Kylie

The Graduate Charles Webb Rating: 7/10 Published: 1963 Number of pages: 192 Summary (taken from blurb): 'For twenty-one years I have been shuffling back and forth between classrooms and libraries. Now you tell me what the hell it's got me.' That's how Benjamin Braddock talked when he came home from university. Somehow it didn't seem to be what his father expected from a college education. And everyone was really appalled when Ben raped Mrs Robinson (that was her story anyway) and ran off with her daughter in the middle of her wedding to someone else... A brilliantly sordid tale of a young man's search for identity and a portrayal of the worst-behaved yet most sympathetic anti-heroes of the day. Comments: I can't really make up my mind whether I thought this was brilliant or just good, so I'm rating it somewhere in between. I think in this instance it really helped that I'd already seen the movie, because I was able to picture the actors in the roles and that brought it to life a bit more. If I hadn't seen the movie first, I probably wouldn't have been too impressed. The dialogue comes across as very dry and a little unbelievable. The characters like saying Ben's name and they seem a little deaf most of the time ('What?'). And I never quite worked out why Mrs Robinson's daughter wanted to run off with Ben. He didn't come off that wonderful or interesting in the story, and there were never any particularly touching moments between them. Once you get past all that though, it's a very good story and Ben is ultimately a likeable character. He's just struggling with those big life issues that we all come across sooner or later. Recommended. Started: 2 June 2008 Finished: 3 June 2008

Right you are Echo I wonder why I have it in iTunes under the name of the violinist and not the composer? I've just looked at the rest of that album and it's very inconsistent - I'll have to fix it. That would explain why Bach was at the back of my mind when I was thinking of the song and I was surprised to see a name I didn't really recognise

I finished reading The Book Thief about an hour ago and, of course, bawled my eyes out. Terrific read - the kind of gem that reminds me just why I love reading so much. I'll post a proper review later.

I don't play any instruments, although I have a keyboard at home (which doesn't get much use right now unfortunately!) I quite like classical music but I'm not good with names. I have a couple of those 'best ever classical music' albums, and I certainly have some favourites but I couldn't tell you names or composers I guess they're just the 'usual' ones that everyone knows. I do have an absolute favourite piece of classical music, however, and that is Air on the G String by Yehudi Menuhin (even with that one, I had to look up the composer's name! ). It's quite possibly the most beautiful piece of music I've ever heard.

I had to look up this poem to see what you were talking about. I was hoping that by some chance it would be a poem that I remember studying back in high school, and it was! I've thought of it periodically over the years - it's one that really stays with you isn't it? Thanks for bringing it to my attention again.

Well, I'd probably call it being @nal-retentive, or not having a life!

Fine! Is the second half any better/worse than the first half? Do you use a bookmark? Because if so, you shouldn't need to get to your place in the book via the inside front cover - you can just open straight to the page (no excuses!) You have a dirty mind, ii

Highly recommended by some, not at all recommended by others And those who do love him seem to have very different ideas as to which book they like the most. I would recommend reading a few of his books - if you don't like the first one there may be something else that you'll like more. Personally, I've only read Atonement: I liked some parts and disliked others, but I'll definitely try more of his work though.

Stay away from me! <makes sign to ward off evil> I'm just over halfway through. It's a surprisingly quick read and I'm really enjoying it so far.

Nice observations Amanda! I tend to miss out on those sorts of things when I read a book. Part of me doesn't want to analyse the book too much - I like to just enjoy the story for the story. But I know I sometimes miss out on things that might otherwise give me a better understanding/appreciation for the book. Thanks for sharing your thoughts...very interesting.

to the forum Amanda! I'm looking forward to reading your observations on what you read, especially if your insightful comments on Atonement are anything to go by!

Interesting comments. Do you think the stories are dull because you're reading them one after the other, with no break in between? Would you recommend that I read something else alongside it so I can break up the stories (when I get around to reading it)? Or is that not the problem at all?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas Dracula by Bram Stoker

Hi Nursenblack and to the forum! I love reading classics too.

Good point Wrath, and good to see you around the forum again!

Welcome aboard Tbain! I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on what you've read.

Nice review, Supergran! I have this and The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox on my TBR pile. I just might start with After You'd Gone after reading your review

Hi Arsonist (I hope that's in name only ) and to the forum.

Hi Vampirebloom and welcome to the forum! We did a Vampires comparative reading circle last year. The books chosen were Dracula by Bram Stoker and Carmilla by J Sheridan LeFanu. Have you read them both? Feel free to add your thoughts to the threads here.

I read about this one the other day and am thinking of joining it myself. I like that it incorporates other forms of sci-fi besides reading. Your other challenges sound great as well. Good luck with them! I also have 9 challenges going, including a sci-fi/fantasy one.

Depending on the book, sometimes I'm not really interested in reading reviews, but if it's a book I'm not certain about, I will read reviews from a variety of different sources (Amazon, LibraryThing, GoodReads, and BCF of course!) to get a better idea of what people did/didn't like about it. When writing reviews myself, I always try to mention both good and bad (if any) aspects to give other readers a better overall picture of the book. I find that people are all too willing to give negative reviews on the internet. It's one of the great (or bad?) things about it being anonymous. I've read some very harsh reviews. I would definitely tell the publisher why I had trouble finishing it. This is, after all, the reason why they send the books out - to receive feedback. If they only ever received positive feedback and no constructive criticism, then they would get the wrong idea of what the buying/reading public actually likes, and chances are they'll keep publishing more substandard books and then wonder why they aren't successes. That's what I always do! I would rather read about the problems that people had with the book. Sometimes they're problems I decide I can live with, and other times I might be put off the book because the problems described sound like they would frustrate me no end if I decided to read the book. That said, I think that ultimately the best judge of a book is yourself, and you shouldn't really let other people's reviews sway you either way. 'One man's trash is another man's treasure.'