Very interesting selection of books. I have read only the first Ferrante , that too several years ago at the recommendation of a former student. I had really liked it but never gone on to read the others. You have persuaded me to go on with them…I think I like to watch your wrap-ups first and then go for the full reviews of those that attract me more. ‘ The Bear Woman’ , ‘Mondegreen’ & ‘Tramp’ I would certainly want to read.
I appreciate the Laxness behind you. The New Yorker just did a very interesting article on him and one of his biggest novels just got translated to English.
Hi, can you consider doing a historical fiction recommendation video? I watched your earlier episodes where you recommend The Eight Life and Gormenghast and Jon Fosse and Perfume, and I followed your recommendation, and by Jove, those were good! Insanely good! All of those are now my favorites. I followed you and in a short time discovered so many favorites. You have such good reading taste. So I want to ask for more recommendations. I’m interested in historical fiction. Do you know if, for example, Books of Jacob is any good?
Hey, thanks for watching. Perhaps I could! I'm glad you've found some solid recommendations. A lot of people like The Books of Jacob, but, I'll be honest, I didn't finish it. I got about half way through and lost interest. If you're more interested in the history of the period, you may like it more than I did! It reads more like a history book than anything else.
Good to know! Thanks! Yeah, I usually take these videos to offer more of my personal thoughts whereas in my full reviews, I like to (think that I) focus more on the book rather than my personal response to it. In that way, it makes more sense to do these afterwards.
Great selection of books this month! I have a few Sorokin texts sitting on my shelf, though I'll probably hold off until I'm in a better headspace to attempt Their Four Hearts based on your review and what others have said about it. A little while back on Twitter, Max Lawton listed some books that had been influential on Sorokin (can't recall if it was specifically linked to Their Four Hearts or just a general list of favorites) and I ended up trying and loving one of them, Before and During by Vladimir Sharov. Quite unlike anything else I have ever read, though the main characters do seem to be stand-ins of a kind for major ideological forces in Russian political life--sounds like that may be a point of similarity with T4H. Also sort of reminiscent of 100 Years of Solitude or, more explicitly, the Old Testament, where these key figures' lives inexplicably encompass multiple disparate eras in their "Chosen People's" history. A bizarre blend of secular-humanist and religious thought that's definitely going to stick with me--perhaps something you would enjoy, too.
Thanks for the recommendation! I have Sharov's The Rehearsals on my shelf and I've been meaning to get to it, but I think you've sold me on Before and During as well. I'll keep an eye out for a used copy of that one for sure. As for Sorokin, Lawton has said that Telluria is "a bit more genteel," so I have high hopes for it. T4H certainly hasn't dissuaded me from Sorokin, though I do wonder what made NYRB decide to published T4H before Telluria, as surely they knew that many people would be picking up Sorokin for the first time this year...
@@travelthroughstories Appreciate your balanced take :) TELLURIA and T4H were meant to come out simultaneously, but, alas, printing delays had their way with our plans. Dalkey actually put out T4H, not NYRB, and we've set up something of a dueling schedule--with Dalkey putting out one of the extreme, cult-classic Sorokin novels (which many serious Russian critics prefer--both Genis and Bykov say T4H is one of Sorokin's best novels, if not his best) and NYRB putting out one of the more "genteel" titles every year. Next year, you'll be getting BLUE LARD from NYRB (which is my favorite Sorokin novel) and early Soviet stories from Dalkey--which are similar to T4H, but maybe a bit punchier. T4H is definitely a top 5 Sorokin novel for me just because he's constantly firing on all cylinders linguistically. But it's also his salted black licorice book, so to speak. It was important for me, in crafting this release schedule, to give the Anglosphere access to both his more extreme enfant-terrible works and his later, more accessible stuff.
@@maxlawton5452 Oh wow, I didn't even realize they were being put out by different publishers - that's my mistake. Thanks for clarifying! It does make sense to mix in some of his more overtly transgressive stuff early on, rather than just playing it "safe" (I'm not sure if Sorokin has a "safe," to be fair). "Black licorice book" is a great way to put it...haha. I believe I heard you speak about Blue Lard on the Beyond the Zero podcast, so I'm extremely excited for that one as well. T4H wasn't my favorite, but it definitely will not dissuade me from picking up more. Thanks for all the insider information!
Douglas Glover's "Elle" covers the same territory of "The Bear Woman" - won Canada's top lit prize in 2003, a postmodern take, I'd say, and hilarious, too.
A nice hefty month of reading indeed. I'm most interested in the Sorokin but can't justify buying any more books considering the ones I have are edging toward tsunami level.
Yeah man, my TBR pile seems to only grow these days... I would be interested in your thoughts on Sorokin in particular though. His sentence-level writing is brilliant.
I think fewer people watch full reviews if the wrap is out first, but it could be dependent on the book, it might be that the wrap-up summary inspires someone to click on a future full book review. This now feels like a bit of a non answer 😅 Mondegreen sounds fascinating though really challenging For some reason looking up Doom Town the book you enjoyed so much came up 4th, it was immediately clear to me that the first suggested book Doom Town: The Snake Goddess was not it :).
Haha - I think you're right though! The problem is that I never do a good job "summarizing" these books in the wrap ups (I think I read too many books that are basically un-summarizable...), so I think I'll just continue doing what I've been doing. I much prefer the format/style of the single book reviews anyways, so I'd rather focus on those, even if they get fewer views. After looking up Doom Town: The Snake Goddess, I'm intrigued.... Perhaps that'll be in next month's wrap up! Hah
I often wonder when reading translated works how much should be explained about specific cultural points, language use etc that the reader might be unfamiliar with and usually err on the side of, I can do my own research. When does it become too much though so that it takes you out of the story? It’s tricky. I suspect like many people, I read My Brilliant Friend when it came out- loved it and then never read on. The fact that you rate that book the lowest of the four makes me much more inclined to get to the rest Sean.
That is an interesting dilemma. It's definitely a fine balance as I find even like Penguin editions and some Norton critical editions often over-footnote, which puts me off. I may be in the minority concerning My Brilliant Friend, but I really think books 2 and 3 especially are simply on another level. I enjoyed My Brilliant Friend a great deal, but I just found that the themes explored later in the series are, by nature, a bit more mature. I'm glad I've encouraged you a bit! I hope you enjoy the rest of the series if you decide to continue on!
The only other Sorokin I've read is The Blizzard, which I liked quite a bit. Shame to hear you weren't particularly enthralled by Day of the Oprichnik - I've been meaning to get to that one for a while, though I'm more interested in his...weirder books. The Ice Trilogy looks particularly interesting.
I'm certainly interested in someone explaining it to me! Haha. I thought it was a fine read, but I just couldn't make too much sense of it (which I should probably stop trying to do with every book, to be fair). I'm really looking forward to more content on Sorokin though! T4H hasn't stopped me from dying to read Telluria in any way.
The Bear Woman sounds strikingly similar to Ghost in the Throat, which was released about the same time. In that book it’s a contemporary Irish author about to give birth who becomes enamored with a hundreds year old poem by a Irish female poet and what her life was like and goes into a deep dive research and full blown obsession. It’s very much a feminist exploration as well, but this book is listed as memoir, where yours sounds like it is listed as fiction. I had my own brush with mondegreen in eighth grade biology, where the teacher spoke of “specific heat” but I heard it as “Pacific heat.” When I got it wrong on a quiz I was heartbroken and showed him that’s what I had written in my notes. I felt a should have gotten at least a half point. I didn’t, and I’m still bitter.
Fascinating - I saw that book floating around, but never actually looked into it. I didn't know it was about the Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire. I had to read that for an Irish Lit course a couple of years ago. I may have to pick up A Ghost in the Throat now! It's interesting how publishers categorize these books. I'm honestly not even sure if The Bear Woman is sold as memoir or literary fiction. I suppose it could be either. Hah! I'm sure I have some mondegreens that will, in some conversation in the future, rear their ugly heads and embarrass me...
@@travelthroughstories I found it very intriguing, especially having an Art History background and that attempt to reconstruct the life of the artist (writer) to better understand the deeper meaning with in the work. I was a third of the way through it before discovering it was a memoir, I knew the poem was real, I just didn’t know that the perspective of the author was based on fact. I think it’s something you will enjoy in its complexities.
"under the patriarchy which I now know is just a liberal boogeyman" In today's America it sure is. I'm waiting for a book to take on the situation of The Patriarchy in Islamic countries. * cue crickets *
ok, I read The Bear Woman and no one has ever bored me this much. The author has nothing insightful to say and she openly admits she STOLE the topic of a book from her friend. I was furious and I experienced a second-hand embarassment for her uneventful, dull life. I have no idea why she decided to fill so many pages with unnecessary, trivial info about her existence.
OOOF THE SHADE ABOUT THE PATRIARCHY BEING JUST A 'LIBERAL BOOGIEMAN', I loved it. Amazing reviews and literary tastes as always!
Haha - I'm always happy to toss shade at some terrible takes. Cheers!
The apolitical reference made me laugh.
Very interesting selection of books. I have read only the first Ferrante , that too several years ago at the recommendation of a former student. I had really liked it but never gone on to read the others. You have persuaded me to go on with them…I think I like to watch your wrap-ups first and then go for the full reviews of those that attract me more. ‘ The Bear Woman’ , ‘Mondegreen’ & ‘Tramp’ I would certainly want to read.
Interesting! Thank you for letting me know. And I hope you enjoy the rest of the series if you decide to read it!
I like Rafeyenko very much!
I appreciate the Laxness behind you. The New Yorker just did a very interesting article on him and one of his biggest novels just got translated to English.
I love Laxness! I read the new translation of Salka Valka earlier this month - not sure if I'll do a review or not, but I very much liked it.
Hi, can you consider doing a historical fiction recommendation video? I watched your earlier episodes where you recommend The Eight Life and Gormenghast and Jon Fosse and Perfume, and I followed your recommendation, and by Jove, those were good! Insanely good! All of those are now my favorites. I followed you and in a short time discovered so many favorites. You have such good reading taste. So I want to ask for more recommendations. I’m interested in historical fiction. Do you know if, for example, Books of Jacob is any good?
Hey, thanks for watching. Perhaps I could! I'm glad you've found some solid recommendations. A lot of people like The Books of Jacob, but, I'll be honest, I didn't finish it. I got about half way through and lost interest. If you're more interested in the history of the period, you may like it more than I did! It reads more like a history book than anything else.
Ahh, new setup. At least first one I’ve seen. Very pretty!
Thank you! These are just my other shelves, but the lighting in here is a lot better.
I don’t mind the current schedule! Didn’t notice, actually… made sense to me. Kind of nice seeing what thoughts solidify after the single review too?
Good to know! Thanks! Yeah, I usually take these videos to offer more of my personal thoughts whereas in my full reviews, I like to (think that I) focus more on the book rather than my personal response to it. In that way, it makes more sense to do these afterwards.
Great selection of books this month! I have a few Sorokin texts sitting on my shelf, though I'll probably hold off until I'm in a better headspace to attempt Their Four Hearts based on your review and what others have said about it.
A little while back on Twitter, Max Lawton listed some books that had been influential on Sorokin (can't recall if it was specifically linked to Their Four Hearts or just a general list of favorites) and I ended up trying and loving one of them, Before and During by Vladimir Sharov. Quite unlike anything else I have ever read, though the main characters do seem to be stand-ins of a kind for major ideological forces in Russian political life--sounds like that may be a point of similarity with T4H. Also sort of reminiscent of 100 Years of Solitude or, more explicitly, the Old Testament, where these key figures' lives inexplicably encompass multiple disparate eras in their "Chosen People's" history. A bizarre blend of secular-humanist and religious thought that's definitely going to stick with me--perhaps something you would enjoy, too.
Thanks for the recommendation! I have Sharov's The Rehearsals on my shelf and I've been meaning to get to it, but I think you've sold me on Before and During as well. I'll keep an eye out for a used copy of that one for sure. As for Sorokin, Lawton has said that Telluria is "a bit more genteel," so I have high hopes for it. T4H certainly hasn't dissuaded me from Sorokin, though I do wonder what made NYRB decide to published T4H before Telluria, as surely they knew that many people would be picking up Sorokin for the first time this year...
@@travelthroughstories Appreciate your balanced take :) TELLURIA and T4H were meant to come out simultaneously, but, alas, printing delays had their way with our plans. Dalkey actually put out T4H, not NYRB, and we've set up something of a dueling schedule--with Dalkey putting out one of the extreme, cult-classic Sorokin novels (which many serious Russian critics prefer--both Genis and Bykov say T4H is one of Sorokin's best novels, if not his best) and NYRB putting out one of the more "genteel" titles every year. Next year, you'll be getting BLUE LARD from NYRB (which is my favorite Sorokin novel) and early Soviet stories from Dalkey--which are similar to T4H, but maybe a bit punchier. T4H is definitely a top 5 Sorokin novel for me just because he's constantly firing on all cylinders linguistically. But it's also his salted black licorice book, so to speak. It was important for me, in crafting this release schedule, to give the Anglosphere access to both his more extreme enfant-terrible works and his later, more accessible stuff.
@@maxlawton5452 Oh wow, I didn't even realize they were being put out by different publishers - that's my mistake. Thanks for clarifying! It does make sense to mix in some of his more overtly transgressive stuff early on, rather than just playing it "safe" (I'm not sure if Sorokin has a "safe," to be fair). "Black licorice book" is a great way to put it...haha. I believe I heard you speak about Blue Lard on the Beyond the Zero podcast, so I'm extremely excited for that one as well. T4H wasn't my favorite, but it definitely will not dissuade me from picking up more.
Thanks for all the insider information!
You’d love it more in Russian; the Sorokin I mean.
Douglas Glover's "Elle" covers the same territory of "The Bear Woman" - won Canada's top lit prize in 2003, a postmodern take, I'd say, and hilarious, too.
Very cool! I'll need to check it out! Thanks for the recommendation.
A nice hefty month of reading indeed. I'm most interested in the Sorokin but can't justify buying any more books considering the ones I have are edging toward tsunami level.
Yeah man, my TBR pile seems to only grow these days... I would be interested in your thoughts on Sorokin in particular though. His sentence-level writing is brilliant.
I've been recommened Sorkin but you may have sold me on it
I think you'd like this one in particular.
I think fewer people watch full reviews if the wrap is out first, but it could be dependent on the book, it might be that the wrap-up summary inspires someone to click on a future full book review. This now feels like a bit of a non answer 😅
Mondegreen sounds fascinating though really challenging
For some reason looking up Doom Town the book you enjoyed so much came up 4th, it was immediately clear to me that the first suggested book Doom Town: The Snake Goddess was not it :).
Haha - I think you're right though! The problem is that I never do a good job "summarizing" these books in the wrap ups (I think I read too many books that are basically un-summarizable...), so I think I'll just continue doing what I've been doing. I much prefer the format/style of the single book reviews anyways, so I'd rather focus on those, even if they get fewer views.
After looking up Doom Town: The Snake Goddess, I'm intrigued.... Perhaps that'll be in next month's wrap up! Hah
I often wonder when reading translated works how much should be explained about specific cultural points, language use etc that the reader might be unfamiliar with and usually err on the side of, I can do my own research. When does it become too much though so that it takes you out of the story? It’s tricky.
I suspect like many people, I read My Brilliant Friend when it came out- loved it and then never read on. The fact that you rate that book the lowest of the four makes me much more inclined to get to the rest Sean.
That is an interesting dilemma. It's definitely a fine balance as I find even like Penguin editions and some Norton critical editions often over-footnote, which puts me off.
I may be in the minority concerning My Brilliant Friend, but I really think books 2 and 3 especially are simply on another level. I enjoyed My Brilliant Friend a great deal, but I just found that the themes explored later in the series are, by nature, a bit more mature. I'm glad I've encouraged you a bit! I hope you enjoy the rest of the series if you decide to continue on!
The Bear Woman sounds remarkably similar in its structure to A Ghost in the Throat.
That's what I heard - I'll have to look into that book more! I do like that structure.
Good work...👍🏾📚❣️📚❣️📚
Thank you!
Have you read any Sorokin before? I read Day of the Oprichnik many years ago and just never felt convicted enough to come back to him.
The only other Sorokin I've read is The Blizzard, which I liked quite a bit. Shame to hear you weren't particularly enthralled by Day of the Oprichnik - I've been meaning to get to that one for a while, though I'm more interested in his...weirder books. The Ice Trilogy looks particularly interesting.
I'm determined to give you a new lease of T4H. Keep your eyes out for my next upload over the next week or two...
I'm certainly interested in someone explaining it to me! Haha. I thought it was a fine read, but I just couldn't make too much sense of it (which I should probably stop trying to do with every book, to be fair). I'm really looking forward to more content on Sorokin though! T4H hasn't stopped me from dying to read Telluria in any way.
The Bear Woman sounds strikingly similar to Ghost in the Throat, which was released about the same time. In that book it’s a contemporary Irish author about to give birth who becomes enamored with a hundreds year old poem by a Irish female poet and what her life was like and goes into a deep dive research and full blown obsession. It’s very much a feminist exploration as well, but this book is listed as memoir, where yours sounds like it is listed as fiction.
I had my own brush with mondegreen in eighth grade biology, where the teacher spoke of “specific heat” but I heard it as “Pacific heat.” When I got it wrong on a quiz I was heartbroken and showed him that’s what I had written in my notes. I felt a should have gotten at least a half point. I didn’t, and I’m still bitter.
Fascinating - I saw that book floating around, but never actually looked into it. I didn't know it was about the Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire. I had to read that for an Irish Lit course a couple of years ago. I may have to pick up A Ghost in the Throat now! It's interesting how publishers categorize these books. I'm honestly not even sure if The Bear Woman is sold as memoir or literary fiction. I suppose it could be either.
Hah! I'm sure I have some mondegreens that will, in some conversation in the future, rear their ugly heads and embarrass me...
@@travelthroughstories I found it very intriguing, especially having an Art History background and that attempt to reconstruct the life of the artist (writer) to better understand the deeper meaning with in the work. I was a third of the way through it before discovering it was a memoir, I knew the poem was real, I just didn’t know that the perspective of the author was based on fact. I think it’s something you will enjoy in its complexities.
@@bookofdust Very, very cool. I always like books about historical artists, so I'm in. Thanks for the recommendation, Michael!
"under the patriarchy which I now know is just a liberal boogeyman"
In today's America it sure is. I'm waiting for a book to take on the situation of The Patriarchy in Islamic countries.
* cue crickets *
Ain’t it just so?!
ok, I read The Bear Woman and no one has ever bored me this much. The author has nothing insightful to say and she openly admits she STOLE the topic of a book from her friend. I was furious and I experienced a second-hand embarassment for her uneventful, dull life. I have no idea why she decided to fill so many pages with unnecessary, trivial info about her existence.