This Week I are mostly reading (contd)

confusticated wrote: »

Finished When Breath Becomes Air today, I don't usually read non fiction but would highly recommend it. It's about and written by a neurosurgeon who had terminal cancer, so his story is interesting in itself, but he was an excellent writer too. It's fairly short but beautifully written.

Agree fully. I avoided it for a while because I was expecting it to be depressing and while it is obviously sad much of the book relates to his life pre-cancer. For such a young man he had an incredibly mature attitude to life and death. What impressed me most was the honesty of the writing. One of those rare books that you know you will never forget.

Callan57 wrote: »

The Good People by Hannah Kent

Does this live up to her previous novel Burial Rites? Loved that.

Latest Harry Hole by Jo Nesbo, ' The Thirst'. Cracking start, has never written an un-enjoyable book.

One previous was ' The Spinning Heart' by Donal Ryan that I was very impressed with.

Finished The Better angels Of Our Nature - A History Of violence in Humanity by Steven Pinker

By the time the 800 odd pages are finished he drums into you that despite every thing we see and read that safest place to be right now since the dawn of the is here right now in the Western Democracies - and it is getting better .

The Greeks And Their Gods - W.K.C . Guthrie , al only but a goodie , first published in 1950 and sets out as a kind of religious companion to the Greek Classics - and it does exactly that - I just loved it

The Deaths Of Berlin - the 2nd Otto Fisher Novel by Jim McDermott - investigating Murder in Berlin in December 1994 - great way to learn more of the background to a country is to read the fiction set in that country of published at the time in that country - and I am going through a German binge right now - Weimar , Between the Wars , The Aftermath etc - Forget Kursk , Ardennes , Jodl , Keitl , this is much more interesting - how did it happen - what gave rise to it .

At the moment I'm reading Irish crime fiction.

Finished broken Harbour by Tana French, and just started In The Woods - Both pretty good. The main characters'/narrators' voices are very distinct and well developed in each.

The Alexandria Quartets, by Lawrence Durrell.
It's four books, (a Quadrilogy?), all developing the same series of events from different points of view.
I'm most of the way through the second. They are beautifully written.

White Tears, Hari Kunzru.
Absolutely loved Gods Without Men and hoping that this will be of similar quality.

Finished A Prayer for the Damned by Peter Tremayne. A very enjoyable murder mystery set in the 7th century in Ireland with his famed character Sister Fidelma leading the investigation.

On a Cormac McCarthy binge at the moment.

First was "The Road" which is probably the most haunting thing I've ever read.

Next was "Blood Meridian" which I've seen best described as an "anti-Western"

Now I'm on "No country for old men" which is somewhat ruined by having seen the movie.