Black (The Circle Series)

Although I am reluctant to make even the slightest comparison between this book and China Mieville's The City & The City, it did somehow remind me of Mieville's book because of the topic of duplicity. Alternate realities, a person being on both worlds. This book, however, made me feel like there were many things missing. The diction, the way sentences were phrased, were frequently so childish that it did make me uncomfortable at times.
       What was more enjoyable - to me - was the idea that the protagonist, Tom Hunter, went through two worlds in his dreams. One "dream" was Earth, and the other "dream" was another Earth, not being able to decide whether one of them was fiction and if so which one was the true reality. It was enjoyable because this is how real life is in my mind. At my job I interact with people of whom I do not know their lives, but we still create this reality that we all share at the office but when I am with someone else, say my friends from university, the reality of me being at work might as well be a dream because no one else participates in it neither knows about it. It feels as if we all live different realities and whenever we tell another person of our lives it is no different from telling one of our dreams.
       That was it. The rest was just trivial, immature, and simple. Unlike other books of fiction that I have read, like The Da Vinci Code, I was not enthralled by "Black" and it felt like Ted Dekker did not reread his book to give more detail, or more thought to the way he prashed the dialogues between the characters. Right now, it seems quite unlikely that I will read the rest of the series, but one never knows, the future is surprisingly random.

How To Be a Gentleman

"3. A gentleman always carries a handkerchief, and is ready to lend it, especially to a weeping lady, should the need arise." (Bridges, J. How To Be a Gentleman. p. xv. United States of America: Thomas Nelson, 2008).

       I chose the previous quote because it was the first rule I learnt, and it was thanks to my friend César who told it to me even before I bought this book. Being a gentleman can mean many things, but this book does a good job at teaching good manners. There are, perhaps, some rules that may seem like they do not fit the real world - because they require a massive amount of commitment to being a gentleman and, ultimately, we all fall into errors - but I think we should all strive to follow these rules as a guidance in life to being polite.

       At times, it has funny remarks. This book is an imperative read for every man who wants to live a good life. We should all learn how to behave in society. I highly recommend this book.

Tender Is The Night

"Of course there is," he said impatiently. "Dick sees it's over between you two - it's obvious he has quit. What does he expect you to do?" (Fitzgerald, F. S. K., Tender Is The Night. p. 300. United States of America: Scribner).

        This book at first seemed to me yet another typical story of infidelities and broken love. The more I ponder about it, the more complex it becomes in my mind. Toward the end I was undoubtedly enjoying it much more. Once again it feels like Providence put this book in my life exactly when I needed to read it, though, perhaps this is another trick that my mind is playing on me. Maybe because of my parent's current situation plus my own current existential crisis, the latter related to my going to see a psychoanalyst and a neuropsychiatrist to help me out of this terrible state I am in.
       I am not sure if the story appears too me as sad, rather I feel numb and confused. The third part of this novel overwhelmed me. Right now all I can do is wonder in what state of mind was Fitzgerald in to write this kind of novel? I cannot help thinking of Beethoven, because every time I listen to his music I feel like he is immensely furious. This leads me to believe Fitzgerald was more or less of a sad person, with a permanent depression. This tought is reinforced when I think of the other books of his that I have read: The Great Gatsby and The Beautiful and Damned. Why do we suffer so much in life? I am thankful for having read these books because it has helped me realize that I also suffer too much, and this is not how I want to live my life. We are all going to be dead, so why not try to enjoy this finite time we are alive? It is just so hard to do, though. Being on my own has definitely helped. Meditating, doing the things I enjoy, like playing the piano. My advise is to focus on yourselves, because that is what most people unconsciously do anyway. Find a way to get self-generated happiness, inner happiness that does not depend on someone else. Because you never know when that other person is not going to be there to help you and you need to be able to stand on your own.