A Game of Thrones

George R. R. Martin's Official Website

A Game of Thrones is the first book in a series by George R. R. Martin. I loaned my copy to my dad for him to read, months ago. I asked him about it recently and even chided him ever so slightly, and he said the book was too "hard" for him.

Ok, well, my dad got a BS in biology and his MS in Environmental Engineering. So, he's not dumb... but geez... too hard? No, it's not.

I told him from the get-go that he needed to get past the first 100 pages, because that's where you are introduced into the world in which things take place. The genre is epic fantasy, though it seems more like a medieval legend than anything else. It's not fireballs from wizards or anything Harry Potterish... it's much more adult than that, much harsher than that.

A character you like, can and will die. Quite a few characters come on the scene and eventually die. Good characters that you like and would want to live. Dead.

But that's the point really. It's an epic fantasy and thus far, it's the best I've seen out there. Though, I heard from a friend that there may be another even better author in some respects, some guy by the name of Bakker I think. I'll read him soon enough.

But back to my dad. I told him to get through the first 100 pages, even I found it somewhat difficult at first but that's only because you are thrown into a new world, and you learn about it as you go. There's nothing in the book, like a forward or whatnot, to give you background or tell you what's up. You learn as you go, that's part of the fun. So you just have to be patient for the first 100 pages and you'll be well rewarded from that point forward.

Anyway, I think he read 11 pages. He's used to silly Clive Cussler novels, ugh, so yeah, it was definitely a different read than that shallow crap. Clive Cussler is the type of book I'd try to get some juvenille who isn't used to reading books as something to start on. I mean, that crap is barely one step above Dick and Jane (and Spot!). Even funnier is that a movie was made from one of his novels, Sahara.

Did you see that movie? Not likely, it was a flop of course. The dumbshit actually advocated to his readers that they boycott the film. Yep. Apparently the movie didn't follow the book closely enough. Umm... Mr. Cussler... most movies adopted from books are no different. That's why people leave theaters and say, "I thought the book was much better," erm... umm... you dumbass. So of course he got sued and he sued them for not following the book closely enough. In the end, guess who paid. Yep.

Anyway, all you out there within the sound of my... blog, err, whatever... get through the first 100 pages before giving up! Don't be like my dad and only read the bible, religious books, and Cussler-like crap. (Bible and religious stuff is, of course, ok... unless it's that crap that says the world is going to end in 1984... no, 1990... no, 2000... etc.)

The series is called A Song of Ice and Fire. The first book, A Game of Thrones, will soon be an HBO movie or something like that. Read it. That is all.