week13. conclusion – I think this course was really great. I know Jon always asks how the course and course structure is, and how everyone is finding it [in comparison to other classes] but I really do think this is something special. As someone who has dropped out of university once already, this is the […]
week13. the taiga syndrome – I’m not exactly sure what to make of this book. I read it within an afternoon but I think the shortness of it made it all the more dizzying. The whole thing read as those old-timey, black and white, noir detective movies that narrates as an inner monologue. It was […]
week12. papi – I liked reading Rita Indiana’s Papi. I think in terms of playfulness, creativity, and breaking normal bounds, Papi ranks pretty high among the other books we’ve read. It felt nostalgic, intimate, and warm in ways that many other books could not have and did not achieve. I think it was unusual for me to feel […]
week11. distant star – Robert Bolaño’s Distant Star was a refreshing book to read. Especially after quite a few heavy and complex books. Not to say that Distant Star is not complex, but it felt lighter in comparison to the books we’ve read recently. It was nice to be involved in a (more) linear story arc. The […]
week10. I, rigoberta menchú – I, Rigoberta Menchú was a packed reading. Just from the plot I can understand that its story is incredibly potent and powerful. While the subject matter can (and does) become very heavy, it oddly feels kind-of nostalgic. Maybe that’s because its Rigoberta recounting her life, but theres still a big […]
week9. the hour of the star – There are authors that write to be seen, or to show something greater – a meaning, perhaps – within the story. One Hundred Years of Solitude is a great example of the latter approach – Márquez used that story to depict something greater than the sum of its parts. Lispector, […]
After having finished the book, I went through an odd and extensive afterthought period. Since the book was the longest I’ve read in a while and because within the plot it went through many, many years of life, and generations of people – it took a little while for me to collect all these thoughts […]
week7. 100 years of solitude – [part 1] Going into this book, I was most curious about the implications of ‘Solitude’ and what it means in the story. I know that personally, I see Solitude as a kind of calm, an allotment of peace away from the chaos. (More honestly, when I think of Solitude, […]
week6. pedro páramo – As someone who previously didn’t know much about magical realism at all, I think Pedro Páramo was the best first impression I could have been given. Though I did read 100 Years of Solitude previously, I have to be honest and say I don’t remember a lot of it. Probably because I […]
week5. labyrinths – I did not understand this book. It was quite dense and while I got bits and pieces every once in a while, it was difficult to keep my attention. Halfway through I had to switch to an audiobook because I was getting a tension headache from trying to keep up with the […]