Phil Craggs
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Re: Reading List
quote:
Edge44 wrote:
I've just received my reading list for the first year of my Writing MA. Has anybody read any of these novels?
TRUE HISTORY OF THE KELLY GANG - Peter Carey
HOW MANY MILES TO BABYLON - Jennifer Johnston
AUNT JULIA AND THE SCRIPTWRITER - Mario Vargo Llosa
THE DANCER UPSTAIRS - Nicholas Shakespeare
THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE - George V. Higgins
RUM PUNCH - Elmore Leonard
THE INHERITORS - William Golding
DARK ADAPTED EYE - Barbara Vine
PRISONER OF THE CAUCASUS - Leo Tolstoy
Any opinions or comments on any of these will be very welcome... 
Not read any of them. Mind you there was no reading list for the MA I did.
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8/4/2006, 7:42 pm
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Fitzgerald Fortune
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Re: Reading List
quote:
Edge44 wrote:
I've just received my reading list for the first year of my Writing MA. Has anybody read any of these novels?
TRUE HISTORY OF THE KELLY GANG - Peter Carey
The convenor of the MA I undertook in 1999 wrote a great book on Carey, and Carey's work was one of the optional topics for our first essay (as part of the taught aspect of the course).
For info on his book, see here.
quote:
AUNT JULIA AND THE SCRIPTWRITER - Mario Vargo Llosa
THE DANCER UPSTAIRS - Nicholas Shakespeare
THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE - George V. Higgins
RUM PUNCH - Elmore Leonard
THE INHERITORS - William Golding
DARK ADAPTED EYE - Barbara Vine
PRISONER OF THE CAUCASUS - Leo Tolstoy
I've read all of these. THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE is one of my favourite novels, and was made into one of my favourite movies, directed by Peter Yates in 1975 and starring Bib Bob Mitchum and Peter Boyle. It's sadly never had an official home video release, but a guy in the US sent me a copy made directly from a (deteriorated) film print, so if you need a copy of the film, let me know 
Both movie and the novel get full points for accuracy: Higgins worked amongst the kinds of people he wrote about, and his deployment of Boston dialect is reputedly spot on. (You may want to look here: http://www.dvdmaniacs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=21809 ).
DARK ADAPTED EYE made quite an impact on me when I read it a few years ago; it's a rather disturbing book. My mother's a big fan of Barbara Vine, and I was force-fed her work from a fairly early age. There's a pretty good television adaptation from the mid-1990s.
I read the Tolstoy book whilst studying for my first degree, as part of a unit on 19th Century literature; but I can't remember a great deal about it, save that it impressed me less than some of the other Russian literature I read during the same period (e.g. Turgenev's FATHERS AND SONS and Gogol's DEAD SOULS).
All Golding is wonderful, as is most of Leonard's work. However, RUM PUNCH isn't really typical of Leonard's work; rather it epitomises the perception people have of Leonard's work since the release of the film adaptations of GET SHORTY and OUT OF SIGHT. For classic, vintage Leonard, read CAT CHASER (my favourite of his novels by a mile), or VALDEZ IS COMING.
What academic texts are on your list, Edge?
--- 'Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy'.
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8/4/2006, 9:57 pm
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stripycardy
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Re: Reading List
Hey Edge, it is the MA at Sheffield you're doing isn't it?
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8/5/2006, 1:32 am
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Edge44
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Re: Reading List
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Phil Craggs wrote:
Not read any of them. Mind you there was no reading list for the MA I did.
This reading list is for my optional Module 'The Novel' which will run as my main subject to the final MA. - the course is divided into 3 parts, PGCE, PGD, and then the MA. It's made up of three modules, the core, which is called 'What Is Contemporay?' and two options. My options are The Novel, which covers all things prose, and Scriptwriting, which as well as covering Tv, Film and Radio, also covers stage, which is something I've never done before, so I'm looking forward to that.
The core module, 'What Is Contemporary' involves reading a novel every 2 to 4 weeks, after which it is discussed and written about - this is the PGCE part of the course, and I've yet to receive the reading list for it, so I'll have to read even more!
quote:
Fitzgerald Fortune wrote:
What academic texts are on your list, Edge?
Don't know yet, Fitz, I'll post them here when I find out, and thanks for the reply - very helpful, as ever.
quote:
Stripycardy wrote:
Hey Edge, it is the MA at Sheffield you're doing isn't it?
Yes it is. I start on Wednesday 4th October... can't wait!!
Last edited by Edge44, 8/6/2006, 2:09 pm
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8/6/2006, 2:08 pm
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Edge44
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Re: Reading List
quote:
Fitzgerald Fortune wrote:
quote:
Edge44 wrote:
AUNT JULIA AND THE SCRIPTWRITER - Mario Vargo Llosa
THE DANCER UPSTAIRS - Nicholas Shakespeare
THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE - George V. Higgins
RUM PUNCH - Elmore Leonard
THE INHERITORS - William Golding
DARK ADAPTED EYE - Barbara Vine
PRISONER OF THE CAUCASUS - Leo Tolstoy
I've read all of these. THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE is one of my favourite novels, and was made into one of my favourite movies, directed by Peter Yates in 1975 and starring Bib Bob Mitchum and Peter Boyle. It's sadly never had an official home video release, but a guy in the US sent me a copy made directly from a (deteriorated) film print, so if you need a copy of the film, let me know
Both movie and the novel get full points for accuracy: Higgins worked amongst the kinds of people he wrote about, and his deployment of Boston dialect is reputedly spot on. (You may want to look here: http://www.dvdmaniacs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=21809 ).
I agree that The Friends of Eddie Coyle is a marvelous piece of writing, and was my favourite book of the whole reading list.
Last edited by Edge44, 2/8/2007, 5:36 pm
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2/8/2007, 5:33 pm
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Fitzgerald Fortune
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Re: Reading List
quote:
Edge44 wrote:
quote:
Fitzgerald Fortune wrote:
quote:
Edge44 wrote:
AUNT JULIA AND THE SCRIPTWRITER - Mario Vargo Llosa
THE DANCER UPSTAIRS - Nicholas Shakespeare
THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE - George V. Higgins
RUM PUNCH - Elmore Leonard
THE INHERITORS - William Golding
DARK ADAPTED EYE - Barbara Vine
PRISONER OF THE CAUCASUS - Leo Tolstoy
I've read all of these. THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE is one of my favourite novels, and was made into one of my favourite movies, directed by Peter Yates in 1975 and starring Bib Bob Mitchum and Peter Boyle. It's sadly never had an official home video release, but a guy in the US sent me a copy made directly from a (deteriorated) film print, so if you need a copy of the film, let me know
Both movie and the novel get full points for accuracy: Higgins worked amongst the kinds of people he wrote about, and his deployment of Boston dialect is reputedly spot on. (You may want to look here: http://www.dvdmaniacs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=21809 ).
I agree that The Friends of Eddie Coyle is a marvelous piece of writing, and was my favourite book of the whole reading list.
It's a truly great book; Higgins shows great insight into the minds of the types of people about whom he writes.
The movie is well worth checking out: sadly, it's one of the most neglected pictures of the 1970s--Bob Mitchum gives one of his best performances as Coyle, one of life's natural born losers. Due to poor distribution, the film is almost forgotten about nowadays. (I've got a lovely daybill poster from the movie's 1975 release, which I bought for a pittance a couple of years ago.)
--- 'Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy'.
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2/8/2007, 11:33 pm
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algy
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Re: Reading List
Just wanted to thank Edge44 for posting his reading list. I'm halfway through Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter and thoroughly enjoying it.
Thank you Edge44.
Last edited by algy, 4/2/2007, 10:57 pm
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4/1/2007, 10:03 pm
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Edge44
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Re: Reading List
Thank you, you've made me happy.
Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter is simply one of the most beautifully written books I've ever read.
Let me know which of the others you've read or plan to read, and which ones you liked.
As I've already said, my favourite was The Friends of Eddie Coyle, but I also fell in love with The Dancer Upstairs, which was a shock because it's a book I would never ordinarily have chosen to read.
Last edited by Edge44, 4/1/2007, 11:37 pm
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4/1/2007, 11:36 pm
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algy
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Re: Reading List
I haven't really got a plan, I'm just going to dip into the list as and when I get a break from reading the degree reading list. Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter was chosen by the Mrs when she needed a makeweight for an Amazon order. She doesn't know why she chose that one ahead of the others; glad she did though.
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4/3/2007, 12:25 pm
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