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Helen DeWitt, Olga Tokarczuk, .... I haven't read much written this century, so I'm probably not much help.
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# ? May 13, 2020 20:31 |
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# ? Mar 29, 2024 05:39 |
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derp posted:Helen DeWitt, Olga Tokarczuk, .... I haven't read much written this century, so I'm probably not much help. I liked the Ferrante novels a lot. I’m reading Atwood’s The Blind Assassin with my wife and we’re both on the same page about it dragging in the middle (we’re a little more than halfway done). Does everything pay off? I feel that my criticism is a bit weird considering I’m ploughing through Knausgaard, where the same criticism could be leveled. Unrelated, I’m rereading Gravity’s Rainbow (75 years since when it takes place!) with the Weisenburger companion and getting a lot out of it. Anyone have any good articles or commentaries about the book?
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# ? May 13, 2020 20:41 |
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svetlana alekseievich (sp.) is good too.
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# ? May 13, 2020 20:45 |
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Dasa Drndic wrote most of her stuff since 2000. I've only read Doppelganger but it was a hoot.
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# ? May 13, 2020 20:51 |
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I've recommended Oksana Zabuzhko before and am recommending her again.
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# ? May 13, 2020 20:57 |
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I've been wanting to read some history lately, because I'm uneducated. Any subject other than American history. But I want stuff with top notch prose. Any standouts in the non-fiction / world history area that shouldn't be missed? The more focused and obscure the better.
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# ? May 13, 2020 20:58 |
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derp posted:I've been wanting to read some history lately, because I'm uneducated. Any subject other than American history. But I want stuff with top notch prose. Any standouts in the non-fiction / world history area that shouldn't be missed? The more focused and obscure the better. Hobsbawn’s Age of ____ is a 4 parter from 1789 (French Rev) through around 1991 in world history. May be a little less lit-y, though. China Mieville’s October is about the October revolution in Russia. Written in prose. More political, but Naomi Klein is a good writer. The Shock Doctrine covers how the US and IMF gently caress up weaker countries and ruin their social services in the name of the free market. sorry I didn’t see ‘other than American history’ People’s History by Zinn is the standard lefty history of the US. Still a bit textbook-y. Caro’s LBJ books are really well written biography of LBJ and his pal Jumbo. Perlstein’s 3 books on Goldwater, Nixon and Reagan document the rise of the modern Republican Party. Not as good of a writer as Caro, IMO, but interesting. McPherson’s Battle Cry of Freedom may be the gold standard for the civil war. Anything by Mike Davis will be more niche. If you want something really niche, try The Great Arizona Orphan Abduction. It’s about a 1904 incident where Irish orphans were sent to Arizona to live with Mexican families (since they’re also catholic) and the response from the White settlers in the town where they end up. Shifting identities in America, who is or is not ‘us’, etc. The North Tower fucked around with this message at 21:14 on May 13, 2020 |
# ? May 13, 2020 21:09 |
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derp posted:The more focused and obscure the better. Montaillou The Cheese & The Worms The Return of Martin Guerre The Hanged Man (Robert Bartlett)
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# ? May 13, 2020 21:12 |
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Ras Het posted:Montaillou The Great Cat Massacre SPQR by Mary Beard
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# ? May 13, 2020 21:15 |
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Ras Het posted:Montaillou The North Tower posted:The Great Cat Massacre YES exactly the kind of stuff i was looking for, thank you
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# ? May 13, 2020 21:23 |
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derp posted:Helen DeWitt Ah, interesting. At one point I was skimming old pages ITT and saw a few good comments about The Last Samurai, but I overlooked the author. I'll look more into this book.
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# ? May 13, 2020 21:23 |
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derp posted:YES exactly the kind of stuff i was looking for, thank you French people were hosed up in the best way. Literature chaser could be Gargantua & Pentagruel. For history-history, I can’t recommend Hobsbawm enough, though. He covers arts, as well.
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# ? May 13, 2020 21:25 |
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Hobsbawm is good but he's usually grand, sweeping, the machine of history-y
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# ? May 13, 2020 21:47 |
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I would second Hobsbawm's Age of series. He's widely referenced, particularly among marxists, and he includes sections on historical trends evident in and driving art, literature, etc. I'm reading Fossil Capital by Andreas Malm about the historical materialist development of climate change, and he references a book on literary criticism and Teju Cole in the first ten pages.
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# ? May 13, 2020 21:51 |
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derp posted:I've been wanting to read some history lately, because I'm uneducated. Any subject other than American history. But I want stuff with top notch prose. Any standouts in the non-fiction / world history area that shouldn't be missed? The more focused and obscure the better. Marc Bloch's The Royal Touch (or, to use the much cooler French title, Les Rois thaumaturges) deals with a completely bizarre part of the royal mystique in Western Europe and is one of the first works of modern history. It's very good.
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# ? May 13, 2020 22:26 |
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derp where are you from again? you should absolutely give Antonio Scurati's novel about Mussolini a go if it's available in a language you can read (the english translation isn't out yet iirc)
Lex Neville fucked around with this message at 22:33 on May 13, 2020 |
# ? May 13, 2020 22:28 |
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Ras Het posted:Montaillou Have you read any Alain Corbin? Based on this list I think you might dig him.
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# ? May 13, 2020 22:39 |
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Lex Neville posted:derp where are you from again? you should absolutely give Antonio Scurati's novel about Mussolini a go if it's available in a language you can read (the english translation isn't out yet iirc) I'm in the US (seattle area) so sadly i can only read english and some very basic spanish (like, children's story basic).
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# ? May 13, 2020 22:49 |
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derp posted:I've been wanting to read some history lately, because I'm uneducated. Any subject other than American history. But I want stuff with top notch prose. Any standouts in the non-fiction / world history area that shouldn't be missed? The more focused and obscure the better. If you’re open to works looser with fact and more focused on impressionistic narratives that capture the “then and there” feeling of events, I would highly recommend Ryszard Kapuscinski. Only has maybe six slim books translated into English, but all are wonderful and often lyrical firsthand(ish) accounts of slices of history in developing nations.
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# ? May 13, 2020 23:25 |
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MystOpportunity posted:If you’re open to works looser with fact and more focused on impressionistic narratives that capture the “then and there” feeling of events, I would highly recommend Ryszard Kapuscinski. Only has maybe six slim books translated into English, but all are wonderful and often lyrical firsthand(ish) accounts of slices of history in developing nations. those look right like they are just my kind of thing, thanks
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# ? May 13, 2020 23:56 |
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Mokelumne Trekka posted:This sounds cool and it did remind me of something I thought this thread could answer. I'm partial to Jennifer Egan.
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# ? May 14, 2020 00:22 |
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derp posted:I've been wanting to read some history lately, because I'm uneducated. Any subject other than American history. But I want stuff with top notch prose. Any standouts in the non-fiction / world history area that shouldn't be missed? The more focused and obscure the better. Sham bam bamina! fucked around with this message at 00:42 on May 14, 2020 |
# ? May 14, 2020 00:39 |
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ulvir posted:svetlana alekseievich (sp.) is good too. alexievich is great. more people should read war's unwomanly face and secondhand time.
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# ? May 14, 2020 00:41 |
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As long as we're on literary non-fiction, what's some good poetic nature writing? Something like Eugčne Marais or J.A. Baker.
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# ? May 14, 2020 01:55 |
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ali smith's four seasons (well, three atm) are very funny and good middlebrow lit e. re contemporary female authors
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# ? May 14, 2020 07:47 |
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lost in postation posted:Have you read any Alain Corbin? Based on this list I think you might dig him. No and there isn't any available on Wordery so you'll have to remind me again post-corona or find me another bookshop
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# ? May 14, 2020 08:36 |
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derp, Just thought of another: The Berlin to Baghdad Railway. A series of goof-em-ups by German failsons during WW1. Will the Germans complete their railway? Will they ignite a pan-Islamic jihad against the British, from India to Egypt? Will anyone take them seriously?
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# ? May 14, 2020 08:51 |
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Mokelumne Trekka posted:This sounds cool and it did remind me of something I thought this thread could answer. Jennifer Weiner jk Valeria Luiselli is p. dope and the Gilead Trilogy by Marilynne Robinson is probably the pinnacle of American Fiction of this century
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# ? May 14, 2020 14:04 |
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The North Tower posted:derp, Just thought of another: The Berlin to Baghdad Railway. A series of goof-em-ups by German failsons during WW1. Will the Germans complete their railway? Will they ignite a pan-Islamic jihad against the British, from India to Egypt? Will anyone take them seriously? This looks cool, thanks!
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# ? May 14, 2020 16:22 |
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Bandiet posted:As long as we're on literary non-fiction, what's some good poetic nature writing? Something like Eugčne Marais or J.A. Baker. This 19th century guy Richard Jefferies wrote some good stuff about the English countryside, check out 'The Gamekeeper at Home'(it's on gutenberg with all his other works)
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# ? May 14, 2020 20:32 |
spqr is bad and only became famous due to a massive media and ad push by the publishers
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# ? May 14, 2020 23:12 |
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Bandiet posted:As long as we're on literary non-fiction, what's some good poetic nature writing? Something like Eugčne Marais or J.A. Baker. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek if you haven't read it. She quotes a lot from Jean-Henri Fabre and while idk if I would call him poetic his insect books are very cool too.
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# ? May 14, 2020 23:20 |
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derp posted:I've been wanting to read some history lately, because I'm uneducated. Any subject other than American history. But I want stuff with top notch prose. Any standouts in the non-fiction / world history area that shouldn't be missed? The more focused and obscure the better. Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Gibbons is often wrong but it's got sick burns aplenty Memoirs from Beyond The Grave is lovely John Mchphee is great but it's American history If you want obscure micro-histories Tim Robinson's Stones of Arran books are fantastic Ian Sinclair if you want eliptical walking histories of London.
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# ? May 15, 2020 10:15 |
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Mel Mudkiper posted:after the first chapter you are gonna have a question and you are gonna read the whole book for an answer to that question and I am telling you right now there is not an answer to that question I'm about 50 pages in and doing my best to read slowly and follow the text the best I can but I'm not sure what question I'm supposed to have? Why did Hal collapse during the interview??
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# ? May 15, 2020 12:31 |
TrixRabbi posted:I'm about 50 pages in and doing my best to read slowly and follow the text the best I can but I'm not sure what question I'm supposed to have? Why did Hal collapse during the interview?? Yeah or just more broadly what happened to Hal?
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# ? May 15, 2020 12:37 |
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Infinite Quest.. for a better book!
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# ? May 15, 2020 12:55 |
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speaking of pointless mysteries that never get resolved because the author trusts that 'i dont know this thing' is compelling in and of itself, sword of the lictor and citadel of the autarch might actually be good. they still have exactly the same problems as shadow & claw and its not worth reading the entire book of the new sun for, but the density of fun ideas has ramped up. i like the ascians.
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# ? May 15, 2020 13:35 |
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The best part of those books was when that little kid gets zapped by the cursed Mt Rushmore head and Severian just shrugs and moves on.
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# ? May 15, 2020 14:38 |
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mdemone posted:Yeah or just more broadly what happened to Hal? the reefer madness got 'im
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# ? May 15, 2020 15:05 |
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# ? Mar 29, 2024 05:39 |
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cest moi liking Shadow and Claw is such a reversal of everything I thought I understood
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# ? May 15, 2020 15:20 |