Books

[Eoin McLove]

Finished Rónán Hession's "Leonard & Hungry Paul" - an incredible piece of modern literary fiction. Beautiful prose and turns of phrase. Can't say enough good things about it.

Halfway through Hession's new book "Panenka" and I can only say the same.

I just orded Leonard & Hungry Paul. I'm reading Emma at the minute which is fairly lightweight fluff so I'm hoping this will be a bit more meaty.

[Necro Red]

Currently reading Sleeping Beauties by Stephen King and Owen King. It is a massive book, I'm about half way and not sure if I'd recommend it though. Will have to stick it out to the end really.

[StoutAndAle]

I just orded Leonard & Hungry Paul. I'm reading Emma at the minute which is fairly lightweight fluff so I'm hoping this will be a bit more meaty.

Not quite sure what you mean by meaty but I though that it was excellent.

So good, in fact, that I re-read it last weekend even though I'm in the middle of two other books.

[Eoin McLove]

I mean I hope it's more substantial, that it goes somewhere. Emma is easy to read but I'm finding it dull.

[blessed1]

Currently reading Sleeping Beauties by Stephen King and Owen King. It is a massive book, I'm about half way and not sure if I'd recommend it though. Will have to stick it out to the end really.

I wouldn't even bother. That's probably the worst King book I ever read.

[Necro Red]

I've read a few of his vintage books which I loved. This is a bit meh. I read a book of short stories by his other son Jor Hill which was great. I may check more of his stuff at some stage

[open face surgery]

Read Hemingway - The Old Man and The Sea today. Enjoyed it.

[StoutAndAle]

Started Tom O'Neill's "Chaos: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties" last weekend.

Published in 2020 after 20 years of research. Heard it recommended a few times on recent podcasts as the definitive work on Manson, The Family, their crimes during that period in California. I am ripping through it - really is excellent so far.

Anyone interested - the Kindle version, which I'm reading, is on special offer on Amazon currently.

[open face surgery]

Getting the load of it off one of the lads. Had it on audible but rarely arsed with listening to books.

[StoutAndAle]

Getting the load of it off one of the lads. Had it on audible but rarely arsed with listening to books.

I know what you mean. The only audiobooks that I've enjoyed are the Alan Partridge ones and Limmy's autobiography. Other than that I seem to zone out on them after a while.

[Eoin McLove]

Picked up a copy of Dune in an op shop today for $1, so even if you're all lying and it's a giant pile of shite, when you all chip in to compensate me it won't cause too much damage.

Second op shop attack yielded the Ian McEwan masterpiece, Enduring Love, for a whopping $3. I read this twenty years ago and loved it so it'll be good to revisit and nice to add to my personal McEwan collection.

Not a bad morning's work 

[Caomhaoin]

Nothing quite like a solidly stocked second hand/ charity bookshop and the ostentatious smugness after hoovering up the bargains.

I was in one there in Inverness in August, can't mind the name of it but it's the biggest in the UK, superb selection. Spent more than I probably needed to and nearly brought me bag overweight for the trip home but still.

[Don Gately]

Currently reading the Great Influenza, J M Barry and The Obstacle is the Way - Ryan Holiday.

Finished Leonard and Hungry Paul, lovely book.

You may wish to note the above.

[Eoin McLove]

I just orded Leonard & Hungry Paul. I'm reading Emma at the minute which is fairly lightweight fluff so I'm hoping this will be a bit more meaty.

Not quite sure what you mean by meaty but I though that it was excellent.

So good, in fact, that I re-read it last weekend even though I'm in the middle of two other books.

Leonard & Hungry Paul arrived today so I'll be now juggling between Dune, Emma, Troy and it 

[Eoin McLove]

Forty or fifty pages in. I dunno. I'm curious to see where it goes but the actual writing isn't bowling me over. It feels a little bit clunky at times. Maybe it needed a more rigorous editing job. There are sentences where the message has been clearly gotten across and it seems to keep going as if the writer isn't convinced that the reader is capable of following his train of thought. And sometimes I get the impression that he was reluctant to let a line or phrase go simply because he liked the writerliness of it rather than it benefiting the flow. But sure... oh, and the dialogue is unnatural but that's often an issue I have within literature. I'll plough on and see how it goes because despite my reservations I can sense there's a good story hiding in there.