Reading the World discussion
WORLD TBR BOOK SWAP
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World TBR Book Swap - tell us about your book!
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Kelly_Hunsaker_reads
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Dec 03, 2018 07:07PM
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I read that James Clavell wrote this book after reading one sentence in his daughter's history textbook. That sentence said that an English mariner traveled to Japan and became a Shogun. That one sentence so intrigued him that he wrote a book that was initially more than 2,000 pages! And even though this audio book was close to 54 hours, I would have listened to many, many more pages / hours! The story was so good that I kept earbuds in, listening, for hours on end. I ignored my household chores. I ignored social media. And, I ignored my husband! Don't bother me... I am reading.
I have only one complaint: the book feels a bit too Westernized. I hope that one day I can find a book that is set at a similar time and is written by a Japanese author so that I may compare.
One of my favorite things about the book was the way he wrote that the Japanese thought of the men from the west as Barbarians, and found their names to be impossible to pronounce. I felt he tool the things that are often said by westerners and turned it 180 degrees, and that doing this little thing made the book stronger, funnier, more dramatic and relatable.
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I read that James Clavell wrote this book after reading one sentence in his daughter's history textbook. That sentence said that an English mariner traveled to Japan and becam..."
😘
Kelly wrote: "My review of Shogun:I read that James Clavell wrote this book after reading one sentence in his daughter's history textbook. That sentence said that an English mariner traveled to Japan and becam..."
His research was spot-on, imo. The Japanese were/are highly xenophobic. For people raised with the assumption that white people are in all ways superior, it's a shock to encounter that assumption turned around on them. Japanese are squeamish about adoption, for example (ew, bring somebody else's blood into our family?!) Of course, this is a broad brush with which to paint, so there are plenty of exceptions.
I'm so glad you enjoyed the book. What a story! Please do yourself a favor and try to find the amazing, excellent, stunning made-for-TV mini-series based on Shogun.
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Celia, "enraptured" makes me very excited to get to it!
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I read that James Clavell wrote this book after reading one sentence in his daughter's history textbook. That sentence said that an English mariner traveled to J..."
I am hoping to do that. I am also planning to read King Rat very soon. Another book about the Japanese = #4 in the Asian Saga, but they seem to be part of a series that can be read out of order without losing anything.
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I read that James Clavell wrote this book after reading one sentence in his daughter's history textbook. That sentence said that an English mariner traveled to J..."
Thanks for your thoughts on his accuracy. I was hoping you would comment about it!
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Review:
Jacob Reckless has only a few months left to live. He’s tried everything to shake the Fairy curse that traded his life for his..."
I don't generally read fantasy or fairy tales but this actually sounds like fun!
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Iceland
The history of this book exerts a remarkable power over the human imagination. Parabolic speech can help the trans-figurat..."
You write such beautiful reviews, Luis.
Luís wrote: "My book-review for this month: Heaven and Hell..Iceland
The history of this book exerts a remarkable power over the human imagination. Parabolic speech can help the trans-figurat..."
You are, or should be, a professional book reviewer, Luis!
Luís wrote: "Candace wrote: "Luís wrote: "My book-review for this month: Heaven and Hell..Iceland
The history of this book exerts a remarkable power over the human imagination. Parabolic spee..."
Indeed!
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I read that James Clavell wrote this book after reading one sentence in his daughter's history textbook. That sentence said that an English mariner traveled to J..."
Are you going to participate in January Celia?
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Kelly wrote: "How about you Candace?"Celia and I both signed up.
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Celia and I both signed up."
Thanks Candace. I feel like an idiot not knowing there was a page two on the thread now! Sheesh. Duh Kelly.
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Thanks... it helps to know everyone is so patient with me. LOL.
Luís wrote: "Kelly wrote: "Candace wrote: "Kelly, welcome to my world 🤪"Thanks... it helps to know everyone is so patient with me. LOL."
I am too."
We're all in this together! LOL
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https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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United States
Procreation is the basic essence of human life. It is for this reason that all human go throug..."
I have never read this one. But your review makes me think that I should do so.
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United States
Procreation is the basic essence of human life. It is for this reas..."
Well that's scary.
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Enjoyed this coming of age story about a teen in Antigua. Great study of mother-daughter relationship. Good description of school life in Antigua.
I found Annie John to be a unique heroine. Not lovable, but definitely different.
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review::
Despite the rave reviews of this book (and the movie adaption) I have failed to read it until now. I knew only a tiny amount about the story but did know about at least one scene in which a young boy was abused. That was enough to dissuade me. What a mistake that was. Yes, this book is brutal. It is jarring, difficult and sad. It is hard to digest. It made me angry. But it is also, beautiful, honest, and full of heart. More than once tears dripped from my eyes and those tears didn't fall only because of the abusive scenes. They fell for the loss of a culture. They fell for the destruction of history when the big buddhas were destroyed. They fell for a man struggling with the guilt from a childhood tragedy. They fell for a silent boy who no longer knew how to trust. And they fell for the hope renewed by the simple act of flying a kite.
My favorite books are those with beautiful character development, deep exploration of culture, and tragic, traumatic events which destroy everything ... except hope. This book has it all.
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review::
Despite the rave reviews of this book (and the movie adaption) I have failed to read it until no..."
I am so happy that you read it. I listened to this book while traveling with my husband on vacation. It was the first book we had listened to together. My husband, ironically, thought it more brutal than I did, but it WAS brutal. Thanks for the update and review.
Luis, thanks very much for choosing Dissolution for me! Here's my review:https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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Luís wrote: "Here's my review of the book of February: The Tenant of Wildfell HallUnited Kingdom
An autobiographical novel that shocked society at the time, it mainly addresses the problems c..."
One of my faves!
You might enjoy The Odd Women. I highly recommend it. The author fell from grace in Victorian society and had to live in poverty as a consequence. His books are about real life in London for the lower class. This particular book addresses the challenges facing "odd women" - those who missed out on the marriage lottery. They had few prospects, not to mention individual rights, other than prostitution. My review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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United Kingdom
An autobiographical novel that shocked society at the time, it mainly addresses the problems c..."
Glad you liked it! And I completely agree with Candace about The Odd Women. I have read several Gissing books and find them wonderful.
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My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."
You are SOOOO welcome. Like your review.
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My thoughts:
Norway completed 04/03/2019
You Have Me to Love
The author is Dutch but the story takes place on a remote island near Norway. The book is sad, tragic and upsetting. But I am glad that I read it.
Review can be found here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Luís wrote: "My review of the book of March: PoeticsGreece
One of the most "accessible" works of the great philosopher, in Poetics - defined as imitation - after having repudiated comedy ("... ..."
Wow, Luis! That is a deep book which cannot be read lightly. It's amazing how much knowledge can be gained from someone who lived more than 2,000 years ago! I hope you enjoyed it.
I finished The Waiting Years (1957: 203 pages) by Fumiko Enchi a few days ago and wanted to think about it before writing my review, which is here. It was a deeply tragic book about women who had to live within the constraints of their societal norms. It was beautifully written and well deserving of Japan's top literary prize.
Luís wrote: "Shirley (stampartiste) wrote: "Luís wrote: "My review of the book of March: PoeticsGreece
One of the most "accessible" works of the great philosopher, in Poetics - defined as imita..."
That's great, Luis! It sounded like a deep philosophical discourse. 😊
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Kelly wrote: "Sirley, I think I need to add that book to my TBR list now."I think you would really like it, Kelly. It was so thoughtfully written and so moving. These characters will stay with me a while.
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I think you would really like it, Kelly. It was so thoughtfully written and so moving. These characters will stay with me..."
Thank you so much.
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The Lost City of the Monkey God
Learned about Honduras, Lidar technology, disease, and how snooty archeologists can be.
Review can be found here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
THANK YOU Luis. 😘
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The Hour of The Star - by Clarice Lispector
"The hour of the Star" is the last work of Clarice Lispector. A Jewish immigrant from Ukraine arrived as a children in B..."
Sounds really good Luis.
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The Hour of The Star - by Clarice Lispector
"The hour of the Star" is the last work of Clarice Lispector. A Jewish immigrant from Ukraine..."
I see you gave 5 stars to The Chandelier so I added it. I need to read something by her.
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Black Shack Alley is a rich and devastating novel about a young black boy coming-of-age in Martinique. It is a book that exposes colonialism, slavery, poverty, prejudice, colorism, and financial unrest. It was published in 1950 and is based upon the author's own experiences growing up in the 1920s. For me everything about this book was new and informative as I knew virtually nothing about the history of the Caribbean.
The book takes place in three parts, each of which depict a different place where Jose (the protagonist) lives at that period of his life. And the most interesting part of it for me is the emphasis on his education and how that influences everything else. It makes me grateful to be raised in the time and place that I was as I realize all the more just how lucky I have been.
The part of the book that touched me most was the first part of Jose's life when he lived with his grandmother in Rue Cases-Negres, or Black Shack Alley. This is a group of tiny shacks located on the land of the sugar cane plantation and are occupied by the very poor people who work there. Jose's mother is away as a live-in servant, and his grandmother works the fields everyday leaving Jose in the alley to play with friends. The poverty is stark and unrelenting. But the occupants do so much to make their lives interesting and to entertain one another. This part was difficult to take due to its harshness, but was also full of vivid descriptions of people and place. I loved it.
The relationship between Jose and his grandmother is touching, warm and beautiful. She was a tigress fighting for him to have a better life. I loved both of them, but as a mom she really spoke to me. Because of her Jose was able to go to school, and he found that he loved it. His education would change everything. I often talk about this with people in the USA but focus on college, or high school at the least. For this boy it was a big question whether he would attend grammar school. That was devastatingly sad for me, especially knowing that it is often still true in many places in the world.
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A forbidden love affair develops between a Christian Arab and a Jewess. Poignant and romantic and full of historical info about war and division in Jerusalem between 1947 and 1967. The story is told by Elias remembering his life from his deathbed in 2006.
Reading the World
Books mentioned in this topic
About the Night (other topics)About the Night (other topics)
The Lost City of the Monkey God (other topics)
Poetics (other topics)
The Waiting Years (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Fumiko Enchi (other topics)Cornelia Funke (other topics)
