What are you currently reading?

[Brian]

   On the Trollope, I am surprised you're a fan. I gave him a try, and just couldn't get into him. I love Dickens, and did my doctoral diss on 18th century British lit, so you you'd think he'd be in my wheelhouse, if not made to order for me. I'll have to give him another shot...

Almost done with Can You Forgive Her? now and my enthusiasm has waned a little bit but not a lot.

He is a witty and genial presence as a narrator, somewhat flippant about the seriousness of his story but in an endearing way. (Not an ironic detachment way.) He is insightful about human nature and human flaws. His plots, unlike Dickens', grow organically and are less reliant on surprise coincidences and twists. Both are predictable, in a way; you can always expect a minor Dickens character to come back at the end, and Trollope's characters basically either make the right choice, or make the wrong one.

The prose of both is admirable but imperfect. I love Dickens in full flight, but at times he is clearly padding his word count. Trollope is more straightforward, for better and worse: the highs aren't as high and I don't think there's a single passage I'd describe as being really amazingly written, but the overall reading experience is pleasant. It's kind of like a good thriller novel writer transposed into the Victorian era.

In this book particularly the treatment of female characters and women's rights issues are notable. Even when Trollope hits the limits of his sympathy, it's interesting to see where the limit is. The major flaw of the book is that its plot revolves around a woman trying to decide between two potential husbands and waffling back and forth, but she has basically no character outside of that choice - she doesn't do much else, have hobbies, make witty conversation, etc. At the time, critics apparently nicknamed the book Can You Stand Her?  Interestingly, her dilemma is mirrored in the fates of two other women who are supporting characters and who are much more lively, entertaining, and cheerworthy.

[SonicMan46]

Unsettled Land (2022) by Sam W. Haynes - sweeping history of Texas from the 1820s, through the 9 years or so of the 'Texas Republic' to statehood in the USA in 1845 - brief summary below.  Recommended to those who are fans of the Lone Star State - I've made over a half dozen visits in previous decades, mostly to San Antonio, location of the Alamo.

Blood and Thunder (2007) by Hampton Sides - epic his of Kit Carson and the American 'conquest' of the West - intermittently covers Carson's life from the late 1820s when he migrated from Missouri to the Santa Fe region to the time of his death in 1868 - summary in second quote - intertwined are stories of many others involved in this James Polk land grab, such as Stephen Kearny, John C. Fremont, and James K. Polk to mention just a few.  Excellent book and highly recommended, again to those with an interest in the topic.  Dave

The Texas Revolution has long been cast as an epic episode in the origins of the American West. As the story goes, larger-than-life figures like Sam Houston, David Crockett, and William Barret Travis fought to free Texas from repressive Mexican rule. In Unsettled Land, historian Sam Haynes reveals the reality beneath this powerful creation myth. He shows how the lives of ordinary people—white Americans, Mexicans, Native Americans, and those of African descent—were upended by extraordinary events over twenty-five years. After the battle of San Jacinto, racial lines snapped taut as a new nation, the Lone Star republic, sought to expel Indians, marginalize Mexicans, and tighten its grip on the enslaved. (Source)

In the summer of 1846, the Army of the West marched through Santa Fe, en route to invade and occupy the Western territories claimed by Mexico. Fueled by the new ideology of "Manifest Destiny," this land grab would lead to a decades-long battle between the United States and the Navajos, the fiercely resistant rulers of a huge swath of mountainous desert wilderness. At the center of this sweeping tale is Kit Carson, the trapper, scout, and soldier whose adventures made him a legend. Sides shows us how this illiterate mountain man understood and respected the Western tribes better than any other American, yet willingly followed orders that would ultimately devastate the Navajo nation. Rich in detail and spanning more than three decades, this is an essential addition to our understanding of how the West was really won. (Source)

 

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

I dipped into the above again and read a short story called Yesterday (the title referencing the fact that a character in the book invents a nonsense rhyme in a Japanese dialect to fit the tune, and sings it in the bath).
A beautifully written story, which I'm mentioning mainly because I'm just amazed at how easy Murakami's prose is to read! It's so transparent, it almost reads itself! I'm not sure I've experienced anything else quite like it. I'm very curious if it reads so naturally in the original in Japanese
My feeling may be coloured by the fact that I recently read the 900 page David Copperfield in which I had to park up almost every 5 minutes to admire the view. Wonderful though that was, the contrast with Murakami could hardly be greater.

Yes, it does.

[JBS]

Re Trollope: there's a reason Barchester Towers remains a favorite Victorian novel.

It's sort of like  the love child of Jane Austen and Charles Dickens

[Mandryka]

The language is just so beautiful. Forget about the the characters, the narrative construction, the ideas etc. The linguistic style is astonishing. I've only had this response before to one other work - and that was in English and more than a century older: Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur.

[SimonNZ]

Adding these to the mix:




and surprised at how quickly I got through vol.2 of Caro's LBJ - an unexpected but genuine page turner

[Iota]

Yes, it does.

Thanks, that's good to know. I guess if I could master Japanese the same way Kitaru does the Kansai dialect in the story, I could find out for myself ..

[Spotted Horses]

The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, Maggie O'Farrell



Iris is a young woman who runs a shop specializing in used and vintage clothing. One day she gets a mysterious letter, then a phone call referencing Esme Lennox, who turns out to be her great aunt, her Grandmother Kitty's sister, who has been confined to a mental hospital for more than 60 years. Iris goes to the mental hospital, which is shutting down, when plans to transfer her to a hostel fall through, she ends up hosting Esme at her flat. Esme has the surreal experience of seeing the places where her early life unfolded more than 60 years earlier. The story of Esme's confinement is told in the present by Iris, and by Esme, in flashbacks to Esme's childhood, and in the semi-coherent thoughts of Kitty, who now suffers Alzheimer's disease. A compelling book.

[vers la flamme]

Thanks, that's good to know. I guess if I could master Japanese the same way Kitaru does the Kansai dialect in the story, I could find out for myself ..

I loved that story too.

[Spotted Horses]

Simply an extraordinary work - You can sense Ellison really stretching himself.

Having re-read The Invisible Man I resolved to read Ellison's unfinished second novel, which is said to have existed in a 2,000 page unfinished draft. But it is available in two forms, "Juneteenth" (an edited and condensed version) and "Three Days Before the Shooting," which is said to be more complete. What is your perspective?

[JBS]

You will want to read Three Days Before the Shooting which is not just the complete manuscript, but also contains a wealth of material especially as it regards the editing process. It is not simply a feat fictionally but also academically. The editing process reminds me of O Lost (the restoration) versus Look Homeward, Angel (the "abridged"). It is an extremely worthwhile book, and one which I find more impressive than The Invisible Man, but that is because it plays a bit more toward my predilections. Ellison is much more daring in Three Days.

Welcome back!

[DavidW]

So many twists and turns.  It is a real chunker, but George uses the length well to develop all of the characters and their relationship well.  There is more complexity and character depth than you would find in shorter mysteries.

[Spotted Horses]

Welcome back!

+1

I hope your sojourn here will be longer this time.

[LKB]

Last night l started the first pass at James Hornfischer's final major work, Who can hold the Sea.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus: Meditations.

[Ganondorf]

Started reading these two in library today:







However didn't actually borrow them as I have currently a little too many books borrowed.

I finished the first 2 chapters of L'assommoir and the first chapter of book 1 in This Side of Paradise.

[aligreto]

Joyce: Ulysses





I have, at last, finally completed reading this opus after at least three attempts to do so.
There are very many appreciations written about this book. I understand its importance as far as the form of The Novel is concerned. One only has to read it to discover how radical it was particularly for its time. I really like and appreciate Joyce's use of words and especially his play on words, being a fellow Dubliner.
However, this was a difficult read for me. It takes stamina to read one's way to the end. It took me three months to get through it without reading anything else concurrently.
In one sense I genuinely do not understand the universal appeal of this book. There are so many specific references to the colloquial essence of a particular place in time [Dublin], particular historical events and persons [in Ireland], colloquial expressions of speech and the manner of local personal inter-reactions that I find it difficult to comprehend how well it appears to have travelled. I wonder how much of it is really comprehended and understood? On the other hand I realise that its appeal can also be universal in the sense that the events, or similar, could have happened in any other European capital city even if the pervading historical background was different.
I must humbly confess that I did not understand or follow large tracts of the prose, particularly when I was presented with some paragraphs that went on for up to two or more pages in length, and sometimes more. There was also that extended "Play" in the novel. What on earth was that about?
Make no doubt about it, this is not an easy read. For me, as a result, this was also not an inspirational read. It was tough going throughout and I sometimes had to force myself to pick up the book again and continue. However, I am very pleased that I have eventually completed reading this epic tome.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Joyce: Ulysses





I have, at last, finally completed reading this opus after at least three attempts to do so.
There are very many appreciations written about this book. I understand its importance as far as the form of The Novel is concerned. One only has to read it to discover how radical it was particularly for its time. I really like and appreciate Joyce's use of words and especially his play on words, being a fellow Dubliner.
However, this was a difficult read for me. It takes stamina to read one's way to the end. It took me three months to get through it without reading anything else concurrently.
In one sense I genuinely do not understand the universal appeal of this book. There are so many specific references to the colloquial essence of a particular place in time [Dublin], particular historical events and persons [in Ireland], colloquial expressions of speech and the manner of local personal inter-reactions that I find it difficult to comprehend how well it appears to have travelled. I wonder how much of it is really comprehended and understood? On the other hand I realise that its appeal can also be universal in the sense that the events, or similar, could have happened in any other European capital city even if the pervading historical background was different.
I must humbly confess that I did not understand or follow large tracts of the prose, particularly when I was presented with some paragraphs that went on for up to two or more pages in length, and sometimes more. There was also that extended "Play" in the novel. What on earth was that about?
Make no doubt about it, this is not an easy read. For me, as a result, this was also not an inspirational read. It was tough going throughout and I sometimes had to force myself to pick up the book again and continue. However, I am very pleased that I have eventually completed reading this epic tome.

Welcome back, Fergus!
Yes, it seems to me, Ulysses is not an easy read. I don't know when I will start reading it. Still, it is a best seller book on Amazon USA and it is recommended by Amazon.  I like Dubliners since I read it first time when I was a high-school student.

[JBS]

Joyce: Ulysses





I have, at last, finally completed reading this opus after at least three attempts to do so.
There are very many appreciations written about this book. I understand its importance as far as the form of The Novel is concerned. One only has to read it to discover how radical it was particularly for its time. I really like and appreciate Joyce's use of words and especially his play on words, being a fellow Dubliner.
However, this was a difficult read for me. It takes stamina to read one's way to the end. It took me three months to get through it without reading anything else concurrently.
In one sense I genuinely do not understand the universal appeal of this book. There are so many specific references to the colloquial essence of a particular place in time [Dublin], particular historical events and persons [in Ireland], colloquial expressions of speech and the manner of local personal inter-reactions that I find it difficult to comprehend how well it appears to have travelled. I wonder how much of it is really comprehended and understood? On the other hand I realise that its appeal can also be universal in the sense that the events, or similar, could have happened in any other European capital city even if the pervading historical background was different.
I must humbly confess that I did not understand or follow large tracts of the prose, particularly when I was presented with some paragraphs that went on for up to two or more pages in length, and sometimes more. There was also that extended "Play" in the novel. What on earth was that about?
Make no doubt about it, this is not an easy read. For me, as a result, this was also not an inspirational read. It was tough going throughout and I sometimes had to force myself to pick up the book again and continue. However, I am very pleased that I have eventually completed reading this epic tome.

Then you're ready to read Finnegan's Wake....might need only a decade or so to finish it.

I've have Ulysses in my bookcase for 30 years, but have never gotten past the opening. FW I've at least read the first hundred or so pages.

From my college courses, I have the impression that part of Ulysses's fame was due to it being a pioneer work in using stream of conciousness--and FW being a logical next step, stream of subconciousness (since its surface layer is presented as one man's night long dream).

[Jo498]

It's been a long time and it was in translation and I had some commentary/guide book but I made it through Ulysses in my early 20s. There were some passages that I found just irritating or hardly comprehensible, even with a commentary, others are entertaining or immersive or both. Also, the "matching" of episodes to episodes from Homer is sometimes a bit silly (e.g. the Cyclops is paralleled by someone throwing something after Bloom)
I am not sure about translation quality but if one likes the  "many-voiced" style in a more manageable and less difficult way, I'd recommend Döblin: Berlin Alexanderplatz, basically a novel of 1920s Berlin, incl. its seedy underbelly.