People’s earlier discussion of Shogun and so on reminded me of a book I read a while back that I thought was very good, The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell. It’s set in Nagasaki in 1799.
More recently I read Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar which I thought was very good.
I think it was published in 1932.
Thousand Autumns is one of my favorite novels of life. Highly recommend Cloud Atlas and Black Swan Green by Mitchell as well.
I read that, and I concur. Good book.
I just finished The Cubs of '69 which probably doesn’t need further explanation. Having lived through that season it was of some interest. That was a talented team that fell apart down the stretch. I always thought Durocher may have been the problem because he kept the team too tight but that is not apparent from the book.Tomorrow I start “The Great Bridge” by David McCullough to honor his passing and because it has sat on my shelf unread for a few years. Not to mention McCullough is greatness.
The Cloud Atlas audiobook was really good and helped me understand what the hell was going on.
I recently reread Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” and “The Duel” to compare the novellas to the film adaptations. Interesting in seeing how Coppala and Milius formulated the concept of the search for Kurtz from Central Africa to Vietnam. The adaptation for “The Duellists” is more straightforward and closely adheres to Conrad’s story with a few additions. While some have criticized Keitel’s performance as Feraud, I found and still find it outstanding. Watch it at least once a year, usually in winter with multiple glasses of brandy and wearing a 7th Hussars shako and nothing else.
Currently about 2/3 of the way through Heat 2, the follow-up novel to the 1995 cinematic classic. It’s part prequel (focusing both on McCauley and the crew, as well as Hanna), part sequel (Hanna and Chris), and if you liked the movie, as well you should have, it’s a great companion piece. It’s not without its flaws - McCauley and Shiherlis are probably painted in too favorable a light, and the prequel part’s chief “villain” is even more cartoonish than Waingro from the original film - but it’s an enthralling page-turner from the jump. Highly recommend!
Ended up checking this one out on your recommendation. Probably finished it six weeks ago but I keep thinking back to it. Really, really good.
Cool, which one?
Jacob de Zoet, hah. Missed that there was a second part to the post.
Nice, yeah, that’s one that will stay with you a while. I’ll sometimes remember certain parts of that book and struggle to remember where it came from, the work was so kaleidoscopic, to me, at least.
I’m halfway through Shogun. Impressive doesn’t feel appropriate enough a description for the book. I’ll probably put King Rat into the queue (I have several histories of the First World War I want to tackle next), although Jacob de Zoet looks pretty damn interesting.
I ain’t gonna
Pretty sure all of my ex-girlfriends would agree with that statement.
Cormac Mccarthy’s 2 new books are on order
I’d like to thank the various folks who recommended The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoat. I’m about 70% through now, and it’s riveting. I’m not sure that it’s Shogun, but maybe it is.
Just finished A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles and very highly recommend it, a great great read from start to finish. Although why Amazon lists it in Thrillers and Suspense is beyond me.
This Fall I’ve been reading things I’ve always wanted to read but never have. I started with, The Third Chimpanzee by Jared Diamond. It was very interesting, though a bit dated regarding things we now know about DNA compared to 1991 when it was written. Now I’m 2/3 through Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian.
