so-soWhat do (or should) we do with good art made by bad people?
I read this book in hopes of getting something close-ish to an answer to that question. I was left wanting, but don‘t really hold that against the author.
I do, however, hold how obnoxious I found the writing against her.
Hence the so-so rating.
pickCurrent read, the selection for our next book group meeting. Thought provoking, thoughtful, emotional, illuminating, recommended. Can‘t wait for the discussion at book club. #FirstSaturdayReaders
bailedAfter reading four essays, I decided to bail... Usually, I like reading essays, seeing other people's point of view, but here it seems I can't connect: lack of definitions, issues with how the ideas flow, sometimes caricatural depiction lacking nuances. But most importantly, no “haha, that's an interesting point“ moment.
pickA cultural critic‘s essay collection that is titled “Against Everything” is an immediate buy for me. A truly thought provoking and boundary pushing read, with some great insights and perspectives by the Stanford professor, author and cultural critic Mark Greif. Read my full review on anushareflects.wordpress.com. Essays dwell on themes of exercise, experience, reality TV, war, and much more.
pickI think we all think about the end of the world or ourselves, if only briefly, at least once a day. We imagine how it will happen—quick, painful? With warning, time to prepare and make final rounds? We consume film, literature, and headlines that talk about it—because we love it. We think we will get the time off from work, lose our worries, lose our financial debts, our jury duties. If we lose these things, will we also lose our sense of⬇️
bailedThis book looks at famous people and discusses whether you can still appreciate their work even though they have done bad things in their lives.
A conversation with the author about his latest book.
Link to listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-book-club/id1158913265?i=1000652169412
pickSomething I sorely needed to read. It kind of lays out that yes, these people committed awful acts and yes, you can be hurt/upset/infuriated by that (I listened to the audio and went for long walks, which helped). A lot of reviews are salty and expect more from the text, but I think it's good that she sort of steps away from giving a definitive 'this is how to go about it' and instead talks of her own and others thoughts about the whole dilemma.
panThis is a far too long, angry diatribe that is very disjoined and poorly organised. Some chapters are all over the place while others have a followable organisation. It is unclear what this author actually believes or is even raging against. It is frustrating to read. I wanted to take her seriously, but after the first few chapters, that was rendered impossible by the book itself, by her own words.
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