The Sisters Brothers

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I finished reading this book while sitting at the bar last night. Like Cold Mountain, The Sisters Brothers is set in America in the 1800s, only a little earlier (1851) so it seems natural to compare the two books. The Sisters Brothers is also something of an odyssey with lessons learned along the way but on a much smaller scale than in Cold Mountain. The mood is lighter too. Not that there aren’t some humourous moments in Cold Mountain, but there is less continual hardship and hunger in The Sisters Brothers.

This book is very easy to read. The story is fast-paced and swept me along with it. There are a few wonderful, thought-provoking passages which slowed me down a little. I think Cold Mountain trumps it in terms of scale and atmosphere but The Sisters Brothers is just as satisfactory a tale.

(9th in 2012)

The Radleys

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I picked this up in the library because I had seen it reviewed on The TV Book Club. It is very easy to read and the references to modern middle class life are quite funny. But, although it passed the time, I can’t recommend this as a good read. Apart from all the mentions of blood it feels like it’s written for children, albeit older ones. It’s unconvincing somehow. Seems silly to be saying that since it’s about vampires, but The Time Traveller’s Wife is convincing and time travel is a fantasy too.

EDIT: Just found out it is in fact for teenagers from the Guardian’s review.

(8th in 2012)

To do lists

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Recently I have found that I’ve just not been getting the basics done in a timely fashion. I’m talking about really basic things like cleaning my teeth twice a day. So I decided to print off a list of daily basics each day and cross off each task after it was done. There is room on each sheet for extra tasks too. I’ve used this system for two days now and it works amazingly well!


To do lists on the computer have never seemed to work particularly well for me. Some time ago I read an article on the net which explained why to do lists on paper, and specifically on post-it notes, are better than digital ones. There are plenty of others that concur with the ‘paper beats digital’ argument. I think this one nails the reason why on the head for me: the paper list is physically far away from other distractions such as email and Facebook.

Cold Mountain

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This book starts off unpromisingly. I went back to the beginning a few times because I kept losing interest during the first chapter, abandoning the attempt then forgetting what I’d read when I picked it up to try again. But after the first couple of chapters the protagonist starts to have interesting adventures which held my attention.

It also took me some time to get used to the language which is of the time the book is set in: 1865. Although I had to look up many words at first, I remembered their meanings when they appeared again. Then my reading flowed and I was transported back in time. It was so enjoyable that I wouldn’t mind reading it again. It’s a story of adventure, friendship, hardship, love and nature. It is something of an epic.

There is a lot more to the book than the language and the plot. There are recurring themes, symbolism and so on but I didn’t look into those aspects in much detail this time around. The Guardian book club examined the book and there are some good notes on the novel here.

(7th in 2012)

The Lovely Bones

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I’ve just finished reading this. I’d already watched the film, so I knew how the story was going to end, but I still enjoyed it purely because it is so easy to read. I didn’t think it lived up to the hype though. For a start I don’t think it’s very well written. Considering the material it covers, the book seems very benign. It’s a good story though and I like Sebold’s very original (as far as I can tell) idea of having the narrator tell the story after her death.

It’s rare but in this case I have to conclude that the film is better than the book, though I can’t say for certain that I would maintain that position had I read the book before I’d seen the film. Of course the film simplifies and accelerates the book, as films have to, but still I found Peter Jackson’s adaptation to be visually breathtaking and the suspense was masterful.

(6th in 2012)

The Planets

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Went to see CBSO perform tonight. Due to a mix up with the tickets we sadly missed La Péri but we did see the main event: The Planets. I’ve had the CD for years and I love it but to see CBSO performing it at Symphony Hall was something else. I was completely blown away. To feel rather than only hear the music made everything else seem unimportant. To be entirely consumed by the sound and its emotions, which came together so effortlessly, and yet I felt I could hear each note completely separately…was wonderful, heavenly even.

Amsterdam

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Read this in just a couple of days. I admit that it’s a novella so not lengthy but, even so, the plot sprints along making it difficult to put down. Dark, delicious and very British, I loved it. My only criticism was that the ending seemed very slightly unbelievable but it is still a most splendid read.

(5th in 2012)