Weekly Recap August 1-August 7 2021

Fellow Readers, I’ve already started planning my travel reading—starting with Swann’s Way on the plane. But my first priority is clearing my physical TBR. Even though I could have done better this week, I am pretty happy with the books I read:

Teahouse by Lao She

In a three-act play with an ensemble cast, a Beijing tea house and its proprietors must adapt to the political changes of the early 20th century. Although its pro-communist ending means that I’ll never see the play performed in English, the humor, strong characters and social commentary shine through in John Howard-Gibbon’s translation.

“WANG LIFA: Reform! I’ve never forgotten about reform…what the hell if I lost a little face, a man has to live, hasn't he? I tried anything and everything, but only so we could live. It’s the truth. Sure I bribed people when I had to, but I never did anything unjust or immoral. Don’t I deserve a normal life? Who have I wronged? Who?” (106)

Search Sweet Country by Kojo Laing

The intertwined lives of people—rich and poor, ordinary and supernatural—in 1975 Accra. Like James Joyce’s Dubliners, with which it is at least on par, I admire it immensely but find it difficult to truly love.

“Passing Ussher Fort by Sraha Market where the Pentecostal church clapped its wall, Loww saw how clearly everything—from fresh water and churches to governments and castles—could fit so easily in reflection in the gutters. This city could not satisfy the hunger of gutters, for there was nothing yet which had not been reflected in them” (9)

The Travels and Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen

The titular braggart recounts his globetrotting exploits, assuring us along the way of their complete veracity. Perfect for fans of Candide, although its themes are more literary and political than philosophical.

“I know these things appear strange, but if the shadow of a doubt can remain on any person’s mind, I saw, let him take a voyage [to the moon] himself, and then he will know I am a traveler of veracity” (86)

Dear Brutus by J.M. Barrie

On a magical midsummer night, eight strangers are offered a chance to experience their greatest “what-ifs.” Although the gender politics of Barrie’s genteel, crepuscular world evoke a few eye-rolls, his sincerity transforms this obscure play into an enchanting almost-classic.

“PURDIE: What really plays the dickens with us is something in ourselves. Something that makes us go on doing the same sort of fool things, however many chances we get…We can at least control him if we try hard enough. But I have for the moment an abominably clear perception that the likes of me never really tries” (62)

Amiable with Big Teeth by Claude McKay

A circle of intellectuals in 1930s Harlem face dual threats: the Fascist invasion of Ethiopia and the charms of a Communist infiltrator. This book has a fascinating premise and plot but due to its status as a “lost manuscript,” it could use a twice- or thrice-over by a good editor.

“Harlem is the stamping ground of false prophets” (110)

Death in Venice by Thomas Mann

While on vacation on the Lido, an aging writer becomes obsessed with an ethereal teenage boy. The most beautiful book to terrify me: both with the descent of its protagonist into morbid depravity and its creepily accurate portrayal of being alone on vacation.

“For one human being instinctively feels respect and love for another human being so long as he does not know him well enough to judge him; and that he does not, the craving he feels is evidence” (50)