Topic: Books You're Currently Reading?

@LimeGreenLegend I read Twain's Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Everett's James back-to-back in December last year and while the first two were predictably a bit troubling in all the expected ways, it was absolutely worth it in order to have a full frame of reference for "James". And the latter turned out to be one of the best novels I read last year, so absolutely worth a read.

The Black Dahlia I first read around the turn of the millennium and is an excellent case of how damaging a poor adaptation can be. I disliked DePalma's movie immensely and found it dull as dishwater, which coloured my memory of the novel for the longest time. Re-read it in 2019 after deciding to read the entire quartet and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was better than my tainted memory told me it was. The rest of the quartet was a bit uneven for me. The Big Nowhere suffered a bit from only having characters it is difficult to root for, which is something that I struggle to enjoy these days, but ultimately, it's a solid novel. L.A. Confidential is probably one of the best Noir novels I've ever read and has become a solid favourite of mine. Unfortunately, the quartet ended on a low note for me, as I found White Jazz both annoyingly written and quite boring. It's worth reading in order to follow Dudley Smith to his end, though.

Another Ellroy book I read back in the day was My Dark Places, an investigative autobiography into the murder of his mother. I remember it as being really good and a particularly good companion piece to "Dahlia". Been meaning to re-read it for a while now.

Anyway, it's fun to have more readers posting their thoughts in here, so welcome to the thread! Hope you'll enjoy your time with the L.A. Quartet

@DETfaninATL I believe many simply refer to it as "the good book". Me? Not a fan.

@DETfaninATL I read it a few years back. Old testament is the best & Revelations is pretty trippy. It has Kaiju in it, Behemoth & Leviathan.

@MightyDemon82 and yet dinosaurs didn't exist if you ask certain groups 😁

People found bones, worked out they were big animals and then smoked a bunch of hash and turned it into some mad capers with all those other mad capers. Always has and always will be what humans do for entertainment 😂

Out of interest, if you had to equate it to modern, or simply other, literature, what does it most read like? Short stories, an anthology, collaborative mish mash, a create your own adventure?

Is there even any continuity with anything in any of the books? Or is it very much that people pick the elements they like and roll with those, whilst ignoring all the bits they don't care for.

@Ravix An anthology/collaborative mish-mash sounds like a great way to describe it. The old testament seemed to flow well enough continuity wise.

Probably why I liked that part the best, all the violence. Once we get into the Jesus stuff, it just repeats itself, as it's the same story told from multiple angles (his disciples or people posing as them).

I find Theology fascinating, even though I'm not religious at all. I do enjoy a good story, which the bible certainly has a few of. I plan to the read the Quoran at some point.

@Ravix @MightyDemon82 What I want to know is, when is the final book in the trilogy coming out?

I abandoned Maldoror and Poems as it is highly disturbing, unpleasant to read and frankly, disgusting in many places and not in a good, FromSoft boss monstrosity type of way. I only got it 'cause I read that it was Modigliani's favourite text. One to avoid.

Now I have moved onto The Manuscript Found in Saragossa by Jan Potocki, which is much better and far more edifying, so far.

Edit: The Potocki book seems to like a Spanish version of the Thousand and One Nights, except it is set in Madrid, rather than havin an Arabian setting, the author led a variegated and colorful life, by all accounts, as well.
I say all that ,having finished the first story in the book, which was very entertaining ,in my opinion.

@FuriousMachine Hello. I thought you might be familiar with, and if you are not, would like to become famiiar with, this Norwegian writer, whom I intend to read, Jon Fosse. His work looks broadly fascinating. Apparently his playwright work has given him Ibsen-heir status!

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/oct/05/where-to-start-...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Fosse

@BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN I'm not familiar with his works, though I have heard the name. I haven't checked out his bibliography in depth, but at first blush I'm uncertain if it's for me. Will take a closer look, though

@FuriousMachine I hope you find you can find something you can appreciate in his vast bibliography, because, as a nobel prize winner, I'm sure you should be able to come across at least one book, play or poem of his that suits your fancy!

@BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN A huuuuuge barrier of entry for me is that he writes in a Norwegian dialect I find immensely irritating ("Nynorsk", which translates to "New Norwegian"). It is a language/dialect constructed from the myriad of dialects actually spoken around the country and for some it will feel natural and close to their own dialect, but for me it feels stilted and unnatural (my dialect has evolved from one heavily influenced by Danish). And it would feel silly to read a Norwegian novel in English, but that would have to be the case if I ever were to read anything of his.

@FuriousMachine Yeah man, just read it in English! Haha just joking, no, that's understandable that you don't want to read it in that dialect, but, if he's as good as they say he is, you might be missing out on something special if you don't read it in English, just something I noted.

@BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN I won't entirely rule it out (and any English translation will probably cost less on digital as well), but there are plenty of other authors and works I am more interested in for now

Just finished Will Self's short story collection Liver. Not his strongest work, I did enjoy the story Leberknodel, which is about an elderly woman with liver cancer traveling to Switzerland for an assisted suicide.

Next up is the Hungarian novel Satantango by Laszlo Krasznahorkai. It's about the dissolution of a failed farming commune at the end of communist rule. The film adaptation by Bela Tarr is my favourite film of all time, an epic seven and a half hour trudge through through the mud in ceaseless rain. Looking forward to reading the source material.

@FuriousMachine Fair enough, I was also gonna ask you about this guy, if he's been cancelled in Norway due to the less savoury views he expressed later in life, or if you read him at school. I always say focus on the art, not the artist, and imo his books are fantastic.

https://thegreatestbooks.org/authors/4947

N.B My favourite book by him isn't actually on that list, it's called The Women at the Pump ,and it's absolutely amazing.

@BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN Can't remember if we actually read any of Hamsun's works in school or not, but he was part of the curriculum. He was also my high school teacher's favourite author, so I've had at least the names of his works drilled into my mind
I don't know how he's viewed by today's kids or if or how he's being taught in school, but his works have always been considered among the finest of Norwegian literature, irrespective of his political views.

Finished the first novel in N.K. Jemisin's "The Broken Earth" series, The Fifth Season, which was a fantastic novel and a brilliant start for the trilogy. The world building is effortless and flows so naturally within the narrative; it never relies on exposition dumps and respects the reader's intelligence enough to assume they will figure it out. This also applies to the reveals regarding how the three separate narratives are tied together. Their connections are never clumsily obfuscated and when the reveals come, they are not made a big deal out of; they are casual and once again assumes that the reader has already figured it out. In addition to respecting the reader, it is also very well written and the story and characters incredibly engaging. Loved it! Five stars!

Continuing with Stephen King's Night Shift collection, I read I am the Doorway, a good little sci-fi body-horror story from the master. Four stars

Next up, another entry in the Harry Bosch universe, with Michael Connelly's latest "Lincoln Lawyer" novel, Resurrection Walk.

just started re-reading Anne Rice's Memnoch the Devil. sort of read it 2 or 3 years ago but forgot if i even read the novel or not

so i have just finished Ken Follets Fall of Giants, which is a 800 pages long novel about ww1 and the impact war can have on families and society. This is also the first book of three so the story continues towards ww2 and beyond i think. ANyways, its light reading so the pages goes by fast. I have been a fan of Follet and his Pillars of the earth series and i have read some of his early works like The Needle, but this book isnt one of his best. I find it a bit shallow and the characters arent very well developed. It is also curious that Follet cant create something exciting in that exciting time of history. I will not read the remaining books in the series.

I have started a new book by Niels Fredrik Dahl, who is a norwegian writer and playwright. The book is called "På vei til en venn" or On the road to a friend, (my translation). Good book, prosaic and short about a young kid and his dramatic experience on the road to his friend. Recommended. Next book will most likely be Sigrid Undsets "Olav Audunssøn" .

And by the way @BlAcK_Sw0rDsMaN Knut Hamsun is well worth the read, espically Hunger, Pan, Growth of the Soil and my personal favourite On overgrown paths. There is also some movies made that could be interesting, since they are made in the landscape which Hamsun grew up in. Nature, both nature and human nature is important feature in his books. I have also read some of Jon Fosses novels and he is also a great writer. Andvake (Wakefullness) is a great book

Finished Resurrection Walk, another home-run from Michael Connelly that sees Mickey Haller and Harry Bosch team up once again for a really compelling courtroom drama. I thought "unputdownable" was a joke word, but it's actually in the dictionary and the title "Resurrection Walk" would have fit quite well as the definition. Fantastic novel! Five stars.

The latest story from Stephen King's Night Shift collection I read was The Mangler. A fun little story about when industrial machines go bad. Four stars.

Now I'm continuing N.K. Jemesin's "Broken Earth" saga with The Obelisk Gate, the second novel in the trilogy.

Also, a polite nod to my fellow Norwegian, @Skarasny (for those who don't know, a polite nod may be overly, and maybe even inappropriately, outgoing, behaviour towards a stranger in Norway, but I'll risk the breach of etiquette this once 😉)