#Machines of Empire

[dreamsatdusk]

Hmm for the ask game how about 1, 2, and 20? And also I see Alexander the Great mentioned in your bio. Can I ask why? :)

Apologies, missed this one earlier! Thank you for the ask!

book you’ve reread the most times?

Probably either The Black Company, by Glen Cook or Ninefox Gambit, by Yoon Ha Lee. I've also ready Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle at least a few times. As a kid, I probably reread The Boxcar Children the most.

2. top 5 books of all time?

I couldn't decide even sort of, so this turned into a selection of favs that I think are rather different from each other.

The Phantom Tollbooth; Norton Juster: Disillusioned kid finds a toy tollbooth setup has appeared in his room, builds it, drives his toy car through...and winds up in The Lands Beyond! It is extremely weird in a very matter of fact sort of way that I adore in books to this day. I was particularly amused by the wordplay and such even as a kid.

Machineries of Empire; Yoon Ha Lee: Okay that's a trilogy and a short story book all together, so I suppose I will say Ninefox Gambit is my favourite of them all, but there's so many key points in the other books too, so! The consciousness of an undead general is installed into the head of a soldier chosen to defend against a rebellion opposed to the dystopian space empire she lives in. It is far far more complex than that little description makes it seem. One of the books where my mind latched on at high speed and very intensely to a particular character (Jedao).

Deathless; Cathrynne Valente: A retelling of The Death of Koschei the Deathless, but set during and after the Russian Revolution. It follows the life of Marya Morevna, Koschei's chosen bride. Another one that is complicated to try to explain, because there is an immense amount going on. I suspect it might be easier to follow if you know at least a bit about the relevant faerie tales and Soviet Union history, but I've heard that even people without that backgound enjoyed it.

The Etched City; K.J. Bishop: Beautiful and utterly bizarre. I'm not sure how to describe the plot. It starts out with two...hmm, friends? war buddies? who are ex-soldiers and on the search for a new home after being on the losing side of a civil war. They resettle in a city with very peculiar stuff going on. Steampunkish in a way. Wikipedia informs me it's considered part of the 'New Weird' genre, so I should look into that and see what else is on that list.

The Lord of the Rings; J.R.R. Tolkien: I really loved LotR when I read it as a child, but then I also got into the History of Middle Earth collection and it's fascinating how much work went into all of it, how much the story (and that of the Silmarilion) changed as they were shaped. And then there's also hilarious things like the proto-versions of the 4 hobbits having a debate about eating dinner on the second floor of a house and throwing the (wooden) plates out into the front yard and never cutting the grasss so you can't see them.... This is all so you needn't bother carrying the dirty dishes DOWN the stairs mind you.

20. what are things you look for in a book?

I tend to be put off by overly simplistic use of language. Not always, but there have been cases where something was really bothering me about a book here or there and I figured out that's what was up.

Characters that interest me. This doesn't mean they have to be 'nice' or 'good' characters, but someone needs to interest me somehow. I've found it a struggle more than once to stay engaged with a book where I get to the point of just not caring what happens to anyone in it. Again, not a hard rule, but one that has recurred more than once.

Vivid descriptions that paint a strong picture in my mind are a delight, but yet again, not a dealbreaker. (One of my favourite authors actually sucks at this*L* I think we were 7 or more books into a series before the narrator of the first 3 books was ever actually described at all?)

Strong worldbuilding, moral complexities, a sense of epicness - all further interests. And I have to admit, I have a soft spot for eccentric military geniuses.

Alexander the Great

Bonus round! Alexander has been one of my historical interests for a long time and I have two shelves of books about him and related topics (e.g., the Successors to his empire, a book about his mother, one about his grandmother, etc.) I'd almost forgotten I put something in profile notes. I think I did so when I was trying to come up with some stuff to mention as interests, like fandoms and such.

In the spirit of the book ask theme, I will recommend A Very Short Introduction to Alexander the Great by Hugh Bowden as, indeed, a good short intro. It's solid and detailed in spite of its brevity, but it also included some information that some older books about Alexander have ignored in my experience, so I found it an enjoyable read even beyond my original objective (which was to find out if it was actually a good intro book to suggest to people who asked).

Thank you!

[fvckuiloveu]

god i love pathetic men

[nicholasmoorethetwittermigrant]

I love the bickering sibling dynamic that MAWS is giving Clark and Kara.

It feels unique to this version of the characters, but I also love it when any Superman adaptation can have that rare character who brings out his petty and agitated side.

[ancientcharm]

Virtual reconstruction of Emperor Hadrian's villa .

By: Virtual World Heritage Laboratory, Indiana University.

The Digital Hadrian's Villa Project.

Stunning

[kokiyoh]

Idk. The concept of Viktor having to drag Jinx out cuz she was blasting music and he couldn’t focus on the glorious evolution was funny to me.

I’ll probably never finish it cuz I’m bad with poses so…enjoy until I’ll find a way to do it? I guess? 🤷‍♀️

[crooked-empire]

The Ink Remonth day 6: instrument

I have been wanting to make something related to this song so for damn long, it feels freeing to finally finish one project.

They all died, so sad :(

Old version:

[sforzesco]

CAESAR AUGUSTUS AND MARCUS LICINIUS CRASSUS

this is about the spolia opima that crassus was robbed of lmao. like, yeah okay octavian could've asked him not to claim it, but nevertheless. a kind of theft happened there.

Fact and Fiction: Crassus, Augustus, and the Spolia Opima, Catherine McPherson

[amalgamasreal]

Japanese Endorsement of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire

The Godzilla Double Feature in 109 Screen X locations in Japan started last night where they were showing Godzilla Minus One and Godzilla X Kong back to back with an intermission, which was a genius move that I need to happen here in the States immediately.

But anyways, the reviews from the Japanese viewers who are seeing GxK for the first time are some of the best I've ever seen (excuse the machine translations):

I don't know about you, but someone telling me "it was a silly movie made by an idiot and it was very good" is a ringing endorsement and would get my butt into a seat faster than anything else. 🤣🤣🤣

[xutxfxrder]

remember when jack was clinging onto the tardis at the end of s3 ? sutekh must have been so confused 😭😭

[goobersplat]

2001 Atlantis Bubble Gum Gumball Machine

[ennislamore]

Earth sign being bewitched by water

Water sign being bewitched by earth

[cid5]

Eighth Route Army fighting on Futuyu Great Wall in Laiyuan, Hebei, China, 1938

[fvckuiloveu]

*patiently waiting for the apocalypse*

[nicholasmoorethetwittermigrant]

Oh. Oh she’s down BAD.

[ancientcharm]

The Colosseum As Never Been Seen Before.

Posted 6 days ago. The most gorgeous 3D work that I’ve seen 🧡

[actualori]

Potentially Joey and Xornoth for a poor deprived soul🤭

from a highschool au created by @devinerot !!!!

vote scosage at @scottsmajorshipbracket !!