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The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

Recently I reread the novella Metamorphosis. I cannot help but identify with Gregor Samsa. Not in body, but in spirit. He used to be so self-sufficient and then he woke up one morning in the form of a hideous vermin. The first time I read it, I could half understand it.

You need a certain degree of knowledge of the English language in order to understand it. In my opinion, it is better to read it in English than in Spanish. English is closer to the original German language. Thus, it makes for a better translation.

When I first read it in Spanish, the narrator gave me the impression that Gregor was a tiny roach. Near the end, I came to realize that he was giant hideous vermin. As I read the Spanish version, I kept asking to myself " why do they have to move the furniture for one tiny bug?". But alas, Gregor is one huge bug.

The Metamorphosis also affected Gregor's family (though their change was only gradual). The sister used to be weak and useless, but she became independent and hard working after Gregor's "accident".

I felt really bad by the meek fashion that Gregor spoke to Mr Manager. I bet a lot of folks can identify with his situation. Most workers fear being fired after taking a leave of absence. Heck, Gregor despite his hideous form was only concerned about the fact that he had missed the first bus.

I truly do wonder what sort of "premonition" Gregor had about his transformation. It's funny how he told Mr. Manager that he sorta felt he was gonna become a roach. That must have been one hell of a premonition. Kafka certainly took medias rex to a whole new level. I guess in the end it does not matter (storyline wise) why or how he became a roach. Still, it is a pretty interesting concept.

Many of you might wonder why a roach. Allow me to tell you. Roaches are the most repulsive animal in existence. This bug is unworthy of being pitied. When one sees a roach, one would never think twice about squashing it. Frankly, the beginning was far more interesting. This book is truly quite the lovely quick read. Perfect gift for someone who was struck by lightning. 

Amok by Stefan Zweig

They say that you meet interesting people on cruise ships. This modernist story proves it. The main character goes on a third-class cruise. After struggling to sleep under the gentle hum of the ventilator bat, he goes up deck and meets a mysterious smoker.

Under the dim light of the twinkling stars, our main character hears a gruesome tale of love and repressed desires. The mysterious smoker was once a doctor in India. He used to be a doctor in Britain.

However, his control freak lover girl caused him to lose his job. He then was forced to take a doctor position in India. As a colonist doctor, it was his duty to treat the colonizers and to enjoy all the native ladies he desired. Eventually, he met the case that sealed his fate.

A pretty colonizer lady asked him for an abortion. Her arrogant attitude reminded him of his old girlfriend. As payment for the abortion (abortions being illegal back then), he asked her to sleep within.

The moment he requested this she left. Too late did he remember his Hippocratic oath (never to use a doctor's skill to harm others). From then on, the story goes downhill. The doctor compares his chase after the lady to amok.

In India, they call it amok when a person runs amok, in mad rage. That person is focused on one thing only and he kills anything in sight. He only stops when he drops dead of dehydration (or when someone else kills him). Truly, this is one novella worth reading.

The vocabulary is bit above average. However, the narration flows easily. All details are purposeful. The book follows after the modernist style, a European in a faraway land. It shows how crazy and derange one gets in a foreign climate. 

The Perfume by Patrick Suskind

"The Perfume" is one of the few contemporary books that I actually like. Basically, this book Chronicles the life and death of the serial killer Grenouille. From his humble birth at the disgusting fish market, Grenoille rose to become the most notorious perfume maker. His secret ingredient being the essence of virgin women.

This book is built around the sense of smell. There are a lot of detail that appeal to our sense of smell. The style is fluid and easy to understand.

In addition, it carries a dark, sarcastic, cruel sense of humor. So, if you are tired of reading smelly books, then this one is the one for you to read. Plus, it teaches you how to make perfume.

 

The Machine Stops by E.M. Forster Review

This is a chilling short story about what happens if humans become too dependent on technology. For being a short story written in 1909, its vision was pretty accurate. Humankind isolated from one another (only connected by a "computer").

In the world described by Forster, the mind has finally triumph over the body. This sounds peachy, except that if your baby is born too strong... he is slain!! In Forster futuristic world, all that matters is a weak body that is adapted to the sedentary, machine-driven lifestyle of this new world. It sounds cruel, it sounds logical!! Religion is no more. All that matter is cold logic.

Our main character is an old School teacher. Her son Kuno was born a bit stronger than the others. He was having an existential crisis because he was not chosen to mate.

Kuno wanted a child badly. However, he had to content himself with his meditation on "The Machine". Kuno one days calls his mother (he wanted to see her in the flesh. This was unusual because the last time she held him was at birth) and tells her that he had gone outside.

Outside the Machine that keeps all humans all over the world connected their lives humans in the natural world. Kuno met these humans. They were stronger, like us. He told his mother about his experience outside. She was shocked and distressed at her son's audacity. She realized that this was due to the fact her boy was too strong to live in the Machine.

Shacking her mother's concerns, he spoke to her about the first time he realized that the machine made a sound (You known HuMMMMMMM). It makes sense. I stop hearing after a while repetitive sounds.

In any case, Kuno noticed the sound of The Machine after hearing something else for a change. Anyhow, some time passed, and The Cult of the Machine came about. People started carrying around the manual (aka The Book) of the Machine as if it was a Bible.

To make matters worse, the Machine started malfunctioning. Kuno who still went to the outside (he stayed on top of the ventilation vents because he could not breathe the outside air) notice that the Maintenance Machine was broken. It was only a matter of time until The Machine Stops.

The story ends with the death of the main character. In her last days, the Machine Stops. Due to humans over dependance on the Machine they could not survive without it. "The Book" did not account for the eventuality of Maintenance Machine's demise.

It worked well for thousands of years while those Machines kept the Main Machine working. Now, all humanity is dying. In the chaos that followed the destruction of the Machine, Kuno and his mother reunite in the flesh once more. With their arms around each other, they watched as the Machine gave its last breath. The fake white sky finally opened revealing the stars that humanity for so long ignored.

As they started to die, Kuno's mother wondered if mankind had learned its lesson. Kuno reaffirmed her that they had. The End!! Well, the moral lesson is that one should not be too overdependent on the Machine.

In the end, the humans that inherited the earth were those that disdained the Machine the first time it was built. They lived outside the Machine, waiting for it to die. Well, the modern equivalent of this situation is the Matrix. It's hard to believe that a Futuristic story like this was written in the 1909. Bummer...

 

The Small Worlds in the Little Prince

After meditating a bit, I decided to change my form in matters of rating books. For long books, I will focus on the particulars. With shorter writing, well... there is no freaking way to focus on small things (because they are so tiny as it is). Before I begin, I wanted to tell a bit about this character.

The Little Prince is a character from "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. This book is a notorious children's classic. It is speaking to both the child and the parent who reads this book to their lil kids. It's more of a family time book, than anything else.

I guarantee that the parents will enjoy reading this lil book to their kids. As for me, I read it from time to time, even though I am already a Big Girl (hehehehe). Anyhow, I wanted to talk about the small worlds (aka other Asteroids) around the asteroid of the Little Prince.

These tiny worlds serve as critique for the lifestyle of the adults. Well, the first tiny world (or asteroid) visited by the lil prince was inhabited by a King. He assumed that the lil Prince was his second subject (the first being a rat living on the other side of the asteroid).

According to the author, all kings assumed that those beneath them are their followers. His King was far wiser than the Kings and Queens of our world. He only gave orders that he knew his followers could perform. In our world, Kings order and you better obey!!!

The wise king in the Lil Prince is the ideal autocrat. However, when it comes to selfish requests even a wise King goes against his teachings. The King was lonely, so he ordered the Little Prince to stay (even after the Little Prince told him that he had to get going).

Well, with great powers there is always the possibility of abuse. The King also serves as a model for all who hold any office of powers. These kinds of adults want their position of power to be recognized (in the form of obedience). You can see, a King as such, from a store manager to a Dictator.

The second planet was inhabited by a Narcissist. According to the author, narcissists (or Conceited men) assume that all other people are their admirers. One sees those kinds of adults all over the place. You know, those that are always hunting for praises regarding all; from their looks to their so called "talents". All he asked of the Little Prince was to clap and then he would salute him with his hat.

The Prince was perplexed by this guy's obsession with being admire. Now that I think about it, I am a little conceited (bordering on Narcissistic). I do love hearing that my work is perfect and sublime... Then again, as the Prince states, what does one get from being admired? Well, I guess that is a question for pop stars. Hehehehe!!

The third planet was inhabited by a drunkard. He drank because he was ashamed of drinking. That redundant logic can easily be applied to all addicts (who are at the end of the line). This reminds me a bit of Hotel California. Some drank to remember, others to forget.

The sadness is that drinking (eczetera, ect.) never really makes the shame go away. It just makes it worse. Needless to say, the Little Prince left this asteroid quickly because the Drunkard was making him really depressed (I cannot blame him).

The fourth lil world was inhabited a Businessman. He was counting the stars in order to claim ownership of them. He wanted to amass as many stars as possible to buy more stars. The Little Prince saw him as not different from the drunkard. We see men like that every day. This planet in specific requires no explanation.

Well, the only adult that made sense to the Little Prince was the Lamplighter. That man lives in a very tiny world that spun too quickly. The Little Prince spent almost 100 days (of the tiny world) in that place. Since the days passed so quickly, the Lamplighter was forced to turn the lights on and off all the time.

Most would have neglected their duties; however, he was faithful to his employment. I admire duty. It works pretty well. One sees duty in soldiers, police officers, firefighters ect. You know, our modern-day warrior class. They are great chaps.

The final world was inhabited by a geographer. He saw the Little Prince as an explorer. He asked him to tell him about his world. The little Prince mentioned his volcanoes and his flower. The Geographer was more interested in the Volcanoes.

It was in this little planet that the Little Prince learned that his flower was ephemeral. Meaning, that there was a big chance that his flower would disappear very soon. It seems that the geographer represents the scholarly society of the time.

They spent all their times writing books and never experience the things they wrote about. It seems that I belong to this cast. After all, I do not experience most of the things I write about. Well, experiencing things is on my to do list.

In any case, these are all the small worlds that the Little Prince visited. The final world was the earth. He found in that place all those kinds of adults mentioned in those little worlds. I hope that you like this lil blog of mine.

I suggest that you read the Little Prince regardless of your age. It is pretty neat. You know, the way this book is written it makes it seem that the Little Prince is a hallucination of the narrator.

This story was based on the hallucination that the author experienced in the desert when his plane crash. One sees very strange things when the desert sun is boiling your brains out (although dehydration is mostly to blame for seeing things). 

H.G. Wells The Island of Dr. Moreau Book Review

I read this book last week. It is fresh in my mind. It's been ages since I read a good book. You may already be familiar with the book. I see hundreds of parodies and movies of this book. However, the pop versions are a mere caricature of the real thing.

Just like the Phantom of the Opera, the media has ruined the true vision of the book. Thus, if you want to read something creepy this is the book for you. The thing about H.G. Wells is that he writes well when he is inside his element. His books start getting cheapo when his imagination runs amok.

This book is based on true events. When it was written, the Great Scientists of Europe were arguing about the morality of vivisection. Vivisection is like dissection, but you are still alive. This was used to study the components of all living beings.

Obviously, the debate did not concerned Vivisection of humans. This was obviously illegal. The matter concerned the vivisection of animals. In any case, H.G. Wells's Dr. Moreau is a talented vivisector. The main character ends up on his Island, after Dr. Moreau's assistant Montgomery saves him from a shipwreck. Montgomery was transporting new animals for Dr. Moreau.

His latest experiment involved the vivisection of a Puma. The rest is history. I really do recommend this book. It will change the way you look at humans, science and the Law of men. It is the work of a sick and twisted mind. My favorite scene is the recitation of the law by Dr. Moreau's chimeras. Plus, the hunt of the Leopard man who had taste human blood. H.G. Wells The Island of Dr. Moreau is a must-read book. 

The phantom of the opera by Gaston Leroux Book Review

Like many classics, the popular media has tamed the Phantom of the Opera. Today, he is a mere shadow of his true self. The true phantom is a twisted psychopath. He also has a true human name. This book is bathed with the air of a true event. Gaston Leroux spends most of the book trying to prove that O.G. is not a Phantom. He tells the story via memoirs and letters.

However, the narration and dialogues are easy to follow. The entire book is bathed with an air of mystery. Leroux also has sick sense of humor that is quite delightful. This is Leroux one and only masterpiece. There are writers who write many good works.

However, there are others who write only one masterpiece. Leroux is of this kind. When silent theater came about, The Phantom of the Opera was adapted for film. This first version was more in tune with the original book. It had the Persian, for starters. Plus, the torture chamber. The book explains many mysteries, like why O.G. wanted the 20,000 francs a month. He was using them to buy something sinister.

I noticed that most revisions of this book change the ending a lot. Some try to redeem The Phantom. In other versions, an angry mob slays the Phantom. In the new version, the Phantom did not die. He strayed like an ominous being looking after Christine.

As a matter of fact, O.G. left a flower on top of Christine's grave. He ends up like a real supernatural being. The true ending of the Phantom of the Opera lies within this book. It is a most read.

Don Quixote Book 1 and 2 by Miguel de Cervantes Review

These books are known far and wide. I do not need to tell you they are good. You already know the caliber of Don Quixite's lance. Don Quixote is a misunderstood character. Many editions, summaries and translation have dwarfed his true message.

For our purposes, the English version has been quite misunderstood. I remember that the Dean of History called Don Quixote a religious book. However, how can Don Quixote be religious if he spent most of the books attacking monks? Plus, he did not care about being excommunicated from the church. He practically said that knights were above the church.

The entire book is a satire to everything that is Spanish. DonQuixote stands for the sinking nobility. We are familiar with his role-playing game. Cosplaying is quite popular, even today. Among other interesting things is Don Quixote fraternizing with criminals. His treatment of them bears semblance to the behavior of Jesus. Thus, he is also a satire to Jesus Christ. 

This book also critiques the ill treatment of Crazy people. In book 2, Don Quixote's family tells him a story of a nutcase. The man really was not crazy. However, his family had paid madhouse to keep him locked up. They wanted his inheritance. When he said sarcastically that he was Poseidon, the owners of the madhouse refused to release him.

In those days, mad people where toys of the noblemen. Many a times people planned pranks against Don Quixote just to hear him rave. This book also fostered an interesting ploy.

Whenever Cervantes wants to say something against the church, he has Don Quixote say it. This technique became popular in writings before the coming of Martin Luther. Oh, and F.Y.I. Don Quixote really was not crazy. When he took off his armor at the noble's castle. He saw that his sock had a hole. This reminded him of who he truly was.

For these many reasons, you have to read this book very carefully. This book became a prototype for all future Spanish novels. It has too layers. On the surface its hilarious. Beneath this satire lie very important social issues.

It takes many important subjects like the nature of salvation and what is true insanity. Needless to say, what Cervantes considers true insanity is to let oneself die. That is the last lesson give in Book 2 of Don Quixote. For this reason, I read this book many times. Each time I read it I discover something new. 

The Comedians by Graham Greene Book Review

Before Fidel Castro started terrorizing Cuba, there was Doctor Francois Duvalier.  He is the infamous Papa Doc who used his Voodoo magic to retain power in Haiti. He is one of the few tyrants who was able to pass the scepter to his son.

The Comedians takes place in Haiti during the reign of this terrible monster. This book got Graham Greene in trouble with Papa Doc. So much so, that Papa Doc sent him a Voodoo curse. It's a good thing Greene countered this curse with a blessing from his Catholic priest.

My point being is that this book gives you a good perceptive of Papa Doc Haiti. The main character is a foreigner who owns a hotel in Port au' Prince. On his return to Haiti, he meets the other main characters. In this book, we encounter the terrible Boogieman Zombie soldiers of Papa Doc.

Graham Greene also narrates in full detail a Voodoo ritual. Whenever there was war brewing, Ogun was summoned. The main character saw a summoning ritual of this Lwa. They were asking his aid to defeat Papa Doc and his Baron Sambi.

Well, the book has a knack for going from bad to worse. You know, a book titled The Comedians sounds hilarious. However, this book is anything, but funny. It basically refers to the day-to-day comedy of life. We each have to play our roles and do the best we can.