Creation
Creation by Gore Vidal is another historical novel set in the world of Ancient Greece and Persia. It is the story of the half-Greek, half-Persian grandson of Zoroaster, who becomes a peripatetic ambassador for the Persian emporer. Vidal vividly re-creates the ancient world of Greece, Persia, India and China, while at the same time deftly exploring the philosophical underpinnings of all those cultures. Creation is a masterpiece by one of America’s finest writers of the 20th Century.
The Persian Boy
During the hoopla surounding the release a few years ago of the movie Alexander I came across this historical novel by Mary Renault, which describes in vivid manner the ancient world of Greece and Persia and spares no description of the wide-open sexual attitudes of the time. The story is told from the perspective of a eunuch who was kept first by the Persian emporer Darius and then by Alexander after he defeated the Persians. The Persian Boy is one of a series of historical novels by Ms. Renault set in Ancient Greece, all of which are highly praised for their recreation of that setting.
The Sun Also Rises
So much of the clean, modern style of writing owes its heritage to work of Ernest Hemingway, and the recent news about the running of the bulls in Pamploma has pulled this book, which I read so many years ago, back into my mind. This story of the Lost Generation after World War I is the original definition of the modern state of angst, something known and felt by most of us who have come after. To be unaware of the emotions and the (lack of) motivation for these characters adrift in a changing world, is simply to be unaware. Hemingway has seemingly fallen out of fashion in the literary world, which has returned to the empty prolixity more reminiscent of the Victorian Era, and the time is ripe for his rediscovery by the new generations of this century, people once more adrift in a changing world where the old bi-polar moorings are gone and a vast and empty sea of ambiguity is all that confronts them. In hearts that recognize a yearning for new goals, Hemingway’s lean and masculine style might find resonance once again.
Cat’s Cradle
I decided to start things off with an obvious cnoice. Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut is one of the little gems of literature. Short, pithy, and somewhat non-linear, this book is the first of the author’s works to display what would come to be his signature style. Among Vonnegut lovers, Cat’s Cradle is often cited as the sentimental favorite and usually recommended as a good introduction. I’ll go with that sentiment: if you are not familiar with Kurt Vonnegut’s work, try this little book (it can be read in a single long sitting). If you enjoy it, then you can be sure that you have many more pleasures awaiting your perusal.
Posted by Larry
Announcing a Group Effort
Book Lovers blog is a group effort in which people can air their likes (and dislikes) in the wide world of books. How many reviewers there will be in the end—who knows? All are welcome to join us and share their preferences.
