Clarissa Dalloway, a high-society woman in post-World War I England, walks through London on a fine June morning after the famous first line–“Mrs. Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself.” We follow Mrs. Dalloway as she prepares for that evening’s party and although the plot takes place over the course of only one day, the thoughts, dreams, emotions, and memories of the characters cover a lifetime of choices and experiences. Clarissa is the main character, of course, but the narration weaves in and out of her story, spending […]
Aren’t we all a little monstrous?
This is an odd, original, remarkable book. I didn’t know anything about it when I picked it up–let’s be real, I was just looking for a short book so I can finish my Cannonball in time! And it was unlike anything I’ve read this year. This short (160 pages!) novel in verse is Anne Carson’s modern re-telling of a Greek myth that was originally told by Stesichoros, a Sicilian Greek of the early classical era. In the original, Heracles murders the red-winged monster Geryon and steals his […]
Put the book in the freezer, Joey.
I’ve read Little Women countless times, and there was always malcontent about how certain love dilemmas resolved themselves. I used to think that Alcott really didn’t know her characters. But reading it this time, as a married adult, I think she might have been on to something. If you’ve never read Little Women (and seriously, why haven’t you?), it’s the story of the four March sisters trying to keep their spirits up during the Civil War. They undergo character trials, vexations, and the simple joys […]
“Behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic.”
Welp. That was different. And very unlike the Wilde I have previously known and loved. I enjoyed the story of this book, but I think what I loved most about it were all the underhanded (and not so underhanded) things Wilde had to say about art and artists. I’m pretty sure all of you already know the basic premise, even if you haven’t read the thing. The beautiful and amoral Dorian Gray, who doesn’t age, has a secret portrait that bears all signs of corruption […]
“Waiting for Godot”: Vangie13 cbr #45
by Samuel Beckett I read a lot of scripts for my job. It’s time for season selection/design, so it’s time to read scripts. It’s been cutting into my CBR review time. And then I realized: I’m still reading stories. Here’s one of those stories. “Well? Shall we go?” Act I Two men, Vladimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), meet by a leafless tree near an empty road. They have a conversation that reveals they are waiting there for a man named Godot. They’re uncertain if they’ve […]
Would this book become a classic if it were published today?
Quickie summary: “In this classic story that inspired the hit movie by the same name, Charlie Gordon, a mentally disabled adult who cleans floors and toilets, becomes a genius through an experimental operation.” I never read this in school, as I believe many did, so though I came to understand popular references to the book or film, I still felt like I was lacking in some collective education. One thought that continually ran through my mind as I was reading the story was the question […]