What books are you reading now? (2020) Showing 1,751-1,800 of 2,222

[Susan]

Not many votes this month for the poll.

As this thread is quite popular, I thought I would post here and ask members to please vote for the December group read:

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/list/2...

[Susan]

I just finished The Postscript Murders

Really loved it - a fantastic, literary mystery.

[Jill]

I have finished Mexico Set Len Deighton. I really liked it, maybe not quite as much as Berlin Game but was still a great read. The internal politics in London,are well described, leaving Samson never quite sure who to trust.

[Nigeyb]

Jill wrote: "I have finished Mexico Set Len Deighton. I really liked it, maybe not quite as much as Berlin Game but was still a great read"

Great news Jill

I posted quite a lot about the Bernard Samson books over on the Len Deighton favourite authors thread. The series gets better and better. Well worth sticking with

[Chrissie]

I ended up liking Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness by Peter Godfrey-Smith a lot. Many interesting topics are broached.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I have begun another book by Irène Némirovsky--The Fires of Autumn. There are two versions. I am reading the one where the author has made final alterations. Nevertheless it was published posthumously.

[Susan]

I also liked Mexico Set, but, like you, Jill, I think I preferred Berlin Game. I would like to continue the books, when I get time.

[Roman Clodia]

I'm just about to start Zola's L'Assommoir, a buddy read for October - I'm also opening up the discussion thread a bit early for those of us who like to post spoiler-free as we go along.

Do join us here: www.goodreads.com/topic/show/21696496...

[Susan]

My enjoyment of Square Haunting: Five Women, Freedom and London Between the Wars has led me to start a book that has been on my TBR list forever: To the River: A Journey Beneath the Surface by Olivia Laing. It is a story of her walk along the River Ouse, where Virginia Woolf committed suicide and is complementing the section I am also reading in Square Haunting, where Woolf is living in London in 1939-1940.

[Roman Clodia]

Oh, I love Laing and can highly recommend her The Lonely City: Adventures in the Art of Being Alone, The Trip to Echo Spring, and Funny Weather: Art in an Emergency. Oddly, To The River is the one I haven't read yet so looking forward to your review, Susan.

[Susan]

I think To the River was her debut. It looks wonderful so far and I have meant to read it for ages.

[Nigeyb]

Nigeyb wrote:


"I've recently started listening to one of Susan's Audible deals of the day


So far, I am really enjoying Shadowplay (2019) by Joseph O'Connor.

It's a bravura reimagining of the real-life relationship between Bram Stoker and the two greatest stars of Victorian theatre, Henry Irving and Ellen Terry

Huge names come and go: Oscar Wilde has a tragicomic cameo; Jack the Ripper terrorises the London streets; WB Yeats is glimpsed on a Dublin bridge, his appearance serving only to fire Stoker's need to escape to London.

So far, so splendid - great narration too

Thanks Susan, another top tip"


I am still thoroughly enjoying Shadowplay

Bram Stoker, Ellen Terry and Henry Irving are such compelling characters and the writing is beautiful, and very perceptive

The allusions to Dracula add another level of pleasure to appreciate

[Chrissie]

I have completed The Fires of Autumn by Irène Némirovsky. It reads as a prequel to Suite Française.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Now for some non-fiction related to the Second World War--Inge's War: A German Woman's Story of Family, Secrets, and Survival Under Hitler by Svenja O’Donnell.

[Susan]

I have Shadowplay too, Nigeyb. You are making me wish to push it up my TBR pile.

[Nigeyb]

Susan wrote: "I have Shadowplay too, Nigeyb. You are making me wish to push it up my TBR pile."

I'm pretty sure you'll really enjoy it too

[Joy D]

Set in Sierra Leone, this book tells the stories of four women, half-sisters, as they relate significant events in their lives to their niece, Abie. It takes place over the majority of the 20th century (1926-1999), as the country evolves. The narrative is rich in details of the Sierra Leone’s culture and natural environment. It is a patchwork of various stories that provide an overall impression of the history and changes over time within the country from the female perspective.

This is the 2nd book I've read by Aminatta Forna and I am rapidly becoming a fan of her writing.

Ancestor Stones: A Novel by Aminatta Forna - 4 stars - My Review

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Joy D wrote: "This is the 2nd book I've read by Aminatta Forna and I am rapidly becoming a fan of her writing."

I have her Happiness on wish list. My biggest wish? That I could get to all of these interesting sounding books sooner rather than later!

[Hugh]

Aminatta Forna is one of my favourite writers, and her books are all strong in different ways - my personal favourite is The Devil that Danced on the Water, but The Memory of Love and The Hired Man are very impressive too.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Hugh wrote: "Aminatta Forna is one of my favourite writers, and her books are all strong in different ways - my personal favourite is The Devil that Danced on the Water, but The Memory of Love and The Hired Man..."

Thanks, Hugh. As you are usually a fiction reader, that is high praise. I've added it to my already over-burdened wish list.

[Judy]

I've started Eggs or Anarchy: The remarkable story of the man tasked with the impossible: to feed a nation at war by William Sitwell, which I remember Susan recommending a while ago - finding it fascinating so far.

[Tania]

That sounds really interesting Judy. I just checked, and my library has it so I've added it to the list.
At the moment, I'm reading The House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier and The Jasmine Farm by Elizabeth von Arnim not very far into either yet, but both look promising.

[Susan]

Yes, I loved Eggs or Anarchy, Judy. Woolton pie!

https://the1940sexperiment.com/2016/0...

[Chrissie]

I have completed and highly recommend Inge's War: A German Woman's Story of Family, Secrets, and Survival Under Hitler by Svenja O’Donnell.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Currently reading Tonio Kröger by Thomas Mann.

[Judy]

Ooh, hope you enjoy Eggs or Anarchy too, Tania. I'll be very interested to hear about The House on the Strand as I have been meaning to read it forever!

Susan, thanks for the link - have you tried Lord Woolton Pie?! It doesn't really appeal to me, to be honest, although I'm sure it is very filling and was appreciated in wartime.

[Roman Clodia]

I enjoyed The House on the Strand - it must have been one of the original time-slip stories which have become over-familiar now. I remember racing through the pages, I was so gripped!

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Maybe I should try another du Maurier, but I did not especially care for Rebecca, and I haven't ever found time to explore further, choosing books that expected to like more. I haven't always been right about that liking more, of course.

[Roman Clodia]

I'd still say Rebecca is her best, Elizabeth, so if you didn't like it, maybe du Maurier isn't for you?

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Roman Clodia wrote: "I'd still say Rebecca is her best, Elizabeth, so if you didn't like it, maybe du Maurier isn't for you?"

That's why I haven't tried anything else. But I may be wrong in that is all I'm saying. I seem to recall others (no specifics, just generally) not necessarily caring for what is an author's most popular work but liking other works by the same author.

One of the things I did not care for Rebecca is that the end/aftermath was told in the first few paragraphs. I'm sure there was supposed to be tension in the book, but it was impossible to feel it.

[Jill]

I wasn't keen on Rebecca but I loved Frenchman's Creek I keep meaning to get to The House on the Strand

[Roman Clodia]

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "One of the things I did not care for Rebecca is that the end/aftermath was told in the first few paragraphs."

Oh ok, if it was a structural issue, it may be worth trying again. The books of hers I've read tend to have a strong romantic element balanced with something gothic or strange. I wonder if you might like My Cousin Rachel?

[Roman Clodia]

Jill, I loved the swoony Frenchman's Creek as a teenager - I'm nervous about rereading in case it spoils my memories ;)

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Thanks! My library has a digital edition of My Cousin Rachel. I'll add it to my wish list just in case I ever decide I should try another du Maurier.

[Tania]

I loved My Cousin Rachel, I hope you enjoy it if you do decide to give her another go. I also loved Jamaica Inn as well as the others mentioned here.

[Jan C]

Having just finished The Honjin Murders, I have started Ann Dvorak: Hollywood's Forgotten Rebel. And I have The Inugami Curse waiting for me (also have Our Malady: Lessons in Liberty from a Hospital Diary and Al Capone and the 1933 Worlds Fair).

[Chrissie]

Thomas Mann is a great writer. His book Tonio Kröger is short but very good, It's a semi-autobiographical novel.

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I am about to start America and Americans and Selected Nonfiction by John Steinbeck.

[Jan C]

Benson has a biography of Steinbeck. Also one of Wallace Stegner.

[Chrissie]

Jan C wrote: "Benson has a biography of Steinbeck. Also one of Wallace Stegner."

Please give me the link to the biography on Steinbeck. I cannot find it.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Jan C wrote: "Benson has a biography of Steinbeck. Also one of Wallace Stegner."

Who Benson. Do you have titles?

[Brian E]

Excuse me for jumping in, but I had just looked the author up for the Stegner bio. The author is Jackson J. Benson and, while the main bios appear to be John Steinbeck, Writer, and Wallace Stegner: His Life and Work the Benson GR author page indicates he has several other books on Steinbeck and perhaps Jan refers to one of them.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Thanks, Brian. I have added the Stegner bio to my wish list. Not sure when/if I'll get to it.

[Sue]

Judy wrote: "I've started Eggs or Anarchy: The remarkable story of the man tasked with the impossible: to feed a nation at war by William Sitwell, which I remember Susan recomme..."

I remember Susan talking about it and still haven't got to it yet, so I'll look forward to your review Judy.

[Chrissie]

Brian wrote: "Excuse me for jumping in, but I had just looked the author up for the Stegner bio. The author is Jackson J. Benson and, while the main bios appear to be [book:John Steinbeck, Writer|4..."

Thanks, Brian.

[Jan C]

Brian wrote: "Excuse me for jumping in, but I had just looked the author up for the Stegner bio. The author is Jackson J. Benson and, while the main bios appear to be [book:John Steinbeck, Writer|4..."

Thanks Brian. That is the Steinbeck book I was thinking about. I need to get back to the Steinbeck and Stegner books.

[Chrissie]

There is a a lot of biographical information about Steinbeck in what I am, reading now--America and Americans and Selected Nonfiction. Also, what is written about Ed Ricketts (Doc in Cannery Row) is fascinating. Now I want to read a whole book on Snicketts. There is additional information by the editor, but for the most part it is Steinbeck's own writing. The humor and the intelligence of Steinbeck come to the fore. I like the book particularly because it has Steinbeck's own writing. As he points out, what another author would say about Ed Ricketts would most probably be very different.

[Chrissie]

Thanks for confirming the title, Jan. Yep, the book you mention is on my wishlist, if it one day becomes available to me.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Have started Dread Journey by Dorothy B. Hughes. It has the same wonderful cadence of language and an undercurrent of violence/murder. I'm not yet 20 pages in, but it seems there are a lot of pronouns referring to which people I'm not sure about. I guess it will straighten itself out - I sure like her!

[Jan C]

Chrissie wrote: "There is a a lot of biographical information about Steinbeck in what I am, reading now--America and Americans and Selected Nonfiction. Also, what is written about Ed Ricketts (Doc in ..."

Have you read The Log from the Sea of Cortez? That was a trip Steinbeck took with Ricketts to Mexico to get samples.

[Susan]

I am reading a forthcoming buddy read Life Among the Savages which is a wonderful memoir, by the - oh, so talented - Shirley Jackson. The second memoir Raising Demons has a new edition out on kindle next year and so I am looking forward to reading that one too.

[Chrissie]

I am not getting any emails from GR! Does anybody know what is going on??????

I have completed America and Americans and Selected Nonfiction by John Steinbeck. Its beginning is great, the middle very, very good, but the end absolutely TERRIBLE!

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Now I am reading The Pastor's Wife by Elizabeth von Arnim. A free download is available at Librivox. It was the only place I could find it.

[Roman Clodia]

Chrissie wrote: "I am not getting any emails from GR! Does anybody know what is going on???"

I usually just get the on-site notifications and those are not working either...

[Chrissie]

I have ben informed this is a problem for all of us at GR. They are working on solving the problem.........