“Greenaway” by a bout de souffle
Flips, stripes, and all that jazz
Imagine my delight when I heard that the New York Review of Books was going to publish another Elaine Dundy novel, following The Dud Avocado. I stumbled upon it at Three Lives, the fantastic West Village bookshop that has quickly become my favorite in the city. I finished it this morning on the C train on my way to work.
I had a few problems with The Dud Avocado. I was bothered by the silly plot twist that occurs towards the end of the novel. It seemed a little overdone and implausible. This didn’t stop me from loving the book, quite the contrary, but it certainly made me take it a bit less seriously. The Old Man and Me comes dangerously close to making similar mistakes. The circumstances that drive the plot, the protagonist, Honey Flood’s impetus for going to live in London and pursue a man 3 times her age, are at times in danger of leading the novel down this path. I was pleasantly surprised, however, to find the writing, plot, and character development to be quite sophisticated on the whole.
This is due partly to a fearless expression of sexuality, and a bluntness when in portraying the sexual relationship between a 20-something and 58 year old man, as well as Honey’s diverse feelings on the subject. Additionally, Honey Flood is a fantastic character; mischievious, at times evil, stylish, and displaying a charming point of view to experience the novel through. All in all, The Old Man and Me was a delight.
Times Online reports on disclosures of William Golding’s violence in unpublished autobiography http://tinyurl.com/kkyusx via @cteicher
:) RT @GraywolfPress @chapmanchapman @MaudNewton @robspill Free books on the NYC subway: http://bit.ly/FKfOu
I enjoy letter writing so much! Wish I did it more often. Maybe my hand wouldn’t get quite so sore if I did.
Nearly finished with The Old Man and Me, the latest Elaine Dundy resurrected by NY Review of Books.
Far superior to The Dud Avocado, and just as much, if not more, fun to read.
The cable company is holding me hostage tomorrow. My appointment is anywhere from 10am to 8pm. Going to be the worst day ever.
Just had an epic day of work, yoga, sushi, Much Ado About Nothing, & ginger cookies…too many ginger cookies…cream-filled.
Shakespeare potluck & reading with friends is my new favorite Thursday night activity. I played Don Pedro…meddling matchmaker.
Why is Blaine’s hair SO flat and awful at the end of this movie? I guess it reflects his depressed demeanor.
RT @MaudNewton: Molly Ringwald, actress & sometime book reviewer, pays tribute to John Hughes. http://tinyurl.com/mdkgj3 (via @mariemockett)
Watching Pretty In Pink and marvelling at Molly Ringwald’s clothes and James Spader’s hair.
Finally made an appt for an Internet installation. Reached my breaking point.
One book into my Russia project: Eugene Onegin is finished. Pushkin’s prose is up next, found at Three Lives, my new fave bookshop.
