Ian McEwan’s Latest Novel is Stunning

Thomas3 Comments

As you can see from my reading list for the year (shown in the left margin of MyPorch) and posts here, here, and here, I love to read. And according to my spreadsheet of books read, I have finished five of Ian McEwan’s twelve novels. All of them have been pretty quirky. They tend to describe unusual and odd circumstances and characters. Yet McEwan has a way of making those oddities seem at least as normal, or as understandable, as they are twisted. His latest book, On Chesil Beach, is no different. Sure it is not twisted in the same way that The Cement Garden is (i.e., entombing a dead mother in cement in the cellar), but it is emotionally disturbing.

Despite their love for each other, the two main characters in On Chesil Beach (two virgins on their wedding night in 1962) lead isolated emotional lives which cause all kinds of complications on their honeymoon. Although their specific circumstances might seem foreign to those of who came of age in the 1980s or later, the challenges they face communicating with each other can feel awfully familiar. After all, emotion can interfere with even the best interpersonal skills. We have all had those moments where something is said or unsaid–often times unknowingly–that leads to confusion, hurt feelings, or anger. Those moments when language gets in the way of love.

There are other currents at work in this book far more disturbing than bad communication, but I am not going to talk about those issues here. I don’t want to ruin it for you.

The book is at times funny, beautiful, and devastating. Over the course of a year I read books that I end up either hating, tolerating, liking, or loving. And–not being a fan of self-help books–on rarer occasions I read one that grabs me emotionally and gives me something to think about. It is amazing that McEwan is able to do that in this smallish book of 200 pages. Go out and get this book.
SPOILER ALERT: Don’t read the comments left for the post if you want to discover one of the mysteries of the book…

I FOUND A NEW JOB!

Thomas1 Comment

Well, frankly this is old news by now. I have known for a while that I had a new job, but I wanted to wait until it was a little more official before I said anything in this forum. Suffice it to say I am very happy about my new position. Big pay cut, but I envision nothing but blue skies and lollipops.

I QUIT MY JOB!

Thomas4 Comments

Well, yesterday I got an email from a very cool potential employer telling me that he was planning on sending me an offer letter next week once he is back from a work trip. Prudence would have cautioned against taking action before actually getting that offer letter. But Prudence wasn’t around so we ignored her advice. (ha ha)

It’s Here!

Thomas1 Comment

The new novel by the lovely and talented Ann Patchett has finally arrived in bookstores. Despite my vow to not buy anymore books for a while (I have 104 unread books in my nightstand), I couldn’t pass up Patchett’s newest novel Run.

I am not going to read it just yet, I want to savor it. But I did want to make sure I got a first edition of the book before it was too late.

A friend of mine in New York gave me a copy of Patchett’s novel Bel Canto back in 2001. I loved the opera singer angle and thouroughly enjoyed the book. I followed up Bel Canto by reading every other book by her that I could get my hands on. They are all good. One of the great things about Patchett is that she is a writer who writes about things other than becoming or being a writer. Don’t get me wrong I love reading about literary lives, struggling or otherwise, but I am quite impressed by authors who write about worlds that are not noticeably autobiographical.

And I think she is as cute as a button. She looks like the kind of person with whom I want to sit in a cozy cafe drinking hot cocoa and gossiping. I have no idea why I think so. Maybe she just reminds me of friends I have had in my life over the years.

You may remember that this is not the first time I mention Patchett and her work. You can check out posts here and here.

Now do yourself (and Ann) a favor and go out and buy one or two (or all) of her books!

Australia Part IV: The Recap

Thomas2 Comments

This was our first trip to Australia and it exceeded our expectations in every way. The natural beauty of Australia and its beautiful cities were only surpassed by the friendliness of Australian people.

We were also very lucky and had pefect weather everywhere we went. The Austrlian winter (North American summer) is definitely the time to go to the Great Barrier Reef. (In the Australian summer the GBR gets pretty hot and the stinging jelly fish are apparently everywhere.) Melbourne with its chilly, fall-like temps was a wonderful change from summer in DC and the weather in Sydney was perfect for walking around and enjoying the city. The winter shadows also made for some beautiful views throughout our trip.

The quality of life in Australia makes it a little hard to come back to the crumbling, crime-ridden streets of the ‘richest’ country in the world. Australians may be taxed to high heaven, but at least they have something to show for it.

Now if I could only get over this killer jet lag…

Australia Part III: Sydney

ThomasLeave a comment


I am glad we went to Melbourne before we went to Sydney. Melbourne is a wonderful place but Sydney was so fabulous that it would have been a let down if we had gone to Sydney first. Not only that, but if we had reversed the order we would have been rained out in Sydney. But, as it turned out, we had beautiful weather while were in there. They were having unseasonably warm days in the mid-70s.

I know I am prone to hyperbole, but Sydney has got to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I know Travel+Leisure magazine thinks so. I could live in Sydney in a heartbeat–if only it wasn’t located half way around the world.

The pictures above were taken from our hotel room. The views were amazing and we could easily walk downtown, take the CityRail which was right next door, or walk through the great neighborhoods of Potts Point, Paddington, Surry Hills, and Woollahra.
Normally we would not do so, but we ended up staying at the Holiday Inn. We were originally scheduled to stay at a cheapish boutique hotel in the same neighborhood, but the bathroom was so moldy it set off the other Mr. MyPorch’s allergies. Not only was the Holiday Inn close, clean, and comfortable, but the views were great and it only cost $50 more a night than the depressing boutique where we spent our first night. It is making me rethink my automatic bias against big chains.