Anyone reading a book?

I finally finished “The Life Impossible”, it was ok. While there was a message it was trying to deliver it all went a bit weird. 6/10.

Have passed it on to my Mum to read, will see how she gets on with it having never been to Ibiza.
 
Just finished reading "Klara and the Sun". It's written in a deceptively simple style, but I think there's a lot in it, which might require another read to fully grasp. Wasn't left devastated as I was by the same author's "Never Let Me Go", one of my favourite books.

Got a huge pile of books on my shelf still to read, being a slow reader. :spank: Think I will go for a music one next - "Ten Thousand Apologies", story of Fat White Family. :twisted:
 
Johnny Vodka said:
Just finished reading "Klara and the Sun". It's written in a deceptively simple style, but I think there's a lot in it, which might require another read to fully grasp. Wasn't left devastated as I was by the same author's "Never Let Me Go", one of my favourite books.
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A month ago I went for a weeks day holiday in Morocco. I took Moby-Dick (700 pages) and Sword of Honour (900 pages/3 books). But at the airport I "had to" buy The Crossing (Cormac McCarthy) and Never Let Me Go. You can never take too many books on a short holiday. :rolleyes:

Never Let Me Go is next on my reading list.

During recent months I have discovered two books that now rank in my top 10 reads. One is The Leopard by Guiseppe di Lampedusa. Set in Italy in the 1860s onwards, during the unification of Italy, it's a story of a more noble and orderly age regretfully passing by. It's rather Bridesheadian, although with the family patriarch as the main character. The book was made into a movie in the 1960s, with Alain Delon in one of the leading roles. I finished the book shortly before he died, and suddenly my Twitter feed was packed with clips from The Leopard.

The other was Stoner by John Williams. It's a bit of slow-burn read, but gradually an absolutely brilliant book. I found the chapters about two of the women in his life most enjoyable. I found the ending somewhat meh, and unlike most readers I did not cry. I must be getting old and unimpressionable.

I've recently finished The Lessons by Ian McEwan. It's a great read if one is into post-war British history, and a story of a life being lived yet with unfulfilled potential, a sense of loss and regret, and a poignant and slightly melancholic feeling where there perhaps should be reason for quiet British contentment. The ending is surprisingly elegant. I don't appreciate all his books, like Saturday (from his mid-career Guardian phase). But both On Chesil Beach, Machines like Me, and now The Lessons are enjoyable reads.
 
Snowy said:
I've recently finished The Lessons by Ian McEwan. It's a great read if one is into post-war British history, and a story of a life being lived yet with unfulfilled potential, a sense of loss and regret, and a poignant and slightly melancholic feeling where there perhaps should be reason for quiet British contentment. The ending is surprisingly elegant. I don't appreciate all his books, like Saturday (from his mid-career Guardian phase). But both On Chesil Beach, Machines like Me, and now The Lessons are enjoyable reads.
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I used to read a lot of Ian McEwan, from his dark and strange early stuff to when he became a proper literary figure. Interesting transition!

There's an interview/profile of Kazuo Ishiguro on iplayer. I saw it ages ago, but would like to find time for it again after finishing Klara...

www.bbc.co.uk

imagine... - 2021: Kazuo Ishiguro: Remembering and Forgetting

A revealing profile of the Nobel Prize-winning novelist Kazuo Ishiguro, author of The Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go, as he publishes his much-anticipated new book, Klara and the Sun.
www.bbc.co.uk www.bbc.co.uk
 
2H76 said:
Do maps - especially Ordnance Survey ones - count as "books"? If so I have an extensive library!
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Like books, maps are a gateway for the imagination to travel back in time, or across cultures, or even into ones family history and therefore discover oneself.

One of my favourites is a map my father bought just after the war when he visited Norway. Several of the peaks were at the time still unclimbed. More than 50 years later I started climbing them.

Another favourite is a German atlas of the German colonies from 1913! Obviously the ink was barely dry before the atlas became outdated. :rolleyes:
 
Didn't know there was a book club on here, superb!

Got a family holiday coming up so have ordered:

The Picture Of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
Minority Rule - Ash Sarkar

Have also just started Of Mice and Men for about the 15th time. The only book I've read more than once, always loved it.

Recently read The Trading Game by Gary Stevenson. His message is really getting out there of late!
 
mashednlovingit said:
Didn't know there was a book club on here, superb!

Got a family holiday coming up so have ordered:

The Picture Of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
Minority Rule - Ash Sarkar

Have also just started Of Mice and Men for about the 15th time. The only book I've read more than once, always loved it.

Recently read The Trading Game by Gary Stevenson. His message is really getting out there of late!
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yeah, I noticed Stevenson's all over YouTube. The recent debate on Steven Bartlett's channel was pretty good
 
Just started a reread of the Aurelio Zen series. Detective novels set in Italy.
Mixing it with an Anna Wintour biography by Amy Odell. Enjoying both.
 
The Sun God said:
Map nerds, check out Stanfords near Covent Garden. Amazing shop. Dunno how they survive in this day and age.
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..because of map nerds like me! The very old ones are - literally - works of art. Worth googling "old maps of Ibiza" but don't use for driving around!!

But back on topic of books, anyone collect those guide books that used to be on the shelves - and if so, any recommendations?
 
mashednlovingit said:
Didn't know there was a book club on here, superb!

Got a family holiday coming up so have ordered:

The Picture Of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
Minority Rule - Ash Sarkar

Have also just started Of Mice and Men for about the 15th time. The only book I've read more than once, always loved it.

Recently read The Trading Game by Gary Stevenson. His message is really getting out there of late!
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I really rate Ash Sarkar- she's a very astute young lady. Of Mice and Men is my favourite of Steinbeck and the movie starring John Malkovic as Lenny is one of the few movies (along with To Kill a Mockingbird) to do such a classic novel justice- make a point of seeing it if you haven't already.
 
Padster said:
I really rate Ash Sarkar- she's a very astute young lady. Of Mice and Men is my favourite of Steinbeck and the movie starring John Malkovic as Lenny is one of the few movies (along with To Kill a Mockingbird) to do such a classic novel justice- make a point of seeing it if you haven't already.
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I seem to be getting more left leaning as I get older?! Even watching Novara Media vids daily now! Never thought I'd say that!

Oh yes that film is unbelievably good. I really want to see a stage version of it and it was on round my way recently but found out too late :(
 
I think Sarkar is someone who belatedly realised that the Left overdid all the woke stuff and that ultimately everything really boils down to class economics. We're now in this weird situation where lefties call for open borders and, by extension, more exploitative capitalism whilst people on the right want to shut down borders and hit global trade. Everything's been turned on its head. Across the West, people spent years getting bogged down in navel-gazing whilst the nastiest regimes re-armed. And now the future is scary as f*** for everyone in Europe.

I think Spain is likely to change in many ways esp if the right get elected. It would not surprise me to see military service ("la mili") brought back, even though that would be as popular as cholera. I could easily see tourism take a nose dive too, if people start freaking out about financial security. An article yesterday in La Vanguardia said that the EU are telling people to stock up on provisions (!!!) and get ready for tough times ahead, something I never imagined I'd see again after the Cold War ended.
 
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