What are you reading?

Films, TV shows, and books of the 'modern' era
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by JackFavell »

It's tremendously sad, it's not like the women were well off, and could afford a loss. I guess they seemed well off enough to him.
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charliechaplinfan
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by charliechaplinfan »

It was sad, all of these women had put the money aside out of a meagre salary that they had managed to earn and were left destitute. It still isn't known how he could kill so quickly and silently but the favoured theory is that he would pull the legs up from under them and by doing so they would quickly drown. The forensics found this out by nearly drowning their guinea pig who was in herself a very strong swimmer.
Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself - Charlie Chaplin
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

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That was a big point in the mystery I was reading as well, the legs pulled up at the end of the tub and the victim can't get back upright.
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

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OMG, I started the Father Brown mysteries. HILARIOUS! So unexpected. I absolutely love the first story. I started reading these because someone in a critical analysis said that Quai des Orfevres was somewhat similar to these stories. They strike me as being almost like watching a Lubitsch movie, very light, jocular, endlessly entertaining, but with some dark shocks thrown in. The writing is excellent. I love it when I start a book and a turn of phrase alone can make me smile. Here is the first paragraph or so of the first story, to give an indication of the style - It's an amuse-bouche :
The Blue Cross

Between the silver ribbon of morning and the green glittering ribbon of
sea, the boat touched Harwich and let loose a swarm of folk like flies,
among whom the man we must follow was by no means conspicuous--nor
wished to be. There was nothing notable about him, except a slight
contrast between the holiday gaiety of his clothes and the official
gravity of his face. His clothes included a slight, pale grey jacket,
a white waistcoat, and a silver straw hat with a grey-blue ribbon. His
lean face was dark by contrast, and ended in a curt black beard that
looked Spanish and suggested an Elizabethan ruff. He was smoking a
cigarette with the seriousness of an idler. There was nothing about him
to indicate the fact that the grey jacket covered a loaded revolver,
that the white waistcoat covered a police card, or that the straw hat
covered one of the most powerful intellects in Europe. For this was
Valentin himself, the head of the Paris police and the most famous
investigator of the world; and he was coming from Brussels to London to
make the greatest arrest of the century.

Flambeau was in England. The police of three countries had tracked the
great criminal at last from Ghent to Brussels, from Brussels to the Hook
of Holland; and it was conjectured that he would take some advantage of
the unfamiliarity and confusion of the Eucharistic Congress, then
taking place in London. Probably he would travel as some minor clerk
or secretary connected with it; but, of course, Valentin could not be
certain; nobody could be certain about Flambeau.

It is many years now since this colossus of crime suddenly ceased
keeping the world in a turmoil; and when he ceased, as they said after
the death of Roland, there was a great quiet upon the earth. But in
his best days (I mean, of course, his worst) Flambeau was a figure as
statuesque and international as the Kaiser.
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charliechaplinfan
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by charliechaplinfan »

I can see why they've caught you. I find myself reading more and more these days, it's like an oasis of calm in the middle of a sometimes uproarious household. Plus I love language and prose, Chris who's a teacher always thinks that literature is such a namby pamby woman's subject, I guess it's one of those things that you either love or can't get into. We're like chalk and cheese, Libby absorbs books like me, Joe not so much.
Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself - Charlie Chaplin
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

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What does Chris teach? Math? Science?

I have been reading like a house afire since going off wheat. I don't mean to keep harping on it, but my brain seems so much clearer now, and that's the only thing I can attribute it to.

I always loved to read. Andrew is not a huge reader of literature, though he likes scientific periodicals and music magazines.
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charliechaplinfan
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by charliechaplinfan »

Chris teaches computing and IT with Maths as a secondary subject, he's so immersed in science and maths although he does like history and geography but he doesn't stretch to the love of languages.

Talking of carbs, I've had a slight relapse in the last couple of days, mostly I would think due to Claude and an awful trip to the dentist. After the parents in law came on Wednesday and Chris's father had let both dogs out to roll in the mud in the garden then let them back in to get muck on everything I own, I managed to miss a meal and bought a loaf of lovely soft doughy bread and finished it off the next day and felt so tired, I'm used to feelin shattered but this was something different and I put 3 lbs on, just like that. Of all carbs bread seems to be the one that I struggle to process the most.
Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself - Charlie Chaplin
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

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I fell off the wagon myself the last few days. We had Alice's birthday cake and then pie and turkey gravy the next two days, though I managed to avoid the stuffing. I feel awful now too so I can commiserate. It's so odd, one wouldn't think it could affect you so, but it does, all sorts of weird little things like blisters on my tongue and some other strange symptoms. I could kill for some french bread, but I've learned my lesson, I don't ever want to feel this way again.
RedRiver
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Re: What are you reading?

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A friend is reading Father Brown and enjoyng it. I'll have to try it. I, also, like language and prose, but with limitations. A well written phrase, a lyrical rhythm? Nice. Words, words, words, whatever is the point of all this? I don't have the patience for that. Another friend of mine, not the Father Brown guy, is a statistician with a p.h.d. He travels all over the world, doing seminars. Hates to read! It bores him to death.
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moira finnie
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by moira finnie »

G.K. Chesterton is a wonderful companion as a writer, providing entertainment, nimble writing, and palatable philosophical musings in Father Brown as well as his essays. I'm glad you're enjoying him.
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

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I'm not a big fan of anything dry. WOrds for words sake is fun, but not really my cup of tea, unless it's a Dorothy Parker bon mot or something. I like a decent plot, and an emotional center. Emotion is probably my raison d'etre, as I've learned it is with classic film.
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by JackFavell »

I've never read G.K. before, Moira. Is there anything else by him I should check out? Or maybe everything? :D
RedRiver
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by RedRiver »

Fans of sophisticated crime fiction speak reverently of THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY. They say it's the best of the best.
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JackFavell
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by JackFavell »

Thanks red!
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charliechaplinfan
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Re: What are you reading?

Post by charliechaplinfan »

I've not ventured into the Father Brown stories, yet.

I've picked up the next in the series of the Call The Midwife books. I tend to flit between fiction and real life trying to read similar themes. I'm completely caught by the Midwife books even though I haven't seen the series. They don't just encapsulate the 1950s but draw a lot on the experience and stories of the nuns who range in age and social class, I knew people suffered before the health service was inaugarated but midwifes didn't even exist as a trained profession until the beginnings of the last century. Each chapter is devoted to a new family/delivery and they're all utterly compelling, they're easy to pick up and put down but as there is a birth or incident in every chapter I don't welcome interruptions.

In between I read a book called Small Island, from the cover it looks like it's been filmed. It's about two families one black, one white between and after the second world war in the east End of London, it tied in really well with the Call The Midwife books.

I do like the kindle, I find I'm reading books that I'd never have thought of buying because I just don't have room and our library is woefully small, it's nice to have so many books available to digitally download.
Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself - Charlie Chaplin
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