So I don't get passed by the movies, I read Harry Potter 5 and 6 over the last couple days. Hermione's death in #7 would be a satisfying non-trivial ending to the series.
Just cycling through - this is a beautiful work, although I don't know what its like in English. If you like Akhmatova, try Blok. If you prefer something less mystical and more "progressive" than Blok, Mayakovsky is your man (speculation abounds that Bezdomniy is modeled on him in Bulgakov's M&M). Or, for a cross between the two, there is Pasternak's poetry. I think there's a new translation of Tsvetaeva out as well (or maybe its a biography?).
Speaking of Russian literature, does anyone here know Lara Vapnyar? Her first book, a collection of short stories (THERE ARE JEWS IN MY HOUSE) was one of the best works of fiction I have read in years and years, and English is her second language. She learned it by reading Jane Austen and watching soap operas when she came to America (!) yet her writing is so clear and correct, a real pure style. I am now reviewing her second book, a novel called MEMOIRS OF A MUSE, for the Wall Street Journal. It's the story of a Russian girl who's life dream is to be mistress of a great writer. Lightly satirical, and as usual nicely put together. Find it if you can--comes out in April.
I've heard of her, but only vaguely. Maybe I'll look up her second work; I'm generally not a huge fan of short stories.
I actually read some Tsvetaeva recently as well. I think the newest book out I've seen about her is that collection of letters between her, Pasternak, and Rilke.
My teaching this week leads to an interesting juxtaposition: for my course on the Beat Generation, and for an intro to lit class...: The former is amazingly easy to read after Naked Lunch, even though it's the third of a trilogy, and the latter would be marketed now as chick-lit, if it was, you now, uplifting and affirming rather than what it is.
I said I was to get better about what I chose to read after the Book draft, so I started Beowulf last night. As is typical for me, read a lot of Beowulf excerpts in HS and then haven't picked it up until last night.
I like this book. If you go to their web site you can nab an RSS feed for updates. I can't remember which one of them but one of them is doing a lot of work on real estate / real estate agents that pops up every now and then. In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in Mobutu's Congo I'm reading this one right now. I had read her more recent book on Eritrea a little while ago and wanted to read this one cuz it was good. SHe's a good writer.
I've been meaning to look into that one. I've read some stuff on Lumumba and would like to dive deeper into the history of Congo.
yeah, but the one i have isn't Vol. 1-3, it just says "A History of Irish nationalism". I might have a newer edition, not sure. I bought it two years ago and read it in college, but am re-reading it now because I really didn't read it throughly. It is rather lengthy, i think it is over 700 pages. edit: I went to wikipedia and I guess my version is from 2000, and they combined Volumes 1, 2, and 3 into one big book.
Just finished Dan Simmons' Olympos, the sequel which completes Ilium. Excellent stuff. A science fiction story based around the Illiad and the Odyssey, Shakespeare, Proust, multiple universes, Mars, quantum physics, sentient robots from Jupiter's moons, and a ressurrected classical literature professor who gets to bang Helen of Troy. Gotta love it.
preparing for my creative writing class as I type. Going over poems by John Ashbery, Elaine Equi, Lyn Hejinian, Rachel Loden, Susan Wheeler, and a couple others. Oh: 500th post! Now, who's going to get the 500th reply?