Alexi's Reading 2013

[frankie]

He has!

 

He's usually a non fiction guy, but makes exceptions for horror, time travel or grisly crime

 

Ooooh, I think that's a very good sign

 

 

He buys me books sometimes and has told me he will get me an extra book case when we move. I might keep him

 

And that's a better one yet Keep him!!

[bobblybear]

Ella Minnow Pea is a very unique and clever book. I hope you enjoy it when you get to it.

[Devi]

I've yet to read a stephen king book too. I started to read The Stand, but I can't remember why I stopped now. Hmm.

 

I've seen a few of the movies of his books though, does that count?

Edited July 29, 2013 by Devi

[Janet]

Ella Minnow Pea is a cracking read, Alex.  Enjoy. 

[Athena]

I loved Her Fearful Symmetry, I hope you do too! Out of the rest of your list I own Slaughterhouse Five (on Kindle), Still Alice, The Shining, Gone Girl and Of Mice and Men (I do own Her Fearful Symmetry too), but they're all not read yet . In my defense, most of those purchases were made not too long ago.

x

And I know about school of any kind cramping our reading styles... I'm happy it's all behind you now and you can indulge in all kinds of recreational reading

x

I agree! What I found very confusing at secondary school was that we had to read a book for Dutch and a book for English. To then also read a book for fun, was a bit confusing to me, so many stories going on at once! I did enjoy most of the books I read for Dutch and English, though .

x

I've yet to read a stephen king book too. I started to read The Stand, but I can't remember why I stopped now. Hmm.

 

I've seen a few of the movies of his books though, does that count?

x

If I remember correctly, you found your version of the book too heavy to hold, and then bought the Kindle version? I'm not sure if you started reading the Kindle version. Who knows, maybe I'm completely off about this.. (whether I'm right or wrong, you can blame my normally-excellent memory for it).

 

Are the movies you've seen any good? I recently bought a few of the movies when I saw them on sale. I plan to read the books first though it will depend on if anyone else in the house wants to watch them sooner than I read the books.

[Devi]

 

If I remember correctly, you found your version of the book too heavy to hold, and then bought the Kindle version? I'm not sure if you started reading the Kindle version. Who knows, maybe I'm completely off about this.. (whether I'm right or wrong, you can blame my normally-excellent memory for it).

 

Are the movies you've seen any good? I recently bought a few of the movies when I saw them on sale. I plan to read the books first though it will depend on if anyone else in the house wants to watch them sooner than I read the books.

 

Yes I found it awkward to hold and it hurt my hands too. I did buy the kindle version and started to read that before I got distracted or something. 

 

IT was scary, I disliked clowns for awhile after watching that and I've seen Carrie, the shining and cujo - enjoyed them all.

[Alexi]

Ugh, I am struggling with multi quote!! Janet and bobblybear - wow, two good recommendation for Ella Minnow Pea! I must get around to it soon then

 

I've yet to read a stephen king book too. I started to read The Stand, but I can't remember why I stopped now. Hmm.

I've seen a few of the movies of his books though, does that count?

 

I think you're doing better than me - I've only seen The Shawshank Redemption!

 

I loved Her Fearful Symmetry, I hope you do too! Out of the rest of your list I own Slaughterhouse Five (on Kindle), Still Alice, The Shining, Gone Girl and Of Mice and Men (I do own Her Fearful Symmetry too), but they're all not read yet . In my defense, most of those purchases were made not too long ago.

Speaking as someone who has 198 unread books on the shelf, I'm not one to judge. I need to give up work and housework and just read for about six months to catch up with everything! Edited July 30, 2013 by Alexi

[shelley.s]

I look forward to seeing what you think of Slaughterhouse 5, two of my friends recommended it to me and its on my wish list but ive seen a few reviews saying its not what its hyped up to be so i haven't actually purchased it yet 

[Athena]

Speaking as someone who has 198 unread books on the shelf, I'm not one to judge. I need to give up work and housework and just read for about six months to catch up with everything!

x

Thanks . Who knows, maybe someday in your life (maybe when you're retired?) you'll get to do a lot of reading.

[bookmonkey]

Thanks Frankie!

 

I've never actually read any King - although I do have 11.22.63 on my TBR. I saw Slaughterhouse Five was only 99p for kindle and that seemed too good a deal to pass up

I read a Stephen King years ago but can't remember what it was and didn't like it.  Put me off reading any more of his until 11.22.63 came out.  I really liked this.  Not sure if I'll try any other King's though.  I don't like horror, and only read this because the premise fascinated me.

[Alexi]

Alexi

I've been eyeing the Alex Woods book, so will be interested in hearing how you like it .

Be just started it now, so will let you know how I get on - although it might be a while because I'm snowed under at the moment, so reading time has been reduced to the commute!!

 

I read a Stephen King years ago but can't remember what it was and didn't like it.  Put me off reading any more of his until 11.22.63 came out.  I really liked this.  Not sure if I'll try any other King's though.  I don't like horror, and only read this because the premise fascinated me.

  

 

I think I'm going to try 11,22.63 first, because the premise fascinates me too!

 

Reviews reviews...

 

#33 Estates: An Intimate History by Lynsey Hanley

 

Synopsis: Lynsey Hanley was born and raised just outside of Birmingham on what was then the largest council estate in Europe, and she has lived for years on an estate in London's East End. Writing with passion, humour and a sense of history, she recounts the rise of social housing a century ago, its adoption as a fundamental right by leaders of the social welfare state in the mid-century and its decline - as both idea and reality - in the 1960s and '70s. Throughout, Hanley focuses on how shifting trends in urban planning and changing government policies - from Homes Fit for Heroes to Le Corbusier's concrete tower blocks, to the Right to Buy - affected those so often left out of the argument over council estates: the millions of people who live on them. What emerges is a vivid mix of memoir and social history, an engaging and illuminating book about a corner of society that the rest of Britain has left in the dark.(From Amazon)

 

Thoughts: I really enjoyed this. I raced through it, and when I wasn't reading it I was thinking about the concepts it brought up.

 

I have never lived in a council house, but my Dad was born in one and lived the first ten years of his life in one. He educated me at a young age about the foolishness of right to buy, but that's pretty much all I knew, so really enjoyed tracing the history back.

 

Hanley writes in an engaging tone, switching seamlessly from social study to autobiography in a moment. I don't agree with everything she says, but she explains herself very articulately.

 

At times, she can repeat herself, but on the whole a thoroughly enjoyable, worthwhile read on a very interesting subject.

 

4/5

[Alexi]

I've also finished Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck which I aim to review soon! I thought it was fabulous though and wish I'd had the opportunity to study that at school rather than Lord of the bloody Flies...

[Roland Butter]

_{Excellent review of Estates, Alexi.  Hanley's particularly good on the development of social housing after the War.  Somehow the myth has grown up that social housing is for welfare cases and scroungers, and it's a myth that's been promoted, to their eternal shame, by both political parties.  As you say, it's a worthwhile read.}

 

_{I'll stop there, I feel a rant coming on ......}

[Alexi]

I actually found that very interesting/horrifying. Normally, in political discussion, it's evil conservatives vs good labour (unless you're very rich where it might be the other way around!) although I do feel that's changing.

 

Here, it was made quite clear that both major political parties have disgraced themselves when it comes to housing. It's horrifying how attitudes towards it can change so quickly after the initial work after the war.

 

I think the major problem we now have is a complete lack of housing policy at all, never mind a decent one. Or if there is one, it isn't clear to me and I follow politics!

 

I went past a new development the other day actually, which had a massive sign outside it, and I thought of Hanley! Particularly as without it I wouldn't know it was council housing at all...

[frankie]

I look forward to seeing what you think of Slaughterhouse 5, two of my friends recommended it to me and its on my wish list but ive seen a few reviews saying its not what its hyped up to be so i haven't actually purchased it yet 

 

I read the book maybe 10 years ago and before getting into it I didn't know anything about it, and I actually had to read it for a literature class at uni. So I'd not heard of any kind of hype, but I really, really enjoyed it. The narrative is a bit difficult to start with, not knowing where and when you are, but if you give it time and read on, you ought to catch up soon. I don't want to now hype it even further for you and put you off reading it. Maybe you could borrow the book from the library instead of buying it, and read a few chapters to see how you get on with it?

 

 

I read a Stephen King years ago but can't remember what it was and didn't like it.  Put me off reading any more of his until 11.22.63 came out.  I really liked this.  Not sure if I'll try any other King's though.  I don't like horror, and only read this because the premise fascinated me.

 

King has written a few novels that aren't horror novels, maybe you might like to try some of those. For example, Apt Pupil, Green Mile, Rage, Long Walk (those two are his Richard Bachman books)...

 

[Kylie]

King has written a few novels that aren't horror novels, maybe you might like to try some of those. For example, Apt Pupil, Green Mile, Rage, Long Walk (those two are his Richard Bachman books)...

 

*shudders* Apt Pupil is the most disturbing King story I've read to date. Admittedly, I haven't read much King yet. In fact, I don't think I've read a single full-length novel of his yet. I've only read a few of his short story collections.

 

Alexi, Apt Pupil is in a collection of novellas called Four Seasons, and two of the other stories (there are four in total) are Stand by Me (you may have seen that movie?) and Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. So those two aren't really scary or gruesome.

 

I will also add my voices to those praising Ella Minnow Pea. Excellent book!

[Alexi]

Thanks Kylie! I have the DVD of Stand by Me but haven't got around to watching it yet - I didn't realise it was based on a King novel. The Shawshank Redemption is one of my favourite movies.

 

I haven't been around much lately because my mojo went for a wander and I moved house, but I'm now reading again - hurrah! A couple of reviews then:

 

#34 Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

 

Synopsis: Streetwise George and his big, childlike friend Lennie are drifters, searching for work in the fields and valleys of California. They have nothing except the clothes on their back, and a hope that one day they'll find a place of their own and live the American dream. But dreams come at a price. Gentle giant Lennie doesn't know his own strength, and when they find work at a ranch he gets into trouble with the boss's daughter-in-law. Trouble so bad that even his protector George may not be able to save him...

(From Amazon)

 

Thoughts: I went into this having heard only good things about it, and my expectations were pretty high. On the whole, Steinbeck delivers with a short, touching story of two friends who have a simple dream - to own their own land rather than working on someone else's.

 

In a book this short, the author really does have to make every word count, especially in a book that covers prejudice based on disability and race in 116 pages.

 

Yet it doesn't feel rushed at all, I actually felt the plot moved along at a fairly slow pace - and I was therefore taken aback by the ending!

 

I wish I had had the opportunity to read this for GCSE, rather than The Lord of the Flies. I imagine my 15-year-old self would have found much more to relate to and pull me in from Steinbeck.

 

I have not given thjs a 5, but I suspect this is largely down to expectations. I was expecting to be blown away, and I felt it dragged in parts for such a short novel.

 

4.5/5

[Alexi]

#35 The Universe Versus Alex Woods by Gavin Extence

 

Synopsis:

 

Alex Woods knows that he hasn't had the most conventional start in life.

 

He knows that growing up with a clairvoyant single mother won't endear him to the local bullies.

 

He also knows that even the most improbable events can happen - he's got the scars to prove it.

 

What he doesn't know yet is that when he meets ill-tempered, reclusive widower Mr Peterson, he'll make an unlikely friend. Someone who tells him that you only get one shot at life. That you have to make the best possible choices.

 

So when, aged seventeen, Alex is stopped at Dover customs with 113 grams of marijuana, an urn full of ashes on the passenger seat, and an entire nation in uproar, he's fairly sure he's done the right thing.

(From Amazon)

 

Thoughts: I really enjoyed this.

 

I picked this up on a whim on my kindle, and when I reread the synopsis during a mojo outage I gave it a go. It's definitely got me back on track.

 

This is going to be a short review because I don't want to give any spoilers away - I think it is best read without any further plot reveals.

 

Alex is a bullied teenager without many friends, but his friendship with elderly Mr Peterson influences his life to a huge extent, from Kurt Vonnegut to his views on morality.

 

The two of them become very close, and it's a story of their friendship over a number of years. The story begins and ends with Alex's arrest in Dover, and while arguing with the police Alex tells us the story of his life....

 

I am now definitely inspired to read some Kurt Vonnegut! I would recommend this one.

 

4/5

[Athena]

Nice reviews . I recently bought Of Mice and Men, so I'm glad to hear you liked it.

[Alexi]

I have been AWOL for a while, firstly because I was dreadful ill and couldn't get out of bed for two weeks (for the first week I was too ill to read ) and my mojo also decided to go for a wander to sunnier climes. I have managed a few books since I last posted so reviews ahoy:

 

Postcards from Nam by Uyen Nicole Duong

 

Synopsis: Mimi (the protagonist of Mimi and Her Mirror) is a successful young Vietnamese immigrant practicing law in Washington, D.C. when the postcards begin to arrive. Postmarked from Thailand, each hand-drawn card is beautifully rendered and signed simply "Nam." Mimi doesn't recognize the name, but Nam obviously knows her well, spurring her to launch what will become a decade-long quest to find him. As her search progresses, long-repressed memories begin to bubble to the surface: her childhood in 1970s Vietnam in a small alley in pre-Communist Saigon. Back then, who was her best friend as well as her brother's playmate, and what did art have anything to do with the alleys of her childhood? What was the dream of these children then? What happened when these children were separated by the end of the Vietnam war, their lives diverged onto different paths: one to freedom and opportunity, the other to tragedy and pain? Now Mimi must uncover the mystery of the postcards, including what might have happened to the people who where less fortunate: those who escaped the ravaged homeland by boat after the fall of Saigon. When the mystery is solved, Mimi has to make a resolution: what can possibly reunite the children from the alley of her childhood even when the alley exists no more?(From Amazon)

 

Thoughts: I picked this up to count for Vietnam in my world challenge.

 

It started off well, combining a mystery and treasure hunt with an exploration of the suffering of the Vietnamese 'boat people' after the fall of Saigon. The two elements were woven together really well.

 

But the ending really let it down. It's a short novel, and the ending felt rushed and unfinished. This is part of a trilogy, but it's supposed to stand on its own and more importantly, it's the last one in the series!

 

I did enjoy getting to the ending though, hence the extra half mark.

 

2.5/5

[Alexi]

#37 The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

 

No synopsis because they all spoil the previous short story collection!

 

I picked this up when ill for the comfort of familiar characters and short stories, plus I would like to complete the Sherlock Holmes works.

 

It thoroughly delivered, there are some cracking stories in this collection, notably The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez, The Adventure of the Six Napoleons and the rather surprising adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton, where Holmes uses his skills for crime!

 

The author does have considerable skill in weaving a mystery in such a short space although occasionally it means you aren't privy to important details until after the case is solved.

 

Enjoyable.

 

4/5

[Janet]

Welcome back, Alex. 

 

Uh-oh - I downloaded the Vietnam one too!  At least it's not too long! 

[Athena]

Wow, I'm glad you're back, it's not nice at all to be ill .

[Devi]

Nice to see you back Alexi.

[poppyshake]

Sorry to hear you've been unwell  .. glad you're back and reading again