50 Book Challenge 2016 Part Four

[southeastdweller]

Thread four of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2016, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, it's not too late to join, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

First thread of 2016 is here, second thread here and third thread here.

How're you getting on so far?

17 The mysterious affair at Styles - Agatha Christie I've been reading Poirot books for the last month or so, and thought I really should start at the beginning and see where it all began. This book (on Kindle) had an introduction about how Agatha Christie began her life as an author and how she got stuck in a very unfavourable five book deal when she first started out, which was quite interesting.

As for the book, a chap called Hastings on sick leave from the war goes to stay with his friend John at his county home, Styles. He's barely been there five minutes when he runs into Poirot who is a Belgian refugee from the First World War and an old friend. Soon after John's step mother is poisoned and dies in the middle of the night. Everyone points the finger at her husband as the most likely suspect. But Poirot takes on the case to find the murderer. Another good Poirot book overall.

I've moved onto A walk in the woods by Bill Bryson which is only £4.99 on Audible (along with another 10-15 other nature related books).

No worries Satsuki

"audiobook narrated by Jeremy Irons"

Ooh I love him. Now I'm picturing him as in that film where he was having a hot & torrid affair with his son's young fiancée which should help me enjoy Lolita, God forgive me.

Jeremy Irons was pretty good as H.H in the 1997 film adaptation, but I prefer James Mason's interpretation in the 1962 Kubrick version.

I'm plodding on with the Cummings. It is, to use a phrase entirely lacking in the beauty and poetry of Nabokov's writing, as boring as fuck. Sorry to be coarse, but he doesn't deserve eloquence. The writing is dreadful. I'll probably finish it because I haven't got much else at hand at the moment, but my Gods, the man really can't write.

cote I'll be needing to know the name of that Jeremy Irons film you mention. Like, now

Yy southeast I like the Kubrick version. Atmospheric and sinister, plus Peter Sellers as Quilty is brilliantly weird. I've only seen bits of the newer one, and it seemed...more lurid and I didn't feel comfortable watching it.

Was there a TV serialisation as well? I read it as a teenager and I'm sure it was on TV around then.

No TV version, Best. Can you remember who was in the thing you saw? I'm good at storing useless trivia like that

Been puzzling South. I must be thinking of the James Mason version as I'm too old for it to have been the 1998 film. But I could swear it was in colour.

Was it Bouquet of Barbed Wire?

It might have been. I have a vivid memory of a girl on a pavement. It must be my age [Grin].

Satsuki, the film is called Damage. The young girl playing Jeremy Irons' mistress is Juliette Binoche. He is incredibly fit. Enjoy

Meanwhile, has anyone seen the new Kindle? Kindle Oasis < swoon >

I saw the BBC article about the kindle oasis. Looks nice, but £270 for an e-reader is way out of my budget.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-36035430

Hello all. Book number 9 The Geeen Road is a slow burner so read number 10 Asking For It by Louise O' Neill. It's a harrowing and ultimately depressing story of a girl who is raped at a party. It details before and after the attack / the reaction of the community. It tries to explore issues of consent and the danger of social media but it is a grim read. I found aspects of the development of the main character irritating. I think the writer tried too hard to make her unsympathetic during the first half of the novel though there were moments in the second half which were very moving.

Will try to finish The Green Road now. Will need to pick up my pace if I'm to get anywhere near 50!

It seems the apocalyptic book Flood by Stephen Baxter could actually happen! WTF

And here is the link I forgot to post

£270 is nuts. I'm hoping that there might be a price reduction towards Christmas, at the latest.

I'm suddenly glad that I haven't shelled out for the Kindle Voyage, though. And my used & abused Paperwhite has been getting slower and slower...

Thanks cote

Yes I was waiting to see the Oasis it does look really good but a ridiculous amount of money for an e-reader. I'm still on my rickety Kindle keyboard, I've resisted upgrading to a Paperwhite as though I really could use one, I hate the idea of a touchscreen. They've put button press back on the Oasis as well as the Voyage, so they obviously agree with me, but I can't justify the price. I like being able to hold it wherever, and think I'd find page turning annoying and the screen would get dirty - does anyone have this prob with the paperwhite?

Page turning on Paperwhite's touch screen is annoying imho. I loved the buttons on my Kindle, but then it died so I upgraded to the Paperwhite, which I am very happy with because I can read in the dark while DH sleeps. But it has no buttons.

I wasn't tempted by Voyage but I'm really tempted by Oasis. £270 is a lot of Kindle books, though.

It looks fab, but I also can't justify the high price. I like my Paperwhite but do miss the page turn buttons press on my old Keyboard. Satuski my screen doesn't get that dirty but then I don't use it that much as I prefer paper books.

Hah, spotted it earlier and did a bit of boggling looks fabulous dahling, but bit pricy, no question. Will have to wait a few years. Got my paperwhite second hand and v happy with it really.

Oh and my screen doesn't get dirty satsuki

I have a kindle touch which must be almost 5 years old. Love the touch screen nature of it. I find the shape on the oasis weird personally plus, couldn't justify that amount on an e-reader, tempted to upgrade to a paperwhite but havent used my kindle in months.

So I know we've moved on a bit from the Lolita discussion, but Phoenix said something that I thought was quite brilliant and illuminated HH a bit for me - that he's a very clever man who's nevertheless totally delusional about his effect on others. It reminded me of several men I knew (mainly academics) who were outstanding in their fields, but had zero ability to work out when they were revolting (or, more often, intimidating/frightening) women instead of charming them. I know that much of that is tied up with entitlement and misogyny, but drawing the parallel made me realise that it is (at least in my experience) eminently possible to be both highly intelligent and a total idiot! (Assuming, that is, that HH is actually pathetically unaware, as opposed to a creepy manipulator.)