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

[caleb72]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I just finished 'The Rats,' by James Herbert and it was a fun, joyful and bloody read!

I recommend it to all those who like these nasty littler buggers, especially when they squeal in alarm.



Don

Used to be a fan of Mr Herbert myself. If you liked The Rats, you might also like Lair and Domain. Love those ratty rat rats.

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

My mom and I were discussing this not long ago, and she pointed out that (most) schoolkids don't have the life experience to appreciate the themes of these classics. Ethan Frome bored us kids something awful back in high school English class.

"Silas Marner," "Great Expectations," and "A Tale of Two Cities" had to be the three most BORING titles to give a 13 year old-15year old guy. Simply awful, and almost turned me off from reading completely.

Re-reading them as an adult was a whole different kettle of fish. 'A Tale of Two Cities' became one of my all time favorites (Silas Marner still bores me...) As SBGuy's mom said, I simply had no frame of reference in which to place what was going on in those books when I was 13. They didn't introduce me to great literature. They turned me off to it!


Stitchawl

[Gazella]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

"Silas Marner," "Great Expectations," and "A Tale of Two Cities" had to be the three most BORING titles to give a 13 year old-15year old guy. Simply awful, and almost turned me off from reading completely.

I had to read A Tale of Two Cities when I was 13 years old and I just loved it. But we were given the Penguin Readers Level 5 so the text was simplified into a more modern style. Maybe children find these classic novels boring because they had to read the original language and found it hard to understand it. Was that the case with you?

P.S. I read the non simplified version of the novel at the age of 18 and it was completely different in terms of the language, format, the chapter titles and how they're divided. Reading the non-altered version made me feel that I'm really reading a classic. When I read the simplified version, I felt like I was reading a modern book that wasn't written a very long time ago.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by caleb72

Used to be a fan of Mr Herbert myself. If you liked The Rats, you might also like Lair and Domain. Love those ratty rat rats.

They're coming up on my TBR. --- Thanks!




Don

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by Gazella20

I had to read A Tale of Two Cities when I was 13 years old and I just loved it. But we were given the Penguin Readers Level 5 so the text was simplified into a more modern style. Maybe children find these classic novels boring because they had to read the original language and found it hard to understand it. Was that the case with you?

Could well have been, but it's been waaay too many years since for me to remember the 'why.' I do, however, clearly remember the 'what!'

P.S. I read the non simplified version of the novel at the age of 18 and it was completely different in terms of the language, format, the chapter titles and how they're divided. Reading the non-altered version made me feel that I'm really reading a classic. When I read the simplified version, I felt like I was reading a modern book that wasn't written a very long time ago.

When my son was about 13, his class was reading Macbeth. And he couldn't stand it... As it happened, the local theatrical group at one of the universities in town was putting on its version of Macbeth, but done up in modern military dress. Still using the original language but set as a modern war story. I took my son to see it, and he loved it! Just giving him some reference point so that he could internalize what was going on made all the difference. But the second act he didn't even realize that the dialog was so archaic.


Stitchawl

[Geralt]

3/4 in The Desert Spear, second book of Demon Cycle by Peter V. Brett.
The book is great continuation of the first one (The Painted Man). It will probably get 4 stars from me. After that, I'm off to The Daylight War. I'm loving this series so much.

http://www.goodreads.com/series/46817-demon-cycle

[Todd Young]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

"Silas Marner," "Great Expectations," and "A Tale of Two Cities" had to be the three most BORING titles to give a 13 year old-15year old guy. Simply awful, and almost turned me off from reading completely.
Stitchawl

I loved Silas Marner, though I think I was in my twenties when I read it. I do remember reading Pride and Prejudice at school (now a favorite) but having no frame of reference (as someone else mentioned) for where this world was and how these people were living.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by LovesMacs

I started reading Stephenie Meyer's The Host because of the upcoming movie and I'm enjoying it much more than I had expected. I say this as someone who hasn't read any of the Twilight novels but has seen parts of the movies on TV.

I saw a preview for The Host when we went to see The Hobbit... it looked like an interesting concept until I saw that it was by Meyer and I lost all interest at all in it. I don't need to watch a teenage love story.

[Gazella]

Originally Posted by Gazella20

Next: Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton.

A beautifully written novel, the author's explicit way of describing the imagery and landscape is so beautiful. The ending was tragic and surprising yet fitting.

Spoiler:

In the opening chapter of the novel, towards the end where it says "on our right a line of light marked the door of the room which had sent its ray across the night; and behind the door I heard a woman's voice droning querulously".- is this supposed to be Zeena or Mattie?

Also, Ethan becomes partially paralyzed after the accident but the unnamed narrator hires him as his driver and is seen walking, so does that mean that he no longer is paralyzed?

Next: Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

As it happened, the local theatrical group at one of the universities in town was putting on its version of Macbeth, but done up in modern military dress. Still using the original language but set as a modern war story. I took my son to see it, and he loved it! Just giving him some reference point so that he could internalize what was going on made all the difference. But the second act he didn't even realize that the dialog was so archaic.

This. No-one should study a Shakespeare play without first seeing it actually performed. Even if only a good film version.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

This. No-one should study a Shakespeare play without first seeing it actually performed. Even if only a good film version.

Yep, reading plays is a bit boring. But, watching them is fun. In high school we had a Shakespeare club where we went to see 5 plays in Boston. They were very good and enjoyable. Although, at the time I still didn't want to read plays. I am sad that I missed Macbeth because I didn't know where the club was meting, I thought I was late and missed them. Of course, there were no cell phones back then.

BOb

[alansplace]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

I saw a preview for The Host when we went to see The Hobbit... it looked like an interesting concept until I saw that it was by Meyer and I lost all interest at all in it. I don't need to watch a teenage love story.

The Host is not a teenage love story by any stretch of the imagination.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by alansplace

The Host is not a teenage love story by any stretch of the imagination.

Hmm... the previews made it look that way... the last human boy and girl find each other and fall in love. (At least that's what the preview looks like and we know that is essentially what Twilight was.)

I'm here to be edumacated!

BOb

[alansplace]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Hmm... the previews made it look that way... the last human boy and girl find each other and fall in love. (At least that's what the preview looks like and we know that is essentially what Twilight was.)

I'm here to be edumacated!

BOb

Sorry, I know nothing about the movie. I read and enjoyed the novel back in 2008 and its protagonists were adults, not teenagers. It was similar in some respects to Puppet Masters (Heinlein). It was certainly not similar to Twilight (Meyer).

[Avalona]

Christina Dodd's Rules of Surrender, and Jennifer Kloester's Georgette Heyer's Regency World. That second one is for research purposes.