TROPIC OF CANCER BY HENRY MILLERThis book, minus everything profound and meaningful about it, is about an American in France who fucks. A lot. Like, I'm pretty sure 90% of this book is about him having sex. Also, I get the feeling that the word "cunt" is used more in this book than the word "the." Just speculation, though.
THE BOX MAN BY KOBO ABEThe story of a man who shuns society and identity and walks around in a big box, scribbling notes and drawings on the inside of it while being stalked by a man with a sniper rifle. All of Kobo Abe's books are admittedly pretty fucking weird, but this is his most well done. Seriously nuts, but also profound.
STEPS BY JERZY KOSINSKIThis book compiles small, loosely tied vignettes about terrifying encounters of sex and violence. Man watches girl have sex with donkey. Man finds women naked and battered in a cage in an abandoned barn. Man watches another man commit suicide in a public restroom. Man unknowingly has sex with a man. Man watches a man get beheaded. You get the idea. This book is about repressed imagination and the simple misunderstandings between people. But really, it's just about sex and violence.
3 comments:
awesome sounds like some good albums!
and way to not go mainstream! So indie! But still, Viva la Vida, Day and Age, For Emma Forever Ago, Dear Science...
And it wasn't a slow year for movies at all!
Oops. That was supposed to be on the albums one.
Evan, you inspire with your forthrightness. I enjoy your cool evaluation of the books, haha. You know you say that these are books you would recommend to people who did NOT know you. In truth, wouldn't they more be books that you would recommend to people who did? Because they are more likely to understand where you are coming from and how you can enjoy a book and its message without getting distracted by the perverseness of some of the material, perhaps. Take, for example, the Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, with its in-depth, chapter-long description of a man being skinned alive. Personally, I could have done without that description and I felt it was a little unnecessary. But I can understand where the author is coming from and what he intends with his description despite the fact that I may not like the material itself. Ah the good old days of writing novels of comments...Anyway, I mostly wanted to say that I enjoy your originality and how you never really seemed to try to conform. I always admired that about you. I also think that you should be aware that you have many more people that appreciate you, would not shun you for your differences, and would gladly consider themselves friends than I think you often believe. For proof, just take your speech at graduation. Many of us empathized with you. And think, too, of how many came up and congratulated you later--they wouldn't have done so if they didn't feel comfortable enough around you or didn't respect you. Just some thoughts.
Your friend,
~Veronica
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