The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

As I mentioned in my previous post, I loved Holden Caulfield when I first read The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. I was probably about 16 years old, which is Holden’s age. I read it again in college (20 years old) and I likewise enjoyed Holden’s story.

I didn’t love Holden on this third reading (age 28). In fact, as I read the first sentence, I groaned. Would I have to put up with this kid’s whining for another 214 pages? But in the end, I couldn’t hate Holden Caulfield, even after 215 pages of whining and complaining. His compassion redeemed him for me, and I’m so grateful I reread his story so I could experience it again from this perspective.

Continue reading »

The Odyssey by Homer, trans. Robert Fagles

I thought that The Odyssey by Homer (trans. by Robert Fagles) was much more readable than The Iliad (also trans. by Fagles) was. It was driven by far more action, and the ending was happy.  I found it a delight to read, as I did The Iliad. And yet, I was surprised by how much I didn’t love The Odyssey.  I liked it, but since I loved The Iliad, I was expecting The Odyssey to be similar for me.

I found myself comparing the two ancient epics as I read, and so this review will compare them throughout. I loved The Iliad so much I wrote three posts about it here (the story), here (what I loved), and here (thoughts on Fagles). There may be spoilers below, but I highly encourage you to read the epic poem anyway; I doubt “spoilers” would spoil it for you. Continue reading »

Listen to the Wind by Greg Mortenson and Susan L. Roth

I can finally recommend something related to the Three Cups of Tea story.

Remember how I hated listening to the audiobook of Three Cups of Tea, which felt like a journalistic report despite being called a memoir? My mother loved Three Cups of Tea and thought it was wonderful, so I enlisted her help in writing my post for Rebecca Reads: I shared a Counterpoint post, with each of us writing our thoughts of the book.

Long story short: The issue of my “hating” Three Cups of Tea was revived last week by someone who wasn’t so happy with my very scathing review. Hate, apparently, is too strong a word, considering Greg Mortenson is in the running for the Nobel Peace Prize. (FYI, apparently more than 100 people are nominated each year.) Despite that, I still thought that the character described in the book is not a likeable person: he’s a bit too flighty for me to trust with my money. Besides, the book dragged along with horribly unnecessary details. I had to reiterate to my visitor that I have no intention of rereading Three Cups of Tea, but if the story were completely rewritten I may revisit the issue. (I said, “If Greg’s story is rewritten by a different author in a completely revamped structure, I may consider revisiting it.”)

Well, it has been rewritten. Twice. Continue reading »

Three Cups of Tea: Counterpoints (Guest Post)

I disliked Three Cups of Tea; my mother loved it. Read our counterpoints. Continue reading »

Stories by O. Henry (and Another BBAW Giveaway)

Image via Wikipedia

After reading, in the past months, the short stories of Turgenev, Chekhov, Maupassant, James Joyce, and Hemingway, I found O. Henry‘s stories to be remarkably different. They were refreshingly delightful, poignant, and easy to read, and yet, I was struck by the inferiority of O. Henry’s actual writing in comparison to the others. In the end, though, I think everyone should read some of O. Henry’s stories: they are enjoyable. Continue reading »