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A James Ellroy thread...
James Ellroy is a great American crime novelist.
I've read pretty much everything he has written. His early novels like Brown's Requiem and Killer on the Road are tight, standard LA crime novels.
He really broke through with The Black Dahlia, a crime novel set during the pre-WWII struggles in LA - the Zoot Suit Riot opens the book. The conceptual basis for his later work is inherent here - EVERYONE is corrupt and corruptible. Mainly cops. Even the innocent have something to hide and there are no innocents here. (It's a realistic view of the world.)
The Big Nowhere is the second novel in the loose LA Quartet series and a bleaker vision.
LA Confidential, his most well-known book and basis for the Academy Award winning film, continues that grand vision with a few of the same characters and deeper and darker conspiracies. Brilliant writing - terse and hard. Ellroy doesn't pull punches. His characters live in the writing.
My favorite is White Jazz. I think it's his best writing. There is a chapter in the book where a (evil bad) detective walks into a crime scene and analyzes everything he sees. Ellroy just tells - and it might be the best example of stream-of-consciousness writing I can think of.
After that, Ellroy dives deep into conspiracy territory with the American Tabloid series - the JFK, RFK and MLK assassinations. Good writing, but I tired after the rehashing of well-known theories and lost patience - but I also lost patience for another reason.
James Ellroy is a very bad person. Racism oozes out of every page from The Black Dahlia onward. He calls himself "The White Knight of the Far Right".
In his autobiography, My Dark Places, Ellroy shows some of where that darkness comes from. He believes that his mother, a woman who liked to party. was taken by a serial killer (see The Black Dahlia.) I think his reward for information regarding her murder still stands. He was a peeper, a stalker and a break-in artist in his youth. He joined the Nazi Party.
"Good evening peepers, prowlers, pederasts, panty-sniffers, punks and pimps. I'm James Ellroy, the demon dog with the hog-log, the foul owl with the death growl, the white knight of the far right, and the slick trick with the donkey dick. I'm the author of 16 books, masterpieces all; they precede all my future masterpieces. These books will leave you reamed, steamed and drycleaned, tie-dyed, swept to the side, true-blued, tattooed and bah fongooed. These are books for the whole fuckin' family, if the name of your family is Manson."
So, another good writer with feats of clay. I deal with this ambivalence in my own way, you do you.
His biblio and bio graphy here.
James Ellroy - Wikipedia
https://redd.it/1i8as3a
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A Note from the /r/Books mod team about X/Twitter
A reminder, since this topic has garnered a lot of attention recently, Twitter/x links are and have been banned on this subreddit. Links to other social media, instagram, tiktok, tumblr, blusky, etc are also banned.
Purely political posts have not been allowed on our subreddit for several years now. We are fully aware that art can be political, however, discussion of a book with political themes must draw on the contents of the book. Discussions of book-related actions with a political motive, e.g. book banning, need to stay relevant to the actual incident in question. In cases where a high proportion of new comments appear to be politically motivated, the mods reserve the right to lock and/or remove the thread. We are a book forum not a political platform.
If you have questions or need further clarification please message us in modmail.
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The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
My 6th book read for the year.
I don't know the best way to start this discussion because I'm late to the party but wow...
Michaelides produced a narrative at times addictive and disturbing. It was a page turner for sure and having the book spliced up in past/present/diary segments made for a great reveal (saw it coming half way through the book I just wasn't piecing together how).
Conclusion wise I feel like most everyone gets their due course save for Alicia, I assume that plays into how it's a modern Greek tragedy. Poor girl, her two mental deaths will haunt me for a while. Max potentially having issues with Tanya due to his unspoken feelings for Alicia, Theo getting caught in the end by the diary being found.
What a statement to have Theo be the spiritual murderer of Gabriel without being the one to pull the trigger.
What were some of your favorite parts?
What, if anything, made you piece it all together before the reveal?
Would you recommend any more of Michaelides work?
Let's discuss!
https://redd.it/1i873hj
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Books about Protest: January 2025
Welcome readers,
Monday was Martin Luther King Jr Day and also inauguration day in the USA and, to celebrate, we're discussing books about protest. Please use this thread to discuss your favorite books about protesting!
If you'd like to read our previous weekly discussions of fiction and nonfiction please visit the suggested reading section of our wiki.
Thank you and enjoy!
https://redd.it/1i82ttr
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Katrine Engberg’s Korner and Werner books (summaries sought)
Hi All- I’ve read the first three of these books available in English. I’d like to read the Sanctuary, but I’ve forgotten a ton about the first three books. I was wondering if anyone would be kind enough to summarize the first three books for me? I’m particularly interested in the returning characters- the detectives, but also that neighbor from the first book. Busy mom, so it would really set me back if I had to reread the first three. Thank you so much for any help :)
https://redd.it/1i7yfnl
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Falling out of reading? 1+ month long reading slump and still going.
I’m not sure if posts like this are allowed here, but my reading slump has really taken a toll on me.
Since mid-December, I haven’t been able to finish a single book. I’ve tried reading across different genres—some books even started off interesting—but I eventually lose interest and end up DNF-ing them.
The more time passes, the more I start to hate these books, even the ones I initially enjoyed. At first, I thought I was just picking bad books, but after trying so many, I’ve realized the problem might be me.
Reading is so important to me and my mental health, so this feels awful. I’m scared that I’ll never enjoy books again, and I can’t let that happen.
Unfortunately, no one in my life is serious about reading, so I don’t have anyone to rant to.
I just want to know: does this happen to you too? How do you get back on track? At this point, no book feels interesting anymore, and I get frustrated over the smallest details not meeting my expectations. Maybe my depression is creeping back, but not reading is definitely making me feel worse and less happy.
https://redd.it/1i7yi5x
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What do you do when you feel a reading slump coming on?
Especially for those who have are looking to complete large reading goals, like 52 books in a year.
This is my first year trying to do 52 and I'm pretty ahead of my goal (5 complete so far, yay!). I just DNFd The Girl on The Train by Paula Hawkins at 60% because I couldn't slog through it and I'm starting to feel a little slump coming on. I'm also working through The Shards by Bret Easton Ellis; it's very good and more my style/pace but it's very long.
Any suggestions on what to do to stave off a slump? What've you done when you've felt like this, especially after DNFing a book?
https://redd.it/1i7lq03
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Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros: Fans rush for hotly anticipated 'romantasy' sequel
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0px6xwr30o
https://redd.it/1i7hcpv
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Reading different chapters of books
Hello everyone, I have learning difficulties and I want to be a screenwriter, I have read a chapter of Syd Field's screenwriting book and while I can comprehend most books, my memory retention is quite bad and my brain can wander and I have to stop reading as I can get overestimulated.
Do you all think that taking a break from that book and reading from other screenwriting books can help with my retention, as I'm reading from other sources of knowledge? Or is this just a silly thought on my end.
https://redd.it/1i788o9
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Your Favourite Book of Your Reading Collection
Write down your favourite genre and your favourite books you have read! Let's exchange books together ❤️ I will start first: I love to read realistic fiction and novels. My favourite is See you in Cosmos. Why I like it is because>!the boy-- Alex is someone who's goals are simple yet complicated and he determined to do it on his own. !<I found it at my school library and I love it:) It is similar to Wonder. Now share yours!
https://redd.it/1i76615
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For those in college how has it effected your reading for fun?
I'm a second semester freshman and I've always been a bit reader my whole life. I always had a book on me and could get absorbed in nearly every story I picked up but while I'm at college I feel like I just don't have the mental energy to read anymore.
I do have a decent amount of reading for classes but it's maybe an a hour a day Max so not an excessive amount somehow though it's completely killed any interest I had in reading for pleasure which is annoying! I have so many books I want to read and I'm still completely interested in the stories but when I open the book to read or try listening to an audiobook I lose interest in just a couple minutes.
I have ADHD but I've never found that to have a significant impact on my reading other than making me read more when it's about something I'm hyperfixated on so I don't think it's related to that. It just feels like my brain is getting zero enjoyment out of things I used to love but not in a depression way and not quite burnout either I don't really know how to explain it.
https://redd.it/1i72ffe
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Jules Feiffer, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Cartoonist and The Phantom Tollbooth Illustrator, Dies at 95
https://people.com/jules-feiffer-dead-phantom-tollbooth-illustrator-dies-at-95-8778223
https://redd.it/1i6zz6b
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Brightly Shining by Ingvild H. Rishøi
I finished reading this last month, and it was not what I was expecting! It was newly out in America last year, and it's being marketed as "A Norwegian Christmas tale of sisterhood, financial hardship, and far-off dreams." It was >!much darker!< than I was expecting, and I'll be honest- I was expecting>! it to end on more of a hopeful note.!<This may be down to a cultural assumption. I'm American, and I think we expect that Christmas stories will follow a certain formula that definitely includes >!an unambiguously happy ending!<.
Has anyone read this one? What did you think of the ending? My best guess was that >!Ronja was daydreaming that they were off in the snowy forest!<. Is there anything obvious that I missed?
https://redd.it/1i6tbz9
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what books do you think are worth reading in their native language?
i’m well aware that every translation is forced to take its own liberties and departures from the original, as is the nature of language and culture, but i remember hearing that dante’s inferno should be read in italian to get the fullest experience, and i’m curious what other books there are out there that have the same status? even just in personal preference.
(this question mostly stems from my want to read the count of monte cristo and one hundred years of solitude in their original languages, since i speak french and spanish (not fluently, but with relative ease), though i wasn’t sure how big a difference it would make)
https://redd.it/1i6ot17
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My (Incomplete) List of Books Which Are Always With Me
As I step into my twilight zone, I find myself thinking a lot about those books I read between the ages of, say, 11–17. These books imprinted themselves on me indelibly, leaving a deep mark on my soul which is incomparable to anything I ever learned at school during those years. I have memories of reading these books, talking about them, and referring back to them, again and again. And again.
These books are always with me, hovering right on the edges of my brain. They’re not the only books I read in those years, but they’re the ones that stand out sharply. The books which made me understand why things are the way they are, which impact the way I behave, treat others, my worldview, my values.
It’s a completely random half-list. In no particular order:
1- The Hobbit, J. R. R. Tolkien.
2- Brideshead Revisted, Evelyn Waugh.
3. God Knows, Joseph Heller.
4. The Women’s Room, Marilyn French.
5. The Wind’s Eye, Robert Westall.
6. The Prince-in-Waiting Trilogy, John Christopher.
7. The Narnia series, C. S. Lewis.
8. The Five Children and It, E. Nesbit.
9. Desirée, Ann-Marie Selinko.
10. The Anti-Death League, Kingsley Amis.
Do you have a list like this? Do you relate to any of these books?
https://redd.it/1i6gtyj
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What does giving a 5 star review mean to you?
I'll start by saying that I don't think there's specifically a wrong answer to this question. Opinions are opinions after all! But I've been thinking about this lately, and it makes me wonder if places like Goodreads should have sub-categorical ratings instead of just overall 1-5 stars, with any nuance being required elaboration within the comments.
For me, there are three types of books that I'd be willing to review 5 stars.
1. A genuine literary masterpiece. In every sense of the word, from technical writing and basic grammar all the way through engaging plot development and continuity, obviously a book that truly hits every single mark is deserving of a 5 star review. An example of this for me personally would be Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse.
2. This one is almost always nonfiction-geared. Something that presents new, profound, helpful, or otherwise important information in an accurate and digestible way for the general public (or a targeted industry-specific public). How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan hits this button for me.
3. For lack of a better term, vibes. This is the kind of book that can be technically lacking in some way (or several ways), but the execution of the book overall keeps me so locked-in that I can completely forget about the parts that may be lacking from an academic-level standpoint. This is obviously the most subjective of my 3 criteria here, and if I'm ever assigning a book 5 stars for this reason, I'll be sure to address how/why in my review. A perfect example of this for me is Rabbits by Terry Miles. Technically speaking, it's pretty objectively bad. There are plot holes/continuity issues galore, the prose and dialog are trivial/basic, and the ending is pretty rushed. But despite all of that, I LOVE the idea behind it, and I tore through it in just a few sessions because I just NEEDED that next dopamine hit once each chapter ended lol. I know it's trash, but I had so much fun along the way that I just didn't care.
I think plenty of people probably wouldn't be willing to give a book that falls under category 3 a 5 star review, because if technical writing falls short, it can't justify 5 stars for them. And I don't think that's explicitly wrong, because for those people a lack of good technical writing can genuinely make their reading experience worse. And in those cases if that's your reality, I could see something like a 3 star review being appropriate as long as you liked the story despite its technical miscues. I do think that this type of reader/reviewer is also the most likely to read something like ACOTAR or Fourth Wing and come to Reddit with a chip on their shoulder wondering why people flock to those books when there's "better" fantasy out there. Obviously not all people who review this way do that, but if you DO do that, I believe you're this type of reader haha.
Overall, making sub-categorical ratings a thing on Goodreads probably wouldn't do a whole lot to change the general landscape of the reviews there. But I'm definitely curious what the consensus is on 5 star reviews that fall under my category 3 above, and how many people are for/against it for their own style of reviewing.
https://redd.it/1i87fcj
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Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine "...incredibly funny."
Uhhhh...is the funny in the room with us right now?
Can someone please explain to me what was incredibly funny about this book? I read it was increasing horror before the final SURPRISE moment of oh lol jk Mummy died in the fire that was supposed to kill you too, but you've been hallucinating these past 10 years that you've talked to her weekly?
This book was so heartbreaking to me. I may have chuckled at some parts (the guy dancing with her and asking to get her a drink/her reasons for declining) but nothing about this was funny. It was sad all around. I'm glad it seemed to have an optimistic ending but.....that it took as long as it did to get her proper help, and only because one doggedly determined man wouldn't give up on her....where's the funny?
https://redd.it/1i87s6q
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Utah students can no longer bring personal copies of banned books to school
https://www.kuer.org/education/2025-01-21/utah-students-can-no-longer-bring-personal-copies-of-banned-books-to-school
https://redd.it/1i85i9d
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What is your opinion on authors breaking the “fourth wall” with the reader
Just curious what my fellow readers opinions are on an author clearly breaking “out of character” and making a comment directly to the audience?
For example saying “…(if you know you know)…” mid sentence. I just read a novel where the author referenced something super specific and then gave a quick thanks to the subreddit she got her intel from.
Personally, it kind of breaks me out of the storyline a little. It doesn’t ruin a book (if it isn’t done excessively), but I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite thing. I’d much rather they put a reference number or asterisks and add it to the end of the page or the back of the book than just throw it into the middle of the prose.
https://redd.it/1i80op8
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James Ellroy - American Tabloid but a bit more chill
I’m really enjoying American Tabloid by James Ellroy - the twists, double crossing, historical fiction, mob ties, noir cool and so on. But frankly all the chainsaw murdering, junkie massacres and genital torture are just a bit… tiring.
Can anyone recommend a similarly complex and twisty noir/mob/detective novel that maybe just sticks to regular old run-of-the-mill violence? I haven’t read any of his other books so maybe LA Confidential is a bit less edgy? I like Chandler but I’m after something written in the 80s/90s/2000s
Thanks
https://redd.it/1i7z9s2
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It Can't Happen Here is real again
I've read It Can't Happen Here, by Sinclair Lewis, in 2023. Now, I'm not from the USA, but my country, Brazil, had its alt-right experience. I know the book had a ressurgence during 2016 because of the first Trump election, but I read it because I was reading nobel prize winners at the time. It was a good book, if a little e exagerated.
That said, since the last events, mainly Musk's nazi salute, It Can't Happen Here jumped to mind again, the story has more in commom with reality than ever. Seeing Trump and Musk together, on stage, remind me of the plot, and it fills me with dread.
For those who didn't read the book, maybe you should give it a try, but only if you have the stomach now; it does make the future so, so bleak. For those who did read it, how do you feel about it?
Stay strong out there.
https://redd.it/1i7s0jh
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What’s with all the thrumming?
The hearts, emotions, powers, and male organs of characters have been thrumming in the last 8 books I’ve read. I always thought thrumming was a sound and I always end up imagining a sound when I hear that word. It seems to be quite popular in fantasy books. I first started noticing it in the works of TJ Klune.
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Literature of Egypt: January 2025
'ahlaan bik readers,
This is our weekly discussion of the literature of the world! Every Wednesday, we'll post a new country or culture for you to recommend literature from, with the caveat that it must have been written by someone from that country (i.e. Shogun by James Clavell is a great book but wouldn't be included in Japanese literature).
January 25 is Revolution Day and, in honor, we're discussing Egyptian literature! Please use this thread to discuss your favorite Egyptian books and authors.
If you'd like to read our previous discussions of the literature of the world please visit the literature of the world section of our wiki.
Shukraan lakum and enjoy!
https://redd.it/1i7al6o
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Reading 1984 right now feels surreal
On pure coincidence I began reading 1984 earlier this month, as it was a book on my reading list for very long and my girlfriend bookclub picked it for this month (they have a list of books each member recommends and randomly pick one each month).
Holy fucking shit, what a great timing. Soo many things that seem far fetched in this exagerared parody world are happening right before my eyes. What the fuck
https://redd.it/1i76qh3
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Audiobooks for Lord of the Rings - easy to follow?
I would like to listen to all of the audiobooks but I’m scared I won’t be able to follow. I tried listening to Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter a couple of years ago but had to switch to ebook because I didn’t know what was happening. This year I listen to Nightingale by Kristin Hannah and managed to listen I enjoyed it.
Does anyone have similar experience and advice if this would be good or not?
Thanks!
https://redd.it/1i74xq9
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10 New Books Coming Out This Week ‹ CrimeReads
https://crimereads.com/10-new-books-coming-out-this-week-january-21-2025/?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us
https://redd.it/1i6zmwt
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So Anyway - John Cleese... what a strange, strange book
Was excited to read this autobiography.. started well. John's School days, Cambridge College, Footlights.. and then reams and reams about the various stage plays and revues. As I progressed through the book and the remaining pages got fewer and fewer it slowly dawned on me with horror. There is next to nothing about Monty Python in this book. No Fawlty Towers. No Life of Brian. No Clockwise. No Time Bandits. No Fish Called Wanda. in fact the narrative barely makes it out of the 1960's. I would have been ok with this if I was prepared for it, but I just ended up disappointed. Hopefully one day there will be a Volume II
https://redd.it/1i6vt6f
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Very interesting article about author Patrick Radden Keefe.
https://www.mediaite.com/podcasts/the-new-yorkers-patrick-radden-keefe-on-covering-trumps-second-term-access-is-overrated/
https://redd.it/1i6trvc
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Book Review: ‘Killed by a Traffic Engineer’
https://streets.mn/2025/01/21/book-review-killed-by-a-traffic-engineer/
https://redd.it/1i6ia5i
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Simple Questions: January 21, 2025
Welcome readers,
Have you ever wanted to ask something but you didn't feel like it deserved its own post but it isn't covered by one of our other scheduled posts? Allow us to introduce you to our new Simple Questions thread! Twice a week, every Tuesday and Saturday, a new Simple Questions thread will be posted for you to ask anything you'd like. And please look for other questions in this thread that you could also answer! A reminder that this is not the thread to ask for book recommendations. All book recommendations should be asked in /r/suggestmeabook or our Weekly Recommendation Thread.
Thank you and enjoy!
https://redd.it/1i6fag9
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