I got some extra gifts this week in the shape of three more orphan books that were escorted to my house by my Christmas visitor. There is still lots more to come where they came from! It's a good thing that from the ones still residing in Holland there is a very easy way to determine which ones I have actually read and which ones are still to be read. I used to be a spine cracker and gave up the habit about 10 years ago. Therefore all the ones that have a cracked spine have been read and all the ones that are still pristine(-ish) have not.
These additions bring the new total of books to be read to: 145
I'm off to catch up on some reading!
Sunday 29 December 2013
Friday 20 December 2013
A human story
This has been a week of many pre-Christmas celebrations, both big and small. It started with a very nice dinner with some friends from jobs gone by. Then went on to a lovely Christmas lunch with the new job lot. Followed the day after by a nice lunch with one of my old mates and rounded off nicely yesterday by a staff Christmas celebration at work. All this has made me stop and realise how grateful I am for the life I have. I have good friends, people to share celebrations with and I really don't have a lot to complain about.
It also makes a nice change to be working for a company that tells you to make sure you take the time off over Christmas to reflect, recharge and relax... to ensure that you get to rest and not just spend time running around after others and thinking about getting back to work.
I have a very special guest coming over for Christmas and am going to make sure I am going to enjoy the time we have together. Christmas dinner is going to be a bit of a lucky dip dinner I am afraid... best laid plans are there to be changed I guess. Still planning to do some of the traditional stuff but am letting Fate decide on the rest of it... who knows what we'll end up with...
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Human Factor - Graham Greene
Every time I read one of Graham Greene's books I am reminded of why I love this man's work so much. He never lets me down and always delivers on story, characters and humanity in his books. This one is no different. Once again with Greene there are some familiar themes in this story: loss, hiding, deception, pretending to be something you are not, faith, trust.
In this tale we find ourselves in the shadowy world of the secret agents once again only this time we are getting a look into the lives of the office bound administrators of the world's secrets. We meet our main man Maurice Castle (solid, reliable, dependable), Arthur Davis (the lone wolf, careless, lazy, chasing after rainbows and skirts) and their boss Mr Watson (uncomfortable with people and life in general, distant even from those he loves). Very soon we find out that there is a suspected leak somewhere in the department that Castle works and the brass is on a mission to find out who it is. For this they call upon the services of the good doctor Percival who has the ear of the big boy upstairs (Hargreaves - pompous, rich and probably a bit bored with his life). After some intensive vetting and snooping some conclusions are jumped to and the matter is dealt with with as little legal fuss as possible. However... things are never that clear cut in the Secret Service and we soon find out that they actually got the wrong man. I have to say it did not come as a surprise to me that they did.
From the start there seems to be something off about Castle. Why does he go to that book store and why does he always gets two copies of every book. Allegedly one for him and one for "his friend" yet Castle seems the most friendless man I have ever known. Why does he seem so interested and even anxious in getting hold of the shop owner's son? All Castle ever seems to do is go to work and go home... and go to the bookshop. Castle is clever and very observant, he seems to be on the lookout for what other people know and can tell him. He also seems to be a man with a hidden agenda... there are little hints that all is not what it seems with Castle. At home he has a wife (whom he met in Africa and saved from harm) and a son (who turns out not to be his). Castle also is a man who is not where he wants to be. He seems to be remembering times gone by when he was in a better place, when things were better for him and he believed in what he was doing.
Little by little you find out that Castle was working as a spy in South Africa and when things got hairy he had to get out and he got help from an unexpected source. You learn that his now wife, Sarah was working for him as an agent and had to get out too as she had been feeding him information. Sarah was also more that just his agent. The two were lovers and then married. Things get even more interesting when you learn that Castle was not just talking to the English about what he found out but that he got turned and worked for the Russians as well. As the story develops you get to know more and more little bits about Castle and his life as a double agent. You also see the toll it takes on him and his family.
In the end Castle's downfall is inevitable. He has put himself in an impossible position and he loses his job (no great loss to him), he loses his Russian contact (a loss to him) and he loses his family... that is perhaps the greatest loss of all. I am not sure that Castle was really prepared to make that sacrifice when he started his double life but it is the sacrifice he ends up having to make to stay alive and have any chance of getting his family back.
What I liked about the story is that you really get to know who Castle is and what makes him tick. You get to know his world, his beliefs, what he treasures more than anything in the world and how he copes with the loss of it all. At first Castle seems to be the man who has it all but in the end that is only on the surface. What is more.... he is the one who loses everything for an ideal he doesn't even really believe in. He never calls himself a communist and seems to be in it for some (possibly) misguided loyalty to an old friend.
The award for Nasty Character in the book is a close run case between the callous Doctor Percival and the South African Muller. Castle likes neither and I don't either. Percival has no conscience, thinks he knows best and can do whatever he wants. He is ruthless when it comes to getting what he wants and will use whatever means to get his way. Muller is whatever you want him to be and therefore a man with no morals and no honesty or dignity.
Saddest scene in the book? Well, there are a few. One sad moment is when Castle goes to see Davis' body. he knows they have the wrong man and knows that Davis died and it should have been him. Then there is the scene when Castle makes his escape and has to get rid of the dog... sad.
Great book, great story, wonderful characters.
Title: The Human Factor
Author: Graham Greene
265 pages
Penguin Books
ISBN# 0-14-00-4956-8
Books to be read: 142
It also makes a nice change to be working for a company that tells you to make sure you take the time off over Christmas to reflect, recharge and relax... to ensure that you get to rest and not just spend time running around after others and thinking about getting back to work.
I have a very special guest coming over for Christmas and am going to make sure I am going to enjoy the time we have together. Christmas dinner is going to be a bit of a lucky dip dinner I am afraid... best laid plans are there to be changed I guess. Still planning to do some of the traditional stuff but am letting Fate decide on the rest of it... who knows what we'll end up with...
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Human Factor - Graham Greene
Every time I read one of Graham Greene's books I am reminded of why I love this man's work so much. He never lets me down and always delivers on story, characters and humanity in his books. This one is no different. Once again with Greene there are some familiar themes in this story: loss, hiding, deception, pretending to be something you are not, faith, trust.
In this tale we find ourselves in the shadowy world of the secret agents once again only this time we are getting a look into the lives of the office bound administrators of the world's secrets. We meet our main man Maurice Castle (solid, reliable, dependable), Arthur Davis (the lone wolf, careless, lazy, chasing after rainbows and skirts) and their boss Mr Watson (uncomfortable with people and life in general, distant even from those he loves). Very soon we find out that there is a suspected leak somewhere in the department that Castle works and the brass is on a mission to find out who it is. For this they call upon the services of the good doctor Percival who has the ear of the big boy upstairs (Hargreaves - pompous, rich and probably a bit bored with his life). After some intensive vetting and snooping some conclusions are jumped to and the matter is dealt with with as little legal fuss as possible. However... things are never that clear cut in the Secret Service and we soon find out that they actually got the wrong man. I have to say it did not come as a surprise to me that they did.
From the start there seems to be something off about Castle. Why does he go to that book store and why does he always gets two copies of every book. Allegedly one for him and one for "his friend" yet Castle seems the most friendless man I have ever known. Why does he seem so interested and even anxious in getting hold of the shop owner's son? All Castle ever seems to do is go to work and go home... and go to the bookshop. Castle is clever and very observant, he seems to be on the lookout for what other people know and can tell him. He also seems to be a man with a hidden agenda... there are little hints that all is not what it seems with Castle. At home he has a wife (whom he met in Africa and saved from harm) and a son (who turns out not to be his). Castle also is a man who is not where he wants to be. He seems to be remembering times gone by when he was in a better place, when things were better for him and he believed in what he was doing.
Little by little you find out that Castle was working as a spy in South Africa and when things got hairy he had to get out and he got help from an unexpected source. You learn that his now wife, Sarah was working for him as an agent and had to get out too as she had been feeding him information. Sarah was also more that just his agent. The two were lovers and then married. Things get even more interesting when you learn that Castle was not just talking to the English about what he found out but that he got turned and worked for the Russians as well. As the story develops you get to know more and more little bits about Castle and his life as a double agent. You also see the toll it takes on him and his family.
In the end Castle's downfall is inevitable. He has put himself in an impossible position and he loses his job (no great loss to him), he loses his Russian contact (a loss to him) and he loses his family... that is perhaps the greatest loss of all. I am not sure that Castle was really prepared to make that sacrifice when he started his double life but it is the sacrifice he ends up having to make to stay alive and have any chance of getting his family back.
What I liked about the story is that you really get to know who Castle is and what makes him tick. You get to know his world, his beliefs, what he treasures more than anything in the world and how he copes with the loss of it all. At first Castle seems to be the man who has it all but in the end that is only on the surface. What is more.... he is the one who loses everything for an ideal he doesn't even really believe in. He never calls himself a communist and seems to be in it for some (possibly) misguided loyalty to an old friend.
The award for Nasty Character in the book is a close run case between the callous Doctor Percival and the South African Muller. Castle likes neither and I don't either. Percival has no conscience, thinks he knows best and can do whatever he wants. He is ruthless when it comes to getting what he wants and will use whatever means to get his way. Muller is whatever you want him to be and therefore a man with no morals and no honesty or dignity.
Saddest scene in the book? Well, there are a few. One sad moment is when Castle goes to see Davis' body. he knows they have the wrong man and knows that Davis died and it should have been him. Then there is the scene when Castle makes his escape and has to get rid of the dog... sad.
Great book, great story, wonderful characters.
Title: The Human Factor
Author: Graham Greene
265 pages
Penguin Books
ISBN# 0-14-00-4956-8
Books to be read: 142
Sunday 15 December 2013
Close to home
My house is finally getting into the Christmas spirit and I am getting there myself as well. Only a week or so to go until the big Ho Ho Ho. The new job has been going well and the second week was considerably less tiring than the first. Also, I have been getting back into the routine of reading in bed again. Get in there early, get reading and relax that brain!
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Cold is the Grave - Peter Robinson
This was my second encounter with Mr Banks and it was another pleasant one.
This is one of those stories that starts out with two seemingly unrelated events and in the end it turns that investigating case 1 helps out case 2. You have (partly) the same group of people involved in both cases which makes for a conveniently tight group of characters and suspects. There are a few more developed characters around which makes reading he stories a bit more interesting, some of them are recurring so it is nice to meet them again.
At the start of our adventure Banks is called upon to do a favour for his Chief Constable (Riddle). A case of his young daughter Emily/Louisa gone a bit wild and trundled off to the big city and could Banks please see if she is okay. He would do it himself but he has his career to think about you see. It seems simple enough and Banks grudgingly agrees to look into it. The girl is suitably not please to see him or to hear that her family are concerned about her. Her boyfriend is suitably obviously bad news and her friends from London are both suitably weird and slightly suspicious. In the end it all seems to work out well and Banks get her home safe and sound so he can get back to his day job of finding out who murdered a local security guard.
Then she turns up dead in a nightclub and the brown stuff starts hitting the fan. The list of suspects is not too long but the fact that the parents hide information from Banks does not help the case. Nor does the fact that he is supposed to be investigating this other random murder f a night guard who went for an involuntary "long ride". Thankfully he has his crack team and Annie to help him (yes, she is back... no, I still do not know why we need her as a love interest!). They way that the story develops is actually quite satisfying and I kind of enjoyed the contrast between the two murders Banks was investigating he is having to shift between two cases and you feel the tension that it brings with it. In a way the two murders Banks is investigating are linked and in a way they are not. The girl was involved with some bad people who happen to be involved with the other murder. In a way, looking into who might have murdered her helps the investigation into the other case... and vice versa. Emily was not involved in the copying of illegal CDs but someone she knew was. Also, it seems that killing someone by adding a lot of strychnine to coke is the mark of a different kind of animal than one that is interested only in making money. Once Banks gets the motive clear of the murder of the guard he realises he needs to find a new suspect for the girl's murder.
I have to say that I kind of figured out who the murderer was in Emily's case. As soon as Emily's mum mentioned a daughter she gave up for adoption and we found out who her father was it was not that big a stretch to put two and two together. Maybe I am finally getting better at this detective story business? Nonetheless, the final reveal in the interview room though is very powerful and slightly harrowing and you get a really good insight into what moved the murderer to act in the way they did. It is a chilling tale of a sociopath who feels everything bad in her life was all down to this young girl and she had to pay with her life. One of the saddest things in the book is that things do not end well for Mr Riddle, the dad. He decides that a date with a hose at the end of an exhaust pipe is to be preferred over a good talk over a glass of whiskey... shame. Not sure if it is the scandal over his daughter's antics or the loss of his political career that drove him to it but it leaves his wife and young son to pick up the pieces and carry on. This is another strength of the book. You not only see get to see the murder, you also get to see some of the fall out in the family. This makes sure you are more involved and invested in wanting to get justice for Emily.
Good story, well structured. Liked the fact Banks went to Stony Stratford which is just down the road from me, still amazed how a guy can be that good a detective and then not see that his marriage is sooooo over and still not sure it needs the Annie love interest angle but hey... I am willing to give him another book to prove me wrong.
Title: Cold is the Grave
Author: Peter Robinson
455 pages
Pan Books
ISBN# 0-330-48216-5
Books to be read: 143
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Cold is the Grave - Peter Robinson
This was my second encounter with Mr Banks and it was another pleasant one.
This is one of those stories that starts out with two seemingly unrelated events and in the end it turns that investigating case 1 helps out case 2. You have (partly) the same group of people involved in both cases which makes for a conveniently tight group of characters and suspects. There are a few more developed characters around which makes reading he stories a bit more interesting, some of them are recurring so it is nice to meet them again.
At the start of our adventure Banks is called upon to do a favour for his Chief Constable (Riddle). A case of his young daughter Emily/Louisa gone a bit wild and trundled off to the big city and could Banks please see if she is okay. He would do it himself but he has his career to think about you see. It seems simple enough and Banks grudgingly agrees to look into it. The girl is suitably not please to see him or to hear that her family are concerned about her. Her boyfriend is suitably obviously bad news and her friends from London are both suitably weird and slightly suspicious. In the end it all seems to work out well and Banks get her home safe and sound so he can get back to his day job of finding out who murdered a local security guard.
Then she turns up dead in a nightclub and the brown stuff starts hitting the fan. The list of suspects is not too long but the fact that the parents hide information from Banks does not help the case. Nor does the fact that he is supposed to be investigating this other random murder f a night guard who went for an involuntary "long ride". Thankfully he has his crack team and Annie to help him (yes, she is back... no, I still do not know why we need her as a love interest!). They way that the story develops is actually quite satisfying and I kind of enjoyed the contrast between the two murders Banks was investigating he is having to shift between two cases and you feel the tension that it brings with it. In a way the two murders Banks is investigating are linked and in a way they are not. The girl was involved with some bad people who happen to be involved with the other murder. In a way, looking into who might have murdered her helps the investigation into the other case... and vice versa. Emily was not involved in the copying of illegal CDs but someone she knew was. Also, it seems that killing someone by adding a lot of strychnine to coke is the mark of a different kind of animal than one that is interested only in making money. Once Banks gets the motive clear of the murder of the guard he realises he needs to find a new suspect for the girl's murder.
I have to say that I kind of figured out who the murderer was in Emily's case. As soon as Emily's mum mentioned a daughter she gave up for adoption and we found out who her father was it was not that big a stretch to put two and two together. Maybe I am finally getting better at this detective story business? Nonetheless, the final reveal in the interview room though is very powerful and slightly harrowing and you get a really good insight into what moved the murderer to act in the way they did. It is a chilling tale of a sociopath who feels everything bad in her life was all down to this young girl and she had to pay with her life. One of the saddest things in the book is that things do not end well for Mr Riddle, the dad. He decides that a date with a hose at the end of an exhaust pipe is to be preferred over a good talk over a glass of whiskey... shame. Not sure if it is the scandal over his daughter's antics or the loss of his political career that drove him to it but it leaves his wife and young son to pick up the pieces and carry on. This is another strength of the book. You not only see get to see the murder, you also get to see some of the fall out in the family. This makes sure you are more involved and invested in wanting to get justice for Emily.
Good story, well structured. Liked the fact Banks went to Stony Stratford which is just down the road from me, still amazed how a guy can be that good a detective and then not see that his marriage is sooooo over and still not sure it needs the Annie love interest angle but hey... I am willing to give him another book to prove me wrong.
Title: Cold is the Grave
Author: Peter Robinson
455 pages
Pan Books
ISBN# 0-330-48216-5
Books to be read: 143
Monday 9 December 2013
Best laid plans
I had planned to re-dedicate my Sundays to keeping up the posts on my blog, however..... I had forgotten that starting a new job can be quite tiring and spent my Sunday relaxing, doing a small food shop and making a start on another puzzle. But I am quite happy to report that at the start of week 2 at my new job I have managed to find some time to do a little update.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
While the Light lasts - Agatha Christie
Another happy return to the work of one of my favourite authors.
Point to note: normally I am not one for reading forewords or afterwords but it was worth it for this collection of stories.
House of Dreams
I liked the fact that this one was unlike anything I have ever read by Christie. It is sort of a ghost story or a supernatural mystery. A young man falls in love with a girl who cannot marry him because of a deep dark family secret (much to the relief of another interested female party). The young man keeps seeing a house in his dreams and in the end it is his downfall and he gets lost looking for it.
The Actress
Nice little story about a woman rising to the occasion with an Oscar winning performance when it matters most. There is the threat of blackmail but in the end we have the con who is being conned. You think you know what is going on but Christie twists it round on you with a nice little reveal at the end. The bad guy gets his just deserts and the lady actress is left to live her life as she pleases.
The Edge
Set in a small village where we find a thwarted lover, an unforgiving soul bent on vengeance.
Clare was hoping to be the next lady of the Manor but she was passed up for an out of town girl in the shape of Vivien. By chance Clare gets a comes across Vivien's secret and uses it to torment her. It seems that all is going well for Clare but then she crosses a line and pushes Vivien too far. But... what goes around, comes around.
Christmas Adventure
Mr Poirot is spending his Christmas re-uniting a pair of lovers and solving the mystery of the Christmas Pudding... oh and there is something about a rogue and an diamond but don't let that spoil the story for you.
This is a nice, tight little mystery for Poirot. It is light and fluffy and totally enjoyable to read.
The Lonely God
The statue of a small god is the meeting place of two strangers who become much more than that. Then fate intervenes and pushes them apart, however, it inspires our man, Frank to make a true work of art himself. In the end and the lovers are re-united but it is a fitting end although a bit soppy.
Manx Gold
Please don't do what I did and not read the foreword on this one... READ IT! the whole thing makes more sense if you do. This is a nice little story about two young people who go on a quest to find a treasure left to them by a relative. Others are trying to get to the treasure to so it is a race to see who gets the loot.
The story was used in a treasure hunt to improve tourism in the Isle of Man.... hope it worked as it is a lovely idea to have treasure hunt with clues designed by Christie. Awesome.
Within a Wall
A kind of serious story about art, survival and whether or not you sell your soul and turn a blind eye to the truth for the "love" of a beautiful woman. An artist seems to do some paint by numbers works but is also truly inspired by someone who he seems to almost hate or resent. His wife seems to have more of a need to keep herself in dresses than her child in decent clothing or to inspire her husband's work and even the help of a long suffering friend is not enough to make the lady happy.
It ends badly for the friend and you get the feeling our painter is not far behind as the lady devours everything around her to satisfy her own needs.... wonder what becomes of the child?
The Mystery of the Bagdad Chest
Another nice little mystery for Poirot to resolve.
He comes to the aid of a man who seems to be obviously guilty of murder but it turns out to be a bit more complicated than that. A nice little mystery involving a big chest, a body and a bit of smoke and mirrors from a vengeful, jealous husband.
While the light lasts
A woman meets the man she loved before and he hopes to pick up where they left off all those years ago. She seems to be bit more ambivalent to changing her life around again and with words left unsaid things take a dramatic turn for the worse for the old lover.
This was a really nice collection of stories from Christie and the nice thing was that there several different genres in this collection. They were all little gems and it was nice to have the variation and to be able to see what Poirot could do in only 10 or so pages.
Nicely written, well paced stories, a great read and as I mentioned nice to have a little extra information on each story about how it came about and/or what it was based on.
Title: While the Light lasts
Author: Agatha Christie
252 pages
Harper Collins Publishers
ISBN# 0-00-715485-2
Books to be read: 144
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
While the Light lasts - Agatha Christie
Another happy return to the work of one of my favourite authors.
Point to note: normally I am not one for reading forewords or afterwords but it was worth it for this collection of stories.
House of Dreams
I liked the fact that this one was unlike anything I have ever read by Christie. It is sort of a ghost story or a supernatural mystery. A young man falls in love with a girl who cannot marry him because of a deep dark family secret (much to the relief of another interested female party). The young man keeps seeing a house in his dreams and in the end it is his downfall and he gets lost looking for it.
The Actress
Nice little story about a woman rising to the occasion with an Oscar winning performance when it matters most. There is the threat of blackmail but in the end we have the con who is being conned. You think you know what is going on but Christie twists it round on you with a nice little reveal at the end. The bad guy gets his just deserts and the lady actress is left to live her life as she pleases.
The Edge
Set in a small village where we find a thwarted lover, an unforgiving soul bent on vengeance.
Clare was hoping to be the next lady of the Manor but she was passed up for an out of town girl in the shape of Vivien. By chance Clare gets a comes across Vivien's secret and uses it to torment her. It seems that all is going well for Clare but then she crosses a line and pushes Vivien too far. But... what goes around, comes around.
Christmas Adventure
Mr Poirot is spending his Christmas re-uniting a pair of lovers and solving the mystery of the Christmas Pudding... oh and there is something about a rogue and an diamond but don't let that spoil the story for you.
This is a nice, tight little mystery for Poirot. It is light and fluffy and totally enjoyable to read.
The Lonely God
The statue of a small god is the meeting place of two strangers who become much more than that. Then fate intervenes and pushes them apart, however, it inspires our man, Frank to make a true work of art himself. In the end and the lovers are re-united but it is a fitting end although a bit soppy.
Manx Gold
Please don't do what I did and not read the foreword on this one... READ IT! the whole thing makes more sense if you do. This is a nice little story about two young people who go on a quest to find a treasure left to them by a relative. Others are trying to get to the treasure to so it is a race to see who gets the loot.
The story was used in a treasure hunt to improve tourism in the Isle of Man.... hope it worked as it is a lovely idea to have treasure hunt with clues designed by Christie. Awesome.
Within a Wall
A kind of serious story about art, survival and whether or not you sell your soul and turn a blind eye to the truth for the "love" of a beautiful woman. An artist seems to do some paint by numbers works but is also truly inspired by someone who he seems to almost hate or resent. His wife seems to have more of a need to keep herself in dresses than her child in decent clothing or to inspire her husband's work and even the help of a long suffering friend is not enough to make the lady happy.
It ends badly for the friend and you get the feeling our painter is not far behind as the lady devours everything around her to satisfy her own needs.... wonder what becomes of the child?
The Mystery of the Bagdad Chest
Another nice little mystery for Poirot to resolve.
He comes to the aid of a man who seems to be obviously guilty of murder but it turns out to be a bit more complicated than that. A nice little mystery involving a big chest, a body and a bit of smoke and mirrors from a vengeful, jealous husband.
While the light lasts
A woman meets the man she loved before and he hopes to pick up where they left off all those years ago. She seems to be bit more ambivalent to changing her life around again and with words left unsaid things take a dramatic turn for the worse for the old lover.
This was a really nice collection of stories from Christie and the nice thing was that there several different genres in this collection. They were all little gems and it was nice to have the variation and to be able to see what Poirot could do in only 10 or so pages.
Nicely written, well paced stories, a great read and as I mentioned nice to have a little extra information on each story about how it came about and/or what it was based on.
Title: While the Light lasts
Author: Agatha Christie
252 pages
Harper Collins Publishers
ISBN# 0-00-715485-2
Books to be read: 144
Monday 2 December 2013
New discoveries
Today I started my new job. It was both a very interesting and tiring day but that was to be expected. Starting at a new job usually means settling into new routines and getting used to new responsibilities. I have a 4 week induction program and this will give me plenty of time to get used to the new environment. It is only a 10/15 minute bike ride to the office and on the way in most if it is downhill and easy coasting. So far, so good.
Before I started work again I did manage to squeeze in a few more books and this is the review of the first one.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Dubliners - James Joyce
What a fabulous book this was!!! Absolutely loved it.
Amazing tales about people. To me the stories were like snapshots into people's lives. You get a little look into their lives and then drift onto the next story. You come across all kinds of different situations and meet all kinds of people who share a little of their life with you. A book about human beings and the relationships they have with one another in various areas and stages of life.
The Sisters
In essence this story is about a visit by a boy and his aunt to a dead man and his two surviving sisters who are now having to deal with the death. But it is about a bit more than that really. Hidden in it you get the hint of a man who saw promise in a young boy, a possibly wasted life and society's attitude that being educated is a waste of time.
An Encounter
Two boys go on an adventure of a lifetime down by the river and meet a bit of a weirdo. And he is a real weirdo... it starts out all innocently with the boys going on a jolly little trip but after they meet the guy by the river the atmosphere changes and a cloud forms over their adventure. You definitely get the feeling that perhaps the boys would be better out getting out of their very quick smart once the conversation turns to boys and girls and punishment! Interestingly there were supposed to be three of them on the trip but the one who was usually all bluster and defiance did not even show up for the trip.
Araby
A sweet story about a boy and his first love. He is way to shy to talk to her and decides to day it with a gift but that adventure does not end well. He is probably still pining away at a distance.... poor little lad.
Eveline
This was a lovely story about the thoughts and feelings of a girl who is considering leaving here family and running away with the man she loves. The way she evaluates her life so far and determines that her life would be better if she left is intended to make you think it is all sorted out and at the same time gives you the feeling that it isn't quite the clear cut for her. The man she loves is willing to take her away and star anew.... but she just couldn't do it. I felt really sorry for her as she deserved a chance of a new life and a better future for herself but she seemed to lack the courage to give herself that.
After the Race
Boys having a good time. They are ringing in the changes. They are the next generation that is going to outdo the old one in absolutely everything. They will have as a given the privileges that their parents had to work hard for. The are able to indulge their every whim and fanciful ideas. And... if if does not work out, there is always daddy's cheque book to fall back on.
Two Gallants
Should probably be called "two rogues". Two drinking buddies talking about women and how they might be able to squeeze a bit more than just a kiss from them.
The Boarding House
A woman has managed to escape her violent husband and is now running a boarding house. She has landed herself a profitable business and her daughter a husband. What is left kind of unsaid is how much manipulation went on in getting the husband. A very interesting story about women. One powerful and strong who knows where it's at and the other more inexperienced... or is she?
A little Cloud
A man meets and old friend who seems to have it all and thinks that perhaps life has passed him by and that he deserves better. In the end he realises that perhaps things have turned out for the best after all.
Counterparts
A man likes his pints a bit more than his work. Ends up drinking away his pay with his good for nothing buddies and then goes home drunk. The man feels hard done by, blames others for his own incompetency and thinks that the answers to life are at the bottom of a pint or 10. Once he had his fun and the money is about gone he goes off home and takes out his frustration out on the ones he should be protecting. This time the kid got it... next time probably the wife.
Clay
Maria enjoys a nice evening out with her friends. She is almost apologetic about intruding in their family life and possibly for being alive at all. She comes across as a small, little woman who has been left on the shelf and has seen life pass her by and lives with it. She has been invited into a family home but you can almost feel the pity for her from the family members as they try make her feel included in all the evening's festivities.
A Painful Case
A gentleman meets a married lady and forms a friendship with her. They seem to be two like minded souls but he breaks things off when she seems to want more than he. The woman ends up dead and it is kind of clear that it may have been a suicide. He holds himself responsible but manages to get on with life nonetheless.
Ivy Day in the Committee Room
Lovely little story about a group of men discussing an upcoming election and the fact if they are going to get paid for all their hard work or not. As always everyone has an opinion and there is some great banter going on. Also good for learning a whole new way to get the corks out of bottles without a corkscrew.
A Mother
By being overbearing and thinking she is doing the best for her child a mother probably scuppers the daughters chances of ever making a career as a musician. The poor girl does her best but with mum on the warpath and money involved there is no way this is going to end well.
Grace
A number of men gently conspire against one stray lamb and manage to get him to agree to taking the first step to a sober life.
The Dead
At the Morkan's annual Christmas party things are all jolly and festive with songs, drinks and good food. Once the celebrations come to an end not everyone's thoughts turn to the positive. One lady remembers her first love and how he was lost to her... kind of dampens the mood with her amorous husband.
Joyce writes like a dream. He is accurate in his descriptions and characterisations of the people you meet and sometimes in one sentence he can in part so much information.... one sentence will tell you all you need to know about the relationship between people or the character of someone. Brilliant use of language... well chosen words, ordered perfectly. Absolutely amazing book and I am going to keep a look out now for Ulysses.
Title: Dubliners
Author: James Joyce
255 pages
Penguin Books
Books to be read: 145
Before I started work again I did manage to squeeze in a few more books and this is the review of the first one.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Dubliners - James Joyce
What a fabulous book this was!!! Absolutely loved it.
Amazing tales about people. To me the stories were like snapshots into people's lives. You get a little look into their lives and then drift onto the next story. You come across all kinds of different situations and meet all kinds of people who share a little of their life with you. A book about human beings and the relationships they have with one another in various areas and stages of life.
The Sisters
In essence this story is about a visit by a boy and his aunt to a dead man and his two surviving sisters who are now having to deal with the death. But it is about a bit more than that really. Hidden in it you get the hint of a man who saw promise in a young boy, a possibly wasted life and society's attitude that being educated is a waste of time.
An Encounter
Two boys go on an adventure of a lifetime down by the river and meet a bit of a weirdo. And he is a real weirdo... it starts out all innocently with the boys going on a jolly little trip but after they meet the guy by the river the atmosphere changes and a cloud forms over their adventure. You definitely get the feeling that perhaps the boys would be better out getting out of their very quick smart once the conversation turns to boys and girls and punishment! Interestingly there were supposed to be three of them on the trip but the one who was usually all bluster and defiance did not even show up for the trip.
Araby
A sweet story about a boy and his first love. He is way to shy to talk to her and decides to day it with a gift but that adventure does not end well. He is probably still pining away at a distance.... poor little lad.
Eveline
This was a lovely story about the thoughts and feelings of a girl who is considering leaving here family and running away with the man she loves. The way she evaluates her life so far and determines that her life would be better if she left is intended to make you think it is all sorted out and at the same time gives you the feeling that it isn't quite the clear cut for her. The man she loves is willing to take her away and star anew.... but she just couldn't do it. I felt really sorry for her as she deserved a chance of a new life and a better future for herself but she seemed to lack the courage to give herself that.
After the Race
Boys having a good time. They are ringing in the changes. They are the next generation that is going to outdo the old one in absolutely everything. They will have as a given the privileges that their parents had to work hard for. The are able to indulge their every whim and fanciful ideas. And... if if does not work out, there is always daddy's cheque book to fall back on.
Two Gallants
Should probably be called "two rogues". Two drinking buddies talking about women and how they might be able to squeeze a bit more than just a kiss from them.
The Boarding House
A woman has managed to escape her violent husband and is now running a boarding house. She has landed herself a profitable business and her daughter a husband. What is left kind of unsaid is how much manipulation went on in getting the husband. A very interesting story about women. One powerful and strong who knows where it's at and the other more inexperienced... or is she?
A man meets and old friend who seems to have it all and thinks that perhaps life has passed him by and that he deserves better. In the end he realises that perhaps things have turned out for the best after all.
Counterparts
A man likes his pints a bit more than his work. Ends up drinking away his pay with his good for nothing buddies and then goes home drunk. The man feels hard done by, blames others for his own incompetency and thinks that the answers to life are at the bottom of a pint or 10. Once he had his fun and the money is about gone he goes off home and takes out his frustration out on the ones he should be protecting. This time the kid got it... next time probably the wife.
Clay
Maria enjoys a nice evening out with her friends. She is almost apologetic about intruding in their family life and possibly for being alive at all. She comes across as a small, little woman who has been left on the shelf and has seen life pass her by and lives with it. She has been invited into a family home but you can almost feel the pity for her from the family members as they try make her feel included in all the evening's festivities.
A Painful Case
A gentleman meets a married lady and forms a friendship with her. They seem to be two like minded souls but he breaks things off when she seems to want more than he. The woman ends up dead and it is kind of clear that it may have been a suicide. He holds himself responsible but manages to get on with life nonetheless.
Ivy Day in the Committee Room
Lovely little story about a group of men discussing an upcoming election and the fact if they are going to get paid for all their hard work or not. As always everyone has an opinion and there is some great banter going on. Also good for learning a whole new way to get the corks out of bottles without a corkscrew.
A Mother
By being overbearing and thinking she is doing the best for her child a mother probably scuppers the daughters chances of ever making a career as a musician. The poor girl does her best but with mum on the warpath and money involved there is no way this is going to end well.
Grace
A number of men gently conspire against one stray lamb and manage to get him to agree to taking the first step to a sober life.
The Dead
At the Morkan's annual Christmas party things are all jolly and festive with songs, drinks and good food. Once the celebrations come to an end not everyone's thoughts turn to the positive. One lady remembers her first love and how he was lost to her... kind of dampens the mood with her amorous husband.
Joyce writes like a dream. He is accurate in his descriptions and characterisations of the people you meet and sometimes in one sentence he can in part so much information.... one sentence will tell you all you need to know about the relationship between people or the character of someone. Brilliant use of language... well chosen words, ordered perfectly. Absolutely amazing book and I am going to keep a look out now for Ulysses.
Title: Dubliners
Author: James Joyce
255 pages
Penguin Books
Books to be read: 145
Wednesday 27 November 2013
Not out of this world
As the sun plays hide and seek for another day and the grey clouds rule the sky I am once more seated next to the radiator and tapping at the keys.
I had a bit of a tired day yesterday, sort of like the sun did. I wandered over to the shop to pick up a few foodie bits and was completely shattered after I got back. Therefore I decided that a catch up of Misfits was in order and I spent a happy afternoon munching cheese and chive twists and getting through the last 4 episodes I had missed.
So far today I have not done too much but I do plan to go out later today and take myself for a walk but first things first.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Colour of Magic - Terry Pratchett
After the roller coaster ride of the last book I thought I would read something completely different and plumped for a sort of tried and trusted author in Terry Pratchett.
I have to say that, unfortunately I felt this one was a bit of a let down. For some reason the story just does not seem that focused and there is not much to it and at the end it dwindles into what is obviously a set up for a sequel. I do not plan to read the sequel so at the end of the book I felt like I had invested all my time into a story I was now not even going to see the conclusion of. What is perhaps worse... I do not really care what the next book is, want to get it and/or want to actually read it.
I do not know what I find more annoying with this one.... the fact that none of the characters seem that interesting or the fact that the story is just not that good. Let me explain.
Rincewind is a cowardly failed magician who never finished magic school. He apparently has a spell inside him (one of the Eight) but no-one is sure what the spell actually does. It tries to escape a few times but we never do find out..... Alas. Rincewind is a sort of tour guide to Twoflower who comes from a different world and thinks that everything he sees is great, fantastic and amazing. He is sort of an explorer and he has a sideline in in-sewer-ants (get it???). He is the gullible idiot in the novel. Then there is The Luggage that travels with him which has a personality all of its own... and teeth... and attitude! It says something for a novel that a wooden trunk come to life is arguable the most interesting character in the book. At least the luggage has some kind of purpose. It holds Twoflower's money, it is very protective towards him and follows him wherever he goes. It is also quite funny that this piece of luggage is so determined to keep up with Twoflower and will literally cross any ocean to be with him.
For me there is not really a lot to the story. Somehow Rincewind gets drafted into being a tour guide and protector for Twoflower who has a slightly unhealthy obsession with bar brawls and heroes. So... there are fights, then a fire and they end up fleeing the city. Then they wander around discworld for a while (six months or so apparently) and have a lot of adventures. There does not really seem to be any rhyme or reason for these adventures other than to fill the time. We do not learn anything new about the characters during these adventures, the characters do not change during or after them. There is a cave with a monster and some dragons that appear only when you believe in them. Oh... and let us not forget Hrun the Barbarian (Conan has nothing to worry about there), the people in the trees and the normal array of trolls, bad guys.... and Death (always hilarious when he comes around!). There is some kind of attempt by Pratchett to draw in a bigger, overlapping story/moral with the game played between the Lady and Fate but that just does not come to anything. In the end we end up at the end of the world and that is where the story ends. Seldom was there a more obvious set up for a sequel.
Point to note: somewhere along the line either Twoflower has learnt to speak the local lingo or others can just "magically" start understanding what he says. When he arrives he has a phrasebook and Rincewind has to do the interpreting for him as Twoflower is said to speak a different language but at some point that seems to be no longer the case. Then there is the little slip up with the name change for one of the characters we meet in the Wyrmberg from Liessa to Lianna (p168).
To me it just seems that we are just filling the time by introducing a variety of characters that will (probably) return in later books. There seems to be no real point to any of it. I was quite disappointed at the end of it, especially since I have read other Discworld books and enjoyed them.
For those who ware interested, the colour of magic is Purple. Do with that what you will.
Title: The Colour of Magic
Author: Terry Pratchett
238 pages
Corgi Books
ISBN# 0-552-12475-3
Books to be read: 146
I had a bit of a tired day yesterday, sort of like the sun did. I wandered over to the shop to pick up a few foodie bits and was completely shattered after I got back. Therefore I decided that a catch up of Misfits was in order and I spent a happy afternoon munching cheese and chive twists and getting through the last 4 episodes I had missed.
So far today I have not done too much but I do plan to go out later today and take myself for a walk but first things first.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Colour of Magic - Terry Pratchett
After the roller coaster ride of the last book I thought I would read something completely different and plumped for a sort of tried and trusted author in Terry Pratchett.
I have to say that, unfortunately I felt this one was a bit of a let down. For some reason the story just does not seem that focused and there is not much to it and at the end it dwindles into what is obviously a set up for a sequel. I do not plan to read the sequel so at the end of the book I felt like I had invested all my time into a story I was now not even going to see the conclusion of. What is perhaps worse... I do not really care what the next book is, want to get it and/or want to actually read it.
I do not know what I find more annoying with this one.... the fact that none of the characters seem that interesting or the fact that the story is just not that good. Let me explain.
Rincewind is a cowardly failed magician who never finished magic school. He apparently has a spell inside him (one of the Eight) but no-one is sure what the spell actually does. It tries to escape a few times but we never do find out..... Alas. Rincewind is a sort of tour guide to Twoflower who comes from a different world and thinks that everything he sees is great, fantastic and amazing. He is sort of an explorer and he has a sideline in in-sewer-ants (get it???). He is the gullible idiot in the novel. Then there is The Luggage that travels with him which has a personality all of its own... and teeth... and attitude! It says something for a novel that a wooden trunk come to life is arguable the most interesting character in the book. At least the luggage has some kind of purpose. It holds Twoflower's money, it is very protective towards him and follows him wherever he goes. It is also quite funny that this piece of luggage is so determined to keep up with Twoflower and will literally cross any ocean to be with him.
For me there is not really a lot to the story. Somehow Rincewind gets drafted into being a tour guide and protector for Twoflower who has a slightly unhealthy obsession with bar brawls and heroes. So... there are fights, then a fire and they end up fleeing the city. Then they wander around discworld for a while (six months or so apparently) and have a lot of adventures. There does not really seem to be any rhyme or reason for these adventures other than to fill the time. We do not learn anything new about the characters during these adventures, the characters do not change during or after them. There is a cave with a monster and some dragons that appear only when you believe in them. Oh... and let us not forget Hrun the Barbarian (Conan has nothing to worry about there), the people in the trees and the normal array of trolls, bad guys.... and Death (always hilarious when he comes around!). There is some kind of attempt by Pratchett to draw in a bigger, overlapping story/moral with the game played between the Lady and Fate but that just does not come to anything. In the end we end up at the end of the world and that is where the story ends. Seldom was there a more obvious set up for a sequel.
Point to note: somewhere along the line either Twoflower has learnt to speak the local lingo or others can just "magically" start understanding what he says. When he arrives he has a phrasebook and Rincewind has to do the interpreting for him as Twoflower is said to speak a different language but at some point that seems to be no longer the case. Then there is the little slip up with the name change for one of the characters we meet in the Wyrmberg from Liessa to Lianna (p168).
To me it just seems that we are just filling the time by introducing a variety of characters that will (probably) return in later books. There seems to be no real point to any of it. I was quite disappointed at the end of it, especially since I have read other Discworld books and enjoyed them.
For those who ware interested, the colour of magic is Purple. Do with that what you will.
Title: The Colour of Magic
Author: Terry Pratchett
238 pages
Corgi Books
ISBN# 0-552-12475-3
Books to be read: 146
Sunday 24 November 2013
Round and round and round it goes
Yesterday was a day of relative activity so today I have decided to take it easy. Did a bit of food shopping earlier so if I do decided I don't want to go out any more I won't starve. I have some snacky bits, a bottle of wine and plenty of books to read.... what could possible go wrong?!
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Fourth Protocol - Frederic Forsyth
I liked this one. It has a good pace and a story line that goes round one way then another with plenty of red herrings in the process. The body count is moderate but some of the stuff that happens is a bit underworldly gruesome. To balance it out Forsyth has created a perfectly likable character in John Preston who is a dogged investigator who is disliked by one of his superiors but turns out to be the man of the moment in the end. I have to say that none of the characters in this novel have a lot of depth but with the pace at which the story moves that is not a bad thing. Deep personal development and man's motive to change the world would just get in the way of the story.
What it kind of boils down to is that it seems that the naughty Russian have infiltrated the British Labour Party to the core and are planning a revolution. In order to get the public to sympathise more with the Labour Party they plan an event that will devastate England, shift the blame squarely on the Conservatives so that Labour will ride to the rescue of the nation in the next elections. The plan is tricky and risky and it will take some of England's finest to stop it. This brings us to John Preston. He is a man stuck in an MI5 job he does not like only to get shifted to a job he likes even less. He keeps stumbling on little things that just do not seem quite right and reports them to his bosses only to have them hushed up. Fortunately for him the good people of MI6 seems to be very interested in what he has to say and this makes sure that Preston is able to remain involved in the investigation into what the Russians are planning. Preston seems to be clutching at straws some of the time but through his persistence manages to get his man, track him down to his hide out and prevent large scale disaster.
One thing i liked about the book was that apart from John Preston doing his investigating and saving the world bit you also get to see what is going on in Russia with those that set the plan in motion. The suggestion that the Russians have spent literally decades infiltrating the English political landscape and plan to overthrow it from the inside out is mind boggling. Not as mind boggling as the fact that it is orchestrated by an former Brit who defected to the USSR. Mr Philby has a pigeon that is pining for some good old British corn to pick at. The plan that they come up with in the end seems almost to crazy for words but so crazy that it might just work. When reading about the meetings and the plan you also get an idea of how Russia was ruled and in what kind of atmosphere and society the idea is born. No-one trusts anyone and every single communist idea seems well and truly overthrown... yet.... they must persist and spread the Russian ideology. At times life inside Forsyth's Russia seems to be the breeding ground for defeatism more than communism and dreariness surrounds everyone's life.
Another thing I liked was that the story does twist and turn and keeps the true motives of some of the main players hidden until the end. There are agents, double agents, people who are not who they seem to be, undercover operatives, true patriots and pretend patriots and each of them have their own motives for doing what they do. It all makes for a divers gang of characters who operate in the shadowy world of espionage. When the plan to send Britain into a revolution is set in motion it seems that nothing can stop it but.. maybe that is not entirely true. There seems to be one who may be able to, but it all depends on just how much drink he can handle. In the end the British intelligence services save the day. However, how much of this was achieved by themselves and how much help really did come from the Russians directly? In the end the book does leave you questioning who is pulling whose strings, who betrayed who and who knew. Did Russia beat the British or did the British strike the final blow?
All in all... low on character development but a fast paced read with lots of things happening on the main stage and in the wings.
Title: The Fourth Protocol
Author: Frederic Forsyth
526 pages
Corgi Books
ISBN# 0-552-12569-5
Books to be read: 147
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Fourth Protocol - Frederic Forsyth
I liked this one. It has a good pace and a story line that goes round one way then another with plenty of red herrings in the process. The body count is moderate but some of the stuff that happens is a bit underworldly gruesome. To balance it out Forsyth has created a perfectly likable character in John Preston who is a dogged investigator who is disliked by one of his superiors but turns out to be the man of the moment in the end. I have to say that none of the characters in this novel have a lot of depth but with the pace at which the story moves that is not a bad thing. Deep personal development and man's motive to change the world would just get in the way of the story.
What it kind of boils down to is that it seems that the naughty Russian have infiltrated the British Labour Party to the core and are planning a revolution. In order to get the public to sympathise more with the Labour Party they plan an event that will devastate England, shift the blame squarely on the Conservatives so that Labour will ride to the rescue of the nation in the next elections. The plan is tricky and risky and it will take some of England's finest to stop it. This brings us to John Preston. He is a man stuck in an MI5 job he does not like only to get shifted to a job he likes even less. He keeps stumbling on little things that just do not seem quite right and reports them to his bosses only to have them hushed up. Fortunately for him the good people of MI6 seems to be very interested in what he has to say and this makes sure that Preston is able to remain involved in the investigation into what the Russians are planning. Preston seems to be clutching at straws some of the time but through his persistence manages to get his man, track him down to his hide out and prevent large scale disaster.
One thing i liked about the book was that apart from John Preston doing his investigating and saving the world bit you also get to see what is going on in Russia with those that set the plan in motion. The suggestion that the Russians have spent literally decades infiltrating the English political landscape and plan to overthrow it from the inside out is mind boggling. Not as mind boggling as the fact that it is orchestrated by an former Brit who defected to the USSR. Mr Philby has a pigeon that is pining for some good old British corn to pick at. The plan that they come up with in the end seems almost to crazy for words but so crazy that it might just work. When reading about the meetings and the plan you also get an idea of how Russia was ruled and in what kind of atmosphere and society the idea is born. No-one trusts anyone and every single communist idea seems well and truly overthrown... yet.... they must persist and spread the Russian ideology. At times life inside Forsyth's Russia seems to be the breeding ground for defeatism more than communism and dreariness surrounds everyone's life.
Another thing I liked was that the story does twist and turn and keeps the true motives of some of the main players hidden until the end. There are agents, double agents, people who are not who they seem to be, undercover operatives, true patriots and pretend patriots and each of them have their own motives for doing what they do. It all makes for a divers gang of characters who operate in the shadowy world of espionage. When the plan to send Britain into a revolution is set in motion it seems that nothing can stop it but.. maybe that is not entirely true. There seems to be one who may be able to, but it all depends on just how much drink he can handle. In the end the British intelligence services save the day. However, how much of this was achieved by themselves and how much help really did come from the Russians directly? In the end the book does leave you questioning who is pulling whose strings, who betrayed who and who knew. Did Russia beat the British or did the British strike the final blow?
All in all... low on character development but a fast paced read with lots of things happening on the main stage and in the wings.
Title: The Fourth Protocol
Author: Frederic Forsyth
526 pages
Corgi Books
ISBN# 0-552-12569-5
Books to be read: 147
Thursday 21 November 2013
No time like the present
In my youthful innocence I thought that being off would give me more time to read and do the reviews. It has definitely given me more time to read but the whole review writing thing seems to have fallen at the wayside somewhat at times. I just finished a big catch up and if I am not careful I am going to end up in a back log again. I could say that it is not my fault that Forsyth has such a fierce pace in his book that it is taking me no time at all to get through it but to be honest I finished the last book last Sunday so there have been a few days I could have done the review for it. Anyhoo... one more resolution made to keep up and one more review to do so off we go. I'll be able to get this one done just before I finish my other book later today!
No spoilers needed
The Book of Prophecy - Geoffrey Ashe
I am not happy with this one! I had high hopes for it and it kind of let me down.
It confused me a lot and it seems to be a book that sets out what is NOT a prophecy rather then what is.
There are some bits that are really interesting and fun to read but the bulk of it just sort of trudged on through what was said to be a prophecy at the start of the chapter only to turn out not to be a prophecy by the end of the chapter. Once you get used to that disappointment it is actually kind of refreshing that he spends quite sometime going through the predictions made by Nostradamus and tells you what they refer to, how they work and how they cluster around a certain series of events.
One thing I fond particularly annoying is how he comes to chapter six, mentions a "groundbreaking prophetic author" called St Hildegard of Bingen and devotes all of one paragraph to her.... Well Mr Ashe if she is so important why don't you tell me a bit more about her, give me some examples of what she wrote and discuss them? Maybe he is just whetting my interest in her and thinks that by just mentioning her I will be interested enough to go and find out more about here and possibly buy a book about just her... he is right, I will! but I am not happy with him just dismissing her like that.
Something else that rankled me was that he seems to contradict himself when he attempts to explain how he thinks prophecy works. He does no believe that it is the person in the past who has seen ahead into the future so to say. He instead suggests that it is "as if" something from the future has come back to inspire the prophesying author. Someone is whispering in the ears of certain people, they pick it up write it down to the best of their understanding and voila... prophecy born! What confused me is that he seems to be saying that man cannot look ahead into the future as it is not set and does not exist yet for the person allegedly receiving the prophecy. Yet at the same time he seems to believe that there is a possibility that people send thoughts, images and ideas back through time - from the future into the past. Well what future are you talking about Mr Ashe? The one that you just told me that cannot exist?
All in all I found it a frustrating read. It seems to build up certain writings as being prophetic only to then go... well, actually no, you see because it was a) open to multiple interpretation, b) written after the fact it says to foretell or c) just plain nonsense.
I suggest that if you buy it you read the chapters about Nostradamus (8 and 9) and the one about Dante and Milton (11) and possibly 13 as they are the best ones.
Title: The Book of Prophecy
Author: Geoffrey Ashe
312 pages (excl notes)
Orion
ISBN# 0-75284-847-X
Books to be read: 148
No spoilers needed
The Book of Prophecy - Geoffrey Ashe
I am not happy with this one! I had high hopes for it and it kind of let me down.
It confused me a lot and it seems to be a book that sets out what is NOT a prophecy rather then what is.
There are some bits that are really interesting and fun to read but the bulk of it just sort of trudged on through what was said to be a prophecy at the start of the chapter only to turn out not to be a prophecy by the end of the chapter. Once you get used to that disappointment it is actually kind of refreshing that he spends quite sometime going through the predictions made by Nostradamus and tells you what they refer to, how they work and how they cluster around a certain series of events.
One thing I fond particularly annoying is how he comes to chapter six, mentions a "groundbreaking prophetic author" called St Hildegard of Bingen and devotes all of one paragraph to her.... Well Mr Ashe if she is so important why don't you tell me a bit more about her, give me some examples of what she wrote and discuss them? Maybe he is just whetting my interest in her and thinks that by just mentioning her I will be interested enough to go and find out more about here and possibly buy a book about just her... he is right, I will! but I am not happy with him just dismissing her like that.
Something else that rankled me was that he seems to contradict himself when he attempts to explain how he thinks prophecy works. He does no believe that it is the person in the past who has seen ahead into the future so to say. He instead suggests that it is "as if" something from the future has come back to inspire the prophesying author. Someone is whispering in the ears of certain people, they pick it up write it down to the best of their understanding and voila... prophecy born! What confused me is that he seems to be saying that man cannot look ahead into the future as it is not set and does not exist yet for the person allegedly receiving the prophecy. Yet at the same time he seems to believe that there is a possibility that people send thoughts, images and ideas back through time - from the future into the past. Well what future are you talking about Mr Ashe? The one that you just told me that cannot exist?
All in all I found it a frustrating read. It seems to build up certain writings as being prophetic only to then go... well, actually no, you see because it was a) open to multiple interpretation, b) written after the fact it says to foretell or c) just plain nonsense.
I suggest that if you buy it you read the chapters about Nostradamus (8 and 9) and the one about Dante and Milton (11) and possibly 13 as they are the best ones.
Title: The Book of Prophecy
Author: Geoffrey Ashe
312 pages (excl notes)
Orion
ISBN# 0-75284-847-X
Books to be read: 148
Monday 18 November 2013
Dental stress
I have to admit that I have bought another 2 books.
In my defence is was a compensation buy to ease the stress brought on to my first visit to the dentist in 10 years. I had a bit break one of my teeth so really had no choice but to go and see a dentist. I had been quite skillful over the years in avoiding it but as I did not want things to get worse I had to bite the bullet (pun intended). Now I have actually had the first visit it turns out that things are not as bad as I thought they might have been. I have to have another visit to see if the dentist can fit a new filling where it has broken off, get a scale and polish done and another xray of one of my teeth as there may be an issue with it but.... apart from that it was not too scary. Hopefully the new filling will be okay for a while at least otherwise we may need to consider other options.... and they may involve more drastic measures.
Now, back to the books.
The one I am reading now is proving to be a bit of a challenge and is taking me a long time to get through. Only about 30 pages to go now so hope to finish it soon and get on to a more interesting one.
Further news, I have a new job which will start on 2 December! Well done me! Might have to treat myself to something nice...
Books to be read: 149
Thursday 7 November 2013
4 in 1
Sorry, but I had to stop for a little lunch there..... was absolutely starving.
So.... This is the final one left to review and it is a corker!
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Hearts in Atlantis - Stephen King
I loved this one! It is not one but four stories that are all connected because of the people involved. At the end of all of it I kind of got the feeling that there was some over arching meaning to all the stories and that there was some kind of philosophy or moral on life in there somewhere but I feel like I never quite got there completely but this is what I did get: There are themes of friendship, of guilt, of strength and madness in numbers, about being able to do more than humanly possible against all the odds, there is loss and love and great courage. Later on there is the loss of a familiar life to be exchanged for one in which you have to face the horrors of war and the effects of the war of those involved in it. It seems that in every situation there are those who put themselves in it and those who stand on the sidelines.
In the first story we meet Bobby Garfield, his mum and Bobby's friends Carol Ann and S-J. We also get to know a bit about the bully boys in the area and about what the average American kid gets up to on his time off from school. And... we meet Ted! Ted is great, I actually want a Ted in my life. He talks books and he knows his stuff!!! Shame he seems to be some kind of alien. Bobby does not have an easy life with his mum. she is bitter towards his dead father, she is tight with money and generally busy trying to make a career. Yet she also seem very tragic. She has managed to get herself into a situation that she is not sure she can get out of and she ends up getting really hurt, mentally and physically. The best thing in this story is the relationship between Ted and Bobby. Ted seems to be hiding from low men and he drafts in Bobby to keep a look out for them. But, Ted is not all that he seems he can do some weird stuff and he talks about some weird stuff as well. Bobby kind of doesn't believe in all the stuff Ted tells him but decides to go along with it anyway. Some of the highlights from this story are the scene where Carol Ann gets hurt and the aftermath of it, the visit to the pool hall by Ted and Bobby and Bobby trying to save Ted.
In the second story we lose sight of Bobby but not of Carol Ann. She turns up as the long distance girlfriend of S-J and the closer by girlfriend of Pete who is the main character of the next story. Pete is trying to make things work at university but he seems to be quite fond of cards and gets distracted by that quite a bit.. then he gets distracted by Carol Ann. Whilst Pete is trying not to flunk out of all his classes Carol Ann is becoming involved with the protests against the Vietnam war. She is not quite sure why but she knows it has something to do with a boy she knew when she was younger, Bobby. He did something and did something marvellous, he did not stand idly by and watch it happen. He took action. Apart from a few protests at uni and the incident with the guy with the crutches it seems that not a lot happens in this story apart form the fact the battle lines are drawn even in uni at who is pro and anti war.
Then we get to the next story. I have to be honest.... I did not quite know what to make of this one. It is about a guy who turns out to be one of the boys who hurt Carol Ann called William Shearman. He seems to have created some convoluted life for himself where he pretends to have an office and a successful job but actually begs for money on street corners and he is quite good at it. Initially it looks like he pretends to be blind but then actually seems to be bind for a certain number of hours a day. Not sure how that one works? The main thing that seems to occupy Mr Sherman's mind is how to atone for the pain he caused when he was little. It is like he thinks that his actions in the past turned Carol Ann into who she became and that him getting her hurt is what made her a anti war protester, and that is it what got her killed. If only he knew...
In the next tale we meet S-J again, or as he is actually known, John Sullivan. He's all grown up and is off to attend a funeral of one of the guys he served with in Vietnam. Turns out he also met our Mr Shearman there again so it links nicely back to the previous story. He also met some friends of our boy Pete and it is good to see that the worse ones turned out no better than I expected. When at the funeral he gets talking to one of his old friends and they reminisce about the war. However, Mr Sullivan has his own mementos of the war. He has a little old lady that travels with him and seems to remind him every so often of the pain a hurt the American soldiers caused her and her fellow villagers. Sullivan has his own demons to fight in the shape of his personal ghost. However, S-J seems to have done okay after the war. Successful car dealer and plenty of money in the bank. Again... I am not sure of the point to this story as Mr Sullivan dies whilst sitting in his car in a traffic jam. Maybe we are just seeing another way of someone coping with the fall out of the Vietnam war?
In the final tale we meet both Bobby and Carol again as they attend S-J's funeral. Seems that Carol did not die as we all thought. she has a new identity and is now a teacher. Bobby seems to have ended up in a good enough place having become a carpenter and has a little stroll down memory lane. The thing that links it all back to the first story is that Bobby gets hold again of his old baseball glove which was taken by Willie Shearman. And where did they find the glove???... on John Sullivan's hand in the car in the traffic jam where he died.
I enjoyed these stories a lot. They are well structured and have a good pace to them. The Vietnam war is an undercurrent in the tales and that makes them a bit grim at times, like some of the characters. I like most of the people in he book but there are quite a few of them so at times it was hard trying to keep track of who was where at what time. I remember reading the one about Shearman and thinking I have heard this name before... but was it the last one or the one before that? There are lots of nice characters in the stories and King lets the main ones develop nicely so you get to know and like them. What I really like is that at the end of it you get to see how both Bobby and Carol Ann have fared in life. It is rewarding as you have invested quite a bit of time and went through a lot with them in the first tale.
Title: Hearts in Atlantis
Author: Stephen King
619 pages
NEL / Hodder & Stoughton
ISBN# 0-340-73891-X
Books to be read: 147
And now.... I am off to do some food shopping and then to pick another book!!!!
So.... This is the final one left to review and it is a corker!
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Hearts in Atlantis - Stephen King
I loved this one! It is not one but four stories that are all connected because of the people involved. At the end of all of it I kind of got the feeling that there was some over arching meaning to all the stories and that there was some kind of philosophy or moral on life in there somewhere but I feel like I never quite got there completely but this is what I did get: There are themes of friendship, of guilt, of strength and madness in numbers, about being able to do more than humanly possible against all the odds, there is loss and love and great courage. Later on there is the loss of a familiar life to be exchanged for one in which you have to face the horrors of war and the effects of the war of those involved in it. It seems that in every situation there are those who put themselves in it and those who stand on the sidelines.
In the first story we meet Bobby Garfield, his mum and Bobby's friends Carol Ann and S-J. We also get to know a bit about the bully boys in the area and about what the average American kid gets up to on his time off from school. And... we meet Ted! Ted is great, I actually want a Ted in my life. He talks books and he knows his stuff!!! Shame he seems to be some kind of alien. Bobby does not have an easy life with his mum. she is bitter towards his dead father, she is tight with money and generally busy trying to make a career. Yet she also seem very tragic. She has managed to get herself into a situation that she is not sure she can get out of and she ends up getting really hurt, mentally and physically. The best thing in this story is the relationship between Ted and Bobby. Ted seems to be hiding from low men and he drafts in Bobby to keep a look out for them. But, Ted is not all that he seems he can do some weird stuff and he talks about some weird stuff as well. Bobby kind of doesn't believe in all the stuff Ted tells him but decides to go along with it anyway. Some of the highlights from this story are the scene where Carol Ann gets hurt and the aftermath of it, the visit to the pool hall by Ted and Bobby and Bobby trying to save Ted.
In the second story we lose sight of Bobby but not of Carol Ann. She turns up as the long distance girlfriend of S-J and the closer by girlfriend of Pete who is the main character of the next story. Pete is trying to make things work at university but he seems to be quite fond of cards and gets distracted by that quite a bit.. then he gets distracted by Carol Ann. Whilst Pete is trying not to flunk out of all his classes Carol Ann is becoming involved with the protests against the Vietnam war. She is not quite sure why but she knows it has something to do with a boy she knew when she was younger, Bobby. He did something and did something marvellous, he did not stand idly by and watch it happen. He took action. Apart from a few protests at uni and the incident with the guy with the crutches it seems that not a lot happens in this story apart form the fact the battle lines are drawn even in uni at who is pro and anti war.
Then we get to the next story. I have to be honest.... I did not quite know what to make of this one. It is about a guy who turns out to be one of the boys who hurt Carol Ann called William Shearman. He seems to have created some convoluted life for himself where he pretends to have an office and a successful job but actually begs for money on street corners and he is quite good at it. Initially it looks like he pretends to be blind but then actually seems to be bind for a certain number of hours a day. Not sure how that one works? The main thing that seems to occupy Mr Sherman's mind is how to atone for the pain he caused when he was little. It is like he thinks that his actions in the past turned Carol Ann into who she became and that him getting her hurt is what made her a anti war protester, and that is it what got her killed. If only he knew...
In the next tale we meet S-J again, or as he is actually known, John Sullivan. He's all grown up and is off to attend a funeral of one of the guys he served with in Vietnam. Turns out he also met our Mr Shearman there again so it links nicely back to the previous story. He also met some friends of our boy Pete and it is good to see that the worse ones turned out no better than I expected. When at the funeral he gets talking to one of his old friends and they reminisce about the war. However, Mr Sullivan has his own mementos of the war. He has a little old lady that travels with him and seems to remind him every so often of the pain a hurt the American soldiers caused her and her fellow villagers. Sullivan has his own demons to fight in the shape of his personal ghost. However, S-J seems to have done okay after the war. Successful car dealer and plenty of money in the bank. Again... I am not sure of the point to this story as Mr Sullivan dies whilst sitting in his car in a traffic jam. Maybe we are just seeing another way of someone coping with the fall out of the Vietnam war?
In the final tale we meet both Bobby and Carol again as they attend S-J's funeral. Seems that Carol did not die as we all thought. she has a new identity and is now a teacher. Bobby seems to have ended up in a good enough place having become a carpenter and has a little stroll down memory lane. The thing that links it all back to the first story is that Bobby gets hold again of his old baseball glove which was taken by Willie Shearman. And where did they find the glove???... on John Sullivan's hand in the car in the traffic jam where he died.
I enjoyed these stories a lot. They are well structured and have a good pace to them. The Vietnam war is an undercurrent in the tales and that makes them a bit grim at times, like some of the characters. I like most of the people in he book but there are quite a few of them so at times it was hard trying to keep track of who was where at what time. I remember reading the one about Shearman and thinking I have heard this name before... but was it the last one or the one before that? There are lots of nice characters in the stories and King lets the main ones develop nicely so you get to know and like them. What I really like is that at the end of it you get to see how both Bobby and Carol Ann have fared in life. It is rewarding as you have invested quite a bit of time and went through a lot with them in the first tale.
Title: Hearts in Atlantis
Author: Stephen King
619 pages
NEL / Hodder & Stoughton
ISBN# 0-340-73891-X
Books to be read: 147
And now.... I am off to do some food shopping and then to pick another book!!!!
An unlikely tale
From ghostly goings on to a more realistic threat.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Lost World - Michael Crighton
Let me start of with the stuff that kind of confused and annoyed me in this one:
1. Why is Dr Malcolm so dismissive of the existence of prehistoric animals when he has been to a place where he has seen them for himself?
2. Why does Mr Levine seem to have a personality transplant at the end of the book and turns from Action Man into a snivelling bag of nerves?
3. Why it is that you can almost tell from the start of the book which characters are going to survive? No effort is wasted on developing a character that does not make it to the end! That's efficient writing.
I know, it almost sounds like I did not enjoy this one much. But I did. I find it strangely hard not to enjoy a Crighton book. He has a great pace, entertaining characters that are very likable (although essentially stereotypes). there is lots and lots of action in it. People are dying all over the place and at one point it seemed like no-one was going to make it to the end of the book.
The relatively simple underlying story is that of group A (goodies) trying to discover if dinosaurs still exist for science's sake and group B (the baddies) trying to get to the same place but for purely personal gain. Inter weaved in all this is a bit of semi-scientific babble about extinction theories and how we can learn from observing nature but there is still much we only observe and cannot explain. The story has a few twists and turns. Some are surprising, some are not.
Malcolm and Levine meet over a lecture where Malcolm belittles Levine's ideas. You would think that might be the end of it but no. Even though they do not seem to hit it off at all Malcolm is intrigued by the ideas that Levine has and the two men start working together on looking at the possibilities of ancient life having survived in certain places on earth. Seems they are not the only ones and our boys have to go covert ops to ensure their work stays safe. They even goes as far as to engage the help of a couple of young kids to throw the people watching them off the trail. Mind you, these are not your average kids (well... they wouldn't be would they). They are kids of the extra smart variety. After some ducking and diving Levine thinks he knows where to go and tries to be a hero. Naturally he seems to get himself in to trouble and the rescue mission is mounted. Malcolm and his crack team set of after Levine. There is the clever yet practical Mr Thorne and the expendable Eddie. They have been busy preparing vehicles and equipment for the expedition and now all their snazzy inventions are going to be put to the test. The stowaway kids are Arby and Kelly. They hide in one of the vehicles as they do not want to miss out on the field trip. Both Arby and Kelly serve a purpose of some kind as they both save the day when it matters most to those around them. Naturally there is a kind of a love interest for the put upon Dr Malcolm and she comes in the shape of the very capable Dr Sarah Harding. She is way to amazingly competent and she wanders onto the stage like and Amazon with a degree. She also ends up saving just about everyone... at least once. when they are on the island there is all sorts of mayhem. There are raging dinosaurs (caused by the opposition, up to a point), we have broken down vehicles, boys in cages and up in hides, girls hiding in and underneath cars and did I mention the really pissed off dinosaurs? At on point it seems we are averaging about a corpse a chapter but not to worry it is not all doom and gloom. It is a thrilling roller coaster ride of a story and it hurtles it's way towards and ending that is strangely fitting ad comforting. All the bad guys lose, all the good guys win and the dinosaurs sort of win too.
Title: The Lost World
Author: Michael Crighton
393 pages
Century
ISBN# 0-7126-76902
Books to be read: 148
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Lost World - Michael Crighton
Let me start of with the stuff that kind of confused and annoyed me in this one:
1. Why is Dr Malcolm so dismissive of the existence of prehistoric animals when he has been to a place where he has seen them for himself?
2. Why does Mr Levine seem to have a personality transplant at the end of the book and turns from Action Man into a snivelling bag of nerves?
3. Why it is that you can almost tell from the start of the book which characters are going to survive? No effort is wasted on developing a character that does not make it to the end! That's efficient writing.
I know, it almost sounds like I did not enjoy this one much. But I did. I find it strangely hard not to enjoy a Crighton book. He has a great pace, entertaining characters that are very likable (although essentially stereotypes). there is lots and lots of action in it. People are dying all over the place and at one point it seemed like no-one was going to make it to the end of the book.
The relatively simple underlying story is that of group A (goodies) trying to discover if dinosaurs still exist for science's sake and group B (the baddies) trying to get to the same place but for purely personal gain. Inter weaved in all this is a bit of semi-scientific babble about extinction theories and how we can learn from observing nature but there is still much we only observe and cannot explain. The story has a few twists and turns. Some are surprising, some are not.
Malcolm and Levine meet over a lecture where Malcolm belittles Levine's ideas. You would think that might be the end of it but no. Even though they do not seem to hit it off at all Malcolm is intrigued by the ideas that Levine has and the two men start working together on looking at the possibilities of ancient life having survived in certain places on earth. Seems they are not the only ones and our boys have to go covert ops to ensure their work stays safe. They even goes as far as to engage the help of a couple of young kids to throw the people watching them off the trail. Mind you, these are not your average kids (well... they wouldn't be would they). They are kids of the extra smart variety. After some ducking and diving Levine thinks he knows where to go and tries to be a hero. Naturally he seems to get himself in to trouble and the rescue mission is mounted. Malcolm and his crack team set of after Levine. There is the clever yet practical Mr Thorne and the expendable Eddie. They have been busy preparing vehicles and equipment for the expedition and now all their snazzy inventions are going to be put to the test. The stowaway kids are Arby and Kelly. They hide in one of the vehicles as they do not want to miss out on the field trip. Both Arby and Kelly serve a purpose of some kind as they both save the day when it matters most to those around them. Naturally there is a kind of a love interest for the put upon Dr Malcolm and she comes in the shape of the very capable Dr Sarah Harding. She is way to amazingly competent and she wanders onto the stage like and Amazon with a degree. She also ends up saving just about everyone... at least once. when they are on the island there is all sorts of mayhem. There are raging dinosaurs (caused by the opposition, up to a point), we have broken down vehicles, boys in cages and up in hides, girls hiding in and underneath cars and did I mention the really pissed off dinosaurs? At on point it seems we are averaging about a corpse a chapter but not to worry it is not all doom and gloom. It is a thrilling roller coaster ride of a story and it hurtles it's way towards and ending that is strangely fitting ad comforting. All the bad guys lose, all the good guys win and the dinosaurs sort of win too.
Title: The Lost World
Author: Michael Crighton
393 pages
Century
ISBN# 0-7126-76902
Books to be read: 148
Post Halloween reading
My mission for today is to finish all the outstanding reviews. I shall not leave this perch before I have achieved this!! As I only had one piece of toast for breakfast an hour ago and am already getting hungry again I had best get on with it. Oh... and I might have a coffee break. But apart from that: Full steam ahead!
Not sure this one requires a spoiler alert. Perhaps for those wishing to avoid haunted places in Warwickshire but I am pretty sure that is only a relatively small group of people and probably most of them will not be reading this blog so onwards we go.
Haunted Warwickshire - Meg Elizabeth Atkins
This one reminded me again of why I love Ghost story books! It is a lovely little collection of places in Warwickshire that are reputedly haunted.
The book lists all he towns, villages that are haunted, tells you what to look out for and how the haunting came about if known. I do not plan to go through every one of them individually. There are stories about floating lights, ghost appearing on the anniversary of their deaths, cruel knights, hard done by maidens, black dogs, battle being re-enacted, horseless coaches and... my personal favourite, wandering nuns. It seems that in Southam someone actually tried to convince a court that a ghost had committed murder. Seems like a good defence to me and I am sure that some high powered lawyer will use it in court before long. the ones that wold really freak me out are where the resident ghost goes and moves tings in your house. Imagine losing something for a number of days and then finding it again in the exact place you left it several days later... even if you have looked there previously! In short, there are lots of lovely tales and hauntings in this one. Atkins dresses it all up nicely by tying in the ghost with the local folklore or legend and it makes for some very pleasant reading. It seems that very often a haunting is shown to relate to someone who used to live at a place or near it. At times ghosts wander or appear because of unresolved issues or perhaps just to remind us of what happened to them and to ensure it does not happen again.
The only negative - my book was missing pages 161-176 so it stopped mid story... very annoying. If anyone happens to find my missing pages please let me know so I can know what happened to the bell in Whitnash.
PS: if you do not want to end up getting ritualistically slain and your murder going unsolved please be sure to avoid both Fenny Compton and Meon Hill.
Title: Haunted Warwickshire
Author: Meg Elizabeth Atkins
180 pages
Hale
ISBN# 0-7091-9131-6
Books to be read: 149
Not sure this one requires a spoiler alert. Perhaps for those wishing to avoid haunted places in Warwickshire but I am pretty sure that is only a relatively small group of people and probably most of them will not be reading this blog so onwards we go.
Haunted Warwickshire - Meg Elizabeth Atkins
This one reminded me again of why I love Ghost story books! It is a lovely little collection of places in Warwickshire that are reputedly haunted.
The book lists all he towns, villages that are haunted, tells you what to look out for and how the haunting came about if known. I do not plan to go through every one of them individually. There are stories about floating lights, ghost appearing on the anniversary of their deaths, cruel knights, hard done by maidens, black dogs, battle being re-enacted, horseless coaches and... my personal favourite, wandering nuns. It seems that in Southam someone actually tried to convince a court that a ghost had committed murder. Seems like a good defence to me and I am sure that some high powered lawyer will use it in court before long. the ones that wold really freak me out are where the resident ghost goes and moves tings in your house. Imagine losing something for a number of days and then finding it again in the exact place you left it several days later... even if you have looked there previously! In short, there are lots of lovely tales and hauntings in this one. Atkins dresses it all up nicely by tying in the ghost with the local folklore or legend and it makes for some very pleasant reading. It seems that very often a haunting is shown to relate to someone who used to live at a place or near it. At times ghosts wander or appear because of unresolved issues or perhaps just to remind us of what happened to them and to ensure it does not happen again.
The only negative - my book was missing pages 161-176 so it stopped mid story... very annoying. If anyone happens to find my missing pages please let me know so I can know what happened to the bell in Whitnash.
PS: if you do not want to end up getting ritualistically slain and your murder going unsolved please be sure to avoid both Fenny Compton and Meon Hill.
Title: Haunted Warwickshire
Author: Meg Elizabeth Atkins
180 pages
Hale
ISBN# 0-7091-9131-6
Books to be read: 149
Wednesday 6 November 2013
Full steam ahead on a miserable day
As today is starting to develop into a poor man's version of Singing in the Rain (the rain without the singing) I decided that it is time for another review.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
I Capture the Castle - Dodie Smith
I thought this was going to be about a girl who was going to capture a castle so was imagining all kinds of bloody battles, heart wrenching deaths and screams in the night. Turns out there is a whole other meaning of the word captured I had not considered so I got a different story to the one I thought I was going to get. But, that was not necessarily a bad thing. The kind of capturing that Cassandra is doing is describing the people who live with her in the castle and it makes for a good read. In order to capture everyone she has her note books and has learnt speed writing. Often events are interrupted because she has to do something or she runs out of natural light to write by. It is not really a diary but it does chronicle part of Cassandra's life.
What we have here is a family that is down at heel and living in a castle that the father seems to have bought on a whim. When he was still trading on his good name and making a living as a writer that was all very well and good. But after the incident with the cake knife and a spell in prison all his inspiration seems to have gone and even marrying a young talented model has not turned his fortunes around. The new wife, Topaz is suitably dramatic and ethereal.. and a bit useless at facing reality. But she has managed to keep the kids in clothes and food so she must be quite resourceful too. There are the children, Rose, Cassandra and young Thomas. Thomas is still at school and you get the feeling that he will be alright whatever happens to the rest of the family. Then there are the two girls. I have to be honest and say that both of them got on my nerves at times. Which was a shame as one of them was the narrator of the story and the other has a major part to play in the main events in the book. Rose is this kind of floaty, unfocused, spoilt and lazy kind of girl who does not seem to do anything useful with her day whatsoever. Then there is Cassandra who seems to be a bit more practically oriented and thinks about food and clothing and the future and how things will fare for them if father does not produce a book any time soon.
Both girls seem to have an highly romanticised idea of how to behave around men and generally seem to be a bit out of ouch with reality. I remember thinking at one point that they almost seemed like the characters in Pride and Prejudice.One sister dreamily pretty and perhaps a bit too distantly dramatic for her own good and the other one a practical tomboy. Maybe that is what living in a castle does to you?
Anyway.... the girls seem to be destined for the poorhouse but lo and behold there on the horizon in their iron steed arrive two handsome men. the fact that they happen to own the deed to the castle and therefore the potential happiness of the entire family is just a happy coincidence. Simon and Neil seem not sure what to make of the girls at first but they strike up a friendship and especially Simon seems to be interested to see if he can help the family improve their fortunes. Rose is chosen to be the object of his affections but throughout the story you are never really sure if she actually likes or loves him. Cassandra is infatuated with Simon but is doing the noble thing and standing aside as Simon has selected Rose as the object of his desire. Although I have to say his heart does not always seem to be in it from the start and he seems to have more in common with Cassandra. But... Rose is the pretty one and they always get the guy! Cassandra has an admirer though but she is not interested in him at all. She tries to treat him fairly in her own sweet way but the lad never has a chance. It is really sweet how Stephen tries to win her over or at least make her notice him. But is all comes to nothing. He comes to something though and goes off to London to pursue a movie career.
And as for Rose... well, it turns out she does not really fancy Simon that much in the end and she runs of with Neil... at least this keeps it in the family though and all the money on her precious trousseau seems not to be entirely wasted.
One of the most fun bits of the book is when Cassandra and Thomas decided that it time to take some drastic measures to get their father back on the writing track again. This is when you can really tell they are really just kids with the naive and innocent ideas that children have. Cassandra decides that in order for her father to get back to writing he just has to be in a place where there are no distractions. With the help of her brother they lock him in the bottom of the tower of the castle, give him some food and lost of paper and tell him to get on with it. Interestingly enough he does!! By now you know enough of the dad to know that the book will probably be another one destined for the sales bin two weeks after it is published and it will have a high ranking in the "most obscure books ever written" list but... if it gets them out of trouble then at least he has done what a breadwinner is supposed to do... provide bread and this he seems to be able to do.
At the end of the book it seems that everyone is slightly better of than they were and peace and harmony is restored to the castle although Casandra still seems somewhat dangerously obsessed with Simon.
Title: I Capture the Castle
Author: Dodie Smith
410 pages
Red Fox
ISBN# 0-09-984500-8
Books to be read: 150
Promises promises...
I have once more sat down to try and end this stacking up of read books. Most likely this has something to do with the fact that I have told myself that I am not allowed to start reading another book until I have done the reviews for the ones I have finished... and that have been finished for some time now.
Now that I have finished my jigsaw and have seriously fallen out with my cryptic crosswords, the only other chore to do is the dusting of the living room and the cleaning of the bathroom I am finding myself strangely well motivated to start the job at hand.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
A Time to Kill - John Grisham
This was the first Grisham novel I have ever read. It was a nice initial encounter and by a happy accident it was also the first novel Grisham ever wrote. It is a good first novel.
The start of the novel almost made me put it away again as it starts with the brutal rape of a little girl, however, bear with Grisham as it does serve its purpose and it does set the scene for what happens afterwards. I think Grisham succeeds very well in getting you to the place that you need to be at to understand what motivates daddy Carl Lee to do what he does. It seems that the expectations that Carl Lee has of his state's justice system are so low that he decides to take the law into his own hands. So, from the start we know who has done what in this one. We know who raped the little girl, we know what her father does to revenge this. At the same time you feel that in the Southern USA things are never quite as simple as they seem to be.
Jake Brigance is the local lawyer that is hired by the accused, Carl Lee. Jake is a young gun, a bit on the ambitious side but underneath he seems to have a good heart and a sharp mind. He has a lovely wife and a little girl and is able to get by pretty well in the little town of Clanton. The place itself seems like a nice enough little town. People seem to get on well enough with one another although I do get the feeling at times that it would not take a lot to set things off!
Jake gets involved in the case early on and he helped by a team of crack assistants.... not really. There is his old mentor and friend Lucien. Lucien has seen the inside of many a whisky bottle but I like him as he seems to what he very damn well pleases. Not to mention he has a keen legal mind and a few bob tucked away to bribe those who do not see things his way. Then we have Harry Rex, Clanton's divorce lawyer who has been taken to the cleaners himself a few times. Also not a stranger to the beer or whisky vendors of the state he is one of the few that decides to help Jake out with the trial and stick with it. Then we also have Ellen... the magical intern that seems to be way too clever for her own good but still a very nice character with it. I am not sue I see the reason for the suggested sexual tension between her and Jake but maybe Grisham just wanted to her to have something else to do but research cases and file away files. the story sure does not need it as there is plenty going on. Together they for Jake's defence team and boy does he need one. I think that even Jake at times does not believe he is going to win this one or even get a draw. What starts out as a local case soon becomes way too big for its boots and ends up drawing in all sorts of opinionated journalists and radicals from all over the South. the black community pulls together and organises protests and collections. Although it takes some doing before Carl Lee and his family get to see any of the money collected for them. The scene where they confront the reverend about the money collected is one of the best ones in the book! Stupidity and sanctimony are strange bedfellows and do not ensure good judgement.
Even the KKK makes an appearance in the little town of Clanton to ensure their side of the story gets attention. They do their usual; wear stupid outfits, incite a few arguments and then stand back, burn a few crosses, point fingers, get fingers broken (Go Ozzie!) and in the end cry off.
Once the trial starts you see that Jake does his best for Carl Lee but at times it really seems that it will all come to nothing. Jake's star witness is reduced to nothing, his best intern gets attacked by the clan, Jake's house gets burned down and everyone seems to become real friendly with the inside of a booze bottle. The more the trial continues the more sorrows are drowned and not talked about. It is a kind of David and Goliath struggle. Jake, the slick, young local lad against the machinery of the state represented by the slick mr Buckley. As a reader you kind of know that Jake will win in the end but from the way the court case goes it seems by no means a dead cert.
In the midst of all of this you do get a very good insight into the workings of law processes and procedures and this is where it sometimes gets a bit lost. It seems to want to tell the tale of one man an his fight against the justice system and it sometimes makes the justice system more the star of the show. I found it a bit hard to sympathise with the Justice System... I had much more sympathy for Carl Lee, Jake and those who worked in it, with it and against it to ensure justice was served.
There were a few things that were strange and annoying. For one, when Ellen gets attacked it is almost as if Jake does not care or does not have time to think about it. She is kind of sidelined and you never hear fro her again.. not even after the trial. then there is the neat little wrapped up present of how the jury reached the decision they did. To be honest I would rather not have known this. It is like getting to see the what happened next that looks really really awful and not in character with the rest of what has happened so far.
The book has a good pace, it sell written, clear and precise. It has great characters in it.. I personally will vote for Lucien if he ever decides to run for mayor! You go through a lot with the main characters and they are a nice lot to spend a good few hours with.
Title: A Time to Kill
author: John Grisham
738 pages
Arrow Books
ISBN# 978-0-099-55816-3
Books to be read: 151
Now that I have finished my jigsaw and have seriously fallen out with my cryptic crosswords, the only other chore to do is the dusting of the living room and the cleaning of the bathroom I am finding myself strangely well motivated to start the job at hand.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
A Time to Kill - John Grisham
This was the first Grisham novel I have ever read. It was a nice initial encounter and by a happy accident it was also the first novel Grisham ever wrote. It is a good first novel.
The start of the novel almost made me put it away again as it starts with the brutal rape of a little girl, however, bear with Grisham as it does serve its purpose and it does set the scene for what happens afterwards. I think Grisham succeeds very well in getting you to the place that you need to be at to understand what motivates daddy Carl Lee to do what he does. It seems that the expectations that Carl Lee has of his state's justice system are so low that he decides to take the law into his own hands. So, from the start we know who has done what in this one. We know who raped the little girl, we know what her father does to revenge this. At the same time you feel that in the Southern USA things are never quite as simple as they seem to be.
Jake Brigance is the local lawyer that is hired by the accused, Carl Lee. Jake is a young gun, a bit on the ambitious side but underneath he seems to have a good heart and a sharp mind. He has a lovely wife and a little girl and is able to get by pretty well in the little town of Clanton. The place itself seems like a nice enough little town. People seem to get on well enough with one another although I do get the feeling at times that it would not take a lot to set things off!
Jake gets involved in the case early on and he helped by a team of crack assistants.... not really. There is his old mentor and friend Lucien. Lucien has seen the inside of many a whisky bottle but I like him as he seems to what he very damn well pleases. Not to mention he has a keen legal mind and a few bob tucked away to bribe those who do not see things his way. Then we have Harry Rex, Clanton's divorce lawyer who has been taken to the cleaners himself a few times. Also not a stranger to the beer or whisky vendors of the state he is one of the few that decides to help Jake out with the trial and stick with it. Then we also have Ellen... the magical intern that seems to be way too clever for her own good but still a very nice character with it. I am not sue I see the reason for the suggested sexual tension between her and Jake but maybe Grisham just wanted to her to have something else to do but research cases and file away files. the story sure does not need it as there is plenty going on. Together they for Jake's defence team and boy does he need one. I think that even Jake at times does not believe he is going to win this one or even get a draw. What starts out as a local case soon becomes way too big for its boots and ends up drawing in all sorts of opinionated journalists and radicals from all over the South. the black community pulls together and organises protests and collections. Although it takes some doing before Carl Lee and his family get to see any of the money collected for them. The scene where they confront the reverend about the money collected is one of the best ones in the book! Stupidity and sanctimony are strange bedfellows and do not ensure good judgement.
Even the KKK makes an appearance in the little town of Clanton to ensure their side of the story gets attention. They do their usual; wear stupid outfits, incite a few arguments and then stand back, burn a few crosses, point fingers, get fingers broken (Go Ozzie!) and in the end cry off.
Once the trial starts you see that Jake does his best for Carl Lee but at times it really seems that it will all come to nothing. Jake's star witness is reduced to nothing, his best intern gets attacked by the clan, Jake's house gets burned down and everyone seems to become real friendly with the inside of a booze bottle. The more the trial continues the more sorrows are drowned and not talked about. It is a kind of David and Goliath struggle. Jake, the slick, young local lad against the machinery of the state represented by the slick mr Buckley. As a reader you kind of know that Jake will win in the end but from the way the court case goes it seems by no means a dead cert.
In the midst of all of this you do get a very good insight into the workings of law processes and procedures and this is where it sometimes gets a bit lost. It seems to want to tell the tale of one man an his fight against the justice system and it sometimes makes the justice system more the star of the show. I found it a bit hard to sympathise with the Justice System... I had much more sympathy for Carl Lee, Jake and those who worked in it, with it and against it to ensure justice was served.
There were a few things that were strange and annoying. For one, when Ellen gets attacked it is almost as if Jake does not care or does not have time to think about it. She is kind of sidelined and you never hear fro her again.. not even after the trial. then there is the neat little wrapped up present of how the jury reached the decision they did. To be honest I would rather not have known this. It is like getting to see the what happened next that looks really really awful and not in character with the rest of what has happened so far.
The book has a good pace, it sell written, clear and precise. It has great characters in it.. I personally will vote for Lucien if he ever decides to run for mayor! You go through a lot with the main characters and they are a nice lot to spend a good few hours with.
Title: A Time to Kill
author: John Grisham
738 pages
Arrow Books
ISBN# 978-0-099-55816-3
Books to be read: 151
Wednesday 30 October 2013
Bits and Pieces
Today was a fairly uneventful day until it got to about 15.00. Then disaster struck.... I chipped a bit of my tooth!! Some of the filling is now exposed and this means I have to finally go and do what I have been putting off for the last 10 years: Make an appointment with the dentist. I have set aside tomorrow to make the dreaded phone call.... Wish me luck.
On the up side. I have not bought any more books! I have given myself a good talking to and have told myself to get the books to be read down before I can buy another one.... or two.... or three
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Best Ghost Stories - Charles Dickens
This was a great collection of ghost stories and this was my first reading of Dickens' most famous one of all, The Christmas Carol. Below is a brief run down of all of the ones in this collection. In true Dickensian style the stories meander on a bit at times but they are suitably gloomy for the dark days before Christmas.
The Queer Chair, the bagman's story
Tom Smart ends up staying overnight in a local inn. He rather likes the look of the landlady but she only has eyes for another man. Fortunately for Tom he has some lively and very chatty furniture in his room that advises him on how to win the lovely lady over.
A Madman's Manuscript
Kind of does what it says on the tin. There is a madman who manages to hide his madness long enough to marry a lovely girl who is really in love with someone else. He drives her mad before he unravels himself. the lady then comes and keeps him company in his cell.
The Goblins who stole a Sexton
On Christmas Eve the sexton, Gabriel decides that he wants to get ahead of the game and finish of a grave. some goblins show up and remind him to stop being a grump and teach him to be more cheerful. Gabriel then decides that he needs to explore new horizons to be truly happy and cheery but returns to the village an old and happier man in the end.
The Ghosts of the Mail, the story of the bagman's uncle
This one rambles on a bit but is still fairly entertaining. A man has a little nap on a closed lot of a wheelwright who works on old postal coaches. At night the place comes alive and the bagman's uncle is forced to come to aid of a damsel in distress. Just as he gets her to safety the lady mysteriously vanishes but the uncle never looks at another woman again.
The Baron of Grogzwig
The Baron marries a lady and his life changes forever. She makes his life decidedly less fun than it was. To add insult to injury the baron then loses all his money. the baron then decides that as there is no more fun to be had he might as well lock himself away from the world. When he does this he is visited by a ghost who helps him appreciate what he has and that life is not that bad after all.
A Christmas Carol
I think most people probably know the story from one movie version or another. Before I read the story I had only seen the Muppet version (Loving the Kermit) and I have to say that the written version is quite a bit better. I love the first line of it just making sure we all know that Marley is dead. Makes it clear that whatever happens next is going to be special. Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by Marley and then by three more ghosts of Christmas Present, Past and Future. These guys are creepy as hell and in some cases not very chatty but they certainly know how to get their point across.
The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain
This one meandered on a bit too much for my linking.
It is a long winded story about a chemist who thinks that he does not need the constant reminders of sorrow and wrong in his life. He wishes them away to a ghost and his life goes into disarray form there. It is not just his own life that is affected but he infects those around him as well. People become cold, distant and cruel and only one woman seems to be able to help them return back to normal. Naturally our chemist changes his mind in the end and all returns to normal.
To be Read at Dusk
In essence five ghosts telling ghost stories to each other.
okay but nothing too exciting.
The Ghost in the Bride's Chamber
Two gentleman are forced to listen to the story of a ghost who is cursed by having to dwell in limbo forever. The story is of a woman who was so ill used by her husband that he literally told her to die. The joke however is on the ghost as he is forced to keep retelling his story and if only he can get two men to listen the curse that keeps him earthbound will be broken unfortunately for our ghost that seems never to be.
The Haunted House
A man decides he wants to spice up his life and moves into a house that he knows is haunted. He gets all his friends to come and stay as well and they decide to see what happens with them. At the appearance of the ghost of a certain Mr B the tale goes off into some weird direction that seems to be wholly unrelated to the introduction of the tale. The whole thing then rambles on to the end and it does not really feel like anything is resolved or explained. Unsatisfactory ending to a weird tale.
The Trial for Murder
This was a good one about a man who is a juror in a murder trial and gets a little supernatural help in deciding if the accused is actually guilty. Nice tightly constructed tale and the final sentence is just about perfect.
The Signalman
I have read this one before and it is still good.
Lovely story about a signalman who sees the future cooped up down by the railway line. He does not make it to the end of the story due to an unfortunate encounter with a fast moving mode of transport.... guess he did not see that one coming.
All in all this was a great collection of ghost stories. Sure they meander on a bit at times but this just Dickens' writing style and it shows their age a bit... but not in a bad way. Secondly, I finally got to read Christmas Carol so it is all good in my book.
Title: Best Ghost Stories
Author: Charles Dickens
273 pages
Wordsworth Classics
ISBN# 1-85326-734-1
Books to be read: 152
On the up side. I have not bought any more books! I have given myself a good talking to and have told myself to get the books to be read down before I can buy another one.... or two.... or three
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Best Ghost Stories - Charles Dickens
This was a great collection of ghost stories and this was my first reading of Dickens' most famous one of all, The Christmas Carol. Below is a brief run down of all of the ones in this collection. In true Dickensian style the stories meander on a bit at times but they are suitably gloomy for the dark days before Christmas.
The Queer Chair, the bagman's story
Tom Smart ends up staying overnight in a local inn. He rather likes the look of the landlady but she only has eyes for another man. Fortunately for Tom he has some lively and very chatty furniture in his room that advises him on how to win the lovely lady over.
A Madman's Manuscript
Kind of does what it says on the tin. There is a madman who manages to hide his madness long enough to marry a lovely girl who is really in love with someone else. He drives her mad before he unravels himself. the lady then comes and keeps him company in his cell.
The Goblins who stole a Sexton
On Christmas Eve the sexton, Gabriel decides that he wants to get ahead of the game and finish of a grave. some goblins show up and remind him to stop being a grump and teach him to be more cheerful. Gabriel then decides that he needs to explore new horizons to be truly happy and cheery but returns to the village an old and happier man in the end.
The Ghosts of the Mail, the story of the bagman's uncle
This one rambles on a bit but is still fairly entertaining. A man has a little nap on a closed lot of a wheelwright who works on old postal coaches. At night the place comes alive and the bagman's uncle is forced to come to aid of a damsel in distress. Just as he gets her to safety the lady mysteriously vanishes but the uncle never looks at another woman again.
The Baron of Grogzwig
The Baron marries a lady and his life changes forever. She makes his life decidedly less fun than it was. To add insult to injury the baron then loses all his money. the baron then decides that as there is no more fun to be had he might as well lock himself away from the world. When he does this he is visited by a ghost who helps him appreciate what he has and that life is not that bad after all.
A Christmas Carol
I think most people probably know the story from one movie version or another. Before I read the story I had only seen the Muppet version (Loving the Kermit) and I have to say that the written version is quite a bit better. I love the first line of it just making sure we all know that Marley is dead. Makes it clear that whatever happens next is going to be special. Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by Marley and then by three more ghosts of Christmas Present, Past and Future. These guys are creepy as hell and in some cases not very chatty but they certainly know how to get their point across.
The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargain
This one meandered on a bit too much for my linking.
It is a long winded story about a chemist who thinks that he does not need the constant reminders of sorrow and wrong in his life. He wishes them away to a ghost and his life goes into disarray form there. It is not just his own life that is affected but he infects those around him as well. People become cold, distant and cruel and only one woman seems to be able to help them return back to normal. Naturally our chemist changes his mind in the end and all returns to normal.
To be Read at Dusk
In essence five ghosts telling ghost stories to each other.
okay but nothing too exciting.
The Ghost in the Bride's Chamber
Two gentleman are forced to listen to the story of a ghost who is cursed by having to dwell in limbo forever. The story is of a woman who was so ill used by her husband that he literally told her to die. The joke however is on the ghost as he is forced to keep retelling his story and if only he can get two men to listen the curse that keeps him earthbound will be broken unfortunately for our ghost that seems never to be.
The Haunted House
A man decides he wants to spice up his life and moves into a house that he knows is haunted. He gets all his friends to come and stay as well and they decide to see what happens with them. At the appearance of the ghost of a certain Mr B the tale goes off into some weird direction that seems to be wholly unrelated to the introduction of the tale. The whole thing then rambles on to the end and it does not really feel like anything is resolved or explained. Unsatisfactory ending to a weird tale.
The Trial for Murder
This was a good one about a man who is a juror in a murder trial and gets a little supernatural help in deciding if the accused is actually guilty. Nice tightly constructed tale and the final sentence is just about perfect.
The Signalman
I have read this one before and it is still good.
Lovely story about a signalman who sees the future cooped up down by the railway line. He does not make it to the end of the story due to an unfortunate encounter with a fast moving mode of transport.... guess he did not see that one coming.
All in all this was a great collection of ghost stories. Sure they meander on a bit at times but this just Dickens' writing style and it shows their age a bit... but not in a bad way. Secondly, I finally got to read Christmas Carol so it is all good in my book.
Title: Best Ghost Stories
Author: Charles Dickens
273 pages
Wordsworth Classics
ISBN# 1-85326-734-1
Books to be read: 152
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