Everybody lies

posted on Thursday, February, 12th, 2009 in Thursday Thirteen, reading matter

I’m lazy again and I haven’t got a lot of time, so again I give you a booklist. Or, rather an author list this time. And because I can’t be arsed to look them all up, there are no pictures of the covers today, nor links to the books on Amazon. But I’m sure you will be able to find them, if you should look for them.

13 new – to me – authors I discovered last year.

1. Ann Packer

Book: “The Dive from Clausen’s Pier”

I don’t remember where I heard of this book first, it was probably on Bookcrossing as usual. I received the book through Bookmooch and although it wasn’t exactly a life-changing experience to read it, it was still a nice read and I would pick up other books by Ann Packer if I should stumble on them.

2. Carl Hiaasen

Book: “Basket Case”

This one I picked up in the library in Leipzig during my ill-fated stay there at the first half of 2008. Loved it and found the story, the characters and the writing style so hilarious that I mooched 7 or 8 other books by Hiaasen from Bookmooch.

Unfortunately, even though I still enjoy his books and they are all quite entertaining, for me his particular style of quirkiness got old real fast and the other books turned out to be a bit repetitive. I still got 4 of them on Mt. TBR and I think they will stay there for the forseeable future. I still think “Basket Case” was the best of the bunch I read so far, but maybe that’s just because it was my first.

3. Jose Saramago

Book: “Blindness”

What a load of crap this book was. Both in the literal and in the figurative sense. I picked it up because it sounded like right up my alley, but it turned out to be a major disappointment. Definitely an author, whose books I will never ever pick up again.

4. John Banville

Book: “The Sea”

Saw this book mentioned in several blogs, and I think Banville won some award or other, didn’t he? Anyway, I got curious and read it on a whim.

I can’t say that I was bowled over, but it certainly has a strange kind of appeal. It’s not the kind of book I’d normally read, but it was a nice change. And Banville earned a place on my “ok to give another try”-list.

5. Markus Zusak

Book: “The Book Thief”

I had this book on my shelf for months before finally picking it up and actually reading it. Definitely not at all the kind of stuff I normally read. But I fell in love with Zusak’s writing style and with this story and it ended up being among my top 10 books I read last year.

I already joined a bookring on Bookcrossing for Zusak’s next book “I Am The Messenger”. Can’t wait to get my hands on it.

6. P.G. Wodehouse

Books: several

As I have mentioned before, I have Hugh Laurie to thank for my discovery of P.G. Wodehouse. I randomly ordered a 3-in-1 omnibus of Jeeves&Wooster stories from Amazon and I haven’t looked back. Pure comedic genius.

7. Sebastian Faulks

Book: “Human Traces”

I picked this one up in one of those used book stores in London on my last trip there, purely because I loved the cover. I have often been lucky with that strategy, but in this case: not so much. I don’t know if it was the book or the author in general, but this thing bored me to tears. I think I tossed it aside for good after about 70 pages or so. I didn’t actively hate it or anything, it was just not interesting at all. But for now Faulks still gets the benefit of the doubt from me and if I run into one of his other books I might give him another chance.

8. John Connolly

Book: “The Book of Lost Things”

Another bookring on Bookcrossing and a fantastic read. One of the rare instances where I wished I didn’t have to send the book on to the next reader and could just keep it to re-read it right away. Instead I put it on my wishlist on Bookmooch.

Every other of of his books I come across will definitely be devoured as well.

9. Michel Faber

Book: “The Crimson Petal and The White”

Another find from reading several bookblogs, who all wrote glowing reviews. Again, not my usual reading matter at all, but it turned out another very pleasant surprise. The 800 pages were way too short for my taste – it could have gone on for another 800 for all I cared.

Another author whose books I will pick up without any questions as to what they are about.

10. Christopher Moore

Book: “Fluke”

Moore was recommended to me as a very funny writer (can’t remember by whom, though). This one was another bookring. It was a nice read, but I can’t say I found it particularly funny. I didn’t, on the other hand, find it particularly awful either. Actually I felt pretty ho-hum about it. But since so many people rave about the funniness of this guy, I will give him another try. I am signed up for another one of his books and will make up my mind after I read that one.

11. Octavia E. Butler

Book: “Dawn”

Another one of the lucky finds last year. It’s a shame that she died so young, but her books are all on my wishlist and the two that I read already have moved straight to my keeper shelf. Absolut fantastic writer.

12. John Updike

Book: “The Afterlife and Other Stories”

Didn’t he die, too, recently? I picked up this book in my local library just because the title sounded halfway interesting, especially since I developed a taste for shortstories last year.

Now, I don’t wanna say anything bad about the recently departed, but it was a complete waste of time for me. If I remember correctly I didn’t even finish most of the stories. Not my taste at all, but I am toying with the idea of giving one of his novels a try. Some day.

13. Sophie Kinsella

Book: “Confessions of a Shopaholic”

Well, now this one is a bit embarrassing, because normally I don’t touch chick-lit. This book I got as a free extra when I mooched several other – real – books from a fellow Bookmoocher. Actually I had planned to directly offer it for a bookring or something, but I figured I might as well read it first. Took me all of one afternoon or so and all it did was reinforce my distaste for fluffy chick-lit. Ok, it wasn’t quite as bile-inducingly bad as I had feared, but it wasn’t in any way memorable or particularly interesting either. One author whose books I can skip in the future without a second glance – together with all the other ones who write the same stuff. No loss.

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