Kafka was the Rage

Kafka was the Rage
A Greenwich Village Memoir
by Anatole Broyard
★★★

After World War II, Greenwich Village became the center of the bohemian revolution in America. Artistic twenty-somethings flocked to the New York neighborhood in droves. It drew them in the same way Paris had drawn their predecessors in the 1920s.

Broyard returned from serving in the war to find that the country had changed in his absence. He, like so many others, made his way to Greenwich, where he pursued his dream of opening a bookstore.

“Looking back at the late 1940s, it seems to me now that Americans were confronting their loneliness for the first time. Loneliness was like the morning after the war, like a great hangover. The war had broken the rhythm of American life, and when we tried to pick it up again, we couldn’t find it – it wasn’t there.”

The sense of loneliness the author speaks about is palpable in this book. He explores his odd relationship with a self-involved woman that seems to leave him feeling more alone when he’s with her than when he isn’t.

I liked a few passages from this memoir more than I liked it as a whole. It gave me a better picture of the history of Greenwich Village and I’m glad I read it before spending more time in the area, but I wouldn’t recommend it as a general read.

“To open a bookshop is one of the persistent romances, like living off the land or sailing around the world.”

“Books were our weather, our environment, our clothing. We didn’t simply read books; we became them. We took them into ourselves and made them into our histories. Books were to us what drugs were to young men in the sixties.”

Everything Beautiful Began After

Everything Beautiful Began After
by Simon Van Booy
★★★★☆

The paths of three strangers cross while they are living in Athens. First there’s Rebecca, an artist and former stewardess. Then there’s George, a student of ancient languages who has fallen for Rebecca, but can’t stop drinking. Finally we have Henry, an archeologist who is haunted by the guilt of his past.

Reading this book is like walking into a dream. I was immediately swept away by the beauty of Athens and intoxicating love of the characters. That same enchanting fog makes it a bit hard to find your footing at first, but once you do, hang on, because just when you think you see how the story is going to unfold, the floor falls out from beneath you.

The language in the book is just beautiful. I didn’t realize it until I’d finished it, that this is the author’s first novel. Yet despite that fact, he managed to craft a story that weaves threads of hope, despair, passion, grief and friendship so seamlessly that you’d swear he’s been doing it for decades.

This is one of those books that is impossible to talk about in detail without giving away important plot points. So instead, let me leave you with a few things.

First, I’m so glad I read this. It just felt profound and so very human.

Secondly, visit the Literate Housewife to read her lovely words about the book.

And finally, the book is filled with so many beautiful lines, here are just a few of my favorites…

"The ability to love Athens, like all love, lies not in the city but in the visitor."

"The love of a man is like a drop of color into something clear."

"Fate is for the broken, the selfish, the simple, the lost, and the forever lonely, a distant light that comes no closer, nor ever completely disappears."

Review eGalley provided by NetGalley

R.I.P. Challenge

I have been reading about the R.I.P. Challenge since I started blogging almost two years ago. This is my first year to participate though. The challenge runs from Sept. 1 until Oct. 31, so there's plenty of time to fit in a few books.

Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings is hosting the challenge for the sixth year and here are the details if you want to join in. There are lots of levels of participation, so check it out!

The purpose of the R.I.P. Challenge is to enjoy books that could be classified as:

Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/Dark Fantasy/Gothic/Horror/Supernatural

I'm going to do the following challenge...

Peril the First:

Read four books, any length, that you feel fit (my very broad definitions) of R.I.P. literature. It could be Stephen King or Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Ian Fleming or Edgar Allan Poe…or anyone in between.

I think I'm going to try and read 4 of the following books...

1) The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
2) Tales of the Unexpected by Roald Dahl
3) A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley
4) The Stand by Stephen King
5) The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
6) Wild Nights! by Joyce Carol Oates
7) The Night Watch or Affinity by Sarah Waters

Maybe Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs if I can get my hands on a copy. I also may add another book to that list if something brilliant comes along.

I can't wait to get started.