Things Fall Apart (1958) by Chinua Achebe — novel #256

An African Tale by an African author!

• by Chinua Achebe
• African literature, Nigerian novel
• Published: 1958
• Awards: Man Booker International Prize for lifetime achievement to Achebe
• My edition: Penguin Books (eBook)
• Setting: Colonial Nigeria, late 19th century

I’ll let Achebe introduce you to the main character Okonkwo.

Okonkwo was clearly cut out for great things. He was still young but he had won fame as the greatest wrestler in the nine villages. He was a wealthy farmer and had two barns full of yams, and had just married his third wife. To crown it all he had taken two titles and had shown incredible prowess in two inter-tribal wars. And so although Okonkwo was still young, he was already one of the greatest men of his time. Age was respected among his people, but achievement was revered. As the elders said, if a child washed his hands he could eat with kings. Okonkwo had clearly washed his hands and so he ate with kings and elders.

He is the exact opposite of his no-account father. Shame for his father is one of Okonkwo’s driving forces. Okonkwo clearly enjoys wealth and status, but he will not be satisfied until he is one of the top men of his clan. He knows what he wants and he knows how to get it.

 

And then a terrible accident, impossible to foresee or prevent, leaves a young clan boy dead and Okonkwo bearing the penalty: seven years banishment. This sentence is imposed with no hostility, just what clan law demanded. This felt like the end of Okonkwo’s aspirations, but to the indomitable Okonkwo it is merely a setback. He and his family leave their village, to live with Okonkwo’s maternal relations, some miles distant.

 

But during his absence, things begin to change, or perhaps—to fall apart. Okonkwo returns intent on reestablishing his standing, but there are new currents driving daily life in his village now: a new religion brought by white men, and new laws brought by colonial powers.

There were many men and women in Umuofia who did not feel as strongly as Okonkwo about the new dispensation. The white man had indeed brought a lunatic religion, but he had also built a trading store and for the first time palm-oil and kernel became things of great price, and much money flowed into Umuofia.

Okonkwo did not object to the new ways so much perhaps, as he did to the acquiescence of his clan.

He mourned for the clan, which he saw breaking up and falling apart, and he mourned for the warlike men of Umuofia, who had so unaccountably become soft like women.

But… 

Okonkwo was not a man of thought but of action.

This is a powerful story, told by one who ought to know. Prior to the publication of Things Fall Apart, most African Novels were written by Europeans or non-Africans. It was considered a milestone in that regard. I thought Achebe was conspicuously fair. He did not treat the missionaries as villains, nor the natives as enlightened sages. The colonial governors were treated more critically, but again, not unfairly. Achebe weaves themes of rigidity vs. cultural evolution in a tale replete with colorful folklore, customs and tradition.

 

Things Fall Apart is a little out of my normal comfort zone, which is good reason to read it. Fair warning: This depicts late 19th century Nigeria. Okonkwo and his clan are severely misogynistic. This is neither condemned nor condoned by Achebe, merely presented as historical reality.

 

I considered my own reading of African stories against the assertion that most African novels were written by non-Africans. This sample size is far too small to conclude anything, but the African novels I’ve read are consistent with the assertion. This does not imply they are unworthy works. 

• Cry the Beloved Country by Alan Paton
• The Heart of the Matter by Graham Greene
• The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles
• A Bend in the River by V.S. Naipaul
• The Covenant by James Michener (much later than Things Fall Apart)

 

My rating  3 ½ /5 stars

 

 

Title #25 of 50 for The Classics Club Challenge – Round IV

 

Things Fall Apart is part of a trilogy along with: No Longer at Ease and Arrow of God. Have you read the trilogy? Your thoughts? Other works by Achebe?

 

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Lord Jim (1900) by Joseph Conrad — novel #255

He [Jim] was running. Absolutely running, with nowhere to go to. And he was not yet four-and-twenty.

• by Joseph Conrad
• Modernist, Psychological novel, British novel
• Published: 1900
• My edition: Project Gutenberg Free Book (eBook)
• Setting: South Seas, Malay Archipelago, late 19^th century
• Also by this author (that I’ve read): Nostromo, Heart of Darkness

Jim, not yet “Lord Jim,” is a young Englishman, son of a parson, just beginning a promising career at sea. He is quietly confident, capable, and the very image of a man who inspires trust. Then one split-second decision aboard the Patna—a moment of treachery from the sea—shatters everything. That single failure will haunt him for the rest of his life.

 

Jim knows, with perfect and painful clarity, that this one dreadful moment is not the true measure of his soul. Yet he also knows the stigma will deny him any easy chance at redemption.

 

Captain Marlow, at first a detached observer, becomes the novel’s primary narrator and eventually Jim’s friend and advocate. Through Marlow’s layered, reflective storytelling, we follow Jim’s restless search for a place where he can prove his worth.

 

Marlow tries to help Jim escape his past—sometimes in spite of Jim himself. As Marlow reflects: 

…it is my belief no man ever understands quite his own artful dodges to escape from the grim shadow of self-knowledge.

 

I ached for Jim and found myself cheering Marlow’s efforts at redemption, even as I sometimes feared it might be hopeless, just as Marlow did.

Which of us here has not observed this, or maybe experienced something of that feeling in his own person—this extreme weariness of emotions, the vanity of effort, the yearning for rest? Those striving with unreasonable forces know it well,—the shipwrecked castaways in boats, wanderers lost in a desert, men battling against the unthinking might of nature, or the stupid brutality of crowds.

 

It’s a marvelous yarn—perhaps my favorite by Conrad yet. He writes what I call a thinking man’s adventure: morally complex, with themes of honor, redemption, self-identity, loyalty, and the painful denial (or possibility) of second chances. There are pirates, tempestuous seas, remote islands, and a beautiful girl, but the real drama is internal.

 

Conrad’s prose is beautiful and evocative, especially considering English was his third language, as the following passage, even without context (something to do with the girl) will show: 

The starlight was good enough for that story, a light so faint and remote that it cannot resolve shadows into shapes, and show the other shore of a stream.

 

Or this near the end of Lord Jim (this may seem to contain a major spoiler; don't take every word literally). 

He [Jim] passes away under a cloud, inscrutable at heart, forgotten, unforgiven, and excessively romantic

 

My rating 4/5 stars

 

 

This is title 24 of 50 for The Classics Club Challenge Round IV

 

Lord Jim is my favorite by Conrad so far. Have you read it? What are your thoughts on Conrad in general?

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The Final Problem: a Sherlock Holmes short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

If the title were not enough, Dr. Watson, opens the narrative of “The Final Problem” with shocking words:

It is with a heavy heart that I take up my pen to write these the last words in which I shall ever record the singular gifts by which my friend Mr. Sherlock Holmes was distinguished.

 

"The Final Problem” is the twelfth and final short story in The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes collection. According to The Annotated Sherlock Holmes¹, it was Holmes’ 31st case chronologically. And indeed, as Conan Doyle had Holmes fictitious chronicler, Dr. Watson, write, it was to be the final adventure of Sherlock Holmes.

 

My apologies for the implied spoiler. It is hardly a secret. After all, Sherlock Holmes himself warned that…

There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.²

 

I can only imagine the dismay, or perhaps fury, in Jolly Ole England when “The Final Problem” was published in 1893.

 

“The Final Problem” makes the first explicit mention of Dr. James Moriarty, Holmes’ eventual
arch-enemy. However, the Sherlock Holmes novel, The Valley of Fear, published later, but chronologically occurring before “The Final Problem” alludes to Holmes’ suspicion of a criminal mastermind still on the loose.

 

In this adventure, Holmes’ arrives at Watson’s home visibly perturbed and slightly injured. Holmes relates his long-held suspicion.

As you are aware, Watson, there is no one who knows the higher criminal world of London so well as I do. For years past I have continually been conscious of some power behind the malefactor, some deep organizing power which forever stands in the way of the law, and throws its shield over the wrong-doer. Again and again in cases of the most varying sorts—forgery cases, robberies, murders—I have felt the presence of this force, and I have deduced its action in many of those undiscovered crimes in which I have not been personally consulted. For years I have endeavoured to break through the veil which shrouded it, and at last the time came when I seized my thread and followed it, until it led me, after a thousand cunning windings to ex-Professor Moriarty of mathematical celebrity.

 

Holmes further relates that he has set a perfect trap for the villain and it only awaits critical timing. The challenge for Holmes at the moment is to stay alive. Moriarty knows Holmes is on his trail and is bent on killing him.

 

This isn’t the most fascinating, nor exciting Sherlock Holmes adventure. Watson, and the reader, just have to trust Holmes both for the case and the trap that he has set for the villain.

 

And the climax, well—no one sees it. But the evidence is certain. Holmes has foiled Moriarty, who will no longer plague humanity, any more than Holmes will protect it.

 

¹ The Annotated Sherlock Holmes attempts to put all of Sherlock Holmes’ cases into their proper, fictional, chronological order.

² The Boscombe Valley Adventure

 

 

The Ascent of Rum Doodle — novel #254

The Ascent of Rum Doodle — To climb Mount Blanc is one thing; to climb Rum Doodle is quite another. ~ O. Totter 

• by W. E. Bowman
• Comic Novel, British Literature
• Published: 1956
• My edition: Pimlico paperback, 2001 (not pictured) with an introduction by Bill Bryson
• Setting: The slopes of Rum Doodle
• Title #23 of 50 for The Classics Club Challenge – Round IV

 

In the 1950s an eminent group intrepid adventurers sets out to climb the world’s highest peak: Rum Doodle, 40,000 and a half feet, in remote Yogistan. I don’t believe the book ever states it explicitly, but I had the distinct impression this was a British expedition. Who else could be described as intrepid? The expedition consists of the standard group of experts:

 

Burley – supplies

Wish – scientist

Shute – photographer

Jungle – radio expert and pathfinder

Constant – linguist

Prone – doctor

Binder – expedition leader and unreliable narrator

 

That’s the last serious thing I can say about this book, and in truth, even the names are subtle puns. The cast of characters is completed by several thousand, yes thousand, Yogistani porters, and the cook Pong, who has supernatural ability to make any food stuffs unrecognizable and inedible.

 

As I say, it’s a comic novel and nothing goes as planned. All of the experts are astonishingly inept. Burley is lazy, Wish is just silly, Shute always misses the shot, Jungle is lost in his own tent, Constant makes disastrous Yogistani translations and Prone is perpetually sick. There are gags, puns, ironies, and pratfalls on every page, but the funniest gimmick was the Yogistani porters. They would routinely be sent up and down the mountain on errands, a duty they accomplished with ease, all in support of the historic feats of the august adventurers.

 

Another bit I liked was the oft repeated saying of the enigmatic mountaineer O. Totter. At various points of impasse, someone would quote Totter’s sage surmise that…

To climb Mount Blanc is one thing; to climb Rum Doodle is quite another.

At this the adventurers would, Ah! and Yes! and Indeed! and be visibly revived by Totter’s wisdom

 

Rum Doodle feels like the story Jerome K. Jerome would write, if he were to write a mountain climbing adventure. Indeed, one of the porters is seen reading a Yogistani translation of Three Men in a Boat.

 

I envied him, because that book was funnier than this book. Rum Doodle is often described as hilarious, laugh-a-minute, or as the cover of my version says: One of the funniest books you will ever read.

 

For me, not so much. It was funny, just not laugh-out-loud funny. It may not have aged well, and the subject matter is rather esoteric. I understand that in mountaineering circles it is a cult classic and widely celebrated. There are numerous Rum Doodle namesakes worldwide including Rumdoodle Peak in Antarctica (official) and Rum Doodle Ridge of Pike’s Peak (unofficial).

 

I give it 3 stars

 

  

I learned a new phrase from this book. When mountain climbers are pondering a particular peak, and their chance of conquering it, they are apt to ask…

Will it go?

 

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Gilgamesh: A New English Translation

The Epic of Gilgamesh — The oldest story in the world

• Author Unknown
• Epic Poem
• Written: 2100 – 1200 B.C.
• Adapted by: Stephen Mitchell
• My edition: Atria Books (eBook), 2004
• Setting: Ancient Mesopotamia and mythical locations

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic poem regarding King Gilgamesh of the Great Walled City, Uruk. He is the son of mortal King Lugalbanda and the goddess Ninsun, also known as Lady Wildcow (ya’d think a goddess wouldn’t stand for that). Gilgamesh is described as enormous and radiant, the text is never precise about his size, but he could travel three days and nights, without rest and cover the distance that ordinary men would travel in six weeks. He is an arrogant and ruthless ruler. The goddess Aruru creates Enkidu — as Gilgamesh’s mirror image and opposite, intending that wild and powerful Enkidu could challenge Gilgamesh and cause him to be a more gracious and beneficent ruler.

 

There are some preliminary events leading up to the challenge, rather mature content, though not graphic or explicit, but the two do indeed fight. I’ll spare the spoiler, but after their contest they become fast friends and set off on a dangerous mission to kill the dread monster Humbaba and other exploits. Eventually Gilgamesh becomes obsessed with finding the legendary man, Utnapishtim who survived the worldwide deluge, by building a large vessel, and taking earth’s creatures aboard to save them. Sound familiar? Gilgamesh believes Utnapishtim can give him the secret to eternal life, since the gods granted it to Utnapishtim after his heroics to save the creatures of Earth.

 

Technically, I didn’t read The Epic of Gilgamesh; I read Stephen Mitchell’s adaptation. I started with a literal interpretation, but it was very scholarly, with many notes, gaps, and repetitions due to slightly differing source tablets. It was very fragmentary and not very coherent. So, I switched to the adaptation, which eliminates the scholarly material and fills in the gaps. I recommend it, if you want a smooth narrative.

 

For me, the story was just ok, not The Odyssey. It’s pretty simple, pretty blunt, not a lot of drama. It does touch relatable themes of love, friendship, grief, and fear of death. It’s historically significant due to an early civilization that held a legend of a worldwide flood and a Noah character, written long before the Biblical account. That was fascinating. It’s also a pretty short read. You can easily read it in one setting.

 

Have your read this or other versions? What did you think.

 

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Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (1989) — novel #253

The Remains of the Day — One might say, if one considers oneself an astute and worthy judge, that this is a most dignified novel. Indeed.

• by Kazuo Ishiguro
• Postmodern, British novel
• Published: 1989
• My edition: Vintage Books (eBook)
• Awards: Booker Prize for Fiction 1989 
• Setting: England, 1957
• Also by this author (that I’ve read): Never Let Me Go

Mr. Stevens is the butler at Darlington Hall, a fictitious estate near Oxford, where he has served for decades, first to Lord Darlington, and now to the new American owner Mr. Farraday. It will help, should you read this, to envision Anthony Hopkins as Mr. Stevens the first-person narrator. First person, though Mr. Stevens often refers to himself in third person, ‘oneself’, very dignified, all that. Indeed Mr. Stevens considers dignity the preeminent quality that “separates a great butler from a merely competent one.”

 

Mr. Stevens has devoted extensive thought on this subject. And while he agrees with the position of the Quarterly of the Gentleman’s Gentleman, that…

…the most critical criterion is that the applicant be possessed of a dignity in keeping with his position.

He has some of his own opinions as well.

A ‘great’ butler can only be, surely, one who can point to his years of service and say that he has applied his talents to serving a great gentleman—and through the latter, to serving humanity.

There is apparently an unofficial Hall of Fame for English butlers. At least, there is a consensus among those in the profession of who the greats are. Mr. Stevens refers to a couple of these luminaries on more than one occasion as the well-known and indisputable standards of greatness. It is clear that Mr. Stevens aspires to this level of excellence and indeed, considers himself not far from this stratum.

 

Minor spoiler alert: Although it is not apparent at first, Mr. Stevens is an unreliable narrator. In the beginning, he expresses himself with such dignity and conviction, the reader has no reason to doubt his truthfulness or wisdom. But slowly, very slowly it becomes apparent that Mr. Stevens is perhaps deluding himself. And maybe, at some level, he is painfully aware of his own delusion. This was a brilliant part of the novel for me. Some authors hit you with surprise twists without warning, but Ishiguro lets it creep up on the reader, along with the changing sympathies it brings. It is a masterful tale with themes of dignity, loyalty, and self-perception.

 

It isn’t exactly action-packed. It could be alternately titled, The Butler’s Holiday, and I would be tempted to pass it by. Well, truthfully I have—for years. But now that I’ve read it, I certainly appreciate it.

 

My rating  4 out of 5 stars

 

 

Speaking of the title, it comes from the observations of an unnamed fellow domestic that Mr. Stevens meets, while sitting by the sea shore near sundown. The gentleman remarks…

You’ve got to enjoy yourself. The evening’s the best part of the day.

I think I enjoyed this a bit more than Never Let Me Go also by Ishiguro. Have you read The Remains of the Day? Ishiguro? What else would you recommend by Ishiguro or by other authors with similar themes?

 

A few other amusing excerpts, all the opinions of Mr. Stevens.

It is sometimes said that butlers only truly exist in England. Other countries, whatever title is actually used, have only manservants. I tend to believe this is true.

Continentals are unable to be butlers because they are as a breed incapable of the emotional restraint which only the English race are capable of.

The butler’s pantry, as far as I am concerned, is a crucial office, the heart of the house’s operations, not unlike a general’s headquarters during a battle...

After Stevens makes an attempt at  'banter', a skill he convinces himself he must learn for interacting with the new American master of Darlington Hall... 

I followed this with a suitably modest smile to indicate without ambiguity that I had made a witticism, since I did not wish Mr. Farrady to restrain any spontaneous mirth he felt out of a misplaced respectfulness.

 It didn't work.

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1,000 Books to Read Before You Die by James Mustich

1,000 Books to Read Before You Die — Not just a coffee table
book

• By James Mustich
• A book about books
• Published: 2018
• Workman Publishing Co., Inc  

My daughter gifted me this book several years ago, and I thought it was a cool book to flip through now and then. I’m an albumiphile—a lover of lists. (I invented that word, seriously!) So, this is a nice book to refer to, but not something to read cover to cover. And then one day, for some reason, I started doing just that and found it completely engrossing.

 

It's really a delightful read. Not just a coffee table book, not even just a reference book. It is sorted alphabetically by author, not sub-divided into genres. So one moment I was smugly reminiscing while reading the description of some novel I’d already read, the next finding a must-read biography, the next learning of collection of short stories, or the collected letters between two famous, or infamous, persons, or a dozen other categories. The narrative itself, by James Mustich is lovely and powerful prose. Introducing one book he writes…

For the best writers, words are tools for apprehending meaning. How those tools are shaped and sharpened by enthusiasm and experience; how their use matures from awkwardness to grace through study, labor, and luck; how they weather circumstance and setback, inspiration and inhibition—these are tales that make, for book lovers, vivid reading.

To date, I’ve read 165 of the books mentioned within 1,000 Books. I’ll never read them all, but I’ve added about a hundred titles to my TBR list, including several genres I don’t typically read. It also prompted me to move several novels higher on my reading plan. And then, there were some, I definitely surmised, were not for me. That’s a useful function too.

 

It’s definitely worth a read, whether you read about 1 or 2 books at a sitting, or binge the entire thing in a week, as I did.

 

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