Finally tripped on the summer book that I listened to and forgot, In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson, 2011. With a title like that, no wonder I forgot. It was pretty good, if a bit long to listen to. An American ambassador in Berlin during Hitler's rise. Interested to read about Berlin as beautiful.
Listened to the first of Tess Geritsen's myteries this week, The Surgeon, because I've been watching the TV show. Book is too bloody and gruesome for me, I skipped over all the guts and blood parts. Don't think I'll read any more of her books. It's a good enough mystery, just too gory for me.
Just started The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt, 2011. Not sure about it, but it seems alright so far. Set in 1851 right in the middle of the California gold rush, the story of two infamous brothers Charlie and Eli Sisters who set out on a mission by the commodore from Oregon City to apprehend and kill Hermann Kermit Warm.
Just about finished John Lawton's book, Old Flames, and it's very good. I do like his writing very much.
Just started a good memoir by Gail Caldwell, Let's Take the Long Way Home, 2011. She is writing about her friendship with Caroline Knapp - who wrote A Pack of Two - a book I bought a long time ago, because she was a drinker and a dog lover. This is a very good book.
Friday, September 23, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
books
Listened to Sing You Home, 2011, by Jodi Picoult and it was good. Long but entertaining but I hated the music tracks - it's offensive to have someone chose music for you. Infertility issues and who has rites to the embryos and gay and Christian rites all come into this book. I almost stopped because the born again stuff but persevered through it and it was worth it.
A New Culture of Learning, 2011, by John Seely Brown and Douglas Thomas is good. I'm reading it for work but by choice. Interesting stuff.
Robert Goddard writes great stories, his latest, Blood Count, 2011 has got a hold of me.
The Blue Light Project by Timothy Taylor, 2011 was good. Not as good as Stanley Park was, but still, pretty good. Interesting to read about city art and those people who use the city as trapeze props. Three main characters; Eve, a former Olympian, Rabbit, a street artist and Thom Pegg, a disgraced former investigative journalist are all interesting and believable. The hostage taking part is there for some reason but was not that interesting.
A New Culture of Learning, 2011, by John Seely Brown and Douglas Thomas is good. I'm reading it for work but by choice. Interesting stuff.
Robert Goddard writes great stories, his latest, Blood Count, 2011 has got a hold of me.
The Blue Light Project by Timothy Taylor, 2011 was good. Not as good as Stanley Park was, but still, pretty good. Interesting to read about city art and those people who use the city as trapeze props. Three main characters; Eve, a former Olympian, Rabbit, a street artist and Thom Pegg, a disgraced former investigative journalist are all interesting and believable. The hostage taking part is there for some reason but was not that interesting.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Some books
Finished James Fitzgerald's book, What Disturbs Our Blood: A Son's Quest to Redeem the Past, 2010 and it was good. A bit long and very sad but interesting. He writes well about his grandfather, famous but forgotten because of his suicide and mental health problems.
Just listened to Sebatian Faulk's Birdsong, something I've been meaning to read for years. It is a very good book, what hell those trenches were in WWI. Good writer, good story. He starts it off so innocently in 1910, with English Stephen Wraysford living in France, entangling himself with the wife of his host. Then bam, into the trenches you go.
Started another John Lawton book and really like it. Old Flames, written in 1997. Troy gets to hang out with Nikita Khrushchev in 1956. Should be interesting.
The latest Kurt Wallander book, The Troubled Man by Henning Mankell was odd. Don't know if it's the translation or the book - but the characters seemed flat, especially Kurt and his daughter. It's good there will be no more.
Just listened to Sebatian Faulk's Birdsong, something I've been meaning to read for years. It is a very good book, what hell those trenches were in WWI. Good writer, good story. He starts it off so innocently in 1910, with English Stephen Wraysford living in France, entangling himself with the wife of his host. Then bam, into the trenches you go.
Started another John Lawton book and really like it. Old Flames, written in 1997. Troy gets to hang out with Nikita Khrushchev in 1956. Should be interesting.
The latest Kurt Wallander book, The Troubled Man by Henning Mankell was odd. Don't know if it's the translation or the book - but the characters seemed flat, especially Kurt and his daughter. It's good there will be no more.
Monday, August 1, 2011
good mystery
The Janus Stone: A Ruth Galloway Mystery by Elly Griffiths, 2010, second book of Norfolk set mysteries. Very likeable characters, Ruth puts up with no nonsense and gets into all kinds of trouble. The plot is a bit bizarre but the people are great.
Listened to another book en route to Victoria and back but cannot remember what it was!
read "There Are Things I Want You to Know" about Stieg Larsson and Me by Eva Barbrielsson, 2011. Not a great book, but interesting to read about their political life and life in Sweden.
Listened to another book en route to Victoria and back but cannot remember what it was!
read "There Are Things I Want You to Know" about Stieg Larsson and Me by Eva Barbrielsson, 2011. Not a great book, but interesting to read about their political life and life in Sweden.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
good book, awful book
Start with the good book, The Hand That First Held Mine by Maggie O'Farrell, 2011. Two stories that eventually come together set in London in the 50s and now. Good writer, realistic depictions of people and babies. Liked this book.
Listened to 9/10 of A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan and do not understand why anyone would like it. I kept hoping it would get better but have finally given up. Characters I don't care about, plot that does not engage, I don't care about the manipulations of time. Glad to have left it.
Listened to 9/10 of A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan and do not understand why anyone would like it. I kept hoping it would get better but have finally given up. Characters I don't care about, plot that does not engage, I don't care about the manipulations of time. Glad to have left it.
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