Happy Halloween everyone. A good excuse to eat some sweets and look slightly more stupid than usual.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Happy Halloween
Happy Halloween everyone. A good excuse to eat some sweets and look slightly more stupid than usual.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Chilling tales
At this time of year, with the clocks going back and the cold dark nights enveloping you as you head home from work it’s a good time to think of scary stories. One of this week’s bedtime reads has been the Virago Book of Ghost Stories. This collection of short stories has got some great ones to leave you wondering if it’s a wise idea to keep the light switched on.
One of the books that came free with The Times this week has been lost Hearts and Other Chilling Tales by M R James. Looking forward to dipping into that and some more of the Virago collection over the next few nights and weeks.
One of the books that came free with The Times this week has been lost Hearts and Other Chilling Tales by M R James. Looking forward to dipping into that and some more of the Virago collection over the next few nights and weeks.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Opting for the shorter stuff
As a result of twitter this year has been one experiencing contact with a different collection of book bloggers. It has been great not only to make additions to the blog roll but also to get the views of other people.
One very interesting post, because a real valid point is being made, comes from Rob over at the Fiction Desk who asks the question whether the pressure to produce regular comments on blogs will lead more bloggers into reading novellas and short stories.
Personally I have been saying I plan to do just that partly with tongue in cheek but also because the pressure to keep reading and posting had been highlighted when you get sidelined with big books like 2666 and Wolf Hall. Perhaps next year I will be one of those following the predicted pattern set out so succinctly by the Fiction Desk.
One very interesting post, because a real valid point is being made, comes from Rob over at the Fiction Desk who asks the question whether the pressure to produce regular comments on blogs will lead more bloggers into reading novellas and short stories.
Personally I have been saying I plan to do just that partly with tongue in cheek but also because the pressure to keep reading and posting had been highlighted when you get sidelined with big books like 2666 and Wolf Hall. Perhaps next year I will be one of those following the predicted pattern set out so succinctly by the Fiction Desk.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Looking a gift horse down the throat
It has been great this week to get some free books with The Times but I’m afraid at the risk of looking a gift horse in the mouth a slight complaint has to be registered.
One of the problems is that the offers, which have been running now for three weeks Monday to Friday in the paper, are never advertised in places I see them and secondly you can only get the books in select venues – large Sainsburys, WH Smiths and M&S Food. It is all too ad hoc. As a result it is very easy not only to miss a book but upset your friends by mentioning how happy you are to have got one.
One of the problems is that the offers, which have been running now for three weeks Monday to Friday in the paper, are never advertised in places I see them and secondly you can only get the books in select venues – large Sainsburys, WH Smiths and M&S Food. It is all too ad hoc. As a result it is very easy not only to miss a book but upset your friends by mentioning how happy you are to have got one.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Wolf Hall - post II
Right time to get back into Wolf Hall and pick up the story of Cromwell and his master Cardinal Wolsey. The Cardinal seems to be being played a bit by King Henry with the public face seeming to show scorn but privately the mission to gain some influence over the Pope continuing.
Meanwhile for Cromwell, who suffers the loss of his wife, life carries on with him being deployed aboard in a rather cack handed way to test the waters in France and further afield to find out the standing of the King and the look of the political landscape.
In a way although his relationship with the Cardinal is one that serves him well you sense that he is starting to outgrow it and as the position of Wolsey becomes slightly more uncertain Cromwell has to look to his own future ensuring he has an exit plan.
More soon...
Meanwhile for Cromwell, who suffers the loss of his wife, life carries on with him being deployed aboard in a rather cack handed way to test the waters in France and further afield to find out the standing of the King and the look of the political landscape.
In a way although his relationship with the Cardinal is one that serves him well you sense that he is starting to outgrow it and as the position of Wolsey becomes slightly more uncertain Cromwell has to look to his own future ensuring he has an exit plan.
More soon...
Monday, October 26, 2009
D-Day - post II
This is one of several books that has been opened and started but not really got underway. There is no obvious excuse for that because the writing is not difficult to digest and the narrative is hardly lacking in action.
One of the problems perhaps is the names that crop up with numerous military officials weaving through the story of the D-Day landings. Luckily you can stick with the main thrust of what is happening, that was the case with reading Stalingrad, and Beevor doesn’t wait too long getting into the actual invasion.
Having reached the part where the Americans land on Omaha beach the credit has to go to Beevor for managing to weave a narrative that is both factual but in its own way as gripping as the first 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan. We all have a rough idea of what happened but telling us, largely from the perspective of the foot soldier, is a great way of illustrating what it was like to go through the hailstorm of bullets and bravely struggle up that beach to take control of the Normandy coastline.
More soon...
One of the problems perhaps is the names that crop up with numerous military officials weaving through the story of the D-Day landings. Luckily you can stick with the main thrust of what is happening, that was the case with reading Stalingrad, and Beevor doesn’t wait too long getting into the actual invasion.
Having reached the part where the Americans land on Omaha beach the credit has to go to Beevor for managing to weave a narrative that is both factual but in its own way as gripping as the first 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan. We all have a rough idea of what happened but telling us, largely from the perspective of the foot soldier, is a great way of illustrating what it was like to go through the hailstorm of bullets and bravely struggle up that beach to take control of the Normandy coastline.
More soon...
Sunday, October 25, 2009
bookmark of the week
This is a magnetic Wallace and Gromit bookmark. I'm a great fan on W&G and there is something quite appealing about the merchandise. It is not too tacky.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
No boasts over book totals this year
The idea of boasting about how many books you have read might seem to be a bit crude but for those that rank the activity as their main hobby and one of their main sources of enjoyment it does matter.
As a result of technology it is possible to see very quickly just how many books you have read in a year and compare them to previous year’s lists you have made. It is also possible of course to go and do the same thing at several other blogs. That last exercise can be fairly depressing sometimes but of course we all have different demands on our time.
This year is not going to be a good one in terms of books consumed but I am starting to feel that it is a very important one in terms of reading lessons being learnt. So putting totals to one side there is still reason to smile and look forward to a positive year.
As a result of technology it is possible to see very quickly just how many books you have read in a year and compare them to previous year’s lists you have made. It is also possible of course to go and do the same thing at several other blogs. That last exercise can be fairly depressing sometimes but of course we all have different demands on our time.
This year is not going to be a good one in terms of books consumed but I am starting to feel that it is a very important one in terms of reading lessons being learnt. So putting totals to one side there is still reason to smile and look forward to a positive year.
Friday, October 23, 2009
The Glass Room - post V
What I might not have mentioned in all the thoughts about this book over the course of this week is just how much sex dominates. The glass room seems to be a magnet for sexual activity with doctors, yoga teachers and soldiers all being aroused to action in that space. Sex is part of life but I’m a bit of a prude and so will limit my comments on that side of the novel other than to say some of it is important for plot development and some of it isn’t. The stuff that isn’t could have ended up on the cutting room floor.
The sense of the house surviving all that has happened around it despite being made of glass is perhaps the most important image here. Something built with high design values and a determination to be different survives all that is thrown at it. In the end it is almost comical with the communist housing committee trying to decide what to do with the building. The building survives but so does its power to change people, to liberate their minds, in that space made of glass.
Anyway without giving away any endings or anything the various loose ends caused by war and the spreading out of the main characters as a result of the war are tied up. Some of it feels slightly too neat but as a reader you are grateful for things coming to a conclusion in the way that they do.
A review will follow soon....
The sense of the house surviving all that has happened around it despite being made of glass is perhaps the most important image here. Something built with high design values and a determination to be different survives all that is thrown at it. In the end it is almost comical with the communist housing committee trying to decide what to do with the building. The building survives but so does its power to change people, to liberate their minds, in that space made of glass.
Anyway without giving away any endings or anything the various loose ends caused by war and the spreading out of the main characters as a result of the war are tied up. Some of it feels slightly too neat but as a reader you are grateful for things coming to a conclusion in the way that they do.
A review will follow soon....
Thursday, October 22, 2009
The Glass Room - post IV
As the family leaves the house the story of the glass room is told via those that stated behind with it initially being taken over as a base for a scientific research programme with Nazi goons measuring skulls and vital statistics looking for a way of identifying Jews. But as the war switches back and forth it moves to a point where the house has been vacated and the Red Army is coming closer.
All the time the glass room and the modern architecture manage to wow the occupants whether they be Nazi’s, war beaten communists or the locals who manage to get inside to have a look around. All the time Viktor’s family struggle to leave Europe and head to Cuba on their way to America. Viktor’s affair is discovered and the marriage is shattered by the distrust. But just like the bombed windows in the glass room it remains to all intents and purposes intact.
Back at the glass house the last few friends of Viktor have been rounded up and taken to the camps and the City and the house are now under the shadow of Stalinism and another period of history begins.
More tomorrow...
All the time the glass room and the modern architecture manage to wow the occupants whether they be Nazi’s, war beaten communists or the locals who manage to get inside to have a look around. All the time Viktor’s family struggle to leave Europe and head to Cuba on their way to America. Viktor’s affair is discovered and the marriage is shattered by the distrust. But just like the bombed windows in the glass room it remains to all intents and purposes intact.
Back at the glass house the last few friends of Viktor have been rounded up and taken to the camps and the City and the house are now under the shadow of Stalinism and another period of history begins.
More tomorrow...
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
The Glass Room - post III
With Austria taken over by Hitler and the refugees starting to come through to the Czech Republic the Nazi threat is now just 50km from the Glass House.
As a Jew, Viktor seems to be more acutely aware of what is potentially coming in terms of hate and he starts to plan for an evacuation to Switzerland. But most of those around him seem to be acutely unaware of what will happen believing that humanity will prevail.
Faced with the reality of the refugees and for Viktor with his own mistress from Vienna standing telling her story in his living room the fear of what might happen starts to become a reality and the family plan to leave the glass room and head for the sanctuary of Switzerland. Before they go there is the opportunity for both husband and wife to be unfaithful in the house and for the memories of the glass room to become impregnated with regrets even before the house is vacated.
More tomorrow...
As a Jew, Viktor seems to be more acutely aware of what is potentially coming in terms of hate and he starts to plan for an evacuation to Switzerland. But most of those around him seem to be acutely unaware of what will happen believing that humanity will prevail.
Faced with the reality of the refugees and for Viktor with his own mistress from Vienna standing telling her story in his living room the fear of what might happen starts to become a reality and the family plan to leave the glass room and head for the sanctuary of Switzerland. Before they go there is the opportunity for both husband and wife to be unfaithful in the house and for the memories of the glass room to become impregnated with regrets even before the house is vacated.
More tomorrow...
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
The Glass Room - post II
The storm clouds are gathering not just in terms of European politics, with the rise of Hitler, but also perhaps in the relationships of the key characters.
In a book that starts slowly sex becomes a theme that overtakes the architecture as Viktor enjoys his Viennese mistress, Liesel dabbles in a bit of Lesbianism and elsewhere most of their friends seem to be at it as well.
Meanwhile the glass house has been completed and stirs debate about modernism and domestic versus work spaces. The owners are happy inside and enjoy the experience of wowing their friends and neighbours.
But as Hitler comes to power and the signs of the swastikas and brown shirts spread to the edges of Viktor’s world he starts to prepare for the worst moving funds to Switzerland. The unease he feels in his relationship with the mistress is an extension of the unease many are feeling across central Europe.
More tomorrow…
In a book that starts slowly sex becomes a theme that overtakes the architecture as Viktor enjoys his Viennese mistress, Liesel dabbles in a bit of Lesbianism and elsewhere most of their friends seem to be at it as well.
Meanwhile the glass house has been completed and stirs debate about modernism and domestic versus work spaces. The owners are happy inside and enjoy the experience of wowing their friends and neighbours.
But as Hitler comes to power and the signs of the swastikas and brown shirts spread to the edges of Viktor’s world he starts to prepare for the worst moving funds to Switzerland. The unease he feels in his relationship with the mistress is an extension of the unease many are feeling across central Europe.
More tomorrow…
Monday, October 19, 2009
The Glass Room - post I
This is another book that was in the running for the recent Booker prize and my god fortunate is to work with colleagues who care enough about contemporary literature to pop out and buy books like this they are then happy to share and pass on.
As the story starts to unfold of the Czech husband and wife and their home designed by an Austrian architect you know that things are going to get difficult because these are the inter-war years and there is already tension in the air.
However the focus of the honeymooners is to commission the Austrian architect to build their home after they meet him in Venice. They set about getting him to design what he describes as a space with a glass room that is somewhere the couple can make their own environment living in natural light.
At parts you expect Kevin McCloud to start narrating the progress of the build as the action moves to the hillside where the work will take place.
You know that the peace that exists on the hillside where their home is being constructed will not last for much longer and you are already starting to wonder what will happen to the house and the people who will live and work in it.
More tomorrow....
As the story starts to unfold of the Czech husband and wife and their home designed by an Austrian architect you know that things are going to get difficult because these are the inter-war years and there is already tension in the air.
However the focus of the honeymooners is to commission the Austrian architect to build their home after they meet him in Venice. They set about getting him to design what he describes as a space with a glass room that is somewhere the couple can make their own environment living in natural light.
At parts you expect Kevin McCloud to start narrating the progress of the build as the action moves to the hillside where the work will take place.
You know that the peace that exists on the hillside where their home is being constructed will not last for much longer and you are already starting to wonder what will happen to the house and the people who will live and work in it.
More tomorrow....
Sunday, October 18, 2009
bookmark of the week
Every year in the US the libraries put together a list of banned books and encourage readers not only to find out why they were banned but to explore them for themselves. This bookmark accompanied a promotion run many years ago along similar lines by the Independent. It's interesting going through the list.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
How long to prove it's worth it?
When you pick up a book it’s interesting to see how long you give it to prove its worth. I usually let things go until around 100 pages and if by then it is failing to grab you in any way you grit your teeth and start to think of the gruelling task ahead or abandonment.
I have never really abandoned a book just put it to one side and waited for the mood to come that will help me reengage with it but it is a prospect that is becoming more of an important question to consider.
The reason is that if a book has lost you then does it deserve to be read? I’d like to believe there are lessons to be learnt as a reader and a potential writer one day from every book but sometimes they can be slim in the extreme.
As the end of this year draws near and it ranks as one of those with the fewest books personally read the question of when and if to bail out on a book is one that is going to demand an answer to avoid a repeat in 2010.
I have never really abandoned a book just put it to one side and waited for the mood to come that will help me reengage with it but it is a prospect that is becoming more of an important question to consider.
The reason is that if a book has lost you then does it deserve to be read? I’d like to believe there are lessons to be learnt as a reader and a potential writer one day from every book but sometimes they can be slim in the extreme.
As the end of this year draws near and it ranks as one of those with the fewest books personally read the question of when and if to bail out on a book is one that is going to demand an answer to avoid a repeat in 2010.
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