Books I Read February 23rd, 2025

There are reasons to despair. Best try and ignore them.

Nightsongs by Jon Fosse – A newborn causes problems in a marriage. Fosse uses simple language and repetition to powerful lyrical effect. Looking forward to reading something from him of more substance.

Caligula by Suetonius – Is making your horse a consul really any worse than making Elon Musk head of DOGE? May a similar end befall our Imperial idiot..

Tram 83 by Fiston Mwanza Mujila – A pair of frenemies struggle to survive in a surrealist Kinshasa. Vibrant, clever, and funny, Mujila's vision is at once apocalyptic and joyful, relishing the anarchic energy of his hometown while lamenting it's poverty, violence and despair. Strong stuff.

The Spirit of Science Fiction by Roberto Bolano – A pair of teenagers journey about a nighttime Mexico City, obsessively discuss genre fiction and poetry, fall in love with girls. Similar territory to Savage Detectives but since I love Savage Detectives this didn't bother me. I always have time for Bolano's alternatively horrifying and exhilarating depiction of youth, particularly as I age. Also a lot of fun to see Bolano name check North American fantasists; I laughed aloud at one long segment in which one character spoils the plot of a Gene Wolfe story—two of my all time favorite writers coming together on the page.