The New Death and Others by James Hutchings

If you like your short stories cynical and twisted, or your fairy tales fractured, then this is a perfect coffee table book full of cynical and twisted tales, interspersed with some very good dark poetry.

Mr Hutchings left a message on this blog asking if I would read and review his book.  I had put the call out to ‘independent authors’ in an earlier post for my 2012 Reading List, but I think this was a random request and I’m so pleased to have been asked as this little book really tickled my sense of humour and touched those dark chords that draw me to unsettling and unusual fiction.

I have never read a book quite like this, it has no particular order, being a total mix of work which makes it perfect for picking up and selecting a page at random. I didn’t like some of the stories, but I did appreciate most of them, and the poetry I thought was wonderful.

An obvious cat lover, there are several references to cats throughout, such as the disturbing How the Isle of Cats Got Its Name and the gorgeous little poem My Cat is Not Like Other Cats, which all of us cat lovers can definitely identify with!  In The Death of the Artist it is revealed that all writers and artists have cats, a fact which takes on a sinister significance; and now I fully understand that when my Tenshi is staring intently at nothing she is actually enhancing her mental powers!!

Of all the short stories I really liked the atmospheric The Scholar and the Moon which has less of the cynicism that prevails in most of the other work, and the nightmarish The Dragon Festival. The poetry, as I have said, is very good with some of it being based on actually stories by Lovecraft, Dunsany and an author I have only just recently ‘discovered’ - Clark Ashton Smith.

Yes, some of the stories are corny or just plain silly, but others have a touch of sheer brilliance to them. If you tend to get bogged down with some heavy reading, which I do on occasion, this is a breath of fresh air.  I didn’t want to put it down, and looked forward to the twisted endings and the clever play on words and ideas.  Even the corny stories got a giggle as well as a groan out of me.

It’s on Smashwords and if you want to inject a bit of random fun into your reading,  I recommend you check it out:

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/92126

Maxine

Do You Believe in God?

My intention is not to spark a debate or to offend anyone with this post.  I  merely want to put down some (rather confused) thoughts after reading The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins.

The God Delusion is a very persuasive and compelling argument against religion, drawing from Darwin's Natural Selection and Human Biology, and has given me plenty of material to discuss with my partner and argue about!

I can't say that I have been a very religious person, but I'd like to think that there is more to life in a spiritual sense than what Dawkins is trying to prove.  It comes down to the age old question - why are we here?  We humans need a reason, we need something to believe in and something to hope for, otherwise what is it all for?  When we lose someone we love we live in hope that they will be waiting for us 'on the other side'.......

Dawkins argument is that religion is purely a way  for those in charge to control the masses, the fear that an almighty being can hear our innermost thoughts and the threat of eternal damnation was a good tool way back when, but in these enlightened times we should know better.  Indeed, I am the sort of person who needs proof to believe in something; I haven't had a religious experience - so I JUST DON'T KNOW - and Dawkins can even explain away some religious experiences.

The Crucifixion

How about Jesus Christ?  My opinion has always been that he was a misguided cult leader and Dawkins leans towards that direction too.  The Bible must be taken within the context of the time, you can't really take it literally with what we know today.  Some of the scriptures are quite appalling and include rape, violence and murder.  It is a handbook for warfare, and the same could be said of The Iliad but we haven't taken that literally and built a religion around it, so why do we hold such faith in The Bible?

Religion takes up a massive amount of money, time and energy, it creates so much guilt in people to the point that some are drawn to suicide.  Think of the lives that are lost in religious wars, honour killings, and martydom? Imagine how happy we could all be if there was no religion.  But, would we really be that happy with nothing to believe in?

I agree with much that Dawkins says, but I still can't shake the belief that there is something out there that is bigger than what we could possibly imagine or comprehend.  There is so much more that we don't know about our origins, but maybe that is my own indoctrination and Dawkins is right; but I sincerely hope not! 

I wonder though, if when the end is near for Dawkins, do you think that he may actually change his mind?

Just a thought.......

Maxine

Are You on my 2012 Reading List?

I will be dedicating 2012 to Independent authors (interspersed with some classics of course) in my search for the ultimate horror novel.  I plan on reading a minimum of 60 books next year, depending how much the classics slow me up!

My list so far consists of 34 novels (they are in no particular order):

Click Here: 2012 Reading List

This leaves me with 25 spots for an independent horror novel - do you want to be on my list? Send me a DM on Twitter @CaffeineChapter with the link to your book -  please note I am interested in horror novels only.  If you can offer your book for free it will go to the top of my list.  If I like the first chapter I will read the whole novel and leave a review on your preferred site.  Short horror stories are also welcome - the only criteria is to SCARE ME!

So, what are  you waiting for?!!

Maxine

My Friend Batman

Jayden & Batman

I have just had the best five days.  A whirlwind visit from my daughter and my two grandsons, all the way from Western Australia, had me realising just how cool it is to hang out with a three and a half year old!  What joy he brought into my home, along with his ever smiling 7 month old brother.  My daughter is obviously doing something right to have such lovely children.  

There were so many funny moments courtesy of Jayden, but the highlight for all of us was when he met his hero Batman at Movie World here on the Gold Coast.  Batman even took the time to talk to Jayden during the end of day parade which totally brought tears to my eyes! I never thought Batman could be so cool :) Jayden was totally awestruck, especially after the Batman Show which had him shaking in his sandals it was so intense, and after he had his photo taken he just had to tell everyone about "my friend Batman". What a magical age three and a half is!

Happy Taj

And who could resist this little cutie? Taj was either eating or laughing. I don't think I've ever seen such a happy infant.  I'll miss out on seeing him crawl for the first time, but he was giving it a good shot whilst he was here.

All good things must come to an end and we said goodbye on Wednesday. Jayden left armed with his new Bat Cave that I couldn't resist buying him, and I've been left with some fantastic memories.  Now I'm counting down to Easter when I'll fly over for Taj's first birthday.

Hungry Taj

Being a Nana (albeit a far too young one lol!) is a truly wonderful experience, and I can highly recommend it. 

All this excitement hasn't left me much time to read this week, and I was ill for a couple of weeks prior, so I have a lot of reading to catch up on.  Plenty of recommendations are coming in via Twitter and my Kindle will be put to good use soon as I try a few Indie horror authors. Right now though I'm finishing off Dicken's Dombey and Sons (depressing), The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins (compelling argument against religion) and Damned by Chuck Palahniuk (disappointing so far).

I'm up to Book 9 of The Iliad.  So, I'm off to bed now to spend some time with the Greeks and Trojans.

Happy Reading All!

Maxine

On First Looking into Chapman's Homer

George Chapman, 1559 - 1634

I have been thinking a bit about translated books, and often wonder do I love the author of this novel or the translator?  I was never quite sure and now I am even more unsure after switching from the audio version of Anna Karenina to my kindle version and the difference in writing is quite obvious.  I am really surprised.

I thought I loved Haruki Murakami but do I really  love Jay Rubin for The Wind-up Bird Chronicle or Philip Gabriel for Kafka on the Shore?  Maybe Koji Suzuki's The Spiral was an okay novel and I just didn't like Glynne Walley's writing style (though the story was so ridiculous that I can't believe that it did get 'lost in translation').

What is the criteria when translating a novel? Is it like the X-Factor where you pick a song and then 'make it your own?'  Can I really say I love Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy - have I REALLY REALLY read them?  It's a subject that I actually wish I hadn't started thinking about!!

My latest translated read, apart from Anna Karenina, is of course Homer's The Iliad.  I'm on Book Six now and can honestly say that I look forward to lying in bed of an evening, reading the study guide notes for the verses I'm to read and then just reveling in the language.  My version is George Chapman's, and although there are many other later translations that may be easier to read, I think I will continue with this one.  The poet Keats was so taken with what he had read by Chapman that he wrote a sonnet about it and I want to read that version which so inspired him. 

Keats, 1795 - 1821

On First Looking into Chapman's Homer

 Much have I travell'd in the realms of gold,

 And many goodly states and kingdoms seen;

 Round many western islands have I been

 Which bards in fealty to Apollo hold.

 Oft of one wide expanse had I been told

 That deep-browed Homer ruled as his demesne;

 Yet did I never breathe its pure serene

 Till I heard Chapman speak out loud and bold:

 Then felt I like some watcher of the skies

 When a new planet swims into his ken;

 Or like stout Cortez when with eagle eyes

 He star'd at the Pacific — and all his men

 Look'd at each other with a wild surmise —

 Silent, upon a peak in Darien.

                                         John Keats, 1816

I would love to know your thoughts on the best and worst of translated novels and translators.

Happy Reading All.

Maxine

What Frightens You?

What makes a horror movie scare one person but comes across as ‘ho hum’ to another?  How many times have you been recommended a 'must see' horror movie only to be disappointed?

I did that very thing the other day.  I recommended Insidious to my son.  This movie scared the hell out of me (well the first hour did anyway), but my son thought it was ‘okay’.  What was it about that movie that made me leap out of my chair and cuddle up to my partner for reassurance?

Thinking about the movies that have rattled me there does seem to be some common themes –

The Unnatural Child

ü     Don’t Look Now (my all time favourite movie) has the father of a deceased child chasing what seems to be her spirit around the canals and alleyways of Venice.  It is only at the end of the movie that we find out what this ‘child’ really is.  I don’t think I slept for weeks after that revelation.

Sinister Gage

ü    Pet Semetary.  We all know the premise of this one, the idea that Gage has been brought back from the dead is bad enough but we know that his soul did not come back, something else did. He makes me shudder every time I think of him.

ü   Insidious.  Dalton, a young boy, is in a coma and being nursed at home. One night his younger brother says he wants to change bedrooms because he doesn’t like it when Dalton walks around. That gave me goosebumps, but the thing that really got me was the sulking boy doll from the laundry that ran and giggled around the house!!

Unnatural Movement

Samara

 ü      The Ring.  I laugh now when I see this movie, but after I saw it for the first time I took the portable TV out of my bedroom and it’s never returned.  The way that Samara moves towards the screen really bothers me.  I can’t stand it!

 ü      The Gift.  Remember the fiddler?  I hate that part, he plays too fast, it’s completely unnatural.  In the words of the immortal Owen Meany – it gives me ‘the shivers’.

Jagged Teeth

Pennywise

ü      Pennywise The Clown from It……… enough said there.

ü   Have you ever seen The Two Faces of Evil?  It was a Hammer House of Horror episode that absolutely terrified me when I about 13 or 14.  The evil doppelganger with his jagged teeth and one long dirty fingernail really played on my mind at night.

The Music

ü    Salem’s Lot (the TV movie with David Soul).  I cannot stand the music that plays when the young boy taps on the window for his friend, it makes my heart race and I just want to cover my ears and bury my face in a cushion to block it all out!

ü      Psycho.  The shower scene music is so well known that it doesn’t have much effect now, but what a great piece it is.  We’re hard to scare these days, but I would have loved to have been in the audience on it’s first showing.

So, it's not blood and guts that I find scary, it's just the little, unnatural things with some good music thrown in.

So now you know what frightens me, what frightens you?

Maxine

Is This Self Torture?

When I picked up my first Dickens novel A Tale of Two Cities I thought it would be torture.  Going from reading nothing but horror to picking up a classic was a bit daunting.  Instead I read a wonderful piece of story telling from a master.  When I picked up Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment I thought 'this will definitely be torture', but I read a fantastic psychological thriller which I still think about today, and which has encouraged me to try other Russian works with equal delight.  Back in  my twenties I read The Bible. I decided that I would read a few verses a day, following the reading guide at the back of my edition, but all the who begat who in Genesis, and all the cubits of this and that when building the ark were mind numbing I wanted to speed read and get to the good stuff.  I did, however finish it, and I can honestly say that was TORTURE!

So, now I've picked up Homer's The Iliad and I'm wondering as I commence this slow read - like The Bible I shall be taking this 'verse' by 'verse' - will it be torture?  Somehow I'm thinking not, even after my partner had a flick through it and threw the book at me and told me to 'give it up' before I had even started.  Talk about narrow minded - or perhaps he's worried about my mood swings if I don't enjoy it!  I understand that this is not the type of book that you jump into feet first, on reading the first page I could not understand a thing.  So I took the sensible step of downloading the Shmoop Study Guide.  I've read the back story, the character summaries and the themes and with its help I am finding a rhythm to the poem.

So why torture myself?  Because Shmoop writes that "you'd be hard-pressed to find a work that comes close to the Iliad for depth of insight into human life, as well as sheer beauty" and when I read literature I love the subtle references to other classical work and the more I read the more I 'get' these references.  The Iliad and The Odyssey have had a huge impact on classical and modern literature and I want to understand this and relate to it.  

Happy Reading!

Maxine