Month: December 2010

Books to watch out for in 2011 .

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Well here are a few books out next year that have caught my Eye for next year .

Peirene Numbers 4,5 and 6 – earlier in the year in an interview on winstonsdad Meike mentioned these titles and her descriptions of their year of men titles are much better than mine .I’m looking forward to these as the first three titles have all been of such a wonderful high standard .

Paris metro tales -another in the OUP collection of city tales ,translated and selected by Helen Constantine ,stories in and set round the Paris Metro due out March 2011 .

Never any end to Paris by Enrique Vila -Matas – maybe the perfect companion to the metro tale a novel set in Paris involving the writers of the nouveau Roman movement .The writer is described as the greatest ;living Spanish writer by Bernardo Axtaga and that is he praise this is due out on new directions May next year .

Tyrant Memory by Horacio Castellanos Moya –A novel following a tyrant in El Salvador in the thirties the action takes place in a month between a coup and a strike .Moya was described by Bolano as the only writer of my generation who knows how to narrate the horrors ,the secret Vietnam that was latin american was for a long time .out in May on New directions ,

Love virtually by Daniel Glattauer –Now a german friend told me about this a while ago a very inventive german novel .A love affair told in E-mails ,but will it survive in real life when they meet ? out feb on Machlehose press .

Trieste by Dasa Drndic -A Croatian novel about a mother being reunited with her son that was stolen by the germans sixty years earlier this is meant to be a touching novel .out in april on Machlehose press .

As though she were sleeping by Elias Khoury –I read Yalo by Khoury earlier this year ,this book is different set in the 30’s in Beirut should be wonderful has a arabic poetic edge to it by a wonderfully talented writer ,this is out may 2011 by Machlehose press .

SPLITHEAD BY Juyla Rabinowitz –a German coming of age story about a seven-year old girl who grew up in russia and then came to the freedom of Vienna .a vibrant new voice in german writing .out in february from Portobello books .

Lovetown by Michal Witkowski – growing up queer in Poland under communism ,a book set in the 70’s and 80’s then in modern Poland .Out april on Portobello books

Gargling with tar by Jachym Topol – A book set in the aftermath of the invasion of 1968 .This book caught ny eye when I first heard about it .out in June by Portobello books .

Windows on the world by Frederic Beigbeder

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Frederic Beigbeder is a french writer ,commentator and lit critic .He word as an advertising executive and work with the french communist party .He also had a talk show on the french tv channel Cannel+ called the hypershow .he has written many novels in french with a couple in translation .This is like many of his books autobiographical in many way .although I enjoyed reading this book I found it hard to review .

Windows on the world is set mainly in new york during the 9/11 attacks and imagines what happened over this time to the people in the windows on the world restaurant .The book is two stories really the first on 9/11 is the tale of a texas estate agent Carthew Yorsten who is having breakfast with his sons in the windows on the world you find out about them ,but I always feel sorry for them as I know what is coming ,maybe that sounds strange but I found it hard to connect with imagined people on this day when I knew what would happen to them .The second story is the writer writing the story and recalling his visits to new York eating at the windows on the world before the attack also,where he was the day of the attacks,I connected more to this section of the book I think Everyone remember what they where doing that day  .The story unfolds minute after minute with each really short chapter defining a minute of the time from the attack to the tower collapsing .

8:56

Everyone knows precisely where they were on september 11 ,2001 .Me I was in the basement of my publisher Grasset ,giving an interview for culture pub at 2:56 PM french time ,when the presenter Thomas Herve ,was informed via cellphone that an airplane had Just flown into one of the world trade center towers .At the time ,we both thought it was a small tourist plane and went on with the interview .

the writer remember where he was that awful day .

Well I enjoyed this book any book on 9/11 is hard to talk about ,for me I was getting ready for work that awful day and remember seeing it on tv just before I went to work and being stunned in to disbelief .As my family lived in Ulster and some still do, bombs and troubles are something I got use to hearing about. But 9/11 was terrorism on a new scale ,Frederic has caught and tried in a sympathetic way to connect with his feeling and emotions due to this .I ve read a couple of other 9/11 inspired novels and this is the best I ve read so far but is still flawed ,maybe some subjects need space and time before you can write about them and I think 9/11 is one of these events .the translation is top draw but Frank Wynne is a great translator and this book won the Independent foreign fiction prize in 2005 .

Have you read this book ?


Novella reading wrap up post

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Had planned to do this yesterday ,but a visit to dentist and Tooth being taken out I thought it was just check up but the  tooth needed taking out so had a few injections as I hate the dentist with a passion ,all due to my sweet tooth I do like my cakes and biscuits !!! Well this weekend Simon at stuck in books had a novella reading weekend well I ve managed to get through 4 novellas this weekend which was great ,may do this on my next weekend of in the new year still have a lot on the shelves to read .

THE FOUR NOVELLAS READ –

So I spent summer in Finland ,a small village in Argentina as it falls in to chaos ,a fisherman’s dilemma over a large pearl and its fall out and a young women’s romance in 1930’s china .Not a bad weekend review to follow in next few weeks .

 

Winstons books

~ winstonsdad ~ 23 Comments

Been a while since I got any books but last week had a splurge at Nottingham where that is a large waterstones and at local Oxfam .

The books –

The wild ass’s skin by Honore de Balzac ,choose this at oxfam due to its 70’s cover will read it for pink sheep cafes bad cover challenge next year ,plus my good friend linda is enjoy Balzac at moment and thought I d read another of his read one in twenties this will make two ,still loads of his to read .

Fear of De Sade by Bernardo Carvalho ,A Brazilian writer this book set in 19th century France is considered one of the best writers in Brazil at moment so really looking forward to this one .

Embers by Sandor Marai ,this is for my Hungarian week that means I ve four books now for that week next year ,this is set in Carpathians so expecting a dark tale and loads of suspence .

Kye by Lukas Tomin ,this is a twisted spoon book a book from 80’s a autobiographical novel set in london where Tomin lived at the time it is about identity .

The Tartar steppe by Dino Buzzati ,a book written just before the war follows a man that is post to a remote fort where he spends the rest of his life as he is forgotten considered Italian classic ,I loved the poem strip when I read it and want to see how two so different books could have come from the same pen .

Solibo Magnificent by Patrick Chamoiseau ,I jump for joy when I got this in oxfam as it is from Martinique a unusal police procedural ,written in french and creole .

The discovery of heaven by Harry Mulisch ,his recent death made me want to read his opus ,considered the best Dutch book ever ,I read another of his books a few years ago but this looks awesome .a book following a quest  and a couple onno and max .

Winter -a dance to the music of time by Anthony Powell ,this mean I ve books 4,5,6, 10.11and 12 I ve read the first two and have book three from library so this  is for when I get this far which will be a way of yet but was a bargain for two pound .

 

 

 

I ve add this post to the story siren mailbox post .have you read any of these books ?

novella reading weekend start post

~ winstonsdad ~ 10 Comments

Simon over at stuck in books ,ask people to join in Novella reading weekend well I started last night with a funny dirty little war by the Argentina writer Osvaldo Soriano .a book that follows a village splitting and fighting as peronist and non peronist’s .a fast paced book so far and a new argentina writer to me .

next on pile after this is The Pearl John Steinbeck

November round up

~ winstonsdad ~ 6 Comments

book of the month .

Well I ve let the blog go a bit to pot this month and also my reading .hope to make up this month on blogging and reading .I ve read  this month .

  1. City pick amsterdam edited by Heather Reyes and Victor Schiferi .
  2. Autonauts of the cosmoroutes by Julio Cortazar and Carol Dunlop.
  3. Purge by Sofi Oskannen .
  4. three trapped tigers by G Cabrera Infante .
  5. Tail of the Blue Bird by Nii Ayikwei Parkes.
  6. ilustrado by Miguel Syjuco
  7. windows on the world by Frederic Beigbeder
  8. A buyers market by Anthony Powell .
  9. The book of chamleons by Jose Eduardo Agualusa .

That is 9 in all the least for some months ,I m not a winter person and hate dark nights so have been reading less .

Challenges –

books for the year 119 want to read hundred but passed that a while ago hope to finsh with over 125 .

around the world in 52 books 20/52 one more from orginal list read .

Next month Novella reading first weekend and want to clear library pile that has built up .and finsh year reading 2666 .

THREE TRAPPED TIGER BY G CABRERA INFANTE

~ winstonsdad ~ 9 Comments

source –  library

Guillermo Infante was one of the leading Cuban writers ,essayists and translator ,he was an early supportER of Castro but fell out with the regime and lived in London in Exile .The book Tres tristes tigres (three sad tigers ) or as it has been retitle three trapped tigers is considered his best book and described as the Cuban Ulysses (oh that’s going to worry some ,but stick along it is only 400 pages long ).

The book looks back to the Cuba before the revolution in the 50’s  the time of Jazz clubs loose ,morals and a laid back way of life .,we find the night life of the Cuban capital described involved via various people ,this is a modernist work so the narrative Jumps but you get the sense of the Jazz beat in the background ,in places books are discussed there are blank pages ,Pharses are repeated over the course of the page ,Can see people worrying ,don’t this book when it is straight narrative reads like short stories jammed together in a small space ,his prose style is readable ,There is a new film Just been made animated film called Chico and Rita I heard about this film and saw a number of clips just before I read this book and it wonderfully gave me the vision of the male and female characters we jump in and out of through the book.there are times you can almost feel the whispers of jazz and cuban cigars flow out of the page .Infante’s writing is adventurous but on whole readable ,the translation seems to work wonderfully.

I knew la Estrella when she was only Estrella Rodriguez ,a poor drunk  incredibly fat negro maid ,long before she died ,when none of those who know her well had the vaguest idea she was capable of killing herself  but then of course nobody would have been sorry if she did .

opening of a chapter about a nightclub singer .

This is an era and place I know little about this book made me want to know more about pre revolution Cuba .I can see why it is called the Cuban Ulysses but it can be off-putting  ,putting it on the cover thou it is a wonderful journey but near end wanders a little but I viewed it like an evening in Havana although it isn,t over an evening like a long evening you get a bit tipsy and wander in your thoughts near the end of the night .

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