tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post8982326643838250574..comments2023-10-30T20:33:13.380+10:30Comments on the paper drunkards: (Books) Out of Africathe paper drunkardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14282542514339651070noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-16542586666004731152007-10-11T20:52:00.000+09:302007-10-11T20:52:00.000+09:30tony, hey, thanks for stopping by! A month in Zim ...tony, hey, thanks for stopping by! A month in Zim must have been pretty confronting! Have a Red Heart instead of a Castle for me, though. I like that rum :)redcaphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01916750858980883634noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-12614067814948309982007-10-11T18:51:00.000+09:302007-10-11T18:51:00.000+09:30Thanks for the wrap, Redcap, and for the comments ...Thanks for the wrap, Redcap, and for the comments on my blog.<BR/><BR/>I'm in South Africa right now, back in internet-contact land after a month in Zimbabwe, churning out (I'm sure that's the right word!) number six.<BR/><BR/>I'll have a Castle for you.tonyparkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08642680619668762777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-74842431341955710532007-09-01T23:02:00.000+09:302007-09-01T23:02:00.000+09:30gw, I haven't been game to pick up a Beverley Harp...gw, I haven't been game to pick up a Beverley Harper. Or a Frank Coates, for that matter. Poor old Coetzee isn't getting too many votes, is he? I might give Waiting for the Barbarians or Michael K a burl just to see what he was like in his prime...<BR/><BR/>idle, oh I <I>loved</I> Scoop! It's one of my favourite books.redcaphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01916750858980883634noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-51106542703744985572007-09-01T20:22:00.000+09:302007-09-01T20:22:00.000+09:30Dear Phish,You might consider the following:Scoop ...Dear Phish,<BR/><BR/>You might consider the following:<BR/><BR/>Scoop (Evelyn Waugh)<BR/>A Good Man in Africa (William Boyd)<BR/>The Fight (Norman Mailer)<BR/><BR/>Idleidlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09938525768274527540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-14777469415484478062007-08-31T14:08:00.000+09:302007-08-31T14:08:00.000+09:30I will "third" (or is that "fourth") the comments ...I will "third" (or is that "fourth") the comments made here about 'Disgrace'.<BR/><BR/>I wouldn't be rushing to read Wilbur Smith if I were you.<BR/><BR/>I have similarly struggled with the horror that is Beverley Harper, whose books I grindingly read because my dad inferred that I would be disowned if I did not work my way through a pile of trashy novels four-deep.<BR/><BR/>I know it's a little bit removed, but I did enjoy 'The Constant Gardener' (book, not film, although I have also seen the film). I'm not usually a fan of political thrillers (which might seem contradictory) but I quite enjoyed that one.<BR/><BR/>PS don't be lulled into a false sense of security that I've forgotten about my book review. it is coming. Promise.gigglewickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15920541341649189801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-1407159894152375442007-08-29T12:47:00.000+09:302007-08-29T12:47:00.000+09:30Red, yes, Elizabeth Costello is so obviously Coetz...Red, yes, Elizabeth Costello is so obviously Coetzee in (thin) disguise. (Except she does public speaking) Milly, I'm so excited by your choice! I love Didion and have been meaning to read that book for ages.Arielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17570339715916432947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-26693473158715421832007-08-29T12:00:00.000+09:302007-08-29T12:00:00.000+09:30ariel, thanks :) I'm really not surprised that cha...ariel, thanks :) I'm really not surprised that chapters of Elizabeth Costello were essays. That's just how they read. Plus, I kept imagining Elizabeth Costello as looking like a female Coetzee, which was off-putting. I haven't read Frankie and Stankie. I looked for it after Temples of Delight, but couldn't find a copy. I should just order it online and be done with it.<BR/><BR/>milly, Disgrace is sort of the literary version of the recession we had to have, isn't it? You read it because you think you should. And Joan Didion is a great choice! I liked Slouching Towards Bethlehem very much. Which reminds me - I haven't seen it in a while. I think I leant it to someone...redcaphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01916750858980883634noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-86975566471182791892007-08-29T11:39:00.000+09:302007-08-29T11:39:00.000+09:30Agree with you both about 'Disgrace' which I only ...Agree with you both about 'Disgrace' which I only got to earlier this year. It's what I'd call a 'worthy' read rather than an enjoyable one. I don't think I'll be rushing out to find any of his other works though.<BR/><BR/>Is it here, RedCap, that I can announced what November 2007 book will be? 'Play it where it lays' by Joan Didion. I've decided to select something that's been languishing on the shelf for a while, yet is one I've paradoxically heard a lot about yet know nothing about.... if that makes any sense.Kath Locketthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09677312773827236567noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6363999539728413766.post-59115747374710004812007-08-29T11:27:00.000+09:302007-08-29T11:27:00.000+09:30What a great post - and a beautiful picture to ill...What a great post - and a beautiful picture to illustrate. I can understand why you want to be back there. (Esp. as I like to pass my time looking at photos of my travels, too.)<BR/><BR/>The Mary Kingsley sounds brilliant - I love gutsy women writer/explorer tales. I shall have to look it up. <BR/><BR/>And I 100% agree with you about Coetzee. I loved Disgrace (though you're right, it's the kind of thing you can't say you liked so much as admired) and hated Elizabeth Costello for exactly the reason you pinpoint. It was dry, the characters felt like they were written to fit the ideas they were supposed to embody (and were thoroughly unlikeable) and it felt like a long lecture. Do you know, four of the 'chapters' in the book were actually previously published elsewhere as essays? Have never been able to bring myself to read Coetzee again since being bitterly disappointed by that book.<BR/><BR/>And have you read the Barbara Trapido set in South Africa, Frankie and Stankie? It's really wonderful.Arielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17570339715916432947noreply@blogger.com