literature
Geek literature from the New York Times or the recesses of online. Our favorite stories showcase geeks.
The Red and the Black by Stendhal
Stendhal is probably best known for lending his name to the famed 'Stendhal Syndrome' but, he was also a fantastic writer. Publishing the novel The Red and the Black in Paris during 1830, the original subtitle: Chronique du XIXe siècle , suggests the novel's aim to reflect the sociopolitical climate of Restoration France after the fall of Napoleon. Stendhal based the novel loosely on the 1827 trial of Antoine Berthet, a young seminarian who shot a woman he had an affair with after she dismissed him; this case fascinated the public and highlighted class tensions.
By Annie Kapur3 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Mother-in-Law" by Sally Hepworth
Sally Hepworth is under-read and underrated. There, I said it. I have never seen her mentioned in your silly BookToks and I have never read about her being on anyone's top ten. But seriously though, she is massively under-appreciated because her books are pure drama. They are all drama. If you love your soap operas, if you love your TV shows and your Netflix binges of all things familial then you're going to adore this woman. I have previously reviewed "Darling Girls" and "The Things We Keep", both of which are linked below. But honestly, if you're not reading her then what are you doing?
By Annie Kapur3 months ago in Geeks
The Big Book Review: "The Big Screen" by David Thomson (Pt.1)
Sorry about the lateness, this one went through a LONG editing process... Welcome back to 'The Big Book Review' and now that Thinking, Fast and Slow is over, we are moving on to a favourite of mine that I once read whilst in university some years' ago - David Thomson's The Big Screen. It is a book about the history of the movies and we will be following the 'parts' the book is split into (with some splitting of the first since it is so long). The first section is entitled The Shining Light and the Huddled Masses and goes back and forth over the USA and Europe to analyse how movies were born and why. We will be covering the chapters A Cheap Form of Entertainment all the way to France. That is the first eight chapters.
By Annie Kapur3 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "One Yellow Eye" by Leigh Radford
So at the time of writing this review, the UK is currently boiling so badly that I genuinely started getting sick and queasy whilst outside. I would highly recommend you stay hydrated because in that moment, I definitely was not hydrated. I've also taken to keeping my water bottle hidden from the sun or windows so that it doesn't turn warm. I cannot believe that this is where we have got to. I needed something to distract me and One Yellow Eye was one of those perfect books. I read the whole book in one sitting because genuinely, I couldn't look away even though this is a deep and enthralling story - there's still a sense of morbid curiosity we have about it. The post-apocalyptic visions of London (which is basically just *looks out of window* Birmingham, I guess) and a love story which is conflicting as it is pitiful - I think the one thing we can learn from this book is that the more you think about issues of mortality, the more morally grey everyone actually is in reality.
By Annie Kapur3 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Suffering" by David Sodergren
I recently watched the movie Late Night with the Devil and I have to say that as a horror movie it really isn't all that, but as a movie on its own it is actually pretty good. It reminded me of movies like I Saw the TV Glow and books like Kiersten White's Mister Magic (which I absolutely loved). But I needed the scare factor and so, I had a choice - do I roll the dice on another horror movie/book I have not seen/read or do I return to a trusted author who can scare the pants off me? Well, I went for the latter. David Sodergren is a fantastic author and honestly, there really has not been anything I've read by him that I can say is less than a 4/5. Books like The Haar and Maggie's Grave definitely have an originality when it comes to horror and so, I have high hopes of this one too!
By Annie Kapur3 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Exorcist's House" by Nick Roberts
This is a book I have seen recommended to me absolutely everywhere and we're not even just talking about on Amazon. I'm also talking about on Facebook, I've seen people write about it on Twitter and it also seems to be part of a series. Will I continue reading this series? Probably not. At least not yet, I have other things to read first. I was told how absolutely terrifying this book would be and though it did not live up to the scare factor, it was a fairly interesting read nonetheless. It has quite a classic premise, there's not too many characters and of course, it has atmosphere. I have some questions about the logistics of it, but those can be left for another time.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Does Everything Need A Movie Adaptation?
It seems like every year, every season at this point, there’s a new movie adaptation. Sometimes it’s from a book, other times a game, but the fact of the matter is the stories aren’t really original. After all, it’s not like the writers or directors came up with the idea themselves. There’s plenty of creative liberty taken – see the How to Train Your Dragon movie versus the original books for example – but it still leaves me sighing in the end.
By caitodoesstuff4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Greater Sins" by Gabrielle Griffiths
I know, it's another folk horror novel - this one is a bit dense though in terms of its cast of characters. As I have said countless times, there is something that takes you a little out of the story the more complex it is, especially if it is horror. Horror may be a vast and wonderful genre, but simplicity is a virtue here and sometimes, I found that this book was trying to do too much. However, that doesn't mean it was no good - there are several things about this book which were frankly, brilliant and I am glad I took the time to read it. It very much relies on some classic folk horror tropes, something we may not get to see too much of today as everyone is trying to reinvent the wheel. This book takes things, quite literally, back to the roots of the sub-genre.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Incidents Around the House" by Josh Malerman
I have to say, I'm not a huge Josh Malerman fan. I've read a few works by him and they're good reads but nothing that stands out as memorable. Nothing that I have felt in my bones. I have heard quite a bit about this book called Incidents Around the House and how strange and twisted it is with reviews basically saying that it was a cursed version of the 'monster in the closet' story. I am going to definitely say that this is perhaps his best book so far and if you read it expecting very little to come out of the story, then you're not paying attention. At the end of the book, everything falls into place. You see things you were never meant to see and ultimately, there's a lot in there.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
We Think the World of You by JR Ackerley
Written in 1960 and published the following year, We Think the World of You is an account of the author's own life, written into a light fiction. The story centres on how he came across his Alsation. It is quite emotional and comments on class and ownership. It is the author's only novel even though he had already published plays and essays. The book was also published at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in Britain, it was therefore considered sinful to read and some of the author's friends feared the law would not be on his side. The author though, had no such fear.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Mad Wife" by Meagan Church
I think there are lots of books about female rage already but there are very few books like this one: books that deal with the terrifying realities of female powerlessness. Like The Bell Jar and The Yellow Wallpaper, this book covers what happens when women try to talk about their realities, talk about their health issues and make it known that they are not simply able to function anymore. This book has a warning before it, stating that it will be a difficult read and it is. Though I don't think it warranted the warning, that might have been a bit of marketing - this book was definitely a brilliant read. I devoured it in one sitting.
By Annie Kapur4 months ago in Geeks
