Comfort Reads discussion
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What are you reading right now? (SEE NEW THREAD)
Christine wrote: "Kathy wrote: "Christine wrote: "Right, it's not actually plague, it's killer flu."I like the flu ones, too. LOL!"
Haha! Do you think we're scaring people?"
LOL, nah, I think all of we readers are twisted in one way or another.
Lee wrote: "Holy moly, I just got out of the shower and find all this excitement about plague books! We are so funny.Lisa, yes I have read Year of Wonders. I liked it.
I will add all the other suggestio..."
That will teach you to take a shower, Lee. I have to go do some things now, too, and I shudder to think of what I will miss while I'm gone.
Christine wrote: "Kathy wrote: "Christine wrote: "Right, it's not actually plague, it's killer flu."I like the flu ones, too. LOL!"
Haha! Do you think we're scaring people?"
Actually, The Doomsday Book is both a book about the plague and about a killer flu, a killer flu that was precipitated from the past, from the unearthing of a Mediaeval grave. I think that one of the major questions for archaeologists should be wether the unearthing of the past, especially of graves could in fact cause major pandemics (influenza, plagues etc.), because we really do not have much information about how microbes live and/or how long they might last in a grave (and even, if we ever do engage in space travel, could that also not bring new, potentially dangerous microbes and diseases to earth).
Err....now I think I am scared....I'm going under the bed.
I too have a fascination with plague stories! Doomsday is the best of them all. Eifelheim was great too.Kim Stanley Robinson has an interesting take on the plague, The Years of Rice and Salt, it's a what if the plague hadn't killed 30% of the population of Europe but all of it. What happens is Islam takes over.
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Lee wrote: "Heehee! We're awesome!"You know, the first time I read The Doomsday Book I read it in one night and when I finally did get to bed, I had very interesting dreams to say the least (I basically relived the whole story, but with me as the main protagonist).
Yay for Major Pettigrew Christine!Also, I loved Year of Wonders and am thinking that I, too, am a plague book lover! I have added The Last Town on Earth to my list!!
I'm not so sure about saying yay for the reco to read Major Pettigrew, because do I really need another book on my to-read list? :D I'm #265 on my libes holds list.
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I don't know what happened to a posting I thought I had posted earlier. I must not have hit the post button. Gee. Well, what I said was something like this:Lori, I agree that The Doomsday Book is the best plague book (at least so far). Gundula, only a great writer like Willis could manage to fit in the plague and the killer flu in one great book. And, how cool, Gundula that you dreamed you were the protagonist. Christine, get out from under the bed and go read a nice plague story to comfort yourself (LOL). Lori, I have added The Years of Rice and Salt to my plague books, sounds delicious (nah, not a pun on the title). A great non-fiction read on the plague is Norman Cantor's In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death and the World It Made. Mary, welcome to the dark side (hehehe). And, finally, yes, Lee we are awesome (not gruesome). Do you think we should start a plague thread?
The first plague book I read was the third book of the trilogy Kristin Lavransdatter I loved that series, 5 stars all the way, and it won the Nobel prize. The first book is really a great bodice ripper, ha! Superb historical fiction. A large part of the population there take a walking trip that follows the same path of Kristin.
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Kathy, if you want to start a plague thread go ahead! It seems a little strange but obviously quite a few of us are attracted to these types of books.
Lee, there's a new translation out that's supposed to be fantastic - Trinna something. Wish I had waited for that, I read it shortly before hers came out.I wonder what it is about the plague that fascinates us? It's certainly not an uplifting story like King Arthur, whose idealism beckons and promises to return. I think one of the reasons I loved Doomsday so much was because of the priest, forget his name, who in the face of it was still idealist.
I'm reading Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela. I'm about a third of the way through it and I'm loving it. I've been meaning to read this book since February and I just got around to doing it last week. It's intriguing. He's a natural born storyteller.
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I wonder what it is about the plague that..."
Thanks Lori, I will make sure I get a copy of the newer translation. :-)
And I wish I could answer your question about why we are attracted to plague stories. Maybe because they remind us how precious life is? I don't know, that sounds cheesy.
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Kimberly, that sounds like a great book. Let us know how you feel when you finish it. He's such an inspiring man.
No, not cheesy at all, Lee. Plus I think we all have a love for medieval times, it seems so pure altho it was most definitely not. But most people were so in touch with their faith whether we as modern folk like it or not, plus the actual natural world was still untouched. I also think it's a bit of rubber necking - wow they had it so much worse than I do! ha!
help....I'm trying to read Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil but I made the mistake (that I said I wouldn't!) of looking up information about the author. Now I can't tolerate her, which makes the book really not fun to read. BUT I have to read it for bookclub. Anyone have anything encouraging to say about it?
Eeeek!Well think of it this way. The art is separate from the person. I hate Orson Scott Card but loved Ender's Game, which admittedly I read before I knew what a loony Card was. I also love Wagner music, even tho I don't like him as a person.
But I think I would be in your shoes, and probably wouldn't read it. You can go to your meeting with info about the author!
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Haha, and maybe this isn't the place to be asking that question!
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When I googled her (as I knew I shouldn't because I saw someone on goodreads say that it changed her attitude as well) I saw that she revealed information about the women in her book that put them in danger, and that she didn't follow through with any of the financial promises that she made. It seems that she took the glory and left them behind when the book was a success. So now I look at everything she is doing and wondering how much is sincere. She toots her own horn a lot about how generous she is as well...that annoys me.
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Lee wrote: "Yuck, no wonder you can't read it now."When you mentioned the book, Christine, I checked to see if it could be something that I would be interested in reading, but there were enough negative reviews to make me hesitate adding the book to my to-read shelf. Now, after reading the extra information you have gathered, I will definitely not be wanting to read this book.
Lori wrote: "The first plague book I read was the third book of the trilogy Kristin Lavransdatter I loved that series, 5 stars all the way, and it won the Nobel prize. The first book is really a great b..."These look really interesting, Lori. Maybe one of these days I can get to them.
Lori wrote: "No, not cheesy at all, Lee. Plus I think we all have a love for medieval times, it seems so pure altho it was most definitely not. But most people were so in touch with their faith whether we as mo..."I agree, Lori and Lee.
Lee wrote: "Yuck, no wonder you can't read it now."I agree. Christine, I'd stop reading now. Life is too short to read books we don't like! Bring your research to your book group meeting. Mention it at the appropriate time (probably not right out of the gate) and let that be your contribution to the discussion. Book groups can be tricky and there is a fine line between "I didn't like it and here's why" and "How could anyone possibly like this" but you seem like a very diplomatic person and I'm sure you'd handle the situation beautifully and make a meaningful contribution to the discussion.
By the way, anyone who is interested in the Black Death as a literary theme and also enjoys Mediaeval mysteries, should consider reading the Matthew Bartholomew series by Susanna Gregory. The novels (fifteen so far and continuing) deal with a Cambridge physician during the time of the plague, and are both very readable/entertaining and interesting.
Christine, it is certainly a heads-up not to read anything else by that author. Maybe you could finish the book as a tribute to the women whose stories Rodriguez exploited and whose lives were put in danger. As to Orson Scott Card, my personal feeling toward him is one reason I haven't yet been able to read Ender's Game. However, I will probably do so sometime in the future. As you say, Lori, I think it is possible to appreciate the art in spite of the artist. Of course, I'm not sure how far I can take that without feeling that I'm supporting a person whose ideologies I abhor. It's certainly an area of conflict for many.
Mary wrote: "Lee wrote: "Yuck, no wonder you can't read it now."
I agree. Christine, I'd stop reading now. Life is too short to read books we don't like! Bring your research to your book group meeting. Menti..."
Thank you, Mary. That is very good advice. We actually have 2 books this month so I will turn my focus to the other one.
I agree. Christine, I'd stop reading now. Life is too short to read books we don't like! Bring your research to your book group meeting. Menti..."
Thank you, Mary. That is very good advice. We actually have 2 books this month so I will turn my focus to the other one.
Kathy, I borrowed Ender's Game from the library; I didn't purchase it. It's such a great book. I loved it. I haven't read a couple of the sequel/companion books that have been recommended but they're on my list.
Lisa wrote: "Kathy, I borrowed Ender's Game from the library; I didn't purchase it. It's such a great book. I loved it. I haven't read a couple of the sequel/companion books that have been recomme..."Well, oddly enough, I have a copy. My son wanted to read it and loved it. So, how crazy is that, that I have the book and haven't read it. You've convinced me (along with my son loving it) to go on and read it, Lisa. It may be this summer before I get to it, but it is back on my to-read list.
Last night I started Lincoln's Dreams by Connie Willis. As I've loved the other Willis books I've read, I'm now trying to read some more of hers. A friend of mine recently read this one and loved it.
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Lee wrote: "Kathy, I read Ender's Game as a teenager and loved it. I'd like to read it again to see if it holds up. I don't know anything about Orson Scott Card though. What's up with him?"He's a bit of a homophobic, squarely against gay rights. I don't want to start a debate on gay rights by posting this information, just passing along why many people have a problem with him.
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Lee wrote: "Yuck, no wonder you can't read it now."
I actually spent a couple of hours today finishing it. It was what Kathy said about reading it for those that were in it.
I actually spent a couple of hours today finishing it. It was what Kathy said about reading it for those that were in it.
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Lee wrote: "Are you glad you finished it?"
Ummm....I feel like I did my part for bookclub. I was not impressed with the book though.
Ummm....I feel like I did my part for bookclub. I was not impressed with the book though.
Right now I am reading Mawson's Will by Lennard Bickel
Peregrine wrote: "I'm reading Darwinia: A Novel of a Very Different Twentieth Century by Robert Charles Wilson. I'm right into it, a fascinating story, and it definitely is *not a comfor..."Sounds interesting...what is that book about? Are you enjoying it so far? (Or, if you've finished it, what did you think?)
Nicole, here's my review of Darwinia (4 stars):This book is a kinetic tumble of genres: alternate history, science fiction, geographical survey, action thriller, horror, mythology. The story is idea-driven much more than character-driven; it's the detached logic of situations that makes many sections heartwrenching. The complete strangeness of Darwinia juxtaposes the absence of Europe, direct ancestor of my literary development. Indeed, in this scenario, I would not have been born at all, as my paternal grandfather would have disappeared in 1912 at age ten. There's no rest for the reader, no place of comfort, as there is none for most of the characters. I'm glad I read (and finished) this book. It made me think; it took familiar world-pieces, tossed a number of them out, and placed the rest in very unfamiliar combinations. It charged my imagination; parts of it creeped me out. Not a comfortable read, but a worthwhile one.
Christine wrote: "When I googled her (as I knew I shouldn't because I saw someone on goodreads say that it changed her attitude as well) I saw that she revealed information about the women in her book that put them ..."That's awful!Thanks for the heads up-I certainly will not be buying her books and financially rewarding her.I hate seeing people being exploited and put in danger so the author can make some money.I might read it if it comes my way through bookcrossing but it is off my 'to buy' list now!
Talking about plague related books, I got "Year of Wonder" in today's mail !!! It sounds real good and you guys are very enthusiastic about it....I am glad to see it now on my TBR pile :-DI am reading Shutter Island....dark, dark !!!But I am enjoying it very much.
Virginie wrote: "Talking about plague related books, I got "Year of Wonder" in today's mail !!! It sounds real good and you guys are very enthusiastic about it....I am glad to see it now on my TBR pile :-DI am re..."
Virginie, I loved Year of Wonders. An interesting side note is how Brooks came to write this story about Eyam, the so-called "plague village" in England. She was in London and came across the sign pointing to the plague village of Eyam, went there and explored, and the birth of a novel was born. I so want to visit this place.
I would love too !!! Somebody(Misfit maybe) on GR posted a pic showing the Plague cottages , but I cannot remember where.That's what triggered my interest and I ended up ordering the book (It seems I always end up doing that!!!;-D)
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Lisa, yes I have read Year of Wonders. I liked it.
I will add all the other suggestions from above, thanks everyone!