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jnzllwgr's reviews
238 reviews
Moby-Dick: Or, the Whale by Herman Melville
4.0
I was convinced I could read this by stumbling upon Bartleby recently. I was so surprised by its modern language and Kafka-esqueness that I presumed Moby Dick possessed similar characteristics — hence why the book possesses such a legacy. What I found was my last book I’ll ever read from the 19th century. I *hate* the flowery, overly expressive language where sentences become paragraphs. About 300 of the nearly 600 pages could be trimmed without changing the course of the plot. The first 100 pages being about Ishmael and how he came to be on the Pequod. The next 50 or so being the most astounding, with Ahab’s famous speech, announcing to the crew his intent to hunt Moby Dick. Then..”filler”. The last 80 are as riveting as Ahab’s speech. There are moments (in the last 25 pages) of ‘cinematic’ brilliance. The lengthy and vivid descriptions finally pay off in spades. A couple friends pointed out some very “meta” elements that might be worth applying, even if it doesn’t eliminate the drudgery of reading 300 pages in the middle: 1) the drudgery of the read parallels the tediousness of the voyage...with little remarkable action, our narrator discusses other topics of relevance, perhaps. It is very much an expression of the interiority of a life on the high seas? 2) as famous as Ahab is a character; as much as he moves the plot, he makes little appearances for much of 500 pages. Perhaps this is an expression of his single-mindedness; there are no other characteristics about the man recorded unless directly relevant to finding, hunting and killing the white whale.
I’m glad I read it. I’m glad it’s over now too. I wonder if that’s possibly a third “meta” element at play?
I’m glad I read it. I’m glad it’s over now too. I wonder if that’s possibly a third “meta” element at play?
Scales/Silenic Drift by B. Catling
5.0
Brian Catling is a brilliant storyteller. I’m a huge fan of the Vorrh trilogy. His phrases are vivid, scenes cinematic. A possession of efficient clarity, without the limitations of extreme brevity. These 5 stars are for his half of the book.
I couldn’t keep Sinclair’s half of the book straight in my head. Most of it seemed like surreal stream-of-consciousness. But it also did not draw the reader, with no experience with London, closer to understanding or appreciating it.
At a discount, purchasing a copy of this for Catling’s half is worth the investment.
I couldn’t keep Sinclair’s half of the book straight in my head. Most of it seemed like surreal stream-of-consciousness. But it also did not draw the reader, with no experience with London, closer to understanding or appreciating it.
At a discount, purchasing a copy of this for Catling’s half is worth the investment.