This reminds me of an interview I just read with Louise Glück in which she claims not to read much poetry but really loves ... murder mysteries! Would check them out from the public library and keep renewing them.
And - she learned that Dean Koontz was a big fan of hers and quoted her in his books and she sent him a thank you letter, and received a letter from him in return, which in the interview she calls "a marvelous letter." Among other superlatives.
Uh huh.
A glimpse into the literary (however you want to define that word) undergrowth, where things can become entangled in unexpected ways ..
I think we may take Glück's claim not to read that much poetry in context, so to speak ...
Thank you! I enjoyed reading that very much! I've been writing some about Glück on my Substack, not at all in the way you do so well there. Rather in a fumbling and yes, devotional way.
From reading about her, especially the tributes after her death, I understand that she was an engaged, warm, and generous teacher, friend and even, it would seem, person.
She loved D.H. Lawrence! So I imagine your "D.H. Lawrence on peyote" would have delighted her even more!
You say her "work is all edges." This is very interesting. When you try to travel to the heart of one of her poems, it returns you to another edge. You can also feel this when you read it out loud, as happened to me the other day when I was trying to make a recording of a poem and found it resistant somehow. And I couldn't figure out why! Then I read that interview where she talks about taking "swerves" in her poems, which I think might be related to your edges.
The book you reviewed there 12 years ago now is the one I have been reading lately, and it has come to me at a certain time in my life. I wonder if you had to review it again tomorrow what you would write?
Your exploration of the reading journey in "Diary: Michael Robbins, Days of Unserious Reading (or, Just Sit Right Back)" is refreshingly candid and relatable. It's an engaging piece that invites readers to reconsider our own reading habits and preferences.
Always a pleasure to see someone else singing the praises of Sara Gran. All her novels are prett amazing, but that one is on a level all its own.
This reminds me of an interview I just read with Louise Glück in which she claims not to read much poetry but really loves ... murder mysteries! Would check them out from the public library and keep renewing them.
And - she learned that Dean Koontz was a big fan of hers and quoted her in his books and she sent him a thank you letter, and received a letter from him in return, which in the interview she calls "a marvelous letter." Among other superlatives.
Uh huh.
A glimpse into the literary (however you want to define that word) undergrowth, where things can become entangled in unexpected ways ..
I think we may take Glück's claim not to read that much poetry in context, so to speak ...
Here's a link to that Glück interview in case anyone is interested:
https://www.awpwriter.org/magazine_media/writers_chronicle_view/1930/an_interview_with_louise_glck
I will say that your unserious reading still sounds pretty serious to me. It could certainly get less serious, or rather, more unserious.
This essay makes me think I should attempt some unserious reading. Maybe I'll pick up some Koontz ... seriously!
: )
Thank you! I enjoyed reading that very much! I've been writing some about Glück on my Substack, not at all in the way you do so well there. Rather in a fumbling and yes, devotional way.
From reading about her, especially the tributes after her death, I understand that she was an engaged, warm, and generous teacher, friend and even, it would seem, person.
She loved D.H. Lawrence! So I imagine your "D.H. Lawrence on peyote" would have delighted her even more!
You say her "work is all edges." This is very interesting. When you try to travel to the heart of one of her poems, it returns you to another edge. You can also feel this when you read it out loud, as happened to me the other day when I was trying to make a recording of a poem and found it resistant somehow. And I couldn't figure out why! Then I read that interview where she talks about taking "swerves" in her poems, which I think might be related to your edges.
The book you reviewed there 12 years ago now is the one I have been reading lately, and it has come to me at a certain time in my life. I wonder if you had to review it again tomorrow what you would write?
Well, I was so much older then. Now I would temper my praise somewhat, & temper my censure even more.
Progress of a sort : )
I get exactly what you mean about Rebecca Makkai’s writing. And Proust.
I love them both.
Your exploration of the reading journey in "Diary: Michael Robbins, Days of Unserious Reading (or, Just Sit Right Back)" is refreshingly candid and relatable. It's an engaging piece that invites readers to reconsider our own reading habits and preferences.
Sometimes I think we just need to speed it up. At least I do …