Bengali and Urdu are, in my limited knowledge, probably the sweetest of the Indian languages.
Regrettably, I don't know either
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Books you are reading
- Thread starter GeorgeO
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Regrettably, I don't know either
The first volume was so good, I borrowed the second instalment immediately from the library, when I finished the first
The language was lucid, simple and direct. Most of the plots were convoluted and engrossing and kept me guessing and though Ray notes that the characters of Felu and Topshe were inspired by Holmes and Watson, I felt these stories were much better developed than Conan Doyle’s
. The simplicity and familiarity of the India in the 70-80s might be a reason. The presence of the third man (quite unusual in a detective fiction), Lalmohan Babu, could be another reason. Every plot in which he’s involved, raises the bar such that the earlier stories in which he was absent, appeared to be not so interesting. In the preface, Ray notes, “A third character was introduced early on: Lalmohan Ganguli, writer of cheap, popular thrillers. He serves as a foil to Felu and provides dollops of humour”. Personally, I was quite surprised at the amount of subtle humour that Ray has included, I always took him to be a serious person 
Thanks for the recommendation, Moktan
. Camera Lucida was not available at my library, so ordered one and received it yesterday. The premise to the book looks very interesting and the observer calls this his most beautiful work. The edition I got was the random house uk version, translated by Richard Howard.
If I like this book, I’ll add Mythologies to my reading list as well.
heart_hacker
Member
Power of habit
OP has mentioned that his AVR doesn't have pre-outs. Any ideas for integrating HT & Stereo without AVR pre-outs..?
Yes, It will work. But it is an incremental upgrade as we are bypassing only the Power Amplification of AVR. Streamer/DAC/preamp opeartions are still managed by AVR. If users want to do a gradual step by step upgrade then its a good idea to first include a Stereo Power Amp in the chain and then for further SQ improvements, can add Streamer/DAC/preamp combo or seperates.
OP has mentioned that his AVR doesn't have pre-outs. Any ideas for integrating HT & Stereo without AVR pre-outs..?
Yes, It will work. But it is an incremental upgrade as we are bypassing only the Power Amplification of AVR. Streamer/DAC/preamp opeartions are still managed by AVR. If users want to do a gradual step by step upgrade then its a good idea to first include a Stereo Power Amp in the chain and then for further SQ improvements, can add Streamer/DAC/preamp combo or seperates.
The first Haruki Murakami book I read was 1Q84 in 2011, when I got my first Kindle reader. I liked the pacing (which was very slow), mystery and his imagination. 'Magical realism' is a convenient sub-genre to fit his books into, but it is much more than that. Most of it is experiential, and goes much beyond mental stimulation alone. I feel his books can be either a hit or a miss, with the readers.
1Q84 remains his best work, I've read so far. Norwegian Wood and A Wild sheep chase are a distant second/third. And, I didn't like his Dance dance dance.
A couple of weeks ago I happened to watch Lee Chang-Dong's brilliant movie adaptation of a Murakami book, Burning (2018) (the film was also partly inspired by a William Faulkner's story. As the director puts it, "the story of a young Faulkner living in the Murakami world."). I realized then, that it's been a long while since I've read his books. So, continuing from where I left off......
As of this particular moment, here are a few I recently finished or am in the process of:
I read about a book every other week or three a month which averages out to 24–36 a year. Not all books are created equally, but I’ve been on a streak of finding some great ones.
...
I read about a book every other week or three a month which averages out to 24–36 a year. Not all books are created equally, but I’ve been on a streak of finding some great ones.
- The Myth of Hindu Terror by RVS Mani
- Afghanistan: The Bear Trap by Mark Adkin and Mohammad Yousaf
- Kashmir's Untold Story: Declassified by Iqbal Chand Malhotra and Maroof Raza
- Military Inc.: Inside Pakistan's Military Economy by Ayesha Siddiqa
- Pakistan: Between Mosque and Military by Husain Haqqani
- The Valley of Kashmir by Lawrence Walter Roper
...
I used to read a lot of Murakami , back in the day. The Elephant Vanishes - a collection of if I remember correctly 17 improbable short stories and The Windup Bird Chronicles were those I liked the most. The first story in the The Elephant Vanishes becomes the first chapter in The Windup Bird Chronicles.View attachment 50941
The first Haruki Murakami book I read was 1Q84 in 2011, when I got my first Kindle reader. I liked the pacing (which was very slow), mystery and his imagination. 'Magical realism' is a convenient sub-genre to fit his books into, but it is much more than that. Most of it is experiential, and goes much beyond mental stimulation alone. I feel his books can be either a hit or a miss, with the readers.
1Q84 remains his best work, I've read so far. Norwegian Wood and A Wild sheep chase are a distant second/third. And, I didn't like his Dance dance dance.
A couple of weeks ago I happened to watch Lee Chang-Dong's brilliant movie adaptation of a Murakami book, Burning (2018) (the film was also partly inspired by a William Faulkner's story. As the director puts it, "the story of a young Faulkner living in the Murakami world."). I realized then, that it's been a long while since I've read his books. So, continuing from where I left off......
But really for this kind of fiction , the author I have immense respect for and would probably be the fiction I would take on the proverbial island is Borges.
Also , Borges is very pithy. He can probably say in a few lines what lesser writers will struggle in pages. Some recurrent themes in Borges are mirrors, libraries , labyrinths and dreams. Some people think he even anticipated the internet — with its propensity to remember everything — in his story Funes The Memorius. But the one that will make you stand in awe of his genius is - Tlön, Uqbar , Orbius Tertius. It’s a long story by the standard of Borges ( about 5 thousand words) but an absolutely riveting read. China Mielville’s Embassytown and Steven Hall’s The Raw Shark Texts , are similar examples of speculative fiction. But Borges is the boss with his wit, humour, teasing experimentation and mind bending erudition.
skroderider
Well-Known Member
The only Murakami I have read long ago is "What I talk about when I talk about running" - it was very inspiring. I used to run marathons at that time and this book just connected.View attachment 50941
The first Haruki Murakami book I read was 1Q84 in 2011, when I got my first Kindle reader. I liked the pacing (which was very slow), mystery and his imagination. 'Magical realism' is a convenient sub-genre to fit his books into, but it is much more than that. Most of it is experiential, and goes much beyond mental stimulation alone. I feel his books can be either a hit or a miss, with the readers.
1Q84 remains his best work, I've read so far. Norwegian Wood and A Wild sheep chase are a distant second/third. And, I didn't like his Dance dance dance.
A couple of weeks ago I happened to watch Lee Chang-Dong's brilliant movie adaptation of a Murakami book, Burning (2018) (the film was also partly inspired by a William Faulkner's story. As the director puts it, "the story of a young Faulkner living in the Murakami world."). I realized then, that it's been a long while since I've read his books. So, continuing from where I left off......
After many years now I have picked up "Absolutely on Music", where he chats with the conductor Seiji Ozawa over listening sessions. If you like Western Classical music you might like this one - and I personally find it very revealing to listen to the compositions they talk about after reading each chapter/section.
Great topic.
Just finished reading Mind Master by Vishwanathan Anand. Great non-fiction read. Anand draws parallels of his games, opponents, strategies & tactics to real-life situations and challenges. Super inspiring and a great window into the world of chess even for those who don't know the game.
Before that (last month) was Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari, found it highly thought provoking and enlightening.
Also a really enjoyable anthology of sci-fi fiction by south Asian writers - the Gollancz Book of South Asian SF. Has some really imaginative stories by known names like Vandana Singh and S.B. Divya who have won the Hugo award and also many debut writers. Another volume is coming up next year apparently - looking forward to that.
Just finished reading Mind Master by Vishwanathan Anand. Great non-fiction read. Anand draws parallels of his games, opponents, strategies & tactics to real-life situations and challenges. Super inspiring and a great window into the world of chess even for those who don't know the game.
Before that (last month) was Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari, found it highly thought provoking and enlightening.
Also a really enjoyable anthology of sci-fi fiction by south Asian writers - the Gollancz Book of South Asian SF. Has some really imaginative stories by known names like Vandana Singh and S.B. Divya who have won the Hugo award and also many debut writers. Another volume is coming up next year apparently - looking forward to that.
@moktan, Thanks. I see two different translations available on Amazon. One by Anthony Bonner and another by Andrew Hurley. Which version do you recommend buying?
@skroderider , That's nice. Music is a key ingredient of his fiction works as well, especially Western classical is a recurring motif. However, me being a Johnny-come-lately to the genre, failed to make the connection he was suggesting using those references
I have the one by Andrew Hurley. Sample below ..@moktan, Thanks. I see two different translations available on Amazon. One by Anthony Bonner and another by Andrew Hurley. Which version do you recommend buying?
@skroderider , That's nice. Music is a key ingredient of his fiction works as well, especially Western classical is a recurring motif. However, me being a Johnny-come-lately to the genre, failed to make the connection he was suggesting using those references
Sean de Silva
Well-Known Member
One of my favourite writers is Joseph Conrad. Of Polish origins, he learned writing in English in his mid-twenties and is now regarded as one of the greatest stylists of the language. His novella — don’t get fooled by its size, it’s a dense book and takes ages to finish reading— inspired Apocalypse Now. In the movie Coppola substituted ivory trade in the Congo with the Vietnam War. A few years back , I watched a Nepali movie called Ringata ( Vertigo) in which the backdrop is the Maoist war in Nepal and the Colonel figure is a Marxist ideologue who is scouring the interior villages , recruiting impressionable adolescents to feed into the revolution.
I am reading his The Secret Agent , a brilliant psychological and political thriller , one in which Conrad anticipates suicide bombing , ideological terrorism and the jeu d’esprit between the terrorists and the law enforcers by at least a hundred years.
A character in it called The Professor is supposed to have been the inspiration behind the Unabomber.
I am reading his The Secret Agent , a brilliant psychological and political thriller , one in which Conrad anticipates suicide bombing , ideological terrorism and the jeu d’esprit between the terrorists and the law enforcers by at least a hundred years.
A character in it called The Professor is supposed to have been the inspiration behind the Unabomber.
Heart of Darkness is also a favourite of Nabokov who was usually critical of other’s works. He mentioned it in his collection of essays on western literature.
I have The Secret Agent , haven’t got around to it.
What a nice thread! I am finding some very interesting recommendations, new authors and subjects.
I was recently introduced to an Italian authors books, short stories (beautifully translated)
”Barron in the trees” is a good place to start.
The author: Italo Calvino
I was recently introduced to an Italian authors books, short stories (beautifully translated)
”Barron in the trees” is a good place to start.
The author: Italo Calvino
On the other hand , Chinua Achebe’s thoroughly negative impressions about the Heart Of Darkness too is interesting to read. He accuses Conrad of dehumanising Africa and even if he was not being so overtly racist of reducing a complex continent into a mere prop to project the dark complications of the European mind.
A friend once told me something interesting. He either made it up himself or read it in something written by Fanon or Bhabha.
He said if an educated young African ( you can say Indian too ) watched a Tarzan movie with the natives back in his home country of say the Netherland Antilles , he would identify himself with Tarzan. If he repeated the same exercise in a European setting where he was the solo native, his identification would be more with the so called savages and the jungle people.
Thats correct. Achebe display strong anti-colonial sentiments in Things Fall Apart , as he should. And his critique of Darkness’s cult of Kurtz was triggered as a counter-reaction to the post-colonial white apologia that he felt Conrad was trying to project. Similar critique can be made of Coetze’s Waiting for the Barbarians or Lessing’s The Grass is Singing , but these reactions are too reductive I feel.
Just Started listening to The Witcher series.
It is just mind-blowing.
Before this, I finished listening to the Wheel of Time series. If you are familiar with the series, that is a huge undertaking and it took me months as each audiobook takes 3-4x time compared to reading the novel.
It is just mind-blowing.
Before this, I finished listening to the Wheel of Time series. If you are familiar with the series, that is a huge undertaking and it took me months as each audiobook takes 3-4x time compared to reading the novel.
Purchase the Audiolab 6000A Integrated Amplifier at a special offer price.