Monday 13 July 2009

Blogging compliments

As well as being dilatory on my own blog recently, I’ve also fallen behind on keeping up with many of my favourite bloggers so I’ve only just read these very kind words on Juxtabook’s blog.

It’s a privilege to be in anybody’s top ten books of the last decade, but when Testament finds itself in the kind of company Juxtabook mentions (Julian Barnes, Ian McEwan, Margaret Atwood) it becomes even more of a compliment.

I’ve read only four of Juxtabook’s top 12 though two others are on my tbr list. How many have readers of this blog read?

4 comments:

Frances Garrood said...

Well done, Alis. You're in very good company! Apart from Testament (which I'm saving for my hols) I've read Saturday (brilliant), Arthur and George (pretty good) and The Restraint of Beasts. Have you read any Magnus Mills? My eldest son drip feeds me with his books, but I still can't make up my mind how I feel about them. They have a totally flat humour, and the characters appear from nowhere with no families, few friends, and little means of support, and do very little. Nothing much actually happens,although every so often someone dies (nobody seems to mind this). Toby (son) howls with laughter at the mere mention of Mills' name. My jury is still out. I gave one to Will, and he enjoyed it.

no said...

Oooh! I love Magnus Mills, Frances, particularly 'Three to see the king'.

I've read five of those. I didn't care much for Darkmans. I liked The Blind Assassin and loved Testament. I dug Cloud Atlas and Saturday, but not enough to feel strongly about them. Hm. Funny what moves people.

Good one, Alis! Luminous is the right word for Testament.

Frances Garrood said...

Was 'Three to See the King' the one about tin houses, Aliya? I get them muddled up. 'The Scheme for Full Empoyment' was a brilliant idea (the actual scheme, that is) and the line about the card game wonderful. But I still think he's a very strange writer.

no said...

Yes, the tin houses. I can't explain why I like it so much. The Restraint of Beasts was also great. I didn't like The Scheme for Full Employment so much, although as you say the actual idea behind it was great.