Indian Readers discussion
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Ghostwritten
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Ghostwritten by David Mitchell - BR Feb 2021
Superb! Way too much excited to read David's first written book !
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Gorab wrote: "Started this today... looks like we are in for a set of 9 books :D":O WWWHaaaaTTT?
Awesome, I'll start today too !
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9 books?
I will try to start it tonight.
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This is insanely gripping. I finished the first of the nine chapters, Okinawa.I think I got the gist of this chapter and am willing to discuss once all of us are on the same page, literally ;)
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Yes! Those parts aren't clear however I am sensing Quasar is some sort of Cyborg. Either that or he's just some innocent lunatic who dwells in things like these
There are some quite fascinating sentences in Chapter 2 : TokyoThen one of them asked why Japanese kids try to ape
American kids? The clothes, the rap music, the skateboards, the hair. I
wanted to say that it’s not America they’re aping, it’s the Japan of their
parents that they’re rejecting.
-----
It
would have been easier to say they’d died in an accident, but I wasn’t going
to lie for those knob-heads. Plus if you say someone’s dead, then it tempts
fate to kill them off early.
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The city is
vast, but there’s always someone who knows someone whom someone
knows.
Minor spoiler in Chapter 2. Please read this AFTER a guy in blood-red jacket leaves and Koji's high school description is done.(view spoiler)
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this is so spot on. when you know you are doing something wrong and then your mind goes through different combinations of getting caught, this is the foremost on your mind.
Em Lost In Books wrote: "I am done with the first part. The fellowship is so similar to the political parties/terrorist groups of today, how following the rules will help the society, curb the evil, and restore order in th..."Perfectly captured. Even while reading, i was constantly comparing the Fellowship to our political parties. However, i felt Quasar is an innocent who is completely brainwashed and doing his best to eradicate the "unclean".
Do you thing there was something in the end that probably meant something wise and we missed it? I felt it ended rather in an unsettling manner
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yup, just like the innocent youth who is brainwashed by these so called leaders. (view spoiler)
Mitchell mostly closes chapters in this way. Am sure we'll get to know in coming chapters if there was any clue in the ending here...
Yep completely agree with you Quasar's character.Yes, I've been seeing some hints in Chapter 2. I think I'll finish it off in a while
Pooja wrote: "May I join now?"Ofcourse Pooja ! Feel free to join the discussions!
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Its a signature Mitchell abrupt ending. At least it did not stop in the middle of a sentence :D
Alpha = mental strength - something similar to meditation, focus, concentration... to the level that the person can disperse molecules and walk through walls!!
Gamma = digestive track strength... or maybe the physical body strength.
what about Beta then :P
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there was no mention of any mobile phones or gadgets or devices... except one mention of Quasar wearing some Alpha boosting device on his head....
not sure.
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Quick question: Whether it answered any questions from Chapter 1? I'm sure it would have opened its own questions which *might* be answered later on...
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there was no mention of any mobile phones or gadgets or devices... except one..."
I think its 90s. some one asks some one to call on their cell phone in Tokyo. When were cell phone first introduced?
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about Mr. Ikeda, (view spoiler)
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Quick question: Whether it answered any questions from Chapter 1? I'm sure it would have opened its own questions which *might* be answered later on..."
yup.
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I did not finished it the first time, stopped reading somewhere in Holy Mountains... So when I read Norwegian Woods two years back, I ended up mixing Tokyo and NW. Young boys and music, reminds me of Norwegian Woods.
Gorab wrote: "Makrand wrote: "Finished Chapter 2!Quick question: Whether it answered any questions from Chapter 1? I'm sure it would have opened its own questions which *might* be answered later on..."
So true. Nothing related in Chapter 2 except (view spoiler)
Chapter 2 has it's own set of questions!
Em Lost In Books wrote: "marked all the musical references thrown in Tokyo to try out soon.I did not finished it the first time, stopped reading somewhere in Holy Mountains... So when I read Norwegian Woods two years bac..."
Yes!! Even I have marked a few and will chck out soon.
Chapter 2 is like the Ready Player One of music
Em Lost In Books wrote: "Makrand wrote: "Minor spoiler in Chapter 2. Please read this AFTER a guy in bloo.."about Mr. Ikeda, [spoilers removed]"
Seems a bit unlikely, i think we'll have to wait for the link in Chapter 3 Hong Kong which I've started and this guy has a very different lingo. You'll see :)
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true. At least they are linked in some way even if just a small one for now.
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Chapter 2 is like the Ready Player One of music..."
I haven't read that one. Have you read Norwegian Woods?
Em Lost In Books wrote: "Makrand wrote: "Yes!! Even I have marked a few and will chck out soon.Chapter 2 is like the Ready Player One of music..."
I haven't read that one. Have you read Norwegian Woods?"
Nope. I haven't read that.
Ready Player One has tons of references to the 80s and 90s arcade and video games just like this chapter has for music videos.
If you're a game fanatic, RPO shouldn't be missed
Em Lost In Books wrote: "Makrand wrote: "Chapter 2 has it's own set of questions! ..."true. At least they are linked in some way even if just a small one for now."
Totally.
Chapter 3 is a whackjob lol.
The protagonist speaks with himself most of the time and I feel too much related. Often we speak with ourselves most of the times cursing ourselves or talking chores. It's fun to read this one
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the most fun part was that phone call to "feed the dog" :D :D
that was so much fun!!!
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am not. :)
you should try NW sometime when you feel like life is too exciting and you want to tone it down. ;)
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My thoughts exactly!
message 42:
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Em Lost In Books, EmLo is my Name, PIFM is my Game
(last edited Feb 05, 2021 05:20AM)
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rated it 3 stars
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I concur! did it make any sense to you? It didn't to me. Felt like I was in a loony land, just one step away from becoming the resident citizen.
Satoru made one line appearance here if I am not wrong ... At least I remember it that way.
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the most fun part was that phone call to "feed the dog" :D :D
that was so much fun!!!"
Even in the first chapter, I found this whole secret code so hilarious but in the second Satoru's reaction made in even funnier.
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The protagonist speaks with himself most of the time and I feel too much related. Often we speak with ourselves most of the times cursing ourselves or talking chores. It's fun to read this one."
ha ha ha true that. fun to read though i've no idea where its leading... or if at all it leads to something.
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if it was not written by Mitchell, it would have gone to DNF pile :(
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Seriously!!! What the hell was that in the end?Totally agree with you Gorab. David left no other option than swearing in the end.
:(
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Indian Readers
Books mentioned in this topic
Weave World (other topics)Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World – and Why Things Are Better Than You Think (other topics)
Ready Player One (other topics)
Blurb from Wiki:
Ghostwritten is the first novel published by English author David Mitchell. Published in 1999, it won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and was widely acclaimed.[citation needed] The story takes place mainly around East Asia, but also moves through Russia, Britain, the USA and Ireland. It is written episodically; each chapter details a different story and central character, although they are all interlinked through seemingly coincidental events. Many of the themes from Ghostwritten continue in Mitchell’s subsequent novels, number9dream and Cloud Atlas, and a character later appears in The Bone Clocks.
Ghostwritten is the product of a number of influences, particularly from East Asian culture and superstition, as well as real events remodelled for plot purposes (e.g. the sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway). There are also hints and references to other works, most prominently from Isaac Asimov and the Three Laws of Robotics towards the end of the book, as well as Wild Swans by Jung Chang and The Music of Chance by Paul Auster.