April Fools and I am reading...
I do like other Dostoyevsky novels, just not Notes from Underground. I tired very quickly of his incessant, illogical whining. Some of what he said made sense to me, but for the most part it was overshadowed by his bitching.
I would have quoted for a reply, but too many people were absolutely indignant at my lack of "good taste" in literature.
I would have quoted for a reply, but too many people were absolutely indignant at my lack of "good taste" in literature.
Nah, you're allowed and encouraged to like whatever you wish; it's really just hard for me to understand WHY someone wouldn't like Notes from Underground. I thought it was great.
thanks for sharing.blackhawk tactical pants.
— Spambot
"I could have done worse!" exultantly cried the murderer Lebret, sentenced at Rouen to hard labor for life. — Félix Fénéon
I would have quoted for a reply, but too many people were absolutely indignant at my lack of "good taste" in literature.
Nah, you're allowed and encouraged to like whatever you wish; it's really just hard for me to understand WHY someone wouldn't like Notes from Underground. I thought it was great.
Perhaps I read it at the wrong time. I'll try again in a year or so, like I usually do with books I don't like by authors I usually do like.
I too just started beat the reaper. I too love it.
Join the club! And for you people just not reading it or just having finished it - don't forget to check out Matt's thread found... HERE
Also I love Dostoyevsky's longer novels. But I too have not been able to get into Notes from the Underground. I've tried reading it a couple times now and I just get distracted. I will read it one day though.
Im starting Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates, another writer Im going to see later this month. Although she does intimidate me.
Where are you seeing her?
Just finished The Sea Came in at Midnight by Steve Erickson, which, like everything i've read of his, was fantastic.
Going to start A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn sometime today, which will be my first by this mad Russian.
Just finished The Sea Came in at Midnight by Steve Erickson, which, like everything i've read of his, was fantastic.
Going to start A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn sometime today, which will be my first by this mad Russian.
The Galway Literature Festival!
Galway has all the fun!
That was almost my next read (after Owen Meany)! but it was too heavy to take to vegas, so its up next again.
"I'm glad I live in the GPS era. In a different century, I would've set off to visit the other side of the village and wandered off into the mountains and been eaten by a carnivorous plant. Or discovered the Americas."
-LaJessica
Wasn't sure if I subvocalize or not, so I clicked the oh-so-handy Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary icon in the taskbar. Here's the definition, in full:
subvocalize
Lotta help, that.
Just finished In The City Of Shy Hunters. God damn. Also, God dammmit!
I just started God's Middle Finger by Richard Grant late last night. Only a few pages in, but so far it's pretty good.
would anybody tell me if i was gettin'... stupider?
This is the first Bukowski that I've ever read. It was pretty random. I wanted to read Bukowski and just sort of picked one.
If you dig Women, may I recommend you read Post Office next? Not only do they cross-reference, but Post Office is such a quick, dirty, transcendent little thing. And especially for anyone who has felt the choking grip of a blue collar, it is simply sublime.
Per the Glamorama discussion--it may not be BEE's "best", but I certainly find it to be his most enjoyable. From specks to mountains...
As for me, I'm currently stuck on I, Fatty; and how I wish I could muster the gumption to finish the damned thing already, so I could start on Kockroach, or Tree of Smoke, or The New York Trilogy, or any of the soft bricks in the ever-rising tower beside my bed...
To be honest, Women disappointed me. Not sure why. Maybe because we get most of the same stories in everything else Bukowski.
"Plus, if I go too long without writing I start to turn into a real asshole." -misterwoe
"She'll like what she's told to like." -Mo'Don
now reading "Contortionist's Handbook" by Craig Clevenger
"Under the Dome" by Stephen King
and
"Look At The Birdie" by Kurt Vonnegut
Contortionist's Handbook is quite possibly the best book I've ever read. Just started reading, right now on the 3rd chapter and the story is freakin awesome! Every sentence advances the plot. A lot of stories take too much time using imagery and describing the scenery which is plain boring. But not Craig Clevenger. He manages to tie in the imagery with the plot. Every sentence has a purpose. and I love it.
On the other hand, I'm quite disappointed in Kurt Vonnegut. Slaughterhouse-Five was a masterpiece. But all of his other books such as Jailbird and Look at the Birdie are ridiculously boring....
http://radscavenger.tumblr.com/
check out my blog
nice plug. I'd love to keepthe discussion going.
I began Hard Times by Dickens today. I've never read anything by him before and I picked this paperback copy up for .75 cents.
On page 29 and I must say, I think I am in love.
Ah! Fie! Dickens!
I love Lionel Shriver, I'm reading her latest book So Much for That.
On page 29 and I must say, I think I am in love.
That book, man, it's one of only two I've read by Dickens, and I didn't enjoy it very much. It just seemed petty.
thanks for sharing.blackhawk tactical pants.
— Spambot
"I could have done worse!" exultantly cried the murderer Lebret, sentenced at Rouen to hard labor for life. — Félix Fénéon
Dickens! Fie!
I love Lionel Shriver, I'm reading her latest book So Much for That.
is We Need to Talk About Kevin any good? I've seen in at least a million times at the bookstore and it looks half interesting, I mean, the title, it sounds interesting. O think I read the first page and got put off by the fact that it was a letter. Is it all written in letters, or is that a different book?
"Under the Dome" by Stephen King
and
"Look At The Birdie" by Kurt Vonnegut
Contortionist's Handbook is quite possibly the best book I've ever read. Just started reading, right now on the 3rd chapter and the story is freakin awesome! Every sentence advances the plot. A lot of stories take too much time using imagery and describing the scenery which is plain boring. But not Craig Clevenger. He manages to tie in the imagery with the plot. Every sentence has a purpose. and I love it.
On the other hand, I'm quite disappointed in Kurt Vonnegut. Slaughterhouse-Five was a masterpiece. But all of his other books such as Jailbird and Look at the Birdie are ridiculously boring....
I agree about Slaughterhouse Five, but I imagine Vonnegut cringing in his grave knowing Birdie was even published. I don't think you can or should even compare it to the rest of his work. Especially Slaughterhouse.
Contortionist's Handbook is next on my list, but if On Writing arrives in the meantime, think I'll jump on that first.
would anybody tell me if i was gettin'... stupider?
On Writing is great.
TCH is indescribably good. Clevenger is so committed to language in that book. fuck.
The Godfather by Mario Puzo. It's one of the best books I've read in a long time.
is We Need to Talk About Kevin any good? I've seen in at least a million times at the bookstore and it looks half interesting, I mean, the title, it sounds interesting. O think I read the first page and got put off by the fact that it was a letter. Is it all written in letters, or is that a different book?
Yes! It's one of my favourite books. It is all in letter form but not in a boring way, you don't really notice that it is in letter form after a bit. I might go along to see Lionel Shriver speak at the London Book Fair, I love everything she writes (she also writes articles for a few newspapers as well as novels).
Just put God Hates Us All back on the shelf ill pick it up again some time!
But I started Beth Pownings - The Sea Captions Wife only 20 pages or so in but it It is really a great read I recomend checking it out. Ill keep yea all posted on how it goes the further I get along.
I keep hearing mixed things about "God Hates Us All."
Did they phone that one in or what?
really? this was one of the few cases were I actually thought the motion picture was better than the book...
"Someone must have slandered Josef K., for one morning, without having done anything truly wrong, he was arrested."
"Jemand musste Josef K. verleumdet haben, denn ohne dass er etwas Böses getan hätte, wurde er eines Morgens verhaftet"
On page 29 and I must say, I think I am in love.
I actually just started Oliver Twist myself. Really enjoying it.
"Someone must have slandered Josef K., for one morning, without having done anything truly wrong, he was arrested."
"Jemand musste Josef K. verleumdet haben, denn ohne dass er etwas Böses getan hätte, wurde er eines Morgens verhaftet"
Fie! Dickens!
really? this was one of the few cases were I actually thought the motion picture was better than the book...
Yeah. Puzo was great, though. Ween, I highly recommend Fools Die. Though it's not part of his mob saga, it's one of my personal favorites.
Did they phone that one in or what?
dude, i really liked it. so did Pete. it's only about 200 pages long, and it's not the literary genius of a "man-child" they make it out to be in the show, but fuck, the sheer fact that they published it makes it worth reading if you're into Californication. i read it in one night., it's quick, the language is easy. and it was fun.
whoever the writer was, they did a pretty good job of getting, what we would imagine to be, Hank's voice down. i'm still so curious as to who did the ghos writing for it.
so, if you love Californication--which i know you do--i'd say buy it. if someone just picked it up without knowing what it was, i think they'd still probably enjoy it. like i said, not a masterpiece but still pretty damn tasty.
I'm going to start War & Peace by Tolstoy and take my time on purpose. With this book, and likely with Les Miserables after this, because they are so long, they will be long term projects that I read more slowly and with more purpose than other books. Although I'm reading the back of the book, and it says that it's possible the greatest novel of all time.
I hope it lives up to that grand boast.
the house on haunted hill by shirley jackson.
Did they phone that one in or what?
dude, i really liked it. so did Pete. it's only about 200 pages long, and it's not the literary genius of a "man-child" they make it out to be in the show, but fuck, the sheer fact that they published it makes it worth reading if you're into Californication. i read it in one night., it's quick, the language is easy. and it was fun.
whoever the writer was, they did a pretty good job of getting, what we would imagine to be, Hank's voice down. i'm still so curious as to who did the ghos writing for it.
so, if you love Californication--which i know you do--i'd say buy it. if someone just picked it up without knowing what it was, i think they'd still probably enjoy it. like i said, not a masterpiece but still pretty damn tasty.
from where I ordered my copy the description said Author: Hank Moody and Jonathan Grotenstein. So Grotenstein might be the guy who wrote the thing, not sure though.
"Someone must have slandered Josef K., for one morning, without having done anything truly wrong, he was arrested."
"Jemand musste Josef K. verleumdet haben, denn ohne dass er etwas Böses getan hätte, wurde er eines Morgens verhaftet"
Strip Jack by Ian Rankin, yet another writer Im going to meet later in the month and its about 10 years since I read a novel by him. So far Im enjoying it.
Did they phone that one in or what?
dude, i really liked it. so did Pete. it's only about 200 pages long, and it's not the literary genius of a "man-child" they make it out to be in the show, but fuck, the sheer fact that they published it makes it worth reading if you're into Californication. i read it in one night., it's quick, the language is easy. and it was fun.
whoever the writer was, they did a pretty good job of getting, what we would imagine to be, Hank's voice down. i'm still so curious as to who did the ghos writing for it.
so, if you love Californication--which i know you do--i'd say buy it. if someone just picked it up without knowing what it was, i think they'd still probably enjoy it. like i said, not a masterpiece but still pretty damn tasty.
from where I ordered my copy the description said Author: Hank Moody and Jonathan Grotenstein. So Grotenstein might be the guy who wrote the thing, not sure though.
yeah, we've done this search and all that came up was shit about poker books or something.
Just like evryone else here, I'm reading Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell.
I'll look at The Reaper Thread when I'm done. It's been hard to ignore it so far.
On page 29 and I must say, I think I am in love.
That book, man, it's one of only two I've read by Dickens, and I didn't enjoy it very much. It just seemed petty.
Well don't go spoiling it for me. I'm not very far into the story yet, I am really liking just the style of writing so far.
Bah! Dickens! Fie!
I'll look at The Reaper Thread when I'm done. It's been hard to ignore it so far.
I'll look at The Reaper Thread when I'm done. It's been hard to ignore it so far.
well, let's hope the reaper thread gets going soon then.
we need more specific book threads.
I just finished The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. It was so good. Great quick read.
Now, I'm finally getting onto reading the last Harry Potter Book - Deathly Hallows.
Ah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love both those books!
Eddy, I'm glad to know you also dislike Dickens.
I've been reading "For Whom the Bell Tolls" but I cannot get into it. I'll probably put it aside and pick up some nonfiction thing at work.
There is hope, but not for us.
HOW DARE YOU
There is hope, but not for us.
This seems not true. I think knowing how things sound in your head either comes naturally or you learn over time. The only thing i think i do above average as a writer is dialogue and it's because i can hear everything pretty clearly in my head. Or maybe i just hear things in my head really well, but i pay a lot of attention to how words look and sound.
Whatever, though. It's strange to think that people read different than the way i read.
I know, right? I feel like my reading method is...I look at the words and basically see them as a picture. I don't read individual words, I look at the phrases and see them kind of like a photograph and my brain translates them, if that makes any sense. I can do things like talk and read at the same time, or read the words out of order.
I'm reading "For Whom the Bell Tolls" by Hemingway.
So not fair. I honestly never knew there was a word for the way I read until it was brought up here. I'm glad there is a word for it and i'm not alone! Believe me, I'd much rather read the way you do, but I'm not sure its something that can be changed.
"I'm glad I live in the GPS era. In a different century, I would've set off to visit the other side of the village and wandered off into the mountains and been eaten by a carnivorous plant. Or discovered the Americas."
-LaJessica