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a.s.
Valinor
Jul 10 2007, 7:57pm
Post #1 of 49
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What have you been reading this week (early edition)?
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First: I am going on vacation tomorrow and will only have limited (or no) computer access for a week or more. Can someone volunteer to start next week's "book review" thread for me? Please???
Thanks.
Well, I've been on a horror kick this week. I'm about two-thirds done with Dracula by Bram Stoker, and I wish I'd read this a long time ago. Stoker's description of the Count crawling like a spider upside down on the castle walls, and of the undead Lucy in the casket are still very creepy to read, even in 2007. The bat at the window trying to get in...yes, you can see the beginnings of so many modern horror stories right here in this book. I guess I know how it will end up...but pretty fascinating to read.
I also read A Good and Happy Child by Justin Evans. Really a great first novel, in addition to being an interesting and scary horror story. I rather thought he ran out of steam right at the end; the conclusion was not entirely satisfying if also somewhat predictable. Yet the ambiguity of the story is its greatest strength. I look forward to Evans' next book. Solid A.
I'm on disc 8 of 11 of the audiobook version of Black Swan Green by David Mitchell (a year behind everyone else, just about!!) and enjoying it. Maybe the 13 year old boy in this novel is just a little bit too mature in some of his phrasing, etc, but I like him. I like the little concrete but interconnected stories that make up the whole of the novel. B+.
Now I say this in front of witnesses to keep myself honest: I am taking Children of Hurin on vacation with me and I will FINISH the book by next week. I am behind in the RR discussion and missing it. Time to buckle down.
That's it! What about you all? What have you been reading this week?
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done."
~~Mother Theresa
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CAhobbit
Rohan
Jul 10 2007, 8:18pm
Post #2 of 49
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Finished "Haunted" and "Life of Pi"....
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Haunted - Chuck Palahniuk
My first Palahniuk book and I really enjoyed it. The main story is so convaluted that your not entirely sure what the exact point of it was except to maybe to show an over the top view of what humanity can be at our dark cores. The short stories throughout the book are quite touching, disturbing or down right bizarre. Not a book for the squemish.
Life of Pi - Yann Martel
A very interesting story about a boy who finds himself on a lifeboat with a zebra, hyena, Tiger and an orangutan. The story practically beats you up at times with what the main character (Pi Patel) goes through but the beatings you recieve while reading are worth the little gems of thoughts you get from the main character. In the end I think we are left not knowing truely what the 'real' story is of this book but that doesn't matter. A wonderful passage from the book that I really loved....
"I know what you want. You want a story that won't surprise you. That will confirm what you already know. That won't make you see higher or further or differently. You want a flat story. An immobile sotry. You want dry, yeastless factuality."
Just started "The Neverending Story" by Michael Ende and am about half way through. It's interesting to see what was changed for the film and what was kept very similar. The writing style isn't much to my liking I'm finding (everything seems to quickly written with little description or lingering on thungs) but I'm getting through it and really am enjoying it.
Have a great trip a.s.!!!!!
Do not meddle in the affairs of hobbits for we can bite your kneecaps off!
CAhobbit's flickr page
CAhobbit's myspace
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deej
Tol Eressea
Jul 10 2007, 8:34pm
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Just finished an amazing novel called 'Blindness' by Jose Saramago. It's deals with a mysterious illness that slowly causes a city (they don't mention if the rest of the world was affected) to go blind, and a small group of people trying to survive. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
And I am almost finshed with the 'Watchmen' graphic novel. As a comic book fan I don't know why it took me so long to read this, but I am totally blown away by how good it is. I read that they are planning to make this into a film and cannot figure out how they are going to do it. It's so complex!
Sincerely, deej - The Artist Formerly Known as djdeathskiss
Atlanta Woot! Moot 2007 - Join us Labor Day weekend; go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/atlanta_woot_moot/
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CAhobbit
Rohan
Jul 10 2007, 9:14pm
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I have a Jose Saramago book that's been sitting on my bookself for over a year now called "The Cave" that I haven't read yet but "Blindness" sounds very interesting. I've added it to my Amazon wish list.
"The Watchmen" is a great comic. I still don't think it will be treated properly for film though. There's just too much going on that I fear they will muck it all up.
Do not meddle in the affairs of hobbits for we can bite your kneecaps off!
CAhobbit's flickr page
CAhobbit's myspace
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Elberbeth
Tol Eressea
Jul 10 2007, 9:16pm
Post #5 of 49
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Getting It Right and Gallows Thief
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Getting It Right is by Elizabeth Jane Howard -- I loved her book The Light Years, so tried another one -- it is a very low-key story about a hairdresser who at 31 years old is still a virgin, mostly because he has a very overbearing mother, and has a vivid fantasy life that a mere human girl could not hope to compete with. I like the way Howard writes. I'll be looking for some more of hers.
Gallows Thief is one of Bernard Cornwell's not-Sharpe books, and reads very well. This one is about an impoverished soldier, post-Waterloo, who has been contracted by the Home Office to investigate whether a convict should hang for murder. No one wants the truth to come out about the crime, or particularly the considerable malaise of the justice system of the time. I haven't quite finished it.
"There are some things that it is better to begin than to refuse, even though the end may be dark."
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Aerlinn
Lorien
Jul 10 2007, 10:04pm
Post #6 of 49
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Rereading Harry Potter is a lot like rereading Robert Jordan's Eye of the World; I start thinking "Nah, it can't be as good as I thought it was" - and then halfway through I come up for air and admit it is at least as good. I'm in the middle of the quidditch World Cup in GofF, and having a wonderful time. Each book, I think, improves by a leap and a bound over the last, and also becomes proportionately darker.
I will have the series to date read by the time Deathly Hallows comes out, I'm determined... and I will very likely be standing in line somewhere for it at midnight on the 20th/21st so that I can dive in at once.
1,038.08
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GaladrielTX
Tol Eressea
Jul 10 2007, 10:11pm
Post #7 of 49
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I'm still reading The Amber Spyglass.
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Don’t get me wrong. I’m enjoying it, but I’ve been watching lots of movies on TCM lately and doing crafty stuff. I wish I had as much time as I wanted for all of my hobbies and my job. Plus, this book is about 500 pages, a little longer than the other two. Doesn't it seem that way with a lot of series (the non-appendix material in ROTK excepted, of course)?
~~~~~~~~
Coming up with reasons for changing my nick from GaladrielTX to Galadriel wore me out.
(This post was edited by Galadriel on Jul 10 2007, 10:12pm)
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N.E. Brigand
Half-elven
Jul 10 2007, 10:16pm
Post #8 of 49
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Sue Zlosnik, in "Gothic Echoes" from the 2005 collection Reading the Lord of the Rings, finds the description of Dracula on the wall similar to that of Gollum climbing down from the Emyn Muil -- what do you think?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Discuss The Children of Húrin in the Reading Room, June 11-October 14.
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SandWitch King
Rohan
Jul 10 2007, 10:21pm
Post #9 of 49
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Have you done the mirror issue yet?
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There are some really well done 'Watchmen' web sites that you must explore. Good stuff.
Have you read, "From Hell" by Alan Moore?
No wonder all writers want to direct: one still has to put up with a load of nonsense, but even if wearing two hats (writer and director), there is one under which one is not called a thief and then raped - David Mamet
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a.s.
Valinor
Jul 10 2007, 10:44pm
Post #10 of 49
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absolutely. See what you think:
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What I saw was the Count's head coming out from the window. I did not
see the face, but I knew the man by the neck and the movement of his
back and arms. In any case I could not mistake the hands which I had
had some many opportunities of studying. I was at first interested
and somewhat amused, for it is wonderful how small a matter will
interest and amuse a man when he is a prisoner. But my very feelings
changed to repulsion and terror when I saw the whole man slowly emerge
from the window and begin to crawl down the castle wall over the
dreadful abyss, face down with his cloak spreading out around him like
great wings. At first I could not believe my eyes. I thought it was
some trick of the moonlight, some weird effect of shadow, but I kept
looking, and it could be no delusion. I saw the fingers and toes
grasp the corners of the stones, worn clear of the mortar by the
stress of years, and by thus using every projection and inequality
move downwards with considerable speed, just as a lizard moves along a
wall.
What manner of man is this, or what manner of creature, is it in the
semblance of man?
The text of the book is available at: http://www.gutenberg.org/.../etext95/dracu13.txt if anyone is interested. I prefer a BOOK book.
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done."
~~Mother Theresa
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Kyriel
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Jul 10 2007, 10:56pm
Post #11 of 49
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The Historian, and it's very good
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It's a vampire novel, but not your typical horror story. It's long and slow moving and full of great descriptions of places (the characters travel all over Europe). And it's not too graphic, except in a handful of places. Very fine reading overall.
Yes, Watchmen is being made into a movie, directed by the guy who did 300. I've read some casting rumors, including Jude Law for Ozymandias (perfect!) and Keanu Reeves for Dr. Manhattan (eek!). This movie could be very good or very bad.
Those left standing will make millions writing books on the way it should have been. --Incubus
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Ataahua
Forum Admin
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Jul 10 2007, 11:36pm
Post #12 of 49
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I found that I enjoyed book 5 a lot more
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when I read it as part of a reading of the entire series (to date). Shouting Harry annoyed me, and the structure seemed bloated, but when it I read it as part of the larger story it seemed to fit really well.
Unfortunately the HP5 movie is getting lukewarm reviews, with comments about how the humour has been removed from the story. Hmmmm.
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded b*****d with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Ataahua's stories
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deej
Tol Eressea
Jul 10 2007, 11:55pm
Post #13 of 49
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..also 'V for Vendetta' and 'The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen' (great comic, horrible movie). Wow - have all of Alan Moore's titles been turned into films?
I will be online tonight looking at 'Watchmen' sites. Any in particular you recommend?
Sincerely, deej - The Artist Formerly Known as djdeathskiss
Atlanta Woot! Moot 2007 - Join us Labor Day weekend; go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/atlanta_woot_moot/
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a.s.
Valinor
Jul 11 2007, 12:31am
Post #14 of 49
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I listened to the audiobook version, and believe me, that's LOTS of CDs!!
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done."
~~Mother Theresa
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a.s.
Valinor
Jul 11 2007, 12:41am
Post #15 of 49
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should we just skip next week, she asks rather obsessive-compulsively??
Remember I will be:
I may have access to a computer before Weds, but maybe not. I will probably just be:
and taking a little break from the world in general (including Torn!!)
So...anyone want to start the thread next week?
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done."
~~Mother Theresa
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Annael
Immortal
Jul 11 2007, 12:56am
Post #16 of 49
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Fourth in the Kushiel's Legacy series by Jacqueline Carey. This time the focus is on Imriel, Phedre & Joscelin's ward. I haven't gotten very far into it, but as usual I am enjoying her writing very much. She is a rich writer - lots of description so you feel you are there, great characters who are consistent and develop over time, terrific plots, lots of action.
I'm happy to start the thread next week if no one else does.
To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you. - anon.
NARF and member of Deplorable Cultus since 1967
(This post was edited by Annael on Jul 11 2007, 12:57am)
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Annael
Immortal
Jul 11 2007, 12:59am
Post #17 of 49
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The old PBS version with Louis Jourdan
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got that scene exactly right. It was extremely creepy and I was terrified.
To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you. - anon.
NARF and member of Deplorable Cultus since 1967
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Penthe
Gondor
Jul 11 2007, 1:17am
Post #18 of 49
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The Power of the Dog by Don Winslow
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The blah on the front says 'No one since James Ellroy has conveyed the morally troubled heart of the American dream with such savage aim...a future classic' and Ian Rankin said 'So good you almost want to keep him to yourself'.
It's a crime thriller I guess. It's left me with a desire to say 'narcotraficante' a lot, which is not such a great thing in itself. The story follows a guy who finishes up working for the CIA after the Vietnam war, and moves into a job in Mexico working to liaise between the Mexican federal police and the Americans. It's the start of the war on drugs. But oh, who is this friendly policeman who seems to know exactly where the drug growers and organisers are going to be next? And why is he killing them instead of arresting them? Uh-oh! The innocent CIA law enforcement man might have underestimated the enemy. Horrors!
The story follows two generations of drug traffickers, the vendetta of the American policemen, the drugs for weapons stuff in Nicaragua and other locales, the collapse of marriages, New York Irish gangsters, Los Angeles high class prostitutes (who seemed a teeny, tiny bit unnceccessary to the plot to me) and more. The body count is massive, and the complete and utter mytification between Mexico (who think guns are bad, but drugs are not so bad) and the Americans (who think guns are OK, but drugs are terrible) is quite fascinating. The story really gallops along, it's one of those books that you keep reading in the middle of the night when you should really be asleep. It really made me want to go and visit Mexico, and it made me really glad that I don't take drugs. If it was a movie it would have a really great, loud soundtrack from the 70s and 80s which would indicate the passing of time, since all the characters keep dressing like cowboys the whole time.
Otherwise I'm still going on Harry Potter with the number one son.
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Ataahua
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Jul 11 2007, 1:23am
Post #19 of 49
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I'll keep an eye out for it here.
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded b*****d with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Ataahua's stories
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a.s.
Valinor
Jul 11 2007, 2:20am
Post #20 of 49
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Thanks very much. I appreciate it. I go now to my well earned rest with a clear conscience.
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done."
~~Mother Theresa
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Patty
Immortal
Jul 11 2007, 2:39am
Post #21 of 49
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Listening to the audiobook of "Time Traveller's Wife"
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I'm curious to know the ending, but in many ways I'm not enjoying this as much as I thought I would.
In the first place, it's pretty much present day (give or take a few years) and I don't know why but I thought it was a period story! I really don't enjoy "bad words" and the language is, in places, more dicey than I like.
I don't care for the readers' voices, although I am glad they chose to use a man and a woman, because the way the story is it would get far to confusing to try to figure out who was talking. It's confusing enough to figure out the technical aspects of his coming and going.
But I do sympathize with the characters' dilemmas, which is always a step in the right direction. And they mentioned Lord of the Rings in the story so I was happy.
I'm not sure, are we considering this to be a place we should not post spoilers? I don't want to say anything that might spoil the story for folks planning to either read this or see the movie, which is due out next year, I think.
Riding with the Rohirrim!
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Annael
Immortal
Jul 11 2007, 2:48am
Post #22 of 49
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you do deserve it :)
To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you. - anon.
NARF and member of Deplorable Cultus since 1967
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Ettelewen
Rohan
Jul 11 2007, 3:19am
Post #23 of 49
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This is a 1993 novel by Kim Stanley Robinson on the colonization of Mars.
Arthur C. Clarke writes, "A staggering book. The best novel on the colonization of Mars that has ever been written. It should be required reading for the colonists of the next century." Since I'd just read Clarke's Prelude to Mars I thought this was a pretty promising review, and I was right. This book is fascinating. Robinson explores not only the physical and logistical issues involved in a Mars colony, such as cold, lack of water, construction in a lower-g environment, inhospitable atmosphere, but also delves into psychological and ethical issues including interaction of individuals in a small closed group, terraforming of an alien environment, politics of extraterrestrial colonization, etc. Highly recommended.
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RosieLass
Valinor
Jul 11 2007, 4:32am
Post #24 of 49
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Audiobook of "Alice in Wonderland."
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It's a combo reading/dramatization. That is, all of the text is being read, but each character's voice is by a different person, rather than all of it by one person. I'm enjoying it very much!
I also started my read-through of Catherine Aird's series of mysteries with Inspector Sloan. I'd read several of them years ago and only recently discovered that she has been continuing the series all this time. The first one involved the murder of a nun in a convent. It was very good, especially for an author's first attempt (in this series, anyway...I have no idea if she had ever written anything else) but the solution was a little far-fetched, I thought.
Just started the next Michael Innes mystery and the next Ngaio Marsh mystery. I like Marsh a lot, but this book is huge, and I peeked ahead a little and Alleyn (the Scotland Yard officer) doesn't show up until the book is half over. I don't really like that much buildup.
This writing business. Pencils and what-not. Over-rated, if you ask me. Silly stuff. Nothing in it.
--Eeyore
http://mallika.vox.com/
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a.s.
Valinor
Jul 11 2007, 9:45am
Post #25 of 49
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and yet, trying to explain the book to others is very hard!! It's hard to capture the glories of the book in a simple "it's about a boy stranded on a lifeboat with a tiger..."
a.s.
"an seileachan"
"The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done."
~~Mother Theresa
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