What's your favorite book of 2002?

**Com King** · February 11th, 2003, 11:23 AM

I don't know if it has been traduced but "Podium" from the french author Yann Moix (which i hate besides it) is the funniest book I read this year. It's the story of a sosie from Claude FranÁois, it's perfectly absurd, it's not well written, but it's delightful.

I think the best book of the year is The Corrections ( this book has been issued in french under the name "Les corrections" so I hope it's the same in english). It's one of the best book I ever read.

And the last book that hit me this year is "Sniper" by Pavel Hak.

It's an extremely violent novel about the conflict in Yugoslavia, but it's a wonderful book, that you absolutely can't forget.

**Nano** · February 11th, 2003, 08:59 PM

Well, I wanted many times to begin a thread like this one but thought it might look so snobby... Thanks, Com King, for doing me that favor

Of course it's difficult -if not impossible- to be in syncro with the book novelties... too much time and money, I guess. About last year, I didn't read Houllebecq's "Platform" yet, nor Ian McEwan's last big novel... But I did read McEwan's first stories book, "First love, last rites", which is perverse and powerful, and also a great novel of his (I think the original title is Children in time, or similar) in which the lead character loses his daughter in a supermarket. I give that one a 10.

Another great book recently translated to Spanish is The Pillow Book by Japanese female writer Sei Shonagon. From around the X century and absolutely fascinating.

Also read some local politics and history tomes but I won't comment them here

About music, I was surprised by Ross Russell's biography on Charlie Parker, "Bird". Miles Davis said very bad things about Russell in his own autobiography. Now I get Mr. Davis didn't like his work with Mr. Parker to be criticized by Mr. Russell! (Because the thing is, fellas, Mr. Russell is right when he says Davis was still inmature on those recordings, and you can hear it on the records!) Anyway, the book is brilliant and it has a great history-explanation on the Kansas City scene and how be-bop started and developed.

So many books, so little time...

**JussiK** · February 17th, 2003, 03:38 AM

Non-fiction: Willi Kuntz: Typography: Macro+Micro Aesthetics - Fundamentals of Typographic Design. Niggli Press. This is a Swiss publication on visual grammar, vocabulary and syntax.

Fiction: I'm currently still reading and so far liking Danielewski's House Of Leaves, a kind of literary Blair Witch Project.

**NickNack** · February 17th, 2003, 08:32 PM

Dean Koontz. Just pick one... I've read it. I just finished "One Door Away From Heaven". Love this guy. He keeps my horror/fantasy/thriller addiction satiated.

**JussiK** · February 18th, 2003, 01:38 AM

Koonz -Haven't read that one yet but am sure to go and buy a copy! I've been addicted to horror fiction since an impressionable child. Starting wide-eyed and gagging with Stoker's Dracula, moving to Lovecraft under the blankets, and on to Dennis Wheatley and pulp fictions of all kinds. I think my all-time fave is THE DARK by James Herbert. This early 80's book has a typical King-style narrative with London slowly being taken over by a malevolent presence. But where King got a bit too saccharine and Spielbergian/Tom Hanksey during the 80's, James Herbert really took you to a walk on the dark side. Tension and creepy weirdness abounds but Herbert does not flinch on the gore either. Kind old ladies turn out to be homicidal sex maniacs and love interludes turn into cannibal orgies. Herbert's THE FOG is also excellent but beware of his recent output.
Shaun Hutson was as gritty as they came until he went for crime fiction - not necessarily bad as such but I still miss his asylums used for crazed genetic experiments and axe murders. Another Brit Clive Barker was phenomenal during his Books of Blood days but then sagged into cutesy fantasy once he became a resident of Los Angeles - what's with that town?! And look what became of his film director career, he did not manage a good movie since Hellraiser. The latest Barker opus about a ghost house up on Hollywood hills - can't recall the title now! - is pretty frightening, though, with unsettling imagery and plenty of un-PC content. Talking of un-pc, shouldn't Poppy Z Brite should write more? Her short stories are wonderful. - Like many I'm too a sucker for traditional vampire novels where vampires are evil entities, not dashing heroes from outer space or gauntly handsome punk rockers or well-dressed Lestat clones. Hate Anne Rice. There's always a new book by her called The Violins of Blood or Moloch The Sensualist or something, while there's a serious shortage of good titles by real horror authors, or what?

**Nano** · February 21st, 2003, 11:51 PM

I remember having read a Dean R. Koontz book a long time ago, called "The vision" I think. Some horror things I liked a lot at the time I read them:
(I'm re-translating the titles so maybe I do some mistake)

-of course "In the Mountains of Madness" by Lovecraft
-"Let the children" (John Saul)
-"The wolves wake" (Whitley Strieber)
-"Pet sematary", "Salem's Lot", "The shining" (Stephen King)
-"I'm a legend" (Richard Matheson)

Jussi's right about King, I get really bored with "The green mile" and hated how he lost it midway in "Bag of bones"... now he's better doing non-horror stuff, like "Dolores Claiborne".
I read an article on Poppy Z. Brite but didn't catch any of her stuff yet.