Pat’s answer to “Can anyone who has read the book tell me at what point this so-called 'amazing' Bolano story grabs …” > Likes and Comments
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Masochistic behaviour! Don't do it to yourself. It's just a book. Put it down, go for a walk. Burn the book! You're not a slave. :-)
...and Heinrich, like Pat I don't like to give up on, arguably, great literature without trying to 'get it'! We 'owe' that much to an author, who has taken the trouble and had the passion, to write and have his words published.
I disagree - I don't think we owe any writer anything. Good 'literary' writers write because they have to write. Not to please everybody out there and certainly not to make you suffer through their work. If they'd wanted to please everyone out their they would all try to write thrillers (or Harry whatsisname) and we would have very little great unique literature. It's just like Hollywood and the movies. I'm a filmmaker - it's hell to get a movie made. You do not owe me sitting through any of my films. Don't see why this should apply to writers. Are you going to eat a terrible dish made by a famous chef just because he made it? Hope not! Hopefully you'll say: hey maybe that was a great dish, but to me it tasted like shit and I'm not gonna eat it. Logical or not? :-) Anyway, it's just my tuppence worth. Schluss. :-)
To answer your question Heinrich, I probably WOULD try a dish by a famous chef to see if it's as good or terrible as everyone says! That's how one forms opinions, surely und jetzt damit Schluss...!
Heinrich, I would have to agree with Alexandra here. It isn't good to toss things aside that you don't like without first exploring the question, "Why?" Sometimes it is good for us to try things we don't like, whether it is books, food, or other things. That can bring growth to us as a person. There can be great value in things that we don't like.
Taste yes, but not one third of a dish you clearly don't like! Why?
Life isn't all about following our likes and ignoring our dislikes. We need to try out new and uncomfortable things in order to grow as a person. I do sit through films I don't like, and ask why it was filmed? What point was the director making? Could the ending be construed in a different way? Was the acting good? The special effects? Does it stay in my mind long after the film has ended, and make me think?
Yes, Pat you are so right! Questioning things and asking why? is, in my opinion, fundamental to making the most of this one life we have. That is why I started reading '2666' and it is also why I joined the local book club - to be introduced to books and themes I may not have discovered myself.
Pat Bretheim, I would offer you a coffee and a sofa and some 'time' (as if I could create it so there would be no sense of looking back and feeling the time had been 'lost') so you could sit and read and read and read, and follow Bolano on this momentous and monumental journey. It's taken me five months or more, and I am a single working mum, and to remember tha many journies outside of my own consuming life - what a gift - I know there's more to read out there, I know every book can be givne a merit of even the smallest iota of learning, but do give 266 a chance. It is glorious. Maybe at another time the journey will resonate ore with you?
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Heinrich
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Apr 16, 2015 03:37AM
Masochistic behaviour! Don't do it to yourself. It's just a book. Put it down, go for a walk. Burn the book! You're not a slave. :-)
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...and Heinrich, like Pat I don't like to give up on, arguably, great literature without trying to 'get it'! We 'owe' that much to an author, who has taken the trouble and had the passion, to write and have his words published.
I disagree - I don't think we owe any writer anything. Good 'literary' writers write because they have to write. Not to please everybody out there and certainly not to make you suffer through their work. If they'd wanted to please everyone out their they would all try to write thrillers (or Harry whatsisname) and we would have very little great unique literature. It's just like Hollywood and the movies. I'm a filmmaker - it's hell to get a movie made. You do not owe me sitting through any of my films. Don't see why this should apply to writers. Are you going to eat a terrible dish made by a famous chef just because he made it? Hope not! Hopefully you'll say: hey maybe that was a great dish, but to me it tasted like shit and I'm not gonna eat it. Logical or not? :-) Anyway, it's just my tuppence worth. Schluss. :-)
To answer your question Heinrich, I probably WOULD try a dish by a famous chef to see if it's as good or terrible as everyone says! That's how one forms opinions, surely und jetzt damit Schluss...!
Heinrich, I would have to agree with Alexandra here. It isn't good to toss things aside that you don't like without first exploring the question, "Why?" Sometimes it is good for us to try things we don't like, whether it is books, food, or other things. That can bring growth to us as a person. There can be great value in things that we don't like.
Taste yes, but not one third of a dish you clearly don't like! Why?
Life isn't all about following our likes and ignoring our dislikes. We need to try out new and uncomfortable things in order to grow as a person. I do sit through films I don't like, and ask why it was filmed? What point was the director making? Could the ending be construed in a different way? Was the acting good? The special effects? Does it stay in my mind long after the film has ended, and make me think?
Yes, Pat you are so right! Questioning things and asking why? is, in my opinion, fundamental to making the most of this one life we have. That is why I started reading '2666' and it is also why I joined the local book club - to be introduced to books and themes I may not have discovered myself.
Pat Bretheim, I would offer you a coffee and a sofa and some 'time' (as if I could create it so there would be no sense of looking back and feeling the time had been 'lost') so you could sit and read and read and read, and follow Bolano on this momentous and monumental journey. It's taken me five months or more, and I am a single working mum, and to remember tha many journies outside of my own consuming life - what a gift - I know there's more to read out there, I know every book can be givne a merit of even the smallest iota of learning, but do give 266 a chance. It is glorious. Maybe at another time the journey will resonate ore with you?
