Category: 30 Day Book Challenge

Day two- Favourite side character – Walser, Spud and Ponder Stibbons

On By kepagewriterIn 30 Day Book ChallengeLeave a comment
As you will discover as this challenge continues, I am incapable of picking a single book for anything. So each post will probably look at two or three books.
My first choice for favourite side character is Walser from- Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter
Jack Walser is the straight man to the magical, winged woman Fevvers in Angnights-at-the-circusela Carter’s wonderful tale of mystery and intrigue. In a lot of ways, he performs the function of a reader, incredulous and duped by the amazing Fevvers. He gets drawn into her chaotic world almost against his will and is amazed by her along with the reader.
In the course of the novel, Walser is frequently injured and humiliated. He completely loses himself at one point before being reborn a new and wiser man. As a reader, we feel for him and worry for him, in a way that you don’t have to about Fevvers who is strong and confident and although she gets into scrapes, she seems so together that there seems little need to doubt she will survive.
The reason I like him so much is that as a journalist, he should be cynical but in the face of the Fevvers, he cannot remain so. He is described as unfinished and does not reach his true personality until he has been through his series of adventures and falls for Fevvers in every way.
Spud from Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh
Spud is one of my favourite comic characters. He is involved in one of my favourite incidents in Trainspotting – the job interview which he attends with Renton having taken speed and in which he informs the interviewer that htrainspottingas lied on his application form. Welsh perfectly captures his voice, calling everyone ‘cat’ and ‘kitten’ and showing his eternal optimism and friendliness. Unlike Renton, Sickboy and Begbie, Spud is a warm character who maybe a little naive and hopeless but is not as flawed as the others.
Spud has perhaps the most poignant moment in the novel where he begins to feel close to a woman but loses his nerve after remembering a line from There is a light that never goes out by The Smiths. It is heartbreaking.
Ponder Stibbons from the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett
If you have ever worked in an office (or wherever) and felt that you were the only sane person in the place, then you will have a great deal of sympathy for my third choice, Ponder Stibbons. He is the only sensible wizard in Unseen University. Having to deal with Arch-chancellor, Ridcully  on a daily basis would try the patience of a saint and Ponder is often on the very edge of his patience. But what is really great about this character is the strategies he employs in order to ensure that things are actually done his way. The way he plays Ridcully is a joy to behold.

Day 1 – Book series I wish had gone on longer – Ian Rankin’s Inspector Rebus series.

On By kepagewriterIn 30 Day Book Challenge2 Comments
Until recently the most obvious answer to this question would have been Ian Rankin’s Inspector Rebus series. John Rebus is my favourite fictional detective because he is difficult, exasperating and above all anti-authority. His moral code is highly personal which ensures that he does not play by the rules much to the annoyance of his superiors and the entertexit musicainment of the reader. Even more importantly, he had excellent taste in music and Rankin litters the books with musical references as should be apparent by some of the titles – Dead Souls, The Hanging Garden, Let it Bleed, Black and Blue and, of course, Exit Music. And then there is the fantastic Edinburgh and Fife locations, so evocative that they seem like a character in themselves.
In what was the final book of the series, Exit Music, Rebus retired. I admit, even at the time of reading, this seemed unsatisfactory. Rebus is one of those people who would be lost on retirement, who die three weeks after or turn up at work more often than when he worked there. It may that Rankin agreed with this as there is now a new book, Standing in Another Man’s Grave which I am yet to read. It may be that it was always the case that another book would be written. The ending of Exit Music is open to a continuation of the story. It matters not. I am certainly looking forward to reading about the next stage in rebus’ life.
I haven’t read that many other series. Harry Potter, I feel ended when it should. The only way to continue that would be with the next generation of Weasleys and Potters. An adult Harry Potter just wouldn’t be the same. Similarly, His Dark Materials had a pleasing ending and a completely new scenario would have to be invented in order for Lyra to have an new adventure. I love the Game of Thrones series but as yet they do not look like finishing.

A Resolution of Sorts – 30 Day Book Challenge

On By kepagewriterIn 30 Day Book Challenge2 Comments

I don’t really believe in New Years resolutions. They make us all feel better, of course, after the excesses of Christmas. But I find a couple of things about them depressing. For a start, they tend to be negative, giving up things, forcing yourself to do things that you don’t want to. It always seems a strange way to start the year. The other thing is the tendency to break them is high as if making the resolution was enough in itself. This relates to the negative nature of resolutions. No one really wants to keep them. They just want people to admire their potential resolve.

Last year, I decided I wanted to make resolutions I would actually keep so I resolved to choose things that would make my life more pleasurable. I resolved to watch more films and to read more books. This has been great and ensured I have discovered new writers and directors, seen things I wouldn’t have bothered with. I have made an effort because I actually wanted to keep them.

This year, I am resolving to blog more. So to start the year I am going to do the 30 day book challenge as created by Becky

DAY 1. – A book series you wish had gone on longer OR a book series you wish would just end already – Ian Rankin Inspector Rebus Series
DAY 2. – Favorite side character – Walser, Spud, Ponder Stibbons
DAY 3. – The longest book you’ve read – A Dance with Dragons – George R. R. Martins
DAY 4. – Book turned into a movie and completely desecrated – The Other Boleyn Girl – Philippa Gregory
DAY 5. –  Your “comfort” book – Rankin and Pratchett.
DAY 6. – Book you’ve read the most number of times – Steinbeck, Ellis, Bulgakov
DAY 7. – A guilty pleasure book.
DAY 8. – Most underrated book – A Disaffection and The People’s Act of Love.
DAY 9. – Most overrated book – David Nicholls and Ian McEwan
DAY 10. – A book you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving – THe Memory Keeper’s Daughter and The Book of Lost Things.
DAY 11. – Favorite classic book – Dickens, Salinger, Stevenson.
DAY 12. – A book you wanted to read for a long time but still haven’t.
DAY 13. – A book that disappointed you – A Sense of an ending and Lighthousekeeping
DAY 14. –  Book that made you cry – Dancer from the Dance and The Book Thief.
DAY 15. – A character who you can relate to the most – Little Women and The Robber Bride
DAY 16. – Most thought-provoking book – Naomi Klein and Joanna Blythman.
DAY 17. – Author I wish people would read more.
DAY 18. – A book you wish you could live in – Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell
DAY 19. – A favourite author – Margaret Atwood
DAY 20. – Favorite childhood book – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Anne of Green Gables, Little Women
DAY 21. – Book you tell people you’ve read, but haven’t (or haven’t
actually finished) – On the Road, The Old Man and The Sea, The Scarlet Letter.
DAY 22. – Least favourite plot device employed by way too many books you actually enjoyed otherwise – Atonement and The Time Traveller’s Wife
DAY 23. – Best book you’ve read in the last 12 months – The Good, The Bad and the Multiplex
DAY 24. – Book you’re most embarrassed to say you like/liked.
DAY 25. – The most surprising plot twist or ending.
DAY 26. – Book that makes you laugh out loud.
DAY 27. – Book that has been on your “to read” list the longest.
DAY 28. – Favorite quote from a book.
DAY 29. – A book you hated – 50 Shades of Grey
DAY 30. – Book you couldn’t put down.