tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post5302623814376729985..comments2024-03-27T16:48:21.039-05:00Comments on Wuthering <br>Expectations: The Infatuations by Javier Marías - a musical instrument that does not transmit meaningsAmateur Reader (Tom)http://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-80324242760303839282013-10-20T11:26:28.963-05:002013-10-20T11:26:28.963-05:00You should read Marías, Miguel. Roberto Bolaño sa...You should read Marías, Miguel. Roberto Bolaño says he is "By far Spain's best writer today." W. G. Sebald says "Marías uses language like an anatomist uses" blah blah blah. I am, obviously, quoting the book jacket.<br /><br />Please note that I have gotten the tenses wrong - Sebald and Bolaño were not talking about this particular book.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-59642939389336822992013-10-20T05:44:32.118-05:002013-10-20T05:44:32.118-05:00I for one never read Javier Marías, but I've e...I for one never read Javier Marías, but I've enjoyed reading your two posts about him so far.LMRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08538873868140070018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-58181827457330269952013-10-19T10:30:18.782-05:002013-10-19T10:30:18.782-05:00The plot is not just slow, but small. It's ju...The plot is not just slow, but small. It's just a murder story - what looked like a random murder turns out to be something else, as every single reader not only guessed but knew with certainty, because that is what happens in novels about murders.<br /><br />Insights about the character, Brian - yes, that's it, as we trace out the leaps they seem not arbitrary but meaningful. I suppose this is a definition of psychology.<br /><br />Have either of you read other Marías books? Earlier ones are quite different, in style, story, and purpose.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-54879569513393422742013-10-19T09:21:41.021-05:002013-10-19T09:21:41.021-05:00I am somewhat fascinated by "arbitrary syntac...I am somewhat fascinated by "arbitrary syntactic leaps". I find that when applied by authors they lead to all sorts of interesting tidbits as well as insights into character. In real life they are of course annoying. Personally, I think that in my real life, if I were to forgo all mental discipline, I would be prone to them ☺ <br /><br />This also sounds like a book that I might enjoy.Brian Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15139559400312336791noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3383938214852108244.post-54511091977725297082013-10-19T05:47:19.735-05:002013-10-19T05:47:19.735-05:00Hi Tom,
I look forward to more of your thoughts o...Hi Tom,<br /><br />I look forward to more of your thoughts on the novel! I started reading it in the original Spanish but had to give up halfway through... I liked the intertextual references but the plot just seemed so slow. Maybe I'll pick it up again at some point. Lucyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15103141646225036708noreply@blogger.com