке Праги (Чехия),одном из крупнейших книгохранилищ Центральной Европы. чтобы популяризовать этот процесс, в Пражской городской библиотеке и была создана инсталляция из книг с названием Idiom. Автором ее стал словацкий художник Матей Крен (Matej Kren).

Инсталляция эта представляет собой башню, сделанную из (примерно) восьми тысяч книг на разных языках. При этом, они не приклеены, а просто стоят друг на друге. В боку этого сооружения есть специальное «окно», куда может заглянуть любой желающий. Если человек заглянет внутрь башни, куда бы он ни посмотрел, вверх или вниз, увидит бесконечный столб книг. Дело в том, что в основание и в потолок инсталляции Idiom встроены круглые зеркала. Они и создают такой эффект.

Смысл этого послания понять легко – книги дают нам бесконечное количество знаний. А посетители этой инсталляции говорят, что появляется ощущение, как у входа в другую вселенную.

The endless tower of books Idiom by Matej Kren.

Nowadays, people spend less and less time reading - this is a global problem. For many centuries, books were the main source of knowledge and wisdom in the world. Now this function is increasingly moving to the Internet, but still only a small part of the printed products created over hundreds of years has its own digitized version. However, the latter does not really worry the mass consciousness - more and more people use the World Wide Web and less and less the library.

The city library of Prague (Czech Republic), one of the largest book depositories in Central Europe, is also concerned about this trend. To popularize this process, an installation of books called Idiom was created in the Prague City Library. Its author was the Slovak artist Matej Kren.

This installation is a tower made of (approximately) eight thousand books in different languages. Moreover, they are not glued, but simply stand on top of each other. There is a special “window” on the side of this structure, where anyone can look. If a person looks inside the tower, no matter where he looks, up or down, he will see an endless column of books. The thing is that round mirrors are built into the base and ceiling of the Idiom installation. They create this effect.

The meaning of this message is easy to understand – books give us an infinite amount of knowledge. And visitors to this installation say that they feel like they are at the entrance to another universe.

Источник://kulturologia.ru/blogs/281211/15931/, /pikabu.ru/story knizhnyiy_stolb_v_prage_1442853,//vk.com/wall-935223_50287, /prohodimcy.livejournal.com/3190726.html,//www.tripadvisor.ru/Attraction_Review-g274707-d10522920-Reviews-Municipal_ Library_ Of _ Prague-Prague_Bohemia.html.

[daigfe]

Hey, it's my original Cristal artwork from 2021, the year Endless Tower released. You know, Endless Tower, my game, the one she's the main character of and the one you can download right now for free on Windows PCs clicking this link

[sandrathachao]

NOT SURE HOW TUMBLR HANDLES BIG FILES, BUT LET’S TRY IT. (usually it shrinks, and i will cry if it does)

I originally started with the last panel as a single drawing, but i couldnt help myself and just kept going with it. drawing these stupid characters are just too much fun. :D I have near to none experience when it comes to comics, so please forgive my weird story telling. xD I imagine this takes place just before the 4th boss.

(if it’s hard to read, what Fake Peppino says in the last panel is ¨It’s me! Peppino! Just like you! Don’t you love it?¨)

[marclef]

Wait, so the frog is capable of gaining weight? (Asking for scientific purposes, not to hurt our Fakie's feelings!)

ah, some more learning about Fake Biology today! ✨✨

in a sense, yes, Fakey is able to gain weight! the way he works is different though: everything that gets eaten/absorbed is directly converted into more of the Goop that makes up his body. so say, a 5 pound chicken, that amounts to 5 pounds worth of Goop added to him. (minus potential things that can't be absorbed, such as bones.)

but here's where it gets interesting; since everything's getting absorbed in the "stomach" area, it leads to all new Goop being formed there, and it only moves to the rest of his body if he allows it to. this can lead to problems, though... if for instance, Fakey were to go out on a day of binge-eating, he'd end up quite bloated unless he's got the strength to properly distribute his new mass. and considering most of the time when he's eaten a lot he ends up sluggish and tired... he usually ends up staying like that for a bit.

... but hey! at least after a bit he'll be able to turn back to normal, once his body burns all that excess new weight off.

however...... on the off-chance that he DOES have the strength to shift that weight properly throughout his body, well, that's a different story. either because he wants to eat more and not feel bloated, or just doesn't want to lie around all day... it's a lot rarer than the former case, but if it DOES happen...

it's a slightly, erm... big problem.

[knockknockitsnickels]

Thinking about parallels between Ms. Beast and Tower. They're both the result of choosing to fight the princess and losing (no-knife and knife routes respectively), both have similarly boastful personalities and see you as beneath them (prey and a pet).

Something about how one becomes an animal and the other becomes a god, yet both transformations are equally dehumanizing.

[writing-for-life]

Dream and Death (The Tower)—J Paul Schiek

Full Source:

[shentheauthor]

Ploo’d my iterator ocs LMAO

[horsemeatluvr23]

every hermitcraft season the men find new ways to fight over who can build the biggest tower... when will it end

[anghraine]

One of the more peculiar things about my current academic existence is that it's like—

me (to my best friend): It feels kind of strange that I've always had so many ties to people who are much more literary than me. There are all these people I know who keep ending up at "I discovered True Art and now I'm too good for Star Wars" and I'm just thinking, "damn, couldn't be me."

best friend: ...you have a PhD in literature.

me: True, but not their kind of literature!

best friend: It's still a PhD in literature. Do these people have that?

me: Well, hmm, maybe not, technically. But I've never been all that interested in major experiments with form and style—doing that stuff myself or reading the kind of literature that focuses on pushing those boundaries. I've always cared more about popular literature that prioritizes immersion and world building and just getting people to care a lot about characters and plot and such, not the really prestigious stuff.

best friend: You literally teach Shakespeare.

me: Well, I decided not to study the things I love most so they didn't get tainted by academia. And anyway, I still focused on popular literature from my eras. The seventeenth-century stuff I was writing about made a lot of the late Victorians very angry because they thought it was crude and cravenly appealing to unrefined common tastes instead of True Art. The novel in Austen's lifetime was even more of a low-prestige popular form at the time, especially the female-dominated genres, which were most of them, and she took care to identify herself as a woman.

best friend: I know you did get into academia through Tolkien and then didn't study anything close to that.

me: I couldn't let them ruin him for me! And besides, I know that Shakespeare and Austen are about as prestigious as it gets now, but for me they've still got that pop culture media energy, you know? Though sometimes when people make sweeping pronouncements about artistry and literature that don't make sense for anything in English published before 1700, I have to fight the temptation to be ... that person.

best friend, laughing: You mean pulling a well akshually? At least you have the credentials. You could even do it like "well actually, *obnoxious cough* as someone with a PhD in this subject..." now. You spent years earning this! Tell a few people Well Actually as a treat and then go watch Star Wars.

[velvetjune]

I love the change of the subway station repeating endlessly after Alan completes the ritual and parliament tower appears

I also went through the map immediately after taking those photos lol

[worlds-of-imaginations]

Endless Journey (1)

(Eng) The beginning of a great journey somewhere in alternative reality…

(PL) Początek wielkiej podróży gdzieś daleko w rzeczywistości równoległej…

[gamesline]

As a return to normalcy, after all the predestination and sexy lethal company monsters and youtube recommendations, John Michonski @servbot42 treats us to a nice, chill list of favs, as well as some accompanying tracks from each that he liked.

[sonnet-of-anarchy]

“Chess, symbolism, that’s why they picked it”-

Yeah yeah yeah. But, just for funzies, I wonder what Robin & Julian’s thing would be if it wasn’t chess? Monopoly? Jenga? Sodding battleships?

I’m just imagining some AU where they’re the ‘drafts dads’ or the ‘scrabble sillies’, maybe even the ‘Ludo lovers’?

[lilareviewsbooks]

More Short SFF Books!

Guys! Thank you so much for the love on my post on short SFF books! It was a lot for a tiny little blog like me lmao, and it made me feel very appreciated - thank you, again! 

I thought that because of all that love, this deserved a second edition. So, since short SFF is definitely my specialty, and I won't stop reading these novellas any time soon, here's some other SFF short books I think might be worth your time!

Also, check out part one of this list if you’d like some more books in this vein :)

The Monk and Robot Duology, starting with A Psalm For The Wild-Built, by Becky Chambers

152 to 160 pages

duology (so far!! I'm hoping and praying, Ms. Chambers!)

queer rep of all kinds, but our protagonist is non-binary! 

If you know me, then it's a surprise this didn't make it into the first edition of this list. I love Monk and Robot! They're My Favorite Books, so rest assured that they come very highly recommended!

This one follows Sibling Dex, a disciple of Allae, the god of small comforts, as they decide to change the course of their professional life and become a travelling tea monk. Along the way, they meet Mosscap, a very friendly robot, with one question - "what do humans need?" There's just one problem: robots have been living in the wild for generations, and they haven't interacted with humans since they gained consciousness. Can Sibling Dex handle this responsibility?

I hardly have the words to describe this one. This is a sci-fi, I guess, but it feels like a fantasy -- it's just so atmospheric and draws you into this utopian and equitable world full of nature and community. Monk and Robot really emphasizes the best parts of life, the best parts of humanity. It will warm your heart because you will see your life in it - in all it's smallness and its gorgeousness. It's perfect if you want something that's short, sweet, and with a conflict that doesn't span the whole entire world, but is focused instead on two people - or, I guess, on one person and a robot. 

Mandatory reading for everyone! Get your hands on a copy, you won't regret it!

Our Lady of Endless Worlds Duology, starting with Sisters of the Vast Black, by Lina Rather

176 to 192 pages

duology

sapphic rep

We're staying on theme here, with another religious-y pick. I give you: Sisters of the Vast Black! This one is about nuns! In space!

Some time into the future, the Catholic Church is alive and well. The sisters of the Order of Saint Rita live on their (get this) living ship, a gigantic animal they use to navigate between space stations and planets. I think this one is worth it just for that concept, I fell in love with it!

This book follows the Sisters as they receive a distress call from a colony, and find out that the Church's means might be more nefarious than they seem. But, mostly, it's about the sisters themselves, as they grapple with their faith, the ever-changing universe and the questionable morality of the Church. 

I loved this one! Not only are the characters very compelling, the setting is just so cool. This concept of the living space ship is so fucking neat, and the duology gets down to the nitty-gritty of it. Not to mention, the idea of religion, and contemporary religion in particular, surviving mostly unchanged into the future is so interesting! I don't know if it's me being nerdy, but I just found the concept here so, so compelling, I couldn't resist bringing these books home with me!

The Seventh Perfection, by Daniel Polansky

176 pages

standalone

I don't remember it being queer, but I could be wrong??

I guess this is also kind of religious in a way lmao. The Seventh Perfection follows Manet as she searches for someone for the God-King, who runs the kingdom she lives in, using her perfect dominion over the seven perfections to help her.

The unique thing about this book, though, is how the story is told. Instead of following Manet's perspective as she goes through her city, interviewing people, we only see one side of her dialogue. As Manet speaks to a shopkeeper, for example, we are only treated to his answers. In this manner, its up to the reader to put some pieces together.

Although it is nothing too complicated, - especially for veterans of books such as The Locked Tomb or fantasy behemoths like A Song of Ice and Fire, with their crazy amount of characters - the structure is pretty unique. Like Esme N pointed out in her Good Reads review of this one, it kind of reads as if you're a POV character in a videogame, going NPC to NPC. I'd say this one is for the anyone who likes different approaches to stories in SFF, and enjoys being a little bit confused!

Elder Race, by Adrian Tchaikovsky 

201 pages

standalone

no queer rep that I remember, either

Elder Race is an interesting one, as well. This one is definitely for fans of books with almost anthropological approaches to culture, such as The Left Hand of Darkness and A Memory Called Empire. Elder Nyr is a scientist, sent to another planet in order to explore it, who lives in his space ship. Except that, for the locals, that space ship is a giant tower, and Nyr is its mysterious sorceror of legend. Now, Lynesse comes to search for him so that he can help her deal with the threat of demon.

The result of the interaction between Lynesse and Nyr, and the fact that each of them have POV chapters, means that this reads as almost two separate books. One of them is a sci-fi, and that's Nyr's perspective, who is from a society with very high-end technology, and sees all problems as matters of science. Meanwhile, Lynesse sees everything as magical, so hers reads almost like a fantasy. It makes for such an interesting experience!

I think about this book constantly, and have been wanting to reread it for ages. I quite liked this particular approach, not to mention the concept! Plus, I love books that go deep into culture like this one. And, of course, it's from prolific and famous author Adrian Tchaikovsky, who wrote the Children of Time series, and although I haven't read the rest of his work, I've heard this is a good starting off point in case you want to get into his other books.

Princess Floralinda And The Forty-Flight Tower, by Tasmyn Muir

146 pages

standalone

non-binary rep

I'm always singing Ms. Muir praise, and that's for a reason! This one follows Princess Floralinda, who is locked up in a (guess!) forty-flight tower by an evil witch. She has placed one monster at every floor, and no prince has managed to get through the first one, let alone trudge up the stairs to rescue Floralinda.

With impeccable sense of humor, which is a trademark of Ms. Muir's fiction, we follow Floralinda's plight as she waits for someone to come rescue her - and then eventually notices no-one might be coming, after all. Her character development is astounding, and it's so satisfying to follow her. It's also just so impressive that so much can be packed into so little pages when it comes to her arc. 

And I forgot to mention - there's a fun fairy character who will help Floralinda on her way! I think it's worth reading just for that!

[satriaproto]

Only in TDX, Endless Mode is pure chaos!

[dinolich]

HELLO— Next Thursday I'll be chatting with ROB RENZETTI!! About the second book in his series The Twisted Tower of Endless Torment in a virtual event hosted by Malaprop! RSVP to attend 👇 https://www.malaprops.com/event/virtual-twisted-tower-endless-torment-rob-renzetti-conversation-moss-lawton