I absolutely love David Thomson's Welles biography Rosebud, although many OW fans & experts hate it.
Books The BOOK thread
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I read the first volume of Simon Callow's series. It goes from birth to Citizen Kane, in incredible detail.
Yeah, Callow's books are very comprehensive. But Rosebud is about Orson the myth, as opposed to the reality, and that's why I love the romance of that bio. 
Yeah the reality is definitely less fun. He was a massive twat.Yeah, Callow's books are very comprehensive. But Rosebud is about Orson the myth, as opposed to the reality, and that's why I love the romance of that bio.
Yes a great book. I hunted out a good few of her novels afterwards because of it.
Just finished Infinite Jest. That was...uh, an experience.
How long did it take you?
Nearly two months, but that's accounting for some time when I was away etc where I really wasn't doing too much reading. I read the start fairly quickly, and towards the end sped up again, while sometimes lagging a bit in the middle.
Not too bad.
For the most part I didn't find it hard to get through as such; the prose is fantastic and flows well in spite of how long Wallace's sentences tend to be. Some sections could occasionally drag/feel repetitive, but it's rewarding once you start to piece things together.
Any fans of Faulkner here?
I loved As I Lay Dying, and I'm currently stuck into Light In August, which has been brilliant so far. I'll be reading Absalom, Absalom next.
I loved As I Lay Dying, and I'm currently stuck into Light In August, which has been brilliant so far. I'll be reading Absalom, Absalom next.
Only read As I Lay Dying. Faulkner's challenging in parts but also quite rewarding. Captures numerous different voices well and has a dark humour that runs through the book. Got The Sound and the Fury sitting there to read at some point, but heard it's quite difficult.
As I Lay Dying was a struggle at first but when it clicked, I dug it completely. Sound and Fury is also on the list, looking forward to it.
Got some time away to actually read over the past few weeks wondering if either of you have read any of these. Bit of a mix of quality here, but
A Horse Walks Into a Bar by David Grossman
Still can't work out what I felt about this book. It took me a long time to get into it, but by the end I was powering through the pages (not sure if it was out of interest or because my train was about to arrive). It's certainly not funny despite its title and setting. I originally thought that was the point, but an interview with the translator indicates that it is supposed to be.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
A quick, easy, read and pretty short. I can see why it was popular, but it's all things considered a pretty poor book that unravels quickly. I started off enjoying it, but once you get past its narrative quirk the mystery at the heart of it is so obvious and the resolution fairly unsatisfying. This book felt, to me, like a polished version of the first draft of a good book, but a pretty shitty popcorn thriller for the holiday book crowd in its current form.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Not sure there's anything I can say about this book that hasn't already been said at one point or another. It's utterly compelling, and a stark view into the future. Also Bradbury's future tech predictions are scarcely accurate given that this book was written in 1953. One word of warning, if you get the 50 year anniversary edition do not read Bradbury's preface before reading the book.
The Power by Naomi Alderman
My girlfriend picked this book up, and I was initially highly sceptical. The premise is that women suddenly get the power to control lightning, and the book explores the changing paradigm shift that results from women now being the stronger sex. I expected from the glossy cover and fairly silly premise that this was going to be a garbage book full of ill disguised misanthropic nonsense which was getting praise from the very people who would decry it if it wasn't about women getting 'the power'.
But this book is not that, what it is is an incredibly sophisticated book that plays with its somewhat silly premise to throw up a light on our own society. This is undeniably a feminist book, but this is a feminist book in the true, original, sense of the idea and it's very good for it. I wouldn't say this is an easy read, and I think most readers will feel uncomfortable with it at some point, but it's well worth reading.
A Horse Walks Into a Bar by David Grossman
Still can't work out what I felt about this book. It took me a long time to get into it, but by the end I was powering through the pages (not sure if it was out of interest or because my train was about to arrive). It's certainly not funny despite its title and setting. I originally thought that was the point, but an interview with the translator indicates that it is supposed to be.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
A quick, easy, read and pretty short. I can see why it was popular, but it's all things considered a pretty poor book that unravels quickly. I started off enjoying it, but once you get past its narrative quirk the mystery at the heart of it is so obvious and the resolution fairly unsatisfying. This book felt, to me, like a polished version of the first draft of a good book, but a pretty shitty popcorn thriller for the holiday book crowd in its current form.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Not sure there's anything I can say about this book that hasn't already been said at one point or another. It's utterly compelling, and a stark view into the future. Also Bradbury's future tech predictions are scarcely accurate given that this book was written in 1953. One word of warning, if you get the 50 year anniversary edition do not read Bradbury's preface before reading the book.
The Power by Naomi Alderman
My girlfriend picked this book up, and I was initially highly sceptical. The premise is that women suddenly get the power to control lightning, and the book explores the changing paradigm shift that results from women now being the stronger sex. I expected from the glossy cover and fairly silly premise that this was going to be a garbage book full of ill disguised misanthropic nonsense which was getting praise from the very people who would decry it if it wasn't about women getting 'the power'.
But this book is not that, what it is is an incredibly sophisticated book that plays with its somewhat silly premise to throw up a light on our own society. This is undeniably a feminist book, but this is a feminist book in the true, original, sense of the idea and it's very good for it. I wouldn't say this is an easy read, and I think most readers will feel uncomfortable with it at some point, but it's well worth reading.
The Fate of the Romanovs.
Good book. There's something very dodgy about the standard story of the killings, the 1979 discovery of the bodies, the DNA evidence etc; see Anthony Summers' The File on the Tsar for more details.
Good book. There's something very dodgy about the standard story of the killings, the 1979 discovery of the bodies, the DNA evidence etc; see Anthony Summers' The File on the Tsar for more details.
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Will keep an eye out for this, story has always interested me.
This intriguing book offers a very different take on the mystery:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/File-Tsar-...d=1504626537&sr=1-1&keywords=File+on+the+tsar
https://www.amazon.co.uk/File-Tsar-...d=1504626537&sr=1-1&keywords=File+on+the+tsar
Before I Go to Sleep (S.J Watson) - 7/10
A pretty good read that felt draggy at the start and middle but intriguing toward the end. The last 150 pages or so was captivating and the ending in particular was excellent in a chilling way.
A pretty good read that felt draggy at the start and middle but intriguing toward the end. The last 150 pages or so was captivating and the ending in particular was excellent in a chilling way.
I never finished this book but can't remember why as it was quite intriguing. It's where the woman has short term memory loss isn't it?
Yup that's the one. The first 200 pages were slightly draggy for me, but it really picked up after that.
Anyone read The Nix? Worth reading?
Finally read It, mainly due to the hype around the film adaptation.
I liked it OK, certianly wish I could give it a more glowing praise but for some reason I just couldn't. For those who are more familiar with King's writing style, is he always this verbose? The book could be cut by a third at the very least without losing anything. There were parts that drag on and on on a tangent that has nothing to do with the happenings, kind of frustrated.
I liked it OK, certianly wish I could give it a more glowing praise but for some reason I just couldn't. For those who are more familiar with King's writing style, is he always this verbose? The book could be cut by a third at the very least without losing anything. There were parts that drag on and on on a tangent that has nothing to do with the happenings, kind of frustrated.
God yeah. Apparently he cuts loads of it out as well for the final draft!
We have no bookshops in my town so I had to go to WHSmith *shudders*
I wanted to pick up a copy of The Magic Mountain but of course they didn't have it. Ended up with Love in the Time of Cholera and The Wind-up Bird Chronicle. Not even the biggest Murakami fan but I've heard it's decent.
Read 50 pages of LitoC in Costa earlier. Pretty decent.
I wanted to pick up a copy of The Magic Mountain but of course they didn't have it. Ended up with Love in the Time of Cholera and The Wind-up Bird Chronicle. Not even the biggest Murakami fan but I've heard it's decent.
Read 50 pages of LitoC in Costa earlier. Pretty decent.
What books (if any) do you guys tend to read again and again? I must have read the The Lord of the Rings every year for about ten years or something when I was younger. The last few years I find myself reading Paul Theroux's The Great Railway Bazaar over and over.
I'm travelling through Colombia at the moment, and have been speaking to a few locals about Marquez. I haven't actually read Cholera (it's on the list) yet, but they've recommended some of his short stories - one in particular called (something like) 'Something Bad Is Going To Happen In This Town', which I'll have to try and track down. Have you read One Hundred Years of Solitude?
Nope. The only book I've read is Of Love and Other Demons but it was years ago and I can't remember it well. Really short book. About 100 pages.
How's Columbia?
I've been trying to get through A Brief History of Seven Killings for quite some time now. Some of the characters are amazing (the Burgess' sisters, for example), while some of them require more patience (Papa-lo for instance - could be because the heavier patois makes it harder to disentangle?). I'm half forcing my way through, though that's not to say I'm not enjoying it. Interesting topic, if nothing else!
I think the books I re-read the most often are Joseph Heller's Catch-22 and Michael Ende's Die Unendliche Geschichte. Followed by Brave New World, I guess.
A biography of the *********** Michel Foucault by James Miller. Regardless of Foucault's ideas & whether I agree with them or not, the historical background of his books fascinates me.
I tend to retreat from any text that namedrops Foucault. I'll keep an eye out for that one though.
I've read Gatsby about 20 times. Probably because it's so short, you can read it in a couple of hours.
Ha, I know what you mean, mate.
But, as mentioned, it's the historical stuff he researched - the beginnings of the scientific method, the history of institutions etc etc - that interests me. In this respect, in the context of the biography, his often dubious opinions are almost irrelevant to me.Colombia is an amazing place. Spent a week in the north (Cartagena, Santa Marta) and in Medellin currently. People are great, loads to do/see, and pretty cheap too.
I did exactly the same with lord of the rings, my favorite book when I was young. I read the Godfather multiple times too, every summer at my cabin.
Lately I haven't reread that much, picking new books instead and life getting in the way. Or not really, I'm wasting my time on the internet.
Yes just finished it, and yes it is worth it. In general pretty good, entertaining stuff with some thoughtful interludes and some smart writing... there was something I didn't like about it but don't really want to say what it is. Worth reading for sure.
The Mountain Between Us - 9/10
Loved this read. I was captivated all throughout and the story and language was easy to follow. Slightly predictable towards the end but I still enjoyed it very much. Definitely one of the best fiction I’ve read in a while.
Loved this read. I was captivated all throughout and the story and language was easy to follow. Slightly predictable towards the end but I still enjoyed it very much. Definitely one of the best fiction I’ve read in a while.
Sapiens - A Brief History of Humankind
Yuval Noah Harari
9/10 - Great book. A must for anyone who enjoyed Bill Bryson's book, A Short History of Nearly Everything.
Yuval Noah Harari
9/10 - Great book. A must for anyone who enjoyed Bill Bryson's book, A Short History of Nearly Everything.
have you read Homo Deus? Harari making predictions about the future. Not as good as Sapiens but still full of crazy shit to make you think.
Keep hearing great things about this one.