Keli’s Comments (group member since Jun 23, 2016)

Keli’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

I just finished Sabrina & Corina a decent collection of short stories (I would have said really good except a few of them felt interchangeable). Amongst the recommended similar books given after I finished was Return to the Enchanted Island, winner of prizes and hailed as only the 2nd book from Madagascar to be translated into English. I looked it up on GR and was shocked to see it had such a low rating. I take ratings with a grain of salt, two books I loathe (I’m against book burning but if I had to choose between saving someone, possibly even a fascist, and setting a book on fire, these would be kindling) have 4+ stars.
What I do trust are the reviews, well mostly. The consistent gripe for this book, aside from density, was narrative structure. I find this is a common complaint regarding translated literature. One reviewer even said it was a “fault” of either the translator or the author. And my thought was why not the reader? This is only the second book to be translated from a culture few westerners know anything about. Wouldn’t it be more accurate to assume that if there is a fault that it would lie with the reader. Why do we assume that everyone will write in one of our accepted narrative structures, probably all based on the Greeks? Why would someone from Madagascar not tell a story in way that conforms to their own cultural norms? I totally appreciate not liking a book, but I think it is weird to attribute blame when something doesn’t conform to one’s own conception of good storytelling. Since, many of us are reading books from other cultures, I’m curious to know your opinions.

I’m going to go back over my many reviews and see what I’ve previously said about some books. I would like to think as a trained anthropologist, I wouldn’t be so ethnocentric and even if I didn’t enjoy a book, would qualify why, other than just a poor job. Unless it is drivel. In which case, I would list all the reasons for my opinion like I did on the books I loathe.

Also, do you think it’s the responsibility of the translator to make an author’s work more palatable to the audience they’re translating for?

Denise wrote: "I'm flying to the mountains tomorrow, so I may not check in as much. We'll see what cell reception is like. I'm not taking a computer--that defeats the purpose of going to the mountains. :) I'll be..."

Have a great time!

Just finished my first book for the challenge. Really good read. Has some hard moments, but couched in the strange afterlife place Maali was in, it didn’t make me want to cry. The atrocities that have occurred in this world stagger the mind. The things people get away with and are even sanctioned by governments is outrageous.

Anyway, really good book. A worthy Booker Prize read.

Slow reader here. I’ll have my first book finished tomorrow. Seven Moons is weird, but interesting. I can recommend so far. It could all go terribly wrong in the last 25% but hopefully not. It is a trippy murder mystery and I don’t generally enjoy murder mysteries.
I will crack Perdition and tonight and probably get that done closer to the weekend.

Ingeborg wrote: "Gosh. I went to Sweden today (ca 4 h drive each way) and got my new horse! It has certainly not been a big reading day, and I have been neck-deep in EU paperwork and full of nerves leading up to th..."

It's awesome you got a new horse!

Eldarwen wrote: "Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "I enjoy that series. My husband likes it too which probably helps as then we talk about the books afterwards. Nightingale is my favourite character.

I agree about the male-centric..."

There are many women who only have super hot guys or gay bffs only in their books. Laurel K Hamilton can’t help but sexualise her male characters, even when they’re half octopus! And there are some male fantasy writer who do what Butcher and Aaronovitch do in regards to women but I can’t quite put my finger on what it is in the tone of their writing that makes their books boring. Brent Weeks has a terrible habit of describing all the women in his books like a horny teenager. They’re either old or scaled for bangability. Yet, I really like his books.

Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "Carmen wrote: "Keli wrote: "I just bought that on audible 😬😬😬"

So did I! With actual money instead of a credit so can't refund it. So typical kjahdas

I hope you enjoy it better than I did!!"

Yik..."

Yes, that’s why I got it too. And I really enjoyed the Scholomance series.

Will do. There is now a party starting at my house. My kid is 25 and has invited her friends and my friends around to play games and drink. So will give alternatives tmz. Have a good night/day all.

Melindam wrote: "Keli,

Could you please add some info in the reason/alternative tasks columns (K, L)?

It will help us to assign books. Thanks."

I put it tineye, just in case and apparently it has all the colours for Brazil. So I popped it there.

Would you still like some alternative info?

I put A4 in the mini spot, so my book didn’t infill the spot and now it has been claimed. I don’t know if there is another space it can currently fill. Can I leave that one for you Captains to stick where you want? It’s Ann Aguirre Perdition, so not t a lot on the letter option front.

Happy reading everyone. I’m starting with Seven Moons. It’s on audio and I’ve got house cleaning to do, so perfect.

Carmen wrote: "

On my TBR since November 2018 and I can't say it was worth the wait. Maybe it was the audio, but oh my god. So slow. So draggy. Not being able to speed up the ..."

I just bought that on audible 😬😬😬

Denise, I really enjoyed Gingerbread too. That book had so many layers! I wrote a long ass review, if anyone cares to read it. Usually my long reviews are for books I slate, but every now and again a good book get a long one. Forgive my grammar.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Ingeborg wrote: "Keli wrote: "Andy wrote: "a not very promising review of murderbot apple tv series from the Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-ra...

begin..."

I totally agree with you, the books do have deep and touching moments. But like Becky Chambers, Ms Wells manages to make meaning without beating one over the head to do it.

Andy wrote: "a not very promising review of murderbot apple tv series from the Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-ra...

beginning to feel it will be a ..."

It could suck but the Guardian can take itself way too seriously. And the flaws she pointed out are what occurs in the book. It is mostly murderbot references, how he wants to be left alone to watch tv. And there’s a lot of throuple references in the book too. A dynamic that plays out later.
But I’m not sure she even read the book and if she did, I question whether she enjoyed it, “ This first series is based on a slim book that doesn’t have much plot, and the Weitz brothers appear to have cleaved too faithfully to it, instead of using it as a springboard to profounder things.”
Not everything needs to be profound. I f-ing hate this desire to connect every thing to the human condition or applaud a mediocre underwhelming experience as some sort of brave spirit who embraces their outlier nature. 😡🤮🤮😡 Yes, it’s angry throw up time! Sometimes an androgynous, human disliking, seemingly indifferent SecUnit, whose morass of conflicting emotions and unacknowledged affection for said humans IS the story. That is what makes Murderbot - not a lot happens, except his slow transition from being alone and thinking he likes it to finding his friends.

Anyway, I’ll just down from my soapbox. So many shitty books and movies, but mostly books, are lauded as amazing pieces of fiction/memoir/manifesto but they fall so short of being even interesting much less profound. Why can’t a story just be a story?

Anyway. It could still suck.

Melindam wrote: "If I'm reading an ebook/physical book, I like listening to classical music, if I can. :)

Occasionally, I choose sth different, like Mary Black, Norah Jones, Van Morrison or John Martyn. :)"

Yeah, classical is the only music I can listen to when reading. Otherwise I sing along!

Sammy wrote: "Eldarwen wrote: "Finished #15 - which brings me over the April line!! Now to keep this up a while longer to maaaaybe be over the actual line in May haha.


Book..."

I did read the next in the series a few years after the first, and I didn’t remember a thing. I had to sort of skim reread the first. Unfortunately, the second one was as MOR as the first. I don’t want to say there is male fantasy and female fantasy, but I do think some authors are writing to a particular audience. I have no doubt that there are some men out the who like Nalini Singh, but I’m willing to bet her target audience it female. I think there is something about Ben Aaronovitch’s writing that feels male-centred, like the Harry Dresden series, something slightly dull and sexist.

I went to a John Bramwell gig tonight. I don’t know if it is lazy may sort of music. But it’s very good and quite chill. I loved listening to I am Kloot on lazy rainy days, so it will probs work in the sun too.

Also, I don’t think you can ever go wrong with Paul Simon’s Graceland.

A beautiful song and, possibly, their most commercial - Proof by I am Kloot
https://youtu.be/-oqB3d6Pklw?si=Q9ulT...

KayLynn wrote: "Homegoing both the author and book are Ghana.
What Storm, What Thunder both the author and book are Haiti.
The High Mountains of Portugal is set in..."

I didn’t know that about Leigh Bardugo either. I have an Israel book, The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem in my pile. But keep meaning to read her Grisha Trilogy.

I don’t know how many times I’ve been on a team with you Melindam, but this is the first time I have actually read your name as Melinda-m. For years, and it must be years now, my brain has always said it as one word. I don’t know official international phonetic stuff, but it was sort of like muh-lin-dam. 😂😂😂 literally just realised.