@VeryHappy, don’t ever hesitate to suggest a book, because even if it doesn’t make it to our final CC club list, it always seems to end up on someone’s personal list for reading during our off months. I can’t tell you how many good books I have read over the years thanks to “rejected” suggestions! For me, the ideas that come up here are more helpful than the “best books” thread, because even though I love to browse through that one, there are so many titles tossed out that it’s overwhelming.
P.S. I support the Camus pairing as well. They are both such slim volumes that the reading would not be burdensome, but they are also complex works if we happen to be feeling especially intellectual come June 1st. That said, I don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. Let’s compile a list of suggestions anyway, if only to have some fun learning about what’s out there (e.g., I never heard of either The Orphan Master’s Son or Judas.
@ignatius, I am impressed by your hope to join us June 1st when your daughter is being married June 10th!
The Orphan Master’s Son is an acclaimed book. I would like to read something about North Korea, even if it is not by a North Korean (who knows when something like that will ever be possible?). It is apparently very carefully researched.
From the LA Times: "The Orphan Master’s Son performs an unusual form of sorcery, taking a frankly cruel and absurd reality and somehow converting it into a humane and believable fiction. It’s an epic feat of story-telling. It’s thrillingly written, and it’s just thrilling period.”
From the Washington Post: “…I haven’t liked a new novel this much in years, and I want to share the simple pleasure of reading the book. But I also think it’s an instructive lesson in how to paint a fictional world against a background of fact: The secret is research…It’s this process of re-imagination that makes the fictional locale so real and gives the novel an impact you could never achieve with a thousand newspaper stories. Johnson has painted in indelible colors the nightmare of Kim’s North Korea. When English readers want to understand what it was about — how people lived and died inside a cult of personality that committed unspeakable crimes against its citizens — I hope they will turn to this carefully documented story. The happy surprise is that they will find it such a page turner…”
I must admit that n general, though, I much prefer reading something by an author with extensive first-hand knowledge of the country and culture in question. Both The Meursault Investigation and Judas meet that criterion.
Johnson did a lot of research for the Orphan master’s Son, including travel to North Korea. Scroll down about a third of this Amazon page to read how he conducted research to get information to write the book.
I guess it wouldn’t be a good month for Tolstoy them? I have two books going right now (audio): Vera, a biography of Vera Nabokov by Stacy Schiff, and A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. To complete a Russian themed trio, I have a book of Tolstoy’s short stories The Death of Ivan Ilych I’d like to start (although I’m always up for trying War and Peace). Or, any interest in Vera? If not, I’ll be happy with the shorter Camus pairing.
We could read War and Peace. JK I had loved it in high school and got stuck about half way through a reread about five years ago! I had a terrible time keeping everyone straight.
Haha! If we ever read War and Peace, I think it will have to be arranged that we skip a session and reconvene after four months instead of two. Now The Death of Ivan Ilyich I could handle!
The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy Judas by Amos Oz The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles Vera by Stacy Schiff
Duo: The Stranger by Albert Camus and The Meursault Investigation by Kamel Daoud
Duo:*The Stranger* by Albert Camus and *The Meursault Investigation* by Kamel Daoud.
*Judas* by Amos Oz.
*The Death of Ivan Ilyich* by Leo Tolstoy OR *The Orphan Master's Son* by Adam Johnson.
I’m still kind of allergic to the idea of the wildly popular A Gentleman in Moscow. I can’t get over the notion that it undoubtedly misrepresents the Russia of the time…despite MommaJ’s eloquent defense of the book on the other book thread.
Congrats on your important upcoming family event, ignatius. I hope it is a happy and beautiful day. Hooray for low-key weddings!
I am so undecided. I am committed to completing both Vera and A Gentleman in Moscow so with that in mind:
*The Death of Ivan Ilyich*
Duo
*Judas*
I have to add that Vera came recommended in a recent WSJ review of best biographies and that it won the 2000 Pulitzer for biography. Also, after reading the description of Meursault, I feel a little intimidated. I’m not by any means vetoing but just saying I need a little reassurance. And, I’ve never read The Stranger which I know should be part of my education, so that’s a big plus.
I know @mathmom is up for the duo, so–since I don’t think we are going to have a lot more votes this round and everyone has the duo somewhere on their list–I am going to select it for our June book(s).
@PlantMom, one the things that reassures me is the fact that The Meursault Investigation is 160 pages. And The Stranger is only 120. That sounds flippant, but what I mean is, I’m not going into this intending to tackle Existentialism. I just want to re-acquaint myself with a long-forgotten (and happily brief) classic, and then look at it from a new perspective. I liked the NPR review of The Meursault Investigation:
After reading a few reviews on Amazon, I think I’m worried about getting lost or spinning around too much in the story! Examples in some phrases pulled from Amazon: “[A]n intricately layered tale”… “Every page a Sisyphus task”…“I just found the story to be too convoluted”. There are, however, many more encouraging statements in the abundance of positive reviews. I am overthinking this, I’m sure.
I suggested the duo, so yes, I am up for it. I didn’t like the Stranger in high school - I’m curious about what I’ll think of it now. I suspect I’ll still hate it, but in a more grown up way. I’ve never forgotten the first line . So there is that. It’s definitely the epitome of not layered. Painfully plain, is my recollection – so it may be an interesting contrast stylistically. We shall see.
I know I’m going to be tempted to try to read the French as well - and I’m so rusty it will probably be very slow going.
PlantMom, “intricately layered” sounds great to me! Some of the books we have read in this group (The Fireman, for instance) have been anything but. I couldn’t find the “Sisyphus task” comment you mentioned (!), but Camus did write The Myth of Sisyphus around the same time that he wrote “The Stranger,” and apparently there are parallels between the two works.
Good idea about reading the French as well, mathmom. I must admit I have never read any Camus. I’ve always had the notion that I should try to read some of the shorter French classics in the original language, but it’s never happened – though I did look up passages of Proust in the French online full text when I was doing my big read in English.
A little late to the party here, due to a Women’s Weekend + family emergency.
I’m always open to whatever book is chosen by the group, so the duo is fine with me. Pretty sure I read “The Stranger” in French back in the day, but can’t say I remember much, if anything.
Just read “A Gentleman in Moscow” for my RL Book Club last month. I loved it – misrepresentations of the time or not.
I too was thinking about trying The Stranger in French, but if I try it, it will only be after re-reading it in English!
I’m up for this challenge. I only hope The Meursault Investigation isn’t like Ulysses or The Sound and the Fury. 'Cause those are impossible. Just impossible, IMO.
This time I’m going to get smart and not start reading until mid-May. Otherwise I’ll forget too much.
VeryHappy, I tried starting The Sound and the Fury several times and gave up each time. Then, finally, I buckled down and powered through the first pages and realized I could understand it. I’m sure Meursault is much easier!!
It’s so cool that several of our members can read French. I love it!
I have two books going right now (audio): Vera, a biography of Vera Nabokov by Stacy Schiff, and A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. To complete a Russian themed trio, I have a book of Tolstoy’s short stories The Death of Ivan Ilych I’d like to start (although I’m always up for trying War and Peace). Or, any interest in Vera? If not, I’ll be happy with the shorter Camus pairing.
That sounds flippant, but what I mean is, I’m not going into this intending to tackle Existentialism. I just want to re-acquaint myself with a long-forgotten (and happily brief) classic, and then look at it from a new perspective. I liked the NPR review of The Meursault Investigation:
I couldn’t find the “Sisyphus task” comment you mentioned (!), but Camus did write The Myth of Sisyphus around the same time that he wrote “The Stranger,” and apparently there are parallels between the two works.