Comments for 26 Books

Comment on Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace (Shane’s book 38, 2008) by White Noise by Don DeLillo (Shane’s book 11, 2010) - 26 Books

White Noise by Don DeLillo (Shane’s book 11, 2010) - 26 Books — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 17:20:44 +0000

[...] waste, media and consumerism, for example – are echoed in David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest, which is one of my favourite novels. DeLillo was Wallace’s mentor so it’s likely that [...]

Comment on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (Shane’s book 24, 2009) by Sue Thomason

Sue Thomason — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:09:50 +0000

Phew! Thank god! I’m halfway through the book and doing an internet search to see if anything that isn’t dull and repetetive is going to happen. I sometimes feel compelled to continue reading until the end even if I’m getting wound up by the total banality of a book, like I am with this one. Now I’ve found out the real truth, I feel released and can stop reading. Why is this rubbish so popular? Mind you, The DaVinci code was an all time best seller and I threw it in the bin a quarter of the way through, so I guess popularity means nothing. Can anyone recommend a

good

book?

Comment on Wise Children by Angela Carter (Kat’s book 1, 2010) by Shop Girl Diaries by Emily Benet (Kat’s book 7, 2010) - 26 Books

Shop Girl Diaries by Emily Benet (Kat’s book 7, 2010) - 26 Books — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 20:29:01 +0000

[...] Angela Carter’s lovely descriptions of south London earlier this year had made me realise how little I read about contemporary London, and this really fitted the bill [...]

Comment on James’s book thirty one: Tomorrow by Graham Swift by James Higgs

James Higgs — Mon, 24 May 2010 18:56:03 +0000

@massoulier:
Yes, plot is only one part of a novel; I’m comfortable with that, more than comfortable. Some of my favourite novels (say, The Man Without Qualities) come dangerously close to having no plot at all. But when the plot stinks to high heaven, and makes you despise every single person in the story (unintentionally: it’s clear that we are supposed to care about what happens to these people), then there is a problem that no amount of ‘art’ can overcome. Worse still is when that ‘art’ is undetectable.

Are there really no ‘artists’ that you would disagree with? Whose output you entirely despise? If not, I suggest that you might be a little bit too keen on arguing from the author’s perceived status rather than the actual content of the work.

I’d love to hear an argued refutation of my review, with examples of where I’m wrong. But just asserting that Swift’s work is ‘challenging’ and ‘extraordinary’ without advancing any evidence is not going to convince me.

Comment on James’s book thirty one: Tomorrow by Graham Swift by massoulier

massoulier — Sat, 22 May 2010 08:38:55 +0000

As far as I’m concerned, Tomorrow is a very challenging work which shouldn’t be read too quickly. A novel is more than a simple diegesis. Art is more than what happens and doesn’t in a book otherwise Sarkis would never exhibit a single work.
You SHOULD read Graham Swift’s novels, they are extraordinary.Only a silly man could insult artists in such a way.
Bye. Nat

Comment on Contact Us by regan hutchins

regan hutchins — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 18:34:17 +0000

i’m so jealous. i want to be in your gang. i run a famous bookshop in dublin and this year so far i’ve read:
david copperfield (started in december), the moving toyshop, journal of the plague, jack straw’s castle, a single man, servants of the people, born yesterday, call mother a lonely field, end of the party, the ikon maker, the pilgrimage, the ginger man, bookshop on the quay, good behaviour, handsome men are slightly sunburnt, troubles

Comment on James’s book twenty six: Troubles by J.G. Farrell by regan hutchins

regan hutchins — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 18:28:01 +0000

i’m struggling with this book. i was looking forward to it but i find the jaded hotel a bit of a jaded metaphor. brendan’s character doesn’t interest me and i’m at page 265 without really caring about any of them. i’m irish – tho nothing like nationalist – but i wonder if this appeals more to british people. i found this site while looking for reviews of troubles

Comment on Collected Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges (Shane’s book 34, 2008) by Species of Spaces and Other Pieces by Georges Perec - 26 Books

Species of Spaces and Other Pieces by Georges Perec - 26 Books — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 18:55:29 +0000

[...] parade of flights of fancy, odd word games and barely-contained lunacy. There’s also a clever Borgesian short story, ‘Le Voyage d’hiver’, in which an academic searches for the provenance of a [...]

Comment on Shane’s book eighteen: A Void by Georges Perec by Species of Spaces and Other Pieces by Georges Perec - 26 Books

Species of Spaces and Other Pieces by Georges Perec - 26 Books — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 18:53:30 +0000

[...] – a collection of interlinked stories about the inhabitants of an apartment block – and A Void – a novel most famous for having been composed without the use of the letter e. The translation, which repeats the feat, is well worth [...]

Comment on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (Shane’s book 24, 2009) by Mike Wheeler

Mike Wheeler — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 08:11:51 +0000

Totally agree. This is a terrible, terribnle book without any redeeming features at all. It is pure drivel. The plot is dull, the characters completely one-dimensional and both the prose and dialogue are truly amateurish. The most bizarre thing I found though is the use of product placement in a novel – truly weird inane descriptions of the wonders of Apple… How anyone can compare this to great literature is beyond me – execrable!