DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
the last story with the table football champion from fife is OK but the rest is proper dire
I'm on Meiville's 'October'
*What book are you reading? (part 2)
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I'm on Meiville's 'October'
D'wards
IT'S YOUR DECISION DANIEL
I loved Welsh for the first 3 or 4 books of his career. Since then he's done his best to prove my live wrong, bit by bit
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
Is there anything worth reading that was published after Porno? I think I stopped reading him after that
rubbershoes
not the only raver in the village
Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household
I read it years ago but it's come up at a book group
It's the ultimate boys own adventure of single combat. Written with an intimate feel for the landscape
I read it years ago but it's come up at a book group
It's the ultimate boys own adventure of single combat. Written with an intimate feel for the landscape
Red About Town
Well-Known Member
Starting Bounce by Matthew Syed on my commute to work tomorrow. Have read some snippets from it before so know what to expect.
Riklet
procrastinación
Skagboys is really good! He only wrote it a few years back but the writing is top notch. Explores the Trainspotting characters' developing personalities fantastically too.
Finished Kenzaburo Oe's A Personal Matter & am halfway through Reefer Madness by Eric Schlosser. Fascinating, even if it is out of date but what with the current US situation, it may well be back in reading lists...
YouSir
Retired from Urban
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi, first of his I read after spotting the name somewhere on here. Not bad, had forgotten how eagerly Sci Fi builds up it's own language though, still adjusting to his.
Just finished 'The Son' by Philipp Meyer too, worked through that in a couple of days and enjoyed it.
Just finished 'The Son' by Philipp Meyer too, worked through that in a couple of days and enjoyed it.
I was a huge fan of Annie P but thought this one was absolutely shit. Seemed she broke her own rules and there was just tons of nonsense filler in there. I was really disappointed by it
I'm currently reading:
You Can't Spell America Without Me by Alec Baldwin and Kurt Andersen
The Beautiful Poetry of Donald Trump by Robert Sears
The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
All presents.
Not sure about the last one yet. Writing's not that good but am intrigued by the slow reveal.
BoatieBird
Well-Known Member
Voley
🐭
Just started 'Long Road From Jarrow' by Stuart Maconie. Really good so far. He sets off on the 80th anniversary of the march/crusade to see what's changed/what hasn't and do his usual wry observational thing. Worth reading for the prologue alone where he absolutely nails how divided post-EU referendum Britain is. I'll rattle through this, I expect. He's a very engaging writer.
Also reading 'Money: The Unauthorised Biography' by Felix Martin which is a good book for me as economics don't thrill me generally. Martin is good at looking at how the pre-money barter economy is supposedly a bit of a myth and, crucially, explaining financial concepts that tend to evade me in language that even I can understand. Two good reads on the go just now.
Also reading 'Money: The Unauthorised Biography' by Felix Martin which is a good book for me as economics don't thrill me generally. Martin is good at looking at how the pre-money barter economy is supposedly a bit of a myth and, crucially, explaining financial concepts that tend to evade me in language that even I can understand. Two good reads on the go just now.
Voley
🐭
I did that for O Level English Lit. Our teacher was savvy enough to choose a thriller for us. Everyone in the class really enjoyed it. I wouldn't mind rereading it - I can remember our teacher getting us to critique the chauvinism in it and having a lively debate about sexism in Bond movies. Good bloke, Rhys Griffiths, our English teacher. Very good at getting apathetic teenage kids interested in literature.
Ooo that looks good Voley - I love his writing style too.
Voley
🐭
He's excellent on Brexit. He's a remainer but is appalled at the liberal media's lazy stereotyping of the working class leave vote as racist and/or thick. This is in between some good travel writing with gentle humour / discussions of what makes a good pork pie and some accurate analysis of the parallels between 30's Britain and now. I'm about halfway through - really recommend it.
rubbershoes
not the only raver in the village
The Enemy at the Gate: Hapsburgs, Ottomans and the battle for Europe by Andrew Wheatcroft
It centres on the Ottoman siege of Vienna in 1683, but includes the long history of the Ottomans and Hapsburgs being beastly to each other, in the name of religion. There's plenty of heads on spikes, impalement and flayings, if you like that kind of thing.
And of course when the two empires decided to be friends and fight on the same side it didn't end well for them.
Quite an engaging book for history wonks
It centres on the Ottoman siege of Vienna in 1683, but includes the long history of the Ottomans and Hapsburgs being beastly to each other, in the name of religion. There's plenty of heads on spikes, impalement and flayings, if you like that kind of thing.
And of course when the two empires decided to be friends and fight on the same side it didn't end well for them.
Quite an engaging book for history wonks
rubbershoes
not the only raver in the village
Read 'The Haunting of Hill House' by Shirley Jackson over two nights recently, excellent story.
The Miniaturist' by Jessie Burton is the biggest pile of wank I've read in a long time. This is why I dislike receiving books as presents. I'm halfway through and am just gonna give up on it.
Keep dipping into 'Daemon Voices' by Philip Pullman that I got the fella for christmas (it's Pullman, we both love him, it's safe
) - most excellent!
The Miniaturist' by Jessie Burton is the biggest pile of wank I've read in a long time. This is why I dislike receiving books as presents. I'm halfway through and am just gonna give up on it.
Keep dipping into 'Daemon Voices' by Philip Pullman that I got the fella for christmas (it's Pullman, we both love him, it's safe
) - most excellent!
Cloo
Banana for scale
Just finished 'Oracle's Queen' the last of the Tamir Trilogy by Lynn Flewelling. Highly recommend this series for anyone missing George RR Martin and looking for some good fantasy. It's not especially like GRRM as such, less gritty but still quite dark, but, importantly, well written. As my mum has said, a lot of fantasy has good ideas but not very good writing, and this one does have gripping writing, good characters, and also features quite a lot of gay characters, bad and good, and a character who changes gender at its centre, which is written about well and sensitively. Apparently her books often feature gay characters and alternative gender identities as she felt she hadn't seen enough of this is fantasy. She spins a great yarn, so top marks for this if you like quality fantasy.
Just finished Ursula Le Guin - The Dispossessed. Magnificent and unlike any other sci-fi I've read.
Nell by Nell McCafferty - fascinating look at life in the Bogside, only 50 pages in but she's a fierce, engaging, darkly humorous voice.
rubbershoes
not the only raver in the village
The Norman conquest by Marc Morris. Less Return of the Mack, and more Return of the King
It's a detailed look (for history wonks) at the Norman conquest, and what led to it. He looks back over a century to Alfred and those pesky Vikings to show how those earlier events led to 1066. He's good at considering the weight and veracity of the differing sources, and manages to stop the narrative getting bogged down.
Some of the post Conquest rebellions are less interesting, though I like his tale of one incident when William's army was besieging Exeter following a Godwinson-inspired uprising. William had one of his captives blinded on in full view of the walls , to encourage the defenders to submit. The response of one defender was to drop their trousers and fart in his general direction. A thousand years later, Exeter is much the same
7/10
It's a detailed look (for history wonks) at the Norman conquest, and what led to it. He looks back over a century to Alfred and those pesky Vikings to show how those earlier events led to 1066. He's good at considering the weight and veracity of the differing sources, and manages to stop the narrative getting bogged down.
Some of the post Conquest rebellions are less interesting, though I like his tale of one incident when William's army was besieging Exeter following a Godwinson-inspired uprising. William had one of his captives blinded on in full view of the walls , to encourage the defenders to submit. The response of one defender was to drop their trousers and fart in his general direction. A thousand years later, Exeter is much the same
7/10
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