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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Trisa Mayasafira
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Jun 21, 2010 07:15AM
I just finished The Old Man and The Sea by Ernest Hemingway..the ending story was surprisingly me.
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Finished Surfacing last week. I am more familiar with Atwood's newer writing, so it was interesting to read the 2nd novel she had published.
Jacques the Fatalist by Diderot. A new favourite for me. Incredibly witty and amusing, but very modern at the same time. Diderot's narrative technique is closer to postmodernism than to the eighteenth century novel. Loved it.
The House of Mirth.Predictable, but I liked it very, very much.
It really doesn't get much better than Wharton.
Erik, I couldn't agree more about the pleasures of reading Wharton! The House of Mirth is by far my favourite Wharton novel.... I love her dissection of social behaviour & erotic dynamics, the competing pulls of romance & money. I often find myself blogging about Wharton.... www.the-reading-list.com
The Catcher in the Rye by Salinger. i didn't care for the book too much but it was a quick read, not that I was that interested I just wanted to get it over with so i can move on to the next one.
JF A Room With a View. Really enjoyed it, except the ending was a little flat and disappointing. Just picked up the movie from the library to watch.
Breakfast at Tiffany's and Island of Dr. Moreau. Both interesting reads for very different reasons. I really enjoyed both.
Leslie wrote: "Erik, I couldn't agree more about the pleasures of reading Wharton!"Have you read Summer? It was written later in her career and a different take on women's roles. I was surprised by it, but in the end I think it's now my favorite of hers. Though I do love The Buccaneers, even if it was finished from her notes.
Something about summer makes me want to reread favorites. My reading on the list has stalled while I'm rereading the Harry Potter series, but I'm sure I'll be back to the list.
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd .....just brillant .... pity there is only one Agatha Christie on the list ..... nevermind I found a top ten Agatha list that I'll also try and get through ....
Inheritance of Loss. Just okay - nothing special. I feel like quite a few of these year 2000+ list books are not going to hold up over time - that they almost need to wait 5 years after publication before deciding whether they actually belong on the list.
Gini wrote: "Leslie wrote: "Erik, I couldn't agree more about the pleasures of reading Wharton!"Have you read Summer? It was written later in her career and a different take on women's roles. I was surprise..."
Yes, I have read Summer.... The darkness of Charity's sexual awakening was beautifully presented, although disturbing, as I recall.... Wharton's variety in theme and style never ceases to amaze me! Have you read The Custom of the Country? That novel is fascinating because the heroine, Undine Spragg, is like Lily Bart in reverse.
I recently finished Stilettos and Steel by Jeri Estes.This novel is still haunting me. The story takes place in the 1960s Tenderloin district of San Francisco. Completely original storyline and well developed characters who felt so real. Based on the author's true story.
Leslie wrote: "Have you read The Custom of the Country? That novel is fascinating because the heroine, Undine Spragg, is like Lily Bart in reverse. ."I have not. Thanks for the recommendation! Putting it on my iPhone now - hooray for manybooks.net!
Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell...unputdownable, if this is indeed to be classed as a word...
Kristel wrote: "I just finished Black Water by Joyce Carol Oates. This novella was a quick but painful read as you experience the last moments of a young single professional females death by drowning after she tak..."I have had problems reading Oates. She is essentially a very gifted, literary writer whose books are fatally flawed. I have read three stories by her, one about 35 years ago, a short story, in which the atmospherics were so overly obvious,contrived that it interfered with the story. She was using the change in the weather to mirror the psychological tension of two characters talking in a kitchen. Her literary tricks were so glaring that I avoided her for years. Two years ago I read the story with Spider Monkey in the title and found that undecipherable. The character is schizoid and so the writing itself, (it is written as a diary, but couldn´t be sure)is distorted, but there are so few clues as to what is actually occuring that by the end of the novel I had no interest in going back and deciphering it.
The third story was one about a young orphaned woman who becomes a nurse´s aid. She is jilted by her lover, decides on a self-abort, and despite the fact she is close to being semi retarded, is able to introduce a cutting device into her insides and self-abort her foetus, (sorry, I can´t believe that one), and then becomes unexplicably a serial patient killer. Despite the fact that she has a highly passive personality, she does a complete character change and becomes a Killer Nurse. Give me a break, Oates.
Geoffrey wrote: "Kristel wrote: "I just finished Black Water by Joyce Carol Oates. This novella was a quick but painful read as you experience the last moments of a young single professional females death by drowni..."
What did you think of them?
What did you think of them?
I just finished The Picture of Dorian Gray. I am happy I read it, but it didn't WOW me. Although it was much more gruesome than I had expected. In many ways it reminded me of Crime and Punishment, because in both the main characters are grappling with the idea of a horrid future brought about by completely selfish thinking, and feel completely alone in their circumstances.
I finished Rasselas, The Prince of Abyssinia. It was ok, sometimes brilliant and sometimes a bit contrived and rambly. Overall, I would slightly recommend it. It brings up alot of questions about the meaning of life that the characters ponder and discuss. It was better than that sounds.
Watchmen by Alan Moore. I was never a fan of the superhero genre (Donald Duck was my favorite, especially those comics featuring "Magica DeSpell") - I enjoyed how the novel was constructed with stories inside of stories - I will review the graphics again for hints of the ending. I didn't love it but it held my interest.
Geoffrey I completely agree with your assessment of Joyce Carol Oates. I've read The Falls: A Novel and Black Girl/White Girl and both were horrid. Should I ever get close to finishing the 1001 books, hers will be the last ones I read, even after I read the books that do not have English translations.
Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin - I appreciate the story for the time in which it was written and its heart-breaking events. However, I really struggled with the religiousity of the novel and skimmed the last section.
JF The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle. It was pretty good, but I felt like I didn't get to know Holmes because much of the story was related by Watson to Holmes
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. Totally brilliant. Couldn't put it down and it was very thoughtful. Characters were written so lovingly I hated to see the book end.
Masanobu wrote: "Finished Under the Net, by Iris Murdoch. A great prose, but not much of a plot."That's because this novel is old school indicative of Lit. Fic. interested in exploring character and themes
vs. what we see in for example Michael Chabon.
Becky wrote: "Watchmen by Alan Moore. I was never a fan of the superhero genre (Donald Duck was my favorite, especially those comics featuring "Magica DeSpell") - I enjoyed how the novel was constructed with st..."I felt the same way over all, but I did especially like 2 sections:Chapter IV and Chapter VI. I thought the meditation about the meaning of existence and time was just awesome. And the meditation about the nature of evil,justice, and vengeance truly chilling.
K.D. wrote: "Tom Wolfe's The Bonfire of the Vanities. Reading it feels like a hard labor."Oh, it is. It is. The best thing about this book, imo, is that it is such an accurate exploration of the narcissism of Wall St. The writer was in the same social circles and got to really "see" who these people were and there motivations. I don't think the mentality has changed much.
Erik wrote: "Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.I hated everyone."
awww, Erik. i absolutely love that book. =(
Sorry Meme):They all just made me sooo angry...
Just finished Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.
Uhmayzing
it's all good Erik. i'm glad u have ur own opinion. =)u can't go wrong with Austen though. i haven't read Pride and Prejudice yet, but it's on my list for July's Books to Movies challenge. =) i can't wait!
Valerie wrote: "Masanobu wrote: "Finished Under the Net, by Iris Murdoch. A great prose, but not much of a plot."That's because this novel is old school indicative of Lit. Fic. interested in explor..."
I was not complaining at all :) I hadn't read anything quite like Under the Net, but enjoyed it, so thank you for directing me to another great author. I've heard both good and bad things about The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, have you read it? If so, would you recommend it?
Meme wrote: "Erik wrote: "Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.I hated everyone."
awww, Erik. i absolutely love that book. =("
I also have to agree with Eric. It was well written, but the main characters were just so dispicable. It just made me angry to read about everyone.
candace wrote: "I just finished The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. I was shocked by how much I loved it."lol i always wanted to read those books
Great Expectations by Dickens. LOVED it! Definitely included in my all-time-favourites five-star list. It's the best Dickens I've read so far.
Regine wrote: "Meme wrote: "Erik wrote: "Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.I hated everyone."
awww, Erik. i absolutely love that book. =("
I also have to agree with Eric. It was well written, but the ..."
looks like i'm out voted. hehe =)
ya know i just think it's a very impassioned novel. there is unrequited love, betrayal, jealousy, envy, hate, sorrow, etc. it just has all the ingredients to envoke intense feelings. just the way i like it =)
Just finished She by H Rider Haggard. Originally excited to read it, ultimately relieved to have finished it.
Shanghai Girls by Lisa See is rivetting, sad, evocative.... It makes me curious about what my great-grandmother went through being coerced into an arranged marriage in Japan. Check out my blog post at: www.the-reading-list.com
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