Last Book Read...
darenhat
The Old PuebloPosts: 2,029Quartermasters
Seeing as how we have a 'last movie seen' thread, I thought it would be nice to have a similiar post for books, as I personally am always interested in new reading materials.
I just finished reading 'Ramage and the Drumbeat' by Dudley Pope.
It's the second novel in Pope's Lord Ramage novels...the unofficial successor to C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower series. The writing is sharp and clean, and Nicholas Ramage is proving to be enjoyable character if not as interesting as HH himself.
I just finished reading 'Ramage and the Drumbeat' by Dudley Pope.
It's the second novel in Pope's Lord Ramage novels...the unofficial successor to C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower series. The writing is sharp and clean, and Nicholas Ramage is proving to be enjoyable character if not as interesting as HH himself.
Comments
The last book I read, which wasn't something technical necessary for my job, was Philip Gourevitch's "We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families" -- about the Rwanda Genocide 1994. Highly recommendable reading for anyone interested in current affairs. It's based on a series of interviews done in Rwanda during 1995.
Gourevitch's book whould be coupled with another book on the same subject, "The Rwanda crisis" by Gerard Prunier, which is more scholarly/academically oriented.
Prunier's book provides a thorough run-through of the historical processes leading up to 1994. Gourevitch's book gives a more journalistic account of the aftermath, survivors' recollections as well as UN's disappointing role/non-role.
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jfm
Overall, I found it a very engrossing read, yet rather sad. The decline and fall of one of the greatest entertainers (if not the greatest) of the 20th century was truly tragic. I thoroughly recommend it to all Elvis Presley fans. And also to anyone who is interested in reading about fame, celebrity and it's consequences.
Got to back you up 100%. It's a great book, and with its predecessor "Last Train To Memphis" probably the best Elvis biography we're ever likely to get. Guralnick's genuine feeling and in-depth knowledge shine out from every line.
Ah, another Christie fan! Personally I've found her short stories even more enjoyable in terms of focusing less on crime and more on her view of human nature. Have you ever read any of her novels under her nom de plume Mary Westmacott?
I just finished reading Myself as Witness by James Goldman who is best known for his screenplay/play, the Lion in Winter. It's a fictionalized account of the reign of King John Lackland (think the Magna Carta) in a more sympathetic view from the perspective of a Welsh monk chronicler. Definitely worth reading if you're interested in medieval history and enjoyed Lion in Winter though with less of Lion's wit.
I am reading another Hiaasen book, Sick Puppy. Sick and twisted humor.
Only one, "The rose and the yew tree", which I kind of enjoyed.
I was expecting sleazy Harlequin-type of romance drivel. Instead it was very well-written emotional drama heavily focused on emotion/romance/character. I've always liked Christie's superior skills in writing natural dialogue that doesn't feel "written" or artificial. That really shines through in book like this.
For some reason, I remember it also included some sort of mystery-cum-surprise ending -- but that was ten years ago I read it, so I might be confused about the contents.
I have two of the others, "A daughter's a daughter" and "The burden", but havn't found time to read them yet.
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jfm
I have read the Mary Westmacott omnibus of Absent in the Spring, Giant's Bread, and The Rose and the Yew Tree, and my favorite out of those three is Absent in the Spring. That one has a bit of a Mrs. Dalloway feel in terms of the subject matter and the nature of the protagonist. There are two passages in The Rose and the Yew Tree which I tend to reread the most often: the one about gingerbread and the other about Shakespeare's Iago.
If you like Christie's natural dialogue and character driven storylines, you probably like her Mr. Satterthwaite and Harlequin short stories (the Mysterious Mr. Quin and the Harlequin Tea Set and Other Stories are the two collections, though Mr. Satterthwaite reappears in Murder in Three Acts). I tend to reread those two collections the most often.
largo_7, you might be disappointed by Dan Brown's Angels and Demons; there's far less emphasis on the secret society hunting plot, and a lot more on the battles between science and religion. The plot is extremely similar to the Da Vinci Code, so it won't be especially surprising.
Just finished Moonraker for the first time. I'm working my way through them all, I started with CR, then LALD and am now up to DAF.
I'm taking a Bond break for the mo though, and I've started Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.
quoting Domino
I've been reading the Bond books. So far, I've read CR, LALD, MR, FRWL, DN, TB, YOLT, OP/TLD. Most recently I read DAF, my favorite book of the series (not film). The Spangled Mob was interesting (I live in America).
I also have been reading the Bond books. Yesterday I finished Dr No. They're different to the films but I still enjoy them. Some of my mates even seem interested in them, even though they hate the films.
LALD is my favourite, with DAF and FRWL coming up with a close joint second.
I usually read thick books like Harry Potter, but altoghether I've read Harry Potter 26 times and it's become a bit of a bore. The Bond books aren't that long and it's nice to read shortish books for a change, that I can get through in a couple of weeks, instead of a couple of months.
I liked the parts in LALD when they were in Florida. I liked a lot of things about DAF. I enjoyed the parts at the races and the parts in the Casino. FRWL was different. I didn't have a specific part I liked the most. But I always leave myself at a cliffhanger, like in FRWL, I ended where Grant had just fired at Bond.
I'm taking a break from the Bond books now, and am going to read my signed addition of Jaqueline Wilson's Diamond Girls.
Currently halfway through The Folding Star by the same author, which seems similar in theme, but more pessimistic and louche.
@merseytart
Before that it was Broken Music by Sting.
You can tell Adams changed quite a bit as he wrote later on in his life. While his unique brand of humor remained the same, it seems as if his writing was laced with a bit more sincere and serious observations of the world around him.
I bought this book after having watched the BBC series. His encounters are documented in a vibrant, chatty style, which made me laugh out loud in places. There are some superb colour photographs too which make the book even better to read!
Overall, a good read.
So now I'm back to the Bond books and have read the first chapter and part of the second of Goldfinger. It hasn't been all that interesting so far. Apart from the fact that Bond decided that he was going to get drunk that night!
I have to confess that Mostly Harmless is my least favorite in the series. I remember reading in some interview that Adams was never very sure about the character of Trillian and who she really was, so her involvement in MH seemed very out of place and unbelievable to me. Still, the whole bit about Arthur as the sandwich maker demi-God never fails to bring a smile to my face. The ending completely boggled me at first, but I don't mind it so much now.
I really enjoyed the novel and could see Ken writing a good Bond book.