books_aprilmarch2001

21.04.2001

Erich Maria Remarque - "All quiet on the Western front" ("Im Westen nichts Neues"), I finally read it. I knew the story already, so there weren't any big surprises. It is still considered one of the most important books on the trench warfare in WWI, and it definitely is intense and feels genuine, but I thought the whole style feels a little dated by now - granted, it was written in the late 1920s. If you are interessted in the subject, you should definitely read the "Regeneration"-trilogie by Pat Barker. There are "Regeneration", "The eye in the door" and "Ghostroad", for which she was awarded the Booker Prize in 1995. Despite that, the first one in the trilogy, "Regeneration", is my favourite. It deals more with the after effects of the trench warfare than the actual event and is set in a hospital in Scottland, where officers are treated for shell shock. The hospital actually existed, as did the psyciatrist in the novel and a few real life war poets like Siegfried Sasson. An excellent read (if you like the slightly quirky) and it introduced me to the war poems of WWI written by the Brits.

15.04.2001

Read an autobiography for a change, "Loitering with Intent" by Peter O'Toole. It is as odd as he is and a good read. This is the first part, it mostly deals with his childhood and growing up during WWII - there's an unusual take on the youth of Hitler, too. A couple of theatre anecdotes strewn in and some poems, that I can't repeat here - gosh, he's not shying away from using strong language, is he? - generally I had a good time and a few laughs reading it.

06.04.2001

And another book that will definitely not enter the "100 books you have to have in your library". It's "Mexican hat" by Michael McGarrity. Ex-cop-turned-Sherif-turned-Ranger stumbles over dead black bear, two-legged corpse and poached puma and thinks "Something is fishy here!" A lot of sleuthing ensues, hero being accompanied by slightly nerdy side-kick and sexy female with brains. A 60 year old mystery gives it the necessary puzzlemet factor. And just to brighten up the plot, you learn how to catch a pony with a lasso and how the exterminate the mice living under your floor boards without contracting the Hanta virus.... What can I say, not high literature, but I read it in 2 days!

02.04.2001

Have finally converted to the ever growing group of people that think, Terry Pratchett is very funny and not to be missed. It's my mum's fault, she gave me "The fifth elephant" at Christmas. It's the latest one, but you can read them in any order you want without problems. Anyway, it really was quite funny, lots of dwarf, vampires, werwolves and the adorable Igors, I want one, please! So I now started in earnest to catch up on things. One of my colleagues has every single word ever published by Pratchett, hence no delivery problems. Have read the first 5 now, "The light fantastic", "Equal rites", "Mort" and "Sourcery" - that's 4, I know, can't remember one of the titles..... Some are funnier than others, they are all weird and he must have had the most fun writing them all. Still, "The fifth elephant" was the best, decent storyline and all that. Not much point, describing what the books are about, just see for yourself.

25.03.2001

Just finished "A Boy Called It" by David Pelzer. It's the first part of a trilogy and deals with his life up to 12 years old, living almost like a slave with an abusive mother. It's a thin books, I read it in 2 days and it thouroughly depressed me. I kept thinking, no way, that can not be happening! A friend recommended it and I was too curious not to read it. But I can't decide if I liked it or hated it. Don't read it if you are squeamish. I don't think I will read the 2nd part.....

Cathy