I Read Therefore I Am discussion
Books and Reading
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what are you reading at the moment?
@ Jenny - having a bit of an up and down experience with Alone in Berlin- bits of it are wonderfully written and I'll be totally gripped and then one of the characters will say, do or think something that seems to me to be totally implausible.
Eudora Welty has been hanging round on my to do list for a while.
Eudora Welty has been hanging round on my to do list for a while.
I have read the first few stories, and I am really liking her tone and the 'Southern' feeling to her stories, though - as usually the case with stories - they don't all grip my attention equally.For Fallada: I should read him again, when reading him first (and last) I was in my 'Neue Sachlichkeit's phase (I think the English term is 'social realism', in Germany there was a very popular branch in literature with Erich Kästner, Joseph Roth, Fallada, Alfred Döblin, Irmgard Baum and Erich Maria Remarque as some of it's main representatives), and I realize that my taste in literature has changed a bit since then.
Alone in Berlin interestingly saw a second boom here a few years ago, simply because it got so big in the UK and the States but it didn't meet the same love here. (am I repeating myself possibly? I am ;), sorry)
Just finished The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath.
What did you think of it Kayla? It seems to be a love it or loathe it book, I couldn't say I loathed it but I certainly didn't enjoy it. I'm afraid I spent most of the time wanting to give her a good shake - not terribly sympathetic I'm afraid.
Hilary wrote: "What did you think of it Kayla? It seems to be a love it or loathe it book, I couldn't say I loathed it but I certainly didn't enjoy it. I'm afraid I spent most of the time wanting to give her a g..."I'm kind of on the same page as you Hilary. I thought it was good, but I was sort of expecting some more of a reaction from myself. I have no experience with depression or mental illness of any kind, so I can't really offer a reliable opinion on it, but for the most part I felt as though her issues were superficial and her motives were selfish. Like you I just wanted to shake or smack her and tell her to snap out of it. Again, I'm not saying that to offend anyone that may have experienced something like this, as I've no experience in the world of depression and mental illness to know what it really feels like, but I can only state how it came across to me. I'd say, while i didn't hate it, and I didn't love it anyway which is why I only gave it 3 stars.
I love reading your comments Hil and Kayla :) I personally am a huge fan of the book. I went to a lecture at a literary festival last year which discussed how The Bell Jar has aged and it's biographical threads, which I think helped open it up for me. But I agree, everyone seems to have a different relationship with it and the majority seems to either love or loathe.
Angela wrote: "I love reading your comments Hil and Kayla :) I personally am a huge fan of the book. I went to a lecture at a literary festival last year which discussed how The Bell Jar has aged and it's biograp..."Angela, what about the book made you love it? I'm interested to hear your opinions. Perhaps it will open my eyes in a way I hadn't considered and I'd be able to see the book from a different angle and get more out of it.
@ Angela I'd also be interested in what you love about it. I understand that she also wrote a factual book about her experience of depression and psychiatric treatment. (I might be wrong there and thin king of Janet Frame who definitely did). The Bell Jar just seems somehow superficial to me.
Hilary wrote: "@ Angela I'd also be interested in what you love about it. I understand that she also wrote a factual book about her experience of depression and psychiatric treatment. (I might be wrong there an..."Hilary, I know I read that The Bell Jar is semi-autobiographical, perhaps that's what you're thinking of. But if that's the case then my imagination of Asylum's and mental illness was way off.
What is so interesting is that I just went and looked at my rating and I have only given it 3 stars as well. This is from my first reading. When I re-read The Bell Jar, after I had attended the lecture, I believe I got a lot more out of it.The writing itself is what stirred me the most I think because I related to the character on a personal level. I am not unfamiliar with mental illness. I like her style and her similes and I was able to see more depth in them. I've been told its important to see it as a complete work of fiction, not an account of Plath's life, because it detracts from her craft and what she was trying to display as an author.
I reread it to observe the technique and monitor my own responses rather than to be 'swept away'... but as from my 3 star rating, I think I was in a similar boat to you both on first reading.
Angela wrote: "What is so interesting is that I just went and looked at my rating and I have only given it 3 stars as well. This is from my first reading. When I re-read The Bell Jar, after I had attended the lec..."What made you attend the lecture. I didn't realize they had things like that. I would be interested in attending lectures if they could enhance or improve my experience of a book. Perhaps simply for the fact that sometimes I feel like when I don't have as passionate a reaction about a book as others do, it's because something is wrong with me and I just didn't get it... rather frustrating because I'm like "what am I missing?"
I've had a look and it was definitely Janet Frame I was thinking of. I read An Angel at my Table some time ago which is the second volume of her autobiography and details her gradual isolation and mental distress. I would recommend it, it's sometimes disturbing but beautifully written. Her book about her experiences as a patient in a mental hospital Faces in the Water has been on my To Buy list ever since.
I had Faces in the Water on my TBR list, but just added Her autobiography (all three volumes) I'm interested in reading them now. Especially if it gives me more insight into mental illness. It's a subject that The Bell Jar created a curiosity in me for so I'm interested in learning more about it. I hate not being able to sympathize with someone/something purely due to the fact that I don't understand what they're going through. I have a need to at least have some sort of understanding no matter how small. Thank you for the recommendations.
Kayla wrote: "Angela wrote: "What is so interesting is that I just went and looked at my rating and I have only given it 3 stars as well. This is from my first reading. When I re-read The Bell Jar, after I had a..."The lecture was part of a writers festival here in Melbourne. I think I was interested in the whole 'The Bell Jar is a big deal' notion and wanted to find out why.
Mental illness in itself is so complex that no one can ever fully understand how it manifests in individuals. The fact that you felt frustrated with the character gives you an insight into what others feel like when they are closely linked with a 'sufferer', so it sounds like you did take something away from it.
Thanks for mentioning those books Hil - I am going to have a look through them myself now :)
Angela wrote: "Kayla wrote: "Angela wrote: "What is so interesting is that I just went and looked at my rating and I have only given it 3 stars as well. This is from my first reading. When I re-read The Bell Jar,..."That's an interesting perspective. Thank you for pointing it out. I think that's part of the reason why discussing books is so important in addition to reading them. I felt like I didn't get anything out of it, and thanks to our discussion you were able to point out that I likely did. Thank you! ;-)
You are welcome :-D And I completely agree - discussions expand our perceptions and make reading even more wonderful!
This is a really interesting conversation - I read the Bell Jar years ago and, like Hilary and Kayla, wasn't very impressed. After reading Angela's comments I think I should give it another go as since then I have had my own brush with depression and associated problems. I totally agree that it's almost impossible to understand mental illness until you've had some experience of it - mainly because it doesn't make any sense! And at times , your nearest and dearest, however sympathetic and understanding, can't help but wonder why you don't just snap out of it.
Those Janet Frame books sound v interesting.
Those Janet Frame books sound v interesting.
Lee wrote: "This is a really interesting conversation - I read the Bell Jar years ago and, like Hilary and Kayla, wasn't very impressed. After reading Angela's comments I think I should give it another go as s..."That's exactly what I felt when I read the book. Snap out of it! You know?
You should totally re-read it. Especially if since then you've had some personal experience with the issues it touches on. I'd be interested to hear if your opinion of the book changes or not.
About 2 thirds of the way through Every Man Dies Alone -(though my copy is called Alone in Berlin) which is excellent - and have just started The Sea, the Sea. I've put The Man With the Golden Arm to one side for the moment because of it's depressing tendencies.
Sometimes you need to put books on hold. I often underestimate how much they can affect my mood! Doing well Lee :-)
Now starting A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf - this was on my TBR and I just saw that its on the recommended reading for my course.Perfect timing :)
Just started By the Rivers of Babylon by Nelson DeMille. I enjoy DeMille for a good page-turner and this was his first hardback, originally published in 1978 I believe. It was also his first 'breakthrough' novel. Part of the blurb on the back - "Covered by F-14 fighters, accompanied by security men, the planes carry warriors, pacifists, lovers, enemies, dignitaries - and a bomb planted by a terrorist mastermind. Suddenly they're forced to crash-land at an ancient desert site." I believe that I have found a counterbalance for my recent Nelson Algren baptism. ;)
I hadn't heard of Mr DeMille - but then the thriller is a genre that I have only really explored in film form. I intend to rectify this in the not to distant future with a read of The Day of the Jackal - Frederick Forsyth
That's a good one Lee, the film too. I've started Instructions for a Heatwave as an escape from The Man With ...... Couldn't take any more at present. Read half of it last night and am determined to finish it this evening, riveting! Thanks for recommending it Lee
Am now 155 pages in, of 521, and thoroughly enjoying it. DeMille has written 4 #1 NY Times bestsellers and 7 other NY Times bestselling novels, including The General's Daughter, which became a major film starring John Travolta. By the Rivers of Babylon is top-notch action/adventure/suspense/thriller. I can see why it is still in print after some 35 years or so. Definitely recommended for its genre.
You've sold it to me - on the to read list it goes.
Robinson CrusoeI've started reading a free version on my kindle. It's no. 2 on the Guardian 100 list (which I've only just found) and letter 'R' on my own 'A-Z Classics I Must Catch Up On' list. Have already read Moll Flanders and Journal of the Plague Year by Defoe, so I already like his style, which I think is quite modern and journalistic for someone writing in the 1600's!Great thing about the kindle is that I can read it while walking the dog!
I read that last month and really enjoyed it - much easier to get in to than I thought it would be.
Ooohh I think you've both sold me on Robinson Crusoe! For some reason I always thought it would be a bit dry.
I've started The Bat by Jo Nesbo. I like good detective stories and this Norwegian Author has me hooked. The Bat is the first, but the last to be translated into English, of a series about Harry Hole, a Detective in the Norwegian Police. They are well devised page turners that keep me guessing to the end. This novel, which is set in Australia, has been referred to throughout all of the books I have already read so I'm looking forward to filling in the details.
I have started The Republic by Plato, for the readalong, and also just started Faulkner's As I Lay Dying. Have never read Faulkner before.
I've read As I Lay Dying last year, and really liked it despite the occasional struggles I usually have with Faulkner. I'd be interested to hear how you get on.
Me too Antipodes, Lee posted a short story by Faulkner which I enjoyed and I recently managed to buy one of his in a local charity shop. I don't think it's the one you're reading but I'm not home at the moment so can't check.
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Jenny - what was it that you struggled with? I've heard that he isn't the easiest author to read...
I'm halfway through the Algren book and have put it on hold for a wee bit to read The Ballad of the Sad Cafe by Carson McCullers which I'm really enjoying.
Half way through The Sea, the Sea, about 2 thirds through Every Man Dies Alone and just starting Who Was Changed and Who Was Dead which has the great 1st line of "The ducks swam through the drawing-room windows"
Oh and also reading some more of Plato's Republic.
Oh and also reading some more of Plato's Republic.
I started Slaughterhouse-Five as a it of light reading as I thought it was a SF book only to find that it's about the fire bombing of Dresden in WW2. It's good though so I'm not regretting it. Shopping got in the way of the Republic but I'll start it tonight. I'm still putting off getting back to The Man with..... Must steel myself and get on with it!
Laurel wrote: "I haven't read any Faulkner either but I really should! Looks like we are all very interested in how Antipodes finds As I Lay Dying.Jenny - what was it that you struggled with? I've h..."
Laurel, I am finding it really hard to put my finger on it, but I sometimes stay stuck in intellectual admiration of his craft but remain strangly detached otherwise. Give me a few more novels, maybe I'll figure out what it is precisely ;)
@ Tanya - let us know what you think of State of Wonder- I loved Bel Canto.
@ Hilary - have you tried Cats Cradle - it was my first Vonnegut and I was very impressed - a uniquely cynical, blackly comic book about the end of the world.
@ Hilary - have you tried Cats Cradle - it was my first Vonnegut and I was very impressed - a uniquely cynical, blackly comic book about the end of the world.
@Lee. I haven't read anything by him before, I don't know where I got the idea he wrote SF, unless he DOES write SF And this is the exception. I'm off to google him!
@ Antipodes - are you a Hemingway fan? I ask this not only because my husband thinks you look like him :0) but also because Hilary was reading For Whom the Bell Tolls a few months ago and, from what I remember, everyone who expressed an opinion rather disliked him. I've only read a couple of his short stories and I don't know if I made an unlucky choice but they seemed so unpleasantly sexist that I made a solemn vow to never read him again.
@Lee - No, I have never read any of his work. This year Faulkner, perhaps next year Hemingway, unless we do one for Boxall's first. I really don't know a lot about him or his work. I don't know a lot about Faulkner either. Have you all ever considered author biographical groupreads?
That's a good idea for when we get a bit bigger - it's also reminded me that my original intention for author of the month was to include biographies and novels featuring the author in my suggested reading list - I must try and remember for next time.
I just started Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Although I am very curious to know what is going to happen, so far I am not as intrigued as most people appear to be by this novel.
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Also think the author biography thing is a good idea - one of my aims for this year is to read more biography's of people I'm interested in.
I'm currently reading All Over But the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg which I'm really enjoying and A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore which I'm not far enough into to tell yet.
I'm reading Stoner, which is the march read for my reading group. another beautifully written book with characters trapped in desperately sad lives. I could do with something a bit lighter next!
I'll read this one in April, I am really looking forward to it!
I Read Therefore I Am
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I have just started The Collected Stories by Eudora Welty.