Highland Greetings

[edal]

Hi there,

I read mainly contemporary fiction and non-fiction and have an enormous tbr mountain.

By way of introduction, I'll mention my recent best reads.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy stands out for me in a class of its own.

Otherwise my favourite reads so far this year have been -

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
The Secret River by Kate Grenville
The Testament of Gideon Mack by James Robertson
Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson

I'm looking forward to lots of conversations about books and reading.

 

[abecedarian]

Welcome to B&R! I read The Book Thief a few months ago, and agree it's a terrific book. Sad, but I suppose a happy story told from Death's perspective might be too odd.

 

[edal]

Thanks for the welcome.

Yes, it is a moving story, but I thought that Death was benevolent and caring in a way and prepared us as readers for what unfolds.

 

[abecedarian]

The way Zusak portrayed death kept the book from sinking into a depressing mire of hopelessness. It was a bold move to choose that perspective, and it worked very well here.

 

[Stewart]

and have an enormous tbr mountain.

Fitting, I suppose, for the Highlands. Does your tbr mountain have a snow capped peak?

 

[edal]

Fitting, I suppose, for the Highlands. Does your tbr mountain have a snow capped peak?

Not at the moment - too many summer reads have scaled the summit!

That and I've just read three in quick succession that have been set in frozen landscapes and so that has left things thawed out a bit -
The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney
The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier
and Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson as I already mentioned.

 

[edal]

The way Zusak portrayed death kept the book from sinking into a depressing mire of hopelessness. It was a bold move to choose that perspective, and it worked very well here.

I agree using Death as the narrator in the way that he did was very successful.

 

[jcsoblonde]

*oooooooo* YOUR FROM SCOTLAND??? YAY!!! I love scotish/british/irish UK PEOPLE!!! Sorry if that kinda buffed you there...I usually greet any UK newbies like that Welcome to the forum!!!

 

[SFG75]

Welcome to the board!. Gotta love The Road, a book that years from now, members of the board will look back and say: "I remember when I first read it in 2007......" But, Eyezonme will be saying: "Stephen King is the greatest writer of all time, I only read King, have you read him? I just loved Lisey's Story, it's my favorite. Do you like Lisey's Story?, I think....."

 

[edal]

*oooooooo* YOUR FROM SCOTLAND??? YAY!!! I love scotish/british/irish UK PEOPLE!!! Sorry if that kinda buffed you there...I usually greet any UK newbies like that Welcome to the forum!!!

Hi there, not sure I know what buffed means but I love enthusiastic welcomes, so thank you.

 

[edal]

Welcome to the board!. Gotta love The Road, a book that years from now, members of the board will look back and say: "I remember when I first read it in 2007......" But, Eyezonme will be saying: "Stephen King is the greatest writer of all time, I only read King, have you read him? I just loved Lisey's Story, it's my favorite. Do you like Lisey's Story?, I think....."

I think I will return to The Road more than once. I can't think of a book that has affected me in the way this book has.
OK I have friends and family that are total Stephen King fans and up until very recently I never felt drawn to read anything by him. However, I heard an interview on the radio with him quite a while back and I was impressed by him and so I've been thinking that now is the time to see what it is about his writing. I'm going to look up Lisey's Story and see if that appeals or maybe you would recommend that I start somewhere else?