What are you reading?
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Help! 
I would like to apply for a configuration, and therefore I have to write an essay about a book I recently read - I have to give arguments and sortlike...
And how much I wanted, I can't chose a TP book, 'cause my teacher says it's "pulp fiction"... I don't agree with this, but OK... So I have to chose a book with a literary message, and I'm thinking and thinkin, but nothing seems right...
So I thought, that I'll read a book which might be accoplished by the jury or whatever, but I don't know which one. I don't want any big classics, like War and Peace, or Crime and Punishement (or anithing with "and" in it)... I thought of Coelho, but everyone seems to read Coelho these days and I don't want to seem like everyone else...
So can you maybe suggest something?
I would like to apply for a configuration, and therefore I have to write an essay about a book I recently read - I have to give arguments and sortlike...
And how much I wanted, I can't chose a TP book, 'cause my teacher says it's "pulp fiction"... I don't agree with this, but OK... So I have to chose a book with a literary message, and I'm thinking and thinkin, but nothing seems right...
So I thought, that I'll read a book which might be accoplished by the jury or whatever, but I don't know which one. I don't want any big classics, like War and Peace, or Crime and Punishement (or anithing with "and" in it)... I thought of Coelho, but everyone seems to read Coelho these days and I don't want to seem like everyone else...
So can you maybe suggest something?
Don't know if it's allowed but maybe The People's act of Love by James Meek?
Review here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2005/ju ... anreview28
It's fairly recent published in 2005. I think you can read a small excerpt here:
http://www.jamesmeek.net/James_Meek/The ... _Love.html
Review here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2005/ju ... anreview28
It's fairly recent published in 2005. I think you can read a small excerpt here:
http://www.jamesmeek.net/James_Meek/The ... _Love.html
I'm not very keen on war-stories... too much fight, too much broken lives, and too much names and places I won't be able to remember 'cause my ability to remember names is... well, really bad.
But thanks for the effort, though. The review seemd quite interesting, or, the person writing it was very enthousiastic.
So, really, thanks, but... I'm sure it's a great book, but... maybe some other time...
But thanks for the effort, though. The review seemd quite interesting, or, the person writing it was very enthousiastic.
So, really, thanks, but... I'm sure it's a great book, but... maybe some other time...
I'd like to suggest you prove your teacher wrong and show him/her that Discworld books are far from "pulp fiction".
Top book reviewers have compared Terry's books to Chaucer, Dickens, Mark Twain and Oscar Wilde. I think I'd add Jonathan Swift to that list. You'd hardly call those writers 'pulp fiction' writers.
Why not print off a bunch of DW reviews and show your teacher and then tel him/her that you intend to show how good the writing is?
Top book reviewers have compared Terry's books to Chaucer, Dickens, Mark Twain and Oscar Wilde. I think I'd add Jonathan Swift to that list. You'd hardly call those writers 'pulp fiction' writers.
Why not print off a bunch of DW reviews and show your teacher and then tel him/her that you intend to show how good the writing is?
I think that's a great idea Tony!
I would recommend The Amazing Maurice. This won the very prestigious Carnegie award. That only, hardly classes it as pulp fiction. 8)
Also, you could just rip off bits from the following dicussion. (I don't mind if you use anything I posted)
http://88.208.209.103/minisites/terrypr ... 0101#20101
I would recommend The Amazing Maurice. This won the very prestigious Carnegie award. That only, hardly classes it as pulp fiction. 8)
Also, you could just rip off bits from the following dicussion. (I don't mind if you use anything I posted)
http://88.208.209.103/minisites/terrypr ... 0101#20101
The people's act of love isn't really a "conventional" war story. It takes mostly place in one Russian village and there aren't that many characters
If you still can't use Pratchett after using Tony's brilliant idea
how about:
Imre Kertesz - Fateless. He is a Hungarian who won the nobel prize for this novel in 2002.
Milan Kundera - The Unbearable Lightness of Being (made into a movie)
Mikhail Bulgakov - The Master and Margarita (someone made a website about this novel http://www.masterandmargarita.eu/nl/index.html)
Another good writer is György (George) Konrád you can check his website here: http://konradgyorgy.hu/
If you still can't use Pratchett after using Tony's brilliant idea
how about:
Imre Kertesz - Fateless. He is a Hungarian who won the nobel prize for this novel in 2002.
Milan Kundera - The Unbearable Lightness of Being (made into a movie)
Mikhail Bulgakov - The Master and Margarita (someone made a website about this novel http://www.masterandmargarita.eu/nl/index.html)
Another good writer is György (George) Konrád you can check his website here: http://konradgyorgy.hu/
Whilst I of course agree that Terry is not pulp fiction, and a teacher of literature should not be so ignorant and narrow-minded, don't risk your grade to make a point. I've often written to please whoever's doing the marking, at the risk of being a bit more controversial and interesting. When you've got your qualifications, you can be as interesting and controversial as you like, and everyone else can knickers!
Currently reading INKSPELL by Cornelia Funke (2nd part of the INKHEART Trilogie), first time Im reading a book in english that was written by a german author. Actually the word order sometimes sounds familiar, lol.
Maybe The Perfume will be the next one I read that looong time ago and nearly forgot about the end
Maybe The Perfume will be the next one
I read that looong time ago and nearly forgot about the end 
Penfold said:
Bearing in mind that his surviving works, including some collaborations, consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems; does your Literature teacher consider Shakespeare to be pulp fiction as well.
Sjoerd, thanks for the tips, but NO WAY I'm going to read The master and Margarita. I have it myself on my bookshelf, I got to some 20 or so pages and than gave up... nothing wrong with russian literature, but it's not meant for me. Imre Kertész I know very well (not personally of course, but the book), but I didn't like it... I'll do some research after the other two you suggested, though.
Chris, thanks, the book seems great, but sadly it isn't published in hungarian...
But here's what I'm going to do: I'll talk once more to my teacher, present him my arguments ('cause even my mother, who wanted to understand me - how nice - and started reading Small Gods, but than gave up, saying that I should read something with more value in it, so even she said that I should write about Discworld, because I should be able to convince other people, and defend the books I love...), and if it doesn't work... well, than I'll have to find an alternetive.
Oh, and Pooh: I have to admit that I haven't read Amazing Maurice yet...
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