Coming off a literary high - please help

Just came back to thread.

In answer to your question Cote I have read other books other than Dorothy Dunnett, lots of the ones on this thread.

I just thought I would recommend something to you that I thought you would enjoy and I am sure you would also find it intellectually stimulating as well.

it was a troubling book, but one that to this day stays with me, so well written or not it has staying power, it makes for difficult reading, but worth it, all her other books are rubbish though, am sure she must have a thing for individual sports as one of her earlier novels is about a tennis player.

Well, I can understand that, Remus.

I found it hard to read.

And I am not even sure that it's any good.

BUT

It remains in my head when so much else (you better believe it) has fled. So, it is surely something.

Just not sure what...

I didn't get on with, 'Kevin' at all.

Why indeed??

Her next novel, 'The Post Birthday World', was about an affair (or not) with a professional snooker player.

Or so I guess, having tossed it aside half way through.

snooker, but why would any one like snooker? am confused.

Oh.

And Primo Levi.

My favourite.

Not 'If This Is A Man'. This is a fine book, but not his best.

The Periodic Table, and The Wrench.

Beautiful, warm, human pieces. There is a strong sense of a man clinging to those things within himself, defining himself by the medium of work, of being what you do.

And of course, what he was, in the Lager, was the chemist that he was before, and after.

So he survived til the guilt got him.

A fine man and a fine writer.

I was thinking about 'Kevin' today...

Just popped into my head.

It still troubles me. The film, and the book differently. But mostly the book.

I'm not at all sure if I like it.

I'm not at all sure if I agree with its underlying premise.

Come to think of it, I'm not actually sure I know what its underlying premise is...

But, 5 full years after reading it, it is still in my head. So, whatever else it is, it is a remarkable, unsettling, epochal piece of work.

But no way would I ever invite Lionel Shriver round for supper.

The woman likes snooker FFS...

i agree, we need to talk about kevin, is a harrowing, yet truly amazing book, the film misses a lot of the deeper meaning of the book, still good, Tilda Swinton is perfectly cast,

I found 'we need to talk about Kevin' absolutely compelling. There's no way I could watch the film, despite adoring Tilda Swinton, due to the content. Shocking but amazing.

I've just finished Dorian Grey. I knew the basics of the story but was pretty surprised by where it went at times. A pleasure to read. Read it at the same time as someone at work and we had good fun guessing where it was going. Lots of good old fashioned tropes in it but a few surprises too.

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is an interesting read. VERRRRRRRRRRY dry in places but that is the age of it (getting one with footnotes is good). It really is to American capitalism (and anti-monarchism) what the Manifesto is to Communism.

That's the one Jajas! Well worth a read. It can be hard going in places, but is somehow lacking in the emotion that so often goes with Holocaust memoirs that it is refreshing and deeply disturbing at the same time.

marshmallowpies For real accounts of the holocaust, I would highly recommend Charlotte Delbo, particularly "Auschwitz and After" - it's a collection of memories written as poems, short stories and random thoughts. Totally mesmerising. One of the most touching and poignant accounts of the Holocaust I've read (I studied this area of literature at uni). I would also recommend Primo Levi's books. They're a little drier, but also good as they question the implication present in most Holocaust literature that all Germans were bad and all Jews were good - I can't remember the one I read first, but it talks a lot about the Jews who ran the gas chambers (I have a feeling it's "If I were a man" or something similar)

Oh and the Underworld scene in the play was awesome.

Cote - keep going! :)

I saw the stage production when it came to Birmingham but (whispers) I didn't like it much. I thought they played for laughs too much and that it lacked the majesty of the books. I did like the angels though.

'Oryz And Crake' I thought was stupid but I quite liked the flood one, as the characters were more interesting.

I thought Oryx and Crake was lazy bandwagon jumping and was really quite angry with Atwood for that and Before the Flood, particularly as I'd liked everything else she's done.

Have you tried Toni Morrison or Murakami?

I liked, 'Half Of A Yellow Sun' and love, 'Perfume.'

'The Help' - I liked the first half and thought the second half was terrible and completely trivialised and negated any serious message the book was trying to give. Really liked the film though.

Dark Tower = Stephen King / Dark Materials = Philip Pullman. The end of Dark Materials made me howl, although I agree that there was some tedious crap in the third book to actually reach the ending.

Can't stand Interview With The Vampire. Yawn.

Withering Heights = entirely appropriate name for highly tedious book.

I love Oscar Wilde though! :)