The Reading List

I thought it would be a good idea to keep a record of my reading. I'm not going to write in depth book reviews, but just a post every couple of months to summarise what I've been reading and what I thought of the books. So here is the 2012 reading list so far...

Stephen King - 'On Writing'

 An insightful, inspiring and helpful book. I'm not actually a huge fan of Stephen King's literature. I admire what he writes and I think he's great at it, it's just not usually what I choose to read. That said, what I have read in my early teens has stayed with me. Scenes from 'The Tommyknockers' are still vivid in my mind. I also remember reading 'IT' when I was on holiday in Finland. Our summer house in Finland faces a forest and you have to walk to the bottom of the garden to use the toilet. Whenever I needed a wee during the night that summer, I remember refusing to give in to my bladder in case a werewolf clown was lurking somewhere in the bushes.

King finished 'On Writing' after he was knocked down by a van and seriously injured in 1999. 
The book is split into three sections: 'C.V.', 'Toolbox' and 'On Living: A Post-Transcript'.

'C.V.' works as autobiography, detailing King's writing journey. It was reassuring to read that Stephen King once had a huge metal spike hammered into his bedroom wall, full of rejection slips. When he finally made a breakthrough, it was 'Carrie' that was the dealbreaker. This was also, funnily enough, a book he had decided was rubbish and had binned halfway through writing. His wife Tabby recovered the script from the bin and persuaded King to carry on with it.

'Toolbox' is sort of like 'the science bit' in the L'Oreal adverts. It covers the tools and techniques that are required to write well. I found that this section covered all of the important tools in just enough detail to be helpful, without becoming tedious. I particularly found tips on editing helpful as I struggle to edit effectively, or even edit at all. To produce a good story, it is essential to get down to the bare bones.

The final section of the book recounts the story of King's near-fatal accident. He was hit whilst taking a walk, by a chillingly unemotional driver with a vicious bulldog. King luckily still has his humour intact, as he suggests that he was almost killed by a character straight out of one of his own books.

King offers sound, encouraging advice to adhere to as a writer, whatever the genre and focus of your writing. King does this without pretension, in a practical, 'cut-the-bullshit' fashion. Definitely worth a read if you are interested in writing.

 

Hanif Kureishi - Intimacy

A brave and unflinching account of male desire and restlessness. The male portrayed here is not one we admire. Jay neither loves or lusts after his wife anymore. Susan (his wife) is a practical woman. Jay finds himself trapped in his own cerebral musings about why he is not happy. His wife bores him and he feels impotent at home.

The novella inhabits Jay's inner thoughts as he grapples with the decision he has made to leave his wife and two young boys. He plans to walk out on them the following day, in favour of single life.

The story recounts Jay's endless affairs and sexual exploits outside the home. He is disengaged and apathetic, following his dick through life and dodging his responsibilites. In one scene we hear how Jay leaves the hospital after his first child is born. He leaves his wife and baby, grabbing the champagne given to the couple to celebrate the birth by his parents-in-law. He drives straight to a young woman's house. They have sex and share the champagne. But even if I didn't warm to the character, I warmed to the honesty. Kureishi has a rare talent for character. I love the way he writes. Through the honesty, I found myself both repulsed, and simultaneously sympathetic towards Jay and his feelings.

Milan Kundera - The Unbearable Lightness of Being

Kundera's novel interweaves characters that tell us of life, love and politics in communist-ruled Czechoslovakia from 1968 to the early 1980s. The novel questions what it is to be human. How much consequence and weight do our actions hold? Are they insignificant and weightless in the scheme of things, or should we treat them with moral weight and take the consequences seriously? The most beautiful, honest and unaffected character in the novel is actually Karenin, Tereza and Tomas's dog.

When Karenin dies, we mourn the loss of simple and unquestioned innocence and loyalty. This ties in with one of Kundera's main philosophical interjections in the book. He believes that the fundamental truth of man's character can be revealed in our attitude towards animals. He claims that "true human goodness, in all its purity and freedom, can come to the fore only when its recipient has no power." In this way, "mankind's true moral test, its fundamental test" lies in its treatment of those at its mercy. In this sense, Kundera points out that man has failed and exalted his true arrogance. He refers to man at one point as a 'cow parasite'. In becoming disconnected from the simplicity of what it is to be an animal, we have barred our own path to paradise. Our actions bear incredible weight because we have chosen this complex path of power. Kundera feels that our choice to abuse our power over animals is the fundamental human error from which all others stem.

 I found this book more compelling towards the end. The underlying philosophical questions were engaging and made me think.

Raymond Carver - Where I'm Calling From

Often hailed as the master of the American short story, Carver is just that. This book pulls together thirty seven stories from all of Carver's previous short story collections. The tome also includes seven previously unpublished stories.

Carver gets right in there. His stories are vignettes, tableaus, snapshots of lives. They are gripping. The openings pull us in and the characters keep us reading. Carver writes with perfect economy, there are no fluffy words, or out of place sentences. I read this book, literally trying my hardest to become a sponge, so that I could absorb all that I could of his craft. I borrowed the book from the library, but I reckon it's definitely one to keep on the shelf and revisit.

Lynne Truss - Eats, Shoots and Leaves

My grammar and punctuation are pretty shocking. I studied English Literature at University so it should be better. In the feedback I received on essays throughout my undergraduate degree, the one criticism that ran through was about the grammar. I actually remember enjoying using punctuation like a paintbrush. I thought that it should be used to make writing personal, to splice and dice a sentence however the writer saw fit. I basically chucked in semicolons and dashes where I thought they looked nice. It is testament to my poor approah to the conventions and rules of the English language to note that my Pakistani friend used to proof-read my essays for me and correct the grammar! English was his second language.

So I figured it was about time I got my head down and learnt the 'boring' rules of our language. Luckily, Truss makes them interesting. This impressed me in itself - she is a self confessed 'punctuation stickler'. Her blood boils when she sees poorly punctuated signs in shop windows and elsewhere. I, clearly, am not a stickler. Yet this book still worked for me and I still revelled in her humour. She told many witty stories of poorly used punctuation and how it could completely change the context of a sentence leading to grave mis-reading.

Punctuation invites us to imbue our writing with meaning. It aids the writer's plight to communicate effectively, and the reader's ability to grasp the meaning. Punctuation is key to good writing and not worth forgetting. I still have a lot to learn, but this was a good start!