Now reading...

[kinuta]

[ghost of miles]

[jlhoots]

47 minutes ago, ghost of miles said:

The Amazing Adventures Of Kavalier & Clay remains one of my all time favorite books.

[medjuck]

5 hours ago, ghost of miles said:

Good book. Has some structural resemblance to David Benioff's "City of Thieves". 

[Matthew]

Last of the Old Guard by Louis Auchincloss. Nice novel by Auchincloss, a writer that I discovered this year. Never thought I would like his writing as much as I do, with his concern for wealthy, old families of the upper class New York, reeking of Boarding Schools, law firms and loveless marriages of convenience, all written in that "New Yorker" style that most East Cost writers seemed to have from that era.  However, he turns out to be much better writer than I imagined and I'm enjoying the novels and short stories that I've read so far.

Edited December 25, 2019 by Matthew

[mjzee]

33 minutes ago, Matthew said:

Last of the Old Guard by Louis Auchincloss. Nice novel by Auchincloss, a writer that I discovered this year. Never thought I would like his writing as much as I do, with his concern for wealthy, old families of the upper class New York, reeking of Boarding Schools, law firms and loveless marriages of convenience, all written in that "New Yorker" style that most East Cost writers seemed to have from that era.  However, he turns out to be much better writer than I imagined and I'm enjoying the novels and short stories that I've read so far.

I had the same surprised reaction from the one Auchincloss novel I've read, "Diary of a Yuppie."

[kinuta]

[sidewinder]

His latest magnum opus.

[ejp626]

There were quite a few interesting aspects of Rushdie's The Golden House, but I ended up with a fairly strong dislike of the narrator, Rene, and his actions towards the end of the novel seemed both unbelievable and unforgivable, so it did spoil the novel to a significant extent.

Working my way into His Only Son by Leopoldo Alas.  I'm struggling with this one as it features a not terribly interesting character making terrible life choices.  I'll probably give it another 50 pages, then bail.

[Brad]

11 hours ago, ejp626 said:

There were quite a few interesting aspects of Rushdie's The Golden House, but I ended up with a fairly strong dislike of the narrator, Rene, and his actions towards the end of the novel seemed both unbelievable and unforgivable, so it did spoil the novel to a significant extent.

Working my way into His Only Son by Leopoldo Alas.  I'm struggling with this one as it features a not terribly interesting character making terrible life choices.  I'll probably give it another 50 pages, then bail.

I haven’t tried that one but I always had this image of Clarin (his pseudonym) as difficult to read.  Speaking of Spanish authors, have you ever read Tristana by Perez Galdos. There is a nice translation by NYRB Classics.

Received the following over the holidays.

[ghost of miles]

Really enjoying this so far, and numerous jazz references in the opening chapters that describe the club scene of 1940s/50s L.A.:

[ejp626]

7 hours ago, Brad said:

Speaking of Spanish authors, have you ever read Tristana by Perez Galdos. There is a nice translation by NYRB Classics.

I have not.  I might give it a try, though it would be at the end of a long list...  Despite my misgivings, I did order a copy of Alas's La Regenta (mostly because the library didn't have a circulating copy!), though I've heard the plot borrows heavily from Madame Bovary.  

I am still waiting on Mann's The Magic Mountain, as well as for the library copy of Dawn Powell's This Happy Island.  I suspect the next book I actually tackle will be Rushdie's Quichotte.  (Third time lucky?  As I said, I've liked aspects of the other two I've just read, but wasn't completely satisfied with either.)

[jazzbo]

[soulpope]

[Brad]

On 12/1/2019 at 11:03 AM, ejp626 said:

That's interesting.  Many Austen scholars consider it her finest work.  I actually have not gotten around to it, but it is on my list. 

Despite its killer first line, I definitely preferred Sense and Sensibility over Pride and Prejudice. 

I was at the movies tonight and they showed coming attractions for a movie based on the novel, coming out in February. 

 

[Matthew]

At Play in the Lions' Den: A Biography and Memoir of Daniel Berrigan by Jim Forest. Just happened to be re-reading this book, and with the current events, it's more timely than ever. Berrigan's life was totally committed to peace & justice, never allowing institutions to control him, but always striving to live a free and encouraging life. 

 

Edited January 4, 2020 by Matthew

[soulpope]

[JSngry]

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/11/04/gods-caravan

Ever so vaguely (but insistently) puts me in mind of Sun Ra, or at least one element of him.

[soulpope]

[Kevin Bresnahan]

I just finished Lee Child's latest Jack Reacher book, "Blue Moon". Over-the-top-Rambo is pretty standard for Child's Reacher books but this one goes way, way over the top... maybe even to the moon.

Even though the bullets were flying and blood was spraying all over the place, I actually laughed out loud at one of the gun fights because I was picturing Weird Al the whole time.

 

Edited January 7, 2020 by bresna

[jlhoots]

Valeria Luiselli: Lost Children Archive

[ejp626]

In the end, I really didn't like His Only Son and skipped out partway through.  However, the novella, Doña Berta, included in the NYRB volume, is worth a look.

I did enjoy Rushdie's most recent novel, Quichotte.  However, this is even more meta-textual than most of his novels (with "The Author" introducing himself a couple of chapters in), so if you are looking for a straight-forward novel, then I would avoid this.  (At some point, maybe in the late spring, I really ought to read the Grossman translation of Don Quixote.)

It looks like it will be Mann's Magic Mountain next and then probably Powell's The Happy Island.

[jlhoots]

Craig Johnson: Land Of Wolves

[jlhoots]

John Le Carre: Agent Running In The Field

[Brad]

3 hours ago, jlhoots said:

John Le Carre: Agent Running In The Field

Good Le Carre. Not his best but still very enjoyable.