Snowy
Active Member
I'm back from a month in Greece. This is what I read:
When We were Orphans - Kazou Ishiguro
I've now read 4 of his books, and this is not amongst my favourites. Choose another Ishiguro.
The Buried Giant - Kazou Ishiguro
This is a decent read, although not amongst my favourite of his books. It's more chicklit than dicklit.
Klara and the Sun - Kazou Ishiguro
This was surprisingly good read. The cruelty slips in matter-of-factly and portioned out unexpectedly, not unlike as in Never Let Me Go. Can recommend.
The Sound of Waves - Yukio Mishima
A decent read and a predictable story, but probably most interesting due to the location (rural Japan) and, to me, a novel culture.
(Yes, I'm going through my Japanese authors phase. I have a few more books by Mishima lined up. Only later did I find out that Mishima has recently become a darling of the aesthetic, body building/fitness, nationalistic, western, online, right-wing. He led an attempted coup d'etat in Japan in 1970, and which culminated in his inevitable seppuku. Imagine a crossover between Bruce Lee (martial arts and physique), Douglas Murray (writer), Brad Pitt (model/actor/aesthetics) and Mussolini (politics). Yet his books are widely available, and unavoidable, in bookstores in Norway. I'm going to have to read a few more of them to see what all the fuss is about.)
Sweet Tooth - Ian McEwan
A great read, despite being somewhat in the tail end of McEwan's mid-career, Guardian phase. Can recommend.
Waiting for the Barbarians - J M Coetzee
This is his first novel, from the early 1970s. I've read 3 of his books, and this is the only one I've really liked. Can recommend.
A Farewell to Arms - Ernest Hemingway
I'm starting to agree with his critics. Not sure if this novel is worth the read. It left me wanting.
The Golden House - Salman Rushdie
This was unexpectedly brilliant. It was my 3rd attempt at one of his books - having failed the first 2 one. In this book, being one of his later-career books, the richness and details have been toned done. The sentences are less complicated, and easier to read. Rushdie doesn't cram too much in anymore. Everything about this book is absolutely brilliant. I had to take breaks in order not to finish it too quickly. This was the highlight of my summer reading. Can recommend.
When We were Orphans - Kazou Ishiguro
I've now read 4 of his books, and this is not amongst my favourites. Choose another Ishiguro.
The Buried Giant - Kazou Ishiguro
This is a decent read, although not amongst my favourite of his books. It's more chicklit than dicklit.
Klara and the Sun - Kazou Ishiguro
This was surprisingly good read. The cruelty slips in matter-of-factly and portioned out unexpectedly, not unlike as in Never Let Me Go. Can recommend.
The Sound of Waves - Yukio Mishima
A decent read and a predictable story, but probably most interesting due to the location (rural Japan) and, to me, a novel culture.
(Yes, I'm going through my Japanese authors phase. I have a few more books by Mishima lined up. Only later did I find out that Mishima has recently become a darling of the aesthetic, body building/fitness, nationalistic, western, online, right-wing. He led an attempted coup d'etat in Japan in 1970, and which culminated in his inevitable seppuku. Imagine a crossover between Bruce Lee (martial arts and physique), Douglas Murray (writer), Brad Pitt (model/actor/aesthetics) and Mussolini (politics). Yet his books are widely available, and unavoidable, in bookstores in Norway. I'm going to have to read a few more of them to see what all the fuss is about.)
Sweet Tooth - Ian McEwan
A great read, despite being somewhat in the tail end of McEwan's mid-career, Guardian phase. Can recommend.
Waiting for the Barbarians - J M Coetzee
This is his first novel, from the early 1970s. I've read 3 of his books, and this is the only one I've really liked. Can recommend.
A Farewell to Arms - Ernest Hemingway
I'm starting to agree with his critics. Not sure if this novel is worth the read. It left me wanting.
The Golden House - Salman Rushdie
This was unexpectedly brilliant. It was my 3rd attempt at one of his books - having failed the first 2 one. In this book, being one of his later-career books, the richness and details have been toned done. The sentences are less complicated, and easier to read. Rushdie doesn't cram too much in anymore. Everything about this book is absolutely brilliant. I had to take breaks in order not to finish it too quickly. This was the highlight of my summer reading. Can recommend.
Of course these Scottish lads, true to their characters, had to hate OMD.