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BOOK CLUB - Galway
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Hi Brian
The next meeting is Tuesday 26th Sept at 8.30/9pm-ish in the Cottage Bar Salthill. We will be discussing the second half of The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov.
Great, thanks! When the next book has been chosen I might just pick that up instead and I'll hook up with you all at the following meeting. Cheers!0 -
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No probs, Ms. Ka, let me know if you need it, there is still a bit of time left... I have started on the book again and am finding it a slog now - that magic stuff is getting really tired IMO.
I agree, great news about the book swap evening, gonna be there defo, not least as it's just around the corner from home. But I also need to unload the M&M and the American Psycho - I'm very selective about the company (of books) I keep
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I was just looking at Julian Gough's website http://www.juliangough.com/letter-from-berlin-prospect/ because I wanted to know if there's any way that he might be in Galway to attend the discussion of his book (I think he comes to Galway fairly frequently...but I could be wrong). I noticed that one of the reviewers of Jude Level 1, The Sunday Tribune, said that it "Could be the finest comic novel since Flann O'Brien's The Third Policeman." Now, isn't that a coincidence 0
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Automatic email response:
I hope he doesn't mind me putting this up here but I thought it was funny. It's the automatically generated response to the email I sent to J. Gough
"Thanks for emailing me. As I am a novelist (an utterly untrustworthy breed), and as I run www.juliangough.com myself, and as I sometimes abandon the world of electricity for months while writing a novel, it could be some considerable time before I reply properly. Let me apologise in advance...
But it's very nice of you to get in contact with me, and I do look forward to answering your email when I return from the jungles of Borneo with beriberi and my tattered manuscript.
-Julian" 0 -
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Yea Tristan, needless to say, as our founding father you were greatly missed at our last meeting, HOWEVER far be it from us to argue against the greater good of the NUI Galway German Society. Wir sind resigniert.
How is everyone doing with The Third Policeman? Bethm, I took your advice and had it ordered from the Westside Library, but no word yet... I hope none of you my fellow Book Clubbers have got your mitts on it! (Just joking. Fair play if you have, I couldn't be bothered making the trek to the Westside.) 0 -
It's nice to know that I was missed Maja. Was it a good discussion? Did everyone like the book? You thought the magic was a bit over the top did you?
The Third Policeman is really good so far. I love Flann O'Brien's style of writing and his wit. It's very similar in style to The Poor Mouth which was excellent. I'm only on page 58 but so far so good. I keep wanting to read more and more which is a good sign for me anyway.
German Society meeting was ok, nothing too special.0 -
Well, there were five of us at the last discussion, and I think that for most of us the magic and the pranks become too repetative towards the end of the book. I, for one, was glad to see the back of it - I think I even liked the Pontius Pilate story more than the Master and Woland one. That said, it is a good book, well written - just not to my taste, I suppose.
Other than that, I am sure you won't be surprised when I tell you that our discussion then veered to such varied and unrelated topics as the merits or otherwise of chick-lit, and Peter Carey's oeuvre, to name but a few...
Have a good week, everyone.0 -
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Hi Everyone,
Damien told me that he will be nominating 'Berlin, The Downfall 1945' by Antony Beevor. He said that it could be fairly harrowing.
One other thing, I was thinking that it might be a good idea for anyone who has attended the meetings and read the books to post up their own rating and small review of what they thought of it the particular book being discussed, if you get the time that is. It would be similar to the reviews that we used to put on the attendance sheets but now each person can write their own What do ye think? 0 -
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Matbe we should discuss it further at our next meeting? We also need to look at whether or not we should change which night of the week we hold BookClub on. The problem with Friday is that I would really doubt if we will be able to use the little room in The Cottage Bar. The place is busy enough during the week, never mind the weekend. I'm up for changing it though. I don't mind 0
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Wasn't changing it to a Friday night not just a once off?
I'm not sure, that's why I said that we should discuss it at the next meeting
Maybe it is just a once-off but I got the impression the last night that getting up early for work the next morning, and in some cases not being able to have a pint was a bit annoying. Maybe I took it up wrong
By the way, The Third Policeman is a fantastic book. I just finished it last night. I absolutely loved the flowing language used in it and the humour is subtle but brilliant IMO, especially in refernece to de Selby and the narrator. I love how de Selby's ideas are introduced throughout the story by the author and how he takes them so seriously even though there are times when he's not so sure about the credibility of the idea itself such as the black air, the air sacs, the diluted water and de Selby's inability to distinguish men from women
However funny the story is though, it is quite bleak overall. I think this is a quote from the book that portrays this:
"When I reached the barrack I payed no attention to anything or anybody but went straight to a bed and lay on it and fell into a full and simple sleep. Compared with this sleep, death is a restive thing, peace is a clamour and darkness a burst of light."
Seeing as we read the Master and Margarita before this there were some references to the similarity of topics dealt with in The Third Policeman. Both deal with surreal situations and death in general but I think that's where the similarity ends. The Third Policeman for me was much superior. It was beautifully written, to the point and I think by reading it again, much more could be taken from it. We were actually wondering why this book (or similar) is not on the leaving certificate English curriculum If I remember correctly, I read Wuthering Heights, Of Mice and Men (which was very good but by an American author) and Castle Rackrent (which could have been for the Junior Cert.).
10 out of 10 for me. I'd read it again no problem!0
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