Recent Posts
For a stretch of time that feels like months but could not have been longer than two weeks, I have carted around a hard copy of this year's Booker Prize winning novel, The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai. As life is short and time a precious commodity, I think one should only ever give a novel 100 pages to engage the reader, and this one did not. However, the reviews were good, and it won the Booker Prize so I had to entertain the idea that I just might be missing something (shock, horror). I was intrigued after reading a review, though not after reading the first 150 pages of the book, that this novel addressed the idea that, when it comes to issues of class and inequality, there is an extent to which we are better off 'accepting our fate' - or something (better articulated) to that effect.
In a shameful act of betrayal of the art of reading and readers everywhere, I found myself skimreading sections of the book, which is obviously well-written but a bit dull and flabby about the middle, much like people who love cheese.
By the 200-page, three-quarter mark, there was no going back. Excitement grew (in me, not in the plot) at the prospect of writing a negative book review. Like a professional reviewer, I could tear it apart, have the undeniable pleasure of lopping a tall poppy, goodness. For this reason only, I set aside a few hours over the weekend to 'read it out', to go back to the half-alive characters and the godforsaken Himalayan climate and the realism so mundane peppered with the too-wise (for the author is young) insights into the shame and sadness of the disposessed. Ho hum, make a cup of tea, get on with it.
Finally, at chapter THIRTY EIGHT (page 241 in the American edition I read) it gets interesting; in fact, it suddenly becomes brilliant. I am so glad that I trusted in the almighty Booker and stuck with it; wish I hadn't skimmed through the all-important build-up. I recommend this book wholeheartedly on the condition that it is not read piecemeal on public transport etc.
Alas, no nasty book review.
A dear and well-read friend once told me that she's careful not to read too many Margaret Atwood books in succession. She didn't want to run out. She wanted to have some fresh, outstanding, contemporary writing available to her, in case of emergencies.
Margaret Atwood's works can be reread, though (if you go in for that sort of thing) and thankfully she writes so much and publishes so often that, for most of us, it's no problem to devour her books as they come out. She is a Canadian treasure and a treasure for fiction readers throughout the world. I hope she lives and writes for a long time yet - but enough gushing.
Moral Disorder was published by Bloomsbury earlier this year. It's a compilation of short stories that share the same central character, lumped together like this they amount to a whole life story without the boring bits and appeals much like the sum of any person's life stories does.
Like many of Atwood's thoroughly satisfying books, Moral Disorder is useful, it reminds us (among other things) why we need to:
1. Take plenty of photos,
2. Be a good friend, and
3. Savour life before it runs out.
Moral Disorder (a title she nicked from her husband's unfinished novel) is merely the most recently published of more than 30 works Margaret Atwood has proffered. It doesn't come near the brilliance of some of her earlier works, such as Alias Grace and Oryx and Crake (the latter so underrated), but it nourishes the reader in that same way that my well-read friend knows too well.
Readers can trust Margaret Atwood to switch them on - who else does this for us?
P.S. I suspect that too few men read Margaret Atwood, to them I most firmly recommend her work, the few men that I've known to read her novels have been very glad they did.
Augusten Burroughs had a very difficult childhood. His life lacked. He became an alcoholic. Then he wrote Running with Scissors, an autobiography, and now everything he writes is a bestseller.
This Burroughs has endured a lot of degradation, and he has a lot of material. He writes very well and despite the heavy themes, his books are easy to read, you can devour them like fast food - when it's fresh and hot (I hasten to add). You might be hungry soon afterwards, though.
I like the way Burroughs writes about - and lives - popular culture. He's the only writer I know of who can write about ebay addiction, for example. He is writing about this moment in history, about the kind of people our culture turns out.
In a chapter about a dog called Kitty Kitty, he writes:
‘The inside of the fence is lined all the way around with benches so you can sit and read the paper, talk to other dog people, or work on a mental assignment from your therapist.’- Burroughs, Augusten, (2006) Possible Side Effects, St. Martin’s Press, New York
www.augusten.com
Bill Bryson writes travel books and Bill Bryson's books travel. They're popular and continue to sell long after publication. This level of popularity of books is usually the result of heavy marketing and, just as often, an indicator of bland, conventional writing. Not so with Bryson.
Notes from a small island details Bryson's trip around Britain prior to leaving for the US. It's a backpacker's last hurrah and good, very light reading for anyone thinking of travelling there, for anyone wanting to reminisce about their time there, for residents, and for those who don't know anything about Britain (beyond Big Ben and The Young Ones
[ Click here to read more ]
Has anyone read The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai (daughter of Anita)? It won the Man Booker Prize, much to my diasappointment (but only because I invested my time on Sarah Waters' The Night Watch).
The thing is, I could read the 15,000 odd reviews on the web, but it just might deplete my appetite for Booker books. I'd rather hear what readers like me have to say - I'd really appreciate your response
[ Click here to read more ]
Ah, the pleasure of reading a novel you can't put down, with the incredible bonus of it not being trash.
In two days time, on Tuesday the 10th, the winner of this year's Man Booker Prize will finally be announced. The prize is worth £50,000 ($AU125,000) to the winner and a massive increase in book sales and thus royalties
[ Click here to read more ]
The winner of the 2006 Man Booker Prize will be announced on the 10th of October. Despite my best efforts, I haven't managed to read all of the six books on the shortlist (below). However, I got my hands on a copy of Sarah Waters' The Night Watch and have been consequently neglecting my work, hiding in the corner of my office cubicle trying to give off the impression of deep concentration and hard work while I devour this incredible novel. Many people would like to write great historical fiction, Sarah Waters has done it.
2006 Man Booker Prize Shortlist:
[ Click here to read more ]
The Tent is a collection of fictional essays by Margaret Atwood. It's a small compilation, the hardcover edition I read extends to only 155 pages and took less than an hour to read. It's also sparsely illustrated with sketches by Atwood herself. Many of the pieces have previously been published (Harper's Magazine etc).
It's no news that Canadian writer Margaret Atwood is brilliant, and prolific. She's written poetry, non-fiction, books for children, novels and short stories. In fact, she publishes so often that if you're not paying attention, her new books can slip onto the shelves without your notice, as was likely the case for many of her fans with this neat (2006) edition
[ Click here to read more ]
September 17th 2006 06:15
The shortlist for the 2006 Man Booker Prize has been announced. Many booklovers try to read as many of these as they can get their hands on each year. Reading books from the shortlist for an award as prestigous as this one is a safe bet. Even if parts of the novels (such as all of the titles), aren't that appealing, the reader can be assured that they're going to be well written.
This is a UK award and Kate Grenville and MJ Hyland are both Australian, which is unusual
[ Click here to read more ]
September 16th 2006 04:28
We all have personal lists of our favourite people, moments, movies, places, foods. But people come and go, amazing moments are eclipsed by others and everyone tires, eventually, of Pad Thai. For me, the list that changes the least is that of my favourite books, and they're all novels.
My list is not in any particular order, and it's not particularly wordly, original or sophisticated, it's just the books that I've never stopped loving
[ Click here to read more ]
|
|
|
Comments (1)
Add Comments
Read More
Comment by Sam
on Britain by Bryson: review of Notes from a small island
I haven't read the America Bryson books. Why don't you read them an let me know what you think?