CUK Book Club: Currently reading...

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "The quiet American" by Graham Greene. Ain't 1955 loooooong looooong ago, far far away, they did things differently then. .

Done: off to Oxfam with it. The 1* reviews on goodreads tickle me to death: evil old British colonialist with blood on his hands, hates septics (not that that is difficult), etc. etc. etc. . I thought it ok in its way having watched both of the films previously. Lets face it, hating the septics is supremely easy.

Next: "Sword of Honour" by Evelyn Waugh. Amazingly I have all three books in the trilogy. Dear "old"* Guy Crouchback, so keen to join the forces.

*35 at the time, going on 36.

The first 16 pages of this thread are from 2008: the remainder are from 2019 onwards.

Far-called, our navies melt away;

On dune and headland sinks the fire:

Lo, all our pomp of yesterday

Is one with Nineveh and Tyre!

Judge of the Nations, spare us yet,

Lest we forget—lest we forget!

Well that's come true. .


Shades of

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away.

.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "Sword of Honour" by Evelyn Waugh. Amazingly I have all three books in the trilogy. Dear "old"* Guy Crouchback, so keen to join the forces.

Done: off to Oxfam with it.

Next: "Officers and Gentlemen" by Evelyn Waugh. Crouchback's war continues.

Parachute training (unsuccessful).

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "Officers and Gentlemen" by Evelyn Waugh. Crouchback's war continues.

Done: off to Oxfam with it.

Next: "Unconditional Surrender" by Evelyn Waugh. The conclusion of Crouchback's WWII exploits.

And off to Jugo(slavia) he goes. With more unintended consequences, as ever.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "Unconditional Surrender" by Evelyn Waugh. The conclusion of Crouchback's WWII exploits.

Done: off to Oxfam with it.

Next: "The pigeon tunnel: stories from my life" by J. Le Carre.

Tales of assorted incidents from his life from the mid 1950s onward, including some of his experiences in MI5 and MI6.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "The pigeon tunnel: stories from my life" by J. Le Carre.

Tales of assorted incidents from his life from the mid 1950s onward, including some of his experiences in MI5 and MI6.

Done: off to Oxfam with it.

Next: "Brideshead Revisited" by Evelyn Waugh.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "Sword of Shame" by The mediaeval murders. Cost 49p remaindered at The Works some indeterminate time ago. Quite a while judging by the foxing, but some time after 2007.

Done, at last: off to Oxfam with it.

Next: "Moon Tiger" by Penelope Lively.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "Brideshead Revisited" by Evelyn Waugh.

Done: off to Oxfam with it.

Next: "The Old Devils" by K. Amis. Set in Swansea renamed as something else, with mentions of Dylan Thomas renamed as someone else. Well there's tidy then. .

I recall watching the tv programme made from it in 1992.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "The Old Devils" by K. Amis. Set in Swansea renamed as something else, with mentions of Dylan Thomas renamed as someone else. Well there's tidy then. .

I recall watching the tv programme made from it in 1992.

"Dai the Books" taking the place of "Ralph the Books" (which transmogrified much later into "Robert the Books" until charity shops shut him down).

Done: off to Oxfam with it. Vaguely amusing in its way. I didn't get some of the references. I recall the tv programme being funnier.


Next: "Work Suspended" by Evelyn Waugh: book of short stories plus a novella. (Bookclub version, published 1948, Boots Lending Library copy).

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "Work Suspended" by Evelyn Waugh: book of short stories plus a novella.

Done: off to Oxfam with it.

Next: "Put out more flags" by Evelyn Waugh. The Phoney War.

Turns out I should read "Vile Bodies" and "Black Mischief" first but I've started this one now.

[DoctorStrangelove]

Next: "Put out more flags" by Evelyn Waugh. The Phoney War.

Turns out I should read "Vile Bodies" and "Black Mischief" first but I've started this one now.

Done: off to Oxfam with it (both copies). Written in 1941 whilst the "fun" was still building up. Oddly unlikable main character.

Next: "Daddy we hardly knew you" by Germaine Greer.

Gosh. His name wasn't Greer. He was an officer in the RAAF intelligence during WWII: in an SLU (possibly), was on Malta, or rather in Malta underground. She finally tracks his origins down in Tasmania in the 1900s. Not too keen on the stuck up Brits it must be said.

His "adopted" mum was Emma Greeney of Launceston, Tasmania.