JamesP_81 Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 Update of my Christmas/new year reading. Crime and Punishment - Dostoevsky ( put in the mood to read it after a few notes on here in the last few months) The Road - Cormac McCarthy. Hadn't realised how recently that was written as feel like it's been on my radar as a classic for ages . Bleak as f*ck yet utterly compelling. I, Robot - Isaac Asimov. Was alright , quite liked the writing style , might delve deeper into the Asimov canon. The Outsider - Albert Camus . An absolutely beautiful piece of literature. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich- Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Made a day in a Soviet Gulag seem almost poetic, wonderfully written. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mathematics Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 1 hour ago, JamesP_81 said: I, Robot - Isaac Asimov. Was alright , quite liked the writing style , might delve deeper into the Asimov canon. Foundation series is excellent. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tongue_tied_danny Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 I'm currently reading Too Much Too Young, by Daniel Rachel. A well written and well researched history of the 2-Tone record label. It helps that I'm a fan of the music, but I am really enjoying this. Plenty of social history in there as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig fae the Vale Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 Death Wins a Goldfish by Brian Rea. A perfect wee graphic novel. Just absolutely superb. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig fae the Vale Posted January 17 Share Posted January 17 Eileen by Otessa Moshfegh. Really well written and a good story. Enjoyable read. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houston_bud Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 On 16/01/2024 at 06:54, tongue_tied_danny said: I'm currently reading Too Much Too Young, by Daniel Rachel. A well written and well researched history of the 2-Tone record label. It helps that I'm a fan of the music, but I am really enjoying this. Plenty of social history in there as well. I've read his 'Don't Look Back in Anger' which I thoroughly enjoyed, I've been meaning to get to his other stuff. Didn't realise he had one out about 2 Tone. I'll add it to my list. Cheers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig fae the Vale Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Ankle Snatcher by Grady Hendrix. A really enjoyable wee short story, genuinely creepy. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GHF-23 Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 Sparrow - James Hynes Sparrow follows a young slave - from infancy to mid-teens - in Roman Cartagena as he learns about Empire, slavery and life from his "mothers" - one of the prostitutes and the chef in the tavern and brothel where he lives. Supporting characters include a former soldier who manages the brothel, the owners trying to turn a buck in the slowly crumbling Empire, and the other prostitutes, in particular one who has bought her freedom and has ambitions to improve her lot in life further. The setting is very contained, with Sparrow's world expanding in each section of the novel but never breaching the limits of the city, and his understanding of the world and his place in it expands as the world of the novel does. Hynes doesn't quite reach the level of elite historical novelists like Hillary Mantel, but he does what good historical novelists should by making the reader truly get a sense of life in a different time both literally and thematically. One criticism is that there is a framing story where Sparrow is recounting the story from a monastery in Britain late in life which is not fleshed out in any way and seems very unnecessary. Our Lady of the Nile - Scholastique Mukasonga Mukasonga is a Rwandan social worker, now living in Normandy, and this like most of her novels is a semi-autobiographical piece detailing the time around the Rwandan genocide. The novel follows a group of girls at an elite girl's school in the years following the revolution but prior to the genocide, and the politics of the school reflect the prejudice against Tutsi that was developing. This is mostly referred to in quiet moments within the novel's largely slow first 3/4s, and explodes in some quite horrific ways later. That first 3/4s spends a bit too much time establishing setting, but also includes some excellent sections which demonstrate gender relations, Tutsi and Rwandan culture, crazy old colonialists and passive newer European imports, and the effects of colonialism in developing the ethnic hierarchies which led to bloodshed in so much of Africa. I'll be honest for 250 pages it took me a while to read this, which is usually a sign it wasn't particularly engaging. Certainly interesting though 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Molotov Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 It is an interesting audiobook narrated by O’Neill. Quite narky in parts about certain situations he has been in. Enjoyed listening to the early part of his playing career. Good insight into his challenges with various chairman and other managers. He does come across a bit bitter about some stuff. Celtic fans would enjoy it. By the way he still owes SAF a shirt from when the Man Utd manager let him stay overnight. MON says he’s not giving it back. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GHF-23 Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 A Perfect Spy - John Le Carre Magnus Pym, senior British spy, is on the run as his history as an almost career-long double agent is unravelled by the man himself in letters written to his son and mentor, and by the mentor's investigations into his past. Often considered Le Carre's masterpiece, a great deal of the material - such as Pym's father being a occasionally highly successful conman - is autobiographical, and it feels more personal and less detached than many of his other works. A lot of Le Carre's familiar themes, such as a loving contempt for the English, a hateful contempt for security services and a fondness for the people who occupy them and become monsters - are present here, and there's a lot more interesting stuff besides. Like a lot of his novels he really takes his time to get into things and it's a little disorientating to begin with, but it picks up pace as the story progresses and the second half is completely engrossing. As spy novels go it's pretty totemic, and while the Smiley series and earlier work will always have a special place for me I think this probably deserves its reputation as JLC's best work. Usually I read a lot in the early parts of winter and as my work heats up in January and the dark and weather gets to me I really fall off, so delighted to be through my 3rd book of the year already. Aiming for 35+ this year so a good start. Finishing a non-fiction book, Wedgewood's 30 Years War, that I have been plodding through alongside fiction for the last couple of months, next. Next fiction will be books 2-4 of Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan series. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Molotov Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Finished Tony Adams “Sober”. Interesting read. He is a bit of a marmite character but it gives an insight into his battles to remain sober. Covers a great deal about the steps of recovery with AA. I haven’t read his book “Addicted” which covers his thoughts on his experiences with alcohol. I will look to borrow that from the library. Thought provoking to read about someone who captained Arsenal and England yet was so hampered by feelings of self doubt, etc. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houston_bud Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 1 hour ago, Molotov said: Finished Tony Adams “Sober”. Interesting read. He is a bit of a marmite character but it gives an insight into his battles to remain sober. Covers a great deal about the steps of recovery with AA. I haven’t read his book “Addicted” which covers his thoughts on his experiences with alcohol. I will look to borrow that from the library. Thought provoking to read about someone who captained Arsenal and England yet was so hampered by feelings of self doubt, etc. On a similar note, I read Paul McGrath's autobiography about 10 years ago. It was pretty harrowing in places but definitely worth a read. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Molotov Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 1 hour ago, houston_bud said: On a similar note, I read Paul McGrath's autobiography about 10 years ago. It was pretty harrowing in places but definitely worth a read. Yeah. Read that a good few years ago and was an incredible back story. One of the greatest players ever to have played for Villa. I think for anyone struggling with addiction these stories are very important. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melanius Mullarkey Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 On 19/01/2024 at 16:23, Molotov said: It is an interesting audiobook narrated by O’Neill. Quite narky in parts about certain situations he has been in. Enjoyed listening to the early part of his playing career. Good insight into his challenges with various chairman and other managers. He does come across a bit bitter about some stuff. Celtic fans would enjoy it. By the way he still owes SAF a shirt from when the Man Utd manager let him stay overnight. MON says he’s not giving it back. Christ, fair play listening to O’Neills voice for a whole book. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I did this on Twitter but as I'm having a social media detox it's going here. Gallus. Scotland, England and the 1967 World Cup final by Michael McEwan. Author of the magnificent Ghosts of Cathkin Park is back with another banger. Not only is it an overview of the most famous result in Scottish football history but gives a brilliant overview of the background and politics of the situation. Well worth a read 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig fae the Vale Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 Shark Heart by Emily Habeck. Absolutely wonderful. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RH33 Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 Rory Stewart's Memoir. Good read. Sadie found the cover tasty. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottsdad Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 Grievous Angel by Quintin Jardine. Another good Bob Skinner mystery, set in Edinburgh in 1996. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig fae the Vale Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton. The most tense book I've ever read. A masterpiece of thriller writing. Not an easy read, but worth it. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig fae the Vale Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Don't Hang Up by Benjamin Stevenson. Had a lot of fun with this and didn't see the ending coming. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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