Goodreads Ireland discussion
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What Are You Reading
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Sara
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Apr 24, 2014 11:59AM
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the books can be intricate but each book has a handy guide to the different families and characters at the end. Great if you get lost. I also have a full set if maps for all the locations which also helps. Nerdy but useful.
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@Sara. I havent come across her before but ill definitely look into it. Im always keeping my eyes open to New interesting series.Maps are great for book series. They released Lands of Ice and Fire last year as a set of maps in a folder. So worth it. Historical fiction is also great with maps
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For N.K. Jemisin, your best bet is probably Kennys or as e-books, if you have an e-book reader. I don't think her stuff is popular enough (sadly) that it's going to be on the shelf of your local bookstore...although she has been nominated for the Nebula and Hugo a couple times
I got a pre-order discount so bought two sets (1 a present) for 22 Euro each. A fair bit cheaper than the shop price
I don't do e books but I'm resourceful in finding books. I'll track it somewhere.
Declan wrote: "For those who Joined later than the rest, The 100 Year-Old Man... was a monthly read if you'd like to check out the discussion. @Monique. I've read a few of McEwan's books and I'm a bit of a fan...."
Yeah, I've always like Ian McEwan's books a lot.
I guess I'll catch up with next month's book! Thanks.
Paul wrote: "I loved the 100 Year Old man. Such an imaginative and funny book.I finished The restaurant at the End of the Universe at the Weekend. It was as good as I remembered it to be. I've started [book:Tr..."
The book is very funny but as it's an audiobook, I find my attention wandering especially when it gets absurd.
I do like Zafron being very fond of Barcelona a city I've been to a number of times, even spent 2 months there in 2006.
Barcelona is a wonderful city to visit and the books do capture the atmosphere. its Part of what I love about them too
I wanted to visit Barcelona after reading the books and the city didn't disappoint. I loved wandering through all the side streets and markets and seeing Gaudi's buildings. It's such an incredible city.
There's even a handy city guide at the back of his books . The gothic area is brilliant.@sara . I found a copy of the first NK Jemisin book for 6 euro in paperback. I might have to get it post birthday
I did, it was incredibly beautiful. we didn't get to go up tp the top though, there was a crazy queue. I'll definitely go back someday.
Hey @AllanYou wanted to know what I thought of Women. Here's a review:
http://www.johnbraine.com/2014/04/wom...
Thanks, John! I have to say that you're a better man than me for getting through the whole book-I really did find it too repetitive and a little sleazy when I attempted to read it many years ago. I have to say, though, that I enjoyed all of his other novels, and a couple of his short story collections and poetry anthologies, and when you said you were reading 'Women' it put me in the mood to go back to him via Audible, where I see a couple of collections that I haven't yet read that I'm going to use at least one credit for at the end of the month.
So how are you going to cleanse your palate after Chinaski then?
All the talk of Barcelona in the posts above has encouraged me to finally lift Orwell's 'Homage to Catalonia' off my TBR shelf. We were there in 2010, and like everyone else who has posted, found it to be a great city to visit.
Btw, John, have you ever heard the 2004 track by Modest Mouse called 'Bukowski'? http://open.spotify.com/track/27QCaXO...
San Jordi Day, April 23rd, is The Day of the Book in Catalonia. The streets are crammed with book stalls and people buying them! I'd never seen anything quite like it. The tradition is to give a book and a rose to friends and loved ones. Roses are given to both men and women, along with a book. It's a lovely tradition.http://barcelona.de/en/barcelona-sant...
Interestingly, the UK and Ireland celebrate the World Day of the Book March 6th, but join the rest of the world on April 23rd to celebrate World Book Night.
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@Barbara I didn't do World Book Night this year as I didn't particularly connect to any of the U.S. titles...so I didn't think I'd do a good job at "marketing" them when giving. If I had been in the U.K. I think I would have given away Tales of the City (could have gone to a gay bar to give away copies) or Rivers of London.
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Sara, 3 of my other goodreads friends have also read it and given it the highest praise. I'll trust you all. ;-)
Ya there's actually a whole book week in march Barbara where kids are given vouchers at school to get a book in participating bookshops. My son was really looking forward to going to use it which was great because he isn't a big reader.
Trelawn wrote: "For those among us who loved The 100 year old man, my other half has just informed me that Jonasson has a new book coming out next called The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden! It sounds equally qu..."Yeah, I'm really excited about this book. According to some reviews I read, it's great. It's already available (on kindle, at least)
I don't do Kindle or ereaders in general so i'll just wait for the general release. can't wait :-)
Might have been a market. They have a great antique market in front of the cathedral
Barbara, did you do World Book Night? I enjoyed my experience. I went to the hospital and gave books away. There's nothing more dreadful than being stuck in the hospital with nothing to read. I also gave one to every member of my in person book club and challenged them to read it or give it to somebody else. I love giving books away.
That sounds great Susan, I like the challenge idea.
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I gave away The House on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet which I have never read. I do know people who really like it but I don't think it's my cup of tea. I think it's an elevated romance but I'm not sure. The organization sends you the books. Last year I gave away Tina Fey's book which was really fun. The first year I gave away The Kite Runner, a book that I adore.
Sara wrote: "On a reading front, in addition the books I mentioned in my last post, I started a slim volume of poetry called Moving Day by Ish Klein...picked up on a whim on recent trip to The Bookmill Cathleen..."Sara, I had a free afternoon last week, so I went out to the Bookmill. I think I should go once a month, just for the atmosphere, if not for the books. That's too bad that the poetry book is a miss.
Barbara wrote: "San Jordi Day, April 23rd, is The Day of the Book in Catalonia. The streets are crammed with book stalls and people buying them! I'd never seen anything quite like it. The tradition is to give a bo..."That sounds marvelous, Barbara. Wish we had a tradition like that in the US!
Gerry wrote: "Great to see lots of love for Carlos Ruiz Zafon. Barbara one of my friends lives in Barcelona and he is in the bad books for getting his girlfreind the same book two years in a row for San Jordi ..."
Poor guy! I suppose the best way to avoid that is to buy this year's books.
Cathleen - it is wonderful to see a whole city covered in book stalls and hundreds of people buying them. I recall in Brazil there was a huge municipal book fair outdoors for a whole week. It was fabulous. Baltimore has a great book festival but much lower key and not nearly as many books and stalls. Nonetheless, it is great fun.
https://www.baltimorebookfestival.com/
Seraphina_ I love the idea of giving kids book vouchers!Susan - I didn't participate in World Book Night but it intrigues me. Also The Corner of Bitter and Sweet is more than a straightforward romance as it involves Japanese internment in WWII.
As Sara has posted there's a small local book fair tomorrow which I may go to. They have some Irish events there - sponsored by a local pub.
http://www.dayofthebook.com/
Thank you, Barbara. I wasn't sure and the cover was not really appealing. I'll give it a go.
Barbara wrote: "Seraphina_ I love the idea of giving kids book vouchers!Susan - I didn't participate in World Book Night but it intrigues me. Also The Corner of Bitter and Sweet is more than a straightforward ro..."
After seeing the link, Barbara, I wish Maryland weren't so far away. f
I finished Farmer Giles of Ham by Tolkien, which was OK, but I don't think it's a book a would have really enjoyed at any time during my childhood.
I've just started John Connolly's The Wolf in Winter, which I'm really enjoying and might make a 5* rating.
I hope everyone enjoyed world book night, btw?
I've just started John Connolly's The Wolf in Winter, which I'm really enjoying and might make a 5* rating.
I hope everyone enjoyed world book night, btw?
Allan wrote: "So how are you going to cleanse your palate after Chinaski then? "Started Stephen King's Doctor Sleep. I grew up with King but got sick of him and haven't read him in over a decade.
Not sure what to make of it. I really like his character writing. He's a great storyteller. But the really heavy supernatural stuff has me rolling my eyes right back in my head. No interest in it any more. I knew there'd be a little bit. But there were whole chapters of nonsense.
Btw, John, have you ever heard the 2004 track by Modest Mouse called 'Bukowski'?
Nope. I like it!
I think I'll try Post Office to try and help me make my mind up on Bukowski.
Understandable. Look at Terry Pratchett and what he calls his embuggerance. Hes done well despite it all.
I started Watching the Door: Drinking Up, Getting Down, and Cheating Death in 1970s Belfast by Kevin Myers yesterday and am already halfway through. Myers was a journalist (of sorts) and it is a fascinating read so far.
John, I read Post Office about 14 years ago, but remember that I really enjoyed it at the time-it's kind of the Bukowski benchmark I suppose. I'd also recommend Ham on Rye, his memoir of sorts-I think I saw it on Audible as well.Barbara, I flew through the Myers book as well when I read it a number of years ago. I'm not sure if you've seen it, but he's the journalist who features in the famous footage from Bloody Friday, on the rooftop of, I think the Europa, talking to camera for an RTE report, while bombs are going off all around the city. The book is excellent, as I'm sure you're finding yourself.
I've just finished Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell, another excellent book in the style of Down and Out in Paris and London, which I also loved. It was written in 1937, without the hindsight of history to help clear the murk of the Spanish Civil War, but it's a great document of what life was like at the front facing Franco's troops, while also explaining the infighting of the various left wing factions fighting for 'democracy' at the time. Not as heavy a read as it sounds!
Allan wrote: "John, I read Post Office about 14 years ago, but remember that I really enjoyed it at the time-it's kind of the Bukowski benchmark I suppose. I'd also recommend Ham on Rye, his memoir of sorts-I th..."Allan - I haven't seen that footage of Bloody Friday but his description is chilling. I have both Homage to Catalonia and Down and OUt in Paris and London, and will put them on my "read soon" shelf. Today I signed a petition for a Catalan group to the Spanish government asking for a referendum on Catalan independence. The government doesn't want them to have this referendum:
http://www.dw.de/madrid-blocks-catala...
I say at least hold the vote.
I just got a note from a friend wondering about a book recommendation she got. I have never read it but I wonder if anyone in the group has. It's the Tipperary Trilogy by W.A. Patterson. Does anyone know about it?
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I devoted almost all of my trip reading time to and made excellent progress on Sword of Stones by George R.R. Martin. I'm about 3/4 of the way and roughly at the same point as the show. I imagine I'll finish tomorrow or Tuesday. I'm catching different things upon rereading which is always nice.
@Susan. It rings a bell but I can't seem to place it. I wonder if I might be mixing it up with something else.
@Sara. I hope they competed well. Did thet manage to place in the competition.
@Sara. I hope they competed well. Did thet manage to place in the competition.
I have apparently been kicked out of the other group. I went to add a comment to our monthly read and it said I had to join the group. I guess Jean-Luke got his revenge.I have to admit I was unreasonable. I wanted to know when book nominations were, when the polling was and a spoiler thread added to our monthly book discussion. I am so unreasonable.
Wow Susan thats a nasty reaction. Makes you appreciate Declan all the more.@Emma Glad your enjoying it.
Wait til you read his Nursery crimes:-)
wow Susan that is ridiculous. I was on the other group yesrerday and noticed message with yout name on them but the box was blank. That is a completly crazy reaction by the moderator.
@ Emma glad your're enjoying the book. I really enjoyed them, they're so quirky and it's fun trying to spot all the literary and film references.
That is disgraceful behaviour Susan. The moderator is obviously a complete knob
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