Thursday, February 25, 2010
STRIPTEASE, REPEAT PERFORMANCE, AND THE PROPHETS -- Slawomir Mrozek
Grove Press, Inc -- hc
New York -- ©1972 -- 166pp
ISBN: 0-394-48280-8
In Striptease, two characters - one an intellectual, the other an activist - find themselves inside a room where a gigantic hand instructs them to remove their clothes until both act out an elaborate dance of rationalized submission. In Repeat Performance, a middle-aged man on an escapade with his sonÕs young wife encounters a ghost from his own youth - the charismatic political leader to whom he had sworn everlasting allegiance, and whose spirit has now returned to claim either the father or the son. The Prophets tells what happens when two prophets show up to fulfill the prophesies instead of just one. [from Amazon.com]
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It has been ages since I've read any Slawomir Mrozek and I was a little worried that either he, or I, might not have aged too well. Fortunately my fears were unfounded. A good playwright tells a story in a strong fashion, and Mrozek is a good playwright.
Theatre of the Absurd is certainly not something that is commonly popular. In fact, I often wonder if it's only popular as history ... studied after the fact. But while I agree that Mrozek's play are absurdist, I'd rather label them Theatre of Metaphor, for he tends to be telling us something by showing us something slightly different. In "Striptease" we learn about power (the power of a single white glove), imprisonment, and the fear of the unknown.
"The Prophets" is a wonderful, humourous, absurdist metaphor for our popular religions.
"Repeat Performance" is the weakest of the plays in this collection. The only two act play (the others are both one acts) in the book, this one seems to try just a little too hard to make a point. There is little, to no subtext or subplot, but Mrozek wears it all on his sleeve. If we, as an audience, don't have to think about it and say "Ah ha! I think I know what you're doing" then we just don't have fun.
Still, the U.S. and Britain just don't produce fascinating works the way Poland does. Not since Jean-Claude van Itallie have we had a playwright expound so metaphorically.
Monday, February 22, 2010
WOBEGON BOY -- Garrison Keillor
Viking -- hc
New York -- ©1997 -- 305pp
ISBN: 0-670-87807-3
A young man from Lake Wobegon, Minnesota decides to hed for greener, or more active, pastures and moves to Upstate New York. But as most of us know, and the young man must discover, you can take the boy out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the boy.
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Garrison Keillor writes very cleanly. Meaning...his style is simple and direct. There's some purple prose, and he does veer from stating a point to describing an event or character that is only marginally related to what he was initially writing about, but he does bring it back on topic. If you are familiar with his PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION radio show, then this isn't anything new to you.
I chuckled, I laughed out loud, I recognized myself more than once. It was a pleasant way to pass some reading time. But I didn't necessarily become enriched or enlightened in any way. Does one need to become enriched or enlightened? No. But once I finished reading it, it was already a book that I knew I wouldn't be thinking about again. In a year or so, I'll wonder if I ever read it. It's just not memorable.
How do you rate a book like that? It wasn't bad, but you never really care about anyone or any thing that's happening. It's a very middle-or-the-road book. So you give it a middle-of-the-road rating.
Three stars.
If you like Keillor's radio show, specifically the News From Lake Wobegon segment, then you'll probably enjoy this book. If you're new to Keillor, maybe this isn't the place to start.
New York -- ©1997 -- 305pp
ISBN: 0-670-87807-3
A young man from Lake Wobegon, Minnesota decides to hed for greener, or more active, pastures and moves to Upstate New York. But as most of us know, and the young man must discover, you can take the boy out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the boy.
#####
Garrison Keillor writes very cleanly. Meaning...his style is simple and direct. There's some purple prose, and he does veer from stating a point to describing an event or character that is only marginally related to what he was initially writing about, but he does bring it back on topic. If you are familiar with his PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION radio show, then this isn't anything new to you.
I chuckled, I laughed out loud, I recognized myself more than once. It was a pleasant way to pass some reading time. But I didn't necessarily become enriched or enlightened in any way. Does one need to become enriched or enlightened? No. But once I finished reading it, it was already a book that I knew I wouldn't be thinking about again. In a year or so, I'll wonder if I ever read it. It's just not memorable.
How do you rate a book like that? It wasn't bad, but you never really care about anyone or any thing that's happening. It's a very middle-or-the-road book. So you give it a middle-of-the-road rating.
Three stars.
If you like Keillor's radio show, specifically the News From Lake Wobegon segment, then you'll probably enjoy this book. If you're new to Keillor, maybe this isn't the place to start.
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
THE UNICORN CHRONICLES BOOK ONE: INTO THE LAND OF UNICORNS -- Bruce Coville
Scholastic, Inc. -- hc
New York -- ©1994 -- 159pp
ISBN: 0-590-45955-4
autographed
A young girl is sent to Luster ... a world where unicorns reign ... by her grandmother. The girl discovers that her grandmother had many secrets related to this world ... secrets which only slowly reveal themselves as the girl begins a journey with the unicorns.
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Bruce Coville is one of the best fantasy writers out there. Because he tends to write toward the younger market, many adults aren't familiar with him, which is a shame.
I first read this many years ago, when I was reading children's books at a tremendous rate. It's possible that this was one of the first Coville books I read. I immediately became enchanted by the book and by Coville's work, which I have sought out on a regular basis.
This book came off the shelf again the other day as I was looking for something to read aloud to my boys (ages 10 & 12) at bedtime. Although both will read on their own, they enjoy having me read to them. I chose this book because I knew they weren't likely to read it on their own (unicorns and a female protagonist made this seem a little too 'girly' for them). They absolutely loved it!
It was hard to stop at night, because both boys would want 'just one more chapter'.
Coville does a good job here by making the unicorns male, to balance the fact that the main human character is female. Throw in a creature that resembles a half man, half bear; a Disney-ish squirrel-like creature called a Squijum; a dwarf, a dragon, and a whole glory of unicorns, and you have one of the most unique fantasy stories around.
The book is a quick and easy read, and we're already well in to book #2.
New York -- ©1994 -- 159pp
ISBN: 0-590-45955-4
autographed
A young girl is sent to Luster ... a world where unicorns reign ... by her grandmother. The girl discovers that her grandmother had many secrets related to this world ... secrets which only slowly reveal themselves as the girl begins a journey with the unicorns.
#####
Bruce Coville is one of the best fantasy writers out there. Because he tends to write toward the younger market, many adults aren't familiar with him, which is a shame.
I first read this many years ago, when I was reading children's books at a tremendous rate. It's possible that this was one of the first Coville books I read. I immediately became enchanted by the book and by Coville's work, which I have sought out on a regular basis.
This book came off the shelf again the other day as I was looking for something to read aloud to my boys (ages 10 & 12) at bedtime. Although both will read on their own, they enjoy having me read to them. I chose this book because I knew they weren't likely to read it on their own (unicorns and a female protagonist made this seem a little too 'girly' for them). They absolutely loved it!
It was hard to stop at night, because both boys would want 'just one more chapter'.
Coville does a good job here by making the unicorns male, to balance the fact that the main human character is female. Throw in a creature that resembles a half man, half bear; a Disney-ish squirrel-like creature called a Squijum; a dwarf, a dragon, and a whole glory of unicorns, and you have one of the most unique fantasy stories around.
The book is a quick and easy read, and we're already well in to book #2.
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