Caroline > Recent Status Updates

Seton favors the nobles in political matters to an uncomfortable degree

Charming book, particularly the dialogue, which sometimes feels straight out of a Nora Ephron flick. Rich people agonizing over their happiness (which is already secure) just does something for me

Watched the Orson Welles movie based on this a few years ago. The source material is much more novelistic so far than I was expecting for non-fiction

Can't stop thinking about Sei Shonagon's lists while reading this:

Elegant Things

A white coat worn over a violet waistcoat.
Duck eggs.
Shaved ice mixed with liana syrup and put in a new silver bowl.
A rosary of rock crystal.
Wisteria blossoms. Plum blossoms covered with snow.
A pretty child eating strawberries.

Did Kang read The Pillow Book?

Byatt loves the words "thwarted" and "tergiversate" to a noticeable degree

insane how much more tightly constructed and well-written this is in comparison with Stoker

This book is hard, but I'm at the end of section one!
One recurring thing I've noticed is the narration's fear that history will lose understanding of action and consequence and will instead just become a series of discrete, random events. Interesting parallel with the way that post-modernist lit like GR is in tension with more traditional narrative

Rough read—Burroughs is like 1950s Hieronymus Bosch. What fresh horrors await?

There's a section in Book I, Canto II where a knight turned into a tree describes getting tricked into abandoning his lady love for a witch who later, of course, tree-ifies him. Two incredible lines from it:

"So doubly lou'd of Ladies vnlike faire,
...
[multiple stanzas that are excellent between]
...
So left her, where she now is turnd to treen mould."

Our protagonist is so self centered, cruel, and unpleasant to hear from, I think his negativity is leaching into my real life. Bring back Maureen, idc about this asshole's family history

There's something about the way Lamb writes about Connecticut that raises my hackles, even though I know for a fact he's from Norwich. I've got my eyes on you, Wally.

Clearing out 2015 additions my to-read list yet again--mixing in this book about school shootings and PTSD as a palate cleanser for Naked Lunch.

You can tell this was serialized originally because they re-explain the plot every 20 pages. Rosine should start tattooing plot points on herself Memento-style to keep track of them.

"Toute salle à manger est une prison temporaire où la civilité enchaîne les convives à la table servie." page 106

I laughed out loud at the reveal that Orlac's hands were mangled less than 12 hours before his scheduled appointment to get them insured. It's always like that, isn't it?