I extend a question to you...

This post on Melville House's website really got me to thinking about my reading choices as of late. I read a couple of Pynchon's in a row and then moved on to a Vollmann. My brain was foggy and muddled after all that. I really needed some fresh air. So, I chose Hans Fallada's Little Man, What Now?.
It was exactly what I needed. Simple, concise, and full of relatable characters. So, what's your favorite readable author and/or books? In stormy seas, who do you call upon to clear the skies?

http://mhpbooks.com/41882/in-praise-of-readability/

Terrible 1Q84 review

I'm as excited for the book as anyone else (yes, I'm still waiting on my copy to come in the mail - Amazon messed up), but this review just left a sour taste in my mouth before I'd even tried the main course. There is a comparison to Stieg Larson's characters and a mention of the 900-pager's potential to strain your arm. Well, if you've been hefting around such intellectual lights as "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," then, yes, this book might cause you to pull a muscle in your brain.

There was a time when I would look to NPR for advice on books, but this has been some time ago. Just read this review and see one of the many reasons why I've quit them.

http://www.npr.org/2011/10/25/141460070/1q84-japans-orwellian-bestseller-comes-to-u-s

V.

Much has been written about the enigmatic and ever-elusive author Thomas Pynchon. Entire wikis are dedicated to recording every noun, allusion, instance of symbolism, and historical fact in his novels. Academia has has been attempting to describe his works for over 30 years with Pynchon Notes. I prefer a moderate stance. To me, his books are just a golden ticket in to his universe. You may take a guided tour and follow the story arc all the way to the end, but when that glass elevator bursts through the ceiling of his factory, you turn to face Pynchon, but he's gone. The elevator is hit with a guided missile and you're left plummeting toward the earth.

Despite being his first novel, V. is no exception to feelings of free-fall and a mountain of questions when you reach the finish. It's essentially the story of two protagonists - one, content with lazing away his days on the streets or bumming around in friends' houses and another fervently searching for "V," whom he believes could be his long-lost mother. As we read, more instances of "V" are found - a mad priest who is trying to convert his rat/lover/devout follower, Veronica; a Utopian land, Vheissu that may or may not exist; and, finally, the capital of Malta, Valletta. Yes, there are more, but lest I risk spoiling any of the fun, I will refrain from including them.

So much is packed in to this novel. Pynchon's erudition is undeniable, but this doesn't prevent him from including comical slap-stick relief and potty humor. From condom bombs to erections to climbing radio towers so the waves will render one sterile, it's all there. The plot of the novel does follow somewhat of a delineated path. The beginning of the novel has our protagonists thousands of miles apart, but as the book progresses, they eventually come closer and closer, until finally meeting each other and heading off together to search for "V" in Valletta. There are many sidetracks and side character stories, but it's not quite as labyrinthine as Pynchon's later novel, Gravity's Rainbow.

I could go on and on about this book, but I almost prefer not to. I don't think it's meant to analyzed so closely. I believe much of the book is about searching and persevering whether or not you know what it is you're looking for. Reading this book is like following bread crumbs. Along the way, you'll find something that another person definitely missed.

The "Iliad" translated again

Do we need another one - or another four in one month? This month, four new translations of Homer's "Iliad" are due to be released, according to The Economist. You might expect to see the same result time after time, but in the article below, starkly different translations of the same line are presented as well as short profiles of the translators and their style - a couple staunch, dusty old men from academia, one poetess, and a reissued translation.

http://www.economist.com/node/21532253

Henry Rollins & Henry Miller

I never really held as much respect for Henry Rollins as the man deserves until I saw him speak at the Buskirk Chumley Theatre in Bloomington, IN over a year ago. He spoke for over three hours, sails at full-mast, engines revving the whole time. I was riveted. I remember leaving the venue and just thinking, "Holy shit. What an intelligent man." I felt as if I'd run mental marathon and was experiencing the post-run high. He's full of insights on everything ranging from foreign policy to F. Scott Fitzgerald. I'd never attended a spoken work performance of any kind before and I don't know if I ever can again - Rollins set the bar too high.

Check out this awesome interview with Rollins on Bookslut. He talks about his books; one of my favorite authors, Henry Miller; and other topics of interest.

http://www.bookslut.com/features/2011_10_018191.php

Melville's been occupyin' for a century and a half

Check out this post from The Millions proving how relevant literature from 150+ years ago still resonates as strongly as ever.

http://www.themillions.com/2011/10/bartleby%E2%80%99s-occupation-of-wall-street.html

Nabokov's Lolita

Did you know Lolita's cover has been through many changes over the years including this most recent design? But, did you know that the cover was originally supposed to be vertical, not horizontal? Check it out: http://housingworksbookstore.tumblr.com/post/10735628268/fun-fact-i-heard-at-chip-kidd-lecture-this-cover

Books

A friend of mine recently told me about his troubles with trying to find a reading group in downtown Chicago. The problem wasn't that what they were reading didn't interest him, but that they simply did not allow males into the group. These groups are hindering themselves from having a male perspective and simply another voice to be heard in the group - one with a unique outlook. I don't understand this problem. Is this a throwback to knitting groups, red hat societies, cliques? I say it only hurts a group to not be all-inclusive and it seems old-fashioned.

Another thing I've noticed is that reading groups seem to read the same books. Just Google "reading group suggestion" or "best book club books" and you'll find nearly the same lists site after site after site, e.g.:

The Russian Concubine
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
The Help
The Art of Racing in the Rain
People of the Book

I think with this blog I'll attempt to make suggestions and add comments or points for discussion. Hopefully, this will help diversify and make book clubs seem a little more progressive.

Brief posting for now. Check for more later.