Hmm. So, this is where I get to show off my ignorance and the rather random variations in my reading habits, is it? Hmmm.
1. Much as I'm not supposed to show off by just naming the ones I've read, this is clearly Far from the Madding Crowd. Erm. So, Wessex. As for date, ooh 'eck. I've always been useless at history. Erm. 18-something. 1875? I can't even remember if anyone mentions where Sergeant Troy's come back from/is off to, which might have been a clue. Feh. As for genre, it's filed in my mind under "romance".
2. This one I don't know. Science fiction, clearly, and satire to boot. I'd guess American. I feel like I know the style. The content makes it sound a bit like David Wossname... Erm. The fella that did Cloud Atlas. It sounds 1970s. Oh, it's not Philip K DIck, is it? It's definitely Someone Odd.
3. Again, clearly American (who else ever mentions craps?) but one I don't know. Also, pretty clearly 1960s or 70s; "joint", "dough", etc. I have the feeling that this is one I'd be expected to know, though. And with the gambling, erm -- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas? I've never read it, but I seem to remember it reads like this. So, erm, contemporary Las Vegas, 1970something.
4. Meh. The first thing I thought of was "The Time Machine", but no, I don't remember that being that preachy, and besides, there were only really high and low there, weren't there? And it sounds later. It still sounds quite stilted and formal, almost like it's not a novel at all. It maybe even sounds a bit like Marx. Erm. 1920s or 1930s? It sounds like the introduction to something, but it also sounds like the introduction to something I might put back down if I read it in the bookshop. As for genre, no idea.
5. Pleasant. Idyllic, even. It reminds me vaguely of Hemingway's early Nick Adams, although it's not Hemingway (well, I like to think I'd recognise him, anyway.) Erm. First half of the twentieth century somehwhere, maybe a coming-of-age novel. Sounds American but I suppose it could be British. Genre: Adolescent something-or-other. Or maybe just idyllic-childhood-about-to-be-buggered-up-by-war-or-something-equally-horrid.
6. Oooh. Obviously Sherlock Holmes, but I don't recognise it, and surely Watson would be narrating and therefore know who he was. Unless it's the first one, I suppose. Is this when they meet? Oh, fiddle, this one smells of trickery to me, but I'm not sure why. It doesn't sound like Conan Doyle to me. Erm. But, no idea if it's not. So, 1920s, detective, bugger.
7. Noir, detective, 1930s(?) Chandler, I'd say, and Philip Marlowe. I may well have read this, but a wisecracking-detective-meets-femme-fatale scene hardly narrows it down, does it? None of the English actually made me laugh out loud or wince, so perhaps he's not at the top of his game yet, language-wise. Erm. The Big Sleep?
8. Haven't the foggiest clue. Do let me know what it is, though, I think I'd like to read more of it. Comedy of something-or-other. Apart from that, drawing a complete blank.
9. Scarily enough, I've never read On The Road, although I obviously bloody well should have by now. It's influenced enough things that I have liked that I can recognise it just from the style and the "Marylou" :) Excuse me, I think I'll just go add it to my Audible list, it's the only way I'll get around to it. Oh, hang on, I'd better take a stab at a year first. Erm. 1955? And "beatnik stream-of-consciousness" for genre?
10. And again, I'm clueless. I like the hero(?), I typically like beginnings like this (it is a beginning, yes?) I'm reminded of the first chapter of Michael Marshall Smith's Only Forward, where Stark elevates the ignoring of a ringing phone into an art form. And there's a coffee connection there, too. Erm. Contemporary. Japan, by the names. Extending my comparison with Only Forward completely illogically, contemporary action adventure/mystery, with our unwilling hero drawn into a high-stakes game and saving the day through the use of heavy sarcasm. Oh -- year. Erm. 1990, just judging from the style. This feels like the most recent of the excerpts.
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Date: 2008-02-22 10:43 pm (UTC)1. Much as I'm not supposed to show off by just naming the ones I've read, this is clearly Far from the Madding Crowd. Erm. So, Wessex. As for date, ooh 'eck. I've always been useless at history. Erm. 18-something. 1875? I can't even remember if anyone mentions where Sergeant Troy's come back from/is off to, which might have been a clue. Feh. As for genre, it's filed in my mind under "romance".
2. This one I don't know. Science fiction, clearly, and satire to boot. I'd guess American. I feel like I know the style. The content makes it sound a bit like David Wossname... Erm. The fella that did Cloud Atlas. It sounds 1970s. Oh, it's not Philip K DIck, is it? It's definitely Someone Odd.
3. Again, clearly American (who else ever mentions craps?) but one I don't know. Also, pretty clearly 1960s or 70s; "joint", "dough", etc. I have the feeling that this is one I'd be expected to know, though. And with the gambling, erm -- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas? I've never read it, but I seem to remember it reads like this. So, erm, contemporary Las Vegas, 1970something.
4. Meh. The first thing I thought of was "The Time Machine", but no, I don't remember that being that preachy, and besides, there were only really high and low there, weren't there? And it sounds later. It still sounds quite stilted and formal, almost like it's not a novel at all. It maybe even sounds a bit like Marx. Erm. 1920s or 1930s? It sounds like the introduction to something, but it also sounds like the introduction to something I might put back down if I read it in the bookshop. As for genre, no idea.
5. Pleasant. Idyllic, even. It reminds me vaguely of Hemingway's early Nick Adams, although it's not Hemingway (well, I like to think I'd recognise him, anyway.) Erm. First half of the twentieth century somehwhere, maybe a coming-of-age novel. Sounds American but I suppose it could be British. Genre: Adolescent something-or-other. Or maybe just idyllic-childhood-about-to-be-buggered-up-by-war-or-something-equally-horrid.
6. Oooh. Obviously Sherlock Holmes, but I don't recognise it, and surely Watson would be narrating and therefore know who he was. Unless it's the first one, I suppose. Is this when they meet? Oh, fiddle, this one smells of trickery to me, but I'm not sure why. It doesn't sound like Conan Doyle to me. Erm. But, no idea if it's not. So, 1920s, detective, bugger.
7. Noir, detective, 1930s(?) Chandler, I'd say, and Philip Marlowe. I may well have read this, but a wisecracking-detective-meets-femme-fatale scene hardly narrows it down, does it? None of the English actually made me laugh out loud or wince, so perhaps he's not at the top of his game yet, language-wise. Erm. The Big Sleep?
8. Haven't the foggiest clue. Do let me know what it is, though, I think I'd like to read more of it. Comedy of something-or-other. Apart from that, drawing a complete blank.
9. Scarily enough, I've never read On The Road, although I obviously bloody well should have by now. It's influenced enough things that I have liked that I can recognise it just from the style and the "Marylou" :) Excuse me, I think I'll just go add it to my Audible list, it's the only way I'll get around to it. Oh, hang on, I'd better take a stab at a year first. Erm. 1955? And "beatnik stream-of-consciousness" for genre?
10. And again, I'm clueless. I like the hero(?), I typically like beginnings like this (it is a beginning, yes?) I'm reminded of the first chapter of Michael Marshall Smith's Only Forward, where Stark elevates the ignoring of a ringing phone into an art form. And there's a coffee connection there, too. Erm. Contemporary. Japan, by the names. Extending my comparison with Only Forward completely illogically, contemporary action adventure/mystery, with our unwilling hero drawn into a high-stakes game and saving the day through the use of heavy sarcasm. Oh -- year. Erm. 1990, just judging from the style. This feels like the most recent of the excerpts.