Brian’s Comments (group member since Mar 02, 2009)

Brian’s comments from the fiction files redux group.

i'm brian but people call me brian, sometimes bri, sometimes brain... well they don't call me brain they just have spelling deficiencies. i'm from a real place called 'cut off' but now live in an imaginary place that better embodies the spirit of the name 'cut off'. i'm not really living on pluto but at times it feels like it. i was depressed when pluto was given non-planet status. i felt homeless and neglected.

i like to read. the people here and at the original fiction files introduced me to good writers. before meeting them i was rummaging through dumpsters reading the trash i found.

i like world literature and dead russians and living japanese. i think philip k dick will soon be added to my lists of likes... so i'll soon like dead americans.

some of my favorite authors are Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Orhan Pamuk, Ismail Kadare, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Anton Pavlovich Chekhov. The book, Ubik, has recently impaired my judgment. so all of this may not be true.

Ben wrote: "i have read a lot of delillo and in my opinion there is no reason to read him. the "opening chapter to underworld," "pafko at the bat," was actually written and published years before the novel as ..."

Ben... I'm curious. Have you read Cosmopolis by DeLillo? I thought it was pretty damn good. Interesting, witty, surreal... and short! It's a downward spiral of a Master of the Universe kind of guy and it all takes place in one day. The peripheral characters were good. The main character was an ass, but an interesting ass.

Now I'm reading Hell by some Japanese guy... I love the easy ability to link to books here.

i love choclates... chocolates too! i'm wondering how she would personally mark the book. my imagination is disgustingly scary at times. i'm now erasing that last image...

hey michael! glad to see you. and your first post was in pfl... you romantic guy you.

Hangnail... easy enough word. But I learned while reading Cosmopolis by Don DeLillo this: Why is a hangnail called a hangnail? It's an alteration of agnail, which is Middle English, Eric happened to know, from Old English, with roots in torment and pain.

From Wikipedia: Agnail is the Middle English term meaning "corn." It comes from the Old English term angnægl (from ang- tight/painful + nægl- nail). Agnail was adapted to hangnail by a process of folk etymology.

Which only goes to prove, to me, that even simple words are complicated things.

His kiss was unnerving her, weakening her while uncovering a sweet longing she had denied even to her self.

So to those who have read this book... does the above quote imply that Nicole never masturbated?

And this is a direct quote from the book from Leeanne's page so 'her self' is indeed two separate words.

http://www.goodreads.com/story/show/2...

how about that 100 years of solitude book? seems a lot of us have it but the bindings haven't been cracked.

i'm also thinking about the code of the woosters by wodehouse.

seems we all have the 100 year book but not many of us have read it... interesting... should we all just maybe tackle a few years and meet later?

poll! poll! poll! poll it i say. i wanna vote for something.

and welcome slow rabbit aka patrick.

makes me cringe... and i just noticed i'm poking the poor guy's piercing blue eyes.

Shelby wrote: "Oh yeah?

Invitation
If you are a dreamer, come in.
If you are a dreamer, a wisher, a liar,
A hope-er a pray-er, a magic bean buyer...
If you're a pretender, come sit by my fire
For we have some flax-golden tales to spin.
Come in!
Come in!
-- Shel Silverstein..."

I agree with margaret, the lady i see twice. this would make a great invitation.

Romper, bomper, stomper, boo.
Tell me, tell me, tell me do.
Magic mirror, tell me today.
Did all my friends have fun at play?

welcome kerry and egret and margaret... i see debbie and connie, mo, and kerry, and egret, and je, and there's margaret, and hi dan and ben... and the lady with the violet eyes and curly hair, and you with the piercing blue eyes...

***SPOILER ALERT***

i'll keep it vague but i'm sure you'll understand what i'm asking. i understood the concepts all the way through to the one before last chapter of the book. at least i think i understood. and then... the last chapter. the money, the picture on it... wtf? am i where i think i am? do i need a can of ubik?

***END SPOILER ALERT***

i finished too, last night, curled up in bed in a fetal position. i know we split the book up to discuss the first 4 chapters but i have a question that falls out of that range. i just don't know at this moment how to properly ask it.

well damn ben... put a damper on my enthusiasm. after finishing ubik i fondled quite a few books in my little library and threw a delillo in my work bag (man bag). so here i am about to go out and get some coffee and indian treats for breakfast with a copy of cosmopolis. the plot summary reminded me of bonfire of the vanities, a book i enjoyed though i felt a tad or a few tads too long. cosmo is short. we'll see how delillo goes.

dan! Are you ok? do you still have a wireless info-transmit unit? we need to stick together. check in when you can.

"i think it is an interesting post actually. book-specfic reader's block? i had underworld for years and gave it away, never reading it. don't know why -- haven't read any delillo.."

I've got a bunch of delillo. i don't know why. never read him either but some of his books have nice covers so i buy them. should we try to read one some time? underworld is too big for me right now.

the post title can easily be edited. are you talking about his title as moderator? ubik has me a bit fuddle-minded at the moment.

whew... that was close. thought for a minute i would have to read it.

and as a plutonian-certifier i can delete, edit, close this post so that no one else can post on it or move it to the top to indicate just how important this post is. the power is tremendous. in fact i think i'll move it to the top right now.

i've got that book. i think it's the 100 years part that scares me. i kind of feel it may take that long to read and i frankly don't think i can spare a 100 years. but if you want, i'll yank it off the shelf and give it a go. my reading fate is now in your hands.