It’s official: I give up. I’ve waded through the first part of Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote, but after a few chapters of the second part I gave up. I just can’t do this any more. It’s too tedious. You have that hidalgo Don Quixote, who has gone so raving mad from reading too many… Read more »
Yearly Archives: 2016
Seen Live: a balladeer @ De Vereeniging
Marinus’ slightly over an hour long, slightly more upbeat that usual solo set on the lovely terrace of De Vereeniging was the 22nd time I saw him (with or without band) perform. So, ehm, did I say his new record A Wolf at the Door is ace? No? Well, it is ace. Here’s the final… Read more »
First Lines: Inferno
Inferno, or, “How Renowned Symbologist Robert Langdon Dutifully Rushes Through Another Improbable Plot” is the fourth of Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon novels, and the third one to be turned into a massive blockbuster. Years ago, I read the first two in the series (The DaVinci Code and Angels and Demons, the later of which is… Read more »
First Lines: Held van beroep (reread)
Upon finishing The Count of Monte Cristo I needed something light to get ready for the next big read I had planned. Adriaan Jaeggi’s Held van beroep was perfect for that. Ten years ago, I picked up this book because I was becoming fairly obsessed with a balladeer. Their song Swim with Sam was a… Read more »
First Lines: The Count of Monte Cristo
Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo is an epic story, in many senses of the word. It’s a adventurous tale — but not a poem, natch — of a legendary figure, in the heroic manner. Also, reading it might seem like an exceptionally long and arduous task or activity, given its length: the edition… Read more »