Which LIST book did you just finish? Showing 5,851-5,900 of 10,248

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

Peter wrote: "Eyeless in Gaza by Aldous Huxley. Over blown and not an easy read. Some good elements but overall dispoointing"

I remember going back and rereading that immediately after finishing, but flipping back and forth to read it in chronological order so I could pick up on some plot points I'd missed the first time around. I really liked it when I first read it, but the effect has kind of faded for me--I think you are right, somewhat overblown and, for me, idealistically naïve. There was a quote in there somewhere...'99% pacifism is 100% militarism', or something to that effect, which at the time I thought was kind of clever. That was on the eve of WWII though...I often wondered if Huxley stuck to that through the 40s, or if reality forced him to change his ideas.

[Diane]

Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym.

[Karen]

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe

Wow -- that was a trip!! Published in 1968, Wolfe's book is one of the early examples of "New Journalism" -- a style of journalism which combined literary techniques (such as a subjective point of view) with in-depth reporting. Wolfe follows the activities of Ken Kesey's (of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest fame) Merry Pranksters as they immerse themselves into the drug culture of the Sixties.

Lots of references to authors and books of the era -- background and life of Ken Kesey, Neal Cassady (from Kerouac's On the Road), Allen Ginsburg, Timothy Leary, a brief cameo by Larry McMurtry, the genesis of The Grateful Dead and many more.

[Sean]

Karen wrote: "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe

Wow -- that was a trip!! Published in 1968, Wolfe's book is one of the early examples of "New Journalism" -- a style of journalism whic..."

This is currently #2 on my TBR list. I can't wait to get into it.

[Mia]

I finished Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes. I definitely should have read Madame Bovary before reading this.

[Karen]

The Atrocity Exhibition by J. G. Ballard and
Things (also known as Les Choses) by Georges Perec

[Ellinor]

H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald, the last of the 2018 additions. Not really my cup of tea and it‘s also obviously non-fiction, so I‘m not sure why they added it.

[Jennifer W]

Finished The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I quite enjoyed that!

[Mia]

The Glimpses of the Moon by Edith Wharton.

[Sean]

I finished 2666 by Roberto Bolaño. More later when the group read has been read.

[Bob]

Bleak House by Charles Dickens, slow starting but picked up in the second half.

[Joy D]

Just finished:
To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf - 3 stars - My Review

Just a note of clarification on the rating - I rate books based on my personal enjoyment, not my perception of its "literary merit."

[George P.]

Native Son by Richard Wright. Seems a lot more contemporary than its age of 79 years; still very relevant.

[George P.]

Bob wrote: "Bleak House by Charles Dickens, slow starting but picked up in the second half."

It really grew on me- I missed it when I was done with it.

[Leona]

Joy D wrote: "Just finished:
To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf - 3 stars - My Review

Just a note of clarification on the rating - I rate books based on my personal enjoyment, not..."

I rate books on my preference also. Hard to do sometimes because the book may be well written but my opinion is different than others.

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

I rate on personal preference too--but I'm pretty sure I've been intimidated into bumping something up more than once when the book I'm rating is every critic's darling.

Sometime I go back through the books I've rated--after six months or so, I feel more objective, and I tend to deduct a star from a lot of ratings.

[Diane]

The Singapore Grip by J.G. Farrell.

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

The Country Girls by Edna O'Brien

[Karina]

Just finished Rites of Passage by William Golding. It was okay. Not exactly jumping at the bit to read Lord of the Flies though.

[Sean]

Karina wrote: "Just finished Rites of Passage by William Golding. It was okay. Not exactly jumping at the bit to read Lord of the Flies though."

Just my $.02... Lord of the Flies is much better than Rites of Passage. And very very worth reading.

[Karina]

Sean wrote: "Karina wrote: "Just finished Rites of Passage by William Golding. It was okay. Not exactly jumping at the bit to read Lord of the Flies though."

Just my $.02... Lord of the Flies is much better th..."

Okay, maybe I won't wait years to read Lord of the Flies! I just didn't care for Rites of Passage and may have fallen asleep a few times reading it!

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

I agree with Sean--I thought Rites of Passage was kind of meh, but LotF was pretty intriguing. Plus, it's one of those books that's been embedded in the culture by now.

[Ellinor]

Uncle Silas by J. Sheridan Le Fanu, a very clever and cunning gothic novel.

[Ellinor]

La Celestina by Fernando de Rojas, the first European novel. Sadly this work is pretty unknown today.

[Karen]

Soldiers of Salamis by Javier Cercas
An excellent novel about recovering history from the Spanish Civil War. The book is in three sections -- the first and third sections describe Cercas' historical research into the life of the Falangist, Rafael Sanchez Mazas, while the second section is the retelling of Mazas' life. The third section contains Cercas' interviews with Roberto Bolaño (2666) who aided him with his research.

So few books on the list about the Spanish Civil War -- this one should not have been dropped!

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

Karen wrote: "Soldiers of Salamis by Javier Cercas
An excellent novel about recovering history from the Spanish Civil War. The book is in three sections -- the first and third sections describe Cerc..."

I did not realize it had been dropped--that's really a shame. This is one of the few 21st century books that I think have a chance at being around for a while. It's on my list of 21st century best, at any rate.

[Nocturnalux]

"Karen wrote: So few books on the list about the Spanish Civil War -- this one should not have been dropped!
"

Your Face Tomorrow: Fever and Spear / Dance and Dream / Poison, Shadow, and Farewell also touches upon the Spanish Civil War, even if only obliquely...and it was also dropped.

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

Nocturnalux wrote:
Your Face Tomorrow: Fever and Spear / Dance and Dream / Poison, Shadow, and Farewell also touches upon the Spanish Civil War, even if only obliquely...and it was also dropped...."

I've been wanting to read that for a while, as well as some other Marias. I liked Tomorrow in the Battle Think on Me, but I thought Thus Bad Begins was just okay. I really want to read some of his more acclaimed stuff, like the one you mentioned. (Dance and Dream is the only one I've run across in my thrift store/used bookstore hunts. I'll probably have to break down and buy the others from ABE or something)

[Karen]

Nocturnalux wrote: ""Karen wrote: So few books on the list about the Spanish Civil War -- this one should not have been dropped!
"

[book:Your Face Tomorrow: Fever and Spear / Dance and Dream / Poison, Shadow, and Far..."

Thanks for the recommendation -- I'll definitely put it on my TBR list.

[Nocturnalux]

Bryan wrote: ".I've been wanting to read that for a while, as well as some other Marias. I liked Tomorrow in the Battle Think on Me, but I thought Thus Bad Begins was just okay. I really want to read some of his more acclaimed stuff, like the one you mentioned. (Dance and Dream is the only one I've run across in my thrift store/used bookstore hunts. I'll probably have to break down and buy the others from ABE or something)"

I have only read the first volume thus far, I have the second one sitting on the shelf and will get to it soon-ish. I'll keep you informed on whether the following volumes are also concerned with the Spanish Civil War.

Speaking of Marías, All Souls- a shorter novel that is in the list- is something of an introduction to the trilogy and it too touches on the subject albeit even less directly.
It is almost a prequel to Your Face so it's a good starting point, I find.

Karen wrote: "Thanks for the recommendation -- I'll definitely put it on my TBR list."

There is at least another Spanish novel that touches upon the Civil War and that is Nada (translated as 'Andrea' in English). It is not the main focus but it makes up much of the background and frames how things came to be the way they are.

The Spanish Civil War is much less central but something of a running theme to Saramago's The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis. The focus is much more on how the War affected the neighboring country, Portugal, in shaping its own fascist regime.

It's one of those subjects that have been almost hijacked by non-natives; even right across the border as I am- as a Portuguese citizen- the Spanish Civil War immediately brings to mind Orwell more than actual Spanish author.

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

I've been wondering if I should take the time to read The English Patient or not--I probably will someday, but I'm not in a hurry. I saw the film years ago, and I like it all right, but I read another book by Ondaatje (Divisadero), and the style didn't appeal to me at all, and put me off reading anything else of his.

[Karen]

Nocturnalux wrote: "Bryan wrote: ".I've been wanting to read that for a while, as well as some other Marias. I liked Tomorrow in the Battle Think on Me, but I thought Thus Bad Begins was just okay. I really want to re..."

Thanks! I'll start with All Souls (already downloaded to my Kindle) and follow it with Your Face Tomorrow. Luckily, the Saramago book is already in my library.

Off the Boxall list -- do you have a recommendation for a good history of the Spanish Civil War?

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

I know you were asking Nocturnalux, but I hope you don't mind me jumping in--I did read Antony Beevor's The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939, but I found it really hard to retain the information I was reading. A lot of people really like Beevor's writing though, so it still might be a good choice. I also read his Ardennes 1944: Hitler's Last Gamble, and didn't retain much of that either, so it looks like what me and the Beeve have is a failure to communicate.

So other than my negative recommendation, I don't have much else to say. I like Orwell's Homage to Catalonia, but it presumed familiarity with the subject that I didn't always have.

[Nocturnalux]

Karen wrote: "Off the Boxall list -- do you have a recommendation for a good history of the Spanish Civil War?
"

Marías himself mentions, in the first volume of Your Face Tomorrow, The Spanish Civil War by Hugh Thomas as an all-encompassing resource on the subject.
I believe he also mentions The Battle for Spain, that Bryan recommended, but cannot be quite certain.

[Mia]

Agnes Grey by Anne Brontë.

[Karen]

Bryan wrote: "I know you were asking Nocturnalux, but I hope you don't mind me jumping in--I did read Antony Beevor's The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939, but I found it really har..."

Thanks for the recommendations -- seems like from the reviews readers either love Beevor or not! I'll definitely leave Orwell's book until I've read a little more history.

[Karen]

Nocturnalux wrote: "Karen wrote: "Off the Boxall list -- do you have a recommendation for a good history of the Spanish Civil War?
"

Marías himself mentions, in the first volume of Your Face Tomorrow, [book:The Spani..."

Sounds good -- from the little research I have done, it is frequently recommended. Thanks for all of your suggestions!

[Jennifer W]

Mercedes wrote: "The English Patient

Well written, although I found myself wavering as to who was the main voice. There is certainly not a lack of interesting and likeable characters to choose from, b..."

I agree. I found the book to be flat- in that there were a lot of things that should have elicited heightened emotional reactions, but they just didn't. It's been a few years since I read it, and all I remember are a handful of people hiding in a half-bombed building. I've never seen the movie, I've heard good things about it and would give it a shot, just haven't gotten to it yet.

[Karen]

The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr by E.T.A. Hoffmann
Two books -- the memoir of the cat Tomcat Murr and the life of the composer Johannes Kreisler -- mixed together due to a printer's error. The reader alternates between the two never exactly restarting where one or the other left off. Tomcat Murr was enjoyable. The life of Kreisler was strange with several people with some serious psychological problems. Sadly, the book was never finished, but is still enjoyable.

[Bob]

A Room with a View by E.M. Forster. Slow starting, but picked up later in part two, ultimately satisfying.

[Peter]

Drop City by T.C.Boyle. OK but overall a little disappointing.

[Karen]

The Shadow Line; a confession by Joseph Conrad

[Mekki]

The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch

[Diane]

Finished No Laughing Matter by Angus Wilson and The Shining by Stephen King.

[Bryan--The Bee’s Knees]

Adam Bede by George Eliot

[S.L.]

The Power and the Glory byGraham Greene

[George P.]

Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood. My sixth Atwood book (5 novels and a short story collection), and I've enjoyed reading every one of them. My favorite is probably still my first, A Handmaid's Tale. Looking forward to The Testaments.
I have one Atwood in the 1001 left to read, The Robber Bride.

[Laura]

Finished Pete Goriot this week. Not a happy book, but I’m glad I read it.

[Jennifer W]

Finished Death in Venice, can't say I'm a fan.

[Diane]

Finished Another World by Pat Barker.