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trin's review against another edition
4.0
Whenever I explain this book to someone, I always start with the story of the time [a:Malcolm Lowry|17439|Malcolm Lowry|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1235445819p2/17439.jpg] punched a horse. Apparently, Lowry—best known as the author of [b:Under the Volcano|126574|Vacation Under the Volcano (Magic Tree House #13)|Mary Pope Osborne|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171918510s/126574.jpg|121897]—got so upset about something, he hauled off and slugged a horse in the face. (The horse crumpled to its knees but was otherwise all right; Lowry burst into tears.) Lowry didn't have the best luck with animals in general, it seems: there's also an anecdote in here about how he once broke the neck of a bunny he was attempting to caress; distraught, he carried the little bunny corpse around with him for days, until the odor became rather pungent.
If you like odd, darkly amusing biographical sketches about a variety of famous authors, then you, too, will get so excited over this book that you'll want to go out and punch a horse. Marías is witty and subtly cutting, though also not unsympathetic; as he says in his introduction, there are really only two authors in this book he failed to find affection for: [a:Yukio Mishima|35258|Yukio Mishima|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1213653898p2/35258.jpg] and [a:James Joyce|5144|James Joyce|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1183237775p2/5144.jpg]. (For the scoop on Mishima, see the insanity that is Patriotism; as for Joyce...James, far be it for me to say that anyone's kink is not okay, but dude. Ew.)
This book will make you want to read the works of all these authors, as well as everything Marías has ever written. But which first? Augh, all these angsty writers were right: life is hard.
If you like odd, darkly amusing biographical sketches about a variety of famous authors, then you, too, will get so excited over this book that you'll want to go out and punch a horse. Marías is witty and subtly cutting, though also not unsympathetic; as he says in his introduction, there are really only two authors in this book he failed to find affection for: [a:Yukio Mishima|35258|Yukio Mishima|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1213653898p2/35258.jpg] and [a:James Joyce|5144|James Joyce|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1183237775p2/5144.jpg]. (For the scoop on Mishima, see the insanity that is Patriotism; as for Joyce...James, far be it for me to say that anyone's kink is not okay, but dude. Ew.)
This book will make you want to read the works of all these authors, as well as everything Marías has ever written. But which first? Augh, all these angsty writers were right: life is hard.
hunterandrew's review against another edition
funny
informative
fast-paced
2.75
collection of short stories about famous writers. nothing particularly compelling save for a line or two (friendship is more tragic than love, it lasts longer) etc etc. im not a classics kind of guy so most of these names meant nothing to me. recognized the sunk cost fallacy at page 50, but finished it just to be done.
misspalah's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
2.0
Madame du Deffand's bad reputation pursued her for some time, but could not outrun her talent. Once past the first flush of youth, the kind of prestige she wanted was intelligence, and with the birth of her salon was born her legend: when she was very old, foreigners and young Frenchmen with a future would go to extraordinary lengths to get invited to one of her suppers, in order to be able to tell their descendants that they had met the friend of Voltaire, Montesquieu, D'Alembert, Burke, Hume and Gibbon and even of the lately deceased Fontenelle. One of those young men was Talleyrand, who, at eighteen, had a rather ingenuous view of the Marquise: "Blindness," he said, "confers on the gentle placidity of her face an expression bordering on beatitude."
Her eyes did, it seems, preserve to the last their permanent beauty, but to see in that lady "unequalled kindness", "great beauty" or "beatitude" was perhaps another form of blindness, since age never changed Madame du Deffand's character, for she had always been indifferent and, on occasion, cruel.
- Madame du deffand and the idiots : Written lives by Javier Marias
.
It was enjoyable at first but it became such a chore to finish it. Instead of the usual detailed biographies, it's filled with short stories that reveal the human side of these writers, showing their quirks and imperfections. Unfortunately in my case, i really thought it is about an important and detailed information on regards of these famous authors' lives. The book mostly talks about male authors and somehow it is clearly demonstrated who did the author likes and dislikes. I don’t want to make my own assumptions but from what i have read i can say that he did not really like female authors simply based on those not-so-great descriptions of women in this book. Joseph Conrad, James Joyce and Henry James are some of the authors that has been highlighted in this biographies with the author’s witty and quirky storytelling. Even though there's not much new to learn about these famous writers, it was fun while it lasted. At the end of the day, It just shows they're human like everyone else. This book is perfect for you if you are into some wild and unverified gossip and rumour about these prominent authors than their factual details.
emsemsems's review against another edition
2.0
While I enjoyed the excerpts published as one of those pastel blue-green Penguin miniatures, reading an entire book with Marías’ overwhelmingly ‘cocky’ tone was just mind-numbing — spaced out a few times to be honest. My experience of his writing (specifically this book — his non-fiction work) was already ‘compromised’ from the beginning anyway because in the book he goes on and on about some of the writers that I like very much (inaccurately telling their life ‘stories’ at that), and already know a bit too much of. Might suit another reader who either doesn't like the writers as much as I do, or better yet — know very little about the writers mentioned in his book. To clarify, I don’t think he was cocky with the intention of being cocky — I think he simply wanted to ‘seem’ funny or entertaining to his readers, but it truly just didn’t work for me at all. It’s not the kind of writing that I enjoy. But I wouldn’t call this a terrible book, just not the book for me.
Do you see what I mean? Not to my taste, this. Not my kind of 'humour'. Make it darker with more substance, please. Also, Charlotte Brontë absolutely did not ‘persuade’ Emily Brontë to publish her work — she basically stole her manuscripts? Persuasion, and theft, a world of difference, no? Also, ‘bakayaro’ (in Japanese) simply means ‘stupid fuck’ — Marías didn’t have to say that it was very ‘hard to translate’ or (make it even worse) try to romanticise/exoticise it (which he kind of did). Anyway, I do not recommend reading this book at all. Not a ‘shortcut’ to get to know these individual writers, more like being fed ‘gossip’ from an unreliable source.
'THE DEATH OF Yukio Mishima was so spectacular that it has almost succeeded in obliterating the many other stupid things he did in his life.'
Do you see what I mean? Not to my taste, this. Not my kind of 'humour'. Make it darker with more substance, please. Also, Charlotte Brontë absolutely did not ‘persuade’ Emily Brontë to publish her work — she basically stole her manuscripts? Persuasion, and theft, a world of difference, no? Also, ‘bakayaro’ (in Japanese) simply means ‘stupid fuck’ — Marías didn’t have to say that it was very ‘hard to translate’ or (make it even worse) try to romanticise/exoticise it (which he kind of did). Anyway, I do not recommend reading this book at all. Not a ‘shortcut’ to get to know these individual writers, more like being fed ‘gossip’ from an unreliable source.
adrianasturalvarez's review against another edition
funny
informative
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Si bien no puedo de buena fe calificar este libro con
estrellas (todavía no tengo suficiente confianza en mi
comprensión del español), puedo decir que realmente lo
disfruté. Escuché este libro en audio un poco todos los días
mientras caminaba hacia mi clase de español durante la
semana. La voz autoral de Marías me pareció reconfortante
encantadora y erudita como siempre.
estrellas (todavía no tengo suficiente confianza en mi
comprensión del español), puedo decir que realmente lo
disfruté. Escuché este libro en audio un poco todos los días
mientras caminaba hacia mi clase de español durante la
semana. La voz autoral de Marías me pareció reconfortante
encantadora y erudita como siempre.
daivarep's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.5
Very informative short biographies, but the selection is very male-centric and, although the author brags about including many nationalities, feels very limited in terms of cultures
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
jola_g's review against another edition
4.0
WELCOME TO WRITTEN LIVES
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Written Lives. I hope you will enjoy a stroll in the literary hall of fame. We are lucky: our guide will be the creator of this unique gallery of portraits painted with words, señor Javier Marías! You will meet him in a while. Autographs and photos after the visit, please.
First things first. Help yourself to the interesting facts and amusing anecdotes about popular writers. Just to give you a taste, one of my favourites, starring Rainer Maria Rilke, a nameless peacock and Eleonora Duse:
Bear in mind that it is just the outer layer and Written Lives offers much more. When you break the attractive shell of fun facts, you can peek into the abyss of a creative process. It is usually painful, not cute to watch. Listen carefully. You can often hear the clash between the authors' sensitivity and mundane real life.
Geliy Korzhev-Chuvelev, Typewriter.
Be prepared for delusions. It may turn out that the golden statue of your favourite writer, which you have been laboriously sculpting for years in your imagination, has a few unsettling cracks now or it may even be blown to smithereens. Truth about the author or dare to pretend it does not bother you?
Do not despair. Get ready for serendipitous discoveries. Chances are some of the authors depicted in Written Lives will pique your interest.
The thing you might find irritating is Marías' authoritative selection of authors for his gallery created with a mixture of affection and humour. Remember that it is not a regular literature course but a capricious, subjective array of glimpses, short snippets. Personally, I would prefer Marías to include more female writers. More geographical and ethnic diversity would be a big plus also. Another issue: the word portraits are uneven, as it often happens in collections. My favourite vignettes are on Rainer Maria Rilke, Djuna Barnes and Isaak Dinesen (Karen Blixen). Some are slightly disappointing.
Leonid Pasternak, The Passion of Creation
Now I would like to address the visitors who expect idealistic apotheoses of beloved authors. I hope I have already made myself clear: your wish will not be granted. The portrayals you will find here are multidimensional and present humans, not impeccable inhabitants of an ivory tower. Humans, with the baggage of flaws and quirks. Sometimes repelling humans, vide the vignettes on Malcolm Lowry and Arthur Rimbaud.
A friendly warning: beware of the guide. Señor Javier Marías' erudition, humour, charm, subtlety, sensitiveness are of a dangerously bewitching kind – you may end up with a crush. We accept no responsibility for loss of your heart. Even if it is A Heart So White.
Last but not least, we are thrilled to bits to have you here and wish you a memorable visit. Right now, I want to turn the floor over to señor Javier Marías.
John Whytock, The Writer.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Written Lives. I hope you will enjoy a stroll in the literary hall of fame. We are lucky: our guide will be the creator of this unique gallery of portraits painted with words, señor Javier Marías! You will meet him in a while. Autographs and photos after the visit, please.
First things first. Help yourself to the interesting facts and amusing anecdotes about popular writers. Just to give you a taste, one of my favourites, starring Rainer Maria Rilke, a nameless peacock and Eleonora Duse:
As for the diva Duse, to whom Rilke was devoted, even though he met her when she was old and mad and already in poor health, his intimacy with her was cut short by a peacock which, in the middle of an idyllic picnic on one of Venice’s islands, walked stealthily over to where they were taking tea and unleashed its awful, hoarse shriek right in the ear of the actress, who fled not only the picnic, but Venice itself. In some whimsical way Rilke identified with the peacock, a fact that brought with it strange feelings of remorse and kept him awake all night.
Bear in mind that it is just the outer layer and Written Lives offers much more. When you break the attractive shell of fun facts, you can peek into the abyss of a creative process. It is usually painful, not cute to watch. Listen carefully. You can often hear the clash between the authors' sensitivity and mundane real life.
Geliy Korzhev-Chuvelev, Typewriter.
Be prepared for delusions. It may turn out that the golden statue of your favourite writer, which you have been laboriously sculpting for years in your imagination, has a few unsettling cracks now or it may even be blown to smithereens. Truth about the author or dare to pretend it does not bother you?
Do not despair. Get ready for serendipitous discoveries. Chances are some of the authors depicted in Written Lives will pique your interest.
The thing you might find irritating is Marías' authoritative selection of authors for his gallery created with a mixture of affection and humour. Remember that it is not a regular literature course but a capricious, subjective array of glimpses, short snippets. Personally, I would prefer Marías to include more female writers. More geographical and ethnic diversity would be a big plus also. Another issue: the word portraits are uneven, as it often happens in collections. My favourite vignettes are on Rainer Maria Rilke, Djuna Barnes and Isaak Dinesen (Karen Blixen). Some are slightly disappointing.
Leonid Pasternak, The Passion of Creation
Now I would like to address the visitors who expect idealistic apotheoses of beloved authors. I hope I have already made myself clear: your wish will not be granted. The portrayals you will find here are multidimensional and present humans, not impeccable inhabitants of an ivory tower. Humans, with the baggage of flaws and quirks. Sometimes repelling humans, vide the vignettes on Malcolm Lowry and Arthur Rimbaud.
A friendly warning: beware of the guide. Señor Javier Marías' erudition, humour, charm, subtlety, sensitiveness are of a dangerously bewitching kind – you may end up with a crush. We accept no responsibility for loss of your heart. Even if it is A Heart So White.
Last but not least, we are thrilled to bits to have you here and wish you a memorable visit. Right now, I want to turn the floor over to señor Javier Marías.
John Whytock, The Writer.
heyep's review against another edition
5.0
This is a lovely collection of short, semi-fictional biographies of notable writers. Marias definitely achieves his puropse - "to treat these well-known literary figures as if they were fictional characters" - without straying into the realms of fan fiction-y fantasy. His longer essay on author photos, with samples from his own collection, was also interesting.
andthyme's review against another edition
4.0
a really charming wee book, of brief biographies of famous writers in the styles in which people write about unknowns. makes me want to reread All Souls, the only previous book of his which i've read.
merixien's review against another edition
4.0
Ünlü yazar biyografilerine Marias’ın ironik ve kibirli anlatımıyla şöyle bir göz atmak isterseniz bu kitap aradığınız şey.
Biyografilerin bilinen detayları yerine yazarların da bir noktada sıradan insanlıklarına- daha doğrusu kusursuzluklarını lekeyelen sıradışılıklarına- dair küçük anektodlar şeklinde. Kitapta kullandığı dil öylesine kibirli ve espirili ki bu kitap sayesinde Marias’ın favorilerini ve nefret ettiklerini çok net ayırabiliyorsunuz. Benim bazen çok şaşırdığım, bazen de kahkahalarla güldüğüm bir kitap oldu. Eğer bu kitaptan beklentiniz yazarlara dair detaylı bilgiler edinip, hayatlarını kafanızda oturtmak ise sizin için yanlış kitap olabilir. Zira büyük bir beklentiniz olmadan okuduğunuzda keyif alacağınız bir edebi gıybetler kitabı. Açıkcası kendisiyle oturup bir Real Madrid maçı izleyip, devre aralarında da edebiyat dünyasını çekiştirmeyi çok isterdim. Zira kendisi asla düşmanı olmak istemeyeceğiniz insanlardan.
Biyografilerin bilinen detayları yerine yazarların da bir noktada sıradan insanlıklarına- daha doğrusu kusursuzluklarını lekeyelen sıradışılıklarına- dair küçük anektodlar şeklinde. Kitapta kullandığı dil öylesine kibirli ve espirili ki bu kitap sayesinde Marias’ın favorilerini ve nefret ettiklerini çok net ayırabiliyorsunuz. Benim bazen çok şaşırdığım, bazen de kahkahalarla güldüğüm bir kitap oldu. Eğer bu kitaptan beklentiniz yazarlara dair detaylı bilgiler edinip, hayatlarını kafanızda oturtmak ise sizin için yanlış kitap olabilir. Zira büyük bir beklentiniz olmadan okuduğunuzda keyif alacağınız bir edebi gıybetler kitabı. Açıkcası kendisiyle oturup bir Real Madrid maçı izleyip, devre aralarında da edebiyat dünyasını çekiştirmeyi çok isterdim. Zira kendisi asla düşmanı olmak istemeyeceğiniz insanlardan.