February: "Briefing for a Descent into Hell" by Doris Lessing

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

For discussions concerning February's book of the month Briefing for a Descent into Hell by Doris Lessing.

[Amanda]

I will have to say i am on page 20 or so and its pretty confusing to keep up with all this persons rambling.

[Amanda]

Yeah i think i should have mad that decision to not read it but i am going to try and work my way through it. Alrough my TBR pile is growing higher and higher. So i dont want to waste to much time on this book right now when i have so many others i would like to read. I too am reading Good Omens for Booksamonth. I started commenting in Booksamonth. Maybe decide on a second read for here. Its a thought.

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

Amanda wrote: "Yeah i think i should have made that decision to not read it but i am going to try and work my way through it..."

I should be posting a secondary read for Cafe Libri members tomorrow since it seems like a lot of members aren't reading Briefing for a Descent into Hell. I know that Jeffrey is trying to make his way through it.

If you have a title you want to suggest as an additional read, let me know, Amanda! I was just going to pick one randomly from a member's future reading list. :)

[Amanda]

I think a secondary read for Cafe Libri would be a good idea. I seem not to be able to read these two books for the life of me Good Omens and Briefing for a desent into hell. I am trying my best though.

I have a lot of suggestions but picking one at random sounds great to me.

[Catherine]

I was going to try to read it but have not yet obtained a copy -- seems to be hard to find. Maybe I'll wait and see what you pick for a secondary read.

[Amanda]

I didnt ask this earlier but is it a specific theme for the month?

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

It looks like we are all having troubles getting the book of the month, lol. I'm at the library looking now. As for a theme, nope, no theme this month. I did decide to pick a love or friendship themed title for February as the secondary read. I'm going to browse the Cafe Libri Website now to pick something at random. I'll confirm that it's in my library system at least before I send out the announcement to everyone else.

Thanks for the patience!

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

Update:

I was able to request a copy of Briefing for a Descent into Hell and Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch from my local library. They are coming in via interlibrary loan. I'm not sure how long that will take.

I hope others are able to get one or both of these titles to discuss. We can always put Briefing for a Descent into Hell back on a re-read list for Cafe Libri if members want. I'll mention this option in the Yahoo group and see what people think.

In the meantime, I picked a secondary read for us:

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/4...

Hope everyone likes the choice!

[Jeffrey]

The book has developed a more traditional, narrative style after the landing on the coast, climbing the escarpment and discovering the ruined stone city. I'm now in the 60's with the clearing of the presumably enchanted circle in the plaza. I'm beginning to get interested.

[Donna]

I'm past this point and I'm thinking that he has come across the incas or aztec ruins...

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

I just got this book from the library today. Hoping to jump into the discussion soon!

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

I couldn't find discussion questions for "Briefing for a Descent into Hell." So, I'm using the generic ones. If anyone can find some specific questions, post them at will:

1. What is the book about?

2. What are the main events of the book?

3. What did you like about this book?

4. What did you dislike about this book?

5. What is the setting of the book, and how does it add to the book?

6. Who are the main characters in the book?

7. Who is your favorite character?

8. Who is your least favorite character?

9. What did you not understand about this book?

10. Does this book have any special meaning to your personal life?

11. What is the theme (moral) of the book? Are there any significant motifs or allusions (biblical, mythical, etc.)?

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

What are some genre or book-shelf tags I should add to this book on the group's shelf? Since I didn't read it, I wanted to get the opinions from others. Thanks!

[Catherine]

My copy of the book via ILL arrived today -- a mere six weeks after I requested it. Still a great service and I'm thankful my library provides it. I know the discussion is officially over but I don't see that any members of the group have marked it as "Read" or even "Currently Reading" on GR. Anybody still reading it? Jeffrey, Donna, Adrianna, Amanda? I hope to start in the next couple days.

[Amanda]

No i quit it was to hard for me to get with the first 20 pages so it didnt interest me much so i put it down and moved on. I hate giving up on books but this one was just not my cup of tea. Good luck with it though.

[Jeffrey]

I'm just finishing. It becomes a very different book if the reader stays with it. After about 1/3 through it began to capture my interest and after the mid point it grew. I'm toward the end of what seems like a long digression and haven't gotten to the point of it yet. I'll post on the e-mail list this weekend when I may be finished. It is a bit trying that it takes so long to create interest and I still only have a conjecture as to the author's intent. But I still have some pages to go.

[Catherine]

Page 40 - Won't worry about spoilers since it sounds like everyone following this discussion has either stopped reading or is almost done. Right off it reminded me of two books:

1- Life of Pi although Pi is actually adrift instead of just thinking he is and that book has 100+ chapters as opposed to no chapter breaks, at least that I've seen so far.

2- The Idiot which I'm currently reading also. Fyodor Dostoyevsky is into internal mental distress in both this and Crime and Punishment, but not to the exclusion of all else -- except the Dr. and Nurse notes, which I find myself looking forward to in order to escape from the mind of Jason/Jonah/protagonist.

I liked the Rachel Carson quote at the beginning about the minuscule world of sand grains and think about how it perhaps relates to the distressed inner world of this character's mind.

The only other Doris Lessing book I've read is, Memoirs of a Survivor and that was in 1981, so I'm unable to compare this with any of her other books.

[Amanda]

When i first started reading the book the ramble sounded like it was a metaphor for life. Like how life can be like an ocean and being stuck out there and things pulling you in and big monsters and stuff.

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

Catherine wrote: "My copy of the book via ILL arrived today -- a mere six weeks after I requested it. Still a great service and I'm thankful my library provides it. I know the discussion is officially over but I d..."

I haven't gotten back to this title. I'm not sure when I will, either. I'm playing catch-up with some reviews of 5+ titles that I've finished.

Are you enjoying it so far, Catherine? It looks like Jeffrey is reading it still.

[Catherine]

Adrianna wrote: "Are you enjoying it so far, Catherine? It looks like Jeffrey is reading it still...."

Page 202 - Not sure if "enjoy" is the appropriate word -- this is not a "fun" book, but I'm intrigued enough to keep pushing toward the end of this book's journey into my mind. Here are my thoughts at this point.

A difficult read, as if the author is testing the reader, putting up barriers and blockades as diversions from the true subject matter which is buried deep inside the protagonists head and we're on a long and arduous journey to unveil the truth about the secrets of life.

There are two very different levels of narrative, in the reality level the patient/protagonist has been admitted to the hospital with amnesia. But reality is evidently the hell from which he is trying to escape into the better and less corrupt world of the other narrative level, his inner self, -- a rejection of conformity which is thwarted by the hospital personnel who have conflicting views about making him healthy.

I'm not a big fan of psychological dramas, but Lessing seems to have sucked me into this inner world, if only to find out how she is going to resolved the character's situation. The multiple realities and the vague connections between them add to the confusion as well as to the depth of this novel.

I like a quote on page 184, "Sometimes when you read a book or story, the words are dead, you struggle to end it or put it down, your attention is distracted. Another time, with exactly the same book or story, it is full of meaning, every sentence or phrase or even word seems to vibrate with messages and ideas, reading is like being pumped full of adrenalin."

[Catherine]

The last part of the book went quickly. Most of my review is a slight revision of what I wrote above, but I did read some critiques, here's a summary:

Other reviews/critiques I found helpful:   Platonic Idealism, the concept of reality, and Sufi philosophy are discussed in Lessing's Engagement with Platonic Idealism in Briefing for a Descent into Hell.  A comparison of 'Briefing' with Lessing's other works in Doris Lessing's Briefing as Structural Life and Death.  And Borderline Fantasies: The Two Worlds of Briefing for a Descent into Hell, is a great overview and discusses the book in depth, including Dr. Y's theory that the amnesia is a form of self-therapy.

[Adrianna, Owner of Cafe Libri]

Catherine wrote: "Page 202 - Not sure if "enjoy" is the appropriate word -- this is not a "fun" book, but I'm i..."

I like how you described your reading of this book, lol. Definitely sounds like a deep read, probably a favorite for academic enthusiasts. The critiques and articles you found sound especially useful. Feel free to share any of the links in our Yahoo group here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/cafelib...

We've already submitted an interview with Lessing in there, but if you found any of these critiques useful, it might be nice to save them for further research and use when other members decide to tackle this one.