Wednesday Weeds of the Past

[evelyn_b]

What I've Finished Reading

I got The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante for Christmas, and was almost physically unable to put it down until I'd finished it. Because my sister was in town with her kids, I read a large portion of it with a baby in my lap. It was even better than My Brilliant Friend, except for my irrational dislike of overnight

Comments

[osprey_archer]

a beautiful and arrogant human trainwreck whose life was one unbroken stampede of drama llamas on fire.

Oh my God. Best description of anyone ever. Drama llamas on fire.

I had never heard about the Philadelphia bombing either. Why did the Philadelphia police bomb a city block? Why did they even have a bomb that would destroy a city block? Who thought that was a good idea? Did anyone think it was a good idea, or was it all like Dr. Strangelove in miniature. ("The bomb has been deployed! There's no way to call it back now!")

I also am curious about this super-grumpy essay about children's television.

[evelyn_b]

Alcibiades is a (terrible) inspiration to us all. There's a story where, as a child, he was playing dice in the street with some other children and a cart came by. The other children scattered, because they were normal human beings, presumably. Alcibiades FLUNG HIMSELF FACE-DOWN ON THE STREET and dared the driver to run him over. Because why should his game be interrupted just because some asshole is trying to move goods like a chump? That's our Alcibiades

[osprey_archer]

ALCIBIADES, YOU WEIRDASS FAILBOAT. He clearly had a metric ton of charisma, because everything I hear about him makes him sound like an entitled jerkface, and yet people followed his plans.

I guess the Philadelphia police just didn't care that they'd burn down the whole neighborhood? Jesus Christ. How did the news report it at the time? Did they sidle around the part where an entire city block burned down and make it sound like the police were heroically rooting out an evil cult?

[evelyn_b]

The way this essay describes it, the TV news coverage 1) acknowledged that bombing a city block seems pretty horrific, 2) emphasized the crazy weirdness and belligerence of MOVE while downplaying decisions made by the police, 3) congratulate Philadelphians on not rioting when some cities we could think of would totally have had a riot, and assure viewers that "most Philadelphians actually endorse what he did, although not the tragic, unintended result", and 4) end on a reassuring note about civic spirit and rebuilding.

[lost_spook]

It sounds like a fascinating collection of things to be reading!

I read Plutarch's biography of Alcibiades, a beautiful and arrogant human trainwreck whose life was one unbroken stampede of drama llamas on fire.

And I have to agree - that is a fabulous sentence!

[evelyn_b]

It's a pretty good roster! No clunkers in this list. I've been pretty lucky in my reading lately in general.

[scripsi]

Titus Groan has completely stalled for me. I need to kick it back into gear aagin.

I love Proust. It's wonderful to read when one's nerves feels frazzled, to me. I wish I could read it in French, though.

[evelyn_b]

You should! It's gotten really good, and a little sad. I didn't expect to feel any sadness for this pack of grotesques, but I've gotten really protective of Fuchsia and. . . well, things aren't going that well for the House of Groan at the moment. :(

I can definitely see Proust being good for frazzled nerves. I'd love to be able to read it in French, too . . . maybe someday. I love the great-aunt whose claim to distinction is never sleeping a wink, and how everyone delicately avoids suggesting that she ever wakes up or falls asleep.

[scripsi]

Oh, I will! Soonish...