Penguin's New Little Black Classics (#Penguin80)

I think that I can safely classify myself as a big reader. I love books and I love indulging in seriously weighty tomes that consume my life because I just can't put them down… 

But sometimes all you really want is a gentle dip into literature. You can't stomach the thought of committing to five-hundred pages of anything but you still want something to keep your mind busy. 

Alternatively, and this is the story of my life folks, your handbag is just too small to hold those beautiful big paperbacks but you still need something to occupy your attention on those seemingly endless tube/bus/train journeys. And if you live in London then you'll probably know that it's far less awkward to avoid eye contact with everyone if you're even just pretending to read something.

 Well hello now Mr. Penguin… what are these dainty new ledgers?

To celebrate their 80th birthday, Penguin recently launched an eighty-strong collection of books that act as a sort of "sampler" menu for some of their most prestigious published authors. Each book is sixty four pages long and clocks in at a very reasonable eighty pence, and when I found a display in Piccadilly's Waterstones I swept up copies from three of my favourite authors. 

Not only do these books fit in every single handbag that I own, but they're also a wonderful way to try out new authors and sample new writing. I love that Penguin is making great literature so affordable and transportable, and I think the entire collection is a wonderful idea that has been conceived very well.

I've only had the opportunity to finish Sketchy, Doubtful and Incomplete Jottings (No. 36) by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, but I found it a very enjoyable selection of his notes that made for a thoughtful read. Although many of these books can easily be devoured over an extended commute, I think their content has been collated very well, featuring stories and snippets that have great potential for re-reading. I'm already looking forward to breaking out the other two in the coming week!

What do you think of Penguin's new collection Little Black Classics? Do you like the idea of sampling new authors in this way, or are you going to stick to regular paperbacks?

Favourite Quotes: Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

John Steinbeck is one of my favourite authors and I simply love the way he writes. I've just finished reading Cannery Row and although it's only a short book I felt inspired to share some of my favourite passages - I'd like to think that if you enjoy these examples then you'd probably really enjoy the book as a whole. And don't worry, there aren't any "spoilers".

"Oh!" said Hazel and he cast frantically about for a peg to hang a new question on. He hated to have a conversation die out like this. He wasn't quick enough. While he was looking for a question Doc asked one. Hazel hated that, it meant casting about in his mind for an answer and casting about in Hazel's mind was like wandering alone in a deserted museum. Hazel's mind was choked with uncatalogued exhibits. He never forgot anything, but he never bothered to arrange his memories. Everything was thrown together like fishing-tackle in the bottom of a rowboat, hooks and sinkers and lines and lures and gaffs all snared up." (p. 30)

Mack said reprovingly to Hughie: 'Just because he doesn't run no dame naked through the streets in the daytime, you think Doc's celebrate.'

'What's celebrate?' Eddie asked.

'That's when you can't get no dame,' said Mack.

'I thought it was a kind of party,' said Jones. (p. 38)

"During the millennia that frogs and men have lived in the same world, it is probably that men have hunted frogs. And during that time a pattern of hunt and parry has developed. The man with his net or bow or lance or gun creeps noiselessly, as he things, towards the frog. The pattern requires that the frog sit very still and wait. The rules of the game require the frog to wait until the final flicker of a second, when the net is descending, when the lance is in the air, when the finger squeezes the trigger, then the frog jumps, plops int the water, swims to the bottom, and waits until the man goes way. That is the way it is done, the way it has always been done. Frogs have every right to expect it will always be done this way. […] But how could they have anticipated Mack's new method? How could they have foreseen the horror that followed?" (p. 76)

"People didn't like you for telling the truth. […] And so he stopped trying to tell the truth. […] Doc still loved true things, but he knew it was not a general love and it could be a very dangerous mistress." (p. 85)

"Henri the painter was not French and his name was not Henri. Also he was not really a pained. Henri had so steeped himself in stories of the Left Bank in Paris that he  lived there although he hand never been there." (p. 108)

"'It always seemed strange to me,' said Doc. 'The things we admire in men, kindness and generosity, openness, honesty, understanding, and feelings are the concomitants of failure in our system. And those traits we detest, sharpness, greed, acquisitiveness, meanness, egotism, and self-interest are the traits of success. And while men admire the quality of the first they love the produce of the second.'"  (p. 115)

What book(s) are you reading at the moment?

High Rise

"These people were the first to master a new kind of late twentieth-century life. they thrived on the rapid turnover of acquaintances, the lack of involvement with others, and the total self-sufficiency of lives which, needing nothing, were never disappointed."

High Rise, p. 46.
J. G. Ballard

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (And Other Concerns)

Revenge Fantasies Whilst Jogging

"If it weren't for my imagination, I would weigh ten thousand pounds. This is because the only way I am able to exercise anymore is through a long a vivid revenge fantasy.

I'm not talking about revenge on real-life people I know, like, "Oh, Ed Helms cut in line at lunch, so I'm going to write that his character Andy gets super fat." That has some justice to it, since he seems to love food so much! I'm talking about elaborate Kill Bill - type stories, involving people who do not actually exist, where I play the lead role. Because revenge fantasies are such a big part of what I think about when I exercise, I've listed some of my greatest hits. Please integrate these into your own workouts, and say sayonara to calories!"

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (And Other Concerns), p. 203

Mindy Kaling

Norweigan Wood

"No truth can cure the sorrow we feel from losing a loved one. No truth, no sincerity, no strength, no kindness can cure that sorrow. All we can do is see it through to the end and learn something from it, but what we learn will be no help in facing the next sorrow that comes to us without warning.” 

Norweigan Wood, p. 360.

Haruki Murakami

Travels with Charley

"In the beginning of this record I tried to explore the nature of journeys, how they are things in themselves, each one an individual and no two alike. I speculated with a kind of wonder on the strength of the individuality of journeys and stopped on the postulate that people don't take trips - trips take people. That discussion, however, did not go into the lifespan of journeys. This seems to be variable and unpredictable. Who has not known a journey to be over and dead before the traveler returns? The reverse is also true: many a trip continues long after movement in time and space have ceased."

Travels with Charley, p. 274.

John Steinbeck

What I Read: January

all images taken from amazon.co.uk

In case you didn't already know, when I'm not blogging I'm working towards an MA in English Literature (more specifically in 'Critical and Cultural Theory'). What this means is that when I'm not reading blogs I'm reading books - and lots of them! As this is, and has been for many many years, such a passion of mine I thought I would integrate my two interests a little bit and do a monthly feature on some of the books I read each month, most likely focusing on my favourites among what I've read. I personally really enjoy reading posts like these on other people's blogs and I'm going to do these posts as 'extras' so they won't substitute for beauty posts but will slot into my blog's current schedule which means that you'll essentially just get an extra blog post from me each month. Today I'm going to be talking about three novels and two short stories.

Nervous Conditions - Tsitsi Dangarembga

Nervous Conditions is a captivating novel narrated from the perspective of a young girl, Tambudzai, growing up in Rhodesia (now known as Zimbabwe) in the 1960s. From its first sentence, 'I was not sorry when my brother died', the reader is made fully aware that this is not going to be a simple read. Instead, we are slowly drawn into an examination of the life, expectations and disappointments of one extended family. What Nervous Conditions particularly offers us is an insight into the lives, and the mentalities, of Rhodesian women living in a colonial and post-colonial context. I found the novel profoundly engaging because it troubled me. The characters are complex and they are slowly built up into engaging, realistic figures whose futures which beyond the realm of the novel piqued my curiosity. I found that I raced through the book because it was a pleasure to read and I would highly recommend it. [8/10]

'The Last Question' in The Complete Stories Volume 1 -  Isaac Asimov

Asimov is an author of numerous science fiction novels but if you're short on time then his short stories make for very enjoyable reads. 'The Last Question' is Asimov's self-professed favourite and I can see why. It's quite a short read and it is very easy to get in to - the plot moves across time and, with it, people, tracing a question which seems to be on everyone's mind. The genius of this short story lies in its conclusion, it is simple a brilliant concept and I have to admit that it left me chuckling. This can be easily found online for free, I googled the title and read it in PDF format.  [10/10]

'I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream' in The Harlan Ellison Collection -  Harlan Ellison

I think the best word to describe this short story is dark. It's an imaginative take on what the future might look like if machines not only 'took over' but if they destroyed almost everything and everyone. The story is about the last few humans left alive and the endless, torturous games they're forced to play by the supercomputer that took over. It isn't going to be to everyone's taste but I thought it was powerfully written and very affecting. Again, this is easily available online which is where I read it. [8/10]

Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

The beefiest book that I read this month and possibly the most interesting. Cloud Atlas is a novel that spans time, place and genre. It features several story lines that are all separate but are still somehow interconnected. It took me a while to get into it but once I'd read the first 200 pages something just clicked and the rest of the novel flew by. It's a very exciting read and at times I found it incredibly hard to put down. This was a book choice very outside of my comfort zone but I'm thoroughly glad that I gave it a chance because it didn't disappoint. I'm now keen to read more from David Mitchell and if you've read any of his other novels I'd love some recommendations. [8/10]

Disgrace - J.M. Coetzee

Disgrace has slowly become one of my favourite books. I read it as part of one of my MA courses and I've actually enjoyed it so much that I'm writing about it for one of my large pieces of coursework that's due in January. It's set in South Africa and it follows the life of a University professor, David Lurie, who exploits his position and has an affair with a student. What follows is a slow disintegration of the life he knew, a relocation and a very poignant look into the tensions present in post-aparheid South African society. The story itself is profoundly moving because characters don't make the decisions that you'd want them to. Disgrace is a novel that defies the readers hopes and expectations which makes it challenging to enjoy reading but it does leave you deeply involved in the story. I've read it numerous times and the novel's conclusion is no less powerful now than it was the first time I encountered it. Disgrace is definitely worth picking up and giving a go. [9/10]

That conclude's this month's "What I Read" but I'd love to hear any feedback you might have on this post and on posts of this kind. I'd also love to know if you've ready anything that I mentioned in today's post?