Reading & Writing

Overall, I tend to like American Contemporary Fiction more than I do British. And it could just be that I've been reading it on my own and haven't been able to talk with anyone about it, but at least as far as short stories go, I would pick the American. Although, that being said, I haven't really read any Contemporary British novels. So I should probably do that. I've read American Contemporary, and International Contemporary, but nothing specifically British. After finals I'm going to return to a blog post I did a while back with a list of some "must-read" British contemporary literature. 

This blog had been extremely helpful in helping me write about what I read. It's also inspired me to get more into writing, and not just reading. I used to be more of a writer than reader, but now it has kind of shifted. I want to get back into writing again.

Maybe I'll also post some of my own writing on this blog...maybe. I'm all for writing for myself, but once it gets to the part where you have to share it with others, it becomes a lot more difficult. But that's something I can work on.

I'm going to start writing again!

And to finish, here are some awesome quotes I found! 

And then this quote, because I think it's hilarious and accurate:

Let Me Count the Times, by: Martin Amis

I read this short story today, and honestly don't quite know what to say about it. After I read the story I have no idea what to go off of for writing a blog post, so I researched it a little and found some interesting information:

-Martin Amis has been called the "best American writer England has ever produced." Ironically enough, his father was also a writer, but he was called the "least American writer England had ever produced."

-This specific short story is part of 'Heavy Water', which is Amis' collection of nine short stories. Maybe if I read the entire collection, or at least part of it, I'd feel different about this story.

Honestly, the story just wasn't really my style. I can see how it could be appreciated, and how others really like it, but it's just not for me. 

Passion in Stories

Last night Brian Doyle (author) visited the BYU-Idaho school campus and did a reading for an hour. I went for part of my English class (the one that I'm also doing this blog for) and I really enjoyed it. It was pretty powerful. There was humor and lots of laughing, as well as somber moments of reflection. It's been a while since I've been that inspired by someone, someone who is SO passionate about what they do that it makes me have passion for it as well. I need more people like that in my life. Here are just some notes I jotted down during the reading:

-Stories are GOOD. Give darkness the finger with your stories.

-Don't let your religion be only your religion. Dig deeper to find the true meaning of it.

-Literature is not literature with a capital L.

^This is probably one of my favorite parts, just because a lot of the time I think people think that in order to count as literature it has to be a long, drawn out novel. But that's not the case. Stories, jokes, books, etc. are all literature.

-Stop trying to be cool. Cool is a joke.

-The best writing isn't always about you. Everybody else is more interesting and also stuffed with stories.

-To be a writer we only need to know how to say three words: "Really? Then what?"

"Violence is a failure of the imagination."

"When in doubt, lower your standards."

-"No one talks about the people that nothing happens to, but it does happen to them."

-I got a bigger story than yours.

-There's got to be a better way to end the violence and stop the wars. 

-To say thank you all the time is the real prayer.

-We all have the power to CATCH and SHARE stories.

-Stories are huge, don't take them for granted.

"Be tender, everything else is a footnote."

And probably one of my favorite parts of the whole reading was toward the end when he gave us some advice on writing:

"Stop thinking! Don't think when you write. Just see what happens!"

I'm super grateful I could attend last night. It inspired to read and write more, and listen to other's stories more carefully. Really, everyone is stuffed to the brim with stories. Who are we to not listen? I needed that inspiration.

It was great. 

The Kite Runner: Paper Ideas

Well, I just got back from a trip to China and Taiwan, and I finished The Kite Runner! That's basically all I did on the plane ride, and I love that book. It's heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. Now I just want to watch the movie (like I did with the Book Thief).

The next assignment I have to do for The Kite Runner is a 3-5 research paper, so now I need to brainstorm some ideas I could write about. 

Here are some ideas I have:

- Obviously a huge theme is redemption, and the search for it. When Rahim Khan calls Amir he says,  "There is a way to be good again." I think this sets up the entire novel. Amir goes back to Pakistan to try and redeem himself. He's been living with guilt for so long, and it haunts him. This novel could be claimed as a being a search for redemption.

- Another huge theme is family, and the role that families play and how the family members relate to each other. You have Father and Son relationships, such as Amir and Baba, as well as Hassan and Ali. You also have Husband and Wife relationships, such as Baba and his wife, Ali and his wife, and Amir and Soraya. So I could write about something to do with how families help us on our search for redemption? I don't know yet. 

-A big symbol I noticed throughout the novel was that of kites. I mean obviously, the novel is titled The Kite Runner. So what do kites symbolize throughout the novel? They symbolize joy and happiness, but also guilt and regret. They symbolize hope for a better world, without war, what the world was like when Amir and Hassan were growing up. 

-The setting is HUGE as well. I mean in Pakistan and Afghanistan with the Taliban and the war going on. I've got to talk about that in my paper at some point. I'm just not quite sure how to tie it in. 

So, I want to talk about the theme of redemption, the symbolism of kites, and the setting. But what do I want to claim about these things? What do I think Khaled Hosseini is trying to claim through this novel and these aspects of the novel? Or not even that, what do I claim from the novel? 

-I could try and use a literary theory, and use the 'lens' to write my paper. I'd most likely end up using New Historicism or Historical Criticism, but I'm not sure if that's the route I want to take. 

-I could also try and use something like a journey, or a quest. But I really want to talk about those themes/symbols, so maybe not that either.

I'll think about it some more and see what I come up with. 

Memories of the Space Age

I just read my first Science Fiction short story and it was, interesting. I think my biggest problem with short stories in general is that a lot of the time there's no resolution or closure. Or, in the case of this story, the resolution was completely ridiculous and did not leave me feeling like I had any answered questions. 

First, I'm going to write some random thoughts I have about this short story:

1. What just happened? I feel like even after reading all of the story I still have no idea what is happening. Maybe that was J.G. Ballard goal, and if so he succeeded greatly. But really! I just want someone to lay out in clear terms what happened with NASA and the 'Space Age.' There's so much alluding to it, without any clear, cut answers.

2. Now that I think about it, the way the story is written is very skillful. There's so much allusion to what's happened and what is still happening to Mallory and his wife, Anne, but it's never once stated openly. I think writing like that takes a lot of skill. So props to the writer on that one. 

3. I recently watched the movie The Martian, so space and astronauts and NASA just completely fascinate me. Could there possibly be some disease that will affect people who have been in space? Or would we know by now? Besides getting stuck in space forever, what's the worst that could happen in space?

4. Is J. G. Ballard trying to make an overall point or is there an overall theme to the writing? Or is it really meant to just fascinate and confound us? Because if it's the latter, spot on. But if there was meant to be some other meaning (most likely to be careful with going in space...? Maybe...) I didn't quite catch it. 

5. Now that I'm thinking about overall meanings and themes for the short story, one idea keeps popping into my head...time. The disease which affects the characters seems to leave them in a time-less trance, where time stops. And one characters idea of how to get ride of the disease is to "get out of time." So something along the lines of transcending time, or getting a way around it? After all, I don't think any of us really ever feel like we have enough time to do everything we want to do. 

Now that I have some of my thoughts written down, I'm going do some research on this story and see what I find:

So basically, J.G. Ballard is very well-known for his Science Fiction writing, both short stories and novels, he has written them both. Memories of the Space Age is actually a collection of short stories, all being very similar to each other. I would actually really enjoy reading these other short stories. They might give me a greater sense of closure than I had with this one story. 

This is the website I found and got most of my information from, it's extremely helpful:

http://www.ballardian.com/ballard-and-the-vicissitudes-of-time

Well now I guess I'll go on to some other short stories and see what I can learn about them. 

Poetry vs. Short Stories vs. Novels

Here's the conclusion I've come to lately with my English classes: I much prefer reading novels and longer books to short stories or poetry. I enjoy poetry, but there's a line for me. I would prefer short stories to the poetry. We've started reading Contemporary American short stories lately in one of my English classes and I much prefer those to poetry. However, I'm also reading The Kite Runner at the same time, and I would rather read The Kite Runner than read the short stories. 

I think since the short stories are, well, shorter, they're harder for me to get in to. And since they're so short, you have to pay very close attention because every aspect and part is definitely important. I feel like with the novels and longer books I've read and am reading, such as The Book Thief or The Alchemist, since they're longer the plot line takes longer time and thus I, as a reader, can get more immersed in it. 

I still enjoy the short stories and poetry, but if I had to pick, the novels would definitely win. It's interesting though, because if I were to ever be a writer, I would definitely write more short stories than long novels, I think.

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I read more of The Kite Runner last night, and I still love it. Even though I'm only on chapter 8 or 9, it's great. I've started reading it for 30-60 minutes or so before I go to bed, and it helps me sleep too. So win-win!

I've started thinking about what I could write about for my paper, which only has to be 3-5 pages (so not too bad. My Book Thief paper was almost 10 pages! and I'm probably going to base it all off of characters. Most likely Amir, Hassan, Baba and possibly Ali. I could definitely change my mind though as I start to read more of the book, but these seem like the biggest characters so far. 

I'm not quite sure what type of claim I'll make yet with my thesis and those characters, but I'm sure as  I continue reading it will come to me. 

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Finally, here's an uplifting literature quote for the day! 

'The Kite Runner': First Thoughts

I started reading 'The Kite Runner' by Khaled Hosseini, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to love it. ABSOLUTELY love it. I can't believe I haven't read it before! I also watched the trailer for the movie, which I also haven't seen, and that's going to need to happen once I finish the book. 

Here are some first thoughts I have about this novel:

-In some ways it seems completely different than The Book Thief and The Alchemist, but in other ways it seems very similar. The points of view are completely different, which definitely effects the story and the affect it has on the reader, but the stories themselves are extremely similar, especially compared to the Book Thief. I have a feeling I'm going to cry while reading this novel too. Great. They're both about heartbreak, with war involved. Obviously, The Kite Runner is set over a larger period of time than The Book Thief was, but still very similar. At least with what I've read so far. 

-It has a different tone than other novels I've read lately. It seems more conserved. The Book Thief wasn't a happy or light-hearted book by any means, but it wasn't quite as dark/reserved than this novel is so far. They're both amazing, just different. 

I'm excited to continue reading the book! And to watch the movie when I'm done with the book.