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Jewish Museum and books 2010
I guess it's time for an entry.
So I finally was at the Jewish Museum today! :D I wanted to go there since I moved here (and even before that), but the opportunity never quite arose.
Today it did though (a friend had a free ticket and I tagged along), and boy, did I spend a long time there... It was really interesting and in parts really depressing, too. In the beginning of the exhibition they had several items relating to the holocaust and had their stories written beneath them. One was a deportation list to the KZs.
There was this Jewish girl who had to write the list of the people to be deported the following week (I think?). She wrote them till late at night (about four o'clock, every night) and the dread was growing she would have to write down her own name eventually. In the end she borded a deportation train voluntarily, in order to go with her friend.
When reading that I just wanted to cry right then and there.
But of course the museum is also about a lot of other subjects, like everyday Jewish life then and now. My favourite was a recording of interviews with pupils from a Jewish elementary school (kids are so adorable!) and a Batman kippah. :D
I can really recommend this museum if you're ever in Berlin! ♥
The "real" reason for this entry is supposed to be my 2010 book evaluation thing though.
And it's really sad but last year I only read 19 books. And 3 graphic novels. That's some literary fail right there. (This year I wanna make the 50 again, but I won't force myself to read, that never works out enjoyably for me.) Anyway. 19 books. Well, at least it's faster to write and rate them this way, eh?
Just let me get my list and we can get started.
Sooo, books I’ve read in English are written in italics, German books in normal script. (Most of the time you can guess from the title, so why am I even writing this...?)
1.) Frostnacht by Arnaldur Indriðason
I wanted to rate this one, say whether I liked it or not, but I just can't. I mean, I know that it was a crime novel set in Iceland, but I had to read a summary to even know what was in this book. My memory is such utter crap. :( Anyway, I guess I liked it well enough when reading it. I quite liked all Erlendur books, so it's unlikely that this was an exception, but since I can't even remember it, it can't have been something really great either. I guess that should earn it about...
5-ish/10.
2.) Menschensöhne by Arnaldur Indirðason
Another novel about Erlendur. And, yeah, same as with the last one, no memory whatsoever. But at least with this one, reading the recap I think "Oh, THAT one!", so that has to count for something at least. I had me on the edge of my seat (figuratively spoken, I read in bed) and I think I found it kind of fucked up. (Which I like in books.)
7/10.
3.) Der blaue Himmel by Galsan Tschinag
This one I really liked! It's about life in Mongolia and if memory suffices it auto-biographic. It's rather short, so I read it in the U-Bahn. It's really interesting, about nomadic life in Mongolia, a story about the authors childhood. The story of his dog just about broke my heart, but also made me weirdly happy because it was such an amazing dog. (Still, heartbreak occured.)
8/10.
4.) Bare en siste gang by Thorvald Steen [Norwegian]
This was the first book I read that's in Norwegian! So yay me! :P It's about a boy who wants to be a skijumper but then can't 'cause he's too sick for it. It's really short, and I still struggled with it. God, at the beginning of the year my Norwegian was even worse than now. (Though that's a good thing, means I got better, of course.) I wasn't too impressed with the book itself, neither was it shittastic. It was okay.
4,5/10.
5.) Nordermoor by Arnaldur Indriðason
Yes, you guessed it, haven't the faintest idea. Amazon tells me it's about genetics and rape, but for the life of me, I can't remember it. :( So, yeah.
5-ish/10.
6.) Kältezone by Arnaldur Indriðason
I READ A LOT OF THESE BOOKS, OKAY? I guess that's why I just can't tell them apart anymore. It's all one big mess of Icelandic crime goodness. ♥
5-ish/10. (I guess. Maybe more. Like with those other books by Indriðason.)
7.) Heidis Lehr- und Wanderjahre by Johanna Spyri
I started reading it because I love to read all those classical childrens' books, and did I love that one! :D I managed to find an unedited edition (read: more oldfashioned and Swiss than most other editions), and the writing style as well as the story were simply wonderful! So heartwarming. I know it's very Heimat-y, but I still love it. I guess I can now understand why it's such a big deal in Turkey. They simply have a good taste in childrens' books.
10/10.
8.) Heidi kann brauchen, was es gelernt hat by Johanna Spyri
And Heidi again! ♥ Still pretty awesome. In this book is the whole Clara comes to visit Heidi and everything's awesome stuff. Also, I love the title. 'S Heidi is such a Swiss girl. ;) (Although we also say this where I am from. Ich bin 'sFranzi, schön euch kennenzulernen. :P
9/10.
9.) Die Kinogänger von Chongjin by Barbara Dermick
This is such an awesome book! It's well, between fiction and documentation. Or maybe that gives the wrong impression? As a fact all the events in the book are true, but they read like a novel. It's the story of various people's life in North Korea and how they eventually flee the country. It is shocking and gripping and really interesting. And somehow very, very desperate. I liked it.
8/10.
10.) Feindesland by Oliver Uschmann
I actually liked his other "Hartmut und ich" books, but this one? Not so much. It was so. I don't even know, it just didn't feel right. It was weird (which okay, I can get behind), the end way unnecessarily depressing and the YouTube cat saving plot device was simply RIDICULOUS. >(
2/10.
11.) Nordkorea-Handbuch by Arno Maierbrugger
This is basically a book about things you have to know when you want to travel to North Korea. I had this phase earlier this year where I just couldn't stop reading about North Korea (and I still find it fascinating!). It's just so. Woah. Depressing, weird, like from an other planet! If I had enough money, I'd like to travel there. I think.
7/10.
12.) The Magicians of Caprona by Diana Wynne Jones
Finally something I read in English! Yesss~! :D God, I just love her books and her writing! I think she's one of the best fantasy authors out there, of not the best! The book was good. :) The thing though was (and this makes me sound like an IDIOT. Sorry about that.) that it's set in Italy and while I certainly love Italy, I was expecting British Britshness. It took me half the book to get over the fact that it wasn't set in Britain. So it's my own fault for not enjoying it as much as I could've Also the main character wasn't my favourite. This sounds really criticising, but it's still a pretty good book.
7/10.
13.) Witch Week by Diana Wynne Jones
That's what I'm talking about when I say British Britishness! xD With the boarding school and the whackiness. It's about a world like our own where magic is common but forbidden. There are burnings of witches and serious prosecution. The themes are rather dark, but the light writing style, balances this out without making light of the themes. I greatly enjoyed that one. :D
9,5/10.
14.) Pyongyang by Guy Delisle
This is actually a graphic novel, and I wasn't sure whether I should list them, but in the end I just decided, that, yes, I will list it, this is my book list and I can list whatever I want! >)
Guy Delisle works as an animator for a French (I think?) animation company, and because in North Korea it's really cheap to get animation done, he goes there for his job to supervise the work. Nothing much happens, but it's such a fascinating chronicle of his stay. A very good read.
10/10.
15.) My North Korean Childhood by Hyok Kang
;___; This stuff is just sad. On so many levels. Hyok Kang tells about his childhood in North Korea (which isn't a surprise with the title) and how he and his family eventually flee the country.
7/10.
16.) Luck in the Shadows by Lynn Fleweling
God, it took me so long to read that book. To tell the truth I didn't really like it all that much. I guess it was... okay. The writing style was okay, the story was okay, the characters where okay. It's just a big pile of okay. I had it recced to me and it also seems to have many fans, but somehow, I don't know, it just didn't do anything for me. I feel more and more right when I say I prefer YA or childrens' fantasy to adult one. There are lots of made up words and it reminded me of this xkcd strip. xD It wasn't too aweful though. It was okay.
3,5/10.
17.) Aufzeichnungen aus Birma by Guy Delisle
The English title of this one is "Burma Chronicles" if anyone wants to read. ;)
Another graphic novel. I bought that one in German since unlike the other books it wasn't much cheaper in English. I kind of regret it now since the German translation is so awkward! I prefer the English ones, for the other two books I have by him, by miles! It's till a good book though. This time he isn't in Birma because of his job, but because of his wife's who works for Médecins sans frontières.
8/10.
18.) Shenzhen – A Travelogue from China by Guy Delisle
In this one he is there for his job, animation again. Like the others it's a good book, but he's so grumpy. I guess he really didn't like Shenzhen. (It could also tip you off that he tells the reader exactly that numerous times.) Interesting anecdotes.
7,5/10.
19.) Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen
He is my very favourite playwright! :D Hedda seems kind of mean, but I could sympathise with her in a way. I didn't find the ending as sad as I should. Maybe. I don't know. It's just, it's a good book.
8/10.
20.) Entropi by Hanne Ørstavik [read in Norwegian]
This book is, well, very postmodern. VERY. Its pages aren't numbered and only every other page even has script. The chapters aren't numbered either, if you can even call them chapter as none is longer than a page, most only half a page. It is VERY weird and VERY fucked up.
Thing is, if I had rated it right after my first read-through, I would have given it, like, a 2. For inventive style. Then I read it again, and began liking it more. And I read it once more and it kind of grew on me. Then we discussed it for our presentation (we had to make one on the book, that's why I read it ine the first place) and BAM OMG I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH! It offers so many ways in which you can interpret the story, countless ones. And since it's oh so postmodern, every single theory is right in a sense. This is a seriously AWESOME book. An awesome book of awesomeness.
The story? Really hard to tell. It's about a woman, aptly only referred to as "hun" (she, duh.). (Or is it about more women than one? WHO KNOWS!) She, well, I guess she has problems. She describes her life (or is she even alive?). She sees insects hatching from her skin. She finds a severed head in her washing machine and bodies in her closet. Maybe she is a nurse, maybe she is in a psychatric ward, maybe she is dead.
God, I love this book. ♥
10/10.
21.) Die Lachsfischerin by Eeva-Kaarina Aronen
This book i kind of trippy. It's about Maria Renfors' trip to White Karelia. It's about fly fishing and customs in Karelia and about travelling in the 19th century. The way language is used in here is quite wonderful, but the story is kind of confusing and it gets seriously scary at the end.
7/10.
22.) The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud
This is what I mean when I talk about amazing fantasy books. Seriously, it's so gooood. It's part one of the Bartimaeus Trilogy (which also has a sequel, so four books in total) and it's witty, clever and exciting. There's suspense and intrigues and emotions and GAH, I LOVE IT SO MUCH. So much not even caps can express all the love I have for it. I already read the other two books of the trilogy this year. It's just one of those books I started and could hardly put down.
It's about a world quite like ours, only that there are magicians. It's set in London where the magicians rule and normal people don't have a very good time. Nathaniel (who has an asshole for a mentor!) summons a quite powerful, snarky djinn and then it just continues being awesome.
I don't know whether that is because it is still so fresh in my memory, but I think this was my favourite book in 2010. ♥
11/10. :P
So, that's it. God, so few books, I still feel awful. xD
Has anyone of you read any of those and wants to discuss? I'm all for it. ♥
Also if you want to rec me something that'd make me a very happy panda. :D
ETA: Late happy new year, everyone! :D And thank you again for the Christmas cards,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ayawinner, gothikmaus and angrylogic, they brightened the dark days so much. ♥
So I finally was at the Jewish Museum today! :D I wanted to go there since I moved here (and even before that), but the opportunity never quite arose.
Today it did though (a friend had a free ticket and I tagged along), and boy, did I spend a long time there... It was really interesting and in parts really depressing, too. In the beginning of the exhibition they had several items relating to the holocaust and had their stories written beneath them. One was a deportation list to the KZs.
There was this Jewish girl who had to write the list of the people to be deported the following week (I think?). She wrote them till late at night (about four o'clock, every night) and the dread was growing she would have to write down her own name eventually. In the end she borded a deportation train voluntarily, in order to go with her friend.
When reading that I just wanted to cry right then and there.
But of course the museum is also about a lot of other subjects, like everyday Jewish life then and now. My favourite was a recording of interviews with pupils from a Jewish elementary school (kids are so adorable!) and a Batman kippah. :D
I can really recommend this museum if you're ever in Berlin! ♥
The "real" reason for this entry is supposed to be my 2010 book evaluation thing though.
And it's really sad but last year I only read 19 books. And 3 graphic novels. That's some literary fail right there. (This year I wanna make the 50 again, but I won't force myself to read, that never works out enjoyably for me.) Anyway. 19 books. Well, at least it's faster to write and rate them this way, eh?
Just let me get my list and we can get started.
Sooo, books I’ve read in English are written in italics, German books in normal script. (Most of the time you can guess from the title, so why am I even writing this...?)
1.) Frostnacht by Arnaldur Indriðason
I wanted to rate this one, say whether I liked it or not, but I just can't. I mean, I know that it was a crime novel set in Iceland, but I had to read a summary to even know what was in this book. My memory is such utter crap. :( Anyway, I guess I liked it well enough when reading it. I quite liked all Erlendur books, so it's unlikely that this was an exception, but since I can't even remember it, it can't have been something really great either. I guess that should earn it about...
5-ish/10.
2.) Menschensöhne by Arnaldur Indirðason
Another novel about Erlendur. And, yeah, same as with the last one, no memory whatsoever. But at least with this one, reading the recap I think "Oh, THAT one!", so that has to count for something at least. I had me on the edge of my seat (figuratively spoken, I read in bed) and I think I found it kind of fucked up. (Which I like in books.)
7/10.
3.) Der blaue Himmel by Galsan Tschinag
This one I really liked! It's about life in Mongolia and if memory suffices it auto-biographic. It's rather short, so I read it in the U-Bahn. It's really interesting, about nomadic life in Mongolia, a story about the authors childhood. The story of his dog just about broke my heart, but also made me weirdly happy because it was such an amazing dog. (Still, heartbreak occured.)
8/10.
4.) Bare en siste gang by Thorvald Steen [Norwegian]
This was the first book I read that's in Norwegian! So yay me! :P It's about a boy who wants to be a skijumper but then can't 'cause he's too sick for it. It's really short, and I still struggled with it. God, at the beginning of the year my Norwegian was even worse than now. (Though that's a good thing, means I got better, of course.) I wasn't too impressed with the book itself, neither was it shittastic. It was okay.
4,5/10.
5.) Nordermoor by Arnaldur Indriðason
Yes, you guessed it, haven't the faintest idea. Amazon tells me it's about genetics and rape, but for the life of me, I can't remember it. :( So, yeah.
5-ish/10.
6.) Kältezone by Arnaldur Indriðason
I READ A LOT OF THESE BOOKS, OKAY? I guess that's why I just can't tell them apart anymore. It's all one big mess of Icelandic crime goodness. ♥
5-ish/10. (I guess. Maybe more. Like with those other books by Indriðason.)
7.) Heidis Lehr- und Wanderjahre by Johanna Spyri
I started reading it because I love to read all those classical childrens' books, and did I love that one! :D I managed to find an unedited edition (read: more oldfashioned and Swiss than most other editions), and the writing style as well as the story were simply wonderful! So heartwarming. I know it's very Heimat-y, but I still love it. I guess I can now understand why it's such a big deal in Turkey. They simply have a good taste in childrens' books.
10/10.
8.) Heidi kann brauchen, was es gelernt hat by Johanna Spyri
And Heidi again! ♥ Still pretty awesome. In this book is the whole Clara comes to visit Heidi and everything's awesome stuff. Also, I love the title. 'S Heidi is such a Swiss girl. ;) (Although we also say this where I am from. Ich bin 'sFranzi, schön euch kennenzulernen. :P
9/10.
9.) Die Kinogänger von Chongjin by Barbara Dermick
This is such an awesome book! It's well, between fiction and documentation. Or maybe that gives the wrong impression? As a fact all the events in the book are true, but they read like a novel. It's the story of various people's life in North Korea and how they eventually flee the country. It is shocking and gripping and really interesting. And somehow very, very desperate. I liked it.
8/10.
10.) Feindesland by Oliver Uschmann
I actually liked his other "Hartmut und ich" books, but this one? Not so much. It was so. I don't even know, it just didn't feel right. It was weird (which okay, I can get behind), the end way unnecessarily depressing and the YouTube cat saving plot device was simply RIDICULOUS. >(
2/10.
11.) Nordkorea-Handbuch by Arno Maierbrugger
This is basically a book about things you have to know when you want to travel to North Korea. I had this phase earlier this year where I just couldn't stop reading about North Korea (and I still find it fascinating!). It's just so. Woah. Depressing, weird, like from an other planet! If I had enough money, I'd like to travel there. I think.
7/10.
12.) The Magicians of Caprona by Diana Wynne Jones
Finally something I read in English! Yesss~! :D God, I just love her books and her writing! I think she's one of the best fantasy authors out there, of not the best! The book was good. :) The thing though was (and this makes me sound like an IDIOT. Sorry about that.) that it's set in Italy and while I certainly love Italy, I was expecting British Britshness. It took me half the book to get over the fact that it wasn't set in Britain. So it's my own fault for not enjoying it as much as I could've Also the main character wasn't my favourite. This sounds really criticising, but it's still a pretty good book.
7/10.
13.) Witch Week by Diana Wynne Jones
That's what I'm talking about when I say British Britishness! xD With the boarding school and the whackiness. It's about a world like our own where magic is common but forbidden. There are burnings of witches and serious prosecution. The themes are rather dark, but the light writing style, balances this out without making light of the themes. I greatly enjoyed that one. :D
9,5/10.
14.) Pyongyang by Guy Delisle
This is actually a graphic novel, and I wasn't sure whether I should list them, but in the end I just decided, that, yes, I will list it, this is my book list and I can list whatever I want! >)
Guy Delisle works as an animator for a French (I think?) animation company, and because in North Korea it's really cheap to get animation done, he goes there for his job to supervise the work. Nothing much happens, but it's such a fascinating chronicle of his stay. A very good read.
10/10.
15.) My North Korean Childhood by Hyok Kang
;___; This stuff is just sad. On so many levels. Hyok Kang tells about his childhood in North Korea (which isn't a surprise with the title) and how he and his family eventually flee the country.
7/10.
16.) Luck in the Shadows by Lynn Fleweling
God, it took me so long to read that book. To tell the truth I didn't really like it all that much. I guess it was... okay. The writing style was okay, the story was okay, the characters where okay. It's just a big pile of okay. I had it recced to me and it also seems to have many fans, but somehow, I don't know, it just didn't do anything for me. I feel more and more right when I say I prefer YA or childrens' fantasy to adult one. There are lots of made up words and it reminded me of this xkcd strip. xD It wasn't too aweful though. It was okay.
3,5/10.
17.) Aufzeichnungen aus Birma by Guy Delisle
The English title of this one is "Burma Chronicles" if anyone wants to read. ;)
Another graphic novel. I bought that one in German since unlike the other books it wasn't much cheaper in English. I kind of regret it now since the German translation is so awkward! I prefer the English ones, for the other two books I have by him, by miles! It's till a good book though. This time he isn't in Birma because of his job, but because of his wife's who works for Médecins sans frontières.
8/10.
18.) Shenzhen – A Travelogue from China by Guy Delisle
In this one he is there for his job, animation again. Like the others it's a good book, but he's so grumpy. I guess he really didn't like Shenzhen. (It could also tip you off that he tells the reader exactly that numerous times.) Interesting anecdotes.
7,5/10.
19.) Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen
He is my very favourite playwright! :D Hedda seems kind of mean, but I could sympathise with her in a way. I didn't find the ending as sad as I should. Maybe. I don't know. It's just, it's a good book.
8/10.
20.) Entropi by Hanne Ørstavik [read in Norwegian]
This book is, well, very postmodern. VERY. Its pages aren't numbered and only every other page even has script. The chapters aren't numbered either, if you can even call them chapter as none is longer than a page, most only half a page. It is VERY weird and VERY fucked up.
Thing is, if I had rated it right after my first read-through, I would have given it, like, a 2. For inventive style. Then I read it again, and began liking it more. And I read it once more and it kind of grew on me. Then we discussed it for our presentation (we had to make one on the book, that's why I read it ine the first place) and BAM OMG I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH! It offers so many ways in which you can interpret the story, countless ones. And since it's oh so postmodern, every single theory is right in a sense. This is a seriously AWESOME book. An awesome book of awesomeness.
The story? Really hard to tell. It's about a woman, aptly only referred to as "hun" (she, duh.). (Or is it about more women than one? WHO KNOWS!) She, well, I guess she has problems. She describes her life (or is she even alive?). She sees insects hatching from her skin. She finds a severed head in her washing machine and bodies in her closet. Maybe she is a nurse, maybe she is in a psychatric ward, maybe she is dead.
God, I love this book. ♥
10/10.
21.) Die Lachsfischerin by Eeva-Kaarina Aronen
This book i kind of trippy. It's about Maria Renfors' trip to White Karelia. It's about fly fishing and customs in Karelia and about travelling in the 19th century. The way language is used in here is quite wonderful, but the story is kind of confusing and it gets seriously scary at the end.
7/10.
22.) The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud
This is what I mean when I talk about amazing fantasy books. Seriously, it's so gooood. It's part one of the Bartimaeus Trilogy (which also has a sequel, so four books in total) and it's witty, clever and exciting. There's suspense and intrigues and emotions and GAH, I LOVE IT SO MUCH. So much not even caps can express all the love I have for it. I already read the other two books of the trilogy this year. It's just one of those books I started and could hardly put down.
It's about a world quite like ours, only that there are magicians. It's set in London where the magicians rule and normal people don't have a very good time. Nathaniel (who has an asshole for a mentor!) summons a quite powerful, snarky djinn and then it just continues being awesome.
I don't know whether that is because it is still so fresh in my memory, but I think this was my favourite book in 2010. ♥
11/10. :P
So, that's it. God, so few books, I still feel awful. xD
Has anyone of you read any of those and wants to discuss? I'm all for it. ♥
Also if you want to rec me something that'd make me a very happy panda. :D
ETA: Late happy new year, everyone! :D And thank you again for the Christmas cards,
ayawinner, gothikmaus and angrylogic, they brightened the dark days so much. ♥
no subject
Ich mochte bis Feindesland eigentlich alle, mal mehr, mal weniger. :) Ganz davon ab, dass ich es von Anfang an doof fand, einen Hui-Roman in Berlin spielen zu lassen. Dann doch lieber in der süddeutschen Pampa (oder wo hat Wandelgermanen gespielt?)