MSS
Something hot to sip on, a comfortable chair—perhaps by the fire—and word covered pages; this is the alchemaic formula for a splendid gateway to worlds without limit. Two pages in and thousands of miles away, a different time, a different place (or perhaps all the same, but through different eyes): this is the miracle of a written story. Throughout the years I’ve been enchanted by many bards and prophets, these are some of my favorite magicians:
+ Rudyard Kipling
+ Charles Williams
+ C.S. Lewis
+ J.R.R. Tolkien
+ Leo Tolstoy
+ Fyodor Dostoyevski
+ Robert Frost
+ W.B. Yeats
+ John Donne
+ Lloyd Alexander
+ Franz Kafka
+ Dorothy Sayers
Two Russians, Two Americans, 1 German, 1 Woman, 1 Irish, Three Poets, and Six Britishers. Who are some of your favorite authors, why?
Nov 11th 2004
Inhale deeply of “Ask the Dust” by John Fante. This book is one of the finest to spring from America. Magical, real, deep and brimming with enthusiasm, it is a rewarding read.
Nov 11th 2004
Kurt Vonnegut - “Cat’s Cradle” “Slaughterhouse-Five” - His writing is so simple - almost childish - but there is a deepness in his playful words. His novels are enchanting and fun to read.
Hermann Hesse - “Demian” - Not only speaks of the protagonist’s awakening, but pulls the reader right along with him.
Jack Kerouac - “Dharma Bums” “On the Road” - Great traveling novels… makes me open my eyes to the beauty of America - to cities and fields and open highways. And the LIFE and spirituality behind it all.
Nov 11th 2004
-I’ve never heard of Fante (perhaps I should be embarrassed by that…), but he certainly sounds interesting; I’ll look for the book.
-Interesting that you should mention Demian, Trev, because I recently finished it. I read Beneath the Wheel some time ago and was really fascinated by Hesse’s darkly beautiful prose, so when I saw “Demian” for $0.50 at the library I grabbed it. I’ve been meaning to read more contemporary Americans, so perhaps your encouragement was just what I needed.
Nov 12th 2004
My top ten would share 4-5 of your authors. What have you read by Sayers?
A little known great read: My Name Is Asher Lev, by Chaim Potock. Strikingly evocative novel about a Jewish painter and his reluctance to deal with an archetype crucial to art - the cross.