On the reading pile

I'm actually reading three books at the same time. I don't do this very often, but the three selections are so varied, it feels alright.

Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig

Written while I was still happily gestating in my mother's belly, this classical philosophical text remains relevant despite the 30+ intervening years. It's been an enjoyable read for two reasons: (1) it hearkens back to my university days when philosophy became a sudden new passion, and (2) I feel particularly smart when I understand some complex idea.

Favourite quotes so far:

Stuckness shouldn't be avoided. It's the psychic predecessor of all real understanding.

You are never dedicated to something you have complete confidence in. No one is fanatically shouting that the sun is going to rise tomorrow. They know it's going to rise tomorrow. When people are fanatically dedicated to political or religious faiths or any other kinds of dogmas or goals, it's always because these dogmas or goals are in doubt.

Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts

I admit it - at one point, I was India-ed-out. I had just read a series of novels set in India, and I couldn't do it anymore. Poverty, unrelenting suffering, violence. I picked up this novel on the very strong recommendation of my friend Bram, and I am quite taken with it. Shantaram offers an alternate view of India - from the eyes of a white man living in the slums. The suffering is still there, but it's underpinned with such a broad stroke of hope and survival, that I feel as if I'm finally understanding more about life in India.

Favourite quote so far:

Lovers find their way by such insights and confidences: they're the stars we use to navigate the ocean of desire. And the brightest of those stars are the heartbreaks and sorrows. The most precious gift you can bring to your lover is suffering. So I took each sadness she confessed to me, and pinned it to the sky.

Á ciel ouvert by Nelly Arcan

This book has been laying around my house for quite some time. When the news of Nelly Arcan's death broke, I decided that it was time to read the writings of this much-lauded Quebecois writer. I am only two chapters in, but I have found reason to continue reading. The subject is compelling and the writing style is very rich and textured, with many well-worded philosophical abstractions. As French is my third language, the reading process is sometimes sludgy (where's my dictionary?), but I'm going to stick it out.

Favourite quote so far:

Les seins se remarquaient davantage parce que c'était une partie de Rose qui n'avait pas été effacée, qui avait au contraire été emplie, sans démesure, d'une rondeur ferme, haut accrochée et qui donnait l'impression que ses seins étaient un sexe bandé.