alicedrinkwater
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Posts posted by alicedrinkwater
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I am exactly the same!
Well, I've abandoned the last two books I tried, The Redemption of Althalus, which I will not pick up again and What Maisie Knew, which I will try again. It's a good book, I'm just not in the mindset for it right now.
I did finish The Doll, a book of very early short stories by Daphne Du Maurier but have yet to leave my thoughts. I will some time soon. The stories were mostly surprisingly good.
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Currently listening to....
Waiting for the September album!
Me, too!
In fact, here is what I am listening to right now:
My favorite band. You have great taste, frankie!
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Sorry to hear that Alice .. you're right to look for something else .. people like that can make one's life a misery!
Hope you find something else soon .. good luck! Thank you, poppy!
That sounds very unpleasant, I remember a supervisor I once had about 10 years ago who totally had it in for me, but loved the other girl who started the same day as me. The other girl was lovely, but very outspoken, and I was very quiet. The supervisor was miserable anyway, for her to like the other girl was unusual, but it really bothered me.
Good luck finding something new
Thank you, Nollaig. It is very unpleasant. I know what you mean about being very quiet. In my own way, I'm not an outgoing person. I can talk to people, and I have opinions, but I prefer to keep to myself and many don't understand that. The ones that do end up being my closest friends.
I can sort of see why they'd promote her, because she won't hesitate to delegate the crappiest jobs and give people bad news and stuff, with her attitude. However, they should know better that with a supervisor/boss like that, everyone will hate the work and will do a poorer job
I hope you can find another job soon! It's a crappy situation, but it feels like you haven't been all that happy to work there to begin with, and so this might be just the sort of thing you needed to find a better fit!
That is true, frankie. That's one of the reasons I would never want to be a supervisor. Some part of me would always feel guilty when I had to delegate crappy jobs or fire someone. At least she doesn't have the power to fire me.
I bought that a few months ago but haven't got around to it yet, it looks great though.
I hope your new supervisor isn't too bad
Timstar, it truly is a great novel, so different. Yes, it's fantasy, but it's not like any other fantasy I have read. The fantasy is implied, rather than overt, which created such an overwhelming feeling of being not quite asleep, not quite awake. That's the best I can describe it. It just filled me with such an awesome sense of wonder, longing, and sadness.
I won't let her get to me too much. I'll just ignore her. I do my job, so what is she going to do to me?
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Very wise move
All the same .. good luck!! Actually, I'm surprised. I'm almost half way through, and it's not as difficult as I thought it would be. It's a disturbing read, and a book I do have to concentrate on, but it is a good read. Maisie is a tragic character. My heart breaks for her. The saddest part is she doesn't know how awful her childhood is.
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That seems radical having to move job though! Unless you are not really too bothered about the place of course.Oh, I work in a very crappy retail environment. I've only been there a little over a year and have no loyalty to the company. I could do the same job somewhere else.
I'm sorry to hear about your work related news
It's really the pits when there are people at work with whom one doesn't get along, especially if they hold a superior position 
I was so shocked when this girl was promoted. Multiple employees have major issues with her. I guess her nasty attitude and aggressiveness is what they look for in managers, though.
I'm so sorry to hear of your work related news
.Thanks! I'll deal with it, just not happy about it.
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I gave up on The Redemption of Althalus. Too much telling and not showing, too many characters that were cute in the beginning became annoying with the constant silly bantering back and forth, and too many plot holes. Oh, well.
I'm going to try the difficult The Ambassadors by Henry James. Wish me luck!
Actually, changed my mind. I'm going with What Maisie Knew instead of The Ambassadors. It's shorter and I find the theme more intriguing.
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It's frustrating and maddening when life keeps you from reading a book as much as you would like to.
They just promoted a girl at work who has not liked me from day one to a supervisor, so it's time for me to look for another job.
I've never let her use me for her own purposes, so she has held that against me. I hate politics in the workplace.
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The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Synopsis
A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don’t know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other.
(taken from Goodreads)
My Thoughts
I own two McCarthy books, The Road and Blood Meridian. I decided that it was the right time to read one of them and I chose to go with The Road. I saw the movie when it first came out so I sort of knew what I was getting into before starting but I had heard a lot of good things about the book so I couldn't wait to get started.
The story is set in a post apocalyptic America which has been utterly destroyed. By what, we never find out but something massive has happened and our story focuses on a father and son making their way across the country. They rarely meet anyone along the way but those that they do meet are usually dangerous and only out for themselves. There is little in the way of character development and from memory we don't even learn the names of anyone. I found this a little hard to get on with but I assume this was done on purpose as it adds to the whole atmosphere of the book.
It's the atmosphere where the book really shines, everything feels gray, downbeat and oppressive. I rarely come across anything like this and it really stood out to me. I felt cold reading it and I could really picture what was happening to the characters. I did feel like a distant observer rather than in the thick of it though. The only other book ive read that had a similar feeling to me was Snow by Orhan Pamuk.
I found the storyline to be very slow moving, so much so that I found myself getting a little frustrated at times. I wouldn't say that I didn't enjoy the book but I don't think that it was my thing and that hurt my enjoyment of it. I can see why it is so popular and largely praised.
2/5 (It was OK).
I didn't care that much for The Road, either. I'm glad I'm not the only one.
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I finished The Art of Racing in the Rain at work this morning and now I have nothing else to read.
I must admit, that book had me blubbering like an idiot in the last chapter, and while I love all animals, I'm not specifically a dog lover.
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That's good to know. It's a shame you didn't like those series, I'm glad though you enjoyed The Elenium and The Tamuli series, and that you're enjoying The Redemption of Althalus so far
.I'm halfway through it and still enjoying it, although sometimes my eyes glaze over when an author goes into detail about battle tactics. I guess war is really not my thing.
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Ooh, I like the sound of A Borrowed Man. I've added it to my wishlist.
Mr. Wolfe is supposed to be working on a sequel to that one, called Interlibrary Loan. If A Borrowed Man is as good as it sounds, I'll be biting my nails for the sequel as well.
Here is another one I am looking forward to.
The Fifth Heart by Dan Simmons.
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I liked this book
. I haven't read many other books by the authors though so I don't know how it compared (they are on my shelves however ). I liked that one, though! I hope you enjoy it too.I can tell you that most people that read David Eddings and like his work prefer The Belgariad and The Malleorian series. I didn't like them at all. But I did like The Elenium and The Tamuli series with Sparhawk and Aphrael, two very lovable characters. So far I am enjoying The Redemption of Althalus. Typical Eddings. Light, fun, and engaging.
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I may have to buy it again when the new SF Masterworks edition is published next year, just for the cover
I've not read that one - I'm guessing you'd recommend it?
Ooooh, that is a nice cover.
Yes, definitely! Get a copy if you can. It's by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. It's an old book, written in the early 70s, but one of the best books about first contact I've read. The most difficult part of the book for me was the scientific terminology and it dragged a little in the beginning, but it wasn't that bad. The "Moties" were fascinating.
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1. The Tree of Life
2. The Shawshank Redemption
3. Rebecca
4. 2001: A Space Odyssey
5. A.I.
6. Pursuit of Happyness
7. You've Got Mail
8. Planet of the Apes
9. It Happened One Night
10. West Side Story
I haven't seen 12 Monkeys, but I have heard great things about it, so I need to see it.
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Well I always recommend A Fire Upon the Deep - it's the one I started with. I've read it twice and it's one of my favourite science fiction novels. This is assuming that you like stories set on other worlds and with weird and wonderful aliens
Also, the prequel - A Deepness in the Sky - is fabulous. They're only linked by one character - the stories are completely separate, so they can be read in any order (or not at all!). More detail on both of them here
I'm about 250 pages into Rainbows End, and it rocks, so far
I will definitely pick up one or the other when I am ready for my next sci--fi read. I have both!
I love stories with weird and wonderful aliens. I read The Mote in God's Eye years ago and that was a great read. I will have to read that one again some day!In other news, I finished The Doll: The Lost Short Stories by Daphne Du Maurier and it was better than I expected. I have just started on The Redemption of Althalus by David and Leigh Eddings.
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Nice reviews
!I think you should rate (or not rate) however you want
.Thank you!
Oh, I meant that I found using stars annoying, that's why I switched. Dance Dance Dance sounds like a great read. I loved The Wind Up Bird Chronicle when I read it earlier this year, so I must make more time for more Murakami.
It was a great read, as was Kafka on the Shore and After Dark. I haven't read The Wind Up Bird Chronicle, but I have heard great things about it, so I will some day.
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Now I am on to (thanks mom!) The Lady of the Rivers, Philippa Gregory's 3rd book in the Cousins War series
I really need to start this series, or at least the first book. I have loved everything else I have read by her.
I have Kafka on the Shore, 1Q84 and The Elephant Vanishes.
The three of us could read Nineteen Minutes together, if you like? I don't know if you like that sort of thing, all reading the book around the same time, or whether you prefer to just read it when you feel like it. It's what the 'Group Reads' subforum is for, so we could do that some time later in the year if you and Anna want to?
You should read Kafka on the Shore. I haven't read IQ84 yet. I think I did read The Elephant Vanishes, but Murakami's short stories don't leave an impression on me like his novels do.
I have no problem if the three of us read Nineteen Minutes together. It should be fun!
Which other ones do you have? I've read all of his novels, apart from Rainbows End (until now, anyway), so may be able to help
Hmmm, quite a bit, actually. I think I might have most of his books. I did try reading The Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge but I don't remember much about it, as none of his short stories drew me in. Maybe you could tell me which novel of his you think is the best to start with. I probably have it.
Which reminds me, I am sure there are many good reads that people on this forum could recommend to me, but I already have so many unread books on my shelves, I can't take a chance at being influenced to BUY anything more.
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I have a few coming out this year that I am looking forward to.
Well, some of them are already released in hardback, but I normally wait for the paperback.
The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley
Fool's Assassin by Robin Hobb (I still need to read the last four that came out before this one, though.)
The Boy Who Drew Monsters by Keith Donohue
A Borrowed Man by Gene Wolfe
Here is a synopsis of the last one! Cannot wait!
It is perhaps a hundred years in the future, our civilization is gone, and another is in place in North America, but it retains many familiar things and structures. Although the population is now small, there is advanced technology, there are robots, and there are clones.
E. A. Smithe is a borrowed person. He is a clone who lives on a third-tier shelf in a public library, and his personality is an uploaded recording of a deceased mystery writer. Smithe is a piece of property, not a legal human.
A wealthy patron, Colette Coldbrook, takes him from the library because he is the surviving personality of the author of "Murder on Mars." A physical copy of that book was in the possession of her murdered father, and it contains an important secret, the key to immense family wealth. It is lost, and Colette is afraid of the police. She borrows Smithe to help her find the book and to find out what the secret is. And then the plot gets complicated.
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This morning I've made a start on Vernor Vinge's Rainbows End. Forty pages in and hooked already.
I have this one, and a few other Vernor Vinge novels, but I keep not picking any of them up. I would love hear your thoughts when finished.
I finished Godbody by Theodore Sturgeon and plan on starting The Doll by Daphne Du Maurier.
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Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami
My rating: 4/5
My thoughts: In typical Murakami fashion, he tells a story about ordinary people that have extraordinary events happen to them. Stepping into a Murakami novel is like stepping into an abstract painting, one in which there are solid shapes, but no right angles or completeness. Imagine your most bizarre dreams written as if they are reality, as if they are not bizarre but blase or commonplace. That's what a Murakami novel is like, although this one was almost "normal". The story is told in the first person by an unnamed narrator, who believes he is being contacted with a message from a past lover named Kiki. While he searches for her, he meets some colorful characters along the way; a shy hotel clerk, a psychic 13 year old with absentee parents, and he also reunites with a long lost friend from high school, who is now a struggling actor. This book feels like a dance, one in which you are not sure where the next reeling turn will take you. In the end, things seem to come full circle. But did the dance end? An excellent read, and my favorite thus far by Murakami.
Godbody by Theodore Sturgeon
My rating: 4/5
My thoughts: Sturgeon is more of a short story master than a novelist, so I kept that in mind when I read this short, but sweet, novel. This is a re-telling of the Christ story, one that would probably offend puritan Christians. A naked man shows up in a small American town who calls himself "Godbody". He touches some people's lives and bodies while he is there, and they will never be the same. Each chapter is told from a different character's point of view, and Sturgeon excels at this. There is quite a lot of explicit sex in this book, but I wouldn't call it pornography. Sex, or physical intimacy, in it's highest form, is Love. That is what this book illustrates, in Sturgeon's always poetic voice. I loved it, but my ideas of "God" and "Jesus" are similar to Sturgeons'. It's not what I think of as a "religious" book, although I would call it preachy. It's just my type of preaching.
My next read is The Doll, a book of short stories by Daphne Du Maurier. Obviously, I can't keep to my projected reading order. Also, I'm no longer using stars for my ratings. It's too annoying.
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Hi and welcome!
The only John Connolly I have read is The Book of Lost Things, which I loved.
I hope you find some more authors and books to enjoy here.
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Good-ho! I didn't know if you knew or not! (Sheep Chase is also very good, btw!).
I'm sure I'll enjoy it! It is on my bookshelf.
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I have never read a Western before, but I do have Doc my Mary Doria Russell on my bookshelf and I think I might enjoy it. I have read The Sparrow and Children of God by her, which were excellent books, so I'm willing to give her novel about Doc Holiday a try. She is also coming out with a follow up to Doc next year called Epitaph.
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Ah that makes sense
.I loved House Rules too! I liked Lone Wolf a lot as well. That could well be, it's a pretty normal thing I'd say
.House Rules was truly excellent!
I finished Dance Dance Dance today by Haruki Murakami, but I'm not ready to review it yet. I loved it, like the other two I read by him, but I have difficulty explaining why I love his books. They are surreal, although this one was actually more "normal" than the other two I read.
I'm starting on Godbody by Theodore Sturgeon today. Maybe when I finish that one (it's short) I'll write a review of both books.
Your Book Activity - August 2015
in Past Book Logs
Posted
Although I do like What Maisie Knew, I abandoned it for now, as my mind is too preoccupied with other things to fully focus on it, and it needs my full attention.
It really was! Sometimes I like really bad books, but they have to at least keep me entertained. This one didn't.
I will be getting to some more Philippa Gregory soon!
My next read (which I will finish, dammit!) is The Fire Rose by Mercedes Lackey, a re-telling of Beauty and the Beast. It's the perfect read for my current love life.