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October 26
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piraterie
is currently reading:
Nation (Hardcover)
by Terry Pratchett
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piraterie
is currently reading:
Botchan: A Modern Classic (Paperback)
by Natsume Soseki
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piraterie
gave
   
to:
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World (Paperback)
by Haruki Murakami
bookshelves:
fantasy,
read2008,
surreal
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read in October, 2008
piraterie said:
"I recently found out that I am moving to Japan early next year. While in the throes of freaking out over having so much to do before I go, it occurred to me that while I have read a fair amount of Japanese non-fiction, I've read almost no fiction fr...more
I recently found out that I am moving to Japan early next year. While in the throes of freaking out over having so much to do before I go, it occurred to me that while I have read a fair amount of Japanese non-fiction, I've read almost no fiction from Japan. Something I should remedy before I go, I thought, although I was a bit wary as a) I have issues about Japanese-to-English translation and b) I'm pretty sure I haven't read much Japanese fiction because I haven't come across much of it that appeals to me. Still, I made a list, and I am starting on it. We shall see how it goes.
In any case, this was my first Murakami, and I liked it more than I expected I would. It broke my brain a lot, but it was engaging from beginning to end. I liked the structure of it, the two books alternating and gradually becoming more connected, both worlds feeling real and unreal. I wanted it to end differently, but at the same time, the way it ended was probably a better ending, if less satisfying to me.
For a book that's more than 20 years old and crammed with pop culture references, it's kind of amazing that it doesn't feel horribly dated.
In many ways, it felt like the literary equivalent of a Michel Gondry film. I like Michel Gondry films; I liked this book.
Had some moments of wondering just how good the translation was, but it mostly didn't worry me. I do have another Murakami sitting about somewhere, translated by someone else; it'll be interesting to see if it changes the feeling. It'll be interesting to know if I really like Murakami or if I just liked this book....less
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October 25
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piraterie
gave
   
to:
A Lion Among Men: Volume Three in the Wicked Years (The Wicked Years)
by Gregory Maguire
bookshelves:
fantasy,
parallel-lit,
read2008
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my rating:
   
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read in October, 2008
piraterie said:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
"I wasn't terribly interested in the Cowardly Lion, but I'm always up for Gregory Maguire, so I was looking forward to this book. And I did end up liking it quite a lot (and ended up reading it all in one sitting), although it was a little slow to gr...more
I wasn't terribly interested in the Cowardly Lion, but I'm always up for Gregory Maguire, so I was looking forward to this book. And I did end up liking it quite a lot (and ended up reading it all in one sitting), although it was a little slow to grab me at first. Or, actually, it did grab me at first, with Yackle and Brrr in the mauntery, but when it got into Brrr's life story, it lost me for a while. But it got me back in the end! And although I'm kind of undecided about how I feel about Brrr, I did find the book very interesting.
A frustration! Although, with so many loose ends, the hint of more books to come is a lovely thought, I want more closure on some things. In Son of a Witch, Liir is looking for Nor. And then in this book we have Nor, but now Liir is lost. I feel like we're going in circles! And while I did enjoy the book on its own, I wonder a bit how it fits into the larger series. It felt somewhat like an intermission in the story; almost nothing from the end of the last book was really resolved in this. And maybe if another book (or more?) follows, it will feel more like it fits in, but for now I feel a little, "Yes, that was good, but can we really get back to the story now?"...less
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October 22
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piraterie
gave
   
to:
Chalice (Hardcover)
by Robin McKinley
bookshelves:
fantasy,
read2008,
to-review,
young-adult
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read in October, 2008
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piraterie
gave
   
to:
Charm School (Mass Market Paperback)
by Susan Wiggs (Goodreads author!)
bookshelves:
read2008,
romance,
to-review
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read in August, 2008
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October 21
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piraterie
gave
   
to:
Date Me, Baby, One More Time (Immortally Sexy, Book 1)
by Stephanie Rowe
bookshelves:
read2008,
romance,
to-review
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read in October, 2008
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piraterie
gave
   
to:
Kitchen (Paperback)
by Banana Yoshimoto
bookshelves:
read2008,
to-review
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my rating:
   
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read in October, 2008
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October 05
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piraterie
gave
   
to:
The Graveyard Book (Hardcover)
by Neil Gaiman (Goodreads author!)
bookshelves:
fantasy,
read2008,
to-review,
young-adult
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my rating:
   
Added to my books!
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read in October, 2008
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