Current Book: The Ginger Man by J.P. Donleavy
Finally finished The Ginger Man. The stream-of-consciousness did get to me in the end. Actually way before the end....about halfway through. The changing from third to first person perspective didn't bother me, but I could never tell what was going on in the present, what had happened in the past, and what was just in Sebastian's mind.
The book was funny though. I felt sympathy for Sebastian since he is poor and has lots of debts, can't pay them, is running from collectors all the time. In a way I can relate to that. I don't have bill collectors after me, but I do have a lot of debt and no money, and at times I have to borrow from my parents which, for me, is more humiliating than having debt collectors calling, I think.
I think part of the reason I felt so sympathetic was that I've been having a lot of problems with my parents during the time I was reading The Ginger Man. My mom is soooo incredibly nosy, and I've pointed this out to her before, but she just gets mad at me. And she's also the biggest gossip I've ever known, so I know my whole family and all her friends are going to find out about anything I mention to her. As an example of her gossiping, last week her friend's stepson-in-law was killed by a drunk driver in a car wreck. I agree that this is very tragic and sad. BUT I don't think my mom needs to discuss it with my aunt (her sister-in-law), my cousin, her other friends, my grandmother, and basically anyone who will listen! I don't think this family wants to share their grief with the whole world! It's a private matter! I pointed this out, but again my mom just got mad at me. On the other side, my dad is so incredibly lazy I'm amazed he hasn't had a heart attack or a stroke yet. He sat in his chair watching TV and sleeping all day today and actually got upset when my mom asked him to take the trash cans out to the curb. I can't stand it here any more. I'm so glad I'm going up to KC next weekend. I've realized I can only stand to be home with my parents for about a month til I need a vacation. I better start planning for August.
In other news, I picked up the next book, The Postman Always Rings Twice, today. It's actually a short story*, so it's in a collection with some of James Cain's other works. I will probably start it later tonight.
*I don't think The Postman Always Rings Twice is technically a "short story". Wikipedia says a short story is typically one that can be read in one sitting. The Postman Always Rings Twice is 116 pages, so it's plausible that it could be read in one sitting, but I probably won't accomplish that. I thought about calling it a "short novel", but I thought since it's part of a collection it can't really be called a novel can it? Maybe it's a novella. I like that word, so I'll use it for now.
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