Glass House, Stones, Mumble Mumble

Yeesh. We got a bit behind in July. In order to stay on track for the year, I need to read at least 37 and ideally 39 more books. We'll see what happens. The two years worth of American Scholars that I salvaged definitely did not help matters, and neither did Bleak House and its 900 pages. Time to kick it up a notch again.

Dashiell Hammett's The Glass Key was definitely the most enjoyable read I had during my Europe trip. It is basically just classic noir of the non-detective variety. It is short, but well-crafted, as you would expect from Hammett. I'd say that this one is less about the twist, per se, and more about the main character's journey. Even that doesn't feel quite accurate, exactly. It's not that he changes as a character, more that his circumstances change and he adapts, and in some ways it's almost as though he expected this change. It's a very cynical novel, of course.

I feel like I should have more to say, but I read it about a month ago now, and though it was a fun read, it was essentially your basic noir. Nothing particularly unusual about it. After I finished it I did start to try to cast a movie version with current actors. They did make a movie of it in 1942, which I have not seen, and which is not available in any format on Netflix. Sad face.

Onward now to Bleak House. I personally find it easier to tolerate this one if I put the emphasis on house rather than bleak. I suggest trying that if you ever decide to read this one.

There's really nothing wrong with Bleak House; it's quintessential Dickens, as you would imagine. I'd suggest David Copperfield or Great Expectations over this one, but overall it's fine. There were some really funny parts, and I think I tolerated Esther more than some (you need to groove with her or you are in trouble). I'm sure many papers have been written about Dickens' treatment of and perspective on women, and this would provide some fodder for that.

The thing is, though, that this is a really, really long book; having read so much Dickens already, this really contributed nothing new. I am Dickensed out, ladies and gentlemen, and that is all there is to say. Yes, it does have spontaneous human combustion, but it's not what you think. It really could have been replaced with pneumonia, say, and would have made little difference.