Solenoid by Mircea Cărtărescu | Book Discussion

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Solenoid by Mircea Cărtărescu is sprawling, phantasmagoric novel exploring the depths of existential dread, questioning the nature of reality, and seeking out the answer to it all. The plot is imbricated in a multitude of ways that blend historical figures, mathematical theorems, and kafkaesque fictional scenes into a riveting narration.
After editing, I will note that it seems I forgot to describe the plot in a more general sense - although I imagine other reviews may suffice. Without spending too much time on the general, I wanted to pour out my thoughts and indulge on the abstruse concepts and key moments.
If you've read it or hope to read it soon, let me know your thoughts in the comments!
Get the book: amzn.to/4byouZL
My Written Review: brockcovington.substack.com/p...
Timecodes:
0:00 - Intro
0:56 - Hype Around The Book
1:53 - Plot Complexities
4:35 - About Mircea Cartarescu
5:49 - Translation
7:27 - Eternal Damnation / Escaping Death
11:57 - The Fourth Dimension
14:12 - Expressing The Inexpressible
16:30 - Finding The Exit Door
18:00 - Rebelling Against Death (Picketists)
22:37 - Absurdism & Kafkaesque
30:21 - “The Fall” Poem & His “Twin”
34:01 - The Solenoids
35:48 - Mr. Palamar & Mites
40:08 - Last Judgement
44:59 - Final Thoughts
50:05 - Outro
My Instagram: / brockwrites
My Goodreads: / brock-c
My Substack: brockcovington.substack.com
#bookreview #bookrecommendations

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Опубликовано:

30 июл 2024

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Комментарии : 27

@TheActiveMind1 2 месяца назад

Correction: I got the Boole family mixed up. Mary Everest married George Boole, Mary Ellen married Charles Hinton, and Ethel Lillian wrote The Gadfly and married a man involved with the Voynich manuscript

@HannahsBooks 2 месяца назад

I’ve heard so many people say wonderful things about this book. It sounds absolutely fascinating! Thank you for the slight warning about the portrayal of women.

@TheActiveMind1 2 месяца назад

It’s definitely a male-heavy narrative but I don’t believe that limits the enjoyment or its ability to resonate universally. I’d love to hear your thoughts if/when you give it a read!

@cosminvoicu8846 2 месяца назад

Hi! Romanian here. Cartarescu is an institution back here. And although his writings aren't my thing (way to weird to say the least) , he's one of Europe's greatest. Glad it passed the old continent and reached North America. He truly deserves the recognition and the hype.

@TheActiveMind1 2 месяца назад

Haha weird sounds very accurate. Any other Romanian authors or works you’d recommend?

@cosminvoicu8846 Месяц назад

@@TheActiveMind1 i'd suggest to check Ana Blandiana out (again an instutition here, and one of the few women in charge when the Revolution happend in '89). Plus she just received the second most prestigious European award for literature (after the Nobel one, Princess of Asturias Awards is called)

@TheActiveMind1 Месяц назад

@@cosminvoicu8846 It seems she has a poem collection translated into english titled 'Five Books'. Would you recommend that?

@cosminvoicu8846 Месяц назад

@@TheActiveMind1 Five books is one of her recent works. If you like Poe, Cortázar or Kafka... you would enjoy her poems for sure.

@hatethenewyou 2 месяца назад

You definitely have me wanting to pick this up soon, and when I do I will refer back to this. Extremely well spoken and insightful as always man.

@ToReadersItMayConcern 2 месяца назад

Such surrealist storytelling is a vessel for ideas, and you so vividly latch onto each one in this discussion. Phenomenal job not merely being tethered to plot. This is the review to finally spur me to read the book. Thank you for that (your enthusiasm generally keeps getting me to move books upward in my backlog; for a new-ish reader, you have a strong sense of literary direction).

@TheActiveMind1 2 месяца назад

I’d recommend having it skip the queue! There’s a multitude of directions one can go with this book but hopefully my review wasn’t too scattered. Grateful for the support!

@EricKarlAnderson 2 месяца назад

What a fantastic, comprehensive and enthusiastic discussion of such a brilliant novel! I appreciate all the images you insert as well. There’s so much to say about this book and you cover it so intelligently. I loved your insights into the mites and the connections made throughout the book. Thank you!

@TheActiveMind1 2 месяца назад

Thank you Eric! After editing my review, I spotted yours and was glad to see you thoroughly enjoyed it as well

@EricKarlAnderson 2 месяца назад

@@TheActiveMind1 Ah, great! And I was so happy to see it win the Dublin Literary Award this past week.

@sharpasaknife6456 Месяц назад

Hello from Germany! What I like about your channel is, that you also seem to focus on European literature. (Saw 2 of your videos up to now, subcribed and am curious to see more). "Solenoid" (German edition) is waiting on my shelf, your video motivates me, to read it as one of my next ones.

@TheActiveMind1 Месяц назад

So happy to hear that! I’m sure the German translation will convey the same atmospheric experience!

@jackwalter5970 2 месяца назад

It is one of the most incredible novels I've read in a long time. Also, the translator did a magnificent job.

@personmcpersonperson2893 2 месяца назад

I'm so glad I did not miss out on that one, truly an unforgettable reading experience

@emanueladadarlat3159 12 дней назад

It's kinda funny, I'm Romanian and I haven't read Cartarescu. I think I did one of his famous books back in the day ("De ce iubim femeile"), but as I didn't remember it, tried to (re)read it now.....I just couldn't. Maybe I will try a different one, and you, a foreigner, will be my nudge into it.

@DarkRuins 2 месяца назад

that book spooks me, i went into a depression for 5 days while reading it. its fantastic, unique, original, haunting, thought provoking and deserving of every award it gets. but damn, its not a light read and could drive someone soft into madness

@TheActiveMind1 2 месяца назад

I can understand that! Much of the book is quite dark, emotionally heavy and somewhat nihilistic