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spooky_miss) wrote2010-03-29 03:59 pm
spooky_miss) wrote2010-03-29 03:59 pm
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Books Twenty Four to Thirty
A bit late, but here are the books I’ve read recently:
Book Twenty Four – Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
This is the story of ..someone.. who is born into a family who emigrated from Europe in the 19th Century. I don’t want to give too many spoilers, but its basically about a man, who grew up as a girl, and the family history which made him that way (a brother and sister having a child, it begins with). I was a little disappointed with this book, as it is known for being about someone who is, well I was going to say transgender, but is that the right phrase? If that’s not right let me know But most of the book (about 2/3) is not about that, it’s a long protracted family history. Which I admit is an interesting read, but its almost like one long introduction and hardly any actual story. And I think because I was comparing this to The Virgin Suicides, his previous (and only other, I think) book, which was really great, that also added to my sense of disappointment. I would recommend this if you haven’t previously heard anything about it or its “controversial” subject matter (as that’s not as big a part of the book as I thought it would be) , and if you’re interested in the story of 19th and 20th century emigrants to America. Although it did cross my mind that part of this story may be true (some facts seem interestingly similar, such as the author’s last name and current home), and so for that it would gain more weight. So, even though it was written well, I only give 5 / 10, as it was disappointing.
Book Twenty Five – Azincourt by Bernard Cornwell
I’ve never read anything by Bernard Cornwell before, but my grandad recommended that I read this, and as I’m into historical fiction at the moment, I thought I’d give it a try. It tells the story of Nicholas Hook, an English archer who ends up as part of Henry V’s army at the Battle of Agincourt (Azincourt is the French spelling I think). I’m not usually as into books which are just about the battles, and not so much the social side of it, but this was a good book. The descriptions of the battle are just amazing, you can really feel like you are there. Its obviously a bit gory and horrible in places, but that is good as it adds to the atmosphere. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who likes military history, and also people who like historical fiction, things like Pillars of the Earth, as it shows another side to just the social life of the people back then. 7 / 10
Book Twenty Six - The Real Oliver Twist by John Waller
This is the story of the life of Robert Blincoe, a man who worked in a cotton mill as a child and wrote a book about it. At first it made me think, why is there a book about it, if he’s already written his biography? But this book is good as it adds the historical context and what was happening in the wider world. Robert Blincoe starts as an orphan in a London workhouse, and is sold to a cotton mill owner in the north of England. While he’s there he endures terrible conditions, and suffers from various health problems. When he finally leaves the mill, he does odd jobs in similar factories and mills, and then gains enough money to be able to own his own small mill. Along the way the book describes the general situation in society, how they viewed child labourers and the actions of Parliament to stop child labour. It is an interesting book as it details the conditions in the mills, the efforts to stop it, and the alternatives available to both the workers and the factory owners. There was something about the style that I wasn’t too keen on but it was a very interesting book. Recommended for anyone who is interested in 19th century history of industrial Britain. 6 / 10
Book Twenty Seven - The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff
This is the story of Josh, who has been told to leave the religious community of the Latter Day Saints in which he was born and lived, and his mother who has been accused of killing his father. This story is intertwined with that of Ann Eliza Young, who was the 19th Wife of Brigham Young in the 19th century, who was one of the leaders of the Mormon church at that time. She gained a divorce from him and became famous for speaking out against polygamy. This was a good book, as the historical part was based in fact it was interesting to read how the church began and why they thought polygamy should be part of their beliefs. The modern day part followed Josh while he tried to find out who actually killed his father, as he was sure that it was not his mother. It all hung on who his father considered his “19th” wife, as just before he was killed he told someone in an internet chatroom that his 19th wife had come to speak to him – previously his 19th wife had been Josh’s mum, but was it still now? I don’t mean to give too much away, hehe, but the way that the old writings of Ann Eliza Young were used to help him to realise that it might not have been her. I like books like this, which even though they’re fiction do give an insight into different religions and how and why they believe what they believe. Recommended for anyone who likes a bit of a mystery and is interested in this religion. 8 / 10
Book Twenty Eight – Middle Classes: Their Rise and Sprawl by Simon Gunn and Rachel Bell
This was a non-fiction book, about the middle classes and how they live. There was a chapter on each aspect of their lives, e.g. housing, education, employment etc, and through each chapter it detailed how this has changed, basically from the 18th century to the present day. It was good as it used specific examples of different families and didn’t just have general facts. For example in one of the chapters it talked about one street in the new suburbs of Leeds and how the lives of those who lived there changed. In one chapter it talked about the Courtauld family (the same who donated and named the famous gallery in London) and how their fortunes changed over time. The book was apparently something to do with a TV series, which I would quite like to have seen. I think as it was a TV series, all the information was laid out clearly as it would be stated in a TV programme. It was a good book, recommended to anyone who likes British history – 8 / 10
Book Twenty Nine – The Return by Victoria Hislop
This is the second book by the same author who wrote The Island, which was really excellent, so I was really looking forward to reading it. It began with the story of Sonia, a woman who went on a Salsa dancing holiday with a friend to Granada in Spain. Whilst there she talked to a man who ran a café, and he began to tell her a little of the history of the area, and the photos of the dancing woman on the walls of the café. After a little bit about Sonia and her life when she returned to England, she then went back to Spain and the main part of the book began, about the life of a family in Granada during the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. This was really good, especially as I had never read anything about the Spanish Civil War before. It showed exactly how brutal and horrible it was, and how it split families so terribly. It really kept you interested and although it was fiction it was informative and gave a background to the conflict. I am giving no spoilers away, but towards the end theres one of those sentences which you have to read again as you’re not sure if you’ve read it right…one of those ones in which the whole story becomes clear and the rest of the book is just filling in the details. I love bits like that The only criticism I would make is that it is a tiny bit of a huge coincidence, but still, it is an excellent book. I almost think she wrote it like that to make it appeal to a certain type of reader, when really she should have just written a book about the Spanish Civil War. Also, its described as a “beach book”, but don’t let that put you off, it does actually have substance and meaning in it. Excellent book, recommended to everyone! 9 / 10
I’m very pleased with this as I have so far managed to stick to my 10 books a month goal (and will probably finish an 11th this month as well), so am on track to read 120 books this year! I’ve also finished my second OU essay and sent it off, and am just beginning to look at the third – even though I can’t even submit it until June, I might as well get it out of the way. Plus Katie is home from uni, so everything is pretty good at the moment. Just one slight problem is that I may not have any money for Whitby…but oh well. We’ll cross that when we come to it…I could probably do with eating small cheap meals and not spending any money on clothes or cds or records anyway! :)
Another film, an excellent TV programme and the book I’m reading at the moment, in the next post, I write way too many words, no wonder hardly anyone comments, they’ve probably not had the time to read this, haha!
Book Twenty Four – Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
This is the story of ..someone.. who is born into a family who emigrated from Europe in the 19th Century. I don’t want to give too many spoilers, but its basically about a man, who grew up as a girl, and the family history which made him that way (a brother and sister having a child, it begins with). I was a little disappointed with this book, as it is known for being about someone who is, well I was going to say transgender, but is that the right phrase? If that’s not right let me know But most of the book (about 2/3) is not about that, it’s a long protracted family history. Which I admit is an interesting read, but its almost like one long introduction and hardly any actual story. And I think because I was comparing this to The Virgin Suicides, his previous (and only other, I think) book, which was really great, that also added to my sense of disappointment. I would recommend this if you haven’t previously heard anything about it or its “controversial” subject matter (as that’s not as big a part of the book as I thought it would be) , and if you’re interested in the story of 19th and 20th century emigrants to America. Although it did cross my mind that part of this story may be true (some facts seem interestingly similar, such as the author’s last name and current home), and so for that it would gain more weight. So, even though it was written well, I only give 5 / 10, as it was disappointing.
Book Twenty Five – Azincourt by Bernard Cornwell
I’ve never read anything by Bernard Cornwell before, but my grandad recommended that I read this, and as I’m into historical fiction at the moment, I thought I’d give it a try. It tells the story of Nicholas Hook, an English archer who ends up as part of Henry V’s army at the Battle of Agincourt (Azincourt is the French spelling I think). I’m not usually as into books which are just about the battles, and not so much the social side of it, but this was a good book. The descriptions of the battle are just amazing, you can really feel like you are there. Its obviously a bit gory and horrible in places, but that is good as it adds to the atmosphere. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who likes military history, and also people who like historical fiction, things like Pillars of the Earth, as it shows another side to just the social life of the people back then. 7 / 10
Book Twenty Six - The Real Oliver Twist by John Waller
This is the story of the life of Robert Blincoe, a man who worked in a cotton mill as a child and wrote a book about it. At first it made me think, why is there a book about it, if he’s already written his biography? But this book is good as it adds the historical context and what was happening in the wider world. Robert Blincoe starts as an orphan in a London workhouse, and is sold to a cotton mill owner in the north of England. While he’s there he endures terrible conditions, and suffers from various health problems. When he finally leaves the mill, he does odd jobs in similar factories and mills, and then gains enough money to be able to own his own small mill. Along the way the book describes the general situation in society, how they viewed child labourers and the actions of Parliament to stop child labour. It is an interesting book as it details the conditions in the mills, the efforts to stop it, and the alternatives available to both the workers and the factory owners. There was something about the style that I wasn’t too keen on but it was a very interesting book. Recommended for anyone who is interested in 19th century history of industrial Britain. 6 / 10
Book Twenty Seven - The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff
This is the story of Josh, who has been told to leave the religious community of the Latter Day Saints in which he was born and lived, and his mother who has been accused of killing his father. This story is intertwined with that of Ann Eliza Young, who was the 19th Wife of Brigham Young in the 19th century, who was one of the leaders of the Mormon church at that time. She gained a divorce from him and became famous for speaking out against polygamy. This was a good book, as the historical part was based in fact it was interesting to read how the church began and why they thought polygamy should be part of their beliefs. The modern day part followed Josh while he tried to find out who actually killed his father, as he was sure that it was not his mother. It all hung on who his father considered his “19th” wife, as just before he was killed he told someone in an internet chatroom that his 19th wife had come to speak to him – previously his 19th wife had been Josh’s mum, but was it still now? I don’t mean to give too much away, hehe, but the way that the old writings of Ann Eliza Young were used to help him to realise that it might not have been her. I like books like this, which even though they’re fiction do give an insight into different religions and how and why they believe what they believe. Recommended for anyone who likes a bit of a mystery and is interested in this religion. 8 / 10
Book Twenty Eight – Middle Classes: Their Rise and Sprawl by Simon Gunn and Rachel Bell
This was a non-fiction book, about the middle classes and how they live. There was a chapter on each aspect of their lives, e.g. housing, education, employment etc, and through each chapter it detailed how this has changed, basically from the 18th century to the present day. It was good as it used specific examples of different families and didn’t just have general facts. For example in one of the chapters it talked about one street in the new suburbs of Leeds and how the lives of those who lived there changed. In one chapter it talked about the Courtauld family (the same who donated and named the famous gallery in London) and how their fortunes changed over time. The book was apparently something to do with a TV series, which I would quite like to have seen. I think as it was a TV series, all the information was laid out clearly as it would be stated in a TV programme. It was a good book, recommended to anyone who likes British history – 8 / 10
Book Twenty Nine – The Return by Victoria Hislop
This is the second book by the same author who wrote The Island, which was really excellent, so I was really looking forward to reading it. It began with the story of Sonia, a woman who went on a Salsa dancing holiday with a friend to Granada in Spain. Whilst there she talked to a man who ran a café, and he began to tell her a little of the history of the area, and the photos of the dancing woman on the walls of the café. After a little bit about Sonia and her life when she returned to England, she then went back to Spain and the main part of the book began, about the life of a family in Granada during the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. This was really good, especially as I had never read anything about the Spanish Civil War before. It showed exactly how brutal and horrible it was, and how it split families so terribly. It really kept you interested and although it was fiction it was informative and gave a background to the conflict. I am giving no spoilers away, but towards the end theres one of those sentences which you have to read again as you’re not sure if you’ve read it right…one of those ones in which the whole story becomes clear and the rest of the book is just filling in the details. I love bits like that The only criticism I would make is that it is a tiny bit of a huge coincidence, but still, it is an excellent book. I almost think she wrote it like that to make it appeal to a certain type of reader, when really she should have just written a book about the Spanish Civil War. Also, its described as a “beach book”, but don’t let that put you off, it does actually have substance and meaning in it. Excellent book, recommended to everyone! 9 / 10
I’m very pleased with this as I have so far managed to stick to my 10 books a month goal (and will probably finish an 11th this month as well), so am on track to read 120 books this year! I’ve also finished my second OU essay and sent it off, and am just beginning to look at the third – even though I can’t even submit it until June, I might as well get it out of the way. Plus Katie is home from uni, so everything is pretty good at the moment. Just one slight problem is that I may not have any money for Whitby…but oh well. We’ll cross that when we come to it…I could probably do with eating small cheap meals and not spending any money on clothes or cds or records anyway! :)
Another film, an excellent TV programme and the book I’m reading at the moment, in the next post, I write way too many words, no wonder hardly anyone comments, they’ve probably not had the time to read this, haha!