So it turns out I'm not a faithful blogger. Life's been busy. Since the last time I wrote I've read Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson, The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, and The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri.

Housekeeping was melancholy and yet touching in an unconventional sort of way. Robinson portrays humanity in its raw form in the face of tragedy. Something in the way she offers insights into her characters draws you in and makes you feel like you can touch their souls. The bond between Sylvie and Ruth is especially powerful. Their journey together makes transience somehow appealing, even more so when compared with Lucille's haughty and stagnant lifestyle.

I don't know if I can even get into The Bell Jar now. But I can say that in some odd way, reading someone else's story about a personal descent into madness was strangely liberating. Maybe it's the way Plath makes her insanity so accessible to the reader...she does such a marvelous job at making even the darkest of times for Esther seem vivid and practical. I think in some way Plath makes madness a possibility for even the sanest of people.

I have to say, I was slightly disapointed with the ending of The Namesake. Not to sound all sentimental, but I don't think it offered very much hope for love. Gogol, or Nikhil later in the novel, seemed to me a bit void of feelings and a rather empty character. He was more roused at the idea of changing his name then he was at his father's death. His parents exhibit deep emotional ties to their relatives from India throughout the novel, but Gogol just seems to remain numb to emotion towards his family. Even the lovers he encounters preoccupy him for a while, but then he seems to be a passive spectator to the relationship after they end and he shows little remorse. I could be being a bit too harsh, or I could be missing the point, either way though it is my opinion, and overall I still enjoyed the book and plan to watch the movie.


the big philosophical question of the day: Are we born with certain talents and inclinations that we are called to use to bring a purpose to our lives?

Personally I'd like to think yes. I'm tired of resigning to the status quo.