Books in 2011
Dec. 31st, 2011 11:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tree_and_leafAm making another attempt at logging my reading for the year (worked two years ago, crashed and burned last year).
1. Roland Chambers. The Last Englishman: The Double Life of Arthur Ransome. An interesting - as a sidelight on the Russian Revolution - book, but a rather depressing one for Ransome fans. He comes over as a bit of a bastard, not so much in the political aspects (his judgement was evidently poor, and he did shut his eyes to the nastier aspects of the Revolution and its aftermath, but that was hardly unique), as in his personal life. He behaved badly to his first wife - though she does sound to have been a difficult woman who he should have had more sense than to marry - but he was absolutely abominable to his daughter, and wrote her some most unpleasant letters. The person who probably comes best out of it is Evegenia, despite everything. Some of Chambers' interpretations struck me as a bit dubiously cod-psychologising (he has an obsession with the effect of childhood humiliation on Ransome), but the documentary evidence tells its own story. Still, it doesn't change the fact that Ransome was a very fine writer indeed, though I don't think either John or Nancy would have been very impressed by their creator...
2. Patrick O'Brian, The Mauritius Command. Another unreliable but gifted author of sailing yarns, come to think of it. R.
3. Raymond Brown, The Gospel and Epistles of John: A Concise Commentary.
4. Damian and Siobhan Horner, For Better, For Worse: a charming story about a family who left London and the rat race to take a boat across France (the website is fun, too.
5. Terry Pratchett, Night Watch. R.
6. Terry Pratchett, Making Money. R.
7. Duncan Hamilton, Harold Larwood. A fascinating portrait of a great cricketer and a thoroughly decent man who was shabbily treated by the MCC.
8. Martyn Percy (ed), Worship-shaped Life (Canterbury Studies in Anglicanism).
9. Steve Sherman and Julia Older, Appalachian Odyssey - nice little travelogue; nothing special, but an interesting read.
10. Evelyn Underhill (with an introduction by Charles Williams), The Letters of Evelyn Underhill.
11. RJ Anderson, Rebel.
12. RJ Anderson, Arrow. Two excellent fantasy stories, suitable for older children and upwards.
13. Frances Hodgson Burnett, T Tembaron.
14. Connie Willis, To say Nothing of the Dog. Good fun, lots of Oxford, and an intriguing time-travel/ paradox plot. But while I can overlook the odd minor anachronism/ Americanism (that sort of thing is hard to do, and over all she does a good job), the continual disparaging of the Neo-Gothic grated a bit, especially the hate for St Pancras station. And the champions of the Neo-Gothic were not mad enthusiasts for the modern and convenient over the old and inefficient, nor were they all stupid. (Funny what annoys me, isn't it?) That said, a really enjoyable book.
15. Christopher Golden (et al), Angel: Surrogates.
16. William Hope Hodgson, Carnacki the Ghost Finder. A literary ancestor of Lovecraft, with a touch of Conan Doyle. Very badly written, but fun, though the mix of the occult with the trappings of scientific rationalism has an odd effect. On the other hand, the mixture of cases which are real hauntings with hoaxes adds a lot to the suspense and interest.
17. Kathryn Stockett, The Help.
18. Andrea Levy, The Long Song.
19. Trevor Huddleston, Naught for Your Comfort. A beautiful, sad, angry, book, which is both a fascinating portrait of South Africa in Apartheid era, and a very profound account of what it means to be a priest in the catholic tradition.
20. Austin Farrer, Saving Belief. Probably best summed up as what Mere Christianity would have been like if Lewis had been an Anglo-Catholic. Pretty good, though very dated in tone and the assumptions which underlie some of the examples he uses (so, yes, quite comparable to Lewis there too...)
21. PG Wodehouse, Aunts aren't Gentlemen. Not vintage Wodehouse, but still good fun.
22. PG Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing.
23. Barbara Myerhoff, Number our Days. Fascinating study of the members of a Jewish community centre for the retired in Venice, California; moving in parts, funny in others.
24. Mary Stewart, Nine Coaches Waiting.
25. Paul Theroux, Kingdom By the Sea.
26. David Ford, Theology: A Manifesto.
27. Alexander McCall Smith, The Saturday Big Tent Wedding.
28. Walter Brueggemann, The Theology of Jeremiah.
29. William Least Heat-Moon, River Horse. R.
30. Jasper fforde, One of Our Thursdays Is Missing. Excellent.
31. Henry Chadwick, The Early Church.
32. Dora Heldt, Kein Wort zu Papa.
33. Herbert McCabe, On Aquinas.
1. Roland Chambers. The Last Englishman: The Double Life of Arthur Ransome. An interesting - as a sidelight on the Russian Revolution - book, but a rather depressing one for Ransome fans. He comes over as a bit of a bastard, not so much in the political aspects (his judgement was evidently poor, and he did shut his eyes to the nastier aspects of the Revolution and its aftermath, but that was hardly unique), as in his personal life. He behaved badly to his first wife - though she does sound to have been a difficult woman who he should have had more sense than to marry - but he was absolutely abominable to his daughter, and wrote her some most unpleasant letters. The person who probably comes best out of it is Evegenia, despite everything. Some of Chambers' interpretations struck me as a bit dubiously cod-psychologising (he has an obsession with the effect of childhood humiliation on Ransome), but the documentary evidence tells its own story. Still, it doesn't change the fact that Ransome was a very fine writer indeed, though I don't think either John or Nancy would have been very impressed by their creator...
2. Patrick O'Brian, The Mauritius Command. Another unreliable but gifted author of sailing yarns, come to think of it. R.
3. Raymond Brown, The Gospel and Epistles of John: A Concise Commentary.
4. Damian and Siobhan Horner, For Better, For Worse: a charming story about a family who left London and the rat race to take a boat across France (the website is fun, too.
5. Terry Pratchett, Night Watch. R.
6. Terry Pratchett, Making Money. R.
7. Duncan Hamilton, Harold Larwood. A fascinating portrait of a great cricketer and a thoroughly decent man who was shabbily treated by the MCC.
8. Martyn Percy (ed), Worship-shaped Life (Canterbury Studies in Anglicanism).
9. Steve Sherman and Julia Older, Appalachian Odyssey - nice little travelogue; nothing special, but an interesting read.
10. Evelyn Underhill (with an introduction by Charles Williams), The Letters of Evelyn Underhill.
11. RJ Anderson, Rebel.
12. RJ Anderson, Arrow. Two excellent fantasy stories, suitable for older children and upwards.
13. Frances Hodgson Burnett, T Tembaron.
14. Connie Willis, To say Nothing of the Dog. Good fun, lots of Oxford, and an intriguing time-travel/ paradox plot. But while I can overlook the odd minor anachronism/ Americanism (that sort of thing is hard to do, and over all she does a good job), the continual disparaging of the Neo-Gothic grated a bit, especially the hate for St Pancras station. And the champions of the Neo-Gothic were not mad enthusiasts for the modern and convenient over the old and inefficient, nor were they all stupid. (Funny what annoys me, isn't it?) That said, a really enjoyable book.
15. Christopher Golden (et al), Angel: Surrogates.
16. William Hope Hodgson, Carnacki the Ghost Finder. A literary ancestor of Lovecraft, with a touch of Conan Doyle. Very badly written, but fun, though the mix of the occult with the trappings of scientific rationalism has an odd effect. On the other hand, the mixture of cases which are real hauntings with hoaxes adds a lot to the suspense and interest.
17. Kathryn Stockett, The Help.
18. Andrea Levy, The Long Song.
19. Trevor Huddleston, Naught for Your Comfort. A beautiful, sad, angry, book, which is both a fascinating portrait of South Africa in Apartheid era, and a very profound account of what it means to be a priest in the catholic tradition.
20. Austin Farrer, Saving Belief. Probably best summed up as what Mere Christianity would have been like if Lewis had been an Anglo-Catholic. Pretty good, though very dated in tone and the assumptions which underlie some of the examples he uses (so, yes, quite comparable to Lewis there too...)
21. PG Wodehouse, Aunts aren't Gentlemen. Not vintage Wodehouse, but still good fun.
22. PG Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing.
23. Barbara Myerhoff, Number our Days. Fascinating study of the members of a Jewish community centre for the retired in Venice, California; moving in parts, funny in others.
24. Mary Stewart, Nine Coaches Waiting.
25. Paul Theroux, Kingdom By the Sea.
26. David Ford, Theology: A Manifesto.
27. Alexander McCall Smith, The Saturday Big Tent Wedding.
28. Walter Brueggemann, The Theology of Jeremiah.
29. William Least Heat-Moon, River Horse. R.
30. Jasper fforde, One of Our Thursdays Is Missing. Excellent.
31. Henry Chadwick, The Early Church.
32. Dora Heldt, Kein Wort zu Papa.
33. Herbert McCabe, On Aquinas.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-06 09:28 pm (UTC)(also, would you happen to still have my copy of Racundra's First Cruise?)
(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-06 10:34 pm (UTC)Aargh, yes, I'm hopeless. I shall return it forthwith.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-06 11:01 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-06 11:06 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-06 11:22 pm (UTC)