It changes from being a dedicated research project to a simple way of life. I love the way the book deals with relationships. This makes their friendship truly unique, requiring a huge amount of trust from Max and a massive sacrifice from Adam. Through a non-linear narrative, Ironmonger builds up a vivid story which allows the reader to fully understand why Adam would make such a huge sacrifice for Max.
He takes us back to Africa in the s, the place and time that the two boys first forge a friendship. There is a lot of love and dependence within the novel, and nothing feels unbelievable or out of place. Adam continuously feels that he is working for, and waiting for, Max, but he never wavers in his dedication to his friend. As a reader, you begin to love the men for their strange but strong relationship with each other. I seemed to spend my life waiting for Max. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
I found none of it boring or hard work. It was a real pleasure to read. I would like to thank Phil for recommending this book to me.
The Notable Brain of Maximilian Ponder by John Ironmonger
All I can do is urge you to read it yourself. Jan 08, M. Kitapta akibeti belli olmayan yan karakterler var Elenora gibi. Dec 23, Malda rated it it was amazing Shelves: An entire concept made up, to make up a story that is both strange in a fun, quirky way and really entertaining to read. Short chapters if I may add. I love short chapters. Maximilian Ponder is a clever and curious young man who comes up with an idea while contemplating life, human limitations, and memories. He realizes that at any point in our lives we will fo rget things we have learned or faced in our past and will be unable to ever retrieve that memory fully back again.
So he starts a project where he records every bit of information he has stored in that notable brain of his, from the earliest memories possible till the end of his days. Well-written, with a fascinating concept, this comes off as more of a thought experiment or series of essays than a novel. It seemed to be just picking up, and then suddenly over, leaving me to believe the book was written solely for a one-page soliloquy in the third-to-last chapter which is the Well-written, with a fascinating concept, this comes off as more of a thought experiment or series of essays than a novel.
It seemed to be just picking up, and then suddenly over, leaving me to believe the book was written solely for a one-page soliloquy in the third-to-last chapter which is the highlight of the book and the sad penultimate chapter, which was a heartbreaking account of losing someone to an illness. Also, just quietly, I am sick to death of hearing the stories of rich colonial white male kids in Africa in the early to mid 20th century. I feel like I've heard it a million times. Aug 13, Louise Henrard rated it it was amazing. Love it, love it, love it. I read this in two days and I have been thinking about it for a few days afterward.
I absolutely identify with Max's craziness, obsession with writing everything down and feeling frustrated, or way over your head when you realize that is not an achievable goal even in 30years.
The brain, our brains, in particular, is full of mysteries and knowing how it works, why it works that way is an interesting goal to have. Made me want to really focus on writing in my diary ev Love it, love it, love it. Made me want to really focus on writing in my diary every day. I wanted the big, dark twist it was hinted but it didn't come. Jun 05, Piotr Segal rated it it was amazing. Brain, with yet undiscovered fullness of its capacity, has been a subject of many literal wors up to date. All of those works tackled upon the subject either in entertaining or educational way.
The Notable Brain of Maximilian Ponder tries a slightly different approach-while telling a story in an entertaining and gripping way, the book focuses on the remembering feature and the extend the human brain is able to cathaloguing the memories. One could think that such an original idea may be expected Brain, with yet undiscovered fullness of its capacity, has been a subject of many literal wors up to date.
One could think that such an original idea may be expected only from the writers having significant experience on the field. Ironmonger, the beginner in the field of novels' publication in the days of the books' publication, decided to take the risk. The story is told from the point of view of Adam, an elderly man finding himself in a superficialy shocking situation-Adam is in possession of the brain belonging to his beloved friend, Maximilian Ponder. A few dozens of years before, Maximilian decided to make a subject out of himself in his own experiment of making research concerning brain's capacity to remember memories.
The main downside of the experiment is the necessity of alienating the subject from the surrounding world, so as not to allow his brain to be disrupted by new memories, that would have to be further cathalogued. The task of keeping Max undisrupted is of great challenge for our narrator, especially that he is in possession of knowledge, that is going to have an damaging influence on the whole experiment.
The whole story cirlcles around Adam, the main protagonist of the whole novel. While the story develops, he becomes more and more conflicted within himself, being torn between faithfulness to his friend and the obstacles, that threaten the experiment. Maximilian is his slight opposition - by putting everything on one card and completely isolating himself from the whole world, he gets more and more absorbed by his experiment to the extend the willingness of discovering the truth about the proces of memorizing becomes his obsession.
The realistic presentation of the characters is the greatest feature of the book. The book is told in a disrupted, hitchcock-kind of way. First, the readers are confronted with the shocking revelation about Max' death so as to slowly learn the truth behind the mystery. What started as a crime story quickly turnes into a poignant drama about friendship and everything that has to be sacrificed in the name of it. Ironmonger is a master of words. Even though the book is easy to read, simplicity is its great value.
To acheive greatness whith debut is truly difficult, especially if the first book concerns such a complex matter. Ironmonger managed to do it. Having read the book a few years ago, I have managed to keep it in my memory till this day. To put it in a more colloquial way: May 15, Hazel Osmond rated it it was amazing. As part of his PhD, Maximilian Ponder, only son of a highly individual family, decides to lock himself away in the family seat to catalogue his memories. He envisages that it will take about three years and his only link with the outside world during that time will be his childhood friend, Adam Last.
So basically time stops for Max and it stops for a long time — the task actually takes him thirty years… Thirty years in one room? The writing is tremendous — rich and detailed, full of big questions, but for all that zipping along and carrying what is a tremendous story. It is rare that I read a book that throws up so many philosophical questions about life, as this little gem of a novel.
Ironmonger has all the makings of a very accomplished writer, his unique voice adds weight to what is already an original idea. Though a relatively short read, coming in at pages, some of life's greatest mysteries are explored here. What it is to Love those around us, dealing with loss and death are just some of the subjects tackled and despite the short length nothi It is rare that I read a book that throws up so many philosophical questions about life, as this little gem of a novel.
What it is to Love those around us, dealing with loss and death are just some of the subjects tackled and despite the short length nothing seems rushed at all. The pacing just seems spot on. I always find it refreshing to discover a book with a unique premise that actually delivers at the end. Sometimes an original starting point is never truly explored and the rest of the book lets the writer down. It really does feel as though these ideas were thoroughly explored and in many ways significantly resolved.
The very idea of a man so obsessed with the inner workings of his brain that he shuts himself away, cutting himself off from life completely, so that he can write a catalogue of his every memory, fact and thought, is brilliant. I enjoyed this book immensely, the ending was heart breaking and very well written. Upon finishing I immediately sought out Ironmonger's other works, and added all of them to my reading list.
Giving a clear indication of just how much I enjoyed this excellent novel. As far as you or I attempting to catalogue our every thought, it seems a daunting and impossible task. The very last line of Ironmonger's postscript tells us all we need to know about the mere prospect of doing so ourselves. He states that "It is not really possible to catalogue your brain. DO NOT try this at home! Mar 22, Maya Panika rated it it was amazing. Maximillian Ponder has locked himself away in the family seat for thirty years with no phone, radio or television.
It could have been rather dry. Turning points in history sit alongside simple stories of the everyday and everything is stitched together with the strange, sad story of Max Ponder. The African chapters in particular, are exceptional. The writing is consistently superb, touching and sad and detailed by turns, rich in detail but never laboured; constantly entertaining, readable and quite remarkable. Mar 20, Jasmine Wills rated it it was amazing.
This book was a complete breath of fresh air, an entirely unique concept which stands out entirely from the crowd. I have to commend Ironmonger a great deal, his first "fictional" novel I invert fictional as some aspects of the novel, characters and events are based on fact was incredibly enjoyable and appeared to be written very concisely for a first attempt. I adored the characters and the constant referral to "The Catalogue" of Max.
I also found the allusions and referrals to philosophers a This book was a complete breath of fresh air, an entirely unique concept which stands out entirely from the crowd. I also found the allusions and referrals to philosophers and theories of philosophy and society that were made throughout the novel incredibly insightful.
It helped immensely in the portrayal of Max and his somewhat difficult yet intelligent personality. I did find that I had to read the first chapter several times when beginning the book to familiarise myself with Ironmongers very descriptive writing style. However, once that main hurdle was overcome, I simply couldn't stop and wanted to read the novel as much as I possibly could.
A really witty, intellectual read! Apr 02, Tim Roast rated it it was amazing. This book is about Maximilian Ponder. He is pictured on the cover, lying dead and beheaded on a table. And that is where the book starts. His friend Adam Last then narrates the full story to fill in the gaps of what has happened before. This includes the telling of the life of Max and how he took to cataloguing his brain, writing a whole library-worth of volumes containing his memories, his conversations, etc.
So the premise i This book is about Maximilian Ponder. So the premise is certainly unique and I found it to be interesting. The way the book was written provided an intriguing way of getting little tidbits of information or funny little stories or detailed descriptions into a novel but at the same time there is a story there to carry it all, a story of an obsessive. There is wit in the novel too, in places, although predominantly the tone is serious.
My only criticism really is that it may not be for everyone but for me its quirkiness and unique premise worked. This book was amazing. On his 21st birthday Maximilian Ponder decides to record the contents of his brain. Thirty years later he is still at it. To complete his grand project he locks himself away in his large country house and employs his best friend to look after him.
‘Slightly less than the sum of its parts’ – The Notable Brain of Maximilian Ponder by JW Ironmonger
At times this brings to mind the film German film 'Goodbye Lenin' as his acquaintances tiptoe around him trying desperately to keep him locked in free from any new information entering his brain. In spite of this there is a This book was amazing. In spite of this there is a curious mention of Max going to the Dogs in Swindon in mentioned on page 30 which haunted me throughout the book - but I think that might have been an error.
I've often wondered at the possibility of recording the contents of your brain and this book quite categorically proves that it just couldn't be done. It's also a great examination of the nature of memory and the kinds of things we keep in our minds. I'm left torn about my overall impression of The Notable Brain. After close to pages, I think it was drawn out longer than it needed to be.
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Its content and originality were winners for me though. With a beginning that sees the eponymous character lying dead on a table and the narrator setting out to behead him, I wondered where the novel would go. Seeing someone set out to record everything brought up so many philosophical ideas and questions that I haven't encountered before. Until he dies at forty-three and wakes up in his eighteen-year-old body again.
An insight into the publishing world…
And then, in one replayed life, he meets a woman who knows all too well what he is experiencing. REPLAY is a novel of gripping adventure, romance, and fascinating speculation on the nature of time, Replay asks the question: Louis and Louise are the same person born in two different lives. They are separated only by the sex announced by the doctor and a final 'e'. They have the same best friends, the same red hair, the same dream of being a writer, the same excellent whistle.
They both suffer one catastrophic night, with life-changing consequences. Thirteen years later, they are both coming home. A tender, insightful and timely novel about the things that bring us together - and those which separate us. A forgotten diary, a forbidden love affair, a desperate fight to save her country When Cara Hargreaves discovers a diary from the s, its contents will change her life forever Then Paul is sent to war and Louise, defying her mother's wishes, ends up a gunner girl in London. Watching the pitch-black skies for bombers, Louise finds comfort recording her dreams in her diary.
And as Cara reads her words, decades later, she learns that hope can be found even in the darkest of times, she just needs to take a chance Can a chance meeting lead to a fresh start? Lillian Taylor dreams of a world beyond the locked gates of the convent orphanage where she grew up. For ten years she has learned to survive without love, facing the cruel whims and hard faith of the Mother Superior.
But the arrival of a glamorous visitor changes everything. Claiming to be her aunt, Anna Ainsley offers Lilian a home in one of Liverpool's smartest streets, and a future the lonely teenager never could have imagined. To grasp it, Lilian must open her heart, and learn the rules of a world she's been taught to believe is full of sin and danger. Sophisticated, wealthy and full of ideas about what a young woman can achieve, Anna turns Lilian's world upside down.
In return, Lilian will show Anna that birth and wealth can't buy a good heart. But can she seize her chance of happiness without facing the secrets of her past? Kate Potter used to love Christmas. A few years ago she would have been wrapping her presents in September and baking mince pies on Halloween, counting down to the countdown to Christmas. But a few years ago, everything was different. That was before Kate's husband went away with the army and didn't come home.
Now she can hardly stand December at all. She doesn't think she's ready for romance, but she needs more than this, and her son Jack needs a Christmas to remember. What Kate needs is a Christmas miracle, and if there isn't one on its way, she'll just have to make her own. So begins Kate's advent countdown to the best Christmas ever. She has it all planned out, but you can't plan for the unexpected, and when the path of the loneliest woman in town crosses with that of the loneliest man, she just might find a way to save Christmas for all of them A contemporary, emotional, but ultimately feel-good, festive up-lit novel for fans of Jenny Colgan, Debbie Johnson, and Holly Martin.
Reviewers love 25 Days til Christmas'A great Christmas read' Netgalley reviewer'A beautifully crafted Christmas tale, full of 'magic' and the reality of life in equal measure. They say you can choose your friends, but you can't choose your family. Yet when Violet Duffy is asked to give a home to the orphaned children of a distant relative, it is precisely the choice she must face. Can she turn her spinster life upside down and take these lost souls into her little house on Amber Street? Abby and Will have had young lives full of tragedy.
Life with Violet offers love and safety. But as they grow up, their past won't let them be. Turning into teenagers only makes them more curious to know about life beyond the Liverpool streets they've come to know. Will they choose Violet, or the lure of bigger cities and new horizons?
All three of them will need friends at their side as they face up to what they really want. Private passions, tough choices, lost loves and second chances pull them in different directions, but wherever life takes them, the door is always open at Amber Street - after all, it's love that makes a house a home. She's on the hen do from hell. Then she gets a message 44 of them, actually from her best friend with big news: Oh, and Lilah's her maid of honour.
Which means she just got signed up for: What fresh hell is this? It's wildly funny AND about my very favourite genre of everything - painfully obsessive wedding planning. If you like laughing a lot, I recommend that you pre order immediately' Daisy Buchanan'What Fresh Hell is so brilliantly, hilariously, on-point about the nutso psychology of hen dos. That's not too bad. A gritty and powerful thriller featuring Detective Constable Karen Sharpe.
Friday 31 December, In the early hours of the morning in a luxury central Leeds penthouse, intruders douse a terrified victim with petrol, set him alight and throw him burning from the ninth floor roof garden. The body is quickly identified as Nicholas Hanley, a wealthy property developer, but Bains' attempts to pull together an enquiry stall when he cannot locate Hanley's lover, Anna Hart.
Unknown to Bains, Hart and her daughter are less than five miles away, kidnapped at gunpoint and struggling to stay alive.
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Meanwhile, the security services are looking for DC Karen Sharpe. Eighteen months ago she walked out on Bains without a word of explanation. Now she has disappeared for real. What Sharpe has been doing not only connects her to Hanley's death, but has placed her at the disposal of men for whom human life means nothing. The danger is greater than anything she has faced before. If she cannot pull her shattered personality together, the last day of the millennium will be the last day of her life.
Why readers love John Connor: A Child's Game 4. Things have got personal for Detective Karen Sharpe - but will she crumble under the pressure? Karen Sharpe has been promoted to Detective Sergeant, but are the pressures of the job getting too much for her? When the battered body of a young girl is discovered, it kicks off an inquiry which pushes Karen and a trainee DC, Marcus Roth, too close for comfort, both on and off-duty. The investigation leads to a woman with a violent past - a woman with a six-year-old boy in her care As the terrible truth emerges, the inquiry becomes a race against time before another child becomes a victim.
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