This novel presents a picture of the lives of ordinary people in a small coastal town in Maine through thirteen stories, spanning a period of twenty or so years, several of which feature recurring characters. The title character, Olive, appears in all of them, sometimes at the centre of the story, in others, very much on the periphery. A retired schoolteacher, she is a no-nonsense, extremely forthright individual (someone whom Ken Clarke would doubtless regard as a 'difficult woman'), but at the same time, vulnerable, compassionate and empathetic (the type of empathy without a shred of sentimentality). Her complexity emerges as the stories unfold and she tries to make sense of the changes in her life. Like pretty well all the characters in the book, she is realistically drawn and has great emotional depth. She is not a 'nice' person, as such, but I found myself drawn to her.
This might not be everyone's cup of tea but I thought it was a cracking read. My thanks to @Jints for alerting me to the author.
Just finished reading Linwood Barclay's "Far from True". Well, I finished reading it, unfortunately he didn't finish writing it. It stops half way through the story - what a fucking swizz! Turns out it's the second instalment of the Promise Falls trilogy. And I didn't even know there was a first... It is a great story - as always with Barclay - but it is quite complicated with several stories running concurrently, which makes it all the more annoying that I will have to wait to find our the conclusion, I will have forgotten much of what has happened by the time I read it. And of course, I didn't realise it was a three parter, so I need to read Pt 1 now as well. Note to self - check on the internet before reading a random book...
I've gone back to re-try Robert Penn Warren's "All the King's Men."
It's quite a hard going US political novel, hopefully it's rewarding enough.
I think I started reading it at one point, can't remember why I stopped (I start and stop a lot of books though).
A lot of people really love it. I think now is as good a time as any as we've just had a "populist" take over.
Let us know how you get on. I'm curious to know what you think of it overall, if it's worth the payoff, and how it stands up/relates to today's politics (if at all).
I'm still only halfway through. It's not hard going in that it's tough to read, but it's still not grabbed me, I've been distracted & it's 600+ dense pages.
It is clearly a good book and clever and insightful, plus as you say it's highly relevant today. However, at the moment it's reserved for when I'm travelling somewhere. Hopefully it will click for me soon, I'm not going to give up!
Just seen that you were reading some Atwood, I've not read The Handmaid's Tale but I have Oryx & Crake. That is decent if you're into soft (and bleak) sci-fi, I should try more Atwood.
This novel presents a picture of the lives of ordinary people in a small coastal town in Maine through thirteen stories, spanning a period of twenty or so years, several of which feature recurring characters. The title character, Olive, appears in all of them, sometimes at the centre of the story, in others, very much on the periphery. A retired schoolteacher, she is a no-nonsense, extremely forthright individual (someone whom Ken Clarke would doubtless regard as a 'difficult woman'), but at the same time, vulnerable, compassionate and empathetic (the type of empathy without a shred of sentimentality). Her complexity emerges as the stories unfold and she tries to make sense of the changes in her life. Like pretty well all the characters in the book, she is realistically drawn and has great emotional depth. She is not a 'nice' person, as such, but I found myself drawn to her.
This might not be everyone's cup of tea but I thought it was a cracking read. My thanks to @Jints for alerting me to the author.
I'm glad you enjoyed it. There's a very good and faithful mini-series (HBO I think of it) with Frances McDormand playing the lead. I recently read Strout's "The Burgess Boys", which was of an equally high standard IMO.
Just starting Murakami's "Hard-Boiled Wonderland". Have read a lot of his strange books and enjoyed most except for his short stories. 1984 - Books 1,2 and 3 were tough going but worth it. If you like surreal would recommend.
I like Murakami a lot too and read the 1984 books recently. Decent though not a patch on Hard-Boiled Wonderland or the A Wild Sheep's Chase IMO. David Mitchell does some fantastic tributes/pastiches of his style, better than the originals in some way.
This novel presents a picture of the lives of ordinary people in a small coastal town in Maine through thirteen stories, spanning a period of twenty or so years, several of which feature recurring characters. The title character, Olive, appears in all of them, sometimes at the centre of the story, in others, very much on the periphery. A retired schoolteacher, she is a no-nonsense, extremely forthright individual (someone whom Ken Clarke would doubtless regard as a 'difficult woman'), but at the same time, vulnerable, compassionate and empathetic (the type of empathy without a shred of sentimentality). Her complexity emerges as the stories unfold and she tries to make sense of the changes in her life. Like pretty well all the characters in the book, she is realistically drawn and has great emotional depth. She is not a 'nice' person, as such, but I found myself drawn to her.
This might not be everyone's cup of tea but I thought it was a cracking read. My thanks to @Jints for alerting me to the author.
I'm glad you enjoyed it. There's a very good and faithful mini-series (HBO I think of it) with Frances McDormand playing the lead. I recently read Strout's "The Burgess Boys", which was of an equally high standard IMO.
Yes, I bought the HBO series for my wife's birthday and now we've both finished the book, we can watch it. I've always liked Frances McDormand since her outstanding performance in Fargo.
Will definitely check out 'The Burgess Boys'. I've got 'My Name Is Lucy Barton' on order from the library, although there's a long waiting list and my last reservation expired after three months just when I was getting near the front of the queue. Elizabeth Strout is clearly popular at the moment.
It's a history of humanity over the last couple of millenia, but centred along the trading routes between the Mediterranean and Asia. Personally, the earlier part was a little slow, and I thought the Mongols deserved a bit more time devoted to them, but it is a fascinating read. It offered me for the first time an intelligible explanation of the start of the first world war and why it was not simply German war mongering, which was interesting. Very readable.
It's a history of humanity over the last couple of millenia, but centred along the trading routes between the Mediterranean and Asia. Personally, the earlier part was a little slow, and I thought the Mongols deserved a bit more time devoted to them, but it is a fascinating read. It offered me for the first time an intelligible explanation of the start of the first world war and why it was not simply German war mongering, which was interesting. Very readable.
Peter Robinson, "A Dedicated Man". One of the early DCI Banks books. Usual decent plot, interestingly I thought it started off in quite an "old fashioned" way. The style akin to early PD James, or Agatha Christie - lots of flowery description and metaphors. But as it went on became more like a modern detective novel. I wonder if he actually wrote it before his first book "Gallows View", which was modern in style from the off, but it was published after "Gallows View" was a success?
This week I have been mainly reading 'The Accounts' by R Duchatelet. Wasn't quite sure what to make of it but it is a true story, bit of a tragedy and it had me in tears by the end.
Paul McCartney .. biography by Philip Norman .. not just a very well written and insightful look into the music maestro and the other Beatles, but also a glimpse into the 'recent' past .. the start of the 'swinging sixties' and an England still, after 15 years or so, emerging from the rigours of WW2 .. recommended .. it's a big book but can be read at leisure in small chunks
This is the 1969 autobiography about the childhood of Maya Angelou, the American writer and poet, in the 1930s deep South. We've had this book for about 25 years but I've never got around to reading it. I'm glad I finally did because it's superbly written and I found it a riveting, insightful and exceptionally honest account. I can quite understand why it's regarded as a modern classic.
A Whole Life by Robert Seethaler
This short novel was written in 2014 by an Austrian writer and actor (he appeared in the Paolo Sorrentino film, 'Youth') and it was translated into English the following year. Its central character, Andreas, is a simple mountain man from the Alps, who spends his entire life there, leaving his valley only once in order to fight in World War II. The novel is only 149 pages long but it somehow manages to embrace and beautifully describe one man's ordinary, but at the same time, extraordinary life. Understated but powerful, this is an extremely tender and poignant read. It's definitely one of the best things I've read recently.
Alan Partridge, Nomad. This was a Christmas present and not a book I'd have chosen for myself. At first I had the feeling that it was just recycling spare material left over from the tv shows, but the more I got into it the more I liked it. It's definitely written in Partridge's voice, it's got some hilarious bits in it and by the end I couldn't put it down. Needless to say, I had the last laugh.
It's a history of humanity over the last couple of millenia, but centred along the trading routes between the Mediterranean and Asia. Personally, the earlier part was a little slow, and I thought the Mongols deserved a bit more time devoted to them, but it is a fascinating read. It offered me for the first time an intelligible explanation of the start of the first world war and why it was not simply German war mongering, which was interesting. Very readable.
I liked the first two thirds but it then became a rather tedious rant about the British and American intervention in the middle-east.
Comments
Very readable account of the events that led to Brexit, what happened on the night and the weeks thereafter.
Gives a new complexion to some of the main players. Fascinating.
Fascinating and brilliant
Mindbending.
Reading it alongside Why Does E=mc2 by Brian Cox.
This novel presents a picture of the lives of ordinary people in a small coastal town in Maine through thirteen stories, spanning a period of twenty or so years, several of which feature recurring characters. The title character, Olive, appears in all of them, sometimes at the centre of the story, in others, very much on the periphery. A retired schoolteacher, she is a no-nonsense, extremely forthright individual (someone whom Ken Clarke would doubtless regard as a 'difficult woman'), but at the same time, vulnerable, compassionate and empathetic (the type of empathy without a shred of sentimentality). Her complexity emerges as the stories unfold and she tries to make sense of the changes in her life. Like pretty well all the characters in the book, she is realistically drawn and has great emotional depth. She is not a 'nice' person, as such, but I found myself drawn to her.
This might not be everyone's cup of tea but I thought it was a cracking read. My thanks to @Jints for alerting me to the author.
It is clearly a good book and clever and insightful, plus as you say it's highly relevant today. However, at the moment it's reserved for when I'm travelling somewhere. Hopefully it will click for me soon, I'm not going to give up!
Just seen that you were reading some Atwood, I've not read The Handmaid's Tale but I have Oryx & Crake. That is decent if you're into soft (and bleak) sci-fi, I should try more Atwood.
Will definitely check out 'The Burgess Boys'. I've got 'My Name Is Lucy Barton' on order from the library, although there's a long waiting list and my last reservation expired after three months just when I was getting near the front of the queue. Elizabeth Strout is clearly popular at the moment.
It's a history of humanity over the last couple of millenia, but centred along the trading routes between the Mediterranean and Asia. Personally, the earlier part was a little slow, and I thought the Mongols deserved a bit more time devoted to them, but it is a fascinating read. It offered me for the first time an intelligible explanation of the start of the first world war and why it was not simply German war mongering, which was interesting. Very readable.
Now onto god is not great, how religion poisons everything by Hitchens.
recommended .. it's a big book but can be read at leisure in small chunks
This is the 1969 autobiography about the childhood of Maya Angelou, the American writer and poet, in the 1930s deep South. We've had this book for about 25 years but I've never got around to reading it. I'm glad I finally did because it's superbly written and I found it a riveting, insightful and exceptionally honest account. I can quite understand why it's regarded as a modern classic.
A Whole Life by Robert Seethaler
This short novel was written in 2014 by an Austrian writer and actor (he appeared in the Paolo Sorrentino film, 'Youth') and it was translated into English the following year. Its central character, Andreas, is a simple mountain man from the Alps, who spends his entire life there, leaving his valley only once in order to fight in World War II. The novel is only 149 pages long but it somehow manages to embrace and beautifully describe one man's ordinary, but at the same time, extraordinary life. Understated but powerful, this is an extremely tender and poignant read. It's definitely one of the best things I've read recently.