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What are we reading? 12 June 2023
Bill wrote: I still haven’t managed to read that 150 page book. ."You'll therefore understand (in a way) why I was unable to finish Heart of Darkness (107 pages in one edition).
I reckon that if we are out of sympathy with an author, there is no point in persisting. No one 'ought' to have to read any book.
I read 'The Outsider' and 'The Fall' more than once as a young man; they were among my favourite books. I also loved many of Camus' plays, especially 'The Just' and 'Caligula'. I liked 'The Plague' less - too long and too allegorical for me - but still pretty good. But what I want to say is this - maybe we have to be a certain age to enjoy some authors. Camus, Sartre, Nietzsche and Dostoyevsky (especially him) helped me to form my own ideas. Beyond a certain age, nothing has the same impact or effect, and for those who have gone in a different direction they may well simply seem wrong-headed.
Berkley wrote: "I rate them both very highly and plan to read more Camus."You may like to sample Camus' plays, in which his characters play out moral dilemmas.
Bill wrote: "...it may be some instinctive resistance to French literature..."Not necessarily - as usual, it's risky to group books according to the language in which they were written (IMO) which is one reason among several why I was never tempted to study 'English Literature' at uni. I always thought that it would make more sense to study books with thematic similarities rather than ones simply written in a specific language. (I have no idea if any such uni courses exist).
Despite being very much a Francophile, and loving some French authors, there are many who don't interest me all that much. I've not read many/any (?) 19th C. French authors (or English ones for that matter), since the Russians were the only ones considering philosophical matters via the novel at that time, AFAIK (this could be total crap, but I do mean 'philosophical and not 'moral' here, and I'm too old to revisit that period or to rethink it.) Let's just say that they were the ones with the most interesting points in those debates.
Mid 20th C was the period of French philosophical novels - which is why those are the books I predominantly read in my youth.
Nowadays, several modern French authors interest me again for their imaginative blend of fact, fiction and personal reflection. Perhaps you could have a look at HHhH by Laurent Binet, in which the author tries to clarify what, exactly, happened during and following the assassination attempt on Heydrich in Prague. I found the intermingling of the historical researches with comments on his own personal circumstances and struggles during writing to be fascinating; others simply don't want the author to 'intrude' into the narrative and have said: "Too much Binet". That brief description and your own knowledge of your tastes might be enough for you to decide that it is of interest, or a definite no-no!
scarletnoir wrote: "You'll therefore understand (in a way) why I was unable to finish Heart of Darkness (107 pages in one edition).I reckon that if we are out of sympathy with an author, there is no point in persisting. No one 'ought' to have to read any book."
I should say that I never made a start on The Stranger, so I can't (yet) say I was unable to finish it. I'm just never inspired to start it and length seems to have nothing to do with it. (Though I do know the first sentence, which is fairly famous, I can’t count that as having started reading the novel.)
I think you may well be right about young people’s books, though at the moment I can only think of one book, Steppenwolf, I liked a lot when I was in my teens but not so much when I re-read it at 50 (an age the author himself thought the appropriate one for reading the novel).
Another problem I’ve found with first encountering famous authors’ work at an older age is that fame tends to give a certain kind of reputation to authors that may not actually chime with one’s experience of their work. To take Zola as an example: I’d formed an image of him as the great realist, showing life with no illusions or euphemisms, un-glamorized and un-romanticized. But I found Nana fairly schematized and only slightly more subtle than the Spenser poem I’m now reading in its symbolism and allegory; in the end it seemed more like a polemic than an attempt at dispassionate reportage.
To take the present example, Camus (along with Sartre) has become synonymous for me with Existentialism, so with The Stranger I think I'm kind of expecting a novel with embodies that philosophical outlook. (I can't say whether or not this expectation explains why I haven't read it; I would say that I have no general objections to reading "novels of ideas".)
CCCubbon wrote: "I was hoping to find some distraction in the book as my dog has been very ill. The vet said yesterday ‘ miracles do happen’ as he had improved a little. Fingers crossed ..."
So sorry to hear this, CC. Am crossing my fingers too for Lucky.
So sorry to hear this, CC. Am crossing my fingers too for Lucky.
scarletnoir wrote: "Perhaps you could have a look at HHhH by Laurent Binet, in which the author tries to clarify what, exactly, happened during and following the assassination attempt on Heydrich in Prague."HHhH sounded interesting to me when I read reviews of it at the time of its American publication, and I later picked up a copy at a used book sale, but (Refrain, as they say in song lyrics) I haven't yet read it. The other Binet novel I'm aware of, The Seventh Function of Language sounded too "inside baseball" for me in regard to literary theory.
(For those who may not know the idiom:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_...)
Bill wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "You'll therefore understand (in a way) why I was unable to finish Heart of Darkness (107 pages in one edition).I reckon that if we are out of sympathy with an author, there is..."
interesting point about coming to authors work at an older age, i have found returning to childhood canons(like Kipling) much more rewarding in my 40s then as a teenager, where i grew tired of the veneration of him, like any rebellious teen. In my 40s he is an author i enjoy more and more
Bill wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "Perhaps you could have a look at HHhH by Laurent Binet, in which the author tries to clarify what, exactly, happened during and following the assassination attempt on Heydrich i..."i really ejnjoyed HHhH, it was a commute read that gripped me on sweaty, packed vile journeys...back when commuting was "in", pre-pandemic (joke joke). amazed i spent so much time in overpriced, uncomfortable trains...
For me The Outsider still resonated with me the last time I read it, probably only 4 or 5 years ago. Possibly reading it in French this time made a difference.That raises another point - if I've read and enjoyed something in French I find I'm a little hesitant about recommending an English translation since I don't really know how I would have reacted to it in that language.
Looking back over the last couple of years or so, I see I've read the following French writers or books:
Le Duc de Saint-Simon - memoirs (in English)
Simenon - various Maigret novels
Amélie Nothomb - Hygiène de l'assassin
Comtesse de Ségur - Les Malheurs de Sophie
- Les petites Filles Modèles (children's books)
Paul de Kock - La Pucelle de Belleville
George Sand - François le Champi
Henry Murger - Scènes de la vie de Bohème
Rabelais (in English)
Fred Vargas - L'Homme aux Cercles Bleues (detective novel)
Marguerite Duras - Moderato Cantabile
Lined up for the near future I have another Nothomb book, something by Ionesco, the Rousseau book I've been reading one chapter or essay at a time, probably more Duras, definitely more of Simenon and Maigret, ...
scarletnoir wrote: "Berkley wrote: "I rate them both very highly and plan to read more Camus."You may like to sample Camus' plays, in which his characters play out moral dilemmas."
Good tip, I hadn't been thinking of the plays for some reason.
Berkley wrote: "For me The Outsider still resonated with me the last time I read it, probably only 4 or 5 years ago. Possibly reading it in French this time made a difference.That raises another point - if I've ..."
i've read a lot of French literature, though as usual a slightly off the beaten track percentage rather than the Zola, Balzac, Hugo back catalogue. Have greatly enjoyed various novels by these three as well as more recently less well known french classics like The Conspiracy by Paul Nizan(1930s) and some Robbe-Grillet, plus the Duras novels of Indochina The Lover and The Sea Wall and Hougrons novels of Indochina and Malraux's novel of Cambodia
i have a handsome second hand copy of one of the Jules Romains novels, it was Sartre in his war diaries who made me hunt for it.
Ofc i havent read any in the original french except for the L'Etranger
Berkley wrote: "Rabelais (in English)"Of all the books you mentioned, Rabelais is the only one I'm interested in reading. I read about half of Gargantua and Pantagruel while in college (on my own, not for a course) and have often thought of returning to it and reading it all the way through.
I have more Simenon to read, but only non-Maigret novels.
Hold onto your hats! I've just finished listening to James Comey's Central Park West, and it is pretty darned good. If I were the star-giver, I'd say somewhere between 3 1/2 and 4. It's complex and has a real twist at the end. I downloaded it from the library so no $$$ is at stake here. Also, I subsequently watched a bit of his interview with Jen Psaki and found out that his wife (a fiction reader) is heavily involved in the writing of his books (2nd is done).
AB76 wrote: "Robert wrote: "It appears that Julian Jackson's book on the trial of Marshal Petain hasn't been published in the US yet, so I'm at work on his biography of General De Gaulle."i have read that and..."
I'm enjoying the book.
Georg wrote: "Robert wrote (#115): "Gpfr wrote: "AB76 wrote: "sMein Kampf would have to be in there, in that it became a gospel for hate ... I cant remember if he had a ghost writer or not..."Didn't he write i..."
Interesting, if the document is authentic.
Bill wrote: "...with The Stranger I think I'm kind of expecting a novel with embodies that philosophical outlook...I'm not sure that it does, really - its main point (I think) is to demonstrate the 'absurdity of existence' which is a sort of jumping off point for the development of existentialist philosophy.
From memory, Camus' other novel The Fall has more ideas in a shorter book, but again I may be mistaken... it's a long time since I read them.
Bill wrote: "The other Binet novel I'm aware of, The Seventh Function of Language sounded too "inside baseball" for me in regard to literary theory."I reviewed that one on the Guardian before this site was set up, but doubt I can find a copy... for sure, it's a trickier read but often very funny; however, much of the humour is at the expense of some of the more pretentious French intellectuals, who may well not be known to anyone without a certain familiarity with France - I knew some of them but not others.
I don't think there is much about literary theory in there iirc, but he does present quite a bit on semiotics - something which I only half-understand, if that. I guess it would not be difficult to skip those passages.
I could not help but enjoy the book, which starts by presenting the death of Roland Barthes - run over by a laundry truck - as a murder carried out by sinister forces. From there it takes off into a crazy mish-mash of thriller and all sorts of other speculations and thoughts. That may sound uncontrolled, but it isn't really... it certainly won't be everyone's cup of tea, though.
Anne wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "I was hoping to find some distraction in the book as my dog has been very ill. The vet said yesterday ‘ miracles do happen’ as he had improved a little. Fingers crossed ..."So so..."
He is a lot better than he was when the vet wanted to put him to sleep. Stated eating a little and weeing for England now. Generally more alert. Yes, living up to his name. We suspect he’s rather liking all the strokes and attention but then we are so glad he is still alive.
I skipped over long passages in the Robinson book, only reading that which was pertinent and galloped through the book to the end. It did seem to pick up a gear but there were whole chapters ( short) that were only listing records, meals scenery and so on but maybe the author wasn’t feeling so good.
Reminded me a little of that last book by Iris Murdoch - Jackson’s Dilemma - that ‘end of’ feeling despite the book content being so different.
MK wrote: "Hold onto your hats! I've just finished listening to James Comey's Central Park West, and it is pretty darned good. If I were the star-giver, I'd say somewhere between 3 1/2 and 4. It's complex and has a real twist at the end."As one of the comments on Ron Charles' review said, I'd rather read Mein Kampf. The commenter may have meant that rhetorically, but it's literally true for me.
AB76 wrote: i have a handsome second hand copy of one of the Jules Romains novels, i..."Some years ago I read an excerpt from one of Romains' 'Men of Goodwill' books - in Clifton Fadiman's 'Reading I've Liked'. I liked it too so set about collecting the whole series. In English, all except the first few translated beautifully I thought by Gerard Walter Sturgis Hopkins.
I got some way through and they now sit on the top shelf making me feel guilty that I stopped, though they are slightly weird, and the story goes on and on. The best thing about them is that you get a complete synopsis in each book about what's gone before, so I suppose I could just pick up where I left off, but I don't think I have the energy.
FrancesBurgundy wrote: "AB76 wrote: i have a handsome second hand copy of one of the Jules Romains novels, i..."Some years ago I read an excerpt from one of Romains' 'Men of Goodwill' books - in Clifton Fadiman's 'Readi..."
interesting, thanks for the info Frances
CCCubbon wrote: "Anne wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "I was hoping to find some distraction in the book as my dog has been very ill. The vet said yesterday ‘ miracles do happen’ as he had improved a little. Fingers crosse..."any dog eating is a good sign CCC, we had a family dog that was ill for 4 mths and had to go to special clinic in Herts. it was an awful period but she pulled through, though lost a lot of weight, we never found out what she had eaten either to cause it
Bill wrote: "MK wrote: "Hold onto your hats! I've just finished listening to James Comey's Central Park West, and it is pretty darned good. If I were the star-giver, I'd say somewhere between 3 1/2 and 4. It's ..."I'm certainly not a fan of James Comey. I think he royally screwed up as FBI Director when he literally 'took down' Hilary Clinton. At the same time, though, a reviewer ought not to vent his prejudices when reviewing a book by an author he despises, or he should just pass the book on to someone else for review.
As I said earlier it's a middling story certainly worth a 'summer read' especially since I've read many more mysteries than Ron Charles who is more of a literary person which I am not.
Hope those of you in Paris are ok and away from the explosion in the 5th.
Quite a North African theme to my reading right now, mid 1950s, with Bowles non-fiction and Camus writing about his childhood in Algiers, via his novel The First ManIts a region that has always fascinated me with its diverse populations of Berbers, Arabs, Tuaregs and others, the coastal rim populated and temperate by African standards, the interior vast, empty and hot.
Both men deal with the ending of the colonial presence in the area. Camus's narrator describes a bomb blast close to his mothers home in Algiers and encourages her to move back to France, while Bowles observes the end of the "Tangiers International Zone" and the slow creep of a more puritan Islamic spirit to a libertine city. Its 30% European population are starting to wonder whether to leave or not.
Bowles also looks at Algeria and Spanish Morocco, by 1962, all of French North Africa was free (Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria).
Bowles is a very interesting travel writer, firmly in favour of cannabis over alcohol and tolerant and observant of Arab-Berber culture and traditions. I would say with Camus, as in all his fiction, the arab, or the "other" is almost invisible. In The First Man the only Arab character so far is the dog catcher who everyone mocks and confounds.
Mod
Well away, thank you. It looked appalling.
AB76 wrote: "Quite a North African theme to my reading right now, mid 1950s, with Bowles non-fiction and Camus writing about his childhood in Algiers, via his novel The First Man ..."
I got The First Man when it first came out but it didn't hold my attention after the first couple of dozen pages. you're encouraging me to give it another try.
I got The First Man when it first came out but it didn't hold my attention after the first couple of dozen pages. you're encouraging me to give it another try.
Bill wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "I read an article this week which said that people are avoiding 'depressing news' in order to preserve their mental health - a sensible attitude IMO"I can understand that read..."
Not playing up to your Irish ancestry Bill? You'll never make President!
Mod
At the moment I'm reading and enjoying The Widows of Malabar Hill that CCC and Sandya, who I think thought quite highly of it, read in the past. It's set in Bombay in 1921 and the heroine is the first female solicitor. She is a Parsi, the widows are Muslim living in Purdah, there are Hindus ... Interesting details about religion, clothes, food, houses ...Speaking of clothes and jewellery, in my other read of the moment, Undreamed Shores: The Hidden Heroines of British Anthropology, there's a nice snippet which I've quoted on WWR. Women students at Oxford in the late 19th/ early 20th century were supposed to be as inconspicuous as possible.
One tutor there ... remembered struggling to persuade Dorothy Sayers, who arrived in 1912, to remove a pair of large red and green parrot earrings and her wide scarlet headband before attending a lecture.
CCCubbon wrote: "He is a lot better than he was when the vet wanted to put him to sleep. Stated eating a little and weeing for England now."Good to hear... dogs can often eat something that 'doesn't agree with them' (an idiom madame found hilarious when she first heard me use it).
Teddy had the great idea to eat half a beach once (it was made palatable by juices from a barbecue) and had to spend a day at the vet's, very unwell, until (with help) he was able to 'move his bowels' once again - as the doctors call it. Since then, he has been prone to pancreatitis, so the net result was to deprive himself of frequent cheese treats and the like.
FrancesBurgundy wrote: "Some years ago I read an excerpt from one of Romains' 'Men of Goodwill' books..." Never heard of these or the author.
Whereas in real life i'd much prefer to meet 'men of goodwill', I can't help thinking that in fiction I'd be more interested to read a series on 'Men of Evil Intent'!
AB76 wrote: "I would say with Camus, as in all his fiction, the arab, or the "other" is almost invisible. In The First Man the only Arab character so far is the dog catcher who everyone mocks and confounds."I have a bit of a problem with attitudes like these, where authors seem to simply bypass significant aspects of their surroundings - especially other cultures (as here) or the maids and other working class people who allow them to indulge their aesthetic or intellectual pursuits without too much in the way of effort regarding the 'everyday'. Obviously, authors have to choose what to include and can't put in everything, but ignoring such significant contextual factors can seem almost perversely blind - reducing other humans to the status of furniture.
Gpfr wrote: "At the moment I'm reading and enjoying The Widows of Malabar Hill that CCC and Sandya, who I think thought quite highly of it, read in the past ... Interesting details about religion, clothes, food, houses..."First of all, good to hear you were nowhere near this nasty incident - I hope those badly injured pull through.
As for that book - I've been quite interested to read it, but am held back by the suspicion that it may focus too much on matters which (just possibly) may be of less interest to a bloke like myself (houses, clothes...). I've much enjoyed Abir Mukherjee's Calcutta-based series with Wyndham and Bannerjee; I readily read female authors - recently Anne Tyer, Claudia Piñeiro and Mercedes Rosende - so that isn't a problem.
But would the content be a hurdle? Your advice on that would be appreciated!
CCCubbon wrote: "Anne wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "I was hoping to find some distraction in the book as my dog has been very ill. The vet said yesterday ‘ miracles do happen’ as he had improved a little. Fingers crosse..."Hi CC. I read your update on Lucky’s great recovery and closed my eyes and I somehow saw him in a rather ancient but ‘natty’ Italian suit, reclining on the roof terrace of his ‘appartamento antico’, in Naples, in his Récamier chaise longue. A bit long in the tooth perhaps, but still chippy, he sat there musing over his imminent retirement. Was this his ‘dog day afternoon’ perhaps? The longueur’s of his old life were pressing into his ‘recherche de temps perdue’.
Cosimo Quintus Catulus, a redoubtable Jellicle chap, and his old retainer, plus sometimes bodyguard and trusted confident, had announced his retirement. He had found a new pad down by the fish-market with a great view across the bay. “I could make a new life down there”, he had said over their ‘Colazione sull’erba’. Lucky had responded with a grimace “You know I’ve been very ill, and I’m now wondering, we had our good times, but we made a few enemies along the way. Now I’m getting on bit I find myself wondering if there is a plot against me? Did one of those old ‘nemico’s try and poison me?...”
Cosimo purred in reply “Dear old chap, you are also much loved, but the elderly tend to worry a bit you know. You must take heart in that your ‘nemici’ are getting much older too, and if, like me, they have their hearts set on a quiet retirement, then they too are just looking for just a nice spot to recline in, and enjoy the view. An old friend, ‘the Cat in the Hat’, said to me, just the other day, ‘How did it get so late so soon. It’s night before it’s afternoon. December before it’s June. My goodness, how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?’”
Lucky grinned at his old mate. “You are right, time to pause the thoughts that do a dog down. I heard someone say, the other day, when I was at my lowest, and as ‘sick as a dog’ “miracles do happen”, we must have some hope and wish for the best... and I took heart from that. And so, I say to all involved, I now believe the problem solved. The art is part of who we make ourselves. And in our own hearts, the means for us, to be absolved...”
Acquired two new books on a visit to the Tate modern yesterday, 'The Hearing Trumpet' by Leonora Carrington, inspired by seeing her 'Eluhim' there. https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/... and 'Notes on a Nervous Planet' by Matt Haig. I remember someone either here, or over there, recommended him as an author, but I cant remember who. I don't think it was this particular book though. Anyway I think it suits my mood at the moment, which is one of 'stuckness' tinged with a smidgen of 'melancholy', in the world at large...
I must get out more... all good wishes to everyone... Tam
scarletnoir wrote: "I have a bit of a problem with attitudes like these, where authors seem to simply bypass significant aspects of their surroundings - especially other cultures (as here) or the maids and other working class people who allow them to indulge their aesthetic or intellectual pursuits without too much in the way of effort regarding the 'everyday'."I was amused when reading Sally Rooney's Conversations with Friends that one of the characters reveals her "radical" political stance by being the only one to talk to the catering workers at a gallery opening. (I should say that, as with other incidents in that novel, I wasn't entirely sure whether to take this as reflecting the author's view of what constitutes "radical" behavior, or to read it as ironically reflecting the shallowness of the characters' political engagement.)
Russell wrote: "AB76 wrote: "Quite a North African theme to my reading right now, mid 1950s, with Bowles non-fiction and Camus writing about his childhood in Algiers, via his novel The First Man ..."I got The Fi..."
yes, 27 years elapsing may make a difference..
scarletnoir wrote: "AB76 wrote: "I would say with Camus, as in all his fiction, the arab, or the "other" is almost invisible. In The First Man the only Arab character so far is the dog catcher who everyone mocks and c..."its deffo a negative for me too, especially as while being a brilliant author, Camus almost always fails to register the "other" in his Algerian novels. In The First Man it is not as bad as the other books, as he grew up in the Algiers suburb of Belcourt which was roughly 50-50% Arab and Pieds noir, so arab characters do occur, i sometimes feel any settler society almost wants to omit the people they displaced
Most pied-noirs in Algeria were poor and lived hard lives but probably saw themselves as "civilised" compared to the poor Arabs and Berbers. This a huge problem of settler societies, in Portugese Angola and Mozambique it was the same, the white Portugese settlers were poor and under-educated but saw the blacks as inferior.
Makes me expouse some marxist ideals here, that if both parties had looked to class rather than race, they could have combined and fought for more rights but they didnt. I read a book that put foward the same situation happened in Northern Ireland. Working class Catholic and Protestants shared so much in common but the controlling politicians were keen to make sure they didnt have a common cause and fed division by religion, rather than unity by class
Gpfr wrote: " At the moment I'm reading and enjoying The Widows of Malabar Hill that CCC and Sandya, who I think thought quite highly of it, read i..."Thanks for reminding me about - Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes
. I saw a video about the book which is available here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oky0i...I've put it on my want list as only Amazon seems to have it here in the States (I'm into Amazon avoidance, if possible).
Off on a tangent - I like little museums. One of my favorites is the Ely Museum where there's a permanent exhibit about eeling in the Fens. Great stuff. But an ages ago London find are the Camden Archives on Theobald Road - 2nd floor. I had gone to the library on the 1st floor to print something several London visits ago and got to see the Arandora Star exhibit there. If I can convince my body to behave better, I would surely put a visit to the Archives on another visit to town. I recommend it to others here who are history-minded.
MK wrote: " One of my favorites is the Ely Museum where there's a permanent exhibit about eeling in the Fens. ..."I often pass nearby or through Ely but had no idea about the eeling museum. Will defo visit it next time, thank you!
Tam wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "Anne wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "I was hoping to find some distraction in the book as my dog has been very ill. The vet said yesterday ‘ miracles do happen’ as he had improved a littl..."Love the story, Tam - I shall read it to Lucky later but guess he will only give me one of his quizzical looks.
He’s playing up the ‘I’ve been a sick dog so need special attention’ game for all its worth. Last night there we both were at the top of the stairs trying to encourage him up while he whined pathetically at the bottom. He is quite capable of walking up on his own and does when we are not looking. I thought we would look daft if anyone could see us standing there in our jammies. Innthe end MrC went down and helped him onto the first step and with an ‘ oh, alright then’ up he came.
scarletnoir wrote: "Gpfr wrote: "At the moment I'm reading and enjoying The Widows of Malabar Hill that CCC and Sandya, who I think thought quite highly of it, read in the past ... Interesting details about religion, ..."I did enjoy that series, learning about Indian culture. From a historical point of view the series by Vaseem Khan which begins with Midnight at Malabar House is better as it deals with the events in 1948 in greater detail. I would recommend both. The Widows… series taught me about life for women then and the Khan books the history.
Note that Vaseem Khan has recently been elected chair of the Crime Writers Association
Mod
I've read two of these and liked them, too: Midnight at Malabar House and The Dying Day.
I've also read two of Abir Mukherjee's Wyndham and Banerjee series, but got annoyed by the character of Wyndham in the second.
CCCubbon wrote: ".I would recommend both. The Widows… series taught me about life for women then and the Khan books the history.."Thanks for the advice - I should at least sample these books to see if I can get on with them.
Gpfr wrote: "(I) got annoyed by the character of Wyndham in the second."Which aspect?
As the series progresses, you get two things: an insight into some of the more shameful events brought about by the colonials (based on true historical events), and also a subtle shift in power dynamics as the 'local' Mukherjee becomes stronger wrt the Englishman Wyndham.
Mod
As for that book - I've been quite interested to read it, but am held back by the suspicion that it may focus too much on matters which (just possibly) may be of less interest to a bloke like myself (houses, clothes...) ..."
I'm not sure whether to recommend it to you— it's true there is quite a lot about houses and clothes. The Vaseem Khan books are perhaps a safer bet.
AB76 wrote: "Working class Catholic and Protestants shared so much in common but the controlling politicians were keen to make sure they didnt have a common cause and fed division by religion, rather than unity by class..."Certainly true in more recent times, though the hostility goes back centuries to the settlement of Scottish Protestants in Ireland under King James 1.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantat...
When I was living there I'm fairly sure that I argued with some locals along the lines you mention, but didn't have a great deal of success!
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Books mentioned in this topic
Dante’s Inferno for Kids and Curious Parents (other topics)The Faerie Queene (other topics)
Apeirogon (other topics)
The Bombay Prince (other topics)
Apeirogon (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Abir Mukherjee (other topics)Alexander Theroux (other topics)
Jeffrey Toobin (other topics)
Helen Vendler (other topics)
Jeffrey Toobin (other topics)
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La Peste/The Plague is his masterpiece, a brilliant novel which was better even than L#Etranger!