And yet you halt not.

To say that I've been a rut would be an understatement.  The chasm I currently find myself in is without equal.  Well, maybe when I was reading To the Lighthouse two summers ago would be comparable, but my progress on The Recognitions has come to a complete standstill.

It isn't that it's a bad book, it is readable, but it just isn't that gripping.  With the weather starting to turn nice, my attention seems to have moved elsewhere, and I find myself sometimes not picking up Gaddis' rather lengthy book for days at a time.  In fact I currently haven't read a page in four days.  Not a single word.

I have to admit I have been doing some other reading; a few non-fiction books that I normally consider temporary diversions, but have now become my only reading.  I suppose I just find it easier to pick up the lighter (both physically and mentally) Kitchen Confidential, than I do The Recognitions.  But of course, this cannot continue, or I'll never finish reading the remaining 46 books.

My next step, which I am about to do as soon as I am finished writing this, is to finish that "other book."  Currently that would be Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson.  I have about fifteen pages to go, and I then vow to not pick up another book until The Recognitions is complete, which might be awhile if for no other reason than I still have 350 pages to go.


Some good news, or rather some interesting news (for me anyway), is I have finally met somebody who has heard of The Sot-Weed Factor. Not only had he heard of it, he'd read it, he loved it, and he is a fan of John Barth's other works.  I was over-joyed to discuss the book with somebody else, which I have of course been unable to do, as I've never come across anybody who had even heard of it.  Unfortunately since it had been over 40 years since he had read it, his recollection wasn't as fresh as mine, but I'm hoping my enthusiasm for it, and eagerness to talk about it, was still appreciated.

Now back to my reading, and this time I'm serious.


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Might be a copy to these younger times;

As I continue plodding through The Recognitions, I've noticed that it is, like The Sot-Weed Factor, quite anonymous.  But, I've had one or two people recognize the title, and I've had several people say they've heard of author William Gaddis, so that already makes it a better known title than Barth's book, but nonetheless, few seem to be aware of it.

 

I then noticed on the copy I have out from the Calgary Public Library, that it was first stamped into circulation on October 15, 1975.  Not only was it stamped the same day that President Ford was involved in a fender bender in Hartford, it also still has the card catalogue information on the inside cover.  The typewriter font tells me the author's name and birth year, as well as the title and publisher; offering me amazing cross referencing capabilities.  Sadly there isn't the envelope on the back cover letting me know who took it out and when.  The book also doesn't have an ISBN, joining The Day of the Locust and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie as books that predated the computer age.

But while all of this is quite nostalgic journey through the library procedures of yesteryear, it leaves me wondering about the book itself.  Sure, it finds itself on a list of 'all-time' novels, but it's been borrowed so few times, the Calgary Public Library has been able to keep it in circulation, albeit with a few tears, longer than I've been in circulation.  I've read that on average, a book can be loaned 25 times before it needs to be replaced, which would mean this copy of The Recognitions has been loaned out no more than every 18 months, for the past 37 years.  I'm going to assume it's another hidden gem, waiting for more people like me to discover its brilliance.  Instead of a book so repugnant, it's been borrowed fewer times than To The Lighthouse.

#52 - "Mrs. Dalloway" by Virginia Woolf

My second book from Virginia Woolf and my 52nd from Time's list of 'All-Time 100 Novels' is now complete, with 1925's Mrs. Dalloway.  I suppose it could be said that it went a little better than To the Lighthouse, Woolf's other book on the list, which I read in 2010.  By this I mean it took less time, as I didn't really enjoy it any more.

Mrs. Dalloway is about...well it isn't really about anything, but it follows Mrs. Dalloway and her friends on the day she is hosting a party.  It's sort of like a season of '24', following each character throughout the day; that is if '24' was about what Jack Bauer was thinking about all day before his daughter's birthday party.  Sadly, there aren't any terrorists, explosions, split-screens or for that matter, any action in Mrs. Dalloway.

Instead of detailing anything that happens, or sharing a lot of interaction between the different characters, Mrs. Dalloway tells us what each person is thinking.  Several different streams of consciousness.  We learn about each person's past and their relationship to the others through their thoughts that day.  They reminisce, to themselves, about days gone by, decisions they regret, their hopes for the future and their hopes from the past.  Big Ben continues to update us on the time of day throughout the book, until the big party finally begins.  There, they continue to think about different things, with very little dialogue or description sprinkled in between.

To make matters worse, the book jumps from person to person, without warning.  There would be times I would have to retrace a couple of paragraphs to establish when I started reading Clarissa's thoughts instead of Sally's.  Not that it really mattered, by the end of the book I found it nearly impossible to distinguish one character from the next.

I realize this is how a book by Virginia Woolf is supposed to read, but that doesn't mean I have to enjoy it.  The only thing more tedious than reading about nothing happening, is reading about people thinking about nothing happening.  The book seemed to ramble on and on, as Mrs. Dalloway et al. thought about what clothes they were going to wear that night, or as they wondered what so-and-so meant when they said...whatever.  While many seem to feel a connection with Virginia Woolf's writing, I did not.  I was unable to relate to the characters, nor did I find them very interesting.

If one is able to make a connection with the characters, this book probably offers a very realistic and emotional journey through these people's lives.  Somebody once told me they have never read a book that felt so much as if the author had been inside their head.  In fact, I've been told this more than once, and as a result I understand why this book found its way onto this list.  But as one who failed to make that connection, I only wanted to offer Virginia Woolf the same advice Neal Page had for Del Griffith in in "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles":



For me, this book was only an exercise in completion, not an enjoyable reading experience.  Because there wasn't any real plot, I often found it difficult to focus on the book.  More times than I care to count, I found myself only glazing over the words, without actually absorbing them.  This made the book even more tedious as I was forced to go back and re-read so many pages.  When it was finished, my feeling was not satisfaction, it was relief.

Perhaps one day I'll look back and think myself better off for having read two Virginia Woolf novels, but for now I'll just consider myself thankful for having gotten them over with, and take joy in the fact that I most likely will never read them again.


Notes: There are nine authors with two books on this list, and Virginia Woolf is the first that I've read both of them.  I admit the reason was to get them over with...

Number 53 is going to be The Recognitions by William Gaddis; I think.  This is a book that took me by surprise when I picked it up from the library, as it is 956 pages.  I thought I had already accounted for all the ~1000 pagers, so this might mess up my schedule a little.  But it has to be read at some point, so why not today?

I can live no longer by thinking.

As my 52nd book from the list, Mrs. Dalloway winds down, I can't help feeling like I'm Mel Gibson's character from "What Women Want."  Since there isn't much of a plot in the book, nor is there much dialogue, the book is made up almost entirely of a few different characters' inner thoughts.  I believe some call it a 'stream of consciousness,' or in the case of this book, 'several different streams of consciousness mashed into one book.'

I think of the movie and how the protagonist at first thinks he might have some kind of gift, the ability to hear what women are thinking.  But he soon realizes that he's hearing everything they think, be it counting calories from breakfast, or in the case of a french poodle, 'I have to poop.'  Soon, the ability to hear these thoughts is more of a cure than a blessing.

That's sore of how I feel about reading this book; it's more of a curse than a blessing.  At first, there is some interesting insight into what each character is thinking, but eventually, I tire so much of their thoughts, and the fact than nothing is really happening.

Although, I am enjoying it more than Virginia Woolf's other entry on the list, To the Lighthouse, a book where even less happens.

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

I've been reading Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway these past few days, but am not moving very fast.  Of course that isn't really an accurate statement; I've been meaning to read Mrs. Dalloway for the past several days, weeks even.  But alas, I am so uninterested in actually reading it, it has served only as a monument to my laziness, rather than a shining beacon of my 52nd triumph from this List.

It may seem that I'm being a little judgemental, especially of a book I haven't read, but I have good reason to be this way.  Ms. Woolf's other entry on the list, To the Lighthouse was a 252 page book that took me two months to read and was a disappointment to say the least.  You can read my take here.  I can't imagine this book is really any different, so I have not been looking forward to it for almost two years.

I have started it however, and vow to make good progress this week.  My new strategy to finishing this one, opposed to my old strategy of carrying it around and not reading it, is to treat the book like a band-aid.  If I just sit down and rip it off, the pain will be instantaneous and I'll no longer have to worry about it.  It's only about 200 pages, I just need to get it over with.

In the two weeks since I finished All the King's Men, I have been keeping busy, having preoccupied myself with a couple of books.  Most recently, I finished Pity the Billionaire by Thomas Frank, another book on the US political scene; colossal bore for some, fascinating for others.  But before that, I found myself entangled with an interesting and unusual read; a book entitled Flashman.

Flashman is the first in a series of books following Harry Flashman through his adventures, or rather his mis-adventures in the British Army during the middle 19th century.  It was a fun book for the most part, and Harry Flashman is likely one of literature's great cads; sort of a less noble, yet bigger scoundrel version of James Bond.  I can't fault a book that begins with the protagonist seducing his father's mistress after being kicked out of school for drinking and gambling.  It was a pleasant diversion from the list and a series I would think of revisiting in the future (after all, there are 15 more books in the series).

But for now, it's back to Mrs. Whats-her-face-away...which I will try to approach with a more open mind.

You must return and mend it.

Progress on number 48 continues, as I read The Painted Bird by Jerzy Kosinski.  I'll admit it might end up being a bit of a slow read.  I say this because the book is turning out to be a major downer; it's about the Holocaust.  While there's nothing wrong with a 'depressing' book, many good reads are, it's just that it's a difficult read, and one you don't just breeze though.  But it isn't slow because of boredom, like To the Lighthouse or because it's so mammoth like Infinite Jest. I'm hoping that as I get deeper into it, my pace will pick up.

In other news, I've been having a little bit of trouble managing my library books.  After not incurring any fines for almost six months, I racked up fines on Animal Farm and Red Harvest in October, but only $1.40, so nothing to write home about.  Before I left for Hawai'i, I thought I had made sure I had everything renewed until I got back, but some how missed two, which became overdue the day I left.  It wasn't until yesterday afternoon I realized I had two book that were more than ten days overdue.  The books in question were Christopher Hitchens' biography of Thomas Jefferson, as well as poet Ian Williams' Not Anyone's Anything.  As a result, my library account was locked, and I was billed $7.30.  To add to my shame, I didn't read either of them, which means I paid the library seven bucks to store their books on my shelf for a few weeks.

When I had started this project, I only borrowed one or two books at a time, but thought that with the Internet making it so easy to renew, I could take out dozens at a time, and always manage them without any problems.  I guess I was wrong.  While it is still much less expensive than buying all the books I read, I have now generously donated $41.15 to the Calgary Public Library since November of 2009.  Of that, $25.15 has been from books from the list.

I vow to not incur any more fines, until the next time I forget to return a book on time; which could be as early as next week.

Yes, I have gained my experience.

When I started tackling this list over 16 months ago, my goal was to expand my reading horizons; to explore books that I wouldn't otherwise tackle. And for the most part, I would say it's been successful so far. I've been able to experience books I loved but had never even heard of, such as The Sheltering Sky and Lucky Jim, and I can now say that although I didn't enjoy them, I have indeed read To the Lighthouse and Infinite Jest. Without a doubt, I'd say I'm the richer for it. But as I near the halfway point (on schedule too I might add), the experience has done so much more than just introduce me to titles or authors I didn't previously know.

This summer I was fortunate enough to talk about these books on the Calgary Eyeopener on CBC radio. Not only was it a fun opportunity to discuss something I enjoy, with others, on the radio, but it was also very educational. Prior to being on the radio, my reading habits as far as this list was concerned were fairly straight forward. I picked a book, read it, wrote a blog, and moved on to the next one. The order or the speed weren't really paramount to anything. And since I was only blogging about them, I could simply spill my thoughts out onto the page and was done.

Being on the radio forced me to not only read quicker, doing a book a week, but also to pay more attention to what books I was reading. I had to make sure I was reading books from different kinds of authors and of differing styles, so as not to bore my listeners with the same thing each week. I also now had to answer other people's questions about these books; no longer was this a one-man show. This offered me a lot more insight into what I was reading, and offered me the chance to see this project from somebody else's perspective.

But most importantly, this reading project has allowed me to become more involved in the book community with people who share my passion for reading. I’ve met others who are reading and blogging their way through this same list (most notably Robert and Matt), and I’ve met people who are simply following my journey because they find it interesting, and hopefully a little educational.

I’ve also now become involved with WordFest, Calgary’s annual literary festival being held in October, as their Festival Blogger. This will give me the chance to work with other avid readers, and expose me to the world of publishing. I’ll be blogging about my experiences at WordFest, offering a behind-the-scenes look, and talking to authors from around the world. It should be a lot of fun, and I’m really looking forward to it!

It also means that I have a few more books to read. While I’ll still be continuing my journey through The List, I’ll also be exploring some of the books from WordFest. I’ve started with Funeral for a Dog, the first novel by German author Thomas Pletzinger. Also attending WordFest will be Lev Grossman, author of The Magician King and literary critic for Time magazine. He’s one of the guys who put this list I’ve been reading for the past year and a half together. I can’t wait to talk to him about it.

As for an update on said list, I have indeed started reading Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry, which will be my 44th book. Again, I don’t know anything about it.

#29 - "Lolita" by Vladimir Nabokov

I think everybody knows what Lolita is about, or at least has a vague idea.  The term 'Lolita' has entered the modern lexicon to refer to 'sexually procarious' young girls, so it's no surprise to learn this novel is the story of a man and his affair with his 12-year old step daughter.

Self-named 'Humbert Humbert' narrates his story from prison, where he awaits trial for murder, the story of his life as a pedophile and his courtship of the 12 year old Dolores Haze, whom he refers to as Lolita.  Humbert first marries the girl's mother, in an effort to remain close to his true love, and it isn't until her untimely (or for Humbert, timely) death that the 'dirty old man' is able to make his move and prey on his Lolita. The two travel across the country, going from motel room to motel room, taking part in acts indescribable even by the narrator, the man who committed them.

As you can well imagine, the book caused a bit of a stir when it was first published in France in 1955.  It was ordered to be seized and destroyed in the UK until 1957, and wasn't published in America until 1958 (it is interesting to note that an American firm offered to publish it in 1955 if Nabokov changed the Lolita character into a young boy).  Of course that isn't much of a surprise, the subject matter remains controversial even today.

While the subject is so controversial and continues to be morally wrong in our society, Nabokov is able to weave it into a story without attempting to condemn or even comment on it.  The author states in the afterword that "there is no moral to the story" and never at any point was he trying to deliver a message.  He was simply telling a good story.  And this is exactly why I enjoyed this book so much.  It wasn't the controversial subject matter, or the shock value of the it, but rather the excellent writing, the wit, and the characters.

Lolita is very well written, almost like poetry, with the words flowing from one page to another so beautifully, the reader gets lost in the descriptions and the narrator's inner-monologue, instead of the dark underbelly of pedophilia.  Looking back, I find it difficult to describe the feelings I experienced while reading Lolita.  When Humbert's wife, Lolita's mother, discovers his true feelings by reading his diary, she runs out of the house with the intention of telling the world what kind of monster he really is.  At this point, I found myself worried he would be exposed, instead of being relieved at the prospect.  When she runs into the street and is struck by a bus moments later, Nabokov creates a sense of ease, leaving me relieved at Humbert's sudden liberation.  It is hard to explain why I would feel relief that a pedophile's accuser has been killed, leaving him free to rape a 12-year old girl, but oddly, that is what I felt.

But this isn't to say Nabokov handles this subject as light-hearted or funny, nor do his descriptions ever suggest what Humbert is doing isn't wrong.  Quite the opposite in fact, even Humbert realizes what he is doing and why it is wrong, he simply feels that he can't help himself.  But despite the nature of the subject, Nabokov is able to inject a lot of humour into the story; often from Humbert's descriptions of the things around him, like his distaste for Lolita's obsessions with American pop culture and his distaste for what he sees as short comings of that society.  And the inner battle Humbert often has with himself was also quite funny, but become less and less so as he slowly comes to grips with what a monster he had become.

It is Humbert's descent into this realization, his descent into his own personal hell, that the books takes a more serious turn.  In the beginning I was curious as to what was going to happen, wondering how an affair would ever begin between a 12 year old and a grown man.  In the end I had to keep reading to see how that affair would reach it's inevitable end and who would be left standing when it did.

You can read Time magazine's original review from September 1, 1958 right here.



Next up I plan on reading The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder.  I haven't read a book from the 20's for a while, To the Lighthouse was the last, and it doesn't look too lengthy.  Again I find myself worried about the length of the books I read.  In an effort to make up for time lost to Infinite Jest, I want to read some shorter books, but at the same time don't want to leave myself with only the really long ones at the end.

Notes: I returned Lolita three days late, and incurred $1.40 in fines.  That puts my total at around twenty bucks.

#27 - "The Berlin Stories" by Christopher Isherwood

I have finished my first book of 2011, or is it my first two books?  The Berlin Stories is two books combined into one; The Last of Mr. Norris  and Goodbye Berlin.  While the two are not directly linked, they do have a common narrator, boarding house and landlady (all the essentials to a great story).

Book one follows the narrator (presumably the author) on a trip from his native England, on the train, to Berlin, where he shares a berth with the odd, yet intriguing Arthur Norris.  The story explores their relationship in inter-war Berlin where they become involved with the local communist party, while Hitler and the Nazis rise to power in the background.  Arthur Norris is simply a great character.  I liked him, but wasn't sure why, and I loathed him for the same reasons.  I found him inexplicably interesting and mysterious, and didn't know what to make of him until the end.  At times he seemed as if he would fit right into a Le Carre spy novel, while at other times he seemed as if he could double for Willy Loman.  Add a little political intrigue into the mix and you get quite a story.

The second book follows a bit of a different format.  While it still revolves around the same narrator, almost all the supporting characters are different.  The second book reads more like a diary or journal, with six different entries, each about people the narrator spends him time with in Berlin.  Most famous of these is no doubt Sally Bowles, who Liza Minnelli won an Oscar for portraying in "Cabaret," but there's also his relationship with Peter and Otto, a gay couple struggling with their relationship in a soon-to-be-Nazi-run Germany, and Natalia Laundauer, a wealthy Jewish heiress, who's family isn't prepared for the fate we all know now they must have met.  Like Arthur Norris from the first story, the characters in the second book are so well written and developed.  They all at times seem oddly likable, but strangely repugnant.

I'm torn as to what to think of this book.  When I finished reading, my first thought was no doubt that I had enjoyed reading it, but when I look back, I'm not exactly sure why.  The first story was quite interesting, especially as the two get more and more involved with the communist party, all while Hitler is rising to power, but the second story didn't really have any story, nor any conclusion.  That isn't to say I didn't enjoy the second half, it just didn't seem to have any real point.  As I mentioned earlier, it was more a series of diary entries, which when I think about it, is exactly how it was intended.  I've always thought that a great story is what make me enjoy a book, but here the story wasn't the best part, rather it was the characters and the setting, both so well written, I couldn't help but get wrapped up in the period.

But I think what I enjoyed the most was the writing style.  More Hemingway than Woolf, Isherwood writes more like a storyteller, and less like a psychiatrist.  Instead of 'philosophical introspection' (a term I once saw used to describe boring, modernist novels like To the Lighthouse), he uses a more direct style of prose; describing the character and their actions, instead of their inner thoughts about their actions or other characters.  Combine this with his interesting characters, and Isherwood gave me an excellent read.

It was also interesting to read this book, knowing what was to happen in Germany and the world in the years following its publication.  When published in 1935, although the Nazis were in power, the war was yet to start, the world was unaware of the atrocities that were to occur.  While many of the characters in both books doubt war will ever happen, the narrator is less certain, predicting not only war, but ethnic mass murder.  If only Neville Chamberlain had thought that way, things might have turned out very differently.

You can read TIME's original review from May 20, 1935, right here.  They only review The Last of Mr. Norris, as the two were not published together at the time it was written.

I've forged ahead into my 28th book, Infinite Jest.  I almost went with a smaller, less intimidating book, but realized that I'm going to have to read this sooner or later, so I might as well dive in right now.  It's going to take some kind of effort to finish this thing before the snow melts (in May).

#20 - "Deliverance" by James Dickey

What can I say about the twentieth book on the list?  While I had already read a couple of the first twenty books before, I haven't been as familiar with a story as I was with Deliverance.  It makes for a different reading experience, and I found myself concentrating on the difference between the movie and the book, not the things I normally, ney, should be concentrating on; writing style, character development, etc. 

What I thought made Deliverance a good book, is the story.  Even though I knew what was going to happen, I was still reading, eagerly anticipating the next page.  To me, this is what makes a book 'good.'  If there isn't much happening (think Naked Lunch or To the Lighthouse) I find it really difficult staying interested in the story.  The imagery or poetic elements of a book have failed to get my attention.  However, I am finding the more I read, the more I pick up on these things.

The other great part of Deliverance, is the characters.  When I was reading this book, I always had a good picture of what the characters looked like and how they reacted to different things.  I really felt like I knew them.  I do realize however, that this is probably a result of having seen the movie so many times.  I fear that I wasn't picturing Dickey's descriptions as much as I was picturing the actors from the film.  Either way, it made me enjoy the book a great deal.

Now the question that remains, is what was better, the movie or the book?  I've thought about this a great deal, as I rally enjoy the movie and think it was well done.  However, I'm going to go with the book for the same reason the book is always better than the movie.  Simply, books can go into greater detail than a movie can.  In the case of Deliverance, the book covers the back story so much better.  We learn more about who the characters are and what their motivations are.  We learn more about what happens after their fateful trip down the river.  The movie never really gets into how each man changed as a result of what happened.  In short, the book answers most of the questions one has after watching the movie; that's why it's better.

Plus, I now have a better understanding of my role as Hillbilly Santa in my Grade 8 Christmas play, a character with an extra ear and an extra eyeball sewn into the forehead of his skullcap.



You can read Time magazine's original review from April 20, 1970 here.

#15 - "To the Lighthouse" by Virginia Woolf

I finished To the Lighthouse today.  It's the third shortest book I've read so far, but took almost twice as long as any other.  I blame summer weather, golf courses, the Stampede and beer on patios.  The real reason it took so long however, was a combination of the aformentioned things and that I really didn't like it.

The problem I had with this novel is the style in which it was written.  Instead of describing actions or using dialogue, most of the book consists of describing different characters' thoughts and emotions.  The book also jumps from one character to another, making it very difficult to follow.  One review I found even said that plot was secondary to philosophical introspection.  I don't even know what that means, other than I'm not going to like it.  How am I supposed to follow a book that doesn't really have a plot, or even any descriptions for that matter.

Throughout the entire novel, I never really had a feel for any of the characters or settings and was unable to picture them in my mind.  I guess the good thing is, if I ever see the movie, I won't be dissapointed with the casting.  "That actor filled the blank face I had in my mind perfectly!" I'll exclaim leaving the theatre, or more likely from the couch.

The plot, a term I use very loosely, centered around a family's desire to visit a lighthouse in Scotland in 1910, and then their actual visit to the same lighthouse in 1920; after half the family had died.  I don't know if lighthouses were a lot bigger attraction a hundred years ago, but I don't see myself itching to visit one for ten years.  Anyway, a bunch of stuff happens in the middle, or rather nothing happens, but all the characters think about how nothing happened.  They all seem to wonder why they couldn't have visited the lighthouse ten years earlier.  Of course, they could hvae, as the trip only involves a thirty minute boat ride, but they didn't because the father thought it might rain.  That's really the reason they didn't go.  I'm not kidding.  But after ten years, the remaining family members were able to risk rain, and visit the lighthouse.  The book however ends just as they arrive, so we never even find out what's so great about the goddamn thing.

I have to wonder what's wrong with me.  This book received high praise from Time Magazine when it was first released in 1927, and again when The List was put together.  Perhaps I'll mature, with regards to literature, as I continue reading the list, but again, I didn't like this book.  Only Naked Lunch surpassed it in...un-readability.

I visited the library today, and picked up two more books, I, Claudius and Lucky Jim.  Both continue my trend of not knowing anything about the book before I read it.  I, Claudius was mentioned in a episode of "Cheers" I saw recently though, as Frasier exclaimed "We can go upstairs, I have all twelve episodes of I, Claudius on tape!", much to Sam's chagrin.  I like to think that I have more sophisticated reading tastes than Sam Malone, but only time will tell.

As for fines, it turns out I incurred $1.05 on both To the Lighthouse and The Power and the Glory.  That brings my fine total to $5.90.  And if you were wondering, I returned both those books today, which means I've been renewing Power all this time, even though I finished reading it almost two months ago.  It's not that I'm lazy, it's that I wanted to conserve fuel, and not drive to the library twice.  Let's go with that.


You can read the original Time Magazine review from May 30, 1927 right here.

No more a briton, I have resumed again

All right, this time I mean it, I have resumed my quest to finish To the Lighthouse.  It's been a sad display of late, but it's tough to read during the summer months, when there are so many other things to do; mainly watch TV.  Despite my near zero comprehension of what is going on in this novel, I am charging ahead, and vow to finish it within the week.  While I don't really have anything to report on the story itself (as I don't understand it), I have come across a couple of noteworthy things.

First off, there was a line in the book that caught my attention.  "Every one could not be as helter skelter, hand to mouth as she was."  Helter Skelter?  I always thought that was a kooky line the Beatles made up, like 'Mean Mr. Mustard' or 'Glass Onion.'  An acid trip set to music really.  However, as this book was published in 1927, there obviously is a little more history to helter skelter than I thought.  Turns out, the actual meaning of helter skelter is in chaotic and disorderly haste, and its use has been found as far back as 1592.  Interestingly (or more likely not), the two words have no meaning on their own.  So, maybe John and Paul weren't on a bad trip when they came up with some of their lyrics, maybe 'I am the Walrus' is how British people have been saying 'I am having a fat day' since the 1700's.

The second thing I came across in this book was chapter 15.  What's odd about Chapter 15 you ask?  It's one sentence, that's what's odd.  I always thought of chapters as dividing different plot lines or settings, sort of a like a star wipe in a movie or TV show.  But what's the point of having a one line chapter?  I guess it doesn't really matter, but it was odd.  The plus side was that I was able to say I read a couple chapters today. 

To hold my very course...

It's been a while since I last posted, but I have a good reason.  The Calgary Stampede took place last week, and anybody from Calgary can attest to the fact it's hard to get anything done during those ten days.  My progress on the list has been put on hold and I haven't read a word since July 7th.

I am halfway through To The Lighthouse however, so it isn't as if I haven't made any progress since June, it's just that there hasn't been much.  So far, I'm finding this book to be a little on the dull side, and again I fear I am missing something.  There has to be more to this novel that what I've read so far.  Doesn't there?  Time to continue reading I guess.  I might have to go back a few pages, as I've forgotten some of what I've read.

As an aside, but related to the author, I found out the movie "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" has nothing to do with the author, and her only connection is having her name in the title.  I was always under the impression that Elizabeth Taylor played the author, but this isn't the case.  I have PVR'd the movie, so perhaps I can watch it, knowing it doesn't have anything to do with the movie.

#14 - "The Power and the Glory" by Graham Greene

I was able to finish The Power and the Glory last night, making that four books in June.  Actually, I finished the book at about 2:00AM, but I'm going to consider that being finished in June.

I found the first few chapters of this book very difficult to immerse myself in.  I don't know if I'm just not that smart or what, but I found the beginning to be quite confusing.  At one point, I wondered if I had missed a page or something.  Or perhaps I had drifted off, where your brain is elsewhere, but your eyes continue to scan across the page.  I hadn't felt this lost since reading Light in August.

Eventually, things began to come together and the pieces started falling into place, but I still can't get over how confusing I found this at the start.  Is it supposed to be read that way?  Or am I finding it difficult to get into any book after just having finished a different one?  When I had started Atonement, I still had the Lambert family from The Corrections in my head, and found any new character to be almost a distraction to my involvement with them.  I have to learn to do a better job of wiping the slate clean, and remembering I'm reading a new book.

The Power and the Glory is the story of an unnamed priest, wandering the Mexican countryside to avoid prosecution. Set in the 1930's in Mexico, while the government was in the process of suppressing religion, making worship illegal and executing any religious figures including priests and bishops, the story follows an unnamed priest as he roams the countryside trying to avoid prosecution.

As the nameless priest moves from village to village, being chased by a Lieutenant and his posse, he slowly feels the pinch of the law, as they move in closer and closer, surrounding the priest.  While he is a self-described "whiskey priest", basically a drunk and a bad priest, he is still devoted to his faith.  Unable to resist the urge to quench the people's thirst for religious guidance, he must decide whether or not to sacrifice his own freedom to enhance the lives of the people he encounters.

The story did gain momentum, and in the end, I was quite engrossed with the fate of the priest.  As the posse slowly moves in, and he resigns himself to his demise, I felt myself felling compassion for not only the man, but also the religion; something I'm not known for.

While I enjoyed the read, it doesn't really stick out in my mind, and I wouldn't be picking it for my favorite books yet.  In fact, this will find itself closer to the bottom, along with Naked Lunch and Light in August.

My next book will be To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf.  Again, I know nothing about it, other than Elizabeth Taylor was in a movie called "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"  I'll assume the two have something in common.

His recognizances, his fines, his double vouchers,

I hit the library yesterday and picked up what will end up being numbers 14 and 15 on The List.  First off is The Power and the Glory  by Graham Greene.  (The British author, not the Canadian actor).  It was written in 1939, which meets my requirements of reading an older book (after my last two were from this decade), but I don't know anything else about it.  It looks pretty short, so maybe I'll be able to finish it in a couple of days, which would be amazing considering it took me a month to read some of these books, and I could finish four books in June alone.

The other book I picked up was To the Lighthouse  by Virginia Woolf, also an 'older' book, having been published in 1927.  Again, I don't know anything about it, other than I've heard of the movie "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf", starring Elizabeth Taylor.

As an aside, I did return Atonement a couple of days late, making it the second book I've incurred fines on.  However, it was only seventy cents, bringing my total to $3.85.

#13 - "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

I'm already done another book, this one went by quite quickly.  I'll thank fewer pages and large print for the speed in which I was able to read this one however, not some new technique I picked up on a late night infomercial.  I saw Atonement described as a "romance" novel, which I don't see at all.  Yes, there is a love story, but it isn't a "romance" novel.  When I think of romance novels, I think of Fabio on the cover, holding a woman, with his hair flapping in a phantom breeze.  This novel isn't like that at all.

Atonement reminds me more of a play actually, than a novel; being divided into four parts, each taking place in a different place and a different time, much like acts in a stage production.  Starting off in 1935, the novel follows the Tallis family on a hot summer day outside of London.  The Tallis family reminds me a lot of the Flytes in Brideshead Revisited, being very wealthy, mostly care-free, but still friendly and accommodating.  Things become more serious however, when 13 year old Briony witnesses something horrible during a family get together; or at least she thinks she did.  The lives of everybody in the family change forever after that night, and Briony spends the rest of her life trying to make up for her actions.

There were a couple of unique things about Atonement and I'm not sure what I think of them.  It has one of the largest time shifts I've ever seen in a book, going from 1940 to 1999 at one point.  Although not unheard of, I have to admit that while reading about events which took place during the War and even before it, I did not expect to later be reading about 1999 or words like 'computer' and 'mobile phone.'  Secondly, and I don't think I've ever seen this before, the book switches from 3rd person in the first three parts to 1st person in the fourth and final part.  The book changes from being told about Briony and the Tallis family to being told by Briony about the Tallis family.  It was an interesting shift, but I found myself having to remember that "I" was one of the main characters, not a narrator.  It stuck me that this was the author breaking the "fourth wall", when one of the characters begins speaking to the reader.  I do enjoy the intimacy of 1st person narrations, as I find it to be as if the author and myself are in on a secret that nobody else knows about.  A similar technique was used in Midnight's Children, when the author continually mentioned writing the story, making it sound as if I were reading it as it was being written; literally standing over the typewriter while he worked away.

Overall, I would say I enjoyed Atonement and was eager to see what would happen next, but I wouldn't classify it as one of my favorites so far.  That isn't to say this wasn't a good book, quite the contrary, it just has pretty strong competition and they can't all be my favorite.


You can read the Time Magazine review from March 25, 2002, here. 

Notes: Briony was reading The Waves by Virginia Woolf at one point.  While it isn't on The List, two of her other books are; To the Lighthouse  and Mrs. Dalloway.  So far The Corrections is the only book from The List to mention another.

This is also the newest book I've read so far, and the 2nd newest book on The List.  Only Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go was published more recently.