Reading (to the end of the year)

[altariel]

More lacklustre reviews, of what I was reading up to the end of 2004.



Jacob’s Room by Virginia Woolf and The Wise Virgins by Leonard Woolf
Out of all the Woolf novels I haven’t read (most of them), I picked up Jacob’s Room because it was published in 1922, and I’m interested in that year (when Ulysses and The Waste Land were also published). And the The Wise Virgins was my Persephone book from my visit to the shop. It was Leonard Woolf’s first novel, written in the early years of the marriage, and concerning the relationship between two characters very like him and Virginia. Apparently Virginia had a breakdown after reading it, and wouldn’t see him for months. Some you win, some you lose, I guess.

The Separation by Christopher Priest
I reread this very quickly at the start of the month because it was my choice for my reading group who, despite being wholly SF-averse, enjoyed it immensely (although the consensus was that it didn’t count as science fiction).

Flambards, The Edge of the Cloud, Flambards in Summer, and Flambards Divided by K.M. Peyton
Thank you to the_wild_iris for lending me these. Orphaned Christina comes to live with mad uncle and two cousins in ramshackle household split between the traditional world of fox-hunting and the modern world of flying. The first three novels were superb; amongst some of the best children’s books I’ve read. The fourth one I had difficulties with; I thought (sadly) that it was very likely that these things would happen to the characters, but I didn’t want to imagine it happening. I’m going to have to HEX the last book out of existence, I think, and plug my own story in there instead.

My Friend Flora, My Friend Madame Zora, and My Friends George and Tom
The last of the Jane Duncans, courtesy of katlinel. I felt bereft at the end of the final one. I’ll have to start all over again, from the beginning.

Peter’s Room by Antonia Forest
GGBP reprint of one of the best of the series, in which the borders between an imaginative game (role-playing, really) and real life become blurred. Extremely good, although I’m not sure I like the moral.

Stalky and Co. by Rudyard Kipling
Adored it.

Comments

[applegnat.livejournal.com]

Out of all the Woolf novels I haven’t read (most of them), I picked up Jacob’s Room because it was published in 1922, and I’m interested in that year.

Do you know, I don't think that's nerdy AT ALL. Like, not one ickle bit. You are positively frivolous.

And un-nerdy. Yup.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I think that the words you're looking for are 'anal' and possibly 'obsessive'.

[applegnat.livejournal.com]

Alas, you are cursed with modernist afflictions!

*prescribes quick dose of subaltern angst and blatant consumerism to alleviate your condition*

PoMo to the rescue!

{I should get an icon that says that}

[altariel.livejournal.com]

*quick dose of subaltern angst and blatant consumerism*

But that's what I grew up on. Modernism is, like, my rock'n'roll, man!


{I should get an icon that says that}



(Postmodernism died at the end of Attack of the Clones, when Yoda fought Dooku. Old man fights rubber dolly. It's no longer ironic. It's just bad...)

[applegnat.livejournal.com]

*gasp* My very own PoMo icon. Oh. *clasps to heart* Thank you, thank you!

((From what I understand, Star Wars, much like PoMo itself, had it's heyday in the 1980s and is now simply all about the merchandising. Have you seen Spaceballs?))

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I think Star Wars was always about merchandising. Oh, the thrill of being the first kid on your street to see it! Oh, the collectible Millenium Falcon! Oh, the plastic C3-P0 suit!

(I haven't seen Spaceballs - is it good?)

[applegnat.livejournal.com]

Oh, the plastic C3-P0 suit!

Urk. This hybrid of socialism and the 1990s did not need to know that.

Spaceballs is good in spots, excruciating in others and engaging while it lasts. It's that parody genre thing that takes itself too far sometimes, you know.

[(Anonymous)]

(katlinel at work, bored silly)

I felt bereft at the end of the final one. I’ll have to start all over again, from the beginning.

Aww. You still have Letter from Reachfar to borrow.

I'm keeping my eye out for paperbacks for you.

I remember reading the first Flambards book when I was about 14. I never read the rest, but I'm not sure why. Maybe it was the horses - I was never a huge fan of any pony books.

I decided to ignore the moral in Peter's Room. i was delighted to read more about the beginnings of Patrick/Ginty though. Poor Nicola.

Long time since I've read Stalky and Co. I can't now remember if I read the book before or after the TV series. It may even have been the reference in Jo Returns to the Chalet School that made me want to read it.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

You still have Letter from Reachfar to borrow.

Yippee!


I'm keeping my eye out for paperbacks for you.

Thank you :-)

I think that I didn't start reading the Flambards books for just the same reason - not interested in ponies, not interested in planes. More interested in planes these days, still not much interested in ponies. Very interested in books set around WW1, though.

It's so long since I saw the TV version of Stalky... I think it was one of the first things I saw on UK Gold, so 1993 or 1994. Would love to see it again.

Poor Nicola indeed. She has a really sad time throughout the book, what with the Sprog and having to do something she doesn't much enjoy.

[kerravonsen]

although the consensus was that it didn’t count as science fiction

B***dy typical. If non-fans like it, they declare it to be not SF.
Not that I've actually read the book in question, so I can't say whether it was really SF or not...

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I'm guilty of the same thing with Westerns: "I don't like Westerns, except for the ones I've seen."

It's a WW2 alternate history, so no obvious markers of SF, e.g. spaceships, BEMs, etc. etc.

[sugoll.livejournal.com]

I don't watch soap operas, I declared. K argued that
Northern Exposure was a soap opera. I disagreed, until I realized she was right and I was wrong.

I watched that soap opera.

I got over it.

Never read Priest, though. I know he's supposed to be really good, but then, people like Dune, too. How did you rate his stuff?

[altariel.livejournal.com]

Heh, the kind of absolute statement made with complete certainty that is bound to be proved wrong...!

This is the only one of Priest's books that I've read, but I loved it. It's right up my street, though: alternate history, and a very strong structure. One person in the reading group thought it was a bit contrived, and didn't think much of the characterization. The characters weren't strongly drawn, but were differentiated enough for me for the purposes of the story.

Speaking of Dune (which I haven't read), I did see the miniseries over the New Year and I thought it was great! Like Blake's 7 would have been, with a bit more money.

[katlinel.livejournal.com]

I don't watch soap operas, I declared. K argued that
Northern Exposure was a soap opera. I disagreed, until I realized she was right and I was wrong.

It's easy to see what the moral of this particular tale is.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

*innocent* Everybody follows at least one soap opera?

[katlinel.livejournal.com]

Ooh, bad Altariel. Naughty Altariel. Bad, naughty, wicked Altariel!

[altariel.livejournal.com]

*bats eyes*

[kerravonsen]

Silly folk. Alternative histories are too SF. You can't call them mainstream.

[the-wild-iris.livejournal.com]

I'm really glad you enjoyed Flambards, and I would love to see an alternative sequel. (Don't suppose you could bring Will back to life?)

Intrigued to see what your verdict on Terry Goodkind will be.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

(Don't suppose you could bring Will back to life?)

I don't think Will loved Christina quite enough. I really wanted her to be happy with Dick.

*rubs hands in anticipation of Terry Goodkind...*