deebee keeps calm and reads

(Photo was taken at the Mercado dos Lavrdores, Funchal, Madeira last October. These are King Protea flowers.)

Decided to keep the photo and use this space for listing titles recommended here at Club Read, which caught my attention --

The Bridge of Beyond by Simone Schwarz-Bart (SassyLassy)
The Corner That Held Them by Sylvia Townsend Warner (baswood)

Welcome back!

It's great to see you here, deebee!

Welcome back! Hope to follow your reading this year.

Yes, my thread name is what it is — a reminder I will badly need every so often in 2016. For a start, returning to Club Read and being among likeminded readers away from the hustle and bustle of work, travel, and life in general, is already for me a calming idea.

In 2015, I read 24 books - not an impressive number, but looking back, I realise that the very limited time I had for leisure reading forced me to narrow down my choices to those I was sure I would like. Didn’t start out with any reading plan, but looking at the completed titles, I seemed to have picked up books loosely revolving around just a handful of themes. I continued on a theme I had started a couple of years back, the Western Roman Empire, and started on the Byzantium. In terms of geographic theme, except for a single book set in France and one about South Africa/Rhodesia, everything else was set in or about southeastern Europe and farther eastwards, including the Levant. Almost half of what I read were non-fiction, an unusually higher share than usual. Several of these were excellent memoirs (Fermor, Thesiger, Thubron) on their travels east and Central Asia, which were inspired by a trip I made to cities of the ancient Silk Road. This, as was expected, triggered new reading interests — but those have to wait another time. I continued to seek out lesser-known translated literature, which turned out to be, unsurprisingly, gem finds.

From last year, here are -

The Best of the Best (idea stolen from rebecca’s thread)

Fiction
The Time of Miracles by Borislav Pekić. Easily island-book material. It is a rewriting of Christ’s miracles — a brilliant and witty interpretation from the point of view of the beneficiaries (or perhaps more appropriate, victims?). Pekić was a Serbian activist who spent 6 years in prison, was only allowed the Bible as reading material during his incarceration. He wrote this book 10 years after his release.
The Case of Comrade Tulayev by Victor Serge. As 5-stars as any book can get.
Death and the Dervish by Mesa Selimovic. Mostly an internal dialogue of Ahmed, the dervish of the title, providing an insightful portrayal of moral failure, set during the Ottoman occupation of Bosnia. This book stayed with me.
Life: A User’s Manual by Georges Perec. Serious fun and amazing, if I may use the word.

Non-fiction
The Reformation: Europe’s House Divided by Diarmaid MacCulloch
Byzantium: The Early Centuries by John Julius Norwich

I read an appallingly low number of female authors in 2015- only 3, something I need to rectify this year. I’ve also missed Latin American fiction, so a few titles may eventually get read. Will continue reading on Asian conflicts, a theme I started last year, and try to continue others like the Byzantium, and the Roman Republic. Already seeming too ambitious here, but having a semblance of a plan is not a bad idea, though I may just as well be dictated by mood. Let’s see.

Wishing you a calmer year. I put The Time of Miracles on my wishlist. I might read it when (if) I read the NT.

Hi deebee nice to see you back.

I think I might steal Death and the dervish from your 2015 best reads.

I love everything by Victor Serge! And I have Death and the Dervish on the TBR; someone must have recommended it before because I never would have bought it -- or known about it -- otherwise.

Nice summary of your 2015 favorites, deebee. I'll move Life A User's Manual higher on my TBR list.

That's an impressive list of favorites, regardless of how many read for the year. It sounds as though you choose quite wisely for yourself. Looking forward to learning more about your reading this year.

>6 dchaikin: Thanks. That the book might interest you actually crossed my mind when I was reading it last year. Growing up in a Protestant home, I knew these stories by heart. As an adult, I thought them rather repetitive and predictable, and have long left them behind me. This book brought back to me the "lessons" we were supposed to learn from them, specially the obligatory blind gratitude towards the doer of the deed. Everyone was supposed to be grateful. Pekić, however, takes us to the after-the-event and there, there is no gratitude, there is nothing to suspend disbelief and the stories don't turn out to be so wondrous after all. It's great reading, with or without NT.

Btw, at the time you were going through the OT, I was reading a very good book by Stefan Heym, The King David Report, another witty retelling of a biblical story. King Solomon commissions a scribe to write a proper record of King David's life - David the glorious hero of battles, etc etc -- it must, of course, be a tribute. But as the writer does his research, he finds another life, hidden -- a life unfit to be written about, to put it mildly. How should he write his report? I had meant to mention it to you, dan, at that time, but forgot about it.

>7 zenomax: Good to be back. Steal away... This is a book for INTJs. :-)

>8 rebeccanyc: If not for your enthusiastic reviews, this extraordinary writer would not be on my radar. Thanks to you, I'm now an eager fan.

>9 kidzdoc: Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. It seemed daunting when I picked it up, but found myself wishing the apartment building Perec was portraying to have been a great deal bigger, with more tenants and so, with more stories to tell. I don't know why that book languished in my shelves for years.

>10 theaelizabet: Thanks. Not so sure about the choosing wisely part, but increasingly having less free time to read has turned me into an even more picky and moody reader. Nice to see you here.

Deebee - there were a lot of boring parts of the OT, but 1 & 2 Samuel and the story of David were so complex and interesting, that has become the story I use to rate the bible. It's a terrific section. As I read the Iliad now, I keep thinking David was far more complex than these static Greek heroes and gods - all just out for glory and not much else (other than Paris).

I have read God Knows by Heller, and found it kind of boring in that he just restates David's story, but tells the reader the between-the-lines stuff. I had not heard of The King David Report and I'm now very interested, but a little hesitant after Heller. I'll certainly keep it in mind.

But you've only made the Pekić more appealing.

Life A User's Manual is one of my all time favorite books. I want to reread it soon.

Hi deebee, really pleased to have found your thread. I look forward to following your reading this year.

Hello! It's great to see appreciation for Pekic, a cert for a Nobel had he lived and Serbia hadn't become an international pariah.

I've noticed some English translations have finally started turning up (he's better represented in French, if it's of any help), including How to quieten a vampire (How to quiet a vampire) which, given what you say about The time of miracles, would be the one I'd recommend next. It's not an easy book to describe... it has the elements of a surrealist romp (for instance, an evil umbrella dogs one of the characters to insanity), but is in fact a deeply serious examination of personal and historical guilt and responsibility.

And, I can't believe the picture in #1 is a photo! It looks like a gorgeous baroque painting, a 'Flower' Bruegel or somebody!

>15 LolaWalser:: Hello back! I wasn't 20 pages into The Time of Miracles when I decided I needed to get my hands on his translated works. So yes, I have How to Quiet a Vampire on my shelves. The Northwestern Univ Press has the Writers from an Unbound Europe series where I find these gems.

Glad you like the photo -- this was a shot I almost missed, as one's attention inadvertently went to the stunningly arranged flowers on the seller's stall, and nobody bothered looking farther or at the corners where the florist dumped the more common varieties. But these unlikely places are exactly what I love to explore when I have my camera. So I got my reward. This is the closest I will ever get to becoming a painter haha.

The Door by Magda Szabo (first published in 1987)
Translated from the Hungarian by Len Rix

I’ve read a few books by Hungarian authors and since none has disappointed me so far so I came to this book with high expectations. The premise seemed interesting — there are doors in our lives and in others’ lives which may never be entered freely. Magda is a struggling young writer who employed an aged housekeeper who is sharp and headstrong, a workaholic with an almost superhuman physical strength, an illiterate, a respecter of no one, and as the author herself puts it, a kind of primitive. She is compassionate toward animals and to the less fortunate, she is the go-to person in the neighbourhood which seem unable to cope without her, but she is a mystery to all. Nobody has ever crossed the threshold of her house, and what lies behind the door is an unknown. Magda and Emerence quickly develop a love-hate relationship and establish a strong bond over the years despite frequent and deeply unsettling conflicts they have. Emerence, during various occasions over the years, reveals secrets from her past but the door remains closed. Magda eventually becomes a big success as a writer, having now been recognised by her government (the autobiographical part of the story) just about the time that Emerence becomes ill. When Emerence dies, Magda blames herself and feels she failed Emerence who expected her to keep her secret, and hide what she thought was her shame, by keeping the door closed. None of what Emergence treasured and kept behind her door would remain — either fleeing or disintegrating into dust when the mysterious door was finally forced open from outside. Magda had orchestrated it all, thinking it was for the old woman’s good — now she was left with the thought that she had betrayed Emerence.

The story is simple and the author tries to make us understand that as a writer, following intellectual pursuits that demand staring for hours into the trees beyond the balcony which for Magda and the academic husband constitute work, but for Emerence is a useless exercise since she only recognises work that demand the use of hands and brute force, somebody like Emerence is needed in their daily lives. Someone who cooks the meals, takes the dog out for a walk, shovels the snow on the sidewalk, in short, someone who makes the house liveable in order for them to concentrate on their higher and loftier pursuits. Easy enough to understand so there really was no need, I think, for Szabo to keep hammering on about this. I would have been happier if she had portrayed how the author in the story matured as a writer (given that she was all those years, free from housekeeping duties because of Emerence - she recognises this, even including a special thanks in her award speech) but Szabo’s writer is uninteresting. We don’t know how she got from one point to the other — was being a writer essential to understanding what lay behind doors and to open doors? Szabo’s telling of the story does not make any connection, and it’s where I think this book fails. I also found slightly irritating the repetitions — of the two women always getting into each other’s way (why are they always “flying into rages” — wondering if it’s the translation — I’m imagining flying dishes every time as each seemed capable of doing) — and Magda’s rather sanctimonious Catholicism, and didn’t like the ending, which I found rather weak. A shorter book also would have helped. In any case, it didn’t leave me thinking about the book afterwards.

>16 deebee1:

Well, as a person with a huge anti-talent for photography, I am thoroughly wowed.

Thanks for that review of Szabo, I haven't read her, and this is very helpful orientation.

I've looked at The Door in the bookstore off and on, and never succumbed to it. Now I know why.

I wasn't thrilled by The Door, I gave it 3 stars.

I didn't really 'get' The Door; I couldn't see what it was trying to do, and when I finished it, my reaction was along the lines of 'so? was that it?' I had high hopes for it because I'd heard several people rave about it. I wonder if it suffers in translation, though; they all read it in the original.

>21 rachbxl: Huh, I had been looking forward to The Door, which was a favorite of some goodreads friends and it was in NY Times 10 Best Books of 2015.

Great review of The Door, deebee. I was also tempted to get it, due in part to its appearing in the NYT Top 10 Books of 2015, but I won't now, given your comments and those by Edwin and Rachel.

>18 LolaWalser: Thanks. Many times it's just a question of timing, though a quick eye and a steady finger definitely help.

>19 rebeccanyc: Your having read widely East European and Russian authors has given you the nose for exceptional writing from this region! This book didn't give off the right smell, I guess.

>20 edwinbcn: >21 rachbxl: I'm not sure what the excitement was all about. It seems to be a celebrated work with writers and critics heaping praises equally, both abroad and in her home country. I don't really think it was just a question of the translation, though I think it could have been better. I wonder how much of the publicity generated is because she addresses a need to bring accessible writing from the former Eastern Bloc by a female written just before communism fell, with a theme that would resonate with the wider English-speaking audience, having much less complexity than the usual from writers from this region? In short, its having all the qualities that make for marketing appeal?

>22 ELiz_M: Please, don't let all this talk stop you...

>23 kidzdoc: Didn't know it was an NYT top book. For all the book's shortcomings in my view, at least the publicity helps bring "newer" European (and female) writers to a more global audience.

>24 deebee1: Good point, deebee. The NYT is pretty slack at reviewing books in translation, particularly ones written by female authors.

The Door sounds like a book length guilt trip. I think I'll pass. Enjoyed your review though.

The Door is on my LT wishlist, but I think that's probably a mistake because I'm pretty sure I read it, from your description. I don't remember much about it, maybe a vague feeling that it didn't live up to my expectations. I don't think I disliked it though. This is why I should make more of an effort to write reviews. A few years later I have no idea how I felt about this book. Possibly, I didn't think about it much at the time. Or didn't think much about it. Or both.

Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, 1932

Glowing reviews and its being in all kinds of Best and To Read lists prompted me to pick up this book when I was in the mood for an amusing and witty read. But what a disappointment this was.

Flora Poste is a well-off orphaned young woman who, rather than learning a trade and getting a job in the city, chose to live with relatives, the Starkadders, in dreary Sussex in a farm called Cold Comfort. The Starkadders are rough, country people -- crude, eccentric and most of the time, stupid and unthinking, with a criminal bent. If they were not raping or pushing each other down the well, they were stark mad, or were raving doomsday fanatics. And into this dark, sinful, brutal, ignorant and miserable corner must shine Flora's sensible, practical, cheerful, and sophisticated spark, at least she thought when she arrived. A whiff of fresh air into this musty corner was needed. Things change and how they change, as Flora takes charge, employing to a great and equal degree her talents for persuasion and assertion. In short, she was into everybody's lives, imposing her new and, for these people, strange and revolutionary notions, structuring them according to her idea of order and neatness, and the advice of the Abbé Fausse-Maigre in "The Higher Common Sense" -- her book for essential life instruction. Interestingly, for all their pigheadedness, no one except ancient Adam in the use of his "liddle broom", raised any disagreement and seemed like sheep to her bidding. One big thing after another takes place, and not many months after, Cold Comfort was a very different farm. And seeing all her efforts bear wonderful results as she had planned, her brief sojourn was over, and now she was ready to return to the civilised world properly -- that is, whisked away by her love -- a properly cheesy ending to a properly cheesy story.

I understand that in 1932, Gibbons wanted to parody what was then the immensely popular "rural novel." She seemed to have succeeded, as the book is considered a masterpiece of the time. Was it amusing and witty, as claimed by many? Some scenes I found amusing and quite memorable -- Amos preaching at the Church of the Quivering Brethren, Flora opening the gate to let the bull Big Business out (because he seemed miserable left alone in the dark barn -- how could he perform if he was miserable? she reasoned), and Amos refusing to use the new "liddle broom" to "cletter the dishes." But most of the time, the effort at funniness didn't really work, such as in the use of awkward and sometimes downright demeaning names. The contrasts between the sophisticated, metropolitan class and outlook, and the rugged, closed and primitive countryside mindset and lifestyle are in full display, and there is no doubt which is supposed to be the superior one, as the author suggests in Flora's behaviour and her views. Gibbons portrays the countryside beautifully, and there are lines in the book which have become classic ("I saw something nasty in the woodshed."). While the story was engaging enough in the first half, it doesn't sustain it through to the end, and I found the supposed climax - Aunt Ada's appearance - to be very dull.

Thankfully this book was short, as I was starting to get annoyed with Flora. Indeed, while the protagonist was educated, urbane and had intelligent views, it seemed to me that for all that veneer of modernity, she was not modern at all. That having to rely on her inheritance, and on friends and relatives for her daily life rather than working or learning something useful, she was perpetuating the ideal of that time -- to be moneyed, beautiful, with good taste and manners, and just perfect in every way. To be flippant and manipulative seem to be qualities that are amusing and are desirable in women. This is probably, for me, the worst message of the book. I'm afraid I couldn't stick to merely chuckling over the funny scenes.

I don't remember much about that one (was there something nasty in the woodshed? ;)), but I think I was amused, overall... still love that name for the bull!

Country ways are scary ways.

Yup, that was old Aunt Ada's line.

Well, I loved Cold Comfort Farm, but I see what you mean about the "primitive" countryside.

Cold Comfort Farm is fun, and it has some great lines, but it does seem to express a particularly annoying sort of thirties superiority. Have you read South Riding? If not, you might find it a very good antidote- it's almost a "serious parody" of CCF...

>28 deebee1: I read this recently and had somewhat mixed feelings about it. I came away with the feeling that Flora was being made fun of for being so vapid, but in the end she got her way so, I don't know. I had a hard time getting a read on it but ultimately it was an OK read for me.

>32 thorold: A parody of a parody, sounds good. Your review on the book page and the 4.5 stars got me intrigued. Thanks for the recommendation.

>33 janemarieprice: Perhaps this is exactly the success of CCF -- in making us feel amused and irritated at the same time. It certainly had all the elements that make for good parody of romanticised rural life.

Thats a very interesting review of Cold Comfort Farm It is one of those books that I have always meant to read and never got round to it.

I always took CCF as being as hard on Flora as the rest of them, but, ultimately, a comedy so that everyone "wins" their heart's desire.

As an inveterate starer out the window sort I have thought much on the issues raised in The Door and am sorry the book disappointed by being histrionic.

>36 sibylline: Thanks for dropping by. I've neglected this thread as RL became quite demanding since I last posted. Hope to return to posting soon.