Zed
This is a very clever read, though it is hard not think that Catherine McKinnon was heavily influenced by David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas in terms of structure with historical and Sci Fi fiction mixed in the pyramid style telling that made Cloud Atlas the great read that it was and still is.
Storyland is not in the same league as Cloud Atlas, but that should not detract from what is a very good book. All stories take place in the Illawarra district of NSW, and all are vaguely connected along the way. All are told in the first person.
The historical story covers the voyage of The Tom Thumb with Mathew Flinders, George Bass and Will Martin, an event that took place and is documented. We have a murder from 1900 and domestic violence as seen by a 10-year-old girl in 1998. The middle Sci Fi element takes us into two futures and takes in a dystopian nightmare of societal collapse in 2033 and that collapse brought back via memory retrieval in 2717.
I listened to an audiobook presentation via my premium Spotify account while out walking. It was a good enough read to have me lose track of time and distance once or twice. No mean feat.
This is either a something for everyone style read or if only interested in a specific genre may not be one's style. It is recommended as such.
Why did the allies take so long to react is the question this book makes me ask. A touch too dense a read for me at times but as the 3 stars say I liked it. One to dip back into when a question arises.
Richard Yates works have periodically appeared on my GR feed, with generally good to very good reviews. Yates also appeared recently in a very obscure novel I read called Last of the Summer Hair by Paul Ransom as the major character was reading The Easter Parade.
My 15 hours audio had Revolutionary Road narrated by Mark Bramhall, so I got on with a listening. Though Bramhall is not someone I know, his narration was excellent, and I see why he is in demand.
I have to admit that in my youth I would have run a long way from this novel, but in my much older age this tale of a middle-class neurotic marriage was superb. I hung on every word, every sentence and every nuance. Just by Bramhall's narration alone, his world-weary delivery of sarcasm, irony and scorn for what the situation was, was superb. It told me that the presented sentence he spoke would have been of the highest quality if I had read the physical copy.
There has been a lot written about this novel elsewhere, so just a couple of thoughts on the character of the husband and wife. There was not much to like about husband Frank Wheeler, plainly self-centred, he had a way with words that fooled just about everyone he came into contact with and that included his also neurotic wife April. He also suffered a far too high opinion of his own ability. Wife April was, to a degree, a product of her upbringing and had done what many a young lady has done over the years, got married because she was in love with the idea of being in love. There is nothing romantic about their tale. It is of a banal life unfulfilled. But it is powerfully told and demands one's attention.
Finally, the last lines might be the best I have ever read to end a book.
But from there on, Howard Givings heard only a welcome, thunderous sea of silence. He had turned off his hearing aid.
Just apt!
I had read this appears in best of lists, and I get why. Highly recommended.
A very good read about the Restoration of Charles II to the throne of the 3 Kingdoms. After the austere and puritanical times of Cromwell the Restoration was a time of decadence in comparison. This book gives a good account of the changes with specific emphasis on the early part of Charles reign. Recommended.
A fine read about an obscure individual who had a profound influence on the world of geology. I was loaned this and began reading expecting little but came away impressed.
Goodreads has changed my reading habits over the past few years. Previously my reading of fiction was very limited but has expanded due to exploration of others reading habits. I now look forward to actually reading fiction! From previously reading very little local literature, Australian, I have found to my surprise how much I have enjoyed it. The discovery of David Ireland lead me to finishing 6 of his books this year and consider The Unknown Industrial Prisoner to be a undiscovered classic. [a:David Ireland 455672 David Ireland https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1429734516p2/455672.jpg] [bc:The Unknown Industrial Prisoner 8486492 The Unknown Industrial Prisoner David Ireland https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1470573855s/8486492.jpg 3771780] [b:The Unknown Industrial Prisoner 8486492 The Unknown Industrial Prisoner David Ireland https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1470573855s/8486492.jpg 3771780]His other book The Glass Canoe was also a wonderful read and is the epitome, for me at least, of that I believe is called Comparative Literature. Fantastic book. [bc:The Glass Canoe 13613776 The Glass Canoe David Ireland https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1335187926s/13613776.jpg 3838042] [b:The Glass Canoe 13613776 The Glass Canoe David Ireland https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1335187926s/13613776.jpg 3838042] I have a couple more of Ireland's to get through and will be doing so in 2017. Both Don Quixote and Flowers of Algernon were as good as suggested by the critics and readers. I enjoyed them thoroughly. All The Light we Cannot See was also a very good book and will, I think, be remembered well into the future. This review here by Will Byrnes sums this book up for me. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/980327343One other fiction work deserves to be mentioned. I loved Pavane by Keith Roberts with a passion. The poetical and lyrical writing was spellbinding for me personally. I reread chapters, called Measures by the author, being absolutely sucked into his alternate world. Why he tacked on the last chapter left me astonished. My advice to those that like descriptive fiction of the alternate style is read this book but do not read the last chapter. [bc:Pavane 6468464 Pavane Keith Roberts https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1333722239s/6468464.jpg 743079] [b:Pavane 6468464 Pavane Keith Roberts https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1333722239s/6468464.jpg 743079]On the non fiction front two stand-outs for the year. Tony Judt's Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 was superb. Well written, informative, thoughtful and maybe as good an attempt at being historically even handed as I can think of. [bc:Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 29658 Postwar A History of Europe Since 1945 Tony Judt https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388276992s/29658.jpg 1979891] [b:Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945 29658 Postwar A History of Europe Since 1945 Tony Judt https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388276992s/29658.jpg 1979891]The Making Of The British Landscape: How We Have Transformed The Land, From Prehistory To Today by Francis Pryor was also an exceptional book. This book has changed the way I look at my surrounds, what I see on a day to day basis be that going for a morning walk in my local forest or taking my car to the shopping centre. [a:Francis Pryor 57943 Francis Pryor https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1381263587p2/57943.jpg] [bc:The Making Of The British Landscape: How We Have Transformed The Land, From Prehistory To Today 8476806 The Making Of The British Landscape How We Have Transformed The Land, From Prehistory To Today Francis Pryor https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1408937985s/8476806.jpg 13341715] [b:The Making Of The British Landscape: How We Have Transformed The Land, From Prehistory To Today 8476806 The Making Of The British Landscape How We Have Transformed The Land, From Prehistory To Today Francis Pryor https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1408937985s/8476806.jpg 13341715]I also had the “pleasure” of reading the worst history book I have ever read. Band of Brothers by Stephan Ambrose is without a doubt appalling. It rates high on Goodreads and I put that down to the very good TV serious that brought to life the individuals for the average reader. 2017 I am aiming for 45 books read. I have six WW2 books lined up for book club read. In between I will finish out David Ireland and a couple of other Australian authors. I also hope to read more Stuart and English Civil War/War of the Three Kingdoms. A period I enjoy and have neglected recently. Yours in good reading
Not that there is anything wrong with being a Dylan tragic but it would take one to write a book like this and then add 2 more to the series. I am a huge fan of Dylan's work up until Desire so I found this a good read and it made me play and listen to my old Dylan recordings in a new light. For the fan who is committed.
Being there helps to enjoy books like this. A top read for those that like a good local music read.
Update: Ed Kuepper previously of The Saints and noted Brisbane musician released a compilation album called This is The Magic Mile in 2005. The sign on the album cover had been there, as far as I can recall, from at least the middle of the 1970's. Ed used this iconic pic for the album cover.
Sadly the building burnt down just after Christmas and with it the sign! Even a local politician understood the significance of the signs loss via comment on social media.
Pig Cities loss!!
An Ok read from Nick. He had a great time of it but if anything came out of this for me it was that Roger is a bit of a twat at times. For the fan.
I don't like music, I love it. I recall my aunty playing Beatles songs to me as a 5/6 year old in 1964. My dad loved jazz and my mum introduced me to classical. I could then and now listen to a rich variety. I was so into music I used to be able to discuss minor detail such as whom the engineer was on a specific album, such was my immersion. With music, though, I move on fast. What I once listened to, be that a genre, a specific band or album, I have found myself to be eventually bored with. I can move on from genre to genre quickly and have actually given away many albums I owned either on CD or vinyl. Once used, they took up precious space and time.
With this demand for new sounds to challenge my senses, streaming has been a godsend. But I do admit that I have selectively delved into the occasional listen from the past. I went on a Beatles re-listen and enjoyed it. I tried the Stones and gave up. They have passed me by.
One day I got talking to a fella about the underappreciated bands we had seen live in the past, I recalled XTC at Brisbane's Festival Hall in 1980. This had me thinking how I had most of their albums and a good many singles. I had actually not given these away, but parked them at my sister's place because she had become part of the vinyl craze that seems to have taken off as of late. I recalled how wonderful Drums and Wires was, XTC's third album, was when released and how me and my pals thought it a work of genius. So I played it via Spotify for the first time this century.
It was still fresh and vital to me. Each song is a pop classic, with hooks and licks that went beyond the 3 chord thrash that was so prevalent with a lot of the Punk/New Wave scene of the times. “XTC? They were better than any of that.” I retrospectively decided. So let's go another. Black Sea got a play for the first time since back then. Wow. This is just as good as I recalled. Track after track of sublimely catchy tunes that stick in your head. Next up was English Settlement. I had this on a numbered cassette that I played the hell out of, but again that was a long time ago. This has also stood the test of time, 3 in a row, how good is this! The production values had changed, and the slightly jangly pop was replaced with some really lush Beatles like complexity.
I recall that I did get the next album, Mummer, but never really took to it and failed to purchase The Big Express. Back then, they may have had their time for me? In this present binge of playing these two, they are at times very good but do not seem to have the songwriting panache of the previous trio.
Next came the XTC side project, The Dukes of Stratosphere. I never knew these recordings, but as a lover of Psychedelia, these are terrific. They are an absolute homage to that genre, great fun and hooks galore. At this point, I expected not much more. I had Skylarking, Oranges and Lemons and Nonesuch, but had hardly played them back in the day. Had I purchased them out of loyalty? I couldn't recall. But I thought onwards and upwards, let hear how they sound.
I will state now that Skylarking is a masterpiece of pastoral pop genius, an album of the highest order and stands up with Drums and Wires, Black Sea and English Settlement. Read professional reviews, I have been devouring them for a couple of days now and agree with the praise. There is not a dud song, a dud note, a dull spot. It is for me just perfect. The little things just work, for example how the opening track, Summer's Cauldron segues into the second, Grass, seamlessly.
Interestingly, when I played Oranges and Lemons I had no memory of much of it. Nonsuch I did and think it is a fine album. I do need to give these a play further, as I do their first two recordings. As to the final two albums, Apple Venus Volume 1 and Wasp Star, I have no idea. They are not on any streaming service, and I don't have a vinyl or CD player anymore.
Please excuse my fanboy drivelling above. I am just on an XTC kick and need to tell the world. As this is a book reading review site, I did indeed read Chalkhills and Children when released. I gave it away to a mate, but from memory I enjoyed it a fair bit. Based on the star rating, XTC are a 5 star band, though sadly underappreciated nowadays.
Is this book recommended? From what I recall, yes, if you appreciate XTC. Is their music recommended? If like me, you like snappy jangly pop melodies with snappy hooks and twists and turns then this is the band for you.
Top band at their best are Primal Scream. Not too bad a bio either. I recall Kris Needs being a music press journo years back in Zig Zag fanzine. Written as an insider, Needs is a friend and fan of the band, so it does come over as a sycophantic read at times. I really liked the book so no issue with a fan grovel from me!
It was OK as a rating was a bit harsh as this had some every interesting moments but it read almost as several essays pieced together though maybe that was the Japanese translation.
From Here to Eternity and The Thin Red Line are far superior to this book by the acclaimed Mailer. I read this first and as much as I enjoyed the banter between Hearn and Cummings it was a bit too forced. As to the end for the mission to get spooked about insects just seemed to me that Mailer was not sure how to finish the story. The Jones books restored my faith that there were some good war novels.
I was blessed with some superb fiction this year.
A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James and The Sellout by Paul Beatty both won the Man Booker and long may, in my opinion, that award provide such profoundly brilliant reading. I also read some wonderful Australian literature that left me impressed in a manner that had me salivating for more. Tirra Lirra by the River by Jessica Anderson, Harlands Half Acre by David Malouf, A Descant For Gossips, Wake in Fright by Kenneth Cook and To The Islands by Randolph Stow showed my native literature at its finest. Add to that a play by David Ireland called Image in the Clay that I found profoundly interesting.
Honourable mentions include The Harp of the South by Ruth Park. If not for slight surgery sweet writing this would also have been mentioned above.
Last but not least is the magnificent Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman. For me a masterpiece.
On the nonfiction front this year was a letdown. The best was probably The Vandemonian Wars by Nick Brodie. This book was in fact a laborious read but had a significant story to tell. The Cultural Revolution by Frank Dikotter was of the standard of the previous 2 in his trilogy on China and a must read for anyone that has an interest in the subject. One book I really enjoyed was Everett Ruess : A Vagabond For Beauty that was a fascinating local tale of a young traveller who went missing in the Utah desert in 1934. A link to what I read in 2017. https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/6852430-4triplezed?read_at=2017
This year I am making no promises to myself on what I read. Let what I am in the mood for be how it is.
29 books. https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2018/6852430
Non fiction.
The following were superb Australian History and a must read for anyone with an interest in that area. ‘Me Write Myself': The Free Aboriginal Inhabitants of Van Diemen's Land at Wybalenna, 1832–47 by Leonie Stevens.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36012486-me-write-myself
Stranded: The Secret History Of Australian Independent Music by Clinton Walker.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2587903-stranded
In the non Australian area KL: A History of the Nazi Concentration Camps
by Nikolaus Wachsmann was outstanding and to quote GR friend Sharn ‘I cannot recommend this book highly enough, though it is of course with a heavy heart. Monumental.'
Serious food for thought was The Better Angels of Our Nature: A History of Violence and Humanity
by Steven Pinker.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16076785-the-better-angels-of-our-nature
Trap by Peter Mathers was a surprise. Hard to find and the epitome of a buried book that has passed the world by.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8592623-trap
Three Australian War novels that I read were superb and I would be surprised if they were not enjoyed by anyone that has an interest in the New Guinea conflict WW2.
The Long Green Shore by John Hepworth
The Barbarians: A Soldier's New Guinea Diary and The Glass Cannon: A Bougainville Diary 1944-45
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21535358-the-long-green-shore
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3994505-the-barbarians
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2118824.The_Glass_Cannon
37 books. https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2019/6852430
Non fiction.
The End by Ian Kershaw was the best non fiction book I read this year. An outstanding history.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/355940746?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The A Brief History serious produced a gem in A Brief History of the Crusades: Islam and Christianity in the Struggle for World Supremacy by Geoffrey Hindley.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/232290265?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
In terms of personal pleasure I really enjoyed Norfolk Island: A Revised and Enlarged History 1774-1998 by Merval Hoare. I suppose a visit to what seemed a quant speck in the ocean that I had no intention of ever visiting but enjoyed immensely helped.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2809884622?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Homage To Catalonia by George Orwell is a must read for anyone who has an interest in the thoughts and ideas that were the genesis for his great works of later years.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2986143074?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Russell Braddon's The Naked Island is a must read for anyone with the stomach for a brutal firsthand account of life as a POW under the Japanese in WW2.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2661986869?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Language Families of the World is an excellent primer for anyone with an interest in language but is not requiring too much depth on the subject. Perfect for the inquisitive.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3094540720?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Fiction
David Mitchell. 5 novels read this year. Superb writer.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/6852430-fourtriplezed?shelf=david-mitchell&sort=date_read
Tamarisk Row by Gerald Murname.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2667091754?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
A trio of Brisbane novels that I found very fulfilling.
The Delinquents by Criena Rohan
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2699060809?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Praise by the late Andrew McGahan
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2404004468?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2809961896?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
I enjoyed them all for various reasons.
26 books. 10 less than last year. After covid dissipated as a major disruption to my working life time was very much of the essence. Work became hectic and long. I began to take later in life exercise as important to my wellbeing and spent at least a couple of hours a day walking. This all changed my reading habits. I am not sure it was that good a reading year other than a couple that stood out.
I will aim for 20 books this year.
https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2020/6852430
Non Fiction
Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis by Jared Diamond
Abysmal.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3099895125?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Vietnam: The Australian War- The Illustrated Edition by Paul Ham
Poor.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14776016-vietnam
Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain by Oliver Sacks
It was interesting to read my review back. I have since discovered Spotify and it has changed my music listening. It has allowed my need to discover and listen to new music to be reignited.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/232295289?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Brave Japanese by Kenneth Harrison
Very good.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2645236761?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Conquest: The English Kingdom of France in the Hundred Years War by Juliet Barker
Interesting.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/696199407?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Introducing Literary Criticism: A Graphic Guide.
Disposable.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3496198403?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Toussaint Louverture by Madison Smarrtt Bell
Informative.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/233733252?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1mative.
The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin by Cornelius Ryan
A must read Classic in its field.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2096221906?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
A Brief History of the Middle East by Christopher Calderwood
Poor.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1634978731?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Fiction
Jimmy Brockett by Dal Stivens
One for those with an interest in Australian literature from another time.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2894006396?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Drums of Mer by Ion L Idriess
An enjoyable though bloodthirsty tale from the Torres Straits. I actually learnt a lot.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2680086209?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The City & the City by China Miéville
Very good and for me at least an amazing concept.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2893978454?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Invention of Morel by Adolfo Bioy Casares
Another concept that caught my imagination.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3192109796?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Shultz
All very weird and metaphorical but at times exhilarating.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3227966098?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Le Grand Meaulnes by Alain-Fournier
With apologies to David Mitchell.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2718006098?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Bloodfather by David Ireland
Grabbed me and spat out the ideas. My hidden gem and my best read this year.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1883873440?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell.
Far from a bad book but by the authors high standards all a bit forced.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3285560113?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Plains by Gerald Murnane
Bizarre.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2151816150?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Roving Party by Rohan Wilson
Van Diemen's Land gothic literature at its best.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2132887804?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
To Name Those Lost by Rohan Wilson
More Van Diemen's Land gothic literature and still very good.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2245703331?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
Seriously poor.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3438584508?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Lost Illusions by Honoré de Balzc
At times very laborious.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/515558074?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Well-dressed Explorer by Thea Astley
Anyone that likes the works of Thea Astley will not be disappointed.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2004923938?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Book of Night Women by Marlon James
Challenging but superb.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2571899660?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
The Mango Tree by Ronald McKie
Very good bildungsroman.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2004924316?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
Epitaph of a Small Winner by Machado de Assis
I missed something I think.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2256968748?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
28 books. 2 more than last year. I will aim for 24 books this year. A link to the year's reading. https://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/26067836I read some very fine books and consider it a good year. [b:Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell 11000861 Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell Susanna Clarke https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1371240840l/11000861.SY75.jpg 3921305] was a wonderful fantasy. [b:The Poisonwood Bible 5220 The Poisonwood Bible Barbara Kingsolver https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327307830l/5220.SY75.jpg 810663] was a great recommendation. I read a lot of travel and enjoyed them all. The stand-out was [b:Arabian Sands 12184478 Arabian Sands (Penguin Travel Library) Wilfred Thesiger https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1328306125l/12184478.SX50.jpg 811179] The surprise was [b:The Mule's Foal 1650670 The Mule's Foal Fontini Epanomitis https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1186368321l/1650670.SY75.jpg 1645193] I would read this again. A hidden gem.
28 books. The same as last year.
A link to the year's reading. https://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/31898781
My favourites for the year were from Australian authors.
From the past, George Johnston and his magnificent novels My Brother Jack and its equally superb Clean Straw For Nothing.
Contemporary author Richard Flanagan was a read three times, with each book a pleasure beyond expectations. All three novels read had a differing theme other than the fact they were set in Tasmania.
Nature writing has never been something I had really thought I would enjoy, but Rogue Intensities by Angela Rockel was a joy.
I came into the possession of Misty Moderns: Australian Tonalists 1915 – 1950 that was produced on behalf of The Art Gallery of South Australia for an exhibition of Tonalist artists held in 2008 with this book produced by exhibition curator Tracey Lock-Weir. Love this coffee table style publication. A pleasure to look at the wonderful art from that period when the mood takes, and a book I will dip in and out of for many years to come.