[Archived] Holiday Reading

[Nelsta]

Just read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, It's Basically Pride and Prejudice but set during a Zombie outbreak.

If you like anything a bit geeky and Zombie-ish then give it a read!

[Flopsy]

if you want a really cool thriller series, The Straw Men by Michael Marshal is an excellent read. The sequel, Lonely Dead isnt great, but perfectly acceptable and sets up the third book, Blood of Angels which i really enjoyed.

[rover6]

East of Eden by John Steinbeck...a classic I only got around to recently but a great read. Bit long as well as dawdling in parts but there are also some sublime parts and fantastic characters. Particularly the villainess of the piece.

Yup, excellent book. So ambitious and Steinbeck pulls it off. I agree that it does dawdle but that was inevitable considering he wanted to write about a series of generations. Very thought-provoking.

Incidentally, anyone read Grapes of Wrath and/or Ulysses?

Despite many strong recommendations, I lost interest in GoW early on. I don't know why because Steinbeck is a great author. I'll have to try it again - this time, not on train journeys!

As for Ulysses - gave me a headache... So many classical quotations that are meaningless to me and so many blimin' obscure words. I gave up - but, again, I have to give it another go soon.

[sparkspakespoke]

I was just about to say that I've read Trainspotting & the follow up Porno.

Both excellent books and I would hearlty suggest to anyone who's seen the film to read the book. As is usually the case the film misses out loads of parts in the book. At first I was put off by the book being wrote in a Scottish accent but after awhile I got used to it

The follow Porno imo is just as good as Trainspotting - this book is slightly easier to read than Trainspotting as there is not as much Scottish lingo in. A must read book though!

I'm looking forward to the prequel 'Skagboys' to be released sometime this year

Two other good reads by Welsh are Glue and confessions of a masterchef.

Edited September 11, 2009 by sparkspakespoke

[Paul]

Sadly this thread doesn't get the attention it deserves but the book I've just finished is so good I have to bring it back to the top.

The Know by Martina Cole centres on life in East London and the events leading up and subsequent to a child abduction. The book deals with many other issues all connected in one way or another with the abduction. No doubt we've all watched numerous TV programmes dealing with sex, poverty, drugs, racism, multi-culturalism, prostitution, people trafficking, community self-help, child abuse; this book encompasses the lot, it's very gritty and often leaves the final scene of each chapter to one's imagination, which is probably worse than the actual description.

It's a book to make you think or just a real fast page turner as you look to discover what happens next. Read it.

[American]

Think I mentioned it before, but have been getting a bunch of books through readitswapit.co.uk, where all you have to do is pay the postage to send one of your books that you don't want to read anymore to get back another.

So far have done a couple dozen and haven't had an issue.

The best of the bunch is The Wrong Kind of Blood by Declan Hughes. It's a Dublin based mystery where the protagonist is an ex-pat who goes back home from the US for his mother's funeral. One of the best mysteries I've read this side of Dennis Lehane (wrote Mystic River which Clint Eastwood made a movie of.

[colin]

East of Eden by John Steinbeck...a classic I only got around to recently but a great read. Bit long as well as dawdling in parts but there are also some sublime parts and fantastic characters. Particularly the villainess of the piece.

Yup, excellent book. So ambitious and Steinbeck pulls it off. I agree that it does dawdle but that was inevitable considering he wanted to write about a series of generations. Very thought-provoking.

Incidentally, anyone read Grapes of Wrath and/or Ulysses?

I've read "East Of Eden" & "Grapes Of Wrath." Both eminantly readable and worth the effort. "Ulysses" is just about unreadable unless you are on LSD & playing "Trout Mask Replica" backwards though headphones. Same as "Finnegan's Wake."

The Know by Martina Cole centres on life in East London and the events leading up and subsequent to a child abduction.

That's the beauty of Manchester City Council online library service. I'll get it reserved & thanks for the recommendation Paul.

For my part, at the moment anything by Charlie Brooker, both books & www.youtube.com.

[mellison24]

For holiday reading, I take in Sportsmen's autobiographies (even a few wrestlers too) and any of James Patterson's works. THOROUGHLY entertaining!!

[FourLaneBlue]

Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende is a cracking pageturner which begins in nineteenth century Chile before moving onto the Californian gold rush. Allende is an excellent novelist and I highly recommend this book.

At the moment I am halfway through The Black Death: The Intimate Story of a Village in Crisis, 1345-50 by John Hatcher which does not sound like a barrel of laughs and, in truth, it isn't. However it is an interesting study/recreation/novelisation of the village of Walsham in Sussex as they await the arrival of the plague and how it affects them. An interesting look at a remarkable time period.

The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera takes place in a Maori community in North Eastern New Zealand and details Maori traditions and history while also focusing on how ingrained sexism can be challenged by strong matriachs as well as children. Very nice little book and made into a film.

Oh I have also had to re-read A Streetcar Named Desire...awesome play, awesome film.

Edited October 8, 2009 by FourLaneBlue

[American]

Not sure if it's allowed, but reading a book by Burnley raised Stephen Booth right now. Takes place in the Peak District.

So far it's pretty good, but he's a bit too descriptive for my usual tastes (I tend to like authors like Ian Rankin who has given me a vision of what DI Rebus should look like without ever having described him). Really good story, though.

[FourLaneBlue]

You might not want to try Thomas Hardy then if you haven't already.

Seem to remember whole chapters devoted to landscape descriptions...

Jude the Obscure is however excellent as is Return of the Native. Actually he was an excellent writer but heavy on description and was often a real downer of a read.

[Glenn]

Some related advertising.

Today only, Play.com are offering us extra commission (which is what pays for this site) on the Flash Forward novel by Robert J Sawyer that was the basis for the new (and rather good) Sci-Fi show.

Play.com Flash Forward offer

Has anybody read it already ? Is it any good ? At just a fiver I'm tempted to have a punt, just to find out.

And whilst I'm pimping books. For those of you with a slightly geeky side or an interest or fear of either technology or privacy, then I loved

Little Brother.

It was so good that when I finished my copy lent by a friend, I went an bought 2 copies for friends, in an attempt to support the author.

[Mc Love]

Try "The Lie" by Chad Kultgen.

Its fictional story told my three characters, who give their opinions on events that they encounter while in college.

would easily give it 10/10

[Flopsy]

For those of you who like sports books, can I recommend When Freddie Became Jesus by Jarrod Kimber, probably the funiest and insightful book of the 2009 Ashes Series. I cant recommend it enough.

Cheers

[Rovermatt]

The Blind Side by Michael Lewis is an excellent mix of sport and social commentary. Centering on Baltimore Ravens left-tackle Michael Oher (who just completed his rookie season in the NFL), it charts his tough upbringing in Memphis and the evolution of the left-tackle as arguably the most sought after position in the NFL (he protects the QB's blind side).

[mellison24]

Autobiographies by the following:

Sir Bobby Robson (Farewell but not Goodbye).

Matt LeTissier (Taking LeTiss).

Ian Holloway (Ollie!)

Graham Poll (Seeing Red)

Jeff Stelling (Jelleyman's thrown a wobbly)

All cracking good reads.

[Paul]

Just finished reading Dean Koontz's "Odd Thomas." Our hero is Odd Thomas, that is christian and surnames, who lives in small town in / near the Mohave desert. Odd, a short-order cook at the local grill, can see dead people and various other manifestations from the other side, including Elvis! Now this is not as corny as it sounds, not great literature but it is entertaining, has a good story line, is very descriptive and has enough twists and turns to keep one occupied. The central plot relates to a terrible event which threatens the town ( saying what would be a spoiler), Odd's efforts to discover what the event is and prevent it. Odd's relationship with the beautiful Stormy, the love of his life weaves in and out of the storyline. Plenty of diversions away from the main plot to describe the other side and its beings! This is holiday reading not mind expanding and thought provoking but I can recommend it.

Edited January 24, 2010 by Paul

[Cheeky Sidders]

Just finished reading "The Pirate Devlin" by Mark Keating and found it to be bloody good fun. I got it as uncorrected proof from Amazon for free ahead of its hardback release and thoroughly enjoyed it. In short, it's set in the Golden Age of Piracy (early 18th century) and is about a lowly Irish servant who through a strange but plausible series of events becomes the somewhat unexpected captain of a pirate ship. Along the way he manages to fall foul of the Dutch, the Portuguese, the French, his former master, the Royal Navy, the East India Company and, just for good measure, old Blackbeard himself. It's a bit light on the yo ho ho and bottles of rum but heavy on the derring-do, fighting, extreme violence, sailing and cunning plans. Okay, it's not Umberto Eco or Cormac McCarthy, but it stands higher than Bernard Cornwell and Simon Scarrow in the literary stakes but is an uncomplicated read and pefect holiday reading, especially if you're off on a boat or going to the Caribbean. It's clearly the start of a series and it ends with a surprise that sets things up nicely for the next volume. I get the feeling that this is the start of something big - you heard it here first! As Long John Silver would say, "Smart as paint!"

[colin]

Back up to the top

"Pies & Prejudice" - In Search Of The North

Stuart Maconie.

Absolutely brilliant

[Shevchenko]

Currently reading Eugene B. Sledge´s Pacific War account "With The Old Breed".

It´s very hard to put down, absolutely gripping. Written in a very honest and direct way, it clearly comes across that the experiences that Sledge recounts are real lived ones even though the horrors described are beyond belief.

With the excellent HBO series "The Pacific" recently on TV, which features Sledge´s story heavily, the book is essential reading. It´s quite clear why it is considered a Pacific War classic.

[American Rover12]

Just started Graham Hancock's "Heavens Mirror." Not mainstream but definitely some interesting things about lost ancient civilizations. At worst it's a book playing devil's advocate but still it's fun to think about.

[FourLaneBlue]

Been reading some of the old Flashman books by George MacDonald Fraser again who unfortunately died a couple of years back. Literary excellence bar none. Fraser also wrote a fantastic account of his time in the war and the Burma campaign entitled "Quartered Safe Out Here" which remains one of the best accounts on the war from a soldier that I have read.

Edited July 29, 2010 by FourLaneBlue

[Cheeky Sidders]

Recently read "Azincourt" by Bernard Cornwell - not as cheesey as some of his books, but all the usual character types are there. Bloody good battles in it though and gives a good taster of Henry V's campaign in Normandy that saw the capture (and near disaster) of Harfleur, followed by the ultimate away win of all time at Agincourt. Splendid holiday fodder, especially if you're going to France.

Just read "Under Enemy Colours" by Sean Thomas Russell - set on Royal Navy vessels in the pre-Napoleonic era telling the tale of a young officer with mixed allegiances, a tyrannical captain and a great deal of derring-do. All the chapters with the female characters in them (thankfully few) are sh1te, quite frankly, but as soon as they are away at sea the action hots up and it's a good read. There's even a mutiny and a court martial so would appeal to court room drama fans too. I'd say the style of the author is something like Patrick O'Brien re-written by Bernard Cornwell.

Currently reading "Alone in Berlin" by Hans Fallada. Only just got started but it's looking good. It's the tale of one man's defiance against the Third Reich. I'm not anticipating a happy ending. Style is very reminiscent of Gogol!

[FourLaneBlue]

Thanks for those recommendations Sidders. I actually have Azincourt but have never got around to reading it. Will give it a try...

[rebelmswar]

Just finished reading What I Loved by Siri Hustvedt, a pretty decent read. Book of three parts it seems, involving art, divorce, and a @#/? of a child. Mixes a thriller with a psychological dissection of the mentally ill. Follows a man and his artist friend through their lives and darkest moments.

If anyone is interested it is on the 1001 books you need to read before you die list, and is worth a go.

On a trivia note Hustvedt is married to Paul Auster, another great author.

<!--quoteo(post=754551:date=May 4 2009, 12:36 :name=Drummer Boy)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Drummer Boy @ May 4 2009, 12:36 ) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=754551"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Just finished reading "Trainspotting" - better late than never - and would commend it to you all as a good read.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

You've got more concentration than I. "Trainspotting" is written in Scottish venacular and is as difficult to comprehend as "Ulysses."

Both made my brain hurt & I gave up on both after about 10 pages.

<i>shudder</i>

Colin I cannot recommend hard enough that you try and give this another go. The language becomes second nature to the reader after awhile and the book itself is far, far deeper than the movie.

Try it again, pretty please.

Edited August 24, 2010 by rebelmswar