Kainzow’s Comments (group member since Mar 27, 2014)

Kainzow’s comments from the Classics Without All the Class group.

Abigail wrote: "Ulysses and Anna Karenina come to mind, but I might actually vote for Tristram Shandy—not that it’s hard, precisely, but I kept trying to force it to make sense! (Just as I want jaz..."

Hmm,reading Anna Karenina was a sublime experience for me.I didn't find it hard at all.Maybe you didn't go for the Maudes translation?

That being said,Borges' Tlon,Uqbar & Orbis Tertius was very hard to get into,but Borges ended up being one of the influential persons in my life! And then,there is Camus' Myth of Sisyphus.I couldn't finish it in French! Maybe I will buy the English translation one day!

Nakul wrote: ""And the air was full of Thoughts and Things to Say. But at times like these, only the Small Things are ever said. Big Things lurk unsaid inside."

I feel that this happens at almost every place in..."

True! This quote is so poignant....

After Things Fall Apart,I've started reading The Myth of Sisyphus in French.
While I did learn a few great things from it,the French proved too much for me. It's not in the least a bad book (on the contrary,it is one of those works that change your outlook on many things),but I would rather read another book than keep on wasting my time by reading the same pages over and over again to no avail.
I'll definitely read the book,but that'll be in English.
I'm going to start Waiting for Godot imminently.

Lord of the Flies: ''We did everything adults would do. What went wrong?''

Death in the Afternoon (Hemingway): ''If two people love each other,there can be no happy ending to it.''

And of course,the ending lines of The Great Gatsby.

Best: Anna Karenina,The Great Gatsby,Never Let Me Go,Lord of the Flies,Labyrinths,in no particular order - oh well,first place to Tolstoy's novel!

Worst: Hmm,worst maybe Murakami's Birthday stories and Kafka's other stories - minus Metamorphosis which I adored.
They are not horrible,but it so happened that I've read better books this year.

Footnotes all the way! How bothersome to turn the pages to get the information you seek and to get back to reading your story!

I have just noticed that I didn't introduce myself although I've commented on multiple threads here.

My name is Kainzow.

I like drinking water and Iced Tea - lemon flavour preferably.

My most-read author is Franz Kafka - I could have said J.K Rowling,but all the seven books are in 1 series only.I've read his 3 novels and all his stories.

I guess I'll go for cookie! (Granola ones)

And I'm from...Mauritius!

I've finished reading Kafka's stories and now am reading Oliver Sacks's The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat!

Here is my favourite quote from the book:

''In those early amorphous years when memory had only just begun, when life was full of Beginnings and no Ends, and Everything was Forever…''

I like the use of capitalization here!

Karakb wrote: "Thank you for the comment on his guilt for his singing. I hadn't tied that so closely together. The Sound of Music ended for him too early."

Glad I helped! I think Estha's guilt doesn't occur to us at first,but rather after the second or third reading.In my case I read the book 5 times because I had to study it in high school.That's why I like it that much; it never fails to move me even if I know everything in it by heart.

Amanda wrote: "I'd have to say at this point that Anna Karenina is probably the hardest one I've read. Talk about plowing through a book! And I've never wanted to slap a character as much as I did Anna by the e..."

Anna Karenina might be one of the easiest books I've ever read.I was stunned by how easily readable it was and totally revelled in reading it.For me,every page was perfection! Sometimes just for pleasure I would re-read the pages I've already gone through.Reading this book is one of the best experiences I've ever had.
Maybe the Maude translation has something to do with it!

It was random,but the twins feel that the death and everything that follows would not have occurred,had they not wanted to flee...

I think that the book endeavours to show us how each small thing has a determining effect in the lives of the characters..
Estha,for example,would not have decided to leave home on the boat if it wasn't for his fear of the Orangedrink Lemondrink Man.He wouldn't have met the man if he didn't sing so loudly at the cinema.Perhaps that's why he turned dumb when he grew up; he feels that his singing was to be blamed for everything that happened to him and to his family...

I'm right in the middle of Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis and Other Stories!

I don't think it purports to vilify marriage.

On the other hand,it shows that the past of all characters causes them to be unhappy in their marriage.

Some quick examples:

1.Chackho,as a result of being too spoilt by Mammachi,cannot 'man up' for Margaret.He is too carefree and this gradually sets them apart.

2.Ammu could have accepted the role of the beaten housewife,but because she herself along with her mother has been physically abused by her father,has turned into a rebellious woman who wouldn't accept living with an alcoholic and abusive husband.

3.When making love with her,Rahel's ex-husband noticed that her eyes seemed to belong to somebody else.This happened as a result of the trauma she experienced in her childhood.

The only lasting marriages we witness are Comrade Pillay's and Papachi's,because in both,the women accept to be degraded and oppressed.

I think Roy is rather conveying the message that in the land she lived,that's how marriage was/is supposed to be.She is exposing a sad reality.

Bookshelf!! :)

Nancy wrote: "Ulysses was by far the hardest book I've ever read. I tried reading it and gave up twice, then I heard a dramatization of it (like a reader's theater) on BBC. It loved it, and it was enough of a ..."

I was put off reading Ulysses after I saw someone calling James Joyce,a drunk Dostoevsky! :3

In fact God of Small Things is the exact kind of book which gets better upon the second reading; for example,the leitmotif ''Like old roses on a breeze'' makes more sense after you know what it means.These little clues make you appreciate the fact that A.Roy took much time writing and organising her story.

It is also terrific on the first reading,because it stuns and deeply moves you as everything is gradually revealed!

That's why it's one of my favourites.You don't see books like this very often...

Is it?
I read the book many times,and I don't find it difficult to remember the names.
I think you'll have to keep on reading to give your mind some time settle in the book. :)
It's a very,very good book.I hope you'll like it! :)

I've finished reading Possession more than a week ago,and I can say that it truly is beautiful! :)
It certainly is one of my favourites and I reckon that Possession is definitely one of the best of all time,as I haven't seen many books of such magnitude!

Finished Possession one week ago.It was an absolute beauty!
I am now reading Borges's short stories in Labyrinths.They are really addictive and remind me a lot of ... Breaking Bad! I highly recommend it to anyone! :)