Crime fiction in autumn

I am currently reading Ripley Under Ground, Patricia Highsmith's second novel featuring antihero/villain protagonist Tom Ripley. Highsmith is not a crime fiction author I go back to very often, in fact this is the third novel of her I decided to read, but she is always enjoyable. And I have been wanting to go through her Ripliad for ages. Anyway, happy coincidence, but it is the third crime fiction I read in a row set in autumn. I don't read crime fiction in autumn,not until November anyway. Before, I read horror stories. Like I mentioned in April, it is nice to see the autumnal atmosphere applied to a different genre, and also to get in an autumnal mood months before my favourite season.

Mr Ripley for #Noirvember

 As it is still #Noirvember for a little while, I thought I would make another reading suggestion. It struck me that The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith would make an excellent read for this month. I've read it a decade ago, after I had developed an obsession with its movie adaptation. I must confess, I actuallyprefer the film to the novel. But both are perfect for #Noirvember, especially if you like a good Hitchcockian thriller and if you like a story following the perspective of a villain protagonist. I actually watched the movie two years ago for the occasion. I never get bored with it.

Carol for Christmas

'Tis the season to be watching and tonight I want to suggest a movie for Christmas which I am rediscovering this year: Carol. Based on the novel The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith, which I haven't read. It is a love story between a young lower class and aspiring photographer Therese Belivet (played by Rooney Mara) and a wealthy and older married woman named Carol. The title character is of course played by none other than... Cate Blanchett. My favourite actress got rubbed of an Oscar again as she is absolutely mesmerizing there (well, I guess she always is). Generally, I am not very fond of love stories, but this one is so well built and the homosexuality of both characters in a time when it was a stigma considered a mental illness,sometimes even a crime, just gives true pathos and dimension to it. And both Blanchett and Mara are very convincing. And as the core of the plot is set during Christmastime, I consider it a Christmas movie. Not a shallow feelgood one, but a Christmas movie with heart and soul that haunts you after watching it.

Planning the holiday reads

As I am planning my holidays to York, which are not for soon but still these needs to be prepared, I am also preparing my reading list for then. I do the same for every holiday: I make myself a list of a few holiday books that I try to make as much as possible relevant to the place. You might remember what I did last year for my time in Devon, which I think was a pure stroke of genius. York proved to be slightly trickier. Then I decided that I will read Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith. I will rediscover a crime writer I know fairly little about, discover the source material of a classic movie I have yet to watch and more importantly... I have a book that fits thematically with the long train journey ahead. I think I am absolutely brilliant (I say it with all humility). It will be the topic of another post, but I have good reasons to believe that our time in Yorkshire will be another railway-themed holiday.

And also, as I did last year in Devon, I will also bring a book of scary stories (I don't know which one yet, I have a rather good collection, if I may say so myself). There are two reasons for it. The first one is that Yorkshire, like many great English places, seems to be full of atmosphere and character, the kind you would need to fully appreciate a scary story. The second one is, as fellow blogger Jaz from October Farm reminded me yesterday in a post, there are less than a hundred days until Halloween.That might sound silly, but that means Halloween is slowly but surely getting there. And I start reading horror stories to get myself in the mood as early as August now. First mixed with other reads, then gradually full on. But first, I will enjoy a good old crime thriller. And you, what do you read on holidays?

The cry of the owl

I know, this is also the title of a novel of Patricia Highsmith, but my post is absolutely irrelevant to it (actually I never read it).

It is a gloomy rainy day today and my wife and I are dog sitting. This morning, we were asked if we heard the owl crying last night. Sadly, I did not. In previous visits here, I have heard the owl and even seen a glimpse of it. Their cry can be quite spooky, and so is their appearance in the dark. They are at the origins of many ghost stories. It is not surprising hearing them and seeing their spectral face. I am in an ideal place to find inspiration for a ghost story: Brittany is a land filled with legends and superstitions, it almost looks like autumn, we are close to a wood and there are owls crying at night.

The thrill of the first pages

I finished reading The Talented Mr Ripley today, on the train to work. I might be spouting clichés here, but there we go anyway: I always have difficulties finishing a book, whether it is a fun read or a boring read. The boring ones I cannot bring myself to read them quick enough, the ones I love I finish them with regret. Highsmith's novel was an enjoyable read, even though I still think I preferred the movie.

But that means that on the way back, I could read another book. I decided to read Trois Carrés Rouges sur Fond Noir by Tonino Benacquista. (Sorry for the French links, but I cannot find info on him or his novels in english right now). Benacquista has always been a great read, making quality crime fiction with loveable human characters, a fair deal of violence but just enough of literary quality to make the book a smart read. I only read the first few pages, but it already appears like it is quality stuff.

I will spout another cliché: I love the first few pages of a good book. I don't think anything can beat the thrill of the first few pages, when you know you made the right choice and that the plot will be great. Nothing might have happened yet, but the stage is set. That is partially why I come back to Benacquista, Pelecanos and of course Burgess: they all make great start.

Fighting boredom

Sunday being Sunday, and first day of August being well, August, I could easily get bored today. Enjoying free time is not always such an easy thing. I get too tired and demotivated to spend time doing something tedious (house chores, more house chores), yet I don't want to be inactive. I have been doing okay so far, having a list of things entertaining enough, yet being not too demanding for the lazy person I am at weekends to be considered farniente activities. So I decided to:

-Watch an episode of The Wire. (Still to be done. I am on season five right now, almost sad that there will be no new episode to watch after that.)
-Read the novel I am currently reading. Bookworms have no excuse to be bored, unless they run out of reading material on their bookshelves.
-Have a drink at the café in the corner with my wife. Not our favourite place, but an interesting place nevertheless and it makes a nice change.
-Discussing/planning the next fun move/activity/relatively near future with wife. In a way that is often more entertaining than anything else.

Italy on my mind (again)

It happens from time to time, I get a longing for a specific place. Maybe it is because my brothers are away travelling and I envy them even though I was on holidays recently and will be again relatively soon. Anyway, from time to time I want to see Italy again and now is one of those times. Maybe it because I am reading The Talented Mr Ripley, which is mainly set there. And I have a confession to make: so far I prefer the movie to Patricia Highsmith's novel.

I haven't been for ten years and I feel like I saw too little of the country. And I want to improve my Italian. I know too little and want to become trilingual before I die. Of course, I would not be as useful to my wife in Italy as I am in French speaking countries, but the little I know could help us get by and I can learn more there than here.