frankie Posted March 22, 2009 Author Share Posted March 22, 2009 (edited) I finished reading The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas last night. It was a brilliant read and I would highly recommend it to anyone! I don't want to give anything away so I'm just going to add the blurb: The story of 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' is very difficult to describe. Usually we give some clues about the book on the cover, but in this case we think that would spoil the reading of the book. We think it is important that you start to read without knowing what it is about. If you do start to read this book, you will go on a journey with a nine-year-old boy called Bruno. (Though this isn't a book for nine-year-olds.) And sooner or later you will arrive with Bruno at a fence. We hope you never have to cross such a fence. Started and finished The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, it was a really quick read. It was good at times, but mostly annoying and predictable. Just the stuff to produce some good yawns. Edited March 22, 2009 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexiepiper Posted March 22, 2009 Share Posted March 22, 2009 I loved The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas too, it's a great book Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted March 22, 2009 Author Share Posted March 22, 2009 I loved The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas too, it's a great book Yep!! It was even better than I had hoped for, it really lived up to my expectations and beyond. I'm a bit miffed that I didn't buy it for myself, I could have read it in English. Now I have to give it back to the library that's constantly supervising us people to return their books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted March 24, 2009 Author Share Posted March 24, 2009 Finished Iain Banks's The Wasp Factory last night. I really could have done without reading this book. The book was one of the most disturbing pieces I've ever read and not in a good way. The only thing that I liked were the telephone conversations between Frank and Eric - Eric was quite a character! I spent the whole day in town and came home really late. There was a card in my postbox, announcing that a package had arrived for me in the mail and I could pick it up in the post office. I'm a bit miffed I wasn't able to pick it up today but have to wait till tomorrow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 I remember studying The Wasp Factory at college and from what I can remember it wasn't too bad. I did buy it last year and will try and re-read it soon. The twist at the end was unexpected from what I can remember he was really a girl and his father was giving him tablets to make "her" masculine. Correct me if I'm way off and confusing it with another book . I actually read the ending whilst I was halfway through the book - very impatient . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted March 25, 2009 Author Share Posted March 25, 2009 You've got it right about the twist It was certainly unexpected. I have to admit that I was glad there was as least a twist to the book, otherwise it would have been even worse. There were a few of Iain Banks's books on my TBR but after reading this one I'm not sure I'll be wanting to read anything by him ever again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola Posted March 30, 2009 Share Posted March 30, 2009 Dear Me Frankie!! I've just added about 10 books to my wish list following your recommendations!! Eeeek!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 1, 2009 Author Share Posted April 1, 2009 Dear Me Frankie!! I've just added about 10 books to my wish list following your recommendations!! Eeeek!! I'm curious, what did you add?? After my last post I've read Little Women (surprisingly good!) and Good Wives by Louisa M. Alcott, Summer Can't Choose by Katherine Applegate and The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom (bit of a disappointment after all the hype, but a very good debut novel). I travelled to see my BF yesterday so I don't have my manual reading blog notebook with me so I can't remember if there are any other books I've read after the last post I finished Albom's book on the train, I'm left with five different books I brought along. If my memory serves me right these five books are Q&A by Vikas Swarup, The Blue Nowhere by Jeffery Deaver, Blue Diary by Alice Hoffman, Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier and The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen. I love packing books for trips but it's also really hard at the same time, I'm never absolutely satisfied with my selection Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted April 1, 2009 Share Posted April 1, 2009 After my last post I've read Little Women (surprisingly good!) and Good Wives by Louisa M. Alcott, Summer Can't Choose by Katherine Applegate and The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom (bit of a disappointment after all the hype, but a very good debut novel). Sounds like you've had a good reading session The Five People You Meet In Heaven isn't actually his debut novel - it was his second after Tuesdays With Morrie. Does that change your opinion? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 1, 2009 Author Share Posted April 1, 2009 Sounds like you've had a good reading session The Five People You Meet In Heaven isn't actually his debut novel - it was his second after Tuesdays With Morrie. Does that change your opinion? Ooops, my bad! My copy of TFPYMiH said it was his debut novel (and was written after the memoir called Tuesdays with Morrie), I read the introduction a bit too quickly and was left with the impression that it was his first ever book. I guess it doesn't change my opinion cause I did sort of say it was his first novel... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola Posted April 1, 2009 Share Posted April 1, 2009 I'm curious, what did you add?? After my last post I've read Little Women (surprisingly good!) and Good Wives by Louisa M. Alcott, Summer Can't Choose by Katherine Applegate and The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom (bit of a disappointment after all the hype, but a very good debut novel). There were a few books that I haven't read but really should have like A Clockwork Orange (if I can get past the disturbing nature of it!), Bram Stoker's Dracula, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (I've never heard of it but it sounds good ), The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Also those Raven Hart books too! I think you mentioned The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice which made me think 'hey I've got one of her books. I'll see if I can find it.....wonder how many pages it is? Wonder if the intro is the same as the movie?'. Then I accidentally read some of it which lead me to becoming hooked! So judging by that I think it's all your fault!! haa!! Also, I've read The Five People you Meet in Heaven and think along the same lines as you pretty much. It was a pretty fast read though which isn't too bad. It'd be awful if you'd persevered with it for 500 pages before realising that it doesn't really get much better. I think he may have another book out now so it might be interesting to see if he's improved at all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mac Posted April 2, 2009 Share Posted April 2, 2009 Hey Frankie. I noticed you've read The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks. What a superb book. Now that's what I call a debut novel! Most of his books are blindingly good. Even if you don't like sci-fi that much (which is me, really), his stuff under Iain M Banks is absolutely fantastic. I'd highly recommend Consider Phlebas and, in particular, Use Of Weapons. Awesome stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mac Posted April 2, 2009 Share Posted April 2, 2009 Is anyone else finding that they're on this site when, usually, they would be reading? I'm discovering loads of new books to read and having less time to read them! Eee, the irony! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 2, 2009 Author Share Posted April 2, 2009 A Clockwork Orange (if I can get past the disturbing nature of it!), Bram Stoker's Dracula, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (I've never heard of it but it sounds good ), The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Also those Raven Hart books too! Good choices! Now, I don't know your reading tastes completely but I am thinking The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society might be something that you don't normally read, but it might be something you'd enjoy and I really recommend it I think you mentioned The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice which made me think 'hey I've got one of her books. I'll see if I can find it.....wonder how many pages it is? Wonder if the intro is the same as the movie?'. Then I accidentally read some of it which lead me to becoming hooked! So judging by that I think it's all your fault!! haa!! I was really surprised that Interview with the Vampire was as good as it was because I tried to read it in my teens and I found it really tedious. It was so good that I simply had to get Vampire Lestat. I've also read the blurb (? or some other info) from The Witching Hour and that sounds good too! Also, I've read The Five People you Meet in Heaven and think along the same lines as you pretty much. It was a pretty fast read though which isn't too bad. It'd be awful if you'd persevered with it for 500 pages before realising that it doesn't really get much better. I think he may have another book out now so it might be interesting to see if he's improved at all I couldn't agree with you more there. I might have just quit reading altogether if that had been the case. I've borrowed Tuesdays with Morrie by Albom though and I'm going to read it and see if it's any better. That one's also a short book so it cannot do too much damage in case I don't like that one too much either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 2, 2009 Author Share Posted April 2, 2009 Hey Frankie. I noticed you've read The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks. What a superb book. Now that's what I call a debut novel! Most of his books are blindingly good. Even if you don't like sci-fi that much (which is me, really), his stuff under Iain M Banks is absolutely fantastic. I'd highly recommend Consider Phlebas and, in particular, Use Of Weapons. Awesome stuff. BF reads Iain Banks with both +M and -M and seems to enjoy everything he writes (hence my trying at The Wasp Factory). I don't do sci-fi so +M stuff might go completely over my head. BF also said that Consider Phlebas is good but might be a bit too tricky to start with (he knows I'm not used to reading books of that kind, he doesn't think I'm too stupid to read it I had to ask just in case!). He suggested Player of Games would be easier to start with. But I'm thinking I'll give +M a pass. I'm not totally set against reading Whit or Dead Airthough. Any thoughts on those? Is anyone else finding that they're on this site when, usually, they would be reading? I'm discovering loads of new books to read and having less time to read them! Eee, the irony! I think it's a daily struggle for most of us Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mac Posted April 2, 2009 Share Posted April 2, 2009 BF reads Iain Banks with both +M and -M and seems to enjoy everything he writes (hence my trying at The Wasp Factory). I don't do sci-fi so +M stuff might go completely over my head. BF also said that Consider Phlebas is good but might be a bit too tricky to start with (he knows I'm not used to reading books of that kind, he doesn't think I'm too stupid to read it I had to ask just in case!). He suggested Player of Games would be easier to start with. But I'm thinking I'll give +M a pass. I'm not totally set against reading Whit or Dead Airthough. Any thoughts on those? I think it's a daily struggle for most of us Both novels are great. Interestingly, Dead Air's protagonist has very similar views on life to me and I recognised myself in him. What's even more interesting is that I didn't really like the guy! Freudian, or what?!? Whit is a great book, and I'd defy anyone not to enjoy it. I also loved The Crow Road, The Business and Complicity. I really didn't enjoy A Song Of Stone. Don't bother with that one. The Player Of Games is brill. Your fella's quite correct about that. Have a go. Ask him if he's read Look To Windward. I thought that was truly excellent, too. Oooh! And ask him about Excession. What a cracking, witty read that turned out to be! Happy days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 2, 2009 Author Share Posted April 2, 2009 Both novels are great. Interestingly, Dead Air's protagonist has very similar views on life to me and I recognised myself in him. What's even more interesting is that I didn't really like the guy! Freudian, or what?!? Whit is a great book, and I'd defy anyone not to enjoy it. I also loved The Crow Road, The Business and Complicity. I really didn't enjoy A Song Of Stone. Don't bother with that one. The Player Of Games is brill. Your fella's quite correct about that. Have a go. Ask him if he's read Look To Windward. I thought that was truly excellent, too. Oooh! And ask him about Excession. What a cracking, witty read that turned out to be! Happy days. Very Freudian indeed! But I don't think it's that weird or uncommon at all, in high school psych classes our teacher asked us why do you think we find some of the traits in other people so incredible annoying, and could it have something to do with the fact that maybe on some level we recognise those traits in ourselves and those traits are the traits which we don't enjoy having. Having said that, BF also said he identified with the protagonist but he didn't mind it, he really liked the protagonist. Now, should I be afraid?? I have to say I'm quite intrigued now! I asked BF about Look to Windward and he said that it's the best book he's ever read (including other authors' novels, not just Banks's). He claims he's said that to me quite a few times when I've asked him about his fave book and yet I never seem to remember. Ooops! He says The Algebraist is the second best Banks he's read and wanted to know your opinion on it I already suggested that maybe he should register in the forum and you could have a talk amongst each other BF did enjoy Excession and found it really interesting but he doesn't think that I would find it that appealing. Wow I'll start getting confused with all the Banks titles if I don't take a break now I have to do the dishes anyway so I can cook and we can eat and mess them up again... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 8, 2009 Author Share Posted April 8, 2009 Since my last post I've read Vikras Swarup's Q&A (thanks to the review by Bookbee) which I found amazing. I normally read novels only from the Western countries and am really not familiar with the East so I was a bit hesitant to start this one. I was dreading the names for example: would I be able to remember them? (I had same thoughts on Tolstoi's Anna Karenina) Once I started reading though I was hooked! It was so easy to read (the book containing individual short stories related to the life of the protagonist) and so incredibly fascinating! The ending was really surprising too. What a great read I'm definitely going to see the film too. After Q&A I went on to read Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk (my first Palahniuk). Recommended by Nicola! To be honest I don't really know what to make of it. I found Palahniuk's style of writing a bit confusing. I found the whole novel confusing! (This is definitely one of those instances where the film outshines the book, at least for me) For the first 40-50 pages or so I kept thinking "should I just give up should I just give up...". I think if the book or the sentences had been any longer I would've given up. I've not given on Palahniuk though, I found Choke and Stranger Than Fiction in the library yesterday and borrowed them and I'll give them a go when I have the time. Currently reading Blue Diary by Alice Hoffman (yet another book that I'm reading based on the recommendations on this forum ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawr Posted April 8, 2009 Share Posted April 8, 2009 After Q&A I went on to read Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk (my first Palahniuk). Recommended by Nicola! To be honest I don't really know what to make of it. I found Palahniuk's style of writing a bit confusing. I found the whole novel confusing! Oh, i found Fight Club pretty confusing first time, but i read through it a couple more times, plus i'd already seen the film several times, and i absolutely love the novel He has a very odd and enthralling style of writing i found. It's such a bizarre story! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 9, 2009 Author Share Posted April 9, 2009 Oh, i found Fight Club pretty confusing first time, but i read through it a couple more times, plus i'd already seen the film several times, and i absolutely love the novel He has a very odd and enthralling style of writing i found. It's such a bizarre story! I guess it would have helped if I'd seen the movie more often, but I've seen it only once and that was maybe 10 years ago if that's possible. But I agree that it might become less confusing and more approachable if I'd read it again, I was actually contemplating that already. Plus, as I was scanning through my digibox yesterday I found that I'd recorded Fight Club some months ago and I had completely forgotten that I had it in the box. I'm definitely going to watch it soon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 17, 2009 Author Share Posted April 17, 2009 Books that I've finished: Alice Hoffman's Blue Diary. This I picked up on the forum and was eager waiting to read it. I was a bit disappointed with it though. I think Ethan was made too perfect in the beginning and the appraisal of his and Jorie's marriage and relationship was just disgustingly too obvious, false and numerous. I didn't find it believable at all. I think the idea of the book was really good but I just didn't enjoy the way it was executed. Jeffery Deaver's The Bone Collector on the other hand was amazing! I got interested in Deaver thanks to Charm's review on The Blue Nowhere and thanks to the Deaver thread on the forum I decided to read the first book of the Lincoln Rhyme series first. I found Lincoln Rhyme incredibly annoying (yet intriguing) and Amelie Sachs seemed like just another typical crime novel female cop with obvious attitude at first, but as the novel progressed I was glad to find there was more to her than met the eye. I'll be interested to see how things evolve between the people in these books. The plotline I thought was amazing. I was just completely hooked and didn't want to put the book down. I simply loved the twists at the end and had no idea whodunnit. Amazing I'll be reading The Coffin Dancer (book 2 on Lincoln Rhyme series) very shortly with Nicola and Ceinwenn. Others are welcome too! Last night I finished Mitch Albom's Tuesdays with Morrie. I thought this was better than The Five People You Meet in Heaven. I don't know if it has something to do with the fact that Morrie was a real life character, I usually enjoy true stories. The book was a beautiful encounter of Morrie's life and death and how he handled both. He seemed like such a warm and nice person but I have to admit that towards the end he seemed a bit preachy about what people should enjoy in life and what to concentrate on. Or was it rather that Mitch Albom seemed to underline that the things Morrie believed in were absolutely right, I don't know. I'm glad that at least the religious stuff weren't pushed, merely mentioned in a way that I didn't find inappropriate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charm Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 So glad you're enjoying Mr Deaver's books! I've only read two of them, one of which was a Lincoln Rhyme book called The Broken Window (lent to me by Ceinwenn ). I will be reading The Coffin Dancer but I have to get my hands on The Bone Collector and read it first! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pipread Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 It`s good to hear you`re enjoying Jeffery Deavers books, I think the Lincoln Rhymes stories are particularly good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted April 17, 2009 Author Share Posted April 17, 2009 So glad you're enjoying Mr Deaver's books! I've only read two of them, one of which was a Lincoln Rhyme book called The Broken Window (lent to me by Ceinwenn ). I will be reading The Coffin Dancer but I have to get my hands on The Bone Collector and read it first! Good, I thought I had scared you off from reading it in the Deaver thread Pipread yeah, I think Deaver's books are the best crime novels I've found in a long time It's so nice to learn new great authors. Although I think that if I just read Gerritsen and Montanari I'd be happily surprised too, just haven't gotten around to it yet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucybird Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 I had been thinking about reading Tuesdays with Morrie after enjoying 5 people you meet in Heaven, I think I will add it to my wishlist now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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