Sunday 16 January 2022

A Good Book!

 There is no doubt about it, if you are a reader , nothing beats a Good Book.   And make  no mistake 

about it - this month's Book Group choice (M's) is a good book.   M is coming up for a coffee in the morning - she only lives at the bottom of the road and we are both fully vaccinated - and the bungalow will be nice and airy in this pleasant weather.   As 'The Guardian' says in the blurb on the back - 'An exciting, sexy, violent Superman version of 'The Iliad'.    It has only recently come out in paperback (£9.99) and worth every single penny.   It really is unputdownable.  It is 'The Song of Achilles' by Madeline Miller.

Alright - if you know anything about Greek Gods and things like The Trojan Wars then you know what happens, but it is so beautifully told.   So often love stories ruin a good book for me because the 'making love' part is so badly told.   But here the text is so beautiful and the story so well woven into it that the love scenes - and same-sex love scenes at that -are just an intimate part of a beautiful story.

We must of course avoid speaking of it in the morning as it is not Book Group until the first Monday in February - mustn't jump the gun.   But really it is the best book I have read in a long time - please do give it a try if it sounds your sort of book.

And while on the subject of entertainment is anyone else watching Jules Verne's 'Around the World in 80 Days' - I am enjoying that too.   It is actually on twice at the moment because there is also a much older Michael Palin version on which is not dramatised and it is interesting too.


 Looking out of my computer room window I can see the odd touch of white where there is a large patch of snowdrops.   I think.   Bu can't get up the steps to look.

 


22 comments:

Debby said...

I'm glad you're enjoying your book. This is the perfect season for a good book.

Right now I am reading A Room with a View and am enjoying it very much.

Sue said...

I agree there is nothing quite so good as a really good book. The sort where you feel you have really escaped into another world and you just don't want to reach the end.

Marcia LaRue said...

I just saved that book to SCRIBD as an audiobook and will listen to it! Thanks for the referral! 😏

Librarian said...

Coming across a really good book is like finding a treasure! I love it when I have something to read that I look forward to returning to every evening for a while. At the moment, I am reading a work of non-fiction, a Christmas present.
I agree that badly written love scenes can ruin an otherwise good story.
On my after-work walk on Thursday, I spottet the first batch of snowdrops near a farmhouse. So pretty!

Ellen D. said...

I recently finished "V2" by Robert Harris which is a historical fiction about the V2 rockets that were launched on London during WWII. It was a book that I couldn't put down. I will read other books by him now as I enjoyed this one so much.
Your book club sounds like a good group!

Shawn philips said...
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Derek Faulkner said...

I'm afraid your book choice would have no appeal to me at all. I've just finished a newly published book by Andrew Maunder - "Enid Blyton - A literary Life," which describes in some detail the industrious and financial mega star that she was. It was sit on the bookshelf with several other books about her and my collection of the 21 Famous Five books.
It is a beautiful sunny afternoon, almost Springlike and I have been busy pruning roses.

Melinda from Ontario said...

Our book club read The Song of Achilles a few years ago. If I recall, it was one we all enjoyed. My friend who chose the book, loved it! She is a big fan of Greek mythology. A few weeks ago, I read The Silence of the Girls by Part Barker. This is a similar story about the love between Patroclus and Achilles but is told through the eyes of Briseis, a concubine of Achilles. Women have certainly had a tough go of it through the centuries.
I love finding a great book. 25+ years ago my sister showed up at my parent's cottage with a copy of Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. She put it down for a few minutes to do something and I made the mistake of picking it up and reading the first few pages. From then on, a battle ensued over that book. I remember pacing outside her bedroom door that night waiting for her to fall asleep so I could snatch it up. It probably remains my favourite novel.

Rachel Phillips said...

There is nothing better than a good book to look forward to at bedtime. I am afraid your latest love of a book does not appeal to me. I have now finished Actress by Anne Enright and recommend as a book group read for you if you are in need of a future idea. A well-written novel, believable, not far-fetched, no murder, no jumping around between characters, just a good read.

Wilma said...

On your recommendation I have put a hold on the ebook version of The Song of Achiles at my library. I should have access to it in 4 weeks. For good measure I have recommended the Enid Blyton book that Derek mentioned. Sometimes the library gets the books I recommend and sometimes they don't - we'll see. It would be a very sad state of affairs if I could download ebooks from the library. Although I love traditional books, they are hard for me to hold because of neuropathy in my fingertips. Also there are no physical libraries within reach of us anyway! Thanks for the reading tips!

John "By Stargoose And Hanglands" said...

I'm glad you're enjoying your latest Book Club read, though I don't think it would appeal to me. At the moment I'm reading, or rather re-reading, A Farewell To Arms, over 50 years since I read it as a set book at school. Amazingly there are odd bits which I remember clearly after all these years.

Susan said...

There is nothing like the joy of discovering a good book. Good of course means one which captivates the person you are and may do nothing for another reader. It makes me marvel at the human mind, are our likes based on past experience, education, environment or the way our synapses communicate in our brain? Anyone who loves reading surely finds discovering a good book particularly restorative in these difficult times. I am delighted for you.

Bovey Belle said...

Tam has this but I've not read it yet. Look out for the companion book, Circe, as that is a brilliant read too.

Unknown said...

Oh my goodness. You must read Circe also by Madeline Miller. What a wonderful book also unputdownable. Another retelling of an ancient tale. You would love it.
I’ve never commented before but follow you religiously. You are a wonderful example of how to live a full life despite some challenges

Jennyff said...

I enjoyed that book a few years ago, I’m .glad you like it too. Currently I am reading Ragnar Jonasson, author of detective fiction set in Iceland, Nordic noir is I believe the correct expression. It’s wonderful having a library 10 minutes walk from home, how I miss that when we are away.

Bonnie said...

It is wonderful when you find a great book like that! It's been so long since I've studied Greek Mythology that I would need a quick review before I read this book. I am recording "Around the World in 80 Days" and look forward to watching it. I've always been a fan of David Tennant and I'm sure he will do well with this role.

Heather said...

That sounds like a good read and I will look out for Madeline Miller's books. I haven't come across her works so far. I must check in the morning to see how the snowdrops in the garden here are coming on. I sounds as if yours might be ahead in the race to bloom.

Jane said...

I loved the book and also her other book Circe which I also really enjoyed- so add that to your list !

The Weaver of Grass said...

John I shall be interested to hear what you think to the Hemingway - I had it for my last Book Group choice and nobody thought much of it except me!
Rachel thank you for the book recommendation = I have already put it on the

Thank you for all your recommendations - I have added them to our list - always good to have a few in hand.

Marcia LaRue said...

I started listening to the book this afternoon while working on the puzzle and, so far, it's pretty good! The boys are with the centaur at the moment!

Joanne Noragon said...

I need a god book. Thank you for the recommendation.

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