the great gatsby is indeed great

The Great Gatsby

by F. Scott Fitzgerald

it didn't leave much of an impression when i first read the book many many years ago. i probably didn't even get the whole story right and certainly had nothing to say about the writing. i was barely able to plow through it smoothly. its exceedingly high reputation had puzzled me since.

this time around, however, i have come to a shocking realization - towards the end - that this is likely the most well written book i have ever read! how vivid all characters, major and minor; and how the incredibly perfect delegation of just the right amount of attention to each. the layout of the whole plot is flawless while the pace of the story flows like a confident river, fast or slow as required. adding to that are the subtle and effective use of symbols and, of course, the very polished and elegant style.

i was not particularly touched by the story, even less the much lauded social implications - it was a re-read after all - yet enjoyed the book tremendously. almost as an artwork. and it is a puzzle no more.

tinkers: tinkering, tinkering, and more tinkering

Tinkers

by Paul Harding

what a letdown.

the writing is simply too crafty (or tinkering); and the story and the plot become apparent twenty pages into the book. the heavy handed treatment makes the characters cartoonish and superfacial, their amazing pains/struggles not touching but overbearing. took some effort to finish this short book.

i am surprised that it won the big prize.

Moby Dick - and I only am escaped alone to tell thee

by Herman Melville

(old comment; been reading Melville biographies last few weeks)

Everything about whale and whaling, yet much more.

So intriguing were the stories and so beautiful the prose;
so abundant were the details and so complex the structure;
and so grandeur was the scope: science, philosophy, religion, history, human psyche and temperament, all in a single book (albeit a lengthy one).

And I had a time of enjoyment, enlightenment and enrichment. Then my heart ached when it all came to one tremendous tragic end.

Simply one of the best books ever written. I believe.

Not an easy one to read*. I might add.

(* No wonder his contemporaies all missed out on this book, leaving the author die in obscurity.)

a spy, a word play

(propped by dean because of this: http://www.modernhumorist.com/mh/0005/anagram/. the original little poem was written because of the word "dust". photo from google image)

Spy bares

by passerby
------------------------
She turns around
and sees –
those golden dusts
glittering
against the setting sun.
ocean abound

under which, a
bronze statue
bathing, unclothed
in the dusting sun.
ocean beyond

and she sighs –
is that you?
Bond,
James Bond?!

--------------

a glimpse of

you turn around
and see -

those golden dusts

glittering

against the setting sun

which touches you

so you look inside

and feel -

your tender heart

glowing

amid the dusting sun

and you resign -

such is life

worth living