NOTES FROM A DEAD HOUSE

i’ve been saving this book for a little bit… ever since i spotted it at the library. it’s full of magic. it transported me instantly. it takes place at a siberian prison camp, loosely based on dostoevsky’s own experience. surprisingly, there is no bitterness, only love. no plot to speak of – just a simple memoir, character sketches, psychological insights. the generosity of it, though…! of course we have child murder – this is dostoevsky, after all – but we also have this supreme tenderness. i can’t put it down. i’m carrying it with me everywhere. a masterpiece.

xxx bookworm

YOSEMITE

in preparation for a yosemite valley adventure weekend after next, i am reading (around in) john muir’s book. his language is immense. you feel the soaring rocks and sparkling waterfalls and so forth. i’d forgot the power & poetry of the sublime. it’s been a while since i’d read the romantics. it’s like he walked hand in hand with robert burns.