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Book Talk

Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2004 1:50 pm
by e_shaun_Archive
Mr. Chimp wrote:Stephanson's The Confusion: as e_shaun mentioned earlier, a fascinating read of fictionalized history and the birth of modern federal/international banking, albeit peppered with alchemy and pirates. Realizing how much of Quicksilver was actually pure setup - The Confusion is much better, and I look forward to reading all three again after the third one comes out and 1-2 years have passed.


Yes, you're absolutely right about that. In a couple years or so, I envision myself reading them all together as a single book. I finished The Confusion a month ago, and I still find myself thinking about the events within...

Since my last post here, I've taken a couple recommendations from this thread in regards to Vonnegut. I'm currently reading God Bless You Mr. Rosewater and quite enjoying it. I read Mother Night a couple weeks ago and absolutely loved it. Can't find the movie anywhere though...I had wanted to see it before simply because I like the director; now I want to see it because it was such a great book. I also recently read Steinbeck's first novel Cup Of Gold which is about the buccaneer Captain Henry Morgan (set in the same historical timeframe as Quicksilver btw Mr. Chimp). It wasn't too bad. It gets a bad rap because it isn't as overtly "Steinbeckian" as his later novels. And the last novel I read was Hemingway's A Farewell To Arms which I enjoyed right up to the unnecessarily bleak ending.

It's odd; more often than not, I'll generally "like" a novel or a movie. There aren't many novels I've read that I've strongly disliked. Yet when it comes to music, I'm all over the map. Anyone else notice the same thing?

Book Talk

Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2004 2:17 pm
by Angus Jung
"Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?" The story of the Carter Family. Not Jimmy. You know, Sara, A.P., Maybelle, the Carter Family. What a very good book it is. I read it during one 10-hour stretch at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport last wk.

Book Talk

Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2004 3:27 pm
by Dylan_Archive
Angry_Dragon wrote:If you ever want to read a book full of amazing plot twists and some of the most elegant prose I highly suggest you read the dictionary.

I already know how it ends.

Bad-dum, PSSH!

The butler did it, but really early on.

Bad-dum, PSSH!

I feel the author is spelling it out for us on each page.

Bad-dum, PSSH!

I fell asleep at the end. ZZZZZzzzzzz

Book Talk

Posted: Thu Jun 17, 2004 7:10 pm
by run joe_ run_Archive
I'm reading The Complete Short Stories of JG Ballard, one a night before sleep. Great stuff (surprised he hasn't been mentioned actually).

The last novel I read was The Vanishing by Tim Krabbe which was boss. It takes about an hour to read and haunts you like hell afterwards. The one before that was The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time by Mark Haddon. It was good.

While I'm here I'll big up Ask The Dust by John Fante and Atomised by Michel Houellebecq. Nice to see House Of Leaves getting mentioned too.

Night night.

Book Talk

Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2004 1:40 pm
by maggiego_Archive
(I own wee bookstore, will be terse as read too much)

1. Paul Auster's The Red Notebook will make songwriters salivate for his observational skills and dumb luck, but i found it a great read too.

2. Haruki Murakami, and not just b/c it will help you pick up chicks if you brandish it.

3. Am reading the Klosterman now (sex drugs cocoa puffs). Snark city but I am still liking book, if looking for things to throw at implied author.

4. Can we talk about how amazing David Berman's book of poems IS, and how Jeff Tweedy's is NOT? Berman's is considered among the best debuts in po-biz in years; Tweedy's is a step removed from JEWEL. A small step. Smooch.

--Maggie

from BiBLiO in Tucson, conveniently located a few short steps from the local abattoir...

Book Talk

Posted: Thu Jun 24, 2004 10:25 am
by Andrew L_Archive
“Hatred of Capitalism; A Semiotext(e) Reader.”

Do not let the title throw you. Beautiful interviews, insane fiction, calls to armed insurrection by imprisoned anti-imperialists, a bit of continental theory (Deleuze and Guitari, Baudrillard), this is highly readable and addictive stuff. Steal it from your local big-box megastore.

Here’s an interview w/ one of the editors:

http://www.physicsroom.org.nz/log/archive/15/lotringer/

* * * *

For on-line reading peruse Alan Sondheim’s archives.

http://www.asondheim.org/

Here’s an example of one the little movies he makes (all the actors are mannequins). His writing is better though.

http://www.asondheim.org/passion.mov

* * * *

Otherwise, here’s 2 poems (yes, poems you denizens of Illiterati) by K. Silem Mohammad who has a book of poems called “Dear Head Nation” available thru Small Press Distribution.











Poetry Pants

Poetry Pants I took off my pants and felt skewed where
the face should be was a mass
beans are seen as the ants pants for web
mainstream, high-turnover items like tuna
“I’ve got your homepage right here in my pants”

morons attempting poetry overy horribly
sanding some guy’s boat
hiking up his khaki worker’s pants
using opium and writing bad poetry
shitting his pants, stoned poetry
going mainstream, this cannot happen
he’s reading his own poetry about headless mainstream
blind people
I wouldn’t invite them in my pants

when the poetry kicks in
write the names of people you love
on the roof of your mouth with your tongue
get an education in fuckology
at the university of my pants
majority maintains mainstream mainly lying
poetry portrays pirates politically
I suggest that you start writing poetry
about a guy who splits his pants
who can put on a pair of pants five sizes








Poetry by Cats


Poetry by Cats I suppose the made flower is like the
big stupid poet
not to be admired a supporter of divided nations
the dork in the world hunky-dory and ready
to graduate when bim-bam-boom “lookie here everyone”
well the stupid poet across the road is so up himself
his arrogance only exceeds his vanity so I have
decided to expand
my horizons again I have difficulty with it and even
the ruffled edges
of that stupid poet’s shirt looked good to him now
seeing him look so pretty in those stupid poet shirts
inspires even me

“are you stupid, poet” the voice in my head
mocked it always came when I needed it least
I didn’t want to be one another stupid poet
*go back to sleep you stupid poet else you’ll think of
some new way
to plunge us into calamity will you stupid poet shut
up will you stupid poet shut up*

what once was us will never again be
a stupid poet with stupid rhymes
who’s lost his love I don’t have a nose ring so how
could I pick it up
and eat cheese there now so dad put out a bear-trap
& some flood-lights in the grass rny fat old man pack
full of toys
he probably likes young little boys “stupid poet”
make every pore our port of entry disgusting mucky
stinky words
the coarse excrement of my viscera my brains and my
heart stupid poet trick
disgusted I was shaken to the core
yowling how could this have happened am I exiled
evermore
I am stupid and I’ll die a stupid poet in love what
bliss is this

Book Talk

Posted: Fri Jun 25, 2004 4:36 pm
by Dylan_Archive
wiggins wrote:a friend of mine let me read a book called "the cheese monkeys" by Chip Kidd.

its a good short read, absolutely hilarious. it reminded me a lot of palahniuk in that in the last 1/3rd of the story, things just get a little hairy and fantastical (if thats even a word haha).

its only about 300 pages long, and it leaves you with this really weird feeling at the end, which i beleive was the authors intent all along, which i think is awsome.

also, im sure you've read it, but Breakfast of Champions by vonnegut is amazing, if you havent.

-wiggins

I just finished this. I liked a lot of it, even the subtle parts (did you notice how the font changes size the first time the teacher speaks and then stays that size for the rest of the book?), but yeah, that last part was weird. I'm not sure if it was a cop-out or something I just don't get yet.

Book Talk

Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2004 12:50 pm
by Dylan_Archive
the Classical wrote:
Mr. Chimp wrote:Recently I've been fascinated with the works of Haruki Murakami - so far have read "A Wild Sheep Chase", "Dance, Dance, Dance" and "Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World." He is a writer of superb quality and infinite subtlety.



agreed, tho murakami sinks or swims on the strength of his translators, jay rubin is the man in my opinion


Just finished "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles" (translated by Jay Rubin, natch) - I'm going to try another one by Murakami, but I did not love this book. I get a little turned off by quasi-supernatural fiction. Great style, though.

Book Talk

Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2004 12:59 pm
by the Classical_Archive
Dylan wrote:I get a little turned off by quasi-supernatural fiction. Great style, though.


That's sort of what Murakami does...Wind-Up Bird is sort of the best distillation of his style.

Book Talk

Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2004 2:15 pm
by Maurice_Archive
the Classical wrote:That's sort of what Murakami does...Wind-Up Bird is sort of the best distillation of his style.


Actually, I don't think he's yet matched Sheep Chase, although Wind-Up Bird was something of a return to form after the dire fiasco of Dance.