Monthly Archives: April 2011

Looking at Hard Times

Posted on April 25, 2011 by carto

This photo of a bleached skull was taken in May 1936 by Arthur Rothstein and appears in Mary Murphy’s history Hope in Hard Times, New Deal Photographs of Montana, 1936-1942. Today, the Great Depression of the 30s is far in … Continue reading →

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Listen to the Voices

Posted on April 22, 2011 by carto

Yesterday I took a break from reading, and went to listen to a play. Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wood is sub-titled “a play for voices”. Thomas wrote this long play in verse for the BBC in 1954.  It is a … Continue reading →

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Awash in The Waves of Virginia Woolf

Posted on April 21, 2011 by carto

Finally, I finished Virginia Woolf’s difficult novel The Waves. For several weeks I have been reading it at bedtime. The novel usually put me to sleep after reading no more than 20 minutes, but the final 35 pages came alive … Continue reading →

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Lost in a sea of words

Posted on April 18, 2011 by carto

My new book is When the Killing’s Done by T.C. Boyle. I really enjoy reading Boyle, it’s not just his stories (even though they are great) it’s the words; you can get lost in some of his sentences and eventually … Continue reading →

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Bumbling Detective saves Czarist Russia

Posted on April 14, 2011 by carto

A bizarre suicide in a public square teeming with Muscovites enjoying a sunny springtime day is the opening scene in this quirky Russian detective story The Winter Queen by Boris Akunin; the date is the 13 of May 1876.  A … Continue reading →

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A Romantic Telenovela Brings Drug Queen to TV

Posted on April 11, 2011 by carto

The Queen of the South is Spanish writer Arturo Pérez-Reverte’s epic novel of drug running, murder and intrigue. It is one of my favorite Spanish language novels. I read it several years ago, but decided to reread when I heard … Continue reading →

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Blue Dogs in my Dreams

Posted on April 10, 2011 by carto

Eyes of a blue dog is a collection of 14 short stories by the Colombian Nobel Prize winner Garcia Marquez, who is best-known in the US for his novels, One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967) and Love in the Time … Continue reading →

Posted in eBook, Fiction, Spanish, Translation | Tagged | 2 Comments

Rough Guide to Bangkok Underworld

Posted on April 2, 2011 by carto

A Nail Through the Heart is a crime thriller set in the exotic underworld of the government authorized entertainment zones in Bangkok Thailand. In these zones explicit sex shows are legal as is the sale of all types pornographic materials. … Continue reading →

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Bricklayer Mets Out Justice

Posted on April 1, 2011 by carto

In the opening chapter of the crime-terror novel Bricklayer, Steve Vail, a former FBI agent turned brick mason, is making a routine transaction at his branch bank. Suddenly, two armed men enter the bank intent on robbery. But the robbery … Continue reading →

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