Eliz_M searches for the Ultimate Question

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Eliz_M searches for the Ultimate Question

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1ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 21, 2017, 9:56 pm

In real life I generally go by Liz. I am still a relative new member of Club Read; this will be my third year. I keep up with most of your threads, although I rarely comment. I am delighted to have found so many individuals with wide-ranging reading habits and writers of thoughtful reviews!

I currently live in Brooklyn -- been there long enough to call myself a New Yorker -- but I grew up and attended college in MN and still consider myself a Midwesterner at heart. I moved out East for grad school and now I work at a performing arts venue in a logistics/management capacity. Sundays are usually reserved for cooking a week's worth of food and I also bake cookies as a way to relax. Lately I have been spending a fair amount of free time at the Met Museum (I'm trying to visit every room -- there are 492 of them), and will post images of the favorite object from each room.

. .

Hortensia by Fernand Khnopff
an unknown sculpture at Ground for Sculpture
The Artist's Wife by Albert Bartholomé

Obviously, I love reading. I have been working my way through the 1001 list for many years but also, thanks to Club Read and my book club, read quite a few other classics and contemporary literary novels as well. I don't particularly enjoy writing and am perpetually behind on reviews in my thread, but I appreciate having a space and a reason to mull over what I've read rather than mindlessly moving on to the next book.

Here is my thread for the first half of 2017.

2ELiz_M
Modifié : Nov 27, 2017, 9:25 pm

Currently Reading:

LT adds to the TBR:
The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt (recommended by The_Hibernator)
Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit (recommended by RidgewayGirl)
Shrill by Lindy West (recommended by Bragan)
Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay (recommended by wandering_star)

3ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 8, 2017, 1:33 pm

Half-point stats:

Books read/listened: 30
paper/ebook: 29
total pages read: 10,087
ave. # pages: 348
audio: 1 (all my audio time is now reserved for podcasts!)

1001-list-books: 18/30 (60%)
Non-Straight-White-Male: 15 (50%)
In Translation: 19 (63%)
Non-fiction: 4

Pre-1800: 0
1800s: 3 (10%)
1900-1949: 4 (13%)
1950-1999: 15 (50%)
2000s: 8 (27%)

Libe books: 10 (33.3%)
Owned-pre-2017: 17 (56.7%)
Bought & read: 3 (10%)

Bought-2017: 30

4ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 8, 2017, 1:33 pm

2017 goals & projects:

Read more books from the owned-tbr than from other sources

At least 70% of books written by non white, straight men

At least 50% of 1001 list books

Read at least 10 non-fiction books

GR International Reading: Under the Yoke, Promise at Dawn, The Book of Ebenezer Le Page, The Return of Philip Latinowicz, An African in Greenland, Men of Maize, Beka Lamb

5ELiz_M
Modifié : Oct 9, 2017, 2:07 pm

Third Quarter Reading Ideas:

Extreme Reading:
Big Books: The First Circle* (580), Eline Vere* (523), At Swim, Two Boys* (562), Your Face Tomorrow, Volume 3: Poison, Shadow, and Farewell* (546), The Singapore Grip* (572)Doctor Faustus* (534), The Magus* (646), A Dance to the Music of Time: Second Movement (732), A Dance to the Music of Time: Third Movement (732), A Dance to the Music of Time: Fourth Movement (793), The Discovery of Heaven (730),

Baby Books: The Left-Handed Woman (49), Limassol (165), Matigari (148), Nausea* (178), The Invention of Morel* (103), Hill* (112), A Month in the Country* (135), The Member of the Wedding* (163), Pierre and Jean* (176), The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born* (183), The Garden of the Finzi-Continis* (200), Tyrant Banderas* (200), Play It As It Lays* (214), Young Törless* (217), Back (218), Spring Torrents* (239), The Last World* (246), Eugenie Grandet* (248)

RT Challenge: Matigari, Judas, The Fruits of the Earth, The Birds, The Song of Achilles, The Vegetarian, Inferno, Nausea, The Case Worker, Solitude, Fifth Business, Heartbreak Tango, Mohawk Trail, The Devil's Highway

1001-gaps: The Discovery of Heaven*, A Dance to the Music of Time*, Play It As It Lays*, 2001?, Promise at Dawn*, Homo Faber, Back*, The Castle* or Alberta and Jacob, Hadrian the Seventh* or The Way of All Flesh, Pierre and Jean*, Nana*, The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr*, Memoirs of Martinus Scriblerus, The Pilgrim's Progress*

July:
Real-life book club: n/a
GR Classic: Paradise Lost
GR AE (France, Monaco, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxumboug): Nausea*
LT 1001 Book: Charterhouse of Parma*

August:
Real-life book club: The Unwinding
GR Theme:
GR AE (Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar, Andorra): The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis, Fado Alexandrino, Baltasar and Blimunda, The Book of Disquiet, Marks of Identity, Compassion
LT 1001 Book: The Heart of the Matter

September:
Real-life book club: Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
GR Literary Prize: A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin
GR AE (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro): Bosnian Chronicle
LT 1001 Book: The Laws

Key:
strike through book linked - A book I read this year
strike through - A book I have read before and don't plan to reread
book linked - A book I am hoping to read for the relevant group/challenge/theme
book title - A book that I haven't read and currently don't plan to read
* - A book I own (paper copy)

6ELiz_M
Modifié : Nov 27, 2017, 9:47 pm

Fourth Quarter Reading Ideas:

Extreme Reading:
Big Books: A Dance to the Music of Time: Fourth Movement* (793), The Discovery of Heaven* (730), The Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll* (700), Lost Illusions* (682), The Book of Disquiet* (608), Ada, or, Ardor* (606)

Baby Books: The Invention of Morel* (103), Hill* (112), A Month in the Country* (135), The Member of the Wedding* (163), Tyrant Banderas* (200), Back (218), The Last World* (246)

1001-gaps: The Discovery of Heaven*, A Dance to the Music of Time*, Play It As It Lays*, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Promise at Dawn*, Homo Faber, Back*, The Castle*, Hadrian the Seventh* or The Way of All Flesh, Pierre and Jean*, The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr*, Memoirs of Martinus Scriblerus, The Pilgrim's Progress*

Bingo: 2001, The Good Soldier, Bebo's Girl

October:
Real-life book club: Upstream: Selected Essays
GR Non-fiction: Evicted
GR AE (Greece, Albania, Macedonia): Zorba the Greek, The Last Temptation of Christ, The Third Wedding, Z
LT 1001 Book: The Last World

November:
Real-life book club:
GR Classic: The Mandarins
GR AE (Italy, Malta, Vatican, San Marino): The Path to the Nest of Spiders, Contempt, The Time of Indifference, As a Man Grows Older, Bebo's Girl
LT 1001 Book: City of God

December:
Real-life book club:
GR Theme:
GR AE (Turkey, Cyprus, Armenia): The Green Hat?
LT 1001 Book:

Key:
strike through book linked - A book I read this year
strike through - A book I have read before and don't plan to reread
book linked - A book I am hoping to read for the relevant group/challenge/theme
book title - A book that I haven't read and currently don't plan to read
* - A book I own (paper copy)

7ELiz_M
Juil 15, 2017, 6:51 pm

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Inferno by Henri Barbusse, pub. 1908
Finished 7/1/2017

In this uneven debut novel, a man in a Parisian boarding house spies on the various inhabitants next door (witnessing an implausible combination of events -- first love, adultery, a birth, and a death) and philosophizes on human nature, and so on.

8ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 15, 2017, 8:01 pm

The Vegetarian by Han Kang, pub 2007
Finished 7/2/2017



This is an astonishing debut novel. It is a slim volume and the lyrical prose allows the reader to float through it easily. Except, of course, it is so disturbing. The story of Yeong-hye's descent into un-reality (a story in some ways too surreal to easily label it as "mental illness") is told in three parts, first by her husband, than by her brother-in-law, and finally by her sister, In-hye. It is a troubling view of South Korean society and even more troubling that her life is narrated by others.

Her sister's narration is thought-provoking and will stay with me for a while. I both agree and disagree with the In-hye's thought that she (In-hye) choose to be sane, while her sister chose to let go. It is a troubling perception -- a slippery slope leading to "blaming the victim". But I feel like there have been so many studies about social connectedness correlation with improved mental health and In-hye always did what was expected of her to maintain her place in society. But, BUT! life and mental health is not so simple and people don't "choose" mental illnesses. The differences in culture and the depictions of passive resistance, obsession, and self-control raise so many questions. And it is all grounded in captivating and unsettling imagery.

9kidzdoc
Juil 15, 2017, 7:45 pm

Great review of The Vegetarian, Liz. I enjoyed it as well. I read her novel Human Acts last month, and I'll post a review of it on my thread sometime next week.

10ChocolateMuse
Juil 16, 2017, 7:33 am

Everyone seems to be reading The Vegetarian! Great review.

I like your "Extreme Reading" category!

11ELiz_M
Juil 16, 2017, 8:22 am

>9 kidzdoc: Ooh, I am looking forward to your review!

>10 ChocolateMuse: Thanks! I'm pretty sure I picked up The Vegetarian due to the many positive reviews here.

12ELiz_M
Juil 16, 2017, 9:01 am

I took advantage of the beautiful weather on the holiday to visit MoMA, hoping that it would be less crowded. I spent almost the entire time in an exhibit of new acquisitions, organized around the idea of "Unfinished Conversations" (inspired by a video of the same name). And while not specifically focusing on non-white artists, the majority of the artists were people of color.

.

Left: Iman Issa, Heritage Studies #9. This is a representation of calligraphic script on a Mausoleum Wall.
Right: Samuel Fosso, untitled photographs from African Spirits. The photographs are all of Fosso. It bothers me that he is doing very similar work as Cindy Sherman (http://www.librarything.com/topic/217228#5604752), almost a household name, but I suspect has not the same recognition.

13ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 16, 2017, 9:31 am

Judas by Amos Oz, pub 2014
Finished 7/5/2017



It is 1959 and Shmuel Ash has been informed that his father has lost a lawsuit and can no longer pay for his studies. Having also been recently abandoned by his girlfriend, Shmuel is adrift. He wanders into a care-taker position at the edge of Jerusalem. His main job is spend 5- hours a day arguing with the elderly resident, Gershom Wald. The household is run by the alluring and mysterious Atalia Abarbanel. Over the winter months, Shmuel continues work on his thesis -- Jewish views of Jesus, which becomes a study of Judas -- and teases out the isolating history of the house's inhabitants.

I was thoroughly enchanted by/fascinated with the narrators novelization of Judas Iscariot. And I am intrigued by some of the other story-lines that are revealed and their parallels. But, as I thought about Atalia Abravanel, trying to understand her role in the story, I kept stumbling over her lack of person-hood. She is not a person, so is she a symbol for something else, other than male wish-fulfillment fantasy? Begin plot-specific mini-rant: Really? You are an ugly, clumsy, youngster and an older woman that you don't have to talk to (and in fact tells you not to talk), treat well, or woo, just decides to walk into your room and have sex with you? And then when it ends "prematurely" does it again, this time "teaching" you how to give her pleasure? Bleech! I usually don't notice this sort of stuff, but for some reason this particular depiction bothered me..

There are some nice writerly touches -- the description of the narrator, Shmuel, is repeated with ritual frequency. And some of the depictions of the physical space, the time period are wonderful.

14ELiz_M
Juil 16, 2017, 9:34 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Fruits of the Earth by André Gide, pub. 1897
Finished 7/9/2017

Beautiful snippets of random, rambling reminiscences and meditations on a particular taste, a particular sight of an oasis, interspersed with songs or poems, that should have been read slowly in a gorgeous, rural setting.

15kidzdoc
Juil 17, 2017, 10:30 pm

I'm glad that you enjoyed that exhibition at MoMA, Liz. I'm a member of the museum, and I plan to see this in early September.

Interesting comments about Judas! I enjoyed reading it, but I have to agree with your spoiler comments.

16ELiz_M
Juil 18, 2017, 7:23 am

>15 kidzdoc: I was hoping you'd get a chance to see it. And thank you for the Judas comment, so many people loved the book that I wondered if I was just being unreasonably grumpy :)

17ELiz_M
Juil 20, 2017, 7:59 am

The Devil's Highway written and narrated by Luis Alberto Urrea, pub 2004
Finished 7/11/2017



In May 2001 a group of 24 Mexican men were led into the Sonora Desert by two coyote guides expecting to reach Phoenix in a day or two. A week later or so later, two of them, dying of hyperthermia stumbled into a Border Patrol Agent. Within an hour every border patrol agent and rescue team in the area was travel via helicopter, truck, and jeep attempting to locate the other 24 men. Of the 26, four were never found, eight were dead, and 12 required extensive medical treatment. At the time, it was the largest number of illegal immigrant deaths in a single incident that had occurred.

Urrea, a novelist and journalist, presents the story form all sides. It beings with a brief history of the area and how the border between Mexico and Arizona became known as the Devil's Highway and the high numbers of death in the region in the 1700 & 1800s. He provides backgroun on the individuals making the journey -- both their personal histories and some of the economic factors driving them north. He details the changes in the border policies and enforcement that push the crossing further away from populated areas and further into the most dangerous part of the desert. He present s the complicated work of the Border Agents -- required to be both policers of the border and search and rescue teams. And he details, as much as possible, the journey. The desert, the heat, the lack of water, the inexperience of the guide, and the inability, once thwarted at the known pass through the growler mountains, to find the way in the desert. Their is an extensive chapter on the physical process of dehydration and hyperthermia.

However, the story feels thin -- perhaps this one incident wasn't enough of a story; the details are too few and the damaged memories of those that survived too contradictory. Most of all, it is not a good story for an audio book. Urrea keeps the story moving my jumping around the timeline, which is hard to follow in audio, as are the individuals mentioned -- for me the names blurred together and i never remember any of the 25 men as individuals (the lead coyote gets special attention, so he is the only standout). Furthermore, the author frequently resorts to lists -- lists of what objects were found with the bodies, lists of the symptoms of dehydration, lists of the temporary jobs they hoped to acquire..... which are far too easy to tune out. It is a good overview of a very complicated issue with all sides presented fairly, but read it in paper/ebook form.

18ELiz_M
Juil 23, 2017, 8:37 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Solitude by Víctor Català, pub. 1905
Finished 7/11/2017

Written in Catalan, this early feminist novel's simplicity is charming, which makes the crude ending that much more unsettling.

19ELiz_M
Juil 23, 2017, 9:05 am

The Absentee by Maria Edgeworth, pub 1812
Finished 7/11/2017



Lord Colambre a young Irish aristocrat educated in England, has joined his family in London, where his mother desperate to enter the highest social circles, is spending vast amounts of money while his father, unable to fit in the the best London society has fallen in with a lower-class Irishman. Lady Clonbrony is determined to marry her son to an English heiress, but Colambre is already in love with another. In order to escape London matchmaking and to understand the family's dire financial situation, Colambre escapes to Ireland to visit the family estates incognito.

I found the novel to be uneven -- it seems to be three stories, one after the other, rather than three story lines woven together. The first two (summarized above) do flow together rather well, but the third story, about Colambre's love interest is somewhat ridiculously tacked onto the end.

Edgeworth also uses the third person creatively, in a manner that felt atypical to me. The novel opens with ladies gossiping at the opera and the reader naturally assumes that the young lady, whose point of view we see, will be the protagonist. But the gossip is about the Clonbrony family and we soon are switched to Colambre's point of view. Later on, in Ireland, Colambre falls in with a London family, nefarious lady and her devious daughter. Here, Edgeworth shows the scheme to ensnare Colambre from all three points of view causing the reader (or me at least) to be incredibly irritated with his naiveté. Later on, the agents for Lord Clonbrony have cooked up a dastardly plot to cheat some good, hard-working tenants. But this scheme is only presented from Colambre's point of view and instead of causing me to be irritated with his stupidity it created a lot of narrative tension.

All in all, once past the extended opening sequence in London, this becomes a quite enjoyable novel.

20ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 31, 2017, 9:43 am

Grief Lessons: Four Plays by Euripides, translated by Anne Carson
Finished 7/15/2017



I read 2.5 plays on various airplanes in June and then finished the book in July. Unfortunately, I don't remember enough to review it properly.

Herakles Herakles returns from the underworld to his family. But a jealous god, who cannot defeat him, sends Madness, compelling Herakles to punish himself.

Hekabe The play begins at the end of the Trojan War. Hekabe, the queen of Troy and the mother of fifty children, has already lost almost all. Now, she will lose her last three children to slavery or death. She executes a violent revenge.

Hippolytos Aphrodite, jealous of Hippolytos devotion to Artemis causes his step-mother Phaidra to fall in love with him. Phaidra, distraught by his rejection, plots her own death and Hippolytos' destruction.

Alkestis Admetos has escaped because his wife has taken his place in Hades. Although the house is in mourning, Ademtos does not want to be discourteous to a guest and Herakles, when informed of the recent death, regrets his disrespectful behavior and vows to rescue Alketis from Death.

Each play is preceded by a short (4-5 page) essay outlining the themes and the structure of the play. I really appreciated the concise introductions, detailing how each play deviated from a typical Greek Tragedy. I loved Carson's translation of An Oresteia, and so was disappointed in this collection. It may have to do with the differences in the underlying works, but the translation/text seemed less poetical and more casual, almost crass, than I wanted it to be. It was distracting.

21dchaikin
Juil 29, 2017, 1:54 pm

Nice to see Euripides pop up here. I think the problem you had had a lot to do with the underlying works. Euripides is hit and miss, and while I find now that I'm happy to have read these plays to see how they relate to later takes (especially Phaidra, Hippolytos and Herakles), I didn't really enjoy reading any of them all that much. I read one translation by Anne Carson, and I found that her commentary in the introduction plus the translation added a lot to the play (I think it was Elektra).

I have been quietly following your thread. I really want to read Judas. Intrigued by Solitude.

22ELiz_M
Juil 31, 2017, 9:42 am

>21 dchaikin: I thought that Euripedes might draw you out of the woodwork. :) Judas is very well-written and I bet it would make a good audio book (the story is fairly straightforward). I don't think my review quite does Solitude justice.

23ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 31, 2017, 11:08 am

The end of July was rather warm in NYC, especially if one lives in a small studio without AC. So, I spent a lot of time at MoMA and the Met.

MoMA has a couple of excellent exhibits right now. I am frustrated and fascinated by Louise Lawler: Why Pictures Now. The works are beautiful -- the gorgeous colors and almost hyper-realism of the production of the works. But it is frustrating because the exhibit is commenting on Museums and the value ad experience of Art in ways that I don't understand. I only perceive enough to know that I don't know what the exhibit is saying.

I am sure there is a story and some further underlying cleverness to Nude. I knew that there was a famous work titled "Nude Descending a Staircase and vaguely remembered is was by Duchamp, but I think this is a picture of an artwork that is in homage to Duchamp....? And I presume the pictures on the right area comment on Degas and/or a sculpture based on Degas?
.

Unfortunately, MoMA does not deign to explain the art references made in Lawler's work.

There is also a huge, stunning exhibition of Robert Rauschenberg's work. It took me two visits to see all of it. I had no idea of how diverse his work was, and in all different mediums.
.

Estate (Left) and Mud Muse (Right)

. .

Thirty-four Illustrations for Dante's Inferno, Canto VIII (Left); Untitled (Red); and Untitled (Gold)

In retrospect, I have not chosen works that are representative of the Rauschenberg diversity, but instead, as always, choose the abstract, bold colors to which I am attracted.

I feel like there should be (if there hasn't already been ) an exhibition dedicated solely to illustrations of Dante's Inferno. Ive seen some of Dali's illustrations and apparently William Blake also has a series of illustrations.

24ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 31, 2017, 10:59 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Eugénie Grandet by Honoré de Balzac, pub. 1834
Finished 7/21/2017

The quiet, ordinary tragedy of how Grandet's greed warps his daughter's life into the shape of his own.

25ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 31, 2017, 11:24 am

An evening visit to the Met only allowed me enough time to visit two rooms. Especially as the Arms and Armor Rooms have so many beautiful objects in each room.

European Arms and Armor, Late Medieval to Renaissance:
. .

Curb Bit, ca. 1550, Italy (left); Parade Saddle, ca. 1450; German (middle); Three Ceremonial Arrowheads, ca. 1437, Prague (right)

As the museum was closing, I went in search of one of the pictures in my first post, but i had written down the wrong gallery number and after fruitlessly wandering through the European paintings, spent some time with Courbet's portraits.
.

But I have to admit I preferred Monet's portrait of Dr. Leclenché (right) to Courbet's portraits, here pictured is Madame Auguste Cuoq.

26ELiz_M
Juil 31, 2017, 9:52 pm

Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari and Eric Klinenberg, read by Aziz Ansari, pub. 2015
Finished 7/23/2017



Aziz Ansari is a comedian. I thoroughly enjoyed his show Master of None, so when I saw his audiobook was available from the library I downloaded it. From his comedy shows, Aziz noticed that his routines dealing with modern technology and dating resonated with his audience and curious about the effects of the phone and internet dating sites on meeting people and falling in love, he recruited a sociologist to help him research and write a book about it.

It was not an earth-shattering, mind-enriching read -- a lot of what is discussed confirms what I thought already. However, I like my audio non-fiction on the lighter side; if it is too academic/dense I get lost. For a short book, they seemed to cover a lot of ground. It was fabulous as an audiobook -- Aziz seemed to be having fun with the recording, adding bits about us being too lazy to read to read his book ourselves or making fun of us for not having a paper copy with the relevant charts/graphs.

27ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 31, 2017, 9:58 pm

The Radiance of the King by Camara Laye, pub. 1954
Finished 7/25/2017



This is the only completely fiction book written by Camara Laye (the rest of his works are creatively autobiographical). It is the story of Clarence, a white man down on his luck hoping for an audience with the King so that he can ask for employment. It is clearly subverting a "white man journeys to Africa to improve the natives" trope, but I not sure if I can explain how. The novel is wonderfully hallucinatory and I can describe the plot, but I don't think that is what matters. For some reason, the hallucinatory quality and excellent prose reminds me of Under the Volcano. A fascinating read.

28ELiz_M
Modifié : Juil 31, 2017, 10:02 pm

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



The Case Worker by György Konrád, pub. 1969
Finished 7/28/2017

A day in the life of a social worker in Budapest culminates in a visit to an extreme case in misery and the limits of humanity, prodding the narrator to imagine a different outcome.

29katiekrug
Août 4, 2017, 9:53 am

Hello, Liz - Thought I'd pop by and just say I hope you can make the meet-up on Sept. 9. According to LT, you and I share over 600 books - sure hope we can find something to talk about ;-)

My husband and I recently moved to the NYC area from Texas. I'm from "upstate" but had been in Dallas for 12 years. It's been fun getting reacquainted with what I consider my home city...

Anyway, nice to "meet" you and I hope to do so in person!

BTW, I read The Unwinding earlier this year and found it fascinating, though incredibly depressing. How are you finding it?

30ELiz_M
Août 8, 2017, 7:33 pm

>29 katiekrug: Thanks for stopping by! NY to Dallas and back again, that must be quite a change.

It's easy to have hundreds of books in common when we've both listed thousands. ;) But if we run out of book talk, you'll have to tell me about the trip to Egypt -- I really really want to go some day!

The Unwinding is hard to read -- some of the chapters are just too maddening. Hopefully I will find time to write a short review soon....

31deebee1
Août 21, 2017, 9:01 am

Eliz_M, you're reading some very interesting stuff. The Radiance of the King sounds intriguing, and the comparison with Under the Volcano, got me. I will be looking for it.

32ELiz_M
Modifié : Sep 14, 2017, 7:17 am

>31 deebee1: Thanks!

>32 ELiz_M: I still couldn't say exactly how/why the those two book are similar in my mind, but if you read Radiance, I hope you enjoy it!

33ELiz_M
Août 27, 2017, 8:59 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Growth of the Soil by Knut Hamsun, pub. 1917
Finished 8/03/2017

A quality Norwegian family saga, well-told; incidents that would be the height of despair in a Thomas Hardy are just a part of life and endured with a stiff upper lip.

34ELiz_M
Août 27, 2017, 9:22 am

The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America by George Packer, pub. 2013
Finished 8/05/2017



Apparently apparently modeled after Dos Passos' U.S.A., this is a chronological, non-fiction portrait of America from the 1970s to more or less present day. Packer begins each section with a collage of events/quotes/highlights from the year and then presents a brief episode from the life of a few individuals, some famous, some rich and influence, and some down and out. There is Dean Price, an Appalachian entrepreneur and owner of the a string of gas stations that becomes interested in biodiesel. Jeff Connaughton inspired by a speech Joe Biden gave at his college becomes a involved in a variety of Washington concerns -- a fund-raiser for Biden's campaign, a congressional aide, a principal in a lobbyist firm, assistant to a judge acting as legal council for the White House. There is also Tammy Thomas, a black union factory worker in Ohio that lived through the decimation of her town and became a community organizer. These stories are contrasted with essays on Gingrich, Oprah, Sam Walton, Colin Powell, Elizabeth Warren, as well as following the stories of the rise of Silicon Valley and the fall of Tampa, Florida.

The writing is captivating, but I was hoping for more. More structure, more analysis, more context. I understand the concept -- showing the progression of the various political views through specific examples -- but I wished for more context that would show that these examples were representative. And in the end, I don't think I really got a different point of view or much further understanding of the other points of view. The chapters on Gingrich and Breitbart were painful to read. Also, it was weird that is just...ended. There was no summary, no conclusion.

I read this for a book club and the individual that enjoy the book he most and seemed to get more out of it read the book out of order -- all the chapters on Tammy Thomas, all the chapters on Dean Price, and so on. Maybe the point of it is that there are no connections, no coherence.

35ELiz_M
Août 27, 2017, 9:29 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



The Female Quixote by Charlotte Lennox, pub. 1752
Finished 8/12/2017

Arabella has read far too many French Romance novels, taking them as true, and is persistently unable to understand and adapt to a world with very different social mores even though, as the author repeatedly informs us, she is the model of perfection except for this one quirk.

36ELiz_M
Août 27, 2017, 9:35 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Fifth Business by Robertson Davies, pub. 1970
Finished 8/17/2017

It is the life story of Dunstan Ramsey told with effortlessly excellent writing and a deceptively straightforward depiction of some awfully weird coincidences and events.

37SassyLassy
Sep 10, 2017, 1:39 pm

Fascinating titles here. You had me searching for The Radiance of the King on my TBR, but I don't see it, even though I have unread NYRBs in their own pile. The Female Quixote is on another pile.

>34 ELiz_M: Great one-liner about Hamsun and Hardy.

38katiekrug
Sep 10, 2017, 2:43 pm

So great to meet you yesterday, Liz! I hope we can get together again soon.

39ELiz_M
Sep 14, 2017, 7:17 am

>38 katiekrug: Oh I hope you do find, and read, Radiance of the King someday!

>39 ELiz_M: Likewise :)

40ELiz_M
Modifié : Sep 14, 2017, 7:41 am

The Dud Avocado by Elaine Dundy, pub. 1954
Finished 8/20/2017



A fun, escapist novel. As a child Sally Jay Gorce was always running away, trying to find adventure. Eventually an eccentric wealthy uncle takes her in hand, striking a deal. If she will commit to finishing school and make an effort, he will fund her travels for two years after graduation, no strings, no questions asked.

Sally, of course, ends up in Paris living a train-wreck of a life. Presented as a journal, we read about her ridiculous, mundane adventures -- a mistress of an Italian diplomat, bumping into and falling in love with Larry, a guy she knew from the States, acting in a play Larry is directing, working as a model and becoming a mistress of an artist, the lost passport, and all of the random frat-like drunken escapades.

This book is sitcom -- all surface and punchlines. One should dislike her immensely, but Sally seems to have the same naive energy and motivation one ascribes to a kitten. So, an entertaining, if not enlightening, read.

41auntmarge64
Sep 15, 2017, 2:11 pm

I'm envious of your goal to visit each of the Met's rooms. When I've gone in the past I've always visited the Costume Institute and then wandered. Once I stumbled on Washington Crossing the Delaware and got giggling - so many of the men look alike! I loved the sculpture garden - so visceral. Anyway, looking forward to your own wanderings.

42ELiz_M
Sep 17, 2017, 7:18 am

>42 ELiz_M: So far it has provided many hours of amusement. For me it helps to have specific goals for that museum, because the aimless wandering in its vastness is not satisfying -- I worry that I am not seeing "the right things". Yesterday was hot and humid, so I spent several hours visiting all the rooms where I had identified there was a painting of a woman reading. I felt so productive when done! :)

43dchaikin
Sep 17, 2017, 3:05 pm

Liz - I just finally caught up again. I've been enjoying your reviews. Interesting that you seemed to gain some energy from The Unwinding. Is that accurate? Hope so. I liked it, but it left me in dark place.

44NanaCC
Sep 17, 2017, 10:06 pm

My daughters and I were at the museum yesterday as well. One of my daughters has a membership and goes quite often. She took us to the items she had previously identified that were part of the rooftop exhibit. Then we went to the roof to enjoy their transformation. After that, we spent a lot of time in a few of her favorite rooms. I'm looking forward to a return visit.

45ffortsa
Modifié : Sep 23, 2017, 12:34 pm

Hi, Liz. It was lovely to meet you at the Morgan. I finally remembered you were over here on Club Read, which I don't look at as often as I would like. I can see I'll have to follow along to pick up the crumbs from your diverse reading.

I'd also love to meet you for a museum trip some time. I don't get to the museums I have memberships in as often as I would like either. Some knowledgeable and pleasant company might help, and from your remarks I think we could have some interesting discussions. I'm a member of MOMA, the Met, and the American Museum of Natural History, as well as the Brooklyn Museum and the Botanical Gardens, but I haven't gotten there again after the O'Keefe exhibit.

Were you at the Brooklyn Book Festival? I meant to ask you before the date. Jim and I went to the Sunday main event and heard some interesting, and some not so interesting, talks. And we got t-shirts.

Off to check out our library similarities.

46ELiz_M
Oct 1, 2017, 11:50 am

>44 NanaCC: Reading The Unwinding and discussing it with a group of friends helped prevent the dark, hopelessness that it might have otherwise imparted.

>45 ffortsa: Sounds like a lovely visit!

>46 ELiz_M: Likewise!

47ELiz_M
Oct 1, 2017, 12:13 pm

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, pub. 2016
Finished 9/2/2017



I was waiting and waiting to post about this book until after my bookclub meeting. And then i was too sick to attend. :(

This imaginative novel seems to have been one of the most beloved books published last year, praised by most critics, nominated for many awards, winning some. Unfortunately, I am contrary and it didn't do much for me; I don't understand the hype.

Set in the 1800s, it is largely the story of Cora a third generation slave on a plantation in Georgia, who is finally persuaded to runaway by another slave, a recent acquisition that had previously belonged to a "nice" master that allowed him to learn a trade and to read. The gimmick in this story is that the Underground Railroad is an actual train. And this flight of fancy allows the author to conceive of each stop (represented by a different state) on Cora's haphazard journey as a different evil of slavery, a different direction history could have gone.

So, the novel is episodic, with each chapter a different vignette of a moment in a fictionalized history. Cora's story is interspersed with chapters narrated by the individuals impacting her story -- Ceasar, the slave that persuaded her to escape; Ridgeway, the slave-catcher in pursuit; Ethel, the woman whose husband hid Cora for months; and so on.

The story is well-written and in some ways lightly told. And perhaps that the difficulty I have with the book. After reading all of the critics reviews which explain the depth of story and the importance of this novel, I think that the author expects the reader to have much, much more knowledge of history than I do. Many reviewers saw a well, but I all I saw was a puddle.

48ELiz_M
Modifié : Oct 8, 2017, 7:22 am

Labor day weekend was beautiful in NYC and I took advantage of it, spending time viewing art. After many weekends of good intentions, I was finally awake and motivated early enough for a trip to the NYBG to view the Chihuly sculptures installed in the gardens.

.
.

49ELiz_M
Modifié : Oct 8, 2017, 7:50 am

My GR group read a brilliant collection of stories by an author that I would never have come across otherwise:
A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin, pub. 2015
Finished 9/8/2017



Lucia had an extraordinary life -- her father working in the mining industry and she grew up in Alaska, Idaho, Montana and Arizona, and Chile, among other places. Plagued by health problems resulting from scoliosis, Lucia lived a tumultuous life. She was married three times had four sons and spent much of her life as an alcoholic, earning a living through a series of working class jobs such as a cleaning woman, emergency room worker, and switchboard operator. It wasn't until later in life that she began publishing short stories and while she never became renowned amongst the public, she influenced many well-known writers.

This is a huge collection of her short stories, some as short as five paragraphs, some sprawling over a dozen pages or more. Her fiction is heavily autobiographical, drawing on the details of her life and struggles with alcohol. Many of the same characters or situations surface again and again, with slight variations. Most of the stories and situations are not pretty. I have to admit admit I recoiled from some of the characters.

So, I guess it's not surprising that one of my favorite stories was "Friends". Partly, it is because it seems to be a stand alone story, complete, because it does not depict the aspects of life and poverty that make us uncomfortable, and mostly because the excellent, beautiful punchline at the end is the perfect conclusion. My least favorite was probably "Let Me See You Smile". Either I was too tired to focus or their is something wrong with the narrative flow. It is a story primarily told from a male point of view -- a character that I suspect the author wasn't able to inhibit fully -- but it switches the point of view occasionally to Carlotta and maybe also Jesse? For some reason I had no idea who Jesse was until many many pages into the story and I definitely missed a narrator switch.

Some of the stories are structured how we expect short stories to be -- contained, focused, a moment in time, "Unmanageable" for example. While others, such as "Tiger Bites", are so much more sprawling and not a complete, self-contained story -- there is so much more that could be told. These stories are best read close together -- not straight through as a novel, but not spread out to one a day either.

I am not a visual person -- I don't always see images in my head when I read. But one way I feel her stories are successful is that I do, occasionally, form pictures. Possibly the stories I "connect" with the most are the ones where I can form pictures because I have experienced something similar enough to draw upon. I have been to enough terrible laundromats that I can picture Angel's Laundromat exactly. Lucia's strength as an author, a storyteller, seems to be finding good and beauty in the people and places we normally look away from. Truly an astounding collection.

50ELiz_M
Modifié : Oct 8, 2017, 8:23 am

A Dance to the Music of Time: Second Movement by Anthony Powell, pub. 1962
Finished 9/13/2017



After quite a gap, I've resumed reading this long, twelve part novel. This volume encompasses:
4. At Lady Molly's, set in 1934, published 1957
5. Casanova's Chinese Restaurant, set in 1928 or 1929, 1933–1937, published 1960
6. The Kindly Ones, set in 1914, 1928 or 1929, 1938–1939, published 1962

It is a perfectly pleasant, scattered novel, attempting to encompass the development of a generation through the life of the narrator, Nick Jenkins. These volumes largely portray a bohemian middle class in the run up to WWII. As Nick has wandered into a writing career, working on film scripts then journalism and novels, he has moved into a sphere almost completely unrelated to his school chums, Stringham and Templar. In these novels we are introduced to another circle of friends including the Tolland family (into which Nick marries), the composer Hugh Moreland and critic Maclintick and their wives, as well as Sir Magnus Donners and various other oddities.

I found the beginning of The Kindly Ones highly confusing, thrown into an extended childhood flashback with no indication.

51ELiz_M
Oct 15, 2017, 8:34 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Pierre and Jean by Guy de Maupassant, pub. 1888
Finished 9/15/2017

This short novel is a excellent study of jealousy and repressed emotions.

52ELiz_M
Oct 15, 2017, 8:46 am

Reviewed in my 1001-books thread (click the picture to read the full review):



Play It As It Lays by Joan Didion, pub. 1970
Finished 9/17/2017

A hypnotic, fractured look at the purposeless and dissolute life at maria's Hollywood life and a life's worth of traumatic events that destabilize her.

53katiekrug
Oct 15, 2017, 10:00 am

Hi Liz! I've been gone for nearly two weeks so trying to get caught up.

>48 ELiz_M: - I liked this one more than you did, but "Many reviewers saw a well, but I all I saw was a puddle" is brilliant.

>49 ELiz_M: - We went to a concert at the NYBG last May? June?, and we were going to stick around to see the Chihulys at night, but then decided not to for reasons I don't quite recall. I love the photos you posted - so bright and cheerful.

>51 ELiz_M: - I read A Dance to the Music of Time over the course of a year a few years ago. I found parts confusing, and some boring, but the ones that were good were *so* good... I did end up enjoying it as a whole.

54ELiz_M
Oct 15, 2017, 10:43 am

>54 ELiz_M: Thanks for the compliment! :)

55dchaikin
Oct 15, 2017, 4:05 pm

enjoying your posts, as always

>50 ELiz_M: what a great find. Noting Lucia Berlin.

>53 katiekrug: note to self, need to read more Joan Didion.

56Simone2
Oct 19, 2017, 12:43 am

>49 ELiz_M: How beautiful!

57ELiz_M
Oct 19, 2017, 7:42 am

>56 Simone2: Lucia Berlin's book is on audio, just saying.

>57 ELiz_M: :)

58dchaikin
Oct 19, 2017, 8:59 am

>58 dchaikin: but not in my library’s collection. : /

59ELiz_M
Modifié : Oct 21, 2017, 7:43 am

In my continuing quest to visit all the rooms of the Met Museum, I tried a new strategy: find all the paintings on view that feature a woman reading. I can't remember what put this into my head, but it ended up a delightful Saturday afternoon treasure hunt and I saw so many rooms in one visit.

. . .

Portrait of a Woman by Quentin Metsys, ca. 1520, Gallery 644
The Reader by Eglon van der Neer, 17th century, Gallery 632
A Woman Reading by Camille Corot, 1869/70, Gallery 803
Woman Reading by Susan Macdowell Eakins, 1879–84, Gallery 774

. . .

The Artist's Wife (Périe, 1849–1887) Reading by Albert Bartholomé, 1883, Gallery 813 (my favorite!)
Louise Tiffany, Reading by Louis Comfort Tiffany, 1888, Gallery 746
L'Arlésienne: Madame Joseph-Michel Ginoux (Marie Julien, 1848–1911) by Vincent van Gogh, 1888–89, Gallery 825
Reading at a Table by Pablo Picasso, 1934, Gallery 901

60ELiz_M
Modifié : Oct 21, 2017, 8:03 am

While on the above image-hunt, I walked through a special exhibit of Australian Aboriginal Art. The paintings were arresting and I couldn't just walk through.

.

DOROTHY NAPANGARDI, Karntakurlangu Jukurrpa, 2002
ABIE LOY KEMARRE, Bush Hen Dreaming – Bush Leaves, 2003

These two images were stunning in person; they had this illusory quality and movement. It is some of the most stunning, mesmerizing painting I have ever seen. From the exhibit text:
"The key to achieving a connection with the distant ancestral past through art is the mastering of dynamic resonance--or shimmer--a highly valued visual effect that signals this past is now concurrent wit the present, a sate referred to as Everywhen...."

61ELiz_M
Modifié : Oct 21, 2017, 8:16 am

And that is, finally, a warp for the third quarter!

Year-to-date stats:
Books read/listened: 53
paper/ebook: 51
audio: 2 (I follow too many podcasts)

1001-list-books: 31 (58%)
Non Straight-White-Male: 27 (51%)
In Translation: 30 (57%)
Non-fiction: 7

Owned Books read: 33 (62%)
Libe Books read: 20
Books Acquired: 49

Goal Check:

1. Read more books from the owned-tbr than from other sources:
Yes!

2. At least 70% of books written by non white, straight men:
Slightly more than 1/2, which I may have to consider a win

3. At least 50% of 1001 list books:
Yes!

4. Read at least 10 non-fiction books:
Hmmm, probably slightly behind schedule.

62dchaikin
Oct 22, 2017, 6:24 pm

>60 ELiz_M: at one time I went through museums looking for dogs that were similar to mine at the time (Cavalier King Charles Spaniels - the breed was "created" in 1921 in imitation of dogs in older paintings that had been bread out). Anyway, these pictures you selected of women reading are much more meaningful. Nice post.

63ffortsa
Nov 6, 2017, 3:44 pm

Hi, Liz. I was thinking of you the other day when the Brooklyn Museum email came about their new exhibits. We'll be out of town this weekend, but maybe after that we can get in a visit?

64chlorine
Nov 10, 2017, 2:29 pm

>62 dchaikin:
Congrats on checking so many goals, and thanks for the interesting reviews!

65ELiz_M
Nov 18, 2017, 8:17 am

>63 ffortsa: That also sounds like a fun way to see a museum.

>65 ELiz_M: Thanks :)

66ELiz_M
Modifié : Nov 19, 2017, 8:31 am

A Dance to the Music of Time: Third Movement by Anthony Powell, pub. 1968
Finished 10/1/2017



Continuing on with this long, twelve part novel. This volume encompasses:
7. The Valley of Bones, set in 1940, published 1964
8. The Soldier's Art, set in 1941, published 1966
9 . The Military Philosophers, set in 1942–1945, published 1968

I enjoyed this volume more than the previous one. Perhaps it was because i was nw firmly back in Nick Jenkin's world, but it also seemed more cohesive with a more unified plot. These novels take place during WWII. Jenkins, too old to be a soldier proper spends most of the war in various backwater posts in the UK -- at training facilities, divisional HQ, and finally at the War Office as a liaison for Allied Forces. The war disrupts society, bringing different individuals from different classes together and allow those with will to rise through the ranks of the military and society. In this volume we meet several new character, most of them military men that will not greatly impact the later story, but a couple of whom will drive the remainder of the narrative.

67thorold
Nov 19, 2017, 6:58 am

>67 thorold: Nice! - the war section is my favourite bit of Dance to the Music of Time as well. Probably, as you say, because the course of external events gives it a clearer structure than the 2nd and 4th movements. It's also fun to read it back to back with Evelyn Waugh's Sword of Honour trilogy...

68katiekrug
Nov 19, 2017, 2:20 pm

>67 thorold: - I remember liking that volume a lot. It was probably my favorite of the whole cycle.

69Simone2
Nov 24, 2017, 1:50 pm

>67 thorold: Great review. I also liked this part of The Dance a lot because we’re ‘back in Nick Jenkin’s world’ as you say. I liked this 3rd part the best, I think in retrospective.

70ffortsa
Nov 24, 2017, 4:32 pm

Hi, Liz! I've never read the Powell, but it's been in the back of my mind to start it for a while now. It's nice to know you find it worthwhile to continue.

I was thinking of calling you to meet at the Brooklyn Museum this weekend, if you were in town, but my foot problem may keep me away from museum walking for a while. I'll keep in touch.

71ELiz_M
Modifié : Jan 1, 2018, 10:09 am

I've obviously, completely neglected this thread. ~sigh~ Perhaps next year will be better.

Bosnian Chronicle by Ivo Andrić, pub. 1945, finished 10/8/2017
The Last World by Christoph Ransmayr, pub. 1968, finished 10/17/2017

Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis, pub. 1946, finished 11/1/2017
A Dance to the Music of Time: Fourth Movement by Anthony Powell, pub. 1975, finished 11/4/2017
Back by Henry Green, pub. 1946, finished 11/4/2017
Bebo's Girl by Carlo Cassola, pub. 1960, finished 11/7/2017
Contempt by Alberto Moravia, pub. 1954, finished 11/14/2017
2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke, pub. 1968, finished 11/16/2017
The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford, pub. 1915, finished 11/27/2017

Devil-Devil by Kent, Graeme, pub. 2011, finished 12/17/2017
Promise at Dawn by Romain Gary, pub. 1960, finished 12/18/2017
L'Assommoir by Émile Zola, pub. 1877, finished 12/20/2017
Game for Five by Marco Malvaldi, pub. 2007, finished 12/21/2017
Legend by David Gemmell, pub. 1984, finished 12/24/2017
The Man Who Snapped His Fingers by Fariba Hachtroudi, pub. 2016, finished 12/25/2017
Zoo Station by David Downing, pub. 2007, finished 12/27/2017
The Line of Beauty by Alan Hollinghurst, pub. 2004, finished 12/31/2017

72katiekrug
Déc 30, 2017, 10:45 am

But you're still reading and that's the important thing :)

Stay warm!

73dchaikin
Déc 31, 2017, 11:59 am

Nice to see your list. I saw on your intro post that you’re closing in on 1001.

74ELiz_M
Déc 31, 2017, 12:52 pm

>73 dchaikin: Always reading!

>74 ELiz_M: Wellllll .... at my current pace its another 5 or 6 years of reading, so I'd hardly say "closing in". ;)