let me not say of my Dead that it is dead! I will believe all else, bear all else, endure all else!
A powerful book.
It was hard to believe that was
let me not say of my Dead that it is dead! I will believe all else, bear all else, endure all else!
A powerful book.
It was hard to believe that was written in the Victorian era because the literature of that period I associate with different styles and topics.
Your immortality is annihilation, your Hereafter is a lie
There were two or three moments when philosophical arguments dragged a bit. Nonetheless, the messages about immortality and women's rights were brilliant and valid. Neither new nor original to me, but still important and truthful.
Our fathers had their dream; we have ours; the generation that follows will have its own. Without dreams and phantoms man cannot exist.
A gem worth reading.
Only then, when there comes a pause, a blank in your life, when the old idol is broken, when the old hope is dead, when the old desire is crushed, then the Divine compensation of Nature is made manifest
The main topic of the book was snobbishness and class prejudice in the middle class (or more precisely among classes in the middle class). Because of The main topic of the book was snobbishness and class prejudice in the middle class (or more precisely among classes in the middle class). Because of it, I felt awful numerous times. Yet, Mrs. Oliphant wrote the story wonderfully, with wit and understanding that made it, at the same time, real, and enjoyable.
Moreover, the author's study of characters was brilliant. It was only the second book by Mrs. Oliphant I have read so far, but I understand why some readers call her a brilliant though neglected Victorian novelist....more
I think this series is one of the best feminist novels. Yes, the women were here show harshly, but one can't tell it wasn't true. I don't like what thI think this series is one of the best feminist novels. Yes, the women were here show harshly, but one can't tell it wasn't true. I don't like what they did. I would like them to be sometimes more modern, sometimes more moral, etc. Yet, in this cruel reality, I watched the essence of a woman, who we are, how we differ from men, and how we do not differ....more
This part of the series was a picture of a young marriage and other young adult relationships, dreams, and decisions in Neapol in the 1960s. I can't sThis part of the series was a picture of a young marriage and other young adult relationships, dreams, and decisions in Neapol in the 1960s. I can't say I approve or like them, but I can say I believe in the reality of them. I got also the feeling that it had many autobiography elements, I almost felt the author's emotions because of it. But perhaps I am wrong, and it was so just because Elena Ferrante is such a good writer.
I had some reservations about all those political, social, and philosophical discussions, or rather just mentioning them. Yet perhaps it was supposed to show the gap between the classes.
There were moments when I was a bit annoyed with the "love-dramas", almost like from the TV series when everyone slept/was in love with everyone (I mean, not at the same time).
And I am not a fan of cliffhangers at the end of the book. The previous novel had it too, but very subtle. This one ended like a chapter, not as a book.
Yet, despite the mentioned reservations, it is hard to give it less than the previous one. One of the reasons is the way the author portrayed women. Like brilliantly put it Violet wells...a dazzling display of a writer removing all the paint and powder from a woman's face mask and showing us the naked truths beneath (...) She dispels all the fog, unravels all the knots of a woman’s deepest feeling and elucidates in simple language the fount, the hidden motive. She always knows the secret as to why her women are doing what they do. She once said in an interview that her ambition was to make the facts of ordinary life gripping.
I needed it to remember why I appreciate Penny Reid so much. Her latest books (since the Knitting in the CitI didn't know how much I needed this book.
I needed it to remember why I appreciate Penny Reid so much. Her latest books (since the Knitting in the City and Winston Brother series - the original ones) were enjoyable, but none of them was a "wow" to me.
I needed it to regain faith in the genre, modern romance with wit and a deeper topic, where characters develop, where is a bit of action, some swoony moments, and something to think through.
I have big hopes and anxieties about Ava and Des' story. So big, that the ebook waited for me since its premiere on my Kindle. I was afraid I would be disappointed. But I wasn't, far from it. Penny Reid gave me the story that I fell in love with, that we, fans of the above-mentioned series, deserved. The author managed perfectly the characters in the background (not overwhelming with old friends, but also not writing like they were not important). And those few talks between Des and Quinn - simply perfection.
I could praise here how brilliantly Penny Reid captured (again) mental illness. How wonderfully she created an enjoyable and mature love story. How funny were some scenes, how much fun I had. But I won't. You read it, and I will dream thinking of it ;-)...more
One of the best of the series, so far. Of course, I am biased because I loved the character of Death.
It was funny, wise, thoughtful, ironic - you nameOne of the best of the series, so far. Of course, I am biased because I loved the character of Death.
It was funny, wise, thoughtful, ironic - you name it. I am sure I lost many of Pratchett's winks and many allegories. I could read it instantly again I would have as much joy as I just had....more
It's really hard for me to describe the book. Horrible, important, unforgettable.
Repeating after GR description: One of the most important testimoniesIt's really hard for me to describe the book. Horrible, important, unforgettable.
Repeating after GR description: One of the most important testimonies of a gulag and at the same time one of the most important works in the history of Polish – and world – literature of the 20th century.
A shocking vivisection of the mechanisms of Soviet totalitarianism and a picture of human nature exposed to the hardest of tests. In a word: a book that – as Albert Camus stated – “should be published and read in all countries of the world.”
I understand why the book isn't more known in the Western world. People know much about Nazi concentration camps, but almost none about the gulags. It is sad because (according to estimates, unfortunately, there is no exact data) almost 20 million people were in gulags and almost 3 million died there. And what the system did with those people (physically and psychologically) was beyond imagination.
If you are able to read such stories - do what you can to get to read this memoir....more
There are so many bad (awful, untruthful) books about IIWW, the Holocaust, etc., we can not forget about those priceless.
Hanna Krall's reportage, her There are so many bad (awful, untruthful) books about IIWW, the Holocaust, etc., we can not forget about those priceless.
Hanna Krall's reportage, her interview with Marek Edelman - one of the few survivors of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was like a blow to the heart. I felt the same reading it for the first time, in High School.
On those hundred pages, you don't get a chronological list of events, names, dates, etc. You get the point of view, struggles with what happened, no definitive answers, many questions, and most of all the feeling that there is no way to fully understand people who had to cope with that horrible reality.
Perhaps some readers will find it difficult to read because it was a bit chaotic. But let me remind you, that not only Edelman was recounting events from about 30 years, that in a way he wanted to forget probably, but also simply because he recalled life, surviving that was chaotic.
If you think about yourself as a reader who is interested in IIWW, the history of Jews, etc. - you have to know this book....more
But only such legends, which were not true, had prepared her for the strangeness of life.
A great novel. Well-written historical fiction. A psychol
But only such legends, which were not true, had prepared her for the strangeness of life.
A great novel. Well-written historical fiction. A psychological study. It isn't easy to say what genre the book was. There was political intrigue, philosophical reflections, a bit of mystery and adventure, quite thorough thoughts about Russians (between centuries, the XIX and XX).
The dialogues and monologues of the characters totally gripped me.
What was beauty, what was ugliness? Only existence mattered.
Perhaps not every reader would be able to follow the story and characters. I had enough knowledge (and understanding) of Russia to enjoy it enormously.
The river has broken its dams and it's made mud of all our land. Your grandfather and I and all Russians have to stay where the flood waters have cast us, where we were sucked down into the marsh, we can't free ourselves, we've just go to wait there.
The story was fictional, but it was also similar to many other real stories (not only about Russia). Treachery and idealism, greed, power, and cluelessness are parts of many social changes (not always for good).
Well, I tried to read it a few times. Each time, I got bored or confused by the preface/dedication. This time I finally went through it.
Had anyone aftWell, I tried to read it a few times. Each time, I got bored or confused by the preface/dedication. This time I finally went through it.
Had anyone after Machiavelli said something new about ruling and invading? I don't think so.
What Machiavelli wrote was sad and depressing but it was true. I can be angry, I can stamp my foot and repeat "No, I don't agree with such a world", but it would not make it less true.
Absolutely a must-read for everyone interested in the topic. The language is old-fashioned (and a bit fatiguing), so if you are not able to go through it, read some good summaries (or use ChatGPT, etc.)....more
I didn't know that Tove Jansson wrote it while mourning her mother.
Although there was Jansson's wit and love fIt was a profound ending to the series.
I didn't know that Tove Jansson wrote it while mourning her mother.
Although there was Jansson's wit and love for characters and life, there were many moments of such great sorrow that it almost felt out-of-the-place. And because of this untypical topic (waiting for the missing main characters), it is a particularly precious piece of children's literature.
In this collection of three theater plays, Mateusz Pakuła used nonsense and insolence in the best style to show us, or rather to ask us the importanceIn this collection of three theater plays, Mateusz Pakuła used nonsense and insolence in the best style to show us, or rather to ask us the importance of science.
There are too many people in the world who want to be right and too few who just want to know.
I adore his wit, and the way his mind works, although I can't tell I understand it fully. But definitely, in many ways, it is similar to mine, so I am always resonating with his "fantasy world".
I can't get out. From a black hole. My insignificance.
Engrossing, knowledgeable research about that short part of German history (Weimar Republic) that was full of contradictions. Brocken, invalid IWW vetEngrossing, knowledgeable research about that short part of German history (Weimar Republic) that was full of contradictions. Brocken, invalid IWW veterans vs. mania of a healthy body. Old-fashioned values vs modernism like from the XXI century. Big cities vs countryside. Starving poor vs ostentatious wealth. And many others. Those years brought ideas and art that were often appreciated later, much after IIWW. Sadly, those years also created nazism and the IIWW.
Because you box and jazz and dance the foxtrot on a powder keg. (...) A fuse smolders underground. There's a crash in the middle of the foxtrot and night falls.
I was reading this book constantly taking breaks to check out the mentioned buildings, paintings, etc. I got a brilliant lesson in German history. I think, that nowadays, the Weimar Republic and those Germans aren't known. Most people see Germany in the first part of the XX century only as a country that was responsible for IWW and IIWW. And, although it is true, there are also many truths that we forget because of anger and a sense of injustice.
People who still think that all Germans were responsible for nazism (and what it did) should read this book.
Just listen to three of the most popular songs of that time: "Wenn ich mir was wünschen dürfte" (If I could wish for something), "Irgendwo auf der Welt" (Somewhere in the World), "Das gibt's nur einmal das kommt nicht wieder" (This only happens once and won't happen again) - to understand how far the true is from popcultural image of Germans of the 20. XX....more
Too little can be said, because there is too much to say.
While reading two previous books of the series I thought: what a great novel. This time w
Too little can be said, because there is too much to say.
While reading two previous books of the series I thought: what a great novel. This time was the same. And I think it was the best of the three, or at least I rooted for the characters the most.
Watching like Stacey "fought with the fire", meaning she coped with family life, was like watching real people. How many of us struggle with similar doubts and troubles?
Moreover, Margaret Laurence didn't try to be polite or give us "a nicer version". She wrote thoughts that women/mothers have, although they do not tell them aloud, because they are afraid of judgment, etc.
The novel didn't have "a big ending", it showed the power of the circle of life, which keeps repeating. And like Stacey, sooner or later we tell ourselves: I'm a stranger in the now world. Nonetheless, we don't stop "dwelling the fire"....more
It was probably one of the most beautiful homages of nature (and the old way of living) in literature. The flora and fauna of Transylvania sang througIt was probably one of the most beautiful homages of nature (and the old way of living) in literature. The flora and fauna of Transylvania sang through the pages the poignant story of the past. Of people who lived then and don't live anymore, of wildlife that had to change, and some parts even died, because humans saw (often still see) Mother Nature as an obstacle to progress.
The language the author used in the descriptions was brilliant. I regret I had a copy from a library, not my own copy or ebook - I would have marked hundreds of quotes. Look at examples (my own translation from Polish):
...it was raining outside and the evening was leaving on its thin threads.
Time cuddled the silence.
The deep blue funnels of gentian tried in vain to make the forest believe in summer; the forest didn't believe them anymore. In the depths of the ravines, in the shadow of the valleys, the ground was already ready to receive the first frost. And the air was pure and cold as steel, as if the winds had drained the last drops of summer from it.
Something that had no beginning has begun.
The characters were memorable and remarkable too. I don't think I ever forget Ivan, Birtalan, Wolf Dumitru, Toderic, Fur-eared (the Armenian bartender), Rotter Abraham, Nátu and Indrei Sándru, Juon, to name a few. Their stories were heart-wrenching to the core of the soul. The two main characters Nuca and Gáspár were in comparison less fascinating than the rest.
What to add, I am speechless, the words I have in my mind are like fairy-tale realism, a hypnotic image of a 19th-century land, a delightful be-gone world.
I am so enchanted by this book that I will search for a copy of the novel to buy for myself.
PS The third part of the book was not as great as the first two. And not because it was the saddest one (which it was). But because in two parts the magical/fantasy bit was more subtle. In the third one, that thread was too plain, too unbelievable. And the fatalism of it was too heavy. Nonetheless, before I could feel too much disappointed in it, the book ended....more
I felt deeply Rachel's intrusive thoughts. That constant mix of worrying and dreaming. Margaret Laurence captured splendidly their intensity and powerI felt deeply Rachel's intrusive thoughts. That constant mix of worrying and dreaming. Margaret Laurence captured splendidly their intensity and power.
The author created supremely other characters too. Rachel's mother, Calla, Nick Kazlik and his parents. Laurence was great at human examination.
You can also find in this novel a glimpse at the specific time and place, at a woman who had her first affair (and her first sexual experience).
In other words, the book was a fascinating character study (and how nice and proper family and society sometimes can be oppressive)....more
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