Matthew Posted October 2, 2010 Report Posted October 2, 2010 (edited) On October 7, the Noble Prize in Literature will be announced. I'm getting a feeling in my bones that Thomas Pynchon will be named. I have no reason to think this, but it's just a hunch. Philip Roth would be nice also.... The betting line Edited October 2, 2010 by Matthew Quote
Matthew Posted October 4, 2010 Report Posted October 4, 2010 City of Nets: A Portrait of Hollywood in the 1940s by Otto Friedrich. One of my all time favorite Hollywood books. Quote
ghost of miles Posted October 4, 2010 Author Report Posted October 4, 2010 On 10/4/2010 at 8:27 PM, Matthew said: City of Nets: A Portrait of Hollywood in the 1940s by Otto Friedrich. One of my all time favorite Hollywood books. Yes! I read this a few years ago...your post makes me want to pull it out again. Thanks for the reminder, Matthew. Quote
Matthew Posted October 4, 2010 Report Posted October 4, 2010 On 10/4/2010 at 9:45 PM, ghost of miles said: On 10/4/2010 at 8:27 PM, Matthew said: City of Nets: A Portrait of Hollywood in the 1940s by Otto Friedrich. One of my all time favorite Hollywood books. Yes! I read this a few years ago...your post makes me want to pull it out again. Thanks for the reminder, Matthew. Ghostie: Have you read Friedrich's book on Berlin in the 1920's? I hear that's supposed to be very good also. Quote
Brad Posted October 5, 2010 Report Posted October 5, 2010 Re-reading Hugh Thomas' The Spanish Civil War. Quote
A Lark Ascending Posted October 5, 2010 Report Posted October 5, 2010 200 pages in and gripped. Some marvellous examples of the realities of segregation that I'll use in my Civil Rights lessons. Quote
ghost of miles Posted October 5, 2010 Author Report Posted October 5, 2010 On 10/4/2010 at 10:43 PM, Matthew said: On 10/4/2010 at 9:45 PM, ghost of miles said: On 10/4/2010 at 8:27 PM, Matthew said: City of Nets: A Portrait of Hollywood in the 1940s by Otto Friedrich. One of my all time favorite Hollywood books. Yes! I read this a few years ago...your post makes me want to pull it out again. Thanks for the reminder, Matthew. Ghostie: Have you read Friedrich's book on Berlin in the 1920's? I hear that's supposed to be very good also. BEFORE THE DELUGE? I got it years ago on a girlfriend's recommendation but still haven't read it yet...matter of fact, I'm not sure I realized it was the same author. Brad: that's another book I have but haven't read yet. A Lark Ascending: glad you're digging the Duke book! Quote
Jazzmoose Posted October 6, 2010 Report Posted October 6, 2010 On 10/2/2010 at 9:54 PM, Matthew said: On October 7, the Noble Prize in Literature will be announced. I'm getting a feeling in my bones that Thomas Pynchon will be named. I have no reason to think this, but it's just a hunch. Philip Roth would be nice also.... The betting line Maybe that would get me to finally drag Gravity's Rainbow off the shelf over there. I think I've been dragging it around for thirty years now... Quote
paul secor Posted October 6, 2010 Report Posted October 6, 2010 (edited) Reginald Hill: Recalled to Life Detective Inspector Andrew Dalziel is one of the great comic characters in English literature. Edited October 6, 2010 by paul secor Quote
ejp626 Posted October 7, 2010 Report Posted October 7, 2010 Just wrapped up Nabokov's Laughter in the Dark. I'm just not enjoying his books at all. Four novels in, and it's becoming a chore. I'm thinking about reading Lolita and calling it quits. At least I've found more of genuine interest in Mahfouz and Narayan. Taking a short break to read a South African writer: Ivan Vladislavic's The Folly. Quote
Jazzmoose Posted October 9, 2010 Report Posted October 9, 2010 Alan Dean Foster: Glory Lane. Pure fluff, but a good work-break and lunch book... Quote
BillF Posted October 11, 2010 Report Posted October 11, 2010 The second David Storey I've read recently. Quote
paul secor Posted October 13, 2010 Report Posted October 13, 2010 W.P. Kinsella: The Moccasin Telegraph and Other Stories Quote
Jazzmoose Posted October 13, 2010 Report Posted October 13, 2010 Kinsella...wow. I haven't read his stuff in years. I'll have to break out The Iowa Baseball Confederacy and see if it's as good as I remember. Quote
paul secor Posted October 13, 2010 Report Posted October 13, 2010 On 10/13/2010 at 1:29 AM, Jazzmoose said: Kinsella...wow. I haven't read his stuff in years. I'll have to break out The Iowa Baseball Confederacy and see if it's as good as I remember. Haven't read his baseball fiction recently, but his Silas Ermineskin stories have held up for me. Quote
jlhoots Posted October 13, 2010 Report Posted October 13, 2010 On 10/13/2010 at 1:51 AM, paul secor said: On 10/13/2010 at 1:29 AM, Jazzmoose said: Kinsella...wow. I haven't read his stuff in years. I'll have to break out The Iowa Baseball Confederacy and see if it's as good as I remember. Haven't read his baseball fiction recently, but his Silas Ermineskin stories have held up for me. All good. I'm approx. 20% of the way through Franzen: Freedom. I like it so far. Quote
Royal Oak Posted October 14, 2010 Report Posted October 14, 2010 The Woman Chaser - Charles Willeford. An undemanding, enjoyable read. Quote
ejp626 Posted October 16, 2010 Report Posted October 16, 2010 I've been reading some of Eugene O'Neill's later plays -- Iceman Cometh, Touch of the Poet, Moon for the Misbegotten. (I'm actually going to see a production of Long Day's Journey into Night next month, so I'm holding off on that.) I can't help but notice how many are set in bars or are about drunken wastrels. While he is still a terrific dramatist, his range, particularly in his last few plays, is pretty narrow, particularly when compared to Tennessee Williams who went in some really crazy directions in his last plays. While I am not going to "read" this in any serious way, I was stoked to find a digital copy of I. N. Phelps Stokes' Iconography of Manhattan Island. Given this sells for upwards of $5000, I think I'll settle for the (free) PDF version: http://clio.cul.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=5800727 Quote
BillF Posted October 17, 2010 Report Posted October 17, 2010 On 10/16/2010 at 11:54 AM, ejp626 said: I've been reading some of Eugene O'Neill's later plays -- Iceman Cometh, Touch of the Poet, Moon for the Misbegotten. (I'm actually going to see a production of Long Day's Journey into Night next month, so I'm holding off on that.) I can't help but notice how many are set in bars or are about drunken wastrels. While he is still a terrific dramatist, his range, particularly in his last few plays, is pretty narrow, particularly when compared to Tennessee Williams who went in some really crazy directions in his last plays. Yes, I read a few O'Neills, but never found them memorable, unlike Williams. Perhaps some of the difference is because O'Neill belongs to an era pretty distant from our own - so much of his stuff was written in the 20s and the 30s, whereas Williams' key period is at least 20 years later. But, where American drama is concerned, Arthur Miller is my favorite, both for intensity and social message. Quote
ejp626 Posted October 17, 2010 Report Posted October 17, 2010 On 10/17/2010 at 3:57 PM, BillF said: On 10/16/2010 at 11:54 AM, ejp626 said: I've been reading some of Eugene O'Neill's later plays... Yes, I read a few O'Neills, but never found them memorable, unlike Williams. Perhaps some of the difference is because O'Neill belongs to an era pretty distant from our own - so much of his stuff was written in the 20s and the 30s, whereas Williams' key period is at least 20 years later. But, where American drama is concerned, Arthur Miller is my favorite, both for intensity and social message. I've been very fortunate that a company here in Chicago has been doing some of Arthur Miller's real rarities, including Resurrection Blues & After the Fall. I should be able to watch A View from the Bridge later this season, and with that, I'll have seen nearly everything (at least the ones I wanted to see) with the exception of Incident at Vichy (which was done while I was out of Chicago). Quote
BillF Posted October 17, 2010 Report Posted October 17, 2010 Very much enjoyed this. Le Carré in humorous mode - the location recalled Graham Greene, the satire Evelyn Waugh. Quote
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