Laurel’s Comments (group member since Aug 06, 2013)

Laurel’s comments from the I Read Therefore I Am group.

Or plum jam? (yummy on toast or crumpets)

Hilary wrote: "I suppose it is but it's a very old film. What I like is that Dracula is so creepy to look at apart from the sinister way he moves around. You couldn't get anything further from the way vampires ..."

I love Dracula but haven't seen many of the old films (I might see if any of them are on you tube) - I'm a bit old fashioned in that I prefer the stories where vampires are actually are the bad guys! Dracula is still my favourite ;)

Shocking what the mine owners could get away with wasn't it?

But Yay for Amelia Earhart!

I can't decide if she just left him or if she has drowned in the river - a bit ambiguous but I like it.

Brilliant! I read the first few pages and it's won me over already. This was the one on the shortlist I was actually least looking forward to but going from the little bit I read yesterday I think I will really like it.
Have any of you ever read anything by Toibin before??

Yeah same here - I'm going to try and get to it but might have to run over time a little.

That's part of what was so sad (view spoiler)[ he realises by the end of the book that maybe he could have just forgotten about it. (hide spoiler)]

Yes that's very true Ellie - Fontane deliberately characterises Effi as young and childlike, she actually seems younger than 17 at the beginning of the book especially!

Made some Apple and Walnut chutney today - I was given a bag of windfall apples so have been trying to come with as many things I can make with apples as I can - that's the last of them gone now thank goodness.

Is anybody reading this one?? I need to get a hold of a copy but am planning to read this as well (hopefully before Hallowe'en actually gets here).

Got my copy of this yay!! Am starting it tonight :)

I enjoyed it, it actually wasn't what I thought it was going to be but still a good read. It was interesting to see the aftermath of the September 11th attacks from the point of view of a Muslim person living in America and how it affected them.

Finish this earlier - really good read, felt quite modern in some respects in the way he didn't waffle on as much as soon 19th century novelists do, he pretty much stuck to his story for the most part. Loved Effi and felt a bit sorry for her - just too young but that's not exactly a crime. (view spoiler)[ I thought Instetten was a bit ridiculous when he HAD to go through with the duel - he didn't even want to do it! The whole thing could have been avoided and that's what makes it so tragic. And why an army bloke wasn't a better shot I don't know, Crampas was already injured in a previous duel before meeting Effi, then gets killed by a bureaucrat!
The bit I found really sad was when she finally gets to see her daughter again and the little girl is just so cold towards her, and also the end where her parents are talking about her death - they know they shouldn't have married her off so young but can't quite bring themselves to fully talk about it - Briest's refrain of 'that's just too vast a subject' was a very poignant last line (hide spoiler)]

I'm about ready to start this - how about everyone else?

ooh I've never seen it - is it creepy with no sound?

119. In Cold Blood - Truman Capote
120. Pale Fire - Vladimir Nabokov
121. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
122. Death in Venice - Thomas Mann
123. The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Moshin Hamid

Yeah!

Ha ha, I quite like that M&D is the standard now that we can use for all future weirdness!

Sounds good Lee!
I couldn't get a copy of any of the Smiley books but I did pick up The Looking Glass War which looks interesting. It did kinda put me in mind of Graham Greene from the description so looking forward to it!

Lee wrote: "I guess a real hen on your lap would be more comforting than a metaphorical one!
Just about to start chapter 18 [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ I don't like him either - he's a bit sleazy (hide spoiler)]