Constant Reader discussion

Happy New Year! A new year of reading awaits.

I am reading Nick Stone's King Of Swords. Max Mingus is one of the best detectives in Miami, but dealing with corruption at the highest levels and voodoo may be even more than he can handle. I'm halfway through this book and really enjoy it. It's a prequel to Nick Stone's award winning Mr. Clarinet, which I haven't read, but which is now sitting at the top of my TBR pile.

Happy New Year everyone! My morning read was the short story "One minus One" by Colm Tóibín which can be found in NewYorker and is the first story in his collection The Empty Family. Quite mournful, full of regret (tinged with relief) at lost opportunities, as one man recalls his emotions during the period leading up to and during the death of his mother back in Ireland. The collection is my in person book club's read for this coming month so am interspacing these alongside my continuance with The Moor's Account by Laila Lalami

I just finished The Mark and the Void by Paul Murray. Murray's Skippy Dies was one of my very favorite books in 2010. I also enjoyed his An Evening of Long Goodbyes. This one didn't quite measure up.

It revolves around a French banker named Claude living in Ireland where he works at a ruthless and overwhelmingly greedy investment firm. Claude is a decent man, but not a well-developed character. In fact, there is almost nothing about him that even seems French.

Sometimes the tone of the novel is too arch, with elements of meta-fiction. Claude becomes friends with an author who just happens to also be named "Paul." Paul, who has been experiencing extreme writer's block, says he wants to write a book about Claude. The two worry that a novel about investment banking might just be too boring to sell. Etc.

Okay- enough of the negatives. On the positive side, Murray knows how to write biting satire and a lot of the book is very funny. There are places where there are too many digressions into the wiles, deceits and downright evil of the investment banking world, but I did learn something about it too. The middle really wanders, but I liked the way Murray finally tied up the story - although I am still not a hundred percent sure what happened. :-)

I am currently reading:
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante and Where You Once Belonged by Kent Haruf.

I'm on the fourth book in Ferrante's Naples series, Karen. Also reading MOBY DICK (at the rate of about ten pages a day, I'll be on it till May, I think) and Claire of the Sea Light, which I'm really liking so far.

I urge you all to read this month's Reading List selection: A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary. I started it yesterday and it is riveting.

I got this book for Christmas, Sherry. I will start it soon.

Sherry wrote: "I urge you all to read this month's Reading List selection: A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary. I started it yesterday and it is riveting."

Yes, I read it a few years ago--absolutely stellar.

I've just started it, too.

David McCullough's bio of Truman. Excellent. Superbly readable. Learned a lot. Fascinating man about whom I actually knew very little.

Kat wrote: "I'm on the fourth book in Ferrante's Naples series, Karen. Also reading MOBY DICK (at the rate of about ten pages a day, I'll be on it till May, I think) and Claire of the Sea Light..."

I am also on the 4th book in The Neapolitan Series and loving it. You're a better person than I - I finally gave up on Moby Dick at about 50% through.

I idly picked up Pascal Garnier's The Islanders from the library the other day and just read it. Wow. I did not want to read what it ended up being, but in a way it was mesmerizing to the end. (I am now wondering why it would be deemed something that should be translated to English!)

Gina wrote: "Kat wrote: "I'm on the fourth book in Ferrante's Naples series, Karen. Also reading MOBY DICK (at the rate of about ten pages a day, I'll be on it till May, I think) and [book:Claire of the Sea Lig..."

My face-to-face book group is reading it, Gina. I wouldn't have tried it again on my own. I bailed the first three times shortly after the Pequod set sail. I seem to be doing better this time, it helps to marvel at the sentences, some of which are pretty fabulous.

I really liked one recent read, Levels of Life by Julian Barnes. I stumbled on this by checking out e-book offerings at my library site. At 129 pages, it is a very short book, but full of deep emotions and beautiful writing.

The book begins with an account of some early balloonists and their success in rising to the heavens. There is a fictional account of a doomed love story between actress Sarah Bernhardt and one of the balloonists, and the final third is a searing account of Barnes' overwhelming grief at the death of his wife. He succeeds in linking these threads in subtle, but meaningful ways.

Highly recommended.

Ann,

I really enjoyed The Sense of an Ending, so I think I will add Levels of Life to my TBR list. In fact, I'm in a Facebook Reading Challenge Group and one of the reading challenges is a book you can finish in a day.

I am about to start The Girl on the Train, a book
I would probably not choose on my own to read, but it fits part
of the Facebook Challenge mentioned above...a book
recommended by a friend.









I am well over halfway through Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante and plan to start The Story of the Lost Child immediately after I finish it. I really like the way Ferrante goes seamlessly into the next book without rehashing a lot of the previous book, as many sequels do. The Neopolitan Novels are really like one big novel to me. I'm going to miss reading them when the fourth one comes to an end.

Karen,
I was glad to hear that you also are a fan of The Sense of an Ending. One of the reasons I decided to read Levels of Life was because I enjoyed The Sense of an Ending so much. I think Julian Barnes is such an original and perceptive writer.

I pretty much raced through the Neapolitan books. I was glad they were all available at the time, so I could read one right after the other. Although I liked the books, when I was done I needed a break from all that intense emotion.

I just started Seveneves, by Neal Stephenson. I'm liking it so far, but I've had mixed reactions to his other novels. Last fall I read Reamde -- I finished it, but by the end it was pure slog. I'm usually more than willing to bail, but after a certain point, I had spent so much time with those characters that I owed it to myself to find out what happened to them.

Something I'm curious about: Do others who have read or are reading Ferrante's Neapolitan novels think that Elena (the narrator) is right in her assessments of other characters--Lila, Nino, and others? She's always analyzing their psychologies, and she's certainly confident that she's right. But do we, the readers think she is? Does the narrator?

Patricia Cornwell's The Bone Bed. Excellent. A real page turner. I'm so glad I decided to check in with one more favorite character, Kay Scarpetta, before I return to more serious and literary works

Peggy, Seveneves certainly gets good reviews on goodreads. Check back with your final impressions. This is not usually my genre but I'm always looking to stretch when the writing is good.

Mary wrote: "Patricia Cornwell's The Bone Bed. Excellent. A real page turner. I'm so glad I decided to check in with one more favorite character, Kay Scarpetta, before I return to more serious and literary works"

I've got the latest Scarpetta novel on my TBR pile! They are a reliable distraction from more serious reads.

Kat wrote: "Something I'm curious about: Do others who have read or are reading Ferrante's Neapolitan novels think that Elena (the narrator) is right in her assessments of other characters--Lila, Nino, and oth..."

I think that Elena, the narrator, is a bit naive in her perceptions of others, despite her extensive education. There are several plot developments, especially concerning Lila, that I anticipated would happen. I also think certain revelations about other characters were foreshadowed to some extent, although Elena remained ignorant about them for some time.

I think Elena Ferrante, the author, gives Elena this naive (at times) narration so the reader connects more with her as she confronts the conflicts and complexities that arise from her friendship with Lina.

Ann wrote: "Karen,
I was glad to hear that you also are a fan of The Sense of an Ending. One of the reasons I decided to read Levels of Life was because I enjoyed [book:The Sens..."

Yes, I definitely agree about the intense emotion that emanates from Ferrante's narratives. As John Waters, the movie director, said about her..."the best angry woman writer ever!"

Karen wrote: "Kat wrote: "Something I'm curious about: Do others who have read or are reading Ferrante's Neapolitan novels think that Elena (the narrator) is right in her assessments of other characters--Lila, N..."

Thanks for your thoughts on this, Karen. I've got about 75 pages left in the final book, I think. It's been quite a ride.

Just finished A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City: A Diary. It was an excellent read, and I'm eager for the discussion to come.

I breezed through Patricia Cornwell's latest, and I think my self esteem goes down a notch every time I read one of her books. I am constantly annoyed with myself while reading the simplistic writing that somehow manages to take one day and stretch it to 600 pages, and the enormous self important egos of the characters, etc, but it's easy and familiar, so I tend to just do it, then am relieved when it's quickly and predictably over.

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury – 4****
Bradbury’s first published book (1950) is an anthology of connected short stories centering on men escaping an Earth about to be destroyed by war for a chance at a new beginning on the red planet. I first read this in about 1962 and it remains a favorite. I decided to re-read it because of the hoopla around Andy Weir’s The Martian. I’m glad I did.
Full Review HERE

Just finished Claire of the Sea Light by Edwidge Danticat, which I highly recommend. It's very short, set in Haiti, with a compelling structure, sympathetic characters, and resonant images. Claire is seven years old, but the story takes us back in time and spins off to tell the stories of related characters, until all threads are brought together at the novel's conclusion, which takes place on the same day that is recounted on the first page. There's also a sense of the environment suffering from human misuse which is meaningfully touched upon but not over-emphasized.

I finished Some Luck by Jane Smiley and looking forward to the second book in the trilogy. I really enjoyed her writing.

I'm almost ready for a reread, Gina because it's on the list of my in-person book club.

Loved those books in Smiley's trilogy..

Karen,
Regarding Ferrante, author of the Neapolitan novels, you wrote, "As John Waters, the movie director, said about her..."the best angry woman writer ever!"

I think Waters nailed it.

Lyn,
I think an awful lot of us like mysteries. I tend to turn to them after heavier reads. I just finished Jar City by Icelandic author Arnaldur Indriðason. Pretty good, but not great.

It's so comforting to have everything wrapped up,with the bad buys either dead or jailed.

Kat wrote: "Just finished Claire of the Sea Light by Edwidge Danticat, which I highly recommend. It's very short, set in Haiti, with a compelling structure, sympathetic characters, and resonant..."

Thanks, Kat, I've read Danticat's short stories before and loved them. This sounds like my next step with her.

I just finished Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, which I highly esteem. If you are wondering what all the fuss regarding "black lives matter" is about, this is a good antidote.

Now I have started Early Warning, #2 in the Jane Smiley trilogy, so perhaps Ann and Gina will want to discuss it with me.

Mary Ann,
When you finish Early Warning, you can set up a note on CR to discuss it if you want.

Kat wrote: "Just finished Claire of the Sea Light by Edwidge Danticat, which I highly recommend. It's very short, set in Haiti, with a compelling structure, sympathetic characters, and resonant..."

I loved this book. So many lives, so many intertwining stories creating love, heartbreak, and tragedy.

Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher – 2**
This is a clever satire of academia and the changes wrought by a society that does not value English majors. Fitger’s letters of recommendation give insight into his thoughts on the status of “higher learning,” the increasing encroachment of technology, and the various personalities he encounters among students, fellow faculty and administrators. They are frequently hilarious, and at other times deeply sad.
Full Review HERE

I thought this book was very funny BC.

Dear Committee Members sounds like it could be right up my alley. I'm going to see if I can find it in my online library.

Lynn,
I'm sure you have been asked to write many letters of recommendation - never my favorite activity. You should get a real kick out of this book, written in the format of recommendation letters. The academic setting provides lots of fodder for satire.

You're right, Ann - I have written a lot of recommendation letters over the years and it's one of my least favorite activities too. The academic satire sounds very entertaining. God only knows there's plenty of material in most academic settings!

Just starting Hemingway's A FAREWELL TO ARMS, which believe it or not I've never read, and The Solitude of Prime Numbers by Paolo Giordano.

I'm reading a very good spy thriller, The Unlikely Spy, by Daniel Silva. This is his first book and does not have his popular character Gabiel Allon, which series I have also just started and has made me want to read more by him. The book is set mostly in England during World War 2. The book's title refers to a beautiful young and cold-hearted female spy who has been assigned the task of finding the secret of where the allies plan their attack in France. To do this, she is to try to find and meet a young engineer, a widower, who German Intelligence believes knows the secret. Silva does a very good job of developing his characters, several of whom I found from Wikipedia were real people, There is much suspense in this book as the woman and some other agents go about their spying business, careful to avoid M15 British Intelligence who could have them hanged if they are caught. I'm almost to the end of this book, and much as I hate to see it end, I'll finally have time to start on my 20-some other books I have out from the library, one of wh ich is A Woman in Berlin. Of course, that total will increase since I've seen so many good books being read by those here. Yum!

Marj

Wow, this sounds good, Marj. Thank you.

Kat, I hope you enjoy A Farewell to Arms. I've read it three times over the last 40 years; it's truly one of my favorites.

Quanjun wrote: "I picked out The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch from the library. And it is great, I hadn't heard anything of her before, so it's a surprise. I'm almost halfway through now.

It's an aut..."

If you like this, you are in for a treat, because Murdoch was incredibly prolific. Obviously not all of her books are as good as the best of them, but it's still nice to have a big stock by a great author waiting for you. Enjoy!

Murdoch is very compelling--like Nicole, I'm a big fan. She has several novels written in the first person by unreliable narrators, all male.

I think my favorite is A Fairly Honourable Defeat. That one isn't a first-person narrator, but multiple viewpoints. I also think her very first, Under the Net, is very good. The one I read most recently was An Accidental Man, which I also liked a lot. But there are a lot of good ones!

My favorites are The Green Knight, The Sacred and Profane Love Machine and, for unreliable narrators, The Black Prince. But, as Kat says, there are a lot of good ones.

Barbara wrote: "Peggy, Seveneves certainly gets good reviews on goodreads. Check back with your final impressions. This is not usually my genre but I'm always looking to stretch when the writing is good."

I'm still working on it, but I can say I now know more about orbital mechanics than strictly necessary. Stephensen could have definitely dialed back the science and given us more story -- and that's coming from someone who has reread The Martian several times.

Thanks, Peggy. I can definitely cross this one off my list. Science isn't easy for me and I would need lots of story to carry me through.