avatiakh reads towards 75 and beyond in 2010 - Part 2

My previous thread is here

My 2010 goal is to read more New Zealand and Israeli fiction.

Take It or Leave It (TIOLI ) Challenge: July: book with ISBN ending in 4: Going to Egypt, Blood Red Snow White
& Book with a Body Part in the title: The Bone People, Boneshaker, Brainjack, Stoneheart
Orange July: The Lacuna
Reading Globally July: Greece: The Last Black Cat

Currently Reading:
The Bone People by Keri Hulme
The Last Elf by Silvana De Mari
Going to Egypt by Helen Dunmore
Almost Dead by Assaf Gavron

Mimus by Lilli Thal (stalled)

Highlights of my reading from the first quarter:
fiction:
The Ministry of Special Cases by Nathan Englander (2007)
Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey (1949)
Small Island by Andrea Levy (2004)
An Equal Stillness by Francesca Kay (2009)
A Pigeon and a Boy by Meir Shalev (2006)
Address Unknown by Kressmann Taylor (1938)
Chess Story by Stefan Zweig (1943)
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson (1972)
Things fall apart by Chinua Achebe (1958)
The old man who read love stories by Luis Sepulveda (1989)
The Blue Flower by Penelope Fitzgerald (1995)
Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels (1996)
Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey (2009)
As the earth turns silver by Alison Wong (2009)
Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh (1928)
Hunting and Gathering by Anna Gavalda (2004)
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (2009)
The Francise Affair by Josephine Tey (1948)
The Last Child by John Hart (2009)

Short Stories:
Tiny Deaths by Rob Shearman (2007)
Love Songs for the Shy and Cynical by Rob Shearman (2009)
Coming Up Roses by Sarah Laing (2007)

children's & young adult:
Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta (2008)
The Reformed Vampire Support Group by Catherine Jinks (2009)
Kes by Barry Hines (1968)
Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson (2007)
Ancient Appetites by Oisin McGann (2007)
Brigands MC by Robert Muchamore (2009)
X-isle by Steve Augarde (2009)

nonfiction:
The Sushi Economy: Globalization and the Making of a Modern Delicacy by Sasha Issenberg (2007)
Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace - I only read this one essay from Gourmet Magazine (August 2004)
The Motorcycle Diaries: a journey around South America by Che Guevara (1992)

poetry:
The Summer King by Joanna Preston (2009)

Leftovers from 2009 that I'm hoping to get a chance to read sometime during the year include:

The Portable Dorothy Parker
The Solitaire Mystery
Kristin Lavransdatter

stared

Found you, Kerry.

While Linda is staring, I'm starring. ;)

Starrrred!

42) Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy (2007)
children's fiction
I read this around an author evening with Derek Landy, mainly to see what the series was like. It's quite a nice fantasy filled with magical elements and beings. Some of the characters have back stories that are still being fleshed out so there is lots to carry on with. Landy said that there will be 9 Skulduggery Pleasant books and he is setting them up as 3 sets of trilogies - I'll probably read the next two, but am not rushing to the books.
He is quite an understated sort of person, shambles onto the stage and fiddles with the microphone, says some really lame things, says a few silly stories about himself including one that was actually funny about how he, a dog person, comes to be sharing his home with about 13 cats. But - he has dedicated fans, the audience was right there with him, the questions, all about his books kept coming and coming. There was a stampede to get the books signed. I had taken my two teens and even they were keen to read his books as the series seems to get darker with more horror elements from book to book. Landy has just signed off on book 5. Before Skulduggery he wrote film scripts about zombies and was mildly successful. Within 3 weeks of giving the SP manuscript to his agent there was a bidding war and he was on his way.

Stephanie first notices the strangely dressed person at her Uncle's funeral, then he comes to the reading of the will. It's not till he rescues her from the men who break into her Uncle's mansion that she realises that he is a walking, talking skeleton - Skulduggery Pleasant, Detective. Full of fast paced action, puzzles, interesting magic, fighting etc etc. Stephanie develops through the book from a nerdy girl into a ready and willing partner in fighting the evil forces that are out there.

43) Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson (2007)
children's fiction
I wanted to read this for the March TIOLI challenge but it was fairly similar in storyline to the Skulduggery book so I finished that one first. I probably ended up liking this one slightly more than the Skulduggery book mainly due to the injection of humour from the narrator, who keeps up a dialogue with the reader right through. I'll definitely read more of Sanderson's work.
Alcatraz has gone from foster home to foster home in the past 13 years and has now just managed to start a fire in the kitchen. He doesn't mean to break everything, it sort of just happens when he's there. There is an explanation for this, but you'll have to read the book because I don't want to give any of the adventure away - except to say that most of the action takes place in a library.
Here's what Sanderson says about the book - The book began, essentially, as a free-write based on what became the first line: "So, there I was, tied to an altar made from out-dated encyclopedias, about to get sacrificed to the dark powers by a cult of evil Librarians." I wrote the book between Mistborn 2 and Mistborn 3, and was driven to do so because I wanted to try something new. I'd been working so hard on the Mistborn books that I needed a break.

So, it might not be very surprising that I wrote something completely different in tone from the Mistborn novels. Not that a lot of the trademarks of my style aren't here. There's a unique magic system (two, actually). Some detailed world-building. A fast-paced ending. However, there's also a whole lot of snark. I (through the voice of Alcatraz, the protagonist) often address the reader directly, talking about things I find funny about being a writer, about the fantasy genre, or about literature in general.

The book is intended to be a light-hearted action adventure book with fantasy elements. The publisher places it for ages eight through thirteen, but I'd personally target it at ages ten and up. It follows the adventures of a kid named Alcatraz Smedry. On his thirteenth birthday, Alcatraz—a foster child—gets a bag of sand in the mail which purports to be his 'inheritance' sent from his father and mother. The Librarians, of course, immediately steal the bag of sand from him.

Glad I found you again!

I just read Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians a week or so ago and I enjoyed it too.

I like how you've grouped your reads above. :-)

I was thinking the same thing. If I read a more interesting mix I'd try it too. But as things stand now, it wouldn't be worth it :)

44) Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman (2009)
children's fiction
Gaiman wrote this for World Book Day and it is a delightful tale based on Norse mythology. Trickster Loki, once again, has put the Gods into an unlikely position and it is up to Odd, a lonely crippled child, to help them win Asgard back from the Frost Giants. I really enjoyed this brief revisit to the Norse myths.

Ah hah ... found you again. I've loved all of Gaiman's books that I've read so far. I haven't read this one yet ... I'll haev to look out for a copy soon. Thanks for the tip, Kerry

#12: My local library just got that one recently. I will have to remember to pick it up next time I am in. Thanks for the reminder, Kerry.

I have multiple copies of Sasha Issenberg's sushi book sitting around, as he and I have a mutual journalist friend. Shamefully, it is sitting atop Mt. TBR...

Yay, I made your highlights list!

And Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians sounds like a gem … time to go hunting a copy.

#8 I may have to read Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians just for the sake of the title and the first sentence alone!

Got you starred again...

Re Odd and the Frost Giants, I think he's going to/writing another book centering around Odd...

Thanks everyone for visiting my thread. I'm trying to finish up on a few books before my holiday but fear that I won't be able to do much more than the 2 that I finished today.

45) So Punk Rock & other ways to disappoint your mother by Micol Ostow (2009)
YA fiction
A fun YA novel about a Jewish teen, Ari, who attends a religious high school and his attempt to become cool by forming a band. There are graphic novel style illustrations throughout the novel which add a bit more entertainment to the book. I enjoyed this, it was a bit different with the Jewish setting and characters.

46) Tschiffely's Ride: Southern Cross to Pole Star by AF Tschiffely (1932)
nonfiction
Tschiffely, a Swiss-born resident of Argentina, a teacher and adventurer, decided to ride from Buenos Aires to New York. Everyone said it couldn't be done, that he was mad, when Tschiffely set off in 1925. It took three years but he proved them wrong. Amazingly, his 2 Criollo horses, Gato and Mancha made the entire 10,000 mile journey with him.
A fascinating read full of adventures, hardships, fiestas, celebrations, lots of mud, deserts, mountains and jungle.

#18: Tschiffely's Ride looks very good. I will have to see if I can locate a copy of that one. Thanks for the recommendation, Kerry.

I wanna read Tschiffely's Ride!!

Aimé Tschiffely's horses 'Mancha' and 'Gato' crossing the Peruvian desert

#19#20 I really loved reading this one. Tschiffely was a real gem - he put up with untold hardship and terrible conditions yet remained upbeat throughout. His observations on the native Indians are really insightful and compassionate.
And towards the end when he was in Mexico, you had to laugh, the poor guy was totally worn out from riding each day but every town heralded his arrival with fiestas and all he wanted to do was sleep - he had about two weeks of all night parties!!
Definitely more interesting than The Motorcycle Diaries, though that's memorable due to the writer.

47) Opportunity by Charlotte Grimshaw (2007)
short stories, TIOLI

I've had this on my tbr pile for about a year as it won the 2008 Montana Best Fiction Award here in New Zealand. I picked it up finally for the TIOLI challenge as it also meets my 'reading more New Zealand fiction' focus for the year. Overall I think the stories were just too close to my own world to hold much interest for me. The writing is good and a few of the stories stood out, but I like my short stories to be a bit more quirky or surreal.

April Progress:
I'm going on holiday today for two weeks and won't be on the internet at all till I return so will do a progress report on my reading as it currently stands. I was asked yesterday if I was packed and ready for the trip - of course I had to admit that I'd only packed books so far. I usually take older paperbacks so I can turf them as I finish. The flight to Buenos Aires takes 12 hours so I usually get a lot of reading done. Last year the return flight was delayed 6 hours which we had to spend in the departure lounge from 11pm through 5am.

The Dud Avocado - enjoying this romp set in 1950s Paris, but leaving it at home as it's a library book.
Cup by Alison Wong - TIOLI living poet challenge. Leaving this poetry collection till I get back.
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters - I have a signed copy so don't want to pack it.

Taking with me:
The year of the Shanghai Shark - TIOLI City challenge
Winter in Madrid - TIOLI City Challenge
The Plague - group read
The Three Musketeers - 1010 March group read & must finish
Imagining Argentina - another about the disappeared
News from a foreign country came - also about the disappeared
The republic of dreams - got to read about Brazil when I'm there!
Buenos Aires: A Cultural and Literary History - Jason Wilson - a nonfiction for discovering a bit more of BA.
Tigana - must read at least one fantasy
Came a Hot Friday - classic New Zealand novel and completes my reading of Ronald Hugh Morrieson's works.
Flaubert's Parrot, Hideous Kinky, The Book of Daniel and a few other dusty, rusty treasures.

I love your vacation reads! what a lovely mix.

Do have a wonderful trip!

Enjoy your "dusty, rusty treasures", Kerry! Have a safe and wonderful trip to Rio. I'd love to see and hear all about it.

Thanks, I'll be taking lots of photos so will load some when I get back. Not the greatest time to be visiting Rio but hope we enjoy it rain or shine.
See you all later

Have a wonderful trip. Safe journeys!

Have a wonderful time, he said from between teeth gritted in agonizing jealousy!

Looking forward to the photos - have a wonderful holiday!

Have a fantastic trip and I hope you get tons of reading done on the plane!

Visited Rio several years ago but would love to return. You are going to have a great time, guaranteed.

Wow, so many threads to catch up on. I just got back this morning so I have lots of posts to read. I read 12 books since I last checked in, including 3 for the TIOLI challenge and my two group reads, so will write them up once everything here on the homefront is in order. I had a great trip and will upload some photos etc etc when I catch my breath.

Kerry, you are back! I hope you had a wonderful trip!!

12 books read? Sounds great.

Welcome home, Kerry. Looking forward to your reviews, and news of your trip.

Welcome back. I hope you had a great trip.

Welcome back!

48) The Year of the Shanghai Shark by Mo Zhi Hong (2008)
fiction
This has been on my tbr for almost a year as it was a finalist in last year's Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best First Book. Mo Zhi Hong is Singpore born, New Zealand educated and has worked in the US dot.com boom and in China as a teacher. I heard him talk about his book last year at the writer's festival and thought it would be an interesting read. An interview is here.
I read this for my New Zealand fiction category on my 1010 challenge and also this month's TIOLI challenge for a book with a city in the title.

This is about orphaned teen, Hai Long, growing up in Dailin, in north-east China and is set during the year of the SARS epidemic in 2002/03. He lives with his Uncle who is very exact in his style of living. The NBA, fast food, and movies are the new passions for Hai Ling and his friends, while the older generation still seem to be trying to get over the past. What stands out in this book are the memorable characters on the city streets and in his apartment building that Hai Ling befriends when he stops going to school. There's also a fun look at studying for the IELTS English test. Overall I found this a highly enjoyable read that brings the urban life in present day China to life.

“I wrote The Year of the Shanghai Shark as an attempt at
capturing various aspects of Chinese life in character form,
bringing them together around two central figures whose situation
represents certain fundamental problems facing the country.”

49) Winter in Madrid by CJ Sansom (2006)
fiction
Another from my tbr pile for my 1010 challenge and also the TIOLI challenge of a book with a city in the title.
I had really enjoyed Sansom's Sovereign which is a historical mystery novel, part of a series involving a lawyer set during the reign of Henry VIII so decided to try this one which is set in Madrid during World War II and concerns the legacy of the Civil War.
The main drive behind the novel is the English political tinkerings in Madrid, trying to gauge whether Franco will enter the war on Germany's side or stay neutral. The novel gives a good insight into the living conditions in Spain after the civil war has ended, when the two sides must start to live together again. An English academic is asked to join the Embassy in Madrid, his cover is as a translator but his mission is to spy on an old school friend, now a shady businessman doing deals with Facist politicians. Add to the mix another old schoolfriend languishing in a hidden prison camp, a legacy from the civil war and a determined woman keen to find him.
Overall an interesting book, well researched, with a slightly hysterical ending when lots of threads had to be tied up. I enjoyed this and will keep reading his Shardlake series.

50) The Solitaire Mystery by Jostein Gaarder (1996)
fiction
I'm a fan of Jostein Gaarder and this is one that I've had on the tbr for far too long, and once again I was in for a treat.
I think you could sum up Gaarder's writing with the following quote from the book: - "How terribly sad it was that people are made in such a way that they get used to something as extraordinary as living."
This is about a father and son roadtrip from Norway to Greece. The father is a philosophising collector of joker cards, the boy plays solitaire as he owns over three hundred packs of cards (each pack minus a joker). When a dwarf gives the boy a magnifying glass and directions to a village in the Italian mountains the trip becomes much more than just a journey across Europe, it also becomes one of destiny, time and fantasy. 52 chapters, each named after a playing card.
I loved this mix of fantasy with reality, the living cards and the Joker character. Overall if you haven't read anything of Gaarder, I'd still recommend starting with Sophie's World, and my favourite is The Orange Girl but this too was excellent.

51) A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M Miller Jr (1960)
science fiction, dystopian

Set in three parts, this looks at a future world, born after an all out nuclear war of the kind expected at the height of the Cold War. A small religious order, named after a survivor, Leibowitz, is formed to protect and preserve oddments of text that have survived the fallout. Most of it is technical, but is preserved in case future generations have need for it. The second part deals with a renaissance of learning, when new scientists realise that this little monastery is sitting on material that will help with their research. Part three is when we come full circle back to a second nuclear age. Has man learnt his lesson three thousand years after the first nuclear holocaust.
Quite a philosophical novel that maybe gives too strong a role to religion in the new future. I wasn't that taken with it, and thought it a little dated, though it did keep me thinking.

I enjoy visiting your thread. You read such incredible books and your comments are wonderful!

Love the Gaarder quote in message 38

I found this incredibly powerful, reading it as a teen in the 60s. I read it maybe 10 years ago again, and found it still resonated. But as a lapsed Catholic, maybe it had more connections?

I'm stalled on p 54 of Sophie's World ... maybe it gets better?

#40 - thanks Linda

#41 - ronincats - I found the religion a bit too much for my own taste. The religion was very over the top and controlling - I presume Miller was reflecting on our own Dark Ages and how the church controlled everything, so he wanted to bring that over to the new age as well.
It was interesting, but as I was on holiday I would have prefered a more action packed type of tale. The datedness remark came from the way he wrote about the Asians in the last part.

#42 - suslyn - all I can say is Sophie's World is a rollercoaster of a read but demanding. It does mess with your mind. I just read that Gaarder is a teacher of philosophy. He brings philosophy and fantasy together in most of his books, forcing you to question your own existence as you read. The Orange Girl is much easier, I thought it was a stunning love story first and formost.

52) Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg (1992)
fiction
Another longtime resident on my tbr pile. A mystery thriller with most of the action taking place on a 4000 ton ship heading for an island off the coast of Greenland in the dead of winter. It starts with the death of a boy in Copenhagen. Miss Smilla, his neighbour, knows quite a lot about snow & ice and suspects the boy's death is not accidental as claimed by the authorities. This was quite wordy and involved, but the action on the ship was really exciting.

Trying to make me have to rename the BlackHole are you, Kerry? I am adding books to it right and left!

.
#44. Miss Smilla has one of the weirdest sex scenes ever written!!!

Otherwise, a very good read,

#49. I love the Shardlake series!!, but have not read Winter in Madrid yet. I might have to read it soon.

Hi Gillian - that scene was definitely weird!!!

Stasia - I still have 7 more to write up!

Yikes! 7 more?!

>48 alcottacre: Kerry has clearly been on a binge. Or a tear. In the zone? Well, whatever we call it, sounds good to me.

A Canticle for Leibowitz was one of my favorite books when I was growing up. I expect it's datedness will be apparent to me, too, so I have not re-read it in a while. Wonder if it's time.

ETA bah! stupid touchstones

#38 On the wishlist it goes... I really must finish reading Sophie's World one of these days - I got about half way through several years ago, then was distracted by other things, then somehow never picked it up again, I don't know why...

#44 "This was quite wordy and involved, but the action on the ship was really exciting." - how funny - for me, the ship part was the weak bit. Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow does feel a bit like two books pasted together though, doesn't it?

Hope you had a lovely holiday - photos?

>44 avatiakh: & 50: I had the same reaction as flissp, the ship part wasn't my favorite (it almost felt like a Dirk Pitt novel), whereas I found the early parts of the book very evocative. Regardless of which part you prefer, it really is divided into two very distinct and different "books".

It was interesting to read about this book over on Wikipedia...about the two translations. Nunnelly did the U.S. translation, Smilla's Sense of Snow, under her name. With the British version, Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow, the author and publisher made changes to the U.S. translation that she didn't care for, so she pulled her name from it and credited it to "F. David". I love those little tidbits! :-)

#51 How fascinating! I wonder what those changes were?!

Loved Smilla's Sense of Snow when I read it back in the 90's. Interesting about the title change.

The Year of the Shanghai Shark and A Canticle for Leibowitz are on my wish list. Thanks, Kerry!

52) News from a foreign country came by Alberto Manguel (1992)
fiction
This was Manguel's first novel and quite hard to describe my feelings about it as I did not care for the main characters - a husband and wife with hidden secrets. I did like how he cocooned the story of Argentina's disappeared within this seemingly unrelated story of their marriage and the wife's childhood years growing up in Algiers. The novel ends on a rather lengthy confession that I did not care for and a brief but telling judgement by the couple's young daughter.
Berence, a French military officer, meets his wife in Algiers and after they marry, they live in Paris then Buenos Aires where their first child is born, before retiring to Quebec. His wife, Marianne, has been silent and unresponsive since their daughter was a young child, she needs constant care.
I will try other books by Manguel such as The Library at Night.

53) Hideous Kinky by Esther Freud (1992)
fiction
One of my favourite reads of the month. I've been meaning to read this since catching the end of the movie which stars Kate Winslet on TV a few years ago, so its another from my tbr pile.
A hippie mother takes her two young daughters to Marrakech in the 1960s. Almost immediately they are abandoned by her boyfriend and fend for themselves for two years with occasional boosts of money from their distant father. Told from the viewpoint of the youngest daughter, Lucy, who is only about 5 years old. Just wonderful.
This is a semi-autobiographical novel based on the writer's own childhood. The title comes from games the girls play and their two favourite words used for chanting - 'hideous' and 'kinky'.

#55: I have not read any of Manguel's fiction, although I have read several of his nonfiction books, and I do not think I am going to be reading that one.

#56: Already in the BlackHole, so I do not have to add it.

54) Came a Hot Friday by Ronald Hugh Morrieson (1964)
fiction, New Zealand
There is a genre called Taranaki Gothic, and the only writer to fall under it is Morrieson with his 4 novels. I've now read three of them and probably won't read the last, Pallet on the Floor (1976), as it isn't widely available and is considered to be poorly edited.

Came a Hot Friday is a black comedy with the most marvellous bunch of characters. Based around a couple of youthful conmen who return to a small rural town with a scheme to swindle the local bookie. Unfortunately they get on the wrong side of the bookie before they know his identity so have to rely on an old school friend to front the scam. This was so fun to read.

From New Zealand Book Council website: Morrieson (1922–72), novelist and short story writer, was born, lived, wrote and died in Hawera, South Taranaki. He was domiciled entirely in the home of his mother, with very occasional breaks of a few days in Auckland in his early twenties and later in New Plymouth and, towards the end of his life, at a writer’s conference in Palmerston North. Until the age of 37 he worked as a casual dance-band player in the Hawera area, but then became a private music-teacher in order to free his evenings for the career in writing which he had always intended. Two novels were made into feature films, yet conservative critics had difficulty with the violence and sexuality of his writing and its failure to conform to the literary values of the period. Morrieson’s fear that he might be ‘another of those poor buggers who gets discovered when they’re dead’, was cruelly prophetic, and the majority of his writing was published posthumously.

I think I will have to read the Manguel -- it's bound to be somewhat autobiographical, or at least derived from his own experiences.

I enjoyed the Sansom book as well, although I think the Shardlake series is stunningly good. There's a new book coming out in the UK in August, I think -- Heartstone. Someone whose books remind me slightly of Sansom in the idea if not in the execution, is Rory Clements. His first book, Martyr is out now, set in late Elizabethan England and featuring Shakespeare's (imagined) brother as a spy in Walsingham's service. Not as nuanced as Sansom, but still clever and interesting.

55) Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes (1984)
fiction
I really enjoyed and recommend this exploration of writing, literary style and the life of Flaubert all wrapped up in a novel about an older man, a widower, whose time is spent obsessively looking for the truth in Flaubert's life and writing, perhaps seeking parallels with his wife's death. I read Madame Bovary last year and this helped a lot in my enjoyment of the novel. There are several sophisticated underlying themes to this novel and I'd rather link you to Barnes himself to explain these than attempt it myself! Here is Barnes' Guardian article When Flaubert took wing.
edit: fix link and correct my apostrophe

#57, 53: Suzanne & Stasia - regarding News from a foreign country came, I did like portions of it, but the wife had a really unusual character, she never seemed to take any initiative, her personality was reactive rather than driven. Anyway I was reading The Plague alongside this one and found the different takes on life in Algeria quite interesting.

Thanks for the recommendations too, I haven't read much historical fiction lately, but do enjoy it when I do so will follow them up. I've promised myself to read more Dorothy Dunnet this year as well as some more of Sharon Penman.

56) The Plague by Albert Camus (1946)
fiction
Another great read which we'll be discussing on the group read thread in the next few days. I must get back to this and finish the introduction essay. Thanks to Darryl for setting up the group read and inspiring so many of us to finally read this.

57) The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas (1844)
classic fiction, 1010 challenge
Absolutely loved this classic adventure. When I read Captain Alatriste a couple of years ago I thought to myself that I should read this as well. This was a group read for the 1010 challenge.

#60: I need to get to that one soon. It has been in the BlackHole seemingly forever.

58) Imagining Argentina by Lawrence Thornton (1987)
fiction
I read this while I was in Buenos Aires and it left me feeling a little angry and perplexed. I'm probably too sensitive a reader but I felt that it was a touch too exploitive on the situation of the disappeared and the Mothers of the Plaza Mayo. The main character, Carlos, gains easy access to the generals in the Casa Rosada, puts his young daughter and workmates totally at risk with his actions when his wife, a journalist, is taken. I also felt that the Buenos Aires of the book was a bit clumsy - like the author did not know the city that well. I much prefered Nathan Englander's The Ministry of Special Cases.
Carlos, a playwright for a children's theatre, has visions of the disappeared and tells their story to their loved ones who congregate once a week in his garden. Many of his stories have relatively happy endings- reunions or escapes to estancias in the pampas or over the border to Uruguay whereas in realilty this was probably quite rare.
Parts of the story involving his wife's torture reminded me of a movie I had seen. On returning home to google the book I see that I've seen the movie of this book about 18 months ago! It stars Antonio Banderas and Emma Thompson and now I'm probably going to watch it again as I don't remember anything about the visions at all.

#64: I think I will pass on that one.

Buenos Aires a cultural and literary history by Jason Wilson (2007ed)
travel nonfiction
I loved having this reference book on hand during my stay in Buenos Aires this time round. I haven't read it cover to cover but certain chapters have been referred to constantly. Wilson writes a street by street guide of the main quarters including almost everything of historical and literary interest for the geeky tourist like me. It was nicely balanced by our other guidebook, Time out Buenos Aires which we found to be an ideal mix of shopping, eating, & sightseeing info with good maps.
The other 'can't do without' is the weekly bus guide - unlocks the puzzling overabundance of bus routes and quickly helps you get from A to B no matter where in BA you happen to be.

#65 Stasia - good move. I'm still amazed that I've seen the movie of this book.

I started the first few pages of Tigana and The Republic of Dreams but neither caught my fancy at the time so I'll try them later in the year.
I'll post some photos of my trip later tonight, I've been pretty busy this week so haven't uploaded many yet.

I look forward to seeing the pictures, Kerry!

59) The Good Women of China by Xinran (2003)
nonfiction
Another from my tbr pile that I felt compelled to read after going to a talk by Xinran in March. Xinran writes about the plight of women in Chinese society, especially those who suffered during the years of the Cultural Revolution. The stories are personal and heartfelt. So many instances of women being treated as mere chattels by their families, husbands, fathers and revolutionary colleagues. Especially heartwrending was her short stay with the women of Shouting Hill, a remote desert area in the northwest of China. The poverty and conditions of the women here were so appalling that she couldn't bring herself to tell them about how life was in modern society, she knew conditions would never be able to change for these women in their lifetime and yet they were relatively happy. Xinran's own childhood story is quite amazing too. A recommended read.

A few arrivals to my house over the last few weeks include:

Nada by Carmen Laforet
Auto da Fe by Elias Canetti
A Death in Brazil by Peter Robb
Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant
The Thin Executioner by Darren Shan
Benjamin's Crossing by Jay Parini
Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green & David Leviathan
Music for Torching by A M Homes
Brazilian Adventure by Peter Fleming
The Lizard Cage by Karen Connelly
White Mughals by William Dalrymple
Tau Zero by Poul Anderson

#70: I already have that one in the BlackHole.

#71: Nice haul, Kerry! I am especially interested in seeing what you think of White Mughals when you get a chance to read it.

Some images of from Rio de Janeiro

Copacabana

Musical instruments - berimbau - at the Hippie Market in Ipanema - we bought a small cuíca - an African friction drum and a couple of samba whistles. Here's a link to the berimbau being played.

Copacabana Beach

More pics from Rio here

I'll try resizing the photos as something has gone wrong with the resolution.

I have never heard of a berimbau before. Fascinating.

Sugar Loaf taken from the top floor of Rio Shopping

Downtown Rio

Niteroi - which is across the bay from Rio. There was a lot of damage in the hills from the flooding.

Lots of good stuff here! Great reviews, enticing books, and wonderful photos. Thanks, Kerry!

I love the pictures, Kerry. Thanks for sharing them.

Oh just lovely. Hope youre time there was as nice as the photos.

We went to Rio in 1988 or 89 and also went up to Salvador for a few days. To be honest it doesn't feel like it's changed that much in places like Copacabana. I couldn't walk as much as I hoped to as I injured my ankle just before we left New Zealand which limited our sightseeing to short stretches.

In Buenos Aires we were lucky to catch my favourite Brazilian musician/singer,Toquinho, in concert with Maria Creuza. I've been trying to find a good clip of them together but it's almost impossible so here's a young Toquinho playing and singing alongside Vinicius De Moraes. He's also playing the guitar in Berimbau in the link in post 73.


The oldest bookshop in Buenos Aires - Liberia de Avila on the same site since 1785.

interior

interior



The most beautiful bookstore in Latin America: El Ateneo, a converted theatre with a cafe on the stage. Pity they don't stock any books in English. I settled down and read The Plague while enjoying a cup of coffee. The boxes are now private reading rooms. The bookstore is on Avenida Santa Fe.
For more info & photos: http://blog.seattlepi.com/bookpatrol/archives/198259.asp

I'll put up a few more photos tomorrow.

In San Telmo, the oldest quarter of Buenos Aires, is the narrowest house. Probably built by a freed slave on land granted them by their former owners who owned the mansion next door!

#80 That might be the most beautiful bookshop ever... *drools*

Somebody needs to build a drool-proof keyboard for me. Mine is all wet now :)

Kerrie,

Love your pics Kerrie. We visited Rio several years ago and loved it. When you went to Sugarloaf, did you take the cable car? We did but my husband always likes to point out that it was wasted on me as I hung onto the center pole and kept my eyes closed. Too wobbly and I'm obviously afraid of heights lol.

I got The Lizard Cage as part of my bookcloseouts haul.

Great photos!! I've never seen any of Buenos Aires before - it looks beautiful. Hope your ankle's getting better.

#84 brenzi - we didn't do Sugar Loaf this time round as we had done it before. But when you look up at the cable cars you just remember the James Bond movie. We didn't want to do Corcovado either as we'd been before. It's covered in scaffolding and inaccessible due to all the damage from the rains. The trams were only running three stops instead of right into the hills, we took a ride but didn't stay up there which was a little disappointing but we took a ferry to the beaches over near Niteroi instead.
#85 Buenos Aires is so photogenic. I will load some more photos later in the morning. I'm still resting my ankle. should be completely back to normal in another 2-4 weeks.

Buenos Aires is a very literary city - there are masses of tiny bookshops, dotted all through the city centre, all bustling with customers. They stay open really late, we were browsing books and music at 2am along Corrientes one night (I like to look at the range of local children's literature and study the illustrations so I don't mind if the books are in Spanish). The 36th Buenos Aires International Book Fair opened on the last days of our visit and there is also a new Borges/Kafka biennial event that alternates between Prague and Buenos Aires.

edit: touchy keyboard

Loved the pics! And what a beautiful bookstore! Wouldn't be great if more bookstores stayed open that late in the U.S. and could take the place of bars as places to meet/gather?

Not every night you come across a 'tank' made from bookshelves and books!! - Seen on Calle Florida, BA.


Another view of El Ateneo

La Boca is the poorest quarter in the centre and was the home of Italian immigrants. Parts have been colourfully painted and draw in the tourists. It's a really fun place to spend an hour or two.

Outdoor parilla (bbq)


Tango buskers taking a break


La Boca dogs

Last photo - this is of Palacio Barolo - a Dante inspired building on Avenida de Mayo, the tallest building in South America when it was constructed in 1923.

The architect Palanti was a scholar of the Divine Comedy and filled the palace with references to it.
The design of the building is based on the golden section and the golden number. The general building and the Divine Comedy are divided into three parts: Hell, Purgatory and Paradise. More info at the building's website.

Most of my Buenos Aires photos from this year and last are on photobucket:

60) Fill out this application and wait over there by Ruth Starke (2009)
YA fiction
This was a fun, laugh out loud read and with not a vampire, werewolf or romance in sight it was a pleasant change. Hailee is a school leaver, and rather than going to university has decided to work for a year so she can travel, first stop Thailand. Hardcase, with sharp observations on the life of a retail worker, this should be required reading for all school students about to enter the real world. Written in diary form, we follow Hailee as she is horrified not to make the grade and get a job at TBHCITW (The biggest hamburger corporation in the world), but manages to get casual work at the local supermarket as a checkout operator, and seasonal work at a chocolate factory visitors centre. She also finds out that the dream job at the upmarket fashion store is not all it's cracked up to be and lasts only one night working in a restaurant.

#90: Adding that one to the BlackHole. It looks fun.

and with not a vampire, werewolf or romance in sight it was a pleasant change

LOL

Fabulous photos! Thanks for sharing them, Kerry.

>89 avatiakh: not a vampire, werewolf or romance in sight it was a pleasant change

How refreshing :)

Okay, I always thought going to Rio might be fun. Your pics of El Ateneo have just pushed it to the "definitely do" list :)

#95 Whoops Susan - El Ateneo is in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I must say that I prefer Buenos Aires on Rio for a 'cultural' holiday - it's like being in Europe but cheaper. Rio is definitely a 'holiday' destination and I would team it with a stay in a beach resort up the coast or a trip to the northeast or inland.




Also want to add that I went to the Xul Solar Museum in Buenos Aires. An artist (1887-1963), he was a great friend of Borges and I was attracted to his work when I visited the Latin American Art Museum (MALBA) last year. His home has been remodeled to become a gallery. I was amused to read that this eccentric surrealist created his own time zone and language as well as designing fantastic architectural spaces that probably have never been built. The art at the museum was a little on the small side, mainly watercolours, but it was possible to see his progression as an artist.

WOW!!! These photos are incredible. May I ask what kind of camera you are using?

I'm in search of a new one.

It sounds like your trip is wonderful!!!!

Wow, Kerry thanks for all of the great pictures. They make me want to go there! You have read some pretty good books too. I have never read Hideous Kinky, although after reading your review, I have bumped it further up the pile.
Thanks again for sharing the photos with us.

#97 - Linda - I love taking photos, though I'm not a particularly clued up photographer. I travel with 2 digital cameras - a little Canon powershot that I can whip out and take candid shots with, though it is useless at night and with interiors. I also have a Nikon D40x SLR, basically the entry level model, which takes beautiful photos but is rather heavy and cumbersome to haul around so I don't always take it with me. I need to learn more about the features of both cameras.

#98 I kept putting off reading Hideous Kinky and so it was a pleasant surprise. Buenos Aires is a fantastic destination - don't be put off by the political history.

61a) Notes from the dog by Gary Paulsen (2009)
YA fiction
A gentle story about Finn, whose life is changed one summer when Joanna, a young woman fighting cancer, becomes his neighbour.

61b) Big Nate the boy with the biggest head in the world by Lincoln Peirce (2010)
intermediate fiction
Goofy story with goofy cartoons about Nate and what should be a typical school day.

61c) Just Macbeth by Andy Griffith (2009)
intermediate fiction
Another in the Just series but slightly different as it is written as a play and I'm not sure if it will appeal to regular readers of Andy, but definitely won't appeal to Shakespearean scholars.

There is a theatre production of the play and it has been wildly popular in Australia -
Andy Griffiths’ Just Macbeth! is a really silly version of Shakespeare’s great big gory tragedy starring Andy, Lisa, Danny and Jen from his Just! series of books. And when we say really silly, we mean really, really silly as it’s performed by six funny but tragic actors and a garden gnome and has witches and Wizz Fizz and ghosts and girl germs and...
Following a rip-roaringly successful season in 2008, Just Macbeth! returns with many of the original cast. Loaded with gags aimed at children and adults alike, it’s an absolute treat for the whole family.

#96: Love those pictures!

#100: I already have Notes from the dog in the BlackHole. I guess I need to bump it up some.

That bookshop looks amazing.

On our first visit to Seattle we found a secondhand bookshop which opened until 1 am except on Friday nights when it was open all night. I don't know if it's still there. On our second visit to Seattle in autumn 2007 we had a 5 month old in tow so had to do things differently.

All night bookshops?? What a wonderful idea!!

Oh, those are some fantastic photos Kerry - looks like you had an amazing time. Those bookshops look wonderful - particularly the converted theatre... Right, South America shoots several places up my list of places to visit...

Would it be fatuous to ask the reason behind the book-tank?! ;o)

OK, now, in addition to doing damage to my book budget, you are wreaking havoc on my music consumption and travel plans! I am obviously going to have to bump BA waaaay up the list... I think it's the kind of city I'd love. I admit to being more interested in visiting Salvador de Bahia than Rio in Brazil -- heresy, I know.

Recommending the Xul Solar Museum for one of my scrapbooking challenges -- frameworthy. Supposed to be inspired by an artist and do something in the style. This would be perfect! THx.

Whoo, just dropping in to say... love the photos! And the Fill Out This Application and Wait Over There book sounds really cute.

62) The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta (2010)
YA fiction, 1010 challenge
This is a sequel to her Saving Francesca which I loved. It is five years since then and the characters are around 21 years old but it still feels like an older YA novel. This time the plot revolves around one of the friends that helped 'save' Francesca, Tom. His family has fallen apart and Tom has come unravelled himself, all since his father's beloved younger brother, Joe, was a casualty in the London Underground bombing two years earlier. All have fallen victim to grief and allowed it to continue ruling their lives.
Another stellar book from Marchetta who writes so perceptively and sensitively.

63) Murder on a Kibbutz by Batya Gur (1991)
fiction, 1010 challenge
My first Michael Ohayon mystery and the third in the series. This is an interesting read as it investigates not only a murder but also the ideology of kibbutz life. I really enjoyed this because of its emphasis on the politics and the changes in kibbutz society, the solving of the murder becomes almost incidental. Ohayon is an interesting, solitary character and I'll probably read another of Gur's books to see how he develops. It's also made me wonder what changes have occurred for the kibbitzim since the early 1990s.

64) The Dud Avocado by Elaine Dundy (1958)
fiction
Saw this on a list of humorous reads and liked the title so went for it. Loved it.
Too good to be classed as early chicklit this is about young Sally Jay Gorse, free-sprirted American girl, bound for a life of bohemian living in Paris. Thanks to an allowance granted by her uncle, she is free from expectations and money worries for two years while she soaks in life's experiences on the European continent. The novel opens with Sally Jay wearing an evening dress in the midmorning sun on the Left Bank's Blvd St Michael (all her other clothes are at the laundry and she never seems to get there when it's open), she is glorifying in how non-typical a tourist (shudder) she is, when she runs into Larry, a guy she knew back in the US and she harbours a serious crush on, though she is on her way to meet her lover, Teddy, an Italian Viscount. And she has just dyed her hair - pink!
This is a fun read as aspiring actress Sally Jay and her aquaintances go about the business of living an interesting life with little or no money in 1950s Paris. We meet film directors, artists, con-artists, musicians, dancers, Contessas and actors.

Based loosely on Elaine Dundy's own experiences in Paris. My New York Review edition (2007) came with an afterward by Dundy.
The only person I really knew anything about for starters was the "I" of the story; of the rest of the characters and the plot I had only the vaguest idea. But I knew Sally Jay was wearing an evening dress mid-day walking down that boulevard because I, myself, had worn an evening dress for a couple of days in Paris mid-day before I managed to get to the cleaners to retrieve the rest of my clothes. Of the various things that happen to Sally Jay, some had also happened to me. I must add, however, that often when I got stuck I would say to myself, "What would I not do?" And then have Sally Jay do it; and I would be off again.

An excerpt of the first chapter is here

#108: Another Marchetta for me to look out for! Thanks for the recommendation on that one, Kerry.

I own the entirety of the Gur series, I think. One of these days, I may actually read them :)

#109: That one is already in the BlackHole. Glad to see you enjoyed it so much.

#109 I agree, what a fantastic title! I'll have to add it to the wishlist...

--> 108

It's also made me wonder what changes have occurred for the kibbitzim since the early 1990s.

Kerry, your next trip has to be to Israel. When I visited kibbutzim in 2001 (after 18 years), I was astounded by their changes! Glad you like the book. Now I'll have to dig down deep in my TBR for it because I've had it for a long, long time.

#109, I've ordered a copy and it's on its way to me...

The Dud Avocado looks fun. Maybe later I can read it.

Great photos! It looks like you had a fabulous trip.

65) Jumper by Steven Gould (1992)
scifi, TIOLI, 1010 challenge
I read this mainly for this month's one word title TIOLI challenge and it also fits my scifi category for the 1010 challenge. I tracked down a copy a while back after reading VictoriaPL's review over on her 1010 thread. It is enjoyable escapist reading and would appeal to the YA market.
David Rice discovers he can teleport when he is 17 and on the receiving end of another vicious beating from his alcoholic father. Quite fascinating as Davy grapples with the logistics of his ability and rebuilds his fractured life.

I sure hope the book was better than the film... ugh, the film was just torture... o_O

I don't remember the details of the film, but I remember being shocked that it could be so bad.... I did think the story had potential, though.

I saw the film a couple of years ago and yes it was terrible. The book is quite different and Davy is a much less sophisticated character, younger with more inner turmoil and self doubt than the movie ever showed. It was only by reading VictoriaPL's review that I was attracted to the book at all, though it is only escapist fiction, not a deep meaningful read.

I started The Book of Daniel a couple of weeks ago but have found it to be quite political so have put it aside for the time being.

66) Nada by Carmen Laforet (1945) trans. Edith Grossman (2007)
fiction, Spain, TIOLI

I loved this gothic bildungsroman set in post-civil war Barcelona. Within the first couple of sentences you are swept up into the romance of a battered Barcelona. After a lonely night arrival to Barcelona, our young Andrea, takes a solitary midnight ride in a horse and carriage from the station to her relatives' house where she will stay while she studies at the University - and then she meets her extended family..... so changed from her joyful childhood memories of urban sophistication - these people - the aunts and uncles make Heathcliff & co look like a walk in the park! Totally ruined by the war, their wealth gone, full of blame and with hate seething on the surface of all their interactions. And the grandmother, helpless wandering like a ghost through the rooms at night. Then there's the maid... truly menacing and dominating...or was that the aunt?! Andrea, orphaned and poor, has no choice but to live in this madhouse.

The NY Times says it best: "Nada" depicts on the one hand the sordid collapse of a family whose fratricidal hatreds mirror those of the Civil War, and on the other hand the struggle of its youngest member for simple freedom. What gives the novel its unlikely freshness is the contrast between the melodramas to which Andrea is witness and the humorous restraint of her narration.

While the old folks writhe in a hell of their own making, Andrea stalwartly goes about the business of being young: studying for exams, befriending a group of would-be Bohemian student-painters, attending her first dance, getting kissed by a boy she doesn't like. Yet Andrea's difference is painful: while her university friends, the children of rich industrialists, smell of "soft perfume," she reeks of "bleach and harsh kitchen soap"; while they drive their own cars and have summer houses on the Costa Brava, Andrea is quite literally starving, reduced to drinking the water in which her relatives' vegetables have been boiled.

Politics hovers here like the weather. Laforet vividly conveys the strangeness of Barcelona in the 1940s, a city that has survived civil war only to find itself muted by Franco's dictatorship, riven by economic inequalities and ground down by a peculiarly punitive form of Catholicism. NY Times full review here

67) The Hour of the Star by Clarice Lispector (1977) trans. Giovanni Pontiero
fiction, novella, Brasil, TIOLI

I read this for the Latin American writer TIOLI challenge. This is an intellectual read, with the reader sitting in on a onesided conversation with the writer as she interrupts the narrator.
The story loosely follows the life of a nondescript, a poor and ugly young woman, Macabea, who has never thought about much at all, has no aspirations, just lives through each day. It's the insights of Lispector herself, that makes this an interesting and stimulating read, as she pushes you to examine the minutae of existence. And we follow the uncomplaining Macabea as she moves inevitably to meet her fate.

Congratulations on reading 67 books thus far!

Nice reviews, Kerry! I have both of those books, and will probably get to them later this year.

#120: I am adding Nada to the BlackHole. The Hour of the Star is already there.

Excellent reviews Kerrie. I'm adding The Hour of the Star. Maybe I can get to it by the end of the month for the TIOLI challenge.

Adding my accolades to Darryl, Stasia and Bonnie, these are great reviews!

Thanks, I struggled a bit to describe The Hour of the Star.
I'm currently busy as a volunteer for our Writers and Readers Festival. It's fun. Today we had the school programme with UK performance poet, Charlie Dark, followed by talks with children's writers from New Zealand. I'm looking forward to tomorrow as we have Thomas Keneally with renown New Zealand historian Anne Salmond.

New to my home lately (sigh):
Telling Tales a life in writing by William Taylor
A Life: Isaac B Singer by Florence Noiville
The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman
Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness
In conversation: Encounters with 39 great writers by Ben Naparstek
The Bad Girl by Maria Vargas Llosa
Far Away and Long Ago by W H Hudson
The Tango Singer by Tomas Eloy Martinez

plus too many books in from the library once again.

Nice haul, Kerry!

I haven't done much reading lately as I've spent 5 days completely immersed in our Writers & Readers Festival. The first 3 days I was a volunteer and luckily was helping in the main auditorium. The last 2 days I have had free entry to any session I wanted if space allowed which it did! I'll post a little about the many writers I encountered later tonight.


68) Knucklehead: Tall Tales and Almost True Stories of Growing up Scieszka by Jon Scieszka (2005)
children's nonfiction
Fun telling of his childhood years by children's writer Jon Scieszka who became the first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature in the USA in 2008. As the second of six boys growing up in 1950s Michigan, there is a lot of potential for hardcase anecdotes.


69) Ebony Hill by Anna Mackenzie (2010)
YA fiction, New Zealand
This is the second of a dystopian trilogy. The first book The Seawreck Stranger came out about three years ago and won the Young Adult Fiction Award. It was an impressive read, the writing very descriptive, the repressive island setting interesting and moody with strong characters. It's a treat to reenter this ruined world and find out what has happened to Ness.

#128: The Writers and Reader's Festival sounds great, Kerry!

I am adding the Anna MacKenzie books to the BlackHole. I enjoy dystopian books. Thanks for the recommendation.

Wednesday: School Programme
Charlie Dark - UK poet, musician charmed with his interactive poetry performance.
Enjoyable sessions with William Taylor, Anna Mackenzie, and Des Hunt.

Thursday: School Programme
John Carey, Oxford Don discussed his biography of William Golding and the background to Lord of the Flies - this was excellent and the students asked well-informed questions. I had no idea how religious Golding was and that he experimented with boys' behaviour at the school where he taught. Carey has read the original draft of Lord of the Flies which had much more religious overtones than the final edited copy and spoke of the correspondence between editor and author - fascinating.
Charlie Higson - talked at length about his latest book The Enemy which is about kids versus zombies.
David Levithan charmed the audience with his reading from Will Grayson Will Grayson.

Friday:
Poet, novelist Elizabeth Smither talked about death, funerals and her latest novel Lola which is partly set in a funeral parlour.

Thomas Keneally and Anne Salmond were paired together and as both have written and researched extensively on the European settlement of the South Pacific, Australia, New Zealand it was an interesting discussion. Salmond, an academic historian, is passionate about writing from both sides of the first meetings between Europeans and the natives of the South Pacific and New Zealand. Her latest book, Aphrodite's Island is about the European discovery of Tahiti. She is currently working on a history of Bligh.
Keneally, a novelist and historian was very interesting, had a heap of anecdotes, but primarily focused on the settlement of Australia.
The chair, Kim Hill, was wonderful.

Michael Otterman author of Erasing Iraq & American Torture. He discussed the human cost of the US war on Iraq - the displaced people, the victims, refugees and whether they had ever been asked what they think of the war. Absorbing.

Wow! I would have been happy to go to any of those sessions.

Saturday:
Colm Toibin - what a great session, he was eloquent and funny. He was introduced as an Irishman who speaks Spanish, is gay and writes beautifully. He used the term 'mental pyjamas' to describe his thinking process in that he is more concerned with the semicolon than being gay as he writes. In Brooklyn, he wanted to write about a timid character, and pointed to being influenced by Jane Austen's Fanny Price. He was also taken with the idea of a character observing another character, referencing Henry James' Washington Square. He discussed how Irish charm can be a mask for a darker side of personality, but American charm is genuine. He talked about Irish literature, immigration, about how the six fine days of an Irish summer are all in Brooklyn, Irish weddings always seem to be a recipe for disaster, settings, storytelling and his St Patricks Day visit to the White House.

John Freeman, Granta Editor; Ben Naparstek; Fergus Barrowman talked about being editors of literary magazines. It's wonderful that these publications exist, being willing to take chances on new writers and how as editors they nurture those showing promise.

Damien Wilkins and Emily Perkins discussed being writers that teach creative writing and how that influences their work. Both were passionate about seeing the 'strangeness' or 'loudness' of fresh new writing before it is polished, before it's masked by edits and how it enlivens them as writers. This was quite a lively session and I'm convinced to read books by both writers now I've seen them in action.

Publishing in the USA - John Freeman, Granta editor and David Levithan, Scholastic NY Editor & YA writer talked about the current state of publishing in the US and what the future holds. Extremely interesting - they talked about survival of independent bookshops, digital books, print on demand, online purchasing and writers not keeping to deadline.

Adrian Wooldridge who is one of the senior journalists of The Economist talked about global issues surrounding his latest co-authored book God is Back: how the global revival of faith is changing the world. This guy is fascinating, thoughtful, provocative, funny.

wow -- what a group!

Sunday:
David Levithan - my third time seeing him in action, this time talking to Paula Morris, who asked thoughtful questions about both his writing and his job as an editor at Scholastic NY.
He read and sang from his new book Will Grayson Will Grayson which was co-written with John Green. He is funny, disarmingly charming and knowledgable. He said the difference between YA and adult fiction is not how you write it, it's how it's published - the writing must be genuine and tell a story.
The themes of his books generally deal with connection or intersection of people and many feature a gay character/s.
At question time he also mentioned a growing need for books about transgender teens - the book Luna is one of very few that addresses this type of gender confusion. Pink by Lili Wilkinson about a bisexual teen and a gay YA Ash by Melinda Lo, that puts a spin on the Cinderella story with Ash falling for a huntress.

Adrian Wooldridge, Michael Otterman, Antony Loewenstein were the panel discussing Religion: What is it good for? This was really interesting and a good chair kept them on track. Wooldridge had a better grasp of the overall picture, reminded us that some aspects of political problems are tribal not religious. Each had interesting contributions, though Loewenstein can be a bit forceful in his views.
I bought a copy of Wooldridge's book, God is Back: How the Global Rise of Faith is Changing the World, I found him so fascinating to listen to.

John Freeman, Granta Editor spent an hour discussing his book Shrinking the World: the 4000-year story of how email came to rule our lives.
Another fascinating talk about over-busying our lives with electronic fidget. He described each new 'change' brought on by the telegraph, the telephone, even how the humble postcard revolutionised how we communicated when it first appeared around the 1870s. He advocates a 'slow communication' movement and told of a 'slow looking' art exhibition he went to that exhibited only one painting.

An hour with Rick Gekoski, chaired by John Carey.
A fabulous way to end with John Carey drawing anecdotes from Rick Gekoski about Graham Greene, Tolkein's gown, philosophy, his childhood reading, his time studying at Oxford. Gekoski admitted to being a Harry Potter fan, queuing at midnight with his daughter to get the latest book.
As both have been judges of the Man Booker International prize, they discussed the difficulty of judging writers in translation. Gekoski will be Chair of the 2011 Man Booker international Prize.

I missed sessions with Sarah Thornton, Jill Dawson, William Dalrymple, Yiyun Li due to timing and needing to go home and see my family occasionally!

What a great summary, and a great adventure! Thank you for sharing--it is so interesting.

Nice program. Sounds like you had a good time!

Bravo! What a wonderful summary, and a great selection of authors and topics. Thanks for taking the time to share that with us.

Kerrie,
How fortunate for you that you got to go to these author sessions. They all sound so interesting, I would't have been able to pick, although I wouldn't have missed Colm Toibin.

Kerry, you have had a wonderful week. I think Lionel Shriver was there too, she seems to have been interviewed by everyone!

#139 - brenzi - That's what makes these Festivals so much fun, you discover an entertaining speaker and you end up going to all their sessions even at the expense of a writer whose books you quite like. John Freeman and Adrian Woolridge were so interesting I ended up going to as many sessions as I could where they spoke, yet before the Festival I didn't know they existed. It also depends on the Chair and how they lead the discussion.

#139 - Gillian - Lionel Shriver was there, I missed her session as I'm never sure if I'm going to like her or her books. I must try one, one of these days.


70) Will Grayson Will Grayson by David Levithan and John Green (2010)
YA fiction
A beautiful tender, honest portrayal of making connections with people during the difficult adolescent years. The story is about two boys who live in the Chicago area, both named Will Grayson, each with their own hangups. A marvellous secondary character, a friend of one of the Wills is Tiny Cooper, who is gay and loving it to the point of writing and performing a musical of his life, and is the glue that binds the story.
Totally recommended and I'll be reading the rest of David Levithan's work, - Boy meets Boy and Love Is the Higher Law.
LT does have a problem with acknowledging co-authored books as Levithan also co-wrote Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, yet both books don't appear on his authors page and they would be in his top 3 based on numbers of copies on LT.

Just adding that I've already read all of John Green's books and a couple of Levithan's.

#140: I am adding Will Grayson Will Grayson to the BlackHole. I could have sworn it was already there, but no it wasn't. Thanks for the review and recommendation, Kerry!

#140. I loved We Need to Talk about Kevin, but I have hated everything else of hers that I have read, and am in no hurry to try her new one!

Tried to edit, but Touchstones not working!

I've had We need to talk about Kevin on my tbr for a few years so should read it. Her latest is getting some good reviews, but there are so many other books to read anyway...

Wow, I loved reading about the festival - when we come home I will start going to things like that.

funny, I haven't read We Need to Talk aboutKevin and I know people on here and my RL friensd loved it, but I just never want to. I think it's because the kids are still little and I just don't like reading books about difficult situations with children. Ick.

The Woolridge book sounds really interesting - and lots of the others - will look forward to seeing what you think.

71) Apples from the Desert by Savyon Liebrecht (1998)
short stories, Israel

I read this for my 1010 Israeli fiction category. I had read one of her stories in The Oxford Book of Hebrew Short Stories last year, which is included in this collection. Her writing usually deals with a misunderstanding across generations, gender or culture and is generally set in contemporary Israel. As a child of Holocaust survivors she grew up in a home with significant silence. Like many of that generation, her parents did not talk about their experiences. Her writing is subtle, descriptive and very moving. 'The Road to Cedar City' is about a minivan journey where the driver assumes he's transporting two Israeli-Jewish families and starts to chat about the conflict. 'Excision' is about the actions of a grandmother, a Holocaust survivor, whose granddaughter brings home the weekly 'headlice' notice from kindergarten.
Recommended by me and also squeakychu who loves this writer muchly.


72) Secret Army by Robert Muchamore (2010)
YA fiction
This is Bk 3 of the Henderson's Boys Series which is set during World War 2 and deals with the establishment of CHERUB. I requested it thinking it was the final book in the Cherub series but ended up reading it anyway as I'd read the first two Henderson's Boys books. Henderson recruits a few more boys to his teenage spy unit and must convince the establishment that they can pass the same training as the adults, including parachute training and a mission within Britain.
Exciting stuff and highly recommended for young teens especially boy readers.
Cherub's Shadow Wave comes out in September.


73) Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter by Mario Vargas Llosa (1977) (2007 Eng ed)
fiction, Peru
I read this for the May Latin American writer TIOLI challenge. Both kidzdoc and Stasia had good things to say about this book and I thoroughly enjoyed it as well.
Life begins to imitate a soap opera when Mario's Aunt Julia, a divorcee, arrives in Lima from Bolivia around the same time as the radio station where Mario works employs a renown Bolivian scriptwriter to write their daily radio serials.
I think Llosa had a lot of fun writing this one.


74) The Book of Dead Days by Marcus Sedgwick (2003)
children's fiction
I can't get enough of Sedgwick's writing and this is another wonderful example. A Faustian adventure for 9-12s.
Boy is the general dogsbody of the illusionist Valerian, whose magic act is still the main drawcard at the Great Theatre. But these are the dead days between Christmas Day and New Years Day and Valerian is acting strange, almost frightened.
I have the sequel - The Dark Flight Down in my omnibus edition.


75) The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters (2009)
fiction
It feels like I've been reading this forever, but I finally settled down and got right into it. This is my first book by Waters and I'll definitely read her other work.
The story revolves round a grand old country home, Hundreds, that has been home to several generations of the Arles family. Now, at the end of World War 1, the income from their estate can no longer support them and/or cover the repairs needed for the grand old home.
The local doctor, who has always loved Hundreds, finds his visits begin to entwine his life into that of the family at the same time as the house seems to have its own ideas about the future.
Not quite a ghost story.
The book did start off slowly, and there are slow patches but these were more than made up for in the last section as the relationships between the characters becomes more and more strained.

I am glad you enjoyed Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter, Kerry!

Have added Apples in the Desert to my wishlist - looks really good. And I still haven't read any Sarah Waters. I nearly started Fingersmith for this month's one word TIOLI challenge, but plumped for 2 others instead.

I've got two of Waters other books on my shelf and must start on them sometime soon. I'm adding Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter to my pile based on your very enticing review Kerrie.

> 146

You're right, Kerry. I *love* Apples from the Desert! In fact, I just got a third copy of it. I gave my other two copies away so others could read Liebrecht's delightful stories. My favorite story was "A Room on the Roof".

Your festival sounds great! And looks like you've done a ton of reading lately. Won't add Nada quite yet to my wish list, but I loved your review. Gotta read Knucklehead just because I love Scieszka's writing.

#148, 149 - Cushla, Bonnie - I'm sure I'm going to like Waters' other books even more than The Little Stranger. I went to a talk she gave back in March when she visited New Zealand and the other books sounded very interesting. I have seen some of the BBC adaption of Tipping the Velvet.

#150 - Madeline; I loved that story too, I also liked the one about the young widow and her Sephardi mother-in-law, Written in Stone. Well, I was pretty taken with all of them. I have to decide on my Israeli novel for June, possibly Adjusting Sights or Rhyming Life and Death.

#151 - Bonniebooks; Enjoy Knucklehead. I'm trying to read less, but still seem to get through a fair few.

I'll be trying to finish American Gods and Tu by the end of the month for the TIOLI challenge. It is doable but RL has gotten in the way of my reading these past few days.

RL is so annoying sometimes. I didn't even get around to opening Potiki, and I am still reading Cranford! (But I'm already looking for next month's titles.)

I agree about RL, yesterday I had to drive to Hamilton to pick up my mother and I'm taking her back on Sunday. She's a member of the Trains Enthusiasts Society and they have an excursion from Auckland to Whangarei tomorrow. We went and saw the movie Boy today, it is set around Ruakokore and is really a good movie - think Once were Warriors, with humour and no violence!! The song Poi-e is really popular here again because of the movie.

Tu is very good, it is about three brothers in the Maori Battalion fighting in Italy.

The festival sounds great!! Toibin has a new book of stories coming out soon -- it's in one of the catalogs I nabbed at BookExpo.
I would have forced my family to wait on the sidelines in order to see William Dalrymple, I confess! And Yiyun Li's novel is stunning if chilling. (Haven't read her short stories yet...)

--> 152

Ohhhhhhhhhh, read Adjusting Sights, Kerry!! That was the first book I read by Haim Sabato and found it sooooooo good.

76) American Gods by Neil Gaiman (2001)
fiction, 1010 challenge, TIOLI
I picked this up for the 'I can't believe I haven't read this yet' TIOLI May challenge and because it would conveniently slot into the fantasy category of my 1010 challenge.
Like others I had started this before and put it down after 40 or 50 pages and then never got round to picking it up again. This time round I found it a much easier read that I enjoyed thoroughly.
I've read several urban fantasy books, mainly YA, that are set in American cities with human characters interacting with faerie worlds and its always felt a bit odd for me, as how did these faerie worlds come to be in America, surely they are more at home in the Celtic countryside? In American Gods Gaiman tackles these issues by having the European colonists, African slaves and American Indians bringing their pagan gods, folklore and beliefs with them as they begin settling in the New World.
The plot revolves around a clash between these now almost forgotten gods and the new ones - those of the modern world such as media, shopping malls and credit cards. Shadow Moon, newly released from prison, is offered work by a mysterious Mr Wednesday and enters into the heart of this conflict. Not only has Gaiman introduced a cast of gods and goddesses he also brings some interesting locations such as the House on the Rock, Rock City and the strangely perfect small town Lakeside.
This blend of myth with road trip across America is definitely worth a try. My favourite part is Shadow's stay with the funeral directors Mr Ibis and Mr Jaquel in Cairo, Illinois where the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers meet. I'll be moving on to Anansi Boys after a suitable interval. I'll also be exploring some of the American Gods websites for more info on some of the lesser known gods that featured in the book.



77) Tu by Patricia Grace (2004)
fiction, 1010 challenge, TIOLI

Grace won the top fiction award in New Zealand for this book back in 2005. She was inspired to write it after reading her father's brief diary (only 25 pages long) about his service in the Maori Battalion during World War 2. Because I had recently read Small Island which looks at the treatment of coloured servicemen in Britain during the war, it was interesting to compare how the Maori were treated both at war and at home during these years.
This is the story of three brothers who go to war and only one returns. Sixteen years later Tu's niece and nephew come with questions about their father and he is finally forced to address the past. The book alternates between his diary when serving in the Battalion and life back in New Zealand from the return of his father from WW1 to Tu's signing up to serve.
This is a beautifully crafted read including vivid scenes of the fighting in Monte Cassino, the comradery of the boys of the Battalion alongside the aspirations of family and community.

Award Judges' comments:
'Tu was inspired by her father's own diary, and several scenes are taken directly from his accounts. The novel is both accessible and subtly intellectual. It tells a simple story which has as its heart the devastation of war, the long reach of racism, and the too vivid parallels experienced by Maori when serving the Empire in Europe.
All this is done without ever distracting from the story, a poignant tale of a family negotiating the Second World War.
It is the author's careful construction of her characters, and her willingness to allow for these characters' complex and confused identities, that sets this novel apart.'

#158: I will have to track down a copy of Tu. Thanks for the review and recommendation, Kerry!

Tu sounds great. Adding it to the wishlist (and buying it as soon as I get around to reading Potiki, which might even be this month!)

#159/160 - It's made me interested in reading more about the Battalion and the fighting in Italy. Also I need to get back to reading more social history of New Zealand.

Cushla - I've been online, watching episodes of our local book show The Good Word. One of the books they reviewed was Damien Wilkins Somebody loves us all, it sounds fascinating and was described as a very Wellington novel.

Kerry, I'm pretty sure one of my friends in Wellington has just read that one for her book group! I'll see what she thought.

Hi Kerry.

The only thing I've read by Grace was Potiki, which I enjoyed quite a bit. I've wanted to pick up something else by her and Tu sounds like a good second book.

Nice review, Kerry. I recently received my first book by Grace, Dogside Story, which I plan to read this summer. I'll add Tu to my wish list.

163/164 - I've put her Baby No-eyes down as my TIOLI Problem title challenge book. I'll be interested in what you think of Dogside Story, I have that down to read as well.

78) Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan (2003)
YA fiction

I read this for the Gay themed TIOLI challenge. This is a delightful read that doesn't dwell on the difficulties of being different, rather it celebrates difference. The setting is an overly tolerant town and high school and the main character, Paul, has always been gay, accepted by family and friends. The book is about being a good friend, relationships and complications.

Paul meets new boy, Noah and falls in love. Meanwhile Paul's ex wants to reconsider and Paul's best friend Joni starts to date an unfriendly moron from the football team.
Levithan writes a defiantly upbeat novel that will appeal to any romantic teen looking for love.



79) The Sergeants' Tale by Bernice Rubens (2003)
fiction, 1010 tbr category

I've added this to the TIOLI Books with a profession in the title challenge since I read most of it over the last couple of days. I came across this book when I was looking for a memoir that had been recommended to me a few years ago.
The novel is based on the Sergeants' affair, an incident that took place in the last days of the British Mandate in Palestine. The Irgun took two young sergeants hostage and threatened to kill them if death sentences were passed on three Irgun prisoners in British custody. Rubens changes the identities of the young men and adds a love story which ties one Israeli family's fortunes to that of the tense political situation. Loyalty to the cause no matter what the cost is sometimes hard to read about let alone live it.
This was an interesting read, with both sides not coming out smelling of roses.

I did not realise that Rubens was such an interesting writer having won the Booker Prize in 1970 for The Elected Member. She also wrote Madame Sousatzka which was made into a movie starring Shirley MacLaine. I'll be looking out for her family saga Brothers to read in the future.
Here's a link to her obituary.

#166: The Sergeants' Tale looks very good. Unfortunately the local library does not have it, although it does have one of her other books, Favours.

Kerrie,

I'm adding Tu and The Sergeant's Tale to my pile as they both sound very good.

Tu sounds like my kind of read!

ETA *chuckle* You'd never guess that from my list here! LOL but it's true.

The Rubens duly wishlisted, Kerry...sounds very involving!

169 - Susan, I know you're limited in reading choices by your location.
167,168,170 - The Sergeants' Tale was a good not great read for me. After reading more about Rubens I'm interested in her other work.


80) Moribito: Guardian of the Darkness by Nahoko Uehashi (1999), (2009 Eng)
YA fantasy, Japan

I'll be adding this to the TIOLI Read a translated YA book challenge. This is the second book in Uehashi's Moribito fantasy series about Balta, the woman warrior bodyguard. The Moribito series is very popular in Japan, now with a successful TV anime series.
I loved this second book much more than the first which I read last year. Here, Balta's character is fleshed out much more and as she finally travels from exile to her homeland more about her past is revealed. The mythologies and political intrigues are interesting.

I love this series, Kerry. I hadn't read it but I've watched the anime series on DVDs.

I've only been able to watch a couple of youtube clips. Uehashi has gone into a lot of detail to build the fantasy world that I just didn't pick up on in the first book. I enjoyed Balsa's character a lot more here as the reasons and consequences of her exile are finally revealed.
I'll have to search out the dvds somehow.

Kerry : check out this website. This is where I've gotten most of my anime DVDs.
http://www.animenation.com/ If you type in Moribito in the search box, it will bring up the box sets

#174 - Thanks Caroline. The dvds aren't available here and I don't want to become an anime addict just yet, cos we are heavily into Dr Who, past and present at the moment.

81) The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (1993) (2010 Eng edition)
YA fiction
I loved The Shadow of the Wind and still haven't got to The Angel's Game, but just had to read this one when it became available recently. This was Zafon's first novel, written for older children, and it is a terrific story, brimful of menace and suspense.
A family move to the coast during the war in Spain where the father feels that they'll be safer. However there is a story behind the former owners of the beach house, and it is told by the sole survivor of a shipwreck who lives in the nearby lighthouse.

edit: read this for the TIOLI Read a translated YA novel challenge

#176: I will definitely have to look for that one! I loved The Shadow of the Wind too.

I'm all fired up now to read The Angel's Game, though I hadn't planned to read it just yet.

#178: I am planning on re-reading The Shadow of the Wind and then moving on to The Angel's Game over the summer.

I prefer to pick up the plot details as I go along. I sometimes keep the previous book beside me to reread a couple of pages if my memory is too hazy.

It has been 2 years since I read The Shadow of the Wind, so I am sure a lot of the details are hazy at this point, lol. Besides, I loved it so much, I really want to re-read it.

Just catching up on threads, I have 6 tabs open for books from this thread alone as possible adds to Mt. TBR! The Book of Dead Days looks very interesting. American Gods is one that has been at the front of the pile for such a long time I can't believe it hasn't been read yet! Like others, I loved Shadow of the Wind, look forward to finding The Prince of Mist. Thanks for all the great recommendations.

Loving this thread - how come I haven't made it over here earlier? Beautiful photos, wonderful reads... I'll be back, mark my words! Now excuse me, I have about five books to add to my wishlist from your recent reading. :-)

Oh Kerrie, just when I'm thinking what am I waiting for to read The Angel's Game you come along with another Zafon book. **sigh**

#184 - lol Bonnie - the only consolation is that this is much shorter than his adult books and still a great yarn. I'll be onto The Angel's Game as soon as I read some of the library books that I shouldn't be bringing home.

#182, 183 - thanks for visiting. I know the dilemma of trying to keep up with all the threads and I'm happy that you've added to your wishlists. My, my isn't LT a dangerous place!
American Gods has had mixed reviews but I ended up liking it a lot, it also sat on my bookshelves for too long.
Do try Marcus Sedgwick, I started with his vampire folkloric novel My swordhand is singing and was impressed.

Ooooooh... My Swordhand is Singing looks good too!

The Prince of Mist looks quite interesting. It is going onto my list. Thanks.

82) The man who fell into a puddle: Israeli lives by Igal Sarna
nonfiction, essays, Israel

I'll probably add this to the TIOLI Book with a problem in the title challenge. Anyway this little collection of essays was a captivating read. Sarna is an investigative journalist and each of these stories looks into the tragic lives of individuals from Holocaust survivors, struggling immigrants or lost soldiers. A few stand out including 'The Dead Company', 'The Kurd's Seven Beds' and 'The Sin of the Bedouin Boy'.
Sarna was a tank commander who did his army service in the Sinai, finishing conscription just a few weeks before the Yom Kippur War, where he fought as a reservist in the Golan Heights. The soldiers who died in the first day of fighting in the tanks in Sinai were his friends and colleagues and in 'The Dead Company', he remembers them and pulls together testimony and recollections to piece together what happened there in those early hours of the war.
In 'The Kurd's Seven Beds' he visits an old Kurdish Jew who lives in Jerusalem but has retreated into the lifestyle of his Kurdish homeland in his old age, and it just feels so right.
'The Sin of the Bedouin Boy' is a very sad look at the traditions of Bedouin families which hide abuse and violence.
An excellent read.

#188: Too bad that one is not available at my local library. It sounds like one I would really enjoy. Thanks for the review and recommendation, Kerry.

83) The Happiness of Kati by Jane Vejjajiva (2005)
children's fiction, Thailand

I read this for the TIOLI Read a translated children's book. The writer is the sister of the current Thai Prime Minister and works as a translator, this was her first book and it won the South East Asia Write Award, the first children's book to do so. It has also been made into a movie.

Kati, a young girl, lives with her grandparents in a small Thai village. The chapter sub-headings show that she misses her mother and that there is an unspoken gap in her life. Then Kati is asked if she would like to visit her terminally ill mother. The story is sensitively told, the adults are compassionate and helpful but leave Kati to make her own decisions.
Sad but also uplifting.

#190: You and Darryl are terrible for the state of the BlackHole, always suggesting books that my local library will probably never get!

#191 - Are you able to make suggestions for purchase to the library? My library has that option and they often get the books that I suggest, especially the children's fiction.

Most of what Darryl reads is not available here either.

#192: As far as I know, my local library has nothing in place as far as a 'suggestions' program. I will check with them next week though.

Maybe we should just boycott Darryl's thread altogether? lol

Hey hey! My good name is being slandered once again (by Stasia, not Kerry).

Stopping by to thank you for recommending Ruined by Paula Morris. My notes indicated I found this book on your thread.

And, Stasia, I was fortunate enough to find it at my local library.

I am another one who loved The Shadow of the Wind, and I also intend to re-read it before I read The Angel's Game, as it has been a few years since I read it. I didn't know that he had another book out, so I will have to hunt this one out too.

#194: That's what friends are for :)

Here's a cute video of the making of the cover of Puffin by design: 70 years of Imagination 1940-2010.

My local library only sells off culled books very occasionally so I was happy to pick up these yesterday when I called in:
No Laughter Here by Rita Williams-Garcia - an excellent YA dealing sensitively with that taboo topic of female circumcision.
The Illustrated a brief history of time by Stephen Hawking - maybe I'll even read it this time
Aboriginal Myths, Legends, Fables by A.W. Reed - Reed was a New Zealand publisher who also wrote several books and collected & rewrote folktales from around Oceania.

Also borrowed from the library are two YA novels set in Africa: The Door of No Return & Zahrah the windseeker.

I'm meant to be concentrating on translated YA & children's fiction this month, but I'm continually sidetracked by all the interesting reads everyone is having on their threads & blogs, plus every book I read seems to lead on to others.
I've just opened a package of used books ordered from a Waikato bookstore, all by Bernice Rubens:
The Elected Member, Brothers, I, Dreyfus, & Madame Sousatzka.

And I've added White Crow by Marcus Sedgwick to my basket over on bookdepository along with Tibor Fischer's Under the Frog.

Continually sidetracked, huh? Of course, that never happens to me :)

I need to get some of these tbr towers down to a level that accords with safety and hazard regulations not make them higher! I've given up on bookshelves.

84) An Innocent Soldier by Josef Holub (2002)
YA fiction, Germany
I've had this on my tbr pile for a while and read it for the TIOLI 'Read a YA translated book' challenge. Holub tells the story of 16 yr old farmhand, Adam, who is enlisted in the Wurttemberg division by his master in the place of the farmer's own son who has received his conscription papers. He forms a friendship with another young boy of noble birth. It's 1812 and they are part of Napoleon's Grande Army journeying to Moscow and then surviving to be one of the 300 Wurttemberger soldiers to return from the 15000 that set out less than a year earlier.
Recommended as a tale of friendship and again tells of the hardship and futility of war.

Holub, a community archivist, based the book on a boy from his village whose story he uncovered in archives. Holub also fought against Russians when he served in the German Army towards the end of WW2 as a 17 yr old.


85) Momo by Michael Ende (1973)
children's fantasy, Germany
Again read for the TIOLI 'Read a YA or children's translated book' challenge. I've had a few of Ende's books on my tbr pile since visiting the Michael Ende Museum which is in the International Youth Library in Munich a couple of years ago.
Momo is a homeless waif who lives in the ruins of an amphitheatre. She has many friends and the local children play wonderful imaginative games together with her. Then slipping silently and discreetly into the city come the men in the grey suits who are time thieves. Soon there is no time for play, to talk, to think. People are rushing everywhere, too busy to take time to enjoy.

Loved this almost surreal fantasy that echoes modern society. I also have his The Night of Wishes to read but haven't found any other translations apart from his The Neverending story which I read several years ago.


86) Pomegranite Seeds Latin American Jewish Tales by Nadia Grosser Nagarajan (2005)
nonfiction

I've been reading this one slowly over the past few weeks. It's a collection of mainly oral tales of and about Latin American Jews. The 34 tales share the heritage over the many years of settlement, most are stories of actual events such as life in the shetl, the holocaust and continue to the safety of life in the Americas. Many Jewish immigrants were poor peddlers or scratched a living on the tough pampas soil. One story was about descendants of Marrano Jews living in the Peruvian rainforest with many Jewish traditions still preserved after untold generations in the New World and the 'clash' with modern Jewish immigrants.
Quite interesting but only recommended to those wanting to know more about these communities. I picked up the book thinking it was a folktale collection and continued to read it anyway.

87) Dead Fathers Club by Matt Haig (2006)
fiction, 1010 & TIOLI challenges
Katethegreyt recommended this adult novel when we were suggesting YA fiction based on Shakespearean plays. As I'd read and enjoyed other books by Haig I thought I'd give it a try this month as it fits the TIOLI 'In Honor of Father's Day' challenge. Haig has based this on Hamlet and the story revolves around a young boy, Philip, whose father has just died in a car accident. His father appears to him as a ghost claiming he was murdered. Poor Philip is in a spot of bother because his Dad is after revenge. A dark 'almost' comedy/tragedy, poor Philip is just pushed too far for my liking in this.
I prefered Haig's The Last Family in England to this one, and have just found out that it is based on Henry IV Part 1. I liked the dogs.
His children's fantasy Shadow Forest which won several awards was a good read too.


88) Auslander by Paul Dowswell
YA fiction, TIOLI

This was read for TIOLI "The A's Have It" challenge. I thought it would be a good follow on from Someone named Eva.
Peter's parents are killed when the Germans invade Poland even though they are of German descent. With his perfect blonde Aryan looks Peter is selected to be fostered to a leading Nazi academic's family in Berlin. As Peter tries to fit in to his new home, school and Hitler Youth Group he also, over time, starts to question the Nazi ideology, especially as he is treated with suspicion by peers and continually reminded that he is really an auslander or foreigner, a polack.
This gives a good insight into what it would have been like to be a teenager in Berlin during the war.



89) Emil and Karl by Yankev Glatshteyn (1940 Yiddish ed) (2006 English ed)
YA fiction

I read this for the TIOLI Read a translated YA or children's book challenge. What sets this book apart from other Holocaust reads is that it was written as World War 2 broke out. Glatshteyn, a Yiddish writer, had returned in the 1930s to his native Poland after 20 years absence and was shaken by the change in attitudes in European society towards the Jewish people and the rise of Hitler. On returning to the US he wrote Emil and Karl for Jewish children in the Yiddish schools as well as writing for adults.
Emil is Jewish, Karl is not, but his parents are Socialists. They are best friends and forced onto the streets in 1938 Vienna when both lose their parents. Totally vulnerable and only 9 years old, they see and experience the bitter hatred the townspeople hold for the Jews.
This is a remarkable book and was based on many events reported in newspapers at the time.

edit: jpeg fix

#201: Adding the Holub and Ende books to the BlackHole and it looks as though I am in luck - the local library has both of those.

#202: Auslander is already in the BlackHole, so I am just adding Emil and Karl.

Thanks for the recommendations, Kerry!

You should enjoy all those, though I must admit that I'll be glad to move on from books focused on war for a while. One of my current reads - Monsters of Men is about war and after that I have a few YA fantasies to get on with. Just today I've found myself being drawn into a great little fantasy - The Wave Runners.

I will look for your comments on both Monsters of Men (even though I have had the first book in the series on my PBS wishlist forever!) and The Wave Runners, Kerry.

Pomegranate Seeds looks like a great book for a friend of mine. You still have it on your wishlist on BookMooch, Kerry.

Thanks Roni - that was the spur I needed to go in and cleanup my wishlist. I hope your friend enjoys the book, I've tracked down a copy of Nagarajan's Jewish Tales from Eastern Europe to read.

90) The Sixty-Eight Rooms by Marianne Malone (2010)
children's fiction

This was a very solid magical adventure based on The Thorne Rooms at The Art Institute of Chicago. On a school field trip to the Thorne Rooms, Ruthie and Jack discover a special key that allows Ruthie to shrink so she can explore the insides of the miniature rooms. She can't wait to return and explore some more. There is enough adventure, art, mystery and interesting characters in the book to keep you turning the pages. Very enjoyable.

#208: Sounds like one I would enjoy. Thanks for the recommendation, Kerry!

#128/130/132/135 (yes, I'm that behind...) The writer's fair sounds fantastic Kerry - how lucky to be a part of it! The Lord of the Flies and Colm Toibin sessions sound particularly fascinating. How interesting that Colm Toibin says he was influenced by Fanny Price in Brooklyn - irritating as I find her, I think she has a lot more grit at heart than Eilis.

#128 The Seawreck Stranger trilogy sounds interesting - I shall have to investigate...

#146 I really must bump Aunt Julia... up the to-read-next list...

#158 Tu sounds fantastic - definitely going on the wishlist. Probably with Small Island, which has been hovering for a while now anyway. ...and I've been thinking that it was time for an American Gods re-read...

#201 Looks like Momo will have to go on the list too - I've only read The Neverending Story (years ago), but I do remember loving it.

#208 Oh what a shame not to have known about this while I was there! ;o)

...also looking forward to your thoughts on Monsters of Men.

Kerry, I don't know how I've missed making this suggestion to you before...I'd really expect you to enjoy a novel called THE SEVERED WING by Martin Gidron. It won the 2000 (I think) Sidewise Award for Long-Form Alternate History.

A world in which WWI and WWII didn't take place has the America of 2000 at about 1950 tech level. The Europe of this world is bitterly anti-Semitic and American Jewry is doing its best to bring co-religionists to the relative safety of New York.

One man, whose PoV we are in, begins to experience the world shifting around him as the Euro-Jews stream into his New York...people vanish, no one remembers them but him, his job as a Yiddish-language reporter ends when his newspaper disappears, the restaurant where he takes his lady-love is suddenly a dry cleaners...the "why" is just flat chilling, and very well imagined.

Here is an excerpt...and here it is at Fishpond.co.nz.

I love this book, and really hope you'll give it a shot.

#210 - I'm having trouble keeping up with everyone too. I'm taking Monsters of Men slowly as when it's finished there is no more.

#211 - Richard - Thanks for the rec, the 'LT will you like it meter' tells me I will absolutely love this book very much, so I've got it on my wishlist and will track down a copy. It sounds fascinating.

91) The Wave Runners by Kai Meyer (2003)
The Wave Walkers: Bk1
children's fantasy

Added to the TIOLI Read a translated children's book.
I was quite taken with this fantasy from German writer Kai Meyer. It reads a little like an action-packed Pirates of the Caribbean adventure with a mix of pirates, ghosts, revenge and magic. Jolly and Munk are the last two remaining pollywiggles, children who are able to walk on water.
The book leaves you on tenterhooks and you want to dive right into next book. Thankfully all three books in the trilogy are available already. The American editions are titled Pirate Curse, Pirate Emperor, Pirate Wars and the pollywiggles are renamed polliwogs!

92) The Limping Man by Maurice Gee (2010)
Salt trilogy: Bk3
YA ficn, New Zealand
I added this to the TIOLI Problem title challenge.
Maurice Gee is one of New Zealand's great novelists, check out his Plumb series, In my father's den or Crime Story. He also like to write for the teen market from time to time, and the Salt series shows he isn't losing his touch here either. The Limping Man continues the story of a bleak dystopian future where evil lurks in different guises and must be overcome. Ben, son of Lol and Hana from the ruined city of Belong must try, where others have failed, to overcome the incredible power of the Limping Man, who plans to wipe out all who resist him in the Country. Riveting stuff and the reader is kept in suspense to almost the last page.
I'd happily recommend any book by Gee.

#213/214: Unfortunately, neither of those is available at my local library, although Meyer's book The Water Mirror is. Have you read that one, Kerry?

The Water mirror isn't available here but I'm keen to read it as it has all the elements that I enjoy in a good YA fantasy. I was thinking of clicking over to bookdepository for the whole trilogy though I shouldn't. He's quite a prolific writer, not everything has been translated yet.

#216: OK, thanks for the input!

>214 avatiakh: Thanks for recommending Gee to us, I've looked at his stuff and it looks really exciting! I've wishlisted, with thanks.

93) Adjusting Sights by Haim Sabato (2003) (2006 English ed)
Israel, fiction, 1010 challenge

Also read for the member recommendation TIOLI challenge.
A beautifully sensitive novel that shows how a soldier's deeply held religious beliefs guide and sustain him during the first days and aftermath of the Yom Kippur War.



94) Over a thousand hills I walk with you by Hanna Jansen (2002) (2007 English ed)
nonfiction YA
Read for the Book set in Africa TIOLI challenge.

Background: Hanna Jansen is an educator and a writer. Marrying later in life, Hanna and Reinhold Jansen, a pediatrician, shared a dream of giving a home to children who did not have one. In 1987, they adopted their first child, a four-year-old son from Africa. Since then, the Jansen's have taken in twelve children, most of them refugees from war-torn countries. One of these children is Jeanne d’Arc Umubyeyi, a young girl from Rwanda, the sole survivor of her family from the 1994 genocide of the Tutsi population. The book is based on Jeanne’s story when, at the age of eight, she is witness to the genocide of her people.

Book Dedication: ‘The book that follows was written with the help of my daughter Jeanne d’Arc, who wanted to remember and tell. I have listened to her again and again and afterward written her story…. As well as I am able to feel it. I dedicate my work to Jeanne’s first family and to their memory’

Each chapter is prefaced with a few sentences describing Jeanne’s present day life in the Jansen family and it reassures that she is now adjusted and reveling in her new life as part of a loving supportive family. The story is told in Jeanne’s voice, the voice of a child. This was a very moving book to read, it tells of terrible events and of a young child’s survival .

95) Zahrah the windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor Mbachu (2005)
YA fantasy

This book won the Wole Soyinka Prize in 2008, quite startling as this is a young adult novel and a fantasy. Beasts of no nation was one of the finalists.
Anyway I came to this book after seeing it mentioned last year as an award winning book and asked my library to purchase it. I’ve been feeling guilty about not reading it straightaway so made an effort this month. There are elements of Nigerian folklore and Alice’s Wonderland in the book which is about Zahrah, a dada-born girl living in the Ooni Kingdom which is surrounded by the Forbidden Greeny Jungle. To be dada-born is to be born with matted dreadlock type hair and is a sign of difference.
I liked this, it was very different in some ways, I really liked the worldbuilding, but in other ways the story was quite simplistic and some of the creatures a bit absurd. Still, apparently there aren’t many fantasy novels out there incorporating the culture and folklore of West Africa.

FYI - LTer Fanny Price is reviewing Okorafor’s latest adult novel in the next issue of Belletrista and had some interesting comments about it on her ClubRead thread.



96) The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon (2002)
science fiction
I saw this listed as a member recommendation on the TIOLI challenge so thought I’d read it too as I finally tracked down a copy after seeing it praised a few times last year on the LT threads .
A really interesting read, the storyline is a bit mundane, but allows us to see life from the autistic perspective and to think about what is considered ‘normal’.

97) Chaos Walking 3: Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness (2010)
YA science fiction

Wow, this guy can write. He has the voices of his characters perfected and all the reader has to do is get on the bike at the top of a really steep slope, keep their feet off the pedals, forget about brakes – there aren’t any and take off. This is a non-stop heart-thumping read that wraps up on the last page, the dystopian thrill ride that started on page 1 of book 1. This book is about War, Revenge and Power with our Todd and Viola caught up in the midst of three armies. I won’t say any more as this is Book 3 of one of the best trilogies I’ve read.
Here’s a link to an interview with Patrick Ness answering questions about writing book one The Knife of Never Letting Go.
http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/interview/with/author/patrick-ness

Oooh, thanks for the link - I've been feeling a bit Patrick Ness-less recently (time to pick up The Crash of Hennington I think...) - and much more lucid comments than mine were ;o)

I already have all of your recent reads in the BlackHole except for Zahrah the Windseeker, which is now there. Unfortunately for me, my local library does not have a single one of them. *sigh*

222> flissp: I will be rereading these books, I'm still in recovery from reading Ness. His ability to maintain the tension and pace throughout all the books is unbelievable. Todd was such a great character, and I adored the 'boy colt' relationship (another great animal-human partnership is I am the great horse). I'll be looking out for a couple of the books Ness mentioned in his interview - Riddley Walker and The Unusual Life of Tristan Smith as well as his own adult books.

223> Stasia: I hope you manage to track down the Ness books at least as they are so wonderful.

I'm really enjoying one of my current reads, it has a similar feel to Roald Dahl's children's books but isn't a clone at all. French writer,Timothee de Fombelle's Toby Alone is proving a thoroughly entertaining distraction for my withdrawal pangs from reading Ness. And there's a sequel, even better! Toby is only 1.5mm tall, lives in a tree and is on the run.

#224: I finally broke down and ordered The Knife of Never Letting Go today. It has been on my PBS wishlist for at least a year now without a glimmer of hope in sight, so today was the day I finally said 'I need to get it bought,' so I did :)

#224 Oh it took me a long time to recover from too - I didn't want to pick up another book in case it wiped the story away for a while too!

I agree about the "boy colt" relationship (and, in fact I loved Manchee too) - which is unusual for me - I'm usually not a fan of anthropomorphised animals, but he manages to be completely unsentimental about them, so somehow they work.

Like the sound of Toby Alone!

#225 Stasia, I don't think you'll regret it!

Sounds like I definitely need to read the Patrick Ness books!

I agree with the others, I now NEED to read Patrick Ness.

#227 & 228. YES.

#225> Stasia - you'll love these books, I'm sure.
#227 & 228> what are you waiting for, they're a real treat.

I've been here ... just lurking silently ... and adding more books to my obese wish list. I just had to speak up now because I love Patrick Ness .... he's an amazing writer. I second Kerry's urging that you all run out now and start reading his books.

98) Toby Alone by Timothee de Fombelle (2006) (2008 English trans)
children's fiction

I really enjoyed this. Only 1.5mm tall, young Toby is one of the Tree People who inhabit a huge oak tree. Their whole existence is wrapped in a miniature world of the one tree though the borders area does have confrontations from time to time with the unknown Grass People. Toby is on the run, he's not sure what's happened to his parents, but he knows he has to head south. The story tracks back and forth in quite a pleasurable way, though it might be harder for children to follow the twists brought on by this type of narrative style. Beautiful illustrations throughout are by Francois Place. Fans of Roald Dahl's children's books will like this.
I've had the book on my tbr pile since it was chosen as a UK IBBY Honour Book (Translation). It is also included in the 1001Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up. Originally published in France the translation has been done superbly by Sarah Ardizzone winning the 2009 Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation.
I also have to say that my hard cover edition is a beautiful high quality production. The paper is silkysmooth, the print dark green rather than the usual black, and the strong brown paper like dust jacket unfolds to reveal a poster map of Toby's tree world.



99) The White King by György Dragomán (2005) (2008 English trans)
fiction

I was given an uncorrected proof copy of this book a couple of years ago but only got round to reading it now for the "Meant for someone else but not for me" TIOLI challenge. The White King was longlisted for the 2010 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and it definitely lived up to my expectations. Dragomán grew up in Transylvania but now lives in Hungary and works as a writer, journalist and translator.

Djata, is an 11 year old boy who lives in an unnamed East Bloc country (resembles Romania under Ceausescu). His father has been taken from home by the State Police and the book follows Djata over the course of the next year or so as he comes to term with the loss of his father. War games, brutal school life, bullies & gangs, and a despairing mother make it sound like a depressing read but on the contrary this novel sparkles with life, vitality and humour. Djata is defiant, strong and streetsmart, his one weakness, his fragile hope that his father will return.

I just found this excellent review over on the Washington Post:

Literature about children living under repressive regimes is as upsetting as it is invaluable. One's appreciation for each new book is mingled with horror at what a young person endured to produce it. How many of us finally understood the ferocity of Sierra Leone's civil war by reading about Ishmael Beah's unbearable ordeal in A Long Way Gone? Last year, Libyan writer Hisham Matar provided a chilling perspective on what it means for a child to live in a state of political terror. In the Country of Men, his autobiographical novel about a 9-year-old boy, describes a family struggling under the rule of Col. Moammar Gaddafi.

The latest contribution to this heartrending genre comes from a 34-year-old Romanian writer named György Dragomán. Published in more than 20 countries, The White King is a collection of connected short stories inspired by Dragomán's experiences during the 1980s. The narrator, 11-year-old Djata, is a resilient but sensitive boy living in a world that seems designed by Joseph Stalin and Roald Dahl. Dragomán creates a nostalgic childhood, full of the games and pranks that mischievous scamps have always pursued -- playing hooky, pestering weird neighbors, daring each other to eat this or jump over that -- but in the dark days of Ceausescu's police state, the atmosphere is so poisoned, physically and psychologically, that boys' make-believe dangers constantly risk becoming deadly.

review continues here

This is the first book I've read where I've noticed sentences lasting up to three pages long - they are quite interesting to read.


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Woot! My local library actually has The White King although it does not have Toby Alone, which is now in the BlackHole. Thanks for the recommendations, Kerry!

#233: I really enjoyed both books a lot and here is the third book, my #100, which didn't want to be part of my last post! Hopefully it will work here.


100) Hicksville by Dylan Horricks (1998) (2010ed)
graphic novel, new zealand

This is a new edition that includes a comic strip introduction on Horrock's childhood and his fascination with comicbooks such as TinTin and his recurring dream in which he finds a stack of previously unread Tintin books.
I almost gave up on this graphic novel but decided to press on and it did start to make more sense once I'd sorted out the characters, eventually turning out to be a really interesting read. Hicksville is a small town hidden in a corner of new Zealand's East Cape and here everyone loves comics. Leonard Batts, a journalist comes from LA to do a story on the childhood of mega-successful comicbook writer Dick Burger and meets with hostility from all the locals.

Batts discovers that Hicksville is not only a town of secrets, but also a place where people are obsessed with comic books, especially obsessed with independent comics from all parts of the world. This improbable conceit works perfectly, transforming the places and characters of Hicksville into a formal investigation of the meaning of comic art and narrative. It also becomes a standing critique of most of what passes for the comics industry.

from PopMatters' review of Hicksville

This graphic novel would have fit in nicely to the July Book about Books TIOLI Challenge except I've finished it in June.

I'm almost certain I'll be giving up on Donna Leon's Death in La Fenice which I thought I'd read to compare to Andrea Camilleri's Inspector Montalbano books that I'm totally besotted with. Over 100 pages in and so far it hasn't hooked me at all.

Congratulations on reaching 100, Kerry!

Thanks, it took almost as much effort to make that Hicksville post work as it did to read the 100 books!

Sorry to hear that you are not enjoying the Donna Leon book more though. Oh well, not every book is for every body.

I'm usually easy to please when it comes to crime novels so not sure what happened, probably I subconsciously decided I wouldn't enjoy it before I started! Anyway, I have a few hundred other books lying around my house waiting to be read so I'm not too worried

I hope you have better luck with your next read, whatever it is.

Kerry

Within less 12 hours I've added six books from your suggestions.

You are dangerous to the tbr pile...but, I cannot help myself because you read or recommend such interesting stuff!

#232 Both those books sound great (where do you find out about all these book awards!) so added to the wishlist!

And congratulations on reaching 100 books!

>234 avatiakh: Kerry, I live four miles from Hicksville and it doesn't look one single thing like that cover image. How odd.

And a big W00T! for reaching 100 books!

Congratulations on 100!

I have Toby Alone from the library and hope to finish it by Thursday for your "translated or YA children's book" TIOLI challenge. Your review is encouraging!

#240> Linda - I thought of another area of interest for you, will visit your thread to post on it! The world is such an interesting place we cannot help but want to read about it!

#241> Heather - I do a bit of research on the books I'm choosing to read, especially the children's and YA books. I'm on the New Zealand IBBY committee so do like to read from their Honour Books List and also if possible the work of the Hans Christian Andersen Award & Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award winners & nominees (not all are available in English).
My previous admin work in children's lit included updating website data and editing a newsletter and I've become a bit addicted to finding out all I can about writers and their books.

#242> Richard - I wouldn't choose to live in a Hicksville! Anyway this fictional Hicksville is based on a remote settlement on New Zealand's East Cape - Hick's Bay. I've visited there a few times. My mother has a bach in nearby Raukokore.

#243> Hope you enjoy Toby as much as I did.

#244: I liked it very much.

Igal Sarna's book is another for my non-tbr as does Pomegranite Seeds :)

And The Sixty-Eight Rooms sounds like a honey of a book!

Really sorry you didn't enjoy THe Speed of Dark more -- I'm one of those who found it fabulous. And, I adding Ness to my list of authors for those rare trips to Paris et al with used English bookstores. After "one of the best trilogies I’ve read", how can I not?

Susan - I enjoyed The Speed of Dark more than probably I gave the impression of. I really liked the main character and thought Moon did a really excellent job with describing his autistic world.

New thread for the third quarter - here

>234 avatiakh:: ...Donna Leon's Death in La Fenice which I thought I'd read to compare to Andrea Camilleri's Inspector Montalbano books...

I find that comparison odd. I've found them absolutely nothing alike (although, unlike you, I do enjoy the Leon books). Aside from being police stories, they have a totally different feel to them.

>248 TadAD: - I love Camilleri, and just read my first by Leon (Doctored Evidence, a later one in the series I believe), and I agree that they are very different, apart from both being crime stories, taking place in Italy (I know, I know, lots of people say Sicily isn't Italy), and having many descriptions of food. If this one was typical, I'd say the Leons are more typical "police procedural", where solving the crime is the main point of the story, whereas in the Camilleris I often think it wouldn't matter if the crimes got solved or not. The Leon had less interesting side stories going on while we waited for the denouement, which could be why you got bored, Kerry?

>248 TadAD: & 249:That was my first Donna Leon book and I found it a quite straightforward whodunnit, which over the years I've read so many of, so I'm just not in the market to read more. I tried it because Leon is so popular here on LT and I thought I might be missing out on a good read especially as they are set in Venice. At this stage of my reading life my preference is with the Camilleri books (and another shameless plug for Ian Rankin's Rebus).
Janet - have you seen the Italian tv series of Inspector Montalbano? That's how I discovered the books.

Yes, I have seen the tv series - but I had already read all the books (or at least, all those which had already appeared in English by then). I can't remember how I first heard of him - must have been a personal recommendation. And I also love Rebus!

Interesting - I loved Death in La Fenice and was bored by the first Camilleri, though I read a review of a much more recent one which mentions the character being a crime fiction fan and of someone I really like, himself - maybe I should give him another go. I remember there being a lot of comment on the society in Leon's first two books - I still have some catching up to do.

Congrats on hitting "100," Kerry! The White King sounds good; might make some of the teenagers I know quit complaining about the rules they have to deal with, and appreciate what they have... but then again, probably not! ;-)

Kerrymelon, old dear old thing, it's looong loooading tiiime over here....

richard - I started a new thread a few days ago but continued the Donna Leon debate here.

New thread for the third quarter - here

Good heavens, and I even *found* it and posted on it and read it!

That's it. Bedtime for Bonzo.

lol. Sleep, tomorrow is a new day that I'm already living!

#253: bonniebooks - teenagers will always complain about rules, it's part of their makeup. I'd worry if they didn't! White King is very good, not matter how grim, he still made you smile.