Blogging Anniversary - 10 years

-
Image
A while ago I checked when I did my first blog post, in order to celebrate with an anniversary post. Well, that day came and went without any reaction from me. Better late than never, so here a reminder of my very first blog post from 24 October 2012.  The book was New Finnish Grammar  by Diego Marani. Marani is an Italian novelist, translator and newspaper columnist. While working as a translator for the European Union he invented a language ‘Europanto’ which is a mixture of languages and based on the common practice of word-borrowing usage of many EU languages. It was a suitable book to start with, being a book about letters, languages and memories. With a beautiful prose, the novel went directly to my heart.  "One night at Trieste in September 1943 a seriously wounded soldier is found on the quay. The doctor, of a newly arrived German hospital ship, Pietri Friari gives the unconscious soldier medical assistance. His new patient has no documents or anything that can ide...
5 comments

Book Beginnings on Fridays and the Friday 56

-



It has been a while since I posted here. Maybe because, since I now live in Sweden, I read more books in Swedish. We have excellent libraries here and that means I don't have to put more books on my already over-full TBR shelves. My local library has a shelf with new books, or new translations or just themes they want to promote. There I usually find good books. They also have a shelf with themed books related to events, time of the year etc. Now they have a shelf with horror books or at least spooky books. It is not my favourite genre, but I was attracted by this particular book; Thin Air by Michelle Paver. "The higher you go the darker it gets." 


"The Himalayas, 1935

Kangchuenjunga. Third-highest peak on earth. Greatest killer of them all.

Five Englishmen set off from Darjeeling, determined to conquer the sacred summit. But courage can only take them so far - and the mountain is not their only foe.

As mountain sickness and the horrors of extreme altitude set in, the past refuses to stay buried. And sometimes, the truth won't set you free."


Book Beginnings on Fridays hosted by Rose City Reader

"Were we wrong to attempt the conquest of Kangchenjunga? Some would say that we were, and that it is a sin to lay siege to the highest mountains on earth. Morover, of the three mightiest peaks - Mount Everest, K.2 and Kangchenjunga - seasoned alpinists regard Kangchenjunga as the most lethal. "


 

The Friday 56 hosted by Freda's Voice

"'My God! My God!' I whispered. Wherever I turned, I was assaulted by dizzying heights of fluted ice, a glaring white against an indigo sky. Such immensity. It was overwhelming. I couldn't take it in. Daunting to think that every one of them is thousands of feet lower than our mountain."

Comments

  1. Laurel-Rain Snow6 November 2020 at 15:52

    Awesome scenes! Here's mine: “FINDING MRS. FORD”

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisbeth 7 November 2020 at 12:17

      Thank you Laurel-Rain. Finding Mrs. Ford sounds really thrilling. Love the tone of the beginning.

      Delete
  2. Literary Feline6 November 2020 at 19:00

    I like horror now and then, but tend to be picky about which novels I will read. I'm more more a thriller reader when it comes to wanting an adrenalin rush. Thin Air sounds intriguing though! I really like the second excerpt particularly. I felt like I was there for a minute. I can see why you were drawn to this book. I hope you are enjoying it! Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisbeth 7 November 2020 at 12:19

      No fan of horror myself, but the synopsis sounded not so much like horror but superstition, mystery and ghosts, so I though it might be something for me. I have started it and it does not disappoint. It has the mixture of real life and something else ... waiting out there! Let's see when I have finished it.
      Like you I like thrillers more than horror.

      Delete
  3. fredamans6 November 2020 at 20:55

    Living in Sweden must be neat! Book sounds awesome too. Happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisbeth 7 November 2020 at 12:20

      Thank you, Sweden is rather nice. Although the dark autumn is here and it has its challenges. Usually, I would travel a bit this time of the year, to sunnier places. Alas, the world situation is not allowing for the time being.
      I have started the book and it is not disappointing so far.

      Delete
  4. JLS Hall6 November 2020 at 23:31

    Great snippets! I read quite a few spooky books, and this one sounds intriguing. But I'm also afraid of heights, so maybe not one I could get through. Hope you love it, though! Happy reading, and have a lovely weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisbeth 7 November 2020 at 12:25

      My husband, Martin, is born in Innsbruck, Austria and just loves the mountains. Myself, being born in the deep forests of the province of Småland in Sweden, see it differently. Martin has been several times to Nepal and loves it. For me, it is more scaring, hard ship and so forth. Although from the pictures it looks beautiful.
      The only climbing I would do is through books like this one. Maybe not the best story to reading if you're into climbing, but I like the threatening atmosphere that the author is gradually building up. I feel safe with both feet on the ground.
      Recently, I read 'The Woman in Black' by Susan Hill. Very good and VERY spooky.

      Delete
  5. Ashley Sapp7 November 2020 at 18:07

    I'm intrigued for more! Those snippets really pulled me in. Thanks for sharing! Happy reading! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisbeth 9 November 2020 at 13:36

      I felt this was a little bit of a spooky story and loved the snippets. I have now read the book, and it was spooky. However, I am not sure what to think of the ending.

      Delete
  6. Catherine @ Book Club Librarian9 November 2020 at 18:18

    I like the bits you've shared--man (and woman) versus nature can be quite interesting. Thanks for visiting my blog.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisbeth 14 November 2020 at 15:53

      I find man versus nature interesting. Sometimes I think though, we should not mess to much with nature.

      Delete
  7. Sammie @ The Bookwyrm's Den15 November 2020 at 21:32

    It's always so nice to have well-stocked local libraries, right?! Glad you're getting to read more books in Swedish. This one definitely sounds like an exciting, thrilling read! I hope you enjoyed it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lisbeth 17 November 2020 at 15:05

      After living 35 years abroad in countries where I don't really speak the language, it is a treat to have a local library. You can easily also borrow e-books which makes the procedure even more easy.
      The books was quite good, a little bit spooky, but there was something missing in the end I thought. It very well characterised being on a mountain, exposed to nature I think.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Magical Room, Saloons in 1920s Paris by Ingrid Svensson

-
Image
Better late than never as they say. This post was supposed to go up last year. At a museum in Sweden I found a book about 1920s saloons in Paris. Very interesting and it generated the post:  Paris in July - French Saloons.    As promised then, here is the first of two posts about four of the main hostesses.  Still picking from the "Magical Rom" and events from Paris in the 1920s. There were four main characters who put their mark on the literary scene of the time; Gertrude Stein, Natalie Clifford Barney, Adrienne Monnier, and Sylvia Beach. For most of you, they are already well known. These ladies had one thing in common, as well as many of the women holding salons, in that they were all lesbians. This was maybe one reason why they ended up in Paris, being more liberal (although you had to be discreet) than many other countries, and the US specifically. They were very creative and talented and did a lot for the cultural scene in Paris, introducing new talents and hel...
Read more

The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A F*ck by Mark Manson

-
Image
This is one of those popular help yourself books that seems to overflow these days. However, it defies all the good advices we have been given during the last years, that is; stay positive. Manson says: "Let's be honest; sometimes things are fucked up and we have to live with it."  Right! That is life after all. "One day, in retrospect, the years of struggle will strike you as the most beautiful." Sigmund Freud  With this quote in mind Manson argues that values such as "pleasure, material success, always being right, staying positive", are poor guidelines for a persons life. After all, some of the greatest moments in our lives are " not  pleasant, not successful, not known, and not positive". Which leads him to the belief, and I am bound to agree with him, that it is the individual who is responsible for everything in his/her life. We just have to act due to external circumstances. We are not always in control of all aspects of our...
Read more

How To Read Novels Like A Professor by Thomas C. Foster

-
Image
I am not a professor in literature, but I would like to be. Unfortunately, this will never happen, so, I have to go along trying to read novels and literature like a professor. Thomas C. Foster's book is therefor a very useful tool. He has also written How To Read Literature Like A Professor , which sounds like another useful read. It is not only a book for readers. I would say it is also useful for aspring writers. How do you make a novel interesting? What does it have to contain? Who should be the narrator and what should he/she do? The content gives a hint on what makes up a good book.  Pickup Lines and Open(ing) Seductions, or Why Novels Have First Pages - are we not fascinated by how certain writers manage to hook you on the first sentence? This seems to be one of the most important sentences in a book and Foster mentions a few excellent openings. I love good openings and cannot help but quote them here, although I am sure you are already familiar with them (I only knew 2,4 a...
Read more