Books based on blogs

ficbot · 10-26-2009, 07:03 AM

I am curious if anyone has ever read/enjoyed a book based on a blog. I have Julia/Julia in my TBR pile but have not read it yet. However, I am currently reading a book based on a blog, and it's terrible. It's about an English woman who moves to France, and while parts of the story do appeal to me (I love the little French colloquialisms she sprinkles in) the author has a really annoying writing style. She overuses the -ly words, and misapplies descriptive things (for example, she'll write a sentence like 'I fastened the buttons with an impatient finger.' I get the mood she is trying to convey, but I keep hearing my college writing instructor's voices in my head going 'fingers can't be impatient!') Also, some of her writing on how she starts the blog date her a little. At one point, she polls her fellow office staff on whether they have ever heard of a blog before, and nobody has. Lady, we're reading the book, we're all on board with the concept! This area of the narrative could easily have been abridged.

In all, I felt the book came across as a little more amateur than most writing I pay for, and I am sorry I didn't look at this in a real bookstore first. I was interested in the topic, thought it was a memoir and didn't realize it was based on a blog until afterward. I'm a little sorry I bought this.

RCR · 10-26-2009, 08:38 AM

"Blood Sweat and Tea" by Tom Reynolds is based on his blog about working for the London Ambulance Service. He writes about the trials and tribulations of working for the government and dealing with the public.

I spent much of my slave-hood doing just that, (not on the ambulances), so there was a lot that was familiar to me. I enjoyed "Blood Sweat and Tea" greatly. There's a sequel which is more of the same stories.

The ebook of "Blood Sweat and Tea" is free in various formats at -

http://manybooks.net/titles/reynolds...tAndTeaCC.html

zelda_pinwheel · 10-26-2009, 09:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RCR

"Blood Sweat and Tea" by Tom Reynolds is based on his blog about working for the London Ambulance Service. He writes about the trials and tribulations of working for the government and dealing with the public.

I spent much of my slave-hood doing just that, (not on the ambulances), so there was a lot that was familiar to me. I enjoyed "Blood Sweat and Tea" greatly. There's a sequel which is more of the same stories.

The ebook of "Blood Sweat and Tea" is free in various formats at -

http://manybooks.net/titles/reynolds...tAndTeaCC.html

huh, i just stumbled across this book last week and downloaded it. glad to hear your recommendation.

i've bought books by 2 authors because i liked their blogs before i had read anything else by them (one of them only published after i had been reading his blog off and on for a few years), although i don't know if this counts because i don't think these books were really "based on" these blogs. what do you mean by that ? inspired by but then rewritten, or litterally a compilation of blog posts ?

one of the ones i bought was disappointing (and in fact i've not finished it yet, and i bought it months ago) partly because it was actually almost nothing like the blog neither in content nor in style really. the other one was brilliant and i've now bought his second book (Mil Millington).

what is the book you're talking about ? it sounds like a book a friend of mine just finished, only it's written by a man (and i've got no idea whether he was writing a blog as well).

HarryT · 10-26-2009, 01:35 PM

It's not based on a blog, but Jeffrey Deaver's recent crime novel "Roadside Crosses" features a blog as the main element of the story, and one is encouraged to read the pages on-line (it's not a "live" blog, but the site is "live") as they are referred to in the book (all the URLs are given). It's an excellent novel, with a real "sting in the tail".

jimbob101 · 10-26-2009, 04:56 PM

How about the other way round. I discovered John Scalzi's Blog "Whatever" after buying his pbook old mans war :-)

Patricia · 10-26-2009, 05:04 PM

Well, Belle de Jour seems to have started with a blog on life as a sex worker, then a TV series (where she was played by Billie Piper) and some books. Someone must be enjoying them.

http://belledejour-uk.blogspot.com/

ficbot · 10-26-2009, 09:27 PM

The book is Petite Anglaise and she's friends with Belle du Jour and mentions her in the book

There was one particularly purple passage I thought I bookmarked, but I can't find it now. When she's being honest---describing her beautiful Paris, for example---the book has its moments. But when she tries to be cute or clever, it all falls apart. It makes me think of this wall we had in my Grade 4 classroom called 'Instead of Said...' where we posted cue cards with every possible variation on 'said' that we could think of. This was supposed to add 'variety' to our writing, which is fine when you are in grade 4, but I had a college writing teacher who was horrified when she heard of this wall

I think Petite Anglaise must have her own 'Instead of...' wall with all sorts of different words...

igorsk · 10-26-2009, 09:41 PM

Not sure if that's what you're looking for, but...
John Scalzi, Your Hate Mail Will be Graded.
Raymond Chen, The Old New Thing.

MelC · 10-26-2009, 11:53 PM

Jen Lancaster started her career with a blog. But she is light and frothy and humourous (with a bit of a mean streak). So not sure if that is the kind of book you would be looking for.

Mel

Donnageddon · 10-27-2009, 01:06 AM

Wil Wheaton just recently released Memories of The Future which started as a blog (Wil calls them columns) on TV Squad.

Very entertaining stuff, if you are at all into Star Trek TNG. Currently only available as POD and PDF from lulu.com. The PDF does a reasonable conversion with Calibre. Readable, but with all the blemishes that come with a PDF conversion.

Janet54 · 10-27-2009, 03:15 PM

I saw the movie Julia/Julia. Loved it!! Came home and immediately download the book in spite of the poor reviews.
It has been the only book I will not finish reading so far this year. (I rarely do not finish a book) But this was horrible........ It was much to vulgar for my taste and the main character Julia was obnoxious and whiney. I can see why Julia Child wanted nothing to do with it.
To me, this was the rare case where the Movie was better than the book.
To be fair the book was based also off her memoirs "My Life in France", I bought that but have not read it as this book left such a sour taste in my mouth. (pun intended)

melbournian · 10-29-2009, 08:24 AM

Waiter Rant, based on the blog of the same name. It's pretty self explanatory. I bought it as a treat for getting a full time job and getting out of the waitressing biz, although I actually love my old job and can't wait to go back to it next year...

10-26-2009, 07:03 AM	#1
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	Books based on blogs I am curious if anyone has ever read/enjoyed a book based on a blog. I have Julia/Julia in my TBR pile but have not read it yet. However, I am currently reading a book based on a blog, and it's terrible. It's about an English woman who moves to France, and while parts of the story do appeal to me (I love the little French colloquialisms she sprinkles in) the author has a really annoying writing style. She overuses the -ly words, and misapplies descriptive things (for example, she'll write a sentence like 'I fastened the buttons with an impatient finger.' I get the mood she is trying to convey, but I keep hearing my college writing instructor's voices in my head going 'fingers can't be impatient!') Also, some of her writing on how she starts the blog date her a little. At one point, she polls her fellow office staff on whether they have ever heard of a blog before, and nobody has. Lady, we're reading the book, we're all on board with the concept! This area of the narrative could easily have been abridged. In all, I felt the book came across as a little more amateur than most writing I pay for, and I am sorry I didn't look at this in a real bookstore first. I was interested in the topic, thought it was a memoir and didn't realize it was based on a blog until afterward. I'm a little sorry I bought this. Last edited by ficbot; 10-26-2009 at 09:03 AM.

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10-26-2009, 08:38 AM	#2
RCR Addict Posts: 334 Karma: 992487 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: 2 x Sony 505, iPad, Samsung 7 Tablet, ASUS Transformer, Nexus 7	"Blood Sweat and Tea" by Tom Reynolds is based on his blog about working for the London Ambulance Service. He writes about the trials and tribulations of working for the government and dealing with the public. I spent much of my slave-hood doing just that, (not on the ambulances), so there was a lot that was familiar to me. I enjoyed "Blood Sweat and Tea" greatly. There's a sequel which is more of the same stories. The ebook of "Blood Sweat and Tea" is free in various formats at - http://manybooks.net/titles/reynolds...tAndTeaCC.html

10-26-2009, 01:35 PM	#4
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	It's not based on a blog, but Jeffrey Deaver's recent crime novel "Roadside Crosses" features a blog as the main element of the story, and one is encouraged to read the pages on-line (it's not a "live" blog, but the site is "live") as they are referred to in the book (all the URLs are given). It's an excellent novel, with a real "sting in the tail".

10-26-2009, 04:56 PM	#5
jimbob101 Connoisseur Posts: 60 Karma: 499999 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Laois, Ireland Device: Kindle App Android, Kindle PW2, Calibre	How about the other way round. I discovered John Scalzi's Blog "Whatever" after buying his pbook old mans war :-)

10-26-2009, 05:04 PM	#6
Patricia Reader Posts: 11,505 Karma: 8720163 Join Date: May 2007 Location: South Wales, UK Device: Sony PRS-500, PRS-505, Asus EEEpc 4G	Well, Belle de Jour seems to have started with a blog on life as a sex worker, then a TV series (where she was played by Billie Piper) and some books. Someone must be enjoying them. http://belledejour-uk.blogspot.com/

10-26-2009, 09:27 PM	#7
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	The book is Petite Anglaise and she's friends with Belle du Jour and mentions her in the book There was one particularly purple passage I thought I bookmarked, but I can't find it now. When she's being honest---describing her beautiful Paris, for example---the book has its moments. But when she tries to be cute or clever, it all falls apart. It makes me think of this wall we had in my Grade 4 classroom called 'Instead of Said...' where we posted cue cards with every possible variation on 'said' that we could think of. This was supposed to add 'variety' to our writing, which is fine when you are in grade 4, but I had a college writing teacher who was horrified when she heard of this wall I think Petite Anglaise must have her own 'Instead of...' wall with all sorts of different words...

10-26-2009, 09:41 PM	#8
igorsk Wizard Posts: 3,442 Karma: 300001 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Belgium Device: PRS-500/505/700, Kindle, Cybook Gen3, Words Gear	Not sure if that's what you're looking for, but... John Scalzi, Your Hate Mail Will be Graded. Raymond Chen, The Old New Thing.

10-26-2009, 11:53 PM	#9
MelC Evangelist Posts: 410 Karma: 2081 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Toronto, Canada Device: Cybook Gen3, PRS600	Jen Lancaster started her career with a blog. But she is light and frothy and humourous (with a bit of a mean streak). So not sure if that is the kind of book you would be looking for. Mel

10-27-2009, 01:06 AM	#10
Donnageddon Now you lishen here... Posts: 2,494 Karma: 479498 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Seattle-ish Device: Sony PRS-650. Kobo Touch, Kindle Fire	Wil Wheaton just recently released Memories of The Future which started as a blog (Wil calls them columns) on TV Squad. Very entertaining stuff, if you are at all into Star Trek TNG. Currently only available as POD and PDF from lulu.com. The PDF does a reasonable conversion with Calibre. Readable, but with all the blemishes that come with a PDF conversion.

10-27-2009, 03:15 PM	#11
Janet54 Connoisseur Posts: 81 Karma: 76992 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Oklahoma Device: Voyage, Fire HDX, Fire Phone, Galaxy Note 8,10.9	I saw the movie Julia/Julia. Loved it!! Came home and immediately download the book in spite of the poor reviews. It has been the only book I will not finish reading so far this year. (I rarely do not finish a book) But this was horrible........ It was much to vulgar for my taste and the main character Julia was obnoxious and whiney. I can see why Julia Child wanted nothing to do with it. To me, this was the rare case where the Movie was better than the book. To be fair the book was based also off her memoirs "My Life in France", I bought that but have not read it as this book left such a sour taste in my mouth. (pun intended)

10-29-2009, 08:24 AM	#12
melbournian Colonial chapette Posts: 22 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: Astak Pocket Pro	Waiter Rant, based on the blog of the same name. It's pretty self explanatory. I bought it as a treat for getting a full time job and getting out of the waitressing biz, although I actually love my old job and can't wait to go back to it next year...

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