What are you currently reading?

[MN Dave]

Had the urge to read some sf and heard good things about these books.

[SonicMan46]

I recently read Pat Conroy's South of Broad, his first novel in 14 years, set in Charleston SC. Not particularly recommended, but I finished it because (a) we love Charleston and (b) I wanted to see how it ended. Rather soap-opera-ish.

I don't plan to read the book above but the title deserves some comments relative to Broad Street in Charleston, a favorite place for us to visit (in fact going back next year for a short vacation).

Broad & Meeting Streets cross each other in the lower downtown area of the city not far from the battery; to be considered a 'true' Charlestonian, living 'South of Broad', i.e. nearer the battery was (is) considered the best social address; others not residing in that area would state that you were thus a SOB!

Now living just above Broad Street was still considered not a bad address, and those would be thought of as living 'Slightly North of Broad', i.e. you were therefore a SNOB!  In the latter location, near the Cooper River side of the area, there is a fabulous restaurant called SNOBS (there, I had the absolute best key lime pie that I've ever eaten a few years ago, and I've tried hundreds over the years!) - great place. 

[Brian]

In a book group i joined above is next choice - dont know if anybody has read this but for me its really hard work. Its about a bloke who has a medical condition which enables him to travel back and forward in time. Sounds ok for a plot but the story imo is total mess. Its supposed to be mainly a romance but the plot is so ridiculous and the story so boring i am tempted to give up - maybe its just me because on amazon site the five stars outnumbered the one stars around 7 to 1   

Wow, that sounds like an awful book. I haven't read it, but can't blame you for not being able to.

[greg]

Harry Partch: A Biography (Bob Gilmore)


Finally finished this, even though I intended to during the summer.

[secondwind]

I'm about to start Outliers by Malcom Gladwell, about what makes people successful. It's my old ladies' book club selection for January.
I recently read Pat Conroy's South of Broad, his first novel in 14 years, set in Charleston SC. Not particularly recommended, but I finished it because (a) we love Charleston and (b) I wanted to see how it ended. Rather soap-opera-ish.

My husband read Outliers recently.  He read bits and pieces of it to me, and I've read some of it myself.  He keeps reminding me of the research concerning what separated the Julliard students who made careers as soloists from the ones who became orchestral musicians or teachers.   It turns out it's just a matter of hours--about 10,000 hours of practice, if I recall correctly--before beginning conservatory.   There's some interesting research in the book.

[Brahmsian]

The Brothers Karamazov - Dostoevsky

[Lilas Pastia]

Biography of Eilleen Farrell, one of the very few artists versatile enough to sing convincingly opera, blues and jazz. The possessor of a huge voice and an excellent technique, Farrell was a radio star before she was asked to try her hand at opera. A big Met star in the early sixties, she ran afoul of the Met's management. A true Irish hotblood, she never hesitated to tell things as she saw them.  Not one to tell anecdotes using shuch foils as 'a certain well-known italian tenor ' or 'this famous german conductor', she tells tales and names names openly, and discusses frankly the problems she ran into or the errors she made in her carreer. All told, a very entertaining and illuminating memoir. One thing she has in common with Nilsson is her distrust of vocal coaches and university conservatories. If one is to believe these two divas, many, many major voices have been destroyed by dangerous and silly vocal practices and reckless voice training.

I have many discs with Farrell ( 8 if memory serves), and the adjectives that comes to mind spontaneously are 'natural' and 'honest'. There was never anything fabricated into her voice production - it all came to her as easily as talking. And histrionically, she always put words first, voice second. This is particularly obvious in her many 'popular' albums.

[Maciek]

You're on an opera-memoir roll, Andre?

[Lilas Pastia]

Well, sort of. I just happened to land on the Norbeck & Peters web site, and there was all that yummy material. Next is a biography of Franco Corelli  . Nilsson's and Farrell's are autobiographies, and although well written and reasonably frank (Farrell's esp), they may not be entirely uncritical.

I also have John Canarina's biography of Pierre Monteux waiting on the table. Singers and conductors are the ones I'm most interested in. Of other musicians, only Artur Rubinstein's mammoth memoirs have held my attention. He even tells about his 'first time', something you never read about in a musician's biography.

[MN Dave]

An adventure novel. Think Indiana Jones.

[Beetzart]

[greg]

I'm trying to find some sort of great novel to possibly read during summer (or, at the soonest, sometime during next month).
I just don't know where to start...

[MN Dave]

I'm trying to find some sort of great novel to possibly read during summer (or, at the soonest, sometime during next month).
I just don't know where to start...

oy

[greg]

oy

Yeah, pretty open-ended, huh?... 
I don't even know what I'd like... I could explain what elements in a story I might like, but I don't know how much it would help.

[CD]

I'm trying to find some sort of great novel to possibly read during summer (or, at the soonest, sometime during next month).
I just don't know where to start...

I think you would like Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.

[Brahmsian]

I think you would like Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.

Seconded!

[MN Dave]

I think you would like Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.

Yeah, that one didn't bore me out of my skull.

[greg]

Cool, that one does look like a good one.
Out of curiosity, what might be considered the Mahler 9th of books? (if there is such a thing)

[CD]

In what way? (I've never heard the M9 btw)

[Opus106]

Out of curiosity, what might be considered the Mahler 9th of books? (if there is such a thing)

War and Peace, perhaps? (I haven't read it, but I know it's a tome... about war and peace. )