Monthly Archives: March 2008

Fiction: “The Good Soldier Svejk” by Jaroslav Hasek

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The February book in Dad’s and my reading challenge.

Eastern European classic, Dad bought it years ago based on a Kundera recommendation. Total farce, hilarious comic novel. Bumbling anti-hero, a miserable idiot…or is he? Really a lot of fun to read. The never-ending “Well that reminds me of” stories and the contretemps…just indescribable. We both loved it. Humbly report, sir…

Somewhat in the tradition of Don Quixote or Tristram Shandy, although Svejk is a bit more self aware than DQ.

À la Nick Hornby, books in/books out for February.

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Bought:

  • The Watchman (A Joe Pike Novel), by Robert Crais (Elvis Cole gets his own spinoff!)
  • The Odyssey and The Iliad, Homer (buying the Robert Fagles translations, my other ones are Lattimore)
  • The Faithful Spy, by Alex Berenson
  • The Monsters of Templeton, by Lauren Groff
  • The Priory, by Dorothy Whipple
  • Saplings, by Noel Streatfeild
  • Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, by Winifred Watson
  • The Tourmaline, by Paul Park
  • The White Tyger, by Paul Park
  • A Great and Terrible Beauty, by Libba Bray
  • Dark Roots, by Cate Kennedy (stories)

Read:
  • Iron Kissed, by Patricia Briggs
  • A Princess of Roumania, by Paul Park
  • The Faithful Spy, by Alex Berenson
  • The Good Soldier Svejk, by Jaroslav Hasek

Note I am not including books I received as gifts (Bonus!) of which there happened to have been quite a few in February (Yay!).