Books and other stuff I feel like discussing
By education and experience - Accountant with a specialty in taxation. Formerly a CPA (license has lapsed). Masters degree in law of taxation from University of Denver. Now retired. Part time work during baseball season as receptionist & switchboard operator for the Colorado Rockies. This gig feeds my soul in ways I have trouble articulating. One daughter, and four grandchildren. I share the house with two cats; a big goof of a cat called Grinch (named as a joke for his easy going "whatever" disposition); and Lady, a shelter adoptee with a regal bearing and sweet little soprano voice. I would be very bereft if it ever becomes necessary to keep house without a cat.
Mood:
Advisory
Read/Post Comments (1)
Books Update - Non suspense titles
It's been far too long since I published my thumbnail reactions after checking my log of current reading. so here goes! The titles that follow are NOT from mystery fiction.
OUT STEALING HORSES Per Petterson
Since we were just recently in Norway, and our itinerary there included a discussion of WWII resistance activities (see my blog entry of 9/23/07), I particularly enjoyed this novel - a memoir of an elderly Norwegian man, living alone on a small farm. In flashbacks to his teenage days, he muses over events he only dimly understood at the time. The reader eventually understands that the narrator's father was active in the Norwegian underground, and that he made choices to support his occupied country, which had a disastrous impact on his family life.
Since I know almost nothing about the Norwegian language, I can only guess, but Petterson seems to have been blessed with a very skillful translator. Run on paragraphs and overly long sentences are high on every list of "don't do" writing tips I have encountered, yet this book is full of them. And instead of confusing and exasperating me, the extended narrative pulled me pulled along in the direction of the action, kept me engrossed, and eventually won my admiration. How did they do that?
SIGHT HOUND Pam Houston
I commented about this book in a blog entry on March 1 of this year. A rich love story in the broadest sense of the term, with a multitude of voices, men, women, gay, straight, cats, dogs, friends, and troublemakers. I struggled with a huge lump in my throat through much of the reading, but did not find the book to be a "downer" at any time. This one will be on my "best of 2008" list for sure.
PACIFIC RISING Simon Winchester
Ever since he was a guest on the late (and lamented) C-SPAN interview show BOOKNOTES a few years ago, I have been a fan of Winchester's and have read most of his books. I persuaded one of my book discussion groups to read this one. Sadly, the attendance that evening was slim, and I think my fellow readers/discussers were the losers. In this book, published nearly 20 years ago, Winchester studies the various cultures along the Pacific rim, from Chile and Australia in the south to Japan and Alaska in the north and has very readable and thought provoking conclusions.
WARS OF THE ROSES Alison Weir
I was never very interested in history in school, and have regretted it for much of my adult life. I've always enjoyed Weir's books, and when I saw this one on the shelf at the library (I don't remember what I was looking for, but this wasn't it) I picked it up, went back to the days of Richard II and began to read up. It took literally FOREVER to finish Weir's book, not because I wasn't interested, but because of demands on my free time which roll around annually as tax season gets hot and heavy. But I enjoyed the read, even as it was bogged down by backing up over and over again, to pick up the thread of her narrative.
SHORTCOMINGS Adrian Tomine
I heard graphic artist Tomine interviewed on NPR and took a look at his latest. In a style only graphic artists seem to be able to manage, an understated, spare story leaves the reader free to fill in the blank spaces and enrich the story in much the same way I used to do when I listened to dramatic productions of late 40's and early 50's radio.
A young Japanese American endures painful changes in his love life.
INNOCENT TRAITOR Alison Weir
Back to the history shelf, this time a fictionalized account of the life of Lady Jane Grey, the "nine day queen" who was manipulated by her power hungry family into being proclaimed Queen of England after the death of Henry VIII. Grey is one of those persons who appear briefly in history books, sometimes for only a paragraph or less, and whose story is worth much more attention.
SOMEDAY THIS PAIN WILL BE USEFUL TO YOU Peter Cameron
In very subtle fashion, the author deals with post 9/11 ennui in the life of a young man living in New York City and coming to terms with his sexuality. This is a "young adult" title. Members of one of the two book discussion groups I attend got me hooked on young adult titles. They are of the opinion that much of the best in current American fiction comes from this genre. After I've read books like this one, and other suggestions from them, I’m inclined to agree.
OUT STEALING HORSES Per Petterson
Since we were just recently in Norway, and our itinerary there included a discussion of WWII resistance activities (see my blog entry of 9/23/07), I particularly enjoyed this novel - a memoir of an elderly Norwegian man, living alone on a small farm. In flashbacks to his teenage days, he muses over events he only dimly understood at the time. The reader eventually understands that the narrator's father was active in the Norwegian underground, and that he made choices to support his occupied country, which had a disastrous impact on his family life.
Since I know almost nothing about the Norwegian language, I can only guess, but Petterson seems to have been blessed with a very skillful translator. Run on paragraphs and overly long sentences are high on every list of "don't do" writing tips I have encountered, yet this book is full of them. And instead of confusing and exasperating me, the extended narrative pulled me pulled along in the direction of the action, kept me engrossed, and eventually won my admiration. How did they do that?
SIGHT HOUND Pam Houston
I commented about this book in a blog entry on March 1 of this year. A rich love story in the broadest sense of the term, with a multitude of voices, men, women, gay, straight, cats, dogs, friends, and troublemakers. I struggled with a huge lump in my throat through much of the reading, but did not find the book to be a "downer" at any time. This one will be on my "best of 2008" list for sure.
PACIFIC RISING Simon Winchester
Ever since he was a guest on the late (and lamented) C-SPAN interview show BOOKNOTES a few years ago, I have been a fan of Winchester's and have read most of his books. I persuaded one of my book discussion groups to read this one. Sadly, the attendance that evening was slim, and I think my fellow readers/discussers were the losers. In this book, published nearly 20 years ago, Winchester studies the various cultures along the Pacific rim, from Chile and Australia in the south to Japan and Alaska in the north and has very readable and thought provoking conclusions.
WARS OF THE ROSES Alison Weir
I was never very interested in history in school, and have regretted it for much of my adult life. I've always enjoyed Weir's books, and when I saw this one on the shelf at the library (I don't remember what I was looking for, but this wasn't it) I picked it up, went back to the days of Richard II and began to read up. It took literally FOREVER to finish Weir's book, not because I wasn't interested, but because of demands on my free time which roll around annually as tax season gets hot and heavy. But I enjoyed the read, even as it was bogged down by backing up over and over again, to pick up the thread of her narrative.
SHORTCOMINGS Adrian Tomine
I heard graphic artist Tomine interviewed on NPR and took a look at his latest. In a style only graphic artists seem to be able to manage, an understated, spare story leaves the reader free to fill in the blank spaces and enrich the story in much the same way I used to do when I listened to dramatic productions of late 40's and early 50's radio.
A young Japanese American endures painful changes in his love life.
INNOCENT TRAITOR Alison Weir
Back to the history shelf, this time a fictionalized account of the life of Lady Jane Grey, the "nine day queen" who was manipulated by her power hungry family into being proclaimed Queen of England after the death of Henry VIII. Grey is one of those persons who appear briefly in history books, sometimes for only a paragraph or less, and whose story is worth much more attention.
SOMEDAY THIS PAIN WILL BE USEFUL TO YOU Peter Cameron
In very subtle fashion, the author deals with post 9/11 ennui in the life of a young man living in New York City and coming to terms with his sexuality. This is a "young adult" title. Members of one of the two book discussion groups I attend got me hooked on young adult titles. They are of the opinion that much of the best in current American fiction comes from this genre. After I've read books like this one, and other suggestions from them, I’m inclined to agree.
Read/Post Comments (1)
Previous Entry :: Next Entry
Back to Top
