Had this interesting chat (IM-ed) with Daph the other day about reading. It all started out with a discussion about Xmas gifts and escalated to that. Anyway, she was saying that she was okay with Son No.1 liking to read Mr Midnight but perhaps only barely. After all we all had our favourite rubbish reading. I lurve Mills & Boon in stacks as a respite to the heavy stuff i sometimes have to read.
But the comment that really got me thinking was something she said about it being ok if you read crap as long as you know the difference between good and bad OR rather, can tell what you like and appreciate in a book. So you can knowingly read crap and would never class them in the same level as a (for want of a better example) Pullman.
And what do i appreciate in a book?
I think the prize should go to the writer, any ol' writer who knows how to write a blossom. Meaning it gets better and better as you read.
Partly because i've been rereading The Merlin Conspiracy. For some books which i totally love, i would just randomly select a spot to start reading from. So the other day i started in the middle, then read to the end. And left it in the bathroom. After a couple of days, i went back to it and started from the very beginning. As i read, i marvelled at the way Diana Wynne Jones held all the cards, maybe smiling a secret smile as her plot thickened.
The same for The Franchise Affair.
The same for this sad book called the Corydon and the Island of Monsters (Tobias Druitt). Daph says it's written by a mother and son team, which makes me feel cheated. Since i really like mythology (hence Neil Gaiman is one Si-Fu), from the beginning, the story was cool. As it progressed, up to two hours ago, i was kinda surprised! I thought it was going to be serious a bit type of fiction, a tinge of historical, like McCaughrean or something. Imagine my shock and amusement, when it takes an about turn and becomes somewhat satirical. Aiya, i know it's been done before, but i've never read anything like this yet so if you want me to be enlightened, tell which books to read.
My point is this.
Love some books because they capture your attention at the beginning with the right amount of information etc. Then as you go on, either the plot or characters or maybe even the style, gets better, bigger and BAM! ... you know everything at the end. A book that grows, unfurls and blossoms, basically.
The Corydon book, not at the end yet but brownie points for sustaining interest and creating a new dimension with the humourous parts. BUT, one hopes with fingers crossed that it does not turn silly.
Another thing i appreciate in a book - intelligence and the concrete, unshakeable belief of the author in the intelligence of the reader. So help me blah blah blah.
SONG FOR A MOOD
OK - A-yue, from his album of the same name. Honestly, this is definitely my 2007 Chinese album of the year. It takes the words from my mouth, that i'm ok, hanging on. So there.
But the comment that really got me thinking was something she said about it being ok if you read crap as long as you know the difference between good and bad OR rather, can tell what you like and appreciate in a book. So you can knowingly read crap and would never class them in the same level as a (for want of a better example) Pullman.
And what do i appreciate in a book?
I think the prize should go to the writer, any ol' writer who knows how to write a blossom. Meaning it gets better and better as you read.
Partly because i've been rereading The Merlin Conspiracy. For some books which i totally love, i would just randomly select a spot to start reading from. So the other day i started in the middle, then read to the end. And left it in the bathroom. After a couple of days, i went back to it and started from the very beginning. As i read, i marvelled at the way Diana Wynne Jones held all the cards, maybe smiling a secret smile as her plot thickened.
The same for The Franchise Affair.
The same for this sad book called the Corydon and the Island of Monsters (Tobias Druitt). Daph says it's written by a mother and son team, which makes me feel cheated. Since i really like mythology (hence Neil Gaiman is one Si-Fu), from the beginning, the story was cool. As it progressed, up to two hours ago, i was kinda surprised! I thought it was going to be serious a bit type of fiction, a tinge of historical, like McCaughrean or something. Imagine my shock and amusement, when it takes an about turn and becomes somewhat satirical. Aiya, i know it's been done before, but i've never read anything like this yet so if you want me to be enlightened, tell which books to read.
My point is this.
Love some books because they capture your attention at the beginning with the right amount of information etc. Then as you go on, either the plot or characters or maybe even the style, gets better, bigger and BAM! ... you know everything at the end. A book that grows, unfurls and blossoms, basically.
The Corydon book, not at the end yet but brownie points for sustaining interest and creating a new dimension with the humourous parts. BUT, one hopes with fingers crossed that it does not turn silly.
Another thing i appreciate in a book - intelligence and the concrete, unshakeable belief of the author in the intelligence of the reader. So help me blah blah blah.
SONG FOR A MOOD
OK - A-yue, from his album of the same name. Honestly, this is definitely my 2007 Chinese album of the year. It takes the words from my mouth, that i'm ok, hanging on. So there.
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