This Week I are mostly reading (contd)

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Joe_ Public wrote: »

Ah, the exquisite Natasha Rostova or, to give her her modern 21st century title, Rachel from Friends

I myself was reminded of a quote from 10 Things I Hate About You. "What is it with this chick? Has she got beer flavoured nippes?"

holy guacamole

Kash wrote: »

It divided me against myself! I absolutely loved parts of it; I really felt for the characters and found it disturbing in places (why I have a fondness for disturbing books is anyone's guess). However, I though it lost itself at various points and had a significant amount of pages that a better editor would have cut.

I felt that having tragedy after tragedy befall poor Jude was indulgently sadistic.

That said, i think the characters will stick with me.

Yeah, funnily enough I've found myself missing the characters today and don't feel ready to commit to another book just yet.

On the subject of Jude,

what did you make of his relationship with Willem and the fact they became romantically involved? I just didn't buy it. The whole notion of one's sexual preferences being completely interchangeable is a common theme throughout the book, but that seemed a step too far.

Joe_ Public

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

I myself was reminded of a quote from 10 Things I Hate About You. "What is it with this chick? Has she got beer flavoured nippes?"

Hmmm, beer flavoured nipples. I have a feeling the idea is a lot better than the reality!

Fathom

Darkest Evening of the Year, Dean Koontz

minnow

The Big Sleep, by Raymond Chandler

Kash

holy guacamole wrote: »

On the subject of Jude,

what did you make of his relationship with Willem and the fact they became romantically involved? I just didn't buy it. The whole notion of one's sexual preferences being completely interchangeable is a common theme throughout the book, but that seemed a step too far.

It wasn't such a stretch for me, I felt that they had always been in love, so anticipated that early on - it was less of a relationship change than actually seeing the relationship for what it already was. I found it harder to accept that Willem didn't see how uncomfortable he was making Jude when he was so observant throughout the rest of the book.

Joe_ Public wrote: »

Hmmm, beer flavoured nipples. I have a feeling the idea is a lot better than the reality!

The reality would be bras that smell like old breweries

quickbeam

SarahBM wrote: »

The First Russian book I read was the Master and Margarita, which I hate. I only read Dr Zhivago because I thought the film was wonderful, but I didn't like the book at all. It ruined the film for me. I am not a fan of long-winded ramblings.
Good Luck with it!

I've not got a great record with Russian literature either. I absolutely hated M&M too. God, a real chore to get through.

I've read Anna Karenina (Tolstoy) and The Idiot (Dostoevyski) and they were much much better than M&M but that wouldn't be hard. They still weren't really great - barely average, and for the length of them not really worth the effort. The Idiot was marginally the better of the two.

I have a few others on my shelf - War & Peace and Dr. Zhivago included. I'm not rushing (or russian - geddit!!!) to read them though based on past experience.

Belle E. Flops

It's funny that a few of you are saying ye hated the Master and Margarita. I don't remember a whole lot about it but I remember enjoying it. Different strokes I suppose.

Joe_ Public

Kash wrote: »

It wasn't such a stretch for me, I felt that they had always been in love, so anticipated that early on - it was less of a relationship change than actually seeing the relationship for what it already was. I found it harder to accept that Willem didn't see how uncomfortable he was making Jude when he was so observant throughout the rest of the book.

Found this on the library shelf today and read the first chapter. Impossible to judge a book on 20 pages, but I got a distinct feeling of Franzen-lite about it, I thought some of the sentences were a bit on the clunky side. Anyway, I'll give it another couple of chapters tomorrow before deciding whether I'll wade through the whole lot.

Edit: Am talking about A Little Life.

Xofpod

quickbeam wrote: »

I've not got a great record with Russian literature either. I absolutely hated M&M too. God, a real chore to get through.

I've read Anna Karenina (Tolstoy) and The Idiot (Dostoevyski) and they were much much better than M&M but that wouldn't be hard. They still weren't really great - barely average, and for the length of them not really worth the effort. The Idiot was marginally the better of the two.

I have a few others on my shelf - War & Peace and Dr. Zhivago included. I'm not rushing (or russian - geddit!!!) to read them though based on past experience.

Try Chekov's stories - brilliant, and short.

Kash

Joe_ Public wrote: »

Found this on the library shelf today and read the first chapter. Impossible to judge a book on 20 pages, but I got a distinct feeling of Franzen-lite about it, I thought some of the sentences were a bit on the clunky side. Anyway, I'll give it another couple of chapters tomorrow before deciding whether I'll wade through the whole lot.

Edit: Am talking about A Little Life.

I'm glad I read it, but I won't be recommending it, if that makes sense. I've never read any Franzen, is he worth picking up?

Joe_ Public

Kash wrote: »

I'm glad I read it, but I won't be recommending it, if that makes sense. I've never read any Franzen, is he worth picking up?

Well, I've read 3 Franzens - The Corrections, Freedom, Purity - and have liked each one a little less than the previous. I think Corrections is pretty fantastic, one of the best novels of this century, though I get the feeling Franzen tends to polarise opinion a bit, maybe because he is very stylized as a writer.

The opening of A Little Life read a little like Franzen to me, with the difference that Franzen is a much better writer, his books far more crafted. I think his problem is that he works so hard at his craft, his novels seem very polished which, depending on your viewpoint, can be a good or a bad thing.

Anyway, I've started A Little Life so I'll continue with it and will reserve judgment for now.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Only a little bit into Dr Zhivago but son far I find it much easier to get through than War & Peace. It does have a similar problem to W&P though in that there are sooooo many characters. I know how Russian names work and for them it's probably a perfectly sensible system but it gets a bit confusing when everyone seems to be called Nikolai Alexandrovich and then they all have about 10 diminutive forms too.

I might have to write them all down on a Homeland style board with little threads connecting everyone.

Harry Angstrom

Kash wrote: »

I'm glad I read it, but I won't be recommending it, if that makes sense. I've never read any Franzen, is he worth picking up?

The old adage of everyone having a book in them is true of Franzen. The Corrections is a masterpiece. Anything he's done before or since doesn't come close.

Callan57

Finished Anatomy of a Soldier ... original idea but I did think it became somewhat repetitive but some excellent writing.

Now it's on to one I've been looking forward to I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes. 888 pages ... should keep me going over the weekend

Kash

Harry Angstrom wrote: »

The old adage of everyone having a book in them is true of Franzen. The Corrections is a masterpiece. Anything he's done before or since doesn't come close.

I've added that one to the to-read shelf - thanks!

Callan57 wrote: »

Now it's on to one I've been looking forward to I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes. 888 pages ... should keep me going over the weekend

I really enjoyed that one! There's so many well-executed tangents, it will make your head spin!

Boulevardier

I am a big fan of Alan Furst, who writes dark thrillers set in wartime Europe.

However his latest effort, A hero in France, was disappointing. I would have to call it an inconsequential pot-boiler.

Xofpod

Boulevardier wrote: »

I am a big fan of Alan Furst, who writes dark thrillers set in wartime Europe.

However his latest effort, A hero in France, was disappointing. I would have to call it an inconsequential pot-boiler.

I love his stuff but haven't read anything past Spies of the Balkans yet. Is there a tailing off in quality recently?

Birneybau

Belle E. Flops wrote: »

It's funny that a few of you are saying ye hated the Master and Margarita. I don't remember a whole lot about it but I remember enjoying it. Different strokes I suppose.

Yeah, really liked it myself.

minnow

Star of the Sea, Joseph O'Connor.

Fathom

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, by Rowling

Xofpod

Frog Music, Emma Donoghue

EoghanIRL

Inferno , Dan Brown.
Enjoying it so much

Gremlinertia

Weightless - Sarah Bannan

Wyldwood

holy guacamole wrote: »

Just finished 'A Little Life' by Hanya Yanahigara and find myself thoroughly conflicted.

On the one hand its beautifully written and deals with horrendous topics without ever being gratuitous. But on the other it's unnecessarily lengthy (self-indulgently so), meanders in no particular direction for large periods and has a set of protagonists whose actions don't always tally up with the personalities and lives the author has presented to us.

At one point, just past the halfway mark, I was beginning to think this was going to be one of my favourite books of recent years, but it tailed off badly and the end was a relief more than anything else. Would still recommend it, but with a few caveats, namely; this is a harsh book, an often distressing one, so be prepared. It's also forcibly multi-cultural and multi-representational, to the extent that it makes you wonder if the author intentionally set out to write a book which would be welcomed by left-leaning liberals - in of itself this isn't a reason to put you off reading it, but the world she creates seemed to me to be unrealistic. Lastly, the narrative; at times it is incredibly affecting and insightful, but it's also wearying and repetitive.

Ultimately, like most critically-acclaimed modern-works, it's a book that will divide most ordinary readers.

That's an excellent review of the book and exactly my feelings on it. I read it last week on holidays and by the second half I was ready to help Jude on his way.

Now starting Louis De Berniere's The Dust That Falls from Dreams.

eire4

minnow wrote: »

Star of the Sea, Joseph O'Connor.

Did you enjoy it? I though it was pretty good. An interesting and different take on the great hunger.

eire4

Finished a re read of the second part of JRR Tolkein's timelsss classic Lord of the Rings trilogy The Two Towers.

Birneybau

'Stalker' by Lars Kepler which has kicked straight into the action, one of the most exhilarating scenes I've read in a very early chapter. Enjoyed all the other books, the most interesting "crime" books I've read.

'The Girls' by Emma Cline will be the one after.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

I'm nearly finished Dr Zhivago and while it's been pretty alright there are some parts of it I find very annoying. I know it's called Dr. Zhivago and so Yuri is the main focus of the story but the other characters, especially the women, are so poorly developed that it's hard to care. I mean he meets Lara at the army hospital and then BANG! they're in love and she's the best thing since sliced bread but we're never given any real reason as to why she's the best thing since sliced bread. We're just constantly told through other people "ah, sure that Lara girl is only lovely". And when they're told

their lives are in grave danger, they must leave immediately and here's some first class tickets on a luxury train to a really nice place where you can be together or, if you like, you can go and be reunited with your wife and kids.... he says no! FOR WHY?!?! He sends Lara off and stays in a freezing cold house surrounded by wolves all the time expecting to be arrested and shot!!

It just makes no sense.

That aside... it's not too bad

Fathom

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, by Rowling