Bibliophile!

Bibliophile!

'Outside a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside a dog,it's too dark to read.' - Groucho Marx

I don't expect you to understand
after you caused so much pain
But then again you're not to blame
you're just a human, a victim of the insane
- John Lennon

So, so you think you can tell
Heaven from Hell, blue...more »
  • Cochin, India
  • member since Friday, December 21 2007

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Public Notes

  • Madhuri

    madhuri says

    I finally read Pedro Paramo - what a captivating book! And such a great idea to talk of the past through people who lived it, rather than from people who merely heard of it.
    Have you read Rulfo's other book - the one with his short stories?
    I read another book from Joseph Roth - The Radetzky March, the translation by Joachim Neugroschel, which is not supposed to be half as good as the Micheal Hoffmann translation, but I was still hugely impressed. You must read him, if you haven't.

    posted yesterday. ( send a note )
  • Jigar

    jigar says

    By the way, you seem to be helluva reader!

    posted 5 days ago. ( send a note )
  • Jigar

    jigar says

    thanks for commenting on my shelf.....yes, have to add more books, but am
    too lazy for that :)
    was not visiting the site for months, and suddenly found your note.
    stay in touch!

    posted 5 days ago. ( send a note )
  • Andra

    andra says

    oh, how embarrassing! Should read "its native castellano," not "it's native"... sorry!

    posted 7 days ago. ( send a note )
  • Andra

    andra says

    So I picked up the Tango Singer in it's native castellano in Buenos Aires.... I don't think it was just a poor translation job. To be entirely honest, I didn't enjoy it at all. I found it to be very dry and it was trying far too hard. I think if Eloy Martinez had focused on telling the story itself it would have been an interesting read. I am certainly glad I read it, though! It makes me appreciate all the authors who can tell a great story but also find a unique and important means of doing so.

    posted 7 days ago. ( send a note )
  • zohreh E

    zohreh e says

    hi.
    can you plz tell me about the book name "MASKS" in your shelf

    posted 9 days ago. ( send a note )
  • tapbirds

    tapbirds says

    I forgot to add that my favorite artists who are living and working today are Makoto Fujimura, a New York “faith-based” painter who uses traditional Japanese "nihonga" techniques that make use of natural pigments such as malachite, azurite, vermillion, and gold. You might want to check out http://www.makotofujimura.com or his book, “The Splendor of the Medium;” I recently had the wonderful opportunity to hear Fujimura speak at the new DeYoung Art Museum in San Francisco. Also, I appreciate Mark Tansey’s postmodern paintings (I recommend “The Pictures in Question” by Mark Taylor). Lastly, I find the contemporary Chinese painters being exhibited to be very exciting (Feng Feng, Hung Liu, Li Jin, etc.). Do you have any “living favorites?” Regards, Scott

    posted 11 days ago. ( send a note )
  • tapbirds

    tapbirds says

    Who are my favorite artists? That is as difficult to answer as is who is my favorite author! I guess that depends on what era/genre we are discussing. My favorite Romantic artists would be Caravaggio and Rembrandt, both for their use of light, and the former for his incredible subject matter found in his works. BTW, I highly recommend “M: The Man who became Caravaggio” by Peter Robb; however I'm still struggling to finish "Rembrandt's Eyes" by Simon Schama. For abstract painters, my favorite is Mark Rothko. I am really drawn into his late period works. I highly recommend his biography by James Breslin if you're interested. Lastly, I love the works by Joan Brown, who was part of the late San Francisco figurative movement of the 60's and 70's as well as the more structural works by Eva Hesse ("Three Artists, Three Women" is on my to-be-read list). I could probably go on, but won't. Best wishes, Scott

    posted 11 days ago. ( send a note )
  • Madhuri

    madhuri says

    Yes, I was very moved by Master of St Petersburg. It is loosely based on Dostoevsky's life. I like it even better than Coetzee's Disgrace, which I think is a great work itself.
    About Gordimer - I simply love her - try reading The Pickup. It is very intense. The Conservationist is quite good too, but it does get a little dry and tedious at times. She has also written some great short stories - may be you could try them.

    posted 12 days ago. ( send a note )
  • tapbirds

    tapbirds says

    I will try to see the Kahlo movie . . . but only after I finish the book and see the exhibit. I also want to read Diego Rivera’s “My Life, My Art” autobiography as well. Borges update: some of his stories are easier to understand, and profound (just finished “Death and the Compass,” . . . wow!). Others seem much more obtuse and require further thought, research. Thanks for letting me share! What are you currently reading? Best wishes, Scott

    posted 12 days ago. ( send a note )
  • Suze

    suze says

    I do like Latin American and South American fiction, although my Spanish reading selections have heretofore been limited to García-Márquez, Pablo Neruda, and a few other various poets. I'll try Borges! Anything specifically you'd recommend?

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • Suze

    suze says

    Haha, I just said "come to think of it" twice in two sentences--I'm sleep deprived, eh? :D

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • Suze

    suze says

    Sadly, I haven't read many of the authors that you've mentioned. Partially because my library is so lacking in foreign reading material--when we move in a couple of months, I plan to dig in much more :D

    Fumiko Enchi's masterwork is The Waiting Years--I've only read one book of hers come to think of it, Masks, which I had to read for a class. That class got me interested in Japanese literature, come to think of it. Mishima's tetralogy looks to be interesting--the first book, Spring Snow is kind of meh until the end, but by the end I was intrigued to read more. The crazy thing--my library has the whole tetralogy, but only in SPANISH! I know I live in California, but geez! :)

    Which author should I read next? Make a recommendation! :) If the library has it, I'll put it on reserve.

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • Suze

    suze says

    Of course, I love Murakami! Mishima is another interesting character, although I've had difficulty getting my hands on his other books in the tetralogy (my library doesn't carry them and I'm trying to buy fewer books right now... ugh!) I've read Fumiko Enchi, although not her masterwork yet, and one of my favorite written works is the Hojoki by Kamo no Chomei. (I want to get the opening lines tattooed on my back... :)

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • pooja

    pooja says

    thnx :) that was a self portrait.
    i started out with gospel, through blindness to stone raft....became increasingly monotonous..gospel was incredible; the god devil dialectics was intelligently crafted...i'm on a break from saramago. Don't want too repeated disappointments that I just don't fell like reading any more....by the way i'm getting very lazy to read..more into movies now. saw the departed and crank y'day. brilliant.

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • pramod kumar

    pramod kumar says

    Take ur time, are u free next Saturday ? If so, inform me.

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • Suze

    suze says

    Hey there! Thanks for checking out my shelf! I haven't gotten around to Abe yet; the library never has it when I go to check it out :\

    I've always been a sucker for cool cover art... :D Those people know who they're marketing to, I've guess! I've discovered some cool books that way, though.

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • tapbirds

    tapbirds says

    In addition to Borges, I'm reading a collection of short stories entitled "The Boar" by Nam Le and a "Biography of Frida Kahlo" by Hayden Herrera. The latter because there is an exhibit of her paintings at the SF Museum of Modern Art that I'm looking forward to seeing - after I finish the book! How about you?

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • pramod kumar

    pramod kumar says

    after a long time...
    how is life ? what r u reading now ? do u recently visit any of book shops ? our secondhand bookshop is not there (near Padma)
    do u see that cds (motorcycle diary & bergman's film) . ur books in my hand and i will retern when we meet . Where and When we can meet ? Now a days I read nothing

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )
  • pooja

    pooja says

    I tried to....but i am not able to find most of the books i search for......
    need some getting used to....

    posted 2 weeks ago. ( send a note )


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