Vodkafan's 2012 Reading List and Genre Challenge

[vodkafan]

I finished Jane Eyre a few hours ago . I enjoyed it and will write the review soon just can't be bothered right this minute. Started The Catcher In The Rie. Going to try to read a lot this month.

[vodkafan]

A Helmet For My Pillow

by Robert Leckie.

 

This was a biographical account of a US Marine who fought through some of the big island hopping battles against the Japanese in the Pacific in WWII.

It started off with his training at Parris Island . Leckie was already a writer before he joined up and there were times during the early part of the book that I wished that he wasn't; his poetic descriptions of things seemed like it was trying too hard.

But then pretty soon he was shipped over to Guadalcanal for his first taste of action, and the book got much more gritty and his writer's insights seemed more profound and worthwhile. He described two things which I have never read in any war book before. The first is of the fatalism of some soldiers (if you your time is up you are going to get it regardless, so why worry) compared to the actions of others to minimise risks and finish the war in one piece.

The second was the despair of realising they were considered "expendable" by higher command and what that concept meant compared to them voluntarily sacrificing themselves. Those bits alone were worth reading the book for.

Guadalcanal virtually broke his health and those of the others but there was still a war on (the idea of combat stress was not yet fully understood) so his unit was reformed and sent to another island where Leckie made a name for himself as a scout attached to HQ. Throughout this time he struggled with a medical condition where he would wet himself like a child during sleep, and spent some time in a mental rehabilitation unit but eventually asked to go back to his unit.

He talks about his friends in the unit, about the stupidity and petty vindictiveness of some of the officers, but he does not gloss over his own failings. He got into trouble many times for minor revolts against the discipline, once going AWOL to be with a girlfriend.

His unit made full use of a rest period in Australia where he was in trouble most of the time.

The final campaign he took part in was a short bloody battle at Peleliu. Reading between the lines, it is easy to see that by now he was at the end of his rope and did not have much mental or physical strength left to fight with. Shocked by the horror of watching his friends die within minutes of arrival on the Island, he was blown up by a near miss of an artillery shell and was found wandering shellshocked and unable to speak out in the open. He was medically evacuated .

I have another book of experiences by the same author. I look forward to reading it.

[Devi]

I picked A Helmet For My Pillow by Robert Leckie up brand new for a $1 at a second hand bookstore! I can't wait to read it now after your review.

 

I also picked up another copy which looks like it belongs but is from a different author. In case you didn't see my reading list, it was called With the Old Breed by E.B. Sledge (under latest posts, first post isnt up to date yet).

Edited April 3, 2012 by Devi

[vodkafan]

I will check out your reading list for that one Devi thanks. Hope you enjoy A Helmet For My Pillow . Have you read The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer? I can recommend that one.

Edited April 3, 2012 by vodkafan

[Devi]

I will check out your reading list for that one Devi thanks. Hope you enjoy A Helmet For My Pillow . Have you read The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer? I can recommend that one.

 

No, I am still on the look out for a copy.

[frankie]

OK I am in trouble already. My bookshelves are overflowing . I already donated some paperbacks to charity and traded in 8 DVDs ( and got 4 other ones I wanted).

Here is the situation today:

 

 

 

 

Where do you take your non-keepers? Is there a giant secondhand bookshop for big ass books?

 

I'm not seeing a problem...add more shelves...I see a tiny bit of room to the right

 

I'm totally with Sofia on this one. There's definitely room for another shelf. Maybe if you can't fit another big ass bookcase you could get one smaller one!

 

Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? by Jeanette Winterson.

 

I enjoyed this book. Mrs Winterson was wonderfully bonkers, although this was of course no laughing matter for the author when she was growing up.

I do like the way she writes, although I can see why Frankie did not like it: I quote this phrase in particular as one that seemed nonsensical : " Words are the part of silence that we can hear" . Eh? Excuse me? Run that by me again ?

 

Frankie hasn't yet tried this book, frankie thinks it was Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit that she didn't enjoy. And, poppyshake has actually talked me into given Winterson another chance So I can't wait to read your review *proceeds to read the rest* Done. Well you haven't convinced me NOT to read Winterson

 

Carry on mr Vodkafan, and enjoy

[vodkafan]

Where do you take your non-keepers? Is there a giant secondhand bookshop for big ass books?

 

Frankie hasn't yet tried this book, frankie thinks it was Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit that she didn't enjoy. And, poppyshake has actually talked me into given Winterson another chance So I can't wait to read your review *proceeds to read the rest* Done. Well you haven't convinced me NOT to read Winterson

 

Hi Frankie, glad to hear that you are getting on your bike to cycle back around to look at Winterson again to see if you have missed anything good.

 

About my non-keeper books, my favourite thing is to post them onto members of this forum, or give them to my children , or people at work. I always try to talk someone else into reading a book if I can. Giving it to a charity shop is my last resort. DVDs I am tired of I trade in if possible.

 

Books are overflowing in my flat now. Charmer and I hit all the charity shops in Rugby on thursday and we bought 27 books and two DVDs between us. Here is the book list:

 

Dark Legend Christine Feehan

The Naked Civil Servant Quentin Crisp

Resistance Anita Shreve

The Amber Spyglass Philip Pullman

The Good Thief Hannah Tinti

Bruce Lee Fighting Spirit Bruce Thomas

Velocity Dean Koontz

Fasting ,Feasting Anita Desai

My Lovers Lover Maggie O ‘ Farrell

The Hungry Ghosts Anne Berry

Misbehaving Sarah Harvey

The Shadow Of The Wind Carlos Ruiz Zafon

A short History Of Nearly Everything Bill Bryson

Blood Of The Flood Terry Goodkind

The Woman In Black Susan Hill

I Choose To Live Sabine Dardenne

Accidents In The Home Tessa Hadley

Outcast Child Kitty Neale

Star Of The Sea Joseph O’ Connor

Seize The Night Dean Koontz

A Moment Of Silence Miss Anna Dean

Eragon Christopher Paolini

The Wench Is Dead Colin Dexter

Angela’s Ashes Frank McCourt

The Venus Fix M J Rose

King Of The World David Remnick

The Gathering Anne Enright

 

We can no longer remember who chose what so we are going to work through them all together. Will probably take us the rest of the year. Some of the books I chose to fill gaps in my Genre Challenge. We are thinking of creating a joint reading blog I need to ask Michelle if that's Ok.

I have already started A Moment Of Silence. Because Catcher In The Rye was strangling my mojo and I had to come up for air.

Edited April 7, 2012 by vodkafan

[julie]

Shelves are looking good, VF ,and it sounds as if you guys have chosen a nice sized pile of books to read . As for sharing them,do you have a system worked out so one reads it,then the other reads it immediately after to compare notes ?

[vodkafan]

Shelves are looking good, VF ,and it sounds as if you guys have chosen a nice sized pile of books to read . As for sharing them,do you have a system worked out so one reads it,then the other reads it immediately after to compare notes ?

Thanks Julie, no we didn't have a system worked out , we will probably just read them as our fancy takes us and compare notes when we get around to it.

 

.

[vodkafan]

Just finished The Fifth Child will write my thoughts in the Reading Circle Group as soon as I can.

[chaliepud]

I really enjoyed The Hungry Ghosts VF, it's a bit of an odd one but very enjoyable none the less.

[vodkafan]

I really enjoyed The Hungry Ghosts VF, it's a bit of an odd one but very enjoyable none the less.

 

Oh great thanks chaliepud I may pick that up next then.

[vodkafan]

Am enjoying The Knife Of Never Letting Go. Would be great to have a talking dog.

[vodkafan]

Finished I Capture The Castle and read a quick Amazon freebie. Will probably read one off Charmer and I's joint TBR pile next.

[Kidsmum]

Finished I Capture The Castle and read a quick Amazon freebie. Will probably read one off Charmer and I's joint TBR pile next.

 

That was quick I'm about halfway through but really enjoying it & looking forward to reading everyones thoughts on it when I get to the end

[vodkafan]

Yes it was a very good read. I will write my thoughts on it tomorrow. I have been busy of late but also managed to read lots of books am on my 3rd and 4th for May already.

[vodkafan]

Just finished The Princess Bride, my third book for this month, and I am half way through my fourth, Resistance by Anita Shreve. My mojo is unstoppable.

[vodkafan]

Hey it worked

Edited May 5, 2012 by vodkafan

[vodkafan]

The First Person and other stories. This was my first Ali Smith book. It really blew me away. The writing was so good and exciting but I find it hard to put into words exactly why; I just knew I was in the presence of greatness.

All the stories were fascinating, not least because I am sure that in most of them she was writing about bits of her own real life relationships. Only one I was not too keen on was Fidelio and Bess. My favourites were the one where she finds the baby in her shopping trolley, and the one where she gets home (after being kissed in the street by a mystery woman which triggers some rip in the universe) to find her own 14-year old self stomping about the house moody and argumentative.

I will read more by this writer.

[chesilbeach]

I can't tell you how happy it makes me that you enjoyed Ali Smith's writing, vodkafan! I think she is the best contemporary writer I've read, and I've yet to find a book of hers I haven't loved. I met her at a book event in a bookshop, and she was a lovely person who talked to every person there and wrote something unique and individual in every book she signed based on your chat with her. I have to admit, I got a bit emotional as I spoke to her and asked her to sign my copy of Girl Meets Boy as I told her it was the most joyous book I'd ever written.

[vodkafan]

The Princess Bride. Enjoyed the film years ago without realising it was a book. Was long overdue that I finally read it. It did not disappoint.

[vodkafan]

I can't tell you how happy it makes me that you enjoyed Ali Smith's writing, vodkafan! I think she is the best contemporary writer I've read, and I've yet to find a book of hers I haven't loved. I met her at a book event in a bookshop, and she was a lovely person who talked to every person there and wrote something unique and individual in every book she signed based on your chat with her. I have to admit, I got a bit emotional as I spoke to her and asked her to sign my copy of Girl Meets Boy as I told her it was the most joyous book I'd ever written.

 

Hi Claire it must have been great to meet her. That must have been a lot of work doing individual messages like that. She sounds like a nice person. What else have you read of hers? What would you recommend?

[chesilbeach]

I've read two of her novels, The Accidental and Hotel World,and I enjoyed them both, but The Accidental gets mixed reviews and although I loved it, Hotel World is my favourite of the two. I still have There But For The to read, but it's my signed hardback copy and I don't want to ruin it, so I'm going to get the Kindle version to actually read.

 

I've also read most of her short story collections, and my favourite is probably Other Stories and Other Stories, but Free Love and Other Stories, The Whole Story and Other Stories and The First Person and Other Stories are all wonderful.

 

But, if there's one book I recommend to everyone I can, it's Girl Meets Boy which she wrote for the Canongate Myths series, where contemporary authors rewrite classical myths either in a contemporary setting, from a different perspective or are just inspired by the original. This book is a retelling of Ovid's Metamorphosis and it just takes my breath away thinking about it. Now admittedly, not everyone I've recommended it to has felt the same about it as me, but I know some who have, so it hasn't stopped me recommending it whole-heartedly.

 

Anyway, waffle over, I would basically recommend anything she's written, even the introductions she's written for other authors work!

[vodkafan]

Haha you lost me talking about Ovid's metawotsit but I will certainly read the book. I know I will like all her short stories so I will leave them till later and get a novel.

[Kidsmum]

I second Chesil's praise of Girl Meets Boy it's a beautifully written book. Not read anything else by her yet but I do have The Accidental on my shelves.