the 100 best books of the decade (according to the Times, that is)
robert schreuder
The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
decade.
I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
regularly comes back in AFCA.
The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
decade?
The comments by readers of the Times are often quite funny. For book
lovers: enjoy and/or get irritated.
regards,
--
robert schreuder
N Jill Marsh
<roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
>decade.
>
>http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
>
>I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
>for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
>regularly comes back in AFCA.
>
>The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
>books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
>claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
>decade?
It's as good as list as any, which doesn't say too much, of course.
It's quite anglocentric, not at all surprising considering the source,
with mostly very good stuff and a few hunks of dreck thrown in to
appease and incite. I know of all but a few of the books, and some
that I don't know I am familiar with the authors. I've read* about
forty or so of them, but most of that wasn't for fun.
nj"though some were very unexpected pleasures"m
*fully or partially, meaning at least half the book - this was the
decade of me not finishing any books unless they were stellar, due to
an embarrassment of riches and just too much to read. I don't read
much at all these days, I blame the job.
--
Welcome, stranger, to the humble neighbourhoods.
John Hatpin
>I have read (12)
Ah, it's going to be one of those threads, is it?
I've read all 100 of them.
Five times.
--
John Hatpin
http://uninformedcomment.wordpress.com/
Mary
<RemoveThisjfhop...@gmailAndThisToo.com> wrote:
> robert schreuder wrote:
> >I have read (12)
>
> Ah, it's going to be one of those threads, is it?
>
> I've read all 100 of them.
>
> Five times.
I've read 12. And regretted one of the twelve.
Mary
John Dean
> robert schreuder wrote:
>
>> I have read (12)
>
> Ah, it's going to be one of those threads, is it?
>
> I've read all 100 of them.
>
> Five times.
I've read five of them a hundred times each
--
John Dean
Oxford
M C Hamster
<roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
9. (Freakonomics, Short History, Kite Runner, Plot vs. American,
Corrections, Heartbreaking, DaVinci, Life of Pi, Tipping Point)
And I'm not starting any comprehensive "Books that AFCA participants
have read" list this time. That's what got me in trouble with
"Infinte Jest".
Interestingly, "White Teeth" by Zadie Smith was, IIRC, the only one on
the first 100 Best Novels list that no one in this group had read. And
it's on this list, too. Still.
--
M C Hamster "Big Wheel Keep on Turnin'" -- Creedence Clearwater Revival
art...@yahoo.com
<RemoveThisjfhop...@gmailAndThisToo.com> wrote:
> robert schreuder wrote:
> >I have read (12)
>
> Ah, it's going to be one of those threads, is it?
>
> I've read all 100 of them.
I read 1.06 (+/-.03) of them.
Motherless Brooklyn belongs on there
And the Yiddish Policeman's Union
Glenn Dowdy
"John Dean" <john...@fraglineone.net> wrote in message
news:7ml60tF...@mid.individual.net...
I rolled joints with the dedication page from each.
Glenn D.
Joseph Nebus
>The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
>decade.
>The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
>books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
>claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
>decade?
I've heard about a fair number of them, but of what I've read ...
hm. _A Short History Of Nearly Everything_, Bill Bryson. _London: The
Biography_, Peter Ackroyd. _The Plot Against America_, Philip Roth,
which would have been nigh perfect if the ending hadn't worked quite so
hard to get history back on track. Hm. That's it.
I wonder what the Collected Afca Recommended Reading List looks
like these days.
--
Joseph Nebus
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bill Bonde { 'by a commodius vicus of recirculation' )
It's the 100 books that the people writing the article have read
(combined) that were published in the decade.
--
What I hate about flip flops is the flip and the flop.
Lesmond
>On Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:25:27 -0800 (PST), robert schreuder
><roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>>The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
>>decade.
>>
>>http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
>>
>>I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
>>for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
>>regularly comes back in AFCA.
>>The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
>>books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
>>claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
>>decade?
>>The comments by readers of the Times are often quite funny. For book
>>lovers: enjoy and/or get irritated.
>>
>
>9. (Freakonomics, Short History, Kite Runner, Plot vs. American,
>Corrections, Heartbreaking, DaVinci, Life of Pi, Tipping Point)
>And I'm not starting any comprehensive "Books that AFCA participants
>have read" list this time. That's what got me in trouble with
>"Infinte Jest".
But aren't you glad you read it? I'm glad I did. And I got to read Life of
Pi because of it, too.
>
>Interestingly, "White Teeth" by Zadie Smith was, IIRC, the only one on
>the first 100 Best Novels list that no one in this group had read. And
>it's on this list, too. Still.
I am going to have to get this book.
--
If there's a nuclear winter, at least it'll snow.
John Hatpin
> Interestingly, "White Teeth" by Zadie Smith was, IIRC, the only one on
> the first 100 Best Novels list that no one in this group had read.
You can't fool us. It's by Jack London, and it's about a wolf.
--
John "denture know?" Hatpin
http://uninformedcomment.wordpress.com/
David Friedman
<604d5ece-bdf4-44be...@c3g2000yqd.googlegroups.com>,
robert schreuder <roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
As of the first thirty on the list, I not only had not read any of them,
I don't think I heard of any. Quite a bizarre list.
I didn't make it to the bottom. Did they include anything by Pratchett?
--
http://www.daviddfriedman.com/ http://daviddfriedman.blogspot.com/
Author of
_Future Imperfect: Technology and Freedom in an Uncertain World_,
Cambridge University Press.
Mary
wrote:
> In article
> As of the first thirty on the list, I not only had not read any of them,
> I don't think I heard of any. Quite a bizarre list.
>
> I didn't make it to the bottom. Did they include anything by Pratchett?
No. The list was an odd combination of obscure "literary" novels and
best-sellers.
Mary
John Hatpin
Sorry, I'll revise my answer. I've read all the literary novels five
times, but none of the best-sellers.
M C Hamster
<les...@verizon.net> wrote:
>On 19 Nov 2009 10:05:02 -0600, M C Hamster wrote:
>
>>On Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:25:27 -0800 (PST), robert schreuder
>><roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
>>>decade.
>>>
>>>http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
>>>
>>>I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
>>>for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
>>>regularly comes back in AFCA.
>>>The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
>>>books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
>>>claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
>>>decade?
>>>The comments by readers of the Times are often quite funny. For book
>>>lovers: enjoy and/or get irritated.
>>>
>>
>>9. (Freakonomics, Short History, Kite Runner, Plot vs. American,
>>Corrections, Heartbreaking, DaVinci, Life of Pi, Tipping Point)
>
>>And I'm not starting any comprehensive "Books that AFCA participants
>>have read" list this time. That's what got me in trouble with
>>"Infinte Jest".
>
>But aren't you glad you read it? I'm glad I did. And I got to read Life of
>Pi because of it, too.
>
Yes, it was good to have to read it. It built character. And it
helped keep my arm strong, by lugging it around.
>>
>>Interestingly, "White Teeth" by Zadie Smith was, IIRC, the only one on
>>the first 100 Best Novels list that no one in this group had read. And
>>it's on this list, too. Still.
>
>I am going to have to get this book.
I wish I'd named my kid Zadie.
If you buy it, you'll have to send it to me when you're done. It's a
mere 480 pages.
Mark Brader
>
> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> decade.
>
> http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
Curious how they seem to have trouble listing them in numerical order.
There are 5 books on the list that I've read:
6. The Tipping Point
10. The Da Vinci Code
17. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
21. The Plot Against America
49. The Ghost
I loved 10 (for sheer fun), 17 (except for one short but critical
scene near the end that I thought was badly misjudged), and 49
(which I'd been hoping to see filmed, and it *was* going to be,
but unfortunately, they hired Roman Polanski for the job). I liked
most of 21, but found the ending ridiculous. I thought 6 was way
too long at book length but would have made an excellent magazine
article.
I've also seen (and liked) the movies of two others on the list,
but wasn't even aware that they were adapted from books:
9. Atonement
34. Seabiscuit
And there are 19 others on the list that I've heard of, but had
little or no interest in reading: 1, 2, 3, 7, 12, 15, 22, 23, 25,
32, 44, 46, 48, 50, 54, 60, 75, 85, and 90.
--
Mark Brader | "Grammar am for people who can't think for *myself*.
Toronto | Understanded me?"
m...@vex.net | -- Buck (Get Fuzzy: Darby Conley)
My text in this article is in the public domain.
Mark Brader
> As of the first thirty on the list, I not only had not read any of them,
> I don't think I heard of any. Quite a bizarre list.
By "first thirty", you mean the bottom thirty, numbers 71-100?
> I didn't make it to the bottom. Did they include anything by Pratchett?
No.
--
Mark Brader | Could it be that this law has nothing to do with law, justice,
Toronto | morality, liberty, or foreign trade, and everything to do with
m...@vex.net | politics? Shame on me for being so cynical. -- Morley Safer
art...@yahoo.com
wrote:
> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> decade.
>
>
> I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
> for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
> regularly comes back in AFCA.
> The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
> books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
> claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
> decade?
> The comments by readers of the Times are often quite funny. For book
> lovers: enjoy and/or get irritated.
And here is the best music* of the decade
http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-best-music-of-the-decade,35540/
*"Popular" music
QueBarbara
My claim is similar with regards to the literary novels and
non-fiction books, but I did read a few of the best-sellers, only
because I was unable to leave the bedside of my terminally ill,
hospitalized dear old mum for naught but short intervals, and those
were the only books available in the gift shop.
--
QueBarbara
David Friedman
m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote:
> David Friedman:
> > As of the first thirty on the list, I not only had not read any of them,
> > I don't think I heard of any. Quite a bizarre list.
>
> By "first thirty", you mean the bottom thirty, numbers 71-100?
I mean the first thirty on the list--I didn't notice if they were in
direct or inverse order.
Mark Steese
news:14kag51465bt00ake...@4ax.com:
> robert schreuder wrote:
>
>>I have read (12)
>
> Ah, it's going to be one of those threads, is it?
>
> I've read all 100 of them.
>
> Five times.
You've read *Twilight* five times? You have my deepest sympathies.
--
Mark Steese
=======================================================================
PS: Your second question, you thought I forgot? I didn't. I never found the
banana slug. - William Least Heat-Moon
Charles Wm. Dimmick
> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> decade.
>
> http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
>
> I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
> for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
> regularly comes back in AFCA.
> The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
> books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar
I've only read one of them, and another half dozen are sitting on the
floor in the bedroom, to be read sometime in the next few years. About
another dozen are ones I might buy or borrow and read one of these days,
but I'm currently about 20 years behind in my reading, even at the rate
of about 25 books a year, which is my present pace.
Charles
Greg Goss
>
>The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
>decade.
>
>http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
One maybe familiar, 6 seen & heard reviews, 2 heard of the movie,
4 read (Bryson, Diamond, Potter, Brown)
--
Tomorrow is today already.
Greg Goss, 1989-01-27
M C Hamster
<dd...@daviddfriedman.nopsam.com> wrote:
>In article <gfmdnWUi4ZUjfZjW...@vex.net>,
> m...@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote:
>
>> David Friedman:
>> > As of the first thirty on the list, I not only had not read any of them,
>> > I don't think I heard of any. Quite a bizarre list.
>>
>> By "first thirty", you mean the bottom thirty, numbers 71-100?
>
>I mean the first thirty on the list--I didn't notice if they were in
>direct or inverse order.
I was supremely unfamiliar with numbers 71-100, and it was only for
about numbers 1-30 that I had passing familiarity.
Mac
<RemoveThisjfhop...@gmailAndThisToo.com> wrote:
> M C Hamster wrote:
> > Interestingly, "White Teeth" by Zadie Smith was, IIRC, the only one on
> > the first 100 Best Novels list that no one in this group had read.
>
> You can't fool us. It's by Jack London, and it's about a wolf.
No, was just just one of the 28 chapters.
Mac
David J. Martin
> robert schreuder <roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
>> decade.
>>
>> http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
>
> One maybe familiar, 6 seen & heard reviews, 2 heard of the movie,
> 4 read (Bryson, Diamond, Potter, Brown)
I've read 7. I don't think I recognized many until about 50.
Seabiscuit, Kite Runner, Curious Incident, Amber Spyglass, Harry Potter,
Da Vinci Code, The Road.
David
M C Hamster
I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
Boron Elgar
Glenn Dowdy
"Boron Elgar" <boron...@hootmail.com> wrote in message
news:j4fdg5pjv76sqlu2c...@4ax.com...
Scoot over, you're hogging the couch.,
Glenn D.
Boron Elgar
Pass the beer.
Boron
Lesmond
Just an evening's reading!
Charles Wm. Dimmick
I have not read it, nor do I have the least desire to read it.
Charles
Mary
> M C Hamster wrote:
> > On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:37:20 -0600, "David J. Martin"
> > <djmartin_nos...@tamu.edu> wrote:
>
> >> Greg Goss wrote:
>
> >>>> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> >>>> decade.
>
> >>> One maybe familiar, 6 seen & heard reviews, 2 heard of the movie,
> >>> 4 read (Bryson, Diamond, Potter, Brown)
> >> I've read 7. I don't think I recognized many until about 50.
>
> >> Seabiscuit, Kite Runner, Curious Incident, Amber Spyglass, Harry Potter,
> >> Da Vinci Code, The Road.
>
> > I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>
> I have not read it, nor do I have the least desire to read it.
Stand firm, Charles.
Mary
Les Albert
<cdim...@snet.net> wrote:
>M C Hamster wrote:
>> I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>I have not read it, nor do I have the least desire to read it.
I have not read it either.
Les
John Hatpin
> Pass the beer.
Any chance of a cup of tea?
Glenn Dowdy
"John Hatpin" <RemoveThi...@gmailAndThisToo.com> wrote in message
news:9hndg5lf3p36ggrug...@4ax.com...
<scoots away from that end of the couch>
Glenn D.
Mac
<RemoveThisjfhop...@gmailAndThisToo.com> wrote:
> Boron Elgar wrote:
> > On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:29:55 -0700, "Glenn Dowdy"
>
> > >"Boron Elgar" <boron_el...@hootmail.com> wrote in message
> > >news:j4fdg5pjv76sqlu2c...@4ax.com...
> > >> On 20 Nov 2009 09:56:01 -0600, M C Hamster
>
> > >>>On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:37:20 -0600, "David J. Martin"
> > >>><djmartin_nos...@tamu.edu> wrote:
>
> > >>>>Greg Goss wrote:
>
> > >>>>>> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> > >>>>>> decade.
>
>
> > >>>>> One maybe familiar, 6 seen & heard reviews, 2 heard of the movie,
> > >>>>> 4 read (Bryson, Diamond, Potter, Brown)
>
> > >>>>I've read 7. I don't think I recognized many until about 50.
>
> > >>>>Seabiscuit, Kite Runner, Curious Incident, Amber Spyglass, Harry Potter,
> > >>>>Da Vinci Code, The Road.
>
> > >>>I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>
> > >> Hi.
>
> > >Scoot over, you're hogging the couch.,
>
> > Pass the beer.
>
> Any chance of a cup of tea?
Dunno if I'm worthy to sit here, 'cause I started to read it. Well, I
started to try to read, it being unreadable and all. I assure you,
tea is far to weak to deal with it. Well maybe Lapsang, which at
least suggests scotch.
Lesmond
I need room, too.
N Jill Marsh
<davo...@nospam.speakeasy.net> wrote:
>I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
Me, a bookseller from before its introduction to after its peak.
nj"old story"m
--
Welcome, stranger, to the humble neighbourhoods.
Boron Elgar
At my house? Sure. In fact, there hasn't been a beer in in since at
least 1993 when we moved in. Bears have been closer to the house than
beers.
Lots of tea choices, too, from fancy, flowery stuff to basic steeping
leaves to Red Rose bags for making iced tea.
Good coffee over here, too.
Boron
Boron Elgar
<glenn.n...@hp.spam.com> wrote:
Some teas can be rolled.
Boron
Boron Elgar
It's gonna be some book club meeting.
Glenn Dowdy
Glenn D.
Dover Beach
I'll bring my own beanbag chair.
--
Dover
Glenn Dowdy
"Dover Beach" <moon.b...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:Xns9CC97C910D228mo...@130.133.1.4...
Glenn D.
Lesmond
That's gonna be tough when we're stacked like cordwood.
Boron Elgar
wrote:
>Boron Elgar <boron...@hootmail.com> wrote in
>news:j2pdg5th4k43mbblu...@4ax.com:
>> It's gonna be some book club meeting.
>
>I'll bring my own beanbag chair.
I'll make cookies....lemon ones, with frosting. They go well with tea,
and I'll get to use the glass tea pot, too. I like that one.
TP is the only habitual tea drinker in the house, and she, definitely
her grandmother's daughter, will only drink Lipton. I will to drink
that at all. We went to a fabulous Chinese restaurant last night that
serves a fine jasmine tea and she rejected it, saying it was
"flowery."
I prefer my teas steeped from loose leaves.
Boron
QueBarbara
<boron...@hootmail.com> wrote:
>On 20 Nov 2009 19:16:16 GMT, Dover Beach <moon.b...@gmail.com>
>wrote:
>
>>Boron Elgar <boron...@hootmail.com> wrote in
>>news:j2pdg5th4k43mbblu...@4ax.com:
>
>>> It's gonna be some book club meeting.
>>
>>I'll bring my own beanbag chair.
>
>I'll make cookies....lemon ones, with frosting. They go well with tea,
>and I'll get to use the glass tea pot, too. I like that one.
>
Can I come anyway? You will all need someone to point and laugh at and
feel superior to, right?
--
QueBarbara
Boron Elgar
You're bringing Shawn?
Boron
S. Checker
I read it, it got me upset but I am bad at stopping reading books. On
the other hand, I have not read any of the Harry Potter books. This is
because I know am am bad at stopping reading books.
--
... ich bin in einem dusenjet ins jahr 53 vor chr ... ich lande im
antiken Rom ... einige gladiatoren spielen scrabble ... ich rieche
PIZZA ...
Slow Motion Apocalypse
wrote:
> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> decade.
>
>
> I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
> for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
> regularly comes back in AFCA.
> The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
> books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
> claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
> decade?
> The comments by readers of the Times are often quite funny. For book
> lovers: enjoy and/or get irritated.
>
>
> --
> robert schreuder
I've read the Looming Tower. And I have a hard time believing Master
Of The Senate isn't better than at least one book on that list. I see
a few I want to read but my brain and attention span is too fried to
read whole books anymore, and I just don't have the time. I might
scope out the list a bit more for the next time I hit the library when
I return the Clarence Clemmons book.
Slow Motion Apocalypse
> On Nov 19, 7:25 am, robert schreuder <robertschreu...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> > decade.
>
> >http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/boo...
>
> > I know, such lists are almost by definition useless and this list is,
> > for many reasons, quite ridiculous. But yet, this kind of topic
> > regularly comes back in AFCA.
> > The vast majority of the books I haven't heard about. There are some
> > books I have read (12) and some 6 more titles look familiar - but
> > claiming that some/all of those books belongs to the top 100? Of a
> > decade?
> > The comments by readers of the Times are often quite funny. For book
> > lovers: enjoy and/or get irritated.
>
>
> *"Popular" music
I only have a handful of those and only seen 4 groups on that list
live. Damn.
My favorite album of the 2000's if not ever is the self-titled Peeping
Tom CD from 2006.
I go to so many live gigs that I don't even time for CD's though.
Charles Wm. Dimmick
this situation.
Charles "also, I bet the Greeks have a word for it" d.
Mac
> Lesmond wrote:
> > On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:19:30 -0700, Glenn Dowdy wrote:
>
> >>news:Xns9CC97C910D228mo...@130.133.1.4...
> >>> Boron Elgar <boron_el...@hootmail.com> wrote in
> >>>news:j2pdg5th4k43mbblu...@4ax.com:
>
> >>>> On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:38:30 -0500 (EST), "Lesmond"
> >>>> <lesm...@verizon.net> wrote:
>
> >>>>> On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:29:55 -0700, Glenn Dowdy wrote:
>
> >>>>>>news:j4fdg5pjv76sqlu2c...@4ax.com...
> >>>>>>> On 20 Nov 2009 09:56:01 -0600, M C Hamster
>
> >>>>>>>> On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:37:20 -0600, "David J. Martin"
> >>>>>>>> <djmartin_nos...@tamu.edu> wrote:
>
> >>>>>>>>> Greg Goss wrote:
>
> >>>>>>>>>>> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of
> >>>>>>>>>>> the decade.
>
> >>>http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainmen
> >>>>>>>>>>> t/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
> >>>>>>>>>> One maybe familiar, 6 seen & heard reviews, 2 heard of the
> >>>>>>>>>> movie, 4 read (Bryson, Diamond, Potter, Brown)
> >>>>>>>>> I've read 7. I don't think I recognized many until about 50.
>
> >>>>>>>>> Seabiscuit, Kite Runner, Curious Incident, Amber Spyglass, Harry
> >>>>>>>>> Potter, Da Vinci Code, The Road.
>
> >>>>>>>> I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>
> >>>>>>> Hi.
> >>>>>> Scoot over, you're hogging the couch.,
> >>>>> I need room, too.
> >>>> It's gonna be some book club meeting.
> >>> I'll bring my own beanbag chair.
>
> >> The orgy's on the couch.
>
> > That's gonna be tough when we're stacked like cordwood.
>
> I'm sure that somewhere in the Kama Sutra there's a position to cover
> this situation.
>
> Charles "also, I bet the Greeks have a word for it" d.
"Eumenides," she said.
Greg Goss
>Lots of tea choices, too, from fancy, flowery stuff to basic steeping
>leaves to Red Rose bags for making iced tea.
Red Rose? Wasn't that the brand that those old sixties TV ads showed
being smuggled into the other countries? When did they start selling
it in the US?
"Only in Canada, you say? Pity!"
--
Tomorrow is today already.
Greg Goss, 1989-01-27
Heather
>On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:37:20 -0600, "David J. Martin"
><djmarti...@tamu.edu> wrote:
>
>>Greg Goss wrote:
>>> robert schreuder <roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
>>>> decade.
>>>>
>>>> http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
>>>
>>> One maybe familiar, 6 seen & heard reviews, 2 heard of the movie,
>>> 4 read (Bryson, Diamond, Potter, Brown)
>>
>>I've read 7. I don't think I recognized many until about 50.
>>
>>Seabiscuit, Kite Runner, Curious Incident, Amber Spyglass, Harry Potter,
>>Da Vinci Code, The Road.
>>
>
>I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
I haven't read it or anything else by Dan Brown. Too many people whose
judgement I trust read it and said it was a complete waste of time.
--
Heather
Heather
I should have read ahead. Me too.
--
Heather
Bill Turlock
>
> On 20 Nov 2009 09:56:01 -0600, M C Hamster
> <davo...@nospam.speakeasy.net> wrote:
>
> >On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:37:20 -0600, "David J. Martin"
> ><djmarti...@tamu.edu> wrote:
> >
> >>Greg Goss wrote:
> >>> robert schreuder <roberts...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> >>>> decade.
> >>>>
> >>>> http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
> >>>
> >>> One maybe familiar, 6 seen & heard reviews, 2 heard of the movie,
> >>> 4 read (Bryson, Diamond, Potter, Brown)
> >>
> >>I've read 7. I don't think I recognized many until about 50.
> >>
> >>Seabiscuit, Kite Runner, Curious Incident, Amber Spyglass, Harry Potter,
> >>Da Vinci Code, The Road.
> >>
> >
> >I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>
> Hi.
Me neither, and proud of it!
Mac
> Boron Elgar <boron_el...@hootmail.com> wrote:
> >Lots of tea choices, too, from fancy, flowery stuff to basic steeping
> >leaves to Red Rose bags for making iced tea.
>
> Red Rose? Wasn't that the brand that those old sixties TV ads showed
> being smuggled into the other countries? When did they start selling
> it in the US?
Red rose was very big in the New England of me yout', but it was a
different blend. Folklore (which mighta been true) was that it was
Commie Tea, and thus unacceptable. (The idea that "the real thing"
was better was an actual folktale; Canadians were seen as closer to
British, and hence better at this sorta thing, among the swamp yankees
and the immigrant groups (except, of course, the irish)
> "Only in Canada, you say? Pity!"
Come to think of it, I've lived most of my life in Baja Canada.
Washington, especially west of Hood Canal, where you can shop in
Victoria cheaper than in Seattle, really is Baja BC in parts, and
Boston and the Maritimes have always had interplay (MacKay, McInnes,
and several people not named Mac-something had more than a little to
do with this, as did the Catholic connection. Antigonish was the
Irish riviera. ).
Rick B.
> Boron Elgar <boron...@hootmail.com> wrote:
>
>>Lots of tea choices, too, from fancy, flowery stuff to basic steeping
>>leaves to Red Rose bags for making iced tea.
>
> Red Rose? Wasn't that the brand that those old sixties TV ads showed
> being smuggled into the other countries? When did they start selling
> it in the US?
>
> "Only in Canada, you say? Pity!"
I can remember it on US shelves in the '60s, and this chimp-o-riffic B&W ad
must go back at least that far:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-918OMwCx6w
Rick B.
news:e8udg51or1kelhhh2...@4ax.com:
I'll join you in the corner. Salon des Refusees!
Boron Elgar
>Boron Elgar <boron...@hootmail.com> wrote:
>
>>Lots of tea choices, too, from fancy, flowery stuff to basic steeping
>>leaves to Red Rose bags for making iced tea.
>
>Red Rose? Wasn't that the brand that those old sixties TV ads showed
>being smuggled into the other countries? When did they start selling
>it in the US?
I grew up in Detroit, just across the river from Windsor, so it's a
brand I have known since childhood. Let's go look.....aha!
http://www.redrosetea.com/history.aspx
"Initially, Red Rose was sold mainly in the Atlantic Provinces of
Canada, but soon distribution expanded into other parts of Canada and
into the United States beginning in the 1920's. Distribution initially
was in cities near the Canadian border such as Portland, Buffalo, and
Detroit. In 1929, Red Rose introduced tea bags for the first time."
>"Only in Canada, you say? Pity!"
That is the way I feel about it. It is the only plain bagged tea I
will drink and the iced tea it makes is full of flavor and remains
crystal clear.
Boron
Mac
Plus, they got those little ceramic animules for Nanas to give to
grand kids.
Lesmond
Oh, no kidding.
All right...we'll wait until after the holidays. Then you get to pick the
place. I'll meet you wherever you choose.
Boron Elgar
wrote:
I walked into my bank branch a few weeks ago, something I do at least
annually, and the teller had a line-up of maybe 12-15 Red Rose
critters by her window. We chatted about the various series that have
been offered over the years.
I have one here on the desk, dammit. It looks like Hansel.
Boron
Boron Elgar
It's going to be a diner somewhere, I hope, so you can bring the kid
and husband I'd love to meet, too.
Boron
Lesmond
Okay, then a weekend, early in the new year. We cannot allow ourselves to
put it off any longer.
Charles Wm. Dimmick
> Boron Elgar <boron...@hootmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Lots of tea choices, too, from fancy, flowery stuff to basic steeping
>> leaves to Red Rose bags for making iced tea.
>
> Red Rose? Wasn't that the brand that those old sixties TV ads showed
> being smuggled into the other countries? When did they start selling
> it in the US?
>
> "Only in Canada, you say? Pity!"
We have been buying and drinking Red Rose Tea since about 1966. We
definitely prefer it to either Lipton's or Tetley's. However, we
actually consume more Jasmine Green Tea [of various Chinese brands] than
Red Rose.
charles
Boron Elgar
Reunite Gondwanaland (Mary Shafer)
<les...@verizon.net> wrote:
> On Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:29:55 -0700, Glenn Dowdy wrote:
>
> >
> >"Boron Elgar" <boron...@hootmail.com> wrote in message
> >news:j4fdg5pjv76sqlu2c...@4ax.com...
> >Scoot over, you're hogging the couch.,
>
> I need room, too.
I don't think this couch is big enough to hold all of us. Maybe we
need one of those U-shaped sectionals.
Mary "Sure are a lot of us; I put it down to natural good taste."
--
Mary Shafer Retired aerospace research engineer
We didn't just do weird stuff at Dryden, we wrote reports about it.
reunite....@gmail.com or mil...@qnet.com
Visit my blog at http://thedigitalknitter.blogspot.com/
Lesmond
We shall take this up in email.
Greg Goss
I'm surprised that the early "pity" ads aren't on youtube. Here are a
couple after the "Pity!" slogan had descended into self-parody by the
end of the eighties.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QobcpUC-W-s&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUnbJAWk6gM
or a decade later
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KA2bRwiw7W8
But I can't find any of the "smuggling" ads from twenty years earlier.
I also found a TV ad promoting 48 cards of flowers (one for each
state) available in Red Rose (and Blue Ribbon) tea.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIR0L1oXfYw
So it looks like the "Only in Canada? Pity!" slogan was bogus all
along.
Greg Goss
>Boron Elgar wrote:
>>
>> On 20 Nov 2009 09:56:01 -0600, M C Hamster
>> >I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>>
>> Hi.
>
>Me neither, and proud of it!
Pride over refusing to read something? That's a bit perverted. Lots
of people avoid it because they expect not to enjoy the process. But
you're making a point of boycotting it because you already know it's
not something that a civilized person would read. Such boycotts where
civilized people "know better" than to read certain books are where
the downfall of civilization starts.
(Point addressed at Bill's pride. The point is irrelevant regarding
Boron. Pride over not reading something is qualitatively different
than choosing to read something else.)
Bill Turlock
"Euripides?", I'd asked
Bill Turlock
"Digital Firtress" was readable, but barely�if you have an active
suspension of disbelief. Also convinced me, even more than ever
not to read DVC
John Hatpin
I've not read The Da Vinci Code five times!
--
John "saw this coming" Hatpin
http://uninformedcomment.wordpress.com/
Bill Turlock
>
> Bill Turlock <"Bill Turlock "@sonnnic.invalid> wrote:
>
> >Boron Elgar wrote:
> >>
> >> On 20 Nov 2009 09:56:01 -0600, M C Hamster
>
> >> >I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
> >>
> >> Hi.
> >
> >Me neither, and proud of it!
>
> Pride over refusing to read something? That's a bit perverted. Lots
> of people avoid it because they expect not to enjoy the process. But
> you're making a point of boycotting it because you already know it's
> not something that a civilized person would read. Such boycotts where
> civilized people "know better" than to read certain books are where
> the downfall of civilization starts.
Oh yeah?! well� pflbbt!
Bill Turlock
I figger if every time I see a copy, and don't read it, that's
one 'not read' instance. In that case, I'm probaly up to ~50. The
thrift shops are full of it!
M C Hamster
<les...@verizon.net> wrote:
And Lesmond, any time you want me to send you my copy of The Da Vinci
Code, be sure to let me know. It must be around here somewhere.
--
M C Hamster "Big Wheel Keep on Turnin'" -- Creedence Clearwater Revival
Bill Turlock
If not I can find one for 25�. LMK
Opus the Penguin
> I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
Me. I'd already read Foucault's Pendulum.
--
Opus the Penguin
The best darn penguin in all of Usenet
Opus the Penguin
> M C Hamster <davo...@nospam.speakeasy.net> wrote:
>>
>> I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>
> I read it, it got me upset but I am bad at stopping reading books.
> On the other hand, I have not read any of the Harry Potter books.
> This is because I know am am bad at stopping reading books.
Are you bad at stopping reading serieseses or just books? If it's
just books, try reading the first one. It's short and, in my opinion,
enjoyable.
If you have to go through the whole series, that would be quite a
commitment if you found out you didn't like it.
I liked the series for the most part. The last two were kind of
disappointing. It was like the end of the X-Files. Rowling had set us
up for more than she knew how to deliver.
We own the whole series. If I had it to buy over again, we'd get the
books from Canada. Word to the wise.
Opus the Penguin
> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> decade.
>
> http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/b
> ooks/book_reviews/article6914181.ece
>
I've read three.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon - Ok
book. Overhyped. I would have preferred a less Wilkie Collins-ish
story line. It got in the way of the character. Haddon was a
beggining novelist and not sure enough of his material. He didn't
trust the character to be interesting enough without an overwrought
narrative.
The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman - An absolute mess. Eye-rolling,
pompous, cringe-inducing, and tedious by turns. This is the third and
final book in a series that started off quite well but started going
off the rails midway through the first book.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling - A mediocre
effort. The worst of the seven. I'd pick the first one or Azkaban for
a "Best," list, but neither one meets this particular list's time
strictures. Restricting myself to this decade, I'd go with Goblet.
Greg Johnson
<opusthepen...@gmail.com> wrote:
>S. Checker (spa...@gmail.com) wrote:
>
>> M C Hamster <davo...@nospam.speakeasy.net> wrote:
>>>
>>> I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>>
>> I read it, it got me upset but I am bad at stopping reading books.
>> On the other hand, I have not read any of the Harry Potter books.
>> This is because I know am am bad at stopping reading books.
>
>Are you bad at stopping reading serieseses or just books? If it's
>just books, try reading the first one. It's short and, in my opinion,
>enjoyable.
>
>If you have to go through the whole series, that would be quite a
>commitment if you found out you didn't like it.
>
>I liked the series for the most part. The last two were kind of
>disappointing. It was like the end of the X-Files. Rowling had set us
>up for more than she knew how to deliver.
Thank you for making me feel my decision to skip the last two was
appropriate. The previous one hadn't appealed to me as much as the
first ones had, so I stopped there.
Boron Elgar
<opusthepen...@gmail.com> wrote:
>M C Hamster (davo...@nospam.speakeasy.net) wrote:
>
>> I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>
>
>Me. I'd already read Foucault's Pendulum.
I read The Pit and the Pendulum before you did.
Boron
Snidely
> That is the way I feel about it. It is the only plain bagged tea I
> will drink and the iced tea it makes is full of flavor and remains
> crystal clear.
I vote for Murchies.
/dps
Mary
Stash, depending on the kind of tea.
Mary
Boron Elgar
I have never seen it. I will look, though.
Boron
Lesmond
Oh, send it anytime. The wood pile is getting kind of low.
Mark Steese
@mid.individual.net:
> Bill Turlock <"Bill Turlock "@sonnnic.invalid> wrote:
>
>>Boron Elgar wrote:
>>>
>>> On 20 Nov 2009 09:56:01 -0600, M C Hamster
>
>>> >I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>>>
>>> Hi.
>>
>>Me neither, and proud of it!
>
> Pride over refusing to read something? That's a bit perverted. Lots
> of people avoid it because they expect not to enjoy the process. But
> you're making a point of boycotting it because you already know it's
> not something that a civilized person would read. Such boycotts where
> civilized people "know better" than to read certain books are where
> the downfall of civilization starts.
Damn right. The week after Flavius Honorius said he was proud he'd never
read The Passing of Peregrinus, he received word that Stilicho had crossed
the Julian Alps.
--
Mark Steese
=======================================================================
PS: Your second question, you thought I forgot? I didn't. I never found the
banana slug. - William Least Heat-Moon
Jesper Lauridsen
>
> And here is the best music* of the decade
> http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-best-music-of-the-decade,35540/
>
> *"Popular" music
On that list I have 3. Including one I never listen to and one from 1999.
N Jill Marsh
I have twelve, mostly because I viciously plunder the Best Beloved's
music collection whenever he's about. Of those, eight or ten are
excellent.
nj"maybe more"m
--
Welcome, stranger, to the humble neighbourhoods.
Mark Steese
news:Xns9CCB731...@188.40.43.213:
> Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote in news:7mp6bcF3iunroU2
> @mid.individual.net:
>
>> Bill Turlock <"Bill Turlock "@sonnnic.invalid> wrote:
>>
>>>Boron Elgar wrote:
>>>>
>>>> On 20 Nov 2009 09:56:01 -0600, M C Hamster
>>
>>>> >I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>>>>
>>>> Hi.
>>>
>>>Me neither, and proud of it!
>>
>> Pride over refusing to read something? That's a bit perverted. Lots
>> of people avoid it because they expect not to enjoy the process. But
>> you're making a point of boycotting it because you already know it's
>> not something that a civilized person would read. Such boycotts
>> where civilized people "know better" than to read certain books are
>> where the downfall of civilization starts.
>
> Damn right. The week after Flavius Honorius said he was proud he'd
> never read The Passing of Peregrinus, he received word that Stilicho
> had crossed the Julian Alps.
Aargh! That should, of course, read "that *Alaric* had crossed the
S. Checker
>
>> M C Hamster <davo...@nospam.speakeasy.net> wrote:
>>>
>>> I wonder if anyone in the world has not read the Da Vinci Code.
>>
>> I read it, it got me upset but I am bad at stopping reading books.
>> On the other hand, I have not read any of the Harry Potter books.
>> This is because I know am am bad at stopping reading books.
>
> Are you bad at stopping reading serieseses or just books? If it's
> just books, try reading the first one. It's short and, in my opinion,
> enjoyable.
I got about five books into the Thomas Covenant series before I finally
told myself, "Self, stop reading these. There's not going to be a happy
ending." I read all of the post-Zelazny Amber books even though it was
obvious from the first that whoever it was couldn't pull it off.
> If you have to go through the whole series, that would be quite a
> commitment if you found out you didn't like it.
>
> I liked the series for the most part. The last two were kind of
> disappointing. It was like the end of the X-Files. Rowling had set us
> up for more than she knew how to deliver.
>
> We own the whole series. If I had it to buy over again, we'd get the
> books from Canada. Word to the wise.
You're killing unborn baby Canadian booksellers, you know.
--
She will take you to another world
where the winds of confusion swirl
She will call you honey
-- Michael Timmins
Charles Wm. Dimmick
> I got about five books into the Thomas Covenant series before I finally
> told myself, "Self, stop reading these. There's not going to be a happy
> ending." I read all of the post-Zelazny Amber books even though it was
> obvious from the first that whoever it was couldn't pull it off.
I did the entire Thomas Covenant series, knowing full well that it
wouldn't be a "happy" ending. I found them to be well-written
nevertheless. However, the series I stopped reading after the second
book was Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" series. I found the first book
quite enjoyable, and the first half of the second book was still good,
but then something about the way things were going turned me off, and I
quit at the end of the second book.
And the absolute worst "must read" book I ever encountered, which I got
less than halfway through, was that hideous "Gormenghast".
Charles
David J. Martin
Gormenghast was one of those I just kept reading while wondering why I
was still reading. I quit Covenant after the first 3. I gave up on the
Shanara after 1 and a half, Dune after 3, I think and I wondered why I
read the last one of those.
David
art...@yahoo.com
wrote:
> The Times recently published a list of the 100 best books of the
> decade.
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is one of the best books of the
decayed.
bill van
spa...@gmail.com (S. Checker) wrote:
> I got about five books into the Thomas Covenant series before I finally
> told myself, "Self, stop reading these. There's not going to be a happy
> ending." I read all of the post-Zelazny Amber books even though it was
> obvious from the first that whoever it was couldn't pull it off.
>
Post-Zelazny Amber books? I'm aware of two series of five books each;
the last was published in 1991, four years before he died. There are
also some short stories floating around. But I'm not aware of any that
weren't written by Zelazny, although some of his non-Amber work was
completed by other people. Do you know of any?
Agreed on not pulling it off, by the way. The first series was a hoot,
though the later books were not as tight and bright as the first. The
second series seemed to me to be just repeated shufflings of the cards.
Nothing purposeful seemed to be happening.
bill