pamelad - the bottom of the pile
Talk Books off the Shelf Challenge
This group has been archived. Find out more.
Join LibraryThing to post.
1pamelad
Aiming to read at least ten of the shelf-sitters. I'll give them a good try, and anything that's just not interesting enough to read I'll give away.
3pamelad
Started!
Come Home Charlie and Face Them by R. F. Delderfield.
Charlie Pritchard, weedy little bank clerk, lusts after the beautiful Delphine at the Rainbow Cafe. She lures him into a bank robbery.
A very silly book, but readable. 3*
Come Home Charlie and Face Them by R. F. Delderfield.
Charlie Pritchard, weedy little bank clerk, lusts after the beautiful Delphine at the Rainbow Cafe. She lures him into a bank robbery.
A very silly book, but readable. 3*
4pamelad
Coming up:
The Guide by R. K. Narayan
Everything is Nice by Jane Bowles
As a Man grows Older by Italo Svevo
Wheat That Springeth Green by J. F. Powers
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai
From London Far by Michael Innes
The Guide by R. K. Narayan
Everything is Nice by Jane Bowles
As a Man grows Older by Italo Svevo
Wheat That Springeth Green by J. F. Powers
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai
From London Far by Michael Innes
5marise
Will be watching to see your thoughts on the Jane Bowles book. I've been wanting to read something by her for a long time.
6lbradf
Welcome to the group. I haven't read anything on your list, which is probably bad news for me: I'll read your reviews and want to read them myself, further thwarting my off-the-shelf reading. That's why, like you, I set a modest goal for this challenge!
7pamelad
A Travelling Woman by John Wain
John Wain, is one of the original Angry Young Men, famous for his first book, Hurry on Down.
George Link, a pedantic, selfish twenty-seven year-old solicitor, takes his wife's devotion for granted, and entangles himself with the dissatisfied, unhappy Ruth. Wain treats his characters with compassion.
Worth reading. A slice of British life in the fifties. 3.5*
Thank you for the welcome lbradf. I thought that by setting a modest goal, I'd have no excuse for not meeting it. Good luck with yours.
Christine, the Jane Bowles has started well. Things happen to her characters - they have no volition.
John Wain, is one of the original Angry Young Men, famous for his first book, Hurry on Down.
George Link, a pedantic, selfish twenty-seven year-old solicitor, takes his wife's devotion for granted, and entangles himself with the dissatisfied, unhappy Ruth. Wain treats his characters with compassion.
Worth reading. A slice of British life in the fifties. 3.5*
Thank you for the welcome lbradf. I thought that by setting a modest goal, I'd have no excuse for not meeting it. Good luck with yours.
Christine, the Jane Bowles has started well. Things happen to her characters - they have no volition.
9pamelad
3. As a man Grows Older by Italo Svevo
Svevo self-published this book, and on its failure gave up writing for twenty years. His next book, The confessions of Zeno initially received little attention, but fortunately was discovered by James Joyce.
Emilio Brentani is thirty-five, an ineffectual businessman who lives in near poverty with his sister Amalia. He meets Angeliolina, a beautiful, healthy, pleasure-loving young woman with whom he imagines he is in love. The book chronicles his obsession. Like Confessions of Zeno, this is a psychological novel. Emilio is hypocritical, weak and self-deluding, a fully-realised character for whom I felt a great deal of sympathy.
4*
Svevo self-published this book, and on its failure gave up writing for twenty years. His next book, The confessions of Zeno initially received little attention, but fortunately was discovered by James Joyce.
Emilio Brentani is thirty-five, an ineffectual businessman who lives in near poverty with his sister Amalia. He meets Angeliolina, a beautiful, healthy, pleasure-loving young woman with whom he imagines he is in love. The book chronicles his obsession. Like Confessions of Zeno, this is a psychological novel. Emilio is hypocritical, weak and self-deluding, a fully-realised character for whom I felt a great deal of sympathy.
4*
10pamelad
4. A Dirty Weekend by Gabrielle Lord
Bought this at a library sale a few years ago, then forgot it. Jack McCain, forensic scientist, ex-policeman and workaholic, investigates the deaths of two scientists, a colleague's wife and an elderly asthmatic. The book is set in Canberra, which apparently has an average of eight murders a year, so this is quite a crime wave.
Quite liked the book, but with reservations. I couldn't really believe Jack McCain was a bloke because he whined on about relationships all the time, and the relationship waffle got in the way of the story. The book would have been better at 100 pages less.
3.5*
Bought this at a library sale a few years ago, then forgot it. Jack McCain, forensic scientist, ex-policeman and workaholic, investigates the deaths of two scientists, a colleague's wife and an elderly asthmatic. The book is set in Canberra, which apparently has an average of eight murders a year, so this is quite a crime wave.
Quite liked the book, but with reservations. I couldn't really believe Jack McCain was a bloke because he whined on about relationships all the time, and the relationship waffle got in the way of the story. The book would have been better at 100 pages less.
3.5*
11marise
>9 pamelad: Svevo sounds like an interesting writer. You just can't help adding to my wishlist can you? :)
12pamelad
Christine, The Confessions of Zeno is one of my favourite books, definitely worthy of a place on your wishlist.
5. Captive Audience by Jessica Mann
Cannot recommend this because of the ludicrous ending. A shame, had enjoyed it until then.
5. Captive Audience by Jessica Mann
Cannot recommend this because of the ludicrous ending. A shame, had enjoyed it until then.
13pamelad
6. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay has been on my shelves since March, when I bought it in response to the many recommendations on LT. All the fans were right. Excellent read. 4.5*
15pamelad
Have been waylaid by Worldcat and have three excellent books to read pronto, so no books from the shelf for a while.
Have sent some ancient shelf sitters to bookmoochers - always good to find a book a home with someone who'll aprreciate it.
Have sent some ancient shelf sitters to bookmoochers - always good to find a book a home with someone who'll aprreciate it.
17RidgewayGirl
Well, tiffin, it is great in theory. The problem begins when you have earned points by giving those books away, and a list of new books you'd like. I blame BookMooch for my towering Mt. Toobie.
18lbradf
I had the same thought when I read your post, Tiffin. Do you know about Bookcrossing.com? It is an alternative for passing on books and it does not involve going to the library to donate them or racking up points on Bookmooch--both of which as RidgewayGirl notes, which just increase the size of your TBR pile. It's fun to read about others finding your books.
19tiffin
I do know about bookcrossing...usually just take my books in to a 2nd hand bookshop owned by a friend...I get a credit there. I have rethought the bookmooch idea and decided to just carry on as is, saving the postage. My problem is new books from the BookDepository!
20pamelad
I've been waylaid by library books, but am back on track. Have decided that any book that was on the shelves before December 17th is fair game, and have just finished number 6, Kim by Rudyard Kipling.
I enjoyed it, but should have read it when I was 12.
ETA It's number 7! Can't count.
I enjoyed it, but should have read it when I was 12.
ETA It's number 7! Can't count.
21usnmm2
I said the same thing about Kim when I read it several years ago. Should have read it when I was 11 or 12 when I was read Just So Stories for Little Children, The Jungle Book etc.
22pamelad
The man at the second-hand bookshop will take back books for half of the price he sold them for, so I have returned a few:
Saturday Night at the Greyhound - read half of it and found it too depressing to continue;
The Penge Bungalow Murders - started it, but it's not a patch on Mortimer's other Rumpoles, so I put it down;
Madam Midas - bought it because I liked The Mystery of a Hansom Cab and want to read more Australian books, but read a few pages and gave up on it;
A book by Sybille Bedford - have already forgotten its name. Had a bit of a craze for her books, but it petered out; ETA A Compass Error
Kim, which I just finished.
Would have made a significant hole in the tbr pile if, flushed with success, I hadn't bought six more books! My justifications for two of them are that books by Barbara Tuchman are hard to find, so you have to buy them when you see them, and that cmbohn just recommended a book by Rudyard Kipling, and it was just sitting on the shelf in front of me.
Saturday Night at the Greyhound - read half of it and found it too depressing to continue;
The Penge Bungalow Murders - started it, but it's not a patch on Mortimer's other Rumpoles, so I put it down;
Madam Midas - bought it because I liked The Mystery of a Hansom Cab and want to read more Australian books, but read a few pages and gave up on it;
A book by Sybille Bedford - have already forgotten its name. Had a bit of a craze for her books, but it petered out; ETA A Compass Error
Kim, which I just finished.
Would have made a significant hole in the tbr pile if, flushed with success, I hadn't bought six more books! My justifications for two of them are that books by Barbara Tuchman are hard to find, so you have to buy them when you see them, and that cmbohn just recommended a book by Rudyard Kipling, and it was just sitting on the shelf in front of me.
25pamelad
Reading By the Sea by Abdulrazak Gurnah, about a sixty-five year-old man from Zanzibar who has sought asylum in Britain.
26tiffin
Oh boy, how well I know that dance: take 5 in, bring 6 home! My favourite used bookshop has the same deal. I have a box sitting here ready to go in. But it a very frugal & ecological way to acquire books, so you should still feel flushed with success.
27pamelad
Finished By the Sea, which is number 9.
Saleh Omar leaves Zanzibar seeking asylum in Britain. He meets a younger countryman, Latif, whose family history is entwined with his own, and who blames Omar for his family's ruin. As they tell their stories, complexities and moral ambiguities are revealed, along with the tragedy of modern Zanzibar.
4*
Saleh Omar leaves Zanzibar seeking asylum in Britain. He meets a younger countryman, Latif, whose family history is entwined with his own, and who blames Omar for his family's ruin. As they tell their stories, complexities and moral ambiguities are revealed, along with the tragedy of modern Zanzibar.
4*
28LynnB
I did read Kim when I was about 12. In fact, by age 14, I'd read almost all the classics. I re-read most of them when I was 28 - 31; I read very little other than classics at that time. Totally different books when I was older and had more of a sense of history and politics. Maybe I should do the same when I retire. It's nice when one book can really be three different ones if you wait long enough.
30pamelad
Reading number 10, Norwegian Wood.
Setting a goal of another ten - anything on the shelves before February.
Lynn, an interesting thing about reading Kim now was understanding it in the context of The Great Game. I wouldn't have understood that as a child.
Setting a goal of another ten - anything on the shelves before February.
Lynn, an interesting thing about reading Kim now was understanding it in the context of The Great Game. I wouldn't have understood that as a child.
32LynnB
I've put Kim on my wish list. I haven't read it since I was a teenager, so it will be a treat!
33pamelad
11. The Misses Mallett by E. H. Young.
Enjoyed this Virago, and am now looking for Young's Miss Mole.
12. To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis.
Liked this one too, despite it being science fiction and a little bit too long. Time travelling Oxford historians return to the Victorian era ostensibly to locate a hideous ornament needed for the restoration of Coventry Cathedral. A mis-step could change the course of history, or has that already happened? A bit of comedy, a bit of romance, many literary allusions - I liked everything but the time travel.
Enjoyed this Virago, and am now looking for Young's Miss Mole.
12. To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis.
Liked this one too, despite it being science fiction and a little bit too long. Time travelling Oxford historians return to the Victorian era ostensibly to locate a hideous ornament needed for the restoration of Coventry Cathedral. A mis-step could change the course of history, or has that already happened? A bit of comedy, a bit of romance, many literary allusions - I liked everything but the time travel.
34tloeffler
I have had To Say Nothing of the Dog home from the library for over a month and I keep getting distracted by other books. I've only got 3 more renewals, so I'd better get on it!
35pamelad
Road Block by Hillary Waugh
Lloyd Ragan has planned every detail of the Tool and Dye Company payroll robbery and the getaway. He knows the police will set up road blocks, but Ragan knows how to avoid them. Things go wrong, and the police search desperately for the gang of vicious killers holding hostages in a secret hideout.
A tense, hard-boiled thriller.
4*
My copy is an original Pan paperback from 1960, with a dramatic picture on the cover.
Lloyd Ragan has planned every detail of the Tool and Dye Company payroll robbery and the getaway. He knows the police will set up road blocks, but Ragan knows how to avoid them. Things go wrong, and the police search desperately for the gang of vicious killers holding hostages in a secret hideout.
A tense, hard-boiled thriller.
4*
My copy is an original Pan paperback from 1960, with a dramatic picture on the cover.
36bragan
Is it stupid of me that I kind of want to read this now just because the protagonist has the same last name as I do?
37pamelad
bragan, I don't think you're going to like your namesake, but Road Block is definitely worth reading.
39pamelad
14. That Summer by Andrew Greig
Len is a young fighter pilot, a working class boy whose father is a game keeper. Stella is a middle-class girl, a little older than Len, working as a radar operative. They meet in a pub in 1940 and gradually fall in love. I had to put this book asiide for a while because I was so attached to the characters and couldn't bear that they might die. It's the battle of Britain, and the life of a fighter pilot is short.
Recommended 4*.
Can't get touchstone to work. Will try again later.
Len is a young fighter pilot, a working class boy whose father is a game keeper. Stella is a middle-class girl, a little older than Len, working as a radar operative. They meet in a pub in 1940 and gradually fall in love. I had to put this book asiide for a while because I was so attached to the characters and couldn't bear that they might die. It's the battle of Britain, and the life of a fighter pilot is short.
Recommended 4*.
Can't get touchstone to work. Will try again later.
40DeltaQueen50
That Summer sounds really good, I am adding it to my wishlist. I love stories about WWII - hope it's only a one hankie read - not a three or four!
*touchstones not working for me either!
*touchstones not working for me either!
42pamelad
15. The Spirit of Prague by Ivan Klima
A collection of articles covering each decade from the forties to the nineties. Definitely worth reading, but the writing isn't brilliant. Perhaps the translation?
3.5*
I'm reading another from the depths of the pile: The Charlotte Armstrong Treasury. Three "great novels of suspense". The first one, The Witch's House, has started well.
A collection of articles covering each decade from the forties to the nineties. Definitely worth reading, but the writing isn't brilliant. Perhaps the translation?
3.5*
I'm reading another from the depths of the pile: The Charlotte Armstrong Treasury. Three "great novels of suspense". The first one, The Witch's House, has started well.
43pamelad
16. Assignment in Brittany by Helen macInnes
A WWII spy novel, first published in 1942. The Englishman Martin Hearne impersonates a Frenchman in occupied France.
3.5*
Have finished the first novel in The Charlotte Armstrong Treasury, and will have an suspense free break before tackling the next. I'm also reading The Confessions of Felix Krull, which has been on the shelf quite a while.
A WWII spy novel, first published in 1942. The Englishman Martin Hearne impersonates a Frenchman in occupied France.
3.5*
Have finished the first novel in The Charlotte Armstrong Treasury, and will have an suspense free break before tackling the next. I'm also reading The Confessions of Felix Krull, which has been on the shelf quite a while.
44mamzel
Wow! I haven't thought of Helen MacInnes in a long time! I loved reading her books when I was in high school.
45pamelad
17. The Charlotte Armstrong Treasury by Charlotte Armstrong
The three suspense novels in this collection are The Witch's House, Mischief and The Dream Walker.
All three share the theme of the evil stranger who invades an ordinary middle-class family. In The Witch's House the stranger is the new wife of a widowed university professor. In Mischief she's the the babysitter. Both of these stories work well; the tension builds as we will the ignorant victims to notice the evil in their midst, and to act before it is too late.
The third story, The Dream Walker is less successful.
3.5*
Touchstones taking a long time to load. Will try to fix them later.
The three suspense novels in this collection are The Witch's House, Mischief and The Dream Walker.
All three share the theme of the evil stranger who invades an ordinary middle-class family. In The Witch's House the stranger is the new wife of a widowed university professor. In Mischief she's the the babysitter. Both of these stories work well; the tension builds as we will the ignorant victims to notice the evil in their midst, and to act before it is too late.
The third story, The Dream Walker is less successful.
3.5*
Touchstones taking a long time to load. Will try to fix them later.
46pamelad
18. Confessions of Felix Krull, Confidence Man by Thomas Mann
This one's been on the shelf for about four years, one of the oldest books there.
I enjoyed it. Felix Krull is an engaging character, and the book is very funny. I suspect it would have turned out to be an allegory, but Mann didn't finish it. I think either that I've missed the point, or that there are many possible directions the book might have taken.
4*
This one's been on the shelf for about four years, one of the oldest books there.
I enjoyed it. Felix Krull is an engaging character, and the book is very funny. I suspect it would have turned out to be an allegory, but Mann didn't finish it. I think either that I've missed the point, or that there are many possible directions the book might have taken.
4*
48pamelad
19. The Time We Have Taken by Steven Carroll
Carroll's book is set in an outer suburb of Melbourne in 1970, its centenary year. A few miles further north, the highway cuts through barren, flat, thistle country. Carroll doesn't name the suburb, which is very like Glenroy, or the highway, which is the Hume, and the book is the worse for it. Carroll's ponderous, repetitive language distances the reader from the suburb and its people.
3.5*
Problem with touchstone
Carroll's book is set in an outer suburb of Melbourne in 1970, its centenary year. A few miles further north, the highway cuts through barren, flat, thistle country. Carroll doesn't name the suburb, which is very like Glenroy, or the highway, which is the Hume, and the book is the worse for it. Carroll's ponderous, repetitive language distances the reader from the suburb and its people.
3.5*
Problem with touchstone
49pamelad
20. The Revolution in Tanner's Lane by Mark Rutherford
The story starts in 1814, when crowds are gathered to see Louis XVIII. Zachariah Coleman, religious dissenter, political radical and supporter of the French revolution, is attacked for failing to remove his hat as a sign of respect for the French king.
The book is in two sections. The first centres on the revolutionary politics of Coleman and his friends as they work towards democracy and the repeal of the corn laws. Rutherford's disgust for the greed and corruption of Prince Regent and his entourage, and his concern for workers and the poor come through clearly.
The second section is loosely connected to the first by the appearance of Zachariah, who symbolises passion and honesty, in contrast to the venal hypocrisy of Cornfold's pastor and congregation. Similarly, the Cornfield pastor is a sad contrast to Bradshaw, the inspiring preacher in the first section.
Rutherford was the pseudonym of William Hale White, a public servant whose father's life has many similarities to Zachariah Coleman's. He lived - the Calvinist Dissenters, the Free Traders and the corn laws, and because it described the domestic lives of its characters - their strict religious observance, the books they read (or did not), the arguments between men and their wives, their expectations of life. We don't often come across contemporary (or near contemporary) descriptions of the lives of the poor.
Recommended 4*
The story starts in 1814, when crowds are gathered to see Louis XVIII. Zachariah Coleman, religious dissenter, political radical and supporter of the French revolution, is attacked for failing to remove his hat as a sign of respect for the French king.
The book is in two sections. The first centres on the revolutionary politics of Coleman and his friends as they work towards democracy and the repeal of the corn laws. Rutherford's disgust for the greed and corruption of Prince Regent and his entourage, and his concern for workers and the poor come through clearly.
The second section is loosely connected to the first by the appearance of Zachariah, who symbolises passion and honesty, in contrast to the venal hypocrisy of Cornfold's pastor and congregation. Similarly, the Cornfield pastor is a sad contrast to Bradshaw, the inspiring preacher in the first section.
Rutherford was the pseudonym of William Hale White, a public servant whose father's life has many similarities to Zachariah Coleman's. He lived - the Calvinist Dissenters, the Free Traders and the corn laws, and because it described the domestic lives of its characters - their strict religious observance, the books they read (or did not), the arguments between men and their wives, their expectations of life. We don't often come across contemporary (or near contemporary) descriptions of the lives of the poor.
Recommended 4*
50pamelad
21. Only Yesterday by Frederick Lewis Allen
Written in 1931, this book covers the years from the end of WW1 to the great stockmarket crash in 1929. Lewis writes clearly and engagingly about the big news of the twenties, including crime and graft of the Harding presidency, the Stopes trial, the trial of Sacco and Vanzetti, the Florida land speculation, Lindbergh's flight, prohibition and the rise of Al Capone. He also records changes in attitudes and ways of life: the trend from religious fundamentalism to modernism, the changes in moral values of youth made cynical by the destruction of the war, and the rise of materialism.
Recommended 4*
Written in 1931, this book covers the years from the end of WW1 to the great stockmarket crash in 1929. Lewis writes clearly and engagingly about the big news of the twenties, including crime and graft of the Harding presidency, the Stopes trial, the trial of Sacco and Vanzetti, the Florida land speculation, Lindbergh's flight, prohibition and the rise of Al Capone. He also records changes in attitudes and ways of life: the trend from religious fundamentalism to modernism, the changes in moral values of youth made cynical by the destruction of the war, and the rise of materialism.
Recommended 4*
51pamelad
This was the bottom book on the tbr pile!
22. The Confusions of Young Torless by Robert Musil
Torless is a student at an Austrian military academy, younger and more intelligent than his classmates. Impressed by their masculinity, Torless becomes an associate of the two class leaders, violent boys who have formed an alliance rather than fighting for complete dominance. The two of them, with Torless as an observer, brutalise another student, the son of a poor widow, who has earned their contempt by stealing money.
The boys believe they are living in a new age; they deliberately jettison their humanity and compassion as weaknesses incompatible with the new world order. They are superior beings; the boy they brutalise is less than human. This is what chilled me about this book. The boys brutalise a weaker student to find out how it makes them feel, to learn from the experience.
A great deal of this short book is devoted to Torless' attempts to crystallise his thoughts into words. It begins with a quotation from Maeterlink, which begins, "As soon as we put something into words, we devalue it in a strange way."
I didn't much enjoy this book, but I thought it was worth reading. 3.5*
22. The Confusions of Young Torless by Robert Musil
Torless is a student at an Austrian military academy, younger and more intelligent than his classmates. Impressed by their masculinity, Torless becomes an associate of the two class leaders, violent boys who have formed an alliance rather than fighting for complete dominance. The two of them, with Torless as an observer, brutalise another student, the son of a poor widow, who has earned their contempt by stealing money.
The boys believe they are living in a new age; they deliberately jettison their humanity and compassion as weaknesses incompatible with the new world order. They are superior beings; the boy they brutalise is less than human. This is what chilled me about this book. The boys brutalise a weaker student to find out how it makes them feel, to learn from the experience.
A great deal of this short book is devoted to Torless' attempts to crystallise his thoughts into words. It begins with a quotation from Maeterlink, which begins, "As soon as we put something into words, we devalue it in a strange way."
I didn't much enjoy this book, but I thought it was worth reading. 3.5*
52pamelad
23. The Levanter by Eric Ambler
This is a lateish Ambler, 1972. I prefer his early books.
Michael Howell, Cypriot, Armenian and British, is the Levanter, a businessman based in Syria. His company is infiltrated by Palestinian terrorists.
According to Ambler, Howell's best qualitites are the result of his English heritage, but he has the slippery insincerity of his Cypriot and Armenian ancestors, and their unfortunate lack of phlegm. I gritted my teeth and read on.
3*
This is a lateish Ambler, 1972. I prefer his early books.
Michael Howell, Cypriot, Armenian and British, is the Levanter, a businessman based in Syria. His company is infiltrated by Palestinian terrorists.
According to Ambler, Howell's best qualitites are the result of his English heritage, but he has the slippery insincerity of his Cypriot and Armenian ancestors, and their unfortunate lack of phlegm. I gritted my teeth and read on.
3*
53pamelad
24. The Guide by R. K. Narayan
Raju was once a tourist guide, an expert on Malgudi. Travellers from all over India asked for him by name and paid him well, but Raj became greedy and cheated too many people. The book starts with Raju's release from jail.
Raju can't face returning to Malgudi, so he stops by a river, near an abandoned temple. A local man stops to talk about his problems, which Raju indavertently solves. The villagers hang on Raju's words and adopt him as a swami, their holy guide.
Narayan's Malgudi novels are philosophical, yet gently comical.
Recommended. 4*
Raju was once a tourist guide, an expert on Malgudi. Travellers from all over India asked for him by name and paid him well, but Raj became greedy and cheated too many people. The book starts with Raju's release from jail.
Raju can't face returning to Malgudi, so he stops by a river, near an abandoned temple. A local man stops to talk about his problems, which Raju indavertently solves. The villagers hang on Raju's words and adopt him as a swami, their holy guide.
Narayan's Malgudi novels are philosophical, yet gently comical.
Recommended. 4*
55pamelad
Hope you like it, Mamzel.
25. My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk
In sixteenth century Istanbul a painter is murdered. With three other master miniaturists he has been illustrating a book for the sultan. One of these colleagues may well be the murderer.
Pamuk's book has many narrators, each with a different perspective. In fact, perspective is central to the story. It is a painter's role to paint the world as Allah sees it; to represent the world through the eye of the painter, rather than in the traditions of the old masters, is forbidden by the Koran. Allah must be the centre of every painting, so the use of perspective, which could make a profane object bigger than Allah, is also forbidden.
The story builds in layers, with painting and religion at its core.
A bit too long, but recommended 4*
25. My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk
In sixteenth century Istanbul a painter is murdered. With three other master miniaturists he has been illustrating a book for the sultan. One of these colleagues may well be the murderer.
Pamuk's book has many narrators, each with a different perspective. In fact, perspective is central to the story. It is a painter's role to paint the world as Allah sees it; to represent the world through the eye of the painter, rather than in the traditions of the old masters, is forbidden by the Koran. Allah must be the centre of every painting, so the use of perspective, which could make a profane object bigger than Allah, is also forbidden.
The story builds in layers, with painting and religion at its core.
A bit too long, but recommended 4*
56pamelad
26. The Face on the Cutting Room Floor by Cameron McCabe
This book was first published in 1937 and it's an oddity. McCabe is author, narrator, detective, and it's possible that he might be a murderer. At first the story just doesn't make sense, but that's because McCabe has left things out. A Scotland Yard detective fills in some of the gaps, then other characters fill in some more. There are diversions into existentialism and politics; characters come and go for reasons that don't become clear until near the end.
The last quarter of the book is a big surprise, unlike anything that came before. Can't say more in case I ruin it.
Recommended. 4*
This book was first published in 1937 and it's an oddity. McCabe is author, narrator, detective, and it's possible that he might be a murderer. At first the story just doesn't make sense, but that's because McCabe has left things out. A Scotland Yard detective fills in some of the gaps, then other characters fill in some more. There are diversions into existentialism and politics; characters come and go for reasons that don't become clear until near the end.
The last quarter of the book is a big surprise, unlike anything that came before. Can't say more in case I ruin it.
Recommended. 4*
58pamelad
27. The Night-Comers by Eric Ambler
Steve Fraser has been building a dam in Sunda, once part of the Dutch East Indies, but now an independent nation. He has finished his contract and is waiting to fly out, when he is caught up in a coup. Fraser and his Eurasian companion, Rosalie, are trapped in the headquarters of the revolutionary army.
Quite a good Ambler. 3.5*
My copy is a 1956 Pan paperback with a highly dramatic cover: an unarmed white man confronts gun-carrying Asian soldiers while a semi-naked girl in a sarong looks on.
Touchstone isn't working. The US title is State of Siege, which also isn't loading.
Steve Fraser has been building a dam in Sunda, once part of the Dutch East Indies, but now an independent nation. He has finished his contract and is waiting to fly out, when he is caught up in a coup. Fraser and his Eurasian companion, Rosalie, are trapped in the headquarters of the revolutionary army.
Quite a good Ambler. 3.5*
My copy is a 1956 Pan paperback with a highly dramatic cover: an unarmed white man confronts gun-carrying Asian soldiers while a semi-naked girl in a sarong looks on.
Touchstone isn't working. The US title is State of Siege, which also isn't loading.
59cammykitty
I love Norwegian Wood and liked To Say nothing of the Dog too. Time travel books do get a bit ridiculous though. Hard to call them science fiction because there's very little science in the twists and turns time travel stories always take.
I'm going to have to put My Name is Red on my wish list. I have a friend who writes mysteries with multiple viewpoints and it's a tricky thing to pull off, so I'd be interested to see how this book handles it. Thanks for the comments!
I'm going to have to put My Name is Red on my wish list. I have a friend who writes mysteries with multiple viewpoints and it's a tricky thing to pull off, so I'd be interested to see how this book handles it. Thanks for the comments!
60pamelad
28. The Feast of the Goat by Mario Vargas Llosa
This fictionalised account of the last days of Trujillo, the feared and fanatical ruler of the Dominican Republic, is interspersed with the story of Urania, a 49-year-old lawyer who escaped the island when she was fourteen. Urania's father was one of Trujillo's inner circle, a sycophant whose life was destroyed when he fell out of favour. Trujillo is surrounded by sycophants, because Trujillo rewards his friends and kills anyone who criticises him.
This is a real page turner. I wanted to know Urania's story: why does she hate her father, and why has she never returned to Dominica? Will the conspiracy to assassinate Trujillo succeed? Will the conspirators survive? Will Trujillo's insane brothers and son destroy the country?
Highly recommended 5*
This fictionalised account of the last days of Trujillo, the feared and fanatical ruler of the Dominican Republic, is interspersed with the story of Urania, a 49-year-old lawyer who escaped the island when she was fourteen. Urania's father was one of Trujillo's inner circle, a sycophant whose life was destroyed when he fell out of favour. Trujillo is surrounded by sycophants, because Trujillo rewards his friends and kills anyone who criticises him.
This is a real page turner. I wanted to know Urania's story: why does she hate her father, and why has she never returned to Dominica? Will the conspiracy to assassinate Trujillo succeed? Will the conspirators survive? Will Trujillo's insane brothers and son destroy the country?
Highly recommended 5*
61cammykitty
I keep hearing about The Feast of the Goat. It'll have to go on my ever-growing wishlist! Sounds good.
62pamelad
29. Passage of Arms by Eric Ambler
A middle-aged American engineer, on holiday with his wife in South-east Asia, is conned into becoming the front man of an arms deal. The book was first published in 1959, a time of great upheaval in Indonesia and Malaya, so it's worth reading for its descriptions of the time and place. Lots of local colour, and a Graham Greenish atmosphere of corruption.
A pretty good Ambler. 3.5*
A middle-aged American engineer, on holiday with his wife in South-east Asia, is conned into becoming the front man of an arms deal. The book was first published in 1959, a time of great upheaval in Indonesia and Malaya, so it's worth reading for its descriptions of the time and place. Lots of local colour, and a Graham Greenish atmosphere of corruption.
A pretty good Ambler. 3.5*
