Sunday 2 July 2017

№ 10 reading list: rediscovering Modiano

№ 10 reading list: Modiano, book stack, latte · Lisa Hjalt


Sunday morning, latte, book podcasts, and a new reading list. When the skies are grey this is a delightful way to start the day. There are nine books on the list, which to some may seem a lot, but many of these are short and I have already finished a few, e.g. that second Patrick Modiano, In the Café of Lost Youth. My new favourite author. [Update: I changed the title of this entry when I realised shortly after posting it that I had indeed read Modiano before, years ago. It was this German edition of Villa Triste. I still remember buying it, in a small bookshop in one of those narrow cobblestone streets in Zurich. I need to reread it; I don't remember the storyline.] He is a French novelist who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2014. Luckily, many of his books have been translated into English, and are available at my local library.

№ 10 reading list:
· The Ballad of the Sad Café  by Carson McCullers
· Pedigree  by Patrick Modiano
· In the Café of Lost Youth  by Patrick Modiano
· Invisible Cities  by Italo Calvino
· Stoner  by John Williams
· Point Omega  by Don DeLillo
· Jigsaw: An Unsentimental Education  by Sybille Bedford
· The Captain's Daughter  by Alexander Pushkin
· Dancing in the Dark: My Struggle 4  by Karl Ove Knausgård

It is time to continue with Knausgård's struggles; I was beginning to miss his voice. The only book in the stack that belongs to me is Bedford's Jigsaw, which is partly autobiographical. A fellow book lover on Instagram recommended it and something tells me I will soon be picking up her memoirs Quicksands.

I meant to include Arundhati Roy's new fiction, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, but I'm still waiting for the copy I ordered at the library. It will appear on the next list. Earlier this week she was a guest on the Guardian book podcast. Besides talking about the book, she also talked about her activism in India, which I found fascinating. The legal cases against her are many and ridiculous, but she has a wonderful sense of humour and doesn't hesitate to make fun of her opponents.

I have finished reading all the books on the Japanese reading list (№ 9), except The Tale of Genji (the one under my cup). It's long and I told you I would be reading it slowly. In case you were wondering, yes, I'm enjoying it very much. I still owe you two book reviews and some notes from my reading journal (right before sharing it, I accidentally deleted the draft of my Pachinko review! I sort of knew it by heart and I just have to finish typing it again). I hope July will be a good month for reading.


2 comments:

  1. really great cover on the delilo book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, these Picador editions of DeLillo's books are very stylish.

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