Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die discussion
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Which LIST book did you just finish?
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Cassie
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Mar 01, 2010 05:27AM
Lyn M wrote: "Technically I just finished two, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass both by Lewis Carroll. They are listed separately on the list, but I rea..."I recently re-read these too.. it's been 30 years since I'd read them. Loooooved every word!
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I just finished A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess... i'm glad that he invented the nadsat language, if that wasn't there and I wasn't able to solve the mystery of what he meant I don't think I could have dealt with Alex at all...
Facundo: Or, Civilization and Barbarism by Domingo Faustino SarmientoThis book tells a bloody chapter in the history of my country. I found it very interesting as regards what it has to say about Argentine society and political history, but it is half novel half essay, and the essay part bored me a little. All in all, I'd say it's ok.
Jay wrote: "Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll... I thoroughly enjoyed it!"wonderful book read it last year ...
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. I loved the dig, "Yes; she is a peacock in everything but beauty." Ouch!!
Just finished The Secret History by Donna Tartt. I really enjoyed it. It makes me want to go out and learn Ancient Greek.
Jay wrote: "Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll... I thoroughly enjoyed it!"Ooh, that might be my next. I just finished The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. I love that so many good, "1001" books are getting made into movies. Hopefully it inspires others to pick them up as well!
Also, Cindy, Dorian Gray is one of my faves of all time. Wilde's wit is without peer!
Katie wrote: "Also, Cindy, Dorian Gray is one of my faves of all time. Wilde's wit is without peer!"I surprised myself how much I liked the story - I think it helped that I knew next to nothing about the plot before beginning. Then you add the witticisms and it became fun!
I just finished An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro. I enjoyed it, but not as much as his other work.
Just reread Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (part of a set.) The first I enjoyed, the second, was not as good as the first in my opinion, but I love how you can read a children's book as an adult and come up with a whole new appreciation for it.
Finally finished The Name of the Rose: Including Postscript. (I guess I'm still reading the post-script, but I just had to check it off.) It was really hard for me to get through, but I did like it. I don't usually do this, but I plan on re-reading the book in 5 years, and I think I'll really like it then. I've been told that this is the kind of book that requires more than one read. Also have the movie from netflix, so I'll watch that this weekend.
Kristi wrote: "Finally finished The Name of the Rose: Including Postscript. (I guess I'm still reading the post-script, but I just had to check it off.) It was really hard for me to get through, b..."I felt the same way about The Name of the Rose - found it was a put down/pick up again book for me but at the same time I really liked it and I'm planning on reading it again sometime in the next few years. I saw the movie years prior to reading the book at a conference of medieval scholars (no, I'm not one - long story) and they were commenting on the over-cleanliness of some of the characters in certain scenes. My memory is that they really over-simplify the story, but that's not really new. I thought it was enjoyable and that Sean Connery and Christian Slater were really good in it. Hope you enjoy! :)
I just finished King Solomon's Mines by Haggard; a fun adventure tale full of sensual metaphors. Ahh, Victorians.
Joy wrote: "I just finished King Solomon's Mines by Haggard; a fun adventure tale full of sensual metaphors. Ahh, Victorians."I love King Solomon's Mines.
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi
I loved King Solomon's Mines too. I finished Vathek and did not like it at all. It was sort of 1001 Nights meets Dante meets Baron von Munchausen. Maybe I was not in the mood for this short read's combination of grotesquerie, exaggeration, and cynicism. It seemed a bit anti-middle eastern culture too. It wasn't very memorable at all but many others have said they liked it.
The Shipping News. I read many mixed reviews and wasn't sure what to expect but really enjoyed it. Very atmospheric and melancholy but in an almost sweet way.
Cindy wrote: "The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. I loved the dig, "Yes; she is a peacock in everything but beauty." Ouch!!"I read this book years ago and it is still with me. Somehow a great book never leaves you.
I just finished Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. This is the first book I have read by this author, and I LOVED it. What a beautiful love story!! I will definitely be reading more by Ishiguro, I really liked his writing style!
Just finished Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Unfortunately, I read this book approximately 20 pages at a time over about a month (very unusual for me as I usually read a book in about a week), and I think that all of the interruptions and other books I am reading simultaneously distracted me from really enjoying this novel. Still, it's a classic and I am glad to finally have read it.
I, Robot (audio version) - this may have been a better book to read than listen to - I had to "rewind" many times because my mind began to wander. In a perfect world, I would listen while reading - throw in some chocolate and like George Costanza, I'd have the trifecta!!!
I also read " The picture of Doryan Gray "...isn't it amazing how some people look beautiful but you can not tolerate them after one week ?
Julie at All Ears wrote: "Jessica wrote: "A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth"Hi Jessica - I'd love to hear what you thought of this one. I have this book on my shelf, but it is SOOO long that I haven't cracked it open (too bi..."
Okay. Here's what I thought. I enjoyed the story, EXCEPT...there were alot of Indian references unfamiliar to me. I like to know what people are talking about, so I had to look them up or ask people what holiday was what, etc...so it took me FOREVER to read this. And I didn't like the ending, even though i'm not a happily-ever-after type of girl, normally.
Just finished 'Stranger in a Strange Land' by Robert A. Heinlein. It took me a while but finally finished it.
Finished The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind earlier today. Very quick one, and although a bit weird and not as good as I found Perfume to be, I still quite enjoyed it, and enjoyed having ticked off the second and last book to be on the list by this author.
Finished At Swim Two Boys by O'Neill. It's been sitting on my shelf for about 2 years, really enjoyed the plot and the relationships between the boys each other and their famillies.Also finished Essays in Love by De Botton, spent a lot of time saying that's so true, another good read.
Finally finshed 'War and Peace'-I read it on an ereader on my i-phone, and 'The Bell Jar'. Loved W and P! Really getting into Russian lit lately.
Finished Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges. This is the most amazing book I've read in a while. Although it is a collection of short stories, it took me quite a long time to read because I couldn't stop thinking about the last story I read and didn't focus on the following one. These are surprising, well-written and lucid. And with my scientific background I couldn't but love them even more.
Really recommended!
War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells, which I liked a lot more than The Time Machine. This one felt like it had a lot more humanity to it (ha ha) as well as more depth. It's a lot longer so that may be the reason for all of that, but the protagonist in The Time Machine didn't really understand the ppl around him so they were at the end rather faceless. War of the Worlds delves more into who/what we are at our root.
Not quite on the list but I just finished reading Roberto Bolano's Nazi Literature in the Americas. It is short -- a little over 200 pages, humorous and more approachable than either Savage Detectives and 2666. I may go back and finish Savage Detectives now, I got about 2/3 of it read last fall and then set it aside.
Eliza wrote: "just finished The Swarm"Was it worth it? Tell me it is worth it, because I am considering putting it aside and not finishing it.
My two cents on "the swarm". No, not worth it. But I know (from the reviews) that others would disagree. Maybe skim the last part? :D
I just finished "the last of Mr norris" and "goodbye to berlin", by Christopher Isherwood. These are the books Cabaret is based on. I quite enjoyed them.
Jessica wrote: ...Okay. Here's what I thought. I enjoyed the story ...."Thanks, Jessica - I'll have to give it a try. Although it'll take a while to finish it, it is taking up such a huge space on my 'to read' shelf, that it is time to move it along!
I just finished Surfacing by Margaret Atwood.
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