Falling Behind
September 5, 2007Ugh. This has got to be my least favorite part about book blogging: I have recently finished three books, but can’t find the time or energy to write them up in a way I would find satisfactory. (I’m not counting The Recognitions in this tally, even though I finished it in May and still can’t figure out how to properly respond.)
Here are the booklogs I need to write, in the order I finished the books:
- The Recognitions (May 19)
I and Thou(August 17)- Jacob’s Room (August 21)
- The Corrections (August 30)
Hopefully, if all is well, I can write at least three of these (probably excepting The Recognitions) before I finish any more books, or at any rate before I leave for vacation in two weeks.
myrtias 
I know exactly how you feel about writing about books. I used to stress about it, always trying to write one post a day, but now I only blog when I feel like it. And I’ve made my peace with my own limitations. I’m not the best book critic, I admit, and moreover, I realized that I didn’t like writing book reviews. Books are hard to write about, probably because the books we really love are often inexplicable. So I often tell people my favorite books–“Only Revolutions,” “The Remains of the Day,” and now, “The Satanic Verses”–and hope that they read them and that those books have the same power over others that they had over me.
I’m going to have to give you a bit of a push, though: I want to read “The Recognitions” very badly, so I’m looking forward to your thoughts on it, when (and, it seems, if) they can be organized. 🙂
I really appreciate it, Brandon. My hope is that when I do write about The Recognitions, it will be a doozy. I have a two-page outline right now…
I am with you. I constantly struggle to find the time to write about what I’d like to write about. And then have to remind myself not to sweat it. But still I do.
“The book’s protagonist, Wyatt, calls for an entirely new way of thinking and talking about what is good and true, and attempts to capture it in his paintings.”
You have no idea. You should read The R. over again. You are wrong. Oh, his name is Wyatt though you go that part right; although people that don’t him call him Stephen.
Dear Grad School Dropout,
I’m not sure why you commented on this post, but allow me to say that I agree with you that I should read The Recognitions again. I in fact look forward to doing just this.
Wyatt is called Stephen by only one or two people at the very end of the book, and Wyatt by everyone else (at least, by those who know his name–for most of the book his name isn’t used at all).
I’d love to hear your attempt to summarize the protagonist in one sentence; I’m still happy enough with mine.