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June 29
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saxonb
gave
to:
To the Friend Who Did Not Save My Life (Mass Market Paperback)
by Hervé Guibert
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in June, 2008
saxonb said:
"i read the first seventy-five pages of this book while sitting in an ER waiting room...fitting? Definitely.
Guibert's world seems to be losing color as his t-cell count continues to drop and friends all around him become the victim of this new an...more
i read the first seventy-five pages of this book while sitting in an ER waiting room...fitting? Definitely.
Guibert's world seems to be losing color as his t-cell count continues to drop and friends all around him become the victim of this new and strange disease that seems to only target homosexuals. The words make you feel his fatigue, his empty stomach as he waits in line for another shot in the arm to see how low his count is, his frustration, delusion, and despair. All the while the sentences become lengthier and comma-ridden as if they are in search of an escape or an answer themselves.
Based on his own life, some may criticize this book as being a bit self-serving and it may be. However, that only humanizes the portrayal of the characters to such a realistic point that we are forced to reflect upon ourselves, see things we knew to always be there but didn't want to admit, and give credit to Guibert's sharp insight and relentless honesty for exposing such.
There are some disturbing and difficult images/scenes in this book that are so vivid that they'll stay with me for awhile.
...less
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June 10
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New comment on Damien's review of
Of Grammatology
(see all 2 comments)
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June 29
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saxonb
is currently reading:
Look Homeward, Angel (Paperback)
by Thomas Wolfe
bookshelves:
currently-reading
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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June 06
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saxonb
gave
to:
Selected Poems 1957-1994 (Paperback)
by Ted Hughes
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in June, 2008
saxonb said:
"So I started this collection of poetry by Hughes at least six months ago. I never dedicatedly read it but that was also kinda the point. Mainly just kept in my backpack or next to the bed as something to read when on the bus or if I couldn't sleep. T...more
So I started this collection of poetry by Hughes at least six months ago. I never dedicatedly read it but that was also kinda the point. Mainly just kept in my backpack or next to the bed as something to read when on the bus or if I couldn't sleep. That being said, I fell hard for Hughes. It has been less that 10 years since he passed and I am not entirely sure how much of his work will be canonized. In addition, he often gets overshadowed, at least in the States, by his marriage to Sylvia Plath. Which is unfortunate because his poetry makes Plath look like an eight-grader. In addition, I admittedly feel like there is some aspects of poetry that I don't understand. Despite all this, I think that this collection proves that no matter what kind of reader of poetry you are, the strength of Hughes is undeniable.
Hughes is errie, potently dark and depicts the world as the overwhelming mess that it is. However, the greatest aspect of this is that Hughes is not an urban poet-in that his poetry often takes place out in the country, in nature, in small towns and the creaking bedrooms of thatch houses and decaying wood. Many may immediately be turned off by this and admittedly I normally would be too. However, Hughes pulls it off which makes it all that more intriguing and enjoyable of collection. Certainly, some sections of this are better than others. However, in over 314 pages of poetry, the good undoubtedly outweighs the bad. In addition, I had a friend once tell me that Hughes was too "masculine" for her. This is an accurate description of his work but its also his greatest strength. Finally, after reading this and comparing him to his contemporaries (Larkin, Heaney, etc) Hughes excels.
1- 314 pages of poetry and I liked over 75 percent of it.
2- Only poet I have ever read who can write a poem about an animal and I actually throughly enjoy it
3- Reading his poems out loud is like have cotton in your mouth...
4- No excerpt from any of the collections was without at least one poem I marked
5- "Sketching a Thatcher"
Five stars.
P.S. I think Hughes' biography explains much about the style of his poetry. Working class, studied archaelogy, two wives who killed themselves including one who killed their daughter ...whoa....less
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June 04
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saxonb
gave
to:
How I Learned to Drive (Paperback)
by Paula Vogel
bookshelves:
school
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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saxonb said:
"Vogel questions your modern sensibilities through this story of sexual awakening aided by your uncle in law?
whoa...
With the help of some Brechtian elements, Vogel succeeds in breaking the illusion of the theater and making the reader/viewer think...more
Vogel questions your modern sensibilities through this story of sexual awakening aided by your uncle in law?
whoa...
With the help of some Brechtian elements, Vogel succeeds in breaking the illusion of the theater and making the reader/viewer think beyond the characters of the play to self-reflect upon yourself. Sorta Lolita-esque...makes you feel queasy about yourself. well done......less
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New comment on Amy's review of
Women, Race, & Class
(see all 2 comments)
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May 28
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saxonb
gave
to:
Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches (Angels in America)
by Tony Kushner
bookshelves:
school
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my rating:
Added to my books!
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saxonb said:
"Its like doing lines of cocaine while at a Prince concert then going home and reading Foucault.
or
Angels in America is a grandiose, surrealistic bombast of a play dealing with almost every contemporary American facet of being gay in the U.S. durin...more
Its like doing lines of cocaine while at a Prince concert then going home and reading Foucault.
or
Angels in America is a grandiose, surrealistic bombast of a play dealing with almost every contemporary American facet of being gay in the U.S. during the late 80's to early 90's. Politics, law, Aids, family, religion are all included. Kushner examines these elements and the nature of Power in the states, how it is used in these relationships, and the effect it has on the gay community externally and internally. Ultimately, all these themes are quickly and hilariously weaved together while still maintain a certain insight and poignancy to his dialogue. Theres a lot going on here and you're not going to catch it all but its still will be fun and even somewhat enlightening.
...less
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June 29
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saxonb
gave
to:
Moral Clarity: A Guide for Grown-Up Idealists (Hardcover)
by Susan Neiman
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in June, 2008
saxonb said:
"expect my review of this published via campusprogress.com sometime in June.
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May 23
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saxonb
gave
to:
Oleanna: A Play (Paperback)
by David Mamet
bookshelves:
school
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in May, 2008
saxonb said:
"The absurdity of political correctness redefining hierarchies of power in male/female, student/teacher, citizen/law relations in a very realistic way. Mamet takes a very topical and important theme then extracts the idiocy of it while insightfully cr...more
The absurdity of political correctness redefining hierarchies of power in male/female, student/teacher, citizen/law relations in a very realistic way. Mamet takes a very topical and important theme then extracts the idiocy of it while insightfully critiquing it. I don't think I cant but help to like this....less
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I know you are probably way too busy, but the book club is basically abandoning Kelly's selection (even though I finished it) and turning back into a Nora/Amy dictatorship. The next selection will be Zeno's Conscience by Italo Svevo, starting next week. Like I said, I already know you are a busy bee...I just wanted you to be aware and feel welcome to join if you so desire...
I'll look for Nine Stories..but I'm a jerk so I think you should borrow Bruno Shultz instead..because I think if all the people who wanted to read Salinger read Shultz instead it would make us all better..just kidding..actually I'm not.
