The Collected Stories of Machado de Assis by Machado de Assis

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I've rated this book 5 stars, how else would you rate Brazil's greatest writer? Assis is to Brazil as Borges is to Argentina and Marquez to Columbia. You can find evidence of the fabulist and the beginnings of magical realism in his work (publishing 1870 - 1906). Not only a medical doctor, he was a highly literate man, fluent in a number of languages and widely read. Literary references abound, and I find influences ranging from Dickens to Poe, if not in subject manner then surely in his narrative voice.

The edition of his work that I've read is a handsome, sewn, hardbound book, and a good thing, for I've taken nearly eight months to read it. There are some 74 stories, plus two excellent introductions by the translators. The stories range in length from a handful of pages to nearly 50 pages.

For the most part, the stories feature middle or upper class characters, preoccupied with romance and their social position. Be forewarned that slaves appear frequently in the stories as minor characters, and Assis treats with them with a casualness that one should expect from a writer from this period.



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Educated by Tara Westover

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I am deeply impressed and incredibly moved.

I pair this work with J.D. Vance's "Hillbilly Elegy." Both books speak to self-reliance and the value of education. Both ask the question "Why did I follow the path not taken by my siblings and peers?" The answer(s) remain unclear. While Vance seems to arrive at the conclusion that he simply pushed harder, Westover credits the assistance of others.

In addition, Westover turns a bright light onto the relationships between men and women outside the usual romantic. She examines her relationship with her father and her brothers, and it seems as though we are all looking just past one another while seeing exactly what we want to see even when all the evidence points to different conclusions.

I found the book powerfully moving, and I'm not easily bent by sentimentality.

P.S. She admits to binging on "Buffy" episodes. I've gotta love that.



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Fresh Complaint by Jeffrey Eugenides

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Well written stories ending with a bit of a twist, though not tricky. Eugenides is developing a reputation as a serious writer of adult fiction. Not afraid to approach some sensitive topics.



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