Short Stories, Irish literature, Classics, Modern Fiction, Contemporary Literary Fiction, The Japanese Novel, Post Colonial Asian Fiction, The Legacy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and quality Historical Novels are Among my Interests








Monday, January 4, 2016

Plans and Hope for 2016 for The Reading Life




I hope this year to complete my read through of the 91 elements in Honore de Balzac's monumental The Human Comedy.  I have read all of the most famous works.  You can tell some of his works were written at a speed fueled by the caffeine in a dozen Red Bulls but every work has at least a few wonderful descriptions.  I have twenty works still waiting to be read.  Serious autodidacts should consider this project.


I hope to reread Proust, starting with Wayne Carter's revision of the first two volumes of the translation of C. K. Scott Moncireff.  I also hope to read Moncireff's translations of Stendhal's The Red and the Black and The Charter House of Parma.  


I have seven anthologies of Indian short stories containing at least seventy five short stories by highly re
regarded  writers I have not yet read and hope to post on many of them this year.  


I am increasingly fascinated by the extreme cultural depth of writers from the old Austro Hungarian Empire.  For sure I will continue reading more of their work.  As of now I am reading Montaine by Stefan Zweig.  


I will continue my read through of the works of Clarice Lispector, Constance Fenimore Woolson and Iréne Nemirovsky.  


Ok quiz, which one in this family picture is Clarice? 


In March I will revise Irish short story month, a completely marvelous and inexhaustible reading life area.   

January 27 is International Holocaust Remebrance Day and I hope to post, one I have already done, on several Holocaust themed works that week.  I urge all book bloggers world wide to consider observing this day.  The Holocaust was for sure a war on lovers of learning and the reading life.  Throughout the year I will be posting on Holocaust related works.  The attacks in Paris can be directly traced to the Holocaust.



I hope to discover lots of great New to me writers, to read old classics I wish I would have read very long ago.

I will continue reading  nonfiction, more short stories, Yiddish, Japanese literature.

My blog has kept me going during dark times, I urge all book bloggers to continue on in the Holy Game of Book Blogging.  I hope one day now young book bloggers can look back on fifty years of their reading life.


I hope to do more Q and A sessions,  if anything is of lasting value on my blog it is my 100 plus q and A sessions.  I think anyone who took the trouble to read all these sessions would be amazed by the depths of the responses.  



Mel u
Ambrosia Boussweau 







3 comments:

Prashant C. Trikannad said...

Seven anthologies of Indian short stories? Mel, you have pricked my curiosity about the seventy-five stories. I hope to read more Indian fiction this year. I couldn't agree more with your observation, "My blog has kept me going during dark times." It has kept me going too. There is a sense of fulfilment in reading and reviewing what we read.

Suko said...

Mel, you cover much in this post; I am sure you will reach your blogging goals in the year ahead. Reading is obviously an extremely important part of your life. Your blog is an inspiration on many levels to many!

@parridhlantern said...

Wonderful aspirations. Have a great new year