Literary Gemstones and Trash
I realized going through the list of books I have read this year that there simply haven't been any that "blew-me-away". Oh well, there is still few weeks left so one can hope for a little gemstone popping up somewhere. Last year was a bit different and I thought I should post a quick summary of worthwhile reads from 2008. In case you need a nice book to curl up with during Christmas.
First off: Silk by Alessandro Baricco was a beautifully written tale of a French silk merchant that develops a forbidden fascination for a Japanese woman. The writing is the kind that makes you beg for more as it is very simplistic yet so perfect. The story was heart-breaking love story which made me cry. This one was my absolute favorite last year!
Another gemstone was A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. The sad story of four people struggling to survive in harsh time in India. If you like depressing and sad books about misery upon misery (like me) this might be something for you.
Jhumpa Lahiri did her magic yet again with Unaccustomed Earth. Melancholic short stories. Reading them is like eating a creamy caramel. You keep wanting it to last forever, yet you cannot stop yourself from reading onward. When near the end you start reading slower and slower because you don't want it to end. When you close the book you let out a sigh and hope she is hard at work at her next book.
A classic: Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. Clever story about a problem that is still relevant in todays society. Not necessarily the greatest book but one that keeps you nodding your head and uhumming to yourself "yeah I could see this happen if a certain political side got in power for too long".
Another excellent book was The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing. Extremely well written account of what effect poverty, loneliness, and racial tension can have on a person's life.
Oh and if you are a girl/women and want to get a serious literary crush (think Anne of Green Gable's Gilbert) you might give Twilight by Stephenie Meyer a try. On contrary to the other books above this is real TRASH but there is something very likable about them. Be warned though that if you post those books as a recommendation at the bottom of a "serious" book recommendation blog post you will probably not be taken very seriously... :) .
Papers want to be free.. unbound!
Books? The concept sounds familiar, but I'm not entirely sure how they work. Am I right assuming it is a bunch of papers, glued or stiched together so you can page through them without it falling apart? I remember when I was young, we had those books all around us.
Seriously, I usually mention it is 15 years since I tried to read a fictional book from one end to the other. Of course I had course books in class, but only read selected chapters. Nowadays I read some shorter stories downloaded from the Internet. Based on the Amazon link, I assume the Silk book also is available as an e-book as it would be possible to obtain used for £0.01 plus shipping.
But good luck finding that one book that will make your reading worthwhile. Personally I doubt I will find time or motivation to squeeze in reading a book. I'll simply spend my time doing other things.
Should try again
You are missing out :) . Books are great! Movies are good too but they are always like the cliffnotes of books. One of my favorite relaxation is disappearing into the world of a good book!
merci pour les liens
merci pour les liens