Always look forward to these recollections — echo the serendipity in reading part where sometimes you cross paths with someone and you’re both reading the same thing (always fascinating to see how differently people perceive the same text)
thank you, Nix ❤️ and yes! it's so great to feel like you have a particularly beloved book in common with a stranger—and it does feel like some obscure SIGN FROM THE UNIVERSE (I am not superstitious about many things, but I'm superstitious about love and art and books!!!) when those coincidences happen
I was nodding when you mentioned Henrik's blog post as search query post then gasped when you mentioned Arrangements in Blue because I also recently read it! I loved that it was written by someone in her mid-40s who has actually lived this out versus a twentysomething who aspires to it (nothing wrong with aspiration but I admire Key's practical wisdom that comes from 20+ years of experience).
Also LOVE the idea of a narrative diet using film! Earlier this year I started a new ritual for myself where every Friday night that I don't have plans (most of them lol) I get takeout sushi and watch an old and/or foreign film. Something about intentionally setting aside that time for something that requires special attention to understand and enjoy has changed how I watch and read everything else.
Posted before I finished reading the whole newsletter - editing to say thank you for sharing those pieces at the end. I think about it often, the luck that my life is what it is and not disrupted by horrific things, and what consequent responsibility towards others I have because of it. It's necessary to think through and take action, and I appreciate the work by others you shared to talk about it.
Kate, thank you for this very kind comment! so exciting tbh that we have been reading and thinking about similar things. I also very much agree with what you said about Key's practical, time-tested wisdom. There's something different about writing that reflects a lifetime of living out one's ideals and processing one's difficulties. That time is so precious and the insights it offers are so unique, for both the writer and reader.
Love your Friday film night approach too—I very rarely order delivery but I'm tempted to try this, it feels like a special way to dedicate time to a film!
To your last paragraph…thank you! This is mostly a "books newsletter" and it isn't a "political newsletter", but any violence in the world will cast a shadow on the page…politics shapes the world around us, and shapes the context we encounter literature in. Very happy to hear that the writing I linked to feels useful.
Celine! I just discovered your newsletter and really, really love your voice and obvious sense of PASSION <-- very worthy of the all caps. I can feel your passion for literature, writing, reading as I read your stuff. It's awesome. Keep doing you.
Loved this list and the exercise overall, so many exciting things to add my own list. Also the discussion on writing, wanting to write from the I but not overshare or cross boundaries with others… I’ll have to read the interview about sublimation but I’m glad to find discussions on stuff like this !
Thank you for reading! And yes, I'm really fascinated by how people write with CANDOR and HONESTY about their lives—while recognizing that other people (who might just be side characters in our stories) are main characters in their own lives. They'll have their own narratives, opinions, and different standards for privacy…
I only managed to read half of Mary Karr's The Art of Memoir before I had to return it to the library 💀 but she writes about this a lot—when you should (and shouldn't!) write about other people in your life
Ah lovely post. If you haven't seen it yet, I wonder what you'll think of the film adaptation of The Hours? Also on Oyler and Carson and reviews -- this morning Emily Wilson dropped a sly cutting review of Anne Carson, of all people (https://www.thenation.com/article/culture/anne-carson-wrong-norma/) -- really feels like we're entering an era of sharp cultural parry and riposte
I haven't seen the film yet, but everyone I've spoken to about the novel has said the adaptation is quite good! will need to check it out soon
and thank you for sharing the Wilson review! I was just reading it this morning—very provocative opening, to posit that there's a connection between the facile, easily digested quality of Rupi Kaur's poetry and Anne Carson's, lol
I loved the actual writing of the review, and the analysis…but I agree with B.D. McClay's critique of the review (https://notebook.substack.com/p/you-dont-need-to-read-everything) where she suggests that accusing Carson of being insufficiently academic/too liberal with her source material is not an especially interesting argument! that's clearly not what Carson's project is (and it's not what people believe they're getting, when they read her work)…so the question is: what IS Carson's project, and can we critique her writing on those terms?
The fact that Carson - one of my favourite poets - invariably leaves me feeling at the end each book “…but what is her project?” is one of the reasons I love her work so much.
Glad to see somebody mention 'Evil Does Not Exist'. I keep thinking about it, and haven't quite worked out the ending either. I.. just about agree with your comment about the soundtrack/score, but implore you to listen to Eiko Ishibashi's other work as he's an interesting composer, always. On the ambient tip, I'm listening to Tujiko Noriko's score for Kuro almost daily at the moment.. really great music for writing/working. Here's a link if you're interested : )
Bandcamp links are very welcome in the comments!!! tysm for sharing, I'm enjoying this score quite a bit; it has such a weighty, freighted quality without making me feel claustrophobic
I will have to check out Ishibashi's other work as well. I should say that I found the music quite lovely, just heavy-handed…very much HERE is an emotional moment, and HERE is the music that will draw out (by coercion if needed) some sentimentality out of you! it felt surprising because the cinematography, and the structure of the plot, felt very delicately and masterfully done
thank you for reading and for your very thoughtful comment!! 💌
Excited to hear someone else talk about the greek tragedy in new translation series!!! I stumbled upon it via a quote posted online from their Medea translation during a high point of a fixation on motherhood and infanticide in fiction that I go in and out of (was also reading Comyn’s retelling of the Juniper Tree around this time) and aside from seeking out Carson’s translations it is my go-to starting point for reading greek tragedy now.
& lol at the Oyler essay collection. I read it for a book club and had never heard of her. I guess as someone who is drifting out of terminally being online I enjoyed learning some of the gossip i missed (so maybe I’m the target audience??) but also I struggled with how she focuses so much on her disdain and so little on her loves. Like it’s fine to be uninterested in the MCU but she only mentions her “pretentious” interests in novels and such in passing and kinda lends credence to the bogeyman that anti-intellectual circles on the internet love talking about.
& Rohmer! He is one of my favorite directors who clearly loves working with women and it shows in his work. Love in the Afternoon is actually one of my least favorite works (I dimly recall really struggling with the lead actress) but still has all the hallmarks (interesting dialogue, lovely sets and outfits) to make it a soothing watch. I really adore the Green Ray (saw it on valentines day at the BAMPFA with a broken heart and sobbed my eyes out), boyfriends and girlfriends, full moon in paris, and a tale of autumn. But rohmer’s a very consistent director so it’s hard to go wrong with any of his output.
As a big movie buff, I’m very curious where your movie watching efforts take you! We’re very lucky in the bay area and im hoping to catch evil does not exist soon as well
it’s so good to know that you’ve liked the rest of the Greek Tragedy in New Translations series—I’d like to read more of them
and loved reading your thoughts on Oyler as well! I similarly would have loved more reflections on what she’s passionate about, but I do think that what she does best as a critic is incisive zingers (she WILL defend a work…when she feels she’s bucking a trend in doing so)
I MUST go to the BAMPFA more, it’s truly one of the best places in the Bay Area 🎬
Curious - are the books by Mauro Javier Cárdenas set in San Francisco? I recently joined a book reading club for books set here (alternates between fiction and nonfiction) so I've got my eye out.
The Hours is on my list to read eventually. I loved Last Confessions of Sylvia P which has a similar format, I think.
They are! So both would be perfect for your book club, I think. I also read Alison Mills Newman's Francisco last year, which has a very intimate diaristic feel—probably not for everyone (very colloquial, mostly lowercase writing) but I found it quite fun, an easy read, and a great portrait of the Black Arts Movement and of young love!
It's set in the Bay Area in the 1970s, and the protagonist spends quite a bit of time in SF, Berkeley, and makes a trip down to LA…
thank you for reading—and breaking from form to write this comment! tbh I wrote very privately and furtively for YEARS before starting to pitch articles/write a Substack/post on Twitter more than once a year…
really happy to hear this resonated, all the best with your reading and writing 💌
Always look forward to these recollections — echo the serendipity in reading part where sometimes you cross paths with someone and you’re both reading the same thing (always fascinating to see how differently people perceive the same text)
thank you, Nix ❤️ and yes! it's so great to feel like you have a particularly beloved book in common with a stranger—and it does feel like some obscure SIGN FROM THE UNIVERSE (I am not superstitious about many things, but I'm superstitious about love and art and books!!!) when those coincidences happen
I was nodding when you mentioned Henrik's blog post as search query post then gasped when you mentioned Arrangements in Blue because I also recently read it! I loved that it was written by someone in her mid-40s who has actually lived this out versus a twentysomething who aspires to it (nothing wrong with aspiration but I admire Key's practical wisdom that comes from 20+ years of experience).
Also LOVE the idea of a narrative diet using film! Earlier this year I started a new ritual for myself where every Friday night that I don't have plans (most of them lol) I get takeout sushi and watch an old and/or foreign film. Something about intentionally setting aside that time for something that requires special attention to understand and enjoy has changed how I watch and read everything else.
Posted before I finished reading the whole newsletter - editing to say thank you for sharing those pieces at the end. I think about it often, the luck that my life is what it is and not disrupted by horrific things, and what consequent responsibility towards others I have because of it. It's necessary to think through and take action, and I appreciate the work by others you shared to talk about it.
Kate, thank you for this very kind comment! so exciting tbh that we have been reading and thinking about similar things. I also very much agree with what you said about Key's practical, time-tested wisdom. There's something different about writing that reflects a lifetime of living out one's ideals and processing one's difficulties. That time is so precious and the insights it offers are so unique, for both the writer and reader.
Love your Friday film night approach too—I very rarely order delivery but I'm tempted to try this, it feels like a special way to dedicate time to a film!
To your last paragraph…thank you! This is mostly a "books newsletter" and it isn't a "political newsletter", but any violence in the world will cast a shadow on the page…politics shapes the world around us, and shapes the context we encounter literature in. Very happy to hear that the writing I linked to feels useful.
Celine! I just discovered your newsletter and really, really love your voice and obvious sense of PASSION <-- very worthy of the all caps. I can feel your passion for literature, writing, reading as I read your stuff. It's awesome. Keep doing you.
Tatiana!! this is such a kind and encouraging comment
thank you—I really do want to convey the ENTHUSIASM and EXCITEMENT I feel about literature and culture, and I’m very glad it’s coming through!
Loved this list and the exercise overall, so many exciting things to add my own list. Also the discussion on writing, wanting to write from the I but not overshare or cross boundaries with others… I’ll have to read the interview about sublimation but I’m glad to find discussions on stuff like this !
Thank you for reading! And yes, I'm really fascinated by how people write with CANDOR and HONESTY about their lives—while recognizing that other people (who might just be side characters in our stories) are main characters in their own lives. They'll have their own narratives, opinions, and different standards for privacy…
I only managed to read half of Mary Karr's The Art of Memoir before I had to return it to the library 💀 but she writes about this a lot—when you should (and shouldn't!) write about other people in your life
finally read it - loved the concluding paragraph!
Ah lovely post. If you haven't seen it yet, I wonder what you'll think of the film adaptation of The Hours? Also on Oyler and Carson and reviews -- this morning Emily Wilson dropped a sly cutting review of Anne Carson, of all people (https://www.thenation.com/article/culture/anne-carson-wrong-norma/) -- really feels like we're entering an era of sharp cultural parry and riposte
I haven't seen the film yet, but everyone I've spoken to about the novel has said the adaptation is quite good! will need to check it out soon
and thank you for sharing the Wilson review! I was just reading it this morning—very provocative opening, to posit that there's a connection between the facile, easily digested quality of Rupi Kaur's poetry and Anne Carson's, lol
I loved the actual writing of the review, and the analysis…but I agree with B.D. McClay's critique of the review (https://notebook.substack.com/p/you-dont-need-to-read-everything) where she suggests that accusing Carson of being insufficiently academic/too liberal with her source material is not an especially interesting argument! that's clearly not what Carson's project is (and it's not what people believe they're getting, when they read her work)…so the question is: what IS Carson's project, and can we critique her writing on those terms?
The fact that Carson - one of my favourite poets - invariably leaves me feeling at the end each book “…but what is her project?” is one of the reasons I love her work so much.
Glad to see somebody mention 'Evil Does Not Exist'. I keep thinking about it, and haven't quite worked out the ending either. I.. just about agree with your comment about the soundtrack/score, but implore you to listen to Eiko Ishibashi's other work as he's an interesting composer, always. On the ambient tip, I'm listening to Tujiko Noriko's score for Kuro almost daily at the moment.. really great music for writing/working. Here's a link if you're interested : )
https://tujikonoriko1.bandcamp.com/album/kuro-ost
Bandcamp links are very welcome in the comments!!! tysm for sharing, I'm enjoying this score quite a bit; it has such a weighty, freighted quality without making me feel claustrophobic
I will have to check out Ishibashi's other work as well. I should say that I found the music quite lovely, just heavy-handed…very much HERE is an emotional moment, and HERE is the music that will draw out (by coercion if needed) some sentimentality out of you! it felt surprising because the cinematography, and the structure of the plot, felt very delicately and masterfully done
thank you for reading and for your very thoughtful comment!! 💌
Excited to hear someone else talk about the greek tragedy in new translation series!!! I stumbled upon it via a quote posted online from their Medea translation during a high point of a fixation on motherhood and infanticide in fiction that I go in and out of (was also reading Comyn’s retelling of the Juniper Tree around this time) and aside from seeking out Carson’s translations it is my go-to starting point for reading greek tragedy now.
& lol at the Oyler essay collection. I read it for a book club and had never heard of her. I guess as someone who is drifting out of terminally being online I enjoyed learning some of the gossip i missed (so maybe I’m the target audience??) but also I struggled with how she focuses so much on her disdain and so little on her loves. Like it’s fine to be uninterested in the MCU but she only mentions her “pretentious” interests in novels and such in passing and kinda lends credence to the bogeyman that anti-intellectual circles on the internet love talking about.
& Rohmer! He is one of my favorite directors who clearly loves working with women and it shows in his work. Love in the Afternoon is actually one of my least favorite works (I dimly recall really struggling with the lead actress) but still has all the hallmarks (interesting dialogue, lovely sets and outfits) to make it a soothing watch. I really adore the Green Ray (saw it on valentines day at the BAMPFA with a broken heart and sobbed my eyes out), boyfriends and girlfriends, full moon in paris, and a tale of autumn. But rohmer’s a very consistent director so it’s hard to go wrong with any of his output.
As a big movie buff, I’m very curious where your movie watching efforts take you! We’re very lucky in the bay area and im hoping to catch evil does not exist soon as well
it’s so good to know that you’ve liked the rest of the Greek Tragedy in New Translations series—I’d like to read more of them
and loved reading your thoughts on Oyler as well! I similarly would have loved more reflections on what she’s passionate about, but I do think that what she does best as a critic is incisive zingers (she WILL defend a work…when she feels she’s bucking a trend in doing so)
I MUST go to the BAMPFA more, it’s truly one of the best places in the Bay Area 🎬
Curious - are the books by Mauro Javier Cárdenas set in San Francisco? I recently joined a book reading club for books set here (alternates between fiction and nonfiction) so I've got my eye out.
The Hours is on my list to read eventually. I loved Last Confessions of Sylvia P which has a similar format, I think.
https://createmefree.substack.com/p/the-last-confessions-of-sylvia-p
They are! So both would be perfect for your book club, I think. I also read Alison Mills Newman's Francisco last year, which has a very intimate diaristic feel—probably not for everyone (very colloquial, mostly lowercase writing) but I found it quite fun, an easy read, and a great portrait of the Black Arts Movement and of young love!
It's set in the Bay Area in the 1970s, and the protagonist spends quite a bit of time in SF, Berkeley, and makes a trip down to LA…
thanks for the shout! enjoyed this!
of course—and very much hoping to see a 2024 reading diary from your newsletter in the future!
thank you for reading—and breaking from form to write this comment! tbh I wrote very privately and furtively for YEARS before starting to pitch articles/write a Substack/post on Twitter more than once a year…
really happy to hear this resonated, all the best with your reading and writing 💌