Comments | katestine: Books by and about being English

katestine

Books by and about being English

Feb 27, 2015 08:50

Through a completely random coincidence, I just finished 4 books in a row by Englishmen. With Ben Aaronovitch's latest "Rivers of London" book, Foxglove Summer, and the new Nick Hornby, Funny Girl, inhaled is a better word to use: I finished both within 20 hours of acquiring them. oops. (Have I mentioned lately how much I like receiving brand new ( Read more... )

reading, free your mind, audiobooks

Comments 6

mallorys_camera February 27 2015, 14:31:45 UTC

I like Orwell's fiction a lot. I recommend Keep the Aspidistra Flying, too. Somewhat dated, but, uh, you know. What was true 90 years ago is still true now.

And after I read Burmese Days, I became obsessed with visiting Myanmar. (Still am.)

Interesting Salon piece. She's right, you know. :-)

katestine February 27 2015, 17:59:03 UTC

I actually started with Burmese Days, but couldn't take the repeated use of the n-word and the nastiness, even if Orwell was trying to make a point.

Keep the Aspidistra Flying sounds like the novelized, expanded version of your birthday conversation with Max, which sounded extraordinarily unpleasant :(

mallorys_camera February 27 2015, 18:03:23 UTC

Well, as you will discover in 25 years, when Alex is applying to law school or medical school or MBA school, that even though MOM ALWAYS KNOWS BEST, the little buggers insist on thinking on their own!!!!

Actually, Keep the Aspidistra Flying could be the proto-Nick Hornsby novel -- Youthful, Aspirational Male discovers the old ways involving multiple compromises are really the happiest-making etc etc

katestine March 9 2015, 22:16:24 UTC

Hm, I'd probably read that...

jofish22 February 27 2015, 19:28:34 UTC

tallou and I re-read the whole series after getting (and reading) Foxglove Summer. It doesn't particularly repay the attention to detail. He leaves an awful lot of stuff unresolved. Little things and big things. Maybe in the sixth book he'll wrap it all up... but it's frustrating. I like it more than Dresden mainly because I was getting fed up with endless descriptions of the politics of the Fae court which weren't particularly interesting.

Unrelated, Michael is my cousin. Maybe second cousin once removed? Far enough that I'm not quite sure, but he did come to our not-a-wedding in England.

Orwell's awesome tho.

katestine March 9 2015, 22:18:05 UTC

Thanks for the warning about Aaronovitch.

What a small world it is!