What's on your bookshelf?: Game urbanist and author Konstantinos Dimopoulos

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! I'm currently reading Dorothy Parker, who did more for the language than I'd previously though. I'm having quite regular moments of "oh, she said that". More proof, if any were needed, that the soul of wit is as much depression and alcoholism as it is brevity.

This week it's game city design expert and author of Virtual Cities, Konstantinos Dimopoulos! Cheers Konstantinos! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

What are you currently reading?

I tend to always read several books simultaneously, excluding the children’s ones we’re going through with my daughter. Oh, and excluding RPG sourcebooks too.

Having said that, and being in a sort of a fantasy phase when it comes to literature, I’m currently reading Sixteen Ways To Defend A Walled City by K. J. Parker and, finally, beginning my dive into the more traditionally sword & sorcery Conan with 1954’s Conan The Barbarian.

Simultaneously, I am reading the rather impressive Procedural Generation In Game Design which was edited by Tanya Short and Tarn Adams and can only be described as crucial for anyone interested in attempting PCG in their games.

Finally, I’m also (slowly) going through Benjamin’s The Arcades Project and re-reading the architectural & urbanistic classic that is A Pattern Language by Alexander, Ishikawa and Silverstein.

What did you last read?

Being in the aforementioned fantasy phase of mine, I’ve recently finished Orconomicsby J. Zachary Pike, which I thought I’d have found more entertaining but still appreciated, and the surprisingly not humorous The Art Of Political Lying by (allegedly) Jonathan Swift.

On the game related books front, I finished the excellent Mysteries Of Monkey Island by Nicolas Deneschau, and the equally excellent Procedural Storytelling In Game Design collection (again) edited by Tanya Short and Tarn Adams.

What are you eyeing up next?

Re-reading the Silmarillion is a top priority, and one I am especially looking forward to, as this will be the first time I’ll read it in English, and the new illustrated edition is simply stunning. Warhammer 40k novel The Infinite And The Divine by Robert Rath is also high on my list, and might just come before my third and final attempt to tackle Joyce’s Ulysses.

What quote or scene from a book sticks with you the most?

There are far too many to list, but, if I’m being honest, the two that simultaneously popped in mind were the Asmodeus flight from Mansoul (book two of Jerusalem), and Gandalf preaching wisdom and pity to Frodo in the Lord of The Rings:

“Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. For even the very wise cannot see all ends.”

As for the Asmodeus flight, besides being incredibly clever, actually hilarious, and downright surreal, it is a fantastic example of the fact that kids could easily drive the devil mad if they wanted to.

What book do you find yourself bothering friends to read?

Depending on the occasion, and provided we are not discussing politics, The Lord of the Ringstrilogy is something I am always suggesting to people, as I’m on a fanatical crusade to ensure that the books remain the dominant version of Tolkien’s masterwork.

What book would you like to see someone adapt to a game?

It is a crying shame that theVlad Taltos books by the wonderful Steven Brust haven’t been adapted to the medium yet. I do aim to try and fix this, but it’s going to be a struggle.

A small bonus gift for you, reader, if I may: I've had a minor revelation recently. For decades now, I have been unable to escape the constant anxiety of the aspiring cataloguer whenever I engage with any media whatsoever, books especially. Yes, I think, I'm enjoying this. I must remember it, both in its entirety and for its individual parts, and also how it exists in relation to everything else I have ever enjoyed, and so build towards some kind of web of greater understanding. I must read all the things and remember all that I have read.

Unfortunately, video games made my memory bad (this probably isn't true but I'm blaming them anyway), and I'm lucky if I can tell you the plot of an episode of television I watched last week. But I've recently come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter: I don't expect to remember every meal I've ever eaten, but trust that they have all nourished me in some way*. So: let the things you love wash over you, read on whims and at random, don't try to grasp too tightly to the specifics, and perhaps the parts that really make an impact will stay with you anyway. I'm calling this 'scholastic chaos theory'. I also do it with website newsletters. Rather than trying to keep up with things, I just subscribe to any newsletter that might be mildly interesting. Who knows what'll be waiting for me in my inbox when I actually do feel like reading something?! Maybe some literary criticism. Maybe some shit about goblins.

This, of course, does not apply to our guests, who are failures one and all for not naming every book ever written. Book for now!

* actually probably not all of them. I've gotten really into mixing crunchy Biscoff spread with vegan Greek yoghurt recently. Tastes like cheesecake. Highly recommended.