mjmooney Posted December 19, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted December 19, 2023 40 minutes ago, MakemineVanilla said: I certainly did and I was watching an old TV programme the other day, discussing modernism, and it go a mention. I think it might have been mentioned that modernist authors have terrible difficulty in finishing. I finally got through it, but bloody hell it was hard work. Comparisons with Joyce and Proust well wide of the mark, imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rds1983 Posted December 25, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted December 25, 2023 (edited) Gift from the wife. Can't wait to read this as thought I'd never read a Pratchett for the first time ever again. Edited December 25, 2023 by Rds1983 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutByEaster? Posted December 25, 2023 Moderator Share Posted December 25, 2023 2 minutes ago, Rds1983 said: Gift from the wide. I'm not sure she's going to appreciate this nickname. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rds1983 Posted December 25, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted December 25, 2023 21 minutes ago, OutByEaster? said: I'm not sure she's going to appreciate this nickname. Been called worse. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MakemineVanilla Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 Determined to seek a bit of comfort and familiarity through these dark and chilly days of January, I decided to re-read Iain Banks's best book, The Crow Road. Its just as good as I vaguely remember it. Some say it is his best book, and I wouldn't disagree. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted January 16 VT Supporter Share Posted January 16 2 hours ago, MakemineVanilla said: Determined to seek a bit of comfort and familiarity through these dark and chilly days of January, I decided to re-read Iain Banks's best book, The Crow Road. Its just as good as I vaguely remember it. Some say it is his best book, and I wouldn't disagree. Never read that one. I'm a big fan of The Bridge, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MakemineVanilla Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 23 minutes ago, mjmooney said: Never read that one. I'm a big fan of The Bridge, though. I never got round to reading his science-fiction, did you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted January 16 VT Supporter Share Posted January 16 1 hour ago, MakemineVanilla said: I never got round to reading his science-fiction, did you? Some of it, yeah. Enjoyed it, but it was a long time ago. I've still got 3 or 4 unread of his Culture novels. Not high on my 'to read' list, tbh. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marka Ragnos Posted January 24 VT Supporter Share Posted January 24 WG Sebald's Austerlitz ... amazing, strange, slowly entrancing novel. It's truly an English novel, but written by a German ex-pat. I think it's the best novel in English from the last 25 years. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted January 24 VT Supporter Share Posted January 24 33 minutes ago, Marka Ragnos said: WG Sebald's Austerlitz ... amazing, strange, slowly entrancing novel. It's truly an English novel, but written by a German ex-pat. I think it's the best novel in English from the last 25 years. I like The Rings of Saturn, too. Just finished Malcolm Bradbury's 'To the Hermitage', and started on Joyce's 'Dubliners'. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marka Ragnos Posted January 24 VT Supporter Share Posted January 24 53 minutes ago, mjmooney said: I like The Rings of Saturn, too. Just finished Malcolm Bradbury's 'To the Hermitage', and started on Joyce's 'Dubliners'. Was re-reading “A Painful Case” today! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MakemineVanilla Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 On 24/01/2024 at 19:43, mjmooney said: I like The Rings of Saturn, too. Just finished Malcolm Bradbury's 'To the Hermitage', and started on Joyce's 'Dubliners'. I really enjoyed The Rings of Saturn, and for those who might not be familiar with it, it is about a German guy's fascination with the landscape of the East Anglian coast, which he finds has sort of mystic qualities. Having stayed at my aunt's cottage as a child, I have to agree that the landscape seems hauntingly mysterious, with its strange network of Dykes. It has the sort of spooky strangeness which David Lean attempted to capture in his film of Great Expectations, or even Jonathan Miller's production of Whistle and I'll Come to You. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutByEaster? Posted January 25 Moderator Share Posted January 25 Not quite in the same high brow mode as much of the last couple of pages, but I just finished The Enchanters by James Ellroy and it's another glorious romp through his favourite historical period, playing fast and loose with fact and reputation, often with just enough truth to keep him out of court. He's my go-to easy read. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharkyvilla Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Could be one for the piss you off thread but recently it seems like all new books are more expensive on the Kindle than hardback. There must be very little printing, distribution or warehouse costs involved surely so how can they charge more? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted January 26 VT Supporter Share Posted January 26 11 hours ago, OutByEaster? said: Not quite in the same high brow mode as much of the last couple of pages, but I just finished The Enchanters by James Ellroy and it's another glorious romp through his favourite historical period, playing fast and loose with fact and reputation, often with just enough truth to keep him out of court. He's my go-to easy read. Ooh, didn't know this was out. That said, as a big fan of the original LA Quartet (and a 40s nerd) I had really looked forward to Perfidia, but was actually a bit disappointed with it. I haven't read This Storm. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutByEaster? Posted January 26 Moderator Share Posted January 26 2 minutes ago, mjmooney said: Ooh, didn't know this was out. That said, as a big fan of the original LA Quartet (and a 40s nerd) I had really looked forward to Perfidia, but was actually a bit disappointed with it. I haven't read This Storm. There seems to be a bit more fun in the most recent ones - The Enchanters and Widespread Panic - Freddy Otash, is quite a character (and, as is the way of these things, was actually a real person of much the same qualities). 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MakemineVanilla Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 14 hours ago, OutByEaster? said: Not quite in the same high brow mode as much of the last couple of pages, but I just finished The Enchanters by James Ellroy and it's another glorious romp through his favourite historical period, playing fast and loose with fact and reputation, often with just enough truth to keep him out of court. He's my go-to easy read. No one should get snooty about James Ellroy, he's a master at what he does. I love pulp and it is lamentable that so little Dan Turner is available at a reasonable price. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutByEaster? Posted January 26 Moderator Share Posted January 26 42 minutes ago, MakemineVanilla said: No one should get snooty about James Ellroy, he's a master at what he does. He's absolutely brilliant at what he does - the world he has created, with all these crossover characters and the weaving in of real events is amazing,. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dante_Lockhart Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 I should read a lot more in my spare time rather than procrastinating and generally being a sloth. I'm pretty sure I can read. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marka Ragnos Posted January 26 VT Supporter Share Posted January 26 17 hours ago, MakemineVanilla said: It has the sort of spooky strangeness which David Lean attempted to capture in his film of Great Expectations, or even Jonathan Miller's production of Whistle and I'll Come to You. You've sorted my film streaming plans for the weekend -- thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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