For what I have I need not to repeat

I'm now back in Calgary, my Egyptian odyssey over. It was a great trip, with lots to see and do. However, the best part I guess, was that I finished two books and started a third, all in two weeks. Okay, Light in August took almost a month to read, but you get the idea.

On my flight from London to Calgary, I started my sixth book on the list, F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. I originally read this book in high school, and enjoyed it thoroughly. As I've said earlier, I'm not sure why I've spent the last ten years avoiding fiction, as I usually enjoy most of the books I read.

So, this will mark the second book in a row I've read, that I'd already read before starting the list. These were supposed to be ready about every fifteen to twenty books, but I've needed to make up all the time lost from Light in August and Naked Lunch, so I'm already in reruns. But it's only two books, and then I can get back to the fresh material.

#5 - "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis

Hello from London! We just landed at Heathrow Airport from Cairo, and now have a five hour layover before boarding our flight to Calgary. I was able to finish The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe on the five and a half hour flight, marking what I'm sure will be the fastest I read a book from the list.

I'll admit that I'm surprised to find the book on the list in the first place. Sure its enjoyable, and it makes for a good read, but it's more of a children's book and is quite 'simple' as far as great novels go. Following four English children, sent to the countryside during World War II, the book takes place in the magical world of Narnia, a world who's entrance is found in the back of an old wardrobe, and who's inhabitants are talking animals.

The book is part of seven book series, The Chronicles of Narnia, which details this fictional land, from it's discovery by 'man' to it's eventual rule by the children who find it. For the most part it follows a very standard storyline used in children's books. Good fights Evil, trying to rescue the medieval-style kingdom and its people from their plight. Although not overtly religious, the book is basically a Christian morality tale. The animals of the kingdom refer to the children as 'Sons of Adam' and 'Daughters of Eve,' with the God-like figure of Aslan guiding them to victory over the evil White Witch.

It's quite an easy read because it was written for children. There aren't any 'big words,' there aren't and deep themes explored, and the story is pretty straight forward. It sure doesn't contain any Faulkner-like time shifts. This was in fact the first novel I ever remember reading on my own, when I was nine or ten years old. I also read the entire series again when I was in University, and found it enjoyable then as well. I guess the appeal for adults is the way Lewis crafts the story, exploring some of the inner emotions of the human soul, such as greed, envy, anger and bravery. The simple story line makes it's easy to get lost in the land of Narnia while reading this book, and allows anybody to feel like a kid again. Unlike many books, there's no need to doubt whether everything will work out for the land of Narnia.

Whether or not I would include this on my own list of the 100 best novels is uncertain, but it does make for an entertaining read, and I'm sure I'll end up reading it again sometime in the future, to capture the magic of being a kid again.


I'm going to start my next book on my flight to Calgary, The Great Gatsby. Yes, that will be two books in a row that I'd previously read, but I don't have anything else with me, and I don't want to go through a nine hour flight without anything to read.

#4 - "Light in August" by William Faulkner

I've finished my fourth book from the list; finally. I'm currently in my hotel room in Cairo and the city is alive following what seems to be a pretty big win for the Egyptian soccer team over rival Algeria. The game was the semi-final of the Africa Cup, and is taken quite seriously by the locals. Walking the streets earlier this evening, every shop with a TV had a small crown of men around watching the game on the edge of their seats; or I guess the edge of their...feet.

Near the end of the first half, Egypt scored the game's first goal, sending the people in the streets into a frenzy. There was screaming, hugging, honking, and flashing lights. When I would stop at a shop and watch some of the game, I'd receive a series of confused looks, and then get asked who I was pulling for. Not caring one way or another, I'd of course answer Egypt, and then receive a pat on the back and invitation to get closer to the TV.

I suppose the atmosphere is much the same as during a hockey game in Canada, except without alcohol. Seems a little weird. People in Canada don't usually get so wound up about a sporting event without the help of a few drinks! Now that the game is over, and Egypt prevailed 4-0, the honking and cheering can be heard throughout the city.


Back to the book, I did finish Light in August earlier in the day, fulfilling my vow to do so before I returned to Canada, which I do tomorrow. I'm still not sure what I t

hink about this book. On the one hand the story is interesting, and the themes Faulkner explores are relevant even today, but I still found it so confusing and slow at times, that I don't know what to think.

The story takes place in the racially divided South in the 1920's and follows a couple of different story lines which naturally become intertwined in the end. Lena Grove is a

poor white girl, searching for the father of her soon to be born child. Joe Christmas is man of uncertain heritage (he's of mixed blood), searching for his place in the world; a world that doesn't look kindly upon people who are different. Neither one of them fit into the Southern society, and both are in a way, outcasts. As the story evolves, the deeply ingrained prejudice of the South rears its ugly head, leading to the destruction of several people within the small town that serves as the setting for the story.

Now that I've finished the book, I do find the constant time shifts used throughout less confusing, as I can piece together the entire story and put it into a more linear context. But the jumping from different times and different places, what Time magazine describes as "outside the zone of normal chronology," was just too confusing for me, and often distracted from the excellent story. I wonder if I am alone in this thought, and am simply "not getting it." Faulkner is considered to be one of the great American writers of the last century and his books are critically acclaimed, but maybe I prefer the fluffier reads like The Da Vinci Code. Hopefully reading through this list allows me to expand my literary understanding, and through time I will learn to love a book like this, having a greater appreciation for it's brilliance.


You can read Time Magazine's original review from October 17, 1932, here:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,744655-1,00.html

Leaving for Canada tomorrow morning, I'm going to read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Hopefully I'm able to finish it on the plane. It's pretty short and I'm familiar with the story, so it shouldn't be a problem.

My boat sails freely, both with wind and stream.

I'm currently sitting in the "library" aboard the MS Prince Abbas, as we approach Aswan, Egypt from the South. The library consists of about thirty books scattered on shelves with room for five hundred books. Most of them are in English, some in German, some in Arabic. They tend to be about Egypt, and many look to be quite outdated. I guess not a lot of people are coming here to find a great book. As far as reading goes however, it's a nice place to come at night as it's as far away from the engines as possible, making it one of the quieter places on the ship. It's also the only place on the boat with an Internet connection, so here I am.

I have been able to get some reading in, albeit not as much as I had thought. Usually our mornings are spent visiting different temples, while our afternoons are spent cruising down Lake Nasser. While it isn't that warm, it's sunny, and it's nice to sit on the sun deck and get a little reading in. There's a certain romanticism in reading on the top deck of a boat that is sailing down what is essentially the Nile river. It seems so 19th century to me for some reason. Or something an ex-pat writer from the early 20's might have been doing so many years ago.

Progress on Light in August is still slow, but I vow to finish it before I return to Canada.