Beach Reading

I tried to post some more pictures but Blogger wouldn't let me. Grrrr. Does anybody know if there is a limit on bandwidth or some other restriction?

In the meantime I'll give you my latest book review. While we were there I read The Children of Men by P.D. James (who is a woman in case you didn't know that). Not exactly the usual beach read, but if you haven't figured it out by now, I'm a bit of a book snob. I've never read any of her mysteries and this was a departure from that genre for her. It was written nearly 15 years ago so you may not have heard of it, but since most of you are IF'ers or former/reformed IF'ers, you might be interested in this story.

Synopsis (from Amazon): Near the end of the 20th century, for reasons beyond the grasp of modern science, human sperm count went to zero. The last birth occurred in 1995, and in the space of a generation humanity has lost its future. In England, under the rule of an increasingly despotic Warden, the infirm are encouraged to commit group suicide, criminals are exiled and abandoned and immigrants are subjected to semi-legalized slavery. Divorced, middle-aged Oxford history professor Theo Faron, an emotionally constrained man of means and intelligence who is the Warden's cousin, plods through an ordered, bleak existence. But a chance involvement with a group of dissidents moves him onto unexpected paths, leading him, in the novel's compelling second half, toward risk, commitment and the joys and anguish of love. In this convincingly detailed world--where kittens are (illegally) christened, sex has lost its allure and the arts have been abandoned--James concretely explores an unthinkable prospect. Readers should persevere through the slow start, for the rewards of this story, including its reminder of the transforming power of hope, are many and lasting.

I found the writing to be somewhat stolid and stoic, as one reviewer put it: no emotion please, we're British. I'm used to lavish adjectives and description passages in my reading. It is supposed to take place in 2021 but does not have one word in it about computers or any other technology that didn't exist at the time it was written. Although it was a good story and interesting to me for obvious reasons, I can't in all honesty recommend the book. This may be the first time I've ever said this, but wait for the movie. The good news is, it has the potential to be a good movie.

The director is Alfonso Cuaron, who brought us Y Tu Mama Tambien and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and stars Clive Owen, Julianne Moore and Gary Oldman. Release date is currently scheduled for next September.