5-second book review: Italian Life Tim Parks

Italian Life: a modern fable of loyalty and betrayal by Tim Parks

Italian Life is a brilliant book about University life in Italy. Honest and insightful about the way higher education works on the peninsula. Tim Parks is an expert in Italian literature and culture. With Italian Life, he has created an intriguing tale filled with accurate, infuriating and on-point observations.

As an ex-pat living in Italy, I don’t know whether to laugh or cry at some situations this novel recounts. All I can say is it is honest without being cynical, hopeful, or naive.

A beautiful book about a convoluted, corrupt and sometimes ugly part of Italy.--

Tim Parks Italian Life: a modern fable of loyalty and betrayal is a must-read if you want to understand how the Italian education system works. Be warned; it is filled with convoluted bureaucracy, cronyism and endless political wrangling. All as flamboyant and unexpected as the Italian peninsula itself.

Books also written by Tim Parks well worth a read: Italian Neighbours, An Italian Education, A season with Verona, The Hero’s Way: walking with Garibaldi from Rome to Ravenna, Italian Ways: on and off the rails from Milan to Palermo, A literary tour of Italy.

5 second book review: Venus in Furs

Venus in Furs by Leopold Von Sacher-Masoch

Erotic literature has been around for a long time; way before E.L James's Fifty Shades of Grey, writers have always expressed their sexuality through writing.

This genre has been around forever. Penguin classics has a top ten list of erotic reads.

So one day, when I didn't have anything in particular to read, I picked one randomly and downloaded it. Thanks to the Project Gutenberg web page, I dipped into the kinky world of erotic fetishism, even though there are probably many other things online for those looking. But Venus in Furs is considered a classic.

The image conjured by Leopold Von Sacher-Masoch was too sumptuous to resist.

According to the book's introduction: 

'Leopold Von Sacher Mosoch's work suffers from the fault of being highly dramatic; the work is filled with swift narration, graphic representation of character, scenes and rich humour. Venus in Furs is the confession of a wretched man who could not master his tragedy of existence and takes us into the dark places that lie latent in all of us.'

Despite the threat of melodrama, I persisted.

Venus in Furs seems relatively tame nowadays as we post; postmoderns have seen everything and continue to be updated online. Venus is the confession of man's particular sexual adventure written in a hyperbolic Romantic way. The personal diary of Severin is a deep dark fantasy and obsession with a strong woman, violent episodes of mythology, whips, fur, slavery, cruelty and bondage.

Severin is emotionally and spiritually devoured by a strong, whimsical and manipulative older woman who takes advantage of his deeply rooted fetishes.

It is all a little silly but fun; the game that Severin and Wanda's play is filled with wonderfully romantic descriptions and banter. Even if, at times, Severin seems too pathetic for words, it is enjoyable in a sadomasochistic kind of way. I was curious to see how low our poor hero would go and how extreme his Venus in Furs would get. 

This book was scandalous and banned at its time of publication in 1870. But today, it is a real treat, easy to read, filled with humor and playfulness. It was a quick read, a great way to pass away time on a lazy afternoon. It didn't stimulate anything in my sex life, but then I don't have a thing for bondage; I haven't suffered a repressed childhood like our poor man Severin. 

Five Second book review: John Williams

Stoner by John Williams

I received this book as a gift, and I am so glad I did because this may be the best novel I have read in years.

William's novel Stoner shows us the beauty, drama, passion, frustration, disappointments and fleeting happiness of ordinary life. This novel traces a complete life with its complexities and emotions in a beautiful arch of character development.

The protagonist, Stoner, has been seen as somewhat of a loser in life, the son of a poor farmer sent to get a university to better himself. He falls in love with the world of literature and abandons the farm and his parents to pursue an academic career.

Within the small world that Stoner inhabits in his life at the University of Missouri, we experience life's different seasons and experiences. While commenting on the insular nature of academic institutions, Stoner's experiences also reflect on various broader issues such as the nature of war, friendship, love, sex, family, disappointment, intergenerational changes and mortality.

In the internal monologue of Professor Stoner's life, we see a complete, fully developed human soul living his life out for us on every page. It's genuinely astounding to inhabit Stoner's mind and listen to his internal voice, which ultimately shows us how complex, challenging, and beautiful even a limited, non-eventful life can be.

John William's prose is exquisite, perfectly disciplined, and filled with erudite description and observation.

Rather than being a ''loser,'' I'd see the character of Stoner as an ancient Stois who dedicated his short life to his first and only true love of learning. His intellectual awakening shapes his life and allows him to observe the world and his own life with surprising clarity of understanding and wisdom.

Stoner overcomes so many frustrations, disappointments, and chagrin in his own life that he reminds us that life is a thing of beauty despite all of the difficulties we face. With the help of his intellectual analysis and reflections, Stoner witnesses the beauty of a life lived with honesty which is what makes even a short and uneventful life worth living.

In the small world of the book, John Williams can create a powerful testament to the nature of a human life, which rewards everyone with a complete spectrum of experiences, emotions and worthwhile memories. In the microcosm of Stoner's life, we see a universal message that energy is never wasted and is an absolute thing of beauty.

Five second book review: Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Memories of My Melancholy Whores

An ode to the solitary life, love, desire, sex and old age. This novella is what all writing should be, honest, astute, simple and visceral. It is about a man well into his twilight years who is unwilling to give up following the beauty he finds in life. The brothels of his town are where he has been able to express himself by exorcising his passions and holding onto the vitality of life.

It is honest and pathetic at times. Above all, it creates a magical, dream-like world beyond the frenetic world around the main character, who rejects everything but his solitude and lives inside his youthful passions, despite being well into his 90s. He continues to narrate his life in a mixture of memories, dreams, music and reflections on mortality in his distinct internal voice.

It doesn't make you exactly fall in love with the protagonist, a second rate journalist who doesn't know the meaning of love, but it is intriguing to follow him where his passions lead him, past everyday life and into his fantasies.

Five second book review: Charlotte Perkins Gilman

The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

This is a disturbingly creepy short story. It is a superb, restrained and masterful piece of prose with an attuned aesthetic sense. The story is an intriguing portrait of mental illness and obsession.

It is a thoroughly absorbing reading experience that transports the reader deep into the mind of an unnamed young writer and mother who gradually slips into another reality.

Five-second book review: Edith Wharton

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

This novella is a masterpiece with the beauty and pathos of a Greek tragedy. Ethan Frome is a real person trapped by his poverty, the strange destiny of his heart and life's circumstances give him.

The insular nature of small-town America and the beautiful yet frozen winter landscape created by Edith Wharton enriches the emotional world of this stunning tragic hero who stands apart from any others. Ethan's twisted physical body reflects his cruel destiny.

 His story is passionate and visceral; its a memory that will haunt you forever.