June 2020 TBR – What Books I’m Reading This Month

When I read him writing about King Lear and Hamlet in Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human, or Browning and Keats in How to Read and Why, I find myself encountering my own soul.

Black Boy (link) and Native Son (link) by Richard Wright

My good friend implored me to read these two books, partly because they show Harold Bloom’s idea of influence at play.

I’ve been reading James Baldwin for a while, making my way through his entire works, and so I thought it worth investigating one of the greatest influences upon Baldwin’s own thoughts and writings.

One of the great tragedies in art – at least in my likely ill-formed opinion – is that one eventually must turn away from their greatest loves.

You see this in all art-forms, where student rebels against master.

I’m still trying to comprehend the levity of this phenomenon.

On the subject of diversity – one I’m loathe to even touch upon – my reading has always been thoroughly inclusive, my personal curiosity about the world and different cultures inspiring me to discover more. But, of course, given the situation in America right now, I’m hoping these two books, along with what I’m reading of Baldwin, will be highly informative.

Giovanni’s Room (link) by James Baldwin

Baldwin is one of the few writers that touches me to my core and makes me feel a special resonance that I believe is kinship. This is nothing to do with identity politics. Though few books have written about love so tenderly, and few writers have written about race with such nuance. This is only part of Baldwin’s magical charm.

But, ultimately, it’s Baldwin’s words, his hypnotic sermonising language, the way he plays powerfully and persuasively with the written form (as analogue for spoken art) in a way that is simultaneously possessing a childish innocence and a refined, mature elegance that belies a man whose lived and suffered through a thousand lifetimes – this what captivates me about Baldwin. It’s a love that I’ve not felt since first reading Kerouac.

If you decide to read Giovanni’s Room (and you should – it’s beautiful and short enough to read in a day or two), I highly recommend you get the gorgeous Everyman Edition. It sits with pride and honour beside my Everyman Edition of War and Peace.

The Complete Works of John Keats (link)

I’m on a Keats kick of late. I’ve been putting up a couple of poetry readings of his work. Along with Browning, I desire to read out all of Keats.

I decided it was high time to finally read everything put out by the writer of one of my favourite poems of all time, ‘Ode to a Nightingale’.

 

The more I read of Keats, the more enraptured I become with him. If you want some direction, start with:

• ‘La Belle Dame sans Merci’
• ‘The Eve of St. Agnes’
• ‘Ode to a Nightingale’
• ‘Endymion’
• ‘Hyperion’
• ‘Lamia’

All incredibly beautiful. Like drinking fine wine.

And, as usual, I recommend the beautiful Everyman Edition.

The Complete Works of Robert Browning (link)

I’ll let you in on a little secret:

My nerdy ambition is to record Robert Browning’s ENTIRE poetry collection.

This is a passion-project of mine and I’ll chip away at it over time. Unfortunately, nobody really cares about poetry, so I’m doing this for myself and perhaps a handful of people who like to listen to poetry read aloud (as it’s meant to) and derive some joy from that.

Here’s an analysis of Browning’s most popular poem, ‘My Last Duchess:

For more readings of Browning and other poets, check out the Hardcore Literature YouTube channel.

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (link)

One of my favourite books of all time. I first read this in Sixth Form, and thank goodness for Mr Dearmer who was clearly passionate about Dickens. Such a cool teacher. I have memories of turning up early and seeing him perched on a desk, Great Expectations in hand, getting ready to read aloud with different voices for all the characters. 

That memory, and the power of the book itself, has resonated with me so strongly that another one of my nerdy ambitions is to read the entire work aloud.

I want to read and release chapters as they would have been made available in their original serialisation production. So first two chapters, then wait a week, another two chapters, wait a week, then one chapter, then two chapters, and so on.

My dream is to read it aloud in front of a crackling fire and bring the story to life like no other narrator. Perhaps no one will care about this, but oh well – it’s my passion, and I’m doing it.

Dance of the Happy Shades by Alice Munro (link)

I’ve been focusing a bit more on crafting short stories. Even submitted one that I was reasonably proud of to the Raymond Carver Short Story Competition.

So I decided I needed to learn the craft. And who better to learn it from than one of the best short story writers of all time, Alice Munro?

Nobel Winner Munro, along with Maupassant, Chekhov, Joyce, really is someone you want to learn the short story craft from. I picked up her very first volume because I wanted to see how such a powerhouse develops. And I realised that I wasn’t even reading her short stories – I was living them. THAT’S a writer.

Having mentioned Maupassant, you’ll notice from my bookshelf picture that this month I’m also learning from the great French writer. I’m easing myself in, using him as preparation for perhaps the greatest short story writer of all time: Chekhov.

The Nicomachean Ethics by Aristotle (link)

I’ve already written a lot about Aristotle.

If you want to know my thoughts, there are two podcasts (to date – I’m planning more, plus lectures), and perhaps thirteen articles that deep dive into everything the great thinker believe about virtue and ethics.

I implore you to read the Ethics yourself.

This is a reread for me. And important one. Especially in today’s current climate. And I’m hoping to learn even more the second time around.

What are you reading in June 2020?

Let me know what’s on your TBR.