Grade the last book you read.

[ie]

Mar 5, 2008 17:22:13 GMT -5 captainofbeef said:

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
9/10
A very deep and effective novella. Conrad succeeds in plunging through the depths of the human mind and bringing out its worst qualities. Its even more amazing that Conrad was not a native speaker of English, yet he wrote in his second language with such dexterity. The book is a bit too dense and a bit wordy at times, but overall, its a deserved classic

The Secret Sharer by Joseph Conrad
7/10
Another decent novella from Conrad. It deals with finding the inner soul as well, but less effectively. The story deals in duplicity and the finding of a career. However, because it is ambiguous and open ended, it doesn't hit quite as close to home. Not to mention that its a bit too short at barely 60 pages.

Third language. Polish and French, then English, and Conrad once said that completing a novel was like overcoming a major illness.

I think I have the same edition you do, because I have both novellas. Never did read it, though.

[captainofbeef]

Crime and Punishment (re-read)
8/10
It seems very dense upon the second read. The story is certainly perfection and the book is immaculate in many ways. But the translation from Russian is pretty brutal at times. Maybe I wasn't as focused this time...

[ie]

Mar 31, 2008 16:57:46 GMT -5 captainofbeef said:

Crime and Punishment (re-read)
8/10
It seems very dense upon the second read. The story is certainly perfection and the book is immaculate in many ways. But the translation from Russian is pretty brutal at times. Maybe I wasn't as focused this time...

So you gave the story an 8/10 because it wasn't translated prettily enough for you?

[PTAhole]

A bad translation can fuck up a great book.

[captainofbeef]

Apr 1, 2008 23:53:22 GMT -5 ie said:

Mar 31, 2008 16:57:46 GMT -5 captainofbeef said:

Crime and Punishment (re-read)
8/10
It seems very dense upon the second read. The story is certainly perfection and the book is immaculate in many ways. But the translation from Russian is pretty brutal at times. Maybe I wasn't as focused this time...

So you gave the story an 8/10 because it wasn't translated prettily enough for you?

No, I'm just saying that the American version loses some of its brilliance in translation. I'm sure the Russian versions flows better rather than feeling choppy.

[mixed]

It is unfortunate but things may never translate so well to the English language from a language as complex as Russian. Guess your best bet is to learn Russian to be able to appreciate it fully

[ie]

Just saying, don't comment on the translation like you've read better, unless you have.

[captainofbeef]

Duma Key by Stephen King
9/10
King's best book in awhile. Not only is the book terrifying, but it also contains well developed characters and doesn't lapse into dullness. Unlike Lisey's Story and Cell, King paces the book perfectly, not cutting it short too early or letting it drone on for too long. Not to mention that the plot of the book is considerably better if a bit unbelievable. Any King fan should definitely pick this one up.

[mixed]

Ballad of the sad cafe - Carson Macullers
Very clear descriptions of the times and feeling of a place and excellent character depth. Like Faulkner but maybe even more simple, in the best of ways.
9/10 an effective novella with a sad ending. Its slightly funny and always interesting throughout.

Atomised - Michel Houllebech
This was a really fun read, the humour worked and it was full of filthy sexual descriptions and thoughts. It was a really fun story to read but got bogged down at times with unnecessary scientific elaborations which often went on for too long. Still it's the best novel I've read in a while and I miss it now I'm done
8/10

[dontdigonswine]

Stuff I've read in English the last few months...

Kite Runner - 6/10
Hated how gimmicky and annoying it was. Especially its "universal themes..." puke. Can't really explain exactly why I hated it.

The Awakening - 5/10
Horrible.

The Importance of Being Earnest - 10/10
Things don't get better than this.

The Stranger - 1,000,000/10
Oh wait, yes they do. The best book I've ever read.

1984 - 9.5/10
The ending is so perfect.

Brave New World - 9/10
The beginning is so perfect.

Pygmalion - 7/10
It was alright. But I'm just tired of social class commentaries.

Endgame - 10/10
Perfect.

Halfway through Waiting for Godot and I've got to say that along with Joyce, Beckett is my favorite author.

Discovered that the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is my favorite of any sort of writing ever.

[captainofbeef]

The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy
8/10
The second book in the Border Trilogy is just as good as the first one. This one is a bit more melancholy and little less dark than All the Pretty Horses. However, the book is still written in elegant prose and McCarthy still manages to portray a bleak and corroded vision of the Old South. As with the first book, it takes about one hundred pages to get going. But once it does, its a very fast and compelling read.

[captainofbeef]

Brave New World
10/10
Though most treat this as the exact opposite of 1984, control through pleasure rather than control through fear, I think they are far more similar than they are different. Huxley creates a world not unlike Orwell's where independent thought is eliminated and government controls all aspects of life. This type of book often effects me the most because I think that losing my independent thought is what scares me the most. The lives of the drones in Huxley's book are frightening and it is through this fear that I see this novel's true genius.

[dontdigonswine]

May 5, 2008 21:46:48 GMT -5 captainofbeef said:

Brave New World
10/10
Though most treat this as the exact opposite of 1984, control through pleasure rather than control through fear, I think they are far more similar than they are different. Huxley creates a world not unlike Orwell's where independent thought is eliminated and government controls all aspects of life. This type of book often effects me the most because I think that losing my independent thought is what scares me the most. The lives of the drones in Huxley's book are frightening and it is through this fear that I see this novel's true genius.

I agree and disagree about the similarities between 1984. Thought perseveres in 1984, and is persuaded through fear. There is proof that other characters besides Winston have "inappropriate" thoughts, but end up being corrupted by the presence of Big Brother. The scary part about Brave New World is that persuasion is not necessary. People are naturally groomed to never think independently. The indulgence in soma can be rooted back to hypnopaedia. Too much government control made it possible for the creation of the perfect form of government control - creating a race that never questions. Either way, the themes of both are eerily latent in society today.

[mixed]

Duma Key

Since Cell, I suppose it's fair to say, King has been fiddling with his style to keep his stories fresh. Cell failed and Liseys Story, although well drawn and thought out, was also a failure and an annoying one at that, with all that made-up lexicon
But Duma key, this is a fresh novel, and different from 'classic' King. It feels so fresh in parts that it could be his first novel. I'm very impressed by his reinvention. The writing style in Duma Key flows wonderfully and is generally simple but never Dan-Brown-simple. The narrative and writing still has a depth to it and the way King writes characters is beautiful. Wireman and Edgar Freemantle live and breath, they are fantastic literary creations! The viewpoint in the book was interesting, and fully involved me as I read.
Not much more to say, except I loved it and was engrossed until the end, and a good, sad ending it was too.

10/10

[captainofbeef]

Tender Is the Night
6/10
I've decided that I really don't enjoy Fitzgerald. After two readings of The Great Gatsby and a single read of this novel, I still find Fitzgerald's prose to be rather dry and his subject's uninteresting. Tender is the Night is certainly a more mature book than The Great Gatsby, with much less symbolism and a more fleshed out story. However, Fitzgerald lingers for too long over certain aspects of the book and this makes the story much less interesting and the novel's messages much less effective.

[mixed]

^^ interesting critique. I have that to read, and I quite enjoyed Gatsby - the only other Fitzgerald I've read - so I'm keen to get onto that.

[captainofbeef]

The Boys From Brazil by Ira Levin
6/10
A typical Nazi-thriller. Levin writes his characters well and introduces an interesting concept. But the book is a bit predictable and way too shallow, even for a thriller. Standard fare...

[captainofbeef]

The Stranger by Albert Camus
10/10
One of the few classic novels that lives up to its reputation. Camus is master with both plot and description. The plot remains grounded in reality while exhibiting some absurdist aspects. Definitely a must-read.

[mixed]

Camus kicks ass! I must read the plague asap

[captainofbeef]

The Quiet American by Graham Greene
6/10
A rather dull piece of literature. It's style is unique and Greene is a good writer, but the story is boring and the characters never grab your attention. Hopefully his other novels are better...

[captainofbeef]

Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene
8/10
Much better than The Quiet American. This book takes on a more humorous tone and the characters are much more likable. Though the book's first one hundred pages are slow, the next one hundred more than make up for it. Makes me want to see the film even more...

[captainofbeef]

Herzog
6/10
Don't really understand the hype around this book. Sure the main character is well developed and the writing style interesting but the plot is very boring and the book never really goes anywhere. I don't think that this deserved a Nobel Prize at all.

[captainofbeef]

The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa
8/10
Very interesting depiction of Italy's transformation from an aristocratic state to a democratic one. Anyone with an interest in Italy should definitely pick this one up.

[captainofbeef]

Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut
8/10
Typical Vonnegut. Interesting story cast with hilarious characters and written in an unconventional way. The ideas presented are a bit scattershot and repetitive in this one and the book doesn't always flow well. But it is still worth the read for Vonnegut fans.

[mixed]

I've been reading cats cradle for a while - very slowly actually, my mind has been away from reading for weeks - and I don't know if I like it. Some of it is really cleverly crafted but other parts of it are so corny, yet described with considerable pretension, that it hits funny keys with me. It's odd.

[mixed]

I finished cats cradle! Finally. I haven't been reading for a while but I finally got back into it and finished.

My thoughts are somewhat positive. I didn't think it was a great novel, but I do feel that I travelled an extremely long way in such a short book. I can't believe how 'whole' the whole thing felt, despite the book only being about 180 pages long. I think the fact that the main character doesn't have much personality, description is very sparse, I think that makes the story more engaging as you, the reader, feel like you are the main character. Weird, I feel really weird about this book, now I've finished it
I think I'll definitely read more of Vonneguts books in the future.

[captainofbeef]

The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
9/10
Masterful prose and story from the mad Russian. Obviously not a fan of her Objectivism and she telegraphs her views a bit too much for me in the book. But one cannot deny the book's genius.

The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut
6/10
Vonnegut before he developed his style. This book is much more serious than Vonnegut's other works maintaining a sci-fi setting while shrouding a serious message. A bit too bleak for my tastes especially from a writer who usually infuses his books with humor. Might be worth another try, just not what I expected.

The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
7/10
A very odd book. Rushdie's style is certainly very different and he tells a story in a way that I've never seen before. However, his disjointed style is not very appealing to me. A deep and at times, enthralling story makes up for the choppiness though. And in the end, the book was somewhat satisfying.

Odd Hours by Dean Koontz
7/10
I'm a big fan of Koontz's Odd series and this book was a refreshing return to the world of Odd Thomas. Though some familiar characters have vanished from the books, the lovable title character still commands the book. The story is a bit less believable this time and the book seemed much shorter than previous works. However, still an enjoyable beach read.

Bleak House by Charles Dickens
8/10
Very well written with an excellent story, just as one would expect from Dickens. But too many subplots and too many minor characters crowd what would otherwise be a fairly concise and effective novel. I have a feeling that because the book was written in segments, Dickens fluffed it up to receive more pay. Nevertheless, still an excellent book.

[captainofbeef]

Primary Colors by Anonymous
8/10
An excellent political novel/roman à clef. The characters are all very well fleshed out and their story is told very well. Some of the references to actual people are a bit too obvious for me. But overall, a very enjoyable read.

[captainofbeef]

Player Piano by Kurt Vonnegut
7/10
Another of Vonnegut's early novels, the style present here is merely a shadow of what was to come in Vonnegut's later books. Once again, the black comedy is much more black than comedic and though it makes for a compelling book, it doesn't have the same effect that the later, more humorous style does. However, the book's story is very interesting, even if a bit of it is pilfered from other authors. A Vonnegut fan will find this one worth the while, others should probably stay away.

[PTAhole]

The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams- 9/10 Really funny, Adams fans should check it out.
Silent Bob Speaks by Kevin Smith- 9/10 Just a collection of essays, but they're all pretty hilarious. Definitely worth reading if you dig Kevin Smith.