Applause is embarrassingly inadequate. Bravo!
The plum tree, that is, the main massing of the original stone-fruit, taken by itself would have displayed a certain ponderous arboreal quality were it possible to have ignored the circumfusion of sweet cold plums that swarmed like an epidemic about its lower branches.
I attempted Lord Foul's Bane a few years back and couldn't finish it; I guess it didn't get any better from where I gave up. Every mention of 'High Lord Kevin' sent me off into giggles anyway.
Now I wish I hadn't taken the Ken Follett to the charity shop. All I have left is bad sex writing.
"Barbee was looking at her teeth. They were even and strong and very white - the sort of teeth with which beautiful women in dentifrice advertisements gnawed bones. It occurred to him that the spectacle of April Bell gnawing a red bone would be infinitely fascinating."
- from Darker Thank You Think. Something on your mind, Jack Williamson?
"Luxuriant hair grew thickly upon the round hill of her pubic mound. Sometimes she liked to imagine it was a forest and she the most diminutive of explorers, wandering through it. He fingers slipped down to the opening of her labyrinth, felt moistness, and lingered. It was an enchanted forest, and silent. Not even birds sang in the branches."
- from around the point when The Iron Dragon's Daughter took a very strange turn.
I was going to quote a bit from 'The Mouser Goes Below' by Fritz Leiber, but the prose isn't really that funny - just the fact of the Mouser witnessing a sado-masochistic lesbian threesome.
On the other hand, don't they also arrange a collision? That at least sounds vaguely plausible (at night and during a snowstorm).
Since the false information is how far away the ground is, I would have thought one glance at the altimeter would foil this dastardly plan.
I'm sure there are a million other things wrong with this scenario, but that seems like the obvious one.
Actually, that's so obvious I'm wondering if they did answer this in the film and I forgot. Die Hard 2 wasn't much fun, I only saw it once.
Vef, aged 17: "I just read this old Chinese saying in this book: "Sit by the riverbank long enough, and you will see the body of your enemy float by." What do you think of that?"
Vef's dad: "There's an old Irish saying. "Eat more potatoes. Before the English come and kill us all.""
Phil @22:
You have ruined John Le Carre for me forever.
Although now I come to think of it, Obi-Wan and Jean-Luc wouldn't make such a bad couple.
Mister Garibaldi
Has his weapon set to stun
He's trawling B5's lower decks
For some Man-Minbari fun
An’ it’s who’ll slash ye this time
Who’ll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Doctor number ten's arrived
From a distant world
He's showing off his Hamlet
To a horde of hungry girls
An’ it’s who’ll slash ye this time
Who’ll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Now Rose is blowing Cybermen
Away with every shot
Martha's down between her legs
And she cares not a jot
An’ it’s who’ll slash ye this time
Who’ll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Peter Petrelli he was there
Sucking up some powers
While brother Nate and sister Claire
Have been in the loo for hours
An’ it’s who’ll slash ye this time
Who’ll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Mister Linderman announced
"It's all going to plan"
While Hiro thrust his weapon
Into each and every man
An’ it’s who’ll slash ye this time
Who’ll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Iron Man and Wolverine
Have cornered Kitty Pryde
She phased through claws and 'pulsor rays
And offered Beast a ride
An’ it’s who’ll slash ye this time
Who’ll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
The Borg have turned up in a cube
They're looking for a date
All resistance is futile
You WILL assimilate
Dave @ 241:
My psychology-grad friend informs me that Chomsky's argument for 'innate grammar' in humans has been debunked by an experiment which got the same results from a computer. That said, I don't have a citation for you and include myself in the category of Things That Should Be Quoted Only At Your Peril.
I don't think anyone's mentioned The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail yet, presumably on grounds of extreme obviousness.
I used to read a lot of espionage history, most of it complete rubbish. Another case where there are books you should probably read - say, Peter Wright's Spycatcher - but never ever take as your starting point.
Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase and Fable. I'm sure much of it is accurate, but many of the entries are either misleading or completely inadequate. IIRC, Terry Pratchett was described as a writer of humorous fantasy whose characters often have unusual names. Not inaccurate, but not terribly helpful either...
Blast it, beaten!
DBratman @ 41
I've been stung by David Day myself. I'll stick to Shippey next time.
The White Goddess by Robert Graves. It's an interesting approach to history but 'fanciful' doesn't begin to cover it.
Can anyone tell me if the CIA World Factbook is generally reliable?
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