Guardian Newspaper 1000 Novels discussion

Just started it, but loving it already :oD

anybody else joining me? :o)

Me! I just got my copy from the library! I'll start as soon as i finish my current read!

I'm just over 1/3 way through and it's shaping up as 5-Star
you do need to be able to cope with Scottish accent/dialect and industrial-strength swearing though! ;o)

Based on what I know of the film, this doesn't sound appealing to me -- maybe I will change my mind but unlikely.

I read this ages ago.

Fun fact: The American edition comes with a glossary.

Hmm...makes me nervous to start. I'll have to see what my edition is...
What were your thoughts on this, Phil?

I'm 2/3 way through and still loving it
wrt movie, there are some episodes in the book that were left out and others that were altered a bit and some that occur in a different order, but the overall "feel" is very similar
there are multiple POV's in the book though - the couple of episodes that I've read from Begbie's POV are particularly er... interesting! :oO

Generally, it is difficult for me to be sympathetic to characters who are so wantonly self destructive. That said, some of the drug induced "hi" jinxs were laugh out loud funny. I have the advantage of not seeing the movie and yes the changing narrators is at times a bit confusing. But so are the lives of the characters.

I'm about halfway now, and enjoying this read even though i thought i would not. Dave is right in that it's difficult to be sympathetic towards such self-destructive characters, but the author does an incredible job of describing the mindset of an addict. In that way, this is reminding me of Infinite Jest.

The POV switched are a bit confusing at first, but they are slightly different between characters, so as i get used to a characters brand of narration, i can recognize when switched occur.

Yes, some scenes are laugh out loud funny to outsiders, but i can imagine if these things were your daily issues, it'd be terrifying instead of funny.

I am excited to watch the movie After i finish! I've never seen it!

Oh, after reading for any length of time, the inner dialogue in my head has a strong Scottish accent. Amusing.

finished this recently and rated it 5-Stars - a true "State Of The Nation" novel if ever there was one, and a glimpse into a world I would be highly unlikely to've ever found out about otherwise
it was difficult to sympathise with a lot of what was going on, but instead it drew you in by virtue of the characters/situations/dialogue all seeming very"real", encompassing humorous, tragic and "challenging" subject matter without fear or favour and just carrying the reader along on a page-turning roller-coaster ride!

I've never read something like this before and thoroughly liked it. It's a page turner and grips you.It took me a few days to get used to the dialect and then I caught on.
There's so much going on. It's real, graphic, funny, poignant and has the capacity to shock sentiments, evoke empathy and make you feel helpless in the same breath. While I could not empathise with the characters' choices, I did feel for their states of mind and helplessness. It was ironical. One question kept cropping up - why the name 'trainspotting'?

Overall a generous 5 and I'd read this book again.

I think there's one scene where they go to a derelict railway station? I thought the title stemmed from that.
That scene isn't in the movie though!

Did you guys know they are filming T2 - Trainspotting 2 right now with the original cast? A 20 years later type of thing! I guess this was good timing for reading it!

Darren - The railway station scene, didn't think of that at all.

Kaycie -Yes agree. Reading this book was well timed. Heard that T2 is good too

"Trainspotting" is a hobby that involves watching trains go by and writing down the numbers of them. I thought the title was a reference to watching life go by while sitting on the sidelines.