Andrea's comments
(member since Aug 23, 2008)
Andrea's comments from the The Next Best Book Club group.
(showing 1-20 of 62)
I'm not sure if this is the place to post this news, but I found it really interesting, as well as quite sad.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/18/books/...
I'm interested in learning your opinions and/or experiences on this matter. Being from Chile, I have noticed two things:
1) Very few Spanish-speaking authors are translated into English. Most of those who are, have either won important awards or live in the USA.
2) Given the shortage of qualified translators from "rarer" languages into Spanish, many books are translated into English and THEN the English version is translated into Spanish... so this means that often we Spanish-speaking folk don't have access to foreign authors because they are of little or no interest to USA publishing houses.
Is there any non-English speaking author that you would've liked to read, but didn't find a translation??
(please, know that this post is in no way meant as a dig at US Americans... I feel that the disclaimer is needed since sometimes passions run amok :p)
The ones I have in my "wishlist" shelf here, and then some :P
You might notice a "slight" bias towards science-writing...
Update:
10 POINT TASKS
- READ A BOOK WITH A ONE WORD TITLE
15 POINT TASKS
- READ A BOOK BY AN AUTHOR YOU'VE NEVER READ BEFORE
- READ A BOOK WRITTEN BY AN ASIAN OR ASIAN AMERICAN AUTHOR
- READ A BOOK BY A HISPANIC OR HISPANIC AMERICAN AUTHOR
Current point total: 55/90
Some favourites, off the top of my head, in no particular order:
- The Night Face Up (La noche boca arriba), by Julio Cortázar (found in English in Blow-Up: And Other Stories
- The Hitchhiking Game, by Milan Kundera (found in Laughable Loves)
- Story of the Young Man with the Cream Tarts, by RL Stevenson (found in The Suicide Club)
- Sredni Vashtar, by Saki
- La cucaracha soñadora, by Augusto Monterroso (found in Obras Completas Y Otros Cuentos/complete Works And Other Stories; it's a retelling of Kafka's metamorphosis)
"I will often buy a bookmark if we are out anywhere. Do others do this? I guess there must be others who do or they wouldn't get sold in the gift shops. Is there a name for bookmark collectors? "
YES, YES, YES!!
More often than not, a pretty bookmark is the only thing I bring back with me as souvenir, whenever I travel a little. I also ask of my friends that they bring me a bookmark from wherever it is that they're going to.
I have literally hundreds of bookmarks from different places.
As for the name... obsessive bookmark freaks? :P
(no offense intended)
PS: Disclaimer - anything in this post remotely resembling orgasmic bliss is really not far off the mark
HUH.
When I first read this poll, I was a little shocked at the negative light in which the "paper" books' option is stated: http://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/793.W...
Now I am just NOT suprised. How sad.
Update:
10 POINT TASKS
- READ A BOOK WITH A ONE WORD TITLE
15 POINT TASKS
- READ A BOOK BY AN AUTHOR YOU'VE NEVER READ BEFORE
- READ A BOOK WRITTEN BY AN ASIAN OR ASIAN AMERICAN AUTHOR
Current point total: 40
I don't think I will be giving audiobooks a try any time soon, for several reasons:
1) Some have said that they like them because audiobooks allow them to do several things at once. I, on the other hand, prefer to do ONE thing at a time. When I read, I give the book my undivided attention, and I want it to stay that way :) (also, I am a TERRIBLE multitasker despite the usual generalisation that women excel at it. I literally SUCK at multitasking. Walking + chewing gum at the same time is where I draw the line...)
2) Related to #1, I have a very short attention span, and my audio memory/concentration skills are sorely lacking (people have different memory/concentration skills... mine are mainly visual), so chances are I would zone out in 10 minutes tops.
3) I prefer to imagine the characters' voices, tones, reactions, etc. on my own, instead of having the narrator's interpretation handed to me in a silver platter.
4) My commute consists of a 30-minute bus-ride, so I prefer to take a short-story book with me and block out everything else.
I admit, though, if I ever find myself in the position of having to deal with a long, daily commute in which I had to drive, I might rethink my position. But I do not foresee that in my near future :)
Ummm, Lorena, the only story I can think of that fits your description is a short story by Horacio Quiroga, called "El almohadón de plumas" ("The Feather Pillow"). The book is Cuentos de amor, de locura y de muerte.
Here's a link to the English version, so you can check it out http://www.horrormasters.com/Text/a0568....
Greetings :)
I have a short attention span, so 2 books tops. Usually a long(ish) book and a short story/essay/letters compilation.
I read the long(ish) book at home before going to bed or early before getting up, and read the compilation in bus rides.
The reason for this is that I have a hard time remembering things if I read them halfways, so short pieces that can be read at one sitting (or one bus ride :p) are ideal because I start and finish them during the ride. This way, I keep the longish books for home-reading, when I can properly concentrate and make sure I read whole chapters.
Greetings :)
Same here... 1997, from Amazon, and back then books took 6-8 weeks to arrive here (here = Chile)
Hi, Holly! It's great to find other people who are interested in such a specific topic :)
PS: wow! I just glanced at your blog and the info you give is awesome... I hope I can find some of those texts at online stores!!
It seems to be back on. I just added what page of Norwegian Wood I'm in.
I see no bar, though; just a simple "I'm in page XX of [b:]"
I was about 2 1/2.
I was a very sickly child so I spent most of my early childhood confined in bed... instead of prematurely turning my brain to mush by placing a tv set on my room, my parents bought me tons of childrens' books and started to teach me the alphabet very early on.
By the time I was 3, I was already reading on my own with no problem.
I've ordered from Betterworld on 3 occassions: On 2 of them, I got my books in less than 3 weeks; the other one, it took quite longer and they even reimbursed me 'cause we all thought it had been lost in transit. The book turned up a week later, so I reimbursed them for their reimbursement :p
All of the books have been secondhand books, but in excellent condition.
Still, if you live in the USA you probably have a lot of options; I've heard very good comments about Abebooks.com
Betterworld is THE choice I have for buying secondhand books, but fortunately they are a very good option.
I've only read The Kite Runner and I think it is highly, highly overrated.
I just added Pamuk's The Black Book and Murakami's Norwegian Wood to my ever-growing, never-ending "to read" pile.
Methinks I will get a tongue-lashing from my SO when I get back home (I'm out of town for a couple of days and I ran out of books to read... what's a person to do in such a case, but rush to the nearest bookstore, I ask you??)
I have a measly 30 points :p :Ayn Rand's Anthem (1-word title)
Fernando Vallejo's La puta de Babilonia (author I hadn't read before)
I also usually read one book at a time. If for some reason I am reading 2, one of them is usually a collection of short stories that I can read in one sitting, which I take with me on bus rides, doctor's apointments, etc. - I cannot keep 2 long storylines straight in my head.
