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After reading the book, I found the original BBC series on YouTube and watched it yesterday. Interesting trivia - the guy who played Arthur on the BBC series is the same guy who played James in the Harry Potter movies. Like "father," like "son."Originally Posted by geek the girl;4019390;
REALLY curious about The Passage after having heard several people rave about it (including Stephen King). Must check it out!
Has anyone read Still Alice by Lisa Genova? I read it the other day and nearly cried my eyes out. It is a remarkably well-written and poignant novel about a 50 year old Harvard professor, Alice, who is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimers. I can't recommend it enough; I imagine it would be a particularly good choice for book clubs.
I read Still Alice and had the same reaction you did, geek. It was so good, but SO gut-wrenching. I don't have any experience with Alzheimer's in my own family, but it felt so authentic to me. It was really hard to read, but very worthwhile.
Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.' - Isaac Asimov
I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, who said, "... I drank what?"
My grandmother passed from the disease so I don't dare read Still Alice. I want to, but fear I won't be able to make it through the whole thing. To live with that disease is gut wrenching. Especially if it's someone very close to you. I just don't think I could read the book.
I'm reading Bloodline by Maggie Shayne. It's vampire fluff, but so far, it's really good.
Has anyone read any inspirational fiction by Teresa Slack. I'm curious as to what you think of her if you have.
I dug up my post about Still Alice from last September:
I can definitely understand why you wouldn't want to read it, JavaJo. It was hard for me to read and I haven't lost a loved one to the disease. This book is even more heartbreaking because the character has early onset Alzheimer's, so she's in her 50s when the disease strikes.
Right now, I'm reading Broken Glass Park by Alina Bronsky. It's translated from Russian, so I instantly was interested: I'm such a Russophile. Here's the write up from Booklist:
It's really not as deadly depressing as it sounds. The narrator's voice and story are so compelling, I just can't stop reading.Growing up in a rough city neighborhood in Germany, Sacha, 17, is a brilliant student, the only Russian immigrant in her elite Catholic high school. But everything is on hold when her brutal stepfather murders her mother. Sacha’s obsession is to kill him, in prison or out, even as she nurtures her little brother and sister in the violent projects. A lot happens in this first novel, but more than the fast plot, it is the striking narrative voice that will grab readers. Translated from the German, the present-tense narrative nails the contemporary teen voice—wry, furious, hilarious, heartbreaking, “wired but wrecked at the same time.” Rooted in the immigrant experience (struggling with a new language, forgetting the old one), the coming-of-age story is universal. When a guy threatens to make Sacha’s life a living hell, she says, “Too late; it already is.” Yes, she hates men, and maybe she hates women, too. Her anger makes you laugh and cry.
Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.' - Isaac Asimov
I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, who said, "... I drank what?"
My grandmother started showing signs in her early 70's and she passed at age 94. It was tough. Oddly enough, at the very end, she couldn't speak but you could see recognition in her eyes. She KNEW us and I think that was worse because she couldn't communicate to us. But we were all there, able to say goodbye and for that I'll always be grateful.
I just finished Henry James's Washington Square. It was awesome. His books can be so flowery, almost soapy, but I like that he brings depth to the narrator's insights, and the characters.
Now I'm rereading Mansfield Park (I know everyone hates it, but it's my favorite Austen), and I'm starting Small Island; I checked it out because I thoroughly loved the PBS miniseries last spring, but I'm kind of afraid because it might not be as good as the adaptation. The reviews I read were mixed.
I LOVE Mansfield Park! It's my third favorite Austen after Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice. I'm really not a big fan of Northanger Abbey. As a character in Jane Austen Book Club said, "It's like 'Nightmare on Northanger Abbey Street.'"
I read Washington Square a while back and really liked it. I tend toward English authors like Austen and Hardy, but I really like James' style too.
Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.' - Isaac Asimov
I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, who said, "... I drank what?"
I finished Faithful Place by Tana French today. It wasn't as interesting as her first two books, but I still enjoyed it. I felt the characters were drawn a little too black/white this time around, but that may have been just the way the protagonist sees them.
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