Wednesday Reading Meme

[osprey_archer]

What I've Just Finished Reading

Maryellen: The One and Only, the first book of the new American Girl series, which never did transcend its lack of illustrations, alas. The illustrations aren't the only change they made with the format this time around: there are also only two books instead of six, which might have worked better if the first book didn't feel like three books smooshed together with no attempt to make an overarching plot.

Even that might have worked all right if they had at least labeled the separate pieces Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. But they didn't, so instead I was just puzzled by the jumps between chapters when one story ended and another began.

I feel like the shoddy construction is of a piece with a general shoddiness in the book's writing, too. The characters don't have much pop to them; I never did manage to tell all of Maryellen's brothers and sisters apart, for instance. It's all rather disappointing.

I also finished Eugenia Ginzburg's Journey into the Whirlwind, which turns out (I can't believe I didn't notice this before) to be only the first half of her memoirs, so I will have to tromp off to the university library to acquire the second half. I have rather a list, actually, of books that I mean to check out there; I'm finally going to get around to reading Rainer Maria Rilke's Letters to a Young Poet, and Oliver Sacks' continual mentions of A. R. Luria in his books have convinced me that I ought to read some of Luria's work, too.

What I'm Reading Now

Margaret Oliphant's Miss Marjoribanks, which I'm enjoying so far, though it could do with slightly less repetition. I can see why Miss Marjoribanks herself informs everyone she meets that her only object in life is to be a comfort to her dear papa (otherwise they might suspect her of overweening social ambitions), but must the narrator repeat it too? I got the joke the first dozen times it was told.

What I Plan to Read Next

I'll probably read the second Maryellen book, if only in the interests of completeness. I was so looking forward to these: it's such a disappointment.

Comments

[egelantier.livejournal.com]

oh, i have a luria anecdote! one of those they tell you in the first university year.

after concluding his seminal experiments in central asia and finding out that uzbek people don't see the optical illusions the way city people see them (hence the way we process the world visually is determined culturally), excited luria sent a telegram to lev vygotsky: UZBEK PEOPLE HAVE NO ILLUSIONS!

(in 1930s. in ussr. via telegram. completely innocently).

poor vygotsky almost had a heart attack there and then, and allegedly sent back a letter starting with AND LURIAS HAVE NO BRAINS.

(thankfully the story didn't have political repercussions for luria, even though it totally could have).

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Oh my goodness, that's great. Maybe pay a little attention to the political climate, Luria?

One of his books is a memoir about neuroscience and psychology in the USSR, which is totally on my list.

[egelantier.livejournal.com]

this generation of soviet psy people was fascinating, i hope you enjoy the memoirs. i'm partial to leontiev myself - in part because of alma mater loyalty, and in part because nothing will dissuade me from the notion that he's made up his shambling impenetrable monster of the "activity theory" to legitimize the psychology in the party's eyes and to provide his young-and-bright proteges with a safe party-approved context to dress their works up with.

[evelyn-b.livejournal.com]

OH GOD LURIA. :O This anecdoted endeared me to him so much for some reason.

LURIAS HAVE NO BRAINS, indeed.

<3

(stay safe, Luria :/)

[egelantier.livejournal.com]

worry not, luria had a long and productive life and died of natural causes at 75. vygotsky has died relatively young, but everybody tacitly agreed he cleverly tuberculosis'd his way out of inevitable repressions, so.

[evelyn-b.livejournal.com]

MARYELLEN DESERVES BETTER. >:( I don't know anything about her, but I already know this much is true.

Letters to a Young Poet is one of those things I loved so much as a teenager that I'm a little afraid of re-reading for fear it will turn out to be Not As Good, but every time I see a quote from it it's just fine, so it's probably ok!

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

EVERYONE IN THE BOOK DESERVES BETTER. At least they deserve to be memorable enough that I remember their names. :(

Also, there are scenes that are described so I just know there was meant to be an illustration there. Maybe the illustrations got pulled late in the process? WHY WOULD THEY NOT ILLUSTRATE THE BOOK. DOES NOT COMPUTE.

Hopefully by the time they release a new girl (this seems to happen every few years) they will have realized this was a horrible mistake.

[emma-in-oz.livejournal.com]

Yay for Mrs Oliphaunt!

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

I've been meaning to read one of her books for a while, so I'm glad to have gotten around to it!

[littlerhymes]

Aww at your American Girl disappointment! How disheartening. :(

I wonder if the repetition in Miss Marjoribanks is a side-effect of its serialisation? Sort of a 'previously on the show' shorthand. I suppose as well she was churning them out too quick to edit as thoroughly as wanted.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

It's so sad. I just can't get over the lack of illustrations. Why, American Girl, why?

Oooh, that makes sense. Yes, I can definitely see why she'd want to remind her readers (and inform new readers) of Lucilla's overriding goals in life.