Ive seen a few different reviews on the catcher on the rye, and i think what determines whether someone likes it or hates it is whether they relate to Holden or not. Some say they were really annoyed of him and spoke of how insufferable and unlikeable he is. I'm 15, turning 16 in a few months and just read the book, and i suppose i like it because he's a very relatable character at times - from the depression to little things like how getting gifts makes him sad - so i cant actually dislike him and actually did like him from the start. Always good to hear peoples opinions on it.
We just found out our dog (Golden Retriever mix) age 12 has cancer and not long to live. We have had her since she was a few weeks old. It's going to be hard on our family. Already is, but especially when she passes.
This narrator was a complete narcissist and a hypocrite when it came to how she’d talk about her best friend Reva. I stopped feeling sorry for her around halfway through the book. She was so observant and smart supposedly when it came to everybody except for Trevor and the way she treated her best friend was awful. Her best friend would do something so small and not really a big deal and she’d be ready to kick her to the curb. But Trevor would do something monumentally disrespectful and she wouldn’t give up 😂😂😂
From my understanding the reason the Kwisatz Haderach is a male is because males possess an X and Y chromosome. Where as women only have X chromosomes. This allows males to look into both male and female memory and not be repulsed. The Bene Geesserit train women to be able to handle the flood of memory and emotion of past memory. The men are left to alone to figure it out and what it means. ( you know Big Boys Don't Cry and all that nonsense) It kind of sucks to be a Kwisatz Haderach. You're doomed to a life time of loneliness, self loathing and yet everyone wants you to be everything except who you are. It is especially bad when you have no teachers and no peers to share you deepest sorrows. If this sounds familiar....it should. Think of a heterosexual man you've known who was brilliant but closed off, incredibly sensitive and not vunderable in any way. That is a lonely existance and a lot to endure for any being.
What I learned from God Emperor Dune is that no one person, no one philosophy, no ones idea of humanity should rule Humanity. Good can be just as tyrannical as evil. And one person's or group's morality is a knife at the throat of another.
Ive been scanning the interwebs looking for books that resonate with me. I came across your channel and while the style or genre of book you often review may not be for me, i was struck by how stunning you are. Good luck with the channel! :)
This is simply amazing. And not so much funnily I know exactly where you are coming from. In an emergency there is only doing that will help, in normal times letting things pass is good enough. The only difficulty is to become aware if there is an emergency or not.
just found this older video and thought i'd add my two cents... on the topic of sexism, it's been noted that a lot of dazai osamu's other works (most notably the setting sun) are told from the point of view of a woman, and that usually these characters are 'stronger' or have more of an admirable type of work ethic than his male characters. so i think there's this really interesting thing that's going on with how he's writing oba yozo, because as western readers, without the cultural context of what a semi-autobiography entails (given how uncommon it is here), we take how he writes oba yozo as how he thinks, as a reflection of his true beliefs. but that's only true in some ways, because the way he discusses how other people see yozo implies a greater level of self-awareness than the character has, maybe even a criticism of this aspect of the culture at the time - a conversation between these two sides of the same gender-role coin. and i'll point out that his most productive time in terms of how many works he was putting out at once was when he settled down with his second wife ishihara michiko and was kind of forced by the beginning of world war two in japan to take the traditional role of the head of the household and be responsible for his family's well-being and safety (which of course fell apart in 1947 when he became an alcoholic and ran off with the woman he'd eventually commit double suicide with (bro was like. genuinely unwell at this point, that guy needed Help. as this book so conveniently demonstrates for us)). mostly i think the more autobiographical aspects shine true in the general beats of yozo's backstory and whenever he discusses philosophy or broader society. but again, this is just my interpretation. ANYWAY. sorry for yapping in the comments lmao this became way longer than i intended this kind of stuff just fascinates me
39 days ago my 15yr old Siberian succumbed to rapid onset dementia, she was my GrandPup but we were companions since becoming disabled in '14. I still wake to take her out to potty. Her 7yr old sister sibe looks at her collar and howls like a wolf during the night. Ty for this video. Also lost 2 children,... babies and friendships too like u spoke of. Followed u back after the AT, was going to go but health changed so I'm unable to do so. Peace unto you
This is not a book specifically on grieving the loss of a pet. But The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa helped me process my own fear and grief in a similar situation late last year. I hope it might do the same for you.
Just a subscriber who never felt like he had anything to comment on your book reviews before saying I'm sorry to hear about your loss. Know you gave them a good life and take joy in the memories.
hello Saoirse, I know it’s devastating but I am glad we can all connect in this sadness. the book “on coming alive: journaling through grief” is a beautiful book to slowly soothe our heart with time. it has quotes, questions and pages for you to write and feel. It’s a very special book to me and I think it would make sense to you too. I know we feel them all too immensely. I send you so much love and light. a warm hug 🩶
This must have been so hard to film but it’ll be exactly what somebody needs right at their worst time. The montage at the end is beautiful and exactly what you spoke about, seeing your evolution while Springer appears eternally Springer 🥹
I'm sorry, Saoirse. Any time I've lost a pet, my reactions have been the exact same. I initially would say I'm never getting another pet again, and I would be completely genuine in my feeling. Then a couple weeks would pass and I would be out there looking to adopt again. Hopefully you feel better soon and if/when you decide to adopt, I hope that it brings you the same joy as before.
I like your take here. The book is not long, but dense with rich characters and history. It is hard to keep up with sometimes. It was interesting your thoughts on the way fantastical events are told so matter of factly. SPOILERS: for example, Rebecca arriving brings the insomnia plague or how it starts raining and doesn’t stop for 4 years. All fantastical but you just get so used to it like yep that’s cool. I loved this book and could not put it down despite its dense nature. The ending is wild.
You said that you did not really want to present your own thoughts on this book, and I can understand why this is the case, but you nonetheless said some things and I am glad that you did, because these thoughts would not come naturally to me. I, too, wish that I would have read this book in my most formative years.
This video actually made me want to read this book and want a terrific read it was. It's one of my favourite books now. Thank you so much, Saoirse. Greetings from Germany Guido
I have Asperger's so I know what it's like not understand emotion sometimes but this level is ridiculous I think the Japanese are quite strange when it comes to psychology no offence am I not fully understand about the human condition involving connecting with others I am fully aware I am not alienated from the world I think this is a fantasy of what depression is
Thank you, thank you, thank you! And thank you for that very sweet and most beautiful smile at 6:47, your oak must be so proud. Does the tree have a name? I'm sure it's a clever one.
I just finished this book last night. Very good, and bone chilling. You picked great passages to share. I see it’s an older video, but I enjoyed your thoughts. Thanks!
As someone whose depression has deeply affected my sleep rhythms and has caused me bouts of insomnia for months at a time, I was drawn to the concept of this book. I thought some of the prose was beautiful, but I had the same critiques of the unlikability of the characters and the repetitive nature of the events and plot. I don’t think it was for me but I’m glad I read it
As someone who also just finished Heretics for their first time: AAAAAAAAAA! This one left me beyond bewildered and I really had a hard time stomaching the feeling that frank in his later years just threw away so much potential with this strange misogyny and sexual fixations. It’s one thing to include sex as a plot device - and in some ways I do enjoy the clever inclusion of all the past Idaho Gholas’ sexual prowess finally culminating into one moment that may well have saved the galaxy - but to fixate on it in this degrading, not to mention heteronormative manner is a disappointment. I want the last book to somehow fix this for me but I think at this point it’s largely an “I’ve made it this far” attitude keeping me going. All in all I think Frank was a great writer and I love the weird and the tippy and the “aha!” moments, but in this book, they are unfortunately diluted with “wtf?” moments. Looking forward to hearing what you have to say on #6. Keep up the good work and see you on the other side ✌🏼
Uh oh, I hope my previous comment shows up. If not, just wanted to say I remembered your review from a long time ago, and after recently finishing the book for the first time, I'm glad I found this review again.
I watched some of this review years ago - like maybe 4 or 5 years ago. And I remembered you talking about how surprisingly funny you found Catcher in the Rye (although you don't actually seem to say that, so huh). Then for whatever random reason I finally decided to read it this week and I loved it. I searched for Catcher in the Rye reviews to see if I could find your video again, and here I am. I didn't recall what else you said, but rewatching your review now, I mostly had the same feelings you did throughout the book. Except I didn't find Holden annoying even at the beginning of the book - but I got spoiled on him having a troubled past, and the book being about Holden lamenting the loss of innocence, so I was immediately accepting and curious about him. Throughout the years I've heard people complain about Holden so I was almost expecting him to be a smartass or bad person or something but he was surprisingly nice through the whole book. Just severely psychologically troubled. I sympathized with him completely. BTW Holden calling a guy "commander blop" made me laugh.
By some chance that you might be reading this, I would like to recommend a book: "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" by Milan Kundera. I think you might like this one a lot.
Sorry if I’m late to the party, but here was my interpretation: Women are naturally better at handling their passed down memories. There is a reason why the sisterhood is all women. However, they cannot access memories from their male ancestors. A quizat haderach could access these missing memories, however by men’s primal nature, they would cause destruction and hurt the sisterhood and therefore humanity as a whole. Their goal was to create a haderach and keep him on a leash and control him. After Paul, they realized controlling one was just not possible and not worth the risk. It does put a dividing line between men and women, yes, but it I took it as Frank Herbert saying that women were better to hold this kind of power than men were. I hope this helps.
Also I think you are on target with how prescience works. Often the books talk about how those who have prescience are, “locked” into a future and become trapped. I don’t think Frank gives a blunt answer, but from what I’ve read, how you explained it is what he was hinting at.
Escape From Spiderhead, in Tenth of December, is genius , and made into a horrible movie with big stars. The screen writer thought he is a better writer than Saunders and made very unwise changes to the plot and characters
Kind of beautiful that it snowed the day you filmed this review. The I am, I am, I am quote comes on a snowy day in the book, with some powerful imagery and emotion. Beautiful book, wonderful review thank you
