Don't Grind Your Teeth Tonight
It is much harder to finish a happy book than a sad movie.
It is much harder to finish a sad book than a happy one.
I have just finished a sad book.
Are we allowed to feel the pain of other people's experiences? Or is that cheating them?
The book was Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, which is a weird name if you try to speak it outloud.
Which, I just found out, Bob is also reading (Red Hand). Let me say this: I don't think I gave anything away by saying I finished a sad book. The setting itself is sad, and I think will always be sad, because it is real and tragic. I am sorry if I gave something away. Please come to discuss this book at the Front Room Book Club meeting, Tuesday 16 Aug, 7pm in the Bunch of Grapes room. There is free coffee, and I'd love to see you there.
It is much harder to finish a sad book than a happy one.
I have just finished a sad book.
Are we allowed to feel the pain of other people's experiences? Or is that cheating them?
The book was Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, which is a weird name if you try to speak it outloud.
Which, I just found out, Bob is also reading (Red Hand). Let me say this: I don't think I gave anything away by saying I finished a sad book. The setting itself is sad, and I think will always be sad, because it is real and tragic. I am sorry if I gave something away. Please come to discuss this book at the Front Room Book Club meeting, Tuesday 16 Aug, 7pm in the Bunch of Grapes room. There is free coffee, and I'd love to see you there.
posted by Monsterbeard @ 12:57 AM
6 Comments:
At 1:55 PM, August 16, 2005,
shorttallnotatall said…
cheating them?
At 9:10 PM, August 16, 2005,
Anonymous said…
It is much harder to finish writing this sentence then walk home low battery! I didn't think the book was sad and... I finished it last night, too, which is weird, because I didn't know you were reading it. I can't come to the meeting tonight because it's already past.
At 11:40 PM, August 16, 2005,
Anonymous said…
And I should say that I did think the book was sad, but it was also happy, and it had a sense of urgency about it. It felt very long to me, and I wanted it to be finished, even though I liked reading it. I can understand why you'd say it was hard to finish. It was hard to be reading, but not in that it made you want to put it down--it made you want to finish it.
At 6:59 PM, August 18, 2005,
Monsterbeard said…
Ok, um, did I just get spammed on my freaking blog? Because that's irritating.
Cat- I guess I just think about how I felt on Sept. 11th, and then I consider how people who were directly affected felt, I don't know if it's fair for me to try and mourn with them, because I don't know anything about the true nature of their pain. Is that realistic? Maybe I was just feeling sad and expressed it in a confusing way.
Bob, it's weird that we read the book at the same time, and then we both found out too late. Maybe next time you'll clear the books you're reading with me first. I did like when I finished it more than when I was reading it, but I would still recommend it.
At 3:13 AM, August 19, 2005,
shorttallnotatall said…
hey chris. i see what you're saying, i think, but i don't know if fairness is really a question when it comes to mourning, or loss. i agree that there is a certain pride in pain, and individual pain, that perhaps could be "cheated" in a way, but i don't think the value of that pain ever even touches the bottom of comfort's garment, you know?
At 4:47 PM, August 20, 2005,
Monsterbeard said…
Cat- I really like that you said "comfort's garment," like a sweatshirt you wear when you're feeling sick. And I appreciate your comments.
I guess you're right. The only people who cheat are politicians, who use 9/11 to promote themselves, and moviemakers, who use something like Pearl Harbor to make a crappy and jingoistic movie. Can I say jingoistic?
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