What are you reading and book reviews

[semi-pro waster]

Originally Posted by volospian

Blimey, that's an old film, made in about 1986 or something... it was actually a good film, if I remember rightly...

I'm sure your memory is correct and I can imagine it being a good film if they skipped some of the drier bits.

I've also realised I've been a complete plum, I'm not reading Brick Lane at all, I'm reading White Teeth by Zadie Smith. Previous comment about it seeming good so far still remains true, I'm not sure how I got them confused though, I suspect it's because I've meant to read both for a long time and they're both critically lauded but even so...

[semi-pro waster]

White Teeth was great, actually worthy of most of the praise it has received. If I was being picky I'd say the ending was a bit abrupt but it does leave you able to use your own imagination about what happens with the families after.

White Fang was next, it's labelled as a childrens classic which I think does it a slight disservice as anyone of any age could read it and enjoy it.

Just received my latest Amazon order (hopefully with BD getting their miniscule share of the value) so I now do have Brick Lane to read, along with Don Quixote, The Count Of Monte Cristo and The Other Hand by Chris Cleave. Last book will be the first to get read here as the next one for the OcUK Book Club.

[Pumpkinstew]

Originally Posted by Kitten

I loved the Lovely Bones. Thought it was evocative, beautiful and terribly sad, though I know what you mean about not really conveying the feel of violence and horror that is inherent considering the premise.

Finished it a little over a week ago.
Yes, it is sad. My problem is it's exclusively sad. No other emotions really get conveyed - anger, bitterness, hope, relief, a little happiness. It's all wistful regret and melancholy. OK, so you can argue this is because the story is told with Susie's voice but it all felt a bit one note to me. At the risk of being flamed I may be the wrong side of the gender divide to fully appreciate it.

And now for something completely different...
I'm now reading Blackwater, an expose' of the mercenary companies rise to prominence in the US 'War on Terror'. It's a little too left leaning in tone to be balanced but that doesn't detract from what is a frankly frightening investigation into what happens when you put a private army in foreign territory and remove almost all oversight and culpability.

[semi-pro waster]

It's been a little while but I did read The Other Hand, it's a rather lovely little book in many ways taking a number of quite serious and potentially depressing themes but yet it manages to feel quite positive oddly despite the ending. There's some lovely curious phrasing which perfectly helps you to understand the characters, it probably shouldn't work but it does as a novel.

Then Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, I'm almost sure I've read some of it before but enough was new to make me think I'd not read it all the way through.

Currently I'm reading The Count Of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas - until I received the book I'd never quite realised what a tome it is. I suppose having read The Three Musketeers a few times I assumed it would be a similar sort of size but it's 800+ pages long, I'm just over half way now and enjoying it but it's going to continue to occupy me for some time.

[Kitten]

I've been reading this on the kindle. It's pretty good, historical murder mystery type of thing. Kept me interested, anyway, very similar to the CJ Samson's I reviewed a while back.

Next I think is 'The Mist' Novella by Stephen King. Been told the book is excellent.

[semi-pro waster]

Finally finished The Count Of Monte Cristo, it's an impressive book for both scale and vision. It felt like somewhat of an achievement to finish it though with some decidedly unsympathetic characters and a bit of moralising.

Next up will be something easy, at the moment it looks like Wild Justice by Wilbur Smith which is some random novel I picked up in the books that are being taken out of circulation by the library. I don't think I've read anything by him yet but it looks like it'll be fairly undemanding.

[Kitten]

Well I got sidetracked by doing some research & reading 'Love, Sex and Tescos Finest Cava which is a kind of 'memoirs of internet dating' - by a bloke...turns out he lives about 5 miles from me which made it more interesting. Is funny though.

Today I read The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Phillip Pullman. Seemed apt for today. Only took about an hour to read & interesting concept.

Back to The Crimson Petal and the White

Love reading in the sunshine!

[Briggykins]

Not actually reading this, but definitely need to get my hands on it: best children's book evar!

[Will]

Just finished "A Week in December" by Sebastien Faulks, good fun.

Getting my way through "The Girl who kicked a hornet's nest" to finish off the Millenium trilogy.

I've also got a couple of medical books about cholesterol and fat... but I doubt that';s interesting to you all

[semi-pro waster]

Wild Justice was as undemanding as expected, it also wasn't particularly good. There is nothing especially wrong with the idea although it's hardly groundbreaking plotwise but a lot of the descriptions felt somewhat forced - as if the author was trying too hard to fit them in. I'd also guessed who the baddie was well before half-way through the book and the "twists" that were thrown in were pretty clumsy to cast much doubt on who it was - maybe I've just read too many of this type of book though.

Now I'm reading Abarat by Clive Barker, too early to make any real judgements but I've got hopes of being entertained at least as I've enjoyed most of what I've read of his so far.