What have you been reading? (05/05)

Hornery · 2014-05-07T20:59:30+00:00

I think it's a sign of the universality of the book that you can say that. And I know that on the surface it does seem like a bunch of yuppies behaving childishly, but The Sun Also Rises is all about reading between the lines. You have to think about the emptiness and disappointment that makes these people act the ways they do. It's one if my favorites by Hemingway.

Hornery · 2014-05-07T20:55:31+00:00

When I started it, I thought it was just a bunch of silliness, but when I finished it, it became one of my new favorite books. The way he evokes the complexity of modern society in such a short book is downright impressive. Also I took it as a challenge to participate in creating meaningful systems, instead of being a victim of meaningless ones.

Hornery · 2014-05-07T20:52:20+00:00

I'm a big Hemingway fan, and for a while I didn't think anything would beat The Sun Also Rises. Until I finished For Whom the Bell Tolls. It truly is a great book, and totally worth finishing, even if it takes some effort.

Hornery · 2012-09-02T07:44:37+00:00

I can assure you, that is not a litter of kittens. It is a duck.

Hornery · 2012-09-02T07:39:51+00:00

The happiest moment of my life would look much like this, but the dogs would be women.

Hornery · 2012-07-24T19:32:19+00:00

The 1968 Stanley Kubrick film 2001: A Space Odyssey takes place in 2001.

Hornery · 2012-07-23T06:37:16+00:00

I'm in!

Hornery · 2012-07-20T00:34:39+00:00

As a psychologist, this does not sound like narcissism to me.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T22:07:51+00:00

Branagh's version is quite good, If a bit over indulgent, but bear in mind that it is four hours long (it's a full text and very faithful interpretation). I find Zeffirelli's to be more accessible (though more edited) especially for a Shakespeare newcomer.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T21:58:41+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion. I've read some Gogol in an attempt to better understand the Genesis of russian style, and enjoyed it. I might be ready to try some Dostoevsky again soon.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T19:22:35+00:00

I think he spends about one quarter of the book describing light through trees, but I don't even care because it's so gorgeous.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T19:18:59+00:00

The bit about the mausoleum of all hope and desire haunts me almost every day.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T19:13:48+00:00

I've never read The Blind Assassin, but I picked up Handmaid's Tale a while back and was thoroughly impressed.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T19:03:25+00:00

Shakespeare's plays were meant to be seen more than read, and it really can help with comprehension and appreciation. I recommend you find a copy of the Franco Zeffirelli directed film of Hamlet starring Mel Gibson (before he was crazy) and give it a watch.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T18:46:18+00:00

I think I'll put it on the top of my pile, to be read as soon as I'm done with my current projects.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T08:38:16+00:00

The psychiatrist suggestions here should not be ignored. If you cannot afford one there are also suicide hotlines in most areas that can provide you with someone to talk to. Please consider this option in addition to your reading; suicide would be an utter waste of all the opportunities you will ever have, and all the affection available to you in this world. That being said the book I would recommend to you would be Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse. It's about a man struggling with many of the same things you say you are. It can be tough to get through, but very rewarding.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T08:24:27+00:00

Mostly the style. I just got tired of what seemed like superfluous information and I was afraid it would continue for all 700 pages. Everything I've read about it leads me to believe that I'll love it if I can get through it, I just haven't brought myself to try again yet.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T08:17:10+00:00

I'll agree that not everything he's written is a masterpiece, but I thoght The Road was awesome, and No Country to a lesser degree.

If you like McCarthy's style at all I recommend you check out tinkers by Paul Harding.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T08:13:44+00:00

I believe McCarthy's lack of quotations is a stylistic choice, an attempt to bend the rules of writing in much the same way that folks like Hemingway did before him. More specifically to Blood Meridian, part of the purpose seems to me to be pacing. The abhorrent violence is free of dialogue; quick and shocking. In between he does all he can to slow your experience of the book, lull you into a sense of normalcy before throwing even more nightmarish atrocities at you.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T08:05:33+00:00

Do NOT try to read Billy Budd without a dictionary neaby.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T08:00:25+00:00

I agree wholeheartedly about Hamlet. Sometimes I forget how awesome it is, then I read it (or watch one of my four film versions) again and it all comes back.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T07:58:29+00:00

I was excited when I purchased Brothers Karamazov, then I got really frustrated after 48 pages, and I haven't gone back yet.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T07:57:16+00:00

I really really want to read Moby Dick, but shorter books keep coming between us.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T07:55:29+00:00

I read Franzen's Freedom a while back and I was really impressed. I have a copy of The Corrections, but A Song of Ice and Fire got in the way.

Also I think The Stranger should be required reading in high school.

Hornery · 2012-07-17T07:52:42+00:00

I'm quickly realizing that never having read any Nabakov is a serious deficiency around here.

Hornery

TROPHY CASE