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Library Bookshelf

Started by Marilyne, March 29, 2016, 03:20:53 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

MarsGal

Marilyne, once upon a time, I could say that I was a particular fan of Dystopian fiction. That was before I was aware of the genre/sub-genre designators. I think (1984, Animal Farm and Fahrenheit 451 were my first encounters when I was still in high school. About 20 years ago I saw a movie called The Handmaid's Tale before I ever knew it was a book or heard of Margaret Atwood or read much Science Fiction at all. Then came Ursula K. le Guin and her The Lathe of Heaven and her Hainish Cycle series which includes The Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed. And my SciFi reading took off big-time. These days my SciFi reads often contain elements of dystopian type societies.

I am now almost done reading Justinian's Flea. Very readable and interesting overview of the history of the Eastern Empire and surrounds but very little is about the plague or the flea. I haven't settled on my next non-SciFi read yet, but it is likely to be a book about the rise of the Mogols in India. I have to get that first one done before I can borrow the other in the series which continue following the rise and fall of the Mogols and get into the "Great Game" era.

Meanwhile, I finished the Agatha Raisin mystery I was listening to and am now listening to a HALO universe-based story by Kelly Gay and narrated by Scott Brick. After that, I will probably be listening to Red Roulette by Desmond Shum. I thought it was a novel but turns out it is listed under Chinese history and biography. It should be ready to download soon.

Bubble, every once in a while I think about your SciFi loving friend in Brazil. He was only up on the net a very few times. I didn't have anything really interesting in SciFi that I was reading, so I didn't say much at the time. It is not often I come across anyone who regularly reads SciFi, so I was disappointed that he didn't stick around. I "dropped the ball" by not asking what kind of SciFi he liked or read that he'd like to discuss. Now I am really interested in seeing what SciFi writers have been translated into Portuguese.  Since I have an interest in reading books and short stories from authors from other parts of the world, I looked up Brazilian authors and discovered that The Brazilian Ministry of Culture/National Library Foundation has sponsored a series of books called Brazilian Literature in Translation. I am especially interested, at the moment, in reading Rubrem Fonseca's detective stories.

Marilyne


I'm almost finished with an excellent novel, that think you all would like as much as I do.
Pony, by R.J. Palacio.  This is not your typical horse story or Western,  that we all remember reading in the past.  I would describe it by saying it has some similarities to the books, "True Grit", and "News of the World" . . . both of which I liked very much, but I like this better.   It takes place around 1860, and is filled with great characters and dialogue.  I recommend it highly.   

Tomereader1

Yes, Marilyne, we did this in my f2f book club.  And it garnered a fantastic discussion.  Of course, our moderator did a wonderful job culling out great ideas/thoughts, images, etc of the book, and everyone was delighted.

I read a book just recently, from the Young Adult shelves of the library. Title: "The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen". It gives great insight into a strict/observant Jewish community and the education of the young people.  There is no sex, cursing in this book, but it does touch on an area that is unfortunately predominant in our society...antisemitism.  The book is touching, funny, informative.  I thoroughly enjoyed it!

MarsGal

I turned Red Roulette back to the library after reading the first few chapters and jumping to the end. Also, not finished was Charlie Wilson's War. After a little bit I got the measure of the man and decided I didn't want to read the rest, at least not now.

What I did finish listening to is Velocity Weapon by Megan E. O'Keefe. The farther I got into it, the harder it was to put down. It sucked me right in. One of the main characters is a ship that is designed to be a smart weapon, not carrying weapons, but actually being one. When the sentient AI running the ship became aware of the true nature of his ship and that he would be forced to comply, he became paranoid and angry. Then there are the two neighboring planetary system groups who are at odds because one has a warp gate and won't share tech. There are the rulers in the "Prime" system who have chips implanted in their brains, and there are some people who are gradually enhancing themselves to become, what, cyborgs? Uplifted? They are still in the shadows but consider what they are doing is the future of mankind. Included: spies, politicians, military, smugglers, junkies, secret and illicit scientific experiments in human and weapons development, oh, and family. Seen from three points of view and experiences. Can't wait to start the second book.

Also reading an Andre Norton book called Star Soldiers. Good book. It is a clash between modernish and more primitive weapons. With humans (mercenary) armies being brought in to supplement the armies of various more primitive worlds. 

MarsGal

Now listening to the third of the Velocity Weapon trilogy, called Catalyst Gate. One of the phrases used to describe the series is "edge of your seat." It sure is. So much so that I have had a really hard time putting them down.

The Book of Lost and Found by Lucy Foley became available at my online library three days ago. I have yet to start reading it.

MarsGal

#2825
I'm afraid I didn't give The Book of Lost and Found much of a chance. Didn't even get through all of chapter one. Just didn't like the 1920's rich party goer's beginning. This book is a split between an earlier time and present. Besides, Megan O'Keefe's trilogy is somewhat all consuming. I still have over 10 hours to listen to on the last book.

so_P_bubble

#2826
Quote from: MarsGal on January 28, 2023, 11:41:13 AMBubble every once in a while I think about your SciFi loving friend in Brazil. He was only up on the net a very few times. I didn't have anything really interesting in SciFi that I was reading, so I didn't say much at the time. It is not often I come across anyone who regularly reads SciFi, so I was disappointed that he didn't stick around. I "dropped the ball" by not asking what kind of SciFi he liked or read that he'd like to discuss. Now I am really interested in seeing what SciFi writers have been translated into Portuguese.  Since I have an interest in reading books and short stories from authors from other parts of the world, I looked up Brazilian authors and discovered that The Brazilian Ministry of Culture/National Library Foundation has sponsored a series of books called Brazilian Literature in Translation. I am especially interested, at the moment, in reading Rubrem Fonseca's detective stories. [/size]


I transmitted your message to him.
I would be
grateful if you could forward this answer to our friend.

I might not be very useful in providing the answer to the question about
how many SciFi authors have their books translated to Portuguese, since
almost all of the SciFi books I read are in English. I have been doing
that since the eighties.

It is good to know our friend has an interest in reading books from
Brazilian authors. Can our friend read in Portuguese?

I was not aware of the existence of Ruben Fonseca. Downloaded a copy of
the book "Feliz Ano Novo" (Happy New Year), just to have an idea. Found
that his is a 'colorful' language, full of swearwords. Perhaps in an
attempt to represent the language of the common citizen. Anyway, it is not
the kind of language I am accustomed with, even in English (though, to
tell you the truth, hearing these words in a foreign language do not have
the same impact as hearing them in your native language).

Searching in the Internet, I found a site from where one can download
books from Rubem Fonseca. I am citing the link here, in case it might be
of interest to you and our friend.

https://elivros.love/autor/Rubem-Fonseca


He could not reply himself because he lost his P.W. aand was too busy at work to look for it.

so_P_bubble

MarsGal : update from Brazil

MarsGal suggested some good SciFi authors to me, for which I am grateful.
She recommended, for instance, Hugh Howey, and I read and liked some books
 from him (The Bern Saga, books 1 to 4, which I read in November and
December 2021). She recommended M.R. Forbes from which I read Forgotten
Colony, books 1 and 2, in March 2021. She recommended Martin L. Shoemaker
whose books I like very much. From him I read The Near-Earth Mysteries,
books 1 and 2, Blue color space, Today I am Carey, A most auspicious star
and Lost in the Fog (all read between 2020 and 2021). She also suggested
John Scalzi, whose books I didn't read yet because I find the cost of his
books is too high.

Have a nice Sunday!


MarsGal

Thank you so much for following up on my query, Bubble. Too bad he lost his PW. I hope he finds it soon.

To answer your friend's question, no, I can't read anything other than English and classical Latin. Shortsighted of me, but then so were all the schools and colleges that started to drop a foreign language as a requirement to graduate.

I have found two books translated by Clifford E. Sanders of Brazilian authors. One is São Paulo Noir (Akashic Noir) which is a book of short stories by various authors, and the other is Crimes of August: A Novel by Fonseca. These are in on my Wish List to buy. Further, I discovered the Brazilian Literature in Translation Series of which Crimes of August is one. The series is published by Tagus Press which is part of the University of Massachusetts for anyone interested. https://www.umassd.edu/portuguese-studies-center/tagus-press/

The cats are starting to pest, so I guess it means lunch time. After lunch, I plan on raking some of the backyard while the sun is shining. I need the exercise.

Wishing everyone well.




MarsGal

#2829
Okay, I'm back.

Megan E. O'Keefe's trilogy is history. What an absolute roller coaster ride that series was. If you like space opera, this has just about everything in it including the kitchen sink.

Now I am into Last Night in Montreal written by Emily St. John Mandel who also wrote Station Eleven. This one is not Science Fiction. It is populated with a bunch of dysfunctional people. The main focus in on a gal who was kidnapped by her father when she was young, and they travel for years never staying in one spot for long. The other major characters, so far, include her last boyfriend who goes looking for her when she leaves, the detective who becomes obsessed with the case and continues year after year to try to locate her, and the detective's daughter. The characters all seem to carry emotional baggage that drive their actions or inactions as the case may be. There is a kind of "ships passing in the night" kind of element to the story. The author has again written an incredibly interesting book.

Marilyne, I have Horse by Geraldine Brooks on hold. The library doesn't have Pony, but I will try to keep it in mind if it goes on sale. Aside from most of the Nancy Drew Mysteries, horse stories and westerns were pretty much all I read when I was a youngster.

Marilyne


Good Morning to any and all book lovers who might be looking in!  :study:
Sorry I haven't posted here in a week or more, but really haven't found anything that I feel like reading.  (In spite of the fact that I have five books here that I got as Christmas presents.)  The last book I read was Pony, by R.J. Palacio, and I'm still thinking about it, and pondering over some of the characters and the deeper meaning to the story?  I want to read something else by Palacio, but there's  only one book by her at my library.   It's titled  Wonder.  There's a long wait list, so I may just order it from Amazon?  Haven't decided yet.

I started reading one of my Christmas books, but it just didn't grab me . . . The Book of Dreams, by Nina George.   Kind of a trite, overworked storyline, that I'm tired of reading about in so many novels.  Thirteen year old boy trying to connect with his father whom he has never met. (a one-night-stand situation).  Of course the boy and his friend are both super intelligent, and have been invited to join Mensa.  ::)  :-\   For  reasons I don't understand,  authors seem to be obsessed with writing about brilliant teenagers?

MarsGal -  The book you mentioned, Last Night in Montreal, sounds good. "It is populated with a bunch of dysfunctional people."   Sounds like something I can relate to!  :crazy2:     Seriously, it does sound like a good story, so I'll see if it's available at my library.     


Marilyne


MarsGal - "Memories of the Future", sounds like something I can definitely relate to at this time in my life.   Four things I have plenty of . . . Time, Memory, Desire, and Imagination!   
I'll check my library for a copy and let you know what I think.   

MarsGal

Current listens: Blue Earth Remembered by Alastair Reynolds and another of M. C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin series. Reading another okay but nothing special Sci-Fi.

Blue Earth Remembered begins with childhood remembrances and a funeral in what was Tanganyika. The family is gathering back on Earth from various parts of the solar system for the funeral.  I just started it, so can't tell you anything much about the book other than it appears to be a space opera and perhaps also a family saga story.

I found something I thought would be interesting and started the process of signing up. Our Giant Food Stores (part of the huge Ahold conglomerate) has a wellness program on their website. I was looking at it this morning and discovered a webcast about books. I began the registration process but discovered that it is a Zoom event. Should have known, but hey, it was 5am in the morning. What can I say! I don't do Zoom or any other similar programs on the net. Wonderful that they didn't mention it was a live participation event upfront. I declined to confirm my email and set up an account so, hopefully, I won't get promotional emails from them.

Meanwhile, for Sci-Fi fans I discovered Quinn's Ideas https://www.youtube.com/@QuinnsIdeas
He has tons of video with lots of interesting commentary on Sci-Fi books and movies in general as well as focused series Sci-Fi conceptions and on books such as the Hyperion Cantos, The Three-Body Problem, Dune, and Foundation. He does some of the best synopses, commentary and explanations I've seen on the subject.

MarsGal

Another book I am reading is worth a mention here, I think. I thought was going to be another ordinary story. The first eleven chapters of William Frisbee's The Last Marines series, however, was written so well that I felt like I was right there in the trenches in Southeast Asia with them. Chapter Twelve starts out 400 years later. Other than the communist type of government/alliance relentlessly spreading throughout the solar system against all opposition, I don't yet see a connection between the two sections - so far. Meanwhile, the first section reminds me of Joe Haldeman's Forever War series which has been cited as anti-war and showing the futility of war.  Haldeman was a combat engineer during the Vietnam War. Frisbee served in the US Marines. I don't know if he had any combat experience, but he did serve during the collapse of the communist states. 

Marilyne

#2835
Good morning MarsGal - I wanted to let you know that I ordered one of the books you mentioned a couple of days ago . . . Memories of the Future.   I picked it up yesterday at the library, and will start reading this afternoon.  "Time, Memory, Desire, and Imagination".  Those descriptive words got my attention, so hoping it will be a good one.

Interesting comment you made yesterday, about  signing on, and then off again, for the wellness event. Seems there are lots of ZOOM meetings, discussions, events online relating to every possible subject.  I'm not a big fan of ZOOM , and I know I would never want to be part of a discussion or meeting.  The few that I have tried, I haven't felt comfortable, and never said a word.    I know it's a new world out there now, and I should get on board, but it's not happening here.  ::)

so_P_bubble

new word:

cli-fi
/ˈklīˌfī/

noun
a genre of fiction that deals with the impacts of climate change and global warming.
"cli-fi, like the science behind it, often presents bleak visions of the future"

MarsGal

The number of books about climate change have exploded in the last 10 or 20 years. The bunch at GoodReads is currently listing over 350 books. I've read Mathew Mather's Nomad series, and Hugh Howey's Sand and have his sequel in my reading cue. Oh, and Hugh Howey's The Shell Collector which is something of a climate change romance. Those are the most recent. I see someone had Dune on their Cli-Fi list. I don't recall climate "change" being an issue there, but I would have to re-read it. Another on that same list is Olivia Butler's Parable of the Sower. I have some Olivia Butler to read, but I don't think that is one of them. I'll have to check into it. Looks interesting.

The Sci-Fi book I mentioned above is getting a little weird for my tastes. Farther into the book and we get a person with psychic abilities and a malevolent "spirit", for lack of a better word at the moment, that infects humans with something that changes them into ghoulish, ravaging beings. No, no, no! Not my cup of tea at all. I am not fond of horror stories.

MarsGal

#2838
Updates:
I finished the SF I was reading and just started the second even though I do not care for horror SF which this seems to have turned into. I like the main character and the banter between him and the private, one of only three other remaining Marines by the end of the bhttps://www.seniorsandfriends.org/Smileys/alive/smitten.gifook.

Yesterday I downloaded two books of crime mystery short-stories translated from Portuguese, Crimes of August by Rubem Fonseca and Sao Paulo Noir which is an anthology of several Brazilian authors. Since Audible was offering several free to listen elementary Brazilian Portuguese language lessons, I downloaded those too.

Other fairly new acquisitions include, Across the Sand by Hugh Howey, Village in the Sky (Book 9 of his Alex Benedict series), Bernard Cornwell's Winter King (my first Cornwell), Mansi Shah's The Direction of the Wind and of Joe Haldeman's three Worlds series.

I seem to have stopped listening to my audio books for the last week. Got to remedy that situation since I am in the middle of two books there.

phyllis

I have been listening to a Robert Parker/Jesse Stone audio book.  I can hear it on my new Blue Tooth hearing aid.  Don't have to bother with an ear plug....which are really uncomfortable for me.  Unfortunately, listening to an audio book still puts me to sleep.  I don't know how to correct that problem. 
  :2funny:
phyllis
Cary,NC

Marilyne


Phyllis - I'm interested in your Blue Tooth hearing aid?  Is this an aid that you wear all the time, in place of your old ones, or one that is only worn for listening to an audio device? 

MarsGal - You're keeping up with your reading, which I haven't been doing lately.  I have a stack of books beside my reading chair, but I can't seem to stick with a book longer than about 10 minutes lately.  Uncomfortable chair, painful eyes, and my mind is far far away.  Trying to get back to the way things used to be, but I think it's too late!   

MarsGal

Marilyne, just a note to let you know I finally got The Night Ship,but haven't yet started it.


Marilyne


MarsGal - Hoping you like,  "The Night Ship",  as much as I did.  The first couple of chapters that take place on the ship went a little slow for me.  I think it was all the Dutch names that were difficult for me to keep straight.  I did read a couple of reviews online, that helped.  I would love to listen to the audio version.   

Marilyne


Mars - I hope you didn't give up on  The Night Ship?   It seems a little confusing at first, but after a couple of chapters, you figure out where the story is going, and then it takes on new meaning.  Fascinating characters! 

I was shut in here for a few days this week because of a storm that knocked out electrical power for TV, internet, or telephone.  So that left reading books, as my only alternative!   I started a couple of new ones, but just couldn't get interested, so began looking through a shelf where I keep books I've already read,  but liked so much that I wanted to read them again.   I chose,  Our Souls At Night,  by Kent Haruf.  A thought provoking story of an older couple in their 70's.  I liked it even more this time than I did the first time around.  I think you might like it, as well as Haruf's other novels.

MarsGal

#2844
Marilyne, I got a little bored with the 1698 side of things with Mayken and her quest to find the evil spirit hiding in the ship. Mostly, I think, it is because I didn't take to most of the characters. I am just skipping and skimming that part now. In 1989, Gil has his evil spirit too, but so far it is confined to a book. It is a nice touch to help tie the two stories together. I like that Gil has been dubbed Gilgamesh when he named his pet turtle Enkidu. The ongoing archaeological excavation is also a great way to bring the two stories together.

Tomereader1

Marilyne, "Our Souls at Night" was a beautifully done book.  The movie they made of it was also done well.  Didn't have a Tom Hanks to mess it up!  It hurt a lot to see Redford & Fonda looking their ages (well, not so much Fonda). If you haven't seen it, pull it up on one of the streaming channels and give it a whirl.  I think you'll enjoy it.

so_P_bubble

Marilyne, Our souls at night was/is one of Don's favorite book. He even sent his copy to me.

Marilyne


Bubble - yes, I can see that you and Don would like that book very much,  and be able to relate to it.  Such a meaningful story. 

Tome - I also saw the movie and thought it was very well done, and the casting was perfect.  I would guess that Tom Hanks was probably considered for the Redford role?   If so, someone had the good sense to nix that idea!   

MarsGal - I also lost patience with Mayken's "Night Ship" activity, although some of the goings on below deck were interesting. (the poor cows)!  On the other hand, never a dull moment on the island!   I was intrigued by the way the two stories merged.

MarsGal

I agree Marilyne. The book actually left me wondering what happened to Gil afterward, but that would be a story for another time. I finished reading it this morning. Did you check out the photos from her research pertaining to the wreck? Near the bottom of the webpage there is a photo of a replica of the ship. http://jesskidd.com/night-ship-gallery/ Big ship. Still, I wonder how they managed to pack over 300 people (did I remember that right?) into it. I was disappointed that there was no mention of current day descendants of the survivors. Maybe there aren't any. That, or they don't want to deal with curious people. I actually think this might make a good movie or mini-series.

Now I need to find a new book to read. My online library says I still have to wait five weeks for Geraline Brooks' Horse. That is the same number of weeks they said several weeks ago. They have an amazing 50 copies with 115 people still on the wait list before me.

MarsGal

While I am waiting for Horse, I am reading War by Sebastian Junger. It is an account of his being with troops in Afghanistan back somewhere around 2004 and later. He did a good job telling how the soldiers fought, lived and died during his times there. He kept himself mostly out of the picture, just reported what the guys had to go through. Junger mentioned a documentary he did. I think I might have seen it on YouTube months ago. Some of the descriptions he wrote seemed familiar.