[Wellsy]

I'm more than halfway through. So far I mostly hope that 2/3 main characters just die, ideally soon

[slab_happy]

Just doesn't grab me. I'm not generally a fan of, err, the more flamboyant, semi-humourous type sci-fi / fantasy stuff.

Fair enough!

[Fultonius]

 At the start of lockdown we built a small book exhnage / free library in our communal garden.

One day, fairly early on I spotted The Grapes of Wrath in mint condition so grabbed it. It's been on the "to-read-sometime" pile for ages. Well... Nearly halfway and what a read.

I read of mince and men, and it was good but it left me wanting. So far GoW just has much more scale and breadth. So much has gone into each scene, each character.

Sitting on my own in the Laggangarbh  hut, after not getting any skiing in today due to the wind, but I couldn't be happier. Climbing tomorrow, with a refreshed outlook.

[teestub]

I read of mince and men, and it was good but it left me wanting.

Is this Dave Mac’s new diet book? 😄

[Fultonius]

 

[chris05]

At the start of lockdown we built a small book exhnage / free library in our communal garden.

One day, fairly early on I spotted The Grapes of Wrath in mint condition so grabbed it. It's been on the "to-read-sometime" pile for ages. Well... Nearly halfway and what a read.

I read of mince and men, and it was good but it left me wanting. So far GoW just has much more scale and breadth. So much has gone into each scene, each character.

Sitting on my own in the Laggangarbh  hut, after not getting any skiing in today due to the wind, but I couldn't be happier. Climbing tomorrow, with a refreshed outlook.

I recommend East of Eden next although it is some time since I read them so can't remeber which I preferred, just that I thought both were fantastic.

[Will Hunt]

Maybe I need to give Steinbeck another try. I had a go with Grapes of Wrath years ago and just couldn't get into it. DNF.

Has anybody read Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead? I enjoyed it; it was good; but it soooo easily could have been great if the editor had sat Shipstead down and insisted she drop a good chunk of it.

[Duncan campbell]

You are not alone Will, I really struggled with Grapes of Wrath. It is beautifully written but I felt it didn’t go anywhere for such a long time.

However the finish of the book is so odd that it’s worth persevering with…

On a slightly (very) different level I have just read Dead Men’s Trousers by Irvine Welsh - it’s the fourth/final book following the characters from Trainspotting and I thought it was absolutely brilliant! Funny, dark, sad.

Tbh all the books are great - Skagboys, Trainspotting, P0rno, and then this. P0rno is potentially the best of the lot actually but haven’t read it for years.

Have also read Filth which was odd but great and Acid House which is a collection of short stories again good. They are all kinda similar in themes but I find them very entertaining.

[SA Chris]

Climbing tomorrow, with a refreshed outlook.

After reading about their suffering, winter climbing will be a doddle.

[SA Chris]

On a slightly (very) different level I have just read Dead Men’s Trousers by Irvine Welsh - it’s the fourth/final book following the characters from Trainspotting and I thought it was absolutely brilliant! Funny, dark, sad.

Tbh all the books are great - Skagboys, Trainspotting, P0rno, and then this. P0rno is potentially the best of the lot actually but haven’t read it for years.

Excellent, wasn't aware of it, will look it out. I only read pr0no recently. I thought Skagboys was the best of the lot, leads well to the hero's tragic demise. Felt like pr0no tried a bit too hard to be a more wild ride. All good though. I really liked bedroom Secrets of the Masterchefs, worth reading if you haven't. Don't let the title mislead you.

[casa]

Regarding Steinbeck-
I agree that there is a general darkness/moodiness to the settings/stories, but this is just reflective of the times i suspect. Stick with GoW it is an awesome piece of literature.
EoE -  i actually prefer this (i do like the mystical realism genre though so am a tad biased)
Also some great shorter stories.
I'd put him in my top 20 authors list.
Also in the current top20 i am currently inserting Hemmingway, Bukowski & Murakami

[SA Chris]

I really liked GoW too, OMAM less so (although I had seen the film first).

I've had EoE on my to read list for a while, must rectify that.

[owensum]

Also in the current top20 i am currently inserting Hemmingway, Bukowski & Murakami

We have similar tastes. You read Raymond Carver or Cormac McCarthy? Or Raymond Chandler? Or Sam Beckett.. all do that stripped down, terse prose style really well.

[spidermonkey09]

Maybe I need to give Steinbeck another try. I had a go with Grapes of Wrath years ago and just couldn't get into it. DNF.

East of Eden is far superior to Grapes of Wrath I think. Amazed it hasn't been made into a big HBO series.

[SA Chris]

Big Country vs The Mission, tough call

[Wellsy]

Finished MJH's Light. Wish I'd never read it tbh. Felt like such a waste.

[owensum]

Finished MJH's Light. Wish I'd never read it tbh. Felt like such a waste.

I'm kind of with you on this, but Harrison's prose is so good I really want to try and salvage something from that book. There's a lot of nonsense and I think he is writing for a very mature sci-fi audience. I honestly couldn't tell if it was satire or not, but it certainly reads better if you think of it as genre parody (IMO).

[Duncan campbell]

On a slightly (very) different level I have just read Dead Men’s Trousers by Irvine Welsh - it’s the fourth/final book following the characters from Trainspotting and I thought it was absolutely brilliant! Funny, dark, sad.

Tbh all the books are great - Skagboys, Trainspotting, P0rno, and then this. P0rno is potentially the best of the lot actually but haven’t read it for years.

Excellent, wasn't aware of it, will look it out. I only read pr0no recently. I thought Skagboys was the best of the lot, leads well to the hero's tragic demise. Felt like pr0no tried a bit too hard to be a more wild ride. All good though. I really liked bedroom Secrets of the Masterchefs, worth reading if you haven't. Don't let the title mislead you.

Good knowledge- will add it to my list!

You could well be right about Pr0no… I read it about 10 years ago and enjoyed the wild ride but also remember the ending!! Was in the valley at the time reading by headtorch - couldn’t believe it and reread the last few pages!

[Hoseyb]

Big Country vs The Mission, tough call

The Mission everytime surely?

[SA Chris]

Not their best work IMO, I was a massive BC fan at the time, and think it's one of their best. First proper band i ever saw live.

[webbo]

I still go and see Big Country live if I get the chance. Still do a great show despite the absence of Stuart.
Back to Steinbeck, I remember the Cannery row books being a pleasant read. On my second trip to the states we actually went to visit the area in the books. Rather touristy even 40 years ago.

[SA Chris]

East of Eden is far superior to Grapes of Wrath I think. Amazed it hasn't been made into a big HBO series.

Centennial was possibly the first miniseries / box set i ever remember watching, and it covers the same era, although based on a different writer's work. I expect it looks very dated now, but remember being moved by it at the time, especially the episodes covering the Dustbowl. Might still be worth a look.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centennial_(miniseries)

[Johnny Brown]

Finished MJH's Light. Wish I'd never read it tbh. Felt like such a waste.

I'm kind of with you on this, but Harrison's prose is so good I really want to try and salvage something from that book. There's a lot of nonsense and I think he is writing for a very mature sci-fi audience. I honestly couldn't tell if it was satire or not, but it certainly reads better if you think of it as genre parody (IMO).

I'm feeling better after abandoning it so early now. I'll not bother with a second attempt.

[Wellsy]

Finished MJH's Light. Wish I'd never read it tbh. Felt like such a waste.

I'm kind of with you on this, but Harrison's prose is so good I really want to try and salvage something from that book. There's a lot of nonsense and I think he is writing for a very mature sci-fi audience. I honestly couldn't tell if it was satire or not, but it certainly reads better if you think of it as genre parody (IMO).

The prose is good but wasted, as is a lot of the conceptual stuff re. the setting and technology, all of which is beautifully described. The technobabble for the K-ships was very evocative and cool. Its just that 2/3 characters were just totally unlikeable cunts and the 3rd was merely "fine." The plot was pretty meandering to non existent and there wasn't much going on that I cared about. If its a satire of the genre then I'd say that it should have been ten pages long not hundreds and that the best satire is quality in of its own sake. I'm sure MJH would defend all their creative decisions and I've enjoyed their other work but there's not many books I've read where I finished it in a vaguely cross mood at having been subjected to it's content.

[owensum]

Finished MJH's Light. Wish I'd never read it tbh. Felt like such a waste.

I'm kind of with you on this, but Harrison's prose is so good I really want to try and salvage something from that book. There's a lot of nonsense and I think he is writing for a very mature sci-fi audience. I honestly couldn't tell if it was satire or not, but it certainly reads better if you think of it as genre parody (IMO).

The prose is good but wasted, as is a lot of the conceptual stuff re. the setting and technology, all of which is beautifully described. The technobabble for the K-ships was very evocative and cool. Its just that 2/3 characters were just totally unlikeable cunts and the 3rd was merely "fine." The plot was pretty meandering to non existent and there wasn't much going on that I cared about. If its a satire of the genre then I'd say that it should have been ten pages long not hundreds and that the best satire is quality in of its own sake. I'm sure MJH would defend all their creative decisions and I've enjoyed their other work but there's not many books I've read where I finished it in a vaguely cross mood at having been subjected to it's content.

Yeah the characters were not good. My favorite part was the present day strand, although my curiosity in even that section waned considerably about halfway and was barely enough to get me through the other parts. The exaggeration I spose is what makes me think it's satire. Wasn't into the space opera, too absurd, but the cyberpunk wasn't terrible at first, until it just turned into nonsense. I liked the Shrander, who I guess is based on a welsh mythic creature.

I guess I must be a sucker for punishment as I got the second book in the series, Nova Swing. Mainly cos I love Roadside Picnic (and Stalker), and Nova Swing is supposed to be based on it.