April 2009 - What Book from the 1001 List Are You Reading?

Despite my claims to the contrary in my last post on the March thread, I was bored and unwilling to do schoolwork last night so I sat down and read The Devil and Miss Prym in one sitting! A very easy read, and pretty fascinating if a little predictable.

Unsure what my next read will be. The following sit on my TBR pile in the event I decide to give them a look-see:

Enduring Love -- Ian McEwan
The Bell Jar -- Sylvia Plath
Naked Lunch -- William S. Burroughs
Life of Pi -- Yann Martel

Oh, oh . . . looks like we posted the same thing at exactly the same time. We can ignore my thread and work on this one -- is there anyway I can delete the other thread?

Wow, that's pretty funny! Great minds think alike, eh? :)

Not sure how to delete threads. Maybe delete your first post and the whole thread goes away? Not sure though. Any moderators around that can offer help?

well, since Nickelini has deferred to this thread, I'll post here... I'm reading Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens. Plot! Interesting Characters! Stuff happening! I love the Victorians.

Also working on Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne and Tono Bungay by H.G. Wells on dailylit.com

I'm still reading The Golden Notebook - I found the introductory chapter not terribly engrossing (too much talk for me), but am into the first notebook now, and am rather intrigued.

Today I finished The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis, which I cannot recommend highly enough. I have a huge lit crush on Saramago now. Next up from the 1001 list will be Some Prefer Nettles, because Junichiro Tanizaki is another recent discovery of mine. Then, maybe, Berlin Alexanderplatz.

4 >

I am also reading Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities :)

Reposted this from the "other" thread.

I just picked up Vile Bodies and Brideshead Revisited from the library. Not sure which one I will read first.

>8 judylou:

Ooh, go for Brideshead Revisited, I Loved it !

There is no wrong choice there, judylou!

I started Aithiopika this morning.

Oh lordy, two threads! How ever will I keep it straight?!

I'm finishing Gain, which is not a 1001 book but is a GREAT novel for those who like thought-provoking, cerebral texts. I've been at it for months and need to kill it to move on.

Gonna be a tough weekend for pleasure reading, but since I'll be in a pretty sad place, I may start The Bell Jar to reinforce my mood!

Finished The Virgin Suicides this weekend and jumped right into The Great Gatsby which I think I read in high school. I believe I hated it at the time, but I find it very entertaining now.

Also, still reading Tono-Bungay by H.G. Wells through DailyLit, which is coming along nicely.

I am reading Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. I am not sure how long it will take because I am reading a little bit at a time everyday courtesy of dailylit.com. So far I am really enjoying it! It seems spooky so far. Maybe I should have read it this fall. This is going to be a slow personal reading week for me. Hopefully I will catch up this weekend and next week!

I am reading Cry, the beloved country. It's just beautifully written.

I just finished Behind The Scenes At The Museum by Kate Atkinson.

I'm still reading Crime and Punishment which is a bit of a literary rollercoaster - some of its quite turgid and some of it is a real page turner.

Anyway during the slog of this book, I have managed to read the Poe trifecta, namely The Pit and the Pendulum, The Pit and the Pendulum and The Fall of the House of Usher. Of these I thought The Pit and the Pendulum the best.

Steppenwolf.

Didn't get into The Golden Notebook so have put that to one side, and picked up Vile Bodies in the meantime. (I thought I may have already read Vile Bodies - I read a lot of Waugh's books many years ago - but the introductory scenes weren't familiar so it's probably one I bought, but hadn't read yet.)

WookieB - did you know that there is a group reading Waugh right now over at http://www.librarything.com/groups/monthlyauthorreads. There's also a discussion specifically about Vile Bodies. Great book--I'm currently writing a paper on it, and the more I reread it, the more interesting things I see.

Thanks Nickelini, that's exactly why I (finally) picked up Vile Bodies! I don't often participate in the discussions there (I read some Willa Cather for Feb, and Poe for March, but never got a chance to make much in the way of comments). I'm also hoping for a re-read of The Loved One (read that last back in high school, *mumble* years ago), but that'll be the most Waugh I'll get through this month.

It is my "couch" book, meaning I grab a page or two when the kids are distracted by the TV or the PlayStation and I can't move without them noticing me and suddenly demanding attention. Not the best place to read, but one grabs one's chances when they occur!

#21 - and I can't move without them noticing me and suddenly demanding attention.
-------------------------

Oh! I know exactly what you mean by that, though I've never thought of it that way. Too funny. I think my kids have mostly grown out of that, but I still need to be careful.

Sorry about stating the obvious with the group read. I can never keep up with who is following what thread. Enjoy Vile Bodies! I certainly have.

Reading Dracula in the mornings and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in the evenings.

I've just finished book one of The Ambassadors. Usually convoluted writing doesn't disturb me (I've read other books by James without any significant mental anguish) but this one keeps throwing me. Every few paragraphs I'm thinking "wait, who said what about what now?". It could be because I'm pretty ill though. I'm already contemplating cheating on James with something more mellifluous.

On the topic of convolution, my "couch" book for the foreseeable future is Naked Lunch. Only about 10 pages in, but I can already tell this will frustrate me.

I've had bad experiences with Burroughs before (see my reviews of The Soft Machine and Nova Express), but I borrowed this one from a friend since it was on the 1001 List. We'll see how that borrowing regret goes...

Oooh! Just noticed while looking through other Burroughs on the list that there's a book called Billy Liar on there! As a HUGE Decemberists fan, I'm pretty sure I can't not read this immediately!

I've sent out a hold to another University library branch and it should be arriving by the beginning of next week. Hurrah! :-D

Starting In search of Klingsor by Jorge Volpi.

I'm reading The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner by James Hogg - pretty creepy so far, in a good way.

#26 - I love that song - didn't realize there was a book. If they based it on the book, it could be an...interesting read. Let us know how it is!

Now reading Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh.

Am reading The Quiet American, which I'm not enjoying all that much... However, I finished One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest last night and that was brilliant.

I'm reading Veronica Decides to Die. I'm about half way through and deciding whether to finish it or not.

And yet that was one that I loved :)

#32 - I browsed Veronica Decides to Die through LT today and saw several people who I respect recommending it, and that's the only reason I'm sticking with it. It has had it's moments, but so much of it feels like I'm being bashed with pseudo-psychology. I wasn't a big fan of The Alchemist (to make an understatement), but I think I would have liked it at 17. So I'm leery of Coehlo from the start. This one made the 1001 list, so I'm giving it a chance. And even with the titles from the list that I disliked, I could see merit on some level. Reading a book for that reason is a good thing in my book. So I'm trying to read it with the attitude that there is more here than kak. Haven't chucked it yet.

A few days ago I finished reading Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day . I found it to be an amusing story . But it also felt like a 1930s version of chick lit . I happen to like chick lit , but this book didn't strike me as being on the same level as most of the other books on the 1001 list .

@#33: I too loved Veronika Decides to Die. I'll confess that if you don't really like the beginning, it won't change much at the end, but since it's short, keep going. You may change your mind anyway!

Maybe like all things - it is dependent on the timing of the reading????

I finished VIle Bodies and have just chosen Beloved from the tower.

Just finished Nicholas Nickleby and am on to Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell. Also reading Tono Bungay and Journey to the Center of the Earth by daily lit.

I actually have already seen the BBC version of Cranford, with Judi Dench, and it was so fantastic, I'm very interested to see how the book compares. I don't usually watch a movie without having seen the book, but I was in bed sick and what's better for that than a long, calm, English book-on-movie?

I'm reading Snow by Orhan Pamuk, inspired by a friend who is travelling in Turkey. I'm afraid I'm struggling a bit as I feel I don't understand enough about Turkish politics and culture and I feel like a lot of it is going over my head.

Still going on Vile Bodies (couch books do take a while to get through as reading opportunities are limited) but have also picked up The Diary of a Nobody as bedtime reading.

Finally finished Crime and Punishment and am very glad I read it. Now I'm reading Saturday Night and Sunday Morning for a change of pace. Lots of beer and vomit so far.....

Beer and vomit -- o joy! (note to self: skip that one)

Finishing Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky is a special moment.
I see it would be a reason to party :-D ...skip also that throwing up.

In the middle of both Naked Lunch and Billy Liar, though I think Billy Liar will be the one I finish first.

Now reading Never Let Me Go

Gave up on A Tale of Two Cities... and started The Story of Lucy Gault

started Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer

Finished Saturday Night and Sunday Morning and enjoyed it. Working Class literature with a selfish lead character is a rare beast on this list.

Now reading a non 1001 title White Tiger Next up for the 1001 slogfest will be I, Robot as I fancy a venture into sci-fi.

Finished Lord of the Flies (bleh) a couple of days ago. Now reading The Woman In White

> 46 hope you get on better with Everything is Illuminated than I did, I think I gave up after about 80 pages ... :(
I just found it too sad !

Having said that I'm loving The Story of Lucy Gault, which is also sad, but in a dreamy way.

Waterland by Graham Swift.

I just gave up on Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, much to my surprize. The humor felt juvenile and the plot line extremely thin. I propose to try again sometime in the next several months, and give it the "100 minus current age" page allowance before quitting again, if I decide to quit. I may simply have expected too much, given the number of lists it is on. Next up is I, Robot. I have not read that for several decades but loved it as a kid.

@#51: I hate to say it, but I'm glad I'm not the only one who was underwhelmed by the Hitchhiker's Guide. What I will say is that it's so short, and reads so quickly, that if you've started it, you may want to just suck it up and finish it at some point in the future. But your mileage may vary, of course. :)

I am going to retry with adjusted attitude in the near term. I was so busy being a little annoyed with what I was reading that I have forgotten the details and will need to refresh. And I am glad to know I am not the only one too!

I loved Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy when it first came out, but I think its time may have passed. Believe me, it was brilliant in the 1980s. :)

Finished Vile Bodies (upgraded it from "couch" status and knocked it off in a couple of days). Delightful satire, it's been an age since I read Waugh's satirical books.

And started (late last night), The Player of Games. Second "Culture" novel for me by Iain M. Banks. Great meaty sci-fi, I'm not very far in and I'm enjoying it already.

I just started Uncle Tom's Cabin.

Read The Yellow Wallpaper in 15 minutes. Somehow reminded me of the horror movie The Ring.

Whew, finally finished The Ambassadors. Tedious as it was at the start, it really grew on me and I am glad that I read it. I am taking a 1001 break to finally read Dreams from My Father, which is absurdly good so far, but I think I'll start Gravity's Rainbow next.

P.S. I also love The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and I read it way after its initial release. I think it is just the type of humor that you either love or hate.

Reading Jane Eyre.

Killing time reading J. M. Coetzee's Youth. Got a LOT of 1001 Books started, and we'll see which one I finish first!

I'm one chapter into Where Angels Fear to Tread, by EM Forster, and I think it's going to be my cup of tea!

I'm halfway through:
Through The Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
On the Road by Jack Kerouac
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

I just finished Rosshalde by Hermann Hesse and am still reading Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon by Jorge Amado.

I started Fifth Business by Robertson Davies.

Currently reading Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow. Read quite a few of Bellow's books in the last few months, and must admit while they are wryly amusing, his characters irritate me intensely.

Before that I read Margaret Atwood's Cat's Eye. Very good. Again as with Bellow thanks to this list I am readign someone I never ead before. Atwood has compelled me to confont unconsious gender based thought processess and attitudes. Clealry her books do express a woman's view of the world that is just, well totallly dflferent to a man's (assuming of course that I have a man's view of the world). Very enlightening and educational.

Apropos of {Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I read in the late 1970s as a student. Read the whole book in one sitting in the bath I remember! Found it utterly hilarious, but after watching the movie when it came out I realised that my sense of humour has changed and I wouldn't find it funny now. So, no not on the re-read list!

I am reading Will Self's How the Dead Live. By page 30 I was forcing myself to continue to at least page 50 before giving up; by page 45 I thought I would give it a few more pages; by page 75 I was quite enjoying it; almost at page 100 I am liking it very much. Wonder if it will continue to get even better????

OK finished the non 1001 book White Tiger which was very good.

I read the The Yellow Wallpaper online at work while waiting for my PC to complete a task. Interesting enough, I would have liked to see it progress more.

Now I've just started I, Robot which I expect to enjoy having read other Asimov.

Just to say, so glad to have found this site and know that I'm not the only nutter trying to read through all these! I am currently half way through Joyce's Portrait of the Artist and also Lady Chatterley's Lover, which I am finding ratehr duller than I had expected!

Oh and both Hitchhiker's and I, Robot are brilliant :)

I'm also nearly finished with Patrick White The Tree of Man, I did not realise it had been added to the 2008 version of the list!

@68 - Hmmm, Patrick White now there's a difficult author.

Tree on Man is one of his more readable.

I just couldn't complete The Living and The Dead. The Aunt's Story (non 1001) was also too difficult for me.

I have successfully read others of his. However the tbr Voss has been silently mocking me from my bookcase for a good 20 years.

Finished The Woman In White which, despite being overly wordy in a Victorian way, was very good. The supporting characters (Marian and Fosco) were great.

Now reading The Hound of the Baskervilles which I think I read in High School English, but can't say for sure. I certainly don't remember much as I read it, so worth the (re-?)read at any rate.

I recently read Woman in White too - I really enjoyed it. It makes me look forward to The Moonstone.

Having serious problems with Joyce.... anyone else?

#69- Last year I read Voss because of the 1001 list. It was such a vast book, and reading it felt a little like slogging through the desert with the characters. But the great writing alleviated the pain somewhat...

I read two books this month. I didn't completely understand the Turkish politics of Snow by Orhan Pamuk, but found myself enjoying it anyways.

I also finished Animal's People because I wanted to cross off the first book on the list. Laugh-out-loud funny at times, tragic at others. Good read

Reading A Confederacy of Dunces. I was prepared for the horror of the character of Ignatius by reviews and am enjoying the satire.

reading Cider With Rosie. Enjoying it so far but...does this count as a novel? Isn't it an autobiography? I dunno.

Finished Tree of Man last night and wasn't sleepy (plus my bed had been invaded by a 4 year old princess) so I decided to stick with an Aussie theme on Tuesday nights and started Peter Carey Jack Maggs. Read half by 1.30 am, enjoying it a great deal. ToM was the first Patrick White I have read, and will go back to Voss and Living and the Dead soon, as I really enjoyed the prose, the deep empathy he displayed for very ordinary lives, and the muted sub-text of twentieth century Australian social history. Will try and pinch some time later today from marking term papers to write a review! (HaHaHa)!

Finished I,Robot and enjoyed it. The ending was a bit of a letdown. The book is very episodic as the chapters had been published as short stories originally. Oh well, this approach worked well enough for the likes of Dickens I guess.

I might now read Foundation to complete the Asimov selections.

Finished The Glass Bead Game by Hermann Hesse. Took a while to get into it, but by 1/3 of the way in I was absorbed. Not sure I fully understood it - lots of deep philosophy going on, but I got the gist of what he was saying. Still haven't quite grasped what the glass bead game is!

Also finished The Outsider by Albert Camus. After the Hesse tome, a welcome short read - only took a couple of days, and those were days when I didn't have much time for reading. Small but perfectly formed, I was absolutely absorbed from start to finish. Almost cried in the courtroom scene (might have something to do with my being a barrister!). Will certainly re-read at some stage.

Next up, either The Black Prince by Iris Murdoch, or To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf.

I finished in the early hours of this morning (which is technically May, but most of the world is still in April, so I'll leave this here instead of starting a new thread :) The Player of Games. Wonderful, dense sci-fi, which has got to be one of my favourite things to read.

I finished reading Heir to Sevenwaters and I`m starting Priestess of the White