by Herman Koch
A very enjoyable book that looks at 4 people out for dinner and how they react. Gradually we start to understand why they are there and the dark secret they all know about but aren't revealing to each other. It builds the tension very well and keeps you asking what you would do in their position.
I found the ending a bit implausible and so would mark it down for that 6/10
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
The Prague Cemetery
by Umberto Eco
This is a mad romp through the second half of the nineteenth century with a narrator, one Simomini and possibly a priest called Dalla Piccola. All the other characters in the book are, we are told, real characters from history and certainly many of them are.
We learn very early on that Simonini is in some sort of trouble and, having at some point met with Freud and obtained some cocaine for him, he has locked himself away and is using some Freudian technique to find out what has happened to him.
This allows us to discover Simonini's life story. His only love is food-and maybe money and he seems to hate everybody-the Germans, the Italians, the French, women, Jews(although he has never met any), Freemasons and Jesuits all come in for torrents of abuse in this book.
The story takes us to Italy and the wars of Garibaldi, to France and Germany in a rapid race through various historical episodes. I particularly liked Simonini's involvement in the Dreyfus affair. The book is at once very amusing and slightly disturbing with a great finale. As with other Umberto Eco books he can get bogged down in detail at times but this bbok-which I listened to as an audiobook was very enjoyable. 8/10
This is a mad romp through the second half of the nineteenth century with a narrator, one Simomini and possibly a priest called Dalla Piccola. All the other characters in the book are, we are told, real characters from history and certainly many of them are.
We learn very early on that Simonini is in some sort of trouble and, having at some point met with Freud and obtained some cocaine for him, he has locked himself away and is using some Freudian technique to find out what has happened to him.
This allows us to discover Simonini's life story. His only love is food-and maybe money and he seems to hate everybody-the Germans, the Italians, the French, women, Jews(although he has never met any), Freemasons and Jesuits all come in for torrents of abuse in this book.
The story takes us to Italy and the wars of Garibaldi, to France and Germany in a rapid race through various historical episodes. I particularly liked Simonini's involvement in the Dreyfus affair. The book is at once very amusing and slightly disturbing with a great finale. As with other Umberto Eco books he can get bogged down in detail at times but this bbok-which I listened to as an audiobook was very enjoyable. 8/10
Tales of the New Babylon
by Rupert Christiansen
This book looks at Paris in the years 1869 to 1875.
This is a fascinating time covering the fall of the second empire, the franco-prussian war, the four month seige of Paris and the time of the Commune followed by the birth of the Third Republic.
I bought the book as a reference book to dip into now and then but once I had read the first chapter-a fascinating mix of contemorary travel guides-I was hooked and found it hard to put down until I had finished. The style is very easy and draws heavily on first hand accounts including many foreign observers who were caught up in events of the seige and the commune. There is a very good bibliography and two picture sections. This is most definitely a book I would revisit. 8/10
This book looks at Paris in the years 1869 to 1875.
This is a fascinating time covering the fall of the second empire, the franco-prussian war, the four month seige of Paris and the time of the Commune followed by the birth of the Third Republic.
I bought the book as a reference book to dip into now and then but once I had read the first chapter-a fascinating mix of contemorary travel guides-I was hooked and found it hard to put down until I had finished. The style is very easy and draws heavily on first hand accounts including many foreign observers who were caught up in events of the seige and the commune. There is a very good bibliography and two picture sections. This is most definitely a book I would revisit. 8/10
Tuesday, November 06, 2012
Snowdrops
by AD Miller
My second audiobook!
This book is the tale of a British lawyer in Russia in the early 21st century. Nick, the lawyer tells his story by writing to his fiancee about his time there and what went wrong and how it happened.
From early on you know something disastrous happened, and with the introduction of a stunning blonde and her supposed cousin, you know it must involve them.
It is a very compelling read, and whether or not based in reality, is not very flattering of the emergent Russian society. To the end I was still wanting to know what happened.
Having said that, I found some of Nick's decisions or ommissions a little unbelievable. But that aside I wouldn't hesitate to reccomend it for a holiday read. 7/10
My second audiobook!
This book is the tale of a British lawyer in Russia in the early 21st century. Nick, the lawyer tells his story by writing to his fiancee about his time there and what went wrong and how it happened.
From early on you know something disastrous happened, and with the introduction of a stunning blonde and her supposed cousin, you know it must involve them.
It is a very compelling read, and whether or not based in reality, is not very flattering of the emergent Russian society. To the end I was still wanting to know what happened.
Having said that, I found some of Nick's decisions or ommissions a little unbelievable. But that aside I wouldn't hesitate to reccomend it for a holiday read. 7/10
Where I Left my Soul
by Jerome Ferrari
This is a short novel translated from the French. It involves alternating reflections by two soldiers who have served in Indo China and Algeria together.
In reflections the main narrator, Capitaine Degorce traces his loss of innocence and moral compass, in what becomes a tragic story of the effect of one nations wars on the individual. It was intensely moving and demonstrates the near impossibility of holding firm values in a relativistic world. 9/10
This is a short novel translated from the French. It involves alternating reflections by two soldiers who have served in Indo China and Algeria together.
In reflections the main narrator, Capitaine Degorce traces his loss of innocence and moral compass, in what becomes a tragic story of the effect of one nations wars on the individual. It was intensely moving and demonstrates the near impossibility of holding firm values in a relativistic world. 9/10
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
The Garden of Evening Mists
by Tan Twan Eng
This story moves between three time periods-the second world war, the early 1950's and today.
The story is that of a Chinese malay woman who survives a Japanese slave camp in the second world war and goes on, in part driven by revenge, to become a high court judge. Her sister-who adored Japanese gardens-died in the camp. Hating the Japanese, but wanting to fulfil a promise made to her sister she sets about making a Japanese garden. The book is the story of how she tries to do this-thrown into direct contact with Aritoma-a man who used to be the Emperor's gardener. They work together on Aritomo's garden and this part of the story is set against the backdrop of the civil war in Malaya that led to independance.
The book is beautiful to read and almost sings of the beauty of the garden while at the same time telling a tale of utter despair and hopelessness. Fantastic 8/10
This story moves between three time periods-the second world war, the early 1950's and today.
The story is that of a Chinese malay woman who survives a Japanese slave camp in the second world war and goes on, in part driven by revenge, to become a high court judge. Her sister-who adored Japanese gardens-died in the camp. Hating the Japanese, but wanting to fulfil a promise made to her sister she sets about making a Japanese garden. The book is the story of how she tries to do this-thrown into direct contact with Aritoma-a man who used to be the Emperor's gardener. They work together on Aritomo's garden and this part of the story is set against the backdrop of the civil war in Malaya that led to independance.
The book is beautiful to read and almost sings of the beauty of the garden while at the same time telling a tale of utter despair and hopelessness. Fantastic 8/10
Middlemarch
by George Eliot
This was my first ever audio bookand I loved it-the story and the format. This is a long book where not a great deal happens but the humour and the drama of small town life against a background of national changes is gripping. It is full of heroes and heroines, villains and crooks, all painted with a reality that allows you to recognise them as people you may have come across.
I listened on my way to work and found myself looking for longer routes so I could squeeze a bit more in on each journey.
Was Dorothea too good? Well maybe, but her sense of humour and her mistakes in marriage make you love her anyway. And I am sure am not the only person willing Mr. Casaubin to die! 9/10
This was my first ever audio bookand I loved it-the story and the format. This is a long book where not a great deal happens but the humour and the drama of small town life against a background of national changes is gripping. It is full of heroes and heroines, villains and crooks, all painted with a reality that allows you to recognise them as people you may have come across.
I listened on my way to work and found myself looking for longer routes so I could squeeze a bit more in on each journey.
Was Dorothea too good? Well maybe, but her sense of humour and her mistakes in marriage make you love her anyway. And I am sure am not the only person willing Mr. Casaubin to die! 9/10
Thursday, September 27, 2012
The Boxer and the Goalkeeper
by Andy Martin
This is a book examining the lives of Sartre and Camus and their renowned friendship and falling out. Knowing very little about these two individuals I found the book very accessible and a good read. Having enjoyed the little Camus that I have read it was a useful book to put some of that writing in context. 8/10
This is a book examining the lives of Sartre and Camus and their renowned friendship and falling out. Knowing very little about these two individuals I found the book very accessible and a good read. Having enjoyed the little Camus that I have read it was a useful book to put some of that writing in context. 8/10
The Lighthouse
by Alison Moore
This was a strange book that I found compelling for a reason that I cannot put my hands on. It follows the walking tour of Futh along the Rhine, following seperation from his wife and is full of flashbacks to his marriage and his childhood. Running alongside this is the story of Ester, the landlady in the hotel in which he stays on his first and last night. Quite how there lives are entwined provides some dark humour to the book. 7/10
This was a strange book that I found compelling for a reason that I cannot put my hands on. It follows the walking tour of Futh along the Rhine, following seperation from his wife and is full of flashbacks to his marriage and his childhood. Running alongside this is the story of Ester, the landlady in the hotel in which he stays on his first and last night. Quite how there lives are entwined provides some dark humour to the book. 7/10
Swimming Home
by Deborah Levy
This is a short novel about an English family-father a poet, mother a war correspondent and daughter a confused teenager-whose holiday in a French Villa near Nice with 2 friends of the wife is disrupted by finding a naked young woman in the swimming pool. She stays and the fallout is examined in this book. The writing was beautiful but the plot I found less gripping 6/10
This is a short novel about an English family-father a poet, mother a war correspondent and daughter a confused teenager-whose holiday in a French Villa near Nice with 2 friends of the wife is disrupted by finding a naked young woman in the swimming pool. She stays and the fallout is examined in this book. The writing was beautiful but the plot I found less gripping 6/10
Sweet Tooth
by Ian McEwan
This was as expected in that he plays with the reader a little by asserting his authorial right to choose an ending and letting us know that he is doing it. He also plays with the Booker prize -from which he was noticeably absent this year! However, the story is about an ex MI5 agent who messed up and was sacked. We know this because the narrator tells us in the first chapter that this is what she did. It is a mark of McEwan's powers of storytelling that, knowing this, he holds the tension throughout the novel. Some lovely reflections on 70's britain to boot. 9/10
This was as expected in that he plays with the reader a little by asserting his authorial right to choose an ending and letting us know that he is doing it. He also plays with the Booker prize -from which he was noticeably absent this year! However, the story is about an ex MI5 agent who messed up and was sacked. We know this because the narrator tells us in the first chapter that this is what she did. It is a mark of McEwan's powers of storytelling that, knowing this, he holds the tension throughout the novel. Some lovely reflections on 70's britain to boot. 9/10
Monday, August 27, 2012
Narcopolis
by Jeet Thayil
This book is based in Bombay in the 80's and 90's and looks at the world of drugs and brothels and lowlifes through the eyes of an opium addict and some rather unattractive characters who I fould myself getting drawn to as the book progressed.
The lives of Rashid, the owner of the opium den and Dimple a very attractive eunuch, who moves from the brothel to the opium den, gradually disintegrate through their opium use and the influx of new drugs onto the market.
It is a book that could do with a glossary as many of the terms went over my head but I did find it moving and strangely engaging 5/10
This book is based in Bombay in the 80's and 90's and looks at the world of drugs and brothels and lowlifes through the eyes of an opium addict and some rather unattractive characters who I fould myself getting drawn to as the book progressed.
The lives of Rashid, the owner of the opium den and Dimple a very attractive eunuch, who moves from the brothel to the opium den, gradually disintegrate through their opium use and the influx of new drugs onto the market.
It is a book that could do with a glossary as many of the terms went over my head but I did find it moving and strangely engaging 5/10
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Skios
by Michael Frayn
This is a very easy read. It is also very amusing, and farce par excellence.
Dr. Norman Wilfred arrives on a Greek island to give an important lecture to a gathering of the rich and famous. Arriving at the same time is the rakish Oliver Fox. With a mix up over a suitcase and an innocent smile, a whole train of mistaken identity and mayhem ensues.
Michael Frayn seems able to take things to where they cannot get worse and then makes them worse in an almost plausible way.
Even when the end looms and you feel that you must be let down, a piece of nimble linguistic footwork brings things to an enjoyable, if improbable ending.
I read it in a weekend during two train journeys and it almost demands to be read in a short time frame. On the beach maybe-but do check your suitcase labels! 9/10
This is a very easy read. It is also very amusing, and farce par excellence.
Dr. Norman Wilfred arrives on a Greek island to give an important lecture to a gathering of the rich and famous. Arriving at the same time is the rakish Oliver Fox. With a mix up over a suitcase and an innocent smile, a whole train of mistaken identity and mayhem ensues.
Michael Frayn seems able to take things to where they cannot get worse and then makes them worse in an almost plausible way.
Even when the end looms and you feel that you must be let down, a piece of nimble linguistic footwork brings things to an enjoyable, if improbable ending.
I read it in a weekend during two train journeys and it almost demands to be read in a short time frame. On the beach maybe-but do check your suitcase labels! 9/10
Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady
by Florence King
This is a memoir of Florence Kink's early life. It is very funny in places and sad in others. Some of the American references were lost on me but it did not distract from the enjoyment.
Despite the wacky family she came from-and which of us have families that our nnot weird in the eyes of others-it left me feeling that this was a tribute to her family and the values they instilled in her.
Her descriptions of her sexual awakening and adventures are not for the sqeamish but she manages to handle them with humour, and deals with loss in a way that can only induce empathy. 8/10
This is a memoir of Florence Kink's early life. It is very funny in places and sad in others. Some of the American references were lost on me but it did not distract from the enjoyment.
Despite the wacky family she came from-and which of us have families that our nnot weird in the eyes of others-it left me feeling that this was a tribute to her family and the values they instilled in her.
Her descriptions of her sexual awakening and adventures are not for the sqeamish but she manages to handle them with humour, and deals with loss in a way that can only induce empathy. 8/10
Monday, August 13, 2012
Lourdes
by Emile Zola
A bit of a mixed bag. Zola deals well with the crisis of faith experienced by the hero Pierre, and despite his personal views, lays out the conflicts between faith and rationalism in a realistic way. However, he also wants to tell us the story of Bernadette and point out the problems of Lourdes as an institution. In fact he wants to do a lot of things and in my view spends too long doing them such that it becomes in part repetitive.
There are a host of characters in the book but I could only engage with Pierre and Marie and her father. The other characters were either too similar or too vague to find that interesting. Like all Zola the naturalism is outstanding and the descriptions of some of the sick can induce nausea, but the detail of the train journey was fascinating as was the description of Lourdes itself. However, not one of his best 5/10
A bit of a mixed bag. Zola deals well with the crisis of faith experienced by the hero Pierre, and despite his personal views, lays out the conflicts between faith and rationalism in a realistic way. However, he also wants to tell us the story of Bernadette and point out the problems of Lourdes as an institution. In fact he wants to do a lot of things and in my view spends too long doing them such that it becomes in part repetitive.
There are a host of characters in the book but I could only engage with Pierre and Marie and her father. The other characters were either too similar or too vague to find that interesting. Like all Zola the naturalism is outstanding and the descriptions of some of the sick can induce nausea, but the detail of the train journey was fascinating as was the description of Lourdes itself. However, not one of his best 5/10
Saturday, August 11, 2012
New Finnish Grammar
by Diego Marani
This is a strange, fascinating tale set in the second world war about a man who is suffering from amnesia. The doctor who first treats him patches together various evidence suggesting he is from Finland and sends him to be cared for by a friend in Helsinki. The friend never appears and this story evolves as our central character tries to pick up the pieces of a lost life and lost language. It is beautifully written/translated and I only found a problem with the ending where it felt as though the author had realised a deadline was looming and pushed the resolution of the story into as short an ending as possible.
It is at times sad, at times amusing but always engaging 8/10
This is a strange, fascinating tale set in the second world war about a man who is suffering from amnesia. The doctor who first treats him patches together various evidence suggesting he is from Finland and sends him to be cared for by a friend in Helsinki. The friend never appears and this story evolves as our central character tries to pick up the pieces of a lost life and lost language. It is beautifully written/translated and I only found a problem with the ending where it felt as though the author had realised a deadline was looming and pushed the resolution of the story into as short an ending as possible.
It is at times sad, at times amusing but always engaging 8/10
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Pure
by Andrew Miller
This is a quirky novel telling the story of the demolition of a cemetery in Paris that formed the foundation for the catacombs. It all takes place in a year and all I can say is I loved it. 9/10
This is a quirky novel telling the story of the demolition of a cemetery in Paris that formed the foundation for the catacombs. It all takes place in a year and all I can say is I loved it. 9/10
The Dreyfus Affair
by Piers Paul Read
This is a very readable and informative summary of the Dreyfus case and its impact on contemporary and later France. In the ways many history works are it is a depressing book in that we never seem to learn the lessons that history lays out for us. But don't let my melancholia stop you reading an excellent book. 9/10
This is a very readable and informative summary of the Dreyfus case and its impact on contemporary and later France. In the ways many history works are it is a depressing book in that we never seem to learn the lessons that history lays out for us. But don't let my melancholia stop you reading an excellent book. 9/10
A Shed of One's Own
by Marcus Berkmann
This book will only appeal to those over 45 or those with a disposition to laugh at the misfortunes of others. Being the right (or is that wrong) side of 45 I enjoyed this book immensely, laughing out loud on numerous occasions as I recognised my own woes and troubles were shared by others. Should be prescribed by doctors for all menopausal men 9/10
This book will only appeal to those over 45 or those with a disposition to laugh at the misfortunes of others. Being the right (or is that wrong) side of 45 I enjoyed this book immensely, laughing out loud on numerous occasions as I recognised my own woes and troubles were shared by others. Should be prescribed by doctors for all menopausal men 9/10
The Widow Lerouge
by Emile Gaboriau
Written in the 1800's this is a detective story which is both entertaining and historically interesting being one of the first in this genre.
The characters are interesting and the end maybe predictable but definitely falls into the category of a good yarn 7/10
Written in the 1800's this is a detective story which is both entertaining and historically interesting being one of the first in this genre.
The characters are interesting and the end maybe predictable but definitely falls into the category of a good yarn 7/10
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