THREE 1000 Books to Read BOOKS: I Capture the Castle, 2666, Company

 

These are Goodreads summaries of the books that I read. I am SO behind with posting my books, I am cheating!

 
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Listening time: 12 hours and 18 minutes.

In this coming of age story, Dodie Smith introduces the visionary and eccentric character of seventeen-year-old Cassandra Mortmain. The youngest daughter in a family of impoverished artists, it is her imagination and writing that takes us away from the ramshackle old English castle where they live, and towards an intriguing tale of husband-hunting and light-hearted sibling rivalry.

With the arrival of their new landlords, the impossibly handsome and wealthy American brothers, Neil and Simon Cotton, the Mortmains are roused from their stupor and moved to action. Despite developing feelings for the younger of the two brothers, Cassandra's beautiful sister, Rose, plots to marry the eldest heir in a desperate attempt to escape the poverty which surrounds her.

When Cassandra finds herself falling in love for the very first time with the same man as her sister, she explores her mixed emotions through her writing, making this a story which revels in irony and ambiguity.

A deceptively complex and intelligent story, I Capture the Castle is Smith's first published work and one which will undoubtedly and simultaneously make listeners tut, laugh and reminisce.



Carol's Take: This book was absolutely delightful! The narration is wonderful. Watch the movie too. 

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2666

(2666 #1-5)

by 

Roberto Bolaño

 4.15  ·   Rating details ·  35,367 ratings  ·  3,932 reviews

Hailed as Roberto Bolaos highest achievement, 2666 takes place in a fictional town on the U.S.-Mexico border, where hundreds of young factory workers, in the novel as in life, have disappeared. There, among the urban sprawl, a diverse throng of unforgettable characters find their lives intersecting.

Carol's Take: I didn't really like it. I know it is a classic, but it was one dead person after another with detailed descriptions. Why is this a classic?

Meh!

 

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Company 

by 

Samuel Beckett

 3.85  ·   Rating details ·  503 ratings  ·  46 reviews

Considered the crown of Samuel Beckett's Late Period, Company has become a modern classic, an extraordinary blending of thought and memory, with poignant glimpses of childhood, including even the author's birth, juxtaposed with a voice, one and many, examining the situation of one lying on his back in the dark, 'the fable of one fabling of one with you in the dark.'