What are you reading at the moment?

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I really enjoyed the original 3 and thought I would give the Spiders web one a go.

It was very very painful to read. Almost gave up a few times but managed to finish it.

I don't think I will bother with any more.
 
Most of the way through the astonishing - "Riddley Walker,' by Russell Hoban. This will be the most affecting book I will read this year - that I'm sure about. It describes a post-apocalyptic vision of England - specifically Kent - after a historical nuclear destruction - the world of the narrator - Riddley - is iron age in technology - animistic in belief - and the very fabric of language has broken down. This is the genius of the book and the author's vision - for example -

"Raining agen it wer nex morning. Theres rains and rains. This 1 wer coming down in a way as took the hart and hoap out of you there wer a kynd of brilyants in the grey it wer too hard it wer too else it made you feal like all the tracks in the worl wer out paths nor not a 1 to bring you back. Wel of coarse they are but it dont all ways feal that way. It wer that kynd of morning when peopl wernt jus falling in to what they done naturel they had to work ther selfs in to it. Seamt like a lot of tea got spilt at breakfas nor the talk wernt the userel hummeling and mummeling there wer some thing else in it. Like when you see litening behynt the clouds.”

When you first start reading it - it is very difficult - you have to slow down - this is part of the pleasure for me - I found it helpful to voice the words - phonetically. You soon get up to speed - Hoban's imagined dialect is consistent - a pidgin of his own making. I find it to be shot through with Christian religious allegory - secular also - but I think that everyone might understand their own interpretation of it - multi layered. The mark of a good book? I shan't say any more for fear of giving away the plot. It's an unsettling vision. All too plausible. I couldn't recommend it too highly.

Thanks to B. - @Barry Giddens - for gifting this book to me. Well off my normal radar - I'm very glad he did.

Yours - I.
 
Most of the way through the astonishing - "Riddley Walker,' by Russell Hoban. This will be the most affecting book I will read this year - that I'm sure about. It describes a post-apocalyptic vision of England - specifically Kent - after a historical nuclear destruction - the world of the narrator - Riddley - is iron age in technology - animistic in belief - and the very fabric of language has broken down. This is the genius of the book and the author's vision - for example -

"Raining agen it wer nex morning. Theres rains and rains. This 1 wer coming down in a way as took the hart and hoap out of you there wer a kynd of brilyants in the grey it wer too hard it wer too else it made you feal like all the tracks in the worl wer out paths nor not a 1 to bring you back. Wel of coarse they are but it dont all ways feal that way. It wer that kynd of morning when peopl wernt jus falling in to what they done naturel they had to work ther selfs in to it. Seamt like a lot of tea got spilt at breakfas nor the talk wernt the userel hummeling and mummeling there wer some thing else in it. Like when you see litening behynt the clouds.”

When you first start reading it - it is very difficult - you have to slow down - this is part of the pleasure for me - I found it helpful to voice the words - phonetically. You soon get up to speed - Hoban's imagined dialect is consistent - a pidgin of his own making. I find it to be shot through with Christian religious allegory - secular also - but I think that everyone might understand their own interpretation of it - multi layered. The mark of a good book? I shan't say any more for fear of giving away the plot. It's an unsettling vision. All too plausible. I couldn't recommend it too highly.

Thanks to B. - @Barry Giddens - for gifting this book to me. Well off my normal radar - I'm very glad he did.

Yours - I.
Is the whole book in this language ? It does sound interesting, you may have enabled me........again! :) P
 
Is the whole book in this language ? It does sound interesting, you may have enabled me........again! :) P

Yes P. it is entirely written in Hoban's unique language/dialect - to quote -

“Its some kynd of thing it aint us but yet its in us. Its looking out thru our eye hoals. May be you dont take no noatis of it only some times. Say you get woak up suddn in the middl of the nite. 1 minim youre a sleap and the nex youre on your feet with a spear in your han. Wel it werent you put that spear in your han it wer that other thing whats looking out thru your eye hoals. It aint you nor it dont even know your name. Its in us lorn and loan and sheltering how it can.”

That's one of the key passages in the book.

As said before - I couldn't recommend it too highly - extremely difficult but all the more rewarding for the effort.

Yours - I.
 
Yes P. it is entirely written in Hoban's unique language/dialect - to quote -

“Its some kynd of thing it aint us but yet its in us. Its looking out thru our eye hoals. May be you dont take no noatis of it only some times. Say you get woak up suddn in the middl of the nite. 1 minim youre a sleap and the nex youre on your feet with a spear in your han. Wel it werent you put that spear in your han it wer that other thing whats looking out thru your eye hoals. It aint you nor it dont even know your name. Its in us lorn and loan and sheltering how it can.”

That's one of the key passages in the book.

As said before - I couldn't recommend it too highly - extremely difficult but all the more rewarding for the effort.

Yours - I.
Enabled......thank you :) P.
 
Most of the way through the astonishing - "Riddley Walker,' by Russell Hoban. This will be the most affecting book I will read this year - that I'm sure about. It describes a post-apocalyptic vision of England - specifically Kent - after a historical nuclear destruction - the world of the narrator - Riddley - is iron age in technology - animistic in belief - and the very fabric of language has broken down. This is the genius of the book and the author's vision - for example -

"Raining agen it wer nex morning. Theres rains and rains. This 1 wer coming down in a way as took the hart and hoap out of you there wer a kynd of brilyants in the grey it wer too hard it wer too else it made you feal like all the tracks in the worl wer out paths nor not a 1 to bring you back. Wel of coarse they are but it dont all ways feal that way. It wer that kynd of morning when peopl wernt jus falling in to what they done naturel they had to work ther selfs in to it. Seamt like a lot of tea got spilt at breakfas nor the talk wernt the userel hummeling and mummeling there wer some thing else in it. Like when you see litening behynt the clouds.”

When you first start reading it - it is very difficult - you have to slow down - this is part of the pleasure for me - I found it helpful to voice the words - phonetically. You soon get up to speed - Hoban's imagined dialect is consistent - a pidgin of his own making. I find it to be shot through with Christian religious allegory - secular also - but I think that everyone might understand their own interpretation of it - multi layered. The mark of a good book? I shan't say any more for fear of giving away the plot. It's an unsettling vision. All too plausible. I couldn't recommend it too highly.

Thanks to B. - @Barry Giddens - for gifting this book to me. Well off my normal radar - I'm very glad he did.

Yours - I.
That's an extremely good description of the novel Iain. I never know quite where to start if I'm ever asked what ‘Riddley Walker' is about.
 
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