Tuesday, November 16, 2004
Now For Something Completely Literary, A Man With Three . . .
This blog is the Lawyer Novelist. However, there has been far more lawyer than novelist lately. That said, I do still read and, on occasion write, non-legal stuff. On the reading front, check out the Chatelain's blog today. It is a very nice short story, but sort of ho hum when compared with the raw eroticism and rich detail of -pick your story- in her great collection "Behind the Blue Canvas".
I always find it amazing to see the development of an artist, and this comparison is worth the look. I am looking forward to seeing Eileen publish her other recently excavated short stories so as to compare her development as a prose writer. Having spoken with her about her prose, I am always amazed at her (gasp) self deprecation over her prose. Completely unwarranted in my opinion. E should be as preening over her short stories as much as she does her poetry.
Another incomparable read is The Kite Runner by Kaled Hosseini. Perhaps all youse literary types read it already, but I am very taken with this book, which I picked up in the Burbank airport last week. It is the story of growing up in Afghanistan prior to the Soviet invasion and the horrible price that the characters pay as a result of the upheaval caused by that event. But it is more than that, much more. The author is truly talented and the story is captivating. For you poets, I'll give the following passage that made me chuckle; both from personal experience and from my assumption that others of you have been there, done that and got the t-shirt:
"Of course, marrying a poet was one thing, but fathering a son who preferred burying his face in poetry books to hunting . . .well, that wasn't how Baba had envisioned it, I suppose. Real men didn't read poetry-and God forbid they should ever write it! Real men-real boys-played soccer just as Baba had when he had been young."
I always find it amazing to see the development of an artist, and this comparison is worth the look. I am looking forward to seeing Eileen publish her other recently excavated short stories so as to compare her development as a prose writer. Having spoken with her about her prose, I am always amazed at her (gasp) self deprecation over her prose. Completely unwarranted in my opinion. E should be as preening over her short stories as much as she does her poetry.
Another incomparable read is The Kite Runner by Kaled Hosseini. Perhaps all youse literary types read it already, but I am very taken with this book, which I picked up in the Burbank airport last week. It is the story of growing up in Afghanistan prior to the Soviet invasion and the horrible price that the characters pay as a result of the upheaval caused by that event. But it is more than that, much more. The author is truly talented and the story is captivating. For you poets, I'll give the following passage that made me chuckle; both from personal experience and from my assumption that others of you have been there, done that and got the t-shirt:
"Of course, marrying a poet was one thing, but fathering a son who preferred burying his face in poetry books to hunting . . .well, that wasn't how Baba had envisioned it, I suppose. Real men didn't read poetry-and God forbid they should ever write it! Real men-real boys-played soccer just as Baba had when he had been young."
That hit home for me. How 'bout you?
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Speaking of t-shirts, got my official "Easy Ride for Autism" t-shirt in the mail tonight. Didn't get mine at the October 14 motorcycle ride for some reason. Black, of course. Matches my Harley. Will get much use.
