Hi - some thoughts on (some) recent reading I won't bother putting into a full ("full") review ("review").
The Factory by Hiroko Oyamada (November 2021)
Things get just far enough out of hand in this odd little novel to where I could understand why a reader might dismiss it out of hand, but for me a couple of unexpectedly sharp observations elevated it to one of my favorite reads of the year. The first was a moment that outlined the broken logic of temporary work - someone brought into an organization that is unwilling to invest in its own workers comes under significant pressure to ignore his or her own potential, eventually becoming jaded enough with the concept of work to resist making any more than a minimal investment of effort into the organization. The second was a scene where one of the protagonists, suddenly finding herself with an unexpected half-day, cannot think of anything better to do than take a walk through the company grounds. These examples speak to two sides of a question that from experience it seems like anyone who works a full-time job will grapple with at some point in their career - the experience alternates from the extremes of meaningless to all-encompassing, often with nauseating volatility, and it leaves the average worker wondering if it's worth making the effort in a world that seems ready to move on without them, all the while as that same world seems to slowly encroach on every free moment of their existence.
The Cost of Living by Deborah Levy (October 2019)
Remember last time, when I extolled the virtues of holding off on a reading review? The other side of the coin is that sometimes you can hold off for so long that you forget everything you knew about the book. If this happens, you'll have a grand old time scribbling down your thoughts while watching a half-arsed helmet football game on Sunday afternoon. But, let's just get to business.
In this case, I went back and checked out a few reviews just to see if I could jog my memory, but this was to no avail. It seems like the most telling note I took down is the one that mentions how Medusa returned the male gaze and, well, look at what happened - portrayed as evil, then beheaded; the example speaks to the subtle and overt sexist experiences Levy draws upon to put together this work. I think there is always something universal in a well-written memoir, and some of my other notes suggest the same applies to The Cost of Living - the note, for example, that someone else's honestly makes it possible for listeners to respond more freely, rings true both from my conversational experience as well as the ease with which I can write about a book reflecting the same feature. I'm also quite convinced of the eternal wisdom in the idea of becoming an artist rather than dying of the past. As a final legacy of my reading experience, I noted that I should look into Arts of the Possible by Adrienne Rich, and I anticipate checking out this work sometime in the next year.
The most honest thing I can say about this book, however, goes back to my initial attempt to jog my memory via various summaries and comments. One review noted that this book was a must-read for Levy's fans, a club to which I claim no membership; I have no idea how I ended up with this book in the first place. It's a good reminder that when I mention certain books about Liverpool FC, reference a moment from a helmet football podcast, or preach about the various virtues of live U2 performances, I should make these comments alongside the all-important disclaimer regarding the intended audience.
Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri (February 2020)
This collection, which I read almost two years ago, was good enough for me to check out Unaccustomed Earth, a book I mentioned in last month's clearout. There were three stories I noted for reread from this debut 1999 collection - "A Temporary Matter", "Mrs. Sen's", and "The Third and Final Continent". It wasn't a major challenge for me to find a PDF online of the former, and it might be worth sampling first before diving into the rest of the collection.
