*What book are you reading ?
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butterfly child
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Do Not Pass Go...
and
Sahara...
and
numerous travel books...
and
Sahara...
and
numerous travel books...
Rumours of a Hurricane - Tim Lott
Good and insightful account of the effect of the Thatcher zeitgeist during the 80s, though by its very nature a bit of a downer.
Puzzled by the various quotes on the cover referring to the comedy element. It's a serious book, with no comedy as far as I can see
Good and insightful account of the effect of the Thatcher zeitgeist during the 80s, though by its very nature a bit of a downer.
Puzzled by the various quotes on the cover referring to the comedy element. It's a serious book, with no comedy as far as I can see
Pickman's model
Starry Wisdom
"the prisoner in the opal" by a e w mason, an occult detective story;
will be on to "the necromancers" by r h benson, about, er, necromancy, in about twenty minutes.
will be on to "the necromancers" by r h benson, about, er, necromancy, in about twenty minutes.
Preston Falls by David Gates - saw an excellent review of another book of his and then happened upon this second hand, very very good so far. kind of mid-life crisis American angst, but very bitterly funny and NOTHING like fucking American Beauty.
thankfully not, although i did worry. 
I have just re-read my (new) favourite graphic novel, Alan Moore's "V for Vendetta", which makes reference to "V" by Thomas Pynchon, who i seem to recall being mentioned somewhere in this thread... could i get a brief summation of what it is about by any chance?
Couple of quick comments on some authors also mentioned:
Alice Walker - IMO "The Color Purple" and "Possessing The Secret of Joy" are both good, but the former just slightly overdoes the sentimentality and the latter just slightly overdoes the Freudian/Jungian stuff (would be interesting to see what Louloubelle thinks of this book).
On the other hand, i wholeheartedly recommend her first 2 novels, "Meridian" and "The Third Life Of Grange Copeland"... not that i don't recommend the other 2, they are all great books, but "Meridian" was her high point IMO and it has been downhill from there. Having said that, Walker's downhill is still far better than 90% of other authors' uphill... i would still rank her among the Great American Novelists, if slightly eclipsed by the more consistent Toni Morrison.
Sylvia Plath - i read "The Bell Jar", but TBH i wasn't as moved as i thought i would be - my main reaction was "well if this is as bad as depression gets, i have had depression all my life, even the bits of my life i consider to be the good bits"... the state of mind she described just seemed ordinary to me...
Her poetry is fucking hard hitting tho IMO.
Bleh, forgot which other books i was going to comment on... well, it is 4am
Couple of quick comments on some authors also mentioned:
Alice Walker - IMO "The Color Purple" and "Possessing The Secret of Joy" are both good, but the former just slightly overdoes the sentimentality and the latter just slightly overdoes the Freudian/Jungian stuff (would be interesting to see what Louloubelle thinks of this book).
On the other hand, i wholeheartedly recommend her first 2 novels, "Meridian" and "The Third Life Of Grange Copeland"... not that i don't recommend the other 2, they are all great books, but "Meridian" was her high point IMO and it has been downhill from there. Having said that, Walker's downhill is still far better than 90% of other authors' uphill... i would still rank her among the Great American Novelists, if slightly eclipsed by the more consistent Toni Morrison.
Sylvia Plath - i read "The Bell Jar", but TBH i wasn't as moved as i thought i would be - my main reaction was "well if this is as bad as depression gets, i have had depression all my life, even the bits of my life i consider to be the good bits"... the state of mind she described just seemed ordinary to me...
Her poetry is fucking hard hitting tho IMO.
Bleh, forgot which other books i was going to comment on... well, it is 4am
Orang Utan
They cannot crucify you if your hand is in a fist
soulrebel said:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
.. and indeed 'ARF!!'
chegrimandi
associated with adultery
just started 'Cat and Mouse' by Gunter Grass.....I haven't tried one of his novels yet...hope they are as good as everyone says.....
chegrimandi said:
as wanking scenes go, Cat & Mouse is one of the best,
rubbershoes
not the only raver in the village
I’m reading Starman – the story of Yuri Gagarin by someone or other. It’s pedestrian in a he went there and he did that sort of way. The only analysis of him as a person is through a lens of soviet heroism.
I should have been warned off by a review on the back – “this book was worth writing and is worth reading” Hardly very effusive is it?
chegri -be careful. Gunter Grass is sooo addictive. His style of writing is highly individual. Cat and mouse sort of follows on from the Tin Drum , but it doesn't matter if you read them out of order. Anyone for a game of Pickled Herring 1-2-3 some time?
I should have been warned off by a review on the back – “this book was worth writing and is worth reading” Hardly very effusive is it?
chegri -be careful. Gunter Grass is sooo addictive. His style of writing is highly individual. Cat and mouse sort of follows on from the Tin Drum , but it doesn't matter if you read them out of order. Anyone for a game of Pickled Herring 1-2-3 some time?
Orang Utan
They cannot crucify you if your hand is in a fist
The Tin Drum is brilliant - that image of the horse's head filled with eels fills my nightmares
chegrimandi
associated with adultery
rubbershoes said:
shit I've got Tin Drum sitting on the shelf as an Xmas present but its a big fucker so I thought I might ease my way in with a shorter novel first...kinda limbering up but would you say I should read Tin Drum first?
I've just started Drive On! A Social History of the Motor Car by L.J.K. Setright.
So far I've discovered that Setright's a rabidly right wing, bumptious, pro-car crusader with a superbly lively writing style and a vast knowledge. I've a feeling I'm going to end up disagreeing with a lot of what he says, but I'm going to enjoy reading it anyway.
edit: I misjudged Setright. "Rabidly right wing" was grossly unfair. He's a bloke of strong views, most of which I disagree with - such as his views on oil (it's not finite, apparently), speed limits (he doesn't agree with them) and public transport (he doesn't like it) - but he's got some very interesting things to say, especially about the way government and social expectations have shaped car design and use. It's a good read.
So far I've discovered that Setright's a rabidly right wing, bumptious, pro-car crusader with a superbly lively writing style and a vast knowledge. I've a feeling I'm going to end up disagreeing with a lot of what he says, but I'm going to enjoy reading it anyway.
edit: I misjudged Setright. "Rabidly right wing" was grossly unfair. He's a bloke of strong views, most of which I disagree with - such as his views on oil (it's not finite, apparently), speed limits (he doesn't agree with them) and public transport (he doesn't like it) - but he's got some very interesting things to say, especially about the way government and social expectations have shaped car design and use. It's a good read.
rubbershoes
not the only raver in the village
Read them in any order chegri. It doesn’t really matter
ViolentPanda
Hardly getting over it.
The Immoralist - Andre Gide
Orang Utan
They cannot crucify you if your hand is in a fist
Just picked up W.G. Sebald's Austerlitz - know very little about it but my dad told me it changed the way he thought about reading and literature.
Orang Utan
They cannot crucify you if your hand is in a fist
This is ace - 10 pages in and I'm gripped by it - no paragraphs thoughOrang Utan said:
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