# Game of Throne Viewers: How Many of the Books Have You Read? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 2, 2012, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634 "2012-04-02T21:56:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/21 "2012-04-03T04:51:04Z")
I read the first four and loved 'em. I’m reading the fifth now, am about halfway through, and am not digging it quite as much. But I’ll still finish it! ---
**Author:** ![2sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e47774/32.png) [@2sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2sense)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/22 "2012-04-03T05:05:07Z")
I’ve read all the novels but not the Dunk and Egg tales. I haven’t seen any of the television show yet. I don’t have HBO and there is still a Very Long Wait on Netflix for the first disc. At some point I’ll get lucky. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/23 "2012-04-03T05:07:58Z")
I’ve read through the end of Feast of Crows (I actually read the first book back in 1996 when it first came out, but then didn’t get to the sequels until around 2003 or so, when word of Feast of Crows getting released started buzzing). I also re-read A Game of Thrones right before season 1 of the show started, and then AGAIN last month, as I wanted to re-read Clash of Kings in time for season 2, but wanted a warm up. My plan this time is to keep going and re-read books 3 and 4 and then finally read Dance of Dragons for the first time, hopefully by the end of summer (pun intended). There’s a subset of dopers who not only haven’t read the books, but like to pretend that the books don’t even exist, and the show was all newly created material. Hense, this poll. ---
**Author:** ![Maiira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Maiira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maiira)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/24 "2012-04-03T12:53:28Z")
Read all of them but 5. Because 5 is fucking boring and I just can’t. ---
**Author:** ![Corcaigh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Corcaigh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corcaigh)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/25 "2012-04-03T13:01:07Z")
I watched Season 1 and was sorely disappointed. I was assured the books were much much better. I bought the first one and was bored rigid. I was assured that it was merely the build up to book 2, so I bought that, and was bored rigid. I was being told “they get better” I bought the next one (which is split into two books, right?) Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz I give up, I’m not reading any more of them, nor am I going to watch Season 2 on TV. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/26 "2012-04-03T14:39:30Z")
If a sixth book ever comes out, I’ll probably get around to reading the fifth book at that point. But there’s obviously no rush. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/27 "2012-04-03T14:54:48Z")
> [@wmulax93](#): > > Wha-wha-whaaaat? Short stories? Where?! Just read the first paragraph here, unless you want spoilers: [Tales of Dunk and Egg - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tales_of_Dunk_and_Egg) ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/28 "2012-04-03T15:00:41Z")
When the first season aired a lot of my friends were talking about it/the books (but I wasn’t watching it), so I decided to read _A Song of Ice and Fire_ and see what all the fuss was about. I loved it, and immediately caught up on the first season online; I think I watched the last one or two episodes when they actually aired. And I loved the show, too. Now I’ve decided to simply watch the show and not read any more of the books, at least until the TV series is over. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/29 "2012-04-03T15:05:52Z")
I read the first one after watching Season 1 of the HBO series (I found the story, given the difference in mediums, to be functionally identifical). I then decided to hold off on reading the 2nd book until after the series, I just enjoyed the series “cold” so to speak. After that, I’ll probably continue forward with the books, with some dread since I am aware of the reputation for decreasing quality. Prior to this, I always refused to read them, because generally speaking I don’t start unfinished series. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/30 "2012-04-03T15:16:09Z")
Where’s the option for “Read 2.5 of the books and quit because Martin is a hack, but digging the series anyway?” ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/31 "2012-04-03T15:26:12Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > Prior to this, I always refused to read them, because generally speaking I don’t start unfinished series. My general rule of thumb is “Don’t read anything by anyone who isn’t dead.” It’s a hard-earned rule after seeing things like Dune go downhill and get milked for money, even AFTER the original author was dead. And don’t get me started on the Wheel of Time gazilliogy. I think your formulation makes more sense, but it’s still problematic. The Thomas Covenant books were a finished trilogy and pretty decent, and then the author went back and wrote a second Thomas Covenant series where it was total shite. The Dark Tower series was on a permanent hiatus(pretty much a finished series), and then fan pressure had King finish it, in a way which has been very unsatisfactory to many fans, and is sometimes considered a big fat middle finger to those demanding fans. The Bourne and Hitchhiker’s books were posthumously violated. It’s getting so a guy can’t tell what to read and what to let age in the cellar. Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/32 "2012-04-03T15:36:23Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Where’s the option for “Read 2.5 of the books and quit because Martin is a hack, but digging the series anyway?” I’d say “I’ve read some of the books - two books”. But not liking the entire series is hardly unusual. Even tho I am a fan, I found this last book to be… well let us say I forced my way through it. sigh. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/33 "2012-04-03T15:39:17Z")
> [@Mtgman](#): > > My general rule of thumb is “Don’t read anything by anyone who isn’t dead.” It’s a hard-earned rule after seeing things like Dune go downhill and get milked for money, even AFTER the original author was dead. And don’t get me started on the Wheel of Time gazilliogy. I think your formulation makes more sense, but it’s still problematic. The Thomas Covenant books were a finished trilogy and pretty decent, and then the author went back and wrote a second Thomas Covenant series where it was total shite. The Dark Tower series was on a permanent hiatus(pretty much a finished series), and then fan pressure had King finish it, in a way which has been very unsatisfactory to many fans, and is sometimes considered a big fat middle finger to those demanding fans. The Bourne and Hitchhiker’s books were posthumously violated. It’s getting so a guy can’t tell what to read and what to let age in the cellar. > > Enjoy, > Steven Perhaps you are wiser than me, this last book was disappointing. And certainly I would have been spared the Robert Jordan train wreck. But then, I would not have had the sheer joy of reading the couple dozen Terry Pratchett books. Of course they are not a series, per se. And even pTerry has a off day. ---
**Author:** ![Chopper9760](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Chopper9760](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chopper9760)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/34 "2012-04-03T17:04:36Z")
All but one of the viewers I know have read the books. My dad hasn’t read all of the books yet but says GoT is his favorite show; I can certainly believe that there is interest outside of readers. Of course, people should be able to start a thread and ask that there not be spoilers posted. Particularly after all the book/show spoiler discussions we had last year it should have been obvious that some folks want to watch the show cold. It’s not that hard to have multiple threads. That said, I have to admit that I can never manage to muster much sympathy for people when it comes to spoilers. If you really don’t want to be “spoiled” WRT your entertainment, reading about it online probably isn’t the wisest course, is it? ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/35 "2012-04-03T17:55:20Z")
> [@Mtgman](#): > > The […] Hitchhiker’s books were posthumously violated. No, they weren’t. _And Another Thing…_, the book written after Adams’ death, is near-universally considered to be nearly equal to the original 4 books, whereas _Mostly Harmless_, the last book Adams completed, is generally considered to be a complete travesty. The Guide was posthumously _vindicated_. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/36 "2012-04-03T20:44:57Z")
I read 4 and I am planning to read through again before going into 5. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/37 "2012-04-03T20:54:28Z")
Read all five. Really enjoyed the first three. Read the fourth and it did seem long-winded but gave Martin the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately no.5 is in the same vein and it appears that Martin has lost control of his overarching plot. 4 and 5 aren’t terrible and have their share of good writing and interesting characters and I will probaby read 6 when it comes out but it’s fair to say my enthusiasm for the books has diminished which is perhaps just as well given the pace at which Martin writes. I am hoping the TV show has the freedom to deviate from the books and keeps the story moving forward better than Martin. ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/38 "2012-04-04T02:44:28Z")
I was reading along with watching the series. Generally, I find books preferable to adaptations, but I thought what I’ve seen so far of Game of Thrones was really well done. I thought the casting was excellent. Visually it’s also rich. Reading while watching fleshed out bits and added depth you can’t get in TV/movie versions. Then I dropped the book and the series for a while, but now I’m back into it. (I’m a fickle reader and leave off and take up depending on my mood and the seasons.) I’m not in a hurry to go through the books. I look forward to having a long series to sink into. ---
**Author:** ![magnusblitz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@magnusblitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnusblitz)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/39 "2012-04-04T05:12:16Z")
> [@Corcaigh](#): > > I watched Season 1 and was sorely disappointed. I was assured the books were much much better. I bought the first one and was bored rigid. I was assured that it was merely the build up to book 2, so I bought that, and was bored rigid. I was being told “they get better” I bought the next one (which is split into two books, right?) Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Whoever told you “they get better” as an excuse did you wrong. While the second and third are my personal favorites, they’re not vastly different in quality from the first. If the first thing wasn’t your thing, you won’t like any of the others. (Though obviously this is probably too late advice) ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634/40 "2012-04-04T05:57:37Z")
I have no interest in reading the books. I rarely read fiction anyway, I prefer my fiction in the form of movies/TV series/comics. Almost all of my reading is non-fiction. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-throne-viewers-how-many-of-the-books-have-you-read/617634.md?page=3)