Books and reading

Now, what's slightly peculiar is that, many months after retiring, I still feel a bit naughty sitting down for a long time during the day, and just reading. It feels faintly decadent. I certainly can't watch TV during the day. But here are some recently read books which I have loved.


First, I've got to mention Alone in Berlin, by Hans Fallada. This led to a lively book group meeting: we all felt that the couple at the heart of the novel  preserved their integrity, and one simply can't know all the long term effects of one's actions, so they may have done some good to others. It's very interesting to consider what one might do in a similar situation. We would all like to believe one would resist tyranny, but I am fairly sure I wouldn't do anything to endanger my family.  One might chose to risk one's own life, but it's another thing to endanger those you love, and who haven't chosen. 


Second, a real Marmite book, Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon. Those who came to the meeting really loved this book, but some hadn't managed to read it at all. The problem, I think, was the Scottish dialect words, which I coped with by just guessing, and not worrying about the exact meaning. (This is what I did with the Hindi insults and swearing in Sacred Games, by Vikram Chandra, another wonderful book.) Sunset Song has the best woman written by a man ever, and the rhythms of speech are gorgeous.


I've also read Cormac McCarthy, but I just want to get out the red pen and put in some punctuation. It's so annoying to read, and why does he do it? People don't speak without punctuation - that's all punctuation is for really, to let you read aloud, or not aloud, but without having to puzzle out the rhythms and who's speaking, anyway. I think he must think that not punctuating makes it more "real", but to my mind it just makes it harder to read. 


One of the thing on my list is to read a couple of classics which I haven't read up to now. I'm pretty well up on the English classics, so I'm going for Zola. I'll   let you know how I get on.