Tien'sPetLurg

I relate most to Karata. Loved the idea of Seons. They kind of remind me of being bonded with a spren. I liked a lot about Kiin. Hrathen was interesting too. My favorite villain was the hunger and the pervasive pain. I mean, that is just one of many truths about our own lives Sanderson points out. We can fixate on our flesh and become driven by that and nothing more. Coincidentally, my husband and I were just reading Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl before I read Elantris. Some serious overlap in themes between these 2 books. Nietzsche said it this way: He who has a Why to live for, can bear almost any How

I'm fairly new to the genre. Last year I went through the WoT series. I just hit those books back to back until I finished. (What an intro to the genre, right?! The bar has been set High.) There was a moment when Moghedien's name was pronounced differently and I thought "is this a new character?" With audio, I'm not seeing the spelling so if the way it's said changes, I'm not sure if we are talking about the same Forsaken. (and when you think about it---it's important to know when you're messing with a Forsaken!) :-) I had to remind myself that there was time between each book being published so it's perfectly human to have some differences. I can't feel too critical about things with projects of that scope. There's just a tremendous amount of work involved from so many (most likely unsung) heroes. I appreciate the effort. If you are one who works on these projects, I thank you. You are adding to my joy in this life. The older I get, the more I realize how impossible it is to make everyone happy and how easy it is to make everyone mad. Bonus points to all of us for just trying to do our best. The thing about accents changing on the ship----With the captain, I decided (at the time) it worked because often ship's crews come from all over. My imagination makes a way. I still wonder when I read that several people don't like a particular character, if it's just the way it's being read vs how it's written. Since my first exposure is audio and Then I go get a physical copy, I also wonder how differently traditional readers "cast" the characters. It's like "hey--you don't know my (insert any character name here)----he sounds like this. No you're doing it wrong. He sounds like this!" Are we reading the same book?! haha I will check out Patrick Tull's performances. I'm always looking for something good.

My son has a form of Autism. The label PDD-NOS is alphabet soup and not very descriptive of how he is as a person. I've never read a Sanderson interview. But I'm in the midst of reading Elantris right now. The child who only mutters numbers , Adien, sounds spectrum(ish). As does his sister, Kaise, as she can retain so many facts, learn a gazillion languages and has some issues with her social skills. I have not finished the book so I don't know if much more of this comes out as the story progresses. But the 2 kids show sort of the extreme examples of the spectrum. (My son falls in between these two examples.) Renarin, from the Stormlight Archives, strikes me as having some spectrum qualities but his powers and how the magic of his world affects him has yet to be fully described. Adolin, who doesn't seem to "get" that flirting with other women while on a date is socially unacceptable and can't seem to "figure" out women sounds about like someone who is so lightly touched that he wouldn't quite qualify for a diagnostic label. Many of us who are Autism Adjacent (LOL---family members) show bits of the same qualities. I like to say that my son's DNA collected every quirk in the family tree. As a result, he is a marvel: simultaneously exhausting and awesome. I'm watching for future books about Lift. I've got my eye on her awesomeness. ;-) Sazed did not come across as having autism to me. Once you remember that his metalminds gave him access to an abundance of information and that he is a eunuch, a lot of his personality falls in line with that of a neurotypical Terrisman. The fact that I just wrote neurotypical Terrisman strikes me as hilarious. I mean, it's a Terrisman, which is not exactly the same as human therefore what is the typical nature of their neurology? <- And there is a bit of my quirkiness coming out. :-D As to the description of autism being a difference or a disability, I think it just depends on the extent to which it affects your ability to live independently. For those who live on their own, hold down a job, have a family, etc... it's merely a difference. I do not think it is a disease. It is fundamentally an information processing difference that can result in scattered skills, developmental delays and savant abilities. It's a grab bag: you never know what you will get. Trying to raise a child with the diagnosis to survive in "the wild" is never boring.

I had a tough time with the narration on a book called The Night Circus. The pace of the reading kept changing. It was fairly quick early on and I needed more time to process the scene description so I slowed the voice down, then the performer slowed down and I had to speed him up. It was not a great experience because the device I used to listen didn't make the speed adjustment simple. I also listened to Divergent. My husband and I both thought the narrator's voice was a bit annoying. I continued through the 2nd book in the series and decided not to complete the trilogy. All of these people read well. It's difficult to pinpoint why some narrators are better than others. I cringed during one book and thought it was the narration. Upon further reflection, it was the author. The book became embarrassing in that it tried to be "steamy" and it was ridiculous. I'm relieved Sanderson doesn't bother with that in his tales. It's just not necessary and can have the opposite effect if not done very well. Honestly, there is a little leap I have to make----a moment when I take a deep breath and think "ok" for the sake of the book...keep going... and it's right when a male narrator shifts into a female character's voice. (or vice versa) hahahaha (Most recently--Michael Kramer reading the voice of Syl in The Way of Kings. I got used to it. But at first...there was an eyebrow raised.) As for Sanderson's works on Audio, the reviews for the narration on Warbreaker have been less than enthusiastic. My guess, from the sample I've heard, is the slightly longer breaks between sentences becomes annoying. Not sure as I haven't listened to the entire thing.

LOL - yes! Oui Oui! So French. I'd have to go back, but I think they had a bit of an Irish brogue in the first book. Of course, Lopen is an Aussie. (But I actually love it in his case.) Pattern is a bit like E.T. But, what would a pattern sound like? Tough question. Syl sounds normal enough. Hmmm. It was great to hear Reading and Kramer again---like old friends returning to my headphones. I have no idea how they create and keep track of so many voices. Even though I hear WoT "Matt" occasionally, they managed to have many different voices for this series. I'm impressed at how much originality they have brought to the Stormlight Archives. I would have figured Rock would be a Loial or Thom voice recycled. I think it's fun to say "Jah Keved." (clearly I have an odd definition of Fun) I have had a bad experience with a narrator on an audiobook. Not from this author or genre but when it happens, it can "break" the book. That's a lot of pressure on the narrator and a lot of trust from the writer I guess.

I'm new to the site and tried to see if this is discussed elsewhere. If I missed it, I'm sorry. I've listened to quite a few of Sanderson's works via Audible. Kate Reading and Michael Kramer are dear to me as I listened to them through the entire Wheel of Time series. Sometimes I hear Kramer read a Sanderson character and think, but that's Matrim Cauthon's voice!!! I was trying to decide which book to listen to next and I played some samples. Lots of people recommended Warbreaker to me. I noticed the reviews really complain about the narration for Warbreaker. I will probably just read it in pdf form instead. (I do buy hard copies of the books as well because it's easier to go back and reference things in that format) How does the narration affect your level of enjoyment? I like hearing the names pronounced. Of course, if I don't see the hard copy I have no idea how to spell them. Can you think of times when you dislike a character more because of how it's read rather than how it's written? I have several experiences of that happening! (Stormlight Archive series) The choice used for Pattern---Yikes! It's kind of a running joke around my house. We start speaking in the annoying voice. <- nerd alert We still don't trust Pattern. Maybe we're paranoid or maybe it's the vocal performance. I instantly liked Lift due to the vocal performance. The accent was changed for the sailors from 1 book to the next. That threw me for a loop. I wasn't sure I knew this "new" version of Yalb. Anyway, I'd just like to "hear" some thoughts on narration. Feel free to comment on any of the audiobooks by Sanderson.

I couldn't get my husband into WoT. I think the first book begins with so much detailed description of the surroundings etc that he just could not go any further. It reminded him of talks with my mother. Painful. LOL All he would ever read was political, religious or nonfiction stuff. He was't very happy (shocker!) and I thought he could use an escape. I handed him Steelheart and he devoured it. I handed him Mistborn (The Final Empire) while I was reading The Well of Ascension and he tore through it and was trying to snatch the book I was STILL reading. So we started getting physical copies and audio copies of the books. We sent his daughter the Mistborn trilogy in the hopes that she will read them. (We want to subconsciously implant some of Vin's strength and initiative into her.) We have gifted Steelheart to our comic superhero fan maniac office manager in the hopes he can make the leap in his reading of graphic novels to a "book without pictures." He also needs to see that all of the great origin and super power ideas haven't been done yet. Sanderson keeps them coming! On a recent road trip, our son with special needs heard Rock speak (“No complaining today! You do this thing too much. Do not make me kick you. I do not like kicking....") and laughed. I think it's really good for him to see his parents reading together, enjoying each other, laughing, etc. We have praised Brandon in several FB status messages. We use Sanderson curse words at home which is a major improvement in our lives. So yeah---it's added a lot to our relationship actually. It gives us a common interest to talk about that isn't all about the problems or logistics of our day. Everyone needs some kind of escape. We just have to try not to over-do it.

I enjoyed Spook because he was so sidelined early on. He has an innocence about him. Maybe it's his openness with people? I don't know he just seemed brave- even emotionally. I tend to cheer for the underdog. I also enjoyed Breeze because we see that even very insightful people still have their own issues. Sanderson does an excellent job of crafting complex, rich and realistic characters.

Steelheart was a good, quick read. Last night, I bought Elantris. I was afraid it would be depressing and sad from the description, but it's not. Very good thus far. In fact, I'm not getting things done because I want to keep reading. Oops!

I read the Alloy of Law also. Is the Warbreaker on the site the same as the published version? I'm thinking about going with an audio book to compliment it. I always end up buying a physical copy after the audio version anyway. I like to go back at the end of each book and go through the bits across the top of the chapters again. Until I started reading this author, I'd never had the urge to re-read a work of fiction. Now I'm ruined! Thanks a pile, Sanderson. ;-)

Hi! I finished WoT and loved Brandon's contribution to that series. I read Steelheart, then hopped right into the Mistborn series. I finished that and jumped through Way of Kings and have just finished Words of Radiance. It's raining this week so my cocoon is gone and I'm looking for another book to devour. Which Sanderson book should I consume next? Thanks for the advice. May your life be minimally impacted by crem.