I think the Craig Bond is a bit closer to Fleming’s slightly OCD sociopath conception of the character than most of the others, with the exception of early Connery and Lazenby. There was always a sly undercurrent of humor in the books, but the movies gradually took on their own idea of what that humor was. Moore’s movies definitely had their own brand of humor that was almost based around comedy routines (e.g. the J.W. Pepper scenes), as opposed to humor that stems from heartless people taking gruesome situations less than seriously. But that kind of divergence is to be expected when there are 23 movies that span several eras of tastes and fashions, whereas the original series of novels spanned just a little over a decade. Occasionally, they have to develop their own sensibilities to fit with the times. The books certainly fit their own time.
But yeah, the books are pulpy entertainments for sure. They’re sort of like MacGyver, where the quality is rough around the edges and the appeal lies in all the little expert details that most popular fictions would omit. Bond’s choice in guns, food, clothing, cars, and women are all elaborated upon to an almost absurd degree. Part of that stems from the obsessiveness of the character (which is otherwise bland by design), but part of it is that Fleming himself is giving us a glimpse of the exotic life of a secret serviceman. In this way, he gives the books a layer of authenticity and sophistication that they lack in other respects.
I’m currently reading Thomas Campbell’s My Big TOE (Theory of Everything). Now THIS stuff is just insane; I can’t believe Campbell managed to synthesize such a wide field of topics into something very cohesive. Don’t let the silly sounding title fool you, I’d recommend it to everyone participating in that “consciousness” thread that’s currently ongoing.
Top one haven’t read but the confessions of a Yakuza one was a good read. Pre war /post war Japan underworld was interesting to say the least. I picked it up prior to playing the Yakuza games when I was researching something then played the games and some things were actually similar in the games. I figured the games would be pure “bootleg mobsters” like the old black and white gangster movies but the games were pretty good.
I knew a proffessor who refused to acknowledge her as a philosopher and did a similar exercise competely discrediting her. What was funny was he used other philosopher who thought on a similar vein as her and in the end I couldn’t disagree. Still, had to read the book to see if he was bias though… he wasn’t, I regret it.
Casino Royal looks the most appealing to me for the time being, probably because it was my favorite Daniel Craig movie so far. That’s not to say the book will be similar to it, but I’m interested in seeing how they differ from each other.
Bad choice. It’s Fleming’s very first James Bond story, and by far the worst he’s written. The book is legitimately dull, and hardly any real “action” occurs. Bond doesn’t come across as particularly interesting or impressive, either.
I agree with goodmourning that “Live and Let Die” is one of his very best. I also really enjoyed “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” and “Moonraker”. “Casino Royale” and “Octopussy and the Living Daylights” (two very short stories, the first with barely an appearance by Bond) are his two worst books with a bullet.
Choose anything besides those two and you should be good. (Although I admit not having read “Dr. No” and “The Man with the Golden Gun”, so don’t quote me on those)
Just finished the Seeds to Harvest series. The end of Patternmaster was very disappointing. The series as a whole was alright. I’d have to say that Wild Seed was the best of them.
Just read two books by one of my favorite sci-fi authors, Robert Anson Heinlein. One being The Door into Summer from 1957 and Friday from 1982.
It’s so funny, because I didn’t even have to read the dates on the books to know what parts of Heinlein’s career they were from.
See, in the 1950s, Heinlein believed that the government was good and that human society would constantly improve. That technological progress would lead to positive improvements in society overall. He was also a liberal that believed in a strong, central government. He was optimistic. This is all strongly reflected in The Door into Summer.
There is little violence, no murder, and no sex in this book. It’s a pretty good book.
By the 1970s, Heinlein believed that government was the single greatest evil. That it’s the job of every decent person to fuck with it as much as possible. He felt that the only thing that mattered was individual freedom and liberty, His vision of the future was a horrible dystopia with rampant, violent terrorism and insane, “Big Brother”-style government. He believed in personal freedom and was a conservative.
Friday features two cold-blooded murders in the first 2 pages of the book, and 9 pages in, we get a gang-rape and extended torture scene. Millions of people die throughout the work. It’s a great book, one of the best works of science fiction I have ever read.
The, brilliance, the sheer,utter, tragic brilliance, of Of Mice And Men, is within its exploration of human being, human social dynamics, and its commentary and judgement of society of itself.
Started reading Jane Eyre a while ago, because it was free on Amazon, and so I decided to read it on the my phone’s Kindle app. Jesus Christ, this broad could write.
In the first few chapters, she not only sets scenes well, but she describes the indignities of childhood very well, and how big everyone else seems to be when you’re young- and not just literally. Only about 7 chapters in, though.
Not an exact fit for this thread since the episodes are so dependent upon the acting and production as opposed to just the words on the page, but still somewhat relevant. Something like a book on tape, but more like a half-hour podcast.
It’s certainly a decent book by itself, but I find that every single other Steinbeck work explores human beings, social dynamics, and overall society in a far better and more deeper manner.
You didn’t really answer my questions, either;
Have you read other Steinbeck works, especially from his early period? (1929-1940?) What did you think of something like “Tortilla Flat” or even “The Cup of Gold”? Is there a novel he wrote during that time you would rank below “Of Mice and Men”?
Melville’s command of the English language and his ability to create powerful, poetic imagery out of even the most “mundane” in Moby Dick is still unmatched compared to what else I’ve read.
