Friday's Blog Exploration


It is another Friday and we are getting closer and closer to Christmas. I just realised, starting this post, that I forgot posting about Sinterklaas. I really wanted to because I love it, but I was so busy celebrating and unwrapping presents :P

First up: Book Beginnings, hosted by A Few More Pages
My dad bought himself a copy of Ayn Rand's 'The Fountainhead', which got me really excited. I always told myself I should read more early 20th-century writing, because it is truly different from contemporary literature. Also, Rand is a terribly interesting writer. Here are the first sentences:

TheFountainhead.jpg'HOWARD ROARK LAUGHED.
He stood naked at the edge of a cliff. The lake lay far below him. A frozen explosion of granite burst in flight to the sky over motionless water. The water seemed immovable, the stone flowing. The stone had the stillness of one brief moment in battle when thrust meets thrust and the currents are held in a pause more dynamic than motion. The stone glowed, wet with sunrays.'

Is that not simply some oft he best writing ever? And those capitals are her capitals.

Friday 56 is hosted by Freda's Voice.


'But he'll say that he's very sorry, only the commission has just been given to Guy Francon. And you'll go home, and do you know what you'll do there? You'll cry. You'll cry like a woman, like a drunkard, like an animal. That's your future, Howard Roark. Now, do you want it?'


Now I am really intrigued at what is going to happen in the book!! Aaaargh my dad needs to finish it now so I can start reading it!



This weeks' Follow Friday question has to be one of the easiest ever. (Hosted by Alison Can Read)
Q: Keeping with the Spirit of Giving this season, what book/s do you think EVERYONE should read and if you could, you would buy it for all of your family and friends?


Eerm, I don't like telling people what to do, so I'll just make some suggestions.

  1. Harry Potter: most definitely a book you should read. Also, a great book to read to your kids and I say this from experience. 
  2. The Lord of the Rings: I think that if you have a liking for dramatic, epic stories you should definitely read this. It is not only a great story, but once you read it you will start to see how the fantasy-genre developed.
  3. The Angel's Game/ The Shadow of the Wind/Prince of the Mist: you are really missing out if you have not read anything by Carlos Ruiz Zafon you are definitely missing out. If you don't like massive use of adjectives or a lot of pathetic fallacy (weather reflecting a character's mood) then maybe this isn't your writer. But if you have a taste for epic romances, thrilling adventures and amazing twists then you should definitely start reading these books: NOW.
  4. Nineteen Eighty-Four: Suggested by my friend Sophia, who is hilarious, check her out on Youtube!!! She says it is a brilliant book that has changed the world. Apparently it is also magical. I guess she'll have to give it to me for Christmas because I have not read it yet. Also, Orson Welles is pretty good anyway. (Sophia is caressing a pickled egg, should I worry??)
  5. Persuasion: This is one Jane Austen's lesser known works, but my favourite, next to Pride & Prejudice. Anne Elliot is one of her best heroines even though she is perhaps a bit weak compared to modern day heroine.
  6. Wuthering Heights: this is my favourite Bronte-book. Although 'Jane Eyre' is good, I think 'Wuthering Heights' is much more passionate and the lovestory between Catherine and Heathcliff is just enticing. I don't want to go into more detail because otherwise I will never be done!
  7.  Iliad: when it comes to massive and world changing works this is pretty much it. The mistake many people make and that I can get very annoyed about is that people think the Iliad is about Helena and Paris. The story of the Trojan War is indeed about those two, but the Iliad is only about Achilles and stops once he dies. Nice to have cleared that up! :)
  8.  The Hungry Catterpiller: another Sophia favourite.She still holding her egg! HELP??!?? (Seriously though, check her out on Youtube!


    Check out some of my posts this week:

    So, how about you? Favourite books??

Comments

  1. Thanks for stopping by and following me!!
    I should re-read The Fountainhead as I loved it originally.

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  2. I absolutely LOVED The Fountainhead. Now I want to reread it!

    Thanks for visiting my blog.

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  3. Hahaha The Hungry Caterpillar is great! Nice answers :)

    Here's my FF!

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  4. New follower. Nice to meet you!

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  5. so many great reads!

    Following you here!! Will you stop by my post?! I have a giveaway going on as well! :)

    http://lindsaycummingsblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/follow-friday-great-ya-read.html

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  6. I remember reading and enjoying The Fountainhead years ago. It might be time for a revisit if I could just conquer my TBR mountain. Happy reading!

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  7. I promised a couple of fellow book bloggers I wouldn’t “machine gun” my Follow Friday posts on the blogs I visit but this week’s Follow Friday has inspired me to make an important exception.

    The book I think everyone should read is a work of non-fiction called The Four Hour Workweek. The thing is, the book is very well written and entertaining so it reads like a work of fiction. What the book can do to enhance your life and change the way you live day by day seems unbelievable on its face which might mark it a legitimate work of fiction for the skeptics out there.

    If you read this work of non-fiction and really follow the advice it gives and apply the insights you’ll gain, your life will read like a modern tale fairytale.

    I encourage, implore and even insist you follow me back to my book blog so you can find out why I think EVERYONE should read The Four Hour Workweek – http://www.howardsherman.net

    TGIFF!

    Howard Sherman
    http://www.howardsherman.net

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  8. Thanks for visiting this week. I should go back and read some of the older works too but I keep getting new books and can't keep up with those. So many books, so little time.

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  9. Great gifting list. New GFC follower for FF.
    My Follow Friday

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  10. Hi, I'm a new follower (GFC)!

    Hmmm...I'm not familiar with "The Hungry Caterpillar", but I'll trust Sophia, and go check it out. Lol. The rest of your picks for the Follow Friday post are absolutely AWESOME, except for one -- "Wuthering Heights". Sorry, but I much prefer "Jane Eyre". All the others you've mentioned are immortal classics, and should definitely be read by everyone on the planet!! The HP series contains some of the most imaginative writing ever, as does "The Lord of the Rings"!!!! Both series are favorites of mine. Would you believe I own Zafon's two bestsellers, and have yet to read them? (Well, you should see my TBR pile....I think it's about half the height of Mount Everest...naw, just kidding!)

    Have a GREAT weekend! : )

    Here's my FF post:

    http://anightsdreamofbooks.blogspot.com/2011/12/follow-my-book-blog-friday-hop-14.html

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  11. Hopping through. Harry Potter is a must for everyone. And Shadow of the Wind was great too.
    My Hop

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  12. Thanks for visiting my blog and the nice comment and now I must apologize for accidently deleting it....I was on my Nookcolor and somehow the next thing I knew I saw a message saying that the comment had been removed. I did not mean to do that.
    Yes, THE FOUNTAINHEAD does sound like an intruiging book to read! Can't say that I have read many of the books on your must read list....will have to keep those in mind.

    ReplyDelete

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