• Welcome to BookAndReader!

    We LOVE books and hope you'll join us in sharing your favorites and experiences along with your love of reading with our community. Registering for our site is free and easy, just CLICK HERE!

    Already a member and forgot your password? Click here.

I just finished reading...

Status
Not open for further replies.
I got 'The Club Dumas' recently from the library, hadn't time to start reading though.

The last book I finished was 'Jigs and Reels' by Joanne Harris. I liked it well enough, although I'm usually not into short stories. Especially the endings of the stories were often very surprising and thought-provoking. 'A Place in the Sun' comes to mind..
 
The curious incident of the dog in the night time - Mark Haddon.
Loved the book. I liked the plot and the narration style.
Five people you meet in heaven - Mitch Albom.
Didn't like it at all.
 
_Haunted_
by Chuck Palahniuk

For years I have been puzzled by Chuck Palahniuk’s use of line breaks.
And periods.
The befuddlement continues with his newest ‘novel of stories’, Haunted (2005). With the completion of this reading I now file Chuck’s last 3 novels as difficult reads. Not difficult in subject matter, structure or even the typeset used, but simply uninspired writing with boring plots.
I have not yet read any of the media surrounding Haunted, so I’m not sure if Palahniuk first wrote a few short stories and then decided to link them all into a novel, or if that was the game plan from the start. Very rarely does the story/stories-within-a-story format work well. Manuel Puig pulled it off in Kiss of the Spider Woman whereas Douglas Coupland didn’t in Generation X. With Haunted, at least, the characters are not sharing independent stories, but telling bits about themselves, so the “stories” simply act as further character development. The trouble with that is there is not one character in the whole 400-page novel even remotely likeable.

Whatever Palahniuk was going for here, originally shorts or a cohesive novel, I have to think that in 2003 when he was on a non-fiction book tour and started reading the short story (included in Haunted) “Guts” and people started, um, apparently, er, passing out and fainting, this had some impact on what Palahniuk was to strive for.
The gross-out effect.
Frankly, with a title of Haunted, a cover illustration of an aghast looking face and as my inscribed copy reads, “Happy nightmares!!”, and past statements that Palahniuk planned a series of 3 horror-esque books (Lullaby, Diary and now Haunted), I had thought there would be an attempt to send the metaphorical chills down my spine. Instead it seemed to read more like a collection of tales just trying to shock. Trying to top each other. Like little boys trying to out-gross each other.
Did the audience reaction to “Guts” steer Palahniuk down a different avenue? Maybe sine the post-Fight Club books haven’t left much of an impact on the Road to Hollywood Palahniuk decided to write something that could be easily optioned by, say, a Troma studious?
Or maybe ‘you make me want to vomit’ is the new ‘you tickle my fancy’?


Another problem with reading much of Palahniuk’s work is that you can clearly tell what is researched. The new, factual information is presented to us, usually in over-kill fashion and usually taking a slight derailment from the movement of the story. Most of us know much of this information, much of it just slightly over the basic information that is, or rather should be, “common knowledge”.
A basic rule of writing should be Never Insult Your Readers.
We know burns are bad. Most know there are various degrees to the severity to burns. We don’t need a page-long discourse on them. It doesn’t add to the story being narrated. Yes, obviously Reflexology and behind the scenes television terms were researched, and that’s great. Insert them into the story as needed, not just to add to a page count.
At times like this is stuns me that Palahniuk ranks the likes of an Amy Hempel or even a F. Scott Fitzgerald to his favourite writers list. These writers are and were so good because they knew what to leave out.

As for the story, we encounter a group of not very interesting characters all embarking on a voluntary 3-month “writer’s retreat”. Oddly though, none of them seem at all concerned with writing anything. Which might be a jab at the portion of Palahniuk’s large fan-base that think the noun Writer is far more important than the verb To Write. Maybe. Maybe not. Committed to the 3 month sabbatical, with no attempt to even put pen to paper (or fingers to keys) the kids convince themselves they are “victims” and are trapped within the old theatre.

And the use of the word “popcorn”, be it as a metaphor or the noun-proper, I don’t know if this was a little in-joke between Chuck and someone else, or if I didn’t receive the instructions to the book…maybe I was to take a drink with every time the word, um, popped up? I don’t know, but it was far more annoying than it was clever. Far more.

I am to believe the Palahniuk is a pretty meticulous re-writer, so I have to believe that such things are done on purpose; the dire overkill and overuse of phrases like “the museum of us”, “the mythology of us”, “don’t laugh”, “1-800-****-OFF”, “And nothing more happens. More nothing happens” etc. Many of these aren’t very interested once, let alone repeated. And repeated.

Yes, there are far worse writers out there, and yes, weaker stories being published. If Haunted were by any other writer I would have put it down instead of just glancing at my To Be Read pile and limping through the last 20 pages. With Palahniuk, early in his career, I sensed a great potential. Sadly, I see it no more.
 
jay said:
_Haunted_
by Chuck Palahniuk

Another problem with reading much of Palahniuk’s work is that you can clearly tell what is researched. The new, factual information is presented to us, usually in over-kill fashion and usually taking a slight derailment from the movement of the story.

Yes, there are far worse writers out there, and yes, weaker stories being published. If Haunted were by any other writer I would have put it down instead of just glancing at my To Be Read pile and limping through the last 20 pages. With Palahniuk, early in his career, I sensed a great potential. Sadly, I see it no more.

i agree with you. it's a shame, too, because i so liked his other books. this one just didn't take me anywhere. the characters were too unlikeable. there was nothing to grab on to but clever bits of information. also, how much clever information can one book contain? Palahniuk was trying too hard to impress somebody, but I don't know who.
 
curently reading...

I'm currently reading a great new non-fic, rather newage, called Rebirth of the Oracle, Tarot for the Modern World. Really interesting, entertaining and not at all dark or mysterious. I found it on Amazon.

Previous to that I read the first two books in David Weber's Honor Harrington series...very entertaining! I also read Michio Kaku's Hyperspace and Noah Lukeman's The First Five Pages.

All very different, but each one interesting in it's own way

Plexerei
 
Hello, I am new here...

I just finished reading Red Dragon by Thomas Harris. I am not going to go into a full detail of it here though I will try to explain how I felt about it on the Horror novels place.
 
Me & Emma by Elizabeth Flock. I personally loved it, but near the end you could tell what was going to happen from a mile away.
 
I just finished reading Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. The ending was not what I was expecting though. This is the first book I've read from Steinbeck and I thought it was very good. I think I'm going to read The Pearl next. So far, he is one of my favorite writers (I dont read very much).
 
Edit in half and it's better

Yesterday I finished up _The Namesake_ (2003) by Jhumpa Lahiri. Overall it was…ok.
It should have been a short story, most especially since she chose that specific title. The title suggests, as does the beginning of the book, that the name will be the main theme, but instead the last 150 pages mention it only once more and then ends with the theme the short story could have. If it wasn’t for the Indian bits I probably would have just put it down because it just turned into a basic story of boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl.
But all in all, I do agree with Gogol (the lead character), that at/around the age of 18 people should just choose their own name. And this, again, the main theme and the theme that made me buy the book, *then* would have stood out more -maybe made people think, if it indeed stayed the theme of the book. Instead that one line will probably be just dismissed and never thought of again and people will just say, “he just thinks that because he hated _his_ name.”
 
jay said:
Yesterday I finished up _The Namesake_ (2003) by Jhumpa Lahiri. Overall it was…ok.
I read this book sometime back. Why do you feel that the book was more about 'boy-meets-girl"? I felt it was much more than that. The story revolves around Gogol and thus it is important to sketch the women in his life. There are glimpses of his parent's lives and characters. So, in my opinion, the book was not about boy-meets-girl theme.

I think the book does talk about his name, his hatred towads it, his frequent embarassments etc and this went on for more than 150 pages, I think. So, I dont think this book would have been equally good (or better) as a short story.
Again, in my opinion.
 
mr_michel said:
The curious incident of the dog in the night time - Mark Haddon.

nice book, but found the ending kinda weak
I am surprised to know that you found the ending weak. I liked the way the book ends. I thought it was a perfect climax considering that its a narration of an autistic boy. He can't openly say that he had a reconciliation with his dad and moved in with him. The ending was a beter way of saying the same thing. Don't you think?

Another way of saying 'And they lived happily ever after ' ;)
 
The Namesake - some Spoil-stuff

**some spoilers herein**

sanyuja said:
Why do you feel that the book was more about 'boy-meets-girl"? I felt it was much more than that. The story revolves around Gogol and thus it is important to sketch the women in his life. There are glimpses of his parent's lives and characters. So, in my opinion, the book was not about boy-meets-girl theme.

The excellent use of a line break can demarcate mere minutes, days, weeks and even years.
And JL uses this often.
While I don’t say that the relationships Gogol had weren’t an ok read, they added very, very little to the core of the story.
Most especially the relationship with Maxine.
And then the wife-stuff just didn’t mean much, especially when she gets some of the main narrative for a while.

I think the book does talk about his name, his hatred towads it, his frequent embarassments etc and this went on for more than 150 pages, I think. So, I dont think this book would have been equally good (or better) as a short story.

Indeed. I never said the theme wasn’t covered, but indeed once Gogol made the name and college transition, the topic wasn’t really covered again until his wife’s friends were talking about children’s names.
From there we know, if indeed the core-them is to be brought up again we will have a) Gogol reflecting back on his name and moreso coming to terms with it (but this would have happened, if at all, when his father died) b) his wife becomes pregnant and he has to be involved in the name-game himself, which of course, thankfully didn’t happen.

And ok novel, although wrongly named. The reason Gogol’s namesake’s stories such as “The Overcoat” and “The Nose” work so well is because the title is proper and the story is concise and to the point.

In essence I think most books work well when whittled down.
Most people simply overwrite and I’m not sure if there are any editors left in the field that even know how to catch common mistakes, let alone how to tell or assist someone to tell a story. And especially since JL won the Pulitzer and the Best Seller list, there seems to be some backing off in the editorial department after such things are achieved.

As an aside:
There were 2 potential errors in the text that an editor should have brought up, and a good writer is supposed to catch. I don’t have the notes I jotted down here but Gogol states he is unaware that his wife, before the marriage stayed with the [best] friends in Brooklyn who he does not like. But she *did* tell him she lived with ‘some people in Brooklyn’. Now Gogol always comes across as a pretty sharp guy. If he can’t put the metaphorical 2 and 2 together on that one…
And also, pretty much on the same them, once his wife reveals the name of her lover Gogol is said to [paraphrase] ‘never has he been so upset by a name other than his own’.
While it’s a good line, it’s not true as he would continually get riled up whenever Graham, the ex-boyfriend’s name came up.
Minor points, but point that could be amplified better or clearer, especially within the context of a novel.
 
jay said:
The excellent use of a line break can demarcate mere minutes, days, weeks and even years. And JL uses this often.
Errr... can you please elaborate on this? Can you please give examples, if possible?

jay said:
While I don’t say that the relationships Gogol had weren’t an ok read, they added very, very little to the core of the story.
Most especially the relationship with Maxine.
I agree with you. The pages on Maxine were not really necessary. I think there was a mention of Gogol's name when Maxine was around and there was some discussion on that, (was it there?) which could have been removed.

jay said:
And then the wife-stuff just didn’t mean much, especially when she gets some of the main narrative for a while.
You are right yet again. Somehow, the sudden change of narration of Gogol to his wife took me by surprise. This was probably to give more depth to his wife's character?

jay said:
Indeed. I never said the theme wasn’t covered, but indeed once Gogol made the name and college transition, the topic wasn’t really covered again until his wife’s friends were talking about children’s names. From there we know, if indeed the core-them is to be brought up again we will have a) Gogol reflecting back on his name and moreso coming to terms with it (but this would have happened, if at all, when his father died) b) his wife becomes pregnant and he has to be involved in the name-game himself, which of course, thankfully didn’t happen.
You know what? I never thought of this. I never even imagined that the issue might come up again when Gogol has a kid. Funny!

jay said:
And ok novel, although wrongly named. The reason Gogol’s namesake’s stories such as “The Overcoat” and “The Nose” work so well is because the title is proper and the story is concise and to the point.
Can't comment on this. I haven't read any of his books! :eek:

jay said:
As an aside:
There were 2 potential errors in the text that an editor should have brought up, and a good writer is supposed to catch. I don’t have the notes I jotted down here but Gogol states he is unaware that his wife, before the marriage stayed with the [best] friends in Brooklyn who he does not like. But she *did* tell him she lived with ‘some people in Brooklyn’. Now Gogol always comes across as a pretty sharp guy. If he can’t put the metaphorical 2 and 2 together on that one…
And also, pretty much on the same them, once his wife reveals the name of her lover Gogol is said to [paraphrase] ‘never has he been so upset by a name other than his own’.
While it’s a good line, it’s not true as he would continually get riled up whenever Graham, the ex-boyfriend’s name came up.
Minor points, but point that could be amplified better or clearer, especially within the context of a novel.
How true! I overlooked both these points. This shows that I can't earn a living as an editor! And thank god I am not one. :)

Though I agree with what you are saying, I still feel that the whole book was necessary (except for Maxine, probably) to make it a whole. I still feel that Gogol's name's issue was mentioned enough number of times to make the reader feel that the book was about his name.
 
Continuing on The Namesake

sanyuja said:
Errr... can you please elaborate on this? Can you please give examples, if possible?

[line breaks: time passes]
I didn’t mean it as an insult to her, in fact I think it’s a trait more should pick up on. Anyway, I don’t have the book here for a specific example, but I just meant that in the course of a changing paragraph (with a
[---]
line break, time passes.
This happens all the time, although generally it is stated in the text, which is abundantly unnecessary.

“jay proved himself to not know what he’s talking about but he carried on anyway.”
[line break]
“Five weeks later he decided to jump out the window”

One line later, over a month passed.

I think the best way to sum this up is by someone that uses the line break exceptionally well, “the connective tissue of a story is often the white space, which is not empty.” – Amy Hempel.

I agree with you. The pages on Maxine were not really necessary. I think there was a mention of Gogol's name when Maxine was around and there was some discussion on that, (was it there?) which could have been removed.

Indeed. But even that name mention (his mother lets the name slip when seeing them off) is not really gone into. Which is fine, it needn’t be hammered home every chapter, although further development on a theme _could_ have been played with. Now knowing her boyfriend’s pet name _she_ tries to use it on him, maybe at a time of playfulness, or intimacy, or even at a time when he’s mad about something, and this could have brought it back into the light.
Instead, the whole thing (the relationship) was merely a set-up so that he could seem more the isolationist when his father died. Which wasn’t important (the former, not the later) in the least.
In essence, if this relationship never happened, or happened minimally on the page (i.e. before our eyes) this would have _brought out_ the guilt the mother has at the end, that the woman she chose for him -the marriage- ended badly. If we (or at least she) only knew Gogol to have some brief relationships, and not blatant ‘mom doesn’t approve’ relationships, the guilt which, granted isn’t terribly important, would have been more painful, as she would have carried a, ‘what if he chose his own wife?’ tone instead of a ‘well, he screwed up when he picked ‘em for himself too’.

You are right yet again. Somehow, the sudden change of narration of Gogol to his wife took me by surprise. This was probably to give more depth to his wife's character?

Hmmm, more than likely just a set up for the reader to feel (more) sympathy for Gogol, as he’s out lead and she’s cheating on him. We (as readers) have an investment in her as our lead’s “love”, but then she betrays him, and therefore us.
With the use of line breaks all that could have been skipped over and/or could have been told differently.
A simple next chapter lets us know that almost 2 years have passed, and that Gogol not only knows of the affair now, and not only are they separated, but now fully divorced.
Controlling time within one’s work is also a hard to hone skill. And a prime example of why many writers have shown better skill when sticking with the shorter form.


You know what? I never thought of this. I never even imagined that the issue might come up again when Gogol has a kid. Funny!

I was hoping it wouldn’t and I was fearing it right until the end. But again, it is a thing she could have played with. If not the actualization, the mere question of it, be it from his wife or internally, to himself.

Can't comment on this. I haven't read any of his books!

worth a flip, certainly.


With far too many commas,
j
 
The curious incident of the dog in the night time - Mark Haddon.
quite interesting & i like minimalistic & emotion-restraint writing style,
speculation about prime number & consciousness.

Star wars revenge of sith by Mattew Stover
more interesting than movie

Losing my mind by Thomas DeBaggio nonfiction
Attractive & i like his honest narative.
 
I just finished reading, White Oleander and I have to say I was not impressed. It was recommended to me by a friend, and I read many reviews and a lot of people liked it. In my opinion, people only liked it because it had Opera's name on it and it became a movie. It was slow, boring, and a story that was so unbelievable that one could not like the main character.

I struggled with this book to try and finish it, just in case it got better, but as soon as I did finish it, I felt like I had wasted my time.

The other book I just finished reading was The Romanov Prophecy and it was interesting. It had a lot of the Russian Tsar's and the history of the Romanov's. A lot of what the author used as history, however, was changed to fit his own story line. The story does move a little slow, but it is has it's exciting moments.
 
jay said:
[line breaks: time passes]
I didn’t mean it as an insult to her, in fact I think it’s a trait more should pick up on. Anyway, I don’t have the book here for a specific example, but I just meant that in the course of a changing paragraph (with a
[---]
line break, time passes.
This happens all the time, although generally it is stated in the text, which is abundantly unnecessary.

“jay proved himself to not know what he’s talking about but he carried on anyway.”
[line break]
“Five weeks later he decided to jump out the window”

One line later, over a month passed.

I think the best way to sum this up is by someone that uses the line break exceptionally well, “the connective tissue of a story is often the white space, which is not empty.” – Amy Hempel.
I get it now. Next time I read a book, I will give more attention to line breaks - how the author uses them! Thanks jay.

I am reading 'Choke' right now and I read one of your earlier posts about Chuck's use of line breaks. I will pay more attention to that!

jay said:
I was hoping it wouldn’t and I was fearing it right until the end. But again, it is a thing she could have played with. If not the actualization, the mere question of it, be it from his wife or internally, to himself.
Yeah, that could have been done. The impact would have been more had he asked this question to himself (as you say, internally).

jay said:
worth a flip, certainly.
I will try my library next time. I doubt getting my hands on it.

Thanks a lot,
sanyuja.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top