UK Book Club discussion
Around the World in 80 Books
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Jen's Around the World in 80 Books Challenge
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looking forward to seeing your books Jen, enjoy it's good fun but quite addictive.
Good luck - hope you enjoy it as much as I am!
Thanks everyone! Hope you're all enjoying your challenges (:Updated with my countries so far for 2015. Only 3! Looks like I've got plenty of ground to cover...
As promised my mini-reviews/reasons:
1. USA - Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman Capote
This was the first time I'd read 'Breakfast at Tiffany's', its a shame I waited so long because I *loved* it. I loved Holly and I loved Capote's writing. The picture of 1940's New York that he paints is wonderful, and its why I'm choosing this book to represent the USA.
2. Greece - Come Close, Sappho
'Come Close' is a collection of poems by the 'tenth muse' Sappho. Its a short collection containing 6 extracts from her work, each section covering different themes and showing a real versatility of emotion and style.
My favorite sections are 'Goddesses' and the dramatically named 'Desire and Death-Longing'. Ancient Greece at its best.
3. England - The Uncommon Reader, Alan Bennett
The Queen discovers a mobile library, leading to a book addiction that shakes the monarchy.
What more can I say? Its perfect.
Country #4: France - Femme Fatale, Guy de MaupassantAnother Little Black Classic, this time a short story collection by Guy de Maupassant.
Guy de Maupassant is one of my favourite authors, in any other author's hands these stories would be ridiculous, but de Maupassant plays and replays with themes of entertainment, human nature and death (the latter becoming an obsession in his later life), each time bringing something new. He has a way of bringing his settings, primarily the Norman countryside and the world of Parisian high society, to life.
De Maupassant writes with real style, dragging impressionism into the realm of the written word. Despite his natural reclusiveness he befriended and was nurtured by Flaubert and Dumas, (along with a number of other prominent authors of the time), I think its safe to say that if you like their work you'll enjoy de Maupassant too, but I struggle to put my finger on why, as they write quite differently, with de Maupassant's mastery really lying in the short story.
It's also worth mentioning the translator Siân Miles, who also translates 'A Parisian Affair'. She's done a remarkable job and the quality of this book is largely down to having a great translation.
Despite my membership of the UK book club, I'm not actually a native. I grew up in Jersey, an island where a song named 'Ma Normandie' has served as the unofficial anthem since the 1800's. This might explain why, despite the unfortunate ends with which many of de Maupassant's characters meet, despite those characters' manipulativeness and the stupidity, these books give me that warm feeling inside. The titular story 'Femme Fatale' is my favourite, de Maupassant's pantomime characters take to the water, and for a little while, I feel right at home.
Rules I'll try to follow:
I'll add any books I've read from different countries in 2015 so far, but not books that I read in previous years.
If I've read more than one book from a given country, I'll either choose my favourite, or the one I think represents its country the best.
And I'll try to do a mini-review for each! Which, given my track record, might be the biggest challenge.
Current total: 3 countries
1. USA - Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman Capote
2. Greece - Come Close, Sappho
3. England - The Uncommon Reader, Alan Bennett
4. France - Femme Fatale, Guy de Maupassant