Watching the anime IS reading a book, lol. Only anime I've ever had to pause on occasion to keep up with the dialogue.

Only have the first book so far, and it's worth it. I like that the book actually explains the timeline and technology better, where the show spreads that information out piecemeal through episode intros. The translation is decent, and I've seen reports that the quality goes in later books as the translator gets better at maintaining the authors style.

It seems to be a retelling of certain aspects of European history from a Japanese point of view which might be, say, interesting.

It is good, the space battles are based on actual European conflicts, and so they play out a lot differently than other shows, and that's the draw of the show. It's a genuine long form war as predictable and unpredictable as a real one. Neither side are really the good guys either, both governments are corrupt and failing in their own ways, both have heroes and villains and internal strife.

As an aside, the show makes excellent use of classical music for it's score and battles. It's worth watching the anime for that alone.

Watching the anime IS reading a book, lol. Only anime I've ever had to pause on occasion to keep up with the dialogue.

Only have the first book so far, and it's worth it. I like that the book actually explains the timeline and technology better, where the show spreads that information out piecemeal through episode intros. The translation is decent, and I've seen reports that the quality goes in later books as the translator gets better at maintaining the authors style.

It seems to be a retelling of certain aspects of European history from a Japanese point of view which might be, say, interesting.

It is good, the space battles are based on actual European conflicts, and so they play out a lot differently than other shows, and that's the draw of the show. It's a genuine long form war as predictable and unpredictable as a real one. Neither side are really the good guys either, both governments are corrupt and failing in their own ways, both have heroes and villains and internal strife.