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[afin73]

The Magician, Colm Toibin

Well I've finished this beauty!

Firstly, Kindle - yes. Thank you. I'd fallen into the mindless scrolling of social media once more and needed to claw myself out of that particular dark cave and so remembered that I had Kindle on my phone. I came across The Magician on the Kindle store and downloaded it because I'd read Thomas' Mann's The Magic Mountain as part of the reading challenge so I figured that although it wasn't in the right decade (although that chronology is shot to shit right now), it was still reading and reading will do.

I finished it two days ago a little bit unexpectedly and I had that mixed feeling you sometimes get when you finish a book: the joy that you've finished but the sadness that you've finished. Especially when I read on my Kindle, I never really know how much I have left in a book. I've turned off all of the helpful notifications that appear at the bottom: reading speed, page, percentage etc. it annoys me and the reading speed one made my competitiveness rear and I start speed reading so that I have an acceptable reading speed (ridiculous, I know). But, by turning off all of the digits it just left me to read and read and read. Which I think let me fully enjoy the book.

As a biopic of Thomas Mann it takes you through his life from being a young man in Lubeck reeling from his father's disapproval until his last days in Sweeden. It reads beautifully, at points I thought the writing beautifully emulated parts of Mann's own style and really helped to imagine that I was reading an autobiography rather than Toibin's work.

The interesting intricacies of Mann's life and acheivements, worries and struggles are beautifully woven within a simple story about a man and his life. I thoroughly enjoyed it and like I said, a little bit sad when it ended.

[afin73]

Hang on...

Reading means actually reading I have to pick up my book and read it?!

So, the reading challenging is at a stand still. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich has turned into a few months in the procastination station. I just can't read at the moment. I am going to play the English Teacher card with this one and state that I'm not reading books of my choosing because I'm too busy reading students', sometimes brilliant, sometimes painful answers to exam questions. Luckily with some classes, we're moving onto Narrative writing so hopefully the answers that I'm spending my energy on will become less life ending and more interesting or at least amusing.

I have been reading - well listening to - The Ottoman Empire by Prof. Kenneth W. Hart.

He has accompanied me many a night when my head is too tired to even contemplate finding my book (it's by my bedside) or holding said book (but endless scrolling if fiiine) and informatively, soothed me to sleep with tales of the sultans and emperors of the past.

I'm a huge advocate that reading, whatever it is, is still reading and that audiobooks count just as much as visual reading. I will admit Prof. Kenneth that you've sent me to sleep (which, to be fair, is the general goal with reading just before bed) quite often before the lecture has ended. But, the lecture series are nonetheless interesting. Especially for someone who had (and still has) very little knowledge of Ottoman history before moving to the Middle East. If you can get around Prof. Kenneth's unique narration style - very direct and I have mightily enjoyed his full-American pronunciation of Arabic words and phrases that make me feel better about my own terribly western pronunciations when practising my arabic speaking. The series of lectures takes you through the emergence of the Ottoman Empire all the way to the collapse; the series initially follows a selection of notable Sultan's and then moves onto - where I am now - selected features of the empire. Honestly, quite worth it really. And, when I've listened to them before bed, I do go to sleep well. I find it incredibly difficult to fall asleep due to my manic brain mostly spending the time as an opportunity to rattle through a range of thoughts, memories, hypotheticals and the like is a cacophaneous bombardment of mental noise - so I am very grateful for anything that my mind can focus on instead when I'm trying to sleep.

So, I'm going to take that as a semi-sort of continuation of my reading challenge (I'm hanging on by a thread to it, I know) and hopefully once the current wave of madness in school has passed - after exam run up, post Christmas craziness and inspection insanity has all subsided I'll feel less like deflated, spat out balloon left over from a toddler's birthday party and delve back into the reading challenge.

Also, note to self, when back at home with a cart full of books you want to read, buy them then and there. Pay the extra on baggage, buy the damn books and read what you're looking forward to!

[afin73]

September 1960s

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich,Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1962)

[afin73]

Sidebar - 2020s (again accidentally)

I am putting this down as my August read - I'm quite aware that it doesn't fit into the chronology of my reading challenge but it's my challenge and I make the rules.

It was quite wonderful. It made me laugh out loud and whilst no Claudia I won't be wearing black or smushed eye-liner (conjunctivitus is too much for me) I did take to heart some more of her suggestions and have thoroughly enjoyed finishing it this Saturday morning and afternoon (yes, I know it isn't August anymore but who cares really?!)

Loved it, laugh out loud, cried once (maybe twice) at the beautiful sentiments she includes and spent a wonderful morning on my arse and indulging in a good book.

[afin73]

July - 1930s again (accidentally)

:I loved reading this! I cried at the beginning. I cried in the middle. I cried when I finished it. I cried at regular intervals throughout the entire book. It is just such a wonderful story.

It is one of my Granny's favourite books. Annie Laurie has more meaning that I want to share right now, and always has. But, reading this was like walking down a memory lane of a family, who isn't mine, but who you love anyway because you laugh with them, cry (a lot in my case) with them, hope and wish for them, struggle with them and just admire them in their love for one another. I felt so proud of and heartbroken for Katie, I felt so sad, mad and heartbroken for Johnny and Francie just made me swell with love and affection for such a wonderful real character.

I promised my husband we would watch the film after I finished reading it - after I burst into tears after finishing the book, he has since declined.

I want to read this book to my children. I want to share with them the wonderful story and the beautiful characters and family bonds that Betty Smith captured so brilliantly. I loved it.

I loved every second of it.

[afin73]

Honestly, time and other things...

I did manage to finish Good Morning Midnight in June, just. And then I had my arse handed to me by July and August. The two months were a lovely, busy blur of visits and catchups, driving the length and breadth of the UK and wizzing all over the place whislt on my summer holiday at home, before coming back to Egypt, leaving an apartment, moving all the things, finding an apartment, starting school, being disappointed (again) with school things, trying not to have a nervous breakdown and having a blooming wonderful week in Dahab with my love, the fishes and the sea. So, whislt I did manage to read my 1930s selection in its dedicated month I've not managed to read July or August and I haven't got a clue what September is meant to be. I don't even know what decade I'm supposed to be on right now. My only point of reference is my list of decades and chosen books written in my journal, which I can't bring myself to look at because that would firstly mean finding it within the collection of boxes, suitcase and black bin bags I am currently living out of and secondly facing the fact that I didn't manage to order the books I need to make it to December with my challenge because I was worried about weight in my luggage (I was over any way and managed to bring back two massive books on grammar - urgh - and a host of Tummy Tox sachets that are still in the bottom of my suitcase). The other thing I need to mention is that since coming back to Egypt, where I live and where I do love, one thing I do not love and miss terribly about home is how hard it is to order a dang book here!

Amazon delivery, for all of its evils and failings in providing decent (not even decent in many cases just adequate or acceptable) working conditions and wages; which I neither condone nor support - although in true modern 'plastic protestor' fashrion do suppport by buying goods from them, is a godsend for us bibliophiles. The privilege of being able to scroll through an endless list of options of books from any age and genre without restriction, and have them arrive at your doorstep in a matter of hours is, quite frankly, one of the greatest privileges in life.

There are books here. I can find books in Egypt - obviously! There are many, many mountains of books. A lot in Arabic (surprise, surprise) and a lot that have newly made their way onto my TBR list, but typically none that are on my challenge list! So, it could be totally buggered.

But, in the current theme of - don't have a nervous breakdown - I am going to just try and suck it up, go with it and in true propaganda-ish, keep calm and carry on.

I've read over the summer and I will just have to use those as my July and August read and I think, quite serendipitously, the newest book on my reading pile that I've picked up puts me into the 60s which is where I should be in the Decades Reading Challenge I've set myself. So there. It's not perfect. It's not according to plan. But I'm reading and writing about it so there.

[afin73]

Well Time's a bugger, but...THIRD ONE DONE

I liked Good Morning Midnight, but it was a bit of a slog. I get that the clunky narrative reflects her mixed up mind and what not. But, it was a bit rough at points. I was glad when I finished it. I am glad that I've read it. The character was wholly sad; a great depiction of utter sadness that comes with depression and feeling completely and utterly baffled and bamboozled by life (although both of those words make it sound more flippant that the soul destroying void that it really is.

[afin73]

June = 1930s Good Morning, Midnight, Jean Rhys (1939)

[afin73]

SECOND ONE OVER

Well, I was defeated by the Magic Mountain. There was no way I was finishing this bad boy no matter how hard I tried, we both knew early on that Mr. Mann would beat me.

I had to download this epic on my Kindle. Usually I don't mind a Kindle version but in these days of online teaching, where I am stuck to a screen all day, I now relish the chance to move away and pick up a book. Not being able to find a hard copy of the book I had to take on the e-reader version.

To be fair, the writing is fantastic and the story is really interesting. The book has all the hallmarks of early 20th century writing; excessive details, excellent descriptions and everso wonderful phrases that one should absolutely use more in modern life. However, the tedium of the trawling through each and every intimate description, details about every side character, back story and intricate information meant that to even have an attempt at finishing this beast I would have to revert to drastic measures. I downloaded the audiobook!

It was then that I knew, I would not finish this beast within the month. I have read 21 hours of the book and have a remaining 30 or so hours to go! I had to switch my kindle off and on again a few times to make sure the timings were working. I'm still not convinced.

Whilst the little monkey Mann has defeated me in this installment of my challenge (in the sense that the month of May has passed and I did not finish the whole book), I have to say that I did enjoy what I managed to read. The main character Franz Castorp, to start with is annoying and just a bit of a bore. But, he grows on you. I found that this character's inquisitiveness and sometimes straight up stupidity are actually endearing rather than annoying and he leads you into getting to know many equally interesting characters whose backstories and microcosms that many of the characters represent.

So, despite all that saying that it is quite a slog to read it is an enjoyable slog that maybe one day, I might pick up again. But for now Franz, you'll have to stay at the top of the mountain, which I think is what you end up doing in the book anyway.

[afin73]

May = 1920s

The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann (1924)

[afin73]

FIRST ONE DONE :)

Kafka's Metamorphosis was a really quirky novella. It's the tale of Gregor, who wakes up one day to find he's turned into a bug or insect like creature.

It's a bizarre reaction narrative that weaves between Gregor's weird contemplations how his new body will affect his working patterns and his families utter horror at this new thing living in their son's/brother's room.

It was an interesting read and there's several layers behind the narrative: the trials of masculinity; trails and terrors of capitalism, ups and downs of familal life and whatnot but overall it was a funny little read that signalled an ace start to this little challenge.

My sympathies lay with Gregor by the end, poor sod, his mam, dad and sister were arseholes to him.

#bugs

[afin73]

April = 1910s

Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka (1915)

[afin73]

Decades Reading Challenge: The Start

I caught Covid.

I've been in isolation for around 15 days. I've done absolutely nothing productive other than stay alive and get better, rewatch several series of GOT, waste hours on social media media, sleep, cry and feel lonely. During this time I realised that I might benefit from a bit of a reshuffle and rebalance and if you can't do that after a shitty bit of poorliness, then when exactly should you start?

I've decided to try and do something productive and start a challenge for myself that I could have started a couple of weeks ago but I was too busy feeling sorry for myself and poorly.

I love reading, but I use the excuse that I'm a teacher and I can't read during term because I'm too busy, I can't stop analysing, marking students' work is reading etc.

Well, bollocks to that I say!

I'm (hopefully) at the end of my dance with Coronavirus (you absolute twitwomble of a virus) and I have had a lot of time to think about things. One of the things I want to do is to cultivate good habits to replace some well-worn but, not well-loved or healthy, old habits.

Habit number 2 is: get into the habit of reading books again instead of wasting mindless hours on mindless bullshit, in particular useless, endless Facebook scrolling. (FYI Habit number 1 is to continue to not smoke: Covid gave me a kick up the arse with this change by making the breathing feel like a luxury and not a normal, automatic function and I only had a mild case! So far I've managed nearly 15 days.)

To help Habit number 2 I am embarking on my Decades Reading Challenge! I have challenged myself to read a book written in every decade from 1910s to 2020s.

My goal is to read at least one book written in every decade, each month from now until next year. I am allowed to read other books as well during this time, but I must read the book on my reading list within the month it has been set.

After each decade's set read, to prove that I have read the book, I'll post a little review of my reading experience.