Gulliver's Travels - Jonathan Swift

Satire is sometimes a thing of beauty, although often satire is a way to take cheap shots without defense. I think Swift's novel is a bit of both. He uses comparisons with imaginary societies to critique governments and individuals without providing support. And yet, the critique is merited and, at the time of writing, difficult to put forth without fear of reprisal. The novel is rarely funny, although it tries to be in places, but it is thought-provoking and provides an outside "objective" perspective that is often difficult to achieve. Overall, I enjoyed it, although I wasn't sad to see it end.

Jungle Book - Rudyard Kipling

My previous experience with the Jungle Book was the Disney movie, which I admit I enjoyed. Kipling's take was a bit deeper, I have to say. The moralistic stories discuss acceptance, learning, role in society, and bravery. Characters are loved for who they are, but at the same time their innate differences (especially in Mowgli's case) still drive them apart in the end. The Jungle Book makes me want to explore India, see for myself the "rule of the jungle." The allegory of the empire is strong, although only slightly critical, and there is a definite favor for the "innate right" of the conquerers. That being said, you can tell Kipling loved India.

Daily Life in the United States, 1920-1940: How Americans Lived Through the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression - David E. Kyvig

This is an interesting history that focuses more on the effects of new technology development and social change of different groups of 'everyman' than on the driving forces behind the history of this tumultuous time. It attempts to sound objective; however, there's a definite progressive slant and very little critique on things that were obvious failings. Every new development is assumed to be an advance from the past (and some definitely were), but this book doesn't discuss in enough detail the long-term effects these decisions had on American culture and way of life. That being said, my timing of reading this book during the current "economic downturn" has certainly given me new perspective on some of the present policy decisions and their potential implications for the future. While government guidelines/regulations and guarantees may help restore customer faith in independent enterprise, indiscriminate government spending (and commercial interest involvement in Washington) has historically not boded well or been effective in economic turn-around.

The Legends of King Arthur and his Knights - Sir James Knowles

Interesting. I've always loved Arthurian legends (knights and adventure and doomed romance), and this version is both fun to read and boring at the same time. It's very medieval both on its focus on religion and the Grail, and completely ignores the more political aspects of the Arthurian stories. The characters are caricatures as well, yet I think the strength of this group of stories lies instead on the insights you can gain into the time period of the author than the subject matter itself.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow - Washington Irving

I've only ever heard this story as a legend or told though television movies. I was quite surprised that rather than a straightforward tale of horror, Sleepy Hollow is a satire on country life and superstition. I really enjoyed the subtle wit and rationality, and loved the wink and the nod ending. In the popularization of Irving's story, so much has been lost!

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - James Joyce

Disclosure: I read this immediately on the coattails of Ulysses and suspect that my relief at the termination of Ulysses may have clouded my feelings for Portrait.

In all, I rather enjoyed this short novel. The life of Stephen Daedalus, which is said to parallel Joyce, is documented from his youth to his development as an artist. I felt like the novel immersed the reader in the trappings of Irish life - boarding school, Catholicism (and a near-Jesuit recruitment), interactions with classmates, Irish nationalism, disaffection, aesthetics.... Relationships with family and friends both play prominent roles in this novel. While perhaps not the vaunted literary masterpiece that Ulysses is reputed to be, Portrait was infinitely more enjoyable.

Ulysses - Joyce

This novel has been, since I was in high school, the only book that I've picked up and not completed. I would hear about how Joyce is one of the greatest novelists of all time, and how Ulysses is his masterpiece, and pick it up again - to no avail. Well, I can say that no longer. I've plodded through this book much to my detriment, but I can now finally say that I've completed it.

So why didn't I like it?

Something about Ulysses just didn't draw me in. Maybe it's too intellectual? (A bit of self-deprecation never hurt anyone, especially when panning a novel with a rabid fanbase.) Honestly, I was just bored. My experience with Ulysses was similar to that of Wuthering Heights. I TRIED to like it, to appreciate it, to look for it's merit. I WANTED to like it. The snob in me wants to be able to talk about its finer points with my "literary" friends. But I just didn't like it. End of story.

I think the primary problem was that I didn't like Bloom. I realize this is blasphemy and am ready to take my lashes. I thought he was boring. I found that I didn't care what he was doing/thinking/feeling. His fantasies, his wife, the funeral... I didn't even get a Every Man feeling from him like I did from Babbit. I could step back and appreciate the literary structure, the storytelling diversity, the Irish focus. And I actually enjoyed reading about Stephen. But every Bloom page flip was painful to me, and I probably spent nearly as much time checking to see how much I had left as I did reading the novel.

I'm sure the Bloom fanatics out there will merely dismiss me as an uneducated buffoon, and I'll gladly listen to any arguments in Ulysses's favor, but for now, I'm just glad that I'm done.