'Because of how influential (Madame Bovary) had been on later novels, it didn't strike me as much and felt derivative even though it's exactly the opposite.' The original is now somehow a cliche. Thanks Aaron, your videos always make me smile.
Life: A User's Manual has been showing up on many lists, specifically for its premise. An undeniably great premise! I like the edition you have. I don't think I've seen that specific cover before. Thank you for participating in the tag!
Thanks! I had a lot of fun with this tag too. I'm looking forward to getting to Life: a User's Manual, particularly after having read The House of Government.
Ah, I haven't read any Sebald, sounds very interesting, must search some out. I love Woolf (the essays & 'To the Lighthouse' are my favourites). Have watched/read 'The Hours'? That was my baptism into Woolfism - amazing, highly fraught, but unforgettable. I am also about to launch into Primo Levi. Ah, Stevie Smith...
When I first read Doctor Faustus I thought it was really difficult and hard to grasp but after reading The Magic Mountain it makes me reconsider how difficult this really is in comparison. I'm vaguely considering a reread but I'm not sure.
Big thanks for your rewview I tried to read To the Lighthouse but i just began and it wasnt so intresting as i thorght maybe cos i dont understand the beauty or didnt read this in whole but in comparasing with tzeig im thinking that last in much more interesting to me and it interesting to know what do you find in the To the Lighthouse?
I'm not sure if it's a good idea to start reading Thomas Mann with this novel. Instead, I would suggest to start rather with 'Buddenbrooks', because that's his only novel where he keeps the narration tempo pretty much straightforward without interrupting it constantly with his later usual (and often boring) philosophical excursions. Another book that I found relatively easy to read is 'Joseph and His Brothers', a four volume novel (actually his biggest literary work) that instead of its size reads quite easily, because the story is already given and known, more or less. So, he has to stay in a given frame. I've already tried twice to read what the majority calls "his masterpiece" i.e. 'The Magic Mountain' but dear, that second chapter bores me to death. (To be honest, I have the suspicion that Thomas Mann, like many other "big" names, is a little bit... overrated. 😲 But please, don't tell that to anyone; let's keep it secret. 🤫) But seriously, It would be of course the better for you if you'll enjoy and appreciate him, so just go and read whichever novel attracts you the most!
Haha, I'm more that happy to keep that a secret 😉 I probably should have said in the video that I've read 'The Magic Mountain' a couple of times, as well as some of Mann's Stories, so Doctor Faustus won't be my first foray into Mann's writing. That being said, I have copies of both 'Buddenbrooks' and 'Joseph and His Brothers' and I'm keen to get to both. I'm a little more intrigued by 'Buddenbrooks', so there's a chance I may give it a try before Faustus.
@@aaronfacer You've read 'The Magic Mountain' twice already? And? Pleeease, help! Tell me that it is worth the effort, that the book at the end does tell us something profound and important! You know, I get so bored when he starts to describe things in such a detail: From houses, to furnitures, to people's clothing 😫🥱 But if you promise me (🥳) that the book is real 'magic', then "I will bite the bullet" 🥴 But since you've read enough Mann, then you can definitely start with 'Doctor Faustus'. 'Buddenbrooks' have some great and enjoyable characters though and it's a quite easy and smooth read, from what I can remember. By the way, I'm reading a very nice and capable, to say the least, Greek writer, her name is Ioanna Bourazopoulou. One of her most famous and critically acclaimed novels has been already translated into English and it's called 'What Lot's Wife Saw'. Maybe you would be interested to check it out. In my opinion she is a very good writer, an exciting story teller. I had misgivings before reading her, because I don't use to read contemporary/living writers. But now that I am reading her I cannot recommend her enough. And that's no secret! You can spread it wherever you want 😀
@@Manfred-nj8vz I'd still recommend it. It has some wonderful set-pieces around the midway point, and an uncanny darkness seems to hover over the second half of the book. But I think the book is supposed to be slow, and is supposed to play with your perception of time, so it's a good book to read when you have plenty of free time and are relatively free from distraction. If it's not working, that's fine! Every book doesn't work for everyone. Thanks for the recommendation there -- I hadn't heard of Bourazopoulou, and haven't read much Greek literature either. 🙂
@@aaronfacer Thanks for the recommendation. What you've said sounds interesting indeed. Some years ago I read until the middle of 'The Magic Mountain' but then, for various reasons, I had to stop. Meanwhile I came to the result that Mann may be not "my cup of tea". Nevertheless I am curious and interested on reading 'The Magic Mountain' more for its ideas and less for its narrative style, which I don't particularly like. But who knows, maybe Mann is able to change my mind... Having said that, I have to admit that I prefer and do enjoy much more "difficult" writers than Mann, such as Faulkner, simply for his deeper emotional feeling. I loved reading 'Absalom, Absalom!', however I liked less 'As I lay dying'. But now I'm really enjoying my reading of 'The Sound and the Fury', which I have do admit would be impossible to carry on without studying simultaneously Stephen M. Ross's and Noel Polk's 'Glossary and Commentary'. I really do prefer this kind of literature much more than the one by Thomas Mann. However, please, do read just once something by Kazantzakis. He's no Mann and no Faulkner either. I highly recommend to pick up 'Christ Recrucified'.
'Because of how influential (Madame Bovary) had been on later novels, it didn't strike me as much and felt derivative even though it's exactly the opposite.'
The original is now somehow a cliche. Thanks Aaron, your videos always make me smile.
Life: A User's Manual has been showing up on many lists, specifically for its premise. An undeniably great premise! I like the edition you have. I don't think I've seen that specific cover before.
Thank you for participating in the tag!
Thanks! I had a lot of fun with this tag too. I'm looking forward to getting to Life: a User's Manual, particularly after having read The House of Government.
This was brilliant, Aaron. I knew that you would have really wonderful choices for these prompts. Thank you for doing this tag!
Thank you, Pat! And thank you for tagging me!
Great list, have fun reading To the Lighthouse for the first time!
Thank you!
Ah, I haven't read any Sebald, sounds very interesting, must search some out. I love Woolf (the essays & 'To the Lighthouse' are my favourites). Have watched/read 'The Hours'? That was my baptism into Woolfism - amazing, highly fraught, but unforgettable. I am also about to launch into Primo Levi. Ah, Stevie Smith...
No, I haven't read/seen The Hours yet. It's definitely something I'm interested in checking out eventually. I hope you enjoy Sebald if you get to him.
@@aaronfacer: Thanks. Really enjoyed this video.
I've read To the Lighthouse lately and although it lost me a bit in parts I found the atmosphere it creates really fascinating.
@@ameliareads589 sounds good!
When I first read Doctor Faustus I thought it was really difficult and hard to grasp but after reading The Magic Mountain it makes me reconsider how difficult this really is in comparison. I'm vaguely considering a reread but I'm not sure.
That's good to hear!
I read Fathers and Sons by Turgenev a few years back but i didn't realize it was so influential.
I think Turgenev was a big influence on Hemingway, although I don't think it was Fathers and Sons specifically.
Big thanks for your rewview I tried to read To the Lighthouse but i just began and it wasnt so intresting as i thorght maybe cos i dont understand the beauty or didnt read this in whole but in comparasing with tzeig im thinking that last in much more interesting to me and it interesting to know what do you find in the To the Lighthouse?
I'll definitely be sharing my thoughts on To the Lighthouse once I've read it!
Day 1 of threatening you to give me half of those books from your book shelf 😾
They're heavy and dusty. Really, you don't want them 😉
I do hush 😾🧌 @@aaronfacer
I'm not sure if it's a good idea to start reading Thomas Mann with this novel. Instead, I would suggest to start rather with 'Buddenbrooks', because that's his only novel where he keeps the narration tempo pretty much straightforward without interrupting it constantly with his later usual (and often boring) philosophical excursions. Another book that I found relatively easy to read is 'Joseph and His Brothers', a four volume novel (actually his biggest literary work) that instead of its size reads quite easily, because the story is already given and known, more or less. So, he has to stay in a given frame. I've already tried twice to read what the majority calls "his masterpiece" i.e. 'The Magic Mountain' but dear, that second chapter bores me to death. (To be honest, I have the suspicion that Thomas Mann, like many other "big" names, is a little bit... overrated. 😲 But please, don't tell that to anyone; let's keep it secret. 🤫) But seriously, It would be of course the better for you if you'll enjoy and appreciate him, so just go and read whichever novel attracts you the most!
Haha, I'm more that happy to keep that a secret 😉 I probably should have said in the video that I've read 'The Magic Mountain' a couple of times, as well as some of Mann's Stories, so Doctor Faustus won't be my first foray into Mann's writing. That being said, I have copies of both 'Buddenbrooks' and 'Joseph and His Brothers' and I'm keen to get to both. I'm a little more intrigued by 'Buddenbrooks', so there's a chance I may give it a try before Faustus.
@@aaronfacer You've read 'The Magic Mountain' twice already? And? Pleeease, help! Tell me that it is worth the effort, that the book at the end does tell us something profound and important! You know, I get so bored when he starts to describe things in such a detail: From houses, to furnitures, to people's clothing 😫🥱 But if you promise me (🥳) that the book is real 'magic', then "I will bite the bullet" 🥴 But since you've read enough Mann, then you can definitely start with 'Doctor Faustus'. 'Buddenbrooks' have some great and enjoyable characters though and it's a quite easy and smooth read, from what I can remember. By the way, I'm reading a very nice and capable, to say the least, Greek writer, her name is Ioanna Bourazopoulou. One of her most famous and critically acclaimed novels has been already translated into English and it's called 'What Lot's Wife Saw'. Maybe you would be interested to check it out. In my opinion she is a very good writer, an exciting story teller. I had misgivings before reading her, because I don't use to read contemporary/living writers. But now that I am reading her I cannot recommend her enough. And that's no secret! You can spread it wherever you want 😀
@@Manfred-nj8vz I'd still recommend it. It has some wonderful set-pieces around the midway point, and an uncanny darkness seems to hover over the second half of the book. But I think the book is supposed to be slow, and is supposed to play with your perception of time, so it's a good book to read when you have plenty of free time and are relatively free from distraction. If it's not working, that's fine! Every book doesn't work for everyone. Thanks for the recommendation there -- I hadn't heard of Bourazopoulou, and haven't read much Greek literature either. 🙂
@@aaronfacer Thanks for the recommendation. What you've said sounds interesting indeed. Some years ago I read until the middle of 'The Magic Mountain' but then, for various reasons, I had to stop. Meanwhile I came to the result that Mann may be not "my cup of tea". Nevertheless I am curious and interested on reading 'The Magic Mountain' more for its ideas and less for its narrative style, which I don't particularly like. But who knows, maybe Mann is able to change my mind... Having said that, I have to admit that I prefer and do enjoy much more "difficult" writers than Mann, such as Faulkner, simply for his deeper emotional feeling. I loved reading 'Absalom, Absalom!', however I liked less 'As I lay dying'. But now I'm really enjoying my reading of 'The Sound and the Fury', which I have do admit would be impossible to carry on without studying simultaneously Stephen M. Ross's and Noel Polk's 'Glossary and Commentary'. I really do prefer this kind of literature much more than the one by Thomas Mann. However, please, do read just once something by Kazantzakis. He's no Mann and no Faulkner either. I highly recommend to pick up 'Christ Recrucified'.