You read that one? =D Here in Sweden, everybody, and I mean EVERYbody, read that book a couple of years ago when it first came out. Me included, and I loved it. The sort-of-sequel came out last year. I actually preferred that one.Cowabungaa said:
When's the last time you read books like these?
- Thread starter Queen Michael
- Start date
Most of the literature I read is not English originally - not because I'm some kind of snob, but just because I enjoy a lot of genres that are better represented in Spanish, Italian, German, and other languages. Julio Cortazar from Argentina, Italo Calvino from Italy, and Kafka are my favorite authors. Also Yukio Mishima from Japan! You all should check them out!
Damn, I'm impressed! I've read all those writers! Well, I'm not done with Calvino's If on a Winter's Night a Traveller yet, though. And I love Cortázar!peruvianskys said:
I don't think it's been translated into any language yet. It's called Analfabeten som kunde räkna, "The analphabet that could count."Cowabungaa said:
To number 1, I remember reading a book by W.E.B Dubois a few years ago, but I couldn't begin to tell you what it was called. Mainly a collection of Martin Luther King Jr.'s letters and notes over the years.
To number 2, well... does the Odyssey count? Frankly, most of the translated literature I have read is centuries old, at least. I find myself more a fan of British and American literature and haven't read much else. No, wait I read Les Miserables a while back, though I really didn't like it. To many damn digressions.
To number 2, well... does the Odyssey count? Frankly, most of the translated literature I have read is centuries old, at least. I find myself more a fan of British and American literature and haven't read much else. No, wait I read Les Miserables a while back, though I really didn't like it. To many damn digressions.
1.Don't know and don't particularly care. I most likely have considering how many books I have read over the years but I tend to read what interests me, follow series from start to finish, and authors I really enjoy will get an entry in my "Keep an eye out for" list. Skin color, Gender and Ethnicity rarely if ever enter my considerations when looking for a book to read.Queen Michael said:
2. Other than the Illiad and Odyssey(from Ancient Greek http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1375.The_Iliad_The_Odyssey), and the Tale of Genji (from 11th century Japan http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7042.The_Tale_of_Genji) I can't say for certain that I have read many books which were translated from another language. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series is in my queue but I haven't got around to it yet.
To answer your question, I think it says that most of us don't know many black writers. As far as novelists about non-race-related issues go, I can't name any. I don't think it says anything about the readers, but it might say something about publishers or the process of getting a book published. I've never tried to get a book published, so I don't know how true that is.
Another thing is, here in the western world, white people certainly got a head start in becoming famous writers. In the US, I doubt that there were any black people getting books published before the emancipation proclamation. Considering how many classic novelists existed before then, that's a huge head start.
Another thing is, here in the western world, white people certainly got a head start in becoming famous writers. In the US, I doubt that there were any black people getting books published before the emancipation proclamation. Considering how many classic novelists existed before then, that's a huge head start.
Song of Solomon and Passing were the last two books I read by black authors.
Fantastic novels, that was a few years ago though.
As for translated foreign language novels, probably The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and its sequel. I made it half-way through the third before I lost interest.
Fantastic novels, that was a few years ago though.
As for translated foreign language novels, probably The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and its sequel. I made it half-way through the third before I lost interest.
No clue as to a black author. I read a lot of stuff off my kindle now so they could all be fucking bright green for all I know.
So as far as I'm concerned that's a non-issue.
As for 'foreign' writers...
I'm Irish so apart from the odd pretentious poet or 'pithy' ex-pat social commenter every English speaking writer is a foreigner to me, and write from a mildly alien perspective.
As for non-English speaking writers....
THe guy who wrote The Achemist and all that shite, The Witcher Series, The Night/Day watch series, Metro Series, I've read War and Peace, and Doctor Zhivago, as well as Crime and Punishment. I've read a lot of Voltaire and Dumas(I would consider him 'French' rather than 'black' in respect to his writing.), Nietche, Freud, Yung, And a little DeCartes.
I've read very little Asian stuff; Mushashi, Oyama, Lu Tse, Sun Tsu. the only modern novel of an Asian bent was Memoirs of a Geisha and I wish to fuck I hadn't bothered.
So as far as I'm concerned that's a non-issue.
As for 'foreign' writers...
I'm Irish so apart from the odd pretentious poet or 'pithy' ex-pat social commenter every English speaking writer is a foreigner to me, and write from a mildly alien perspective.
As for non-English speaking writers....
THe guy who wrote The Achemist and all that shite, The Witcher Series, The Night/Day watch series, Metro Series, I've read War and Peace, and Doctor Zhivago, as well as Crime and Punishment. I've read a lot of Voltaire and Dumas(I would consider him 'French' rather than 'black' in respect to his writing.), Nietche, Freud, Yung, And a little DeCartes.
I've read very little Asian stuff; Mushashi, Oyama, Lu Tse, Sun Tsu. the only modern novel of an Asian bent was Memoirs of a Geisha and I wish to fuck I hadn't bothered.
1: I have no idea. I read about one book a week on average, but aside from Scalzi, Pratchett and Stross i can't currently think of any author i actually remember a picture of. GRRM i suppose though i haven't read anything by him in ages. So i might have read something from a black author but i'm not sure. I could definitly name a lot of authors whose names sound non-WASP that i've read.
2: I'm not from the US or UK and my first language isn't english so i pretty much ace this by default. Although i haven't actually read anything in my native language in months, i've recently read something from Adam Christopher (New Zealand), Hannu Rajaniemi (Finland), Marko Kloos (Germany), Wesley Chu (Taiwan), and that's probably just the last couple moths i remember.
2: I'm not from the US or UK and my first language isn't english so i pretty much ace this by default. Although i haven't actually read anything in my native language in months, i've recently read something from Adam Christopher (New Zealand), Hannu Rajaniemi (Finland), Marko Kloos (Germany), Wesley Chu (Taiwan), and that's probably just the last couple moths i remember.
1. More than six months ago but less than 2 years ago. I read dozens of books a year (just under 1 every 2 weeks, and up to 2 a day when I am on vacation, depending on the length of the book), and I remember noting in passing way that one of the books I was reading was written by a black person. I could not tell you when exactly this was nor the book title. Come to think of it, I can't name any novel I have read that I know was written by a black person, but by sheer statistical probability I have probably read several. None of the authors I follow are black. On the flip side, none of the authors I feel are talentless hacks are black either.
I do read books written by Neil Degrasse Tyson, but he isn't really an author in the way I normally think of it. His writings are a result of his greater work, not exactly an end to themselves. Plus, he doesn't write novels. At least not that I know of. I am working though his texts right now.
2. Only a few months ago I read a series of books translated from Japanese. I also read a book translated from German about a year ago, but it was a scientific text so that probably doesn't count.
I do read books written by Neil Degrasse Tyson, but he isn't really an author in the way I normally think of it. His writings are a result of his greater work, not exactly an end to themselves. Plus, he doesn't write novels. At least not that I know of. I am working though his texts right now.
2. Only a few months ago I read a series of books translated from Japanese. I also read a book translated from German about a year ago, but it was a scientific text so that probably doesn't count.
1# I barely pay attention to authors names let alone what they might look like...
I should change that.
I mean the only author whose books I purposefully read is Terry Pratchett and I guess Yahtzee.
Other than that I just pick up books based on recommendations.
So I guess I can't tell you the last book I read that was written by a black author.
Man, now I feel bad for just ignoring/forgetting about the authors of the books I enjoy.
2# Recently finished Metro 2033. I also recently reread Candide. Currently reading the Divine Comedy.
I should change that.
I mean the only author whose books I purposefully read is Terry Pratchett and I guess Yahtzee.
Other than that I just pick up books based on recommendations.
So I guess I can't tell you the last book I read that was written by a black author.
Man, now I feel bad for just ignoring/forgetting about the authors of the books I enjoy.
2# Recently finished Metro 2033. I also recently reread Candide. Currently reading the Divine Comedy.
1) Throw this into "I don't keep track of the race of my authors" box, because I only know that GRR Martin and JK Rowling are white because I have seen them on television. Otherwise, I don't know what race my authors are.
2) I'm not reading a translated book; I'm reading the Three Kingdoms in the traditional Chinese. So, if I'm translating it in my head, does that count?
2) I'm not reading a translated book; I'm reading the Three Kingdoms in the traditional Chinese. So, if I'm translating it in my head, does that count?
All the authors I can think of who's race I actually know are all white.
Also, I'm not counting Alexandre Dumas because I think he was 3/4 white and I'm tempted to not include Barack Obama either because he is 1/2 white (does anyone else get annoyed that he is constantly referred to as being black when he's just as much as white man as a black man?)
Also, I'm not counting Alexandre Dumas because I think he was 3/4 white and I'm tempted to not include Barack Obama either because he is 1/2 white (does anyone else get annoyed that he is constantly referred to as being black when he's just as much as white man as a black man?)
1) Dumas I guess, since he's african-caribbean. Not that I know a lot of black authors who do speculative fiction or continential philosophy.
2) Grotesque by Kirino Natsuo
2) Grotesque by Kirino Natsuo
Does it have to be a novel by a black author? The most recent book I've read was From a Land Where Other People Live by Audre Lorde, but that's a collection of poetry and not a novel. If it can't be that, I've recently read Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, every book Barack Obama has put out, Love by Toni Morrison, and a ton of stuff by Cornel West.
For the second thing: I read Latin American literature all the time because we have a lot of it in stores here in Texas. It's frequently really cheesy by American standards, but I like it.
For the second thing: I read Latin American literature all the time because we have a lot of it in stores here in Texas. It's frequently really cheesy by American standards, but I like it.
1. No clue, unless maybe Alexandre Dumas, of whom I've read The Count of Monte Cristo a few weeks back. But Dumas was only 1/4 black and identified as white, so maybe that doesn't count.
2. I've recently started reading The Last Wish by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski. I'm only a few chapters in though.
2. I've recently started reading The Last Wish by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski. I'm only a few chapters in though.