felser Posted November 13, 2022 Report Share Posted November 13, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted November 16, 2022 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejp626 Posted November 16, 2022 Report Share Posted November 16, 2022 I just finished rereading Rushdie's The Satanic Verses, partly inspired by the terrible attack on him a few months back. 😢😠 I'd say I liked it more this time around (not that I can really remember my reaction from the early 90s...). Probably at least one of the subplots could have been excised, however. (No, I'm not talking about the subplot that caused all the trouble in the first place...) Currently, about one-quarter of the way through The Milkman in the Night by Andrey Kurkov. I suppose I was simply feeling that I should read some Ukrainian literature. Kurkov is best known for Death and the Penguin and the sequel Penguin Lost, which I read a while back. I'm finding The Milkman in the Night quite interesting. One of the better novels I've read in 2022, at least so far. On 10/24/2022 at 4:32 PM, Bluesnik said: After finishing Simon Reynolds book on post-punk today I started this, which collects all of the Bandini novels by John Fante. I have this same edition. Been meaning to get to it forever... I might tackle it next year. I did manage to read some of Fante's short stories though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlhoots Posted November 16, 2022 Report Share Posted November 16, 2022 Thomas Mullen: Midnight Atlanta Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted November 20, 2022 Report Share Posted November 20, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejp626 Posted November 21, 2022 Report Share Posted November 21, 2022 On 11/15/2022 at 9:56 PM, ejp626 said: Currently, about one-quarter of the way through The Milkman in the Night by Andrey Kurkov. I suppose I was simply feeling that I should read some Ukrainian literature. Kurkov is best known for Death and the Penguin and the sequel Penguin Lost, which I read a while back. I'm finding The Milkman in the Night quite interesting. One of the better novels I've read in 2022, at least so far. Enjoyed this, even if the ratio of happy to unhappy endings (for the 10 or so main characters) was suspiciously high. One might almost say Kurkov had mellowed out... Am just starting The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted November 21, 2022 Report Share Posted November 21, 2022 (edited) By coincidence I just finished Kurkov’s Grey Bees. Edited November 21, 2022 by Brad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted November 22, 2022 Report Share Posted November 22, 2022 This is based on interviews from the podcast One True Sentence where Hemingway experts and writers discuss Hemingway, his work, the man and the world he lived in. The term “one true sentence” comes from his posthumous memoir A Moveable Feast where Hemingway wrote “All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.' So finally I would write one true sentence, and then go on from there.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted November 23, 2022 Report Share Posted November 23, 2022 Collected Plays of Tennessee Williams. Reading "Spring Storm", which wasn't produced until the 1980's. A very interesting failure, but you can see Williams starting to put his writing together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HutchFan Posted November 25, 2022 Report Share Posted November 25, 2022 Just finished: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejp626 Posted November 25, 2022 Report Share Posted November 25, 2022 On 11/21/2022 at 9:17 AM, Brad said: By coincidence I just finished Kurkov’s Grey Bees. What did you think of this? It looks like something I might try to get to next year. After Ministry, I might read Cosmopolis by DeLillo and then probably Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medjuck Posted November 26, 2022 Report Share Posted November 26, 2022 I believe that the New Waterford Jewish grocery store owner in Fall on Your Knees is based on my grandfather (though the chronology isn't entirely correct). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted November 26, 2022 Report Share Posted November 26, 2022 20 hours ago, ejp626 said: What did you think of this? It looks like something I might try to get to next year. After Ministry, I might read Cosmopolis by DeLillo and then probably Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald. I liked it. It’s almost picaresque as he tries to navigate the grey zone he lives in, then Ukraine and finally Russian Crimea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluesnik Posted December 2, 2022 Report Share Posted December 2, 2022 On 10/24/2022 at 10:32 PM, Bluesnik said: Today I finished Ask the dust, in my opinion the standout novel from the quartet. And I still have the last to read. But I dug a bit deeper and researched and found it's considered his finest work. And Bandini, his alter ego, something you notice just by reading (there's one novel, Wait until spring, Bandini, where the main characters are his father and his mother and he is just a small kid), but when you read secondary literature it all falls into place. It's just as he describes it. I don´t like to read anything about what I am going to read beforehand. Not even prefaces or texts on the back. I like to enjoy the work of the author as it was conceived to be enjoyed, without knowing anything about it. There's always time afterward. And I also didn't know he was an inspiration to Bukowski or Kerouac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlhoots Posted December 2, 2022 Report Share Posted December 2, 2022 Ramona Emerson: Shutter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted December 2, 2022 Report Share Posted December 2, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejp626 Posted December 2, 2022 Report Share Posted December 2, 2022 In the end, I felt The Ministry of Utmost Happiness veered dangerously close to the category of torture porn. The first third was the most successful for me, probably not coincidentally that was the section that had almost nothing to do with Kashmir. It's also a bit interesting that 9/11 is almost a blip to these characters. The aftermath of the train burning (and riot) in Gujarat impacts several characters more, though it still is treated mostly off-screen, as it were. I gather A Burning by Megha Majumdar is not based on this tragedy (as I had assumed) but is more of a fictional composite. I've been thinking of reading A Burning and will move it up a bit on my list. I'm not really enjoying Cosmopolis either, but at least it's short. I've never been that interested in reading about people who think they are "masters of the Universe," even if their feet of clay are on display. I am a bit curious if the character, Eric, is just as insufferable in the movie (likely so) but I'm not sure I am curious enough to find out. However, I am curious if the movie of White Noise (a much, much better novel) is well-done, and I'll have a chance to watch it on Sunday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluesnik Posted December 2, 2022 Report Share Posted December 2, 2022 1 hour ago, ejp626 said: The first third was the most successful for me That is also always the case with me. All works of art follow one simple structure: presentation, conflict, resolution. And I always like the first best. The first part of a novel, film or anything is always the best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HutchFan Posted December 5, 2022 Report Share Posted December 5, 2022 My wife & I are planning to go to Madrid next summer, so: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluesnik Posted December 5, 2022 Report Share Posted December 5, 2022 On 12/2/2022 at 7:58 PM, Bluesnik said: Today I finished Ask the dust, in my opinion the standout novel from the quartet. And I still have the last to read. Now I'm with the last novel, Dreams from Bunker Hill, which while not as good, is also interesting because it portrays the Hollywood studio world the writers live in. Amongst sycophants who pretend to be friends with all the stars, and a real crazy day to day live. It's really hilarious. Though admittedly it's not the best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluesnik Posted December 5, 2022 Report Share Posted December 5, 2022 On 8/13/2022 at 12:58 AM, Rabshakeh said: I have it on my shelf waiting a reading. Looking forwards to it. Exactly the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted December 6, 2022 Report Share Posted December 6, 2022 11 hours ago, HutchFan said: My wife & I are planning to go to Madrid next summer, so: It’s not bad. Perfect for what it is. All his other books on Spain are very good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HutchFan Posted December 6, 2022 Report Share Posted December 6, 2022 13 hours ago, Brad said: It’s not bad. Perfect for what it is. All his other books on Spain are very good. Brad, If Spain is an area of expertise, are there any other books that you'd particularly recommend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted December 7, 2022 Report Share Posted December 7, 2022 22 hours ago, HutchFan said: Brad, If Spain is an area of expertise, are there any other books that you'd particularly recommend? I’d say it’s more an area of interest as I lived there when I was a teenager. It depends on what you’re looking for and where you’re going to be. Historically, Tremlett’s book should do it for you. If you want to go more in depth about the Spanish Civil War, for example, I can make some recommendations. A book I have always liked because it gives you a flavor of Spain is The Sun Also Rises, although it’s not just about Spain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HutchFan Posted December 7, 2022 Report Share Posted December 7, 2022 25 minutes ago, Brad said: If you want to go more in depth about the Spanish Civil War, for example, I can make some recommendations. Yes, please. I'd appreciate your recommendations on the Spanish Civil War very much. ... Another period that I'd like to dig more deeply into: The Islamic al-Andalus and the Christian Reconquest (8th–15th centuries). 25 minutes ago, Brad said: A book I have always liked because it gives you a flavor of Spain is The Sun Also Rises, although it’s not just about Spain. I'm a Hemingway fan, so I've read that one a few times. For Whom the Bell Tolls as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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