What Book Are You Currently Reading ... (And Why)?

[Redvee]

Currently reading Cycling to the South Pole: A world first by Maria Leijerstam. Followed the journey on social media and only knew about the book when she tweeted about it. Next on the shelf to read is A Captain's Duty by Richard Phillips which the film Captain Phillips starring Tom Hanks was based on, sat down to watch the film a week or two back and the announcer mentioned the film was based on the true story and book so I had ordered the book before the opening credits had finished.

[[XAP]Bob]

Currently reading Cycling to the South Pole: A world first by Maria Leijerstam. Followed the journey on social media and only knew about the book when she tweeted about it. Next on the shelf to read is A Captain's Duty by Richard Phillips which the film Captain Phillips starring Tom Hanks was based on, sat down to watch the film a week or two back and the announcer mentioned the film was based on the true story and book so I had ordered the book before the opening credits had finished.

Ooh - did she write a book... I must look that up somewhere....

[Cyril Haearn]

I have nearly finished "Buddenbrooks" by Thomas Mann, in German of course. Started a couple of years ago, only 30 pages left but when I will read them
It is a bit heavy and long but there is a lot of humour too, it is good if one knows the places
Some of Thomas Manns later books are much heavier apparently

Guenter Grass is good too

Both won the Nobel Prize for literature, that is not to be sniffed at!

[fausto copy]

I'm currently reading Gunter Grass' "The Box".

I was attracted by the cover picture of an old Agfa box camera, having been given a book all about unusual cameras by my son at Crimbo.
The other thing that attracted me was the bargain price of £3 for a hardback edition.

I'd never heard of the chap, but three chapters in I'm finding it fascinating. He had some imagination.

[Cyril Haearn]

I'm currently reading Gunter Grass' "The Box".

I was attracted by the cover picture of an old Agfa box camera, having been given a book all about unusual cameras by my son at Crimbo.
The other thing that attracted me was the bargain price of £3 for a hardback edition.

I'd never heard of the chap, but three chapters in I'm finding it fascinating. He had some imagination.

You have now!
I was at a seminar about his book "Aus dem Tagebuch einer Schnecke" last Friday, one expert described how GG had invented a new word: Vergegenkunft, derived from the German words for past, present and future
In Luebeck there is a GG museum with a lot of his drawings too, he was politically active for the SPD
I have read a couple of his books, "My Century" is good
I often cycle past his house at Behlendorff

Interesting fact about GG: he could not cycle, that probably saved his life during the war cos he was not sent into battle. I think he rode tandem later with his wife in front

BTW are you reading GG in Welsh or English? Kate Roberts is one of my favourites from Gogledd Cymru..

One of my German favourites is W G Sebald, his books are available in English, are set partly in Wales (Austerlitz) and East Anglia (The Rings of Saturn)

[fausto copy]

English version of The Box, as my knowledge of Welsh is limited to road signs I'm afraid.

fausto.

[Cyril Haearn]

Experts found that children from households with fewer than 100 books did much worse at school than those with more books at home (n=100+1?)

[Cyril Haearn]

I do like reading 'secondary literature' such as biographies of authors
There are more and more literature museums, in Hull Philip Larkins bicycle was shown, +1

I do have too many books at home, I want to downsize, not sure where to start, any tips?
Diolch yn fawr

[Si]

Edmund Crispin's Gervase Fen books. Very much of their time, dont read if you are easily offended by non-pc literature, but jolly good fun.

[Pastychomper]

Working my way through Parley Parker Pratt's autobiography (he was a 19th century LDS leader and a fairly prolific writer). I started it after reading one of his more entertaining tracts, partly out of curiosity about his time and place(s).

Some of the later chapters are basically journal entries and fairly dull, but it has its moments. I'd heard some stories about his life before, but they were fairly tame compared to the way he told them.

[SmilerGB]

Sky’s the limit, Richard Moore. Intrigued into the start up of one of the worlds most iconic cycling team

[Cyril Haearn]

Hannah Hauxwell just died age 91
Her books are surely worth reading again

[Cyril Haearn]

I do love fairy tales and fables, went to an exhibition about animal stories
Grimms Tales is one of the most popular German books but the British banned it after 1945 because it had been abused for military propaganda

[Cyril Haearn]

Got a paperback edition of Aesops Fables for 75p, lots of very short stories, just the thing to read on the train

[Mike Sales]

The Prize of All the Oceans by Glyn Williams.
This is about Anson's voyage round the world in the early 1740s. A squadron of nine ships was sent to the Pacific to harry the Spaniards. Two turned round when they had a battering off Cape Horn. Only the flagship made it back to Britain. Of more than 1900 nen who set out, nearly 1400 died of disease or starvation. Many were enfeebled pensioners or ill when they sailed. The provisions were poor, perhaps an example of privatisation. The suffering was terrible. Scurvy was universal, though the officers fared much better, they started healthier and ate better.
The Spanish ran a yearly galleon to and from Manila in the Phillipines to Acapulco in Mexico. It carried silver from the South American mines to buy spices, silks, porcelain etc. which would be carried across central america and on to Spain. This was the foundation of Spanish wealth and power. Occasionally the galleon was captured by English pirates, or, in this case by our Navy.
Anson had difficulty dealing with the Chinese authorities, and the European merchants in Canton had their own concerns.
At the time the loot was estimated as worth between £500,000 and £1,250,000. Today you could multiply that many times.
Under the laws of prize money Anson got three eighths. The division of the rest was fought for in the courts.
This is a well written book about a very different world to ours, with some new material,