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Wow, you never fail at having the best deep dive discussions, whether it is Why Read or today’s live on GGK. As soon as I finish this dualogy I will come back for the 2 hours of spoilers!

Beautifully somber is how I always describe this book just like Ishiguros previous and similar work Never let me go. Looking forward to the film adaptation coming out later this year.

Great video! Loved the wheel of time discussion and the discussion about expectations and how they impact our experience. I am currently on book 7, so far I have liked the books more and more till book 5, read 4-5-6 close together and I thought everything slowed down A LOT in book 6. The great ending does not change the fact that not much else happens in that book and that lots of setup doesn't pay off (yet, probably). That's not a take I've heard very often so maybe it's just me? I took a break and now am about half into book 7 and having a good time. Maybe I adjusted my expectations about the slowing dowm and things not being resolved till mutiple books later :) I am in love with the worldbuilding, the magic, I'm not very good when it comes to imagining settings in my head but The Wheel of time does that for me so I don't mind the writing style too much. And yeah some of the gender war stuff is a bit annoying, depends on the book, but nothing horrible so far and lots of great female characters. Gender is very binary though (it was the 90's)

I want to get into Janny Wurts books so badly. So far I have DNFed Curse of the Mistwraith twice. Around halfway the first time, further the second time. I dont know what it is about that book that I want to read it, but keep losing interest in the second half. Thinking about trying one more time this fall.

I am on page 350 of Salem's Lot ad I almost threw it across the room three times for some disturbing stuff which I ironically did not think would bother me. I am glad I did not stop reading because I do really like the book but probably could have done without those disturbing parts.

Hmmm do you think I would like Janny Wurts and if so where is a good place to start? I am finishing Malazan as we speak, and will be finishing Realm of the Elderlings by the end of the year and am looking for my next huge series.

I didn’t start DNFing books until I started participating in BookTok and discovered that a *huge* amount of the popular books people rave about there are very poorly represented or even just. Inaccurately advertised. So for a bit I was going into books everyone seemed to be reading thinking I was getting one thing, but getting something VERY different that I would never have picked up if the reviews had been more accurate.

Baddies that read are irresistible

I love hearing about booktubers using libraries! Sadly it seems so uncommon to use the library

I’m reading Crime and Punishment right now! 160 pages in. Bit tricky to keep the Russian names straight at first but it’s otherwise quite readable. Which translation did you read?

O love Klara and the Sun. Klara's absolute innocence and innate goodness are beautiful. And that is a good thing because the world that she inhabits is quite unpleasant.

Thanks for the review. Quick question: How would you compare the wars of light and shadow to Malazan in terms of scope, pros, and plot lines?

I'm just at 50% in The Curse of the Mistwraith. The book is rewiring my brain 😂

Heavy month 😅

I read 11 books in August

Always deeply appreciate your honest and well-articulated thoughts on stories, whether they are hits are misses for you. I simply can't wait to get to Klara and the Sun, the audiobook should come available soon! And I keep hearign such good things about Keegan, I am going to have to check her out!

Johanna, Klara and the Sun sounds truly fascinating. If you enjoyed this Ishiguro novel, you should read Feed, by M.T. Anderson, and watch Her, which is a film by Spike Jonze. Btw, I really think you're going to love Never Let Me Go. Also, I'm so happy you enjoyed Crime and Punishment. It's one of my favorite novels. I taught it for a couple of years. Truly a philosophical masterpiece. If you found the philosophical ideas fascinating, I would recommend that you read Nietzsche next. Either Beyond Good and Evil, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or The Genealogy of Morals. And you're right that there's no evidence that Dostoevsky had read Nietzsche before writing this, even though Nietzsche wrote during this same time period. That said, there were many people in Europe and Russia at the time who were advocating what they call "Great Man" theories of history and morality. Lovely video! :)

I’ve read/listened to three books by Ishiguro - never let me go, the buried giant and the remains of the day. Out of the three for me personally the remains of the day tops that list but I’ve had klara and the sun on my bookshelf for months now and haven’t got to it! After hearing your review of the book I think it will be one I’ll be picking it up very soon , it sounds so good! He always has a deeper message cleverly imbedded within his writing. Definitely one of my favourite authors. ❤

Nice wrap-up, Johanna! Hearing you talk about Crime and Punishment REALLY makes me want to reread it. I felt the first time I really enjoyed it but didn't get everything out of it, and a reread will make it better since I won't be reading just to see what happens next. Such complexity, especially with the main character - it felt like it was written last month, not so long ago.

C&P is one of my all time favourites too! I have also read Klara and really liked it. You’re right that there’s so much to think about in it. One topic that struck me is what people will do to advance their children’s chances in life - at the moment parents get private tutoring arranged and get them in the best schools but in Klara they can have some kind of procedure. Those that don’t have it become outcasts while those that do have it have a considerable risk of side effects - what a choice!

I agree with you on Crime and Punishment. I enjoyed the plot and character work, but the philosophical writing style was very dense and made it a more challenging read for me. I will also get more out of it on a re read, and I think this is the type of book you almost HAVE to read more than once. I think I felt impatient with it because I was so curious how the plot would go, maybe I rushed the philosophy.

Wow what an intense month of deep reads! I can’t wait to try Dostoevsky when I’m in the mood for something intensely psychological and grounded in our reality. Also pumped for Klaara and the Sun but in print since I did not gel with the narration when I tried it. Happy reading!

Even though you didn't enjoy book 6 as much, what you're saying here yet again makes me super excited to read WoLaS next year!

I really need to read Janny. I appreciate your well articulated thoughts on each book. I’ve read Crime and Punishment and it was too psychological for me, I don’t like being in other people’s heads that much. Also why Virginia Wolf typically doesn’t work for me either.

1:35 HAHAHA this I love this. Almost spat out my coffee. (I feel like that too so often 💕)

Nice. These could give a high school learning list for a semester instead of the one we usually have. I read Crime and Punishment in high school.

Hello there hey there hey there hey Hello hi hello hi

Nietzsche was deeply influenced by Dostoevsky, going so for as to call him one of the greats (maybe even the greatest psychologists-though I’d argue Søren Kierkegaard is just as good with his wonderful exposition on existential anxiety). Anyway…the connection is there. I hope you delve into more of Dostoevsky’s work. I’d love your thoughts on The Brothers Karamazov. I loved this novel even more than Crime and Punishment. Speaking of the Russians, I can’t help but shill for Anna Karenina. If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend the book. You’ve prob noticed I’m a big fan of Russian literature lol. Also, well done on the translation pick.

Great video as always! Had such a great talking with you and Wera!

I got a little bored with Crime and Punishment around page 150 and never picked it up again, I mean it was good and interesting but whatever else was on my nightstand at the time won out it seems. I feel like that's what happens with Dostoevsky for me, one day I'll complete one of his books. Hope you are enjoying the late summer sun's nourishment.

Glad you liked Foster! You kind of made me want to try Crime and Punishment

I love your videos so much!! I never miss a video 🔥🔥

Good picks! I’ve read C&P a few times, always in winter (winter just fits with Russian lit). Klara and the Sun has such a beautiful cover, I keep meaning to pick it up. Keegan seems to be popping up everywhere, sounds like it’s well-deserved. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

How I loved Crime and Punishment! No. 4 on my all-time list. You are so blessed that you were able to buddy-read it with your mother. Your picture is of the Pevear/Volokhonsky translation. Is that the one you read? I understand there is a newer translation by Michael Katz (2019?) and you may have inspired me to pick it up. Thank you.

Great wrap up! I just picked up Klara and the Sun from the library based on yours and Jimmy's reviews of it

Modern psychology is typically two-faced tbh. You have your theorists and you have your clincians - both to me are rather strange and unrelatable. They don't really understand people as much as they like to say they do. And they don't seem to really know themselves either. And in regards to this Dostoyevskian and Nietzechean morality most people and not just psychologists fail the test with flying colors (I know how people like their colors). So, yeah, if you buy into these modern psychologists that are more or less self help gurus with an academic flair, then the ending would seem a bit basic and even concerning. But I suppose that is ultimately the lack of hope and the ingrained societal nihilsm that people wouldn't dare mistake themselves for.

Hi Johanna. I'm looking forward to reading Crime and Punishment in 2025. It sounds full of promise and fascinating storytelling.

Everytime I watch your videos, I keep adding more books in my TBR.

I’m so excited to eventually start Wars of Light & Shadow! Great video Johanna!

What a special way to read Crime & Punishment! I soft DNFed C&P earlier this year due to toking but I definitely want to return to it. Cant wait to try Klara and the Sun!

Asking for a friend-do you suggest doing one massive series at a time?? Aka-this friend of mine is midway through Malazan and has a brain that can only register so much epicness but wants to read wars of light and shadow. Anyways-thank you! Dostoyevsky is one of those authors I’ve been putting off because of how polarizing I assume the writing style is. I definitely need to get over that self limiting hurdle and just dive in

It was a joy to chat with you and AP about Peril's Gate, Johanna! I think it's important for us to articulate what doesn't work as well for us when we are reading, even if it's from a book or series we are otherwise enjoying. You did a fantastic job with it!

I read _Klara and the Sun_ when it was first released and really enjoyed. It is definitely the kind of book that benefits from being a buddy read, or having someone to talk to about it as you go! I had read C&P in high school and it didn't do a lot for me, but then in undergrad I had the chance to come across it again in a different way. One of the acting and directing professors at my university staged a performance of it, and I served as the Stage Manager, so I became intimately familiar with the text, reading and re-reading it over again and again for 6 months. The whole production was done in an amazing stripped down way. The set was in the round, audience on all four sides, with the set piece being a single white room whose walls were in various states of crumbling. There were only 6 actors in the play, and 3 of them played Raskolnikov, and all three were on stage together for the entirety of the show, serving as different aspects of his psyche, often arguing with each other. (The other three characters were the police detective, the murder victim, and the love interest). It was a really mind-opening way to experience the text... I think I read the actual book two or three times, and then our director wrote the screenplay, doing his own translation from the Russian as he did, and then I must have read that script a hundred times. It was a remarkable exercise at finding the heart of the text and bringing it to life in a way that I would never have expected, especially considering how massive the text is and how many characters it has. It isn't exactly an experience that you can replicate with all the (dense, sometimes difficult) classics, but I feel fortunate for having gone through it.