A Game of Thrones: Outside Interactions

As some of you know, I have been slowly working my way through A Game of Thrones, the first book in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series for a month. My first post covered my initial thoughts up to page 118 with some first impressions of characters and events, including one damn-I-was-wrong insight. For my second post, I switched it up a bit, talking a bit more about less and including an image I found online that reminded me of the story. In my third post, I focused on the characters, specifically how complex characters are needed in books centered around intrigue. Today, I yet again want to do something a bit different.

Normally, I fly through books. I'm a ridiculously fast reader and have no trouble speeding through an entire book in one day. But this is different. I want to savor, enjoy, and most of all to completely understand A Game of Thrones. Okay, I gave up on completely somewhere around page 600. There is so much going on that to catch all of the nuances, the backstory, the character motivations, etc., I will definitely have to re-read this one. But it is this very complexity that I find so appealing in this novel, and it is why I am taking my time, reading carefully, and even adding a few outside interactions. That is what I want to share with you for this post: all of the things I am doing while reading to interact with this wonderous, epic tale.

My Family Tree
Only three chapters in I realized that there was going to be an abundance of characters, and that their relationships to each other were integral to understanding the plot. So I grabbed a yellow legal pad, flipped it sideways, and started fleshing out a family tree. One family tree turned into four family trees. Then I started listing the employees of each family, the primary companions, etc. The end result is a mish-mash of half-organized papers which, despite their unprofessional look, really have helped me immerse myself in this world.

The Citadel
This website contains a ton of information about the series, so it's both highly useful and awfully tempting. I try very hard to only go to those pages and read information that will not spoil the story for me. But outside of reviews, a wiki, and discussions (which I can't wait to enjoy after reading the first four books) there is a ton of other information, including sample chapters, interesting tidbits, interviews, etc.

Tower of the Hand
Another informative website, this one includes easy access to family trees, maps, short histories and timelines, and other geektastic aids to understanding the world. There is also a Spoilery Thread where people can discuss clues they did and did not pick up on throughout their reading. I can't wait to get into this once I'm done. There is also an Essays and Analysis section with some literary/social/etc. criticism of the stories. Sweeeetttt! Did I mention the Art Gallery, the Listmania, the Trivia and Quizzes, the... You get my point, right? This is one awesome site.

The Discussion
My cousin is listening to the book on audio right now and my uncle is watching the HBO series, so I've had a lot of fun talking to them about the books. And of course, posting here on the blog has been really helpful as well.

So there you have it, four ways I'm interacting with the book outside of just reading it. Now, I only have about 200 pages left, so I'm hoping I can have a lazy afternoon today and finish it!

And of course, I also want to spend some time checking out today's posts for BBAW!

~~The picture above is an awesome one I found when searching "interactive reading". You can see it at its home and other reading pics are there too!