After giving up on Un Lun Dun, I wanted to read a book that I knew was good. I read Death in Venice when I was in college for a class called something like Myth and the Modern Novel. I really, really enjoyed it, and I remember it as one of my favorite assigned books. Except now, fourteen or fifteen years later, I don’t like it half as much as I did then. I was distracted by the admiration bordering on pedophilia, and I simply didn’t enjoy it. I’m not sure why my opinion has changed so much since then.
Somehow, over the years, I’d conflated Death in Venice and Daisy Miller. Or I thought Death in Venice was Daisy Miller, though that’s certainly not the case. It’s about an author who works very hard and adheres to a strict schedule, achieving hard work through skilled effort. He decides to take a vacation to Venice, where he indulges in the scenery and the city – and in watching a young boy he compares to a god. Apollonian versus Dionysian, yadda, yadda, yadda.
Maybe I would have liked this book more if echoes of college classes hadn’t bouncing around in my head. Or maybe I just don’t like books like that anymore. If it hadn’t been so short, I’m not sure I would have finished it because it isn’t very interesting. What’s funny is that I’m almost disappointed with myself for disliking it this time around when I know that it’s well-written and that I’m supposed to like it. But alas.
So. During the couple of days while I read Death in Venice, Things Happened! First, we ordered a fancy new refrigerator, which is scheduled for delivery tomorrow!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lindsayloveshermac/12549357683/
We also got a new front door! Progress!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lindsayloveshermac/12616461634/
We still have to put on another coat of red and repaint the trim (and straighten the handle. UGH), but I’m soooo happy with the results so far!
