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Spoilers What Book Are You Reading?
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Alec Guinness autobiography, My Name Escapes Me, with a foreward by John Le Carré.
Still waiting on The Little Book of Stoicism.
Just ordered The Splendid and the Vile. It arrives tomorrow.
Just ordered The Splendid and the Vile. It arrives tomorrow.
I'm reading the English translation of a novella written in Portuguese, which language the Italian author elected to use in homage to Portugal's literary chameleon Fernando Pessoa (who spent nine formative years in South Africa and there learned both French and English but migrated back to Lisbon where he spent most of his adult life). The book is Requiem: A Hallucination, by Antonio Tabucchi, translated by the renowned British translator Margaret Jull Costa.
This slight but charming novella is perfect for my deep dive this summer into the challenges and risks of translating poetry and fiction. I know just enough Portuguese to ad lib in Spanish when I think I might get away with it, and remember about enough Italian from school days to have to keep a dictionary open even if reading news of the day in that language. So my chance of nuance-checking Jull Costa's translation is slim to zero, and I will probably just relax and enjoy the read... before moving on with my exploration of how writers fare at the hands of potential translators.
Via the always interesting blog Beauty is a Sleeping Cat, I have also discovered that Tabucchi's book, a collection of vignettes really, has been made into a movie (in French/Portuguese, not sure it has English subtitles). So there's yet another layer of translation, i.e., not only words but the medium of a work. Think on it: a novella written in Portuguese as the second language of an Italian, translated into English, then made into a movie presented in Portuguese with French subtitles.
There's a piece in the summer issue of the Paris Review about Ms. Jull Costa and the arts of translation; she is interviewed by Katrina Dodson, herself a well known translator from Spanish and Portuguese to English.
www.theparisreview.org
The world of my summer exploration this year is feeling smaller already: the works of the iconic Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector (transplanted from Ukraine to Brazil as an infant with her parents who had fled the pogroms) were one of my deep dives a few summers ago. Her writing has had many translators, but Katrina Dodson is who translated my copy of Lispector's The Complete Stories from Portuguese to English and received a PEN award in 2015 for that effort.
Back to work... or play, more likely. Too hot to go back to the gardens now. Perfect day for hanging out in the shade with a pile of summer reads in or about translation, at least until time to check out the first online-only WWDC later today.
This slight but charming novella is perfect for my deep dive this summer into the challenges and risks of translating poetry and fiction. I know just enough Portuguese to ad lib in Spanish when I think I might get away with it, and remember about enough Italian from school days to have to keep a dictionary open even if reading news of the day in that language. So my chance of nuance-checking Jull Costa's translation is slim to zero, and I will probably just relax and enjoy the read... before moving on with my exploration of how writers fare at the hands of potential translators.
Via the always interesting blog Beauty is a Sleeping Cat, I have also discovered that Tabucchi's book, a collection of vignettes really, has been made into a movie (in French/Portuguese, not sure it has English subtitles). So there's yet another layer of translation, i.e., not only words but the medium of a work. Think on it: a novella written in Portuguese as the second language of an Italian, translated into English, then made into a movie presented in Portuguese with French subtitles.
There's a piece in the summer issue of the Paris Review about Ms. Jull Costa and the arts of translation; she is interviewed by Katrina Dodson, herself a well known translator from Spanish and Portuguese to English.
The Art of Translation No. 7
Photo © Gary Doak/Alamy Stock Photo Margaret Jull Costa is a name revered in some circles and utterly unknown in others, yet more readers have fallen under the spell of her words than realize it. The greatest translator of Portuguese literature into English, she has taken on Fernando...
www.theparisreview.org
The world of my summer exploration this year is feeling smaller already: the works of the iconic Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector (transplanted from Ukraine to Brazil as an infant with her parents who had fled the pogroms) were one of my deep dives a few summers ago. Her writing has had many translators, but Katrina Dodson is who translated my copy of Lispector's The Complete Stories from Portuguese to English and received a PEN award in 2015 for that effort.
Back to work... or play, more likely. Too hot to go back to the gardens now. Perfect day for hanging out in the shade with a pile of summer reads in or about translation, at least until time to check out the first online-only WWDC later today.
Not sure how much of a railway interest there is around on this forum but either way I'm still rereading this BookDepository book on the 1853-1914 history of railways in Japan. Quite a lot of interesting cultural notes in there too, especially with regarding to samurais' being disbanded by the government.
Has anyone read the Foundation series? After watching the trailer and hearing how many movies have been influenced by it, it has me curious. Thinking of picking it up. Thoughts?
The Miracle Club (2018) by Mitch Horowitz. Admittedly, I bought the book due to the Lynch endorsement on the cover and the good reviews on Amazon. This is a book about the New Thought which delves into metaphysics, spirituality, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. I found it an interesting book, but not a good book overall. It certainly inspired me to buy some essays by Emerson, and it helped me understand one event in Lynch's Twin Peaks The Return, but ultimately the book was a bit too superficial for my tastes.
Siddhartha (1922) by Herman Hesse. Second time I read this book this year, and it is as magical as the first time I've read it, if not more. My copy is now full of notes, highlights, and Post-It's so I ordered another copy. I plan to read it again soon.
Siddhartha (1922) by Herman Hesse. Second time I read this book this year, and it is as magical as the first time I've read it, if not more. My copy is now full of notes, highlights, and Post-It's so I ordered another copy. I plan to read it again soon.
You can't go wrong with Asimov.
My recommendation is to read them in order of publishing, BUT stop after the third book (Second Foundation) to then start the Robot series. Then go back to the Robot Series starting from I, Robot and finish it to then go into the Empire series and then go back to the fourth Foundation series book (Foundation's Edge). Or, start from the Robot series.
In other words, either
OPTION A (Publishing order, more or less, with Foundation first)
- Foundation
- Foundation and Empire
- Second Foundation
- I, Robot [First book in Robot Series]
- The Caves of Steel
- The Naked Sun
- The Robots of Dawn
- Robots and Empire
- The Stars Like Dust [First Book in Empire series]
- The Current of Space
- Pebble in the Sky
- Foundation's Edge [Fourth book in Foundation Series]
- Foundation and Earth
- Prelude to Foundation [Prequel to Foundation]
- Forward to Foundation [Second prequel to Foundation]
- The End of Eternity [Out of time book, linked to Foundation]
- I, Robot [Robot Series]
- The Caves of Steel
- The Naked Sun
- The Robots of Dawn
- Robots and Empire
- The Stars, Like Dust [Empire Series]
- The Currents of Space
- Pebble in the Sky
- Prelude to Foundation [Prequel to Foundation, written AFTER the Foundation]
- Forward the Foundation [Second prequel]
- Foundation ["true" Foundation Series]
- Foundation and Empire
- Second Foundation
- Foundation's Edge
- Foundation and Earth [Final Foundation series]
- The End of Eternity [out-of-time novel linked to Foundation]
Recommended, then?
My sister-in-law, who is German, used to give my mother and I Christmas gifts of modern classics of German literature (which is how I came to read Narciss & Goldmund, - which I thought excellent - and The Glass Bead Game, also by Hermann Hesse, and the superb The Buddenbrooks, by Thomas Mann).
But, somehow, I never managed to read Siddhartha (and my sister-in-law never included it in the books she gave us).
I love Hermann Hesse. I read Siddhartha a few years ago, but it might be worth a re-read. My favorite of his so-far is "The Glass Bead Game".
I recently started The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles. Recommended to me by the owner of my local used bookstore.
I recently started The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles. Recommended to me by the owner of my local used bookstore.
Well crud... I have already read the Caves of Steel... I my kindle, that is showing as book one, is that not the case? I liked it.
Currently reading "Foundation"... not bad so far... I am keeping this list though as this is an excellent reference on the order in which to read them!
Am a Fan of Asimov 💕
FWIW and IMHO - I would start with the 3 original Foundation Series books - classic sci fi
after that Foundations edge (4th and assuming you enjoyed the first 3) is brilliant IMHO, and will hook you on the remaining "Foundation books" - then the others mentioned in yaxomoxay post (see above) might be interesting as "add ons" after you complete the series?
Hilary Mantel — The Mirror and the Light
I have been meaning to report back on this for quite a while.
For the first time in my reading life I don't know what to do.
First, IMHO, this is Hilary Mantel's best book yet.
Definitely the best of the trilogy, so in my view she pulled it off. Let's see what the Booker Prize judges think. She is in with one heck of a change for a one, two… three! And I hope she does.
Now, my problem.
The historical character Thomas Cromwell I have always been ambivalent about. The character that Hilary Mantel created however, is a creature I really, what's the word I am searching for…? Like? Love? Not really. I suppose let's say, a lot of warmth and respect for. No, I have still not quite captured it.
Anyway!
I have read his journey through her words and I am reaching the conclusion.
The end! Where it all goes wrong. Spectacularly badly for Cromwell.
If you know Tudor history, you know what's coming… what inevitably lies at the end of the book.
She gets us there very deftly. A kind of sideways, sidling up… another day at the Council… oh, he notices friends, allies, absent. Some called away… he is alone. His enemies all round.
There is the door. He is uneasy, sure, but doesn't suspect the extent of what lies beyond it. We, informed readers, do.
I am stuck at page 804, another 100 to go. I don't want to go through that door.
"… His throat is dry. His heart is shaking. His body knows, and his head is catching up; meanwhile we are bound for a council meeting."
I am full of admiration for Mantel and her creation. The power of good writing.
I have been meaning to report back on this for quite a while.
For the first time in my reading life I don't know what to do.
First, IMHO, this is Hilary Mantel's best book yet.
Definitely the best of the trilogy, so in my view she pulled it off. Let's see what the Booker Prize judges think. She is in with one heck of a change for a one, two… three! And I hope she does.
Now, my problem.
The historical character Thomas Cromwell I have always been ambivalent about. The character that Hilary Mantel created however, is a creature I really, what's the word I am searching for…? Like? Love? Not really. I suppose let's say, a lot of warmth and respect for. No, I have still not quite captured it.
Anyway!
I have read his journey through her words and I am reaching the conclusion.
The end! Where it all goes wrong. Spectacularly badly for Cromwell.
If you know Tudor history, you know what's coming… what inevitably lies at the end of the book.
She gets us there very deftly. A kind of sideways, sidling up… another day at the Council… oh, he notices friends, allies, absent. Some called away… he is alone. His enemies all round.
There is the door. He is uneasy, sure, but doesn't suspect the extent of what lies beyond it. We, informed readers, do.
I am stuck at page 804, another 100 to go. I don't want to go through that door.
"… His throat is dry. His heart is shaking. His body knows, and his head is catching up; meanwhile we are bound for a council meeting."
I am full of admiration for Mantel and her creation. The power of good writing.
I would highly recommend it. I can't say that you'll like it, but the book is short enough and deep enough to give it a try. To me, it's one of the most wonderful literary discoveries of my life. I recommend an edition with some (basic) notes due to the use of Hindu/Buddhist terminology; nothing major, but sometimes terms such as Siddhi, Brahaman, Karma, Dharma, Maya, etc. can be found in the text and knowing their most basic meaning might help.
Siddhartha is now one of the three books I always carry with me.
[automerge]1593445370[/automerge]
Go through that door; it's inevitable, it happened. Attend the Council, wait in the Tower, and see the end of it. Sooner or later, the curtain must fall.
Wonderful post.
Before I managed to obtain The Mirror and the Light, I re-read the first two books (Wolf Hall and Bring Up The Bodies) in the trilogy and also re-read Diarmaid McCullough's - who enjoys a close friendship with Hilary Mantel, one based, among other things, on respect for the other's historical scholarship - brilliant biography of Thomas Cromwell.
Agreed that this is Hilary Mantel's best book (by far) yet; some of the passages - the one where the Seymour brothers interrogate Jane Seymour after her wedding night, ("does it conduce to the getting of a child?") another where Henry confides his intention to head to Dover ("I want to nourish love") in disguise to meet Anne of Cleves - and Cromwell's response - "he closes his eyes" - are actually hilarious.
For writers, it can be a considerable challenge to maintain the high standards of a series (or trilogy) across the entire series, especially the final book; how often have we seen a situation where the final work in a series is a colossal disappointment - yes, it may tie the respective strands of the story together, but, as a work in its own right, it falls short of the standards of the remainder of the series.
J K Rowling managed this achievement with the Harry Potter series: I had feared for Deathly Hollowes before it was released, only to be both reassured and delighted with the dawning realisation that, not only did it maintain the standards of the rest of the series, but, actually, it far exceeded and surpassed them.
Likewise, with The Mirror and the Light: Hilary Mantel brings it home in style.
McCullough argues that Cromwell's normally excellent (political) judgment, superb political instincts and touch and nose for nuance, essentially deserted him in his last year of life, possibly arising from a mix of hubris, and indeed, illness.
The Cleves marriage (and, here, I think that Mantel's take is brilliant, that the physical revulsion was mutual and cut both ways, a reading which strikes me as entirely plausible) was not the only issue, calamitous though it was, (and one of the reasons that Cromwell appears to have hesitated re arranging or facilitating a dissolution was that Henry had already become smitten by yet another Howard niece, the upshot of which would have been Norfolk restored to full favour and even greater political influence once the subsequent marriage had taken place) which affected outcomes.
There were other alarm bells which might have sounded a note of caution, which, if taken together, signalled not so much a loss of influence, as a waning of influence.
One was Gardiner's return from France, and the fact that the relationship between France and the Habsburgs had become less close, (thereby reducing the need for the link with Cleves), with the French (always close to Norfolk, to whom they paid a retainer/pension) hinting that relations with England could possibly become even closer if Cromwell was removed from office.
Another - and, to my mind, key sign of declining influence, or diminishing of influence - was the fact that Cromwell surrendered the Secretaryship (Master Secretary, which was the base of his power), in April 1540, the functions of which were divided between Thomas Wriothesley and Ralph Sadler, - which meant that he no longer had access to Henry on a daily basis, while the actual levers of power were now in other hands. His appointment as Earl of Essex did not compensate for this.
A third was that he fell ill at a very inconvenient time in late spring/early summer - and, that, combined with his removal/promotion, to the House of Lords, meant that he no longer controlled the Commons, and, therefore, for the first time in almost a decade, was not in a position to steer the affairs of the Commons, or determine the direction of debate.
A fourth was the idiotic - and entirely unnecessary - dissolution and destruction of Thetford Abbey (where Norfolk's ancestors - and Norfolk revered rank, his ancestors, and relics - were buried, necessitating a reburial), which meant that Norfolk's undying enmity became even more personal.
Moreover, the arrest of Robert Barnes in early April 1540 - (and the fact that Cromwell was unable or unwilling to risk political capital to protect him, or to try to save him) also sent a message about the extent (or limits) of Cromwell's power by then.
And a fifth, Cromwell was unwise (and uncharacteristically indiscreet) to confide his concerns about Henry's impotence to Wriothesley, (rather than Sadler, or Richard Cromwell), and, even though Henry had requested that Cromwell set about freeing him from the marriage, citing non-consummation (thereby adding - publicly - to Henry's sexual humiliation) as grounds for nullity wasn't really a runner, in these circumstances.
By then, of course, Henry himself was completely delusional and monstrously self-absorbed, unable and unwilling to accept that the charismatic, talented, accomplished Renaissance Prince that he had been, was a character he had long outgrown.
Not only was he in pain, overweight, capricious, increasingly cruel, disloyal, - discarding wives and advisers and old friends with a cool and detached and indifferent composure - increasingly demanding, needy and equally, enamoured of the conventions of courtly and romantic love while murdering and discarding wives, yet astounded that this should have an effect on the success of his attempts at courtship - but Cromwell - who should have known better - also failed to recognise, or remember, or bear in mind, what had happened to those who had served Henry faithfully in the past (not just Wolsey, but even earlier in his reign, two of the minsters who had served Henry VII well, Empson and Dudley, had been executed unjustly).
Certainly, by May 1540, Marillac, the French Ambassador, (who seemed well informed) wrote that Cromwell was "tottering".
However, I am sorry that Hilary Mantel did not make more of the dinner (in terms of using the actual words they each are reported to have uttered) in summer 1539, hosted by Cranmer (at Henry's request), and attended by both Cromwell and Norfolk, where they (Cromwell and Norfolk) had a blazing row. Now, while Norfolk was irascible at the best of times, Cromwell was normally composed and in control of himself, and the fact that he exploded - and felt sufficiently confident to allow himself the luxury of losing his temper in public with the Duke - was telling.
The actual records of the dinner (McCullough's book describes it, as does David Head's biography of Norfolk) are extraordinary enough, as Wolsey was the subject matter of their row, with very sharp barbs and remarks exchanged on both sides, - I'll post the actual quotes later, as this post is already more than sufficiently long - but the effect was that their breach was now pretty much in the open and more or less irreversible.
Agreed, a brilliant book.
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Thanks!
Glad you agree. Before this I would have nominated A Place of Greater Safety as her best … especially because I have a great interest in Revolutionary France.
But this has changed my mind.
Oh I know the history well enough. In fact I read MacCulloch's book before I started the Mirror and the Light and his rise and fall is well enough known that I doubt anyone would be surprised.
Hence why I am hesitant to go the final mile.
I cannot imagine what a horror it must have been to have Henry as "boss". Yikes.
I hope BBC take it up and complete their excellent series. Sometime in a Post-Covid world… Otherwise there's going to be a lot of single occupancy rooms and creative camera angles!
Thanks!
Glad you agree. Before this I would have nominated A Place of Greater Safety as her best … especially because I have a great interest in Revolutionary France.
But this has changed my mind.
Oh I know the history well enough. In fact I read MacCulloch's book before I started the Mirror and the Light and his rise and fall is well enough known that I doubt anyone would be surprised.
Hence why I am hesitant to go the final mile.
I cannot imagine what a horror it must have been to have Henry as "boss". Yikes.
I hope BBC take it up and complete their excellent series. Sometime in a Post-Covid world… Otherwise there's going to be a lot of single occupancy rooms and creative camera angles!
I was struck by her utter mastery of - and confidence in her use of - her material, her sources, and her almost intimate understanding of her characters; there is a sharp wit in this book - some of Cromwell's internal asides are very funny - that is tempered by a profound compassion for Cromwell himself (but not over-looking the essential compromises of character that he had made by the time of his eventual fall) and his world.
Wriothesley is a very nasty piece of work, (as was Richard Rich), and, if you read Mantel closely, his contempt for - and dislike of - women is elegantly and subtly conveyed, a foreshadowing of his later (profoundly unpleasant) career.
I thought A Place of Greater Safety (almost twenty years ago, one of my former students gave it to me to read, recommending it warmly - for, he had loved it - which was the first time I had come across her writing; he told me that he had bought it on the strength of an excellent review in The Economist) excellent, but think this far better.
Agreed, I would love to see the BBC make a series of these final four years.
I had the privilege and pleasure to see the RSC adaptations of both Wolf Hall & Bring Up The Bodies (I saw both in one day and brought two close friends) in the Aldwych in 2014; absolutely sublime, an amazing production.
Part of Mantel's skill is being able to tell a story - the outcome of which is already known to us (but, as she constantly points out, not to the characters, for, this still lies in the future for them) - and make it new, and fresh and a surprise in the telling; thus, while we know what happens, she is still able to surprise us with her take on how it happens (and why it happens).
Superb stuff.
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Definitely!
Mark Gatiss is well cast in the BBC adaptation… he really makes my skin crawl.
👍
Mark Gatiss was superb, agreed, as were the entire cast. And the soundtrack (by Debbie Wseman, yes, I have it on CD, was wonderful).
Gosh, yes: Needy, increasingly paranoid, and developing a taste for cruelty and blood, parsimonious, (but extravagant with the monies of others), self-absorbed, delusional, still the handsome and accomplished Renaissance Prince in his own mind.
Mantel seems to suggest that Cromwell became both somewhat tired of, and rather impatient with, having to manage Henry's incessant moods and needs, and emotional demands.
Hmmmm… now that reminds me of a certain orange individual… whoever can it be?
Definitely my impression as well.
However, Henry wasn't the only person who was a bit blinkered; Mantel is brilliant on TC's apparent inability to see how some of those whom he had treated kindly actually viewed him: For example, his relationship with Gregory, is superbly depicted, and how (it becomes clear) each of the pair perceived it so dramatically differently.
And the chapter where Thomas Cromwell visits Wolsey's daughter, ensconced in a nunnery, is heart-breaking, haunting and gripping. As are the chapters where he meets his own daughter.
And, on the other hand, his genuine friendship with (the very different character of) Thomas Cranmer is portrayed beautifully.
And the chapter where Thomas Cromwell visits Wolsey's daughter, ensconced in a nunnery, is heart-breaking, haunting and gripping. As are the chapters where he meets his own daughter.
And, on the other hand, his genuine friendship with (the very different character of) Thomas Cranmer is portrayed beautifully.
Well, to my surprise... I opened one of the two main Italian papers just to find a full page article on Kissinger and Gewen's book (the article is titled: "Kissinger's Revenge")... to then receive a message pointing me to this good article on the book and other FP subjects that I think you'll like: https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/06/07/kissinger-review-gewen-realism-liberal-internationalism/
A wonderful, and thought provoking read; thank you for sharing it.