Currently reading anything by a British writer? Showing 651-700 of 1,160

[Werner]

I've never read any of the Morris novels (and actually hadn't heard of him until now --thanks for the heads-up, Igor!), but I do have Crime and Punishment on my to-read shelf. Back in junior high school, I tried to read it for a book report, but was put off by the grisliness of the killings, and never finished it. (Needless to say, I didn't do well on the book report!) So it's one of the dangling loose ends in my reading that I need to deal with someday. :-)

[Melanie]

I recently finished the late Ted Allbeury's The Twentieth Day of January and thoroughly enjoyed it. Here is my review.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Currently reading Beneath Sunless Waves by Stephen Makk which is excellent and hard to put down. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2....

[Igor]

Werner wrote: "I've never read any of the Morris novels (and actually hadn't heard of him until now --thanks for the heads-up, Igor!), but I do have Crime and Punishment on my to-read shelf. Back in j..."
Surely, you have to read C&P first to be interested in the series. If you venture in the long run. But mind you that these novels contian still gorier scenes, including detailed descriptions of body dismemberment by a forensic doctor. But you're not junior anymore:))

[Werner]

Igor wrote: "But you're not junior anymore:))"

True! But with 399 books on my to-read shelf already, I think I'll pass on Morris' series. :-)

[Rosemarie]

I just finished a lighter novel called Low Notes On A High Level by J.B. Priestley. It was a nice change from the weighty tomes that I have been reading.

[Igor]

Werner wrote: "Igor wrote: "But you're not junior anymore:))"

True! But with 399 books on my to-read shelf already, I think I'll pass on Morris' series. :-)"
Great! But remember: C&P first, оtherwise it will not be so interesting.

[Werner]

Thanks, Igor; I'll keep that in mind.

[Emeka]

BlakeS wrote: "

Kierkegaard Between Traffic & Travel

I read this great comic novel recently that was recommended by a friend. He said the..."

I just started this. Enjoying it immensely.

[Werner]

I've just started reading the story collection , by, of course, one of my favorite British authors (and favorite authors of any nationality), Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Most of the stories are ones I haven't read elsewhere, even though I'm a Holmes fan; and I'm particularly interested in one, "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire." That one was dramatized years ago, in the PBS adaptations of the Holmes canon starring Jeremy Brett, as "The Last Vampire" (which I taped on VHS), and I've wanted to read it ever since. (First published in 1927, the collection will also count towards an ongoing challenge in another group to rack up 250 classics.)

[Rosemarie]

I am reading A Tale of a Tub and other Satires by Jonathan Swift. The language takes some getting used to, but fortunately the edition I am reading has notes.

[Melanie]

I've just started Diney Costeloe's The Girl with No Name.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2....
This will be the fifth one I've read by this author - a favourite!

[Melanie]

I've just finished this poignant story 'The Girl With No Name' by Diney Costeloe - 5 stars. Here is my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Rosemarie]

I am reading My Man Jeeves by Wodehouse. I haven't read any of his books for awhile and had forgotten how funny they were.

[Carol]

I love all Wodehouse books, even the ones that are not quite as good. Whenever I feel down, I pick one up and am instantly transported to a hilarious world.

[Melanie]

I've just finished A Spy's Life by Henry Porter and thoroughly enjoyed it. Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Rosemarie]

I just finished rereading The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. This is a good one.

[Werner]

Rosemarie wrote: "I just finished rereading The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. This is a good one."

Rosemarie, I read that one as a kid of 10 ore 11, and really liked it! It was one of the first mysteries I read (although The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes might have been my very first).

[Rosemarie]

My favourite part is when Poirot gathers all the suspects together in one room and discloses the murderer. Classic!

[Werner]

Rosemarie wrote: "My favourite part is when Poirot gathers all the suspects together in one room and discloses the murderer. Classic!"

That's quite a common device in the Poirot novels!

[K.]

Something that I realized, as of late, is that I tend to read a lot of British authors during the summer.

When I step outside to a 100 degree heat index, all I want to do is lay inside in the AC and read about somewhere that isn't so hot! Does anyone else share this experience? Also any suggestions for someone that wants to feel cold?

[A.]

Hi all! I have recently finished reading love and friendship by Jane Austen. I didn't really enjoy it. I was wondering about other opinions on the book, maybe guidance on how I could have enjoyed it more, (currently re reading) or point out things you enjoyed from the book. I want to appreciate this book as much as possible, it shocked me I didn't like it as I normally deeply enjoy Jane Austen.

[Melanie]

Hello, I'm reading Harry Drinkwater's 'Harry's War'. He wrote this diary whilst he was actually serving in the Great War. It's both fascinating and gruelling. The description of the conditions under which they had to fight were so awful that I have to read it in stages.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

[Werner]

A. wrote: "Hi all! I have recently finished reading love and friendship by Jane Austen. I didn't really enjoy it. I was wondering about other opinions on the book, maybe guidance on how I could have enjoyed i..."

A., I'm not familiar with that Austen title, and I thought I knew about all of her writings (though I haven't read all of them). Can you link to the book you just finished?

[Rosemarie]

I haven't read the Austen book,but I have heard about it. Love and Friendship is a story written by Austen when she was 15 and not published during her lifetime.

[Werner]

Thanks, Rosemarie! (I always enjoy learning something new.)

[Melanie]

At last, I've finished Henry Porter's 'Empire State'.

I loved his earlier book, 'A Spy's Life', but this one wasn't as good. Here's my review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....

Now reading: 'Double Cross: The True Story of the D-Day Spies'
by Ben Macintyre, one of my favourite authors.

[Werner]

I'm taking part in our group's common read of Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene this month, so I got started on that one yesterday.

[Werner]

Today, Edwardian writer (and Anglican priest turned Roman Catholic priest) Robert Hugh Benson is mostly known as a writer of ghost stories, and I've read one or two of his works in that genre. But back in the early 70s, I stumbled on a copy of a very different kind of work, his 1907 novel , and skimmed it but didn't have the opportunity to actually read it (long story). Ever since, it's been on my to-read list as a must-read, so it's with special satisfaction that I finally started on it yesterday. In a very real way, I think it can be said to be Benson's answer to H. G. Wells' A Modern Utopia (1905)

[Rosemarie]

I am reading Goodbye to All That by Robert Graves, his autobiography about his school days and his experiences in World War One.

[Rosemarie]

I usually read more than one book at a time, and am reading books by four different British authors, The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare by G.K. Chesterton, Something Fresh by P.G. Wodehouse, Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams and Tom Brown's Schooldays by Thomas Hughes.

I don't usually read that many British authors at once, it has just worked out that way.

[Melanie]

Stephen Makk's, The Kali Option. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2....

The thread extends from Ireland (an IRA operative is sent over) to India and Pakistan as the tension and military build-up increases between the two countries.

I'm also reading Harry Drinkwater's, Harry's War - his diary and vivid description of his experience in the trenches in the Great War.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

[Rosemarie]

Right now I am reading Death at the President's Lodging by Michael Innes, first published in 1936. Michael Innes is the pen-name of J.I.M. Stewart.

[Rosemarie]

I am rereading The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins.

[Rosemarie]

I am reading A Coffin for Dimitrios, also known as The Mask of Dimitrios, by Eric Ambler. I am only two chapters in and am enjoying it so far.

[Barbara]

Rosemarie wrote: "I haven't read the Austen book,but I have heard about it. Love and Friendship is a story written by Austen when she was 15 and not published during her lifetime."

I have a bundle on Kindle ( lol) of all Austen's work, fragments, juvenilia and all and am enjoying re-reading them all . Just finished Emma and was cross all over again at Mr Woodhouse . I never understood why he is considered endearing. Selfish old codger, to my mind even if he is scrupulously polite about it !

[Rosemarie]

Maybe Mr. Woodhouse is considered endearing by those who don't have to live in. Emma needed to be the "adult" in their family.

[Alicia]

I'm rereading Dorothy L. Sayers collected Lord Peter short stories.

Even though some of them are very mannered, I always love sinking in to the world she creates, and getting the only available information about the sons of Peter and Harriet.

Very soothing when I'm having writing breaks.

[Werner]

Although he currently lives in Indonesia, Justin W. M. Roberts, the author of The Policewoman, which I've just finished reading, was born in London and got his college degree in England (Hull Univ.). This debut novel is also partly set in England. It wouldn't be a stretch, IMO, to claim him as a British writer.

[Rosemarie]

I am going to start The Wisdom of Father Brown today. I like the short story format, since I tend to read more than one book at a time.
Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte is on my to-read soon list.

Happy New Year everyone!

[Carol]

I love Father Brown!!! The tv series is good too, although the far fetched plots take a bit of letting yourself fall into that world. Reading is different. Chesterton's writing is so fine that I can totally suspend disbelief!!

[Werner]

I've read (and really liked) The Innocence of Father Brown (my review is here, if anyone's interested: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . And although I don't watch much television, I've actually watched, and liked, part of one episode of the series recently. Chesterton is a favorite author of mine, so I definitely hope to read more of Father Brown's adventures in the future!

[Alicia]

Loved the books, way back when I read them (previous century?), but the TV show was both too literal and too slow. What took me ten minutes to read and create a world in my head out of took them a lot longer to dramatize. Sometimes it makes the story better, other times it doesn't - YMMV as to whether you like book or video (or even audio) presentation best.

I think they'd be great audio for a car trip, too.

[Alicia]

Also, hubby doesn't read fiction much, so he likes the video form - he has nothing in his memory to compare them against, so it's just a story.

I think I liked Chesterton's way of writing, which is completely lost in the TV version. Word choice is particularly notable to me, as a writer.

Good questions.

[Werner]

Written novels/stories are definitely entirely different art forms from dramatic adaptations; each of the two forms have their own unique characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. (I only saw bits and pieces of the Masterpiece Theatre adaptation of Bleak House years ago; but one thing I remember was host Alistair Cooke reading Dickens' description of the carriages lined up at the curb for Mr. Tulkinghorne's funeral, and then showing the scene from the movie where the camera pans over the filmed carriages, to illustrate the difference.)

Alicia, I think you're right that which is "better" can only be decided on a case by case basis (though I also think it can be something like comparing apples and oranges). You're also right that an author's distinctive prose style is usually lost in a filmed adaptation. That can take away a dimension of pleasure if you've read and liked his/her prose style. But if an author's prose style is often on the overly verbose, dry and ponderous side, like Henry James or James Fenimore Cooper, the excision of the written narration can actually make the work come across more favorably.

[Rosemarie]

I am reading The Door in the Wall and other stories by H.G. Wells. I read The Door in the Wall in high school English class, but the others are new to me. I am enjoying it so far.

[Alicia]

Werner wrote: "Written novels/stories are definitely entirely different art forms from dramatic adaptations; each of the two forms have their own unique characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. (I only saw bits..."

Many a bad story has been improved by filming - and many a good book has been ruined by the movie. I've known both kinds - as we all have. And it may even depend on the individual reader/viewer.

I, for example, don't like anyone but the original author writing stories in their universe, and consider the Sherlock Holmes adaptations as abominations, all of them. Won't look at them, won't read them. I want my memory of Conan Doyle's stories to be exactly what I get when I pick up my copy of The Complete Sherlock Holmes from next to my bed. It's my opinion - others obviously have different ones.

Scarlett was widely disdained - and probably also made a lot of money for Alexandra Ripley. I won't read it, and will never look at Go Set a Watchman. I'm a purist. I like writing novels and possibly plays because whatever I choose to make them, no one will get a chance to interfere.

It also makes me responsible for anything that goes wrong - I hope I do a good job of it.

Other writers can't wait to send their latest file to their editor.

The one thing I won't do is tell other people what to do!

[Diane]

Remember that Go Set a Watchman was written by the original author, Harper Lee, although many people do not seem to like the book. I personally could not finish reading it.

[Alicia]

Harper Lee did not let that go to publication the entire time she was alive.

[Werner]

Actually, Lee was still alive when Go Set a Watchman was published (she died the following year). But there were some (very legitimate, IMO) serious questions about whether her so-called "consent" to the publication was genuine or informed and voluntary. I haven't read it, for that reason, and don't intend to. (Of course, I've never read To Kill a Mockingbird either, but I do intend to read it at some point, hopefully soon!) Also, contrary to what many people assume, the former is NOT a sequel to the latter. Both novels were part of a massive proto-draft version that Lee originally submitted to her publisher back in the 1950s. A lot of editing later, what we know as To Kill a Mockingbird was the pared-down and polished version that came to be published. Go Set a Watchman was put together in 2015 (not necessarily by Lee!) from the discarded scraps. Those who know something about editorial processes might suspect that there were probably legitimate artistic reasons why the discarded material ended up as scraps in the first place!

Alicia wrote: "I, for example, don't like anyone but the original author writing stories in their universe, and consider the Sherlock Holmes adaptations as abominations, all of them. Won't look at them, won't read them. I want my memory of Conan Doyle's stories to be exactly what I get when I pick up my copy of The Complete Sherlock Holmes from next to my bed. It's my opinion - others obviously have different ones."

Alicia, although I see your point, I personally can enjoy a good pastiche of an older writer, a new adventure of a character that I like, or another writer's exploration of a concept or world created by someone else, provided that they're faithful to the original author's vision. (Sometimes they're not, and I have a problem with that. Since you mentioned Sherlock Holmes, I gave Laurie R. King's The Beekeeper's Apprentice, set in Holmes' not-really-"retired" years, five stars; but since the subsequent novels of her spin-off series feature a married Holmes, I'm not interested in reading them --that strays too far from the canon for me! And while Fred Saberhagen stays true to Doyle's vision in The Holmes-Dracula File, he's very unfaithful to Stoker's, and that cost the book stars when I rated it.) Some authors have a problem with their work being used this way; but it's been said that "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," and some take it that way. For instance, H. P. Lovecraft's many author friends sometimes worked his Cthulhu Mythos concepts into their own tales during his lifetime, and he seems to have enjoyed the imitative fun as much as they did. :-)

Alicia wrote: "The one thing I won't do is tell other people what to do!" Well said, Alicia; that's the credo of most of us here! Much of the fun of Goodreads comes from comparing and contrasting our different tastes and opinions. It'd be a dull world, and our discussion boards would be pretty boring, if we all thought alike and liked/disliked the same things.

[Werner]

Other than the third volume of Louis L'Amour's collected Western stories (which I've already been reading in intermittently since last year), for various reasons, since finishing my most recent paper-format book, I've been slow to permanently start on another one. That's been partly due to the fact that I've been pretty sick with (I think) the flu since Tuesday, and I'm not well yet. Often, I haven't felt like reading, and my ability to focus mentally on any prose that's very demanding has been limited. (That's why I started one book and then put it aside for a later time.)

However, since so far today I've been free of fever (crosses fingers and knocks on wood!), I've now started on a nonfiction read about paranormal phenomena, Shane Leslie's Ghost Book. My copy is actually of the 2017 reprint edition, but it's not a review copy. Instead, it was a thoughtful gift from my friend and fellow writer of supernatural fiction (though he writes better, and more prolifically, than I do!), Andrew Seddon, who knows we share an interest in the real-life investigation of the supernatural. The author, Sir Shane Leslie (1885-1971) was a quintessentially British writer, of the old Anglo-Irish landed gentry and a first cousin of Winston Churchill on his mother's side.