P.E. > Recent Status Updates

Struggling to get through this one; it's playing with form in a way that is likely more impactful for the author than the reader.

Done the first story, The Age of Discretion in a single sitting. This is my first Beauvoir and I truly had no idea what to expect; I vaguely knew there were three stories, but I couldn't tell you anything about the subjects, themes, characters, etc. But I love this so much, there is so much warmth to the story. I would like to come back to this one throughout my life. Perfect for someone without much hope for aging.

The Woman Destroyed... How about a book called The Woman Enjoyed where nothing bad happens and the characters stay happy and fulfilled and content with their lives. I would totally read hundreds of pages of a pointless, plotless book about happy women. Someone please make it happen. Ofc I'm reading Simone de Beauvoir after my Paris trip in the meanwhile.

I'm not enjoying this one. I'm having a hard time latching onto any of the characters or being engaged with the plot, and I don't enjoy Shafak's prose. I considered DNFing but the cover is so pretty and I would really like to like this book so I'll keep going.

I read in an article that Djavadi was playing with the psychology of French literature and the epic storytelling of Iranian culture. The way the two are combined in Disoriental is a great source of tension, with abrupt cutoffs, asides, and footnotes, but that seems to me exactly the point. I love this play on style that furthers the author's storytelling.

Despite being incomplete and unedited, this is giving me the kind of vibes that Speak, Memory was supposed to give. I appreciate Camus even more as I read about the humble, multicultural way he grew up. There's conviction without arrogance in this work - it is in need of editing to bring out the key ideas more clearly, but even through part 1 I found some gems.

I was totally delusional in thinking this was going to be a romance.

I love that Ferrante canon is that men are trash and the 'crazy bitch' is worth hearing out

After the mess that was Nabokov, I wanted to read someone different, and Nabokov really didn't like Dostoevsky, and I had a copy of Brothers Karamazov, so the stars aligned. So far, I'm loving the prose and the characters. They're funny and everything is readable. This makes me happy.

I am relieved that I like this. It's weird how sometimes you can tell immediately if something is to your taste or not. I had a strong feeling after the author's note at the beginning that I would enjoy Camus' writing. So far I have. It's not always easy. He is very clear with simple writing, but his ideas also jump around sometimes and I have to reread carefully to understand. Still, I'm happy so far.

It's finally time to read this!

A lot happens and nothing happens; it's so pleasant to read Hobb's writing

I need a book that is easy to read and entertaining! Let's gooooo

I despise Kyle 🤬

This is my first Robin Hobb and I'm pleasantly surprised by the quality of the prose and the depth behind the world building. Her descriptions are beautiful, and her characters face interesting social issues. There's also the nice pieces of out there original fantasy concepts and mythology. Looking forward to more!

Chapter 12 was so difficult for me. I reread it at least 4 times on different occasions, and Pensum A took more than an hour.