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LIFE TIME BUDDY READS
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Booker Hit List - Girish and Vimal (feat Syl and Srividya)
message 151:
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Srividya
(new)
Feb 06, 2016 06:01AM
That's great Vimal! I shall also do some digging before starting this book so that it makes sense this time round! ;)
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I have read The unlikely pilgrimage of Harold Fry and A spool of blue thread from your list. Loved them both especially the first. It was a poignant tale with a slow pace. The second one too lacked dramatics but was well narrated.
Rebecca wrote: "I have read The unlikely pilgrimage of Harold Fry and A spool of blue thread from your list. Loved them both especially the first. It was a poignant tale with a slow pace. The second one too lacked..."Cool. Ya I remember your status updates on Fry's pilgrimage. Hoping to get to both books this year.
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Count me in for Wolf hall..."Super. 3 on board for the British court intrigues.
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Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "1/4th through Cloud Atlas. Enjoying Kit so far. Have reached the part where Luisa is told by Isaacs that he's got a present for her with Garcia."i'm exactly there Smitha :) :)
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I have reached the chapter "AN ORISON OF SONMI-451, whatever or whoever it is.
And things are confusing
Only thing I understood is that it is futuristic, there are people, there ARE clones. And clones are like slaves, and are supposed not to have mind, thoughts or rebellion.
Someone called Yoona 939 was courtmartialled for her misbehaviour.
Am at the middle of the chapter. It is as if I am suddenly thrown out of the comfortable old age home of Cavendish (though he is rebelling), to a chaotic universe seeming alien to our present earth customs.
What are Sonmis, Yoonas, MaLeuDas and HwaSoons on 3D? various "caste systems"?
Hawaii is OUR Hawai?
Mod
http://cloudatlas.wikia.com/wiki/An_O...
for a few minutes I got a Déjà vu feel..... remembered Infinite Jest.
Glad you got that reference, Syl. And yes they are clones and the whole thing is set in the future. :)
Mod
Sloosha's crossin and everything....
Was so confused till I got the hang of it.
Then referred Wiki to find out whether I presumed correct. Yes, at least to some extent.
http://www.shmoop.com/cloud-atlas/par...
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Help needed!I have reached the chapter "AN ORISON OF SONMI-451, whatever or whoever it is.
And things are confusing
Only thing I understood is that it is futuristic, there are people, there ARE cl..."
lol, comfortable..So you liked Cavendish's old age home?
I liked Sonmi and Sloosha the most. A narration and imagery too hard to imagine that any author could pull off with such ease.But surely it has nothing to take away from the remarkableness of the first 4 tales.I think you are liking the earlier stories better?
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Am enjoying all, as of now. :-)"Great! I asked because I know dystopia to be your nemesis :)
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I love Atwoodian dystopia.
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As Vimal says, am not liking it much, though initially I was eager.
have reached the part where "don't cross the bronze bridge meaning has been made clear to him.
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Have crawled on to 63%
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Don't remember reading a weirder book - perhaps Infinite Jest, but haven't read it beyond 14% to authoritatively comment.
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I feel that I am the dunce of this lot. :/
Incomprehensible language and slang... messed up stories.... am at 75% now. Loved the first half more than the next 25%, let me see whether the last quarter has redeeming qualities
Sometimes I feel like a dull student reading a text followed by the guide book to make things easy.
Have reached the second part of Tim Cavendish, where he is recovering from his stroke.
Aww don't feel bad. The stories reflect upon the various virtues and vices that exist in mankind today and those that have existed forever. Looking at it from that point of view, the messed up stories will make sense. It is the gradual decline of humanness in life as well as the ray of hope that shines across every grey cloud. Hope this makes sense. This is what I felt while reading the book. :)
Mod
Yeah it can get a little too much at times, although for me it was smooth sailing all the way. Take it little by little, give yourself breaks with other books. Maybe that will help in taking in all this.As regards the language - Only the Zach part is quite different, otherwise everything else is quite normal....
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Not impressed .
Have reconciled myself to my sub intelligence when it comes to profound books like this. :-P
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Tough treks are easier completed in groups than alone. Thinking back I soaked in the power angle and the teasing prose which made it easier.
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first half is 4-5 rating and second half about 2 - 2.5 to me.
Its sad that you didn't enjoy the book as much Syl. When you started reading, I was pretty sure that you wouldn't enjoy the Sonmi and Zachery stories, but the thing which surprises me is that you were put off by the lack of solid threads connecting the stories, since I remember that Kafka on the shore was a 5-starrer for you as it was with me.
Mod
Can't explain, but last parts were dismal, depression inducing.
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Finished.Not impressed .
Have reconciled myself to my sub intelligence when it comes to profound books like this. :-P"
hahahaha sorry but i feel the same. Ditto. I feel less useless now ;P
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Vimal, I wouldn't have minded unconnected threads that much if I had liked the descriptions. Can't explain, but last parts were dismal, depression inducing."
It is! And that's because the point is to show how much man can fall or the level to which he would stoop to, to get his needs and wants met. It is a stark contrast to the lighter mood of the earlier part and without this, it wouldn't have formed a complete circle. Man's ability to lose himself completely, including every bit of dignity to attain his greed is something tremendous and that's what the last part signifies, at least in my humble opinion.
Cloud Atlas, at least according to me, signifies the same stages of man, irrespective of where or when they are. Man's virtues and vices remain the same, just like the clouds in the sky. While the pattern, size and shape may vary, the basic tenet of that virtue or vice remains constant. It is like a crescendo that builds up slowly whilst also being the fall that comes after reaching the zenith. The first half signifies the rise of the tempo or plot while the second half is the fall and it tells us that nothing in life is without rise or decline. Every object that rises has to fall down and every object that falls down has to rise, whether that rising is because of other's actions or one's own is the only difference. However, whether it is rise or fall, man's emotions, actions, reactions, intellect, greed, apathy and every other element of human behaviour will remain constant, only changing according to their innate personality.
At least this is what I understood...I could be completely wrong! :P
Mod
5 stars for this one, if not for Cloud Atlas.
Thank you for the 'putting feelings and thoughts to words' part, however much I try I can never do that. Everything remains muddled up inside just leading to some heavy mass settling down my conscience and mind. :P
Srividya wrote: "Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Vimal, I wouldn't have minded unconnected threads that much if I had liked the descriptions. Can't explain, but last parts were dismal, depression inducing."
It is! And that's..."
Verithanam! How do you keep on writing such varied interpretations of the book relentlessly in several posts and reviews. Can make an interpretation atlas out of it :)
But then.Whatte book!!!
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Vimal, I wouldn't have minded unconnected threads that much if I had liked the descriptions. Can't explain, but last parts were dismal, depression inducing."
Cool. I somehow loved the depression inducing parts of this book more than the lighter parts.Frobisher's end was really heart-rending and the Sonmi story is a powerful forecasting of what can go wrong with an increase in consumerism and how.I still remember every part of it vividly and it sends me the chills.I'm planning to re-read this book sometime later this year to permanently carve it into my memory :)
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "This year itself? !!!"If I can find time, surely Yes! Can't believe how efficiently David Mitchell has enslaved me :D
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Which book are we reading next?"Girish, can we start anything later this month? I've been in a complete fiction-rot for the past month or so.
Mod
Vimal wrote: "Srividya wrote: "Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Vimal, I wouldn't have minded unconnected threads that much if I had liked the descriptions. Can't explain, but last parts were dismal, depression inducing."
..."
Haha! Thank you, Vimal! :D
I totally agree - Whatte book indeed! :D
Mod
And Vimal, we will start something in March. Any chance I can convince you to join illicit happiness of other ppl? :p
Girish wrote: "Sri, every time I read your analysis on a book, I wonder if I'm such a shallow reader! nicely put :) And Vimal, we will start something in March. Any chance I can convince you to join illicit hap..."
Would've loved to join in if not for my ruthless work-cook-eat-wash-sleep schedule, which doesn't leave any time/energy for physical/ebooks :( The reason I can read from the booker list is I can borrow the audiobooks that I have in that list, my only saviors these days.
Girish wrote: "Sri, every time I read your analysis on a book, I wonder if I'm such a shallow reader! nicely put :)"Haha, thank you, Girish. *blushes* However, you are in no way a shallow reader. It's just that this book resonated very strongly with me. I guess that is why it is still close to my heart, even though I have moved onto other books.
Vimal - Do let me know when you read this again. I would love to join in. I think this is one book that will give way to different interpretations each time you read it.
Mod
But from where do you borrow audiobooks?
The few I have are downloaded from Librivox, and a few gifted to me by my cousins in the US.
I know we can buy audiobooks in India, but those are too costly. More than 1000 /-
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