November 2019 reading thread

[Danny McG]

On occasion we fed our pigs carp. But that's a story to itself

That sounds a bit fishy to me

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

I am well into In the Darkroom (2016) by Susan Faludi, author of the feminist classic Backlash. It begins with the author visiting her estranged father in Hungary after many years, after that parent has undergone male-to-female sex reassignment surgery. Besides dealing with transsexualism and other such issues, it considers other topics concerning identity, such as the romanticizing of the glory days of Hungary before the First World War. Quite a fascinating book.

 

[Dave]

In another thread I posted:

I have The Second Sleep by Robert Harris on my 'to read' pile. I'm trying to quickly finish another book so that I can start it. It sounds excellent. Begins in 1469 with a monk riding to Devon to bury another monk. People began to write to Harris after they had only read the second page to complain about his historical inaccuracies. Spoiler: it isn't set in the past but in the future.

I've started reading it now, but haven't got far yet. No one replied much to that post and I can't see anyone else talking about it here, thought there is a discussion of other Robert Harris books. I had to laugh because that second page mentions the damnable Indian ring-necked Parakeets that have invaded southern England. Then he smokes a pipe, seemingly 100 years before tobacco was brought to England. But by page 22 it is obvious to every reader that 'We're not n Kansas anymore.'

 

[Danny McG]

In another thread I posted:
I've started reading it now, but haven't got far yet. No one replied much to that post and I can't see anyone else talking about it here, thought there is a discussion of other Robert Harris books. I had to laugh because that second page mentions the damnable Indian ring-necked Parakeets that have invaded southern England. Then he smokes a pipe, seemingly 100 years before tobacco was brought to England. But by page 22 it is obvious to every reader that 'We're not n Kansas anymore.'

Enough!
I've got it but it's probably going to be sometime between Christmas and the New Year before I settle down with it.

No more plot details please

 

[Ian Fortytwo]

I'm currently reading Thomas Cromwell, by Diarmaid MacCulloch.

 

[Dave]

sometime between Christmas and the New Year before I settle down with it.

I need to talk with someone about it before then.

Sorry for the spoilers. I thought those were mild given that on BBC Radio 2 last week they read out the whole paragraph from the end of a chapter.

 

[Rodders]

On to "Dark City" (Repairman Jack the Early Years)

 

[The Big Peat]

Little over a hundred pages into Shoe Dog, the memoir of the guy who founded Nike, and there's something just utterly captivating about it.

 

[DannMcGrew]

Started Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry and if it's possible to turn off a reader with the first sentence this book's got it in spades! "When Augustus came out on the porch the blue pigs were eating a rattlesnake - not a very big one." ----- Did he do any research? Pigs are not blue unless someone has dyed them. And pigs don't kill snakes as a rule. There are two possibilities where a pig could kill and eat a snake, if it were a wild pig as they are not susceptible to the poison or if the snake were dormant because of the cold and in the first page the book talks about the unbearable heat. Pigs are not hunters. Even a wild one would not chase a snake. Sigh! I was excited when I read it had won a Pulitzer Prize but ... For now I've quit and picked up one of my favorite authors Laurence E. Dahners his new offering Hood (A Hyllis family story #7).

Parson, methinks you jumped too soon. A) further along it becomes clear the "pigs" are allegorical and important characters B) they were probably wild shoats and could

be called "blue" but "Blue" is also important in other ways in the story.
C) Wild boars do indeed prey on reptiles including rattlesnakes but so do domestic pigs. I myself have seen a pig going for a black snake.

Why Are Pigs Immune to Snake Bites?

No animal is immune to snake bites, but pigs have a thicker layer of skin than most animals. According to Books Upstairs, this is due to the thick layer of adipose tissue that makes it harder for venom to seep into the bloodstream. Science Daily notes that adipose tissue is normally found...

www.reference.com

It's a great book I encourage you to give it another try.

 

[DannMcGrew]

I'm reading Robert Macfarlane's non-fiction Underland. He provides time travel and adventures into the unknown without leaving Earth. Excellent descriptive writing that's almost too good at times, especially if you're a bit claustrophobic. The chapter about the city under the city of Paris is amazing.

 

[M. S. Ari]

Start reading of Gateway by Frederik Pohl

 

[HareBrain]

Little over a hundred pages into Shoe Dog, the memoir of the guy who founded Nike, and there's something just utterly captivating about it.

With the waffle iron? He copped up in the Netflix doc series Wild Wild Country about the conflict between local Oregonians and the community set up by the Baghwan Rajneesh in the early 80s. I'd heard nothing about him before.

 

[The Big Peat]

With the waffle iron? He copped up in the Netflix doc series Wild Wild Country about the conflict between local Oregonians and the community set up by the Baghwan Rajneesh in the early 80s. I'd heard nothing about him before.

Different guy, although obviously connected. Phil Knight is the guy who came up with the idea of importing Japanese running shoes to the US and then when that relationship went sour, making his own - he's the author of the book. Bill Bowerman, the guy who did the stuff with the waffle iron, was his running coach at college and one of the first guys Knight sent some of the sample Japanese running shoes to. They went into business off the back of that - 51-49 at Bowerman's request, because he wanted Knight to have the final say and no arguments - and the rest is history.

Finished it this morning as its a very compulsive read. I don't know if Knight's actually a good writer, or he hired a good ghost writer, but either way the writer does a very good job of teasing out what's interesting here - the people. Knight in particular comes across as an interesting mix of insecurity, spirituality and stubborness. He's pretty open about some of his failures and fears. That psychological element is what makes the whole "How a guy selling shoes out of his trunk and dad's house became one of the richest people on earth" interesting. You get a sense of what makes him tick. I don't think I'd tell anyone to buy the book unless biography/business is their cup of tea, but if you see a copy floating around and just want to read about a human talking about himself and humanity in an interesting manner, I'd definitely recommend it.

 

[Parson]

Parson, methinks you jumped too soon. A) further along it becomes clear the "pigs" are allegorical and important characters B) they were probably wild shoats and could
View attachment 57834

be called "blue" but "Blue" is also important in other ways in the story.
C) Wild boars do indeed prey on reptiles including rattlesnakes but so do domestic pigs. I myself have seen a pig going for a black snake.

Why Are Pigs Immune to Snake Bites?

No animal is immune to snake bites, but pigs have a thicker layer of skin than most animals. According to Books Upstairs, this is due to the thick layer of adipose tissue that makes it harder for venom to seep into the bloodstream. Science Daily notes that adipose tissue is normally found...

www.reference.com

It's a great book I encourage you to give it another try.

I have continued with Lonesome Dove. I am now about 7% into the book and although I'm no longer angry, I am becoming more and more frustrated with it. So far this has been one long drawn out introduction. To quote the Bard "Much ado about nothing." But I will persevere for a time longer, because the book seems to have many fans. --- You do worry me about "allegorical pigs." Maybe this novel will be entirely too pretentious for a country Parson like myself.

 

[DannMcGrew]

I have continued with Lonesome Dove. I am now about 7% into the book and although I'm no longer angry, I am becoming more and more frustrated with it. So far this has been one long drawn out introduction. To quote the Bard "Much ado about nothing." But I will persevere for a time longer, because the book seems to have many fans. --- You do worry me about "allegorical pigs." Maybe this novel will be entirely too pretentious for a country Parson like myself.

Hey, if it doesn't ring your chimes move on. There are too many books that want reading to wrestle with one that does not speak to your condition.
I've finally learned that after waaaaaaaaay too many years.

 

[Bick]

I finished 1633, by Flint & Weber. I like these books; my impression is that they are well researched and this one was a little less hung-ho than 1632, presenting a balanced view of the history of the time. They are quite educational as well as fun.

I’m now starting The Daughter of Time, by Josephine Tey.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I’m now starting The Daughter of Time, by Josephine Tey.

I read that a long time ago, enjoyed it very much, and found the arguments in favor of Richard III quite convincing. I wonder if it ages well?

 

[Bick]

I read that a long time ago, enjoyed it very much, and found the arguments in favor of Richard III quite convincing. I wonder if it ages well?

I’ll let you know what I think, for sure.

 

[Dave]

I need to talk with someone about it before then.

Sorry for the spoilers.

I finished it yesterday. Impossible to talk about The Second Sleep without spoilers.

Spoiler: Goodreads reviewers

Looking over at the reviews at Goodreads, most people were very disappointed with the ending. Initially, I have to say that I was too, but I've since come to realise that it suited entirely the point Robert Harris is trying to make.

Spoiler: The book's title

It also makes the title make sense too.

 

[Ian Fortytwo]

I'm currently reading Thomas Cromwell, by Diarmaid MacCulloch.

I found this to be utter rubbish I had read nearly two hundred pages.

So I read a little gem by Charles Dickens, The Signalman, which also included The Boy at Mugby. Both deserve more recognition. 10 /10.