Bond and Beyond Book Club: Nominations

I voted for Joe's book, mostly because I'm already in the process of reading it.

I'm down with whatever, though. Being forced to read something is a welcome thing to me.

Kennon wrote:

Anybody care to read The Stars' Tennis Balls, Heart of Darkness or Any Human Heart?

ANY HUMAN HEART is well worth a read, but in many ways it seems a retread of Boyd's far superior THE NEW CONFESSIONS, a book that has the added bonus of being wonderful stuff for anyone interested in film.

LANCELOT sounds good and attainable.

May I make a case for the novel "It Happened on the Way to War" by Rye Barcott. Here's a quick description:

Quote :

In 2000 Rye Barcott spent part of his summer living in the Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya. He was a college student heading into the Marines, and he sought to better understand ethnic violence-something he would likely facelater in uniform. He learned Swahili, asked questions, and listened to young people talk about how they survived in poverty he had never imagined. Anxious to help but unsure what to do, he stumbled into friendship with awidowed nurse, Tabitha Atieno Festo, and a hardscrabble community organizer, Salim Mohamed. Together, this unlikely trio built a non-governmental organization that would develop a new generation of leaders from within one of Africa's largest slums.

Their organization, Carolina for Kibera (CFK), is now a global pioneer of the movement called Participatory Development, and washonored by Time magazine as a "Hero of Global Health." CFK's greatest lesson may be that with the right kind of support, people in desperate places will take charge of their lives and create breathtaking change. Engaged in two seemingly contradictory forms of public service at the same time, Barcott continued his leadership in CFK while serving as a human intelligence officer in Iraq, Bosnia, and the Horn of Africa. Struggling with the intense stress of leading Marines in dangerous places, he took thetools he learned building a community in one of the most fractured parts of Kenya and became a more effective counterinsurgent and peacekeeper. It Happened on the Way to War is a true story of sacrifice and courage and the powerful melding of military and humanitarian service. It's a story of what America's role in the world could be.

Thought I'd just bring a little non-fiction into the mix. Something that everyone could at least find empowering without being too overtly political yet still provide healthy discussion.

When do we know which book we're reading?

Now. Congrats, LANCELOT's won.

Good call. Library is holding my copy now. How we doing this thing?

We can't start yet - I don't get to pick up my copy until 30th September.

How long are we spending on each book? I want to get involved in this discussion of Lancelot, but I haven't really had time to read for pleasure during term.

HJackson wrote:

How long are we spending on each book? I want to get involved in this discussion of Lancelot, but I haven't really had time to read for pleasure during term.

Hm. I though it was supposed to go for a couple of months. But, TBH, just because the "official" LANCELOT window has passed, I don't see why folks couldn't continue discussing it.

Well, it seems LANCELOT went over like a lead balloon.

Shall we try again with a different book? I promise to sit the nomination process out this time.

Sorry about that.

What was that other book we mentioned? STRANGERS IN A STRANGE LAND?

Maybe ASSASSIN OF SECRETS?

Harmsway wrote:

I promise to sit the nomination process out this time.

I don't reckon anyone wants you to do that, Harms.

My nomination would be ENGLEBY by Sebastian Faulks.

I go along with that as I already have it but never got around to reading it.

x

Harmsway wrote:

HJackson wrote:

How long are we spending on each book? I want to get involved in this discussion of Lancelot, but I haven't really had time to read for pleasure during term.

Hm. I though it was supposed to go for a couple of months. But, TBH, just because the "official" LANCELOT window has passed, I don't see why folks couldn't continue discussing it.

Fair point. Once December rolls around I'll give it a whirl.

Erica Ambler wrote:

I have Lancelot, but never got around to reading it. That's five quid you owe me, Harms.

I'd still be interested in what you think about it, Ambler.

Is the book club.... well, dead?

Seems like it. Sadly.

Ok, I've added STRANGER ON A STRANGE LAND and ENGLEBY. Keep firing out some more nominations and we can get this thing back on a roll.

Back from the ashes. Ambler nominates Nabokov's LOLITA.

PS. I want to delete the poll here but can't. If a mod could sort that out, that'd be great.

Largo's Shark wrote:

Back from the ashes. Ambler nominates Nabokov's LOLITA.

No, he doesn't.

Reread it this morning. Very good, but I'm done for the next 10 years. If nominations are open to non-fiction I'm going to take this with me on holiday in November:

The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century - Alex Ross

Erica Ambler wrote:

The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century - Alex Ross

Very good choice. I second that.

PS. I read it before a couple of years ago, but gave up on it. From what I remember he focuses more on Benjamin Britten's homosexuality than his music, and slags off Pierre Boulez because it's popular to do so in some circles (I don't believe Ross has read any of Boulez's books, or listened to much of his music). Received opinions in other words. Will give it another try.

x

If nothing else, it'll hopefully provoke a good discussion.