Miscellaneous book trivia and stuff (1 Viewer)

[hydromancer]

Are any of you concerned about dust gathering on the top of your books and discolouring them? What measures have you taken to address the problem? I bought some crepe paper today and have started folding a little of it over the top from inside the front cover to inside the back cover but its a pain in the hole, I don't know if I'll continue.

Some type of feather duster perhaps

 

[Jim Daniels]

Donna Tartt

Those eyes, that voice

Donna Tartt - Charlie Rose

 

[Cornu Ammonis]

Donna Tartt

Those eyes, that voice

Donna Tartt - Charlie Rose

The way she says "poetry" is amazing.

 

[pavlos]

Are any of you concerned about dust gathering on the top of your books and discolouring them? What measures have you taken to address the problem? I bought some crepe paper today and have started folding a little of it over the top from inside the front cover to inside the back cover but its a pain in the hole, I don't know if I'll continue.

Book brush

 

[Lili Marlene]

Donna Tartt

Those eyes, that voice

Donna Tartt - Charlie Rose

I "read" the Secret History on audiobook, narrated by her. She does all the voices and all, presumably nailing Bunny pretty well.

 

[Jim Daniels]

The Little Friend

Yes or no?

The mixed reviews have dissuaded me from ever buying it

 

[nooleen]

i enjoyed it; preferred it to the secret history i think

 

[Jim Daniels]

i enjoyed it; preferred it to the secret history i think

Nice one! I'll give it a go so.

 

[David Kronenbourg]

The Little Friend

Yes or no?

The mixed reviews have dissuaded me from ever buying it

First one of hers I read and it remains my favourite

 

[Lili Marlene]

I haven't read it, I probably should. Was really unimpressed with the Goldfinch.

 

[Jim Daniels]

I haven't read it, I probably should. Was really unimpressed with the Goldfinch.

Would an edited version have helped, or was it a total lost cause for you?

 

[Lili Marlene]

Would an edited version have helped, or was it a total lost cause for you?

You know i'm kind of confused about it all.

One of the things I liked about The Secret History was all the ridiculous ancient greek stuff they were all into - and it was ridiculous, but when you're in a fancy college and surrounded by all this thinking it doesn't seem so silly, it seems new and exciting. I felt she took that cloistered buzz and amplified it really well. It probably wouldn't have been able to sustain itself outside of the confines of the university but, thankfully, it never goes there.

Maybe, to me at least, the Goldfinch showed this aspect of her writing up. It was all very JK Rowling - lots of good characters and an exciting enough plot with some great scenes and certainly very likeable, but not much to say about anything. The philosophical musings of The Secret History might have been just making fun of pretentiousness in college but at least it was trying to engage with ideas on some level, everything in the Goldfinch felt out in the open (bar, literally, the painting).

Complaining that a book doesn't do what you want a book to do isn't much of a criticism though - that's the kind of criticism that deserves the answer "so write your own book". We should be dealing with what's in the book, not what isn't. Anytime I think of the Goldfinch though I just think of plot details, what did it have to say about anything at all??

I don't agree with James Wood who has (semi-famously at this point) said: “Its tone, language, and story belong in children’s literature" - that opinion shows a fundamental ignorance and and uninterest in some of the best ever writing and hasn't got a leg to stand on really.

So.... eh... I dunno. What did you like about it?

 

[IFF]

Would an edited version have helped, or was it a total lost cause for you?

She could have cut 200 pages by being a little bit less descriptive . overall, I thought it was ok though maybe a reason for the over descriptiveness of it being PTSD affecting the narrator so they'd be more observant of their surroundings.

 

[Denny Oubidoux]

Amazon product ASIN 0300217234
Never heard of this book before

Many call the fifteenth-century codex, commonly known as the “Voynich Manuscript,” the world’s most mysterious book. Written in an unknown script by an unknown author, the manuscript has no clearer purpose now than when it was rediscovered in 1912 by rare books dealer Wilfrid Voynich. The manuscript appears and disappears throughout history, from the library of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II to a secret sale of books in 1903 by the Society of Jesus in Rome. The book’s language has eluded decipherment, and its elaborate illustrations remain as baffling as they are beautiful. For the first time, this facsimile, complete with elaborate folding sections, allows readers to explore this enigma in all its stunning detail, from its one-of-a-kind “Voynichese” text to its illustrations of otherworldly plants, unfamiliar constellations, and naked women swimming though fantastical tubes and green baths.

 

[David Kronenbourg]

 

[Jim Daniels]

You know i'm kind of confused about it all.

One of the things I liked about The Secret History was all the ridiculous ancient greek stuff they were all into - and it was ridiculous, but when you're in a fancy college and surrounded by all this thinking it doesn't seem so silly, it seems new and exciting. I felt she took that cloistered buzz and amplified it really well. It probably wouldn't have been able to sustain itself outside of the confines of the university but, thankfully, it never goes there.

Maybe, to me at least, the Goldfinch showed this aspect of her writing up. It was all very JK Rowling - lots of good characters and an exciting enough plot with some great scenes and certainly very likeable, but not much to say about anything. The philosophical musings of The Secret History might have been just making fun of pretentiousness in college but at least it was trying to engage with ideas on some level, everything in the Goldfinch felt out in the open (bar, literally, the painting).

Complaining that a book doesn't do what you want a book to do isn't much of a criticism though - that's the kind of criticism that deserves the answer "so write your own book". We should be dealing with what's in the book, not what isn't. Anytime I think of the Goldfinch though I just think of plot details, what did it have to say about anything at all??

I don't agree with James Wood who has (semi-famously at this point) said: “Its tone, language, and story belong in children’s literature" - that opinion shows a fundamental ignorance and and uninterest in some of the best ever writing and hasn't got a leg to stand on really.

So.... eh... I dunno. What did you like about it?

That's a great post and unfortunately I have nothing much to add to it. To be honest, I can't recall The Goldfinch in great detail. I really liked long segments of it, mainly for the story-line and some of the characters. But while I admit that it has its flaws, I still can't help defending it for reasons I am not entirely sure of. I may be guilty of liking the author more so than the work itself. It's a weird sense of loyalty to an artist that I frequently have, where deep down I know some of the criticism is justified, but I can't bring myself to join in! See also Joanna Newsom, PJ Harvey, Radiohead, John DeLillo, David Mitchell and many others.

I don't necessarily think that a book always has to "say something" to make the reading of it worthwhile. Sometimes the story itself is enough. But generally, a bit of depth certainly adds to the appeal.

 

[Lili Marlene]

That's a great post and unfortunately I have nothing much to add to it. To be honest, I can't recall The Goldfinch in great detail. I really liked long segments of it, mainly for the story-line and some of the characters. But while I admit that it has its flaws, I still can't help defending it for reasons I am not entirely sure of. I may be guilty of liking the author more so than the work itself. It's a weird sense of loyalty to an artist that I frequently have, where deep down I know some of the criticism is justified, but I can't bring myself to join in! See also Joanna Newsom, PJ Harvey, Radiohead, John DeLillo, David Mitchell and many others.

I don't necessarily think that a book always has to "say something" to make the reading of it worthwhile. Sometimes the story itself is enough. But generally, a bit of depth certainly adds to the appeal.

thanks and I know what you mean, looking for books to "say something" is an awful way to be carrying on.

There was just something unsatisfying about the Goldfinch that I can't quite put my finger on

 

[Jim Daniels]

Ali Smith was great on Desert Island Discs this morning. Great humanity and impeccable music choices

Ali Smith, Desert Island Discs - BBC Radio 4

 

[Scientician 0.8]

I really ages ago got out of the habit of reading novels and I sort of regret it. I am going to make a concerted effort to start reading them again, my room is coming down with uncracked books. The Secret History is here somewhere, I didn't realise it was well over 20 years old. Thought it was an early '00s buzz.

 

[Lili Marlene]

Amazon product ASIN 0300217234
Never heard of this book before

The Unsolvable Mysteries of the Voynich Manuscript - The New Yorker