Reading for pleasure! What are you reading now?

[Penelope]

Ooooh I LIKE the sound of that one......A Midwife's Tale.

Thank you for recommending it. I will get a copy and read it whether it is the forum choice or not.

Nice One Saffron!!!

I have just started 'The Bad Mother's Handbook' by Kate Long - fun, fun, fun....

[dbooks]

Memoirs of a Geisha is a really fascinating novel, I have read it twice...

Right now I am reading a detective fiction: The Falls, by Ian Rankin. I had never read any Rankin novels before and I am enjoying it, the plot is complex and intriguing...

[Penelope]

I haven't ever found the time to read even the most 'masterpiece' twice.

There are so many books to read.

wrt Ian Rankin - The Wasp Factory. I haven't read it.......but my kids were mightily impressed.......

Of course, what appeals to one generation doesn't always/usually appeal to another. We inhabit different worlds with different priorities....most of the time....but not ALL the time.

Maybe that is what makes a great book....one that can speak to different generations in different countries. We do live in different Worlds.

Nostalgia is a bit of a sickness with me......maybe I should try to keep up.

[Constance963]

I'm currently reading The Terror by Dan Simmons and next up is the Whole World Over by Julia Glass, which is one of the last books I got for Christmas.

[ralphinlaos]

Hello everyone -

I haven't been reading so much recently; I get caught up in crosswords and everything else goes out the window. I'm still reading The Second Coming by Walker Percy - excellent book.

I don't think I've ever heard of Ian Rankin. Is he British? From what you write, he seems to be an author I would enjoy. It's strange, isn't it, how some authors travel well and some don't. I mean, I suppose Stephen King and John Grisham and Ruth Rendall are read around the world - this is just supposition on my part, I don't know if it's true or not. But I would imagine that many novels never make it past the shores of the country in which they are published, for whatever reason. Or maybe in this day and age, everything is published everywhere. What do you think? Is Garrison Keillor read outside the United States?

Penny, I do hope that someday you will find something by Studs Turkel and read it; he's been an American icon for decades, but is still around. He writes about the masses, the people who go to work everyday to jobs many of us would abhor, their struggles and triumphs. He's written so many - all of them good.

Perhaps you could put some of your winnings from the races toward a good book!

Yes, Theomanic, Naked Lunch was a shocker in it's day - is it still? I haven't read it in years, but I did pick up a copy of Grace Metalious' Peyton Place a couple of months ago and it's still a pretty amazing book for it's time and, IMHO, very well written.

And Constance, my daughter told me that she loved The Terror - are you enjoying it? I haven't been able to find it yet.

Now, here's a question for everyone. I have heard about a current, popular lady novelist who, when a young girl, together with her girl-friend, committed a crime (I think it was murder). I think they both spent time in prison. Anyway, when she got out of prison, she changed her name and became a best-selling novelist. I'd really like to know more about this; does anyone know if a book was ever written about this case? I do know that their was a movie made of the incident wherein she and her friend committed the crime. It was quite a popular movie when it was released (I think it was an English film - or maybe from Ireland). I can't remembr the name of the movie - but maybe it was based on a book. Anyone ever hear of this?

Have a great holiday, Penny. I see on the BBC that Gone With the Wind, the musical, has just opened in the West End - to horrendous reviews; I'd love to see it.

Ralph

[dbooks]

Ralphinlaos: Ian Rankin is Scottish, his novels feature Inspector John Rebus, and are based in Edinburgh. It is a bit early for me to recommend him since I have not yet finished reading The Falls, and haven't yet read any other novel by him. However, he is considered as one of the best new detective novel writers, along with Peter Robinson (when I write "new", it is as opposed to older, longer established writers such as Rendell or P. D. James). I believe he "travels" a bit: he has been translated at least in French.
I have never heard of Garrison Keillor: is he good?

[Theomanic]

Ralph: The author you are mentioning is Anne Perry, and the movie about those events is called "Heavenly Creatures". It's a creepy and eerily moving movie... definitely a surprise when I rented it, as I didn't know it was based on a true story. The movie is from New Zealand, I believe, but maybe the actual event happened there and the movie was filmed elsewhere. I'm not certain. I am told that Anne Perry didn't like the movie or feel it was very accurate. As to the movie being based on a book, I haven't a clue!

Naked Lunch is still quite the shocker, even in this hedonistic day and age. Though personally, I felt all the "shocking" situations got a bit repetitive.

[Ophelia]

Memoirs of a Geisha is a really fascinating novel, I have read it twice...

Right now I am reading a detective fiction: The Falls, by Ian Rankin. I had never read any Rankin novels before and I am enjoying it, the plot is complex and intriguing.

I don't know enough about these authors to comment, but I'll take the opportunity to say hello, Marie. It's good to see you're finding your way around the forum.


President Camacho has started a thread called "Taking control" in which he (among other things) imagines a modern form of democracy which reminds me of direct democracy in Switzerland.
I don't know whether you are a Swiss citizen and are able to vote, but perhaps you can join the thread and tell us about your experience of direct democracy. The last time I talked about this with a Swiss person was over 10 years ago and she seemed to say that voters were not very motivated.

Also, you are just a few posts away from 10, which is the number of posts you need to be able to vote in the poll to choose our next fiction title.

[Ophelia]

It's good to see that lot's of us are reading because we like to read; not because we're supposed to read a particular novel

Actually, we're dilligently working on a fool-proof way of preventing any reading by members apart from official BT selections.
I'll let you know how we're progressing (and meanwhile, enjoy those last free reads).

Theomanic - I don't know if you are male or female, but I think Naked Lunch has been kept alive all these years and even become a minor classic because of male readers. Does that make any sense? I think there are many books which appeal to one gender more than to the other

This makes perfect sense to me Ralph, especially about novels and movies (you should hear some of my colleagues describing the sort of movies their husbands want them to see as entertainment: Rambo, Spiderman...)

For some types of novels, in particular detective stories and thrillers, I take into account whether the person who advises me to read (or tells me it's awful) is a man or a woman. In my experience, men tend to like more "hardboiled" detective fiction.
And I agree about Jane Austen fans being mostly women ( and of course "tend" and "mostly " are important here.)

[dbooks]

Ralph: The author you are mentioning is Anne Perry, and the movie about those events is called "Heavenly Creatures". It's a creepy and eerily moving movie... definitely a surprise when I rented it, as I didn't know it was based on a true story. The movie is from New Zealand, I believe, but maybe the actual event happened there and the movie was filmed elsewhere. I'm not certain. I am told that Anne Perry didn't like the movie or feel it was very accurate. As to the movie being based on a book, I haven't a clue!

Wow, I had no idea that this creepy movie was based on a true story. And that one of the girls involved was famous writer Anne Perry (not that I have read anything by her, but it is really a name everyone knows). I find this idea even more creepy... Apparently she hasn't seen the movie, and it is a part of her life she understandably does not like to remember (you can read this on her official web site: http://www.anneperry.net/3.html)