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[Leeway]

 

Consisting of THE GHOST WRITER, ZUCKERMAN UNBOUND, and THE ANATOMY LESSON, and the epilogue, THE PRAGUE ORGY.  I enjoyed the first and last of these (novellas) more than their longer companions, which while interesting seem to miss their mark.  Roth's narrative voice is vibrant and compelling throughout, one is inevitably pulled in, his intelligence is undoubted, but the obsessive qualities of the narrative can be too much at times. 

 

[ejp626]

17 hours ago, Leeway said:

Consisting of THE GHOST WRITER, ZUCKERMAN UNBOUND, and THE ANATOMY LESSON, and the epilogue, THE PRAGUE ORGY.  I enjoyed the first and last of these (novellas) more than their longer companions, which while interesting seem to miss their mark.  Roth's narrative voice is vibrant and compelling throughout, one is inevitably pulled in, his intelligence is undoubted, but the obsessive qualities of the narrative can be too much at times. 

 

Still my favorite Roth work to date.  I liked it a lot at the time.  It's on my list to read again, though that probably means a year or two away! 

Have you read Exit Ghost, which is the sequel to The Prague Orgy?  I have not, but I will when I reread Zuckerman Bound.

17 hours ago, Leeway said:

Consisting of THE GHOST WRITER, ZUCKERMAN UNBOUND, and THE ANATOMY LESSON, and the epilogue, THE PRAGUE ORGY.  I enjoyed the first and last of these (novellas) more than their longer companions, which while interesting seem to miss their mark.  Roth's narrative voice is vibrant and compelling throughout, one is inevitably pulled in, his intelligence is undoubted, but the obsessive qualities of the narrative can be too much at times. 

 

Still my favorite Roth work to date.  I liked it a lot at the time.  It's on my list to read again, though that probably means a year or two away! 

Have you read Exit Ghost, which is the sequel to The Prague Orgy?  I have not, but I will when I reread Zuckerman Bound.

[Leeway]

9 hours ago, ejp626 said:

 

Have you read Exit Ghost, which is the sequel to The Prague Orgy?  I have not, but I will when I reread Zuckerman Bound.

I have not read EXIT GHOST either, but I plan to read more Roth, so will include that. 

 

[BillF]

1965 novel by little-known American author, telling life story of a provincial university teacher. Excellent.

[paul secor]

1 hour ago, BillF said:

1965 novel by little-known American author, telling life story of a provincial university teacher. Excellent.

Not so little known here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/166997.Stoner?from_search=true

A wide range of ratings and comments - mostly positive, but a number of people (including myself)  whose tastes I respect don't care much for it.

[A Lark Ascending]

Macdonald wrote a wonderful series of books in the 70s/80s based around her interviews with veterans of the Great War, aware that they weren't going to be around much longer. I bought her 'They Called it Passchendaele' at the Sanctuary Wood museum outside Ypres on the first school trip I assisted with there around 1980. Had a huge effect on me.

I'd been expecting a new book on 1915 last year but apart from several on Gallipoli there was nothing (whereas 1914 and 1916 have seen torrents, as will 1917 and 1918 I've no doubt). So I got a second hand copy of this one I'd not previously read. As ever a superb, very detailed account built round eyewitness testimony with Macdonald placing it in context of the wider events. She tracks the changing mood from the belief at the start that it would all be over soon to the realisation by December that it was going to be long and very costly. Neuve Chapelle, Second Ypres, Gallipoli and Loos are the main focus but you get interesting domestic coverage (including the awful troop train crash near Gretna).

Macdonald was writing before the revisionism of the 90s began to present an alternative view to the 'Lions Led By Donkeys' interpretation; yet she is still very even handed. Her heart is with the troops, she points out the errors made by the generals but does not resort to the standard caricatures. A long read but utterly absorbing.   

Edited September 20, 2016 by A Lark Ascending

[sidewinder]

'Cameron at 10 - The Verdict' by Seldon & Snowdon

[Leeway]

SIEGFRIED  - Harry Mulisch

What if Hitler and Eva Braun had a son? This novel explores a version of what might have happened. Mulisch's philosophical investigation is intriguing. I've read Mulish's THE ASSAULT, which I also found quite compelling. I haven't yet read his opus, THE DISCOVERY OF HEAVEN. 

[paul secor]

Graham Swift: Mothering Sunday

 

[Leeway]

WIDE SARGASSO SEA - Jean Rhys

A sort of prequel to the early life and relationship of Rochester and his wife (the madwoman in the attic of Jane Eyre) Bertha/Antoinettte, and an alternative history to that presented in Charlotte Bronte's novel. It's become somewhat harder to read Bronte's novel without wanting to read this as well. This work has sparked an interest on my part in the quartet of novels that Rhys wrote in the 1920 snd 30s. 

[Leeway]

A story beautifully poised between comedy and tragedy.

[BillF]

5 hours ago, Leeway said:

A story beautifully poised between comedy and tragedy.

[Leeway]

9 hours ago, BillF said:

Wanted to add that I find Italo-English novels, like this one, as well as Muriel Spark's The Takeover and Shirley Hazard's The Bay of Naples, to name a few examples, interesting creatures. Someone should (and probably already has) do a study of them. Italy has long been a part of English imaginative life. I''m reminded of the expression, "An Englishman Italianate is the Devil incarnate." Modern novels seem to play off that notion.  

[BillF]

6 hours ago, Leeway said:

Wanted to add that I find Italo-English novels, like this one, as well as Muriel Spark's The Takeover and Shirley Hazard's The Bay of Naples, to name a few examples, interesting creatures. Someone should (and probably already has) do a study of them. Italy has long been a part of English imaginative life. I''m reminded of the expression, "An Englishman Italianate is the Devil incarnate." Modern novels seem to play off that notion.  

Re Italo-English novels, I expect you've also read Forster's A Room with a View.

[Leeway]

7 hours ago, BillF said:

Re Italo-English novels, I expect you've also read Forster's A Room with a View.

Yes, but it's been a while now and probably due for a re-read. Good example. 

[BillF]

Here's another that fits your category. Or does an Italian-set fiction with Italian characters by an English author fit your category?

[Simon8]

On 20/09/2016 at 10:38 AM, BillF said:

1965 novel by little-known American author, telling life story of a provincial university teacher. Excellent.

Loved it as well. Beautifully written. 

[ejp626]

On 9/19/2016 at 9:11 PM, ejp626 said:

Christodora does have quite a large cast of characters, and seems to be at least sort of influenced by Wolfe's The Bonfire of the Vanities in how they are juggled.  What is different, and actually more than a little annoying, is that Murphy insists on moving the chronology all over the place.  So chapter 1 is 2001, chapter 2 is 2009, chapter 3 is 1981, etc. ...  Still, if a writer needs to rely on these gimmicks throughout a fairly long book, that is not a good sign in my mind.

While Christodora relies a bit too much on coincidence and I have a few reservations relating to how most of the characters do drugs, but the non-white characters get more hooked than the white characters.  Still, I thought the ending was pretty good (some might think it too sappy).  So on the whole it was worth reading.

I've just started Lethem's Chronic City.  I'm liking it so far.

I am just back from an author's reading (which I haven't done in ages).  This was Canadian-Korean author, Ann Choi, reading from Kay's Lucky Coin Variety.  It is one of the finalists for the Toronto Book Award 2016.  I'm sort of fortunate that I put my reserve request in way back before it got hot, so I now have the book waiting for me at the library (and there are still 170 people in queue!).  I should be able to pick it up in a few more days.

[paul secor]

Declan Burke: Slaughter's Hound

[Leeway]

On September 24, 2016 at 10:00 AM, BillF said:

Here's another that fits your category. Or does an Italian-set fiction with Italian characters by an English author fit your category?

No rule here, but I typically have in mind English characters acting in an Italian setting, among themselves, or with Italians. Knowing Fitzgerald, though, I'm confident there are interesting variations being made. 

[ejp626]

I'm about a quarter into Lethem's Chronic City.  Still finding it interesting.  It almost strikes me as a lost novel by Don DeLillo, though it is interesting that there is a subplot involving an astronaut (and 4 cosmonauts) stuck in a space station, probably never to return.  I wonder if this is a shout-out of sorts to PKD's Dr. Bloodmoney.  I would be a bit surprised if Lethem had not read Dr. Bloodmoney.  (Actually, I did a quick search and Lethem is a huge fan of PKD and has read essentially all of his work.)

[Leeway]

Howards End - E.M. Forster

Moving ahead with more Forster. This is a more substantial and ambitious novel than Where Angels Fear to Tread. It has many virtues but I'm not quite in sympathy with Forster's project of uniting Imperialism with Humanism (I'm simplifying drastically here). "Only connect" says Forster.  It should be so simple. 

[fasstrack]

Not reading it quite yet, but Terry Waldo's This Was Ragtime looks quite promising.

I often listen to Terry's groups playing hither and yon in NYC. I've heard him lecture informally on Ragtime, Geeche and Gulla culture as recently as this past Sunday at his regular afternoon gig at Fat Cat. Between his very knowledgeable playing, song list, speaking and even sorta charming singing he seems to really know his onions.

Perhaps worth a gander. I'm sure it is obtainable at amazon or elsewhere...

 

 

Edited September 28, 2016 by fasstrack

[Leeway]

Another Italianate novel from Forster. Quite readable. 

[BillF]

1 hour ago, Leeway said:

Another Italianate novel from Forster. Quite readable. 

I had it 1st year university as a set text, but I subsequently read all the Forsters and think all great, with the exception of Maurice. (This isn't for reasons of prejudice - I just think he'd lost the touch by the time he got to writing that one.)