Abandoned Book Review
So far this year, in accordance with my goal of abandoning more books, I've quit three:
1. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
I thought I'd enjoy this, a grown-up version of a Lemony Snicket book that discusses traumatic events with a light, comical air. Unfortunately, I found the writing infuriating, self-centered, and very disjointed.
2. Mrs. Dalloway
Maybe I just don't have the patience for elaborate descriptions. And this book is a protracted description of everyone and everything Clarissa Dalloway sees on the London streets, written in a stream-of-consciousness style that disoriented me.
3. Walden
I enjoyed the essay Civil Disobedience, which outlines the liberal's ideal role of government in free society.
Thoreau’s solitary, ascetic lifestyle in Walden was interesting, his self-reliance admirable. But underneath, there seemed to be a misanthropic distaste for the company of people he considered uncultured.
Footnote 1: The above post was 141 words long (3,141 if you include the pictures). There are 141 days left in the year.