Book 39 Complete Poems - Elizabeth Bishop

I must say that I have a love hate relationship with poetry, I like some poetry but I hate a lot of it ! For me it is the snobbery that surrounds the world of poetry that I don't like. Personally I love to be able to read a poem without having to have a degree in the history and workings of poetry, if a poem doesn't make sense then I don't like it. And I don't want to know about iambics or any of that stuff to be able to appreciate a piece of writing. I have written poetry in the past and maybe I will again in the future but I'm not interested in writing anything that you need a diploma or a degree in poetry or English Lit to understand. I like to write poetry and to read poetry that makes me feel something, whether it is joy or sadness or surprise or shock. I love Billy Collins and even Sylvia Plath, even though Sylvia's poetry isn't the easiest to understand, I just love her imagination.

To be honest the Complete Poems of Elizabeth Bishop didn't rock my world, in fact it was a bit of a nightmare to read. Of the many MANY poems in the book I could probably count on two hands ( maybe one) the ones that I liked. I much prefer her later poems than her earlier ones. The final part of the book featured Elizabeth's translations of poetry by other poets and to be honest these were probably more fun to read !

The highlights of Elizabeth's poems for me were poems such as ; Manners, Filling Station, Visit's to Elizabeths, In the Waiting Room ( probably my favourite), Crusoe in England. And translations of note are 'The Death and Life of Severino' by Joao Cabral de Melo Neto, 'The Table' by Carlos Drummond de Andrade and 'January First' by Octavio Paz.

Even though this wasn't my favourite read of the year I do think any writer could do worse than to read poetry, I think a writer can learn a lot from poetry in general. Where better a place to learn about imagery and metaphor and imagination ?
I would like to read more poetry.

4/10

Book 38 Roadwork by Richard Bachman

King is Bachman and Bachman is King.

This is my latest read of Richard Bachman otherwise known as Stephen King. This book is in many ways very different from most King books but the writing is unmistakable.

Written inbetween Salem's Lot and the Shining, Roadwork is a non-horror that focuses on one man's determination to stop a new major road from being built in an unnamed city in the mid west of America. It doesn't sound too exciting does it ?
Well maybe the story isn't the most exciting thing since bottled cider and there's nothing original or hugely imaginative here but it doesn't really matter because this book is written in Stephen King's own unique way, I couldn't help but love it !
He has a way of writing that could make anything work, I'm sure he could write a book about a plate of sausages and make it interesting. Maybe 'The Girl that Loved Tom Gordon' is an example. That's what I like about him. This non-horror shouldn't really work but it does. He, throughout, has this way ( like in all of his novels) of waffling off at tangents and that is what sets him apart from alot of authors in my opinion. I love his waffling tangents.

Even though the basic plot doesn't sound to exciting there are actually many layers to this book. You end up feeling sorry for the main character as well as thinking he is a total loon.

Enjoyed.


8.5/10

Book 37 Bloody River Blues by Jeffery Deaver

John Pellam is a location scout working on the set of a " Bonnie and Clyde " style movie in Maddocks, Missouri. When a random guy opens his car door and sends his beer crashing to the ground he becomes a wanted man in the connection with a murder and the shooting of a cop.

He becomes Missouri's most wanted man and everybody seems to want to track him down and to make sure that his mouth is kept firmly shut.


First of all I must say from the outset that thrillers are not normally my bag unless it happens to be somewhat special, so maybe a thriller addict would enjoy this a lot more than I did. I have only ever read one other Jeffery Deaver book and I enjoyed that one more. Apparently this is one of his earlier books and he does get much better. There is nothing terrible about ' Bloody River Blues' , it's just not great. It's just that everything about it is average. There is nothing original or fresh about this story and it is probably a storyline that has been regurgitated over and over ( in various forms) in books and films over the years.

I did like the character of John Pellam ( he is to be found in other 'Location Scout' books) but I prefered the character of the cop, Buffet. The parts of the book that centre around cop, Donnie Buffet are probably the better written and more interesting parts. And I did like the way Jeffery Deaver tricks us a few times in the telling of the story, that's something I wouldn't mind incorporating into my own work.

Average 7/10

Book 36 One Foot Wrong by Sofie Laguna

Hester lives in the house and isn't allowed outside. She lives with Sack and Boot and often eats her food under the table with Cat and goes to the hanging room if she is bad. God the bird watches over her and Jesus is drumming the beat inside her head. Then one day she has to go to school and learns that everybody is different from her and that a secret has no sound and lives in your darkest corner where it sits and waits.


I cannot praise this book enough, it is simply incredible. If you are looking for a happy slappy relaxing book to take with you on your holidays then perhaps this isn't for you. It is probably the most dark and disturbing thing I have ever read but it is written with such skill and imagination, it is hypnotic.

Sofie Laguna takes us into the world of Hester, a young girl who is locked in her own private world.. The imagination of this writer is brilliant and makes a sad story un-putdownable ! It is a remarkable and shocking read. Brilliantly written.


10/10.

Book 35 Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett

Wizard ,Drum Billet, has 6 minutes to live and he has finally found the eighth son of an eighth son to pass on his magical powers. Unfortunately the eight son happens to be a girl.Eskarina sees herself as more of a witch but finds herself on a journey to become a wizard, but in the Discworld, girls aren't allowed to be wizards. With the help of Granny Weathermax she decides to follow her new calling but then discovers that magic is more powerful and dangerous that she thought. And she also learns that wizards are pretty stupid.


This is a fun book and I enjoyed reading it as I have enjoyed reading other Terry Pratchett books. It is the third book in the Discworld series and perhaps it isn't as hilarious and polished as some of the others and perhaps it is ( in parts) more for a younger audience than his later books. But it did have some brilliantly funny and imaginative moments and Terry Pratchett never fails to entertain me. Fun.


7.5

Book 34 Paranormality - Professor Richard Wiseman

I thought I knew a lot about the paranormal but this book made me realise how little I actually did know. It is a fascinating look at the paranormal from a sceptical scientific point of view and looks at the psychology of the paranormal. From table tipping to cold reading, from ghosts to prophetic dreams, it is an eye opener and it is very accessible and nothing like reading a textbook.

Professsor Wiseman's book is fascinating and entertaining, filled with interesting facts and humorous tales. I especially loved reading about Gef ' the Talking Mongoose' . I liked the interactive stuff as well, there are links to online videos and interactive psychological tests that you can take part in.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the paranormal , be they a skeptic or a believer, but this book shows how ( when it comes to the supernatural) there is more to it than meets the eye. A real eye opener, a truly interesting and thought provoking read.

Book 33 The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.

I cannot even begin to review a book like 'The Secret Garden' because in all honesty I am not 'intended reader', this book could probably only really be reviewed by a child of a certain age or by a parent reading for a child of a certain age. I am a forty year old bloke with a big nose and a bald head ! However it is very important for me to read as many different kinds of books as possible during this challenge and that includes books like this.

I am sure I couldn't dream of appreciating this book as much as a young child, if in fact children are interested in books like this anymore. But there is much to be learned by reading this from an aspiring writers point of view and even though I am forty, it was fun to read. In fact I actually listened to this in an audio book format and it was a pleasant change, although it was at first a bit of a leap of faith to listen to an American woman attempting an English Yorkshire accent. But I soon got over that and in the end it didn't bother me !

What I liked about this book was the lovely way in which the author set the scene, I found myself seeing the big house and the big gardens in my minds eye without any difficulty, something that is not always true in other books. It is a skill I would like to master. The characters were good and endearing and I liked the way in which the three important characters all changed and grew , again something I think is important in any work of fiction.

But one of the best things in 'The Secret Garden' was its simple but well told tale with a strong moral story at its heart.