Kilgorius' 100/2011

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Kilgorius' 100/2011

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1satsche
Dez. 20, 2010, 9:00 am

I passed the 100 in 2010 although I read some really long books. Guess I will reach the 100 in 2011...but who knows...?

So far I decided to read more John Steinbeck and the Joseph and his brothers tetralogy by Thomas Mann in 2011.

2wookiebender
Dez. 20, 2010, 10:02 pm

Oooh yeah, Steinbeck keeps on floating into the back of my mind, begging me to read him... One day, I'll listen.

Nice to see you here for 2011!

3jfetting
Dez. 21, 2010, 9:18 am

Ooohh, Thomas Mann! I'm looking forward to reading your reviews - I love him.

4satsche
Jan. 5, 2011, 10:09 am

#1 The Power of the Dog by Don Winslow

689 pages

Rating: 5 stars

Well, this was a very good read. I didn't expect anything because I've never heard about the author or this special book before (it was a christmas present).

What it's about? Mainly it's about the drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia. It's all in the hands of the Barrera brothers. They're making a lot of money (and I mean *really* a lot) by smuggling cocaine into the USA; they're killing a lot of antagonists; boodle nearly everyone. They're kind of "heroes" in Mexico because they're investing a lot of money in the mexican infrastructure and the mexican government have no interests to extradite them. Well, maybe they have...I don't want to talk too much.

On the other side there's Art Keller (an ex-DEA) who wants to catch them because amongst other things they torture his friend to death. Actually there are so many characters who are important to this story like a classy prostitute or the chinese Mafia or even the NY Mafia... - I can't describe this all.

Compendious I just want to say: this is a really good mix of Mario Puzo and James Ellroy and this book is really worth reading it. But I have to announce a little warning: this book is very exciting but also partly very bestial.

What I personally found so amazing: organised crime has so much effects in countries like Mexico (even if only 50% of the book refelcts the truth). You know about the FARC in Columbia or the contras in Nicaragua? Well, you'll read about them in this book and probalbly wonder where they're all get their money from. I'm still stunned...

Okay, enough said I guess.

5satsche
Jan. 7, 2011, 9:15 am

#2 Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

113 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

This was a re-read. I didn't remember this one is kind of sad. Makes me think awhile.

6satsche
Jan. 14, 2011, 11:09 am

#3 So gut wie nichts. Ausgewaehlte Gedichte (As good as nothing. Selected poems) by Uli Becker

139 pages

Rating: 2,5 stars

I guess I don't really get it. Most of the poems are quite confused. But I have to admit I'm not really a "poem-guy".

7satsche
Jan. 16, 2011, 4:34 am

#4 The Rebellion of the Hanged by B. Traven

327 pages

Rating: 4 stars

I always wanted to read something by B. Traven (read his Wikipedia article and you'll know why). So, this was my first one.

I liked it. I like the story about the indian lumberjacks in Mexico and their hard life in the beginning of the 20th century. It's a book about racist oppression and lack of rights in quasi-feudal circumstances. Some day the life of the indians is so insufferable that they're are starting a rebellion.

What I didn't like: the rebellion starts at the last third of the book and the book suddenly stops in the middle of the revolution.

The Rebellion of the Hanged is the fifth the part of Traven's "Jungle Novels" (Caoba-circle). Before I started the book I read that all the books of this circle are self-contained, otherwise I'd certainly start with the first part. Well, maybe the story of the rebellion continues somehow in the last part of the "Jungle Novels" (A General from the Jungle). But I don't think so.

8satsche
Jan. 18, 2011, 9:33 am

#5 Bjørger by Knut Hamsun

126 pages

Rating: 3 stars

The first Hamsun I didn't like so much. The story is good, but the writing style is partly very confused.

9satsche
Feb. 2, 2011, 9:29 am

#6 The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

938 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

Very good. A few parts were a little lengthy, but all in all this in an absolutely must-read.

I guess the story is well known, so I don't have to write about it. All I knew before was: Edmond Dantes was innocently in prison for a long time, escaped in a very special way and wanted revenge. But I had no idea *how* he took revenge (and was partly surprised; I've never seen a film version before and still don't know which is the best).

But I also liked the unexpected sub-plots (like how Danglars forced his wife to die)...and some more.

10SouthernBluestocking
Feb. 2, 2011, 10:25 am

That one's on my list for this year....

Stephen Fry's Revenge: A Novel is a retelling of Monte Cristo set in English boarding schools of the 80's. Rather fabulous--quite dark, very acerbic, definitely recommended.

11wookiebender
Feb. 2, 2011, 6:00 pm

#10> Yes, I think I've read the Stephen Fry one. I'm yet to read the original (one day!), and I don't think I've seen any movie adaptations either. Yet somehow the story (at a basic level) is known to me! Probably from watching Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny, or Pinky and the Brain. (Ah, who said cartoons were dumb?)

12satsche
Feb. 3, 2011, 9:29 am

#11> "Probably from watching Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny, or Pinky and the Brain." Thank you making me laugh :-))

I'll keep an eye on the Stephen Fry one. Sounds interesting. The translation of the german edition is "The tennis balls of the stars". Sounds weird, I'll find out if this title makes sense ;-)

13satsche
Feb. 3, 2011, 9:40 am

#7 The Coma by Alex Garland

159 pages

Rating: 3,5 stars

The story is about Carl who's in a coma after trying to help a girl. The girl was harried by four guys in the subway, and Carl was beaten up by this guys. Now Carl tries to wake up from the coma.

Partly interesting, but mostly I found it a little boring and strange. Maybe it's because I'm comparing Garlands books with The Beach in my head automatically. I also had the same "problem" with The Tesseract.

And by the way: is the function with the book title links out of order? I always see "loading" and nothing happens; after posting there are no links. Well, maybe it's just me...

14satsche
Feb. 12, 2011, 3:53 am

#8 In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck

336 pages

Rating: 5 stars

Again another very great Steinbeck read. I really love his work and I'm looking forward to read the rest of his books I haven't read yet.

If I'm continuing reading that slow I'll never reach the 100 this year. I really have to work too much. Unfortunately too little time to read in the moment.

15satsche
Feb. 18, 2011, 9:26 am

#9 Ultimo viene il corvo (The Crow Comes Last) by Italo Calvino

112 pages

Rating: 3 stars

A collection of eleven short stories (in my edition; I read the english edition contains thirty stories). Two or three stories were really great. But the other ones...well, I found them kind of boring. I like his novels more.

16satsche
Feb. 19, 2011, 4:00 am

#10 The Pearl by John Steinbeck

94 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

A short storie about a man who find a big and wonderful pearl. He think this will change his life forever. But instead of getting rich he just get problems.

17satsche
Feb. 26, 2011, 2:59 am

#11 The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

235 pages

Rating: 4 stars

Sometimes I like this kind of detective story. And the time was right to read this book.

18satsche
Mrz. 3, 2011, 9:11 am

#12 Poems written before jumping out of an 8 story Window by Charles Bukowski

115 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

This was my second Bukowski in the first place. Guess I'll really read some more. Somehow I like this crazy guy.

19satsche
Mrz. 3, 2011, 9:13 am

#13 If this is a Man by Primo Levi

165 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

Read this one in a day. Very impressive.

20jfetting
Mrz. 3, 2011, 1:44 pm

If This is a Man is one of the most powerful books I've ever read. Have you tried The Periodic Table by him? It isn't about chemistry, really, and it is wonderful.

21satsche
Mrz. 4, 2011, 9:00 am

#20>> No, I haven't read it yet. but it's my list.

22satsche
Mrz. 12, 2011, 3:24 am

#14 Drums in the Night by Bertolt Brecht

60 pages

Rating: 3 stars

Good, but not as good as I expected.

23satsche
Mrz. 22, 2011, 9:49 am

#15 The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño

677 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

Very, very good - but not as good as 2666 (well, of course just my opinion).

24satsche
Mrz. 22, 2011, 9:52 am

#16 Pacific Telephone by Charles Bukowski

112 pages

Rating: 4 stars

Contains 51 poems. Most of them are quite fantastic.

25wookiebender
Mrz. 22, 2011, 10:57 pm

I do have 2666 on the shelves. I keep on saving it for, well, I dunno. When it looks slimmer and less intimidating?? That's not going to happen. :)

Will have to put it somewhere a bit more obvious, so I stop avoiding it.

26satsche
Mrz. 23, 2011, 9:40 am

Before reading 2666 I was a little bit intimidated because of its size.

I just start reading and couldn't put it down. Guess you'll like it.

27satsche
Mrz. 26, 2011, 12:30 pm

#17 A Russian Journal by John Steinbeck

293 pages

Rating: 4 stars

Very interesting travel journal of Steinbeck's travel through the Soviet Union in 1947. Steinbeck was accompanied by photographer Robert Capa who took a lot of great pictures (certainly contained in this book).

A Russian Journal was original released in 1948 but was first released here (germany) this year.

28satsche
Mrz. 31, 2011, 9:07 am

#18 El festin de los cuervos (german title: Tijuana Blues) by Gabriel Trujillo Muñoz

247 pages

Rating: 2,5 stars

The book is about Miguel Ángel Morgado, a lawyer for human rights in Baja California (North Mexico).

Sounded interesting to me. It was not a *complete* waste of time, but at last boring.

29satsche
Apr. 1, 2011, 9:25 am

#19 Mémoires d'un vieux con (Memories of an old Asshole) by Roland Topor.

197 pages

Rating: 5 stars

Topor make fun of biographies of his coevals. He nearly let 400 celebrities (like Salvador Dali, Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Edith Piaf or Benito Mussolini) run into his fictitious path of life.

An insidious parody of countless auto-biographies. Great!

30satsche
Apr. 9, 2011, 2:35 am

#20 Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

383 pages

Rating: 2,5 stars

Well, to make it short: I was disappointed. Somehow I expected some kind of "great literature". But it's definitively not. The writing style is much too simple, when the story starts to get "deeper" it mostly says something like "I don't want to talk about this anymore, because the reader could be bored". What the...? I'm not enjoying this one. 2,5 stars just because the story itself is interesting - but could be better written.

I know it's world literature, but I really don't know why. Maybe this is because of my edition (or translation).

31satsche
Apr. 12, 2011, 3:52 am

#21 The Roominghouse Madrigals by Charles Bukowski

167 pages

Rating: 4 stars

32satsche
Apr. 20, 2011, 9:15 am

#22 Fool on the Hill by Matt Ruff

575 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

I still think Set This House in Order is the best Ruff book, but I really liked this one. Anyhow Fool on the Hill contains too much fantasy to my taste.

33clfisha
Apr. 20, 2011, 12:16 pm

I have yet to read that one, agree Set This House in Order is his best, although I quite liked Bad Monkeys

34satsche
Mai 7, 2011, 4:02 am

#23 Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

1545 pages

Rating: 4,5 stars

Finally I finished this one. In the beginning it was a hard read; very extensive. But after about 200 pages I found my way around. All in all a quite good book. Glad I'm reading it.

35satsche
Mai 8, 2011, 4:17 am

#24 We by Yevgeny Zamyatin

142 pages

Rating: 4 stars

36satsche
Mai 25, 2011, 9:08 am

#25 The Women by T.C. Boyle

557 pages

Rating: 2,5 stars