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4.32 AVERAGE
4.32 AVERAGE
full of labyrinths, tigers, infinite repetitions, libraries and far too many literary references for one person to get
I’m disappointed. Borges has been recommended to me for years, and I AM interested in his themes but…idk this was a slog. I have a very old version, so I don’t know if my issue here is awkward, dated, clunky translation, or if it’s just Borges. I did not care much for his preferred method of story telling - some sort of retrospective scholar ruminating on an idea, memory, or finding. I found these stories on the whole unremarkable and frankly rather boring. Though sometimes the themes or concepts were intriguing, the method of delivery was usually too stale, matter of fact, and impenetrable for my tastes, which is surprising given how short most of his stories are. He’s also like, really preoccupied with Cervantes and Quixote, which I haven’t read yet so Idk why he’s so obsessed.
I understand that his technique was considered groundbreaking at the time, and I see that. But I prefer my magical realism REAL and as stories, not the musty dusty musings of a retired old academic. Not sure why this collection is so recommended for magical realism fans…
Stories-
Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius: 2
The Garden of Forking Paths: 4
The Lottery in Babylon: 3
Pierre Menard, Author of Quixote: 1
The Circular Ruins: 4
The Library of Babel: 4
Fumes the Memorious: 3
The Shape of the Sword: 4
Theme of the Traitor and the Hero: 2
Death and the Compass: 3.5
The Secret Miracle: 4
Three Versions of Judas: 1
The Sect of the Phoenix: 2
The Immortal: 4
The Theologians: 2 (the end was the most intriguing part ughhh I wanted more of that)
Story of the Warrior and the Captive: 1
Emma Zunz: 4.5
The House of Asterion: 4
Deutsches Requiem: 2
Averroes’s Search: 2 (really wanted to like this aw man)
The Zahir: 2
The Waiting: 3
The God’s Script: 3
I will abstain from rating the essays because though he’s a great, deep thinker idgaf about any of this and have no idea what he’s talking about most of the time tbh.
Parables-
Inferno, I, 32: 5
Paradiso, XXI, 108: 4
Ragnarök: 5
Parable of Cervantes and the Quixote: 3
The Witness: 4
A Problem: 3
Borges and I: 3
Everything and Nothing: 2
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I enjoyed the wild swings, even if I didn't always enjoy the stories/essays themselves —but I did enjoy a lot of them. I'd never read Borges before, and some of the work contained within was a Bluesky book club pick, so I'm glad it made me finally get around to it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Racial slurs, Racism
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I was drawn to this book because I have fallen in love with infinity. In all the books I have read so far, nothing had quite scratched the itch…until this one.
It was thrilling to see him reference other work and provide his thoughts and further questions. I related very strongly to his world/universal view. There are SO many passages that struck me and made me put down the book to get lost in happy thought.
Like this one:
“A book is not an isolated being: it is a relationship, an axis of innumerable relationships.”
I look forward to reading more of his work.
It was thrilling to see him reference other work and provide his thoughts and further questions. I related very strongly to his world/universal view. There are SO many passages that struck me and made me put down the book to get lost in happy thought.
Like this one:
“A book is not an isolated being: it is a relationship, an axis of innumerable relationships.”
I look forward to reading more of his work.
medium-paced
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Like Tlön, like the Zahir, I don’t think I will ever be able to fully move on from Borges after finally delving into his fictions and essays.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Reading Borges it takes a lot of effort to not get left behind. He’s going to haul your ass across languages, histories, philosophies, metaphysics, into endless paradoxes and labyrinths and face to face with doppelgängers and halls of mirrors. There’s more genius in these stories than in most things you’ll read.
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
So much to think about!! Apparently this Borges guy is as good as everyone says he is. Very weird to discover that some authors who I thought were experimental and inventive were really just full-throatedly ripping off Borges stories