A Good Read: Book Suggestions & Recommendations

[Spookdaddy]

Well, I finally knocked Our Mutual Friend on the head after a couple of months of intermittent but largely pleasurable reading. But it's the size of the thing! How can you go about recommending 830 closely-typed pages of anything...

After reading The Dumas Club by Arturo Peréz-Reverte I bought a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo. Although obviously familiar with the title it really wasn't something I'd naturally settle down to reading, but for years I'd been hearing it referred to as a favorite novel by many writers - and Peréz-Reverte was the last straw.

Anyway - 1243 pages in the Penguin Classics edition :shock: (Not counting notes.)

I've not finished it, and tend to dip in and out between reading other titles; I know a lot of people hate doing that but fortunately I've got a good plot memory. I'm bingeing on Scandinavian crime fiction at the moment and swashing my buckle in warmer climes makes a nice change.

(Anyone interested should buy the Robin Buss translation; apparently the older one, which some editions are still based on, is old-school, but not in a good way - it's been bowdlerised for a start.)

 

[Yithian]

I taught a translated, abridged AND graded edition of The Count of Monte Cristo: less than 90 small pages! (And not my choice)

The first chapter was quite leisurely and rather enjoyable, but the rest of the book was just a high-speed romp where characters are introduced and then die or disappear a few pages later. Motivations for actions seemed to come from out of nowhere and be decidedly ropey. And, worst of all, the main characters changed their names and titles and have similarly named offspring so often that I was truly lost - never mind the teenage English learner!

I'm sure the original is better; I'd hope so.

As to real books, I'm reading (and teaching) To Kill A Mockingbird, and it's good. I feel like somewhat of a late-comer. Anyway, the 'voice' of Holden Caulfield is one of the most authentic and believable of any I've ever read - and it's surprisingly funny, in a way.

 

[Ravenstone]

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favourite books.

 

[Monstrosa]

...

As to real books, I'm reading (and teaching) To Kill A Mockingbird, and it's good. I feel like somewhat of a late-comer. Anyway, the 'voice' of Holden Caulfield is one of the most authentic and believable of any I've ever read - and it's surprisingly funny, in a way.

you have either the Title or the character incorrect. It's either "The Catcher in the Rye" or Scout Finch.

 

[Yithian]

Someone must have switched covers on me!

No, you're quite right. I've just ordered a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird to teach to the same student next. In my head I muddled the titles. I meant The Catcher in the Rye - which I am similarly late to the game in reading.

 

[Spookdaddy]

I taught a translated, abridged AND graded edition of The Count of Monte Cristo: less than 90 small pages! (And not my choice)...I'm sure the original is better; I'd hope so...

I would think so. 1243 into 90? Kind of reminds me of those homeopathic remedies that are so diluted that the original substance no longer exists in the final product.

I've never understood the point of abridged novels. I mean, I understand why a long book would be impractical for the purpose of teaching a foriegn language - but why not just use short stories in their original form?

Apart from the Scandinavian crime binge I mentioned I've also recently read:

Montaillou, by Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie: medieval life in a French village as elaborated through the records of the Inquisition's persecution of the Cathars - the everyday chronicled through a study of the extraordinary.

The Cold War, by John Lewis Gaddis: a lucid, thriller paced and very readable history of the Cold War.

The Winter War: The Russo-Finnish War of 1939-40, by William Trotter. The classic account of a hugely overlooked and fascinating episode of WW2.

 

[Spudrick68]

Two books that ma be of interest are now available through Project Gutenberg:

Arthur Macken - The Angel of Mons, The Bowmen...

And

W. H. Myers - Human Personality & Its Survival of Bodily Death.

 

[DrWhiteface]

I am reading (again!) Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson. It's an outstanding read...

 

[Yithian]

...I'm going through a Graham Green phase having 'enjoyed' (not quite the word) The Heart of the Matter a great deal...

Marvellous book, though it was bloody nearly wrecked for me when I had to do it at A Level - took me 20 years to pick it up again, despite happily reading Greene's other works in the meantime. My favourite remains The End of the Affair - I find it rewards the reader more on every reading.

I've gone on to read several books by Graham Greene now. In order of reading:

The Heart of the Matter
The Quiet American
Our Man in Havana
The Power and the Glory
The Comedians
The End of the Affair

The dark Haitian setting of The Comedians was most effective - and it gave me the sparks of a history lesson. The End of the Affair was a powerful piece of writing that quite affected me. All the more so, I think, for its continuation beyond the obvious point of Sarah's death and into Bendrix's theological suspicions. And I particularly like the very final scene of Bendrix and Henry walking across the common to the pub: Conrad meets Forster meets Casablanca. I read The Power and the Glory whilst on a distant and deserted island beach, which was one hell of a juxtaposition, and while I enjoyed it a great deal, I'd say I did more so towards the beginning and end, with perhaps the middle being drawn-out a little too much. The opening scenes are, as has been often mentioned, stunningly cinematic.

I've just started Brighton Rock and it seems to be set at a faster pace that the others that I've read. The Honorary Consul and the The Human Factor remain on the 'to-read'. I'm beginning to suspect that I've found a new favourite author and would be grateful if anyone could recommend his other highlights (I like to go from better to worse). I had thought that The Ministry of Fear and Travels with my Aunt might come next, unless anyone can think of choice higher up the ladder. I like the sound of the set up in The Captain and the Enemy, but it didn't get terribly good reviews compared with his other work - perhaps that's the problem: the comparison with his towering highlights.

See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Greene_bibliography

 

[stu neville]

I think as Greene got older his grasp of narrative started to loosen a little. Which isn't to say the books are duff - he was too self-critical to publish anything below par - but the way he tells stories noticeably alters. I think that's what throws some people, particularly literary critics who like their authors to work in a particular and consistent way . Good example being Dr Fischer of Geneva, which is Greene through and through, but structurally feels altogether different.

I've read pretty much the entire canon, and can honestly say there isn't a single one I'd have given a miss.

Brighton Rock? Cracking book. Also the two movie adaptations both serve it well (Greene did the honours with the first one himself, and last years' allowed the visceral nature to be fully portrayed.)

 

[Spookdaddy]

They have a Graham Greene festival every September (I think) in Berkhamstead.

(Or Bumstead, as a friend who once lived there calls it - the reason for which I do not know and have no desire to find out).

I only found out recently that the Ferris wheel Cuckoo Clock speech in The Third Man was not Greene's writing - and is almost entirely inaccurate. (Probably already well-known to Greene buffs).

 

[Ravenstone]

The Doomsday Testament by James Douglas.

A fun romp. A missing Nazi scientist; a missing Tibetan artefact; and a race against time.... What more could anyone want??

 

[Monstrosa]

"The Strange Affair of Spring-Heeled Jack" by Mark Hodder. Steam-punk alternate history and a jolly good read.
Currently reading "The Martian Ambassador" by Alan K. Baker. Steam-punk again, Spring-heeled Jack again but we have Martians and fairies thrown into the mix. The action fair jounces along, a real page-turner.

 

[GNC]

Just finished Ernest Borgnine's autobiography this afternoon. What a great guy, and what an entertaining read, full of anecdotes, he doesn't drone on, just succinctly relates his stories and tells it like it is. Or was. Stuff about The Black Hole, The Devil's Rain, Willard, and loads more, he's funny and charming and it's like having a conversation with him.

If you like showbiz autobios where the author doesn't get on their high horse and knows you want to hear the good stuff (like how awful Shelley Winters was!) then this is highly recommended. Not bad for a man pushing one hundred years old, either, we should all hope to be so sharp at that age.

 

[special_farces]

If you have at least half a spare life it's worth tackling Marina Warners work. I'm currently scaling the north face of 'Phantasmagoria', an exploration of the representation the soul and spirit in art, literature and culture.

'From the beast to the blonde' deals with the origins, meanings and evolution of fairy tales.

And 'No go the bogeyman', a lightweight at 387 pages, tackles the prevalence of masculine ogres, gaints and fiends, all often employed to intimidate children.

An example of magical realism I enjoyed a few years ago is 'The Minotaur takes a cigarette break' by Steven Sherrill. Written before the Dionysian larks in True Blood, 'The Minotaur' is about a regular guy (with a bulls head) holding down a job at a diner in America.

And for sheer bonkersness there is 'Rats & Gargoyles' by Mary Gentle. Its best to be straight up about this book, parts of it are not exactly well written. But the ideas, characters and some of the passages are incredible, and the final chapters utterly amazing. It is a gorgeous, deeply engaging fantasy, involving the astrological signs as gods, an extra dimension in everyday life and humans rats and magical forces engaged in, among many other things, saving the world from apocalypse.

 

[Ravenstone]

I tried Rats and Gargoyles years ago. Couldn't get into it.

Read Jon Ronson's The Psychopath Test at the weekend. Amusing.

 

[Spookdaddy]

...An example of magical realism I enjoyed a few years ago is 'The Minotaur takes a cigarette break' by Steven Sherrill. Written before the Dionysian larks in True Blood, 'The Minotaur' is about a regular guy (with a bulls head) holding down a job at a diner in America...

I'm not normally a fan of magical realism - real life seems to be weird enough already, to my mind - but I really enjoyed The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break, and I think I may have recommended myself way back whenever.

I gave my copy to an insane Alabamian New Yorker actor type I was having bit of a thing with at the time - she later said it reminded her of me. To be honest, I wasn't sure how to take that - for a start, I don't smoke.

I've had a copy of Marina Warner's No Go the Bogeyman sitting on my shelf for years - and never got around to reading it. Must do so - thanks for the nudge, special farces.

 

[Moooksta]

Read Jon Ronson's The Psychopath Test at the weekend. Amusing.

Halfway through, really enjoying it. Ronson on form IMO.

 

[sherbetbizarre]

Headpress have released Conspiracy Cinema - Propaganda, Politics and Paranoia

http://www.headpress.com/ShowProduct.aspx?ID=108

Tens of millions of people have seen films like Loose Change and Zeitgeist, yet this is the first book to offer a guide to the weird, disturbing, hilarious and frequently mind-blowing genre of conspiracy cinema.

Each chapter of Conspiracy Cinema offers readers an overview of a particular conspiracy theory (the Moon landings, 9/11 etc), with a synopsis of both the ‘official’ and conspiratorial positions, before moving on to a selection of the worst, the best and the most outlandish films that deal with the issue in question, both considering them as works of documentary filmmaking, and as arguments in their own right.

53 pages can be previewed here -

http://issuu.com/headpress/docs/consonspiracycinema

 

[Spookdaddy]

As a teenager I was an obsessive sketcher and, after years of neglect, I've started getting back into it - aided by the current coolness of urban sketching (which is where my interest always lay).

Anyway Gabriel Campanario's The Art of Urban Sketching is absolutely beautiful. Dozens of artists from around the world present their subject towns and cities in lots of different styles. You won't have to be a sketcher to appreciate it.

Campanario's blog is here.

Some examples of the genre here.

 

[SHAYBARSABE]

I'm not normally a fan of magical realism - real life seems to be weird enough already, to my mind - but I really enjoyed The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break, and I think I may have recommended myself way back whenever.

Just finished reading The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break, and I can recommend it, too.

 

[Spookdaddy]

Has anyone read Florence and Giles by John Harding?

I should be loving it ('Imagine The Turn of the Screw reworked by Edgar Allen Poe', states The Times review - what's not to like?) but I'm finding the style incredibly irritating. It's had great reviews, and I'm putting my issues down to a case of de gustibus. But that doesn't help me being unable to get beyond the first two lines of chapter 3:

Suddenly my existence was uncosied. I was seriously problemed.

So, to anyone who has read it - should I persevere?

 

[PeniG]

Oh, dear.

With usage like that, unless there's a strong in-story reason to do it - I wouldn't. It'd be like reading a whole novel in LOLspeak.

 

[Spookdaddy]

Oh, dear.

With usage like that, unless there's a strong in-story reason to do it - I wouldn't. It'd be like reading a whole novel in LOLspeak.

To be fair - because I really wouldn't want to put someone off simply because of my own taste - the narrator/protagonist is a 12-year-old girl who has been deliberately deprived of education and has taught herself to read and write through illicit visits to a library. The language is obviously intended to reflect the nature of her learning; I can totally see what the author's doing with it, and why - it's just that it drives me up the wall.

 

[Ravenstone]

In that case, the writer shouldn't over-do it, and you might find the cases of annoying word-creation should reduce in a chapter or two. If not, it might just be too annoying to continue. So I'd give it at least another chapter.

I read Christopher Moore's Bite Me a while back. Candyfloss for the brain. It took about two hours to read. But the start of it was all first person as a California chick. Basically.... -

"So I was like grrr, and the master, he was a bit stern, and the Mistress was like, whatever, so I thought WTF and went off to find my dark lover and stud muffin, who was like waaaaaay too intense about his Subaru...."

And so on. It was amusing for a few pages. It was just getting irritating when it changed to a different character, which saved the book going straight in the bin.

 

[Novena]

I'm reading John Le Carre's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy at the moment. Never read the book before, but I'm a massive fan of the 1979 TV series with Alec Guinness. I recently watched the film version with Gary Oldman and was mightily disappointed with it, so I wanted to check out the novel so I could compare all three versions. I'm about two thirds through it and I must say the TV series was absolutely spot-on, not only plot-wise but in terms of the "feel" of the novel too.

 

[Mal_Adjusted]

still ploughing through Neal Stephenson's "Anathem" - seriously good read. only another 300 pages to go

 

[SHAYBARSABE]

still ploughing through Neal Stephenson's "Anathem" - seriously good read. only another 300 pages to go

Because I listen to books (mostly), I just checked Anathem at audible.com. Wow--32 hours of recording. Is it really that good? (Contrast that time to Gaiman's American Gods which was 16 hours long.)

 

[ramonmercado]

still ploughing through Neal Stephenson's "Anathem" - seriously good read. only another 300 pages to go

Because I listen to books (mostly), I just checked Anathem at audible.com. Wow--32 hours of recording. Is it really that good? (Contrast that time to Gaiman's American Gods which was 16 hours long.)

Its worth the time, esp if you are into SF & maths.

 

[Anome]

I was the one person I know of who preferred the bits of Anathem devoted to the cloistered life of the academic monks.