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Rikard Erlandsson, PhD These are the books I've read, sofar. At least some of the recent ones. Books are more than just literature. For me they have also been a way to study a couple of foreign languages (I tried to read to a Maigret by Simenon in french but it did not work out. I guess I did not give it enough time. I managed one chapter, 22 pages, in five hours. I hope to have more patience some other day). But maybe more importantly, they also give culture and joy. Go here for Swedish literature. It is a cool site! Take your time and add a comment in the guest book as well. It is nice to read and to communicate your thoughts. Made 1997-05-18. Latest change 99-01-14. |
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| I read it | Author | Title | Should you read it? |
| 1999-01-15 | Simon Singh 1997 |
Fermat's last theorem Order it |
This book, that might look quite un-interesting to start with, turns out to be very well written. It is even thrilling, occasionally. The mathematics involved are impossible to follow, at least for me. It is not the intention by the author either (sometimes it is not even attempted, I think). It was a nice read. You meet a lot of great minds and sad destinies. |
| 1999-01-08 | Sue Grafton 1982 |
"A" is for alibi Order it (I did.) |
It is a Krimi, alright. The story is quite entertaining but still it is written in a way that you understand what the author tries to hide from you. It is the first time that I have that feeling and the problem is of course predictability. |
| 1998-12-26 | Max von der Grün 1963 |
Irrlicht und Feuer Order it |
This is a good book in the real sense. It is quite heavy to read but contains great experiences. I recommend this book to everyone with an interest in real life. Working class experience from the early 60s. |
| 1998-11-26 | Gaby Hauptmann 1995 |
Suche impotenten Mann fürs Leben Order it |
This is not a Krimi. It was still quite funny to read it. The question, though, is if it had a message. Or do you really want impotent men? |
| 1998-11-09 | Kurt Vonnegut 1985 |
Galápagos Order it |
Irony all over the place. What is true and what are you supposed get from this? It is antiwar propaganda. And it is funny. |
| 1998-10-29 | Kurt Vonnegut 1963 |
Cat's cradle Order it |
First person, again. This is the story about Bokonon and Ice 9. It is extremely fantastic. And ironic and sarcastic. In the end I had a feeling it got a little too much. |
| 1998-10-24 | Alex Garland 1996 |
The Beach Order it |
I am telling a stroy, again. The backpacker people kind of story about the lost Eden. The story is told in a nice way but I think it was hundred pages too long. |
| 1998-10-15 | Max Frisch 1957 |
Homo faber Order it |
This is another of those stories told in first person. I do not like that in general. However, I have grown quite used to it. It is not that bad either. A slow non-exciting story about life, with a general question. And why doesn't Homo faber care? |
| 1998-10-08 | Ingrid Noll 1996 |
Kalt ist der Abendhauch Order it (I did) |
This is the fourth Ingrid Noll book that I read. It is a sad story told in very nice way. As with the other Nolls it takes a while to get into the story. But ones you are there you are really trapped. Read it. |
| 1998-09-26 | Torgny Lindgren (transl. Tom Geddes) 1987 (1992) |
Light Order it |
It is the third time I read this book but the first in English. It is a great anecdote and the translation works very well, although I miss the dialect. The real question is how to distinguish right from wrong? Könik, Önde, Blasius and the others will help you out. |
| 1998-09-18 | Friedrich Dürrenmatt 1952 |
Der Verdacht Order it |
This Krimi is about the same detective as Der Richter und sein Henker. It is a nice and provocative read (but not as good as Der Richter und sein Henker). |
| 1998-09-10 | George Orwell 1933 |
Down and out in Paris and London Order it |
This is a tough read. It is definitely worth reading but it is not simple and it requires a real effort. It is not something that you would read without reflection. It is kind of autobiographical and contains several interesting pieces from real life. |
| 1998-09-03 | Nelson Demille 1997 |
Plum Island Order it (I did) |
This book has an offensive language and an attitude that will piss off a lot readers. Others will really become buddies with the hero. If you can accept that and continue to read you'll find quite a nice story. The first half is even very entertaining. |
| 1998-08-22 | Ingrid Noll 1993 |
Die Häupter meiner Lieben Order it |
This is the third Ingrid Noll book that I read. They get better and better all the time. As with the previous ones (see below) I can definitely recommend this one. The books are advertised as Krimis (which is good, otherwise I would not have found them), which they in reality not are. They lack excitement and the page-turning suspense. But they are written in a very nice story-telling language. It is just like sitting and listening to someone who just committed all these killings. Read it! |
| 1998-08-12 | Ken Follett 1996 |
The third twin Order it (I did) |
Besides predictability it is too many details of sex-associated violence that makes it impossible for me to recommend this book to any-one. The idea of the story is, however, quite nice. Too much sensation is built into it. I liked the subject and it competes with Chromosome 6 (see below). But it is left far behind in all respects. |
| 1998-08-07 | Mikhail Bulgakow 1923 |
The white guard Die Weisse Garde Order it |
I started to read an old English translation that, it turned out, was lacking 60 pages in the second half. I bought a German more recent translation including two different endings. The second end is more comprehensible and supposed to prepare you for the next part that was never written. The book is well written and interesting, but a bit boring, in-between. It describes the civil war and a bourgeois family trapped in it. |
| 1998-07-10 | Jostein Gaarder 1991 |
Sofies värld Order it |
I had to read this one, since one of my daughters read it. She liked it and I think it is good that she read it. I liked it myself and I think it is an interesting introduction to philosophy, although it is a bit short on Marxism. But I like the fact that it deals with New Age and such stuff. |
| 1998-06-22 | Ines Veith 1995 |
Im Innern des Bernsteins | This is a badly written story that in itself could be quite interesting. The only thing the characters do is to bring the story closer to its end. It gets kind of boring since you know exactly what to know to understand the sequence of events. But there is nothing else, it is completely cold! |
| 1998-05-21 | Staffan Skott 1980 |
Tsarer och samovarer | This book is a collection of anecdotes with connection to the Sovjet union. Some are actually quite funny but I have the feeling it got too much. |
| 1998-05-13 15.10 | Hans Alfredsson 1996 |
Attentatet i Pålsjö skog | It is a nice language in this book, like in Hasses previous. How Sweden joined WWII but it leaves nothing to the reader. The explanations in the last chapter should not have been included. No-one really needs them. |
| 1998-05-03 | Birgitta Trotzig 1957 |
De utsatta | This book is quite difficult. It is written in a different way. It is like a remote memmory from centuries ago. The story is about late 17th centery in Skåne. A depressing story. |
| 1998-04-19 | Robin Cook 1997 |
Chromosome 6 Order it |
This was a really good book. Read it! It discusses today's new techniques and the ethical dilemmas. However, the solution is not as simple as it looks. |
| 1998-04-12 | John Darnton 1996 |
Neanderthal Order it |
An eye-catching title, but this is romantic crap!!! The ultimate pseudo-scientific search for the land of Yeti. May I suggest Krings et al. Cell, 1997 (90) 19-30 instead. |
| 1998-04-06 | Colin Forbes 1981 |
The Stockholm syndicate | A very flat, mechanical and complicated story. Absolutely dead! Some parts were placed in Sweden with diacritics randomly scattered in names of Scandinavian places. It was impossible to recognize Stockholm from the description. |
| 1998-03-08 18.19 | Ingrid Noll 1993 |
Der Hahn is tot Order it | This is a good one. It is definitely the best since "Ljuset, Torgny Lindgren" (see below). It is a great anecdote. Just read, laugh and amuse yourself. |
| 1998-03-01 | Frederick Forsyth 1996 |
Icon | The first half is a boring prologue to the second. The plot is politically impossible to understand. Why would fascists that get their printing capacity destroyed not buy that capacity somewhere else? It was plenty of logical error like this one. |
| 1998-02-19 | Michael Crichton 1996 |
Airframe | Quite well written, but far too predictable. |
| 1998-02-11 07.27 | John Grisham 1996 |
The runaway jury | A quite funny story, but where is the thrilling action and suspense that kept me turning pages in his previous books? |
| 1998-02-03 | Ken McClure 1997 |
Pandora's Helix | Sentimental story. Well written but too predictable. You might get more from it if you are not working in microbiology or something. |
| 1998-01-30 | Christine Lehmann 1997 |
Der Masochist | An entertaining story that evades predictability in a sparkling fashion. A complex story that might be worth reading. |
| 1998-01-11 19.15 | John Grisham 1997 |
The partner | A quite good anecdote but not the depth we used to see in Grishams earlier books. And far from as thrilling as they use to be. |
| 1998-01-04 | Tom Clancy 1996 |
Executive order | In this book Tom thinks that lack of bureaucracy is the same as lack of ideology, how naive. And profit making capitalism supported by government spending (tax money) is the best for an American (read capitalist). Moreover, the book contains a lot of war techno jargon like F15, I-Troop, BMP-IkSH completely impossible to follow. This was the last Clancy I read. His books have gone from thrilling to politics (extreme right wing). To much blabla between a few good pages (<<7%). |
| 1997-12-22 | Gudbergur Bergsson 1991 |
Svanen | I read this one in Swedish, since my Icelandish is non-existing. The book is nothing special and the language makes it difficult to enjoy the reading. Is it only a bad translation? |
| 1997-11-22 | Doris Gerke 1988 |
Weinschröter, du musst hängen | The first Bella Block Krimi. It was good and is highly recommended! |
| 1997-11-01 | Friedrich Ani 1995 |
Killing Giesing | A Munich guide book dressed up as a Krimi. Boring but still some kind of political twist that makes it kind of readable, but only kind of. "Wenn die Sonne im Bierglas steht, das ist Heimat." |
| 1997-10-12 | Bodil Malmsten 1988 |
Svartvita bilder | To read this book is like jumping on ice. The style is something of its own. Don't stay and think just follow the text and you will get forward. And its partly about Jämtland. I really liked it! |
| 1997-10-05 21:50 | Ingrid Noll 1994 |
Die Apothekerin Order it | This book is actually better than its form suggests. A woman telling her bed neighboor in a female hospital her story. It was, not thrilling, but well written, as far as my German tells(?). It's kind of cute! |
| 1997-09-28 23:55 | Viola Schatten 1994 |
Kluge Kinder Sterben Freitags Order it | An intresting Krimi with many possibilities. Definitely a politically correct story, also written by a female author. However, painfully short. |
| 1997 June | Thea Dorn 1994 |
Berliner Aufklärung | Interesting insight into the Berlin University world and some gay/lesbian culture. Read it! |
| 1997 June | Sabine Deitmer 1994 |
Dominante Damen | Good book. Actually entertaining, although not really an unexpected end (for the clever reader). |
| 1997 June | Willi Voss 1992 |
Bluthunde | An entertaining book but not as good as Asphalt by the same author. |
| 1997 May | Matthias Martin 1993 |
Blüten für Madame | This book feels like a TV play. That's why I cannot recommend it. A slow, but funny, story. |
| 1997 May | Tim Willocks 1994 |
Green river rising | This book is shocking! Everything from inside the prison. Could it be interesting? Well it is certainly thrilling. |
| 1997 May | Larry Bond 1996 |
Enemy within | It was really readable, so to speak. It kept me going for the next page at Uppsala-pendeln. |
| 1997 April | David Baldacci 1996 |
Absolute power | This is a good book. There is even a movie made after it. However, the story in the book is so much better. It is genuinely exciting and well written. Follow the poor fellow and find out if he can beat the system. |
| 1997 April | Stephen Hunter 1994 |
Dirty white boys | This book has a shocking start. But once you past it it is a real page turner. I often have a problem with predictability. It is so easy to guess what will happen. That is not the case with this book. I can recommend this one. It is really thrilling! |
| 1996 | John Grisham 1996 |
The Chamber | Very boring story, but well written. |
| 1996 | Doris Gerke 1988 |
Nachsaison | A story about Bella Block, but not the best. |
| 1996 | John Grisham 1995 |
The Rainmaker | This book is extremely fummy. It is well worth the time it takes reading it. |
| 1995 | Willi Voss | Asphalt | About detective Fleestedt, this is a good krimi. |
| 1993 | Tom Clancy 1992 |
Patriot games | This book starts out quite OK. But in the end it turns out to be a techno inferno. |
| 1992 | Tom Clancy 1991 |
Red storm rising | Something for techno-war proffesionals. It was just too much. |
| 1991 Spring | Tom Clancy 1984 |
Jakten på röd oktober | Quite boring book, it is just to much, somehow. But it was interesting to find out where Jan Gouillou picked up the Coq Rouge ideas. |
| 1991 Spring | Torgny Lindgren | Legender | This is a collection of short stories (or anecdotes). Some are extremely funny. A good book! |
| 1991 Spring | Torgny Lindgren | Merabs skönhet | A very good book! |
| 1991 Spring | Torgny Lindgren | Ljuset Order it |
His best book! And that means a lot! It is really incredible. About a small village in Norrland (northern part of Sweden). The best is, however, how well the form corresponds to content. recommended by Dr Håkan Axelsson |
| 1990 Oct | James Follet | Swift | About the international banking, computers, satelites, etc. . It is just too bloody. |
| 1990 Sep | Jan-Jöran Stenhagen | Informania | Very bad. Dark blue. |
| 1990-08-13 | Jan Gouillou | Fiendens fiende 1989 |
Quite thrilling story. |
| 1990 Jul | Klas Östergren | Fattiga riddare och stora svenskar | Interesting story but a weird ending. |
| 1990 Jun | John Kennedy Toole | Dumskallarnas sammansvärjning | Disgusting. But it grows and gets better until the end where it is just too realistic. |
| 1990 Jun | Erik Maria Remarque | Tid att älska dags att dö | Worth reading. Slow, nice description of people. |
| 1990-05-20 | John Le Carré | Mord i den högre skolan | Straight forward, not extremely good. |
| 1990 May | Arthur Hailey | Stark medicin | Very good, a lot of emotions. |
| 1990 Apr | PC Jersild | Geniernas återkomst | A complete mix of everything. Impossible. |
| 1990 Apr | Ken Follet | Mannen från St Petersburg | Ok, but a weird story. |
| 1990 Mar | Erik Eriksson | Råttornas vinter | Very good, read it. |
| 1990 Feb | Irving Shaw | Störtlopp | Ok, but weird ending. |
| 1990 Jan | Sjövall, Wahlöö | Roseanna | Ok. |
| 1989 Jan | Sjövall, Wahlöö | Terroristerna | Ok. |
| 1989 Dec | Jan Gouillou 1988 |
I nationens intresse | Ok, but politically impossible. |
| 1989 Dec | Jan Gouillou 1987 |
Den demokratiske terroristen | Not as good as the previous. |
| 1989 Dec | Jan Gouillou 1986 |
Coq Rouge | Ok. |
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