[Bibliogoth London] Long List: April 2008

[Ruth Chapple]

That time of the month again :o)

Usual rules, 5 positive votes and 1 anti-vote per person. Votes by
email to me before Sunday. Apologies if I have missed any suggestions
or accompanying notes - I'm assembling this from various posts/emails
so I might have missed something. *Please* email me if I get something
wrong! I'm not doing it deliberately :o)

Any more suggestions for the list welcome as ever!


1. Sergey Lukyanenko (translated by Andrew Bromfield), "The Night Watch"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Night-Watch-Sergei-Lukyanenko/dp/0099489929/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197479986&sr=1-1
I don't think we read enough vampire novels, and I'd quite like to see
what this would be like compared to the film. Although it is part of a
trilogy, I don't think it would be necessary to read all three books.

2. James Herbert, "The Secret of Crickley Hall"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-Crickley-Hall-James-Herbert/dp/0330411683/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197479906&sr=1-2
I thought some "traditional haunted" house stories might be fun to
take a break from the more serious books we do. Although apparently
this one is not one for the squeamish...

3. John Llewellyn Probert, "The Faculty of Terror"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Faculty-Terror-John-Llewellyn-Probert/dp/0955092256/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197479839&sr=1-1
Scary short stories, a homage to the horror films made by Amicus.

4. Liz Williams, "Snake Agent"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Snake-Agent-Detective-Inspector-Novels/dp/1597801070/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204125380&sr=8-1

5. Max Brooks, "World War Z" (I think it's finally into standard
paperback rather than trade)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/World-War-Z-Max-Brooks/dp/0715637037/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204125405&sr=1-2
Just because it turned out to be a very good book which was a lovely
surprise given that I was expecting a B movie in book form!

6. Iain M. Banks, "Excession"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Excession-Iain-M-Banks/dp/185723457X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204125424&sr=1-1
My favourite Culture novel and well worth a read.

7. Karen Armstrong, "Through the Narrow Gate"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Through-Narrow-Gate-Memoir-Convent/dp/0006550541/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204125443&sr=1-6
I heard a couple of murmers wondering where this went last time the
list got revamped. An interesting little biographical piece about
being a nun in the mid twentieth century.

8. Dan Simmons, "Hyperion"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hyperion-Gollancz-Dan-Simmons/dp/0575076372/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204126243&sr=1-2
I thoroughly enjoyed some of the stories in this (it's one continuous
story, but told from the viewpoints of several characters including
flashbacks to their past). I suspect it would make for a good
discussion and it also leaves open the possibility of reading the
second book in the series for people who really enjoy it.

9. Asimov, "Caves of Steel"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Caves-Steel-Robot-Isaac-Asimov/dp/0586008357/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1199386773&sr=1-1
My favorite of Asimov's novels, part cyber-punk detective story years
ahead of it's time, part commentary on humanity. And it's got Robots!

10. Shan Sa, "Empress"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Empress-Shan-Sa/dp/0061147877/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1199386733&sr=8-1
A reasonable fictionalised account of the only woman to rule China as
Emperor and found her own dynasty. (my favorite woman in all of
Chinese history)

11. Mary Shelley, "Frankenstein"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Frankenstein-Modern-Prometheus-Penguin-Classics/dp/0141439475/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1199387023&sr=1-2
It took me ages to get around to reading this so I'm not sure if
everyone else has or not. But I was shocked at how good it was and how
much I enjoyed it. I think it has a lot of interesting ideas that
could be discussed about science and monsters.

12. Burroughs "Junky"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Penguin-Modern-Classics-William-Burroughs/dp/014118700X/ref=pd_sim_b?ie=UTF8&qid=1199387049&sr=1-1
After loving On the Road so much, I thought it'd be good to try some Burroughs.

13. E.T.A. Hoffmann, "The Devil's Elixirs"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Devils-Elixirs-E-T-Hoffmann/dp/1906210187/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204126306&sr=1-1
A cursed monk drinks from the forbidden Devil's Elixir and finds
himself inexorably drawn into crime and depravity. I thought some
german romanticism / Sturm & Drang would go well on the list, and this
one seemed appropriately gruesome.

14. Apuleius (Lucius Apuleius Madaurensis), "The Golden Ass"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Golden-Ass-Oxford-Worlds-Classics/dp/0192838881/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204126321&sr=1-2
Written in the 2nd century AD, it is the only Roman novel to have
survived intact to the present. Lucius is obsessed with magic and
wants to be transformed into a bird, but becomes an ass by mistake. A
series of mishaps ensues as he tries to regain his human form. Get a
modern translation (the Oxford classics one should do) or you might
find all the naughty bits have been omitted.

15. Jacques Cazotte, "The Devil in Love"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Devil-Love-European-Classics/dp/0946626731/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204126349&sr=1-1
Alvare dabbles in black magic and summons the devil, who falls in love
with him and, in the form of a beautiful girl, follows him everywhere
to win his affection.

16. Gustave Flaubert, "Madame Bovary"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Madame-Penguin-Classics-Gustave-Flaubert/dp/0140449124/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204126371&sr=1-1
Emma's ennui leads her down the path to ruin: one of the loveliest
literary tragedies ever.

17. Donna Williams, "Nobody Nowhere: The Remarkable Autobiography of
an Autistic Girl"
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nobody-Nowhere-Remarkable-Autobiography-Autistic/dp/1853027189/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204126391&sr=1-2
What the world of autism is like, from an autistic person's point of view.



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