BernardR wrote:I am sure that you will agree, Gargamel that the paragraph above shows a mastery of the language and the incredibly detailed and inventive description of surroundings. Kerouac obviously avoids cliches and astonishes with his felicitous phrasing------"looked murderous in the snowy grass"
You may like it, Gargamel, but I agree with Capote-
That's not writing--that's typewriting!!!
Gargamel wrote:Thank you!
And I'd say that passage supports your point.
Kerouac's more in his element when he's not poking around the political, and actually describing "the mad ones." And particularly those passages in which he's describing music, and the rhythms of his prose mime those of improvisational jazz. In hindsight that may not seem so great, but it had never been seen in a novel before.
So I think you're wrong. On the Road is a great book.
This particular exchange I appreciated.
Gargamel- You are entirely within your rights when you claim that "On the Road" is a great book. I do not agree because if "On the Road" is truly a GREAT book, then there are thousands of "Great Books"
I don't believe that and I don't think you do either!!!
I'm reading "The Star of the Sea".
It's a harrowing tale of famine in Ireland, emigration, and man's inhumanity to man.
Has anybody else read it?
i'm re-reading (as i do regularily), my collection of sandman comics
The Sandman (comic book series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Sandman was a comic book series written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics for 75 issues from 1988 until 1996. It became the flagship of DC's Vertigo imprint, and is kept in print as a series of ten trade paperbacks. It is widely considered one of the most original, sophisticated and artistically ambitious comic book series of the modern age. By the time of the series's conclusion, it had made significant contributions to the artistic maturity of comic books and become a pop culture phenomenon in its own right.
The protagonist of Sandman is Dream, the immortal anthropomorphic personification of dreams and storytelling. He is known by an array of names, most often Morpheus, but also Oneiros, Lord Shaper, Lord Kai'ckul, the Prince of Stories, the Carrion King, and, rarely, "The Sandman". He is one of a family of seven siblings known as the Endless, each of whom personifies some aspect of reality, they are Death, Desire, Delerium, Destiny, Despair, Dream and the missing brother Destruction.
A total of ten collections contain the full run of the series, and have all been kept in print. They are as follows:
Preludes and Nocturnes (collecting The Sandman #1-8, 1988-1989, ISBN 1-56389-011-9): Dream is imprisoned for decades by an occultist seeking immortality. Upon escaping, he must reclaim his objects of power while still in a weakened state, confronting a dream junkie, the legions of Hell, and an all-powerful madman in the process. Guest starring several DC Universe characters including John Constantine, Scott Free, J'onn J'onzz, Scarecrow and Doctor Destiny.
The Doll's House (collecting The Sandman #9-16, 1989-1990, ISBN 0-930289-59-5): Morpheus tracks down rogue dreams that escaped the Dreaming during his absence. In the process, he must shatter the illusions of a family living in dreams, disband a convention of serial killers, and deal with a "dream vortex" that threatens the existence of the entire Dreaming.
Dream Country (collecting The Sandman #17-20, 1990, ISBN 1-56389-016-X): This volume contains four independent stories. The imprisoned muse Calliope is forced to provide story ideas, a cat seeks to change the world with dreams, Shakespeare puts on a play for an unearthly audience, and a shapeshifting immortal (obscure DC comics character Element Girl) longs for death.
Season of Mists (collecting The Sandman #21-28, 1990-1991, ISBN 1-56389-041-0): Dream travels to Hell to free a former lover, Nada, who he condemned to torment thousands of years ago. There, Dream learns that Lucifer has abandoned his domain. When Lucifer gives the Hell's key (and therefore, the ownership of Hell) to the Sandman, Morpheus himself becomes trapped in a tangled network of threats, promises, and lies as gods and demons from various pantheons seek ownership of Hell.
A Game of You (collecting The Sandman #32-37, 1991-1992): Barbie, a New York divorcée, travels to the magical realm that she once inhabited in her dreams, only to find that it is being threatened by the forces of the Cuckoo. This series introduces the character of Thessaly, who will play a key role in Morpheus' eventual fate.
Fables and Reflections (collecting The Sandman #29-31, 38-40, 50, Sandman Special #1 and Vertigo Preview #1, 1991, 1992, 1993): A collection of short stories set throughout Morpheus' history, most of them originally published both before and after the "Game of You" story arc. Four issues dealing with kings and rulers, were originally published under the label Distant Mirrors, while three others, detailing the meetings of various characters, were published as the Convergences arc. Fables and Reflections also includes the Sandman Special, originally published as a stand-alone issue, which assimilates the myth of Orpheus into the Sandman mythos as well as a very short Sandman story from the Vertigo Preview promotional comic.
Brief Lives (collecting The Sandman #41-49, 1992-1993): Dream's erratic younger sister Delirium convinces him to help her search for their missing brother, the former Endless Destruction, who left his place among the family three hundred years before. However, their quest is marred by the death of all around them, and eventually Morpheus must turn to his son Orpheus to find the truth, and undo an ancient sin.
Worlds' End (collecting The Sandman #51-56, 1993): A "reality storm" strands travelers from across the cosmos at the "Worlds' End Inn". To pass the time, they exchange stories.
The Kindly Ones (collecting The Sandman #57-69 and Vertigo Jam #1, 1994-1995): In the longest Sandman story, Morpheus becomes the prey of the Furies, avenging spirits who torment those who spill family blood.
The Wake (collecting The Sandman #70-75, 1995-1996): The conclusion of the series, wrapping up the remaining loose ends in a three-issue "wake" sequence, followed by three self-contained stories
Interesting, sigh, to look back at one's own posts.
I see I said "may the bird of paradise fly up your nose" for no apparent reason about five pages back.
I can't explain it myself, though I presume I was answering someone in my mind - I near remember having a reason. Apologies to those who might have figured I was talking to them, as I might have been, but I can't pull up why.
I'll try to apply it more appropriately in the future.
Still, I like the phrase...
And now, I'm reading yet another soho press book, Jonathon Westermann's
Exit Wounds.
I like or adapt to just about anything by Soho Press. Lot of sharp writing within their series...
While I'm diving into the soho press book, as noted above, I just finished something quite different...
The Country of Marriage by Anthony Giardina.
Batch of short stories. All of them kept my interest. I didn't hear false notes.
The Blue Diary
I have completely forgotten the name of the woman who wrote it.
Oh well.. it is a simple time filler book anyway. Sort of a guilty pleasure love style novel.
But not entirely a happy happy/joy joy story. Wich threw me for a bit of a loop.
The main characters start out in a "perfect" home, with a perfect marriage, and a perfect son, all the way down to the white picket fence.
With in 4 chapters, the husband is revealed as a child rapist and murderer.
Quick read, good story.
After this, I think I will re-read East of Eden.
ossobuco wrote:Interesting, sigh, to look back at one's own posts.
I see I said "may the bird of paradise fly up your nose" for no apparent reason about five pages back.
I can't explain it myself, though I presume I was answering someone in my mind - I near remember having a reason. Apologies to those who might have figured I was talking to them, as I might have been, but I can't pull up why.
I'll try to apply it more appropriately in the future.
Still, I like the phrase...
Ahhh. First laugh of the day. You're terrific.
djjd62 wrote:i'm re-reading (as i do regularily), my collection of sandman comics
Thanks for this dj. I've never been able to *get into* comics. Always found they required too much effort to glean the story, though this series sure seems compelling. I really like some of Neil Gaiman's books.
The Velocity of Honey, subtitled "AND MORE SCIENCE OF EVERYDAY LIFE" by Jay Ingram.
24 chapters about the little mysteries of life and the science to explain them, or not. Toast falling butter side down is well explained, as is what happens in your brain as you approach the ATM (an awful lot). Some things that still need studying ~ why the spin of a coin speeds up just before it drops, just how many degrees of separation are there (it may or may not be 6).
follow up to a post of mine a page or two back:
The best recommendation I can give Until I Find You is to finish it, if you start. It'd be a shame to invest hours of time, simply to pack it in mid way through, because he does pull it together in his way
and there was a reason for the detailing, ad infinitum, of the main character's traumas.
Now that sounds like an endorsement, which it isn't really
it's simply that, for what it's worth, I acknowledge Irving's
craft
Not for everyone, this one.
shewolfnm wrote:
After this, I think I will re-read East of Eden.
I've never read it
Good, yes? I vaguely remember good reviews, and no negatives that I recall, from some years ago.
What makes you want to read it again?
This could be an interesting thread idea.
Tico, I just can't help myself -- I love watching Jay Ingram. I'd definitely browse his book if it crossed my desk, just for fun!
Joeblow wrote:djjd62 wrote:i'm re-reading (as i do regularily), my collection of sandman comics
Thanks for this dj. I've never been able to *get into* comics. Always found they required too much effort to glean the story, though this series sure seems compelling. I really like some of Neil Gaiman's books.
they are quite compelling reads, nothinh like any comic book you've probably seen, give them a try
It's a book on the Brain.
Interesting. I haven't read a novel like book in forever. The last one I read was pretty good but would be judged by the characters so I'll keep that to myself.
This is a bit British, and maybe not to all tastes, but is anyone familiar with the works of George MacDonald Fraser? He wrote the "Flashman" series, and I've now got a "Private McAuslan" compendium book lent to me. It's about the British Army in the east.
Fraser has also written non-fiction, military history, which I've never read but I believe is very good.
Any fans out there, or any comments?
I haven't myself McTag, nor your listing from a page back, either, but I wish I had, so I could comment with more than an acknowledgement that I've read your posts.
djjd62 wrote:
they are quite compelling reads, nothinh like any comic book you've probably seen, give them a try
dj I just might do that --- I'll keep an eye open for them, especially if you give me a hint about where you find them.
Presently reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez's
One Hundred Years of Solitude. It's early pages yet...I hope to find it...enjoyable...if not edifying (though that's a distinct possibility...wish me luck). Written in the 60's, I think, and translated into scads of languages, english among them, Marquez won the Nobel for Literature (in 1982).
The term "magical realism" appears to have been coined as a result of this work, or at least that's what I've read.
Joeblow wrote:dj I just might do that --- I'll keep an eye open for them, especially if you give me a hint about where you find them.
vertigo comics, a division of dc just re-released the entire series in graphic novel form
see
here
my previous post gives the correct reading order
Ok good, thanks. There's a Chapters at the Eaton Centre that I stroll through during lunch from time to time. Perfect.
