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I must admit I am not a big reader of books but it’s clear that some on the forum are.
I could of course be tempted and no better time than now when we have very little to do.
So I thought it would be interesting to hear from members their recommendations.
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Sorry, I posted my first draught by mistake. And still missed the typo!
Horribly overpowered with a 35hp engine Tharg. Most of the old slipper boats had petrol engines about 8 or 10hp like a Morris Vedette or even single cylinder Stewart Turners. Torque rather than horse power mattered to push them along at the maximum 7mph allowed on the Upper Thames.
Beautiful boats indeed. Would not choose to con one below Teddington though. No draft at all and Mama Thames can be pretty brutal with her tides.
Knowing the way movies are made, I reckon the Riva in the Indiana Jones thing probably was totalled. Unforgiveable. Those are the most beautiful launches. Ever. On bucket list to go to Monte Carlo and hire one for a day or so (only place I know they can be rented).
Even worse is the From Russia… climax. They bought some five or so Fairey Huntsman launches and sank, blew up, dismembered four of them! Very painful to watch. Huntsman and Swordsman possibly the best British classic launch. Have heard of power-boat enthusiasts in tears when watching it.
Yup. Those slippers look so fast that you them to have a Volvo petrol V8 hidden away somewhere. Forgot about pace restrictions on non-tidal Thames.
Some Rivas of course have two of the buggers buried in the back. Saw them for hire in Monte Carlo when at a conference there (couldn’t afford it under own steam). Very frustrating seeing them floating elegantly in harbour begging to be taken out. Couldn’t even afford to sit in one!
Hello! I’m back. Finished Wild Chamber a couple of days ago – the ‘who’ who ‘dunnit’ was more than usually unexpected, and I’m not entirely sure it satisfied – they were too much an incidental character. Still, even if the conclusion was a bit of a squib (imho), the Game itself was well worth the candle.
So last night I Took the plunge, Bit the bullet, Seized the nettle and veritably Crossed the Rubicon:
Shōgun
My goodness, I’d forgotten just how good a writer Clavell was. Utterly engrossing, wakarimasu ka?
Yup. Felt the same meself re Wild Chamber. Kinda fizzled out. Tried another Garth Nix – set of stories in the Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz series. Hmmm. Might work out OK. Have also started Kim Watt’s second Gobbelino book. Not as good as the rest but still fun. Am sure you’ll enjoy Shōgun again.
I sometimes wondered what happened to ‘Gobbelino – the Witch’s Cat’ by Ursula Moray Williams. I have a copy of the original, which includes Gobbelino saving the ship from a Sea Witch, at the cost of revealing his true nature, by climbing to the top of the mast and shouting “Fiddlesticks to you, madam!”
It’s a very sweet and funny little children’s story (c. 4 – 7 yrs) about a kitten with magical powers who doesn’t want to be a Witch’s cat like his mother and sister, so he runs away, has many adventures,
SPOILER SPACE
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ultimately has his magic taken away by the spiteful Witch and spends the rest of his days, utterly happy, as a family pet.I still have my childhood copy, which is now rather fragile. It was out of print for decades, but I’ve just discovered there was a re-print for it’s 70th anniversary in 2012 and I’ve just ordered a copy. 🙂
I think we must have it somewhere. Just the sort of thing Mrs T would treasure. Will, very carefully, hunt through our vintage stuff, from Dylan to Longfellow, and see what I can find. Also, finally found her volume of poems. Will try to post some – here or on Interesting Stuff…
Too right, Fastbike. It is always on my list of “read agains”. Must do it soon. Much better than the films, I reckon.
Too right, Fastbike. Tom Bombadil and Goldberry are nowhere to be seen. Tried to watch one of the films at a cinema. Had to leave – it was so loud, particularly the “hidden” underfloor bass speakers, that it physically made me want to chuck up. Couldn’t hear half the dialogue either. Too much background noise.
Just started Anthony Horowitz’s latest “detective” novel A Line to Kill. Absolute cracker. Intriguing, engaging, just about any -ing you care to name. Horowitz really is one of our best authors. I reckon the only reason he has not got a Booker or similar is that he simply doesn’t want one.
The “detective” series breaks so many rules. Narrated in first person by Horowitz himself who, in the fiction, is charged with accompanying a former Met copper, now a PI, on his investigations. He weaves lumps of reality in with his imaginings absolutely seamlessly. Most enjoyable.
Sounds promising.
I’ve just started part 4 of Shogun (Crimson Sky) so it’s the home straight. 🙂
I’m thinking I might revisit the Cadfael series after I’m done with medieval Japan.
Yup. Cadfael – must read more. Will probably go on to that next. That said, however, I have part two of Falco waiting in the wings, well, in the memory of my Fire tablet at least. Might go there next.
It’s a nice place to visit. You haven’t even met Falco’s family and friends yet. 🙂
I tell you, Shogun is definitely a ‘Value for money’ book. I’ve been thinking “I’ve nearly finished reading it” for the last three days! This morning I was convinced I’d get to the end before getting up, but the next time I looked up it was 45 minutes later and it’s still going . . .
Don’t get me wrong, it’s really good. It’s just that it keeps generating more and more pages the closer you get to the end – A Hilbert’s Hotel of a novel. 😉
Hilbert’s Hotel? Wow. Never heard of this mathematical mayhem. Checked it out but one thing defeats me. How can a thing be “countably infinite”? By definition, you cannot count an infinite number of things unless you wait until the universe falls into the massive end-of-time black hole when all the common-or-garden bit of physics become strangely eccentric.
Oh, that’s nothing. Wait until you get to Gabriel’s Horn or The Painter’s Paradox! >:-)
Oh, good grief. Just as I was coming to terms with a Mobius Strip, you launch these mind meddlers at me!
” . . . then I learned that ‘Nothing is Real’. I mean, what do you do with knowledge like that? And that’s when I joined the Circus.”
(Northern Exposure, The Flying Man)
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