Photographic proof of my embarrassingly slow progress. It’s been quite a few days since we started reading this book, and I honestly thought I would just tear right through “The Blind Assassin” and fall in love with it and quote it endlessly, because I love Atwood, I really do. She is one of my favorite poets and the one novel of hers that I’ve read prior to this one was so amazing to me. (The novel is “Penelopiad” and is pictured below. It is considerably shorter than “The Blind Assassin” and re-tells the story of the Odyssey (kind of) through the eyes of Odysseus’ wife, Penelope. You should definitely read it, if you are able to.) I’ve just started working, and the last few months have been really strange, in a I don’t know how to fit reading into my schedule way. Most days, I just want to fall into a Harry Potter re-read-athon and call it a day. Usually, I just pick up a book at night—in this case, Atwood’s “The Blind Assassin”—and leaf through a couple of pages, and then give up. Which, I think, is unfair. I’m slowly realizing that there are amazing books that I really need to commit to and spend time with if I expect to glean anything from them. At this point, I don’t understand where Atwood is going with her narrative, and the most exciting part to me is the sci-fi meta-novel, which she seems to have dropped, sucks. But I think I’m going to have to give it more than a couple of pages before bed, or bringing it to wherever I’m going armed only with the “intention” of reading it. I believe that it’s a great book—it wouldn’t have won The Booker Prize or been on that TIME list if it isn’t—but I think I just need to give it a little more time and a little more effort than I am right now. I like juggling books and my comfort zone when it comes to reading involves a lot of YA. But I really do think it’s time for me to stick to this one book for now, until I finish it, until it makes sense to me. I think, perhaps, Atwood is signaling my growth as a reader, and even though it’s not terribly exciting for me yet, I’m going to take on this great frakking challenge. I have a good feeling about how this novel is going to turn out and how it’s going to change me, but I just have to come to terms with how I’m going to get there.

Photographic proof of my embarrassingly slow progress.

It’s been quite a few days since we started reading this book, and I honestly thought I would just tear right through “The Blind Assassin” and fall in love with it and quote it endlessly, because I love Atwood, I really do. She is one of my favorite poets and the one novel of hers that I’ve read prior to this one was so amazing to me.

(The novel is “Penelopiad” and is pictured below. It is considerably shorter than “The Blind Assassin” and re-tells the story of the Odyssey (kind of) through the eyes of Odysseus’ wife, Penelope. You should definitely read it, if you are able to.)

I’ve just started working, and the last few months have been really strange, in a I don’t know how to fit reading into my schedule way. Most days, I just want to fall into a Harry Potter re-read-athon and call it a day. Usually, I just pick up a book at night—in this case, Atwood’s “The Blind Assassin”—and leaf through a couple of pages, and then give up.

Which, I think, is unfair.

I’m slowly realizing that there are amazing books that I really need to commit to and spend time with if I expect to glean anything from them. At this point, I don’t understand where Atwood is going with her narrative, and the most exciting part to me is the sci-fi meta-novel, which she seems to have dropped, sucks. But I think I’m going to have to give it more than a couple of pages before bed, or bringing it to wherever I’m going armed only with the “intention” of reading it.

I believe that it’s a great book—it wouldn’t have won The Booker Prize or been on that TIME list if it isn’t—but I think I just need to give it a little more time and a little more effort than I am right now. I like juggling books and my comfort zone when it comes to reading involves a lot of YA. But I really do think it’s time for me to stick to this one book for now, until I finish it, until it makes sense to me.

I think, perhaps, Atwood is signaling my growth as a reader, and even though it’s not terribly exciting for me yet, I’m going to take on this great frakking challenge. I have a good feeling about how this novel is going to turn out and how it’s going to change me, but I just have to come to terms with how I’m going to get there.

9 notes

Show

  1. readhard posted this

Blog comments powered by Disqus