Thursday 8 September 2011

Slack

I've been so busy at work I've been slack on this blog. So catch up.

The Finkler Question was disappointing. I was excited to have a "humorous" read for Book Group. But this book was neither humorous nor deserving of a Booker imho. Most of the characters were unlike-able, the story went no where and it didn't really do anything good for Jewish people living in London. Just made them all look like knobs.

Lemony Snicket was one I have been meaning to read for years after being recommended it by one of the many nephews. Unfortunately it didn't translate into an easy read for adults I felt. It used big words and then stopped the flow of the story to explain the meaning. Which would be a great way to teach an 8 year old what the words meant but for an adult (well, one who was familiar already with the words) it was clunky.

Nick Hornby started bringing the level back up after 3 shit books in a row. However, I still find him overrated. He's fun and fluffy but not as spectacular as I am led to believe. That being said High Fidelity was a nice change and pretty decent read. I think I have seen a grand total of 15 mins of the movie which I found out is at the business end of the book, so that was slightly annoying. But it was a fun look at being 30something and waking up and realising that you have no idea how your life has quite got to how it is.

Finally we get to the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. This book flicked between a YA read and an adult read for me, but both of them were welcome. Christopher is both someone I understood and was bewildered by. Obsessed by the logical but his life was driven by illogical impulses. What differentiates him however most people was he could recognise he was illogical and fallible. Not the nicest story in the world but one that endeared you the main character and made you want to keep on reading to find out what happens to Christopher and how everything turns out.


Thursday 1 September 2011

Grrrr... Argh...


From 4 August 2011:

I've been busy. Mind-numbingly, exhaustingly busy. The only reason I'm posting is because I have time to waste while I copy files to entertain an Visiting Fellow who has fallen ill on their first weekend she has in a new city. This tells me things could be worse, but my body isn't buying it.

The Graveyard Book was beautiful. I opened it after The Great Gatsby and my partner found me smiling broadly to myself while reading it in bed. Neil Gaiman has a wonderful way of whipping you away on a magical journey with a few pages absolutely dripping with description. But not in a Dickens-ish way where there is an over description about everything. Everything is necessary. It places you directly in his world. I have a big crush on Neil Gaiman and this book did not disappoint.

Angela Carter however. Her editor, if not her should be shot. Retelling of fairy tales are all well and good. But not when you tell the same story you just told again. Twice. Boring and repetitive. Not terrible writing though, so I shouldn't whinge too much.

I started The Finkler Question, and I'm enjoying it. I tried to read it on the plane yesterday but didn't get very far. My boss kept on remembering things I needed to do and so I kept on trying to remember to remember them. Not sure if I succeeded in that either... Maybe I'll get some more reading in again soon.