In his own words
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Savage Beauty
Review: It took the author 30 years to write this. It’s less biography and more muckraking and airing of dirty laundry. It’s disappointing. All the bad, dirty details from personal letters inserted for no good reason. Like, I get you want to show the grit, the bad with the good, like Boswell avowedly did. But…
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The Pilgrim’s Progress
Review: Christian allegory. But… actually very well done, and it’s old, but holds up well. For the time and audience that it was written for it sure got its message across. The first part was more gritty, the second a bit too “okay now we got a dude with superpowers to get this pilgrimage done…
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Life of Johnson
Review: 1402 pages of sycophantic twaddle. Johnson was an asshole. It is however an important document on 18th century life, views, prejudices, and attitudes. Also, the most undisputed deep dive into biography ever. Let’s call it a rite of passage, the three plate deadlift of literature. Overall rating: How I discovered or acquired this book:…
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The Halloween Tree
Review: Pipkin! “Joe Pipkin was the greatest boy who ever lived.” An absolute triumph of prose. Makes you cold, and scared and fascinated all at one time. Everyone should read this, especially before Halloween. Overall rating: How I discovered or acquired this book: Noteworthy experiences while reading this book: Rediscovering Dave Brubeck’s Indian Summer album…
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The Tale of Genji
Review: It’s a classic. A masterpiece. It was old when Chaucer picked up his pen. It was difficult to get through as it is a thousand years old and very long. However, the poetry is very good, and it is a unique glimpse into 10th century Japan. Overall rating: How I discovered or acquired this…
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The Stranger
Review: A triumph. A guy that just does not care one way or the other. Some wonderful scene settings, made you feel like you were right there. Calm even in the face of certain death, can’t beat that. It’s good to take some lessons from this book, it’s fiction, but it’s got good philosophical content,…
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The Scarlet Letter
Review: A great testament about the poison that is religion. Superbly paced, characters are among the best developed in so short a space. It makes one angry, and sad, and passionate, all sorts of emotions. Makes me want to punch a priest in the throat. Superb job Mr. Hawthorne! Overall rating: How I discovered or…
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Crime and Punishment
Review: Surprisingly, a page turner. Basically a murder mystery where we know who did it from the start. A thoroughly unlikeable protagonist. You feel constantly like you need a shower while reading it. A classic, classic. Overall rating: How I discovered or acquired this book: RNG4LRP Noteworthy experiences while reading this book: Check out author’s…
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Analects
Review: Fortune cookie aphorisms. Very good if you live in dynastic China and are a sage or otherwise employed in wandering through forests, philosophizing. More classist than classic. Nice to cross it off the LRP though! Overall rating: How I discovered or acquired this book: RNG4LRP Noteworthy experiences while reading this book: Check out author’s…
