Hi Diddly Dee, an Actor's Life for Me

"Those who agree with us may not be right, but we admire their astuteness."
Cullen Hightower

Book 2... Belle de Jour - The Intimate Adventures of a London Call Girl I'm not quite sure what I expected when I picked this book up in Waterstones.  The title pretty much explains the content but for some reason I was expecting 18th century courtesans.  I was therefore a little taken aback to find myself reading some pretty explicit modern-day content on the bus - I'm sure I was blushing!  This probably isn't a book to lend to your favourite maiden-aunt, put it that way. Belle de Jour is the published version of a blog which was running from summer 2003 to autumn 2004 (and, I note, has just started up again if anyone's interested in reading the original).  The book has expanded on the blog - the same basic events happen but Belle goes into more detail for the book. Belle has a witty style of writing, which is very blog-like.  I've noticed many people writing in a similar style on 20six.  Emotions are skated over slightly in favour of a sardonic humour, which can sometimes make Belle seem brittle.  You never feel all that attached to her, although you do want to keep reading.  The short chapters also contribute to an easy reading style - especially when reading, as I did, on a short bus journey to and from work each day - although I did worry sometimes about people reading over my shoulder! I did enjoy the book, but I'd warn anyone of a prudish disposition to avoid it.  Belle describes her life as a prostitute wittily and with flair - but also explicitly.  Not for the fainthearted!

8.3.05 17:30

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Heartbreak A young girl and her father sit at the back of the bus.  The girl's face is pale, her eyes red.  An occasional tear runs silently down her cheek.  The father holds a cat box on his lap which, on closer inspection, is empty.  The journey home seems very long tonight.
11.3.05 18:25	Permalink / 16 Comment(s) / Comment

Book 3 Strangers by Taichi Yamada Recently divorced and having given most of his possessions to his ex-wife in her settlement, Harada is forced to live in his office in a busy part of Tokyo.  One night, feeling nostalgic for his childhood, he returns to Asakusa, the area of town where he grew up and where his parents were killed 36 years before, when Harada was 12.  Here, in a comedy theatre, he sees a man who looks exactly like his father did at the age he died... Strangers is a modern-day ghost story with a twist that completely took me by surprise.  It has been translated from Japanese by Wayne P Lammers and I initially found the slangy Americanisms a bit off-putting.  However, they do serve their purpose in pointing the difference between the relaxed friendliness of Harada's parents and the formality of Harada himself and once I had got used to the writing-style it no longer bothered me.  The book is very evocatively written and the heat of the Tokyo summer seems to radiate off the pages.  Even minor characters have life to them and are tangible. Strangers is one of those books that, once you have finished, you see all the clues leading to the outcome.  However, it is only once you have finished that you realise this, which is refreshing.  Highly recommended...

11.3.05 19:01

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Because I have loved this song since time began... ...I would like to nominate it for Troubled Diva's blog disco. Clicky Oh yes, you want to know the song, don't you?      It's You To Me Are Everything by Real Thing.  Of course!
11.3.05 19:50	Permalink / 6 Comment(s) / Comment

Book 4 The American Boy by Andrew Taylor Thanks to Luda for recommending this one.  The American Boy of the title is Edgar Allen Poe, although in schoolboy form.  The book is written in first-person narrative from the point of view of Tom Shield, who is tutor to the young Poe and his best friend Charlie Frant.  The story starts innocuously enough; Shield - a disgraced soldier who has spent time in the lunatic asylum, as being mad was apparently more respectable than being anti-war - is offered a job at a private school in Stoke Newington, which he accepts.  It is here that he meets the boys Frant and Poe and rapidly gets drawn into all kinds of intrigue.  There are murders galore, and twists in the tail at every turn.  No sooner do you think you know exactly who is lying to who and which murky secret is about to appear from the past do your ideas get turned on their head and you have to start from scratch again.  A greatly enjoyable thing about this book for me was the setting, split between 19th century London and Gloucestershire.  I'm not a great historian, but it seemed authentic and was certainly atmospheric without being over the top and alienating. My one criticism of the book is the epilogue.  The author had written a perfectly good (if a little pat) ending to the book and then decided to add an epilogue, in a different character voice.  Throughout the book we have been treated as reasonably intelligent beings, being given the clues but not spoonfed them, having the chances to draw our own conclusions.  However, the epilogue abandons this ethos and left a bit of a sour taste with me, which was unfortunate. This apart, however, The American Boy is a thoroughly enjoyable and eminently readable book.  Recommended.

14.3.05 22:15

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Goldfish bowls I went to see The Life Aquatic last night, which was quite bizarre and very, very good.  I especially enjoyed the Portuguese David Bowie songs throughout.  And the 3-legged dog.  And the pirates.  And Bill Murray with a beard.  And Willem Defoe as a camp German in shorts.  Oh yes, it was a very good film and I highly recommend it. In a very spuriously linked kind of way, I am wearing fishnets today, getting compliments and feeling rather good about myself.  Ah, springtime...

17.3.05 12:50

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My mate I really fancy a marmite sarnie right now.    Edit: I made do with a fruit scone with lashings of cream and jam.  It's a hard life.
17.3.05 16:16	Permalink / 23 Comment(s) / Comment

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