I love that book![/quote]
Thank you, kind sir! You are a prince among men. 
About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design. Should be read by anyone whose bread and butter lies somewhere in the space between people and machines. If djlowballer and jashu havenāt read it yet, they should. I guess mabagal has already read it?
I love that book![/quote]
Thank you, kind sir! You are a prince among men. [/quote]
Me does too, does that make me a princess 
? I recently saw Colin Firth as Darcy, :lick: On Topic, I like Women authors from England.
Still holding the sibling rivalry book!
I love that book![/quote]
Thank you, kind sir! You are a prince among men. [/quote]
Me does too, does that make me a princess ? I recently saw Colin Firth as Darcy, :lick: On Topic, I like Women authors from England.
Still holding the sibling rivalry book![/quote]
Colin Firth is the only Darcy. Everyone else is a pretender!!!
Iāve been worshipping le Carre since last summer when I read Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, Our Game, Absolute Friends, Single & Single and The Tailor of Panama. Just picked up a copy of A Murder of Quality.
Breath, by Tim Winton - growing up tale set in western Australia. Absolutely fantastic, and a must for anyone who surfs (and then maybe you can explain some of those passages to me). No, it is not a surfing novel, but thereās a fair bit of surfing in it.
If you enjoy reading a writer for their style, then Winton is an absolute must - he and Cormac McCarthy are my two favourite writers these days. And, surprisingly, both of them have a decent selection of books available in that odd literature corner of Page One (to the left of the main entrance).
Also recently finished The Bellini Card, by Jason Goodwin: a mystery set in the 1840s, partly in Ottoman Istanbul and partly in Venice. Itās the third book in one of those open-ended series that features a central detective. Not a magnificent work of literature, but fun, and I usually enjoy mystery novels like these: the ones that half-immerse you in a different time and place. Good light reading.
I loved that book. On the other hand, I found Oscar and Lucinda a chore. I gather this makes me odd.
[quote=ālostinasiaā]
I found Oscar and Lucinda a chore.[/quote]
Me too. His collection of short stories, Exotic Pleasures is IMO unparalleled, though.
Iām reading Portrait Of An Addict As A Young Man. An excellent account of crack addiction.
Iāve been worshipping le Carre since last summer when I read Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, Our Game, Absolute Friends, Single & Single and The Tailor of Panama. Just picked up a copy of A Murder of Quality.[/quote]
Iām not the biggest fan of his earlier stuff, but anything from Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy on is pretty good. If you didnāt mind Absolute Friends or Single & Single, you should be okay: those are probably the least liked among his readers.
I loved that book. On the other hand, I found Oscar and Lucinda a chore. I gather this makes me odd.[/quote]
āChoreā is putting it mildly. I didnāt even finish that one. I just wanted both of them to die horribly so that at least something interesting would happen. However, I did enjoy Jack Maggs and Theft. Regarding True History of the Kelly Gang: Iām finding it interesting (read: contradictory) that Ned has poor grammar and punctuation, yet both his spelling and his use of proper nouns are perfect. Funny how that works. I guess thatās my way of saying I find the writing style gimmicky rather than providing verisimilitude. Still, itās very good story telling on Careyās part.
V for Vendetta. Ugh. Iāve never seen the movie, but had heard the book was better - if so, that doesnāt say much for the movie.
Or maybe I just donāt understand graphic novel culture.
I love that book![/quote]
Thank you, kind sir! You are a prince among men. [/quote]
Me does too, does that make me a princess ? I recently saw Colin Firth as Darcy, :lick: On Topic, I like Women authors from England.
Still holding the sibling rivalry book![/quote]
Colin Firth is the only Darcy. Everyone else is a pretender!!![/quote]
Iām not sure if Pride and Prejudice or Sense and Sensibility is my favorite Austen novel. Both are brilliant. But the BBC adaptation of Pride with Colin Firth is amazing (much better than the movie with Keira Knightley 10 years later). I remember watching it and being blown away at how well they managed to capture the right amount of caricature in certain of the characters. (There is a reason why the movie adaptation of Helen Fieldingās Bridget Joneās Diary, which loosely follows the story of Pride and Prejudice, got Colin Firth to play the role of the man Bridget finally ends up with - the aptly named Mark [color=#BF0000]Darcy[/color]. They probably just couldnāt imagine anyone else playing the role.) The adaptation of Ang Lee and Emma Thompson of Sense and Sensibility is, however, also awesome.
Iāll stop here now, though, before I continue, off-topic, waxing lyrical about two of the most beautiful British books ever written and their equally beautiful screen adaptations. Nobody beats Jane for combining fun with the repression of emotions and the insatiable need for a good man, under restrictive economic conditions. There is a reason many of us still love her books 200 years later. Truly timeless stuff.
Ah shit, I waxed lyrical. Donāt fret - Iāll post about more masculine books next time.
Jane Eyre is more better on the chicklit front.
[quote=ālostinasiaā]V for Vendetta. Ugh. Iāve never seen the movie, but had heard the book was better - if so, that doesnāt say much for the movie.
Or maybe I just donāt understand graphic novel culture.[/quote]
Moore, I feel, is a genius. The best graphic novelists make countless references to other works and itās easy to overlook these allussions. But even if you do, with V, weāve got a nice little tale of the good guy against the fascists. But that is too simplistic and I donāt think Moore provides a clear right and wrong in the battle between anarchism and totalitarianism.
Admittedly graphic novels are not for everyone, but I like most of Mooreās work. Watchmen, From Hell. etc. He is a truly great mind even if he ā¦
[quote=ālostinasiaā]V for Vendetta. Ugh. Iāve never seen the movie, but had heard the book was better - if so, that doesnāt say much for the movie.
Or maybe I just donāt understand graphic novel culture.[/quote]
I thought the movie was awesomeā¦
Remember, remember, the 5th of November
The Gunpowder Treason and Plot
I know of no reason
The Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgotā¦ 
I love that book![/quote]
Thank you, kind sir! You are a prince among men. [/quote]
Me does too, does that make me a princess ? I recently saw Colin Firth as Darcy, :lick: On Topic, I like Women authors from England.
Still holding the sibling rivalry book![/quote]
Colin Firth is the only Darcy. Everyone else is a pretender!!![/quote]
Iām not sure if Pride and Prejudice or Sense and Sensibility is my favorite Austen novel. Both are brilliant. But the BBC adaptation of Pride with Colin Firth is amazing (much better than the movie with Keira Knightley 10 years later). I remember watching it and being blown away at how well they managed to capture the right amount of caricature in certain of the characters.[/quote]
Totally! I love that BBC series and the actors were superb. Colin Firth was awesome and played Darcy to a tee. I loved Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth and David Bamber (Cicero in Rome) was great as Mr. Collins. Just a brilliant cast, reallyā¦ The new movie doesnāt do it justice at all.
Yeah, I was watching that on cable the other night and I realised it for the first time.
I also liked that one. Emma Thompson is pure genius in the right role.
Hence the opening line of Pride and Prejudiceā¦ :roflmao: Priceless!
Nothing effeminate about Darcy. A true gentleman!
Have you ever read Vortex? All about war and other such āmanlyā stuffā¦ 
Sorry bismarck, I havenāt done Vortex yet - looks interesting. Any good?
I did just do Union Atlantic though.
I was under pressure to finish it for the book club and just did that in a few smooth hours while on vac. Ultimately, but not at the outset, a quick read.
At the start of our reading, I think all four of us (from the club) thought, āOh God, another bad pickā. The first chapter is about war in the Persian gulf in the late eighties, and the second chapter is set 15 years later in the world of American finance. It seemed as if the author knew these subjects well and would continue on. And why would I be interested - what do I know of these?
But - dammit, Adam Haslett knows how to tell a good yarn and is clearly a smartie in many fields. Though you could complain that some of the ways his characters end up being connected is unlikely, this novel - to me at least - seems to be a great American novel. Iām sure it will be on post 9-11 literature lists.
I might have missed a lot of what he had to say for lack of knowledge, but I am certainly going to read his previous collection of short stories which was up for the Pulitzer Prize.
The book made me think about the world of big finance and his characters are ā I do him disservice to use clichĆ©s here ā very flawed, but sympathetically drawn. Supposedly soulless finance people, a retired history teacher whose dogs talk in the voices of past icons, a teen who ā recovering from his dadās suicide ā is seeking a father figure. Get through the first 40 pages and the next 250 will go spectacularly fast. Very human. I was surprised.
It seems he wrote it before the big financial meltdown, which would kind of make him a genius. Iād love to know what others think of this book. Pretty new. Not in paperback yet.
Itās a goodie. Fans of Tom Clancy would like it, as itās in the same mold. Saffas will either love it or be incensed by it. I liked it.
Iām reading Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Crutis. This is a Newbery Honor book and winner of the Coretta Scott King award, among others. Itās available throught scholastic, is leveled for sixth to eigth grade, and is MARVELOUS! A ripping great read that I canāt stand to put down, and full of awsome life lessons, and potential classroom lessons. If youāre teaching, you should read this book. If you just like to read, you should be on Amazon or the Scholastic website trying to order yourself a copy!
Iām not finished with it yet, but itās about a young black boyāthe first to be born free in a settlement for escaped slaves. Itās set in Buxton, Canada. (Anyone know the area?) Heās a wonderful character and the story is told through his voice.
Itās not often that I post in this threadāIām an avid reader and I expect a LOT from a writer. I donāt even bother to mention a book that doesnāt impress me. This is a book that I picked up in the States before I left thinking that I may need some fresh materials for classes here. Itās written for children, but Iām in love with it!
Iām reading: HYPERION by DAN SIMMONS
On Writing by Steven King
The Awakening of Intelligence by Krishnamurti
(you canāt click to read inside thoā¦)
Just started reading D.H. Lawrenceās Lady Chatterleyās Lover. Never read it before. Just started Chapter IV, and frankly, disappointed by the lack of smut so farā¦
Heh. Lady Chatterleyās Lover was very racy for the time.
Heh. Lady Chatterleyās Lover was very racy for the time.[/quote]
Might heat up later, but up to Chapter IV itās been pretty lack lustre on the racy scene. Only hinting at her shagging the Irish Playwright blokeā¦