Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die discussion
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Which LIST book did you just start?
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Jan 13, 2009 05:38AM
The Sea by John Banville
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Okay, Finished "House of Seven Gables" and "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" so I started on "Anna Kerenina" and "Clockwork Orange"Still slogging through "War and Peace" very well written but realllllly looooooong.
Well, I'm wrestling with Midnight's children by Salman Rushdie. I loved it at the start, but the digressions (I know they are the whole point of the book, but I am a conventional sod I suppose) are starting to get up my nose. I'm about a third of the way through and I don't know if I can keep going. I'm going to start Lolita and read it at the same time, but its not easy to read two at a time when the number one book is such a wandering minstrel to start with - I'll find it hard to pick up the thread.
Jennifer wrote: "Well, I'm wrestling with Midnight's children by Salman Rushdie. I loved it at the start, but the digressions (I know they are the whole point of the book, but I am a conventional sod I suppose) ar..."I just read Midnight's Children and LOVED it. But I did find it a bit much to read during the chaos of the holidays and took a break from it, and it was surprisingly easy to come back to. Hopefully you can stick with it... I just started Hawthorne's "The House of Seven Gables", and I'm finding it hard to adjust to the dense writing after a bunch of modern reads lately.
Sentimental Education by Flaubert, really easy to read and interesting plot. Also enjoy the odd snippets of information that Flaubert drops into the plot, in order to set the period of the story.
Galen wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "Well, I'm wrestling with Midnight's children by Salman Rushdie. I loved it at the start, but the digressions (I know they are the whole point of the book, but I am a conventional ..."Thanks for the encouragement - maybe I will go back to it..but Lolita is OK so far too. Tell me, Galen, does Midnight's children change at all or is this what I can expect for the next two thirds too?
Ragtime by Doctorow. So far it's weird. It doesn't follow the basic conventions of a novel (like giving your characters names). I can't decide if I like it or not.
I'm starting War of Peace today. I am currently reading Great Apes by Will Self, which I just started a day or so ago, but its causing me some confusion so I thought I would set it aside momentarily. I'm doing War and Peace through daily lit and I let my email build up a couple of parts before reading it.
Logan wrote: "I picked up Haruki Murakami's Wind-Up Bird Chronicles at the airport last night and then spent an entire flight when I should have been sleeping sucked into the pages. One of the review snippets o..."I really enjoy Murakami's writing. He keeps you wanting more the entire time.
Lianna wrote: "Middlesex. I blew through the first chapter. Chapters two and three are a little more sluggish... "Hang in there. Middlesex was worth it.
I'm reading "Madame Bovary" through DailyLit. I'm half way through "Time's Arrow" by Amis but I left it on the plane yesterday so I need to pick up another copy. It reminds me of "Slaughter-House Five". The main character is cold and unfeeling but I don't know why because the book goes through time backwards. I also just started "Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain" by Maryanne Wolf.
I've set aside Great Apes by Will Self, am reading War and Peace through dailylit, but only because they didn't have a copy at half priced books when I went yesterday and I just started Never Let Me Go by Ishiguro
100 years of solitude, just about to move country for the third time so I'm hoping to finish it before I leave Canada.
Jennifer, Midnight's Children stays about the same in pace and writing style, but the story does get much more into the history of India and Pakistan as the story goes on. I'm reading Atonement now, and so far think it has its interesting points but is overall moving quite slowly.
I started 2001 A Space Odyssey yesterday. I haven't seen the movie so I only know a little about what to expect.
One Flew Over The Cuckoo's NestSusan, I almost bought The Once and Future King today but I put it back because my New Years Resolution was to not buy anymore books until I read all the books that are on my bookshelf that I haven't read yet. I'm down to 45 (from 67). Ugh.
Gaston, As I Lay Dying should be on the list. I've read it a few times and the second time I went through it a teacher suggested that I approach it with a sense of humor. It made the book a lot richer for me, and I realized that as tragic as much of the book is Faulkner was definitely going for laughs with a lot of it, too. Enjoy!
Gaston wrote: "It's not on the list, but I am starting As I Lay Dying by Faulkner."Gaston: let us know how you like Faulkner. My college daughter in Atlanta once attended a performance of As I Lay Dying by large wooden puppets/marionettes. She said it was bizarre.
Lenoir wrote: "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's NestSusan, I almost bought The Once and Future King today but I put it back because my New Years Resolution was to not buy anymore books until I read all the books th..."
If I didn't but another book until I read all on my shelfs, I wouldn't be buying a book for years! You are an example of self-restraint. "The Once and Future King" has captivated me, but hundreds of pages to go.
Just started Seize the Day by Saul Bellow. Looks like it will be easy reading and it's fairly short. I think it was originally on the list but then dropped. Anyone have a recommendation for a different work by Bellow?
Lenoir wrote: "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's NestSusan, I almost bought The Once and Future King today but I put it back because my New Years Resolution was to not buy anymore books until I read all the books th..."
I made a similar resolution. I don't mean to finish every book I own before buying another, but I have purchased so many in the last four months! Also, I get so many books from the library that I put those before the ones that I own. I didn't think I'd ever say this, but I need to stop going to the library so much!
I just started The Mandarins.
Luckily, most of the books on my "have-it-to-read" shelf are on the 1001 list. I don't know if I can really go a whole year without buying any new books though. It's only the end of January. You can hold me up as an example of self-restraint later in the year. I might crack under the pressure of my addiction way before then. I am just happy that I can now fit them all on one shelf of my bookshelf (except for Bleak House).
Lenoir wrote: "Luckily, most of the books on my "have-it-to-read" shelf are on the 1001 list. I don't know if I can really go a whole year without buying any new books though. It's only the end of January. You ca..."I have already bought one book, but it couldn't be avoided. It's my turn for book club, and I wasn't able to get a copy at the library.
Linda wrote: "Just started Seize the Day by Saul Bellow. Looks like it will be easy reading and it's fairly short. I think it was originally on the list but then dropped. Anyone have a recommendation for a diffe..."I loved "Mr. Sammler's Planet." It's like a love-letter to New York City pre-clean-up. New York City sounds dirty and dangerous but also beautiful.
Kristi wrote: "Lenoir wrote: "Luckily, most of the books on my "have-it-to-read" shelf are on the 1001 list. I don't know if I can really go a whole year without buying any new books though. It's only the end of ..."So what are you reading for your book group?
The Book Thief. It's not on the list, and technically young adult, but I have heard great things about it.
I just began The Bell JarI've heard lots of good things about it from my friends, so I'm quite excited to finish!
Going to start Middlesex tonight. Glad to hear it's worth hanging in for. Just finished Ironweed and Never Let Me Go.
Denise wrote: "Going to start Middlesex tonight. Glad to hear it's worth hanging in for. Just finished Ironweed and Never Let Me Go."I have 3 chapters to go in Middlesex and the end is definitely more interesting than the beginning. I'm actually surprised that more of the book did not happen in the "present" time. Was it a book that I had to read before I die...I don't know but it definitely made me aware of some things that I haven't thought much about before.
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