Little Boy Lost by Marghanita Laski

Little Boy Lost by Marghanita Laski is about taking chances: daring to love again after having lost all. Although as a post-war novel it captures one man’s search for himself in the form of looking for his lost son, Little Boy Lost remains relevant to all men and women as they search for their own abilities to love, to serve, and to persevere in the midst of atrocities.

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Silence by Shusaku Endo

Silence by Shusaku Endo is an unusual book compared to the other Japanese novels I’ve read. It’s an historical fiction novel, taking place in 1600s Japan, and it is about faith. It is about trusting in God, or not, when things get hard.

Yet, to some extent, Silence seems similar to the other Japanese novels I’ve read (Naomi, The Makioka Sisters, The Old Capital) because all occurs under the conflict of Japanese society versus western society; Silence happens to take place 300 years earlier, showing that such conflicts are long-rooted in Japan. Silence, although at its heart a Christian novel, is likewise a Japanese novel in the way it adopts the common struggle toward accepting western ideals that seems to recur in Japanese literature (at least, in the ones I’ve read: I suspect this is a common theme).

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Introducing: My Victorian Summer

I am not finished with Milton, despite the fact that May is over. I will have another Paradise Lost post (probably tomorrow) and probably two to four more posts in the two weeks – posts on the biography I finished, the C.S. Lewis commentary I’m reading, Paradise Regained, Samson Agonistes, and possibly some other Milton poetry. I’ll combine posts as I find convenient, but I am still reading about Restoration England for two more weeks at least.

Nonetheless, I have been planning my summer reading, and I’m so excited I’ve already begun my reading for my project. This summer will be My Victorian Summer.

Between now and the end of August, I plan on immersing myself in as much Victorian fiction (and nonfiction about the era) as possible. I decided to do this because I’ve been slacking on my Our Mutual Read books and I really have been craving Victorian literature lately.

The idea is to enjoy Victorian literature, so I’m focusing on what is most loudly calling my name, which is early and middle Victorian novels. I’ll leave poetry for another time and I’m avoiding the later fiction, which just seems different in my mind. (I admit, I’m afraid of Hardy.)

That said, here are some things I want to read in the next three months. Continue reading »

Milton in May: Areopagitica and Adam and Eve’s Choice in Paradise Lost

I was once on this site accused of being a book banner because I disliked a book and I was not nice in the comments on this site. When I started a discussion post about it last year, you were all quick to give your opinions on what it means to be a book banner, and to reassure me that I didn’t sound like one. Nevertheless, I have often thought about “book banning” and what does it mean in this day and age.

Reading about the English civil war, the Interregnum, and Restoration England this month has put censorship into perspective. In John Milton’s day, censorship was a reality. In fact, books were required to be licensed by the government. As both a political and religious man who happened to disagree with much of what was happening at various times, Milton certainly did not want to have to get his writings government approved.

Milton’s response to the licensing issue, “Areopagitca,” was praised in a book I read as the best prose in the English language, so I thought I’d read it for my Milton in May project. I am glad I did because to my surprise it was both an engaging read and completely relevant. It reminded me strongly of Paradise Lost and I found it to be a good companion read to that. Continue reading »

Hunger by Knut Hamsun

Knut Hamsun’s Hunger is about pride in being human, the ridiculousness of everyday life, and the hopelessness of the two of those combined. As the title may suggest, the unnamed narrator is a hungry starving artist, struggling to write to earn money to pay for a meal. His life physically depends on his ability to write, but since at times in the book he’s gone one day, three days, and nearly a week without food, his coherency disintegrates. Hunger, at its heart, explores the human psyche in the midst of physical deprivation and emotional panic.

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Milton in May: Paradise Lost, Books 7-9

How is Paradise Lost coming along for you who are reading along?

I admit that I slowed down a little bit in the last two weeks (hence, there was no Paradise Lost post last week). I got a head cold and I don’t think Milton is best considered on a cloudy brain. But, there is still a week left in the month, and I suspect I’ll still be reading Milton into the first week(s) of June. Once I picked up Milton again recently, I felt I needed to keep going. There seems to be some kind of momentum that comes from reading, and I always enjoy it once I do pick up Paradise Lost.

Discussion questions and thoughts on Books 7-9 after the jump. Continue reading »

The Makioka Sisters by Junichiro Tanizaki

Beginning with powdering a sweaty back and ending, quite literally, with diarrhea, The Makioka Sisters by Junichiro Tanizaki captures the intimate everyday moments of a once-powerful family in a rapidly changing 1930s and ’40s Japan.

It was not an enjoyable read for me. Coming from both a Western perspective and a modern one, I found just about all the aspects of the dying Japanese upper-class culture to be dreadful. The attempts at an arranged marriage for the aging third daughter, the repression of the modern and talented fourth daughter, and the family and social politics (that is, trying to keep up appearances as a successful and happy family) all seemed pointless.

Yet, Tanizaki captured the family so exactly that I could not help believing that such a family did exist. I better understand the era of Japanese history and the pain that came from rapidly modernizing centuries-old traditions. Continue reading »

The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham

Although I strongly disliked The Painted Veil upon finishing it, after discussing it via email with a fellow blogger (thanks again, Amanda!) and attending my book club discussion, my feelings have been moderated. I still don’t consider it a satisfying novel and I probably won’t be actively seeking out more Maugham, but it did have an interesting perspective on a particular woman’s coming to an understanding of life, so to speak, in the 1920s. (And many people loved it, so I’m apparently the odd one out here in disliking it!) Continue reading »

Outlaw: The Legend of Robin Hood by Tony Lee

I was not in the mood for trying to write about Paradise Lost last night, so I thought I’d take a Milton break and read something else on my shelf. After I finished I Kill Giants (read my thoughts) two weeks ago, I’d felt a strange compulsion to go check out some more graphic novels. It’s only strange because I have never felt that before! Outlaw: The Legend of Robin Hood caught my attention from the YA shelf at the library, and last night was the perfect time for a little folkloric fun. Continue reading »

The Golden Age of Detective Fiction: A Christie and A Sayers Novel

Today begins the Golden Age of Detective Fiction Classics Circuit, and I have the honor of beginning the tour with reviews of two mystery novels. See the full schedule to see where the tour goes next.

It is rather ironic that I get to start off this great tour, because after reading my two novels, I’ve decided pretty strongly that I am not a great fan of the mystery novel. Although I enjoyed both of them, I found myself a bit bored, I’m sorry to say.

That said, both novels actually were rather excellent, just not my favorite genre. If you, like me, do not normally read mystery and would like to try one, either Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express or Strong Poison by Dorothy Sayers would both be great books to start with, although for different reasons.

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