Book Thirty
I'd first heard about this book over here. Mike likes to read and has recommended a few good'uns to me over the last year or so, so when I read his thoughts on this one I thought I'd give it a go.
It tells the story of a boy who loses his father in 9/11 and his subsequent search around New York for the lock to a key he finds in his fathers closet.
There's no doubt that it is beautifully written, and it's clever use if images and blank pages create a different reading experience to that which I have encountered over the last 29 books. But my gut feeling is that I just didn't really enjoy it. I had been hoping for more. Everytime I picked it up I began to read with renewed enthusiasm, but I just didn't really get where it was coming from, or where it was going to. There were parts of it that completely threw me, but as I began to near the end I actually thought I should probably read it again. This is to the book world, what "The Usual Suspects" is to the movie world – it all fell into place when the film was watched again. I think I will enjoy this so much more if I give it another crack. If I do, does that mean it counts as another book on the tally?
And I'm not sure where Mike would've laughed out loud either!
Oh, and a review of Book Thirty One could be some time. It's nearly 1000 pages long.....
It tells the story of a boy who loses his father in 9/11 and his subsequent search around New York for the lock to a key he finds in his fathers closet.
There's no doubt that it is beautifully written, and it's clever use if images and blank pages create a different reading experience to that which I have encountered over the last 29 books. But my gut feeling is that I just didn't really enjoy it. I had been hoping for more. Everytime I picked it up I began to read with renewed enthusiasm, but I just didn't really get where it was coming from, or where it was going to. There were parts of it that completely threw me, but as I began to near the end I actually thought I should probably read it again. This is to the book world, what "The Usual Suspects" is to the movie world – it all fell into place when the film was watched again. I think I will enjoy this so much more if I give it another crack. If I do, does that mean it counts as another book on the tally?
And I'm not sure where Mike would've laughed out loud either!
Oh, and a review of Book Thirty One could be some time. It's nearly 1000 pages long.....
posted by Jonny @ 5:16 PM
2 Comments:
At 17/8/07 7:43 AM,
MIKE AND LYN said…
Salmon fishing in the YEMEN is supposed to be an excellent read.
At 29/8/07 8:19 PM,
swisslet said…
I've got this one on my "To Be Read" pile, as it happens. I've just finished "The Kite Runner", which I liked and I thought was a powerful book, but one which slipped into the predictable towards the end where it had been so poetic in the beginning. I'm currently reading "Brighton Rock" by Graham Greene, which is a total change of pace, but I've decided to risk some Martin Amis next, and have selected "London Fields".
Have I mentioned how much I enjoy your book updates?
I'll recommend another book for you as well - it's not one to add to your list, but it's quite a useful reference guide of what to read next --- "1001 books you must read before you die". Not so much because it makes you feel guilty about what you ought to be reading as the fact that it offers boundless inspiration as to what you might pick up next.
Two more recommendations? Have you done any Paul Auster yet? (forgive me, my memory is short!) Try "The Music of Chance" or "New York Trilogy" and (hear me out) I reckon you'd quite enjoy "The Three Musketeers" by Alexandre Dumas. It's a whole lot less stuffy than you'd think, and a whole lot more like the Oliver Reed films.
So many books, so little time!
ST
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