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Post by wireman on Jul 22, 2020 15:41:16 GMT
We are discussing Aloft by Joe Hill today from the book Strange Weather
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Post by Wicked Esther on Jul 22, 2020 16:00:03 GMT
I was hoping for a story with a lighter tone after that last one, and that's exactly what I got. Yay!! I enjoyed this. I'll be honest and say that the last 20 pages or so kind of dragged for me, with the cloud castle and whatnot. It could have been just a little shorter, but that's alright--no big deal. You know I have to point out the Kiss reference and how I loved it, even if it does play to the stereotype that all Kiss fans are loud, drunken overweight middle-aged men.  There were some lines that stood out to me, but I kind of want to wait for other people to post, so I'll come back to those later.  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 22, 2020 17:23:15 GMT
I liked the story but felt it was perhaps 20 pages too long or so. And i cant help wondering what he was gonna tell his mother and Harriet about where he have been. How they react to his crazy story. And there were things on the cloud too..... All in all it was a good story but i felt it left some questions unanswered.
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Post by wireman on Jul 22, 2020 17:43:27 GMT
This was an interesting story. I guess I would say it's about getting your act together and moving on. For Aubrey, it was a heck of a way to overcome his fear of heights. 
Was it a hallucination?
I thought this passage summed up the story
There was no life waiting for him down there, because he had never bothered to build one. He had left as little trace on the world below as the shadow of a cloud passing over a field—a notion that infuriated him and made him want to get back down there all the more.
Hill, Joe. Strange Weather (p. 308). William Morrow. Kindle Edition.
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Post by Wicked Esther on Jul 22, 2020 18:00:21 GMT
I liked the story but felt it was perhaps 20 pages too long or so. And i cant help wondering what he was gonna tell his mother and Harriet about where he have been. How they react to his crazy story. And there were things on the cloud too..... All in all it was a good story but i felt it left some questions unanswered. Yes. I’m with you, kurben. I felt like the descriptions of every little cloud-thing were too detailed, and the part about him climbing up to or over the pearl was tedious to read. I did really like Aubrey, though, and as the story progressed, I started to feel like he deserved to meet someone more emotionally mature than Harriet. I like to think that’s what happened after the story ended. |
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Post by cat on Jul 22, 2020 21:50:33 GMT
Nothing in this reread rang a bell for me at all except the big cloud thing. All the other details were like brand new to me. Not sure what that says about my memory skills. 🤪
Funny how it was mentioned that this story was lighter in tone than Loaded. I had the opposite thought. It definitely was lighter than Loaded,but I would have liked a more airy (😄) version of this. There still was a lot to deal with, losing a friend to cancer at a very young age, unrequited love.
I really loved the parts where the cloud just gave Aubrey everything he wanted/needed, and that is where I thought the story could be more whimsical, more along that line. But the cloud could not feed him or give him water and the whole cloud girl thing kinda gave me the heebie jeebies.
I too, am interested in what everyone's reaction was when Aubrey came strolling back into town. Maybe he didn't. Maybe he went back to London or went somewhere else to start building his life, like in Joe's quote. That's what I hope he did.
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Post by Wicked Esther on Jul 22, 2020 22:11:21 GMT
Hi cat , I agree that there were still some heavy themes in this story, but I guess they were treated with a lighter touch. Does that make sense at all? It wasn't a tragedy all the way around, like Loaded was. I really liked some of the comedic lines, like how Aubrey thought of one of the sky-diver guides as "Chewbackish". Haha I think he even referred to him as The Wookiee if I remember correctly. One "scene" that really struck a chord with me was when Aubrey told the gang that he was too scared to go ahead with the jump, and he realized that Harriet didn't even care. That realization--that a person's indifference sometimes hurts more than if they were to express disappointment- is something most of us have felt, but I've never been able to put into words as clearly as Joe Hill did. |
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Post by wireman on Jul 22, 2020 22:15:34 GMT
I also wonder what happened when the jump instructor that was fastened to Aubrey landed without him. What did everyone on the ground think happened to Aubrey?
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Post by wireman on Jul 22, 2020 22:23:17 GMT
Hi cat , I agree that there were still some heavy themes in this story, but I guess they were treated with a lighter touch. Does that make sense at all? It wasn't a tragedy all the way around, like Loaded was. I really liked some of the comedic lines, like how Aubrey thought of one of the sky-diver guides as "Chewbackish". Haha I think he even referred to him as The Wookiee if I remember correctly. One "scene" that really struck a chord with me was when Aubrey told the gang that he was too scared to go ahead with the jump, and he realized that Harriet didn't even care. That realization--that a person's indifference sometimes hurts more than if they were to express disappointment- is something most of us have felt, but I've never been able to put into words as clearly as Joe Hill did. What else was kind of sad was when Aubrey found out that his talent was more of a nuisance for the trio because Aubrey made them better. The group had to take their music more seriously than they wanted to.
This is really a sad story that Joe manages to not make seem as sad as it really is.
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Post by cat on Jul 22, 2020 22:26:30 GMT
Hi cat , I agree that there were still some heavy themes in this story, but I guess they were treated with a lighter touch. Does that make sense at all? It wasn't a tragedy all the way around, like Loaded was. I really liked some of the comedic lines, like how Aubrey thought of one of the sky-diver guides as "Chewbackish". Haha I think he even referred to him as The Wookiee if I remember correctly. One "scene" that really struck a chord with me was when Aubrey told the gang that he was too scared to go ahead with the jump, and he realized that Harriet didn't even care. That realization--that a person's indifference sometimes hurts more than if they were to express disappointment- is something most of us have felt, but I've never been able to put into words as clearly as Joe Hill did. Makes perfect sense! 🙂🙂 I agree with you about indifference, too. It does hurt so much more. |
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Post by Wicked Esther on Jul 22, 2020 22:36:14 GMT
Hi cat , I agree that there were still some heavy themes in this story, but I guess they were treated with a lighter touch. Does that make sense at all? It wasn't a tragedy all the way around, like Loaded was. I really liked some of the comedic lines, like how Aubrey thought of one of the sky-diver guides as "Chewbackish". Haha I think he even referred to him as The Wookiee if I remember correctly. One "scene" that really struck a chord with me was when Aubrey told the gang that he was too scared to go ahead with the jump, and he realized that Harriet didn't even care. That realization--that a person's indifference sometimes hurts more than if they were to express disappointment- is something most of us have felt, but I've never been able to put into words as clearly as Joe Hill did. What else was kind of sad was when Aubrey found out that his talent was more of a nuisance for the trio because Aubrey made them better. The group had to take their music more seriously than they wanted to.
This is really a sad story that Joe manages to not make seem as sad as it really is.
Yeah...the girls actually wanted to put an end to their act, but when Aubrey joined, the three of them sounded too good together to call it quits. So he was actually a burden to them. Poor Aubrey. The guy deserved better friends. |
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Post by wireman on Jul 22, 2020 22:38:42 GMT
What else was kind of sad was when Aubrey found out that his talent was more of a nuisance for the trio because Aubrey made them better. The group had to take their music more seriously than they wanted to.
This is really a sad story that Joe manages to not make seem as sad as it really is.
Yeah...the girls actually wanted to put an end to their act, but when Aubrey joined, the three of them sounded too good together to call it quits. So he was actually a burden to them. Poor Aubrey. The guy deserved better friends. |
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Post by Wicked Esther on Jul 22, 2020 22:39:44 GMT
I really loved the parts where the cloud just gave Aubrey everything he wanted/needed, and that is where I thought the story could be more whimsical, more along that line. But the cloud could not feed him or give him water and the whole cloud girl thing kinda gave me the heebie jeebies. I liked the way it slowly dawned on Aubrey that everything that was given to him by the cloud was empty and cold and not real. In the story ,it's put this way: "You knew what was real not by its qualities but by its imperfection." |
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Post by spideyman on Jul 22, 2020 22:59:28 GMT
The story came across with a Twilight Zone feel. His memories and desires came to life while on this cloud. I guess the take away for me was that Aubrey realized that love and desire are not the same.
And yes, so wanted to know what happened after he landed.
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Post by wireman on Jul 23, 2020 14:09:50 GMT
Next Wed we will be discussing Rain by Joe Hill from the book Strange Weather. Be there, aloha.
I'm going to have to look but I think there was a reference to this story in Snapshot.
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Post by Wicked Esther on Jul 23, 2020 14:21:08 GMT
Next Wed we will be discussing Rain by Joe Hill from the book Strange Weather. Be there, aloha.
I'm going to have to look but I think there was a reference to this story in Snapshot.
Awesome. Just for planning purposes...are we going with Everything's Eventual after Strange Weather? I just want to make sure I have a copy of whatever collection is next. |
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Post by wireman on Jul 23, 2020 14:23:00 GMT
Next Wed we will be discussing Rain by Joe Hill from the book Strange Weather. Be there, aloha.
I'm going to have to look but I think there was a reference to this story in Snapshot.
Awesome. Just for planning purposes...are we going with Everything's Eventual after Strange Weather? I just want to make sure I have a copy of whatever collection is next.  Sounds good to me.
How does that sound to everyone else? |
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Post by spideyman on Jul 23, 2020 16:41:39 GMT
Awesome. Just for planning purposes...are we going with Everything's Eventual after Strange Weather? I just want to make sure I have a copy of whatever collection is next. Sounds good to me.
How does that sound to everyone else?
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Post by wireman on Jul 23, 2020 16:58:44 GMT
Sounds good to me.
How does that sound to everyone else?
Rain on 7-29
Autopsy on 8-5
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Post by spideyman on Jul 24, 2020 11:53:19 GMT
Rain on 7-29
Autopsy on 8-5
With all the "rain" we have, been having, was my sub conscience avoiding that word???
Yes, indeed- Rain by Joes Hill this coming Wednesday. |
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