Books I Read September 5th, 2021

Though the world grows daily more terrible our means of combating the decay remain unchanged—small acts of compassion and creation; courage, especially when pointless; the strength to find joy amid the growing shadow; the slow and almost imperceptible accumulation of wisdom. They are blunt weapons by which to contend against apocalypse, but as they are all we have we had best hold them tight. I read the following books the last two weeks.

Motley Stones by Adalbert Stifter – A collection of vignettes in the bucolic, Teutonic mold, vivid descriptions of the alps and the soaring emotion of the human heart. For the sort of book I usually don't like I didn't mind this. Also, best name ever.

Amsterdam Stories by Nescio – Another old favorite. For my money, not many people ever did youthful longing as well as Nescio. Potent enough that even though it's like 100 pages it took me forever to finish because I kept finding myself getting midway through a sentence, sighing wistfully and staring off into the distance.

The Immortals by Amit Chaudhuri – The relationship between the son of a wealthy industrialist and his music teacher in 1980's Bombay offer opportunity to ruminate on the disconnect between the reality and idealization of the artist. Sharp writing and I found the insight into traditional Indian music fascinating.

The Five Books of Moses by God (trans. Robert Alter) – Continuing my journey through Alter's translation of the Old Testament. It's been a long time since I read through the adventures of the Patriarchs and I was struck by the efforts of the ancient Hebrews to reconcile the dichotomy between the savage world in which they live and the moral framework which they desperately wish undergirded human reality. Later generations found themselves appalled by the veneration of heroic figures who are often dishonest, drunken leches, but to my mind there's a courage in enshrining into the founding myths the essential facts of our own complex and often unsavory natures—this is what we sprung from, this is what the very best of us look like. The endless contradictions of the Old Testament, even down to character and place names, reflect a world as chaotic, tragic and unknowable as that which we find ourselves facing. Good stuff, though I'll admit I skimmed the genealogies. Quick postscript – probably someone has suggested that the point of God interrupting the Exodus narrative with an elaborate description of the Tabernacle is to inspire in the reader the same sort of boredom which will, in part, drive Aaron and the Israelites to built their infamous calf in the next section?

Earthlings by Sayaka Murata – A social misfit attempts to escape the social and practical demands of Japanese society through the elaborate fantasy (?) that she is an extraterrestrial. Quick, effective, weird, but I confess to feeling that the territory is pretty well-mined.

The Outcast by Selma Lagerloff – A fantastical Christian romance which didn't do a lot for me. I think maybe this project of re-reading Ms. Lagerloff has come to an end.

Maigret in New York by Simenon – I mean I couldn't really be bothered to follow the actual plot but it's fun to watch Maigret ramble around Manhattan bitching about things.

The Stalin Front by Gert Ledig – The collapse of a German salient on the Eastern Front as depicted through the individual actions of a handful of participants. This is every bit as grim as you can imagine, with Ledig's WWII experience offering both an endless ream of horrifying detail and insight into the pitilessly miserable nature of the experience. Bleak, excellent.