Coalbanks's comments
(member since Apr 01, 2008)
Coalbanks's comments from the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die group.
(showing 1-20 of 28)
Amanda wrote: "I've heard a lot of Dickens fans call Hardy 'melodramatic'. Having not read any Dickens' novels *cue gasps of horror - this is something I plan to correct soon!* I am not qualified to compare, but..."
Dickens wrote best about his own urban British middle class with few successful characters of the working class (Bill Sykes, a violent criminal, may have been a notable exception, likewise Sam Weller, a valet which may have been the worker that Dickens understood best as he employed valets & could observe them closely. A pity that no valet left us a pictue of Dickens.). Hardy created some memorable working class characters & scenarios, esp Jude the Obscure, but was always trying to fit into the middle class both in his writing & in his personal life, like Jude...
Julie at All Ears wrote: "Just finished 3 off the list - The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (just ok and definitely a bit dated with the Cold War and Berlin Wall), Faceless Killers (another mystery tht was just ok) and The B..."
Margaret wrote: "dracula. i liked it a lot even though halfway through i just wanted it to end. "
SPY...Dated, yes as to time & place but what about the treachery & deceit? Still relevant, no?
FACELESS KILLERS Not a bad debut in the genre.
BLIND ASSASSINS On my to-read shelf. Thanks for the good words.
Chel wrote: "I just finished A Clockwork Orange, the original as the author intended with the last chapter included. It ultimately has a positive outlook on overall human nature. I thought it was a great book..."
Burgess & Golding were great writers as was Ballard. Difficult to find their match today. Any suggestions?
Stacie wrote: "I just completed The Three Musketeers. It was good, but not as good as The Count of Monte Cristo."
Monte Cristo was a much more intense tale than the 3 M's which is as much a comedy/farce as anything else. Both good reads in their own way.
Eva wrote: "I finished The Catcher in the Rye and The Picuture of Dorian Gray"
For "...Cathcher..." : Take a handful of aspirin, lie down, sleep. You will feel better in the morning. Ha Ha! Just not my favourite book!
Lyn wrote: "Just finished The Grapes of Wrathand am starting Robinson Crusoe"
Betteredge the narrator of "The Moonstone" considers a chapter of Robinson Crusoe ( and a pipe of tobacco) all that he needs to set the world right & to give him guidence.
Finished Brideshead Revisited, not sure how or why I had not read this sooner, liked it, somewhat predictable story-line, too moralistic for my tastes but generally well-written, not his best or worst.
Thanks. That does tend to be my "method" of selection. The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao... again someone has mentioned it to me. Time to look it up, I guess. Thanks.
All of the books of the Maya/Aztecs banned by the Inquisition & Spanish authorities for supporting non-Christian beliefs & for showing the natives that they had a culture and identity prior to the conquest by Spain.
I start several books more or less at the same time & let the best win me over to exclusivity. Fickle? So many books - so little time! Some books are better read with a complimentary or supporting book esp history, biogs.
I'm considering: Moonstone by Colin Wilkie or The Brothers Karamazov by Dosoyevsky or Bill mOyer's essays on Democracy. Any advice? Currently reading Solzhenitsyn's Letter to the Soviet Leaders/ Letter to the West.
So true, so often proven true.
Quixote as Christ figure? How about as an old, post-reunion with Penelope Odysseus?
TOLSTOY KNEW HIS CLASS & ENVIRONMENT. He could portray the aristocracy, to which he & his family belonged, & their manners, values & belifs but was less aware of the realities of "his" serfs, the peasants & the working class. His understanding & portrayal of the upper middle class; the higher ranked priests,diplomats & professionals ie lawyers, doctors, academics & "men of business" was somewhat better than his understanding & therefore his portrayal of the lower classes. An enjoyable writer for the most part both in the novels & short stories.
Msg # 18 Silver; There are few true penitents within the prison walls. The measure of success comes not in their words while inside but their deeds if they ever regain their freedom.
Swift had a sharp & nasty tongue which, given the legal system of the time/place, he was lucky not to have had nailed to the public stocks. I read Gulliver's travels when I was too young to appreciate it properly. Where are the satirists of his calibre today when they are so sorely needed? TV? Stephen Colbert? Rick Mercer? Any suggestions?
I wonder if in another 100 years his "carnivore" values will be as difficult to read as his "racist" values are today?
534 Erin: A couple of old favourites there. let us know what you thought of WD & Siddhartha. Which stories of Poe?
507 Logan: The Spy Who... was an eye-opener for me when I read it as a teen. No heroes here, kid. Watch your enemies closely & your allies closer & "good deeds may not go unpunished" was the message I took away. And the teen-aged angst descended full-force!
Gollum for Prez!
Sam for Saint!
1001 Books You Must Read B...
