What I read in July
This seems to be the only post I make, so although I don't particularly enjoy writing it I will write it. Truth be told I've been kind of in a mood. Hope it passes soon!
Dubliners, by James Joyce. For reasons unclear, likely just coincidence, I've read many book set in or about Ireland and Dublin as a teenager. It has become mythical for me. Incredibly enough, I hadn't read this one yet. I hope sometime soon I find a time and a good excuse to finally visit. About the book I don't have much to say. It's Joyce, it's great.
La invención de Morel, by Adolfo Bioy Casares. I understand why people like it, it is absolutely clear to me, but I just don't vibe with Bioy Casares as much as I'd want to. It's a fun adventure book, quick summer read, a very meritable way of spending a couple hours, but I don't think I will come back to this. I had a similar feeling with Plan de evasión, although that one was for me far more puzzling and interesting.
The Odyssey! Yes, I also did it. I read Emily Wilson's translation. I wasn't planning to read The Odyssey or anything (beyond what I already had read, in school, in Spanish) but I went to a bookstore and they had a whole display of different translations ahead of the movie release, so I picked up the one accused of being "woke". I wondered: can The Odyssey truly be made woke? Turns out no, it's just really not a woke book, no matter what Wilson does, unfortunately. It's just not a woke book. Sorr.y. It's still good though. Fun. Cooky. I have many thoughts about this whole phenomenon but all I'll say here is I think people are very unreasonable about all of it, gravitas of the book included.
Ariel, by José Enrique Rodó. Classic Uruguayan essay about how yanquis suck. The only thing wrong about it was Rodó's optimism: They didn't improve, they're worse than ever, and they're bringing the entire world down with them.
I tried to create a little table with the book covers on the left of my paragraph about them but I couldn't manage to get the images to a reasonable size. My mood is indeed too fickle to keep trying. Whatever 👍
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