Richey Edwards Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 I finished The Book Thief. It is a superb story, and it joins the club of books that made me cry a little. Unsure of what to read next, I went over to the massive "to read" pile and did the trusty old "close your eyes and grab a book" trick. The book in my hand was The Trick Is To Keep Breathing by Janice Galloway. It is a novel about a young woman with depression, which appears to be set in Ayrshire judging from the reference to Bourtreehill (which I chuckled at - because it is described in a pretty unfavourable way and I know people from there). On 06/06/2021 at 01:26, NotThePars said: The Trial is a great book. Top tier stuff. I really enjoyed The Trial, and Amerika. Two more of his books (Metamorphosis & Other Stories and The Castle) are also somewhere in the aforementioned massive "to read" pile. I swore a while ago that I would not buy any more books until I have conquered Unread Mountain. I have not been entirely successful in that endeavour, as it has grown somewhat due to a Waterstones gift card inspired shopping trip. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melanius Mullarkey Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 Man in the High Castle. Interesting concept but someone must have ripped out the last couple of pages because the ending is shit. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richey Edwards Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 10 minutes ago, Melanius Mullarkey said: Man in the High Castle. Interesting concept but someone must have ripped out the last couple of pages because the ending is shit. I read that a couple of years ago. To be honest, I didn't really like it that much. The ending was pretty bad as well. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TheJTS98 Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 26 minutes ago, Melanius Mullarkey said: Man in the High Castle. Interesting concept but someone must have ripped out the last couple of pages because the ending is shit. 14 minutes ago, Richey Edwards said: I read that a couple of years ago. To be honest, I didn't really like it that much. The ending was pretty bad as well. Perverts for not enjoying one of the best books ever. There's a tv series version of it on Amazon Prime, which I thought was also excellent. Really well done, and I'd been worried it would be shite. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genuine Hibs Fan Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 2 hours ago, TheJTS98 said: Perverts for not enjoying one of the best books ever. There's a tv series version of it on Amazon Prime, which I thought was also excellent. Really well done, and I'd been worried it would be shite. I really enjoyed the novella, feel like it might need a second go as I was a bit surprised by the ending. Couldn't get into the tv show at all though, managed about 2/3s of the way through the 1st episode twice 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melanius Mullarkey Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 51 minutes ago, Genuine Hibs Fan said: I really enjoyed the novella, feel like it might need a second go as I was a bit surprised by the ending. Couldn't get into the tv show at all though, managed about 2/3s of the way through the 1st episode twice Yes I’ll probably read it again just to make sure. I think Dick started writing a follow up but never finished it. The fucker. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archie McSquackle Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 I finished The Book Thief. It is a superb story, and it joins the club of books that made me cry a little. Unsure of what to read next, I went over to the massive "to read" pile and did the trusty old "close your eyes and grab a book" trick. The book in my hand was The Trick Is To Keep Breathing by Janice Galloway. It is a novel about a young woman with depression, which appears to be set in Ayrshire judging from the reference to Bourtreehill (which I chuckled at - because it is described in a pretty unfavourable way and I know people from there). I really enjoyed The Trial, and Amerika. Two more of his books (Metamorphosis & Other Stories and The Castle) are also somewhere in the aforementioned massive "to read" pile. I swore a while ago that I would not buy any more books until I have conquered Unread Mountain. I have not been entirely successful in that endeavour, as it has grown somewhat due to a Waterstones gift card inspired shopping trip.I'm half way through The Book Thief and also really enjoying it. I can see where you're coming from regarding the tears- it's already pretty depressing (with some black humour) and I can tell it's not going to get any cheerier. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richey Edwards Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 (edited) 50 minutes ago, Archie McSquackle said: 5 hours ago, Richey Edwards said: I finished The Book Thief. It is a superb story, and it joins the club of books that made me cry a little. Unsure of what to read next, I went over to the massive "to read" pile and did the trusty old "close your eyes and grab a book" trick. The book in my hand was The Trick Is To Keep Breathing by Janice Galloway. It is a novel about a young woman with depression, which appears to be set in Ayrshire judging from the reference to Bourtreehill (which I chuckled at - because it is described in a pretty unfavourable way and I know people from there). I really enjoyed The Trial, and Amerika. Two more of his books (Metamorphosis & Other Stories and The Castle) are also somewhere in the aforementioned massive "to read" pile. I swore a while ago that I would not buy any more books until I have conquered Unread Mountain. I have not been entirely successful in that endeavour, as it has grown somewhat due to a Waterstones gift card inspired shopping trip. I'm half way through The Book Thief and also really enjoying it. I can see where you're coming from regarding the tears- it's already pretty depressing (with some black humour) and I can tell it's not going to get any cheerier. A book set in Nazi Germany and narrated by Death himself is never going to be cheery to be fair, but I did laugh at some parts because they were quite funny. The "Jesse Owens incident" especially made me laugh. Edited June 8, 2021 by Richey Edwards 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richey Edwards Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 2 hours ago, Melanius Mullarkey said: Yes I’ll probably read it again just to make sure. I think Dick started writing a follow up but never finished it. The fucker. What a Dick eh. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotThePars Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 (edited) 3 hours ago, Genuine Hibs Fan said: I really enjoyed the novella, feel like it might need a second go as I was a bit surprised by the ending. Couldn't get into the tv show at all though, managed about 2/3s of the way through the 1st episode twice I watched a season and a half and got so pissed off with Julianna Crane's selfishness I stopped watching for maybe 4-5 years. Went back and finished it and thought it was fine. I like alternate history and there were some terrific performances (from Joel de la Fuente and Rufus Sewell especially) which helped a decent enough story tick along to an alright conclusion. Anyway, I'm reading The Twittering Machine by Richard Seymour which is probably the best book on the diseases that social media give your brain. Apparently The Twittering Machine is a painting or something depicting birds perched above a hole containing something deadly and the birds lure you in with their chirping. That sounds like a metaphor. Anyway, this is the best one of these books I think. ETA: having quickly Wiki'd this is the description: Like other artworks by Klee, it blends biology and machinery, depicting a loosely sketched group of birds on a wire or branch connected to a hand-crank. Interpretations of the work vary widely: it has been perceived as a nightmarish lure for the viewer or a depiction of the helplessness of the artist, but also as a triumph of nature over mechanical pursuits. It has been seen as a visual representation of the mechanics of sound Edited June 8, 2021 by NotThePars 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TheJTS98 Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 5 hours ago, Genuine Hibs Fan said: I really enjoyed the novella, feel like it might need a second go as I was a bit surprised by the ending. Couldn't get into the tv show at all though, managed about 2/3s of the way through the 1st episode twice I think I did similar with the tv show. Got distracted from it for whatever reason. But once I actually got watching it, it was tremendous. I'll watch it all again at some point. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmca Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. One of those books that emotionally drained me by the end. Powerful stuff. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotThePars Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. One of those books that emotionally drained me by the end. Powerful stuff. Wasn’t what I would normally read but really enjoyed it. Quite hard hitting especially as you uncover just what exactly is going on. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saigon Raider Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. One of those books that emotionally drained me by the end. Powerful stuff. I heard him on the Adam Buxton podcast hut haven't read any yet. Got Remains Of The Day to read on holiday this summer. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmca Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 7 hours ago, Saigon Raider said: 13 hours ago, gmca said: Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. One of those books that emotionally drained me by the end. Powerful stuff. I heard him on the Adam Buxton podcast hut haven't read any yet. Got Remains Of The Day to read on holiday this summer. Haven't read Remains of the Day, but the film is absolute quality. I don't know that it will be an easy read, but should be worth it I would think. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MSU Posted June 10, 2021 Share Posted June 10, 2021 Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go are both gorgeous books. Quite similar in a lot of ways. Hundreds of pages of people not saying what they feel has never been so good. Finally got round to starting The Glass Hotel by Emily St John Mandel. I've had it to read for more than a year but I loved her other books, particularly Station Eleven, so much I was kinda scared I wasn't going to enjoy this one. So far so good. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Kersey Posted June 10, 2021 Share Posted June 10, 2021 I'm off work this week so I'm trying to catch up on my reading. I'm about half way through Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. It's considered a dystopian classic and is often mentioned alongside 1984 and A Clockwork Orange. I am enjoying it and I like the concept, however I feel Huxley doesn't have the flair of Orwell or Burgess. His writing style isn't as engaging and I'm finding that it just kinda plods along. I'm still glad that I've finally got around to reading it though. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig fae the Vale Posted June 10, 2021 Share Posted June 10, 2021 Just finished Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi. Not as good as Homegoing but still a very decent read. An interesting look at science, religion, racism and a whole lot more. Will warn anyone who's planning on reading it though, you need to pay proper attention, it skips around in time a lot and is pretty easy to lose where you're at with it. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Granny Danger Posted June 10, 2021 Share Posted June 10, 2021 1 hour ago, Paul Kersey said: I'm off work this week so I'm trying to catch up on my reading. I'm about half way through Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. It's considered a dystopian classic and is often mentioned alongside 1984 and A Clockwork Orange. I am enjoying it and I like the concept, however I feel Huxley doesn't have the flair of Orwell or Burgess. His writing style isn't as engaging and I'm finding that it just kinda plods along. I'm still glad that I've finally got around to reading it though. I read BNW years ago and really enjoyed it. Tried to read it a few months back (inspired by the shit TV serialisation) and couldn’t get into it. Not a patch on Orwell’s writing. AS AN ASIDE: I’m trying to give away 30+ boxes of books, mainly fiction, and having no success. Anyone wanting them? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnash Posted June 10, 2021 Share Posted June 10, 2021 7 hours ago, Paul Kersey said: I'm off work this week so I'm trying to catch up on my reading. I'm about half way through Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. It's considered a dystopian classic and is often mentioned alongside 1984 and A Clockwork Orange. I am enjoying it and I like the concept, however I feel Huxley doesn't have the flair of Orwell or Burgess. His writing style isn't as engaging and I'm finding that it just kinda plods along. I'm still glad that I've finally got around to reading it though. I really liked Brave New World but it is chalk and cheese compared to 1984. While the 1984 world is an absolute hell, BNW actually seems like quite a good idea. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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