JustJoey's list

Taking a deep breath and plunging into a 75 books-challenge. I've doubted about starting this thread, because I had no idea of how many books I read averagely. But it seems, I'll be able to read 75 this year, so I add my list of 2010 reads now.

My book-taste is quite eclectic. I'm crazy about reading, but can't pin myself down to one or two genres. I ended last year and started this year devouring mysteries and detectives, but gradually shifted to "Real Literature and Prize-Winners". In the past, I already was passionate about humour & satire, historical novels, biographies, etc. It is very likely I'll shift towards another genre before the year is over.
I listed my books in the language in which I read them (mostly Dutch). Btw, is anyone interested in the English and/or original titles (some touchstones aren't working)?


PS. I love to receive comments on the books I read, etc.

January 2010
1. De geruchten / The Rumours by Hugo Claus - 2 stars
2. Een schitterend gebrek / In Lucia's Eyes by Arthur Japin - 3 stars
3. Amerikaanse pastorale / American Pastoral by Philip Roth - 3,5 stars
4. Asbestemming by A.F.T. Van der Heijden - 3 stars

February 2010
5. De engelenmaker / The Angel Maker by Stefaan Brijs. - 3 stars
6. Een misdaad om de hoek / A crime in the neighborhood by Suzanne Berne - 3 stars
7. Tirza by Arnon Grunberg - 2,5 stars

March 2010
8. The middle of things by J. S. Fletcher - 3,5 stars
9. The yellow wall paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman - 4 stars
10. Elizabeth and her German garden by Elizabeth von Arnim - 4 stars
11. The Penrose mystery by R. Austin Freeman - 3,5 stars
12. The red house mystery by A.A. Milne - 3,5 stars

April 2010
13. Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey - 3 stars
14. A study in scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle - 3,5 stars
15. The woman in white by Wilkie Collins - 3,5 stars
16. Mannen die vrouwen haten / The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larson - 3 stars
17. Smeltbreedtes / Latitudes of Melt by Joan Clark - 3,5 stars
18. De vrouw die met vuur speelde / The Girl who played with Fire by Stieg Larsson - 3 stars

May 2010
19. De erfenis van de tempeliers / The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry - 2 stars
20. Het verslag van Brodeck / Brodeck's Report by Philippe Claudel - 4,5 stars
21. Gerechtigheid / The Girl who kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson - 2,5 stars
22. Engleby by Sebastian Faulks - 4 stars
23. Godenslaap by Erwin Mortier - 4 stars
24. Kapitein Nemo's bibliotheek / Captain Nemo's library by Per Olov Enquist - 3,5 stars
25. 's Nachts komen de vossen by Cees Nooteboom - 2 stars
26. Grijze zielen / Grey Souls (UK) / By a Slow River (US-Canada) by Philippe Claudel - 4,5 stars
27. De witte tijger / The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga - 4 stars
28. Tot ziens meneer Friant by Philippe Claudel - 3,5 stars
29. Het diner by Herman Koch - 4 stars
30. De weg naar huis / The Road Home by Rose Tremain - 3,5 stars
31. Eilandpost / The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer - 4 stars
32. De filantroop / So Little Done: The Testament of a Serial Killer by Theodore Dalrymple - 4 stars
33. Het kleine meisje van meneer Linh by Philippe Claudel - 4 stars

June 2010
34. Atonement by Ian McEwan - 4 stars
35. The Bookseller of Kabul by Åsne Seierstad - 3,5 stars
36. The scarlet letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne - 4 stars
37. De laatste zomer van de rede / The last Summer of Reason by Tahar Djaout - 4 stars
38. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery - 4 stars
39. Boven is het stil (The Twin) by Gerbrand Bakker - 3,5 stars
40. A Star Called Henry by Roddy Doyle - 3,5 stars
41. De helaasheid der dingen (The Misfortunates) by Dimitri Verhulst - 3,5 stars
42. De zelfmoordclub (A Charming Mass Suicide) by Arto Paasilinna - 3,5 stars
43. Salka Valka by Halldór Kiljan Laxness - 4,5 stars
44. The Secret History by Donna Tartt - 3 stars

July 2010
45. The Flanders Panel by Arturo Pérez-Reverte - 3 stars
46. The boy in the striped pyjamas by John Boyne - 4,5 stars
47. De tocht van de olifant / The Elephant’s Journey by José Saramago - 3,5 stars
48. Hoe te praten over boeken die je niet hebt gelezen / How to Talk About Books You Haven’t Read by Pierre Bayard - 4 stars
49. Smilla's Sense of Snow by Peter Hoeg - 2,5 stars
50. The sea by John Banville - 4 stars
51. My father's wives by José Eduardo Agualusa - 3 stars
52. Berlin Poplars by Anne B. Ragde - 3,5 stars
53. Te veel helden / Demasiados Heroes by Laura Restrepo - 4 stars
54. Astrid and Veronika by Linda Olsson - 3 stars
55. The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan - 3,5 stars
56. Too loud a solitude by Bohumil Hrabal - 4 stars
57. Skylark Farm by Antonia Arslan - 4 stars
58. Waar we ooit liepen / (Where Once We Walked) by Kjell Westö - 4,5 stars

August 2010
59. Vissen redden by Annelies Verbeke - 3 stars
60. Het proces Sonderberg / The Sonderberg Case by Elie Wiesel - 4,5 stars
61. De Ontnuchtering / The Awakening by Kate Chopin - 4 stars
62. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett - 3 stars
63. Zuivering / Purge by Sofi Oksanen - 4 stars
64. Zuidstraat by Denis Henriquez - 3,5 stars
65. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett - 4 stars
66. Barnsteen by Guido Van Heulendonk - 3 stars
67. De werkplaats van de duivel (Chilly Land) by Jáchym Topol - 4 stars
68. De schaduw van de slang (The shadow of the snake) by Saulius Kondrotas- 2,5 stars
69. Love and Mr. Lewisham by H.G. Wells - 3 stars
70. Bloedband (Long Time Coming) by Robert Goddard - 4 stars

September 2010
71. Cloudstreet by Tim Winton - 3 stars
72. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad - 4,5 stars
73. Hunger by Knut Hamsun - 2,5 stars
74. Spies by Michael Frayn - 4 stars
75. Unburied by Charles Palliser - 4,5 stars
76. The mysterious affair at Styles by Agatha Christie - 3,5 stars
77. Het Ibrahim-comité by Koen Verstraeten - 3,5 stars
78. Het geheim by Anna Enquist - 4 stars
79. Rivier van vergetelheid / Meuse l'oubli by Philippe Claudel - 4 stars

Welcome! Looks like a nice list.

Welcome to the group, Joey!

I do hope that, if you know the English titles, you will post them. I love tracking down good books!

Thank you, drneutron & alcottacre!
Especially for you, I've added the English titles, if available. Next, I'll add my personal thoughts on the books I've read, although I can already say that Brodeck's Report by Philippe Claudel is my alltime favourite so far.

I appreciate you adding the English titles!

I already have the Claudel book in the BlackHole. Unfortunately, my local library does not have it yet.

I've added my personal thoughts to my reading-list. Curious if anyone shares my thoughts?

1. Hugo Claus. De geruchten / The Rumours
Claus is one of the most renowned Belgian (Flemish) writers, but I can't say I like his writing myself. I like his themes but not his style. The Rumours is about a long-lost son who comes home but upon his arrival, people start to become ill and die. The son carries a secret, but it's never revealed what's really happened to him. A bit disappointing.

2. Arthur Japin. Een schitterend gebrek / In Lucia's Eyes
A story about the first love of Casanova.

3. Philip Roth. Amerikaanse pastorale / American Pastoral

4. A.F.T. Van der Heijden. Asbestemming
Memories about the author's father upon his death.

5. Stefaan Brijs. De engelenmaker / The Angel Maker
This is about a doctor returning to his village with his three young children. There is something strange about the doctor and his children, which is slowly explained. Impressive.

6. Suzanne Berne. Een misdaad om de hoek / A crime in the neighborhood

7. Arnon Grunberg. Tirza
About a father who has problems letting go of his grown-up daughter who's planning a trip to Namibia. A bit too many pages but entertaining.

8. J. S. Fletcher. The middle of things

9. Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The yellow wall paper

10. Elizabeth von Arnim. Elizabeth and her German garden
If you love gardeing like me, you'll love this book. It was a best-seller in its own time and I can see why.

11. R. Austin Freeman. The Penrose mystery

12. A.A. Milne. The red house mystery

13. Josephine Tey. Brat Farrar*

14. Arthur Conan Doyle. A study in scarlet

15. Wilkie Collins. The woman in white*

16. Stieg Larson. Mannen die vrouwen haten / The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

17. Joan Clark. Smeltbreedtes / Latitudes of Melt
Oh, how I would love to visit Newfoundland.

18. Stieg Larsson. De vrouw die met vuur speelde / The Girl who played with Fire

19. Steve Berry. De erfenis van de tempeliers / The Templar Legacy

20. Philippe Claudel. Het verslag van Brodeck / Brodeck's Report
The most impressive book I've ever read. The story is about a man who comes home after the war and is asked (pressed) to write a report on what happened to a stranger who came to the village. But this book is so much more. Highly recommended.

21. Stieg Larsson. Gerechtigheid / The Girl who kicked the Hornet's Nest*

22. Sebastian Faulks. Engleby
Wow, what a book. Can't tell you much if I don't want to reveal a lot, but it's one of my favourite books of 2010.

23. Erwin Mortier. Godenslaap*
An award-winning book by a Belgian (Flemish) writer and rightly so. The language is very, very rich and the style is awesome. I hope it will be translated, although I really am sorry for anyone who has to translate this little gem.

24. Per Olov Enquist. Kapitein Nemo's bibliotheek / Captain Nemo's library
I don't really know what to think of this book about two boys who had been switched at birth. In a way, it's very nice, but it hasn't swept me off my feet.

25. Cees Nooteboom. 's Nachts komen de vossen
An award-winning collection of short stories, but I really can't understand why. But then, that's probably only my loss.

26. Philippe Claudel. Grijze zielen / Grey Souls (UK) / By a Slow River (US-Canada)
Again, a very impressive book by Claudel who has rapidly become my favourite writer.

27. Aravind Adiga. De witte tijger / The White Tiger
A mixture of satire and drama, this story of a poor, intelligent Indian boy who kills his rich boss.

28. Philippe Claudel. Tot ziens meneer Friant
A little book which tells the story of the author's grand-mother and the time she lived in, using the paintings of mr. Friant. Great literature.

29. Herman Koch. Het diner
Oh, what a lovely book. I hope it'll be translated in English (or you all learn Dutch?), because I thought this was a great story about two brothers and their wives having dinner in an exclusive restaurant, discussing the crime their children committed. The description of the restaurant-etiquette is hilarious. The twist at the end is great. Recommended.

30. Rose Tremain. De weg naar huis / The Road Home
What a sad person, this Lev is. A bit depressing but beautifully written.

31. Mary Ann Shaffer. Eilandpost / The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
I loved this book, because it's both very funny and very deep. Quite rare to find in one book. And, oh how I would love to visit Guernsey.

32. Theodore Dalrymple. De filantroop / So Little Done: The Testament of a Serial Killer
Brrr, what a weird book where a murderer convinces the reader that he's no better (and even worse) than him. Very, very deep.

33. Philippe Claudel. Het kleine meisje van meneer Linh
What a sweet, lovable, sad book about an old man who moves from Asia to Europe to protect his grand-daughter from the war. And what a great end to this story.

Coincidentally, I've read The Angel Maker and Brodeck's Report in the past couple of months. I liked them both, but liked the Claudel better. I'm looking forward to reading more by Claudel.

Welcome to the group!

I read Guernsey after much prompting by the wife. Turns out she has pretty good taste. I thought it was really good, too!

Well yes, I was quite reluctant to read it at first. It looked rather cheesy and the blurb was't very promising either but I took it with me in the library just to have something easy (and cheesy) in case some heavier stuff I read became too heavy, so I could read this one for a change. But then it turned out to be a very good read in itself. How I love this kind of surprise.

Welcome Joey

A few of us read and discussed Brat Farrar earlier this year. You've read a few other books I want to read or reread at some point.

Thanks elkiedee, you have a very inspiring book-choice. What are your favourites?

I started on Richard Powers' The Echo Maker, but stopped after some 70 pages. Right now, I'm just not in the mood for long stories like that, but I'm sure I will pick it up when I have a bit more time to read. I started on Atonement by Ian MacEwan and I like it so far. That's one I'm sure to finish.

#7 - Yes, I liked Claudel better also and have mixed feelings about Brijs. Sometimes I think it was great (he sure knows how to write and keep his reader's attention), but I found the ending a bit confusing, as if he wanted to end the story with a bang (quite the opposite of Stieg Larson's way of writing).

Hello Joey, found you!
I enjoyed Engleby too, but really preferred The Road Home which I think I read the same summer.
I've got Brat Farrar on order, hope to read it soon as others have highly recommended it.

I've recently tried reading a bit in Dutch (I used to live in the Netherlands as a child and still retain some of the language) so I'll be interested to hear about any of the Flemish authors you are reading.

Welcome Joey

You wrote somewhere that you love gardens/gardening. I can give you a hint to a quite interesting book: The brother gardeners by Andrea Wulf.

Thank you Paul! It looks like a book I would REALLY love. I'll try to track it down and let you know what I think about it. It's because of friendly people like you and good unexpected recommendations like this one, I like LT so much.

Hi Joey. I loved The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, too. I have Atonement on my tbr list. Maybe I can get to it soon.

I looked at your profile. We have 65 books in common. That's alot, I think, since I only have about 300 listed, 65 tbr.

Just saying thought I would say hi.

Dawn

Hi Dawn, how nice of you to stop by. Yes, 65/300 is a lot. It seems we even share an interest in gardening as well. I'd like to add yours as an interesting library, if that's ok with you?

I'm halfway through Atonement. I know there's a movie, but I havn't seen it yet (not too fond of books made into movies). I'll post my review after I finished it.

Thanks. I'm adding you :-)

Hi and welcome...I think we've talked before, when I had my old username of amwmsw04. Anyway, this challenge is where I spend most of my LT time. Hope you like it here - we are a friendly chatty bunch.

Angela

PS- I believe we talked about free Josephine Tey ebooks available from Australia's project Gutenberg??

Ah yes, Angela, I remember. Thanks to you, I read (and enjoyed!) Brat Farrar. Glad to find you back here! I feel comfortable in this chatty group. I've "met" so many friendly people with interesting books these past few days. I love the recommendations, the inspiration and the surprises. Hope to hear from you again :-)

Found your thread, and starred it!

Thanks, hope you enjoy it!

I read Atonement by Ian McEwan for my Europe Endless Challenge (http://www.librarything.nl/topic/92322). I thought it was a beautiful book, though not quite what I'd expected. Reading the blur, I had thought it would have been a combination of a love-story and a drama, but I think what the book is really about, are the characters, the personal responsability for one's own acts and the interaction with other lives, however insignificant it may seem. It struck me e.g. that being passive or absent can also have a huge impact. That was beautiful.

Next up is The bookseller of Kabul by Åsne Seierstad as I've decided to start a global alfabetical tour as well (http://www.librarything.nl/topic/92759). My first stop is Afghanistan. This book is highly recommended by nice people (yes, maybe you :-)) who share my reading-interests, so I'll give it a try.
Don't worry, I'm also/still reading some other books as some of you know (hedgehogs, scarlet letters, ...).

Hi Monica:) I couldn't help but notice you're reading The Bookseller of Kabul next. It is quite well known up here, and it actually ended up with a lawsuit. The bookseller proclaimed the book to be all lies, and therefore wanted compensation. This was a few years ago, but I don't think he has given up yet, even if his claims were dismissed in court. I hope you like it (I haven't read it myself).

#22: Monica, I will be reading The Bookseller of Kabul this month as well. I will be interested in seeing what you think of it.

I didn't know that about The Bookseller of Kabul. It adds an extra dimension to my read. I guess, I never expected it to be all true, but fictionalised anyway, so it wouldn't bother me whatever it is. Funny this comes up just after having read Atonement which more or less deals with the same theme (can't really go into this as this may spoil the book for those who haven't read it yet).
I'll let you (and Stasia) know what I think of it.
Btw, thanks for stopping by.

Interim update: election-day (13.06) here in Belgium and I'm so angry with people who say they couldn't care less about voting. They should read The Bookseller of Kabul to find out what the right to vote means and how important it is to be able to have a vote and freedom of speech.

#26: Unfortunate that in this day and age, people take the privilege of voting forgranted. It happens here in the States all the time.

Just as an aside: I took my daughters with me one time when I was voting. I told them I was going to exercise my right to vote. Beth, who was about 8 at the time, asked at the polling center, when I was going to start exercising - she was expecting jogging or situps at the very least :)

#26 When my friends say they aren't going to vote, I say I therefore don't expect to hear a single complaint from them about anything the government does or doesn't do over the next x years. Unfortunately, this doesn't usually work.....

Well, I always knew there are smart people on LT. I guess people who do not want to vote can only hope to be surrounded by smart people who'll make responsable decisions for them. But it's a very risky gamble. I don't know if it's an international saying, but here we say that "you may not care about politics but politics will surely care about you".
I haven't done much reading today, as I'm following the events here on election-day. There's a political landslide here which completely changes the political landscape. But don't worry, it's all very peaceful and respectful.

# 27: she was expecting jogging or situps at the very least :-) I think it would be a fun idea to clear your head before casting your vote by jogging around a bit :-).

#29 Sounds like an exciting day, election-wise. I've just googled on elections in Belgium to see which way things are sliding - I see that the separatists may be gaining the ascendancy.

Do you think there is a real possibility of the state being divided in two?

Hi Genny, hope you're doing well, through all the sadness.
As for the elections, it's so strange to see the international press all thinking Belgium is going to divide now and talking about "separatists" as if the Flemish are a horrible, radical bunch. First of all, the Flemish represent 60 % of all the people in Belgium. The French-speaking part are about 40 %. Secondly, the territory which now is Belgium has a long history of being ruled by the Spanish, the Austrians, the French, the Dutch, until it became independant in 1830. It consists of the French-speaking Walloons in the south and the Flemish-speaking Flemish in the north. The French-speaking citizens were so fed up with Dutch rule, they imposed French in all of Belgium, although historically, people in Flanders have always been speaking Flemish (= Dutch) ever since the Middle Ages and probably before (the oldes Flemish literature dates form the 13th century!). This caused a lot of problems e.g. in court when a Flemish person was ruled by a judge he could not understand or he couldn't get proper schooling in his own language. So little by little, the Flemish tried to get the right to speak their own language on official occasions. It took till 1922 (after World War I), until they were allowed to do so in their own part of the country. In the 1960, people were counted and there came a "language-border" stating that people south of that border spoke French and people north of it spoke Flemish. Since then, the Flemish have gradually gotten more rights, but the French keep seeing this (and pretending it to be) the Flemish being aggresive towards them.
It hurts my feelings as a Flemish-speaking Belgian to be spoken of as a separatist minority, when all the Flemish really want is to have the right to speak their own language in their own part of the country. I guess, part of the problem why Belgium is so misunderstood is that the international press only hears one side of the story through the French-speaking press which conveniently keep representing the Flemish as radical separatists. But really, all of the Flemish parties want the same rights for the Flemish. Some want to go a bit further than the other: some want to stay together in one Belgian country with tow communities, others want to evolve to two separate communities within Europe. So, even after the landslide-win by the Flemish party in Belgium, I do not think Belgium will be separated and certainly not overnight. There's certainly not going to be any blood-shed.

It looks like the Flemish have 'won'. As a Swiss it's interesting to see other countries deal with their multi languages. We have four languages, three of them are used in parlament - if you don't understand the other you can (should) get a translation. When taking part in a (librarians') conference, everyone speaks their mothertongue. Quite fun, but also exhausting.

I hope that Belgium stays together as a nation and solves their language/culture problem in leasrning and strenghthening each language.

BTW I catalogued Timerman's Caecilie and wanted to put Flemish as the original language - but there was only Dutch. Is that really the same or are they as different as German and Swiss German?

The Swiss model is a model we like to watch and would like to follow, because it seems to be the right way to deal with the language-difference while respecting each other at the same time. We never hear about language-problems in Switzerland.

The Flemish speak Dutch (this is our mother-tongue), which is written the same in the Netherlands and in Flanders. We have a few words and ways of saying things that the Dutch never use and vice versa. The pronunciation is different though, although I don't know if someone who doesn't understand Dutch would notice. I don't know about German German and Swiss German, but I think it's a bit like British English and American English.
And we have a lot of local (non-official) dialects.
If you want to read more about the language-difference, here's a Wikipedia-link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flemish
Wow, Timmermans is a classic, but soooooo oldfashioned. I hope you didn't think he's a representative of the modern Flemish novel :-)

Swiss German is almost as different to German as Dutch ;). We have just two tenses (past and present) and have quite a number of Helvetisms.
It says Helvetia on Swiss stamps because there is no place for all four names (Schweiz, Suisse, Svizzera, Svizra). The border between the French and German speaking part is called Röstigraben (Rösti is a dish made from potatoes) and occasionally there are verbal conflicts. Some 20 years ago, the Canton (departement) of Jura split away from the Canton of Bern because of language mainly.

>I hope you didn't think he's a representative of the modern Flemish novel :-) ... now that you mention it...
No, I was teasing some Brasilians about Brasilia, their capital, saying that the name derived from the Catholic order of the Saint Caecilia who found her bra in the jungle and therefore name that spot Bra - silia. That's why I looked at Timmermans work again.

I know Hergé, Maurice Tillieux are Belgians. Can you recommend a modern author (mystery, fantasy) (in German or English, please)? Thanks

#31 Thanks for your interesting reply. I was aware of some of these issues, particularly the historical background, but not much about the contemporary political situation: so little in fact gets reported in the UK, with or without bias, about what is going on in our neighbouring countries in Europe, which only goes to re-inforce our typically insular approach.

Whereas I think we in Britain could learn so much by paying attention to how other nations manage, especially where there are multiple cultures and languages, as in both Belgium and Switzerland. We have our own issues about how to live effectively as a union of four countries where too often 'English' is taken as synonymous with 'British', at least by the English themselves. Some English people get very defensive when the Scots, Welsh or (Northern) Irish seek to protect the distinctiveness of their culture or language, or look for greater political autonomy. I think these questions of national identity and their connection to language and culture are fascinating, and it is a shame that too much of what most people hear in the media about Europe in the UK tends to be exaggerated scare-mongering negative stuff about the European Union's attempt to reduce us all to uniformity. If only more people were being inspired to do a read around Europe challenge!

I finished both The Bookseller of Kabul by Åsne Seierstad and The scarlet letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
My reviews are here:
- http://www.librarything.com/work/829/reviews/60425398
- http://www.librarything.com/work/2264/reviews/58197177

I can recommend both books:
The Bookseller of Kabul because it gives an unusual insight into life in Afghanistan. I have my reservations about how Seierstad can really have captured the soul of the Afghan people, but it's a very interesting book anyway.

I loved The scarlet letter. Dimmesdale is such a weak character. It's also interesting to see how the doctor destroys himself out of jealousy and wrath and the minister destroys himself out of shame and fear (and hubris?). And all the time, they all could have tried to put it all behind them and have a very happy life with or without each other. Such a waste, what a lesson, what a great book!

#34-35. Thanks for stopping by my thread.
#34 Ah, so that's the language I didn't understand when I checked in at this Swiss hotel a few years ago :-) It made me think of Luxemburgish. Once you get used to hearing it, you can pick up some words, but that's about it.
So you do have language-problems too. What a pity.
Btw I love Rösti!

Well, I have to think very hard to find you a Belgian sci-fi-author. I'm not a sci-fi-reader myself, but I'll check it out, although I don't think it'll be easy to find you one. Mystery and thrillers may be a little bit easier, but I'm not sure if many of them have been translated (Pieter Aspe maybe?). Most Flemish authors write realistic fiction, Hugo Claus being the most famous and best-regarded. He died a few years ago, and I'm sorry to say, I didn't like his writing very much. The Belgian-French authors, well that's a complete mystery to me. I really should become more of a nationalist :-)

#35 You are so right. I think we can learn from our differences but have to keep our own identity as well. It's like mixing colours: a mixed border can be lovely, but if you put all colours together, you end up with a greyish-brown that isn't inspiring at all. I think Europe is a great idea, but we do have to watch out for becoming all too alike, instead of sharing our identities without losing them. One of my reasons why I do the global and Europe challenge is to get to know the countries a little better.

#36: I am so glad you loved The Scarlet Letter! It remains one of my all-time favorites.

I have The Bookseller of Kabul set aside to read this month for one of the TIOLI challenges. I hope I like it as much as you did, Monica.

I finished The last Summer of Reason by Tahar Djaout. It's about an (Algerian) book-seller who sees his world falling apart when the religious fanatic take over society. He sees how people give in to the threats and intimidation and become shadows of themselves. He witnesses how arts, science, books, music, colour, beauty,alcohol, joy and happines... all is banned and forbidden. He sees men growing a beard, wearing identical clothes and women hiding under a burka. It's a very sad story, but beautifully written. It explains how a little spark can light a fire. The author himself was murdered in 1993 by Algerian extremists. This manuscript was found between his papers. Highly recommended.

#39: I will have to look for that one. Thanks for the recommendation, Monica!

#39 - I've added this to my wishlist. Thanks for the great review

I've finished Muriel Barbery's The Elegance of the Hedgehog. I thought it was beautiful! I liked the unusual characters, their humour and the fragility of the words. Anyone who has ever experienced the beauty of friendship, arts, flowers or anything beautiful will recognise this. It was a deep but also very sweet book, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Anyone who wants to savour Dido's Lament that's mentioned in the book can click here

Mozart's Confutatis which startled Renée so much can be found here

#42: I loved that one too, Monica. I am glad you enjoyed it as well.

Thanks for the links.

Hi Monica. I just started The Elegance of the Hedgehog, so I'm glad you liked it. Enjoying it so far:)

#44 Hi Apolline, and I thought it even grows better as the story unwinds :-) So, enjoy!

I've started Boven is het stil (The Twin) by Gerbrand Bakker that just won the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. I like it so far.
Have any of you read it already? And what do you think about it?

#46: Monica, I know Darryl (kidzdoc) has read it. I have it on my TBR pile so I will be curious to see what you think of it.

ETA: His review is here: http://www.librarything.com/work/2509100/reviews/42997234

Joanne's (coppers) review is also on the book page: http://www.librarything.com/work/2509100/reviews/59748892

Thanks, Stasia! I can already agree with Darryl's review. I'm some 80 pages in the book and it feels as if I've slowly entered a beautiful still-life water-colour. (I think I'm still influenced by Renéé Michel :-)) When I get at this point, a book rarely lets me down. But one never knows...

I've finished Boven is het stil (The Twin) by Gerbrand Bakker. Somehow it is a book I couldn't put down, but now it's finished, I'm not really sure if it'll be one of my all-time favourites. It's about an elderly man who's lost his twin-brother at age 19 and has to help out on his father's farm. Now his father is dying and the former fiance of his brother asks if her son can come to the farm to get him out of his lethargy. All through the book, as a gentle layer underneath, there's the feeling of loss for the dead twin-brother, the anger with his father and the sense of despair about his own life. It's a highly symbolic book, which might seem a bit over the top at times, but as it is told by the remaining twin-brother who has his own ways, it's all very plausible, very subtle and tender. All in all it's a beautiful book, but there's something about it... it's just not my perfect cup of tea.

#49: I have really got to bump The Twin up my TBR pile. I just need to find where I put it first!

I have finished A Star Called Henry by Roddy Doyle. I read it for my Europe Endless Challenge

Although this isn't the kind of book I usually read, I'm very glad I did. It's about a poor Irish kid who becomes a gunman for the IRA and tries to find his father after his disappearance. I think Doyle did an excellent job on portraying the life of this man. Although the story is very hard, very depressing and scary, he manages to put a spark, energy and humour to it that make it exceptional. It might have been easier to read if I'd known more about Irish history before I started reading the book, but it didn't stop me from enjoying it. Recommended, but only if you can stand the violence and rather explicit scenes.

#51: I read the first 100+ pages of that one and gave up on it. I also attempted Doyle's Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha. I have decided he is just not an author for me. I am glad you enjoyed the book more than I did, Monica!

Just finished De helaasheid der dingen ("The Misfortunates") by the Flemish author Dimitri Verhulst. This book won the peoples's choice of one of the most prestigious Dutch book awards (Gouden Uil). It also was made into a movie
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Misfortunates).
It's the story of the author and his family of low-life drunks. Abandoned by his mother, he lives with his father, grand-mother and three uncles in a dump. Although the theme is very depressing, the author manages to add humour and love to his story which makes you see things differently. This story is said to be autobiographic, which makes it even more impressive. I don't think it's been translated yet, but if it will be, do try it.

I have another of Verhulst's books already in the BlackHole, Mevrouw Verona daalt de heuvel af. It has not been translated yet either.

> 53: I haven't read De helaasheid der dingen yet, but I recommend Mevrouw Verona daalt de heuvel af by Dimitri Verhulst, I loved that book!

I think this book wil be translated soon, now it won the Gouden Uil.

Monica, I read your review of The Bookseller of Kabul last night and thought it summed up very well my thoughts/concerns about the way the story is told. What language did you read the book about an Algerian bookseller in?

If you have a look at the TIOLI challenge threads, including the explanation of how it works, quite a few people have read Bookseller this month or plan to.

I loved A Star Called Henry too - did you know it's part of a trilogy? The 3rd book about Henry only came out a few months ago, but although I think the 2nd book is the weakest in the trilogy, I'd seek out Oh Play That Thing! - Henry in the US with Louis Armstrong - yes, really, first.

Of the books you've catalogued so far on LT, I have catalogued that I own or have recently read (in the last 3 years) about a third of them.

Hi Luci, thanks. I read the Bookseller of Kabul right before The last Summer of Reason by Tahar Djaout and I have to admit, the last one impressed me more. I read it in Dutch, although it's originally written in French (Le dernier été de la raison ) and translated in English. I thought it was more genuine as it was written by an Algerian writer who was killed for his beliefs before he had had the chance to have his last book published. It is fiction, but it might as well be non-fiction. I saw some documentaries and read some articles about the situation in Algeria and it's all telling the same story. But Djaout told it very, very poignantly

I did know A Star Called Henry was part of a trilogy, thanks to Alison (RidgewayGirl). I might look them up sooner or later. That Louis Armstrong-meeting sounds interesting! I didn't know that.

Wow, I looked at your profile and threads. I think it is very impressive that you read and have read so much. How do you do that? I'm soooo envious. I like your choice of books, but then if you have read 1/3 of my collection, that's not a surprise :-)

I'm off now to take a look at the TIOLI-threads. It took me a while to find out what you all were talking about (sounde a bit Italian to me) and now I understand, it looks like something I might get addicted to as well...
Thanks for stopping by!

I am just about finished with The Bookseller of Kabul and admit to being disappointed in the book. I think your concerns about it wrap mine up as well, Monica.

I've just finished A Charming Mass Suicide (in Dutch translation from the Finnish Hurmaava joukkoitsemurha) by Arto Paasilinna. It's a very humorous book (despite the title) about two men who bump into each other when they want to commit suicide. They decide to look for other people who want to commit suicide in order to kill themselves in a more dignified way. They end up in a bus, travelling from Finland to the North Cape, determined to go ahead with their plan and drive off the Cape, but they always find a reason to postpone it. They end up in Portugal where the whole plan is left behind when they discover that most of them now have found a reason to live. This was a lovely in-between-book with hilarious situations and characters. On a second, deeper level, it shows that despair and depression are often due to special circumstances and loneliness which is temporary and that things can change for the good rather rapidly. It's not Great Literature but quite heart-warming.

#59: I will have to look for that one. Thanks for the recommendation, Monica!

Wow, that was quick, I didn't even finish adding it to my list :-) I'm not sure if it's translated in English yet, but it really should be.

It does not look like it has been translated yet.

43. Salka Valka by Halldór Kiljan Laxness
What a beautiful book! 9 year old Salka arrives with her mother in a small coastal village in Iceland in the 1930s. The mother is trying to build a new life for her and her daughter, but while the older woman is weak, Salka is trying to find her own way and create her own opportunities in the small community. Salka is a real character who witnesses how her mother gets carried away by the Salvation Army and throws herself in the arms of a low-life, sees how the poor are depending on the wealthy Bogesen who owns the fish-industry and the shop, how both the minister and the doctor are indifferent to the fate of the people and how people react when they are faced with their problems of every-day-life.

The second part of the book deals with the reality of the introduction of communism in Iceland and more specifically in the small community. Actually, it is not so much a story of the clash between capitalism and communism. which would have been so easy, but rather the clash between opportunism, realism, idealism, love and weakness which make it a great story. Laxness introduces so many great characters that are so realistic, so human. Although the story never leaves the small village and Salka is always the centre, you get the feeling it is the story of a whole world which is told here.

Definitely one of my best reads of 2010 and highly recommended.

I read Laxness' Independent People last year and really liked it. Unfortunately, it is the only one of his books that my local library has. Still, I will add Salka Valka to the BlackHole in the hope that eventually I can get my hands on a copy. Thanks for the recommendation, Monica.

44. The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Well, what can I say. It had all the ingredients: a New England-collegesetting, bright students studying Greek, murder, intrigue, beautiful scenery,... that should have made this book one of my favourites. But it also had gallons of alcohol, truckloads of pills and drugs, a depressing lack of sleep and/or odd sleeping-hours, a lot of sickness, the usual college-hysteria. Maybe I'm getting too old for this college-stuff, maybe I've read too much of this, maybe it wasn't the right moment for me, maybe it was something else, but I just didn't enjoy the book as much as I'd expected. The story was okay but not WOW, the main characters were flat, cliché, never became true to life for me, scenes and dialogues were stretched far too long and wide, the Greek was used as a pedantic façade.
Maybe I would have liked the book more if I hadn't had such high expectations? Or maybe , I'm just missing the point?
Conclusion: I liked it, but didn't love it.

#65: I am with you on that one - liked it, but did not love it.

Hi Stasia, like minds... :-)
I keep wondering how this book became such a best-seller. In fact I often wonder why some best-sellers are often very disappointing and why other books that are barely known, let alone read, turn out to be so great. Is it only commercial, is it a buzz that surrounds the hype, or is it just something I lack. It somehow reminds me of the Andersen fairy-tale "The Emperor's New Clothes".

#65 - I didn't even go as far as liking it. I thought the characters were cliched, the story silly, the portrayal of "typical" classicists insulting (my husband is one, and he is nothing like these guys), the writing only so-so. For me, yet another book that everyone was talking about and apparently loving, yet I couldn't see why.

#67: I am very leery of books that get a ton of hype. If it gets hype here in this particular group, I will give it a look because I respect the opinions of these people, several of whom I have 'known' for 3 years now.

Oh, what I relief, I was starting to doubt my own judgement on this one. Strange indeed how classicists are portrayed in this book. The classicists I know are nothing like these either. Actually, I always thought them to be the most well-read, well-informed teachers we had, quite unlike that fool who didn't even know man had landed on the moon.

I agree with you Joey and Stasia, I also liked The secret history, but didn't love it. And I'm also sceptical to hypes, although sometimes I just cannot stand the same book for a long time in the shopping window....

45. The Flanders Panel by Arturo Pérez-Reverte
I picked it up at the library, meant as a divertimento on a hot summer-night. I must have outgrown this genre recently, because it didn't sweep me off my feet at all.
I liked the beginning in which the main character decribes the 15th century painting of a Flemish Primitive in detail. It reminded me of the book I read a while ago (see Peter Schmidt. Het Lam Gods) about the famous Flemish painting"Adoration of the Mystic Lamb" by Hubert and Jan Van Eyck (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghent_Altarpiece) in which the author analyses the famous painting into the finest detail and unravels the symbolic significance of this medieval painting.

But then it collapsed for me: the main character and the one who was supposed to do the restoration of the painting was a chain smoker who SMOKED and drank coffee while sitting or standing in front of the 500 year old painting, never seemed to have heard of conservation-conditions (temperature, moist, light,...) apart from a burglar-alarm which was merely there for financial reasons. My historian heart was bleeding...
The other characters were so cliché without even having to play their part to the full: you had the bad guy because his teeth were too white and his skin too dark, the friend who didn't want to get older and tried to seduce men, the typical homosexual snob who surrounded himself by beauty, the autistic chess-player who didn't want to win, etc.
And please, please, please, would anyone explain to me why the main character was such a compulsive smoker and coffee-drinker? Till the end I hoped something would come up that might have given this a reason, but it turned out is was just a gimmick.
I didn't much like the book as I thought the story would have benefited a lot from a better cast of characters and a lott less clichés and loose ends. A pity really as the story was okay (although I saw where it was headed to after having read about 50 pages) and had potential. But hey, let's not be too negative, as a summer-read it's okay.

I went to the library and picked up:
- De tocht van de olifant (The Elephant’s Journey) by José Saramago (thanks to LT-rec.). I read it is due to come out in the US in september 2010. How strange, my library had it since july 2009...
- The sea by John Banville
- The boy in the striped pyjamas by John Boyne (thanks to LT-rec.)

I'll be very interested in knowing your impressions of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.

#72 I'm sorry The Flanders Panel wasn't as enjoyable as you hoped. Hopefully one or more of your new library books will be better - I don't know any of them, though I've had quite a few people recommend The boy in the striped pyjamas.

>73 Trifolia: The boy in the striped pyjamas by John Boyne is an interesting story - let us know, what it does to you.

46. The boy in the striped pyjamas by John Boyne
I just finished the book. I thought it was amazing! It was recommended by Pbadeer who suggested not to read any reviews beforehand. He was right. It's such a beautiful story. I see why some people think it's naive, but I think they may miss the point. It's more like a fairy-tale, but then without the "happily ever after". I loved the point-of-view of the little boy and what it did to the story.
Comparing my nr. 46-read to my nr. 45-read, I think I may have read one of the best and one of the worst books in one day. Highly recommended although I think most 75 Book Challengers have read it already?).

>>77 Trifolia: - I'm glad you liked Boy in the Striped Pajamas. I'm not sure how "mainstream" it is - I guess there was a movie of it. It's great you were able to read it from such a fresh perspective. I admit that initially I missed the point (since I DID know about the book) and I thought the boy was a moron. Once I realized what the author was doing, I tried to step back and look at it from the boy's perspective without the whole "omniscient reader" thing going on. I'm not sure when it would have "clicked".

You mention the "fairy tale" aspect of it. It made me think of Briar Rose by Jane Yolen. Following the same them, there is still the air of mystery to that tale, but even knowing a little about it going in doesn't prepare you for where the book goes.

#72: How disappointing! I read one of Perez-Reverte's books earlier this year and really liked it, but it sounds as if I can skip that one.

#77: I liked The Boy in the Striped Pajamas too. I read the book before I saw the film version. I think the reason the 'fairy tale ' quality of the book really works is because of the age of the boy - he is still at the age that believes in magic.

#78-79. The book sunk in a bit today and I must say I think it's one I'll cherish. It hit me this morning *SPOILER ALERT* that a lot of the book evolves round the "costume"-thing which is pointed out when the little boy remembers that when his grand-mother wanted him to dress in the proper costume for a little show, she said that when you wear a costume, you become that person. That goes for his father, Hitler, the doctor/servant, the soldier, the servant Maria, and of course right till the end when the boy wears his own costume. I guess it's very much the same in real life.
I liked the boy. He may have been a moron, but then children accept things rather easily as they have nothing else to go on. Everything is new to them as they lack the history and references of a lifetime and like Stasia said, at that age they believe in magic (hey, I believed in Santa Claus till I was 9 and maybe would still have believed in him had my mother not told me the shocking news :-)).
I also liked the fact that, although his main character being naive, the author managed to have the boy paint a very clear picture of all the other characters and their speficic ways and behaviour.
Actually, I only wanted to dwell on this book a little longer because it's so lovely.

# 79. Did the main character also smoke and drink so much in the Perez-Reverte-book you read?

>>80 Trifolia: - Santa Claus isn't real?!?!? ***off to write to the Easter Bunny to confirm***

I didn't mean to come off harsh by calling him a moron (gee, why would anyone take that the wrong way). It was just the case that I was thinking the boy should have known more of what was going on because WE knew what was going on. And I did love the book, but based on some of these comments, it reinforces the idea that the boy needed to be a year or two younger. Nine going on ten, when your father is in the military, should have made him a little more jaded than this boy was. (Maybe that's more an insight into my jaded side.) But I don't think any of the story would have needed to change had the author just made him 7, an even more magical and naive time.

And I completely agree with your thought that the book was still sinking in after you finished. I read it weeks ago and still find myself thinking about it.

I didn't mean to come off harsh by calling him a moron (gee, why would anyone take that the wrong way). No, no, no, I didn't take that the wrong way. I guess my abilities to express myself in English aren't as subtle as I would like to. Actually, I completely agree with you.
And even so, everybody's entitled to his own opinion. That being said, it also happens to me that I find a character rather nice at first, but then start to get annoyed during or even after I've read the book or vice versa. I guess it all belongs to the pleasures of reading. Thanks for the comments, btw.

Hi Monica, what a great reading year you're having! I loved your review of Salka Valka. I loved Independent People when I read it a few years ago, so this is one I'll definitely try to find. I was also profoundly disappointed in The Flanders Panel. The ending (and in particular, the motive,) was particularly bad!

Thanks Anne, for stopping by and for your nice comments. I agree I'm having a great reading-year and that's all due to LT and its members who broadened my book-horizon immensely. I find recommendations very useful and the challenges, well, challenging. I did love Salka Valka a lot and hear Independent People is even better so I went to the book-shop yesterday and bought a copy. It'll be interesting to compare the two.

Hi Monica! Wow, I can see you've been busy lately. Glad you liked the book by Arto Paasilinna:) I'm adding the icelandic book to my list too, thanx for the recommandation.

47. José Saramago. De tocht van de olifant / The Elephant’s Journey
What can I say about this book that does it justice? It's witty, funny, ironic, weird, special and delicious, in other words, I liked it. I can't really compare it to any other book I've read. Basically, it's the story of the transport of an elephant from Portugal to Austria in the 16th century, but the way in which Saramago portrays this journey is exquisite. The author mingles with his characters, creeps into their heads and adresses the reader at the same time, which gives the story a nice twist. The strange way in which capital letters and punctuation are used, add another special touch. I'm not sure everybody will like it, because it is so strange and requires some effort as it's all about the details, but to those who like to try something different, it's recommended.

PS. Something has happened to my touch-stones in my first message. I'll look into that tomorrow, if it hasn't restored itself by then.

Great review!

48. Pierre Bayard. Hoe te praten over boeken die je niet hebt gelezen / How to Talk About Books You Haven’t Read
I've just finished this book (essay) with the slightly disturbing title. I must admit I picked it up because I couldn't resist the title and even moreso when I read the author was a French professor who teaches literature at university.
I must say it is a strange, but eye-opening book. While it's often funny and witty, the message Bayard brings is actually very interesting. His idea of a common library, an individual library and a virtual library (this may be translated differently in English, as I've translated it from my Dutch copy) are thought-provoking concepts and may well change my view on reading and the reason and meaning of reading.
Although I often agree with Bayard as he wants us to see reading as part of a whole culture, I think he misses the point of considering reading as an aesthetic occupation in itself, the way others (or we) enjoy art, music, etc. Well maybe he does see it, but he wants us to wake up and stop reading all the stuff one has to read to be hip and instead read the books that we really want to read and make us what we are. All the time I was reading this book, I was thinking of LT and what a great site this is to achieve this goal. If you read the book, you'll probaly understand what I mean. Highly recommended (and a fairly quick read).

#88 How to Talk About Books You Haven't Read was one of my favorite reads from last year and I'm glad to find someone else who wasn't put off by the vaguely blasphemous title. Thank you for sharing your astute thoughts on it.

#88: I am obviously going to have to locate a copy of that one! Thanks for the recommendation, Monica.

#88 I'm adding that one to my wishlist too. Thanx for the tip Monica:)

How to talk about books you haven't read sounds interesting. Added to my wishlist as well.

49. Peter Hoeg. Smilla's Sense of Snow
I finished this book for my Endless Europe Challenge (country nr. 4).
A smart but socially handicapped and angry female lead, a murder, a male sidekick, a failed father, lots of leads, suspicion and suspense in an desolate surrounding... does that sound familiar? No, I'm not talking about Stieg Larsson but of this book that was published in 1992.
I wasn't really impressed: too many characters that didn't come to life, too many flashbacks, too many feelings that weren't explained, too many facts and so little reasons to keep me interested. I liked the background-information on Greenland, but after a while, it all became a bit too black and white and I really can't think why Smilla had to be so troubled all the time.
Well, you can't like them all. It's the ones we don't like so much that make us appreciate the ones we love a lot more.

>93 Trifolia:, I read Smilla years ago, and remember being underwhelmed... but I don't remember much else. Hope your next book is better!

Monica, I had the same feeling about Smilla's gevoel voor sneeuw. I never really came into the story.

#93 Just to be different, I remember really enjoying this book, which in the UK was titled Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow (so it's strange seeing the slightly different and more alliterative translation of the title). Can't remember what I particularly liked about it at the time - it was also years ago - but it worked for me then.

50. John Banville. The sea
Strangely enough, I liked this book, although it had all the elements to put me off: mourning over a lost wife, the coming of age, despair and resignation. But the way the author "painted" his book impressed me... it was sensual, rich, colourful and yet very subdued and delicate. In a few words he could bring forward a person, a scene, a memory. It was lovely.
Recommended if you like slow, intimate, "still life water-colour"-reads.

Looks like you will be reaching the big 75 this year Monica:) Your last book seems really nice, adding it to my list!

# 98 - Yeah, yeah, I'm slowly making progress (although it looks I'm speeding up these past few months), but I take care not let the quantity overtake my joy of reading. However, LT has helped me to crawl out of my narrow "thriller and detective-well" and discover many other exciting books I'd never heard of but which are all there waiting in books-shops and libraries round the corner. I'm having so much fun!

#97 Have you tried Spies by Michael Frayn? It's similar to The Sea but, I thought, better. I found the incident at the heart of The Sea a bit of a let-down, inasmuch as the book had built it up to be much more. But yes, the writing was excellent.

#No, I haven't read it yet, but it looks like something I'd like to read (even LT thinks so), so I've added it to my to-read-list. Thanks for the recommendation! I'll keep you posted.

I've read The sea some years ago, and although beforehand that I would like it, I didn't. Good to hear that you liked it!

#99 I hear you on that one. In January I made the discovery to only spend +/- 5 days in a book to be able to reach 75. I got a little stressed out about it, so I decided to take it easy and read as much as I want to. I probably wont reach 75 this year, but I will read a lot more than I did last year and I get to meet all the wonderful people in this group:) It's a win - win situation. Not even to mention the ever growing tbr pile. I will never run out of books to read, which is great!

# 102 Too bad, but I guess you can't like them all. Btw, I think it also has to do with the mood you're in if you like or dislike a book sometimes (for me it's like that anyway).
# 103 Seems like we've posted to each other's thread at (almost) exactly the same moment :-)

#97: I received The Sea from PBS not long ago. I need to bump it up the stack!

I finished My father's wives by José Eduardo Agualusa for my Reading Globally challenge (Angola). I would not have read this book if it had not been one of the only two I found on Angola that were available. But I liked it, surprisingly. It was warm, refreshing and a good read.

I also finished Berlin Poplars by the Norwegian author Anne B. Ragde. Now here's a book that surprised me! Although it dealt with a lot of grief, sorrow and secrets, it was light-hearted and heart-warming. I read it's part of a trilogy and now I'm determined to read the second one as well (only to read the third if the second one convinces me too). It's about three brothers, their father and a daughter who come together when their mother dies. The interaction, the characterization, the descriptions are lovely. It even changed my thoughts on pigs... Maybe not the most intellectual literature, but highly recommended.

#106: Well, rats. My local library does not have either of those. *sigh*

>106 Trifolia:: My Father's Wives sounds interesting. It would also count toward my Half-Assed Reading Globally Challenge. *grin*

I finished Te veel helden / Demasiados Heroes (Too Many Heroes) by Laura Restrepo. I guess this book isn't well-known (undeservedly), as I'm the first one to add the Dutch version on LT and only 7 have added the Spanish version.
But I enjoyed it very much. The story is about a (Columbian) mother who returns to Argentina with her 15 year old son to find his (Argentinian) father who left when the boy was 2 (well, it's a bit more complicated than that, but you should read the book if you want to know the fine details). Both the mother and the father were in the resistance at the time Argentina suffered under the dictatorship in the late 1970's and 1980's. Apart from the fact that you get a feel of what it must have been like to live under such regime, you also see the difficult relationship of a mother and her teenage-son, both undecided whether the man they are looking for is a hero or a nutcase. The mother and the son aren't flat characters either: you sometimes like them, understand them, but also sometimes get annoyed with, i.e. they're portrayed very human.
It's a very well-written, bitter-sweet testimony of an unusual expedition which I liked very much. Recommended.

#109: Unfortunately, my local library does not have that one either. It does, however, have Isle of Passion which has been in the BlackHole for a while now. I will bump it up! Thanks for the inadvertant reminder, Monica.

I finished Linda Olsson's Astrid and Veronika. My sentimental part liked the book, but my rational side kept shouting at me: "Cliché, flat characters, the author made a list of everything that could go wrong in a woman's life, split it up over two characters, summed them up as flashbacks and put a sauce of landscape, nature and sentiment over it". I know, it sounds nasty but that's how my rational side reacted. Too many threads that weren't picked up, too easy a setting to work out. It didn't surprise me to read that the author had written it as a result of a novel-writing-course she took. Well, I liked it as a fluff (chick-lit) read for a lazy and hot sunday but it's not the kind of book that makes me feel "wow" anymore. But don't feel sorry for me, it makes me appreciate the ones I like even better.

I agree with you re. Astrid and Veronika. I thought the writing was trite and choppy. The tone was good..it was soft and unhurried. But overall, I didn't highly recommend it.

>111 Trifolia:, I love the quote from your rational side! For me the dish was okay, but the sauce of landscape, nature and sentiment was what made it work for me.

#111: It was not a 'wow' book for me either.

Glad for the warnings about Astrid and Veronika. That was one that had sounded good to me and was on my wish list. I'm delisting it--too many good books out there.

I got Too Many Heroes as June's ER book (in English), and I'm looking forward to reading it when I receive it.

#100-101 I liked Spies very much. Do try it when you get the chance.

55. John Buchan. The Thirty-Nine Steps
A classic which is said to be the first spy-novel ever. A quick read and very entertaining if you consider it's the first of a genre, written almost a 100 years ago. Very different from the Hitchcock-movie though.

Simply stopping in to wave hi.

#117: I love the Hitchcock movie. One of these days I may even read the book.

56. Bohumil Hrabal. Too loud a solitude
A very good, philosophical book that was recommended to me by Lisa (well, I recommended The last Summer of Reason, she read it and recommended this one, so the circle is closed). I agree with Lisa that it's a very good book, thought-provoking and multilayered. However I thought it was a bit old-fashioned (which I don't mind, but it struck me) and I wasn't surprised to find out it was written in 1977. It's about a man who works in a paper-mill and is surrounded by books. I won't tell you much more as it would spoil it.
I recommend it but only if you are willing to try to look beneath the superficial layer that lies over the book and hides a beautiful, depressing yet hopeful message.

#120: I already have that one in the BlackHole. Unfortunately, the local library does not have it yet.

# 118, ~~Hi Linda~~
#119, it's a very quick read and very refreshing if you need to take a break from the heavier books you might be reading. I'm reading Skylark Farm which is beautiful, but I can't take too much at a time because it's one of the most heart-breaking books I've ever read and I need a break once and awhile. However, it's too beautiful to not read it. Then, books like John Buchan's help.

#122: Me, read heavy books? Everyone knows I just read BC books :)

I think I even own The Thirty-Nine Steps because I loved the movie so much. I must investigate my library (when I am home that is.)

I've seen and enjoyed several film versions of The Thirty-Nine Steps and I like the book a lot, but none of them bear much resemblance to any of the others. I am probably due for a re-read of that one.

57. Antonia Arslan. Het huis met de leeuweriken / Skylark Farm
Without a doubt, this is one of the most gripping books I've read in a very long time. The author tells the story of what happened to her Armenian family just before and during the Armenian genocide of 1915. Genocide must be one of the worst things that can happen to anyone, but when it is described through the eyes of survivors and relatives like Antonia Arslan does, your heart goes out to a people you've never met. In this book, you get a privileged look into the rich culture of the Armenian people, their sense of kindness, humour, style, their ways and habits. But it's also about unconditional love and friendship, bravery, courage, compassion, perseverance and dignity. Some parts of the book are really very hard to read because they tell in detail what happened to these people, but I think, if you can stand it, it's our duty as human beings to try to understand what happened.

#125: I will add that one to the BlackHole. I read The Burning Tigris by Peter Balakian several years ago so I am familiar with the Armenian genocide, but Skylark Farm is definitely one I would give a shot since it would put a more personal reflection on that time period.

#125: I must say that your comment touched me so deeply as the Armenian Genocide has claimed a tremendous part of my history (my grandmother was a toddler who survived the atrocities in 1915 yet she never wanted to broach the subject, so books and newspaper articles and archived material were my storytellers).

It's a fine balance to live one's life fully and joyfully and still struggle with the less than dignified history that one's ancestors experienced.

In my library, I have a myriad of historical and political essays that also comprise books that touch crimes against humanity and genocides, but personal narratives are what I crave to read these days. It doesn't seem like my university library has Skylark Farm, but I'll keep it in mind. :)

Cheers,
Saro

#127 - Hi Saro, thanks for your comment. I can't even begin to think what it must be like to have a family-history so severely scarred like yours. I was (and still am) impressed by Antonia Arslan's book. The first chapter starts with an anecdote from her own happy childhood-memories which involves her grandfather and aunt. Later she goes back further in history and you discover that the grandfather and aunt have had a very different past from what you might expect if you read the first chapter. This book has made me more aware of the rich Armenian history and culture and of the fact that the pain and sorrow of people may not always be visible, but still be there. I think that the survivors like your grandmother may have wished to keep their story to themselves not to burden the present and future which is understandable, but on the other hand, everybody wants to trace down their own family-history sooner or later. I do hope that you'll find some comfort and answers in the book if you find it and decide to read it.

Hello Monica, I'm glad you enjoyed The Thirty-Nine Steps - like Caty I've enjoyed that in a number of forms (book, film, TV, radio) all slightly different. There was even a stage play recently based on it, which was I think a kind of humorous/ironic playing with the genre (I didn't see it so not sure if it worked).

But Skylark Farm sounds very moving and rather more serious. I've added that to my wishlist.

58. Kjell Westö. Waar we ooit liepen / (Where Once We Walked)
This is a beautiful book. The setting which is described is interesting enough: Helsinki during the first part of the 20th century, the first World War, the impact of the civil war between the Reds and the Whites, the gay twenties with the introduction of jazz, alcohol-prohibition, the introduction of modern age,...
Unlike many other books where characters are merely "results" of their time or upbringing who must "fit the story", Westö manages to create wonderful characters who not only have their own, complex personality, but he lets them grow up and evolve, influenced by the time they are living in, by interacting with the society they live in or oppose to, by confronting them with their friends and their family-background.
While you get a great insight in life in Helsinki, it's far more subtle and universal than a description of this society because the characters aren't placed there merely as metaphors, but they have their own psychological development as well: hope, fear, strenght, courage, weakness, despair, love, pride, ... it's all there. The beautiful and fluent writing-style of the author adds to the magic of this book.
With this book, Kjell Westö deservedly won the Finlandia Prize in 2006. It's a book you cannot help but fall in love with. It slightly reminded me of the atmosphere of Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited and F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, but then a lot more intricate and subtle. Highly recommended and one of my best reads of 2010.

What a wonderful review! I'm going to look for that one. Is it a new book? I've found a couple of books here on Amazon and at the library, but none that seen to fit the description of your review.

#131 - Can it really be so that this masterpiece (written in 2006) has been translated to Dutch and French (Les sept livres de Helsinfors), but not to English? I thought this book was translated but it seems another book of his (Lang) was longlisted for the 2007 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. Isn't there a "pressure-group" to promote translations of great books to English?

Well, just because I can't find it doesn't mean it hasn't been translated, though sometimes the availability of translated works in the American market can pitifully thin. Now that I know that it's not a new book, I'll look harder! There is a book called Where Once We Walked, but it's by a different author. Westo's Lang is the most common book that comes up in searches.

I do hope it is translated. Here's more info on the book (http://www.finlit.fi/fili/en/spotlight/kjell_westo.html) as I realize that I haven't told much about what the book is about really. It's far too intricate to even try to summarize.

Thanks!

*sigh* I am not seeing anywhere that the Westo book has been translated into English either.

59. Annelies Verbeke. Vissen redden
A short book by a young Belgian (Flemish) author about the writer Monique Champagne who grieves over the break-up with her boyfriend and concentrates on saving fish. She's invited to give a literary speech at scientific conferences in different countries but finds out she cannot forget about her boyfriend and that her struggle for the fish isn't as easy as she thought, as the reception of her speeches isn't very much appreciated.
This is a modern, well-written novel with a modern theme and a bit of humour, but I don't think it will stand the test of time (and probably won't be translated either). A nice quick read but not one I'll remember very long.

137, Thanks for your review of this book, Monica! I've read the previous three books by Annelies Verbeke (Slaap!, Groener gras, Reus) and I'm still not sure what to really think about this author. I like them, but they are all also a little strange. I might try to borrow Vissen redden from someone, as I am, for no logical reason, interested in it...

Waar we ooit liepen does sound interesting. Roll on the English translation!

Just dropping by to say Hello! You are reading at a pretty good pace...

# 138 - I will try other books by Annelies Verbeke. She has a specific style indeed, but somehow I think she might not have written her masterpiece already (although she still might).
# 139 - You could try it in Dutch, Genny! It's a page-turner.
#140 - You are reading at a pretty good pace...
Vacation, hot summer-days which prevent me from doing anything else and turning off television works well for me :-).

You could try it in Dutch, Genny! I could... but I have a Margriet de Moor in Dutch to read already, and realistically it will slow me down a lot as my Dutch is not so fluent - so it might be quicker to wait for a translation into English!

As I'm enjoying the Reading Globally and The Europe Endless Challenge so much, I'll set up yet another challenge: a Reading Through Time-challenge. I'll start in 1899 and continue to read one book from the year it was first published in for every year that follows. I'll try to pick up some classics on my way, but also (and especially) the ones that reveal more of the "spirit of times", i.e. books that were more or less relevant back then (and maybe old-fashioned now).
I've already have sorted out the first 10 or so I'll read (with some surprises for me and some I'm really looking forward to). You can check them out in my "Reading Through Time"-collection on my profile.

What a great idea for a challenge!

#143: Sounds like a fascinating challenge, Monica. I will be very interested in seeing what you read.

Are you going to set up a separate challenge group for Reading Through Time? I bet lots of people would join!

#146 - I'm setting up this challenge in the Reading Through Time-group which already exists and I think meets the needs. Do you think I should set up another challenge group?

60. Het proces-Sonderberg / The Sonderberg Case by Elie Wiesel
Sometimes a book can take you by surprise and give you a feeling of overall joy. I picked up Het proces-Sonderberg / The Sonderberg Case by chance. I had wanted to read something of Elie Wiesel and stumbled upon this one, only to find out it's one of his latest (published in French in 2008, published in English in 2010, out in America on August 24th).
This is a M a g n i f i c e n t Book.
It's the story of Yedidyah, an American theatre journalist who, by chance, has to follow the trial of a young German, Werner Sonderberg , accused of having killed his uncle. When asked if he pleads guilty or not guilty, Werner answers he's guilty and not guilty. While Yedidyah is trying to find out what's going on with Werner, he also finds out about his own identity, both physically and psychologically.
This is an intriguing story of two men who are struggling with their own questions of guilt, their identity and their past. It's a very dignified, ethical, positive book with a lot of beautiful sentences to think about thoroughly. There are simply no words to describe how much I loved reading this book.
This is definitely one of my best reads of 2010, if not the best read. Need I add I highly recommend it?

Just popping by to say hello:)

I see you liked The Berlin Poplars. It has been quite popular up here, and I have to admit I have never seen my mother so caught up in any book as those three. I hope you enjoy the rest too!

I've read Night by Elie Wiesel and was gripped by that. From that I knew I would like to read more by him, like Dawn and Day.

Thanks for this review of Het proces Sonderberg. I will be looking for it.

Another great review! I'll watch for that one.

I had also only read Night and greatly enjoyed it. I'll be watching for this to come out in the states. Thanks for the recommendation.

Adding The Sonderberg Case to the BlackHole. Thanks for the review and recommendation, Monica!

61. The Awakening by Kate Chopin
What a great start for my new Reading Through Time-challenge!
The young wife and mother of two little boys Edna stays with her family at their summer-house near New Orleans and falls in love with a young man Robert Lebrun. She finds out she's tired of her role as a wife and a mother and sets out to pursue her own happiness and not let others decide how she should live her life. She decides to stop playing her role, give up on her social life, devote her time to drawing, move out of the house while her husband is off on a long business-trip and do as she pleases while she longs for Robert who has left for Mexico because he was falling in love with her.
I won't give away how the story ends, but I can tell you this is a beautiful book with a few very interesting characters: the loving husband who treats his wife respectully and lovingly, but all in all not differently than he would treat his pet, the perfect house-wife and husband, the old cynical spinster, the charmer, the old doctor, etc.
It seems this book caused an uproar when published in 1899 and wasn't received well. Most people seem to think the author sympathized with the main character. I actually think she didn't. This book was rediscovered in the seventies as a feminist book. Somehow I think the main-character may be a role-model for feminists, but I'm not so sure that is what the author meant her to be.
Well, it seems my first book already gives me something to investigate more thoroughly.

Afterthought: although I firmly believe every person should have the right to pursue his or her own happiness, I also think he or she should at least try to stick to the choices they have made of their own free will, especially when it involves other (and sometimes innocent) people. Edna wasn't dragged into marriage (she actually went against the wishes of her own family, persisting she wanted to marry her husband), she was treated well, she had a lot of space and freedom to do as she pleased and yet, she felt uncomfortable. She could have decided to remain single, she could have pursued her own happiness within the boundaries of her own life, but yet, she chose not to. All in all, I thought Edna was extremely selfish. But what a great character and what a great book. I might add, the setting and writing in itself are beautiful and it doesn't feel as if it was written over a 100 years ago. Highly recommended.

#61: I read that one a couple years back and enjoyed it so much that I bought a copy for my library. I am glad you liked it, Monica.

I like your 'Afterthought' and agree with your points.

What a great review of The Awakening. I need to move this closer to the top of the tbr pile.

# 61 It was an e-bookread for me (:-)), but I might decide to buy it in a paper-version as well.

(For the probably one person who doesn't follow Stasia's thread, here's something that made me laugh and found very appropriate for LT-readers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhcPX1wVp38)

#156 - I think you'll like it too, Linda. I'm flattered you find the energy to visit my thread. I hope things change for the best very, very soon for you. I think the oxalis blooming is an omen that it will. Sending you all my friendship!

You are reading some great books! Very creative idea for a challenge as well...

That youtube video is hilarious.

Thanks for posting it.

62. The secret garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
I guess it wouldn't be fair to comment on this book without taking into consideration that this IS a children's book, written early 20th century. I thought this was a sweet book and I'm glad I read it. That being said, it's definitely not the best children's book I've ever read. I just wasn't taken by the story. I thought at times it was a bit tedious and long-winded. The children were far too presumptuous, acting like bullies towards personnel right till the end. Of course I should have felt sorry for them because of their losses, but I just couldn't like them, even though they did the most fabulous thing i.e. gardening. Things were far too easy ("Magic") and straight-forward (sometimes flower-seeds do not grow, sometimes rain can ruin flowers, sometimes a plant may die, sometimes boys are sick and remain handicapped, sometimes girls do not grow up to be beautiful,...). Actually, in the end I got annoyed with the children and felt sorry for the personnel who had to wait on them... Maybe my problem with this book is that it was a straight line from all bad to all good. I always like a bit of struggle in between.
Ooh well, maybe I've finally outgrown children's books (I hope not!), maybe I should try to reread some of my all-time favourites to see if they stood the test of time and compare it to this one, but having reread Heidi by Johanna Spyri and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott quite recently, I think I might conclude this book just wasn't my cup of tea, despite my high expectations.

#62 I think I saw the movie when I was a teenager and didn't like it because it was so dark (literally). I don't remember anything of it. But I have the book here, so I might read in sooner or later and have a real opinion ;)

#160: I do think there are children's books that stand the test of time better than others. Little Women will probably remain one of my all-time favorites until I die.

You know... I don't think I've ever read The Secret Garden. I know I had a copy as a child -- it had a yellow border with a pastel image of a garden hedge and a girl's back as she peeked beyond a metal gate -- but I'm certain I never read it. Wonder why that is... and your review doesn't make me want to run out and find another copy, either, heh. Maybe someday I'll try it because it's a "classic", but it doesn't sound like there's much there to be gleaned in the first place.

Hi Monica
I thought I have seen Buirnett's Secret Garden in German. I wanted to check the German particulars in LT but I can't find the German book. I can see the German title when going to 'editions' but there seems to be no way to go to German (or any other for that matter) edition. Do you know how to look at translations? Any help appreciated

Hi Monica. I never read The Secret Garden, but after watching the movie a while back, I can certainly say that the story didn't catch me either, and I see no reason why I should read the book. I hope your next read is better:)

#164 - Hi, Paul, yes, I find the language-issues on LT a bit confusing sometimes.
I found a German copy of The Secret garden on Amazon.de: http://www.amazon.de/geheime-Garten-Frances-Hodgson-Burnett/dp/3423073179

More info on the German version of the book is here: http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Der_geheime_Garten

Or would any of these ISBN-numbers do?
Der geheime Garten. / Frances Hodgson Burnett (ISBN 3423073179)
Der geheime Garten / Frances Hodgson Burnett (ISBN 3806751188)
Der geheime Garten (Arena Kinderbuch-Klassiker) / Frances H. Burnett (ISBN 3401045849)
Der geheime Garten / Frances H. Burnett (ISBN 3825176339)
Der geheime Garten / Frances Hodgson Burnett (ISBN 3401045849)
Der geheime Garten / Frances Hodgson Burnett (ISBN 3806749108)
Der geheime Garten. CD / Frances Hodgson Burnett (ISBN 3898134733)

# 165 - Don't worry, Bente, I'm in the middle of two lovely books which I hope to finish this weekend. The funny thing is... I would like to see the movie, because I'm always interested in gardens. I wonder how and where they managed to film this "perfect garden"...

Edited to add I've found parts of the movie on Youtube. Eeks, it's so cheesy I couldn't even watch three minutes of that...

Simply stopping by to wave hello to you.

#167 - Waving back to you and wishing you a lovely trip and good treatment next week!

Back from vacation and trying to catch up with your thread. It sounds like you've read a lot of good books lately. I'll definitely look for The Sonderberg Case. Weisel has so much moral authority AND writing talent. I shared your feelings of The Awakening. I've read it twice now and can never quite like Edna. I have mixed feelings for The Secret Garden. As a child I always preferred A Little Princess, but there is something appealing about TSG that I can't quite put my finger on. Perhaps that the lives of the children are so independent of and, well, secret from the adults. Or perhaps the very dreariness is somehow compelling, a la Oliver Twist. Anyway, my daughter seems to feel the same way because she has read or watched it several times now. P.S. I found a beautiful edition illustrated by Graham Rust that highlights the descriptions of the natural world and is quite appealing.

#Hi Lisa, I hope you had a great vacation. Thanks for stopping by. I think you'll enjoy The Sonderberg Case. I'm still pondering on The Secret Garden. I feel I'm doing it nog justice by criticising it too much, because I think it was a good book in its own time. Also reading it in an e-book-version, may be - in this case - a bit like putting plastic flowers in your garden. I'll try to get my hands on an illustrated version. It might do the "Magic" then :-).

Oh, don't get me wrong--like most adults, I think the kids are very self-centered and rude. But sometimes there is something appealing about that none-the-less, especially when you are a kid. :) That and the desire to exclude or ignore adults.

I'm trying to think of other books like that. Roald Dahl's books are caricatures of situations like The Secret Garden: the adults are mean, so the kids go off on their own, even going so far as to kill the adults as in James and the Giant Peach. It's just done in a humorous way.

I may have a different perspective because I am watching my daughter's reaction to these books and remembering my own reaction as a kid. However, the book still wouldn't make my list of 100 top children's books.

P.S. Have you ever wondered why so many kids like books about orphans?

I enjoyed The Secret Garden when I read it as a child, but I remember being surprised at how mean the children were in the beginning. My parents raised me to be polite and I was shocked that these kids could get away with that. :)

#171 - I see what you mean and I agree. I always found the child that stood up against the adult very appealing. I might have liked the characters better if the author had not stressed the fact that they were "contrary" or "behaving like a raja" ever so often. It's like an old-fashioned teacher who points out every five minutes that a "good girl or boy shouldn't behave like this". To me the best exemple of an independant child was Pipi Longstocking. Now thát is a lively child that did things people didn't approve of but you couldn't but like her. I also liked Roald Dahl's characters. It's getting clearer to me now that the author really did her characters wrong by presenting them the way she did. I guess Roald Dahl or Astrid Lindgren would have done this differently. Thanks for helping me to clear this out.
And yes, I've wondered about the orphan-thing too. Maybe it's because it allows children to end up in a happy home as they always seem to do and then live happily ever after. Ofcourse, the happily ever after doesn't continue with telling about home-work, bullying class-mates, boring teachers, sickness, pain, not achieving the goals and dreams you set and the other issues of life, i.e. growing up in real life.

63. Purge by Sofi Oksanen
This is the story of Aliide Truu, an Estonian old woman, who finds the young, desperate Zara at her doorstep. Reluctantly, she takes her in but it soon becomes clear that both have their own deep, dark secrets and both are afraid of what the other might be or might do.
Slowly, the history of both Aliide and Zara unravels: Aliide isn't simply the sweet, pitiful old lady who cares for her fruit and herbs. After the war, she did nothing to prevent her sister Ingel and niece from being deported because of Ingel's husband Paul who went into hiding after having sympathized with the Germans. Aliide, while being married to Martin, a communist, kept Paul in hiding, hoping he would fall in love with her. Now, she's a widow and alone.
When Zara shows up, she's very afraid the truth about her past may come out.

Zara has her own problems. She's the grand-daughter of Ingel and has fallen into the hands of sex-trafficking men. While visiting Estonia, she manages to flee to her great-aunt's house.

The story is told very psychologically. A lot happens but it's all seen and told through the eyes of Aliide who's very reticent and Zara who's traumatized by the brutal sex-abuse. In between, there are diary-fragments from Paul.

Although this story has a lot to offer, I think the story of Zara was one too many and not really necessary to add to Aliide's story. Sometimes it felt a bit overdone with too many explicit scenes of sex-abuse and violence. I also think that the end, however brilliant in itself, was presented too fast and a bit over the top, especially if you take into consideration the pace in which the first two thirds of the book were presented. Also, the book would have benefited from creeping into the head of Ingel herself instead of her grand-daughter who was too ignorant to really add to Aliide's story.

So, all in all, this book has some flaws but it's still brilliant enough to make this one of my better reads of 2010 and recommend it to anyone who's willing to make the effort of reading every single word of this book very carefully, as every word is important.

>166 Trifolia: Thanks so much; I find German books on KIT-Bibliothek http://www.ubka.uni-karlsruhe.de/kvk.html there I can check most German, Swiss, Austrian library catalogs, including Amazon and second hand book sites, in addition most of the European national libraries, and those of Australia, Israel, Kanada and USA - very useful

I wanted to know if you know any possible way to an editions search in LT- there is apparenty none (only ISBNumbers)

I have Der kleine Lord by Burnett but I can't remember much, and I guess, that I have read The secret garden as a child.

Nice review of Purge, JustJoey (I was looking for your review to give it a thumbs up, but didn't find it). I'm pretty squeamish when it comes to violent imagery, so I'll definitely pass on reading it.

64. Zuidstraat by Denis Henriquez
This book is a collection of stories about the people living on Zuidstraat in Oranjestad on Aruba in the 1940-1950's. The author has a very fluent, witty, swift style. There isn't a real plot or storyline. Each chapter tells a different story, which gives an insight in what life must have been like then and there. We get to know more about the two schoolboys having a crush on a nanny, about the Portuguese man who falls in love with an Aruban woman, about the laidback Dutchman Johannes who marries Catharina but who cannot live up to the expectations of his father-in-law who is a businessman, about the uncle who's been all over the world and now is back in Aruba, etc. It's a heart-warming book with splashes of joie-de-vivre, sadness, togetherness, love, friendship, homesickness,... Recommended, but regretfully only for those who can read Dutch.

#176 - No, apart from the "Editions"-link on the left-handside of the LT-page with the ISBN (http://www.librarything.com/work/2770555/editions/58260511), there seem to be no specific references for editions.

# 177 - Such a pity, because you might scroll over the violent Zara-parts as they do not really add to the story (adding this as a little PS on my post to read every word). Btw, I added the review on the LT-page.

@178, Zuidstraat is placed on my wishlist, sounds good. I've been living in Suriname for 4 months during my internship as a student, and as life there fascinated me, the mix of Dutch history and South American behaviour, I also got interested in the Dutch Antilles. Hope to visit them once.

#178: Oh, well. I cannot read Dutch so I cannot put that one in the BlackHole :(

65. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
What a sweet little book! The story is well-known to 75'ers: Queen Elizabeth II of England finds a bibliobus at her ktichen-door and feels obliged to lend a book. Then she gets hooked on reading. This worries her staff, the consequences are hilarious. I liked this book because it was light and witty. Also I recognize myself and many of my fellow-readers who can't stop reading and always try to find ways to find extra reading-time and space. And of course the ways the Queen sorts out her reading-list sound familiar. Very cute and very much recommended for a light, quick and agreeable read.

I agree! The Uncommon Reader is a delightful book!

66. Barnsteen by Guido Van Heulendonk
Flemish writers seem to have a tendency to choose depressed, frustrated young males for their main characters. This book is no exception. Dorian, the Flemish 30-something son of a right-wing politician and a left-wing poetress, tries to come to terms with the suicide of his mother. We find out he's at sick-leave because of an apparent depression when he decides to go to Latvia to find out about his mother's lover. In Latvia, he gets to know a student-guide Ineta, much like "Natalie" in Gilbert Becaud's song. She tells him about Latvia and its history. They end up in the hotel, the former Lieven family estate Mežotne, where his mother is supposed to have had her affair and where he tries to resist to fall in love himself. He then goes back to Belgium but returns later that year to Latvia to execute his plans.
The book is laden with cryptic information of Belgian politics (which probably should give it a feeling of topicality), Latvian history (but too little to really be worthwhile), Dorothea Lieven (who's supposed to have had an important role in creating Belgium, although I'd never heard of her, but again, too cryptic and little to be interesting). The story itself is flimsy, misty and a bit dreary although there's nog doubt the author knows how to write. He does a wonderful job, but unfortunately it feels as if his story let him down. There is far too much information that doesn't stick together, too many details that do not lead to anything, promising threads that aren't worked out properly, although it may ofcourse have been the author's intention as a way of emphasizing the confusion of Dorian. Maybe the merit of this book to me is that it has enticed me to read more about this Dorothea Lieven and Latvia in general and to pursue other books by this author because I do like his writing-style.
Probably only available in Dutch as well, I'm afraid.

Here's a link to Natalie (to cheer you up after this depressing review), a lovely old-fashioned love-song written in the sixties, when Cold War was dead-cold: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asAepCRxpek&feature=related

Nice review of Barnsteen, JustJoey.

Have you read De verwondering (Wonder) by Hugo Claus? I'll probably read it in the near future, as it was published by Archipelago Books in the US last year. Which recent authors and works of Belgian literature (hopefully translated into English) would you recommend?

#182: I am glad you enjoyed that one, Monica!

# 185 - Well, I'm not a huge fan of Hugo Claus, to put it mildly. It probably has something to do with overkill at high-school and my natural reservation on authors who are praised even before they have published their books. But he's regarded as one of the best, if not the best Belgian writer, and probably the one whose books were translated the most. I'll have to think about others who are 1. worth your while and 2. translated in English. Not an easy job...

#174 Pippi Longstocking *is* on my top 100 children books. I agree that it is much better reading than The Secret Garden.

I added The Purge to my list. Thanks for the review.

#187: The only other Belgian novelists I've heard of (besides Georges Simenon) are Marguerite Yourcenar and Amélie Nothomb. I'll have to ask my friend's wife, who is originally from Liège, about this, too; she tends to prefer British literature, though.

Re Zuidstraat--I wish I could read Dutch. I was born in Aruba, and lived there through-out the 1950's and 1960's. My mother was born there in 1930, and lived there til the 1960's. I know it would make me very nostalgic.

67. De werkplaats van de duivel (Chilly Land) by Jáchym Topol
What an awesome book. In short it deals with the heartbreaking question of the moral aspect of commercially exploiting war-tourism and tourists who are emotionally vulnerable and traumatized. The main character grows up in Theresienstadt, the concentration camp north of Prague. When the town falls into decay, a survivor of the camp, Kops, is determined to save it. He is helped by the main character who just wants a place to live and by some foreign tourists who are emotionally involved and looking for some answers. Kops manages to raise funds which attract more tourists, much to the the dislike of the officials who are not happy with it. Eventually, Kops and his "commune" that is formed around him are defeated, but the main character is asked by a couple of Belarussians to come to their country and help develop tourism for their killing-fields which are far less known but involved much more people. They intend to start a museum in Chatyn called "the Devil's work-place" that should overshadow all other tourists-attractions of that sort. While Italy has the sea and the paintings, Thailand the sex and Holland the cheese and clogs, Belarus will have its horror-tourism. What follows is an incredible journey to the horrors of genocide-tourism.

In this book the reader is faced with the question if it's morally right to exploit this kind of tourism, but it also deals with the right and the reason of remembering the victims and their relatives. Do we really need to go all the way in showing the horrors, use oral history and mummification as part of reviving history?
I'm a historian myself and I live in "Flanders Fields" where I'm used to the many graveyards with victims from the first World War. I've also visited the Menin Gate in Ypres where The Last Post is held every evening lots of times. To me, the graveyards and the memorials are places to reflect on the horrors of war. But I have not visited the war museum because I do not need to see, hear, smell and feel the horror to know it was horrible. I'm reluctant to visit places like Theresienstadt because I'd feel like an intruder, a voyeur and I don't think it would make me a better person if I saw this with my own eyes. Maybe some people do need to see everything with their own eyes, but not me. I prefer a bit of reticence. It is very important to remember, but not at all costs. So, I'm very glad Jáchym Topol dared to write about the frenzy of war-tourism in all its aspects. Highly recommended.

>>191 Trifolia: - what a great review - but it doesn't look like it's been translated into English. But it will go onto my wishlist anyway, in hopes for the day that happens.

# 192 - Hm, I'm afraid this one is not translated into English either (so many good books aren't...). But don't give up hope as the book was originally published in 2009 and just started to be translated. I still don't know why we have the privilege of being able to read more books through translations than the English-speaking part of the world.

That one does sound excellent: I shall be hoping for an English translation, too.

Excellent review and a book I would definitely be interested in reading. I'm sorry it is not published in English translation....drat.

I too would be very interested in reading this one. It sounds as though the author raises some very interesting questions. I have visited Theresienstadt, and although I had a mental picture formed by the reading I had done (I've studied a lot of East European history), there was something viseral about seeing it that I could never have felt simply by reading. That said, none of the places I have visited have had skeletons, but there are lots of photos and artifacts at, say, the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. Sometimes I think that we have become so inundated with violence, that it sometimes takes "seeing to believe". Also, it is possible to psychologically read non-fiction almost as fiction, simply because it seems too horrible to believe. It is harder to discredit physical sites. However, I understand what you say too, that horror-tourism is a gruesome idea. I have seen people at Holocaust memorials talking on cell phones, laughing, and being generally disrespectful. Where is the line between tourism and memory/memorial? It's interesting to note that Jews and Israelis are generally supportive of Holocaust memorial sites. If the victims feel it is important to preserve these sites, that alone makes me think we should do it. Anyway, I hope I have the chance to read Topol's book some day.

What terrific books you're reading! It's killing me that I can't read them, too.

#197 - Thanks, well, you're not doing too bad yourself :-). Most of the books you read are books I'd love to read or loved reading myself. I somehow lost your thread, but I found it again and starred it. There are far too many books there to let it go.

Add me to the list of people wishing for an English translation of the Jáchym Topol book.

Just found your thread! I found a copy of The Uncommon Reader in the charity book shop the other day so I will hopefully get to that one soon.

>191 Trifolia: sounds interesting. The university library has a German translation Die Teufelswerkstatt - I will try to have a look at it.

68. De schaduw van de slang (The shadow of the snake) by Saulius Kondrotas
What a strange book. It had flashes of brilliance but also pages which were so boring and confusing, I just wondered if this book had been assembled correctly. It's the story of a family in Lithuania in the 19th and early 20th century. The best parts reminded me of Garcia Marquez, but all in all, after a blizzard-start, it turned out to be a huge disappointment. Which is just as well, because I just started wondering if I was getting less critical, having read all these great books lately.

#202: Finally a book bullet from your thread that I can dodge!

#202: I'll give that book a pass, too. I hope that your next book is a better one, Monica.

I hope your next book is more exciting for you!

Message 200: Heather, I think you will like The Uncommon Reader is a gem.

69. Love and Mr. Lewisham by H.G. Wells
I read this 1900-novel for my Reading Through Time-thread. I enjoyed this old-school yet witty story a lot. We meet Mr. Lewisham when he's 18 and aspiring to be a scientist. He lives by a "Schema" that ensures him not to loose a minute of his life. Then Love hits him like a flash of lightning. The rest of the book is about the struggle between his head and his heart as he sometimes lets the former and sometimes lets the latter take over. This may sound like a silly book and I wouldn't call it Literature with a capital L, but I liked it because every human being can relate to this "problem" sooner or later in life. The chapters in which Wells describes how Mr. Lewisham falls in love are superb. Set in 1900, it also touches on the rise of science, socialism and spiritism that were quite hot issues in those days. I really liked the internal dialogues and the fact that the whole story is topped with some exquisite humour.
It was also strange to see the similarity between the 1899-book The Awakening and this 1900-book as both the main characters choose for love in the end. But what a completely different outcome. I'd recommend this book as a light read to everyone who isn't daunted by old-fashioned books.

#206: I like old-fashioned books, so I will give it a go! Thanks for the recommendation, Monica.

70. Bloedband (Long Time Coming) by Robert Goddard.
I admit, I have a soft spot for Robert Goddard's books. They never let me down. Ok, he may follow the same recipe over and over again: a young man is dragged - outside his will - into a case that has ties with both his personal life and historical events. This takes him all over the world and in the end all is resolved. This may sound boring and predictable but it doesn't prevent me from enjoying the result over and over again. It's like eating your favourite cake every now and then. You don't grow tired of that either, do you?
I savoured this one also and even moreso because a large part of the story was set in Belgium. It was so much fun to see how Goddard described Antwerp and Oostende. I was actually impressed with his accuracy. I won't give away too much about the story but it involved Picasso's paintings, the IRA, the second World War, Congolese diamonds and it all came together in one single story. I don't know how he does it, but Goddard keeps my attention from page one till the very last one. I've rarely put down one of his books before I finish it. That's why now I make special arrangements to be able to read at least 5 hours without interruption.
So I recommend this book to everyone who's interested in reading a stirring book without having to do too much effort.

#206 I like H.G. Wells but I haven't heard of that particular book, I will look out for it!

#208 I think it's always good to fit some comfort reading in. Glad you enjoyed that one.

#208: I have never read anything by Goddard, so I will give him a shot. Are there any of his that you particularly recommend, Monica?

210 - It's very hard to choose. I've rated 15 out of the 17 I've read with 4 stars, so it seems you can't really go wrong: if you like one, you'll probably like them all. So unbelievable you haven't read any of his books, Stasia :-)

#211: So unbelievable you haven't read any of his books, Stasia :-)

Not really. Prior to LT, my reading scope was fairly narrow.

71. Cloudstreet by Tim Winton
This book is about two Australian families, having their own problems and peculiarities, living in the same house in Cloud Street, Australia. The story spans some 20 years of their lives. I'm undecided about this book. The first 100 or so pages, I really liked. The author introduced a bunch of characters and situations that were very promising. It sometimes reminded me of Garcia Marquez and John Irving (magic and all included), but after a while I sometimes felt something was missing. The families had their own problems and solved them or tried to adapt and survive, which is what happens in real life too, but in a book you expect some change, some evolution, apart from time going by and people ageing. Also, sometimes characters just changed without an explanation. E.g. Rose is anorexic as a teenager, but then, all of a sudden, she starts eating again. Some characters are depressed one day and then, without a real reason, they are very happy. But on the other hand, the characters are so warm and lively that you simply have to at least like the book. The compassion, the love, the togetherness of families that are obliged to live together, for good and for worse, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer,... is worth the while.
So, OK, this book may not be perfect, but I liked it and did not regret having read it.

#71 Thanks for the interesting review. I've had that viseral like for a book without being intellectually impressed too. Most recently with Life After Genius.

#213: *sigh* Another book that has been in the BlackHole forever. I will get to it. . .eventually.

72. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
I must admit I was a bit reluctant to start reading this book. Now, I just wonder why I haven't read it a lot earlier.
The story is simple enough: Marlow becomes captain of a ship in Kongo in the late 1800's. When he arrives in Kongo, he's appalled by the way the white colonists behave and treat the natives. Then he's ordered to get back Mr. Kurtz who's believed to be ill. Everybody thinks very highly of this Mr. Kurtz because of the enormous loads of ivory he's sending, but it soon becomes clear to Marlow that there's more to the man than meets the eye. When he finally arrives, after a dangerous journey on the river, he finds a dying and very disturbed man who's totally lost his touch with humanity.
This book was written in 1899, in a period when blind imperialism was accepted as the right evolution. In writing this book and depicting the consequences of imperialism the way he did, Joseph Conrad must have opened some eyes. His view is evxpressed by Marlowe who starts his story by talking of the Roman conquest of he British Isles, 1900 years earlier and it explains how he feels about the things that are going on in his days: "They were conquerors, and for that you want only brute force - nothing to boast of, when you have it, since your strenght is just an accident arising from the weakness of others. ... The conquest of the earth, which mostly means the taking away from those who have a different complexion or slightly flatter noses than ourselves, is not a pretty thing when you look into it too much. What redeems it is the idea only. An idea at the back of it: not a sentimental pretense but an idea: and an unselfish belief in the idea - something you can set up, and bow down before, and offer a sacrifice to..."
This is a very dark, very intense, deeply-layered book with a universally important theme. The very rich style and language used by Joseph Conrad only adds to the quality of this book. Heart of Darkness definitily stands out as one of my better reads of this year.

#216: I just read that one about 3 years ago or so as the girls were reading it for school. I will have to read it again soon. I am glad you enjoyed it, Monica!

#216 I read Heart of Darkness earlier this year and thought it was really good. I need to read some more Conrad.

# 218 - I need to read some more Conrad . My thoughts exactly...

I just finished Hunger by Knut Hamsun. Written in 1890, it's the story of a very poor, destitute wanna-be writer-journalist who's extremely hungry and suffering throughout the book. It's rather depressing and although it's obviously very well written, I didn't really like it. I guess it's just not my kind of book when a whole story evolves round one person, however relevant the story. I prefer interaction, growth and evolution one way or the other. But that's just my opinion. Someone else will probably like this classic a lot better than I did.

#219: I have had Hunger in the BlackHole for a while now. I guess it can wait a bit longer!

I just finished Hamsun's Growth of the Soil. It had lots of characters, interacting with each other, evolving, and it was well-written. But I didn't like it either. Hamsun seemed too removed from his characters, they seemed to be emotionless and removed from each other (which I'm sure was on purpose), and I didn't really like any of them. However, I can understand Hamsun's winning the Nobel, and that his books are considered classics.

Following the advice of iansales (thanks Ian), I read Spies by Michael Frayn. I really like this book. It's clever and it warmly and vividly focusses on what it feels like for a boy to be growing up during the war in an English village, without grasping all that's going on in adult life yet. I won't give away the story because everyone who's interested in reading this book, should get a chance to unravel the story itself. But I enjoyed it and would recommend it.
I just realize this was my 74th book this year and as I'm already reading nr. 75 and 76, I can now safely say, I'll reach the 75-books-target.

#222: I read Spies a gazillion or so years ago and enjoyed it too. I am glad you liked it. Congratulations on almost making the goal, Monica - but no bouncy guy until it is official :)

Monica
I'm adding The Heart of Darkness to the tbr pile. Thanks for your excellent review.

I read Spies a couple of months ago, and I really liked it too. I thought he captured the voice of the boys really well. I also bought Frayn's Headlong and hope to read it soon.

And my nr. 75 is .................... Unburied by Charles Palliser. I must admit I was drawn to this one because it involves historians, archivists & archives and some other ingredients that I always find irresistable: a detective-story set in an old English, small community and everything that comes with it. I was not disappointed. Although it required some concentrated reading because of the different story-lines set in the past and a rather confusing mix of characters, I liked it better and better as I continued to read. Apart from the intricate story, the author also reflected on some universal issues and insights which I found especially interesting, e.g. where he reflects upon the meaning of his life when he realizes he is middle-aged and not the young man with his whole future ahead of him anymore.
I also thought it very interesting when his characters reflected on the fact that we tend to be partial towards historical characters and that we therefore should try to find out more about our own motives in order to realize our own prejudices.
But above all, I found this a very good detective-story. Worth the effort and highly recommended.

226- I wishlisted that one - sounds great!

And...congratulations on reading 75 books!! :D

congratulations on hitting 75!

Congrats!

hartelijke gelukwensen

Happy on-going reading

Thanks everyone :-)

To commemorate the 120th birthday of Agatha Christie today, I'm rereading The Mysterious Affair at Styles and plan to read each and every book of hers in sequence, starting with the Poirot-series. I must have read most of them over the past decades, but it feels like renewing an old friendship: sweet and often surprising. I know it'll take me a few years because I plan to mix this with my other challenges and other reads, but it's something to look forward to :-).

#232: If I can find all my copies of the Poirot books, I will join in with you, Monica.

Congratulations, Monica!

232- I love Poirot - he's my favorite Christie character...

76. The mysterious affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
Now, is there anyone in this group who has not read any books by Agatha Christie yet? No? Well, no need for a review then :-)

#236: I read that one the other day too, Monica. I enjoyed it very much.

77. Het Ibrahim-comité by Koen Verstraeten
After the death of his father, Harry finds out his fame as a world-famous journalist originated from his connections with the Catholic intelligence service who gave him scoops in order to help him spy for them. Harry is asked by the same group to do the same, but then he finds out there are two other groups in the religious field his father may have been drawn to as well and he doesn't know who to believe anymore.
This is a fast-paced espionage and counter-espionage novel in the religious atmosphere. It contains all the classics of a spy-novel and a lot of incredible and amazing links and hypotheses which add to the fun of this book. Of course, it contains a lot of improbabilities too (like getting past a highly secured entrance over and over again or kidnapping a sick man from a secluded place), but it is well written, modern and sometimes witty as well. If you like John Buchan, Robert Goddard and Arturo Pérez-Reverte, I'm sure you'll like this one... if you understand Dutch or if it were to be translated...

#238: I'm sure you'll like this one... if you understand Dutch or if it were to be translated

Now that is just plain mean, Monica :)

# 239 - Oops, sorry :-)
Maybe I could teach you some basic Dutch while we are touring the LT-bus on this long journey across the world? Btw, I'm OK with you driving it :-)

#240: I am not sure basic Dutch would get me through an entire book, but it sounds like a good plan to me!

#241 - Well, a smart and well-read woman like you wouldn't have too many difficulties with it.
Lesson one might be:
book = boek (pronounced exactly the same way)
bus = bus
school = school
friend = vriend (male) / vriendin (female)
Now, that's easy, right?

I can handle that.

78. Het geheim / The Secret by Anna Enquist
This is a very gentle, sensitive book about the life of a talented piano-player told by herself and her former husband. Throughout this book, she finds out that her past and her family are not what she used to think they were. I thought this was a very genuine, literary book dealing with feelings in a very beautiful way without becoming sentimental or artificial. This was the first book I read of this author but I'm looking forward to reading more because I really like her style. Highly recommended. Originally written in Dutch but translated to English.

#244: Originally written in Dutch but translated to English.

Good thing since I never got beyond lesson #1 in Dutch :)

79. Rivier van vergetelheid / Meuse l'oubli by Philippe Claudel
This book by one of my favourite authors is so sad and yet so beautiful. The main character mourns the death of his young wife. He moves to a small town near the river where he slowly starts to get over his grief by the comforting ways of the other people who surround him. The beauty of this book lies in the fact that the main character slowly recovers and picks himself up, not because of long therapies and psychological analysis, but merely by giving it time, by walking, sleeping and participating in simple acts of village-life: drinking some wine, having dinner with the landlady, visiting the churchyard and talking to the grave-digger, etc. Little by little, he finds he's not the only person in the world who is grieving and that there is a life after having lost his wife. This book may have its flaws (the main character may be a bit too invisible in this story as a person, the villagers may be too easy-going,...) but I thought it was very comforting, very gentle and as always with Philippe Claudel, very well written in his specific, poetical way. Highly recommended.

My new thread is here