CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
There's actually been quite a lot of comment recently about Lovecraft's racism; as if this was something new.
Lovecraft really did love the white people.
His letters are highly entertaining too.
Currently, I'm reading Gods & Generals by Jeff Shaara. This is Jeff Shaara's first book, written to complement his father's 1974 Pulitzer Prize winning novel, The Killer Angels. It follows four American Civil War figures - Lee, Hancock, Jackson, and Chamberlain - from the start of the American Civil War through to the Battle of Gettysburg. Spoiler alert! One of them doesn't make it that far!
Overall, it's a good book, written similarly to his father's work. Unlike The Killer Angels, which is an easy read, Gods & Generals is a far denser book. It's easy to see how The Killer Angels won the Pulitzer - it was accessible to the average American, and rather easy to understand, and dealt with topics well known to most Americans, but poorly understood to most. What I find interesting is that G&G doesn't pick up what will be Michael Shaara's lasting contribution to American historiography - most people who study the historiography of the American Civil War point to The Killer Angels as a focal point for the downfall of the effects of the Lost Cause beliefs in modern American society, and the rehabilitation of James Longstreet at the expense of Lost Cause idols like Nathan Bedford Forrest, George Pickett, and Jubal Early.
Overall, it's a good book, written similarly to his father's work. Unlike The Killer Angels, which is an easy read, Gods & Generals is a far denser book. It's easy to see how The Killer Angels won the Pulitzer - it was accessible to the average American, and rather easy to understand, and dealt with topics well known to most Americans, but poorly understood to most. What I find interesting is that G&G doesn't pick up what will be Michael Shaara's lasting contribution to American historiography - most people who study the historiography of the American Civil War point to The Killer Angels as a focal point for the downfall of the effects of the Lost Cause beliefs in modern American society, and the rehabilitation of James Longstreet at the expense of Lost Cause idols like Nathan Bedford Forrest, George Pickett, and Jubal Early.
What are the books like? I think I've seen a film adaptation of Gods and Generals, isn't it about Stonewall Jackson? Found it a great insight into the Civil War.
The books are good. Gods & Generals, the film, was not good. Gettysburg was far better a film, in my humble opinion. If you want a good historical fiction work on the war, I recommend it - with the caveat that the US Civil War is much, much bigger than what is covered here.
Sounds good. I did like the film, actually. I haven't seen Gettysburg yet, although the BF has it.
I thought it was better than Gods & Generals, by far. I tend to watch it once a year or so, and I am completely unsurprised the BF has it. All the extras are, after all, re-enactors.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
I'm reading The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett. It's a short, to-the-point old school noir mystery. Good fun if only for the snappy dialogue and rampant alcoholism.
Maturin
Sköldpadda
Reading Himmelstrand by John Ajvide Lindqvist, author of Let the Right One In.
Four caravans and the people they contain end up on a seemingly endless field of grass while their GPS-devices tell them they haven't moved. You can't help but think of Under the Dome by Stephen King. And that's sort of what it is, but with less plot and more exploration of behaviour under pressure. Don't particularly care for it this far. Oh, and the title comes from songwriter Peter Himmelstrand, whose songs is the only thing playing on the radio wherever they might have ended up... Very odd.
On a more positive note, I noticed Amazon has a release date for the new Alastair Reynolds novel, titled Poseidon's Wake. Looking forward to that by insane degrees of looking forwardness, not only is Reynolds one of my favourite authors, it will also complete the trilogy begun with the brilliant Blue Remembered Earth.
Another favourite author, China Miéville, is publishing a short-story collection in the summer. I'm very frustrated with that, since I don't particularly care for short stories, and on top of that is has been three long years since his latest novel. Do you dare hoping that he is writing a fourth Bas-Lag-novel and that's why it's taking so much time? I feel I may disappoint myself if I do that, but a short-story collection in three years isn't too good.
Four caravans and the people they contain end up on a seemingly endless field of grass while their GPS-devices tell them they haven't moved. You can't help but think of Under the Dome by Stephen King. And that's sort of what it is, but with less plot and more exploration of behaviour under pressure. Don't particularly care for it this far. Oh, and the title comes from songwriter Peter Himmelstrand, whose songs is the only thing playing on the radio wherever they might have ended up... Very odd.
On a more positive note, I noticed Amazon has a release date for the new Alastair Reynolds novel, titled Poseidon's Wake. Looking forward to that by insane degrees of looking forwardness, not only is Reynolds one of my favourite authors, it will also complete the trilogy begun with the brilliant Blue Remembered Earth.
Another favourite author, China Miéville, is publishing a short-story collection in the summer. I'm very frustrated with that, since I don't particularly care for short stories, and on top of that is has been three long years since his latest novel. Do you dare hoping that he is writing a fourth Bas-Lag-novel and that's why it's taking so much time? I feel I may disappoint myself if I do that, but a short-story collection in three years isn't too good.
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Terry Pratchett died.
Maturin
Sköldpadda
He was suffering from Alzheimer, wasn't he? Horrible disease. Haven't actually read any of his work but I'll get around to it eventually.
Read Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. After having watched the film and immediately put it among my favourites, I just had to read the novel.
Cloud Atlas is a novel consisting of six interconnected stories, each set in a different time and with a different genre-tone. We are first introduced to The Journal of Adam Ewing, a ship-journal written by Ewing who is traveling from the Chatham Islands to San Fransisco in 1850. This narrative ends just in the middle of a sentence and we instead gets to read the letters of one Robert Frobisher, an aspiring composer who is seeking work as the amanuensis of renowned composer Vyvyan Ayrs in the 1930's. Through letters written to his lover Rufus Sixsmith, we learn that he has found a part of a journal written by this Ewing which ends in the middle of a sentence, and he is desparately looking for the rest of it... Cut, and we're reading a mystery novel set in 1973 where an older Rufus Sixsmith is working as a scientist threatening to reveal a secret that people are prepared to kill to keep.
It goes on like this until the middle, where the sixth chapter is complete, and then closes with the rest of the stories in reverse chronological order. All the stories are connected, and these characters influence each other through time, which is the central idea behind it. Due to getting to know these stories through second-source material the genre-shifting remains natural. It's thus an epistolary novel in a way. The motif of rebirth and interconnected souls isn't featured heavily as in the film (where the actors playing roles in pretty much every story makes it impossible to ignore), and neither is true love prominent as way to find salvation.
Mitchell switches voice so easily between the chapters that it's like it has been written by six different writers. Some chapters are rather heavy to read, especially the sixth one set a few hundred years in the future - the language is broken English with some made up words thrown in. It's not a particular easy ride, but it does feel rewarding. The title comes from Frobisher's masterpiece composition called The Cloud Atlas Sextet which is described as structured in the same way as the novel.
In the end, I liked it a lot - but the film does feel like the more definite representation of the idea. It does a better job at tying the threads together.
Read Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. After having watched the film and immediately put it among my favourites, I just had to read the novel.
Cloud Atlas is a novel consisting of six interconnected stories, each set in a different time and with a different genre-tone. We are first introduced to The Journal of Adam Ewing, a ship-journal written by Ewing who is traveling from the Chatham Islands to San Fransisco in 1850. This narrative ends just in the middle of a sentence and we instead gets to read the letters of one Robert Frobisher, an aspiring composer who is seeking work as the amanuensis of renowned composer Vyvyan Ayrs in the 1930's. Through letters written to his lover Rufus Sixsmith, we learn that he has found a part of a journal written by this Ewing which ends in the middle of a sentence, and he is desparately looking for the rest of it... Cut, and we're reading a mystery novel set in 1973 where an older Rufus Sixsmith is working as a scientist threatening to reveal a secret that people are prepared to kill to keep.
It goes on like this until the middle, where the sixth chapter is complete, and then closes with the rest of the stories in reverse chronological order. All the stories are connected, and these characters influence each other through time, which is the central idea behind it. Due to getting to know these stories through second-source material the genre-shifting remains natural. It's thus an epistolary novel in a way. The motif of rebirth and interconnected souls isn't featured heavily as in the film (where the actors playing roles in pretty much every story makes it impossible to ignore), and neither is true love prominent as way to find salvation.
Mitchell switches voice so easily between the chapters that it's like it has been written by six different writers. Some chapters are rather heavy to read, especially the sixth one set a few hundred years in the future - the language is broken English with some made up words thrown in. It's not a particular easy ride, but it does feel rewarding. The title comes from Frobisher's masterpiece composition called The Cloud Atlas Sextet which is described as structured in the same way as the novel.
In the end, I liked it a lot - but the film does feel like the more definite representation of the idea. It does a better job at tying the threads together.
Yep.
Currently reading D. J. Molles' The Remaining: Allegiance. It's book 5 of The Remaining series:
So pretty much a ZA book, although the infected here aren't really dead/zombies. Anyhow, this is way better than The Walking Dead and has real potential to become a great TV series, provided they don't change too much stuff...
Maturin
Sköldpadda
Currently reading The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. Goddamn bittersweet romance taken to the extreme... While being utterly readable, enjoyable, fun, and interesting. Time travel as an uncontrollable genetic disease is the central idea at play, and it's a cool idea. I just wish there was more to the book than the relationship between our timetraveler, Henry and his wife, titular Clare. Just for the sake of my conscience.
Medieval Torture Device
Visual Timekeeper
Dean Koontz- The City. Once this is complete, I will be reading his final Odd Thomas opus, Saint Odd.
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
I'm currently reading/browsing:
Reference Catalogue of Books, Pamphlets and Plans, &c. Relating to Glasgow in the Library at Barlanark (1905).
As you can probably tell from the title, it's immensely interesting...
Reference Catalogue of Books, Pamphlets and Plans, &c. Relating to Glasgow in the Library at Barlanark (1905).
As you can probably tell from the title, it's immensely interesting...
That actually does sound interesting. How far back to the books, pamphlets and plans catalogued date?
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
I was being slightly sarcastic there, as most people would find this boring & dry as hell. But since you ask...
I don't actually know; it's not catalogued by date. Nothing epically old or anything; they'll probably be some stuff from the 16th/17th century. I'm actually using it more as a guide to my own future buying/reading/collecting. The interesting Glasgow stuff, from a historical content perspective, is really material from the early 1800's to the early 20th century; that's the stuff I like reading & collecting. I'm also interested in book publishing/printing generally. Glasgow had some very famous 18th century book publishers/printers (& 20th century too), which I also like to collect. I have a very early Foulis Press edition of Aristotle from 1745. Think that's probably one of the oldest books I have.
national acrobat
Ancient Mariner
I've been reading quite a bit of classic crime recently. P D James - Innocent Blood was very good, as was Edmund Crispin - The Moving Toyshop. I didn't enjoy so much Marjorie Allingham - The Tiger in the Smoke, a bit too unbelievable. Currently reading Michael Innes - Death At The President's Lodgings; enjoying it, but just a few too many words I don't understand (I ain't too good with the words, better wiv pictures), which is fine at home with my dictionary but not so good on the toob.
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
New Tolkien published today! 
For those familiar with Tolkien scholarship this is nothing new (it has actually already seen print in the yearly academic publication Tolkien Studies) but still of much interest. Finnish, the language, was very important to Tolkien the linguist; his invented languages are heavily influenced by Finnish.
This publication follows other more recent Tolkien publications, and makes available another long-discussed & known-to-exist piece of writing that many didn't think would see the light of day. Like Sigurd & Gudrun (2009), Arthur (2013), and Beowulf (2014) before, this might not be to the taste or interest of those looking for more "tales of Middle-earth"; but these publications do have merit on their own, deserve to be read & understood beyond academic/scholarship circles, & should be of interest to those who are interested more generally in Tolkien's influences/sources etc.
The Kalevala itself (from where the story of Kullervo is derived) is also a decent read; it's not difficult (for those not much into reading verse), it's fairly coherent as a story, & it's also highly amusing & has some delightful turns of phrase (--depending on what translation you're reading). Also recommended reading, for those interested in such things.
So see all that stuff mentioned below: you won't be interested in any of it!
For those familiar with Tolkien scholarship this is nothing new (it has actually already seen print in the yearly academic publication Tolkien Studies) but still of much interest. Finnish, the language, was very important to Tolkien the linguist; his invented languages are heavily influenced by Finnish.
This publication follows other more recent Tolkien publications, and makes available another long-discussed & known-to-exist piece of writing that many didn't think would see the light of day. Like Sigurd & Gudrun (2009), Arthur (2013), and Beowulf (2014) before, this might not be to the taste or interest of those looking for more "tales of Middle-earth"; but these publications do have merit on their own, deserve to be read & understood beyond academic/scholarship circles, & should be of interest to those who are interested more generally in Tolkien's influences/sources etc.
The Kalevala itself (from where the story of Kullervo is derived) is also a decent read; it's not difficult (for those not much into reading verse), it's fairly coherent as a story, & it's also highly amusing & has some delightful turns of phrase (--depending on what translation you're reading). Also recommended reading, for those interested in such things.
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