Resurrecting October Reading

[Mary Hoffman]

Erm, I don't know if this is what anyone wants to hear, but I'm re-reading War and Peace. There's a new translation and the book is hell's long - 1200+ pages - so it's blocking any other reading for a couple of weeks but it's really good and I have to ration myself. Several nights on the trot I've stayed awake too long reading it and then been unable to get to sleep so I suppose that's some kind of recommendation.


I read it first in the old translation when i was in my 20s and someone gave us this new one last Christmas, so it's taken a while to get round to it but I'm finding it gripping. It helps that I remember some of the plot from before and the old film with Audrey Hepburn, Mel Ferrer and ?Henry Fonda.

Mary

 

[j d worthington]

Which translation is this, Mary? I know that several of the classics have been receiving better, more accurate translations of recent years (Jules Verne, for instance, has been given a thorough overhaul, resulting in English translations that are much, much closer to the original); I'd be interested in looking this one up, if you wouldn't mind passing on the information....

 

[HoopyFrood]

I mentioned this once, but I think it disappeared. But anyway, rereading Battle Royale by Koushun Takami. The last time I read it was about a year ago and since then I've had action-packed modules so I can recognise more than ever that the writing isn't brilliant (possibly due to translation) but this takes a back seat because it's just an awesome story.

 

[Razorback]

[FONT=&quot]Just read Callahan’s Secret, by Spider Robinson. Like the first two in the series, it’s a collection of short stories. I don’t read a lot of short stories, but I really enjoy this series for an occasional change of pace. I like the sense of humor and overall writing style. I look forward to collecting and reading the rest of this series. I rate this one an 8 on a 10 scale.


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[Mary Hoffman]

Which translation is this, Mary? I know that several of the classics have been receiving better, more accurate translations of recent years (Jules Verne, for instance, has been given a thorough overhaul, resulting in English translations that are much, much closer to the original); I'd be interested in looking this one up, if you wouldn't mind passing on the information....

Sorry, J.D., I had to look it up.

It's by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (Vintage Classics UK and Alfred A. Knopf US in 2007). This is a mighty hardback, which would hardly travel but there might well be a paperback now.

And I'm now over half way through and still finding it addictive!

Mary

 

[Fried Egg]

"Books of Blood: Vol 2" by Clive Barker. Something to take me up to Halloween...

 

[Lobolover]

well,reading "Stivinghoe Bank" by H.R.Malden,having finished Ewers' "The sorcerer's aprentice" ,as well as two stories by him yesteray "The heart of Kings" and "Jurists".I also wanna rad a Barbey D'Aurevilly story.

 

[Tillane]

Finished Kafka On The Shore over the weekend. Really enjoyed it - it's the third of Murakami's books I've read, and I've enjoyed each one more than the last. He's quickly becoming a favourite of mine.

Now reading The Road by Cormac McCarthy. It's very sparse (as McCarthy often is), but sor far not bad.

 

[mortbury]

I especially like the one Carnacki story in the collection and I look forward to reading more tales featuring this character.

Carnacki is best in small doses, too.

 

[tyr]

Last night I finished Forever War by Joe Haldeman. This is my second JH book that I've read. My first JH's book is Forever Peace.

Although I have read th reviews saying that FW considered as one of the best of Military SF novels, I still not prepared with the excellence of the book.
Can anyone recommend other great Haldeman stories?

 

[D_Davis]

Last night I finished Forever War by Joe Haldeman. This is my second JH book that I've read. My first JH's book is Forever Peace.

Although I have read th reviews saying that FW considered as one of the best of Military SF novels, I still not prepared with the excellence of the book.
Can anyone recommend other great Haldeman stories?

Mindbridge is fantastic. One of my favorite SF books, and my favorite book of Haldeman's that I've read.

 

[tyr]

Wow, that was fast. Thanks a lot. I noted that.

 

[Razorback]

It was quite a while ago for me, but I also enjoyed Mindbridge. More recently, I thought that Camouflage was pretty good. In my opinion, Forever Free was a bit of a disappointment.

 

[elvet]

I started the Sword of Shannara yesterday. I was gifted the whole series up until the Genesis books. It's very much like LotR, and I'm enjoying the similarities.

 

[Lobolover]

finished "A strange Holdfield" by Guy Boothby and reading "The hero of the Plague" by W.C.Morrow.

 

[tangaloomababe]

I've been sick and stuck in bed the last couple of days so I read Ken Folletts World without End again. I enjoyed it so much the first time and its good to read such a big book again as its alot to take in. Great book for those who have not read it.

 

[Ursa major]

In the now-dead version of this thread (no trace discovered) I mentioned that while the concept and cleverness displayed in Ilium, by Dan Simmons, should have won out of 4.5 out of 5, but delivered only 3.5; at the time I wasn't really sure why this was. Then I began reading the sequel, Olympos, and the answer struck me. In the first part of this book (just short of 170 pages in the UK paperback), things noticeably improved; the reason was obvious: a bunch of characters was missing. Short on the heels of this revelation, those characters returned and it was all downhill after that. While there are lots of things wrong with the characters, the problem can be summed up in a phrase: these characters are unredeemably boring. They spend pages regarding themselves, seemingly not noticing that they're not far above idiots. (Ignorance is more than forgivable in a tale of discovery; stupidity is not, well not by me.)

I had to force myself to finish the book, taking 12 days of dodging opportunities to pick the stupid thing up. Only the hope that the rest of the content would outweigh this major flaw kept me going. My hope was in vain.


A very major disappointment.

 

[Ursa major]

And in the two days since, I've been able to race through the eminently readable newton's wake, by Ken Macleod. while in no way a comedy, the book had me smiling at the interesting turns of phrase that Macleod seems to write so easily. Even the major use of dialect (and Glaswegian, apparently, at that) did not reduce my enjoyment.


While there are more than enough deep themes underlying the book, Macleod seems able to dance across them, whirling the reader from character to character.


Easy to read; a joy to read.




And now (fingers crossed) for the Hyperion Omnibus (Hyperion plus The Fall of Hyperion), starting - oddly enough - with Hyperion. (I'm sure, in spite of all I've read so far, that there is a good book in Dan Simmons. I can only hope it's in this omnibus.)

 

[D_Davis]

Chasm City - Alastair Reynolds

As I approach the end, or at least the final 1/4, of this book, I am once again reminded of why I don't read space opera. While the book is entertaining, and competently written, it just doesn't offer much of anything beyond a compelling plot.

There is nothing for me to sink my teeth into. Space opera, like sword and sorcery fantasy, just doesn't really have much to say about humanity. Yes there are some BIG IDEAS presented here, but they never really amount to anything more than me thinking, 'wow, that's kind of cool.' I greatly prefer the SF stylings of a Sturgeon, Dick, Ballard, Lem or others of their ilk - more speculation, less high flying adventure.

Or at least I'll take something like Harry Harrison's The Stainless Steal Rat books, short little pulpy adventures that can be read in a single sitting.

This is not a slight against this book or author. For what it is, Chasm City is good. It is highly entertaining. But for almost 700 pages, I expect more depth. As it is, it is simply the equivalent of an epic Hollywood Summer blockbuster, only this takes days to get through rather than a few hours.

 

[j d worthington]

Ursa: I highly recommend Carrion Comfort. It's a lengthy novel, but very well done (overall, though it stumbles a bit at one point) and a very chilling one; one of the better modern horror novels I've read....