Who really gives a damn? My book log 2010

buck65

Tried to do this before but gave up. Not going to say I'll read 50 this year just keep track of where I am headed as a reader and feel free to throw in your 2c.

buck65

1- 2666 - Roberto Bolano ****

Really enjoyed reading this big book (900 plus pages). There are alot of reviews and points of view on this novel by the late Bolano. Not going to add to it bar saying it is quite an easy read for a "literary" book. It may take some time for me to confirm the 4 star rating that I have awarded it.

buck65

2 -On Writing - Stephen King ****
Been interested in picking this one up for a while now. The reviews were very positive and this is really a must have for any aspiring writers out there. King, as always, tells it like it is. The first half deals with his youth and early forays into the world of writing.
In the second,he opens the "toolbox" and examines the tools, nuts and bolts of good writing. There is alot of good, simple advice here. Recommended.


As the joke goes:

Question:How do I get to Carnegie Hall
Reply: Practice, practice, practice..

buck65

3- Charles Bukowski - Collected poems - The Pleasures of the Damned. *****
Look, I love Bukowski. So this was always going to be a 5 star book for me. His fiction can be hit and miss but always worth reading and likewise his poetry. If there ever was a writer who divided opinion Chuck is that writer. Sure, of the 500 plus poems here there are alot that I would read only once but there are also a hell of a lot that I would and have read repeatedly. A desert island choice for me.

buck65

4- Stepping stones - interviews with Seamus Heaney - Dennis o Driscoll ***
This book is one long interview conducted with the magnificent Heaney over a period of time. The answers are fresh and revealing and the questions are vast and cover all aspects of Heaney's life and works. I read most of this book in a week and continue to dip in and out of the rest. Good stuff.

buck65

5 - Aparition and other late fictions - Thomas Lynch ****

Eileen Battersby gushed about this collection of stories in the Irish Times and it had been on my radar when I saw that poet and story writer Lynch would be partaking in the Ennis Book Festival. I snapped it up and duly booked my ticket for Lynch's and Paul Durcan's reading and interview in Glor on Saturday 6th March.
The stories remind me of Carver at times. Lynch is a man who enjoys his hunting and fishing too by the looks of things. Some beautiful prose here. I am halfway through the book and will update my rating when I finish.

Ps the poetry recital was great. Durcan got very emotional whilst reading. Lynch was hilarious. Nice guy too.

buck65

Fear and Trembling - Amelie Nothumb ***

An account of a native Belgian working in a Tokyo office of a large Corporation. Very instructive book about Japanese workpractices. Her treatment by her superiors for showing vision and promise is unbelievable. Fascinating.

Hermy

buck65 wrote: »

2 -On Writing - Stephen King...this is really a must have for any aspiring writers out there...

That is a good book.
I would also recommend the similarly titled On Writing Well by William Zinsser.