tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post3170252073844885967..comments2024-03-18T16:41:34.785+00:00Comments on Vapour Trails: What A Carve Up!Séamus Dugganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00574186409184247059noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-49181740646390236572015-01-02T00:10:18.394+00:002015-01-02T00:10:18.394+00:00I will certainly have to keep my eyes open for Hou...I will certainly have to keep my eyes open for House of Sleep which seems to be getting very strong recommendations both here and elsewhere. Thanks for adding your voice to their numbers Brendan.Séamus Dugganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00574186409184247059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-18120594332815740642015-01-01T23:26:30.681+00:002015-01-01T23:26:30.681+00:00House of sleep is amazing..a novel about sleep not...House of sleep is amazing..a novel about sleep not an enticing prospect, but turns out to be compelling and very moving as is the Rotters club..great humanity in all 3 Books.... BrendanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-25740773126446293032015-01-01T14:41:29.904+00:002015-01-01T14:41:29.904+00:00Hi David, Thanks! Great to hear that Coe's oth...Hi David, Thanks! Great to hear that Coe's other books live up to and perhaps even exceed What a Carve Up! I have The Rotter's Club on my shelves so might try that fairly soon. Séamus Dugganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00574186409184247059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-5658270013723741872014-12-31T14:59:22.399+00:002014-12-31T14:59:22.399+00:00Fantastic post Seamus. Achieved what all good revi...Fantastic post Seamus. Achieved what all good reviews should do , it has made me want to drop what I am reading and reread this instead. I did really like the book , but I loved his next house of sleep and then the rotters club better. I think because they are more straight forward. With carve up I kept thinking I was missing various levelsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-70869278445266532832014-12-30T22:04:28.388+00:002014-12-30T22:04:28.388+00:00Oh I wasn't saying you were wrong about Gormen...Oh I wasn't saying you were wrong about Gormenghast, only that that line seems so deliberately Groanian. Pykkhttp://pykk.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-72412713003215916712014-12-30T08:48:39.734+00:002014-12-30T08:48:39.734+00:00There's the idea for your next post! Thanks fo...There's the idea for your next post! Thanks for suggesting the readalong - it's been fun. JacquiWinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16220597283351925721noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-20740345588462818412014-12-29T19:40:36.665+00:002014-12-29T19:40:36.665+00:00I should, more accurately have said Titus Groan as...I should, more accurately have said Titus Groan as it is the only one of the trilogy I have read thus far.<br /><br />Peacock, as I took it, is just a sideswipe at the vanity in self-publishing.Séamus Dugganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00574186409184247059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-30757269128467638532014-12-29T19:13:49.565+00:002014-12-29T19:13:49.565+00:00Is "Peacock Press" a reference to Thoma...Is "Peacock Press" a reference to Thomas Love Peacock? <br /><br />That "giant black hand, gnarled and deformed: its fingers clawed at the heavens," looks like a direct allusion to the first page, not of Gormenghast, but of Titus Groan. "This tower [...] arose like a mutilated finger from among the fists of knuckled masonry and pointed blasphemously at heaven."Pykkhttp://pykk.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-34295942960864095312014-12-29T11:39:21.776+00:002014-12-29T11:39:21.776+00:00I seem to have missed a complete section I planned...I seem to have missed a complete section I planned where I was to discuss how the plot seems to be arising from Michael's dreams. It seems to suggest that to find inspiration we must look inside us, in Yeats' 'foul rag and bone shop of the heart". The writer can never fully shrug off his creations, but accept that they share much with him.<br />I like the way that chance is highlighted but that some of the most coincidental seeming events are then shown to have been carefully planned.Séamus Dugganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00574186409184247059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-500794647428701667.post-79371181020844023352014-12-29T09:05:50.551+00:002014-12-29T09:05:50.551+00:00I've been looking forward to reading your revi...I've been looking forward to reading your review, Seamus, so I'm sitting here with my cup of coffee before the day gets underway! Marvellous post. I love that quote on the Winshaw Towers - it's such an atmospheric description full of menace and greed, just like the Winshaws themselves. I like how you've highlighted the coincidence theme too. Chance seems to play a significant role in the novel's events, doesn't it?<br /><br />I'm interested in your theory that Coe might be inviting us to consider how we may have played a part in the creation/proliferation of these creatures. I think it's a valid point, especially if we fail to demonstrate our anger or avoid demonstrations when push comes to shove. It's sad to think how many of these political issues remain relevant today...JacquiWinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16220597283351925721noreply@blogger.com