What are you currently reading?

[ritter]

For some strange reason, Amazon.es was (and still is) offering this volume of the Complete Works of W.H. Auden (volume III of the complete prose, 600 pages covering the years 1946 to 1955) at a deeply discounted price. I grabbed the opportunity, and have been reading some short essays or reviews (on Cocteau, on Colette, or a very sympathetic and insightful appraisal of Cav & Pag, of all things) and finding them really enjoyable.



The "big" essay included in this tome is The Enchafèd Flood, which deals with romanticism and its relation to the sea. This will have to wait, though, as I am still halfway through Robert Antelme's L'Espèce humaine (see my previous post in this thread), which is harrowing but superbly written.

[Number Six]

The Giants of the Polo Grounds - Noel Hynd

Continuing this one, among other books. The first segment covers the history of major league baseball, not just the Giants. I am up to the mid 1890s, and I have found it entertaining and informative because I know so little about this era. (okay, pretty much nothing)

[hopefullytrusting]

Frolov's Dictionary of Philosophy:



This is a Soviet dictionary, and being a materialist myself, I find it a lot more aligned with me than the "American" ones (Cambridge, Oxford, Penguin, Stanford, etc.).

[T. D.]

I'll be very interested to hear what you think of that book. Lumumba is a figure I find fascinating, and his story intersects with a lot of other moments in history that are, equally fascinating.

I saw Soundtrack To A Coup d'etat in a film festival a few months ago. Its not just good but brilliant. Even if you're feeling a bit under the weather that day don't miss it.


This reminds me that I've still got this recent book waiting to be read:



Will need to move it near the top of the pile

It (The Lumumba Plot) is very good indeed, albeit a thick book and long read. Strongly recommended.
The whole affair was extremely complex (or maybe chaotic) and unclear. As one might expect, there are no obvious conclusions. Excellent research involved. The ...CIA... subtitle is clickbait to some extent, as the CIA's history is full of surreal bungling and the Congo was no exception...the Agency did plot to kill Lumumba, but the explicit plans never came to fruition. However, they did tip Lumumba's enemies off to certain travel plans, which directly led to his death. OTOH, the whole Congo situation was so shambolic that Lumumba might have been doomed anyway.

Sadly, due to a snowstorm I had to miss Soundtrack To A Coup d'etat, which was showing for just one night. Hope to get another chance.

May follow up with the other book you mentioned. I was rather surprised (having read Spies in the Congo) that Reid, in his last chapter wrap-up, downplays the importance of the Congo's natural resources to the USA.

[AnotherSpin]

Frolov's Dictionary of Philosophy:

This is a Soviet dictionary, and being a materialist myself, I find it a lot more aligned with me than the "American" ones (Cambridge, Oxford, Penguin, Stanford, etc.).

Materialism wanes with age, and cases of extreme exacerbation are mostly curable.

By the way, Frolov was a rather remarkable figure. A member of the Politburo of the Communist Party Central Committee, chief editor of the newspaper Pravda. He served as Gorbachev's advisor on ideology, and it was likely under his influence that Gorbachev became obsessed with the idea of returning to "true" Marxism and reforming socialism in the USSR to give it a "human" face.

[hopefullytrusting]

Materialism wanes with age, and cases of extreme exacerbation are mostly curable.

Mine has only grown stronger with age.

[AnotherSpin]

Selected Passages from Correspondence with Friends by Nicolai Gogol, original.

Gogol's famous last text reflecting the writer's mood in the last period of his life. Published after Gogol destroyed the second volume of Dead Souls and effectively abandoned his earlier work. Angry, complex book, which was opposed by virtually everyone, both left and right. A strong rejection of education, progress, democracy and other Western ideas, while exalting tsarist power and the orthodox church. The Russophile political fundamentalism Gogol expressed here could be the envy of Solzhenitsyn or Dugin. Putin, if only he were literate, would probably marvel at many of the ideas in Selected Passages. Curiously, Dostoevsky was sent to Siberia's katorga for discussing Belinsky's response to Gogol.

A difficult read, but very intriguing. Valuable perspective in understanding the Russian idea up to the present day.

Finished reading, and the impression is deeply complex. Gogol's dense, thoroughly reactionary Russophilism and obscurantism provoke either revulsion or, at the very least, bewilderment. His persistent logical contradictions and his inability to distinguish between an imagined ideal and a starkly opposing reality are striking. Yet, despite this, it was impossible to simply put the book aside.

Afterward, I revisited Belinsky's famous response and Nabokov's essay on Gogol. Both make similar points: Gogol's letters carried a sanctimonious tone, bordering on self-parody. Grandiose, pious plans for his friends were mixed with tedious and trivial instructions. Those who received his epistles from Rome, Dresden or Baden-Baden must have wondered if he had gone mad or was just mocking them.

Nabokov diverges slightly from Belinsky, suggesting that this might all have been a grand joke or a deeply sarcastic critique perhaps aimed at his contemporaries, or at future readers unwittingly wandering into the bizarre, phantasmagoric world of late Gogol.

And yet, the aftertaste is strangely positive. There's something indescribable here, a peculiar light breaking through the grotesque clutter and grim cobwebs of his writing. It's a rare and valuable case where disagreeing with an author like Gogol feels more rewarding than agreeing with someone else. I think I'll delve into more of his lesser-known works.

[Florestan]

hat this might all have been a grand joke or a deeply sarcastic critique

The same ambiguity hovers over Taras Bulba. Is it a paean to the Cossack lifestyle and values or a deeply sarcastic critique thereof?

[T. D.]

I haven't read the (Gogol's) late correspondences, but I've always treasured V. Nabokov's essay (published in USA by New Directions). Neither could I ever figure out Taras Bulba.

My conclusion re. Gogol is that he was mentally unhinged to a significant degree, making it impossible for me to logically deduce his motivations, underlying principles, etc. [Not that I could claim to make such deductions for sane authors.  ]

[AnotherSpin]

I haven't read the (Gogol's) late correspondences, but I've always treasured V. Nabokov's essay (published in USA by New Directions). Neither could I ever figure out Taras Bulba.

My conclusion re. Gogol is that he was mentally unhinged to a significant degree, making it impossible for me to logically deduce his motivations, underlying principles, etc. [Not that I could claim to make such deductions for sane authors.  ]

If we take Selected Passages from Correspondence with Friends on its own, it's no longer just a matter of mental instability but complete madness rooted in the idea of Russia's greatness — standing alone against a hostile West dreaming of seizing its wealth. This is especially evident today in the mindset of the Russian authorities and the overwhelming majority of the population. However, with Gogol, things are not so straightforward, which I tried to convey in the post above. One way or another, beyond Russophilia, there is something much more significant and genuine, though well-disguised and not visible on the surface. I'm not sure that Nabokov, in his overall brilliant essay, touched this.

As for Taras Bulba, I have nothing to say, I haven't read it, nor some of Gogol's other early works. The folkloric-culinary portrayal of Ukraine has never appealed to me.

Added: I realized that I've never read Nabokov's essay on Gogol in the original English, only in its Russian translation. Considering that the translation was done and published back in the USSR, perhaps I should read the original.

[SimonNZ]

It (The Lumumba Plot) is very good indeed, albeit a thick book and long read. Strongly recommended.
The whole affair was extremely complex (or maybe chaotic) and unclear. As one might expect, there are no obvious conclusions. Excellent research involved. The ...CIA... subtitle is clickbait to some extent, as the CIA's history is full of surreal bungling and the Congo was no exception...the Agency did plot to kill Lumumba, but the explicit plans never came to fruition. However, they did tip Lumumba's enemies off to certain travel plans, which directly led to his death. OTOH, the whole Congo situation was so shambolic that Lumumba might have been doomed anyway.

Sadly, due to a snowstorm I had to miss Soundtrack To A Coup d'etat, which was showing for just one night. Hope to get another chance.

May follow up with the other book you mentioned. I was rather surprised (having read Spies in the Congo) that Reid, in his last chapter wrap-up, downplays the importance of the Congo's natural resources to the USA.

Thanks for that.

I believe Soundtrack To a Coup d'etat is available on Kanopy, which many library services offer to cardholders.

[AnotherSpin]

Amazing book -- need a kind of refreshment after Gogol/Nabokov.

[Spotted Horses]

In the Time of the Angels, Iris Murdoch



Iris Murdoch is a favorite author of mine. This book involves Carel, a priest who has abandoned his faith, and who is in charge of a parish church in London that was destroyed mostly destroyed by bombing in the Second World War. There is philosophizing from his brother Marcus, who wants to justify the idea of morality in the absence of belief in god. But it is belied by shocking events that occur in and around Carel's household involving his daughter, niece, and the Russian refugee who tends to the building grounds.

[relm1]

I'm reading 1177 BC Civilization Collapsed.  Apparently, history is full of times that sucked.

[Cato]

I know some of you have read this book, when it was published in three smaller volumes, and I thank you again for your support!

The story has now been reissued in one volume: please consider buying this as a Christmas present.

If you have not read the book, please consider doing so!   

From a 5-star review:

I found it very appealing that the self-appointed detective in this unusual murder mystery is a 14-year-old high school freshman, and maybe that is because I am raising a 14-year-old right now.

This age group can be brilliantly observant and annoyingly dense at the same time, but then again, they probably say the same thing about parents and teachers. The author understands high schools and those who populate them very well.

The story holds many surprises and insights. I loved the many zingers and the philosophizing. (A quotation from the book): "Not knowing how the story ends, not knowing how your life is part of that story: that's the worst thing about life..."

Indeed. A clever page-turner.

A Diary Found at Lynchburg

[SimonNZ]

Needing something a little lighter read this noir which the George Clooney film The American is based on. As with the film the novel is considerably more subtle and fresh than the genre often allows.

Started two books on East Germany:



Garton Ash got access to his Stasi file in the 90s and interviews former supposed friends and acquaintances who informed on him during his time there as a foreign correspondent.

[Cato]

A reminder as Christmas is one week away!

I know some of you have read this book, when it was published in three smaller volumes, and I thank you again for your support!

The story has now been reissued in one volume: please consider buying this as a Christmas present.

If you have not read the book, please consider doing so!   

From a 5-star review:

I found it very appealing that the self-appointed detective in this unusual murder mystery is a 14-year-old high school freshman, and maybe that is because I am raising a 14-year-old right now.

This age group can be brilliantly observant and annoyingly dense at the same time, but then again, they probably say the same thing about parents and teachers. The author understands high schools and those who populate them very well.

The story holds many surprises and insights. I loved the many zingers and the philosophizing.

(A quotation from the book): "Not knowing how the story ends, not knowing how your life is part of that story: that's the worst thing about life..."

Indeed. A clever page-turner.

A Diary Found at Lynchburg

[LKB]

By way of the Internet Archive, I'm currently enjoying the first edition of Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

[Ganondorf]

My journey with Proust's la recherche is nearing it's end. Just started the last volume, Time Regained.

I have so far rather mixed feelings. The prose is at times gorgeous, but more often than not rather tedious and banal. I also find the narrator one of the most narcissistic and selfcentered ones in all of literature. I'm not sure if Proust intended the narrator to be so but in any case his pangs of conscience about practically holding Albertine prisoner are almost non-existent so far. If Proust is going to attempt some sort of redemption arc for him I think it's too late and that the right place for the narrator is either in madhouse or prison.

However, and this is a rather big however, I don't know French and I've heard that his prose in original French is magical. However, I am not really in the mood to start learning French. But there are other great qualities than merely superficial aesthetics. One of the biggest problems about this book is the fact that constant theme in the book is that you can never know truly the other person and that with each passing second he/she is created anew. It is a problem because the main character constantly at the same time pretends he knows everyone's thoughts and motivations. If this disparity is meant as ironic contrast the effect is not a pleasant one because it instead makes me want to punch the main character in the face for his conceit

Ok, rant over.

[Mandryka]

My journey with Proust's la recherche is nearing it's end. Just started the last volume, Time Regained.

I have so far rather mixed feelings. The prose is at times gorgeous, but more often than not rather tedious and banal. I also find the narrator one of the most narcissistic and selfcentered ones in all of literature. I'm not sure if Proust intended the narrator to be so but in any case his pangs of conscience about practically holding Albertine prisoner are almost non-existent so far. If Proust is going to attempt some sort of redemption arc for him I think it's too late and that the right place for the narrator is either in madhouse or prison.

However, and this is a rather big however, I don't know French and I've heard that his prose in original French is magical. However, I am not really in the mood to start learning French. But there are other great qualities than merely superficial aesthetics. One of the biggest problems about this book is the fact that constant theme in the book is that you can never know truly the other person and that with each passing second he/she is created anew. It is a problem because the main character constantly at the same time pretends he knows everyone's thoughts and motivations. If this disparity is meant as ironic contrast the effect is not a pleasant one because it instead makes me want to punch the main character in the face for his conceit

Ok, rant over.

For me the novels are too bourgeois -- petty tales about rows among gay men and women from la haute bourgeoisie. Honestly, who cares whether Morrel loves Charlus, or whether Albertine was with Gilberte when Marcel brought her a bunch of lilacs. Also I think the more you try to make sense of his ideas about time and beauty, the more you realise that they are probably a bit half baked. And there are real longueurs -- all that verbiage about strategy and diplomacy and the etymology of place names. I'm not interested much in Dreyfus. 

However, I think there are parts which are memorably funny (e.g.  Morrel pretending to have algebra lessons and that doctor who says that Albertine must be a lesbian because her breasts are stiff when she's dancing with another woman), and I think there are lots of memorable scenes and ideas  (the young girls in Balbec, the comparison of men cruising to insects gathering nectar in a garden, the banquet where everyone knows that Charlus is gay (as if it wasn't  obvious already!) just by the way he says "I'll have an apple juice", the dinner which Marcel has with Bloch when he reflects about why the messy table of empty dishes isn't a work of art  etc etc.)

As far as language is concerned -- the French is indeed impresive, and I'm not even a native speaker. Musical, and somehow very natural to read. It's a bit highfalutin though, not the language of the people. Give me Celine any day.