tooth soup

photo credit: callumscott2

Following my esteemed

compatriot blogger Aditi’s example, I’m going to start posting my book lists from month to month, and short impressions of them. If I were to be honest, this is mainly an exercise in oiling the groan of the blog machine to get my posting regularity back on track. It’s been a hectic few weeks, but I’ve got some content backed up that I feel is good enough to share with y’all, so look out for some more novel posts coming up. Without further ado, my reading list from the past couple months. I’m a bit vague on which books I read in August, so I might have missed a few.

The Dreaming and Other Essays — W.E.H. Stanner

If you only read one book on Aboriginal history in Australia, read this one. Stanner literally lived and followed Aboriginals for decades, and his observations and insight into their plight are honest and unbiased. He is not prone to hyperbole, nor understatement, he just tells it how it was (and, sadly, how it continues to be).

Dirt Music — Tim Winton
Breath — Tim Winton

I hadn’t read any Tim Winton since high school, and in actual fact cursed his name on more than one occasion when friends brought up his books. I put it down to enforced analysis. But having read Dirt Music and Breath, I can safely say he is my favourite Australian author of the moment. his descriptions are just so damn spot on, and it’s refreshing to read about places I know and have been to, rather than the same ‘luxury’ locations from around the world.

City of Thieves — David Benioff

For a guy that wrote the execrable X-Men: Wolverine, Benioff writes a damn fine novel. I enjoyed the pacing of the story and the interplay between the two main characters as they face the impossible task of acquiring a dozen eggs in the wasteland of World War II Russia. I saw the end coming from an approximately page 10, but it didn’t ruin the plot in the slightest. Very easy reading for the holidays.

The Pigeon — Patrick Suskind

Incredibly short, and not really anything to compare to Perfume. Suskind does have a knack for kooky characters, and I enjoyed the portrayal of the man who has lived life so safely that he cannot even confront a pigeon outside his door. On second thoughts, it would probably be impossible to write about such a man for longer than Suskind did, for fear of losing his readship to utter boredom.

The Chrysalids — John Wyndham

Can you tell I’ve been into the Popular Penguins stacks again? This is classic sci-fi: Providing an analogue for society through the use of science fiction elements. A group of children develop an ability to communicate telepathically in a society that outlaws any kind of mutation. With the advent of a new child in the colony that can communicate over distances much vaster than the group could previously, they discover a civilisation on the other side of the world (New Zealand, hah!) where their ability is the norm. A very insightful story about the abuse of power, and the cycle of the powerful.

Cat’s Cradle — Kurt Vonnegut

This was a re-read of one of my favourite books. I adore Vonnegut for his ability to blend quite complex science so seamlessly into his stories, pulling the focus off it and onto the characters.

The Slap — Chris Tsiolkas

I recently read an interview (somewhere, unfortunately I’ve misplaced the link) where Tsiolkas said something along the lines of ‘There will be two people who read this book: those that recognise the characters as being people they know, and those that can’t believe that they exist.’ That’s a very fuzzy paraphrase, but even so I can safely count myself in the latter category. However, it’s not because I don’t know anyone vaguely resembling the characters in the story, it’s more that they aren’t qritten real enough for me to believe that they might have these outlandish, L.A.-style motivations. Everyone is cheating on everyone else, all the males are insensitive pricks yearning for grandeur and money, and most of the women fawn pathetically over the men. I should note that I’m only half-way through this one at the moment, and I’ll be the first to retract this statement if I should be proven wrong in the second half.

Structure Determination From Powder Diffraction Data — W.I.F. David, K. Shankland, L.B. McCusker, Ch. Baerlocher.

Not the most thrilling narrative, but if you are ever thinking about moving into the realm of determining crystal structures from powder diffractometry, this is an essential book for you to read. It explains all the theoretical limitations and offers advice on the most important aspects of SDPD.

The Plague — Albert Camus

Only half-way through this one as well, but I like it. The style of writing is unlike a lot of the books I’ve been reading, sounding more like a journalist is writing it (which in the plot, he is, so it makes sense). I’m at the point where the town has just acknowledged the fact it has a plague, so I’m looking forward to the progression.

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