Kell
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Posts posted by Kell
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Mmmmmmmmm - sounds delicious! I adore spicy, peppery soups. I think I might try making some of this for next week. I might cut down on the garlic a bit though, so I don't stink out the office - LOL!
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I really enjoyed it - it's been my best read of the year so far. OK, so we're still in anuray, but I've read 8 bokos in that time & it's by far the best - really my pick of the month!
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This is included in the Richard & Judy Book Club 2006 list. They're reading it at the moment, actually.
You can check it out here
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You can always get them out again if you don't finish them by the due date, 'Chelle. Whenever I get to the library, I take out a huge pile & then end up taking the last one or two out again when I take the rest back - LOL!
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Almost half way through Savage (the 1st of Armstrongs online Otherworld novellas). It's really interesting finding out a little more about Jeremy as a young man & the relationship with his father, Malcolm, seeing as Jeremy was introduced in Bitten as the Pack Alpha, it's interesting to see that his own father thought so little of him. Very good so far.
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I think you can get both. I've only ever had the semolina based one though. I'd like to try a corn-based one though - I rather like corn.
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I'm up to part 2 of AG. I can kind of see where part of the story is going, but not all of it - it's a bit of a mystery, but I'm looknig forward to solving that, THere's been a lot of reference to "a storm" that's coming. It's not arrived yet, but I think that when it hits, it's going to be an absolute hum-dinger!
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I like raw mushrooms too, Mau. Though not so long ago I wouldn't have touched them cooked or raw if you paid me - LOL!
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Im' still enjoying this, despite the fact that there's a particularly strange scene involving a Goddess with some weird sexual preferences (you'll see what I mean when you read it, if you haven't already). It's the only scene that's seemed slightly out of place so far, but even so, I can see the point of the scene in a way. In the end, it's all down to methods of worship as seen from the point of view of the Gods themselves. I'm finding the grifting sideo f things very interesting (I love movies like The Grifters, so this sort of stuff is right up my street) & it's fun trying to figure out which Gods are what when you first meet them.
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The "gore" is actually rather integral to the plot. The manner of death is vitally important, so it all ties in. It is quite visceral, but at the same time, it's very readable, despite the fact that every now & then you actually wince in sympathy!
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Started reading Savage by Kelley Armstrong (one of the Otherworld online novellas) last night. It folows the story of Clay as a child, how he came to be a werewolf & how Jeremy Danvers came to take him into the Pack. I printed this one off so I could read at my leisure, so it's all on A4 paper - found myself about 30 pages in while waiting for Desperate Housewives to start! It's pretty good so far & already I'm beginning to understand the character, to whom I was initially introduced in Bitten, a little better. It's really uncovering how he came to be the way he is. Im' enjoying it.
(I'm reading this alongside American Gods, so I don't get too far ahead of Michelle, as she's reading it with me & I'm enjoying it so much that I have a tendency to speed on ahead - LOL!)
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It is funny, that, isn't it? I couldn't imagine not liking veg, & yet Dale won't touch any of them, He says it's a texture thing more than anything. Me - i love loads of 'em. I'm not a fan of green stuff, like spinach or green beans or cabbage (not even the red stuff - LOL), but I do like lettuce & cucumber (yes, I know that one's a fruit really!). I like a whole rainbow of colours on my plate as often as possible - it makes it more interesting & to be perfectlyhonest, much as I love meat, I tend to go for the veg first if anything gets left, it'll be the meat.
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At least this is coming from someone who's read the others first - I was completely put off, but if someone who's read them says this is a disappointing one by the standard of the others, I may well reconsider & perhaps pick up the 1st one at some point in the future. It won't be high on my list of priorities, but if I come across it when I'm short on reading material, I might give it a go.
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I've not read Adrian Mole & the Weapons of Mass Destruction, but I loved Secret Diary & Growing Pains. They were both hilarious.
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Reading Group Discussion Questions (from the back of the book):
1. American Gods is an epic novel dealing with many big themes, including sacrifice, loyalty, betrayal, love & faith. Which theme affected you most strongly, & why?
2. Shadow begins the novel as a convict, & ends it a different man. How does the novel exploit the idea of America as a place where immigrants & exiles, both physical & emotional, can reinvent themselves? What makes Shadow himself so compelling & complex?
3. American Gods is partly a road trip through small-town America, where Shadow can see the sarker side of life that other people ignore. What does the novel say about what other people will accept in order to maintain a sense of normality?
4. The old gods expect sacrifice, violence & worship. How have they adapted to the modern world? What does this say about the nature of divinity? How & why have Americans transferred their devotion to the new technological & material gods from the old spiritual gods? What comment is being made about modern cultural values?
5. What is the significance of the illusions, cons & magic tricks that occur throughout the novel? American Gods is a novel where magic, myth & the divine coexist with the normal, mundane & human in a way that is utterly believable. How is this illusion maintained?
6. How does the rick* (sic) background description increase the power of the narrative? What do the secondary characters, particularly the gods whose lives & deaths are given a brief insight into, add to the novel?
* I think this might be a typo - I think it's supposed to be "trick", but I'm not sure.
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I was just looking at that one on Read it, Swap it - LOL!
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Birthday: 26 September 1976
Age: 32
Starsign: Libra
Single/Married/Other? Married to Dale (1/8/03)
Children? One son, Xander Hayden (24/9/08)
Where do you live? Aberdeen, Scotland.
Do you work? Yes - I work in the Local Plans office for Aberdeenshire council.
Favourite author? Toss up between Terry Pratchett, Kelley Armstrong & Simon Scarrow, I think.
Favourite book? Argh! I can't possibly think of one book above all others - there are too many on my list of faves!
How did you get here? I was doing a search for Yahoo book groups so I could plug On the Shelf on any quieter ones (you know, pilfer members who wanted something a little more active than where they were). Michelle then emailed me to say they were no longer using Yahoo & to come along here if I fancied it. I did & the rest is history.
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It'll say on the front cover if it's the same one as mine - it'll say "author's preferred text" on it. If not, then it's the original version which was trimmed down a bit.
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'Chelle, have you read Small Gods by Terry Pratchett? I'm thinking that parts of AG, so far, are a little similar in idea - the whole small god/forgotten god thing...
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Read another 50 pages in bed before Dale finished with his online game & came to bed. It's really good so far. I'm really enjoying the idea of "old gods" (similar to Pratchett's "small gods" idea...)
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I've got the "Author's preferred text" version of this, which is about an extra 12,000 words from all accounts (635 pages paperback). It actually has reading group questions in the back of the book too. If anyone wants to see them, I'll be pleased to post 'em.
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I'm hoping to start American Gods in the bath tonight.
That's just what I did - I read 50 pages straight through & so far so good. I have the "Author's preferred text" version, which apparently (according to the foreword) has an extra 12,000 words to it...
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Decided to join Michelle in her additional Reading Circle, American Gods by Neil Gaimen, as I got this one for Xmas off Dale & have been dying to get into it. I thought about suggesting it for one of the voting choices for the next Posh Club meeting, but I can't wait that long to get to it - too impatient - LOL!
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Finished DIG this evening & am just about to post the review - but don't go reading it till you've read the book if you're going to, guys. Just in case. I do try not to put spoilers into the reviews, but it can be touch & go sometimes. Dying for a few more folks to read it so we can all discuss it properly. Dale said he'll post the book to Inanna for me tomorrow, so you won't have to wait till after the weekend after all - it should be with you within a couple of days - hurrah!
Kell's 2006 Reading Log - January to June
in Past Book Logs
Posted
I'm now almost 1/2 way through American Gods & there's still a fair bit of mystery, the storm's still brewing & I'm still playing "spot the God". I'm still very much enjoying it though.