Books Thread

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MJ2004
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Books Thread

#1

Post by MJ2004 »

We didn't have a books thread? At least not that I could find. If I'm wrong, please merge and delete this thread.

I just finished Spare (actually got a copy from the library!) and thought I'd post some thoughts here. Yes, I know, who cares about the British RF? Well, neither do I. As far as I'm concerned the monarchy should cease to exist, but since this book makes an excellent case for that, I couldn't resist. Plus Moehringer - sure to be a good read.

1. Open > Spare. Andre was such an open book. With this one, you sense the agenda throughout.

2. The book started and ended strongly but the middle was a slog. There's a permeating sadness with recurring themes throughout - Diana, the media, Diana, family silence and leaks, Diana.

3. I will say that by cutting off Harry's security the RF lost any leverage they may have had and forced his hand into writing this book. Not smart at all and they have nobody to blame but themselves.

4. The RF comes off as awful - pretty much all of them but primarily Camilla and Charles. No surprises there. I actually felt a little sorry for William - he's completely trapped and it shows in his behavior.

5. Overall, worth the read, even if just to shed light on the BS the media feeds everyone. While everyone is sick of the stories, and rightfully so, I felt the book actually counteracts that because it's telling the story not from a media perspective. The counterpoint is that it's hard to tell if the story is always been told by a reliable narrator.
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Re: Books Thread

#2

Post by ponchi101 »

Thanks for the summary. But I will agree with you on the fact that the RF should simply disappear, like all RF's of the world (Spain, Thailand, and all other people that claim they are better by birth).
It has simply fascinated me how people are fascinated by these bunch of boring people. So your summary suffices for me.
(We had a book's thread in TAT1.0, not here).
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Re: Books Thread

#3

Post by ti-amie »

Thanks for the summary MJ. I think the English RF and its apologists thought that they'd drive people away from the book but their hysteria has pushed people to want to read it and apparently they are.

The attacks against the Duke and Duchess of Sussex come off as petty, mean spirited, and yes, racist. Sometimes I buy a book just to rub peoples noses in it. This may be one of those times.
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Re: Books Thread

#4

Post by JazzNU »

MJ2004 wrote: Fri Jan 13, 2023 11:42 pm
3. I will say that by cutting off Harry's security the RF lost any leverage they may have had and forced his hand into writing this book. Not smart at all and they have nobody to blame but themselves.
Such a significant part that so many people miss about the amount of money they have to make to afford 24/7 high-level security. A bizarre and/or petty or mean-spirited decision by the RF that has come back to bite them in the ass big time.
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Re: Books Thread

#5

Post by mmmm8 »

Thanks, MJ. I had no interest in reading this, but I didn't know J.R. Moehringer was the ghostwriter. I love his writing (Open and also his own memoir, The Tender Bar). He has another novel/fictionalized bio that I have yet to read). So I'll probably put this on my list.
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Re: Books Thread

#6

Post by Ainsley »

The last book I will have to read in high school is for my last semester AP English class as we are finishing up with a unit on Charles Dickens. The book is Hard Times. I will be starting the book tomorrow.
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Re: Books Thread

#7

Post by ponchi101 »

Good that you are reading the classics :thumbsup:
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Re: Books Thread

#8

Post by Ainsley »

ponchi101 wrote: Sun Feb 26, 2023 6:49 pm Good that you are reading the classics :thumbsup:
Oh yeah, I have had my share of the classics in high school. From Dickens, Shakespeare, Austen, Twain, Bronte, Tolstoy, Verne, Chaucer, Melville, & Alcott.
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Re: Books Thread

#9

Post by Deuce »

Ainsley wrote: Sun Feb 26, 2023 7:02 pm
ponchi101 wrote: Sun Feb 26, 2023 6:49 pm Good that you are reading the classics :thumbsup:
Oh yeah, I have had my share of the classics in high school. From Dickens, Shakespeare, Austen, Twain, Bronte, Tolstoy, Verne, Chaucer, Melville, & Alcott.
Aren't all those authors banned from school by the 'politically correct' brigade? :roll:

You should read Amos Bronson Alcott - Louisa May's father. He was a progressive thinker, and friends with Thoreau, Emerson, and Hawthorne.
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Re: Books Thread

#10

Post by Ainsley »

Deuce wrote: Mon Feb 27, 2023 3:05 am
Ainsley wrote: Sun Feb 26, 2023 7:02 pm
ponchi101 wrote: Sun Feb 26, 2023 6:49 pm Good that you are reading the classics :thumbsup:
Oh yeah, I have had my share of the classics in high school. From Dickens, Shakespeare, Austen, Twain, Bronte, Tolstoy, Verne, Chaucer, Melville, & Alcott.
Aren't all those authors banned from school by the 'politically correct' brigade? :roll:

You should read Amos Bronson Alcott - Louisa May's father. He was a progressive thinker, and friends with Thoreau, Emerson, and Hawthorne.
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is the only author and book on that list that is banned by the US Government. We did not read that works by Chaucer. We read "The House Of Fame" which is poetry written by him. Some schools I guess would not have Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, but it is not banned by the government.
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Re: Books Thread

#11

Post by JTContinental »

Why it is hard for me to read fiction about tennis:

I just started Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid, which is about a retired player making a comeback when her Grand Slam singles record is tied by a rival. I'm on the third paragraph, it's 1994, and said rival casually drops a 126 mph serve in the US Open final.

By the second page, if my math is mathing, said rival also won 13 slams in a 3 year-span.
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Re: Books Thread

#12

Post by ponchi101 »

I can see how that would be hard to swallow.
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Re: Books Thread

#13

Post by JTContinental »

Doing a quick check, it looks like Brenda Schultz-McCarthy has the actual fastest serve in 1994, at 114 mph
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Books Thread

#14

Post by MJ2004 »

I just started the Realm of the Elderlings 19 book series. Wish me luck. Image🪄Image


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Last edited by MJ2004 on Thu Mar 09, 2023 5:35 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Books Thread

#15

Post by ponchi101 »

19 books?! :o
What is it? The History of the ENTIRE UNIVERSE? Wow, that's an undertaking, MJ. Indeed, good luck, and have fun :thumbsup:
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