May's Manic Meanderings Into Marvellously Mystical Manuscripts

[Lady of Winterfell]

I'm wading my way through A Clash of Kings (GRRM). I'm enjoying it and eventually I may catch up with the series as far as its got. Back to SF after this I think though.

That one is pretty good. A Storm of Swords is my favorite of the series. A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons seems too much leading up to something that never quite arrives.

A Storm of Swords is my favorite of the series as well. Probably one of my favorite books ever. AFFC and ADWD do slow down a bit. I hope you continue on in the series.

 

[Connavar]

Shakespeare's 1 Henry VI -- one of nine plays I need to read & then will have read all the plays attributed to the Bard in my Pelican Complete WS. This one is the one with Joan of Arc as a witch, abandoned to the justice of her enemies by her devils when she's served their purposes.

Funny coincidence i was at a small party of a Uni friend few days ago and he had Henry play in one of those Pelican complete WS paperback. I was thinking about loaning it because i have only read one complete WS play. I was wondering which of his Richard II, different Henry plays was seen as stronger. I find that historical period fascinating and wondering what Shakespeare did with it.

In the end i borrowed from my friend The Major Works by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Just to try some of his poetry collections and see how he stands out today as poet of that era. I have read many of his contemporaries but i know the other Shelley much more than him.

 

[Extollager]

Funny coincidence i was at a small party of a Uni friend few days ago and he had Henry play in one of those Pelican complete WS paperback. I was thinking about loaning it because i have only read one complete WS play. I was wondering which of his Richard II, different Henry plays was seen as stronger. I find that historical period fascinating and wondering what Shakespeare did with it.

Conn, I'd recommend starting with* the four-play sequence of Richard II, Henry IV Parts 1 and 2, and Henry V. You get the story of how Bolingbroke was responsible for the murder of King Richard, and assumed the English throne as Henry IV but was uneasy about his own claim to it. Allies (the Percys) turn against him, and he wishes their young Hotspur was his son rather than Hal; who, however, clears himself of the cloud over him, and becomes King Henry V, victor at Agincourt. The second play in the sequence, 1 Henry IV, gives us one of Shakespeare's greatest comic creations, Falstaff.

Shakespeare wrote the above tetralogy after that of Henry VI Parts 1-3 and Richard III. This second (written earlier, but chronologically later) sequence deals with the Wars of the Roses (York and Lancaster) and the villainous Richard Crookback, whose remains were dug up some weeks ago. My present reading of the Henry VI trilogy will be my first reading of it.

My sense is that E. M. W. Tillyard's Shakespeare's History Plays is an excellent companion for reading these works, and I think inexpensive paperback copies are easy to get hold of. For more on the background, I'd certainly turn to T. McAlindon's Shakespeare's Tudor History on Henry IV.

*If you want to start with just one play, go with Henry IV Part One.

 

[AlanPoulter]

Just started Kiwi author Philip Mann's first novel in years - The disestablishment of Paradise - which is good but too much in the same vein (contact with very strange aliens) as his previous novels but with rather more 'wordage'.

 

[J-Sun]

Off topic: Corrected. I had marvellously spelt with two ls though...which is correct.

Off topic again: I'm aware of many Britishisms (or, in this case, Australianisms), but I didn't know that one - US spelling is one 'l' - sorry about that.

On topic: haven't read a word further in my book. But I'll get there someday.

 

[GOLLUM]

Off topic again: I'm aware of many Britishisms (or, in this case, Australianisms), but I didn't know that one - US spelling is one 'l' - sorry about that.

Off-topic: No problem. I didn't actually realise that that was one of those words that did vary with U.S. spelling. Being a technical writer vis a vis spelling with 2 versus 1 'l' is a handy thing in general to be aware of (and check for). Any further chat on this topic may need to be via PM...

I do really like it. I loved Pan's Labyrinth - the film - and have enjoyed Zafon. The Fermin character was well developed in this one. I would love to see more in the genre, I'd also love to see it merged with other areas of the world where magic is just sort of accepted. Recommend away, please!

Weel funnily enough I am currently reading an impressive (in its purported scope and ambition) 2 book Epic by the Mexican writer Luis Alberto Urea. Book 1 is called The Hummingbird's Daughter which I've had a for a while but now that Book 2 Queen of America is out I'm able to read the intended duology. It's certianly magic realist in nature. although as Urea himself points out it's more indigenous than anything. The story follows a distant relative of the author Teresita Urea, known as the 'Mexican Joan of Arc' who apparently conducted several 'miracles' and became a Saint, so it's part historical fiction also. The work has been hailed as a real contemporary masterpiece and certainly Urea has spent decades researching the story, so he is clearly working from a point of relative authority. The prose to date is great, the story itself quite fascinating and clearly Urea is a skillful storyteller. I'm not that far into Book 1 yet, so I'll need to complete the duology before passing final judgement.

Anyway..what is and what isn't magic realism is something of a bone of contention but enough to say that some of its most prominent practitioners include Jorge Luis Borges (generally regarded in the broad sense of the term as the father of magic realism, some see him as its main progenitor in fact and along with Julio Cortzar probably my favourite Latin American author), Alejio Carpentier (who first referenced a concept similar to magic realism in literature in his novel Kingdom of The World although you'll find that debated as well) Gabriel Garcia Marquez (One Hundred Years of Solitude, in fact you should also read Love In The Time of Cholera, to me both are magnificent works deserving of Marquez's Nobel Prize), Isabelle Allende's wonderful House of Spirits, Jose Donso (Obscene Bird of the Night is more weird than magic realism but it's an amazingly fractured, kaleidoscopic mind-bending (literally) work that I loved) then if we take the postmodernist element of this movement to heart we can inlcude two of my favourite authors (of any time) in Angela Carter and Italo Calvino. Ben Okri is another with his wonderful Booker prize winning novel The Famished Road, in fact Okri is worth reading anyway along with Salman Rushdie, especially with what was rightly voted the Booker of all Bookers Midnight's Children; a magnificent novel I would recommend anyone to read.

I have many more recommendations and authors to add to that list, so I can post stuff for you periodically but that hopefully gives you a further start at least, albeit that's a bit of a scratchy overview.

Cheers.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

That's amazing... I have read quite a lot of these, without seeing them as magical realism (and of course, can absolutely see that they are now.) I love Allende, have read most of her stuff (criminally I found a signed copy of one of her books, limited edition 1000, turn up in a remaindered book bin near Belfast for a pound. Needless to say, it has pride of place in my book shelves!) I also love Angela Carter, and have read a lot of hers. I think I will try the Marquez one - Mr Springs has mentioned it to me before and thought I might like it. Rushdie, to be honest, is an author I've never managed to warm to, despite thinking I might.

Thanks, Gollum!

 

[GOLLUM]

That's amazing... I have read quite a lot of these, without seeing them as magical realism (and of course, can absolutely see that they are now.) I love Allende, have read most of her stuff (criminally I found a signed copy of one of her books, limited edition 1000, turn up in a remaindered book bin near Belfast for a pound. Needless to say, it has pride of place in my book shelves!) I also love Angela Carter, and have read a lot of hers. I think I will try the Marquez one - Mr Springs has mentioned it to me before and thought I might like it. Rushdie, to be honest, is an author I've never managed to warm to, despite thinking I might.

Thanks, Gollum!

Cool. We appear to share similar great taste... If you like Angela Carter then you will adore Italo Calvino..one of the 20th Century's greatest authors (no exaggeration). I agree Rushdie can be a mixed bag but Midnight's Children is his best work and well worth a look...unless you've already read it of course.

I have all of Calvino's (in English) and Carter's published work. For Calvino try If on a Winter's Night a Traveler, Invisible Cities (arguably his greatest single work, mind you most of his stuff is superb) and Cosmicomics (short fiction pieces). I should have mentioned two other authors, German, who seem to get pidgeon-holed into the category of Magic Realism, Gunter Grass and Thomas Bernhard. Grass can be a bit variable but his Tin Drum I liked. Thomas Bernhard is mesmerising, especially his propensity towards brilliant roiling minimally punctuated diatribes that very much have a musical structure to them. It'll do your head in but you'll love it..

Cheers.

P.S. I also have all of Allende's published work (in English) as well as Marquez and Yes try One Hundred Years. Once I find an author I really like I tend to be a bit of a completist.

 

[hitmouse]

Some overlooked magic realism worth checking out:
Tieta by Jorge Amado
infante's Inferno by G Cabrera Infante
The War of Don Emmanuel's Nether Parts by Louis de Bernieres

 

[Vertigo]

Finished Cosmonaut Keep by Ken MacLeod. Thankfully I found this much, much better than my only previous reading of his books: Learning the World. Let down by some sloppy editing*, but still an intriguing story entertaingly told with some fascinating ideas and technology. I shall certainly get around to reading the other book in the series. More here.

*I seem to be finding a lot of sloppily edited books recently. Am I getting more (too?) picky or have I just had a bad run of them? Maybe a bit of both!

 

[GOLLUM]

Some overlooked magic realism worth checking out:
Tieta by Jorge Amado
infante's Inferno by G Cabrera Infante
The War of Don Emmanuel's Nether Parts by Louis de Bernieres

Nice one. Anyone interested in Infante will also want to read Three Trapped Tigers. I picked up a copy a couple of years back at a city booksale not knowing anything about the book and little of its author and was blown away by it. Penguin black classic have put out a number of Armado's shorter works recently including his comic materpeice The Double Death of Quincas Water-Bray and The Discovery fo America by the Turks but his greatest work for me remains The Violent Land. Tieta is certainly worth reading also.

Berniers of Captain Corelli's Mandolin fame I've never been a fan of but that particular work you quote I've not read, so I think i'll add it to my list.

Cheers.

 

[hitmouse]

Capt Correlli did not do much for me either. Don Emmanuel was earlier and is a fantastical allegory of the right wing dictatorships in S America (Argentina in particular) Earthy, funny, beautiful, and moving. There is a trilogy. Some of my favourite books.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I tried Don Emmanuel but didn't fall in love with it. Which saddened me since I love, love, love Captain Corelli's. i might give it another go, I still have it buried somewhere.

 

[The Judge]

Last week I read Wolfhound Century by Peter Higgins, which I enjoyed. (I've added some thoughts on Werthead's review thread). I've now started The Master of Bruges by Terence Morgan. I'll reserve judgement until I'm further along with it, but so far it's not gripping me.

 

[gully_foyle]

Just finished Timequake by Kurt Vonnegut which started off as a novel, fell apart into anecdotes, and became a bit of an autobiography. It's a wonderful piece of writing by one of the bright minds of the last century. Don't look for any SF content in this one, the Timequake itself is a maguffin for the people who populate the book, who are sketches of his friends and family. Kilgore Trout is clearly Vonnegut's alter ego. Picked up Emphyrio by Jack Vance for the next one.

 

[elvet]

I'm slogging through Blood of Dragons by Robin Hobb. There are patches of good reading, interspersed with more boring sections, especially when the dragons are behaving and talking like spoiled children. I'm glad the series is ending. I'm invested in the characters and I want to find out how it's going to play out, but I can only take so much of whingey dragons.

 

[Bick]

A Storm of Swords is my favorite of the series as well. Probably one of my favorite books ever. AFFC and ADWD do slow down a bit. I hope you continue on in the series.

Thanks for the encouragement folks. I'm nearing the end of A Clash of Kings now. I'm so hoping Cersei gets her comeuppance. You'll all know of course, but don't tell. I can see see how you could get hooked on these books. I have all sorts of classic SF waiting for me in the TBR pile, so I will probably pause before tackling A Storm of Swords (it's tempting to plow straight on though...)

 

[Lady of Winterfell]

Thanks for the encouragement folks. I'm nearing the end of A Clash of Kings now. I'm so hoping Cersei gets her comeuppance. You'll all know of course, but don't tell. I can see see how you could get hooked on these books. I have all sorts of classic SF waiting for me in the TBR pile, so I will probably pause before tackling A Storm of Swords (it's tempting to plow straight on though...)

No worries, I would never mention a spoiler for this series! I would recommend reading A Storm of Swords next if you at all feel like it. I would take a break after that. A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons are still good, but they can wait.

And if you do decide to tackle some SF, at least you know you have a great book waiting for you in ASOS.

 

[sassy1]

I'm slogging through Blood of Dragons by Robin Hobb. There are patches of good reading, interspersed with more boring sections, especially when the dragons are behaving and talking like spoiled children. I'm glad the series is ending. I'm invested in the characters and I want to find out how it's going to play out, but I can only take so much of whingey dragons.

Yeah there was rather a lot of that. I assumed it was that Robin Hobb thinks all her readers are rather slow witted and need telling over and over again how self-absorbed and aloof dragons usually are, like we didn't already understand that from the other three books =P I thought it was a good story over all

 

[mosaix]

The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill

An excellent murder mystery set in Laos a year after the communist take over in 1975. The characterisations are good, a wealth of humour and an intriguing story line. Never read anything by this author before but, apparently, there are other stories involving the same characters - can't wait.