Whatcha reading?

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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Wolter »

Silent Majority wrote:
11 Jul 2019, 5:08pm
39) Thatcher Stole my Trousers - Alexei Sayle. Kindle. The second and more interesting of Sayle's memoirs. This details his rise through stand up comedy and attempts to keep a left wing revolutionary bent as increasing fame and fortune came his way at the same time as the government inflicted merciless defeat on the vanguard. One of the last chapters is called "The Workers United Will Frequently Be Defeated."

An extremely good read. As a Rik Mayall fanboy, I was charmed to learn that Rik liked to spend his personal time watching videos of his own shows and laughing exactly like the world's biggest Rik Mayall fan.
Missed this but that is charming.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Tub book:
Image
I've read this at least once before, but it's likely been a couple decades. Both book and movie are as good as it gets.

edit: I think I'll set aside Magary's novel and read the sequel, Son of Rosemary, as my bedtime book. I know I've never read that one.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Silent Majority »

Dr. Medulla wrote:
17 Jul 2019, 6:02pm
Tub book:
Image
I've read this at least once before, but it's likely been a couple decades. Both book and movie are as good as it gets.

edit: I think I'll set aside Magary's novel and read the sequel, Son of Rosemary, as my bedtime book. I know I've never read that one.
Be nice to consume this story without Polanski's involvement. On my list.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Silent Majority wrote:
18 Jul 2019, 10:26am
Dr. Medulla wrote:
17 Jul 2019, 6:02pm
Tub book:
Image
I've read this at least once before, but it's likely been a couple decades. Both book and movie are as good as it gets.

edit: I think I'll set aside Magary's novel and read the sequel, Son of Rosemary, as my bedtime book. I know I've never read that one.
Be nice to consume this story without Polanski's involvement. On my list.
Funny, tho, that I can't read it without having the film's imagery and actors in my head. BTW, while I'll complete Son of Rosemary because it's rather brief, it seems like fanfic. No idea what happened to Levin's ability at that time, but the novel is really weak.
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Silent Majority »

41) A Brief History of the Wars of the Roses - Desmond Stewart. Kindle. The kind of writer who's able to write about people and events from more than a few centuries ago and not make it seem fusty, schoolbook, and past is a rare breed to be respected and treasured. Seward is not that type of writer. He focuses on four personages from the period as a way of telling the stories of some of the people who'd end up in Shakespeare's histories. I only ended up finishing this because I listened to short parts of it as palate cleansers between other, more enjoyable books. Or maybe it was fine and I just didn't get on with the readers and his accents from the past, who knows.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Silent Majority wrote:
19 Jul 2019, 3:45pm
41) A Brief History of the Wars of the Roses - Desmond Stewart. Kindle. The kind of writer who's able to write about people and events from more than a few centuries ago and not make it seem fusty, schoolbook, and past is a rare breed to be respected and treasured. Seward is not that type of writer. He focuses on four personages from the period as a way of telling the stories of some of the people who'd end up in Shakespeare's histories. I only ended up finishing this because I listened to short parts of it as palate cleansers between other, more enjoyable books. Or maybe it was fine and I just didn't get on with the readers and his accents from the past, who knows.
Everything I know about the Wars of the Roses comes from here:
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Silent Majority »

I'm not gonna watch that, mate 👍
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Silent Majority wrote:
19 Jul 2019, 5:54pm
I'm not gonna watch that, mate 👍
Wallow in ignorance about your own history. Plus, miss out on some hoo-doggy viddles.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by eumaas »

Why Marx was Right by Terry Eagleton. Not bad so far even though like most English socialists he has a bizarre love for Trotsky.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Finished Son of Rosemary last night. Awful awful awful. Bland writing. It depends entirely on a person being knowledgeable of the first novel (i.e., there's no way this book could stand on its own). I have no idea what the point of it all was. The gist is that Rosemary was placed in a coma by the coven in 1972 or so and wakes up in 1999 when the last of the witches dies. She rediscovers her boy Andy, who is now a world-famous philanthropist messiah type. He assures her that he's renounced Satan and is trying to save the world. He's actually plotting to kill everyone on New Year's Eve to prepare for Satan's reign on earth. Rosemary encounters Satan in hell and then suddenly wakes up in 1965. It's all been a dream—the bulk of the first book and this—or has it? Who cares. One of the worst novels I've ever endured to the end.
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Kory »

Only about 20 pages in so far, but pretty good:

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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Bedtime reading:
Image
Despite my sneering dislike of this book, I'm reading it again to (a) see if I value it more now, given my evolving views; and (b) consider using it, or part of it, for a class next year. My inclinations are yes to both, tho I think Reynolds is caught in the common trap of normalizing his experiences and judging other generations as lacking for not seeking the same, and that at 500 pp students might rebel (they tend not to tolerate anything more than 250 pp, and really don't care to hear how "in my day" we were assigned books 700 pp).
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Kory »

Dr. Medulla wrote:
24 Jul 2019, 9:59am
Bedtime reading:
Image
Despite my sneering dislike of this book, I'm reading it again to (a) see if I value it more now, given my evolving views; and (b) consider using it, or part of it, for a class next year. My inclinations are yes to both, tho I think Reynolds is caught in the common trap of normalizing his experiences and judging other generations as lacking for not seeking the same, and that at 500 pp students might rebel (they tend not to tolerate anything more than 250 pp, and really don't care to hear how "in my day" we were assigned books 700 pp).
Reynolds is weird, if only because I don't think he mentions Magazine a single time in his book that details like every post-punk band from the cusp.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Kory wrote:
24 Jul 2019, 1:19pm
Reynolds is weird, if only because I don't think he mentions Magazine a single time in his book that details like every post-punk band from the cusp.
I was about to call you daft, but I just did a search in my epub copy of his post-punk book, and you're right. Devoto gets mentioned as having been in the Buzzcocks and Magazine get mentioned a couple times but only in the context of their members playing with other bands. That book gets a lot of acclaim, but I really didn't care for it. I have no idea what the point was other than, Here's a bunch of bands I really liked. Sure, I can geek out on anecdotes as much as the next fan, but I like to read more than someone's research notes in prose form. At least Greil Marcus comes armed with an argument when he writes, even if it's smothered in bullshit sauce.
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by tepista »

Dr. Medulla wrote:
22 Jul 2019, 6:33am
th. Rosemary encounters Satan in hell and then suddenly wakes up in 1965. It's all been a dream—the bulk of the first book and this—or has it? Who cares. One of the worst novels I've ever endured to the end.
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