Books, Books, Books

[Goalie]

I like books. Books are good. 

I mainly read books about history or people tho. I recently finished one about Jack The Ripper. 

 

Anyways, is this the place for this? Maybe... recently schools have started to talk about banning certain books? 

Yes or no? 

 

I say no because history is what it is and we can't hide from it and pretend certain great authors didn't exist because maybe they weren't up to today's standard of people 

[Wilbur]

33 minutes ago, Goalie said:

I like books. Books are good. 

I mainly read books about history or people tho. I recently finished one about Jack The Ripper. 

 

Anyways, is this the place for this? Maybe... recently schools have started to talk about banning certain books? 

Yes or no? 

 

I say no because history is what it is and we can't hide from it and pretend certain great authors didn't exist because maybe they weren't up to today's standard of people 

I agree. A lot of books that are deemed not appropriate for schools really are due to the lessons they contain within them of a moral nature.

[Wideleft]

27 minutes ago, Goalie said:

I like books. Books are good. 

I mainly read books about history or people tho. I recently finished one about Jack The Ripper. 

 

Anyways, is this the place for this? Maybe... recently schools have started to talk about banning certain books? 

Yes or no? 

 

I say no because history is what it is and we can't hide from it and pretend certain great authors didn't exist because maybe they weren't up to today's standard of people 

I think any discussion about books and reading is welcome here.  Banning books is a ridiculous notion given how easy it is to find books online.  When it comes to schools and public libraries, I do think there needs to be intelligent, thoughtful and expert guidance on what belongs and I think that for the most part it has worked out very well in Winnipeg particularly, thanks to the expert guidance.

Some red-cap wearing Floridian lady should not be allowed to single-handedly have books removed from schools and libraries across the state like we're seeing.  It's a complex issue similar to curriculum development that can be corrupted if the wrong people are in charge or responding to complaints.

The unfortunately titled Lies My Teacher Told Me delves into the mess caused in Texas jurisdictions by ideologues afraid of history.  I say "unfortunately titled", because for the most part, it's not the teachers' fault in any of his examples, but more on the curricula decision-makers.

It is a fantastic read at any rate.

[Mark F]

getting old.   I have to apologize and correct...

the three books I read by Galeano are "the memory of fire trilogy," NOT "open veins"

"The first book, Genesis, pays homage to the many origin stories of the tribes of the Americas, and paints a verdant portrait of life in the New World through the age of the conquistadors. The second book, Faces and Masks, spans the two centuries between the years 1700 and 1900, in which colonial powers plundered their newfound territories, ultimately giving way to a rising tide of dictators. And in the final installment, Century of the Wind, Galeano brings his story into the twentieth century, in which a fractured continent enters the modern age as popular revolts blaze from North to South.

This celebrated series is a landmark of contemporary Latin American writing, and a brilliant document of culture. "

see here.

https://www.amazon.com/Memory-Fire-Trilogy-Genesis-Century-ebook/dp/B00JK55998

 

sorry bout that.

 

 

Edited May 19, 2023 by Mark F

[Wideleft]

Just now, Mark F said:

getting old.   I have to apologize and correct...

 

All is forgiven.

[Mark F]

hard to find a well written, humorous book.... 

last year I read Don Quixote.... that thing is absolutely hilarious.  three stooges turned into a novel.

going to check dave steinberg's book.

thanks for all these interestingb books. 

oh yeah... sci fi

"Ubik" ... and "a scanner darkly"  Phillip k diiiiiick

both are  hilarious, confusing, sad,  and frightening.    

scanner.....I had friends that lived that life.

Edited May 19, 2023 by Mark F

[Wideleft]

9 minutes ago, Mark F said:

hard to find a well written, humorous book.... 

last year I read Don Quixote.... that thing is absolutely hilarious.  three stooges turned into a novel.

going to check dave steinberg's book.

thanks for all these interestingb books. 

oh yeah... sci fi

"Ubik" ... and "a scanner darkly"  Phillip k diiiiiick

both are  hilarious, confusing, sad,  and frightening.

Al Franken's political commentary books are very, very entertaining.  Forrest Gump may be the funniest novel I've ever read.

I didn't find Lamb as hilarious as my wife did, but it definitely has its moments.

The birth of Jesus has been well chronicled, as have his glorious teachings, acts, and divine sacrifice after his thirtieth birthday. But no one knows about the early life of the Son of God, the missing years -- except Biff, the Messiah's best bud, who has been resurrected to tell the story in the divinely hilarious yet heartfelt work "reminiscent of Vonnegut and Douglas Adams" (Philadelphia Inquirer).

Verily, the story Biff has to tell is a miraculous one, filled with remarkable journeys, magic, healings, kung fu, corpse reanimations, demons, and hot babes. Even the considerable wiles and devotion of the Savior's pal may not be enough to divert Joshua from his tragic destiny. But there's no one who loves Josh more -- except maybe "Maggie," Mary of Magdala -- and Biff isn't about to let his extraordinary pal suffer and ascend without a fight.

 

Edited May 19, 2023 by Wideleft

[Mark F]

7 minutes ago, Wideleft said:

The birth of Jesus has been well chronicled

reserved it at library. thanks!  been listening to hitchhikers guide by adams at night. silly/entertaining

more new parents should consider "biff", male or female. standout name.

there was a singer from N Manitoba named biff., biff naked.

Edited May 19, 2023 by Mark F

[Tracker]

4 hours ago, Wilbur said:

I agree. A lot of books that are deemed not appropriate for schools really are due to the lessons they contain within them of a moral nature.

Like the Bible?

[Wilbur]

1 minute ago, Tracker said:

Like the Bible?

Not really referencing the Bible friend; a lot of schools do not allow that kind of thing, especially here in the Southern US due to how much of a heated thing it is and not wanting to push religion on to kids if you will. I'm a Christian myself, not a hardcore one by any means mind, but I can see why people would want their kids to choose their own religious affiliation if you will rather than have it be forced upon them.

The main books I am talking about are books like Catch-22 and essentially anything by Vonnegut lol, etc. Children need to understand about other places, perspectives, etc.

[Mark H.]

Some schools have removed Little House on the Prairie from their libraries - I disagree with that.

[bb.king]

For a light read, I read “Ballad of the Whiskey Robber” a few years ago. Highly recommend and a true story. It was hilarious, full of quirky characters, and gave a nice insight into life in a former eastern bloc country just after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Here’s a description from Amazon.

 https://www.amazon.com/Ballad-Whiskey-Robber-Transylvanian-Moonlighting/dp/0316010731

Edited May 20, 2023 by bb.king

[Mark H.]

Any of Alf Silver's books - especially A Place Out of Time.

[Mark F]

The Sisters brothers is very entertaining. some violence. I agree with this review:

 

"Hermann Kermit Warm is going to die. The enigmatic and powerful man known only as the Commodore has ordered it, and his henchmen, Eli and Charlie Sisters, will make sure of it. Though Eli doesn't share his brother's appetite for whiskey and killing, he's never known anything else. But their prey isn't an easy mark, and on the road from Oregon City to Warm's gold-mining claim outside Sacramento, Eli begins to question what he does for a living - and whom he does it for.

With The Sisters Brothers, Patrick deWitt pays homage to the classic Western, transforming it into an unforgettable comic tour de force. Filled with a remarkable cast of characters - losers, cheaters, and ne'er-do-wells from all stripes of life - and told by a complex and compelling narrator, it is a violent, lustful odyssey through the underworld of the 1850s frontier that beautifully captures the humor, melancholy, and grit of the Old West, and two brothers bound by blood, violence, and love."

The movie is not good.

1 hour ago, Mark H. said:

Any of Alf Silver's books - especially A Place Out of Time.

have you been to the cemetary at the church in east selkirk? probably.

 

I think it is a Metis church. not sure.

 

there is a grave there of someone born in the 1790's.

lot of history around selkirk Mb.

Edited May 23, 2023 by Mark F

[Wilbur]

Gonna start James Clavell's 'Shogun' series here shortly. Read them a long time ago, but don't remember all that much.

[Mark H.]

2 hours ago, Mark F said:

have you been to the cemetary at the church in east selkirk? probably.

 

I think it is a Metis church. not sure.

 

there is a grave there of someone born in the 1790's.

lot of history around selkirk Mb.

St. Peter's Church - it was built when St. Peter's Reserve was still located there

 

[Wideleft]

3 hours ago, Mark F said:

The Sisters brothers is very entertaining. some violence. I agree with this review:

.....

The movie is not good.

I quite liked the movie, but haven't yet read the book.  A friend who read the book first also didn't like the movie.

Edited May 23, 2023 by Wideleft

[iHeart]

3 hours ago, Mark F said:

The Sisters brothers is very entertaining. some violence. I agree with this review:

 

"Hermann Kermit Warm is going to die. The enigmatic and powerful man known only as the Commodore has ordered it, and his henchmen, Eli and Charlie Sisters, will make sure of it. Though Eli doesn't share his brother's appetite for whiskey and killing, he's never known anything else. But their prey isn't an easy mark, and on the road from Oregon City to Warm's gold-mining claim outside Sacramento, Eli begins to question what he does for a living - and whom he does it for.

With The Sisters Brothers, Patrick deWitt pays homage to the classic Western, transforming it into an unforgettable comic tour de force. Filled with a remarkable cast of characters - losers, cheaters, and ne'er-do-wells from all stripes of life - and told by a complex and compelling narrator, it is a violent, lustful odyssey through the underworld of the 1850s frontier that beautifully captures the humor, melancholy, and grit of the Old West, and two brothers bound by blood, violence, and love."

The movie is not good.

have you been to the cemetary at the church in east selkirk? probably.

 

I think it is a Metis church. not sure.

 

there is a grave there of someone born in the 1790's.

lot of history around selkirk Mb.

I actually had to read that book when I took the Library Tech course at RRC, I can't remember the class oh wait Reader's Advisory

[blue_gold_84]

2 hours ago, Wilbur said:

Gonna start James Clavell's 'Shogun' series here shortly. Read them a long time ago, but don't remember all that much.

His Asian Saga is some phenomenal reading. I haven't read Whirlwind but the rest are all amazing books (Shogun and Gaijin are two favourites).

[Mark F]

56 minutes ago, Wideleft said:

quite liked the movie,

 

I should say, the beginning with the horse burning, was too  much for me, so I bshould not have an opinion on the movie.

vut John C. Reilly  is top notch. 

The book is very funny, entertaining. I read a second book by the same author.... not so good.

Edited May 23, 2023 by Mark F

[Mark F]

started "inconvenient Indian"  but did not enjoy it enough to read it. not sure why. maybe a bit too much of an autobiographical theme.

 

found a writer by chance.... started one book, like it a lot. ( changed my mind see below)

 

Olga Tokarczuk. Polish, Nobel prize. book

 

"drive your plow over the bones of the dead"  

 

"at night I observe Venus, closely following the transitions of this beautiful damsel. I prefer her as the evening star, when sne appears as if out of nowhere, as if by magic, and goes down behind the sun. a spark of eternal light. it is at dusk that the most interesting things occur, for that is when simple differences fade away. I could live in everlasting dusk"

 

some beautiful descriptions of winter, snow, wind, light, cold, that Prairie dwellers all understand. will see.

later.

upon further review, this is a depressing book. good writer, too grim for me.

 

Edited June 15, 2023 by Mark F

[Mark F]

very funny. really really funny.

anthony burgess 

"Inside Mr Enderby."

consistent guffaws  throughout, and excellent writing.

biography of a poet.

Edited July 27, 2023 by Mark F

[Mark F]

put a hold on this at library.

not sure I can make it through the thing, since it is probably filled with stories of  trampling small people, and failure to hold the highest level criminals to account.

Curious about use of blackmail, which I suspect is a very important tool in the playbook of the corruptors.

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/david-talbot/the-devils-chessboard/

maybe relevant in the trump age. the system has been corrupt for ever, but he has removed the veil, and must be punished to maintain credibilty.

I think that There is a "deep state" but it's not the one imagined by the right wing.

Edited August 16, 2023 by Mark F

[Noeller]

I'm in the middle of a few things right now..... reading an old CFL book from about '99 that sort of details Grey Cup rivalries between various teams (eg A chapter on Ticats vs Bombers over the years), also reading the newest updated version of Kives' "Daytrippers Guide To Manitoba" which is one of my favourite things to re-read each year. Also in and out of Kives' "Stuck In The Middle 2: Dissenting Views of Manitoba", which has been interesting. 

[Wideleft]

Apparently, you can't judge a book by it's cover - especially if the cover quotes from reviews:

 

Two critics who reviewed a book by Jordan Peterson have said their articles were quoted on its cover in a misleading way.

Quotes from reviews published in the Times and the New Statesman were used on the cover of the paperback edition of Peterson's Beyond Order.

The book cover quoted a line from the Times saying the book was "a philosophy of the meaning of life".

But it didn't mention that the review described that philosophy as "bonkers".

 

Peterson and his publishers Penguin have not yet responded to the BBC's request for comment.

The Canadian psychology professor has gained a loyal following partly due to his opinions on so-called "culture war" issues such as white privilege, gender-neutral pronouns and gender roles.

 

But the 61-year-old is a controversial figure who is derided by others for his views.

Beyond Order: 12 More Rules For Life, which was published in paperback last May, quoted Johanna Thomas-Corr's review in the New Statesman on its cover.

She said the quote that was selected to market the book was a "gross misrepresentation" of her 2,500-word review.

Thomas-Corr, who is also literary editor of the Sunday Times, posted on X (formerly Twitter): "I don't have it in me to write some causally witty thing about how horrifying this is." She added that her quote "should be removed".

Thomas-Corr's review appeared in the New Statesman, a left-leaning current affairs magazine, in March 2021, when the original hardback edition of the book was published.

Her article referred to what she called the "inadvertent comedy" of the book, and said Peterson spent several pages "ranting".

 

Her lengthy review also said: "His unwillingness to address detail or confront counter-arguments feels cowardly.

"He repeatedly identifies masculinity with order and femininity with chaos and makes it clear which side he feels we should favour."

But Thomas-Corr's review did feature some praise, and it was these passages that were quoted on the paperback's cover.

One line quoted Thomas-Corr saying it was "genuinely enlightening and often poignant".

Another said: "Here is a father figure who takes his audience seriously. And here is a grander narrative about truth, being, order and chaos that stretches back to the dawn of human consciousness."

However, Marriot has also also suggested his review had been quoted selectively to "disguise" the fact it was largely negative.

In a since-deleted post, Marriott jokingly praised the "incredible work from Jordan Peterson's publisher", adding: "My review of this mad book was probably the most negative thing I have ever written."

The full-length review described Peterson's prose as "repetitious, unvariegated, rhythmless, opaque and possessed of a suffocating sense of its own importance".

Only in a paragraph praising one particular chapter did Marriott say the text was the best prose Peterson had written.

Marriott's full review otherwise said the book "nails together shower thoughts, random prejudices and genuine insights into a decidedly rickety structure", and repeatedly used the word "bonkers" to describe Peterson's philosophy.

At the time of writing, Marriott's review still features on Penguin's online page for the book.

Beyond Order: 12 More Rules For Life was a follow-up to Peterson's 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos.

Another review by Suzanne Moore in the Telegraph said Peterson's book featured "hokey wisdom combined with good advice".

The book jacket cut out the word "hokey" so the quote read only: "Wisdom combined with good advice."

However, Moore gave a positive review to the book overall, awarding it four stars.

Although it is normal for publishers to use techniques to increase sales, the complaints could raise questions in the publishing industry about selective quoting.

The matter does not fall under the remit of the Advertising Standards Authority because the quotes feature on a book jacket rather than in an advertisement.

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-66520089?xtor=AL-72-[partner]-[bbc.news.twitter]-[headline]-[news]-[bizdev]-[isapi]&at_medium=social&at_campaign=Social_Flow&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_link_type=web_link&at_campaign_type=owned&at_format=link&at_ptr_name=twitter&at_link_origin=BBCNews&at_link_id=C04BBB50-3C4D-11EE-92CC-18F9FD754D29