Hey!! Let's get some action going! What are we reading?

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I haven't read it in book form, but I do have it on pr-eorder as a Kindle ebook. All other books will take back seat and will be promptly forgotten, as I focus only Murakami's work.



Don

Hmmmmm (says my avatar)....high praise indeed....hmmmmm...

$15.00 for the Kindle book!

http://www.amazon.com/1Q84-Haruki-Mu.../dp/0307593312

Damn, None-zero of his ebooks at either local library.

Don I was looking at his short story collection: http://www.amazon.com/After-Quake-St...t_at_ep_dpt_11

Your thoughts?

[HomeInMyShoes]

Originally Posted by endobenthic

Afternoon:

For those who have read The Cellist of Sarajevo , is it a dark and disturbing book or more of a "hopeful light in the darkness" kind of story?

I read the links posted about the book and the author, but quite often other experienced readers can give a more fully formed impression and perhaps even other comparison works.

Anyone?

I would lean to the hopeful side. It is at times a sad story, but it's a beautiful book. A wonderful read. I don't read a lot of books centered on themes of war so I have no comparisons for you there, but I was totally engaged from the first few lines. I didn't find it overly dark. It is war, it was at times heart-rending, but it really was a story of the human condition and there is more hope than dark in the three main characters.

[WT Sharpe]

I'd eat my avatar if anyone recognized this Bible passage from the book I finished Friday:

Spoiler:

and yes I know your thoughts
the wooden arguments
the corpses you're lining up

you want to ask your rigid questions
but where is Stalin's house now
or Franco's

not to mention
run-of-the-mill criminals
never caught: Martin Bormann etc.

the loyal collaborators
the rich and privileged saluting
any flag that flies their way

and busy in the wings the faceless
you won't see them standing around
at any apocalypse

you ought to ask some tourists
who speak your language
open-mindedly

listen to some impartial camera clicks
look at the photographs
even postage stamps

you push me into irony
and out the other side
to common sense

That is how poet/scholar David Rosenberg translates a portion of the 21st chapter of the book of Job in A Literary Bible: An Original Translation. I'll readily admit (as I don't read Hebrew) that I could be wrong, but it's my suspicion that the translator may have taken some liberties with the original text in the name of poetic license. Not to worry; he says quite plainly that, "[M]y practice as a poet was brought to bear on the English language: often I found myself as if remaking an ancient poem or sentence. Yet this is no different a position than many biblical authors found themselves in, working with and adapting much older sources." This may not pacify his critics, but this former Jewish Publication Society editor said that his intention in writing the book when he began the project more than thirty years ago was to translate the literary works of the Bible as if they were written by poets and prose artists.

It should be noted that this is not a complete translation of the Tanakh, but rather a sampling of some of it's literary passages. Although I prefer his prose translations over his poetic ones (possibly a result of my own long-stand biases and understanding of the texts), I found Rosenberg's book as well as his commentary on the selected passages to be both rewarding and challenging. While this book will never replace any current Bible versions, it is a fascinating and original take on the literature of the Hebrew Scriptures. Out of a possible 5 stars I give it 3½.

[Latinandgreek]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I haven't read it in book form, but I do have it on pr-eorder as a Kindle ebook. All other books will take back seat and will be promptly forgotten, as I focus only Murakami's work.



Don

Yes, All other books for me will be put on hold as well when iq84 comes out. I've been waiting for a long time to get it!

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Latinandgreek

Yes, All other books for me will be put on hold as well when iq84 comes out. I've been waiting for a long time to get it!

More high praise....I've clearly missed this guy ... I've got some catching up to do!

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Hmmmmm (says my avatar)....high praise indeed....hmmmmm...

$15.00 for the Kindle book!

http://www.amazon.com/1Q84-Haruki-Mu.../dp/0307593312

Damn, None-zero of his ebooks at either local library.

Don I was looking at his short story collection: http://www.amazon.com/After-Quake-St...t_at_ep_dpt_11

Your thoughts?

For his short stories (fiction), I would highly recommend "The Elephant Vanishes," and second "Blind Woman, Sleeping Willow."

I'm an absolutely huge fan of his work, and predict that he will win the Nobel Prize in Literature.


Don

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

For his short stories (fiction), I would highly recommend "The Elephant Vanishes," and second "Blind Woman, Sleeping Willow."

I'm an absolutely huge fan of his work, and predict that he will win the Nobel Prize in Literature.


Don

Thanks That's one I was looking at. I'll get it right away.

[anjirlly]

Originally Posted by endobenthic

Afternoon:

For those who have read The Cellist of Sarajevo , is it a dark and disturbing book or more of a "hopeful light in the darkness" kind of story?

Depends on what you mean by "dark and disturbing." More than graphically portraying brutal violence, it depicts the grinding down of a populace astounded that civilization has failed them. People nevertheless try to survive and even look out for others, but these individual acts are very ephemeral and have no effect on the forces driving the outcome.

The Canadian author clearly did his research, but it still felt to me like someone at a remove putting the characters through their paces to create his written sonata. So it's purportedly on their behalf, insofar as it's an indictment of what happened to a city that had attained a multiethnic existence, but it feels exploitative to me that he's achieving such renown as an author for usurping someone else's tragedy.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by Fbone

Time for a change-up. Landscape With Dead Dons by Robert Robinson an English journalist/broadcaster who recently passed away. Written in 1956.

Well, that was strange. The only clue was in the epigraph. Any one of the 13 characters could have done it. The motive wasn't known until the last three pages. And it appeared out of thin air. The ending was funny, though. His word usage was good and very 50s British. Some words not in my MW dictionary. Rated C- [3 stars].

Unsure of my next selection. Feeling a bit unperusious.

[Bikeridr]

Finished Nick Spalding's "Love ... From Both Sides". Absolutely hilarious and a very warm recommendation.

Continuing and some 30% into Mike Hillier's "The Gigabyte Detective". I'm waiting it to "take off" soon..

[caleb72]

Just finished Age of Giants - awakening by Rob Reaser. Great post-apocalyptic future sci-fi/fantasy blend.

Have reviewed it on my website. Good stuff.

Now I'm reading another post-apocalyptic sci-fi novel: Scavengers by Cynthia Echterling.

I love me some apocalypse aftermath.

[Latinandgreek]

I just started reading the Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides, and I couldn't put it down.

[kennyc]

Suddenly I find myself trying to read 12 things at once and feeling frustrated....also 10's more on my "must read right now" list....maybe I need to step away and focus on one thing....

[Apache]

I am reading Leon Uris's Battle Cry.
Apache

[thinkpad]

Reading the second book in the Halcyon trilogy by MR member: jrlewis