Constant Reader discussion
Constant Reader
>
What I Just Put Down, and what I just began
Almost finished with Chris Bohjalian's "Skeletons at the Feast", now I have to decide what's next ... sometimes this tends to be a difficult decision!
Barb, it's great to be back to non-work related reading. I've read about one book a month so far this year, so I'm not anywhere close to my former average 2 books a week - but that's okay, 2 books a week is a bit excessive! Other than work I can also blame Netflix for my reading slump . . .
I just finished Chimamanda Adichie's HALF OF A YELLOW SUN. Many, many thanks to whomever nominated it for our list, even though it wasn't a main selection.It's a story of the Nigeria-Biafra War of 1967-1970. The characters were rich, the horrors of war heartbreaking without being over the top. My favorite book so far this year.
What's up next? Who knows. There's no shortage from which to choose.
Anne
I will put in another plug for The Madonnas of Leningrad. It was beautifully written in places, highly visual, and with a variety of pacing that kept things interesting. I will look forward to Debra Dean's next book.
Last night I finished His Majesty's Dragon (mentioned upthread), which was a fun read for fans of the historical fiction/fantasy/Royal Navy subgenre :). I was in need of a fun read. Now I guess I should return and finish The Names, though I'm sure the discussion has left me far, far behind. Maybe it would be better to get started on The Enchanted April and leave Don for another time, rather than possibly miss out on the discussion of both books.
I just finished The Names. I liked it the whole time I was reading it, but after I finished I felt like I'd missed the point. I'll try to explain more on the discussion thread. I don't know, Phillip, maybe you are better off moving on to the next book.
I just finished Consider the Lilly by new author Sandra Carey Cody. The book's a cozy mystery and a perfect read for anyone who can't deal with anything too heavy or too intense.I'm about to start Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows. Both my kids and my mother read it and enjoyed the book very much. If I can get through all those adverbs Rowling's so fond of, it should be a good read.
What I do when I can't get into a book is start in the middle. If it's interesting I get hooked and then go back to discover what I've missed. If I don't like the middle I give up.An exception is Johnathon Strange and Mr. Norrell which I have been reading for 2 years. Wow. It gets good, then puts me to sleep, and then gets good again. I am however, at mid point starting to like it. In the meantime it makes a great step stool.
Well, that is the most inventive idea I have ever heard, Val. But I am constitutionally unable to start things in the middle. Books or movies. I am a very linear type of person. It took me a while to read JS&MN, too. At least you have a good substitute for drugs to put you to sleep.
I have been reading some non-fiction this summer. Three books I recently finished are:The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Eagan
This is about the horrible dust storms of the 1930's. The writer picks a number of actual people and recounts their experiences. I have to admit that after the 30th dust storm, I started skimming the details, but it still was an interesting tale of human folly in digging up and trying to farm this unpromising area. The resulting ecological disaster reminded me of current problems with global warming.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly – Jean-Dominique Bauby
This takes about two hours to read. I got it from the library after I had watched the movie - which was outstanding. It is a touching book and an amazing insight into the mind of another human being.
Three Cups of Tea - about an American who has started schools in some of the poorest villages in Pakistan and Afghanistan. It was SO nice to read about someone who is doing good for a change.
Hi Ann, I'm so glad to see you here. You've been scarce lately. I read The Worst Hard Time a couple of years ago, and my reaction was the same as yours.I found myself underwhelmed by Diving Bell, tho. Maybe my expectations were too high, given the publicity, etc. I found the book to be a bit Pollyannaish.
Ruth,Actually, I'm here lurking often and still enjoy reading everyone's posts. I just haven't had much time to write.
I suspect the author of the Diving Bell felt a lot of rage at his condition that he consciously kept out of the book - both out of a sense of pride and and a recognition that it would turn readers off.
I guess I can't get over the fact that the guy dictated the book by blinking his eyelid when his assistant said the correct letter of the alphabet, and that he continued to have such a rich interior life in spite of his nightmarish physical condition.
What did you think of the movie?
Ann D.
I first read a review of 3 Cups of Tea in a climbing magazine. I've wanted to read it ever since. I had it in my hand at the bookstore yesterday, but I guess I'm not ready yet.
Our local library manager recommended Goodreads about six months ago and I can't believe how often I check in every day for reviews and comments and ideas. Recently, in the latest New Yorker I read Alice Munro's "Deep-Holes" short story. I wanted SO much to discuss it with someone that I googled on the internet and found a couple of blogs that had posters who went into that story and analyzed it in depth - (funny word to choose here). I tried Goodreads first, but it was too new perhaps -- or maybe I didn't know where to look on the site? Anyhow, it's a suggestion for people who like this sort of interchange. Or maybe you all do it already!
We have a short story conference where you can start a discussion of any short story you like. Someone is bound to have read it. We also have a schedule where you can recommend stories. Since Alice Munro is the favorite author of our Short Story coordinator (Barb Moors), I don't think you would have to twist her arm to put Munro's story on the next list.
I've started reading von Arnim's The Enchanted April and am enjoying it very much. Don DeLillo awaits my return to The Names, sitting reproachfully in the far corner of my room.
I just finished reading Eragon by Christopher Paolini and have started re-reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I've been on a YA/fantasy kick lately and what better book to pick up than this one?
Jesse, Paolini is about to release the third in the Eragon series. It's due out this Fall and is titled 'Brisingr.'I'm sure you know that Paolini was only 15 when he wrote 'Eragon.'
Amazing.
Just finished Loving Frank. It was kind of wooden. Just started Jumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth.
Beej--I try to imagine myself writing a 500 page novel when I was fifteen...absolutely impossible! It still amazes me whenever I think about it! And I'm heading out to Barnes & Noble today to pre-order my copy of Brisingr! I'm totally excited for it, even though I have yet to read Eldest.
Ruth--I'm curious about Unaccustomed Earth. Will you let me know how it is? I saw that Oprah had recommended it in her magazine a couple months ago and I've been curious about it ever since!
Hi all!Just finished the wonderful story A Buffalo in the House by R.D. Rosen. I had been reading stories with an animal theme - read Dog Years by Mark Doty before starting the Rosen story (it was excellent too).
Now I'm trying to decide what to read next...Mister Pip or The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen!
Last week's New Yorker ran a new story by Alice Munro called "Deep-Holes". I usually discuss these Munro stories with a friend, but we both sort of hit the wall and couldn't think where she was going. I found a very interesting blog that went into some fine analysis of the story and if anyone else is interested, here it is:http://perpetualfolly.blogspot.com/20...
Why don't you post that link in Short Stories,too, Sylvia. I'm sure some of those readers (including me) would be interested.Jess, about 5 of the Unaccustomed Earth stories I've already read--penalty of subscribing to the New Yorker. But last night I read way late in bed to finish one I hadn't read before. That's a good indication of quality, isn't it?
Ruth--yes, that is definitely a good indication of quality! I was up reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe late last night as a matter of fact! I'm looking forward to picking up a copy of Unaccustomed Earth!
I just finished The Enchanted April barely in time for the discussion already underway in the Classics Corner, and am about to start in on The Blindfold by Siri Hustvedt.
I, too, have The Blindfold ready to be read. I'm excited about joining in another discussion (The Road was my last discussion, and that was quite a while back). I just finished several YA books for our summer reading program:
The Skin I'm In - Sharon Flake
The Schwa was Here - Neal Shusterman
Life as We Knew It - Susan Pfeffer
Bella at Midnight - Diane Stanley
Diary of a Wimpy Kid - I forgot the author :(
I'll get these reviewed soon, so check my student shelf if interested!
- Misty
I just finished The Blindfold -- ahead of the discussion for once -- and am well on my way into Dorothy Dunnett's The Game of Kings.
I just finished Out Stealing Horses by Norwegian writer Per Petterson. Has anyone else read it? Ruth, perhaps? It is very well written and, in many respects a good story, but it also frustrated me, as too many literary novels do. Why do so many modern writers feel compelled to leave so much unexplained and unresolved at the end? In this particular case, I really expected to find out a bit about the father's subsequent relationship with his lover, as well as the narrator's life in the last 52 years, particularly that accident with his wife.
Does anyone else get irritated by the mushy plots of modern fiction?
Ann D.
I read it, Ann, a few months ago. Liked it very much. No, I don't get irritated by what you call the "mushy plots." Maybe because heavy plotting is not my expectation when I head into these books. I'm more interested in character development, and I think these writers are, too.
Just finished Nausea by Jean-Paul Sartre, today I will start reading The sorrow of Belgium by Hugo Claus. I read one of his other books: De Metsiers and really liked so I'm very curious about this one.
Tell us about Nausea, Sibyl. That book just looks too intimidating to me. For what reason, I have no idea. My husband had it for a college French class and I think it's floating around here somewhere. Maybe it was intimidating because it was in French.
I read this in a Dutch translation, not in French. The reason I read this book is that the teacher in my twentieth century philosophy class mentioned it and I thought it sounded interesting. It is written as the diary of a young and bored Frenchman. I'd recommend it to anyone with some knowledge of existentialism interested in diaries by bored, lonely people.
It reminded me a little of The Evenings by Gerard Reve, about a young man who lives with his parents whom he finds disgusting and pittyful and is desperately looking for ways to spend his evenings outdoors with his equally boring friends. Not much happens, some parts of it are quite abstract or maybe even absurd. I always find it hard to explain why a book is interesting if nothing really happens, just read it (in translation) I only needed a week or so to read it and I had to combine it with exams etc. so it can't be too intimidating.
If you like books where nothing really happens then here are some recommendations:
-The evenings by Gerard Reve
-Anything by J.J. Voskuil (I don't know if he is translated in English, but his 'Bureau' series is amazing: 7 wonderful books about people at an office, doing useless and absurd research on the belief in gnomes etc.)
It reminded me a little of The Evenings by Gerard Reve, about a young man who lives with his parents whom he finds disgusting and pittyful and is desperately looking for ways to spend his evenings outdoors with his equally boring friends. Not much happens, some parts of it are quite abstract or maybe even absurd. I always find it hard to explain why a book is interesting if nothing really happens, just read it (in translation) I only needed a week or so to read it and I had to combine it with exams etc. so it can't be too intimidating.
If you like books where nothing really happens then here are some recommendations:
-The evenings by Gerard Reve
-Anything by J.J. Voskuil (I don't know if he is translated in English, but his 'Bureau' series is amazing: 7 wonderful books about people at an office, doing useless and absurd research on the belief in gnomes etc.)
Thanks for the explanation, Sibyl. If a book is written well, even if nothing happens, I might read it. Maybe Nausea would be a good book to try for our Classics Corner.
That's a good idea. The average rating here on goodreads is 3.89 so I think most people will enjoy it.
I've been wanting to start a novel in French, as it has been a while since I read anything in French. I generally like Sartre's style (when he is not writing philosophy). I'd be happy to see it as a Classic choice. I just started my first Zola novel, The Belly of Paris, and I am liking it more than I expected.
Sylvia, I finished our schedule for the short story conference before I saw your note about Alice Munro's story. However, we can always talk about nonscheduled stories as well. As Ruth said, I'm a huge fan of all of her writing, but haven't read this yet because the New Yorker came while I was on vacation. Feel free to go to Short Stories here on CR and post a note with the link. If you don't, I'll post something as soon as I'm done reading it.
Ruth,Re - Out Stealing Horses by Petterson
Character development is very important to me too, and I don't think that I will soon forget the young boy/ old man who is the protagonist. For those who have not read it, the book alternates between the present and 52 years earlier with almost no information about the man's life in between.
There were some very interesting plot developments in the book's first half - but then things slowed down to a crawl. I did like the ending, when the mother bought the boy the new suit. I didn't know how to interpret the daughter's visit. What did you think?
Ann D.
Now here's the disadvantage of my new resolution to use the library instead of buying books, Ann. I read this only a few months back--from the library. If I owned the book, all I'd have to do now to refresh my memory would be to glance at the ending. As it is, I have to confess I don't remember the ending. I do remember that the descriptions of the area were beautiful.R
Re - Out Stealing Horses by Per PettersonIn spite of a few reservations, this really is an excellent book. The descriptions and sense of place are remarkable. The fact that I keep thinking about the boy and his father indicates that the story had enough meat to keep me fully engaged.
This was a New York Times Best Book of the year and won the 2007 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. In fact, I really wish some other people would read this so we could discuss it! It is only 258 pages.
WARNING PLOT SPOILERS
*************************************
Ruth,
At the end of the book, the boy and his mother go to Sweden to cash in the check for selling the logs. It is a disappointingly small check. The mother decides to buy the boy a new suit since they can't even take the money out of the country to Norway. The boy is very pleased. I took the new suit, which he wore out of the store, as a symbol that he had become a man - more or less a necessity since the father had abandoned the family. The memory is bittersweet, both because of the father's desertion and because this is the last time his mother shows any spirit. She spends the rest of her life in lethargy and sadness.
The daughter visits the narrator as an old man shortly before this incident is recalled. We discover that they have not been close but that she cared enough about his to track him down. I wanted to know more about his relationship with his family, but maybe the author wanted us to believe that the broken bond with his father affected his own relationship with his children.
Did Leif also read this book?
Ann D.
Thanks, Ann. I remember now. I think you're right in that the book lost some steam in the second half. The ending worked for me, though.As to your question about why so many writers leave things unresolved. I think it's because it's truer to life. Those older novels that went on for 400-500 pages of involved stories and then tied up everything neatly at the end, may be wonderful books, but they don't reflect the way things usually happen.
Ruth,One of the attractions of the classics for me has always been that they are plot driven, but I'm afraid I have lost my patience for those 400-500 novels.
I understand what you mean about modern novels reflecting what really happens. It's just that sometimes I need an break from the ambiguities of real life.
Another novel I recently finished was The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. This is pure escapist fun, written like a Gothic novel. I really enjoyed it, but that author went to the extreme of wrapping up every little detail.
I guess there's a fine line somewhere. The Brief Wondrous Life Of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz and The Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo are current novels that satisfied my need for resolution.
Ann D.
I used to feel that way about the stories in the NYer, Ann. But over time I got used to being left hanging.
my aunt who is reading it for book club, and whose opinion i respect, said it is an interesting story but the writing is really awful. SOOOOOOOOOOOO how does a book like that get published, get good reviews and do so well. Oy.
Which book are you talking about, Lisa?
Sylvia, I liked Munro's New Yorker story too. It is similar thematically to her story Silence, in the collection Runaway. Silence should be read in conjunction with (and after) Chance in that same collection. The New Yorker story starts with a similar idea and takes it in a different direction. Kind of an interesting peek into Munro's writer's mind. I actually think the Chance/Silence stories are superior to the New Yorker story.Theresa
sorry, thought i was responding to ruth's post on Loving Frank....
That's OK, Lisa! I was just curious. My sister really liked Loving Frank and I love to talk to her about books we've both read. So, of course, I was hoping it was well written.
Syliva and Theresa, I just put a note up in the Short Stories conference about "Deep Holes" by Alice Munro, with a link to the story, so there can be some more specific discussion. Theresa, I am taking the liberty of copying your note there because I love your points.
I "read" Loving Frank as an audiobook. But I agree, Lisa. It wasn't very well written. "And then she did this, and then she did that."R
Constant Reader
Books mentioned in this topic
Eat, Pray, Love (other topics)Naked Lunch: The Restored Text (other topics)
Beloved (other topics)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (other topics)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Robert A. Heinlein (other topics)Roger Zelazny (other topics)
Edgar Rice Burroughs (other topics)
I just finished my reread of The Enchanted April for the upcoming discussion. I'm nearing the finish line on my other current book the love affair title -- it's slipped away) as well and the third one has been kidnapped by Jim so Dave Robicheaux and I will have to hang out together later.