This Week I are mostly reading (contd)

paddyh117

Eventually finished The Goldfinch - great book and really enjoyed it, although felt a little let down by the last maybe 10% or so

tried to start Max Hastings' Catastrophe - a history of WWI, being the year that's in it, but could not get past the first few dozen pages and it's huge so will shelve that for now

Instead started The Harvest, enjoying it so far - without expecting it to be great.

Monkeybonkers

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

Callan57

The Undertaking by Audrey Magee

Listened to an interview with the author last week & was so impressed I went & purchased the book that lunchtime.

Huzzah!

Huzzah! wrote: »

I just finished this as well. It took me ages to get into it, but I enjoyed it well enough. To begin with, it reminded me of the Grass is Singing, which I didn't enjoy at all.

Struggling to think of what to read next.

Finally decided on AM Homes's Jack. She's one of my favourite authors; I love her sense of humour, which is shining through already in this novel.

ankles

waiting for some stuff to arrive in Amazon, history books mostly, re-reading Tenth of December, short stories by George Saunders in the meantime. Brilliant stuff. Amazing writer

Aenaes

Okay, since reading The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared as fast I could just to finish it, I've went to read a few more.

I picked up Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Stories To Be Read With The Lights On, Volume Two. Some weird, spooky, strange short stories by different authors chosen by Hitchcock to make up the book. I'm reading one story whenever I finish a book. I've read two and they seem somewhat decent but nothing spectacular. I'm wondering if better stories were chosen for the first volume.

I read Skin by Mo Hayder for something non-serious after some of the books I've read and also to get rid of it off the top of my pile (it's been staring me down for a few months). Modern crime novel, with a recurring maverick detective. It continues with a story and characters from his last case which was in the previous book of the series. It ended up being a bit far-fetched and annoying. I've noticed alot of other modern crime books having the same effect on me.

Disclosure by Michael Crichton. Yes, it was made into that film with Michael Douglas and Demi Moore. Film was often on tv years ago and I remember the basic plot and the twist in the end of it but I don't think I ever watched it fully. Anyway, the book was decent at least. I ended up reading it one night, I'm just not sure if it was because the story was compelling or because I couldn't sleep. I know sexual harassment was central to the story but there seemed to be alot of emphasis on gender roles and stereotyping and it was almost rammed down your throat. Obviously, 1994 was a different time and things have changed so they were probably bigger issues when the book was released.

I've turned the first page on World War 2 Commanders by Ian Westwell. I got this for Christmas and I've been excited to get stuck into it. It gives a brief biography of all the main military leaders from all the belligerent nations and some political ones too. It should be a nice reference book for the future when coming across some names in other books.

I'm currently in the very early stages of reading Henry James' The Portrait Of A Lady. It came with a long-winded and confusing introduction by the author. The book itself seems very long especially if the lady is just going to be sitting in European tea rooms being flattered by posh gentry.

Wyldwood

Read The Fault in Our Stars through all the storms over the last two days. It's a young adult book. Not as depressing as I anticipated but quite an emotional read, especially if you're a parent.
Some of the language didn't read true for 16/17 year olds no matter how precocious.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Wyldwood wrote: »

Read The Fault in Our Stars through all the storms over the last two days. It's a young adult book. Not as depressing as I anticipated but quite an emotional read, especially if you're a parent.
Some of the language didn't read true for 16/17 year olds no matter how precocious.

I thought it was like Dawson's Creek - The Cancer Years. Pretty awful, in my opinion.

SarahBM

Finished the Contractors by John B Keane, not bad but as my friend said the ending was a bit of a cop out.

started Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry. I have so much college stuff to do at the moment though, doubt I will get to read much in the coming months. that "to read" pile in the corner is just going to keep growing. I cannot wait for the summer break so I can read in peace.

Callan57

The Undertaking by Audrey Magee - read it after listening to Sean O'Rourke's interview with the author. This is a great read, written mostly in dialogue, I was really, really gripped by it. An amazing first book & I highly recommend it.

Now it's on to The Infatuations by Javier Marías

Monkeybonkers

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

adrian522

adrian522 wrote: »

Currently reading the Star of the Sea by Joe O'Connor.

It's really a great book, the writing is beautiful and the story is told via a few different methods(different peoples POV, letters to family members, the ship captains log, newspaper reports etc). It also gives good insight into the Ireland of the time.

I finished this today, I really liked it, the last chapter was a bit dis-jointed or rushed or something but the book as a whole was very satisfying. As I said above I love the writing it almost reads as poetry.

Anyway, enough of Star of the Sea, I'm moving onto Friday Night Lights by HG Bissinger

I'm a fan of the movie and have heard good things about it and need some sort of american football fix in the off season.

SarahBM

adrian522 wrote: »

Anyway, enough of Star of the Sea, I'm moving onto Friday Night Lights by HG Bissinger

I'm a fan of the movie and have heard good things about it and need some sort of american football fix in the off season.

Have you watched the tv series of Friday Night Lights? It's better than the movie. I'm dying to read the book too let us k.ow what its like.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

SarahBM wrote: »

Have you watched the tv series of Friday Night Lights? It's better than the movie. I'm dying to read the book too let us k.ow what its like.

I second this.

adrian522

SarahBM wrote: »

Have you watched the tv series of Friday Night Lights? It's better than the movie. I'm dying to read the book too let us k.ow what its like.

I have watched it but I don't agree it's better than the movie. The movie is based on the book and is at least realistic.

The TV show while entertaining is essentially a teen drama soap opera, it had it's moments but I much prefer the movie.

I found myself cringing a lot while watching the TV series.

Anyway, started the book and it seems to be well written but early days yet.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

adrian522 wrote: »

I have watched it but I don't agree it's better than the movie. The movie is based on the book and is at least realistic.

The TV show while entertaining is essentially a teen drama soap opera, it had it's moments but I much prefer the movie.

I found myself cringing a lot while watching the TV series.

Anyway, started the book and it seems to be well written but early days yet.

:eek:

How very dare you!

Rothko

In Cold Blood - Truman Capote

I'm about three quarters of the way through it and I've really enjoyed it so far.

adrian522

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

:eek:

How very dare you!

Yeah I know. I still think it's a decent TV show, but I'd much prefer the movie.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

I've been slacking on my reading of late, I blame the Winter Olympics, so I'm still reading The Secret Scripture.

I'm very nearly finished and I have to say it's a very frustrating book. Roseanne's story is interesting and the way her memories and reality don't quite match makes it kind of intriguing. What's real and what's not? But..... I think the way the writer chooses to reveal the real story is quite lazy? I don't know, I just think there must have been a less clunky way to have Roseanne's real history revealed alongside her memories than having the Doctor write what is basically a diary akin to a teenage girl. Harsh, I know, but that's how it reads to me.

I know they're making a film of this soon and I suppose the Doctor discovering the truth element will work fine on screen but I think it stops the book from finding any real rhythm.

Merkin

Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea

Aenaes

Merkin wrote: »

Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea

I loved it. Hope you enjoy it!

Merkin

Aenaes wrote: »

I loved it. Hope you enjoy it!

Thanks, have just started it.Was stuck on the DRIVEL that is Shantaram by David Gregory Roberts for a couple of weeks and you know how after something really appalling you want to read a proper book?!

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Finished The Secret Scripture this morning. Not impressed at all with that ending. I see now why he used the Doctor's notebook to explore the real history of Roseanne but the "twist" was too much of a coincidence and it all wrapped up a little too neatly.

Has anyone read any other Sebastian Barry books? I was looking at a few in Easons the other day and they seem to have the same structure i.e. the story of something that happened in the past mixed with something happening in the present and they overlap. Are all his books like that?

Callan57

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Finished The Secret Scripture this morning. Not impressed at all with that ending. I see now why he used the Doctor's notebook to explore the real history of Roseanne but the "twist" was too much of a coincidence and it all wrapped up a little too neatly.

Has anyone read any other Sebastian Barry books? I was looking at a few in Easons the other day and they seem to have the same structure i.e. the story of something that happened in the past mixed with something happening in the present and they overlap. Are all his books like that?

I agree with you the ending was a bit obvious.
The Whereabouts of Eneas McNulty & Annie Dunne I loved

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Callan57 wrote: »

I agree with you the ending was a bit obvious.
The Whereabouts of Eneas McNulty & Annie Dunne I loved

Is it the same Eneas McNulty as from The Secret Scripture?

paddyh117

Finished The Harvest by Jim Grace - not terrible, but terribly disappointing

anyway, moved on to Saints of the Shadow Bible by Ian Rankin. Will enjoy this a lot more I'm sure

Callan57

Finished The Infatuations by Javier Marias .. enjoyed it immensly, superb writing and really gripped me.

Now it's The Umbrella Tree by Mary Stanley - I'm 20% into it & still not sure where it's going if anywhere but we'll see.

Monkeybonkers

In Search of the Castaways; or the Children of Captain Grant by Jules Verne

Huzzah!

I'm nearly finished Foster by Claire Keegan. It's well written and has an engaging-enough story

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

I've started The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. Bit daunting given the size of it, I think I could literally kill someone with it, if I wanted to. Very early days but so far so good.

paddyh117

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

I've started The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. Bit daunting given the size of it, I think I could literally kill someone with it, if I wanted to. Very early days but so far so good.

One of the advantages of the Kindle is you don't get overwhelmed by the physical size of a book!

Enjoy - it's a great read

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

paddyh117 wrote: »

One of the advantages of the Kindle is you don't get overwhelmed by the physical size of a book!

Enjoy - it's a great read

But you also get no sense of achievement when you see your bookmark slowly making it's way further and further into the book

Callan57

paddyh117 wrote: »

One of the advantages of the Kindle is you don't get overwhelmed by the physical size of a book!

Enjoy - it's a great read

.. and you don't get big muscles carrying it around

paddyh117

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

But you also get no sense of achievement when you see your bookmark slowly making it's way further and further into the book

ah you do - the % rises (very slowly) as you progress!

paddyh117

Callan57 wrote: »

.. and you don't get big muscles carrying it around

True - but i like to read on the bus to/from work, and after Stephen King's 201163, i know it was time for a Kindle!

IvyTheTerrible

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

But you also get no sense of achievement when you see your bookmark slowly making it's way further and further into the book

If you click the menu icon, it tells you how many "pages" you've read! I always check!

RossMerle

Itis very funny

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

IvyTheTerrible wrote: »

If you click the menu icon, it tells you how many "pages" you've read! I always check!

Ah but I don't have to click anything to see my bookmark

vepyewwo

Voodoo_rasher wrote: »

Reading "Child 44,,. Remarkable piece of writing, 2008, by a chap who was

barely 30 yrs of age yet writes of 1950s Soviet times as though he had lived

through that era. Ridley Scott has considered basing a film on it.

I stayed up until 3 am finishing this, so tired now but really enjoyed it. There are two more books in the series - The Secret Speech and Agent 6.
It has already been made into a film starring Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace, think it's due out later this year.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1014763/

thejaguar

I've just finished To Kill a Mocking Bird. Couldn't put it down, it was absolutely excellent. Who knew....?

Dibble

This Side of Brightness by Colum McCann.

Wyldwood

Finished The Old Man and the Sea. It was an easy read, didn't excite me too much. Not sure what all the hype was about it.

I sometimes wonder if we read too much into the works of the "literary greats". Did they really mean to write simple stories or were we supposed to read them as metaphors for life or whatever interpretation is put on them by those that followed?

OldRio

Engleby by Sebastian Faulks.

Belle E. Flops

Wyldwood wrote: »

Finished The Old Man and the Sea. It was an easy read, didn't excite me too much. Not sure what all the hype was about it.

I sometimes wonder if we read too much into the works of the "literary greats". Did they really mean to write simple stories or were we supposed to read them as metaphors for life or whatever interpretation is put on them by those that followed?

I have to say The Old Man and the Sea, for all the hype around it was the most painful book I have ever read, although Madame Bovary is a very close second.

Aenaes

Belle E. Flops wrote: »

I have to say The Old Man and the Sea, for all the hype around it was the most painful book I have ever read, although Madame Bovary is a very close second.

Really? I thought painful would be the adjective least used to describe the book. I can kind of understand Wyldwood's point of view but struggling to accept "painful".
I admit there might be some mundane descriptive passages (like when the old man decides to eat a meal) but I felt they just made me connect with the guy even more. I pitied him during the start, I was rallying for him during his titanic struggle and I

cursed those damn sharks.

This is by no means an attack on your opinion, I just really liked the story.

I'm still reading The Portrait Of A Lady and finding it a tough slog. I'm restricting myself to just reading one or two chapters a night which I rarely do.

Callan57

Finished The Umbrella Tree by Mary Stanley - it was OK but not the brilliant read I'd been recommended.

Next off the pile is Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (love all his books so far so optomistic for Marina)

Ipso

Belle E. Flops wrote: »

I have to say The Old Man and the Sea, for all the hype around it was the most painful book I have ever read, although Madame Bovary is a very close second.

Really? I read it when I was fairly young and loved it (after seeing the Anthony Quinn film), I'm from a fishing area andclike angling so that may have atteacted me. Needless to say the themes of masculinity and aging escaped me.

Belle E. Flops

It has been a few years since I read The Old Man and the Sea but I do remember that even though it's a very short book I thought I'd never get to the end of it. I just found it so boring and if it had been a longer book I'm pretty sure I would have just given up on it, which I very rarely do. I know people love it but I just did not enjoy it at all.

ankles

Liked the Old Man and the Sea, and Madame Bovary. On a history binge. Have finished the causes of the Great Crash 1929, by JK Galbraith. Everyone should read it. Now reading the Pursuit of Glory Europe 1648-1815. Very interesting. Already found out where the term "spinster" came from.

Rothko

I'm currently re-reading American Psycho. I'm liking it even more this time for some reason.