So, after testing this idea for a week, I can assure you that we are sticking to it.

Idea: read books on specific topic for 3 months (a quarter of a year, fiscally speaking) 

I have amassed a number of books on Christianity because of curiosity. My English tutor did his job very well and “converted” me to atheism at the tender age of 12. The culprit was the book “Gadfly”. The train of thought was simple: if the institution was so evil, then the idea behind it (the religion) is meaningless. I have developed a more profound understanding of this world-view since, but curiosity remained. Nothing to justify or to defend, but the cultural and societal impact of Christianity is enormous to this day. 

Thus I have decided to pick several books on this topic and read only those in the upcoming months. As a classical mood reader, this is quite a challenge. On the picture you might notice “I”, as the first thematic quarter, but perfectionism is not welcomed here, so we’ll see, how it works long-term, will there be a "II"? Plus 3 months are arbitrary, I don’t really care how long it might take. This is a passion project, not a prison sentence. 

I started with the general overview by Diarmaid MacCulloch (thank God - pun intended - this is a blog and not a YouTube channel, as I have no idea how to pronounce the name of this really formidable scholar) and have managed to read through the first 3 chapters this week: the impact of Antiquity, the impact of Judaism and the story of Jesus. This non-fiction is a piece of art, I am laughing out loud when the author allows jokes. But the scope is mind-blowing, though it is clear, that if one wants to go deeper, one needs to read additional literature. So it happens that my ebook hoarding finally bears fruit. 

There are two particular areas that are of great interest for me: Papacy and History&Culture. Can’t explain how it happened. 

Anyway, will continue reading and sharing progress here, stay tuned, if you want :)

P.S. Upon googling the pronunciation of Diarmaid MacCulloch‘s name, I stumbled upon his BBC documentaries. It will be cheating to watch them now, so I’ll finish his book first. But hey, I now know how to say his name correctly!

I almost never buy physical books anymore. The only exception: they are not available as ebooks, which mostly concerns literature in my mothertongue. What's more, some of those books are written and published by "enemies of the state". In this case, I never think twice:

And, as a rule of thumb, it is preferable to buy indie, so I order such precious paper bricks at Babel Books Berlin. The hand-written card is always there and it makes me believe in humanity again, such small and nice gesture!

The book on the left is the second updated edition of a non-fiction by an iranist about Iran. I read the first one a couple of years ago and want to see how much has changed. The one on the right is about British fantasy, once my special interest at high school. This book is visually absolutely stunning, no regrets that it has no ebook format.

This "haul" stands no comparison with those done on booktok and booktube, but it has indescribable value.

There is a small lifehack to use in my library: twice a week or so, they massively add new books. First came first served principle. Otherwise, it’ll take weeks to get some of those books, if not months. So, I diligently look through the “newest added” section. Today those 3 were added and I have downloaded them on my Pocketbook. If you look at the screenshot, in pinkish red are the prices for Kindle (I didn’t check kobo store or ebooks.com, but it can’t be very far apart). 56,45€. The library card is 10€ per year.

Yeah, no conclusions needed here 🥸

p.s. 99 ways has been on my wish list for a while, so I am glad even more

Today Tour de France is a commonplace name for human endurance. You might not ride a bike, but you have heard about this elite competition. Well, in the beginning of the twentieth century it used to be brutal. Seriously brutal.

I first encountered the topic of early Tour de France on a GCN YouTube channel, where they recreated a stage of 1903 on original vintage bikes. It is worth watching, especially for the thoughts on how, even today, on good tarmac and with contemporary gear, like light (or bibs), it is an extremely hard enterprise. 

watch GCN video here

Now, imagine 1910, with the state-of-the-art bikes, that will not qualify today even for a commute in the city, unsupportive (mildly understated) organisers, over 4000 kilometres in three weeks in horrible weather and road conditions, and you will scratch the surface of how mad this race used to be. 

Nicolas Debon tries to convey the hardship of 1910 in frames as short as breath of a cyclist going uphill. He introduces the major contestants and their rivalry, the forces of nature these Giants had to endure, and the psychological toll too much to bear sometimes. "Murderers!" cries one of them to the organisers, and murderers these were. Circling the hexagon, as France is known, with the ever-changing terrain and climate, with inhumane rules and severe road conditions - we cannot fathom it today. 

One of the topics that particularly caught me off guard, is the further fate of the winners and other racers. When the first to places of the race in 1903 made it to their sixties, Louis Octave Lapize (1st place) and François Faber (2nd place) along with many others, did not make it to their thirties. The Great War claimed the Great Men. 

They are called Giants for a reason.

For the last weeks I have been marathoning the books of Stephen Fry about Ancient Greek Myths. The order is completely jumbled as I get the audiobooks from the library on Libby (VÖBB in Berlin gets a shoutout every time!). Today I have started the 3rd book about Troy, after completing and thoroughly enjoying Odyssey and Myths. And boy Mr. Fry makes mood better with his voice alone! 

Looking forward to Achilles!

p.s. E-reader on the photo is my most prized possession after the gravel bike: Viwoods AI Reader, will write about it and my other liseuses later

(The shortlist has been announced, and features six books that reverberate with history, humanity, heartbreak and hope - thebookerprizes.com)

Первые мысли:

ого, She who remains, мне очень понравилась эта книга! Перевод с болгарского о девочке (а потом выросшей женщине), которая для своего отца была больше сыном, чем дочерью (и на то были причины!). Для отца все кончилось плохо, потому что нравы албанской деревни слишком кровожадные, но для героини все кончилось отлично. Heartbreak

ого, Кельманн, вот у него есть неплохой шанс в этот раз. В прошлый он тоже попал в шорт-лист со своим Тиллем. Если география не будет преградой (Дженни Эрпенбек только пару лет назад что-ли взяла приз), то это была бы премия за заслуги. Я жду книгу в библиотеке, потому что меня смущает количество страниц в переводе, настолько их меньше, чем в немецком или даже в свежем русском переводе. History

ого, Ндияйе, вот это продолжение бесстыжества, потому что ее книга выйдет только 07.04, я все жду свой предзаказ электронной версии. Hope, I guess? Ну, судя по аннотации, а не по ситуации. Оригинала на французском нет в электронной версии, кстати. Вообще.

Вторые мысли: 

Две книги, которые я не собиралась читать вошли в шорт-лист. И я все равно не буду их читать. Про Тегеран все еще думаю, начало странное (первые параграфы отличные, а вот потом что-то-как-то-ну-не-знаю)

Четыре книги, которые мне понравились, не вошли в шорт-лист. За итальянца обидно, сильный роман, но я рада, что узнала о новом для себя издательстве. За Энара тоже обидно, как и за Равн, но это достаточно известные имена. Шведская писательница тоже выдала отличную книгу, но общество еще не готово к теме несправедливости денег в современный литературе, дайте людям два-три года на медленном огне. 

Третьи мысли:

Хз на кого ставить, Букер относительно непредсказуем, но и там есть паттерны. Дождусь предзаказ Ведьмы и подумаю. Эта премия совсем не о переводах, она больше о социально-политических болячках, которые ноют у читающей публики. Раньше мне эта вся тема очень нравилась, но теперь я буду использовать лонг-лист, как источник о новых для себя издательствах.