Do you read?

[mjmooney]

59 minutes ago, El Zen said:

I’ve read all three books, about 200 pages each, in one sitting. They are intensly fascinating.   

I should say, they won’t be to everone’s taste, given the sheer brutal unsentimental nature of the writing, where truly horrific events are told with the naively honest words of a child. The narrative is also intensely confusing, and you are never given any other information than the immediate observations (or fantasies?) of the narrator. There isn’t a single place name given, not a single date, not even a surname as far as I can tell. 

It is very much a work of art. But it’s one of the most beautiful works of art I’ve ever enjoyed.

It sounds very much in the same ballpark as The Painted Bird, the film of which is brutal, shocking and (imho) utterly brilliant. 

Edited July 2, 2022 by mjmooney

[El Zen]

59 minutes ago, mjmooney said:

It sounds very much in the same ballpark as The Painted Bird, the film of which is brutal, shocking and (imho) utterly brilliant. 

I’ll try to remember to look for that one next time I’m in a bookshop. Thanks!

[mjmooney]

1 minute ago, El Zen said:

I’ll try to remember to look for that one next time I’m in a bookshop. Thanks!

I've not read the book, but watched the film a few weeks ago. Tough viewing, but a true masterpiece of cinema. 

[El Zen]

Read another book today, If You Want by Danish author Helle Helle (sic). A fairly short, little story that still somehow manages to capture both the beauty and the deep tragedy of an ordinary, yet unfulfilled life. It is, essentially, a short story elaborated in the format of a novel (Helle is a brilliant short story writer.)

Two strangers ‘ paths cross as they both find themselves lost in the woods jogging. Effortlessly, without fanfare and sentimentality, their life stories are revealed, glimpse by glimpse, as they pass the time trying to find their way back to the main road on blistered feet and empty stomachs. 

Edited July 3, 2022 by El Zen

[StewieGriffin]

Mini bump...

Currently reading The Wheel of Time series - I assume others here have read them based on the comments I've seen on the rubbish Amazon adaptation, so rather than start a thread I thought Id come here. Im currently on book 4, Shadow Rising, so preferably no spoilers beyond that, but they are old books so I wont be too annoyed...

Is there a more irritating character in the whole series than Nynaeve? Christ what a moany trout she is. She thinks she's better than all the Emond's Field lot (and Elayne) for no reason other than she's older and therefore knows best despite the fact she cant even channel properly (although Im assuming that'll be resolved in time for her to save a major character). I'm assuming she has a big redemption arc at some point, but the mention of her name in a chapter fills me with annoyance. Id argue this is one of the few things Amazon got farly right, as her presence on screen annoyed me too.

At this stage (2/3 of the way through book 4) Id probably say Perrin, Matt, Moiraine and Thom are my favourite characters, and Lanfear sounds like an absolute pleasure to be turned to the Shadow by...

On the whole I'm enjoying it so far, although I do have reservations that 14 books is a lot - I already find myself switching off at points and missing a couple of things (I had to read parts of the chapter where Rand is in Rhuidean having his history lesson three times).

[Marka Ragnos]

It was a big deal a few years ago --  bit overrated and insular, and I'd rather read quality realistic fiction that tells the deeper story of class in America, but I felt I needed to check it off the list.

[Marka Ragnos]

Speaking of which ... very under-the-radar literary work that I can't get enough of. From one reviewer: "Banner's first collection (following his 1999 novel The Life I Lead) sears and surprises. His stories, mainly set in Ohio and Tennessee, read like small revelations, perhaps because they focus on people usually ignored in gay fiction—rural, low-income, overweight, largely uneducated folks with dead-end or thankless jobs; they might call themselves "white trash," but Banner gives them a dark and fragile dignity. Two developmentally disabled gay men living in a group home are given a secret wedding in "The Wedding of Tom to Tom" after their caregivers look past the constant, against-the-rules coupling to see their deep bond. In the disturbing "Holding Hands for Safety," the overweight narrator's gorgeous cousin has just murdered his 10-year-old "borderline retarded" half-sister. The boys kiss, and the narrator relishes Trent's sudden vulnerability: "he needed someone to love him right after he told.... He knew that I would not tell no one because I wanted him so bad, and that makes me feel trashy but also full of hope again because it will only be me and him who know." Banner demands—and gets—empathy for these often unappealing characters. Their voices are direct and heartbreakingly honest, and Banner's use of imagery brilliantly echoes the low-rent surroundings (fried mushrooms in a fast food restaurant are described as "floating like little severed heads in a hot black lake"). In the O. Henry–winning title story, two characters epitomize Banner's world with queasy, tender precision: "Two queers... in rural Ohio, one slightly obese, the other skinny tight-lipped, wanting to escape but not knowing how."
 

[mjmooney]

On 23/06/2022 at 12:03, MakemineVanilla said:

I wasn't sure if this belonged in the history thread or not, but here goes...

Austerity Britain by David Kynaston (1945-51)

Some books change your view of a particular era, and this looks likely to be one of them. Most of the claims made about the early post-war years, tend towards the hyperbolic, and insist that there was a shared spirit and enthusiam for the political projects, which eventually amounted to what was called the "post-war consensus".

The film footage which shows people dancing on VE Day, give the wrong impression: the celebrations were overwhelmingly subdued, out of respect to those who had lost people in the war. In Erdington they made do with drinking the pubs dry and attending a bonfire on Marsh Lane.

It seems that most ordinary folk had very little interest in politics. Still remembering the broken promises after WW1, they expected another betrayal.

The people were exhausted and became very uncooperative in the workplace.

The quotes from ordinary folk as recorded by the Mass-Observation people, and the many interesting facts, make for a very worthwhile read.

'Unsurpassed...a classic' The Guardian

Just received the latest in the series: "On the Cusp: Days of '62". 

I was a little confused at first, by both the title, and the shortness of the book - he had previously said that the next volume was going to be "Opportunity Britain, 1962-1967" - and I was concerned that he may have abandoned the project. But he explains in the introduction that this is a sort of 'interlude', or holding volume (written during the 2020 lockdown), and that he considers 1962 to be a sort of 'hinge year' for the era. "Opportunity Britain" is still scheduled (although when is anybody's guess). 

Looking forward to reading it (particularly as it's well into an era that I can actually remember, now). 

Edited August 4, 2022 by mjmooney

[MakemineVanilla]

21 minutes ago, mjmooney said:

Just received the latest in the series: "On the Cusp: Days of '62". 

I was a little confused at first, by both the title, and the shortness of the book - he had previously said that the next volume was going to be "Opportunity Britain, 1962-1967" - and I was concerned that he may have abandoned the project. But he explains in the introduction that this is a sort of 'interlude', or holding volume (written during the 2020 lockdown), and that he considers 1962 to be a sort of 'hinge year' for the era. "Opportunity Britain" is still scheduled (although when is anybody's guess). 

Looking forward to reading it (particularly as it's well into an era that I can actually remember, now). 

Thanks for the heads up.

Having enjoyed Austerity Britain so much, I have just started Family Britain.

I am not sure it is as good as the former but it gets more interesting when it moves on to political topics, especially concerning Labour's attitude towards the Korean war.

The more than doubling of defence spending, seems to illustrate the competing priorities, between Britain's global role and the comfort of the general population.

I think this might have been a factor in Labour losing the election.

The contrast between Attlee the pragmatist and Bevan the orator, offers some insights into the realities of politics.

There is a very interesting quote from Doris Lessing's autobiography, which promises to reveal what attitudes led her and others to join the communist party, in full knowledge of Stalin's crimes.

 

 

[villaliver]

I love reading 

I like to read about fighter planes & fiction 

My Favourite book is the Damned United lol

[mjmooney]

13 minutes ago, villaliver said:

I like to read about fighter planes & fiction 

Derek Robinson's novels recommended (if you like your fighter planes to be those of WWI and WWII). 

[villaliver]

On 07/08/2022 at 17:33, mjmooney said:

Derek Robinson's novels recommended (if you like your fighter planes to be those of WWI and WWII). 

Never heard of them just googled him looks very exciting author thanks for this recommendation 

[useless]

Last night I read The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, there's a deeper message, but I thought it also worked well as a straight ahead creepy story.

[Follyfoot]

@rjw63

 

Not good news Rob, third of a way into the new Reacher, OK but something is missing, very much like his last couple 

[mjmooney]

1 hour ago, Follyfoot said:

@rjw63

 

Not good news Rob, third of a way into the new Reacher, OK but something is missing, very much like his last couple 

What, no Villa players' names? 

[mjmooney]

On 10/10/2022 at 19:03, useless said:

Last night I read The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, there's a deeper message, but I thought it also worked well as a straight ahead creepy story.

Funnily enough, I read that a couple of months ago. I agree, it worked as both a feminist work and a Poe-type story. Other recent reads included 'The Corrections' by Jonathan Franzen (rather good, I thought), and Virginia Woolf's 'Mrs Dalloway' (I'm a big fan of modernist literature, this one seemed a bit 'Ulysses lite'). 

Edited October 27, 2022 by mjmooney

[heffoman]

On 14/07/2022 at 23:33, StewieGriffin said:

Mini bump...

Currently reading The Wheel of Time series - I assume others here have read them based on the comments I've seen on the rubbish Amazon adaptation, so rather than start a thread I thought Id come here. Im currently on book 4, Shadow Rising, so preferably no spoilers beyond that, but they are old books so I wont be too annoyed...

Is there a more irritating character in the whole series than Nynaeve? Christ what a moany trout she is. She thinks she's better than all the Emond's Field lot (and Elayne) for no reason other than she's older and therefore knows best despite the fact she cant even channel properly (although Im assuming that'll be resolved in time for her to save a major character). I'm assuming she has a big redemption arc at some point, but the mention of her name in a chapter fills me with annoyance. Id argue this is one of the few things Amazon got farly right, as her presence on screen annoyed me too.

At this stage (2/3 of the way through book 4) Id probably say Perrin, Matt, Moiraine and Thom are my favourite characters, and Lanfear sounds like an absolute pleasure to be turned to the Shadow by...

On the whole I'm enjoying it so far, although I do have reservations that 14 books is a lot - I already find myself switching off at points and missing a couple of things (I had to read parts of the chapter where Rand is in Rhuidean having his history lesson three times).

I ve read the series several times and on rereads there are a lot of sections I skip. Some of the middle books do drag a bit.

I m not sure Nynaeve changes that much over all. She can be a very annoying character at times. I found Egwene swayed that way as well.

Still a great series with some great scenes in it. Its a terrible pity he never got to finish it. I wasnt in love with Sandersons writing in the last few books.

[StewieGriffin]

1 hour ago, heffoman said:

I ve read the series several times and on rereads there are a lot of sections I skip. Some of the middle books do drag a bit.

I m not sure Nynaeve changes that much over all. She can be a very annoying character at times. I found Egwene swayed that way as well.

Still a great series with some great scenes in it. Its a terrible pity he never got to finish it. I wasnt in love with Sandersons writing in the last few books.

Im halfway through 6 (I think?) now - Lord of Chaos, and Im finding it interesting rather than gripping. When I read Game of Thrones I genuinely struggled to put them down, whereas Im dipping in and out of WoT a bit more.

I can see Egwene getting there, she's already become very impatient and thinks she knows best regarding Telaranrhiod (not even attempting to apostrophise it...).

Im more into the Forsaken than anything else I think, Im finding their bits really enjoyable. 

[Follyfoot]

2 hours ago, mjmooney said:

What, no Villa players' names? 

None

[rjw63]

15 hours ago, Follyfoot said:

@rjw63

 

Not good news Rob, third of a way into the new Reacher, OK but something is missing, very much like his last couple 

First time I haven't bought one since 2007. Actually still haven't finished the previous one, they just aren't as good anymore.