Current Reading - Books best thread

[Levin]

Has anyone read 'The Netanyahu's'? It's published by fitzcarraldo and I've not read anything activity bad from them. The subject has put me off though

[gt3]

Just finished The First Crusade by Peter Frankopan. Having during lockdown, read Steven Runciman's History of The First Crusade, it was fascinating to see the same history told from an eastern perspective. It's also not as dry as Runciman. Frankopan has a real enthusiasm for the medieval east which shines through.

And talking about enthusiasms (I always hear de Niro saying "entoosiasms" from The Untouchables whenever I hear or use that word), I've just started Kathrine Rundell's biography of John Donne - Super-Infinite. It turns out it is R4's book of the week. Clearly a fan. And yet not gushing - at least so far.

There was an episode of In Our Time which I happened upon about Donne which re-awakened my curiosity about him. Here's a link to it:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001gx0k

[Sam]

I finished Ariadne earlier. As novels based on Greek mythology from the women's point of view go, it's not quite as good as A Thousand Ships by Natalie Hynes, but it's still bloody good.

When I go to bed in a short while I'll be starting Hold Back The Tide by Melinda Salisbury, which is a murder mystery set in the Scottish Highlands.

[Levin]

Have you read Crista Wolf's Cassandra or Margaret Atwood's Penelopiad? They are both extremely good.

[Jobi1]

Coming towards the end of The Ormering Tide, the debut novel by singer-songwriter Kathryn Williams, which focuses on a girl growing up on a post-war unnamed (but seeming channel) island. It took a few pages to get used to the occasionally clipped, quite poetic style, but I'm really enjoying it now, highly engaging.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Kirk Wallace Johnson ran The List Project — an non-profit organisation that attempted to resettle Iraqi refugees who'd worked for the US Government during the war. It was exhausting and, ultimately, depressing work. Initially as a distraction, later as a compulsion, he began researching a break-in that occurred at the National History Museum's storage facility in Tring, Herts. Hundreds of of rare bird feathers and skins were stolen, many from species now extinct. Most the result of 19th century expeditions by the likes of Alfred Russel Wallace. Months later a young American professional flautist 'fessed up to the theft. Why and how he did so is recounted in The Feather Thief.

It's a strange and multilayered tale of a real-life heist, but far beyond that, of an obsession. Of how people become so detached from the day-to-day that what begins as a seemingly harmless, if bizarre, hobby eventually rules their lives. Very much recommended.

[Jon]

And talking about enthusiasms (I always hear de Niro saying "entoosiasms" from The Untouchables whenever I hear or use that word), I've just started Kathrine Rundell's biography of John Donne - Super-Infinite. It turns out it is R4's book of the week. Clearly a fan. And yet not gushing - at least so far.

She's good that Katherine Rundell. And an equally good children's author too. Makes you sick.

[Sam]

Have you read Crista Wolf's Cassandra or Margaret Atwood's Penelopiad? They are both extremely good.

I have not. Will check them out, though. Thanks!

[gt3]

Kirk Wallace Johnson ran The List Project — an non-profit organisation that attempted to resettle Iraqi refugees who'd worked for the US Government during the war. It was exhausting and, ultimately, depressing work. Initially as a distraction, later as a compulsion, he began researching a break-in that occurred at the National History Museum's storage facility in Tring, Herts. Hundreds of of rare bird feathers and skins were stolen, many from species now extinct. Most the result of 19th century expeditions by the likes of Alfred Russel Wallace. Months later a young American professional flautist 'fessed up to the theft. Why and how he did so is recounted in The Feather Thief.

It's a strange and multilayered tale of a real-life heist, but far beyond that, of an obsession. Of how people become so detached from the day-to-day that what begins as a seemingly harmless, if bizarre, hobby eventually rules their lives. Very much recommended.

Right - getting my copy of this today from Foyles.

Jon - There's certainly a childlike joy in her writing. I finished Super-Infinite the other day. A fascinating and insightful read. At at the same time, good fun. At one point, she interprets one of Donne's letters as "why don't you fuck off and die". This isn't Rundell being vulgar or anachronistic. She's trying to convey just how rude Donne was being. A book that wears its authors intelligence and learning lightly.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Right - getting my copy of this today from Foyles.

I envy you. I read my copy on a Kindle, not realising that half the book consists of illustrations — I assume in colour — mainly of the birds involved.

[gt3]

I envy you. I read my copy on a Kindle, not realising that half the book consists of illustrations — I assume in colour — mainly of the birds involved.

Yup

[gt3]

20230328_171701.jpg 20230328_171701.jpg Heres some more pictures from the book

[Amor de Cosmos]

Hmm. Yes definitely it would have been worth buying the bound version for the illustrations.

[Sam]

I finished Hold Back The Tide at the start of the week. It's very good. I'd bought it after hearing it was dead good and not much else, so went into it expecting a historical murder-mystery. The first thing that was unexpected is that it's young adult, which I have no problem with at all (I like to read a YA thing now and then, and if I were reading a physical copy this would've been much more apparent as it's published by Scholastic). The second is that 'historical murder-mystery' is arguably an apt description for about the first third of it, and then it takes a sharp, sudden and – if you've not read anything beyond the two-line teaser promo text on Amazon – highly unexpected turn into something completely different. The night I got to the twist, I ended up wide awake and still reading about an hour later than usual.

I'm now reading Erebus by Michael Palin.

[Jon]

I think it was you, Sam, who said they'd read Matt Haig's midnight library. I've just finished one by him - how to stop time. I've read a few of his Christmas children's books to my son over the years but this was my first grown up book by him.

It's about a man who ages really slowly and so has been alive for centuries. I have fond memories of reading Tom Robbins' jitterbug perfume many years ago, which has a similar theme, but this book was a bit more of a slog. Haig is a good, thought-provoking writer and there are some great scenes and quotable lines within the book. As a whole though, the novel didn't come together as well as I'd have liked.

[Sam]

It was me, yes. I've read The Midnight Library and The Humans by him (the latter of which had me almost crying with laughter during the first chapter).

[steveeeeeeeee]

It's been discussed a fair bit on th Kindle 99p thread, but I'm currently reading "Motherwell" by Deborah Orr and it is very good. Outstanding writing.

[Incandenza]

Recently read:

Julian Barnes, A Sense of an Ending. A third book from a "best short novels of the century" list I've looked at, and I have to say that I haven't thoroughly enjoyed any of the ones I've picked from it. This was fine, I found that there being some major twist/revelation at the end didn't work for me, but I didn't know where the story was going otherwise.

Will Sommer, Trust the Plan: The Rise of QAnon and the Conspiracy that Reshaped the World. Sommer has been on the right wing conspiracy beat for a long time and has done more research into the people that are part of the QAnon movement more than any other writer in the US. This was a nice quick read that covers the various figures that either actually believe this or have latched onto it as a grift. This is more reporting than sociology/anthropology, and I think it would still be worthwhile to read something from that perspective.

[Satchmo Distel]

I absolutely blasted through The Wind-up Bird Chronicle, found it really compelling.

I have started it but might wait until summer holidays so I can read it uninterrupted.

I'm tempted also by his debut, Norwegian Wood, but Amazon reviews are mixed.

I was a little disappointed with Salman Rushdie's 'Shalimar The Clown' in the end. Some exhilirating chapters but far too long and a rather improbable ending.

I still can't finish Catch 22. The nightmare of having your missions endlessly extended just becomes grim and claustrophobic.

[RobW]

Reading A Diplomat in Japan by Sir Ernest Satow, former minister to Japan. It is based on his diaries and covers the years 1862-1869. He came straight out of university to become an interpreter and it describes the transformation of Japan from shogunate to Meiji restoration.

[Jobi1]

I'm tempted also by his debut, Norwegian Wood, but Amazon reviews are mixed.

…

I still can't finish Catch 22. The nightmare of having your missions endlessly extended just becomes grim and claustrophobic.

I really enjoyed Norwegian Wood too, another one where I found myself really invested in the characters. The film adaptation is decent too, but doesn't quite capture the depth for me.

As for Catch-22, I absolutely adore it! Read it for pleasure, studied it at uni, became a bit of a teenage obsession. I think Yossarian might just be my no.1 fictional hero. And unlike Norwegian Wood, I love the film as much as the book; the recent TV series version was very good as well. But the less said about Heller's sequel Closing Time, the better…

In my current reading I'm finally on with Where the Crawdads Sing, which I feel like I'm about the last person on the planet to read. Very engaging so far.

[ale]

Another massive fan of Catch-22. And even more so of Good As Gold. And yet nothing else Heller done has made any positive impression. Especially Something Happens. But still. To write 2 of the greatest novels of the 20 century is some achievement.

[Sam]

Finished Erebus last night. Michael Palin's better at writing properly researched history than I'd expected; it's very good.

Off to bed shortly, so about to start How Much of These Hills is Gold by C Pam Zhang.

[Nefertiti2]

Really enjoyed Polly Barton's 50 Sounds using 50 sounds to write about learning Japanese and teaching English in Japan, about onompatopoiea and Wittgenstein, and embodiment and loneliness and a hundred other things. Strongly recommend

[ad hoc]

Really enjoyed Polly Barton's 50 Sounds using 50 sounds to write about learning Japanese and teaching English in Japan, about onompatopoiea and Wittgenstein, and embodiment and loneliness and a hundred other things. Strongly recommend

Sounds great. Have just ordered