book 6 summary

The Odyssey

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The Odyssey Book 6 Summary

• Meanwhile, Athene enters the city where Odysseus has crash-landed and heads to the bedroom of the beautiful princess Nausikaa.
• Taking the form of the princess' friend, the goddess enters Nausikaa's dream and explains that, while the single life is nice, it's time for her to think about marriage. She urges the princess to go to the streams and wash her wedding linens.
• In the morning, young Nausikaa asks her father to borrow the car—i.e., mule-cart—to take her laundry to the streams.
• When her party gets to the streams, they wash their clothes and play around on the shore.
• Nausikaa is so beautiful that she looks like the goddess Artemis .
• The girls' shouting wakes Odysseus and he gets up to see who it is.
• Did we mention he's naked? (Well, he covers the naughty bits with an olive branch.)
• Everyone scatters at the sight of the big, scary, nearly-naked man. Everyone except Nausikaa, who stays because Athene gives her courage.
• Odysseus considers whether he should fall and hug her knees or use his eloquent speech to convince her that he needs some help.
• They don't call him "cunning" for nothing: Odysseus decides that a big naked man hugging a pretty virgin's knees is probably the wrong way to go, and so he uses his eloquent speech instead.
• He praises her beauty, tells her his situation, and effectively begs for her aid.
• Nausikaa is touched by his story and wants to be of service. She calls her maids out of hiding to help him bathe. (What?)
• Odysseus, always the gentleman, begs to bathe alone—he doesn't want to offend the young girls by letting them see him naked.
• Teehee. If this is what he looked like, we bet a few of those maids would have been glad to volunteer.
• When he's done, he puts on some clothes that the princess gave him and Athene plays up his good looks.
• Now might be a good time to try the knee-hugging approach, because Nausikaa is in l-o-v-e. She tells her maids that she wants a man who looks like Odysseus for a husband.
• The princess gives Odysseus directions to the palace, where he can meet the rest of the Phaiakians.
• Wait a minute… Phaiakians…on the island of Scheria…this sounds familiar. Oh, right, Zeus predicted it.
• She rambles on a bit about her people, who are apparently terrible archers and great at building ships, a particularly juicy tidbit for a stranded man with no possessions who's trying to sail back home to his family.
• Once she's done dropping unintentional hints, the princess tells Odysseus to follow her train of accompanying servant-folk into town and ignore the crude remarks of the seamen they will pass on the way.
• Once they get to town, she says, he should hang out in the garden while she goes inside.
• Then, when the time is right, he should come inside, find her mother the Queen, and hug her knees while he begs for mercy.
• Apparently everything depends on the Queen's opinion. If he can get her on his side, he's all set for hospitality and help in this country.
• Now that Nausikaa has laid out the plans, everyone follows them.
• While Odysseus waits in the gardens, he prays to Athene for luck.
• Athene hears him.

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W hy's T his F unny?

C. Julius Caesar, Gallic War

("Agamemnon", "Hom. Od. 9.1", "denarius")

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Lord of Chaos

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Lord of Chaos (abbreviated LoC ) is the sixth book in The Wheel of Time series. It was published by Tor Books and was released on October 15, 1994. It is 1007 pages long.

• 1 Plot Summary
• 3 Ebook format
• 4 Statistical Analysis

Plot Summary [ ]

Rand al'Thor rules Cairhien and Andor until he is captured by Aes Sedai loyal to Elaida , then freed by Aiel , Asha'man , and others led by Perrin Aybara . The rebel Aes Sedai of Salidar appoint Egwene al'Vere as their new Amyrlin , and she has their forces set off for Tar Valon . Egwene raises Nynaeve al'Meara and Elayne Trakand to Aes Sedai and sends them to Ebou Dar to hunt for the Bowl of the Winds .

Plot Developments [ ]

Rand al'Thor is ruling in both Caemlyn and Cairhien , Traveling back and forth between them. Mazrim Taim arrives, and Rand sets him in charge of his school for men who can channel, whom he names Asha'man ; he has Davram Bashere organize the volunteers who cannot channel into an army.

Rand is approached in Caemlyn by Aes Sedai emissaries from Salidar , accompanied by Min , and in Cairhien by emissaries from Elaida with an escort for honor headed by Gawyn Trakand and his Younglings . There are also Sea Folk ambassadors in both places. Alanna and Verin join the Caemlyn group with girls from the Two Rivers and Rand manages to alienate many who knew him as children. While visiting them, he is bonded without consent by Alanna, who finds she cannot use the bond to compel him.

Egwene discovers her love toward Gawyn while spying in one of his dreams and later by encountering him in the city and secretly meeting in an inn. Gawyn believes that Rand al'Thor killed his mother and sows a special hatred toward Rand, but by loving Egwene he promises her that he won't hurt Rand.

The Aes Sedai in Cairhien offer Rand chests full of gold and jewels thinking they can buy him. Egwene is summoned by the Salidar Aes Sedai, and Rand sends Mat and the Band , with Aviendha, to fetch Elayne and return her to Caemlyn so she could be crowned as well as look after Egwene. Perrin and Loial arrive. Although he distances himself from Aviendha , he keeps Min close, not seeing her love for him.

After one of the Caemlyn group of Aes Sedai is supposedly attacked by a group of Aiel (though with dark eyes), they blame Rand and become hostile. Just then, two more Sisters arrive at Caemlyn, turning the number of the sisters to thirteen.

Terrorized and untrustful, Rand leaves for Cairhien with Min, Perrin and Loial. Shortly afterward, he and Min are captured by the Aes Sedai in Cairhien. They hide him in a chest. After he tries to escape and kills two Warders , they keep him there at all times, taking him out regularly to beat him. He develops claustrophobia, interacts more and more with Lews Therin , and becomes more firm in his emotional detachment and mistrust of Aes Sedai. Lews Therin helps him break the weavings of the Aes Sedai and the chest. When he breaks free, he inadvertently stills several of the Aes Sedai holding him captive. He later makes a number swear allegiance to him.

Mat Cauthon leads his personal army and many of Rand's forces downriver to Tear . He takes pity on an orphan boy named Olver , who accompanies them afterward. When Rand finds out that Egwene went to Salidar he sends Mat and the Band after her, into Altara , with Aviendha . He gives Mat orders to bring back Elayne to take both the Lion Throne and the Sun Throne , and to bring Egwene and Nynaeve, should they need it, and otherwise to protect them. Upon arriving and finding Egwene is Amyrlin, Mat has little to do. He sees that the other Aes Sedai aren't treating her with the proper respect, and makes a show of courtesing, for which Egwene is really glad. When Nynaeve and Elayne leave for Ebou Dar, Mat accompanies them, leaving most of the Band behind. Elayne insists on "testing" his ter'angreal without his permission, so when they arrive he stays with his soldiers in an inn (which was confirmed important by dice rolling in his head).

Perrin Aybara , now Lord of the Two Rivers, leaves with a force of men because he believes Rand needs him. They arrive in Caemlyn and he and Rand catch up; shortly afterward, Rand leaves for Cairhien and takes Perrin with him. Faile 's jealousy of Berelain is reawakened when they meet her in Cairhien. After Rand disappears, Perrin is instrumental in realizing what happened, and leads a force of Aiel, Mayeners , Cairhienin, and Aes Sedai to free him. Perrin finds himself sickened by the carnage of the ensuing battle.

Egwene al'Vere , an honorary Wise One apprentice, and recovering from Lanfear 's attack, is summoned by the Hall of the Tower to become the Amyrlin Seat of the rebel Aes Sedai, and starts the long march to Tar Valon . She took the control over Moghedien 's a'dam . She also arranges the Logain 's escape to allow him to join Rand. Aran'gar , disguised as Halima helps Moghedien to escape, making thus Egwene to worry that it was Logain.

Ebook format [ ]

Main ebook cover

Panoramic version

The Lord of Chaos ebook cover was created by Greg Manchess. It portrays the Battle of Dumai's Wells , including Asha'man and Aiel . The panoramic version also includes Loial (in the green coat), Perrin Aybara , and two wolves.

Statistical Analysis [ ]

Lord of Chaos contains a prologue, 55 chapters, and an epilogue. There are 47 different POVs listed in this book.

• 1 Rand al'Thor
• 3 Egwene al'Vere

Moon Rising

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Moon Rising is the sixth book in the New York Times bestselling series Wings of Fire , as well as the first book of the second arc. The main protagonist is Moonwatcher . The book was officially released in the United States on December 30th, 2014.

Moon Rising follows The Brightest Night and precedes Winter Turning .

• 2 Quote on Back of Hardcover
• 3 Dedication
• 4.1 A Guide to the Dragons of Pyrrhia
• 4.2 Prologue
• 4.3 Part 1: Welcome to Jade Mountain
• 4.4 Part 2: Stay Hidden
• 4.5 Part 3: The Darkness of Dragons
• 4.6 Epilogue
• 8 International Releases
• 9 References

Summary [ ]

Peace has come to Pyrrhia … for now.

The war between the tribes is finally over, and now the dragonets of the prophecy have a plan for lasting peace: Jade Mountain Academy , a school that will gather dragonets from all the tribes and teaches them to live together, perhaps even as friends.

Moonwatcher isn't sure how she feels about school, however. Hidden in the rainforest for most of her life, the young NightWing has an awful secret. She can read minds, and even see the future. Living in a cave with dozens of other dragons is noisy, exhausting and dangerous.

In just a few days, Moon finds herself overwhelmed by her secret powers and bombarded by strange thoughts, including those of a mysterious dragon who might be a terrible enemy. And when someone starts attacking dragons within the academy, Moon has a choice to make: Stay hidden and safe? Or risk everything to save her friends?

Quote on Back of Hardcover [ ]

Moon's head snapped up. This voice — it was unlike anything she'd ever heard before. It sounded crisp and clear like it was talking to her.

I am talking to you.

Another telepath — how was that possible? Moon tried to push back. She imagined reaching out with her talons, trying to grab on to the voice and open up what was happening in the mind behind it.

"Who are you?" Moon demanded. "How are you doing that?"

You really have no idea, the voice mused. Hmm. Let me think about that.

Moon listened, but the voice didn't come back.

Did I imagine it? Maybe I imagined it. But if it was a real mind reader, maybe they could teach me how to use my powers.

Or expose me to everyone.

Dedication [ ]

For all the FanWings and everyone who reads these books — I hope you love the new dragonets as much as I love you guys!

A Guide to the Dragons of Pyrrhia [ ]

The book began with a description of the new school (Jade Mountain Academy) and the winglets. The winglets were groups of dragons attending the school: the Jade Winglet, Gold Winglet, Silver Winglet, Copper Winglet, and Quartz Winglet. Each winglet had seven dragonets in it, one from each tribe. Starflight had updated and edited what was now A Guide to the Dragons of Pyrrhia .

Prologue [ ]

The book began four years before the events of Moon Rising with Moonwatcher's mother, Secretkeeper , who had hidden Moon's egg in the rainforest to keep it safe. She frantically traveled from the NightWing island to get to Moonwatcher before her egg hatched alone. On the way there, she was held up by Farsight and Preyhunter , but managed to excuse herself in time. Not finding her egg immediately, she had sudden doubts and questioned why she ever thought it was a good idea to lie to the tribe. She did not trust the father, who was confirmed to be Morrowseer , and kept it secret from him. Moonwatcher hatched from a silver egg under two full moons and got her name when she tilted her head up to look at the moons. Some time after, Preyhunter called her, but Moonwatcher had to stay hidden. Secretkeeper realized that Moonwatcher could read minds, though she did not believe the old legends at first.

Part 1: Welcome to Jade Mountain [ ]

Moonwatcher was very nervous about going to school. She thought everyone would do something bad to her and hate her if she revealed her powers. Secretkeeper, who was there, spotted three SeaWings , who Moon identifies as Queen Coral with two of her daughters, Anemone and Auklet . Tsunami , greeting them, beamed in delight when seeing Anemone and another SeaWing, Turtle , who was one of Tsunami's thirty-two brothers. Tsunami appeared to be shocked at the fact that she had that many brothers. Anemone was put in the Silver Winglet, and Turtle was put in the Jade Winglet with Moonwatcher. Then Coral left with Auklet, followed by Secretkeeper. Moon went into Jade Mountain Academy, where Fatespeaker greeted her excitedly, commenting on Moon's teardrop eyes scales and how shiny and big they were compared to hers, then asked Moon her name. She repeated the the NightWing's nickname as she looked for Moon's cave on a scroll . She found it, exclaiming, "You're going to love your clawmates." As Moon went to find her cave, she read several minds and wondered how she would cope with other dragon's thoughts constantly bombarding her. She then noticed a scroll rack on the wall and one by the door. The sign above the one above the door said, Free reading! Hope you like them. In her cave, she heard a voice in her mind, who is later revealed to be Darkstalker. Moon shared a cave with Carnelian , a grumpy SkyWing , and a RainWing named Kinkajou who she quickly became friends with. They were both in her winglet, the Jade Winglet, along with Turtle, his clawmate, Umber , a SandWing named Qibli , and an IceWing named Winter . Later, in the library, Moon borrows the scroll The Animus Histories from Starflight and finds out that the mystery voice is Darkstalker.

Part 2: Stay Hidden [ ]

The bracelet that had put Darkstalker into a deep sleep so that he could not wake up broke when the comet came by, six months before the book. He asked Moonwatcher to help him escape and told her that he could see all the possible futures. Moon heard someone yelling, "The SkyWing! She's here to kill us all!" and Starflight immediately told her and Kinkajou to hide because he thought it was Scarlet . Instead, Moon went to the source of the commotion and saw a SkyWing that was not Queen Scarlet. Icicle came up from behind her and saw that it was Peril .

Moon learned that the comet apparently woke Darkstalker from the enchanted slumber and that he had enchanted himself to be immortal, which was how he had stayed alive for 2,000 years. Moon then went to Mightyclaws in the art cave to try to learn more about NightWing powers. Darkstalker then learned that legends about him had been extremely exaggerated, and Moon learned that NightWing powers come from the three moons. Darkstalker asked for Moon to set him free from being trapped underground; he claimed he could not use his animus powers to free himself because he did not want to lose his soul. Due to this fear, he had put all of his power in an object , later revealed to be a scroll. Moon then was struck by a vision of dragons dying in a mysterious fire, which caused her to try to stop Winter, Qibli, Kinkajou, and almost anybody else from going into the history room, but Carnelian was too stubborn to listen and was killed by the explosion. The NightWing named Bigtail also died from the blast, and Tamarin and Moon were injured. Winter became suspicious of Moon, wondering how she knew about the explosion and gave her until the end of the next day to provide him with an explanation of how she knew. Turtle guessed about her powers, and Moon admitted that this was true to Turtle, Qibli, and Kinkajou (Winter had stormed off and so he was not around to hear about her powers). Moon learned that a cactus caused the explosion called dragonflame cactus , which explodes when it comes in contact with fire, something Turtle recognized because it was used for bombing the SeaWings' Summer Palace . Overnight, Moon heard the dreamvisitor conversation again, a weird, ominous voice saying that someone must be killed in Jade Mountain Academy, or there would be consequences.

Part 3: The Darkness of Dragons [ ]

Moon decided to use her mind-reading powers to help find the killer, aided by Qibli. Moon discovered that Onyx wore a stone that could block mind reading. The stone was called skyfire . Both Onyx and Turtle had them, so she was unable to read their minds. When she and Qibli went back to the prey center, someone attempted but failed to kill Icicle by causing a sharp stalactite to fall on her. The malicious IceWing realized that she was the target and that it was Sora , a MudWing assigned to be her clawmate, who tried to kill her and who was the one who caused the explosion. Qibli and Moon rushed to tell Sora that Icicle was aware, and she wanted to kill her. As a result, Sora and her brother Umber fled the academy.

Moon realized that Icicle was the one who dreamt about the strange, evil voice (who happened to be Ex-Queen Scarlet) and that she was going to kill one of the dragonets of destiny. Realizing that Starflight would be her first target because he was the most vulnerable, she and Qibli dashed to the library before Icicle could kill Starflight. Qibli rushed to stop Icicle before she could manage to get away with killing the blinded NightWing, attempting to stab her with his barbed tail, but he got knocked out by the large IceWing. Then Icicle charged at Moon, choked her, and threatened to kill her. Winter suddenly arrived and attempted to get her to release Moon. When Icicle told him he should be helping her because she was trying to save their brother, Winter faltered. However, he smashed his tail across Icicle's head to save Moonwatcher from his older sister, despite his and his tribe's hatred of NightWings. He questioned how Icicle could work with Queen Scarlet when she was the one holding their brother captive in the first place. This caused Icicle to flee to the rainforest in another attempt to kill a dragonet of destiny , Glory . Hailstorm was Winter's older brother, and because of an incident with the SkyWings when they were both looking for scavenger dens , Hailstorm was captured, leaving Winter to hate himself more than anybody else. Winter had suspicions that Hailstorm was killed by the NightWings when they raided the SkyWing arena to save Starflight. Later that day, Moon gave the skyfire to her friends through Turtle with his bracelet, which contained the skyfire stones. Qibli noticed that Winter had left to find his brother, Hailstorm, who Icicle had said was alive. The Jade Winglet followed him. Winter said that he was going back to the Ice Kingdom for Icicle. Qibli deduced that Icicle probably went to the rainforest to kill Glory, and they (except Turtle) decided to go with Winter to stop Icicle, despite his protests. After Moonwatcher delivered the Jade Mountain Prophecy , it ended with Moonwatcher ready to tell Winter about herself and her powers.

Epilogue [ ]

Scarlet was seen with a dreamvisitor and a NightWing tapping something against his talons. Scarlet asked why she was unable to get to her (likely referring to Icicle). The mysterious dragon replied that she must not be asleep, so Scarlet went into Peril's dream. She asked Peril who died today, and Peril said nobody was killed, but several dragons had left Jade Mountain. Scarlet left the dream out of frustration and asked the dragon with her what he was carrying. In response, he held up an ancient scroll in the moonlight that later turned out to be Darkstalker's talisman.

Mistakes [ ]

• IceWings are described as having "silver scales like the moon" [1] even though there are three moons. [2]
• Moon "[felt] the paper-soft brush of thin clouds parting around her dark wings." [3] However, it is physically impossible to feel a cloud.
• Icicle and Winter are mentioned to be standing next to four other IceWing students, [4] even though there are only five IceWings attending Jade Mountain Academy. [5]
• Starflight's eyes were described to be closed when Icicle knocked him out. [6] However, he wears a blindfold at this point of the story, [7] therefore making it impossible to see his eyes.
• Peril told Scarlet that a MudWing and an IceWing were gone. [8] However, two MudWings were gone, Umber and Sora.
• On the back cover of Moon Rising , Turtle is shown in the water.

Gallery [ ]

Click here to see the cover gallery.

References [ ]

• ↑ A Guide to the Dragons of Pyrrhia (updated and edited by Starflight of the NightWings)
• ↑ The Brightest Night , page 237
• ↑ Moon Rising , page 95
• ↑ Moon Rising , page 226
• ↑ Moon Rising , page 273
• ↑ The Brightest Night , page 220
• ↑ Moon Rising , epilogue
• 1 Darkstalker
• 3 Moonwatcher

History of the Peloponnesian War

91 pages • 3 hours read

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Book 6 Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Book 6 summary, summary: “sicilian antiquities” (chapters 1-7).

Thucydides discusses Sicily’s history and Athens’ reasons for wanting to conquer it, which is due to treasure the Athenians have been told will be available to them. The same year the Athenians embark on the Sicilian Expedition (415), the Spartans attack Argive territory, and the Athenians intervene on Argos’ behalf.   

Summary: “Launching of Sicilian Expedition, 415 BC” (Chapters 8-32)

Athens debatessending an expedition to conquer Sicily, in order to expand its territory and influence. Nicias opposes sending the expedition, but most are eager to launch it, Alcibiades in particular. Both Alcibiades and Nicias address the assembly, revealing their personal animosities in the process. After the expedition is approved, hermae (religious statues) throughout the city are disfigured, which the people read as a bad omen for the expedition. Alcibiades’ enemies accuse him of responsibility, but he is nevertheless approved to sail with the Athenian fleet to Sicily. Thucydides records the grandeur of and optimism at the expedition’s launch from Athens.

Summary: “The Debate at Syracuse, 415 BC” (Chapters 33-41)

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Screen Rant

10 great horror & thriller books recommended by stephen king.

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1 Of Stephen King's Darkest Novels Was Supposed To Be A Comedy

Wb's new lord of the rings movie just retconned a controversial peter jackson book change, brendan fraser's the mummy 4 gets an update from director stephen sommers.

• The Great God Pan is deemed one of the best horror stories ever in the English language by Stephen King.
• Invasion of the Body Snatchers remains relevant with themes of fear and identity appreciated by King.
• The Plot is hailed as one of the best novels about writers and writing by King, with high suspense levels.

Stephen King is one of the most acclaimed and prolific horror and thriller authors of all time, and, like the best writers, he is also an insatiable reader who does not hold back on giving recommendations. King’s interests are vast and varied, and over the years, he’s lavished praise on classic novels from bygone eras and contemporary writers just getting started in the book industry. From referencing his favorite books in interviews, providing his thoughts for the blurbs of novels, and even giving shout-outs on his social media, there are many places where readers are likely to discover a recommendation for a great horror or thriller book from King.

Checking out some of the excellent book recommendations by King is a great way for readers to broaden their horizons and discover some works they wouldn’t otherwise have read. For those who love King’s books and are looking for something new, the obvious place to look for recommendations is from the man himself, as he’s been influenced by, thoroughly enjoyed, or even wished he wrote many of these novels. From classic authors who were writing long before King was born to modern writers who grew up reading his work, King recommends many great horror and thriller novels .

10 The Great God Pan (1894)

By arthur machen.

“ One of the best horror stories ever written. Maybe the best in the English language .”

The Great God Pan is a fantasy horror novella by the Welsh writer Arthur Machen that was first published in 1894 and went on to influence everybody from H.P. Lovecraft to Stephen King. A story of sinister woodland rituals, disappearances, and suicides, The Great God Pan was highly controversial when first published but has been recognized as a highly influential work in the horror genre. In an interview on King’s website , he described it as: “ One of the best horror stories ever written. Maybe the best in the English language .”

The Great God Pan was a truly terrifying story written well over one hundred years ago. With a story that started as an experiment on a woman, it soon led to countless mysterious events and deaths that forced readers to confront the cosmic horror of the universe. King stated that his novella N. from his story collection Just After Sunset is " a riff on Arthur Machen's The Great God Pan.... Mine isn't anywhere near [as] good [as the original], but I loved the chance to put neurotic behavior—obsessive/compulsive disorder—together with the idea of a monster-filled macroverse ."

9 Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1955)

By jack finney.

Although it was first released almost 70 years ago, Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney has not lost any of its incredible relevance. Lauded by Stephen King as a story to be “ read and savored for its own satisfactions ” (via Simon and Schuster ), Finney’s sci-fi horror novel had a lot to say about fear of the other, McCarthyism, and Cold War anxieties at the time of its release, but can be just as easily applied to contemporary fears. With a story about people being replaced with emotionless duplicates, Invasion of the Body Snatchers gets to the heart of humanity's psychological anxieties.

It’s no surprise that King has a soft spot for Finney’s novel, as Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ alien invasion story has much in common with King’s book Dreamcatchers . Originally published under the title The Body Snatchers , Finney’s book has been adapted for the screen four times, which showcases the eternal relevance of its story’s themes. A truly fascinating read, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a great classic recommendation from King.

8 The Shrinking Man (1956)

By richard matheson.

Stephen King described American fantasy, horror, and science fiction author Richard Matheson as “ the author who influenced me the most as a writer ” (via New York Times .) With this in mind, it is no surprise that King is a fan of Matheson’s The Shrinking Man , which, much like King’s The Shining , steps right into the heart of the psychological horror genre. While Matheson is responsible for other acclaimed horror works, such as I Am Legend , The Shrinking Man foreshadows much of the work that King would later write.

The Shrinking Man tells a terrifying story about Scott Carey, who, after ingesting a cloud of radioactive spray, finds himself slowly shrinking every day until he starts to waste away. The slow, unnerving horror of The Shrinking Man powerfully deconstructs American masculinity and middle-class fears during the 1950s . King highlighted the importance of The Shrinking Man and Matheson's work in his non-fiction book, Danse Macabre , which is about the horror genre.

7 The Haunting of Hill House (1959)

By shirley jackson.

While Stephen King is always quick to praise great contemporary works when he finds them, he’s also a writer with a great appreciation for the history of horror. For this reason, it is no surprise that King is fond of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House , which he has called one of the finest horror novels of the late 20th century. As one of the best-haunted house stories ever told, Jackson’s novel has been adapted for film numerous times and serves as the basis for Mike Flanagan’s Netflix series, The Haunting of Hill House .

In King’s nonfiction book Danse Macabre , he wrote a lengthy chapter on “Horror Fiction,” in which he praised Jackson’s novel and explained the influence that The Haunting of Hill House has had on the horror genre as a whole. King cited The Haunting of Hill House , along with Henry James’ The Turning of the Skrew, as “ the only two great novels of the supernatural in the last hundred years ” (via Guardian .) King was also a fan of Flanagan’s adaptation and said that although some aspects of the story were revised, he believed “ Shirley Jackson would approve .”

6 Sharp Objects (2006)

By gillian flynn.

Way before American author Gillian Flynn received widespread recognition after the release of her novel Gone Girl , Stephen King had already recommended her debut Sharp Objects in 2006, calling it an “ admirably nasty piece of work ” (via EW ). King took to the story of Camille Preaker, a newspaper journalist who must return to her hometown to report on a series of brutal murders. With plenty of intrigue, mystery, and suspense, Sharp Objects is exactly the kind of book that would connect with a King reader, as it encapsulated a lot of what was great about his writing.

Flynn’s debut novel gained even more exposure after HBO adapted S harp Objects into an eight-part miniseries starring Amy Adams in 2018. It appeared that King had not forgotten the novel even 12 years later, as he tweeted about the show and said, “ Adora's husband Alan gives me the creepy-crawlies .” For a man who came up with some of the scariest stories of all time, stating that something gives King the “ creepy-crawlies ” sure is a big compliment.

5 The Strangler (2007)

By william landay.

American crime novelist William Landay impressed Stephen King with his second novel, The Stranger , which King recommended to his followers on X. King called Landay “ so good he makes my teeth hurt." The Strangler was a mystery thriller set in Boston in 1963, in which a serial killer casts a dark shadow over the Irish-American Daley family. What starts with the suspicious death of a police officer in the line of duty soon reveals itself as a story of betrayal, corruption, and family.

King also had kind words for Landay’s other work and referred to him as the writer best known for Defending Jacob but also praised his debut work, Mission Flats . King’s recommendation came from a reader looking for a different kind of crime novel than what’s normally popular, so King obviously thinks Landay is doing something unique. This signature writing style led King to state that Landay’s writing made him feel “ pure envy .”

4 Life Or Death (2014)

By michael robotham.

The crime thriller Life or Death by Michael Robotham tells the story of Audie Palmer, who spent a decade in prison for armed robbery and has endured beatings, stabbings, and threats at the hands of prison guards and inmates. However, Audie escapes the day before he is supposed to be released, and everybody from the police, FBI, and even high-profile gangsters try to hunt him down. But Audie’s not running away; he’s trying to save a life.

Stephen King gave his recommendation to Life or Death (via Robotham ) as described it as a “ nerve-shredding thriller ” that has “ the heart and soul so often missing from lesser crime and suspense novels .” King said it was a fantastic pageturner that he “ couldn’t stop reading ,” although at the same time, he “ didn't want Audie's story to end .” In a compliment of incredibly high praise from an author of King’s caliber, he described Robotham as “ an absolute master .”

3 You (2014)

By caroline kepnes.

While most people might think of Penn Badgley’s portrayal of Joe Goldberg when they think of You , the popular Netflix thriller was adapted from a novel by Caroline Kepnes. Kepnes's original novel was full of suspense, leading to Stephen King describing it as “hypnotic and scary,” as he recommended (via Better Reading .) As a story of obsession and romance, You was an exciting tale that brought to mind other obsessive literary characters, such as Annie Wilkes, the antagonist of King’s novel Misery , which similarly featured a character who took their infatuation with another person a little bit too far.

Kepnes was ecstatic at hearing that King enjoyed her novel and stated that she was “jumping up and down” and trying to tell the people working in the Beverly Center Mall what happened when she first heard the news. ” They’re looking at me like I’m crazy because it’s one of those places where people don’t get excited and everyone is trying to be cool, and I’m like ecstatic ,” Kepnes said. Kepenes added that King’s work has had a big impact on her, and she highlighted the character of Brady Hartsfield from King’s Bill Hodges trilogy in particular.

2 Fever (2016)

By deon meyer.

To have a book compared by Stephen King himself to one of King's greatest works is an extreme honor, and this was exactly what happened to South African writer Deon Meyer. In 2017, King took to social media to tell his followers that they have “ a nice surprise coming ” and jokingly added, “ no, not Brexit .” as the South African novelist Deon Myer’s latest book Fever was about to be released. King said Fever was reminiscent of his book, The Stand , and compared it to the equally thrilling novel The Passage by Justin Cronin.

Fever is set in South Africa after a deadly virus has swept the country and killed most of the population. A shockingly relevant story released just a few years before the COVID-19 pandemic, Fever explored similar themes to King’s The Stand , which also centered on a deadly pandemic. Told through the eyes of a 13-year-old boy and his father, Fever truly added humanity to its post-apocalyptic story.

1 The Plot (2021)

By jean hanff korelitz.

The Plot is a mystery thriller by the American novelist Jean Hanff Korelitz that Stephen King called “ one of the best novels I’ve ever read about writers and writing ” (via Korelitz .) As a highly psychological and suspenseful book, it made sense that King connected with its story about a once-promising novelist, although the protagonist Jacob Finch Bonner’s life went on a different trajectory and was teaching without having published anything new in years. After one of Bonner’s students dies without completing his masterpiece novel, he can’t help but steal the work for himself.

King finally added that “ the suspense quotient is through the roof."

What follows is a story of deceit, plagiarism, and struggles to hide the truth, which Stephen King called “ insanely readable and terrifying .” King finally added that “ the suspense quotient is through the roof ,” lavishing his influential praise on The Plot . HBO plans to adapt Korelitz's novel into a miniseries, as they had previously done for her book You Should Have Known , which was renamed The Undoing for television.

Sources: Stephen King , Simon and Schuster , New York Times , Guardian , EW , Michael Robotham , Better Reading , Jean Hanff Korelitz

• Stephen King

UbuntuHandbook

News, Tutorials, Howtos for Ubuntu Linux

• Ubuntu 24.04
• Ubuntu PPAs
• Install Ubuntu 24.04

How to Encrypt Your Home Folder in Ubuntu 24.04

This is a step by step beginner’s guide shows how to encrypt your home directory in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS.

As you may know, the new installer in Ubuntu 24.04 only supports encrypting the entire disk. If you want to dual boot Ubuntu with another OS in single disk, there’s no option so far to encrypt only the Ubuntu file-system partition.

In the case, you may choose to encrypt your home folder to keep personal data and files safe.

There’s NO visible difference after encrypted your home directory. You can login just like before, read and write files, run apps and play games. Because, it’s automatically decrypted using your password.

But, if you lost your computer/laptop, then no one can access your files in the home folder, without the login password or the encryption passphrase. Accessing from another operating system will show something like the screenshot below shows you:

Encrypted home is not accessible from other machine or OS

Step 1: Install the encryption tool

Ubuntu installer used to have an option to encrypt home folder, which uses eCryptfs for encryption. However, this option is no longer available in Ubuntu 24.04 installer.

To install the tool, press Ctrl+Alt+T to open up a terminal window and run command:

Step 2: Create a temporary admin account

You need to log out the user account, whose home folder you want to encrypt. And, use another admin account to do the encryption process.

To create a temporary admin account in Ubuntu Desktop, do:

• Open “Settings” from top-right system status menu (aka Quick Settings).
• In “Settings”, navigate to System -> Users
• Next, click Unlock -> Add User …
• Finally, insert a username, enable “Administrator” option, and set password.

For Ubuntu Server, simply run the command below to add user. In the process, it will ask to set a password for the new account, and configure some user information (it’s OK to hit Enter for all).

Then, grant sudo permission to the account by running command.

Step 3: Encrypt home folder

Now, log out the user account whose home folder you want to encrypt. Then, login with the new admin account ( temp_user in the case).

NOTE: The command below will make a backup of the home folder! Just in case, it’s BETTER to manually do an additional backup of your important data.

1. After logged in with the temporary admin account, press Ctrl+Alt+T to open terminal, and run command:

Replace the THE_USER_NAME in command with the username whose home folder you want to encrypt.

2. When done, you should get the following terminal screen with some notices. They include:

• MUST login the encrypted user to finish the process before reboot!
• Restore the backup file “/home/username.xxxxxx” if something goes wrong.
• The command to get the auto-generated passphrase.
• Command to also encrypt the swap area.

Step 4: Log back the encrypted user to generate passphrase

If everything goes well, log out and temporary admin account, and log back with the user account whose home is encrypted.

1. After login, it will pop-up a dialog as the screenshot below shows you ( there may be a few seconds delay according to your device ).

Just click on “ Run this action now ” button, then type your password (the password for login) and hit Enter in the pop-up terminal window. It will generate a random passphrase for recover purpose, in case your system refuse to boot or broken in future.

2. To get the auto-generated passphrase, just run command:

Then copy and keep the output passphrase in safe place!

Step 5: Encrypt the Swap Area

To ensure the integrity of all encrypted data, you should also encrypt the swap area.

NOTE: This step will break the hibernate and suspend feature!

1. First, open up a terminal window (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command to check if you have a swap area:

If there’s no swap partition or swap file in use, you can just skip this step.

2. Then, run command to encrypt the swap:

The command output “ swapon: cannot open /dev/mapper/cryptswap1: No such file or directory “.

Step 6: Clean Up

If everything’s done successfully, you can now remove the temporary admin user, and delete the auto-generated backup folder.

To delete the temporary account, either open “Settings”, navigate to System -> Users , click “Unlock”, select the temporary user account and finally click “Remove User” button to remove it.

Or, run the commands below in terminal instead:

To delete the auto-generated backup, use command:

Replace ji.jjf1M2qF in command accordingly. Go Files -> Other Locations -> Ubuntu -> home to check the backup folder name.

In this tutorial, I’ve shown you how to encrypt the home directory in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS.

In short, user just needs to install the ecryptfs utility, run the encryption command using another admin account, and login back to generate the passphrase in pop-up dialog for recover purpose. And, run one more command to encrypt the swap file or partition.

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