Marilynne Robinson's Gilead on the table. Written before Jack, but its events coming afterward. Interesting to a non-believer that the literary artefacts of a worldview foreign to one's own—as in, some religious people, including at least one rather sophisticated author, believe Christianity is literally true—can claim a strong hold on one's attention, and one can respect her religious characters without thinking for a moment that their metaphysical beliefs are true. But here's the thing: maybe it's unsurprising that an author steeped in religion would turn to fiction, because where do you draw the line between them? Does it even exist? If someone is comparable to Jack Boughton, that doesn't mean he's ever going to meet his Della Miles. That is, divine grace or anything resembling it, contra Robinson, is itself a fiction—or slippery enough that it makes no difference—and the concept of it is comparable to the happily-ever-afterism of both fairy tale and Jane Austen.
I think we are all living in a world where we have people that we respect despite the fact that they believe in fantasies.
Well, I wasn't trying to make a banal or commonplace observation, and I still think I have not, not in this instance. I'd like to think that I'm not wasting my own time or anyone else's when I post on here. Robinson's books and her thinking are not in a realm of "we are all" this or that. One thing with her that is not in the usual run of my experience is coming across a thinker whose religion is central to her thought, whom I nonetheless suspect may have an authorial talent larger, perhaps subtler, than mine.
Posted by Julie808We of Little Faith I Stopped Pretending to Believe (and Maybe You Should Too) By Kate Cohen.
Posted by dfrossI enjoyed "The Dictionary of Lost Words", a historical fiction about the creating of the Oxford-English Dictionary and the fight for women's suffrage in the UK.
Posted by ReignmondA highly biased selection.
Posted by ReignmondI read this back in 2018. Absolutely loved it. It is an oddly small sized book, so it is good to travel with. [amazon.com]
Posted by ReignmondI read this back in 2018. Absolutely loved it. It is an oddly small sized book, so it is good to travel with. [amazon.com]
Posted by ReignmondA short Sci-Fi that is quite good even though it will only take about an hour to read. It is also kinda cheap. [amazon.com]
Posted by ReignmondLooking again at this book reminds me that I wanted to re-listen to it again.
Posted by ReignmondThis freebie ebook from Gutenberg Press and by the Master Sci-Fi writer Philip.
Posted by ReignmondAt Home: a short history of private life by Bill Bryson. An enjoyable book about everyday things we don't even think about. [amazon.com]
Posted by ReignmondAt Home: a short history of private life by Bill Bryson. An enjoyable book about everyday things we don't even think about. [amazon.com]
Posted by ReignmondJust finished Bomber Mafia written by my genetic 4th cousin on both of our Fathers' side.
Posted by ReignmondI read this back in about 1983.
Posted by ReignmondVery good. I have noticed that 12 step programs are ineffective. [goodreads.com]
Posted by ReignmondActually read this some time ago (46 years) while trying to figure out why I simply could not believe in Jesus or God or anything else I was being told by Bible Thumpers.
Posted by ReignmondThis is one of my very most favorite books.
Posted by Julie808I'm currently reading "The Power Worshippers" by Katherine Stewart. Is anyone else reading this?