Here it is... the book thread!

[MeltingMan]

I had a guilty conscience because of my books in the basement. The room is not optimal, even if I can ventilate it and store all copies in special boxes. I have now placed 60 books in the living room again - all my favorites.   Interesting to see how the paper has changed. It is partly wavy and foxed here and there, but the handmade endpaper is not! Already remarkable. I now store heavy exhibition catalogs horizontally. At the moment I read a book by Arnold Mandel. 

[Sacha8]

Wow! I'm so glad there's a section about BOOKS, and not necessarily Cure-related ones...
I'm currently reading several books simultaneously, among which Titus Groan by Marvyn Peake (part one onf the Gormenghast trilogy), Possession by A.S. Byatt and a study on Goth culture by Paul Hodkinson.

[MeltingMan]

The Geneva Salon du Livre begins tomorrow:

https://www.salondulivre.ch/

 

[MeltingMan]

I recently came across a book attributed to Simone Weil. Her short, tragic life story would have even led me to believe she'd written a biography of Sâr Péladan. I already have quite a bit of primary and secondary literature on him, but the name Weil doesn't appear anywhere in the appendix. I came across at least two French publishers, and there are several authors named Weil as well. When Christophe Beaufils was finally mentioned, I realized I already own the book! He did indeed write a remarkable biography. I immediately canceled the order. I'm still waiting for confirmation... 

PS: I have identified about five titles from Péladan, which I am still missing and are indeed online available. Used market prices range from 15,- up to 150,- EUR roughly estimated. So from 'waste paper' to 'outrageously expensive'.

[Sacha8]

I've recently started reading a book by Ilan Pappé, Ten Myths about Israel, about the wrong assumptions some (most?) people have about Israel in the West.
Given the recent events going on in Iran, let alone what has been going on in Gaza and Palestine for decades now, and the mild discussion we've had about it here, I thought it might be of interest. You can find more info on the book here:

https://www.versobooks.com/products/370-ten-myths-about-israel?srsltid=AfmBOop_z3fu_oaGLWMImDjIdlc3ZuWQbbehz4H4UXPwWHro1sOfyGcr

[Ulrich]

https://www.buzzmag.co.uk/absence-autobiography-budgie-siouxsie-banshees-book-review/

Observing a period of white-hot musical and cultural change from the drum stool, Budgie's gaze covers an appealing and hidden subject, especially so for fans of the more liminal aspects of 70s and 80s pop culture. Budgie – Peter Edward Clarke according to his birth certificate – primarily played with The Slits before bringing his percussive mastery to dark pop meisters Siouxsie And The Banshees, and post-Banshees group The Creatures, for a two-decade tenure of critical and commercial success.

As well as a rare insight into Clarke's complex and occasionally bloody marriage and divorce with Siouxsie Sioux, a figure who remains elusive and rarely decoded, The Absence shines a light on much more. Poignant and relatable, abusive relationships and addiction play a part. All this amid a gaze on that rarefied world of fame, offset by the mundanity of touring, soaked with the booze and drug-fuelled quarrelling with bandmates and label bosses that comes with it.

This book has everything: emotive, engaging, vulnerable and fun, possessing a rare insight into a grubby yet glamorous musical chapter of leftfield pop stardom.

https://louderthanwar.com/the-absence-by-budgie-book-review/

The nickname Budgie was given to him by bandmates Holly Johnson and Paul Rutherford. As part of the legendary punk-era Liverpool music scene, he played first in the Spitfire Boys ("my first gang") with Paul and then in Big in Japan with Holly.

In spite of the dysfunction in the relationship and the ongoing dysfunction within the various Banshees line-ups, there are lighter moments in the story. Even in a goth band, life in the studio and on the road allows for some fun and frivolity, not to mention globe-trotting glamour. There was, too, plenty of creative growth: another kind of fun.

As a writer, Budgie avoids the clichéd story arc of addiction and redemption: he gets sober halfway through the book, but it doesn't solve his problems. Only after marriage breakdown and therapy does he finally start to regain that "sense of self", and "Peter" re-emerges from the shadow of "Budgie".

[Sacha8]

https://www.buzzmag.co.uk/absence-autobiography-budgie-siouxsie-banshees-book-review/


https://louderthanwar.com/the-absence-by-budgie-book-review/

The nickname Budgie was given to him by bandmates Holly Johnson and Paul Rutherford. As part of the legendary punk-era Liverpool music scene, he played first in the Spitfire Boys ("my first gang") with Paul and then in Big in Japan with Holly.

Wow! I had no idea Budgie used to be a bandmate of future Frankie Goes to Hollywood (which I love btw) frontman and keyboardist/back vocalist/dancer/younameit...