Books in May

In May I wrapped up the last of the Bronte novels. Villette by Charlotte Bronte dragged a lot in the beginning, then got very engrossing near the end. I'm going to have to tackle all of her books again some day after I've learned a little French; she puts entire paragraphs in French and doesn't translate. A sentence or two I can guess the gist, but whole paragraphs? Emily Bronte only ever wrote Wuthering Heights, which I read back in my teens. It's a tickle to read it again post-Jasper Fforde. Anne Bronte was apparently the religious one of the three; Agnes Grey comes across to me as very moralizing. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall I liked better. You'd think a novel about the long-suffering wife of a narcissist alcoholic (and possible heroin fiend) would have even more heavy-handed moralizing than the story of a governess in charge of a bunch of ingrates, but I actually found it very human and with a still-contemporary feel.

After all that reading of books more than a century old, I gorged on new releases from some of my faves. The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman... well, what can I say? My Kindle version is underlined like crazy now, this book had so much wonderful writing in it. Victory of Eagles by Naomi Novik is the latest Tremeraire novel. I liked it better than the last, which I felt wandered too much. This one has a stronger, more relentless plot: Napoleon invades England and the British army is driven back to Scotland. And the next book is set in Australia: I'm geeked already.

Helpless by MJ Pearson was all kinds of awesome. Oscar Wilde's trial makes the perfect backdrop for this story about the love that dares not speak its name, in this case a love triangle where someone is not to be trusted, but which one? And since this is Pearson, the historical details are delightful and perfect, and the secondary characters are rich and often laugh out loud funny. I had to wait awhile for this one to come out, but it was worth it.

Still reading about writing: Word Work by Bruce Holland Rogers was a fun read, more about process and lifestyle than about the mechanics. Rogers is one of my favorite short fiction writers, and the only short-short writer I consistently like; getting a little glimpse into how he approaches writing was enlightening. More work, but worth it, was The Rhetoric of Fiction by Wayne C. Booth. It took me a few months to get throught it, but mostly because there were so much here I needed to stop and let it soak in, really think about it. Anyone interested in the old show vs. tell debate, particularly if you like me are a bit cynical about rules cut in stone, I highly recommend this book to you.

And lastly, Hindi: An Essential Grammar by Rama Kant Agnihotri. A nice overview. Grammar, like math, I find I understand best if I have multiple people explain it from their own unique perspective (in case you're wondering why this seems like the fourth or fifth Hindi grammar I've read in the last year). This is thorough and points are clearly explained, but it's meant to be used in a classroom with a teacher; hence, none of the exercises have answers. So for the self-taught, I'm afraid RS McGregor is still the best bet.

And now for a few of my favorite quotes from the month:



No mockery in this world ever sounds to me so hollow as that of being told to cultivate happiness. What does such advice mean? Happiness is not a potato, to be planted in mould, and tilled with manure. - Charlotte Bronte, Villette

I'm part of the world, and I love every grain of sand and blade of grass and drop of blood in it. There might as well not be anything else, because these things are enough to gladden the heart and calm the spirit; and we know they delight the body. - Philip Pullman

And here am I, my hands red with blood and shame and wet with tears, longing to begin telling the story of Jesus, and not just for the sake of making a record of what happened: I want to play with it; I want to give it a better shape; I want to knot the details together neatly to make patterns and show correspondences, and if they weren't there in life, I want to put them there in the story, for no other reason than to make a better story. - Philip Pullman

"...he just doesn't talk much. He can, of course, he's not dumb or dumb, if you get my meaning, he just doesn't say much. But when he does-"
Douglas was amused. "It's bound to be wise and profound?"
"Oh no, absolute drivel, usually."
Donnie rolled his eyes and spoke at last. "Orange," he said. - MJ Pearson

He seldom deigned to notice me; and, when he did, it was with a certain supercilious insolence of tone and manner that convinced me he was no gentleman; though it was intended to have the contrary effect. - Anne Bronte, Agnes Grey

"It is I who left them," was the smiling rejoinder. "I was wearied to death with small talk - nothing wears me out like that. I cannot imagine how they can go on as they do." - Anne Bronte, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall

What meaning would it have to say to Joyce that he has asked for "too much" cryptoanalysis in Finnegans Wake? Too much for you and me, perhaps, and we may find ourselves ultimately repudiating, on moral grounds, an author who excludes practically everyone. But not too much for Finnegans Wake. Who would bother about Finnegans Wake at all if it were not packed with Finneganswakism? - Wayne C. Booth

"Where does he live?" Temeraire asked, interrupting; he felt that anyone who did not have time for politics must be rather sensible. - Naomi Novik