Read any good books lately?
posted by Eric Forbes at 12:01 AM
eric forbes’s book addict’s guide to good books
unleash your imagination and awaken to the joys of literature and the reading life
a media sponsor of the 2010 citibank-ubud writers & readers festival 6-10 october 2010
Saturday, May 26, 2007
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About Me
- Name: Eric Forbes
- Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
I am a senior book and magazine editor who lives in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I love books and the freedom to read whatever makes me happy: both fiction and nonfiction. I have always been obsessed with the relationship between literature and life and its role in society. As an editor, I have edited many books, but never get tired of the grand adventure of reading. We must never underestimate the redeeming power of fiction in our lives. The idea that there is something out there that is far, far bigger than our lives sustains some of our lives. I am the co-editor of URBAN ODYSSEYS: KL STORIES.
7 Comments:
'Lullaby' by Chuck Palahniuk (tragicomic novel of litigious and power-hungry American life) and 'Unleashed: Poems by Writers' Dogs' (co-edited by Amy Hempel).
Hi, Eric. I'm halfway through 'The Kite Runner' which I've borrowed from the town library. It's a simply, beautifully written novel, but I find the protagonist doing too many mean, cowardly and dishonest things, and therefore becomes less likely for me to root for.
I am at the moment deeply engrossed in Khaled Hosseini's A Thousand Splendid Suns (2007).
I have just finished reading Ian McEwan's On Chesil Beach (2007). I thought it was a good read. You can read it practically in one sitting. I wish more writers would write novellas; novellas are not too long and not too short either. They are perfect for people short on reading time. Next book on my reading list is another novella: Irène Némirovsky's David Golder (2007), a novella translated from the French, David Golder (1929), by Sandra Smith.
Last good book i read is 'The Blue Afternoon' by William Boyd. I found his depiction of 19th century Manila beautiful and his writing has a movie style of flow to it which makes it difficult to stop reading and is akin to watching a movie instead of reading a book. Always wanted to read his stuff. Bought 'Restless' as well recently.
The Blue Afternoon was first published in 1993 and it won the 1993 Sunday Express Book of the Year Award and the 1995 Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction. I think this is one of William Boyd's best books. He is quite a consistently good writer.
I am reading Christopher Hitchens's God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything (2007) at the moment. I obtained a copy from MPH Bangsar Village II. I am enjoying it tremendously.
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