What are you reading at the moment?

Robin Hobb Ship Of Magic, Liveship traders Trilogy Book 1
Part of the The Farseer saga, this fantasy trilogy is a sea tale with all sorts of magic, sea serpents and pirates, telling the story of the Vestritts Trader Family, their ship Vivacia and Kennit the Pirate.
I'm good for around 2500 pages now ....


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Thought I'd offer these after a period of absence. Actually, I was inspired by @Digimonkey and his use of the term ‘moribund'. It's not used often enough, I feel. Perhaps a victim of its own semantics.

Anyhoo. Following on from another of Iain's recommendations (Meetings With Remarkable Manuscripts), I happened upon The Madman's Library. Another book about books. Books that aren't really books; books made of flesh, written in blood, cryptic books, hoaxes, supernatural books and so on throughout history. Fascinating stuff thus far; beautifully illustrated.

The Queen's Conjuror is a biography of John Dee; astrologer, confidante and magus of QE1. This was inspired by Peter Ackroyd's The House of Doctor Dee; another of his ‘time slippage' novels between past and present. It's also a really interesting look at the Elizabethan era.

Of course, Hallowe'en approacheth; and it would be remiss not to include something weird. Normally, M.R. James, Algernon Blackwood, H.R. Wakefield et al are my literary sustenance this time (and most other times) of the year. But recently, I began collecting the tales of Robert Aickman. A self-confessed author of ‘strange stories', his tales don't explain everything away nice and neatly. This can be challenging and they can really can get under the skin.


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Over the last week or so this is what i've been reading as my bedtime nightcap.

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Before i read these books i will be honest and say i always thought of ben as a comedy writer and can't get 'Loads of Money' of my mind and the scripts he co wrote for the Blackadder TV series....I was totally drawn into both of these excellent books....He must have done extensive research into the first world war....The First Casualty story The story is well put across to the reader. There was enough action going on to make you want to keep on reading, wound around the action on the front line. At times the description of the front during the first world war or rather the description of the many soldiers experiences made me think deeper about how the soldiers ,some of them only boys were able to cope and get through the day, yet alone weeks, months and years, expecting death to come soon.
Watching documentaries on the first world war you are removed from the soldiers emotions, the storyline is a poignant insight into the horror of the first world war.

Time and Time Again,...Another good read, not in the same league as 'The first Casualty., I've read a few time travel novels and yet this one is a little different to any of them that had gone before...I love the description of the period how 'Guts Stanton' the main character of the book is sent back in time to 1914 and altering history for the "better" I certainly learnt a little more about the political situation at the time. All in all, I enjoyed the twists and turns towards the end of the book, but felt it took a long time to get through and was a little drawn out in places...However both are well written books that i highly recommend.

Regards. B.
 
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I omitted this one. The Lives They Left Behind is a very moving indictment of psychiatric care in America during the 20th century. The Willard Psychiatric Center in upstate New York closed in 1995. Some 400 or so suitcases of personal belongings that residents brought with them over the years were found in the attic. The authors use the contents of the suitcases to paint and tell their stories. As I say, moving; but often shocking.

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I omitted this one. The Lives They Left Behind is a very moving indictment of psychiatric care in America during the 20th century. The Willard Psychiatric Center in upstate New York closed in 1995. Some 400 or so suitcases of personal belongings that residents brought with them over the years were found in the attic. The authors use the contents of the suitcases to paint and tell their stories. As I say, moving; but often shocking...


They could easily return these because as a result of the tragedy of deinstitutionalization these people are now on every street corner raving at all who pass by. :whistle:
 
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Gettysburg - Pennsylvania - Timothy H. O'Sullivan. 1863

Abraham Lincoln - the Gettysburg address - November the 19th 1863 - in full - exquisite and painful words. Two hundred and seventy one of them.

'Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate - we can not consecrate - we can not hallow - this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us - that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion - that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain - that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom - and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.'


What I was reading again tonight - even 157 years distant - entirely relevant - ding dong - the witch is dead - biggly. It's going to drag out in the courts for months - obviously. The president elect will be the oldest in American history - replacing the second oldest - biggly. Kennedy, Clinton and Obama were in their 40's. A system on the point of atrophy? I seek to make no greater point, or any point at all - for that matter - will we learn? - I doubt it - I.

@Scotshave @Missoni
 
I'm an absolute softy for this book. Revisiting for the first time in 20 years. I have so many happy memories of being on Ithaka and Kephalonia. I would give anything to be there right now.

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I've just finished this. When it comes to films, horror is one of my favourite genres but not one I usually venture into when I'm choosing a new book.

While the story of this is intriguing, the layout, journal entries from different characters, also tie in well but I didnt find the horror aspect of it good at all. Maybe I was expecting too much from a book.

When it comes to horror in particular...maybe films are just better?
 
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I've just finished this. When it comes to films, horror is one of my favourite genres but not one I usually venture into when I'm choosing a new book.

While the story of this is intriguing, the layout, journal entries from different characters, also tie in well but I didnt find the horror aspect of it good at all. Maybe I was expecting too much from a book.

When it comes to horror in particular...maybe films are just better?

It's definitely not a schlock horror novel, but firmly in the gothic horror genre, it's a slow burn given the epistolary style, but imho this gives the reader the opportunity to let their imagination run riot, rather than having every scene set out for them. For me this makes the book a more immersive experience rather than having it described in a more cinematic style, which is pretty much an inevitability in modern horror novels, because cinema.
 
It's definitely not a schlock horror novel, but firmly in the gothic horror genre, it's a slow burn given the epistolary style, but imho this gives the reader the opportunity to let their imagination run riot, rather than having every scene set out for them. For me this makes the book a more immersive experience rather than having it described in a more cinematic style, which is pretty much an inevitability in modern horror novels, because cinema.
Very well put Rob...slow burn describes it perfectly. By no means a bad read, just not what I expected and certainly wouldn't put me off reading more of that genre in the future.
 
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I've just finished this. When it comes to films, horror is one of my favourite genres but not one I usually venture into when I'm choosing a new book.

While the story of this is intriguing, the layout, journal entries from different characters, also tie in well but I didnt find the horror aspect of it good at all. Maybe I was expecting too much from a book.

When it comes to horror in particular...maybe films are just better?
It's a fascinating, but uneven, book. Inherently misogynistic, with a slight homoerotic undertone that, to me, Stoker felt he had to overcompensate by the staking of Lucy (the most horrible part in the book). Lucy's only crime was being slightly flirtatious and flighty.

I'm concerned that we never get to the real Dracula; apart from him talking of his Szekely history. Later on, he is sidelined and viewed through the standpoint of others.

The book can be interpreted many ways: through the lens of Marxism; fear of ‘the other'; contagion; miscegenation and so on.

it does have its plusses: the use of modern media; wax cylinders, stenograph, telegraph, railway timetables, typewriters, Kodaks and so on is interesting. But then you get Van Helsing the Dutchman coming out with ‘Mein Gott!'. Also, D dies by a stab with a khukri knife; no stake etc. Very clumsy. That's one of my editions you have, incidentally.

As to films being better, it depends what you want from your book.
 
It's a fascinating, but uneven, book. Inherently misogynistic, with a slight homoerotic undertone that, to me, Stoker felt he had to overcompensate by the staking of Lucy (the most horrible part in the book). Lucy's only crime was being slightly flirtatious and flighty.

I'm concerned that we never get to the real Dracula; apart from him talking of his Szekely history. Later on, he is sidelined and viewed through the standpoint of others.

The book can be interpreted many ways: through the lens of Marxism; fear of ‘the other'; contagion; miscegenation and so on.

it does have its plusses: the use of modern media; wax cylinders, stenograph, telegraph, railway timetables, typewriters, Kodaks and so on is interesting. But then you get Van Helsing the Dutchman coming out with ‘Mein Gott!'. Also, D dies by a stab with a khukri knife; no stake etc. Very clumsy. That's one of my editions you have, incidentally.

As to films being better, it depends what you want from your book.
:unsure: until I read your reply there it hadn't even crossed my mind about questioning how the Khukri knife was fit for purpose to kill Dracula! No idea why this didnt stand out to me as a blooper if you will.
 
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