Michel Faber - The Crimson Petal & The White
Having read all the way through this book, I still don't know where the title comes from. Perhaps I should look it up on wikipedia... I'm sure there is something profound in it that I have missed, probably linked to one passage within the dense continuous description.
That sounds like a complaint. It's NOT. I have never read a book with so many descriptive passages, although now I'm reading (struggling through) Vanity Fair I perhaps see where Faber got his cues from. But, a book like this helps me remember why I took History at University. Delving into historical London with such lucious description made this book so enjoyable - I very much enjoyed this book. All the characters were historically accurate - I've never come across a William in historical literature quite like this one - and engaging, especially Sugar. Her feminist outburts and lascivious novel were brilliant, although I think more could have been done with said novel. It was pretty depressing when she lost it at the end. Anyway, combined description and good plot and wonderful imagery make this a pretty gripping read.
It's a big book. It took me a long time to read. But I never lost track of the plot because it was very well maintained. I guess what also helped was the BBC's dramatisation of the novel at the same time I was reading it - I know you shouldn't watch films/television before reading the book, but sometimes it brings the page to life a bit more in your head because you have a clear picture of the characters looks in your head. I find it quite hard to conjure a face and a body out of my imagination from just pure description, so having an actor stand in and do it for me - even if they're not quite accurate - definitely helps me.
I'm going to try and read more historical books from now on - hopefully I won't have to wade through endless amounts of trash (believe me, it's out there) before I find something as good as this. The great thing about it is that it is entirely fictional, I find it quite difficult to read books about Anne Boleyn or someone like that - a REAL person - which embeds them into a story when I know it's not true. Pure, imaginative fiction, like Vanity Fair, and this book, is much more up my street. Thanks to Katie Dyer for the recommendation.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Keith Richards - Life
Keith Richards - Life
I think it's quite fitting that my first book review is about someone who, despite his amazingly crazy life, has become an idol and hero and inspiring figure for so many people just through his music. I grew up with the Rolling Stones. I'm signed up to every ticket email list possible as well as all their fan pages so that when they finally tour again (PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE) I definitely get a ticket. I know it's morbid but they are getting old now and I really want to see them tour.
Keith Richards and Mick Jagger have, either independently or colloboratively, written a song for every feeling I have ever had. I'd much rather listen to old music from the 60s than some of the trash that comes out now.
I guess from the outset of reading Richards's autobiography, I knew I was going to like. It's written in such a casual style that you really feel like he is talking to you; you see words written down that you can imagine him saying. Reading this book enhanced my personal connection to the Stones in so many ways, but even more so because Richards doesn't hide anything about his childhood. Jagger and Richards were both born in Dartford, Kent, which is not too far from me at all - I now feel a geographical allegiance to the band!
I read it in a couple of weeks because I enjoyed it so much. And it's weird because so much of the subject matter is out of my circle of understanding, like being a heroin addict or playing sell-out rock shows across the world, but I still found that I could really connect with the content. People say that when you meet people you admire they often don't live up to your expectations, but now I want to meet him and see them tour more than ever. Literally, this book gave me so much more knowledge about the Stones and showed how much there is out there in the world that I have yet to experience or even know about! The entire book felt completely genuine throughout. More than anything though, Richards's documentation of the creative process, meaning that the reader really knows where some of their favourite and most famous rock songs of all time have come from makes it an unbelievably rewarding read. This book makes the songs greater - I adore them all the more. A true idol, with such an exciting life it almost doesn't seem real.
If I ever get pets (I'd like dogs one day) I'm definitely going to call them Jagger and Keef.
I think it's quite fitting that my first book review is about someone who, despite his amazingly crazy life, has become an idol and hero and inspiring figure for so many people just through his music. I grew up with the Rolling Stones. I'm signed up to every ticket email list possible as well as all their fan pages so that when they finally tour again (PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE) I definitely get a ticket. I know it's morbid but they are getting old now and I really want to see them tour.
Keith Richards and Mick Jagger have, either independently or colloboratively, written a song for every feeling I have ever had. I'd much rather listen to old music from the 60s than some of the trash that comes out now.
I guess from the outset of reading Richards's autobiography, I knew I was going to like. It's written in such a casual style that you really feel like he is talking to you; you see words written down that you can imagine him saying. Reading this book enhanced my personal connection to the Stones in so many ways, but even more so because Richards doesn't hide anything about his childhood. Jagger and Richards were both born in Dartford, Kent, which is not too far from me at all - I now feel a geographical allegiance to the band!
I read it in a couple of weeks because I enjoyed it so much. And it's weird because so much of the subject matter is out of my circle of understanding, like being a heroin addict or playing sell-out rock shows across the world, but I still found that I could really connect with the content. People say that when you meet people you admire they often don't live up to your expectations, but now I want to meet him and see them tour more than ever. Literally, this book gave me so much more knowledge about the Stones and showed how much there is out there in the world that I have yet to experience or even know about! The entire book felt completely genuine throughout. More than anything though, Richards's documentation of the creative process, meaning that the reader really knows where some of their favourite and most famous rock songs of all time have come from makes it an unbelievably rewarding read. This book makes the songs greater - I adore them all the more. A true idol, with such an exciting life it almost doesn't seem real.
If I ever get pets (I'd like dogs one day) I'm definitely going to call them Jagger and Keef.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Books I Have Read But Shall Not Review
I am now 21 years old.
In my past 21 years I have read several books which I will not review, but I think it's important that they are included because they show where I come from before I begin my reviews. Some of them I read in school, and this post will probably be updated as I remember novels I read in my past.
Chinua Achebe - Things Fall Apart
Richard Adams - Watership Down
David Almond - Skellig
Iain Banks - Dead Air
Ishmael Beah - A Long Way Gone
Louis de Bernières - Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Emily Bronte - Wuthering Heights
Russell Brand - My Booky Wook
Dan Brown - The Da Vinci Code
Candace Bushnell - Sex and the City
Roald Dahl - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Roald Dahl - George's Marvellous Medicine
Roald Dahl - Fantastic Mr Fox
Bret Easton Ellis - American Psycho (my favourite novel to date, although it is hard to pick!)
Bret Easton Ellis - Glamorama
Bret Easton Ellis - The Rules of Attraction
Helen Fielding - Bridget Jones's Diary
F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
William Golding - Lord of the Flies
Patricia Highsmith - The Talented Mr Ripley
Patricia Highsmith - Ripley Underground
Khaled Hosseini - The Kite Runner
Stephen King - The Green Mile
Sophie Kinsella - Confessions of a Shopaholic (and sequels)
D.H. Lawrence - Lady Chatterley's Lover
Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird
C.S. Lewis - The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
Andrew Marr - History of Modern Britain
Andrew Marr - The Making of Modern Britain
A.A. Milne - Winnie the Pooh
Audrey Niffenegger - The Time Traveller's Wife
George Orwell - Animal Farm
Sylvia Plath - The Bell Jar
Beatrix Potter - The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Louise Rennison - Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging
Bernard Schlink - The Reader
Mary Shelley - Frankenstein
Lionel Shriver - We Need to Talk About Kevin
Patrick Suskind - Perfume
David Talbot - Brothers
J.R.R. Tolkien - The Lord of the Rings
Rose Tremain - Restoration
E.B. White - Charlotte's Web
Oscar Wilde - Picture of Dorian Gray
Irvine Welsh - Trainspotting
I have also read a fair bit of Shakespeare (which I love!) I am familiar with:
Macbeth
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Much Ado About Nothing
Romeo and Juliet
Antony and Cleopatra
Othello
Hamlet
The Tempest (my favourite)
All's Well That Ends Well
As You Like It
There are so many more to read and see though, which I plan to continue throughout my life.
Other dramatics I have read include John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi, Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, Arthur Miller's The Crucible, and Brian Friel's Translations; all thanks to A Level English Literature!
I am not reviewing any of the academic books which I read in order to get my degree, one of note would be David Beresford's Ten Men Dead, which was a godsend during my dissertation!
In my past 21 years I have read several books which I will not review, but I think it's important that they are included because they show where I come from before I begin my reviews. Some of them I read in school, and this post will probably be updated as I remember novels I read in my past.
Chinua Achebe - Things Fall Apart
Richard Adams - Watership Down
David Almond - Skellig
Iain Banks - Dead Air
Ishmael Beah - A Long Way Gone
Louis de Bernières - Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Emily Bronte - Wuthering Heights
Russell Brand - My Booky Wook
Dan Brown - The Da Vinci Code
Candace Bushnell - Sex and the City
Roald Dahl - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Roald Dahl - George's Marvellous Medicine
Roald Dahl - Fantastic Mr Fox
Bret Easton Ellis - American Psycho (my favourite novel to date, although it is hard to pick!)
Bret Easton Ellis - Glamorama
Bret Easton Ellis - The Rules of Attraction
Helen Fielding - Bridget Jones's Diary
F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
William Golding - Lord of the Flies
Patricia Highsmith - The Talented Mr Ripley
Patricia Highsmith - Ripley Underground
Khaled Hosseini - The Kite Runner
Stephen King - The Green Mile
Sophie Kinsella - Confessions of a Shopaholic (and sequels)
D.H. Lawrence - Lady Chatterley's Lover
Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird
C.S. Lewis - The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
Andrew Marr - History of Modern Britain
Andrew Marr - The Making of Modern Britain
A.A. Milne - Winnie the Pooh
Audrey Niffenegger - The Time Traveller's Wife
George Orwell - Animal Farm
Sylvia Plath - The Bell Jar
Beatrix Potter - The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Louise Rennison - Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging
Bernard Schlink - The Reader
Mary Shelley - Frankenstein
Lionel Shriver - We Need to Talk About Kevin
Patrick Suskind - Perfume
David Talbot - Brothers
J.R.R. Tolkien - The Lord of the Rings
Rose Tremain - Restoration
E.B. White - Charlotte's Web
Oscar Wilde - Picture of Dorian Gray
Irvine Welsh - Trainspotting
I have also read a fair bit of Shakespeare (which I love!) I am familiar with:
Macbeth
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Much Ado About Nothing
Romeo and Juliet
Antony and Cleopatra
Othello
Hamlet
The Tempest (my favourite)
All's Well That Ends Well
As You Like It
There are so many more to read and see though, which I plan to continue throughout my life.
Other dramatics I have read include John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi, Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, Arthur Miller's The Crucible, and Brian Friel's Translations; all thanks to A Level English Literature!
I am not reviewing any of the academic books which I read in order to get my degree, one of note would be David Beresford's Ten Men Dead, which was a godsend during my dissertation!
Preface
I've always enjoyed reading. I took English Literature A Level partly because I did so well at GCSE, so I thought I was good at it, but also because I really enjoy reading. There are so many brilliant books out there, and although I spent most of my teens reading chick lit (and thoroughly relishing every page, despite the lack of supposed pedigree held in these pages) university not only gave me a degree but also showed me that there is a wealth of literature out there waiting for me to read and learn from! So much has been written - authors must be the most diverse occupational group on the planet.
I started secondary school wanting to be an author. I wanted to write a bestselling novel - a groundbreaking piece of literature. My first attempts, aged 11, were typical teen trouble stories, often written in collaboration of friends and obsessed with my male counterparts. Needless to say, they are not worth note now. I then turned to poetry and my mastery of vocabulary helped me write some lovely little rhymes, rhyme being the optimum word in that sentence. They rhymed, yes, they flowed well, yes, but they were not deep. Whenever I tried to be deep I just became depressing, and out of my depth.
So, I decided that in order to write a good novel I need to do two things.
Firstly, I must gain some life experience. I could probably write a good book about teenagers, but it would not be ground-breaking. It might be amusing, occasionally well written, but I don't want to contribute to that field of work. More than anything, I know a good friend is writing a fantastic novel about teenagers (with a supernatural, but non Harry Potter/Twilight, angle). I shall leave this area to her, and focus on gaining my life experience.
Secondly, I must read more. How can I write something new when I don't know what has already been written? People come up with amazing creative original stories because original things happen to them and then they can translate them into the written word. I need to culture my imagination a little after I have lived, and reading some past and present masters' work can only help me in this. Plus I'll (hopefully) really enjoy the process. Don't worry though, I won't pretend to like every book, although undoubtedly there are good points to all books.
I don't particularly care if no one else reads this, it is a process I want to go through regarding something I'm interested in. So, what follows are my personal, opinionated book reviews. Not supposed to be works of criterary genius, just my own observations on what I have read and what I have learnt. I'll focus on the classics and more modern reads because I think the classics have a lot to teach and provide a lot of subjectual, contextual and creative variety, but modern reads are sometimes easier and quicker and more relatable. The books I read are also not confined to fiction - you can learn a lot from someone's elses memories.
And so I begin.
I started secondary school wanting to be an author. I wanted to write a bestselling novel - a groundbreaking piece of literature. My first attempts, aged 11, were typical teen trouble stories, often written in collaboration of friends and obsessed with my male counterparts. Needless to say, they are not worth note now. I then turned to poetry and my mastery of vocabulary helped me write some lovely little rhymes, rhyme being the optimum word in that sentence. They rhymed, yes, they flowed well, yes, but they were not deep. Whenever I tried to be deep I just became depressing, and out of my depth.
So, I decided that in order to write a good novel I need to do two things.
Firstly, I must gain some life experience. I could probably write a good book about teenagers, but it would not be ground-breaking. It might be amusing, occasionally well written, but I don't want to contribute to that field of work. More than anything, I know a good friend is writing a fantastic novel about teenagers (with a supernatural, but non Harry Potter/Twilight, angle). I shall leave this area to her, and focus on gaining my life experience.
Secondly, I must read more. How can I write something new when I don't know what has already been written? People come up with amazing creative original stories because original things happen to them and then they can translate them into the written word. I need to culture my imagination a little after I have lived, and reading some past and present masters' work can only help me in this. Plus I'll (hopefully) really enjoy the process. Don't worry though, I won't pretend to like every book, although undoubtedly there are good points to all books.
I don't particularly care if no one else reads this, it is a process I want to go through regarding something I'm interested in. So, what follows are my personal, opinionated book reviews. Not supposed to be works of criterary genius, just my own observations on what I have read and what I have learnt. I'll focus on the classics and more modern reads because I think the classics have a lot to teach and provide a lot of subjectual, contextual and creative variety, but modern reads are sometimes easier and quicker and more relatable. The books I read are also not confined to fiction - you can learn a lot from someone's elses memories.
And so I begin.
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