Thursday, December 21, 2006

Last post before xmas

I'm taking an xmas break - one where I don't write at all for a few days instead of writing sporadically! - so I'll take this opportunity to wish everyone a merry christmas and a happy new year. Have fun, I hope you get what you want!

I'll do an end of year type post before the new year; I have to say, I'm not sure my around the world reading has been progressing much recently, certainly not as fast as I'd hoped. I've got stuck on the Sandman series, reading the whole of book two yesterday (I am now completely hooked and can't wait for number three to wing its way to me), and reading more from China, this time in the form of a novel. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress has been a book I've glanced at many times in the past but never wanted to read, so I was pleasantly surprised by how interesting I found it. It was a testament to the power of great writing and how great writers can change lives, give hope, encourage people to believe in themselves. I thought the quality of the writing fluctuated a little, and the very good passages stood out from the rest as being exceptionally noteworthy as opposed to merely very readable; I have one more Chinese novel to read, then I'll move on, but my recent forays into Chinese writers, or writers of Chinese origin, has made me very nostalgic. I have a feeling one of my new year's resolutions will be to start reading in Chinese again; I didn't realise how much I'd miss it!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Have a great holidsy! I've noticed the Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress book but didn't know if it was good -- glad to know you liked it.

Danielle said...

Have a wonderful holiday, too. It is nice to take breaks! I have Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress on my TBR pile, too!

Stefanie said...

Merry Christmas! Have a nice break!

Anonymous said...

It's always great to be pleasantly surprised by a novel one avoided. Murakami Haruki was my author of 2006 whose books surprised me.

Merry Christmas!

Anonymous said...

I really like Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. It led me on an interesting reading journey. Since then I've read several books about that time period in China.

Merry Christmas to you, too.

Anonymous said...

I hope your Xmas break is enjoyable and that you have a lot of fun during the festive week. I read "Balzac....Seamstress" a year ago and yes, it was a great little read! And you read the Chinese language? I am in awe!

Anonymous said...

I like the new template! I use this one on my OBG blog. I hope your break was wonderfully bookish!

Heather
www.thelibraryladder.blogspot.com

Iliana said...

Hope you are enjoying your holiday!