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Post by mossie on Jul 1, 2017 15:59:50 GMT
I have two books on the go at the moment
"Revolt in the Desert"by T.E.Lawrence, yes, Lawrence of Arabia. This was the first book he wrote about his time with the Arabs and which was later expanded to become "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom". From which the film was derived, and described the situation leading up to the carving up of the Ottoman Empire to form the current day Muddle East. A bad situation which is still not resolved.
And "The Fall of Paris" by Alistair Horne, which covers the 1870 War with Prussia and the Siege of Paris resulting in the Commune of 1871, a black period in European history which ultimately resulted in the formation of Germany and the 2 World Wars of the 20th century and then the E.U.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 1, 2017 16:48:48 GMT
If I see a book anywhere, I pick it up and promise myself that I will read it. So right now I am reading Raymond Queneau's Les Derniers Jours which was lying on a seat in the metro and which is remarkable. It was written in 1936 and takes place in 1923, but it is amazing how Paris has practically not changed at all since then, except for where they spend their time. Most of the characters are always in cafés, which is no longer so much the case, but their discussions and the current events being analysed could easily be happening in this century. Raymond Queneau
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Post by Kimby on Jul 1, 2017 17:20:23 GMT
I keep meaning to review a book I finished recently, which was Creation: The True Story of Charles Darwin, Randal Keynes. It's an absolutely fascinating look at Darwin and the Darwin family. This reminds me that it's time to re-read Irving Stone's The Origin, one of my favorites.
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Post by questa on Jul 2, 2017 9:12:51 GMT
Mossie, I must confess an unfashionable trait...I am a number one "fan" of TE Lawrence in spite of all his faults and weaknesses. I have many of the books he wrote, published in the 1920s and the story after the desert.
The book you were reading has its own story.Charles (I think from memory) Doughty was the greatest of the explorers and Orientalists, whom TEL visited and wrote to over the years. He was famous and his information invaluable to the War Office. TEL visited in mid 20s and found his mentor in serious financial troubles. At the same time the publisher Jonathan Cape who had founded his business on TEL stories was also in trouble.
TEL had all his notes for 7 pillars ready to go * so he offered to do a quick "Boys Own" version from the manuscript. The sale of the book would keep Cape afloat. Meanwhile TEL arranged with Cape that Doughty should be asked to do a lengthy foreword for which he would be paid enough to live in comfort. (Money came in discreetly from other sources as well)
It all worked out well and Jonathan Cape was one of the few small publishers to survive the Depression, thanks mainly to "Revolt in the Desert". Later TEL spent 2 years rewriting it as "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom"
* When TEL had his final manuscript ready, he was travelling by train to a meeting and left his manuscript behind, somewhere on a platform. After Police, Army and rewards failed to find it TEL started to write it again...all 600,000 words.
The copy I have of Revolt, is 2nd impression published 1927 after 1st impression sold out in days.
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Post by mossie on Jul 2, 2017 19:03:11 GMT
My copy is a 2004 edition by Tess Press, in an American printing for a series called "Common Reader" which appeared to reissue old best sellers, I picked it up in a charity shop in excellent condition.
As you may have realised I went to Egypt as a 19 year old Philistine, but caught 'sand fever'. In our sergeants mess library was a copy of Seven Pillars which only made me worse. The RAF had dumped us in this inhospitable desert country when my previous expectation of Egypt had been pyramids and belly dancers and none were forthcoming; there was too much heat and flies, dust which got absolutely everywhere. To add to the pleasure we got poor food, shortages of equipment and spells without bread and, more unforgivably, beer, unable to leave the camp for fear of ambush. Beau Geste it wasn't. An all round very bad show. So Lawrences' book made a deep impression on me. That was 65 years ago so it is coming fresh to me now.
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Post by questa on Jul 3, 2017 4:08:51 GMT
You are right about the dust and flies, Mossie. I have wondered how they made the movie without these filling the screen. Lawrence loved flying and led sorties to gather intel, bomb and machine gun enemy camps.He was in 3 crash landings and survived. www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/7961742/Lawrence-of-Arabias-secret-X-flights-revealed-in-diary.htmltheconversation.com/how-i-found-the-lost-desert-camp-of-lawrence-of-arabia-25291After the war he joined the RAF and was posted to Cattewater where he worked on developing high speed rescue boats. He was part of the design and development team of the early hovercraft. The first one launched bore the name "L of A" TEL is one of History's most fascinating characters in spite of, or because he was "different". (PS TEL was 5' 6" and skinny, Peter O'Toole over 6 feet. The film would have been so different if a shorter actor wasn't towering over the Arabs and Military bosses. Then you could see how his character won them over, not his physique. Think Edward Woodward in his "Callan" days.)
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 3, 2017 16:24:09 GMT
I misplaced the Queneau book that I was reading for 3 days! How is that even possible in a small apartment?
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Post by spindrift1 on Jul 4, 2017 17:31:49 GMT
A Facebook friend recommended that I read Paul Bowles 'The Sheltering Sky'. Not only did I read it once, i read it twice. On the back cover the Evening Standard writes ' A novel touched with genius...a book of challenging power and penetration, a story of almost unbearable tensions'. And so it is!
It probably appeals to me so much because the story is set within the North African desert in the 1930s. I have always longed to visit this part of the world and it's too late now. Having read the book I sent for the film which is equally compelling.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 4, 2017 18:54:55 GMT
I saw the movie and then read the book.
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Post by mossie on Jul 4, 2017 19:03:29 GMT
Never too late Spindrift, but that desert is not one that I would recommend; it all sounds romantic, but that is just a con. Maybe I'm biased.
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Post by bjd on Jul 31, 2017 5:20:08 GMT
I borrowed the second volume of Elena Ferrante's trilogy, The Story of a New Name, from a friend and am reading it, along with a couple of other books. As annoying as I sometimes find the narrator, it's really an interesting look at southern Italy, and Naples in particular, in what appears to be the late 1950s/early 1960s. The poverty and limited social possibilities for the narrator and her immediate surroundings, the strict moral and social conventions especially for women, the gulf between the poor and the educated middle classes. And it all rings true, not like someone who imagines herself in the time but as though it was really lived by the narrator.
I also just read the latest book by Donna Leon, an American who has lived in Venice for many years and writes detective stories whose main character is a policeman called Brunetti, as well as a book by a Greek writer, Markaris, whose policeman is confronted in his daily life with the current austerity policies, rise of the far right. Both to be recommended for those who like detective stories but also want a look at a wider background to the characters' lives and times.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 31, 2017 15:02:35 GMT
Belatedly acknowledging Huckle's recommendation, which recent world events make even more compelling. Also, I don't know that much about Germany. Ahhh ~ I was wondering if you'd proceed with the Ferrante series, Bjd. Supposedly the author was born in 1943, so her age would roughly correspond to that of the books' narrator. I recently finally acquired a copy of Bitter Almonds, a book of which I'd long been aware, but unaware that it wasn't just recipes, but also a fascinating as-told-to memoir. It covers the subject's childhood in western Sicily after WWII and the poverty and societal constraints are even more shocking than what is depicted in the first Ferrante book. I tried Donna Leon almost 20 years ago, and broke down early in the book during an extended, gratuitous explanation of how to make a cup of coffee. Still, I know she is very popular and I do like detective novels. Should I give her another chance?
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Post by bjd on Jul 31, 2017 16:00:41 GMT
I hadn't intended to continue the Ferrante books, but decided to read the second one. Like Huckle, I don't really like the narrator's voice, or perhaps I just don't much like the narrating character (or her wonderful friend!), but I still find it quite interesting.
I once read a Lucarelli book, written with someone else, but didn't much like it. The only Italian crime writer I like is the Sicilian one whose name escapes me for the moment, the one with Montalbano.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 31, 2017 16:08:48 GMT
Although the raves about Ferrante are multitudinous, I gave up after the first book because I didn't like her "voice" Ha ~ I didn't make it through the first book and the only reason I didn't fling it across the room in annoyance was because it wasn't my book. I reported on that here, coincidentally right at the time Bjd had just acquired the book, but hadn't read it. That's why I was curious as to how she'd react to it. I probably shouldn't admit this, but over time I've learned that I prefer books written by authors from the US, the UK, Canada, & Australia, for what that's worth. I think it's because they generally don't belabor a subject, which god knows, Ferrante wrote the book on, so to speak. That said, I'm now reading my first and undoubtedly last book by the American author Richard Russo. He can give Ferrante a run for her money in the belaboring department!
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 31, 2017 16:11:31 GMT
We all love Andrea Camilleri Didn't see your & Bjd's comments until I posted mine above. I had to laugh, because I'd looked up Manzini and found this quote written by someone who gave his Black Run a one-star review: To compare this book to the Work of Andrea Camilleri is like comparing The Hardy Boys to Hammett. Camilleri is a masterful story teller who weaves tales of corruption and betrayal filled with fascinating characters who are funny, flawed, noble, deceitful, troubled and complex.
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Post by bjd on Jul 31, 2017 18:06:59 GMT
While we are confessing, I must admit that I prefer crime novels by British (English or Scottish) authors. I have read some older American books that I liked a lot: Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler type, but many of the recent ones are so gruesome that I give up in disgust when they start describing things in detail. James Ellroy comes to mind. And I have totally given up on Nordic noir -- just more of the same, every single time, no matter which Scandinavian country they come from. Is it the climate? All those dark winter days?
However, as I mentioned about the Greek writer recently, I do often look for (at the library) crime books by European authors. I have read some interesting Greek ones about the Albanians in Greece, some Italians, Spaniards and Israelis (not Europeans, I know). Can't think of any others offhand. Even when the story is not great, the descriptions of how things work in other countries I find interesting. There is also a series of books that take place in Shanghai that I like. The author is Chinese but lives in the States -- probably because he mentions corruption and political influence quite a lot. His character is Inspector Chen.
And despite my reading almost all my library books in French, I am not very keen on French crime writers. Just not that good.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 31, 2017 18:52:44 GMT
many of the recent ones are so gruesome that I give up in disgust when they start describing things in detail. Amen to that! I read a recent Lee Childs book* that was like that -- images that you have to fight to get out of your mind. That was a disappointment, too, as I've always like that author as a reliable source of thrills. I'm a big fan of the Hieronymus Bosch series by Michael Connelly and the alphabet books of Sue Grafton, just in terms of solid entertainment and affection for the protagonists. Ditto the Wallender books of Henning Mankell. the descriptions of how things work in other countries I find interesting. I can't say I've read very many crime books by non-UK/US authors, but do very much like books set in other countries if they're either very well-researched or written by natives of those countries. * An accidental source of amusement with the Lee Child book was that it was a UK edition, so the spelling and certain terms -- tyres, lorry -- were used instead of the US versions. Even though Lee Child is originally from England, his Jack Reacher books are very American.(I thought there was a separate thread about crime novels, but it must be a discussion that is part of this thread.)
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Post by whatagain on Jul 31, 2017 18:52:47 GMT
I am an absolute fan of Dona Leon. I read quasi exclusively in English but there are two French authors I love who have great detectives. Simenon - maigret. Léo Mallet - Nestor Burma. Right now am reading ´conclave ´. The latest Robert Harris. Just started and am hooked.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 31, 2017 18:55:23 GMT
I've read Imperium and Pompeii by Robert Harris and yes -- he hooks you right in!
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Post by bjd on Aug 1, 2017 5:21:49 GMT
Whatagain, we are trying to make up a collection of old Maigret books. My father-in-law used to have a whole series of the old Série Noir editions but when he went into an old age home, the cleaning lady got them. So whenever I find one second-hand, I buy it. I also really like Leo Malet's Nestor Burma books. I'm always impressed at his writing -- a mixture of slang and poetry written in extremely correct French.
I also mostly like Robert Harris's books. The only one I can't get into is something about a ghostwriter, which has been lying around on a shelf for a while now. And as far as US writers go, I nearly mentioned Michael Connelly too, as well as Martin Cruz Smith with his series about Arkady Renko, starting with Gorky Park.
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Post by breeze on Aug 1, 2017 13:12:01 GMT
bjd, I added Markaris to my library list. Thanks.
Donna Leon is a favorite of mine because her writing acknowledges Italy's corruption and misgovernment, which injects a dose of reality into Brunetti's somewhat low-key policing and his family life. I get the impression that US readers who love Italy are put off by that, preferring a more idealized view of Italy.
There's a lot of online enthusiasm for Martin Walker's mystery series set in the Dordogne. He's found a formula that includes strong sexy women, wine, food, horses and dogs, and local color. Occasionally the author fits in some crime-solving but that's never a priority. I'm a mystery fan and this approach annoys me.
I like mysteries which adhere to the rules from the Golden Age of mystery writing, but not many authors follow them any more.
bixa and others, exactly why do youand I find English writers so much better than many American writers? I've tried to put my finger on it but can't quite. Some authors can really write, words that you want to read because they are doing more than taking you along to the next sentence. They can turn a phrase. Their writing has charm.
Some of you can surely express this better than I can!
I just finished Imperium after being hooked by Pompeii last month. I think Ghost was the only book of Harris's I'd read before these two, and I remember finding it absorbing but for some reason wasn't moved to look into him further till a friend gave us Pompeii. It's fun to discover an author with a solid backlist.
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Post by bjd on Aug 1, 2017 13:53:53 GMT
Breeze, in thinking about why I prefer British writers, I come to the conclusion that the old ones -- Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh (who was from New Zealand), Josephine Tey, P.D. James etc. just wrote very well. The more modern ones like Philip Kerr, Robert Harris have an interesting cynical black humour approach that I like. And I do like Americans who write like the British: Elizabeth George and Martha Grimes.
There is a Scot who lives in southern France part of the time -- Peter May -- who has written some good books. Some are set in China, others in Scotland. But some other books set in France but written by foreigners tend to be more "local colour and the more stereotypical the better" and less story.
Whatagain, if you like Nestor Burma and read in English, try Philip Kerr. His Berlin policeman, Bernie Gunther, is a great character. The first trilogy is called Berlin Noir.
I think that Alan Furst has written himself out. His last two books had mediocre reviews and I haven't bothered to buy them. The early ones are good though. Except for the time he mentioned a shower curtain in a 1940s Paris bathroom!
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 1, 2017 17:22:18 GMT
bixa and others, exactly why do youand I find English writers so much better than many American writers? Just for the record, I did not say that I find English writers better than American one. My exact words were: I prefer books written by authors from the US, the UK, Canada, & Australia In reality, I wouldn't avoid books by other authors, although admittedly certain milieus, themes, and even countries don't interest me.
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Post by bjd on Aug 2, 2017 18:31:50 GMT
I finished the second volume of the Elena Ferrante book and quite feel like getting the 3rd so I can find out what happens. I still don't like the narrator but there is a story to be followed, and the description of Italy in the 1950s and 1960s is really interesting.
And since it was too hot today to do anything outside, I read a Camilleri book.
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 14, 2017 17:23:13 GMT
I thought I'd replied to your post above, Bjd, but obviously not. My friend who lent me the first Ferrante book did exactly what you did and for the same reasons with the 2nd and 3rd books. I keep trying to finish "Bridge of Sighs" by Richard Russo, but there always seem to be just a few more last few pages. It's the single most boring book I ever read in my life and I will never read another book by him.
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Post by bjd on Aug 15, 2017 17:14:25 GMT
I just finished a book by Hanif Kureishi, a writer of Pakistani origin who lives in London. Quite interesting and well written, although it's not traditional London. It takes place mostly just after the bombings of 2005. I think the title is Something I've Been Meaning to Say but I'm too lazy to go and check. And I just started re-reading an Ian Rankin book with his Edinburgh policeman John Rebus. Now that I can imagine contemporary Edinburgh.
Still haven't bought the Elena Ferrante book though. I'll try to get it from the library when I get home.
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Post by kerouac2 on Aug 19, 2017 13:42:04 GMT
I've read a few of his books, but not that one. I recall The Buddha of Suburbia and The Black Album. As I recall, he also wrote the screenplay for the movie My Beautiful Laundrette.
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Post by kerouac2 on Aug 19, 2017 13:45:40 GMT
I have just been ordered by a friend from university (48 years ago!) to read David Sedaris' new book, the first volume of his diaries -- Theft by Finding.
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Post by mossie on Aug 19, 2017 15:33:16 GMT
Currently struggling with "History of the Paris Commune of 1871", by Prosper-Olivier Lissagaray. I know it was written a long time ago but I find his style of writing very difficult to follow at times, making it a very putdownable book. Incidentally, with a Christian name like that he should be one of the Pilgrim Fathers.
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Post by Kimby on Aug 19, 2017 17:26:29 GMT
Looking for a short novel to take on a short backpacking trip, and found these 3 in a used book sale pile. Have not read any of these. Suggestions, anyone?
1. "Being There" by Jerzy Kosinski (saw the movie ages ago...the political and media plots seem apropos now) 2. "Goodbye Mr. Chips" by James Hilton (loved his Lost Horizons and re-read it every few years) 3. "Love of Life and other stories of excitement and romance" by Jack London ("Eight stories of excitement and romance by one of America's master storytellers")
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