2016 was a
disappointing reading year as far as numbers of books go and I am not at ease
with that at all. Reading has always been like oxygen and food for me and the
constatation that I get it in fewer doses is truly alarming me.
Too much
work, too much hazzle, too many distractions... you name it.
still...
Best Novel
in English
* Synge :
The Aran Islands. One of my companion books on my holiday trip around Ireland.
Not really a novel, more a travelogue by the famous Irish folklorist relating
his voyage to the most savage part of the Irish west coast. A good read.
Best Novel
in Translation
* Alfred
Dôblin : Berlin Alexanderplatz. The tragic story of an ex prisoner trying to
stay on the right path in a Berlin enjoying herself between the two wars.
Captivating and well written.
* Karel
Capek : An ordinary life. An intriguing and profound book about the meaning of
life.
* Hermann
Broch : Death of Virgil. A challenge and a masterpiece of Modernism. Only three
quartered finished.
Winner :
Alfred Doblin
Best Poetry
* WB Yeats
: Collected poems. Another companion book on my trip to Ireland. I am not
really a poetry reader but I like Yeats. And it is the only poetry book I read
during the year anyway.
Best Non-Fiction
* Valery Larbaud
: Ce vice impuni : La lecture. ( Reading , that unpunished vice ). You would swear that Valery Larbaud
was one of us: a kind member of the Tropics. He dissects in this short
anatomical essay the evolution from childhood to old age of a very peculiar
species : the reader. Tongue in cheek, self-mocking and educated fun. Loved it.
* Hugh
Kenner : The Pound era. This book, written by the Canadian literary critic is
by far the most exciting discovery of the year. Kenner has completely
disappeared under the radar nowadays but this book needs to stay. Here is a
quote by Guy Davenport : “The Pound Era is a book to be read and reread and
studied. For the student of modern letters it is a treasure, for the general
reader it is one of the most interesting books he will ever pick-up in a
lifetime of reading”. It is no exageration : The Pound Era is in a class of its
own.
* Gordon
Craig : The Germans. A book I read in the wake of the Mann's Doctor Faustus
experience. Ian Bostridge mentions Craig in his analysis of Schubert's Winter
Journey. Craig says interesting things about Thomas Mann, Faustus and the Magic
Mountain. Interesting for those who are interested.
* Moses
Finley : The world of Odysseus. This one has been on my shelf for several
years. The real historic world behind the Illias and the Odyssee by the famous
classical scholar. A must read for anyone interested in that period.
* David Van
Reybrouck : Against elections. Feeling uncomfortable since many years ( since
in fact the election of Coluche in France and La Cicciolina in Italy ) about
what I thought was a failure of the Democratic System, I understand now that it
is not democracy that is the problem but the technique of elections associated
with democracy. The election of the Trump, the Brexit, Kascinsky in Poland and
Erdogan In Turkey show us the constant danger to democratically elect the next
world-threatening demagogue.
Winner by
far ; Hugh Kenner The Pound Era
Best Reread
* Timothy
Severin : The Brendan voyage. The inlet where Tim Severin started his epoch
making crossing of the Atlantic in a hand-sewn leather Curragh was a compulsive
pilgrimage destination when I was in Ireland. The book after all describes a
breathtaking sailing adventure and at the same time an exciting inquiery in the
boat building skills of the craftsman in medieval Christian Ireland. Read Saint
Brendan on the island of Skellig to understand why people need to believe in
God and in the skills of a good boat builder.
* Paul
Cronin : Werner Herzog. Cronin added a few chapters to his fantastic book made
up of a dozen conversations with the incomparable Werner Herzog. Everything you
wanted to know about the great man in a single book. And what you did not want
to know too !
Winner :
Cronin with his fabulous Herzog.
Overal
Winner : Kenner with the Pound Era
