A childish allegory that reveals itself within the first few pages, followed by a noir detective plot. This combination made it a challenging read forA childish allegory that reveals itself within the first few pages, followed by a noir detective plot. This combination made it a challenging read for me at times, but I pushed through thanks to the fluidity and smoothness of the author鈥檚 language, which effortlessly carries the reader along. The underlying sarcastic tone was a delight, and I found myself laughing out loud at many moments in the novel....more
Voegelin really outdid himself, recycling old church rhetoric against Gnosticism without ever bothering to read any actual Gnostic texts. Why do the wVoegelin really outdid himself, recycling old church rhetoric against Gnosticism without ever bothering to read any actual Gnostic texts. Why do the work when you can just crib from centuries-old church diatribes?
Then, with the grace of a circus acrobat, he leaps to connect Gnosticism to Hegel and Marxism, painting himself as some medieval priest bravely battling the "modern Gnostic devil." Bold strategy, Voegelin. Bold.
It鈥檚 almost impressive how lame this all is. How anyone takes him seriously is beyond me. Honestly, if Voegelin were around today, his peak achievement would probably be as a guest on the Joe Rogan podcast, smugly holding court about how Gnosticism is ruining everything. That鈥檚 about as far as he鈥檇 go....more
I fell in love with the novel and Aimee Bender from the first page. I have read three of her books so far, and I want to read more. She has become oneI fell in love with the novel and Aimee Bender from the first page. I have read three of her books so far, and I want to read more. She has become one of my favorite writers....more
A perfect summer read! I've been on the lookout for a book that explores queer love without the unnecessary drama and family issues. Finally, I stumblA perfect summer read! I've been on the lookout for a book that explores queer love without the unnecessary drama and family issues. Finally, I stumbled upon a romantic queer novel that delivered just that. I loved the focus and tension in the novel between the characters because of the age gap, which was a clever arc that Jenny created. It captured the wilting of desire and the transformation of love into familiarity. The sun repeats its journey every day, but that does not necessarily bring about the rising edge of desire
I also loved the Instagram princess. I think Jenny introduced what we could call the "Instagram self romance".The modern mental health narrative centers around the pivotal idea of 'Love yourself.' This abstract concept is visualized in the novel through Instagram love, where we see characters falling in love with themselves, their images, their bodies, their accounts, and their followers and likes. Additionally, the dark humor and subtle sarcastic tone hit the right spot. I definitely would like to read Jenny's work again to see how this sarcasm manifests itself in other work ...more
Reading this novel a couple of months ago had a profound impact on me. As a writer who is in the process of recognizing his new identity as an immigraReading this novel a couple of months ago had a profound impact on me. As a writer who is in the process of recognizing his new identity as an immigrant exiled writer, I thought I was walking this road alone. I read other writers who were forced into the exile desert to discover how wide and dark this desert is, that everyone walks alone, crafting his road or lost in the sand. However, Selvon's short novel, which was published more than 50 years ago, was the first literary work that shone for me on this road. I felt I found a family, a tree that my leaf could aspire to become a flower. My favorite character was not the narrator, though, but the Nigerian friend who lives on lies and imposter; maybe because he is the only one who does not belong to "the working class" like the rest of the characters, he is an early image of the immigrants I am interested in writing on. Immigrants with white color jobs, students, and scholars who also forced to lie, to adopt, to charm and confirm the fascists, that they are just good white puppies....more
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