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What have you just read? Opinions, recommendations & reviews
I finished In the Woods, the first in an Irish mystery series. I thought it was well-done but had a few too many 'had I but known'-type passages. Given the outcome of the book, I am curious about who will be featured in the next one...Now onto my Kindle library book, The Light Fantastic :)
Just finished a collection of short stories, Burning Bright: Stories, by Ron Rash. Well worth the time. Very enjoyable. My review:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Alex wrote: "Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates. Simply a brilliant story that slowly tears your heart apart. I've seen the movie of Gone Girl, and I liked it very much (there are similarities between RR and G..."Alex, I love Yates every since reading Revolutionary Road and The Easter Parade by him. Have you read the latter?
I've just read Emma - not Jane Austen's but Alexander McCall Smith's. As I love the original, I was quite surprised to find I also really enjoyed this. The author sensibly adapts the story and characters, rather than trying to stick religiously to the original and it makes for a gently humorous read. It's much less sharp than Jane Austen but engagingly written in McCall Smith's usual style. (view spoiler)
Joy wrote: "I've just read Emma - not Jane Austen's but Alexander McCall Smith's. As I love the original, I was quite surprised to find I also really enjoyed this. The author sensibly adapts th..."You have piqued my interest Joy!
Chuck wrote: "B the BookAddict wrote: "Yes, that's right. What I meant was it was the only part of French History that was covered in my schooling. Pretty poor, hey? The French revolution was a much more signifi..."Chuck, I've just added The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle. This seems a must-read for anyone interested in the facts of the French Revolution. I don't know when I can get round to reading it though. One interesting tidbit that I learned from the reviews is that originally John Stuart Mill had been commissioned to write this book, but he had been too tied up and had delegated the job to Thomas Carlyle. Another one is that this book inspired Charles Dickens to write A Tale of Two Cities.
I've finished Watch the Lady by Elizabeth FremantleMy review is at: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I finished Thirteen Ways of Looking. What to say? You expect a lot from an author you have come to depend on for good writing.My refiew: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Angela, we rated that exactly the same! :0) Good, but certainly not perfect.
Alice wrote: "Chuck wrote: "B the BookAddict wrote: "Yes, that's right. What I meant was it was the only part of French History that was covered in my schooling. Pretty poor, hey? The French revolution was a muc..."It did, Alice. I studied the French Revolution extensive in school. Once upon a time I knew all the important dates, people but memory is a fickle friend.
Diane, remembering dates is certainly one big task in studying history. That's why I didn't dare take on both Chinese and European histories at the same time, although I would have liked to.
@Diane Memory is indeed fickle but I'm finding new facts rarely stay for long, either:)
B the BookAddict wrote: "@Diane Memory is indeed fickle but I'm finding new facts rarely stay for long, either:)"Bette, don't even get me started - I now suck at remembering names: names of children of my many cousins, names of my best friend's grandchildren etc.
B the BookAddict wrote: "@Diane Memory is indeed fickle but I'm finding new facts rarely stay for long, either:)"Boy do I agree with that! What moves you, the stories of people who lived through historical events are what stay with me - not the dates, not the names! My husband, he remembers those. I can always ask my portable encyclopedia for those details. ;0)
That's so true Chrissie. Studying history in school was no fun at all. But nowadays I find that I have an intense interest in both Chinese and European histories, fiction or non-fiction, in English or in Chinese :)
I used to think that spoken "Chinese" sounded like weird nonsense. Now I have more appreciation for it tho my understanding is very, very limited.
Tejas, there are many dialects in Chinese. The most common two are Mandarin/Putonghua and Cantonese. Spoken Cantonese (or the southern dialect) and spoken Putonghua (or the northern dialect) are less pleasant than Mandarin (the dialect that Taiwanese speak).Strangely though, Chinese poetry is all read in the Cantonese dialect, which makes the rhymes work.
Alice, I didn't have any good history teacher. What taught me to like history was living in different countries. You see first hand how people/cultures are molded by history.
I had remembered The Bell as a straightforward early philosophical novel by Iris Murdoch. Boy was I wrong! There's a lot of complex issues - yet it's very readable. I gave it ★★★★.To read my review link here
Chrissie wrote: "Alice, I didn't have any good history teacher. What taught me to like history was living in different countries. You see first hand how people/cultures are molded by history."Although I said it was no fun studying Chinese history at school (because of the exams), I did love the subject as a kid, as there was such an abundant volume of amazing (sometimes perplexing) human stories in the times gone by (though admittedly they mostly concerned people in the Imperial Courts). I've now come to love European history for much the same reason.
Alice, we share that common interest.
Alice wrote: "Chuck, I've just added The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle. This seems a must-read for anyone interested in the facts of the French Revolution."Thank you, Alice! I actually found that on Gutenberg right here: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1301 Looks pretty tough to me.
For me, History is comfortable because I can always step out of it into the real world. I'd hate to live in some of the times I've read about.
Hi all just joined this group and have enjoyed reading the posts so far. I've just finished reading Norwegian Wood y Murakami and loved it. would go as far as saying this is one of my favourite reads. :)
B the BookAddict wrote: "@Diane Memory is indeed fickle but I'm finding new facts rarely stay for long, either:)"I guess I'm pretty lucky in that regard. I tend to retain things I actually commit to memory very well. I can remember phone numbers and addresses and whatnot from over 30 years ago with no problem, but don't ask me where I laid my car keys 5 minutes ago. I have no idea, lol!
Chuck wrote: "Alice wrote: "Chuck, I've just added The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle. This seems a must-read for anyone interested in the facts of the French Revolution."Thank you, B! I actual..."
You can also try Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution by Simon Schama. I have it on my shelf, but haven't gotten to it yet. (Well, you know, it's been years. But in my defense it is a rather large book.)
B the BookAddict wrote: "For me, History is comfortable because I can always step out of it into the real world. I'd hate to live in some of the times I've read about."Oh, I just mean the writing style is really antiquated. Kinda tough for me to get the flow of the writing. But I'll get it, I'm sure. Thanks again!
Welcome Joanne. I liked that one but wouldn't say it was a favourite. It lacked something although I'm not quite sure what!
Jean wrote: "I had remembered The Bell as a straightforward early philosophical novel by Iris Murdoch. Boy was I wrong! There's a lot of complex issues - yet it's very readable. I gav..."I did a little double-take one seeing this as I am embarking on my first Iris Murdoch, The Black Prince. I have heard that the writing is "dense" so your description of philosophical helped me understand what was coming...
I just finished two books: a poetry collection by our seasonal poet, W.B. Yeats -- The Wind Among the Reeds (OK but not really for me) and a Kindle library book, The Light Fantastic, which was good light fun. I am sure that if I wanted to expend the energy, I could find all sorts of deeper meaning in Pratchett's Discworld but I am happy to just enjoy the ride :)
Chuck wrote: "B the BookAddict wrote: "For me, History is comfortable because I can always step out of it into the real world. I'd hate to live in some of the times I've read about."Oh, I just mean the writing..."
Did you mean the book you got via Gutenberg? I was referring to history in general. Historical books do depend a lot on the quality of the author. They can range from one end of the spectrum to the other. I have my favourite types but will generally read all. I did read Ken Follett but I find him very, very dry reading.
Joanne wrote: "Hi all just joined this group and have enjoyed reading the posts so far. I've just finished reading Norwegian Wood y Murakami and loved it. would go as far as saying this is one of my favourite rea..."Welcome, Joanne! Is this your first Muramaki book? I have a very loose and very unscientific theory that the first Murakami book one reads will be one's favorite Murakami book. :D
I haven't read Norwegian Wood yet but really enjoy Murakami's writing.
My favorite (and the first of his that I read) was 1Q84.
Hi Petra yes I've also read 1Q84 although liked NW better so your theory may be correct!Thanks to you Lou on here I've just mass ordered ten books my other half is going to do his nut when he sees them all arrive after finally getting me to get rid of a pile ooops!
I'm also just about the finish The Strain by Del Toro (who wrote the movie pans labyrinth). it's a bit of light hearted fun although looking forward to it finishing so I can move onto something else..
Just finished Skeleton Run
, a political thriller. Here is my review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
B the BookAddict wrote:" Did you mean the book you got via Gutenberg?"
Yeah.
B the BookAddict wrote:"
I was referring to history in general.
Oh, okay. I'm sorry. My brain must not be working today.
B the BookAddict wrote:"
Historical books do depend a lot on the quality of the author. They can range from one end of the spectrum to the other. I have my favourite types but will generally read all. I did read Ken Follett but I find him very, very dry reading. "
Yeah, I've heard essentially the same thing from others. I have read a little bit of Ken Follet's historical fiction--Well I say a little bit, but I reckon the two books I've read from him total about 2000 pages, so yeah, I do know his style. But I have actually enjoyed it quite a lot for the most part.
Historical fiction is one of my very favorites genres. The fact that you can learn so much while having fun. That's a win-win situation as far as I am concerned.
I guess I need to find some good historical fiction set during the French Revolution. There must be a ton of stuff out there, surely.
Bella wrote: "You can also try Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution by Simon Schama. I have it on my shelf, but haven't gotten to it yet. (Well, you know, it's been years. But in my defense it is a rather large book.) ""
Thank you, Bella. I'll see if I can find it.
Anatole France's The Gods Will Have Blood (Les Dieux Ont Soif) is absolutely brilliant.
Joanne wrote: "I'm also just about the finish The Strain by Del Toro (who wrote the movie pans labyrinth). it's a bit of light hearted fun although looking forward to it finishing so I can move onto something else.."Great movie, he also did the Hellfire movies I think, also great in my opinion.
Chuck wrote: "B the BookAddict wrote: "For me, History is comfortable because I can always step out of it into the real world. I'd hate to live in some of the times I've read about."Oh, I just mean the writing..."
@Chuck, it was I, not Bette, who mentioned Thomas Carlyle's The French Revolution: A History. I said I was adding it to my to-read list. :) (My message #6733 refers)
Alice wrote: "@Chuck, it was I, not Bette, who mentioned Thomas Carlyle's The French Revolution: A History."Okay, I'm sorry. I see what happened now, and I've corrected my post. I totally went out in left field on you all. Again, I'm sorry. I'm usually not quite so dense, I promise, heh.
Chuck wrote: "Alice wrote: "@Chuck, it was I, not Bette, who mentioned Thomas Carlyle's The French Revolution: A History."Okay, I'm sorry. I see what happened now, and I've corrected my post. I totally went ou..."
Don't worry about it Chuck! I like historical fiction too, but sometimes I want to get the facts right about pivotal events. I hope the book is not too dry!
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All About Books
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The characters are unlikable (except for two) but they are real. There are more flaws in these people than redeeming values. This story is dark and gritty. But so well told.
Silko manages to weave some magical realism into it as well with indigenous people's myths and legends. It works.
I can't recommend this book for everyone. It's truly gritty and dark. But it is a good, well written book if you can handle that sort of thing (in which case, I would recommend it).
I was reminded of 2666 throughout this read. This book has that sort of detailed, dark, sometimes hard to stomach story to tell. Both stories are about the people we don't see in our worlds and tries to tell their stories.
My review, which does not do the book justice: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...