MrCat

I'd say it's probably a bit of both. You could argue that themes like women's rights, equality and freedom are universal themes but every culture and country approaches these subjects differently. Oh and let's not forget about book banning. My country, like many other ex-communist ones, have a history with banning books that were not approved by the communist party. Income is a factor that many do not take into consideration. While I assume it's not a big issue in Western Europe or in countries with an above average income, in poorer countries, the price of a book matters very much. When Go Set a Watchman costs 30$ and you make an average of 300$/month, buying books can become a luxury.

I have changed my thoughts and wrote them all down in my freshly made thread.

Holidays are over and I am so happy! I am not Scrooge to hate Xmas but the fuss everyone makes about it, running, shopping, cooking and buying everything they need and mostly don't need is making me weary. At least Santa made up for it and gave me and electric kettle so I can make my tea and coffee easier. Oh and I saw Star Wars Rogue One today. Surprisingly good to be honest.

I probably should have made this thread after the holidays since I've read very little during this time. I did finish To Kill a Mockingbird however. I understand why it is a classic and sadly, in some ways it still is relevant today. The first thing that comes up is the writing. Usually when you think of a "classic" novel, you think of hard language, probably sophisticated descriptions and heavy writing. I love Dickens and Virginia Woolf but they are not easy and forgiving authors. Harper Lee is. Sadly not much happens up until half the book is over but it still serves to set the pace for the second half. The action sometimes feel episodic and it takes some time for things to get going but it's all fine once it does. I've seen people complaining about characters being too one dimensional but that is not really the case. They are all a product of their time and place, from the ever righteous Atticus to Boo and Tom. Even Mayella, the one that condemned Tom to death the second she opened her mouth, is a product of the patriarchal society she lives in. I'd also say that there is a lot of character growth even though it's mostly just evident for Scout and Jem. There are so many themes and issues in this book that I am surprised all most people ever talk about is racism. Social condition (regardless of colour) and women's rights and expectations are excellently pointed out in the book. Then again, it's not unusual for a single scene/fragment/idea to take up a book's spotlight *points and Lady Chatterley's Lover*. Characters are also great and it's great that Harper Lee decided to tell the story through children's eyes. They are so innocent and naive, most of the time having a better understanding of things than the adults do. Indeed it could be argued that they were white and not poor (unlike many of their classmates) but besides Atticus that gets all the praise for them stands one of my now favourite characters in literature: Calpurnia. Excellent book and definitely worth its praise. Move aside The Great Gatsby, TKAM is the great American novel.

God damn not her too. 2016 took so many from us.

Since everyone and their cat has one of these threads, I've decided to make one after half a year spent here since it will be easier to talk about my readings and maybe some might be interested in what I have to mumble about. The title is classical because I mostly read classics (though that's another topic on its own since I consider Dune and LOTR classics too). This will also be a good place to keep up with my book challenges and goals. Goals for next year are : 1. Read more classics (duh) 2. Read Ulyssses, Moby Dick and Middlemarch. You know, books that most people say they've read but haven't 3. Read some modern lit for a change. I don't get along very well with modern lit but then again I barely read any. I'm not really in touch with current books or trending authors so that might change in the future. 4. Read more American lit. Faulkner, Kerouac Steinbeck, Vonnegut etc. 5. Re-read some of my fav books/series. I am not sure exactly what to pick, I will just see in time but Jane Eyre, Dune series will probably be read. As well as Virginia Woolf's entire bibliography. 6. Last but not least, attempt to have a go at Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time. Thx for reading and see you around.

Nice thread to increase post count.

I've started reading this yesterday and I am already 100 pages through. The writing is all over the place and feels... episodic and so far there's barely a trace of the acclaimed Atticus. Yeah you can tell he's a great dad but most of the action so far has been around the kids. It is enjoyable to read however and I assume the book does get better later.

As with any Hemingway novel, for me it was the writing. His writing in general is excellent even if you don't get into the story or care about symbolism. When most people read The Old Man and the Sea they usually find symbols (in the sea, the old man, the fish) and this usually being a a universal theme ticks all the right boxes for people. I'd say that if it does not catch you, don't feel discouraged and try something else. The Sun Also rises is great too. Try and enjoy the writing, regardless of story.

Re-reading A Christmas Carol. Excellent holiday reading.

Favourite read? The Second Sex Favourite author? Simone de Beauvoir Most read author? Dostoyevsky Favourite book cover? N/A Book you abandoned (if there was more than one, the one you read least of)? N/A Book that most disappointed you? Crime and Punishment Funniest book? N/A Favourite literary character? Emma Favourite children's book? N/A Favourite classic? Emma by Jane Austen Favourite non-fiction book? The Second Sex Favourite biography? N/A Favourite collection of short stories? N/A Favourite poetry collection? Collected Woroks of Yeats Favourite illustrated book? N/A Favourite publisher? Pengiun Favourite audiobook? N/A Favourite re-read? The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Thx for mentioning Dear Hank and John. I love the Crash Course vids even though the only John Green book that I've read was below average. I listened to the particular podcast where they mention Ayn Rand and I am quite surprised to hear them dismissing a book. Sure one might not agree with the message or writing but that does not mean it's bad per se. I don't think it's bad to want to be whatever you want and change the world, I mean that's why you ask 5yo kids what they want to be when they grow up and I find it encouraging that people dream big. Maybe society does not work like it does in her books (I have not read my book yet) but why is this argument making her irrelevant? Societies keep changing but that does not mean we should not take into consideration a book because of this. Sorry but John dropped the ball hard on this one.

Mom is feeling better and it snowed here a little this week. Christmas might not suck at all this year after all.

Finished reading The Woman in the Dunes last night. Excellent book imo. Now I will finally see the movie. It's written on the back of my book that it's a "kafkaesque" novel but I did not really see it that way. Oh and don't read this while you are at the beach. Or any place with lots of sand for that matter.

Resurrecting this thread because I bought The Fountainhead this week. It was on a book challenge last year for "post modern novels" but I read something else back then. I have not heard of the book or the author before last year but given that I am still new to modern literature in general (and by modern I mean something that was not written in the 19th century) I will give it a shot. Eventually.

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir Some poems by Yeats Reading The Woman in the Dunes now and I am loving it. 1913 The Summer of the Century by Florian Illies This year I read many things that honestly left me disappointed and did not like at all. Yes I am looking at you Dostoyevsky and T.E Lawrence!

Ghost in the Shell is an amazing anime. There's also a series that's excellent and you should see it if you like the genre. The anime and the concepts behind it are more interesting than Blade Runner.

I am still successfully avoiding any kind of cold that still makes most people cough left and right. My mom has had a pesky pneumonia for the last 3 weeks but for some reason everyone around her is doing fine.

Forgot to post here but I have finished two books this month: The Tin Drum and The Diary of a Young Girl. The Tin Drum by Gunter Grass is a very strange book. If you like magic realism is your cup of tea, then definitely check this out. Not exactly sure if I liked it as much as some of Murakami's works but I'd still say it's worth reading. The Diary of a Young Girl is one of those books that always pops up in lists like "Top 100 books" and always comes up as something that YOU MUST READ but it all honesty it bored me to death. The only reason this gets so much attention is because it has all the right ingredients: jews, innocent girl, WW2. I've read a few opinions on-line and apparently if you don't like this book you're heartless spawn of Satan. Look, if you'd write a journal or any kind of literature at the age of 11 or 13, how good would it be? Leaving the context aside (and not even that is very relevant in the book) how good and interesting can the writings of an 11yo be? We all know the answer to that don't we? Verdict: Overrated.

Finished with Kafka for now. I've plowed through all of his works except The Trial, I left that for another time. With the exception of Metamorphosis, everything he wrote was kind of... average. His short stories are nothing special (not even the famous A Hunter Artist) and most of the time I barely saw any point in them at all. On another note, I've finally started reading The Woman in the Dunes by Kobo Abe. Intriguing premise and good writing (well translation I guess) and for some reason it always makes me want to keep on reading. There's all this mistery combined with every day trivialities that I find fascinating. After this I can see the movie at last since I've been avoiding it for more than five years now.

This weekend I read... Not much. Finished The Diary of a Young Girl (150 pages or something like that) and read around 150 more of Kafka.

Again this? I give up.

Everyone around me seems to have a cold these days but for some reason I got away with it. I am trying my best to be on the safe side by drinking lots of tea, coffee, eating sweets and staying indoors reading, meaning that I just have to do what I always do

Again, it's not about being white, black, male, female, European or African. Stop this, it's getting pathetic. It sounds like something I'd hear from a feminist on tumblr and not what I assume to be, read and smart people. Literature is a product of time, history and context. Many great works would not have been written if not for certain events or social conjunction that appeared at the time (like To Kill a Mockingbird, Beloved, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, A Room of One's Own) but also due to quality literature. Saadawi is so anchored in the present impact of her work that she thinks her work is not taken into consideration because of very different and wrong reasons. Frankie I love how you argued the authors I named but did not mention Simone. She's also European and white by the way but it seems that because she is a woman, she was given a pass. Thx for proving my point. Also, it's not really relevant how many authors that write in Arabic I can mention. Replace "that write in Arabic" with "that write in Vietnamese" or Korean or "how many native american authors that are universally known and celebrated do you know" and you more or less get the same answer. Oh and fyi, Pasternak could not get his Nobel because of politics and he really cared about that and Orwell just got his recognition a few years before his death but who cares right? They are white males so they can't complain.

Oh so now it's about being a woman and being African, not about " I write in Arabic and because I am critical of the colonial, capitalist, racists, patriarchal mindset of the super powers". And I don't really think that the Nobel reflects an author's literary value. Many (most?) great authors never won the Nobel or were published before it even appeared.