My literary life

I spent much of the past week reading, discussing, looking at, and thinking about books.

I am in two book clubs—one is business and one is pleasure—both of which met recently, both of which focused on recent books that largely take place inside the mind of middle-aged upper class men from the British Isles. Unsurprisingly, the discussions had some similarities. In the discussion last night, after realizing that none of us liked the book very much, we discussed whether or not it is moral to be a kept [wo]man. I had never thought about the issue in moral terms before. I am still turning it over in my head.

Yesterday, I went to The Belgrade Book Festival. Huge and amazing. There’s a quote over the entrance to the Portland Central Library that is along the lines of “for me, heaven would be something like a library.” When I walked into the fair, I was reminded of that quote (although for me, heaven would have less of a basketball stadium aesthetic and would have an ocean). I spent a lot of time wandering around the foreign books section, looking at photos of Indonesia and trying to figure out if I can fit Spanish classes into my schedule. The US booth was huge. It had large portraits of prominent Americans, the usual suspects (Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks) plus Nikola Tesla. I can’t imagine Nikola is trotted out by the US government outside of the Western Balkans. (And it seems kind of selfish for the US to try to claim him. I mean, we have enough notables already. Leave Nikola for Croatia and Serbia to fight over.) There was also a copy of America (The Book) on display. I stood reading it and chuckling to myself until I started to feel conspicuous. That’s something that I am happy to have my tax dollars spent on.

My progression through the Harry Potter universe continues. Last night, I finished book #5.