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Emanuel
Veteran Poster
Username: Emanuel
Post Number: 439
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 01:18 pm: | 
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Although I'm currently in the process of writing another novel, I'm trying to get back to reading again. Next up for me is "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I learned about it by reading Roger Ebert's review of the film "Love in the Time of Cholera," which was adapted from a Marquez novel. I didn't even realize it was a Nobel Prize Winner and an Oprah Book Club pick from 1994. I hope it's good.
What ya'll reading to close out the year and start the new one? |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 10764
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 02:27 pm: |
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I just finished reading "And It Goes Like This", an urban novel which ironically struck me as being a kind of ghetto version of "New England White". Both of these lengthy novels are in-depth depictions about black cultures with which I am unfamiliar, and both feature ruthless male characters who exercise absolute control over their turfs, while attempting to dominate the independent females in their lives as they all luxuriate in the expensive lifestyles their money provides for. One guy is the president of a prestigious ivy league university and the other is a drug lord. What occurred to me after reflecting on these 2 books was that the two men featured in them belong to different chapters of the same fraternity, because when it comes to the pursuit of wealth and power, there is a thin line between respectibility and criminality.
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Emanuel
Veteran Poster
Username: Emanuel
Post Number: 440
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 02:47 pm: |
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It's interesting that both Bellestric Press books (also Eyes on the Pryze) on Amazon deal with the drug culture. The description of "And It Goes Like This" reminds me a lot of "The Coldest Winter Ever" by Sista Souljah. I found the subject matter of Sista Souljah's book intriguing but didn't think the book itself was very well written.
It's funny how people have been saying for years that a lot of drug dealers have the brains of CEOs and business owners without the college degrees. Sounds like the two books you read further that theory.
Would you consider this book street lit? |
Yvettep
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Yvettep
Post Number: 2470
Registered: 01-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 03:07 pm: |
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Power of Babel--McWhorter
World Without End--Follett
The Meaning of Everything--Winchester (audiobook version)
Just finished The Echo Maker by Richard Powers. |
Emanuel
Veteran Poster
Username: Emanuel
Post Number: 441
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 03:17 pm: |
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Yvette,
Did you like "The Echo Maker"? I started it but put it off and never finished it. |
Yvettep
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Yvettep
Post Number: 2472
Registered: 01-2005
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 03:27 pm: |
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I did, Emanuel, very very much. It begins kind of slowly. You kind of have to go with that flow. (I think he is trying to capture the feel of the place. I have never been to Nebraska but I feel like I have been there after reading the book.) As you continue to read, different aspects of the characters' lives begin to peel away and their intertwined stories become quite compelling.
In another way, it is a very interesting post-9/11 story, even though 9/11 is not the center of it per se. It is also a story about academic life (which I have mentioned I am very interested in given my background and current job), life transitions (especially at middle age, but also at the point in your early 30s or so when you have to realign some of your dreams), and the complexities of family relationships. Most obviously, it is a commentary about personal identity that is at once highly scholarly, philosophical, and mundane.
And Powers manages to do all this while also providing an environmental commentary! I know it sounds like a hodge-podge mess, but IMO he pulls it off wonderfully! LOL |
Cynique
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Cynique
Post Number: 10766
Registered: 01-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 03:49 pm: |
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Yes, Emanuel, "And It Goes Like This" did have a "The Coldest Winter" vibe. But it was very slick and professional in its presentation so maybe it could be considered well-written street lit. |
Emanuel
Veteran Poster
Username: Emanuel
Post Number: 442
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 09:38 pm: |
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Thanks Yvette. I'll have to give it another try some time in 2008. I think I took on too much trying to read it while reading "A Dirty Job" AND "On Beauty." I ended up reading the majority of "A Dirty Job" and halting on the others.
Cynique, "And It Goes Like This" sounds interesting too. The title sounds like a book that would have a hip hop music theme.
I'm enjoying "One Hundred Years of Solitude." I think I might actually finish this one based on the first two chapters I finished today. I find it interesting that it has more narration than dialogue and won the Nobel Prize yet everyone these days says more dialogue than narration is a must. "Portnoy's Complaint" was the same, and I loved that book. (A friend recommended after comparing my own novel to it.) These rules of writing really make my head spin. |
Urban_scribe
AALBC .com Platinum Poster
Username: Urban_scribe
Post Number: 581
Registered: 05-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 10:25 pm: |
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Speaking of Eyes on the Pryze, I just finished reading that book. If you're into Urban Fiction and under 25, then this book is definitely for you. The writing is no-frills, which makes this book a quick read. The storyline is solid. I like the way Bradshaw (Felisha Bradshaw, the author) showed in a number of scenes how things can be misinterpreted, depending on who's doing the interpreting, and how that misinterpretation can lead to a whole lot of chaos. Eyes on the Pryze hits its mark, which is teen and 20-something UF lovers, with simplistic straightforward language, hip young characters, and enough twists to keep you turning the page.
My main complaint with this book is I felt that a few characters needed to be developed more. But when I consider the books intended audience, the characters are fleshed out just enough as to not overwhelm them. Plus, the book is plot-driven rather than character-driven. My reading (and writing) taste tend to lean more towards character-driven novels. FWIW, my 16-year-old son FINISHED the book in 4 days, and he doesn't like to read. This is the same kid who read the first few chapters of my novel then put it down because, in his words, "Ma, how come your book is so complicated?" Kids...
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Mochascafe
Regular Poster
Username: Mochascafe
Post Number: 11
Registered: 08-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 01:26 pm: |
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Im filming an "E-Pal" book exchange project with a group of children in Abuja Nigeria and DC. They'll both be reading Copper Sun and Purple Hibiscus and discussing the books through email and video conferencing. I figure it might be a good idea to read the books as well  Just finished Purple Hibiscus which was REALLY good. Chimamanda Adichie does a wonderful job of making you feel like you are actually there in Nigeria breathing the air, tasting the food and smelling the scents of the land. I thought it was a very bold move to play with the "relationship" between the main character and the priest.
So now Im off to read Copper Sun, not looking forward to the kidnapping scene... |
Libralind2
Veteran Poster
Username: Libralind2
Post Number: 984
Registered: 09-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 10:46 am: |
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Im going to be reading this soon:
LiLi
AN EXCITING NEW BOOK
By
Eugene Stovall
=
BLOOD AND BROTHERHOOD
A NOVEL OF LOVE IN A TIME OF HATE
PETE JENKINS’ Brotherhood saves GRADY JONES’ life in WWI France. But
when Army intelligence links GRADY to the deaths of two American
soldiers and threatens to hang him, GRADY agrees to betray PETE who has
become a high ranking member of MARCUS GARVEY’s African Legion. Colored
troops killed white people in Europe during the war and the Army needs
Negro agents to prevent Garveyites from killing whites in America.
JULIA DUNCAN agrees to help GRADY ensnare PETE but instead the Jamaican
beauty falls in love,
Blood and Brotherhood: REVIEWS
“Hurrah for Blood and Brotherhood. Eugene Stovall skillfully weaves
espionage with fantasy to create a mesmerizing, hypnotic and
unforgettable novel that approaches a masterpiece of magic realism….
The novel screams for attention, a reality that attests to the author’s
seriousness as a self-publisher.”
Moza Mjasiri Cooper
Pan African Film & Arts Festival
“What an engaging story --- filled with life action and packed with
lots of politics, adventure and fantasy with a twist of reality. BLOOD
AND BROTHERHOOD characters are colorful and brave… gang of activists
who are searching for freedom and liberation.”
Ayuko Babu
Executive Director, Pan African Film & Arts Festival\
BROWSE: www.eugenestovall.com/shop
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Chrishayden
"Cyniquian" Level Poster
Username: Chrishayden
Post Number: 5829
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 11:06 am: |
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Y'all nosy
True to the Game
Pimp
The Coldest Winter Ever
The Ambassadors
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Robynmarie
Veteran Poster
Username: Robynmarie
Post Number: 583
Registered: 04-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 08:41 pm: |
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I am reading "Nickel and Dimed" by Barbara Ehrenrich nonfiction tome about the working poor. The author goes undercover as a waitress, maid, hotel worker, etc to see how it feels to get by on $7 an hour. There is an underclass of people in this country that gets no attention at all-unless they are committing crimes. |
Libralind2
Veteran Poster
Username: Libralind2
Post Number: 988
Registered: 09-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 09:35 pm: |
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I read that Robynmarie...
LiLi |
Emanuel
Veteran Poster
Username: Emanuel
Post Number: 445
Registered: 03-2004
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 10:21 pm: |
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Me too Robyn and Libralind2, a few years ago. Good book but you get the feeling that the author can just leave the undercover life as a waitress and return to her own wonderful one. That was my only complaint about the book. I also enjoyed "The Working Poor" by David Shipler which was of the same subject matter. Both are depressing but needed material. |
Robynmarie
Veteran Poster
Username: Robynmarie
Post Number: 586
Registered: 04-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 10:48 pm: |
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Yeah, EC and LiLi "N&D" is kinda depressing, but there is something brave and admirable about those she is writing about...
Before I started reading this book I read "The Bookseller of Kabul" about life in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban. I would give that one a B. |
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