As usual, after fiction I want something else. The last book was emotionally hard work, so now I need something easier. I read the second volume of Stephen Fry's autobiography a while back and enjoyed it a lot, so now's the time to step back and read about his earlier life - I have started Moab is my Washpot. Odd title.
19 Jun 2011
17 Jun 2011
Room - by Emma Donoghue
This is an amazing book, which was very hard to put down.
The story is told by Jack, who is 5 years old and has spent all his life in an 11 foot square room with his mother. It quickly becomes apparent that they are being kept prisoner and we can see how his mother has evolved ways to handle the situation. The author had a big challenge to firstly put herself in the position of such a young child. She did a very convincing job of showing how different [and odd/illogical] the world would seem. She also had to consider how these very unusual living circumstances would affect that view and, again, her attention to detail is excellent.
Looking at the premise for the story, one might expect it to be rather grim or shocking. At times it is both. At other times it is very funny. What it is never is boring. The book has an amazing pace that kept me turning the pages right up to the end. It also does have an ending; it doesn't just stop. However, I don't think I'm giving anything away when I say that there is not something horrendous waiting to bite you late in the story.
12 Jun 2011
What I'm reading
Time for fiction again and I have started Room by Emma Donoghue. The premise for the story intrigued me: It is written from the viewpoint of a 5 year old boy who lives in a room with his mother and knows no other world. I have a feeling that it won't be a bundle of laughs...
What You See Is What You Get: My Autobiography - by Alan Sugar
I was interested to read this book, as I enjoy autobiographies most when they are about someone whose life has been connected, or at least concurrent, with my own. Although the author may not have been familiar to me over all those years, the events that he writes about and his companies and products are very familiar.
The book is quite comprehensive, covering: his early life, starting in business, the rise and fall of Amstrad, involvement with Sky, his work in football, The Apprentice and his recent political activity. The strong factors, that I see all through the story, are his intelligence and clear-sightedness, along with his short temper, but he is always thinking about and relying upon other people.
I am sure that many autobiographies are ghost written. There is something about the style of this one that makes me feel that it really is Alan Sugar's words. In some respects, the writing style is clumsy, but he's not a professional writer. I suppose it could just have been written very cleverly by someone else. I choose to believe the honesty of the writing and enjoyed the book very much.
The book is quite comprehensive, covering: his early life, starting in business, the rise and fall of Amstrad, involvement with Sky, his work in football, The Apprentice and his recent political activity. The strong factors, that I see all through the story, are his intelligence and clear-sightedness, along with his short temper, but he is always thinking about and relying upon other people.
I am sure that many autobiographies are ghost written. There is something about the style of this one that makes me feel that it really is Alan Sugar's words. In some respects, the writing style is clumsy, but he's not a professional writer. I suppose it could just have been written very cleverly by someone else. I choose to believe the honesty of the writing and enjoyed the book very much.
4 Jun 2011
What I'm reading
After some fiction, time for some non-fiction and biography is always a good bet. I have started What You See Is What You Get: My Autobiography by Alan Sugar.
Imperium - by Robert Harris
I was looking forward to this book, as I have enjoyed several of the author's previous ones. It took me a while to read, but I was not disappointed. The story is broadly about Cicero's rise to power - ultimately becoming Consul. In the process I learned a lot about Roman politics and how their society was organised, all at a brisk pace that keeps the pages turning. In particular, it was interesting to appreciate that the process of law was the cornerstone of their government - much the way it is in Western democracies today.
At one point in the story, a character is endeavouring to gain some absolute power and is positioning himself accordingly as the only way to defeat a rather Ill-defined enemy - some pirates. He states: "Those who are not with us are against us". Familiar, eh? I think this was the author humorously likening the political system then to the current "war on terror".
The story is told from the viewpoint of Cicero's slave and private secretary, Tiro. This is a mechanism that works well. I was only about a quarter of the way into this book, carried along by the pace of the story, when my enthusiasm made me purchase the next volume, "Lustrum". I understand that the third and last will be published this year.
At one point in the story, a character is endeavouring to gain some absolute power and is positioning himself accordingly as the only way to defeat a rather Ill-defined enemy - some pirates. He states: "Those who are not with us are against us". Familiar, eh? I think this was the author humorously likening the political system then to the current "war on terror".
The story is told from the viewpoint of Cicero's slave and private secretary, Tiro. This is a mechanism that works well. I was only about a quarter of the way into this book, carried along by the pace of the story, when my enthusiasm made me purchase the next volume, "Lustrum". I understand that the third and last will be published this year.
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