Logan's comments
(member since Feb 20, 2008)
Logan's comments from the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die group.
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Katie, thanks for that! I read Brothers Karamazov earlier this year and would love to hear some other takes on it, especially from an existential perspective.I've haven't made it to Anna Karenina yet but am currently immersed in War & Peace, which I'm enjoying far more than I thought I would.
I'm also nearly finished with Gogol's Dead Souls, in fact just a few minutes ago I read the passage that Dostoevsky refers to in The Brothers K when talking about Gogol's metaphor for Russia as a speeding carriage. Having read Dostoevsky's interpretation first it was nice to have the primary source under my belt now. I feel like I understand that part of Brothers K a lot better now than I did originally.
I'm still about halfway through War & Peace. I like it, I just wish Tolstoy had had a better editor. 1200 pages on land rights for serfs and court intrigues is a bit much.I've decided to balance the Tolstoy with a bit of Gogol, so started Dead Souls today. It's a great read, I like Gogol's tongue-in-cheek look at the landowners of 19th century Russia, especially now that I have the historical background from War & Peace.
Next year I'm planning on reading at least 31 books from the 1001 list. Though I'll hopefully exceed that number, it seems like a realistic goal for now. I made a great dent in the "thicker" books on the list, Infinite Jest met its end back in July and I'm just now toiling like a serf through War & Peace. My overall goal for next year is quality over quantity. I read some great books this year that I may not have picked up had it not been for Goodreads- I'm hoping that this trend will continue through 2009.
Well said, Lorena. I don't think you're reading too deeply into things at all. I am very disturbed at the thought of any teen getting their idea of what constitutes love and romance from Myers; she definitely has some outdated concepts that can prove dangerous to impressionable youths. Control isn't love, reinforcing the idea that it is is a big step back for equal rights.
Kristen, I've also just started on War & Peace. I'm really loving it so far, though I've barely even begun. I don't know why Tolstoy intimidated me for so long.
I feel much the same as Deanne- it's not my favorite Rushdie book (Midnight's Children, for the win) but I can appreciate the impact that it had. I found that while I was a little interested in Farishta and Chamcha, the scenes that most interested me were those with Mahound and Baal. I almost wish that they would have been expanded into a bigger part of the story. I don't know, it's been two years since I've read this book and I'm still very unsure what my final thoughts on this book were.
I really enjoyed the scenes when Chamcha is riling up the Indian expats in London and the descriptions of the Bollywood film industry, but all in all think it's a bit of a scattershot book- very hit and miss.
Mirela, I love Project Gutenberg! I've read so many odd things from their site that every time I visit it's like a scavenger hunt of oddness.
I really can't wait to dive into this. I've set aside all of December for Tolstoy and I am chomping at the bit to get started.
Deanne, that's been my experience with Graham Greene. I'm not sure there exists a poor novel by him.Carmelo, Infinite Jest is a dense read but it's definitely worth reading in its entirety. I finally tackled it this summer and ended up really enjoying it.
Maya, I had no idea that it was a book, let alone a book on the 1001 list! I saw the film a few years ago and loved it. I'm going to have to track that down rather soon.
Kristi, The Corrections definitely isn't a feel-good book, to say the least. That book was just so depressing with all of those hateful characters. I've been leery of Jonathon Franzen ever since then.
December- If Not Now, When by Primo Levi
January- At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft
February- On the Black Hill by Bruce Chatwin
Laura, I like your idea that the society at large is a clockwork orange that forces people to act within proscribed boundaries. There's the illusion of choice but is it true choice when you are only choosing one of a handful of pre-approved futures? This hearkens back to the very strong impression I took away that the tale was a sort of existential parable. Humanity is defined by its ability to choose. At every moment we are choosing and creating our identity through our actions in the world. When that choice is removed from Alex and he is no longer able to choose to rape and pillage, he quickly becomes a miserable creature that evokes a mix of sympathy and disgust.
There's a lot that you can take away from this book and I have the feeling that we're only starting to scrape at the top of it. But I need more coffee...
Emilee, I really enjoyed A Clockwork Orange. The film had been a favorite of mine for a long time but I'd always been shy of the book because I didn't want it to muck up my feelings for the film. Fortunately it didn't. It's a really quick read too, I flew through it.
I finished A Clockwork Orange recently and I've been digging into Love in the Time of Cholera lately. I am in absolute love with Garcia Marquez's writing style.
I'm planning on reading this in December and I really can't wait. I love vast, all-encompassing books like this. There are few better ways to settle into the nice lull of Winter reading than with some Russian Lit.
Vicky, it's my understanding that Devil in the White City is Non-Fiction in the way that A Perfect Storm or Into the Wild was non-fiction. Some stylized bits but everything matching up to the historic record.
I really don't think that I can recommend Ballad of the Whiskey Robber or The Orientalist highly enough. They are some of the most enjoyable non-fiction reads I've ever come across. Skeletons on the Zahara is also a really engaging read.
I started A Clockwork Orange earlier today. I'm really enjoying it so far, the nadsat isn't bothering me at all.
Wow, Cathy, that is really daunting! I'm sorry! When I factored in the new books to what was listed previously (I'm not taking anything off my lists) my percentage read fell 4 points to 10%
1001 Books You Must Read B...
