Welcome to this month's reading group selection. David Von Drehle mentions The Melting Pot , a play by Israel Zangwill, that premiered on Broadway in 1908. At that time theater was accessible to a broad section of the public, not the exclusive domain it has become over the decades. Zangwill carried a hopeful message that America was a place where old hatreds and prejudices were pointless, and that in this new country immigrants would find a more open society. I suppose the reference was more an ironic one for Von Drehle, as he notes the racial and ethnic hatreds were on display everywhere, and at best Zangwill's play helped persons forget for a moment how deep these divides ran. Nevertheless, "the melting pot" made its way into the American lexicon, even if New York could best be describing as a boiling cauldron in the early twentieth century. Triangle: The Fire That Changed America takes a broad view of events that led up the notorious fire, noting the gro
I also have that one my list.
ReplyDeleteHere's another I wanted to post for Bo (I think he's a Toole fan, as am I):
http://www.strandbooks.com/new-arrivals/butterfly-in-the-typewriter-the-tragic-life-of-john-kennedy-toole-and-the-remarkable-story-of-a-confederacy-of-dunces
That one sounds like a lot of fun!
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't sound promising, but you never know. Toole does remain an enigma:
ReplyDeletefrom Butterfly in the Typewriter
He broke the silence of the room with the first few keystrokes, sending forth the fat medievalist Ignatius Reilly into the carnival of New Orleans life. The language started to pour out. Pent up energies of a decade flowed filling page after page as he conjured the characters of his past and spun a tale of absurdity and hilarity. And over the next few months, a thrilling sense emerged in him that he was writing something readable, something publishable. His future success, the rave reviews, the devoted readers, the accolades and awards that would come, were entirely unknown to him. Nonetheless, as he cranked away at the typewriter in his small private room, as that fluttering music of the novelist danced out of the open windows, borne aloft in the Caribbean breeze, he ascended to his pinnacle moment. He crafted his masterpiece, A Confederacy of Dunces.
Better just to read Toole. There was another book released posthumously. Neon Bible, I think it was.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I was excited to find the bio but looking at that excerpt ... now I don't know.
ReplyDeleteI read Neon Bible, too. It wasn't as good. But then nothing can compare with Ignatius. He is definitely a one-of-a-kind character in American literature.
And what struck me when re-reading the book with the Times group a few years back was that the book held up. It's over the top to be sure, but the characters still seemed to maintain their basic dignity. I haven't read it since then. I'm hoping it's one of those books that you can enjoy every few years.
Sounds like an interesting subject.
ReplyDeleteAs for me, still reading Richard Francis's "Fruitlands" with about 75 pages to go. And have taken a big interest lately in the fictional works of HP Lovecraft. In fact, I'm planning on reading more of his stuff. Very fascinating character!
I saw that there was a Library of America edition of Lovecraft. For some reason I had thought he was British.
ReplyDeleteAvrds, thanks for the link.I spent way to much time this afternoon and eve with BBall on off to the side and watching the Cal Trans traffic cams in the Tahoe area of a major storm descending.I-80 up in the Donner Summit and castle Peak cams was lots of fun.Whiteout conditions and it was interesting watching it change from rain to snow in the Tahoe Basin where it's coming down at a good clip tonight.I was supposed to be up at the Tahoe house this week but my buddy backed out at the last minute.Now I wish I wasthere with a fire going and a few books to read.
ReplyDeleteI have a collection of Lovecraft.Really odd spooky stuff.The Dunwich Horror and The Whisperer in Darkness are two faves.If you google HP Lovecraft stories you can find a lot of them online.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that was quite a storm. Better late than never.
ReplyDeleteI have friends in Nevada City and they've had long very warm and dry stretches all winter which doesn't bode well for fire season. I'm assuming that will head our way next.
Speaking of books, I believe my manuscript is (near) complete! Writing my acknowledgments now, including the NY Times history book group that got me started down this path to begin with. Defend on Thursday. Wish me luck!
ReplyDeleteGood luck Diane!
ReplyDeleteA good number of Lovecrats relatives including his father are buried in Mount Hope in my hometown of Rochester NY.On a like historical note so are several of Buffalo Bill Codys children.
ReplyDeleteAll the best to you Av. Great accomplishment!
ReplyDeleteThat's quite a connection, J.
Thanks everyone. I'll keep you posted.
ReplyDeleteGood comments about Lovecraft. The stories along with online sports and a large amount of home cooked Hoppin' John made my weekend. I made enough for 3 people but ate it all by myself and it was yummy beyond belief!
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Trippler the other story by Lovecraft a novella actually I was thinking of is The Shadow over Innsmouth.Will never look at folks in small New England coastal villages the same again.
ReplyDelete''Innsmouth''
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up on that one. Sounds very interesting.
A thought occurred to me ~ in those days there had been so much talk about human perfectibility. Yet, Lovecraft's writing, like that of so many others, reflect a world and a humanity whose shortfalls are the exact opposite of perfection. Isn't it interesting that these two very different portrayals were so emphasized in those days? And you have to wonder, WHY?
Yes it seems most of his work was written between the mid 20's and early 30's in the era after WW1 and the beginning of the rise of Fascism in Europe so he was in the minority in his fiction that the aftermath of WW1 had brought about a golden age of goodwill.Per James thinking him British I notice that he uses the Brit spelling in words like colour throughout his fiction.
ReplyDeleteIn reading through Lovecraft's "The Statement of Randolph Carter" I see that part of the setting is in England. Perhaps other stories had a similar setting and this would make anyone think the writer was from the UK. Heck, I thought Paul Gallico was a Brit (some of his stories are situated in England) and only discovered after many years that he was from NYC which is my home town!
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