Grenouille

1mo

There’s also a great BBC mini-series of it — 6 parter with some famous names: Damian Lewis as Henry, and a few other vets like the now late Bernard Hill and Jonathan Pryce. Cameo from a very young Tom Holland too.

kogoyos

2mo

The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera

novel about several characters and their relationships and lives during the 1960s in Czechoslovakia. some interesting explorations of fidelity, destiny, and sacrifice but so much of the book was the backdrop of a historical period and country I'm not really familiar with. maybe because of that I wasn't too impressed by this one

7/10

St. Agnes Stand by Tom Eidson

think this was recommended itt. western novel about a man who stumbles upon a group of nuns under siege by a band of Apaches. couldn't put this down, think I read it in two days. nothing amazing or all that unique about this but it was simply a well written western novel with a story told in different perspectives and at a pace that makes it a fun read. read Scorsese was planning on doing an adaptation of this which would've been crazy, but I don't think you can tell this story nowadays tbh. definitely recommend this one

9/10

Poeta Chileno by Alejandro Zambra

story focusing on a few fictional Chilean poets, this novel unexpectedly turned into a bit of a family drama but with ruminations on responsibility, selfishness, and existentialism. a lot of literary and Chilean poetry references, including meta comparisons to Bolaño and how all Chilean novelists must write about poets. can't speak to the English translation but I really liked Zambra's prose and style of writing. the structure was interesting as well, check it out if you like Bolaño, tho their style is a bit different

8.5/10

WRU

1mo

just finished this one after first buying it many many years back. whelp shiiiit

_jesse

1mo

All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy

This book left an indelible mark on me. Though I’ve never ridden a horse or worked a day on a ranch, there is a universal quality to John Grady Cole’s experience as it’s rendered in Cormac McCarthy’s novel
All the Pretty Horses. I believe that we can never attain a complete view of the world we inhabit, and that a life well lived is one spent pursuing such an understanding, however unattainable it might be. At the start of this novel John Grady thinks he knows all there is to life (and for his part in it up until the beginning of the novel he may be correct). When the final page turns on this instalment of McCarthy’s “Border Trilogy,” however, the protagonist comes to see that the world doesn’t adhere to the romanticized ideas he’d once held it to. By the novel’s end, John Grady’s idealism has been tempered, but he has nonetheless set forth on a path to that same enlightened understanding as he rides west out of our view.

All the Pretty Horses is a masterpiece of realism that depicts the dread we feel when faced with the harshness of reality and the relief that the straightforward kindness of a stranger’s outstretched hand offering us a serape in a cold, unforgiving land can bring.

4/5

kogoyos

1mo

The Music of Chance by Paul Auster

somebody recommended me this after Auster's passing. novel about a wandering misanthrope low on money who comes across a poker prodigy and bets everything he has on a game against two barons. interesting story that kept me guessing and Auster's prose was funny and engaging

8/10

Clockers by Richard Price

crime novel and whodunit about a street level d*** dealer whose life is closing in on him from all directions after being ordered to do a hit. shifting in perspective between the d*** dealer and homicide detective, this was a fun read with complex characters. only knock on it was it needed an editor, over 600 pages that could've been cut down to 400 if you take out a few storylines that went nowhere. movie really didn't do it justice

8/10

Heart of a Dog by Mikhail Bulgakov

wanted to read more Bulgakov after enjoying Master and Margherita. this was a quick read about a dog that gets turned into a man by a mad scientist. felt like it could've gotten fleshed out a bit more, and tho it had some funny parts the deeper meaning might have gone over my head

7/10

Koala

1mo

4.5/5

Oakley Hall's American mythos of the old west might be the blueprint of HBO's Deadwood but is more nuanced in its themes of honor, responsibility, capitalism, and outlaw justice. The chapters feel almost episodic, bringing a buzzing energy to not only the varied characters but to the town itself. While these topics are nothing new to the legend of the American West, Hall's sensibility and tone make this another excellent choice of a western not written by Cormac McCarthy.

For fans of HBO's Deadwood and films like Tombstone, the works of John Williams and McCarthy, and just about everything else in the genre.. How bout some Red Dead Redemption.

_jesse

1mo

Big fan of Deadwood so this is very intriguing

_jesse

1mo

Curious to hear about those itt grading process. It can feel insufficient to rate some books on a 1-5 scale. I personally gravitate to a “would recommend vs. wouldn’t recommend” binary. (With varying degrees of enthusiasm).

rano

1mo

Finished Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas, Flowers for Algernon and Slaughterhouse 5. Currently reading short stories from Anton Chekhov, The wind up bird chronicle by Murakami and gonna start War & Peace soon.
I'm addicted now

_jesse

1mo

Curious to hear about those itt grading process. It can feel insufficient to rate some books on a 1-5 scale. I personally gravitate to a “would recommend vs. wouldn’t recommend” binary. (With varying degrees of enthusiasm).

kogoyos

1mo

I don't put too much stock into grading but I like to use a 10 point scale that more or less breaks down like this

7 good
7.5 would recommend
8 very good
8.5 great
9 excellent
9.5 amazing
10 one of my favorite books ever

some books are between scores tho and I recognize my subjective rankings might change if I read the book at a different point in my life

Koala

1mo

Ratings is just based on personal enjoyment, its nothing in stone or anything like that especially when it comes to books.

Marble

1mo

Short novels

rano

1mo

Also drop y'all Storygraphs if you got em

kogoyos

1mo

reading this rn and really enjoying it

_jesse

1mo

Still thinking about so many of the scenes in atph. The dialogue during his final meeting with the aunt, the convo JG has with the judge

lmk your thoughts when you finish!