2022 Reading Challenge
- Thread starter sarcasticfairyprincess
- Start date
ayayrawn
Well-Known Member
I read the Maude translation, which I think is one of the original translations. Both W&P and AK I read the Oxford classic versions of, which was nice because it kept the original languages like French and German in context, while translating them on the page, and had footnotes for obscure references. Made them both easier.
Edit: also, AK was a newer translation by Rosamund Bartlett.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
I want to do this with The Master and Margarita some day. I used to have three translations, but I've only read one.
I'm cracking up reading the volleys of the P&V haters vs lovers. I had a hard time with some stretches in the book because it was clunky, but by no means was it unreadable or too difficult. To each their own I guess.
So many books, so little time right? I have at least six things in queue to read...so when the heck would I pick up a 1200 pager for a second run??
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
I cam fully dig that. At least TM&M is a nice compact 350ish which bodes a little better for re-reads, but the list of other stuff is pretty much unending!
Mr Moore
Well-Known Member
Booker shortlist announced:
ayayrawn
Well-Known Member
Any recs here? I haven't heard about any of these!
Mr Moore
Well-Known Member
Sadly, like records I buy more books than I really have time to read so while I have a couple, Treacle Walker and Oh William!, I haven't actually gotten round to picking them up yet. I think I saw that Treacle Walker is the shortest ever Booker listed title at around 80pp so I'm going to try and squeeze that one in soon.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 29
Split Decision: Life Stories by Ice-T & Spike with Douglas Century
I've never been a fan of Ice-T, per se, but I've always respected him and generally enjoyed him. I don't know that I would've rushed out to get an Ice-T biography or memoir, but the conceit behind this one grabbed my attention and I immediately put a hold on it through the library. Ice-T & Spike came up together doing robberies and being players until eventually, their lives took very directions as Ice-T's music career took him to stardom and Spike's robbery career landed him a life sentence in jail. This is a breezy read of them discussing their intertwined stories from past to present. It doesn't go too in-depth into Ice-T's music or acting career, merely using them as marker points within their life stories. Very enjoyable read.
Split Decision: Life Stories by Ice-T & Spike with Douglas Century
I've never been a fan of Ice-T, per se, but I've always respected him and generally enjoyed him. I don't know that I would've rushed out to get an Ice-T biography or memoir, but the conceit behind this one grabbed my attention and I immediately put a hold on it through the library. Ice-T & Spike came up together doing robberies and being players until eventually, their lives took very directions as Ice-T's music career took him to stardom and Spike's robbery career landed him a life sentence in jail. This is a breezy read of them discussing their intertwined stories from past to present. It doesn't go too in-depth into Ice-T's music or acting career, merely using them as marker points within their life stories. Very enjoyable read.
I haven't read any of them, but the one I am most interested in based on a quick synopsis I read is Glory. I think I'll pick that one up.
Turbo
Well-Known Member
Book #17
BjorgenFjorgen
Well-Known Member
Two thirds of the year done, and I'm on track to complete my page goal, through 24 books, including four of the nine I first listed. (As always, other interests pop up.)
The books I've enjoyed the most so far have been In Cold Blood, The Hearing Trumpet by Leonora Carrington, Roddy Doyle's The Commitments, and my first reread of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.
Selaws
Well-Known Member
Book 23: Sugar Free Saxophone - The Life And Music Of Jackie McLean by Derek Ansell (Northway Publications, 2012)
I bought this for a couple of quid a while ago and it's been on my pile to read ever since. Its a really fantastic read. Ansell was in communication with McLean's widow during the period he wrote this (McLean himself started writing and autobiography but passed away before he finished). Well worth reading if you are a fan of his music.
I bought this for a couple of quid a while ago and it's been on my pile to read ever since. Its a really fantastic read. Ansell was in communication with McLean's widow during the period he wrote this (McLean himself started writing and autobiography but passed away before he finished). Well worth reading if you are a fan of his music.
avecigrec
Well-Known Member
Book 30
Pat Patrick: American Musician and Cultural Visionary by Bill Banfield
I only learned of this book's existence about a month or so ago and immediately ordered myself a copy when I did. Pat Patrick was an incredible musician and a member of Sun Ra's Arkestra for over 25 years - I relished the idea of doing a deeper dive into his life and broader musical accomplishments. At 135 pages it's not a particularly long read - I think I breezed through it in four, maybe five, relatively short sittings. That said, I found it a... frustrating read at times. Its heart is very much in the right place and its importance cannot be undermined, but it languishes at times due to unnecessary repetition, overlong lists better suited for notes, unnecessary repetition, awkward self-referential writing and necessary repetition. That said, for all its flaws it is still a good and easy read, if mildly annoying at times.
Pat Patrick: American Musician and Cultural Visionary by Bill Banfield
I only learned of this book's existence about a month or so ago and immediately ordered myself a copy when I did. Pat Patrick was an incredible musician and a member of Sun Ra's Arkestra for over 25 years - I relished the idea of doing a deeper dive into his life and broader musical accomplishments. At 135 pages it's not a particularly long read - I think I breezed through it in four, maybe five, relatively short sittings. That said, I found it a... frustrating read at times. Its heart is very much in the right place and its importance cannot be undermined, but it languishes at times due to unnecessary repetition, overlong lists better suited for notes, unnecessary repetition, awkward self-referential writing and necessary repetition. That said, for all its flaws it is still a good and easy read, if mildly annoying at times.
Bull Shannon
Well-Known Member
Book 24: Urth of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe
This one is Book 5 and a belated coda to the Book of the New Sun. I know what you're thinking: but Bull, wasn't this a four-book series? It was! However, while Wolfe included everything to understand his story, his publisher felt some things were less clear than others, and asked him to write a sequel/coda. Throughout BotNS, especially near the end, the protagonist alludes to a journey and trial he'll have to go through, and the book basically ends on this note of "welp, now you know my story and what I'm about to go do." Urth of the New Sun covers that journey, the trial, and its aftermath.
I didn't read this one on my first go-round of New Sun because I'd felt like I'd barely processed its events. I'm really glad I did a reread first, because I found Urth to be a really enriching experience that would have left me far behind otherwise. In Wolfe fashion, this book does add some explanations; certain revelations are underlined, while others (which I'd argue were entirely obfuscated in the original text) are made a little-less-opaque. Troll that he is, he also recontextualizes several ideas and themes from the OG books.
I thought I wouldn't continue with the next two novels (one four-volume and one three-volume) in the cycle, as it seems most/many readers drop off before even getting to Urth, let alone once they're done with it. But I'm starting to toy with the idea.
This one is Book 5 and a belated coda to the Book of the New Sun. I know what you're thinking: but Bull, wasn't this a four-book series? It was! However, while Wolfe included everything to understand his story, his publisher felt some things were less clear than others, and asked him to write a sequel/coda. Throughout BotNS, especially near the end, the protagonist alludes to a journey and trial he'll have to go through, and the book basically ends on this note of "welp, now you know my story and what I'm about to go do." Urth of the New Sun covers that journey, the trial, and its aftermath.
I didn't read this one on my first go-round of New Sun because I'd felt like I'd barely processed its events. I'm really glad I did a reread first, because I found Urth to be a really enriching experience that would have left me far behind otherwise. In Wolfe fashion, this book does add some explanations; certain revelations are underlined, while others (which I'd argue were entirely obfuscated in the original text) are made a little-less-opaque. Troll that he is, he also recontextualizes several ideas and themes from the OG books.
I thought I wouldn't continue with the next two novels (one four-volume and one three-volume) in the cycle, as it seems most/many readers drop off before even getting to Urth, let alone once they're done with it. But I'm starting to toy with the idea.
Indymisanthrope
Well-Known Member
So. I haven't finished a book since April. May through August were lost to the sands of time (establishing new life routines, chipping away at sleep deficits, catching up on some TV from the last couple of years...).
But today it's cloudy, with an unseasonably cool high of 64 degrees, and it's the first time in months that I've felt like I need to get back into the pages of a good book. I have 16 weeks left to read another 11 books to reach my goal for the year. There's still time.
Selaws
Well-Known Member
Book 24: Thames - Sacred River by Peter Ackroyd (Vintage, 2008)
A pretty thick book that covers every angle imaginable in regards to the Thames. There's even a chapter dedicated to the rivers Swans. Not usually my go-to kind of read but really glad I did and it helped me learn a bit more about the river I cross over every day!
Book 25: The Rum Diary by Hunter S Thompson (Bloomsbury, 2011)
This is one of my favourite books and one of a few that I read yearly. I'm fortunate enough to have a first edition that I picked up a while back as well but this is my reader copy.
A pretty thick book that covers every angle imaginable in regards to the Thames. There's even a chapter dedicated to the rivers Swans. Not usually my go-to kind of read but really glad I did and it helped me learn a bit more about the river I cross over every day!
Book 25: The Rum Diary by Hunter S Thompson (Bloomsbury, 2011)
This is one of my favourite books and one of a few that I read yearly. I'm fortunate enough to have a first edition that I picked up a while back as well but this is my reader copy.
Mr Moore
Well-Known Member
RIP Dame Hilary Mantel. Can’t wait to finish the trilogy.
ayayrawn
Well-Known Member
I finally purchased Wolf Hall a couple weeks ago after years of wanting to pick it up. Seems as good a time as any. RIP.