What are you currently reading?

[epilogue]

Man I love that book.

ready player one?

I have not read that book. But I hear good things.

[epilogue]

Finished chapter 7 of Distant Star on the ride into work today.

Man! It's the chapter all about

Spoiler: show

What happened to Wieder after his photo showing and speculation about whether or not he's dead, etc

.

So. Fucking. Good. I love the sideways humor in this book. There's a sense of bizarre history to it. Like some it feels like it really happened, that it isn't fiction at all.

Bolaño writes about the coup in that way across a number of different pieces of fiction. I think he's borrowing the tone and mood of magical realism at points--he's able, as you've seen, to get a reaction of, "This can't be real, can it?" out of readers quite easily--and it all makes it feel like a fever dream or a waking nightmare. I just re-read a short story called "Detectives" (from the collection The Return) that deals with Arturo's imprisonment during the coup from a different perspective, and I think it'd make a nice companion piece to Distant Star.

In general, do you like his short fiction?

[lennytheweedwhacker]

i have trouble at times getting into short stories

[epilogue]

i have trouble at times getting into short stories

I do too. But there are some that are outstanding. Have you read Tenth of December by George Saunders? That fucking book! Wow... That thing is outstanding.

[Simple Torture]

i have trouble at times getting into short stories

I do too. But there are some that are outstanding. Have you read Tenth of December by George Saunders? That fucking book! Wow... That thing is outstanding.

[Simple Torture]

Finished chapter 7 of Distant Star on the ride into work today.

Man! It's the chapter all about

Spoiler: show

What happened to Wieder after his photo showing and speculation about whether or not he's dead, etc

.

So. Fucking. Good. I love the sideways humor in this book. There's a sense of bizarre history to it. Like some it feels like it really happened, that it isn't fiction at all.

Bolaño writes about the coup in that way across a number of different pieces of fiction. I think he's borrowing the tone and mood of magical realism at points--he's able, as you've seen, to get a reaction of, "This can't be real, can it?" out of readers quite easily--and it all makes it feel like a fever dream or a waking nightmare. I just re-read a short story called "Detectives" (from the collection The Return) that deals with Arturo's imprisonment during the coup from a different perspective, and I think it'd make a nice companion piece to Distant Star.

In general, do you like his short fiction?

In general, yes, but I much, much more prefer his long books that take a long time to unfold. When it comes to the short stuff, there are some that struck me (and still stick with me) with the incredibly strong impressions they leave, but there are some that just sort of feel like exercises, trying out different strategies to tell stories. Not that that's bad or anything, I just get a different bit out of them. I tend to gravitate towards the ones that exist within the universe of his longer fiction--like "The Death of Ulisses" and "Days of Chaos" in The Secret of Evil.

[epilogue]

I have a feeling Distant Star is going to be my key to Bolano. I can't stop thinking about the book. Reminds me of Saramago (who I just absolutely adore) in some ways. Not style or voice or anything but just impression or the way it's staying with me. All of a sudden I want to read everything Bolano wrote. I think I'll work through his novels before I tackle his short stories. But I'm now putting him in the rotation.

[lennytheweedwhacker]

i have trouble at times getting into short stories

I do too. But there are some that are outstanding. Have you read Tenth of December by George Saunders? That fucking book! Wow... That thing is outstanding.

never heard of it

[bune]

i almost checked out ready player one...i suppose it's a ya novel, but has anybody here read it?

Yes. Are you a child of the 80's? It might be too schmaltzy for you or you might like it. Hell, Speilberg is working on the movie.

i have trouble at times getting into short stories

Started the latest Stephen King collection of short stories "The Bazaar of Bad Dreams" and the very first story had me on edge. It was so tight and I loved how it didn't end the way I thought it would.

[lennytheweedwhacker]

i almost checked out ready player one...i suppose it's a ya novel, but has anybody here read it?

Yes. Are you a child of the 80's? It might be too schmaltzy for you or you might like it. Hell, Speilberg is working on the movie.

i have trouble at times getting into short stories

Started the latest Stephen King collection of short stories "The Bazaar of Bad Dreams" and the very first story had me on edge. It was so tight and I loved how it didn't end the way I thought it would.

born in 83...i'll give it a go at some point

[The Argonaut]

i almost checked out ready player one...i suppose it's a ya novel, but has anybody here read it?

I had fun with it.

[tragabigzanda]

Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.

[epilogue]

i almost checked out ready player one...i suppose it's a ya novel, but has anybody here read it?

I had fun with it.

Did you take it to Chuck E. Cheese?

[tragabigzanda]

Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.

[epilogue]

What you're saying does make sense, thanks for taking the time to write that up, trag. I really appreciate it.

[lennytheweedwhacker]

i just remembered that i never actually finished extremely loud and incredibly close before...i had started to read it in a book store and got a chunk read, but never finished it

also, asher based on what you said about works of art making you cry - i really think you'll cry a lot reading this and everything is illuminated...but i'd really like for you to read them

[epilogue]

Distant Star was.... really lovely. Just a fantastic read.

[lennytheweedwhacker]

[tragabigzanda]

Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.

[lennytheweedwhacker]

I'd love to read it before the film comes out. What does RM think of Ready Player One? I'm hoping it's like Neal Stephenson's earlier works (Snow Crash, The Diamond Age).

i asked rm a few weeks ago and i think argo was the only one who responded, but he said he liked it...looks like the film got pushed back to spring of 2018 so you have plenty of time