Third Sentence Thursday - The Mad Goblin

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1) Take the book you are currently reading and open it to a random page. Share the third full sentence on that page. (If there isn’t a third one – like at the end of a chapter or a blank page – you can share the third sentence of the book or just choose another random page.) Feel free to share more than one sentence, if you feel the need to do so.
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence at Words I Write Crazy
4) Visit one or two of the other blogs to check out their third sentences!

"It was a lizardlike reptile with a long slim snakelike body about five and a half feet long." from The Mad Goblin by Philip José Farmer

So far this has been a great adventure story. One of the sequels to A Feast Unknown.

Third Sentence Thursday - Freedom and Virtue

Make your own banner at MyBannerMaker.com!

1) Take the book you are currently reading and open it to a random page. Share the third full sentence on that page. (If there isn’t a third one – like at the end of a chapter or a blank page – you can share the third sentence of the book or just choose another random page.) Feel free to share more than one sentence, if you feel the need to do so.
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence at Words I Write Crazy (follow the link in the image above)
4) Visit one or two of the other blogs to check out their third sentences!

I'm reading some non-fiction this week.

"Frequently, these respective facets seem symbiotic, if not completely compatible, yet on occasion these two perspectives appear distinct, separate, and irreconcilable." Freedom and Virtue page 79 (near the beginning of an essay by John P. East)

This sentence comes form John P. East's essay "Conservatism and Libertarianism: Vital Complements." It seems to capture that at first glance, especially to an outsider, the two philosophies may seem very similar. However, when one digs deeper many very incompatible opinions quickly surface.

Third Sentence Thursday - Underground Warfare 1914-1918

1. Take the book you are currently reading and open it to a random page. Share the third full sentence on that page. (If there isn’t a third one – like at the end of a chapter or a blank page – you can share the third sentence of the book or just choose another random page.) Feel free to share more than one sentence, if you feel the need to do so.
2. Share your thoughts on the sentence (or sentences).
3. Post a link on Proud Book Nerd's Third Sentence for the week by clicking on the image above.
4. Visit one or two of the other blogs to check out their third sentence(s).

"He also asked that new units be recruited from the class of 1915, which need not be trained in the full range of field engineering, but only in sapping and mining." (from Underground Warfare 1914-1918 by Simon Jones (p.36)

Both sides were unprepared for the type of war that would develop. Little training had been given to sapping and mining in the years prior to the Great War, is was assumed that it would be a war of mobility. It quickly became apparent that the old skills would still be needed, and by the end of the war they would be greatly refined and many new developments in underground warfare would take place. French General Foch realized the need for sappers and made this request regarding the class of 1915.

Third Sentence Thursday - The Red Baron

1. Take the book you are currently reading and open it to a random page. Share the third full sentence on that page. (If there isn’t a third one – like at the end of a chapter or a blank page – you can share the third sentence of the book or just choose another random page.) Feel free to share more than one sentence, if you feel the need to do so.
2. Share your thoughts on the sentence (or sentences).
3. Post a link on Proud Book Nerd's Third Sentence for the week by clicking on the image above.
4. Visit one or two of the other blogs to check out their third sentence(s).

"Therefore, it never occurred to me to become a pilot." (from The Red Baron by Manfred von Richtofen (p.63)

An interesting quote from the greatest fighter ace of the First World War. Of course in context it was early in the war, he was recently transferred from the cavalry to become an observer in a two-seater aircraft. At that point he felt that in the time it would take him to train to become a pilot the war would be over.

Third Sentence Thursday - Tarzan at Earth's Core

1. Take the book you are currently reading, and share the third sentence in the first chapter (NOT the preface, preamble, introduction, etc. – Chapter 1). Feel free to share more (maybe the first three, the second through fourth, or the third plus the two following) if you’d prefer.
2. Share your thoughts on the sentence (or sentences).
3. Post a link on Proud Book Nerd's Third Sentence for the week by clicking on the image above.
4. Visit one or two of the other blogs to check out their third sentence(s).

"You could have smelled nothing but the mustiness of decaying vegetation, which blended with the aroma of growing things." (from Tarzan at Earth's Core by Edgar Rice Burroughs)

Sounds like Tarzan is at home in the jungle. It turns out he is in Africa about to be approached by an American who offers him a chance to take a journey to Earth's core.

In this book Burroughs crosses over his popular Tarzan series with his Pellucidar stories. Should be quite an adventure.

Third Sentence Thursday - The Myth of the Great War

1. Take the book you are currently reading and post the third sentence of the third chapter. Feel free to share one or two of the following sentences, if you’d like.
2. Share your thoughts on the sentence (or sentences).
3. Post a link on Proud Book Nerd's Third Sentence for the week by clicking on the image above.
4. Visit one or two of the other blogs to check out their third sentence(s).

"The Russians had declared a preparatory or intermediate step toward completing mobilization on the twenty-sixth, followed by an order for a general mobilization on the twenty-ninth, which was canceled and then approved on the thirtieth." (from The Myth of the Great War by John Mosier)

I started this one today, I've read too much fiction that last couple weeks, back into World War One. The Russians seem to have fumbled a bit in their reaction to Austro-Hungary's partial mobilization against Serbia.

Russia wanted to intimidate Austria in an attempt to limit the Empire's vengeance against Serbia. They had trouble with a partial mobilization since their plans and time tables were geared for full mobilization. They didn't want to antagonize Germany, but the Germans were itching for a fight.

Not long after most of Europe was at war. A war that would draw in much of the world including Japan and the United States.

(image from Amazon.com)

Third Sentence Thrusday - The Divide

"Centered between the olive drab of the Honda halftracks and Mitsubishi combat cars was the shine of a Toyota limousine, yellow CNC pennants snapping at the fendertips." (from The Divide by William Overgard)

Sounds like the Japanese military is on the move. Someone important, like a general, given the Toyota limo with the pennants.

Of course, looking at the cover these vehicles are probably moving somewhere across the western United States. I wonder what they are up to and how the Germans and American resistance will respond.

(image from Amazon.com)

Third Sentence Thursday #12

"I was conceived and born in 1888." (from A Feast Unknown by Philip José Farmer)

This was the third sentence in the Foreword. It was part of the first person narration of the main character, Lord Grandrith. Normally when I hear the year 1888 my mind jumps to one thing. Despite all of the events that took place in 1888; The founding of the National Geographic Society, the Washington Monument opening to the public, Susan B. Anthony organizing a Congress for Women's Rights, George Eastman's patent on a camera that uses film rolls, the crowing of Wilhelm II as the Emperor of Germany, and countless other events of that year.

No, the first thing I think of hearing 1888 is Jack the Ripper.

This time my instincts would be right. The fourth sentence of the Foreword is: "Jack the Ripper was my father."

(image from Amazon.com)

Third Sentence Thrusday #11

"So far as I can recollect I have always been a man, a man of about thirty." A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs

These is more to John Carter than just astrally projecting to Mars/Barsoom. He doesn't seem to age and doesn't remember his childhood. This could possibly be influence from Edwin Lester Arnold's Phra the Phoenician, another un-aging character.

Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #10

"But on Earth and on other planets of the pocket universes, the hills, mountains, valleys, plains, the rivers, lakes, and seas, seldom altered." (The Lavalite World" by Philip José Farmer)

Sounds like they are on a world with an evershifting landscape. Given that the book is called the Lavalite World it brings images of clumps of matter shifting, breaking off, and merging back with each other just like a lava lamp.

Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #9

"This was when soldiers were the most vulnerable, and the tightly packed men in each of the dozen assorted craft knew that a hit anywhere would impact on something soft, meaty, and human." (Red Inferno: 1945 by Robert Conroy)

This sentence pretty much sets the tone for the whole tone of the book. Despite the anxiety the men feel in this opening chapter of the book they cross the river without incident. However the rest of the book is filled with the horrors of war as the Soviet Union attacks the United States in the last days of the war to destroy Nazi Germany.



Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #8

"This statement requires elucidation." (Armageddon - 2419 A.D. by Philip Francis Nowlan)

Well I suppose that this statement may indeed need elucidation. Elucidation means to make something clear. That takes care of the meaning of the above sentence. In context of the story it is Anthony Rogers attempt to clarify his unique position in history. Being a man born in the 19th century, fighting in the Great War in the 20th and finally coming out of suspended animation in the 25th century.

This book is the original story that started the future 'Buck' Rogers; the source of all future Buck Rogers stories and inspiration for other characters like Flash Gordon.


Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #7

"For us in England it came too late." (The Battle of Dorking by G.T. Chesney)

Something for the people in England came too late. Dorking is a city in southern England. The warning must be of foreign invasion. Question is wether it is the French, Russians, Germans, or Martians that are invading.

This story has been collected with other examples of 'Invasion Literature' in a book called Before Armageddon.

Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thrusday #6

"Corn cakes, fried ham and eggs were heaped on plates before them." (Squadron of the Scorpion by Robert J. Hogan)

Breakfast time for G-8 & his men. Looks like they'll have a little time to socialize before the next fiendish plot is unleashed by the Kaiser's scientists.

(image from www.vintagelibrary.com)


Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #5

"He stood before what appeared to be the station's sole permanent building - a weathered structure that presumably at some dim time had served as a railroad storehouse" (The Blue Max by Jack D. Hunter)

'He' is Bruno Stachel, a German aviator arriving at his first assignment. The station has one permanent building which means there are numerous temporary structures scattered about the area. While the area may have once been a bustling railway station it now serves a much different purpose.

I just finished up this book last night. I really liked it. While very different from the movie there were eerie similarities. While I still like the film the novel is much better (which I suppose is nearly always the case).



Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #4

It's Thursday! That meens it's time for:




Here is the third sentence from a book I read a couple of months ago. My current book reading speed will still be a little slow for the next couple of weeks.

“Robert Wolff knew that there could be no horn or man blowing upon it behind the sliding doors.” (The Maker of Universes by Philip José Farmer)

Wolff hears something that can’t possibly be real in a confined space behind some sliding doors. What is the true source of the sound and will Wolff open the doors to find out?

Of course he does open the doors and his life will change forever as a result. This is where the whole World of Tiers series began. I’m so far into it I’ve nearly forgotten about Robert Wolf, the character Kickaha becomes the primary protagonist by the third book. In fact Kickaha steals the show in the scenes he has in The Maker of Universes.

Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #3

Another review of the third sentence of a novel.  To-day is...






"The whaling ship was on its last, its vertical, voyage."  (The Wind Whales of Ishmael by Philip José Farmer)

Looks like this book is starting off with a ship sinking.  Not a bad start, and to be expected from 'science fiction's incredible sequel to Moby Dick.'  Only poor Ishmael survives to witness the sinking of the Pequod but his adventures appear to only be begining.

Book cover illustration by Bob Habberfield

Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #2

This week the third sentence from a history book I've been reading at the gym:

"If the boy from Fife feared at that moment that he might miss the action, however, his anxiety was unjustified." (The Pity of War by Niall Ferguson)

 This 'boy from Fife' was in a hurry to enlist at the beginning of the Great War.  It was believed by many that the war would be over by Christmas.  The boy turns out to be the author's own grandfather who served and was wounded a couple of times.  This sentence is important in setting the tone for this book which re-evaluates the causes and other myths of World War I.



Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Third Sentence Thursday #1

Be sure to go over to Sniffly Kitty's blog and check out other Third Sentences.Over at Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books blog there is the 'Third Sentence Thursday' meme. It seemed like a fun thing to try out. The basic concept is to take the third sentence from a book you are currently reading and give a review of it.

"Weeds, even bushes, sprouted from the cracks, but the freeway was still the best route south from the Valley."

(The Valley-Westside War by Harry Turtledove)

Something terrible has obviously happened a number of years ago. When I read freeway I picture a modern road, however this one is in poor repair and even has bushes growing out of cracks and potholes. The 'Valley' brings to mind Los Angeles. Something terrible has happened.

(130 years ago, in 1967, a nuclear war between the Soviet Union and the United States broke out. That was the backstory for this world.)



Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.