Readers and Reading discussion
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Steffi, I love this word --->>> sesquipedalian. It sounds so much better and more intellectual than my phrase "used too many words". LOL
JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: Philistine that I may be, I must admit that when I read Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, as a teenager, I only read them as good and engaging stories and knew nothing about the philosophy of objectivism which Rand espoused.Maybe I should re-read them. Have any of you done this as an adult? "
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I read The Fountainhead as an adult. I do not agree with her philosophy at all. The book drove me nuts. I had angry marginalia on every page.
The plus side is it made one think even if you didn't agree with her. I found the plot to be lame and the writing poor. It also became very repetitious. It really was little more than a tool for her to espouse her philosophy. I have Atlas Shrugged on my book shelves to read one day.
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JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "to be honest, I barely remember what Rand's books were about....it was sooo long ago and I was so young."I read Rand as a teenager and became a very devoted follower of hers. I subscribed to The Objectivist and later The Ayn Rand Letter and literally sat at her feet. This was happening from ages 13-18. When I became 18 I went to college and my world changed completely. By age 19 I realized the limitations of Ayn Rand's philosophy and was no longer a follower of hers.
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This is interesting...thanks for this "background" info.
I reread "The Fountainhead" recently for a book club and absolutely hated it! Alias Reader has already given my reasons.
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I have a feeling I would hate it too. If for no other reason than it is so wordy!
Alias, the first few pages are available online, and I just read them. Like you, I thought the writing was poor - and awkward.
JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote:I have a feeling I would hate it too. If for no other reason than it is so wordy!"----------------
She takes "wordy" to a whole other level ! If you were made to read it, I think what would happen to you is the same thing that happed to Felix Unger when he was forced to stay in Oscar's room in one episode of the Odd Couple. He was so overwhelmed he went into a catatonic state. :)
Though the main reason it drove me nuts was her philosophy.
Re Ayn Rand: I read a couple of her books as a teenager and during college years and thought they were fascinating. A couple of years after college, I read Fountainhead again and wondered what was changing...I wasn't so enamored with the ideas presented. A couple of years later I re-read Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged again and thought "what drivel".....it finally dawned on me who had changed.Lois
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LOL I would probably need to be put into a padded room!
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JoAnn wrote: Steffi, I love this word --->>> sesquipedalian. It sounds so much better and more intellectual than my phrase "used too many words". LOL
JoAnn, thanks for looking up that word! I have never encountered that one. I do not remember Yerby being particularly 'wordy' but it has been 30 to 40 years since I read them.
Donna in Southern Maryland
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I recall almost nothing about Yerby's books except that he was prolific and my mother loved them.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTR...
JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "I know a lot of you have read books by Jose Saramago, who has just died.http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTR..."
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:(
I read his book,
Blindness
It's written sans some punctuation. A devise I usually find quite annoying. But it this case I thought it worked. I thought he might have used this to simulate the plight of the characters in the novel. Though some say he used this technique in other books.
I just found out that Jon Cleary died on July 19th (http://therapsheet.blogspot.com/2010/...).Besides being an award winning crime novelist (he won the Ned Kelly award for Lifetime achievement), Cleary was a very prolific writer whose other famous works included The Sundowners, High Road to China, and A Very Private War
I am a big fan of his police procedural series set in Sydney featuring all-around good guy Scobie Malone and also really enjoyed Peter's Pence which was nominated for an Edgar award in 1975.
Editor-anthologist Les Pockell dies at 68 By Hillel Italie, AP National Writer
NEW YORK — Les Pockell, a publishing executive and literary anthologist known for his deep and unpredictable intellect and an equally eclectic range of book projects, has died. He was 68.
Pockell, a vice president and associate publisher Grand Central Publishing for the past decade, died of cancer Monday at his home in White Plains, N.Y., the company said Tuesday.
In a long publishing career, Pockell worked at St. Martin's Press, Doubleday and the Book-of-the-Month Club before joining Warner Books, which became Grand Central, a division of Hachette Book Group (USA).
He helped edit a diverse group of authors from mystery writer Donald Westlake to the critic Harold Bloom to the actor and children's writer John Lithgow and compiled numerous anthologies, from 100 Essential American Poems to The 101 Greatest Business Principles of All Time.
Former Warner Books CEO Larry Kirshbaum, now a literary agent, remembered Pockell as a thinking man who stood out at a relatively commercial publishing house. He was also regarded as a mentor with a great deal to teach and a willingness to let others take the credit.
Grand Central publisher and executive vice president Jamie Raab said she liked to call him "The Professor" because Pockell knew so much about so many subjects and would become visibly animated in discussion, his hands "flailing" everywhere. His learning was such that the staff at Grand Central encouraged him to try out for the TV game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
"He had an audition, but he didn't make it," Raab said. "Everyone was rooting for him because he was the smartest person we knew."
Pockell was born on June 19, 1942, in Norwalk, Conn, and graduated from Columbia University in 1964. He is survived by his wife, Noriko, and his brother and sister.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/ne...
I just learned of the death of Tony Judt today. I read this by him:Postwar A History of Europe Since 1945, by Tony Judt (read 25 Jan 2006)
I said of it:
4120 Postwar A History of Europe Since 1945, by Tony Judt (read 25 Jan 2006) This is a very good book, and puts together a coherent account of things we have over the years from 1945 been reading and hearing about in the news. It includes, of course, an account of the years from 1987 to 1991--a favorite time in modern history telling of the collapse of Soviet Communism into the dustbin of history. There are 834 pages of text, which is a lot of reading, but I never got tired of reading and I usually agreed with the author, an English-born history professor at NYU. The book has no bibliography, which is usually something I regret--but there is one on the Internet, so that takes care of that defect. A blurb on the slip cover by Ian Kershaw says "It is hard to imagine how a better ...history of the emergence of today's Europe from the ashes of 1945 could ever be written." I cannot say my thoughts better than by agreeing with him.
While surfing the net I came across the New York Times obituary of Vance Bourjaily(http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/03/art...)
I had never heard of him and my library does not have a single work of his but in the obit his first book The end of my life was compared favorably to Ernest Hemingway and he was a friend of Norman Mailer, James Jones, and William Styron.
Has anyone read any of his books?
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Yes, I have heard of him. But the only book I read by him is:The End of my Life, by Vance Bourjaily (read 23 Jan 1953)
In those days I kept a diary and I thought maybe I would say therein what I thought of the book. However I was in the Navy at the time and ashore in Algeria and all of my entries seem to talk about what I saw and did in Algeria and I find no mention of the book or of my reaction to it.
Edwin Newmanis dead at 91.Here is what I read by him:
Strictly Speaking: Will America Be the Death of English? by Edwin Newman (read 7 Apr 1979)
Here was my comment on the book:
1510 Strictly Speaking: Will America Be the Death of English? by Edwin Newman (read 7 Apr 1979) This is a very uneven book, some of it so funny, and other seemingly thrown together to make it book length. My favorite from it: "Or this, from a UPI story about motherly weather in Utah: 'After stuffing the apparel in the Cessna 210's window to keep out the blistering winds, a snowstorm completely covered the craft.'" But there seemed to be a lot of filler in the book, and it is not organized at all: it just jumps from one thing to another with no discernible system.
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Isn't that the way, like the most brainy professors are so unorganized.
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maybe, but you would think he or an editor could have organized a BOOK! Maybe not his life, but his book.
Was shocked to see that Stephen J. Cannell had just passed away from cancer at a fairly young age. Always loved his TV production logo of the typewriter page being pulled out of the machine. His output of crime novels seemed to get really decent reviews in library journals although I have not read any myself.
While catching up on the news that I missed while on vacation, I noticed that Belva Plain passed away at age 95. I remember really enjoying Evergreen and also read Random Winds and The Golden Cup though my enjoyment diminished with each book.
Sandra wrote: "Was shocked to see that Stephen J. Cannell had just passed away from cancer at a fairly young age. Always loved his TV production logo of the typewriter page being pulled out of the..."That was sad news. I loved reruns of The Rockford Files, The A Team, and Twenty-one Jump Street back in the day. I did listen to the first Shane Scully book Tin Collectors, The and liked it well enough.
Reynolds Price died yesterday in Durham, NC.Here is my comment on the only one of his books I read:
3325. Kate Vaiden, by Reynolds Price (read July 4, 2000) This is no. 96 on the librarians' list of a century of good books. It came out in 1986. The central character is a quirky character, but I was quite impressed by the story, odd tho it is. I might read more by Price, I decided, since while his characters lack a moral sense they appear to have a conscience and there are decent people in the story. I felt it was better fiction than I have read recently
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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/21/boo...
Historical fiction writer Diana Norman who also wrote historical mysteries under the name Ariana Franklin has died. Here is a link to a story on the BBC website: BBC NewsI have not read any of the books that she wrote under her own name but have been a big fan of her historical mystery series featuring Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar of Salerno and also enjoyed her standalone suspense novel City of Shadows: A Novel of Suspense.
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JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar - wow that is quite a name!"Yes, quite a mouthful. Luckily she just goes by Adelia.
I really liked the first of the novels about Adelia though I lost interest in the sequels. Before that happened, I obtained a French Revolution book that Diana Norman wrote under her own name, but hadn't gotten around to reading it yet.
Brian Jacques, author of the Redwall series passed away over the weekend at age 71. (Brian Jacques)I listened to the first two books in this series and, even though they are aimed at young readers, found them quite entertaining. Brian Jacques read them with a full cast and the productions were excellent.
Lilian Jackson Braun, author of The Cat Who mysteries passed away recently at the age of 97. (Lilian Jackson Braun).A co-worker of mine avidly read this series but I have not read any.
Thanks, Sandi. I had not heard of her death. Lilian Jackson Braun died June 4, 2011 at Landrum, S.C. I did read a book by her. My comment was as follows:4181 The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, by Lilian Jackson Braun (read 23 June 2006) This is the first book in a series of some 18 titles about "the cat who" called mysteries. Some of the talk about art is funny. But I have no desire to read any more of the series. I found this low on suspense and not really worth reading.
Robert F. Karolevitz was born 26 April 1922 at Yankton, SD and died at that city on June 17, 2011.Here is my comment on the book by him that I read:
2426 With Faith, Hope and Tenacity: The First One Hundred Years of the Catholic Diocese of Sioux Falls 1889-1989, by Robert F. Karolevitz (read 15 Dec 1991) This is a very good book, even though it seems to emphasize the difficulties more than the triumphs of the diocese during the 100 years. Maybe this is because there were more difficulties. It would be fun to go through South Dakota looking at all the churches mentioned in this book. It has been fun reading this book, and I look forward to reading the similar book on the Sioux City Diocese. [Frontiers of Faith: A History of the Diocese of Sioux City, by Richard J. Roder (read 3 Oct 2001)]
Andy Rooney died Nov 4, 2011 in New York City. He was born in Albany, NY, on 14 Jan 1919. I read a book by him. My comment thereon was as follows:2823 My War, by Andy Rooney (read 14 Jan 1996) This was a most satisfying read. I have long enjoyed his five minutes on 60 Minutes, but never thought I would read a book by him. He was drafted in 1941 . His big break came when he was assigned to the Stars and Stripes, an Army newspaper. He actually went on a couple of bombing rids over Europe, and arrived in France a few days after D-Day. His story is unfailingly interesting. He has nothing good to say for General Patton. This is just a great book, moving, serious, funny, just exceptionally well-written. Though he had a safer war than many, he took risks and certainly is admirable.
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I guess no surgery is really "minor".
[[Mike Wallace]] died 7 Apr 2012 at new Canaan, Conn. I read two of his books:4112 [Between You and Me A Memoir] by [[Mike Wallace]] with [[Gary Paul Gates]] (read 29 Dec 2005)
This is a book much like the authors' Close Encounters, which I read May 6, 1985. Wallace has interesting things to tell of his interviews with famous and infamous people. He claims Shirley Maclaine was bent on becoming his wife--but she did not. An interesting book and fun to read, though I am not sure it is very memorable.
[[Mike Wallace]] died 7 Apr 2012 in New Canaan, Conn. I read two books by him. My comments there on:1924 Close Encounters, by Mike Wallace and Gary Paul Gates (read 6 May 1985) This is a kind of autobiography-biography of Mike Wallace, the number one reporter on Sixty Minutes, which TV program I've watched for years. (It first came on in 1968 and is still going strong.) I found the book fascinating.
Mike Wallace died 7 Apr 2012 at News Canaan, Conn. I have read two of his books. My comments thereon are as follows:4112 Between You and Me A Memoir by Mike Wallace with Gary Paul Gates (read 29 Dec 2005)
This is a book much like the authors' Close Encounters, which I read May 6, 1985. Wallace has interesting things to tell of his interviews with famous and infamous people. He claims Shirley Maclaine was bent on becoming his wife--but she did not. An interesting book and fun to read, though I am not sure it is very memorable.
Maurice Sendak died today, May 8. I read one book by him and my comment thereon is as follows:3797. Where the Wild Things Are Story and Pictures by Maurice Sendak (read 9 Sept 2003) Hey, this 'book' is on the Library Journal's list of the "150 good books of the century" and Melvin listed it as one of the 100 best 'books' of all time. So I thought I should read it--my grandson read it to me and I reread it (in about a minute). It is a neat little dream or fantasy about Max and is worth the minute it takes to read it. But whether it belongs in my lifetime list of books is arguable, since seldom have the kids' books I've read over the years to kids or grandkids made this list. I don't know how many times I've read e.g.,Curious George, but it never occurred to me to put it in my list of books read.
I admit I have always wondered if the book I read was complete or whether it was shortened for kids. I know it gave no hint that it was less than the complete book.
I encountered Where the Wild Things Arefor the first time when I was involved in a reader's theatre group in college. We traveled to elementary schools and acted out various children's stories. I had never read Sendak's best known book and was assigned the role of the narrator. I fell in love with it. I can still recite it from memory.
Carlos Fuentes died today, May 15, 2012.I read one book by him and said of it:
4011. The Death of Artemio Cruz, by Carlos Fuentes (read 17 Apr 2005) I recently was supplied with a list called "the 100 Greatest Novels of All time" which ranks novels. I like to see how many of the 100 I have read in such lists, and I found I had read 85 of the 100. No. 72 was this book. Since I greatly disliked what I have read by people like Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Isabel Allende, I did not expect to like this book. However I found the book not as boring as those authors' 100 Years of Solitude and The House of Spirits. The central character is on his death bed and in flashbacks his life is told--but not in chronological order (that would make the story too easy to follow, of course). Some episodes have a certain power, but there is also a lot of pretentious stream of consciousness mingled in the story. Cruz is, of course, immoral sexually with a host of women--though his wife was at his deathbed. This was not, usually, enjoyable reading.
Paul Fussell died 23 May 2012 at Medford. Ore.I read these books by him:
1401. The Great War and Modern Memory, by Paul Fussell (read 14 Aug 1976) (National Book Award arts and letters prize for 1976)
2274. Wartime: Understanding and Behavior in the Second World War, by Paul Fussell (read 8 Mar 1990)
2748. Siegfried Sassoon's Long Journey: Selections from the Sheraton Memoirs, edited by Paul Fussell (read 22 May 1995)
Ray Bradbury died 5 June 2012 in Los Angeles. My comments on the two books by him I read:3182. Dandelion Wine a novel, by Ray Bradbury (read 13 Apr 1999) This was recommended to me, so with considerable misgiving (I do not find myself enticed by sci fi) I read it. It is really a kids' book, tho I found it in the adult section of library fiction. It is full of near-fantasy, and really did not interest me much. The boys said and did dumb silly things, and there was so much exaggeration and it really offended my prosaic soul. This one was a loser.
4175 Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury (read 11 June 2006) I got tired of seeing this title on "Best Books" lists and being one of the few thereon I had not read. I think it is certainly the least interesting book I have read this year. It is pretentiously 'profound' but nothing it said seemed pertinent. Guy Montag is a "fireman"--he burns books. Orwell's 1984 was a credible work or society compared to Bradbury's supposed scene or society. I was sure glad to finish this--it did not "speak" to me at any time. Its merit is that it is only 190 pages.
Gore Vidal died July 31, 2012, in Los Angeles. The only book I read by him was:1531. [Burr A Novel] by [[Gore Vidal]] (read 7 Aug 1979)
Of it I said:1531 Burr A Novel by Gore Vidal (read 7 Aug 1979) I started this back in 1974 and only finished it now. I despised the stupid brat who told the story, though the historical aspects of the book were of some interest. I am convinced Washington was not the boor the book portrayed him as, nor was Jefferson. Eight volumes of Freeman's biography and Malone's five or more on Jefferson must have left some residue in my sieve-like mind. ( )
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A new book will be published in October....WEEK IN WINTER
http://www.mcnallyrobinson.com/produc...
Readers and Reading
Books mentioned in this topic
Where the Wild Things Are (other topics)City of Shadows (other topics)
The Tin Collectors (other topics)
Evergreen (other topics)
The Golden Cup (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Lilian Jackson Braun (other topics)Brian Jacques (other topics)
Diana Norman (other topics)
Ariana Franklin (other topics)
Stephen J. Cannell (other topics)
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http://www.claremont.org/publications... - Who is Ayn Rand?
I read the Wikipedia entry when I read the above linked article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayn_rand
Philistine that I may be, I must admit that when I read Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, as a teenager, I only read them as good and engaging stories and knew nothing about the philosophy of objectivism which Rand espoused.
Maybe I should re-read them. Have any of you done this as an adult?