Who do you remember?

Those who spring immediately to mind:

Thomas Covenant, from my science fantasy days, an incomplete hero, with people who thought more of his abilities than he did.

Sydney Carton, a character who would never reach his potential, but stoic to the end.

Jim Lovell, brilliant in adversity, stories and yarns to tell, if you made them up, people wouldn't believe them.

The Big Fellow and the Long Fellow, two uncompromising characters with very divergent paths and history will remember them very differently.

5 characters, three very real, did any have any impact on me, I doubt it, but all have left a finger print.

Who do you remember?

I seldom remember the names of characters.

The storyline, the characterisations, events, denouements and so on, yes. But names - very seldom.

At the moment I'm reading a book on the siege of Tobruk, where the proponents are all historical people, so those I know.

But normally the name is forgotten within a week (except Sidney Carton, of course)

And that is on reading three or four books a week.

Some great characters in that zone of the conflict, I wonder what the outcome would have been if Rommel had been given more men and tanks and had reached the oil fields, which in hindsight might have been better than striking for the oil fields of the USSR.

But Montgomery the master of the set piece and the Fox's hit and run tactics.

Humph,

what's the book and who's the author?

Maurice

Some great characters in that zone of the conflict, I wonder what the outcome would have been if Rommel had been given more men and tanks and had reached the oil fields, which in hindsight might have been better than striking for the oil fields of the USSR.

But Montgomery the master of the set piece and the Fox's hit and run tactics.

Humph,

what's the book and who's the author?

Maurice

The Longest Siege by Robert Lyman

Too much listing of unit numbers and such, as with many military historians, but otherwise well worth reading.

With you on Thomas Covenant, would add Paul Atreides (sp) Lazarus Long and of course Golem.

With you on Thomas Covenant, would add Paul Atreides (sp) Lazarus Long and of course Golem.

Pug.............and Jimmy The Hand

Omar Kayam , for teaching me about repentance and drink .

Soap Distant , Jim Pooley and John O'Mally for saving the world again and again .

Clifford D Simack for allowing me to dream of talking dogs .

Kurt Vonegut , for discovering the answer to the population explosion .

Tom Leonard and the wee ghostie man .

William Blake and the chimney sweep .

Calico Joe and Black Sheba .

Ian banks for the paranoias.

The Longest Siege by Robert Lyman

Too much listing of unit numbers and such, as with many military historians, but otherwise well worth reading.

Yes, Historians tend to do this, I will give it a try, but longer than Stalingrad I will need to check.

If you haven't already try Stalingrad by Anthony Beevor or a Bridge too Far by Cornelius Ryan, an incredible retelling of the most heroic struggle by Lions led by Donkeys that had such an impact on the indigenous people.

Black Hawk Down isn't bad either, an event I remember in my time, rather than an historical event

With you on Thomas Covenant, would add Paul Atreides (sp) Lazarus Long and of course Golem.

TC was quite an avid read in my youth, PA, struggled with the books and never really continued after the first, didn't the guy from the 'Police' play him in the film? Lazarus Long, I am afraid is a new one on me, and Golem? There was the Gholem in the Wheel of Time books, otherwise Jewish Folklore?

With you on Thomas Covenant, would add Paul Atreides (sp) Lazarus Long and of course Golem.

Pug.............and Jimmy The Hand

Yes Pug was quite a journey and Jimmy a son of the Upright Man, I quite liked the pirate Amos Trask.

Flashman....

What life lessons.

Avoid conflict at all costs but come up smelling of roses if forced into one.

Never refuse sex.

Greed and gluttony is good.

Cleave to a life partner but never consider forsaking all others.

With you on Thomas Covenant, would add Paul Atreides (sp) Lazarus Long and of course Golem.

TC was quite an avid read in my youth, PA, struggled with the books and never really continued after the first, didn't the guy from the 'Police' play him in the film? Lazarus Long, I am afraid is a new one on me, and Golem? There was the Gholem in the Wheel of Time books, otherwise Jewish Folklore?

Sorry Moss, I meant Gollum, hideous typo my precious.

Lazarus Long is a character that spans several books by Robert A. Heinlein, his best appearance is in "Number of the Beast"

With you on Thomas Covenant, would add Paul Atreides (sp) Lazarus Long and of course Golem.

TC was quite an avid read in my youth, PA, struggled with the books and never really continued after the first, didn't the guy from the 'Police' play him in the film? Lazarus Long, I am afraid is a new one on me, and Golem? There was the Gholem in the Wheel of Time books, otherwise Jewish Folklore?

Sorry Moss, I meant Gollum, hideous typo my precious.

Lazarus Long is a character that spans several books by Robert A. Heinlein, his best appearance is in "Number of the Beast"

I like the Way Lazlo Woodbine , some call him Laz , talks the toot with Fangio's one eyed barman .

Well, I'm just about through a book I found in my daughter's room the other day. It's called "The Glass Room" by Simon Mawer. It's a fictionalized account of the time leading up to WW II and the decades beyond in a provincial Chechoslovakian town and what happens to one of its leading family's. Really well written and i'm enjoying it immensely. Like all books I like this much I'm going to be sorry when I've finished it.

With you on Thomas Covenant, would add Paul Atreides (sp) Lazarus Long and of course Golem.

TC was quite an avid read in my youth, PA, struggled with the books and never really continued after the first, didn't the guy from the 'Police' play him in the film? Lazarus Long, I am afraid is a new one on me, and Golem? There was the Gholem in the Wheel of Time books, otherwise Jewish Folklore?

Sorry Moss, I meant Gollum, hideous typo my precious.

Lazarus Long is a character that spans several books by Robert A. Heinlein, his best appearance is in "Number of the Beast"

I like the Way Lazlo Woodbine , some call him Laz , talks the toot with Fangio's one eyed barman .

Had to look that one up, I'll be honest and say that I have never read anything by Rankin before, but on reading the reviews, I think I will.

If you like salty sea-dogs I recommended Richard Woodman as an author. He wrote a series of books with "Nathaniel Drinkwater" as the central character in the Royal Navy at the time of Napoleon. For my money he's better than Patrick O'Brian. He was in the merchant navy and has written other books about the sea including a 'novel' about a 4th Mate with Alfred Holt on a general cargo ship doing Liverpool to the Far East and back. It's obviously an amalgam of his own experiences and it rings very true. I closed my eyes and I was back at sea.