Mr. Palomar

by Italo Calvino
1983
translated by William Weaver

I tried to read this a couple of years before, and got through a considerable amount, but stopped. It's a quite hermetic, cryptic work. Anyway, I tried again and this time I plowed all the way through. A definitely different work, it's extremely well-written (and translated into a smooth, perfect English admirably by the great William Weaver), and a great intellectual exercise into questions on the relation of self to the mind, self to the world, language and symbols. The last chapter, on "learning to be dead," is particularly intriguing in this way. Palomar's thoughts are, now and then but not often, comic, often at his expense.

I think the book could have used more of this deprecatory angle for comic relief from trio after trio of analysis – to have more of a character development, since there is no plot. When Palomar dies at the end, it is funny, true, but should anyone care? If not, why did it happen? I suppose my main impression of the book is, in fact, like something Palomar would think: I didn't get that much out of it except respect for Calvino's writing skills, but – since it is the work of such a gifted writer and has garnered such praise – I feel I must be missing something.

four stars

Japanese Mythology

by Juliet Piggott

A brief summary of Japanese mythology. As with all Paul Hamlyn myth books, really fine examples of the art of the culture were included, which made the book. Most of it wasn't about the gods themselves or their histories, but either folktales concerning talking animals or ghosts, or very loosely historical tales of heroes.

Of the indigenous mythological creatures, I liked the kappa, who lose their strength when the water is spilled from the dents in their heads. I also like the idea of the mischievous tengu. Like the others I've read in the series, the book could have used some cohesion, more detail where interesting-sounding stories are only glossed over, and a little better organization. But it's a good reference book as a starter, and again, great pictures (Japanese art is so detailed and stylized!).

[read twice]

Troubled Sleep

by Jean-Paul Sartre
translated by Gerard Hopkins

(Translated from La Mort Dans L'Ame – a somewhat different title.) This series was apparently supposed to continue beyond three books, and although I get the sense of transition in this book, there's also completion: Mathieu makes a final decision for freedom, Brunet finds out that the mindset he wants his fellows to share does not come about so easily. It is sad that we never find out what happens to Odette & Jacques, Daniel & Philippe, or Gomez, lost in America... However, the main focus of this book is Mathieu, representing the typical soldier who fights simply because, and Brunet, the party member who has a cause which is shared by few. The scene describing Mathieu's last stand was particularly moving, as was the death of the printer at the end of the book. A great series, all in all, that I am very sorry to see end before the end of the road is found for everyone.

four stars

The Reprieve

by Jean-Paul Sartre
translated by Eric Sutton

The second volume of the Roads of Freedom. It is a completely original, intricately planned masterwork. The narration of the novel shifts frantically back and forth from character to place to first person, all without warning, once even going into the head of a dead man (he died secure in the knowledge that WWI was the last war). This duplicates the confusion and frantic anxiety everyone was feeling as the Germans demanded Czechoslovakia. Often, two scenes that parallel each other are shown intertwined, to great effect. Perhaps the most powerful of these was the final scene, when the taking/rape of Czechoslovakia shifted and corresponded with the taking/rape of Ivich. And beyond matters of style, it was fascinating to read about the war years from a totally European perspective, a book in which America is mentioned (I believe) once. It really was an utterly European concern. A great book, a classic.

five stars

Beowulf

by anonymous
8th-11th century AD
translated by Burton Raffel

The edition I read also had a lengthy afterword by Robert P. Creed. The poem itself was great stuff, epic in the Homeric sense, full of lengthy monologues and side stories in the midst of bloody action. It was also surprisingly subtle (for instance, the contrast of Beowulf's personality from the Grendel stage to the dragon-slaying, elderly stage). Raffel's intro was basically an ad for the poem, while Creed's essay was first an ad for Raffel's translation (and he made a great case for its quality), and in its second part an interesting description of the style, intent and ability of the historical poem-singers of sixth century England.

four stars

Egyptian Mythology

by Veronica Ions

Although messily written, with misplaced sentences, non-identified references and awkward redundancies, it was an intriguing beginner's book. What I learned from the book in a nutshell is that there were a lot of Egyptian gods, existing not in set story form like Greek & Roman mythology, but as changing concepts: a war god might evolve into a fertility god, a fertility god into a solar god, or a domestic god into a death god. Also, despite the book's rejection of the idea that ancient Egyptians were obsessed with death, what I got out of the deity descriptions (which made up 98% of the text) and the (many, fascinating) pictures was that basically they were concerned with two things: fertility and the afterworld. (I realize that this book is a narrow view of the entire picture.) All in all, my curiosity was definitely whetted about Egyptian myths.

four stars

The Age of Reason

by Jean-Paul Sartre
1945

It's the first book in his Roads of Freedom trilogy. A very meticulously planned novel, it centers around Mathieu, a disenchanted college professor with a pregnant mistress. The character of Daniel, the cruel and masochistic homosexual who hates himself, is one of the great instigators in literature. Throughout the book, Mathieu trees to be free, even though he doesn't know how to attain freedom. He sees marriage as sacrificing his freedom, but has no clear alternatives.

There are exceptional passages, such as when Mathieu goes up to Lola's apartment after Boris has mistakenly reported her dead. The complex network of occurrences takes place in the space of three days in the book, so it's a very tight examination of its characters' minds. All in all, a great work, the theme of which will hopefully be expounded on in the second novel

four stars