من عند Talegaon, Maharashtra 424108، الهند من عند Talegaon, Maharashtra 424108، الهند

I'll admit I didn't finish the book. Though I love what I know, I don't have a very strong knowledge of Brazilian music. Veloso tries to make the history approachable for the uninformed, but he's talking about music, mostly, so without knowing what these things SOUND like, it's all just too abstract to follow the chains of influence. This isn't helped by the writing style - I respect that he takes his subject so seriously, but it seems a bit overly academic and intellectual, and leans towards long, fairly convoluted sentences which I could probably parse if I wasn't also keeping tabs on who everybody was and what songs they sang, etc. To be fair it's hard to know how much of this is Veloso's intention and how much is the work of a translator. What I loved about the book was the sense of he and his peers building a cultural movement that mattered, mostly because they believed it did. This belief that art has a power (beyond its power as a commodity) to transform life is one of the main things missing in america today! I'd love to steep myself in the music of some of the main reference points and come back to the book someday.

How I Came To Read This Book: I spied it on a fellow Good Reader's to read list and picked it up from the library. The Plot: This book essentially tells wannabe writers (and avid readers) that the best way to appreciate writing is by close reading and focusing on the details that make great writing what it is. Through the analysis of everything from gesture and dialogue to sentence and narration, Prose explores how varied good writing is - but drives home the fact the details are what matter both on the reader and writer's end. The Good & The Bad: This was a great book, relatively easy to read even when some of the sample passages were a bit long or dry, and it offered lots of constructive advice (almost too much to digest admittedly) that all boiled down to the fact selective details are critical to good writing. I'd be quite tempted to actually go out and buy a copy of the book if only so I could reference certain sections and suggestions when writing in a certain style. The only downsides would be the end drags on quite a bit - there are about 3-4 sections that easily could have been the end of the book and felt a bit like filler. Also, while the advice is the book when broken down is helpful, it also makes for a slightly repetitive read. By the end you'll probably feel like enough already! That being said, this is a great resource for writers in particular and will definitely influence my close reading in the future. The Bottom Line: Better for writers than readers, but insightful nonetheless. Anything Memorable: Coincidentally the next book in my to read pile is The Great Gatsby, which is referenced for 'setting' in this book. 50-Book Challenge: Book #35 in 2009.

Ths is my next and final young adult novel that I will be reading. I am really excited about this book. It is one that I have wanted to read since elementary school and never got a chance to. I have heard so many great things about it, and wanted to save it for last and hopefully, it will be all that I have heard about it and more. Check back to see my post-review! ;)

classically wonderful book, must re-read this, it has been too long.