Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group discussion
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ABOUT BOOKS AND READING
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What are U reading these days? (PART NINE (2013) (ongoing thread for 2013)
message 551:
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Jackie
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Jun 14, 2013 08:34PM
I plan on watching the movie too, after I read the book. I placed it high on my priority list.
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Jim recommended the 1980 film version in his review of The Lathe of Heaven. Reading the book first is the best way but I'll never get to the book. I've got too many other books I've been wanting to read and I'm such a s-l-o-w reader!
You could get it as an audio book, Joy. The one I got was well read.I'm reading The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler & listening to Dead Anyway by Chris Knopf. Both are mystery-thrillers, but different enough that I have no trouble keeping them straight.
Really enjoyed the movie,"Salmon Fishing in the Yemen." I recommend it.
Jim wrote: "You could get it as an audio book, Joy. The one I got was well read.I'm reading The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler & listening to Dead Anyway by Chris Knopf. Both are mystery-thrillers, but di..."
Jim, I enjoyed Chandler's "The Big Sleep". His similes are classics. I compiled a list of them once. See them at the following thread at this group:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/8...
See Message #22.
PS-I'll think about the audio-book suggestion, Jim. I'm currently listening to Arthur Clark's "Rendezvous with Rama" and it's taking me a while to get through it. I'm over-extended with my reading and listening and movies!
Nina wrote: "Really enjoyed the movie,"Salmon Fishing in the Yemen." I recommend it."Here's a link to the trailer:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1441952/?...
How do you like "Rendezvous with Rama", Joy?
I gave 4 stars to Dead Anyway by Chris Knopf. A tech thriller & the first I've read by him. Someone recently wrote a review about it which intrigued me & I managed to find it as an audio book. I forget who you were, but thank you!My review:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
Jackie wrote: "How do you like "Rendezvous with Rama", Joy?"Jackie, I've definitely been "drawn in" to Rendezvous with Rama. So it has caught my interest. (not easy to do nowadays!). It certainly is different! Because my listening times are spasmodic, it's slow-going for me. So far, I've listened to the first half of the audible.com version. Mostly, so far, it's describing the exploration of an interstellar spacecraft which belonged to space aliens. Strange descriptions and weird happenings aboard the ship. No creatures have been encountered yet! Can't say I'm crazy about it but, as I said, it's holding my interest. Will post more about it later when I'm finished listening.
Jim wrote: "I gave 4 stars to Dead Anyway by Chris Knopf. A tech thriller & the first I've read by him. Someone recently wrote a review about it which intrigued me & I managed to find it as an audio book. I..."Jim, do you think I'd like it (Dead Anyway)? Audible.com offers a free clip here:
http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?...
(Click on "sample".)
I'll listen to it while I have my morning coffee which is right now. :)
Joy, RwR is interesting. I liked the spacecraft, it was highly imaginative.
Jackie, yes, "highly imaginative"! A good way to put it! Jackie, you are so good with words! My brain never delivers the right words to me. I blame it on the fact that I didn't do much extra-curricular reading as a kid. I'll bet YOU did!
Jim, I listened to the sample of "Dead Anyway". The narrator of the story (not the reader) is very conversational. I liked that. It was like sitting in a room with him and listening to him tell me about his life and adventures. Easy listening! The reader sounds pleasant too.
Jim, we were mentioning intriquing first lines and a friend of mine sent this to me. She attributed it to a Science Fiction writer named Brown but couldn't recall his first name. Perhaps you can. "The last man in the world sat in an empty room. There was a knock at the door." Guess that is two "first" lines. She said the book was good.
That sounds familiar, Nina. The Scariest Story? Joy, it's not very violent, but I don't know. I doubt it would be your cup of tea.
Nina wrote [in Message #541]: "I didn't get to finish my message about my book club meeting today where we discussed interesting first lines and I was remembering the first line in "Pride and Prejudice," and I quote: "It is a tr..."Nina, here are a couple of links to pages about famous first lines:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/gal...
http://americanbookreview.org/100best...
"100 Best First Lines from Novels"
Joy, interesting link. How could I ever forget the first line, "Once upon a time?"
Hmmm... Not impressed by either list, although perhaps a dozen of the 100 were pretty good. I wonder at the criteria used. Some of the sentences ran on like a cross country walk (Yes, I meant exactly that - wandering & paceless.) while others imparted very little except through their familiarity. I think over half were picked simply because the book or author was a classic. There are dozens I've liked better.Why wasn't "Who is John Galt?" - Ayn Rand in Atlas Shrugged included? As a catch phrase, it's as famous as Call me Ishmael. although the author isn't in society's graces as comfortably. At least Rand had the moxie to make up her own mythology & make it stick.
Neither grabbed me as much as
HE LAY BACK ON THE ACCELERATION COUCH AND WONDERED idly whether he had been officially decommissioned, and whether anybody left alive had the authority to decommission him.
Lawrence Watt-Evans in The Cyborg and the Sorcerers
This sentence opens up a world of possibilities, yet defines the playing field wonderfully; high tech POV, war, & possibly the losing side - if there was a winner.
Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the western spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.
I didn't even like The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but still thought it was a great opening. It slaps our species' egotism right in the teeth. We're not even in a fashionable neighborhood much less the one & only!
The last class of my old professor's life took place once a week in his house, by a window in the study where he could watch a small hibiscus plant shed its pink leaves.
Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom. I've just always had a fondness for this one. Draws me in comfortably.
I liked the movie, "Tuesday's with Morrie," but didn't remember the first line or maybe they didn't use it in the movie.I always did like the first line of "Out of Africa,
"I once had a farm in Africa..." It really did draw me in never knowing the I'd have two missionary granddaughters living in Africa; one for ten years and one still there.
Jim wrote: "... 'Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the western spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.'I didn't even like The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but still thought it was a great opening. It slaps our species' egotism right in the teeth. We're not even in a fashionable neighborhood much less the one & only! ..."
Good one, Jim! LOL
Nina wrote: "Joy, interesting link. How could I ever forget the first line, "Once upon a time?""Ah, yes! Using Jim's words: "Draws me in comfortably.".
Almost finished with Ember and Ash...finally, now that my time is mostly my own again. I started Tess of the D'Urbervilles as my secondary book, I'll choose a new primary once E&A is finished. It's that time again to read a classic and from all accounts this one is exceptional...so I'm about to find out.
Jackie, In 2010 I watched the 1998 film adaptation of Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy. I gave it 3 Netflix stars out of 5.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0126100/?...
http://dvd.netflix.com/Movie/Tess-of-...
I've watched a couple of other movie adaptations of books by Hardy: "The Woodlanders", "Far from the Madding Crowd", and "Under the Greenwood Tree".
Hardy tells a good story. I should follow your good example and read one of these classics.
Jackie, I hope the Netflix description in my review of Tess of the d'Urbervilles didn't give away the ending too much. Do you think I should put a "spoiler" warning there?I wonder if any of Hardy's stories have happy endings. :)
You might find my review of Hardy's novel, The Woodlanders, interesting, relative to the ending and the characteristics of Hardy's writing. My review is at:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
Oh, heck, I'll post the part I'm referring to here:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The following member-review from Netflix has some interesting comments about Hardy's writing:
====================================
"Many years ago, I read The Mayor of Casterbridge and was immediately hooked on the novels of Thomas Hardy. I read them all. The Woodlanders has always been my favorite. I think it's one of the most "poetic" of his stories. Towards the end of the movie, I waited with bated breath for Marty's speech at the grave. This short speech forms the last paragraph of the book and it's sheer poetry, though not of the rhyming variety. Hardy spent a great deal of his life thinking about why so many good people end up unhappy, how random or chance happenings can change everything in an instant, conversations accidentally overheard (or not overheard), unfulfilled longings, the regrets we may carry with us for a lifetime, etc. I don't know that he had any answers, but he certainly understood the problem and was able to express so beautifully what a lot of people feel. I've never seen a movie made from a Hardy novel that captures this essence, The Woodlanders included. I don't read Hardy for plot and dialogue. I read him for the pleasure of his use of language and his insight into character. This is what the movies just can't convey. The plot and dialogue alone are somewhat empty. Additionally, the movie omits the last part of the book and so it's like hearing a favorite song with the last note or word missing. Poor Marty! With the stroke of a pen, the script writers wrote her out of the story ending, and instead gave Grace the last word. This is a very Thomas Hardian turn of events, by the way. Hardy's characters are never safe from a fickle fate. But it changed Hardy's story in a significant way and robbed us of that final, beautiful speech."
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No, Joy, you didn't give me spoilers, no more than the book cover did. When I see a classic, I know it's gonna be a downer. Most seem to be tragedies. I didn't get very far, under 50 pages. Almost done with Ember and Ash, 30 pages left which I'm going to read right now. Then I'll start on Lathe of Heaven as my primary book.
So, Jackie, will you read further than 50 pages in Hardy's book about Tess?
Yes, I like Hardy's writing style and I like Tess and want to know her story.
That's good to hear, Jackie.
I almost never quit a book, it's got to be really bad for me to do that. I don't think I've even quit 5 books in my entire life. I wish I could sometimes, lol
That's amazing. Come to think of it, I haven't kept track of the books I've quit. Usually I'll stick with a book unless it's overdue and unrenewable at the library. I've quit plenty of movies though, the ones that are streamable. If I've rented a DVD, I'll usually stick with it. However, I recently sent back Only Fools and Horses without watching much of it. It wasn't my cup of tea.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081912/?...
It's a British TV comedy sitcom.
I find it much easier to quit a movie than a book.
Jackie wrote: "I find it much easier to quit a movie than a book."Me too. I wonder why that is.
Ever since I read the Hunger Games earlier this year, I've wanted to finish the trilogy; so over the weekend, I started on the second volume, Catching Fire. Of course, I'll have to set it aside while we go on our trip. :-( But it'll be here waiting for me when we get back!
Werner wrote: "Ever since I read the Hunger Games earlier this year, I've wanted to finish the trilogy; so over the weekend, I started on the second volume, Catching Fire. Of course, I'll have to set it aside wh..."Werner, I've heard a lot about the book you've mentioned ( The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins ). I know how popular it is. Nevertheless, I have no desire to read it. Below are links to some one-star reviews which indicate why I wouldn't read the book:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
EXCERPT FROM REVIEW LINKED ABOVE: "Who wants to read about kids getting mauled and killing each other for absolutely no reason ON LIVE TELEVISION?"
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
EXCERPT FROM REVIEW LINKED ABOVE: "The trend of dystopic young adult fiction is quite nauseating. The Hunger Games is a shameless inoculator, its anti-subversive, pseudo-dystopic, politically biased, and simplified world-building has inseminated the genre, producing more works of the same platitude."
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
EXCERPT FROM REVIEW LINKED ABOVE: "Frankly, the premise for this book as describe above is repulsive to my adult mind. However, there's enough of the junior-high aged boy in me to know that had I read this when I was young I would have found it to be a thrilling story. ...
... In defense of the book, there is an underlying message contained within the story of the human spirit trying to not be overcome by impossible circumstances. So there's more to the book than being a scary thriller. By extrapolating current trends the book illuminates what the mindless seeking of television thrills could do to a society. Is this what could happen if entertainment is valued above humanity?
Joy, because I shared the revulsion you and the linked reviewers feel towards the premise of the Hunger Games trilogy, I wasn't inclined to read it either, for a long time. But when I finally did read the first book (long story), I found that Collins' treatment of her premise was far different from the "pornography of violence" some readers expect, and deeper both emotionally and morally-philosophically than some reviews indicate. (For whatever it's worth, here's the link to my review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/297275418 .)All of that said, people's literary tastes differ, and this won't be every reader's cup of tea. To be honest, knowing something about your tastes, I don't think it would be yours --especially since you aren't really a speculative fiction fan in the first place.
Hi Werner. I followed the link to your excellent review of the Hunger Games. It certainly explains things very well. Although I'm not a fan of speculative fiction, your review tempts me to try reading the book. However, there is still something holding me back. I guess it's the feeling that it would be too stressful for me.
Thanks, Joy! I didn't mean to try to tempt you to read the book, though. "Stressful" would be a pretty good description of quite a few passages. (And for a few, we could add "gut-wrenching.")
I was blown away by Mark Chisnell's The Wrecking Crew, the first of his that I've ever read, although this was the 2d in the series. Don't let that stop you from reading this first. It works. The designation is mere chronology.My 5 star review is here:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
Werner, about "stressful" and "gut-wrenching" (good expression), I remember reading The Firm by John Grisham. It had me so stressed out that I almost couldn't stand it. I never read another book by Grisham after that. It was the only book by Grisham that I ever read.
Jim wrote: "I was blown away by Mark Chisnell's The Wrecking Crew ..."Jim, I read your review. The word "shudder" says it all. I don't like "shuddering". :)
I finished Lathe, TY Jim. It was interesting. I'm going to watch one of the movie versions, if I can find it that is.Started Daughter of the Empire last night and I like it already. One of my groups will be reading it for the July Group read, a good reason to finally get to it.
Interesting? Sounds as if you didn't care for it that much. If you do watch a movie version, get the old PBS one. The other sucked, from what I read.I LOVED the Empire trilogy. I think I liked it better than anything either Ray or Janny did singly. Those two complemented each other wonderfully. I re-read it in a group a couple/few years ago with both of them answering questions & that added a lot to it, too.
You should read all 3 books. Have you read the other Rift War books yet? Two (or one depending on the binding) precede it, Magician: Apprentice & Magician: Master. While you don't HAVE to read them, I'd highly suggest it. They're very good, too. The next two are pretty good & after that they're just OK. Fun.
Interesting is a compliment. Unusual take on things, unique. It wasn't what I expected, with the dreaming, and that's exactly what I liked about it. I generally like Le Guin's stories but there's something about her writing that doesn't wow me. I don't know how to explain it.
About the movie, I found 2 on imdb, one is from 1980 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081036/?..., the other 2002 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0290230/?.... Which is the one you referred to above?
I read the first two books of Riftwar, they were good but not great. It's been so long that I don't really remember it, I'm going by my ratings here, #1 got 3, #2 got 2. The one thing I really liked by Feist was Faerie Tale, creepy!
Already this collaboration is more my thing and I'm liking it, in fact, I'm rushing through my chores so I can spend some time with it. I have all 3 to the series so I'll read them also.
Are you in Fantasy Aficionados group? If so, Janny volunteered to be available for Q & A, which is so awesome. I love how she's always willing to talk to her fans. http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
Oh, good. Glad you liked it. No, I'm not a real fan of her understated writing, either. I've liked several of her books very much, though.The 1980's one is the PBS version. The Wikipedia article about the book says this,
The 2002 adaptation discards a significant portion of the plot and some of the characters. Le Guin had no involvement in making the film.
I haven't watched it, but don't intend to.
The 1980 version was re-released in 2000, but PBS's rights were long gone, so it doesn't play the original Beatles tune, just a crappy cover band version. (Yuck) It was a real hit & is one of their most requested movies. More here on the Wikipedia article about the film. (Make sure to read the 200 re-release section.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lath...
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No, I'm not in any of the Fantasy groups any more, but I just read the books with a group a couple of years ago. I liked the first 2 Rift War books more than you, but I think you'll really like this trilogy.
Jackie, Faerie Tale is my top favorite of Feist's works so far, though I've never gotten around to reviewing it! Barb and I read and liked the whole Riftwar Saga back in the 90s; it was one of my first forays into fantasy after reading Tolkien. But I've never read any of Feist's multitude of spin-off books and series set in the same world(s).
Jim, isn't that awful when they do that? (The 2002 adaptation discards a significant portion of the plot and some of the characters.) It's a pet peeve of mine, I feel if they can't adapt it faithfully then do a different project. I'll see if I can find the 1980s adaptation.
Werner, I really enjoyed Faerie Tale . I sent it to my BIL because we have a similar taste in books.
I finally finished Daughter of the Empire. I'm beginning to wonder if I subconsciously drag out the books I like most, because it seems to me that the ones I enjoy the most are the ones that take me a long time to finish. The main character, Mara, was a refreshing change from the usual annoying female main character that seems to overpopulate fantasy. The book was unpredictable, with a lot of clever twists I didn't see coming. Love that in a book!
The book wrapped up completely, with none of the dreaded cliffhangers, although there are 2 more books in the series which I own and plan to read sometime soon.
Ghostlight by Marion Zimmer Bradley is up next. This is one I can hardly wait to get started.
At the moment, I'm doing some beta reading for a couple of my Goodreads friends; but what I'm reading is still unpublished, so doesn't show up in the Goodreads database.
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