I must have been close to 20 too when I read Proust's Swann, it's more than 45 years ago now and I don't remember anything of the story. But no novel after it grasped me so much right from the first sentence, it wasn't the story, it was the style of his writing, the descriptions of things that beamed me right into the places he writes about. It was a revelation for me of what literature can do and set the standards for what to read after. I always wanted to reread it and to read the whole set of volumes - but so many unread books pile up in my room and I won't live another 45 years ...
Biggest tragedy for me is having to choose, I know. Time is precious. Thank you for choosing to spend your time here, means a lot. Helps me to highlight things and skip to them once in awhile for reminders.
Please read the rest of the volumes, if it meant so much to you then I guarantee it will resonate even more now. Please take my word for it, and take the time, you will thank God you did. You’re the kind of person he was writing it fore--someone that got it.
I'm 80, just starting this masterpiece and I've made a commitment to be in my second reading before I check out. I'm reading it slow, so someone younger better get on climate change and the Ukraine, cause I'm going to be around for a while with Proust. I love your reviews and will join as soon as I can. Meanwhile, thanks a bunch. Diana/Chicago
I spent 6 months reading Proust (made a video sharing my thoughts) and it is my favourite novel of all time. It's the hard but at the same time the most rewarding book you will ever read. It really goes deep, i learnt things i didnt know existed inside me. reading proust is reading yourself. Thanks for the video. if you have time, watch my summary of the novel, or not. cheers!!
My two favorite english speaking booktubers reunited by my favorite novel. What else can one ask from digital life? Keep up the criminally good work man!!!
About 30 years ago, during a lecture, Michael Graves called Proust a likely great architect just for his description of dust appearing in sunlight through parted curtains.
Ha! Also, croissants in UK supermarkets taste of misery and despair. I have no idea what those imposters actually are, but they are most certainly NOT croissants. :)
22.19. That is the exact extract I sent to friends. An incredibly peceptive passage. Marx said "An hour prwctice is worth a 100 hours of theory". Proust is saying we can learn faster from literature which provides us with experiences we may never have.
Swanns Way is broken into three parts, the first and last is a first person narrative by a high-class youth of his experiences at home in France and while in Combray, a village of France, the second part, stuck in the middle, is told in third person, and relates the love life of a French socialite in his relationship with a free-spirited woman, Odette, who isn't as serious as Swann in their relations, and eventually parts from him. The beauty of the book is its long and beautiful descriptions of French countrysides, the social interactions between the characters with its masterfully crafted dialogue and tension. In a sense, Swanns Way is a poetic look of life in France during the turn of the 19th century, full of its drama and social intrigues. It's a very good book! Most readers and writers suggest people to read this book, for its witty use of words, for in very few other works, can one read a work written with such a wonderful style.
This channel is one of the best discoveries I've made (or UA-cam's algorithm made for me) in a long time. Thank you for creating this environment of cultural showcase and exchange. I truly enjoyed your delivery, perspective and humour. Eagerly waiting for the day you'll (maybe) review philosophy books. Came for the Clarice book (Paixão segundo G. H.), stayed for the absolute quality of the content. PS: Sorry about my English. It's not my first language (portuguese) and I'm still figuring it out.
If anyone is interested, the George Sand novel that Proust mentions in volumes one and seven in connection with the night the narrator's mother failed to kiss him before bed, _François le Champi_ , is potentially an "Easter egg" relevant to the story. I'm currently about a third of the way through _François_ and have already observed at least three things that bear directly on _À la recherche du temps perdu_ . And it's a good story of its own, as well.
YES! 19:40 this really translates my feelings with Proust. And Tim Hecker was absolutely one of my more blissful live experiences ever, I was completely drowned in the sound of his Konoyo live setting, accompanied by an ensemble of Japanese musicians playing Gagaku. It made me think of Teshigahara's films and Toru Takemitsu's soundtracks.
I came here after reading Flaubert's Madame Bovary (I loved it), because you recommended that book to people who like Proust. So happen now I am reading Swann's Way; I like Madame Bovary the story more, but I enjoy the writing in this book. That part you read at the end, about how we empathize better with people in books (more than people we know outside books) because we can see them really close, we can see them change (I am thinking about Madame Bovary when I write that), and people outside books change too slow and feel less than real for us. Happen it is similar if you have a child and the child she is growing; in your mind you can remember when she was an infant but because you saw every moment in her growing, it is difficult for to feel how each part in her childhood, infant, 1 year, 2 year, and every day and week between she is changing, but we forget the different people they become and remember only a line stretch back from how she is now. I remember the moment I read that part and I think, still think, that is one of the most true things I read in my life. Thank you.
I read Bovary when I was younger I remember feeling contempt towards her and pity for her husband. Retreading it later in life I have pity for her and contempt for her husband. Life changes the way you read tremendously
Hey Cliff, just wanted to say your channel has made a great impact on my life. I'm 17, about to go into uni and this period of transition has given me time to read and appreciate many of the books you have recommended. Thank you! Should you find yourself in Sydney Australia, give us a heads up!
Proust distinguishes himself from all the other great authors through his meticulously fathoming of human emotion and the unparalleled meditation on the passing of time which surpasses in his complexity any philosophy I've read. Great review Cliff, always happy to see a new video of yours.
@@williamdrouin8063 The themes of Joyce are very different though, dealing with religion, symbols and language. I'd say Virginia Woolf is much closer to Proust because she also uses interiority, time and memory to structure her narratives. She also has a debt to the romantics like Proust, Joyce is radically modern.
Greetings from Siberia! I'm so happy to hear your analysis again and again. The thinking people form a real family. Thank you so much, man, for your work!
Read Swann's Way only last year and totally loved it! As you said, it needs to be taken in slowly, sipped in drop by drop like very heavy port wine. Second Part is already on my bookshelf, but I'm still busy with other books and work and boring everyday issues... ;-) As Proust is also one of the writer's discussed by Bataille in "Evil in Literature" I wondered wether you would touch on that. But maybe that would make for a good topic for a seperate vid: "Evil in Literature" and the works discussed therein.
I finished Past Recaptured a few years ago... it was magnificent! time well-spent I must say... Proust was a genius.... what else can I say? LOL... thank goodness for that damn madeleine!
@@scriecumine913 thanks for the recommendation. The first volume has sort of shocked me profoundly while the 2nd helped me to grasp Proust‘s genius. I will continue and plan to read it all!!
I believe it was Richard Griffiths who played Uncle Monty in 'Withnail & I'. Did you know 'Withnail & I' was originally an unpublished novel?, one which featured a far bleaker ending than the one shown in the film.
Not sure if the novel is readily available, though sections of it certainly are. If you do manage to find it then I'll look forward to your review of it. :)
I've been hoping you'd do Swann's Way since I discovered your channel. It has intimidated me for years. I've always doubted my ability to grasp it but I think it's about time I gave it proper go.
Did you read it ? I have the same problem you faced. Not sure if iam ready to understand it. How about you. It's been 7 years. You read ? If you read please tell me your experience
As the same occurrence. I have read Proust with the same breaks. Firstly, half of Swan's way, then about 7 months passed and I returned to again and couldn't separate myself from him.
Great review per usual . After I finish up with Giovanni's room I'm definitely picking up Swan's Way. Have you read any James Baldwin? Is he a future video topic ?
glad to see this one on here cliff, it really is a great read. hope ur project is going well. if you like proust but maybe found him a little too sensitive I recommend the man without qualities by musil-some of his sentences r more precise than math equations. also based on the high recommendation from bolano, I discovered the great poet ( or antipoet, as he claims), niconor parra. looking forward to whats coming
Ohhhh Man I really love your channel, just because you talk about my favorite books and authors (and you do it with passion): Huysmans, Pessoa, Lispector and now Proust (if you do one of Virginia Woolf I die jaja). Im happy,. In this days Im reading the second novel of the saga, and Im doing it to my grandmother.
Better Than Food: Book Reviews Well, I recommend you The Complete Shorter Fiction. One of my favorite topics in those tales is madness, and how that style, the steam of conciusness, fall in a hole (as ocurrs in Ms Dalloway).
@@BetterThanFoodBookReviews 'Orlando' is my favorite book of hers. It grabs you right from the first page. Borges even translated it to Spanish. Maybe that one, Cliff.
By being so sensitive and observant of the tiniest details a great writer can express the human experience in the most beautiful way but it also means they can cut through bullshit which may not be so good for the fathers ego. Clashes of opinion are probably quite good for sharpening the sword of rhetoric too.
I re-watched Eyes Wide Shut a few days ago, then picked up Dream Story by Arthur Schnitzler today. Just wondering if this novella is on your to-read list?
haha finally! I love Proust. I had planned to read all of In Search... last year, but life happened and school happened... maybe when I graduate. But yeah, I read Swann's Way in High School and it became my all time favorite book.
,,For a while he had had the idea, so as to be able to go to Compiegne and Pirrefonds without appearing to be doing it in order to meet Odette, of contriving to be taken there by one of his friends, the Marquis de Forestelle , who had a chateau in the vicinity."
Volume 1, Swan's Way, is like a prelude to the remaining volumes, or so I am told by an Oxford literature professor friend of mine. I'm currently half way through Volume 2, In the 'Shadow of Young Girls in Flower'. I'm reading the Penguin Modern Classics ed. translated by James Grieve. I highly recommend it. It is a dazzling analysis of male and female adolescence, of childhood memories, of love and sexuality, of growing up, relationships, finding one's place in society and much more. Proust's ability to describe feelings, emotions and perceptions is simply spectacular. Please don't stop at reading Swan's Way. In The Shadow of Young Girls in Flower is, in my opinion, deeper and more profound. Virginia Woolf is quoted as saying 'My great adventure was undoubtedly Proust. What is there left to write after that?'
This might seem unrelated, but I recently saw The Neon Demon and I was wondering--spoilers for the ending--: Do you think the ending was a reference to 'Story of the Eye'? It fits the themes of the film oddly well, in my opinion.
Knausgaard definitely has daddy issues. He wrote about it extensively in his books. In an interview I saw, he himself doesn't take that comparison seriously. Lazy reviewers came up with this label because their works are somewhat autobiographical and long. That's it. The style of writing is nothing alike. Proust has a truly unique style.
I have a painting that is probably done by Marcel Proust, it has been in my French family for decades and I wonder if art by Marcel would have some value. Anyone?
Life is too short to read bullshit. What a wonderful review! I picked up Swans Way last fall and was intimidated that I wouldn’t grasp it fully. But after your review I can’t wait to take my time, slow down and take it in. Thank you!
I thought you were supposed to dunk the cookie in the tea? Seriously though this link is the best explanation of Proust: www.theschooloflife.com/thebookoflife/marcel-proust/
Hi there Mr. Books, Love your channel! You give literature another fun dimension... thank you for that! So, question: Did you read anything of Mr. Philip Roth? What do you think about him? Keep on awesome work! Kindest and warmest regards, De Selby
Love this book. I'm starting to watch your video now, so maybe you'll answer it there, but... I still have got to read the others, do you think they can be easily be resumed after some two or three years I've read the first one?
you don't read big books and now you pick the largest of the lot! i suppose you are going to read it in series form. A great reward if you can do it so they say.
I couldn't articulate it either. Glad I sounded it out enough for Google to give the name of the author. 'Joris-Karl Huysmans' is his name, and the book title is, 'Against Nature'. 'Better Than Food' gives a review of it, btw. ua-cam.com/video/6iDdRSBW92s/v-deo.html
God i was excited when i saw this in my feed. Purchased the Recherche a couple of weeks ago, now i just gotta finnish all my unread books. Keep the Great content comin'!
I don't think James Joyce had any issues with his dad, actually I've heard they were quite fond of one another, and Joyce is my favorite 20th century author! (please try to review one of his books, although I remember you saying in one video that you did not finish "Ulysses" which is understandable but unfortunate)
Who the hell finish Ulysses? I try, 2 or 3 times, and when I can enter is stream of tought, the book is really amazing, but the last 1/3 of the book is just impossible. i can't believe that someone ever read that. It's impossible.
Better Than Food: Book Reviews I believe Pynchon said 49 was a failure. GR might be a better experience. Or perhaps start with his latest novel, Bleeding Edge.
I'm not a Pynchon expert, but I believe it's better to start with, say Inherent Vice or, as RyanJE suggests, Bleeding Edge. GR is exhausting, apparently.
I remember travelling with my Dutch girlfriend through the North-West Frontier in a railway carriage full of Sikhs back in 1980. They all carried kirpans, breech-loading rifles and bullet belts. Moreover, there was another outsider - a Syrian who decided to have a cigarette which is taboo in Sikhism. It would be most apt to describe this in a Proustian manner, but I am not going to.
Its funny you mentioned Borges, because I just picked him up recently. All I can say right now is that I'm in complete awe. He manages to do things in stories that I didn't think were possible.
I must have been close to 20 too when I read Proust's Swann, it's more than 45 years ago now and I don't remember anything of the story. But no novel after it grasped me so much right from the first sentence, it wasn't the story, it was the style of his writing, the descriptions of things that beamed me right into the places he writes about. It was a revelation for me of what literature can do and set the standards for what to read after. I always wanted to reread it and to read the whole set of volumes - but so many unread books pile up in my room and I won't live another 45 years ...
Biggest tragedy for me is having to choose, I know. Time is precious. Thank you for choosing to spend your time here, means a lot. Helps me to highlight things and skip to them once in awhile for reminders.
Please read the rest of the volumes, if it meant so much to you then I guarantee it will resonate even more now. Please take my word for it, and take the time, you will thank God you did. You’re the kind of person he was writing it fore--someone that got it.
You might. It’s not unheard of to live to 105
I'm 80, just starting this masterpiece and I've made a commitment to be in my second reading before I check out. I'm reading it slow, so someone younger better get on climate change and the Ukraine, cause I'm going to be around for a while with Proust. I love your reviews and will join as soon as I can. Meanwhile, thanks a bunch. Diana/Chicago
Well sad.
I spent 6 months reading Proust (made a video sharing my thoughts) and it is my favourite novel of all time. It's the hard but at the same time the most rewarding book you will ever read. It really goes deep, i learnt things i didnt know existed inside me. reading proust is reading yourself. Thanks for the video. if you have time, watch my summary of the novel, or not. cheers!!
My two favorite english speaking booktubers reunited by my favorite novel. What else can one ask from digital life? Keep up the criminally good work man!!!
Yes. Proust's language is so beautiful, you can't even see the horizon of it's beauty.
About 30 years ago, during a lecture, Michael Graves called Proust a likely great architect just for his description of dust appearing in sunlight through parted curtains.
' the past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.' - L.P. Hartley ( The Go-Between; another great book, similar is some ways).
If it doesn't taste like you're eating a stick of butter, it's not a good madeleine.
Great humour of you. I enjoyed this comment.
I want to eat a stick of butter!
Ha! Also, croissants in UK supermarkets taste of misery and despair. I have no idea what those imposters actually are, but they are most certainly NOT croissants. :)
Pastry shops are a treasure
22.19. That is the exact extract I sent to friends. An incredibly peceptive passage. Marx said "An hour prwctice is worth a 100 hours of theory". Proust is saying we can learn faster from literature which provides us with experiences we may never have.
Swanns Way is broken into three parts, the first and last is a first person narrative by a high-class youth of his experiences at home in France and while in Combray, a village of France, the second part, stuck in the middle, is told in third person, and relates the love life of a French socialite in his relationship with a free-spirited woman, Odette, who isn't as serious as Swann in their relations, and eventually parts from him.
The beauty of the book is its long and beautiful descriptions of French countrysides, the social interactions between the characters with its masterfully crafted dialogue and tension. In a sense, Swanns Way is a poetic look of life in France during the turn of the 19th century, full of its drama and social intrigues. It's a very good book!
Most readers and writers suggest people to read this book, for its witty use of words, for in very few other works, can one read a work written with such a wonderful style.
This channel is one of the best discoveries I've made (or UA-cam's algorithm made for me) in a long time.
Thank you for creating this environment of cultural showcase and exchange. I truly enjoyed your delivery, perspective and humour.
Eagerly waiting for the day you'll (maybe) review philosophy books.
Came for the Clarice book (Paixão segundo G. H.), stayed for the absolute quality of the content.
PS: Sorry about my English. It's not my first language (portuguese) and I'm still figuring it out.
Please don’t apologize for your English. It is excellent and you write as if it is your first language. Well done! 🙂
Just started reading this. After reading Lolita I have struggled to find a work with such beautiful prose.
call the Monsieur "Marcel Prose" I guess... LOL
I don’t think I’ll ever find anything as beautifully written as Lolita.
If anyone is interested, the George Sand novel that Proust mentions in volumes one and seven in connection with the night the narrator's mother failed to kiss him before bed, _François le Champi_ , is potentially an "Easter egg" relevant to the story. I'm currently about a third of the way through _François_ and have already observed at least three things that bear directly on _À la recherche du temps perdu_ . And it's a good story of its own, as well.
Must read: Robert Musil's Man Without Qualities.
YES! 19:40 this really translates my feelings with Proust. And Tim Hecker was absolutely one of my more blissful live experiences ever, I was completely drowned in the sound of his Konoyo live setting, accompanied by an ensemble of Japanese musicians playing Gagaku. It made me think of Teshigahara's films and Toru Takemitsu's soundtracks.
I came here after reading Flaubert's Madame Bovary (I loved it), because you recommended that book to people who like Proust. So happen now I am reading Swann's Way; I like Madame Bovary the story more, but I enjoy the writing in this book. That part you read at the end, about how we empathize better with people in books (more than people we know outside books) because we can see them really close, we can see them change (I am thinking about Madame Bovary when I write that), and people outside books change too slow and feel less than real for us. Happen it is similar if you have a child and the child she is growing; in your mind you can remember when she was an infant but because you saw every moment in her growing, it is difficult for to feel how each part in her childhood, infant, 1 year, 2 year, and every day and week between she is changing, but we forget the different people they become and remember only a line stretch back from how she is now. I remember the moment I read that part and I think, still think, that is one of the most true things I read in my life. Thank you.
I read Bovary when I was younger I remember feeling contempt towards her and pity for her husband. Retreading it later in life I have pity for her and contempt for her husband. Life changes the way you read tremendously
It took me until I was quite an mature lady to realize how hilarious parts of "Swann's Way" really were.
Hey Cliff, just wanted to say your channel has made a great impact on my life. I'm 17, about to go into uni and this period of transition has given me time to read and appreciate many of the books you have recommended. Thank you! Should you find yourself in Sydney Australia, give us a heads up!
Shall do! Great to hear Adam, stick around and keep in touch.
Hey hows it going?
How are you today
I'm sorry, I thought this was Better Than Food: Book Reviews, not Better Than Books: Food Reviews!
Proust distinguishes himself from all the other great authors through his meticulously fathoming of human emotion and the unparalleled meditation on the passing of time which surpasses in his complexity any philosophy I've read. Great review Cliff, always happy to see a new video of yours.
Thanks!
I dont know. Joyce is probably his equal
@@williamdrouin8063 The themes of Joyce are very different though, dealing with religion, symbols and language. I'd say Virginia Woolf is much closer to Proust because she also uses interiority, time and memory to structure her narratives. She also has a debt to the romantics like Proust, Joyce is radically modern.
I really enjoyed Alain De Botton's book 'How Proust Can Change Your Life'. That's a light, fun but worthwhile read.
Greetings from Siberia! I'm so happy to hear your analysis again and again. The thinking people form a real family. Thank you so much, man, for your work!
Read Swann's Way only last year and totally loved it! As you said, it needs to be taken in slowly, sipped in drop by drop like very heavy port wine. Second Part is already on my bookshelf, but I'm still busy with other books and work and boring everyday issues... ;-)
As Proust is also one of the writer's discussed by Bataille in "Evil in Literature" I wondered wether you would touch on that. But maybe that would make for a good topic for a seperate vid: "Evil in Literature" and the works discussed therein.
Ohhhh yeaaaahh....God I love that essay. Thanks for watching.
Can u do one on The Tale Of Genji
I can’t wait to read it. I really like the analogy with ambient music (and Tim Hecker!)
I would love for you to read/review Aurélien by Aragon!
Always wanted to read him and more surrealists - thanks for the suggestion!
Always love your reviews! Been watching for a year now and love to see your channel expand even more.
Been wanting to get into Proust. This sounds like a good time to do so.
Just finished Swann‘s Way. Anybody read the other one‘s? How are they in comparison?
I finished Past Recaptured a few years ago... it was magnificent! time well-spent I must say... Proust was a genius.... what else can I say? LOL... thank goodness for that damn madeleine!
Swann's Way is the least interesting from the bunch. Still great, though.
@@scriecumine913 thanks for the recommendation. The first volume has sort of shocked me profoundly while the 2nd helped me to grasp Proust‘s genius. I will continue and plan to read it all!!
I believe it was Richard Griffiths who played Uncle Monty in 'Withnail & I'. Did you know 'Withnail & I' was originally an unpublished novel?, one which featured a far bleaker ending than the one shown in the film.
Had no clue - gotta review that one, thanks for watching!
Not sure if the novel is readily available, though sections of it certainly are. If you do manage to find it then I'll look forward to your review of it. :)
What we all have in common with Proust is that we are human beings possessing the ability to live life and assess life simultaneously.
I've been hoping you'd do Swann's Way since I discovered your channel. It has intimidated me for years. I've always doubted my ability to grasp it but I think it's about time I gave it proper go.
Did you read it ? I have the same problem you faced. Not sure if iam ready to understand it. How about you. It's been 7 years. You read ? If you read please tell me your experience
As the same occurrence. I have read Proust with the same breaks. Firstly, half of Swan's way, then about 7 months passed and I returned to again and couldn't separate myself from him.
Great review per usual . After I finish up with Giovanni's room I'm definitely picking up Swan's Way. Have you read any James Baldwin? Is he a future video topic ?
glad to see this one on here cliff, it really is a great read. hope ur project is going well. if you like proust but maybe found him a little too sensitive I recommend the man without qualities by musil-some of his sentences r more precise than math equations. also based on the high recommendation from bolano, I discovered the great poet ( or antipoet, as he claims), niconor parra. looking forward to whats coming
My proustian moment is smelling the decay of leaves and feeling the warm sun of mid autumn whilst walking through my local park
I love this playful and insightful discussion of Proust and his amazing insights to be found in Swann's Way.
If you're looking for another great winter read I recommend Ice by Anna Kavan.
19:05 Who is this author that he mentioned? I couldn't quite grasp what he said
J.K. Huysmans 👍
Great author
The only book review channel I really enjoy
There's more to life than books you know,
But not much more.
-Moz
11:26. The answer is James Joyce.
Ohhhh Man I really love your channel, just because you talk about my favorite books and authors (and you do it with passion): Huysmans, Pessoa, Lispector and now Proust (if you do one of Virginia Woolf I die jaja). Im happy,. In this days Im reading the second novel of the saga, and Im doing it to my grandmother.
I really didn't care for 'The Waves' but I'm willing to give her another shot if you have a rec, thanks for watching.
Better Than Food: Book Reviews Well, I recommend you The Complete Shorter Fiction. One of my favorite topics in those tales is madness, and how that style, the steam of conciusness, fall in a hole (as ocurrs in Ms Dalloway).
@@BetterThanFoodBookReviews 'Orlando' is my favorite book of hers. It grabs you right from the first page. Borges even translated it to Spanish. Maybe that one, Cliff.
By being so sensitive and observant of the tiniest details a great writer can express the human experience in the most beautiful way but it also means they can cut through bullshit which may not be so good for the fathers ego. Clashes of opinion are probably quite good for sharpening the sword of rhetoric too.
I re-watched Eyes Wide Shut a few days ago, then picked up Dream Story by Arthur Schnitzler today. Just wondering if this novella is on your to-read list?
haha finally! I love Proust. I had planned to read all of In Search... last year, but life happened and school happened... maybe when I graduate. But yeah, I read Swann's Way in High School and it became my all time favorite book.
Vrixton Phillips qeqeeqeeeeeqeqeeeeeqeqeeqeeetqqtqtqeeqqeqqerqeqeqqerqeqeqqeeqqeeeqqeeqqeqeqeqqeeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqeqqeeqeqqeeqeqpqeqqeeqeqeqqeeqqqeqeeqrqqrrqeqqeqeeqqteqqeqeqeqeeqqeqtqeqeqeeqqeqeeqqeeqeqrqqeqeeqqeqeqeqeqeqeqtrqqeqeqeqeqepqteqeqqeqeqeqeqreqeqqeeeqqqtqeyqeeqeqqeqeqerqqrqrqrqrrqqrqeqeqeqeqeqqqqqqqqqeqeeqqeqtqeqeqeqeqqqqqqqqqqqq
,,For a while he had had the idea, so as to be able to go to Compiegne and Pirrefonds without appearing to be doing it in order to meet Odette, of contriving to be taken there by one of his friends, the Marquis de Forestelle , who had a chateau in the vicinity."
I remember Proust saying : "it is better to live a life than dreaming about it but dreaming about it is also living it".
See the Monty python sketch - summary of the whole of Temp Perdu in 30 seconds in a barmy Quiz show .
The tea should be served in pocerlain teacup and from teapot
Volume 1, Swan's Way, is like a prelude to the remaining volumes, or so I am told by an Oxford literature professor friend of mine. I'm currently half way through Volume 2, In the 'Shadow of Young Girls in Flower'. I'm reading the Penguin Modern Classics ed. translated by James Grieve. I highly recommend it. It is a dazzling analysis of male and female adolescence, of childhood memories, of love and sexuality, of growing up, relationships, finding one's place in society and much more. Proust's ability to describe feelings, emotions and perceptions is simply spectacular. Please don't stop at reading Swan's Way. In The Shadow of Young Girls in Flower is, in my opinion, deeper and more profound. Virginia Woolf is quoted as saying 'My great adventure was undoubtedly Proust. What is there left to write after that?'
I'd like to see you review Pimp by Iceberg Slim
Why the slurping though?
'Withnail and I' is my all-time favorite comedy, next to 'O Brother Where Art Thou?'
I'm glad you love Withnail and I. I always wonder if the humour of those quintessential British comedys carries over the Atlantic.
Richard Griffiths- RIP - was Uncle Monty.
amazing narration, you picked out some of my favorite passages as well. love the backdrop of the tea
"You mean you've been up here in all this beastly mud and oomska
without wellingtons?"
This might seem unrelated, but I recently saw The Neon Demon and I was wondering--spoilers for the ending--: Do you think the ending was a reference to 'Story of the Eye'? It fits the themes of the film oddly well, in my opinion.
yup, I do.
Hey has anyone noticed that this novel is available in different number of volumes? 3, 4, 6 or 7? Why is that?
Dazza Howard SWANN’S WAY is Volume 1 of a whole work called IN SEARCH OF LOST TIME, in which there are 7 volumes total.
your videos are always the highlight of my day
Thanks! Glad to make it better!
What about Karl Ove Knausgaard? He is meant to be the Swedish Proust?
I think he did a video on "My Struggle" a while back.
ImmaterialDigression More or less,Karl is cooler and less slow
ImmaterialDigression Knausgaard is norwegian, not swedish
hahaha My bad I don't know much about him I knew he was from a country around there
Knausgaard definitely has daddy issues. He wrote about it extensively in his books. In an interview I saw, he himself doesn't take that comparison seriously. Lazy reviewers came up with this label because their works are somewhat autobiographical and long. That's it. The style of writing is nothing alike. Proust has a truly unique style.
That opening is hilarious! XD
My goal in life now is to become the one great author without daddy issues. Thanks, I have found my purpose.
😂😂😂😂
Thank you for giving me words.
Waiting for the day you'll review some Haruki Murakami or Pynchon.
Keep doing the great job
Ulisses Brandão Murakami is exactly how I learned about Proust. 1Q84 brought me here
I have a painting that is probably done by Marcel Proust, it has been in my French family for decades and I wonder if art by Marcel would have some value. Anyone?
The slurping and smacking is truly terrible... but ill give it a pass cuz youre a Fall fan
The book is mainly about how the narrator became a writer, how the narrator became the writer of the book your are reading.
Life is too short to read bullshit.
What a wonderful review!
I picked up Swans Way last fall and was intimidated that I wouldn’t grasp it fully. But after your review I can’t wait to take my time, slow down and take it in.
Thank you!
Life’s to short to read bullshit and here am I reading UA-cam comment sections. Yourself excluded of course
Amazing review, thanks a lot
Fantastic reviews dude. Read Story of the Eye last week, very cool book.
Glad you enjoyed man, thanks for watching
YES. I WAS WAITING FOR THIS
I thought you were supposed to dunk the cookie in the tea? Seriously though this link is the best explanation of Proust: www.theschooloflife.com/thebookoflife/marcel-proust/
Kerouac loved Proust, so I’ve wanted to dive in!
Hope you share your views on the other six volumes as well.
Arcana; in an essay, Michael Graves called Proust a better architect than most by virtue of his description of dust floating thru rays of light.
Hi there Mr. Books,
Love your channel! You give literature another fun dimension... thank you for that!
So, question: Did you read anything of Mr. Philip Roth? What do you think about him?
Keep on awesome work!
Kindest and warmest regards,
De Selby
i nearly spilled my fucking coffee at the beginning ahahahaha
I was thinking of reading this, now I'm convinced
Love this book. I'm starting to watch your video now, so maybe you'll answer it there, but... I still have got to read the others, do you think they can be easily be resumed after some two or three years I've read the first one?
Don't know, find out!
you don't read big books and now you pick the largest of the lot! i suppose you are going to read it in series form. A great reward if you can do it so they say.
On daddy issues. Both Nabokov and Beckett loved and revered their fathers.
Hey Mr Sargent, could you recommend any british comedy similar to Whitnail and I?
Proust was known for taking his tea with the bag still in.
Who's the author he mentions at 19:04 ? I can't spell the name and the captions don't help.
I couldn't articulate it either. Glad I sounded it out enough for Google to give the name of the author. 'Joris-Karl Huysmans' is his name, and the book title is, 'Against Nature'. 'Better Than Food' gives a review of it, btw. ua-cam.com/video/6iDdRSBW92s/v-deo.html
Wish I had more time to watch this right now! Great review choice. I'll be back.
Hey in case you forgot to come back, here to remind you that you can watch this now :)
Richard Griffiths was Uncle Monty in Withnail and I
why is the cover page worded 'snob'?
that slurping is just revolting!
you forgot to dip it!
God i was excited when i saw this in my feed. Purchased the Recherche a couple of weeks ago, now i just gotta finnish all my unread books. Keep the Great content comin'!
I wanna see you review the REST of Rememberence of Things Past, please.
Withnail and I is the best. Great review as always. Love Tim Hecker too
I don't think James Joyce had any issues with his dad, actually I've heard they were quite fond of one another, and Joyce is my favorite 20th century author! (please try to review one of his books, although I remember you saying in one video that you did not finish "Ulysses" which is understandable but unfortunate)
Who the hell finish Ulysses? I try, 2 or 3 times, and when I can enter is stream of tought, the book is really amazing, but the last 1/3 of the book is just impossible. i can't believe that someone ever read that. It's impossible.
wait until you get to Finnegans Wake....
It may be tolerable to read a volume a year, over a period of seven years. That's what I'll be doing anyways (when it's time)... (Lost time?)
Cool ive been meaning to watch some of these after the Yukio mishima vid on sun and steel, good channel!!
Have you ever considered doing anything by Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow seems like something you might enjoy thematically at least.
tried '49', really struggled getting into it. Maybe will try GR, thanks for watching
Better Than Food: Book Reviews I believe Pynchon said 49 was a failure. GR might be a better experience. Or perhaps start with his latest novel, Bleeding Edge.
I'm not a Pynchon expert, but I believe it's better to start with, say Inherent Vice or, as RyanJE suggests, Bleeding Edge. GR is exhausting, apparently.
Yeah I heard that. As we progress and I have more time I'll be able to get to GR. Maybe in stages. It's a serious commitment.
I didn't care for The Crying of Lot 49 myself, but Gravity's Rainbow is something else entirely. Brilliant book.
Collective memory
Bourgeois - about small acts of cruelty
Top of hierarchy as ideal - ideal as kid
End of video - in defence of the novel
Hey bro. Great review, rather unconventional. What book would you recommend by Jorge Luis Borges? Like what's THE BOOK to get?
He recommends Ficciones
I remember travelling with my Dutch girlfriend through the North-West Frontier in a railway carriage full of Sikhs back in 1980. They all carried kirpans, breech-loading rifles and bullet belts. Moreover, there was another outsider - a Syrian who decided to have a cigarette which is taboo in Sikhism. It would be most apt to describe this in a Proustian manner, but I am not going to.
It is one novel and it holds the Guinness record for the longest novel.
Its funny you mentioned Borges, because I just picked him up recently. All I can say right now is that I'm in complete awe. He manages to do things in stories that I didn't think were possible.
Here for the Withnail and I reference 🖤🖤🖤